Tennis Forever

[VinodKumar's]

"Djokovic played eight matches in 11 days against the top 10, winning all of them."

Very quick comeback after US open :clap:.

[JamesDap]

http://www.atpworldtour.com/News/Tennis/2013/11/45/London-Finale-Monday-Singles-Final-Djokovic-Nadal.aspx

EPIC Point of the year!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cMHnyhD_2xo

That was an insane get, how on earth did Djoko make the passing shot against Nadal's serve-volley. Maybe Nadal should have driven it instead of slicing the backhand but little would have he known.

[raagadevan]

Aircell Chennai Open

Players:

http://www.aircelchennaiopen.org/2014/players

News/Results Update:

http://www.aircelchennaiopen.org/2014/

[raagadevan]

Rafa Nadal wins the Quatar ExxonMobil Open 2014 – beats Gael Monfils in the finals 6-1, 7-6 (5), 6-2.

Roger Federer to meet Lleyton Hewitt tomorrow in the finals of the Brisbane International.

[VinodKumar's]

Roger Federer to meet Lleyton Hewitt tomorrow in the finals of the Brisbane International.

Tough day ahead for Roger against Hewitt in front of Australian crowd. Sad thing is I dint see much difference in Roger's game and temperament even after 2 months gap :(. It was his aces kept him in the match. Actually Chardy choked himself in the deciding set and gave away the much needed break for Roger.

[VinodKumar's]

Hewitt takes first set 6-1.

[VinodKumar's]

Hewitt wins the final 6-1,4-6,6-3.

[raagadevan]

Stanislas Wawrinka wins Aircel Chennai Open, beating Edouard Roger-Vasselin 7-5, 6-2.

[JamesDap]

That Brisbane court was pretty fast. Saw some balls shooting through at about ankle height. Haven't seen much of that on hard courts since the 90s. Expect Nadal to REALLY have a word with the Aus Open tournament director to make sure that surface is nothing like Brisbane. ;)

[ajithfederer]

:lol:. Plus a customary too many hardcourt events on the tour every year.

That Brisbane court was pretty fast. Saw some balls shooting through at about ankle height. Haven't seen much of that on hard courts since the 90s. Expect Nadal to REALLY have a word with the Aus Open tournament director to make sure that surface is nothing like Brisbane. ;)

[raagadevan]

And Roger Federer of course insisted on Sunday that his three-set loss to Lleyton Hewitt at the Brisbane International was not a setback to his Australian Open preparations! :)

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/tennis/interviews/Roger-Federer-says-loss-not-a-setback/articleshow/28438541.cms

[ajithfederer]

32 vayasula velayadaradhe peria vishayam. Let me see how many cross 30 in the 1st place. :)

[VinodKumar's]

Stan, the biggest problem I see is he started worrying about results. During Brisbane finals most of time he was angry, frsutrated, less confident and forseen the loss.

Its high time to reduce chip return of service. If Chardy/Hewitt could easily convert those chip returns to winners then it will be cake walk for top players.

[omega]

I think Fed is still coming to terms with his new racquet. He looked reasonably good in the initial 2 rounds then started shanking all around in the next 2. The biggest plus I see is that his serve is much better (except the first set in the final) which does seem to have a bit more pop (atleast in the first 3 rounds when he was able to touch 200kmph pretty consistently). He did serve somewhat well in the final but his average speed was in the 170s' though, which again makes us think if it had anything to do with the back??

I think he needs more practice time with the new racquet along with 100% fitness... Its a 50/50 right now. Will see how the draw pans out & how his initial rounds go at AO. Hope Stefan can regain his confidence and bring back his calmness..........Still a beauty to watch though. Can't get enough of him!!

[omega]

32 vayasula velayadaradhe peria vishayam. Let me see how many cross 30 in the 1st place. :)

With 7 month break every other year, I think people may very well..............strategy strategy you see!!

[raagadevan]

New year brings new challenges for Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and the players chasing them

http://www.oregonlive.com/the-spin-of-the-ball/index.ssf/2014/01/new_year_brings_new_challenges.html

[raagadevan]

ATP Rankings (January 6, 2014)

1. R. Nadal(ESP) 13,130
2. N. Djokovic(SRB) 12,260
3. D. Ferrer(ESP) 5,800
4. A. Murray(GBR) 5,560
5. J. Del Potro(ARG) 5,255
6. R. Federer (SUI) 4,355
7. T. Berdych(CZE) 3,180
8. S. Wawrinka(SUI) 3,890
9. R. Gasquet(FRA) 3,140
10. J-W.Tsonga(FRA) 3,065
11. M. Raonic(CAN) 2,860
12. T. Haas(GER) 2,435
13. N. Almagro(ESP) 2,290
14. J. Isner(USA) 2,150
15. M. Youzhny(RUS) 2,145
16. F. Fognini (ITA) 1,930

[Arvind Srinivasan]

Nadal, Federer and Murray have all been drafted in the same draw with Nadal having the chance of facing either of the other two in the Semi finals. Djokovic's got an easier draw one would think.

[omega]

Nadal, Federer and Murray have all been drafted in the same draw with Nadal having the chance of facing either of the other two in the Semi finals. Djokovic's got an easier draw one would think.

Nole has got a cake walk & his only challenge could be Stan in QF....
Nadal's half is loaded with Tsonga/Delp/Federer/Murray & he opens it with Tomic (not a serious threat, but still).

May be another GS where Federer will not even make the QF. Hope if he could somehow gets red hot & win the top 3 back to back (Wishfull thinking!!)

[raagadevan]

Tomic can beat Nadal: Del Potro

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/sport/tennis/tomic-can-beat-nadal-del-potro/story-fnbe6xeb-1226799311629#

[raagadevan]

I can knock off Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, says Roger Federer

http://sports.ndtv.com/australian-open-2014/news/219347-australian-open-i-can-knock-off-rafael-nadal-novak-djokovic-says-roger-federer


Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer ring in big guns for help

http://sports.ndtv.com/australian-open-2014/features/219314-australian-open-novak-djokovic-roger-federer-ring-in-big-guns-for-help


Rafael Nadal to test Novak Djokovic, star coaches at Australian Open

http://sports.ndtv.com/australian-open-2014/news/219261-rafael-nadal-to-test-novak-djokovic-star-coaches-at-australian-open

[venkkiram]

I can knock off Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, says Roger Federer

http://sports.ndtv.com/australian-open-2014/news/219347-australian-open-i-can-knock-off-rafael-nadal-novak-djokovic-says-roger-federer

கேட்கவே பாவமா இருக்கு! அய்யா! நடத்தி காட்டிட்டு பேசுங்கய்யா!

[JamesDap]

கேட்கவே பாவமா இருக்கு! அய்யா! நடத்தி காட்டிட்டு பேசுங்கய்யா!

Ditto.

[omega]

Q. Most pundits have talked up Novak and Rafa's chances at the Australian Open. Is there still belief in you and other members of the top 10 that you can knock Novak and Rafa off their perches?

ROGER FEDERER: Well, I think it's normal that they are considered, you know, the one and two favorites for the tournament. Of course, we do believe we can knock them off, yes.


=====================================

I don't see anything wrong in it.....

[ajithfederer]

Brand new year More whining as usual from you know who. I told you so guys last week that a roundd of complaining is due.

http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/news/australian-open-nadal-fumes-changed-australian-open-courts-200913548--ten.html

Australian Open - Nadal fumes at changed Australian Open courts
Spain's Rafa Nadal is furious at the new courts installed at the Australian Open.

The world number one, who opens his tournament with a very tough match against local hope Bernard Tomic, is not happy that the resurfaced hardcourts are faster than previous years.

"The conditions of play are very different from the ones I remembered in this tournament. Many things have changed," he said.

"I think that the court is faster and so is the ball. So it makes a of it a different tournament for me. I didn't remember it like that. It's a little bit a pity for me.

"In the first round, I will play against a home favourite [Tomic], who is a great tennis player. And what's more, he is in great shape because he reached the final in Sydney.

"So it's tricky to think beyond this match. I will try to give my best in this first match and if I get through this opening match, I will try to improve my play day after day."

Nadal also disagreed that Novak Djokovic is his chief rival for the coming season.

"A very important player like Murray comes back to the circuit. Del Potro finished very well last year and he started very well this one by playing the final in Sydney. [And] Federer found good again tennis last year so he will try to start again with energy.

"Afterwards, we'll see how players like Tomic, Dimitrov, Raonic, Janowicz are developing themselves. They should go on better this year.

"There are also the players who are always there: Berdych, Tsonga, Wawrinka, Monfils, David Ferrer. In the end, you never know what could happen with all these players and you have to keep a look on them to get an idea of what rank you will finish the year at.

"At the beginning of the year, I respect everybody, I put all these players on the same level. Then, at mid-season, we will have abetter idea of who could be the most dangerous rivals."

[ajithfederer]

Brisbane was fast. This is medium quips Roger. He also says that you can still play from baseline and do long rallies as French Open(well, that last bit about FO i added) :)


Nadal's assessment was not shared by Federer, who played on Rod Laver Arena in an exhibition match last Wednesday night and considered the court slower than Brisbane last week, where he began his Open lead-in for the first time.

''I think … we'll see long rallies,'' Federer said. ''We're not talking about a lightning-speed court. In Brisbane, it was fast but it wasn't lightning either. This is like medium, if that.

''I don't know what the big problem is. You really can still play from the baseline, no problem. You can stay back, return from the back. You can do all that stuff if you want to. It's not like it's impossible.''

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/sport/tennis/roger-federer-calm-while-rafael-nadal-gets-in-a-spin-over-courts-before-australian-open-20140111-30nnk.html#ixzz2qGMBhLPP



That Brisbane court was pretty fast. Saw some balls shooting through at about ankle height. Haven't seen much of that on hard courts since the 90s. Expect Nadal to REALLY have a word with the Aus Open tournament director to make sure that surface is nothing like Brisbane. ;)

[ajithfederer]

“You can speed up the balls as much as you want, they’re going to be so fuzzed up after two games that it’s just going to be hard to hit winners and service winners,” he said. “If that’s what people want to see, just rallies, rallies, rallies all the time, then it’s good to have a slow court. If you want a bit more even ground for everybody, even the lower-ranked guys and more danger for the top guys, you go with a faster court. Maybe we’ll get more serve-and-volley back into the game or more of the unknown, which I think is nice.”


http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/13/sports/tennis/13iht-speed13.html?_r=0

[omega]

Nadal camp must be seriously trolling out there..........
Melbourne show courts if anything looks slow & bouncier as ever since the plexi has been laid.
Typical Nadal camp trying to give false hopes as if he is going to struggle out there....
Seems to be tailor made conditions for Nadal to get the double career GrandSlam...

[raagadevan]

Roger Federer beats 133rd ranked James Duckworth 6-4, 6-4, 6-2 in the first round.

[raagadevan]

Bernard Tomic retires after the first set (4-6) due to an injury, allowing Rafa Nadal to enter round #2. Roger Federer was right; it looks like the the Rod Laver Arena court is "slower than Brisbane last week". Don't know why the Nadal camp is complaining!

[JamesDap]

Nadal camp must be seriously trolling out there..........
Melbourne show courts if anything looks slow & bouncier as ever since the plexi has been laid.
Typical Nadal camp trying to give false hopes as if he is going to struggle out there....
Seems to be tailor made conditions for Nadal to get the double career GrandSlam...


If players play over aggressive tennis under the false hope that it's fast, he can save himself some trouble. :D After all, it IS very hot this year in Australia. Definitely not anywhere near as fast as Brisbane from what I have seen so far. One of the smaller courts looked fast but not Laver or Hisense. Maybe the balls come on a tad faster after bounce than before but nothing that would be difficult for the problem solver.

Speaking of which, if players want to rant against the torrid, 'inhuman' conditions, how about supporting the Tour organisers in moving back to faster courts and lighter balls? Australian summer has always been hot, we just saw the Poms collapse in a heap in the Ashes. But playing slow, heavy balls over long rallies doesn't help. Players can't have everything, they have to compromise somewhere. There was a reason why the spectacle of long rallies used to be reserved for the French summer earlier. ;)

[ajithfederer]

Yesterday a Canadian player and a a ball boy fainted during play.

[ajithfederer]

Nadal / Federer into 3rd round.

[omega]

Didn't watch the match today, but seems like Fed had some better play today. Hope he improves.
With Verdasco going out, it would be Fed vs Gabashvili in the 3rd round.

Nadal's only possible threat DelP goes out to Spaniard Bautista-Agut in 5 sets.
Nadal faces Monfills in his 3rd Round match....

