HCFoo's Blogyard

Well, no one is perfect. But imagine if you are able to construct a superhuman being with lethal serve, the ability to return powerful forehand, creativity to create beautiful volley, etc

Based on my reading online and off line, here's the combination of players (with emphasis on current players) at their best in each facet that will create the perfect male tennis player:

Serve
Pete Sampras has powerful and accurate serve. Most players will be very careful on their second serve but not Pistol Pete. Another player who is notable for his serve is Roger Federer. Unlike Sampras' speed, Federer's serve is unpredictable as you do not know where he's going to hit the ball.

Forehand
It has to be Roger Federer. His forehand is almost perfect with the ability to hit from any angle with total precision. Another player with a violent forehand is Fernando Gonzalez. He has great pace and depth, with the ability to rip even from the corner.

Backhand
Andre Agassi is well known for his backhand. He doesn't even mind to hit them using both hands. David Nalbandian, who uses both hands too, plays "strong two-hander up to the line" and is "safe and accurate".

Speed
Bjorn Borg has the most nimble and versatility feet. But in today's tennis, it has to be Rafael Nadal. He will sprint and hunt down a ball, hit it, turn, sprint again with so much commitment. This player basically runs after everything.

Endurance
Ivan Lendl was never mentally tough but he uses his physical fitness to the max. He is fit, strong and almost robotic.

Volley
John McEnroe has such tremendous balance, he covered the net so well. In today's tennis, there are not good volleyers. Perhaps Novak Djokovic is a well enough volleyer who comes to the net well, and cover the court impressively.

Court craft
Everyone has been talking about how smart Andy Murray is. He is a strategist, able to read the game and design points even though he lacks muscles to power the ball.

Well, there you go the players at their perfect best.

Sources: ESPN and The Straits Times.

Dear bloggers and friends,

To those of you who have supported my campaign to meet my tennis idol, Rafael Nadal, which I did, the amount of RM200 which I've pledged has been contributed to Yvonne Foong. Thank you for all your support as it helped me to focus and commit in achieving my dream goal.

I'm not sure if this is happening in all McD outlets throughout Malaysia. But the McD in Kota Damansara that I usually go early in the morning is finally providing free WiFi.

Check this out. There are more than 15,000 WiFi-enabled restaurants around the globe. So I wouldn't be surprised if we finally have it here in Malaysia.

Now I don't need to hangout at expensive cafe or over-charged kopitiam. I can just spend less than RM3 for a cup of hot Milo and I can sit in McD as long as my battery can lasts. By the way, the McD outlet in Kota Damansara is pretty cosy.

Too bad, they don't provide any power points to recharge battery. Maybe not yet. But it's still a good news.

Is it for real?

The biggest boy band back in the late 80s and early 90s is planning for a reunion. Their website, www.nkotb.com is up again after a long period of dormancy. However there are no confirmation whether there's going to be a tour or release of a new album.

"I wanted to address the rumors of the NKOTB Reunion Tour," Wood wrote on his MySpace blog Monday. "There has been no talk of this and you are getting it from the source directly...You can't believe everything you read."

Wood, who said that he was releasing a solo album in March, didn't completely close the door on the would-be reunion, however, writing on his blog, "Never say never!"

Well, their time is over when they called it quit back in 1994. But I don't mind to see what they are coming up with. It's great to reminisce the mega success of the boy band who once rule the world and music charts.

By the way, this is my favourite NKOTB's song. I know it's kinda dorky to listen to this song now but what the heck.

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Whether you are working in a big corporate or just a small organisation, more often you will encounter 'back stabber'. They will do whatever they can to achieve personal gain at the expense of others. Politicking is their game.

Well, thank goodness I've not really encounter such people before but I have heard so much about. I was browsing through The Straits Times, a Singapore based newspaper and I thought this article under the recruitment section is worth sharing here.

So how are we going to survive in an environment where politicking game is what your colleagues play?

