Novak is probably a better tennis player overall than Roger or Rafa.
He’s just a horrible human being.
All hail the queen of tennis! Her ranking points are about twice that of second place (8631 vs Kontaveit’s 4326). For a comparison, the top seven men are above half the current number one. Świątek is simply unstoppable right now. She has no weaknesses that anyone can exploit.
Update me on women’s tennis. Where are the Williams sisters at? Still playing? Considering retirement?
Yeah, Djokovic is the heel of professional tennis. He’s always there to jeer at. I love watching Federer play–it’s beautiful, but I’m resigned that he’ll never play at his former level again. Nadal seems like a good guy and works hard, but his play doesn’t do anything for me.
My current infautations in tennis are are Maria Sakkari and Stefanos Tsitsipas. Something about those Greeks is fun to watch. Tsitsipas has been on somewhat of a slump lately, which is discouraging.
Dude hits some outrageous shots, though. I was watching the final from Sunday and you can see why Ruud came out after and said Nadal “ate me alive”. It’s a whole different level with the top 3 guys. Nadal hit some angles that were just outrageous. Only he, Federer(in his prime), Novak, and Nadal can do it consistently. Other top pros hit amazing shots, but Nadal on Sunday hit so many of them.
I don’t know if they’re “officially” retired, but they’re effectively retired. Not a factor at all in current tennis.
If you haven’t watched Iga Świątek play, do so. I don’t know what her longevity will be, but she has the potential to be at or near top for at least half a decade, if not longer. No one else is close to her level. For a while it looked like there’d be a lot of churn at the top after the Williams faded out, but Świątek has got it.
Besides Sakkari (who I’ve been following for a while and who gets huge karma points from me for signing an autograph for my kids after she lost a match), I watch the Americans. We have several good up and coming players now. Coco Gauff gets all the media attention (and she deserves it, being young and rising), but there’s also Jessica Pegula and Danielle Collins. They’ve been around for a while and it feels like they’re getting their ducks in a row. Probably too old to make it much higher than they’re currently at, unfortunately.
Others to watch are Leylah Fernandez (Canada) and Emma Raducanu (British), both teens and lots of potential. But they’re not quite well-rounded enough at the moment. Tons of skill and when they first went pro, they were devastatingly good. But they each have some minor deficits in their games that have been exploited as their opponents’ coaches review their play. (Compare to Świątek who has no flaws.) I assume they’ll up their game over the next few years. I hope to see some nice rivalries between them and Coco and Iga.
Finally, I’m a huge fan of Naomi Osaka. She’s the local SoCal star. But I think she’s just burned out and just doesn’t have it in her to compete at the world level any more. I wish her well and don’t expect her rising again.
No doubt, he is good. In mine opinion, he is good through sheer hang-doggedness, not beautiful form. Make no mistake, I think that’s a good thing! He’s a great example of how hard work can catapult someone from “merely” great to the pinnacle. He just doesn’t give up, even when he probably should.
It’s just I prefer watching Federer (and Djokovic as the bad guy) for superb tennis execution. Or Tsitsipas, although he’s not at their level.
I just read Serena Williams is going to play Wimbledon, so she is indeed still going.
Since ATP and WTA are cancelling any points earned, it’s basically an exhibition now.
I’m not familiar with this topic. What is happening?
The Wimbledon tournament has banned all players flagged Russia or Belarus, because of the invasion of Ukraine. Other tournaments remove the flags, but allow the players to participate, which is consistent with the policies of ATP and WTA. Their stance is that because players represent themselves, not a nation, the players should not be punished, but their association with a nation is removed.
So in response, ATP and WTA have removed all ranking points from Wimbledon wins. It’s merely a very well paid exhibition now. It’s not entirely clear how the players will react. Money is good but so are ranking points.
https://www.atptour.com/en/news/atp-statement-removal-of-ranking-points-wimbledon-2022
Wow, weird. Any major player boycotting over the move?
I’m not sure; I’ve been too busy to read the latest news. Last I saw was “it’s up in the air”. Players are always balancing “earn money now” vs “heal minor injuries”, and this adds another factor to consider.
I’m curious about Rafa Nadal. He’s won both the Australian and French Opens, which means he’s on pace for a Grand Slam. That’s a huge incentive to play. But he’s injured. He was doing some serious pain management at the French Open. It’s a tough call.
Serena Williams will be playing Wimbledon as a Wild Card invitee. Having not played since she was injured at Wimbledon last year, she has zero ranking points.
How well is a 40-year old woman who hasn’t played a competitive match in a year going to do against the top players in the world? I hope she doesn’t embarrass herself. It was tenuous enough when she was playing 6 tournaments a year, but none at all? If anyone could make a comeback at 40, it’s her, but she has to actually be serious about it. Otherwise, she needs to formally retire.
I get it. I mean, she might do well. Maybe she’ll announce her retirement. I think Roger isn’t going to play Wimbledon, but I hear he is signed up for Basel and I bet he retires there. I just think he’s realizing he isn’t going to be top-level competitive.
US Open doubtful for NoVax due to Covid restrictions, but Russians and Belarusians will be eligible.
I’m ok with that.
Maybe? I see that the US Open website says this right now about players and vaccines.
Great - Cilic had to bow out of Wimbledon because he got covid while practicing with fucking NoVax on Centre Court last Thursday.
Even before this, I refused to watch this guy play.
I’ve only been watching sporadically (Wimbledon is my least favorite of the majors).
Semi-finals start tomorrow. Ons Jabeur (#3, Tunisia) plays Tatjana Maria (unseeded, Germany). Simona Halep (#16, Romania) plays Elena Rybakina (#17, Kazakhstan). I’m guessing Jabeur is favored, but I think Halep will win it. Number one seed Iga Świątek does have a weakness afterall: grass surface, and was eliminated in the third round.
More semi-finals on Friday. Nick Kyrgios (unseeded, Australia) plays Rafael Nadal (#2, Spain), and Novak Djokovic (#1 Serbia) plays Cameron Norrie (#9, Great Britain). Nadal and Djokovic have both shown vulnerability, but realistically, one of the will win the championship. I’ll be cheering for the home favorite, Norrie.
I’m happy to see Americans get to the quarter-finals: Amanda Anisimova (#20) and Taylor Fritz (#11). hoping they continue to do well.
Official draw brackets with results (PDF) at