2014 Australian Open

Don Wassall

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Third seed Maria Sharapova barely survived the second round, beating an unseeded Italian with the rather un-Italian name of Karin Knapp in three sets in blistering 107 degree heat. The third set went to 10-8.

Venus Williams was dispatched in the first round. She's long been a shell of her former self, but unfortunately younger sister Brutus is still going strong.
 

foobar75

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Third seed Maria Sharapova barely survived the second round, beating an unseeded Italian with the rather un-Italian name of Karin Knapp in three sets in blistering 107 degree heat. The third set went to 10-8.

Venus Williams was dispatched in the first round. She's long been a shell of her former self, but unfortunately younger sister Brutus is still going strong.

I recall the BSPN headline that Venus had been "upset" in the first round. An unseeded player, 2nd oldest in the tournament, losing to a younger, seeded player is somehow an upset. It's a ludicrous thing to say the least. As for our favorite linebacker, maybe this brutal heatwave will be her undoing, as one of the others wears her out in a 3-set match.

Regarding Karin Knapp, I believe she hails from the Sudtirol region in northern Italy. This autonomous province borders Germany and Austria, and the majority of its population speaks German and is of Austrian/Bavarian descent. I had no idea about this until I started to follow Alpine skiing some years ago and there were so many Italian skiers with German names. Turns out, they all hail from there, and while all these athletes compete under the Italian flag, they have nothing else in common with the rest of the country.
 

whiteathlete33

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Third seed Maria Sharapova barely survived the second round, beating an unseeded Italian with the rather un-Italian name of Karin Knapp in three sets in blistering 107 degree heat. The third set went to 10-8.

Venus Williams was dispatched in the first round. She's long been a shell of her former self, but unfortunately younger sister Brutus is still going strong.

Serena Williams body is so sloppy it's disgusting. True, her upper body is muscular but she has tons of fat on her thighs and looks disgusting. How she can perform so well is beyond me. Maybe she really is taking some PED's. I'm hoping she doesn't break Grafs' records.
 

referendum

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Yeah, the South Tyrol had been part of the Austro-Hungarian empire but was given to Italy after WW 1, to give Italy a border at the Brenner Pass IIRC. Hitler didn't add South Tyrol to his wish list of territorial changes even after Germany had annexed Austria because it was more important for Germany to keep good relations with Mussolini's Italy.
 

foobar75

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Yeah, the South Tyrol had been part of the Austro-Hungarian empire but was given to Italy after WW 1, to give Italy a border at the Brenner Pass IIRC. Hitler didn't add South Tyrol to his wish list of territorial changes even after Germany had annexed Austria because it was more important for Germany to keep good relations with Mussolini's Italy.

Referendum, thank you for explaining this in historical context. That was going to be my next step, to study why Sudtirol is not presently part of Austria or Germany, and you explained it perfectly.

It's my understanding based what I read a couple of years ago that the province enjoys a wide degree of autonomy in all their affairs and happens to be one of the most prosperous regions in all of Europe (and all that without any benefits from cultural enrichers or other wonders of diversity, imagine that).

I have to say, whether it is sports, politics, history, economy, or pretty much any other subject, we have the best of the best right here in Caste Football. I've been the beneficiary of this from the first day I joined.
 

FootballDad

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A picture of our favorite linebacker from the Open today for people here who want to be grossed out....

b1ac5700-d62d-3b1b-a4dc-0b394abd8bbc
 

foobar75

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Look at those forearms, triceps, shoulders. We have often mentioned those massive legs as well. She must be at least 175-180lbs on that 5'9 frame.

It's a disgrace that this abomination has been allowed to play amongst normal women and more often than not dominate. In an ideal world where PED cheaters are caught, Serena would've washed out just like her sister 3-4 years ago. Instead, between the ages of 28-32 when most players (male or female) start to break down, she has won 8 GSs, half of her total. It's plainly obvious that she's cheating.

Venus, who I believe is clean, has only won 7 GSs, 5 at Wimbledon. All were won in her prime years of early to mid 20s, except a last gasp effort in 2008 when she won Wimbledon one last time. Since then, she's been a non-factor due to injuries, illness, and simply a decline of skills which is normal. And yet we are to believe Serena is at her absolute prime and going strong at the age of 32.
 

Matra2

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Regarding Karin Knapp, I believe she hails from the Sudtirol region in northern Italy. This autonomous province borders Germany and Austria, and the majority of its population speaks German and is of Austrian/Bavarian descent. I had no idea about this until I started to follow Alpine skiing some years ago and there were so many Italian skiers with German names. Turns out, they all hail from there, and while all these athletes compete under the Italian flag, they have nothing else in common with the rest of the country.

