ESPN tennis analysts Cliff Drysdale and Mary Joe Fernandez, along with Jason Bernstein, senior director, programming & acquisitions, participated in a media conference call today to discuss ESPN’s multiplatform coverage of the 2011 French Open. The tournament begins on ESPN2 HD on Sunday, May 22. The network will present more than 56 hours, all in high definition, culminating with the women’s semifinals live Thursday, June 2. In addition, ESPN3.com will have nearly 350 hours of exclusive a multi-court offering, also starting May 22, including simulcasts of ESPN2’s telecasts. This press release has all the details, including about ESPN platforms plus schedule information.
A transcript of the conference call follows:
Q. I wanted to get to Novak Djokovic, why beat around the bush. He’s off to this incredible start this season, but I want to go back into his personality a little bit and discuss his persona as the joker. Hoping you or Cliff can talk about where he was, some of his antics say in ’07 and how that played out as the years went on and maybe his attempts to down play that persona a little bit?
MARY JOE FERNANDEZ: We’ve seen Djokovic develop over the last few years. He’s been on the top of the men’s game for a while now, and his personality has always come out, whether it’s imitating the other male and female players and hamming it up on the court. He’s had struggles with his fitness and with his breathing. So I think we’ve always considered him a bit dramatic sometimes on the court, but ever since the end of last year, he has really matured and mentally, physically, everything’s come together. You see it when you look at the past champions. There is a moment when everything starts to click and you’re in the zone, and he’s in the zone right now. Whether it was winning Davis Cup and then winning his second major in Australia, he now, obviously, looks invincible. I think he feels invincible. But from his movement to the way his weaknesses have become now literally not only steady but strengths, his serve and his forehand. He’s the complete package. He’s obviously the real deal. It’s amazing to see this start with the competition he’s playing against. I’ve been very, very impressed. I think he goes into the French Open as a co‑favorite now. Nadal was the heavy favorite before the last couple of tournaments, and I think Djokovic has earned the right now to be considered a co‑favorite.
Q. The Davis Cup seems like it was kind of a turning point for him on court. I don’t know if enough has been made of his dropping gluten from his diet to cure a disease he was suffering from. Can you talk about how that has affected his ability to play going forward?
MARY JOE FERNANDEZ: Well, I read that article as well. At this level, at this elite level, everything helps. Whether now he feels he can last longer, and he said he’s dropped a few pounds so he’s moving even better. I think that just mentally gives you more confidence, knowing that physically you’re going to be up to standards no matter what. So it’s just when you get to this level, every little bit helps, and to be able now to have the confidence in your physical ability, I think, mentally has made him a lot stronger. So I think it has played into his overall success.
CLIFF DRYSDALE: Let me give you my take. First of all, I agree with what Mary Joe is saying. He reminds me a little bit about talking about going through history and the last few years, he reminds me a little bit of Jim Courier. Because when Courier started out, he was very animated and shared his emotions. Then one of his coaches got ahold of him and reined him in a little bit. I think the same thing happened with Novak. He’s a very free and open kind of personality. And I think we’ll probably end up seeing a little bit more of that. As for putting a finger on what’s happened to him, I’m not into the food and the medical side of it, so it’s very hard for me to address that. But I am into the technical side of it, and he’s changed two things dramatically. One is his serve. He used to take the racquet back, open the face behind his body, and there is nobody that’s been really successful that’s been able to get away with that. When I saw that over the years I thought unless he can correct that, he’s not going to make it to the top position. He has corrected that. The mechanics on his serve are different from what they were a year ago or two years ago or three. He’s also changed the mechanics on the forehand side, and that enables him to take a guy like Rafa Nadal, that nobody else has been able to do, stand on the baseline, attack the first short ball that inevitably comes from Nadal because of all the top spin that he uses, and then just annihilate it. That’s what he’s done successfully, and that’s what’s made the difference.
Q. If we could continue on Novak, because he’s obviously the subject going into this, what does Rafa need to do? Mary Carillo was on a call yesterday from the other channel, and she was saying that Rafa seemed like a little bit on the court, something that we never see, which is him sort of realizing that nothing that I’m doing is working, what do I have to do against this guy. So what do you think he can do going into the French Open, considering that Novak is doing everything that he’s doing right now, what does Rafa need to do, or do you think he can play the same way he’s always been playing and beat him?
