Nadal packs the stadium, Tiafoe delights the press at Rogers Cup

The Grandstand is in Toronto. Or to be more precise, I am in Toronto for The Grandstand. I arrived yesterday afternoon, having paid the expected but no less horrific toll I like to call “Toronto traffic hell.” If you’ve never been to Canada’s largest city, I highly recommend it. Lovely people, a thriving multi-ethnic culture, excellent nosh, extra super-duper fun escape rooms–just don’t bring your car.

Each time I cover an event live I’m reminded of a few steadfast truths, the first and most important of which is that I am a complete tennis dork. There are two kinds of journalists who inhabit tournament media rooms (three if you count the tennis dork):

1. The seasoned veteran. They are at tournaments week in and week out and rarely see the need to venture from the media room to a court. They do their job and move along to the next event. On first glance, one might be tempted to assume that they don’t really like tennis that much. But every one of them has a story about the 2008 Wimbledon final. They’ll talk about being squeezed in next to each other, watching from the players’ tunnel. And they speak in the hushed tone of reverence that’s impossible to mistake for anything but sheer admiration.
2. The general sports journalist. These are the reporters who cover the sports column for the local publication. And make no mistake, our sport NEEDS them. Tennis has become far too much of a niche sport for my liking. They are also good because they supply MUCH entertainment in  press conferences. On Wednesday night, a “General” asked Novak Djokovic a question that went something like, “Novak, you know that thing you do where you hit the ball and it goes WAY HIGH up in the air? I mean, do you do that on purpose, like for a strategy???” Djokovic, to his credit, did NOT say, “Yup. The chair umpire gives me extra points if I can do a cartwheel before the ball lands……” He was very patient.
3. The tennis dork. That’s me. As in VERY not sophisticated–I still get excited at the prospect of a great match–I LOVE tennis. I want to watch every match live. Well, okay. I might pass on Dominic Thiem vs. Fabio Fognini on a hard court. But otherwise? I’m there, cheering great shots in my head.

Other truths (not necessarily listed in order of importance):

1. Toddlers are not particularly conscientious fans and respond poorly to being shushed and having their dad’s hand cover their loudly squawking mouth.
2. Rafael Nadal can sell out a stadium, regardless of the round and regardless of his opponent. It’s pretty impressive.
3. Frances Tiafoe is the new media darling. He’s both funny and engaging. When he concluded his presser on Wednesday evening, I heard more than one reporter say, “I wish he had kept going! He’s great!” Impressing a bunch of journalists is no easy feat, I can tell you that.

Stay tuned for my next installment, which I am tempted to call, “I cannot believe Novak Djokovic just lost to Stefanos Tsitsipas.” I’ll check back with everyone soon!