Rank Name City State Section District Points
1  Berenbaum, David  Paramus  NJ  Eastern  New Jersey Region  1008
2  Adler, Richard W.  Southampton  NY  Eastern  Long Island Region  738
3  Lurie, Jonathan  New York  NY  Eastern  Metropolitan Region  666
4  Henderson, Jan Mark  East Brunswick  NJ  Eastern  New Jersey Region  592
5  Moss, Paul S.  New York  NY  Eastern  Metropolitan Region  588
6  Hoffman, John B.  New York  NY  Eastern  Metropolitan Region  510
6  Boutillette, Michael J.  Somerset  NJ  Eastern  New Jersey Region  510
8  Titcomb, John  Lloyd Harbor  NY  Eastern  Long Island Region  466
9  Brill, Steven C.  Great Neck  NY  Eastern  Long Island Region  448
10  Clooney, Jim  oyster bay cove  NY  Eastern  Long Island Region  400
11  Serebro, Boris  White Plains  NY  Eastern  Southern Region  398
12  Andersen, Glen A.  Wharton  NJ  Eastern  New Jersey Region  376
13  Slott, Joseph  Brooklyn  NY  Eastern  Metropolitan Region  358
14  Stillman, Richard  Mountain Lakes  NJ  Eastern  New Jersey Region  322
15  Johns, Mark  Great Neck  NY  Eastern  Long Island Region  275
16  L'allier, Jean  Flushing  NY  Eastern  Metropolitan Region  224
17  Tanis, Robert J.  Oak Ridge  NJ  Eastern  New Jersey Region  192
18  Rolfe, Chevas William  Astoria  NY  Eastern  Metropolitan Region  168
19  Coglietta, Fred F.  Saint James  NY  Eastern  Long Island Region  164
20  Farley, Robert C.  Saratoga Springs  NY  Eastern  Northern Region  134
21  Udis, Andrew  New York  NY  Eastern  Metropolitan Region  132
22  Hanchrow, James P.  White Plains  NY  Eastern  Southern Region  128
23  Ackerman, Philip  Rensselaer  NY  Eastern  Northern Region  126
24  Checa, Luis P  New York  NY  Eastern  Metropolitan Region  106
25  Smith, Gerard J.  Garden City  NY  Eastern  Long Island Region  104
25  Chizever, Richard S.  Aquebogue  NY  Eastern  Long Island Region  104
27  Evans, Dwight R.  Westfield  NJ  Eastern  New Jersey Region  96
28  Winnitzki, Walter J.  Manhasset  NY  Eastern  Long Island Region  88
29  Scheibner, Peter J.  Stony Point  NY  Eastern  Southern Region  82
29  Mutch, Robert D.  Ramsey  NJ  Eastern  New Jersey Region  82
29  Sussman, Gary A.  Highland Mills  NY  Eastern  Southern Region  82
29  Lamonaca, Donato  Brooklyn  NY  Eastern  Metropolitan Region  82
29  Dunning, Dennis J.  Poughquag  NY  Eastern  Southern Region  82
29  Scammacca, Michael  Waterford  NY  Eastern  Northern Region  82
35  Weisberger, Mike  New York  NY  Eastern  Metropolitan Region  68
35  Wawrzyniak, Piotr  Forest Hills  NY  Eastern  Metropolitan Region  68
