Early US Open Ruminations

[Kieran]

Murray will be back in this hard court season. He can't play any worse than he has this year so far.

Worse not, but equally bad, yes. Look, I know you are a fan, and I am mainly teasing you, but did not say most of the posters at the beginning of the year that he will be back by the grass season comes around? And he managed to lay down one of the worst showings on grass ever. So, you cannot be sure which Murray shows up.
By the way, I am also betting on Murray to be back in top 8 soon. But top 4? Nope.

Good post herios. You made me think of the thread Isabelle started up.

http://www.tennisfrontier.com/forum/showthread.php?tid=2097&highlight=When+will+Murray

With the loss of Lendl and Murray showing strong signs of returning to his self-ranting former persona, I'm beginning to wonder that it may be after the USO when he finally wins one.

^^ That's thread makes for interesting reading, Nehmeth. Expectations regarding Murray have been wavering for a while, and that thread only highlights what guesswork it all is. I take on board GSM's principle that "nothing stays the same forever" - more or less, that should be true - but that implies that things can get much worse, too...

 

[nehmeth]

^^^

Yep. Seeing a resurface of the pre-Lendl lunatic at Wimbo does not bode well for Murray winning more slams. I think he's too talented to go into a free fall, but will he return to the rarefied air he once breathed?

 

[Kieran]

^^^

Yep. Seeing a resurface of the pre-Lendl lunatic at Wimbo does not bode well for Murray winning more slams. I think he's too talented to go into a free fall, but will he return to the rarefied air he once breathed?

That's the question. He is too good - and proud - to be washed up on the shore, but he's in a strange moment in his career. He might have returned to a pre-Lendl state, and this would be a concern for him. If this is the case, it'll be harder for him to get back than it was for him to get there, in the first place. That's my hunch, but there's no science that backs it up.

Since he won Wimbledon, it hasn't been an easy road for him. Surgery, and then his talismanic and strong-armed coach left him high and dry. It would be foolish to write him off, but I'd have to see some evidence before I'd write him back on again, too...

 

[TennisFanatic7]

Everyone has their opinions and they're all valid. Only time will tell but I'm confident Murray will recover.

 

[Kieran]

Everyone has their opinions and they're all valid. Only time will tell but I'm confident Murray will recover.

Well, you've reason for optimism, too. Murray's a man of substance, highly ambitious and with a lot to prove, so we'll see how he does...

 

[herios]

A big question for me will be how Stan Wawrinka will do. Here a year ago his run to the top 3 began. he managed to defeat Murray and gave a hard fight to Novak, when playing his first slam SF ever.
You may have thought his run was over after Monte Carlo when he flopped at RG, but he recently had his best Wimbledon of his career, so he might be back on track again.

 

[Kieran]

Yeah, Stan will be one to watch. The US open is a good slam for him, but there's no reason to think he can't do well in Canada and Cinci too. It'll be a pulse-taker...

 

[GameSetAndMath]

Florian Mayer out due to Groin Injury. But, this should not be a surprise as he has not
played for a long time due to same issue. In particular, he missed both RG and W.

Maximo Gonzalez in.

So far, 3 got out. Expect another three at least before the dust settles.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

Tommy Haas ranked no. 26 is out of USO. Actually he is done with tennis for this
year as he is having shoulder surgery again.

Marcos Baghdatis, the one time AO finalist, gets entry into Main Draw due to that.

Haas makes the 4th player to officially withdraw from USO so far.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

Here is an article on second tier challengers for the US Open title from their official website.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

Peter Bodo says that according to his excellent sources, barring a miracle, JMDP will not play in this year's USO.

 

[TennisFanatic7]

Wouldn't include Isner or Ferrer in that list of challengers myself, but each to their own.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

Here is Nguyen's list of Men to Watch out for the US Open.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

There is every indication that Nadal is recovering fine and will be there at USO.

 

[Front242]

There is every indication that Nadal is recovering fine and will be there at USO.

With Dr. Angel Ruiz-Cotorro at the helm I wouldn't expect anything less. In fact, bank on him doing very well if he plays given what his PR camp are saying about his treatment.

 

[Kieran]

It'll be great if he's there, but will he get any matches in before it? He can't go straight from a 4th round loss at Wimbo, to Flushing Meadows, and believe he has much chance to win. I hope he gets at least a few matches in one of the small knock-up events before the Open, if indeed he can play there...

 

[sid]

After the next AO i expect Wawrinka to drop back down the rankings.From now i feel Murray will start to find his real game.Bar Nadal,i doubt the other higher in ranking will want to face him.We just might get things like the MurrayVic all over again.

 

[Front242]

Let's see how he does against Kyrgios first.

 

[Moxie]

It'll be great if he's there, but will he get any matches in before it? He can't go straight from a 4th round loss at Wimbo, to Flushing Meadows, and believe he has much chance to win. I hope he gets at least a few matches in one of the small knock-up events before the Open, if indeed he can play there...

If the draw isn't punitive, he could play himself into form in the first few rounds. As long as the wrist is fully recovered, I'd give him a shot, so why not play? It's not the same as skipping AO in 2013 with no tune-up, which I agreed with, after a 7-month lay-off.

He may not win, but, on the other hand, if Nadal's in a tournament, he's got a better shot than most. (Just remember IW 2013. :clap )

 

[sid]

Bit of a nasty first match but i think Andy will beat him.