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Tennis - General Discussion

Niraj

I shot people I like more for less.
five months ago i would have been excited for the possibility of federer and nadal playing at the us open. now i expect one or both to lose before the quarters, and if they both make it it'll be a routine 3 set beatdown from nadal.

federer can only play about a set and a half of great tennis against nadal, and then when you think he might just pull it off, he serves like he's on the wta tour.

best thing about nadal's comeback: we are spared another murray-djokovic grindfest as a final.

Yeah, pretty much this.
 

Saty

Member
Screw this, Aga has a potential quarter final against Li and semi against Serena. Bottom half is a joke compared to that. Sharapova screwed the draw.
 
Does anyone have the link to watch qualifying? Melanie Oudin lost in the first round. Donald Young is on right now, so I'm sure Rafa=Fedkilla is tuned in to that
 

Niraj

I shot people I like more for less.
Screw this, Aga has a potential quarter final against Li and semi against Serena. Bottom half is a joke compared to that. Sharapova screwed the draw.

Man, weak :( although to be honest, I'd rather have her play Serena than Azarenka, who seems to relish nothing more than embarrassing her every time they play. At least she seems capable of going three against Serena. I'm still bitter I didn't get to see her and Li play at Cinci again :(
 
Jared Donaldson, a 16 y/o American, is 1 round away from qualifying for the Open. It's one thing for the USTA to place a young player in the main draw, but if he could make it on his own merit, which is what he's trying to do, that would be very impressive for the kid
 

Niraj

I shot people I like more for less.
Jared Donaldson, a 16 y/o American, is 1 round away from qualifying for the Open. It's one thing for the USTA to place a young player in the main draw, but if he could make it on his own merit, which is what he's trying to do, that would be very impressive for the kid

Wow, that'd be awesome. What won't be awesome is when all the dumbass American commentators put way too much pressure on him to be "the next big thing" if he does make it out.
 
Wow, that'd be awesome. What won't be awesome is when all the dumbass American commentators put way too much pressure on him to be "the next big thing" if he does make it out.

Yeah no kidding. Donald Young and Ryan Harrison were winning ATP matches at that age ( Ryan Harrison won his first ATP match at 15 actually against Pablo Cuevas in Houston ) and look where they are now...not even in the ATP 100. These top American prospects become victim to entitlement around age 18 or 19 usually
 

Reyne

Member
I don't think expectation or entitlement make them fall, but simply poor coaching. That, and the game is getting older, as I see it. ( Average age of top 100 is around 27,3 and it gets higher as we narrow it down to the top 10 ) Older player dominates the tour now. Many young talents seem have the tools for great shot-making but yet they seem unable to break through, only seldom beating the top players and never when it matters ( like in a final ).
Basically, because the courts are made slower so that rallies can be longer, you to have a tough mentality, experience and strategy to get through matches which most young players lack and the only remedy for that is to play more tough matches. The mentality necessary to take on the current top players takes years to achieve, if it is achieved at all. Gone are the days when seventeen year old kids win slams with nothing but sheer vigor.

Btw, aren't we due a US open thread? :p
 
D

Deleted member 231381

Unconfirmed Member
I don't think expectation or entitlement make them fall, but simply poor coaching. That, and the game is getting older, as I see it. ( Average age of top 100 is around 27,3 and it gets higher as we narrow it down to the top 10 ) Older player dominates the tour now. Many young talents seem have the tools for great shot-making but yet they seem unable to break through, only seldom beating the top players and never when it matters ( like in a final ).
Basically, because the courts are made slower so that rallies can be longer, you to have a tough mentality, experience and strategy to get through matches which most young players lack and the only remedy for that is to play more tough matches. The mentality necessary to take on the current top players takes years to achieve, if it is achieved at all. Gone are the days when seventeen year old kids win slams with nothing but sheer vigor.

Btw, aren't we due a US open thread? :p

shotguuuuuuuun
 

Reyne

Member
fed already switched back to his smaller framed racket?

“I just felt like, you know what, I’m going to play with the old racquet through the US Open right now, and I’m going to do more racquet testing when I have, again, some more time after the U.S. Open,” Federer told reporters after his opening-round victory. “Yeah, I was playing for a month with the black one, but it’s a prototype. At the end, I just felt like, you know what, right now I feel like I need to simplify everything and just play with what I know best.”
 
