The Buzz from the Bubble

Bill Simons

For decades, tennis was used to its familiar, ritual dance that started Down Under, a grinding, seemingly endless journey that crisscrossed the globe until at last there was a brief respite in December that some had the audacity to call an “off season.” Then the whole cycle began again. Wash, rinse, repeat.

But the five-month COVID break has changed everything. Yesterday, a reporter told a player, “This is a totally new world. We have never had an experience like this. Changing the tour, just stopping on a dime.” 

ESPN’s Chris Fowler noted, “There is such newness.” His colleague Chris McKendrick gushed, “Welcome back to live professional tennis. Welcome to our new world, new rules and a renewed sense of gratitude and excitement surrounding our sport, our joys and the work we do this time of year…[This is] the double in the bubble.”

Not surprisingly, Novak Djokovic put matters in a cosmic context. “I think this is a huge transformational phase for all of us on this planet, and I think maybe even the last wake-up call.” Tennis Channel’s Paul Annacone was more down to earth. He said, “It’s just good news to have tennis back, that’s all I’m saying.” 

“We are part of history,” said Stefanos Tsitsipas. Yes, this is a brave new world. Hawkeye’s calls rule. At this oddly silent tournament where random rumbling motorcycles pierced the quiet but no boisterous linespersons shouted, Renae Stubbs wisely suggested, “If you don’t hear the word of God screaming [i.e. Hawkeye], you play on.”

Yes, the New York player fields have been diminished. There will be no Roger, no Rafa. There will only be three male players who’ve won a Slam on hand: Djokovic, Andy Murray and Marin Cilic (and the Croat lost today).

The women’s defending champ, Bianca Andreescu, and the WTA’s top two players, Ash Barty and Simona Halep, will be absent. Karolina Pliskova is the only elite European star in the bubble. Only six of the WTA’s top ten players will be in New York. In some ways, this year’s Open brings to mind the old days when the French and Australian Opens drew limited fields.

But who cares? “No matter who is playing, no matter who stayed at home, I think you just always start from zero,” said No. 1 seed Pliskova.  

“There are going to be a lot of unbelievable results,” said Daniil Medvedev. “It’s going to create a more equal space for any player,” contended Stefanos Tsitsipas. “I think it benefits a bit the lower-ranked players.” Pliskova added, “We should be just happy that we have the opportunity to play these tournaments now. And that we finally could leave home.”

Unfortunately for American fans, both our great elder, Ms. Venus, and our young wonder, teen Gauff, dropped their first matches, as did Sam Querrey, and Frances Tiafoe, who fell in three sets to the resurgent Andy Murray. After three astounding Slams, Gauff seemed like a tepid cup of Coco – where was the zest? She served poorly, her footwork was shaky and she wasn’t able to make one of her fabled charges. One wondered, “What difference would a stadium packed with shrieking fans have made?”

Other Americans did well, including Amanda Anisimova, who beat Alison Riske, and the still-hot-after-all-these-months Taylor Fritz, who dominated on serve as he swept past Lloyd Harris. Big Reilly Opelka had a big win and the Canadian Big Three, Denis Shapovalov, Milos Raonic and Felix Auger-Aliassime, prevailed.

*****

NOW HAIR THIS: It was noted that Milos Raonic had “full quarantine hair.” Not surprisingly, the first question in his press conference was, “When was the last time you got a haircut?”

THE UPSIDE OF MASKS: Renae Stubbs noted an unintended benefit of masks: “When you are coaching and you drop an f-bomb every now and again, your player can’t see it.”

SCHIZOPHRENIC COACHING: At crunch time during her match against Venus Williams, one of Dayana Yastremska’s coaches gestured to her to pump it up. The other signaled her to cool it and calm down.

QUOTEBOOK:

“Honestly, I’m zero percent nervous or scared about traveling here. We are safer than anywhere else on the whole planet here in the bubble.” – Dominic Thiem 

“It’s tough for most of the players not being able to open their window and being in a hotel in a small room.” – Novak Djokovic, who’s renting a pricey house for himself and his team

“It’s just the costs were astronomical, so I went for the bubble. It’s nice. They’ve done a really good job…They’ve got games and arcades…[I’m] still a bit of a child in that respect.”  – Andy Murray

“Basically, Hawkeye serves as the appellate procedure in most of the tournaments, but it is judge and jury here. You cannot challenge the original call.” – Chris Fowler

“I have the Spartan inside me. I give my heart and everything until the last point. And I like drama.” – Greek Maria Sakkari, who downed Gauff in straight sets today

POLITICAL POTPOURRI:

• When asked about the surge for freedom in her homeland of Belarus, two-time Slam champ Victoria Azarenka told IT, “It’s a very difficult topic to speak on. Honestly, it’s breaking my heart to see what’s happening, because not being able to be there and understand the whole situation, it’s really sad. It’s really sad, and really difficult to speak on. But I just hope that all the violence stops immediately, really does, because it’s really heartbreaking. I can’t even speak without tears in my eyes when I think about it, to be honest. I hope people’s voices are heard.” 

• Months ago Coco Gauff drew attention when she gave a spontaneous speech on racial justice. When she was asked what it meant that African American Kamala Harris was nominated for the vice-presidency she said, “It was definitely good to see some representation. I think that it’s going to be cool for little girls to see themselves represented at such a high standard in this country.”

• Naomi Osaka has a Japanese mother and a Haitian father, and Kamala Harris has an Indian mother and a Jamaican father. So a reporter asked her what she thought about a woman running for vice-president who has an Asian mother and a father from the Caribbean. She replied, “I didn’t know that. There were some people tagging me on Twitter, but I didn’t open it. It’s a bit weird, the stance I have to take. I’m not supposed to talk about politics, to be honest, because technically I’m not American, per se. I kind of have always been advised not to say anything…It’s a bit weird when you’re living in the country and you’re seeing the things that are going on, and you kind of want to say what you think…I would just say everything that’s going on is really interesting. I feel like the younger generation is definitely trying to do something about it. It’s going to be interesting how it turns out.”

FANS ARE AT THE HEART OF THIS THING: Vika Azarenka said, “[Fans] create an energy – those magical moments always happen when there is a crowd. It can swing each way. That’s what motivates me and excites me…I love that energy. I feel like you can feed off [it]. Sometimes you have the whole stadium against you and you kind of feed off of that, as well…I miss fans. That’s what we play for…We are entertainers. I want to be in front of the crowd.”

YOUTH VS. EXPERIENCE: Paul Annacone reflected on how younger and older players might have dealt with tennis’ pause. He said, “It’s a different experience. For the older, more experienced players it’s an opportunity to hit the pause button, to let the body rest, to get rejuvenated, the three Rs. For the young guns, they get out there with their coaches and say, ‘Okay, guys, we have some time, what are we going to work on without a lot of pressure?’”

TESTY EXCHANGE: Reflecting on the return of the circuit, Tennis Channel’s Steve Weissman reported that the USTA’s Stacey Allaster said, “The energy has been great so far. It feels like the Australian Open. Players haven’t seen each other for a long time, they are rested, they are fresh, they’re grateful. Normally the Western and Southern is an event at the end of the year when the players have been tested.”

Paul Annacone then jumped in and said, “The players are tested, – just a different kind of test. Tennis on the court, off the court, COVID – there are all kinds of tests going on.”