Roland Garros, Paris 2020

[stotty]

Here is the Roland Garros draw: https://fft-rg-site.cdn.prismic.io/f...0924195601.pdf

Rafa has a tougher draw than usual. Novak seems to have the easier half for sure. Roger is absent. Does anyone else have a shot at the title?

[arturohernandez]

Here is the Roland Garros draw: https://fft-rg-site.cdn.prismic.io/f...0924195601.pdf

Rafa has a tougher draw than usual. Novak seems to have the easier half for sure. Roger is absent. Does anyone else have a shot at the title?

The ultimate question! Now that Thiem has the monkey off of his back will it lead to a period where he is ready to dethrone the big 3.

It's cold in Europe. I can see people wearing light jackets. Rafa looked vulnerable against Kurtzman. Djokovic looks very solid but has not won something big in a long time.

I think the cold conditions will make Rafa much more vulnerable. Djokovic would be my favorite in this one if they should meet in colder conditions. He'll make Rafa run all day and deal with low balls that are outside of the court. Nothing will be above Djokovic's strike zone. Thiem will either be invigorated or feel relieved.

I think this is the most open RG in a long time. So unpredictable. Anyone could be disqualified at any time. Djokovic might get angry again. Rafa might test positive. Thiem may just call it a year and go home to kiss his US Open Trophy.

Then we will be left with everyone else dying for a major.

It leaves my biggest dark horse but a legitimate one who is the third or fourth best player on clay: Stan the Man. If he can make it to the second week with a debilitated field, he will be the only one to have one RG. And with another chance at a major he will seize it and then go home to his beloved Switzerland to kiss his two RG trophies goodnight for the rest of the year.

[stroke]

I do not think Rafael will win his 13th here(but I would not bet on it). To me, there are just too many young wildcards out there like Rublev. Ruud, and Tsitsipas. Not to mention the prince of clay. Thiem. Certainly Novak could work his way through them all if he engages at his highest level, but he has gotten even more prickly it seems to me. I always felt with the Roger love out of the picture, he would be more at peace, but maybe now the self imposed pressure of overcoming Roger's GS tally is getting to him. Who knows? His Master's 1000 achievements alone to me do not get anywhere near enough credit.

[stotty]

Rafa is definitely favourite. Novak is comfortably second favourite. Rafa can rally all day long if he wants to and it will take a monumental effort to break him down. I feel Novak will take him down a heavy day. The only other player I see in the picture is Thiem.

Novak must be miffed. Wimbledon was cancelled and the US threw him out; two titles he was heavy favourite for. He will want the FO really, really badly. Just don't see Roger's grand slam tally phasing him one little bit. He feels he's a better player than Roger and thinks it's his right to snatch from him no matter what setbacks COVID throws at him. It would be ironic if the FO got cancelled due to a COVID spike in the tournaments second week. Anything is possible in this crazy world at the moment.

[stroke]

One more musing on why I would not bet on Rafa. To me, he built his house of success on his unparalleled spin rates on his forehand, which were unparalleled as he 1st came on tour. But now I have noticed/observed via the ATP tennis tv quantitative measurements of forehand RPM's that other players are actually recording slightly higher ram's. The first was of course Sock, who was right there with Rafa. Now I have observed that Berrettini and Ruud have actually recorded higher overall match rpm's than either of them. Times are a changing, and the players to me have before more accustomed to dealing with the extreme spin players, taking the steam out of the Nadal game.

[stotty]

One more musing on why I would not bet on Rafa. To me, he built his house of success on his unparalleled spin rates on his forehand, which were unparalleled as he 1st came on tour. But now I have noticed/observed via the ATP tennis tv quantitative measurements of forehand RPM's that other players are actually recording slightly higher ram's. The first was of course Sock, who was right there with Rafa. Now I have observed that Berrettini and Ruud have actually recorded higher overall match rpm's than either of them. Times are a changing, and the players to me have before more accustomed to dealing with the extreme spin players, taking the steam out of the Nadal game.

Yes but I thought Moya had opted to take the spin out of Rafa's forehand as it was become vulnerable to the bigger hitters? Or was that just on grass and hard courts? For me it is not just about the spin, it's that he plays perfect tennis on clay. He always plays the right shot at the right time and measurers opponents' clay court skills down to the last millimetre.

As arturohernandez says. The climate may have a major bearing on things.

[stroke]

Moya may have tweaked his forehand, but his rpm numbers have not changed per the measurements I have seen. Anyway, my theory is just food for thought.

[stroke]

2 very interesting matches today in Hamburg semis, Ruud vs Rublev and Tsitsipas vs Garin.

[stotty]

Well Rublev was looking pretty good in dispatching Ruud. That boys creams that ball as well as anyone.

Stephanos a set up versus Garin...who is dogged opponent.

[stroke]

Rublev looks to me be in the top 2 or 3 after Nadal and Novak. He does everything that is needed to be a serious contender on clay, He moves great,hits the ball very well off both sides, and competes very well. His serve is good enough. Tsitsipas and Thiem are obviously the other 2. Very similar, I like Tsitsipas' forehand better backhands about even to me, movement even. I do think Tsitsipas moves forward to finish at the net better than Thiem. I like Thiem's serve better. Tsisipas makes me nervous with his serve with that forehand type grip.

[stotty]

Stephanos is very watchable. There is something classical about his style similar to Roger. He is the closest to Roger in that sense. A classical game is still to most watchable and it's great when occasionally a player pops up out of the blue with some remnants of it.

[don_budge]

The Virus and the Towel...

Perhaps the most redeeming aspect of the COVID-19 scamdemic is placing the onus on professional tennis players to manage their own towel needs. Maybe now the rest of the tennis viewing public will admit how ridiculous it was to have the ball boys and girls scurrying around like chickens with their heads cut off to administer the towel to these spoiled primadonas.

[stroke]

I do hope the tennis world sticks with this towel management policy.

[stroke]

Stephanos is very watchable. There is something classical about his style similar to Roger. He is the closest to Roger in that sense. A classical game is still to most watchable and it's great when occasionally a player pops up out of the blue with some remnants of it.

He is that. I think he will always get the crowd love, but not at the Roger worship level. Rublev looks to me like a young Willem Dafoe, who played the Green Goblin in Spiderman. The Goblin is a very slight favorite over Tsitsipas in this final. He is up 4-3 with a break 1st set and has only made 1 error thus far.

[stroke]

Great 3 set win for Rublev. He just outplayed Stef from when Stef was serving for the match at 5-4. Tough one for Stef. And he did double fault on match point.