Bangkok Open

Following the sports I've typically followed is difficult, especially when most are played while you sleep and the Thai sports stations seem infatuated with soccer. I had actually come to terms with it more quickly than I had expected given the abysmal year the Mariners are finishing up, the pessimistic prospects being given to the Seahawks and, of course, the fact that my (former and unnamed) basketball team has blossomed into the most promising and likable team in the NBA. Seemed the perfect storm to ease into the role of passive sports fan. Of course, the Seahawks are suddenly looking viable in the perpetually mediocre NFC West, so maybe I'll have go start paying attention. Or, maybe I'll know better when I wake up tomorrow...

At any rate, craving a little sport, I purchased tickets to the Bangkok Open, which has been widely publicized here. Rafa Nadal, he of the 3 consecutive Grand Slam wins was headlining the tourney and looking angry/dreamy/constipated in the posters everywhere. I've been to the US Open several times over the last few years but never seen Nadal. Plus, I've always gone to the opening weekend matches, which means more matches but also means cakewalks for the marquee players. So, I figured I'd buy tickets to the finals of the Bangkok Open and have a good chance of seeing Nadal in a meaningful match. All was going as planned until the semis, when up 1 set to 0, and going into a 2nd set tiebreak, he became human and lost to his countryman, Guillermo Garcia-Lopez. Instead of having tickets to see Nadal and his magical topspin, I had tickets to see Garcia-Lopez against Jarkko Nieminen of Finland, a battle of 50-to-60-something ranked players in the world.

So, short story long, we never made in past the doubles final, which was still a good match and it's always fun seeing pros play live, as they really smack the ball. Plus, having just seen matches at the US Open which plays outside, this was inside and it was quiet save for the sounds of the balls and rackets, the players grunts, and a rainstorm outside hitting the roof. Definitely a different experience and, as you can probably surmise from the quiet, the Thais are a different kind of fan than several thousand New Yorkers in Arthur Ashe Stadium.

There were quite a few "I Love Nadal" t-shirts on sale outside probably selling for next-to-nothing due to his absence from the final. I just don't think I could pull it off, though. There are a lot of creepy dudes walking around this town, but I think me in a "I Love Nadal" t-shirt would rank better than top 50-or-60.