Time Well Wasted

I've always had this affinity for tennis, I've never played formally yet I respect the game and those who play it. It's something about the overwhelming physical and mental aspect of the game that excites me. Over the years I've always enjoyed watching Andre Agassi play, he's always had such respect for the game, even in his early years where he could have gone the way of John MacEnroe. The best were the years watching the epic duels with Sampras, which unfortunately Sampras got the best of.

Last night I decided to stay up and watch what could have possibly been Andre Agassi's last match ever. He was up against the 8 seed, Marcos Baghdatis, and his experience was showing over the youth of his opponent, winning the first two sets by capitalizing on the endless string of unforced errors by Baghdatis. After dropping the third Andre bounced back and rallied to a 4-0 lead in the forth set. When most athletes would have packed it in, atleast mentally at that point, Baghdatis rose up and fought back to 4-4, eventually winning the set 7-5, incredible. To already be down 2 sets in a best of 5 and losing 4-0 where do you find that drive? That's what makes a professional athlete I believe, beyond all of the physical talent. That's where punks like Terrell Owens really piss me off, they don't deserve to be where they're at, they're not professionals.

So, back to my being attached to the couch for over 3 hours at this point. The match of course goes to a fifth set and fittingly after watching both players struggle both pyhisically and mentally thought the set, a tie break. At this point Andre can't get a first serve out of the bottom of the net and Baghdatis is cramping in both legs and can barely walk let alone chase down Andre's ground shots.

In a somewhat anti-climactic end to the match 4 hours after the start, Agassi won. Baghdatis couldn't overcome his cramping and became more or less a lame duck with only his serve to keep him alive, which unfotunately left him so abruptly at the start of the tie break where he double faulted two services in a row.

4 hours, time well wasted to watch two professionals perform at their best and giving it their all.