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2018 In Between Grand Slam Thread

  • 28-12-2017 5:18pm
    #1
    Moderators, Arts Moderators Posts: 23,913 Mod ✭✭✭✭


    And we're off.....


«13456716

Comments

  • Registered Users, Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 7,255 Mod ✭✭✭✭yerwanthere123


    Has anyone read, or is planning to read, Sharapova's book Unstoppable? I got it for Christmas and I'm almost finished it. I think I'll actually like her less by time I've finished it, which I wasn't really expecting to happen.


  • Moderators, Arts Moderators Posts: 23,913 Mod ✭✭✭✭TICKLE_ME_ELMO


    Has anyone read, or is planning to read, Sharapova's book Unstoppable? I got it for Christmas and I'm almost finished it. I think I'll actually like her less by time I've finished it, which I wasn't really expecting to happen.

    Haven't read it but it seems to have had the opposite effect on people who didn't like her prior to reading it.


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,843 ✭✭✭dominatinMC


    I see that it's being reported on twitter that Djokovic has pulled out of Abu Dhabi due to that chronic elbow issue. Hope it's nothing serious, but it sounds worrying after all that time off, and not a good omen for 2018.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 2,930 ✭✭✭jr86


    Not good at all..

    It seems Murray cut a training camp in Miami short and is unsure about AO warm ups (although it seems he's playing an exhibition in Abu Dhabi later anyway), while I think I read Stan is still struggling to play full points in practice

    Nadal has pulled out of Brisbane

    Wouldn't surprise me if any of the above pulled out of Melbourne, sadly.

    Yerwanthere123 referenced it in the other thread that Murray shouldn't rush back, and I'd agree that if there's any issues he'd be far better holding off till Miami anyway and play 1 or 2 clay tournaments and aim for Wimbledon


  • Registered Users, Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 7,255 Mod ✭✭✭✭yerwanthere123


    Fun little match between Serena and Ostapenko there, with Ostapenko winning in a second set super tie-break. Serena looks as if she has a little of the baby weight to lose yet, she was very low to start but the level improved a lot as the match went on. Remains to be seen whether she was just showing up to collect the pay cheque or whether she'll play in Melbourne.


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  • Registered Users Posts: 7,467 ✭✭✭Floppybits


    Murray has pulled out of Brisbane.  From his statement on his Facebook page I cant see him making the Australian Open.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 2,930 ✭✭✭jr86


    Can't see Murray playing AO. By all accounts he was a long way from full fitness in an exhibition only a few days ago, and I don't see him playing without a proper warm up.

    He's as well off do a training camp in Miami and aim to make his competitive comeback there late March (that's if he doesn't need surgery)

    Will probably be another write-off season though for him, and you'd have to have reservations as to whether he'll ever rediscover his best form. I doubt Lendl jumped ship lightly and he's hardly been gleaming with positivity himself the last few days

    Wawrinka, Djokovic and Nadal look to have tentatively committed to Melbourne anyway by entering an exhibition next week. That said I still wouldn't be shocked to see ND pull out but I'd imagine Nadal will play anyway no matter how fit.

    Add Raonic (still not fully fit) and Nishikori (will probably pull out of AO) to the mix and it's a heavily depleted field again (in terms of withdrawals and top players not 100%).

    Hopefully - for the game - it yields a new slam winner


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,843 ✭✭✭dominatinMC


    Agree with most of what jr86 said. Murray's hip issue is very worrying, and his Facebook statement was ominous in tone. Seems like surgery is now at the forefront of his options, and it is obvious he is reluctant to pursue this option. Sadly, we may have seen the last of Murray at the top tier of tennis. I hope I am wrong, but such is the fickle nature of top level sports.

    The AO is beginning to resemble last years US Open, and the last man standing will win it! I hope Dimitrov takes advantage of the weakened field, would love to see his undoubted talent translate to a slam win


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 2,930 ✭✭✭jr86


    Yeah I hadn't actually read his statement until now (they're generally PR soundbites), but typical Murray it was frank, honest and open

    Very ominous tone indeed and it would appear surgery is on the cards, which will probably rule him out for the majority of the season if he goes ahead with it

    Beyond that though, it's hard to look past the grave possibility that this could well be career threatening at this stage.


