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So far in match, 10 backhand winners for Struff vs 1 for Tsitsipas. Struff is volleying better and more frequently this tournament than I have seen him.
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Tsitsipas at the moment of truth...serving out the match.Originally posted by stroke View PostComment
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So impressed with Stefanos, his whole game and attitude. Rock star.Comment
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Novak may not be a rock star, but he was clinical in 1st set win over Khachanov, who like about everyone else in tennis, has no answers when Novak is in that mood.Comment
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Novak is just embarrassing Khachanov with his backhand dropshot to the ad side. Just clinically brutal.Comment
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The guy is unbelievably handsome to boot. Definite Rock Star potential. But just for the sake of making things interesting...I am pulling for Daniel Evans to yank the Rock Star back to earth. I would love to see what Evans would do with Djokovic. But it's win/win here...how could I go against Stefanos Tsitsipas? I was on to this guy real quick. For all the right reasons. He is showing a lot of character. He's pretty...that's for sure. But he knows how to get gritty and there is so much more potential here. Daniel Evans is my favourite player now...pound for pound. I love a good underdog and his past mistakes are still being talked about. I couldn't care less. I like what I see and that is a guy who knows how to play tennis. I miss his all white clothes too.Originally posted by stroke View PostComment
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Stefanos routines Evans 1st set. We will see if Evans can pressure him 2nd set.Comment
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Nope...he couldn't. Stefanos kept the pressure on him from bell to bell. But it's a learning experience for Evans. Same for Tsitsipas. But Stefanos is showing us what he thinks of the learning curve. It is progressive. But he is in another final and most importantly he lives up to his seeding. So now he has nothing to lose against Novak Djokovic so he is going to get a good barometer where he stands on the food chain. Novak being at the top. Tsitsipas really played like the number six ranked player in the world today. He was only playing against the #30 something. But Evans stock is rising. The thing about Evans is that he is somewhat limited by his size and athletic dominance...or lack of it. Stefanos just manhandled him...which is a great sign for the Greek. A good match all things considered. Evans gave it a go but he didn't have the guns to match those of his opponent.Originally posted by stroke View Post
The Rock Star thing goes up another notch. He is really gathering some steam. What a huge opportunity for him tomorrow. Nothing but a down side for Djokovic. He has little to gain by winning as he is expected to but he has a lot to lose if he loses. Such an interesting psychological game now. Let's hope that Stefanos can make it interesting.Comment
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Tsitsipas had the answer to Evans' backhand crosscourt slice - powerful inside in forehands with great accuracy. And Evans' serve was off. He (Evans) was still fighting though, and between them there were some attractive points. Well done to Tsitsipas.Comment
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Interesting match...wasn't it. Fascinating player this man from Britain. My kind of player. Tough nosed. Takes on the big guys with a belief he can prevail. What was the difference between Stefanos Tsitsipas and the other opponents?Originally posted by glacierguy View Post
I am focused on the Tsitsipas forehand grip that enables him to get down to that low ball and drive it with impunity...instead of excessive spin. The other victims of Daniel Evan's magic all had rather strongly pronounced forehand grips and wonder of all wonders...two handed backhands! Tsitsipas was not nearly as vulnerable to that wicked little slice when it landed near the service line and stayed low. So while Evans game is certainly somewhat ideally suited to dismantling the two handed backhand it did not prevail on tiny little iota against a player with a superior backhand than his. Stefanos was much better equipped on his "weaker" side to deal with the tactics of Evans.
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Good point. Now you've made it, seems highly likely.Originally posted by don_budge View Post
The first time Tsitsipas nailed an inside-in off the slice, you could see by the way he celebrated that he was thinking 'yes, that's the plan, and it works'.
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2020 Dubai Duty Free Finals...Stefanos Tsitsipas versus Novak Djokovic
Which brings us to the match of the day...Stefanos Tsitsipas versus Anybody. Oops...did I just give Novak Djokovic second billing. The most boring bests tennis player in the world ever. Yes I did. With good reason...Novak in of and by himself is simply not watchable. He is a dreadful bore even if he goes through the run of the mill opponents thrown at him like a hot knife through soft butter. He is also the most one dimensional best player in the world ever. Can anybody get him to play THEIR game? That was the question I had for Daniel Evans in case he had the dubious honour of facing the "Lullaby Kid". Please don't tell him I called him that. He might melt.Originally posted by glacierguy View Post
Earlier in this thread I was speculating on the possibility of a Daniel Evans match with Novak. It was as if Gael Monfils was a foregone conclusion. Monfils had after all lost 16 straight times to Djokovic and why would he break that trend. Well he nearly did. Apparently he had a couple of match points in the second set. How could he flub that opportunity. Sixteen times in a row and the match on your racquet? That had to hurt. But that's classic Djokovic who makes a living on being slippery among other things. Awfully hard to nail this guy down.
So Tsitsipas actually has a two win and two loss record against Novak head to head. That is a truly impressive record at this point in his career. It is really early to be playing neck and neck with a player who some are referring to one of the greatest ever. That is truly a huge mistake in of itself because this game is designed specifically for the "Human Backboard" with the slow surfaces and slow balls...the huge racquets and laser strings. What is Stefanos going to take into this match strategically speaking. I hope he borrows a page for Daniel Evans and begins to exploit the two handed backhand with the slice...but somehow I doubt that he will. Tsitsipas likes to pound it. He likes to drive it. But a nice short slice in the midcourt wide to the Djokovic backhand followed by a ball into either the backhand or forehand corner would be nice. Somehow I believe that a good one/two combination would be the short angled followed by a sliced drive deep into the forehand. From there a number of things could happen and it would be interesting to see what they would be.
If young Stefanos Tsitsipas wins here it is going to be a big deal. Novak has a lot to lose. If this kid gets it into his head that he can beat Djokovic with the championship on the line he is going to be that more confident thus making him that more dangerous. This actually could be watchable.
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After the 2nd set vs Monfils, the 3rd set was a foregone conclusion. With het big 3(and I think Stefanos) that would never be the case. It is time to go back to work.Comment
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I like Stefanos to win, with a few sit-sit-Tsitsipas crowd chants thrown in.Comment
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Novak at his clinical best, Stefanos no answers.Comment
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