All Things 2021 Tennis Thread

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BleedGopher

BleedGopher

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per ESPN, albeit a week or so old:

Roger Federer is withdrawing from the Australian Open while he continues preparing to return to action after two operations on his right knee, the tournament confirmed on Sunday.

Tony Godsick -- Federer's longtime representative and CEO of their management company, TEAM8 -- said he is working on putting together a 2021 tennis calendar for the 20-time Grand Slam champion, who plans to get back on tour soon after the year's first major tennis tournament.

"Roger has decided not to play the 2021 Australian Open. He has made strong progress in the last couple of months with his knee and his fitness. However, after consultation with his team, he decided that the best decision for him in the long run is to return to competitive tennis after the Australian Open," Godsick said in a statement released to the AP.

"I will start discussions this coming week for tournaments that begin in late February and then start to build a schedule for the rest of the year," Godsick said.

www.espn.com

Federer to miss Australian Open; planning return

Roger Federer is withdrawing from the Australian Open while he continues preparing his return to action after two operations on his right knee.
www.espn.com www.espn.com

Go Federer!!
 

Good showing for young American Sebastian Korda at Delray Beach. He has a promising future and great pedigree.

Christian Harrison also had a great tournament in both singles and doubles, the latter teaming up with his brother and they lost in a 3rd set super tie-breaker in the finals.

Go USA!!
 

BleedGopher said:
Good showing for young American Sebastian Korda at Delray Beach. He has a promising future and great pedigree.

Christian Harrison also had a great tournament in both singles and doubles, the latter teaming up with his brother and they lost in a 3rd set super tie-breaker in the finals.

Go USA!!
Click to expand...

It seems Petr's kids have done well

His daughters have 11 combined Top-10s in LPGA majors, and Sebastian has made it to the 4th round of the French Open, in addition to his first final at Delray.
 

I don't mind Kyrgios' "bad boy" persona, but he needs to back it up on the court.

Per ESPN:

Kyrgios hits out at 'tool' Djokovic as tense Australian Open buildup continues

Nick Kyrgios joined former Davis Cup player Sam Groth in criticizing Novak Djokovic after the Serbian world No. 1 reportedly wrote to Australian Open organizers asking them to ease quarantine restrictions for players.

Passengers who arrived on three charter flights have been placed into hard quarantine, including more than 70 players who are unable to train outside their rooms for 14 days before the year's first Grand Slam starts on Feb. 8.

A Spanish tennis website reported Djokovic wrote to Tennis Australia boss Craig Tiley with a list of "demands," asking for reduced isolation periods and having players moved to "private houses with tennis courts."

Kyrgios criticized Djokovic time and again in 2020 for organizing the Adria Tour exhibition event in the Balkans, where multiple players, including the top-ranked Serbian, contracted the virus.

"Djokovic is a tool," Kyrgios, ranked 47th in the world, said on Twitter.

Djokovic, who opted to rent a private house instead of staying at a hotel during the 2020 US Open, is among top players who are serving their mandatory quarantine in Adelaide before traveling to Melbourne for the year's first Grand Slam.

www.espn.com

Kyrgios hits out at 'tool' Djokovic

Nick Kyrgios joined former Davis Cup player Sam Groth in criticizing Novak Djokovic after the Serbian world No. 1 reportedly wrote to Australian Open organizers asking them to ease quarantine restrictions for players.
www.espn.com www.espn.com

Go USA!!
 

Australian Open 2021 -- How players are adapting to training in quarantine


www.espn.com

Accept and adapt: How players in quarantine are training for the Aussie Open

Victoria Azarenka and 71 other players are preparing for the Aussie Open from their hotel rooms and are being forced to think creatively about their training routines in addition to managing the different emotions that come from being in quarantine.
www.espn.com www.espn.com

Go USA!!
 


Ski U Mah Gopher said:
It seems Petr's kids have done well

His daughters have 11 combined Top-10s in LPGA majors, and Sebastian has made it to the 4th round of the French Open, in addition to his first final at Delray.
Click to expand...

Korda sisters update:

Jessica won & Nelly was 3rd at the season opening Tournament of Champions.
 

per ESPN:

Serena Williams withdrew from an Australian Open tuneup tournament citing a right shoulder injury on Friday within hours of setting up a semifinal match against top-ranked Ash Barty.

