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Jul/17

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Atlanta Showdown: The Smyczek vs Young Rivarly

120814073354-donald-young-1-single-image-cutTim Smyczek vs Donald Young will play first round in Atlanta. Just out of curiosity I checked the head to head and was surprised to learn these two have played against each other sixteen times already!

That’s right – 16. The first thirteen meetings were in ATP qualifying, Challengers and one Futures back in 2007. The most recent three all were contested last year on the ATP Main Tour.

Young won the first four meetings in straight sets. Then Smyczek finally got on the board in 2009 at the Winnetka Challenger, winning 62 76. Young regained the mental edge by winning the next two meetings in three sets in 2010 and then Smyczek regained the edge winning the next two. Overall, Young leads the sub ATP Tour matches head to head 8-5.

Young and Smyczek battled three times last year in Delray Beach, Houston and Atlanta. Smyczek won the first two matches – 16 76 62 in Delray and 62 64 in Houston and then Young won a thriller in Atlanta one year ago 46 76 63.

The all time overall head to head (not counting any junior duels) stands at 9-7 for Young.

Today’s contest, the seventeenth overall over the last decade, will be more important for the 29 year old Smyczek who has dropped down to 194 in the world. Young, 28, has had a pretty good season, beating John Isner for the first time in Memphis and reaching the Roland Garros doubles final, to sustain his singles ranking at typical 51.

Donald Young vs Tim Smyczek may not get the fanfare or media glory but it’s one of the best little-known rivalries in professional tennis.

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119 comments

  • Doogie · July 26, 2017 at 7:20 pm

    @andrew:

    True, I thought Vesely had the potential to make some noise at GSs but over the years now I dont see any improvement in his game. He is still bit lazy and does not practice enough. Also he does not work on his body. Because of his talent he will be from 20-60 over a decade.

    My favs are: Thiem of course, as he is from Austria too, Zverev I rate very high (even higher than Thiem tbh), from the US Boys Tiafoe (as Scoop wrote he is still 19 – even Zverev lost to Darcis, Chung and Mahut this year). Young guns have their up and downs but Tiafoe has potential and body. He will make his way into Top10 – other US I dont see it .

    AND of course Amanda Anisimova!!

  • Andrew Miller · July 26, 2017 at 8:55 pm

    Eubanks played awesome! Reminds me of Karlovic a bit with the huge serving and one hander. Fritz started off fine but was consistently caught off guard. Eubanks really made him pay for his sluggish movement. What a great performance. That’s more like it! Fritz should take notes and improve.
    Does anyone believe me now about Fritz? I said his game had some flaws and his movement was poor to different shots. Eubanks made him suffer for the poor movement and late preparation and total lack of strategy.
    Fritz was still in it. Just showed much less heart as he lost by a close scoreline.

  • Andrew Miller · July 26, 2017 at 9:00 pm

    Lacko is very solid. Young melted down out there, I bet he went into it seeing it as a winnable match in front of the home crowd. Not so easy. Must be why he’s angry at himself.
    It looked like he was still trying out there, just nothing working at all. Lacko could do nothing wrong.
    But that Young couldn’t find a way into the match is unfortunate and a bit upsetting for sure. But Young is known for the consistency issues – one match. Even a set, he’ll be incredible. And the next he becomes a magnet for errors.
    It’s too bad he didn’t simplify it a little. Ostapenko hits harder when nothing works. Agassi decided to hit the same shot back to his opponent with a little more pace in his victorious French open final when down by two sets to Medvedev.
    With Fritz and with Young, sorry to see them unable to adjust when facing very fine playing by opponents.

  • Andrew Miller · July 26, 2017 at 9:04 pm

    Doogie maybe Vesely has the Czech issue – no one will be Lendl or Navratilova, so settle for just ok performance. I think about him and Carreno Busta together, both were on fire on the challenger circuits and with some successes on the ATP.
    The belief factor doesn’t seem to be there for Vesely. He is quite a good lefty player. He should ask Muller and Lopez what to do, they have put together great years.

  • Duke Carnoustie · July 26, 2017 at 10:34 pm

    I take it back on Djoker. Noway he’ll get his act together with Agassi in his camp. Andre is still a mess and not somebody who should be coaching anyone who is a contender, let alone a 12-time Slam champion.

