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Amazing match.  What a comeback!  That last set and that last game was completely thrilling.

7 minutes ago, theatremouse said:

Zverev is showing his youth, not that I blame him, but as soon as he lost he looked like a little boy, and he sounds like one now. Poor dude.

This is exactly why I have a hard time rooting for him.  He just seems very impetuous, he has a hard time hiding his emotions when he's down.  I guess neither could McEnroe but still.

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Sasha’s only 23. I bet (hope) his team will help him focus as he matures. Not gonna lie, I wasn’t originally rooting for either player but since I wanted a good match, I found myself cheering for Dominic, especially as his legs were struggling. Looking forward to the French Open now!

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I was actually pretty proud of Sascha. Just after the semis, I said that this I why I could never root for him, cuz you never know what you're gonna get. So when he came out playing his A game straight off, I was impressed. Then in the third set he choked ...then in the fifth he got himself together ...then he choked again in the final tie break ...then he cried ...then he thanked his team and told them he was improving and would continue to do better. I can't ask for much more from a 23 year old. I also loved that he came right over to his friend Dominic, did their secret handshake and embraced him before he indulged in his devestation.

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7 hours ago, mojoween said:

Not going to lie...this is the first time I have really ever paid attention to either of these gentlemen, and they are two very nice-looking men.

Really? You think so? Whenever I see a close-up of Sascha I always think he looks like the caricature of Eric Trump that Stephen Colbert does, where he somehow tucks his upper lip in and looks like he's nothing but teeth. Very hard to describe but funny as hell if you've ever seen him do it.  😆😆😆

I didn't watch the whole match, just checked in on it occasionally, but I wasn't very impressed with what I saw. Didn't think either of them played very well although there was some drama at the end what with going to a tiebreak in the fifth set but for the most part, both of them seemed content to endlessly slice the ball cross court. Made me appreciate even more the wondrous level of tennis we've been lucky enough to watch the past 15 years from the Big 3.

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That was a wonderful match.  Happy Thiem finally broke through and got his win.  Although I have to say it was definitely a wish they both could win day. After 15+ years of the Big 3 dominating I hope this is a sign that the new blood will finally break through.

19 hours ago, truthaboutluv said:

Well damn, I said dig deep Dominic and you did. Cramping and wobbling all the way to the end. That was impressive. I think he's also now the first player to come back from two sets down to either win any Grand Slam final or just the US Open title.

Sucks for Zverev because he played a strong match and he had his chances. 

Andre Agassi overcame a 2 set deficit to defeat Andrei Medvedev in the 1999 French Open final.  Not only did it cement his comeback but also gave him the career slam, the one bragging right he has over Pete Sampras.

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1 hour ago, kittykat said:

Andre Agassi overcame a 2 set deficit to defeat Andrei Medvedev in the 1999 French Open final.  Not only did it cement his comeback but also gave him the career slam, the one bragging right he has over Pete Sampras.

OMG you're right. How could I forget that amazing moment, especially as I watched it live. And yes, the fact that he cemented his place as one of few male players to win all Grand Slams - a feat Pete Sampras never accomplished. Good times.  

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Do we know what channel the French Open will air on? I know it's normally on NBC but since nothing in 2020 is normal......  I don't know if this is still accurate but this is from the NY Post on Sept 8  "The Post has learned that because of the pandemic, the NBC crew of McEnroe, Mary Carillo and Dan Hicks won’t make the trip to Paris. Instead of heading to the City of Lights, McEnroe will work the matches remotely — likely from a studio in Stamford, Conn."  .  So I guess NBC is planning to air at least some of the tournament. I wonder if it will be all rounds or just the later ones.  