1. Always present ideas in favour of organisational goals and not your own personal interests.

2. Develop the right image by adopting a style of dressing and behaviour that conforms to the culture norms of the organisation.

3. Develop a resource base (expertise and knowledge) that is central to the organisation's activities.

4. Try to create the illusion that you are indispensable.

5. Be visible! Take part in social as well as work activities.

6. Be seen to be popular by developing strategic allies at different levels within organisation.

7. Avoid 'tainted' people - avoid too much contact with fringe employees, those whose loyalty and ability are questionable.

8. Always support your boss without being labelled as a 'boot licker' or a 'yes man'.

THE Asia-Europe Institute (AEI) of Universiti Malaya (UM) and Goethe Institute Malaysia are organising the annual German Film Week once again.

I was at the event last year. Thanks to Nux for reminding me about this even or I'm going to miss it this year.

Supposed there will be 5 films shown at AEI. However, the first film 'The Fisherman and His Wife' was shown yesterday, Sunday, 27th January between 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. at Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre (KLPac), Sentul instead.

Anyway, there's another 4 more award-winning films to come:

30 Jan: The Lives of Others
13 Feb: Schultze gets the Blues
20 Feb: The Miracle of Bern
27 Feb: Kebab Connection

The venue for the above films is: AEI, UM
Date: Every Wednesday, 30 Jan - 27 Feb, 2008
Time: 8.30 onwards
For direction go to: map

You know why I love so much about this event? Free movies and free refreshment. And it's open for all. Where can you get that in KL, please tell me.

Finally Djokovic gets to taste his first Grand Slam .

It was nerve-wrecking when Jo-Wilfried Tsonga took the first set. However, Djokovic reminded us that he is the guy who humbled the world #1 and defended champion, Roger Federer, a couple of days ago.With the results of 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 7-6, Djokovic shows us that he can be very serious on court.

Tennis fever is not over yet. At least for me.

Here's a web-based tennis game for weekend warm up and relaxation. There are several modes to it: training, exhibition and tournament.

But for more polished tennis video games, check out this blog here. There is a list of the top 5 tennis video games. I don't have an Xbox or Playstation, so these games are out of questions.

As much as I want Novak Djokovic to win at the 2008 Australian Open, my instinct said Jo-Wilfried Tsonga will create history by winning at the Rod Laver Arena.

The joker and the gentle giant have never met each other. Both have defeated the world no. 1 and world no. 2 players in the semifinal. Hence, it is quite hard to predict who's going to take the Grand Slam. This is definitely a match not to be missed.

Tsonga said he goes into the title bout with nothing to lose and fighting against the odds.

"It's the same, because Nadal is number two in the world and Djokovic three."

"Both of them won a lot of tournaments and they have more experience than me. I'll just do my best, and that's it. I will see what happens on the court. If I win, that's unbelievable. And if I lose, I did my best, so no problem."

Djokovic goes in with respect for the Frenchman.

"Tsonga is coming up. He's just amazing athlete," said the Serb.

"He's been performing some impressive tennis in these two weeks. As I did. I still haven't lost even a set here in Australian Open, which is amazing. It's gonna be interesting to see young players playing against each other. Obviously, we will not have anything to lose."

Djokovic predicted that he and Tsonga will be equally motivated, "even though looking at the rankings I would be the favorite. But it's finals, so anything can happen."

(All photos from Getty Images)

Maria Sharapova is definitely sending out message that she's aiming the #1 spot in the ATP rankings and domination in the women tennis in 2008.

She was once in that spot in 2005 but only for a short while. With Wimbledon and the Australian Open under her sleeves now, she's definitely out for the rest of the two Grand Slam titles, the French Open and the US Open.

It is a very rare occasion that we can have a chance to see two tennis beauties in the same court fighting for the prestigious Grand Slam title. So, guys and guys, make sure you are in front of Star Sports this morning to catch the final between Ana Ivanovic and Maria Sharapova. Too bad I have to miss this live match as I'm working today.

Darth Federer, the master of the dark side of the ATP force, has to accept his lost to Nole Djoker in straight sets.


