Filed under: MMA Media Watch

So much for that.

A day after we noted that DirecTV, alone among major carriers, had chosen to offer Friday night’s Shine Fights pay-per-view card but not Saturday night’s Shark Fights card, DirecTV has changed course.

With Shine Fights’ event moving from a sanctioned show in Virginia to an unsanctioned show on a tribal territory in Oklahoma, DirecTV decided not to offer Shine Fights anymore.

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DirecTV Won’t Offer Shine Fights

Despite the “major concerns” voiced by the commission’s director, Chambers insisted that every fighter is “exceedingly comfortable” with participating in the event on Otoe-Missouria Tribe land, and that all of them had been made aware of the potential consequences from the commission.

“We’ve communicated to them what’s been said, but that’s coming from second-hand information from the internet,” Chambers said. “Are we going to go tell them, the forums are saying you guys are going to have this or going to have that? Our matchmaker is very open with them and communicating with them. That’s a non-issue, the suspensions and stuff. They’re well aware of what the possibilities could be, absolutely.”

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Shine Fights COO: Licensing Restriction for Shine Fighters a ‘Non-Issue’

Filed under: U.S. Open

NEW YORK — The Pakistani and Indian ambassadors to the U.N. sat next to each other to watch a tennis match Wednesday at the U.S. Open. These two men from countries that are always warring or threatening, nuclear neighbors, sat together and cheered for the same players to hit a ball over a net.

Imagine that.

“It was a beautiful thing to see,” said Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi, of Pakistan, one of the players. He and partner Rohan Bopanna of India had just beaten Eduardo Schwank and Horacio Zeballos 7-6, 6-4 to advance to the Open finals. “If me and Rohan can get along so well on and off the court, there’s no reason the Indians and Pakistanis can’t get along with each other.”

Tennis diplomacy. Qureshi can feel it. He’s getting more and more emotional as the tournament goes on and he realizes that he’s not only having the moment of his career, but also becoming a force for change, for peace.

They just both needed a doubles partner.

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Unlikely Doubles Team Sending Unifying Message Through Tennis

Filed under: U.S. Open, ATP

Roger Federer defeated No. 5-seeded Robin Soderling in straight sets 6-4, 6-4, 7-5 to advance into his seventh straight semifinals at the U.S. Open. Federer, who lost to Soderling for the first time in 13 matches at this year’s French Open quarterfinal, avenged his loss against the Swede in brilliant fashion on Wednesday night.

Earlier on Wednesday, third-seeded Novak Djokovic of Serbia defeated Frenchman Gael Monfils 7-6 (2), 6-1, 6-2 and will face Federer for a fourth year in a row at Flushing Meadows.

The 16-time Grand Slam champion from Switzerland had an easier time handling the heavy winds than Soderling during the match. Between the windy conditions and Federer’s solid play, 26-year-old Soderling never found any footing and failed to generate an ace on his powerful serve until the middle of the third set.

“I’ve been practicing my serve a whole lot, for my whole career. If I can’t serve in the wind, I’ve got a problem, you know?” said the 29-year-old Federer in an on-court interview. “You could probably wake me up at 2 in the morning, or 4 in the morning, and I could hit a few serves.”

It was routine from the beginning for the No. 2-seeded Federer, breaking Soderling on his first opportunity of the match with a beautifully sliced backhand drop shot to go up 4-3 in the opening set. The break rattled Soderling and the Swede never gained any consistent momentum against the 29-year-old Federer.

Soderling served poorly, and just when it looked like he was about to creep back into the match with a break against Federer to go up 5-3 in the third set, he dropped his next service game and put the match right back on serve at 5-4. Federer held serve during the tenth game to level the set at 5-5, then broke Soderling again in the 11th game to go up 6-5 before he fittingly served the match out with two aces to claim another night victory at Arthur Ashe Stadium. The five-time tournament champion has yet to drop a set at this year’s Open.

Federer’s groundstrokes were powerful and precise, forcing the normally aggressive Soderling to play on the defensive throughout the match. Federer generated 20 more winners than Soderling — ending the match with 36 — and 18 aces, while the normally hard-serving Swede only finished with two. Federer’s serve carried him through the match, winning 86 percent of his first-serve points and limiting Soderling to 67 percent on his first serve.

