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I like Hugh's stuff!
Have to quibble about his analysis of the Indian Wells match. Sinner seemed to have the edge until he fell hard and couldn't play well after that. He appeared to hurt his right elbow plus both wrists. Near the end, Sinner appeared to hit a pair of one-handed backhands from deep. There were questions about whether he'd skip Miami to recover.Comment
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Hugh is certainly good at analysis but for me it's that ability to inject pace and spin on forehands that separates Carlos from the rest...in exactly the same way as Federer used to. He can use greater topspin and clearance on demand and he can also rip a flatter ball at 98mph in the same breath. The shot is so explosive.StottyComment
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Absolutely. It was amazing to see in person. One pass against Zverev was simply explosive. Great forehand from Zverev, took Carlos way out. On dead run hit a 99 MPH ball angles slightly behind Alcaraz in Zverev's forehand corner. The German never moved.
Don't mean to make it sound metaphysical but it just felt different. You see attempts at that shot all the time and they generally feel like low percentage shots and when they land it's lucky. This was a bullet with a couple feet margs on two sides as if Alcaraz wasn't redlining.Comment
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Brutal loss for Matteo. No putting lipstick on that.Comment
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Martin Damm, the 6'8" young lefty American, had a 2 tiebreaker win over Z Zhang, who is a good player. Martin's serve is top notch, and he has a good all court game. He is certainly one to watch. He is only 20 years old.Comment
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Yes I can imagine. There is nothing like seeing stratospheric players live in full flight. The best match I ever saw was Roger dismantle Raonic. I say 'best' in terms of incredibly shotmaking that was utterly breathtaking at times.
There is nothing like actually being there to witness it.StottyComment
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TD James Blake is speeding up play at the Miami Open to make for more exciting tennis ( Here's hoping Tommy Haas of Indian Wells is paying attention).
We'll see how that plays out with this year's miserable, rain-delayed beginning, but here is information from "Pro Tennis Bettor nish"
hese are the key court Speed stats from the Miami Masters 1000 since 2019, when the tournament moved from Key Biscayne to Miami Gardens. You can see how last year there was a clear increase in the Speed of the court conditions. The tournament director, James Blake, already hinted at it in 2023. He said that the courts would be faster compared to the previous year. He also added the following: "Laykold is such a well-respected company with a proven track record and that's why we trust that they're going to do a great job of making sure that the courts are exactly what we ask for. If we ask them to speed up the courts a tiny bit or to slow them down a little, Laykold always delivers the pace we require. Our experience of working with them over the years has been really positive. The court is such an important part of the player's experience: we need to take it seriously and we absolutely do." We'll see how 2024 unfolds, but initially the 36 qualifying matches played so far seem to show speed data close to those of 2023: • 72.8% Points won on the First Serve • 82.1% Service Holds • 0.27 TBs/Set • 0.52 Aces/Game
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I just wonder how much Blake is getting bunged to give such a ringing endorsement. Well, it happens you know.
I am always suspicious when I hear cringeworthy endorsements.
On the whole it's the type of hard court that should be tweaked more. This acrylic stuff seems to everywhere. It's a soulless surface that discourages variety in my view. In short, it's the surface of the modern player and the killer of artistry.
StottyComment
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The match of the tournament so far was Chris Eubanks with a very tight 3 set win over pugnacious Dan Evans,, 7-6, 3-6, 7-6, before a very engaged raucous pro Eubanks crowd. It was a great win for Chris and super tough loss for Evans. Evans was serving up 6-4 in the 3rd set tiebreaker, hit a great 1st serve and got a weak short blooper return from Chris. Chris just stayed put in the deuce court, and Evans, instead of going to the open court, crushed a high forehand right back to Chris. Chris responded with a block continental forehand for a winner past Evans at the net. Chris then served to make it 6 all in the tiebreaker, and went on to take the match from there. Both players played great.
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Sinner and Griekspoor get rained off at 3-3 in the second set. Griekspoor with his rather heavy game is sticking to his plan and proving difficult to break down. It will be interesting to see if Sinner can get through this.StottyComment
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