Running 2014 Tennis thread

Li Na is probably the favorite in the women's draw now, no?

And yes, Federer is obviously the underdog against Nadal these days on any surface. mostly I'm just hoping he brings this one home. Still, he's looked great so far, and you'd have to think he has at least a chance.

 

Li Na is seeded fourth and Radwanska fifth, so not too much difference there. I would call them co-favorites. I really wish someone played serve and volley. Would make for more exciting matches.

 

That's primarily why she's immortal. ;D

 

Hats off to Wawrinka for winning his first major, although one can't help but wonder how things might have turned out if Nadal hadn't been injured. Credit to Nadal for gutting out a win in the third set and making Wawrinka work hard in the fourth to close it out.

Wawrinka moves ahead of Roger Federer in the world rankings for the first time. He's a first-time Slam winner at age 28. I always respected him as a player, but was doubtful that he could break through the Nadal/Djokovic/Federer/Murray monopoly, which had combined to win 34 of the previous 35 majors. Adds some additional interest to the men's game.

 

With Roger Federer's loss yesterday -- the third time in four majors he hasn't reached the quarterfinals after 36 straight appearances -- it made me realize he's never going to win another GS. So he'll finish with 17. That means Nadal (who is 27) needs only four more to catch him and five more to surpass him.

Then it got me to thinking about this era of tennis, and maybe why the sport isn't as popular. I grew up watching a number of players (Agassi, Sampras, Courier, Rafter, etc.) compete for GS titles, not just 3-4. In the past decade or so, you could have penciled in Federer, Murray, Nadal or Djokovic, with a very rare exception (Warwinka). Also, I think a lot of it was dominant players in the US, which we haven't had since Agassi retired.

So, two questions:

1) Does Nadal catch Federer?

2) Will tennis ever be a popular sport here again?

 

Tennis is one of those sports where it's kind of sad (not sure that's the right word) to watch the Gods lose their status bit by bit. In my lifetime it's been Connors and McEnroe and Lendl and Edberg and Courier (more of a shooting star; here one minute, gone the next) and Sampras and now Federer. Nadal will be next.