2013 Wimbledon Championships...London England

[don_budge]

Round of Sixteen...aka The Fourth Round

As usual at the Grand Slam events the men have separated themselves from the boys. Anyone remaining in the draw at this point have withstood some stiff challenges and richly deserve their place in the tournament. Not that the outcome is somewhat predisposed.

Eight matches to be played. How many of them have a clear cut favorite and how many are up for grabs? One never knows...when trying to see into the future. But right at the top of the draw there are two compelling matchups...but are both a bit deceptive in that there is a clear cut favorite. Djokovic versus Haas on paper is really interesting. Haas even has a win over Djokovic recently but is he up for the occasion? Best of five sets on grass? Logic and conventional wisdom tell us that his best years are behind him...but can he mentally convince himself that he can elevate his performance to do what it takes. I don't believe that he can...but he does.

Just below Djokovic and Haas is another really interesting match up. Bernard Tomic and Tomas Berdych. A couple of interesting players that have a big presence here on the forum. Bernard Tomic has a slice backhand video...to which I suggested it would be nice to have a forehand and a serve video as well. To no avail. But it was his underspin backhand that was served up and we analyzed it to death when comparing the "modern" slice backhand to the slice backhand of yesteryear. It looks to me as if the Aussie influence has modified his slice somewhat, as it appears he has changed his technique a bit...it looks to be a bit more Rosewallian. But take a good look at that service setup as well. It looks to be modified too...he looks to be more Samprasesque...what do you think? It would have been nice to have had that service video with the backhand video, you know, just to compare. Perhaps a player of the month as opposed to stroke of the month. What do I know? Just thinking out loud. But I am not complaining...just musing.

I have watched Tomic some against Sam Querry...with whom the question for me was Tomic's intestinal fortitude. Tomic answered that question with a five set victory over bottle's Frankenstein. Then he straight setted James Blake...before taking out the ninth seed Richard "Cocaine Lips" Gasquet in four sets. The kid has game...he even knocked out his excoach to boot...in Spain I think. Mean as a snake...riffs with the police down under and such behavior. He just may be ready for a prime time moment. He is the type of player that may give Tomas Berdych some trouble. Like Stotty notes...he can push and place the ball around the court as well as bang it. But there are some questions about his ability to rise to the occasion...let's see if he can answer some of them.

But now it is Tomas Berdych who is as we all well know...Kyle LeCroix's great hope...probably his great disappointment as well. The collective hopes of Berdych and LeCroix should be kept alive if everything goes to script. Berdych is seeded seventh and Tomic is unseeded. Berdych is coming off of a good win against Kevin Anderson in four sets so his teeth are into the tournament. This could be a tricky match though for the seventh seed. Tomic has everything to gain here and nothing to lose...if he doesn't trip over his bad self.

David Ferrer versus Ivan Dodig...who cares? That is my initial impression about this match and any other match that involves Ferrer. Dodig's best win so far was in the first round against Phillipp "Cabbage Patch Kid" Kohlschreiber in the first round. He has since beaten an American and a Netherlander in subsequent rounds...neither country noted for tennis players currently speaking. But Ferrer is interesting...in that he is so utterly boring, yet so utterly effective. He's a French Open finalist...he gutted out a match against Dolgopolov in five sets in the last round. This guy lives up to his reputation as the "EveryReady Energizer Bunny" time after time. He rarely loses when he is supposed to win. He is supposed to win here but Dodig is rather dangerous. Contrasting styles make this a good matchup...even though it is potentially a snoozer as well. Like any other match that David Ferrer is involved in.

Del Potro versus Seppi. Del Potro. Lukasz Kubot versus Adrian Mannarino. Kubot I hope. I used to have a superviser named Mannarino whom I detested...what a jerk! Hey Mannarino...I am going to skewer you in my epic Ferdinand Cèline takeoff..."Johnny Tango and the Rouge Hotel". You were such a big bellied bag of hot air! But I hope that Mannarino goes down...but then again it doesn't really matter. Not that I believe in revenge. I think that the only revenge in life is success and why try to stoop to be as low as the antagonist...the enemy. They will never stop in sinking to new lows...why bother.