  • Scoop Malinowski · July 26, 2017 at 11:17 pm

    Scoop Malinowski writes:

    First saw Eubanks hitting with Raonic pre US Open last year. All I can say is watch out. Kid can play. Was holding his own with Raonic.

  • Scoop Malinowski · July 26, 2017 at 11:18 pm

    Scoop Malinowski writes:

    Lacko is no clown, he once gave Nadal a bagel.

  • Dan Markowitz · July 26, 2017 at 11:54 pm

    Starting to disagree with you, Doogie. I think the American young gun with the most upside is Donaldson now, not Tiafoe or Fritz. Donaldson has taken the most professional approach and has the most solid game. Tiafoe, Top-10? Doubt that very much. A lot of flash, a lot of talent, but he’s had way too many bad losses even at 19 to say this guy’s a star in the rising.

  • Krzysztof · July 27, 2017 at 1:37 am

    Once again betting on US player was a bad decision. I lost just one buck due to Young’ loss but winning just 4 games vs Lacko?! Even James Blake from 2012 was able to beat Lacko soundily at the US Open…

  • Scoop Malinowski · July 27, 2017 at 7:40 am

    Donaldson is shining now but go back and look at his results in the first quarter of 2016. Bad broken busted results. But he was able to suddenly spark the engine.

  • Hartt · July 27, 2017 at 7:56 am

    The site, Last Word on Tennis, has a piece, “American NextGen Bunch Have Vastly Underperformed in 2017.” In it, the writer gives grades – Tiafoe B+, and Donaldson and Escobedo each a B.

    He is much tougher on the rest, other than Rubin who is N/A because of injury, and Paul (who is mentioned in the article but overlooked for the grades). The remaining guys get either a D or F.

    He does think the young American players may do better during the American hard court season. I am not as up to date on the American youngsters as many people here, so don’t know if his take is fair or not. But I was struck by how unimpressed he is with them, echoing some of the comments here.

  • catherine · July 27, 2017 at 8:09 am

    Hartt – going back to what players do in their holidays, I see Simona has opened a cafe in Constanta.

    But I don’t suppose we’ll see her waitressing there anytime soon unless her career takes an unexpected downturn 🙂

  • Scoop Malinowski · July 27, 2017 at 8:26 am

    Scoop Malinowski writes:

    Paul is in the QF of Atlanta and I would say he has a shot to win the title. See? One tournament can change a player's career. Just a few weeks ago Paul lost in a Futures to a guy I never heard of ranked 1900 something. Now Paul is three wins away from winning an ATP title. These rankings or grading of #NEXTGEN players is like trying to critique an oil painting before it's half way finished.

  • Scoop Malinowski · July 27, 2017 at 8:27 am

    Scoop Malinowski writes:

    Catherine; What is the name of Simona's cafe?

  • Hartt · July 27, 2017 at 8:31 am

    Catherine, this could be a whole new theme, what pro tennis players do when not playing tennis. 🙂

  • Andrew Miller · July 27, 2017 at 8:43 am

    Agree, one tournament can change a player’s career. Scoop is right on that. It’s never clear in which direction the change is – better or worse!!!

    Lots of examples here.

  • Hartt · July 27, 2017 at 8:48 am

    I haven’t been watching the American youngsters this week because am concentrating on 2 of my faves – Khachanov and Shapovalov. Right now am watching Karen vs Bedene in Hamburg. It is a close, entertaining match with a good contrast of styles. Karen won the first set TB and the 2nd set could go either way.

    Speaking of Shapovalov, he won his first 2 matches in Granby, solidifying his position in the top 150. In the “Last Word” piece the writer said he thought that “the stud” Shapovalov might make the NextGen finals in Milan. Given what a small wiry guy Denis is I had to chuckle at that description.

    I hope the American youngsters do well. It is fun seeing the young players progressing.

  • Andrew Miller · July 27, 2017 at 8:49 am

    Glad to see Paul break through. I’ve seen clips and he owns a nice game. I’d argue as of today that the pecking order for the USA next generation is still tbd, even for the immediate future. They do need breakthroughs this summer. They have opportunities to do that, and we’ll see if they make the most of it.
    For now,
    Expect that other countries next generation will be superior to USA next generation until one of them decides to set their goals higher. Donaldson has done all the right things, in some ways like Thiem who also dedicated himself to quite a regimen. He’s the best right now. He may not be in six months time. Or he may be!

