MELBOURNE, Australia - Eugenie Bouchard — the unwitting protagonist of an Australian Open saga that has been dubbed Twirlgate — would prefer if people just focused on her tennis.For the record, Bouchard said Friday she was not offended by the male interviewer who asked her to twirl for the crowd earlier in the week.I think it was just kind of funny, the Wimbledon runner-up said after advancing to the fourth round in Melbourne. Im fine with being asked to twirl if they ask the guys to flex their muscles.This is not the first time the Australian Open has offered up a headline-grabbing sideshow that has nothing to do with tennis.In previous years, two-time champion Victoria Azarenkas former boyfriend, the rap star Redfoo who was a regular front-row fixture, got as much press as she did. In 2011, former No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki told a colorful tale about getting into a fight with a kangaroo and showed a scratch to prove it. She later retracted the story, saying she had bumped into a treadmill but wanted to spice up a dull news conference.This year, the seasons opening Grand Slam tournament has Twirlgate, a term being used by Australian media and as a hashtag on Twitter.It started Wednesday when Bouchard, one of the rising stars of womens tennis, was asked by a male interviewer to give us a twirl and show off her tennis dress after winning her second-round match. Noticeably embarrassed, Bouchard complied with a laugh and later said, it was very unexpected.Social media erupted with chatter. Some called it sexist, some questioned whether a male player would be asked to twirl after winning a match, and some dismissed the debate, saying they didnt feel sorry for a highly-paid athlete being asked to twirl.Billie Jean King added to the chorus of criticism.This is truly sexist, tweeted King, an 11-time Grand Slam winner and a longtime campaigner for equal rights in tennis. Lets focus on competition and accomplishments of both genders, and not our looks.The 20-year-old Bouchard, a 1.78-meter (5 foot-10) photogenic blonde, has become one of tennis newest cover girls. She won the Wimbledon juniors title in 2012 and has made rapid progress ever since. She reached the semifinals at last years Australian and French Opens followed by the Wimbledon final which ushered her into the No. 7-ranking — the highest ever for a Canadian player.Bouchard, from Westmount, Que., won her third-round match Friday, beating Caroline Garcia of France 7-5, 6-0. After a few questions on tennis, her post-match news conference turned to the twirl.I was waiting for this one, Bouchard said, smiling.Players typically say that during big tournaments they try to stay away from newspapers and limit their time on social media to keep their minds on the game. But Bouchard said she was aware that the incident had caused a stir.My friends are texting me, saying I dance and twirl well and stuff, as jokes, she said. Its just funny how its taken a life of its own. Im just going to try to focus on my tennis.She raised her eyebrows when asked if this was a deja vu of an embarrassing question she faced last year, when an on-court interviewer asked her which celebrity shed most like to date.You mean the Bieber question? she said. Her answer at the time had been fellow Canadian Justin Bieber. I dont know. They try to ask funny questions. Its entertaining, I guess. I dont mind it.But she added that it would be nice to move on.Im happy that Ive played three solid matches here, Bouchard said, and we could definitely be a little bit more focused on that.
Tyler Bozak Jersey . In Englands first game since its worst-ever World Cup showing, Roy Hodgsons side rarely looked like scoring against unambitious opposition and the breakthrough in the friendly only came when Raheem Sterling was tripped in the penalty area.
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Ted Kennedy Jersey . Players suspended during the season for a performance-enhancing drug violation will not be eligible for that years post-season. In addition, discipline will increase from 50 games to 80 for a first testing violation and from 100 games to a season-long 162 for a second. A third violation remains a lifetime ban.
Leo Komarov Jersey . The veteran NFL receiver received his work permit and is in Montreal for the start of the Alouettes rookie camp. Johnson even took in the Montreal Canadiens Game 5 win over the New York Rangers at the Bell Centre Tuesday night."This is not a team to win tomorrow, its a team of kids, this is a team where the best years are to come, the best stage is not this one or the next one. More than 50 per cent of the team are aged 23 or below, this is a team to be built, which is what I have been asked to do, build, with the fantastic talent I have, a Chelsea team for the next decade." - Jose Mourinho, summer 2013. Without a ball being kicked, Mourinho knew the size of the task at Stamford Bridge. When his team came up against Manchester United at the end of August at Old Trafford, he kept it tight, bringing a new resilience to the team to help them get a point. It was an examination of his players and one they had rarely been asked to do under Roberto Di Matteo and Rafael Benitez last season. Almost five months later, in the return match against United at Stamford Bridge, Mourinho put his players through a different exam, one they passed again, thumping Manchester United 3-1. This was not a game won on the training pitch, or at the blackboard tactically in the buildup; instead a deflection and two poor defensive errors handed the game to Chelsea. Mourinho had hoped something like that might have happened at Old Trafford. This time hed hoped they might create a bit more, but he will certainly take the manner in which they won. In the minds of many, the game officially ended Uniteds title challenge but, realistically, this was secured two months earlier. Instead, this game showed us more of Chelsea - a win where they finally relied upon a striker to deliver the critical blows, as Samuel Etoo scored a hat-trick inside 50 minutes, and a win where they easily defeated an arch-rival without being at the top of their game. And it is that which will please the manager most. Strikers are paid a lot of money to score goals and often these become vital, isolated moments that have no reflection on the way the game was played. When Etoos shot deflected off Michael Carrick and into the net on 17 minutes, it put an end to a period that United were in control of the match. Etoo scored again and again, both times being left to easily poke home in the penalty box to secure a rare kind of victory for Chelsea. Dont get used to