Australian Open 2012: Discussion Thread

frostie500

First Grand Slam of the season gets underway on Sunday night with a couple of pretty interesting matches (Azarenka vs Heather Watson and Bernard Tomic vs Fernando Verdasco are the two matches I'll be most interested in watching but I think Philipp Kohnschreiber has a great chance to knock of Juan Monaco as well.

Should be a great tournament, especially in the ladies draw where there are quite a few challengers and some tricky draws. The mens on the other hand once more resolves around the big four(not that I'm complaining!)

Not sure what the policy is in this forum but I've a preview of the Open on my website as well as my analysis of the leading seeds in the mens and ladies draws for anyone whose interested.

_Bella_

Really looking forward to this tournament. Womens side is really interesting. It will be interesting tosee who emerges as the victor. I hope for women's tennis that it is either Azarenka or Kvitova, preferably Kvitova due to her lack of noise.

With the men as usual its hard to see past the big four, though pundits now seem to be focusing more on the big three? Would love to see Djokovic win, but I having a feeling that this could be Murray's opportunity to win.

In the dark horse category I would love to see Kanepi make a good run, she has a good powerful game and looks to be in form. On the mens side it would be great to see Monfils make a good run, but Del Potro seems more likely to.

RosyLily

Very excited for the Australian Open..hoping for a great one!:D

Quite surprised about the number of players that are picking up injuries already and retiring in matches. I hope it's just rust and lack of play that causing it and not something more serious.

In the men's draw, you can't really look pass the top 4. Personally, I haven't seen much of Djokovic so I'm not sure what his form is like. Nole plays Italian Paolo Lorenzi in the first round. Some dangers in his quarter- Ferrer, Roddick, Hewitt, Raonic, Gasquet etc. Raonic is a great player and can't wait to see what he can do.

It will be interesting to see how Murray and Lendl will gel as a team. I can't see him yelling and raging at his box with Mr. Lendl in it!:p He's in Djokovic's half of the draw (first time since 2007 he's not in Nadal's) which could prove very interesting if both players reach the SF. Also in Andy's quarter is Tsonga, Monfils, Simon. I reckon a Murray-Tsonga QF is most likely.

For the first time in years, Federer & Nadal are in the same half of the draw. Mardy Fish & Juan Martin del Potro will pose the most threat to Fed in his quarter. If Federer's in 100% form he'll reach the SF. He will play Alexander Kudryavtsev in the first round.

As for Nadal, he's gotta shake off what happened last year and start afresh; no point dwelling on past losses. Berdych is the main threat in his quarter of the draw...he usually plays well on hardcourt. He plays American Alex Kuznetsov in first round.

The women's draw is wide open. Clijsters is probably many people's favourite for the title. She might be carrying some niggles but she's a tough player and will fight to keep her title. Unfortunately, she's got quite a difficult draw with Na Li a possible 4th round opponent. That could be a quality match! Kim will play Maria Joao Koehler in the first round.

Also in Kim's quarter is Number 1 seed, Caroline Wozniacki. Ah, poor Caro! She gets criticised so much for not winning a GS and I don't think she'll break her duck at Aussie. Such a difficult quarter and, if she gets through (possibly) Jankovic in the 4th and Clijsters/Li in QF, Azarenka or Radwanska will be waiting in the SF. Caroline will play Australian Anastasia Rodionova in the first round.

Sharapova is in the most interesting quarter if you ask me! Zvonareva, Kanepi, Lisicki, Williams & Kuznetsova...all genuine threats. Some great matches could materialise here. Maria has an excellent chance of going deep in the draw. Her first round opponent is Gisela Dulko...a tough opener.

Number 2 seed Petra Kvitova is another favourite for the title. The draw has been quite kind to her up until the QF where she could face home favourite Sam Stosur. Both players won their maiden GS titles last year and have quite different games; Petra is power whereas Sam is speed. Hope this match-up becomes a reality.

If I was a betting person, I'd pick Djokovic & Clijsters.

Play begins Sunday night at midnight on Eurosport. Victoria Azarenka vs. Heather Watson kicks things off on Rod Laver.

