The word going 'round the Internets is that there have been at least four layoffs at the print arm of the pub, not including Peter Bodo + Steve Tignor who are said to be safe. The website will continue to run while print work is being outsourced to 10TenMedia.com.
I noticed the alarming lack of ad pages all the way back in September 2008 so this news doesn't come as a surprise. They did a really good job of getting this far in a tough economy but I don't think it'll go much further. I would bet by next year TENNIS will be fully online.
I'll make sure to update this post as more news becomes available. Feel free to contact me, though, if you have any more info at DownTheLineTennis[at]GMail[dot]com.
- Novak Djokovic + Gael Monfils guest star in DJ Martin Solveig's new video for his single 'Hello' which was partly shot in Court Philippe Chatrier at Roland Garros. Fantastic Frenchie record producer and DJ Bob Sinclar also makes an appearance as Solveig's opponent.
- “Now I have to run around and be nice to everybody," saidMarat Safin about his current role as a Russian tennis official. He also had some words for his sister, Dinara, who's been troubled by a herniated disc in her back. "I think she needs to rest six months and think about the future," SexGawd says of his sister. “Don’t play two weeks here and two weeks there and get [re-]injured.”
- Steve Tignor offer his thoughts on the Fedal dominance at the Slams and wonders aloud how many more each baller will win - and who will end up with the most when all is said and done.
- Janko Tipsarevic and the very posey Biljana Šešević were married late last week and Serbian mag Story got the exclusive photos. I wonder if she forgot this photoshoot was actually for her wedding pictures?
- Enough with the injury talk and just play ball says Peter Bodo.
- Fierce Tennis gave me serious lulz with its fantastic take on Maria Sharapova's decision to play doubles with Yanina Wickmayer at the Bank of the West Classic at Stanford. Angry grrrls.
- With all the talk of Fernando Verdasco + Feliciano Lopez'sboat and beach bromance, it's strange to see Nando going it alone. Trouble in paradise, perhaps? But no worries, his better half was 'uncovered' by the ATP though not in the way you would really like. Ah, well.
- Juan Martin del Potropurchased a road in his hometown of Tandil connecting two recently purchased lands, which caused a rift with some of the town's residents. The U.S. Open champ, who's at the Mayo Clinic getting a check up on his wrist, confirmed the news via Twitter but said the move will keep the tourists away from his home.
- TOT: Nike released this t-shirt to celebrate Spain's first EVAH World Cup win!
UPDATE - I thought this piece of news would be an interesting tidbit to pass along: Stanislas Wawrinka will now be coached by Peter Lundgren. His past pupils include, of course, Roger Federer and most recently Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov. His reason for taking on the veteran Swiss? "When I asked what he wanted help with, he said he wants to return to the top 10," said Peter. "It's what you want to hear as a coach."
Well it seems TENNIS mag's Peter Bodo was taken to task after the scribe lambasted the currently vacant ATP CEO role in a recent blog for ESPN.com aka Bodo's now infamous "Negative Nancy" moment.
Apparently the ATP's main flack, Kris Dent, had some words with Bodo about the blog and, in particular, his remarks regarding the ATP in-house staff. In the blog Bodo writes, "Senior employees might be intractable and exacting, and often at cross-purposes" but recently backtracked on his comments saying,
I want to make clear that I was playing around and meant "employees" metaphorically - as a reference to the top players, agents and tournament promoters, all of whom loosely can be said to work for or under the ATP CEO. This was an obtuse and ill-chosen device, because it sure reads like a criticism of ATP staff - which is an extremely professional, diligent and cohesive unit. It's always been a great pleasure to work with them.
Okay - bad enough. But in today's Tennisworldpost called "An Open Letter..." Bodo bends over for Dent again and gives the flack an open space to push his image-saving agenda for the ATP. Here's just an excerpt of the very lengthy letter:
Indeed many of the positive changes that have been made to the men's game in recent times have come about because both the tournaments and players have been represented at the ATP Board table, and they have been able to find ways of moving the sport forward to the benefit of all in the men's game.
