Novak Djokovic eats grass and kisses the Cup for the 6th time : Wimbledon 2021

11^th July 2021 – it is a Sunday and whole excitement was about Wimbledon Men’s Singles Finals (it is also the finals of Euro 2020 between England and Italy)

I don’t remember but read about Chennai Open – in 1999 - Byron Black defeated Rainer Schüttler 6–4, 1–6, 6–3. Patrick Rafter was the defending champion but did not defend his title.

Remember following Wimbledon and memory stretches back to 1977 when   Björn Borg defeated   Jimmy Connors, 3–6, 6–2, 6–1, 5–7, 6–4 [7] – it was Borg's second consecutive Wimbledon title and 4th Grand Slam title overall.  He was to win in successive years too .. and in 1980 – he was stretched, perhaps struggled against an angry  antics-filled young leftie -  John McEnroe, 1–6, 7–5, 6–3, 6–7(16–18), 8–6[5] – it was Borg's 10th career Grand Slam singles title and his 5th and last title at Wimbledon.    Between 1974 and 1981, he became the first man in the Open Era to win 11 Grand Slam singles titles (six at the French Open and five consecutively at Wimbledon), but he never won the US Open despite four finals appearances.  

It was only back in 2007 when Wimbledon became the final Grand Slam to award equal prize money to both the singles men's and women's champions. And that prize money has risen exponentially over the years from £500,000 just 20 years ago to £2.35m back in 2019. However, all Grand Slams have decreased their money pot for 2021, with Wimbledon champions receiving £1.7m (apprx INR 17.62 crore] this year. In total, the prize money on offer throughout the tournament is £35m in total for all players involved. The runner-up in both the men's and women's final will receive £900,000.[INR 9.32 crores approx.]

Ravichandran Ashwin was at the venue as also was Indian team coach Ravi Shastri.  Earlier there were reports that Novak Djokovic has spoken that  he will be supporting the Italians to beat England in the Euro 2020 final at Wembley – but in the post match conference, he diplomatically said, I like Soccer and I would watching the game ! (without stating that he would not be cheering for hosts England !)

Irrespective of what does about football .. at Wimbledon he tasted yet another success.  Serbian Novak Djokovic won his sixth Wimbledon Gentleman's singles title, drawing level with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal on 20 Grand Slam successes, but Matteo Berrettini made him work very hard for it. The Italian, making his debut as a Grand Slam finalist, began nervously but recovered to take advantage of a sub-par period from Djokovic to take the first set on a tie-break. He had come into the final on an 11-match winning streak, all on grass, since losing to Djokovic in the quarter-finals at Roland-Garros, and his facility on the surface was evident.

That breakthrough encouraged his supporters in a fervent crowd to believe Berrettini could become the first Italian man to win a Grand Slam since Adriano Pannatta at Roland-Garros in 1976, and the first to do so at Wimbledon. However Djokovic, though nine years his elder at 34, slowly ground his opponent down. Though not consistently at his best when it came to the key points he more often than not found a way to win. Finally, after three hours and 24 minutes, on his third Championship point, he secured his third successive Wimbledon title.

It was the first set Djokovic had dropped since his first of The Fortnight, to Jack Draper. But his response was fierce, breaking Berrettini twice to seize a 4-0 lead. Even then, however, Berretini pulled it back to 5-4 before Djokovic could serve out. The Serb took the third 6-4 having broken early. It began to look a long road to glory for Berrettini whose left thigh was heavily strapped. So it proved. He pressured Djokovic's serve but was unable to break, lost his own, and the match. Few, though, after his performances this Fortnight, would bet against him being back.

Very well played Djoko .. .. it was indeed a pleasure watching today’s game.

