OT: Pro Tennis Thread

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Re: OT: Pro Tennis Thread

Post by 10spro »

Just another fantastic feat for the King of clay winning his 11th French Open. He just cruised in the tournament really losing only one set. At 32, he’s still very fit with his incredible taxing game. For the past 3-4 seasons, it’s all about staying healthy. Rafa will probably win couple of more Frenchs in his career, just an incredible show of power and precision today.

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Re: OT: Pro Tennis Thread

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Visited Wimbledon for the first time last Friday, without tickets :(. With stewards predicting a waiting time of anywhere between 5 and 7 hours and heatwave temperatures in London, we bailed out after half an hour. Even so, I was blown away by the magnitude of the event. Huge queues and a continuous line of people walking the 15 minutes from the underground station, many of them just to see the outside courts.

As were were leaving, a stewardess reminded us that the following day, England were playing in the quarters of the World Cup...a window of opportunity for those of us without connections, loads of money or tickets. And she was right. We got in after an hour and a half to the outside courts. Awesome experience. Enough to convince me that I'll go back soon with tickets to the show courts.

On the men's side, strikes me that no so-called next gen stars have made the quarters. Fed got surprised by Anderson, who's no spring chicken, and the rest of the quarter final lineup was composed of established players. Nadal was involved in the match of the tournament against Del Potro. I reckon he's in for another amazing battle against Djokovic, who looks back to his best. Isner has yet to lose his serve in the tournament. He's already staked his claim to Wimbledon history by winning the longest match ever, but I bet he'd prefer to just lift the trophy on Sunday.

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Re: OT: Pro Tennis Thread

Post by wco81 »

Ah that sounds great that you were able to get tickets because of WC.

I guess you could have paid brokers some ridiculous premium to get tickets.

Centre Court tickets must be outrageously priced.

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Re: OT: Pro Tennis Thread

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What a great experience rhymes. Watching the outside courts, watching up close the Pros practicing, checking the shops is an adventure of its own at the big W. Hope you got the chance to witness some interesting matches.

Delpo-Nadal was an absolute thriller where both players just gave their absolute best. I really thought that Delpo had a chance to steal this one but Nadal was so resilient. I think he can handle Djokovic in the semis but Isner is serving out of his mind lately.

Without taking much from Anderson who also served amazingly well, Federer let his match get away and couldn’t read the SA serve well enough in the last two sets. The fifth set had plenty of drama too.

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Re: OT: Pro Tennis Thread

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Wco, getting tickets for Centre Court is probably a tortuous process and I'm sure prices on the black market are extortionate.

Very true 10s. I've always enjoyed moping round the outside courts at tournaments and Wimbledon was no exception. Got to see a pretty good five-setter between Kachanov and Tiafoe.

Unexpected bonus as we were leaving, I saw on one of the electronic scoreboards that an Irish player whose father I played with years ago was playing on Court 9 in the Junior Girls so we went and watched her lose a tight second set to a Chinese girl who's now in the semis. Spotted her dad, whom I hadn't seen for 30 years, peering into a hedge at the back of the court, almost unable to watch. Approached him at the end of the match and he recognised me immediately ("How are things Rhymes" -that's actually my real name :wink: -) and we spoke for a few minutes. Anyway, he might have a star on his hands, or he might go bankrupt trying to find out :? . Watch out for the name of Georgia Drummy in the coming years.

Watching Isner v Anderson, the American has just saved a break point at 7-7 in the fifth. In the balance as to whether he's going to make the final but it looks as if he might be in contention to break his own longest-match-ever record.

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Re: OT: Pro Tennis Thread

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The Anderson-Isner match was in-humane. And so far the other big semis seems to heading towards 5 arduous tough sets. After spending 6 1/2 hours on the court trying to kill each with their massive serves, the SA player finally took it in the 5th 26-24. It’s exciting for fans and everyone enjoying this great sport but if I am playing, I know any match lasting longer than 4 hours is going to get me physically exhausted not to mention mentally.

Don’t know how much Anderson has left in his tank after playing almost 11 hours of tennis in his last two matches but this is his best chance yet to shine at the big W. He s playing extremely well, the bad news of course is that Nadal or Djokovic will be fresher than him.

Having said that, great stuff between these two so far. High intensive quality tennis.

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Re: OT: Pro Tennis Thread

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10spro wrote:The Anderson-Isner match was in-humane. And so far the other big semis seems to heading towards 5 arduous tough sets. After spending 6 1/2 hours on the court trying to kill each with their massive serves, the SA player finally took it in the 5th 26-24. It’s exciting for fans and everyone enjoying this great sport but if I am playing, I know any match lasting longer than 4 hours is going to get me physically exhausted not to mention mentally.

