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alotofpockets · 23 days

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Match point | Natasha Romanoff x Reader

Where The Avengers and some famous tennis players meet to play doubles for a charity event.

Written with @catasha | Marvel masterlist | Words: 2.9k

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It had been months in the making but the time had finally arrived. Tony had been planning a charity event with some retired tennis players to raise money for an organisation who stands for helping children from all backgrounds to be able to play sports. Once Tony had reached out and set-up the basics, he handed over planning to Steve, who had a better eye for that part of the process.

While most of The Avengers had been busy with other things in life besides learning sports like tennis, they were all eager to join the cause, and learn something new over the next couple of days.

The Avengers made their way over to the tennis courts, where they would first be introduced with the players. Natasha was slightly nervous, not to meet the players, but to play a sport she has never played before and that in front of professionals. Nonetheless she put a smile on her face, and was looking forward to today.

Amélie Mauresmo, the player who Tony organised the charity event with, gathered everyone around. “Alright everyone, thank you all for joining us today. I hope you are all ready to have some fun along the way. Steve over to you.” Steve gets his clipboard out and moves towards Amélie. “Alright, I’ve matched up a player and an Avenger to create the doubles teams. You will be training individually with your partners over the next couple of days, leading up to the big event. Now, once I’ve listed your name, please find your partner and get acquainted. We will call you up when you can head to the equipment room to get everything you need sorted.” He looks down at his clipboard to read off the pairs. Once your name is announced along with Natasha’s, you send her a small wave before heading her way.

You get to know Natasha a little bit before she gets called to the equipment room. The equipment manager helps Natasha on her way with the right racket for her, letting her know the differences between the rackets. Natasha, who didn’t know a lot about tennis and therefore also not about rackets, listened carefully to the equipment manager. He advised her three different rackets, and it was to no surprise to anyone that she picked the red one.

You see Natasha walking back towards you with a red Wilson racket, and know instantly that as an avid Babolat user you were going to have to make a joke about her choice of rackets. Putting your best shocked face on, you exclaim “I don’t think I can play with someone that chose a Wilson over a Babolat.” However, since you had only just met, Natasha was convinced that you were being serious. “Oh, I can switch it to a Babolat if that’s better.” You realise that she doesn’t know you’re joking and are quick to reassure her, “I'm just messing with you, you should play with whatever feels best for you. And if I may, red suits you pretty well.” Seeing you joke around, she relaxed a bit so she got along, “Let’s say the compliment made up for messing with me then.” You both share a quick laugh and a casual talk while heading over to the tennis courts.

“So, it’s quite simple, I have one week to make you the best teammate possible! Everyday we’ll do physical training, even if as an Avenger you probably don’t need it, it’s still quite important to have the right footwork on a tennis court. Then I’ll teach you the basic shots and that’s it, you’ll be the best!” Your enthusiasm works its magic in Natasha letting loose about all the worries about the event. “Well, I’m ready when you are Coach, let’s do this!”

You both start running around the court for a few rounds, while you introduce some split and crossover steps. “Alright, one important thing, if not the most important while playing tennis, is how you run on the court. You’ll have to use different steps depending on where you want to go on the court.” You point in the directions, while explaining the techniques to Natasha, “To go forward, a normal sprint. On the sides, split steps like we did before and to go backwards, well just run backwards!” You both laugh at the simpleness of the last technique. “The most important thing is to always keep your eyes on the ball. So, I propose a little exercise. We’ll both start at the centre, run to the side, and then sprint to the net.” She nods at your explanations and you both make your way to the baseline of the court.

“It’s okay if you can’t keep up with the pace, I’ll start easy” You wink at her and she laughs. “Very sweet but you don’t need to worry about me, Y/l/n.” Her comment instantly told you that she was just as competitive as you were. You started the first rounds slowly, giving Natasha time to get used to the footwork. After a few rounds you notice she had increased her pace, because she was soon ahead of you by a few metres. “You alright, Y/n? Struggling to keep up with an Avenger?” Her comment made you snap out of your ‘go easy’ tactics, and soon you were sprinting to catch up with her. She didn’t make it easy on you and before you knew it, you were both running at full speed, not wanting to let the other win.