37  Deutsch, Ron Edward  Chappaqua  NY  Eastern  Southern Region  66
37  LIEMER, DAVID  Chappaqua  NY  Eastern  Southern Region  66
39  Simel, Peter B.  Douglaston  NY  Eastern  Metropolitan Region  64
39  Underwood, Steven  Minoa  NY  Eastern  Western Region  64
39  Hoekstra, Mark  Baldwinsville  NY  Eastern  Western Region  64
42  Chavez, Peter  Cortlandt Manor  NY  Eastern  Southern Region  52
42  Rudina, Solee E.  Basking Ridge  NJ  Eastern  New Jersey Region  52
44  Neubauer, John  Patterson  NY  Eastern  Southern Region  22
45  Kier, Nelson  New York  NY  Eastern  Metropolitan Region  6
46  Darris, Cranston  New York  NY  Eastern  Metropolitan Region  4
46  Eskenazi, Jack  Levittown  NY  Eastern  Long Island Region  4
46  Kalb, Scott E.  Greenwich  CT  Eastern  Southern Region  4
46  McIntyre, Mark J.  New York  NY  Eastern  Metropolitan Region  4
46  Cooper, Judson A.  Armonk  NY  Eastern  Southern Region  4
46  Wilkinson, Alan W.  New York  NY  Eastern  Metropolitan Region  4
46  Harvey, Michael  Boca Raton  FL  Florida  Region 6  4
46  Yonkers, Paul J  Sea Cliff  NY  Eastern  Long Island Region  4
54  Prasad, Narayan  New York  NY  Eastern  Metropolitan Region  3
55  Silbiger, Thomas  New York  NY  Eastern  Metropolitan Region  2
55  Guernsey, Steve G.  Poughkeepsie  NY  Eastern  Southern Region  2
55  Schechner, Robert M.  Hazlet  NJ  Eastern  New Jersey Region  2
55  Schneider, David I.  Springfield  NJ  Eastern  New Jersey Region  2
55  Ambrose, Eric  Rosedale  NY  Eastern  Metropolitan Region  2
55  Rahbari, Raymond K.  North Babylon  NY  Eastern  Long Island Region  2
55  Gash, Gary M.  White Plains  NY  Eastern  Southern Region  2
55  Lease, Jack  Newburgh  NY  Eastern  Southern Region  2
55  Donnelly, James G.  Richmond Hill  NY  Eastern  Metropolitan Region  2
55  Wilkinson, Kenneth  Brooklyn  NY  Eastern  Metropolitan Region  2
55  De La Cruz, Augusto C.  New York  NY  Eastern  Metropolitan Region  2
55  Hickey, Tom  Hopewell Junction  NY  Eastern  Southern Region  2
55  Bart, H Ted  New York  NY  Eastern  Metropolitan Region  2
55  Lerner, Peter  New York  NY  Eastern  Metropolitan Region  2
69  Glanzman, Robert L.  Carmel  NY  Eastern  Southern Region  1
69  Makuch, Bish  Woodside  NY  Eastern  Metropolitan Region  1
69  Eleby, Larry  Valatie  NY  Eastern  Northern Region  1
69  Dowling, Robert E  Castleton  NY  Eastern  Northern Region  1
69  Ruiz, Hugo  Jackson Heights  NY  Eastern  Metropolitan Region  1
69  Dirusso, Steve  Great Neck  NY  Eastern  Long Island Region  1
69  Landau, Donald Alan  Goldens Bridge  NY  Eastern  Southern Region  1

