CAMELOT FANTASIES
Camelot Tennis Universe => General Pro Player Discussions => Topic started by: masterclass on November 03, 2014, 05:17:41 am
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he is the man at the top emma.
rest of the tour has no answers to him at the moment.
they are just not willing to work as hard as nole.
nole has said repeatedly that he is just going to outwork them all and he is doing it.
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And the winner is....Novak Djokovic! Very well deserved. Congrats Nole!
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Unfortunately, the World Tour Finals ended on a decidedly anti-climatic note as Roger Federer was forced to withdraw in the finals against Novak Djokovic due to a back injury incurred during the deciding set tiebreaker against Wawrinka some 18 hours earlier. His team tried to get him ready with painkillers, massage, and who knows what other treatment, and trying to warm out of it the next day, but it had stiffened up too much to compete. Roger is the second top player that Stanimal has injured in the back this year with his aggressive heavy ground strokes, the other being Rafael Nadal at the Australian Open.
Federer had come into the match unbeaten to the final with a 3-2 H2H against Novak this year and was hoping to add another title to his record 6 at the event. Nole was also unbeaten to the final hoping to extend his indoor 31 match unbeaten streak, and win his 3rd straight Masters Cup. The day before featured the only 3 set matches of the tournament in the semifinals. First Kei Nishikori extended Djokovic to 3 sets, with a well played second set, but faded and Nole won the decider with a bagel.
But the match of the tournament was the Saturday evening semifinal match, Wawrinka vs. Federer, with Stan handily taking the first set, then Roger the second, and the third went to a deciding set tiebreaker with Federer saving 4 match points before defeating Stan in the hard fought battle. One never quite knows when Stanimal will show up, as earlier in the tournament he played poorly against Novak Djokovic after looking quite good against Berdych, but he showed up in Australian Open form Saturday night and it was a real drama filled match as he battered the ball all over the court and looked to be the better player most of the match. But as Federer has done a few times this year, he hung in there, battled back, and won it with a last ditch effort, even though he wasn't bending at the very end.
Unfortunately for Federer and the Swiss, the effort by the Swiss Davis Cup teammates in that match might not have only cost Federer a chance for a title, but might cost them their best chance at a Davis Cup win this year in the final if Federer cannot mend in time.
Congratulations to Novak and team for a great tournament and year as he also clinched Year End #1.
Commiserations to Roger and his team. He was also undefeated in the tournament, but withdrew in the final (it counts as neither a win or a loss in the record totals). Good luck to him in a speedy recovery. Doctors are reportedly pessimistic at the moment, but sometimes back spasms can come around after two or three days of rest and treatment. Unfortunately for him, he also needs to get on the clay in Lille and practice if he wants to play in the Davis Cup final. I myself can't see how he'll be able to play.
Well into his 34th year, he has played the most of any player on tour this year with 83 matches, winning 72 and losing 11, making 11 finals with 5 wins, 5 losses and giving a walkover, his best year in terms of finals and match win percentage since 2007. It's unfortunate for him he had to get hurt right at the end, but others also struggled this year and missed out on more chances.
Let's hope 2015 is a healthy year for the players and full of exciting tennis.
Have very happy holidays! Take care.
Respectfully,
masterclass
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Well, here we are Friday at the World Tour Finals, in the final rounds of the round robin part of the format. This will decide who goes through from Group A to the single elimination portion of the tournament. Novak Djokovic is the big favorite against Tomas Berdych who said he would like to win 3 or 4 games. Stan Wawrinka is a lukewarm favorite against winless Marin Cilic. I wonder if Feli Lopez will come in for Cilic as David Ferrer did for the winless Milos Raonic? David didn't win against Kei, but he made perhaps the most interesting match of the tournament winning the first set and making it a 3 set match, though the last was a runaway, 6-1, by the Japanese.
A Novak Djokovic win against Berdych will make him the year end #1, and he would face Kei Nishikori in the semis. Stan will try to cement his status as world #4 for the start of the season, and he would have to face undefeated Roger Federer in the semis.
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Maybe Mr. Andy Murray, OBE would have done better not to qualify after his brutal defeat at the hands of Roger Federer at O2 last night, but that's in hindsight.
Afterwards, Great Britain's Andy Murray said he has never experienced a defeat like his 6-0 6-1 hammering by Roger Federer at the ATP World Tour Finals. In less than 20 minutes he was down 5-0 and staring the end of his participation in the season ending finals in the face.
The 27 year old Murray was beaten in only 56 minutes by the 33 year old Swiss world number two, ending his season in rather ignominious fashion.
The Scot said: "It has not really happened to me before like that where winning games has been an issue. "I've had tough losses and heavy defeats but nothing quite like that."
He added: "It's very frustrating, when I'm trying my best. I've never been in that position before in my whole career.
"Maybe I need to make some changes to my game, but that's the one good thing - I have time now to do that."