Marián Vajda  a  former player, is  the current head coach of Novak Djokovic and has been his coach during almost his entire professional career, winning 83 titles together (out of the 84 won by Djokovic). Vajda is the most successful coach in the history of tennis in terms of Grand Slam titles.  Vajda has been the coach of Djokovic from 2006 until 2017, then again from 2018 to the present day. From Dec 2013 until 2016, Boris Becker was Djokovic's head coach with Vajda remaining part of Djokovic's team.  Goran Ivanišević   a Croatian former player who won  the men's singles title at Wimbledon as a wildcard is also the coach. Djokovic is a self-described fan of languages, speaking Serbian, English, French, German, and Italian. Djokovic’s wife is Jelena (earlier Jelena Ristić) who was known to Novak from his high school days and was dating her since 2005.  The  couple got married on Sveti Stefan in Montenegro,in 2014.  

It has been a long, steep climb for Berrettini since he arrived at a tennis club in Rome at age 14 and was awed by the credentials of the coach he met: Vincenzo Santopadre, whose career-high singles ranking had been 100th. Berrettini was not one of the best players in Italy in his age range, and Santopadre and the other coaches at the Circolo Canottieri Aniene wanted to give him time and space to decide if tennis was something he wanted to pursue seriously. Vincenzo Santopadre is a former player from Italy who had limited success in his playing days.  Since 2011, he has been the coach of Matteo Berrettini.

He reached the semifinals of Bournemouth in 1998 and the quarterfinals of Chennai and Munich in 1999, defeating Gustavo Kuerten in the latter. He is the son-in-law of former Poland international footballer Zbigniew Boniek. 

Berrettini's girlfriend Ajla Tomljanovic is a tennis player herself, straight from the land that Barty belongs to, and is ranked 75th by the Women's Tennis Association. Tomljanovic has been watching Berrettini in all his matches unless she is playing a tournament somewhere, and she appears to be his number one fan and supporter.  

Well played Novak Djokovic winning  Wimbledon 6 times !

With regards – S. Sampathkumar
11^th July 2021. 

Wimbledon 2021 ~ Women in the finals on Sunday

Wimbledon offers great thrill and entertainment – this is post about a woman in the Sunday finals of Wimbledon !

Remember following Wimbledon and memory stretches back to 1977 when   Björn Borg defeated   Jimmy Connors, 3–6, 6–2, 6–1, 5–7, 6–4 [7] – it was Borg's second consecutive Wimbledon title and 4th Grand Slam title overall.  He was to win in successive years too .. and in 1980 – he was stretched, perhaps struggled against an angry  antics-filled young leftie -  John McEnroe, 1–6, 7–5, 6–3, 6–7(16–18), 8–6[5] – it was Borg's 10th career Grand Slam singles title and his 5th and last title at Wimbledon.  That year  Evonne Goolagong Cawley defeated   Chris Evert Lloyd 6–1, 7–6(7–4)[6] .. .. today watched the match between - Ashleigh Barty and  Karolina Pliskova, and it was not all that impressive as easy points were won .. .. and at some point of time Pliskova appeared cold-feeted, not moving at all ..

Of course the stage is big and the finals at a Grandslam can be nerve-wracking. Yet in the first women’s final since 1977 where neither contender had ever reached the ultimate decider before, in Pliskova’s case it showed so much that for much of the opening set she played as if she could barely recall her own name. Few would have thought that from those toe-curling beginnings, there would emerge an utterly riveting contest. Not since 2012 has the women’s final gone the distance, and ultimately it was Barty who lasted the course to triumph 6-3, 6-7(4), 6-3 in five minutes under two hours. Fifty years after Evonne Goolagong became the first indigenous Australian to win Wimbledon, Barty walked a dance of joy in her footsteps.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge watched Ashleigh Barty triumph in the Wimbledon final this afternoon - Kate's first outing since she was forced to her self isolate after coming into contact with an Covid-infected person.  The Duchess of Cambridge, the patron of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, presented the champion with her trophy alongside president of the All England Club the Duke of Kent as the crowd cheered.  

Today, Ash Barty authenticated her world number one status with a triumphant performance that brought her a first Wimbledon title. The former French Open winner, who sat out so much tennis during the pandemic, showed that she has properly resumed being the world’s best player with a 6-3 6-7 6-3 victory that took an hour and 56 minutes. The 25 year-old Australian took advantage of an initially nervy performance from an opponent who stands eight inches taller than her. The top seed produced a super display to cement her status as the best women's player.  She also became Australia’s first singles champion of either sex since Lleyton Hewitt in 2002, closing the match out with an edgy service game. Throwing different spins and paces at the 6” 1’ Czech, Barty eventually built on a dominant start that at one point looked in danger of turning into an embarrassing rout. Pliskova recovered admirably to fully use her wingspan but was ultimately outfoxed by a more agile opponent.

