Rafael Nadal is safely through to the Wimbledon third round, but he will be eager to raise his level when he takes the court against Lorenzo Sonego on Saturday. Botic van de Zandschulp and Richard Gasquet are also aiming for a place in the second week.
(27) Lorenzo Sonego vs. (2) Rafael Nadal
Nadal did enough to reach the third round at Wimbledon, but he will have to raise his level substantially if he wants to win a third straight Grand Slam title. In fact, he may require dramatic improvement if he simply wants to get past Sonego on Saturday. From the standpoint of offensive firepower and general grass-court prowess, Sonego is a much more dangerous opponent than Nadal’s first two foes in Francisco Cerundolo and Ricardas Berankis—both of whom took a set off the Spaniard. Two of the 54th-ranked Italian’s ATP final appearances have come on the green stuff, including the 2019 Antalya title. He reached the fourth round at the All-England Club last summer and so far this fortnight he has taken out grass-court specialist Denis Kudla in five sets and Hugo Gaston in straights.
Surprisingly, Nadal dropped the third set against both Cerundolo and Berankis and even trailed the fourth set of his opening match by a break. It has hardly been impressive by the 22-time major champion, but those were his first two grass-court matches since 2019. You have to think improvement is coming sooner rather than later, plus it’s never easy facing Nadal for the first time—which is the case for Sonego in this contest.
Pick: Nadal in 4
Richard Gasquet vs. (21) Botic van de Zandschulp
Van de Zandschulp and Gasquet will be going head-to-head for the second time in their careers and for the second time at a major this season. They previously faced each at the Australian Open, where it was one set all before Gasquet retired. The Frenchman had lost 10 games in a row at the time. Gasquet has been plagued by injuries throughout his career and at 36 years old things are not getting any easier. The world No. 69 was forced to play nine sets in his first two rounds, too, so he is definitely a question mark heading into the last 32.
Whereas Gasquet had to work hard against both Joao Sousa and Mackenzie McDonald, Van de Zandschulp mostly cruised past Feliciano Lopez and Emil Ruusuvuori—dropping just one set to the Finn. The 25th-ranked Dutchman has been in great form dating back to the summer of 2021 and this is his fourth consecutive appearance in at least the third round of a Grand Slam. Now he has a golden opportunity to reach the Wimbledon second week for the first time.
Pick: Van de Zandschulp in 4
WWW?
I think this is going to be a 5 setter.
Rafa clinches it in the end 6 – 3 in the last set
Sonego is tough on grass, but I’ll take Rafa in 4….and BDV in 3.
Rafa is third on centre tomorrow.
Nervous abt this as rafas level is just too patchy. Sonego is decent n Rafa has never played him ,so it will be tricky
Btw djoko n Carlos level is looking top notch .both have demolished their third round opponents
Rafa in 3, BVDZ in 3
Saw Alcaraz today ..he was scary good. Whole game is on fire ..37 winners to 8 ue .that’s just top line.
I didn’t watch him today but I was impressed with him in the first 2 rounds. With the pressure off him he is playing really well. He is playing way better here than at RG.
He could give Novak a scare..
Sinner against Alcaraz should be good but I think Alcaraz will win.
Alcaraz is way more talented n more firepower than sinner
Vithoven trouble for djoko ?
Jose Morgado said he ( Vithoven )would be the toughest test for NOvak before the final.
Dunno about that as I haven’t seen him play and anyway Alcaraz is surely tougher?
But he is a seasoned tennis journo so I thought I would pass on his opinion..
Sanju, I wass impressed by Alcaraz’s easy win, because Otte is actually good on grass, and he had done well in the last tournaments. But I was also surprised how Sinner dismantled Isner! Was there something wrong with Isner. I cannot remember that a healthy Isner did not even manage to escape into a tie-break!
Sinner vs. Alcaraz will be a very interesting meeting of two very talented young guns. But I think that Alcaraz will win.
He showed his finger to the physio in the match is what I read..plus sinner was serving lot of body serves
I am pretty nervous about tomorrow. Sonego has some real shot making ability and if Rafa leaves it to the fourth set again to play as he can then he might already have lost.
Before even if he was poor his opponents couldn’t really damage him. He could lose tomorrow if he can’t raise his game and play a solid match..
