TennisIDENTITY

It's November. Where in the world is pro tennis?

Here's where pro tennis is happening in the world this month:

Completion of October's tournaments.

Commonwealth Bank Tournament of Champions -- WTA Where: Bali, Indonesia When: Began 11/3/2011 Surface: Hard/Indoors Players: Bartoli, Lisicki, Vinci, Hantuchova, Medina Garrigues, Petrova, Ivanovic, Peng

BNP Paribas Masters ATP World Tour 1000 Where: Paris, France When: 11/7/2011 Surface: Hard/Indoors Players ATP: Djokovic, Murray, Federer, Ferrer, Tsonga, Fish

Barclays ATP World Tour Finals ATP World Tour 1500 Where: London, England When: 11/20/2011 Surface: Hard/Indoors Players: Djokobic, Nadal, Murray, Federer, Ferrer

Davis Cup World Group Final ITF (men)  Where: Seville, Spain When: 11/28/2011 Surface: Clay/Indoors Players: Spain vs. Argentina (a whole lot of hotness I must add).

 

Björn Borg vs. John McEnroe. A look back.

 

Tis the 30th anniversary of Björn vs. John. Rediscover the era in new  books:, tv programming and in this  quick little retrospective. Fun. Love the clothes!.

P.S. Another good read on the topic, the just-out: EPIC John McEnroe, Björn Borg and the Greatest Tennis Season Ever by Matthew Cronin.

Barclays ATP World Tour Finals. Today O2, Tomorrow OZ.

The Barclays ATP World Finals are underway at the O2 arena in London and so far no great surprises.

There's a fair bit of Roger worship going on and the twitterin' tennis world doesn't like Andy Murray's new shirt (his first change all year). All-black might have proven a more effective outfit choice as it was for team Melzer/Petzschner.

For those unfamiliar, the Finals breaks the ATP's top men into two groups, A and B in both singles in doubles.

Play is round-robin format. In singles, before the top two in each pool advance to the semifinals for traditional, single-elimination play, each in the groups compete in at least three matches. Singles and doubles winners in A and B play finals matches Sunday, November 28.

Here are the groups:

A singles: Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Andy Roddick and Tomas Berdych

B singles: Roger Federer, Andy Murray, Robin Söderling, David Ferrer

 A doubles: Bob Bryan/Mike Bryan, Mariusz Fyrstenberg/Marcin Matkowski, Juergen Melzer/Philipp Petzschner, Lukas Dloughy/Leander Paes.

B doubles: Daniel Nestor/Nenad Zimonjic, Mahesh Bhupathi/Max Mirnyi, Lukasz Kubot/Oliver Marach, Wesley Moodie/Dick Norman

Follow the standings here as they roll out. Predictions anyone?

Watch it on Tennis-Channel, online via Tennis-TV or using the iPhone app (look for BATPWTF in the iTunes store)

Next stop OZ (Australia).

Watch the US Open Live Online FREE. Plus the TV schedule and App.

For those stuck at home, at a desk or simply light in the wallet, you can now watch the US Open FREE online.

For the first time ever, all matches played on the five television courts of the US Open (Arthur Ashe Stadium, Louis Armstrong Stadium, Grandstand, Court 11 and Court 13), will be streamed domestically live for free on USOpen.org. In all, more than 200 matches will be made available free of charge, including the men’s and women’s finals.

Here's the TV schedule. I'm also enjoying the free app.for iPhone.

10 Tennis Tournaments to Watch For On the Road to the US Open.

The 2010 Olympus US Open Series begins this weekend with players arriving at the first of 10 tournaments leading up to the U.S. Open. Here's the line up:

Atlanta Tennis Championships; Atlanta, GA;  July 19 - 25 (ATP)

Bank of the West Classic; Stanford, CA; July 26 - August 1 (WTA)

Farmer's Classic; Los Angeles, CA; July 26 - August 1 (ATP)

Mercury Insurance Open; San Diego, CA; August 2 - 8 (WTA)

Legg Mason Tennis Classic; Washington D.C.; August 2 - 8 (ATP)

Western & Southern Financial Group Women's Open; Cincinnati, OH; August 9 - 15

Roger's Masters; Toronto, Canada; August 9 - 15 (ATP)

Rogers Cup; Montreal, Canada; August 16 - 22 (WTA)

Western & Southern Financial Group Masters;  Cincinnati, OH; August 16 - 22 (ATP)

Pilot Pen Tennis at Yale; New Haven, CT; August 22 - 28 (WTA and ATP)

The 2010 U.S. Open runs August 30 - September 12. Ten tournaments in six weeks and then the Open. I like the sound of that!

