Paris Bercy, ATP 1000

[ClayDeath]

I think Berdych is going to get decimated to pieces tomorrow.

 

 

 

[DarthFed]

Roger's form this Fall has been dreadful thus far.  He won Basel but with greater difficulty than would be expected given it's a fast indoor court in his hometown.  I'm not expecting much from him at YEC which plays somewhat similar to Paris.

 

[Billie]

So we have the last 4 matches scheduled like this:

 

Starting at 2pm:

Gasquet vs Murray

Ferrer vs Isner

Not before 7:30pm

Nole vs Berdych

Wawrinka vs Nadal

 

Not bad line-ups, most of the matches could go either way, certainly in Nole's case if he plays like today, but hopefully he finds his timing and plays better.

 

 

[Billie]

Roger’s form this Fall has been dreadful thus far. He won Basel but with greater difficulty than would be expected given it’s a fast indoor court in his hometown. I’m not expecting much from him at YEC which plays somewhat similar to Paris.

It just happens sometimes.  I honestly don't know how they do it over and over again, playing let alone winning all the time.  I am a very hard worker and don't slack at all, but even I can't be enthusiastic every day at work. We have to give players a bit of pass.

 

[Moxie]

Moxie wrote:
<blockquote>
CAMELOT wrote:
a bit of a test for rafa tomorrow. this time wawrinka is fresh. it should be a good battle. Rafa has to hit the ball off that backhand wing. pushing and shoving wont do. the idea is to dictate play and you cant do that with that weak slice that just sits up for target practice. he also gives his topspin backhand a better chance to get in the groove. slice has its place but for the most part you have to dictate play if you want to win.

Agreed. Rafa recently skunked Stan in Shanghai, but you never know which Stan will show up, and I expect that Wawrinka is invested in proving he can beat a healthy Nadal on slow HCs. A curiosity: I wonder if Djokovic fans will be rooting for Rafa to win this one? Novak looked a little wobbly today, from what I saw, and the stats, and Stan can trouble him on this kind of court. Semis are this, and in order of play tomorrow: <span style=”text-decoration: underline;”>Bottom half:</span> Gasquet v. Murray Ferrer v. Isner <span style=”text-decoration: underline;”>Top half:</span> Djokovic v. Berdych Nadal v. Wawrinka ___________________ I think Murray should feel embarrassed if he’s not able to make the final from there. The top half is more complicated. Djokovic will get through, almost certainly, but the semi-final could be complicated, whichever one he faces, especially if he doesn’t clean up his game. If the top half make a wreck of each other, and Murray gets through as he should, he could be hoisting the trophy on Sunday.</blockquote>
wawrinka also prepared very hard for RG. and he did not go in there to lay down for Djokovic. in fact he said he had to game to beat djokovic and he pulled it off. he basically said he was not scared of djokovic or anybody.

 I'd like to see the link to that interview.

 

[ClayDeath]

you will have to dig it up yourself. I really don't give a damn if people don't believe what I have to say.

he said very clearly that he was not afraid of djokovic or anybody. he also said that he had the game to beat them all.

 

I just remember some things. I also know for a fact that wawrinka worked very hard on his game and his fitness--prior to the RG campaign-- to take down djokovic who is one of the greatest ever to lift a racquet.

wawrinka is not young either. he had to go out and earn his fitness. he also believed in himself and then went out and made it happen.

 

[Moxie]

you will have to dig it up yourself. I really don’t give a damn if people don’t believe what I have to say. he said very clearly that he was not afraid of djokovic or anybody. he also said that he had the game to beat them all. I just remember some things. I also know for a fact that wawrinka worked very hard on his game and his fitness–prior to the RG campaign– to take down djokovic who is one of the greatest ever to lift a racquet. wawrinka is not young either. he had to go out and earn his fitness. he also believed in himself and then went out and made it happen.

