Favorite/Best MS 1000s

[Moxie]

Since it has come up on a recent thread, I thought I'd give this question a poll: Which are your favorite 1000s? You can vote for most prestigious, or any other reasons, which we can discuss. I'll try to make it a multiple-choice poll.

 

[Front242]

Had a post written and then voted without posting so I have to now type it again. Zzzzz. Anyway, Cincy would be my favourite as it's one of the fastest courts left and we don't really have many fast ones anymore at all. It's a far cry from Miami, for example. As clay tournaments go Monte Carlo is one I really like for the sheer beauty of the venue with such gorgeous coastal surroundings. I like the unpredictability of Paris as we've had some surprise winners there and, yes, I'd say move it to Feb. The main reason to move it besides fatigue issues late in the season is players have ample WTF prep with Basel imo.

Indian Wells is also nice to see how players' levels are post AO and of course, it's the first Masters 1000 of the year unless they decide to move the Paris masters so that adds extra spice to the mix.

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

Rome has to be one of my favourite Master's tournament.I have attended it many times over the year's and the officials have done a wonderful job to upgrade the facilities.

 

[Moxie]

^ Well, I never thought the first one mentioned would be Cincy, but I take your love of the fast courts. (As is Paris, I think.) Surely, Cincinnati is the odd-city out on the list as far as top drawer towns for a top-drawer MS. I wonder how they got it?

I added the moving Paris notion because it has been talked about…though I don't know where they are on that. I'm in favor, too.

 

[Front242]

Well they've have practically killed the speed of the courts in so many venues over the years that basically (not talking just Masters events here) you have Dubai, Cincy and Newport as the fastest courts left and the rest have been noticeably slowed down and I don't like it at all. Cincy is particularly exciting for shotmaking as many more winners are hit with defensive retrievals much harder to make. The way tennis should be imo.

 

[Moxie]

^ The eternal debate. And I suppose you bemoan the lost of carpet venues. I get why people want some courts to be fast, to favor the first-strike, but why do you say it's the "way tennis should be?" Clay would never be like that, and it has always been a surface that tennis was played on. I get the variation, but I don't understand the preference for it only being one way.

 

[Front242]

^ The eternal debate. And I suppose you bemoan the lost of carpet venues. I get why people want some courts to be fast, to favor the first-strike, but why do you say it's the "way tennis should be?" Clay would never be like that, and it has always been a surface that tennis was played on. I get the variation, but I don't understand the preference for it only being one way.

Well, besides clay obviously. I'm talking the grass (besides Newport) and hardcourt speeds being killed. Clay is the one surface that is meant to be slower. It wasn't one-way back more than a decade ago but it pretty much is now actually. You still had slow clay years ago and faster grass and hardcourt surfaces. Now they've all been slowed down to the point that there's very little difference save for Cincy, Newport and Dubai and a handful of others. I don't care how fit and fast you are, you wouldn't be able to consistently run down shot after shot in rallies if they speeded them back up a bit. You'd still have rallies because of slicing and spin for variation but not so many long yawn fests either like Simon v Monfils AO '2013. A lot of the top players and fans are visibly aggravated that shots that would've been winners a decade ago are simply run down.

I'd love to see more top players play Newport but it doesn't fit in with the rest of the year's schedule and most wouldn't travel there to play it anyway unless it was made a 500 or 1000 mandatory tournament. Because it's a fast surface even at his age now, Hewitt has had good results there.

Look at this for an example of slowwwwwwwwwwww. Horrific tennis. It gets faster towards the end but I guarantee if those courts were faster that would not have taken 71 shots. It was like a practice session much of that rally.

[video=youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=Zk_rhsDxUFs[/video]

 

[Murat Baslamisli]

Well, I have been to every Toronto Masters since 2000 (meaning every other year, since they alternate with Montreal) so, it is the home town Masters and a big favorite, but IW is right up there for me, because it is kind of like the beginning of the nuts and bolts part of the season...you know, like, the first slam is over, whatever happened has happened, now let's see who is really serious about the season.

 

[shawnbm]

Like Murat, Miami is my hometown favorite and the winners' list is stock full of hall of famers. It was and still is called the "fifth major".

 

[Moxie]

^ OK, that was boring, and I couldn't watch all of it. Simon even makes Monfils look tedious. There are better examples of exciting matches on slow hards, for sure.

I always feel bad about Newport, as it's such a lovely venue and nice grass, but it just doesn't seem to fit into the schedule for the top guys. Perhaps with the added week in between RG and Wimbledon, if Newport got moved to before Wimbledon, and added some sweet money, perhaps a few could be enticed across the pond to play there. It's tricky, though, with Wimbledon pending, and crossing the time-zones.

