2015 French Open…ATP 2000...Roland Garros, Paris, France

[klacr]

Wawrinka in the French Open finals. Incredible job from him. Will be up to #3 in the world on Monday. Novak and Andy putting on a show in that 3rd and 4th set. Gotta come back Saturday to finish it. Not as Easy as Djokovic hoped.

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

[GeoffWilliams]

It was the unprofessional, "I'm too sick to walk.", psych, that worked to unravel Timea B. Really disgussting to see, and unvirtuous, unprofessional, cheap, sick type of psych. Just another day at the office for Serena, who is becoming somewhat of a thief out there with that shit. Compton crap showing again. Very ungracious.

[stotty]

I just love Matts Wilander's commentary:

"There was once a time when players taped up their own blisters".

"We never had a team/entourage in my day...a coach yes".

"I don't remember having a toilet break. I just went before the match started"

"They need to find way to speed the game up. To make the game even more exciting than it is already"

He always finishes by saying:

"But these changes that have come about are all for the good of the game" But he is sooooo tongue in cheek when he says it. He's sending the game up, really.

He did a great job also on Serena's goings on yesterday. In a round about way he was telling the audience she was faking it.

He's good Matts. He calls it like it is without landing himself in trouble. Smart man.

[stotty]

As you can imagine the talk over the pond is whether Murray can put the spanner in the works and defeat Djokovic. Murray is playing well, as well as he has ever played come to that. The pundits suggest Murray has the variety and skills to at least make life very uncomfortable Djokovic, but are sceptical he can find the temperament to do the job over a five sets.

[GeoffWilliams]

When the attacking players come in they lose to the better base line passing shot artists. Equipment won't change that now. Technique changes determined by who likes serve/volley attack play will never occur ever for good reasons. Nadal looks burned out, maybe on a new drug cocktail, after being caught for doping and secretly suspended? Who knows, but his frame switch from the old apd paint jobs really hurt him as well, dropping his power and spin rates.

[stotty]

Djokovic, for as poorly as he plays the net, simply too good for everyone else on the baseline

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

Yes, like I have said before, it's stunning how good Djokovic considering the chunks missing from his game. His volleys and overhead are positively unrefined compared to net players of the past, and his sliced backhand isn't even that great. But his ground shots are incredibly solid and his serve so reliable. His second serve has improved a lot this year. His strengths have gotten even better while his weaknesses have remained exactly the same. He's proved some shots are almost surplus to requirements in the present playing climate.

When Miles Maclagan was asked why he thought Djokovic was so good, he replied "Djokovic just does the basics so incredibly well."

I think Miles is right...

[don_budge]

The Clash of the Titans…Not

Nadal falls to 10 or 11 on Monday when new rankings come out. Djokovic, for as poorly as he plays the net, simply too good for everyone else on the baseline and since many others stink at net, they also play from baseline. One game and whoever is the best at that one and only game will dominate. That player is Djokovic.

Tennis world...time to embrace the net!

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

Hahaha…great stuff klacr. "Since many others stink at the net". What a great line. Actually I think that they are allergic to the net. But it's interesting to see the drop shot tactic. The crowd ooh and awe's. They are flabbergasted to see a player in the vicinity of the net also. Such daring. Such bravado.

Players have begun to realize that it's a great tactic to bring the other stupido in where they are out of their comfort zone. The classic fish out of water. I have been advocating this sort of tactic since…the beginning of time.

"Embrace the net"…and let's get serious now. Reduce the size of the racquet. I for one have had quite enough of this pseudo tennis. In fact…I had enough of it from day one. It was a stupid idea in the first place. The initial ones that embraced it were weaker tennis players that needed the extra real estate because they were inferior tennis players. The real studs wanted nothing to do with it. Borg, Connors, McEnroe and Lendl held out until the last. Borg never caved in. He just disappeared into the sunset only to reappear once again a dozen years later…with his beloved Donnay's.

Here's the highlight youtube video…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cWUXgnJAwMQ

The most glaring thing about this video is the noise these two clowns are making. Sure the backcourt play is impressive…particularly from Djokovic. But let's not forget they are playing with racquets the size of snow shoes. But the fake noise is just nauseating. All of that feigned effort. Give me a break. This is the best the tennis world has to offer. The much awaited clash between Djokovic and Nadal. Fizzle.

