Sweet Nothings

I put the French Open tennis on at lunchtime to follow Andy Murray's hopeful progress, and he duly despatched plucky young Croatian Marin Cilic fairly comfortably in three sets. The real story was to come though - Senor Nadal, red-hot favourite and unbeaten at Roland Garros, was a set down to Sweden's Robin Soderling (above - phwooar!). And blow me down if, after an enthralling afternoon's viewing, the impressively-muscled Swede didn't dump poor Rafa out of the tournament. The top seed was some way off top form but "Sod" (as the onscreen graphic rather unfairly referred to him) was blasting winners from all angles in what must have been the game of his life. Unfortunately, any enjoyment that derives from watching the French Open is tempered somewhat by the crowd. Now, the French have many qualities as a race, but politeness and humility are some way down the list. Any player at Roland Garros who dares to question a line call is subjected to a barrage of whistl...

The BBC’s coverage of the Masters snooker this week is happening without one of its most recognisable voices. The decision to dispense of Clive Everton’s services is the latest in a long line of such moves by the Beeb, who have now got rid of nearly all of their long-serving commentators. Bosses insist that age has not been a factor in their decisions, but there is a general televisual drive towards pushing younger, supposedly more dynamic personalities into the foreground and your Bruce Forsythes and Peter Allisses are very much the exceptions that prove the rule. In sporting terms, the modern trend is to appoint famous former stars to replace the veterans who’ve been forced into retirement. There have undeniably been successes on this front, Sam Torrance, Steve Cram and Andy Jamieson to name a few BBC examples. But equally there are those that confirm the belief, which applies to commentators and pundits/trackside interviewers alike, that just because you’re famous for excelling at a...