The US Open - 2019

First topic message reminder :

The last GS of the season opens in New York tomorrow. Without checking what was written at the start of the other three slams this year, I bet I'm probably repeating myself by saying it's going to be hard to look beyond anyone other than the Big Three to be in contention for the men's title.

Where could a challenge come from? The form man at the moment is Medvedev, but what shape is he going to be in after reaching three successive finals? Guys who've done well at the USO in the past include Cilic and Nishi. Nishi might do well, but Marin's had a poor season.

You wait, in vain it seems, for Zverev to show up at a Slam. Thiem is always tough to beat, but one feels clay is his best surface.

As for the women, may as well stick a pin in to discover the winner. Serena seems to do OK these days until having horror shows in finals. Halep is always worth putting money on. But it's very difficult to pick out a firm favourite. Virtually any of the top 20 could win it.

Halep's just lost in a tight 3 setter to US qualifier Taylor Townsend. What a weird year she's having - challenging for number 1, dumped out early at the French, flying under the radar to win on her weakest surface at Wimbledon and then now out in 1st week at US Open. Still haven't a clue who's going to win the womens' title - Kvitova also lost today. Konta playing with confidence but still not convinced she has the tactical nous and mental toughness to go all the way.

Decent win for Wawrinka over Chardy in 4 sets - would like to see Stan reach 4th round and give Djokovic a run for his money.

sirfredperry wrote:Murray lost in a final set tiebreak in his match versus Viola of Italy in Majorca. Two hours 43 minutes. Important thing is that it's to be hoped he feels OK.

In the last set he had severe cramping and two medical timeouts.  Murray had a matchpoint in the final set tie breaker but double faulted the point.  This was a hard court tournament. I assume the conditions were warm and humid.

BBC wrote: ... beaten 3-6 6-4 7-6 (7-3) ... The second set saw Murray, 32, lose his serve three times.  He struggled physically during the third set, receiving treatment on his left thigh during two medical time-outs which he said was for "cramping".  Murray added afterwards that he was "very tired" and said "physically, I need to get better" ... He is planning to travel to China next month, where he is due to play in Zhuhai and Beijing.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/49518040

MrI - Very difficult to predict what will happen next in the women's game. Next up for Osaka is Coco Gauff who bt Babos in three.

Caroline W, who has had illness and poor form to contend with, really likes the USO and could now be one to watch.

Back to Murray. Relieved to see his physical prob was cramp rather than anything else. He's got three matches in, and the match fitness and overall physical condition will improve.

The Yorkshire journalist whose accent so intrigued A Zverev has flown over to New York to support the German at the USO.

Apparently, Sasha's team saw an email the reporter had sent re Zverev and after an exchange of emails the guy promptly dropped everything and headed stateside.

Dan Evans has hardly been treated fairly after the rain screwed things up. After the Brit's three-hour-plus match yesterday he's FIRST on today against Fed.

Yes, that does seem rather unfair on Dan Evans. Virtually every player has to put with something similar at one point or another during the course of their career .... but that early start today could surely have been avoided with a minor schedule adjustment.

No such problems for Rafa .... for whom an already ‘wide open’ draw just got even better, with a walkover round following withdrawal of Kokkinakis ..... so I guess his only potential ‘issue’ is not having enough challenging matches / time on court as he makes his way smoothly through to the business end.

Federer through for the loss of just five games.

Couldn’t see the match, so don’t know whether this was clear evidence of Federer gradually easing his way to something closer to his true level OR whether Evans was indeed seriously inhibited by his very short rest period after a long match v Pouille.

Maybe a combination of both, though am inclined to think that - even when at his best - Evans simply doesn’t have quite enough to see off Federer in a Bo5.
(but then again .... we all thought the very same about Millman last year ! )

Rather surprised that Alex de Minaur took out Nishikori in four. The higher seeds really have been tumbling this first week ......

Gotta feel for Dan Evans. Long match yesterday and running into Fed who had finally got some form in this tournament.

More good news for Rog. OK, he might still have to play Goffin, but a potential quarter-final opponent in Nishi has been knocked out.

It will be Fed v Goffin, but meanwhile Zverev finds himself a set down against Bedene. Rafa is two sets up v Chung.

Caroline W went down to Andreescu who is having a terrific time. Kiki Bertens is also out, beaten by Goerges.

The intriguing Gauff-Osaka battle starts later. Reckon Osaka will have too much for the youngster.

Osaka beats Gauff 6-3, 6-0. Rublev beats Kyrgios.

Monfils-Shapovalov has been a lot of fun in the last two sets. Monfils wins 6-3 in the fifth set.

