Comments on: Italian Open 2006

By: Marketman

Marketman — Wed, 19 Jul 2006 01:28:22 +0000

JRodriguez and bay leaf…no, The Kid’s tennis is recreational sport for now…not competitive tennis…but she does appear to enjoy it!

By: JRodriguez

JRodriguez — Tue, 18 Jul 2006 18:55:16 +0000

MM,

Will “The Kid” turn pro? You might have to go back to the states and go to the Sunshine State. Good luck and what a lucky kid to be able to get exposed to the outside world at an early age! MM, I’m glad you posted this! Such a pleasant article to read!

By: Bay_leaf

Bay_leaf — Tue, 18 Jul 2006 12:24:36 +0000

lol, actually Roger was a brat when he was younger, throwing tantrums and rackets all over the place. He’s more controlled now. Off court though, he’s a normal guy, and very down to earth.
But you’re right, his tennis IS poetry in motion. no one quite like him… :)

Mrs. MM, i just found out that Beeyong Sison even played doubles with Heinz Gunthard when he was living here. HG is a former tennis pro and used to be Steffi Graf’s coach. He is now commentating for Swiss tv.

Good luck on your Kid’s tennis. Hope we’ll see her in WTA in the near future! ;)

By: Marketman

Marketman — Tue, 18 Jul 2006 11:45:24 +0000

Poetry in motion, bay leaf, is how I would describe Federer in action. MM doesn’t like him because he thinks Federer is too teutonic and hardly shows any emotions. :)

Mrs. Marketman

By: Bay_leaf

Bay_leaf — Tue, 18 Jul 2006 10:30:46 +0000

Thank you for this info, Mrs. MM!

Next time i see Roger, i’ll remind him. ;)

In fact i’ve been prodding him (everytime i get the chance to get close to him) to come to the Philippines to enjoy our beautiful beaches. Unfortunately he’s got a very hectic schedule and it’s out of the way.

By: Marketman

Marketman — Tue, 18 Jul 2006 10:15:49 +0000

Bay leaf, the kid’s tennis coach says Beeyong Sison, who now coaches at the International Tennis School (ITS) Academy in Subic, once taught Roger Federer at an early age (when Federer was 11 or 12). Beeyong apparently was a Swiss National Assistant Coach and helped set up the ITS in Basel, Switzerland.

Mrs. Marketman

By: Marketman

Marketman — Tue, 18 Jul 2006 07:41:35 +0000

Bay leaf, I have to ask my daughter’s coach to be sure of the name…

By: Bay_leaf

Bay_leaf — Tue, 18 Jul 2006 07:26:48 +0000

hi Honey,

i gotta add something to your post, whenever Federer is playing in Switzerland i always give out all sorts of excuses to come wherever he plays (i lied about Roland Garros, too, hehe)and when he came back last Monday from Wimbledon, he was met at the Basel airport by a couple of fans. Good thing i didn’t go cuz it was all over the papers and tv, if my boss finds out, i would be in big trouble! (except the weekends, of course. ;)
MM, interesting about the Pinoy coach, what’s his name? The coach i know who trained him at an early age was Sepp Kacovsky (he still works at Old Boys Tennis Club in Basel) followed by the late Peter Carter.

Anyone heard of our very own Alan Zafra? He is now based here in Swizerland and is a tennis coach.

By: honey

honey — Mon, 17 Jul 2006 23:42:58 +0000

I had a college buddy who was a big fan of Felix Abbarientos 9or maybe it was Barrientos). she absented herself from a mid term exam exam to watch him play. the excuse she gave the prof was that her brother died. the next day, her photo was on the front page of the inquirer as one of the spectators. good thing our prof doesn’t seem to read the PDI

By: Marketman

Marketman — Mon, 17 Jul 2006 21:35:52 +0000

fabian, you are right, she’s from Belgium, I have changed post, it must be the effect of that “other” Belgian, Justine Henin Hardenne that causes the confusion… bay leaf, here’s a little trivia, did you know that one of Federer’s first coaches (when he was like 11), was Filipino, he’s now back in Manila and gives lessons? Fried neurons, you gotta see the Italian Open, the grounds are spectacular!