2019 Roland Garros...ATP 2000...Paris, France

[don_budge]

Alex doubles 3 times in a row to lose the 2nd set 6-2. Not looking good at all.

He doubled on set point in the first set. All along I have been a huge critic of his service motion. It's convoluted...it makes very little sense. Inefficient looking...fails in the clutch. Both matches were totally boring...I started out with both on my screen and turned both off before the first set was completed.

Tomorrow will be different. The weather is questionable. We have projected Noah's Ark type rain here in Brännemo, Sweden tomorrow.

[stroke]

Well those were not riveting matches. Tomorrow should be though weather permitting.

[stroke]

Alex doubles 3 times in a row to lose the 2nd set 6-2. Not looking good at all.

[stroke]

The Prince of Clay, Muster 2.0, Thiem, is up 2 sets to 0 behind massive forehands, backhands, and kick serves. And very few errors. A timeless clay court winning strategy.

[stotty]

Novak snatches the first set but really had to play to do it. Roger and Rafa will be loving this.

[bman]

The more I think about it, the more disappointing the forecast is. The winds are 20-25 mph all afternoon. The tennis will be a bit of a joke. Remember Federer-Agassi US Open 2004?

[stotty]

Don, good post, but as a fellow fed fan I urge you to go in with low expectations. I watched Nadal feed a bagel and a breadstick to Djokovic in Rome, and that's very scary, I don't care how tired Djokovic is.

It is supposed to be windy and damp on Friday, which is good in one way as it keeps the ball lower, but bad in that Federer will have an even harder time hitting through the court and hitting aces.

Federer HAS to serve well, and I feel he will need to get to a few tiebreaks and be clutch there in order to pull of the miracle. After yesterday's historically bad break point conversion rate, I'm not feeling that Fed will break serve very often.

Mostly I just hope he plays well, because this is probably his last chance to beat Nadal at the French. If he plays well, and loses, hats off. But I will be disappointed if he plays like he did at the French in 2008 and Rome 2013.

Great post...grounded. It will be interesting to see Roger's tactics. You would assume he might serve volley a fair bit given how far Rafa stands back to return. The drop shot could feature heavily, and balls that draw Rafa to the net. Roger has nothing to lose so he may as well throw in the kitchen sink and some. I am not sure who benefits more from damp conditions. Rafa likes a fast, dry court -- he says -- because his forehand gets more bite in the court. But I think it's fair to say all clay court conditions can suit Rafa. He has won the even 11 times, after all.

And today's rain delay is a gift to Nadal and Roger's half of the draw. Novak is going have to work hard and be efficient from here if he has to have any hope of taking the title. It was unlucky to get rained off at this stage. The rescheduling is odd too as you think they would start early the next day rather than at 2:30pm.

[bman]

Don, good post, but as a fellow fed fan I urge you to go in with low expectations. I watched Nadal feed a bagel and a breadstick to Djokovic in Rome, and that's very scary, I don't care how tired Djokovic is.

It is supposed to be windy and damp on Friday, which is good in one way as it keeps the ball lower, but bad in that Federer will have an even harder time hitting through the court and hitting aces.

Federer HAS to serve well, and I feel he will need to get to a few tiebreaks and be clutch there in order to pull of the miracle. After yesterday's historically bad break point conversion rate, I'm not feeling that Fed will break serve very often.

Mostly I just hope he plays well, because this is probably his last chance to beat Nadal at the French. If he plays well, and loses, hats off. But I will be disappointed if he plays like he did at the French in 2008 and Rome 2013.

[don_budge]

One time, 2007 Hamburg, Fed defeated Nadal. I can still remember his quote, he had "cracked the code". That was optimistic, but Fed always had the belief.

Roger couldn't be in a better position to face Nadal under these circumstances. He has had enough match play to put it all on the line for a all or nothing performance. Federer is the master at disarming players of their strength and turning it back on their weakness. He is well rested. This is a chance for a peak performance. There is no tomorrow. There are no finals. It is all before him in this one match. He has beaten this nemesis five straight times under different circumstances. But this is on Nadal's home court...Roland Garros. That matters not a twit. You have to have that mentality that you are going into your opponents own backyard and you are going to take the fight to him.

It appeared...and Wawrinka said as much...the conditions were fast and "slippery". I think that this is going to favour our boy. He has to take all of the variables and make them fit into his equation. As in "cracking the code" he is solving for multiple variables here. Linear algebra. He is searching for the belief that he can do this. That he can take Nadal out of his own tournament. If he finds this sort of belief then he can put the pressure on Nadal to prove himself. There might be a bit of pressure on Nadal here in that Federer has gotten into his head with the last five wins. The expectations are on Nadal...as our own bman has expressed...there is no way that Nadal can lose. Or can he? Stefanos Tsitsipas said about Nadal that "he makes you play bad...and that is a talent". So Roger has cracked the code in that Nadal cannot make him play bad. Nadal can beat him if he can get Federer to buy into playing his game. But I think that Roger has a game plan. He has some new wrinkles to show his old adversary. He can get up on that baseline and control that line of demarcation then he takes the fight to him and he is the aggressor. He wants to be the aggressor. No amount of defence is going to win this match.

