2019 Australian Open...ATP 2000...Melbourne, Australia

[arturohernandez]

The final will be big. But I expect that Novak will do what he always does. Take Nadal's high forehand and hit short cross court and vary it down the line. Nadal has no solution for Novak on hard courts. But you never know...

I dug these highlights out from the first round. Ironic that this game style does not lead to a better ranking overall. But he fared better than just about everyone else in the tournament against Nadal.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Duckworth_(tennis)

Is it better to lose badly with your A game or have a chance with your B game?

If I were a top junior coach for a singles player, I would force them to play doubles in every tournament.

https://youtu.be/LTK02BMUPBA

[don_budge]

Stefanos Tsitsipas...In His Own Words

http://tt.tennis-warehouse.com/index...ad-idk.635723/

Thi may say it all better than any of us could possibly

Thanks so much for posting this interview stroke...I looked for it on youtube and came up empty.

Once upon a time...when Johnny Tango was working down in the bowels of the Rouge Plant as a technician in a Quality Control Laboratory in the Steel Division. Trying to figure a way out of the rut...to advance to the next level. One thing that he realised that if he had any kind of suggestion...any kind of proposal to improve the environment or the function of the department that he must submit it in writing. The reason being he surmised was that as soon as the air stopped moving that was created by his lips flapping most of what he had said was either forgotten or misunderstood. If it is in writing then the listener can go back and read word for word exactly what it was that they heard.

So I submit to you to the best of my ability a transcript of the Stefanos Tsitsipas post semifinals match interview. The interview is strangely revealing. The young man is an ultra charming personality in that he is totally unfazed with the situation and he is equally unfazed by his accomplishment. He wants more. He wasn't satisfied. He was merely in the process of sort of lazily "processing" his thoughts with the press corps after a crazy week of the Australian Open tennis tournament that he rather took by storm.

Stefanos impresses me as incredibly thoughtful and confident. He may have been disappointed...he certainly was tired. But already he is getting ready to get back on that horse. He is in the process of development and he seems to have his head in the game. All of the attention hasn't either sunk in or it hasn't impressed him. I am guessing the latter. There is so much to be gleaned from this sneak peek into his thoughts as he goes from answering to playfully teasing. I really, really like his attitude above all else. You see...ladies and germs...it is all about attitude. He lost the biggest match of his life but what the hell. We are all losers in the end. The question is not one of losing...it is one of being defeated. Two entirely different things.

Was Stefanos defeated by Rafael Nadal? Not one little tiny bit. Yes...he got his ass handed to him. But next time I will bet my bottom dollar he is saying to himself..."I'm going to beat this guy". I love this guy...Stefanos Tsitsipas.

R for Reporter...ST for Stefanos Tsitsipas


R: Do still feel like the happiest man in the world? What do you think is the most important takeaway from this match?

ST: Honestly I have no idea what I can take from that match. It’'s not as if I was even close to get something. I only got six games from that match…...and I don’'t know, I feel very strange…...I feel happy with my performance in this tournament but at the same time I feel disappointment. I feel I could do a bit better today...…I don’'t know. That’'s how I felt…...but it’'s a very, very weird feeling. It almost felt like I couldn’'t just play better.

R: Stefanos…...you look a bit dazed. Did he surprise you in any way or is it because it is right after the match and you just haven’'t processed it yet?

ST: Yes...…he did surprise me. HIs serve is not...…it’'s not the biggest serve on the tour. It’'s a pretty average serve. It’'s annoying to not getting close to breaking him at all. He’'s just very aggressive from the baseline...…that’'s just pretty much it. But I’'m...…I mean…...I don’t know. I really can’'t think of something positive from that match. Probably the second set, which is the one that I got closer to. The rest...…it kind of felt in a way as if it wasn'’t tennis so much like the other matches I played. It felt like a different dimension of tennis completely. He gives you no rhythm. He plays...…just…...a different game style than the rest of the players and he has this talent that no other player...…I have never seen a player have this…...he makes you play bad. I would call that a talent.