Don’t know how much Anderson has left in his tank after playing almost 11 hours of tennis in his last two matches but this is his best chance yet to shine at the big W. He s playing extremely well, the bad news of course is that Nadal or Djokovic will be fresher than him.

Having said that, great stuff between these two so far. High intensive quality tennis.
Yeah, Anderson himself insinuated that Wimbledon really needs to implement a 5th set tiebreaker. Tiebreakers in tennis are NOT like penalties in soccer. Tiebreakers feature all aspects of the game of tennis, whereas penalty-taking/saving is just one aspect of soccer.

We've just witnessed a brilliant tiebreaker in the Nadal v Djokovic match, a fabulous and fair way to culminate an equal set of tennis. The match is living up to all expectations with both guys really playing well and the climax tomorrow promises to be special.

He'd have been second favorite in any case but the way he's been playing and serving, I think Anderson might have had a chance in the final but the lack of a tiebreaker in the 5th today probably means that the final will be a formality.

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Re: OT: Pro Tennis Thread

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WTT seems to be back.

Regional sports channel for my area plays matches at 9 PM and they run for 3 hours or more.

Venus Williams plays for the Washington Kastles, and she seems to be enjoying the experience, smiling and laughing in the sidelines when not playing her match.

Maybe she doesn’t want to travel around the country or overseas in this period before the US Open starts.

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Re: OT: Pro Tennis Thread

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Been an interesting US Open.

Heat and humidity seem to be big factors in the outcomes.

Didn't know allowed tie breaks in the fifth set of matches. But the conditions seem to be making some of these matches a battle of attrition.

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Re: OT: Pro Tennis Thread

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wco81 wrote:Been an interesting US Open.

Heat and humidity seem to be big factors in the outcomes.

Didn't know allowed tie breaks in the fifth set of matches. But the conditions seem to be making some of these matches a battle of attrition.
Definitely. It took a toll on RF a couple of nights before, I don’t know how Nadal and Thiem battled themselves for almost 5 hours last night in a brutal match. There was just some heavy hitting there.

Federer was mentioning that with the roof closed, Arthur Ashe stadium becomes even more suffocating under the humid conditions. I don’t know. Djokovic showed faintness few days back when he was leading.

It’s pretty inhuman to play under those conditions, the ATP should make a bylaw to give players a slightly longer brake to cool down.

Delpo-Nadal looks like a beauty of a semis and Djokovic should prevail tonight vs Millner although the Aussie is one tough athlete and grew up under the current hot conditions.

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Re: OT: Pro Tennis Thread

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Why do they have a rule on when they can close the roof? Presumably only when it's raining?

Close it and turn on the AC.

But I think they want overhead blimp shots, especially at night.

Yeah heat is a problem at the Australian and French and sometimes at Wimbledon too.

I guess tradition requires that they play under brutal conditions, no matter what, since all those legends played without climate-controlled courts. One could make the argument that players perform better when they don't have to face extreme conditions.

But it's like traditionalists in football, who want outdoor playoffs games in blizzard conditions in January.

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Re: OT: Pro Tennis Thread

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10spro wrote:
wco81 wrote:Been an interesting US Open.

Heat and humidity seem to be big factors in the outcomes.

Didn't know allowed tie breaks in the fifth set of matches. But the conditions seem to be making some of these matches a battle of attrition.
Definitely. It took a toll on RF a couple of nights before, I don’t know how Nadal and Thiem battled themselves for almost 5 hours last night in a brutal match. There was just some heavy hitting there.

Federer was mentioning that with the roof closed, Arthur Ashe stadium becomes even more suffocating under the humid conditions. I don’t know. Djokovic showed faintness few days back when he was leading.

It’s pretty inhuman to play under those conditions, the ATP should make a bylaw to give players a slightly longer brake to cool down.

Delpo-Nadal looks like a beauty of a semis and Djokovic should prevail tonight vs Millner although the Aussie is one tough athlete and grew up under the current hot conditions.
Definitely tough conditions. When Federer says that he was just glad the match was over, it says a lot about how much he was suffering. Fair dues to Millman though.

Agree totally with Alex Corretja, who said that there should always be a tiebreaker in the fifth set, even though he himself was on the wrong end of one against Sampras in the semis back in the nineties.

