British world No 180 and cancer survivor Ryan Peniston stuns French Open finalist Casper Ruud

Stircrazy · Tennis legend

RE: Week 24 - ATP 500 - Cinch Championships - The Queen's Club, London, Great Britain (grass)

dodrade · Futures qualifying

Stircrazy wrote:
Coup Droit wrote:
Matteo was playing lights out tennis
What the hell does that mean? Peter Fleming used the phrase when he was talking about Ryan's match (I think) & I was none the wiser!

Tennis so powerful he metaphorically punches his opponents lights out?

JonH comes home · Tennis legend

dodrade wrote:
Stircrazy wrote:
Coup Droit wrote:
Matteo was playing lights out tennis
What the hell does that mean? Peter Fleming used the phrase when he was talking about Ryan's match (I think) & I was none the wiser!
Tennis so powerful he metaphorically punches his opponents lights out?

Yep

Kill Them Dead (i.e. the opponent, competition)

Derived from boxing, Im gonna knock his lights out! (Slang)

Used in context to your question, We played lights out against Tampa tonight (Idiom)

Stircrazy · Tennis legend

JonH comes home wrote:
dodrade wrote:
Stircrazy wrote:
Coup Droit wrote:
Matteo was playing lights out tennis
What the hell does that mean? Peter Fleming used the phrase when he was talking about Ryan's match (I think) & I was none the wiser!
Tennis so powerful he metaphorically punches his opponents lights out?
Yep

Kill Them Dead (i.e. the opponent, competition)
Derived from boxing, Im gonna knock his lights out! (Slang)
Used in context to your question, We played lights out against Tampa tonight (Idiom)

Yet more lazy Yank-speak, then! evileye

Coup Droit · Tennis legend

No, SC - yet more idioms that reflect the rich cultural diversity of this forum's readership and its understanding

Coup Droit · Tennis legend

Copied over from the doubles thread:

Coup Droit wrote:

"Just of passing interest, Ryan Peniston has a junior ITF CH of 460 - that's pretty low

After turning 18, he spent three years ranked about ATP 1600

And then dropped out altogether (all obviously linked to going to college in the US)

When he came back, he then spent about 2 years at approx ATP 600 or so

And then another two years at about 350 or so

He finally cracked the top-300 back in Nov. 2021

And then the top-200 six months later

And counting.....

It's good we don't all take the same path"

NIX

"That's so funny. I just looked up that exact thing, his junior career high that is to say. I'm often curious as to why players with such a low junior ranking then go onto try their luck in the senior game where there's even more competition, just from the greater number of players at senior level.

However, with Ryan it seems to have paid off as his senior ranking easily beats his junior career high. I'd love to know more about how some players don't make the transition (injuries aside, obviously) whereas others come from lower levels and do pretty well. I still imagine he's something of an outlier though."

Shhh · Challenger level

I guess we see this in all sports Coup? I know in football it is painful to see all the "chosen ones" selected at 7 or 8 years old by local pro clubs feeding the delusions of both the child and more often than not, the parent. The percentage that come through is so, so small its unreal. Meanwhile there are plenty of examples of those who were let go, making their way via non-league to the ultimate heights.

I sometimes feel the schemes and academies work almost to an algorithm that does not take into account the character or personality.

"Its not the size of the dog in the fight but the size of the fight in the dog"

indiana · Tennis legend

Stircrazy wrote:
JonH comes home wrote:
dodrade wrote:
Stircrazy wrote:
Coup Droit wrote:
Matteo was playing lights out tennis
What the hell does that mean? Peter Fleming used the phrase when he was talking about Ryan's match (I think) & I was none the wiser!
Tennis so powerful he metaphorically punches his opponents lights out?
Yep

Kill Them Dead (i.e. the opponent, competition)
Derived from boxing, Im gonna knock his lights out! (Slang)
Used in context to your question, We played lights out against Tampa tonight (Idiom)
Yet more lazy Yank-speak, then!

Well to me, perfectly OK variety in the English language. But we are never going to agree on much of this biggrin

I have always been surprised that someone apparently so involved in language is not more open to IMO such reasonable diversity.

Stircrazy · Tennis legend

From today's Times (Stu Fraser & John Westerby) - some interesting background:

British world No 180 and cancer survivor Ryan Peniston stuns French Open finalist Casper Ruud

The British grass-court season is often good for a plucky tale, and one accordingly emerged on the hallowed grass courts of Queen's Club. Ryan Peniston, a 26-year-old childhood cancer survivor from Southend who is ranked No 180 in the world, thrilled the home crowd on a sundrenched afternoon by knocking out the world No 5, Casper Ruud, in straight sets.