CLIFF DRYSDALE: That all depends on Djokovic. Novak has found a solution, and I’ve always felt that anybody who can be a flat ball hitter which is what he is, and stay as consistently strong off the ground, which he has been able to do, it is going to be very difficult in my view for Nadal to find a technical or even ‑‑ he can try standing on the baseline, but that’s not really ‑‑ I mean, on the baseline, but that’s not really his game. So I don’t think he’s going to be able to find it long‑term, just like he learned how to flatten out the backhand side to take out Roger and make that such a competitive contest. He may find another solution. Eventually he’s going to have to take a little bit more spin off the ball. He’s taken some off of it. He’s going to have to take more spin off of it, and play more like Novak, who at this point is the complete player. But that’s not something that’s going to happen in two weeks. The only thing in my view that helps him is the best of five‑set match against the best of three. That is a story that’s not yet reached its end.
MARY JOE FERNANDEZ: I agree with Cliff. At the moment, he’s taken the time away from Nadal. Nadal loves to run around and hit a lot of forehands. I think now that Novak can hit to his forehand and take it so early, he might be wiser to not look at so many balls at the right side of the court and just hit his backhand. I mean, his backhand is world class. So that might be something strategy‑wise that he can do better to cover that crosscourt backhand better, because he’s been getting hurt on that quite a bit. I saw his last final. I thought he tried to mix it up and hit more serves to the forehand of Novak. But, yes, 3 out of 5 it is tougher to put Nadal away. He’s going to keep bringing the balls back. But Nadal is someone we’ve seen through the years improve all the time. He’ll keep tweaking, keep trying to figure out ways to get better and to find the solution.
CLIFF DRYSDALE: The bottom line is this: If he cannot find a way to hit the ball deeper in the court against Novak, he’s going to continue to be in trouble against Novak, just like anybody else is going to be in the business by the way. But that is the key. With that much top spin off the forehand side particularly, that is why Djokovic is not afraid to go to the forehand side, because he knows that eventually he’s going to get a short ball. And when he does, it is lethal.
Q. I’m going to depart here for a second of Novak, and don’t accuse me of being sexist here. But, Mary Jo, can you talk about what you’re expecting from the American women, and, Cliff, tell me what you’re expecting from the American men?
MARY JOE FERNANDEZ: Sure. Well, we have a few more direct entries, which is great for the women. I think we have Coco, and we have Christina McHale who has made a big jump in the last couple of months, doing well. Unfortunately, the Williams sisters are still out. Hopefully they’ll be back by Wimbledon. But the clay has always been more of a challenge for the Americans, I think, on both the men and the women’s side. But now I think we have players that actually enjoy playing. I think someone like Melanie and Christina, Sloane Stephens who has just played well in a small tournament. They’re training. They’re doing more training on the clay, learning how to construct points and getting better. That is the bottom line; they just have to get better. They need to improve, get stronger, fitter, and try to make a bit of a run, but obviously, they’re not going in as the favorites. Bethanie Mattek has had a good run recently, and she can play on any surface. She’s a shot maker. For her, it’s being able to keep it together when it counts the most and be consistent. But she can play on the clay. She just had wins over Schiavone and Pennetta and a couple other good ones. So she probably has the best ability to go far in the tournament, but I’m hoping some of the other younger ones will step up and gain confidence.
CLIFF DRYSDALE: I do not think that this tournament for the men is going to be any worse than any one of the last eight French Opens, which is not saying a lot, because they have been pretty much disastrous. My hope springs eternal for James Blake, maybe, since he’s clearly closing on the end of his career, that he will have one last gasp. I’m not sure that it’s going to be at the French championship. But if he’s got enough determination to go out and play challenger events and fight his way back to the Tour, I’m looking for something big from him somewhere this year, but clay is not his favorite surface. The other obvious name is Mardy Fish who is, as we all know, in really outstanding shape, and it’s a game that can translate to the clay. As for Andy and John Isner, for example, or Sam Querrey, I’m not very hopeful.
Q. Roddick has the shoulder issue going on and has hardly played, and Sam has had some success on clay, more in the States. With Isner’s serve, wouldn’t you think on any surface he could make a run?
CLIFF DRYSDALE: Hard to do it on clay. It’s just hard. You can get away with a one‑shot wonder on other surfaces, and I’m not saying that he is. I’ve always been impressed with the way that he’s able to back his serve up with his ground strokes as well, which is what makes him so dangerous. But on clay I just don’t see it. I don’t think it’s going to happen for him. I wish I could say that he had a chance. Sam is pretty much in the same boat. I’m not very hopeful for the U.S.
Q. The third round would be a success, would you say?
CLIFF DRYSDALE: I would say third round for Andy would be a big success, same thing for Isner. I think Mardy Fish, success for him would be the final eight. James is just too much of a question mark, obviously.
