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Celebrities and fellow tennis players take to Twitter to congratulate Andy Murray

September 11, 2012 by TennisGrandstand

By Romi Cvitkovic

Celebrities and fellow tennis players swarmed to Twitter to give their congratulations to tennis’ newest Slam winner, Andy Murray as he defeated Novak Djokovic in a nearly five hour championship match.
Congratulations, Andy! You are a true fighter and champion!
Have a look at the warm wishes below from players like Juan Monaco, Andre Agassi, Sabine Lisicki,Victoria Azarenka and Ross Hutchins and celebrities like Russell Crowe, Pau Gasol, Ewan McGregor, Rory McIlroy, Piers Morgan and Mario Andretti!
Brother of Andy Murray:

What a historic night! Tonight Andy achieved his dream. He got the result his talent dedication and perseverance deserved. So proud of him.

— Jamie Murray (@jamie_murray) September 11, 2012


Coach of Roger Federer:

Congratulations Andy Murray a great effort and a war of a match- enjoy the win !

— Paul Annacone (@paul_annacone) September 11, 2012


Novak Djokovic’s hitting partner:

@andy_murray @DjokerNole What a match Congratulations to Andy Murray on his 1st GS Title! Proud of Nole, Left his heart on d court Idemoo!

— DUŠAN VEMIĆ (@dusanVemic) September 11, 2012


Former ATP pro:

Well deserved…Congratulations to the #USOPEN Champion Andy Murray!!!

— Andre Agassi (@AndreAgassi) September 11, 2012


Former WTA player:

@andy_murray won this match in Melbourne when he came so close and didnt truly believe! tonight he believed! very happy for him and his team

— rennae stubbs (@rennaestubbs) September 11, 2012


Former coach of Andy Murray and current ESPN commentator:

What a close from the muzzard that was and epic final major props to the guys a pleasure to watch

— Brad Gilbert (@bgtennisnation) September 11, 2012


Former ATP pro and current Tennis Channel commentator:

Amazing final, proud 2 be involved in this great sport, congrats 2 both @DjokerNole @andy_murray both guys laid it on the line, WARRIORS

— Justin Gimelstob (@justingimelstob) September 11, 2012


Former ATP pro and current ESPN commentator:

Thank you @andy_murray and @djokernole The sport of tennis wins…..again.

— Patrick McEnroe (@PatrickMcEnroe) September 11, 2012


Former ATP pro and current tennis commentator:

Murray has done it !!!

— Boris Becker (@TheBorisBecker) September 11, 2012


Tennis commentator:

Congrats to @andy_murray! First of quite a few Slams, IMO. Well earned. His joy and relief evident. Even Lendl was hugging people!

— Chris Fowler (@cbfowler) September 11, 2012

Fellow tennis players:

@andy_murray well done Andy! really happy for u! well done to all ur team as well

— victoria azarenka (@vika7) September 11, 2012

Grande andyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

— Juan Monaco (@picomonaco) September 11, 2012

I am SO pumped for Andy Murray!! Wow! Love the Joker but it was Andy's time… Gutsy performance by both players! GB has to be proud!!

— Bethanie MattekSands (@BMATTEK) September 11, 2012

Congrats to @andy_murray to achieve his first Grand Slam! He and Nole has been played a great US Open final, both deserved to win.

— Rafa Nadal (@RafaelNadal) September 11, 2012

Incredible, amzaing, unbelievable!!!!! Soooo happy for him, deserves everything

— Ross Hutchins (@RoscoHutchins) September 11, 2012

Us Open Champion Andy Murray. So happy for him. #proud

— Laura Robson (@laurarobson5) September 11, 2012

Great job @Andy_Murray! Incredible improvement this year! Still need to work on your emotions after winning:) Smiling and jumping would do:)

— Alina Jidkova (@AlinaJidkova) September 11, 2012

What an EPIC final!!! Great match from both players! Big congrats to @andy_murray for his 1st Grand slam title!! Happy for him 🙂

— Sabine Lisicki (@sabinelisicki) September 11, 2012

Enhorabuena a @andy_murray por ganarl el Us.Open!! Te lo merecias! Congrats to @andy_murray for winning the Us.Open title!! U deserve it!

— Fernando Verdasco (@FerVerdasco) September 11, 2012

Huge congrats to@andy_murray!Well played and off course well deserved!Enjoyed watching final.Novak is a great champion,now it was Andy turn.

— Elena Vesnina (@EVesnina001) September 11, 2012

Well done @andy_murray. Totally deserved…a true british hero!

