flashback: agassi wins his first, 1992

The same outfits today? Andre Agassi gets inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame today in Newport, R.I. It’s no surprise that Agassi, who won eight career Slams, was the no. 1 trending topic on Yahoo! this morning. The dude has done a lot, no? We couldn’t help ourselves from putting up this pic, which has several meanings. Our first thought? That’s really a wig?! Yep, according to Andre it was. And there he is with Steffi Graf, seven years before they would both win the French Open and kindle their romance for good. As for tennis significance? Wimbledon 1992 was Andre’s first Major, and one that he wrote in his book was most unexpected for him — he wasn’t favored to win — and he finally shook off the disbelievers when it came to his early success translating onto the big-time court. Oh right, and the next year Barbara Streisand was there, too. Who doesn’t love a Wimbledon champ?! Congrats, Andre! | TSF Vault: Flashbacks | Andre Agassi

Favorite Agassi moment? Vote on TennisFame.com

(Image via AELTC archives)

short balls: the post-wimbledon edition

Changing of the (screen) guard: While the victories of Petra Kvitova and Novak Djokovic marked somewhat of a changing of the guard on the respective tours, the biggest change at Wimbledon came in the week after the tournament was over: in its TV coverage. It was announced earlier this week that ESPN had outbid NBC for full TV rights of the tournament, meaning the peacock network was pushed out of a gig it had held for some 43 years. And for ESPN? They’ll have the whole shebang for the next 12 Championships. The network team of ESPN, ESPN2 and ABC will take over from London starting next year.

That’s a wrap? Did you miss the slew of Wimbledon post ops? If so, here’s a collection: Tignor’s A-List. Tignor’s the rest of them. Wertheim’s mail bag. ESPN’s Wimbledon grades. ESPN’s power rankings. WTA’s video highlights. Forty Deuce’s hilar “pic this.” The Guardian. Oh! The list goes on and on…

Too sexy for ya?  Time ran an interesting piece from its business section on the WTA‘s ad campaign, “Strong is Beautiful.” The thrust of the article: what the ?!?#?#%% Well, not exactly. But, the article points out that sexualizing the women the way this campaign does undermines women’s sports in a sense, and their ability to compete as athletes on court. We certainly see such a point.

The Journal recommends some tennis whites — including Boast — this summer. (WSJ)

Feeling Boastful? You guys know that TSF isn’t the only place online that talks about tennis fashion. OK, but we admit it: we’re the only ones that talk about it everyday. Anyway, the Wall Street Journal got in on the tennis fashion game during Wimbledon, running a piece that examined the cultural shift of the industry as it’s moved through the decades. Nope, tennis isn’t a rock-star sport driven by John McEnroe anymore, but the clothes he wore might be making a bit of a comeback. Featured in the article were one of TSF’s faves, Boast. | TSF Vault: Boast

Doesn’t it vibrate? While most of us have learned to silence our phones or at least put them on vibrate while at work or in public, it doesn’t seem as though Alize Cornet has attained such a habit. The Frenchwoman was down match point in the first round of the Swedish Open this week against world no. 1 Caroline Wozniacki when a phone started ringing. Wozy first tried to ignore the noise, but it persisted, and she stepped back from the line to see if someone would answer/silence/ignore the call. It was then that her opponent, Cornet, ran to her bag to switch off the phone that had been ringing — hers! Hilarity. Video below:

Roll the tape: Seems as though the fellas at Tennis.com — Peter Bodo, Steve Tignor and Ed McGrogan — have a new outlet for their weekly chats. The trio has teamed up with BNP Paribas for a sit down in a round-table discussion called “The World of Tennis.” This week they talk about Andre Agassi, who will be inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame tomorrow in Newport, R.I. | ESPN: Agassi’s top 10 moments

Short(er) balls: It ain’t “Wimble-TIN.” Sportscaster raises money for charity by fueling PSA over pronunciation of Wimble-DON. | In case you forgot, Novak Djokovic is no. 1 in the world now. HEAD hails the king. | Are you reading Jonathan Scott‘s musings on Tennis.com’s “The Spin?” If not, you should be. | Lindsay Davenport is preggers and (tastefully) pulls out of the WTT season, via doctor’s orders. | This might be a little old, but who cares? It’s Maria Sharapova talking about Cole Haan. Take note, Martina Hingis. | Shouldn’t every short(er) balls end with Djoko dancing on stage? We think so.

