French Open discussion thread

[Mad for Chelsea]

First topic message reminder :

I thought it was about time we got one of these started. While Federer surprisingly (cough cough) had the advantage of starting his campaign nice and early on day 1, Djokovic is currently in action against Sousa of Portugal. Also on at the moment we have everyone's favourite Briton... James Ward. He's been handed a tough draw against Tommy Robredo, but is battling hard, despite being a break down in the first.

We're also due our first major upset over on court 1, with Nishikori on his way out against Klizan. Injury issues? Finally we have Mahut vs Kukushkin in a pleasant match between two talented shot-makers. That one's at one set all, with the intriguing possibility of the winner meeting Isner in R2.

EDIT: in the time it took me to write this one, Ward has broken back, and is level at 3-3, well done that man .

[DirectView]

Federer might just tank before QF to let Djokovic take on Nadal in the finals, I don't think so he wanna lose to Nole nor Defeat him and lose in finals given Nadal got a paper draw again.

[CaledonianCraig]

A breadstick for Andy taking the first set 6-1. Going with serve in the second set with Golubev leading 1-0.

[lags72]

Murray's game looking in good shape. He's not having to push himself too much, and more of the same should see him through in straights.

[CaledonianCraig]

Yes but just going through a little dip and losing serve and back all square in the second set.

[CaledonianCraig]

Murray battles through to take the second set and leads 6-1 6-4. A decent little test this.

[antonico]

So Dimitrov goes out to Karlovic, meaning Dimitrov hasn't won a set in his last two matches. Looks like Rasheed has a lot of work to do on that Return game of Grigor's.

[CaledonianCraig]

This third set encapsulates Andy's season. Far too inconsistent. Golubev now in pole position to take the third set as he leads 5-2.

[kingraf]

the rank and file have had a very rebellious year.

[CaledonianCraig]

Golubev seals the third set 6-3 and we go into a fourth set.

[lags72]

Golubev certainly put in a respectable showing, but after a familiar mid-match wobble Murray progresses looking in fair shape ahead of tougher challenges to follow ......

[laverfan]

Llodra retiring from Tennis!

PS:2014 is his last season.

[DirectView]

Llodra retiring from Tennis!

I think he should retire from singles and focus a little bit more on doubles.   

[CaledonianCraig]

A fair assessment that lags. He must not allows dips (like today) to creep in against higher quality opponents as he may run into much bigger problems if he does.

[Calder106]

Hope Murray's new coach can get him serving much more consistently well.

[antonico]

So after 3 days of The French Open, we've already lost both title holders from the 2014 Australian Open. Not sure about Li's year overall - but I don't remember her holding up too many trophies after Australia. First round is still a shock though, even on the Ladies tour. As for Stan, well, he got his Major, and managed to outlast Federer in Monte Carlo, but beyond those events, I see lots of losses piled up. When you look at these results, and contrast them with how consistently well you see Serena (and to a lesser extent Maria) on the Women's side and Nadal, Djokovic & Federer on the Men's side do well, you get an appreciation for just how good the greats of the game really are.

[laverfan]

So after 3 days of The French Open, we've already lost both title holders from the 2014 Australian Open. Not sure about Li's year overall - but I don't remember her holding up too many trophies after Australia. First round is still a shock though, even on the Ladies tour. As for Stan, well, he got his Major, and managed to outlast Federer in Monte Carlo, but beyond those events, I see lots of losses piled up. When you look at these results, and contrast them with how consistently well you see Serena (and to a lesser extent Maria) on the Women's side and Nadal, Djokovic & Federer on the Men's side do well, you get an appreciation for just how good the greats of the game really are.

There are some early losses for others as well, Dimitrov, Almagro (injury), Haas...

Li has had an erratic career so far.

[Born Slippy]

So after round 1 of RG I reckon we are down to four players in the men's draw who are 22 and under. Tennis continues it's ageing process.

[The Special Juan]

But what about the women's game where there are many young ones breaking through. Just look at Eugenie Bouchard.

[Jahu]

Venus is heading home. A 19y old slovak Schmeidelova is leading 2:6, 6:3, 3:0

[Josiah Maiestas]

Is Chardy-Djokovic after this Venus match?

