Shanghai Open ATP 1000

[stotty]

Roger digs out another tight match out against Nishikori. Nishikori should have won the second set. He was a better player in the latter half of the set and had a 4-1 lead in the tie-break. If the kid had a serve he'd have won a slam or two by now. He hits the ball so clean off the ground.

[stroke]

Interesting match tomorrow Novak vs Zverev. Zverev is maybe(?) the one player who can hang with and maybe get to Novak baseline exchanges.

[stroke]

Nevermind on the interesting match thing.

[arturohernandez]

Zverev just not mobile enough to trouble Djokovic these days. Coric is stronger. Maybe he can win a set.

[arturohernandez]

Roger digs out another tight match out against Nishikori. Nishikori should have won the second set. He was a better player in the latter half of the set and had a 4-1 lead in the tie-break. If the kid had a serve he'd have won a slam or two by now. He hits the ball so clean off the ground.

Kei is incredible. Great match!

[stotty]

Great performance from Coric. He served incredibly well and bossed the rallies. Roger actually looked pushed for time in many of those rallies. Coric showed great temperament. He's a workhorse and relentless....and an animal.

It hasn't been a good week for Roger. He has been struggling all week to find any continuous rhythm and flow. Nevertheless he is stunning to watch and never fails to do something extraordinary every time he walks on court. I am glad he didn't make the final as he would have been given a drubbing by Novak.

Zverev is starting to worry me. He can't alter his game all that much. Everything is hit hard and without much margin at times. He seems to have got to a certain level and hasn't moved an inch further for a year or more now. Against Novak he had a a bad day. His serve percentages were poor and Novak read him like a book. Novak learns very quickly about players and may lose once or even twice to them, but then no more. He's very smart like that and it's something that goes unrecognised.

There are many good two-handers out there but Novak's is still the best for me. It's very reliable and no one, absolutely no one, can hit a backhand when on the stretch like Novak. He is unusually athletic and there has never been another like him in our sport. Sometimes I wonder how he gets to some of those backhands let alone play a beautifully timed stroke when he gets there.

Coric has a chance in the final. He will need to serve as well as he did against Roger and be really assertive in the rallies. Having said that Novak must be heavy favourite. He hardly missed a ball against Zverev.

[stroke]

Great performance from Coric. He served incredibly well and bossed the rallies. Roger actually looked pushed for time in many of those rallies. Coric showed great temperament. He's a workhorse and relentless....and an animal.

It hasn't been a good week for Roger. He has been struggling all week to find any continuous rhythm and flow. Nevertheless he is stunning to watch and never fails to do something extraordinary every time he walks on court. I am glad he didn't make the final as he would have been given a drubbing by Novak.

Zverev is starting to worry me. He can't alter his game all that much. Everything is hit hard and without much margin at times. He seems to have got to a certain level and hasn't moved an inch further for a year or more now. Against Novak he had a a bad day. His serve percentages were poor and Novak read him like a book. Novak learns very quickly about players and may lose once or even twice to them, but then no more. He's very smart like that and it's something that goes unrecognised.

There are many good two-handers out there but Novak's is still the best for me. It's very reliable and no one, absolutely no one, can hit a backhand when on the stretch like Novak. He is unusually athletic and there has never been another like him in our sport. Sometimes I wonder how he gets to some of those backhands let alone play a beautifully timed stroke when he gets there.

Coric has a chance in the final. He will need to serve as well as he did against Roger and be really assertive in the rallies. Having said that Novak must be heavy favourite. He hardly missed a ball against Zverev.

Zverev, who is in this very common now 6'4" to 6'6" category, has no advantage over what appears to the gold standard size of Novak, Fed, and Nadal. His serve is slightly better than Novak, because of his height, but he gives up so much movement to a guy like Novak that simply put, his height is a disadvantage. There has still not been a player this height that can move like the 3 great ones. Cilic and Mededev are just not there either. The closest may be Monfils and Nick, who both have great speed and could probably beat all 3 in a 40 yard dash, but still cannot move on a tennis court as well, particularly point in and point out. Arturo has spoken of this kind of thing also. One would think that the superior wingspan of these tall players would give them an advantage at the net, but to me, I cannot think of a tall player that has ever volleyed as well as Edberg, McEnroe, Rafter, Sampras, or Fed. I would guess this is because once again their overall movement deficiency to these great volleyers.