Jerzy "Joe" Janowicz versus Jurgen Melzer. Jerzy! The kid is gaining in valuable experience the deeper he goes in this tournament. If he should make it to the semifinals against Murray he will have built up a nice head of steam. Watch out...his confidence against Almagro was intimidating. Man...was it intimidating. Almagro just hated that ass kicking. It really stung the way Jerzy just kept hammering away...plus the way he was obviously relishing the moment and the attention. Even some of the crappy dropshots that the kid hit messed with Almagro's head. At one point Almago tried to drill one of them through Jerzy "Joe's" midsection...he missed, he lost the point, the match and he looked thoroughly thrashed at the end. Janowicz has two nice matches ahead of him to build upon his confidence and get comfortable with the surroundings...before a potential semifinal with Murray. I wonder why this match is scheduled for court 12 when he is deserving of some rather large attention given his potential to future Championships. He is looking like a thoroughbred positioning himself for the home stretch...chomping at the bit. I like the emotion...but tennis_chiro is absolutely right as usual. He will have to bridle his emotions and keep them in check.

Fernando Verdasco versus Kenny De Schepper. Another unknown Frenchman...where do these guys come from. What are the French doing? QuickStart? Drugs? I doubt it. But it's debatable...contrary to what people may say. These French guys just keep popping out of nowhere. There French names keep multiplying in the draws of the Grand Slams. While the Americans are disappearing. Interesting phenomenon...don't you think so? Never seen De Schepper play but what a draw he has had...Paolo Lorenzi in the first round, walkover Cilic in the second then Juan Monaco in the third. Hardly the stuff of great grass court legend. Verdasco? You guys like his forehand...but I don't think it so suitable for grass court play. On the other hand he took out your darling swimming forehand of Ernesto Gulbis. He probably has one more round in him before...he meets Murray.

Andy Murray...looks to be a "Demolition Man" even without his "RoboCop" Adidas outfit. I think he looks much better in all white clothes and it doesn't hurt his play either. He looks just a bit more dignified. Even the haircut is slightly better...interesting and ironic that he has Ivan Lendl in his corner mentoring him. Lendl also had some problems growing into his role but once he arrived he was there to stay. He was sort of "The Terminator" to Murray's "Robocop". Andy has had a really easy tournament so far and he just may put a real ass whipping on Youzhny...who in turn just may treat us to some realtime racquet smashing fireworks. Wouldn't that be nice to see a couple of nice and new shiny Head racquets going up in smoke...splintering against a chair or maybe even against his own head.

Is it possible to see...Djokovic vs. Del Potro and Janowicz vs. Murray in the semi's. That would be the most entertaining of outcomes...in my humble opinion (just kidding 10splayer!).

[stotty]

Tonic is looking good. His match with Gasquet was very good tennis. His forehand that John once called an extreme type 3, is doing some damage.

Tomic is an unusual player to watch live. You don't get the real impression on TV. He really doesn't hit the ball all that hard. He often pushes it around, mostly flat, and places the ball in awkward spots. He makes it hard for players to take a swipe at him if you know what I mean. It's hard to explain...bit like Mecir was...finds safe places to go so his opponent can't hurt him.

He's smarter than people think...

[stroke]

Tonic is looking good. His match with Gasquet was very good tennis. His forehand that John once called an extreme type 3, is doing some damage.

[don_budge]

American Tennis...

Is it me or are there no Americans left in the men's draw? I couldn't find one. I can't remember a time when all the Americans were out by round three.

R. I. P.

[stotty]

American tennis players

Is it me or are there no Americans left in the men's draw? I couldn't find one. I can't remember a time when all the Americans were out by round three.

[don_budge]

Fiery, fierce performance...Janowicz over Almegro

He never lost that look and in the end he rocked Almagro 7-6, 6-3, 6-4. True...grass is not Almagro's best surface so we must be careful about overevaluating the emotional performance of young Jerzy Joe.

The serve was intimidating and the forehand was heavy and penetrating. The backhand was adequate and the drop shots were effective against the strong grips of Almagro. At times the drop shots were not that great but Almagro struggled to come to grips with them...so to speak.

He served out the match with vengeance and I suspect that the most recent loss to Almagro was still on the young Pole's consciousness. He showed him who was boss...that is what it looked like.

Now he plays Jurgen Melzer who beat the conquerer of Roger Federer...Sergiy Stakhovsky. Short lived success story. Amazing that Roger lost to the 100 and something ranked player in the world. Amazing.

Tommy Haas also through. Looks to be on a collision course with Novak Djokovic.

[don_budge]

Janowicz vs. Almagro

They traded breaks...Jerzy lost his serve first broke back. He's got a very aggressive look about him. I like that fire...emotion. They are in a tiebreak right now. Let's see if he can sustain it.