Few of the 9,500 spectators who turned up here would have known who Peniston was before this tremendous display. As he walked onto the court for his first match on the main ATP tour, his Twitter account had less than 900 followers. In the aftermath of a 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (7-2) victory, even Peniston himself struggled to comprehend what had transpired on this life-changing day. He was informed that he had received a Wimbledon main-draw wild card, guaranteeing a cheque of at least £50,000 to add to the £27,000 he had just secured at Queen's. "I can't really believe it," Peniston said. "It feels like a dream. It's a bit surreal, as four or five years ago I was sitting over there [as he pointed towards the stands] watching. I'll need a bit of time to process it."

Within British tennis circles, Peniston's recent progress had been noted. This time last year he was ranked No 375 before four runner-up finishes on the second-tier ATP Challenger circuit propelled him up the list. But even then he still required a bit of help to get into the Queen's draw. Step forward Andy Murray, who secured a special exemption with his run to the Stuttgart Open final, which in turn freed up a wild card for Peniston.

No one can say that he does not deserve this slice of fortune. At the age of one, a large tumour was discovered in Peniston's stomach and he subsequently had Rhabdomyosarcoma, an aggressive soft-tissue cancer, diagnosed. He was so young at the time that he struggles to recall the chemotherapy sessions which followed. "I don't remember tonnes [sic] of it, which I guess is a good thing," Peniston said. "It was definitely a difficult start to my life. For my parents and my brothers, I think it must have been a pretty tough time. After that I had check-ups every couple of years, sometimes every year, just to make sure everything's okay. And yeah, I'm standing here today."

In terms of ranking, Peniston had not been given a kind draw against a player who only nine days before had finished runner-up to Rafael Nadal at the French Open. But Ruud, the 23-year-old from Norway, is not at his best on this surface, having once famously joked that "grass is for golfers".

Peniston also had the benefit of already playing six matches on grass over the past fortnight and it showed. The left-hander hit nine aces, won 78 per cent of points on his first serve and was far more accurate in the execution of his groundstroke winners. Considering his relative inexperience, he also showed impressive composure in the tie-breaks at the end of both sets. He next plays Francisco Cerundolo, the world No 46 from Argentina. "I was definitely anxious about my first ATP match," Peniston said. "That brings maybe a bit of added pressure. But I had nothing to lose, really, so I kept trying to think of that."

JonH comes home · Tennis legend

Stircrazy wrote:
From today's Times (Stu Fraser & John Westerby) - some interesting background:
British world No 180 and cancer survivor Ryan Peniston stuns French Open finalist Casper Ruud
The British grass-court season is often good for a plucky tale, and one accordingly emerged on the hallowed grass courts of Queen's Club. Ryan Peniston, a 26-year-old childhood cancer survivor from Southend who is ranked No 180 in the world, thrilled the home crowd on a sundrenched afternoon by knocking out the world No 5, Casper Ruud, in straight sets.
Few of the 9,500 spectators who turned up here would have known who Peniston was before this tremendous display. As he walked onto the court for his first match on the main ATP tour, his Twitter account had less than 900 followers. In the aftermath of a 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (7-2) victory, even Peniston himself struggled to comprehend what had transpired on this life-changing day. He was informed that he had received a Wimbledon main-draw wild card, guaranteeing a cheque of at least £50,000 to add to the £27,000 he had just secured at Queen's. "I can't really believe it," Peniston said. "It feels like a dream. It's a bit surreal, as four or five years ago I was sitting over there [as he pointed towards the stands] watching. I'll need a bit of time to process it."
Within British tennis circles, Peniston's recent progress had been noted. This time last year he was ranked No 375 before four runner-up finishes on the second-tier ATP Challenger circuit propelled him up the list. But even then he still required a bit of help to get into the Queen's draw. Step forward Andy Murray, who secured a special exemption with his run to the Stuttgart Open final, which in turn freed up a wild card for Peniston.
No one can say that he does not deserve this slice of fortune. At the age of one, a large tumour was discovered in Peniston's stomach and he subsequently had Rhabdomyosarcoma, an aggressive soft-tissue cancer, diagnosed. He was so young at the time that he struggles to recall the chemotherapy sessions which followed. "I don't remember tonnes [sic] of it, which I guess is a good thing," Peniston said. "It was definitely a difficult start to my life. For my parents and my brothers, I think it must have been a pretty tough time. After that I had check-ups every couple of years, sometimes every year, just to make sure everything's okay. And yeah, I'm standing here today."
In terms of ranking, Peniston had not been given a kind draw against a player who only nine days before had finished runner-up to Rafael Nadal at the French Open. But Ruud, the 23-year-old from Norway, is not at his best on this surface, having once famously joked that "grass is for golfers".
Peniston also had the benefit of already playing six matches on grass over the past fortnight and it showed. The left-hander hit nine aces, won 78 per cent of points on his first serve and was far more accurate in the execution of his groundstroke winners. Considering his relative inexperience, he also showed impressive composure in the tie-breaks at the end of both sets. He next plays Francisco Cerundolo, the world No 46 from Argentina. "I was definitely anxious about my first ATP match," Peniston said. "That brings maybe a bit of added pressure. But I had nothing to lose, really, so I kept trying to think of that."

thanks SC, I enjoyed reading that

christ · Futures level

I think that the "[sic]" after the tonnes was a little patronising!