  • Scoop Malinowski · July 27, 2017 at 8:56 am

    Scoop Malinowski writes:

    On Monday, Paul was at the bottom of the list of #NEXTGEN US players. On Sunday afternoon he could leapfrog to the TOP of the list. That's how much things can change in the span of a week.

  • Andrew Miller · July 27, 2017 at 9:04 am

    One thing is for sure: Fritz is doing badly and he’s not as good as billed. Another obvious point: Khachanav, Rublev, Coric, Zverev Alex, all better than American youngsters. Again that’s right now. And Zverev Alex is far and away better than all of them, especially with his Rome Masters.

  • Andrew Miller · July 27, 2017 at 9:07 am

    Given Ostapenko’s rise and slam title, obvious we have no ability to predict anything accurately. They’ll be an ATP Ostapenko.

  • Andrew Miller · July 27, 2017 at 9:08 am

    Kyrgios is in the “your guess is as good as mine” category.

  • catherine · July 27, 2017 at 9:15 am

    From what I can see Simona’s cafe iscalled ‘SH’ – a pattern of her initials.
    But then I can’t read Romanian 🙂
    Best of luck to her anyway.

  • Chazz · July 27, 2017 at 9:18 am

    Yeah, the pecking order for NextGen is fluid. Donaldson is playing the best right now but I remember when he played Sock in the Miami Open in March and it was such a decisive loss he looked like he belonged on the ITF tour. It seems like a lot of them have had their moments but no one has been consistent throughout the year. Donaldson, Tiafoe, Escobedo, Fritz, they all have shown flashes, especially Donaldson and Tiafoe. Now we have Paul beating Chung and Jaziri, two very solid wins.

  • Hartt · July 27, 2017 at 10:03 am

    Khachanov just won his Hamburg match against Bedene in 3 tight sets. In fact, Bedene had 105 points to 100 for Karen. Khachanov can make some amazing shots, putting the ball right in the corner or an inch from the line. But he also makes a lot of UFEs. He is becoming a little more consistent but he can still lose focus from time to time.

  • catherine · July 27, 2017 at 11:52 am

    Amusing comment by Sharapova (and no, nothing to do with her suspension etc) in her column for the Players Tribune in which she notes her peers’ obsession with social media – they come off court and before they do anything else, change, shower etc they log on to their twitter and look up their mentions. Before anything else 🙂

    Something wrong here I think. I’m not a fan of social media myself but trying to be a detached observer I think – oh, c’mon – narcissism or what ?

  • catherine · July 27, 2017 at 12:04 pm

    What seems obvious I suppose is that the players who do this aren’t thinking about the match or their games or anything like that but about how others see them.
    Which strikes me as pretty irrelevant. Are they thinking about tweets during the actual match ? Would they consult twitter during the changeover if permitted ? Probably.

  • Chazz · July 27, 2017 at 12:05 pm

    Catherine, the selfie generation is definitely summed up as narcissistic. That’s the best word for it. It’s bizarre to me.

  • Hartt · July 27, 2017 at 1:04 pm

    Catherine, thanks for mentioning the Sharapova Players’ Tribune piece. I always find these fascinating, and Sharapova’s was no exception. Because they are in-depth, I always learn something. I was never a Sharapova fan and am not one now, but it was very interesting to see things from her perspective and must admit I have a better understanding of what it was like for her to come back after her suspension and how tough this latest injury was.

  • Hartt · July 27, 2017 at 1:26 pm

    I just read Pete Sampras’ Players’ Tribune piece from about 2 years ago, in which he writes to his 16-year-old self. He talks about how dramatically things would change when he won the USO and this part made me think of Kerber. “The more successful you are, the more people will want out of you. . . . The pressure will be as exhausting as anything you’ll ever do on a tennis court.”

    Sampras also tells his younger self that he will be very lucky to retire before twitter and Facebook come along.

  • catherine · July 27, 2017 at 2:04 pm

    Hartt – It struck me that Maria has probably learned a lot over the past couple of years and has very likely emerged as a more mature person. And not unintelligent. So I hope things work out for her in the years she’s got left, in terms of playing as well as she can and avoiding injury.
    (and on that subject I wish someone would give Bouchard a smack – will she never stop harping on her own self-importance ?)

