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2020 In Between Grand Slam Thread

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Comments

  • #212
    Sheridan81
    Closed Accounts Posts: 1,429 ✭✭✭Sheridan81


    I didn't realize until now that back in the old days married women used to have their HUSBAND'S name up on the scoreboard! Forename initials and all. Jesus Christ. Was it arranged so John Lloyd got to win a slam?


  • #213
    CassieManson
    Registered Users Posts: 693 ✭✭✭CassieManson


    Sheridan81 wrote: »
    I didn't realize until now that back in the old days married women used to have their HUSBAND'S name up on the scoreboard! Forename initials and all. Jesus Christ. Was it arranged so John Lloyd got to win a slam?

    Yes its funny to look back at the old matches, the players didn't move around the court nearly as much as they do now. The current players must be so much fitter. Also the coke machine under the umpires chair was a bit strange. And no sweaty towels being handed to the players by ballboys during play.

    And the little tight shorts worn by Borg etc!


  • #214
    Sheridan81
    Closed Accounts Posts: 1,429 ✭✭✭Sheridan81


    Hector Savage wrote: »
    And I just found ...



    almost in tears watching ... the emotion .... amazing

    I watched every match of his 2001 run in full on BBC Red Button back then. I think it was the win over Roddick that made me believe he could do it.

    I watched him get beat easily by Cristiano Carratti a couple weeks before at Queens and John Lloyd and Sue Barker were saying how sad it was to see a great player struggling at the end of his career!


  • #215
    Hector Savage
    Registered Users Posts: 8,810 ✭✭✭Hector Savage


    CassieManson wrote: »
    Yes its funny to look back at the old matches, the players didn't move around the court nearly as much as they do now. The current players must be so much fitter. Also the coke machine under the umpires chair was a bit strange. And no sweaty towels being handed to the players by ballboys during play.

    And the little tight shorts worn by Borg etc!

    Greg Rusedski started that towel ****e in Wimbledon 1995 !!!

    It was a weird new thing back then and the commentators would laugh about this Canadian/Brit and his funny habits.

    Now they ALL do it....


  • #216
    walshb
    Registered Users Posts: 54,561 ✭✭✭✭walshb


    So many great great finals at SW19

    My personal favorite is 2001 Goran.....just sheer joy...

    My fav ever slam final is 2017 Oz final....Roger's greatest single match IMO; not necessarily that he played his absolute best ever tennis, but more who he beat, what it meant, and the manner of the win...to come back from the brink of defeat against a colossus like Nadal.....epic....

    I would not be surprised if this is Roger's most special and influential win.........and that his 2019 SW19 loss when so so close to SW19 number 9 is his most painful match.

    2012 Oz final is probably the best match I ever saw.....

    2015 FO final another brilliant match. Stan was on fire....second fav slam final.


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  • #217
    walshb
    Registered Users Posts: 54,561 ✭✭✭✭walshb


    whiterebel wrote: »
    Watched the 2009 final yesterday from BBC replays. How unlucky was Roddick? Didn't drop a service game until the last one in the fifth. Much as I'm a Fed fan, I wouldn't have minded Andy taking that one. His nerve on serves was something else, blasting down 130mph+ serves when under real pressure, and serving his way out of trouble. I wonder if he had had the benefit of someone like Edberg coaching him would he have had the game to take Wimbledon? Volleying really let him down. Fed hit 50 aces in that match too, and over 100 winners. BJK and Ann Jones before it. I had forgotten we used to use white tennis balls, and I didn't realise the T2000 was around in the 60s. Such a gentle game for the ladies back then, Jones won with a powder puff serve. It looked like BJK was going to flatten her after an easy first set, but Jones came back well. Oh, yes, and no seats in the ladies final for the players. Get your own drinks.....Nadal would have a sh*t fit without someone to hold his towels!!

    Stunning match that.

    I really wanted Andy to win. He came so close.

    Fed's serving that day was off the charts. His serve won him the match....


  • #218
    yerwanthere123
    Registered Users, Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 7,276 Mod ✭✭✭✭yerwanthere123


    No posts in over a month :eek:

    WTA returned last week, Fiona Ferro became the first tour champion since March after winning Palermo. Everything seems to have gone ok so far, now over to Prague and Kentucky to see how some bigger names handle playing in the current conditions.

    ATP won't be playing again until 'Cincinnati'... which will be held in New York this year preceding the US Open.


  • #219
    whiterebel
    Moderators, Business & Finance Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 14,822 Mod ✭✭✭✭whiterebel


    ND confirms he’s playing S&W, and US Open.