The 23-time Grand Slam champion usually doesn't play in a tournament in the week before a Grand Slam event, but made an exception before last year's US Open and for this Australian Open because of all the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The 39-year-old American was playing her first tournament since withdrawing from the French Open before her second-round match because of an Achilles tendon injury in October. She, like all players traveling to Australia for the tournament, had to quarantine for 14 days and had limited practice during that time.

www.espn.com

Serena, Osaka, Azarenka out of Aussie tuneups

Serena Williams, Naomi Osaka and Victoria Azarenka withdrew from their Australian Open tuneup tournaments, citing injures.
www.espn.com www.espn.com

Go Serena!!
 

Good first day for the Americans Down Under. Only Alison Riske was upset, otherwise nearly a clean sweep.

Go USA!!
 

It's looking more and more likely that Sloane Stephens is a one Slam wonder. I hope I'm wrong, I hope she can realize better consistency, but it's been a roller coaster for her. Sam Querrey's career is hanging on by a thin thread after yet another first round loss.

Go USA!!
 



I was up late the other night and caught a few minutes of Zverev vs Giron. Zverev had a first rate fit of rage in the middle of the 2nd after getting broken. He didn't just give it a quick bounce he hammered it until it didn't even look like a racket anymore. I gather this is not uncommon with him. Nice gesture after the match too.


Stuff

www.stuff.co.nz www.stuff.co.nz
 

Bleed, tell us about Jessica Pagula (besides being the daughter of the owners of the Bills & Sabres and the couple responsible foisting Big Ten Hockey on us.)
 

Ski U Mah Gopher said:
Bleed, tell us about Jessica Pagula (besides being the daughter of the owners of the Bills & Sabres and the couple responsible foisting Big Ten Hockey on us.)
Click to expand...

She's a journeywoman, has been around for about a decade but rarely does anything of note. I don't think she's ever cracked the top 50, and sometimes wins a round or two at a Slam.

Tough match for Tiafoe in the 2nd vs Novak, but he played him tough.

Go USA!!
 

Not going to lie, I was pretty disappointed with the draw for the American men. So many young Americans got drawn against top 5 players for their 2nd/3rd matches, seemed pretty unlucky.
 



I watched the end of the Medvedev match last night. Pretty crazy turnaround in the 5th. Medvedev lost the 3rd and 4th sets, which included a break for him to have the trainer work on him. Then he just absolutely blitzed the other guy in the 5th, winning 6-0. Don't know much about the other guy other than that he is 28th ranked and was playing well in the match. Medvedev just flipped a switch and turned what had been an entertaining match into a complete joke.
 

Brady and Pegula both advance to the Quarters and play one another, thus guaranteeing at least one surprising American in the Semis!

Serena gutted out a tough match in the Round of 16 against a very annoying Sabalenka who was screaming all match. Serena has a very tough matchup vs Halep in the Quarters.

Go USA!!
 

Big straight set win for Serena over Halep. Serena's movement was as good as I've seen it in a while. Let's hope she brings it vs Osaka as that will be a huge match.

Go Serena!!
 

I see that Karatsev took out Dimitrov 3-1 and the last two sets weren't close. Seems the door is firmly shut on Dimitrov ever contending for a title. He never lived up the hype he had early in his career.
 

Tough match for Serena, Osaka played fantastic. She's going to win a lot of Slams in her career and she's an easy player to root for as well.

Good to see Jennifer Brady advancing to the Finals. Would be amazing if she can pull this out.

As for Serena, hard to know what's next. She looked good in this Tournament. I hope she's got some fight left.

Go Serena!!
 

Novak with a dominating in the Finals. He now has 18 Slams and seems to me like he's poised to eventually be the all time Slams leader. He also will surpass Federer with the most weeks at #1, a record he will likely crush.

Novak is now 18-0 in Aussie Open Semifinals and Finals. That's an incredible stat.

Go USA!!
 

Seb Korda with a strong win over Tsonga (admittedly who is not in as good of form), but at a tournament in France.

He's already made the final in Del Ray and won a challenger event in France so far this season.
 

mplarson7 said:
Seb Korda with a strong win over Tsonga (admittedly who is not in as good of form), but at a tournament in France.

He's already made the final in Del Ray and won a challenger event in France so far this season.
Click to expand...

Great to see. Seb is climbing the Tour rankings quickly. It will be interesting to see if he passes the likes of Tiafoe or McDonald as the likeliest American to compete for the elusive Slam.

Go USA!!
 


Nice week for Taylor Fritz in Doha. He made it the semis with three wins over top 40 players, including Shapovalov in the quarterfinals.
 

Top-ranked Novak Djokovic lost 6-4, 7-5 to Dan Evans on Thursday in the third round of the Monte Carlo Masters for his first defeat of the year.

