Bill Simons
Wimbledon
SIPPING MARGARITAS WITH THE BIG THREE ON A BEACH: Novak Djokovic insisted he doesn’t have time to reflect on his records. He added, “I’ll do that when I sit on the beach and sip margaritas with Federer and Nadal.”
GADS – NOW THERE’S NOTHING TO TALK ABOUT IN THIS SPORT: The game’s glamour couple, Stefanos Tsitsipas and Paula Badosa, have parted. A source close to their teams said, “Ghosts from the past have returned, marked by the injuries they have both suffered.”
HEADLINE OF THE DAY: Wimbledon Became Boneyard After Seeds Fell
QUOTEBOOK:
“I executed perfectly.” – Novak Djokovic, after beating British Dan Evans in straight sets
“Jack Draper probably wants to play longer because he wants to get into a rhythm that helps him ignore that thumping beat of expectation.” – The Daily Mirror
“I just can’t bloody stand the heat.” – An elderly fan explaining why he wasn’t buying anything while walking around Wimbledon’s air conditioned gift shop.
A PLAYERS’ GUIDE ON HOW TO SURVIVE THE MEAT GRINDER OF THE CIRCUIT
There have been shock upsets and fabulous forehands here. But the topic of the tourney has been sanity – and how to maintain it. Alexander Zverev’s let-it-all-hang-out press conference created waves at Wimbledon. The former Olympic champ and former No. 3 said he felt completely lonely on court and off; that he had no joy and motivation, he felt he was in a hole and was at a loss.
So Inside Tennis asked players who have struggled how you can play pro tennis for years with joy and not feel devastated at times.
NAOMI OSAKA: Perhaps more than any other player, she has spoken of her struggles and the importance of mental wellness. Naomi said, “I don’t know if I’m the person that should be giving advice. Every moment of life…is a little temporary. Life is serious and not serious at the same time.
“If you don’t enjoy something that much, you can always do something else. I’m not telling Sascha he should stop playing…I [just] always think people should do what makes them happy – no matter what.”
MADISON KEYS: The Aussie Open champ, who has worked to counter online bullying and has said that therapy was key to her winning the Aussie Open, commented: “Therapy has been incredibly helpful to me. I have tried sports psychologists in the past, and everything being so focused on just the sport and just tennis was not as helpful as I needed.
“I think…going to someone and looking at [my] overall life and how that was influencing how I felt on court probably made the biggest difference. As tennis players, from a pretty young age, our identity becomes very wrapped up in being a tennis player. That’s great, but when you have the tough kind of weeks, months, years on tour, that can really take a toll on how you think about yourself as a person.
“So, being able to dive in and figure out how to separate the two and know that you’re not just a tennis player. You’re a full person that has all of these other really great attributes and different things in your life. That was really a really important piece for me.”
ANDREY RUBLEV: The Russian player who at Wimbledon last year bashed himself seven times in the knee and later confided that felt as if he had no reason to live and he had bipolar tendencies. He then stopped taking his anti-depressant. Recent conversations with former star Marat Safin have helped him mightily.
Andrey said, “You can find excuses – how exhausted or mentally tired you are from playing nonstop. But it’s nothing to do with tennis. In the end, tennis is just the trigger point. Everybody knows how to serve over 125 mph. Now it’s more about who is more stable, more focused, more ready.”
ARYNA SABALENKA struggled with her early coaches, the premature loss of her dad, her serve abandoning her, the Ukrainian war, the suicide of a former lover and wretched losses.
“I had a therapist for, like, five years – I stopped in maybe 2022. But it’s actually crazy to hear from someone like Alexander, because he surrounded himself…with the family, you know?
“Sascha just needs to open up to whoever is close to him. I think family is the best – people who can accept whatever you’re dealing with. The moment you start talking about your problems…that’s helping to solve them. So, he just has to be a bit more open…so everyone is aware of what’s going on through his mind.
“With my team, we always talk a lot. So that’s why I don’t need a therapist. We can talk about whatever. I know they’re not going to judge me or blame me.”
EMMA RADUCANU has for years navigated life as British superstar whose every move is under excruciating scrutiny, and whose on-court results have wavered. Emma said, “In tennis, you’re pretty much losing 26 weeks a year. That’s a really difficult concept to get your mind around…The momentum in tennis shifts through the whole season. It’s really challenging.
“I’ve tried to surround myself with good people, I’ve tried to win the day, tried to focus on the process. It’s really difficult to kind of take your joy from the results, because it’s such a roller coaster.
