Monte Carlo Rolex Masters 2025, Monaco, ATP Masters 1000

[MargaretMcAleer]

Due to the weather forecast for Sunday, the schedule for the Singles Final will be moved to 12.00pm local time and the Doubles Final will now be played after the Singles Final.

 

[Moxie]

Three of the four semifinalists haven't won a Masters yet. Of course Alcaraz is the favorite, and no offense to him, but am definitely rooting against him. Would love to see one of the other three have the confidence boost or, at least, "do a Popyrin."

I can see why you would go this way. I will be backing Alcaraz, because he is my favorite, but I'd be happy with any of the others. I'll root for an Alcaraz v. Musetti final. If all matches are good, they should all take away confidence going forward in the clay season.

Btw, in the commentary afterward on TC, the commies seem to have no explanation for Dimitrov's performance, either. Bad day at the office. No answers to de Minaur, who they do say has worked on his clay game. And remember, he did train in Spain in his formative years, so he has clay chops.

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

I can see why you would go this way. I will be backing Alcaraz, because he is my favorite, but I'd be happy with any of the others. I'll root for an Alcaraz v. Musetti final. If all matches are good, they should all take away confidence going forward in the clay season.

Btw, in the commentary afterward on TC, the commies seem to have no explanation for Dimitrov's performance, either. Bad day at the office. No answers to de Minaur, who they do say has worked on his clay game. And remember, he did train in Spain in his formative years, so he has clay chops.

Quite frankly I have never seen Dimitrov play so bad, in saying that, he usually flops at the business end of tournaments.

 

[Moxie]

Quite frankly I have never seen Dimitrov play so bad, in saying that, he usually flops at the business end of tournaments.

So the only explanation seems to be that he's 33 and had a bad day.

 

[mrzz]

And remember, he did train in Spain in his formative years, so he has clay chops.

Yes, but this is the odd part. On paper his style fits clay. He did train in Spain, as you put. So why the hell is he going far in a clay tournament just now? He is not a minor anymore (sorry, couldn't resist)...

Is this just the result of his overall improvement?

 

[Moxie]

Yes, but this is the odd part. On paper his style fits clay. He did train in Spain, as you put. So why the hell is he going far in a clay tournament just now? He is not a minor anymore (sorry, couldn't resist)...

Is this just the result of his overall improvement?

I mentioned above that he has been working specifically on his clay game, so not so odd.

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

So the only explanation seems to be that he's 33 and had a bad day.

Gee wiz whats his explanations for the other times he has flopped badly at the buisness ends of tournaments, this wears a bit thing,
Whatever I have never been a fan,he has never lived up to his soo called potential period!

 

[Moxie]

Gee wiz whats his explanations for the other times he has flopped badly at the buisness ends of tournaments, this wears a bit thing,
Whatever I have never been a fan,he has never lived up to his soo called potential period!

Oh, believe me, I've been amongst those with no faith in him at the business end of big tournaments or any tournament, but a double-bagel is a whole other thing. Someone said something about it not happening at this level since Fed double bageled someone in 2013, or something? This was an ignominious loss, even by Dimitrov standards.

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

Oh, believe me, I've been amongst those with no faith in him at the business end of big tournaments or any tournament, but a double-bagel is a whole other thing. Someone said something about it not happening at this level since Fed double bageled someone in 2013, or something? This was an ignominious loss, even by Dimitrov standards.

Please Federer is on another lever than Dimitrov, people cant compare Federer double bageling in 2013 to this, it is laughable,
de Minaur even though he lived in Spain, has worked on his clay game I mean it is not the level of good clay court players, I give him credit, he has always been a hard worker and for his limited weapons he has done well., even though I am not a huge fan, I like to give credit when it is due

 

[Moxie]

Please Federer is on another lever than Dimitrov, people cant compare Federer double bageling in 2013 to this, it is laughable,
de Minaur even though he lived in Spain, has worked on his clay game I mean it is not the level of good clay court players, I give him credit, he has always been a hard worker and for his limited weapons he has done well., even though I am not a huge fan, I like to give credit when it is due

You misinterpret me completely. But no matter.

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

You misinterpret me completely. But no matter.

You didnt make your self very clear, if you want to make excuses for Dimitrov go ahead, being bagled, I watched the match and Alex deserved his win,
Yes all players have bad days at the office, though we have all seen Dimitrov flopped at the business end of tournaments, many times in the past and present, being bagled or not and just not showing up which he did in his match against Alex

 

[Moxie]

You didnt make your self very clear, if you want to make excuses for Dimitrov go ahead, being bagled, I watched the match and Alex deserved his win,
Yes all players have bad days at the office, though we have all seen Dimitrov flopped at the business end of tournaments, many times in the past and present, being bagled or not and just not showing up which he did in his match against Alex

I wasn't making an excuse for him. I don't like him. I don't respect him. I was agreeing with you. I was just saying that, even for him, it was an astonishingly poor showing, it seems. I didn't see the match, and I can't see any point in watching it now. Neither was I denigrating de Minaur's win...I think I was defending his clay game to mrzz.

