ATAR Notes: Forum
General Discussion => Sport => General Discussion Boards => Tennis => Topic started by: Sine on January 12, 2019, 07:38:56 pm
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Tips/Predictions?
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Tips/Predictions?
I’m thinking Djokovic for the men and Kerber for the women.
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Should Novak keep up his form from the second half of 2018, it's gonna be hard to defeat him.
Rafa is wearing sleeveless again hmmmm. He got injured and subsequently retired in both of the tournaments last year where he wore a sleeveless shirt (Aus Open and US Open). A bad omen for sure lol.
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People have (yet again) predicted the end of the Novak Fedal era, but with Federer beating Zverev in straight sets (Hoffman Cup) I don't see it happening. It's been predicted so often now that I still can't see it coming, as these old legends are just phenomenal. I'd have to say that I pick either Novak or Federer (preferably Fed :D )
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I would just love for an underdog to come from nowhere and take it.
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I’m thinking Djokovic for the men and Kerber for the women.
Should Novak keep up his form from the second half of 2018, it's gonna be hard to defeat him.
Rafa is wearing sleeveless again hmmmm. He got injured and subsequently retired in both of the tournaments last year where he wore a sleeveless shirt (Aus Open and US Open). A bad omen for sure lol.
The Djoker is definitely the favorite by a sizeable margin imo.
People have (yet again) predicted the end of the Novak Fedal era, but with Federer beating Zverev in straight sets (Hoffman Cup) I don't see it happening. It's been predicted so often now that I still can't see it coming, as these old legends are just phenomenal. I'd have to say that I pick either Novak or Federer (preferably Fed :D )
They have been predicting that for years now - but they are still dominating and ending up winning 3 or 4 of the grand slams.
I would just love for an underdog to come from nowhere and take it.
Even just an unseeded player winning or making the final would be huge!
As always for mens I'll be hoping Federer wins however his draw is quite tough unless there are other big upsets. For women's I'd like to see Sharapova do well, however, she is probably not at the stage to win/make a final right now - something like round of 16/quarters would be good. Kerber/Serena will probably win.
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Feeling Djokovic would win
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He was upset recently by Bautista Agut...who is looking in good form
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For the men's my head says Djokovic but my heart says Federer
For the women's maybe Kerber?
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Paging Sine: Great to know that I'm not the only person that is a Sharapova fan. I've basically supported her since I was 8/9 years old, in awe of her capabilities at such a young age, mentality and her work ethic. Although taking Meldonium after it was banned was wrong, it's sour grapes of players to say that she has cheated all these years and that they were robbed just because she has won a lot. There is absolutely nothing wrong with doing things that enhances your performance as long as it is completely legal. Pretty sure almost all players (if not all) does that.
I don't think that any of the female players that I particularly like has a decent chance of winning (Sharapova, Halep and Azarenka). All of them played very few matches this year. My prediction is the same as everyone else-Kerber or S.Williams.
As for the men's-probably Djokovic or Federer. I would love Anderson to win though (seems like a really nice person), and came really close to beating Djokovic in a final in Middle-east just before the new year (also won against Nadal). Karchanov and Zverev (if he can overcome his sub-par grand slam performance trend) are also a strong challenger, would be happy if either of them won as well. Would prefer Federer over Djokovic, although of Djokovic plays like he did in the 2nd half of last year, no one would say he doesn't deserve it
I hope that de Minaur does well but his comments regarding the schedule are ridiculous. I agree that it's unfortunate that he has to play today and was right in requesting a postponement. Claiming that the Aus Open is supposed to help Australian players do well and that the schedules are purposely disadvantaging them is really weird. Although given his age, probably shouldn't take it too seriously and give him credit that he's handling things extremely well overall.
Really sad that my favourites mens player-Andy Murray, is retiring soon. I've been supporting him for 10 years, and seeing him evolve as a player and even more as a person is special. Genuinely seems like one of the most down-to-earth people around, and has done a lot to support Nick Kyrgios and gender equality in sports (while I supported him before he started doing those things, it was a nice bonus).
EDIT (since Murray is playing right now): Murray's reaction after winning the 3rd set... Even as this will probably be his last Aus Open match (hopefully not the last match of his career), and he wasn't expecting to do to well anyway, he still has so much drive and passion.
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Nadal is so powerful. Yikes.
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Nadal is so powerful. Yikes.
It's amazing. There aren't too many people who believed Nadal would still be going this strong at the age of 32 when he was in his early 20s.
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De Minaur didn't give up throughout - rising star that one! Love watching, full of grace. I managed to sit through and watch the entire match from start to finish (I can't usually do it but this time I was able to).
