Another installment of the Novak Djokovic-Roger Federer rivalry will take place in the semifinals of the Australian Open on Thursday. Djokovic is the defending champion of this event, while Federer is ultimately looking for his first winner’s trophy Down Under since 2010.
Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer will be squaring off for the 45th time in their careers when they collide in the semifinals of the Australian Open on Thursday. The head-to-head series is all tied up at 22-22 after a pair of 2015 World Tour Finals showdowns failed to settle the score. Federer took a brief 22-21 lead by upsetting Djokovic 7-5, 6-2 during round-robin action before the Serb came out on top when the stakes were raised in the final with a 6-3, 6-4 triumph.
The two double-digit Grand Slam winners have faced each other three times at the Australian Open. Federer cruised 6-2, 7-5, 6-3 in the 2007 fourth round before Djokovic’s breakout tournament–resulting in his first major title in 2008–saw him upset the Swiss 7-5, 6-3, 7-6(5) during semifinal action. The world No. 1 has won thee slam matches in a row at his rival’s expense since losing to Federer in the 2012 Wimbledon semifinals. Djokovic prevailed in the 2014 Wimbledon final (five sets), the 2015 Wimbledon final (four sets), and the 2015 U.S. Open final (four sets).
“Any round feels like finals because of the fact that we are–you know, big rivals,” Djokovic commented. “We (have) played so many times against each other. There’s a lot of tension. There’s a lot at stake. I’m expecting a great fight.”
This blockbuster battle was almost denied in improbable fashion by massive underdog Gilles Simon. The Frenchman benefited from a shocking 100 unforced errors off the Djokovic racket to push their fourth-round affair two five sets, but the favorite finally survived 6-3, 6-7(1), 6-4, 4-6, 6-3. That was preceded by straight-set defeats of Hyeon Chung, Quentin Halys, and Andreas Seppi, and followed by a 6-4, 6-2, 6-3 rout of Kei Nishikori on Tuesday.
Federer has endured no scares of any kind. The 34-year-old Swiss dropped only one set through his first five matches and he bounced back nicely from a minor hiccup against Grigor Dimitrov to win that tussle 6-4, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4. Federer also boasts straight-set victories over Nikoloz Basilashvili, Alexandr Dolgopolov, David Goffin, and Tomas Berdych.
“I feel like I’m competitive at the top,” the third seed assured. “I can beat all the guys on tour. It’s nice now that in the last three slams that I’ve been as consistent as I have been. I’m playing good tennis; fun tennis for me, anyway. I really enjoy being able to come to the net more like back in the day. So I’m very pleased.”
But he can’t be pleased seeing Djokovic on the other side of the net, as opposed to Simon or Nishikori. Despite the relative competitiveness of the recent matches, Djokovic has simply had Federer’s number of late. Nobody turns defense into offense better than the world No. 1, an aspect of his game that can expertly counter Federer’s aggressiveness and net-rushing. Expect another high-quality contest, with an edge going to Djokovic.
Pick: Djokovic in 4
[polldaddy poll=9286575]
Fed will end his career with a losing record against his top two rivals… strong point this is going to be against his legacy.
He’s 34. Of course Novak wasn’t in his prime when he got dominated by Fed. The record against Rafa though, now that will suck for him.
why? He isn’t even in the same generation as Djokovic.
So? fed got to play enough times against him when he was at the peak of his powers and Novak was in the developing stage. Now, novak has had his share. Also note that novak is also 29, not a 21 year old. the fact that he moves and plays like a 21 year old is miraculous.
Fed-Novak have played 45 times! Fed’s top two rivals will have a positive head to head against him…
Djokovic will most likely end his career with positive head to head records against Fedal. Damn… Quite worried about the rate at which this guy is racking up title after title. Somebody stop him!!
Right on VR! Especially if Nole displays the longevity that Fed does and if there is no rival to stop him, he may rack up some mind boggling records. He is no mug on any surface, no mug against any opponent, has no weakness in his game. Novak era seems like it is here to stay
it is scary to think of it, vmk…. things can change pretty quickly in tennis and I am hoping something will happen to change this dynamic. Otherwise, novak djokovic is primed to break record after record.
May be the man from Mallorca can do something about this in the clay court season. Please rafa, dominate on clay again :/
VR, all because Rafa is not there at the business end of the slams. Also Murray not live up to expectations at Wimbledon. Thanks Stan for standing in when Rafa was down.