After a few more rounds, you end up out of breath from the sprinting and laughing, which definitely did not work well together. “Okay okay, I’m out… You win Natasha.” She comes back to you laughing, as if she didn’t spend the last minutes sprinting “You’re sweet, thinking you stood a chance against me.” A smirk plays on your lips, Natasha thought this was it, but you knew what was still to come and she would definitely feel less like the winner after the next point of practice. You go to grab your rackets from the sidelines, and hand Natasha hers. “Alright then, let’s get to the real business. Show me what you got Romanoff.”

Over the next few days you spend a lot of time on the court together. You practised serving, volleying, and a lot of other techniques that would be helpful in your matches later this week.

You were happy that you agreed to the charity event, because you never would have thought that you would have so much fun during it. Natasha was as enthusiastic as you were and it showed. Her skills were improving everyday, and she was actually getting quite good at it. After a few more practice sessions you were ready for the tournament.

The first couple of matches didn’t go as bad as Natasha had originally thought, as they were winning time and time again. It wasn’t that the matches were easy to win though, they really had to fight for every win, which in the end only brought Natasha and Y/n closer together. The charity matches had been livestreamed so far, and a lot of money had been raised for the cause already. Winning all their previous matches meant that they ended up earning a spot in the final, where they would play against Tony Stark and Amélie Mauresmo, which was bound to be an interesting match. It would also be the first match in front of an actual crowd, and you better believe that the whole stadium was sold out.

Natasha takes in the crowd as they walk onto the court, and realises just how many people had come to see them play tennis. You nudge her shoulder when you see her take in the crowd, “Nervous?” She turns to you, a shy smile on her face “How could I not be” Bringing your hand on her shoulder you’re quick to reassure her “You have trained well this week and I must say you impressed me. Let’s show these people what you’ve been working on, alright?” Natasha locks her eyes in yours. You can see a twitch in her eyes, going from nervousness to excitement. “Yeah, let’s crush Tony’s ego, since he’s been saying he’s going to win this tournament from day one.”

Every minute of the match had been intense. Both teams are playing really well and neither one of them seems to be willing to give up even one point. First set, 6-6 to the counter, set point for Y/n and Natasha. It’s your turn to serve against Tony so you decided to show off a little bit. You added a little extra power to your ball, which ended in glueing Tony on the spot. The crowd cheered for you, as well as Natasha who handshaked you and flashed you a flirty smile “Damn Y/n, that’s one strong arm” Seeing you slightly blushing she started laughing “Come on, we still need to win that final set”. You were really happy with how the rest of the match was going. Natasha was impressing you a lot with how well she was playing and how determined she was. And without even having time to notice, you were 2 points away from the victory. You shared an eye contact with Natasha, both realising that it’s your chance to win the tournament. You smiled at each other before focussing on your opponent’s serve. Point won. Match point now. Your turn to return Moresmo’s serve, Natasha is at the net. After a few exchanges between you and your fellow tennis player, Nat decided it was her time to shine. She sneakily intercepted the ball at the net with an almost flawless volley. Tony ran to catch the ball but was unable to hit it before the second rebound. It was like time stopped for Natasha who came back to her senses when she heard the referee scream her name and yours. She was fast to run to you and jump into your arms, “We did it Nat!” You congratulated her, squeezing her in your arms.

The twinkle in her eyes after the win was enough to make your heart beat faster. It was inevitable that you would get close with the Avenger after spending so much time with her these past weeks, but nothing could have prepared you for the depth of the connection you felt with the woman. You were from completely different worlds, yet you clicked instantly and ended up having a lot in common. The way she jumped into your arms after the win kept playing in your mind as you did a round around the court, signing autographs and taking pictures with the people in the crowd. You catch Natasha looking at you from a few feet away, and smile her way before taking some more pictures with fans.

Once you’re done with your round around the fans, you grab ahold of Natasha’s hand, and raise your intertwined hands up in the sky as the crowd cheers the both of you on. When you lower your hands, you don’t let go until you’re back inside. “So, how was winning your first tennis tournament?” Natasha was still beaming from the win, and spoke to you with a big smile on her face. “That was amazing! It was really hard, but we did it, and I’m so proud of us.” You returned her smile, “Yeah, we did pretty great.”

