2016 Brisbane International…ATP 250…Brisbane, Australia

[don_budge]

http://www.atpworldtour.com/en/scores/current/brisbane/339/draws

The curtain slowly draws down on the Roger Federer Express in his maiden tournament for 2016. Perhaps his final "meaningful" year on the ATP tour. What did he end up last year…number three? Superb performance on high octane levels for the 34/35 year old maestro…the last remaining link to classic tennis.

Didn't Roger win this event last year to serve notice that he was still viable…that he was still relevant? He's relevant alright…he always will be. Even though Novak Djokovic has currently eclipsed him as the leading active player on tour, Roger still remains a force in any two out of three venue played on a slightly quicker surface. In fact he stands head and shoulders above the whole crew in terms of playing style. He is in fact the last remaining player with any style at all. To play with style means that you must be able to play the ball competently from any point on the court at any time in the point. He is the current definition in terms of style when it comes to modern tennis…a game that has outthought itself and reengineered itself into a unrecognizable game with relation to the original.

What will this game be like without Federer…the likes of Djokovic, Murray, Nishikori and other monotonous entities left to fill the void. Politically correct tennis. Cookie cutter.

At any rate there are the top seeds in this event looking to derail The Express…Nishikori, Raonic, Cilic and even the Baby Fed clone…Dimitrov. Federer in his last lap on the tour…his final meaningful lap. Watch how he meticulously prepares for each event. Watch how he paces himself and picks and chooses his spots to shine. Maybe handing a match or two over in the process as he has been doing the last couple of years…always with something in mind for the future. He is the hallmark of the modern day tennis champion. He is an extension of the book and the final chapter at the same time. The Living Proof.

[klacr]

http://www.atpworldtour.com/en/score...bane/339/draws

...What will this game be like without Federer…the likes of Djokovic, Murray, Nishikori and other monotonous entities left to fill the void. Politically correct tennis. Cookie cutter.

He is the hallmark of the modern day tennis champion. He is an extension of the book and the final chapter at the same time. The Living Proof...

The game will be different. Much different. Lacking the substance and the style. I hope that day is still a ways away. But it will be inevitable. Sad times ahead for fans, coaches and the education of the game.

With all that being said...Happy 2016! Let's get this tennis party started down under!

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

[don_budge]

The Party Down Under...

With all that being said...Happy 2016! Let's get this tennis party started down under!

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

The party is about to begin. I am watching Roger Federer warm up for his second round match. It's been a while since I have seen some real tennis played. So looking forwards to seeing this guy hit the tennis ball.

[don_budge]

The Twilight Zone…in America and other points of interest

The party is about to begin. I am watching Roger Federer warm up for his second round match. It's been a while since I have seen some real tennis played. So looking forwards to seeing this guy hit the tennis ball.

When I was in America this past month one of the things on cable television was a marathon station running reruns of an old great and legendary television series called the "Twilight Zone". It was amazing how many of the future stars of the silver screen cut their acting teeth on the "Twilight Zone".

Roger beat one Tobias Kamke 6-2, 6-1 in a warmup match before he faces his cloned study of himself…Grigor Dimitrov. While Grigor resents the comparison nowadays he has only himself to blame…somehow he mimicked the Federer game down relatively pat and let's just say he could have done worse.

Dimitrov is not quite as interesting to watch…it is like watching a stale rerun of an old sitcom of "Bonanza" or something to that effect. But the contrast between him and Viktor Troicki for instance is stark and Grigor looks to be in living color…in comparison.

http://www.atpworldtour.com/en/rankings/singles?rankDate=1978-01-16

The Federer game is timeless and in this respect Dimitrov does some inevitable justice to the game. It used to be that most everyone played like Federer…at least everyone played the all-court game. Some of the Europeans and South Americans were more or less pure clay court players. The modern game is of course made up of nearly 99% of this type of player…hugging the baseline. In January 1978 for instance one has only to take a look at the top 100 ranked players in the world to see that this is the truth of the matter. Americans held 30 spots in the top 100, Australians 20 spots…even the Swedes held 3 spots which is 3 more than they have now.

Federer would have been playing a whole different type of competition and his level of success might not have been so great as a consequence. The contrast between him and the rest of the field now is so pronounced but 40 years ago it was a different story. Federer is like a breath of fresh air to watch him move around the court with the classic grace that was once the standard of the game. He is in the twilight of his career now…that magical moment between day and night where the gap between light and darkness is a mere passing moment. He will linger on somewhat before he becomes a dream…a memory.

[don_budge]

Roger Federer vs. Grigor Dimitrov…the original versus the clone

Starting at 10 AM in Europe today it is Roger "Living Proof" Federer versus Grigor "The Clone" Dimitrov in a quarterfinal match at Brisbane. Cup of coffee and Puntzie as a foot warmer…we're good to go. Callisthenics during the match…regrouping from the American Odyssey.

