2021 Miami Open...ATP 1000...Miami, Florida USA

[stroke]

Isner played perfect giant boy tennis in taking out FAA in 2 tiebreakers, no breaks of serve in match.

[stroke]

Khachanov and Sinner in a high quality slugfest, a lot of hard jabs battle of attrition. Khac wins the 1st set 6-4, on serve in 2nd.

[stroke]

1st sets numbers were out for Medvedev 1st set win over Popy. Medvedev with a WTA like 33 RPS on that forehand for the set. One does not have to be the prettiest.

[stroke]

Medvedev is a more athletic taller version modern day Jimmy Connors. This just came to me watching him today. And that is a compliment.

[stroke]

Popy wins the 2nd set making Medvedev look a bit like Miss Congeniality in doing so.

[stroke]

Medvedev serving for match at 5-4 while cramping. Quite the effort.

[stroke]

That was impressive by Medvedev. He was really in pain with cramps.

[stotty]

Haven't caught much of this tournament. Lockdown is over here and I am coaching my socks off. I did catch the second set of Tiafoe v Medvedev. Medvedev was certainly moving Tiafoe around at times, though Tiafoe can be quite dangerous on the move with that forehand of his. Tiafoe always looks so raw to me...not quite the finished article...like and overgrown junior still.

The middle of the second set was competitive. Medvedev does have a knack of closing the door on opportunities, a quality I really like. I call it a Big 3 quality.

[stroke]

Korda looks like a real contender for this tournament and top 5.

[klacr]

Korda looks like a real contender for this tournament and top 5.

Korda even more impressive in person. His ball striking is clean and easy...like another big player of Czech heritage...Berdych.
If you think he is good now, wait until he can start maximizing his gym hours and build some muscle and add even more pop on that serve.

Most importantly, he's a really good kid. Polite, respectful, humble. Has athletic genes and his parents learned from their own mistakes to benefit him and give him the best knowledge and guidance to pursue this tennis dream.

Kyle LaCroix USPTA, PTR
Boca Raton
SETS Consulting

[stroke]

Korda even more impressive in person. His ball striking is clean and easy...like another big player of Czech heritage...Berdych.
If you think he is good now, wait until he can start maximizing his gym hours and build some muscle and add even more pop on that serve.

Most importantly, he's a really good kid. Polite, respectful, humble. Has athletic genes and his parents learned from their own mistakes to benefit him and give him the best knowledge and guidance to pursue this tennis dream.

Kyle LaCroix USPTA, PTR
Boca Raton
SETS Consulting

Well said Kyle. Your evaluation on Sébastien, even though obviously I have had no interaction with him, is just what I imagined.

[stroke]

Sinner looks like a future #1.

[don_budge]

Sinner looks like a future #1.

Sebastian Korda falls considerably outside of the discussed range of perennial Grand Slam champions at 6' 5" tall but that shouldn't eliminate him before any match begins.

https://www.atptour.com/en/video/vid...ity-challenger

It is way more interesting to listen to a coach talk tactics then it is to discuss endless times about the ATP 3 forehand. Here is Korda's coach talking a bit about tactics and I like a couple of things...his idea about serving and the importance of getting the first serve in and being a bit fatalistic about swinging at the second. Great stuff and this is what the coach should be talking about after a certain point in a players development. At what point? At the point when the player has a perfect service motion and from the video this is the big takeaway...the actual motion. From the limited viewing angles...I didn't notice a nice rear view...It appears that young Sebastian has a really fine motion without any friction or noticeable hitches. At first glance. It will be interesting to see how he manages his service game against Nadal. One of the starting points in beating Nadal is to serve extremely well. This is rule number one...to take care of your serve. You see this with Roger Federer against Nadal in his last several matches where he has experienced a lot of success...he has supremely taken care of his service game by serving supremely well.

At 6' 5" this is a place where the Korda height can be a positive factor. Obviously the longer a point goes on with Nadal his winning percentages will go down. It will be interesting to see if he can press the action forwards to the net. In the video it appears that he practices just that.

We'll see. Speculation is only that. But this is what a good coach specialises in...sound percentage speculation. Develop the player with options and then employ those options to suit the opponent.

Speculation is only that. I quote myself. Seemingly I lost interest in this tournament of hopefuls. I have bigger fish to fry. The club opened the golf range last week. Guess where I've been? I'm on a mission. My mission, that I have chosen to accept, is to shoot my age this year. Sixty-seven. I'm going low. A huge epiphany in the last 24 hours. That should make all the difference. It wasn't so much the right arm as it is...it was the left. The role of the left arm in the swing. This has backhand implications. Huge backhand implications. You will have to apply "the completion backwards" principle as the man is talking about the left arm.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V8nZeZ2xCtc

But anyways, Sebastian Korda has been on my radar for a while now. Not that I have been following tennis with more than a casual interest. But if you can imagine my casual interest can be as serious as a heart attack. I was hoping for a breakthrough performance at Roland Garros against Fafa Nadal when I wrote this. I didn't get to see young Korda this week at all. His matches were coming on a bit late here in Sweden. I get up with the sun here. I cannot afford to be fiddle fucking around watching meaningless tennis matches. I have bigger fish to fry. Yesterday it was the 1,000 jump ropes...20 times 50 jumps with as little rest as possible in between.

Stefanos Tsitsipas went away yesterday. This guy is always a thorn in the Greek's side. Daniil Medvedev failed once again to hold on to his ranking...his seed in the tournament. Big yawn. Another snooze fest after all. I love golf. It give's me something to do. A passion to chase. Standing out there in marginal weather hitting ball after ball. My physical training has paid off. Just like steroids would. It enables me to practice longer. Harder. More intensively. Thinking it through. Chasing down clue after clue. Ben Hogan said that each swing sent a message to your heart. You have to listen to the message.

Today the message here in Sweden is Good Friday. Thank you Lord. Forgive me. Thank you for your Perfect Son. Thank you for my Father.

[stroke]

Yes the baton passed from Connors to Borg to McEnroe, Lendl, Sampras, Fed/Rafa/Novak, looks like it will be hitting the track.

[stotty]

Big test for Sinner versus RBA. RBA being a great benchmark for any player looking to learn where he stands in the game.