Amy..positive vibes. No uttering word lose
Sorry sanju!!😀😀
Am so super positive now I may explode!😀
Sanju,
Thanks for your positivity. It is helping calm my nerves as I watch Rafa struggling to get it together on grass.
From what I am hearing about Sonego, it is concerning. Rafa hasn’t played him either. I have to believe that Rafa will know he has to raise his game.
I remember you saying that Moya not being there is a problem for Rafa. You have said that from the beginning. So that also makes me nervous.
I will just have to cheer even louder for Rafa!
One would think that all the stars are aligning for Rafa to win Wimbledon (still want/hope to believe) this year but the way he is playing does not convince me he is going to be ready to challenge the joker/Alcarez or Nick.
As I said above YOU NEVER KNOW and one of the reason I believe he has slim chance (to win the title) is because all the heavy hitters (or players that can really challenge him early) are gone without facing him and he has time to fine tune his game. He got broken too easily nowadays…lot UE… some folks are saying that his rib issues may resurface again. All in all we rafans really have to be concerned.
I have Rafa to the Final and Novax winning, but now have severe doubts about another GS for NoVax. Maybe he needs to get vaccinated if Australia is still banning the unvaccinated, and he might as well get the jab before US Open season if that is still mandated. His chances for keeping up with Rafa are blowing by fast.
The rib issue did not surface entire RG where he played 4 hr plus matches vs Felix Novak n brutal rallies with zverev .why will it surface now.
Please let’s not screw our minds thinking any injury whatsoever ..foot is enough to worry abt..
I agree. The rib issue has resolved. Rafa had tough matches at Rag without having any rib problems. We don’t need to complicate our lives by bringing up an injury that has healed.
The foot is more than enough to worry about!
😉
At RG!
Why can’t Moya come here in second week if Rafa wins today ..rafa needs you Moya ..do it for him..having videocalls ,phone calls can never replace in person support
Right now this stupid lady is freaking me out. She has been creating havoc entire wimby.
God please keep rafa safe
https://mobile.twitter.com/TennisPodcast/status/1543178937597136897
What is that all about? I don’t understand. Who is this lady?
A player who was to play doubles with Tan who defeated serena…she posed with rafa yest n today said she has covid ..
Oh no. That’s all I needed to hear. In Rafa’s last post match presser he said that he is staying inside and not going out. So he is trying to take precautions.
It is suddenly the invasion of Dutchies 🤗
Gasquet in 5
Rafa in 4
I think Rafa will win his R3 match no matter how many sets it may go. I think Rafa is strong enough mentally to think of solutions on court to win the match.
I hope the playing conditions is better than when he played the R2 match. Djoko’s half of the draw has ideal conditions today, no rain and not much wind either.
I hope it’s sunny weather and no windy conditions when Rafa plays his R3 match.
Every tourney I hear the same thing! Someone always put of the blue is going to give Rafa troubles! I’m so tired of hearing that. Rafa always gets treated like the dog’s breakfast! Doesn’t Rafa”s 22GSs count for nothing?! I am not worried about Sonego to be quite honest, don’t care what anyone says. If Rafa loses it would most likely be bcoz he didn’t play his game!!! Simple! Now Vamos, Champ!!!
I agree zero respect or confidence in rafa…rafans are programmed to only worry , me included. This happens only with rafans..i rarely see fed or Novak fans worried unless it’s a big match…i don’t know what it is about us rafans that we even want to invent potential reasons to worry hehe.
Rafa play your game , buck up and win this damn title
Excuse me? I already said that Rafa will only lose if he doesn’t play his real game! This match is entirely on his racket!
My only point is that if he doesn’t play his real game he has an opponent who could take advantage in the way the others couldn’t.
I think Rafa will win another slam this year but his best slam after Rg is the US Open so it may well be there…
As I have said before, this match is entirely on his racket.
Amy i wasnt talking abt u or anyone .i said rafans in general ..we are a worried lot me included
Haha sanju!! Yes we are!!😀😀
PS before AO I was convinced Rafa was going to win multiple slams this year. I definitely think he wins another but that may well be the USO. I think Rafa much prefers to play after the warm up masters especially Canada where he seems to be very comfortable.
Amy .we have matches now middle Sunday is it ? I thought all fourth round matches on Monday ..has that changed
Yes it has changed sanju!
