ATP World Tour Finals - London

[don_budge]

Federer vs. Del Potro

What a big moment...Federer serving for the match! 6-5 in the third set. Do the nerves hold? It is a moment of truth...that is for sure!


Deuce...smash for match point! First serve baby...come on!

Ace...done deal. Horse in the barn! That reminds me...my horses are out in the rain...gotta go! Wow! What a sweet match. Rainy day in Sweden...what a class act that Federer is.

[tennis_chiro]

Thinking of you, Kyle!

yeah. I watched. 2nd set was good. 1st and 3rd sets were far from it. That's why I've been a bit silent last 24 hours on the forum. licking my wounds.

Unlike many of the players, Berdych's season is not over. he still has a Davis Cup title to play for. Something Nadal, Federer, Del Potro, Ferrer, Murray, Gasquet, Wawrinka won't be doing. See how I was able to spin that?


Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

Not many realized that after dropping a bad first game of the match and going down 0-2 at the start of his match with Nadal, TBerd won 10 or the next 13 games. Up through 3-3 in the third, Thomas was looking like the dominant player. His first serve percentage was very high after that first service game where he faltered. In the end, the match ended with both players having won 72 points. Berdych was hitting those big forehands into Nadal's forehand corner with tremendous pace and looked to have solved the puzzle. Nadal was really struggling. Once Rafa won the first set the pressure was off; he had secured first place in the group. But he had no answers for what TBerd was throwing at him in that second set.

But at crunch time, serving at 3-4 in the third, TBerd blinked. And given just the slimest of openings, Nadal crashed his way through it. When Berdych keeps that first serve percentage high as he did until the third set, he is a force to be reckoned with. But he needs a sports psychologist who can help him get over the mental block that is keeping him from holding up under the pressure he feels from Nadal and Djokovic and perhaps Murray. What he showed clearly up to the middle stages of the 3rd set is that he has the weapons to hurt anyone; the mental and psychological toolbox may need some augmentation!

don

[stotty]

Great semis

It couldn't have worked out better today. Federer beating Del Potro was a dream...life in the old dog yet. Nadal v Federer will be interesting. Nadal isn't playing that well and Federer loves playing indoors. He loves this event. The British crowd are right behind Federer like he's one of us.

Djokovic just did what he does all the time....gets in a muddle....then takes off and leaves his opponent wondering why he bothered trying to make a game of it.

It's brilliant that Wawrinka is through because he always gives Djokovic a good game and seems not to be daunted by him.

The semis are perfect....

[don_budge]

Well said...licensedcoach

The semis are perfect....

Yes they are...life is good.

[tennis_chiro]

Cue the "Jaws" theme song

Cue the "Jaws" theme song. He's coming....He's coming. I've seen more and more of the missing quickness from Federer with each match. The set against Nadal in Cincy semis was a reason for hope. The matches in Basel and Paris were up a notch from that. Now Fed finally looks like he is moving at full speed without any impediment from his back.

I still think he needs his 3-4 week training session in Dubai to get his confidence back to where he needs it to be a solid three or four in the world and challenge Nadal and Djokovic on the biggest stages. But he finally looked like he wasn't rushing when he got an opportunity, just operating at a very high level. Prior to today, I always felt when he was playing well and pressing Delpo and Djokovic and Nadal that he was playing above his comfort level. Today it looked like he had a level of confidence and comfort in the heat of the battle that we are much more used to seeing from him, but have not seen since 2012.

What is especially encouraging is that he went to the net something like 29 times and won 22 of his 107 points at the net. He's hit a couple of backhand volleys that were terrific this week and this is where he has an edge on the rest of the top players. He haa to use that slice and bring that advantage to bear. Maybe he is finally realizing he can't bang with these guys unless he completes the package with sufficient closing moves to the front court. He's also starting to volley better and be more comfortable doing that in pressure. He may not be what he was in the front court 10 years ago, but he can still be a lot more effective there than he has been teh last 5 or 6 years.

He still needs that training session to be really ready to take on Djokovic and Nadal in 5 setters, but he could certainly knock off Nadal in 2 out of 3 tomorrow. A little help from Wawrinka and there could actually be a Swiss champion this week. I wonder what the odds on that were at the beginning of the week.

I just hope the apparent recovery of Fed's back is not just an illusion. If it really is as it has appeared this week, the Fab Four are still in business (depending on Murray).

don

[don_budge]

licensedcoach...tennis_chiro: hand in hand

don_budge, can you check the "three lines" business out with Federer? Nadal and Djokovic seem to make the three lines every darn time, Federer seems not to as much these days, especially on the forehand where he gets caught very open at times.

