It looks like no sport is immune from scandal this summer. Officials are investigating a possible betting scandal involving the match between 4th ranked Nikolay Davydenko and 87th ranked Martin Vassallo Arguello in an ATP tournament in Poland. Massive bets were placed for Arguello to win a match in which he entered the huge underdog. No accusations against Davydenko have been made but a British betting company nullified all bets pertaining to that match because of "suspicious betting patterns."
The ATP tour has avoided the substance abuse scandals endured by MLB and the Tour de France by dealing out harsh punishments to the likes of Guillermo Canas who was banned from the tour for a year for violating the policy. However it now looks like Tim Donaghy has some friends on the tennis circuit. Expect officials to be extra-sensitive in this case in light of the NBA's troubles this summer. I personally wouldn't be surprised if Davydenko was involved. He has had a thus-far disappointing season and has had to fight his fair share of injuries. Davydenko has not even made it to the finals of a tournament in 2007, let alone winning a championship. His play since Wimbledon has been downright awful. So perhaps he thought he could make some money on the side by overplaying an injury and throwing the match. Regardless, this does not affect tennis in the same way betting affects other sports. One corrupt player can be kicked out, a bad linesman can be overruled, and an incorrect chair umpire can now be questioned by players. Tennis has a better system of checks and a less subjective system of umpiring that protects the sport well from corruption.
On the women's side of the tour, Maria Sharapova quickly disposed of Sania Mirza, who until this match, had been playing her best tennis of the year. Mirza looked sluggish, hopeless, and lost on the court. She also could not get a serve to fall in. Admired by fans in India, Mirza has done a lot for women's tennis and for sports in India, but she will never amount to anything more on the court. She does not have the skills on her backhand or serve to be successful against a top player such as Sharapova. While Indians and people around the world alike can appreciate what she represents, she does not seem focused enough on tennis to be ranked in the top five.
Maria Sharapova, however, should be doing much more with her 2007. Three disappointing slams and like Davydenko, no tournament victories, should have her plenty motivated for the US Open. But she will have to start elevating her game if she has any chance of salvaging a season that can be considered a step backwards for a player that ought to have one major this year. Even against Mirza, winning 6-2, 6-1, Sharapova looked timid at times. Her serve has been, to say the least, unreliable over the summer and though she does not lack the focus, she seems to lack the mental toughness this season. Now, she's playing with expectations unlike the young woman who had nothing to lose when she won Wimbledon. I liked Sharapova then, but she might be drifting toward the land of Marat Safin, a fellow Russian whose full potential could never be realized because of faulty wiring between the ears.
where to go from here
16 years ago
1 comment:
I agree with your assessment of Mirza. She really needs to improve her serve (particularly her second) to get to the next level. Spinning in 80 mph second serves is just not going to cut it against top flight players like Sharapova.
With respect to Sharapova's game, I have been really impressed with her performance at the Acura Classic. After serving pretty badly in the European tournaments this year, she has made some changes to her motion (to relieve some stress on her ailing shoulder). The new abbreviated motion is "serving" her well. Against Chakvetadze in the semis, she was virtually untouchable. Her first serve was consistently in the 110-115 range. If her shoulder can stay healthy, look for her to make a strong defense of her 2006 U.S. Open title.
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