Australian Open Mens Final Preview
The Australian Open men’s final will see the number one ranked Novak Djokovic up against the number two rank Rafael Nadal.
The defending champion Djokovic; who is coming off one of the greatest years in tennis history, is looking to build on the momentum and win the first major of the year. Advancing to the finals with an epic five hour, five-set match verse the number four seed Andy Murray in the semi-finals. Djokovic showed the heart and soul of a champion coming back from 2-sets to 1-down, to win the match 6-3, 3-6, 6-7 (4), 6-1, 7-5. A match defined by long rallies, with both men running all over the court to retrieve the ball resulting in both men buckled over, grasping for air numerous times. Upon winning the match, Djokovic fell onto his back in celebration, catching his breath and taking a big sigh of relief.
Nadal on the other hand, did not have as much of a problem with his semi-finals against long time rival Roger Federer. After losing the first set to Federer, Nadal buckled down, rallied back and took the next three sets winning the match 6-7 (5), 6-2, 7-6 (5), 6-4. Nadal looked a little lost in the first set; as if the right knee that he had injured two weeks prior to the commencement of the tournament may have been causing him discomfort again. However, he showed that when it comes down to it, no bit of pain is going to stop him from making it back to a Grand Slam final and seizing the opportunity at winning the Australian Open once again.
This is the third straight Grand Slam final that will pit Djokovic against Nadal, with Djokovic taking both the US Open and Wimbledon in four sets. All time Head-to-head, Djokovic and Nadal have faced each other 29 times, with Nadal holding the slight edge in victories 16-13.
We are in for quite a show Sunday morning, as Djokovic and Nadal know how to bring the best out of each other. A win for Djokovic would put him into selective company, joining the group of four; Rod Laver, Pete Sampras, Federer, and Nadal as the only men to win three straight Grand Slams in the Open Era. While a win for Nadal, will put him back into the winner circle in Melbourne for the first time since 2009.
Expect a gritty five-setter from these superstars, with whoever has the most endurance to come out on top. With Djokovic coming off a tough five hour, five setter this might give the edge to Nadal, but anyone that knows Djokovic’s personality. When he sees a player of Nadal’s calibre on the other side of the net, fatigue will not be a problem and this should make for epic showdown.
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Written by: Omar Khamissa - @omarbha135The Australian Open men’s final will see the number one ranked Novak Djokovic up against the number two rank Rafael Nadal.
The defending champion Djokovic; who is coming off one of the greatest years in tennis history, is looking to build on the momentum and win the first major of the year. Advancing to the finals with an epic five hour, five-set match verse the number four seed Andy Murray in the semi-finals. Djokovic showed the heart and soul of a champion coming back from 2-sets to 1-down, to win the match 6-3, 3-6, 6-7 (4), 6-1, 7-5. A match defined by long rallies, with both men running all over the court to retrieve the ball resulting in both men buckled over, grasping for air numerous times. Upon winning the match, Djokovic fell onto his back in celebration, catching his breath and taking a big sigh of relief.
Nadal on the other hand, did not have as much of a problem with his semi-finals against long time rival Roger Federer. After losing the first set to Federer, Nadal buckled down, rallied back and took the next three sets winning the match 6-7 (5), 6-2, 7-6 (5), 6-4. Nadal looked a little lost in the first set; as if the right knee that he had injured two weeks prior to the commencement of the tournament may have been causing him discomfort again. However, he showed that when it comes down to it, no bit of pain is going to stop him from making it back to a Grand Slam final and seizing the opportunity at winning the Australian Open once again.
This is the third straight Grand Slam final that will pit Djokovic against Nadal, with Djokovic taking both the US Open and Wimbledon in four sets. All time Head-to-head, Djokovic and Nadal have faced each other 29 times, with Nadal holding the slight edge in victories 16-13.
We are in for quite a show Sunday morning, as Djokovic and Nadal know how to bring the best out of each other. A win for Djokovic would put him into selective company, joining the group of four; Rod Laver, Pete Sampras, Federer, and Nadal as the only men to win three straight Grand Slams in the Open Era. While a win for Nadal, will put him back into the winner circle in Melbourne for the first time since 2009.
