2021 U. S. Open Tennis Championships...ATP 2000...New York, New York

[arturohernandez]

Alcaraz I think made a great coaching choice in JCF. JCF was was great player and a pro's pro.

Even if you don’t understand Spanish watch where he trains. Dirt roads around the club. It’s not the Hilton. It’s just a great environment with substance. No frills or Luxury. No BS just hard work.

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=video&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwjbntLt4ePyAhUvSzABHVZAAdkQtwJ6BAgEEAM&url=https%3A%2F%2Felpais.com%2Fdeportes%2F2020-12-26%2Fcarlos-alcaraz-la-luz-para-el-tenis-del-manana.html&usg=AOvVaw2CXQHcCAzxeQ8rj8LAhsjO

Alcaraz losing a bit of steam. But he looks so good. Always fighting no matter what.

[stotty]

Stef vs Alcaraz what a match. This match to me a fine example of why the WTA is not opposed to a merger with the ATP. What an atmosphere for this match.

It's incredible someone at 18 can play so well. Tsitsipas now has a good lead in the 4th so with luck we will get a five setter. Be interesting to see how the youngster copes and deals with a fifth set.

[stotty]

Alcaraz is looking out of gas...or injured...not sure which.

[stroke]

Alvarez definitely looking for some cream cheese to go with that bagel 4th set. Very interesting here. We will see.

[stroke]

Stef though mentally, I am impressed.

[arturohernandez]

Alcaraz is looking out of gas...or injured...not sure which.

Both to me!!

[stroke]

Well that was about as good as is gets. I would take that over Connors Kriekstein any day.

[arturohernandez]

A star is born. He is not like Nadal, Fed or Nole. He reminds me of Sampras. Huge firepower and speed. Sampras and Chang the other youngest to make it to the 4th round of US Open.

Wow!!!

[stroke]

A star is born. He is not like Nadal, Fed or Nole. He reminds me of Sampras. Huge firepower and speed. Sampras and Chang the other youngest to make it to the 4th round of US Open.

Wow!!!

I disagree, He to me reminds me of a combo of Novak and Nadal, not that it matters.

[arturohernandez]

I disagree, He to me reminds me of a combo of Novak and Nadal, not that it matters.

It’s funny how it starts with comparisons and then eventually they fade away. His touch and explosiveness are unreal. Apparently, he goes on the court thinking he can beat any opponent.

with those weapons I can’t blame him.

[glacierguy]

I will say Stef is not breaking any rules, and he is clearly not going to be intimidated by anything anyone says about how he is conducting his business. If I were his opponent, I would simply leave the court also, and make sure I was gone at least 10 minutes or so ha. No use sitting around bitching about it while he is gone. Nothing is going to change right now, and you are probably only hurting yourself by getting pissed.

If you're sure he wasn't texting his coaching team whilst sitting on the lav...

[stroke]

Stefanos Tsitsipas Press Conference | 2021 US Ope…: https://youtu.be/dq1X3iNWMxQ

[stroke]

It’s funny how it starts with comparisons and then eventually they fade away. His touch and explosiveness are unreal. Apparently, he goes on the court thinking he can beat any opponent.

with those weapons I can’t blame him.

He is something, I think I would put him as the 3rd favorite for the FO right now. And his stock is rising very quickly here at US Open. What a match by both players. Their forehands are both BG model type 3's, but Stef's backhand let him down too much. Carlos really outplayed him from the backhand side.

Oddsmakers have certainly taken note of Carlos. He is now tied with Berrettini for 4th favorite to win the title, behind Novak, Medvedev, and Alex.

[stroke]

https://inews.co.uk/sport/tennis/carlos-alcaraz-rafael-nadal-roger-federer-juan-carlos-ferrero-coach-academy-644703

Very interesting article on Alcaraz, and thoughts on him from JCF.

[don_budge]

Match of the Day (Under the Radar)...Daniel Evans vs. Alexei Popyrin

No doubt the Stefanos Tsitsipas vs. Carlos Alcaraz drew a lot of attention, but it doesn't surprise me in the least. Without seeing the match I know one thing...the Tsitsipas serve did not blow the young upstart off of the court like it should. Stefanos is never going to live up to his potential unless he gets that service motion right. As classy and elegant as his groundstrokes are they are not going to be enough and so far this has held true. He has been close...but close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades.

Daniel Evans on the other hand gets all that he possibly can from his service motion and pound for pound I give the nod to him over Tsitsipas in this regard. In the sense of getting the biggest bang for the buck out of their toolbox. Evans went ahead in the first set but lost his momentum and found himself down two sets to love. I only saw a bit of the second but it looked to me that the Popyrin game was too big for Evans at that point. After tuning out and heading for the sheets, Evans turned it around and ran off three sets in a row. Bully for him. I have seen Popyrin a few times and he looks to be a bit casual and nonchalant in his approach to the game. Daniel is anything but that in his approach. He is always probing and digging looking for inroads. I can see in my mind's eye what happened in this match. Evans tenacity just got the better of Popyrin.

Next up for Evans is Daniil Medvedev. On paper it is all Medvedev, all of the time. But Evans has definitely got an "X" factor in his match play philosophy. He isn't afraid to get his hands dirty. He doesn't have to win with the cleanest of ball striking. He does such a great job of bringing the tall men down to his size. He does it with an ingredient that is a combination of old school tactics and true grit. He uses the backhand as a neutraliser much of the time and patiently waits to get the ball on his forehand. He isn't the biggest of hitters on that side either but tactically he is rather unparalleled in the modern game. It will be interesting to see what he can do with Medvedev, who is a bit of an enigma himself. This match is a rarity in modern tennis where you will see contrasting styles pitted against each other among other contrasting aspects of the players. Evans is measured at 5' 9" and Medvedev at 6' 6". There has been some talk in these neck of the woods regarding the relative merits to taller players and someone said something about the shorter Rod Laver and Ken Rosewall. Here we can substitute the diminutive Evans...even though his heart has a bigger appetite that many of the others.

Would love to see a great performance out of Evans. Even though on paper he doesn't stand a chance. These are the kind of matches I believe he likes to play. Out gunned but never say never.