Q. More than 56 hours of coverage on ESPN2, and 350 hours on ESPN3.com, does that boggle your mind that we’re getting that much tennis coverage these days compared to all the technological breakthroughs?
THE MODERATOR: Let me cut in and suggest Jason from programming take that one on, and he can speak to it. It seems that the more we add it gets consumed, and the numbers go up particularly in tennis.
JASON BERNSTEIN: Yeah, the reality is, does it boggle our minds? Absolutely, as does the technology in which people consume sport these days. The reality is we are serving fans wherever they and however they access sport. So it’s our privilege to a certain extent to be able to take all of the most meaningful tennis tournaments in the world and make them available to fans through ESPN2, ESPN.com, ESPN3.com, our new app, mobile app or our Watch ESPN app where they can access all of our content through mobile devices. So all of those outer‑court feeds, main‑court feeds, from all of these major tournaments, essentially every major tournament in the world, is available to fans live ESPN3.com. We’re happy to do that, and we think it’s only going to be more and more of an opportunity for fans to get stuck, if you will, in the sport of tennis and get involved to become true fans for the long haul.
Q. Wanted to talk about the forgotten man, Roger Federer, who it’s amazing we don’t mention him as much in the last couple months with the great runs of Djokovic and Nadal. What chance do you give him to reach the final, or do you think Roger can do any damage at the French given the incredible seasons that Nadal and Djokovic are having?
CLIFF DRYSDALE: If you give me just four players in the field and you give me just a semifinal lineup, I would say that Federer would not beat even Nadal or Djokovic at this point on clay in Paris in five sets. But this is the French championships, and there’s many a slip ‘twixt the cup and the lip, so there is a lot that can happen. And I understand that you’ve got clearer favorites in the men’s field. But in the big picture, things can change quickly. Djokovic in the best of five sets, we talked a little bit about him earlier, and I sense that something could go wrong. With Rafa, there’s a guy like Soderling hanging on, and it’s just not a gimme. So bottom line, I’m saying that Federer, given the right draw, can absolutely reach the French final.
Q. But probably not win it?
CLIFF DRYSDALE: It depends on who is there as well. And once he gets to the final ‑‑ in my book, Roger Federer will win another two Grand Slam titles, and for the reason that I mentioned. Because if you give him an opening, he is going to take it, there is no question about it. It’s amazing that we’re talking about him in these terms now, when two years ago he was unbeatable. Mary Joe, you’re a Federer fan. What is your two cents.
MARY JOE FERNANDEZ: I am, it is hard to see anybody but Nadal or Djokovic take the title at the moment. But having said that, I think if there is going to be someone outside of that, it would be Federer. If he’s at his best, he knows how to win the majors and he knows how to play well when he needs to. He played Nadal a three‑setter in Madrid. But, you know, it’s getting tougher. The competition is getting harder, and I think he looks back, and he’s probably like, gee, I’m glad I won the French when I won it because it only gets harder from here on out. He’s set the bar so high. I think that’s one of the reasons why Djokovic is playing the way he is. He’s raised his game, and now he’s going to force everybody else to do the same.
CLIFF DRYSDALE: Let me make one point, Mary Jo, before we leave this subject, talking about Federer. All the years that I’ve been in tennis, and there are a lot of them, I don’t think tennis has ever been even close to ‑‑ men’s tennis ‑‑ has been as close to as strong as it is now. When you add that portrait to this mix, and you have Nadal, Djokovic, Federer and Andy Murray and Del Potro, I’d put in that mix, and Soderling, Berdych, and the rest of the field, including Andy Roddick are sort of second tier. But that top tier of men’s player now there’s never been an era that’s been as close. Not the Agassi‑Sampras era, not the Connors‑McEnroe era, not the Borg, none of them come close to this era in terms of sheer shot‑making ability.
Q. We saw the first time grand slam champion Schiavone last year. Do you think he’ll we’ll see a first time major champ on the women’s side? The second question was what rivalry could you see potentially emerging on the women’s side that could maybe capture the fan’s interest?
MARY JOE FERNANDEZ: I think that’s a good question. That is what the women’s game right now without the Williams sisters is lacking is the rivalries. Clistjers having won the last two majors but then getting hurt in between and hasn’t played that much. I think she and Wozniacki would create a good rivalry if they were to play a little bit more often. Sharapova’s now back in the mix, which is great to see, so she and the Clistjers and Wozniacki or Azarenka will be something to look forward to in the future. But I think it’s a very good possibility we’ll have another first‑time French Open champion. I mean, there are not that many former champions in the draw. Having had Maria just win in Rome and Wozniacki looking for her first win, and Clistjers, if she’s healthy, it seems like she’s going to play. Looking for three in a row in the majors. She’s been to two French Open finals, and you have Schiavone from last year’s final. It’s wide open. We’ve been saying that for a while, but this one really, really is up for grabs. We’ll see how, as Cliff said before, the draw open up and some people get upset who takes advantage of the big opportunity.