[lobndropshot]

I hate the roof! It provides the seeds and Brits an unfair advantage I would rather see replays of old classic matches. It makes me sad that all of the grand slams are doing this. I feel that it hurts comparability between eras.

[don_budge]

Stunt man?

No play on the outside until at least 1.30pm. Forecast is awful for the day. Thank God for the roof. At least we'll see something.

I go next Tuesday...court one...near the front. Maybe I'll get a Tennisplayer.net T shirt printed...why not?...if JY is good with. If I see John Lloyd I'll ask him to get the cameraman to pan to it.

That would be a great stunt! Thanks for the update!

[stotty]

No play on the outside until at least 1.30pm. Forecast is awful for the day. Thank God for the roof. At least we'll see something.

I go next Tuesday...court one...near the front. Maybe I'll get a Tennisplayer.net T shirt printed...why not?...if JY is good with. If I see John Lloyd I'll ask him to get the cameraman to pan to it.

[don_budge]

Weather Report...calling on licensedcoach

Hey Stotty...what's the weather prognosis like there today? I am waiting on the Haas match that was scheduled for 12.30.

By the way...which day are you attending? Can we see you in the stands? Would you wave a sign saying something like..."Hello tennisplayer.net" or something to that effect?

[don_budge]

"Downtown" Dustin Brown...

Never asked a ballboy for a towel. Always played the same ball if he won a point...waiting for it and making certain it was the same ball. He never asked a ballboy for the extra balls to check them. Nice change of demeanor.

[klacr]

Will Sergiy Stakhovsky ever volley that superbly or confidently again. Amazing performance. He couldn't do anything wrong yesterday. Pretty solid play from a guy ranked 116.

For those keeping track at home, Tomas Berdych is at 33-1 odds to win Wimbledon. Just saying. Believe in Berdych.

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

[stotty]

Serve and volley

Strange days indeed. My matches of interest yesterday were certainly interesting...weren't they? I started out watching three matches at one time...the three men's matches at 12.30. Only one finished, the other two pulled out. Isner with a knee injury and Stepanek with a thigh injury. A bit later Tsonga bowed out. What's with the grass?

Yes Stotty...Dustin Brown serving and volleying proved to be a winner against Lleyton Hewitt. He managed to keep the pressure on Hewitt to the very end. Much of the pressure was drawing Hewitt forwards in addition to the serve and volley tactic. This is a tactic that I have maintained will work against the modern day back court specialists. They are a little out of their comfort zone the closer to the net they get when the ball is kept low. The strong grip forehand and the two hand backhand are less suitable from this position.

Darn right stroke...that was one beautiful relaxed service motion. I wonder what he was smoking. Just kidding...not all rastaferi's smoke ganja. But it certainly did hold up the entire match and especially when it got a little tight when you have to serve it out. That's right...nothing can go wrong if the tempo is tied into a rhythmic motion with the gravitational pull of the racquet head. Really elegant. And the dreadlocks...they were just huge. What a sight. He reminds me a little of Gail Monfils with the sort of loose and natural approach to the game...the negro nonchalance. Cool runnings anyone?

Then there was John Isner and Radek Stepanek...both injury casualties. End of tournament and how unfortunate and disappointing is that for both of these guys. Best of luck now to Jerzy "Joe"...here he has a chance to avenge his recent loss to Almagro on a surface that he should find more suitable. Although he should make it a point to move in...it looks like the grass is more conducive to moving forwards. None of the injuries seemed to have occurred when the player was moving forwards. It should be interesting to see if any of the players agree and adapt their tactics.

Seven withdrawals on the men's side...including Nadal's conquerer. Hard to fathom. But the worst casualty of course was not due to an injury. Roger bowed out without a whimper and he saved his best sneers for the post match interview. The questions were completely obnoxious as usual...why doesn't anyone ever ask him why he doesn't switch racquets, tactics and coach. Those questions are probably forbidden...the person asking would be whisked out of the press room fast than an Obama heckler.

My other match of interest ended in an injury as well. In a sense every match of interest ended rather ironically which I am sure that I richly deserve for all of my irony. Tsonga bows out to Gulbis...remarkable that four of five matches actually did end in injury and the fifth to a mental incapacity. But yes...the serve and volley tactics of Brown and Stakhovsky should encourage this tactic as a suitable play...at least on grass. Perhaps the engineering will start in the other direction any day now, if it hasn't already.