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Rank Name City State Section District Points
1 Rodgers, Scott D. Scotch Plains NJ Eastern                                             New Jersey Region 756
2 Friedman, Neil New York NY Eastern                                             Metropolitan Region                                             576
3 Clark, James Larchmont NY Eastern                                             Southern Region 516
4 Kalina, Jonathan Fair Lawn NJ Eastern                                             New Jersey Region 384
5 Harrington, Bill New York NY Eastern                                             Metropolitan Region                                             354
6 Satterlee, Richard Thomas                                             Bronx NY Eastern                                             Metropolitan Region                                             259
7 Miyake, Junji Cliffside Park NJ Eastern                                             New Jersey Region 258
8 Okuda, Tatsumi Tenafly NJ Eastern                                             New Jersey Region 198
9 Serebro, Boris White Plains NY Eastern                                             Southern Region 192
10 Olds, Mason Garden City NY Eastern                                             Long Island Region 192
11 Lurie, Jonathan New York NY Eastern                                             Metropolitan Region                                             165
12 White, Ken Elma NY Eastern                                             Western Region 164
13 Hakanson, John East Northport NY Eastern                                             Long Island Region 159
14 Hoffman, Andrew Holmdel NJ Eastern                                             New Jersey Region 132
15 Irom, Bruce Roslyn NY Eastern                                             Long Island Region 126
16 Difabio, Joseph J. Troy NY Eastern                                             Northern Region 126
17 Asher, Jordy Endicott NY Eastern                                             Western Region 104
18 Smith, Theodore Croton Falls NY Eastern                                             Southern Region 96
19 Miller, Grant L. Guilderland NY Eastern                                             Northern Region 96
20 Spano, Joseph Oak Ridge NJ Eastern                                             New Jersey Region 96
21 marshall, william New York NY Eastern                                             Metropolitan Region                                             95
22 Coglietta, Fred F. Saint James NY Eastern                                             Long Island Region 88
23 Boutillette, Michael J. Somerset NJ Eastern                                             New Jersey Region 84
24 Goetz, Philip Brooklyn NY Eastern                                             Metropolitan Region                                             84
25 Yonkers, Paul J Sea Cliff NY Eastern                                             Long Island Region 68
26 Bellcourt, Scott L. Niskayuna NY Eastern                                             Northern Region 64
27 Smith, David Cresskill NJ Eastern                                             New Jersey Region 64
28 Sherlock, John G. Laurence Harbor                                             NJ Eastern                                             New Jersey Region 44
29 L'allier, Jean Flushing NY Eastern                                             Metropolitan Region                                             13
30 Varela, Alejandro Jamaica NY Eastern                                             Metropolitan Region                                             6
31 Greenblatt, Joel Sands Point NY Eastern                                             Long Island Region 4
32 Rakoczy, Roman Clifton Park NY Eastern                                             Northern Region 4
33 Barest, Warren S. White Plains NY Eastern                                             Southern Region 4
34 Gash, Gary M. White Plains NY Eastern                                             Southern Region 4
35 Heath, Timothy New York NY Eastern                                             Metropolitan Region                                             4
36 Appel, Jeffrey New York NY Eastern                                             Metropolitan Region                                             2
37 Gribbin, Bill Manhasset NY Eastern                                             Long Island Region 2
38 Delman, Robert Old Westbury NY Eastern                                             Long Island Region 2
39 Reiley, Jorge A. Manorville NY Eastern                                             Long Island Region 2
40 Soltan, Yasser Ahmed Brooklyn NY Eastern                                             Metropolitan Region                                             2
41 Hesky, Haim Great Neck NY Eastern                                             Long Island Region 2
42 Ackley, Frank Wainscott NY Eastern                                             Long Island Region 1
43 Anton, David Old Bethpage NY Eastern                                             Long Island Region 1
44 Swenson, Christopher B Montclair NJ Eastern                                             New Jersey Region 1
45 Clooney, Jim oyster bay cove NY Eastern                                             Long Island Region 1
46 Weiss, Andrew G. Port Chester NY Eastern                                             Southern Region 1
47 Sedlacek, Paul L. Rockaway NJ Eastern                                             New Jersey Region 1
48 Volpe, John L. Nutley NJ Eastern                                             New Jersey Region 1
49 Mejia, Robert J. Mahwah NJ Eastern                                             New Jersey Region 1
50 Hinshaw, John Levittown NY Eastern                                             Long Island Region 1
51 Gigante, Joseph West Islip NY Eastern                                             Long Island Region 1

