[DanaKz]

Phew!!!!

[Rafkei]

That was a big relief indeed

[DanaKz]

From WTC facebook:

Kei is still not feeling well :-( Hope to have him playing Thursday night

[chewy]

Thank God! Even tho I was trying to be optimistic, I was devastated. I'm praying that he'll be fit by AO.

@DanaKz, thanks for asking questions on fb/twitter and giving us updates.

Originally Posted by *bunny*

So true!

Wow so it's Yeu-Tzuoo!! Great to see him playing again. He's been very unlucky with injuries, right?

And Dana, GJ with facebook and twitter!
Actually, Hide Sakamoto, who was with Kei in India wrote on his twitter that he's been suffering from stomach bug. I hope it's the same with Kei too. When I was a kid I myself was told by a doctor I might have appenditicis, turned out it was just a bad cold!

Sorry for going off topic here...
Yeah I believe it was a wrist injury that he eventually had surgery, and not sure if his time off had anything to do with the mandatory military service for men in Taiwan.
Good news is he's possibly returning to pro tennis or already has, most news are in chinese so I'm not entirely clear yet.

[*bunny*]

From Gilbert:

If we get a clear window, looks like Kei's up to playing Llodra tonight, worth the effort to get a quick practice in.

Rain day, super gray, pulling Dante out of the hotel to come squeegee with me, no crew, so it's up to Team Nishikori to get the courts dry!


Chewy, thanx for the info! And sorry I was the first one who ran off on a tangent...

[*bunny*]

And from Kei's FB:

Good morning from Adelaide. Feeling better. Had a light workout yesterday morning and a light hit in the afternoon. On the way back. Will practice again this morning. Glad this is behind me.

[DanaKz]

[*bunny*]

Looks like it's raining in Adelaide but the play will go ahead and Kei is scheduled to play!!

From the tournament FB about an hour ago:

DAY 3 WEATHER UPDATEPatrons are advised that at this stage play will be going ahead. If it is raining at the scheduled start of play, we will wait until the courts are dry enough to commence. We will keep all patrons up to date at the venue through the PA system if any delays are expected.

If play has not commenced by 8:00pm, the match formats will be shortened as per the World Tennis Challenge Inclement Weather Policy.

If play is to be cancelled, this decision will not be made before 9:45pm.

Please note the schedule has been changed for tonight

Court 1

McEnroe v Lendl followed by Lldora v Nishikori followed by Doubles

Court 2

Cash v Leconte followed by Ljubijic v Harrison followed by Doubles

Should play not commence, please click here to view the 2011 World Tennis Challenge Inclement Weather Policy.

Keep your fingers crossed, and hopefully the rain will pass through during the afternoon.

See you tonight!

[*bunny*]

Looks like Kei won over Llodra.
(from twitter search in Japanese/English and other sources.)

[DanaKz]

Originally Posted by *bunny*

Looks like Kei won over Llodra.
(from twitter search in Japanese/English and other sources.)

Yay!

[*bunny*]

day 3 results

Court v1: McEnroe beat Lendl 8/4

Court 2: Cash beat Leconte 8/4

Court2 : Ljubicic beat Harrison 8/7 (7/4)

Court1: Nishikori beat Llodra 8/6

McEnroe and Harrison bt Ljubicic and Bahrami 6/5 (7/0)

Cash and Nishikori beat Llodra and Leconte 6/5 (7/5)

It was an hour or two at best before play started, that the rains finally abated.

Steady and persistent all day, the court sweepers were out in force, a multitude of towels mopping up the last of the drops that threatened to derail the final evening’s play.

Anticipation was put on hold and the legends were brought forward to kick off the night’s proceedings, two pairings who could not have been more different.

Pat Cash and Henri Leconte, the great entertainers for whom losing is a mere inconvenience, John McEnroe and Ivan Lendl who simply love to win.

Neither coupling will have been happy to wait but shortly before play was due to begin, the rains returned.

This time the wait was short, Cash and Leconte heading out to start shortly before 8pm.

Perhaps they needed to get rid of some excess energy after the delay. Three games in and Cash swopped sides, chasing Leconte around the net as the Frenchman donned a chequered black and white headband, Cash’s longtime trademark.

Silly, yes, Somewhat surreal, yes, but brilliantly funny and the crowd lapped it up.

Leconte proceeded to play out a range of sublimely accurate and often achingly funny impressions of McEnroe and perhaps caught up by the appreciation around him, let his game slip somewhat, Cash the victor 8/4.

Mac and Lendl meanwhile arrived on court, bristling, gladiatorial and prepared to slug it out.

Mac though camewith a finesse and concentration redolent of 30 years ago. His serves hit the lines and when they came back his volleys ensured they didn’t return a second time.

He was imperious throughout and not beyond the occasional, and cruel, drop volley to force the iron man to scramble at his will.

Lendl edged his way back in, power, accuracy and a confidence borne of years of winning but Mac was the man, 8/4 and worth every point.

Next up, debutant Kei Nishikori, recovered from a bout of food poisoning, set out to make his visit to Adelaide an experience to remember for the right reasons.

Perhaps new coach Brad Gilbert had spent his unexpectedly free days studying Michael Llodra, because the Japanese youngster tore into Llodra to take a 5/1 lead, his style of play immediately identifiable with the Nick Bollitieri Academy of his youth, hard running, swishing groundstrokes and a refusal to concede.

Llodra meanwhile , the best player this week, fought back, wonderfully stylish and a joy to watch. Maybe he had half an eye on Melbourne, Nishikori seeing the match out 8/6. Two very good players.

Last up, the doubles and an absolute treat that descended into a good humoured farce of skill and style, players swopping courts, into the umpire’s seat and lapped up by all.

And the week’s winners?

Who else but Team USA and SuperMac, taking the trophy on a countback after a 6/6 tie with Asia Pacific.

A wonderful, wonderful few days.

[*bunny*]

Can't wait to see the match on Youtube!

[DanaKz]

By the way FINALLY daylife published Kei's pics with his shoes!


No doubt now, it's Adidas, adidas CC Genius II Ink/White




As I understand Adidas will remain shoe sponsor for Kei but they don't provide him with their last models (CC Genius is now on sell, their last models are AdiZero and Barricade 6.0)

[DanaKz]

Originally Posted by *bunny*

day 3 results

Thank you for news bunny!
Tonight we'll know the draw...

[*bunny*]

Thanx for the pix and confirmation, Dana!

No I don't want Kei to wear UNIQLO shoes.

But his official site dropped Adidas logo from the list of Kei's sponsors.