R: Stefanos...…though this is hard as you said. You only took six games, you were not even close, I understand that. Maybe not tomorrow, maybe not in a weeks time, but maybe in a few months will this defeat help you maybe?

ST: I hope so. I really don’'t know. That’'s definitely not the way I wanted to leave from the tournament. At least I wanted to fight…...maybe a fourth set. You know…...get something out of it. Not just leave with only six games from that match. That’'s what I meant in the previous interview. I just felt I could do better...…but I just couldn’'t today. The angles he was using...…my brain was used to a certain rhythm of the game...…the right handed players that I had played all week. And to him it felt that I was always...…when he was playing always on the wrong foot. Never really...…didn’'t check properly…...felt very slow today. I feel pretty fast when I am on the court...…I mean...…I have really improved in that part of my game. Today I felt like a two meter ten guy that cannot move on the court and that’'s definitely not me. I don't know. It just felt weird. The whole match felt weird from the very beginning. My body was stiff. I wouldn’'t say I was serving very well. As I said before he just has a talent to make you play bad. That’s it.

R: Do you feel at all tired? You'’ve played a lot of tennis these past two weeks. Did you feel fatigued at the start of the match at all?

ST: I felt a bit...…I was a bit...…I would say that I was not mentally in the match so much. I felt kind of empty in my brain…which is strange because I never feel like this when I am in the match. I really wanted badly to wake up. I felt a bit...…I felt my reaction time was very slow. I felt like everything was not that alert...…like it usually is. I felt a bit down...…just a click worse than I am usually and I really don’t know how to explain this. I guess from the match I played before...…the whole week that I played here. Trying to understand what was going wrong today.

R: When was the last time an opponent made you feel that way on the court?

ST: I probably say that the last time I felt like this...…good question…...in Paris Rolex Masters. I felt pretty much the same when I lost in the second round I think. I felt really not in the match. I felt like I was somewhere else. I was trying pump myself up a little bit…...just give a reason to be on the court but still couldn’'t find one. That was also a bad match that I played there. Actually I practiced with him...…I practiced with Rafa the day before I played Dhamir Dzumar...…and, I mean practice is different. But that was the tournament that Rafa had to pull out. We had the practice and after the practice he had to pull out...…the very next day...…I don’t know...…I felt…...I was playing horrible on the court. It wasn’'t me. That’s what I am thinking. That’'s what I said before.

R: Inaudible…

ST: Yea…...his game style makes your other half of your brain work more than it usually does. I don’'t know but I cannot find an explanation for that.

R: Stefanos…...you had a big week off the court as well. You got a lot of attention and everything for coming through and beating Roger. You did earn a trophy this week because you hit a hundred thousand subscribers on youtube…...but I am curious how much all that other outside stuff…...do you feel maybe effected this match or just made this whole tournament something that you have never experienced before.

ST: This match?

R: This whole tournament with all of the growing and growing attention. It was something new for you I would think.

ST: For sure...…for sure, I mean this tournament kind of changed and gave another dimension to my career. I’'m really happy I got some good wins this week. Against Roger…...again I will stick to that match because I did play very good tennis against Roger, against Bautista-Agut and also Betitinni in the first round match who is a great player in my opinion. I had good matches but I’'m really disappointed in today because I felt I could get closer and improve myself a little bit more and not let him dominate the entire match. It just felt wrong.

R: Do you think that the occasion was a factor? Being in your first Grand Slam final was a factor?

ST: Maybe...…I hope that it doesn'’t happen again. I really hope it doesn't because it'’s nice to have wins against these kind of players...…top four. It’'s not that I don’'t want it...…I really want it badly, but I got to want it even more than I want it at the moment.

R: Stefanos…...do you think this loss, even though disappointing, will motivate you to work even harder?

ST: I mean I’'ll try. Hopefully I’'ll get closer next time. I have been working really hard and it seems that it is even going worse than before. Against Rafa…...in Toronto I did play a good match against him. I had my hopes high for the next time. I said to myself...…I remember saying to myself I’'m going to beat this guy next time I play him. That’'s why I am so disappointed today because I wasn’'t even close. But again I am going to try work hard…...aim high...…hope one day maybe I can get a win against him.

