Australian Open 2013: Match Thread 2

[User 774433]

First topic message reminder :

Australian Open 2013:

Information: The Australian Open is a major tennis tournament held annually over the last fortnight of January in Melbourne, Australia. First held in 1905, the tournament is chronologically the first of the four Grand Slam tennis events of the year – the other three being the French Open, Wimbledon and the US Open. It features men's and women's singles; men's, women's, and mixed doubles and junior's championships; as well as wheelchair, legends and exhibition events. Since 1988 the tournament has been played on hard courts at Melbourne Park.
The Australian Open typically has very high attendance, second only to the US Open. It was also the first Grand Slam tournament to feature indoor play during wet weather or extreme heat with its two primary courts, Rod Laver Arena and Hisense Arena, equipped with retractable roofs.

Day by Day Match Reports: http://www.sportpulse.net/category/tennis

v2 Preview: https://www.606v2.com/t39437-australian-open-2013-the-contenders#1785084

Dates: January 14 - January 27

Draw: http://www.australianopen.com/en_AU/scores/draws/ms/index.html

Schedule: http://www.australianopen.com/en_AU/scores/schedule/index.html

AO Rankings Points Tracker: https://www.606v2.com/t39351-points-tracker-ao-2013


Ready? Play.

Amritia3ee

[dummy_half]

Well, Fed taken to 5 sets, but in a night match (so not too hot) and in a match that didin't last all that long (just over 3.5 hours). Fed v Tsonga is always going to be quite quick, as it's mostly a case of hitting a quick winner or quick error rather than lots of 30 shot rallies.

Still, Andy will have been smiling a little at Fed's (relative) struggles - not sure it will have much impact on the semi-final though.

[Jeremy_Kyle]

Serena Williams knocked out of this Australian Open by young American hope Sloan Stephens.....wow!

[luciusmann]

I'm pleased this wasn't a re-run of Fed's laboured victory over Delpo in the Olympics, which drained Fed's reserves for the final. I watched the last 2 sets and they went astonishingly quick. The semi with Murray will be the one people want to see, I think most make Murray slight favourite because of his performance in the last 3 big tournaments (Wimbledon, Olympics & USO).

Either side of supporters can use different information to support their cases: Murray fans will point out he hasn't dropped a set and thrashed Fed in the Olympics. Fed fans will point out that Fed has never lost to Murray in a slam and will get less support than he did at Wimbledon & the Olympics.

Naturally I'm a Fed supporter and I was pleased with the way Fed dealt with the Tsonga threat: there was the potential that Tsonga could have struck it lucky like Berdych did @ the USO but Fed dealt with him clinically (in the final stages). For me, it's hard to pick one, I was thinking that whoever snatched the first set will end up the winner, but I forget Murray took the first set at Wimbledon and still lost. I can't imagine this match being a quick 3 sets for either player and I'd be surprised if doesn't go to 4 if not 5 sets.

[Guest]

Have to say had Tsonga made 20% less UE's, he would've taken Feds out.

For me not enough is said on the amount of ground Roger can run down and his defence at times was just ridiculous. He did up the pace in the 5th set which isn't looking promising for Murray.

Tsonga has to be the most gracious loser I have seen.

[Haddie-nuff]

On top of which he has such a well developed sense of humour.. He played well

[Silver]

Agreed on the Fed defence LK, though I think in recent years people are recognising it a little more. Probably because he's not blowing people away with forehands constantly like he did in his pomp, and is being forced onto the defensive increasingly as he gets older and the competition improves. Likewise his serving - before Wimbledon '09 a lot of people didn't appreciate just how good it is, although it's obviously always been a key weapon for him. By the end of his career, Feds may well be considered one of the greatest servers to have played the game?

Tsonga's a legend in victory or defeat, likewise Delpo. Serena's out?!

[laverfan]

On top of which he has such a well developed sense of humour.. He played well

JwT was all smiles after the ball hit net chord and dribbled over and he threatened to hit Federer with the ball. It was good to see Federer return that with a smile. Wish JwT had a bit better luck.

[Haddie-nuff]

Yes I noticed that little exchange. He played the best I have seen him in a very long while today. Must be something to do with his new coach perhaps ??

[Silver]

Highlights for anyone who missed the match: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IjAjQ1259eQ

(We're allowed to post highlights on the site, right...?)