[omega]

Federer looks very slow out there. His shots have no zip at all, falling very short most of the times.
He seems to hit with more top spin with his new racquet which doesn't seem like a good strategy at all...
Tsonga to take Fed in straight sets to become another player to beat him in 3 different grand slams...

[VinodKumar's]

Nammalunga Federer-ayum vidurathu illa :lol:

http://www.orkut.gmodules.com/gadgets/proxy?refresh=86400&container=orkut&gadgets=http%3A%2F%2Forkut.com%2Fimg.xml&url=https%3A%2F%2Flh3.googleusercontent.com%2F-bDC71EKMg0g%2FUtQLVisCmKI%2FAAAAAAAAEe0%2FqDp8gX_R RgE%2Fw800-h597-no%2F1524879_641187752587125_1124137434_n.jpg

[JamesDap]

Woo hoo, Serena loses her rhythm yet again in the round of 16 at Aus Open, this time losing to Ivanovic who has tremendously improved her backhand and RoS. Third time running...wonder if Serena is no longer able to handle the Aus heat because she has been winning almost everything for the most part since last two years.

[VinodKumar's]

Seems she had bad back.

[venkkiram]

Woo hoo, Serena loses her rhythm yet again in the round of 16 at Aus Open, this time losing to Ivanovic who has tremendously improved her backhand and RoS. Third time running...wonder if Serena is no longer able to handle the Aus heat because she has been winning almost everything for the most part since last two years. Its Ivanovic who stolen the show completely. Even she lost the first set, the way she carried the whole game plan against Serena was commendable. Each of her winners were absolute treat to watch. Its a watching a final match. Its very very rare opportunity for us to witness someone really dictating Serena and take the control of the match that too being lost in the first set.

[JamesDap]

No doubt Ivanovic played brilliantly. It's amazing how much she has improved. She was net rushing after returns like Edberg (Edberg disciple, please take note) and was so agile around the court. But the way she stood right in to Serena's serves also suggested to me that Serena was 'off'. Serena's serve, even the second serve, is not that weak that somebody can take it out from almost near the service line. Not to take anything away from Ivanovic, again...she played superb tennis against Stosur too.

[venkkiram]

Stanislas Wawrinka's powerful, elegant back hand winners continue to rule here. His bad luck he meets with Djoko at QF. Let us wait whether he also like Ivanovic surprises us or not.

[venkkiram]

Never Give Up guy "Ferrer" (Current era Michael Chang!) also moves to QF. Another notable Spaniard in any Grand Slam who guarantees his spot in QF. His consistency mostly ends in QF or SF. I wish he holds one GS! All the best!

[VinodKumar's]

I dont think this time Stan can delay Nole's victory. Ippothaiku Nole ah NAdal aala mattum thaan jeyika mudiyum NAdal ah Nole aala mattum thaan jeyikka mudiyum.

[venkkiram]

I dont think this time Stan can delay Nole's victory. Ippothaiku Nole ah NAdal aala mattum thaan jeyika mudiyum NAdal ah Nole aala mattum thaan jeyikka mudiyum. I dont buy this kind of equation. If any good day, Andy Murray and Stan have the elements in them to surprise these two. But its not that easy.. Let us see.

[venkkiram]

மனசு ஃபெடரருக்கும் , புத்தி சாங்காவிற்கும் அலைந்து கொண்டிருக்கிறது. ஆறைக் கடக்குமா பத்து? பத்தை விழுங்குமா ஆறு?

[ajithfederer]

^^^^ Please you support Tsonga itself ;)

[VinodKumar's]

:rotfl:

[venkkiram]

What a forehand to grab the second set! Bliss to watch!! I think, this is the first match of the tournament where Nadal is being challenged! Good work from Nishi!

[Arvind Srinivasan]

Federer beats Tsonga- 6-3 7-5 6-4. Will meet Andy Murray in the SFs.

[VinodKumar's]

Dint expect this :|.

Arvind, did u watch the match ? If yes, how did he play ?

[omega]

Roger you beauty!!!
Saved my day....
Please continue to save tennis from this so called modern players (sluggers/pushers/grinders)...
What a treat to watch!!!

[ajithfederer]

A very good match by Roger.

[ajithfederer]

+1
Abso f'in lutely

Roger you beauty!!!
Saved my day....
Please continue to save tennis from this so called modern players (sluggers/pushers/grinders)...
What a treat to watch!!!

[ajithfederer]

http://www.fawcette.net/2012/02/hard-courts-fast-clay-slow-not-so-much-.html

http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2011/06/serve-and-volley-the-classic-tennis-strategy-you-wont-see-at-wimbledon/240706/


0mega, need your comments on this!

[omega]

What a forehand to grab the second set! Bliss to watch!! I think, this is the first match of the tournament where Nadal is being challenged! Good work from Nishi!

Looks like Bull used all tactics to win this match (Coaching violation/time violation/)!! Was there a Medical Timeout also??
Full arsenal at display!! What a role model for upcoming tennis players!!
Way to go Bull!! You never let me down!!
Get ready folks for another 6+ hours slug fest coming Sunday!!

[venkkiram]

Federer's net movements and serves were the weapons against Tsonga. I still find his single handed back end ugly. Most of the time, no beauty at all. Compare it with fellow Wawrinka. Pond Vs Ocean.

[raagadevan]

Federer cruises past Tsonga into last eight

He did so in such an elegantly complete manner that his game looked even better at times than when he had been at his best.

http://www.smh.com.au/sport/tennis/australian-open-federer-cruises-past-tsonga-into-last-eight-20140120-3153s.html


Nishikori pushes Nadal all the way, but Spaniard prevails

Insanity, said Einstein, is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result, except in tennis, in which doing the same thing over and over is the way to gaining better results, incrementally. It has been one of the motifs of Nadal's grand career. Look at his peers and their mentors: Djokovic/Becker, Federer/Edberg, Murray/Lendl. Nishikori's is Michael Chang, a one-time major winner. Nadal's is uncle Tony, and always has been.

http://www.smh.com.au/sport/tennis/australian-open-nishikori-pushes-nadal-all-the-way-but-spaniard-prevails-20140120-314rj.html

[VinodKumar's]

Federer's net movements and serves were the weapons against Tsonga. I still find his single handed back end ugly. Most of the time, no beauty at all. Compare it with fellow Wawrinka. Pond Vs Ocean.

Ugly is better than double handed back hand ... Syntex tank Vs Pond Vs Ocean !!!

[cinema]

Ugly is better than double handed back hand ... Syntex tank Vs Pond Vs Ocean !!!
double handed backhand is yucky. I really do not know how people tolerate it and still watch tennis. For women's tennis double handed backhand is okay because I don't watch them.

[venkkiram]

Ugly is better than double handed back hand ... Syntex tank Vs Pond Vs Ocean !!! we are not talking about different style. That comparison is about skill level within single handed back end itself. Any style.. You need to dominate in a way that you question your opponent. Just keep on answering that too as a kid level display is ugly. Look at the way Stan positioning himself in every back hand and how he releases his energy completely.

[venkkiram]

Your "syntex" usage only shows your love towards Feddy. Nothing else.

[venkkiram]

Yesterday Nadal-Nishi match was excellent. Though Nadal won it in straight 3 sets, he struggled many times and Nishi dictated him with a fine performance. Tough fighter. Good to see that Nadal's serve improving tournament after tournament.

[venkkiram]

Watched Sania's match yesterday. She and her partner Black handled the game nicely and Sania's powerful forehands and Black's elegant net movement were too good. Bad luck, they go to meet number 1 seed in their quarter final. Good luck.

[venkkiram]

Stephens is nothing but Tsonga. They have the potential to wn against leading players but by the time they find their rhythm, the match would come to an end. Her match against Azarenka shows clearly it would take longer time for USA to replace Serena.

[omega]

Federer's net movements and serves were the weapons against Tsonga. I still find his single handed back end ugly. Most of the time, no beauty at all. Compare it with fellow Wawrinka. Pond Vs Ocean.

I am not sure if this is a generic assessment or just for this one match....
I can agree that Wawrinka's BH has got more sting that Federer's, but the elegance & the effortless flick that Federer can produce can matched by none!!

[omega]

http://www.fawcette.net/2012/02/hard-courts-fast-clay-slow-not-so-much-.html

http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2011/06/serve-and-volley-the-classic-tennis-strategy-you-wont-see-at-wimbledon/240706/


0mega, need your comments on this!

Sure, the evidence is there for everyone to see.
ATP has bended too much to the myth that spectators always want a 5+ hour grinding SF/F in Grandslams...
It is an insurance for the current top 4/8 guys to safely reach the last 8 of Grand Slams mostly.

[venkkiram]

பொஷார்டு:

இளம் நாயகி உதய மாகிறாள்.. வரலாற்றில் இடம் பெற எல்லா தகுதிகளும் இந்த 19 வயது கனடா வீராங்கனைக்கு இருப்பதாக தெரிகிறது. ஆரம்பத்தில் அருவியாய் தோன்றி போகப் போக கானல் நீராக கரைந்து போகாமல் இருக்க, வாழ்த்துக்கள். செரினாவை வென்றபோது, ஆஸி ஓபன் கோப்பை இவனொவிக்குத்தான் என நினைத்தேன். இப்போது இவனொவிக்கின் கனவினை அகற்றிய பொஷார்டு இறுதிக்கு போனாலே மிகப்பெரிய விஷயம். ஆனால் லீக்கு சரியான போட்டியாக இருக்கும் என நம்புகிறேன்.

http://www.gotceleb.com/wp-content/uploads/celebrities/eugenie-bouchard/2014-australian-open-in-melbourne/Eugenie-Bouchard:-2014-Australian-Open-in-Melbourne--14.jpg

[ajithfederer]

^^^^ Oh yeah, I am her fan since yesterday :noteeth:

[ajithfederer]

H/L Tsonga-Fed AO 2014

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0NHKq5Kwh3Q

[ajithfederer]

A peRFect Treat for Edberg's Birthday!
Today Federer went to the net 41 times and won 34 of them contributing to 47% of the total points in the match he won!

[Dinesh84]

Wawrinka, come on ya

[VinodKumar's]

I dont think this time Stan can delay Nole's victory. Ippothaiku Nole ah NAdal aala mattum thaan jeyika mudiyum NAdal ah Nole aala mattum thaan jeyikka mudiyum.

I am trolled :ashamed:.

[Arvind Srinivasan]

Stan's got it. Gets it in 5 sets. Well done, mate...:clap: :clap:...A great chance to get to the final.

[raagadevan]

Score: 2-6, 6-4, 6-2, 3-6, 9-7!

[VinodKumar's]

So route clear for # 14 :|. Anyway well done Stan. Would be great if it is all swiss final :arpanuku vazhvu vantha artha raathirila kodai pidipaanam:.

[omega]

Stan the Man!!

Advance congratulations to Rafa for completing the "Career double" that no one has done in open era...
Be thankful to ATP rather than whining from now on!!

[venkkiram]

Stan the Man!!

Advance congratulations to Rafa for completing the "Career double" that no one has done in open era...
Be thankful to ATP rather than whining from now on!!

நடாலுக்கு இப்பவே டங்குவார் அறுந்திருக்கும்.. ஜொகொவிக்கை சந்திக்கவே ஐந்து செட்டுகள் நாக்கு தள்ள, போராடித்தான் வெல்லவோ தோற்கவோ முடியும். இப்போ அதற்கும் அப்பால் சென்று வாவரின்காவினையும் வெல்ல கடுமையாக உழைக்க வேண்டியிருக்கும்.

[omega]

நடாலுக்கு இப்பவே டங்குவார் அறுந்திருக்கும்.. ஜொகொவிக்கை சந்திக்கவே ஐந்து செட்டுகள் நாக்கு தள்ள, போராடித்தான் வெல்லவோ தோற்கவோ முடியும். இப்போ அதற்கும் அப்பால் சென்று வாவரின்காவினையும் வெல்ல கடுமையாக உழைக்க வேண்டியிருக்கும்.

LOL!!
One handed BH have absolutely no chance against the Bull.
The only hope is for a manned up Murray to show up.
Everyone else is a lapdog for the Bull...
Wawrinka has not even won a set against Bull so far in their 11 meetings...

[VinodKumar's]

நடாலுக்கு இப்பவே டங்குவார் அறுந்திருக்கும்.. ஜொகொவிக்கை சந்திக்கவே ஐந்து செட்டுகள் நாக்கு தள்ள, போராடித்தான் வெல்லவோ தோற்கவோ முடியும். இப்போ அதற்கும் அப்பால் சென்று வாவரின்காவினையும் வெல்ல கடுமையாக உழைக்க வேண்டியிருக்கும்.