D

Deleted member 231381

Unconfirmed Member
Federer will shock everyone and win the U.S. Open.


LOL no.

If he magically beats Nadal, I'd actually say his odds are pretty decent. I'm not much of a Federer fan, either, so that's a rare appraisal. He was playing really well in Cincy and a few odd mistakes here and there were what decided it.

EDIT: damn, I forgot I was a junior. Will a kind volunteer please post my carefully crafted US Open thread for me?
 

Reyne

Member
Federer and Nadals draw was practically designed for them to meet as soon and as untroubled as possible, so if either are upset before the quarter, the other will have free pass to the finals, more or less.

I want to believe that Federer has another slam in him, but it getting harder and harder to have faith that he will pull through. Putting Nadal in Federers quarter sure as heck doesn't help, but the way Nadal is playing I'd imagine Federer would have to go through him at any rate, so bring it on I say. I actually think he has a better chance of getting the job done in a quarter than a final.
 

John Dunbar

correct about everything
If he magically beats Nadal, I'd actually say his odds are pretty decent. I'm not much of a Federer fan, either, so that's a rare appraisal. He was playing really well in Cincy and a few odd mistakes here and there were what decided it.

EDIT: damn, I forgot I was a junior. Will a kind volunteer please post my carefully crafted US Open thread for me?

i can post it.
 

Niraj

I shot people I like more for less.
I guess one of the few benefits is that even if Federer makes it to the QF and loses, at least he won't lose any points :/

Yeah that didn't really make me feel any better either.
 
The 16 year old American boy lost his final qualifying match today so we won't see him in the open. The prodigy comments by American commentators will be put on hold till next year
 
D

Deleted member 231381

Unconfirmed Member
Shame, James Ward also went out in the qualifiers. Karlovic is through the third round, though. Hopefully Kyrgios and Evans make it.
 
Cross posting from US Open thread since I am not sure people are still checking it.

Thought this was interesting. Is this normal?

U.S. Open women’s final scores higher TV ratings than men's final
Sunday's U.S. Open final between Serena Williams and Victoria Azarenka drew the highest overnight ratings for a U.S. Open women's final in 11 years—a 4.9 rating—which was higher than the men’s final's ratings on Monday. Rafael Nadal's four-set win over Novak Djokovic, also broadcast on CBS, earned a 2.8 overnight rating.

The women’s final was up 26 percent from the same match-up from 2012 (3.9) and was up 17 percent over 2011, when Sam Stosur upset Serena (4.2). The 4.9 rating is the highest for a women’s final at the U.S. Open since the Saturday night prime-time final between Venus and Serena in 2002, which earned a 7.2. The 4.9 rating was also the highest for any U.S. Open final since Roger Federer beat Andy Roddick in 2006 (5.1).

Source: http://www.tennis.com/pro-game/2013...res-better-tv-ratings-men/49130/#.UjGpD8Z6ba5

Overall they pulled in 19.3 million viewers.

NNvSOv3.jpg
 

Deadman

Member
I think its pretty normal for the viewing figures to be highest for a player from that country. For example in the uk 17.3 million (79.6% share) watched murray vs djokovic. I cant find figures for bartoli vs lisicki but it was lower, given other information in this article
 
it is normal if you have one final on sunday with an us woman against a final on monday with two europeans that clashes with the opening night of the nfl.
 
Serena was in the final last year and it was 25% lower though. Anyone remember/have access to the ratings for the mens final last year?

it is normal if you have one final on sunday with an us woman against a final on monday with two europeans that clashes with the opening night of the nfl.

Yes, but as the article said. It was also higher than any mens final since 2006. Were all of those pushed to Monday as well?
 
Serena was in the final last year and it was 25% lower though. Anyone remember/have access to the ratings for the mens final last year?



Yes, but as the article said. It was also higher than any mens final since 2006. Were all of those pushed to Monday as well?

I can't remember the last time a USO had the mens final on Sunday due to weather issues so...maybe?
 

Reyne

Member
Last one I can remember is...Federer v Murray in 2008? I might even be wrong there

That was a Monday too. :p
2007 Federer v Djokovic was on a Sunday though.

Also, Davis Cup play-off and semi-finals being played right now, if anyone cares.
 

Niraj

I shot people I like more for less.
That was a Monday too. :p
2007 Federer v Djokovic was on a Sunday though.

Also, Davis Cup play-off and semi-finals being played right now, if anyone cares.