The defeat is the worst since he lost by the same scoreline to Novak Djokovic in Miami in 2007. "I was a bit injured then," said the Scot. "There was nothing wrong with me at all this evening."
As for Roger, maybe his coach Stefan Edberg, a six-time slam champion sums it up like this:
He said it was the best he had seen the Swiss play this year "by far".
"I don't think he can play much better to be honest - and I've seen a lot of tennis over the years," said Edberg.
"It's just one of those performances where everything goes your way, so it was enjoyable. He's in good form."
The worst that can be said about Federer's game last night was that he only put 38-39 % of his first serves in play, but then he won 100% of them. Everything else was clicking, a strong second serve, and a full array of ground strokes, drop shots, volleys, and lobs that made Murray look like he was on a string and Federer the marionette master.
Asked about his thoughts on giving Murray a double bagel when Murray served at 0-6, 0-5, Federer, who now leads Murray 12-11 in the H2H said, “At the end I was happy I didn’t win the second to last game...".. “Yeah, it’s uncomfortable. I don’t know. I don’t like it."
For many Murray fans, it had to be a heart rending performance by their hero and very tough to swallow. I think he needs to decide if he wants it badly enough. After winning Wimbledon in 2013, and having back surgery in the fall, one could understand a drop in his motivation. I think the Lendl release happened because Lendl wanted Murray to work harder and go on to do more, while Murray didn't want to be pushed and just wanted someone to listen to his physical and emotional needs, and so Mauresmo was hired. That strategy is plainly not going to work if he wants more and greater success in tennis. As he gets older, he'll need to work even harder to achieve that. So the question is does he want it badly enough, or is he satisfied with what he has done? There is nothing wrong with achieving one's dream and enjoying it, instead of going back to the proverbial grindstone, so it's up to him.
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On a slow surface where it is difficult to find winners, it is difficult to come back once behind, which is why I think the scorelines have been so one-sided. A player has to walk a fine line between control and aggression. Passive play has been punished, as has risky play. Purposeful point construction is key. Federer has succeeded at controlled aggression, much like Novak this week, but in a different way using his variety of skill shots, a solid defense, and solid second serve placement, whereas Novak has used a combination of his remarkable athleticism and steady strong ground strokes from just inside the baseline.
I think the winner of this tournament will be the one who can walk that line of controlled aggression, not panic into riskier play, and make the fewest errors with excellent placement, but at the same time not be complacent and willing to step into the court and control it. But first, the final round robins have to be played today, and the semifinals tomorrow. We will see what happens.
Respectfully,
masterclass
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Hey folks how about Berdych removing Cilic from the facilities.
Great win for Andy also. He is still in the hunt.
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The World Tour Finals elite players completed their first round matches yesterday with no surprises other than the lopsided scorelines.
World #4 Stan Wawrinka, aka Stanimal, or Stan the Man, returned to London in fine style and form against #7 Tomas Berdych. That may have been a surprise to many considering Stan's play of late, but no surprise to those who have been watching the Australian Open champion practice hard recently in preparation for the Finals in London and the Davis Cup Finals in France.
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Wawrinka totally dismantled Berdych, 6-1, 6-1, the notorious double bread sticks, putting in a true Stanimal performance. No part of his game was missing, from service to his backhand to his volleys. He was on fire from the start and Berdych seemed a punch drunk shadow of himself.
In two sets of tennis, the powerful Czech did not make a single winner from his forehand or backhand side. It's true that the O2 courts are slowish, but a man of Berdych's stature and strength should be able to find a few winners. That is testimony to the strength of Wawrinka's defense. Time and time again, he returned the Berdych serve and ground strokes, patient, calculating, mixing up pace, and waiting for the right moment to strike. It was clay court point construction on the sandy hard courts of London's O2 arena.
Stan's play was brilliant and fully deserved the dominating scoreline. Tomas' play was unimaginative, under par, and shell shocked. He was a beaten man in more ways than one when he left the court. After the match, he said:
"I'm in the worst possible situation that I can ever be," he gloomily said. "I'm going to face Marin or Novak first, in the end playing both of them, and the only chance to qualify is to beat them, it's almost mission impossible."
Now one ask to ask, even if true, what kind of attitude is this from any player, much less a top 10 player? I expect him to say something like,
'I didn't play well today. I have some tough matches coming and I have to fight hard to play my best tennis. I can beat these players if I can bring my best tennis.'
I would rather see alternate David Ferrer out there making the big effort than Berdych sadly in despair. Berdych needs a strong coach who can attempt to get his mentality and attitude straight. Rumors are that it might happen. We'll see.
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In the evening match, Wimbledon champion and world #1 Novak Djokovic soundly beat US Open champion #9 Marin Cilic 6-1, 6-1. Novak played very well, and definitely retained his winning Paris form, but Cilic looked nowhere near his US Open form. He was very rusty, serving under 50% most of the match, and serves he did get in were solidly returned by Nole. He couldn't match Nole in the baseline battles either, and had a difficult time trying to hit winners, as many sailed beyond the lines.