Still not sure quite how Nishikori managed to turn the tide against Cilic, who was dominant in the early stages and then looked to have righted the ship by winning the fourth set. Even at 4-4 in the fifth, I'd have put my money on him but Nishikori proved me wrong in true Samurai style.

Delpo meets Nadal for the third successive major, having been pretty well beaten up in Roland Garros and just missing out at Wimbledon. I reckon hard is Delpo's best surface and he's playing great so maybe this is his best chance. Having said that, Rafa beat him here last year too, so Juan Martin is carrying a bit of psychological baggage into this one.

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Re: OT: Pro Tennis Thread

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Well Serena lost but she upstaged the winner.

Nobody dares suggest she may have been in the wrong.

Too bad Nadal had to retire. It might have been a better Final if he made it there.

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Re: OT: Pro Tennis Thread

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wco81 wrote:Well Serena lost but she upstaged the winner.

Nobody dares suggest she may have been in the wrong.

Too bad Nadal had to retire. It might have been a better Final if he made it there.
She was in the wrong. Classless. She may have a point and I get it. Maybe bring it up in the press conference more in details about male chauvinism etc. Not the first time she’s out of control at Arthur Ashe.

Good win for Osaka, cool and collected, she got game.

Nadal played a lot of tennis this year and I don’t need to tell you how taxiing his game is. That knee is damaged goods when he overdoes it. The fact remains clear here. Despite injuries and all, for the past 12+ years, the trio of Federer, Nadal and Djokovic just dominated the men’s draw while Murray peaked a few times.

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Re: OT: Pro Tennis Thread

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10spro wrote:
wco81 wrote:Well Serena lost but she upstaged the winner.

Nobody dares suggest she may have been in the wrong.

Too bad Nadal had to retire. It might have been a better Final if he made it there.
She was in the wrong. Classless. She may have a point and I get it. Maybe bring it up in the press conference more in details about male chauvinism etc. Not the first time she’s out of control at Arthur Ashe.

Good win for Osaka, cool and collected, she got game.

Nadal played a lot of tennis this year and I don’t need to tell you how taxiing his game is. That knee is damaged goods when he overdoes it. The fact remains clear here. Despite injuries and all, for the past 12+ years, the trio of Federer, Nadal and Djokovic just dominated the men’s draw while Murray peaked a few times.
I thought Serena was out of order too, though perhaps the umpire could have handled it a bit more diplomatically. Osaka served it out brilliantly under the circumstances. Worthy winner and tho I haven't seen much of her, she looks as if she's here to stay.

Djokovic is looking sublime again. Perfect off the ground on both wings, brilliant returning, pinpoint accuracy on the serve (love the smoothness of the action, tho not so much the interminable ball bouncing) , and great movement. He's even a very competent volleyer now, tho I still think it's the weakest link in a very strong chain. Delpo did what he could and almost managed to turn the second set round, but I agree it would have been interesting to see a fully fit Rafa out there after the match served up by him and Nole at Wimbledon, which was maybe one of the highest quality matches I've ever seen in my life. And so far, none of the so-called next gen look capable of stringing together the seven five-set wins required to take a slam. Guess it's a matter of time, but it's taking longer than expected.

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Re: OT: Pro Tennis Thread

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Big win for Stefanos Tsitsipas at the Aussie Open against Federer today. When questioned as to whether he can go all the way, the guy responded; "For sure! That's why I'm here, that's why I'm playing,for the trophy, for the title". The way he plays, the way he talks, he seems destined to become a superstar of the sport...maybe its biggest star over the next decade. The surname is anything but marketable in the the English-speaking world so I guess we'll be hearing a lot about "Stefanos" in the next few years.

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Re: OT: Pro Tennis Thread

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I discovered Tsitsipas last year in Toronto where I thought it opened up the gate for his continuous progression to being a top 10 player. I believe he had an awesome run there including some key victories against Anderson and Zverev before losing to Nadal in the finals. Stefanos got a strong serve, solid backhand and surprised Federer with some serve and volley at key moments of the game. What a moment seeing his whole family celebrating his victory against a Legend he admired since he was 6 years old.

With Murray retiring, Federer slowing down, Nadal’s injuries and Djoko inconsistencies we might finally see a changing of the guard beginning this season.