Just check, when Rafa was there in SFs at least, from AO2012 onwards, he stopped Novak at the FOs and USO. Its only on grass that he couldnt do the job of at least reaching the SF to meet Novak.
Out of 20 slams played from 2011 to 2015, Novak won 9 lost 11 – 4 to Rafa, 2 each to Fed, Murray and Stan and 1 to Kei. Without a top form Rafa standing in his ways, its like a huge burden off his mind.
A top form Rafa with Stan are the two who could stop Novak at the slams. In a Masters Novak will be hard to beat because he comes out all guns blazing when facing the top guys. In a slam he couldnt sustain that level throughout.
it is true that only an on-fire stan and a top-form rafa can stop him in slams. I know that rafa not being there has made things easier for him. We know how it was different in 2012-14 . However, to be fair, his level of tennis in 2015-16 is also higher. He is tougher to beat than he ever was.
But not at the slams. Just check how often he goes five sets at the slams in 2015 till this AO. He practically was stretched in every slam before winning the titles. Imagine a top form Rafa at the FO last year!
Rafa when he was winning at the slams werent stretched that often esp at FO and USO.
The difference is Novak now can outlast any opponent even when not playing well – Stan and Murray at AO2015; Anderson at Wimbledon, Murray at FO; Dolgo/ Gulbis etc at the Masters for eg.
Such flawed reasoning. As usual. Nole is 29 but he was nowhere in 2009 and 2010. Roger has absolutely NOTHING to prove against Djokovic.
I understand the argument with Nadal to an extent. He’s been with Roger since 2005. Djokovic-Roger, there’s ZERO comparison. Even assuming Roger got his wins when he was in his prime and Djokovic wasn’t, being less experienced is not even HALF as bad as being out of your physical prime. Just look at the sheer number of matches Roger’s played.
In any case, he clearly doesn’t care about the H2H. For every match lost in a H2H, he sets a new record literally every tournament these days.
And no amount of experience will ever compensate for loss of footspeed. That too on such slow courts.
I thought this was actually a really good result compared to last two years. And Roger didn’t do much wrong in terms of gameplan. Just that executing it is so difficult on courts this slow. And Novak knew this. Just watch one slow motion video of Roger volleying and you’ll see how high the ball bounces off the Court.
In any case, only Roger can achieve this:
http://twitter.com/Crumdawg97/status/692657029551357952
“Federer point got dude out his wheelchair.”
[img]http://pbs.twimg.com/media/CZzP5JAW0AAQDZx.jpg:large[/img]
I loved how even the interview was all about Roger.:p
Right you are VR. Federazzi love to ignore the advantage Fed had up to 2008 building a 7-2 advantage over Nole before Nole turned 20 and Roger still in his prime.
And now it’s the other way around and Nole has taken the overall h2h.
Rafa always owned Fed at any age.
Roger has nothing to prove.
Nor do any other past GOATS.
So Novak now has a winning record against all three of his rivals, and will probably end up as the only player with a winning record over both Federer and Nadal. That is quite an achievement.
Not so soon, its just one win over the two of them each, things can change.
very very unlikely. he is going to win more even if he loses a few of them. Rafa at least has had his number in slams 🙂
Thats enough. I also feel that IF Rafa plays the right way, like at MC and Rome 2012, he still can beat Novak at clay Masters.
On the HCs its always Novak except at the slams when they’re tied 2-2.
Well I’d Novak was a little unlucky not to face Rafa at the Australian or Wimbledon more than once. But then that’s how things go.
Mikkers, you should be thankful he won that AO 2012 final 🙂 ….could have easily gone rafa’s way had it not been for that easy backhand miss AND the fact that he had lost 6 straight times to novak in 2011…haha….
Regarding wimbledon, I also wish he had met rafa in the 2010 final and not lost to Berdych. Rafa was untouchable at that time..
Well if you want Novak to beat that bad back Rafa in 2014 AO!
Given how close that AO2012 was, I’m also not sure that Novak would beat Rafa should they meet at the AO more often. They may be even at the AO.
FYI, their H2H at the slams excluding the FO is 3-3; so contrary to common belief, Rafa is not losing the H2H at the slams to Novak even on non clay surfaces.
Oh come on, AO 2012 was the FO 2013 match of Rafa’s dominance over Novak at RG. GIven how the two have played relatively on the surface, it is safe to say Novak would have won most encounters.