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Roger Federer Sails Past Robin Soderling at Windy US Open

Filed under: UFC

Just because two men are looking at the same problem, it doesn’t mean they’re going to come up with the same answer. It’s an obvious lesson, but one we learned again this week thanks to Dan Hardy and Kenny Florian.

The (perceived) problem? All these knuckleheaded wrestlers are coming into MMA, taking people down, and then just holding them there until time runs out and the judges declare them the winner.

The solution? According to Hardy we need to make some rule changes, maybe give the referees more authority to put a stop to these grapple-happy shenanigans. But according to Florian, who this week told Sherdog.com that he’s hired Boston University assistant wrestling coach Sean Gray to help him in training, the answer is to add more arrows to your own quiver rather than trying to take them out of someone else’s.

I think we already know which strategy will prove more successful.

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Kenny Florian Opts to Improve, While Dan Hardy Would Rather Complain

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Steve Phillips’ Three Down: Braves’ Offense, Rangers’ Health, Cardinals

Original post:
FanHouse TV: Ron Washington on the Rangers’ Challenges

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Rays Get Glimpse of Future With Arrival of Desmond Jennings

Filed under: U.S. Open, ATP

Top-seeded Caroline Wozniacki braved the elements and defeated unseeded Dominika Cibulkova in straight sets 6-2, 7-5 during Wednesday’s windy quarterfinal night match at the U.S. Open.

The 20-year-old Dane of Polish descent rattled off her 13th straight victory against Cibulkova. She has won four tournament titles and 31 hard-court matches this year, both better than any woman on tour. Wozniacki advances into the semifinals at Flushing Meadows for the second straight year, she finished runner-up to Kim Clijsters at the Open last year.

Wind played a contributing factor in the match. Play was halted on numerous occasions due to flying debris around the court. Both players were visibly frustrated with the wind throughout the match.

“It was really difficult to play today,” Wozniacki said regarding the weather. “It was very windy, and from one side you barely hit it and the ball was flying, and from the other side you had to really hit through because the ball didn’t go anywhere. So it was tough, but it was the same for both of us.”

With gusts over 30 mph on Arthur Ashe Stadium, both players struggled with their tossing during their opening service games.

There was not a hold of serve until the fourth game of the first set when Wozniacki went up 3-1. Wozniacki went on to claim the first set convincingly, but the wind continued to throw off the tempo of the match.

To open the second set, Cibulkova continued to struggle with her ball toss and Wozniacki broke the Slovakian in the opening game. Cibulkova battled valiantly throughout the second set, but Wozniacki played steadier to eventually prevail. Wozniacki earned the commanding break in the 11th game of the second set to go up 6-5. The Dane then staved off break point to put her service game into deuce where she won a long rally on her first match point to seal the contest.

Wozniacki survived the wind much better than Cibulkova on Wednesday night. She finished with 25 fewer unforced errors, only committing 18 in the heavy winds. Wozniacki also broke Cibulkova five times, while only having her serve broken twice.

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Caroline Wozniacki Outlasts Cibulkova, Wind to Advance to Semis

Filed under: U.S. Open

NEW YORK — We all tinker. Tennis players try to stand in a new spot to return serve, or to go through a new routine before a toss. Golfers are notorious for tinkering, their search for the magic nugget. Usually, it just turns them into Nervous Nellies.
And whatever we find usually lasts, what, four weeks?

“Sunday,” Toni Nadal said.

Sunday?

“Yes Sunday, the day before the tournament.”

That’s when Rafael Nadal changed the grip on his serve, under the guidance of his coach, Uncle Toni. And just like that, it has made for the most amazing transformation. Just a week and a half ago, Nadal slid his hand over a little on his racket handle, and as a result, he now has one of the biggest serves on tour.

A few weeks ago, he played in Cincinnati in hot weather on fast courts, perfect conditions for power. But he was not serving like this.

Rafael Nadal has found the Holy Grail. A weekend-warrior didn’t find it. Not you. Not me, of course. Rafael Nadal, the best player in the world.

Snap, just like that, he has reached the quarterfinals of the U.S. Open without losing a set. Without losing his serve. Not once.

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In Adapting Game, Rafael Nadal Reaching New Levels of Greatness