In the bottom half it's Kai Nishikori against a resurgent Bernard Tomic. Does Tomic have the mental toughness that it takes at this point in the game? He's showing flashes of it but is it enough? He has to stay consistent for the duration of tournaments…for a season. This is the rap against him and always has been. He is maturing and learning from his mistakes. There is no way around it sometimes…the school of hard knocks. He needs a big win against a player of Nishikori's stature to bolster his confidence. Once he gets a couple of wins under his belt at this level he will give his game a much needed turbo charge.

That being said…the interest in any match other than Federer vs. Dimitrov is minimal. Lip service…to a game that has been engineered beyond recognition.

[don_budge]

1st set to The Original…The Living Proof

A extremely well played first set…by both players. The difference? It wasn't much. Roger held his serve easily in every game. Either at love or at 15. He made Dimitrov work only incrementally harder until Dimitrov served to stay in the set and 4-5…then Roger started to tighten the screws. He got Dimitrov to 15-30 and he stepped around a second serve and nailed it for two break points. Dimitrov hit two huge serve but once again found himself serving at ad-out and second serve. Roger converted for the first set.

[stroke]

I've mentioned before I really like Tomic's game. Its efficiency is very good, reminds me of someone. His movement is an issue. He certainly is below the top tier there.

[don_budge]

Federer in Three...

Working like a real professional Roger pulled out the match in the third set. Dimitrov looks to be playing more aggressive and he went toe to toe with Federer every step of the way. Federer upped his serve in the third as he looked to be in real trouble after losing the second set.

Federer apparently had a bit of flu and being down under he probably was suffering from some jet lag also. This is a tough combination of maladies to play with…some keyboard warriors have been known to have been thrown off their games from the combo. Somehow he found the energy to dig down deep and gut this one out. He wanted this one as moves into a semifinal match against Dominic Thiem. Three of the four quarterfinalists in the the top half of the draw use one hand backhands.

Milos Raonic to play Bernard Tomic in the other semifinal. Tomic showing some real improvement as he moved past Kei Nishikori. Raonic lost in the finals to Federer last year in Brisbane.

[don_budge]

The Art of Winning...

Does Tomic have the mental toughness that it takes at this point in the game? He's showing flashes of it but is it enough? He has to stay consistent for the duration of tournaments…for a season. This is the rap against him and always has been. He is maturing and learning from his mistakes. There is no way around it sometimes…the school of hard knocks. He needs a big win against a player of Nishikori's stature to bolster his confidence. Once he gets a couple of wins under his belt at this level he will give his game a much needed turbo charge.

I've mentioned before I really like Tomic's game. Its efficiency is very good, reminds me of someone. His movement is an issue. He certainly is below the top tier there.

Couple of quotes from the horse's mouth-Bernard Tomic

"I've improved so much. Being in this match was a huge opportunity for me, huge test, and I was playing very, very solid. He was playing also good. So it was quality, quality tennis out there."

"Obviously this win is huge," said Tomic. "Now I'm at the level [over the] past few months being in the Top 20 and playing these players that have been consistently in the Top 10, 5 in the world. It's a huge, huge feeling to play, and it motivates you. That's what I needed. I needed match wins against these high profile players around the world."

To move up a notch the belief system must move up a notch accordingly. It's a process…much as klacr outlines in "The Loser's Edge". Everyone starts out a loser and eats their way up the food chain seeking the level they can live with. Not that everyone gets there. But Bernard Tomic may be on the verge of some kind of personal breakthrough. There were high hopes for him once upon a time but they subsided as he seemed to be imploding with personal problems. It helps to sort things out off of the court first so that you can go into a match even…believing you can win. It's a meticulous process and it is the mental game. Pathological losers have the ability to snatch a loss from the jaws of victory. Tomic was one of these guys at one point.

[klacr]

Fed-Dimitrov match was entertaining. The athleticism, ball striking, shot making was superb. If only the tactics were on par with rest of their game, it would be early season contender for match of the year.

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

[don_budge]

Early and Premature Match of the Year…Federer vs. Dimitrov

Fed-Dimitrov match was entertaining. The athleticism, ball striking, shot making was superb. If only the tactics were on par with rest of their game, it would be early season contender for match of the year.

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

It was the match of the year to this point. A great athletic display. I noticed a rather what I thought was a pronounced flaw in the technique of Dimitrov's backhand volley. On some very difficult backhand volleys he took the racquet head back all of the way behind his left ear. From this position he has to make such a pronounced downward motion on a ball that was on his shoelaces. Obviously he must do that on more basic volleys as well.

The men's professional game is really an interesting conundrum at this point in time and history. There are many parroting just how great it is and how great the players are but the truth of the matter is even players at the very top of the game are fundamentally flawed in parts of the game that used to be traditionally standard issue…serve and volley, approach and volley. Any sort of play in the forecourt. I think that the authorities need to be called out on this. It is to the detriment of the sport. It is also an interesting potential aspect of John's discussion on grips. The stronger gripped play essentially inhibits play in the forecourt and transitioning to the net.

