Gilles Simon slagging off gender parity in tennis, we can't think of anything better to generate controversy between men and women. As for the rest, it happened to be quite an eventful week at Wimbledon…
The quote
"
I feel that right now men's tennis is more interesting than women's tennis. As in any business, it must be paid on that basis. The point is not men or women, the point is whether people come to see you or not. When I open a newspaper, I see four pages on the men’s draw against only one on the women. You've been saying for four years that women's tennis doesn't have any number one and that men's tennis is extraordinary. Men certainly once again spent twice as much time on-court at Roland Garros as the women. We often speak of equality in wages, but I think it is something that doesn’t work in sport. I think that tennis is the only sport where there is gender parity in terms of prize money today, while men's tennis remains more attractive than the women's tennis right now." That’s the bomb dropped by Gilles Simon, newly elected to the board of the ATP players, about gender parity in tennis. It’s the kind of statement that doesn't remain unanswered.
Especially since the Frenchman has added yet another layer by saying that "
when the tournaments are becoming combined events, it’s mainly to save the women’s event. When in Internazionali BNL d'Italia, there are 20 spectators attending the women's final and the following year, I can't even train at the site once, because there are now too many of us, obviously I'm pissed off.
And I think it's legitimate."
Not to panic, the ladies didn't take long to answer, including Maria Sharapova who quickly went to the net to kick the Frenchman's arse. "
Whatever Simon says, it means nothing to me. We already had discussions about it at Estoril when he tried to kick me off of a training court” said the Russian. “
I'm sure more people watch my matches than his" joked the world number one before Serena Williams added her two cents to the debate: “
Maria is right, she is way hotter than him”. Making friends....
Benoît Paire’s pants
Benoît Paire is a nice lad. Kind of cute, even. Some say he's charming. At the last Roland Garros, the photographers were very pleased to immortalize his naked torso in his Swedish pants. Because yes, as far as pants are concerned, the Frenchman has one and only favourite brand: Bjorn Borg. "
These are the best in terms of fabric and style” says the Avignon native. “
The brand manager told me he was very pleased with the publicity and sent me some. If I could get a contract, that would be great. Every morning I make a choice. To play Dolgopolov, I had the Spanish pants because they won the previous day in football. "
Video: How to keep busy at Wimbledon?
Marcos Baghdatis vs. Andy Murray, in theory, it's a nice day out on the British field. However, for this lady it is obviously a coma-inducing experience. Making the most of her ticket, she brought something to occupy her time; her knitting…
Link:
http://youtu.be/JgA4gd9jS7k
Wozniacki recovers quickly
The former world number one, the beautiful Caroline Wozniacki, didn’t last long in London. One round, then out - the Dane going down 5-7, 7-6 (4), 6-4 against Tamira Paszek. The lady has not been dwelling on her defat though. She left her racket and shoes to join Rory McIlroy, her man, in Portrush, Northern Ireland, where golf’s world number 2 was doing his eighteen holes for a living.
The blunder
Justine Henin has an exquisite backhand, a hefty trophy cabinet and a very pretty chin. In the next edition of the Larousse dictionary, the Belgian lady will also have a scar on her good name. 800’000 dictionaries are to be delivered all around France, displaying the surname of the beautiful woman: Hénin. With an accent.
The come-back
In 1999, Maria Sharapova was only 12 years old, and as for Radwanska and Azarenka, they had just blown out the candles on their tenth birthday cakes at the time. Meanwhile, Mirjana Lucic, 17, properly smashed a certain Monica Seles at Wimbledon before reaching the semis. We then thought that the Croat had what it takes to rule the women's tour. Except that the player had a body made of glass and was forced to quit tennis in 2003. Little-by-little though, the blonde returned to the game. She picked up her racket again in 2007, got back into the Grand Slams in 2010 (at Wimbledon, moreover, Editor's note), and this year added the scalp of Marion Bartoli to her list of conquests. Still alive!
The record
Who are you, Yaroslava Shvedova? Good question. Fact is that the Kazakh has just written her name in the record books. Her feat? Winning a set without conceding a point during her victory over the Italian Sara Errani (6/0, 6/4). It's very simple - Shvedova won the first 24 points of the match, and dispatched the first set in 17 minutes. Impressive. In the Open era tennis only the American Bill Scanlon, in 1983, had achieved such a feat, against the Brazilian Marcos Hocevar. Whether by pure luck or empirical achievement, Shvedova already held the record for consecutive points scored in a game (23 against Amy Frazier in 2006 Editor's note). A woman who looks for challenges…
The tweet
Janko Tipsarevic has a perfect oral anatomy. He brushes his teeth every morning, and here’s the proof:
https://twitter.com/#!/TipsarevicJanko/media/slideshow?url=pic.twitter.com%2FjhjgXukw
By Mathieu Faure
