Italian Open, 2018

[stroke]

Djokovic beats Nishikori in three grueling sets. Glad to see Djokovic getting back in shape, but his I find this style of play so boring. A baseline basher,with no variation. Yawn....

I thought it was a compelling match with easy on the eyes play from both. I am really looking forward to seeing Nadal and Novak go at it tomorrow and the winner taking on Zverev probably. These Masters tournaments are almost more compelling to me than the Majors as the players have to play such quality matches with no days off. The career records of players at the Masters is quite revealing, past and present.

[stotty]

Zverez edges out Goffin in a three setter full of ebb and flow. Zverez plays better than I thought on clay, moving well and adopting the best court position possible in rallies. I love the way he drops back to aggressively defend and then moves up to attack at the first opportunity.

I think I like the clay court season best of all.

[stroke]

Zverez edges out Goffin in a three setter full of ebb and flow. Zverez plays better than I thought on clay, moving well and adopting the best court position possible in rallies. I love the way he drops back to aggressively defend and then moves up to attack at the first opportunity.

I think I like the clay court season best of all.

Stotty, you and I are on the same page

[tennis_chiro]

Phil says the baseline bashing of Nishikori/Djokovic is a little boring. A couple of months ago, I terminated my cable subscription (about $70) and signed up for YoutubeTV ($35). I get ESPN, TNT, MSNBC and even the Tennis Channel. Better yet, I can watch the MSNBC shows at 1.5 x speed (or even 2x) and they are perfectly understandable. I watch a recorded match like Nishikori/Djokovic at 1.25 speed and it looks fabulous. I also get to jump from point to point with the 15 second advance button. Then when the match gets to a really important stage, I slow it down to regular speed. You'd be amazed how mesmerizing the action on the court looks at 1.25x... and if I really want to see something they are doing, I go back and look at it at .25x.

In any case, I thought the level of play was tremendous. Stotty, try to pick up a replay. I think you will enjoy the match. Both players seemed to be at their past levels for the first time in a long time. It will be really interesting to see how Novak does with Rafa and then to see if Zverev can get by either of them at sea level (if he can get by Cilic first). The Big Four may be making a comeback although Murray is still a long ways away.

don

[stroke]

oddmakers have Zverev with about a 66% chance of winning his match vs Cilic and Nadal at a massive 85% chance of winning vs Djokovic

[stotty]

Terrific first set from Nadal and Djokovic. Djokovic is playing well again and Nadal is in bruising form. stroke, I hope you are watching this. The standard is really high.

Those drop shots of Novak's really cost him at times. Nadal's down the line forehands in the tie-break were superb and key to him clinching the first set.

[stotty]

Nadal wins in two and looks as good as he has ever been on clay, maybe better with his more beefy backhand. No decision-making errors by him. He was aggressive and seized the opportunity to dish out bruising forehands whenever they came around. He hit to every corner of the court. Great stuff.

When it comes down to it Nadal is just a tiny bit better in the clutch than Novak.

Great to see Novak playing so well again.

[stroke]

Terrific first set from Nadal and Djokovic. Djokovic is playing well again and Nadal is in bruising form. stroke, I hope you are watching this. The standard is really high.

Those drop shots of Novak's really cost him at times. Nadal's down the line forehands in the tie-break were superb and key to him clinching the first set.

you are correct, just spectacular tennis. Nadal and that forehand, to me the best forehand on clay ever(that brutal hook spin exploring areas of the court like no one else), just brutal. There has never been a torch passing like we are eventually going to see. Basically the best clay court player in the world since 2004(or 2005) except for maybe one year when Novak got so hot. He is 31 and clay is as we all know the most physically demanding. Zverev appears to be the most likely candidate for dethroning him. One t hing I know though. It will be only because of his age. To me, he would never beat Nadal on clay when Nadal was in his prime.

[stotty]

Zverez wins in two straight. He's getting better mentally. In the last two matches he faced difficult situations and tackled them superbly to come roaring back and win. He wouldn't have done that last year.

I can't see him winning against Rafa, but if he goes out and plays freely he have may at least give him a run for his money. It's just that Rafa is playing so well and is so stingy with the points that it's hard to see Zverez coping with relentlessness of it. It might have been interesting had Novak won that first set today.

And by the way, has anyone ever seen Rafa miss an overhead? Has anyone ever seen anyone smash better? He can back peddle and leap up to overheads like no one else. I have yet to see him miss an overhead.

[stroke]

Zverez wins in two straight. He's getting better mentally. In the last two matches he faced difficult situations and tackled them superbly to come roaring back and win. He wouldn't have done that last year.

I can't see him winning against Rafa, but if he goes out and plays freely he have may at least give him a run for his money. It's just that Rafa is playing so well and is so stingy with the points that it's hard to see Zverez coping with relentlessness of it. It might have been interesting had Novak won that first set today.

And by the way, has anyone ever seen Rafa miss an overhead? Has anyone ever seen anyone smash better? He can back peddle and leap up to overheads like no one else. I have yet to see him miss an overhead.

Such a good point about Nadal overhead. It is about the best out there, and he gets plenty of chances to show it after those forehands. It is a bit of an underappreciated aspect of his game because we are so enamored with other things he does so well. Oddsmakers have Nadal at an 82% chance of winning vs Zverev, ever so slightly better chance than Novak odds.

[stotty]

Such a good point about Nadal overhead. It is about the best out there, and he gets plenty of chances to show it after those forehands.

Roger's is also good, but Rafa can do arch over for a lob hit over his backhand side like no one else. And he hits them so bloody hard!

[stroke]

stroke

• Join Date: Jan 2006
• Posts: 816

#23
Today, 11:32 AM
Zverev wins 2nd set 6-1 and Nadal did not do a Fabio. I don't remember ever seeing Nadal lose a set like that on clay. 3rd will be very very interesting, Zverev hits a very big ball and he hurt Nadal. When he plays like that, one can see that Nadal is not in his mid 20's anymore. Even more revealing to me, Zverev did not look like he was red lining his game in the 2nd. He just looked very comfortable. And his serve, particularly his 1st, is a much bigger weapon than Novak has ever had,

[stroke]

they are back on court after a 30 minute or so rain delay, 3rd set, Zverev serving at 3-2. A real test for him here.

[stroke]

Nadal wins 6-3 in 3rd. Zverev played well, to me he showed he can play within himself and be a true threat to Nadal at FO. I think clearly the #2 favorite after Nadal. Obviously, Zverev is not going to be as good as good on clay as Nadal has been, but he is close to this nearly 32 year old Nadal.

[stotty]

Well the rain delay was useful. It meant when I got home I could watch from 3-2 in the third. Watching the match from that point on it looked all Rafa. He battered the kid all over the place. I will have to catch the second set on a replay.

Rafa looks better than ever on clay to me. His backhand is better and he is generally more aggressive than previous years. He hacks far less and dictates much more. I make him slightly slower these days perhaps but he moves so well on clay, better than the other three on that surface. His retrieves from deep in the corners are amazing. It's a shame no one can volley when he retrieves like that because those great retrieves would be gimmes for a quality net player. No one moves in these days, not really.