R: I’'d to congratulate you. I saw Roger Federer beating Pete Sampras in 2001 and everyone thought he was going to win the tournament...…or could possibly win the tournament...…then he lost to Tim Henman in the quarters. Then you know what Federer did after this so you shouldn’'t get depressed. You lost one match. You are twenty years old. You are only twelve years less than Nadal.

ST: I agree with you. I don’t know. I’'m just trying to figure how Federer beat him so many times because he has a similar game style like me. I am just trying to understand how to...…I mean I don’'t want to lose to Rafa ten times in a row.

"Nadal has a talent for making you play poorly."

[don_budge]

I had to repost the interview transcript...the formatting from my Apple Word didn't translate the "..." or the " ' "...so I had to go back and insert them. Sorry arturohernandez...didn't mean to back over your post.

[stroke]

Novak has about 56% chance of winning the match per the odfsmakers, so he is of course the slight favorite. It appears the odfsmakers have taken note of Nadal's form in this tournament as Novak was such a strong pre-tournament favorite to win the title.

[gzhpcu]

Looks like the old question: what happens when an irrestible force meets an immovable object?

[bman]

Another Djokovic-Nadal final incoming.

Just a reminder.

[arturohernandez]

I had to repost the interview transcript...the formatting from my Apple Word didn't translate the "..." or the " ' "...so I had to go back and insert them. Sorry arturohernandez...didn't mean to back over your post.

I wondered what had happened to my post.

Djokovic has one shot that bothers Nadal. He can hit the short angled backhand and push Nadal off the court to his forehand.

Nadal's defensive loopy forehand is not helpful cross court.

Then Nadal is forced to hit his shots down the line more.

Djokovic is the only one that consistently dictates against Nadal.

It is the way I imagine Agassi in his prime would have played Nadal.

Return really well and then sit in the middle of the court and make Nadal run to his forehand.

It's the only way to beat Nadal and Djokovic can do it with no risk.

Nadal has to play lights out aggressive which is not the way he normally wins.

The only question is how long Nadal can pull it off.

His whole game leaves the court open.

He fills the holes so quickly against everyone else.

But against Djokovic he cannot do this.

I am picking the immovable object to carry the trophy on Sunday.

[don_budge]

2019 Australian Open Ladies Final...Naomi Osaka vs. Petra Kvitova

I must admit that I have very little interest in the women's tennis. But on the other hand the men play virtually the same style. Fortunately none of the ladies have the unseemly style of one you know who. Both of these gals look to be rather well behaved and I don't anticipate any unnecessary drama or unseemly behaviour. Behaviour that makes you cringe. Should women act like ladies?

I like both of these ladies and their stories. Naomi Osaka is apparently of Japanese and some form of African descent. In the video that was censored in a thread about Serena William's behaviour there was an interesting discussion about "racism" in Japan. Their own form of nationalism. Apparently Naomi is not the national hero she would be if her lineage was pure Japanese. Culture is an interesting phenomena. Particularly so in a real and ancient culture such as the Japanese that perhaps isn't so susceptible to the social engineering of modern Western cultures.

Petra Kvitova had her career derailed in a random crime. She fended off an attacker who had a knife with her tennis hand and sustained some rather horrific injuries and here she is all the way to the Australian Open Ladies final.

It's really nice to see two very nice women competitors going at it in a sportsperson like manner. Good luck to both.

[don_budge]

2019 Australian Open Ladies Final...Naomi Osaka vs. Petra Kvitova

I must admit that I have very little interest in the women's tennis. But on the other hand the men play virtually the same style. Fortunately none of the ladies have the unseemly style of one you know who. Both of these gals look to be rather well behaved and I don't anticipate any unnecessary drama or unseemly behaviour. Behaviour that makes you cringe. Should women act like ladies?