(Image by George Ellison via Flickr.)

tsf podcast: wimbledon winners (+ celebrations), caroline on clay and our fashion faves

Listen up, Caro! Erwin and I had the pleasure of being joined on the TSF podcast by Jonathan Scott, who has done tremendous things in these realms and also writes daily on Tennis.com for their gossipy thread, the Daily Spin. We were all about the post-Wimbledon gossip on this podcast, where the three of us weigh in on Novak’s grass-eating habits, what SW19 meant for Kvitova (and Sharapova) and how it’s possible that Caroline Wozniacki is playing this week — on clay! Plus! Our take on London fashion, our favorite moments from the 2011 grass Slam and how much this week really means to one Andy Roddick. Click on the link below to easily download our musings onto your iTunes!

Post-Wimbledon musings: TSF Wimbledon Wrap 2011

TSF Vault: More podcasts | Davis Cup details | Caro’s Swedish Open draw

(AP image)

(tuesday’s) sunday survey: your thoughts on the wimbledon that was

Say so long, y’all! While we’re a little teary-eyed that Wimbledon is all finished and shuttered for the year, there is this to mull over: at this time next year, the Championships will be wrapping up and the Olympic Games — which will be held at the All England Club — will be just three weeks away. Yeah. Three. It’ll be glorious and strange all the same.

For all you Brits out there: The 2012 Olympics tennis jobs are up. Apply!

There’s so many moments to love from the last two weeks. But which was your fave? Pick one below and leave behind a comment, too, if you so please.

(Image by MOLIBLOG via Flickr.)

novak djokovic, graminivore

Graminivore, one who eats grass. That description would fit Novak Djokovic just fine after his post-Wimbledon eating habits. The champ, after knocking off Rafael Nadal in four sets, snacked on a little bit of Centre Court to really “taste” victory. While we appreciate the gluten-free Novak expanding his diet horizons, we wouldn’t have minded just a plain-old shirtless victory cry. Video above. | TSF Vault: Shirtless Nole

trophy watch: london hardware

Different paths, same result: The lead-ups to their respective Wimbledon titles could not have been more different, but it was Petra Kvitova and Novak Djokovic who were at the Champions’ Ball on Sunday night, each posing with their respective, hard-earned trophies. Kvitova’s 6-4 6-3 victory over Maria Sharapova shocked us a bit — at least in the ease that she saw it through — and the way she took it all in stride (no on-court breakdown, P?!) after winning. For Djokovic, his 6-4 6-1 1-6 6-3 win over Rafael Nadal was the Spaniard’s first loss to someone other than Roger Federer in a Grand Slam final. Below, a look at all the Wimbledon champs from the Bryan brothers’ historic doubles victory to the winning juniors. Above: We are digging Kvitova’s toned-down side bun and simple, but gorgeous manicure. A classy champ!

Forbes blog: Djoko’s season a flash in the pan? | Full Wimbledon gallery

Us, too! It was a monstrous week for Bob and Mike Bryan, who won their third round match 16-14 in the fifth set and semifinal match 9-7 in the fifth set before comfortably rolling in the final, 6-3 6-4 7-6 (2) over Robert Lindstedt of Sweden and Horia Tecau of Romania. Their win in London was their 11th Major title, which ties them with Aussie duo Mark Woodforde and Todd Woodbridge for most Grand Slams by a doubles pairing.

Not just you, Novak: Djokovic became the world’s no. 1 player in yesterday’s rankings with his win at the All England Club, but so, too, did Kveta Peschke and Katarina Srebotnik, who took the ladies’ doubles crown. Peschke and Srebotnik subdued Sam Stosur and Sabine Lisicki 6-3 6-1 for the title.