  • #220
    lostcat
    Registered Users Posts: 695 ✭✭✭lostcat


    whiterebel wrote: »
    ND confirms he’s playing S&W, and US Open.

    He was kind of dammed if he did and dammed if he didn't publicity wise I suppose, particularly after the adria tour fiasco.

    A lot of other players attending will have played a good bit more tennis than him in the past month or so. He will be the favourite, but things don't always go his way in the US Open, there may well be a new slam winner here.


  • #221
    Girly Gal
    Registered Users Posts: 2,802 ✭✭✭Girly Gal


    lostcat wrote: »
    He was kind of dammed if he did and dammed if he didn't publicity wise I suppose, particularly after the adria tour fiasco.

    A lot of other players attending will have played a good bit more tennis than him in the past month or so. He will be the favourite, but things don't always go his way in the US Open, there may well be a new slam winner here.

    Hopefully a new winner, Novak knows this is a great opportunity to add another slam, don't think it was ever really in doubt that he would play from his point of view, It was others who cast doubt on it, has Nadal confirmed if he's playing or not?


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  • #222
    whiterebel
    Moderators, Business & Finance Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 14,822 Mod ✭✭✭✭whiterebel


    Nadal is not playing.


  • #223
    yerwanthere123
    Registered Users, Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 7,276 Mod ✭✭✭✭yerwanthere123


    whiterebel wrote: »
    Nadal is not playing.

    Players are almost pulling out on a daily basis, I must try find the current entry list to see who is/isn't playing. I think Djokovic, Murray, Thiem, Medvedev and Tsitsipas are still entered though.

    Andreescu isn't playing either, but not sure the pandemic would've made much of a difference there anyway, seems to be injured on an almost permanent basis.

    Meanwhile, Serena lost to Shelby Rogers in Lexington, who really knows where she's at now. The Gauff hype train continues, into the SF's with two quality wins over Sabalenka and Jabeur.


  • #224
    yerwanthere123
    Registered Users, Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 7,276 Mod ✭✭✭✭yerwanthere123


    Nice win for Andy over Zverev :cool:


  • #225
    lostcat
    Registered Users Posts: 695 ✭✭✭lostcat


    yerwanthere123 wrote: »
    Nice win for Andy over Zverev :cool:

    It was, especially since the courts seem to be playing very fast which should have suited Zverev.

    Peoples form is understandably a bit all over the place - Zverev was fairly uneven, Thiem was very poor in his match and Djokovic has a creaky neck.

    Nice to see a 'proper' tournament back though.


  • #226
    dominatinMC
    Registered Users Posts: 2,850 ✭✭✭dominatinMC


    lostcat wrote: »
    It was, especially since the courts seem to be playing very fast which should have suited Zverev.

    Peoples form is understandably a bit all over the place - Zverev was fairly uneven, Thiem was very poor in his match and Djokovic has a creaky neck.

    Nice to see a 'proper' tournament back though.
    Whilst it's a welcome return, I just can't get excited about the tournament, or some of the upcoming tournaments either. I'm not sure if it's due to lack of crowds, and the resulting zero atmosphere, or if it's the reduced field but I'm a bit ambivalent towards it all at the moment.


  • #227
    lostcat
    Registered Users Posts: 695 ✭✭✭lostcat


    dominatinMC wrote: »
    Whilst it's a welcome return, I just can't get excited about the tournament, or some of the upcoming tournaments either. I'm not sure if it's due to lack of crowds, and the resulting zero atmosphere, or if it's the reduced field but I'm a bit ambivalent towards it all at the moment.

    Maybe they could pipe in some 'drunken crowd shouting' background noise for the US open to give it a more authentic feel?

    It is a bit stanger than watching, say, football, which I think is maybe more to do with the fact that a football match has more continuous acton and a lot more people to point a camera at during down time.

    watching players wandering around at the change of ends looking for their towels is mildly amusing however.
    The field (at least on the mens side) isn't reduced by that much, only Nadal really is missing (Federer is injured/recovering from surgery).

    im hoping that prople will find a bit of form this week and we will have a US Open of consistent quality.


  • #228
    lostcat
    Registered Users Posts: 695 ✭✭✭lostcat


    lostcat wrote: »
    im hoping that prople will find a bit of form this week and we will have a US Open of consistent quality.

    I'm obviously talking about the quality of post here, rather than the tennis(.....looks around for Hector Savage et al.....)


