Monday, December 03, 2007 @3:58 AM
Ok I'm thinking I should probably be posting about the Fed-Sampras match too. XD I meant to have it in the same post as the Rafa one, but unfortunately, it ran much MUCH longer than I expected, and since a post any longer than that one would probably kill off people, I decided to write about it another time. Which is now.
No need for alarm(s) on that day, cos I was already in malaysia. Instead, I happily overslept cos I was up till about 2 the previous night watching disney channel. XD Anyway, my dad went off to play golf at six in the morning, which I was having no part off. Gosh, I only wake up at that sort of inhuman hour for school or holidays. Or Rafa. Cough. Rafa's match I mean. So after waking up at eleven, I started watching tv again until my mum insisted that we go shopping. Unfortunately, our hotel's just next to Pavillion and Starhill and a whole lot of other shopping malls, so no excuse and no way out. :( In the end, we still got back early because I started whining after one hour. Yes, I hate shopping. Unless it's with a purpose, like there's something SPECIFIC which I wanna buy. I totally hate walking around aimlessly.
Which is why I've promised myself that I'm NOT going back to KL again unless:
(a) More exhibition matches (Rafa hinted he might want to come back next year :D)
(b) Visit relatives
No way am I going there for nothing. >< There's nothing to do but shop.
Oh, and the night before, Fed actually went to Starhill to have tea! I'm guessing that's the function when the nanyang team got to meet him. And remember I said Starhill was just next to our hotel. Instantly, my mum and me got all excited and wanted to go over there that night. I mean, obviously we wouldn't be able to get in, but just to see him from far would be enough. XD My dad, however, rolled his eyes and told us not to be ridiculous. Men just don't get it.
Once again, at four-thirty I was all set, and this time, so was my mum. My dad happily strolled in at four-thirty after having played eighteen holes, showered and lunched with the uncles. I started screaming "WHAT IS THE MEANING OF COMING BACK AT
THIS TIME?! WE'RE GOING TO BE LATEEEEEEEEE!" Thankfully we left at five. Phew. And for some very strange reason, there was absolutely no jam at all that day, so we arrived at my uncle's house in twenty minutes.
Yinfei: (wails) THIS IS A CONSPIRACYYYYYYYYYYYY WHY IS THERE NO JAM AT ALL TODAY WHEN THERE WAS SUCH A HORRENDOUS ONE ON THE DAY OF RAFA'S MATCHHHHHH?!
Humph. Good thing is, I didn't need to get a heart attack this time, bad thing is, I fumed over the injustice of it all. And then, there wasn't any jam on the way to the stadium too! So we were REALLY early this time. I suppose I could interpret it another way. I like to think that it's cos there aren't as many people rushing to see Fed as there was for Rafa. XD My aunt came along this time, cos she hasn't yet seen Fed live, whereas she's already seen Rafa live at wimbledon. She was suanning me about it in the car, "You know, Nadal was just TWO METRES away from us! I could see him CLOSE-UP!"
Ok ok ok.
We arrived at the stadium real early, so I hastened to take pics of the four huge posters which I didn't manage to take good pics of that day due to the fact that it was already dark by the time we arrived. Then we walked around the booths outside the stadium. My uncle the tennis fanatic disappeared immediately into the one selling Wilson rackets. There were posters of Justine and Djokovic. I took pics of the Justine one, but ignored the Djokovic one. XD Fine, I'm biased. Then there were the booths selling the products that Fed endorses. I didn't know he endorsed coffee! O.o Anyway, he really looked damn shuai in the coffee ad. XD
The same excitement I had the other day was starting to build up again, as I realize that in less than an hour's time, I'm actually going to be seeing the top of the top in this fantastic sport. :D
And I forced my dad to buy me the souvenir magazine. XD They come with this lucky draw slip, and if you win, you get to meet the players in person after the match. I don't care about the lucky draw cos there're only three lucky winners out of goodness-knows-how-many, but I really wanted that magazine! They have two pages about each of the four players, interviews with Fed and Sampras, and info about other players who'd be coming for the malaysia open. I was looking at it over the person reading it in the row in front of me, and when I saw that there were profiles of Max Mirnyi, Florian Mayer, and Rainer Schuettler (I know I've spelt that wrong), I was immediately bent on buying it. My dad refused to buy it for me on the day of Rafa's match, but after begging and pleading for three straight days, he bought it for me on the day of Fed's match.
That day at Rafa's match, they were trying to sell the magazine too:
Person: Hi! Do you want to meet the players after the match?
