Love, Balls and Courting: Tennis V

I think one reason Roger has kept playing so long is to try and extend his slam record since he knows with Nadal and Djokovic still going strong there is never a point it is fully safe. Himself and Serena playing so well in their late 30s and most of the top 10 in the ATP being in their 30s make that even more clear when Nadal and Djokovic are only 31 and 32. When Del Potro and Cilic turn 30 later this month there wont be an active slam champion on the mens side younger than 30 unless someone in their 20s somehow wins this U.S Open.
 
Is there anyone who would like to see Isner win the U.S Open? I know a lot dont like him and put him in the servebot category but he is such a nice guy, and I think his window will close soon being 33 and not being a supertalent like Federer or super athlete like Djokovic/Nadal. This is probably one of his last good chances at a slam, especialy with his unlikely great year at this age. And I admire his hard work and making so much of limited talent.
 
For those of us on the US east coast near NYC, the humidity was brutal last night--even worse than the heat of the past few days.

I would have used that as an excuse for either player, although it was a level playing field weatherwise.
 
Is there anyone who would like to see Isner win the U.S Open? I know a lot dont like him and put him in the servebot category but he is such a nice guy, and I think his window will close soon being 33 and not being a supertalent like Federer or super athlete like Djokovic/Nadal. This is probably one of his last good chances at a slam, especialy with his unlikely great year at this age. And I admire his hard work and making so much of limited talent.

Considering his racist, misogynist, and homophobic tweets, I hope he loses every match he plays.
 
Hopefully Del Potro wins his 2nd U.S Open then. Would rather a surprise winner than the expected (a Djokovic or Nadal win, the expected result even before the Federer upset).
 
Del Potro and Isner was an outstanding match. Lots of fun to watch. The talent and determination of Del Potro was too much in the end though!
 
Sooooo happy for Serena!! Only two more matches to go and she will tie the all-time number!! Then steamroll through the next year and her place at the top in history will be sealed. Good that Sloane Stephens was bounced. This should not be an impossible feat now.
 
Sooooo happy for Serena!! Only two more matches to go and she will tie the all-time number!! Then steamroll through the next year and her place at the top in history will be sealed. Good that Sloane Stephens was bounced. This should not be an impossible feat now.

There will always be some delusional Graf fanatics who still say it is her even when Serena reaches #25. Delusional is all they are though. I think it is ridiculous there is even a Graf vs Serena for female GOAT debate now. Graf had her biggest rival stabbed, and still has already been passed by Serena in slams and tied or passed in almost all categories.
 
I don't think he meant that Graf personally had Seles stabbed. I understand what he meant. Had Seles not been stabbed she certainly would have won many more of those slams that went to Steffi. When Monica was taken out, she owned Graf. I would even say that the GOAT if not Serena would be Martina Navratilova.
 
Navratilova at her best was unbeatable. She played like a man. So powerful and accurate. I agree she is 2nd best to Serena, over overrated Graf.
 
Maia Shibutani is attending her first U.S. Open tonight (presumably with Alex), courtesy of their sponsor Polo Ralph Lauren (official outfitter of the tournament): https://www.instagram.com/p/BnXQW-wAZSS/?taken-by=maiashibutani
ETA photo of them both: https://www.instagram.com/p/BnXY_0ehD_g/?taken-by=shibsibs

:cheer: for both Naomi Osaka and Kei Nishikori reaching the semifinals - they are the first Japanese players to reach the final four at the same Grand Slam. :)

ETA:

And Madison Keys just advanced & will meet Osaka in the SF!
 
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Considering his racist, misogynist, and homophobic tweets, I hope he loses every match he plays.

I have searched far and wide, and I also follow tennis fairly extensively. I have not seen anything that would indicate this. Are you sure you aren't mixing him up with Tennys Sandgren?
 
I have searched far and wide, and I also follow tennis fairly extensively. I have not seen anything that would indicate this. Are you sure you aren't mixing him up with Tennys Sandgren?

Many of his posts actually were him sticking up for Tennys, whom he considers a buddy.
 