CountryJoe

_Bella_ wrote: »

With the men as usual its hard to see past the big four, though pundits now seem to be focusing more on the big three? Would love to see Djokovic win, but I having a feeling that this could be Murray's opportunity to win.

Ive always felt that if Murray will win a slam, it will be either the US or the Aussie open. It will be interesting to see how he fairs this year now that lendl has joined his coaching team, im hoping its going to be his year.

Scanlas The 2nd

Hope Federer wins it, although I have a sneaky feeling we might be seeing an early exit for him. I thought there were bad signs in final of WTF for him against Tsonga. He's getting tired far too easily, just find it hard to see him winning on a slow surface especially if he has daytime matches. This is possibly his worst grand slam surface.

CountryJoe

No major shocks on day 1. Fed & Nadal comfortably through as are Clijsters & Wozniacki in the womens.

Nadal was heavily taped up on his right knee, may be more for precaution than anything else, however, whether it will come against him if he has to play a 5 setter remains to be seen. No sign of the back injury that forced Fed out of Doha a few weeks back, he looked quite comfortable throughout.

Murray due on court at 11am local time against Ryan Harrison. I would imagine that will be a comfortable opener for him.

RosyLily

Scanlas The 2nd wrote: »

Hope Federer wins it, although I have a sneaky feeling we might be seeing an early exit for him. I thought there were bad signs in final of WTF for him against Tsonga. He's getting tired far too easily, just find it hard to see him winning on a slow surface especially if he has daytime matches. This is possibly his worst grand slam surface.

No negativity!! All positive, positive postive!!!:D:P


5/6 of the British players are out of Aussie already. Heather Watson lost 1-6, 6-0 to Azarenka last night. Anne Keothavong had to retire against Germany's Mona Barthel, citing food posioning as the reason; she lost the first set 0-6. Elena Baltacha was defeated 2-6, 4-6 by Stephanie Foretz-Gacon. Laura Robson was brushed aside by 13th seed Jelena Jankovic 2-6, 6-0. And finally James Ward was beaten by Slovenian Blaz Kavcic 4-6, 3-6, 4-6.
Once again, Andy Murray is last Brit standing.

Agnieszka Radwanska & Bethanie Mattek-Sands had a great match on Court #2. M-S went 5-2 up in the first set before Aga clawed her way back to force a tiebreak. TB went the way of the American but the Pole went on to win the match. Final Score: 6-7, 6-4, 6-2.

Aussie Tomic came through a 5 setter to beat Fernando Verdasco. Impressive considering he lost the first 2 sets; not many teenagers would have the mental strength to pull themselves up like that.

Federer, Nadal, Wozniacki, Clijsters, Schiavone & Li all won in straight sets.

Playing tonight is Djokovic, Murray, Tsonga, Ferrer, Roddick, Hewitt, Stosur, Kvitova, Serena & Sharapova.

P.S. Anyone watching Eurosport earlier and hear Rusedski's views on the schedule debate? Well said! Spoke about how the players choose to play exhibitions (i.e. Nadal in Dubai in off-season) instead of resting. Also mentioned that tennis fans will have little sympathy for players since it's a recession and they're earning $1m or more every few months (depending on how lucrative tournaments are).

frostie500

RosyLily wrote: »

5/6 of the British players are out of Aussie already. Heather Watson lost 1-6, 6-0 to Azarenka last night. Anne Keothavong had to retire against Germany's Mona Barthel, citing food posioning as the reason; she lost the first set 0-6. Elena Baltacha was defeated 2-6, 4-6 by Stephanie Foretz-Gacon. Laura Robson was brushed aside by 13th seed Jelena Jankovic 2-6, 6-0. And finally James Ward was beaten by Slovenian Blaz Kavcic 4-6, 3-6, 4-6.
Once again, Andy Murray is last Brit standing.

I was really surprised to see Watson struggle so badly but she looked so nervous walking on court that it was no surprise once the match started to see her struggle. Jankovic played well but Robson's footwork was really sloppy today and played into JJ's hands throughout.