Expect a gritty five-setter from these superstars, with whoever has the most endurance to come out on top. With Djokovic coming off a tough five hour, five setter this might give the edge to Nadal, but anyone that knows Djokovic’s personality. When he sees a player of Nadal’s calibre on the other side of the net, fatigue will not be a problem and this should make for epic showdown.
Remember to Follow us on Twitter @SportsJunki3
Written by: Omar Khamissa - @omarbha135
Australian Open Women's Final Preview
The Australian Open Woman’s final will see the number three-ranked Victoria Azarenka up against the number four ranked Maria Sharapova. The winner on Saturday will not only receive the first Grand Slam of the year, but she will also gain the overall number one ranking in woman’s tennis. Which is up for grabs since the current number one, Caroline Wozniacki lost in the quarterfinals.
Azarenka who is 11-0 in 2012 got to her first career Grand Slam final with a 6-4, 1-6, 6-2 victory against the defending champion Kim Clijsters. The match took two hours and 12 minutes, and was a hard fought battle, but the 22-year-old Azarenka looked like she had more than enough poise and ability to handle the pressure that comes with a big time matchup, in a big time situation. Azarenka who has been playing with more maturity and poise to her game has taken her game to the next level. She knows she belongs now and that she has the ability to be the best player in the world and to step into the winners circle at the Grand Slam for the first time in her career
Sharapova on the other hand is no stranger to the spot light, winning her first major (Wimbledon) at the mere age of 17. Since then she has added four other Grand Slam championships. Any tournament she enters, she is considered one of the top contenders. However in the past few years, she has been plagued with shoulder and ankle injuries that have forced her to the sidelines for extended periods. However, Sharapova has showed no sign of her body slowing down throughout this Australian Open and has looked as good as ever. Sharapova advanced to the finals with a tough 6-2, 3-6, 6-4 victory over the second Petra Kvitova in the semi-finals, giving her a good warm up for the matchup against Azarenka.
Head to head, Sharapova and Azarenza have both won three matches against each other, with Azarenza taking the last matchup, but the last two times they faces on a hard surface like they will be playing on Saturday, Sharapova coming has come out on top. With both women coming into the finals playing high level of tennis, this should make for another suburb finals between the two.
There is however online ONE thing guaranteed to happen Saturday. It will be the “Scream Queen Finals”. With the two loudest shot grunters on tour going at it, it will defiantly be very LOUD.
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Written by: Omar Khamissa - @omarbha135
Australian Open Semi Final Preview
There is a definite top tier in men’s tennis. Coined as the “Fantastic Four” Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, and Andy Murray have moved themselves ahead of everyone else. In any of the Grand Slams, they are the only ones given a definite chance of winning. To show just how dominate they have been since 2005, only one other player not in the top four has won a Grand Slam. That is, in the past 28 Grand Slam tournaments, only once did another individual win.
Once again, this year one of the four will be winning, but first come the semi finals.
The first Semi-Final will see the biggest tennis rivalry of the past decade rehashed. The second ranked Rafeal Nadal up against the third ranked Roger Federer. All time Nadal has a 17-9 record verse Federer. The last time these two met in the Australian Open was in 2009, when Nadal took the title with a five-set victory over Federer in the finals. Nadal secured his spot in the semi-finals with a tough fought victory against the 7TH seed Tomas Berdych, beating him 6-7 (5), 7-6 (6), 6-4, 6-3. In a match, that Nadal had to buckle down and play an intense game for the first time in the tournament, giving him a nice warm up for Federer. Federer on the other hand, has been going through the tournament without any hitches, getting through the ball-crusher, 11th seed Juan Martin Del Potro, in the quarterfinals winning in straight sets 6-4, 6-3, 6-2. Federer looks to be in mid season form already and should make for another epic matchup against Nadal.
The second semi-final will see the number one player in the world Novak Djokovic, who is coming off one of the greatest seasons in tennis history, up against the 4th seed Andy Murray who has looked sharp under the tutelage of new coach Ivan Lendl. Djokovic has, as a career 6-4 record against Murray, including a matchup in last year’s Australian Open finals, in which Djokovic won in straight sets. Although last year Djokovic took care of Murray in straight sets, this was during his 43 match-winning streak in which he was not losing against anyone!
