Here We Go Again

Roger Federer officially announced his retirement from competitive tennis yesterday, just before I left for work. It came as a surprise to nobody, really. He hasn't been truly competitive since the Wimbledon final of 2019, when he somehow managed to lose to Djokovic, despite playing better tennis for five sets and not having his serve broken until he was serving for the match. (And every tennis pundit I've heard speak about it agrees that if the rules hadn't changed that year to introduce a final set tie-break instead of playing it out, Roger would probably have won.) He's had three knee surgeries over the last few years and they haven't worked as well as he hoped. Earlier this year, when Roger announced he'd play doubles with Rafa in the Laver cup, Catherine Whitaker of the Tennis Podcast said, 'This is it. This will be Roger's goodbye. He doesn't want the last professional match he played to be losing a 6-0 set at Wimbledon when he hobbled off the court.'

So no surprise. And yet everyone's still sad to hear it.

I've written before in this journal about how much Roger Federer's playing meant to me, only of course now I can't find it, because apparently I didn't tag it. But I grew up obsessively watching Wimbledon with my dad and my sister on TV (the first one I really remember is the 1981 final when McEnroe beat Borg) and then I went to college and the era of Sampras came along, when Wimbledon became a serving fest and the rallies died. I lost interest. I watched Henman play sometimes, because I was English, and I thought Agassi was fun, but I wasn't an obsessive any more.

Seeing Roger Federer play gave me the love back. He made rallies where there shouldn't have been any, because he got to the balls that so many players wouldn't have reached. And while it was FAR from effortless, he made it look easy because he was so damn graceful about it. I fell in love with Federer, and with tennis again. And then of course his rivalry with Rafa was amazing - for a few years there they played each other in grand slam final after final - so different in style and both so brilliant. And unlike the era of Connors/McEnroe/Lendl, they didn't hate each other for their rivalry - they were delighted by it, and by each other.

Here's what Rafa said yesterday after Roger's announcement.

'Dear Roger, my friend and rival, I wish this day would never have come. It's been a pleasure but also an honour and privilege to share all these years with you, living so many amazing moments on and off the court.

We will have many more moments to share together in the future, there are still lots of things to do together, we know that. For now, I truly wish you all the happiness with your wife, Mirka, your kids, your family and enjoy what’s ahead of you. I’ll see you in London at the Laver Cup.'

I cried reading that yesterday at lunchtime. I cried this morning listening to the special tennis podcast on Roger's retirement. I'm crying again now typing this. I've been an obsessive all my life - I've had crushes, adoration for actors, singers, TV shows, films, for decades. But I've never cried over a stranger I've never met like Roger has made me cry over the years. I cried when he won, I cried when he lost, I cried when he cried, and he always showed how he felt. And now I've got a headache from all the crying...

Coming just weeks after Serena's retirement, tennis has lost two absolute titans of the game in quick succession. (And I'll admit, although Serena was undoubtedly the better player, personally I always preferred Venus. Her huge smile and absolute joy when she won were SO infectious.) But tennis will go on without them, and I don't think I'll lose the love again. Carlos Alcaraz, who's made his massive breakthrough this year at just 19, unquestionably has something of the Federer play style about him. He too makes it look easy while he does the impossible. And Francis Tiafoe, who I had given very little thought to until a couple of weeks ago, definitely won my heart at this US Open - so much fight, so much spirit and joy he showed, and like the Williams sisters, he grew up with none of the advantages of many of his middle class tour rivals. Tennis has me for good this time.

But I'm unlikely to love any of them like I love Federer. Nadal now has more grand slam titles than Roger, and both Nadal and Djokovic have a winning record against him. But as one of the tennis podcasters said in that broadcast, being the greatest isn't about numbers, it's about how you feel. And nobody else makes me feel like it feels watching Roger play.

So Roger Federer won his eighth Wimbledon title without ever dropping a set, matching Nadal's romp through the French last month. I guess he just had a point to make. It was certainly the easiest Wimbledon final he's played in a very long time. I love the attitude he's taking this year, though, saying screw the world rankings and all that crap, he's just going to play tennis when he wants to, and when he wants to, he wins. Why the hell not?

I did feel sorry for Venus yesterday, I wanted her to win. I remember watching when she first won Wimbledon, just turned twenty, and she bounced around with practically the world's biggest smile; she was adorable. It would have meant the world to her to win again after all the issues she's had with illness, but I guess it meant too much, because after she lost that tight first set, her game just collapsed. Sad to see, but she was so gracious in her interview afterwards, and big smiles again talking about her sister.

I know they'll both have to stop being major competitors some time in the next few years, but meanwhile they're amazing to watch.

So Tatiana Maslany finally got her Emmy for Orphan Black. It only took three years of campaigning by geeks to get her nominated, and then another year to get her the amazingly well-deserved win. While the show can be patchy, there's no doubting the talent of the actress who landed and nailed the most challenging role on television. Good for her.

I haven't heard a thing from my f-list about Black Sails, and why not? You are clearly all failing me as scouts, people! I watched the first (very short) series and really enjoyed it for it's fast-moving, twisty plot. I'm now half way through the second series, and it's still brutal and fast and throwing plot about-turns with every episode, but OMG, the canon ships in this series are fucking EPIC. We have TWO crazy, complex three-ways on offer, and I am adoring both of them. There has never been such a series for canon OT3s :-)

The cut scene from X-Men: First Class where Charles visualises Erik in drag finally made it onto teh interwebs. It's at the 3.55 mark in an otherwise fairly routine Japanese promo for the DVD release.

( Behind a cut because I hate it when stuff on my f-list wants to autoplay. )

As stolen from solo____

Name your 10 absolutely favorite couples (het/slash/canon/fanon) and ask people to see what trends they notice about your couples. Try to pick different fandoms.

( Only 10? Damn, this could be painful!) )

Eddie Izzard is fabulous! But you all already knew that :-) He's witty, brilliant, energetic, and probably smarter than most of the people in any audience. (There's one thing he can't do though, and that's a Brummie accent without it drifting into Scouse. But that's okay, since he admitted it himself :-) )

One thing last night confirmed was that there's no such thing as a typical Eddie fan. Everyone was there from teenagers to the grey hair and glasses brigade, tats and piercings to little flowery dresses.

Oh, wait, no - they're all Democrats. And atheists. Probably. Since half the show was Eddie taking the piss out of the concept of religion in general and the Bible in particular. Just when I thought I couldn't get to like him more XD

Good Omens artwork for fans!

EDIT: Hmmm, my banner's disappeared. Where did my hot guys go? ::sniff:: Since I haven't been fiddling, I'm going to assume it's LJ's fault and they'll be back later.

OK, I know I'm behind here, and after more than one friend gave me the tip-off long ago about the book, but... yeah. I watched ep 1 of Dexter in a constant state of glee, and I waited to watch ep 2 to be sure, and, oh yeah! A twisted comedy about a psychopath? Who kills other psychopaths? I'm right there, guys! Why isn't everyone watching this series?

The important bit of yesterday's madness - the fillum! (Okay, margaritas and friends are important too XD)

( Non-spoilery general witterings )











( More detail, spoilers within )