  • Registered Users, Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 7,255 Mod ✭✭✭✭yerwanthere123


    Very concerning and sad to read about Andy. What's striking is the fact that surgery is the secondary option, the one he wants to avoid, and yet the chances of a successful outcome are still not as "high as he would like"? Seems like a damned is he does, damned if he doesn't situation. Either way, it seems as if 2018 is mostly going to be a write-off for him, and he won't be playing much top-level tennis. He clearly needs a long time out of the game. At his age, that's obviously not ideal, to say the least, but who knows? Next year he'll be 31, still not too old to compete at the highest level, and it's not as if the younger generation are closing in massively, we've been waiting for them for years, maybe he can still be a force? His best tennis is more than likely behind him, but it may not be all over yet.


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  • Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 3,288 ✭✭✭mickmackey1


    Could never warm to the bloke but it's obviously concerning. Fed's miracle working makes us forget that 30/31 is still a real veteran age for a tennis pro.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 2,930 ✭✭✭jr86


    Murray officially withdraws.

    No surprise, but obviously the big question is what exactly this means for the rest of 2018, and indeed the rest of his career

    Nishikori has also unsurprisingly withdrawn. Sadly it seems his body has ultimately hindered him really fulfilling his potential

    Djokovic is still a big question mark, it wouldn't shock me at all to see him sit it out

    In other (lower profile) absentee news, Tomic hasn't been given a wildcard (delighted!) and has refused to enter qualifying


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,580 ✭✭✭NoviGlitzko


    Tomic not getting a WC is terrific news. Hopes he retires and f*cks off from the sport for good.


  • Registered Users, Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 7,255 Mod ✭✭✭✭yerwanthere123


    Tomic was defending third round points too, so the ranking will plummet even further. If he couldn't motivate himself to play qualies at his home slam then what's he got left really? Seems like it really is all over.


  • Registered Users Posts: 7,467 ✭✭✭Floppybits


    I'd be worried for Murray now, this hip injury could finish him. You have to wonder what the grinding game played by players is taking out of them.


  • Registered Users Posts: 695 ✭✭✭lostcat


    Floppybits wrote: »
    I'd be worried for Murray now, this hip injury could finish him. You have to wonder what the grinding game played by players is taking out of them.

    terrible for Murray, and with Djokovic also still not properly healed, in hindsight they might have been both better off to bite the bullet and have the surgery last July, they can't have been any worse off than they are now.

    I was looking forward to what could have been the final year of the 'big 4/5' all playing at a decent level and at the same time, doesn't look like it will happen now :(

    I don't think the grinding game can be attributed to the Djokovic injury (elbow), or Stans, who is hardly a grinder. Nadals and Murrays probably can be.


  • Moderators, Arts Moderators Posts: 23,913 Mod ✭✭✭✭TICKLE_ME_ELMO


    Serena had withdrawn from the Australian Open. Not really a surprise. Says she can compete but not to the level she would like so she's going to take a bit more time.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 2,930 ✭✭✭jr86


    I genuinely thought at the time Djokovic's break was more of an "out of love with tennis need a few months away from the sport" than a genuine injury absence. But it certainly seems serious.

    However an elbow issue won't really affect his physical fitness and stamina, unlike Murray's, so getting up to speed won't be such an issue when he does return to competitive action.

    Hindsight is wonderful and all that but I wonder was Murray's fully loaded second half of 2016 the beginning of the end for him. The effort to get to number 1 surely took a lot out of him physically, he played a hell of a lot of matches in that time. His scheduling was a bit bizarre up to Wimbledon in 2017 too, despite looking nowhere near fit all season.
    There was even talks of him trying to return to Vienna in October and he pulled out of Cinicinatti and US Open at the 11th hour. One would wonder from the outside, is he too stubborn for his own good at times (was this even a factor in Lendl jumping ship?)?


  • Registered Users Posts: 13,574 ✭✭✭✭josip


    So if we discount all the definitely possibly injureds from the mens who's left with a realistic chance of winning?
    Delpo, Fed, Raonic?


  • Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 3,288 ✭✭✭mickmackey1


    + Goffin, Dimitrov, even Kyrgios is playing well in Brisbane.


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  • Registered Users Posts: 762 ✭✭✭Pistachios & cream


    Serena had withdrawn from the Australian Open. Not really a surprise. Says she can compete but not to the level she would like so she's going to take a bit more time.

    I’m not too surprised, she didn’t look to be at full fitness playing ostapenko so there’s no way she’d be able to defend a grand slam. It’s a smart decision, coming back too early there’s a real possibility of early losses in tournaments and that would damage the ‘aura’ of invincibility she has.

