2015 Australian Open…ATP 2000...Melbourne, Australia

[don_budge]

Time to man up once again. Practice matches…warm up tournaments aside. Grand Slam time. Anyways…here's the draw.

http://www.ausopen.com/en_AU/scores/draws/ms/index.html

Projected quarterfinals:

Novak Djokovic (1) vs. Milos Raonic (8)
Stanislas Wawrinka (4) vs. Kia Nishikori (5)
Rafael Nadal (3) vs. Tomas Berdych (7)
Roger Federer (2) vs. Andy Murray (6)

The usual prognostications are virtually worthless. Projected quarterfinals…anything can happen along the way. The best laid plans of mice and men and all of that.

Come on Roger…for the Gipper even…if you will. Maybe it's too much to ask for after last years incredible super human effort. The preparation was unbelievable starting with the racquet and then retooling with Stefan Edberg consulting. Preparation for the shot. Preparation for the tournament. Preparation for the year…the long haul. Preparation for life! Preparation…preparation…preparation. The mantra of a tennis player. Last year was a clinic…culminating with the Davis Cup…in what used to be France.

[klacr]

No doubt Roger is an absolute delight to watch. I don't know one tennis player or fan that doesn't enjoy watching him. Those that say they don't are either lying or have never ever attempted to learn to play tennis themselves.

The Aussie Open is upon us. What a interesting year 2015 has the possibility to be. Can Wawrinka repeat? Doubtful. Can Roger Federer turn back the clock for another grand slam run and assault at #1 in the world? Perhaps. Can Djokovic establish his dominance and overall best in the world form. More than likely. Can Nadal manage to stay healthy the whole season, not just miraculously heal in time for Clay season? Not so sure. Can Tomas Berdych do what he is capable of doing, what he should be doing, what all of us know he needs to be doing? Winning a grand slam! God....I hope so.

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

[stroke]

Roger winning the AO would not really be much of a surprise. The oddsmakers have him as the #2 favorite behind Novak. I thought he would win Wimbledon last year, for his one more major. I still think he will win one more, and this one looks pretty good for him to me.

[vrc10s]

Roger

To win the AO Fed might have to beat Murray, Nadal and Djokovic. Seems like to much to do.

[gzhpcu]

Don't see Murray as a problem. He hasn't been playing that well lately. Nadal was off to a strong start against Youzhny, remains to be seen if he can keep it up. He was out early in the warmup tournaments. Djokovic seems the most predictable hurdle...

[don_budge]

The Best Laid Plans of Mice and Men…often go astray

Roger winning the AO would not really be much of a surprise. The oddsmakers have him as the #2 favorite behind Novak. I thought he would win Wimbledon last year, for his one more major. I still think he will win one more, and this one looks pretty good for him to me.

To win the AO Fed might have to beat Murray, Nadal and Djokovic. Seems like to much to do.

Don't see Murray as a problem. He hasn't been playing that well lately. Nadal was off to a strong start against Youzhny, remains to be seen if he can keep it up. He was out early in the warmup tournaments. Djokovic seems the most predictable hurdle...

Basically it comes down to put up and shut up. All of the speculation is meaningless nonsense…no offence intended. The players themselves will tell you it is one match at a time. One point at a time. Stay in the moment and focus on the job at hand. This is where the preparation comes in. It's all about the focus and the intent and the ability to pull off what it is that you believe that you can do.

Murray, Nadal and Djokovic all have some cause for concern internally. Well perhaps not Djokovic…he may have been playing it with a bit of insouciance. Playing it a little nonchalant in the lead up to the Australian Open. He was playing some rather impressive tennis at the end of the year and he has had time to mend and embark on his 2015 game plan. But even Novak stumbled a number of times last year.

Rafael Nadal has some serious question marks surrounding him but you cannot trust the obvious with him. His handlers are the masters of deception and he has done this disappearing act before. He is not to be trusted in any sense of the word. Somebody is going to have to take him out and this is as simple as you can put it. He isn't going to leave voluntarily.

