A little something that Novak has now achieved that Roger hasn't

6 consecutive hard court slam finals.

Today was also his 11th concecutive slam semi final, which moves him into 2nd on the all time list. Some way to go to move ahead of Roger on that one though!

Hugely impressed with Djokovic at this AO.

If he goes to claim his third in a row on Sunday (as I fully expect him to) I very much feel it could be the springboard for another year of 2011 proportions.

Interesting times ..........

HMH not sure how aware all these players are of the multitude of records out there other than those regarding titles and being no. 1.

Djokovic does look rather like a man on a mission since he dodged the Wawrinka bullet and that third consecutive AO slam is almost within his reach.

newballs wrote:
Djokovic does look rather like a man on a mission since he dodged the Wawrinka bullet and that third consecutive AO slam is almost within his reach.

As does Federer, after dodging the Tsonga bullet.

Best hard court player of this generation

It Must Be Love wrote:Best hard court player of this generation

Don't be silly.

He's fortunate Federer is near the end of his great career. Federer at his peak would beat Djokovic every time.

Gerry SA wrote:

It Must Be Love wrote:Best hard court player of this generation

Don't be silly.

He's fortunate Federer is near the end of his great career. Federer at his peak would beat Djokovic every time.

Depends on court speed

you think he will match feds 9 HC slams?

LuvSports! wrote:you think he will match feds 9 HC slams?

No chance

He'll get 7 HC Slams max imo.

Gerry SA wrote:

It Must Be Love wrote:Best hard court player of this generation

Don't be silly.

He's fortunate Federer is near the end of his great career. Federer at his peak would beat Djokovic every time.

Oh, I do so love to see conjecture dressed up as fact.

I'll even turn a blind eye to those times when peak Federer lost to pre-prime Djokovic.

It Must Be Love wrote:

LuvSports! wrote:you think he will match feds 9 HC slams?

No chance

If he wins on Sunday, that's 5 HC slams and he's only 25. He's in with a shout.

HM Murdoch wrote:

It Must Be Love wrote:

LuvSports! wrote:you think he will match feds 9 HC slams?

No chance

If he wins on Sunday, that's 5 HC slams and he's only 25. He's in with a shout.

OK you may be right

HM Murdoch wrote:

Gerry SA wrote:

It Must Be Love wrote:Best hard court player of this generation

Don't be silly.

He's fortunate Federer is near the end of his great career. Federer at his peak would beat Djokovic every time.

Oh, I do so love to see conjecture dressed up as fact.

I'll even turn a blind eye to those times when peak Federer lost to pre-prime Djokovic.

It's called one of these *

legendkillarV2 wrote:

HM Murdoch wrote:

Gerry SA wrote:

It Must Be Love wrote:Best hard court player of this generation

Don't be silly.

He's fortunate Federer is near the end of his great career. Federer at his peak would beat Djokovic every time.

Oh, I do so love to see conjecture dressed up as fact.

I'll even turn a blind eye to those times when peak Federer lost to pre-prime Djokovic.

It's called one of these *

is that the Hawkeye asterix, as its now known?

Danny_1982 wrote:

legendkillarV2 wrote:

HM Murdoch wrote:

Gerry SA wrote:

It Must Be Love wrote:Best hard court player of this generation

Don't be silly.

He's fortunate Federer is near the end of his great career. Federer at his peak would beat Djokovic every time.

Oh, I do so love to see conjecture dressed up as fact.

I'll even turn a blind eye to those times when peak Federer lost to pre-prime Djokovic.

It's called one of these *

is that the Hawkeye asterix, as its now known?

Every great player has peak.

Any loss is explained by a *

HM Murdoch wrote:

Gerry SA wrote:

It Must Be Love wrote:Best hard court player of this generation

Don't be silly.

He's fortunate Federer is near the end of his great career. Federer at his peak would beat Djokovic every time.

Oh, I do so love to see conjecture dressed up as fact.

I'll even turn a blind eye to those times when peak Federer lost to pre-prime Djokovic.

What 2008 Australian Open semi final?

Federer had problems a d still made the semi final stage.

Djokovic took another 3 years to contend in another Slam...

It Must Be Love wrote:

Gerry SA wrote:

It Must Be Love wrote:Best hard court player of this generation

Don't be silly.

