Bleacher Report - Articles by Rich Rodriguez

Open Letter to FSN: Give Up Broadcasting Tennis

Rich Rodriguez — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 04:40:53 -0400

Dear Fox Sports Net:

I have some feedback - you and your affiliate here in the New York City area, MSG, are doing a terrible job of covering the Pacific Life Open, one of the biggest tournaments in tennis outside of the four Grand Slams.

During yesterday's now-classic match between Rafael Nadal and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, your programmers made the very asinine decision to stop coverage after the end of the second set. Your broadcasters didn't provide any type of segue - you just never returned to the match. I would relate the feeling to what it must be like to get a big present, open it up, and find nothing inside.

And, to rub salt in the wound, you started the evening's coverage of the tournament late because the game before ran over! Could you not have done the same for the tennis match earlier in the day?

I was accepting of the fuzzy quality of your telecasts and the way you tease viewers with two-hour blocks (that's maybe one set of a Nadal match) of coverage, but cutting out an entire set of a now classic match with no explanation is unacceptable and a slap in the face to tennis fans and potentially new viewers for your channel. I hate to see what you have in store for next week's Miami Masters.

Please do all tennis fans a favor and give up your pursuit of tennis. Actions always speak louder than words.

Martina Navratilova to Maria Sharapova: Shut Up!

Rich Rodriguez — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 10:54:55 -0400

Martina Navratilova, who recently regained Czech citizenship 30 years after defecting to the US, would like to silence the grunters for good, even calling out the girl she helped discover - Maria Sharapova.

Speaking to the press in Tokyo where she's participating in an exhibition with Steffi Graf and Kimiko Date, the 18-time Grand Slam champion said,

"If I were the commissioner of tennis I would outlaw (screeching during matches.) Maria's level gets louder the closer the match and quite frankly it's not necessary, they aren't lifting 300 pounds, they're hitting a tennis ball."

The tennis legend even referenced the recent story of 9-year old Lauryn Edwards, who was banned from her local tennis club for excessive shrieking, to make her case saying,

"Here you had this little kid who was just barely getting the ball over the net yet the noise coming out of her made you think she was hitting the ball 200 miles an hour. She was concentrating more on making the noise than hitting the ball."

Andy Roddick's Decision to Skip Beijing Olympics a Mixed-Bag

Rich Rodriguez — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 10:57:10 -0400

All of a sudden, Andy Roddick is everywhere.

The former top-ranked tennis baller entered the recent Dubai Tennis Championships with questions about his game and relevancy hanging over his Lacoste-wearing head. However, with the speed of his record-breaking serve, he split with coach Jimmy Connors and defeated the No. 2 and 3 players in the world to win the title.

And, with Roger Federer still working towards regaining full health after battling mononucleosis, Roddick is poised for big triumphs during tennis' version of March Madness—The Pacific Life Open at Indian Wells and The Sony Ericsson Championships in Miami.

However, Roddick announced today he is opting out of competing at the Beijing Olympics this summer to defend his title at the Legg Mason Classic in Washington, DC and to prepare for the US Open (which begins the day after the Games end on August 24.) This decision will no doubt impair the US team's chances of medaling at the Games since Roddick is the US's top male player.

Is this a smart decision by Roddick? Yes and no. Yes, because the 25-year old may be the last baller standing at the US Open after the Olympians make the long trip back from Beijing. Plus, he's one of the few ballers to consistently support his country in Davis Cup competition (even more than Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal) so no one could accuse him of turning his back on the team.

However, the decision may not bode well for him with the US media and fans. Roddick is already a target of constant media scrutiny (myself included), from accusations of underachieving to being a one-shot wonder with his serve.

Only time will tell if he made the right choice to stay home. But, all of a sudden, Roddick seems to be making the right ones after all.

Venus and Serena Williams: Talking Race and Politics

Rich Rodriguez — Wed, 05 Mar 2008 08:48:35 -0500

Andy Roddick isn't the only tennis baller feeling all political these days. The "Sisters Sledge"—Venus and Serena Williams—threw their racquets in the ring and spoke out on the emergence of minorities, more specifically African-Americans, in tennis and in the U.S. at this week's Bangalore Open where they're playing singles and team up for doubles play.

Eight-time Grand Slam champion Serena said, "Each year when I go on tour and at the U.S. Open, I see another black face. It just makes my heart smile."

However, she emphasized the limited access to the sport for some saying, "Maybe sometime if you want to talk economics, then maybe it (tennis) might not be affordable to some black people. Traditionally you look at tennis, you see in the past, 50 years, maybe one black player there. Tennis is an expensive sport."

Older sister Venus, who is widely recognized as a catalyst for getting women equal prize money at Wimbledon, commented on the current U.S. presidential race saying, "It is good that minorities are coming to the fore, (Barack) Obama is an example."

But she was quick to point out she's "equally happy" for Hillary Clinton, though "it is tough for Afro-Americans in the US."

Martina Hingis Makes Another Return to Tennis

Rich Rodriguez — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 03:01:14 -0500

It seems playing tennis is a hard habit to break for Martina Hingis. The formerly top-ranked tennis baller, who famously re-retired after testing positive for cocaine and receiving a two-year ban, is returning to the courts.

The Swiss Miss has accepted an invitation to play at the Liverpool International in June, though she could only enter the non-competitive Legends section of the draw.

Martina told the press, "I have heard a lot about Liverpool over the years and all the fine work they have done up there to develop tennis in a region that is mostly famous for football. I am very much looking forward to playing the event and to seeing what's on offer in the European Capital of Culture."

The 27-year-old will be joined in the Legends group by fellow retirees Goran Ivanisevic and Pat Cash.