Dementieva announces retirement
wen...@cix.compulink.co.uk
and Dementieva announced her retirement amid much emotion from players,
fans, family, et al. Lots of thank yous and hugging.
I'm really sorry to see her go; she was always enormous fun to watch, and
on her day she could challenge everyone. The tour will be (even) poorer
without her.
wg
Trevor Smithson
That's too bad, she's been one of my favorites on the women's side. Made some irrational picks of
her in Hops' contests.
Inglourious Basterd
MBDunc
Dementieva is probably in top3 of those who never won a slam.
With a proper serve...
.mikko
Javier González
With a proper serve, all those meltdown maiden slam winners wouldn't
have had a chance.
:(
Yama
: At the end of the Schiavone match they stayed on court for a presentation,
Nooo...I sorta picked up some hints before the tournament, but didn't really think
it would come just like that. But of course she did not want drawn out farewell
tours and huge, awkward ceremonies. It dawned me when she didn't leave after the match,
and announcers were talking about some special events, that gosh, she might actually
do it...
Well, good luck for her. There are rumours she plans to get married...but for WTA,
this is a terrible blow. She was top-10 stalwart and was involved in more
classic matches than probably any other 2000's WTA player.
Oh well, Clijsters-Zvonareva next. Show must go on...
*sob*
TT
WTA just became much less attractive.
--
"I am no more a witch than you are a wizard, and if you take away my
life God will give you blood to drink"
-Sarah Good, 1692
Yama
: this news means nothing to me.
Yeah, it was a funny quality Dementieva had going for her -
she only appeals to tennis fans.
TT
Touché
yolanda
Bummer! I didn't see that coming. Too bad. She was always fun to watch.
Such a great athlete.
Manuel aka Xax
Yep.
So sad she didn't get at least a slam.
Would have deserved it much more than (too) many of her wta era
rivals.
Glad she got the Olympic Gold.
What a surprise, anyway.
Going for her 10th master, knowing it would be her last tournament...
I just can't figure out at the moment a better way to retire.
A class act, once again, not having any leak about her decision.
One last thing I liked about her: she wasn't a court diva.
Was prettier in "real life" than on court, having her hairs untied,
for exemple.
Given her love for France (she does speak french a way that might put
some french footballers to shame), hope we'll have a chance to see her
at the french, working for some tv or for her own leisure.
Clever & humble.
Definetly what the wta has been missing the most for years.
wen...@cix.compulink.co.uk
wrote:
>
> Well, good luck for her. There are rumours she plans to get
> married...but for WTA,
> this is a terrible blow. She was top-10 stalwart and was involved
> in more
> classic matches than probably any other 2000's WTA player.
Yes, there are those rumors. She's 29, and I imagine it's getting harder
to recover from injury, etc.
I'm glad she got her gold medal, at least.
wg
Calimero
Demented!
Somehow a poor man's Steffi (blonde, great legs, classy woman) ...
Mach's gut, Elena!
Max
ca1houn
Very sad i was able to take a picture with her very nice, unlike that
dirty bitch Maria who ran from the fans.
Yama
: I'm glad she got her gold medal, at least.
Yeah, that was for her probably better than a Grand Slam. She was so so happy when
she won the silver medal in Sydney...and then she topped that at Beijing. And
Beijing had a strong field.
Scott
she lost the USO's best match to the losing finalist. now she's
retiring?
Connors is probably pissed of by this.
Patrick Kehoe
Tremendous work ethic... always in top physical shape... battled
valiantly against yippy toss while saddled with odd serving
mechanics... fought on every point to the end of a match... wonderful
spirit and sporting character... possessed great ground strokes and
driving defensive coverage at the back of the court... certainly is a
beautiful woman as well, so aesthetically speaking, the WTA loses that
as well... wonderful that she was able to capture an Olympic gold,
even though she missed out on a win in a major final... all in all a
top flight career for a classy lady...
P
TT
I'm sure she wouldn't change her Olympic gold to a slam title.
TT
What's there to achieve?