He's fortunate Federer is near the end of his great career. Federer at his peak would beat Djokovic every time.

Depends on court speed

The great man has shown time and again that he can win on any surface

I think Djokovic is looking at double figures of majors if he plays as well as he can. I can't explain it but it's a gut feeling I have, especially as there are 2 hardcourt majors each year. He's not too shabby on the other surfaces either so he'll definitely have a career GS by the time he retires.

Gerry SA wrote:
What 2008 Australian Open semi final?

Federer had problems a d still made the semi final stage.

Djokovic took another 3 years to contend in another Slam...

"OK everyone heads down. And our next call in Excuse Bingo is... the fat lady doesn't have stereo... it's 'Mono in 08'!"

Some thoughts from me having watched he AO so far. Why bother comparing the HC slams of 2010+ to those of 90s and 00s...AO13 probably plays slower than Rome clay event. Comparing Novak's HC achievement to Fed's, Pete's or even Ivan's is not comparing like for like. USO was a vastly different surface 10-20 yrs ago.

However, I'm actually starting to believe these current slower HCs, and slower courts in general, have been leading to a "new" (or rather, old) breed of play...flatter hitting. If you hit hard and flat enough you can hit through these courts...tennis has once again started to become about seizing control within 3-4 shots. Ferrer found this out today, if you roll the ball in you're dead. We're starting to see the un-westernising, un-spinning of strokes. Novak is a tennis throwback technique-wise in that he hits a much flatter, less RPM shot than probably any of the top 20, and he's no.1. Novak showed the ability to drill the ball really hard and early today, he left Ferrer floundering chasing shadows. If he hits this form in the final I don't see Fed or Murray being able to live with that level of power, precision. He turns defence into attack quicker than anyone on tour right now. Players will have to flatten their games to live with this type of play...and high spin will be seen to have peaked and died with Nadal and Federer in my opinion (both have highest RPM forehands). Djokovic's brand of tennis is the future of the game. His technique is much simpler, less sophisticated than Nadal's or Federer's...that's the point. It can be executed in very little time, hence why he's the best returner. Murray is a kind of halfway house, but just watch him have to flatten his shots out further over the next 2-3 yrs. Nadal will likely have to do similar to a degree, although his leftism, movement and unconventional technique and shotmaking may yet prove a thorn in the side of Djokovic. But I see Djokovic being the catalyst for future game progression right now, he's the new benchmark...and could still win an awful lot of slams before others overhaul him.

Good to have you back Lyd

I can't see djoko reaching 10 slams 2bh but I think he can get to the 7-8 mcenroe lendl tally.

Lydian, what a tour-de-force of a comment! Fabulous stuff.

LuvSports! wrote:I can't see djoko reaching 10 slams 2bh but I think he can get to the 7-8 mcenroe lendl tally.

If he wins on Sunday, that's 6 slams and he is only 25. Do you really see him winning only 1 or 2 more?

Of course, you can never say for sure - who would ever have thought that McEnroe would never win another slam after USO 84? - but I think 10 slams in still very much in play. Results this year will make or break that goal I suspect.

Cheers guys, still been watching and reading IMBL!
Loved Fed's play vs Tsonga as well...it seems his BH is becoming better than his FH, who'd have thought! Can't wait wait to watch Fed vs Murray tomorrow morning.

lydian

Djokovic is probably the best at the moment of that flatter hitting precision style of play that you describe (although Davydenko at his best is pretty good too). But the way to beat Djokovic and Davydenko for that matter isn't to play to their strengths by feeding them similar balls. This will make players like that look great. The trick is to throw them off balance by mixing it up.

lydian wrote:Cheers guys, still been watching and reading IMBL!
Loved Fed's play vs Tsonga as well...it seems his BH is becoming better than his FH, who'd have thought! Can't wait wait to watch Fed vs Murray tomorrow morning.

Yes, I was shocked by how good the BH was.

In my opinion the ball is bouncing a little lower putting it into his range. He's driving it 85% of the time too, using the slice only tactically.