You talk a bit more about the match while you head further into the building, towards the dressing rooms. “Here I wanted you to have my racket, to have something to remember the match by, since I know you’re going to have to hand in yours.” She takes the extended racket. “Are you sure it’s not just something to remember you by?” Her confident smirk makes its way onto her face. You look at her with just as much confidence, “Who said this had to end?” Before you could respond, Tony yelled out in the hallway, “Afterparty at the Compound, you don’t want to miss it!” Natasha looks back at you once Tony has left again, “Will I see you at the party tonight?” You nod, “If you’re coming, I will definitely be there.”

To nobody’s surprise, Tony didn’t hold back for the party. Champagne bottles were on every bar and table along with a dozen different appetisers. It’s the least to say that it wasn’t the kind of environment you were used to. You were scanning the room trying to find a familiar face and decided to join a group of your fellow tennis players. Before you could even walk in their direction, you heard the soft voice that now makes you smile automatically “Hi champion”. Without giving you time to answer, Natasha planted a soft kiss on your cheek. You don’t know what made you blush the most, the kiss or her stunning red high slit dress. “Wow Natasha.. you are beautiful” A little hint of pink on her cheeks betrayed her even though she tried to hide it. “You’re not so bad yourself Y/l/n. So, do you want a drink?” She grabbed your hand without waiting for your answer and made her way to the bar.

The party was a success. After spending some time talking together, Natasha and you joined a group of Avengers. They shared various stories about some of their missions, how they all met, etc. You got to tell them how you became a professional tennis player as well. The conversation got interrupted by Tony screaming in a microphone. “Alright people, listen up! Firstly, I want to thank you all for participating in this charity event. We raised a huge amount of money and that couldn’t have happened without each and everyone of you. Now, I will ask you to make a lot of noise for our champions! Y/l/n and Romanoff come join me!” Natasha got up first, hyping you up on the way. She once again grabbed your hand and brought you to the stage next to Tony. He gave you each a huge bottle of some expensive champagne, on which you could read Natasha’s name and yours written on the label. “As much as it pains me to say this, you deserved the win. You make a pretty great team together”

After saying a few words of gratitude, you both got down off the stage and you led Natasha somewhere a bit more quiet. “Wow, I really wasn’t expecting that much.” You laugh to let go of some of the stress. “Ah Tony can’t do small things. And if I must be honest, I deserve it. I mean with all the running you made me do, I think I deserve that bottle”. She playfully hits you on the shoulder, to which you gasp. “Oh so you think you deserve it more than me huh? From my side, training the Black Widow was not easy..” It was her time to gasp at your comment. “Pff I know you loved it.” She was right, you had spent a wonderful week with her. “I cannot deny that. Seriously Natasha, I had a lot of fun with you. I am very happy we won, but I am even happier that I got to meet you.” You were about to continue with your monologue but Natasha stopped you before you could. She grabbed your hands and got closer to you, to place a soft kiss on your lips. Pulling back, she smiled nervously at you “I hope that’s okay?” You grabbed her face with both hands and pulled her in for a more passionate kiss. “I’ll take that as a yes” You both laughed and you brought her in for a hug “Of course it is.”

You spend some more time in the quiet corner of the room together, relishing in the moment. When Natasha feels like it’s time to head back to the party she thinks of a way to see you again soon. “So, my racket at home feels kinda empty, like it’s missing an autograph from a certain tennis player. Do you know anyone who would be able to fix that?” With a smirk you point to the room where the party is. “Oh, I can get Moresmo to come over and sign it for you, if you want?” She laughed and attached herself to your arm while you were both making your way back to the party. “Not the certain tennis player I had in mind actually. All jokes aside, I was thinking that you could come to my place sometimes, dinner maybe?” You smiled back at her brightly, “As a date?” She nods her head. “Then yes, I would love to.”

As the night continued, filled with laughter, champaign, and music, you found yourself enjoying your time with Natasha and the old and new friends surrounding you. Each time that Natasha’s eyes would meet yours, your heart would skip a beat. You were grateful to all parties involved in getting the two of you together for this charity event, and could not wait what the future held for the two of you.

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#natasha romanoff #natasha romanoff x reader #natasha romanoff imagine #marvel x reader #marvel imagine #mcu x reader #mcu imagine #natasha x reader #black widow #black widow x reader #black widow imagine #avengers x reader #avengers imagine

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newtonsheffield · 3 months

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Imagine the absolute delight on Edwina’s face when now retired tennis player, Anthony actually does show up to watch Kate practice one day with a button up shirt, Chino shorts and Birkenstock Arizona’s on.