Fourth round matches include
Djokovic (2018 winner) vs Wawrinka (2016 winner)
Nadal (2017 winner) vs Cilic (2014 winner)

Of the next gen making it to the fourth round we have
Alex De Minaur (20)
Andray Rublev (21)
Alexander Zverev (22)
Daniil Medvedev (23)
Matteo Berrettini (23)

I wonder how many of the above next gen are future singles grand slam winners.

No name Bertie wrote:

........................

I wonder how many of the above next gen are future singles grand slam winners.

It will be interesting to see, for sure ! Think they all have a solid chance.

But right now ..... if I was forced to pick just one ..... I would probably put my money on Rublev.  

And how many of them will make it to the top of the rankings ..... ?  And how long might they stay there ??

In September 2007, the highest-ranked players were Roger Federer (aged 26), Rafa Nadal (21), and Novak Djokovic (20)

Today, TWELVE YEARS LATER  in Sept 2019, the highest-ranked players are Novak Djokovic (32), Rafa Nadal (33), and Roger Federer (38).

The changing of the guard has been a very long time coming, and it’s not quite happened yet.  Is there any such parallel of ‘group longevity’ in the history of other sports .....  

Some terrific matches yesterday. Interesting that Cilic seems to have shaken off poor form to make it to round four.

He now takes on Nadal and this could be a tight match. Yes, Rafa is a clear favourite, but Cilic is a former winner in New York and has reached two other Slam finals.

Another guy who has slipped ever further down the rankings is Dimi who now has a good chance of making the quarters and a possible match with Fed.

Zverev also should make the quarters as long as he has not worn himself out with three long matches so far.

I thought Gauff would lose to Osaka but reckoned she would get more than three games. Barty and Serena look to be on a collision course. Konta takes on Pliskova today. Could Andreescu go all the way?

Just been watching a few clips from yesterday's matches. Cilic could easily have lost in straight sets. He had to save SPs in the first and third set.

Doubt Rafa will relish playing him, although the Spaniard will probably win in the end.

From what I saw of the Andreescu highlights Bianca gives it an almighty whack. I reckon she needs to slim down a bit, although she's pretty quick around the court as it is.

Goffin seems to have fallen off the turnip truck. Bagel third set 6-2, 6-2, 6-0.

Oh dear .... it’s a bagel for poor David Goffin in set 3 as he gets blown away ...... suffering an even worse fate at the hands of the Swiss one than did Dan Evans yesterday : 6-2 6-2 6-0.  

That’s three years in a row that David has exited in the Round of 16 at the USO.

apols laverfan - crossed with your earlier update

lags72 wrote:apols laverfan - crossed with your earlier update

No worries! Goffin was not doing too well, physically. Glad he came out and played, despite the challenges.

I guess that on a day when Federer’s serve was firing so well it was always going be tough for Goffin to bring any serious pressure. Up next is Dimitrov, who has clearly found some form at the right time. De Minaur was the last of the Aussies to go down.

Well done Konta .... coming back strongly to take the match, after dropping the first set to Pliskova - a player who had beaten her in six of seven previous clashes.

Was Goffin less than 100 per cent today? Next up for Fed is Dimi who at the very least will now improve his much-too-low-for-him ranking with a q-final appearance.

Thought Konta had a chance against Pliskova and it was a good win from a set down. She'll now play the winner of Svitolina-Keys

Bit surprised Barty lost. Think I'm right in saying that she'll still go back to number one unless Osaka wins the whole thing.

Let's hope Stan the Man can give Djoko a reasonable run for his money tonight.

This might be my only chance to give him a mention so .... a big shout-out to 118-ranked Dominik Koepfer who has made it through three quals and now has a (very !) long shot at a QF spot. Medvedev will almost certainly end his impressive run. But this is sport after all ...... so you just never know ....  

Koepfer played very well in the first set, but Medvedev is up 2-sets-to-1.

Medvedev's antics have resulted in fans booing him. Koepfer seems to have a lot of fan support. Medvedev wins in 4th set TB.

He needs to learn from the anti-Djokovic sentiment in NY and what Djokovic had to do to get back in good graces.

Djokovic down two sets to Wawrinka. Wawrinka has done well to get this far.

Djokovic has the trainer for his left shoulder. And Djokovic retires 2-1 in third set.

Djoko was having shoulder problems but it was still a shock to wake up this morning to find he was out of the tournament.

I felt at the beginning of the tournament that he was a likely winner. Of course, he'll lose a chunk of points now and this result could make the battle for the year-end number one very interesting.

We don't know just how bad this injury is and Djoko's already been talking about being back in action in four weeks. But what shape will he be in?