You can look at this decimated draw in two ways. Either it opens things up...or it simply narrows things down. That is...narrow down to an inevitable Djokovic vs. Murray final. How interesting is that?

Great post...amusing. It's great to be amused.

Finally! It's about time some of these no-hopers tried the serve and volley tactic. Well, there isn't a hope in hell of slugging it out from the back against the top three so why not throw caution to the wind. The trouble with throwing caution to the wind is that it can go terribly wrong. A player could lose 6-2 6-1 6-2 very quickly. Slugging it out from the back will likely result in a more respectable scoreline. I honestly think that's what it comes down to. Few players out there want to risk looking silly.

McEnroe commented here on the BBC about the lack of serve volleyers in recent years and how handy a good serve and volley game would be against Nadal. Serve wide to Nadal's backhand and come in...done with skill, Mac says it could work a treat.

[don_budge]

Strange Day on the Lawn at Wimbledon...Good bye Roger

It's a rainy day in Sweden...I wonder how it is in London where The Championships are being played out...and the roulette wheel is spinning. Black or Red? Zero!!! Gentlemen place your bets. You guys gotta read "The Gambler"...I know bottle has.

So looking over the lineup today on www.livescorehunter.com...the lineup today for me will look like this for matches of interest:

12.30pm (In Europe)
Hewitt vs. Brown
Isner vs. Mannarino
Janowicz vs. Stepanek
Suarez Navarro vs. anybody (what's in a name bottle?)

3.30pm
Tsonga vs. Gulbis
Darcis vs. Kubot

6.00pm
Federer vs. somebody

Got your bets on the table...read 'em and weep.

Strange days indeed. My matches of interest yesterday were certainly interesting...weren't they? I started out watching three matches at one time...the three men's matches at 12.30. Only one finished, the other two pulled out. Isner with a knee injury and Stepanek with a thigh injury. A bit later Tsonga bowed out. What's with the grass?

Yes Stotty...Dustin Brown serving and volleying proved to be a winner against Lleyton Hewitt. He managed to keep the pressure on Hewitt to the very end. Much of the pressure was drawing Hewitt forwards in addition to the serve and volley tactic. This is a tactic that I have maintained will work against the modern day back court specialists. They are a little out of their comfort zone the closer to the net they get when the ball is kept low. The strong grip forehand and the two hand backhand are less suitable from this position.

Darn right stroke...that was one beautiful relaxed service motion. I wonder what he was smoking. Just kidding...not all rastaferi's smoke ganja. But it certainly did hold up the entire match and especially when it got a little tight when you have to serve it out. That's right...nothing can go wrong if the tempo is tied into a rhythmic motion with the gravitational pull of the racquet head. Really elegant. And the dreadlocks...they were just huge. What a sight. He reminds me a little of Gail Monfils with the sort of loose and natural approach to the game...the negro nonchalance. Cool runnings anyone?

Then there was John Isner and Radek Stepanek...both injury casualties. End of tournament and how unfortunate and disappointing is that for both of these guys. Best of luck now to Jerzy "Joe"...here he has a chance to avenge his recent loss to Almagro on a surface that he should find more suitable. Although he should make it a point to move in...it looks like the grass is more conducive to moving forwards. None of the injuries seemed to have occurred when the player was moving forwards. It should be interesting to see if any of the players agree and adapt their tactics.

Seven withdrawals on the men's side...including Nadal's conquerer. Hard to fathom. But the worst casualty of course was not due to an injury. Roger bowed out without a whimper and he saved his best sneers for the post match interview. The questions were completely obnoxious as usual...why doesn't anyone ever ask him why he doesn't switch racquets, tactics and coach. Those questions are probably forbidden...the person asking would be whisked out of the press room fast than an Obama heckler.

My other match of interest ended in an injury as well. In a sense every match of interest ended rather ironically which I am sure that I richly deserve for all of my irony. Tsonga bows out to Gulbis...remarkable that four of five matches actually did end in injury and the fifth to a mental incapacity. But yes...the serve and volley tactics of Brown and Stakhovsky should encourage this tactic as a suitable play...at least on grass. Perhaps the engineering will start in the other direction any day now, if it hasn't already.

You can look at this decimated draw in two ways. Either it opens things up...or it simply narrows things down. That is...narrow down to an inevitable Djokovic vs. Murray final. How interesting is that?