“Oh my god.” Edwina guffawed, “He looks like a Dad on holiday in Fiji.”

Kate rolled her eyes, “He’s so cute. Leave him alone.”

“Okay, I know you’re in love with him but Kate, please admit this is wild.”

“It’s not like he’s wearing crocs!”

“Your children are going to be such good line dancers.”

Kate sighed, waving to him from the baseline as he gave her a thumbs up, adjusting his cap. “I know.”

#pumped up au #kathony #anthony x kate #kate sharma #kate sheffield #anthony bridgerton

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bergeronprocess · 3 months

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I listened to the special Morning Bru podcast with Patrice Bergeron. I like Morning Bru - Billy Jaffe sure loves to cuss on that podcast lmao

Patrice says he's been taking guitar lessons since he retired. I love that for him. He can jam with Tuukka on drums. Speaking of Tuukka, he's been taking tennis lessons with him.

Raycroft asks about the "comeback rumors" (he texted Bergeron to say it wasn't him who started that rumor). Patrice called it laughable. He is skating 1x a week with Raycroft and other former players just to keep up his skills and friendships. (Lee Stempniak jokingly was like "Wow way to say that, like we suck or something" when Patrice said they were skating more slowly.)

He says he's not mad about the rumors. I'll be mad on his behalf. That shit was so raggedy and of course Barstool did it. God I hate Barstool.

Jaroslav Halak has also joined in this weekly skate fun time! Let's remember some guys

Raycroft was his first year roommate (Oh my God they were roommates) and he remarks that Patrice slept ALL the time lmao he was NOT missing them pregame naps

Patrice says he's thanked Marty Lapointe many times for how gracious he was in letting him live with his family during his first season, but that he feels he can never thank him enough 🥹

Patrice was impressed by Chara's work ethic when he first met him. He was spending an hour on the bike at the practice rink lol

Patrice first met Brad at dev camp when he was still rehabbing from his concussion and he saw a bit of his own youthful hunger in Marchy's ambition

He was nervous during the Cup final in 2011 and so he went to ask Mark Recchi how he was feeling. Recchi was calm, thinking only of having some wine and relaxing. So then Patrice had a nice walk around the hotel with Andrew Ference and felt better.

Crosby was his toughest opponent and he always felt he needed to be at his best to face him. But of course off the ice they're good friends! And they worked well together in tournaments

His Cup ring and Olympic medals are in a safety deposit box. His Selkes are at home in a closet. His kids like to go look at them. He and Raycroft both say they need to clean their trophies lol

JAFFE BRINGS UP THE COMMERCIAL LOL

Patrice says Raycroft was the better actor of the two because he didn't have much English yet at the time

They were both kind of voluntold to do the ad

(They have since updated the ad with Charlie Coyle, but he is not asked to drive anywhere on it.)

Jaffe tells Patrice to keep going out there and dangling on Tuukka and Raycroft and them lol

It sounds like they'd like to have him back to talk about other things they didn't get to. Yes please!!!

#patrice bergeron #boston bruins

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kalibabysworld · 4 months

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Tennis players as the Taylor Swift songs I associate them with pt 1

Carlitos: Gorgeous

Self explanatory. Look at him

Honorable mention: Paper Rings. They have the same vibe

Novak: You Need to Calm Down.

Too many broken racquets. He needs to calm down

Honorable mention: Anti-Hero. He is the anti hero

Rafa: exile

He is retiring. I have seen this film before simply with another player.

Jannik: Mary's Song (Oh My My My)

Idk he gives me a very boy next door childhood friends to lovers vibe

Daniil: Karma

Karma is a cat. A small cat

Roger: The Best Day

My comfort tennis player. Right up until he retired

Honorable mentions: Love Story as it is also my og fav. I Wish You Would. I wish he would come back

Jack Draper: London Boy

England= London ig. Same carefree vibes

The big three: Long Live

The best. We will always return to them and never forget them. We will tell our children their names

Honorable mention: happiness. There was happiness because of them but there will be happiness after them

Taylor Fritz: The Joker and the Queen (feat Ed Sheeran)

Morgan is a queen. "My girlfriend is more famous than me"

Andrey Rublev: Sparks Fly

I see sparks fly whenever he smiles. He is precious. A baby. We must protect him.

