El Dude
The GOAT
- Joined
- Apr 14, 2013
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Yeah, he's been sort of disappointing. I suppose the silver lining is that he's still picking up points, so playing pretty well, but not elite level. He's only reached a SF or F at an ATP 250 this year. And of course he's just turning 21 this month, so he's playing better than all but one guy his age or younger.However they fall in "greatness," Alcaraz and Sinner are shaping up a good rivalry. That alone is good for tennis. And I do keep hoping Rune will be in the mix.
Going back to 2023, he went 0-3 at the ATP Finals, but took a set from both Djokovic and Sinner. Meaning, he was competitive in the matches, but couldn't pull it off. His last big tournament final was Rome, losing to Medvedev. He also reached the final at Monte-carlo and QFs at Roland Garros and Wimbledon, so he's got some serious points to defend coming up.
The short of it is after that surge in late 2022 and for half of 2023, he's settled into more of a #10-20ish guy. The talent is obviously there to be more, but he hasn't yet unlocked it. I do think that he'll at least be a middle-man between the Big Two and the pack--in the range of Medvedev--but for a bit there, it looked like he could be more. And it might be that if Daniil is the "new Andy Murray" (as far as his role as "best of the rest" on tour, with steady excellent play - but not as good as the top 2/3), Holger could become something like the "new Stanimal" with occasional bursts of stratospheric play, but lacking consistency. Just speculating, though.