To Federer's credit he has the memory of this type of play in his DNA and armed with the larger racquet he is demonstrating it once again. He went to the net at one point 33 times and converted on 26 of those points. Against Dimitrov he gave away 10 years and thousands of miles…at one point it looked as if Dimitrov might make this advantage play for him. Roger managed to recover his dynamic serving and played out the third set without letting the younger Dimitrov get his foot in the door.

It was a highly entertaining match. First of all it was Roger Federer…secondly his "clone" played closer to his potential and actually took his first set against "the original". That made for some interesting viewing.

[gzhpcu]

Roger did not serve well against Raonic, and made some untypical errors. Kudos to Raonic who really blasted some great groundstrokes and had a high percentage of points won his serve.

As a consolation, Wawrinka won in Chennai for the third time in a row. Great power playing...

[klacr]

Roger was 0 for 1 in break point chances. Raonic was 2 for 5.
Both players served in 50's on first serve percentage. No "SABR" from Roger either. Although tough against a serve from Raonic. I hate that word SABR as well. Just terrible. I threw up a little bit in my mouth when I had to type it.

Anyways, bit of a mental battle as well. Raonic not pleased with Ljubicic going to Federer's corner. Ljubicic was the coach of Raonic last year. Raonic had some motivation. With that said, Roger's career highlight won't be winning Brisbane in 2016. He's got bigger and better things to win. Raonic could enjoy the glory, Federer will be just fine.

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

[don_budge]

A tough loss for a great Champion…Roger Federer

I watched the entire match and Roger was not Roger. Who was he then? He was a guy brought down to earth by the flu and jet lag…a nasty combination. It didn't look to me that he was himself the entire week. Even against Dimitrov I was asking myself why is he walking so slow changing sides of the court. Normally he is pretty deliberate but he looked like he was dragging all week. I know how he feels…at least from the flu and jet lag end of it. I wish I knew how it felt to be playing tennis at such a high level in spite of his low energy.

Milos Raonic looked to be the same old Milos. He took a medical timeout in the middle of the match that left Roger fuming in his chair. He didn't have the patience for this. He got up and went to his end of the court a couple of minutes early trying to keep his head in the game. The look on his face belied his thoughts…he felt like shit.

At one point he missed a number of backhands that he would normally make all day long and he just sort of dropped his racquet. I thought one of the announcers said something about him saying something that he shouldn't have said. Just dropping that racquet was a sure sign something was dramatically amiss as if the missed backhands weren't. Certainly with Rod Laver sitting in the crowd that racquet normally wouldn't have clanged to the court. By the way…was that some "Hunteresque" character going "gonzo" on poor old "Rocket" bugging him for an autograph or worse yet…an interview. Anybody seen JeffMac? Get him on a leash!

Roger was as graceful as ever in the award ceremony. He thanked everyone. He laid a heavy amount of praise on Milos even. What a guy. He did mention that he was sick this week. It wasn't like it was an excuse…more like a plea for some good old chicken noodle soup. He looked sort of terrible. He weathered it like a real champion. He gave the crowd there moneys worth. No defaulting for this tough hombre. He brought his C- game and made what he could with it. It's tough returning million mph bombs when you feel like crap. Another debatable win over Federer for Raonic. This puts Raonic on Federer's radar once again as Roger wished him the best of luck in the Aussie Open coming up. Sort of like saying…see you there Milos…with a wicked thought in the back of his mind.

Milos for his part never said a word about Roger. Perhaps they don't like each other anymore. Why would they? These guys hate to lose. It makes them want to go gonzo…but they have to keep up the nice guy, good loser image. Tough to do when deep down inside the primal feelings are almost getting the better of you. After Milos' medical timeout he didn't look as if he was the least bit daunted. I am certain that Roger noticed this. "See you next week Milos. I'm going to make you wish your mother never had you." This is what I love about tennis. The gentlemanly behavior with the rage simmering below. Roger doesn't take losing so bad when you beat him fair and square or if it is on his terms. I had the distinct feeling there were elements about this match he wasn't too happy about.

[stotty]

I watched the entire match and Roger was not Roger. Who was he then? He was a guy brought down to earth by the flu and jet lag…a nasty combination. It didn't look to me that he was himself the entire week. Even against Dimitrov I was asking myself why is he walking so slow changing sides of the court. Normally he is pretty deliberate but he looked like he was dragging all week. I know how he feels…at least from the flu and jet lag end of it. I wish I knew how it felt to be playing tennis at such a high level in spite of his low energy.

Sadly, TennisTV doesn't cover the current tournaments being played. I have been a little starved of tennis of late and am looking forward to the Aussie Open and the 1000 events coming up.

I am getting a little desperate for a new player to burst on the scene. The game needs it, I need, the forum needs it. Someone has to be coming up any time now. It's been ten years since someone outstanding turned up...