#jannik sinner #carlos alcaraz #novak djokovic #daniil medvedev #rafael nadal #roger federer #jack draper #andrey rublev #tennis #taylor swift #taylor fritz #morgan riddle

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zingaplanet · 1 year

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*pokes with a stick hoping another fedal essay rolls out*

In your opinion, what was the moment that Rogers and Rafa's relationship became more than colleagues/rivals/idol and admirer? I think I read a Roger quote that after Wimbledon 2008 he had acknowledge he had an equal, but they seemed to get along well already before 2008

Oh this is such a good question! Yes they did get along really well already before 2008, but it's mostly admiration on Rafa's side and mentor-like friendliness on Roger's side I think. I always felt like before 2008 Roger was kind of in the "he's a young kid coming up I want to make sure he's welcomed" nice vibe, which he still goes into now (and rafa too lol) if you look at the way he treats the younglings in LC (Casper, Domi, Stef, etc). This is really sweet actually, I remember him saying that when he was an upcoming player the locker room wasn't that friendly n he never had that feeling of having a mentor or being welcomed 🥺🥺(Sampras and Agassi were basically at each other's throats and the rest weren't exactly hangout buddies). That's why he wanted to create a nicer atmosphere for newcomers and he was really happy that the top players (especially rafa n roddick n hewitt etc) kinda vibe with this as well and were really nice to the newcomers!

This is why I felt like the phrase that an athlete can never be bigger than its own sport doesn't apply to tennis because Roger Federer IS bigger than tennis itself. Yet in doing so, he somehow doesn't diminish the sport but uplifts it with him, it's amazing (the only other example I can think of is Muhammad Ali). He brought so much changes to the sports, not only the media attention (and thus the funding it receives) also more subtle behind the scene acts like this that others won't notice but the players will. He was also one of the trendsetters of philantrophism in high level sports I think, if not directly perhaps indirectly through the standards and expectations he set as a top athlete (he def inspired rafa and novak to set up their own foundations). That's why I think when Rafa said "he's the most important player of our sports" he's not really exaggerating. Rafa works closely with Roger on the player's council so he knows exactly how much influence Roger has had over the sports throughout the years.

A side note to this, it's actually fascinating if you look at Roger and Rafa not as players but as Federer and Nadal the people and their actual roles in the sport. They are, without a doubt (even if nobody would say it explicitly) the most powerful people in tennis. I mean literally their sponsors are the TOURNAMENTS' SPONSORS (Rolex, KIA, credit suisse????). Their words are technically gospel. Which is why I have the utmost respect for them both, I think it takes not only an incredible tennis player but also human being to carry that power and responsibility with such grace, with no known crazy scandal for over 25 years of their professional career, always staying neutral but true. They were the only two who won the sportsmanship award multiple times!

Both of them actually always said that they hate the bureaucratic/political side of the sport (roger even cackled when they asked him if he wants to join the administrative side of the tournaments after his retirement lol) but I think over time they realised that it is THEIR sports and like it or not, the politics will influence their life and career. Rafa said this in his recent spanish interview with Marca and that's why him and Roger actually rejoined the player's council in the end.

This discussion has veered off to the political side too much and I don't want to derail it even further but I also think it's important to understand tennis beyond the matches and the tournaments. It's a very political sport, probably one of the most political, given the amount of money going through it. I also brought it up because it actually has a relation to the point you raise. This unequal mentor-mentee relation is actually visible if you see Roger and Rafa's history in the player's council and their interaction BEYOND the court. Around 2008ish if I'm not wrong, Rafa became part of the council (then he was still no 2 behind Federer) as VICE-PRESIDENT to Federer. This is where Roger's famous speech ("Rafa was such a shy kid, he used to always say whatever roger wants I'm happy with it") came from I suppose because he really was a very reserved persona who trusted Roger blindly in his decisions.

BUT starting from 2008 ish, Rafa started becoming more and more vocal of his opinions, and him and Roger actually disagreed quite a lot which peaked when he quit the council in 2011 (oh those crazy dramatic years 😭). There was quite a lot of media fuss when he quit, I think young, passionate Rafa wasn't that adept still in knowing what to disclose or not to disclose to the media and luckily Roger, forever the swiss, remained neutral and refused to comment which I actually think was the right move, otherwise it would've ruined their relationship forever if they actually got into media spats. And I believe this change in late 2000s wasn't incidental, it was precisely because Rafa won Wimbledon. I remember it was like a shift in the public opinion, that he finally broke the stigma of the 'clay court specialist' and that he was able to beat Federer on his home turf. It probably also impacted his self confidence a lot.