Here's the TV Schedule if you can't make it in person.

Feed your addiction with some pro game. There is tennis life after the Open.

So we've all completely caught up on everything we didn't get done during the Open and we want more tennis. Although mainstream media isn't making much of it, our game is out there and there are a whole lotta surprises going down early -- not to mention weird looking trophies. Below are a few (not all) tournaments to look for and their start dates:

Toray Pan Pacific Open, Tokyo; Now (WTA)

Thailand Open in Bangkok; Now (ATP)

China Open in Beijing; October 3 (ATP and WTA)

AIG Japan Open Tennis Championships, Tokyo; October 5 (ATP)

Shanghai ATP Masters1000; October 12 (ATP)

BGL Luxembourg Open; October 17 (WTA)

Kremlin Cup, Moscow October 19 (ATP and WTA)

If Stockholm Open; October 19 (ATP)

St. Petersburg Open; October 25 (ATP)

Grand Prixe deTennis Lyon; October 26 (ATP)

Sony Ericsson Championships-Doha 2009; October 27 (WTA)

Valencia Open 500; October 31 (ATP)

Commonwealth Bank Tournament of Champions, Bali; November 4 (WTA)

BNP Paribas Masters, Paris; November 7 (ATP)

Barclays ATP World Tour Finals, London; November 22 (ATP)

TennisTV will carry some of the tournaments online. Look also to the Tennis Channel's lineup of coverage as well as the ATP and WTA.

Can't Be There? Watch Wimbledon Live on TV.

Can't be there?  Watch Wimbledon Live on TV Monday, June 22 - Sunday, July 5.

For the complete schedule visit the 2009 Wimbledon TV schedule courtesy of the U.S.T.A.

For live online viewing see our post here.

Image courtesy of Fila.

10 Ways to Improve Your Tennis Game While Watching Pro Tennis.

Watching great tennis IS good for your game. Check out my article "10 Ways to Improve Your Tennis Game While Watching Pro Tennis" just out at on THE BASELINE.

Can't be there? Watch Roland Garros/the French Open live on TV and online May 24 - June 6.

U.S. fans, a fortnight of high-definition Roland Garros coverage begins May 24 at 5 AM EST and runs through June 6. Watch all the French Open action live on the Tennis Channel and ESPN2 or online at TennisChannel.com. Seven hours plus per day, that'll do it -- leaves just enough time in the day to play ourselves.

Visit Tennis Channel for the complete schedule of match coverage.

Venus Williams and Andy Murray Kick Off the Sony Ericsson Open with Traffic Tennis. Watch the Tournament Live, on TV or Online

 

Venus Williams and Andy Murray kicked off the 2009 Sony Ericsson Open with a little "Traffic Tennis" atop two SUV's on Miami's Ocean Drive yesterday. The tournament runs March 25 - April 5. World Men's #1 Rafael Nadal will open play on the purple courts, March 28.

If you are in the area visit the Sony Ericsson Open website for ticket information. Click here for where to watch on tv and here for an online tournament pass via Tennis TV. Enjoy. Love that dress Venus! Talk about Miami heat.

 Getty Images/Courtesy Sony Ericsson Open/WTA tour

BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells. Can't Be There? Watch it Live on TV or Online.

Can't be there? Check out these links for live television and online coverage of all the action live from the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells.

 Click here for television coverage courtesy of the BNP Paribas Open's official site, and for online coverage click on TennisTV, $14.95 for the full online tournament pass. Sorry employers of the world, we need to watch this, every minute of it.

Watch First Round 2009 Davis Cup Competition Live on TV. U.S.A. vs. Switzerland March 6-8.

 Live from Birmingham Alabama, the Tennis Channel has got this weekend covered in HD: March 6, 2 pm, singles; March 7, 2 PM, doubles; and, March 8, 2 PM singles. "Instant Encore" replays will air throughout the weekend for those who can't catch the live matches.

Leading the American team is Captain Patrick McEnroe. He returns with the same team that won the title in 2007: twins Bob and Mike Bryan, the World No. 1 doubles tandem and 2009 Australian Open doubles champions, along with No. 6 and No. 13 singles players Andy Roddick and James Blake, respectively. Switzerland will be without its top-ranked player Roger Federer, who was forced to withdraw due to a back injury, but still brings an impressive roster of Stanislas Wawrinka, Stephane Bohli, Marco Chiudinelli and Yves Allegro into Birmingham.

Learn more at Tennis Channel.