I like both of these ladies and their stories. Naomi Osaka is apparently of Japanese and some form of African descent. In the video that was censored in a thread about Serena William's behaviour there was an interesting discussion about "racism" in Japan. Their own form of nationalism. Apparently Naomi is not the national hero she would be if her lineage was pure Japanese. Culture is an interesting phenomena. Particularly so in a real and ancient culture such as the Japanese that perhaps isn't so susceptible to the social engineering of modern Western cultures.

Petra Kvitova had her career derailed in a random crime. She fended off an attacker who had a knife with her tennis hand and sustained some rather horrific injuries and here she is all the way to the Australian Open Ladies final.

It's really nice to see two very nice women competitors going at it in a sportsperson like manner. Good luck to both.

Great play by Serena. Nice to see her comeback.

It's great that you think so. But it was even better to see her leave. Margaret Court Stadium.

I watched the first 45 minutes or so of Naomi Osaka vs. Petra Kvitova and it was very pleasant to watch without the obscene grunting and there wasn't a hint of drama. Great to see Osaka pull it out in the end. By the scores it looked like a close match. Both ladies deserved to win. But I sure am glad that Osaka got a chance to share the podium with someone who enhanced her win and not detracted from it.

[stroke]

Copy leave. I would not have thought it possible to get back to the level of intrigue of last year's AO Final, but I think we are there. This is a massive match in a lot of ways and it is so great that both players are relatively rested and in such good form. Nadal should he win will be at 18 GS titles with the FO on tap. He would be the prohibitive favorite to make it 19 there, 1 behind Fed a that point. Novak could tie Sampras at 14 with a win, at is is certainly possible to see him making a run at the GS title record, though less likely than Nadal. Fed in all likelihood will have his last best chance for 1 more at Wimbledon this year. I have a feeling that Nadal will get #18 here.

[gzhpcu]

Great match between Osaka and Kvitova. Looked like Osaka woul win in two. Great fighting spirit from both.

[bottle]

2019 Australian Open Ladies Final...Naomi Osaka vs. Petra Kvitova

I must admit that I have very little interest in the women's tennis.

So why do you appoint yourself to write about it? Couldn't you get one of your henchmen to do it for you? I might be a logical choice if I didn't wish to keep my job as a college Sports Information Director covering 40 sports far, far in the past.

Nevertheless, you did succeed in saying a few nice things about Naomi and Petra although you were completely off in your assessment of "no drama." It must have almost killed you to bend that far backward . Of course you let us know how you did it. You saw this as another chance to malign Serena. I imagine you'll still be doing that 40 years from now. What a waste of the precious store of malignity allotted to us all.

Two items of special interest: Naomi's parents are one from Japan, the other from Haiti. And Naomi's public speaking ability which she asserted was non-existent. But she was just fine when speaking with the gals at the television tables.

As far as addressing a huge stadium, she's already mastered the two items necessary to do it well, first, have a few notes prepared, second, lose them before you speak.

Now all she has to do is quit looking away from the microphone, lighten up, relax, be herself, show her natural charm.

As for two of the most notorious and revealing items in tennis history, the tennis of neither Monica Seles nor Petra Kivitova benefited from the champion's being knifed despite the romantic blather on this subject.

Am I saying that if Petra hadn't been knifed, she might have won the 2019 Australian Open? Sure, I'll say that. Someone has got to stand up against knifing women. And Petra was pretty good before.

[don_budge]

Stefanos Tsitsipas...In His Own Words

ST: Yes...…he did surprise me. HIs serve is not...…it’'s not the biggest serve on the tour. It’'s a pretty average serve. It’'s annoying to not getting close to breaking him at all. He’'s just very aggressive from the baseline...…that’'s just pretty much it. But I’'m...…I mean…...I don’t know. I really can’'t think of something positive from that match. Probably the second set, which is the one that I got closer to. The rest...…it kind of felt in a way as if it wasn'’t tennis so much like the other matches I played. It felt like a different dimension of tennis completely. He gives you no rhythm. He plays...…just…...a different game style than the rest of the players and he has this talent that no other player...…I have never seen a player have this…...he makes you play bad. I would call that a talent.