But he finally looked like he wasn't rushing when he got an opportunity, just operating at a very high level. Prior to today, I always felt when he was playing well and pressing Delpo and Djokovic and Nadal that he was playing above his comfort level. Today it looked like he had a level of confidence and comfort in the heat of the battle that we are much more used to seeing from him, but have not seen since 2012.

don

These two comments absolutely go hand in hand...together with your other analysis'. Life begins at the end of your comfort zone.

Federer himself in some post match analysis noted how Del Potro got off to a quick start in each of the three sets...up a break as it was. It forced Roger to "fight" and play each point as a separate and equally important entity. He was focusing on the score and fighting for each and every shot to wrest control from the Jolly Argentine Giant on the other side of the net. And fight he did. We haven't seen that in such a long time. He also talked about his back in some of the interviewing citing problems that went back as far as Indian Wells in the summer.

Roger said he would have rather gotten off to a quick start so that he could have played more "mindless" and flowing tennis but I believe that this ordeal was a good lesson for him and he did what I have been calling on him to do for a couple of years now...revert to the slice backhand more often...much more often. The topspin is pretty but the slice is the ball that is going to be a source of discomfort for a guy like Del Potro and could very well be the same for Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic. This is the type of ball that keep them slightly off balance as they have to stoop just a bit rather than standing straight up for the drive that comes very nicely into their strike zones.

The backhand drive and the topspin backhand of Federer are generally landing in the area right around the service line but he is much better at controlling the depth of his slice. Did you see those brilliant lobs that sent Del Potro scrambling backwards...those were slice backhands as well. Not only that but the placement of that sliced shot is much more consistently superior to that of his drive. The combination of the two strokes is the best set of tactics and he pulled it off perfectly against Juan Martin yesterday. He had him on a string...like a yo-yo. Bringing him up a bit, then pushing him back. Just enough so that the big guy couldn't get set. It was a riveting match...it kept me riveted to my chair throughout the entire two and a half hours. Man...that was some great tennis.

Once again it is the contrasting styles that made the thing so entertaining. The slice and dice of Federer subtly drawing the lumbering Argentine into the the short side of the backhand side leaving him just open enough to move him over to the forehand so that he was unable most of the time to really tag it. Federer's subtle tactics blunted the big weapon of the Argentine. I really love that slice backhand down the line too...I hope that Federer starts to use that more in combination with his sharp crosscourts. In this manner he is using the whole court and forces his bigger hitting opponents to cover more ground and it brings them into a position where they are closer to the opposite baseline playing lower balls...which sort of neutralizes their power and forces them to play for more placement. He is taking the ball out of their "wheelhouse" as one poster likes to refer to it as. He plays with more patience using that slice...patience is a virtue you know.

He served like the savvy Federer of the past too. Even though he had some shaky games at the beginning of each set...when the chips were down he once again became the Federer of old and was dissecting Juan Martin and tying him up on his returns when it counted. At the end of the match he was serving as loose as a goose. With confidence. He felt so good about his motion that all of the pressure just made it perform that much better. His very last delivery was a clean ace that Del Potro could not even budge for. Case closed.

Federer played patient. He was willing to exchange five to ten balls for each opportunity. He missed a fair share of forehands but not enough to lose the match. He didn't have to press...he was in position more often than not this match. It has a lot to do with confidence too...when you are nervous or unsure of yourself it is more difficult to get your feet under you. But he was dancing with the tennis ball yesterday. He looked like he enjoyed the confrontation. He didn't worry or panic...he fought tooth and nail. He has shown much more fight the past several weeks...something that was missing over the summer and fall. He's back...in that sense.

Whether or not all of this can carry him back to the top is another question. Three out of five is the big question against the others in the top four. Back to back best of two out of three is going to be a real challenge for him today. But he has a couple of things going for him...one of them is the surface. Nadal was griping about the surface earlier in the week and he remembers the little butt whooping that Federer put on him in London not so long ago. Was it last year? At any rate...you cannot count him out. He looks rather hungry these days. It is a question of what he has left in the tank. He certainly looked strong at the end of the match...but as we all know it is a question of recovery when you get a bit older. That was one tough match yesterday and once the adrenalin wore off it had to hurt.

