!102401469 Mornin' from tropical London, folks. I rolled in last night and had a nice, late dinner at a local Italian joint with Rosangel, who picked me up at Heefrow. There was only one other couple in the restaurant, until Jeff Tarango and a couple of young kids came in and sat at the next table. I always have to chuckle when I see Jeff at Wimbledon (he does color commentary for Radio Wimbledon), given that he was once a pariah here, after playing the lead role one of the most bizarre and comical (to us, if not Jeff) controversies in recent Wimbledon history.
That incidentoccurred in 1995, and the most striking thing about it was the way Benedicte Tarango, Jeff's wife (they've since divorced), strolled out onto the court and slapped chair umpire Bruno Rebeuh across the face. Not once, but twice. Rebeuh isn't seen in the umpire's chair very much anymore, and all I've heard recently is a rumor that he's the tournament director of a small event in France. Wouldn't it be a hoot if he hooked up with the hot-blooded and (presumably) single Benedicte?
Anyway, the tennis is starting here, and as you all know this is the best of all days at any Grand Slam event - the second Monday, when the event is awash in great match-ups and still intriguingly chaotic, as a dozen story lines struggle to emerge from the smoke and din of the battlefield. It's downright distracting; I'm watching Justine Henin battle Kim Clijsters as I type this (Henin is up 3-1, and playing like she means it), and also trying to keep an eye on Venus Williams and Roger Federer.
I expect I'll write the women today, and probably post some thoughts on one or more of the men's matches tomorrow morning.
Justine just called for the trainer. She appears to have a right elbow problem, but says she's alright, and said she's already taking medication for her shoulder. I like that you can hear the dialog, and wonder if the players are aware of it. Don't say anything nasty about Champagne Kimmy, Justine, unless you want to end up on YouTube. . .
Justine seems to be finding her groove; that win over Nadia Petrova (see photo) was one of those over-the-hump matches that can really loosen up and energize the winner. Henin had every right to walk off the court after that one, thinking, Hey, I can do this. Piece of cake. And she's getting slaphappy now, expressing her exuberance right in Kim Clijsters face via a 5-2 lead. But you know the recent history of these two, so this is probably far, far, far from over.
Catch you all later. This is your Crisis Center post for today.
-- Pete