Recent Posts
Photo: Charlie Whelton
Hail Novak Djokovic, by all means. But hail Lleyton Hewitt while youre at it.
One of the things that made the 2012 Australian Open fascinating was how thoroughly it exposed Hewitt. All aspects of his personality and ability were on full display.
No longer did anyone have to play the detective to work this complex character out searching for clues from one tournament and combining it with evidence from another to piece together the Hewitt puzzle.
Different Hewitts had been revealed over the years Hewitt the winner, Hewitt the loser, Hewitt the strong, Hewitt the weak, Hewitt the hero, Hewitt the villain.
This time, with everything exposed, a full and accurate assessment of Hewitt could be made.
What it showed was that the positives far outweighed the negatives.
First, to his personality. Hewitt haters would recoil at the thought, but the man is no monster. Accusations of racism in that famous US Open match against James Blake were always fanciful. Still, there have been many times in his career in which he has crossed the line from fierce competitor to bad sport. Such ugly incidents, while not excusable, were easily explained as the actions of someone desperate to win.
That is a part of Hewitt, but only a small part. Those who know him have often remarked on how calm and contemplative he becomes when off the court. He showed that once his Australian Open ended with a fourth-round loss to Djokovic. Immediately after, he praised his conqueror something Hewitt haters might be surprised to learn he has made a habit of throughout his career. In the days following, he leant a friendly and astute presence to the Channel Seven commentary box, again praising Djokovic, while also lauding other stars, like Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, who had gotten the better of him over the years.
The real way to judge a tennis player, though, is by his tennis. What Hewitt has been striving all these years to win are tournaments, not sainthood. How convenient, then, that this years Australian Open should have been a microcosm of his career. He played good tennis, he played bad tennis, he overcame injury, he launched fightbacks, he had stirring wins and, ultimately, he lost.
What all the ups and downs confirmed is that Hewitt has only ever been a player of middling talent. That might sound like an insult, but it is actually the greatest compliment he could be paid. Middling talents dont win grand slams. But he has somehow won two.
Hewitts golden run at the turn of the century owed much to good timing Sampras and Agassi were on the way out and Federer and Nadal had yet to emerge. He was also blessed with the robustness of youth; the continuous injuries that have devastated the second half of his career only arrived after his last grand slam final, the 2005 Australian Open loss to Marat Safin.
Another reason for Hewitts success was his skill at working the percentages. He didnt so much outplay his opponents as outlast them. Keep getting the ball back and eventually the other bloke will make a mistake.
But that approach no longer works. Back then, he was fast enough and determined enough to seemingly chase down every ball, which helped conceal the fact he had a weak serve, a non-existent net game and only above average ground strokes. These days, the mind is willing but the flesh is weak. He can no longer chase all those balls down and his shots seem to be landing further and further inside the service line with every passing year.
The other problem is that his rivals worked him out long ago. They now understand he was the ultimate poker player all bluff and no cards. Fearful of getting into long rallies with him because he always seemed to have the skill to win them they would force shots and lose the point. Eventually, though, it dawned on the rest of the tour that he was winning those rallies through tenacity, not skill. Why fear a player with a non-existent net game and only above average ground strokes? With that realisation, the other players called his bluff. They started bludgeoning shot after shot at him and Hewitt, his fitness and reflexes fading, found it increasingly difficult to get them back.
And so to this years Australian Open. Anyone else with Hewitts characteristics would have lost in the first round. His ranking was 181. His body was fragile. He had only played four lead-in matches for three losses and a win over Chinas Wu Di.
He started with a creditable four-set win over Cedrik-Marcel Stebe. In the second round, he had come from behind to lead Andy Roddick two sets to one when the world number 16 retired. Then came a tough four-set win over rising star Milos Raonic.
That set up his showdown with Djokovic. The Serb blitzed the first two sets and strolled to a 3-0 lead in the first just what one would expect from a match between someone filled with talent and another person only sprinkled with it.
The stage had been set for one hour of quintessential Hewitt.
He held serve to make it 1-3. A hard-earned break made it 2-3. At 4-4, he summoned all his willpower to overpower Djokovic not with brilliance, but determination and somehow break for a 5-4 lead. Serving for the set, he was placed under almighty pressure, before he struggled over the line. Nobody could explain it, but the set was his.
By the time it became 1-1 in the fourth, Hewitt was playing his best tennis in years. He was hitting the ball hard and deep and pushing Djokovic around the court. He had willed himself to this position. A break point arrived. For a fleeting moment, a win over the brilliant Serb seemed possible. Viewers all across Australia would have thought another improbable Hewitt fightback had begun.
But reality hit. Djokovic held serve. He then broke Hewitt. The Australian fought desperately to get back into the match of course he did but he couldnt. He didnt lack heart; he just lacked talent.
Hewitt had had no right to progress to the fourth round or steal a set off Djokovic just as he had had no right to win the US Open in 2001 and Wimbledon in 2002, or fight his way to that Australian Open final in 2005.
