To allez or not to allez...

I've been away for the weekend in beautiful Normandy (except the weather was not good!) so I caught up with the Roland Garros action via Eurosport today. What struck me most was the collapse of Justine Henin's game in her match with Sam Stosur: a downfall of Murray-like proportions. Which is unusual because she has much greater grit and will-to-win than the wearisome Scottish player.

What seemed to finish Henin off was her war-cry of "Allez..." when leading 4-3 and 0-15 against Stosur's serve in the deciding set, following Stosur's mis-hit backhand beyond the base-line. She had already used the exhortation twice in the set after previous errors by her opponent. Sam gave her a look of steely Aussie disdain at what she seemed to consider unsporting verbal gestures on Justine's part and proceeded to dismantle Henin's lead to take the set and match 6-4.

Now it's difficult to say how much impetus this apparent gaffe gave Stosur and whether Henin felt psychologically demeaned by the Oz ace's reaction. But I bet Carlos Rodriguez had a few words to say as his protégé went tumbling out and that 'Allez' was not one of them.

A wet day in Paris...

What a wet and windy day in Paris. Some would say typical weather for the up-coming AEGON International in Eastbourne. That's a bit unfair on the south coast resort which in recent years seems to have been blessed with wall-to-wall sunshine and fewer rain delays than Roland Garros.

At least the frequent stoppages at the French Open allowed time to reflect on the performances of those entrants for Eastbourne currently slogging it out on the damp clay in Paris. Caroline Wozniacki looks the pick of the current crop lined up to appear on the verdant grass of Devonshire Park. Let's hope she doesn't win in Paris and then decide to take a rest from competitive play before Wimbledon...though maybe she might then turn up to practice on the hallowed Sussex turf and breathe in the bracing sea air.

Alisa Kleybanova has just beaten Ana Ivanovic, Dementieva marches serenely on to the 3rd round, Schiavone has demolished S Ferguson (no, not her - the prize money isn't high enough...) and Na Li similarly crushed France's own Stephanie Cohen-Aloro. That's not an exhaustive list of winners so far entered for the AEGON International but it does show how strong the Women's entry is for Eastbourne.

As for the Men's list, that's in a different and lower league but it will be interesting to contrast the power and physical presence of John Isner with the guile and craft of Julien Benneteau on the grass courts in a couple of weeks time. I hope to see you there!

Venus and other confections

I don't know about you but I found Venus's black and red lacy see-through outfit a trifle too distracting today. Just as well red-blooded French males were absent from the opener in an empty Chatrier stadium at Roland Garros since they don't get up before mid-day for anyone, even the outrageous Ms Williams.

By the way, she beat her positively demure Spanish opponent Arantxa Parra Santonja 6-2 6-4 but sadly will not be present at the Aegon International in Eastbourne while Santonja would have to qualify or get an unlikely wildcard. These are normally reserved for the posse of British no-hopers supported by the LTA who hope to make the Wimbledon qualifiers after losing in the first round at Eastbourne.

I wish the LTA would concentrate on getting a couple more men or women into the top fifty rankings or at least give Team Brit some hope of beating Turkey in the post-Wimbledon Davis Cup match which also takes place in Eastbourne. We all know we are light years behind France and even (God help us!) Belgium in achieving this aim but hey, which is more important - massaging under-performing egos or giving British tennis fans something to be proud of?

As an old boss of mine used to say - Proper Preparation Prevents Piss-Poor Performance...

Welcome...

Hi - my name is Rick Lindsay and I'm touching down in Eastbourne UK for the pre-Wimbledon AEGON International tournament.

I've spent the last year sounding out opinion worldwide on the current state of world tennis and in particular the abject performance of the LTA in taking British mens' tennis to the bottom rung of Davis Cup competition.

Your views and feedback are welcome and in the course of the next month I hope we will come to some meaningful conclusions and maybe have some fun along the way.

Enjoy...

Richard Gasquet

Richard Gasquet, who is playing at the AEGON International but having to make the main draw via qualifying, tested Andy Murray on home clay at the French Open.

A five-set thriller was always on the cards and Gasquet looks set to make an impact at Eastbourne as well as Wimbledon, having already captured the Nottingham grass court title twice.