An Appetizer Fit to Spoil the Main Course

In several years of closely following Grand Slam tennis tournaments, I have seldom reached the point of true emotional exhaustion prior to the stage at which the titans of the game collide in pitched, high-stakes encounters. The first half of this year's Wimbledon Championships, however, has been a most pointed exception; a week spent arising each morning to immerse myself in ever more gripping, harrowing and historic action, while a treat and a wonderful experience, has repeatedly left me emotionally drained to the point of numbness and fatigue. This being the case, I am thankful for the small eye in this storm of intensity that is afforded by the middle Sunday of Wimbledon, and hope to use it to fully recover my senses and energy for the week to come.

Writing in the wake of the sensation which has reverberated around the world as a result of the aforementioned goings-on, there seems scarcely anything original left to say about them insofar as description or analysis is concerned. Obvious highlights include Roger Federer's narrow aversion of what would have been one of the most tremendous upsets of all time, Rafael Nadal's back-to-back five-set battles, Taylor Dent's new Wimbledon serve-speed record, a rare appearance by the queen of England, and, of course, the historic blood-and-guts war between John Isner and Nicolas Mahut, which hearkened back in spirit to the days of epic bare-knuckle fights such as John L. Sullivan's legendary 75-round victory over Jake Kilrain. The consistent quality of entertainment and groundbreaking historical significance of these Championships has been of such brilliance as to utterly transcend any reasonable expectations.

After such a week, however, I do find myself beginning to wonder whether this year's conclusion might actually come off as something of an anti-climax; what could possibly top what we've already seen? Almost anything short of yet another classic final, supplemented by many engaging twists and turns and subplots on the way there, would summon to mind one of those occasions upon which my family and I would go out to eat at our favorite Mexican-style restaurant. We would be served a delicious helping of tortilla chips and salsa as an appetizer- so delicious, in fact, that I would often find myself disappointed and vaguely indifferent when the actual meal arrived. Here's hoping, then, that whatever magic produced this last week has not worn off. It may mean a few more days spent dragging myself out of bed abnormally early each morning to overload my senses for a few hours as a precursor to a hardy afternoon nap, but in my book, it will be more than worth the trouble.

What do you think? Was this the greatest first week of a Wimbledon event in history? Can and will the second week live up to the first week's standard? Who looks the best bet for winning the title? Has my ongoing obsession with this event reached an embarrassing and unhealthy intensity? Let me know. More to come soon, as I delve into the the remainder of the men's singles draw and discuss my thoughts and hopes regarding competitive prospects for the decisive stages of the tournament.

Queen's Club - Roddick Starts Strong

Andy Roddick displayed confident, workman-like form today in dispatching Igor Kunitsyn of Russia 6-2, 6-1 in 51 minutes.