Anyone for Tennis !

I really want Novak to finally get that elusive title. He'd complete the Grand Slam and be the first man since Rod Laver to hold all four Slams at the same time.

Think he will,as he's going in as a heavy favourite. Plus he's hardly had any matches to tire him out like he had in Rome.
I'm not a supporter of either,to be honest. But I'll be rooting for Murray tomorrow.
 
Think he will,as he's going in as a heavy favourite. Plus he's hardly had any matches to tire him out like he had in Rome.
I'm not a supporter of either,to be honest. But I'll be rooting for Murray tomorrow.

Something about the pressure of winning that RG title makes me feel he won't do it, plus Murray has been phenomenal this season on clay. I expect a five set match and that would favour Murray because Djokovic played four consecutive days whereas Murray had a bit of a break.
 
Can't see anything other than a straight sets win for Djokovic. He's a class apart from everyone else, even the No.2 seed.

It was a great performance from Murray to oust Stan, but I think he'll also be more jaded. If he's gonna win i think it will have to be in straight sets too. And I just can't see that.
 
Something about the pressure of winning that RG title makes me feel he won't do it, plus Murray has been phenomenal this season on clay. I expect a five set match and that would favour Murray because Djokovic played four consecutive days whereas Murray had a bit of a break.

Think the pressure part,will be the only thing that holds him back at all. But having the freedom of the BO5 sets,I think he's got enough 'leeway' to take it tomorrow.
It took Rafa 4 hard sets in their last final,2 years ago (and Murray's no 2014 Rafa,on clay :)) to beat Novak,and he's by far a stronger player now.
As for the fatigue. It depends on how much Murray's earlier rounds catch back up with him.
 
Think the pressure part,will be the only thing that holds him back at all. But having the freedom of the BO5 sets,I think he's got enough 'leeway' to take it tomorrow.
It took Rafa 4 hard sets in their last final,2 years ago (and Murray's no 2014 Rafa,on clay :)) to beat Novak,and he's by far a stronger player now.
As for the fatigue. It depends on how much Murray's earlier rounds catch back up with him.

I hope you're right. Nothing against Murray but Djokovic could make history today. One can only hope Djokovic learns from his mistakes in his past three finals here where he's played too passively. The benefit for Novak is that Murray is more of a retriever than attacker and he won't bring the game to Djokovic like Wawrinka and Nadal have done with success.

Having said that, Murray has improved tremendously on clay and he beat the defending champion, the man who dismantled Djokovic last year in the final, with relative comfort.
 
and we're off....

break to love for Nole on Murrays opening service game....
 
and a break back by Murray on Noles opening service game winning it with a great drop shot/lob combo (edit: or dropper-lobber as I've just seen it called on the BBC website lol)

this is going to be a good match!
 
Murray holds his own serve then breaks Nole again! 4-1 Murray
 
1st set to Murray - 6-3
 
It's warm and I don't fancy having the heater <del><del> plasma on. Is there a live stream of this I can watch on a phone?
 
It's warm and I don't fancy having the heater <del><del> plasma on. Is there a live stream of this I can watch on a phone?

ITV player may have a streaming of it...
 
It's warm and I don't fancy having the heater <del><del> plasma on. Is there a live stream of this I can watch on a phone?

Put your shorts and t-shirt on, put on some sun cream and sit in front of your plasma and watch this match properly!
 
Sat in the garden watching a stream. Fancied Dokovic at the start of the tournament and still think he'll prevail here even if Murray goes 2 up. His best is way better than Murrays best and if he so much as gets a foothold, I think it'll be curtains for Murray.
 
All too easy. There really is no one to challenge Djokovic at this moment. Federer (who used to toy with him in his prime) is long gone, Nadal is finished and Murray lacks the mental strength and steel necessary to get himself back into games when it starts going away from him.

None of the emerging talent seems capable either, at least not for the next couple of years or so. I honestly didn't think he'd pass Federers tally and still think it's a tall order but, if his strongest opponent can be dismissed this easily then barring injury, Djokovic could almost have an unopposed run at the next 8-10 slams. There's simply no one playing who can get close to him!

He's a magnificent athlete though and you do wonder whether his formidable fitness, skills and mental strength beats opponents long before they get on court.
 
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I called Djokovic yesterday, and to be honest I should have thrown some money on it. There was never any doubt here.