RosyLily wrote: »

Agnieszka Radwanska & Bethanie Mattek-Sands had a great match on Court #2. M-S went 5-2 up in the first set before Aga clawed her way back to force a tiebreak. TB went the way of the American but the Pole went on to win the match. Final Score: 6-7, 6-4, 6-2. [?QUOTE]
I think if Mattek-Sands could have won the first set earlier we could have had a real upset but she looked really tired by the end, good to see Radwanska have a tough game though, it will help her over the next week to have a challenge early doors

For anyone interested check out my website through the week, I'll be trying to keep it updated with analysis of the matches and a very brief preview of the next days matches....it'll be much easier at the weekend's I'd imagine!

snubbleste

Almagro v Dimitrov
Who will win this match? Almagro is around longer and is ranked far higher, but the odds on the young Dimitrov are shortening all the time.

I'd chance Serena Williams and home-crowd pleaser Stosur to be in the final. I'll be shocked if Andy Murray makes it past the semi-finals.

_Bella_

snubbleste wrote: »

Almagro v Dimitrov
Who will win this match? Almagro is around longer and is ranked far higher, but the odds on the young Dimitrov are shortening all the time.

I'd chance Serena Williams and home-crowd pleaser Stosur to be in the final. I'll be shocked if Andy Murray makes it past the semi-finals.

Stosur's gone already, so there goes that bet! She seems to really struggle with the home expectation but to go out in straight sets is really disappointing. Was watching Kutznesova and she was playing really well in the third set of her match. I can't remember whose section of the draw she is in but she could definitely cause an upset.

Djokovic destroyed his opponent. Murray's was a bit trickier with Harrison playing really well at the beginning but once Murray got the break in the second set it was smooth sailing from there.

Rjd2

Stosur's form has been dismal since the US and has never done well at Australia so her early exit is not that much of a shock. Zvonareva was patchy against the very dangerous Dulgheru, while Sharapova battered Dulko hushing those who doubted her fitness. Azarenka and Kvitova have impressed me the most on the ladies side so far.

Men's side hasn't revealed to much, everyone has done what was needed. Tomic admitted he was knackered at the end of his game so its going to be a tough week for him especially when you consider the conditions. Verdasco proved once again when its comes to mental midgetery he has no equals, an absolute bottler indeed.

Rjd2

Oh and Tsonga stuggling against Istomin, one set each and a tight 3rd set.

Istomin has always impressed me when I watch him, but you look at his rankings and how often he loses to mugs, its easy to write him off.

adamski8

isner match had such a great ending, it will be hard to match that drama again

the_monkey

Could be Murray's year - Lendl is exactly what he needs to take him to that next level where he is well capable of.


Allthough I would have said Djokovic won't win it (as I thought he wasn't over his injury) - but after seeing his 1st 2 matches he is looking strong.

Federer - I can't see him winning another slam - though it would be great
for the record books 17 slams wow! - would cement him as the G.O.A.T.

Nadal - hard to know with this guy - is he really injured ? or is he playing his usual mind games and tricks ? - if not injured he can easily win it, if he is then can't see him getting to the final


So my prediction Australian Open champion 2012 -

Murray

And check this out ! this guy is going for my record !

http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2012/jan/18/marcos-baghdatis-smashes-four-rackets

StephenHendry

i think murray might win a slam this year and it could be the AO. with lendl on board it hopefully will help him. lendl like murray lost a number of grand slam finals before he finally won the french open in 1984. that said i'd think djokovic will be hard to beat

CountryJoe

the_monkey wrote: »

And check this out ! this guy is going for my record !

http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2012/jan/18/marcos-baghdatis-smashes-four-rackets

John Mac would be proud of that, even if he did look to be doing it just for the crowd with the last 2 rackets!

It was a shame to see Roddick retire, ever since his 2003 US Open title, he has always been the nearly man, 3 Wimbledon finals & another US Open final where he was beaten by Fed. Safe to assume with the current form of the top 4, he wont be adding to that 1 slam anytime soon.

RosyLily

Great performance from Bernard Tomic against Alexandr Dolgopolov earlier! I was pretty impressed by him; got a good game! Up next for him is Roger Federer...intriguing!!

