Wimbledon 2009

[blackdarkeye]

Originally Posted by pseudonym

I never fully expected Roddick to make it this far.

But I had a gut feeling that it would be a "old person's" final, meaning either Federer-Hewitt or Federer-Roddick.

Roddick is playing his best tennis ever. His shots are ridiculously solid.

roddick is only 26, not that old

 

[AR_Six]

I honestly think Roddick is mentally dominated by Fed, having been annihilated so many times. I don't know that he believes deep down that he can win. Fed has plenty of confidence, I'd go with Fed in 4 sets.

 

[Rambo]

Originally Posted by JD_May

I honestly think Roddick is mentally dominated by Fed, having been annihilated so many times. I don't know that he believes deep down that he can win. Fed has plenty of confidence, I'd go with Fed in 4 sets.
+1 commentary. I've got Fed going straight sets. Roddick's got no chance.

 

[Get Smart]

I wanted to see Murray win it all, but a Federer-Roddick final I think will play better than a Federer-Murray final, if Federer is to win which unfortunately he will

the Williams match is close but it's so boring, it has the excitement of a 6-0 6-0 match with a closer score

**meh, I woke up early for this? 2nd set was a route

 

[King Francis]

I'm eager to see Federer regain his rightful place as world number one. I've been thrilled with his play so far in Wimbledon this year. You have to respect the fight and all-out hustle and athleticism of a player like Nadal, and my heart goes out to Roddick too, clearly playing like a man inspired, but I'm in awe of Federer in a way that I could never be of the others. His overall decency and respect for other players and for the history of tennis, combined with his genius for the game, won me over a long time ago.

 

[Hard2Fit]

Well said.

 

[SField]

Originally Posted by King Francis

I'm eager to see Federer regain his rightful place as world number one. I've been thrilled with his play so far in Wimbledon this year. You have to respect the fight and all-out hustle and athleticism of a player like Nadal, and my heart goes out to Roddick too, clearly playing like a man inspired, but I'm in awe of Federer in a way that I could never be of the others. His overall decency and respect for other players and for the history of tennis, combined with his genius for the game, won me over a long time ago.

His decency has faltered in the last two years. His crying in stealing the show from Nadal and a few of his comments have been really off color, but in general he was always very decent and gracious before he started losing.

 

[King Francis]

Originally Posted by SField

His decency has faltered in the last two years. His crying in stealing the show from Nadal and a few of his comments have been really off color, but in general he was always very decent and gracious before he started losing.

He cries when he wins too. He's a passionate guy. Admittedly, I didn't watch the post-match show after last year's Wimbledon final, but was it really that bad? I haven't heard anyone else say this. In the interest of full disclosure, I probably would have cried too in that situation. The visibility was awful by the end, and it was a heartbreak of a loss.

 

[matadorpoeta]

i'll be going for roddick only because he is the underdog, though i don't really give him a chance.

 

[Trapp]

Originally Posted by King Francis

He cries when he wins too. He's a passionate guy. Admittedly, I didn't watch the post-match show after last year's Wimbledon final, but was it really that bad?.


I'm pretty sure he's talking about Fed's tears after losing this year's Australian Open.

I find it impossible to interpret those tears as a lack of decency, and certainly not any effort on Fed's part to steal the spotlight from Nadal's win. I mean, watch the tape. It was desperation, frustration, and probably (given how Fed had been playing for several months) a real feeling that he was truly in decline, that his best tennis was behind him, that Nadal was completely in his head, and that he was a fading number 2 and still slipping. Meanwhile, he's holding the 2nd place platter and having microphones put in his face and being asked to describe his thoughts. It's tough, and it's tennis. If he had the power to hold back his emotions for five minutes, put on a good face for the crowd, the photographers, and the tv cameras, I'm certain he would have. I found his raw emotions tough to watch, felt both bad and a little embarrassed for him (his basic incapacity to speak and get through the moment) but I never thought it was indecent or inauthentic.

I do think Fed overdoes it sometimes during standard interviews; especially since winning the French. I've been hearing him talking about what a remarkable achievement it is to have reached 20 (or 21?) consecutive semifinals (which it is). But he's implied that people aren't recognizing enough how historical a feat that is. Given how much attention he gets anyway, it seems unnecessary for him to pump that. People will figure it out.

I like Fed. And--I hope Roddick pulls the impossible and wins tomorrow.

By the way, nice to see Sebald quoted on the forum.

 

[Rambo]

Really surprised that Venus rolled over like that. She was playing so well.

 

[Trapp]

It was disappointing.

 

[unrated]

Originally Posted by Rambo

Really surprised that Venus rolled over like that. She was playing so well.

I only watched the first set, but the second set score leads me to believe her knee started acting up. Serena looked a little bit better from the beginning but I fully expected Venus to bounce back.

 

[pseudonym]

Originally Posted by King Francis

He cries when he wins too. He's a passionate guy. Admittedly, I didn't watch the post-match show after last year's Wimbledon final, but was it really that bad? I haven't heard anyone else say this. In the interest of full disclosure, I probably would have cried too in that situation. The visibility was awful by the end, and it was a heartbreak of a loss.

As a Federer fan, I admit that him losing matches somewhat consistently a couple of months back would lead to his eventual downfall.

Wimbledon 2008 was hard for me to watch, because the way the match went, I had a gut feeling Nadal would take it. Seeing Federer lose and cry made me feel more pissed off than sad. The AO 2009 was even worse.

I think Federer's whole mindset is based on his desire to be a self-reliant, self-made player. He refused the possibility of getting a new coach. In a way, he's very much arrogant (maybe even selfish/stubborn), but who isn't when he/she has been such an icon in tennis history?

His more recent interviews have shown a little bit of his pride in his accomplishments. I think this is due in part to him being thrown down to #2, having the press hounding him as a soon-to-be retired player, and basically everybody pointing fingers saying that he will never be #1 again, as long as Nadal is present. Him explaining all his accomplishments etc. is a way for him to basically tell everybody that he's still in the game, still playing and fighting and that he's not going anywhere, as opposed to what the media said a couple of months back. Let's be honest; we all doubted his ability to play at his top level when he was losing badly. But maybe we were harder on him and placed more pressure on his shoulders because he's supposed to be #1, to beat anybody, and to defend his #1 title.

Now that his confidence is at a high, I honestly think he deserves to show that. He's still playing, and I hope he wins a few more slams. After that, he can retire, take care of his son, and enjoy life after a highly successful tennis career.

 

[SField]

Originally Posted by Trapp

I do think Fed overdoes it sometimes during standard interviews; especially since winning the French. I've been hearing him talking about what a remarkable achievement it is to have reached 20 (or 21?) consecutive semifinals (which it is). But he's implied that people aren't recognizing enough how historical a feat that is. Given how much attention he gets anyway, it seems unnecessary for him to pump that. People will figure it out.


This is exactly what I'm refering to. He's advertising like crazy for himself. Also, when you lose, you don't go on and on. You just let the guy enjoy his victory. He did the same when Murray beat him before that.