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NBC will have coverage 10/8 & 10/9 - I believe noon to 3pm ET but I’d have to double check on time (I’m in MT here and coverage here is 11a-2p but we’re usually on a delay for weekday coverage)

Then they have coverage 10/11 & 10/12 9a-noon ET both days

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Wow, that match between Schwartzman & Shapo was the best one I have seen this year. Too bad that Schwartzman will probably be too tired to give Novaxx a run for his money.  It seems that Fox sports west might also have some Roland Garros along with TTC in my area

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15 hours ago, khyber said:

Wow, that match between Schwartzman & Shapo was the best one I have seen this year. Too bad that Schwartzman will probably be too tired to give Novaxx a run for his money.  It seems that Fox sports west might also have some Roland Garros along with TTC in my area

I don’t want to be a jinx by posting names but someone looks pretty good against someone else right now!

ETA: well, crap! Insert F Bomb here. 

Edited by Spunkygal
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23 hours ago, Spunkygal said:

I don’t want to be a jinx by posting names but someone looks pretty good against someone else right now!

ETA: well, crap! Insert F Bomb here. 

Yeah when it comes to Djokovic, I wouldn't celebrate a potential upset until it actually happens. In any case, this result was never in doubt for me. I was happy for Schwartzman getting his big win over Rafa and making the Finals, but I knew it'd all be for nothing against Novak. 

I was highly amused at the tennis media trying to make this story of Schwartzman beating Rafa because "omg, Rafa lost on clay to someone he was 9-0 against". Yeah, like this man hasn't not played since February and it's not like he's never lost on clay before. 

I knew Rafa wouldn't be 100% after all that time without match play. Problem is he doesn't have the three masters tournaments to get his momentum back before the French. Honestly, I'm keeping my expectations very low for this French Open. My only hope is that if he is going to lose, it happen before the Finals because then his perfect FO final record will still stand. 

As for Djokovic, we know he's coming to that FO with a fucking vengeance. Because his little mea culpa about the US Open mess was probably bullshit and he was likely stewing about their denying him his rightful US Open win. So he's coming to that FO even more motivated than he already was. 

12 hours ago, SuburbanHangSuite said:

(As long as they don't get shut down for a Covid outbreak!  Hearing how lax Roland Garros is being regarding virus precautions is wild.)

I think at this point, most can agree that the FO officials are just a disaster all around. 

Edited by truthaboutluv
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If I were betting, I think my money'd be on Thiem. He might have a little bit of the rebound-exhaustion that happens after a first GS win, but other than that potential hiccup, I think he's better on clay than hard. So I think Thiem on the men's side.

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1 hour ago, theatremouse said:

If I were betting, I think my money'd be on Thiem. He might have a little bit of the rebound-exhaustion that happens after a first GS win, but other than that potential hiccup, I think he's better on clay than hard. So I think Thiem on the men's side.

He was my safe pick as well, until for the exact reason you mentioned. He's coming from the high of winning his first slam and he didn't exactly have a physically easy run to win it. And because of having to recover physically, he's coming into the French with no real match play on the clay at all. 

Honestly, because of the circumstances of this year and things being all torpsy turvy, who the hell knows how this thing will shape up. 

Edited by truthaboutluv
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22 hours ago, Spunkygal said:

I don’t want to be a jinx by posting names but someone looks pretty good against someone else right now!

ETA: well, crap! Insert F Bomb here. 

Yep.  I saw he was up 3-0 and just assumed that he was going to crumble... and then he did.

I get that all players have their detractors, but it seems like Djokovic has way more detractors than supporters at this point.  My cousin has hated him with 1000 burning nuns intensity for years and I never quite understood why.  I have never been a big fan, although I tire of him winning everything because I like variety.  But I never quite disliked him until this year... COVID, US Open incident, Italian Open outburst, etc.  There are few players that I always wish first round upsets on but he's at the top of my wishlist (Pliskova and Halep too).

The media especially is crucifying him, saying he has an image problem.  When was the last time a #1 player seemed so almost universally disliked?  Was it Lendl?  I don't recall Lendl having that many fans.  Even after he moved to the U.S. and started playing under the American flag, I seem to remember he was frequently portrayed as the cold Eastern European against the All-American John McEnroe.

 

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1 hour ago, TVbitch said:

What was Novak's Italian Open outburst? I haven't been able to watch any of it. It must be soley on tennis channel. 😞 Who won the ladies?