— julien benneteau (@julienbenneteau) September 11, 2012

Well done to @andy_murray , great effort by him and truly well deserved.

— Rohan Bopanna (@rohanbopanna) September 11, 2012

He's done it! Andy Murray – Grand Slam Champion!

— Colin Fleming (@colin_fleming) September 11, 2012

Amazing match today, was rooting for Andy!

— Vania King (@queen_v21) September 11, 2012

Congratz @andy_murray

— Janko Tipsarevic (@TipsarevicJanko) September 11, 2012

First Grand Slam Treasure for Andy Murray!!! So AWESOME!!!

— Aleksandra Wozniak (@alekswoz) September 11, 2012

Celebrities:

Absolutely magnificent win by @andy_murray – what heart, what fight, what guts. #PrideofBritain

— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) September 11, 2012

Congratulations @Andy_Murray on your well deserved, brilliant win at US Open. I cheer your victory & everyone back home is so happy for you!

— Kevin Spacey (@KevinSpacey) September 11, 2012

Congrats to Andy Murray for winning the Mens U.S Open Championship!! Great match

— Michael Strahan (@michaelstrahan) September 11, 2012

Its been a great couple of months for @andy_murray. Pretty awesome!

— Carli Lloyd (@CarliLloyd) September 11, 2012

CONGRATS @Andy_Murray!!!! He dug deep and I'm so happy that his first grand slam was in NYC!!! You too, @andymurray.

— josh groban (@joshgroban) September 11, 2012

@andy_murray We don't change, just become more like ourselves… YOU made history, well played!

— Jeremy Piven (@jeremypiven) September 11, 2012

Massive congrats Andy Murray!!!! The first of many and well worth the wait!

— Rory Mcilroy (@McIlroyRory) September 11, 2012

Congrats to @andy_murray for winning his first Grand Slam! Tough one for @DjokerNole but great tournament as well! #usopen

— Pau Gasol (@paugasol) September 11, 2012

@andy_murray Massive congratulations. What a champion.

— Coldplay (@coldplay) September 11, 2012

Well, that was sublime. My, oh my, this little, old island has seen some history made this summer. Top lad @andy_murray. #GREATBritain.

— Matthew Lewis (@Mattdavelewis) September 11, 2012

Murray wins historic first major!! http://t.co/hKQU5RU9

— Ewan McGregor (@mcgregor_ewan) September 11, 2012

Looks like I missed a heck of a us open final. Went to bed after second set. Epic match. Happy for Murray and Lendl. Well deserved

— Dirk Nowitzki (@swish41) September 11, 2012

Congrats Andy Murray!! Such an incredible match! #makinghistory

— Kevin McHale (@druidDUDE) September 11, 2012

Huge congrats to @andy_murray. The flood gates have opened

— Ben Ainslie (@AinslieBen) September 11, 2012

Andy Murray on a roll. You champion.

— Russell Crowe (@russellcrowe) September 11, 2012

Congrats Andy Murray! Finally! #USOpenFinal

— Official Wanda Sykes (@iamwandasykes) September 11, 2012

Andy Murray is the US Open Champions! Congrats.

— Cristiano Ronaldo (@CRonaldoNews) September 11, 2012

How could my twitter not work last night? Congrats @andy_murray , won a Grand Slam title..I think the boss gave u the hair dryer! #inspired

— Rio Ferdinand (@rioferdy5) September 11, 2012

Listening to tennis on the radio: actually pretty exciting! Congrats Andy Murray!!

— James Valentine (@jamesbvalentine) September 11, 2012

Congrats to Andy Murray! Hell of a win. #USOpen

— Shane West (@shanewest_1) September 11, 2012

So pleased for Andy Murray, thoroughly deserved after the frustrations of the last couple of years. Great job mate!

— Chris Hoy (@chrishoy) September 11, 2012

Brilliant Andy Murray. When we think of this date we will always remember your historic victory.

— Frankie Boyle (@frankieboyle) September 11, 2012

Congratulations Andy Murray for winning the U.S Open, top effort. #champion

— Jenson Button (@JensonButton) September 11, 2012

Fantastic tennis by Djokovic & Murray. Fab first Gran Slam win for Andy. Big congrats! @usopen

— Mario Andretti (@MarioAndretti) September 11, 2012

Last, but not least, Prince Charles. Well, the parody account anyway…

Well done Andy Murray on winning the US Open, and finally becoming British.