So what happens now? Fed now faces Dimi and then possibly Stan, who he'd much rather play than Djoko. Rafa has to get past Cilic and possibly Zverev. Keep thinking Medvedev's exertions will catch up with him but he's still in the tournament. Monfils is also loitering.

In the women, Konta will now take on Svitolina.

laverfan wrote:Djokovic down two sets to Wawrinka. Wawrinka has done well to get this far.

Djokovic has the trainer for his left shoulder. And Djokovic retires 2-1 in third set.

You mean Djokovic was actually injured for a change?

Djokovic was apparently booed off court as he abruptly retired in the third ; but this reaction by large sections of the raucous NY crowd has come in for widespread criticism across the media where there is a sense that he deserved far more respect, given the circumstances.

Wawrinka is in good form once again, and I feel would prove a strong test for Federer if they do actually meet.

It has been - and continues to be - an interesting Open !

lags72 wrote:Djokovic was apparently booed off court as he abruptly retired in the third ; but this reaction by large sections of the raucous NY crowd has come in for widespread criticism across the media where there is a sense that he deserved far more respect, given the circumstances.

Wawrinka is in good form once again, and I feel would prove a strong test for Federer if they do actually meet.

It has been - and continues to be - an interesting Open !

Do you not think it's a case of the boy who cried wolf?

The amount of times he's been apparently injured when behind in matches to then suddenly turn it around after a convenient visit from the train is numerous.

lags72 wrote:Djokovic was apparently booed off court as he abruptly retired in the third ; but this reaction by large sections of the raucous NY crowd has come in for widespread criticism across the media where there is a sense that he deserved far more respect, given the circumstances.

Wawrinka is in good form once again, and I feel would prove a strong test for Federer if they do actually meet.

It has been - and continues to be - an interesting Open !

Wawrinka is a shadow of his former self and has a mental block against Fed anyway, so wont be any threat if he gets pass Medvedev. Sadly, Novak’s injury has deprived us of a possible repeat of the Wimbledon final. As it is, Fed should win from here without losing a set. Not a great tournament so far and unlikely to get any better.

Born S - I know it's Monday morning but you seem a little on the gloomy side. I reckon there's been some good matches. OK, Fed has had some easy rides but we've had some good five-setters and close matches.

As for the booing of Djoko: he felt he couldn't go on and being two sets down and a break down he would have had to have gone on for a long time. It's always disappointing for the crowd when there's a retirement but sometimes it can't be avoided.

The crowd booing Djokovic are an absolute disgrace. This is a 16 time grand slam champion that has come back dozens of times from losing positions, in fact I can hardly recall a player that has come back from match point down to win more than this guy, particularly in grand slams.

His shoulder has been at him for a while and it is obvious when you look at his serve speed. He is not serving as fast as he used to and it is also impacting his backhand.

Why would he play on if it is pointless and he cannot compete and risk making it worse? These fans are absolutely clueless. This guy is 32 years old, had recent enough surgery and has played over 1,000 matches in his career. Wear and tear is inevitable when you are playing as many high level matches as these top guys, tennis is a very gruelling sport physically.

Soul Requiem wrote:

lags72 wrote:Djokovic was apparently booed off court as he abruptly retired in the third ; but this reaction by large sections of the raucous NY crowd has come in for widespread criticism across the media where there is a sense that he deserved far more respect, given the circumstances.

Wawrinka is in good form once again, and I feel would prove a strong test for Federer if they do actually meet.

It has been - and continues to be - an interesting Open !

Do you not think it's a case of the boy who cried wolf?

The amount of times he's been apparently injured when behind in matches to then suddenly turn it around after a convenient visit from the train is numerous.

And are you suggesting other players don't get injured and come back?? Murray did this for years, holding his back, hips, shoulders etc. and would then get treatment and come back and win. Nadal has done this countless times in his career and at slams. I would hazard a guess that most players have been injured, called a trainer and ended up winning match.

slashermcguirk wrote:

Soul Requiem wrote:

lags72 wrote:Djokovic was apparently booed off court as he abruptly retired in the third ; but this reaction by large sections of the raucous NY crowd has come in for widespread criticism across the media where there is a sense that he deserved far more respect, given the circumstances.

Wawrinka is in good form once again, and I feel would prove a strong test for Federer if they do actually meet.

It has been - and continues to be - an interesting Open !

Do you not think it's a case of the boy who cried wolf?

The amount of times he's been apparently injured when behind in matches to then suddenly turn it around after a convenient visit from the train is numerous.