If the 2012 Australian Open turns out to be the last time we see Hewitt play on local soil, we can say he has left us with fond memories. This was a player who was as inspirational in victory as he was in defeat. He never had the talent of a champion but for a few glorious years, through sheer self-belief, he conned the tennis world into thinking he was one.
Brisbane Roar's superior system led them to a win over the Central Coast Mariners in last season's grand final. Photo: Geoff Auckland.
Now is not the time to panic for the Brisbane Roar.
Their record 36-game unbeaten run has given way to a losing streak that currently stands at four.
Thankfully, coach Ange Postecoglou is no Corporal Jones and is refusing to panic.
The key to Brisbanes success in the last two seasons has been the system Postecoglou has created. It has made average players look good and good players look great. In other words, it has made the whole greater than the sum of the parts.
His system demands hard work, discipline, intelligence and teamwork on and off the field.
During games, players are expected to create space, make runs and look for teammates. That means movement, movement, movement.
The philosophy is exemplified by the way defensive midfielder Erik Paartalu drops back to start attacks, fullbacks Ivan Franjic and Shane Stefanutto surge down the wings, midfielder Mitch Nichols buzzes around the hole and striker Besart Berisha darts between his markers.
And thats just when Brisbane have the ball. When they dont, the players quickly harry the opposition to win it back.
To learn and perfect the system required countless training sessions, because it meant unlearning old habits and painstakingly acquiring new ones.
Postecoglou deserves enormous credit for having had the foresight and courage to implement a system unique to Australian football.
He understood he had to go backwards before he could go forwards. Thats why he kicked out Brisbanes core of recalcitrant veterans after replacing Frank Farina halfway through the 2009-10 season.
Few coaches would have had the nerve to dump Craig Moore, Danny Tiatto, Charlie Miller and Liam Reddy. Dumping the stars didnt guarantee success; all it guaranteed was that the club would go backwards, at least in the short term, and put enormous pressure on Postecoglou. Coaching positions are difficult to attain yet he was prepared to risk his in pursuit of his vision.
The players that remained also deserve praise for being willing to open their minds and work hard, even when the results initially went against them.
Foresight and toil off the field produced scintillating and successful football on it. In just over a year, Postecoglou and co won the double, bagged a spot in the Asian Champions League and set an Australian professional sporting record that may never be broken.
All credit to the system.
Brisbanes current losing streak doesnt mean the system has broken. It is mainly due to some clever thinking from opposition coaches. It also owes something to Brisbanes bad luck, loss of confidence and loss of form.
It would be tempting to say it was the Mariners that first made the Roar look fallible during several tough encounters late last season. However, that would only be half-right. They showed Brisbane were vulnerable against strong defending, thoughtful passing and incisive attacking that is, quality football. But every team is. And no A-League side other than Brisbane is currently capable of playing that sort of football.
It was actually Gold Coast that really exposed Brisbanes vulnerability paradoxically, during a 3-0 loss in round three. To continue the paradox, Gold Coast coach Miron Bleiberg had the shrewdness to recognise that Brisbanes irresistible attacking could be traced to the passing and movement of their defence. So to counter Roars attack from the back, he instructed his team to defend from the front.
Gold Coast pushed five strikers and midfielders forward to press Paartalu and the back four. Their energy and pressure made the Roar looked more vulnerable in possession than at any time during their unbeaten streak. But Brisbanes composure proved telling. Recognising that they had an extra man in goalkeeper Michael Theoklitos, they were able to methodically if riskily pass their way out of trouble. Once Paartalu scored against the run of play in the 13th minute, confidence and energy drained from the Gold Coast, and the match was as good as over.
But where Bleiberg failed, Sydney FC coach Vitezslav Lavicka succeeded. He used the same pressing tactics to mastermind a 2-0 win and end the Roars unbeaten streak. Unlike Bleiberg, Lavicka had the luck go his way. Firstly, Dimitri Petratos goal in the opening minute gave Sydney confidence. Secondly, there was no Brisbane goal to drain their belief. Thirdly, the cool weather allowed them to keep pressing. Fourthly, the windy conditions affected the normally slick Roar passing.
Thanks to Bleiberg and Lavicka, A-League coaches now realise the way to beat Brisbane is to defend high up the pitch. They will pass and run you to death if given the chance; so better not to.
But that doesnt mean Brisbane have suddenly become impotent. Even in their losses they have dominated possession. They still have an excellent system. It just needs refining.
Postecoglou made the first move. It took over a season for his rivals to respond. It is now Postecoglous move again. What he needs to do is not move away from his system but to further embrace it.
Enhanced pressure is making it harder and more time-consuming for Brisbane to play out of defence. However, long balls are not the answer. That will only lead to turnovers. Instead, Brisbane need to adopt even more short passing and running. Opposition teams cant press high up the park without leaving space in midfield. So if Brisbane can eventually play their way into the middle of the park, they will find themselves with more openings than when teams parked the bus. Increased risks will produce increased rewards.
Brisbane may again have to go backwards to go forwards. If they continue trying to play out from the back in the face of ever increasing opposition pressure, they may go through a period during which they reguarly concede possession in dangerous areas, and subsequently cheap goals.