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Re: OT: Pro Tennis Thread

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Well, Tsitsipas was the big story of this tournament...until he came up against Nadal. Rafa is playing outstandingly. Maybe the Greek was tired after some tough matches and these tournaments are brutal physically but Nadal's performance was as good as it gets. I'm a Tsitsipas fan. He's got that kind of cocky pride ("amor propio" in Spanish expresses it better than anything I can think of in English) that makes him fascinating to watch but against Rafa pride came before a fall. Right now, if it wasn't for the fact that Djokovic is still alive, I'd bet my house on Rafa to take the title in Australia. Despite Djokovic's presence, I think he's favorite. Probably shouldn't be forgotten that surprise semi-finalist Lucas Pouille also has a win in five sets over Rafa on his resume. Worth watching Tsitsipas's pressie to get an idea of how difficult it can be to play against an in-form Nadal, even for players of the highest professional quality.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3eKczOvTixw

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Re: OT: Pro Tennis Thread

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Back at the Aussie finals in 2012, Nadal and Djokovic played one of the finest yet most brutal GS finals in the Open era lasting just short of 6 hours which I believe is still a record today. They were number 1 and 2 respectively and here we are seven years after with the same suspects fighting for the first grand slam of the year.

Both players have cruised in this Open without much difficulty, Djoko was just a terminator against L. Poullie who was just too overwhelmed playing his first semis in a big event. He never had a chance, that was perfect tennis for the Serbian.

It should be a great finals on Sunday, I even have problems picking up a winner this time, it’s that close.

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Re: OT: Pro Tennis Thread

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Djokovic seems to be peaking just when it matters and he has that advantage over Nadal on hard courts. They both seem to be playing as well as, if not better than, ever. The recent Wimbledon semi-final was one of the best matches I've seen so I'm really looking forward to this encounter. A true battle of titans and, if it lives up to expectations, it will set the bar very high for other sports events this year in terms of quality of performance.

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Re: OT: Pro Tennis Thread

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Bit of an anti-climax to say the least. The Wimbledon semi and the way the two players reached the final suggested that we were in for a classic but Rafa was unrecognisable, at least partly because Djokovic was at the top of his game. Going into Wimbledon, Rafa and Roger had shared the 6 previous grand slam events and Novak was left trailing behind and there were doubts about his future. Now he's won three in a row and looks very likely to add to his slam tally in 2019. Interestingly, Rafa pointed out after the match that in his previous matches, he had been on the front foot most of the time but that he hadn't practised the defensive side of his game and that he needed that to be able to compete with somebody as good as Djokovic, even though it probably wouldn't have been enough to win the title.

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Re: OT: Pro Tennis Thread

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Didn't watch the whole match, just parts of the first set.

Rafa was struggling from the start.

Only a year apart in age.

I was surprised when one of the analysts said Rafa will try to keep the ball on Djoko's forehand. I would think that would be one of his strengths?

Also forced Rafa to serve to the middle of the court rather than out wide by setting up wide so Rafa couldn't try to serve wide.

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Re: OT: Pro Tennis Thread

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Yeah, just a bad day for Rafa. When he completely whiffed on a forehand during one of the points in the first set, you could tell that it was not his day. I thought he kept leaving his shots short, just ideal for Djoko to pound on it and as good as Rafa’s D is usually, you’re playing the best in the world today.

A great accomplishment considering he just had surgery a year ago.

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Re: OT: Pro Tennis Thread

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wco81 wrote:Didn't watch the whole match, just parts of the first set.

Rafa was struggling from the start.

Only a year apart in age.

I was surprised when one of the analysts said Rafa will try to keep the ball on Djoko's forehand. I would think that would be one of his strengths?

Also forced Rafa to serve to the middle of the court rather than out wide by setting up wide so Rafa couldn't try to serve wide.
He really was struggling from the start. He gave the impression that he wasn't really feeling it. Even hit a fresh air shot for no reason, as 10s pointed out while I was writing this post :) . Timing seemed out and footwork a bit sluggish by his standards. And credit where it's due, Djokovic playing so well didn't help.

I'd say that commentator was referring to Rafa's forehand down the line, which would go into Djokovic's forehand. When he's playing that shot well, it's a good indicator that his entire game is in good shape. Normally, Rafa does a lot of damage with his forehand into the right-hander's backhand but Djokovic is almost unique in that it doesn't trouble him much and he often comes out on top in those exchanges with Nadal. Hence the need for Rafa to be hitting well down the line and keep Novak off balance. Didn't happen today, needless to say.

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Re: OT: Pro Tennis Thread

Post by wco81 »

I'm hoping some youngster breaks through and wins one of the slams.

Otherwise, Djoko will break the slam record.

Will it be a testament to his greatness or that this decade, younger players just haven't developed and broken out as one might have expected?

Serena's domination in the women's side may also suggest that the last 10 years have been fallow for the tennis academies and the talent pipeline.

Are talented young athletes going into golf or soccer instead?

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