Djokovic secured his spot in the semi-finals with a victory over the 5th seed Spanish speedster David Ferrer, winning in straight sets 6-4, 7-6(4), 6-1. Murray had just as easy a time in his match; beating the 24th seed Kei Nishikori in straight sets 6-3, 6-3, 6-1. With a new year comes a new opportunity and Murray is looking to prove that he has what it takes to play with the "big boys".
Whatever the outcome of these two semi-finals it sure to lead to one thrilling championship match in Australia
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Written by: Omar Khamissa - @omarbha135
At 30 years of age, Lleyton Hewitt has a career full of highs and lows. The former number one player in the world and two time Grand Slam winner (US Open 2001, and Wimbledon 2002) had the skill and opportunity to go down as one of the greatest tennis players to play the game. However, as every athlete knows, no matter how much skill you have there is only one thing that can slow you down; your body. The Aussie has had a career filled with injuries from a nagging foot, ankle, leg, wrist to groin, and hip injuries, just to name a few throughout his career. The one thing that Hewitt has always loved, is his Australia’s roots, being the first to put his hand up to represent his country for the Davis Cup and always being determined to be healthy enough to help host the Australia Open and do his country well. This year that was almost in doubt even up to a couple months ago, Hewitt himself did not know if he would be able to play tennis ever again. However, the determination and perseverance that Hewitt is renowned for came through once more as he battled back from injuries and entered the tournament as a Wild Card seed. This year marks the record setting 16th straight time Hewitt has played in the Australian Open. Hewitt has continued to battle in the tournament, getting through two top 20 players Andy Roddick and Milos Roanic and is on his way to the fourth round to face the present world number one Novak Djokovic who has not lost a set all tournament. Novak will push Lleyton to his limits, and it will take all the grit and passion that the Aussie has to find a way to beat the world number one.
Win or lose, Hewitt has set an example that we should all try to emanate whether it is in sports or in life. Throughout all the injuries and the constant surgeries, he never once gave up. He is still there fighting for every point, not willing to give up that extra inch. His motivation is unbelievable; even though his body has been beaten and broken, he will not surrender. If this does turn out to be Hewitt’s last Australian Open, he has given us all a lasting example of just how much heart he has.
Elsewhere in the Australia Open men’s number 1, 2, 3 and 4. Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, and Andy Murray have all had a pedestrian first three rounds and have not lost a set. Once again, nobody will be surprised if they meet each other in the Semi-Finals.
On the women’s side, world number one Caroline Wozniacki has not had a problem all tournament and is looking to win her first Grand Slam. However, for that to happen she will need to get though the 5th ranked Li Na, or the 11th ranked Kim Clijsters , and potentially 3rd ranked Victoria Azarenka, both who are on her side of the draw and have looked dominant so far. On the other side of the draw, there is a very juicy quarterfinals matchup that could happen between Serena Williams and the fourth ranked Maria Sharapova, both of whom have not even broke a sweat in their first three round matchups.
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Written by: Omar Khamissa - @Omarbha135
Mayweather Challenges Pacquiao Via Twitter
This fight has been talked about for years now and both sides have been to blame for it never happening, but earlier today Floyd Mayweather changed all of that. He won't be the reason this highly anticipated match up never happens. Mayweather took to twitter to challenge Pacquiao to a fight May 5th:
Your move Manny...
Bell and Rogers Purchase MLSE
Bell Media and Rogers Communications bought out the Ontario Teachers Pension Plan's stake in the MLSE. The OTPP currently holds a 79.5% stake in MLSE and this deal is reportedly worth $1.3 billion.
MLSE currently owns three Toronto sports teams: the Leafs (NHL), the Raptors (NBA), and Toronto FC (MLS). They also own the Toronto Marlies (minor league hockey) and the ACC. Rogers already owns the Blue Jays and the Rogers centre.
This is an odd partnership because these are the two biggest competitors in the media and communications market in Canada. They are each others' main competition when it comes to pretty much anything, so how will they co-exist? Who gets the broadcasting rights, the radio rights?
I wonder how fans will feel about one company (Rogers) having a stake in all the sports teams in the city, and having a stake in the two major stadiums (Rogers Centre and ACC) as well. I guess Canadians won't mind since they are used to being overcharged for services from these two companies.