Ah ok lol. I was in undergrad then so it all blends together :p
 

MIMIC

Banned
Was scheduled for another match and reverted back to my regular forehand. Played a guy who was marginally better than my last opponent....and won 7-6(3), 6-3

Sigh. And I really didn't find much pleasure in winning because I knew I was better. 90% of the time, he was defending and I was either hitting a winner or hitting an error. Of course, you always want to win, but I like being pushed. I don't mind losing to people better that me because I feel that it makes me better and more focused.

Anyway, since I'm back to my awesome forehand (lol), I wasn't too comfortable hitting backhands (since I don't really have anyone to practice with). So....I just hit slices. And I kid you not: there hasn't been a single opponent that wasn't fooled by how good my slice is. It is fuckin NASTY. The trajectory looks like it's coming to you, and all of a sudden, it'll stop going forward, and then when it hits the ground, it dies. It is hilarious when I do it for the first time; they'll start scrambling for it and they never reach it. And it's not even a drop shot (I rarely hit drop shots). And if they DO get there in time (lol), I can easily pass them.

On one point, I was in a really bad position, and he hit a passing shot to my backhand. I had to turn around and run for the baseline to get it, and had to hit a defensive slice. I hit it so well that it started coming back to me when it hit he ground on his side, lol

Sometimes I feel that it's cheating because 1) it's easier to hit than a regular backhand (for me, lol) 2) very little set up required (as opposed to setting up to hit a FH/BH), 3) it puts all sorts of crazy spin on it, and 4) if you do it right, you've forced your opponent to come to the net and turned a defensive situation into an offensive one....or at worst, it's back to neutral.

I'd compare it to Federer's, but my slices stay lower and have substantially more spin on it (probably because of the way I hold the racket). I was looking for a video, and it reminded me of what Federer did here to Djokovic at the end of this point: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zG4iNFxScak (the time thing isn't working for me. I starts at 0:46). Mine died in the service box, while Fed's kept going. But like I said, I have a really bizarre grip which puts more spin on it.

But I'm just glad that I can hit forehands again :)
 
If you ever find yourself in Brazoria county in Texas MIMIC let me know and I'll play a match with you. I really want to experience returning this slice of yours.
 

xzoowy

Member
Its nice to see Daniel Nestor still being an elite doubles tennis player at age 41. I still remember his victory against Stephan Edberg in the early 90's at the Davis cup, that was quite a shocking upset at the time.
 

IISANDERII

Member
An executive whose firm handles security for the US Open[among other things like Pebble Beach, Barret-Jakson] has had some disturbing emails emerge.

Scott Dennison, 56, a VP for special events at Contemporary Services Corp., repeatedly used the N-word and called blacks “scum suckers” and “worthless” in the correspondence, some of which he sent through his CSC e-mail account.

“No African Americans please only limited quantities that have brains and can actually do a day’s work,”


Worse at link
 

Saty

Member
Radwanska ditches the blonde; wins a title.

Now if i can only find highlights of the match. Even the official site doesn't have videos. And in general atpworldtour.com \ wtatennis.com are rather poor sites for up-to-the-minute coverage.
 

Niraj

I shot people I like more for less.
Radwanska ditches the blonde; wins a title.

Now if i can only find highlights of the match. Even the official site doesn't have videos. And in general atpworldtour.com \ wtatennis.com are rather poor sites for up-to-the-minute coverage.

That's two good pieces of news

Surprised Tsonga lost to Simon, though I guess he is coming back from injury. Still though lol
 

szaromir

Banned
Radwanska ditches the blonde; wins a title.

Now if i can only find highlights of the match. Even the official site doesn't have videos. And in general atpworldtour.com \ wtatennis.com are rather poor sites for up-to-the-minute coverage.
It was a good match, both players were delivering the goods when break points down, Aga saved 9/12 and Anastasia 16/22. Here's a highlight reel of the match (fairly long, good quality):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qcXwPIzJw1M
Amazing lob at 20:37
 

LuuKyK

Member
It was a good match, both players were delivering the goods when break points down, Aga saved 9/12 and Anastasia 16/22. Here's a highlight reel of the match (fairly long, good quality):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qcXwPIzJw1M
Amazing lob at 20:37

Awesome match! Aga looks much prettier with this hair color. And Anastasia played some amazing tennis there. She should do well in the future I think, if she manages to get a brain. :lol
 
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