    Sampras is good about the pressure – maybe it’s been worse for Angie because she was older and had spent so many years as a medium ranked player,not attracting much attention outside Germany and suddenly all that changed and she wasn’t ready.
    I’d like to see her end the year on an upward trajectory – going on from where she left off at W’don. Not on the covers of magazines etc but perhaps happier in herself.

  • Thomas Tung · July 27, 2017 at 2:12 pm

    Catherine, I agree re: Kerber — quite (mentally, psychologically) overwhelmed by the frenzy of attention, and the stress of being at the very top.

    Sampras always extremely mentally tough, in part due to his father Sam being unable to sit through an entire match with his son (nerves always got to him). This forced Pete to not look at his team/player’s box from a very young age (as he himself notes in his autobiography).

    Federer loves the game as much as, and even possibly more than, anyone else in the pro ranks right now. As Roger himself said, he enjoys winning much more than he hates losing (Nadal is one who seems to hate to lose more than anything else, but he’s been trained not to go beserk on court, courtesy of Uncle Toni).

    In other words, everyone needs to find their way of dealing with pressure, and that way is different for everyone (Sampras, Federer, Nadal, etc). A Federer with Nadal’s mentality would cripple himself mentally with too much self-analysis. A Nadal with Federer’s mentality would be too relaxed and complacent. Can Kerber do it? That is the big question that will dog her at every tournament she goes into.

  • catherine · July 27, 2017 at 2:42 pm

    TT – Being lower ranked now and passed on the highway by Muguruza and co may take the pressure off Angie – and move it on to someone else. No one gave her a chance at W’don – so she played in a tough loss with freedom and confidence not seen for a while.

    Federer’s got a mind to match his playing style. A gift given to very few. Unique.

  • Andrew Miller · July 27, 2017 at 4:15 pm

    Catherine, Sharapova’s quip is amusing. I can’t fault players for being from different generations. Some will be obsessed with twitter whereas in the past others may have had their Walkman on. It enriches the sport for me, I love it that older players keep on going as the locker room changes. Federer has the best seat in the house, he’s seen it all!!!

  • Andrew Miller · July 27, 2017 at 8:28 pm

    Favorite player tribune: Mardy Fish. Honest, got to the core of why he had to retire, his heart issues, his anxiety, how the need to improve began to turn on him. If Kerber does this or Pennetta or anyone, always fascinating.

  • Chazz · July 27, 2017 at 11:19 pm

    What is going on in Atlanta? Christopher Eubanks, a 400+ ranked college player, beat Fritz and now Donaldson. Harrison barely beat Millman, 7-5 in the 3rd.

  • Andrew Miller · July 27, 2017 at 11:49 pm

    Eubanks is really good! He’s playing in front of a home crowd much like Isner. Eubanks played at Georgia Tech. Like Isner huge serve, and a fine one hander.

  • Andrew Miller · July 27, 2017 at 11:54 pm

    What’s Granby like? Nice to see Shapovalov pull it out vs Yuki Bhambri. Bhambri was moving up the ranks and even qualified for slams. He’s another junior slam winner with a pretty decent game, just a lot of errors.

  • Andrew Miller · July 28, 2017 at 12:11 am

    Eubanks joins next Gen! He has to. He’s got the drive, nice power game. Efficient. No playing around! Like Raonic, Isner, Karlovic, go big or go home style.

  • Dan Markowitz · July 28, 2017 at 12:47 am

    Amazing that of all the Next Gen players, it might be one we’ve heard so little about, Christopher Eubanks, a 21 year old, 6-7, 180, who’s ranked no. 461, who might become the best. Just like Izzie, he’s a college student, apparently going all four years, and yet he takes out Donaldson today in the Atlanta ATP event.

    What does this say? Eubanks is getting hot in his home college town? Perhaps. JD isn’t all that great? Perhaps. But it’s intriguing in an era where college tennis is scorned by so many, that Eubanks might be following in the footsteps of Izzie and SteveJo.

  • Dan Markowitz · July 28, 2017 at 12:55 am

    Plus he’s black and we haven’t had a great black American player since Arthur Ashe, who next year it’ll be 50 years since he won the US Nationals (nee Open)in 1968 to capture the first slam title by a black man. We’ve had Mala Vai, Blake, DY, but none has ever come near to accomplishing what Ashe did, top 5 player, 3 slams, Davis Cup star.

