2019 Australian Open Semifinals: Nadal vs. Tsitsipas

[Vince Evert]

that's it 2 sets to 0 for Nadal. Am off to Maccas and have a frappe now ! Can't bare to watch any more of this rout.

 

[Moxie]

I hope ol'Front is watching this, who insists that Rafa has no offensive skills.

 

[Jelenafan]

His serving is off the charts, just smart and accurate.

 

[DarthFed]

I miss the days where Nadal's main talent was his "preparation". Now he's actually really fricking good technically.

 

[Moxie]

I miss the days where Nadal's main talent was his "preparation". Now he's actually really fricking good technically.

Likely the best compliment we'll ever hear from you. Only took 14 years and 17 Majors.

 

[brokenshoelace]

Nadal's serve this tournament is being majorly overrated. The Down the T serve on the ad side is non existent (as in he barely even goes for it) and the percentage isn't good.

That said, the rest of his game looks pretty off the charts this match, but this is a pretty favorable match-up. One major issue facing Tsitsipas is he's not able to transition from defense to offense, meaning if Nadal takes control of the point, and he mostly will, Stefanos can't turn the rally around. You're not going to beat Nadal that way. Obviously the backhand in this match-up is another pretty glaring issue.

 

[tenisplayrla08]

Alright. 2 sets to the good. I'm going to sleep. My favorite pastime. I want to keep watching. Because Nadal is at an ungodly level right now. Just brilliant. He's unplayable right now. But I did a double today and my eyes hurt. I shouldn't have watched these two sets.

 

[AnonymousFan]

Triple BP for Nadal lol

 

[brokenshoelace]

Yeah this is a beatdown.

 

[AnonymousFan]

Yeah that should be it. Can’t think of a truly tough match for No. 1 or 2 so far. Hopefully they do meet!

 

[DarthFed]

I hope Roger is watching this and feels embarrassed. He made Tsitsipas look great a few days ago.

 

[brokenshoelace]

I hope Roger is watching this and feels embarrassed. He made Tsitsipas look great a few days ago.

Roger wasn't at his best but you've been watching long enough to understand this is a completely different match-up and the way Nadal is exploiting it, Federer can't.

 

[brokenshoelace]

Re: this being a different match-up than Stefanos-Federer, one clear area in which Stefanos is struggling is the return of serve, because he's still lost as to how to deal with Nadal's lefti-ness and spin. Roger obviously has the superior serve, and yet Stefanos dealt with it far better than he is with Rafa's.

 

[Jelenafan]

Rafa’s ball is heavier, apples and oranges.

 

[Moxie]

Stunning return.

 

[AnonymousFan]

Another BP!

 

[Moxie]

And now he lobbed him. This is getting rough on the kid.

 

[Jelenafan]

God, this is a demolition.

 

[brokenshoelace]

Novak rose from the dead at just the right time, otherwise Federer's GS record would have been toast. Last year's Wimbledon, this AO, and the next FO would have been in the bag.

This is just an observation by the way, and I'm not bemoaning anything, since all 3 of them have benefited from the other two's ups and downs over the years.

 

[DarthFed]

Roger wasn't at his best but you've been watching long enough to understand this is a completely different match-up and the way Nadal is exploiting it, Federer can't.

I've seen plenty of Tsitsipas, at this point just strong mentally with an ok forehand. My only worry going into that match is that he is currently much stronger mentally than Federer. That played out in that match and Roger was just absolute dogshit.