— Prince Charles (@Charles_HRH) September 11, 2012

Filed Under: Lead Story, Romi Cvitkovic Tagged With: Andy Murray, celebrity tennis tweets, Fernando Verdasco, Juan Monaco, murray tweets, pau gasol, rory mcilroy, russell crowe, US Open tennis, Victoria Azarenka

Scoping out the Practice Courts: Ivanovic, Wozniacki, Murray, Lopez

March 22, 2012 by TennisGrandstand

 
Even before match play began on Thursday morning, spectators got their money’s worth as Caroline Wozniacki, Ana Ivanovic, Andy Murray, and Feliciano Lopez were all spotted on the practice courts at the Sony Ericsson Open. Check out all the photos at the end!
Caroline Wozniacki was hitting with adidas Player Development Program’s Mats Merkel as coach Sven Groeneveld gave small tips from the sidelines. Her boyfriend and professional golfer Rory McIlroy sat side-by-side with her father Piotr. Both were relatively quiet – which is a stark change for the ever-vocal Piotr.

Caroline Wozniacki practicing as father Piotr and boyfriend Rory McIlroy look on

Wozniacki’s hitting was clean and surprisingly flat. Makes one wonder why the incessant moonballing continues to trump her game into oblivion during match play.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=al0UD2J2oz0
On a court across from the central Tennis Plaza, tennis’ golden girl Ana Ivanovic was seen practicing with a University of Miami athlete. There is no sweeter individual on the WTA tour willing to chat with fans, sign autographs or smile for photos, but during practice she is brutal on herself. Floppy forehand? Unacceptable. Missed volley? Disappointing. Missed serve? Pathetic. It’s no wonder she’s had her fair share of struggles coming back in the rankings over the last couple of years. She’s tough on herself but it sometimes makes you wonder if it’s too much of the wrong kind of pressure.
Ana Ivanovic practicing at the Sony Ericsson Open

Of note though is Ivanovic’s improved physical appearance. Just last year, she was looking eerily thin for a girl with a 6’1” frame. But today, she seems to have put on a few healthy pounds – thanks in part to her new coach since Wimbledon, Nigel Sears. She needs to keep this athletic and lean figure in order to have the strength and power required to hit her signature forehand well.
Ana Ivanovic with her coach Nigel Sears

On a neighboring court, fans clustered around the fence for a peek of Andy Murray practicing with Feliciano Lopez. There were plenty of laughs, intentional pegging by Murray of his coaches while he served, and great match-like points during their joint practice session.
After a 30 minute warm-up, Murray’s coach Ivan Lendl walked over to his pupil and asked “What do you want to do today?” Oh, so that’s how you coach! If this is the type of approach Murray requires of a coach, then he may have been better off with just his core team. However, Murray’s demeanor on court was lively and he seemed to be enjoying himself. So maybe having a bigger team helps his psyche in that manner. Whatever it is, I hope he gets far here because he’s a fun player to watch.
Lopez likewise was having fun in the sun and the two have a good friendship going. Perhaps Lopez can convince Murray to get back on twitter? A girl can hope!
Lopez laughing at Murray pegging serves at his team and coach (bonus video below!). Not sure, Wilson thought through the sweat situation on this latest t-shirt…

In the two photos below, I would like to think that both Lopez and Murray are looking directly at my camera for an awesome photo-op. In all seriousness, it’s probably the hot redhead next to me that made their jaws drop.

 Hey. At least I got Murray to smile. AT me. Win!

 Murray and his team mesmerized by a yellow airplane in the sky. No joke. I can’t even make this stuff up!


Feliciano Lopez laughing as Andy Murray pegs his team with serves:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DbR3rqgu1Ho
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vObelhZUqdM
 
Clumsy Andy Murray:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4H3pVZ4PalA
 
Feliciano Lopez:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yc2teF3akno
 
Andy Murray:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wiN1vdsp0tg
 
[nggallery id=44]

Filed Under: Lead Story, Live Coverage, Romi Cvitkovic Tagged With: Ana Ivanovic, Andy Murray, ATP, Caroline Wozniacki, Feliciano Lopez, funny tennis, rory mcilroy, Sony Ericsson Open, Tennis, tennis practice, tennis videos, WTA

Tennis With a Twist

March 6, 2012 by TennisGrandstand

Around 11:30 PM at Madison Square Garden a tan Rory McIlroy, the newly crowned #1 golfer in the world, stood quietly and practically unnoticed in the back of a crowded press room.  All eyes were on his girlfriend, Caroline Wozniacki, as she talked about dragging McIlroy onto the tennis court earlier that evening to play a point against Maria Sharapova. “He was not too pleased with me but at least he can say he played tennis at Madison Square Garden. Not a lot of people can say that.,” she laughed.  Later in the same press conference Roger Federer and Andy Roddick were asked what they thought of the breakout New York Knicks player Jeremy Lin.  Federer, who has been overseas the past month, was well aware of “Linsanity”, and said he hoped to watch (Lin) play at the Garden one day. Roddick had actually used Lin’s locker before the exhibition that night and said he might have to “send (Lin) a thank-you note” after his victory.
Tennis, meet pop culture. Pop culture, meet tennis.
Amidst all of the scheduling, length-of-season, and injury dramas in the WTA and ATP these days, exhibition matches are often frowned upon.  But last night’s 5th Annual BNP Paribas Showdown’s Tennis Night in America showed exactly why they’re an integral part of the game.  Andy Roddick put it best when he said, “I’m not sure how 18,000 (spectators) in the most famous venue in the world watching our sport can be a bad thing. I think it’s a great thing. There are a lot of people (in the media center) who don’t cover tennis on a regular basis and it will be out there tomorrow. I think it’s a huge positive for our sport.”
The evening started at 7:30 when world #2 Sharapova and world #4 Wozniacki stood (under spotlights) on opposing ends of the court on top of blue light-boxes as sparklers flew behind them and Katy Perry’s “Firework” blasted from the stadium speakers. This was not going to be your average night of tennis.  However, during the first set Wozniacki and Sharapova battled like the match was taking place a few miles east and a few months later at Flushing Meadows. They were laser-focused, engaging in sharp rallies, and playing very aggressive tennis (yes, even Wozniacki). There was barely even the hint of a smile.
Things changed in the second set. In the break between sets Sharapova, Wozniacki, and the chair umpire talked and giggled (yes, even Sharapova). Later, after the girls exchanged leads, Wozniacki decided to kick things up a notch.  During a changeover she took a young girl from the audience and began dancing with her. Never one to be outdone, Sharapova then took an older man from the audience and danced with him. When the music stopped and it was time for tennis again the boisterous New York crowd made it known they weren’t ready for the fun to stop. Wozniacki- an expert at milking a moment of fun-  knew exactly what to do. She went into the crowd and fetched McIlroy. At first it seemed like the couple were just going to dance, but then she put the tennis racket in his hand and created a blockbuster moment- he actually played a point against Maria Sharapova.

After losing the point to McIlroy (“He won more points (against me) than Caroline did!” Maria joked), Sharapova would go on to serve out the match and fairly easily defeat Wozniacki 6-3 6-4.
Then, around 9:00PM, it was time for the men (professional tennis players, not golfers) to take over. Andy Roddick and Roger Federer are clearly no strangers to each other, New York, or the big stage. The two have played twenty-three times- seven times in the semis or later of a Grand Slam-  with Federer holding the infamous 21-2 lead in their head-to-head.  But this time was different. It’s Roddick’s home country and Roddick was born to comically entertain a large crowd.  In the first set alone Roddick got Ben Stiller’s autograph, tossed a racket after a failed tweener, reacted mockingly to a foot-fault call from the crowd, and did a spot-on impersonation of Rafael Nadal.

Impersonations and jokes aside, Roddick played some crafty, powerful tennis, and most importantly looked healthier and moved better than he has in months.  Federer, fresh of a victory and a plane-ride from Dubai, also played some brilliant points but the American was just a tad looser and sharper than his adversary this night. With the near-capacity crowd hanging onto every point Roddick upset the Swiss Legend 7-5 7-6 (7).
After the match it was all jokes and respect between the two. Roddick quipped that he “must be in Federer’s head,” and said that the 16-time Grand Slam Champion “clearly isn’t very good under pressure”. Federer seemed pleased that Roddick is playing well again, saying “it is good to see (Roddick) play so well and hopefully he can make another run at the top-10.”
There’s no telling what the tour-level significance of these matches will be. Is Wozniacki going to actually employ the more aggressive techniques she displayed tonight at Indian Wells? Will Sharapova stay loose and serve-quip free from now on? Can Roddick build on this momentum and make another run at the Top 10? Will Federer ever survive the humiliation?  Only time will tell.  But last night 18,079 people in person and countless others on sketchy streams around the world got to say they saw Andy Roddick beat Roger Federer, Maria Sharapova laugh and dance, and the best golfer in the world play tennis.  Tennis has had many memorable Monday nights, but none quite like this one.

Filed Under: Lead Story, Lindsay Gibbs Tagged With: Andy Roddick, ATP, BNP Paribas, Caroline Wozniacki, exhibition, Madison Square Garden, Maria Sharapova, new york knicks, Roger Federer, rory mcilroy, Tennis, WTA

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