Bethanie Mattek-Sands comforted by husband Justin (click to enlarge)
I was going to wait until the weekend to post a reflection on week one of Wimbledon 2017, but I had to say something now about Bethanie Mattek-Sands. The #1 ranked doubles player in the world suffered a terrible knee injury during her 2nd round singles match versus Sorana Cirstea. It was agonizing to watch, similar to watching the injury that ended Mary Pierce’s career. I hope it’s not that serious, but it’s clearly an acute knee injury. With her doubles partner Lucie Safarova crying courtside, Bethanie was screaming for somebody to come help her. Cirstea came over to Sands, later saying she’s never seen a knee injury that looked like what she saw.
It took a long time for paramedics to get to Bethanie. The video doesn’t show how long she went on wailing in agony. I can only hope that she can recover from this. She is one of the few players in the game who reaches people beyond the court. She and doubles partner Lucie Safarova, Team Bucie, share so much joy, exuberance and fun with fans on and off the court. Tennis fans can get a pick me up on a low energy day by going to YouTube and watching a Team Bucie hip hop dance routine or just the love and energy in one of their interviews. A lot of players are great. Team Bucie puts a smile on your face and warms your heart. And they’re not just style. They currently hold the US Open, Australian Open and Roland Garros women’s doubles crowns. Had they won Wimbledon this year they would hold all four Majors at the same time. But forget about Grand Slams or even if Bethanie plays any time soon. I just wish her to recovery completely and quickly. Tennis is not an issue right now.
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Fairways and Forehands 