The only thing "great" about this match was watching that skunk leave the court with his tail tucked firmly between his legs where he has been pulling at his shorts for all of these moronic years. Djokovic should have bageled him.

[klacr]

Rafa gave up in the 3rd.
He new there is now a better player on the court. This is Djokovic's Roland Garros party, and we are all invited. From 4-all in the 1st set, Djokovic won 15 games, Nadal only 5.
Nadal falls to 10 or 11 on Monday when new rankings come out. Djokovic, for as poorly as he plays the net, simply too good for everyone else on the baseline and since many others stink at net, they also play from baseline. One game and whoever is the best at that one and only game will dominate. That player is Djokovic.

Tennis world...time to embrace the net!

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

[stotty]

Novak v Rafa

I saw the Djokovic/Nadal match in patches. I left to go to work at 4-0 to Djokovic in the first set. Nadal was being executed. I then came back midway through the second and watched to the end of the match. Nadal was being executed again. Those were three bruising sets to say the least. Toward the end Djokovic was literally doing what he wanted and was even happy to throw in mistakes going for big shots, knowing full well he could recover the match at any point. It was complete and utter domination.

Djokovic was playing at a very high level. I mean he is on his own right now. By contrast Nadal is a shadow of himself. He's misfiring forehands, hitting short, and making errors he would never normally make. I think he may have lost his nerve too. He looked drained and empty at the end of that match. Full credit to Djokovic but Nadal is out of sorts.

Djokovic deserved his victory. He's had two crushing loses to Nadal in the past at Roland Garros when on the cusp of winning. Once courtesy of a rain delay that saved Nadal...and another time due to a gust of wind that took away a gimme overhead. Those loses must have been tough to swallow. He made up for those loses today.

And to think he still has a long way to go yet if he is to lift the trophy....

[don_budge]

Elvis…going, going, going...

Wawrinka.

Tsonga.

nuff' said.

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

I know how you feel…but the show must go on. Elvis has not quite left the stadium…although he made an early exit yesterday at Roland Garros.

I missed the Federer/Wawrinka match. Did Stan play the game of his life or did Roger screw up? The wind in this part of Europe is outrageous at the moment, with gusts over 40mph. Going down in three straight seems a little tame for Roger

Stan Wawrinka certainly did not play the match of his life even though it has to rank right up there with his biggest wins on one of the biggest stages. Roger Federer clearly was not 100%. Whether or not it was some physical problem…clearly mentally he was not in the match. He never got his teeth into the match.

It was windy and blustery. He seemed to have some issues with the court. He played very poorly by his own standards and it quite difficult to know where to begin. So as klacr said…enough said. It was a full moon last night. Roger was out of sorts. He made some uncharacteristic errors and routine shots and to say that he wasn't sharp is understating the case. Towards the end of the match he yelled out rather loudly after mistiming yet another backhand. He missed so many shots so badly…clearly he was very frustrated.

We will probably never know what his problem was. In the post match interview he cited the wind, the courts and his inability to adapt to the conditions. Very uncharacteristic of him to not adapt better than his opponent. In this case Stan Wawrinka didn't necessarily adapt all that well either. His play was rather patchy too. From what I saw of Tsonga against his opposition I would say that he is the sharper of the two at the moment.

Federer is out. Perhaps some extra time with the family and more time to prepare for Wimbledon. The sand is running out of the hour glass. He only has so much time left to contend for the big ones until he becomes a tourist attraction. Sadly it is tennis itself that is so in need of a hero. There really isn't anyone that can fill that bill these days. There was a meeting in London a week or two ago. The brain trust were asking who the next up and comer will be. There weren't any definitive answers. Roger is going to be sorely missed. He is already being missed…at this year's French Open.

Bye bye Johnny. Johnny bye bye.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oeee8sNbSbY

[klacr]

Wawrinka.

Tsonga.

nuff' said.

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

[stotty]

I missed the Federer/Wawrinka match. Did Stan play the game of his life or did Roger screw up? The wind in this part of Europe is outrageous at the moment, with gusts over 40mph. Going down in three straight seems a little tame for Roger

I saw the beginning of Tsonga v Nishikori, and all of the 5th set. That Tsonga is as strong as a bull, belts it. Nishikori's serve just sits there sometimes and Tsonga really took advantage of it in the game he broke, and many Nishikori's service games went to deuce. That's hard work. If he could just serve a tad better.

