Australian Open 2020

Yes no reason to retire if he can make a GS semi but he was fortunate to get that far here this year

Women's final has the potential to be decent.
Not as if a decent final is common on the women's side.

josip

At his age his decline will accelerate.
If he's having trouble with his groin and back already at the AO, who knows if all the bits will still be working by the time the US Open comes around.

yerwanthere123

Very disappointed Barty lost, would've been some atmosphere in the final if she'd made it. I'm indifferent to the final now tbh, dare I say might even be a little bit more interested in seeing if anyone can stop Djokovic on Sunday morning.

Would be weird to think Garbine would be three-quarters of the way to a career slam if she wins. Kenin is pretty unknown to me, not sure I've ever seen much of her play.

MisterAnarchy

glasso wrote: »

Fed has now only taken 1 set off Djokovic in their last 4 matches in Melbourne.

Most likely the last time that they will face each other here, certainly at the semi final stage.

Its hard if nigh impossible for a man of Feds age to compete on these courts.
Its some achievement to be getting to Grand Slam finals at his age.

MisterAnarchy

MisterAnarchy wrote: »

Its hard if nigh impossible for a man of Feds age to compete on these courts.
Its some achievement to be getting to Grand Slam finals at his age.

well he was in the final at Wimbledon only last Summer.

but he seems to be going downhill at the top level faster now. (even though he had some injury in this match)

he was lucky (and through resilience) to get to the semi final here - Sandgren blew 7 match points which is pretty much unforgivable.

Rob2D

No way Fed just up and retires at the end of the year. He's too big. When he does decide to go there will have to be a farewell tour year of sorts all announced well in advance.

john9876

If federer doesn't retire soon, he won't be retiring at the top ... in terms of most majors won.

john9876

john9876 wrote: »

If federer doesn't retire soon, he won't be retiring at the top ... in terms of most majors won.

I don't think that he has much of a chance to win another one slam now. Even at Wimbledon.

Nadal will hang on until 40 if necessary to try to get to 21 slams. It will be interesting to see if Thiem can take him out at Roland Garros now.

Hector Savage

Saw this over on Talk Tennis ...

Federer never beat a top-2 in the hardcourt Slams. His score is 0-7.

vs #2 Agassi UO 2001
vs #1 Nadal AO 2009
vs #1 Djokovic UO 2011
vs #2 Nadal AO 2012
vs #1 Nadal AO 2014
vs #1 Djokovic UO 2015
vs #1 Djokovic AO 2016
Update: vs #2 Djokovic AO 2020

Crazy stat!!

Chivito550

People seem so obsessed about Federer retiring. He will retire when it suits him and his family. If he enjoys his tennis then why would he retire.

He probably won't win another slam. Then again, I thought he was finished challenging for slams after his loses to Anderson, Millman and Tsitsipas and he came back to almost take Wimbledon.

Chivito550

Hector Savage wrote: »

Saw this over on Talk Tennis ...



Crazy stat!!

That's skewed by the fact he was number 1 for so long and the number 2 (Nadal) couldn't make harcourt finals during this time.

Sheridan81

Federer still has a chance at Wimbledon. Until he starts sucking there, he'll not retire.

MisterAnarchy

glasso wrote: »

well he was in the final at Wimbledon only last Summer.

Sorry ,I meant semi finals .:)

Floppybits

The quicker the court the better it is for Federer as the rallies are shorter. The slower courts mean more rallies and at 38, doesn't matter how fit you are, its going to give the advantage to the younger players. This is why he does so well at Wimbledon, shorter points, quicker matches.

josip

He'll retire when Uniqlo let him

walshb

I have written Fed off a a slam winner several times, only to be surprised

This time he is wrote off.....

whiterebel

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josip wrote: »

He'll retire when Uniqlo let him

47!!!

NoviGlitzko

Federer is winning Wimbledon lads. You can bank on it!

walshb

NoviGlitzko wrote: »

Federer is winning Wimbledon lads. You can bank on it!

Hector in disguise?

NoviGlitzko

NoviGlitzko wrote: »

Federer is winning Wimbledon lads. You can bank on it!

you and Hector should start your own thread lol

mzungu

I hope the injury Fed is carrying doesn't disrupt the rest of his season.

I got the feeling after last years SW19 final that Feds best chance to take one last slam has come and gone. Still though, making the semis at 38 is no mean feat, I would imagine as long as he is getting deep into the second week of slams he will stay at it.

NoviGlitzko

walshb wrote: »

Hector in disguise?

glasso wrote: »

you and Hector should start your own thread lol

Just messing. But Federer will be back.

mzungu

mzungu wrote: »

I hope the injury Fed is carrying doesn't disrupt the rest of his season.

I got the feeling after last years SW19 final that Feds best chance to take one last slam has come and gone. Still though, making the semis at 38 is no mean feat, I would imagine as long as he is getting deep into the second week of slams he will stay at it.

he said that he doesn't think that the injury will cause him long-term issues. still thinks that he can win another slam. Wimbledon will be everything for him this season.

https://www.bbc.com/sport/tennis/51312826

Hector Savage

I like Thiem and if this was a final i'd root for him, but I think Djokovic has a slightly better chance v Zverev so wouldn't mind seeing him win this one ...

Hector Savage

Pair of fine lookin lads on court today ...