Karolina Pliskova was moved to tears as she spoke after her defeat to Ash Barty in Saturday’s Wimbledon final. The Czech tennis player was playing her second Grand Slam final after losing in the 2016 US Open final, and made the world number one work hard for the women’s title at SW19. Pliskova began to play much better in the second set and was in the ascendancy at 5-5 and 40-0 before losing five points in a row against the relentless slice of Barty.  

If you had read the first para right – it makes no big news about Wimbledon finals on Saturday but on Sunday – it is Men’s Finals and there would be no woman on the Centre Court.  Wimbledon is set to break with tradition by appointing its first female umpire to oversee a men’s singles final.    There will be a female chair umpire for the Wimbledon men’s singles final for the first time in the history of a tournament first played in 1877. Marija Cicak, a 43-year-old from Croatia, will officiate Sunday when Novak Djokovic faces Matteo Berrettini for the championship at the All England Club.

Cicak is  one of the game’s most experienced umpires and has been an elite ITF Gold Badge holder for the past 10 years. Cicak, 43, was in the chair for the marathon Wimbledon men’s semi-final between John Isner and Kevin Anderson in 2018. Her other notable matches have included the women’s Wimbledon final of 2014 when Petra Kvitova beat Eugenie Bouchard. Now she is expected to make history when Novak Djokovic takes on Italy’s Matteo Berrettini on the Centre Court. Wimbledon overlooked highly-regarded WTA Tour official and former player Clare Wood when it appointed Gerry Armstrong as referee last year to replace Andrew Jarrett. But now it looks likely to follow other sports events in promoting female officials to one of its highest-profile tasks.

Woman-power at Wimbledon finals 2021 !

With regards – S. Sampathkumar
10^th July 2021. 

winner of Djoko - Shapovalov to meet Matteo Berrettini in Wimbledon finals 2021

Sunday 11^th July 2021 would be a day of significance for Italy !  .. ..on that day, Italy will play England in Euro 2020 finals – England have  reached their first final in 55 years after beating Denmark on Wednesday night. Due to strict Covid-19 quarantine requirements for visitors to Britain, supporters from outside the UK have effectively been unable to attend Italy’s past two matches at Wembley. For the final, “British authorities have guaranteed a maximum of 1,000 people from Italy the possibility of going to London, with a series of requirements to respect” but without quarantining in the UK, the FIGC said in a statement. 

Prime Minister Mario Draghi’s broad unity government has overcome deep divisions to agree to a contested justice reform, which the European Union has demanded as part of a deal to unlock billions of euros in recovery funds. Italy has long been dogged by a dysfunctional, painfully slow justice system, but repeated attempts to overhaul it have failed to significantly reduce backlogs in many courts. Sharply opposing views between the parties have complicated efforts to improve the situation, but Justice Minister Marta Cartabia managed to reach a compromise deal late on Thursday that the government hopes will improve efficiency. “Italy has taken a significant step forward in modernising the justice system and speeding up trials,” said Regional Affairs Minister Mariastella Gelmini, a member of Silvio Berlusconi's Forza Italia party. The draft law will now go to parliament for approval.

A case brought by more than 500 families of Covid victims seeking a total of €100m in compensation from the Italian government has reached court, as the first hearing into continental Europe’s deadliest outbreak got under way in Rome. Lawyers representing the relatives of coronavirus victims filed a dossier of more than 2,000 pages on Thursday containing hundreds of testimonies and evidence of “systemic negligence” by the Italian authorities, which allegedly caused the deaths of thousands of people. “Italy was late introducing measures to contain the outbreak of Covid,” Consuelo Locati, a legal representative of the families, told the Guardian. ‘‘And when they finally did, these measures were not adequate.’’ According to a 65-page report compiled by a retired army general, Pier Paolo Lunelli, tens of thousands of deaths could be attributed to the lack of sufficient anti-pandemic protocols. ‘‘The pandemic plan and strategies put in place to stop the infections did not take into account the structural deficiencies of hospitals and the Italian health system,’’ said Locati. “This civil case calls into question the responsibilities of politicians and institutions and asks that they assume their responsibilities in front of the citizens they were called to protect and whose rights they have violated – both the right to health and the right to life.”

