2021 VTB Kremlin Cup, European Open...ATP 250...Moscow, Russia-Antwerp Belgium

[don_budge]

Just a couple of throwaways. ATP 250's. Just a little noise to fill in the spaces between the ears. The ATP 1000's are no longer enough to capture much interest. The empty stands. The lack of enthusiasm on this forum. It used to be friendly place. A nice little neighborhood of tennis lovers, students and fans. A mix to put it simply. It is what it is. I think that in the world at large that the problems are so big that they no longer have viable solutions. So it is...in a post Roger Federer ATP universe. There is nothing left to sustain it. Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal have more or less vacated the premises as well. Only interested in their own selfish interests. There brand. They have created financial empires where they reign as king and the rest of the tennis world are their subjects. They blather at each tennis tournament that they abandon how much they miss the fans and such. Pure and utter bullshit. They are off at destinations unknown...training for the next slam. Or not. I don't give Nadal a snowball's chance in hell at the next French Open. They jinxed him with that unholy statue. That idol. What kind of idiot would worship there?

Their was a fourth name in the above mentioned. He is still at it. More or less plodding long and at the same time blathering about his vaccine views. Andy Murray won the longest three setter of the year yesterday when he took down the strutting, lurching Francis Tiafoe. I actually watched fifteen minutes of it before turning it off in lieu of some sleep. Some much needed sleep in that it shuts off the rest of the world. But Andy is still at it. He actually serves a purpose in this star absent sport. His past allure only a fading shadow of his former self. He stirs enough intruigue amongst the curious to just keep the tennis world awake for an extra fifteen minutes before nodding off from boredom or lack of interest.

So that leaves it up to literally two names remaining. Jannik Sinner and Jensen Brooksby. One service motion going in the right direction and the other mired in a rather unusual attempt or semblance of motion. Did somebody actually teach the young man that? Brooksby took down Opelka, who coincidentally was opining what a potential Brooksby is. That will teach him to open up on things that are better left unsaid. Tennis players should just shut up and let their racquets do the talking. Unless of course they actually have something of interest to say about the game. But that sort of thing left the stadium with Roger. Sinner on the other hand is seeded number one and sooner or later he is going to have to live up to his billing or run the risk of all of the next latest and greatest being left in a heap of trash in the kingdom of expectations. Sinner is young and seems to have hit a plateau of sorts. This is when you really have to keep your nose to the grindstone. That's what my dear old tennis coach used to tell me. It's peaks and valleys...development is. Or so it seems. But if you hit a plateau or a valley it is no time to pussy foot around. You have to double down on your efforts and fight your way to the next level. Who has the stomach for that anymore? Once you hit one of those infernal peaks the media just lasers in on you and all of a sudden you are the greatest things since French toast. With all of the blather circling around in your noodle it is terribly hard to focus on busting your own butt to get to the next level before you find the one that you are currently astride is an illusion. Once that little fun fact becomes clear it all feels like a house of cards...collapsing all around you. Good luck Jensen and Jannik. You are really going to need it.

https://www.atptour.com/en/scores/cu...scow/438/draws

https://www.atptour.com/en/scores/cu...erp/7485/draws

[stroke]

Mannarino loses a close 1st set to Rublev, and then just raises his level to win in 3. Mannarino is such a good all court efficient tennis player. Love his game.

[don_budge]

Speaking of loving a tennis player's game...I was somewhat impressed with Lorenzo Musetti and Jannik Sinner. But then my impression came to a screeching halt when I remembered another Italian with a truly elegant game. I'm referring to Adriano Panatta. Musetti swooped in on the net a couple of times and knifed a couple of decent backhand volleys. The Musetti single handed backhand held up to a point with the Sinner two handed backhand. Funny how my standards can lapse in a weak moment. Hoping for something to happen on the tour. Hoping that someone will emerge to save the day from the monotonous cookie cutter strong gripped forehand, two handed backhand mode. I was almost seeing Musetti twirling a Dunlop Maxply or a Slazenger wood model. The two of them had a typical slugfest. Lots of drilling the ball from the baseline without much variation...except the Musetti slice backhand. As close to the knifing action that left with Roger Federer. In the end...it was another yawner. I only lasted twenty or thirty minutes in a couple of sittings watching it.

Jannik Sinner's new service motion continues to impress. He served out the first set easily...which is sometimes a dicey situation. He is getting more pop on the ball and it opens up a whole another dimension to his game. The variety of deliveries and placements you can make off such a motion changes the depth of resources that a player brings to the table in a match if you can take advantage of it. This is a tournament that he should be setting his sites on winning. With any luck we shall see a Sinner/Brooksby final. Then we can talk about comparative service motions.

[stroke]

Sinner to me a #1. Anything other than that to me, he has underachieved. So much game.

[don_budge]

Lloyd Harris advances to test Jannik Sinner and Jensen Brooksby keeps his part of the bargain to face Diego Schwartzman. This tournament could certainly use a Sinner vs. Brooksby final. Or maybe it's just me. Sinner's new and improved service motion has held up quite nicely and the rule of thumb with improved service motions is...the rest of the game goes as the serve goes. He looks to be that much sharper. A better serve means poorer returns which means a ball more easily to be aggressive with. It also means that it affords one to take chances on the opponents serve. Do you see the synergistic effect?