I thought Clijsters and del Potro also played well. Both won in straight sets and are looking fresh and healthy. Clijsters made quick work of Daniela Hantuchova winning 6-3, 6-2 in just 75 minutes. Up next for her is Na Li...excited to see this one!!
del Potro beat Taiwan's Yen-Tsun Lu 6-2, 6-3, 6-0. Really good final set from him. He could face Federer in the QFs if both of them come through their 4th round matches.

Playing tonight from midnight are Kvitova, Sharapova, Djokovic, Tsonga, Ivanovic & Kuznetsova. In the morning, Murray, Hewitt, Williams, Raonic.

_Bella_

Have to say I was very surprised b Hewitt's win! I was sure that Raonic's serve would see him through, but he did not play a very good match making a lot of unforced errors. I don't think Hewitt has a prayer against Nole but I'm happy that he got to the fourth round.

The Llodra Murray match was very entertaining. There was a great game at the end of the second set where they traded some very enjoyable volleys and angles as well as some attempted hotdogs. I really enjoy watching Llodra's serve and volley style.

The most anticipated matches of tomorrow have to be the Na Li Clijsters match and Federer against Tomic. The women's match in my opinion will be closer and if I had to bet on one of them it would have to be Na Li. She has been playing very well recently. I can't see any other outcome in the Federer match than a Federer victory, though I do see Tomic possibly getting a set.

Pighead

Just watched the last set of the Berdych Almagro match. Quality tennis from both of them. Berdych eventually won 3-1 after losing the opening set.

Major talking point at the end of the match when Berdych refused ro shake Almagros hand. Crowd went absolutely ballistic. Booed Bedych all through his post match interview. Reason he didn't shake Almagros hand was because the Spaniard hit him on the shoulder with a smash (on purpose according to Berdych)

Didn't see the incident so can't really comment but it's never a good idea to get the crowd offside. Berdych up against Nadal next. Crowd are going to boo him all through match.

Didn't see Clijsters Na but it sounded like a cracker. Na was a set up and 6-2 up in the second set tie break and still didn't win. Blew five match points. Clijsters despite a dodgy ankle won 4-6 7-6 6-4.

Tomic V Fed next. Huge test for the impressive young Australian. Can't see him getting past the maestro though. Fed to win in three tight sets. 6-4 7-6 6-4.

CountryJoe

Pighead wrote: »

Just watched the last set of the Berdych Almagro match. Quality tennis from both of them. Berdych eventually won 3-1 after losing the opening set.

Major talking point at the end of the match when Berdych refused ro shake Almagros hand. Crowd went absolutely ballistic. Booed Bedych all through his post match interview. Reason he didn't shake Almagros hand was because the Spaniard hit him on the shoulder with a smash (on purpose according to Berdych)

Didn't see the incident so can't really comment but it's never a good idea to get the crowd offside. Berdych up against Nadal next. Crowd are going to boo him all through match.

Didn't see Clijsters Na but it sounded like a cracker. Na was a set up and 6-2 up in the second set tie break and still didn't win. Blew five match points. Clijsters despite a dodgy ankle won 4-6 7-6 6-4.

Tomic V Fed next. Huge test for the impressive young Australian. Can't see him getting past the maestro though. Fed to win in three tight sets. 6-4 7-6 6-4.

Here is a youtube link of the incident & the aftermath.

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

To be fair to Almagros, the shot still had to be played, I dont believe he intentionally tried to hit Berdych. Almagros immediately apologised which looked to be genuine. Ive seen far worse cases that have been laughed off by both players. By refusing to shake his hand he has let himself down at the end of the day & due to that, the crowd will give him hell against Nadal. As if he was'nt going to be up against it enough playing Nadal!

RosyLily

Watched the highlights from Berdych-Almagro match. Seemed like a genuine accidental hit from Nico...he held up his hand in apology and walked to the net to check on Tomas, who turned his back and walked towards the back of the court.
Bad sportsmanship from him not to shake hands, regardless of what happened. Just suck it up and talk it over in private! Here's the shot..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=555O8jIYkwk

Didn't get to see Clijsters-Li match in full...only few highlights. Kim rolled her ankle pretty bad at 3-3 in 1st set. Fair play for continuing! Her lob shot to save MP was a risk...could have easily went out. She'll play Caroline Wozniacki next. I can see a Kim win here.

