Wimbledon 2012 Preview

Photo courtesy of zimbio.com. Novak Djokovic (left) and Maria Sharapova (right) are the favorites to take home the third Grand Slam of the year.

By Josh Kramer

We are less than a day away from the best tournament in all of tennis.  London is the place to be in sports these days.  First there is Wimbledon.  Then there is the Olympics.  Out of the four major tennis tournaments, Wimbledon holds the most historical significance and is widelyy considered the most prestigious tournament of them all.

Men:

The last nine Grand Slams have been won by one of two men.  They also happen to be the current number one and number two ranked players in the world.  Ironically, the last player not named Nadal or Djokovic to take home a Grand Slam championship has won at the All England Club on six different occasions (Federer).  Lastly, 28 of the last 29 Grand Slam titles have been captured by Djokovic, Nadal, or Federer.

Champion:  Novak Djokovic

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Tennis Night in America – BNP Paribas Showdown

Photo courtesy of zimbio.com. Maria Sharapova (pictured above) will be one of the stars taking center court at Madison Square Garden this evening.

By Toni Headley

Toni Headley is a tennis expert who worked at ESPN for 10 years and has been a freelance writer there for the past 2 years.  She also previously worked at CBS Sports and has covered every major tennis tournament in the world multiple times.

As a precursor to the start of the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament from Indian Wells California, tennis fans will be treated to some exhibition tennis from the world’s most famous arena Madison Square Garden or “The Garden,” as it is sometimes called. Billed as “Tennis Night in America,” fans will get to see the likes of four former number one players, Maria Sharapova, Caroline Wozniacki, Roger Federer, and Andy Roddick.

Both matches will feature a best of three format. First up will be Maria Sharapova vs. Caroline Wozniacki, which begins at 7pm on ESPN3.com.  This will be followed by Roger Federer vs. Andy Roddick at 11:30pm on ESPN.

The “Woes” of Wozniacki

Photo courtesy of zimbio.com. Once again Caroline Wozniacki (pictured above) has disappointed at a Grand Slam event. This time, it will result in loss of her number one ranking.

By Josh Kramer

When the next WTA rankings are released, there will be a new world number one in Women’s tennis.  How many of you out there are actually aware of who the current number one player on the WTA tour is?  I am sure for the vast majority of my casual fans; you had to really think about that one.  Well I will give you a hint.  She has been ranked number one for 67 of the past 68 weeks.  That probably did not help.  Here is the giveaway hint.  She is currently dating rising PGA Tour star Rory McIlroy.   I bet every one of my casual fans can name the top four players on the ATP tour in the present though.  Who doesn’t know about the “Fantastic Four?”

As I have said on this blog before, the WTA tour has turned into a Nancy Drew novel.

Weekly Nickel 1-16-2012

Photo courtesy of latimesblogs.latimes.com. Kobe Bryant (pictured above) has shown no signs of aging after putting up 40+ points for a fourth consecutive game on Saturday. Can he lead the Lakers to a victory in Miami on Thursday?

By Josh Kramer

The clock finally struck midnight on “Tebow Time,” or at least for the time being, and the globe is still spinning.  “Lob City” staked their claim to Los Angeles.  And the 49ers won against an outstanding Saints team in a game that will go down as one of the all-time greats.  The past week, or even the past day for that matter, was classic.  This week should be pretty fun in its own right though.  Here are the events to keep an eye on.

5.  Pitchers and catchers start reporting in 33 days (February 18th for a lot of teams).  MLB baseball is just around the corner.  And the Yankees finally broke their silence on Friday in a big way.  Who else is already very excited for the 2012 baseball season?  Keep an eye this week on what happens with marquee available players such as Prince Fielder, Rick Ankiel, and many more.  Will your favorite team pick up the piece they need to make a deep run in October?

4.  Kobe Bryant has now put up 40 or more points four straight games.  So much for the 33-year-old wearing now.  Any chance he will eclipse his nine-straight games of 40 or more points back in 2002/2003?

