Scholarship table
Should woulda been nice for Rafa to have been in that part of the bracket, Muggs. But I guess he only can blame himself for not winning a little more in the events leading up to the French Open.It's still a shame to have 2 of the 3 greatest players ever -- guys who are still winning majors -- meeting in the quarters.
Just watched full-match highlights on YouTube. Wow ... what a performance by Rafa!!Had an answer to everything Djokovic did. I think Rafa only missed a couple of Djokovic's drop shots all game, but Novak kept trying 'em. And Djokovic had no answer to those amazing cross-court winners off Rafa's serve.A little bummed that Zverev beat Alcaraz, but now Rafa will have no mixed emotions (not that he would have anyway) -- and he can take down Zverev on Thursday.Way to go, King of Clay!!!!
It sounds like the Zverev/Alcaraz match was also very high quality. Zverev certainly has the talent to win a GS. When his serve is on he's quite dangerous. We're talking about a 6'6 guy with power and underrated court coverage. That said I'm thrilled Rafa will get two full days of rest. Imao, what Rafa has done on clay, is as impressive as any sports accomplishment in history. The possibility of him snagging 14 French Open titles is beyond normal human thought. It's more unbreakable than a 56 game hitting streak.
Thanks for the correction, Muggs. Didn't realize the semis won't be till Friday but it makes sense because the other two QFs are tomorrow. Rafa turns 36 years old Friday ... it will be a great present for himself to beat Zverev.Like you, I'd love to see Rafa take No. 14 and 22 all in one fell swoop on Sunday. What an amazing career. And here's something else that's amazing: Even if you took away all of Rafa's French Open titles and said he "only" won 8 majors, just four players in the open era would have had more: Federer, Djokovic, Sampras and Borg. What an incredible, consistent, dominant athlete.
That's correct. But think about this for a moment: I think he's 110-3 at the French Open. There's really not much more one can say but my contention is that clay is the most true tennis surface. Wimbledon is the most important tournament but unlike the hard court or grass you can't simply overpower an opponent with the serve on clay and often endurance plays a role because the points are much longer. I saw that one game today took nearly 19 mins. My take is that his domimance on clay should get significantly more recognition.
I think Rafa gets pretty good "recognition." Most observers of the game consider him to be one of the top three men's players ever, and quite a few "experts" rate him No. 1. As a fan, I'm pretty satisfied with that level of recognition. At the end of his and Djokovic's careers, the numbers will be what they are.And yes, his record at Roland Garros is insane. Looking forward to it being even more insane -- 112-3!!I also really like watching events on clay, Muggs. There's so much strategy in the way Rafa or any other accomplished clay player sets up his or her opponent. Rafa was like a maestro out there today, drawing Djokovic out wide and then smashing those beautiful forehand winners. I used to play quite a bit of tennis from my teens into my 40s, but I never got to play on clay. Have you ever played on the surface, Muggs?
I've played on true clay three times in Belgium but quite a bit on hard tru which is the lame American version. I've also been fortunate to play on grass but not pro tournament quality grass. Anyway, clay is the great equalizer because even for the pros they don't get a ton of free points on the serve. It helps those who can run balls down and also in particular the drop shot which was part of my game. I believe it requires far more strategy and overall thinking on the court and rewards consistency over sheer power. I'm also a fan of those who can hit wicked top spin which works best on clay.
Sounds fun. I know I sure like watching the French Open. It's cool when they have to run down a shot, hit the ball and then slide several feet.
Marin Colic is one match away from the French Open Final. The former U.S. Open champion can complete the accomplishment of making the finals of all 4 slam events in his career with a win. Took out Rublev in 5.
But the Davis Cup Champion, Olympic Silver Medalist, 20 title winning Cilic will have to get past World top 10, Casper Ruud, who advances to his first slam semifinal with his win over Rune.And, Ruud used his his post match interview time of the biggest moment in his young career thus far to promote fellow Norwegian, Ulrikke Eikeri, who advanced to the Mixed Doubles Final. Well done. https://twitter.com/rolandgarros/status/1532133127262547970?s=21&t=x0pvzku9wil-gCjCKFhmnA
Has there ever been a Scandinavian QF in a GS tournament? Maybe it's me but it's extremely disappointing that USA men's tennis has been basically non-existent since Roddick. And frankly Roddick was obviously nowhere near American greats the generation before. Any theories on what we're doing wrong?