And are you suggesting other players don't get injured and come back?? Murray did this for years, holding his back, hips, shoulders etc. and would then get treatment and come back and win. Nadal has done this countless times in his career and at slams. I would hazard a guess that most players have been injured, called a trainer and ended up winning match.

I don't remember Murray calling for the trainer that often to be honest and yes Nadal is just as bad in that respect. If they're coming back and winning then simply put they weren't injured in the first place.

Are players ever completely 100%? There are usually a few niggles to contend with.

The question during a match when a player has treatment or an MTO is: "Are they really hurt or is this a ruse to give them a bit of breathing space and to upset their opponent's rhythm?"

You'd like to think that all injuries are "genuine". May be, sometimes, that's not the case. But you have to also consider that there will be times when a player really needs some treatment. Crickey. My knees start hurting in the knock-up!

I've learnt from the WTA website that unless Osaka takes the title Barty will return to number one. Given Djoko's exit here and doubts about his fitness, there could also be an eventual change at number one on the men's side.

Soul Requiem wrote:

slashermcguirk wrote:

Soul Requiem wrote:

lags72 wrote:Djokovic was apparently booed off court as he abruptly retired in the third ; but this reaction by large sections of the raucous NY crowd has come in for widespread criticism across the media where there is a sense that he deserved far more respect, given the circumstances.

Wawrinka is in good form once again, and I feel would prove a strong test for Federer if they do actually meet.

It has been - and continues to be - an interesting Open !

Do you not think it's a case of the boy who cried wolf?

The amount of times he's been apparently injured when behind in matches to then suddenly turn it around after a convenient visit from the train is numerous.

And are you suggesting other players don't get injured and come back?? Murray did this for years, holding his back, hips, shoulders etc. and would then get treatment and come back and win. Nadal has done this countless times in his career and at slams. I would hazard a guess that most players have been injured, called a trainer and ended up winning match.

I don't remember Murray calling for the trainer that often to be honest and yes Nadal is just as bad in that respect. If they're coming back and winning then simply put they weren't injured in the first place.

Don't remember Murray doing this??? The guy was constantly grabbing his back, hips, wincing, getting treatments. He would always make it seem as if there was something wrong with him but he would often end up coming back to win. I remember countless examples of him displaying that he was in pain in some way and then winning matches. I am not saying he wasn't injured but he always seemed to be complaining about something and gesturing that he had an injury. He may not have always called the trainer but even gesturing like you are in pain could have an impact on your oppoenent

I remember him grabbing his hip and back whether he was winning or losing but I don't remember constant stoppages for the trainer, there is a big difference there, Djokovic used to do it in order to disrupt his opponent when he was losing as far as I'm concerned.

Seem to recall Virginia Wade once called Murray a bit of a "drama queen" for the way he acted.

I think for some players reacting to injuries is the same as reacting to the match. Some ooh and aah and glare at their coach/family and these are the ones who might advertise their wears and tears.

Others, perhaps more stoic, show little emotion on court and might well be in awful pain but would never show it.

I think Murray was as bad as any. He did often call the trainer too. I would put him up there with Djokovic and Nadal in that category. I am not suggesting they were not injured though, how could any of us really know? Anyway a lot of players do it

While we're on the subject of injuries/MTOs/retirements, what about toilet breaks? Is it right for a player to go off for, say, 10 minutes, after a set?

Am I right in saying that at the AO they had proper breaks at some stage? But that, I think, was because of the heat.

Surprised that TV has not insisted on breaks after every set. They could cram more ads in that way.

Born Slippy wrote:............. Sadly, Novak’s injury has deprived us of a possible repeat of the Wimbledon final. As it is, Fed should win from here without losing a set. Not a great tournament so far and unlikely to get any better.

Was looking at some odds earlier and the bookies certainly don’t see things to be as clear-cut as you do.

Prices vary as always .... but in broad terms I’m seeing Nadal quoted as title favourite at 11/10, then Federer at 9/4. The only other two who seem to be rated with a half-decent chance are Wawrinka and Medvedev, both at 9/1.

In a Nadal / Federer clash (assuming it actually happens), I would put Fed as slight favourite, on the basis that he has beaten Rafa in, I think, (?) six of their last seven meetings. But we all know that it needs only Fed to have an off day serving-wise, and for Rafa to get ahead by means of a break or two for him to go on to win. And history shows that Rafa tends to be more of a threat over five sets than three.

I consider both Medvedev and Rublev as still dangerous, having got this far.

I would have Federer as slight favourite now followed in order by Nadal, Wawrinka, Medvedev, Cilic. Cant see anybody else having a chance to be honest.