:rotfl2:

[ajithfederer]

Venkki comedy pannadhinga, Stan kellam vaaipe illa. AO 2014 is for Nadal.

[venkkiram]

Venkki comedy pannadhinga, Stan kellam vaaipe illa. AO 2014 is for Nadal. நடால் ஜெய்ஹிந்த் படத்த்துல வர்ற அர்ஜூன் போல. தலைகீழ தொங்கவிட்டு முகத்த்தை ஒரு சாக்குப்பையால் கட்டி அதுக்குள்ள ஒரு எலியை விட்டுவிட்டால், போராடி எலியை வாயாலையே சாகடித்த்து விடுவான். நேற்றைய நிஷி ஆட்டத்தையே சொல்லலாம். உயிரைக் கொடுத்த்து விளையாடியபோதும் ஒரு செட்டைக் கூட நிஷியால் கைப்பற்ற முடியவில்லை. ஆனாலும் எதிர்வரும் வாவரிங்காவுடனான ஆட்டம் கொஞ்சம் கிலியைத்த்தான் ஏற்படுத்தி இருக்கிறது. எந்தப் புத்துல எந்த பாம்போ !

[VinodKumar's]

Testing time for Dimitrov's single handed back hand.

[venkkiram]

Testing time for Dimitrov's single handed back hand.
பையன் சர்வ்-ல கெட்டி. வேகம்னா அப்படி ஒரு வேகம். அதுல மட்டும் ரொம்ப கன்சிஸ்டண்டா இருக்காப்ல. மத்தபடி சொல்றதுக்கில்ல. அப்படின்னு சொல்லி முடிச்சிடவேண்டியதுதான்.

[venkkiram]

Regardless of one winning the match against Nadal or not, a player get good opportunity to practice all flavors of top spin.

[ajithfederer]

Camaaan Dimitrov!!!

[ajithfederer]

4-4 3rd set!

[venkkiram]

Camaaan Dimitrov!!! பார்றா!

[ajithfederer]

:lol:

Nadal @ 5-6 staying to serve cha serving to stay in 3rd set.

[venkkiram]

Tie Breaker!

[ajithfederer]

4-3 nadal

[venkkiram]

Nadal leads 3-6, 7-6, 7-6

[venkkiram]

Somehow Nadal finds a way to rest for some time.

[leosimha]

:shaking:

[ajithfederer]

2-0/////

[venkkiram]

3-1 Nadal plays the ending notes of Dimitri in his racket!

[venkkiram]

அப்பாடா! ஒரு வழியா டிமிட்ரிக்கு சங்கூதியாச்சி! ஹ்ம்!

[raagadevan]

Rafael Nadal avoided becoming the latest victim of an Australian Open upset with a battling four-set win over Grigor Dimitrov.

http://www.bbc.com/sport/0/tennis/25838796

[raagadevan]

Leander Paes and Radek Stepanek lose their doubles quarterfinal match to Michaël Llodra and Nicolas Mahut 2-6, 6-7.

[VinodKumar's]

Roger leads two sets to love !!! Anyone watching ?? whats happening out there ? Is Roger good or Andy bad ?

[raagadevan]

A bit of both! Murray is not playing that good, but Federer seems to be playing very good.

[leosimha]

Nadal playing with blisters in his hand!! :shaking: :shock:

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/BeZ5VRhCIAEcXCi.jpg

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Bea5hE8CcAE4Dzx.jpg:large

[leosimha]

Roger leads two sets to love !!! Anyone watching ?? whats happening out there ? Is Roger good or Andy bad ?

Feddy in great form and a match against Nadal :shaking:

[VinodKumar's]

That's vintage Roger. Losing from nowhere :banghead:.

[JamesDap]

^^^ Ditto. Idhu manasukku innum kashtama irruku compared to 2013. Today he played brilliantly and then SHANK SHANK SHANK SHANK from 5-4 up onwards.

[VinodKumar's]

Now he seems to be struggling. Summa irunthavana sorinju vuttutu :twisted:.

[JamesDap]

Phew, wrapped it up this time. But if he is such a bundle of nerves, he can't beat the Bull. He has to see through serving out the set/match, grab break points when they are up on offer. Wonder what happened to Federer that he turned into the men's version of Novotna. :(

[JamesDap]

Marks the first time in years that only one of the top four ranked players has reached the men's semis in a grand slam. Don't even remember when was the last time. Even Wimbledon 2013 had two - Djoko and Murray - getting to the semis.

[Arvind Srinivasan]

Federer gets it in 4. A match that should have been winded up in three. Off late he's been literally struggling to close out matches and this is another such instance. Its gonna be a good one come Friday. Lets see as to how that pans out.

[VinodKumar's]

Happy but he shud have closed match in 3rd set and saved lot of energy.

What a good hearted fellow # 4/17 BP

[Rbee]

Hope that blister is not much of a problem in the semis. Come on Nadal

[venkkiram]

ஃபெடரர் - முரே ஆட்டத்தை பார்க்கவில்லை. ஆனால் ஸ்கோர் பார்ப்பதற்கு சிறப்பா இருக்கு. வாழ்த்துகள் ஃபெடரர்! சரியான ஃபார்ம் -ல இருக்கிறார். புது ராக்கெட், புது கோச் எனச் சொல்லிக் கொண்டாலும்,இந்த முறை ஆட்டத்தை ஃபெடரர் எதிர்கொள்ளும் முறையே ரொம்ப நல்லா இருக்கு. எனக்கென்னமோ எதிர்மறையா கமெண்டரி, விமர்சனம் பண்ற எல்லா மனிதர்களுக்காகவாவது இந்த முறை ஃபெடரர் கோப்பையை வெல்லனும் என நினைக்கிறேன். அல்லது இறுதிவரையாவது செல்லனும். :notworthy:

[omega]

Very pleased with Federer's game the first 2.5 sets. He should have closed it out in 3, but nevertheless it was a very good match.
No hopes against Rafa!!

If Wawrinka let Rafa get a hand to AO trophy yesterday, Roger made sure it is safe and secure in Rafa's hands today!!
Roger is always a good friend of Rafa no!!....

Rafa has won GrandSlams with just one leg, blisters are nothing!! expecially against Roger
History says that whenever Rafa reaches the final of AO, he would have a terrible rest of the year!!

[leosimha]

Very pleased with Federer's game the first 2.5 sets. He should have closed it out in 3, but nevertheless it was a very good match.
No hopes against Rafa!!

If Wawrinka let Rafa get a hand to AO trophy yesterday, Roger made sure it is safe and secure in Rafa's hands today!!
Roger is always a good friend of Rafa no!!....

Rafa has won GrandSlams with just one leg, blisters are nothing!! expecially against Roger
History says that whenever Rafa reaches the final of AO, he would have a terrible rest of the year!!

you are being very kind and generous in your choice of words :)

[leosimha]

ஃபெடரர் - முரே ஆட்டத்தை பார்க்கவில்லை. ஆனால் ஸ்கோர் பார்ப்பதற்கு சிறப்பா இருக்கு. வாழ்த்துகள் ஃபெடரர்! சரியான ஃபார்ம் -ல இருக்கிறார். புது ராக்கெட், புது கோச் எனச் சொல்லிக் கொண்டாலும்,இந்த முறை ஆட்டத்தை ஃபெடரர் எதிர்கொள்ளும் முறையே ரொம்ப நல்லா இருக்கு. எனக்கென்னமோ எதிர்மறையா கமெண்டரி, விமர்சனம் பண்ற எல்லா மனிதர்களுக்காகவாவது இந்த முறை ஃபெடரர் கோப்பையை வெல்லனும் என நினைக்கிறேன். அல்லது இறுதிவரையாவது செல்லனும். :notworthy:

:evil: come on nadal :twisted:

[VinodKumar's]

Venki strategy ah alli thelikiringalae :rotfl:. All the best :).

[svaisn]

ஃபெடரர் - முரே ஆட்டத்தை பார்க்கவில்லை. ஆனால் ஸ்கோர் பார்ப்பதற்கு சிறப்பா இருக்கு. வாழ்த்துகள் ஃபெடரர்! சரியான ஃபார்ம் -ல இருக்கிறார். புது ராக்கெட், புது கோச் எனச் சொல்லிக் கொண்டாலும்,இந்த முறை ஆட்டத்தை ஃபெடரர் எதிர்கொள்ளும் முறையே ரொம்ப நல்லா இருக்கு. எனக்கென்னமோ எதிர்மறையா கமெண்டரி, விமர்சனம் பண்ற எல்லா மனிதர்களுக்காகவாவது இந்த முறை ஃபெடரர் கோப்பையை வெல்லனும் என நினைக்கிறேன். அல்லது இறுதிவரையாவது செல்லனும். :notworthy:

Super :clap: enakku athu than venum...

But indha Nadal cross panrathu is a big hurdle.. I am not sure if he can pull that off... moreover he is approaching the 17 number...that is even more scary..

[raagadevan]

Resurgent Federer books dream clash with Nadal in Melbourne

"The win continued Federer’s revival after his annus horribilis of 2013,
and with new coach Stefan Edberg and a bigger racquet in his arsenal,
the Swiss master is confident he can give the top seed a shake."

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/more-sports/resurgent-federer-books-dream-clash-with-nadal-in-melbourne/article16444617/


Blistered Rafael Nadal into Australian Open semi-finals

"Nadal coughed up seven double-faults and conceded the deep wound was
causing him big concerns ahead of a semi-final blockbuster on Friday night..."

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/sport/tennis/blistered-rafael-nadal-into-australian-open-semifinals/story-fnbe6xeb-1226807933153

[cinema]

"blister-wracked Spaniard ". What a joke. Always we need a tag for excuse.

my 9 year old girl plays tennis. She competed and played 2 matches back to back for 4 hours in 12U juniors with blisters on hand and without even saying a word about it.

Some of these pro players like Nadal looks so immature and unprofessional to me. my respect to my 9 yr old daughter as a person grows a lot everytime I see and hear from Nadal

[leosimha]

"blister-wracked Spaniard ". What a joke. Always we need a tag for excuse.

my 9 year old girl plays tennis. She competed and played 2 matches back to back for 4 hours in 12U juniors with blisters on hand and without even saying a word about it.

Some of these pro players like Nadal looks so immature and unprofessional to me. my respect to my 9 yr old daughter as a person grows a lot everytime I see and hear from Nadal

never came to my mind that 9 year old tennis is the same as pro-tennis. :)

[venkkiram]

"blister-wracked Spaniard ". What a joke. Always we need a tag for excuse.

my 9 year old girl plays tennis. She competed and played 2 matches back to back for 4 hours in 12U juniors with blisters on hand and without even saying a word about it.

Some of these pro players like Nadal looks so immature and unprofessional to me. my respect to my 9 yr old daughter as a person grows a lot everytime I see and hear from Nadal

Congrats! All the very best for your daughter to grow big as a PRO in this sport. Which tennis woman/women your daughter like and follow?

[venkkiram]

"blister-wracked Spaniard ". What a joke. Always we need a tag for excuse.

my 9 year old girl plays tennis. She competed and played 2 matches back to back for 4 hours in 12U juniors with blisters on hand and without even saying a word about it.

Some of these pro players like Nadal looks so immature and unprofessional to me. my respect to my 9 yr old daughter as a person grows a lot everytime I see and hear from Nadal

First of all, comparing male - female in a same sport itself does not make sense. But anyway Cinema, you need to consider at least this while comparing your daughter and ridiculing the No 1.


Nadal employs a full western grip forehand, often with a "lasso-whip" follow through, where his left arm hits through the ball and finishes above his left shoulder – as opposed to a more traditional finish across the body or around his opposite shoulder. Nadal's forehand ground stroke form allows him to hit shots with heavy topspin – more so than many of his contemporaries.

[venkkiram]

Comparing Male - Female Tennis players, I asked my son's coach this question last year "We all know Serena is a powerful woman ever Women's era witnessed. To what level of Men's tennis range she can compete with?" He immediately replied "Any PRO from anywhere in this globe can easily kick her out in straight sets. Period."

[Russellyhd]

:lol:

[cinema]

Congrats! All the very best for your daughter to grow big as a PRO in this sport. Which tennis woman/women your daughter like and follow?
My daughter's favorite WTA player is Serena and in men's section she loves a Rafael Nadal lot because he plays very much like WTA, such as double handed backhand, grunting and whining about something always(court speed, blister injury etc..)