Marin's dull play wasn't unexpected. Marin had seen little play nursing an arm injury, his last match being an ATP 250 win in Moscow about a month before. If he is not hurt, I expect to see some improvement in his next match, especially as he'll play the aforementioned disconsolate Berdych, but he is not showing form enough to proceed to the knockout phase of this tournament. Novak served fairly well, was razor-sharp from the back of the court, defending and returning well, and was hitting deep to the lines. He'll be tough to beat here in these conditions.
The Serbian Slayer and Stanimal are unquestionably the picks to advance to the semifinals from Group A. They play each other next in what should be an exciting match to determine the top player in Group A. Novak will be seeking to avenge his QF Australian Open defeat to Stan, which was the last time they played each other. Stan will be looking to affirm his return to form and help his friend and countryman Roger Federer retain his slim hopes for the Year End #1 ranking at the same time.
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The second round begins today with the winners of group B's round 1 playing. It will be #2 Roger Federer vs. #5 Kei Nishikori in the afternoon, and the losers, #8 Milos Raonic against #6 Andy Murray in the evening session. One hopes to see some better battles than yesterday.
Respectfully,
masterclass
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Order of play for Sunday and Monday.
ORDER OF PLAY - SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 09, 2014
CENTRE COURT start 12:00 noon
[4] J Benneteau (FRA) / E Roger-Vasselin (FRA) vs [6] M Granollers (ESP) / M Lopez (ESP)
Not Before 2:00 pm
[4] K Nishikori (JPN) vs [5] A Murray (GBR) Wow, this is too tough to call. Andy isn't looking all the way back and Kei seems tired after a long season. If I had to pick I'd go with Kei. Itt wouldn't matter though, both results would be great.
Not Before 6:00 pm
[2] D Nestor (CAN) / N Zimonjic (SRB) vs [7] I Dodig (CRO) / M Melo (BRA)
Not Before 8:00 pm
[2] R Federer (SUI) vs [7] M Raonic (CAN) Pretty sure Fed will avenge this loss. He's probably still upset that he let that get away.
ORDER OF PLAY - MONDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2014
CENTRE COURT start 12:00 pm
[3] A Peya (AUT) / B Soares (BRA) vs [5] J Rojer (NED) / H Tecau (ROU)
Not Before 2:00 pm
[3] S Wawrinka (SUI) vs [6] T Berdych (CZE) Hoping Berdy, Stan seems to still be in mental fog. I guess the pressure has really gotten to him and Tomas has been playing well.
Not Before 6:00 pm
[1] B Bryan (USA) / M Bryan (USA) vs [8] L Kubot (POL) / R Lindstedt (SWE)
Not Before 8:00 pm
[1] N Djokovic (SRB) vs [8] M Cilic (CRO) Can't call this one either. Will the USO Cilic show up, or will Nole prevail with all that rest in his body? A doesn't matter match for me.
Respectfully,
masterclass
I hate doubles, LOL!
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Order of play for Sunday and Monday.
ORDER OF PLAY - SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 09, 2014
CENTRE COURT start 12:00 noon
[4] J Benneteau (FRA) / E Roger-Vasselin (FRA) vs [6] M Granollers (ESP) / M Lopez (ESP)
Not Before 2:00 pm
[4] K Nishikori (JPN) vs [5] A Murray (GBR)
Not Before 6:00 pm
[2] D Nestor (CAN) / N Zimonjic (SRB) vs [7] I Dodig (CRO) / M Melo (BRA)
Not Before 8:00 pm
[2] R Federer (SUI) vs [7] M Raonic (CAN)
ORDER OF PLAY - MONDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2014
CENTRE COURT start 12:00 pm
[3] A Peya (AUT) / B Soares (BRA) vs [5] J Rojer (NED) / H Tecau (ROU)
Not Before 2:00 pm
[3] S Wawrinka (SUI) vs [6] T Berdych (CZE)
Not Before 6:00 pm
[1] B Bryan (USA) / M Bryan (USA) vs [8] L Kubot (POL) / R Lindstedt (SWE)
Not Before 8:00 pm
[1] N Djokovic (SRB) vs [8] M Cilic (CRO)
Respectfully,
masterclass
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The ATP World Tour Finals starts Sunday Nov 9th with the following players:
1. Novak Djokovic
2. Roger Federer
4. Stan Wawrinka
5. Kei Nishikori
6. Andy Murray
7. Thomas Berdych
8. Milos Raonic
9. Marin Cilic
1st alternate - David Ferrer
2nd alternate - Feliciano Lopez
(#3 Nadal withdrew due to surgery)
Official Groupings Draw:
Group A
Djokovic
Wawrinka
Berdych
Cilic
Group B
Federer
Nishikori
Murray
Raonic
Respectfully,
masterclass