Yinfei: Duh, of course I do, but I don't think I'd be that lucky.
Person: Hey, you'd never know!
At Fed's match:
Person: Hi! Do you want to meet the players after the match?
Dad: If Roger Federer wants to take picture with me, ask him to come and see me.
Person: (laughs in an unsure way)
Yinfei: Don't be lame, pa! (GOSH, THAT WAS SO FREAKING EMBARASSING!)
Dad: What if we don't want the lucky draw? Can give half price?
Person: No!
Aunt: Aiyah just buy lah, maybe we're lucky enough.
So we bought it eventually, much to the grumbles of my mum (until she saw the nice pics of Fed and Rafa and Richie inside :D).
At the entrance, there was the box to drop your lucky draw slip in. At first I didn't think there was any point to do that, but my uncle and aunt insisted. So I dropped it in the end. Anyway, I can tell you now that we didn't win. Yep.
Once again, we ate ice-cream, and once again, my dad insisted on being traditional and took strawberry.
This time, we were seated further away. Like, really quite far. I was quite disappointed, but glad that at least this wasn't Rafa's match. This time, though, I was wiser and made my dad video the entrance instead, so that I could see with my own eyes the players themselves, instead of stupidly peering through the cam. The usual announcements, and Fed and Sampras enter, Sampras first, obviously. My mum grabbed the binos immediately and stared for so long until I grabbed them back to take a good look myself. I discovered that Fed really does look quite shuai. :D Now I know why there're fan clubs dedicated to both Fed and Rafa. I quote, "I'm crazy. I'm totally in love with BOTH Rafa and Rog. :)" Very smart of these people, cos they wouldn't need to have heart attacks every time a grand slam final rolls around, cos as everybody knows, the last ten slams or so have been shared out between the duo. And for the past years at wimbly and roland garros, finals have always been between Fed and Rafa. Fed takes wimbly, Rafa takes roland garros. Quite a nice deal, really, and I wouldn't mind it so much if Fed didn't also take USO and AO as well. ><
Anyway.
Sampras is a really funny guy. :D When there was a point when Fed lobbed the ball over him, he gave this priceless WTH look, like, "I can't believe you did that to me!" Ahahaha. Then there was this ball of Fed's that went out, but the linesman didn't say a word. Like I said, they suck. So Sampras went over and pretended to get all mad and kept challenging and questioning the call, and kept poking at the ground with his racket. The whole stadium was laughing like crazy.
The disappointment was that I didn't think Fed really gave his best. I mean, of course I didn't expect any of them to, since it was just an exhibition match. But still. During the practice rally, he kept giving these real soft balls (I mean, soft for the world's top player!), and didn't really whack them. Or maybe it was cos I was seated further away this time. But I sincerely, unbiasedly think that Rafa played more impressively than him. At this match, that is. I'm not saying that Rafa's better than him, obviously, but he did give more to this match cos he's got a reputation to hold, since he's playing against Richie. World number eight for anyone who doesn't know. And if anyone says they didn't know that Rafa's world number two, they shall suffer my displeasure. >:) *evil laughter* But since Fed and Sampras were both top in the world (Sampras was a former top in the world for anyone who once again doesn't know), any one of them could win. So probably not as much pressure on Fed to perform. Ah, and he won by the way. 7-6 7-6. The score speaks for itself. Obviously he wasn't trying.
My dad thinks they should have asked him to play against one of those I mentioned were coming for the malaysia open, like Florian Mayer. I was all "WHAT?!" until my dad explained that since they were so lowly-ranked, Fed would have more pressure, like, "I can't lose to THIS low-ranked loser!". And the other guy would be thinking, "What the heck, I'll probably lose, so I might as well go all out and give my all." That's my dad's reasoning. Which might make sense, but honestly, people wouldn't exactly want to see a Fed vs Mayer right.
Halfway through, my mum felt bad that no one was exactly shouting for Fed very much, and she begged me to shout on her behalf. Strange, isn't it, that when it comes to stuff like this, she loses her voice. -.-
I didn't want to shout cos:
(a) we were seated much further, meaning that I would have to shout even louder, which I really couldn't bear to.
(b) the umpire was so freaking strict about shouting ("Please don't shout and distract the players") for this match.
(c) obviously I don't like Fed as much as I like Rafa. -.-
But because I'm so nice, I did shriek and scream and clap (quite against my conscience, but nevermind). No shouting "I love you Roger!" though. Perhaps if we were nearer, I would have shouted "Go Roger!" or something.
Ok that's it. I'm totally pooped from typing so much.