[Henman Bill]

Thanks for the highlights as I only watched the first set. I thought Federer looked marginally below par in set one and would need to step up to beat Murray. Although he is capable of doing that.

[invisiblecoolers]

Serena Williams knocked out of this Australian Open by young American hope Sloan Stephens.....wow!

Serena took her young opponent for granted and paid the price, Sloan will be slaughtered by Vika next round, if Sloan win the title here it would be one hell of an achivement considering her path 4th laura Robson [could have been Kvitova rather], QF Serena Williams, Semi Finals - Victoria Azarenka and Finals against Maria Sharapova [Likely] in devastating form.

[invisiblecoolers]

Highlights for anyone who missed the match: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IjAjQ1259eQ

(We're allowed to post highlights on the site, right...?)

Thx appreciated, Couldn't watch the full match as I fell a sleep after the first set [way too early in the morning for me], but I knew Tsonga not gonna leave without a big fight.

[Jeremy_Kyle]

Serena Williams knocked out of this Australian Open by young American hope Sloan Stephens.....wow!

Serena took her young opponent for granted and paid the price, Sloan will be slaughtered by Vika next round, if Sloan win the title here it would be one hell of an achivement considering her path 4th laura Robson [could have been Kvitova rather], QF Serena Williams, Semi Finals - Victoria Azarenka and Finals against Maria Sharapova [Likely] in devastating form.

Serena probaly didn't bring her A-game, but: what a win! Didn't expect this to happen. I think a Vika - Sharapova final is now in the making.

[dummy_half]

In the Fed draw thread I made the point that half of the time Fed stuffs Tsonga, but in the other half of their matches it is close and the results are 50/50 - this was definitely another in the tight match category. Third set tie break was obviously a critical point.

It's interesting that Fed seems to have far more problems with Tsonga than do the others in the (locker room) Top 4 - Murray in particular is very good at just pinning J-WT on the backhand and waiting for the mistake. Of course, by contrast Andy struggles with Berdych.

As for the women, great result for Stevens, but she was playing a somewhat hindered Serena - still, you have to be ruthless when the opportunity presents, and she did a great job coming through in 3. Can't see her getting as lucky agaist Azarenka or MaSha though - both have looked in imperious form so far.

[invisiblecoolers]

In the Fed draw thread I made the point that half of the time Fed stuffs Tsonga, but in the other half of their matches it is close and the results are 50/50 - this was definitely another in the tight match category. Third set tie break was obviously a critical point.

It's interesting that Fed seems to have far more problems with Tsonga than do the others in the (locker room) Top 4 - Murray in particular is very good at just pinning J-WT on the backhand and waiting for the mistake. Of course, by contrast Andy struggles with Berdych.

As for the women, great result for Stevens, but she was playing a somewhat hindered Serena - still, you have to be ruthless when the opportunity presents, and she did a great job coming through in 3. Can't see her getting as lucky agaist Azarenka or MaSha though - both have looked in imperious form so far.

Fed's movement is lot to do with it these days, on his hey days he would have had no problems with JO like players.

[The Special Juan]

As Mr Harman said, "It could have been Laura". Next year Neil, Sloane is pretty much one year older than Laura.

Serena was having back spasms during the match or so she claims.

[Jeremy_Kyle]

uhmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

[lags72]

Not entirely sure if the facts would be back me up but I've always had the impression in recent years that Serena has either just been injured, is about to be injured, looks as if she might be injured (before staging a miraculous recovery) and has a tendency to withdraw from a fair few tournaments shortly before they start .........

[luciusmann]

In the Fed draw thread I made the point that half of the time Fed stuffs Tsonga, but in the other half of their matches it is close and the results are 50/50 - this was definitely another in the tight match category. Third set tie break was obviously a critical point.

It's interesting that Fed seems to have far more problems with Tsonga than do the others in the (locker room) Top 4 - Murray in particular is very good at just pinning J-WT on the backhand and waiting for the mistake. Of course, by contrast Andy struggles with Berdych.

As for the women, great result for Stevens, but she was playing a somewhat hindered Serena - still, you have to be ruthless when the opportunity presents, and she did a great job coming through in 3. Can't see her getting as lucky agaist Azarenka or MaSha though - both have looked in imperious form so far.

