Quotes Often Don’t Tell The Real Story - UBITENNIS
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Quotes Often Don’t Tell The Real Story

Published

6 years ago

on

Dustin Brown (zimbio.com)

HALLE: Every tennis journalist approaches writing a daily story in a different way. Today with No. 1 seed, Roger Federer of Switzerland, No. 3 seed, Kei Nishikori of Japan, No. 4 seed, Alexander Zverev of Germany and No. 6 seed, Lucas Pouille of France in action at the Gerry Weber Open in Halle, Germany, there is a smorgasbord full of topic choices. Once the focus is decided on, the construction of the tale begins. And this is the fun aspect of the job.

 

Finding a way to capture a reader’s attention is enjoyable, as well as a test. Allowing creativity to “roam”, enables thoughts to flow and the journey to begin. The difficult part is not falling back on themes used in previous narratives. In other words, making the piece new and interesting, and most important – readable.

A journalist can select a match or matches, depending on the demands made by the publication, develop a storyline then watch what takes place. Hope is part of the process because a contrary result can destroy the approach that has been planned. If the puzzle pieces come together, all that is needed is a post-match quote or two and the story is ready for presentation.

Quotes can often make or break a narrative. To depend on insights from a competitor, occasionally calls for a walk through dangerous territory that could be filled with missteps or in some cases, outright stumbles. Stated simply, this may depend on a player. Many, no matter how elated or disappointed they are following a contest, will give the media workable responses to questions they are asked. Some, though, are only quotable following a victory. Losses bring about a cascade of verbal nothingness that must then be worked into something that will capture the attention of readers.

On Monday, two German players prevailed in three-set contests. The difference in their after-match comments reflected a variance in their personalities and the way they approach playing the game on the elite level.

After Philipp Kohlschreiber slipped past Joao Sousa of Portugal, 3-6, 6-4, 6-4, he offered a mixed bag of thoughts. He began by saying, “I wasn’t that happy with my game today. I don’t think there is a need to go into details.” But, then he did,  adding, “There were just too many mistakes.” He concluded, “But, the positives I am taking from that match are that I moved well and was mentally strong. I really wanted to win the match, and now I’m in the second round.”

Dustin Brown survived a 6-1, 6-7, 7-6 tussle with qualifier Vasek Pospisil of Canada. Following the contest, Brown explained, “I think he returned well and that doesn’t help me. He knows exactly what he is doing on grass. He was a quarterfinalist in singles (2015) and won the doubles (with Jack Sock in 2014) at Wimbledon. I feel I kept my calm and tried to use my chances to somehow win sets.”

Kohlschreiber is 33-years old and became a professional in 2001. He is a year older than Brown, who made the move to play for money just a year after Kohlschreiber. They differ in height as well as dispositions. Kohlschreiber stands 5’10” and Brown is a lofty 6’5”. One is a confirmed baseliner who appears to be staid and reserved – actually, controlled says it better. The other sports dread-locks, and is a serve and volleyer who is entertaining, effervescent and outgoing.

“I actually live by being very solid at the baseline and that’s not the case yet,” Kohlschreiber admitted. “Maybe I’ll sleep unbelievably well tonight, have an awesome practice day, and play as if I were from another planet. Who knows?”

Brown, whose favorite surface is grass, offered, “The Stadion Court plays faster than the other courts. I have played a few more matches and practiced a lot on the courts. I have tried to change things. I have also watched the other guys to see how they are playing. You can see that every player is returning much better. I have the feeling that many more first serves are being returned. It’s not so easy, and you have to find your way into a match.”

Words convey messages and both Kohlschreiber and Brown made a number of solid points. They also provided room for reading between the lines that might lead to opportunities for speculation. That, of course, was not the reason this story was written. Clarity may be in the eye of the beholder, because words can, on occasion, be just words. It depends on a journalist to offer their view using a player’s perspective and explain it by using a player’s own words

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India’s Sumit Nagal Receives Sponsorship Boost After Revelling Financial Struggles

Published

1 day ago

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21/09/2023

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Image via https://twitter.com/nagalsumit/

A leading food and drink company has pledged to support India’s highest-ranked men’s player who was unable to train at his usual facility in Germany earlier this year due to a lack of money. 

 

Earlier this week world No.159 Sumit Nagal made a public plea for financial support to help him continue his career as a tennis player. In recent years he has been based at the Nansel Tennis Academy in Germany but was unable to train there during the first three months of the 2023 season due to a lack of funds. During this period he relied on his friends, including former player Somdev Devvarman, to help maintain his fitness. 

“If I look at my bank balance, I have what I had at the beginning of the year. It is 900 euros. I did get a bit of help. Mr Prashant Sutar is helping me with MAHA Tennis Foundation and I also get monthly (salary) from IOCL but I don’t have any big sponsor,” Nagal told the Press Trust of India.
“I am investing whatever I am making. The yearly cost where I travel with one coach is costing me around Rs 8 million to Rs 10 million (90,000-113,000 euros) and that is just with one travelling coach (no physio). Whatever I have made I have already invested,” he added.

Nagal, who is 26 years old, has reached the semi-finals of better at five tournaments on the lower-level Challenger Tour so far this season. His only Grand Slam result was at the US Open where he lost in the first round of qualifying to Taro Daniel. It was at the US Open where he took a set off Roger Federer before losing in 2019. 

Despite being the only player from his country to be ranked in the top 400, Nagal is currently not part of the Target Olympics Podium Scheme. An initiative set up by the Indian government to provide support to their top athletes.