[don_budge]

The Lizard King…Jim Morrison

Great song. Lots we can learn from Jim Morrison.

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JSUIQgEVDM4

There is much we can learn from the times that produced a Jim Morrison and a slew of other artists.

[don_budge]

The quarterfinals…2015 French Open, Roland Garros, Paris, France

What an incredible chance Federer has this year. The other big three are going to have to knock each other out for a place in the final. Federer must be licking his lips at the thought of one big match to take the title...or am I getting ahead of myself...it just seems so doable.

The one big threat to Federer is Monfils on a good day, but Monfils has just gone into the 5th set as I write. You don't want too many (if any) five setters at Roland Garros...just too taxing.

That's right buddy…one step at a time. Go real slow. You like it more and more. We got the match we wanted and Roger took care of his business. He's got his teeth into the tournament and his Davis Cup and fellow Swiss is next up. 16 and 2 against Wawrinka? It may as be 0 and 0. It's the beginning…it's the end. Thanks for the tip about the printable version of the draw. That other was really pissing me off! You cannot be serious!

Novak Djokovic vs. Rafael Nadal…Novak hits hard to the Nadal forehand to prevent him from camping out on the backhand side. Then he starts to attack the backhand. Then he is slapping the Spaniard around the court…both sides now.

Andy Murray vs. David Ferrer…Edge to Murray. Only because he has a snowball's chance in hell of beating Djokovic whereas Ferrer has none.

Kei Nishikori vs. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga…Tsonga pretty impressive so far. Except for his helicopter victory laps. Between Tsonga and Monfils…there is some rather interesting stories behind these two guys. I'm sure. Talented black guys in France. They have big time immigration problems just as the rest of Europe does. Boat people.

Stan Wawrinka vs. Roger Federer…My God! Nothing needs to be said. "The Federer Mistake"…Federer BH vs. Wawrinka BH. Take your pick. I'm picking Roger.

Last year I was sitting in this cafe in Paris at this time and this beautiful woman and her man were eating next to the Ugly American and I. This Dutch dude was at our table too. He had ridden down to Paris from Amsterdam on the same train as us and was staying at the same hotel as we were. It was right down the street from the Arc d'Triumph. Somehow he ended up in the room that we originally were going to stay in. Instead we got a balcony view of the Arc…down the Champs Elysses. Still…somehow our journeys were connected.

http://www.grayline.com/tours/paris/dinner-on-the-champs-elysees-seine-river-cruise-and-illuminations-night-tour-5875_25/

The little cafe was Italian cuisine. The beautiful woman was of Italian descent. She was friends with the owners of the cafe. Her man was a passionate tennis person…my buddy and I had been to Roland Garros during the day. He didn't seem to mind in the least that his beautiful companion was totally engaging with me. He seemed to be sympathetic. I told him about the old guy twirling the wooden tennis racquet on the Roland Garros grounds. I introduced myself as don_budge, an American transplanted in Sweden. I'd seen her walking down the street and she said she had seen me too, we started discussing George Orwell, tennis and over-sized racquets, immigration in Europe, political correctness, love and life…you know, typical conversation for a Paris cafe. The Parisian hour. In the middle of our conversation three machine gun armed soldiers walked right by us. I was like…what the fuck?

"Well", they said…"there have been problems in Paris." Several months later…well you know the rest.

[stotty]

I saw only the first two sets of Sock. He was getting clobbered when I left. I just felt if he could direct his forehand a little better he might start making a dent. Nadal's forehand was the more effective. He directs it so well and makes it awkward for players. I found Sock enjoyable to watch. He's got something about him. I find his serve odd. The start looks so contorted.

You just get the feeling there is only one player in the draw who can stop Nadal...Djokovic. Nishikori might also be able to do it if he plays freely and well and doesn't put too much pressure on himself. A player has to have an exceptional backhand to have any chance whatsoever. Nishikori might just steal in and surprise us all.

Federer owns every player in his half of the draw...except Nishikori. He has played Wawrinka 18 times and lost only twice. If he plays well and holds his nerve, he should win to play either Tsonga or Nishikori. But let's not get ahead...one step at a time...one match at a time.