She won Olympic Gold, no point staying on tour and trying to win a slam
- wouldn't change her historical status at all.
Raja, The Great
> Scott wrote:
> > On Oct 29, 2:21 pm, Yama <tj...@NOSPAMpajuoulu.fi> wrote:
> >> wen...@cix.compulink.co.uk wrote:
>
> >> : I'm glad she got her gold medal, at least.
>
> >> Yeah, that was for her probably better than a Grand Slam. She was so so happy when
> >> she won the silver medal in Sydney...and then she topped that at Beijing. And
> >> Beijing had a strong field.
>
> > she lost the USO's best match to the losing finalist. now she's
> > retiring?
>
> What's there to achieve?
>
> She won Olympic Gold, no point staying on tour and trying to win a slam
> - wouldn't change her historical status at all.
She was lucky to play in an era where she could reach slam finals and
win OG with that hilarious serve.
Viper
Shame, with those physical attributes she should have achieved much
more. Unfortunately, mental fragility x ineffective serve = problems.
Should have taken 6 months off, hired a westerner and developed a serve
worthy of her height and athleticism
Viper
Patrick Kehoe
> Patrick Kehoe wrote:
> > On Oct 29, 9:01 am, wen...@cix.compulink.co.uk wrote:
> >> At the end of the Schiavone match they stayed on court for a presentation,
> >> and Dementieva announced her retirement amid much emotion from players,
> >> fans, family, et al. Lots of thank yous and hugging.
>
> >> I'm really sorry to see her go; she was always enormous fun to watch, and
> >> on her day she could challenge everyone. The tour will be (even) poorer
> >> without her.
>
> >> wg
>
> > Tremendous work ethic... always in top physical shape... battled
> > valiantly against yippy toss while saddled with odd serving
> > mechanics... fought on every point to the end of a match... wonderful
> > spirit and sporting character... possessed great ground strokes and
> > driving defensive coverage at the back of the court... certainly is a
> > beautiful woman as well, so aesthetically speaking, the WTA loses that
> > as well... wonderful that she was able to capture an Olympic gold,
> > even though she missed out on a win in a major final... all in all a
> > top flight career for a classy lady...
>
> > P
>
> I'm sure she wouldn't change her Olympic gold to a slam title.
????????? oohhhkkkkkkk...
P
Inglourious Basterd
> Inglourious Basterd <thetruetennisg...@hotmail.co.uk> wrote:
>
> : this news means nothing to me.
>
> Yeah, it was a funny quality Dementieva had going for her -
> she only appeals to tennis fans.
I am no big fan of women's tennis, it's true. Among the women of the
past decade Dementieva is to my mind a nonentity.
Yama
: > I'm sure she wouldn't change her Olympic gold to a slam title.
: ????????? oohhhkkkkkkk...
She would not. Olympics are pinnacle of sports achievment in Russia. Almost nobody
there cares about pro tennis, but they do care about the Olympics. That's when
rise of Russian tennis began - when tennis became Olympic sport.
Besides, even from tennis legacy standpoint...lots of Slam winners out there. Much
fewer Olympic gold medalists.
Ted S.
> Should have taken 6 months off, hired a westerner and developed a serve
> worthy of her height and athleticism
Of course, she already tried Krajicek for her serve.
--
Ted Schuerzinger
tedstennis at myrealbox dot com
If you're afraid of the ball, don't sit in the front row. --Anastasia
Rodionova
Viper
> On Sat, 30 Oct 2010 09:28:42 +1100, Viper wrote:
>
>> Should have taken 6 months off, hired a westerner and developed a serve
>> worthy of her height and athleticism
>
> Of course, she already tried Krajicek for her serve.
>
A Dutchmen is fine if you want advice on cheese or land reclamation, but
for her serve she would have been smart to employ someone like John
Newcombe or Darren Cahill
Viper
Ted S.
>> Of course, she already tried Krajicek for her serve.