CLIFF DRYSDALE: I would say to specifically answer your question, the best rivalry that I would like to see happen and that has a chance is the return of Maria Sharapova taking on the No. 1 in the world, Wozniacki. I don’t think we should discount the return of the Williams sisters though. That is the wildcard in this whole thing. If they come back, which they will, anything can happen. It’s a whole different ballgame. As for Schiavone, she was my pick for the one who would probably disappoint at the French this year, more than anyone.
Q. I would like to see if you can tell me how well you think Kim Clistjers will do seeing she’s only been back on the court two or three weeks. Is that enough for a world class tennis player to get up to speed at this level?
CLIFF DRYSDALE: Definitely.
MARY JOE FERNANDEZ: It is. We’ve seen that after she won the US Open after two years off having a baby. So I think this is a piece of cake for her.
CLIFF DRYSDALE: I agree. In the history of comebacks, including the Williams sisters on the women’s side — even on the men’s side. Del Potro made a pretty good early comeback after being out for a year. Three weeks is not an issue. If she’s in good shape, and physically in good shape, for me, she is the favorite.
Q. You guys spoke a little about Wozniacki. I kind of want to go a little deeper on that. She struggled this clay court season obviously, two straight losses to Goerges, one to Sharapova, no finals. And clay you would think would be a surface that she’d do well on. I’m wondering what you guys think. Is she just running into players that are on a hot streak or is she struggling with something particularly on the clay?
MARY JOE FERNANDEZ: I think she won in Charleston. She can obviously play on the clay, and because she’s so quick and can anticipate so well, she’s tough to beat. You have to put her away. The two players that you mentioned hit big and can knock her out. And Goerges, we played her in Fed Cup, she’s got a lot of power, a big serve. And Maria played really well in Rome. To me Wozniacki is still struggling with that balance of trying to be a little more aggressive. I think her consistency is the reason why she’s at the top of the game. But if she’s going to make a push and win a major, she has to find a little bit more. Really watching her at the Australian Open when she had the match points, when you get to that level, you can’t wait for your opponent to miss. You have to make it happen. And I think that’s where she struggles to find that balance. She’s improved her serve. She’s improved her forehand. She plays a lot. She’s playing in another tournament this week, so you also have to be eager and fresh and ready to go. But she definitely has the capabilities of going all the way, but I still say she’s missing that one more step of being more aggressive when it matters.
CLIFF DRYSDALE: She found her window of opportunity. She became number one. But you have to remember it was in the absence of the Williams sisters. It was in the absence of Justine Henin, for example, it was the decline of Maria Sharapova and the real big hitters who were dominating. It looked like that was going to be the future. But we’re sort of back to the future now because she plays more like Martina Hingis than she plays like Serena Williams. So in a way it’s kind of nice to see that style of play return, but I don’t think it’s going to be for very long, unless, as Mary Jo says, she develops a lot more of the power game.
Q. You’re feeling like her window of opportunity is smaller than say some of the bigger hitters that she has sort of unlimited time to get that major?
CLIFF DRYSDALE: No, the window of opportunity I was talking about is just the opportunity that Mary Joe’s talking about because the big hitters are on the sidelines. I think that’s going to be momentary. I don’t think that’s going to last for very long.
Q. As far as wide open as it is, can you name any dangerous floaters, as it were, that will make it to the second week that you wouldn’t normally think would happen?
MARY JO FERNANDEZ: I think what we just mentioned Goerges has a about possibility. I think she’s going to be Top 10. She has a really good game, big serve, really solid second serve, and a huge forehand. She’s still a bit inconsistent at times, but as we saw her when she played Wozniacki, when she gets it together, she would be tough to beat. She could be someone to look for. Her fellow German, Petkovic, is another dangerous one. She’s had quite a run the last few months. Besides that, I’m sort of looking like players like Ivanovic and Kuznetsova, former French Open champions, to hopefully find their game and challenge again at the top. Because they’re great athletes, they have the weapons, they know what it takes, and hopefully they can get their confidence back.