Group A
Poland
Greece
Russia
Czech Republic
Group B
Netherlands
Denmark
Germany
Portugal
Group C
Spain
Italy
Republic of Ireland
Croatia
Group D
Ukraine
Sweden
France
England
Urban Meyer Back With Buckeyes
The Ohio State Buckeyes have announced the hiring of Head Coach Urban Meyer, after a one-year stint as an ESPN analyst. The 47 year-old head coach will get a chance to return to the team that gave him his start as head coach in 1986. Meyer resigned as head coach of the Florida Gators, due to health and family concerns, but after just one year on the sidelines, Meyer got an offer from a team that he could not say no to.
The deal is a four year one, in which Meyer will be paid a base salary of approximately $4 million, with incentives. He will become one of the highest paid coaches in the NCAA. Meyer won two National Championships with the Gators in six years, and now will try to help the Buckeyes out of a tough year, filled with NCAA violations.
"A year ago in my mind I was convinced I was done coaching," said Meyer, "If not for the coaching position at Ohio State, I would not have coached this year."
GSP Drops out of UFC 137
Next week's main event has been scratched due to an injury to George St-Pierre. GSP is currently the UFC Welterweight champion, and his opponent, Carlson Condit will have to wait for him to get healthy before having his shot at the title.
Nick Diaz vs BJ Penn has now been moved to the main event. GSP's trainers say that he is out approximately one month, and no doctor has cleared him to fight next week.
Playing like the Pros: Your Opponents
What is it about that one guy in your poker game that just gets under your skin? He’s tight, aggressive and generally knows how to play, but every time you get to the river he always turns up the goods. Well, from a poker standpoint, he’s playing flawless poker and you should be too. His vision of you is the guy who always pays him off, the station, the fish. Maybe you are just there to have fun and he knows this, and he’s using this information against you.
Today we are going to talk about your opponents. You should know your hole cards by this point, and the stakes you play. At any level of poker, whether high, or low, there are good players, mediocre players, bad players, and even on the odd occasion-- there is a great player. The latter is true for the higher stakes games, where games are built and die surrounding a single fish and great players generally flock as their bankroll permits.
Generally speaking you should be adapting to your opponents. When they play loose, you should tighten up, and when they tighten up, you need to rev into 5th gear and start pouncing on them. Not every opponent is the same but there is generalization on how some players play and how we can use this information to our advantage.
There are many types of opponents but the ones we should be looking for are the more loose-passive and the weak-tight players:
The loose-passive player tends to lean on the call button too much. They love to play pre-flop, but they almost never fold! How can we beat them if they never fold? Well, that’s sort of the point. We want them calling us down until the river. They usually have no concept of pot odds and value betting thin is the best solution. A thin value bet is when there are many other hand combinations that may beat us, yet we elect to bet a portion of the pot knowing that we will be called by worse. A simple example would be betting a straight, when it is pretty obvious a flush is out, but we are sure our opponent does not have it but may look us up with a set (trips) or two-pairs. Remember though, betting for thin value is opponent dependent so you have to use your best judgement. The bet/fold line is best unless we really think our opponent is spazzy/spewy then we should consider just checking back in position if the action dictates.
The weak tight players tend have no concept of the game except they know the value of AA and KK. Trust me; most of these nits even hate QQ on a K high flop. They are in check/fold mode most of the time since they need to smash a flop to bits before putting any amount of money in. These guys are perfect for small ball poker. Small ball poker is the concept of winning multiple small pots versus one large pot. So we basically try to beat them with continuation bets on the flop after we raise pre-flop. I tend to almost fold most of my hand range against a 3-Bet unless I am near the top portion which against a nit would be something like QQ+/AQs+. Sometimes I will drop the AQ suited and stick with AKo+ but sometimes I won’t. It is really dependant on your opponent and how he plays.
Keep your eye on these players and target them when you are in position against them. Take mental notes on what they do. Remember the last time he bet the pot on the river and he was bluffing? Remember the last time he checked the flop with the nuts? Recreational players tend to make the same mistakes over and over again. They subliminally maintain bet sizes which they think are mysterious and take really unorthodox lines, but generally they just have no clue what they are doing and are simply gambling rather than strategizing.
My next article will discuss bankroll management and how important it is in having a successful poker career.
Do you have a question or an idea for a column? E-mail me at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
You can also follow me on twitter @TheRealSump
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Australian Open Mens Final Preview
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Australian Open Women's Final Preview
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