Murray is a great player, but he was born at the wrong moment. Both Federer and Djokovic are special players, and they aren't to be touched. As long as Djokovic is around, Murray will never beat him when it matters.
 
Tennis is slipping into a bit of a dull stage. We've been blessed with many years of incredible talent, especially in the mens game with a handful of players at the very top of their game. But now we've finally come to a point that's been coming for a while - Federer continues to fade, Nadal is done, and Andy Murray just doesn't have enough in him to topple Djokovic when it really matters. There isn't really anyone coming through any time soon who I can see will be a force to be reckoned with in the coming years.

Djokovic will go on to dominate for many more years yet.
 
I kind of agree that he could dominate for a few more years but, I also think it will be unlikely. Injury permitting, I suspect it'll be a couple more and then he'll start to slide. He's 30 next and time is against him now. He needs six more slams to pass Federer and if I was a betting man and despite there being no genuine opposition now, I still don't think he'll do it.

Once sportsmen (in any sport really) at that level hit 30, it's almost psychological and the wrong side of the peak to be on and with Djokovic in particular, whose aggressive style is very similar to Nadal, he’ll probably decline quite quickly. A bit like Manny Pacquiao in boxing, his all action lung busting brand of tennis relies on youth and extreme fitness and I’m not sure how long he’ll be able to maintain that. Nadal couldn’t do it and the moment he got injured once, it was the beginning of the end for him. Federer has lasted into his mid-thirties because his game has always been reliant on his supreme shot making and skill rather than energy sapping aggression (even though he had amazing court coverage in his prime). That being said, he still hasn’t been able to challenge the very best for about 4 years now which tells its own story.

The way Djokovic throws himself around court, sliding with ankles and feet at almost 90 degrees; I’m amazed he hasn’t suffered ligament injuries already. It’s only a matter of time and the older he gets, the more likely an injury will become and when that happens, it will in all probability finish him.

I like Djokovic though. I like his manner and his attitude. He’s humorous, humble and gracious and not as egotistical as Federer ended up becoming towards the end of his reign. He doesn’t have Federer’s sublime skill and nor does he have Nadal’s aggression but, his unique blend of both those is what makes him an extremely potent player. He’ll be a worthy slam title holder if he manages it.
 
All too easy. There really is no one to challenge Djokovic at this moment. Federer (who used to toy with him in his prime) is long gone, Nadal is finished and Murray lacks the mental strength and steel necessary to get himself back into games when it starts going away from him.

None of the emerging talent seems capable either, at least not for the next couple of years or so. I honestly didn't think he'd pass Federers tally and still think it's a tall order but, if his strongest opponent can be dismissed this easily then barring injury, Djokovic could almost have an unopposed run at the next 8-10 slams. There's simply no one playing who can get close to him!

He's a magnificent athlete though and you do wonder whether his formidable fitness, skills and mental strength beats opponents long before they get on court.

Djokovic was about 19 when Federer was in his prime (2006), that's a bit unfair. Djokovic beat Federer in straight sets in the 2008 Australian Open SF and went on to win the tournament when he was just 21.

I agree with everything else you've said though except Djokovic has a more far more flexible and injury free body than Nadal's. He'll go on for a while yet.
 
Look back at the stats and head to heads up to 2011 (never mind 2006). Federer is 13-6 up. When his decline gathered pace (and his lingering illness in about 2010/11 didn't help), it was only then that Djokovic started to beat him consistently. Djokovic peaked young, then abated, and then came back again a much better player.

In fact, it was Nadal who had the measure of Federer. 14-8 up by 2011 and had he managed to remain fit, I suspect he could have been out of sight by now. Too aggressive though and the years of blasting opponents with sheer brute force took their toll on his body. Shame.

I'll be amazed if we witness an era of mens tennis like this again.
 
She was a cheat plain and simple, got away with it for ages - 10 years!! - and the BS about health issues just paints her as a lying nobhead. I would have banned her for her fudgeing grunting.
 
She was a cheat plain and simple, got away with it for ages - 10 years!! - and the BS about health issues just paints her as a lying nobhead. I would have banned her for her ****ing grunting.

Don't think you can quite say that when the drug wasn't on the banned list until January this year. So many more could actually have been taking it for years too. But just stopped at the right time. We may never know who they were.

I don't think she intentionally took it, it's just a huge bit of negligence on her camp's behalf. But her career is blighted now anyway, even if they overturn her ban. It's all folks will remember. I'd already forgotten she had the Career Slam! :laugh:
 

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