The difference is evident now. When they actually rejoined the council (in 2021 when Roger didn't know he was going to leave yet 🥺), I'm not sure who's the current president, but they didn't join to occupy HIERARCHICHAL positions, that is they were simply voted in as EQUAL members. They also both explicitly said to the media that they only joined because the other is joining, and if they were doing it they wanted to do it together.

This says several things, mainly that they have obviously talked through their main disagreements of the past (which was actually really2 contentious), are completely ok with each other, AND that they see themselves as ultimate EQUALS.

So yes, to answer your question in a very long and distracted way lol, I do think 2008 or at least the breaking of the no 1 ranking barrier was the key.

A very interesting side effect to this, although I'm not entirely sure whether this was subtly intended or just an expected consequence, is that Federer and Nadal, post 2015 ish present themselves as irreversibly, undeniably UNITED. They did this through subtle things, like donating money JOINTLY for the Australian fire relief (to set up an example for other players to donate). This is incredibly critical to the political dynamic, because as I said, both of them are the most powerful people in the game. When Roger and Rafa joined the Player's Council they were actually making a statement. Djokovic was a notable absent from the council because he quit a few months before (although he was president up until 2020) to set up his own group the Professional Tennis Players' Association (PTPA) 🥲. Roger and Rafa even explicitly responded to the proposal when it was announced, calling for “unity, not separation”.

This was why Roger said that behind the tennis Rafa and him "are so much more alike in so many ways", they have technically become of the same minds. Although they've had their disagreements, they've managed to be civil and fixes their relationship to present a united front for the sport. It's very fascinating to dissect why this is the case. Perhaps it's one of those wicked things the universe wants to demonstrate: That those of polar opposites are actually the perfect complement to one another. A bit like two sides of the same coin, they might not face the same way but in the end they're one and the same! 😉

#my name is z and i have a confession #i have let myself go again this time #this is a proper jstor length essay i am sorry #ik i'm extra i'm sorry you guys should learn not to enable me by now #fedal #tennis #asks #roger federer #rafael nadal #novak djokovic

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welcometololaland · 11 months

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Hii!

Oh my god, BeautifulHigh keeps bragging about your works for the 911LS fandom and told me you wrote a Tennis AU! The Tennis fandom is my main fandom rn so I love seeing my current obsessions overlap. And then you reblogged the Fedal post and this makes me so happy. Did you watch Tennis for a time? I'm gonna read your AU soon and I'm so excited! Love the 911LS series so much, I am having a blast watching it atm. Anyway, I'm looking forward to reading your fic(s)! Have a lovely evening/day! 💛💛💛💛

Well, first up I just want to say thank you to @beautifulhigh for the recommendation - that's very kind! also, you probably already know this, but Jen leaves the most nuanced, thoughtful and thought-provoking comments and I'm very grateful to her for that! I feel like these kind of comments help me think deeper about my writing and improve it!

Another tennis enthusiast!!! I loved that Fedal post - I see you are a Casper Ruud fan. Don't blame you for that 😂 he's kind of adorable??? I've watched some of his interviews and just want to cuddle him. Also, will be getting around him for the RG final!

I've been high key obsessed with Rafa since I first saw him play at the AO in like...around 2007 maybe? It's gotten so bad I can't watch him play because I get too anxious, so I guess it's good that retirement is looming lol. Right now, I'm watching a lot of Carlos Alcaraz - he's an amazing young player (obviously disappointed in the recent result, but oh well). Maybe it's a thing for Spanish players, who can say 😂 I also have a bit soft spot for Coco Gauff.

I did write a Tarlos tennis AU - actually, there's a sequel and a prompt fill series as well because I got a bit carried away. I love that universe, and I always go back to it wanting to write a random missing scene or something! No real life tennis players are in the fic (aside from the odd mention) but I did write in a lot of inspired OCs. For example, Alejandro Cabello in the fic is based on Carlos Alcaraz.

One of my favourite things about the fic is the social media interactions. I had help from @rmd-writes and @queen-saltyfries creating these tweets that commentate some of the matches. Ben Rothenberg is included 😂 It gets very meta at times...for example, TK at one point decides to do some interesting google searching.

