The real Tennis thread.

[tobydawq]

Novak on the ropes in R1 of the Australian Open? Against an (to me) unknown teenager - Croatian no less.

 

[tobydawq]

Classic first week shithousing by Djokovic.

Is it? It's the first time ever he spent more than 4 hours in a R1 at a Grand Slam tournament.

 

[Tricycle Rider]

Last USO he went down 0-2 in sets to Djere in the 3rd round. He has a habit of having one early round match that gets weirdly tight for a moment, though this one was more intense than usual. He had a somewhat similar scoreline vs Rune at the 2021 USO.

In fact, while both Nadal (4x) and Federer (2x) won Grand Slams without dropping a set, Djokovic has never done so

I'm playing catch-up, but it's fun to watch all these young bucks trying to dethrone Djoko and almost getting there, but not quite yet. (I might have mentioned earlier that Djoko is hard not to like, but that is on the court only. Off the court... well, better just stick to his play on the court. Felt like I needed to clarify that.)

 

[tobydawq]

This must have been one of the craziest days of a week one in a Grand Slam ever.

Swiatek pushed to the absolute limit, wins in over three hours.

Ruud and Zverev playing and winning match tie breaks at the same time.

Rune losing against an unknown Frenchman (sorry if I'm being oblivious but I never heard of Arthur Cazaux before).

Rybakina losing 20-22 (!!!) in the match tie break.

Raducanu losing after three hours (okay, maybe not that crazy).

Medvedev coming back from two sets down to close the day out at 3:41 am.

 

[tobydawq]

Ruud and Zverev doing random 5sets in 1st week isn't that out there. Neither is Rune losing early. I admit I never heard of Cazaux before either, but apparently he's been injured like half the year every year and all the French consider him their biggest talent. I saw the 3 minute highlights and he seems technically amazing.

Raducanu losing in 3 hours is shocking considering she normally retires after 2.

Yes, and if those things stood alone, it wouldn't be much.

But those two match tie-breaks at the same time was quite funny. Especially just before when the score was 6-5 in both matches, and the first five points went exactly the same way at almost exactly the same time in both matches - 15-0, 30-0, 30-15, 40-15, 40-30. But I guess one needed to have been awake and double screening at that moment to really appreciate that.

All the things combined, though. I don't have a comprehensive catalogue of all GS days, but it takes something special to have this one beaten.

 

[iBanesto]

Sinner looks good to reach the SF.

 

[BullsFan22]

Grigorius giveth a sliver of hope. And Grigorius taketh all away

Once he was broken back in the 4th you just knew he would crumble. Wish people would stop calling him ‘baby Federer.’ He’s not even ‘baby Gasquet.’

 

[BullsFan22]

People stopped calling him baby Fed a long time ago. And his career is definitely better than Gasquet.

That’s debatable

 

[tobydawq]

Grigorius giveth a sliver of hope. And Grigorius taketh all away

Yeah, that was quite disappointing.

Mannarino's tequila-fuelled run came to an abrupt end against Djokovic. He looked like he was set to suffer a triple 6-0 defeat but fortunately got a few games in the third.

I wonder if he managed to not find out about his opponent before he met him in the corridor this time.

 

[iBanesto]

That’s debatable

I reckon peak Dimitrov is greater than peak Gasquet. Slight edge.

Dimitrov:

- Career high ranking: 3
- ATP titles: 9 with 1 ATP Tour Finals win and 1 Masters 1000 win (1 other Masters 1000 final)
- Grand Slam: 3 SF and 3 QF
- 1 year finished in the world top 10

Gasquet:

- Career high ranking: 7
- ATP titles: 16 with 0 ATP Tour Finals win and 0 Masters 1000 win (3 Masters 1000 final)
- Grand Slam: 3 SF and 2 QF
- 4 years finished in the world top 10

 

[tobydawq]

I reckon peak Dimitrov is greater than peak Gasquet. Slight edge.

Dimitrov:

- Career high ranking: 3
- ATP titles: 9 with 1 ATP Tour Finals win and 1 Masters 1000 win (1 other Masters 1000 final)
- Grand Slam: 3 SF and 3 QF
- 1 year finished in the world top 10

Gasquet:

- Career high ranking: 7
- ATP titles: 16 with 0 ATP Tour Finals win and 0 Masters 1000 win (3 Masters 1000 final)
- Grand Slam: 3 SF and 2 QF
- 4 years finished in the world top 10

Pretty boss stat to have only once finished in the top 10 of the year, yet won the Tour Finals that one time!

 

[BullsFan22]

Pretty boss stat to have only once finished in the top 10 of the year, yet won the Tour Finals that one time!

And before this year, his last title (of any kind) was that tour finals, in 2017. 6+ years without a title. A talented player, but certainly not as talented as some made him out to be.

 

[tobydawq]

Seems very tough logistically to do that as you get deeper into the tournament.

Imagine you make the final of a Grand Slam. Literally everyone is gone then. You're like "I wonder who I play next, it may be this junior player, or that doubles specialist who didn't even enter singles, or could it be Novak Djokovic?"

Yeah, I have thought this as well. It seems quite bizarre to put it mildly to not wanting to know the opponent.

 

[iBanesto]

Pretty boss stat to have only once finished in the top 10 of the year, yet won the Tour Finals that one time!

True.

Dimitrov to me is a perennial top 20 player with glimpses of brilliance.

 

[iBanesto]

Yeah, that was quite disappointing.

Mannarino's tequila-fuelled run came to an abrupt end against Djokovic. He looked like he was set to suffer a triple 6-0 defeat but fortunately got a few games in the third.

I wonder if he managed to not find out about his opponent before he met him in the corridor this time.

Mannarino played 3 5 set matches prior to his 4th round match with Nole.

Also the Melbourne heat has not been kind to the players.

It was never going to be easy against one of the GOAT.

 

[tobydawq]

6-1 in the first set to Sinner.

Is this the beginning of the end for the last of the big three?

Or just a poor start to the match for Djokovic?

 

[tobydawq]

I thought it was over there. But he lives to fight another day (set).

 

[iBanesto]

Sinner had MP in the 3rd set.

Nole survives.

 

[tobydawq]

Djokovic' moment in the sun looks to be ending.

And I mean that literally. The sun is setting, so soon the court will be entirely in shadow. That should suit Djokovic a lot more if you listen to the clever tennis people.

 

[iBanesto]

Nole looked physically tired which makes sense compared to Sinner who did not drop a set before this match.

 

[tobydawq]

Funny how similar this match was to Alcaraz' match against Zverev.

 

[Gigs_98]

Let's go, just one more to go Jannik!

Btw, I knew Sinner was from South Tirol but didn't realize he is from Innichen. Do we know if Mr. Innichen himself, @Mayomaniac, happens to know him or has some other personal connection to him? That town is not a big place

 

[Mayomaniac]

Let's go, just one more to go Jannik!

Btw, I knew Sinner was from South Tirol but didn't realize he is from Innichen. Do we know if Mr. Innichen himself, @Mayomaniac, happens to know him or has some other personal connection to him? That town is not a big place

Nah, he's from Sexten and was born in the hospital in Innichen because it's the nearest.
That said, he has more hardcore fans in Innichen than in Sexten. Last year a few guys travelled to Australia to support him, that's a bit over the top...

 

[tobydawq]

Quite the comeback Medvedev's got going on right now...

 

[tobydawq]

Incredible comeback! The wife beater is out!