Sabine Lisicki Hits WTA's First 130+ MPH Serve (210 kph)

Germany's Sabine Lisicki recently had a 210 km/h serve the PTA event in Europe.

This is the fastest service ever recorded by a woman professional in a tour match.

Is Jerzy Janowicz the Real Thing?

After unheralded 21-year-old Jerzy Janowicz upset Andy Murray today in the Paris Open, it's time to ask how good is this guy? 

Update: Janowicz's fairy tale story came to an end, for now, when he lost in the final of the Paris Open to David Ferrer, who won his first Masters 1000 title.

Along the way, Janowicz  beat five Top 20 players to reach the final: Andy Murray, ranked 3,  #6 Tomas Berdych,  #9 Janko Tipsarevic, #18 Giles Simon, and #19 Philipp Kohlschreiber -- all after coming through the qualifiers. Winning eight matches in row was too much to ask, though, as he ran out of gas. Photo thumbnail ATP.com

Lighter Moments: How Novak Djokovic Practices His Serve

And who is that brave friend?

Great Paris Pics in HDR Tutorial

Trey Ratcliff, a photographer specializing in high-dynamic-range (HDR) photos -- basically using software to combine multiple images of one scene to get a broader exposure range -- and travel photos, has a vid that starts out mini-tutorial then has a really nice sequence of Paris shots. 

Juan Martin Del Potro Wins First Title Since Surgery, Video of Strokes

It's great to see Juan Martin Del Potro slowly getting working back into top form after missing about a year with a serious wrist injury. 

Milos Raonic's Serve Close Up in Video

Rising tennis star Milos Raonic has one of the best serves, already rivaling those of John Isner and Ivo Karlovic.

I cobbled together this video of Raonic's serve from images I took during Raonic's semifinal-and-final matches when he won his first title last week at the SAP Open, dethroning world number nine, Fernando Verdasco, whom he beat again yesterday in Memphis. This includes slow-motion at 120 frames-per-second and stop-action segments, using a couple of times of cameras at varying resolutions. 

To best view this video, please click the four-arrow box in the lower right to enlarge, then select "720p", also in the lower right, to see in higher resolution. 

Watch Roger Federer's Footwork in Slow Motion

Tennis great Rod Laver said, while at Roger Federer's fifth WImbledon championship, "Fans should take the time to just watch his feet. Ignore the point and the ball, just watch his feet. Federer's footwork is beautiful."

Tennis Footwork Drill in Short-Court

Make your mini-tennis warmup meaningful. FYB has a video with suggestions on practicing footwork in a serve-line-to-service-line groundstroke drill. They discuss alternative footwork for ground strokes: The "walking" forehand, moving forward into the ball as you hit, then returning; The "hopping step" to drive forward; and the carioca, where you cross the back foot behind the front, normally used on an approach shot so you can land in a stable position, facing the net. {If you view full-screen (4-arrow box) switch to HD rez from the pop up that appears next to the four arrows.}

Women's Tennis in Stylized Slow Motion

Unusual video and photo essay at NYT.com, showing WTA players hitting in extreme slow motion, but stylized to feel almost balletic. (go here). 

Generic Movie Video - Build Your Own Now!

Via Google Reader:  A template for comfy, risk-averse movies, starring Robert Pattinson or Adam Sandler, Natalie Portman or Sandra Bullock. Directed by Ron Howard or someone whose only previous work has been on YouTube.