>>
>
> A Dutchmen is fine if you want advice on cheese or land reclamation, but
> for her serve she would have been smart to employ someone like John
> Newcombe or Darren Cahill
Said Dutchman won Wimbledon back in the serve-and-serve era.
Calimero
Yes, we all fondly remember how Cahill served his way to a Wimbledon
title.
Oh, wait ...
Max
Scott
> Scott wrote:
> > On Oct 29, 2:21 pm, Yama <tj...@NOSPAMpajuoulu.fi> wrote:
> >> wen...@cix.compulink.co.uk wrote:
>
> >> : I'm glad she got her gold medal, at least.
>
> >> Yeah, that was for her probably better than a Grand Slam. She was so so happy when
> >> she won the silver medal in Sydney...and then she topped that at Beijing. And
> >> Beijing had a strong field.
>
> > she lost the USO's best match to the losing finalist. now she's
> > retiring?
>
> What's there to achieve?
>
> She won Olympic Gold, no point staying on tour and trying to win a slam
> - wouldn't change her historical status at all.
>
Superdave
Elena put Maria to shame in sooooooo many ways Paki !
Fan
The only rational explanation would be if she planned to marry and
start a family. Is there a boyfriend?
She will soon be back if she just retired because she wanted to do
other things besides having a family. That would be stupid just as the
Henin retirement.
Laurent
<wen...@cix.compulink.co.uk> a écrit dans le message de news:
pvidnQWger14clfR...@giganews.com...
> At the end of the Schiavone match they stayed on court for a presentation,
> and Dementieva announced her retirement amid much emotion from players,
> fans, family, et al. Lots of thank yous and hugging.
>
> I'm really sorry to see her go; she was always enormous fun to watch, and
> on her day she could challenge everyone. The tour will be (even) poorer
> without her.
>
> wg
I totally agree. It was an emotional announcement. We will miss her.
Back in February, she was the one who spoke -in a perfect French language-
on behalf of all the players at Amélie Mauresmo's retirement ceremony in
Paris.
And now she retires.
One of the best player ever not to have won a slam.
Sakari Lund
<tj...@NOSPAMpajuoulu.fi> wrote:
>wen...@cix.compulink.co.uk wrote:
>: At the end of the Schiavone match they stayed on court for a presentation,
>: and Dementieva announced her retirement amid much emotion from players,
>: fans, family, et al. Lots of thank yous and hugging.
>
>: I'm really sorry to see her go; she was always enormous fun to watch, and
>: on her day she could challenge everyone. The tour will be (even) poorer
>: without her.
>
>Nooo...I sorta picked up some hints before the tournament, but didn't really think
>it would come just like that. But of course she did not want drawn out farewell
>tours and huge, awkward ceremonies. It dawned me when she didn't leave after the match,
>and announcers were talking about some special events, that gosh, she might actually
>do it...
Geez... This come totally out of nowhere to me. She never was one of
my favourites, for some reason (these things are largely
irrational...), but she has been one of top players for such a long
time and always seemed as such a nice person that she will definitely
be missed.
Just watched the announcement from the WTA site. Very emotional.
Yama
: Re: Dementieva announces retirement
: The only rational explanation would be if she planned to marry and
: start a family. Is there a boyfriend?
She has been dating Maxim Afinogenov, Russian hockey player, for quite
some time now...
Yama
Hingis, Seles, Maggie, Hingis again, Myskina...and now Dementieva. I've still been watching,
but Elena was the last player who got me emotionally involved.
Well, there is Na Li, she is sorta semi-favourite. Her going for broke-style is so insane one
has to like it. Or maybe I will start rooting for Kuznetsova. At least she doesn't have the Slam
monkey. I can always root for Kimiko, but she is more like a nostalgy act, like Hulk Hogan or
Michael Schumacher...
Oh well, someone will come along sooner or later, I guess.... :/
wen...@cix.compulink.co.uk
<f9439b06-a4b4-4d1e...@30g2000yql.googlegroups.com>,
>
> She was lucky to play in an era where she could reach slam finals
> and
> win OG with that hilarious serve.