Good to see you back Lydian

I was wondering where you were

Yes HE, but Djokovic hits the ball ALOT harder than Davydenko ever did though, and retrieves even better in comparison. Then there's the will to win/mentality.
Mixing it up will always be important but hitting flatter is here to stay, and IMO is the reason why we also see a renaissance from Fed across the past 2 seasons. He can handle flat hit balls extremely well with his Easternised grips...its why he can at times take the game away from Novak like no other player can. As BB alludes to, the ball is coming through at a generally nicer height to Fed's BH/FH these days with balls being hit harder and lower through the court...he feeds off this and takes the ball ridiculously early. Some of those 1/2 volley BH drives from the baseline vs Tsonga were prodigiously outrageous! But in general his BH is much stronger than ever before, he's put a lot of work into it and has learnt to take it even earlier to stop it rearing up...this took him time. Because of this and some other points I think Murray will have his hands full tomorrow, I'm going for Fed in 4.
Love the Fed slice BB when he uses it...the highest RPM shot in the current game...5000RPM (same as Sampras' serve...which is also ridiculous).

Cheers carrieg4, I have had my hands full with career and son's tennis development which has become a 4-5 day/week commitment!

lydian. I agree that Djokovic can consistantly hit the ball harder than Davydenko and definitely beats him with all that "will to win/mentality" stuff. He is the superior player and has the slams to prove it. But Davydenko at his best is pretty good too. I reckon he can take the ball even earlier than Djokovic. What do you think?

But that is their game. And of course they shouldn't change it. It's tricky to beat an exceptional player at their own game and most that try will end up making them look very good. Like Ferrer did in the semi's. I certainly don't think Federer should attempt to beat Djokovic in this way should they meet in the final. Federer should use his full array of shots. Mix up spins, pace... move him backward and foreward (not from side to side) etc. If Federer can get a win in this way it would prove that the Djokovic style of play is not the only way forward for the game. I certainly hope that is the case because watching everyone play this same style of tennis would be a real turn off.

Oh and that's great about your son. I presume with that progression and degree of commitment he's doing very well. So good luck to him.

hawkeye wrote:Oh and that's great about your son. I presume with that progression and degree of commitment he's doing very well. So good luck to him.

I second this Lydian, it sounds like he is doing great

If he plays like Nadal I will support him after Nadal retires.

Other than that, of course I echo HE and Carrieg's sentiments in wishing him good luck in his tennis career.

lydian wrote:Some thoughts from me having watched he AO so far. Why bother comparing the HC slams of 2010+ to those of 90s and 00s...AO13 probably plays slower than Rome clay event. Comparing Novak's HC achievement to Fed's, Pete's or even Ivan's is not comparing like for like. USO was a vastly different surface 10-20 yrs ago.

However, I'm actually starting to believe these current slower HCs, and slower courts in general, have been leading to a "new" (or rather, old) breed of play...flatter hitting. If you hit hard and flat enough you can hit through these courts...tennis has once again started to become about seizing control within 3-4 shots. Ferrer found this out today, if you roll the ball in you're dead. We're starting to see the un-westernising, un-spinning of strokes. Novak is a tennis throwback technique-wise in that he hits a much flatter, less RPM shot than probably any of the top 20, and he's no.1. Novak showed the ability to drill the ball really hard and early today, he left Ferrer floundering chasing shadows. If he hits this form in the final I don't see Fed or Murray being able to live with that level of power, precision. He turns defence into attack quicker than anyone on tour right now. Players will have to flatten their games to live with this type of play...and high spin will be seen to have peaked and died with Nadal and Federer in my opinion (both have highest RPM forehands). Djokovic's brand of tennis is the future of the game. His technique is much simpler, less sophisticated than Nadal's or Federer's...that's the point. It can be executed in very little time, hence why he's the best returner. Murray is a kind of halfway house, but just watch him have to flatten his shots out further over the next 2-3 yrs. Nadal will likely have to do similar to a degree, although his leftism, movement and unconventional technique and shotmaking may yet prove a thorn in the side of Djokovic. But I see Djokovic being the catalyst for future game progression right now, he's the new benchmark...and could still win an awful lot of slams before others overhaul him.

Lydian,

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If you are interested, we can conduct the interview on 606v2. The interview will be of a standard Q&A format and will begin at 7pm on Monday the 28th of January. Good luck with your interview preparations.