It was a rare sight to see both players in black. You know what, it blended well with the blue tennis court.

It was an unbelievable results at the 2008 Australian Open as Roger Federer, the defending champion, was knocked out by Novak Djokovic. This is a result which I least expect from Djokovic. What more Djokovic will be battling against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga on Sunday for the prestigious Grand Slam.

So who you'll be rooting for? For me, of course my bet is on Djokovic. I want a revenge for my jedi, Rafael Nadal.

What is the best possible way to celebrate a win with your double partner? Ask Arnaud Clement and Michael Llodra.

Perhaps a little bit of intimacy wouldn't hurt especially when your team have made it into the men's doubles final.

(All pictures from Getty Images)

I agree with Esther, that Jo-Wilfried Tsonga does resemble boxing legend, Muhammad Ali. See if you agree with me.

I must say, WOW! The spectators at the 2008 Australian Open are fortunate because all the top tennis beauty queens are in the semifinals.

We have Ana Ivanovic, Maria Sharapova, Daniela Hantucova and Jelena Jankovic. I know some of you might not agree with me that Jankovic is beautiful but like it or not, a lot of people regard her as one.

So, we'll see which tennis beauty queen can wave her racquet better than waving to the crowd.

All Rafa's (although I prefer to call him Nadal) fans around the world will be eagerly waiting for this match against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga at the semifinal at the Australian Open.

I haven't really watch Tsonga played until last night, the match against Mikhail Youzhny. I wasn't impressed when he beat Andy Murray and Richard Gasquet but when I saw him played in the quarterfinal yesterday, I realized how dangerous and threatening this Frenchman is.
Tsonga could create another upset and deny Rafael Nadal a chance to play in the final at the Australian Grand Slam for the first time. After all, Youzhny was the guy who beat Nadal few weeks ago at the Chennai Open final.

He looked so relaxed and calm even in the most crucial moment, when he needed to close the deal in straight sets during the tiebreak against Youzhny.

Nobody exactly knows Tsonga's style because he is basically not 'the star' before the 2008 Australian Open starts. Hopefully Nadal will stretch him more and make him run around and keeping up with the balls all the time.

Whatever the result is, this year is going to be an exciting for all tennis fans. At least we know tennis is not heading towards something like the F-1 where only the big guns win.

Tennis can be very stressful even for us, the fans and viewers.

You'll probably be spending 2 to 5 hours just by watching one match. And if you get to watch a match like the other day between Leyton Hewitt and Marcos Baghdatis, you have to choose between your precious sleep or witness the latest finish in Grand Slam history.

But tennis is not just about stress. There are some lighter sides of tennis too.

The theme for today is 'What you can do with tennis balls'.

... unless you are a celebrity like Nicole Kidman or Keith Urban.

You see, unlike the movie theaters, the tennis court is really bright. You also need to stay put and be silence during the match. And gazing into your partner's eyes, you'll probably missed the best shot of the tournament. If you are talking about the Grand Slam like the Australian Open, the tickets already cost you a bomb.

Well, if you are a celebrity, you don't mind all that. The match is not as important as to prove to the media that your marriage is not on the rock.

Probably this is one of the most controversial Grand Slam ever. Earlier of the week, we heard about clash between the police and some spectators who appears to be Greek supporters. Then Sania Mirza was accused of being disrespect to her national flag.

And now, Marcos Baghdatis who has just beaten Marat Safin, has landed himself in a bigger mess. He has been accused of being racist.

Marcos Baghdatis has appeared in a YouTube video showed the Cypriot socializing with a group of Greek supporters called Hellas Fan Club (HFC). In the video, Baghdatis was holding a red flare above his head and chanting anti-Turkish slogans with others.



Baghdatis' home island of Cyprus has been a flashpoint for ethnic tensions since winning independence from Britain in 1960. Turkey invaded and occupied part of the island in 1974 in the wake of an attempted coup by Greek Cypriots.

Baghdatis said he just wanted the matter to go away.