ST: I probably say that the last time I felt like this...…good question…...in Paris Rolex Masters. I felt pretty much the same when I lost in the second round I think. I felt really not in the match. I felt like I was somewhere else. I was trying pump myself up a little bit…...just give a reason to be on the court but still couldn’'t find one. That was also a bad match that I played there. Actually I practiced with him...…I practiced with Rafa the day before I played Dhamir Dzumar...…and, I mean practice is different. But that was the tournament that Rafa had to pull out. We had the practice and after the practice he had to pull out...…the very next day...…I don’t know...…I felt…...I was playing horrible on the court. It wasn’'t me. That’s what I am thinking. That’'s what I said before.

"Nadal has a talent for making you play poorly."

“Grunting is one thing but there’s a bigger issue with Nadal and that’s the amount of time it takes him to play a tennis match.”-Marin Cilic

Stefanos Tsitsipas gave a very strange assessment as to how it felt to play Rafael Nadal. I have often wondered what his opponent must be thinking when he is going through his litany of ticks, distractions, obsessive, compulsive actions. Marin Cilic alluded to this after Nadal quit on him last year at the Australian Open. But Stefanos gave a better description just how it feels to be on the other side of the court.

His comment about Nadal when he said, "He gives you no rhythm" can be taken a couple of different ways and one of them might be his actual tennis. But I really think that when he is discussing the Nadal serve he is actually saying that the serve is pretty average but he is constantly fussing and fidgeting and then goes in to his long and obsessive preserve routine that by the time he finally gets around to serving the ball you feel like Stefanos describes feeling during the match.

He says that, "...…it kind of felt in a way as if it wasn'’t tennis so much like the other matches I played. It felt like a different dimension of tennis completely." All of the stalling and gamesmanship has an effect on the opponent and I have felt this all along. How can he take so long to get the ball in play on every single point. Then on second serves he goes through the whole darn thing again. You spend so much time waiting around you lose patience and when Tsitsipas also remarked about his own service it occurred to me how much this gamesmanship actually does effect the opponent.

So when we watch these two masters of the stalling and bouncing of the ball tomorrow. Try to imagine yourself trying to concentrate through all of the shenanigans. I know I couldn't. It impresses me as a cheating tactic to let the clock wind down to zero on every single point. He uses this on purpose. The opponent is watching the shot clock out of the corner of his eye and is wondering if he is going to get the darn thing off before it hits zero.

I think it's fine that a lot of you fellows like him. That you admire him. But I see him for what he is. He is a self absorbed skunk and he is a bully when it comes to dictating play. Stefanos said it was weird. He said it was strange. He had a look on his face that he was annoyed. He, in fact, did say that he was annoyed when playing on Nadal's serve. Nadal is so self absorbed I wouldn't trust him in regard to his using PED's either. His behaviour before the coin toss and the constant fiddling with the bottles, using the ball boys as his own personal cabana boys. It all adds up. I know that I am not alone either.

I'm not a big Novak Djokovic fan either. He does the very same thing on the service game. He takes so darn long that by the time the game is over you try to maintain the rhythm of your own service game and at the same time trying to deal with his uncanny ability...sort of like Nadal. He smashes racquet to smithereens. It all adds up to a total mind-fuck. If you know what I mean.

Heads up in the drama department. These are a couple of drama queens if you ask me. They are currently heads and shoulders over the rest of the lot but that illustrates one thing...a lack of depth on the tour. A lack of versatile game styles where a player adapts. Conditions that dictate the type of play as much as the players do. I will probably start out watching it but I really wonder how long I will last. Like Stefanos...I find it all kind of weird. Strange.

"The rest...…it kind of felt in a way as if it wasn'’t tennis so much like the other matches I played. It felt like a different dimension of tennis completely. He gives you no rhythm. He plays...…just…...a different game style than the rest of the players and he has this talent that no other player...…I have never seen a player have this…...he makes you play bad. I would call that a talent."