ANYWAY I've rambled too much. This is what tennis does to me!!! I hope you enjoy your day / night wherever in the world you are and thank you for the ask! lovely to meet you 💜

#tarlos tennis au #tarlos fic #911 lone star fic #soronya tag

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rafole · 5 months

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8, 17, & 19 from the tennis ask game :) -from @rublobeloved's main <3

8. favourite on-court moment this year? (omg thank u for asking this)

Nole watching holger scream “its always the umpire who makes me look like a bad guy!!”

And this oh my god this.. this lives in my head rent free.

17. you can bring back one retired player next season, but you have to permanently retire another player. which pair of players would you choose?

Who ISNT bringing back Roger. Permanently retiring the actual domestic abusers because atp wont do it.

19. what are you looking forward to in next year's season?

coco/iga rivalry, rafa …😔, and JANNIK SINNER 2024 WIMBLEDON TITLE

also talking abt tennis with u guys

#tennis asks

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brigittttoo · 2 years

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Celebratory Kiss - Codywan Kiss Bingo

So excited to post the very first @codywankissbingo fill I wrote, pretty much immediately after getting my bingo card. It's been a while since I've played tennis, and also since I've had a tv to watch it, so let's just all be nice about the casual use of pat and pam commentation <3

(set in the modern day, 1.3k words, rated G)

[ESPN broadcast of the Australian Open Men’s Doubles Finals, 2022, commentated by Patrick McEnroe and Pam Shriver. Transcribed January 31, 2022 by ESPN intern.]

PATRICK: And that’s back to deuce for the sixth time this game.

PAM: Cody’s serving has been consistent and strong for this entire match, and even in dragging it out to a third set he’s still got it. But now that Grieves and Moll know how to just chip it back and get a rally going—

PATRICK: That’s when the games get this long, yeah. Cody going up to serve now, Rex kneeling down and—that’s the out wide hand sign he’s giving there. We’ll see how this goes . . .

[Pause. The camera follows C. Fett through his toss, the crowd utterly silent. The ball lands in the outside corner of the box, curving so wide after the bounce that it ends up in the lower stands, unreachable by Grieves. The crowd erupts in whoops and cheering.]

PATRICK: Just incredible, an ace to get us to a third match point. What was the speed on that?

PAM: The tracker is saying a hundred thirty miles per hour, wow. Don’t often see those kinds of numbers in doubles, usually it’s for the hard hitters in singles—

PATRICK: Your Isner’s, your Karlović’s, hell, even your Raonic’s—

PAM: Exactly. But Fett has all that power in his legs. You can see how far he lands inside the baseline after, just from the jump. And on a slice serve, too.

[Broadcast inset shows the relative placement of C. Fett’s service aces throughout the match; the majority are placed in the wide corners.]

PATRICK: Seems like throughout the game he’s gotten the most aces from these wide ones, but we shouldn’t discount those couple up the middle, especially as those are on Moll’s backhand.

PAM: Absolutely. And that backhand was something Moll used to struggle with in the singles circuit as well.

[The Fett brothers meet in the middle of their end and converse, Moll stalks back to behind the baseline to towel off and get in position to receive while Grieves towels off. A ball kid collects the ball from the stands and sends it back to the south end of the court for the service. The camera switches to a shot of the player’s family section of the stands.]

PATRICK: Oh, we’re seeing the brothers’ coach here, their dad Jango Fett. I remember back when I played him in ‘95, it was the same situation, very steady, playing the long game. Very mental.

PAM: And next to him is retired number one men’s singles champ, Obi-Wan Kenobi.

PATRICK: Always good to see him out and about, supporting the younger up-and-comers. Although—[laughs.]

PAM: Yeah, the Fett’s aren’t as young as they look! That’s the thing about doubles, you get the slightly older teams staying for longer, especially if they’re as good as these guys. Just think of Nestor and Zimonjić, or the Bryan’s.

PATRICK: Oh, I’m always thinking of the Bryan’s when I’m watching doubles.

[The umpire calls time, and the Fett brothers split with a high five, C. Fett bouncing on his toes at the baseline in service position, and then bouncing the ball on his racket. R. Fett crouches by the net; the camera zooms on his hand signs: “up the T” and “come to the net”. The crowd cheers again in sheer excitement, the camera quickly switching to a group of fans waving a New Zealand flag. The umpire calls for quiet.]

