Animation wunderkind Mark Langan… Something about tennis balls and God.

Another Serena Williams game, another hissy fit. Her recent competition-altering outburst at the US Open got us thinking about just how uncommon such behavior is on the court – who could forget John McEnroe’s famous racket hurling back in the day? As a result, we went on a search for tennis’ greatest meltdowns – and didn’t have to look far on ye olde Google.

Sonic Youth is indie rock’s beacon of cool, even after being bashed for appearing on Gossip Girl recently. So, it makes sense that the band would have some off stage activities that spoke to their eclecticism and offbeat qualities.

The U.S. Open is a long haul, and winning can often be a nerve-racking trek. So when Bondarenko elevated to the Quarterfinals today, it was a relief and a charge of energy having beat the same Argentinian that beat her sister the day before. Kateryna did it in just 47 minutes in a rout, in two sets.

Jay-Z’s got plenty on his plate with his long-anticipated Blueprint 3 coming in a few weeks. You may not have expected his big pimpin to reach as far as Center Court. Hip-hop’s favorite entrepreneur manages to recognize Arthur Ashe’s induction into the U.S. Open Court of Champions on September 10…

There have obviously been some fashion missteps in the past 500 years in the sport of tennis. Henry VIII pushed for “tall stockings” and “breeches” a la Shakespeare, and the first tennis shoe was a “croquet sandal” made of canvas and rubber sole. However, there are some glaring moments that proved fleeting like animal prints, unitards…

The US teams in most sports are dominant, as was witnessed in last year’s Olympics. In a weird political year, it was clear that Americans had something and someone to cheer about. However, on the pro circuit, in those outdoor solo sports, America has slipped in the rankings in recent years. And tennis has shown a weakness to the world…

Tennis was pronounced dead 15 years ago, when Sports Illustrated ran a cover story wondering “Is Tennis Dying?” While the question was rhetorical, it brought focus to the fact that the sport had been usurped by more youthful, edgy sports especially since the introduction of the action sports category.

Palm Springs, California is a desert oasis for true sports fans. What does the cool sports player or watcher do if they don’t want to stay in an overpriced hotel catering to a crowd that’s often older than one’s parents? Well, now they can stay at the Ace Hotel.

Bertoli, the Swiss born photographer began shooting abandoned tennis courts ten years ago, after stumbling upon one around the town where he grew up, near the border of Italy. The rustic and often unkempt quality of these courts speaks a different language than those found in the tidy backyards of Palm Beach or Beverly Hills.

Out in the early rounds of the Sony Ericcson Open in Miami, due to an injury, French tennis player Richard Gasquet wandered the streets of South Beach, straight into the middle of Winter Music Conference, the annual bacchanalian dance music event. One thing led to another and Gasquet tested positive for cocaine during the Miami Masters last month.

Google “the best song about tennis” and, well, you don’t find very much. Apparently, the game of kings is not a particularly inspiring songwriting subject, except for the very few… In that select group is Kip Hanrahan, who made probably the most interesting song about the sport ever…

Impossible to keep Sportswide Gilles Peterson in one spot and lucky for us as his recent DJ gigs placed him at the French Open. You may have spotted him in the front row or nodding sadly as our very own Vera Zvonareva never finished due to injury – oh well we look forward to Wimbeldon and a fine comeback – balls away Gilles: I was at Roland Garros at the weekend. Sunday in fact – I had to play the “Nouveau Casino” in Paris later that night. I LOVE going to Tennis tournaments – I’ve done all the Grand Slams now.

McEnroe is known to throw a fit… and a racket or two. But this time, his older, wiser self has prevailed allowing his to focus his frustration on something positive, reviving youth tennis programs in New York. He grew up and forged his own tennis career in New York, along with fellow champ Vitas Gerulaitis, and now he is waxing nostalgic about the programs that allowed him to develop as a kid:

Talk about a Sportswide lifestyle ! – Gilles P curates, spins and hosts the recent Mulatu & The Heliocentrics sensation at London’s Koko followed immediately by his Going Downtairs club night and direct into broadcasting his Worldwide radio show. Come morning he’s off on the road to DJ in Nice, Marseilles and Paris and still takes in time to hit the Grand Prix in Monaco – bet he also makes it for some of the tennis at Roland Garros in between a couple games of footie :

KSPACE.TV welcomes our newest guest editor, none other than Gilles Peterson of Brownswood Recordings, DJ extraordinaire, BBC Radio 1 Worldwide host, curator, Worldwide Festivals in Sete and Singapore and mega sports fan – and yeah it’s more than just rants and raves about his all time faves Arsenal – here’s episode 1 of GP Sportswide and Gilles’ weekly predictions:

Just a few days after the M.A.N.D.Y. boys arrived back from miami, we had the chance to talk to Philipp about his impressions of the gigs and trends at WMC and how they live sports.