it. Mourinho acknowledged this recently, saying: “We cannot just let the players hide behind the fact that we are not scoring enough goals and wait for that to happen. We cannot play for that. People need to change their brains a little bit more." Sunday was the first time all season a Chelsea striker had scored more than once in a game. Last season? It happened just once in 38 games when Fernando Torres got a brace at Sunderland (and one of those was a penalty.) Etoo handed Chelsea the three points on Sunday, but with a settled back four and an average striker playing up top for Chelsea this season, their championship-calibre credentials will be determined by the five that connects them together. This is Mourinhos most important project. The Fundamental Five Mourinho knows that these five players dictate the way his team is playing. When they lose, like they did at Sunderland in the League Cup last month, it makes Mourinho question how these five play, as he said: "We may have to take a step back in order to be more consistent at the back. Its something I dont want to do, to play more counterattacking, but Im giving it serious thought. If I want to win 1-0, I think I can, as I think its one of the easiest things in football. Its not so difficult, as you dont give players the chance to express themselves." If Mourinho is giving counterattacking more thought, it requires a more solid double pivot in central midfield, but when you ask him about this area, Mourinho would admit he isnt fully sold on the style, saying, as he also did last month, this time after a win: "We are not a very solid team, at the same time compared with last season, when this team played a big part of the season with David Luiz and [John Obi] Mikel in front of the four defenders, so at the end of the day they had five defenders plus Mikel, Ramires playing on the right side closing one side down and the team was playing with one striker and Juan Mata behind him, defending well and trying to counterattack, thats not the direction we want to go." Mourinho will only tell you publicly what he wants you to know. In truth, if Chelsea are to become the powerhouse Mourinho wants, the team needs to be able to attack better annd counter and that was shown on Sunday against United.ddddddddddddUp 3-0, he brought on Mikel to play alongside Luiz and pushed Ramires on to the right to close down the threat of Adnan Januzaj, who had moved there when Javier Hernandez came on. However, it is one thing to do this, up 3-0, but it is quite another to do it at 0-0. Yet, at 0-0 Chelsea still countered. And at Arsenal last month, a game that ended 0-0, they countered from deep positions on regular occasions. However, in that match never, was it more evident that the playmakers didnt trust Torres, as they often would break from deep positions and not want to give the ball to the Spaniard. "It was like they were playing with 10 men," said Sky Sports analyst Gary Neville after the match and he was absolutely spot on. Ramires has been a permanent fixture in central midfield and, despite often saying Luiz wasnt a central midfielder, the Brazilian was selected there again for Sundays clash, just as he did last week at Hull and at home to Liverpool recently. Luiz is clumsy on the ball and gives away needless fouls, but, unlike Frank Lampard, he gets the best out of his midfield partner because, positionally, he is ideal. He allows Ramires to use his speed and energy, getting forward to connect with the playmakers further forward, but is also useful in counterattacks because he can often ignite them with the first pass as he thinks like a centre back when his team is not in possession of the ball. It is clear Mourinho wants to play a four-band system, which has been labeled 4-2-3-1, but is often really 4-3-2-1 with the central playmaker dropping deeper when not in possession, another reason why counterattacking can work for this team. When asked about the three behind the striker, earlier this season, Mourinho said: "We have six players for these three positions and they will give me chances as a manager to change, match to match, depending on the opponent, the game plan. It is based on these three players how we create our football." This has certainly been true. Five months after that comment, Kevin De Bruyne has been sold, Juan Mata and Andre Schurrle have sat on the bench a lot and Mourinho has found out who the three players he relies on most in those positions - Willian, Oscar and Eden Hazard - and, with whoever playing as a striker continuing to be inconsistent, these playmakers certainly dictate Chelseas creativity. Hazard is the fun inside the fundamental five and has had a wonderful season, already scoring nine league goals. Of the three, he sticks to his position, on the left, more than most, but has the football intelligence to come central, to occupy the centre backs, when the striker comes deep, and even go right and attack from deep through the middle, as he did when he scored his wonderful individual goal against Liverpool. Keeping the Belgian predominantly on the left appears to be the reason Mourinho prefers Cesar Azpilicueta over Ashley Cole at left back. Mourinho rarely encourages his full backs to get forward and having a more defensive-minded full back down the left negates Hazards defensive issues, which were far too evident under both managers last season. Finding these combinations all over the pitch is what is crucial in finding the perfect balance for Chelsea going forward. Oscar is much better at combining with Ramires than Juan Mata, for example, while Willians workrate on the right has made him a perfect partner for Branislav Ivanovic. It was fitting, after a win on January 1st, that Mourinho said: "We are right in it, we have a good team but we need a few important bodies for next season, and I will say in the summer we will get it, I would say the team evolves in this direction, I can predict in the next season we will be real important contenders." For many, Chelsea are real important contenders this season, but what Mourinho means is that, by then, his team will play the way he wants them to. Nemanja Matic has arrived and 4-3-3 may well be in the future, but for that Chelsea needs a legitimate star striker and they need to continually show their manager that they are getting better when they immediately lose the ball. Transitions are the theme for Chelsea to improve, but in this transitional time at the club, they might even be surprising the manager with just how well they are doing. The team not built for tomorrow is becoming the team to win today.
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