Smile, Jurgen: Our life wouldn’t be complete if we couldn’t include mixed doubles cutie Jurgen Melzer in this week’s Trophy Watch. The Austrian paired up with Czech Iveta Benesova to take the mixed crown over Elena Vesnina and Mahesh Bhupathi, 6-3 6-2. | TSF Vault: Jurgen Melzer

After the cut: Australia wins a double in singles with boys’ and girls’ winners while Novak gets a champion’s welcome home in Belgrade.

short balls: wimbledon crumbs

Clean-plate club: As Wimbledon begins to wrap up, we’ve been scooping up the best little bits of the tourney yet to get big play on the TSF stage before you all run for the parks and beaches and the great outdoors post Sunday afternoon. The WTA has the above video, which we find strangely fascinating. Too bad strawberries and cream isn’t a more popular snack in the States! Just the right balance of good- and bad-for-you, right?

Draws: How Kvitova and Sharapova got there | Djokovic and Rafa, too

Wimbledon stylings, for you: Esquire has churned out a clever how-to for us regular folks on wearing Wimbledon whites. Our favorite parts of their six-step process? “Hats, not headbands. Never headbands” and “Lose the socks. Those should never be white. Unless you’re actually winning Wimbledon.”

Lego Andy: This may be one of our favorite finds of The Championships. It’s Lego Andy (Murray) who greeted fans in the queue in the early goings of the tournament. The three-foot model was built by England’s only certified professional, Duncan Titmarsh, (didn’t know there was such a thing) and was completed with 13,000 Lego pieces over six days. Oh, and that’s Fred Perry that Lego Andy is wearing, not adidas. Guess he’s a little nostalgic, no?

Gift for (hearing) grunts? Seriously. If you haven’t tried this brilliant Slate.com test on matches the players to audios of them grunting, you must! TSF East was a nine of ten. Can you match such a score? Beat it?! Click on the image above to play.

(Lego Andy image by the Kingston Guardian; screen grab via Slate.com)

tonic, clothing line by hingis, to launch next spring

Launching a line: Martina Hingis is. The former world no. 1 said today that she hoped folks had heard about the line, which debuts in March of 2012. Above, the landing page for Tonic. Click the image or here to check it out. | TSF Vault: Martina Hingis

(Screen grab via Tonic)

Squirrel (Who Run Novak’s World)

Novak Djokovic‘s been having this courtship with a squirrel over at Wimbledon. So far he’s still finding a way to get close to the darned rodent. (“How should I call her?” he tweets.) Don’t play with fire, Nole! We’re pretty sure rabies won’t help you win a major… | More: Djoko fights for dog to get onto SW19 grounds

(via The Awl)

lavazza’s tasty wimbledon treats

Do you have that in decaf? While Wimbledon gets unending press on the tradition of strawberries and cream, plenty of tennis fans need a little pick-me-up throughout the day, and we don’t mean an Andy Roddick serve in the gut. Enter Lavazza, the Italian coffee maker who teamed up with The Championships this year to bring the folks of rainy London a little bit of a bright spot in their day: caffeine.

While you can’t make it over the Atlantic to try some of Lavazza’s creations at SW19, sip some espresso goodness and try to act as jazzed-up as Marcos Baghdatis‘ Cypriot fans while you watch/listen to/pretend to play in Wimbledon at home. Lavazza has two recipes for make-at-home goodness. And while they recommend using a Lavazza A Modo Mio machine (with a custom Wimbledon covering) — we say just wing it! Or grab some espresso from the closest local cafe and then DIY at home! We have faith in you!

Buy: A Modo Mio, online for $270

Lavazza Wimbledon | To make your own Lavazza Iced Latte, you will need:
A all glass + ice + milk + a single serving of Lavazza espresso + sugar to taste + a blender + syrup (vanilla, chocolate or strawberry as desired — or all three?!) + straw (for sipping!)