It Must Be Love wrote:Best hard court player of this generation

Well thats stirring another pot of controversy, its very similar to saying he is the best clay courter of this generation, he wasn't even the best clay courter in 2011 inspite of beating Nadal in various clay masters.

lydian wrote:Why bother comparing the HC slams of 2010+ to those of 90s and 00s...AO13 probably plays slower than Rome clay event.

Hi lydian, good to see you back here. They are slower now than in the past, but this AO specifically seems to be playing a bit faster. It feels that way from what I have seen, and I have also heard people say that.

(Not that it made much difference in the SF line-up )

Great post by the OP what a performance Murdoch, it is quite an impressive record if he plays this way on sunday at Rod laver there will be no stopping him. Lets hope he keeps it up Murdoch I need more excuses to drink scotch. I agree with you, I think if he stays healthy he could threaten fed's hardcourt records. Although I don't think it is likely it is certainly possible.

Nice post by lydian, interesting analysis although I will say I have a bit of caveat here. Djokovic from what I understand hits the RPM pretty high up there on the forehand when decides to go heavy. Also one of his most effective shots on the night was the cross court, short and heavy spinning forehand which he used to push ferrer wider and wider on a dozen or so occassions. But I do agree with the overrall jist of what you are saying and a very nice analysis indeed.

For me the thing that has always separated Djokovic from the rest is the ease in which he changes direction from either wing on the baseline. He reminds a lot of Agassi in that because he can go up the line pretty much as easily as he can go cross court off either side it makes it virtually impossible to stay with him from the baseline when he is on song. A lot of players can do it off one or the other the wing, but Novak makes it look effortless from either side. He hits with just enough margin to make those shots safe for himself and flat and hard enough to penetrate the court. He has in my mind complete mastery of both wings. Which means that he can return, pass, hit inside out, cross court, or up the line off either wing without a high error rate. That is a very unique proposition in a tennis player and I really can't think of many players ever like that. Again the name that comes to mind is agassi. Nalbandian and Davy had a little of that but I don't think either have the cross court passes that Novak has or the up the line forehand. And of course neither is the athlete Novak is.

At this point in time I would be very surprised if Novak Djokovic didn't top 10 slam wins in his career.he has time on his side and is world No.1 I'd be interested to hear which players are going to deny Djokovic over the next 20 to 25 slams.

CaledonianCraig wrote:At this point in time I would be very surprised if Novak Djokovic didn't top 10 slam wins in his career.he has time on his side and is world No.1 I'd be interested to hear which players are going to deny Djokovic over the next 20 to 25 slams.

20-25 slams means 5-6 years. I would be surprised to see Djokovic still dominating the tour in 2018-2019 as he plays a very physical game and as soon as he gets a bit slower or some injury struggles, he will lose his edge.

Even if you want to be ridiculous and say he has 4 years left at the top then that is 20 slams so who do you see snatching the majority of them away from him?

If Ferrer can play his grinding game and have his best success at 30 why would Djoko not be able to effective in his late twenties and yes even at early thirties. He doesn't do much running in most of his matches, he takes it early and goes up the line exceptionally. He has pretty much after Federer been the most injury free of the top guys averaged 80 plus matches a year for the last 6 years. He is extremely flexible, strong, and has the firepower to play shorter points. Also I think with modest improvements on his first serve with the ground strokes he has most of his matches should get easier not harder. The guy really does take care of himself, and he only plays physical when he has to. I will concede I get very sketchy watching him slide on a hardcourt, but he has been doing it for years and has played a full schedule with relatively minor injury issues. He had the one bad back muscle tear at the end of 2011 that has been for the most part the worst injury he has suffered in quite some time.

The thing you have to remember about Novak is that he is very good at beating any player outside the top 4 at a canter, without really expending much energy. Ok he had a real physical battle against Wawrinka, but apart from that and being pushed against Tsonga at RG, can anyone remember his last 4-5 hour match against someone not in the top 4?

If the top guys are the only ones that usually push him really hard, then why shouldn't he be able to stay in good shape until 29-30? He puts 80% of his opponents away easily.

Frankly, I'd be really surprised if Novak isn't competing for slams in 4 or 5 years.