2021 Australian Open...ATP 2000...Melbourne, Australia

[stroke]

Perfect 1st set for Novak. A couple of notes: Novak's return of serve is just the best ever, as we all know. Novak is dictating more often than not vs the one guy here who can truly rally and hang in with him on extended rallies. And Novak simply has better athletic foundation/posture striking the ball off both sides. Medvedev is not going anywhere though. He needs to really extend Novak every set as DB mentioned, and see if his younger legs can become a factor, see if he can get him deep in 4th or 5th set.

[glacierguy]

He has the ability to appear vulnerable and then come out swinging.

Tell me about it! That Fritz match drove me nuts - I kept shouting at the TV "he's faking it!!!" "AGAIN!!!!"

[stotty]

Novak has been hitting a stunning length and his level of aggression is just right.

[stotty]

Brilliant first set by Novak. No rope-a-doping today. As stroke said, totally engaged.

[don_budge]

Kind of working for now, but if Djokovic keeps baling out of long rallies with his drop shot, I think Medvedev will work it out and make him suffer.

Interesting...if he is bailing it is a good sign for Medvedev. The first set is a must for Djokovic. If it is a tie-break...crucial for Novak. It looks to me as if Medvedev is putting more pressure on. Novak is not to be trusted though. He has the ability to appear vulnerable and then come out swinging.

[stroke]

Kind of working for now, but if Djokovic keeps baling out of long rallies with his drop shot, I think Medvedev will work it out and make him suffer.

I think like McEnroe said, that drop shot in part of Novak's strategy, but a fine line there no doubt.

[glacierguy]

Kind of working for now, but if Djokovic keeps baling out of long rallies with his drop shot, I think Medvedev will work it out and make him suffer.

[don_budge]

I think that the pressure is squarely on Djokovic. It's early. But the younger legs might be a factor here as Medvedev seems to have an angle on moving Djokovic.

...and if this is the case then the quicker court is going to favour Mr. Pencil with the flatter ground strokes. Federer was able to exploit this against Djokovic somewhat, particularly after he switched racquets.

[don_budge]

I think that the pressure is squarely on Djokovic. It's early. But the younger legs might be a factor here as Medvedev seems to have an angle on moving Djokovic.

[stroke]

Medvedev breaks back. Both players totally engaged. This is what we had all hoped for so far.

[stroke]

Novak has not come out in a mood. He is in early clinical mode with an early break. Up 3-0 in first set.

[stotty]

https://www.espn.com/tennis/story/_/...edev-men-final

I think McEnroe might be on the money.

[stroke]

https://www.espn.com/tennis/story/_/id/30932061/australian-open-2021-our-experts-preview-novak-djokovic-daniil-medvedev-men-final

[stroke]

I rate Mr Pencil's chances quite high on Sunday. I actually make him the slender favourite. He's on form, and as stroke rightly pointed out, Novak gets a little petulant these days. He's so used to one-way traffic that when someone outplays him for a while he chucks his rackets out of the pram. At the same time, Novak has made it to the final, albeit in a bumpy fashion, but nevertheless he's given himself a shot at 9 Aussie titles. He knows the threat he's facing and I am expecting him to step up to that. We all know he's going to do that, for sure.

I am not sure Medvedev is any more interesting than Novak. He has no volley, not much of a smash, and his slice backhand is a pretty weedy effort too. What he can do is surprise us all with some impromptu strikes out of the blue. I like that. His ball control is up there with Connors.

Being one-handed on the backhand, I think, gives a player the best shot at having an all court game. It gives a player the best chance of having a decent slice backhand and a decent backhand volley. But - as is evident with Tsitsipas - it is no guarantee. Many one-handed players don't have great sliced backhands or decent net games either.

That said Mecir and Connors were two-handed players with an excellent all court games. They were very comfy at the net and knew, most importantly, how to approach the net. So being two-handed doesn't have to handicap a player from developing an all court game. It really doesn't.

I wonder what Novak's tactics will be in the final because he certainly can't hit Medvedev off. I wonder whether he will bail out of rallies with drop shots or opt for occasional flurries to the net. Both tactics will fail. I imagine he will try to serve well and resort to locking down in the rallies and hitting a very good length. What else? He may opt to draw Medvedev to the net but that's risky and not a tactic he can exploit too often. I think Medvedev is wise to both the bailout drop shot and being enticed to the net. The last time they played he dealt with both tactics handsomely. So there seems nowhere else to go other than lockdown for Novak.

I think Novak has gone ever so slightly past his best both mentally and a tiny bit physically. He is a supremely confident man however. He believes he's the best player in the world and even when 20,000 people were screaming against him when he last played Roger at Wimbledon, he still won. You have to respect that. And it's what Medvedev will be up against on Sunday.

All so true. That Wimbledon triumph vs Fed with Fed in full flight and almost the whole stadium behind Fed., the single most impressive tennis win I have ever seen. Oddsmakers have Novak as a paper-thin favorite, 52.4% chance of winning. Obviously, a virtual toss up. Very unusual odds.

[stotty]

I rate Mr Pencil's chances quite high on Sunday. I actually make him the slender favourite. He's on form, and as stroke rightly pointed out, Novak gets a little petulant these days. He's so used to one-way traffic that when someone outplays him for a while he chucks his rackets out of the pram. At the same time, Novak has made it to the final, albeit in a bumpy fashion, but nevertheless he's given himself a shot at 9 Aussie titles. He knows the threat he's facing and I am expecting him to step up to that. We all know he's going to do that, for sure.

I am not sure Medvedev is any more interesting than Novak. He has no volley, not much of a smash, and his slice backhand is a pretty weedy effort too. What he can do is surprise us all with some impromptu strikes out of the blue. I like that. His ball control is up there with Connors.

Being one-handed on the backhand, I think, gives a player the best shot at having an all court game. It gives a player the best chance of having a decent slice backhand and a decent backhand volley. But - as is evident with Tsitsipas - it is no guarantee. Many one-handed players don't have great sliced backhands or decent net games either.

That said Mecir and Connors were two-handed players with an excellent all court games. They were very comfy at the net and knew, most importantly, how to approach the net. So being two-handed doesn't have to handicap a player from developing an all court game. It really doesn't.

I wonder what Novak's tactics will be in the final because he certainly can't hit Medvedev off. I wonder whether he will bail out of rallies with drop shots or opt for occasional flurries to the net. Both tactics will fail. I imagine he will try to serve well and resort to locking down in the rallies and hitting a very good length. What else? He may opt to draw Medvedev to the net but that's risky and not a tactic he can exploit too often. I think Medvedev is wise to both the bailout drop shot and being enticed to the net. The last time they played he dealt with both tactics handsomely. So there seems nowhere else to go other than lockdown for Novak.

I think Novak has gone ever so slightly past his best both mentally and a tiny bit physically. He is a supremely confident man however. He believes he's the best player in the world and even when 20,000 people were screaming against him when he last played Roger at Wimbledon, he still won. You have to respect that. And it's what Medvedev will be up against on Sunday.