Federer played his 1,000 match against Tomic. Nice win for him...show the kid how it's done!:P He plays Juan Martin del Potro next...could be a great match. Both players are playing really good tennis.

Rjd2

Pleased to see the back of Serena tonight, she was really poor.

Nishikori played very well against Tsonga, he was able to deal with Joe's power and sadly for the French man he had no plan b.

Kukushkin was terribly out of his depth against Murray who must be pleased with how the draw has opened up for him.

Sour faced screaming hag Maria Sharapova is on the verge of defeating the lovely Lisicki , she has a huge chance of winning the whole thing sadly.

RosyLily

Rjd2 wrote: »

Sour faced screaming hag Maria Sharapova is on the verge of defeating the lovely Lisicki , she has a huge chance of winning the whole thing sadly.

I'd much rather see Sharapova win that Azarenka!!! That girl annoys me on court no end! She sounds awful!!! And I wouldn't mind only she has a really good game and seems nice off the court. Pity.

Great match between Hewitt & Djokovic earlier. First 2 sets were all Djoko, then he seemed to lose concentration in the 3rd...giving Hewitt the opening. Shame it couldn't go to a 5th set.
Up next for Djokovic is David Ferrer, who came through in straight sets against Gasquet. Could be a top match. If the Serb gives Ferrer any chances he will pounce on it! Maybe a 5 setter?

Fantastic win for Makarova today over Serena! She had some great shots and really made the American pay for her errors and DFs. It's probably the poorest I've seen Serena play in a long time.

Some really exciting matches tonight. The first of the Women's QFs are on: Azarenka vs. Radwanska & Wozniacki vs. Clijsters. And also the first of the Men's QFs: del Potro vs. Federer & Berdych vs. Nadal.
I predict will see an Azarenka vs. Clijsters SF & Federer vs. Nadal SF on Thursday.

califano

Berdych enjoying the villain role, set up against Nadal. It wasnt about the smash anyway its a race hate incident Baghdatis style;).

MoscowFlyer

Here comes Rafa!

Scanlas The 2nd

Some sublime Tennis from Federer today, looking forward to Federer vs Nadal semi final pending the inevitable defeat of Berdych. Can't believe they have only met each other once in a grandslam on hardcourt.

walshb

Rafa is thru in 4 sets. Berdyc had his chances. Didn't take them. Fed on form vs. Nadal in real good shape. Should be a cracker, and for once, it's not a final.

MisterAnarchy

walshb wrote: »

Rafa is thru in 4 sets. Berdyc had his chances. Didn't take them. Fed on form vs. Nadal in real good shape. Should be a cracker, and for once, it's not a final.

Huge test for Federer against Nadal.
Will he crack like he has in their last few Grand Slam matches or will he be able to keep his nerve and maintain his performance over more than 2 sets.
There has never been a better time for Federer to defeat Nadal but will he be able to win the mental battle.

walshb

MisterAnarchy wrote: »

Huge test for Federer against Nadal.
Will he crack like he has in their last few Grand Slam matches or will he be able to keep his nerve and maintain his performance over more than 2 sets.
There has never been a better time for Federer to defeat Nadal but will he be able to win the mental battle.

Always been the question for Fed. He always seems to faulter vs. Nadal. Doesn't perform to his best, and not simply down to Nadal being a great player. Everything suffers for Fed. His first serve % is down, and he makes too many unforced errors. Mentally Nadal seems to get to him.

Agreed, never been a better time. I think they have met twice in that last thre months, 1-1. Fed crushed Nadal in London, but again, over 3 set match.

jcf

and the cheat wins again with his cheating and mind games - pretending to be injured in this tournament, when he clearly isn't ... mind you he does that at most tournaments..


Fed will turn into a big girl again, Djoko(if he makes the final) won't win as he's not 100% ... so a black black day for tennis as a cheat wins the 1st Slam of 2012...

snubbleste

Did anyone see the immediate on-court interview with Nadal?
He had put a watch on his right wrist, made sure time and again that his sleeve did not cover it and then throughout the interview kept touching his face or his hair with his right hand.
It was too obvious a product endorsement.