A rainy weekend here in Sweden...thank God for this tennis. Thank God for the horses, the dogs and the cat. The clean air. The forest and the trees. Space...room to think. Freedom. Life is good. Even the Djokovic vs. Gasquet match was somewhat interesting. I really like Gasquet lately...he looks like a tougher hombre. He could use his slice a bit more effectively too. You know...in the end...at the end of the day...I wonder what it is like to kiss a girl with cocaine on her lips. That has to hurt. Perhaps klacr's Grossjean is having a good influence on him. Apparently his other coach left him yesterday rather mysteriously. People do that occasionally. It's the mystery in life that keeps things interesting...or not. Well...life goes on. With or without us.

[klacr]

Sunday Semi-finals of ATP World Tour Finals in London

Nadal vs. Federer

Djokovic vs. Wawrinka

Yeah, I think we can settle for that. Should be an interesting dday of tennis. Does Federer have a little something special left? His match against Del Potro was something special. Can Wawrinka finally conquer Djokovic?

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

[don_budge]

Tactics...Federer vs. Nadal

Sunday Semi-finals of ATP World Tour Finals in London

Nadal vs. Federer

Djokovic vs. Wawrinka

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

Federer vs. Nadal

I would like to see Federer use his slice to neutralize and move Nadal around. I think that the crosscourt slice should try to move Nadal forwards in the court in a position where he is not in position to buggy whip that forehand. This should help to neutralize the down the line forehand of Nadal.

At the same time I want to see a lot of slice backhands down the line to the Nadal backhand. When he has Nadal looking for the short angle it will be a chance to slide one up the line or slice drive deep to the backhand corner. This will encourage Nadal to hit his backhand into the Federer forehand which is the game that Federer would like to play as opposed to the Nadal forehand to the Federer backhand.

If he is going to play the backhand to the forehand Federer needs to play a rally that is to advantage. Driving into the teeth of the Nadal forehand is the last thing he wants to do. The topspin drive of Nadal will just get higher and deeper on the Federer backhand putting him in a defensive position that he will not be able to extricate himself from.

Roger needs to serve laser like precision with the objective being to surgically dictate his service points. Hopefully on the return he slices to get the ball back into play off of the backhand trying to find the backhand of Nadal as often as possible. Pressure at the net whenever feasible. Djokovic seems to start out his matches with Nadal by attacking the Nadal forehand in order to loosen up the backhand side by doing so. Whatever it takes. Attack the strength to get at the weakness...Tilden style.

All that being said...this is going to be an uphill battle for Federer as Nadal has had a day of rest whereas Federer just 24 hours earlier played a fantastic match against the Jolly Argentine Giant Del Potro. This is just some food for thought that I would talk to Roger Federer about if I had his ear for this match.

I might also take some of those mind games away from Nadal...make him wait at the coin toss...stall him at the net as well. Mind fuck back.

[don_budge]

First set 7-5 to Nadal...but

Roger's best bet is to slice to the Nadal backhand. If he gets the point into a slice backhand down the line he will be in command of the point and will be able to dictate when to change the direction of the point. But as long as he insists on driving into the teeth of the Nadal forehand he is playing a decidedly uphill battle.

Even his topspin into the Nadal backhand is not accomplishing much tactically speaking as the topspin plays the ball right up into the zone where Nadal likes to play. The best bet again is to try and get Nadal into a slice to slice exchange.

I wouldn't suggest that Federer use an exclusively slice backhand but he certainly must surgically insert it at the precise proper moment in order to seize the initiative in the point.

[don_budge]

Tactics vs. the left handed tennis player

I think that Roger Federer needs to consult a great left handed tennis player (John McEnroe) about tactics playing against a strong left handed player with a two hand backhand. He is clueless in this regard. He cannot beat Nadal with his present tactical mindset.

[julian1]

Low percentage when coming to the net?

Cue the "Jaws" theme song. He's coming....He's coming. I've seen more and more of the missing quickness from Federer with each match. The set against Nadal in Cincy semis was a reason for hope. The matches in Basel and Paris were up a notch from that. Now Fed finally looks like he is moving at full speed without any impediment from his back.

I still think he needs his 3-4 week training session in Dubai to get his confidence back to where he needs it to be a solid three or four in the world and challenge Nadal and Djokovic on the biggest stages. But he finally looked like he wasn't rushing when he got an opportunity, just operating at a very high level. Prior to today, I always felt when he was playing well and pressing Delpo and Djokovic and Nadal that he was playing above his comfort level. Today it looked like he had a level of confidence and comfort in the heat of the battle that we are much more used to seeing from him, but have not seen since 2012.