The Talented Mr. Nadal.

[stotty]

Copy leave. I would not have thought it possible to get back to the level of intrigue of last year's AO Final, but I think we are there. This is a massive match in a lot of ways and it is so great that both players are relatively rested and in such good form. Nadal should he win will be at 18 GS titles with the FO on tap. He would be the prohibitive favorite to make it 19 there, 1 behind Fed a that point. Novak could tie Sampras at 14 with a win, at is is certainly possible to see him making a run at the GS title record, though less likely than Nadal. Fed in all likelihood will have his last best chance for 1 more at Wimbledon this year. I have a feeling that Nadal will get #18 here.

Novak is tied with Sampras now. They have 14 slams each. A win would see Novak pip Sampras with 15.

A lot of people are erring towards Nadal and I can understand why, but he hasn't played anyone like Novak yet. Stephanos underperformed and went away against Nadal, all the rest were easy fodder. So he hasn't really been tested yet.

Nadal's record against Novak since 2011 is identical to Roger's since 2011. Novak has played Nadal 29 times since 2011 and won 20. He's played Roger 29 times since 2011 and won 20. Identical.

I have never seen Nadal play as well as he did against Novak last year in their Wimbledon semi, yet he lost. He did everything right though and was only a centimetre away from winning.

His new serve won't help him. It's not enough and nowhere near as good as other players on the tour, all of which Novak handles with aplomb. For me, it's the return that's key for Nadal. He needs to stand right in when returning on the deuce side to avoid getting pulled wide at all costs. He needs to attack returns fiercely and take away Novak's time to stop him him patrolling the baseline with his control and movement. Most of all it's the forehand up the line that could make all the difference. Nadal cannot hurt Djokovic with his crosscourt forehand like he can others; Novak can't hurt Nadal that much either with his backhand (what makes Novak's backhand so great is it can deal with anything coming in), but if he can pull Novak cross court enough and then pull the trigger up the line, it could turn the tide. Nadal is hitting his forehand really well at the moment, better than ever maybe.

It's at tough call but I am still going with Novak. I just think he can meet anything Nadal can throw at him.

I'll miss the first set and a bit tomorrow. A summary from someone of what's happening would great.

Let's hope for a five setter....

[arturohernandez]

Novak is tied with Sampras now. They have 14 slams each. A win would see Novak pip Sampras with 15.

A lot of people are erring towards Nadal and I can understand why, but he hasn't played anyone like Novak yet. Stephanos underperformed and went away against Nadal, all the rest were easy fodder. So he hasn't really been tested yet.

Nadal's record against Novak since 2011 is identical to Roger's since 2011. Novak has played Nadal 29 times since 2011 and won 20. He's played Roger 29 times since 2011 and won 20. Identical.

I have never seen Nadal play as well as he did against Novak last year in their Wimbledon semi, yet he lost. He did everything right though and was only a centimetre away from winning.

His new serve won't help him. It's not enough and nowhere near as good as other players on the tour, all of which Novak handles with aplomb. For me, it's the return that's key for Nadal. He needs to stand right in when returning on the deuce side to avoid getting pulled wide at all costs. He needs to attack returns fiercely and take away Novak's time to stop him him patrolling the baseline with his control and movement. Most of all it's the forehand up the line that could make all the difference. Nadal cannot hurt Djokovic with his crosscourt forehand like he can others; Novak can't hurt Nadal that much either with his backhand (what makes Novak's backhand so great is it can deal with anything coming in), but if he can pull Novak cross court enough and then pull the trigger up the line, it could turn the tide. Nadal is hitting his forehand really well at the moment, better than ever maybe.

It's at tough call but I am still going with Novak. I just think he can meet anything Nadal can throw at him.

I'll miss the first set and a bit tomorrow. A summary from someone of what's happening would great.

Let's hope for a five setter....

I agree! Nadal has to play a different game. A tough ask in a five set match on hard courts. Novak in 4.