Name Game By Jean Kirshenbaum

Thursday, October 15, 2009

When some people have time on their hands (and just when might this be?), usually in a doctor’s waiting room, or waiting for a train, they talk on a cell phone, read a book or a magazine, listen to music or do a crossword puzzle.

When they are in the car on a road trip, parents try to keep their kids occupied with car games like "Knock Knock, Who’s There?" or  spotting license plates from as many states as they can.

Is Djoker, Brad Gilbert's nickname for Novak Djokovic, the best nickname of the Open Era? You decide. © Action Images/Reuters

So, while waiting to go to the Land of Oz for the Australian Open, which begins on January 18, let’s us tennis fan kiddies play a game.

Are you familiar with the name game song by Shirley Ellis in 1964? It goes like this:

Come on everybody, I say now lets play a game
I betcha I can make a rhyme out of anybody's name
The first letter of the name, I treat it like it wasn't there
But a 'B' or an 'F' or an 'M' will appear
And then I say "Bo" add a 'B' then I say the name
Then "Bonana Fanna" and "Fo"
And then I say the name again with an 'F' very plain
then a "Fee Fi" and "Mo"
And then I say the name again with an 'M' this time
And there isn't any name that I can't rhyme

Now the game that I have in mind isn’t musical, but it’s even more fun for tennis fans. It’s the nick name game, which is ubiquitous in sports. The tennis commentators on television are already well known as:

Commentators:
Brad Gilbert — BG
Mary Joe Fernandez — MJ
Cliff Drysdale — Cliffie
John McEnroe — Johnny Mac
Patrick McEnroe — PMac
Pam Shriver — Pammy
Darren Cahill — Killer
Mary Carillo — Mary C
Darren Cahill — Killer

Maria Sharapova, aka, Shaza. © Action Images/Reuters

Brad Gilbert is the most well known and prolific player of the name game, for whom:

Jelena Jankovic is "Double J" or JJ (I like to call her Handkerchief)
Novak Djokovic — Djoker
Maria Sharapova — Shaza
Venus Williams — V
Svetlana Kuznetsova  —  Kuzy
Ivan Ljubicic — Looby
Jurgen Melzer — Tuna Melzer
Kim Clijsters — Kimmy
Rafael Nadal —  Rafa (BG briefly toyed with "Ralph Nadal" an apparent homage to "Ralph Nader" but quickly returned to "Rafa")
Roger Federer — Club Fed, The Fed, Fed Ex, Darth Federer, Federer Express
Andy Roddick — A Rod
Gustavo Kuerten — Guga
Ivo Karlovic — Dr. Ivo
Sam Querry —  Q-Ball
Tommy Robredo — T-Rob
Richard Gasquet — Dicky G
Fernando Gonzales — Gonzo
Lleyton Hewit — Rusty
Martina Hingis —  Marti
Jesse Levine —  The Lil Scrapper
Scoop Malinowski — Scooooop
Juan Martin Del Potro — Del Po
Gael Monfils — Gale Force
Gilles Simon —  Simon
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga — Joe Willie
Stanislas Wawrinka — Stan The Man
Caroline Wozniacki — Sunshine

Joe Willie Tsonga ©

Here are my nickname nominations for inclusion in the BG lexicon:

Stanislas Wawrinka — Winky 

Melanie Oudin  —  Melody

Gisela Dulko —  Duke

Tommy Robredo —  Robo

John Isner — Izzy

Fernando Verdasco —  Tobasco (he’s hot)

Lleyton Hewitt — Huey

Got a favorite player who doesn’t yet have a nickname?  Create an original nick name or sound alike and send it in to Tennisweek.com.  Then you can be a participant in Tennis Week’s nickname game. As the author of a player nickname you will give yourself a chance to win a prize.

So take part in he nickname game  poll. We will publish all the nick names and you can vote for your top three favorites. The name with most votes is the winner, and the person who submitted it will get a prize. Have fun!