CLIFF DRYSDALE: How much pencil lead do you have left in your pencil because there are so many? You start with Jankovic, she could win it. Bartoli could come through, she’s come close or, as you said, Petkovic. Even Flavia Pennetta could come back. She had a great year two years ago, and she could do it again. How about Ana Ivanovic? We haven’t talked about her. There are just so many players that can surprise the field at the French championships.
Q. How about on the men’s side? Anyone you’re looking out for to make it to the second week who won’t necessarily win, but could cause some trouble for the higher ranked players?
CLIFF DRYSDALE: It’s going to be much, much tougher. The whole field is so much more clearly defined. I said in looking at it from afar, Jo‑Wilfried Tsonga, if he’s healthy, or Gilles Simon, if he’s healthy playing in front of his home crowd or Nalbandian.
MARY JO FERNANDEZ: I think he might have pulled out. But I think you’re right, Cliff, I think the French are the biggest shot makers that have the biggest potential to upset them whether it’s Gasquet or Tsonga or Simon. They usually get very nervous when they play in front of their home crowd.
CLIFF DRYSDALE: It’s just never easy.
MARY JOE FERNANDEZ: Thomaz Bellucci, maybe? He had a good run in Madrid.
CLIFF DRYSDALE: Thomaz Bellucci has a good shot, Thomaz Bellucci. That’s a much tougher assignment for anybody who is going to try to win the French.
Q. Cliff was asked earlier on to say what would be a good tournament for U.S. players, and both of you, what would be a good tournament for Andy Murray on that same basis? Are you seeing any influence so far from your ESPN colleague, Darren Cahill, on Andy’s game?
CLIFF DRYSDALE: I’ve not had a discussion with Mr. Cahill, the killer, yet. I’m sure we’ll hear a lot more about him. And a good result for Andy would be to make the final, and I would say he’s got a 28 to 32% chance of making the final.
Q. Very specific!
CLIFF DRYSDALE: His problem is he’s going to have to deal with one of those top three or four players. I’m not sure. Again, I’d like to put Del Potro in that mix, but he’s also got injury issues at the moment, apparently. I think getting to a final would be a very good result for him. And by the way, he is going to win a grand slam here in the next year and a half.
MARY JOE FERNANDEZ: I’d agree with that. I think he’s starting to gain his confidence. I think this match against Djokovic will hopefully go a long way even though he didn’t finish him off. But clay’s never been his favorite surface, even though he practiced a lot on it. He likes a little bit of the faster court to help him out with a little bit more pace. But he’s quick. I mean, he should be able to be out there all day if he needs to be. I think he believes that he can beat anybody on any given day. To me, if he gets to the semis, that’s a best result. I don’t know what his result in the French is. I don’t think he’s been to the quarters yet, has he? So semis, I think, would be great. But it’s going to be tough if he comes up against Nadal and Djokovic again. But I think he and Roger are the ones that can knock those two guys out.
CLIFF DRYSDALE: I have high expectations for your country man. I just think that he’s ‑‑ the talent question is so high that in spite of himself ‑‑ if there was one thing that he could do that would please me would be to improve mechanically on his forehand side. I think the rest of his game, including his serve, has really improved. Nobody argues with how speedy he is around the court, and his fitness question is very high. So you put those things together, if he had a forehand that matched the forehands of his major competitors, he would have already won a couple of slams.
Q. Which of the main two would you favor him against, Cliff, if the draw opened up to be Djokovic for him or the Nadal side, which would you think he could take if he could take either of them?
CLIFF DRYSDALE: He needs to step away from Rafa Nadal in a five setter on clay. He’s much more likely to beat Djokovic than he is Nadal.
Q. I was wondering if you could elaborate on what Cahill is bringing to the table and bringing to the party? It seems like he’s had that kind of immediate impact on Andy.
CLIFF DRYSDALE: He’s a friend of both Mary Joe and I, and he’s very analytical. He’s also a generous and warm personality. I think, to be honest, that he is not going to take any of the abuse that Andy gives out to those that he’s closest to: His coaches, et cetera. And I think that’s going to help him. Because here is a piece of advice that I’m going to give you, now answer this bit of advice other than the forehand side that Andy Murray should do, and that is not look for excuses. He’s constantly looking around and blaming the coach or the trainer or whatever. And if Darren can convince him that he’s got to stop looking for excuses, then this boy is going to win even maybe more than two slams.
Q. Do you think he’s strong enough to not put up with anything like that and that he’s a big enough personality to say it’s my way?
MARY JOE FERNANDEZ: He’s got so many options in his game. He can play different ways, and I think Darren’s very good with tactics and analyzing strengths and weaknesses of his opponents that I think that’s going to help him out a lot.
-30-
-
-
-
-
-