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

I wasn't making an excuse for him. I don't like him. I don't respect him. I was agreeing with you. I was just saying that, even for him, it was an astonishingly poor showing, it seems. I didn't see the match, and I can't see any point in watching it now. Neither was I denigrating de Minaur's win...I think I was defending his clay game to mrzz.

It came over to me you were making excuses, okay even for him it was a bad loss,he never showed up to begin with, dont bother watching the match it was over in a flash

 

[mrzz]

I mentioned above that he has been working specifically on his clay game, so not so odd.

Yes, you did, and I completely missed it.

Anyway I went to the ATP site to see if there was some "explanation" for the result. I didn't find any. So I watched the highlights, which can be misleading, but what I saw agrees with what I read around, and with what the commentator on the highlights says more than once: poor showing from Dimitrov plus an extremely solid showing from de Minaur.

Actually, I guess it was in Indian Wells that I saw a Dimitrov match and was left with an horrible impression. His shots simply do not bite anymore. But... he is still decently ranked and quarter finals in a Masters is not a terrible result. But right now I cannot help but feel that he is heading out of the top 50 to never come back again.


Anyway, on the ATP site there is this quote from de Minaur:

“With the troubles I had on this surface at the start of my career, I didn’t quite understand it and how to play well on it," De Minaur said of his improvements on clay. "As the years have gone by, I have grown to understand the things I can do well to become a tough opponent on this surface. I’m very happy that I am playing better and better every year."

By the way the ATP site also struggles with capital letters in particles within a name.

Back to topic, no mention to recent specific work on clay though. Anyway, this shows that, on clay, you simply cannot keep pushing balls across the net. This de Minaur did quite well already in his early years. He had to understand the clay to get something going. Good on him, a lot of players never do.

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

Yes, you did, and I completely missed it.

Anyway I went to the ATP site to see if there was some "explanation" for the result. I didn't find any. So I watched the highlights, which can be misleading, but what I saw agrees with I read around, and with what the commentator on the highlights says more than once: poor showing from Dimitrov plus an extremely solid showing from de Minaur.

Actually, I guess it was in Indian Wells that I saw a Dimitrov match and was left with an horrible impression. His shots simply do not bite anymore. But... he is still decently ranked and quarter finals in a Masters is not a terrible result. But eight now I cannot help but feel that he is heading out of the top 50 to never come back again.


Anyway, on the ATP site there is this quote from de Minaur:

“With the troubles I had on this surface at the start of my career, I didn’t quite understand it and how to play well on it," De Minaur said of his improvements on clay. "As the years have gone by, I have grown to understand the things I can do well to become a tough opponent on this surface. I’m very happy that I am playing better and better every year."

By the way the ATP site also struggles with capital letters in particles within a name.

Back to topic, no mention to recent specific work on clay though. Anyway, this shows that, on clay, you simply cannot keep pushing balls across the net. This de Minaur did quite well already in his early years. He had to understand the clay to get something going. Good on him, a lot of players never do.

Even living in Spain Alex never had the real training on clay, even with our juniors here in Australia, we have to send them overseas to get training on clay, there are a few clay courts in Sydney, more in Melbourne near where the AO is held, thankfully there is a junior tournament happening now in Melbourne, clay is a surface where you learn to 'construct a point' also be aware of the whole dimensions of a court, also clay promotes your foot skills which does translate to other surfaces. I sound like a commercial why you should learn on clay,, as I was living in Italy, as far as I am concerned it is the one surface that gives you construction of points, in tennis, but also strengthens your mind and focus and also your physicality

 

[kskate2]

As @Front242 would say. What a flaming pile of slop. This match is pure ugly. 40 errors combined in 1 set. Chuck serve is whack now. Go back to the old one

 

[don_fabio]

As @Front242 would say. What a flaming pile of slop. This match is pure ugly. 40 errors combined in 1 set. Chuck serve is whack now. Go back to the old one

I think he won against Fils with 18 winners and 40 UEs. Ugly too. Sinner might be a bit rusty when he comes back, but Red's level is way higher than this. Dude barely makes UEs. Plus he got a few months to work on his physical fitness not pressured by season's schedule and all. He might come back and sweep the competition. I mean just look at the the current level of Charlie and the gang. It's just not good enough.

 

[kskate2]

That was a lucky escape, with 0:40 down on a serve at 5:5 and he couldn't make a first serve in that game. It wasn't enough for the young French. I can't shake off a feeling that Fils is just a ball basher, in some way an improved version of silent K.

He is. I've been saying it for some time. He's alot like Foki (very high risk w/ lots of errors), but steadier.

 

[kskate2]

I think he won against Fils with 18 winners and 40 UEs. Ugly too. Sinner might be a bit rusty when he comes back, but Red's level is way higher than this. Dude barely makes UEs. Plus he got a few months to work on his physical fitness not pressured by season's schedule and all. He might come back and sweep the competition. I mean just look at the the current level of Charlie and the gang. It's just not good enough.

Bean will eat everyone alive in his return. Chuck picked the wrong time to lose his mojo. 4K points coming off in the next 2 slams, poor USO, AO and Sunshine Doub.

 

[Moxie]

Wow...Lorenzo flubbed his lines when he served for it, but won in the TB! Forza, Musetti!