And Novak played Nadal plenty of times at the height of his dominance on clay, skews the record. Nadal has played Novak once at the AO over the last five years. Having said that, the edge Nadal holds at USO is very impressive, especially the 2013 victory.
@Vamosrafa, or If Nole had not missed those 2 routine FH’s in the 4th set Tiebreaker, the match would have been Novak’s in 4 rather than 5!
Seem’s like no one remembers those FH errors by Nole in that 4th set TB!
Mikkers at 12:46
+1
#TwoWayStreet
….but Rafa is not at his peak now while Novak is so Novak now has the advantage.
You cant just use ‘Novak hasnt reached his prime/peak’ as an excuse whilst ignore the fact that its Rafa now who’s not at his peak whilst Novak is.
Check:
2006-2010 on clay Rafa vs Novak – 9-0; on HCs 5-7.
2011-2015 on clay Rafa vs Novak – 5-6; on HCs 2-9
So, it all balance up from 2006 to 2015 – 23-23 including grass. Rafa is better than Novak on clay and Novak better on the HCs.
Going forward Novak really HAS the edge over Rafa until he himself comes down from his peak.
2010 doesn’t count. Nole wasn’t quite gluten-free yet. There’s pre gluten free years (he was damm good) and gluten free years (out of this world phenomenal)
My post was in response after reading vamosrafa @ 11:53 am 🙂
Again, my prediction was right! Novak in 4 was totally realistic pick. Fed was not serving well to begin with and without his huge serve he is easy to smash by this Djokovic.
I don’t think either Andy or Milos have chance against Nole. I am afraid Andy would just give up once he realized Novak is winning the rallies. That’s why I wish Milos to beat Andy as his ice cold nature may make a difference in the final. I know he will be under huge pressure playing his first final but maybe, just maybe, his poker face and huge serve would shake Novak’s game…still little chance for Milos to win…
MOST people had Novak in 4. But yes, good pick.
Well, no, a lot of people also predicted Fed wining ..including hawkeye… ?
Congrats to me!!!!
RT Genny SS (1h ago): “Fed looking at Lubo every single time he’s hesitating to challenge a shot….”
That’s on-court coaching!
every player does that. Hope that helps
AT 11:20 AM,
Nope, nothing helps Fed’s defenders.
Many players violate the time limit between points but only one one player gets regularly punished. Hope that helps.
RTJosé Vallejo: “Novak Djokovic now with positive H2H records vs both Rafael Nadal and RF. He officially takes over the privilege Nadal enjoyed for…12 yrs.”
12 years! Sweet!
yeah good old times..he needs two straight wins against Djokovic to have that again. Sigh.
It doesn’t count until he’s done it for 13 years and with more than a margin of 1.
according to who??
Gosh, I just had this most depressing thought: If Rafa failed to reach his best form this year enough to win some we may witness both Fed and Rafa retirements at the same time at the end of the year…hope not!!! ?
Nah, dont be so pessimistic. Rafa can win on clay, he needs to start winning the smaller events first to build up his confidence.
lots of hopes tied to the clay court season. For now, rafa MUST win titles in all the clay events he is playing before IW. He will get a wild card entry for Beunos Aires and there will be Ferrer, Fognini and some other good players. I am hopeful he will win these titles and start building some momentum. THAT is what he desperately needs. Momentum.
Fed wont retire so soon as he still hopes to hold off Rafa and Novak from touching his slam records.
He needs Murray plus Raonic to be in Novak’s half of the draw at Wimbledon to give himself more chances of winning another slam, the Wimbledon. Its still possible I feel.
Unlike many, I feel Murray has a chance vs Novak here if he gets to the final and plays the right strategy.
have always been a believer that Murray’s brand of tennis can win him matches against Novak but the situation is against him this time. Losing sooooo much to Novak lately. Novak’s confidnence level. The question is whether Murray can sustain a high enough level.
The gap in the quality of 2nd serves has widened so much. In their 2012 AO SF Murray won only 30% of second serves but he made up for that by allowing Novak to win only 45%. With time, novak has really improved his second serve and wins more points behind it. Andy has enormous pressure when serving and Novak not so much . If somehow Murray can address this imbalance, he can do some serious damage.
Murray needs to get past Raonic first. It’s not a given that he would.
^^that!
I know…. i would give them both almost an equal chance….murray slight favourite. I was just analyzing a possible final…
Murray had Novak on the rope last AO but failed to persist and so fell short. If they meet here, hope Murray doesnt make the same mistakes and also not making and mistakes!