[venkkiram]

Today's Semifinal schedule:

Eugenie Bouchard (CAN) [30] vs. Na Li (CHN) [4] ( லீ அம்மணி.. அப்படியே திரும்பி பாக்காம சைனாவுக்கு ஓடிப்போயிடு! விளையாண்டமா பொட்டியை கட்டுனமான்னு இருக்கோணும்! )

Dominika Cibulkova (SVK) [20] vs. Agnieszka Radwanska (POL) [5] ( ராட்வன்ஸ்கா.. இறுதி வரை நீ வரலாம். ஆனா கப் வாங்கிடலாம்னு கனவுல கூட நெனைசிடாதெ! )

அப்பாடா! பொஷார்டுக்கு ரூட் கிளியர்.

Tomas Berdych (CZE) [7] vs. Stanislas Wawrinka (SUI) [8] ( எல்லாரும் ஒரு கனவு கண்டால் அதற்கு சம்பந்தெயில்லாமல் தாமஸ் பெர்டிக் ஜெயிச்சிடப் போறான்! )

[ajithfederer]

Ditto. The history bit is interesting but there is always time for a first occurence.


Very pleased with Federer's game the first 2.5 sets. He should have closed it out in 3, but nevertheless it was a very good match.
No hopes against Rafa!!

If Wawrinka let Rafa get a hand to AO trophy yesterday, Roger made sure it is safe and secure in Rafa's hands today!!
Roger is always a good friend of Rafa no!!....

Rafa has won GrandSlams with just one leg, blisters are nothing!! expecially against Roger
History says that whenever Rafa reaches the final of AO, he would have a terrible rest of the year!!

[venkkiram]

Li advances to final by defeating Bouchard in straight sets 6-2, 6-4. ஒரு பச்சை கொழந்தையை கதற விட்ருக்கா லீ! இருக்கு ஒனக்கு ஃபைனல்ல!

[raagadevan]

Roger Federer vs Rafa Nadal - Australian Open 2012 semifinal highlights:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uqr_gA4MYls


Roger Federer vs Rafa Nadal - Australian Open 2009 final highlights:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SnATiDGqkLQ

[venkkiram]

"You are the first Slovak to enter into Final in a Grand Slam." :notworthy: இப்படி கேட்கும்போதே அந்த நாட்டின் ஒவ்வொரு மனிதனுக்கும் எப்படி தேனாக இனித்திருக்கும்! ஏணியில் ஏறுவதற்கு எப்பேற்பட்ட முயற்சி எடுத்திருக்கணும்! ராட்வன்ஸ்கா இதற்கு முந்தைய ஆட்டத்தில் நடப்பு சாம்பியனை துவம்சம் செய்துவிட்டு வந்தால் இங்கே நாயடி பேயடி சிபுல்கோவாவிடமிருந்து. எப்பேற்பட்ட ஆச்சர்யங்களை உள்ளடக்கிய 2014 ஆஸி ஓபன்!

[Russellyhd]

ஆஸ்திரேலிய ஒபன் டென்னிஸ் போட்டிகள் மெல்போர்னில் நடக்கிறது.. கலப்பு இரட்டையர் ஆட்டத்தில் இந்தியாவின் சானியா மிர்ஷா, ரூமோனியாவின் ஹோரியா ஜோடி, ஜார்ஜ் -குரேஷி ஜோடியை 6-3, 6-4 என்ற செட் கணக்கில் வீழ்த்தி அரையிறுதிக்கு முன்னேறியது.

super sania :clap:

[Arvind Srinivasan]

Wawrinka does it....Beats Berdych 6-3 6-7 7-6 7-6...First grandslam final for him and very much deserving.

[VinodKumar's]

Stan into grand slam final. :notworthy:. I know it is impossible against Nadal in final but I wish he find some way to life the trophy.

[svaisn]

Stan into grand slam final. :notworthy:. I know it is impossible against Nadal in final but I wish he find some way to life the trophy.

Enna Vinodh ippadi pusukknu Nadal soliteenga... innum oru SF erukku :)

[venkkiram]

Enna Vinodh ippadi pusukknu Nadal soliteenga... innum oru SF erukku :) அதெல்லாம் உலக மகா strategy :)

[omega]

Roger Federer vs Rafa Nadal - Australian Open 2012 semifinal highlights:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uqr_gA4MYls


Roger Federer vs Rafa Nadal - Australian Open 2009 final highlights:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SnATiDGqkLQ

Thanks for reminding 2009 & 2012 exactly the two years when he beat Roger at the AO ended up being a miserable year for him. Hope Rafa will be wise this time around!! AO Final is a curse for Rafa!!

[omega]

அதெல்லாம் உலக மகா strategy :)

This will be nothing to what we could possibly witness in the match if it gets tight (big if though!!).
Looking forward to Rafa's usage of everything available strategywise!! Uncle Toni is the best ever in that department!!

[JamesDap]

That blister business is a little more insidious. IF Rafa does somehow manage to lose, it will always be a blistered Nadal losing to Fed, not full strength Nadal (never mind Fed's age). If he wins, of course, it will be heroic and one for the ages. Remember, every time Nadal suffered an unexpected defeat at the slams, it was basically an injury-sparked fluke (see Soderling/Rosol). Sampras was fond of doing this too in the 90s, to the point where Rafter lashed out at him after beating him in US Open. Playing up the injury cheapens the competition, sorry.

[VinodKumar's]

அதெல்லாம் உலக மகா strategy :)

Never. We know history.

[venkkiram]

If Federer continue coming forward and volley / forehand / drop the ball (typical Stefan Edberg signature), that would shake Nadal's balance and make him distracted. I am sure Federer comes up with more strategies today and make a tough fight (as he did in the past). Federer has to be on target right from the beginning as Nadal takes time to get into the game. That would stretch the game into minimum 4 sets. Strictly no double faults and every Serve is very important. Grigor Dimitrov could sustain majorly because of this consistency on Serve. I am sure Federer's serve is the key for today's match. All the best. Whoever wins.. I am happy. Coming till Semi final itself a big milestone for both the players. And Federer - Nadal - Djokovic are the supreme talented trio Tennis era ever witnessed.

[ajithfederer]

Yov, epdiyum we all know who will win. Tayathai waste pannikittu naansenss madhiri. :)

[Dinesh84]

Last time Feddy beat Nadal was way back in March 2012. Almost 2 years. Lets see if he can turn the tables. I want to Feddy to have maximum tally in every grand slam(Prench open la mudiyadhu). paapoom.

[venkkiram]

Yov, epdiyum we all know who will win. Tayathai waste pannikittu naansenss madhiri. :) Its not the same all the time. I would be surprised if Nadal wins this match against Feddy in a very convincing manner. Narrow margin win (going till tie breaker or 7-5 kind of ) has edges on the both the sides. Anyone who keep their excellence during those points would win.

[Russellyhd]

Feddy... Vetri umakke.... :victory:

[Arvind Srinivasan]

Nadal gets the first. The story so far taking the familiar route.

[VinodKumar's]

Whats the score ?

[Arvind Srinivasan]

7-6 3-2 with Federer serving. It looks close but it isn't. Federer just hanging in....

[Arvind Srinivasan]

Nadal gets the break. Now leading the set 4-2.

[Arvind Srinivasan]

Nadal leads two sets to love.

[raagadevan]

Rafa beats Roger [again] 7-5, 6-3, 6-3.

[omega]

Rafa beats Roger [again] 7-5, 6-3, 6-3.

Never in doubt really!! - Bring even a 200 head size racquet you will still lose to the warrior!!
I am very happy with this result!!

[leosimha]

Rafa beats Roger [again] 7-5, 6-3, 6-3.

7-6 6-3 6-3

[venkkiram]

Never in doubt really!! - Bring even a 200 head size racquet you will still lose to the warrior!!
I am very happy with this result!! I am not happy with the result. Nadal says this is the best so far in this tournament. But I think its Federer's worst performance. There is no execuse for 50 unforced errors.

[raagadevan]

7-6 6-3 6-3

Thanks for pointing out the typo! :)

[Dinesh84]

chai! :(

[ajithfederer]

Told you so

Its not the same all the time. I would be surprised if Nadal wins this match against Feddy in a very convincing manner. Narrow margin win (going till tie breaker or 7-5 kind of ) has edges on the both the sides. Anyone who keep their excellence during those points would win.

[omega]

I am not happy with the result. Nadal says this is the best so far in this tournament. But I think its Federer's worst performance. There is no execuse for 50 unforced errors.

That would have been 0 if not for the blisters no!!
I am extremely happy with the result though...

[venkkiram]

Anyway, I am happy that Federer was able to defeat Andy Murray. That one game was my pick from Fed's notable performances. Having that strength to come back strong till the semis itself a big achievement if considering the age and experience factor.

[venkkiram]

Fed:

"I think that it's been a good start to the season...I feel my best tennis is ahead of me"

"I wish I could have won tonight and made an all Swiss final. That's something I'll regret"

"The lack of opportunities I gave myself created pressure for me...he deserved to win tonight, he was better"

"I enjoy playing against him, it's always going to be a big story going into the match - that's what you train for"

"I think Rafa does a good job of neutralising you...I guess at times I couldn't do what I wanted to do"

"It's not as cool when you lose in straight sets but I enjoy it all the same" Fed tongue in cheek in press ;)

[VinodKumar's]

Intha kodumai-ku rendavathu roundae thothurukalam :twisted:.

[omega]

Intha kodumai-ku rendavathu roundae thothurukalam :twisted:.

Considering where Fed was at the end of 2013, this is an excellent start to the season.
Seriously beating Tsonga & Murray the way he did was remarkable and would have given plenty of confidence to him.
I am sure he would never mind losing to Nadal as he knows that even while he was at his best in Hardcourts (2005-2007) a Hardcourt toddler Nadal won against him, so this is no big deal at all.....

I am very happy as Roger had clearly said that he expects himself to be in prime condition by March-April. I bel18ve!!
Nadal in AO Final makes me even happier!! YES!!

[JamesDap]

^^ Yeah, given how disastrously Fed was playing towards the end around US Open, this is very welcome. We have to be realistic. He's 32. Another grand slam is a long shot now. Just be happy if he keeps playing well at least up to whatever point he gets to in the tournaments. Meantime, title no.14 coming up on Sunday. Would be nothing short of a miracle if Wawrinka can actually beat Nadal. My dad joked yesterday that Wawrinka would have a much better chance of winning the title if Federer won the semi, else Nadal would crush him. No mercy for Wawrinka, sadly.

[venkkiram]

Floored Roger Federer complains at Rafael Nadal's grunting after losing semi-final

http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/tennis/australian-open-2014-floored-roger-federer-complains-at-rafael-nadals-grunting-after-losing-semifinal-9084007.html

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/tennis/australian-open-2014/top-stories/Roger-Federer-hits-out-at-Rafael-Nadals-grunting-slow-play/articleshow/29311723.cms

[omega]

Floored Roger Federer complains at Rafael Nadal's grunting after losing semi-final

http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/tennis/australian-open-2014-floored-roger-federer-complains-at-rafael-nadals-grunting-after-losing-semifinal-9084007.html

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/tennis/australian-open-2014/top-stories/Roger-Federer-hits-out-at-Rafael-Nadals-grunting-slow-play/articleshow/29311723.cms

What the ****, he himself was grunting on a few occasions.
Looks like thats what Rafa can do to you..He instills his qualities to the opponents.
Roger seems to have caught a few (whining, grunting etc etc...)

[raagadevan]

Rafael Nadal's game can scarcely be described as normal

"... what Nadal plays on the court is not always tennis. It's akin to some kind of tribal dialect. Yes, it bears a resemblance to the court game involving a racket, balls and a 78-by-27-foot grid of boxes. But it is wildly different from any other player's game -- past, present and, we can safely say, future. Nadal, a natural righty, holds his racket with his left hand when he plays. He pounds his shots, but also imparts unholy amounts of spin, on his forehand in particular. You think the bathwater here swirls down the drain in a strange direction? It has nothing on Nadal's shots, what with their ducking and dipping and swerving. He hits serves that land in the court, often on the lines, and then bounce at an altitude three times higher than the net. Mentally, he is impregnable".

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/tennis/news/20140124/rafael-nadal-roger-federer-australian-open/

[raagadevan]

Highlights - Roger Federer vs Rafa Nadal - Australian Open 2014:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XvFoPXc5-NU

[raagadevan]

Federer optimistic despite defeat to Nadal

"But I think this is a very good start to the season for me overall. I played some really good tennis here. I still feel my best tennis is only ahead of me right now. So I'm looking forward to the next couple of months, how they're going to play out and hopefully by April I feel like I'm going to be at 100% again."

http://www.espn.co.uk/tennis/sport/story/276771.html

[ajithfederer]

:rotfl:

What the ****, he himself was grunting on a few occasions.
Looks like thats what Rafa can do to you..He instills his qualities to the opponents.
Roger seems to have caught a few (whining, grunting etc etc...)