Nowhere near the same class as Rafa though... was clear he was going to get thumped but glad he didn't just chuck in the towel and blame everybody else except himself..... :)
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Personally, I believe Novak or Federer will win this year, these two players are of a different class. Especially due to Novak being in form and when he is in form it’s hard to stop him.
For women’s like everyone else I believe Kerber or Serena will win.
However, in terms of men’s I would like to see an underdog win, Frances Tiafoe despite his young age has been playing phenomenally I love him as a player and definitely has a lot of potential. He was able to beat Anderson! Zverev is also a favourite of mine but due to his lack of experience I don’t believe he could beat top notch players as seen when he got beaten by Federer. Raonic has not been playing bad aswell but his size puts him at an advantage and disadvantage at the same time. His serves are beautifully executed and hard to stop, however, after his knee surgery his movement isn’t what it was and has become even slower on his feet.
But tennis can be unpredictable let’s see how it goes!
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Tsitsipas is playing fantastic against Fed! Even if he loses, very strong player.
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Tsitsipas is playing fantastic against Fed! Even if he loses, very strong player.
Crowd influence in the last point of the first set was frustrating.
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Tsitsipas's short service games compared to Fed's, seems to be putting pressure on Fed, especially with Tsitsipas serving first.
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Great game. I always want Federer to win but have to hand it to Tsitsipas. Amazing.
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Fantastic!!!! I think my reasoning is the thought of somebody new winning it rather than the same pool of players all the time.
Was close pretty much all night.
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I found the crowd so annoying that much. People never go for an underdog just always for Federer and Nadal LOL great game anyway, was jumping out of my seat by the end and was so scared when Tsitsipas got the cramp
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I found the crowd so annoying that much. People never go for an underdog just always for Federer and Nadal LOL great game anyway, was jumping out of my seat by the end and was so scared when Tsitsipas got the cramp
I swear i had a feeling Tsitsipas was going to win!
Semi - finals with nadal is gonna be tough
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Since Fed is out I would like to see Tiafoe get far but obviously has a tough matchp against Nadal next. He has already beaten two big seeds (Dimitrov and Anderson) along with Seppi (ranked somewhere in the 30s) . Unrelated since facing nadal but he does kinda have a knack of beating high ranked players only to lose to someone outside the top 50 in the next round.
Or Zverev but he can be hit or miss at grand slams
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Since Fed is out I would like to see Tiafoe get far but obviously has a tough matchup against Nadal next. He has already beaten two big seeds (Dimitrov and Anderson) along with Seppi (ranked somewhere in the 30s). Unrelated since facing Nadal but he does kinda have a knack of beating high ranked players only to lose to someone outside the top 50 in the next round.
Or Zverev but he can be hit or miss at grand slams
In a way, I hope Raonic Gets to the finals. Every time he rises to the semi's and loses, and he is such a calm player!
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Tiafoe getting the ball into the court so consistently considering his technique is amazing.
This AO is, yet again, set up for Novak to extend his run to three slams.
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HALEP's comeback!!!!! Left Melbourne Park (where the big screens are) after she got broken in the 3rd game of the 2nd set. Was a bit intense with all the Serena fans there.
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Surely everyone has seen the clip of Zverev smashing his racquet :o :'(
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XrCOII2MGX0
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Carreno-busta's explosive exit...saw the point that changed the course of the remainder of the match. CB was right, linesperson/umpire called the ball out early (without immediate correction) before Nishikori hit it. Nishikori's ball may not have been a winner (which was the basis on awarding the point to Nishikori), had the ball not been called out and CB still tried to win the point as a result. Should have been replayed. Understand his disapointment in the heat of the moment.
This was particularly annoying during Verdasco-Cilic match where at crucial points late in the 4th set, a linesperson made a few incorrect calls, which is umpire did correct immediately (still distracting for players). At one point, an linesperson called Cilic shot out, umpire corrected, Verdasco hit a winner just before the correction, point was still replayed.
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Carreno-busta's explosive exit...saw the point that changed the course of the remainder of the match. CB was right, linesperson/umpire called the ball out early (without immediate correction) before Nishikori hit it. Nishikori's ball may not have been a winner (which was the basis on awarding the point to Nishikori), had the ball not been called out and CB still tried to win the point as a result. Should have been replayed. Understand his disapointment in the heat of the moment.
This was particularly annoying during Verdasco-Cilic match where at crucial points late in the 4th set, a linesperson made a few incorrect calls, which is umpire did correct immediately (still distracting for players). At one point, an linesperson called Cilic shot out, umpire corrected, Verdasco hit a winner just before the correction, point was still replayed.
