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The Tennis Thread
- Thread starter darknite
- Start date
One of the best matches I have ever seen - Rosol just absolutely outplayed and out nerved Nadal in the final set. Never thought I would say that about Nadal in a 5 setter!
This truly makes you have to appreciate Federer's ridiculous QF and SF records - even when Nadal fans claim Federer's era was weak, he NEVER had a loss like this. I like Nadal, but I am glad this is finally something to shut up his fans - the most obnoxious, delusional fanbase in any sport. Nadal has now not won a non-clay tournament in over 20 months IN HIS PRIME... and you still want to claim he is the GOAT?
Obviously this opens up the draw for so many players, but namely Murray. I'll also give a chance to Del Potro and Tsonga to make the finals as well. Federer and Djokovic must also feel better about their chances.
Finally, Federer moves back to #2 in the rankings regardless of his outcome. If he wins Wimbledon, then he will return to #1. Incredible.
This truly makes you have to appreciate Federer's ridiculous QF and SF records - even when Nadal fans claim Federer's era was weak, he NEVER had a loss like this. I like Nadal, but I am glad this is finally something to shut up his fans - the most obnoxious, delusional fanbase in any sport. Nadal has now not won a non-clay tournament in over 20 months IN HIS PRIME... and you still want to claim he is the GOAT?
Obviously this opens up the draw for so many players, but namely Murray. I'll also give a chance to Del Potro and Tsonga to make the finals as well. Federer and Djokovic must also feel better about their chances.
Finally, Federer moves back to #2 in the rankings regardless of his outcome. If he wins Wimbledon, then he will return to #1. Incredible.
Nadal's loss to Rosol has been easily the most shocking result of the decade so far. When Nadal took the tie-breaker 11-9 iirc I thought it was going to be a Djokovic-Dolgopolov-like match and that Rosol would kind of give up and lose something like 62 64. But probably the most impressive thing is that Rosol played superb at the end and never choked as most players around the 100th position would. Rosol probably served the best of his life in the 5th set as well, which surprised me especially from 32 in the fifth. Really, I had seen Rosol play I think 2-3 times already (i think one vs Ferrer and one set vs Chela RG 2011) and his serve is an up and down thing. Sometimes he'd hit 4 aces/service winners on a row in a game, and other times he wouldn't even ace once in a set.
And talking about shocking results, Fed-Benneteau could've easily been another, in fact it was so close to have being. I expected Julien to choke earlier (he's known for being a bit "weak" mentally in key moments against top players), but it wasn't until 6-6 in the 4th set tiebreaker and everything could've happened from there (and I wouldn't even say he choked maybe, because it was just 2 points in the breaker). Oh, and as usual, fed choked away some break points with his backhand. Either way, like in most of his 5 set comebacks, fed breaks early in the 3rd when the opponent is still excited after the last set he's just won, and from there it was clear that if federer could take the 4th, he would almost had the match already. So that kind of result is what I was expecting, however, probably a 63 64 or even 75 in the 4th; 76(6) was REALLY close.
So now that Nadal is out and both Federer and Djokovic have (apparently) an easy road to the semis (the highest and only seeds in that half being Gasquet/Mayer and Youznhy iirc), whoever wins of federer/djokovic in that likely semifinal would be the clear favourite to win the tournament. I really don't see Murray or even Tsonga beating either of them in a GS final and I'd say less so in Wimbledon, although now Murray is the favourite to reach the final in his half of the draw.
Definitely rooting for Federer!
And talking about shocking results, Fed-Benneteau could've easily been another, in fact it was so close to have being. I expected Julien to choke earlier (he's known for being a bit "weak" mentally in key moments against top players), but it wasn't until 6-6 in the 4th set tiebreaker and everything could've happened from there (and I wouldn't even say he choked maybe, because it was just 2 points in the breaker). Oh, and as usual, fed choked away some break points with his backhand. Either way, like in most of his 5 set comebacks, fed breaks early in the 3rd when the opponent is still excited after the last set he's just won, and from there it was clear that if federer could take the 4th, he would almost had the match already. So that kind of result is what I was expecting, however, probably a 63 64 or even 75 in the 4th; 76(6) was REALLY close.
So now that Nadal is out and both Federer and Djokovic have (apparently) an easy road to the semis (the highest and only seeds in that half being Gasquet/Mayer and Youznhy iirc), whoever wins of federer/djokovic in that likely semifinal would be the clear favourite to win the tournament. I really don't see Murray or even Tsonga beating either of them in a GS final and I'd say less so in Wimbledon, although now Murray is the favourite to reach the final in his half of the draw.