This year there will be matches on the middle Sunday for the first time…was announced earlier this year…
So no manic Monday when everyone plays! Good thing really..
PS next week it will get much hotter from the mid week onwards…
Everyone is entitled to their opinion. For myself, I know very little about Sonego. But I do see Rafa struggling. Fortunately, he does not have to play his best in the early rounds.
I tend to agree with Lucky. I believe that Rafa does have the advantage with his tennis brain and ability to make mid match adjustments. In a five setter he will always have the advantage. We have also seen him raise his level of play when needed. So the game on grass is there. He just needs to do it more consistently.
We have seen how much this means to Rafa. In his post match celebrations he has been happy and joyous. We know Rafa’s will to win.
Go get him Rafa!
I am not worried bout Sonego at all. He may well turn out to be dangerous – but if Rafa cannot deal with players like Sonego, he is definitely not ready to reach the final, or even win Wimby this year! How is he supposed to win against the likes of Kyrgios, Alcaraz, Fritz or even the Djoker if both of them reach the final? And if Rafa is not ready to face these opponents, an early loss is not the worst thing. This year there are no points to be gained anway, and it would be better for Rafa to rest and recuperate for the North American hardcourt events. A reasonably healthy Rafa is definitely one of the favorites for the USO.
2018 and 2019 Rafa played great grass court tennis, and the hype was justified. But we have not seen anything like this in Rafa’s first two matches. Let’s wait and see, what happens today…
I agree with you littlefoot 1000%
I love everything about ure assessment!
Let the games begin!
😀😃 😀
I wouldn’t be surprised if we had a surprise winner this year if that makes sense…
Mid as in Wednesday onwards Amy ?
I just checked sanju and it’s not clear.
Probably will be around 23 pm Wednesday and Thursday which is warmer but not by a lot. But all forecasts say on Friday and the weekend it will be a lot hotter i e 26-28.
There should be no rain.
Sanju, did you see my comment yesterday where I quoted the Portuguese tennis journalist Jose Morgado who said that he thought Rijthoven would be Novak’s biggest test before the final? Interesting take. I haven’t seen Rijthoven play..
He has a Sampras like serve supposedly. He likes ghee big stage as he has beaten both meddy n Feliz at a grass tourney. Plus he seems fearless . He has even claimed he can beat Novak lol..now that last statement can be his undoing..Cheryl also feels he will give Novak a very hard time
Iga lost 1st set.. and down a break in second.
Iga lost the match.,
Iga lost in str8ts!!! Oh boy!! What a manic Saturday it is today!! Coco, Iga………..who else?
Iga struggled last round against a lucky loser so this is not so wildly surprising..
Cornet has had big results. I remember her beating Serena years ago at wimby when Serena was the big favourite to win wimby.
So no one”s commenting on match this far? Rafa is serving VERY well thus far! Looks focused!! Keep it up champ! Take ure chances!! Vamos!!
Now just talking about how great Rafa”s serving is and he goes and drops 2 dfs!! Sigh!! Vamos, Rafa!! But ure back into it!!’
Mona,
I am here. Rafa looks a lot sharper starting this match. He is already up a break. He was serving well until the 2 DF’s. But it didn’t hurt him.
What is it with Rafa when he serves after breaking?
The first time he broke against Berankis he served a double fault on the first point. Rafa did exactly the same on the first point ! and also served another double later in the game..
Nick is there complaining about everything!! As always! He lost first set but still on serve so y he is behaving like this?
Meanwhile Rafa breaks twice!! Already serving for set 1!!!
I think Kyrgios is going to blow. He does this when he is losing. Tsitsipas played a great first set and won the TB easily. So we are about due for one of his meltdowns.
Well hello grass court Rafa!
Rafa wins the first set6-1!
This serving day (sans the dfs) is blowing my mind!! Rafa serves more aces in this set alone than in his entire career!! 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
Good going Rafa!! Onto the second set we go!!! 💪🏽💪🏽💪🏽💪🏽
Rafa looked a million times better in the first game! One point hitting forehands and then a great bhdtl winner…so much better.😀
Rafa looks much more like his grass court self. Nice to see!