Method:

1. Fill tall glass with ice

2. Top up with milk – three-quarters of the way up the glass

3. Add a single serving of espresso and a spoonful of sugar to taste

4. Pour contents of glass into a blender with three pumps of the appropriate syrup and blend

5. Once fully blended, pour back into tall glass and add the appropriate drizzle to serve. Drink through a straw

Amaretto Espresso | To make your own Amaretto Espresso, you will need:

A one liter jug + 100ml Amaretto Disaronno (aka some Amaretto flavoring, y’all!) + 100ml sugar syrup + 30ml Lavazza espresso coffee (per serving) + 300ml chilled whipping cream (if using cream whipper), otherwise a serving of aerosol cream + balloon whisk/tennis racket — you choose

Method: (Use a cream whipper while making)
1. Whisk together the whipping cream, Amaretto Disaronno and sugar syrup in a jug
2. Pour the combined mixture into the cream whipper
3. Load the cream whipper with nitrous oxide charge, shake vigorously and then put in the fridge to chill
4. To serve, brew a single shot of espresso per person and pour into a regular coffee cup, then simply top with the chilled Amaretto Disaronno mouse and serve immediately

Cheers! Lavazza brought former players Annabel Croft and Pat Cash (looking good, right?) out to the queue on Friday to hang with fans. | TSF Vault: Cash shows bum for BBC

(Images via Lavazza)

hipster tennis? sure, for a day

SMASH!-tastic: For all the attention it gets for being a tennis town, New York hardly has a lot to claim when it comes to tennis that happens on the island we all (well, most of America, that is) think of first when we think about the city: Manhattan. Courts are hard (and expensive) to come by, and availability — good luck, tookums. But a couple of weekends ago, downtown Manhattan not only got its tennis on for the day, it did so in fashion. Gargyle and United Bamboo fashion, that is.

The boutique (Gargyle) and fashion line (United Bamboo) teamed up to host SMASH!, a day-long tournament, for a second straight year, this time venturing a bit west from the East River Park courts to those at Seward Park, on the fringes of Chinatown. SMASH! is what you would expect tennis in Chinatown to be like: fun, quirky, oh-so hipster-esque, relaxed and above all — cool.

Above: a wall of celebrating. TSF contributor and fashion extraordinaire Troy Venechanos and I ventured to the day’s worth of events to check things out. Troy snapped some TSF-worth shots while I chatted with Don Vu of Gargyle about the event, which the store has approached a bit like throwing a dinner party at their house. “Tennis is one of the inspirations for Gargyle and you can see that in a lot of the lines that we pick,” Vu told me while we took in some of the round robin tennis. “We decided to take that part of us and make a tournament out of it. For fun. It’s pretty casual, but once you get on the court it’s pretty competitive. It’s relatively mellow overall, though.”

All you need is you: The mixed doubles teams (15 of them total) were all told to dress up for the occasion, some going all out and others choosing toned-down looks. But this is no Wimbledon folks: these outfits are colorful. The teams were broken into groups of five, playing one another in a best-of-three match-tiebreak format (first to 10 points) where the top team from each group would advance to the semifinals and one wild card (Team Lisicki?) would be chosen to participate as well.

TSF Vault: Gargyle | Gargyle wraps up SMASH! on its blog

“There are similar events [around New York],” Vu told me. “For the most part there is nothing like this for tennis. It’s a social event. We’re not raising money for anything — it’s just to hang out and have fun. It’s friends and friends of friends who are playing. We run Gargyle just down the street.” While Gargyle operates a few blocks away, the Hester Street Fair was happening just next door, so Troy and I trotted over a couple times throughout the day to snack on donuts (from Wonder City) and a specially-made macaroon called the SMASH! Sandwich. The guys at Macaron Parlour and Melt Bakery knocked heads (at Gargyle’s nudging) to create a tennis-ball looking macaroon that was downright delicious. This pup below is drooling over the thought of such things.

See the SMASH! Sandwich and more on the Gargyle event after the cut.

a royal visit to wimbledon

Here hunny, you sit here. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, better known to us as Kate and Will, made their first visit to Wimbledon today as a married couple. The two took in Andy Murray‘s rather straight-forward match against Richard Gasquet, the Scotsman winning 7-6 (3) 6-3 6-2. Kate looked stunning in off white (don’t you love that shoulder pattern, too?) and Will looked regal in a classic navy suit with a patterned red tie. Billie Jean King joined them in the royal box, as well.

More Murray: The world no. 4 has Kubot or Lopez in the quarterfinals

(Getty Images photo)

so, was it an accident?