[JamesDap]

Thalaivar-ku vayasu ayiduchu, romba oda vaccha mudiyala. If Nole goes for a bit hit on the return and manages to put it in, he polambi-fies (see US Open 2011), if Nadal grunts, he polambi-fies. What next?

[raagadevan]

Li Na beats Dominika Cibulkova to win Australian Open final

It was the 31-year-old's third Australian Open final and brings her a second major title after the 2011 French Open.

http://www.bbc.com/sport/0/tennis/25875113

[omega]

Thalaivar-ku vayasu ayiduchu, romba oda vaccha mudiyala. If Nole goes for a bit hit on the return and manages to put it in, he polambi-fies (see US Open 2011), if Nadal grunts, he polambi-fies. What next?

I still think his "lucky shot" comment after US Open 2011 SF loss was valid which Novak himself admitted...
I don't think his complain was about Nadal's grunt. No one was clear about that incident when it happened.
Commentators were wondering if it was against Nadal's time taken between points. Nadal's grunting is nothing new & Roger was not playing against him for the first time.

[raagadevan]

I don't think his complain was about Nadal's grunt.

Looks like it was...

http://www.express.co.uk/sport/tennis/455858/Keep-it-down-Federer-calls-on-umpires-to-clamp-down-on-Nadal-s-tactical-grunting

[JamesDap]

I still think his "lucky shot" comment after US Open 2011 SF loss was valid which Novak himself admitted...
I don't think his complain was about Nadal's grunt. No one was clear about that incident when it happened.
Commentators were wondering if it was against Nadal's time taken between points. Nadal's grunting is nothing new & Roger was not playing against him for the first time.

My grouse is not so much with him calling Djoko's shot lucky, but with proceeding to give a lecture on how players like him were 'taught' to work hard to win their points, blah blah. It was all very patronising and not in good taste given he was the one who had finished on the losing side. Djoko made it clear he took a chance because he HAD to...facing match point against a top player. I am not convinced, in spite of what Federer said then, that he himself would have done anything different had he been in Djoko's shoes. He was just too bitter about losing that day to understand that. Djoko was also by then at the business end of a tremendously successful season (most since McEnroe in 1984, I think) so it came off like Fed trying to pretend Djoke was just this fluke lucky shot player and not the overwhelming no.1 that he was at that time. Of course, later on Fed himself acknowledged Djoko's worthiness so I think it is more about losing (especially long hard fought matches) making him a whiny player.

[Arvind Srinivasan]

What the ****, he himself was grunting on a few occasions.
Looks like thats what Rafa can do to you..He instills his qualities to the opponents.
Roger seems to have caught a few (whining, grunting etc etc...)

:lol:.....So people did notice this....

[Arvind Srinivasan]

Federer for his part has never been a very happy loser has he....I guess he had some words to say about the time taken by Nadal between points as well...I for one think that's a valid argument...Better have the same yardstick for everybody or scrap it all together...A great win for Nadal though...:clap:

[JamesDap]

I think his complaint about time violations is valid, not the one about 'tactical' grunting. I don't think Nadal indulges in tactical grunting any more than anybody else on the men's tour, that is, he doesn't. His grunt is a bit loud but it's nothing compared to Guga and don't even mention the ladies. As Nadal himself said, it's strange it should come up for questioning now because nobody has said anything about Nadal's grunts all these years.

[raagadevan]

Padma Bhushan Award for Leander Paes

http://www.thehindu.com/sport/paes-gopichand-get-padma-bhushan-yuvraj-padma-shri/article5617886.ece?homepage=true

[venkkiram]

குளோசப்பில் பிரசுரமாகும் நடாலின் ரத்தம் வழியும் இடது உள்ளங்கை மூலம் வாழ்க்கை, விதி ரேகைகளை பார்க்கையில் இந்த முறையும் ஆஸி அவருக்கே!

[VinodKumar's]

Whats happening there ... just tuned in and seen Nadal leaving all balls, not serving properly after medical timeout ... whats the problem ?

[VinodKumar's]

Wawrinka is so upset .. paavama irruku :(.

[VinodKumar's]

Suddenly from no where he is playing good in 3rd set ... wawrinka lost mentally and spraying balls :twisted:.

[VinodKumar's]

Nightmare first set, bad start in second set, medical time out, bongu aatam, metal torture to Stan and now he is winning easily ...Stan completely lost and digging grave for himself :notworthy:.

[VinodKumar's]

Congrats Stan. At last you won it. Get well soon Nadal.

# 3 in world :thumbsup: # 1 in Swiss :|.

[VinodKumar's]

Nightmare first set, bad start in second set, medical time out, bongu aatam, metal torture to Stan and now he is winning easily ...Stan completely lost and digging grave for himself :notworthy:.

Konja nera kadupula neraya eluthitaenn .. though I feel those were not bad at that moment ... Nadal's presentation speech slapped me :ashamed:.

[raagadevan]

Congratulations to Stan Wawrinka!! :) Hope this is the first of many Grand Slams to come!

[Russellyhd]

Congrats Wawrinka... Indeed u r deserved :)

[JamesDap]

By some coincidence or design, this is the second Aus Open final in three years that I missed (only partly this time) because of a film. In 2012, I had been called to watch Agneepath by college friends and couldn't refuse but deeply regretted watching the terrible film even as I found out what was going on in Melbourne. This time, I missed the meat - most of the first two sets - by the time I got back from a matinee show of The Wolf of Wall Street. But no regrets this time, had badly wanted to watch the film, really enjoyed it and was more worthwhile than a match that was sadly not a full on contest. Nice to see Wawrinka win, any non-big four player winning is a pleasant surprise. Hopefully he can also add either of Wimb or US Open this year in a hard fought contest instead of today. Nadal will have to wait a bit longer to equalise with Sampras.

P.S: The one that I didn't miss - 2013 - was strangely enough pretty boring and monotonous.

[Arvind Srinivasan]

Wow...just wow....Never expected this. Gave this a miss and hit the bed early thinking the writing was on the wall. Now I have to watch the replay...:clap: Wawrinka....

[venkkiram]

Congratulations to Stan Wawrinka!! :) Hope this is the first of many Grand Slams to come!

+1. Congratulations Wawrinka! Excellent match and the way he used his weapons against Nadal was right on target.

[omega]

Very happy for Stan the Man!! You deserved it for the complete game you have. Way to go as he breaks into the top 3.
Didn't watch the match but as the media plays out it looks like the same old "No one beats a healthy Nadal"

Can't tell if his injury was genuine, but he had made it tough on himself doing it so many times in his career (taking MTO when down) that majority sees it just as a cheap tactic. Crowd booing was a bit too much which would have shattered Nadal for sure!! The mystery continues!!

[ajithfederer]

Wawrinka :clap:. Well done deserved. Beating No 2 & No 1 deserves a grandslam. It's going to be an exciting year in the Men's Circuit in 2014.

[ajithfederer]

And oh yeah the new Swiss Number ONE

https://fbcdn-sphotos-d-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-prn2/t1/1779845_10152191052763701_2082664559_n.jpg

:D

[JamesDap]

Very happy for Stan the Man!! You deserved it for the complete game you have. Way to go as he breaks into the top 3.
Didn't watch the match but as the media plays out it looks like the same old "No one beats a healthy Nadal"

Can't tell if his injury was genuine, but he had made it tough on himself doing it so many times in his career (taking MTO when down) that majority sees it just as a cheap tactic. Crowd booing was a bit too much which would have shattered Nadal for sure!! The mystery continues!!

Ha ha ha, as I said before. I don't buy that favourite Nadal-boy argument anymore. Staying fit enough for the battle through the full two weeks is part of the deal. I sympathise with Nadal that he was not able to fight it out at full strength in the last 2 1/2 sets of the match (that is, I will give him full benefit of doubt as he looked genuinely in pain when I did get to watch the match). But I am not going to suffer Nadal-boys trying to extrapolate what could have beens anymore. A loss is a loss and Wawrinka won fair and square. Ask Nadal not to run around so much and play less physical tennis so that he doesn't have to give injury excuse every time he loses. Wawrinka's backhand is a thing of beauty!!!

[JamesDap]

Even when Fed won Wimbledon 2012, Nadal boys talked it down. Nadal was injured, so Rosol got lucky to beat him and Fed in turn not having to face him. Yeah sure but Fed also beat Djoko and Murray back to back to win. Why so much disdain for other players' efforts, I cannot fathom. As if Fed or any other player is just 'lucky' to remain fit unlike Nadal.

[venkkiram]

Wawrinka's backhand is a thing of beauty!!! + 100. Such a powerful, elegant one!

2014 would be a fantastic year for Tennis fans. Wawrinka, Nadal, Djokovic, Federer, Murray, Berdych, Ferrer, Del Porto, Tsonga, Nishi.. Just thinking about how Wawrinka from nowhere now found a place in this ladder.. is simply superb.

[omega]

+ 100. Such a powerful, elegant one!

2014 would be a fantastic year for Tennis fans. Wawrinka, Nadal, Djokovic, Federer, Murray, Berdych, Ferrer, Del Porto, Tsonga, Nishi.. Just thinking about how Wawrinka from nowhere now found a place in this ladder.. is simply superb.

Wawrinka has been knocking hard right from the start of 2013. It is not from nowhere. Since Nadal & Djokovic holds to the major chunk of points, its literally a close one between 3-8. It will be very exciting how it plays around for the rest of the year. Nadal is obviously very safe until Indian Wells (March) from which point he would have to defend a hell a lot!! He can even it out a bit by going deeper in Wimbledon though!! Hope the AO Final curse doesn't follow him in 2014!!

[raagadevan]

Stanislas Wawrinka steps out of fellow Swiss Roger Federer's shadow

http://sports.ndtv.com/australian-open-2014/news/220026-australian-open-stanislas-wawrinka-steps-out-of-fellow-swiss-roger-federers-shadow

[JamesDap]

The thing about Wawrinka is he is timing the ball so sweetly. Was doing that in 2013 as well, unlucky not to break out last year itself as omega pointed out. Fed used to time it like that all the time in his peak, occasionally produces that magic but the others in the big four are more about power and court coverage. Wawrinka is like Fed with a much sweeter backhand or maybe a one handed backhand version of Agassi. Baseline, but attacking and with great timing.

[Arvind Srinivasan]

Like how Venki put it , 2014's gonna be a great year for tennis. The big two have a good number of points to defend and with the other six breathing down each other's neck, I wouldn't be surprised if the rankings go for a toss in the next few months.

[JamesDap]

I think Gasquet also has the potential to be a good challenger to the top four, if he overcomes what seems to be fragility under pressure. There are a bunch of players who could really bother the big four this year. Nadal has had his ups and downs with injuries but Nole also seems to be tiring.

We are seeing some upheaval in WTA too. As Amritraj said, Bouchard is the player for the future. Ivanovic is also hitting some good form. We might see Sugarpova slide a bit. For Serena, much depends on her fitness.

[leosimha]

Very happy for Stan the Man!! You deserved it for the complete game you have. Way to go as he breaks into the top 3.
Didn't watch the match but as the media plays out it looks like the same old "No one beats a healthy Nadal"

Can't tell if his injury was genuine, but he had made it tough on himself doing it so many times in his career (taking MTO when down) that majority sees it just as a cheap tactic. Crowd booing was a bit too much which would have shattered Nadal for sure!! The mystery continues!!

It is very very bad of Nadal to always be in such a position. I hope it is genuine otherwise it is very annoying tactics by Nadal. Already the Grunting and the lot of Time Taken is not at all good and is very very annoying. The mystery will ever be a mystery. We will never get to know what was he upto. But to me it looked like to take the rhythm of Stan who was in good touch. I felt Stan must have won in 3 straight sets but that lone set by Nadal is a surprise to me.

And yes Stan Wowrinka deserved every bit of this victory. What a superb game to defeat Nadal and emerge victorious. Congratulations to Stan :thumbsup:

It would be better for Nadal to concentrate on his game and come back stronger later.

Wish Magnus Norman was the coach of Federer.

[VinodKumar's]

But to me it looked like to take the rhythm of Stan who was in good touch. I felt Stan must have won in 3 straight sets but that lone set by Nadal is a surprise to me.


Thats what annoyed me. Stan was confused and got irritated when NAdal did not attempt to reach the balls but served well and hit hard fore hands at break points. He could have retired from the match.