I will be cheering for Wawrinka, a fantastic player on his day. I don't see him getting through Federer and Nadal back to back though. I am always surprised by his poor record vs Federer, on paper his head to head against him should be much better. He has the ability to overpower Federer but he seems to have a mental block playing him. Nadal also matches up difficult for Stan but I think hard court would be Stans best chance.

Anyone think Dimi could give Fed a good match? Trouble is the head-to-head is alarming for the Bulgarian.

Cilic, too, has a poor record against Rafa but it could still be close.

Who's prepared to stick their neck out and predict the women's champion? I fancied Halep, but she's out. I reckoned Barty would do well, and she's out, too.

How about a long shot (or perhaps not so long given recent form) - Andreescu?

I would say there is a better chance of Tim Henman rejoining the ATP tour than Dimitrov beating Federer. Every time you think Dimi is about to break through at a grand slam, he spectacularly implodes. I am actually in shock that Dimitrov has reached the QF

slashermcguirk wrote:.......... I am always surprised by his poor record vs Federer, on paper his head to head against him should be much better. He has the ability to overpower Federer but he seems to have a mental block playing him.........

Yes, the h2h is certainly very skewed in Federer’s favour but I do understand your perspective as regards the fact that it ‘shouldn’t’ perhaps be that way, given Stan’s outstanding natural talent & abilities.

I think, dating back to the early days (and beyond) there was indeed some sort of mental block, stemming in part maybe from them being fellow-countrymen but Stan forever living in the shadow of Fed’s global fame, achievements, and huge fanbase. There is no doubt that on a good day - as we have seen in the past - Stan is more than a match for Fed. But equally, I can recall a number of matches where it seemed that Stan’s power - formidable though it can be - was somehow blunted by the greater variety in Federer’s all-round game and that Stan would sometimes get frustrated at Fed’s ability to get out of trouble by conjuring up the occasional uniquely special shot.

So ..... in summary, an in-form Stan can certainly get the edge over Fed. But when all said & done, there can be little doubt that in the course of any one season and succession of matches, Federer will always prove to be a better tennis player than Stan The Man.

Bencic took out Osaka which means that Barty will return to number one. It also means that for the third year running a different women player will win the four GS.

Vekic saved an MP before beating Goerges in three and will now meet Bencic for a s-f place.

Zverev is one set all v Schwartzman. Looks as if it'll be another long match for the German. Berrettini leads Rublev by two sets to love.

TB in Berrettini v Rublev. 6-5 for Berrettini. MP on Rublev's serve. Berrettini wins on his second MP on his own serve. Well played.

Schwartzman up two sets to one on Zverev. He has been the better player so far! He wins it in 4.

Nadal v Cilic - first set split. Nadal up a break in second.

QF

Wawrinka v Medvedev
Federer v Dimitrov
Berrettini v Monfils
Schwartzman v Nadal

It’s a good, though not spectacular, lineup. Doesn’t exactly mirror the current ATP rankings

Schwartzman has done extremely well to make the quarters .... as a quality, tenacious player probably doesn’t get all the credit he deserves. Won’t make the semis, but it’s been a great run.

Wawrinka / Medvedev difficult to call but I will go with Stan and his greater experience and record at the USO. Hopefully a big battle if they can both bring their best (Probably the match I would most like a ticket for ! )

If Federer maintains his current level (from last two rounds) he will again prove too solid for Grigor.

Berrettini v Monfils should be an interesting one ..... and could go either way.

From all this, Federer, on balance, the title favourite I’d say ....... but only by a very slight margin. Bookies all seem to prefer Rafa. Let’s see how the quarters and semis shake out first !

What price Dimi ousting Fed? Stranger things have happened, particularly in NY last year when Rog lost to Millman.

In any case, it seems that Rog and Rafa are fated never to meet at the USO. Sometimes a meeting has been one point away, but something always seems to happen.

Thought Cilic might push Rafa a lot more than he did. Surely Medvedev's long - and many - matches will be a decisive factor against Stan. (I keep writing Medvedev off but he keeps on going).

Vekic v Bencic in a quarter final is an unexpected line-up which shows just how unpredictable the women's game is at the moment. I thought Andreescu would have too much for Townsend.

It's Konta v Svitolina today. Jo seems to do better against the higher-ranked players than when she is in a match where she's favourite.

Anyone notice that lovebirds Monfils/Svitolina and Stan/Vekic are all still in the tournament!

sfp - your closing line has to be the standout news of the day ! I like trivia - and that’s a fine example

Konta has a seriously tough challenge v Svitolina

Well done Vekic and Bencic.

With so many weird happenings on the men’s side already - starting right from the opening day - I guess it’s hard to rule out anything