Innovations like Hawkeye and the changes to Doubles scoring, for instance, have been introduced successfully and have become huge fan favourites. Similarly, having both groups represented at Board level has allowed the calendar changes for next year to be made - positives such as creating a healthier schedule for players to plan their season from, the creation of a new, dedicated Asian swing post-US Open, and the less congested spring clay and autumn indoor seasons are good examples. The increases in investment into new stadia ($800m worth) and the record prize money levels on offer next year only came about because both tournament and player representatives worked at a Council and Board level to create them, together.
Something smells fishy and a bit lame here. I mean, since when does a journalist hand over their column to a PR flack intent on pushing their own agenda? Aren't journalists supposed to cut through all the fat and "spin" to try and give an unobstructed view of current events and happenings to their readers?? At least, that's supposed to be the intention but what's developing here is the exact opposite.
I'm getting the feeling someone's in the back pocket of the ATP and we, as fans, will need to be more vigilant about what we're hearing and, most definitely, what we're reading.
Either Peter Bodo's having a tough go-of-it in the hallowed halls of TENNIS mag or he's just plain over it. But someone's having a temper tantrum.
In his blog for ESPN.com, Bodo discusses the prospects of the new ATP CEO and does his absolute worst at selling the "thankless" position to anyone with intelligence or, at the very least, someone with good intentions:
If you're hoping some new messiah will emerge to bring bliss to the ATP and tennis fans worldwide, I have news for you: It ain't gonna happen. That's because no hard-charging boy wonder (or corporate veteran) would want this job. As Etienne de Villiers learned, the ATP tribe is a restless one, constantly bickering and feuding. It is more inclined to burning its leaders at the stake than to adopting the discipline of a highly trained work force that will march toward a better future in lockstep.
Wow, bitter much? I know Bodo has been around the sport since it was invented (say the 19th century) so he's seen the ups, downs, and nasty in-betweens and knows a lot of what he speaks about. But is this editorial, which will most likely have a wider audience on ESPN.com than his spindly one at TENNIS.com, helping the situation at all? Or is that the point??
Bodo ends by peering into his crystal tennis ball:
I'm predicting that the ATP won't hire a strong visionary leader, because I'm not sure any person who fits that description would want the job. The next CEO will be an "insider" who is most acceptable as a negotiator among self-interested parties. Let's be frank about this: It's a job for an I-dotter and a T-crosser, not a visionary.
We get it Bodo. It's a tough role with complex challenges and separate, sparring international entities all wanting their interests accounted for and questions answered. But do you have to be such a "Negative Nancy"? It's the holidays dude. Cheer up.
What do Novak Djokovic + Jimmy Connors have in common? According to Peter Bodo, a big mouth and a penchance for going all Frank Sinatra on the tour's ass.
Peter Bodo finally takes his (always lengthy) aim at Nole'sretirement woes saying the two ballers share a "My way" attitude which may inadvertently hurt the Serb's physical well-being:
One critical similarity between Djokovic and Connors is that both have been accused of being lousy sports who did a fair amount of manipulation in their drive for success. For Connors, the accusations were based on his attempts to intimidate officials and opponents, and his "ducking" of the top players by refusing to play the main, WCT tour early in his career. The complaints against Djokovic are similar: he doesn't sufficiently "respect" Federer and Nadal; he "ducks" out of big matches against the best players by succumbing to mystery ailments. After all, there is no alternative tour, like there was back in Connors' heyday.
So Djokovic is loosely following in the footprints of Connors and any other player who can claim to have done things "My way." Like Connors, Djokovic has circled the (family) wagons and keeps his own counsel, although he has nothing like Connors's siege mentality. Djokovic also has a much better grasp of public relations and basic decorum than Jimbo ever did. This sense that you have to figure it out all by yourself, with such an enormous amount at stake, can become oppressive. It creates pressure, and pressure always seeks an outlet. If denied, the pressure shuts down the machine.
Interesting - so the mental affects the physical? How ingenious!