Andy Murray is certainly not to be taken lightly. At the end of last year he showed signs of revival after perhaps a tough surgery. Who knows? None of these guys are to be trusted. I know one person who isn't taking him lightly should he be so fortunate to get so far.

But it is all up for grabs. Semifinal berths don't come with a guarantee. That is for certain. Each man has someone lurking in his quarter who is a potential "sleeper" that can wake up at any given moment and deliver the match of his life. The favourites have to be on their toes for such a match and if their preparation has been faultless they will respond to any and all challenges…that's why they are the best.

But as for Roger…I am still focused and gaging his preparation. Ever since last year he has been measuring each step with the expert calibration of a quality control wizard. He has that kind of limitless experience at this point and there is nothing that he doesn't take into account.

A good case in point is the quarterfinals at last years 2014 U. S. Open. Gael Monfils may just have come up with the match of his life against Roger and caught Roger when he was less than perfect and nearly poked enough chinks in his armour to take him down. Roger clawed his way out that predicament but ran into the one obstacle that he couldn't overcome. Father Time. He didn't have what it took when a second player came along that was playing the tournament of his life. The biggest "Sleeper" of 2014…Marin Cilic.

That said and done…Roger packed it up and was undeterred. He took his high wire act over to Asia and through Europe and gave himself a real shot at some serious hardware and prizes. He nearly ran the table…but once again he ran into the same sort of situation that he did at the U. S. Open. His Davis Cup partner nearly brought him down in perhaps the best tennis match of the year. Roger was only cat food for Djokovic the next day so he slipped out of that match and began his PREPARATION for the biggest prize of all remaining on the table. The Davis Cup. Mission accomplished.

So the preparation of 2014 lays the groundwork for 2015 and judging from his performance in Brisbane he hasn't been laying around eating Swiss chocolates all holiday season long like a lot of other couch potatoes. So even for Roger it is one match at a time…and he knows it. He has the new racquet that has levelled the playing field against the big guns. He has the new coach who has perhaps just enabled him to believe in himself one more time. His preparation has been a wonder to behold from almost a year ago to the day. Now all that he can do…is man up.

Time to man up once again.
Projected quarterfinals:

Novak Djokovic (1) vs. Milos Raonic (8)
Stanislas Wawrinka (4) vs. Kia Nishikori (5)
Rafael Nadal (3) vs. Tomas Berdych (7)
Roger Federer (2) vs. Andy Murray (6)

The usual prognostications are virtually worthless. Projected quarterfinals…anything can happen along the way. The best laid plans of mice and men and all of that.

The preparation was unbelievable starting with the racquet and then retooling with Stefan Edberg consulting. Preparation for the shot. Preparation for the tournament. Preparation for the year…the long haul. Preparation for life! Preparation…preparation…preparation. The mantra of a tennis player. Last year was a clinic…culminating with the Davis Cup…in what used to be France.

One match at a time and today it is none other than Yen-Hsun Lu who would like nothing better than to ruin "the best laid plans of mice and men". Yeah…it's a lot to do. It will be lot to do for anybody that is there at the end of the tournament. It's a daunting task for anybody…that is another thing that is for certain.

[don_budge]

Preparation…and the speed of the courts

Yesterday I watched Roger Federer tuning up for the Australian Open. I say tuning up because for Roger the tournament will begin in the quarterfinals and these early preliminary rounds are being used for the Swiss Maestro to further fine tune and calibrate his repertoire before he engages with the likes of Andy Murray or Grigor Dimitrov.

Roger treated this prelim exactly as you might expect…playing in a lower gear yet maintaining enough pressure to assure that he doesn't waste any energy by losing a set. He is managing his fuel tank these days knowing that if he is going to win the whole thing he is going to need every drop. He is plotting his course…preparing for the best case scenario.

Speaking of preparation and more specifically the preparation of the shot…I wonder about the speed of the courts. I think they must be playing just a bit quicker than the standard of recent years. Quicker courts are going to favour Federer more this year than any other. With the switch of racquets and his new…old tactics…a quicker court is going to favor him exponentially. We saw this a couple of years ago or was it last year. The tournament was experimenting for the way forwards with regards to future engineering. I wonder what the conclusions were. Noticeably quicker courts…we even had Doug Eng there to verify.

