Day 2 as the Media Guy: Steve Johnson has one or two WHAT?
I know its supposed to be chaotic when it comes to tournament traffic but getting to Newport is one heck of an adventure. Two bridges, a toll, and not an open space to park anywhere in sight! I LOVE IT! But it in all seriousness, it is the small price to pay for an experience of a lifetime. Parked and fueled by coffee, I am ready to take on the next day. Today's adventure we had the opportunity to explore some of the event tents on the grounds and we started our, in tournament competition between players for who can regrip a racquet the fastest. Not only that, we got to ask some questions to some of the players after the match.
Speed Grip Challenge ft. Pospisil and Thompson
Ok, some people claim they are slow at regripping their racquet but Jordan Thompson really did back up his statement of being slow. Our goal is to have most of the players in the tournament participating in the Speed Grip challenge and by the end of it, the winner will be announced. Vasek Pospisil did pretty today. Not only winning his opening match against Donald Young but setting the tone for the rest of the players.
Steve Johnson: One hands or Two?
While watching Top 50 American, Steve Johnson, I noticed that he was practicing one handed and two handed backhands. This is interesting because for a 28 year old player on tour, should he be switching to a one hander this late in the game? When I confronted him about it, he said he felt more comfortable with a one hander but it's too late for, "a 28 year old, ranked 48 in the world". I'm not going to lie, the one hander looked solid and fluid. He uses it when he is mostly on the run but I think it might be a game changer for his career and put it back into the Top 20 where he once was.
The Mystery of the Ball Boy Injury
So, the word on the street is that a ball boy was injured by a hard hit serve and received a black eye. He was then taken to a local hospitalized after he resisted because he wanted to finish the match he was participating in. Now, I want to meet this ball boy and interview him about this injury. This is what I am ASSUMING and what I have heard on the grounds. If you are reading this and know of the ball boy, CONTACT ME.