He had quite a chance last year but wilted in the third set.
12 years?
luckystar (AT 11:35 AM),
It would be more correct to say that almost 11 years in a row.
No. / Year /Tournament/ Surface/ Round -Winner – H2H (Rafa:Fed):
1. 2004 Miami Hard R32 – Nadal – 1:0
2. 2005 Miami Hard Final – Federer – 1:1
3. 2005 French Open Clay Semi-final – Nadal – 2:1
…(and so on)
What a damn squib of a match? What was wrong with Federer in first 2 sets. So subdued, poor body language, leaking errors off both wings, serve had no pop.
Such a poor semi and such a let down.
many Fed fans on my timeline are so unhappy with what they saw as it was not even competitive but almost a surrender. Thank God Novak cooled off in 3rd.
To be quite honest @Sanju, it was quite an entertaining match!
At leat that is what me and many others on the twitter feed felt.
Entertaining? in what way? 3rd set maybe yes..def not first 2 and 4th too had just not more than 3 points that were entertaining.
certainly not the first two sets…well, if Fedfans are suddenly entertained by this performance of their fave then you guys have definitely lowered your expectations & standards…
Entertaining because of the incredible level of tennis displayed by Nole in the first 2 sets.
For tennis to be entertaining, it doesn’t always need to be a dogfight. Even 1 player completely dominating the other by playing incredible tennis can be entertaining too.
how can a fed fan enjoy that manhandling regardless of how well the opponent played :s
^^^that
You need to have realistic expectations!I knew Fed will end up losing today. That’s what I had said at the beginning of the tournament.
If it would have been a straight set loss, I would have been really glum, but Roger fought it out really well to take the 3rd set and produced some magical winners too. That made me a bit happier.
Like many of you Rafa fans already gearing up for clay season, I’m already prepping up for the grass season and Wimbledon. That’s only where Fed has a chance to beat Nole.
No point having much hopes for the other tournaments, when Nole is gonna play this kinda of tennis on courts that naturally suit his game style
Because despite all the accusations, Fed fans like tennis way more than just watching their guy win. I thought it was a good match myself. Novak came in knowing he had the clear advantage on this surface. Roger came in knowing it too but in the third set he decided he wasn’t simply going to throw the match away like that. And Djokovic played his game well. No complaints there. He did what was expected.
Geez, fedfan, you sure have a lot of “public holidays” it seems.
I posted after the match (was anyway following scores) while you’re here all day, everyday. It takes me seconds to type given that drafting’s basically my job.
But for some reason you have a weird, convexed obsession with me. Probably something do with the fact that you can never win an argument with someone who decides to call out your BS.
Nah, I’m your daddy (you know like Rafa’s Fed’s with a more than 2:1 h2h advantage).
I guess you have time to see all my posts while “drafting” lol.
Such a multitasker.
Tomic was right.
Ever heard of multiple windows? Like I said, you’re one jobless fellow. You come here, attack me, and then expect not to be attacked back. But yes, since you’re that jobless, draw up a list of public holidays across the world. That might give you a clue. And something to do.
And fedfan I’ve seen you post countless endless comments on T-X clogging up the board during a match endlessly whining on about how bad a player is playing against a player you don’t like or whining about Fed when he’s losing like anyone is interested.
It’s both tedious and comical at the same time.
I guess your “draw-rings” aren’t too taxing for you?
I don’t post on whichever website you’re referring to. But like I said, you have too much time on your hands.
Riiiight.
Same moniker and same attitude.
One and the same.
Federazzi are everywhere.
I don’t know what you’re on about but it appears there’s no point in indulging you (not least because unlike you I’m not jobless) anymore.
If my username is similar to anyone on any other obscure tennis website that is not my problem.
That is not fair on Novak. Fed was poor but Novak was redlining in the first two sets with every part of his game. He got into Fed’s head very early.
+1
Sanju (AT 11:50 AM),
—many Fed fans on my timeline are so unhappy—
===
.
