Serbia Hand The Davis Cup To Czech Republic

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With a second singles player who usually plays on the challenger circuit rather than the main tour the doubles rubber was crucial for Serbia to have any chance of taking home the Davis Cup. Serbia's top ranked singles player is in contrast pretty good but securing two singles wins was never going to be enough to win this particular title. To have any chance of winning the tie against the committed defending champions Serbia had to play their very best players in the doubles. Second best would not be enough. Both Berdych and Stepanek played both singles and doubles. Djokovic should have played the doubles. By not doing so he is responsible for feeding poor Lajovic to the lions (or Radik Stepanek). Djokovik may has well have sat this tie out as he has handed the Davis Cup to the Czech Republic. What was he thinking?

slashermcguirk wrote:Guys, I think the criticism is a bit over the top. Djokovic has never been a doubles player and even if he had played i am sure the match was 70 - 30 in Czech Republics favour. People seem to think top singles players just make the transition as easy as that. Djokovic and Nadal paired up together in a tournament and lost to unknowns in straight sets !

Doubles does not work like that. The team that Serbia chose beat the Bryan brothers. Djokovic did his part by winning both points he could, i think people suggesting Djokovic playing doubles would have meant they won are wrong. Stepanek and Berdych are a far more experienced unit than Djokovic and Zimonic. I am sure they have played together before and lost.

Exactly, people claim Djokovic is selfish yet he plays pretty much every davis cup tie for serbia while King Roger and Rafa rarely if ever participate, yet Novak is the selfish one. You can not simply go from being a great singles player to playing doubles it has completely different tactics and strategy.

I found HE's comments particularly amusing about Novak being selfish for not crying or showing remorse in the trophy presentation ceremony. Remorse for what winning his two ties, leading them to the finals and having won the trophy for them a couple of years ago. Hawkeye is really missing Andy Murray because now she has nobody to attack but Novak, who she claims is her third favorite player. He has comported himself quite well and if anything if he was selfish and self absorbed by individual glory he wouldn't play more Davis Cup ties in recent years than Rafa and Roger combined. Why are they not selfish for choosing to hardly ever participate?

For me, this isn't about Djokovic being selfish, or whatever. I just think he'll regret not having played that doubles. You can quote doubles ranking, having beaten Bryan Bros, or whatever...but this was a Davis Cup final for their country. Bozo was never going to be able to handle the pressure...Djokovic can, and indeed thrives under it. By losing the doubles his singles match vs Berdy, as good as it was, was a waste of time and effort. Stepanek and Berdy both expected him to play because they knew it was a massive final, and under those conditions you need tried and trusted winners. When they won in 2010 it wasn't Bozo playing, it was Troicki with Zimonjic. When the crunch comes you want your best players in doubles...regardless of whether they're singles or doubles players. Trust me, a world number 1/2 is going to be very very decent at doubles, especially a guy who can serve and return big. I just think Djokovic will be quietly rueing his decision...nothing further to add on this now.

I'll throw in another possible angle - Novak was annoyed with the Serbian Tennis Federation (TSS).

TSS banned Troicki from entering the arena even as a paying spectator. There were reports of this being enforced to the level of distributing Troicki's photo among the arena security!

There may also be some residual disappointment at how TSS failed to really support the Belgrade Open, which I believe Novak invested a lot in.

He may well have not been inclined to make the extra effort to help out a federation he feels let down by.

HM Mudoch

That's interesting speculation. It also might explain why Djokovic failed to attend the Davis Cup dinner and the distance between him and other team members at the trophy ceremony (and in Zimonjics later open criticisms of him). Also his surprising choice of Troiki as a travel companion on his trip to South America. But if that is true he should be a little careful with who he picks his fights with.

socal.

It wasn't that he didn't cry at the trophy ceremony it was more that he appeared not to share any disappointment at all. He looked as if he had won. IMO all these grown up "men" crying because they have lost has got a bit much. I blame Federer. It is far easier to emulate his crying than his play. At least Djokovic can usually maintain a stiff upper lip even when he is really, really disappointed and was dry eyed when Nadal once again walked off with the "holy grail"...

I salute you HE for managing to land the 2013 FO into this thread. I wonder if that ship had already sailed, but wham you nailed it!

 

hawkeye wrote: But if that is true he should be a little careful with who he picks his fights with.

Funny you should say that because there are also reports of the ITF drug testing Novak for 5 hours while the doubles were being played!

http://inserbia.info/news/2013/11/anti-doping-agency-held-djokovic-for-five-hours-on-testing/

A conspiracy theorist could have some fun with that!

I do agree though that it does not seem that everything was harmonious within Team Serbia.

legendkillarV2. Did you hear the commentators at the WTF referring to it? I'm pretty sure they even called it the "holy grail". Ha ha! But I got there first

hawkeye wrote:It wasn't that he didn't cry at the trophy ceremony it was more that he appeared not to share any disappointment at all. He looked as if he had won.

