TENNIS.com - Backcourt Articles

Backcourt Buzz: Pretzeling and parenting

Tue, 09 Jun 2009 19:53:19 GMT

By Sarah Thurmond The latest off court happenings in the world of tennis O Captain My Captain Last month the great American humorist Garrison Keillor contributed a column to The New York Times about his trip to the U.K. While the focus

Backcourt Buzz: Tennis is all a-Twitter

Thu, 21 May 2009 20:31:26 GMT

By Sarah Alvanipour Tweeting Tennis Players These days, it seems that everyone and her grandmother is chronicling life’s every moment, no matter how banal, via the social networking site Twitter, and the tennis world is apparently just as taken with

Backcourt Buzz: Another Williams plays tennis

Wed, 20 May 2009 20:58:32 GMT

By Sarah Thurmond The latest off court happenings in the world of tennis Must See Cameo This Thursday, Billie Jean King will be guest starring on the season finale of ABC’s telenovela “Ugly Betty.” As usual, King will be playing

Backcourt Buzz: McEnroe gives courting advice

Wed, 13 May 2009 16:34:41 GMT

Backcourt Buzz: Is Ivanovic sexier than Sharapova?

Tue, 28 Apr 2009 19:54:30 GMT

By Sarah Thurmond The latest off court happenings in the world of tennis Maria Makes Over the New Lion Full disclosure from a celeb gossip junkie Typically on a Tuesday at 7 p.m., I’m catching up on the day’s entertainment

Backcourt Buzz: Roddick to become a married man

Tue, 14 Apr 2009 20:33:43 GMT

By Sarah Thurmond Andy’s Getting Hitched There’s big celebrity news to report (you know it’s big when the holy Hollywood gossip trinity of People, US and the New York Post’s “Page Six” are reporting it) Andy Roddick and his Sports Illustrated swimsuit model

Moving On: Verdasco, Wozniacki spotted together

Fri, 10 Apr 2009 19:40:52 GMT

By Sarah Alvanipour Backcourt Baby News Another first for Ashley Harkleroad, the first professional tennis player to pose for a nude pictorial in Playboy According to online reports, Harkleroad and her coach and fiancé Chuck Adams welcomed their first child,

Backcourt Buzz: MC Ivo, 1970s Guillermo and More

Thu, 09 Apr 2009 13:03:57 GMT

Mail ing It In? Where would Backcourt be without Serena Williams? The queen of verbal blunders and entertaining off court exploits never disappoints when it comes to our coverage of players’ beyond the baseline lives. Editors at London’s Daily Mail

Backcourt Buzz: Playing tennis on cars

Wed, 25 Mar 2009 18:32:04 GMT

By Sarah Thurmond Ron Silver RIP I’m a little late on this but Ron Silver, the acclaimed Tony Award winning actor, died on March 15 at the age of 62. I mention Silver’s passing here because he played the role

Backcourt Buzz: Serena, Spring Break, Simpsons

Tue, 10 Mar 2009 17:55:09 GMT

By Sarah Thurmond The latest off court happenings in the world of tennis Serena Excels At Other Racquet SportsWhile in New York for the Billie Jean King Cup last week, Serena Williams appeared on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. A good moment

Ad-In: Nadal Stars in New Commercial Campaigns

Thu, 26 Feb 2009 21:27:42 GMT

By Sarah Alvanipour The world economy may be in a free fall, but Rafael Nadal’s star continues to rise—and he’s reaping the financial rewards. Last Sunday, the world No. 1 and his uncle and coach, Toni Nadal, were honored

Backcourt Buzz: Sharapova Overload and More

Thu, 19 Feb 2009 17:04:17 GMT

By Sarah Thurmond In a week that’s been dominated by the troubling news of Shahar Peer's exclusion from the Dubai event, here's a roundup of some of the lighter goings on in the world of tennis Make Every Shoe a