  • #229
    mzungu
    Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 6,306 Mod ✭✭✭✭mzungu


    No doubt there will be some rustiness in the first few rounds. Great to have it back, though.


  • #230
    yerwanthere123
    Registered Users, Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 7,276 Mod ✭✭✭✭yerwanthere123


    Must admit it's quite jarring watching with no crowds. Thought we'd be somewhat used to it with some of the soulless Chinese WTA tournaments, but to have literally no reaction to players hitting winners is just too odd. Hope the US Open can think of something novel to make up for it.


  • #231
    [Deleted User]
    Posts: 0 ✭[Deleted User]


    No crowds probably will suit ND at the moment lol!

    Aside from the anti-vaxxer thing I don't think that he's necessarily a bad lad - just really knows how to put his foot in it.


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  • #232
    yerwanthere123
    Registered Users, Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 7,276 Mod ✭✭✭✭yerwanthere123


    The Bryan Brother have finally retired at the age of 42. The most successful doubles pairing of all time, a bit sad for them that they didn't get to go at the US Open like they'd originally planned. They've always seemed like decent fellas too so I hope they have a very happy retirement.


  • #233
    Sheridan81
    Closed Accounts Posts: 1,429 ✭✭✭Sheridan81


    David Mercer died. RIP.


  • #234
    lostcat
    Registered Users Posts: 695 ✭✭✭lostcat


    Djokovic gets out of jail against Bautista-Agut in the semi. He was 5-2 up with the break in the third set, Bautista-Agut broke back and ended up up serving for it as 6-5 but was broken himself. Djokovic ran away with the tie-break. Looked like the heat or something was getting to him in the end, his serve went awol for the third set and wasn't pristine throughout (maybe the neck isn't perfect yet?)

    Bautista-Agut played quite well until he had to serve it out, he could go a long way in the US Open.


  • #235
    MisterAnarchy
    Registered Users Posts: 14,514 ✭✭✭✭MisterAnarchy


    Sheridan81 wrote: »
    David Mercer died. RIP.

    Wow, I didnt realise that he was 70.
    Sad news, I always liked him, especially with Frew Mc Millan on Eurosport.


  • #236
    yerwanthere123
    Registered Users, Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 7,276 Mod ✭✭✭✭yerwanthere123


    Great to see Azarenka win another big title, even if it was via a walkover. Hope she plays well at the US Open. Sabalenka in R2 could be very tough.


  • #237
    yerwanthere123
    Registered Users, Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 7,276 Mod ✭✭✭✭yerwanthere123


    US Open thread.


  • #238
    lostcat
    Registered Users Posts: 695 ✭✭✭lostcat


    Djokovic ties Sampras for career weeks at No 1 this week, at 286. He will retain No 1 next week no matter what happens in Rome so will move to second place on his own. Federer leads the way at 310 weeks.

    I'm not sure what the remainder of the season looks like after the FO so hard to say what he has to do to hold it to the end of the year. There are 16/17 weeks left in 2020.


  • #239
    CassieManson
    Registered Users Posts: 693 ✭✭✭CassieManson


    lostcat wrote: »
    Djokovic ties Sampras for career weeks at No 1 this week, at 286. He will retain No 1 next week no matter what happens in Rome so will move to second place on his own. Federer leads the way at 310 weeks.

    I'm not sure what the remainder of the season looks like after the FO so hard to say what he has to do to hold it to the end of the year. There are 16/17 weeks left in 2020.

    Did they keep counting during the break?


  • #240
    lostcat
    Registered Users Posts: 695 ✭✭✭lostcat


    CassieManson wrote: »
    Did they keep counting during the break?
    they didn't, they paused it pretty early into lockdown, started again a couple of weeks ago.
    Its a messy year however, following the restart of the season, everyone can opt to keep their points from the equivalent tournament last year or take this years points if they fare better. Hence Nadal will hold onto his US Open winning points from 2019 even though he didn't attend this year. Thiem will obviously gain a good few as he performed better than last year, etc.


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  • #241
    MisterAnarchy
    Registered Users Posts: 14,514 ✭✭✭✭MisterAnarchy


    Tennis seems to be going down the "woke" road alot lately.
    Murray now calling for the Margaret Court Arena to be renamed .
    https://www.skysports.com/tennis/news/12110/12073772/andy-murray-thinks-margaret-courts-name-should-be-removed-from-australian-open

    "Every statue and street and building has been renamed, every date has been altered. And that process is continuing day by day and minute by minute. History has stopped.”
    1984


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