    Now you’ve got Tiafoe and Eubanks and maybe just maybe either of them may win a slam.

  • Hartt · July 28, 2017 at 7:14 am

    Andrew, regarding Granby, I saw that match. It’s a good thing the court has lights because the match did not end until nearly 11:00 pm, having started very late. It was a bizarre match, Bhambri totally disappeared in the 2nd set and Denis won it 6-0. Then, in the third, Bhambri suddenly remembered how to play and Denis had to work to win it. One thing I like about Denis is he does not get discouraged when down in a match, or when he has to fight for a win.

    Also in Granby we have a a tale of 2 players. Philip Bester announced his retirement there because he said the fans always supported him. His final tourney will be his home tournament in Vancouver. His good friend, Peter Polansky, is also in the tourney. They are close in age and for a long time had somewhat similar careers. But while Bester is so low in the rankings he is retiring, Polansky is close to a career best, and could make it into the top 100 if he continues to do well.

  • Hartt · July 28, 2017 at 8:20 am

    Regarding players who go the college route another example is young Canuck Brayden Schnur. He went to the University of North Carolina for 2 1/2 years, although he did not graduate, turning pro a year ago. He played for the Tar Heels and was very successful as a college player, winning the Singles National Indoor Championship.

    Brayden turned 22 earlier this month and is a bit behind other young Canuck players such as Denis, but he is steadily going up the rankings. He is now No. 197 in the live rankings and is in the Granby QFs. So far he has had his success at the Futures level, winning 5 singles titles and 4 doubles. It looks like he is ready for the Challenger tour now.

    I first saw him in qualies at the 2014 Rogers Cup when he beat Sugita to make it into the main draw. Had never heard of him then but was very impressed. He is another big guy, 6’4″ – that seems pretty much the norm for young players these days.

    Schnur is also part of the Philip Bester story, the 2 have played 4 times, splitting their matches at 2 apiece. Schnur won their last match, in Little Rock, this past April. So one player on his way down and the younger one on his way up.

  • Chazz · July 28, 2017 at 8:22 am

    OK thanks, I knew almost nothing about Eubanks. I saw that he is 6’7″ but was shocked that someone with basically no ATP experience could take out two guys like Fritz and JD for his first two ATP wins. I will definitely pay closer attention to this guy. Let’s see how he does against Harrison next.

  • scoopmalinowski · July 28, 2017 at 8:24 am

    Eubanks absolutely is now officially ahead of Kozlov, Rubin, Mmoh, Fritz and Opelka. QF of atp main tour event. Not even finished yet. Eubanks has caught fire.

  • jg · July 28, 2017 at 8:45 am

    What about William Blumberg from UNC winning a few rounds in Binghamton.

  • Andrew Miller · July 28, 2017 at 9:14 am

    Eubanks is rocking the tournament. Harrison’s return of serve has improved – he’ll have to dig in to beat Eubanks, who like Opelka last year is red hot and catching fire.

  • Hartt · July 28, 2017 at 9:17 am

    Wow, if Eubanks’ weight on the ATP site is correct, he is one thin guy. Sascha, at 6’6″ is listed at 189 lbs, and Eubanks, an inch taller, is shown as 180 lbs.

  • Andrew Miller · July 28, 2017 at 9:21 am

    Hartt, what a tournament up in Granby! Did Bester give a speech or it came out in the papers? Maybe he looked around and saw the writing on the wall with Shapo, other youngsters coming up. What’s impressive to me, the Canadian men play VERY well in front of a home crowd. I’d be surprised if Canada doesn’t win Davis Cup, given they relish playing for home teams and remember what they are playing for abroad.
    Maybe this comes back to the training I think you mentioned before, where players play a lot with similar coaches and facilities. Some form of camaraderie is bound to form. And some Canadian coach has a master plan or vision?
    One Canadian I like: Steve Diez. He has a nice, scrappy game. Solid technique. He’s all around good. I’d say one of best technically, though Raonic, Shapo, Dancevic also have good technique.
    Bester to my eye didn’t.

  • Chazz · July 28, 2017 at 9:22 am

    I don’t follow college tennis much. How did he not reach the semis or final of the NCAAs? Did he underachieve or are there players just as talented in the NCAA?

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