PARIS — By the Sorbonne – on Rue Serpente — the woman in the purple dress with the orange bag and rebellious red hair, puffing her white cigarette, gestures emphatically. Meanwhile, in the garden on the dusty, ancient steps, the more-than-menacing young man with the black beard, wearing salon-velvet shoes and little look-at-me buckles on his sockless feet, makes outraged points, full of continental 'tude, over his cell.
But now the random urban ferocity is balanced by the playful French teens, jolly Spanish tourists and the tai chi troupe flowing smooth from grace to giggles while the solo martial artist under the tree canopy uses Japanese fans and swords as curious props while a tennis pro on a modest court — the one with the do-rag, hippie pants and dreads to his waist — laughs free when his preppy student whizzes a winner by him.
Unaware, by the pond, the Parisian boy, just four, chases the duck hoping for a moment's rendezvous — pure glee, the delight of innocence. All the while, on the lawn, a giddy teen duo is lost in eternal gazes of love and a statue — the one of the forgotten 18th century poet — strokes his too-tidy beard and offers a bemused chuckle: another bounty of gentle whimsy and quiet wonder.
THE ONLY THING: It used to be said that the only thing that could stop Rafael Nadal was his knees. Now it appears the only thing that can stop the gluten-resistant Novak Djokovic is a big bowl of gluten-soaked pasta.
SOMETIMES THE MAGIC WORKS, SOMETIMES NOT: The surging Andrea Petkovic used to do a delightful dance after big wins. But she's stopped. So when the German spoke about keeping on her toes, Inside Tennis jumped in and said, “Speaking of on your toes, if you win this tournament, would you consider giving us the ‘Petko-dance’? Petkovic: “If I win here, I give you anything you want.” Inside Tennis: “We'll talk later.”
THE END OF ‘KINGFISH’: At 4:42 p.m., it was the end for “kingfish.” Translation: With the losses of the resurgent Mardy Fish and the surprising Vania King, there were no more Americans left in the French Open singles draw. So we Yankees made it to Saturday afternoon in the singles. That's just about what most analysts thought. King, who now trains at a clay only academy in Florida, said her run to the third round was all about improvement. She conceded that in her 6-4, 6-2 loss to the powerful Czech Petr Kvitova, she was as nervous as she was in her second-round win. Reminded of Billie Jean King's mantra: “pressure is a privilege,” Vania said she met her fellow Long Beach native when she was just four at the Billie Jean Tennis Club. “She has so many mantras and likes to re-iterate them and they're great,” said Vania. I think everyone should follow them. It's kind of like Confucius — so simple yet so hard to follow.”
THE LAST STEP ON THE WHITE MILE: The most prominent male Swiss player of our era is a powerful right-handed lad from Basel. The most prominent female Swiss player of our era is a crafty left-handed baseliner who’s also from Basel. Roger Federer is known as the best person to ever pick up a racket. Patty Schnyder — who won 11 tournaments, reached the quarters at four Slams and made over $8 million over her 18-year career — retired today. Often a delight to watch and a terror to play, her spin-and-angle game was always entertaining. But truth be told, she was more known for her quirky ways. Asked once about her career goals, she said, “I hope to finish in the top 10 so that my father and my agent quit smoking, because they promised me they would if I did.” Her career-high ranking was No. 7 and she reached the final four at the '04 Aussie Open. Schynder's first husband, Ranier Harnecker, was a quirky fellow known for his obsession with the medicinal value of orange juice. The two created an offbeat website called “The White Mile.” They explained why: “To use a tennis ball and a smiling face seemed too normal…At the beginning, all seems white, but the deeper you go, the more colors you will find. Many things rested in the dark, but once discovered you will definitely be surprised by the truth. A mile can be very long, especially if it's white.” Eventually, things went all wrong with Schnyder and Harnecker, who supposedly began to stalk Patty. So Schnyder hired a bodyguard for protection. And like another more famous Patty before her – California heiress Patty Hearst — Schnyder fell in love and married her body guard. At Schnyder's farewell press conference in Paris, a French writer asked, “You said there are essential words you wanted to say and utter. What were the essential words today?” Patty replied, “Well, the fact that — what's the word in French? In English it's ‘thankful.’ In French, ‘reconnaissant.’ But also proud, proud of all these moments I lived with the fans and everybody, all these continents on which I lived these emotions with champions…The past 20 years that I shared with the greatest champions.”
THE UPSET BUG: When the top players start to tumble or suffer big scares (like Nadal and Maria Sharapova) a buzz start, and it’s infectious. Petkovic thinks so. “That's probably true,” the young German says. “There is just — when you see the first one going out, all the other players in the locker room, they are watching the matches and they go, ‘Wait a minute. I could be that one maybe.’ And also, if you are just not at 100 percent, even guys like Rafa and Roger, if you just give away 1 percent, the other guys are good enough to be there and take their chances…The best players in the world are here.”
NOLE’S SERBIAN PRIDE: There has been much talk of Djokovic's role in Serbia's public life. Clearly, he’s the international face of the new Serbia, which wants to join the European Union. He’s spoken at big rallies and elsewhere about his opposition to the independence of Kosovo. In fact, few players have been more nationalistic or devoted to their country. So when the headlines blared that, after a 15-year search, the suspected Serbian war criminal Ratko Mladic was arrested in a rural farming community, we thought about asking Serbia's most prominent public citizen about this hugely important development, which should advance Serbia's standing in the European community. After some thought, we decided to go forward:
IT: “Of the players in the modern era, it's been said that few — aside from yourself — have loved their country, have felt more for their country, and have been willing to share about the destiny of their country. A couple of days ago, there was a very significant event that is going to affect new Serbia. Can you take a moment and share your thoughts?”
ND: “About which event?”
IT: “About the general who was detained.”
ND: “We shouldn't talk about this, really. We shouldn't talk about this, because it's too sensitive to talk about that. I'm a sportsman, so I should stay this way.”
Later, a European writer approached the issue in a far more general way, asking Novak about being an ambassador.
Q: “Obviously, you’re for your country more than just a sportsman; you are kind of an ambassador. How do you live up to these expectations?”
ND: “Well, it is a responsibility for every single athlete who is performing outside of their country to represent their country in the best possible way. So I'm one of those athletes, and I do have the expectations of representing the country in a good way, and I'm aware of that, so I try to — I try to do that in the best possible way. And especially the country like Serbia that had a very difficult 20 years and has been through a lot of problems and wars and things like that and has not a great image in the world. So it’s extreme pleasure and honor to be one of the people that can influence this image in some ways. So I play an individual sport, but everywhere I go, it's a Serbian flag behind my name. So it is significant. You need to handle it in the best ways you can.”
