First Annual Unofficial Tennis Media Poll

First Annual Unofficial Tennis Media Poll  | read this item

Zaniest Erratic: Jelena Jankovic

Favorite Tournament: US Open

Future Star: Viktoria Azarenka

Best Personality/Charisma: Amelie Mauresmo

Overhyped: Maybe Serena/Donald Young

Underhyped: Ivan Ljubicic

Favorite TV Commentator: Mary Carillo

Favorite Tennis Apparel: I like the Adidas stuff. I liked James Blake’s Nike outfits.

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David Saffran, NYC-based photographer

Coolest: Federer

Smartest: Federer, without a doubt.

Funniest: Can’t answer that one.

Dullest: Davenport.

Zaniest Erratic: Roddick but he holds it on. He talks to himself. He can be cool one second, then, literally strap him up in a strait-jacket. He needs Prozac during some matches.

Favorite Tournament: US Open

Future Star: Ivanovic. Donald Young

Best Personality: Agassi – the elder statesman. He’d do that little skip-hop – the crowd feeds off it. Sampras and Federer didn’t play to the crowd.

Overhyped: NA

Underhyped: NA

Favorite TV Commentator: Mary Carillo, John McEnroe, Patrick McEnroe – just as good as his brother.

Favorite Tennis Apparel: NA

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Al Bello, Getty Images Photographer

Coolest: Federer. He does everything looking like he’s not exerting himself.

Smartest: Hingis. She made up for physical disadvantages by out-thinking people.

Funniest: Marat Safin. He’s always breaking his racquet and yelling and screaming.

Dullest: Amy Frazier

Zaniest Erratic: Safin. Lleyton Hewitt was always angry about something.

Favorite Tournament: Miami

Future Star: Murray

Best Personality: It was Agassi

Overhyped: NA

Underhyped: NA

Favorite TV Commentator: I do like McEnroe

Favorite Tennis Apparel: Fila – it’s not too flashy.

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Lloyd Carroll, Queens Chronicle

Coolest: NA

Smartest: I like Gimelstob. He’s funny, good wit. Understands it, knows his limitations. Just a good sense of humor. Can laugh at himself.

Funniest: Gimelstob, Spadea, Muster, Djokovic

Dullest: Dokic, Dementieva

Zaniest Erratic: Rios

Favorite Tournament: A&P Classic in Mahwah RIP. Forest Hills Challenger Classic RIP.

Future Star: Sania Mirza, Peer

Best Personality: Federer’s got a certain charisma for a champion.

Overhyped: Andy Roddick. James Blake comes in a close second.

Underhyped: Kim Clijsters

Favorite TV Commentator: Mary Carillo. I think she’s pretty sharp.

Favorite Tennis Apparel: Adidas. I like the logo.

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Alex Trautwig (Son of Al)

Coolest: Blake. He carries himself well.

Smartest: Agassi.

Funniest: NA

Dullest: Davenport

Zaniest Erratic: Roddick. He’s sort of all over the place.

Favorite Tournament: NA

Future Star: NA

Best Personality: Nadal. He’s just exciting, no matter what he does.

Overhyped: NA

Underhyped: NA

Favorite TV Commentator: John McEnroe

Favorite Tennis Apparel: NA

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Doug Smith, Formerly of USA Today

Coolest: Nadal

Smartest: Andre. Photographic memory, shows perspective, insightful despite not a day in college. I don’t know a lot of the lower ranked players.

Funniest: Gimelstob makes me laugh.

Dullest: In the sense of Sampras, Federer has been content to win. Very few distractions.

Zaniest Erratic: Marat

Favorite Tournament: French Open

Future Star: I thought Vaidisova.

Best Personality: Maybe Serena somewhat. I still like Andre for that. He wasn’t that way when he was younger but he grew into it.

Overhyped: NA

Underhyped: NA

Favorite TV Commentator: John – he gives you more than the others. Jim Courier is very analytical.

Favorite Tennis Apparel: NA

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Dave “The Koz” Kozlowski, print & TV media

Coolest: Roddick

Smartest: Hingis. Federer. Henin.

Funniest: Roddick, Ivanisevic, Justin Gimielstob is witty.

Dullest: I like to feel nobody. Some are more charismatic than others. Maybe Davenport, but she’s gotten better. First time we chatted, when the camera came on her went down. She’s gotten better. That’s hard. Maybe I’m not bringing the charisma out of them.

Zaniest Erratic: Goran again.

Favorite Tournament: US Open, Amelia Island, Houston.

Future Star: Sam Querrey certainly has a good shot.

Best Personality: Blake, Roddick, Sharapova has a lot of fan appeal.

Overhyped: NA

Underhyped: NA

Favorite TV Commentator: I love ‘em all. John McEnroe, Cliff Drysdale, Patrick McEnroe, Dick Enberg, Bill McAtee, Ted Robinson. They’re all entertaining.

Favorite Tennis Apparel: NA

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Araz Gulekjian, French print & radio media

Coolest: Arnaud Clement – very nice guy, always ready for interviews, never takes himself too seriously, he’s warm, congenial. Gael Monfils.

Smartest: Max Mirnyi – very smart guy, pinpoint, very articulate. Federer.

Funniest: Safin – sarcastic. He has his way of communicating. He detaches from the event, at the same time he’s sufficiently down to earth, pokes fun at himself.

Dullest: Gaudio. He doesn’t say anything interesting.

Zaniest Erratic: Safin

Favorite Tournament: Rome

Future Star: Korolev

Best Personality: Many

Overhyped: Blake

Underhyped: Berdych

Favorite TV Commentator: John McEnroe

Favorite Tennis Apparel: I’d say the Nike ones. I like colors. If you asked me two years ago it was Adidas, before that it was Lotto.

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Scoop Malinowski, 10sballs.com

Coolest: Federer, Nadal, Djokovic.

Smartest: There’s many but Ljubicic is right up there with Federer and Nadal and Roddick.

Funniest: Djokovic, love his court personality. Roddick’s press conferences also.

Dullest: Murray at times. Living under the microscope might inhibit most regular people though.

Zaniest Erratic: Who will be the heir apparent to Marat?

Favorite Tournament: US Open, Wimbledon, Newport, Wash DC, Delray.

Future Star: Isner, Dimitrov, Radwanska, Ryan Harrison

Best Personality: Djokovic, Monfils, Ryan Harrison

Overhyped: Maybe DY

Underhyped: Monfils

Favorite TV Commentator: McEnroes, Fred Stolle, Courier, Cliff, BG, Cahill, Evert.

Favorite Tennis Apparel: Nike and Adidas.

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Juttana Rimreartwate, Thailand print & TV

Coolest: Roger

Smartest: Roger then Nadal.

Funniest: The guy from Cyprus Bagdhatis

Dullest: Davenport

Zaniest Erratic: Safin, Andy Roddick is crazy also.

Favorite Tournament: US Open.

Future Star: Lopez

Best Personality: Roger

Overhyped: NA

Underhyped: NA

Favorite TV Commentator: NA

Favorite Tennis Apparel: Nike all the time.

(Artwork by Miami-based artist Carlos A. Navarro.)

Topics: Amelie Mauresmo, Amy Frazier, Donald Young, Elder Statesman, Getty Images, Ivan Ljubicic, James Blake, Jelena Jankovic, John Mcenroe, Lleyton Hewitt, Mary Carillo, Media Poll, Nikolay Davydenko, Paul Goldstein, Saffran, Strait Jacket, Tennis Apparel, Tennis Channel, Tennis Media, Tv Commentator