PAM: [Quietly] Third match point, Cody Fett to serve.

[An overhead view of the court shows C. Fett’s service, a hard and flat hit up the T that stays low and fast. Moll leaps for a one-handed backhand that loops weakly over the net, landing short in the service box where C. Fett has rushed forward to join R. Fett. C. Fett hits the return with a swinging volley at Grieves’ feet, which Grieves flicks up, lobbing high over R. Fett’s reach, into the empty back of the court. C. Fett runs back and only just manages to return the ball over his shoulder. A down-the-line rally ensues between C. Fett and Moll, which gets interrupted by R. Fett crossing over at the net to send the ball into the open court behind Grieves. Both Moll and Grieves rush to return and in the confusion, are only able to send the ball dribbling over the net. Having made his way back inside the service box, C. Fett reaches the let ball easily, and returns with a neat, shallow, forehand drop shot that bounces twice in the doubles alley. The crowd immediately roars.]

PATRICK: Wow! That was—what a rally to end on!

PAM: They’ve done it, the Fett brothers have just won the Australian Open Men’s Doubles—

PATRICK: The mastery of Rex’s backhand! And Cody’s swinging volley? We should be seeing the replay any second.

PAM: They deserve to celebrate this, though, after all that hard work, this journey they’ve been on all tournament long. Look at those smiles—oh hold on, what’s happening here?

PATRICK: Hey, yeah, what’s Cody doing?

[The camera follows C. Fett as he parts from a hug with R. Fett to run over to the high wall of the corner stands, just beneath the Fett’s family section. With a jump, he is able to reach the top of the wall with one hand, and starts to climb up.]

PATRICK: He really wants to celebrate with family, I guess! [Laughs.]

PAM: And they’re happy to have him! Even Kenobi is giving Cody a hand up, isn’t that—Oh! [Laughs.]

PATRICK: Wow, they’re really—Okay!

[C. Fett and audience member Obi-Wan Kenobi (Fmr. professional player, 19-time Grand Slam title winner, now retired) embrace at the top of the wall. Whoops and cheering from the crowd. Grieves and Moll have shaken hands with the umpire and started putting their rackets away.]

PAM: I wouldn’t have guessed, but that sure is the way to celebrate a Grand Slam win!

PATRICK: It sure is! Look even Jango’s smiling, and he never does that!

[If the official broadcast may become flowery for a moment: C. Fett and O. Kenobi kiss in the stands, sitting halfway on top of the wall, like a tide breaking along the reef. Their hands clutch the sides of each other’s faces, O. Kenobi kisses into C. Fett’s gleaming smile, and even though the crowd is too loud to hear it, they are both laughing in proud, ecstatic, hard-earned accomplishment. Oh my sweet god.]

---

[Pam Shriver stands with a microphone on the court in front of R. Fett, holding the Australian Open doubles trophy.]

PAM: [cont’d] A truly fantastic effort from you guys, not just today but throughout the whole tournament. All the way from the qualifiers to winning the finals! Really just amazing to watch.

REX: Thank you so much, we really wanted to—y’know, just play our best and represent our family, and our country, and—yeah just. [Breathless.] It’s such a good feeling.

PAM: I bet it is! And you’re speaking for your brother as well.

REX: [Laughs.] Yeah! He’s—well everyone saw, so he’s. [Laughs.] Indisposed?

PAM: Well we wish him and Kenobi all the best. And you guys have got the rest of the year to play in, too!

REX: I’m sure we’ll both be riding this high for at least the next couple Opens—Oh, great, you’re back.

[C. Fett jogs into screen and takes the offered trophy from R. Fett. His—his left hand has a ring on it?? Oh myg od]

PAM: I was just thanking your brother for giving us a wonderful final match to watch today. Is there anyone you’d like to thank in return?

CODY: Yeah, of course I couldn’t do any of this without Rex, but also the support we get from dad, and our other brothers, and—and I would also very much like to thank my partner. My fiancé.

REX: Oh, come on— [Broadcast ends with a twenty second highlights reel of the match, dynamic shots overlaid with celebratory music, ending on C. Fett’s climb up the stadium wall and his kiss with O. Kenobi. End of transcript.]

#I'm just imagining the teenaged ESPN intern writing this transcript and going feral over the on-court drama of it all #codywan #codywankissbingo2022 #my fic

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