[VinodKumar's]

குளோசப்பில் பிரசுரமாகும் நடாலின் ரத்தம் வழியும் இடது உள்ளங்கை மூலம் வாழ்க்கை, விதி ரேகைகளை பார்க்கையில் இந்த முறையும் ஆஸி அவருக்கே!

Was this strategy :huh: ?

[venkkiram]

Was this strategy :huh: ? Nope.. what would have thought about prediction if Nadal won the title? Like the majority, I also predicted Nadal would be defeating Wawrinka.

[ajithfederer]

Sample this Hindu Headline

Wawrinka stops injured Nadal to claim maiden Grand Slam title http://www.thehindu.com/sport/tennis/wawrinka-stops-injured-nadal-to-claim-maiden-grand-slam-title/article5620226.ece



Very happy for Stan the Man!! You deserved it for the complete game you have. Way to go as he breaks into the top 3.
Didn't watch the match but as the media plays out it looks like the same old "No one beats a healthy Nadal"

[ajithfederer]

Saw the match till two and a half sets. Lost interest and slept through the middle of 3rd and opening of 4th and woke up again to see Wawrinka serving for the match. The 1st and opening of the 2nd set was amazing as Stan pummeled away with all the points. The interesting thing happened when Nadal went out for a medical timeout as the idiotic chair umpire said to the repeatedly questioning Stan that he didn't know what the reason for his timeout was. Crowd booing Nadal was the final touch. Nadal was all and out when he served for the previous service game itself as he couldn't move like he always did in the court. And the rest is as they say history.

(Now onto something that i always wanted to write here for sometime)

Roger-Rafa rivalry might have been great but in hindsight i think it might have just killed the sport already. It is the same thing over and over with the expected results. Hit 2 his backhand-make him run around- win the pt with an error/winner. Sure, the rallies might seem interesting but it is (pardon my lack of a better example)like watching a Rajnikanth film. I can understand how seasoned tennis viewers may dislike this. You know what to expect and how it will play out at the end. IT IS BORING. The top 4 (excluding Murray may be) and the ATP are complicit in this disaster. I don't see powerful servers( pete/Goran) wrestling the initiative away from the opponent, no 1-2 service pt winners, serve/volley, no drawing opponents to the net, no lobs. no slices, no dropshots, no variety at all. Even yesterday's match is a replica of the above. Serve was a powerful and a potent weapon which I always loved to see on the court. Nowadays it all boils to who can slug it out more on the court. The result is what you see in terms of Nadal's/other player's injuries!!!!!> What's the friggin point, ATP??? :huh:. I for some reason don't want to blame Nadal, even though its his own downfall playing such physical tennis all the time.

[Arvind Srinivasan]

New Rankings-
1) Nadal- 14330
2) Djokovic- 10620
3) Wawrinka- 5710
4) Del Potro- 5370
5) Ferrer- 5280
6) Murray- 4720
7) Berdych-4540
8) Federer- 4355

[raagadevan]

Stan Wawrinka:

"It's an amazing feeling. I saw Roger winning so many Grand Slams in the past, so now it's my turn to win one". "I will need time to realise what I did in these two weeks. Because at the end, even if Rafa was injured, I think I deserve that Grand Slam because I won against Djokovic, the number two, and I won against Rafa". "I had an amazing two weeks, and I was playing my best tennis ever."


Rafa Nadal:

"It's Stan's day, not my day". "As I said before, I try my best and it was not possible for me today. I'm obviously disappointed and very sad about what happened. But that's life, that's sport. I really had a lot of great moments in my career. That's a tough one. I'll just accept it and try to keep working hard for what's coming".

[JamesDap]

ajithfederer: On the other hand, Nadal and some of the other top players should take some part of the blame. During Bercy 2012, commentators openly hinted that the players had asked for the surface to be slowed down. As I said earlier in this thread, if you want to play brutal tennis on slow courts, then don't complain about too many matches leading to injuries. This style of play is also a factor in injuries. Even though women's tennis is pretty boring (imo) after the retirements of Henin, Clistjers, Hingis, etc, they don't have such long relentless rallies. Even their baseline rallies are more attacking, 'first strike' in nature. Either the players on ATP should play more attacking or they should stop pressurising tournament organisers to slow down the courts even further. Faster courts (and, importantly, lighter balls) will lead to more outright winners and shorter rallies. Even yesterday, Wawrinka was depending more on excellent shotmaking than on matching Nadal toe to toe in athleticism. How was it that he could generate such pace on one handed backhands on the same court, so much that Nadal couldn't even get to some of those winners. Maybe because he wasn't putting so much topspin to slow the f down? :P

Anyway, I think the Federer-Nadal rivalry by itself was fine because Federer never had the patience to go down the brutal route the whole hog. He always tried to finish off the point (albeit unsuccessfully). The problem started when Djoko finally decided he was ready to match, in fact outdo, Nadal for stamina and endurance. From that point on, tennis became a lot more physical.

P.S: But there are actually plenty of volleys, lobs, smashes, drops, slices, etc in contemporary tennis. They probably just get sandwiched between the uber brutal groundstrokes. There are three Wawrinka serve and volley winners in just the highlights package (i.e. probably more instances of serve and volley in the entire match). Even Nadal does an occasional S&V these days, maybe coaxed by Toni to attack and spare his knees a bit.

[raagadevan]

Things we learned from the Australian Open...

Stop with the "Fed is dead" stuff, etc...

http://abcnews.go.com/Sports/federer-back-us-men-falter/story?id=22198983

[ajithfederer]

MUST READ:

BRAIN GAME ANALYSIS
Brain Game: Stan's Tactics Revealed
Melbourne, Australia

by Craig O'Shannessy
|

27.01.2014

Stanislas Wawrinka played the best set of tennis of his life to set up a stunning victory over Rafael Nadal in the final of the Australian Open in Melbourne. Wawrinka had to overcome nerves and an injured Nadal to close out the match but a smart game plan and outstanding execution early on set up the victory.

Wawrinka described his opening set as the “perfect start” for good reason. He won 11/11 first serve points including 3/3 serve and volley points and was 5/5 at the net. “I was moving well, feeling really aggressive, and I played my best set for sure by far,” he said.

Wawrinka’s domination over the World No. 1 to lead 6-3, 2-0 was built around strategic primary patterns (used 7 or 8 times out of 10) when the score was close and then employ secondary patterns (2 or 3 times out of 10) when he was ahead and the scoreboard didn’t apply extra pressure to the riskier tactic. The key was making Nadal unsure what was coming by getting the mix right to disguise the master plan.

Primary - Attack the Forehand
Wawrinka built his set-and-a-break lead with the clever tactic of going after Nadal’s forehand wide in the Ad court. Nadal is always looking to gravitate to his right to turn a backhand into a forehand in the deuce court, so Wawrinka often went wide in the Ad court early in the point to take advantage of this subtle movement. Nadal committed five forehand errors during this period, all in the Ad court, and four of them were sliding defensively as wide as the alley. Wawrinka wasted no time attacking this area, winning the opening point of the match by twice pressuring Nadal deep and wide, forcing a forehand error long down the line.

Primary - The Backhand Cage
Wawrinka constantly put Nadal on defense by hitting to his backhand out wide behind the alley in deuce court exchanges, which had three main benefits for Wawrinka: Nadal had no backhand winners in the first 11 games, it made it tough to hit his favorite run-around forehand in the deuce court and it created a lower percentage, wider angle to go down the line to neutralize the point to Wawrinka’s backhand. Wawrinka’s curling, cross-court forehand essentially put Nadal’s backhand in a cage. Wawrinka broke Nadal for the first time at 1-1, 15/40 with one of these excessively wide rally balls that Nadal could only manage to slice back, bouncing before the net.

Secondary - Backhand Down-The-Line
This was a masterful tactic from Wawrinka that was a crushing blow to Nadal every time it landed. Wawrinka hit the down-the-line backhand winner for the first time at 1-1, 40/15 off a low backhand slice down the line from Nadal. It won Wawrinka the game with a huge exclamation point. He hit it like a rocket as a passing shot in the following game. Nadal could not handle it, leading to the first break of serve of the match. The next time The Swiss used it was with Nadal serving at 1-4, 30/15. Wawrinka crushed three consecutive backhands cross court then pulled the trigger down the line for a spectacular winner. Just the threat of having such a huge weapon without always using it creates doubt and uncertainty in Nadal’s baseline movement and shot selection.

Secondary - Serve and Volley
The scoreboard dictated this clever surprise tactic as Wawrinka did it six times in building his set-and-a-break lead – never when he was behind in the point score; once with the point score tied and five times when he was ahead in the point score, including twice at 40/0 where the pressure was minimised. Wawrinka won five of six and what was interesting was the way he went about it – a sprint to the net with no split step, which enabled him to get well inside the service line when he had to hit a volley.

Nadal’s back injury early in the second set ended Wawrinka’s spectacular play as he now encountered a new opponent who served softer, took more risks and used less patterns. While it seems logical that an injured opponent should be easier to play, quite often it’s the complete opposite as Wawrinka’s brilliant tactics no longer applied. Clarity was replaced with nerves, and as is often the case, Wawrinka hoped Nadal would miss.

Wawrinka battled himself during the third set, which he lost, and for most of the fourth until he got the final break of serve to go ahead 5-3 and then served it out for an incredible, rollercoaster victory. The best set of his life laid the perfect foundation for the best win of his life and the fulfillment of a dream to become a Grand Slam champion.

Craig O'Shannessy uses extensive tagging, metrics and formulas to uncover the patterns and percentages behind the game. Read more at www.braingametennis.com.

http://www.atpworldtour.com/News/Tennis/2014/01/5/Australian-Open-Brain-Game-Nadal-Wawrinka.aspx

[VinodKumar's]

Roger annanuku ithula rendu parcel pannunga ...

[JamesDap]

Superb analysis. He serve volleyed 6 times in the first set and a half and converted 5 out of 6! That's an incredible success rate against Nadal who punishes anybody who comes to the net. Mixing it up well is what Fed tried to do all these years but always failed in the execution.

[venkkiram]

Roger annanuku ithula rendu parcel pannunga ... அப்படியே பார்சல் அனுப்பிட்டாலும்!

[venkkiram]

Same kind of analysis appeared when Djokovic started winning against Nadal and it became a show for some years / some grand slam finals. Anyway, the year 2014 and 15 will tell us more about where Stanimal stands and delivers.

[venkkiram]

By the way, the comments section of that analysis has lot of interesting insights from many. Good time pass.

[ajithfederer]

:lol:. ATP site is a good one. Their professional standards are quite high.

அப்படியே பார்சல் அனுப்பிட்டாலும்!

[ajithfederer]

Ada paavigala 17 granddslam-la kedaikadha perumaya davis cupla kedaikka pogudhu!

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-01-28/swiss-press-hails-australian-open-champion-stanislas-wawrinka/5221622


"Giant," headlined Le Matin, including a signed poster of the player inside a 14-page spread dedicated to the triumph of the native of Saint-Barthelemy, a village which was renamed "Stan-Barthelemy" by its mayor after the victory.

:clap:

[ajithfederer]

STATISTICS
Stan's Rankings Rise Is Biggest In 10 Years
Wawrinka's Rapid Rise
by Greg Sharko
|

28.01.2014


ATP stats and information guru Greg Sharko looks at the numbers behind Stanislas Wawrinka's run to his first Grand Slam title at the Australian Open.

