Neither result disappointed me especially. Why?


a) I didn't see either match. Maybe the player was injured? Maybe there were a few wrong line calls? Maybe there was a good looking streaker? Who knows, huh?
b) Even though quite a few people seem to think the higher ranked player is always the favourite (no offence intended to anyone), that's not how it works. Tennis is governed by match ups. Have any of you seen Menga play?
c) Maybe Menga is a local player? Have you noticed that he had received WCs here in 2008, 2009 and 2010 in both singles and doubles?
c) Most importantly, anyone can beat anyone on a given day. Donald Young and Bogomolov beat Andy Murray a few weeks ago. The guy who was supposed to be untouchable on clay dropped a set against Lorenzi and lost twice in a row to Djokovic.


What quite a few of us are doing is making huge assumptions by looking at a few numbers. And in Evo's case, just 4 digits. I love all of you guys individually (and the thread starter is one of my favs) but you're much better than this!

The main impetus of the thread wasn't to focus on the specific players involved in the defeat but the manner in which it was suffered. Obviously we didn't witness it live and external factors could've contributed, so to change the defeats in to something i have witnessed i'll use another Brit, Andy Murray.

His loss to Young? Ranked outside the top 100, a defeat which almost nobody expected or...
His loss to Djokovic? 2 points from victory, served for the match and yet still managed to lose.

What 'type' of defeat would have more of an effect on you? A humiliating loss to a significantly inferior ranked opponent or a defeat against a good opponent, when you could almost smell victory and the win is snatched from you when you were two points away from victory.

It was just coincidental that we had Brits in consecutive days to suffer the different types of defeat.

-- Edited by The Magician Santoro on Tuesday 17th of May 2011 06:41:12 PM

Yeah, but to say that Menga is someone he should never have lost to is wrong.

I did mention in the Cremona thread that on Menga's last ATP appearance last year again in Cremona, he only lost  1 - 6  7 - 6 (5)  4 - 0  RET  to Alexander Peya (AUT), then WR 230, so he does look as if he can come out and produce a performance, without much prior activity, better than his general numpty status that was being made out in the thread.  I did still indicate though that it was a match I certainly thought Dan should have been winning. ( I didn't mention any "should never" there, Salmon   )   I suspect a combination there of Menga being better than thought and Dan continuing his recent dip in form.

I found the original question when related to the specific matches rather difficult.  Re James defeat very disappointing ending yes, but just that as distinct to really blaming him without knowing in particular how the  5 - 3  final set game was played out. Yes, I know he was 30 - 0 up and had a MP but maybe Harrison just went for it and hit a string of winners. 

Re turning the question into a general one re the different types of defeat, I am afraid I still find it very difficult in that both can be very disappointing to suffer.  I guess it would really be the occasion that would determine it and some possible circumstances  eg.  re the two Andy defeats mentioned the Djokovic one had more effect on me, but really I'm thinking that was because it was a clay Masters SF and his serve went away when serving for it ( missing first serves and 2 DFs ).  The Young first round ( for Andy ) defeat was to me just more an annoyance ( oh, Andy ! ) at the time, as I knew he was better than that.  

So pass....

-- Edited by indiana on Tuesday 17th of May 2011 08:52:33 PM

The Magician Santoro wrote:

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[...] succumbness [...]

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The Magician Santoro wrote:

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Not like Stircrazy to pull me up on a spelling fault, his edit has seemed to have removed the poll too..........

-- Edited by The Magician Santoro on Tuesday 17th of May 2011 10:30:30 PM

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Might pull you up on something else, though if she's screwed up your poll she might be a bit meeker   

The Magician Santoro wrote:

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Not like Stircrazy to pull me up on a spelling fault, his edit has seemed to have removed the poll too..........

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This message board without Stircrazy's exasperation at our poor standard of English would be almost as bereft as this message board without any puns.

Talking of entertainment, does anyone know what's happened to the Count? Yes, I know it's mad, but I kind of miss him! LOL (hopefully he's just taking a temporary break while the Bogster's taking a break from playing tournaments)