Word: backhanded
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...recent phenomenon. In China's more vehemently socialist days, tennis was frowned upon, viewed as a marker of capitalist excess. (Any sport in which a major tournament has English nobility sampling strawberries and cream on the sidelines hardly bespoke of communist equality.) But China has changed, and a decent backhand is now considered de rigueur among many progeny of the Chinese elite. There's also the matter of international glory: Like dozens of other sports, tennis was targeted by the country's sports czars as a possible manufacturer of gold medals and world titles. In the 1990s, China poured money...
...equivalent of a bruiser (case in point: he served 25% of the time to Federer's body), while Federer is a dancer (he chose that aggressive target only 4% of the time), and how Nadal managed to neutralize the greatest attacking forehand in tennis with the game's greatest backhand passing shot (Federer won only 60% of points when approaching net, which should almost always be a winning gambit on grass), and how Federer's remaining greatness still lies in his preference for elegance and accuracy over force. (Federer had 25 aces, much more than Nadal, but his fastest speed...
...notes that had nothing to do with tactics or score, but rather attempted to capture the seemingly mundane moments in the four-hour and 48 minutes of play that will stay with me long after I forget how Federer won the crucial match point in the 4th set (a backhand pass), or even what shot Nadal hit to win the match (a serve). Here is the view from...
Second Set: From across the court, I can see into the TV commentator's booth. John McEnroe - whose five-set epic against Bjorn Borg in 1980 was, until this match, considered the gold standard in Wimbledon final history - is gesticulating wildly, re-enacting Nadal's backhand with such eagerness you worry he might fall from his booth onto his cherished court below...
Wimbledon plays to Ivanovic's strengths. The ball moves faster on grass, which will help her monstrous serve. Ivanovic likes playing at the net. Plus, her backhand slice will skid away from opponents on the turf: good luck lunging for it, Ms. Sharapova and Mss. Williams...