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morning emma.
I am catching the match too.
I do have to meet some friends at starbucks shortly so I will catch the conclusion later tonight.
it is close in the first set. nole is playing better. -
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4 double faults by Nole in this set. That's a bit much but he's still serving slightly better than Federer.
The French crowd must be the worst in history. They truly take the cake. Once Federer retires, we won't have to put up with this nonsense anymore. It doesn't make it a good match, support-wise if it's going to be so one sided.
Come on, Nole. Get it together. -
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morning emma.
I am catching the match too.
I do have to meet some friends at starbucks shortly so I will catch the conclusion later tonight.
it is close in the first set. nole is playing better.
No worries. I'll be heading out shortly as well right after this match.
Nole has now lost both breakpoints. He's definitely started out nervy. Still playing nervous. Losing points he should really be winning. -
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Come on, Nole you can do it.
Frustrating. -
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Well, but the plus side is, Nole has cut down the errors and is more focused now. He should only focus on the match and forget what the crowd is doing, which is shamelessly supporting only Federer. I know this kind of support hampers his performance but he needs to play against all odds and make it his own.
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Federer is now kind of playing like Ferrer - returning all the balls back; however, Nole is choosing all the wrong shots to outrun Federer. It's time he comes up with a strategy. For a start, he can get the break back immediately.
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Nole is now serving at 50% while Federer 75%. Big difference.
Nole breaks back. 1 all. -
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morning emma.
I am catching the match too.
I do have to meet some friends at starbucks shortly so I will catch the conclusion later tonight.
it is close in the first set. nole is playing better.
No worries. I'll be heading out shortly as well right after this match.
Nole has now lost both breakpoints. He's definitely started out nervy. Still playing nervous. Losing points he should really be winning.
I will leave in a few minutes.
good battle to watch.
nole`s return is just off the charts. I dot think I have ever seen a better return.
he has all that reach too.
also I think am safe in saying that nole is a fairly accomplished volleyer. he is not too shabby at the net.
close set so far in the 2nd set. it should be interesting to see how this unfolds. -
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tight 2nd set so far.
I will have to catch the conclusion when I get back home later. -
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Federer is playing very well I must admit. He likes playing Nole no doubt so it tends to bring out the best in him. Kinda like Sampras vs Agassi.
Nole still not at his best yet. Has had a few errors where I thought he could have done much more.
Nole with 2 breakpoints yet again. -
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speaking of Sampras, becker is on record for saying that Sampras was the toughest player he ever faced.
anyway I have to run now.
see you all a little bit later.
take care emma. -
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The best part of Federer's game today is that he's defending very well - which also means, he's been more consistent off the ground than Nole. And has served very well on certain crucial points; that is, if you take a look at the breakpoints Nole has had so far, but failed to capitalize it mainly because of Federer's serve.
Nole finally breaks and holds quickly. 5-2 Nole, 2nd set. -
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speaking of Sampras, becker is on record for saying that Sampras was the toughest player he ever faced.
anyway I have to run now.
see you all a little bit later.
take care emma.
That's very true what Becker says about Sampras. Only those know what it's like to play again ta player like Sampras. There are a couple of things that stand out as far as Sampras is concerned. His lethal serve (both 1st and 2nd) and his mental strength. I saw so many matches of his live on TV, because back then I was a student so I had time to follow him around closely, and so I witnessed time and again how he remained extremely calm at crucial moments and under great pressure and came up with great shots. By that I don't only mean aces but also, his volleys or his abilities at the net. His serves are designed in a way, if they were to come back he would know exactly where to put it next; as in, he'd follow up with it. Raonic, for example, can't do it 50% of the time because he first, doesn't expect it to come back and so second, when they do, he can't come up with as good a volley as Sampras. Sampras is a natural volleyer while both Federer and Raonic aren't.
If Sampras were to meet with Federer, then he would break Federer mentally down as did Nadal but even more so, because of his serves and his ability at the net. Federer would find it very difficult to break Sampras' serve let alone do anything else. Federer is also not good at returning serve so that makes it even worse. A great returner like Agassi had no answer to Sampras' serves for example. Why would anyone think Federer would have better success at returning?
Sampras' mental strength truly stands out amongst all and he also had the luxury to either stay back of the court (while he's not serving and the game is playing on his opponent's serve, say, Agassi, Courier, Chang etc.) or be at the net because of his all court game. There's no one on this planet who'd be able to beat him 3 times in a row in GS finals on different surfaces. You know very well that it takes one hell of a game and mental attitude to stay at the top of ranking 6 years in a row and win 14 Majors. The fact that he had never won RG doesn't cut the argument much and does not at all negate his greatness. In fact, he felt too early in his career that he couldn't possibly continue to win both RG and Wimbledon back to back, given that they are both so close to each other, so he went with Wimbledon. He simply modeled his game that way, since back then, most of the courts were playing faster, so he needed to compromise and calculate his schedules that way. Not to mention, he had to play on variety of surfaces and had to play against players who'd both be S&V and baseliners. Today's fans don't have the first hand idea about Sampras and whatever is in front them, they tend to think that's the best thing since the sliced bread. If they are witnessing it then it has to be that greatest thing on the planet. After all, it is all about them first.
Anyway, have fun!
I'll stick around until the end of this match. Federer has now become very error prone and playing with less confidence. Nole, on the other hand, has cut down the errors and playing with more confidence as expected.
4-2 Nole, 3rd set. He should get the insurance break here. -
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3 match points for Nole the great and he gets it!
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herc, maybe I can do a tiny signature. Just one frame since I have some space because of my tall avatar. I'll think of something but obviously, you will have to do the job! lol.
Okay, gotta go. Great match. Federer did wonderful but Nole needed the win and was the better player in the end. -