If you’ve watched more Olympics than me (and I only got to the most important three hours of it, the women’s free skate), then you were sure to have had the pleasure of watching my favorite tennis commentator — and esteemed journalist — Mary Carillo in one of NBC’s delightful featurettes. Carillo’s sports knowledge is […]
watching the men’s semis: nole + ferrer, roger + kolya
Congrats to Novak Djokovic for downing David Ferrer in three easy sets — 6-4, 6-4, 6-3; and to Roger Federer for beating Nikolay Davydenko (le sigh) after a seesaw third set that saw a million breaks of serve (7-5, 6-1, 7-5). A few things I noticed while I watched these U.S. Open men’s semis with […]
thank god for usa network
Thank god for USA Network. In their decades of covering the U.S. Open, they’ve settled into a style that’s worlds better than CBS‘ (such a relief!). They also keep it consistent and simple: no unnecessary graphics; minimal “comeback kid” or “on the rise” profiles; ample servings of quality matches not involving Americans; a nice sampling […]
sketches of the open's humble broadcasters
Those of us neither out in Flushing, nor subscribers to extremely high-end satellite packages with live feeds, are ultimately resolved to endure CBS’ weekend coverage. As green as TTC proved to be in covering their inaugural slam at this year’s French Open, one perversely hopes that they’ll gain enough leverage to buy out CBS’ Open […]
"dangerous" to whom?
Is it just me, or is anyone else getting a little sick of hearing commentators use the word “dangerous”? As in: “This guy is a really dangerous player,” or “She’s a really dangerous floater in the draw.” Here’s my beef: clearly “dangerous” is a subtext for “this player could wipe out a seed,” and that […]