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Rank Name City State Section District Points
1 Rodgers, Scott D. Scotch Plains NJ Eastern                                             New Jersey Region 756
2 Friedman, Neil New York NY Eastern                                             Metropolitan Region                                             576
3 Clark, James Larchmont NY Eastern                                             Southern Region 516
4 Kalina, Jonathan Fair Lawn NJ Eastern                                             New Jersey Region 384
5 Harrington, Bill New York NY Eastern                                             Metropolitan Region                                             354
6 Satterlee, Richard Thomas                                             Bronx NY Eastern                                             Metropolitan Region                                             259
7 Miyake, Junji Cliffside Park NJ Eastern                                             New Jersey Region 258
8 Okuda, Tatsumi Tenafly NJ Eastern                                             New Jersey Region 198
9 Serebro, Boris White Plains NY Eastern                                             Southern Region 192
10 Olds, Mason Garden City NY Eastern                                             Long Island Region 192
11 Lurie, Jonathan New York NY Eastern                                             Metropolitan Region                                             165
12 White, Ken Elma NY Eastern                                             Western Region 164
13 Hakanson, John East Northport NY Eastern                                             Long Island Region 159
14 Hoffman, Andrew Holmdel NJ Eastern                                             New Jersey Region 132
15 Irom, Bruce Roslyn NY Eastern                                             Long Island Region 126
16 Difabio, Joseph J. Troy NY Eastern                                             Northern Region 126
17 Asher, Jordy Endicott NY Eastern                                             Western Region 104
18 Smith, Theodore Croton Falls NY Eastern                                             Southern Region 96
19 Miller, Grant L. Guilderland NY Eastern                                             Northern Region 96
20 Spano, Joseph Oak Ridge NJ Eastern                                             New Jersey Region 96
21 marshall, william New York NY Eastern                                             Metropolitan Region                                             95
22 Coglietta, Fred F. Saint James NY Eastern                                             Long Island Region 88
23 Boutillette, Michael J. Somerset NJ Eastern                                             New Jersey Region 84
24 Goetz, Philip Brooklyn NY Eastern                                             Metropolitan Region                                             84
25 Yonkers, Paul J Sea Cliff NY Eastern                                             Long Island Region 68
26 Bellcourt, Scott L. Niskayuna NY Eastern                                             Northern Region 64
27 Smith, David Cresskill NJ Eastern                                             New Jersey Region 64
28 Sherlock, John G. Laurence Harbor                                             NJ Eastern                                             New Jersey Region 44
29 L'allier, Jean Flushing NY Eastern                                             Metropolitan Region                                             13
30 Varela, Alejandro Jamaica NY Eastern                                             Metropolitan Region                                             6
31 Greenblatt, Joel Sands Point NY Eastern                                             Long Island Region 4
32 Rakoczy, Roman Clifton Park NY Eastern                                             Northern Region 4
33 Barest, Warren S. White Plains NY Eastern                                             Southern Region 4
34 Gash, Gary M. White Plains NY Eastern                                             Southern Region 4
35 Heath, Timothy New York NY Eastern                                             Metropolitan Region                                             4
36 Appel, Jeffrey New York NY Eastern                                             Metropolitan Region                                             2
37 Gribbin, Bill Manhasset NY Eastern                                             Long Island Region 2
38 Delman, Robert Old Westbury NY Eastern                                             Long Island Region 2
39 Reiley, Jorge A. Manorville NY Eastern                                             Long Island Region 2
40 Soltan, Yasser Ahmed Brooklyn NY Eastern                                             Metropolitan Region                                             2
41 Hesky, Haim Great Neck NY Eastern                                             Long Island Region 2
42 Ackley, Frank Wainscott NY Eastern                                             Long Island Region 1
43 Anton, David Old Bethpage NY Eastern                                             Long Island Region 1
44 Swenson, Christopher B Montclair NJ Eastern                                             New Jersey Region 1
45 Clooney, Jim oyster bay cove NY Eastern                                             Long Island Region 1
46 Weiss, Andrew G. Port Chester NY Eastern                                             Southern Region 1
47 Sedlacek, Paul L. Rockaway NJ Eastern                                             New Jersey Region 1
48 Volpe, John L. Nutley NJ Eastern                                             New Jersey Region 1
49 Mejia, Robert J. Mahwah NJ Eastern                                             New Jersey Region 1
50 Hinshaw, John Levittown NY Eastern                                             Long Island Region 1
51 Gigante, Joseph West Islip NY Eastern                                             Long Island Region 1

