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In Doha, 18 year old Czech Jakub Mensik just took out ATP number 23 Davidovich Fokina in the 1st round. He certainly looks like one to watch. Andy Murray, who has only won 1 of his last 10 matches, is up later today.Last edited by stroke; 02-20-2024, 05:28 AM. -
I watched some extended highlights. They looked evenly matched. If anything Mensik had a bigger game and was more than happy to move up to the net. He seemed to volley pretty well too. Yet another well-produced humungous forehand, also.Originally posted by stroke View PostStottyComment
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All the seasoned war horses won today, Murray, Gasquet, and Monfils. The big 3 I guess are saying whatever. Wawrinka still to come.Comment
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Stan goes out 1st round. Murray has Mensik today. Probably will end his win streak there .Comment
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In Rio, 17 year old Brazilian WC Joao Fonseco, world rank 636, just to out Arthur Fils, the number 7 seed, 6-0, 6-4.
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I was going to post that!Originally posted by stroke View Post
He'll be ranked a lot higher next Monday.
First player born in 2006 or later to win a match on the ATP Tour!
Fils broke in by beating Ruud 0,4 now Fonseco beats Fils 0,4.Comment
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Mensik wins 1st set vs Rublev and on serve 3 all 2nd set. Mensik has the whole game, size, groundstrokes, movement, serve, very good slice bh. He looks like someone who will be in top 50 soon. His forehand is great, his backhand is better.Last edited by stroke; 02-22-2024, 08:44 AM.Comment
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Mensik wins it 2nd set tiebreaker. He wins it with a huge forehand winner. Rublev played very well to lose in 2 sets. Mensik just played better.
Last edited by stroke; 02-22-2024, 08:55 AM.Comment
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Gen Z is So Yesterday, Here Comes Gen Alpha
Look at these results from Doha to Cabo. Tennis' Generation Z is over. Toast. They had their chance. Make way for Gen Alpha, maybe they're the real deal <g>.
Remember all the hype around 19 yo Frenchman Arthur Fils, the highest-ranked 19 yo and finalist in Jeddah's NexGen round robin? He burst on the scene beating Caspar Ruud, I think it was 6-0 6-4. Well, he was beaten love and four by 17 yo Jo?o Fonseca in Rio yesterday. Nice run while it lasted Arthur. Maybe try pickleball?
On this brief sample, Jo?o looks like a potential star. Outrallied the big-hitting Fils, but more than that he has a full-court game already - drop shots, down the line, net. He is the first Brazilian to finish number 1 in the junior rankings and won the 2023 US Open boys singles after making the quarterfinals of the other three junior 'slam events. I believe Fonseca is the first player born in 2006 or later to win an ATP main tour event. Here are 5:05 min of highlights from Fonseca - Fils in Rio.
Meanwhile, as you've read in this post,18 yo Jakub Menš?kstunned Andrey Rublev 6-4, 7-6(6) in Doha, becoming the youngest player to earn a top 5 win since Carlos Alcaraz at the 2021 USO. No highlights are up yet, but there are highlights of Mensik beating Sir Andy Murray the day before. Fortunately, Andy got his first win of 2024 earlier in Doha. Whew! :
{ Alcaraz badly sprained his ankle in Rio but X-rays were negative so he expects to play Indian Wells.}
Showing that aging Gen Z may have some gas left in its collective tank, 19 yo American Alex Michelsen grabbed his first top 10 win, taking out Alex de Minaur 4 and 1 in Los Cabos. Tennis Channel analyst Robbie Koenig gushed that Alex is a "skill merchant". I have no idea what that means, but it sounds good! In fairness, de Minaur played Jannik Sinner in the Rotterdam finals on hard courts Sunday, flew the 9,545 km to Los Cabos and probably had one afternoon hit around to get used to the new surface before running into the buzzsaw. Played more like he took the 32 hr 6 minute, two stop flight on British Airways. De Minaur avoided what would have been only the 11th bagel of his career by winning his final service, down 0-5 before Alex closed it out, baking a breadstick instead.
Bye, bye Gen Z. You burned so brightly but briefly
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Mensik is up against one of the older war horses, charter member of the Big 3 lost generation, Gael Monfils. Mensik has shown absolutely no fear of the big matches thus far. Mensik is the slight favorite.Last edited by stroke; 02-23-2024, 09:07 AM.Comment
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17-year-old Brazilian Joao Fonseca into the Rio quarter-finals 6-4, 6-4 win over Chilean Cristian GarinThursday night.
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Odd match in Cabo, Thompson defeats 19 yo Michelson despite being bageled in the first set.
Thompson converts all 3 of his BPs, but Alex only 5/16
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Well. Jordan Thompson is continuing his streak of extraordinary, as in the sense of unusual, matches.
3 hour 40 minute best of three over Zverev 7-5 4-6 7-6(2)
That was after Ruud-beat Tsitsipas so did it end in the AM today?
Ruud win was an up-and-down one. Ruud won all of his first 18 first serve points. Then ended up down love-30 I think it was four games in a row, one of them love-40, and won them all.
Tsitis got soooo tight and frustrated not breaking that when Ruud came to the net, Stef would wind up like he was trying to hit the ball through him and hammer it into the net.Comment
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