Her serve was, much of the time, more effective than it looked (I asked
several players about returning that slice, and they said it was
surprisingly tough). And she developed, as Wertheim said, the best
return-of-return-of-serve in the history of the game - she backed up her
serve far more effectively than, say, Stosur does a lot of the time.
wg
wen...@cix.compulink.co.uk
>
> Shame, with those physical attributes she should have achieved much
> more. Unfortunately, mental fragility x ineffective serve =
> problems.
>
> Should have taken 6 months off, hired a westerner and developed a
> serve worthy of her height and athleticism
She did hire Krajicek.
wg
Pelle Svanslös
> In article
> <f9439b06-a4b4-4d1e...@30g2000yql.googlegroups.com>,
> zepf...@yahoo.com (Raja, The Great) wrote:
>
>> She was lucky to play in an era where she could reach slam finals
>> and
>> win OG with that hilarious serve.
>
> Her serve was, much of the time, more effective than it looked (I asked
> several players about returning that slice, and they said it was
> surprisingly tough).
Well, try reading this serve
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YT714mG17bA&feature=related
--
"Another opponent, exhausted and thin!
Is bludgeoned to death by endurance and spin."
-- Anonymous
Sakari Lund
wrote:
>wen...@cix.compulink.co.uk wrote:
>> In article
>> <f9439b06-a4b4-4d1e...@30g2000yql.googlegroups.com>,
>> zepf...@yahoo.com (Raja, The Great) wrote:
>>
>>> She was lucky to play in an era where she could reach slam finals
>>> and
>>> win OG with that hilarious serve.
>>
>> Her serve was, much of the time, more effective than it looked (I asked
>> several players about returning that slice, and they said it was
>> surprisingly tough).
>
>Well, try reading this serve
>
>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YT714mG17bA&feature=related
lol. I don't want to know how did you find that... But as someone
commented, he actually ends up hitting the serve pretty well.
Pelle Svanslös
> On Sun, 31 Oct 2010 00:45:20 +0200, Pelle Svanslös <pe...@svans.los>
> wrote:
>
>> wen...@cix.compulink.co.uk wrote:
>>> In article
>>> <f9439b06-a4b4-4d1e...@30g2000yql.googlegroups.com>,
>>> zepf...@yahoo.com (Raja, The Great) wrote:
>>>
>>>> She was lucky to play in an era where she could reach slam finals
>>>> and
>>>> win OG with that hilarious serve.
>>> Her serve was, much of the time, more effective than it looked (I asked
>>> several players about returning that slice, and they said it was
>>> surprisingly tough).
>> Well, try reading this serve
>>
>> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YT714mG17bA&feature=related
>
> lol. I don't want to know how did you find that...
Er, let's just not talk about that.
Scott
what's wrong with Caroline Big Smile?
Ted S.
> lol. I don't want to know how did you find that... But as someone
> commented, he actually ends up hitting the serve pretty well.
Considering he heads back to the baseline and seems to be taking out the
second ball, I don't think he could have hit the serve too well.
Ted S.
> She did hire Krajicek.
Didn't somebody say that already? :-p
Actually, I had forgotten that Viper is an Aussie chauvinist, which is
why he pooh-poohed the hiring of Krajieck.
Yama
She's ok, but doesn't really click for me. I can understand why her game works, and
respect that (instead of calling her 'Pushniacki' like all the idiots), but she is just
so one-dimensional. Sure, Dementieva is one-dimensional too, but she's exciting.
Scott
i think Stosur is the most exciting gal on tour. i loved her match
with Dementieva in the USO. Stosur was coming in on some of the most
crucial moments in the match. it was great to see.
Yama
: Her serve was, much of the time, more effective than it looked (I asked
: surprisingly tough). And she developed, as Wertheim said, the best
: return-of-return-of-serve in the history of the game - she backed up her
: serve far more effectively than, say, Stosur does a lot of the time.
Dementieva reworked her serve several times...she got rid of the hilarious
slice thing, which as said wasn't easy to tee off, but produced way way too
many double faults. She then developed more of a "regular serve" which worked OK.