Nick got code violation for calling lines person snitch and whistleblower!! Haha!!!! Oh boy!! What can I say?! Nick is being Nick!!!! He is about to get disqualified!!! He asked the referee if he”s f@&king dumb after winning the set!!!!!! On national TV!!! This is nuts!!!!!
Meanwhile, Rafa is just continuing to make me proud!!! 💪🏽💪🏽💪🏽💪🏽😄
So was he penalised?
Nope!!! But now Tsistipas hit a ball towards some spectators almost hitting one of them! They both are asking for it!!🤣
How can you watch 2 matches at once Mona?!
Tsitsi should have been defaulted. They just showed the clip of what happened.
Hitting a ball into the crowd is automatic default..
Yes Sonego is playing much better. Rafa needs to maintain his level…
Amy, One on tv and one live stream! 🤪
On my cable here they’re showing Nick so I’m steaming Rafa!
Rafa should now keep his intensity bcoz Sonego is playing a bit better!! Hope we don’t have any third set dips here!!
Hear the crowd scream as Rafa stripped?! 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 Rafa is so naughty!!
Sorry Mona! My reply is the post above!
NK wins the second set…
Rafa is playing out of his skin. Nice to see you back, grass court Rafa!
Vamos Rafa!
NK isup 4-1 on Tstitsi now.
NK wins the third set..
What is all this crap about the light from Sonego?
He’s been going on since 8
Exactly!!! This is CLEAR gamesmanship!!!! While Nick and Steph r playing the skins off!! Sigh!!
It’s very irritating. He is only saying this because he’s losing. After he first complained Rafa seemed quite bothered and not playing with same aggression..
Whoever designed this so you only have lights when you close the roof needs shooting…
It’s pretty clear Tsitsi should have been defaulted.
I hope he loses.
NK is a brat but so is he.
Sonego is a cheat!
If they hadn’t had the delay Rafa wouldn’t have lost his serve!
This is very irritating.
Well done Rafa!
Amazing the improvement today since the first 2 rounds.😀
He was fantastic today..
Finally Rafa has gotten it together! A great effort today! Happy to see him get his grass game going!
Three sets for Rafa! No fourth set!
Way to go Rafa!
Yes but not sure what happened there with him and Sonego!
I like the way Rafa addressed it in the interview!! Bravo, Rafa!! 😃
Onward and upwards, Vamos!!!
Can Tsitsi be retrospectively defaulted?
He should be…
Now, now that Rafa has won, where r all the nay sayers that said what they said about Sonego giving Rafa a hard time?!! Honestly………..disappointed in u all!!
We didn’t say that Mona! We said Rafa had to lift his level!
The match was always entirely on Rafa’s racquet..
Come on! Rafa won and played his best yet! We should just celebrate!
Rafa moving on to the fourth round!
😍
Yesss!! Very happy today!
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 acknowledged!
Anyway who is Rafa playing next? Nick!!
Monalisa, we were right not to worry about Sonego 😉 !!!
NK may have the honour to play against Rafa in the semis – if both of them manage to win their next two matches. But it seems to get more likely…
NK wins!
He may well go through to the semis..
The commentators are saying he was behaving in an intimidating way..
I only saw the end..
So happy to see that Rafa’s playing so much better and had an “easy” win today! I didn’t watch since ABC is carrying the coverage this afternoon and I figured I’d be stuck watching a lot of NK and Tsitsi and I have zippo interest in either of them except I’d love it to go 5 so that they wear each other down!
You were smart not to watch. They did stick with the train wreck that is Krygios. Tsitsipas tried to take it to five but came up short.
The match between Kyrios and Tsitsipas was close, but Tsitsipas as usual had to make mistakes and lost serve once in set two and three, when he also had BPs or SPs against Kyrios but Kyrios saved all of them with good serve and good play.
The fourth set TB was close and Tsitsipas lost it again, at 8-6 or 9-7. Tsitsipas was simply not clutch at crucial moments, whilst Kyrios OTOH could just rely on his great serving to get out of troubles.
It’s another disappointing loss for Tsitsipas where it matters, to me Kyrios wasn’t playing exceptionally well, just well enough to win a closely fought match.
Kyrgios was losing and then he started wuth the bullying and verbal abuse. At everyone. The chair umpire, the crowd. He made a mockery out of it. But what it did do was throw off Tsitsipas. He got rattled. I know what some may say. That he should not let these antics get in his way. But that is easier said than done.
