Back in the saddle again (minus Rafa)

Posted by BESS: Holy crap. Have we seriously not blogged since last May? Such slackers! Understand that this has not gone unnoticed. Dave's students have accused him of being a hypocrite... preaching about the proper way to maintain a blog and then letting his own blog languish. 

Luckily, I have no students. And none of my friends really care about tennis. So I've been flying under the radar.  But for Dave's professional credibility alone, it's time we get back to it.

Let's be honest. My lack of interest in blogging may perhaps have coincided with the six-month absence of my perennial fave, Rafa Nadal. Injured for months, he was set to return at the 2013 Australian Open, but here we are again... up all night watching the action down under... and... no Rafa.

I should get credit for the amount of "soldiering on" it takes for me to even care without him involved. ;-)

But soldier on I must.

SPOILER ALERT: At the moment, I'm watching American Brian Baker withdrawing from a match due to a knee injury.  He's a great 2012 story, finally making it back into the ATP tour after five surgeries and a stint volunteer coaching for a college team in his hometown. Man, it just doesn't seem fair. The wheelchair has arrived to take him off court.  With Roddick retired and Mardy Fish still unwell, he was my pick for an American man to root for. Darn the luck.

Speaking of players we're rooting for, Dave and I completed our brackets independently and without any previous discussion.  For the first time ever, we both selected the same men's and women's champions!  Especially impressive since neither of them is the odds-on favorite to win. Mind you, they're no slackers, but conventional wisom doesn't really show Juan Martin Del Potro and Maria Sharapova raising the trophies overhead two weeks from now.

Let's hope they do, just for the novelty of Dave and I both being right; with no trash-talking upon which to stake our friendship.

A few miscellaneous notes about the tournament so far:

• Brad Gilbert reports much too much yellow in the 2013AO tennis garb. I guess if you're going to wear bright yellow at a major, the AO is the place to do it.  But I agree with Brad that it's generally not a great look. Also not a great look? Brad Gilbert's lack of correct spelling, punctuation and grammar on Twitter. But he's a font of knowledge, so I stay tuned.
• Andre's scheduled to make an appearance at the tournament, and I for one, can't wait. Andre and I got much closer over the holidays with the surprise arrival of his autograph--a gift from a truly generous friend. (Thanks, J-Rad!)
• Serena's a bit questionable for today's practice and perhaps the overall tournament after rolling her ankle yesterday.  Although she managed a 6-0, 6-0 win, so I'm not yet convinced I should be concerned. And by concerned, I mean marginally interested.
• After a long stretch of not watching tennis, it's nice to be back among my good friends: Li Na, Aggie Rad, Venus, Mary Joe, Killer Cahill, the inimiatble Jon Wertheim, Tipsy, Baghdatis, Sugarpova, Monfils, Ferrer, Woz, and the amiable Aussie crowd. Ahhh.... it's like old home week. Let me soak it in as if I'm there basking in the bright, sunny, 100 degree day! 

Hello, 2013 tennis season. Hello again, dear readers. Despite Rafa's absence, this sentiment holds true... vamos!