She won Olympic gold with that, double-faulting just three times in 3-set final.
Her first serve become actually a decent, regular top 20 serve during that period.
Last one was which I commented in other thread, bizarre wavey thing service motion.
I suspect she had some timing issues, she was probably rushing her serve.
Someone told her to add an extra motion to get the timing right. Quick & dirty solution,
but as she was retiring, no point taking months to rework the whole thing.
Her serving woes were somewhat exaggarated, though no doubt they cost her matches.
Her volleys were actually a bigger problem...they were pretty bad (somewhat incredible
that she made two doubles Slam finals). Another, more generic problem was her
somewhat poor timing...she would often hit the balls pretty late. This sometimes
reduced the effectiveness of her otherwise awesome ground strokes, esp. her backhand.
Ka
Same here. But not Na Li, not her tattoo, and not Kuznetzova either,
not someone who looks like a truck driver x_x
Viper
> On Sat, 30 Oct 2010 12:51:51 +1100, Viper wrote:
>
>>> Of course, she already tried Krajicek for her serve.
>>>
>>
>> A Dutchmen is fine if you want advice on cheese or land reclamation, but
>> for her serve she would have been smart to employ someone like John
>> Newcombe or Darren Cahill
>
> Said Dutchman won Wimbledon back in the serve-and-serve era.
>
Said Dutchman could have won a whole GS but that doesn't translate to
being an effective coach. How the fuck could you assume that he is? The
awful mechanical process that is Dementieva's serve doesn't reflect well
on good old Richard, does it Teddy?
Viper
Viper
Another hamster that thinks being a GS winner translates to being a good
coach......fuck you have to wonder
Viper
Viper
> On Sat, 30 Oct 2010 17:25:46 -0500, wen...@cix.compulink.co.uk wrote:
>
>> She did hire Krajicek.
>
> Didn't somebody say that already? :-p
>
> Actually, I had forgotten that Viper is an Aussie chauvinist, which is
> why he pooh-poohed the hiring of Krajieck.
>
No, you new age soft cock, that's not why he 'poo pooed' Dicky boy.
'Poo pooed'? Are you in fact a male?
Viper
Ted S.
> 'Poo pooed'? Are you in fact a male?
<http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/pooh-pooh?x=0&y=0>
A dictionary might be your friend here....
wen...@cix.compulink.co.uk
wrote:
I kind of have the same problem. Date, as you say - but I hardly ever get
to see her matches. I also really liked Myskina and still miss her.
It's hard for me to care very much about players like Azarenka or
Sharapova - the shrieking and ball-bashing just bug me. I do like Jankovic
and Ivanovic, but neither is playing up to her potential atm.
We have to hope Henin comes back next year and that Clijsters stays
interested; but both are really only going to care about the big events.
wg
pltr...@xhost.org
>We have to hope Henin comes back next year and that Clijsters stays
>interested; but both are really only going to care about the big events.
And Henin really needs to address the coaching/cheating issue for me
to root for her.
-- Larry
Yama
: I kind of have the same problem. Date, as you say - but I hardly ever get
: to see her matches.
Bali next week...hope for plenty of netstreams...
: It's hard for me to care very much about players like Azarenka or
: Sharapova - the shrieking and ball-bashing just bug me. I do like Jankovic
: and Ivanovic, but neither is playing up to her potential atm.
I couldn't agree more there. I thought Sharapova was interesting when she first came
around, but I'm just so sick about all the goddamn shrieking. I don't mind grunting,
lots of my favourites grunted, but it's one thing to grunt and wholly another
to wail like a sex crazy humpback whale. Serena and Sharapova are just unwatchable
(-listenable) nowadays. Enough already! Plus Sharapova has really boring and mindless
game, she has to be the worst tactician ever on the Tour. I used to think Venus
and Dementieva had no tennis brains, but they're like Santoro next to Sharapova.
Ivanovic is making sort of a comeback. Played pretty good fall.