After learning about Nagal’s ongoing struggles on the Tour, a leading company has decided to support the tennis player by signing a three-year deal with him. Gatorade specializes in sports drinks and is manufactured by PepsiCo. Under the deal, Nagal will receive support with his recovery and nutrition from experts at the Gatorade Sports Science Institute (GSSI).  

“I am deeply moved and grateful to join hands with Gatorade. This association comes to me at a pivotal time, and I am thankful my hard work and passion is getting recognized and appreciated. With Gatorade by my side, I am sure I will reach new heights and give it my all both on and off the court,” the Indo-Asian News Service quoted Nagal as saying on Thursday. 

Speaking about the new partnership, Ankit Agarwal from PepsiCo India has hailed the collaboration. Agarwal is the company’s Associate Director of Energy & Hydration. 

“Sumit is a role model for the new-gen athletes of India with his career being a true example of hard work and sweat that makes talent shine,” he said.
“As a brand that is dedicated to supporting athletes in removing barriers to sporting success, we are delighted to welcome Sumit to the Gatorade squad.”

Nagal has been ranked as high as No.122 in the world. So far in his career, he has won four Challenger titles with two of those occurring this year in Italy and Finland. 

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(VIDEO): Malaga Line-Up Set As Davis Cup Most Unpredictable Tournament In History

UbiTennis founder Ubaldo Scanagatta explains why any of the eight teams in Malaga could win November’s Davis Cup Finals

Published

3 days ago

on

19/09/2023

By

(@DavisCup - Twitter)

The Davis Cup quarter-final line-up is set after an incredible Group Stage over Bologna, Split, Manchester and Valencia.

 

Now eight teams remain including Novak Djokovic’s Serbia, Great Britain and Australia.

However surprise teams such as the Netherlands, Finland and the Czech Republic will also appear in the quarter-finals.

Ten-time champions Great Britain will face Serbia with the winners taking on the winner of the quarter-final between Italy and the Netherlands.

In the other half of the draw Canada will be heavy favourites against Finland while the Czech Republic face Australia.

The final eight tournament will take place in Malaga and will take place between the 21st and the 26th of November.

However this year’s Davis Cup could be the most unpredictable version in the tournament’s history with there being no Spain or USA.

It really could be anyone’ tournament with Tennis’ most prestigious team competition up for grabs in November.

In this video UbiTennis founder Ubaldo Scanagatta explains why this year’s Davis Cup finals could be the most unpredictable edition of all-time and why any of the teams could win the title.

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Simona Halep Claims Doing Ban Is ‘Based On Scenarios’ Without Proof

Published

4 days ago

on

18/09/2023

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SIMONA HALEP OF ROMANIA - PHOTO: MATEO VILLALBA / MMO

Former world No.1 Simona Halep has questioned the fairness of her anti-doping hearing after being suspended from the sport for four years. 

 

The two-time Grand Slam champion is suspended from tour events until 2026 after an independent tribunal concluded that the Romanian broke rules set out in Tennis’ anti-doping program. In a 126-page report by the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA), investigators accepted that the collagen supplement taken by Halep – called Keto MCT – was contaminated with Roxadustat “on the balance of probability.” However, they stated that there must have been another source of Roxadustat based on the level detected in her sample taken during the 2022 US Open. 

Furthermore, three experts in the area said they have ‘a high degree of confidence‘ that there was not an ‘innocent explanation’ for the abnormalities detected in Halep’s Athlete’s Biological Passport (ABP). They reported that ‘likely doping’ occurred based on an analysis of 51 valid samples of Halep’s blood and rejected her explanation for the irregularity. The tennis star cited blood loss during surgery and spells when she was inactive as her defence. 

Despite the comprehensive ruling, Halep has insisted that she is innocent and never intentionally took any banned substances. During an interview with Front Office Sports on Monday, the 31-year-old claimed that the ITIA’s four-year ban handed to her was based on ‘scenarios’ instead of any proof. 

“I was confident after the hearing because there were so many things that made no sense and that are not fair,” she said.
“When I received the decision, I was in complete shock. I could not believe that they suspended me for four years when we found the contamination and my blood was totally normal. They didn’t find anything bad in my blood. It’s crazy that they made this decision with everything [her legal team presented]. They judged me on scenarios. There is no proof. It’s just insane.”

The ITIA originally requested a six-year ban for Halep due to what they described as ‘repetitive and sophisticated’ doping practices. She is accused of using blood doping to improve her performance during Wimbledon and the US Open last year. However, the report found it was not ‘completely satisfied’ that Halep has been doping since March 2022 despite there being ‘strong grounds for suspicion.’

As for the substance Roxadustat, Halep says she would have never deliberately taken the drug as it would ‘work against her.’ She says that the drug would have worsened a thyroid issue which she has been dealing with for several years. Front Office Sports referred to a European Medicines Agency study which finds a possible link between the drug and decreased thyroid function. 

“There was no point for me to take this,” Halep said. “It’d work against me. It wouldn’t help me.”

The study couldn’t establish how common this side effect is due to the amount of data available at the time. 

In the wake of Halep’s ban, some have publicly expressed their views on the matter. One of the most notable to do so was Serena Williams who wrote on social media ‘8 is a better number” in a jibe at her former opponent. The reference was to the 2019 Wimbledon final when seven-time champion Williams lost in straight sets to Halep. 

“I think everyone has the right to judge me because the tribunal decided that I have the fault here,” Halep commented. “Someone told me today that those players who are hating on me because I beat them.”

Halep is set to appeal against her ban to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). 

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