Tennis Random, Random

[Drop-shot]

Maria Sharapova and Grigor Dimitrov are dating.

Is Grigor the new Lapentti?

[Moose]

The longest tiebreak in tennis?
Chris Chase, USA TODAY Sports
1:34p.m. EST January 7, 2013

A futures match in Florida featured a tiebreaker that lasted a mind-boggling 70 points.

By comparison, Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic played a 22-point tiebreak at last year's U.S. Open that set a record for the longest in a men's Grand Slam final. It lasted 25 minutes.

The epic tiebreak, at qualifying for a Futures F1 tournament in Plantation, was won by Benjamin Balleret, who defeated Guillaume Couillard 36-34 in the first-set marathon. More specific information likely won't become available (it was one of 16 qualifying matches that day at a $10,000 tournament), but the tiebreak would have featured, at minimum, 30 set points.

The second set almost certainly finished faster than the tiebreak, as Balleret easily put away Couillard, 6-1.

A 50-point tiebreak at a doubles match at Wimbledon is generally considered to be the longest tiebreak in tennis history. The record for longest tiebreak in a Grand Slam event is 38. That total has been reached three times, with major winners Bjorn Borg, Goran Ivanisevic and Andy Roddick winning those, respectively.

Since it happened in qualifying for a third-tier Futures match, the tiebreak of Balleret and Couillard wouldn't surpass any ATP longevity marks.

Coincidentally, both players involved in hail from Monaco, the tiny principality that only has two players among the ATP's 1,984 ranked men. Couillard is not one of those two. Before this week, he had no rankings points, by virtue of not winning his sole match in 2012. The 37-year-old reached a career high of No. 569 in 2002.

Balleret, 29, is currently ranked No. 636.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/gameon...break/1814049/

[Moose]

Has Mary Pierce ever formally retired?

Sometime in the last several months, her Wikipedia page changed status to retired. And with the new WTA website changes. you can no longer pull up her profile (you used to be able to get retired players profiles, which was a great feature, but they seem to have decided not to keep that information any longer).

And is there an entry standard for the HofF for a player who may never fornally retire? I think with her two Slams, 2 doubles Slams, and her other career achievements, she clearly gets in, but at what point does she become eligible if she never retires?

BTW, she turns 38 next week.

[mysterX]

The WTA website still has profiles for former players, but you have to search for them. The main player profile page is geared toward current players, as you say, but there is a search field, and if you search on Mary Pierce one of the results will lead you to her profile page.

http://www.wtatennis.com/players/player/6297

Looks like they have changed the look and feel of the player profiles, but it appears the same info is there

[Moose]

The WTA website still has profiles for former players, but you have to search for them. The main player profile page is geared toward current players, as you say, but there is a search field, and if you search on Mary Pierce one of the results will lead you to her profile page.

http://www.wtatennis.com/players/player/6297

Looks like they have changed the look and feel of the player profiles, but it appears the same info is there

Thanks, mysterx. I entered her name into the general search tool, and got nothing. So I tried a few other former players, again got nothing. Tried a few current players, and they popped up.

They continue to show her status as "pro", so she's still in the mix, I guess. Even if we haven't seen her play in over 6 years.

BTW. love her bio intro:

Coached by younger brother, David ... Father's name is Bobby; mother's name is Yannick ... Loves Jesus and is committed to serving Him

[omess]

Levine will not play for Canada in February Davis Cup tie


Have learned the ITF has ruled "new Canadian" Jesse Levine to be ineligible for February's Davis Cup tie vs Spain. Needed 90 days clearance https://twitter.com/ArashMadani/stat...20584422174720

[skatingfan]

Levine will not play for Canada in February Davis Cup tie


Have learned the ITF has ruled "new Canadian" Jesse Levine to be ineligible for February's Davis Cup tie vs Spain. Needed 90 days clearance https://twitter.com/ArashMadani/stat...20584422174720

I think that is okay because I sort of felt it was unfair to either Pospisil or Dancevic would have been left off the squad and since both of these players have played for Canada for many years while Levine decided he wanted to be an American it seems they should have the opportunity to play against Spain this time - next tie than it should be who is higher ranked or playing better going in that gets the spot - hopefully that next tie is a Davis Cup quarterfinal.

[mmmm8]

Many WTA schedule changes in the next 2 years + 10% prize money increase in 2013:

http://www.wtatennis.com/news/articl...-wta-calendars

[Martini4me]

I think that is okay because I sort of felt it was unfair to either Pospisil or Dancevic would have been left off the squad and since both of these players have played for Canada for many years while Levine decided he wanted to be an American it seems they should have the opportunity to play against Spain this time - next tie than it should be who is higher ranked or playing better going in that gets the spot - hopefully that next tie is a Davis Cup quarterfinal.

Yeah, I kind of feel Levine is jumping on the bandwagon now that he sees a front-line player in Raonic. There was an Ottawa Sun story a couple of days ago with the headline "I always wanted to play for Canada", but the text of the story had nothing to support that (in fact, it seemed more the opposite). Pospisil is not playing the Australian Open (flu?, or injury? I don't remember what I read now), so I don't know if he'll be available for Davis Cup.

[mmmm8]

So, Cibulkova's been engaged for a year

http://www.womenstennisblog.com/2013...ged-for-a-year

[MJ2004]

I don't know what thread to put this in, but I love it!
http://www.ifc.com/portlandia/videos...ad-yelp-review

[Scotty]

I don't know what thread to put this in, but I love it!
http://www.ifc.com/portlandia/videos...ad-yelp-review

OK, someone at that show is a tennis fan. I loved the use of the Wimbledon theme music. Also, the autograph bit was hilarious.

[JTContinental]

I don't know what thread to put this in, but I love it!
http://www.ifc.com/portlandia/videos...ad-yelp-review

I hate that show, but we just happened to catch this little snippet while channel surfing the other night, and it made me laugh.

[Tscott415]

I don't know what thread to put this in, but I love it!
http://www.ifc.com/portlandia/videos...ad-yelp-review

Love this show! Although I fear its running on fumes. The first season was great. But some of the skits have become even too weird for possibly the weirdest show I've seen

[mmmm8]

Sharapova Serves Sweet Ace With 120% Return on Sugarpova

By Danielle Rossingh - Jan 10, 2013 10:29 AM ET

French Open champion Maria Sharapova is turning her sweet tooth into a profitable business.

She spent $500,000 to set up Sugarpova, her own candy brand, and the 25-year-old from Russia may more than double her money in the first year alone. She introduces it today in Australia, where she’ll be seeded second when the tennis season’s first major tournament starts in three days.
Enlarge image Maria Sharapova Finds Sweet Investment as Candy Brand Takes Off

Tennis player Maria Sharapova launches her Sugarpova candy collection at It'Sugar in Universal City, on Dec. 13, 2012. Photographer: Mike Windle/Getty Images for IT'SUGAR

The gummy candy was first marketed in the U.S. in August, reaching 250,000 bags in the first three months, according to Max Eisenbud, Sharapova’s agent at IMG Tennis. He’s forecasting sales of 1 million bags in a year as distribution starts in the U.K., Australia, Japan, Canada, Russia, India and China. Sharapova, who gets as much as $1.10 per bag, said she’s surprised by the success.

“We don’t really have a big budget at all for marketing and advertisement,” the four-time Grand Slam tournament winner said in an interview. “So it’s pretty incredible that the awareness that it has so far is where it is.”

Continued: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-0...sugarpova.html