Tuesday, April 12, 2022

My favorite season

As far as sports go, my favorite season is pro tennis' clay court season. It runs from April through to the first week in June, culminating at Roland Garros, the French Open Grand Slam. Most of the tournaments are played in Europe, so I get to watch them on television in real time. This week, the guys are playing in Monte Carlo (an ATP Masters 1000 tournament) and the women just finished tournaments in Charleston, USA, and Bogota, Columbia.

Justine Henin prepares to serve at deuce, leading 2-1 in the second set. She eventually lost the match. Digited color slide, Spring 2001.

So, to celebrate the "dirtballers," here's a shot I took at the 2001 French Open women's semi-final on Center Court in Paris. This match was between Belgian compatriots Justine Henin and Kim Clijsters. Clijsters won and went on to face Jennifer Capriati (who we watched defeat Martina Hingis) in the final. Capriati won the championship.

Center Court, officially named Court Philippe Chatrier, has been almost completely rebuilt in recent years and now looks quite different. There's even a retractable roof that allows play to continue in rainy weather.

5 comments:

  1. A very cool shot... even if tennis doesn't excite me.

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  2. Great shot. I don’t think I would want to sit in one of the nose bleed seats!

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  3. My tennis days are pre WWII!

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  4. How exciting - center court, too! Was the price worth it? I often think about doing it on a trip to France, but then I think of all the activities I would be missing out on and I have second thoughts. And I love to watch (no longer play) tennis!

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  5. mitch, and you grew up right next door (sort of) to one of the Grand Slam tournaments!

    bettyann, it was a very intimate court, so we didn't feel to far away from the action.

    chm, mine feel that way.

    mary, it's a great day out, and a very Parisian experience, depending on which day you go and what kind of matches you want to see. I highly recommend it. It's been 19 years since I last played.

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