Hector Savage

So one light has gone off, and play has been stopped, meanwhile the crowd are singing sweet Caroline .... jaysus. Wimbledon 1996 with Cliff Richard memories ...

Floppybits

Some backhand by Thiem there. He is all over Zverev.

Hector Savage

Cannot call this one ....
very see saw at the moment

josip

A 5 setter lasting 6 hours will be just fine

Hector Savage

2-1 Thiem ....

Hector Savage

Thiem wins, I think he has the potential to beat Djokovic ...

yerwanthere123

This was a big step forward for Zverev but at the end of the day he's still gonna need to be far more aggressive to win these kind of matches.

Anyway, hoping and praying Thiem can get the job done Sunday morning.

lostcat

final is going to be interesting, Thiem is riding a wave of 5 tiebreaker wins in row. I didn't see much of it but Zverev looked good, if a bit passive on occasion.


If Djokovic picked up one tip from the last two Thiem matches, its that Thiem certainly isn't going to beat himself in the final.

dominatinMC

No doubt about it, it will be a huge upset should Thiem win on Sunday. If he brings his A game, it's a possibility though, and I wouldn't rule it out. Needs the serve to click and suppress any nerves. Here's hoping it's at least competitive

Thiem has a chance for sure.

What particularly impresses me is his tiebreak tennis against Nadal and Zverev - he won 5 tie-breaks between the 2 matches (100% win rate).

That is the mark of a champion.

He wasn't 100% today - needs to cut out the little lapses against Djokovic.

whiterebel

lostcat wrote: »

final is going to be interesting, Thiem is riding a wave of 5 tiebreaker wins in row. I didn't see much of it but Zverev looked good, if a bit passive on occasion.


If Djokovic picked up one tip from the last two Thiem matches, its that Thiem certainly isn't going to beat himself in the final.

An interesting comment early on from Frew - Zverev needs to put more "steam" on his forehand. He's right, he doesn't hurt you with it, whereas Thiem can get you from way back by the fence. I'd like to see Thiem do it, but its good to see Zverev play so well. How he lost a set only losing 4 first serve points is mad.

lostcat

glasso wrote: »

Thiem has a chance for sure.

What particularly impresses me is his tiebreak tennis against Nadal and Zverev - he won 5 tie-breaks between the 2 matches (100% win rate).

That is the mark of a champion.

He wasn't 100% today - needs to cut out the little lapses against Djokovic.

Djokovic has won something like 13 of the last 14 tiebreakers he has played, he seems to have absolute mental clarity in them at present.

that said, statistically over a long period of time and matches tiebreaks are little more than 50/50, so somehting might have to give on Sunday.

dominatinMC

glasso wrote: »

Thiem has a chance for sure.

What particularly impresses me is his tiebreak tennis against Nadal and Zverev - he won 5 tie-breaks between the 2 matches (100% win rate).

That is the mark of a champion.

He wasn't 100% today - needs to cut out the little lapses against Djokovic.

To be fair, Djokovic wasn't totally convincing against Federer the other day either, was v poor in the first set especially. Also had a medical timeout/intervention for a stomach issue. May offer a small bit of hope for Thiem!

lostcat

lostcat wrote: »

Djokovic has won something like 13 of the last 14 tiebreakers he has played, he seems to have absolute mental clarity in them at present.

that said, statistically over a long period of time and matches tiebreaks are little more than 50/50, so somehting might have to give on Sunday.

Don't believe that for a second, surely the best players win more of the breakers and it's more than 50/50?

(stands to reason)

e.g. Fed had a 65% win-rate up to 2018

https://www.atptour.com/en/news/federer-fedex-atp-performance-zone-september-2018-tie-breaks

The elite players have the ability to focus and perform in these crucial tie-break moments.

Even tho Nadal wasn't at his best Thiem winning 3 tie-breaks against him in a match definitely points to champion material imo.

Not saying that he will win but hopefully should be a great battle if both turn up on the day.

walshb

Thiem wins final in 4 sets!

yerwanthere123

First time getting a proper look at Kenin, I think she's very reminiscent of Kasatkina?

Anyway glad Garbine's winning, hope she keep it going.

NoviGlitzko

Kenin playing well though. Still anyone's match although Muguruza the favourite ATM obviously. Vamos Gabby!

Joe_ Public

Kenin has been really solid all tournament, no great signs of mental weakness. Anyones match from here i reckon.

Joe_ Public

That was some game from kenin. Could never guess you were looking at a slam final novice out there.

NoviGlitzko

Kenin's defence is better than Halep's. It's unrivalled in this final.

Great comeback from love forty down.

Kenin played to win the points back, not just to play them out.

And breaks next game

muguruza can't take her breaks

Joe_ Public

She's such a clever player, no fierce weapons but everything is well directed. Intetesting ti see if she tightens now.

Seriously it's embarrassing tho for a GS final that a player hits two double faults in a row three times. And another one on match point.

Ugh

NoviGlitzko

Garbine just wasted way too many opportunities. 2/12 on BP's compared to 5/6 for Kenin and being broken from 40-15 up twice on her own serve in the final set, and then not closing out at 0-40 on Kenin's. Can't complain after that.

Not the result I wanted, but hey. Fair play to Kenin, deserved.

Joe_ Public

Kenins mental attitude was just so much superior which is extraordinary given how little experience she has. Remains to be seen how she backs it up but thats for another day. She was excellent today and for past 2 weeks, very worthy champion.