What if Roger Federer summoned his inner beast… The Rogimal?

Yep, Thomas, Sweeting! That’s right. I agree, but he got to the 60s in the ranking count, then his complacency I think sorry to be harsh, wrecked his career.

Andrew, exactly. Pistol Pete had no relationship at all with Roddick. That’s kind of how it goes. I know tennis cutthroat but when you are retired, you may want to know the champions from your own country. And if I am Berdych I’d hate Lendl now. I really want Tomas to get to Friday.

Hate to say it but I think Sam is going down hard tomorrow. Hope I’m wrong. He’s not too satisfied, I think, but it may be too big a moment for him, Friday on Centre court. Cilic is two wins from becoming a tennis immortal – he may lose Sunday to Fed but he’s not losing to Samimal with that on the line. Hope I’m wrong.

Duke, I don’t understand Sampras’ affinity and Agassi’s affinity for today’s living legends. That’s great everyone’s friends or respectful, but they really distanced themselves from the us men’s players. Was it not to “pick winners” or generate friction between, say, Querrey and Isner? If so, wouldn’t that mean the USA men’s legends wouldn’t join the coaching camp of Djokovic, sonewhat unsuccessfully, as Agassi has done kind of?
I guess they are in a darned if you do and darned if you don’t situation. Maybe I’m not up on whether Sampras shared a few insights or if Agassi welcome Querrey and Johnson to camp Agassi in Vegas. I get it that there’s probably only so far they can go, they are limited in terms of setting up longer term coaching arrangements. For Berdych, maybe that’s a box, the pressure of coaching a fellow Czech box in a country Lendl left, that Lendl wanted locked with key tossed away.
It’s still hard to see Agassi join Djokovic camp, or Sampras in the Federer box as he had been. And maybe USA men don’t want Agassi and Sampras around given that they haven’t been all that positive on USA men’s players. They haven’t been negative, but nor are they encouraging.
Key word is distance. They’ve been distancing themselves from current and future players. Maybe they have to. Maybe it’s to avoid the limelight. But Rafter, Hewitt have waded in, for Davis Cup at least. Then again, Agassi and Sampras never loved Davis Cup either!

Querrey takes set 1 in tiebreak. Wow.

1 set all for Querrey Cilic. Now it’s about fitness and playing your game as trite as that is.

Scoop, I don’t think that was a choke. QBall may have won the first set but he wasn’t in control. The margin is so thin in a match like that. Both have played extremely well but Cilic has a little extra and the end result is no surprise.

Chazz, true, no surprise. And Cilic is one of a few players, joining Wawrinka and Del Potro, outside the big four to own a slam. I was hoping Querrey would Samurai Cilic but, not to be.
Ultimately, huge result for Querrey. I’d like to think the result wakes up his USA men’s counterparts up and down the ATP rankings, but I hoped for the same thing last year and only Querrey has proven he can make it to a slam quarter or further. Maybe his A+ game is just better and he has another gear, both in the shots and attitude department, that Sock etc don’t have.

Then again, USA still arguably does not yet have a contender for slams, even with Querrey’s great performance and best USA men’s result since Roddick’s retirement. Enormous achievement in context, smallish nonetheless within an era where a lot of other guys have made this mark many times without a slam to their name either.

Scoop, I hear you. Hard to be downbeat, Querrey did amazing – he broke the five year spell of no USA man in a slam quarter, then broke it again this year by making the semifinal. That’s a lot for one guy! Even Switzerland has more help from their bench. But I did notice that he said I never expected to be here. Maybe it became too real. After a while it may have dawned on him, holy smokes there are only four guys left in this tournament, I might win it!
I heard this among women’s players, that they too are startled when they win a huge tournament because all of a sudden there’s no more preparing. That’s why when asked to describe what’s it like to do x y z every player falls flat. Because it’s so new. New territory. Cant explain it and it’s pretty much surreal to win these things, realize there isn’t another match.

It is payback time. For Federer, it’s always payback time!!!

On the match today I’ll go for Muguruza, particularly if it’s a 3 setter.
Sentiment says Venus but I think Garbine will be too strong.

Scoop, Sam did good with the X this year. His Acapulco run was a “step up” from his Delray title last year, more proof he could take out the big guys. Could say that Sock’s first quarter of the year was pretty good performance with the X on his back too. Just that once surfaces changed for the Sockster, it was as if he didn’t exist.

I still hold Fritz scared the living daylights out of Querrey, Sock, Johnson Donald Young, etc, Fritz, Opelka, Tiafoe, Donaldson etc. And now, hopefully, Kypson, a semifinalist in the boys Wimbledon, will scare the daylights out of those guys.

My sense is negative though and I think the young guys are just as likely to look at Querrey and say see, when I’m 28 and 29 I’ll make a quarterfinal, I’m doing fine.

Hunger is a two edged sword. The further you get the more you want, the better the wins feel and the tougher the losses sting. That’s why Querrey is understandably upset even after a career best. The less you want the more you’re satisfied.

Sweeting, Levine, and Collari? The argentine kid. Or one of the argentine kids who had been a French Jr winner or finalist? Not Bjorn Fratangelo, his opponent.
Sorry to be cruel, but there were some huh? arrangements made by USTA in the Pat McEnroe era on sure things that didn’t pan out. Dumb, controversial ish moves. But they struck some silver even gold in supporting the next genners. They are complacent but a hungrier lot than we’ve seen in the States since Fish’s cohort with Roddick, Ginepri, etc.

Scoop, a USA ATP pro made a slam semifinal. It’s a miracle. That it’s Querrey is a miracle. Where is Isner? Sock? How about Fritz, shouldn’t he have shown up at least in the latter half of the first week of a slam by now?
It’s a miracle.