Novak seems to be the ideal size to play his high level(highest ever) of hardcourt baseline tennis. He is tall at the ideal tennis weight. He stands straight and maintains an ideal core position for rallying. Nadal, obviously more muscular than Novak, uses that added bulk to an ideal level on clay. Fed is just Fed, stand alone at being Fed.

I like what you said about Zverev not being able to alter his game much. But to me neither can Novak. But he does not need to. At his best, no one can force him to.

[stotty]

Coric served great again in the final but still lost. Novak is playing so well and is the best player in the world again by quite a margin. I don't know how Novak and Roger do it. Every time they step on court they seem to have ball control and precision at their disposal. Novak is perfectly built for tennis with not an ounce of fat on him. I know people think he should bulk up but I think his 'lightness' is one of his key assets. He moves so well.

Let's hope Novak stays healthy for a few more years yet. It's going to be interesting to see if any of the newcomers can finally break through that bulletproof game of his.

Coric has improved. He may come sneaking up and be a better player than many thought. There is no faulting his temperament.

[klacr]

Djokovic2.0 is heads and shoulders above everyone else right now. He's lost once since July, to Tsitsipas.
Djokovic will win a few more slams next year. He is back to his peak form that saw him dominate. Djokovic has the game to make a serious run at a calendar grand slam. He has won Aussie Open numerous times, is a splendid clay courter that has beaten Nadal multiple times, including at the French Open, exceeds on the hard courts at US Open and has had success on grass. He is complete in terms of what is required to win today. Fed is looking more tired than ever and Djokovic is just getting his 2nd win. 20 grand slams is not out of question for the Serbian.

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton, FL

[stotty]

I like what you said about Zverev not being able to alter his game much. But to me neither can Novak. But he does not need to. At his best, no one can force him to.

I know what you mean but Novak's game style is slightly different in that he is far less of a risk taker. I watched Zverev at Wimbledon and he hits the ball harder and lower over the net, which is terrific when he's feeling it, but prone to error when he's not. Novak is way more conservative and opts to go for placement and length much of the time. When he's defending he lofts the ball higher and better than Zverev. He moves better (not that Zverev is a slouch) and he wins so many points by moving so well.

I actually think Novak has improved in the sense he exploits the whole court at times and moves his opponent around really well. Zverev is hopeless at the net whereas Novak has at least learned precisely when it's feasible to come in and mop up.

Novak is a better player than Zverev 364 days of the year and that's really all there is to it.

[stroke]

I know what you mean but Novak's game style is slightly different in that he is far less of a risk taker. I watched Zverev at Wimbledon and he hits the ball harder and lower over the net, which is terrific when he's feeling it, but prone to error when he's not. Novak is way more conservative and opts to go for placement and length much of the time. When he's defending he lofts the ball higher and better than Zverev. He moves better (not that Zverev is a slouch) and he wins so many points by moving so well.

I actually think Novak has improved in the sense he exploits the whole court at times and moves his opponent around really well. Zverev is hopeless at the net whereas Novak has at least learned precisely when it's feasible to come in and mop up.

Novak is a better player than Zverev 364 days of the year and that's really all there is to it.

No doubt, to me that gets back to the size thing I was talking about earlier. Zverev at his size is never going to be able to pretty much say to all that he can stay in the rally longer than his opponent. Novak is the gold standard now for hard court baseline rallying. The Novak way is tougher on the opponent's psyche also to me. Zverev can certainly hit more awe inspiring winners, but the opponents can feel like that is ok and they can wait on him to drop level a bit. Novak is just doing what he does, in the left lane just cruising, no surprises to anyone. That is tough to accept.

On another note, it appears db has checked out, probably because of the Serena stuff. I hope he comes back at some point. He could really set the table for tournament threads.

[stotty]

On another note, it appears db has checked out, probably because of the Serena stuff. I hope he comes back at some point. He could really set the table for tournament threads.

Yes it's always good to have don_budge's tournament insights. He assesses play well and peruses the draw for the best upcoming matches. Let's hope his departure is only temporary and that he comes back soon. Maybe the ATP tour finals will draw him back.