Or maybe just nerves? OK guys, we all know that’s not urine! (But is it?!!) Just a hard-working, sweaty Andy sweating it up on Middle Sunday before what is to be the biggest week of his life. (Getty)

tsf podcast: wimbledon fashion, grunting, exclusive bags and more

Jelena Rustic approves of this podcast. No, really, she loves us! (Getty)

On the airwaves: After going silent on the radio front for a couple of months, the TSF team is back to check in on Middle Sunday talking about Venus Williams fashion, Bethanie Mattek-Sands “fashion,” the big noise about grunting (we’re over it! — the arguing, that is), the tennis bags for SW19, the return of the Williams sisters and more musings from both TSF East and West in this installment of our podcast series. | TSF Vault: More podcasts

Chatter: TSF Wimbledon 2011 — Checking in on Middle Sunday

fresh (and exclusive) strawberries for domi

Strawberries for Domi and the men get classic green from Dunlop this year at Wimbledon. (Photo provided)

Any cream, too? There’s been plenty of talk around Andy Murray‘s chic white HEAD bag that has been sprinkled with his favorite messages from fans through a creative Facebook campaign his racket maker has put on. But for Dunlop, it’s going the traditional — but fun — route with Dominika Cibulkova‘s bag for this year’s Championships, making her a colorful bag adorned with miniature strawberries for Domi, and Domi only. The bag isn’t for sale, Dunlop told TSF, but it looks great strapped over the diminutive Czech’s shoulder. The next scalp she’d like to throw in that bag? That’d be world no. 1 Caroline Wozniacki. The two are second on Court No. 2 (after Sharapova) on Monday. | More: Women’s draw

TSF Vault: Dunlop | Dominika Cibulkova

sunday survey: wimbledon … for which williams?

Sister act, 2011: Venus and Serena have both made their way through the first week of Wimbledon with their respective bumps — we’ll call it “character building” — and are currently on track to meet in the championship match at Wimbledon for the first time since 2009 (they met in the finals in 2002, 2003, 2008 and 2009). While both would have to win an impressive three more matches each to get to the finals, they certainly have proven to be unpredictable before, and long layoffs for each has put their games into a realm of unknown.

So, what do you think: which Williams can win Wimbledon? Tell us below.

(Getty Images photo)

there’s color (in the crowd) at wimbledon

Best dressed? Sort of cheesy, we know. But, like any slam, Wimbledon has plenty of color in its crowds — even if the players have to sport all white on the courts. The WTA has this video on fans around the grounds, and we dig the characteristic tennis-savvy folks on screen/in the stands.

Middle (American) weekend: Mardy Fish moves on | Serena, too

(WTA video)

who wears calvin klein?

No Fruit of the Loom? Lleyton Hewitt goes for Calvin Kleins under his Yonex garb, so it would seem. But the Aussie’s trendy undies and backcourt game were not enough to get him past no. 5 seed Robin Soderling, even after the veteran led two sets to none. The final in favor of the Swede 6-7 (5) 3-6 7-5 6-4 6-4.

TSF: Chris has Sod going to the QFs | More undies

(Reuters image)

tsf interview: monica seles talks twitter, figure skating and her love of fashion

I cannot tell you how many thousands of hours I have spent hitting a tennis ball against a wall. Recently, I moved to Harlem in Manhattan and have discovered that there are hand ball walls just two blocks away from my new place. My afternoons? Now often spent hitting the ball against the wall, with curious walkers by baffled that I’m not playing hand or racquet ball.

Much of this fascination is due to the fact that when I was just 12 I read Monica Seles‘ From Fear to Victory, the book that chronicled her life into tennis — including her love of hitting the tennis ball against a wall in a parking lot below her family’s apartment.

This last Monday I got the chance to talk to Monday for the third time in my short, young career as a journalist. I was visiting HSBC‘s “Wimbledon at Rockefeller Plaza,” a week-long event that the Wimbledon-partnered bank has put on for several year that allows Manhattan to boast a grass court in the city — even just for one week.

It was here that I (full disclosure: I was on a media pass both for TennisWire.org and TSF) got to talk to both Monica Seles and Jim Courier. For more on the HSBC event and it’s details, see the Courier post here (or scroll up).