Just watched the footage of his outburst. Oh boy that was bad HAHAH
There were similar issues in the first game of the Federer Tsitsipas match. Same issue, same wrong call.
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Really feels bad for PCB that was a rough call...
Idk why you can still use hawk eye at that stage if it wasn't going to change the outcome
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After the way Nadal played against Tsitsipas today, I definitely think he can go on to win the tournament. I was honestly expecting a really close match
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After the way Nadal played against Tsitsipas today, I definitely think he can go on to win the tournament. I was honestly expecting a really close match
Just doesn't have the game style to isolate Nadal *yet*. He's basically an underdeveloped Federer with a less traditional technique, so I'm not surprised Rafa worked him out really quickly.
If Rafa can overcome Djokovic, his likely opponent to win a second AO title, I'd think it'l be mighty hard for Fed fans to continue claiming Federer's GOATness.
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Was really wanting Tsitsipas to win ( eversince he beat Federer, I liked him before that and considered him a potential chance in the same bracket as Anderson/Zverev/Karchanov/Cilic/ Nishikori behind the big 3, but like Federer more). Almost every point in the 3rd set was a Tsitsipas unforced error. The disappointment that resulted in an underwhelming display in that set was understandable as it seemed as though he came out to win. I'm sure we will be seeing a lot more of him in the future. All credit to Nadal though, haven't seen him this good in ages (didn't watch Wimbledon last year as WC was on). It took until now for me to view him as a potential AO 2019 champion, even though I watched Tiafoe ( in fairness, I haven't watched him before so I don't know the extent of his potential) and bits of the De Minaur match. Even though I am a Murray fan (also love Federer), Nadal's humility is class.
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LOLOLOL and I thought Nadal had a good chance to win the final after his performance in yesterday’s match. Djokovic played out of this world in today’s match, every aspect of his game was on point. This is going to be quite an entertaining final to say the least :P
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Mens Semis have turned out to be flat overall. Hoping Joker v Rafa is intense on Sun.
Actually got more satisfaction out of watching Stosur/Zhang win in womens doubles.
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Please be a 5 set grand final :D
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Couldn't watch this match tonight as I had a theatre performance in Southbank. Was going down to see the remainder of the match on the big screens at Melbourne Park at around 9-9:30. But saw herds of people with Australian Open lanyards walking towards Flinders. Only saw the scoreline. Went down to Crown (not a gambler but like the Friday's night atmosphere), but saw the final quarter of the women's double match. Great effort to beat the best/2nd best women's doubles team for the past year. Although Stosur used to be a no. 1 doubles player.
Really looking forward to both the Mens and Womens final though. Although they weren't my favourites, both Kvitova and Osaka would be very deserving winners. Also nice people to top it off.
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83 minutes semi-final ......... Combined both semi finals went for 3 hours 9 mins.
What is everyone's predictions for the final?
I'll go with:
Djokovic in 5
Kvitova in 2
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83 minutes semi-final ......... Combined both semi finals went for 3 hours 9 mins.
What is everyone's predictions for the final?
I'll go with:
Djokovic in 5
Kvitova in 2
I suspect you're probably right about Djokovic getting the chocolates at the end of the day. Their record against each other is basically even, but if you remove clay from the equation, Djokovic has dominated Nadal on other surfaces.
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I suspect you're probably right about Djokovic getting the chocolates at the end of the day. Their record against each other is basically even, but if you remove clay from the equation, Djokovic has dominated Nadal on other surfaces.
Statistically, I would agree with you. However, we don't know what Nadal's game plan rework will do against Djokovic. His serving, which used to be a point of weakness, hasn't been challenged at all after the second round, and although you can argue it's because of his opposition, Djokovic has dropped two sets this tournament in comparison and has a day less rest, so it's hard to say.
I want Nadal to win one in six hours just so that everything's even in the history books. HAHAHAHAHA
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Really dramatic final games of the 2nd set. Tough to not consolidate one of the three championship points, but hopefully Osaka comes back.
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My mother won’t stop screaming at the tv because of Osaka ahaha. Hoping she makes a good comeback in the next set.
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Kvitova ftw. I've always had a fascination with the Czech.
Plus with her comeback from her hand injury due to the home invasion, good comeback story too if she wins this.
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I was reading earlier today that any player on the WTA tour has a 97.1% chance of victory if they get match point and are the first player to do so.
Osaka still looks the goods from here.
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And Osaka has wonnnnnnnnn!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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So humble.
