Sandy Koufax, one of Major League Baseball’s greatest players, announcing his retirement at age 30 on Nov. 20, 1966 at the Beverly Wiltshire Hotel. *Courtesy the Los Angeles Public Library Photo Collection.*

'Say it ain't so, Joe' -- the challenge of letting go

July 4, 2024

Wimbledon may be a long way metaphorically as well as geographically from Washington, D.C., but both Ws have been confronted recently with the age of key players. Two-time Wimbledon champion Andy Murray, with an artificial hip and fresh from surgery to remove a spinal cyst, is playing doubles with brother Jamie at age 37. Just a week younger, seven-time champ Novak Djokovic is playing ahead of schedule after surgery to repair a meniscus tear, which may or may not have an effect on his chances for an Olympic medal at the Paris Games, beginning July 26, and

a repeat as US Open champ. (I don’t know why people keep saying “an elusive Olympic medal.” He won a bronze at the 2008 Beijing Games.)

Rafael Nadal, 38, who has had his own hip surgery and subsequent injuries and whose knees are allergic to grass anyway, is sitting out Wimbledon for a chance to play at Roland Garros again as Carlos Alcaraz’s doubles partner at the Paris Olympics, after losing there in May in the first round of the French Open, a tournament he once dominated.

But hey, at least they’re not running for president of the United States.

The Empire strikes back: Andy Murray and the Davis Cup

November 29, 2015

Great Britain has won the Davis Cup, defeating Belgium.

More accurately, Andy Murray has won the Davis Cup.

Any Cup championship is, first and foremost, about teamwork, with the country of the winning team getting the honors. Sports are forever entwined in politics as I illustrate in “Water Music,” the first novel in my series, “The Games Men Play.”

But tennis, like swimming, is also among the most individualistic of sports, and the tension between the individual and the team in these sports– another theme of “Water Music” – is part of their flavor. ...

Their (Davis) Cup runneth over

September 20, 2015

One week after the US Open, there’s no rest for the weary men as most of the top stars are in action in the semifinals of the Davis Cup.

The big exception is Novak Djokovic, who’s sitting this one out. Can you blame him? No one goes deeper into matches than Nole. Everyone needs a break from time to time, and, frankly, I envy him his.

That said, everyone else seems to have something to prove this weekend. Rafael Nadal, after a dismal year, is seeking redemption for himself and the Spanish team in their defeat of the Danish. Andy Murray is burnishing his Davis Cup legacy in an attempt to earn a berth for the British in the finals against Argentina. ...