But the more they work on it in training and during games the better they will get at it. That will then spell even more danger for opposition teams than before, as they will have fewer defenders to combat Brisbanes dynamic attack.
Dont panic, Postecoglou. The system works and could make you the first coach to win consecutive A-League titles. That would be no more than you and your team deserve.
Credit: Jen mainly in Bangladesh
Welcome to the world of 5ives.
This new concept has a sexy name for a good reason it promotes itself as the saviour of the one-day international.
The aim is to make matches more interesting by keeping the teams in close contact throughout.
Team A would begin by batting for five overs. Team B would respond with 10. Team A would then bat for 10 overs, followed by Team B for 10, and so on. Bonus points would be awarded to teams that finished ahead during a cycle.
Cricket Australia is said to be interested in 5ives. The board is right to be interested, because the concept has the potential to make ODIs more interesting. However, 5ives is not the solution to the problem.
As Sport: The Australian Disease has already explained, there is a simple explanation for the declining popularity of the ODI.
The reason for the steady decline in the popularity of ODIs can be simply explained: they generally seem pointless. With an ever-increasing number of meaningless fixtures being played, it is natural that people would lose interest. But the way to win them back is not by emphasising gimmicks; the way to win them back is by emphasising cricket.
Although the idea of split innings is innovative, it is not gimmicky, so 5ives is based on sound thinking. Thats why Sport: The Australian Disease has already promoted split innings.
...splitting ODIs into two innings is a wonderful, and long overdue, idea. In day-night matches, the team that bats under lights is at a disadvantage, so this simple change would immediately make contests fairer and thus closer and thus more exciting.
Its easy to see how playing matches in five-over bursts may produce problems. Batters and bowlers may struggle for rhythm. Innings may seem incoherent. Storylines may be difficult to follow.
But its also easy to see how five-over bursts may prove attractive. Matches may be more dramatic if teams are closer together. Constant changes may keep things fresh. Bonus points may introduce an intriguing new tactical element into the game.
Yet even if everything does go as planned, 5ives still doesnt solve the problem of ODIs that they generally seem pointless.
So often, cricket fans notice ODIs on the schedule and wonder why they are there. And they are right to ask that question, because many 50-over matches owe their existence to greed. They are not played for sporting reasons. They are played for financial reasons. Spectators know this and yawn accordingly.
Another reason fans have turned off ODIs is because they have increasingly emphasised cheap run-making.
Fans dont only want to see close matches; they want to see matches in which there is an even contest between bat and ball. One hundred overs of slogging is mindless, even if it is somewhat redeemed by 10 tense overs at the end. By contrast, matches in which the advantage constantly ebbs and flows, in which first the bat, then the ball, then the bat and then the ball again is on top, produce drama from beginning to end.
Cricket Australia, the other boards and the ICC should be concerned about the flagging health of the ODI and be doing everything possible to revive it.
If the problem is that 50-over matches often seem pointless the solution can only be to return them to the relevant spectacle they once were.
Law changes, however wise, will only be bandaids. What is needed is major surgery administrators need to urgently reduce the number of ODIs that are played.
First and foremost, CA should be campaigning to have the number of ODIs reduced. Fifty per cent of the matches could be cut from the international schedule and nobody would notice. This is nothing more than the commonest of common sense: reduce the supply of a product and demand increases.
The concept of 5ives fails to address this central issue. Thats why it may be part of the solution, but will never be the entire solution.
Will Harry Kewell play in the A-League or wont he?
Australian football desperately needs the answer to be yes which is why the FFA needs to do everything in its power to make it happen
[ Click here to read more ]
Can the sequel ever be as good as the original?
Ian Thorpe, Michael Klim, Libby Trickett and Geoff Huegill will soon find out
[ Click here to read more ]
Is Vitezslav Lavicka the new John Kosmina?
It seems an appropriate question given how much the Sydney FC of season six resembles the Sydney FC of season four and how little the Sydney FC of season five
[ Click here to read more ]
Do North Queensland Fury belong in the A-League or not?
If the conspiracy theorists are to be believed, the FFA have already decided to dump the Fury, but are waiting until after the 2022 World Cup vote has been held to announce the decision
[ Click here to read more ]
September 11th 2010 07:08
Want fans? Ask us how.
Nothing better captures the A-Leagues problem and its solution than that sign, famously displayed at a Gold Coast home match last year in response to owner Clive Palmers crowd cap
[ Click here to read more ]
|
|
|
Comments (2)
Add Comments
Read More
Comment by Anonymous
on Little Aussie battler
Sport: The Australian Disease
The reason I didn't mention it was because I didn't think it relevant to an article that focused on the Australian Open.
As for the last sentence, "conned" wasn't meant to be interpreted literally - but I probably could have expressed myself more elegantly.
It will be interesting to follow Tomic's career. He has much more talent than Hewitt. Let's see, though, if he ends up matching Hewitt's grand slam and Davis Cup record.
Take Philippoussis. He had more talent in his little finger than Hewitt had in his entire body - and look how that turned out.