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Nadal in 4 :))))) cmon
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Nadal in 4 :))))) cmon
Nadal in 3!
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Nadal in 3!
Bit of a ballsy call there :P
But valid nonetheless.
I’m going to say Nadal in 4
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Tips/Predictions?
um... Federer... you tried mate:) that dude you played against was also quite amazing. Lets hope Feddies' opponent doesnt become a Pauler in his
youtube account.
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The Mind says Novak in 4.
The Heart says Rafa in 5.
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I really hope it's a gruelling 5 set match - will make up for the one-sided semis.
Maybe i'll watch it :)
A final should be played out the full length - anything less is just boring... and a shame to those that paid top dollar to get a ticket.
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I really hope it's a gruelling 5 set match - will make up for the one-sided semis.
Maybe i'll watch it :)
A final should be played out the full length - anything less is just boring... and a shame to those that paid top dollar to get a ticket.
I'd still call a straight set win full-length - all that's needed is for three sets to be won by the same person. I'm sure I've watched straight set wins that felt more interesting than some of the five-setters I've seen, because the three sets had more good shot play throughout. But, just for example, last year's Wimbledon semi between Anderson and Isner kept me up till after 5AM till I finally went to bed (a while before the fifth set finished 26-24), and while it was hypnotic the continual "Will either of them break in these two games?" I didn't think it was particularly brilliant tennis.
That said, I have to say last year when Federer-Cilic looked to be heading to a fairly predictable Federer win it got a lot better as Cilic dragged it into a fifth. And the fifth set of Federer-Nadal in 2017 was awesome tennis.
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Early days, but looking a bit like a rout. I only saw Djokovic play one and a half sets against an injured Nishikori and being tested against Medvedev (had a lot of chances in the match and could've won). So couldn't accurately grasp his level before.
EDIT: Nadal being in the right position but missing the ball while swinging his racket was so awkward.
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Novak is sliding around so much that i’m concerned he’s going to twist an ankle or pull a muscle soon.
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Novak is sliding around so much that i’m concerned he’s going to twist an ankle or pull a muscle soon.
I'm a bit surprised there aren't more issues from this tbh.
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Goooo Novak, you can win it!!
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Pretty much just Novak easily winning when he serves, and then when Nadal serves Novak has the lead in the game and Nadal somehow makes a comeback and keeps Djokovic from breaking his serve. I’m still crossing my fingers hoping Nadal will still win :-\
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Nadal is playing like absolute trash. You could see from his very first return that he was off, and boy oh boy has he kept that trash up
I'm a bit surprised there aren't more issues from this tbh.
Me too
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After 2 sets, I can say with certainty that Djokovic will win this in 3 sets if Nadal continues playing like this. He’s just making so many unforced errors, add this with the fact that Djokovic is playing amazing, and I can’t really see Nadal coming back from this
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Somewhat disappointing final to be honest.
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When Djokovic made the quarterfinal of the French Open last year, I thought he was on the comeback (though his loss there was surprising). But I didn't expect that comeback to include winning the next three slams plus taking the final masters tournament he hadn't won and returning to No 1. Plus surely being one of the favourites for the remaining slams this year...
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Somewhat disappointing final to be honest.
Agree 100%.
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I really hope this isn't what I think it is, although it's been said many times before; it almost feels like the beginning of the end for Rafa's body.
That said, even a barely running Rafa could probably steal another French.
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It was clearly obvious something was going on with Rafa. He was losing points that he has easily won in previous matches. I don't want to take anything away from Djokovic's win because it was hard fought and clearly won, but Rafa defs wasn't playing at his peak and really to go down in straight sets when his previous matches he hasn't dropped many sets (if any?) overall... eh, says something wasn't right.
Rafa still walks away with a cool $2.1m in prize money for being runner up, not including any money earned via sponsorships etc. :)
Not bad for a 2 week tournament!
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Was a let down, but it's still worthwhile watching, there were quite a few entertaining rallies (was to be expected though). I do agree that the scoreline needs to be close with switch-ups in momentum (like the women's final) for it to be exciting. Nadal's net play was dissapointing, he would put himself in a good position into the net from the baseline on his own terms but would do a poor half volley where Djokovic hit a shot towards his body.
In terms of value for money, 4th/3rd day or night passes are probably the best. Multiple matches, with a very high chance of reasonably high quality matches.
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WOW! Novak was just too good this final.
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Djokovic was a machine! Was hoping for more of a battle but I'm not too surprised, even with recent Rafa's recent form. Djokovic at his best reaches this exceptional level of domination... and doing it against Nadal... even the best of the best rarely look so good against the top opponents..