"There has been a lot of coverage of me appearing in a video on youtube.com," he said in a statement.

"In that video from 2007, I was supporting the interest of my country, Cyprus, while protesting against a situation that is not recognised by the United Nations.

"Now I would like to concentrate on the tournament and ask everyone to respect that. I love the Australian Open and want to do well here."

The Hellas Fan Club, which is part of a worldwide network of supporters of Hellenic athletes, said the slogans chanted had been misconstrued.

"The 'Turks out of Cyprus' chant is directed towards the well documented illegal occupation of Cyprus, and is not directed towards citizens of the Turkish ethnic minority," it said in a statement.

Earlier in the tournament, Baghdatis defended the Greek supporters involved in the ugly scenes this week during a match between Chilean Fernando Gonzalez and Konstantinos Economidis of Greece.

The Australian Turkish Cypriot Cultural and Welfare Association on Friday demanded an apology from Baghdatis.

"This is a straight-forward provocation of our community and he is playing a different game to sport, he is not being a sportsman and should apologise," president Hakki Suleyman told reporters.

Baghdatis is scheduled to play Australian Lleyton Hewitt today.

This is the second part of my 'Tennis is NOT boring' post.

If you are an up and coming singer and want to make an impact in the music industry, here is one tip for you. Make sure you have tearjerker songs in your album. Whether it's about being dumped, breakups, physical and substance abuse, frustration in life and feeling useless, etc, it all works.

I'm just wondering what are some of the saddest songs you ever heard that touches your heart. For me, the first song that came into mind is Simple Plan 'telling his dad he is not perfect but will try to make him proud'.

Sinead O' Conner's memorable music video of the song Nothing Compares 2 U is sad enough to make it one of the saddest song ever. And I definitely can't forget Eric Clapton expressing his grief in the song Tears In Heaven.

There are so many polls in the magazines and internet listing the top saddest songs like this one. However, I believe each one of us have our own sad songs, that we love to listen especially when we are down. So what are your favourite sad songs? (Warning: Self pity is contagious and it will eat you up. So cut down on the sad songs)

Oh, what the heck? Today is already Friday and this is supposed to be a happy day.

Finally, Maria 'Shriek'apova is done with Novak Djokovic. In portraying the Russian court diva, he preens before serving and imitates her habit of sweeping her long, blond hair behind each ear.

Djokovic did it again at the 2008 Australian Open!

Now it seems that Sharapova looked to be retaliating.

"We'd need a really long time, because all I'll need is a tennis ball," she said of the leisurely Djokovic serve. "I'm just going to stand here and bounce the ball for a really long time before I serve. We're going to be here all day long."

Sharapova then called the Djokovic act "kinda boring," adding: "He's got his own little thing going on. So let him do it, I'm sure you guys are going to get bored of it. But it's fun any time you can get some entertainers out there."

Djokovic, the tennis clown has also done other impersonations including Rafael Nadal, Andy Roddick and Roger Federer.

Oops, I shriek again!

Back to 'Shriek'apova, an Environment Protection Authority officer recently measures the raucous Russian with a decibel counter during her match against Lindsay Davenport, the quiet American.

The results proved what was painfully apparent to opponents and fans.

Her loudest shriek was 71.5dB -- louder than a vacuum cleaner (70dB) and approaching the level of a power drill (80dB).

And that was from a distance of 30m. The only thing louder than Sharapova are the clapping and cheering for Davenport.

Well, you might not be a tennis fan simply because you judge the sports as boring. Here's what you might missed on the court (or on sports channel) at the 2008 Australian Open.

Rafael Nadal continues to shine at the Australian Open by punishing Frenchman Florent Serra 6-0 6-2 6-2.

With the new slower-paced court surface, I supposed Nadal has more confident to go even further than the third round. Perhaps this Grand Slam will be a good head start for Nadal to win his first title of the year and be the best training ground for him to chase the fourth French Open title, which is even slower-paced.

And by the way, if you have been reading The New Straits Times a