What is especially encouraging is that he went to the net something like 29 times and won 22 of his 107 points at the net. He's hit a couple of backhand volleys that were terrific this week and this is where he has an edge on the rest of the top players. He haa to use that slice and bring that advantage to bear. Maybe he is finally realizing he can't bang with these guys unless he completes the package with sufficient closing moves to the front court. He's also starting to volley better and be more comfortable doing that in pressure. He may not be what he was in the front court 10 years ago, but he can still be a lot more effective there than he has been teh last 5 or 6 years.

He still needs that training session to be really ready to take on Djokovic and Nadal in 5 setters, but he could certainly knock off Nadal in 2 out of 3 tomorrow. A little help from Wawrinka and there could actually be a Swiss champion this week. I wonder what the odds on that were at the beginning of the week.

I just hope the apparent recovery of Fed's back is not just an illusion. If it really is as it has appeared this week, the Fab Four are still in business (depending on Murray).

don

A small excerpt about coming to the net
from www.guardian.co.uk
---->
Federer comes charging into the net in the ensuing rally, and his delicate drop shot is a touch too delicate, clipping the net cord and bouncing back on his side. He does the same again on the next point and concedes the game.
---->

[stotty]

I missed Federer v Nadal. I was hoping Federer was going to pull that one off...not to be.

I saw Djokovic v Wawrinka. Djokovic looked red hot. He made few mistakes and played well within himself...won easy and without taxing himself. His backhand was sublime, and his length on both wings was terrific throughout the match.

It's a tough call tomorrow. If my life was on it, I'd pick Djokovic, but Nadal is going to want this title badly. It will be a good scrap...

[tennis_chiro]

Nole looked just too good!

He just looked too good for Wawrinka today. And over the course of the year, you can see he is coming to the net more and more. Still looks a bit awkward when the reaction time becomes critical, but he is making better and better volleys, especially drop and angle volleys.

Should be a great final tomorrow. And as quick as that match was, both Djokovic and Nadal should be well rested.

don

BTW: even if he doesn't win another match until Indian Wells and even if Novak wins every match until then, Djoker can't catch him until almost Indian Wells. He picked up 1360 instead of the 666 I said he needed to hold the year end. That's an extra 694 points. He has 900 to defend from the tournaments he played before Indian Wells last year. And Novak is defending a lot of points: Australian Open and Dubai. But even if Novak repeats those victories and adds another 250 tourney (he can do that; he's only got 13 tourneys on his schedule from last year), all Rafa needs until Indian Wells to hold number one is 256 points; that's for tomorrow, the Australian and anything else he plays until Indian Wells. And if he wins tomorrow, Rafa is guaranteed to hold the top ranking at least until Monte Carlo. If I was him and his knees don't like hardcourts, I'd be thinking about skipping them completely.

[stotty]

He just looked too good for Wawrinka today. And over the course of the year, you can see he is coming to the net more and more. Still looks a bit awkward when the reaction time becomes critical, but he is making better and better volleys, especially drop and angle volleys.

He is doing well at the net for a player who can't volley. I really mean that. He needs to be sure it's a gimme or he's likely to fluff it. Much is made of his success at the net, but it's purely down to him approaching on the right shots...giving him mop up balls...he can manage those.

His hands are hopeless at the net. Anything intricate and he's had it. He has to volley in straight lines because his hand skills are virtually zero. Murray couldn't believe his luck to see Djokovic wandering in to the net so often in their Wimbledon final. He just popped in low balls to Djokovic as he came in...job done...easy pass to follow.

That said, he is doing well at the net for one of the worst volleyers in living memory. It just shows, come in on the right ball and anyone can do it...

[klacr]

He is doing well at the net for a player who can't volley. I really mean that. He needs to be sure it's a gimme or he's likely to fluff it. Much is made of his success at the net, but it's purely down to him approaching on the right shots...giving him mop up balls...he can manage those.

His hands are hopeless at the net. Anything intricate and he's had it. He has to volley in straight lines because his hand skills are virtually zero. Murray couldn't believe his luck to see Djokovic wandering in to the net so often in their Wimbledon final. He just popped in low balls to Djokovic as he came in...job done...easy pass to follow.

That said, he is doing well at the net for one of the worst volleyers in living memory. It just shows, come in on the right ball and anyone can do it...

If you didnt' say it I was going to. I agree on all points Stotty. Thank you.

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton