Murray Guarantees No. 2 Ranking

Scot Andy Murray has guaranteed he will rise to a new career-high of No. 2 in the South African Airways 2009 ATP Rankings on Monday, after snapping Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal’s four-year dominance at the top of the men’s game.

Murray became the first Briton since Roger Taylor in 1970 (l. to Rod Laver) to reach the Rogers Cup final on Saturday, after defeating seventh-seeded Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 6-4, 7-6(8) in one hour and 50 minutes on Saturday afternoon. Murray saved two set points in the tie-break at 5-6 and 7-8. It was the pair’s third meeting.

Murray will be the first player other than Federer and Nadal, who both lost in the Rogers Cup quarter-finals on Friday, to rank No. 2 since 18 July 2005. Murray, 22, is already the highest-ranked Briton in ATP history (since 1973). By reaching Sunday’s final, Murray has accumulated 8,850 points to surpass Nadal’s total haul of 8,665 points. (Source)

Bryan Brothers To Release Debut Album

From ATP World Tour News

Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan will attempt to conquer the music world when the American twins release their debut album Let It Rip, with close friend and accomplished singer/songwriter David Baron on 1 September 2009.

The Bryan Brothers Band Featuring David Baron will perform three new songs from their debut album on the Festival Stage on Arthur Ashe Kids’ Day on 29 August at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, the venue of the US Open, in Flushing, New York. The following day, the band will play a special set at The Mercury Lounge in New York City.

“Music has always been a big part of our lives. We’ve spent countless hours jamming in hotel rooms all over the world and it’s been our dream to do a real record. We’ve had a blast making this album and we hope to share our passion for music with our fans,” said Bob Bryan.

The album, Let It Rip, will contain five songs that feature Bob Bryan playing the bass and keyboards, Mike Bryan on the drums, and David Baron as the lead vocalist also playing piano and guitar.

In 2009, The Bryan Brothers Band Featuring David Baron has already performed at the SAP Open in San Jose, the Delray Beach International Tennis Championships, the US Men’s Clay Court Championship in Houston and at Wimbledon.

The Bryan twins have won 54 ATP World Tour doubles titles (54-36 overall), including seven Grand Slam championships, and an Olympic Games bronze medal in Beijing last year.

More information on The Bryan Brothers Band Featuring David Baron can be found on www.bryanbrosband.com, which will be made live before their debut at Arthur Ashe Kids Day.

fishing, hockey, and HS basketball better coverage than Indian Wells... What the F?

Once again, Fox Sports (Comcast Sports Network) in the SF Bay Area is pre-empting or abbreviating coverage of the IW Masters. No Nadal/Nalbandian on Wednesday night, nor Federer/Verdasco. The 2009 coverage [stinks] as bad as 2008. At least Tennis Channel wouldn't pre-empt coverage to air a 2008 rerun or a hockey game. Please let Charlie Pasarell know.
-- Annette, Oakland, Calif.

• Amen. In a word, this situation is unacceptable. Indian Wells is a world-class event with record attendance and a top-tier sponsor.....and television coverage unfit for a high school jiu-jitsu tournament. How do you call your tournament the "Fifth Slam" and have your coverage get pre-empted for fishing? This is like owning a sweet new Macbook and then having dial-up Internet access. You may as well cut bait entirely and stream matches online than alienate fans like this.

I see this from the tournament's perspective. ESPN was unwilling to give them enough hours of coverage. And much as we all love Tennis Channel, it's still --thanks, Dolans! -- unavailable in so many markets. It also bears mentioning that the international coverage draws high marks. If you want it straight from the directors' mouths, click here.

Still, the current situation is untenable and here's what I don't get: In recent years, the USTA was negotiating with ESPN for broadcast rights of the U.S. Open and, presumably, negotiating from a position of some strength. Why not say, "As part of the deal, you have to guarantee X hours of coverage of the Indian Wells and Key Biscayne events. Our organization, after all, is based on promoting and growing tennis in the U.S., and when the second- and third-biggest Americans event are, for all intents, not televised, it's a real problem. What's that? The ratings would rival those for bull riding and bass fishing? Fine, throw it on ESPN Classic or ESPNU or ESPN Reject Bin. Just somewhere so there's a distinct time and place and the viewers can watch without having to worry that the matches will be pre-empted for the saltwater taffy pull." Then the USTA could either turn around and charge a fee to IW and KB for using its leverage, or even get some sort of equity stake. Anything to avoid the current situation, which has the effect of chilling interest in the sport.

Just to be clear: This has nothing to do with the quality of the broadcasters --Lindsay Davenport, Justin Gimelstob, Ted Robinson -- or the productions. It's just a function of access.

Side note: Just so you know, I think Lindsay did an incredible job as a commentator. Much better than Justin Gimelstob. But then, as you know. I don't really care for him. He's lousy.

Bye Bye Larry, Thanks for visiting

Well, well. The recipient of two consecutive Gonad Awards for Biggest Overall Disappointment on the WTA, I'm happy to see Larry Scott resigning from CEO of the WTA to become Commissioner of NCAA's Pac-10.

As Savannah wrote, this provides a prime opportunity for the tours to join, something Billie Jean King has been calling for rather loudly in recent weeks.

The BNP Paribas Open proved just how poor the WTA product is now. Scott's resignation should inspire those with the biggest influence on women's tennis to take a comprehensive inventory of the tour and suggest some much-needed improvements.
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