[don_budge]

Cockpit chairs...

I like the umpire chairs at the Australian Open…as I watch Gael Monfils struggling against his countryman Lucas Pouille. The umpire chairs look like airliner cockpit chairs.

[klacr]

Kyrgios and Kokkinakis thrilled the home crowd on day 1 with five set victories. Aussie Open is always considered the fan friendly grand slam. The look, the feel and the innovations they bring forward earn the players respect. Looking forward to an awesome fortnight.

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

[stotty]

To win the AO Fed might have to beat Murray, Nadal and Djokovic. Seems like to much to do.

Hmmm...and in darned hot weather too. I always think the Aussie Open is a formidable task for someone who is getting on a bit. It's important Federer breezes through the early rounds if he is to have a chance.

[klacr]

The Australian Open is won in December. Off season training.

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

[vrc10s]

Hmmm...and in darned hot weather too. I always think the Aussie Open is a formidable task for someone who is getting on a bit. It's important Federer breezes through the early rounds if he is to have a chance.

The weather is supposed to be mild this year. Give Fed a better chance, but I still wouldn't bet on him.

[don_budge]

A gentle breeze in the stifling heat...

The weather is supposed to be mild this year. Give Fed a better chance, but I still wouldn't bet on him.

Roger Federer breezed into the third round…conserving perhaps another ounce of energy to be expended at a later stage in the tournament. His preparation for the later rounds is based on his not becoming depleted before the rest of the field…a precarious balance at his age.

He has to avoid an epic episode of the nature of the Gael Monfils spectacle at the 2014 U. S. Open quarterfinals. Conservation of energy and efficiency of tactics is paramount. He is expedition things with an attacking style of play and he seems to be in excellent form. During the course of a Grand Slam this level of performance is extremely difficult to maintain without a hiccup or two.

He is staying the course and preparing for his next round. Preparation…preparation…preparation. He says to himself as his mantra.

[hockeyscout]

The Australian Open is won in December. Off season training.

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

Its won by the guy who has stayed the course for two decades, or in Federer's case close to three decades. Its a long path. At this high a level a lot of players have peaked out, however, their are a few maniacs in ranks who are on it, and can create that small amount of separation between themselves and their peers. Enjoy this generation, I am not sure if we will ever see a group like this one again EVER. The world is changing, and I don't think we will see a Nadal, Federer or Williams for a VERY long time. We might see flash and bash, however, not much substance. We're all getting lazier, and lazier, and I just can't see this magical run continuing. Such great personalities as well, and now this new generation is just so boring and well rehearsed.

[don_budge]

Getting that darned horse in the barn…Swinging volleys are not going to get it done

Watching matches on the Australian Open, I wonder why when most players attack to follow the ball to the net, they play mostly topspin instead of a heavy low slice? Is it because slice is not used much and they don't feel comfortable with it?

Interesting match between Rafael Nadal and Tim Smyczek. Smyczek who is not currently ranked in the top 100 presently took Nadal to the edge…but he couldn't push him over the cliff.

He came so close. At 5-5 in the fifth…at 15-15 Smyczek took a ball that looked like he could have taken as an overhead if he had moved forwards quickly or even let the ball bounce but he elected to topspin volley…the dreaded swinging volley. Predictably it was the kiss of death against Nadal who hammered a backhand on the topspin volley, that landed short, crosscourt for an easy pass.

Two points later Smyczek again approached the net…this time with a forehand topspin approach down the line to the Nadal forehand. Nadal reply was a sizzling, scorching and dipping bullet at the feet of Smyczek that he couldn't handle. Neither approaches fooled Nadal in the slightest. Situation wise…both shots by Smyczek were mental errors. But that being said…Smyczek played the entire fifth set from the baseline and it didn't appear to me that he had a lot of experience playing net approach tennis.

His tactics were more of an indication that he sensed that he really didn't belong out there with Nadal so late in the fifth set at the Australian Open. As a consequence he sort of panicked a bit trying to get the horse in the barn and he tried to rush things just a tad.