Fed fans have constantly been gloating over Rafa’s losses and Fed has laughed at Rafa’s losses. I don’t feel sad about their unhappiness. 🙂
it becomes clear that Novak aims at wining matches as fast as possible pushing so hard in the first two sets…he was just extraordinary in the first two sets but helped a bit with Fed subpar performance…
however, Fed raised his level in the third but also Novak dropped in level…so if anyone can sustain the rallies with Novak as Simon did then there is a chance of beating Novak because he just does no longer expect it to happen…Novak is so high on confidence that he was so to say shocked by Simon’s resistance which resulted in record 100 errors…
But for Rafa to stand a chance against Novak he has to mix his services and varies his game in order to be less predictable…so far we have not seen it happen against Novak because it’s hard to implement it against the best in game right now…but we did see it against Milos and if Milos is in the finals tomorrow that means that Rafa is doing the right things…
I am most worried about Novak’s ROS though…it is just amazing how focused he is and how he reads his opponents service so well…he has become like Serena in that regard…
mix his SERVES of course…
Lol, I’d argue he is way better than Serena in that regard. The coordination on the stretch returns is insane.
yeah, I understand your well deserved overconfidence atm …Nolefans are in the phantasy world right now…he is better than anyone EVER in every department…well, I don’t think so…he still has a lot to do…playing old Fed and Rafa in decline does not make Novak a miracle worker…where was his brilliance in that Simon match? And how was he able to lose to Wawa?
I thought comparing Novak to Serena would be flattering for Nole’s fans…she just reached her 7th AO final…Her total of 21 Grand Slam singles titles speak for itself…
Anyway, in terms of Novak, the rising stars are on their way and will make it harder for Novak…I wish Rafa would be back to his high level of play to challenge Novak but more that I expect more I get disappointed…
Its not the same game IMO. Women’s and men’s tennis cannot be compared but if you want to be objective, Novak does everything countering greater power, and in smaller reaction time.
Djokovic is the most balanced player I have ever seen and is the most complete from the baseline. Does this make him the best ever? Certainly not. But I think he has it in him to go past Nadal. So their peaks didn’t coincide so what? Every argument about Nadal and Federer being in decline can be reversed to Novak’s favour by simply saying he wasn’t in his prime, he wasn’t at his best level etc.
And I’m not simply a Novak fan. I rate both Federer and Nadal above him, as well as Sampras, but I believe that when all is said and done, Novak will be one of the top 2 players of all time, with Federer probably being better.
Mikkers nailing it.
(Except I think Nole will pass Fed as the best – as soon as June possibly.)
@mikkers 12:52pm,
women’s and men’s tennis CAN NOT be compared???? Are you serious? Why? Because women are inferior to men? Serena’s serve is better and faster than of most of the male players on tour…none of the male players can play drive volley as women tennis players do…
So according to you we should just disregard all the accomplishments women had in tennis because it can’t be compared? What is so special about men’s tennis? Sorry, but it seems to me as pure male chauvinism…
@ mikkers 12:55 pm,
” I rate both Federer and Nadal above him”…
You MUST rate them above Novak because they ARE above him with their records. For the time being…we would have to wait a few more years and see if anything changed…
yep
natashao,
The brilliance in the match with Simon, was that when it was over Novak won. That’s the point! Winning when you are not at your best! By all rights, Novak should have lost that one. But Simon seemed to fade a bit in the final going. He fought to the end but Novak found a way to win. Sound familiar?
That’s because someone named Rafa Nadal used to do the same thing! We would be on here singing Rafa’s praises to the heavens if he had done what Novak did in managing to find a way to beat Simon. He did not have his game on that day. That’s the way it is. But the champions find a way to do it anyway.
I just want this whole sorry saga without Rafa to finish. It’s torture watching the men’s matches…………..what a yawn!!!!!!!!
Your yawning is catching.
Is thia going to be the face of tennis? I can’t think of anybody on the tour capable of bringing the reign of Djokovic to an end any time soon.
I thought he already is the face of tennis!
Novak’s Achilles heel is that no matter how many titles he wins and records he breaks he is still not held in the same high regard as the other three in the Big Four. In recent years the majority of commentators. like so many sheep, toe the party line and talk him up incessantly and for the most part turn a blind eye to the fairly frequent lapses from grace.
Todays match reminded me on Novak Rafa Wimbledon final 2011. That was another hyped match that turned out to be a squib. Second set Novak won 6 1, 3rd Rafa won 6 1. Other 2 sets were 6 4 in Novaks favour. That match got over in 2.5 hours and left huge sense of disappointment for not living upto the billing.
That’s the fault of the fans, not the players. If we keep on billing up the hopes for an epic, we will never be able to enjoy what’s on offer and end up disappointed most often than not.