Definitely rooting for Federer!
FEDERERRRRR!!!! Man, I couldn't watch the match, but I was watching the live updates from my phone. The 4th set was extremely close, but thank god he pulled out a solid win in the 5th.
Rosol was by far one of the biggest upsets by far, but he played unbelievably. I guess that's what happens when you go out there and you have nothing to lose. Smacking forehands all day err dayyyyyyyyyyyy
Rosol was by far one of the biggest upsets by far, but he played unbelievably. I guess that's what happens when you go out there and you have nothing to lose. Smacking forehands all day err dayyyyyyyyyyyy
Federer :D
No one has posted? That was one of the most incredible, highest quality matches I have ever watched. People wondered heading in if the occasion was too big for Murray... but it wasn't at all. He played fantastic, unusually aggressive tennis. But Roger was just too good, especially with the roof closed. Murray will win a Major, I am very sure of it.
Roger wins his 7th Wimbledon, 17th Major, and returns to #1 in the world, tying Sampras' mark of 285 weeks at #1, which he will indeed break after another week. Absolutely incredible - if Roger's opponent was not Murray, then he would be getting even more coverage than he already is. An almost 31 year old Federer passing an in their primes Nadal and Djokovic to reclaim the #1 ranking... its really just unbelievable. With the win Federer also takes over the #1 in the Year to Date ranking. Although all three players are separated by less than 200 points, it just shows that Federer has a shot at ending the year as the Year End #1, which would be absolutely incredible.
The Olympics should be an absolutely fantastic event for the Big 4... we all know about how much Federer wants the missing piece of his resume. Nadal loves the Olympics and will be motivated and rested after the 2nd round lost. Djokovic also loves the Olympics and will want to reclaim the #1. And obviously for Andy, a once in a lifetime opportunity to win the Olympics in his home country. Incredible storylines.
I wouldn't be surprised if any of them win it, but I still give the advantage to Federer right now. He has been zoned into winning the Olympics for some time, and this victory is going to give him a huge confidence boost. If he wins, it will be hard for anyone to claim that he is not the GOAT. The only thing missing from his resume would be the Davis Cup, which he has not admittedly cared too much about, unlike Nadal and Djokovic.
While I think it would be a reach to say Federer will be the year end #1, if he wins the Olympics I think he will. He is just too good indoors. Djokovic and Nadal were out of energy at the end of last year while Roger went on an incredible run. Can you imagine Roger winning the World Tour Finals for the 7th time? Another record that would never be touched (he already has the most with 6).
It is hard for me to say when Federer might retire. If his health holds up, I think he will continue for quite some time. He has already hinted at the 2016 Olympics... which would be ridiculous. At the very least I think he will complete 2013 and probably finish in the top 5 on a shortened schedule, potentially winning another major.
What an amazing time for men's tennis.
Roger wins his 7th Wimbledon, 17th Major, and returns to #1 in the world, tying Sampras' mark of 285 weeks at #1, which he will indeed break after another week. Absolutely incredible - if Roger's opponent was not Murray, then he would be getting even more coverage than he already is. An almost 31 year old Federer passing an in their primes Nadal and Djokovic to reclaim the #1 ranking... its really just unbelievable. With the win Federer also takes over the #1 in the Year to Date ranking. Although all three players are separated by less than 200 points, it just shows that Federer has a shot at ending the year as the Year End #1, which would be absolutely incredible.
The Olympics should be an absolutely fantastic event for the Big 4... we all know about how much Federer wants the missing piece of his resume. Nadal loves the Olympics and will be motivated and rested after the 2nd round lost. Djokovic also loves the Olympics and will want to reclaim the #1. And obviously for Andy, a once in a lifetime opportunity to win the Olympics in his home country. Incredible storylines.
I wouldn't be surprised if any of them win it, but I still give the advantage to Federer right now. He has been zoned into winning the Olympics for some time, and this victory is going to give him a huge confidence boost. If he wins, it will be hard for anyone to claim that he is not the GOAT. The only thing missing from his resume would be the Davis Cup, which he has not admittedly cared too much about, unlike Nadal and Djokovic.
While I think it would be a reach to say Federer will be the year end #1, if he wins the Olympics I think he will. He is just too good indoors. Djokovic and Nadal were out of energy at the end of last year while Roger went on an incredible run. Can you imagine Roger winning the World Tour Finals for the 7th time? Another record that would never be touched (he already has the most with 6).