If you don't feel the need to corroborate any of your own claims, then some might also think that it's possibly invented in your own mind (or "eyes.")  A lot of stuff you spout is intuited, or from your memory, as you freely claim.  So carry on as you see fit.  Don't be shocked if some people ignore it, as befits the "value" of the information.

 

[DarthFed]

Twisted wrote:
Roger’s form this Fall has been dreadful thus far. He won Basel but with greater difficulty than would be expected given it’s a fast indoor court in his hometown. I’m not expecting much from him at YEC which plays somewhat similar to Paris.

It just happens sometimes. I honestly don’t know how they do it over and over again, playing let alone winning all the time. I am a very hard worker and don’t slack at all, but even I can’t be enthusiastic every day at work. We have to give players a bit of pass.

It was a pretty long break from USO though it's possible he is worn out from a long season.  I think it's just bad play following the disappointment of being close to greatness this past summer.  Like 2014 Roger almost had a great year, instead he pretty much walks away empty handed assuming he doesn't win YEC.  For someone who had been great for so long being close is not much consolation.

 

[ClayDeath]

roger will use the time very wisely. I think he will take a short break and then start putting in monster training blocks as he prepares for London.

those tiebreakers can go either way. they went roger's way at the u.s. open against Isner.

 

this time they went isner's way.

 

 

at any rate roger is far from done. he has set high goals for 2016.

 

[isabelle]

roger will use the time very wisely. I think he will take a short break and then start putting in monster training blocks as he prepares for London. those tiebreakers can go either way. they went roger’s way at the u.s. open against Isner. this time they went isner’s way. at any rate roger is far from done. he has set high goals for 2016.

He said he had a painful arm, don't know if it's serious or not but it didn't help to return Big John's serve for sure. He looked tired in presser, he needs to sleep before thinking about Masters

 

[britbox]

Quarter-Finals:

[10] Richard Gasquet (FRA) vs [2] Andy Murray (GBR)
H2H: Murray Leads 6-3

[8] David Ferrer (ESP) vs [13] John Isner (USA)
H2H: Ferrer Leads 5-1

[1] Novak Djokovic (SRB) vs [5] Tomas Berdych (CZE)
H2H: Djokovic Leads 19-2

[4] Stan Wawrinka (SUI) vs [7] Rafael Nadal (ESP)
H2H: Nadal Leads 13-2

Some pretty one sided head to heads in there... anyone foresee any surprises?

 

[isabelle]

Very bad start for Gasquet who serves very bad

 

[britbox]

Very bad start for Gasquet who serves very bad

Tie-break

 

[EdbergsGhost]

Disappointing for Gasquet.  Will he have any fight back or go quietly?

 

[EdbergsGhost]

Quarter-Finals: [10] Richard Gasquet (FRA) vs [2] Andy Murray (GBR) H2H: Murray Leads 6-3 [8] David Ferrer (ESP) vs [13] John Isner (USA) H2H: Ferrer Leads 5-1 [1] Novak Djokovic (SRB) vs [5] Tomas Berdych (CZE) H2H: Djokovic Leads 19-2 [4] Stan Wawrinka (SUI) vs [7] Rafael Nadal (ESP) H2H: Nadal Leads 13-2 Some pretty one sided head to heads in there… anyone foresee any surprises?

Djokovic was broken four times (?) in the second set alone yesterday.  If he does that with Berdych, it could go badly.

 

[ClayDeath]

Djokovic just destroys you with his returns. One can expect suboptimal rhythm on the serve once in a while.

i don't think he is going to lose a single match the rest of the year.

the key is preparation and not excessive talking about what you are going to do. He prepares better than the rest and is willing to outwork them all.

he is doing it and not talking about it.

 

[ClayDeath]

Andy snatches it.

 

[ClayDeath]

Dr Hi Rise snatches the 2nd set.

who will blink first in the deciding frame?

ferru or Dr Hi Rise?

 

[ClayDeath]

Bye bye Berdych.

 

[britbox]

Wawrinka snatches the first set... (v Rafa).  Nadal will want a few of those set points back... again looking a bit tight.