Moving away from all these – this is a Sports post .. .. .. Three of the men’s semi-finalists today at Wimbledon  have one main problem. The fourth man. Novak Djokovic. In the past 10 years at Wimbledon, three men have beaten him in completed matches: Roger Federer in the semis in 2012, Andy Murray in the final in 2013 and Sam Querrey in the third round in 2016. Djokovic also lost to Tomas Berdych in 2017, but on that occasion he retired hurt with an elbow injury, so the size of the task facing Denis Shapovalov, and by extension the other two semi-finalists, Matteo Berrettini and Hubert Hurkacz, is clear. The Serb has been flawless in the tournament so far. The five-time Wimbledon winner reached the semi-final after beating Hungarian Márton Fucsovics in straight sets. On the other hand, Denis Shapovalov had a tough fight against Russia’s Karen Khachanov to reach the last four.

This is Denis Shapovalov's first slam semi-final and a pulled forehand, dragged wide, shows some early signs of nerves for 15-30, but he quickly recovers as Djokovic dumps a two-handed return into the net and we're at 1-1. Then the Canadian reaches greater heights !  A gorgeous one-handed backhand across the court puts Djokovic on the stretch to his right and can only then send it into the net.  Shapovalov breaks and leads 2-1.  Now at 09.40 pm IST, still very, very early days though.

Few minutes earlier - Italy's Matteo Berrettini beat Hubert Hurkacz [6-3 6-0 6-7 (3-7) 6-4] -  to reach first Wimbledon final.  The 25-year-old from Rome became the first Italian man to reach the SW19 showpiece.   Everything was moving quickly on Centre Court, from the serves to the scoreboard to the galloping realisation that Sunday could be quite the day for Italian men on the green bits of London. Serving at almost 140mph, and at one stage even ripping his way to an astonishing 11 games in a row against Poland's Hubert Hurkacz, Matteo Berrettini was on the hottest of hot streaks as he became the first Italian man to reach a Wimbledon final.

The Italians have been waiting 144 years for this, for one of their own to go through into a final at the All England Club. No Italian man had ever previously served as quickly or as brilliantly on the Wimbledon grass, or played with as much poise at such a big, life-defining moment, as the 25-year-old Roman in a reversed baseball cap. When Berrettini led 6-3, 6-0 it appeared as though this meeting of first-time Wimbledon semi-finalists was going to be very lopsided. While Hurkacz took the third set in the tie-break, Berrettini broke in the opening game of the fourth set and went on to win 6-3, 6-0, 6-7(3), 6-4.

A few hours before the Italian men's football team play England in the Euros final at Wembley, Berrettini will attempt on Sunday to become the first Italian man to score a Grand Slam singles title since Adriano Panatta became the Roland-Garros champion 45 years ago. The main course may be England’s date with Italy in the Euro 2020 final on Sunday evening, but Berrettini will provide a tasty antipasti when he walks out on Centre Court at 2pm.

Interesting !

With regards – S. Sampathkumar
9^th July 2021 @ 21.45 hrs. 

Novak Djokovic cruises to Semis - Wimbledon 2021

Wimbledon 2021 is underway.  Their country man Jack Draper was cheered on to Centre Court and roared off it. In between he caused sufficient discomfort to arguably the great male player in history that it seems a rather safe bet that he’ll be back.  It was  a stirring performance on the opening day of Wimbledon from the talented 19-year-old. It ultimately ended in defeat for the lad from Surrey, with sets two, three and four being won by the 19-time Slam champion for the loss of five games. And yet it was the first, won 6-4 in 37 minutes, that will lock Draper in the memory and reinforce the idea that he is the best of the emerging British players.  .. .. the hero of this post, has lost only that set thus far, and today decimated his difficult (in spelling and pronunciation) opponent in straight sets to move into Semi-finals.