Bodo & blow: In the wake of Martina Hingis' 2-year ban from the tennis world, TENNIS.com'sPeter Bodo wants us to know he's in no place to judge the Swiss Miss for her apparent misdeeds. In his blog, Mr. Bodo explains,
"I'd be the last person to advocate lynching people who have used or even just tried cocaine (among other things it would make me a horrible hypocrite, wink-wink), but the recreational drug is a prohibited substance and, at the end of the day, either you have rules or you don't. (Excuse me, I need to run to the men's for a moment!)."
Wow - we never thought so before, but Peter Bodo's Tennisworld sounds a lot more interesting now! Maybe we'll actually start reading it on a regular basis.
- The Tennis Channel pulls another coup by securing the rights to feature the 3 exhibition matches between living legends Pete Sampras and Roger Federer. The matches scheduled to air are the meetings in Seoul, Korea . Up next is the Nov. 22 match in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, then the Nov. 23 meeting in Macao, China.
- Tennis Diary states their case for why Rafael Nadal has yet to play well at the US Open. Our guess: he's worn his body to shreads by the Open - period.
- Mercedes will be ending its 11-year sponsorship of the ATP tour to broaden its portfolio to include golf, football, and get this, equestrian activities. Tennis, you're losing out to horses - get a grip.
- Prince is entering the gaming world by producing Wii Tennis racquets
- An Olympic gold medal vs. a Grand Slam championship: the players weigh in
- Andy Roddicklaunched the Andy Roddick Youth Tennis program this week. About 60 students receive two hours of tennis instruction and one hour of the "Living Smart/Living Strong" Development and Guidance Program, led by OLLU Education faculty. Learn more about the program by visiting OLLU.edu.
- 2008 Olympics update: The surface for the '08 Olympics has been chosen - DecoTurf - which is the same surface used at the US Open. We know one player who is probably very happy about this decision: US Open champion Roger Federer who, surprisingly enough, has yet to sport the gold medal.
- Meet DJ Dmi: Apparently Dmitry Tursonov can spin more than a tennis ball. The eccentric Russian is also a DJ and has posted his own mixes on his website. Check them out here!
- Should the tennis schedule revolve around having a "season" similar to baseball, football, or...football (soccer for our US readers)? ESPN.componders this question.
- Ain't no mountain high enough: Marat Safin is putting his tennis aside for another challenge. The 2-time Grand Slam winner is part of a Russian expedition team scheduled to climb Cho Oyu, the 8,201-meter (26,906 ft) mountain on the Nepal-Tibet border.
- We'll be sad to see you go, Guga, if you decide to hang up the rackets...
- The Hewitts are fighting: Never a dull moment in the Hewitt household, is there? The famous Aussie couple are being accused by Channel 7 program, Today Tonight, about failing to fulfill their commitment to building an orphanage in Cambodia.
- Are you suffering from having excess balls? Here are 17 innovate things you can do with the balls you've used and abused.
- Jon Wertheim is certainly making a name for himself. Not only does he cover tennis in-depth, the Sports Illustrated writer is interviewed here about his book on pool entitled "Running the Table".
- Mind over matter: Peter Bodo delves into the mind of Roger Federer to explore his uncanny ability to focus so intensely in the moment...very interesting.
- OFF TOPIC ALERT: Becks releases 2008 calendar, undresses for you
Speaking of TENNIS magazine's covers, Serbia's Ana Ivanovic will be the face on the mag's newest issue, continuing her Global Domination Tour. Here's an excerpt from the article written by Peter Bodo:
"When Ivanovic was a youngster, the Belgrade athletic club where she trained and played sports could not afford to heat its Olympic-size swimming pool in the winter. Club officials decided to have it drained and lay down carpet, and that’s where Ivanovic got her first taste of indoor tennis. Practicing there made her game lethal because the walls of the pool were just 18 inches from the sidelines of the court. Down-the-line, often the most difficult shot to hit, was the only way to go."
Did Bodo just give Down the Line! a shout-out? Probably not...but we'll take it!