: We have to hope Henin comes back next year and that Clijsters stays
: interested; but both are really only going to care about the big events.
Yeah, and this is exactly why the Tour is a mess...
Ka
I need a good player with a nice persona. Serena is a good villain.
Sharapova, the dumb blonde?
only human
I won't miss her bunny teeth. but i will miss her.
Superdave
>
>I won't miss her bunny teeth. but i will miss her.
You took the words right out of my mouth.
Fan
> I won't miss her bunny teeth. but i will miss her.
Or having to turn the sound off because of her yelling
Sharapova is semi-retired and that leaves Azarenka as the only and
possibly the worst screamer
Yama
Haven't seen Williams sisters play, have you?
Venus is much louder than Dementieva or Azarenka, and Serena at her
worst approaches Sharapova level wailing...
DavidW
> At the end of the Schiavone match they stayed on court for a
> presentation, and Dementieva announced her retirement amid much
> emotion from players, fans, family, et al. Lots of thank yous and
> hugging.
>
> I'm really sorry to see her go; she was always enormous fun to watch,
> and on her day she could challenge everyone. The tour will be (even)
> poorer without her.
That's too bad. What will her mum do now? :-)
mimus
> I just realized I have essentially no favourites left on WTA. They have slowly been dropping out...
> Hingis, Seles, Maggie, Hingis again, Myskina...and now Dementieva. I've still been watching,
> but Elena was the last player who got me emotionally involved.
>
> Well, there is Na Li, she is sorta semi-favourite. Her going for broke-style is so insane one
> has to like it. Or maybe I will start rooting for Kuznetsova. At least she doesn't have the Slam
> monkey. I can always root for Kimiko, but she is more like a nostalgy act, like Hulk Hogan or
> Michael Schumacher...
>
> Oh well, someone will come along sooner or later, I guess.... :/
Root for Coco, man. Especially if you like the going-for-broke//on/off
style . . . .
(And she's funny as hell.)
--
Take a deep breath, take a walk, cool off, plot a bit, and serve
again.
mimus
> On Sat, 30 Oct 2010 17:25:46 -0500, wen...@cix.compulink.co.uk wrote:
>
> > She did hire Krajicek.
>
> Didn't somebody say that already? :-p
>
> Actually, I had forgotten that Viper is an Aussie chauvinist, which is
> why he pooh-poohed the hiring of Krajieck.
Isn't Australia in the Far East?
DavidW
> On Oct 30, 8:51 pm, "Ted S." <tedsten...@myrealbox.com> wrote:
>
>> On Sat, 30 Oct 2010 17:25:46 -0500, wen...@cix.compulink.co.uk wrote:
>>
>>> She did hire Krajicek.
>>
>> Didn't somebody say that already? :-p
>>
>> Actually, I had forgotten that Viper is an Aussie chauvinist, which
>> is why he pooh-poohed the hiring of Krajieck.
>
> Isn't Australia in the Far East?
Even farther east than that.
Superdave
I would say the far south east is most accurate.
Viper
> On Sun, 31 Oct 2010 19:39:21 +1100, Viper wrote:
>
>> 'Poo pooed'? Are you in fact a male?
>
> <http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/pooh-pooh?x=0&y=0>
>
> A dictionary might be your friend here....
>
Oh dictionary.com? Another fucking American contribution to the world of
language
How fucking insular are you cunts?
On the contrary Teddy Boy, YOU might like to spend some time with a real
dictionary like the Oxford
poo
verb
[no object]
*
(usually poo)defecate
Viper
Viper
You mean there was room in there for words and some blokes
cock as well?
Congrats
Viper
Ted S.
> Oh dictionary.com? Another fucking American contribution to the world of
> language
Perhaps you might like cites in the .au domain?
<http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=%22pooh-pooh%22+-winnie+site%3A.au&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&oq=&gs_rfai=>
Or, the OED claims it dates back to the 16th century:
<http://www.phrases.org.uk/bulletin_board/61/messages/603.html>