NEW YORK — The cliff is always there. The road is always going to end.
But the joy ride is just too fun to worry about it, or to do anything about it.
The Indianapolis Colts have been riding Peyton Manning for years, building everything around him. And now, suddenly, the cliff: He apparently has had neck fusion surgery and will miss the season. You’re reminded that at some point, sometime soon, the whole ride will end.
Should the Colts have done something before now to prepare?
Tiger Woods ran off the cliff, too. Golf was a thrill with him on top. Now golf is just golf again.
Serena Williams is driving perilously close to the cliff. Venus Williams, too. But Serena is so amazing in general that no one seems to notice how amazing her story has been these past two weeks at the US Open. Amazing is commonplace for her, expected.
I can talk tennis all day long, and often do. And yet some of the people I talk to about it might rather I talk about something else.
Or with someone else.
That’s how it is with tennis, right? Sort of an addiction. Sort of a high.
I am a national columnist at FoxSports.com and a FoxSports1 TV insider, and have been a columnist at the Chicago Sun-Times.
In 2010, I was the only American sports writer to cover the full two weeks of all four majors, and also to cover each of the U.S. Masters series events.
I’ve seen a lot of tennis, talked with a lot of players, coaches, agents.
I watched from a few rows behind the line judge as Serena rolled her foot onto the baseline for the footfault, a good call, at the 2009 U.S. Open. I sat forever watching a John Isner marathon, leaving for Wimbledon village to watch an England World Cup soccer game at a pub and then returning for hours of Isner, sitting a few feet from his wrecked coach.
I got to see Novak Djokovic and Robin Soderling joke around on a practice court on the middle Sunday at Wimbledon, placing a small wager on a tiebreaker. Djokovic won, and Soderling pulled a bill out of his wallet, crumpled it into his fist and threw it at Djokovic, who unwadded it, kissed it, and told me, “My work is done here.’’
And when Rafael Nadal won the French Open in 2010, I finished my column, walked back out onto the court, and filled an empty tic tac container with the red clay. I’m looking at it right now.
Well, I don’t always see the game the same way others do. I can be hard on tennis, particularly on the characters in suits running it. Tennis has no less scandal and dirt than any other game. Yet somehow, it seems to be covered up, usually from an incredible web of conflicts of interest.
I promise to always tell the truth as I see it. Of course, I would appreciate it if you’d let me know when I’m wrong. I love sports arguments and hope to be in a few of them with you here.
Personal info: One-handed backhand, serve-and-volleyer.
View all posts by gregcouch
“then win in Sunday’s finals. She will. She is the talk of the women’s tennis….”
Kinda missed the call on that one- didn’t you smarty pants… Not only did she not win- she acted like a 5 year old losing the neighborhood marbles match off when things didn’t go her way…
Do people actually read your pompous, self-absorbed nonsense?
I can see why someone like you would put someone like Serena Williamson on a pedestal… oh yeah, very clear…. I don’t need to take Psych 101 to understand that connection…
Of course it can survive. There’s a brighter star on stage already. Petra Kvitova. Kvitova has the most complete game imaginable. She can hit every shot in the book well, including forgotten ones, like stop volleys, half-volleys, backhand overheads, stab volleys, mid-court no man’s land winners. You name it, she can do it. AND, as importantly, she a nice person, honest as can be, funny, bright. Common sense is hers too. As has been said, she is a model professional; not a professional model.
Greg Couch is an award-winning sports columnist based in Chicago. He covers college football for BleacherReport.com, NFL for RollingStone.com and freelances at several other places, including The New York Times. Lots of tennis, mostly here. He has traveled the world covering tennis and is a member of the International Tennis Writers Association. A former sports columnist at the Chicago Sun-Times, his tennis writing has been in the book "The Best American Sportswriting."
I’m saying I don’t think the USTA has anything to do with this…Yanina Wickmeyer was banned even tho she never faile… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…1 day ago
Djokovic is complaining that he can’t see the logic in why unvaccinated Americans can play the US Open but internat… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…1 day ago
Serena’s Wimbledon loss is not a surprise 3 days ago
All of the pressure at Wimbledon is on Djokovic 1 week ago
My kids gave me Nadal tennis shorts for Father’s Day. I would have preferred his backhand, but this will have to do 1 week ago
Greg Couch on Tennis 
September 13th, 2011 at 8:38 pm
“then win in Sunday’s finals. She will. She is the talk of the women’s tennis….”
Kinda missed the call on that one- didn’t you smarty pants… Not only did she not win- she acted like a 5 year old losing the neighborhood marbles match off when things didn’t go her way…
Do people actually read your pompous, self-absorbed nonsense?
I can see why someone like you would put someone like Serena Williamson on a pedestal… oh yeah, very clear…. I don’t need to take Psych 101 to understand that connection…
September 29th, 2011 at 6:46 am
Tennis will always prevail and see old players go and new players coming in.
November 24th, 2011 at 7:43 pm
Of course it can survive. There’s a brighter star on stage already. Petra Kvitova. Kvitova has the most complete game imaginable. She can hit every shot in the book well, including forgotten ones, like stop volleys, half-volleys, backhand overheads, stab volleys, mid-court no man’s land winners. You name it, she can do it. AND, as importantly, she a nice person, honest as can be, funny, bright. Common sense is hers too. As has been said, she is a model professional; not a professional model.
December 17th, 2011 at 3:55 pm
i wish to see new faces in WTA.