TSF: Monica, what about social media? Why aren’t you tweeting up a storm?
Monica Seles: I don’t think anybody would care what Monica Seles is eating or what she’s doing.

TSF: [Laughing.] Monica, are you kidding?! I think you’d be surprised.
MS: I’m an old dinosaur. [Twitter] is more all of these reality show stars that everyone watches. This is how this generation that has shifted. We didn’t have reality TV when I was growing up and now they’re the biggest stars. I really enjoy [my time away from the computer] because I’m on it a lot for work, but you kind of have to. My 10-year-old godson is tutoring me on the computer of how to navigate everything.

TSF: But you did Dancing With the Stars, so you’re sort of a reality star. What about trying Skating With the Stars?
MS: I couldn’t even [dance on] dry land! [Laughing.]

TSF: But you skated as a kid, right?
MS: Yeah, I skated for about a year and a half. That’s what I wanted to be. I loved it. I loved the costumes and all the glamor stuff. But I haven’t been on ice skates since I was 8 years old. I think being on Dancing With the Stars was enough. [The show] was more about art and how you look and how you present yourself. In tennis I didn’t have to worry about where the camera was or what angle to smile at. I loved [Dancing] because it was so out of my comfort zone.

TSF: What about favorite figure skaters. Do you have any?
MS: I always liked Kristi Yamaguchi in skating and she was on Dancing with me. And I always liked Nancy Kerrigan, too.

TSF: So you didn’t get to design figure skating costumes, but you still love fashion. Do you ever see yourself diving into it like Venus Williams or Maria Sharapova have?
MS: [Fashion] is something I enjoy looking at, but I don’t know. Tennis is really hard because all of the big companies have kind of taken over. I love it when you see the girls come out [for the players’ parties] and you want to see what everyone is wearing. Now, it’s going to be more and more daring. At Wimbledon all the girls got all dressed up and it allows the fans to see the girls in a different light — I like that.

TSF: Did you see Bethanie Mattek-Sands’ dress?
MS: [Laughing.] No… but I heard about it. I saw Maria’s and Ana Ivanovic‘s. Ana was very classy.

TSF: What is one thing that you must do when you’re in New York in the summer?
MS: I love Shake Shack in Madison Square Park. It’s really nice to just sit and be outside — I love being outside. You can sit there on a nice day and just have your friends eat with you — that’s my favorite.

TSF: Do you ever think there’s going to be a young star again? WTA success seems to be coming at an older age these days.
MS: Oh yeah. The tour has their age regulations, but there are always going to be young girls coming up who are powerful. Martina was powerful. And then Stefani. And then me. Then the Williams sisters came along. I think the sport always evolves. Maybe age mentally — how you manage success and fame and money — but otherwise, I think we’ll always have young players coming up.

(tsf photo)

venus: the forever 21 of tennis

Objects on TV are nicer than they appear: We’re not going to lie — watching Venus Williams play her first-round Wimbledon match left us deflated (and no, it wasn’t the grueling workout we just finished, we’re sure); that repurposed wedding gown just did not look good on the decorated AELTC vet as she gracefully pranced around the court in a first-round clinic over Akgul Amanmuradova. The scoreline: 6,3-6-1. (Brackets: Chris has Venus dropping out in the round of 16.)

And about that lace jumpsuit with gold trim (Golden Girls meets Project Runway?): le sigh. On TV, the shorts seemed a little too billowy, especially since we’ve seen how Venus can rock a cute pair of hot pants on the Wimbledon lawns. The gold-zippered top flopped in awkward ways as she hit her groundstrokes. The sleeves seemed as though they were missing whole panels.

(At least her trends are on point, ish? Venus, on her outfit: “Jumpers are very ‘now,”‘ she explained, “as is lace.” As is gold, really. That’s the advantage to producing one-offs for match play: your design schedule is not beholden to the super-long lead time associated with retail.)

Suprisingly, it all seemed to come together in the photos snapped during the match (see below). Just a good photographer? Maybe we were glancing up at the TV at the wrong time? Anyway, it doesn’t matter, since no one can buy this stuff. Picture worth a thousand words, but zero dollars in revenue.

More photos: Check out other looks at Venus’ EleVen outfit