Australian Open Preview

Photo courtesy of sportige.com. Roger Federer (pictured above) won in Melbourne back in 2007. Could it be deja vu five years later?

By Josh Kramer

Though you may find it hard to believe, the year’s first Grand Slam is set to begin tomorrow.  Doesn’t it feel like we just got done in Flushing?  But I digress.  Both the ATP and WTA Tours are as exciting and unpredictable as ever.  Sure the Women’s tour has turned into a Nancy Drew novel, but who doesn’t like a little unpredictability.  I remember last year at about this time, I was discussing how the “Tourney Down Under” had seriously lost some of its thunder.  You won’t hear me saying that this year.

Here are some questions to ponder as we head into the first Grand Slam of the 2012 season.

-Can Djokovic repeat his memorable run of 2011, or at least remain on top of the tennis world (70 and 6 record, 3 Grand Slams)?

-Will an American on the Men’s side bring the US its first Grand Slam title since 2003?

-Does Federer have a 17th Grand Slam Championship left in him?

-Can a player such as Tsonga, del Potro, or dare I say Mardy Fish break up the “Fantastic Four” party atop Men’s tennis?

-Will Caroline Wozniacki finally break though at a Grand Slam or will a dominant force of some sort emerge in the Women’s game?

-What do the Williams’ sisters have left in the tank?

US Open Preview

Photo courtesy of lawntennis.org. Novak Djokovic (left) and Maria Sharapova (right) are my picks to take home the 4th and final Grand Slam of the year.

By Josh Kramer

All eyes in the tennis world will be focused on the Big Apple starting on Monday.  The year’s fourth and final Grand Slam tournament begins with many question marks.

-Can Djokovic continue his remarkable run?

-Does Federer have another Grand Slam in him?

-Can Mardy Fish bring America it’s first Grand Slam title in eight years?

-Without Clijsters in the  draw, who is the front-runner?

–Can either Williams’ sister regain their old swagger?

-Is Maria Sharapova the best player on the WTA tour?

Djokovic is quite the jokester

Photo courtesy of ontennis.com. In a recent commercial for Head tennis rackets, Novak Djokovic (right) impersonates women's tennis star Maria Sharapova (left).

By Josh Kramer

Novak Djokovic has continued to make good on his number one world ranking as he heads into match play today with an astounding 55 and 1 record on the year.  This record includes a crazy good 31 and 0 clip on hard courts (his US Open chances continue to look better with each victory).

Over the years, many complained about the lack of personality from former number one ranked tennis players like Pete Sampras and Roger Federer (I did not agree with these complaints).  Well have no fear people, the very outgoing and fun personality of Novak Djokovic is here.  Over the years, Djokovic has been known as a “jokester” for his impersonations of other players on the tour and comical interviews.

Well in this recent clip, he continues to live up to the name via a hilarious impersonation of the lovely Maria Sharapova.

Stay tuned for the next edition of TheSportsKraze.

Who Knows Li Na?

Photo courtesy of sporterinfo.blogspot.com.

By Josh Kramer

For those of you who don’t know Li Na, get to know her.  Li Na is a 29-year-old professional women’s tennis player out of China who has been around the block to say the least.  She is defying all logic at this point in her career though.  Most players get worse with age, to a certain degree.  By your late 20s in tennis, especially on the women’s side, you become a dinosaur.  An extinct presence of sorts. 

“Strange Days in Australia”

Great Britain is placing a lot of faith in tennis star Andy Murray's right arm Sunday in Melbourne. Can Murray end Great Britain's over 70 year drought in Grand Slam tennis?

So I wrote about the “Major Down Under” losing some of its thunder last week.  And I am not going against this statement.  But what a weird tournament it has been.  On the women’s side, the finals, semifinals, and quarterfinals were “Williams-Less.”  On the Men’s side, we will miss out on watching Mr. Federer or Mr. Nadal in the finals.  Are we witnessing a change of the guard or are things just strange down under this year?