If each and every match starts turning into epics, there won’t be the charm of W’08 / USO’09 /AO’09 / USO’10/ AO’12 /RG’13 / W’14 and many others
I agree about being able to appreciate the truly special slams because they don’t happen all that often! That’s what makes them special! 🙂
Roger quietly telling a reporter off for slighting Novak.
“Q. As dominant as you have been the years 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, and so on, since there are not any more the Nadals or the Federers in the next three years, we don’t see that around, the fab four. Do you think Djokovic will be as dominant or more dominant than you have been having no great opponents in the future?
ROGER FEDERER: You have to be careful how you phrase a question. You don’t want to be rude to the other players because you have to face them. I don’t have to face them. I don’t ask them stupid questions like that.
I think there’s a lot of good players on the tour. I’ll tell you that. I think it’s hard to keep up that level of play. What he’s been doing is amazing. I was very happy how I’ve been able to keep up my level. Is it better or not? I don’t know.
I think we’re both, all of us, with Rafa, Novak, me, Murray, you name it, Stan, we’re all very happy with our careers. Of course, you can argue all these cases. We’re trying our best, you know, everybody. I think we’ll all walk away very happy that we were as successful as we were.”
You tell ’em Rog! Just goes to show the difference between a real player and the media.
Who other than the Maestro can enlighten these souls!
ALLEZ ROGER!!
Good answer by Fed. I cant stand the media for asking stupid questions! Good thing Fed tells them in the face how stupid they are for asking such stupid questions.
Nah, he knew he couldn’t complain about a weak era for someone else. He’s no hypocrite.
fed had 51 UEs with only 27% receiving points won…1st serve % was pretty low at 57% relative to Fed’s own standards given that he relies on his serve more than anything…given that he wasn’t able to play his S&V game and ended up losing long rallies as expected…this definitely was not a good match for Fed!
Pay attention Rafans! When Rafa underperforms we are the ones criticizing, finding answers & solutions, feeling down whereas Fed fans are happy that the opponent displayed some stunning tennis which made their favorite look doomed…well, this does not sound right, doesn’t it? I bet Fed will be criticizing his own performance…
Fed made >50 UFE’s in his 2008 RG Final. Yet we get to listen how good Rafa was rather than how poor Roger was.
Hope this helps.
On a side note: How crestfallen was Laver? Love the guy.
^^^ I clocked that too. You could see he was feeling Federer’s pain.
Rafa was SOOO good in that 2008 RG. You just can’t take it away from him…He never played a five-setter like Novak did at this AO. He was never even tested!
Rafa destroyed his opponents in the 2008 RG beating natural clay court players Verdasco and Almagro with respective scores: 6:1 6:0 6:2 and 6:1 6:1 6:1. He also beat a strong and in-form Novak in three sets (where Novak was able to take him to a tie break in the third) And then he allowed Fed ONLY 4 games…C’mon you can’t be saying that Rafa did not outplay Fed in every department in that match…
There are two ways of looking at it. Roger did have a lot of UFEs in the match because otherwise I just don’t think he’s getting bagelled in a GS final. He hadn’t been bagelled at all in ten years at any tournament until then. Of course Nadal was winning anyway. But Roger was way off all tournament.
Fed’s UEs were as a result of Rafa stretching him. Hope this helps.
You don’t know the difference between forced and unforced errors. Hope it helps.
She does actually.
Technically they are UEs but they are ‘forced’ in the sense that Fed is ‘forced’ to go for riskier, lower margin shots.
Hope this helps.
End of.
There;s no such thing as ‘technically’. Either it is forced in which case it won’t be counted in the stats or it is unforced for which you have separate stats.
Here, educate yourself for change instead of worrying about my public holidays:
http://www.tennismindgame.com/unforced-errors.html
sigh
No hope for fedfan. He doesn’t get it.
Hope that @natashao understands your point.
Probably should have said it more directly myself in my last post @ 1:53pm
no, 2008 RG Rafa was just too good to begin with…he was not struggling in any of the matches, he was so dominant, which Nole wasn’t at this AO…Fed had a chance to make it competitive but his own game plan and execution thereof failed him…you will just have to live with it!
Roger’s rhythm was off in the beginning. He started slow and Novak raced through. It happens. I’m not one to pay so much attention to UEs. Roger also had more winners than Novak at the end of Set 3 (didn’t check stats for the whole match)despite the score. That is Roger’s game. It’s tougher to execute on courts where a point doesn’t end quickly but that doesn’t mean he’s playing bad tennis. And I’m just happy he’s still in the game because otherwise all we’d have is defenders everywhere. Same style with same patterns of play.