1. Kim Sears is the only serious girlfriend Andy has had. They met at the US Open in 2005.

2. As a boy, Andy spent his pocket money on Bond films – his favourite was Goldfinger. He was thrilled when he received a call from Sir Sean Connery during Wimbledon 2005 to wish him luck.

3. He once played tennis with David Cameron in the State Dining Room at 10 Downing Street during a reception. He admitted to being scared that he would break something but luckily they both managed to avoid hitting the chandeliers.

4. The 26-year-old appeared in a special edition of the BBC comedy show Outnumbered for Sports Relief where he showed his sense of humour. He was asked by the young character Karen what he did. When he replied, "I play tennis", an underwhelmed Karen replied, "But what do you do for a job?".

5. He once loaded so many Milky Way cake bars into his supermarket trolley that the lady at the checkout said, "Do you think these are on special offer or something?" Kim replied, "No, he just likes them a lot."

6. As Andy was born with a bipartite patella, where the kneecap bone fails to fuse together, he has required painkilling injections and pills to get him on court.

7. Andy sold his red Ferrari as he felt like an idiot in it. "I'm quite a conservative driver, but when I was driving that, I would get beeped just for getting out of the car," he said.

8. When Andy won the junior title at the 2004 US Open he dedicated his victory to the victims of a terrorist attack on a school in Beslan in Russia that year, as well as to the victims of the 1996 shooting at Dunblane primary school (where he and his brother were pupils). "I found it hard to watch those children coming out of the Russian school," he said. "I watched it on television and felt so much sorrow for them."

9. When Andy started playing on the tour, he often felt lonely and isolated. "I love company, I love being around a lot of people," he has said.

10. If you listen to the album produced by the world's leading doubles team, American twins Bob and Mike Bryan, you will hear Andy rapping about signing autographs. "During Wimbledon it gets really crazy. My hand cramps up and my mind gets hazy. I sign and I sign but the line doesn't end. Wake me up and let's do it tomorrow. Autograph."

11. Though the only book Andy ever read all the way through was a wrestler's autobiography, he has been acquainted with Shakespeare – he read some to Kim to help her learn her lines for a stage production.

12. As a young boy, Andy and his family would listen to cassettes of Billy Connolly's stand-up routines as they drove to tournaments. He says that Connolly taught him to swear.

13. Andy sometimes has been known to eat four Feast ice-creams a day (although he is now extremely strict when it comes to his diet). "I can eat ice-cream from midday until I go to bed," he once said.

14. Andy believes there is "a fear of emotion in tennis". "It wouldn't make me feel good to bottle up my emotions," he once said. "Saying nothing and standing there makes me feel flat. If someone in the crowd boos, everyone looks at them as if to ask, 'What the hell are you doing?'"

15. He recently bought a hotel, Cromlix House in Dunblane, where his brother Jamie got married.

16. His obsession with go-karting is such that he has his own racing shoes and helmet which has "The Stig" written on the back.

17. The tennis champion almost missed the 2004 BBC Sports Personality of the Year show, where he was given an award for young sportsman of the year, after he inadvertently locked himself in a hotel bathroom.

18. As tennis is a "diagonal sport", Murray's body is not totally in balance; he has a weaker left shoulder, because it never gets to work as hard as the right, and his left leg is a little stronger than his right.

19. Andy's middle name is Barron, which translates from Old English as "young warrior".

20. When Andy was seven, he spent £8 at a local market on getting the Andre Agassi ‘hot lava’ look in tribute to his idol — Andy bought some cut-off denim shorts, neon pink and purple cycling shorts, and a baseball cap with a long blond ponytail clipped to the back.

source: hellomagazine.com

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WIMBLEDON, England — Andy Murray's long-awaited Wimbledon victory against Novak Djokovic could signal a tilting of an entrenched dynamic.




Murray, though it took him a while to break through, has become a significant force in the chase for majors.




Playing with a calm sometimes lacking in previous campaigns, No. 2 Murray knocked off top-ranked Djokovic 6-4, 7-5, 6-4 on a brilliantly sunny afternoon — thus ending a cloud of anxiety that has hung over Britain.




Scotland's Murray is the first British man to win Wimbledon in 77 years, since Fred Perry won the last of three in a row in 1936.




"I still can't believe it," Murray said a couple of hours after sending the Kingdom into collective delirium. "Can't get my head around that."




Djokovic remains No. 1 in the rankings. It could be said, however, that at this moment Murray is at the top of the game.

The two 26-year-olds, born a week apart, have upped the physical stakes with Rafael Nadal and are threatening to separate themselves from Roger Federer, who turns 32 in August and has dropped to No. 5, his lowest ranking in a decade.

You're looking at a bit of the changing of the guard," John McEnroe said Sunday. "Roger is one of the greatest, if not the greatest ever, but it's going to be harder for him to hang with these guys in long matches now. And Andy's really come into his own."

One year after a crushing defeat to Federer in the Wimbledon final, Murray returned to the All England Club lawns to capture his second Grand Slam title. He broke through in September at the U.S. Open, where he beat Serbia's Djokovic in a rousing five sets.

Murray, who also won the 2012 Olympic gold medal at Wimbledon, ran his unbeaten string on grass to 18-0 since.