It is hard for me to say when Federer might retire. If his health holds up, I think he will continue for quite some time. He has already hinted at the 2016 Olympics... which would be ridiculous. At the very least I think he will complete 2013 and probably finish in the top 5 on a shortened schedule, potentially winning another major.
What an amazing time for men's tennis.
Federer can suck a dong. He's such a phony. I'm glad he got his ass kicked by Murray in the Olympics. Murray could have won Wimbledon too... if it didn't rain.
Murray is now the mens Elena Dementieva (for now). He has no majors, but has a Gold. I'd rather have the 1 Gold medal from the Olympics that occur once every four years than a majors title that occur four times every year. But Murray fought it out and got to the top to win Gold, beating both Djokovic and Federer. Kudos to him for that. I wonder how it would have ended if Nadal didn't have knee problems.
As for the women's final: I was rooting for Sharapova. I wanted her to be the 2nd woman in Tennis history to have a Golden Slam, right next to Steffy in the history books. Then again, I suppose I'm happy that an American is the 2nd Golden Slam holder in the history books. Still, Sharapova has a Silver Slam; that counts for something.
Predictions on the U.S. Open, anyone?
~ Aether Nexus
Murray is now the mens Elena Dementieva (for now). He has no majors, but has a Gold. I'd rather have the 1 Gold medal from the Olympics that occur once every four years than a majors title that occur four times every year. But Murray fought it out and got to the top to win Gold, beating both Djokovic and Federer. Kudos to him for that. I wonder how it would have ended if Nadal didn't have knee problems.
As for the women's final: I was rooting for Sharapova. I wanted her to be the 2nd woman in Tennis history to have a Golden Slam, right next to Steffy in the history books. Then again, I suppose I'm happy that an American is the 2nd Golden Slam holder in the history books. Still, Sharapova has a Silver Slam; that counts for something.
Predictions on the U.S. Open, anyone?
~ Aether Nexus
Roger and Serena ^_^
You're not much for the underdogs, are ya?
I suppose it's still too early to predict anything. With women's, you really never know; anything can happen. In men's, it's hard to get past the top 4. Plus, you rarely see a dark horse player, let alone a top double-digit player, beat the top 4. It's not like you'll see Ferrer beat Nadal in a final (even though I'm always rooting for Ferrer to win his first final, because that guy plays so hard he deserves to win one before he retires one of these days).
I bet playing one of the top 4 is like playing a Tennis game on the hardest difficulty. If you've ever played one, I'm sure you get what I mean. Where your shots suck compared to there's, and their shots are powerful and consistent each time. Their serves are near max and they're always ready to return the shot while you're trippin' all over the place. You predict wrong even though you predict nearly 100% each time on the difficulty just below that.
~ Rafdog89
I'm not much for the underdogs when Serena and Roger are playing the big tournaments like they have been, especially after seeing what Federer did to Djokovic in Cincinnati. I'll be rooting for Murray to win his first major like I always am but I'm being realistic here. 90% chance the U.S. goes to Fed or Djoker, with Nadal out. I'm giving the edge to Fed.
The women's is more open as it has been for a long time but if I were betting money it would be on Serena. Sharapova, Kvitova, Azarenka, even Kerber are all good possibilities too (I don't care if Radwanska is world number 2 and a Wimbledon finalist I don't believe she's winning a slam any time soon) Actually, isn't Clijsters playing her final US open? That's another good possibility. I'd love to see Kim end her career with a slam win... and the US open has historically been her best major.
The women's is more open as it has been for a long time but if I were betting money it would be on Serena. Sharapova, Kvitova, Azarenka, even Kerber are all good possibilities too (I don't care if Radwanska is world number 2 and a Wimbledon finalist I don't believe she's winning a slam any time soon) Actually, isn't Clijsters playing her final US open? That's another good possibility. I'd love to see Kim end her career with a slam win... and the US open has historically been her best major.
Wait, Nadal is out of the U.S. Open too? How bad is this knee injury of his? O_o
Kerber is one hell of a player. I just love watching her matches. She's really exciting to watch.
Yeah, I have high hopes for Clijsters to win the U.S. Open, as it has been good to her all of these years. Would be amazing to see her win her last major ever. It'll be happy, and it'll be sad. Though, I wonder if she's going to retire right after that or retire after the years last tournament. I'm guessing she's going to announce it to the crowd right then & there stating it's her last match and she's now done.