Golovin, Hantuchova, Kirilenko in SI swimsuit issue

Wed, 11 Feb 2009 19:27:41 GMT

Sports Illustrated’s swimsuit issue came out this week. Bar Refaeli, Leonardo’s DiCaprio’s girlfriend, garnered the coveted cover spot, but tennis fans will be happy to know the issue features three Sony Ericsson WTA tour players, Tatiana Golovin, Daniela Hantuchova and

Changes at the Top: New partnerships for top pros

Wed, 11 Feb 2009 19:45:02 GMT

By Sarah Alvanipour The start of the tennis season is a bit like the first day back at school after summer vacation. Everyone is trying to get back into the routine while scoping each other out and catching up on

Backcourt Buzz: Hewitt Headed Stateside and More

Thu, 19 Feb 2009 17:02:30 GMT

By Sarah Thurmond Here’s some news you may have missed during the Australian Open... Guitar Hero Tour newcomer Somdev Devvarman, an Indian citizen who resides in Virginia, had a nice start to his new year. In January, he reached his

Gavin Rossdale: On Federer, fatherhood, forehands

Fri, 09 Jan 2009 18:18:28 GMT

By Abigail Lorge The global celebrity of British rocker Gavin Rossdale derives both from his success as a musician and from his marriage to American pop star Gwen Stefani, with whom he has two sons. What’s less known about the

Backcourt Buzz: Martina as Mama Morton and More

Thu, 19 Feb 2009 17:03:23 GMT

by Sarah Thurmond When You’re Good to Martina… You may have heard that Martina Navratilova came in second on the British reality show “I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here ” but what you may not have heard is that

Baby Boom: Tennis players become parents

Tue, 30 Dec 2008 16:46:39 GMT

By Sarah Alvanipour Santa Claus wasn’t the only one making special deliveries this holiday season. The stork has been busy in the elite tennis world, as several top players have recently welcomed new bundles of joy – or announced that

Keeping Busy: Ivanovic a fixture in headlines

Mon, 22 Dec 2008 22:44:48 GMT

By Sarah Alvanipour The tennis off season may be short, but world No. 5 Ana Ivanovic is making the most of her time out. The Serbian beauty, who has been dating Spanish player Fernando Verdasco for about four months, spent

From the 80`s to `08: Where are they now?

Fri, 19 Dec 2008 00:44:57 GMT

By Dan Weil With their contrasting playing styles and divergent personalities, John McEnroe, Ivan Lendl, Chris Evert, and Martina Navratilova were four of the biggest tennis stars of the 1980s. From running through the Australian jungle for reality TV to

Cover Girls: WTA stars in the fashion magazines

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 19:35:46 GMT

By Sarah AlvanipourPhoto by Scott Gries Getty Images Tennis fans who are suffering through the offseason need not look farther than the newsstand for a fix of their favorite court stars. As was the trend this summer, several of the

Down Time: Players enjoy vacations

Fri, 12 Dec 2008 15:07:06 GMT

By Sarah AlvanipourPhoto by Stuart Franklin Getty Images The tennis off season, all one and a half months’ worth, is nearly half over. Here’s a look at how some of the pros have been spending their time away from the courts

Off-season Acquisition: Federer buys new home

Wed, 03 Dec 2008 15:18:56 GMT

By Sarah AlvanipourPhoto by SAEED KHAN AFP Getty Images In 2008, Roger Federer didn’t break Pete Sampras’ record for career Grand Slam titles, but he did pass his idol on the career earnings list. By reaching the semifinals of the Madrid

Drama Queen: Jankovic film opens in Serbia

Fri, 21 Nov 2008 05:16:57 GMT

By Sarah AlvanipourPhoto by MARKO METLAS AFP Getty Images World No. 1 Jelena Jankovic, known for being one of the more emotive players on tour, is now taking her theatrics off court – and to the big screen. Already a

Break Point: Becker's engagement ends

Fri, 05 Dec 2008 05:02:13 GMT

By Sarah AlvanipourPhoto by Alexander Hassenstein Getty Images Following Boris Becker’s love life has become something of a spectator sport in Germany. The tennis legend, now a pop culture icon in his homeland, has never shied away from his ladies’ man