"I understand how much everyone wanted to see a British winner at Wimbledon so I hope you enjoyed it," Murray told the crowd at Centre Court, where the year before he broke down into tears in his on-court interview. "I tried my best."

Grueling groundstroke rallies

Meeting in their third major final in less than a year, the world's top two players and defensive standouts exchanged many grueling groundstroke rallies. A few went 30 shots or more.

Murray was quicker around the court and steadier in the clutch, taking advantage of Djokovic's lackluster serving and bouts of error-prone play.

"The bottom line is that he was a better player in decisive moments," said Djokovic, the 2011 Wimbledon winner. "He was all over the court."

Murray had a better ratio of winners (36-31) and unforced errors (21-40) than Djokovic, and also smacked more aces (9-4). But the biggest difference was his ability to put return after return in play — 77% in all.

"Even though when I was putting my first serves in he was always getting them back in the court and making me play an extra shot," Djokovic said. "That's why he won this tournament."

Murray, too, seemed energized by the nearly 15,000 screaming fans on sold-out Centre Court and thousands more watching the big screen from the grounds.

With them at his back, he recovered from a break down in the last two sets and shook off the loss of three match points when he was serving for the match at 40-0.

"At the end, mentally, that last game will be the toughest game I'll play in my entire career, ever," Murray said.

When Djokovic netted a backhand, Murray's racket and cap went flying as he pumped two fists at his box.

Soon he was there himself, hugging his coach of the past 18 months, Ivan Lendl, his girlfriend Kim Sears, his father Bill and other members of his team and family.

The Dunblane native nearly forgot the person most responsible for putting a racket in his hand and shaping his game before reversing course to give her an embrace — his mother Judy, Britain's Fed Cup captain and a former top player in her native Scotland.

Murray credited hard work and resolve for his win — making the incremental improvements from which champions are constructed.

"I think I persevered," he said. "That's really been it, the story of my career probably."

He also learned from his losses, particularly last year's four-set defeat to Federer.

"I think it was a turning point in some ways," Judy Murray said. "He had chances in the final last year and let it get away. I think every time you have a really tough loss, a loss that really hurts you, you learn a lot from it about how to handle the occasions better going forward."

Eight-time Grand Slam champion Lendl, who like Murray lost his first four major finals, provided the voice and mind-set to help him turn the corner.

"I think he believed in me when a lot of people didn't," Murray said of Lendl, who reached two Wimbledon finals but never left with the trophy. "He would have loved to have won here, but it's the next best thing."

Murray, who skipped the French Open with a bad back, ran his record in Grand Slam finals to 2-5. He lost to Djokovic in January in the Australian Open final. Djokovic fell to 6-5.

Together, they have contested four major finals and are tied 2-2, with Djokovic beating the Scot two of the last three years in Melbourne and Murray winning here and in September in New York.

Djokovic leads their head-to-head 11-8, but meetings in the latter stages of Slams seem likely in their budding rivalry.

"I could see them playing another four times over the next three years," ESPN's Brad Gilbert said.

Hardcourt summer ahead

With the season shifting to North American hardcourts, Murray and Djokovic won't slow down. Both defensive whizzes excel on cement.

If Nadal's knee is not a problem, it sets up a tantalizing summer between the trio that will culminate at the year's final Grand Slam in New York.

The fourth-ranked Spaniard tore up the tour after returning from a seven-month absence in February, winning seven titles and a record eighth French Open. But the 27-year-old limped out of Wimbledon's first round with his chronic knee issues again flaring up.

Federer, the all-time leader with 17 majors, appears to be in slow decline. He owns one win against a top-10 player in 2013 and has captured only one small title at Halle, Germany, last month on grass.

Perhaps to get more match play, the Swiss is competing in two minor claycourt events in Europe as he prepares for the summer swing.

"It's definitely a three-horse race for the year-end No. 1, but everything depends on how Rafa's knee is," Gilbert said. "Then we get the hardcourt season that we want."


Source: USA Today

 WIMBLEDON, England -- It wasn't until late Friday afternoon that the secret aim of this year's Wimbledon became clear. The fortnight of falls, all those buckling knees and quivering ankles, were but little alerts meant for Novak Djokovic: Tennis' grand dame was coming after him. 