It was wearing the big wig and the dancing with the balls boys after the Davis Cup final that gave him away.

HM Murdoch. Wow! This is better than a soap. ITV should buy the rights. I haven't time to think about it now I will think about it later...

JuliusHMarx wrote:

hawkeye wrote:It wasn't that he didn't cry at the trophy ceremony it was more that he appeared not to share any disappointment at all. He looked as if he had won.

It was wearing the big wig and the dancing with the balls boys after the Davis Cup final that gave him away.

Now you are being silly. If Djokovic ever did something like that he really would have "jumped the shark".... Oh wait a minute he did!

I remember The Fonz jumping the original shark.

hawkeye wrote:HM Murdoch. Wow! This is better than a soap. ITV should buy the rights. I haven't time to think about it now I will think about it later...

I imagine your script will go something like this:

The Odd Couple
A mix up with the leasing agent leads brilliant tennis player, humanitarian and philosopher Rafael Nadal to be forced to flat share with a bloke from Serbia called Novak Djokovic. Hilarity ensues.

Novak Djokovic: Hey Rafa, what's up?
Rafa Nadal: My ranking.
ND: Doh!
RN: I went fishing today.
ND: Why didn't you ask me?
RN: I thought you'd run into the net.
ND: Doh!
RN: Shall we watch a film tonight? How about Indiana Jones?
ND: Which one?
RN: The one where he looks for the Holy Grail.
ND: Doh! I'd rather watch The French Connection. Doh!
RN: Let's toss a coin. Best of 3?
ND: I call heads.
RN: I call grails. Sorry, tails.
ND: Doh!
RN: So that's heads you win, grails you lose.
ND: Doh!
(Two of the three tosses come up heads)
ND: Yes, I win!
(Djokovic rips shirt, pulls a wig out of his bag and dances with a ball boy)
RN: You have a lot to learn. Best of 5?
ND: OK.
(next two tosses come up tails)
RN: Ha! It's easy to win best of 3! Best of 5 is the Holy Grail!
ND: Doh!

And their grumpy Swiss number yells out "Be quiet!"

Ha! I imagine there will also be a grumpy Scottish janitor who everyone thinks is brilliant at fixing things but is actually over-rated.

The Janitor likes to tell everyone that he is friends with Rafa.

Rafa would also have an uncle who keeps telling him the correct way to flip the coin and a Spanish lackey who endlessly flip coins but never wins anything.

This could really work!

Rafa could also have a Basil Fawlty-esque knee injury that flairs up at convenient moments.

"getting a bit of gyp from the old knee this morning"

As a tribute to Socal, I think we also need an incompetent local gang called The Rollover Generation. They are:

One Shot Andy
No Shot Lleyton
The Russian Playboy
Empanada Dave (the leader)

They try to carry out crime but fail because One Shot and No Shot have hopeless weapons, and the other two get distacted by women and take-aways respectively.

Murdoch you are a riot, very funny. I think we need to change One-shot Andy to "No-hair Soon to be a bald guy Divorced by his Hot wife"Andy.

And Hawkeye didn't answer my question as to why Djokovic who particpates in Davis cup religiously every year is selfish and Federer who doesn't deign to participate at all is not selfish?

lydian wrote:For me, this isn't about Djokovic being selfish, or whatever. I just think he'll regret not having played that doubles. You can quote doubles ranking, having beaten Bryan Bros, or whatever...but this was a Davis Cup final for their country. Bozo was never going to be able to handle the pressure...Djokovic can, and indeed thrives under it. By losing the doubles his singles match vs Berdy, as good as it was, was a waste of time and effort. Stepanek and Berdy both expected him to play because they knew it was a massive final, and under those conditions you need tried and trusted winners. When they won in 2010 it wasn't Bozo playing, it was Troicki with Zimonjic. When the crunch comes you want your best players in doubles...regardless of whether they're singles or doubles players. Trust me, a world number 1/2 is going to be very very decent at doubles, especially a guy who can serve and return big. I just think Djokovic will be quietly rueing his decision...nothing further to add on this now.

I agree he should have played doubles, it was a serious miscalculation. He would have been better than Bozo for sure.

lol! HM Murdoch. In fact I did literally lol.  You are very talented. If only it wasn't such a niche market you could probably get a contract to write an afternoon soap...

Thanks, HE. I've noticed that there is a link on the BBC website where you can pitch programme ideas...!

Ha ha! I'll put in a word for you.

HE - it seems your opinion of Novak's dancing is not share by all:

http://www.tennis.com/photos-video/2013/11/top-tennis-player-dances-2013/49829/

It actually felt weird to read a comment about Novak's dancing and not have it suffixed with "he has a lot to learn" or, indeed, "holy grail"!

All of those dances reminded me of a segment in an old South African sketch show called "Dancing like a white guy"....

I'm not sure which makes me chuckle more, Novak having a lot to learn or the French Open being the new holy grail of tennis.

Surely it's just Nole's Holy Grail?

