Could you learn how to play tennis without using a tennis racket?
Yes, you can! Mansour Bahrami is a great example of this, he grew up in Iran where he didn't have access to a racket. Instead, he taped a dustpan to a broomstick and played with that. When he eventually moved to France and picked up a racket for the first time, he said everything was considerably easier from there. He made a deep run at the French Open in doubles, but due to his extremely late professional debut, never accomplished what he was capable of. Today, he delights fans all over the world with his incredible shot making and antics in exhibition and senior events, earning him the nickname “The Court Jester”. I encourage you to look up videos of him playing, he is very entertaining as well as talented!
What are some of the best examples of wasted talents and short-lived careers in sporting history because of bad management, poor choices, poor luck, or other extraneous factors?
Owen HargreavesLooked a real class signing in the Roy Keane mould. Looked the only World Class English player at WC 2006 in a team with big names like Beckham,Gerrard,Rooney,http://etc.S.as injuries curtailed his career at Manchester United.Fernando TorresNot exactly wasted but has played remarkably poorly for a long long time and for a player of his ability.I am a United fan but could only admire Torres despite him being a Liverpool player.I have not seen anyone bully Vidic into submission like he did.Andy RoddickI really loved his tennis-aggressive. Really unfortunate to have ended up playing in an era alongside Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.Jo Wilfried TsongaAtleast Roddick won a Grand Slam.Tsonga may never win one.What an entertainer.Looks unstoppable when on song.His strokeplay leaves you left dazzled yet you are left wondering why doesnt he win more often.Jugraj SinghHere was a player who made my enjoy watching hockey.He was so good that Sohail Abbas,the great Pakistani penalty corner specialist saw in him his younger self.Unfortunately an accident cut short his career.SreesanthHe is undoubtably the most talented fast bowler in India.He has a perfect wrist position for a swing bowler.When on song he could do thisYet he has never quite made it big.
Orange.
What is the single most incredible tennis point you've ever seen?
This is from over a quarter of a century ago, so please bear with me if I get some of the details wrong.Bailey vs Ivanisevic, at Wimbledon in, I think, 1991.It was a cracking match. It was the last day of term at university and it was on in the common room. People were dropping in to say their goodbyes and finding that they couldn't pull themselves away from the screen. A lot of people got home to their families late that day.Bailey, playing for the day the role of archetypal plucky Brit at Wimbledon, had pushed Ivanisevic to a fifth set, and was break point up in the fifth. Ivanisevic has to recover his serve to stay in the match.His first serve is ruled out.Second serve, facing a break in the deciding set.And Goran pulls out a brutal, arcing serve of such ferocity that it flirts with the line and then curves past Bailey so fast that you have to watch it again in slow motion to appreciate just how unplayable it was.And it turned the match. Ivanisevic won the game with two further aces (I think) and went on to win the match. It was as if, after that serve, Bailey had no more answers.I've seen some brilliantly constructed points, some spectacular rallies and even some memorable acrobatics (Boris Becker's incredible diving saves at Wimbledon on 1985 spring to mind).But I don't think I have ever seen a more influential second serve under pressure.
Who are the top ten tennis players of all time?
A2A.I'm going to answer this question assuming you mean natural racket skills, not just being the best ever. While Rafael Nadal is ridiculously talented, I'd think that most people agree that players like Federer have more natural talent.In my opinion, it boils down to three people: Roger Federer, Gael Monfils, and Mansour Bahrami.While anyone who knows anything about tennis knows who Federer is, and anyone who follows pro tennis today knows about Monfils' crazy acrobatics,a lot of people don't know who Bahrami is. He turned pro in 1974, and was born in Iran. Growing up in Iran was oppressive, and he didn't have a racket for a very long time. He taped a dustpan to a broomstick, and played with that for awhile. Once he moved to France, he said that once he got his hands on a racket, everything was really easy for him.Known as the "Court Jester", he achieved small success on the pro stage due to turning pro very late, but delights fans all over the world today with his ridiculous shotmaking and antics in exhibition matches.