The Tennis Thread

[Soapsuds]

Apparently, Sasha Zverev wants to hire Boris Becker as his coach but Boris is asking for too much $$$$

[DramatistDreamer]

 

That's too bad, if true. Boris has a chance to take on a young German prospect with a lot of talent and room for growth and make an impact. I would've thought that Sascha would be just the type of pupil that Boris would love to take on- young, lean and hungry (okay, maybe the hunger is still a ??) but how much $$$$ does he need? 

 

I wonder if the request were coming from the German Tennis Federation (with the possibility of additional support, perks, etc), would Boris accept?

I realize that having coached the #1 player in the world, perhaps he's used to a certain rate and probably doesn't want to come down from that rate but this is a chance for Boris to give back to his country (even though I realize he's had a complicated relationship with Germany) and be seen in maybe a more positive light at home?

Edited February 8, 2017 by DramatistDreamer

[ChitHappens]

 

Right now, Sasha can't afford Boris and I would advise against it for the time being. He's 18 with many weapons and scalps on his record. He can hire BB at some time in the future. 

[Soapsuds]

If I were Sasha I'd wait a couple of years and hire Magnus Norman as his coach. How much longer can Stan play? He needs to tell Becker fuk you for wanting all the $$$$$.  Norman is a great coach.

[ChitHappens]

SS, BB has earned the right to charge whatever his rate. 6 slams in 3 years for Djoker and we can't dismiss BB's own tennis history. How much do you think Patrick M is worth? 10 Slams with Serena?

[Soapsuds]

For a minute there I thought you meant Patrick McEnroe...he is worth nothing...LOL

[ChitHappens]

 

Hes as useful as Connors as a coach!  

[Soapsuds]

Boris threw some shade at Sasha sayin he hadn't won anything significant for him to be his coach.....ouch!

[ChitHappens]

Yikes!  

[Soapsuds]

Even though he hasn't won a major yet maybe Boris is afraid Sasha will become a bigger legend/win more majors than him....LOL.....He's got to see how good he is. I mean Sasha already beat Roger and has come so close to beating Rafa.

[DramatistDreamer]

Sounds like Boris may still be sore about Sascha's Davis Cup performance last weekend. He was there watching as Belgium nearly swept Germany 4-1.

I know a lot of Germans were stunned by that and even though Belgium were former finalists for the Cup, David Goffin wasn't even there so many tipped Germany to win that tie. I guess Steve Darcis and company had other ideas. Darcis has always been an inconsistent talent but I was shocked to see Philipp Kohlschreiber go down like that in the first singles rubber and then Mischa and Sacha lost in doubles to two guys I'd never heard of before. It was a mess. Then in the reverse singles, I think Sascha's youth and inexperience worked against him as he seemed unable to get over the nerves.

 

I think Sascha at 19 could be forgiven for kind of buckling under the weight of the pressure of being expected to carry the team at such a young age. Boris was on the team that won West Germany's first ever Davis Cup and then they won again the next year. Boris who won Wimbledon at 17. Even by now Boris should realize that there are no more teen phenoms in tennis.

 

http://www.daviscup.com/en/news/253212.aspx

Edited February 9, 2017 by DramatistDreamer

[Soapsuds]

Phillip Kohlschreiber's game has sure gone downhill. I've never cared for the Davis Cup though and even moreso now. The top players play it only when they give a damn to play it. I wonder why they haven't just squashed the Davis Cup. The USA vs Swiss was a joke. Still John looked completely lost against a no name player and could have lost....LOL. If Roger and Stan had played the USA team wouldn't have won or had a chance. I just had to LOL at how TC was pimping how great the USA team was.....please...rejects from Isner to Sock to Querrery to Johnson....a mess child as Florence would say....LOL

 

So Sasha losing doesn't bother me. He usually doesn't get up for the no name players.

Edited February 9, 2017 by Soapsuds

[DramatistDreamer]

 

Davis Cup hasn't been scrapped for the simple fact that despite the fact that the schedule is a complete mess (why can't they just alternate each year with Fed Cup one year, Davis Cup the next??), the jubilant excitement that happened as the Argentine Davis Cup get its first title was something that you couldn't bottle and it was the main argument that people use to keep Davis Cup. Then the year before, all of Great Britain was exuberant when GB won after not winning since the 1960s (I think) and the year before that when the Swiss won the Cup there was a wellspring of exuberance for Federer fans seeing Roger and Stan win. If France wins this year...guess what? There will be a same explosion of exuberance, LOL.

 

With all that enthusiasm, it's highly unlikely that anyone will ever get rid of Davis Cup for the foreseeable future.

What they need to do is eliminate the annual competition and make it a biennal competition and just alternate with Fed Cup, that way the holders of the Cup get a full year to celebrate and hold onto the Cup instead of everyone forgetting who won the year before, as Marat Safin once joked.

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Edited February 9, 2017 by DramatistDreamer

[Soapsuds]

They should do the Davis Cup as a mini tournament where teams eliminate others and move on to the next day. I think it would be more fun and the higher ranked players would play.

[DramatistDreamer]

For anyone interested, it looks like Sloane won't return until summer, at the earliest.