Nadal retired from the semifinals after losing two sets to Del Potro (?).

ETA- Nadal had a right knee injury and he was barely moving in the second set, from one article.
 
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No surprise- Djokovic is in the USOpen Final. Straight sets win over Nishikori.

On his way back to the locker, Nishikori ignored fans who were asking for his autograph on hats and balls. Unsportsman like, or understandable?
 
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The majority of players I've seen on TV who've lost in the later rounds of the U.S. Open don't stop to sign autographs afterwards. (Djokovic is the correct spelling, BTW).

Looking forward to the Serena vs. Naomi Osaka final tomorrow!!

Thanks for the correction.
 
Oh man we got rid of cable a few months ago but I may need to sign up for a Hulu or Sling TV trial to watch the two finals. Feel bad for Nadal but love DelPo. :cheer2:
 
On his way back to the locker, Nishikori ignored fans who were asking for his autograph on hats and balls. Unsportsman like, or understandable?
Fans really need to cut these athletes a break on whether or not they sign autographs before or after competing. Sometimes it's best to move along and not get caught up in it for many different reasons which do not automatically make the athlete in question an unsportsmanlike jerk. Fan’s shouldn’t assume the worst, take it as an insult or be offended by it. Occasionally, it happens to unfold the way that it does. No harm, no foul.
 
I don't think he meant that Graf personally had Seles stabbed. I understand what he meant. Had Seles not been stabbed she certainly would have won many more of those slams that went to Steffi. When Monica was taken out, she owned Graf. I would even say that the GOAT if not Serena would be Martina Navratilova.

I wouldn't say that Seles owned Graf before the stabbing. In 1990, Seles was 2-0 against Graf but in 1991 when Seles was #1, Graf was 2-0. In 1992, they were 1-1. And in the one match they played in 1993, Seles won it in 3 sets.

However, Monica definitely did dominate the tour that Steffi was a part of. And that's because Monica almost always brought her A-level stuff at the majors whereas Graf was often faltering in earlier rounds in 91 and 92.

IMO, one issue with Steffi's game in the early 90s was that her backhand had changed. In the late 80s, she had a very hard and vicious slice backhand that had a lot of block on it. In 1990 she broke her thumb in a skiing accident and when she came back during the claycourt season that year, she was hitting her backhand much closer to her body than before, making it go from a hard and heavy slice to a short and choppy one. She was also hitting it crosscourt all the time which made it predictable and both her down the line slice backhand and topspin backhand started to disappear as well.

Many of Graf's die-hard fans like to say it was solely because of the blackmail scandal in 1990 that she lost her dominance but it was much more than that. Yes, some of it was her problems like her groundstrokes changing after her thumb injury, some health issues, her hanging onto a very old and archaid Dunlop racket for years. But it was also because of the awesome rise of Seles (many Graf fans never acknowledge this which is ridiculous) and the improvement of Sabatini. I actually think Graf's toughest test in the early 90s was Sabatini because Sabatini's junkballing and chip & charge strategies exploited the issues with Steffi's game like her impatience and her unwillingness to move forward after hitting good shots. And the few times that Steffi would come into net in an effort to take the net away from Sabatini, Sabatini was really able to exploit that Steffi was very poor at reading the ball when at net.

The stabbing was terrible on many levels because not only would Seles have won more majors (people who say otherwise are completely deluded) but it robbed tennis of a potentially amazing rivalry. Because Steffi was showing signs of getting back into form during the years between 1993 and 1995. Graf looked much livelier in 1993 than in 91 and 92. And even more so in 1994 when she finally switched to a new Wilson tennis racket. But it was in 1995 that she at long last fixed the extension issue with her backhand. She also brought her down the line slice backhand back, she was hitting her second serve with a lot more topspin on it, and she was taking her forehand earlier than before. Unfortunately, Seles was out of action and Sabatini was sputtering badly. It's a real shame because this potential rivalry that didn't quite happen could've lifted tennis to amazing heights.
 

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