He actually had two... he got a warning for breaking his racket and then the next day he was having an argument with the chair and got an obscenity warning.  

Look at this face.  So endearing, isn't he?

djokovic-novak-200920-1180.jpg

 

Halep won the ladies against Pliskova, after Pliskova retired in the second set with a leg injury.  I was hoping for Garbine to win.  I have long disliked robot automoton Pliskova.  And there's something about Halep that I just don't like.  After the match concluded, Halep was being interviewed and was talking about the injury and said something addressed to her like "I am sorry you had to retire and I hope you get well in time for the French Open, where we will probably meet in the finals".  I'm sure it was said in the spirit of encouragement and competition, but it just comes across odd to me, like it is arrogant or something.

Edited by blackwing
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3 hours ago, blackwing said:

I get that all players have their detractors, but it seems like Djokovic has way more detractors than supporters at this point.  My cousin has hated him with 1000 burning nuns intensity for years and I never quite understood why.  I have never been a big fan, although I tire of him winning everything because I like variety.  But I never quite disliked him until this year... COVID, US Open incident, Italian Open outburst, etc.  There are few players that I always wish first round upsets on but he's at the top of my wishlist (Pliskova and Halep too).

Oh, I've proudly hated Djoker from the moment he started climbing the rankings in earnest, in 2006 or 2007.

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1 hour ago, NUguy514 said:

Oh, I've proudly hated Djoker from the moment he started climbing the rankings in earnest, in 2006 or 2007.

My dislike started during his first prominent match at the US Open against Gael Monfis when both were fresh out of juniors, and Djoker pulled out all the gamesmanship stops, calling dubious injury timeouts etc.  It was a repulsive display that smacked of desperation and duplicitousness (both of which he has continued to display in various forms since then) and got him off on the wrong foot with me.  That plus his parents were/are terrifying.

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On 9/16/2020 at 8:22 PM, theatremouse said:

NBC and Tennis Channel. I don't know the exact splits but I'd expect the biggie matches on NBC, whether that might mean Famous Players On Court throughout the both weeks, or something less like "Quarters and forward" I do not know. 

I was able to find a page just now with the complete channel breakdown:

https://olympics.nbcsports.com/2020/09/22/french-open-tv-live-stream-schedule/

There does seem to be more NBC coverage than in recent years if I am remembering correctly, also I'm interested to see that there is some coverage on the NBC Peacock app as well.  I have already signed up for Peacock for the special $29 a year deal so I will have to check out that coverage.

Let's really hope there are no more COVID issues, apparently several players are already out of qualifying after either they or their coaches tested positive.

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13 hours ago, roseha said:

Let's really hope there are no more COVID issues, apparently several players are already out of qualifying after either they or their coaches tested positive.

Yes, I saw that Damir Dzumhur, who used to be a top 40 player I thought, is out after his coach tested positive.  The coach blasted the tournament organisers and said that Dzumhur had worked so hard to prepare.  Too bad.  They shared a hotel room to save money, and because of that, Dzumhur is out.  They knew the risk. I feel bad for these younger players who are struggling on the tour and have to pay their own travel expenses, but that's how it is unfortunately.  For something like this, they should have gotten two hotel rooms.  Or at least the coach could have shared a room with another coach who is a friend of his, because now that decision has forced his player out of the tournament.

The French Open is my favourite Slam, and not just because it's the one at which Djokovic (and Federer) perform most poorly.  There's something about that red clay that I find so appealing.  The sounds, the wonky bounces, the way the balls leave marks.  Plus I think it's just such a novelty since clay courts are much less common around here.

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16 hours ago, roseha said:

I was able to find a page just now with the complete channel breakdown:

https://olympics.nbcsports.com/2020/09/22/french-open-tv-live-stream-schedule/

There does seem to be more NBC coverage than in recent years if I am remembering correctly, also I'm interested to see that there is some coverage on the NBC Peacock app as well.  I have already signed up for Peacock for the special $29 a year deal so I will have to check out that coverage.