RANKING JUMPERS IN TOP 10

Wawrinka climbed from No. 8 to No. 3 in the Emirates ATP Rankings following his biggest career title. He is the first player to move at least five spots within in the Top 10 since Andre Agassi and Tommy Haas after the Internazionali BNL d'Italia in May 2002. Here are the players who have jumped at least five spots within the Top 10 after a tournament title in the past 24 years in chronological order:
Player

Ranking Jump

Tournament
Stanislas Wawrinka

+5 (No. 8 to No. 3)

2014 Australian Open
Andre Agassi

+6 (No. 9 to No. 3)

2002 Rome
Tommy Haas

+5 (No. 7 to No. 2)

2002 Rome (finalist)
Marat Safin

+5 (No. 7 to No. 2)

2000 US Open
Yevgeny Kafelnikov

+7 (No. 10 to No. 3)

1999 Australian Open
Petr Korda

+5 (No. 7 to No. 2)

1998 Australian Open
Goran Ivanisevic

+5 (No. 9 to No. 4)

1997 Vienna
Andre Agassi

+5 (No. 7 to No. 2)

1994 Paris (Bercy)
Jim Courier

+5 (No. 9 to No. 4)

1991 Roland Garros

OLDEST FIRST-TIME GRAND SLAM TITLE WINNERS

Wawrinka is the fifth-oldest first-time singles Grand Slam champion in the Open Era (since 1968). Here is a look at the Top 10 oldest winners:
Player

Age

Tournament

Previous Best Slam Result
Stanislas Wawrinka
28

2014 Australian Open

SF - 2013 US Open
Goran Ivanisevic
29

2001 Wimbledon

Finalist - Wimbledon (3 times)
Petr Korda
30

1998 Australian Open

Finalist - 1992 Roland Garros
Andres Gomez
30

1990 Roland Garros

QF - Five times (3 RG, 1 W, 1 USO)
Andres Gimeno
34

1972 Roland Garros

Finalist - 1969 Australian Open

WAWRINKA AGAINST TOP 10 OPPONENTS

Last season, Wawrinka won a career-high nine matches against Top 10 opponents and at the Australian Open he defeated three Top 10 rivals in a tournament for the first time. He began last year with an 0-4 record against Top 10 competition before securing his first win at the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters in April. Since that time, Wawrinka is 12-8 against the Top 10 during that stretch and he's defeated every opponent he's played. (He has not faced del Potro, Federer.) Here is the breakdown since April 2013:
Rank

Player

W-L
1)
Rafael Nadal

1-4
2)
Novak Djokovic

1-3
5)
David Ferrer

2-0
6)
Andy Murray

2-0
7) Tomas Berdych 4-0
9) Richard Gasquet 1-0
10)
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga

1-1

-With assistance from Joanna Mather

http://www.atpworldtour.com/News/Tennis/2014/01/5/Australian-Open-Wawrinka-Statistics.aspx

[ajithfederer]

Why I wanted to boo Nadal too

Charles Happell

Written on Tuesday, 28 January 2014 20:24

I was at Melbourne Park for the men's final on Sunday and, to all those sanctimonious types who've wailed about the crowd's heckling of Rafael Nadal, I must say I felt exactly the same way as the boo-boys.

I'd been mesmerised by Stan Wawrinka's play over the first set and a bit. It was tennis of the most sublime quality - backhand winners peeled off down the line, crunching off forehand winners - that rendered Nadal's power game almost impotent.

The crowd had turned up hoping for some sort of contest - anything but the straight-sets bore-athon which had been predicted by just about every expert - and they were loving the way Wawrinka was, in his first Grand Slam final, totally dismantling the world No.1 and raging favourite.

Here was a sporting moment that every underdog-loving Australian could revel in: a no-hoper - tennis' Buster Douglas - playing the match of his life to give the world champ not just a bloody nose but a standing count from the ref.

I was actually, by some ticketing quirk, sitting in Row A, right in the corner of the court, above the Chinese characters that apparently denote the ANZ Bank. Close enough to feel the hoardings reverberate every time a Wawrinka serve crashed into the signage just below me; close enough to see the despair on Nadal's face as his opponent bullied and bossed him around the court in a way that few, if any, players have done before.

When Nadal came back on to the court after his medical time out, at 1-2 in the second set, he walked towards the ball boy just below me to collect a handful of balls, his brow furrowed even more deeply than usual as boos echoed around the stadium. He couldn't seem to comprehend the crowd reaction: they're booing me?

Four nights earlier, I'd seen the usually imperturbable Roger Federer feel aggrieved enough at Nadal's antics to complain to chair umpire Jake Garner about the Spaniard's grunting and time-wasting.

Channel Seven flashed up a stat at one stage of that match, indicating Nadal was taking an average of 28 seconds betweeen points on his service, Federer 20 seconds, the maximum time permissible under ATP rules. So why was Nadal allowed eight seconds longer than everyone else? And why isn't he more regularly called out on that?

Federer wanted to know as much, calling on weak offials to clamp down on the Spaniard's serial gamesmanship.

He later said Nadal had been given just two time violations in the 33 times they'd met, covering 80 hours or more of tennis. Two measly violations. - What bull shit is this!!

Which is why I felt Eva Asderaki, the Greek chair umpire during Nadal's round-four match against Kei Nishikori, deserved some sort of Australia Day medal. There was Nadal serving, with the third set locked at 4-4 and deuce, and taking his usual interminable time between points when Ms Asderaki piped up: ''Time violation, Mr Nadal'', meaning the gobsmacked world No.1 had to forfeit his first serve. :clap:

For me, an absolutely priceless moment that should feature in any tournament highlights package.

(Just to illustrate how Team Nadal doesn't get it, uncle Toni later told Spanish radio it would be better if umpires were drawn from a pool of former players who knew what it was like to be out on court in a pressure situation. "We had a problem with a girl (Asderaki)," uncle Toni gallantly explained to the interviewer.) - :fatigue:. Dayyy just coach your nephew don't try to set game rules.

Nadal's flirtation with gamesmanship - bolder commentators (of the sort you don't tend to find in the Seven commentary booth) might go so far as to call it cheating - has been going on for years.

Here's the start of a piece in the New York magazine from July 2011 about the very same subject:

''Rafael Nadal is in acute distress. He's just lost the game, he's facing a momentum-defining tiebreaker, and his opponent has his second wind. Rafa's just hit yet another impossible shot from an impossible angle, and one foot seems to have borne all the acrobatic brunt. He's in deep crouch, trying to gauge the extent and implications of the pain. Then he heads to his chair and calls for the trainer; the tiebreaker will have to wait; his opponent, oozing adrenaline, will have to cool his heels. After a tense interlude during which his opponent, visibly upset, remonstrates with the umpire to restart, Nadal returns, takes the tiebreaker, and romps. The press waits with bated breath to hear the results of the MRI — will he be able to carry on and defend his title? The results show nothing of any concern, and Nadal smashes his next opponent in four sets, fresh as a daisy...''

That account of Nadal seeking medical attention mid-match took place during his fourth-round US Open victory over Juan Martin del Potro. After days of speculation about the Spaniard's injury, he dismissed Mardy Fish in the next round, telling reporters that he was using a heavy anesthetic to numb the pain in his foot.

Yet that sequence of events could have been from any number of Nadal matches in the past five years. In 2010 at Wimbledon, in the third round against Germany's Philipp Petzschner, Nadal was trailing by two sets to one. Petzschner, as anyone who was watching the game could see, was in the zone and serving bombs that Nadal was simply not able to get a racquet on. - No wonder he calls for lesser fast courts!!

Nadal called for the trainer several times on the way to a hard-fought five-set victory yet never appeared injured, a tactic his opponent characterized after the match as "pretty clever." He did the same thing to disrupt Federer's rhythm during the first set of the 2011 French Open final. In each instance the timing was impeccable, and unsportsmanlike.

So that's was the backdrop to Nadal's injury time out against Wawrinka on Sunday night. That was the reason for the crowd's booing. That was why Wawrinka went ballistic in his courtside seat, berating the chair umpire and gesticulating to uncle Toni and Team Nadal sitting across from him in the stands. - Well done Wawrinka :smokesmirk:

Those who follow the sport for longer than two weeks a year - the ones being derided by Angela Pippos in the New Daily, Cameron Tomarchio in the Herald Sun and Will Brodie in Fairfax as ignorant and boorish - understood exactly what was happening.

That this was Nadal's tried-and-tested fallback position, his modus operandi, when his opponent has all the momentum and he needs to do something to stall proceedings and win himself back some breathing time.

The Swiss player clearly felt he was being duped as well, complaining to chair umpire Carlos Ramos that he deserved an explanation about the nature of Nadal's injury.

The crowd picked up on Wawrinka's annoyance and started slow hand-clapping the Spaniard who was still doing whatever he was doing underneath the Rod Laver stands.

And then when Nadal finally appeared, well that's when they gave it to him with both barrels.

Critics have labelled the booing of Nadal as un-Australian. Yet this concept of what constitutes 'Australian' and 'un-Australian' behaviour - nebulous at the best of times - is now so blurred as to be rendered utterly meaningless.

This country's cricket fans booed England's Stuart Broad for two whole months this summer for doing what every Australian Test cricketer (with one notable exception) has been doing since Ian Chappell had sideburns: not walking after edging a catch. So is that Australian or un-Australian behaviour?

What Australians don't like (if I can indulge in a little racial stereotyping here myself) is shysters and conmen.

And they felt on Sunday night that they - and Wawrinka - were being conned. - :clap:

The Swiss blew him off the court in the first set and then broke him to love in the opening game of the second set (have a look at that on YouTube if you want to see a small slice of tennis perfection) and suddenly Rafa starts grimacing in pain and clutching at his back.

Well that's mighty convenient, isn't it?

Of course he was hobbled by the back complaint but cynics will wonder just how badly. Will he, for example, front up next week, as bright as a button, claiming the back problem was just a momentary spasm and everything is A-OK now? That he's taken a 'heavy aneasthetic to numb the pain'. We'll see.

Nadal is a wonderful champion and gracious winner, always heaping praise on his vanquished opponent. It's this descent into gamesmanship when he's losing, though, which is threatening to become a blot on his career.

http://www.backpagelead.com.au/index.php/tennis/12098-why-i-wanted-to-boo-nadal-too

[JamesDap]

Pretty scathing stuff. Hard to argue with, though. Not to be discriminatory, but Spaniards have a fine track record of gamesmanship. I remember years back a bitter Davis Cup final in which USA (I think) accused Spain of cheating (final was played in Spain IIRC). People are going to pin him down more and more for these strategic breaks because there seems to be a pattern. And IF indeed he gets injured, again, he shouldn't complain so much about fast courts or ridicule the Sampras era as boring which he did.

[raagadevan]

In win-obsessed world, Nadal offered education in defeat

The Straits Times;Tuesday, Feb 04, 2014

Joan Solsona is painting a competitive picture. Rafael Nadal, he beckons me to imagine, is skipping stones across the water. A friend is winning this idle competition, so Nadal cannot stop. His compulsion is to be the better man.

"He has to be a winner," says Solsona, "otherwise it's like he cannot sleep. If he doesn't win, everyone must keep playing. In golf, it is the same. These are his hobbies, imagine what he is like in tennis, his professional life."

My conversation with Solsona - a Spanish journalist who has known Nadal since he was 12 - occurs an hour before the Australian Open final last Sunday as I try to comprehend Nadal's urge to win. If his appetite for victory suggests a primitive stone-age man with a club, it also makes him a more evolved competitor than his peers. Yet this idea is transplanted after the final by a even more baffling consideration. If winning is so essential to his being, how does he lose so well?

That Nadal fought on against Stanislas Wawrinka was an answering to the coding of his DNA. Expected you might think, yet fellow athletes, who understand effort better than us, swooned. Joel Selwood, an Australian Rules football captain, from a physically brutal sport, tweeted: "Would love #Nadal as a team-mate!" But if Nadal had quit, this might have been understandable. Accosted again by injury he was agonised by it, but never let it win. This victory he didn't allow.

He played on for he answered another code, a worthy, unwritten one, that demands you complete a match. To finish is to not hand the other man an amputated victory and in effect you are honouring the man who is destroying you. But if Nadal said he did this for Wawrinka, and the fans, he also did it "for me". To finish is to practise not giving up, it is to give yourself a chance - Wawrinka might have collapsed - and it is later a reflection of who he is: the man who gave everything. Or else is nothing.

Sainthood is not on offer in athletic arenas for to expect it is to strip sport of its different complexions and to misunderstand its madness. If we are hostile in the stands, imagine the middle. Imagine the fury, the exhaustion, the want. The athlete is immersed, even lost, often deaf, in this reactive, instinctive world of no respite. That he can think clearly is staggering, that he might hurl an unsavoury epithet at himself or a toss a racket is human.

Yet as much as we relish the mercurial man, we must marvel at how Nadal kept a hold of himself while his world fell apart. There is unkind chatter over his medical time-out as a calculated ploy - a tennis version of football's diver - but if he returned immediately to 195kmh serves and unaffected sprints then a case might be made. But no, he was hurt, it was evident, and the issue instead was his ability to reach into a decency when the moment was uniquely indecent to him.

The endurance of Nadal lies not in miles run but conversely in days of sitting idle as the instrument that is his body was being repaired. He endured pain in the knees, he endured frustration as other men rose while he had fallen, he endured even as his stationary life reversed the very idea of his existence.

Everything must be rebuilt, over months, first body, then movement, then precision, then hope, and then another body part, this time the back, mutinies. You want to smash every racket at this bullying by life - why me, why again - yet after the match, with no time for calmness to settle, Nadal says: "Just a tough day. But lot of people in the world have a lot of very tough days. I am not this kind of person, so I feel very lucky."