I'm usually fearful if Fed has to play Berdbrain or Tsonga (outside of the top 4) because both of them have defeated him in a slam. However, out of these two, only Berdych worries me. Tsonga has the firepower to defeat any top player, but usually he doesn't. He came close in Queens and in the French Open to beating Murray and Djokovic and yet fell short. So I was glad when I knew Berdbrain was on Djokovic's side of the draw, I felt Fed could dispatch Tsonga, whether in 4 sets or 5, a win is a win. Apart from Wimbledon 2011, I don't think Fed really has any problems with Tsonga in the slams. Granted their matches have been close, but usually it's Fed who wins them, not Tsonga.

[invisiblecoolers]

Sharapova is outclassed by LiNa, so easily done.

[The Special Juan]

Maria :facepalm: The most overrated player of all time. Well done to Li though as she's one of my favourite players and hopefully her new coach has helped her take another step forward (and perhaps saved her marriage!!). Laura beat Li at the US Open so I think it's quite obvious that Laura > Sharapova.....

[CaledonianCraig]

Today's mens semifinal should be interesting. I don't think the result is in doubt as I can't see past Novak Djokovic due to David Ferrer just lacking the necessary weapons to trouble the champion. The interesting things for me will be can Djokovic put in a clinical display and prevent this turning into an unnecessary war of attrition. He has already had some long matches so he needs to get this won as quickly as possible but also I will be looking for an improved performance by him. For some reason he has looked not quite right - a little vulnerable at times. Lets see if he can put that right todsy.

[shivfan]

As Mr Harman said, "It could have been Laura". Next year Neil, Sloane is pretty much one year older than Laura.

Serena was having back spasms during the match or so she claims.

I think it was pretty obvious to anybody who's unbiased watching the match that Serena had serious pain in her back, maybe caused by over-compensating for her ankle injury suffered earlier in the tournament...funny how everyone accepts at face value whenever Murray complains about an injury, but no one wants to accept it when Serena is injured, even when the TV cameras focussed on her foot being bandaged and re-bandaged during the match....all that must have been one big lie then!

Great win by Sloane, though, but she's now out of it, having lost in the semis to Azarenka. It was a good run by the youngster....

One of Serena's major strengths is her devastating service return, which wins a lot of points for her. Only a handful of players on the WTA tour have shown that they have the ability to return that service return, and get into a decent rally, and Stephens is one of them. For it to "could have been Laura", Robson needs to step up her game, the way Stephens has.

Laura has a strong serve, and a powerful forehand, but she's a lot like Kvitova. She hits it hard, hits a few winners, but also sprays it all over the place. She doesn't seem to do much else. In contrast, Stephens might not be as powerful a hitter of the ball, but she is much faster around the court, has a better service return, a better service-return-return, and possesses a lot more shots in her armoury than Robson.

That is why Stephens, and not Robson, has reached the semis of a GS event first, and that's why Stephens is ranked where she is, and Robson is ranked where she is. Robson still has room to improve, and let's hope she does...but can she really improve her all-court coverage and speed around the court?

Watson, on the other hand, seems to be the forgotten player on this forum, and she possesses a more allround game than Robson. But her bigges weakness is her serve, and she's one of those youngsters who seems to have suffered from trying to copy McEnroe's unorthodox serving stance, so she doesn't get much power into her serve. If she works on her serve, she could be a serious threat in the future.

[JuliusHMarx]

Is Djoko v Ferrer even more predictable than Ferrer v Almagro?

[CAS]

you can talk about all the tactics you want, at the end of the day Djokovic is just better than Ferrer, there is not one area he is better than the Serb. At least with Tsonga and Berdych they can take the racket out of your hands by spraying winners all over the place, Ferrer cannot do that. We are witnessing a world class playing being torn apart

[Guest]

Was there any point in Ferrer showing up? Clearly intimidated by Djokovic.

[Guest]

Djokovic conceding only 2 points on his serve all match against someone renowned for returning and retrieving?

Is Ferrer the weakest world number 4 in recent time?

[CAS]

Djokovic conceding only 2 points on his serve all match against someone renowned for returning and retrieving?

Is Ferrer the weakest world number 4 in recent time?

Mats Wilander just said he is the best World number 5 in history, its just the top 4 could be the best top 4 in history

Think that's a bit strong

[JuliusHMarx]

Was there any point in Ferrer showing up? Clearly intimidated by Djokovic.