I watched just a bit of all four matches. Sinner took down his opponent in routine fashion. Holding on to his serve. Harris managed to take Fuscovics going away...which is impressive as Fuscovics seems to by very fit. I first noticed Harris a couple of years ago at Wimbledon where he lost first round to Roger Federer. All roads do lead to Federer. The Living Proof. Harris managed to take the first set off of Roger. He was impressive...for that set. Brooksby won going away too. His unorthodox style is going to put off a lot of players in the same way they find it hard to put Medvedev under their thumb. It's not that he just doesn't go away either. He is rather sneaky aggressive. He is what you call a percentage player who takes every possibility under consideration before making his play. It is all done instantly and therefore instinctively. Schwartzman? There is nothing very unpredictable about this undersized, overachiever. His backhand reminds me so much of Aaron Krickstein's and that goes for the slice as well. It's uncanny...like deja vu.

[stroke]

Sinner vs Harris is an interesting matchup. Karatsev looked really good yesterday taking out Giles Simon. He plays Katchanov today.

[don_budge]

A rare report on women's tennis from yours truly...don_budge. I want to reiterate a point regarding the importance of a perfect service motion and that goes double for the women. Alexandrova was up a set and 4-0 against one Kontaveit from Estonia. Somehow Alexandrova became just a tad tentative when she was poised to serve out the match. Kontaveit, on the other hand, had other ideas. Sensing a bit of apprehension she has fought her way back to a 4-5 lead in the second set. However, now the shoe is on the other foot and she cannot afford to let up on the gas pedal here. Alexandrova serving to stay in the second set.

[don_budge]

A rare report on women's tennis from yours truly...don_budge. I want to reiterate a point regarding the importance of a perfect service motion and that goes double for the women. Alexandrova was up a set and 4-0 against one Kontaveit from Estonia. Somehow Alexandrova became just a tad tentative when she was poised to serve out the match. Kontaveit, on the other hand, had other ideas. Sensing a bit of apprehension she has fought her way back to a 4-5 lead in the second set. However, now the shoe is on the other foot and she cannot afford to let up on the gas pedal here. Alexandrova serving to stay in the second set.

Sure enough...Kontaveit sensing the apprehension of her opponent breaks her serve to take the second set. Alexandrova suffered a lapse on her serve when she could ill afford to do so. Now the match is up for grabs in the third set where it probably would have been over with better serving.

[stroke]

Karatsev's technique on all shots is top shelf. He to me is right there with Fognini lined up behind Fed in the technique rankings. No one attacks the return of serve as consistently as Karatsev.

[don_budge]

On the other hand in Antwerp...Jannik Sinner's new and improved service motion carried him to the title as he demolished Diego Schwartzman in the finals. Never in trouble on his service game he just rolled the Argentinian. He has something Gonzalezesque going on with the backswing that gently and without any hint of hurry begins its descent behind his back. Like a rollercoaster car coming over the hill. He hasn't unveiled the finished product yet as he is just getting the feel of the effortless and frictionless motion. I predict he is going to banging it in the not too distant future. Truly a lesson for Tsitsipas, Zverev et al.

[don_budge]

Great serving means using your serve to win big matches.

Truer words have never been spoken regarding the service motion and the service game. Jannik Sinner has done himself a huge by adapting and realising he needed to improve his motion. I am somewhat floored by the rather substantial change he has made. This is the closest thing we have seen to a classic service motion and the frictionless delivery that I advocate. The interesting thing is that Sinner's entire game was a notch higher and the level didn't drop during the entire tournament. Straight sets the entire week. Lots of 6-2 sets. Just mowed the field down just as he should. It was a tournament for him to win from the beginning of the draw sheet. This is what it looks like to a champion. Very impressive week. He goes right back to work next week and I am ginning for a Tsitsipas versus Sinner semi-final.

[jimlosaltos]

Karatsev's technique on all shots is top shelf. He to me is right there with Fognini lined up behind Fed in the technique rankings. No one attacks the return of serve as consistently as Karatsev.

Well put. I watched Karatsev-Rublev in doubles semis and finals at IW and can't recall anyone being so consistently aggressive on service returns.

I call Karatsev "Mini Fed" because of his court position. But Fed blocks returns when he comes in like this; Aslan clubs them.

If John wants it, I might do a Tour Portrait on Karatsev-Rublev.

Look at this, on a big serve!

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[stroke]

Yes Jim he is so athletic, so strong and so fast. Brutal power of both sides. Reminds me strength wise of Dmitry Tursunov. He is much faster though, He has a muscular sprinter type build. He does take the ball early a la Fed, but with so much more power as you say. I have never seen anyone take it so early with such bad intentions.

[don_budge]

Sure enough...Kontaveit sensing the apprehension of her opponent breaks her serve to take the second set. Alexandrova suffered a lapse on her serve when she could ill afford to do so. Now the match is up for grabs in the third set where it probably would have been over with better serving.

Kontaveit goes on to win the title as Alexandrova wilted at the moment of truth. The Moscow final was the second time in as many encounters that Kontaveit and Alexandrova have needed a tight third set to separate them. In the first round of Ostrava last year, Alexandrova failed to serve out the match three times and missed two match points, falling 4-6, 6-2, 7-6(6). Here is a blatant example of the necessity of honing the service motion to be free of friction in order that when all the cards are on the table the player is not left wanting for a service hold.