I'll voice a minority opinion here. Even though Nadal is a touch slower than in his prime, he's made other improvements such that he's (regrettably) playing his best clay court tennis ever. He is more aggressive than in the old days (serve and first ball forehand combination is untouchable) with better touch, net game, backhand, and ability to change direction. His understanding and use of the geometry of the court is second to none. If he is a bit slower, it is less exposed because he is less likely to play defensively now.

The culprit in all this is Carlos Moya. Nadal appeared to be clearly declining in 15-16, but he's experienced a renaissance since picking up Moya in 17 and is pretty much as dominating as ever.

This is going to be one interesting post in retrospect.

But we are going to have to wait now. Patience. Roger is biding his time and Nadal is chomping at the bit.

[stroke]

One time, 2007 Hamburg, Fed defeated Nadal. I can still remember his quote, he had "cracked the code". That was optimistic, but Fed always had the belief.

[stotty]

Nadal is very big favorite vs Roger at 1/8. Roger is 32/5. Roger probably has never been this big of underdog. If he can pull this off, I would say it is the most impressive win he has ever had.

It would...be Roger's most impressive win.

He has no virtually no record against Nadal on clay and none whatsoever at Roland Garros. I never thought I would be saying this about Roger but it's true: he has absolutely nothing to lose.

Artistry is the only to do it.

I have missed most of the tournament so far as I am on holiday in Edinburgh, Scotland. I will likely missed tomorrow's tennis also as I'm travel back then. Nice place Scotland but you wouldn't want to live here. It's bloody cold.

[stroke]

Nadal is very big favorite vs Roger at 1/8. Roger is 32/5. Roger probably has never been this big of underdog. If he can pull this off, I would say it is the most impressive win he has ever had.

[don_budge]

What I saw about the hug at the end at the words exchanged was it was mostly Stan. Stefanos was not feeling it, he was not feeling anything other than the brutal disappointment of the loss he just had and that is no problem at all. You are right, he is on the verge of greatness, we all see it. Just not as great as Fed, Nadal, and Novak. Stotty talked about Stan being an ox, the diesel. Of all the match outcome scores, I see 3-0 for Fed vs Stan most likely.

Very perceptive stroke. Stefanos does not appear to be a hugger after matches. The perfunctory handshake will suffice thank you. I think that he has a killer instinct and he is going to be up there. Lots of work to do. He is a work in progress. The service motion needs to be ironed out...there is a wrinkle in it induced by the tossing technique. But he is done for now. We turn to Stan Wawrinka and Roger Federer.

I have my first golf competition today after ten years. No big deal unless I allow my mind to magnify the importance of an impossibly minute event. It's psychological. What will be going on with Stan and Roger today will be largely psychological too. Luckily for Roger. I think the match with Tsitsipas may have erased some of the physical advantage that Stan might have had...but I am not too certain on that either.

Sorry to miss the match between the two Swiss greats. Another one hand backhand slugfest. Notice how the interest level just falls off the charts when it is the top half. Juan Martin Del Potro could barely induce himself to get interested either. It was embarrassing to watch him. Dominic Thiem hit a highlight reel shot against Gael Monfils but that also was pure boredom. Fognini and Zverev? Snooze alert. Djokovic? Where's the coffee? Make mine a double.

But the Federer, Tsitsipas, Wawrinka bracket carried the tournament so far. It will for at least one more round. Should Federer prevail it will carry it another round. Keep me posted. Federer in three? That would be a godsend. Wawrinka has been playing back the entire tournament. Way back. He played a whale of a match against Tsitsipas and the match against Dimitrov was really good as well. Might his level drop off just a tad giving Federer the knockout he is looking for? An early round knockout (straight sets)? I think four sets will do. I would love to see a really healthy Federer up against that...you fill in the blanks.

Nobody is capable of carrying this tournament like Roger...unless it is Stefanos. He's young and coming on like gangbusters.

[stotty]

I missed Khachanov but have seen him play twice before. He has an unusual forehand but it's a bazooka of a shot. Zverev has an unreliable forehand and it's the core reason why he hasn't done a s well as we thought he might. You simply must have an excellent forehand if you are going to win slams. That's been the same throughout history and not just in today's tennis. The forehand is the shot players play the most. You can run round backhands to hit forehands, but it doesn't work anywhere near as well running round forehands to hit backhands...almost unheard of.

Khachanov is potentially a dangerous player for Novak should they meet. From here on in it won't be easy for Novak whoever he plays.

I am looking forward to what's lying ahead. History will be made one way or the other if one of the Big 3 goes on to lift the trophy. Rafa's achievements at Roland Garros have been mind-boggling. He owns a record I feel may never be beaten. Roland Garros is the toughest tournament to in. There are no cheap points on clay; everything has to be worked for. It's amazing he could be winning the event for the twelfth time.

[stroke]

Khachanov looked dangerous in winning on 4. His forehand is a real weapon, a difference maker kind of weapon that to me Alex does not have. Alex is similar to Novak in that he is so good off both sides, particularly the bh, but as we all know, he will never be able to move like Novak, and his fh is prone to break down at times.