[Josiah Maiestas]

My mate Dolgo is being fisted these last 2 sets... by one of the most annoying grunters going    Venus is out   

[The Special Juan]

The scoreboard reads Wil v Mug.  That's a bit disrespectful to Serena's opponent...

[sirfredperry]

Venus is heading home. A 19y old slovak Schmeidelova is leading 2:6, 6:3, 3:0

Venus is out. Saved two match points and got one of the breaks back but lost in what was a terrific match. Next up for her conqueror will be, I think....Serena.

PS Hold on, Serena is 4-1 down in her first set today !

[The Special Juan]

Why are they showing Novak v Chardy? Chardy was made to look less than ordinary against him at Wimbledon (last year?) so this has "simple straight sets victory" written all over it. Meanwhile, Serena could be about to bite the dust against Mug!!

[Josiah Maiestas]

Special, Chardy is French and Novak is one of the fav's. Chardy beat Fed in Rome too   

[The Special Juan]

Fair point but showing Chardy because he's a home player shouldn't apply to somewhere like Britain. I don't care if he's a home player or not. I suppose, because it's Novak, we can't argue with it. After all, as you say, he's one of the faves.

Anyway, Serena beat Mug 6-2 6-0 at the AO last year. What odds on that scoreline reversed?

[Josiah Maiestas]

Serena and Venus both going out it looks. Dolgopolov is gone now!

I'm switching it off   

[dummy_half]

Serena 4-1 down in the second and can hardly buy a serve at the moment. Needs a minor miracle from here given where her head seems to be.

[Jahu]

Serena going home too. What a week.

Djoko crushing that french chard.

[Jahu]

Dolgo goes home too. Disaster.

[Jahu]

Where is JHM? Has he been kicked in the nuts by Fed and Murray fans?   

[The Special Juan]

Sharapova clear favourite now?

[The Special Juan]

Wow, Serena looked fairly gracious in defeat there! Well done to Mug - what a solid performance. Last time we see the Williamses in Paris?

[Jahu]

Fed 4:2 up. Bit of a silly shirt, but he's getting old.

[Josiah Maiestas]

Hopefully the 3rd round is better than the 2nd round, so far it's like watching a labour speech zzzzzzz

[Jahu]

Fed takes first set 6:3.

[The Special Juan]

4 bagels handed out so far by men today.  That seems like a lot.

[Josiah Maiestas]

Raonic can do damage in this tournament. Vesely can be a future star, Federer meanwhile is is looking like he'd rather be fishing.

[lags72]

I'd say Federer is having to maintain focus because he can see that this Argentinian youngster is unfazed by his opponent, and producing some high quality tennis

[The Special Juan]

Melzer has been disappointing today. I thought he had a fair chance of beating JWT but obviously not. Is Jo now finally starting to find some form?

[lags72]

Well Jo does blow hot & cold as we know, but he's looking good right now.

Made QF's in 2012, then SF in 2013.

Could he go one better this year .....?? 

[The Special Juan]

With Djokovic in his 8th then I really doubt it. Still, bigger shocks have happened.

[The Special Juan]

Has Stan really dropped the "islas" from his name?

[lags72]

Can't help re your Stan conundrum TSJ !

Wrt the Williams family exits ......a big shock, sure. But for a good while now I've been wondering just how much longer they can keep making the business end of Slams, just how much longer they can maintain the necessary fitness. Serena looked to me to be bigger than ever ; but then size has hardly been a hindrance to her in the past.

Until recently, their power alone has generally carried them through when confronted with a tougher-than-expected opponent ; however, given how much time they devote to outside interests, and the way in which they periodically dip in & out of WTA events (admittedly often through injury) I always felt that something has to give at some point. Maybe today was just a weird blip, or maybe it was the start of a new era in the women's game....... 

[kingraf]

Stan Wawrinka... Lo

[kingraf]

Stan Wawrinka... Lol

[socal1976]

Stan is experiencing the difference between being the hunter and the hunted. Managing expectations is a big deal in tennis and now that he is a grandslam champion people are going to find more juice in their tank in the matches where they play him and he is going to have to deal with more expectations and pressure. Makes what federer, Djokovic, Nadal, and to a lesser extent Murray have done the last few years even more impressive. Week in and week out having a target on your back and being expected to win can be a pressure of its own.