Australian Open 2009. Set your DVRs now for all the action.

  The dry season is over with the 2009 Australian Open running January 19 - February 1. US residents can watch it on TV by checking the schedule posted at USTA.com. ESPN2 has got it covered.

Live online coverage of the action is available to some countries at Australian Open TV. The US is unfortunately not a beneficiary of this service.

Visit the Australian Open's official site for all the psych-up and current info.

2009 Outback Champions Series Schedule Announced. Eight Tournaments Including New Events in Brazil and Mexico.

The 2009 Outback Champions Series offers up a series of global tennis events featuring some of the biggest names in the game now over age 30: Pete Sampras, John McEnroe, Jim Courier, Stefan Edberg and more. To be eligible to compete, players must have reached a major singles final, been ranked in the top five in the world in singles or played singles on a championship Davis Cup team. Yes hot-shot, they can still take you down 0 and 0.

In addition to single elimination singles, each six-player event will also feature special doubles exhibition matches which are really a treat to see as doubles gets a bit neglected when it comes to pro tennis television coverage. The 2009 Outback Champions Series schedule is as follows:

Champions Cup Boston, Boston, Massachusetts, Feb. 13-15; Rio Champions Cup, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, March 12-15; The Del Mar Development Champions Cup, Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, March 18-22; The Residences at The Ritz Carlton, Grand Cayman Legends Championships, Grand Cayman, April 23-26; International Tennis Hall of Fame Champions Cup, Newport, Rhode Island, August 19-23; The Citadel Group Championships at The Palisades, Charlotte, North Carolina, September 25-27; Cancer Treatment Centers of America Championships at Surprise, Surprise, Arizona, November 6-8; Emirates NBD, The Legends Rock Dubai, Dubai, U.A.E., Nov. 19-21. Learn more at Champions Series Tennis. Watch for Tennis Channel coverage of some of these events as well.

Fed Cup Quarterfinal, U.S. vs. Argentina February 7 and 8, 2009 in Arizona. Tickets on Sale.

Tickets for the February 7-8 United States vs. Argentina Fed Cup quarterfinal go on sale today (10 AM MT). The matches will be played at the Surprise Tennis and Racquet Complex in Surprise, Arizona where the U.S.T.A. will build a temporary 4,000 seat stadium for the two-day, best of five match event.

The U.S. and Argentina are two of eight quarter finalist nations competing for the 2009 Fed Cup title as part of the Fed Cup World Group. Fed Cup by BNP Paribas is the world’s largest annual international women’s team competition with more than 80 countries competing this year. Tickets are available online through Ticketmaster or by calling 1-888-334-USTA (8782).

Tennis Channel will present daily live coverage for those you can't make it to sunny Arizona.

Spain vs. Argentina Davis Cup Action on TV. Plus, A Look at the Regimes of Some of the World's Greatest Tennis Coaches.

Davis Cup action continues this weekend with complete coverage by Tennis Channel of Argentina and Spain's Davis Cup final in Mar del Plata, Argentina. The year-ending championship will run Friday, November 21, 10 AM EST - Sunday the 23rd. Looks like Argentina has a pretty good chance with some of Spain's top guys out.

On Sunday, November 23,  at 7:30 PM EST Tennis Channel launches a six-part coaching series hosted by Tracy Austin. The series premiere takes an inside look at the Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy, taking viewers through a typical day beginning with an on-court lesson with Bollettieri. Future episodes will focus on John and Chris Evert, fitness guru Pat Etcheberry, Robert Lansdorp, and Carlos Rodriguez. Each will give an inside look at the tennis training processes they have created. Here's where you'll find out how hard the pros really work.

Find times and details at Tennis Channel.

Venus Williams Wins Season Ending Championships in Doha. Here's What Went Down in Singles.

Will the Bryan Brothers Make Doubles History? Watch The Action November 9-16.

Bob and Mike Bryan are making a run for a record fourth straight number one year-end ranking. Watch them strive to make history November 9 - 16 at the Men's Doubles Tennis Masters Cup Championships in Shanghai. The second ranked doubles team of David Nestor and Nenad Zimonjic is hot on the Bryan's heels.

The round-robin action is being broadcast live and same-day by the Tennis Channel. For those of you who complain that doubles isn't given enough air-time, here's your chance to watch the best in mens.

Find the air schedule at Tennis Channel TV.

image credit: camerawork usa, inc.

