Australian Open [Men] - Grand Slam

[rafanoy1992]

Nadal hasn't looked good all month. Not surprising really.

To be honest, it does not matter if he is playing well or not, he often donates service games but playing error prone tennis.

 

[rafanoy1992]

With that loss set, only Zverev and Raonic that have not lost a single set in this tournament.

 

[tenisplayrla08]

Well the crowd and the chip always on his shoulder gets Nick a set. Can it get him a second? I hope so. But I doubt it. Rafa looks really good out here. Just had a few more unforced errors in that set.

 

[tenisplayrla08]

To me Gael has never had the mental or focus that is needed to achieve more,he is a first class athlete,like a lot of French players they are taught great technique,but the mental side is not there.Look at Richard Gasquet who was a child prodigy and to me he is also a under-achiever,perhaps he could not handle the pressure that was expected of him in his career..

I actually give Gasquet a pass. I think Gasquet got too highly touted. People saw a child with that backhand and lost their minds. But he doesn't move amazingly. He doesn't have the power of any of the top guys. And he plays fairly conventional tennis in an age where the Big 4 simply made that look pedestrian.
But I do agree he has a mental issue. Doesn't have that mental toughness. And I would agree that he's an underachiever. But I don't think he was ever gonna win more than a slam or two.

 

[tenisplayrla08]

With that loss set, only Zverev and Raonic that have not lost a single set in this tournament.

Yeah impressive win from Wawrinka. Took a guy that has looked really good for 4 or 5 months and showed him that Rafa's not the only one that can over power him. Medvedev looked flummoxed out there for a quite a bit. Just didn't know what else to do. Stanimal kept having the answers. He's 34 and had a tough couple years coming back from his major injury. But he's trying to remind everyone he's won this thing and beaten Novak here.

 

[britbox]

Cheeky underarm attempt

 

[AnonymousFan]

BP saved, dropshot

 

[tenisplayrla08]

No. If you're going to go for the last 15 years you have to include Safin and Nalbandian, who are world-class under-achievers. Plus you also have to put Tsonga in there. And probably Dimitrov. @Front242 might add Soderling, but he might be a stretch. However, I do agree that Monfils is a great player and he has under-achieved.

Well yeah. I guess I was imprecise.

I fully agree on Nalbandian. Maybe not Safin. I just see Safin as transitional. Like Lleyton. Once Roger found his mojo, Safin didn't stand much chance. He got the upset at the 05 Aussie and won that one. But that was the last of Fed's dalliances for two years. And really. Nalbandian was transitional as well. But. He I don't ever give him a pass because he was so lax and under achieving his entire career after 200.... 2002? 2003? He's Argentinian. He's happy to just make his money and go sit on the beach.

As for what I meant about La Monf. I guess I mean.... I don't know. He went pro 2 years or so after Rafa. 2005ish. His first slams were in 2005. And he's just. He's had a ton of injuries. I'll give him that. That stops your momentum. But he's never even sniffed a slam final. 2 semifinals 8 years apart. He's lost TWENTY ONE finals. Only won 8 titles. Granted. Making 29 finals counts for something. I mean. That's the thing. La Monf's career would be a dream for the vast majority of the guys who hit the circuit and never do much. But that's the point. He's got the talent to have a good bit more. And again. He's had to contend with the Big 4/3. That's the case for every single one of these guys. It forever will be. But moreso than Tsonga, Soderling, Nishikori, Gulbis, and a number of other guys, I think La Monf is right up there as one of the biggest disappointments of his generation. Which... the time frame would be flexible to an extent.

 

[Bonaca]

With this level Nadal is showing right now, i dont give him a chance against Thiem or Novak. Not even against the fake swiss.

 

[rafanoy1992]

With this level Nadal is showing right now, i dont give him a chance against Thiem or Novak. Not even against the fake swiss.

I agree with Novak... but not with the other two. What’s your reasoning?

 

[Vince Evert]

With this level Nadal is showing right now, i dont give him a chance against Thiem or Novak. Not even against the fake swiss.

that's if he actually wins this match.

 

[tenisplayrla08]

I'm so proud of Kyrgios right now. Just competing. Fighting. Wants to be here. Executing a high percentage of his unpredictable shots.

I'm still waiting for Nadal to pounce and turn it back around. Snatch the momentum back. Nick surviving right now. But it only takes a 2 loose points and 2 great points from Rafa for Rafa to break quickly and finish the set. He's come back here in this game to deuce. So often he gives away return games when he's down 2 or 3 points. So I'm just glad to see him competing. Which. With everything going on down there, I actually expected from him tonight. I just wasn't sure it'd be enough for him to execute well. But he is. And it's a pleasure to watch. So inventive sometimes.

And of course the crowd of course just giving him all sorts of energy.

 

[tenisplayrla08]

That's a tough miss from Kyrgios there. But gets it back to deuce with a beautiful drop shot. Just perfect.

 

[Vince Evert]

i'm taping it on my panny hard drive to watch later... am checking in on here as it progresses.

 

[rafanoy1992]

I would say the hardest opponents for Nadal outside of Novak and Federer are Thiem, Zverev, and Wawrinka in that order.

 

[tenisplayrla08]

Either way, this is some brilliant tennis from both men. Truly fantastic to see.

 

[Bonaca]

I agree with Novak... but not with the other two. What’s your reasoning?

I dont see his usual constant pressure he puts on opponents and he is not serving that well.
Also i have the feeling he isnt 100% fit. Looks tired.
I hope i am not right. We will see.

 

[Vince Evert]

NADAL should win this set now.

 

[tenisplayrla08]

Yo I didn't even realize Zverev/Rublev had started. And I'm fairly surprised Zverev is dealing with him fairly straight forwardly. And over in the women's I've been trying to keep an eye on Kerber/Pavlyuchenkova but I missed basically all of the second set because this Nadal/Kyrgios match is so engrossing.

I wanted to watch that Zverev/Rublev match too. Dang. I'll catch what I can here in the third. I remember now seeing that it'd be on Melbourne Arena. But I guess I got it in my head it'd come after the Kerber match.

 

[mrzz]

If this goes to a tie break then maybe Nadal can slip on an UFE at a crucial time. That is the only way he is losing this set.