Brendan F · Lower Club Player

christ wrote:
I think that the "[sic]" after the tonnes was a little patronising!

If it's a quote how do they know it's wrong? Clearly it's just hyperbole so whatever measure he used would be acceptable

Stircrazy · Tennis legend

Brendan F wrote:
christ wrote:
I think that the "[sic]" after the tonnes was a little patronising!
If it's a quote how do they know it's wrong? Clearly it's just hyperbole so whatever measure he used would be acceptable

I was questioning the spelling, not the actual quotation & its use as an idiomatic expression signifying an extremely large amount/number (more or less equivalent to "loads"), with which I have no problem, so it was the fault of whichever journo wrote that part of the article, not Ryan's for using the word. A "tonne", as far as I'm concerned, is a metric unit of weight only. The imperial "ton", on the other hand, is more versatile. Apart from being a unit of weight consisting of 20 hundredweight (or eight stones or 2,240 pounds), it does rather lend itself to colloquial hyperbole. Once upon a time, any self-respecting Brit would automatically have used "tons" (as in "don't worry about the expense, he has tons of cash", "the boss came down on the culprit like a ton of bricks" or "sending you tons of love"). Are cricketers ever said to score tonnes?!!! I do not think, therefore, that I was being at all patronising.

JonH comes home · Tennis legend

Stircrazy wrote:
Brendan F wrote:
christ wrote:
I think that the "[sic]" after the tonnes was a little patronising!
If it's a quote how do they know it's wrong? Clearly it's just hyperbole so whatever measure he used would be acceptable
I was questioning the spelling, not the actual quotation & its use as an idiomatic expression signifying an extremely large amount/number (more or less equivalent to "loads"), with which I have no problem, so it was the fault of whichever journo wrote that part of the article, not Ryan's for suing the word. A "tonne", as far as I'm concerned, is a metric unit of weight only. The imperial "ton", on the other hand, is more versatile. Apart from being a unit of weight consisting of 20 hundredweight (or eight stones or 2,240 pounds), it does rather lend itself to colloquial hyperbole. Once upon a time, any self-respecting Brit would automatically have used "tons" (as in "don't worry about the expense, he has tons of cash", "the boss came down on the culprit like a ton of bricks" or "sending you tons of love"). Are cricketers ever said to score tonnes?!!! I do not think, therefore, that I was being at all patronising.

I think I was most amazed that someone went through a journos article which was cut and paste and pointed out a spelling mistake!!

Did you ever work as a sub-editor on a newspaper??!

Stircrazy · Tennis legend

JonH comes home wrote:
Stircrazy wrote:
Brendan F wrote:
christ wrote:
I think that the "[sic]" after the tonnes was a little patronising!
If it's a quote how do they know it's wrong? Clearly it's just hyperbole so whatever measure he used would be acceptable
I was questioning the spelling, not the actual quotation & its use as an idiomatic expression signifying an extremely large amount/number (more or less equivalent to "loads"), with which I have no problem, so it was the fault of whichever journo wrote that part of the article, not Ryan's for suing the word. A "tonne", as far as I'm concerned, is a metric unit of weight only. The imperial "ton", on the other hand, is more versatile. Apart from being a unit of weight consisting of 20 hundredweight (or eight stones or 2,240 pounds), it does rather lend itself to colloquial hyperbole. Once upon a time, any self-respecting Brit would automatically have used "tons" (as in "don't worry about the expense, he has tons of cash", "the boss came down on the culprit like a ton of bricks" or "sending you tons of love"). Are cricketers ever said to score tonnes?!!! I do not think, therefore, that I was being at all patronising.
I think I was most amazed that someone went through a journos article which was cut and paste and pointed out a spelling mistake!!
Did you ever work as a sub-editor on a newspaper??!

Not for a newspaper, no, but before my retirement, I was frequently asked by colleagues who were about submit responses to parliamentary select committee, Treasury, Prudential Regulation Authority or Financial Conduct Authority consultations to proof-read their texts & correct any typos & grammatical errors. I don't have to work at it. Spotting such things comes naturally - & it's always easier to spot them in someone else's work. wink

Incidentally, it wasn't a simple copy & paste job: Activeboard doesn't like punctuation, e.g. inverted commas, dashes & apostrophes, used in external sites (it substitutes a strange diamond-shaped symbol), so I had to go through the piece to weed them out by previewing the post to tidy it up & I picked up "tonnes" as I was doing that.