Watch the Sony Ericsson Championships on TV, November 4-9

There has been a smattering of U.S. televised tennis coverage from overseas lately. The relative dry spell breaks with more than 30 hours of live action, November 4-9 from the prestigious year-end Sony Ericsson Championships in Doha, Qatar.  This round-robin format tournament features the world's top eight womens singles players and top four doubles teams. The coverage is unprecedented for this tournament, likely the result of a tumultuous but memorable 2008 women's tennis season.

Playing singles will be: U.S. Open winner Serena Williams, Wimbledon winner Venus Williams, World No. 1 Jelena Jankovic, French Open winner Ana Ivanovic, Dinara Safina, Elena Dementieva, Svetlana Kuznetsova and Vera Zvonereva.  Doubles teams include: US Open winners Cara Black/Liezel Huber and French Open winners Anabel Medina Garrigues/Virginia Ruano Pascual joined by Kveta Peschke/Rennae Stubbs and Katarina Srebotnik/Ai Sugiyama.

Find out when and where to watch the action on the  Tennis Channel's TV Schedule. Coverage is listed by day. Visit Sony Ericsson Championships for more tournament detail.

Watch Davis Cup Action on TV -- USA vs. Spain. Who Will Avoid The Bull? Plus More From All Over The World.

Davis Cup World Group Semifinals and Playoffs run September 19-21. Semifinal match ups include: Argentina vs. Russia in Buenos Aires, and Spain vs. defending title-holders, team USA in Madrid. The winning teams advance to face each other at the World Finals, November 21-23.

Sam Querry and Raphael Nadal will play each other Friday to kick off the best-of-five match series between Spain and USA. Who will avoid the bull? Spanish Captain Emilio Sanchez referred to this Spanish expression during today's press-conference, fitting for a match played inside a bullfighting ring. Andy Roddick will play David Ferrer in the second singles match.

World Group Playoffs also this weekend include: Great Britain vs. Austria, Switzerland vs. Belgium, Croatia vs. Brazil, Israel vs. Peru, Netherlands vs. Korean Rep., and Slovak Republic vs. Serbia.  The winners advance to World Group in 2009

To find out where and when to watch all the action, go to to the Davis Cup website; click on the match you want, then click the "View TV Schedule" icon. You can also view team team line ups and draws.

US fans can purchase US Davis Cup gear at the USTA shop online under Davis Cup Gear. We especially like the Davis Cup Team Men's Zip Microfiber Navy Pullover ( $64 USD) and Davis Cup Skullcap ($20 USD). Image: USTA/Ron Angle

Watch the U.S. Open on TV -- Catch the action daily. They've got this one covered.

"It's showtime." Our entertainment is covered; August 25 - September 7 we know what we are doing.  If you can't make it to Flushing Meadows, watch the action on tv. Click here for the planned televised coverage of the US Open. You can of course find many other details at the US Open's official site.

Here's a tip for New Yorkers and visiting ticket have-nots, you can also catch the action on the VERY big screen live and free at Madison Square Park in NYC, Friday August 29 through Sunday September 7, 11:00 am  - 11:00 pm compliments of American Express. Thanks guys.

Final Days of the US Open Series/Watch Now from New Haven

The final days of the 2008 US Open Series are upon us and the late draw action at Pilot Pen is on TV. Check out the television schedule HERE compliments of the USTA. Men's finals are Saturday. Next stop NYC!

"You're The One" (or Two if you are Federer Today) Series Highlighting Major Federer/Nadal Match-ups Begins Tonight

Today Rafael Nadal will take over the No. 1 ranking in men’s tennis, the first time in 237 weeks since Roger Federer took the ranking in 2004; Federer will trade places with Nadal and become the World No. 2.

In honor of the switch, Tennis Channel's series “You’re The One,” airs this week and will showcase one of five classic championship matches between the two men each night.  The highlight is Friday, Aug. 22’s replay of this year’s Wimbledon final. All matches will air at 9 p.m. EST except for the Aug. 22 replay of the 2008 Wimbledon final which will begin at 7 p.m. EST.

Here's the schedule: Monday, Aug. 18 – 2005 ATP Masters Series, Miami; Tuesday, Aug. 19 – 2007 ATP Masters Series, Hamburg; Wednesday, Aug. 20 – 2006 French Open; Thursday, Aug. 21 – 2007 Wimbledon; Friday, Aug. 22 – 2008 Wimbledon.

Olympic Tennis. A Matter of National or Tennis Identity?

Everything we read indicates that there are no sure predictions for tennis medals at the 2008 Olympics. The tournament schedule prior to the event, the slam after and intrinsic national identity all factor into the results. There are points to be earned in the stats race but national pride figures in big and it showed in Rafa's beautiful face as he walked with his team into the opening night arena. There have been many surprises over the years. Read Christopher Clarey's article at Tennis.com for an insightful look at past winners, this year's hopefuls and what goes into winning in tennis at the Olympics.