The other day when Andreas Seppi defeated Lleyton Hewitt he was interviewed by Jim Courier on the court. Courier said to him that he doesn't seem very Italian - he's blonde and very calm. Seppi replied that he comes from the north of Italy where, as he put it, they are not like the rest of Italy. When I visited Italy 5 years ago a hotel receptionist I was speaking to said "northerners are not Italians, they're Germans". I don't think he meant it as a compliment. Of course many northern Italians call southerners "Africans". Definitely not a compliment!
 

Don Wassall

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The lovely Anna Ivanovic played a very strong match in beating the high testosterone Aussie Sam Stosur and advances to the round of 16 where she will attempt to defeat Brutus Williams for the first time in her career. Anna is the 14th seed.
 

Shadowlight

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The pretty ladies of tennis

The lovely Anna Ivanovic played a very strong match in beating the high testosterone Aussie Sam Stosur and advances to the round of 16 where she will attempt to defeat Brutus Williams for the first time in her career. Anna is the 14th seed.

Yes Ivanovic is gorgeous and it would be great if she could knock off the best linebacker left in the NFL playoffs. Another player still alive I like is Agnieszka Radwanska and she has a younger sister/player who is even cuter. And of course Maria Sharapova always looks beautiful and she is still in it after surviving a brutal heat match two rounds ago. Other pretty girls out of the tournament include the world famous fashion model type Daniela Hantuchova and Maria Kirilenko who never made it to Australian due to an injury. A new very cute young lady who made a lot of noise at the US Open is Camila Giorgi. I love her and the ways she plays but she has a ways to go and is a bit contoversial because of her flamboyant dad. A strange back story. She has an Italian name and is from Argentina but reports say she is Jewish heritage. She has it all the looks and the flash. Only time will tell.
One other side note, I am no fan of Dan Fowler.
 

Matra2

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Yes Ivanovic is gorgeous and it would be great if she could knock off the best linebacker left in the NFL playoffs. Another player still alive I like is Agnieszka Radwanska and she has a younger sister/player who is even cuter. And of course Maria Sharapova always looks beautiful and she is still in it after surviving a brutal heat match two rounds ago. Other pretty girls out of the tournament include the world famous fashion model type Daniela Hantuchova and Maria Kirilenko who never made it to Australian due to an injury. A new very cute young lady who made a lot of noise at the US Open is Camila Giorgi. I love her and the ways she plays but she has a ways to go and is a bit contoversial because of her flamboyant dad. A strange back story. She has an Italian name and is from Argentina but reports say she is Jewish heritage. She has it all the looks and the flash. Only time will tell.
One other side note, I am no fan of Dan Fowler.

Chris Fowler?

Giorgi was very impressive at last year's US Open. The most interesting up and comer in the women's game is Canadian teenager Eugenie Bouchard.

On a downer Rafa's coach Uncle Tony has described Gael Monfils as the greatest athlete in any sport on earth.:icon_rolleyes:
 

Shadowlight

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Chris Fowler?

Giorgi was very impressive at last year's US Open. The most interesting up and comer in the women's game is Canadian teenager Eugenie Bouchard.

On a downer Rafa's coach Uncle Tony has described Gael Monfils as the greatest athlete in any sport on earth.:icon_rolleyes:

Yes I am sorry about that Chris Fowler who has a man crush on Gael Monfils. Bouchard is for sure one to watch.
 

Quiet Speed

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I was watching an entertaining match last night between Caroline Wozniacki and Garbine Muguruza from Spain. Was just too tired and fell asleep at the beginning of the 3rd set. Muguruza took the final set to win. Muguruza is going to be a top ten player one day and that is setting the bar on the low side. Tall girl with good coordination and can fire bullets.


muguruza4.jpg
 

Don Wassall

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Yes I am sorry about that Chris Fowler who has a man crush on Gael Monfils. Bouchard is for sure one to watch.

Monfils, the world's greatest afflete, won all of 6 games total against Nadal.

The female broadcasters are as bad or worse than mangina Fowler in automatically bringing up the "A" word as soon as one of the few black players in the tournament is mentioned. Tsonga and especially Sloane Stephens get the treatment ad nauseum. Brad Gilbert gives Stephens a good chance of knocking off Azarenka. Hopefully Victoria will take her in straight sets. And of course Brutus Williams gets the Tiger Woods treatment, being talked about constantly even when she isn't playing.
 

foobar75

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I watched the first set of the Nadal-Monfils match before hitting the sack, and one thing became very obvious to me.

When someone like Nadal plays a world class athlete like Monfils, he needs a carefully crafted strategy to win the match. It starts with playing smart tennis and getting the most out of his limited skill-set. Add the deceptively deadly topspin of this forehand and sneaky first serve, and he gives himself a great chance at winning. Last, but certainly not least, is the lunch pail that Nadal brings to each match. He uses it during breaks to supply his body with the necessary energy and nourishment to ensure he doesn't get run out the court by a naturally gifted athletic specimen like Monfils.
 

