BLEACHERS BREW EST. MAY 2006

Someone asked me how my blog and newspaper column came to be titled "Bleachers Brew". It's like this, it's an amalgam of sorts of two things: The bleachers area in the stadium/arena where I used to sit when I would watch baseball, football, and basketball games and Miles Davis' great jazz album Bitches Brew. That's how it got culled together. I originally planned on calling it "The View from the Big Chair" that is a nod to Tears For Fear's second album, Songs from the Big Chair. So there.

Tuesday, May 20, 2008

Another goodbye at center-court


Before Pete Sampras, I was a fan of McNasty. Yeah, him of the fire and brimstone. I remember that infamous "You are the pits of the world. Vultures! Trash!" or "You cannot be serious!" tirade at the umpires and linesmen.

People didn't like him because he was boorish and foul-mouthed even if he was a very good tennis player. I, on the other hand wanted him to beat Bjorn Borg, Jimmy Connors, Ivan Lendl, and Boris Becker every time.

Aside from Sampras and McNasty (who were on opposite sides of the spectrum in terms of character), I liked players like Goran Ivanisevic and Gustavo Kuerten who were colorful in their own way.

Now after this year, Guga will join McEnroe, Sampras, and Ivanisevic in retirement. Chronic injuries have robbed him of his speed as he struggled to find his form. The Brazilian who won three French Open titles will make his final appearance in Roland Garros when it gets going this Monday (Philippine time).

Guga enters the tournament as a wild card. Now if he can't repeat Ivanisevic's feat when he won Wimbledon in 2001 as a wild card entry beating Patrick Rafter that would be a cool way to go out. But current clay court king Rafael Nadal will obviously be the tournament fave. Still you'll never know.

But thanks, Guga! That was some game. Man, what I'd give to chant "Guga! Guga!" at Roland Garros.

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