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Post by oopssorry on Jun 28, 2011 17:48:31 GMT
I didn't see much yesterday or today, so missed a lot of the Rafa-delPo drama. But the family and I did catch a brief video synopsis and my husband snorted when he saw Rafa's grimace during the MTO, seeing it as acting. I hadn't even considered that, but now it's a big question mark in my mind. Wondering if I have the discussion on DVR - was it right after the match? Should I even bother?
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Post by falafaclese on Jun 28, 2011 17:51:30 GMT
Well, this match sure isn't helping. *yawn* Someone (Kvitova please) win already. I didn't get to see any of Sharapova but that wasn't a barn burner either, was it?. Yeah, I'm glad I missed both of them. Of course it wasn't hard to miss Maria's match, it was over before it began. I saw a few minutes of the end of the second set, and that thing should have been over in two. I'm not sure why Kvitova chose that moment to start spraying errors all over the place. |
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Post by harry24 on Jun 28, 2011 18:29:16 GMT
Don't forget Tsonga-Dimitrov. That afternoon was pretty awesome for the men. I forget the other matches, but there were a couple of hot matches going on at the same time as Tsonga-Dimitrov.
Oh, and no fucking way was Rafa acting. I agree that panicking might be more accurate. I don't think the young man has a disingenuous bone in his body.
However, I do think he has emotional fragility that he is able to compartmentalize into his compulsions/OCD stuff, compulsions that lead him into behavior that I personally find unsportsmanlike, mostly by keeping his opponents waiting at the beginning of the match and in between points. However, I fault the officials big time for not nipping that in the bud years ago. I'm sure that a few points/games penalized early in his career would have cured those particular "quirks" and forced him to find other ways to cope.
I would hate to see him get compulsive about on-court injuries, as distressing as they might be, because that sort of squirrely behavior could really tarnish his reputation.
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Post by curlywhirly on Jun 28, 2011 18:31:14 GMT
Sharapova has been looking good, but she's had one of the puffiest draws in recent memory-- no top 20 players before the final, and her two seeds were Peng and Cibulkova. Still, if she makes the final, its hard to see her losing just given her experience. Though Kvitova and Azarenka could definitely beat her, I'm just not sure either would play her best in her first slam final. Personally I'd love Kvitova to take it at this point.
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Post by harry24 on Jun 28, 2011 21:41:13 GMT
Part of me (the schadenfreudelicious part of me) would love for the women's final to be Shrieky and Aza-also-shrieky playing under the roof, with the hope that the resulting cacophony would be so outrageous something would have to be done to address this ridiculous issue.
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lb
1st Round
Posts: 31
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Post by lb on Jun 28, 2011 23:17:21 GMT
So looking at the schedule tomorrow, Fed/Tsonga followed by Andy/Lopez on Centre; Tomic/Djoko followed by Nadal/Fish on court 1. My own gut is there will be at least one upset tomorrow - it was only this recent French Open that these top four made a semifinal together. But I can't articulate which one it will be; they all have their reasons to be ripe for an upset.
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Post by Jer2002 on Jun 29, 2011 0:04:59 GMT
That is some bullshit scheduling. Seeds 1 and 2 should be on CC!!
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Post by mooncreek on Jun 29, 2011 0:23:57 GMT
That is some bullshit scheduling. Seeds 1 and 2 should be on CC!! There's no way Novak is getting on Centre with Rafa and Roger and Andy in different matches as well as having the lowest ranked opponent (meaning likely the least competitive match). |
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Post by oopssorry on Jun 29, 2011 0:41:22 GMT
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Post by harry24 on Jun 29, 2011 1:03:38 GMT
I hate to say it, but I have a feeling there will be one too: Tsonga taking out Roger. JWT is the only player I think I could be even a bit happy for for beating Fed.