Matra2

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Praise to the Gods!!

The lovely and talented Ana Ivanovic knocks out Serena Williams.:clap2: Possibly Ana's best performance since winning the French 5 or 6 years ago.
 

Quiet Speed

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Praise to the Gods!!

The lovely and talented Ana Ivanovic knocks out Serena Williams.:clap2: Possibly Ana's best performance since winning the French 5 or 6 years ago.

Wow! Thanks for the news.
 

Matra2

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Had Serena won this tournament she would've tied Chris Evert and Mantina Navratilova with 18 majors. Steffi Graf has 22 and the controversial (she's against gay rights) Margaret Court has the most with 24. Almost everyone just assumes Serena is going to surpass all of them. I agree she'll catch Evert/Navratilova but I getting to Graf's 22 isn't going to be easy given her age. If she does get more than Court we'll never hear the end of it.
 

Don Wassall

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It was awesome to watch! Ana won 4-6 6-3 6-3. Her return of Brutus' serve was off the charts good, with the announcers declaring that no one has ever jumped on Williams' serve, her best weapon, that effectively. Ana was also superior in baseline rallies, having more winners than Williams by a factor of about 3.

I missed the first set that Ana lost, but she was dominant in the final two sets. Brutus missed lots of backhands and looked a step slow. At her weight it's amazing she can run at all. Maybe this will be the year she starts to slow down, though she had won 25 straight matches before this one.

I checked and Ana won the 2008 French Open for her only major title, the same year she was ranked number one. She has to be considered the co-favorite with Azarenka now.
 

Don Wassall

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Had Serena won this tournament she would've tied Chris Evert and Mantina Navratilova with 18 majors. Steffi Graf has 22 and the controversial (she's against gay rights) Margaret Court has the most with 24. Almost everyone just assumes Serena is going to surpass all of them. I agree she'll catch Evert/Navratilova but I getting to Graf's 22 isn't going to be easy given her age. If she does get more than Court we'll never hear the end of it.

Every time Williams doesn't win a major it's equivalent to Tiger Woods not winning one in golf. Long live the marks of Jack Nicklaus and Margaret Court.
 

jaxvid

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Here's a shocker....

"Williams later admitted she'd been bothered by a back problem in practice in recent days and considered pulling out of the tournament."

Her excuse making is pathetic. She's never lost without complaining about some injury afterwards. It has to be a running joke with the reporters covering tennis.
 

foobar75

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What makes it extra sweet is that she got beat by one of the most feminine players on tour, not by a Li Na or Stosur, whom Ana had beaten in the previous round. Truly a caste match-up in every sense.
 

GiovaniMarcon

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Here's a shocker....

"Williams later admitted she'd been bothered by a back problem in practice in recent days and considered pulling out of the tournament."

Her excuse making is pathetic. She's never lost without complaining about some injury afterwards. It has to be a running joke with the reporters covering tennis.

^
This.

So many Black people seem to lack the basic, mature ability to be gracious when they are defeated (and Blacks, as we all know, are defeated REALLY often).

Such a simple commonplace as, "Nice game. This time the better man/woman won, look out next time though because we'll do this again!" is utterly foreign to Blacks, who are in many cases nothing but spoiled children.

The trouble is, rather than ridicule ungracious, childish behavior so that it can rightfully be seen as the trash that it is, Blacks are encouraged by corporate vaginas in the media to keep up this asinine attitude.

It's the same reason why no one ever really learns sh*t in public school anymore. The teacher can never just call a spade a spade, or teach a subject like it's supposed to be taught. Everything is pussyfooting around and making sure to coddle the delicate feelings of these friggin' 'tards.

If a kid is acting like an ass or needs to shape up, no one is doing him or her any favors by telling him, "good job! It's not your fault! It's your circumstances, it's racism, it's the White man..."

—years of that crap in American society and we have people like the Williams sisters. If they were more ladylike in their demeanor—and by ladylike, I don't mean demure, Victorian types, but just not the stupid, skank ghetto b*tches they act like now—they'd be easier to root for DESPITE being Black.

I don't mind appreciating Black athletes as long as they are skilled and comport themselves well. If they act ghetto, then they can go f**k themselves.

Same goes for White athletes.
 

PamelaOC

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Watching from a hotel in Dallas. When Ana beat The Masculine One I jumped up and cheered. Probably a little too loudly. She was fast, agile, and light on her feet. Ana really showed the natural athleticism of the white race. It's no wonder we win the vast majority of medals at the Olympics. DWFs, poor babies, don't cry too hard for your beloved Saint Serena. One of your quotablacks will win tomorrow!
 
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