Tsonga is in ESPN studio watching this match and waiting for his interview.
US OPEN, Flushing Meadows, NY, USA, GRAND SLAM (Men)
- Thread starter Moxie
- Start date
maybe RAFA is finally READING Pouille's ball direction better now.
deuce.
TSONGA LOOKS NICE in his interview.
deuce.
TSONGA LOOKS NICE in his interview.
Yep, my father's sister or brother has a different name than my mother's sister or brother, including their husbands and wives.
there was an article a few years ago - it was about a certain modern system of testing player's athletic bodily qualities -- things like speed, reflect, eye-hand, muscle twitch, etc...like a very advanced system - and they said many tennis players are checked with that -- and according to them -Tsonga is in ESPN studio watching this match and waiting for his interview.
the ONE Player that scored very high in whatever categories was TSONGA...LIKE considered the naturally most ideal athlete.
that's just amazing!! slavic must be such a RICH language...i wish i learned it long ago !!
I don't think anybody dislikes Tsonga.
HE iS very charming guy..and of course wonderful tennis and athlete.
just everyone's frustration that he really should have won a major already.
i guess it's that old description of the French players -- so much talent and variety -- just a little funny in the head. lol.
That last point was brilliant from Pouille, but each player is tense. Back on serve. Goodness me. I have no clue how this will end up.
britbox
Multiple Major Winner
britbox
Multiple Major Winner
britbox
Multiple Major Winner
brokenshoelace
Grand Slam Champion
- Joined
- Apr 14, 2013
- Messages
- 9,380
- Reactions
- 1,334
- Points
- 113
Nadal can't put together some consistency in this match. There were times in the fourth set where he seemed to be hitting the ball really well, but that didn't last. Glad he won it. Hopefully he an get an early break in the fifth. If Pouille breaks first I think it's over.
brokenshoelace
Grand Slam Champion
- Joined
- Apr 14, 2013
- Messages
- 9,380
- Reactions
- 1,334
- Points
- 113
Pouille starting to make more errors. Gets broken (on a sidenote I'm impressed with his movement). You'd think experience and clutch factor should be enough for Rafa to take this now, but Rafa holding serve is never a given.
brokenshoelace
Grand Slam Champion
- Joined
- Apr 14, 2013
- Messages
- 9,380
- Reactions
- 1,334
- Points
- 113
By the way, this match is a good example of why I think Rafa's volleying, while definitely improved from his 2006 days, gets overrated (remember McEnroe laughably claiming Nadal volleys better than Federer?). He's hit some fantastic volleys, but missed some really easy ones, and actually made a mess of so many make-able ones.
I think I've finally caught on to which volleys he struggles with and which ones he hits well, and it's really specific to where he is on the court and the height of the ball.
His main problem obviously is that he can't punch volley to save his life, and relies almost exclusively on drop volleys, meaning that if his touch isn't perfect, he can give his opponent some super easy passes. His drop volleys are occasionally heavy-handed on medium-to-high balls, but are feather light when he has to get low (which is odd considering the latter is theoretically more difficult).
His backhand volleys are really good when he's stretched out wide and has to create a short angle, but they're so-so when he's in the middle with the ball coming more or less directly at him.
However, his overhand and backhand overhead are absolutely phenomenal. Easily among the best on tour. In fact, throughout history, his backhand overhead is second to only Federer IMO.
I think I've finally caught on to which volleys he struggles with and which ones he hits well, and it's really specific to where he is on the court and the height of the ball.
His main problem obviously is that he can't punch volley to save his life, and relies almost exclusively on drop volleys, meaning that if his touch isn't perfect, he can give his opponent some super easy passes. His drop volleys are occasionally heavy-handed on medium-to-high balls, but are feather light when he has to get low (which is odd considering the latter is theoretically more difficult).
His backhand volleys are really good when he's stretched out wide and has to create a short angle, but they're so-so when he's in the middle with the ball coming more or less directly at him.
However, his overhand and backhand overhead are absolutely phenomenal. Easily among the best on tour. In fact, throughout history, his backhand overhead is second to only Federer IMO.