The Australian Open champion was 10-0 coming into the match but faced pressure from the outset as he trailed 3-0 to the unseeded British player in their first meeting.

Djokovic dropped his serve five times in windy conditions. Evans, after breaking for a 6-5 lead, clinched the victory on his first match point with a forehand winner that clipped the net.

"It probably hasn't sunk in yet, I couldn't quite believe that last ball went over the net. It nearly didn't," Evans said. "It's clearly a big win. That's the biggest thing, you've got to believe you can win. Serving it out isn't easy, you've got all these things going through your head."

www.espn.com

Evans ends Djokovic streak at 10; Nadal cruises

Australian Open champ Novak Djokovic had won all 10 matches that he had played this year until falling 6-4, 7-5 to Dan Evans in the third round of the Monte Carlo Masters.
www.espn.com www.espn.com

Go Federer!!
 

This is so depressing and embarrassing for a country our size with the resources and facilities we have.

Per the AP:

There are no American men in the ATP's top 30 for the first time in the nearly half-century of computerized tennis rankings.

The highest-ranked man from the U.S., Taylor Fritz, slid one place to No. 31 on Monday after a first-round loss at last week's Madrid Masters.

Next is John Isner, who made it to the quarterfinals on the red clay in Spain and rose five spots to No. 34.

There always has been at least one man from the United States ranked in the top 30 each week since the inception of the computer-calculated standings on Aug. 23, 1973. That includes No. 1s such as Jimmy Connors, John McEnroe, Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi, Jim Courier and, most recently, Andy Roddick, who held the top spot for 13 weeks from Nov. 30, 2003, to Feb. 1, 2004.

That was shortly after Roddick won the 2003 US Open, the last time an American man won a Grand Slam singles title.

There are currently 10 players from the country in the top 100, the same number that Italy has, although there are three Italians in the top 30: No. 9 Matteo Berrettini, No. 18 Jannik Sinner and No. 28 Fabio Fognini.

www.espn.com

U.S. men hit historic low in world tennis rankings

There are no American men in the ATP's top 30 for the first time in the 48 years of computerized tennis rankings. Taylor Fritz at No. 31 is the highest-ranked U.S. men's player.
www.espn.com www.espn.com

Go USA!!
 

per the AP:

The heavy topspin. That lefty spin. The loopy trajectory.

Rafael Nadal's forehand gave Novak Djokovic fits in the latest installment of the most-played rivalry in modern men's tennis.

A whopping 26 forehand winners -- 15 in the first set alone -- helped Nadal to a 7-5, 1-6, 6-3 victory and a record-extending 10th Italian Open title Sunday.

With whipping forehands that produced an average of 54 revolutions per second -- to Djokovic's 45 -- Nadal's biggest weapon was in top form.

The title reestablished Nadal as the overwhelming favorite for the French Open, where the Spaniard will be aiming for his 14th title starting in two weeks.

www.espn.com

Nadal earns win in Djokovic rivalry, Rome title

Rafael Nadal beat Novak Djokovic 7-5, 1-6, 6-3 on Sunday for a record-extending 10th Italian Open title, reestablishing himself as the overwhelming favorite for the French Open.
www.espn.com www.espn.com

Go Gophers!!
 


Heck of a weekend for Coco!!

American teenager Coco Gauff won the singles and doubles titles at Parma, becoming the youngest woman to sweep singles and doubles at a WTA event since Maria Sharapova at 2004 Birmingham. As a result, Gauff has reached a career-high ranking in both singles, at No.25, and doubles, at No.41.

www.wtatennis.com

WTA Rankings Watch: Gauff, Badosa reach career highs

Coco Gauff and Paula Badosa continued their strong clay-court play with titles this past week. Both reached career highs in the latest WTA rankings.
www.wtatennis.com www.wtatennis.com

Go Coco!!
 

Wow Sebi Korda continues his fast rise up the rankings with two huge back to back wins!! The future of American men's tennis finally has a what appears to be a worthy torch berear:


Go Korda!!
 

Well this sucks:

Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer all ended up in the same half of the French Open men's field in the draw Thursday, meaning no more than one of them can reach the final.

The Big Three top the leaderboard for Grand Slam men's singles titles. Federer and Nadal head to Roland Garros, where play begins Sunday, tied with 20, while Djokovic has 18.

www.espn.com

Djoker, Nadal, Fed in same half of French draw

Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer all ended up in the same half of the French Open men's field in the draw Thursday, meaning no more than one of them can reach the final.
www.espn.com www.espn.com

Go Federer!!
 

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