The Masters of Miami 2013: Andy Murray & Serena Williams

Photo: Matthew Stockman/Getty Images

Key Biscayne, FL - Andy Murray (No. 3, Britain) prevailed over David Ferrer (No. 5, Spain) in a grueling, see-saw 3 set battle this past weekend to take the Men's Singles Championship at the Sony Open in Crandon Park Tennis Center, 2-6, 6-4, 7-6 (1). 

The match lasted 2 hours and 45 minutes in a blistering South Florida humidity before a sell-out crowd and national TV audience.

The win was Murray's second Sony Open title in Miami, and propelled him to World No. 2 rank, past Roger Federer.

Murray, the 25 year-old Olympic Gold and U.S. Open champion, saved a match point in the third set and closed out the tie-break in convincing fashion. He explained later that it was really a battle of attrition to see who could out-last the other.

"It was a just a brutal, brutal match today, and both of us were kind of on our last legs," confessed Murray. "It was one of the toughest matches I've had to play in a Masters series, for sure."

Murray is known for his off-court regimen, and is considered one of the fittest players on the tour.

Meanwhile, in the Women's Singles Championship, Serena Williams (No. 1, USA) defeated Maria Sharapova (No. 2, Russia) in a dramatic 3 set final, 4-6, 6-3, 6-0.

Williams won each of the last 10 games, for her 6th Sony Open title in Miami, overtaking the previous record held by Steffi Graf.

The match produced some high-quality tennis, with both players displaying slam-bang points with sometimes ferociously long rallies.

Congrats to all the winners, players, fans and supporters of this year's Sony Open in Miami.

See you next year!
Gary

Nadal is back! BNP Paribas Open 2013

Indian Wells, CA -- BNP Paribas Open

Rafael Nadal (No. 5, Spain) defeated Juan Martin Del Potro (No. 7, Argentina) in a see-saw 3 set thriller, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 to claim his first Indian Wells title. 

It was Nadal's 3rd title since his return after a 7 month injury absence.

It was also Nadal's 22 ATP Master's 1000 Title, an all-time record, and capped a stunning comeback.

Nadal, an 11-time Grand Slam champion, overcame a gritty challenge from his opponent -- and turned back the final tide in a battle between two of the biggest forehands in the game today.

After the match, Nadal reflected on painful moments in his layoff, and then remarked on how he prevailed in the battle: "When I was able to calm myself, I began to play better. I started to play a little bit slower. My movement was unbelievable."

As for Del Potro, the big Argentine played a fantastic tournament beating Olympic Gold Medalist Andy Murray and World No. 1 Novak Djokovic on the way to the finals. He stands as a powerful threat for the rest of the tennis year.

Meanwhile, in the women's championship, Maria Sharapova (No. 2, Russia) blasted her way over Caroline Wozniak (No. 8, Denmark), 6-2, 6-2 with her trademark power-hitting tennis.

It was the 25 Year-Old's first WTA title this year, and second Indian Wells championship.

Sharapova is one of the most recognized female athletes in the world in any sport, and reportedly also the highest-paid.

It was another great tournament in the California desert this season.

See you next year!
Gary

BNP Paribas 2013 Player Party (Indian Wells)

Tennis Quote of the Day: Practice and Play

"I'm a big believer in practicing how you play and vice versa. Jimmy Connors was incredible at this, and so was Michael Chang. In today's game, no one does it better than Rafael Nadal. Concentrate on every shot you hit in practice and in matches. If you give everything you have every time you play, you'll get a lot more in return."

Peter Burwash
Tennis Magazine, March-April 2013
"Learn From the Past", Page 76

World Tennis Day is March 04, 2013!

For More Information See: WorldTennisDay.com (Coming Soon)

Lessons from Soccer - "Brilliant Orange: The Neurotic Genius of Dutch Football" by David Winner

Brilliant Orange: The Neurotic Genius of Dutch Football, by David Winner, 288 Pages (Woodstock, NY, 2000: Overlook Press)(Available on Amazon.com) 

"There is no medal better than being acclaimed for your style."
--Johan Cruyff, Legendary Dutch Superstar

I. THE BOOK
The great Pele famously called the sport of football (what we call soccer), "the beautiful game."

Beginning in the late 1960s, the Netherlands (The Orange) and its trailblazing superstar Johan Cruyff, transformed "the beautiful game" into something quite special - something called "Total Football."

What is it? How did it come about? What lessons might we find in it for the world beyond soccer?

David Winner writes masterfully about these topics in a book regarded as one of the best soccer books ever.

Brilliant Orange explores not just soccer in Holland, but the culture, mindset and history of the Dutch which produced it.

Holland is a place where the landscape is notoriously flat, practically below sea level and exists only because a boy once plugged a dike with his little finger.

It is said that this has produced a peculiar thinking which assumes that space and time is at a premium, and thus must be maximized.

In "Dutch space", the soccer pitch (or field) is not just a big rectangle. It's a restricted zone which demands innovation, creativity, quick-thinking and "doing-it-all".

II. THE GAME
Enter Total Football.

Total Football means adventurous attacking; rapid position-switching of players (attacker to defender, back to attacker); and exquisite speed and footwork. And above all it means quick-reaction.

It has also sometimes meant an almost weird pattern of seeming self-destruction - attacking to the point where you left your flank open for potentially devastating counter-attack.

And if The Orange could find a way to defend a play, it also meant quickly turning from defense back to offense again.

The bottom line: every player plays any position and does everything, and always moves forward on the attack.

Total Football lifted the Dutch into the top echelons of the soccer world and landed them into multiple World Cup finals - indeed, it influenced all of football around the world.

III. THE LESSONS FOR TENNIS
For those of us in tennis, what lessons might the related sport of soccer and the Total Football model teach us?

**Like soccer, tennis is ultimately a game of the human feet! In both sports, the relationship of the foot and the ball is the key to court footwork and spacing to the ball. 

**Like soccer, tennis is a game of moving forward and attacking, creating angles and dominating a confined space - the rectangle of the court. 

**Like Total Football, winning tennis is about the "All-Court" game. It means playing well at all positions - baseline, mid-court, and net - and transitioning between them all well. 

**And like Total Football, winning tennis means, when necessary, moving from offense to defense - and then turning defense back quickly into offense.

Soccer's take-away lesson for us in tennis is this: Total Football and "All-Court" Tennis are sports brothers!

Best,
Gary

Tennis Tip of the Day: The Return of Serve

"The biggest mistake that club players make on their return of serve is that they try to do too much with it. Get the ball back in play!

The return of serve is already a difficult shot. It comes at you at different speeds, different angles, and with different spins than other shots. Don't make things worse by forcing spectacular returns.

One winner can't compete with two or three misses. Your opponent should have to work for their points, not have them handed to them.

So chip it, slice it, punch it. Do whatever you have to do to get the ball in play, and start the point. Your competition will never miss if you don't give them a chance to.

Keep this mind the next time you're staring down the barrel of a serve and you'll be breaking them in no time."

--Keith Fox, USPTA Certified Pro Instructor
Springton Tennis Club, Springton, PA USA
"Pro's Corner", Newsletter Jan.- Feb. 2013