[lags72]

socal, I think you highlight a fundamental issue as regards Stan and the ability to manage the pressure that comes with a heightened level of expectation - both his own expectation, and that of the watching world.

Don't know if you happened to hear his presser (or might have been a one-to-one interview, not sure) soon after that sorry defeat by GGL, but it was every bit as painful to experience as his match performance. I doubt anyone could fail to sympathise with him, such was the sound of dejection in his voice. You felt that this was not just about one match, but a clear sign that he is currently wrestling with some sort of deeper malaise. And yet his AO triumph, and more recently Monte Carlo, are still very recent, and it's not as if he has suddenly forgotten how to play tennis.

Like the overwhelming majority of tennis fans, I like Stan. A lot. But I do wonder whether he is the sort of guy who was perhaps more relaxed in his own skin as a solid top 20 player, rather than being the hunted when at the higher echelons, up there at Number 3 ; in much the same way that some very able 'office job' people just don't settle easily when promoted to a senior role, giving the impression they would have been more comfortable staying in their lower-ranked role. That's not meant as an unkind assessment because Stan is hugely talented and of course thoroughly deserved his Slam title. But the mental side of the sport is of course a huge factor, and maybe that's where Stan is feeling the heat, rather than any drop in physical ability.

[HM Murdock]

Stan has admitted to getting very frustrated with himself when he's not playing at his best.

It's a challenging situation to navigate. He's tasted the success of winning the biggest events but I suspect he also knows that he can only do so on a 10/10 performance. If he's not at his best, there are a number of other players whose 'base level' is higher and his chances are hugely diminished.

For most of his career, a decent run to a QF or SF have been classed as a success. Now the parameters have changed and anything less than a win must feel like somewhat of a disappointment. It must be harder to fight tooth and nail for an outcome that doesn't excite him as much anymore.

I also don't think he's an especially tactical player. I'm not sure he has a great ability to change things up a bit when Plan A isn't working.

It's tough though. Djokovic is a consistently good, resilient player now but he had his trials and tribulations for years following his first slam. Novak had time on his side but Stan won his maiden slam as he was approaching 29.

[socal1976]

socal, I think you highlight a fundamental issue as regards Stan and the ability to manage the pressure that comes with a heightened level of expectation - both his own expectation, and that of the watching world.

Don't know if you happened to hear his presser (or might have been a one-to-one interview, not sure) soon after that sorry defeat by GGL, but it was every bit as painful to experience as his match performance. I doubt anyone could fail to sympathise with him, such was the sound of dejection in his voice. You felt that this was not just about one match, but a clear sign that he is currently wrestling with some sort of deeper malaise. And yet his AO triumph, and more recently Monte Carlo, are still very recent, and it's not as if he has suddenly forgotten how to play tennis.

Like the overwhelming majority of tennis fans, I like Stan. A lot. But I do wonder whether he is the sort of guy who was perhaps more relaxed in his own skin as a solid top 20 player, rather than being the hunted when at the higher echelons, up there at Number 3 ; in much the same way that some very able 'office job' people just don't settle easily when promoted to a senior role, giving the impression they would have been more comfortable staying in their lower-ranked role. That's not meant as an unkind assessment because Stan is hugely talented and of course thoroughly deserved his Slam title. But the mental side of the sport is of course a huge factor, and maybe that's where Stan is feeling the heat, rather than any drop in physical ability.

I didn't see the presser Lags. Unfortunately haven't been able to watch too much of the tennis. I agree with your post but I don't think it is so much other people's expectations as much as his own that he has to wrestle with. Some of the most challenging matches often for players at any level is when you are playing someone you know you should beat but for some reason or other your own shots are not clicking. Instead of upping your level and running away with it you end up in a dogfight because you just can't believe your own performance. It is that sense of dissappointment and pressure that you put on yourself when you expect to win a match and you just don't start well or your shots aren't clicking. Stan has a lot of talent but he has the type of game that where at his best he can beat anyone and at his worst he can lose to anyone. The reason being is that he doesn't return particularly well so any slip up in his own service games and it can run away from you. A player who serves big and doesn't return well can beat players better than his level when he is on and when he isn't he can lose to anyone. I still get the sense from Stan that when he goes a break down in a set it is usually a lost cause because he isn't comfortable in getting that break back like a murray, Djokovic, or Nadal.

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