 

[Front242]

Yeah I tried watching it twice and couldn't. Painful viewing. Of course there are examples of good rallies too, great ones, but I still think it'd be better a bit faster than it is. Shame about Newport alright seeing as it's a hall of fame tournament but gets so little attention.

 

[Moxie]

Like Murat, Miami is my hometown favorite and the winners' list is stock full of hall of famers. It was and still is called the "fifth major".

Which IW is trying to co-opt. I love Miami, and I think it has a great argument for itself for being the "Latin-Slam," as well…i.e., the most accessible big tournament for the Latin American fans, who have a lot of players to follow. Tennis is a very 'Spanish-speaking' sport, at the top levels, and Miami brings the Spanish-speaking fans and players together.

It's a combo-event with the women, as is IW, and Madrid and Rome. They're all vying for top-status. I will say, I do give the combo-evens bonus points, at least in terms of their ambition.

 

[Murat Baslamisli]

^Roger's Cup is a combo event too...in different cities.

 

[britbox]

I think Rome and Miami were historically the most prestigious but my personal favourite these days is Indian Wells.

 

[tennisville]

My favourate masters 1000 events are Rome Monte Carlo and Paris.

The first 2 because I just love clay and these 2 have a lot of prestige and the third because I love indoor tennis and it always manages to surprise us . Indoor tennis also provides us with lots of great tennis which I have yet to see in say Miami these 2 weeks

Actually the quality of tennis in Miami is the worst of the bunch in my eyes because the courts are just too slow and sometimes even act slower than red clay

 

[Moxie]

^Roger's Cup is a combo event too...in different cities.

I knew one of my Canadian friends would complain about that. It's two different cities and two different weeks. I love the symbiotic relationship that the Montreal/Toronto events have, which is completely unique. But it's not the same as having men and women at the same event and at the same time. That's what raises some events to argue for a "Fifth Slam" status.

 

[tented]

I like IW because it's the beginning of the tennis season, so the players tend to be rested and fit.

MC is another favorite because it's the beginning of the clay season, and the venue is breathtakingly beautiful.

As for the Paris Masters, I don't think it should be moved. What makes it most interesting is its position in the calendar -- the last Masters, at the end of the regular season. That's precisely why it has been such a volatile tournament, with early exits and multiple unexpected winners.

 

[Moxie]

^ The first two are easy to agree with, and I do. The point about Paris is very well-made. It makes it a hard win, I guess…look how long it took Roger to win it, and he's the best there is indoors. And I guess something has to be last.

 

[Front242]

My favourate masters 1000 events are Rome Monte Carlo and Paris.

The first 2 because I just love clay and these 2 have a lot of prestige and the third because I love indoor tennis and it always manages to surprise us . Indoor tennis also provides us with lots of great tennis which I have yet to see in say Miami these 2 weeks

Actually the quality of tennis in Miami is the worst of the bunch in my eyes because the courts are just too slow and sometimes even act slower than red clay

Agree, the courts in Miami are far too slow and a good comparison to clay.

 

[nehmeth]

For me it's Monte Carlo, then Rome.

If there is one place on earth I would like to go to watch a tennis match, it would be Monte Carlo. To be in the stands watching the tennis and still being able to take in the views of the sea - that's incredible. The history of the city itself, the movies that were made there, the event, the atmosphere. Having watched Muster, Bruegera, Kuerten, Borg, Vilas, Nadal play in that setting - it's my favorite by far.

Then there is Rome. The event used to be the Italian Open. I remember when I was very young; it was 1976. Andriano Panatta was playing Guillermo Vilas in the final. Vilas was a brute, and on clay, only Borg could push him around. For years, he held the record for the longest winning streak on clay, until Rafa broke it a few years ago.

Here was Italy's son, playing in the final of their championship... and he won. The people chanted "Adriano, Adriano, Adriano" and it reverberated back and forth across the Foro Italico. They wouldn't stop. It sent chills up this little kid's spine. Even to this day, I remember that moment and how it felt.

I also remember in 2011, Nole had beaten Murray in a brutal 3 hour semifinal, and Rafa was waiting to meet him Sunday. There was little belief he'd have something left over for the final, and this was real clay, Rafa's turf. But Nole went out there and beat him 6-4, 6-4. Again, it is a moment I will never forget.

Obviously, I am a fan of clay. And if you don't like Rafa, these two venues may not have held much interest for you in the past decade. Still, there's a history about these tournaments - in tennis, and in my memories, that the other Masters events cannot touch.