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lb
1st Round
Posts: 31
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Post by lb on Jun 29, 2011 1:18:24 GMT
I actually agree with Wertheim's take (and It's take) that Rafa has to be careful and not keep doing this as to not perpetuate a reputation, but Wertheim's misquoting DelPo. DelPo never questioned Nadal's injury. He questioned the umpire Ramos' handling of the matter and called Ramos, not Nadal, a liar. I think it's one thing to allege he was faking for an advantage (that's a serious allegation) and another to be upset about the timing because it messes the flow of the game, and DelPo was the latter. DelPo also had an ill-timed MTO so I think he later understood which is why when the match ended he was pretty cordial with Nadal, and vice versa.
As to the court assignments, there was no way Andy didn't get Centre Court and perhaps the tournament directors expect a better match out of Fed/Tsonga than the other two (I know I do though Fish can also upset Nadal tomorrow).
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Post by apocalipstick on Jun 29, 2011 13:34:20 GMT
On the Nadal injuries. Are we really talking about the guy who sat in a presser and cried 2 years ago when he had to pull out of Wimbledon and miss his chance to defend as an injury faker? They guy who finished his quarter in Australia, CLEARLY injured because he wanted his countryman to actually get a win and not a default? Really?
Sure, he has some annoying habits that have always seemed to me more about getting his head to the right place and feeling ready to start. Anyone watch figure skating? Remember Oksana Baiul? She took FOREVER to get in place to begin her routine. It seems to me to be the same thing. And we are talking about having a routine of carrying his bags out, arranging, eating a protein gel while bouncing both knees, drinking some of each water bottle, placing them perfectly, grabbing his racket and bounding out on the court. Sure, he's OCD about the placement, but the routine is always the same. Should he eat his protein gel in the locker room? Maybe. Throw his bags willynilly? Why not? But he's completed the same routine for around a decade now. Every single one of his opponents should know it and be able to time it themselves. Not one thing stops them from sitting there waiting for Rafa to get up first.
We could all tell you his entire pre-serve routine and post point routine too. He also, win or lose, lets his opponent shake hands with the umpire first. Always lets his opponent volley first during warmups. He's a ticky and twitchy guy. But we aren't talking intimidation tactics like Connors pretending his opponent doesn't exist. Nadal could be faster, sure, but is he slow to intimidate opponents? Really? He's a 10 time Grand Slam winner, No. 1 in the world with some incredibly lickable biceps. Do we really think he needs to arrange his water bottles to intimidate his opponents?
We, the fans and commentators, sometimes find it annoying because it does seem so slow. We want to get to the action. We want our action to be nonstop! But after a 32 shot rally, I'm pretty sure the opponents are appreciating those extra few seconds to breathe. Rarely do the players complain about it because it is always the same thing. And Delpo wasn't being Mr. SpeedDemon out there himself. He pokes around between points looking like Droopy Dog. I give that a big fat SO?
The only player that I have ever seen who wants to rush through a match is Roddick. When he's playing bad, he plays even faster. (This is why I also think that poor Brooklyn suffers through jackhammer sex. Roddick knows two speeds, fast and faster.)
Nadal doesn't have faith in his legs right now. His feet are gross with blisters. Both players took injury time outs when the injury happened. That doesn't make them poor sportsmen.
Okay, off soapbox.
I can't believe I'm rooting for Bernard Tomic. That kid is a douchenozzle, but I just can't take Beaker.
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Post by apocalipstick on Jun 29, 2011 14:29:09 GMT
Okay, there has to be someone watching. I'm at work and having to, you know, pay attention to work. BASTAGES! What is going on? Has Tsonga raised his game? Can Tomic douche out a second set?
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lb
1st Round
Posts: 31
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Post by lb on Jun 29, 2011 14:37:50 GMT
I'm trying to watch but at work. I did catch the beginning of the Tsonga match and he was playing hella nervous and lost an early break. He started to pick it up but a little too late. His tiebreak game was also not that great. The few points I've seen now, he's doing well and Fed's dropped his level a little tiny bit. But it could go either way.
As for the other game, I haven't been following as well but looks like a few UFEs and double faults changed the momentum.
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Post by tikigirl on Jun 29, 2011 14:39:56 GMT
I'm here, after the train ride from hell, and WHERE IS THE FUCKING TENNIS BEING BROADCAST? Not on NBC nor ESPN/2. HELP!
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