Onto the DC... Great win for the Republic. Grand Slams are of course the ultimate in tennis, but I've always wondered if anything could beat the euphoria of winning a fifth rubber in front of 15, 000 people chanting your name... Can't think that anything in tennis comes close... Except maybe the situation Murray had at Wimbledon.

kingraf wrote:Onto the DC... Great win for the Republic. Grand Slams are of course the ultimate in tennis, but I've always wondered if anything could beat the euphoria of winning a fifth rubber in front of 15, 000 people chanting your name... Can't think that anything in tennis comes close... Except maybe the situation Murray had at Wimbledon.

Except poor old Radek had 15,000 Serbs wanting him to lose!

I was actually referring to the 2012 DC, HMM. Although, I would think the only thing better than winning in front of 15, 000 adoring fans, is sticking the proverbial finger to 15, 000 hecklers.

I mean, if I was a pro, Id rather a slam than a DC, but the weekend warrior in me tells me that the immediate euphoric feeling of winning in front of patriotic fans who now think you're the second coming of Jesus is a better feeling than winning in say, Melbourne where half the people who bought tickets did it in the hopes that Federer could turn back the years, and have no empirical affinity in relation to you.

kingraf wrote:Surely it's just Nole's Holy Grail?

Yes the French Open is Djokovic's Holy Grail. He tells everyone how much he wants it at every opportunity. Unlike other slams (and other tournaments) that are pretty much up for grabs this particular one has an owner. Maybe other players would like to win it but they have accepted that it would require some freaky good fortune in order to do so and would never be so bold as set it as a goal. Better to dream of winning something a bit less difficult. Not Djokovic he thinks he is a cut above the other players and he reckons he can win it with just his forehands and backhands. He needs it to be in that special club with Nadal and Federer. But he would probably like to go one better than Federer as he would like to steal it directly from its owner... Just by telling people he intends to win it has set him apart. Some people think that he already has one hand on the trophy but the reality is that he is just as far away from it as ever. After last years semi Djokovic said that he was "affected mentally" by his failure...



Danny_1982, You have a lot to learn...

HM Murdoch wrote:HE - it seems your opinion of Novak's dancing is not share by all:

http://www.tennis.com/photos-video/2013/11/top-tennis-player-dances-2013/49829/

It actually felt weird to read a comment about Novak's dancing and not have it suffixed with "he has a lot to learn" or, indeed, "holy grail"!

Ha ha! I am still laughing after your comments yesterday. The tennis world would be a poorer place without Djokovic.

Nole said in 2012 that his main targets were the Olympics and the French open. He said before 2013 that his main target was the French open.

He's said recebtly that he is after all the slams next year, and he doesn't want to put one above any of the others. So I guess he's 'un-grailed' it. Now it's back to being just a slam.

Of course, none of this promoting of the FO would be anything to do with trying to dilute a certain players Wimbledon win. That would be just childish.

kingraf wrote:I was actually referring to the 2012 DC, HMM. Although, I would think the only thing better than winning in front of 15, 000 adoring fans, is sticking the proverbial finger to 15, 000 hecklers.

I love the Davis Cup too and yes the atmosphere can be electric. It's not just the winning though that can make it so exciting but the potential scary-ness of losing. In 2011 Nadal was a set and a break down to Del Potro in the 4th rubber on clay...in front of an adoring Madrid crowd who had just come to party in celebration of a win. (Nadal can't lose on clay can he?) They were stunned into silence. IMO one of the highest pressure matches I have watched. Somehow Nadal turned it round and the spectators got their party. I think it was after that match that video's of a drunken partying Nadal appeared too. I don't blame him.

Danny_1982. The interview I saw was just before the WTF on BBC. Djokovic said he was mentally affected by his loss in the semi's to Nadal and that he still "really really" wants to win the French Open. He didn't mention any other slams. Afterwoods the studio discussion was how he was affected by that loss. Rusedki said if Djokovic hadn't touched the net he would probably be holding a grand slam. Personally I thought that was rubbish as touching the net wasn't the reason he lost the French.

hawkeye wrote:Personally I thought that was rubbish as touching the net wasn't the reason he lost the French.

Was the reason Rafa's rather unsporting refusal to let the court be watered when the 5th set reached 6-6, despite Djokovic's request?  

See - you could play that both ways... How unsporting of Djokovic to request the natural state of the court be altered to suit his game having completely hashed a mess of a smash.

Absolutely correct kr - it's easy to see why they didn't win the Sportsmanship of the Year award  

sportsman of the year is really a cool way of saying "sucker of the year".

"The Grand Slams are the tournaments where I want to win, where I want to get my hands on the title," he said."That will be my highest priority for next year."

Djokovic lost in the semi-finals at the French Open and the finals of Wimbledon and the US Open in 2013, before finishing the ATP season with a superb run.

"It was very satisfying," he said. "After the last two and a half months, even more. But the only thing I'm not as satisfied about is the fact that I lost the three big matches in the three Grand Slams."

Seems to be targeting all of them to me.