The Blog

MEMO TO FABRICE SANTORO:  Buck up, man!  Cool it with the whining, cry-baby shtick.  Show some backbone.

Santoro is the lily-livered professional tennis player who got blown out by Andy Roddick in the first round of the U.S. Open in New York.  Did I say professional? Santoro looked anything but as he quit on match point in a cowardly and juvenile fit of pique.  He should be ashamed of himself.

As Roddick prepared for his final serve, Santoro refused to ready himself and made no attempt whatsoever to return the ball as it went whizzing past him.  Why?  Santoro was upset about the previous point, when Roddick blasted a 140 m.p.h. serve right at him, causing Santoro to have to duck out of the way.  The serve was legal and was Roddick’s 14th ace in a match he thoroughly dominated.

I don’t criticize Santoro for ducking out of the way.  What I blame him for is the ridiculous refusal to play out the match, based on his feeling, as he expressed it afterward, that Roddick deliberately fired the serve at him. 

Excuse me, but . . . SO WHAT!?   Is this guy such a wimp that he can’t cope with the psychological trauma of a hard serve to the body? 

If I remember right, every part of the service box is legal.  Serving to the opponent’s body has always been an effective tactic in tennis.  Apparently, Santoro believes that Roddick violated some moral code by serving at him when the match was all but decided.  This would be the equivalent, I guess, of running up the score in football.

I can’t imagine that this sort of attitude is good for the game.  If you’re out there to compete, then compete, damn it!  Anything less creates a chilling effect on great play.  Are we to expect Roddick–or anyone else–to ease off a serve for fear of offending an opponent?  Should a superior player go so far as to serve under-handed to give a lesser opponent a more equal chance?  Where do we draw these lines?  Is tennis or any sport well-served by having these asinine unwritten rules.

If Roddick’s serve is too hard for Santoro, I suggest he back up several feet and give himself more time to see and react to the ball.   Either that, or go back to his home country, France, and play in the local rec league.