The first written mentions of Nyíregyháza date back to 1209, although it was then called simply Nyír ('birch'), after the Nyírség, the greater region in which the city lies. In the 16th century, during the Turkish occupation of Hungary, Nyíregyháza became deserted; it was resettled later. Nyíregyháza   is a city in northeastern Hungary and the county capital of Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg.   It is famous for its zoo - Nyíregyháza Zoo, with over 500 species. After the War for Independence led by Prince Francis II Rákóczi, the town's population increased. Most new settlers were Slovaks from the area of Békéscsaba.   In the early 19th century, Nyíregyháza was wealthy enough to secure freedom from its feudal lords, the Dessewffy and Károlyi families.  

You are reading all these for the man who lost today in the Quarter finals of Wimbledon 2021 - Márton Fucsovics,  a Hungarian professional tennis player was born here in 1992.

After reaching the Wimbledon quarter-finals on Monday, Novak Djokovic admitted that he tries not to think about who the greatest player of all-time is and where he fits into that conversation. The Serbian feels that devoting energy to that would “derail” him from the task at hand, which is winning matches and tournaments.  But the World No. 1’s next opponent to be in QF, Marton Fucsovics, chimed in on the “GOAT” debate — speaking about the ‘Big Three’ of Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal — before their clash in the last eight. “I think they are the greatest of all time, all three of them. For me there is no difference between them,” Fucsovics said. “When I play against these guys, of course it's a pleasure for me. But they bring out the best of me, and I think I can improve my game when I play against them.”

Nothing of that sort today as  Novak Djokovic reached his 10th semifinal at Wimbledon and 41st at a major tournament with a straight-set victory over unseeded Marton Fucsovics. The World no. 1 Djoko continued his quest for a third consecutive Wimbledon title with a simple uncluttered  straight-sets 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 quarter-final win in the  Centre Court. The top seed needed two hours and 17 minutes to record his 100th tour level win on grass.

“I’m aware of certain stats and obviously I love this sport with all my heart, body and soul,” said Djokovic. “I’ve been devoted to this sport since I was four and sometimes things do look surreal, but I try to live in the moment and not take anything for granted. Going for history is a huge inspiration for me.”

Match statistics: aces (4-5), double faults (3-5), winners (23-24), unforced errors (30-31), total points won (106-86).  The 34-year-old from Serbia also improved to 19-0 at majors this season as he pursues the first calendar-year Grand Slam by a man since Rod Laver in 1969.

The top-seeded Djokovic raced to a 5-0 lead after 18 minutes against Fucsovics, a 29-year-old from Hungary who is ranked 48th and was making his major quarterfinal debut.  Djokovic then had a three-game blip and needed six set points before eventually closing out the opener. He used a five-game run bridging the end of the second set and start of the third to leave no doubt about the outcome.

Djokovic will face No. 10 Denis Shapovalov or No. 25 Karen Khachanov in Friday's semifinals. In serbia the nickname for someone that has the name 'Novak' is 'Nole. ' Djokovic is fondly known as Nole.  The “GOAT” (Greatest of all Time) debate has divided opinions for a decade and remains a hot topic as the trio of Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafa Nadal continue to dominate the field despite the challenge from the younger generation.  The Hall of Famer names Rod Laver as the pre-Open era GOAT and says the Open era GOAT will be the Big 3 champion—Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal or Novak Djokovic—who wins the most career Grand Slam crowns. In an interview for Channel 9's Wide World of Sports, a great Tennis legend Ivan Lendl said Rod Laver, the only player in history to sweep the Grand Slam twice—once as an amateur in 1962 and again as a professional in 1969—is the pre-Open era GOAT.

Now at the time of posting this @ 0930 pm of 7^th July 2021 – in the Centre Court, another Roger Federer is playing Hubert Hurkacz from Poland.  His mother, Zofia Maliszewska-Hurkacz, was a junior tennis champion in Poland.  The news is Hurkacz has won the first set against Federer !!

With regards – S. Sampathkumar
7.7.2021.