@ Fedfan,
Fed had one winner more than Novak 34 to 33. But Novak had only 20 UEs…what does it tell you? Novak benefited from Fed’s UEs…I really expected Fed to do better in this match…but if the Fedfans are happy I am too…
I’m not ‘happy’ but I’m not sad either. If you’ve watched attacking players enough you know that their propensity for peaks and troughs is much higher than those that play consistent but safe tennis. Sampras had such moments as well. Because you risk a lot when you’re playing that style and then if the range on your shots is off even for a small period in the match, things can slip by quickly.
yeah, I agree…But I thought Fed would make this one more competitive…he certainly could if he was playing his A game…my thinking is that he brought his C game today… I do not think the reason is Fed being intimidated by Nole…If anything I admire Fed not having fear from Nole…if he had he would have been losing to Novak at much earlier stage in his career…
in fact, when I made my prediction I said Fed would lose because he is 34 years old and if he allowed Nole to drag him into long rallies he would have had no chance…Fed did exactly that…he could od better than that with his extraordinary net game…but serve let him down big this time…
Novak forced Fed to go for lower margin shots.
Theoretically they were UEs but practically they weren’t.
You mean the same way Rafa did in all his wins over Roger
#DoYou
#OrDon’tYou
Different cases. Fed is nearing the end of his career and is almost 35. He plays to enjoy tennis and perhaps add to or protect his legacy.
Rafa is 29 and still has plenty he wishes to achieve, at least he says he wishes to get back to his best and competitive level. Of course we are more concern if he’s not getting there. It Rafa is 35 and having Fed’s kind of achievements, I wont be that bothered when he lost to younger opponents in their prime.
lucky,
I do think you made a good point about Fed being at a different point in his career. Rafa is five years younger and still has things that he wants to achieve, according to him. He seems to still have the desire to compete.
If Rafa had won the Rafa slam in 2011 or the double career slam in 2014, then I wouldn’t be as upset about what is going on with him now. Because he would have done something that no one else has done in the modern era. Either one of those and I would be happy for him. But he lost out because of injuries, yet again. That is what makes it so hard seeing like this now. Fed has done what he wanted to do in this sport. He plays now for the love of it and also because he would most likely love to get one more slam to add to his legacy.
AT 5:59 PM,
Fed plays for the money and to set records.
Oh, did Fed tell you that himself?
Nativenewyorker AT 8:18 PM: “I don’t have to answer to anyone here.”
Me too. 😆
Different scenarios. Fed is nearing the end of his career and is almost 35. He plays to enjoy tennis and perhaps add to or protect his legacy.
Rafa is 29 and still has plenty he wishes to achieve, at least he says he wishes to get back to his best and competitive level. Of course we are more concern if he’s not getting there. It Rafa is 35 and having Fed’s kind of achievements, I wont be that bothered when he lost to younger opponents in their prime.
Sorry for double post.
it’s a bit different underperforming in a grand slam semi-final against the world number one who owns this event and intimidates anyone across the net from him just by stepping on court to underperforming by going out first round! (and that is the 3rd straight loss in the early rounds of slams). fed has played very well in the last 3 slams getting to 2 finals and a semi. kudos to him! commies to all our fed fans especially benny and abhirf.
it’s certainly a bit different to make comparisons with the player who was unlucky enough to be plagued with injuries all his life and had been coming back strong each time to beat those who enjoyed comfortable injury-free runs on tour…
amy,
Just catching up here, so I didn’t see your comment before I posted mine. I said basically the same thing. That there is a world of difference in going out in the first round to someone like Nando, versus playing in a slam final and losing!
It’s called rationalizing! But don’t you know that real Rafa fans can’t say anything like that, even though it’s the truth at the moment. I don’t find it fun to watch Rafa get owned by the likes of Nando or Fog, for that matter. I also don’t think he’s enjoying it, judging from the look in his eyes at his post match pressers.
natashao2013 (AT 1:19 PM),
—Pay attention Rafans! When Rafa underperforms we are the ones criticizing…—_
.
It has always amazed me that (some) people who call themselves Rafa fans are attacking him.