See our Olympic TV Post for all the information you need for watching the results unfold.

A Head's Up on Olympic Tennis Coverage

We don't want to miss a minute of the Olympic tennis action and know you don't either. Here's the scoop: NBC has the TV ticket. Go to Olympics TV Listings for the complete schedule. You'll have to enter in the event (tennis), the date you want, and your zip code. It's pretty easy. Television coverage starts on August 10.

Olympic tennis matches will also be streamed live online at NBCOlympics daily, Saturday, August 9 through Saturday, August 16 between 10:30 PM and 11:00 AM EST.

Tennis.com, the website of Tennis Magazine, will provide written commentary on the matches as they happen.

Star power includes: Serena Williams and James Blake representing the United States; Nikolay Davydenko, Russia; Roger Federer, Switzerland; Rafael Nadal, Spain; and Novak Djokovic and Jelena Jankovic, Serbia. For a complete list, check out all the Olympic tennis players.

Watch the US Open Series on TV. It's anyone's guess at this point.

The tennis world is in a blender with recent player news and wins that are bringing new names to the surface. Last year's series winners are nowhere in sight. The current Olympus US Open Series Bonus Challenge leaders are listed here.

Watch the drama unfold further starting today at the ATP Countrywide Classic. Go to US Open Series TV Coverage to learn where and when to watch.

Cincinnati's Western and Southern Financial Group Masters and Montreal's Rogers Cup (Womens) July 28-August 3 on TV

Today launches two more great tournaments in the US Open Series. The Western and Southern Financial Group Masters men's tournament in Cincinnati and the Rogers Cup, Womens in Montreal. Watch some of the action on TV. Check here for TV listings.

Roger Federer is the defending champ in Cincinnati. We wonder who will take Justine's crown at Rogers Cup.

Rogers Cup Mens and East West Bank Classic 2008 on TV

Two more Olympus US Open Series events kick off today with the Rogers Cup Mens in Toronto July 19-27 and the womens East West Bank Classic July 21- 27 in Los Angeles. Check television coverage here.

The male and female Serbs, Novac Djokovic and Ana Ivanovic are on deck, prepared to defend their individual titles.

The Good Old Days. How Not to Behave.

Tennis Channel is counting down the top-five tennis meltdowns of all time in a new documentary special, Best of 5: Temper Tantrums. The program looks at some of the most outrageous behavior, racquet smashes and over-the-top on-court verbal abuse you have ever seen (if you are a young gun).  Most of this stuff is pre-hawk-eye, so short-shorts on the guys, stretch headbands...you get the picture...McEnroe is in it yes, of course. Good stuff.

If you've ever wanted to smash a racquet (but don't because it cost a pretty penny) or yell at a bad call, here's a chance to live vicariously and laugh a lot.  Best of 5:Temper Tantrums  will be airing throughout July. Look for times by visiting Tennis Channel's TV Schedule.

Indianapolis Tennis Championships and Bank of the West Classic 2008 on TV

The 2008 Olympus US Open Series just kicked off the six-week hard court summer season with the start of the mens Indianapolis Tennis Championships presented by Lilly and the womens Bank of the West Classic running now through July 20. There is limited television coverage of these tournaments but we'll take what we can get. See what The Tennis Channel and ESPN2 have slated here and set your DVRs if you can't watch live.

Learn more about the Indianapolis ATP event at Tennis Indy and Stanford WTA event at Bank of the West Classic.

Watch Wimbledon on TV, June 23-July 6, 2008

Looking to watch Wimbledon from home? Go to Wimbledon on TV for a comprehensive look at the US television schedule.

For details on draws and results go to the official website at Wimbledon. There you can also subscribe to watch live and on-demand video from the Championships on your computer. An all-access pass is $24.99.

Image courtesy of AELTC.

"A History - A Story of Roland Garros," May 29 on Tennis Channel

If you love tennis history, check this out. Celebrating the 80th year of Stade Roland Garros, home of the French Open, The Tennis Channel will debut A History - A Story of Roland Garros, for the first time in the U.S., on Thursday, May 29, 5:30 PM EST (2:30 PM PT).

This hour-long documentary captures everything that has made this grand-slam tournament special, from its storied debut in 1928 through eight decades of tennis greats on the auburn tinged clay. Take a break from 2008 action and see just how far we have come with this great game.