“It’s like love. When you look too hard, you don’t find it. When you let it come naturally, it happens.” – Marat Safin on Confidence
There are gobs of reasons to like James Blake. The guy’s a hunk and a special guy: a reflective gentleman everybody likes. He has one of the best forehands on the planet, came back from a broken neck, paralysis of his face and the (way-too-early) loss of his dad. And, yeah, we almost forgot: he’s a totally loyal Davis Cup player who has delivered some heroic matches for the U.S. He’s climbed as high as No. 4 in the rankings and has wins over some guys named Federer, Nadal and Agassi and many another star in the tennis heavens. He’s fun-loving, down to Earth and refuses to play the race card. In fact, he graciously let Lleyton Hewitt off the hook when a race controversy emerged at the ’01 U.S. Open.
So what’s the prob? Well the guy has some slight little issues when it comes to closing out big matches. He was within two points of great glory at the ’05 U.S. Open, when he fell short to Andre Agassi in one of the most scintillating night matches ever to delight the drunken masses. For years, he fell short in those nasty five-set marathons, losing 10 in a row. He came within two points of winning an Olympic medal in Beijing, but then came unglued when he felt Fernando Gonzalez didn’t fess up and admit that a ball hit him. This spring in Portugal, he came within two points of winning a clay-court tournament in Estoril, where he fell to Albert Montanes 5-7, 7-6(6), 6-0. Then, after losing in the first round at Roland Garros to Argentine Leonardo Mayer, he reached the Queens Club final and looked as if he might finally be ready for a deep run at the All England Club. But he subsequently lost in straight sets in Wimbledon’s opening round to Italian Andreas Seppi, despite being up 5-0 in the third set tiebreak.
Yes, every pro suffers heart-wrenching losses. Just ask Roger Federer. But it’s become a bit of a specialty with Gentleman James.
“James is a hot and cold player, like a lot of players are,” said Blake’s pal and doubles partner Mardy Fish, who’s experienced his own share of ups and downs. “I’m just the same. When he’s playing well and when he’s on his game, when he’s playing within himself, he beats everyone, literally everyone. We’ve seen that before. Confidence is just a huge thing in this sport. If you struggle, all you need is a little bit to struggle with and you can take it to a whole ‘nother level. We’ve all done it, and I’m sure he’s just struggling with confidence a little bit. The guy works his butt off. He’s not lacking that aspect of it. He’s just had a few tough breaks in Slams.”
Blake, who insists he’s as fit as he’s ever been, said, “I still feel like I can play with anyone in the world, but for some reason lately it’s been very inconsistent. At times in my career I’ve been inconsistent with results, but I’ve always had those big breakthroughs where I’ve gotten to finals, gotten to quarters of Slams, beaten some top players, and lately I haven’t been having those runs.”
While Fish points to a lack of confidence, others are quick to single out Blake’s habit of playing it safe, his tendency to abandon his aggressive, go-for-broke/live-on-the-edge attack when he’s being pushed by an opponent. Some might argue that the former breeds the latter.
“When I am going for a lot, I’m playing aggressive, that usually means I’m confident and playing my style,” the 29-year-old explained.
The Yonkers native, who’s in danger of falling out of the top 20 at No. 17, will cross his fingers for a speedy turnaround, the kind he experienced in the summer of ’05, when he dropped four first-round matches before rebounding to reach the D.C. final, win New Haven and advance to the U.S. Open quarters.
“I’m hoping for something like that again,” he said. “I know I still have the ability. It’s just frustrating because it’s happening at big tournaments where I’m having my not-so-good performances.”
Blake’s Davis Cup co-soldier Andy Roddick noted, “He’s gone final, first round, final, first round. It’s just unfortunate for him that the first rounds have come in Slams.” Roddick, who moved on to Wimbledon’s second round with a 6-3, 7-6, 4-6, 6-3 win over Frenchman Jeremy Chardy, added that Blake will “be the first to tell you he’s had an inconsistent year, but James is certainly capable of going on a hot streak…There’s no magical scenario to get out of it. You’ve just got to work. And it can turn. It can turn in a couple of matches.”
