Is Federer at Perfection?

Sandgren is out of Dallas and Quito challengers.

Simona apparently spent more time on court this year than any woman in the history of the tournament. She should get a prize for that 🙂

Another riveting match. Great fight by both women. I was hoping for a Simona win, but kudos to Caro for getting back to the top after some disappointing years.

Yes, Simona still has Paris to look forward to. But she really does need to win that one, she may not have many other chances.

For sure there is hope for Simona. And several players, such as Clijsters, Lendl and Murray, lost several Slam finals before winning one. But Serena will be back soon, and there are several players, Like Muguruza and Kerber, who are capable of winning Slams. So it does not get any easier.

I watched Simona’s press conference and was impressed. she was articulate and dispassionate about why she didn’t win and what she felt were her strengths and weaknesses. Her English has improved a lot – a sideffect of having an English speaking coach no doubt – it’s very much better than Kerber’s and Simona seems more capable of analysis. Angie basically has only one thing to say in English- ‘I left everything on the court’. She may say more in German or on the other hand she may be a German version of Gabriela Sabatini – inhibited in both languages.

Overall, Simona struck me as having matured mentally in the last year or so, physically as well – she’s grown into her face.

Now let’s see who signs her up 🙂

Also just seen Sebastian Korda won the boys’ final. Highlights video on the AO site.

Unfortunately for tomorrow and the men’s final, it looks like the Melbourne heat and humidity cycle is reaching its peak. Forecast is around 35° even at 8 PM. It looks like ability to tolerate extreme heat may be a be decisive factor.

Scoop I deleted my Twitter long ago due to the attacks from you can guess who but I am glad to see you have kept yours going. Stay with it; I see you are fighting the good fight on social media for us.

Simona really deserves a title. I hope it will happen and believe it will happen.

Taylor Fritz and Klahn for all the marbles in Newport. They could also meet in round 2 in Dallas.

Nishikori draws Nevolo once again in big D! Some other great 1st-rounders – Tiafoe v. Kozlov with the winner facing the winner of Mac Mac v. Ito. Another blockbuster is Kwiatkowski v. Opelka.

Also have to mention that Kiki Mladenovic won doubles with Babaos over Vesnina/Makarov. I have to admire her success there while completely flaming out in this debacle of a singles losing streak.

Scoop – I think Simona just reached the end of her physical endurance. She’d run miles and miles during the fortnight. She did say as much in her interview – she just hurt all over. She’s not enormously robust, has a slight figure.

IMO Angie would have lost to Caro.

A doubles player to keep an eye on – Mate Pavic of Croatia. He has won everything – the men’s doubles (with Marach) and the mixed doubles (with Dabrowski) at the AO, after winning two other tourneys already in 2018. Pavic is just 24, a mere baby for a doubles player.

Well, that AO final was more than enough excitement! I did a match call on another site to try to keep my nerves in check, but that fifth set was almost too much. So many ups and downs throughout the match for a Fed fan. I wasn’t taken in by that poor first set by Cilic; I knew that once he got his nerves under control he would raise his level dramatically.

Roger gave a terrific speech, acknowledging the Australian people and also the past tennis greats who were there. He nearly got through it before the tears came. I was OK until they showed Robbie in tears and then I started to cry too. It means so much after all those lean years when Fed fans kept hoping against hope, and had their hearts broken more than once.

I said that now that Roger has won No. 20 I will never ask anything more from him. I will try to keep that pledge. But this huge win warrants double treats! 🙂

Saw Simona had to go to hospital to be re-hydrated. Not surprised. She really was at the end of her tether.

Hartt – I did cry about Jana because she had died and I still feel sad when I think of her. Novotna had a sort of sweetness and integrity, added to all her talent as a player, and I think that’s why so many people reacted the way they did to her comparitively early death. You had a real sense of a life cut short. I may not have been listening, but I never heard anyone say anything bad about Jana and I never heard any gossip – not the kind you hear these days.

I can watch her matches on video and not feel any emotion now. Just appreciate her play and regret that style is gone because I liked it so much.

I admire Roger, but he doesn’t make me emotional. He’s too good. Maybe if Kerber won W’don I might feel a bit sentimental because it’s what she really wants and she’s worked so hard and had so many difficult times. Something like that. Those kind of players get to me. Not so much the Serenas.

Roger will go on I’m sure, his tennis is so economical and saving of stress on his body. So stock up on the chocolate 🙂

Watched the fifth set and utter domination by Federer. I believe he has at least four more Slams in him. There is little doubt he will defend his Indian Wells and Miami titles. Then he should skip all the clay-court events again; it’s a winning formula and why change?

Cilic is the Andy Roddick of this generation minus the American hype.

Looks like I was right about Tomas Berdych. Roger said he thought Birdman would beat him.

Q. Why do you think you were so nervous going into this match? From the outside looking in, you’d think last year would probably be more nerve-wracking.
ROGER FEDERER: You can’t explain it sometimes. It is just a feeling you get. It’s like against Berdych, I felt, like, I’m probably going to lose this one. I was not negative, but I just felt like I saw a loss was coming somehow. Not because I was not feel good or anything, I just felt like maybe Berdych is really feeling it.

Until the last year it wasn’t Fed who was standing in the way of the young players, but Novak, Andy and on clay, Rafa. With those players dealing with injuries, Fed may be the big stumbling block for the young guys now. But he is playing a limited schedule and is also impaired by back problems from time to time.

So it is time for the youngsters to step up. Not necessarily the really young ones like Denis, but the guys like Kyrgios and Thiem, along with Sascha, (who is still very young). And certainly Dimitrov, at 26 years old, should be winning big tourneys. He did pretty well last season, but he needs to at least get to a Slam final this year.

Opelka is not facing Mac Mac – yet.

The Challengers have more intrigue because Fed is treating the majors like his personal playground. I don’t think he should retire to give others a chance necessarily but it makes the others in the sport look pedestrian the way he brushes them away. He is wiping away generations of players. I can’t imagine kids growing up want to be like him as old as he is.

Going back to the earlier thread about Simona’s clothing contract – apparently at the AO the dress she was wearing was one she chose online and had made up by a Chinese dressmaker, presumably when she was in China earlier this year.

I liked the simplicity of her dress, it suited her, better than the blue and green fashion disaster which adidas produced. I’ll be interested to see how this story turns out.

Catherine, I liked Simona’s outfit as well. It was simple but the colour gave it some pizzazz. Sometimes I feel sorry for the players because of what their sponsors stick them with.

The bad news for Simona is she has plantar fascitis on one foot to go with the ankle injury (on the other foot, I think).

She is scheduled to play Fed Cup in a couple weeks. (In Romania against Canada)

That’s bad news for Simona. A friend of mine has plantar fascitas and has to wear a special support. The ankle injury should heal up but the Pl can be a long job or even permanent. Hoping for the best.

There’s no way she should be playing Fed Cup – a long lay off is the only cure.

Just a comment here on women who failed to step up at the AO –

It’s early in the year but we should expect more from : Muguruza, Svitolina, Konta, Pliskova, CóCo (?) Keys (especially poor showing) and Sloane S, who really should take a long hard look at herself and her committment to the game.
Ostapenko seems stuck in a groove somewhere.

Caroline Garcia and Julia G disappointed but Julia is just continuing her GS jinx and Caroline probably needs a new coach,not her father. She showed at the end of last year what a good player she can be.

BTW – Cornet is currently playing in St Petersburg so obviously no penalties for missed drug tests, at least so far.