Tracking the Emerging Stars of Tennis

[britbox]

 

[Moxie]

An interesting piece on Taylor Fritz in todays NYTimes. Shows the nuts and bolts of catching up to the fast pace of the tour for a young up-and comer.
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/21/s...-exhausting-climb.html?ref=international&_r=0

 

[britbox]

 

[britbox]

Kyrgios, Zverev, Fritz are making the biggest waves... joined by the older Dominic Thiem. The future looks very bright for this quartet. Thiem will be looking forward to the clay swing for sure.

Chung and Coric have not had the best of starts to the season. Chung was thrashed today in Dubai by Bautista-Agut (who in fairness, might challenge for a Top 10 slot if he maintains his early season form)... Chung escaped with only a breadstick for his efforts.

 

[herios]

Also, just a reminder that last year we had 4 teenagers in the top 100, Coric, Chung, Zverev and Kokkinakis.
Kokkinakis has dropped out of the top 100, because he has not played this year at all, undergoing surgery. Just one week after Thomasi was out, Taylor Fritz joins the top 100, so the same number of teenagers remain, which is 4 for now.

 

[Denis]

Thanks @britbox for posting the Chung video. Interesting that he escaped two years of military service by winning gold at the Asian games. That must have been quite a high pressure final for him lol.

 

[britbox]

Thanks @britbox for posting the Chung video. Interesting that he escaped two years of military service by winning gold at the Asian games. That must have been quite a high pressure final for him lol.

...just a little! I like Chung but worry that he won't have the physical attributes in the modern game to be a truly elite player.

ATP just published an interesting video on Thiem's emergence.

 

[britbox]

Sascha Zverev... following this player closely. He and Kyrgios are my favourite players of the emerging young guns.

 

[britbox]

Introducing the next generation...

Kyrgios, Nishioka, Chung, Kokkinakis, Zverev, Kyle Edmund, Borna Coric, Elias Ymer, Taylor Fritz, Khachanov, Andrey Rublev, Frances Taifoe, Quentin Halys, Jared Donaldson,

 

[Moxie]

...just a little! I like Chung but worry that he won't have the physical attributes in the modern game to be a truly elite player.

I don't know why you think that, BB. I saw Chung play at the USO and he's a big kid. Tall and muscular.

 

[britbox]

I don't know why you think that, BB. I saw Chung play at the USO and he's a big kid. Tall and muscular.

He's taller officially than he looks IMO. Listed at 6'1" - I wouldn't say he looks particularly muscular, but I haven't seen him in person.

 

[Moxie]

He's taller officially than he looks IMO. Listed at 6'1" - I wouldn't say he looks particularly muscular, but I haven't seen him in person.

I was surprised by how tall and solid he looked when I saw him in person. Perhaps I was expecting someone more Nishikori-sized, and that's my bad. (Overthinking the Asian thing? *blush*) Tbh, I would have guessed him taller than 6'1".

 

[britbox]

Chung lost today, as did Fritz. But your other young gun Taifoe is carrying a flag.

 

[Ricardo]

...just a little! I like Chung but worry that he won't have the physical attributes in the modern game to be a truly elite player.

Stereotyping the asian players a bit don't you think? he seems like a powerful player with great movement, exactly the type that thrives in the modern game. Of course he's nowhere near an elite yet, but shouldn't be written off so early.

 

[britbox]

How is saying Chung doesn't have the physical attributes to be an elite player stereotyping Asian players? Were any other Asian players mentioned?

 

[Moxie]

How is saying Chung doesn't have the physical attributes to be an elite player stereotyping Asian players? Were any other Asian players mentioned?

In fairness, I think it was I who said I expected Chung to be smaller in person, when I saw him, based on Nishikori, and copped to my own, perhaps, stereotyped idea. I looked at his photos when we were discussing it, BB, and he's really at that age when it depends on when the photo was taken. There are totally scrawny ones from not so long ago. I had the benefit of seeing him in person recently. @Ricardo: he's been growing like a weed and has really filled out. No reason that britbox should have known how big he'd gotten of late. We're all just catching up with these teenagers, and they do change, year-to-year.

 

[Ricardo]

How is saying Chung doesn't have the physical attributes to be an elite player stereotyping Asian players? Were any other Asian players mentioned?

In what way doesn't chung have the physical attributes? small? weak? slow?

 

[Ricardo]

In fairness, I think it was I who said I expected Chung to be smaller in person, when I saw him, based on Nishikori, and copped to my own, perhaps, stereotyped idea. I looked at his photos when we were discussing it, BB, and he's really at that age when it depends on when the photo was taken. There are totally scrawny ones from not so long ago. I had the benefit of seeing him in person recently. @Ricardo: he's been growing like a weed and has really filled out. No reason that britbox should have known how big he'd gotten of late. We're all just catching up with these teenagers, and they do change, year-to-year.

It's ok, just thought that they (Asian) come in all sizes and shapes too.... there was Michael Chang (5"8') then there was the biggest of them Yao Ming (7"6', tallest NBA player for a while), I've been to many regions of Asia and there is big difference in their physical attributes depending on where you go.

 

[Moxie]

That's well-pointed out, Rickie. I would say about the teenagers, in generally, that it's not fair to judge their size or fitness as a fixed thing at least until they get out of their teen years, given that they're mostly of them still growing either up or out or both. Which doesn't even mention maturity.

 

[britbox]

In fairness, I'll backtrack a bit too, he looks quite a big bigger than he used to... growing lad!