Non vaccination costs tennis star $4.4 million!

[Zeno Marx]

Anyone who doubts mental strength being the fulcrum in sports need only watch women's tennis. Osaka's mental fragility, but outside of that having as much power as many of the men. Or the countless women who can crush their opponent for a set and 5 games, until they had to serve for the match, completely blunder their service game, fall apart, and then end up losing the match in the third set. Some don't like to watch weakness, though. Heck, most do not. I happen to prefer watching weakness play out. Who is going to overcome, or merely stay focused, and prevail? I can't believe I'm drawing a blank right now as to give examples, but one of the big reasons there hasn't been a stand-out women's player since Serena is because so many of the potential greats fall apart as they're closing their matches. There's been so many who were thought to be the next big thing, only to have that particular weakness exposed. On the funny side of that, it drives the older players, like Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert absolutely bonkers to watch the women unable to close a match. People with nerves of steel and the resolve of machines, cringing at the very thing that many people cite as being "typical weak women." When Martina Navratilova is analyzing a match and this happens, you can practically feel her shifting in her seat in the booth, the whole time biting her tongue from lambasting them. She's not very good at hiding her displeasure.

 

[Hermit]

I'm disgusted by this. Djokovic recently had the Rona (for the second time) and has
natural immunity as good or better than the vaccine that doesn't prevent the virus anyway.
He is no threat to anyone. The Australian government has destroyed the tournament.
I would have been cheering for Nadal or Federer, but the Open is now tainted.
I suppose he will be banned from further tournaments. All further records are meaningless.

 

[RSteve]

I'm disgusted by this. Djokovic recently had the Rona (for the second time) and has
natural immunity as good or better than the vaccine that doesn't prevent the virus anyway.
He is no threat to anyone. The Australian government has destroyed the tournament.
I would have been cheering for Nadal or Federer, but the Open is now tainted.
I suppose he will be banned from further tournaments. All further records are meaningless.

So, you have no problem with the fact that he concealed the fact that he tested positive for CV19 and the following day proceeded to interact with other players and interviewers while infected.

 

[RSteve]

Re: Naomi "Osaka's mental fragility,"
I cannot imagine the social/cultural pressures she has dealt with her entire young life.

I have a female friend I've known for nearly fifty years. She is Japanese, born to Japanese parents in 1948. She is 5'8" tall and is 100% Japanese, born to the parents who raised her. Her father, the taller of her parents at 5' 3" refused to be seen with her by the time she was 12-years-old. In school my friend was taunted by classmates as being the child of a prostitute and an American soldier. Trust me. She looks 100% Japanese and, in the photos I've seen, facially just like her father. She was very fortunate that her H.S. English teacher was an American with ties to St. Paul, MN's Hamline College (now University) The English teacher found her a sponsor and got her a scholarship to Hamiline.
The Japanese are very race conscious. Although Osaka "identifies" as Japanese, I'm sure she's heard more than a few racist taunts in her life.

 

[Zeno Marx]

My comment about Osaka wasn't meant to be read as derogatory. That should be absolutely clear, and since it wasn't, let it be so now. Her anxiety and pulling in/out of tournaments makes more sense to me than the people who are said to be unaffected by young success. It's actually more likely that the difference between the young champions of the past vs now is that there wasn't a 24/7 news cycle and social media when Capriati, Seles, and Hingus won as teenagers. They were dealing with the same anxiety and dysfunction, but we didn't know about it. Their teams had control of them and kept the small number of outlets from knowing of the problems. Check out Agassi's book to see what kind of craziness was happening behind the scenes, when they could control the narrative. The champions of today have control over their own lives and grow up in the same "tell them everything, all the time" world as all the other people their age. That's the difference, in my opinion. It isn't because people are weaker now. They own their own lives and are confident in sharing their weaknesses.

Djokovic lied. He knows he lied. Djokovic put other people in danger, and they had both the right to know and the right to make the decision of exposure for themselves. He didn't afford them that because of his own beliefs. Djokovic has been openly advocating to his fellow countrymen athletes to not get vaccinated because their faith and superior athlete bodies will defend their health. He doesn't like the protocol. He tried to get around it. He deserves the same consequence as anyone else entering Australia.

 

[RSteve]

My comment about Osaka wasn't meant to be read as derogatory.

I doubt that anyone could view it as derogatory. I certainly didn't.

 

[RSteve]

Djokovic concealed the fact that he tested positive for CV19 and the following day proceeded to interact with other players and interviewers while infected.

Djokovic put other people in danger, and they had both the right to know and the right to make the decision of exposure for themselves. He didn't afford them that because of his own beliefs. Djokovic has been openly advocating to his fellow countrymen athletes to not get vaccinated because their faith and superior athlete bodies will defend their health. He doesn't like the protocol. He tried to get around it. He deserves the same consequence as anyone else entering Australia.

And if the science of contact tracing were more advanced and any person with whom he had contact become infected with the virus, he should be criminally prosecuted.

 

[eggman]

And there those instances when a clearly lesser opponent is victorious because his opponent's mindset is that he's invincible.
Buster Douglas v. Mike Tyson

Wait a minute Douglas played Tyson n a tennis match?

 

[Blackhorse]

Wait a minute Douglas played Tyson n a tennis match?

It wasn’t very well publicized.

 

[RSteve]

eggman said:
Wait a minute Douglas played Tyson in a tennis match?

Blackhorse said:
It wasn’t very well publicized.

Winner played Richard Raskind. Loser played Renee Richards.

 

[Blackhorse]

Yeah..THOSE I saw.

I think Richards won!

 

[RSteve]

Yeah..THOSE I saw. I think Richards won!

At close to age 90, I think they're just playing recreationally now.

 

[Hermit]

Well, it was a spectacular men's final.
Nadal was down two sets, serving at 2 - 3, love-forty.
Then came the greatest comeback I've seen.
I'm a big Nadal fan, but I will forever wonder if Rafa
would have beaten Novak in the semi-finals.

 

[Blackhorse]

Yup…spectacular comeback. So “Nadal”. You know, it’s been such a rewarding ten years plus, being a fan during the prime Nadal, Federer, Djokovic years. Each one not only inspired but tough as nails as well. Reminds me of a phrase characterizing a family in one of my favorite novels, “Sometimes a Great Notion” by Ken Keasy…NEVER GIVE A INCH!

Oh yeah, can’t forget Serena Williams.

 

[Hermit]

DHS denies vaccine waiver for Novak Djokovic; senators implore Biden to intervene; Indian Wells and Miami Open on the line

This is insane. At this point, are they really gonna keep Novak out of the country?

 

[Blackhorse]

It only costs him if he would have won the #1 spot. He’s my favorite player but that’s just an assumption.

 

[Blackhorse]

DHS denies vaccine waiver for Novak Djokovic; senators implore Biden to intervene; Indian Wells and Miami Open on the line

This is insane. At this point, are they really gonna keep Novak out of the country?

I’m pretty sure this is due to tournament rules and not the USA that’s he’s elected to stay out…right?

 

[Hermit]

I’m pretty sure this is due to tournament rules and not the USA that’s he’s elected to stay out…right?

He's not allowed in the country.
He should sneak in from Mexico; nobody cares if they're vaxed.