No player's body, of course, has proven more elastic, more inhumanly resilient while strapped onto the rack known as today's men's tennis, and Djokovic slid through his first five matches largely unscathed. Now she'd finally had enough. There Djokovic was, late in the third set of an epic semifinal, pinned behind the baseline by Juan Martin Del Potro's lasered cannonade -- racing back-and-forth, back-and-forth, legs like pipe-cleaners splayed ever wider with each exchange. Finally he groaned. He crashed. He stood up slow. Next rally, again: Seven strokes, seven more clicks of the rack that now pushed spectating into the surreal. You actually thought: Stop, please. Del Potro's about to split the man in two. 

And yet, after Djokovic literally held it together, after he survived the valiant Argentine and the longest semi in Wimbledon history -- after a match, indeed, that any other Grand Slam would've taken as a perfect finish, the vicious old dame wasn't done. If Djokovic wants to win his second title at the All-England Club, all he need do is withstand a surging, stronger Andy Murray, a Centre Court cauldron brewing with hostility, a nation of 60 million intent on pushing their man over the line at last. 

"It's going to be very loud," said Djokovic, who at 26 is just seven days younger than his opponent. "But I'm ready to go all the way. As long as it takes for me to play, to give it all, I'm ready to go out on the court and give everything I have." 

Murray, of course, beat Djokovic in a five-set marathon to win his first -- and only -- Grand Slam title last fall at the U.S. Open. All of his breakthroughs -- last year's run to the final here, his resulting tears, his gold-medal win at the London Olympics -- seem sure to ease anxiety over his becoming the first British man in 77 years to lift the trophy. But the last time these two men met on such a stage, at the 2013 Australian Open final, Murray battled Djokovic evenly until the second set tiebreak, when a rogue feather -- of all things -- drifted into view and derailed his concentration. He stopped play to move it, and went on to lose in four. Maybe that's just a coincidence. 

"He's improved a lot in his offensive tennis," said Djokovic's coach Marian Vadja of Murray today. "He improved on serve, he improved on his forehand. He's more stable. He's mentally strong, as he never has been before. I have to say he's very ready, too." 

And maybe it's not. "I think I'll be probably in a better place mentally," Murray said Friday of his state compared to a year ago. "I would hope I would be a little bit calmer going into Sunday. But you don't know. You don't decide that. I might wake up Sunday and be unbelievably nervous, more nervous that I ever have been before. But I wouldn't expect to be." 

That Murray himself can even concede that possibility, though, tells just how heavy the weight must be. He may call the U.S. Open his favorite Slam, but to Brits his win there was somehow minor, the necessary means to a glorious end. No other tennis championship really matters. "With Wimbledon, obviously, you double it," said former Brit No. 1 John Lloyd of the difference in impact. "Because unfortunately in Britain tennis is not that popular a sport until Wimbledon happens. Then a lot of audience is housewives, but after Wimbledon finishes it's, like, 'Let's wait 'til next June.' They don't even look at the rest of the tournaments." 

But in truth, they're not too far wrong. Wimbledon may be played on archaic grass and can be aggressively out of touch with modernity, but its Championships -- at least on the men's side -- consistently provides the game with its most discerning winnowing of talent, its truest test of greatness. Djokovic won his first major in Australia in 2008 and has since won three more there. He came off the canvas to stun the great Roger Federer en route to winning in New York in 2011. None of them can compare. 

"I visualized holding this trophy when I was only six, seven years old," Djokovic says of his four-set win over Rafael Nadal. "When I won it back in 2011 it was definitely the highlight of my career -- and it still is." 

But Wimbledon does more than unveil living history. Today marks the third meeting between Djokovic and Murray in a Grand Slam final in the last year -- but the first as No. 1 and No. 2. There's a reason: Wimbledon reveals the game as much as players; it showcases the state of the art. Just as the 1980 final between John McEnroe and Bjorn Borg -- and the 2008 final between Federer and Rafael Nadal -- remains that era's ultimate expression, Sunday's showdown will provide the clearest picture of today's game: The fitness and speed, the near-extinction of serve-volley, the string technology that has revolutionized the transition from defense-to-offense, the vital endurance that leaves previous generations in awe. 

"What we're seeing is two guys who have taken movement and physicality to a different level," said commentator Patrick McEnroe, the head of player development for the USTA. "They don't have the dynamic shot-making ability of Federer. They don't have that easy-to-see intensity of Nadal. They bring more predictability, but they do it so well; they're so efficient. 