Let's really hope there are no more COVID issues, apparently several players are already out of qualifying after either they or their coaches tested positive.

Thanks for the coverage link that's very useful.

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57 minutes ago, khyber said:

Thanks for the coverage link that's very useful.

You're welcome @khyber.  I have to say that I wish there were more Peacock coverage, since I suspect that NBC might have first say over Tennis Channel in terms of coverage.  I'm keeping Sling for the next month to get TC, and then will see.

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On 9/22/2020 at 10:36 AM, blackwing said:

The media especially is crucifying him, saying he has an image problem.  When was the last time a #1 player seemed so almost universally disliked?  Was it Lendl?  I don't recall Lendl having that many fans.  Even after he moved to the U.S. and started playing under the American flag, I seem to remember he was frequently portrayed as the cold Eastern European against the All-American John McEnroe.

 

Lleyton Hewitt wasn’t very popular during his brief tenure as number one, but I think grew on people more as he started moving down the rankings and stopped throwing hissy fits on court. 

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13 minutes ago, Jillibean said:

Lleyton Hewitt wasn’t very popular during his brief tenure as number one, but I think grew on people more as he started moving down the rankings and stopped throwing hissy fits on court. 

YMMV but Lleyton was never had a period of dominance long enough to warrant the kind of hatred Lendl and now Novak elicits. Not to say Lleyton didn't have plenty of detractors, because he did. But his period of being at the top of the game was fairly brief. 

Edited by truthaboutluv
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I've been playing and following tennis for close to 40 years, and there is nothing true tennis fans hate more than unsportmanslike conduct. When a player like Novak gets a rep for it early on, it's hard for them to redeem themselves.

Edited by BitterApple
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Some big names crashing out in the first round.  Venus, Angelique, Madison Keys, FAA.

Venus said she won't play for the rest of the year.  She says she will be back next year but this has naturally sparked rumours of retirement.  She's definitely been one of the game's great champions.  I know one motivation of her staying on the tour was to make it to another Olympics.  But even if the Olympics had been held this year, there was zero chance she would have been chosen for singles and no guarantee she and Serena would have been chosen for doubles.

I do hope she will come back next season and I do hope she and Serena would play doubles together at least one more time in a Slam.  For some reason I feel like Venus would always be up for playing doubles but I think Serena is too focused on 24 and doesn't want to play doubles because of the distraction and the additional physical toll.

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Just when I thought I couldn't dislike her more, when did Kenin start screaming, "MINE!" when she wins close points?!  She's been doing it almost constantly toward the end of the 2nd set and the beginning of this 3rd with Bogdan.  Come on Bogdan,  shut her up.

Edited to add:

Guess I have to wait for the next round for someone to send her and her toddler-sized skirt packing.

Edited by SuburbanHangSuite
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2 hours ago, SuburbanHangSuite said:

Just when I thought I couldn't dislike her more, when did Kenin start screaming, "MINE!" when she wins close points?! 

Never noticed the yelling "Mine" but she's always had a habit of maniacally talking to herself, particularly during tight points and matches. 

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14 hours ago, theatremouse said:

I know Rafa won his match easily, but did I dream it or did he sort of seem to be limping in the third set?

Not that I noticed. And I don't think if he was, he'd have done that high jump in victory after he won. 

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So NBC somehow had the rights to the Thiem match and didn't show it or let Tennis Channel show it.  It was on their new Peacock streaming platform and you can't watch reruns there so I would have to be up at 5am to watch it. Screw them.  Also, NBC only has a 3 hr window scheduled for the men's final.  Some golf stuff after, so we will see what they do.

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So clearly, the asshole trait is strong with that Kenin family.  Not only did the umpire have to issue a warning about her cheating-ass father coaching in Russian, he went and plopped his ass RIGHT NEXT TO Ferro's coach after Kenin dropped that first set.  This is unbelievable.  I guess it was a mental tactic which has clearly worked because poor Ferro's game has fallen apart but I can't believe dude didn't get up and move.  Why would you allow your player to be rattled like that just because you were there first? 

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