Officials at the Association of Tennis Professionals today expressed relief that talented young Serb Novak Djokovic won the ATP Master’s Cup in Shanghai, rather than fifth-ranked Nikolay Davydenko.
“If Davydenko had won, then we might actually have had to promote him,” said one official, who requested anonymity but, since he’s in charge of the ATP marketing, will be referred to as Tweedledee.
“Davydenko is a hard worker and reliable presence in the top 10,” said Tweedledee, “but his personality and charisma make one nostalgic for Yevgeny Kafelnikov. His baseline-hugging game makes one long for Thomas Muster.”
Similar sentiments were expressed by another official who also asked not to be identified, but since he is in charge of ATP scheduling will be referred to as Tweedledum.
“People will naturally blame me for Davydenko reaching the final, since (Rafael) Nadal, our top-ranked player, couldn’t even make it and (Roger) Federer, our two-time defending champion showed up hurt,” said Tweedledum.
“But they miss the fact that there was almost a marquee final between Djokovic and Andy Murray. Think of it: The game’s two fastest-rising young stars, competing in the tour’s last match for the momentum they need to challenge the top two. So close, and all undone by …(sigh)…scheduling.
“I can’t even do things right by accident,” Tweedledum added.
Murray, the hottest player on tour in the fall had won all three of his qualifying-round matches, including a three-set thriller against Federer on Friday. That match, however, left Murray in less than ideal shape to play Davydenko the next day.
“We were afraid that the same thing would happen Sunday, since Novak had gone three sets with (Gilles) Simon the day before,” said Tweedledee. “Then alllllll next year we would have had to refer to Davydenko as ‘the Master’s Cup champion’ as if that somehow put him in greater contention for slams.”
The officials said that that Master’s Cup has in recent years been jokingly referred to among ATP staff as Executions with Roger Federer.
This is because the Swiss seems to be the only top five player whose style of play allows him to conserve enough energy to have something left for the Cup, where he wins a lopsided final round match against a hot player who otherwise is out of his depth against the Swiss, and who won’t be back to the final the following year.
“I guess this year Executions had a new host in Djokovic, and a new guest to the take the place of James Blake and David Ferrer,” said Tweedledum. “I’d like to take credit for the last really good final we had, which was Federer-Nalbandian in ’05, but since this is off the record, I’ll be honest: It was pure luck.
“Nobody can predict what Nalbandian will do.”
Tweedledum said that more high-quality finals, like Becker-Sampras 1996 or even Hewitt-Ferrero 2002 seem unlikely until “I’m fired and replaced by someone who has the authority and the courage to shorten the season and save the players’ energy.”
Tweedledee looks forward to the upcoming season, one in which Federer and Nadal should be challenged by both Djokovic and Murray.
“To find a foursome this strong, you pretty much have to go back to 1990, when it was Ivan Lendl, Boris Becker and Stefan Edberg in the top 3, all of them multi-Slam winners, while Andre Agassi was knocking on the door,” he said.
“Davydenko hits an awfully clean ball, but he’ll never be in that category. I’ve watched him play matches against Federer where I thought, Davydenko could make not one unforced error and still lose this match.”
Davydenko is 0-12 against Federer, having not won a set from the Swiss in nearly three years. He is 2-3 against Nadal, 1-2 against Djokovic and 1-5 against Andy Roddick. While he has won two Master’s Series events and reached four Grand Slam semis, the majority of his 15 ATP titles have come in second and third-tier venues like Moscow, Warsaw and assorted cities in Austria.
Tweedledee described watching him play as “the most joyless experience in men’s tennis, aside from watching Ivo Karlovic hit ace after ace.”
“It would take a marketing genius to promote him. It would certainly require more ability than I’ve demonstrated.”
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about 1 month ago
This is because the Swiss seems to be the only top five player whose style of play allows him to conserve enough energy to have something left for the Cup
cute observation - i thought the same thing
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the most joyless experience in men’s tennis, aside from watching Ivo Karlovic hit ace after ace.”- ha ha ha
i dont even think david plouffe (obama's strategist) can market Niko - even trump cant
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yeah - Davydenko could make not one unforced error and still lose this match.”
very true - thats Niko !
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cheers - love the tweedle drift
cheers Mate - picked it
from about 1 month ago
Thanks. I thought about just coming out and saying "Davydenko is boring and the ATP is run by gorillas" but decided I needed to show more style. Glad you liked it.
from about 1 month ago
yeah - besides, diplomacy is a wonderful asset ... we always need that RY - thats what separates the good writers from the amateurs
am glad you made the right call
about 1 month ago
hes your Miller-Lite ....
from about 1 month ago
Main thing separating him from Ferrer and Rainer Sch. is that he puts in the same unspectacular result year after year.
about 1 month ago
First rate, Rob...as usual. Excellent analysis. Loved Tweedles...jaa
from about 1 month ago
Thanks. While I can't share your love of Fed, I have loads of respect for him and you both, so I'm glad you liked it.
about 1 month ago
Thanks - I appreciate that coming from you, as well. You are a professional in this field...so that means a lot to me! Love it that we can share this venue! It was a great article-- the best! jaa
from about 1 month ago
You are just a comment-generating machine over there. How do you do it?????
from about 1 month ago
I don't know why...maybe it is the people who seem to follow what i write...maybe it is the slant. Can't say and cannot predict...maybe this is a question for Long. He seems to have an answer about most things! I am just glad that there is quality writing here...i speak of you and Long, in this regard.
I think, too, that Federer is a magnet...people are more prone to read or in this case, comment, on his career.
You did make the front page, you know...i saw it! So congratulations on that! I have no idea how that works, btw...but seems it is a big deal! jaa
from about 1 month ago
The greatest number of comments I've gotten have been when I wrote specifically about Federer, so I guess you're right. Niko just isn't going to get it done.
But your work is thought provoking and you deserve the attention you get.
about 1 month ago
“Nobody can predict what Nalbandian will do.”
Sure they can. He will crap the bed anytime something good is expected of him.
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