"Djokovic brings almost perfect tennis skills. Murray's not as great a mover, but he's willed himself -- just busted it so hard -- to get to where he is. He's stronger physically, and his tennis skills are more varied. There are subtle differences, and that should be the defining factor on grass. I like Murray in this match, because he has a bit more versatility. Djokovic is a better ball-striker. Overall they're pretty similar." 

That fact alone, of course, militates against the kind of rapturous reviews that followed Federer-Nadal matches. The criticism of this new era is that it's more assaultive than artistic, more exhausting than exquisite, with only the current baseliner offense capable of consistent success. Federer and Nadal -- grace and guts, ice and fire -- made it easy for even the casual fan to access their genius, "because they were doing stuff differently than the prior generation," says former U.S. top ten Todd Martin. "These guys are just doing it better." 

Indeed, just as the Fed-Rafa rivalry seemed to echo McEnroe-Borg, carries more than a whiff of the mid-80s rise of Ivan Lendl and Mats Wilander, players whose matches inspired more respect than rapture. "No, it's not as appealing." Wilander said. "Contrast of styles is always going to be more appealing than the level of play." 

That's why, too, this Wimbledon's legacy might prove even more lasting. The excitement caused by 22-year-old Pole Jerzy Janowicz was hardly dampened by his four-set loss to Murray in the semis; his 140 m.p.h. serve, quickness, soft hands and pure feistiness ("I don't care," Janowicz said about Murray's complaints over the roof being closed mid-match. "What I can do? I care about myself. I don't care if he was angry or not.") felt like a one-man challenge to today's dominant pair. 

"When he starts to put it all together, to try and actually win matches, as much as points? He's one who can break into those guys," Wilander said of Janowicz. "He's the next No. 1 in the world. But these two are going to be around a while. They're both so dedicated to fitness and strength and flexibility and eating and coaching; they're taking it to the next level in all of what they're doing. And they're going to push each other. They need each to stay ahead of the rest, so they can end up playing in every Grand Slam final -- apart from the French Open -- every year for the next four years." 

But why get ahead of ourselves? Asked to sum up his Wimbledon in one word, Janowicz said, "Fun." That's not how British fans will regard today's torment, not until -- maybe -- it's all over. And it's certainly not how Murray and Djokovic would describe what they face in each other today. For tennis fans, though, the prospect of pomp, excellence and national heartache loosed together upon Centre Court is irresistible. Get the rack ready. Fun, indeed. 


Read More: sports illustrated



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Jim Clooney, Principal Advisor for Total Solutions Real Estate and an avid tennis fan, recounts his experiences with the sport and how they prepared him for a career in sales and finance.

My love of tennis really took off in high school. As a result of playing tennis competitively on the school team, I was able to get a four-year tennis scholarship to St. John’s University, an event that would help shape my career and life in general. While attending St. John’s, I was a member of the tennis team for four years and later became team captain, and I also participated in a number of extracurricular activities related to tennis. These experiences were extremely positive, endowing me with the teamwork and leadership skills, drive, and self-possession that would later serve me well in my career.

I have maintained my passion for the sport over the years. I am currently a ranked player in the U.S. Tennis Association’s senior division, and I do not intend to stop playing anytime soon. Additionally, I continue to participate in fundraisers for the St. John’s University tennis team. I cannot imagine how my life would have turned out without tennis, and I have no desire to live without it.

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My dedication to tennis has helped me achieve a National Senior ranking by the United States Tennis Association. There are a number of steps you can take to improve your tennis game.

1. Improving your groundstroke can greatly enhance your overall performance. Practice your groundstroke with a partner at least twice a week. Take lessons from a tennis pro at least once a month if possible.

2. Work to maintain your focus during a match. Instead of chastising yourself for making a bad shot, concentrate on what you must do to defeat your opponent.

3. Improve your fitness level. Losing a few extra pounds can make a huge difference in your stamina and lead to better performance.

4. Develop your serving technique. Serving is one aspect of your game you can work on alone as well as with a partner. Attempt to get to the point where you can serve effectively without having to think about your technique.




Written by Jim Clooney

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