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Originally posted by jimlosaltos
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I saw fritz play sinner courtside at indian wells I think 5 years ago. This was before Sinner got really good. And I remember thinking fritz was the most talented player I had seen that day. He won points so easily, it was scary. It just was that he was a psycho and mentally not as strong as sinner. -
Sinner had his fast forward/video game going vs Musetti. Musetti had no chance. Not a small margins situation.
Last edited by stroke; 09-04-2025, 11:25 AM.Comment
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True, but I still enjoyed watching the match.Originally posted by stroke View Post
A clash of styles. You've criticized Lorenzo's deep positioning, justifiably, and he was up against an opponent with aggressive, almost Fed-like court positioning.
Never stood a chance BUT Lorenzo did hit some of the most amazing shots I've seen in ages -- Stunning. Guy hit some outright winners from the box seats on the run to within inches of the baseline that left Sinner unable to react. Ditto some returns. Not enough. Was never going to be enough.
But years later he'll have the highlight reel
Last edited by jimlosaltos; 09-04-2025, 02:44 PM.Comment
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He is a beautiful player technique wise. Gasquet 2.0.Originally posted by jimlosaltos View Post
True, but I still enjoyed watching the match.
A clash of styles. You've criticized Lorenzo's deep positioning, justifiably, and he was up against an opponent with aggressive, almost Fed-like court positioning.
Never stood a chance BUT Lorenzo did hit some of the most amazing shots I've seen in ages -- he had. Guy hit some outright winners from the box seats on the run to within inches of the baseline that left Sinner unable to react. Ditto some returns. Not enough. Was never going to be enough.
But years later he'll have the highlight reelComment
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Gavin working his magic. I've looked at video before and after of Sabalenka's serve. I've studied it a bit and written on her motion before in another thread. I was critical in my comments regarding the claims and results of Gavin MacMillan. Sabalenka's serve looks like an accident waiting to happen. She does a most interesting thing to offset the deficiency in her motion. She just hits it as hard as she can and doubles down on the second serve. Her approach to the game is brutal. Hitting out from just about every position on the court. That is pretty impressive in itself but the question is of sustainability.Originally posted by jimlosaltos View Post
It looks as if she is just plain fatalistic about things. But the motion has a very pronounced and nervous looking hitch at the critical juncture where back swing becomes forward swing. The transition point. Because of her fatalistic approach she has the ability to just throw the nerves to the side and hit all out. I don't detect any element of "control" in the traditional sense in her service game approach. Just all out come what may. She gets away with it. Afterall...she is a superb athlete. But I wonder that if at some point the nerves get a hold on her and that thin line of being out of control doesn't raise it's ugly head. I haven't seen anything to convince me that Gavin has fixed her serve at all.
Regarding Coco's serve. I would approach her the same as any other tennis player. First the setup position, which I don't like one little bit. Then you proceed to the back swing. You have to arrive at that transition point in balance and in position to push the pedal to the metal. It will be interesting to see how long he lasts in her camp and how he spins it. He is more of a spin doctor than a biomechanics expert. A biomechanics expert would have eliminated the obvious hitch in Sabalenka's motion or admitted the obvious truth.
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Good to see Naomi Osaka playing more tennis and giving the social justice a rest. I hope. She competed well and overwhelmed serve challenged Coco Gauff. Leave the social justice to others. Take care of your child and when on the court...play hard. I give her a lot of credit.Comment
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I congratulate Amanda Anisimova for the way that she has come back from her Wimbledon defeat. She avenges her 0 & 0 defeat to Swiatek in the quarters. Wins a tough 3 setter against Osaka, in the semi's and is back in another Grand Slam final at the U.S Open. She's been through alot and has come out the other end. Good for her!! I'm pulling for her.Comment
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Absolutely. Great to see both women back.Originally posted by seano View Post
What a battle they had. Osaka served for the match at 6-5 in the second set after winning a nervous first set tiebreak, but was broken. Amanda took over then let two match points slip away with perhaps tight shots
Plus, the two women's lives and their tennis are more alike than not. Hard, flat power hitters. Amanda might be the best returner in women's tennis, where returning seems to trump serving. On one point in the first set you knew it was on when Amanda hit an 83 MPH return winner off a respectable second serve. No quarter given. No idle rally balls, waiting for an error.
Both women were phenoms, Amanda Anisimova at 14 years old was the youngest player in a main draw match since 2005, Naomi Osaka at 16 years old won her first main draw match over a top 20 player. One a 'Jersey girl of Russian parents, the other a Floridian returned to her birthplace in Japan.
Both dropped out of tennis. Both experienced severe depression. Both have come back in a big way.
Both winners.
P.S. This was a fast-paced match but it still ended at something like 12:56 AM this morning. On a weekday! There were no huge delays. The prior semifinal Pegula-Sabalenka was only 2 hours long. Why does the USTA insist on scheduling matches that run into the next morning? It's not for the ticket holders - stands started out full, ended up half empty. It's not for the TV viewers, except perhaps in Osaka. To sell more Honey Deuce's?Comment
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Midway, not the best we've seen between these two.
At 6-4 4-4 Alcaraz up a set, he's still keeping Djokovic's hopes alive by making some poor choices on volleys ( taking handful of easy put aways & instead trying to push them behind Novak, and getting passed or successfully lobbed.}. And with several outright shanks on rally ball forehands, or netted blasts going for a low percentage shot ( But he makes those ! }
Novak broke Alcaraz in the second set, which is something.
And Alcaraz butchers a drop volley where anything would have won. McEnroe, "Novak could have lost all 3 points on his serve", instead Novak steps up to serve out what shouda' coulda' been a break.
Short rallies bode well for Djokovic lasting.
UPDATE: After a strange, somewhat ragged second set, Alcaraz amps up his serve in the tiebreak and seizes control of the match.
Yup, here comes the injury interruption by Novak -- but it's a net rub not the full MTO.Last edited by jimlosaltos; 09-05-2025, 01:21 PM.Comment
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I am absolutely shocked at the pace of ball between Amanda Anisimova and Osaka. That was an insane match! They both have amazing forehands and backhands. That was some of the highest level women's tennis match I have ever seenComment
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It was quite good, Neil. Great drama, ebb and flow, tense comebacks. Both of them there to win it, not wait for it to be handed to them.Originally posted by neilchok View Post
This was not Chris Evert vs Virginia Wade with wood rackets (nothing against them!)
Plus, their comeback stories. Awesome.Comment
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Well, those damn oddsmakers were right again with their Alcaraz 79 % implied probability of winning. I thought those odds were a bit strong. But I did not bet.Comment
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Watched two minutes of each semifinal. Yada...yada...yada. Yawn. Snooze fest. What else is there to be said? Let's see what the captain of the forum has to say. Now there is only the foregone conclusion to be played out...the final. The rest of it? Mere foreplay. Modern tennis at its best/worst.
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