He called the chair umpire every name in the book. But it worked. The ESPN commies were all saying it’s terrible and blah,blah,blah. But they stuck with that match and pretty much ignored Rafa’s match.
That’s pretty awful!
I only saw the very end of the match.
I hope he loses to Nakashima. It’s entirely possible as he generally plays a lot better against the top players and loses concentration against those he is supposed to beat..
Go Nakashima!
I will be cheering for Nakashima!
Welp that was hilariously fun imo. Nick got into Tsitsipas’ head. He’s gonna be hard to stop if he keeps this level up. And the rule needs to change imo. You shouldn’t need to injure someone when you hit a ball recklessly in their direction out of uncontrolled anger.
The unfortunate part is that they stuck with that match and I saw very little of rafas win.
Vamos Rafa!!!
I didn’t find it remotely fun. Tsitsipas got frustrated with the antics that were done to deliberately throw him off. Kyrgios lost the first set. So I’m the second set he started arguing about nothing and going after the spectators and the chair umpire. Anything to disrupt the flow of play.
Oh and about trying to hit someone. Kyrgios did exactly that a few years back at Wimbledon. He went straight for Rafa. Rafa stared him down and then just played some great shots.
So are you saying that it’s not okay for Tsitsipas but it is okay for Kyrgios? Because nothing happened to him when he did it.
They have not done anything that would be harsh enough or damaging enough to Kyrgios. So he gets away with it. It is bad for the game. He is toxic. But there is nothing at all funny or hilarious about his behavior.
Nick is a narcissistic individual. Watch both of their post pressers. Nick was totally shocked that Tsitsipas said he was a bully! He said he did nothing wrong today. It was Tsitsipas hitting balls into the crowd and at him. He just has no idea why?? He muttered constantly when Tsitsipas was serving. But Nick accomplished what he set out to do… especially after he lost the first set. He was trying to get under Tsitsipas skin… and he did. Steph lost focus. Players don’t need to involve themselves in Nick’s craziness on court. He does this for a purpose…. to needle his opponent. But I’m like Tsitsipas, I think all of that on court chatter he does, needs to have a rule put in place to warrant a warning. It’s just beyond ridiculous! My two cents!
I agree about Kyrgios doing this deliberately. He lost the first set and was not happy about it. That’s when the verbal abuse started. He talked whenever Tsitsipas was serving. That will break a player’s concentration.
In his presser Tsitsipas said he took responsibility for hurting the ball into the stands. He has never done it before and he says he wouldnever do it again. Typical of Kyrgios to inky see his opponent’s bad behavior and not admit honestly that it was because he was trying to rattle him and get under his skin.,
I do think they need a rule in place just like with other code violations. Kyrgios will do it as long as he gets away with it. The ATP should stop looking the other way.
I blame the ATP for all of Nick’s behavior becoz they refuse to address it appropriately. I feel he clearly has some mental issues, and what’s worse the crowd loves it hence the reason they rather show HIS match rather than Rafa”s! Maybe if it was Roger playing they wouldn’t show Nicks match that much.
Nick behaves this way a lot when he plays high ranked players bcoz he believes he’s better than they r. He has an ego trip and he is envious of the attention they get and bcoz he knows he may never realize their achievements he acts up so he can get at least some notoriety. I agree with the person who said he might just lose the next match.
And by the by, how comes no one mentioned the thing that occurred between Rafa and Sonego? What was that about really?! I heard Martina going on about how Rafa should not have said anything until end of match. 🙄🙄🙄🙄I’m like look woman, y don’t u go commentate on the women”s matches?!! Sigh!
What are you talking about Monalisa? Martina is completely entitled to her opinion. And Rafa is not perfect either, he can make mistakes too.
If some other people on this forum had written that Martina should commentate on women’s matches, you would have been at their throat and have accused them of being some right wing loon. Horrendous hypocrisy from you, what a joke! Putting others down because they have their justified opinion on your favourite is lame.
Rafa said in his presser that he should not have confronted Sonego on the court. From what I gathered, Rafa had a problem with Sonego grunting and celebrating after hitting a winner. It was supposedly close to a hindrance.
They only showed Rafa’s match when this issue came up between Rafa and Sonego. Otherwise you would never know anyone else was playing a match.
The ESPN commentators are hypocrites for not telling it like is with Kyrgios. His behavior is outrageous. Now I am watching the replay on the tennis channel. They showed a video clip of Tsitsipas hitting the ball toward the crowd. It showed that the ball went between two people and then clipped someone else on the back of the head. So according to the tennis channel commies Tsitsipas should have been defaulted.
I should clarify that the video showed the ball going between two spectators and then it hit the backboard and bounced into the back of someone’s head.you have to watch it a little longer to see what happened.
Remember when Nick said he was going at Rafa’s chest? He said he intended to hit him and he would not apologize. I’m thinking Stef might have learned that little trick from Nick‼️ 😜😜😜 But seriously, he’s out of control. I got amused at the commentators in the Bublik/Tiafoe match. They were really bad mouthing the underhand serving he used against Francis. But the same commentators think it’s wonderful when Nick used the underhand serve against Rafa. They will say it’s a legit serve and Rafa stands so far back iff the baseline….. blah blah blah, hypocrites!! I think it’s bush league, myself. Why the commentators that are former tennis greats fawn over Nicky the head case! I’ll never figure it out.
Yes Kyrgios said after that match that he intended to hit Rafa! He flat out owned it. I think Tsitsipas key Kyrgios get into his head and he did not react well. Even he said he’s never hit the ball into the crowd. He played right into Nick’s hands.
The ATP has created a monster because they won’t suspend Nick when he breaks the rules.
There’s little that’s new in tennis. Nick’s behaviour so reminds me of Johnny Mac’s. The difference is, of course, Mac used to win slams. Tsit is no angel, nor is his father if we’re talking cheating, and should’ve been defaulted.
I think that handling of bashing balls deliberately into the spectators or other people should be changed! The player who does it, should be disqualified immediately, even if no one gets harmed. It’s dangerous behavior which should be prevented in the first place, and it is ridiculous to disqualify only if someone gets hit! I am on Kyrgios’ side as far as this argument is concerned. However, Kyrgios’ oncourt behavior very often is deliberate bullying in order to distract his opponents. Many single and double players have complained about this by now, and the umpires should stop this kind of behavior immediately because it’s deeply unfair! I have no idea why they are so lenient! Personally I do not think that Kyrgios is bad for tennis, and I don’t exactly dislike him. He certainly has some mental health issues, as he has openly admitted. He also has loads of talent, and his style of playing tennis can be very entertaining. But if his distracting and immature oncourt antics are tolerated, he most certainly has no incentive to stop doing it – especially if he wins his matches. It will be interesting to see how the umpires will handle Kyrgios in his next matches. There should internal discussions amongst the staff.
I was pretty disappointed with Rafa’s behavior yday. But, that’s coz I hold him to high standards. At least, he was courageous enough to apologize straight away.
Anyhow, March to #23 continues.
Rafa told the umpire about it. Sonego used to roar after hitting the ball n that is hindrance to the opponent. Yes rafa should not have called Sonego to the net n talked but then he apologized n it’s topic closed now.
Really??? You are upset because Rafa talked directly to Sonego at the net about what was bothering him instead of going through the umpire? This is a tornado in a water glass, and for all we know Rafa’s complaints may even have been legit! Since Rafa hasn’t told us, it might’ve been either Sonego’s allegedly untimely grunting or his silly demand to close the roof before the official closing time. If it was the latter, it was clearly gamesmanship, because Rafa’s opponents know by now how much he dislikes the Wimby roof 😉 I don’t have the foggiest idea why the umpire gave in! The match would have most likely be over before this deadline.
The only problem with Rafa’s talk at the net was that he did it after Sonego broke him, and it could be interpreted as sour grapes or an attempt to disrupt Sonego’s concentration. But I really think it’s ridiculous to waste time on this tiny mole hill. Like all other players Rafa is human. He has most certainly done things which are regrettable. Considering his long career, it would be very strange if he hadn’t. But what happened yesterday was not really an issue for me – especially if we compare it with the chaos on Court 1!
Rafa said it himself at his presser. Also in his on court post match interview. I don’t know why this should be a big deal. He felt that he should have spoken to him in private. He also would not discuss the issue in his presser. He made it clear that it will stay in the locker room. Rafa is decent enough to acknowledge if he thinks he did not handle a situation in the best way. Good for him!
The double standard that occurs in tennis is shocking!! And many of the commies are darn culprits!! Nick has gotten away with SO much and many think it’s cool! Even the way Nick”s matches r promoted is akin to some back in the day Sylvester Stallone movie block buster, bcoz they’re expecting some kind of fireworks, yet when Nick reacts they act all surprised and shocked!!! Nick literally on national tv berated and cursed the referee and the lines person and yet he was NOT disqualified, many think it’s cute! Yet, some of these same ppl want to go on about Rafa calling Sonego out at the net!! Rafa was very right to do this bcoz the referee didn’t do his job when Rafa complained in the first place!!! Rafa was good to apologize bcoz I for sure wouldn’t! While Nick is like since I’m paying a fine there is no need to apologize!!! Sigh!
All the stunts Sonego pulled in his attempt at gamesmanship, I didn’t hear the commies saying anything about it. Y must Sonego be the one to ask for the roof to be closed? There should be a clear policy on roof closure that is not triggered by the whims and fancies of players!!! Y didn’t they talk about that? But they want to be quick to harp on Rafa”s actions! I wasn’t pleased about how Martina spoke of Rafa”s actions not really understanding the full background! Some of these commies who were former tennis players honestly need to stop trying to steal shade from the current players, choopz!!
And of course there is always going to be chaos on the courts when ppl don’t behave the way they ought to! The match with Kyrios and Steph started really well. Not a fan of Steph but the scar tissue his has endured in his losses against Nick is evident, and he was trying to play his BEST game to give himself a chance. But Nick got rattled after losing the first set and then all hell broke lose, calling the lines person a whistleblower etc!!! Until it got to the point where he rattled Steph who instead, like Rafa, should have said something to the referee (and then Nick if it continued) bcoz the referee could NOT manage the match!! And on top of that the crowd was not helping bcoz for them it’s added entertainment, but they r not realizing that it steals from the match when one player acts like a total nob while the other player is trying to win a match!! And hence, bcoz players r different certain players will tend to react in ways that r unwise like in this case with Steph hitting ball in crowd. And then the same person who is the epicenter of ALL the chaos will turn around and criticize Steph for his reaction!!! What am I missing here?!!! This is CRAZY!!!
I didn’t watch the match with NK but most of the tennis journalists are saying Tsitsi should have been defaulted for hitting the ball into the crowd.
I don’t like NK but Tsitsi seems to be involved in a lot of controversies and alterations. Several with Med including one about his father coaching. One with Zverev over his bathroom break, another with Murray over exactly the same. I think there have been others as well.
It’s way past time NK got properly penalised ie with game and then set penalties ( like Serena) but Tsitsi isn’t some angel. Apparently he hit the ball at NK 3 times in around 5 minutes.
There seems to be a complete abdication of authority by the ATP and the ITF over these incidents, easily the worst of which being the one with Zverev attacking the umpire. I do still find that incident utterly appalling.
Novak got defaulted when he bashed a ball which happened to hit the line judge. But there was no intention behind it while Tsitsi hit the ball really hard into the crowd and nothing happened. That’s not fair in the slightest.
If I sound like I am defending NK I am not. He should get game/ set penalties followed by default if he continues. Just saying there are issues with Tsitsi as well and he seems to annoy a lot of people.
As for the Rafa incident it was nothing and it clearly came about because Sonego was going on and on about closing the roof when there was no need. He started at 8 for heavens sake and they could easily have finished the match without closing the roof. His complaints really upset rafa’s concentration and rhythm which was clearly his intention. It was pure gamesmanship.
Amy I know ure not defending Nick, lol! None of the players are saints including Rafa! However im just concerned if the ATP does not address this policy adequately and with urgency it will moth into chaos and ruin the sport! They must enforce the rules and not be discretionary with applying it. Anyone who hits the ball anywhere on court if NOT during a serve or rally, regardless of the reason, should be penalized, END OF!!!
Monalisa, I totally agree!
Yesterday’s match was a trainwreck – which is a pity because both players occasionally played great tennis!