Well when Rafa gets to slam finals again, then we can be happy. Right now it’s not happening! Rafa just lost in the first round to someone like Nando. He lost early in last year’s USO to the likes of Fog!
There’s a big difference between that and still getting to slam finals! So let’s not kid ourselves!
It’s not criticizing him to state the facts. I made it perfectly clear that I don’t like seeing Rafa lose this way and see the pain in his eyes. Maybe others don’t mind that, but I do.
I don’t have to answer to anyone here. When I lose sleep and am sad for days after a loss like the last one, that is because I do care about Rafa. No one can say how I feel and what is in my heart. But it is concerning to see Rafa get knocked out early in three successive slams. I can’t just pretend that it didn’t happen.
Look to Fed for inspiration. Fed had a bad 2013 losing early at Wimbledon and USO but he kept working hard and by Wimbledon 2014 had reached the final.
Rafa came back in 2015 without much practice and still reached the QF of AO. He’s not doing well in the last three slams no doubt but its more to do with his nerve than with his game. He will be playing on his favorite surface soon so lets hope he can regain his confidence.
When he came back from injury in 2009, it took him one full year before he won his next title and its at MC on clay. In 2013 when he came back from long injury break, its still on clay that gave him his confidence.
I repeat what I’d said before, that Rafa made the mistake of playing too soon at Doha/AO last year without much time for practice before that. He should take Jan 2015 off and practiced using the new racket/strings and then came back in Feb to play on clay. He could look to his 2013 for inspiration. He might not want to miss the AO again esp when he was the finalist in 2014 and would drop many ranking points just like in 2013. However, by being ill prepared, he was not only losing matches but also losing confidence.
He needs to win matches now to regain his confidence. I hope he can implement all those changes into his matches and stays relevant and be a contender at the slams again.
Lucky,
Thanks for hearing me and responding in an encouraging way. Because that is what I am searching for right now – some answers and some hope. I am hoping that Rafa can get himself going in the South American tournaments. Some good match play and wins and maybe a title. Then maybe he can move forward with some good feelings.
It’s true that fed had his annus horribilus in 2013. Rafa has now had his in 2015. Now u hope that he can improve his serve and implement the changes necessary to make him get back to his best. All I want is only good things for Rafa. We also need him to challenge Novak. Tennis needs him.
I know that you understand where I am coming from and that it’s not about criticizing Rafa just for the sake of it. I am trying to be patient, but losses like the one to Nando, once again exiting early in a slam, is quite painful to watch.
Luckystar (AT 1:43 AM),
—Rafa made the mistake of playing too soon…He should take Jan 2015 off and practiced using the new racket/strings and then came back in Feb to play on clay. —
===
.
Rafa was supposed to test a prototype of the new racket model before the 2015 season, but it was not ready in time. That’s why he tested it later, in April.
The new model called the Pure Aero 2016 was launched in August/September, but Rafa doesn’t play with it. According to his own words, he had ‘less control’ with it.
Dang it. Good match from Djoker he played two lights out opening sets. Big turning point in fourth set imo was Djokovic’s let cord. Didn’t like how he screamed after that because that was WAY lucky. It’s alright Roger just go win Wimby lol.
Yeah, Novak was all revengy on that point, lol. That scream was pure primal. Normally you apologise for lucky let cords. :p
Fedfan: ‘Novak was all revengy on that point,’
He has toned it down a lot since the shirt-ripping days but I have always found his ‘in your face’ bellicose triumphalism the antithesis of good sportsmanship.
The convention has always been to acknowledge the luck of a net cord point whereas he let rip like he’d just won the title. Ugh.
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CZzezWIVIAAXwuP.jpg
Very nice, Fedfan. Nice to know. I remember Peter Carter and how that loss affected Fed.
I never knew anything about this coach who was with Fed in the early days. That’s amazing how he has been so kind of his parents after his untimely death. Great story!
I just wanted to offer my commiserations to Fed fans, like Benny and abhirf. It’s tough to see it happen again, but at least he got to a semi and did what he could. He’s still in there fighting. At 34, that’s a accomplishment. I don’t think Fed has anything left to prove, but it’s obvious that he would like at least one more slam. If he’s willing to keep making the effort and loves playing, then good for him!
Wimbledon is his one chance. And it’s a decent chance.
I agree about Wimbledon.
Before this thread winds to a close I would just like to say how refreshing it is to have fans of different players debating in a civilised manner – apart from few sly digs here and there. Long may it last.
+1