    I’d say she will probably aim to return in Miami. It’s a big tournament she has a great relationship with and is basically in her back yard.


  • Registered Users, Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 7,255 Mod ✭✭✭✭yerwanthere123


    Another huge name caught! Thomaz Belluci failed a drug test last year and got a silent ban, so will be back playing in February. So much for that promise that test failures would be made public immediately.

    https://twitter.com/josemorgado/status/948997989703540737


    I'd like to know how he proved this and why they let him off, particularly since what he tested positive for was a diuretic, something designed to be a masking agent.


    Regarding Serena, will be interesting to see when she does come back. I mean she'd probably be ready by the Indian Wells/Miami swing, but I somehow can't see it being until Wimbledon. I doubt she'd want the French to be her first slam back, may as well wait until she's on a surface where she's much more comfortable.


  • Registered Users, Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 7,255 Mod ✭✭✭✭yerwanthere123


    Had never heard of him before he lost in the Brisbane QF's today, but American Michael Mmoh is half-Irish, so that's someone we can kinda cheer for :o

    Sam Barry, meanwhile, was playing in the Auckland qualies but has already lost in three sets to Dutra Silva.


  • Moderators, Arts Moderators Posts: 23,913 Mod ✭✭✭✭TICKLE_ME_ELMO


    Had never heard of him before he lost in the Brisbane QF's today, but American Michael Mmoh is half-Irish, so that's someone we can kinda cheer for :o
    .

    He was born in Saudi Arabia. His mother is Irish but also an Australian citizen, his father is Nigerian, and he represents the United States :)


  • Registered Users, Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 7,255 Mod ✭✭✭✭yerwanthere123


    Nice win for Kyrgios in front of his home crowd, hope it motivates him for Melbourne. He could be a contender to win if he wants it enough, but won't hold my breath.

    Good to see Svitolina win on the women's side, she's a contender to win in Melbourne too if she can avoid the biggest hitters. Also nice to see Goerges pick up where she left off in 2017 by winning Auckland.


  • Registered Users Posts: 695 ✭✭✭lostcat


    Nice win for Kyrgios in front of his home crowd, hope it motivates him for Melbourne. He could be a contender to win if he wants it enough, but won't hold my breath.

    I can't see him holding it together for 2 full weeks, but who knows what kind of a draw will fall his way. Its the hardest slam to call for a long time, which makes it interesting.

    Fed would be my clear favourite if the draw falls his way (a la Nadal at US Open 17)


  • Registered Users, Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 7,255 Mod ✭✭✭✭yerwanthere123


    Yeah, Federer is the favourite, almost by default really. Nadal, Djokovic and Wawrinka may not yet play and it doesn't look like any of the next generation down are ready to step up yet.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 2,930 ✭✭✭jr86


    All about the draw really.

    The thing is Kyrgios has such a weapon in his serve that can help him breeze through matches, and always gives him a glimmer against any player. He's very hard to break on this form so you're hoping to sneak tie-breaks against him really

    Federer the clear favourite, but he's 36 now and I don't think he'll be as consistent as last season. When he came back last January he was playing with a sort of nothing-to-lose freedom to his game, he's more of a marked man now. He showed signs of a few niggles in late-2017 too, so there's no way I'd back him at his odds

    All on the draw though!


  • Registered Users, Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 7,255 Mod ✭✭✭✭yerwanthere123


    Very weird we're facing an Australian Open with potentially no Nadal, Djokovic, Wawrinka and of course Murray is out as we know. It's the kind of draw you'd expect to see at the end of the season rather than the beginning.

    Sloane and Bouchard's losing streak continue, with the former winless since the US Open and the latter now out of the top 100.

    Meanwhile there's this
    https://twitter.com/tumcarayol/status/950154415377342465

    Playing Kooyong as well, so AO qualies still on the cards it seems. Seems as though maybe someone had a word, something like "ya know Bernie if you snub the Australian Open your career is kind of over" perhaps?


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  • Closed Accounts Posts: 2,930 ✭✭✭jr86


    Yeah looks like someone has talked a bit of sense into him.

    I'm sure this decision is really about the $$$ though, as it would appear he has little to no interest in the sport.

    Pulling out of the AO means he could slip down to nearly 200 in the rankings. He'll make a relative pittance out of Challengers

    It was only over the weekend I was reading James McGee's story and his struggle for funding and getting by on tour. Very hard to see a guy like Tomic getting any respect on the Challenger tour.

    The guy is a complete oddball though, his speaking accent alone changes by the week.


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