Amy, I totally agree with you that the ATP/ITF have shown a lack of authority which is mind boggling. Many players have far too often just received a slight slap on their hands for their transgressions! The most blatant event was Zverev hitting at structures close to the umpire a couple of months ago! And NK should be strictly and immediately reprimanded oncourt when he starts with his bullying antics because it is deeply unfair! I am also of the opinion that players who bash the ball into the direction of the spectators or the stuff, should be disqualified even if they have not hit anyone. The point is that they could have hurt people. Therefore this behavior should not be tolerated. I am sure that the players will stop doing this very quickly after a couple of disqualifications!
After Zverev’s meltdown Jon Wertheim wrote an article about the problem that there are hardly any adequate consequences after serious transgressions. He said that this is to be expected because the ATP is an organisation which is controlled by the players, and therefore they hestitate to punish their own too harshly!
I dislike neither Nick Kyrgios or Tsitsipas, and I appreciate their tennis. But both of them were out of line yesterday, and the umpire didn’t handle these incidents adequately. And the problem with Kyrgios is that he gets away with his bullying behavior far too often!
Nick called the lines person a snitch and a whistleblower after the lines person ratted in him to the main umpire. So who knows what Nick was saying aloud that he heard. Probably dropping the f-bomb 20 times. He was appalled that Stef called him a bully! He is a bully. He bullies the officials, his opponent and whoever else gets in his way. Yes, not a fan of either player but I could definitely see why Stef was frustrated with his antics. He lost concentration…. clearly what Nick was trying to accomplish and it worked. I really think if Stef had kept his cool it would have gone five sets. But we will never know….it is what it is! People get into that stuff and Nick gets the adoration for this behavior. Go figure???
I agree. Nik was insulting the linesperson and the chair umpire. He is a bully. That is quite accurate. He knows exactly what he is doing. He lost the first set and decided to rattle Tsitsipas. It worked. Both guys did not handle the situation well. But Nik was talking when Tsitsipas was trying to serve. He talked about it in his presser. He complained to the chair umpire. That should be called as a hindrance.
I know Tsitsipas is no angel. He has been fined for coaching from his father. There have been issues with him. The replay they showed several times on the tennis channel clearly showed that the ball almost hit two spectators, bounced off the backboard and then grazed a man in the back if the head. So Tsitsipas should have been defaulted. But what about Kyrgios? The one whose abusive behavior started it all? He should not get away with this behavior.
I despise Kyrgios. He represents everything I dislike. He is boorish, bullying, nasty, vicious and insulting. Talent does not excuse abusive bullying behavior. Tsitsipas has his issues but nobody behaves like Kyrgios. He spits at players and spectators. Who does that?
Mona and littlefoot,
The Zverev incident was monitored by the ATP as it was an ATP event. Their cowardice was appalling but that was the ATP. The ATP have no jurisdiction over the slams. I don’t know who is the disciplinary body who monitors the slams? Is it the ITF?
As for the ATP, Federer and Rafa are on the ATP council aren’t they? They both deeply disapprove of this behaviour so I don’t see how it is the players who are constraining the actions of the ATP? More likely it is to do with £££.
But perhaps I don’t understand the structures involved? I am no expert!!
I think it is terrible Zverev wasn’t banned for months and both Tsitsi and NK should have had major consequences for their actions not some pathetic retrospective fines.
Tennis lost a lot of money over covid so they are probably very reluctant to ban players who bring in money for them.
Well I’m glad u raised the point about money, bcoz whenever money is involved all bets r off and anything goes!!! I could see where this is going already!!!
And that’s y I mentioned earlier that the spectaculars themselves love the chaos!! Nick has many many many fans!! He’s like a rock star!! So I don’t c things changing any time soon!!
Monalisa, I guess you wanted to write that the spectators (not the spectaculars 😉 love the chaos unleashed by NK. And you are right – he does have a lot of mostly younger fans who love his antics. And the ATP/ITF want to attract new fans because they fear that many tennis afficionados might lose interest when the Big Three are gone. So, money does play a role. But things get out of hand when someone is deliberately trying to disrupt his opponent’s play. That is very unfair and should be stopped! And it does not help that NK has turned the double event at the AO into a frigging circus and then won the title! And the officials did nothing, because they were seduced by the media attention. This encouraged NK. Why should he stop doing his thing? But many doubles players have been very upset!
Tennis is riven with double standards. Rules applied rigidly in some cases, not at all in others.