Nadal's uncle forbade the throwing of a racket for it was disrespectful to an instrument many kids ache to own. Such tutoring by family to distinguish between athletic disappointment and real suffering has kept him from an excessively self-centred view of life. Taught by the example of Roger Federer, he has found the balance between sport and life. Educated by the brutality of his sport - "You're out there alone. You really are. It's the ultimate one-on-one sport," said Pete Sampras - it has bred a particular respect: you are alone, but you understand so is the next man.

Nadal did not skip his press conference, for tennis demands the athlete must confront rival, crowd and then interrogation. This is his job, yet here also lay his mettle. On the third question on his injured back, he responded: "It is not the moment, as I said after the first question. This is not the moment to talk a lot about the back."

To a query on the briefly petulant crowd, he noted: "You never will hear me talk badly about the crowd here."

Winning tells grand stories as it did about Wawrinka's urge to improve in athletic middle-age, but the champion is not enough in sport. To decode sport, we need the defeated man. For everyone is defeated and only in the emotional, public whirlpool of loss can we appreciate the core of the athlete. We see them wear masks, resort to cliche, show defiance - and why not, they are hurt - but also lift. Such athletes reveal to us not mythical hero, but fine human player.

And, if we can - and must - look past this tribalistic and mundane view of tennis, where to elevate Federer we must diminish Nadal, and vice versa, we will find a grateful education. For by being weepy yet never whiny, Nadal defeated self-pity. Like a stone thrown over water, he, the competitor, skipped over sports' demons and found grace on the other shore. This is victory in itself.

http://news.asiaone.com/news/sports/win-obsessed-world-nadal-offered-education-defeat?page=0%2C1

[ajithfederer]

It is. Isn't it?

An absolute gem of a comment where in a fellow tables all "such instances" in the same article.



May be except for 2011 (when Djokovic bashed him fair-and-square) and late last year, but from 2009 (not looking at earlier instances), almost all of Rafa's losses have been "attributed to injury", in one way or another. Or "fatigue".

Cases in point - loss to Soderling at RG09, loss to del Potro at USO09, WTF09, retirement at AO10, WTF10, loss to Rosol, Darcis and now, Stan.

Similarly... He was "fatigued" in his losses to Roger at WTFs in 2010 and 2011 (where he was pummelled, btw), but the very next week - he most certainly was fresh as ever and took his country to Davis Cup victories.

Of course, many other matches which I haven't bothered mentioning (e.g. walkover to Murray at Miami 2012), the numerous "dubious" timeouts during a match [v. Del Potro at Wimbledon 2011 (not the US Open like you've mentioned), v. Federer at RG 2011, etc.] and the like.

Some instances I could quickly pen down... I am sure there are more.

2006 - Roger Federer calls out Toni - midmatch - for illlegal coaching.
2006 - Ivan Lubijic got pissed off with Rafa's time wasting and made it clear everyone wanted Federer to win the French.
2006 - Scolding Tomas Berdych who made a "Shhh" gesture to the crowd after beating Rafa.
2007 - Robin Soderling, at Wimbledon, for time-wasting and butt-picking before every point.
2008 - Medical time-out against Federer in Hamburg while he was losing.
2010 - Retires against Andy Murray at the Australian Open (but "bravely battles" David Ferrer next year)
2010 - Medical time-out against Philipp Petzschner and illegal coaching
2010 - Wimbledon; against Robin Söderling. Argues and threatens umpire Carlos Ramos, I think. Even had the crowd jeering. Can you actually imagine Wimbledon center court crowd jeering Rafa!?!
2010 - World Tour Finals. Against Berdych. Argues with umpire Bernandez (one of the respected fellows) and threatens to not play.
2011 - Wimbledon; against Juan Martín del Potro. Takes a time out to get some tape cut, hobbles before MTO, comfortable goes on to win (despite tough DelPo fightback) afterwards.
2012 - Indian Wells; doesn't take a loo break before Federer serves for the match (play had already been suspended due to rain); but rushes for one just before *match point*.
2012 - Madrid; Blue clay is fine when he beats Nikolay Davydenko but dangerous when he blows a lead to Fernando Verdasco.
2012 - French open; conditions are good when winning and bad when losing.
2012 - Wimbledon; complaining about opponent, time wasting, illegal coaching and bumping on opponent (Lukas Rosol).
2013 - "Pain" after loss to Steve Darcis; nothing when winning almost everything all year!
2013 - Paris; Mysteriously loses to Ferrer, cites "rustiness", but handily defeats the same opponent four days later at the O2.
2014 - Australian Open again. Needn't elucidate.

Oh btw - returning to that fourth rounder you've referred to - he gave Asderaki an earful following the match, chatted sheepishly with Courier later and et voila! Eva was nowhere to be seen again.


Pretty scathing stuff. Hard to argue with, though. Not to be discriminatory, but Spaniards have a fine track record of gamesmanship. I remember years back a bitter Davis Cup final in which USA (I think) accused Spain of cheating (final was played in Spain IIRC). People are going to pin him down more and more for these strategic breaks because there seems to be a pattern. And IF indeed he gets injured, again, he shouldn't complain so much about fast courts or ridicule the Sampras era as boring which he did.

[JamesDap]

Asderaki ran afoul of Serena as well. That time, Serena was the one who got berated but Asderaki didn't account for the diabolical powers of the problem solver. Hate the way ATP pays blind obeisance to Nadal in particular and the top guys in general. It's time for things to go full circle; it's the players who are getting too big for the sport. Not a comment on Federer by the way. Bad loser he may be, but he is pretty old school when it comes to time taken between serves and such.

[VinodKumar's]

2012 - Indian Wells; doesn't take a loo break before Federer serves for the match (play had already been suspended due to rain); but rushes for one just before *match point*.

He was welcomed with a wide ace match point :)

[raagadevan]

ATP Rankings (February 17, 2014)

1. Rafael Nadal(ESP) 14,085
2. Novak Djokovic(SRB) 10,580
3. Stanislas Wawrinka(SUI) 5,620
4. David Ferrer(ESP) 5,440
5. Juan Martin Del Potro(ARG) 4,960
6. Thomas Berdych(CZE) 4,950
7. Andy Murray(GBR) 4,795
8. Roger Federer(SUI) 4,305
9. Richard Gasquet(FRA) 2,950
10. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga(FRA) 2,885
11. Milos Raonic(CAN) 2,440
12. Tommy Haas(GER) 2,435
13. John Isner(USA) 2,320
14. Fabio Fognini (ITA) 2,260
15. Kei Nishikori (JPN) 2,170

[raagadevan]

4th-ranked David Ferrer of Spain loses to 54th–ranked Ukrainian Alexandr Dolgopolov 4-6, 4-6 in the Rio Open semifinal;
and 1st-ranked Rafael Nadal struggles past 40th ranked fellow Spaniard Pablo Andujar 2-6, 6-3, 7-6 (12-10) in the other semi.

[JamesDap]

Not related to any of the above news items, just something that occurred to me was: why do people rant about David Ferrer reaching semis of US Open or QF of Wimbledon AND go on to add that clay courters getting that far in the 90s was unthinkable. Because it's not true. Corretja reached the QF in 96 US Open and stretched Sampras to 5 sets. Kuerten also reached QF stage at both US and Wimbledon BEFORE either surface was slowed down. Kafelnikov won Aus Open and reached the semis of US Open. MAYBE people didn't notice these things at that time with the domination of Sampras and other attacking fast court specialists but to pass that off as a factual statement is unjustified. I am not denying for a minute that conditions changed in the new millennium. But that it was impossible for players with a mainly clay court based game to do well on fast courts seems to be more of an, er, American media myth than reality. Wilander, Lendl won US Open in 80s and even before graphite racquets, Vilas was able to win that tournament in 1977. That he was not a good serve and volley player (at least by the standards of the time) is borne out by the fact that Borg decided to practice playing aggressively in the 1976 QFs against him so that he would be prepared for the final against Nastase. :mrgreen:

[raagadevan]

Rio semifinals - Highlights:

Source: ATP World Tour

http://www.atpworldtour.com/Media/Video-Landing.aspx?/*/Tennis/Media/Videos/Uploaded/2014/2/22/Rio%20De%20Janeiro%202014%20Saturday%20Highlights# ooid=p5dm5zazoL4IB_rngbW2dJlNZ7IWDq2Q

[raagadevan]

Alexandr Dolgopolov serves 10 aces, but also a double fault in the second set tie-breaker. Rafael Nadal wins the Rio Open 6-3, 7-6 (7-3).

Latvian Ernests Gulbis (ranked 23) wins the Marseille Open beating Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (ranked 10) 7-6 (7-5), 6-4.

[omega]

Uncle Toni gives his take on Rafa's relationship with French fans:

http://www.tennis.com/pro-game/2014/02/uncle-toni-gives-his-take-rafas-relationship-french-fans/50713/

What's up with this clown (Uncle Toni)??

[raagadevan]

Del Potro's injury sends Somdev into second round in Dubai

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/tennis/top-stories/Del-Potros-injury-sends-Somdev-into-second-round-in-Dubai/articleshow/31002992.cms

[raagadevan]

Federer To Face Djokovic In Dubai SFs

http://www.atpworldtour.com/News/Tennis/2014/02/9/Dubai-Thursday-Federer-Rosol-Djokovic.aspx


Murray Fights Past Simon; Ferrer's Acapulco Campaign Cut Short

http://www.atpworldtour.com/News/Tennis/2014/02/9/Acapulco-Thursday-Ferrer-Murray-Dimitrov-Gulbis.aspx

[VinodKumar's]

kadum porattam at Dubai.

[VinodKumar's]

Unnai poi nambunaen paaruya :banghead: .. as usual choking when serving for match :twisted:.

[VinodKumar's]

Roger upsets Novak to reach Dubai final.

[Arvind Srinivasan]

Federer gets to the final in Dubai. Well done...:clap:

[JamesDap]

Great match. Fed was aggressive whenever he found an opportunity but also held his own from the baseline and even often on the backhand side. Djoko seemed to tire out a bit even as Fed upped the ante.

[VinodKumar's]

Federer's backhand and net points were solid today. Most important thing was his confidence and temperament. Glad today he did not choke at the important moments. Hope he gets some momentum from this match.

[raagadevan]

Federer now leads Djokovic 17-15 in their FedEx ATP Head2Head series.

Highlights of today's semifinal match:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Ji5rM90FCI

[raagadevan]

Top stars in IPTL line-up; draft on Sunday

"Some of the biggest names in tennis -- world No.1 Rafael Nadal, No.2 Novak Djokovic and Wimbledon champion Andy Murray -- have signed-up for Mahesh Bhupathi's International Premier Tennis League (IPTL) which will have its player draft in this dazzling desert city on Sunday."

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/tennis/top-stories/Top-stars-in-IPTL-line-up-draft-on-Sunday/articleshow/31187600.cms

[omega]

Great match. Fed was aggressive whenever he found an opportunity but also held his own from the baseline and even often on the backhand side. Djoko seemed to tire out a bit even as Fed upped the ante.

Must be the weakest era ever...
32 year old guy, way past his prime winning against a modern strong era player...

[JamesDap]

Has happened before, on the Grand Slam stage no less, Sampras beating Roddick in US Open 2002. Or Becker beating Chang in Aus Open 1996. Becker even joked at that time that his days were numbered while Chang was still young. I mean, sure, Becker wasn't that old but he was way past it already.

Also Federer is still much fitter than typical 32-33 year old washed up tennis stars. He looked much fresher and was more mobile than Djoko in the third set.

EDIT: Another startling instance now that I began to read up about old man heroics. How could I leave out the grand daddy Jimmy Connors? Beat Stefan Edberg in straight sets in US Open 1989!!! :shock: Would have been 37 at that time.

[VinodKumar's]

:banghead: ... ellathulayum business aaki naaradikirathae ivanunga polappu.

[raagadevan]

Rohan Bopanna (India) & Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi (Pakistan) win the Dubai Duty Free Championship Doubles title beating Daniel Nester (Canada) & Nenad Zimonjic (Serbia) 6-4, 6-3.

[VinodKumar's]

Again kadum porattam in Dubai.

[raagadevan]

WOW! What a match! Federer wins 3-6, 6-4, 6-3! :)

[Arvind Srinivasan]

He's got it...:clap: :clap:

[VinodKumar's]

He made it. :victory: ...

[VinodKumar's]

Back to back win against top 10 players ... he played good and aggressive tennis for last two days .. Keep it up Roger :ty:.

[Russellyhd]

Well done feddy :thumbsup: