It's a Horse. . . IWCC Day 7
Mornin'.
As you've noticed, we love our jargon, slang and lingo here at TennisWorld. Personally, one of the things I most enjoy is reading the comments and stumbling upon some newly-coined nickname (Mat2 - presumably for Paul-Henri Mathieu) or expression, like: Tumbleweed Queen (the name for a poster who puts up a succession of comments in a short period, like rolling tumbleweed). Whoever thunk that one up gets one of TW's jealously guarded and rarely dispensed Genius citations (no need to be bashful, step out!, which is a painting of a serene landscape, featuring a blind pig finding an acorn.
I wish I'd collected all these nicknames and turns-of-phrases; anybody want to compile, or at least begin to keep track of them? Anybody feel like just scrolling through your mental rolodex and posting the nicknames/expressions that come to mind? And if you just write the tag "TW lexicon" in your comment, we can call up the comment using the Search box any time we want - either for compilation purposes or in some reference capacity. It's something to do while you're sitting around waiting for the BNP Paribas Open to begin, right? This would be a way cool thing, but I don't want to force y'all into doing it, so do as you will. . .
Anyone want to be TW's official lexographer?
On a similar topic, you know I'm partial to all things western, including slang and such, so here's a new expressionI stumbled across in reading unrelated to tennis last night: It's a horse, ain't it?
Meaning: No matter what the problem is, it's still just a horse, and any horse can be ridden. . .
Question: Distraught Roger Federer fan, beads of sweat on his brow, fingernails bitten to the quick, asks, on the eve of a final pitting Federer against Rafael Nadal: Is there any way Roger can win this match on a clay court this slow, when they're calling for it to be hot and humid?
Answer: It's a horse, ain't it?
BTW, The basic thrust of this expression is one of the reasons I dislike making predictions about tennis matches, unless I feel I have some really intriguing reason to venture one. When two world-class players meet, anything can happen. It's one of the reasons we watch the game. It's a horse, ain't it?
So that's my navel-gazing for the day.
Beyond that, it occurs to me that things aren't looking so great for James Blake these days. I asked him at the Davis Cup tie in Birmingham if he was looking forward to Indian Wells, and he seemed very upbeat about his chances, and eager to get onto a court where his quick-strike, roll-the-die game can really pay off. But he was crushed by Gonzo yesterday.
Blake seems to be at that stage in his career when maybe he ought to shake things up in a pretty big way, maybe make some changes in his game, not just to address his weaknesses (failing to keep the ball in play?) but to spark his interest and give him the traction to approach the future with a enthusiasm and renewed confidence. Sometimes, trying something new is the best of all ways to reinvigorate your attitude and refresh your interest.
- Pete