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2013 Running Tennis Thread

Discussion in 'Sports and News' started by Gator, Jan 27, 2013.

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  1. Mark2010

    Mark2010 Active Member

    And Djokovic storms back, takes the second set and gets an early break in the third. Lots of long rallies. Ebbs and flows.
     
    Mark2010, Sep 9, 2013
    #229
  2. Mark2010

    Mark2010 Active Member

    The Open will benefit by moving up a week with a Labor Day finish. As it is, it seems to get buried by all the football talk. Sort of like Wimbledon one year when England was playing in the World Cup.

    I remember a few years ago (when I was working sports copy desk) rooting for Roger Federer NOT to win the Australian Open and break the record for Grand Slam wins, because I knew it would get buried beneath all the Super Bowl stuff the next day.

    But this is a great match going on now.
     
    Mark2010, Sep 9, 2013
    #230
  3. Gator

    Gator Well-Known Member

    Who cares who wins .... who's got the hotter girlfriend? Where's Brent Musberger when you need him?
     
    Gator, Sep 9, 2013
    #231
  4. Mark2010

    Mark2010 Active Member

    He'll be OK. Maybe even No. 1 in the world!
     
    Mark2010, Sep 9, 2013
    #232
  5. qtlaw

    qtlaw Well-Known Member

    Nadal was amazing today because he's just so mentally tough, he gives up so few free points/unforced errors; then when there's an opening he's got the goods to go for the winner.

    Djoker's amazing when he's on, when he was up 2-0 in the 3rd and looking to get another break, he was on fire. Then, some unforced errors and Nadal just slams the door; that's the difference between them.
     
    qtlaw, Sep 9, 2013
    #233
  6. The Big Ragu

    The Big Ragu Moderator Staff Member

    You nailed it. The difference was Nadal's mental toughness. Djokovic had taken control of the match and was pushing Nadal around, and really should have been up a set heading into the fourth. Nadal willed himself back to take the set and Djokovic mentally seemed to become undone -- as if he was thinking, "I blew my chance" heading into the fourth set. He gathered himself, but by then, Nadal was not going to give an inch to him.

    I love both their games, because they are so tenacious. But earlier in his career, what held Djokovic back was his head. He'd be up in a match and cruising and something would go wrong, and he'd become completely undone and he let it affect himself so much that he'd lose the match.

    He has conquered that, and that was what led to him moving into the elite. Against Wawrinka, he was the mentally tougher of the two, and that was really the difference. He just wasn't going to let himself lose that match, even though Wawrinka wouldn't go away and they were both playing ridiculous tennis. But Djokovic is never going to win that kind of battle against Nadal. Nadal has this amazing combination of tenacity and mental toughness. Combine that with all the shots he has, and it's just ridiculous. The only times he seems to ever really lose is when his body is breaking down. And even then, he can sometimes play through it.
     
    The Big Ragu, Sep 10, 2013
    #234
  7. albert77

    albert77 Well-Known Member

    I lean toward Nadal. Djokovic's blonde is pretty, but she looked fragile and high-maintenance. Nadal's girlfriend looks like she's a firecracker.
     
    albert77, Sep 10, 2013
    #235
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