No, not really. I've no idea why anyone would like him to get to a slam final. As a reward for all his hard work? Pah!

[Guest]

Djokovic conceding only 2 points on his serve all match against someone renowned for returning and retrieving?

Is Ferrer the weakest world number 4 in recent time?

Mats Wilander just said he is the best World number 5 in history, its just the top 4 could be the best top 4 in history

Think that's a bit strong

Wilander has a habit of getting away with himself with some bizarre comments.

[CaledonianCraig]

Ferrer is so stubborn in sticking to his one plan. He has no variation or back up plan, no trying to change things up and so Djokovic is in fully relaxed mode. Sorry David but this tactic may beat most players in the world but to beat the very best you need a little bit more.

[Shanerio]

Who will win Australian open this year?

[Guest]

Was there any point in Ferrer showing up? Clearly intimidated by Djokovic.

No, not really. I've no idea why anyone would like him to get to a slam final. As a reward for all his hard work? Pah!

Agreed. Not sure a Slam Final would be a worthy reward for player not offering anything in the attacking sense.

[Guest]

Djokovic 94% on first serve points won

[JuliusHMarx]

Djokovic conceding only 2 points on his serve all match against someone renowned for returning and retrieving?

Is Ferrer the weakest world number 4 in recent time?

Mats Wilander just said he is the best World number 5 in history, its just the top 4 could be the best top 4 in history

Think that's a bit strong

I think Wilander's view of Ferrer is nonsense -he's never remotely looked like a slam winner in his entire career. He's just a retriever with lots of energy and stamina, aided by today's technology.

[CAS]

at this level I can't see Murray or Federer beating Novak, especially as they are likely to beat each other up beforehand as well

[CAS]

Wilanders comments make me scratch my head a lot, he's also said Ferrer isn't a great defender he's an aggressor.

I remember him proclaiming Murray as the best player in the World back in 2010 and making claims such as Nadal having better hands than Federer then a few months later saying only Federer can beat Soderling on clay because he has great hands, and Nadal does not have that. Make your mind up

[Guest]

at this level I can't see Murray or Federer beating Novak, especially as they are likely to beat each other up beforehand as well

In fairness Ferrer is making Djokovic look good.

All I can say is look at the Wawrinka encounter. Federer can play above that level Wawrinka produced which is a scary thought.

[JuliusHMarx]

If this was a women's semi final, would we be lamenting the state of the women's game?

[Guest]

Djokovic 6 for 6 on BP's

JHM, even with a performance like this Ferrer would struggle in the WTA!

[Josiah Maiestas]

Djokovic is so confident, and Ferrer is so negative. I truly believe tiger Tim would make it harder for Djokovic

[CaledonianCraig]

JHM this is all just about Ferrer having a rank-rotten....scratch that...no game plan. We have seen Djoko tested far more in this tournament by Wawrinka, Berdych and even Stepanek so nothing wrong with the game. Quite simply, somebody needs to sit down with Ferrer and thrash out an alternative game plan with him.

[Josiah Maiestas]

Usually Ferrers returns are precise and unsettling. Where have they been today?? Feeding the sheep to the wolves..

[Josiah Maiestas]

Never seen so many love service games from such an average server on this stage of a slam. Stan shouldve been given the chance for a rematch instead for this.

[CaledonianCraig]

A statement of intent made there. How much of it was down to Djokovic and how much down to Ferrer?

[Josiah Maiestas]

Outstanding domination. We'll never see Murray dominate a player of Ferrer's calibre like this. Really smooth.

[CAS]

how must that result make you feel? To know you are that outclassed, must be horrible

[Guest]

Outstanding domination. We'll never see Murray dominate a player of Ferrer's calibre like this. Really smooth.

I don't think you will ever see a five knuckle shuffle performance like this in a Slam semi ever

[Guest]

The best possible outcome for Djokovic after his matches with Wawrinka and Berdych.

Ferrer, well it is a case wait for Rafa to come back and maybe we won't have to tolerate such a performance in a Slam semi again!

[HM Murdock]

Poor from Ferrer.

But even with a bad performance, the world #5 doesn't get demolished 6-2 6-2 6-1 unless the opponent is performing brilliantly. Novak was brilliant today.

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