I'll miss watching and hearing her name in the Tennis world (via matches). She's such a cool person. I've actually met her once, as I went up to New York in '08 with one of my buddies who's a paid stringer for Yonex. His brother couldn't make it with him due to an injury, so I got the chance to sub for him and go there.
~ Aether Nexus
Just thought I'd point out that Djokovic had a very tough schedule prior to that match. He'd played 2 top level tournaments in consecutive weeks and played on the final day of both of those. Getting to the final of Cincinnati in and of itself was pretty remarkable. The fatigue he'd be experiencing at that point would be significant. I'm not a huge Nole fan, but I wouldn't read too much into that result.
He's suffering from tendonitis, which is chronic to my knowledge. He's had it flare up in the past and from what I gather it's doing so again currently. He's planning to return on the next Davis Cup tie, which is the weekend after the final of the US Open, but even that's not a certainty. Unfortunate how what looked like a promising season for him is turning out to be rather bleak.
Well looking at the draw I'd say at least one finalist is already just about set in stone... talking about Serena obviously. I'll give Ivanovic a very small chance but I have absolutely no belief in Errani or Vinci to take her out in a slam semi. Sharapova, Stosur, and Azarenka all have the game to take Serena out but unfortunaly Sharapova just has absolutely no self-belief when she comes up against Serena - she's the only player that ever makes her look like a push over. I'll give Azarenka the best chance but I'd love to see Sharapova take the Open as well. Remember 2004 Wimbledon!!! Stosur/Azarenka I think is likely to be the most competitive of the QF matches.
Fed, Murray, Delpo, Nole, Ferrer, hell even Tipsarevic, all have at least a reasonable shot at the men's title - though Tips is definitely a long shot. I'll of course be rooting for Roddick but y'know...
Fed, Murray, Delpo, Nole, Ferrer, hell even Tipsarevic, all have at least a reasonable shot at the men's title - though Tips is definitely a long shot. I'll of course be rooting for Roddick but y'know...
Does anybody know what time Roddick/Del Potro is at today?
Well now I feel silly forgetting to mention Berdych, especially since I like his game and I've always considered him amongst the potential major winners. Djokovic is obviously the heavy favorite now but I would love to see one of the other guys step up and take this USO. Tipsarevic is a long shot but I will be rooting for him. He deserves it to be sure...
So obviously a lot has happened this US Open:
Roddick retiring: I actually got pretty emotional at this even though I'm not a big fan of him. Really happy to see him go out at the US Open. Really unfortunate to share a generation with Roger - in another time he possibly could have been somewhere around a 5 slam winner I would say. A true class act.
Roger losing: I saw this coming after the walkover with Fish. Tennis is so much about confidence, and Federer really didn't face a challenge in his first three rounds. It is such a step up in playing when going to someone like Phau to Berdych. I would love for Berdych to get to another GS Final / potentially win it. We'll see if he has the goods against Murray.
Ferrer in semi's: Won the match of the tournament against DJ Tipsy. Really happy for him. One of my favorite players. Is still somehow overlooked even as the #5 ranked player in the world. It would be absolutely amazing if he won the Open. If he makes his first GS final that would be awesome too. Extremely difficult for him to get by Djokovic though. Never count out Ferrer though.
I'm hoping that Berdych or Ferrer wins, although i guess Murray winning his first would be cool too. As a Federer fan I would love to see him end year end #1, which would be very hard if Djokovic wins.
Roddick retiring: I actually got pretty emotional at this even though I'm not a big fan of him. Really happy to see him go out at the US Open. Really unfortunate to share a generation with Roger - in another time he possibly could have been somewhere around a 5 slam winner I would say. A true class act.
Roger losing: I saw this coming after the walkover with Fish. Tennis is so much about confidence, and Federer really didn't face a challenge in his first three rounds. It is such a step up in playing when going to someone like Phau to Berdych. I would love for Berdych to get to another GS Final / potentially win it. We'll see if he has the goods against Murray.
Ferrer in semi's: Won the match of the tournament against DJ Tipsy. Really happy for him. One of my favorite players. Is still somehow overlooked even as the #5 ranked player in the world. It would be absolutely amazing if he won the Open. If he makes his first GS final that would be awesome too. Extremely difficult for him to get by Djokovic though. Never count out Ferrer though.
I'm hoping that Berdych or Ferrer wins, although i guess Murray winning his first would be cool too. As a Federer fan I would love to see him end year end #1, which would be very hard if Djokovic wins.