Don't quote me while my foot's in my mouth!
Speaking whilst inserting a foot in one's mouth is seldom a good idea. When the proverbial
consequences hit the fan, the stock reaction is to complain about being taken "out of
context". Andy Murray is the latest to trot out the lame old excuse in a desperate attempt
to qualify his comments about corruption in tennis. "When I said, 'everyone knows that
it's going on'," he explained, back-pedalling like a politician on a unicycle, "I meant
that everyone has probably heard that three or four players have spoken out about being
offered money to lose matches — which they refused."
One can only hope the young Scot's backsliding is proving a salutary experience. Stoking
up controversy in the glare of the media spotlight probably seemed like fun at the time.
As for the dressing room glares of his fellow professionals - now that's a context he'd
probably like to be out of at the moment.
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Murray wins Wimbledon title
I wish I could have a pound for every time someone has said to me: "See I told you Murray would
win the Wimbledon title!" (following Jamie's success in the mixed doubles with Jelena Jankovic).
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An inconvenient cure
After such a cold, wet Wimbledon, it's time to start the backlash against Al Gore. Bring back
global warming! The man's gone too far.
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Looking on the bright dark side
You know what? It makes sense to be a pessimist because you're either proved right or you're
pleasantly surprised all the time.
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Make it rain on Slough to ensure a dry Wimbledon!
The umbrella trade could soon be roaring in Slough following rumours that the All
England Club is considering using rain seeding to control the weather during the
Wimbledon fortnight. As the costs of installing a retractable roof over Centre Court
continue to spiral, the prospect of manipulating the weather around London SW19 is
becoming a very attractive alternative.
It may sound outlandish, but rain seeding has been around for some time. The world's
most active proponents are the Chinese, who recently triggered a snowfall over the city of
Nagqu in Tibet. It's a procedure that involves releasing a catalyst such as silver iodide
into clouds by means of aircraft or rockets. A more recent development has involved
sprinkling a special powder into the air to "dry up" clouds and reduce the threat of
hurricanes and tropical storms. Experimentation started way back in the 1940s and has
been quite controversial. There are some who suspect that rain seeding was the cause of
the Lynmouth flood in 1952.
Chinese authorities have already promised to use rain seeding before the Beijing Olympics
to clear the skies for the opening ceremony. So why should we Brits not fire a few chemicals
into the clouds as they approach Wimbledon so that they release their soggy cargo before they
reach the hallowed lawns? Surely the residents of Slough wouldn't mind making this small
sacrifice?
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"There are some defeats more triumphant than victories"
Following his Australian Open fourth round encounter with Rafael Nadal, the BBC hailed Andy Murray's
"valiant" and "lion-hearted" performance. The Daily Telegraph enthused about his "brilliant
tennis which the rest of the sport simply cannot ignore." The Guardian insisted the young
Scot had "served notice of greatness" in a knife-edge struggle and The Times suggested he had
now become "world class".
"I don't believe for one minute that Rafael Nadal knew where Andy Murray's next shot
was coming from. Not for one minute," said John Lloyd, Britain's Davis Cup captain,
while Murray himself declared: "It was probably the best I have ever played, probably
better than when I beat Federer last year."
Did no one notice he lost?
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"A clever man commits no minor blunders"
It would probably be an understatement to say Serb Janko Tipsarevic was uncompetitive
in the second set of his encounter with Belgian Kristof Vliegen in the Heineken Open in
Auckland. Vliegen edged a closely-fought first set 7-6 and then lost a mere five points in
the second set, which took just 17 minutes. Tipsarevic apparently reads Goethe and Nietzsche
in his spare time so presumably he can be philosophical about any fine coming his way.
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Getting better
It's amazing to think we're the product of two million years of evolution. Oh boy.
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Improve your accuracy
Always aim for a target when you hit the ball. To be sure of hitting the target, hit the ball first
and call whatever you hit the target.
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Dave Winship
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