The Hopman Privilege

It is so, so good to have tennis back on television - it almost makes you forget how much you love the sport when you don't see it for so long. And for the tennis viewing year to start off with such a tournament as the Hopman Cup... it is truly a privilege, not a chore, to be a blogger then.

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Yesterday we had the first tie of the tournament, France versus Chinese Taipei. France, as one might expect, won the tie - it was a 3-0 whitewash - but Chinese Taipei did not shame themselves. It was the same team as they had last year, and, like last year, I found both of their players very intriguing.

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Let's start with Hsieh Su-Wei, their female player. She is seriously one of the most unusual players to watch, because she plays with two hands off both sides. Seriously, who has a two-handed forehand? I can't think of anyone apart from Seles, and that's going back a while. But that's not to say that Hsieh's game is somehow stunted. Her serve isn't exactly going to rock anyone's world, but one thing I really like is the way she plays at net - she has reactions of steel. She copped a few massive bodyshots from Gilles Simon during the mixed doubles yesterday, and she gave as good as she got. I also really like the way she can just chuck a dropshot into a rally at any given moment... she may not have beaten Alize Cornet yesterday, but she sure made her run - poor Alize, straight off the plane from France, had some thinking to do!

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And Lu Yen-Hsun really gave an excellent account of himself to Gilles Simon, especially in the second set - he is just a lovely player to watch. He had a victory over Andy Murray last year and you can see why: kid's got some serious flair. Simon was just a bit too much for him yesterday, but I think we're definitely going to see Lu come up the rankings a bit more this year. I'm calling top fifty - anyone going to gainsay me?

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But all credit must go to the French team - especially in the mixed doubles, where it was pretty clear they had no idea what they were doing at the beginning, especially Gilles Simon, but they picked it up quick smart. I've always enjoyed watching Alize Cornet play, but despite Simon cracking the top ten, I can't remember ever seeing him play before, and it was a joy. You can see why he posted victories over the three big boys last year - he has a really stylish game. He is really, really quick round the court - he got to some fabulous droppers from Lu Yen-Hsun - and he can crack that ball as well as anyone. I look forward to seeing him play again this week - it was really a pleasure.

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And how 'bout that Andy Murray taking out Rafa in Abu Dhabi? I had my doubts about the whole Big Four thing, but I am seriously coming round. Actually, I'm going to stick to Big Three - I reckon Murray could take Djokovic's spot, and I think the Australian Open is thus going to be very interesting, because Murray has everything to gain (he lost first round last year) whereas Djokovic has everything to lose...

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Today's Results

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Capitala World Tennis Championships (Abu Dhabi)

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Andy Murray def. Rafael Nadal, 6-4 5-7 6-3

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Harry Hopman Cup (Perth)

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France 3, Chinese Taipei 0

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Alize Cornet def. Hsieh Su-Wei, 6-4 6-4

Gilles Simon def. Lu Yen-Hsun, 6-3 7-6 (8-6)

Cornet/Simon def. Hsieh/Lu, 6-4 7-6 (11-9)

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Josh's Tennis Tips

Focus: Forehand

Today's Tip: Following Through and Angling

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When you hit a shot do you hit it as quick as you can? or do follow through and take it slow and calm? Well, you should take it calm and slow: step into the shot, and make the most of it.

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When you hit a shot, you should you angle your shot so you can hit just over the net but not too high. If you are hitting it high and lobbing the ball all the time, you're probably angling your racquet too much. Or you may be coming under the ball too much. To lift the ball, you should follow through as straight as possible.