“So I’m trying to enjoy it, and ask, ‘Did I get 1% better today, or did I maintain today?’ Because maintaining, as well, is a big skill. If you don’t do the right work, you can easily slip. Trying to maintain or at least get a little bit better is the goal that I have accepted, and we are just going to work through it.”
AMANDA ANISIMOVA has suffered many setbacks, including the loss of her father. A while ago she took an eight-month break from the game. Amanda said, “Tennis is definitely tricky, and everyone has their doubts and negative times. It takes self-reflection on what is going wrong. You ask, ‘How can I create a lifestyle I can enjoy? How can I find people I trust and can confide in?’
“Like Alex, people struggle [with] being lonely on tour. It might help [to] find what’s best for you and take a break. I’m happy I did that. I came back feeling refreshed and with a new perspective. I learned a lot about myself.”
JUST WONDERING: All the difficulties so many players have with mental wellness brings to mind a question: why didn’t the Big 3 have huge problems? Were they great because they didn’t have these issues? Or rather, was it that they were so good, so they overcame their mental problems with some ease?
OLLIE’S COMPLAINT – ‘I’M NOT A PHILOSOPHER, I’M NOT AN ASTROLOGER, AND I SURE AIN’T OLIVER:’ There’s lots about the life and times of Oliver Tarvet that don’t make sense. He’s a college kid in one of the better party towns on the west coast, but he prefers pressing 500 pounds instead of partying.
A month ago, Inside Tennis approached him at a Southern California Pro Series tourney, and asked the No. 731 player in the world, “Hey, are you going to make it to Wimbledon this year?” “No way,” he replied.
But now he’s got to figure out what to do with the $135,000 he just won here: pocket the money and turn pro, decline the money and forever ask why, or get the smartest tax lawyer in California and come up with some inventive dodges so he can retain his NCAA standing.
After all, the pride of St. Albans, England (east of Oxford) raced through the qualies to the second round. But there was an Oliver twist here. Even these generous words had a problem. Tarvet hates being called Oliver. He told us, “Only my mother calls me that.”
Yet in the end, Ollie was jolly. He gushed, “Even though it wasn’t the result I wanted, it was the best day of my life.”
KEYBOARD DISASTER: Time and again when I type in the name Tarvet, my computer says “no way ” and changes it to Target. But I have the last word.
WHAT BREAKS NAOMI OSAKA’S HEART: More than usual, there’s been talk of Arthur Ashe around Wimbledon. It’s the 50th anniversary of one of the most important matches in tennis history: Ashe’s inventive and impactful Wimbledon win over Jimmy Connors in 1975.
Among other things, Ashe was known for his passionate support of the rights of Haitian immigrants. He was handcuffed and arrested outside of the White House during one protest.
So Naomi Osaka, who is of Haitian and Japanese descent, was asked to comment on Ashe and Haiti. She noted, “My dad was in Haiti. But he’s here with me right now, so I’m really grateful for that.
“But every time I hear news about Haiti, it kind of breaks my heart, because I always feel like it’s really unfair, and I think that people have a really negative image of Haiti. To me, it’s one of the most beautiful places in the world. Yeah, it really sucks.”
WHAT HEALS NAOMI OSAKA’S HEART: When asked about celebrating her daughter Shai’s second birthday, Naomi said, “I woke up this morning and kind of laid in bed with her, and I felt really grateful to be living the life that I’m living because I get to travel with her. “She’s so young, but she’s already been to so many different places. It really is a blessing.”
TAYLOR’S METTLE: He doesn’t have the charisma of Frances Tiafoe. And Ben Shelton, Tommy Paul and Jenson Brooksby are more fun to watch. But, goodness,
world No. 5 Taylor Fritz keeps on showing his powerful mettle. After winning four matches in his title run in Eastbourne, he took a day off and then played the first three days at Wimbledon, winning two five-set matches on Court 1 against a couple of rising 6’ 8” players [Note: how much more can a 6’ 8” player rise?] – France’s Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard and Canada’s Gabriel Diallo.
TWO EMMAS: Both South Carolina’s Emma Navarro and Britain’s Emma Raducanu are through to the third round.
KUDOS TO CATY: In a story we will delve into tomorrow, Cincinnati’s Caty McNally has returned. She took a set off of Iga Swiatek on Centre Court.
– Also Reporting: Lucia Hoffman
