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Post Info TOPIC: Weeks 22 & 23 - French Open (Roland-Garros) - Paris, France (clay) - SINGLES ONLY
JonH comes home


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RE: Weeks 22 & 23 - French Open (Roland-Garros) - Paris, France (clay) - SINGLES ONLY
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Neil Gee wrote:
JonH comes home wrote:
Neil Gee wrote:

Good news! We actually had a Novak Djokovich match worth watching this time.

What cracking tennis Karen Khachanov played to take the first set; right up until the second set tie break KK was bang in this match, then suddenly as we've seen him do so many times when it really matters Djokovich finds another level, he speds into the distance 7-0. That's what great champions do, that's why he's won so many titles. It got easier for Novak after that, although Karen gave him a hard set through to 4-4 in the fourth before finally capitulating.

I may be clutching at straws here but this match played in 26 degree afternoon heat is bound to have taken something out of Novak, it'll be interesting to see how hard Alcaraz has to work to get through his (evening) quarter final.

 Neil,Neil - youre forgetting I have tipped Tsitsipas to win it; dont assume Carlos will win that easily!

 You're right Jon - I had forgotten. I just read this after watching Carlos play the most blistering set of tennis I've ever seen from him, wrapped up 6-2 in  half an hour. The commentary agree this is the best they have ever seen Alcaraz play.

When you backed Tsitsipas you couldn't have been expecting Carlos to raise his level like this! Everything he tries is going right so far and to be fair Tsitsipas is looking a little intimidated. Alcaraz is 20 years old and he's playing like an inventive, inspired tennis genius combined with all that youthful ebullience and irrepressible energy, it makes for a phenomenal package. 

You think that nobody can continue to play at this level for long but there goes the second set 6-1 in 31 minutes. It's do or die for  Tsitsipas now, his back's to the wall he's just got to throw everything at Carlos in this third set. He does look bewildered, thwarted in most everything he tries, but the third is Tsitsipas best set even if it doesn't show on the scoreboard, he's loosened up a bit. does take it to 5-3 and makes Carlos serve out for the match. No, wait,   Tsitsipas has just got his first two breaks points of the match! This would be the Mother of all comebacks if Tsitsipas can pull this off. He's done it! He's broken back, and Carlos level has finally slipped a little. Tsitsipas holds for 5 all. The crowd are loving this. It's getting more like a match now. Tie break. 7-5 Alcaraz. Tsitsipas didn't go down without a fight.

On the basis of the relative quarter final performances you might think that CA's time has come and that history is not going to made at this tournament, but we all know it's not that simple disbelief

 

 Nice write up, Neal. I didn't get to see the match (sadly, since ITV4 stopped showing it, I have not been able to watch the French) so it is good to read how it went. Thanks. 

Djoko v Alcaraz should be interesting. And , then we have Alcaraz due to grace the grass at Queens Club, I hope he keeps to that entry! 



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Neil Gee


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Thanks Jon. I wasn't sure if I had gone on a bit too long so thank you for the reassurance.

We have Eurosport and that's where I'm watching the French Open. The Mrs thinks it's a free channel available through Freeview although we do have a Netflix package and Amazon Prime as well.

Sorry there's no blow by blow of Zverev's four set victory over Etcheverry. For one thing I missed the first set getting home from work late.

The match caught fire a little towards the end but what I saw was largely quite pedestrian stuff, definitely the tennis of mere mortals compared to what we were seeing in the first two quarter finals, the two quarter finals from which I'm convinced the eventual winner will come.

I know you said you expect Rune/Ruud to be a battle but I'm not sure if I will watch all of it if it starts turning into an endurance test. Need an early night lol.

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JonH comes home


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Not a battle so far, Ruud demolishing Rune, 1 and 2 first two sets

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Neil Gee


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I saw the first two sets, Jon, Mr McEnroe on commentary summed it up when he said that Rune had 'left his head in the locker room'. I've never seen so many double faults so early in a tennis match, Rune just didn't turn up, amazing how his mind could just go missing like that in such a prestigious competition. I switched off at that point, only this morning reading that Rune had 'found' himself in the third set and pulled one back, but I suppose by then he had left himself slightly more than a molehill to climb not just because he was 2 sets to 1 down but because he didn't make Ruud expend any energy to speak of in the winning of those first two sets.

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Bob in Spain


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When Alcaraz had 0-40 on at *4-5 on the Djokovic and didn't convert, I feared that might be the pivotal moment of the match.

But 2nd time round he does the business and wins that set 7-5

Game on.

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Neil Gee


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It took a hard 78 minutes to achieve it but Carlos is back in the game.

Then the game takes an unexpected turn. It's the youthful Carlos whose body seems to be failing him. At 1 all in set 3 he suffers a calf cramp but the rules says that to take a medical timeout at this stage of the game means he must forfeit a game. So that's like a break for ND without him having to strike a ball. How unfair is that.

Worse still the medical treatment hasn't worked. Carlos is virtually static on the court. Third set 6-1 ND. The match has died as a competitive spectacle.

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Jan


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Neil Gee wrote:



It took a hard 78 minutes to achieve it but Carlos is back in the game.

Then the game takes an unexpected turn. It's the youthful Carlos whose body seems to be failing him. At 1 all in set 3 he suffers a calf cramp but the rules says that to take a medical timeout at this stage of the game means he must forfeit a game. So that's like a break for ND without him having to strike a ball. How unfair is that.

Worse still the medical treatment hasn't worked. Carlos is virtually static on the court. Third set 6-1 ND. The match has died as a competitive spectacle.

 cry



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JonH comes home


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Djokovic won. Hard to see him losing the final.

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Stircrazy


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JonH comes home wrote:

Djokovic won. Hard to see him losing the final.

6-3 5-7 6-1 6-1  furious



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indiana


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What a pity 



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JonH comes home


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Ruud the opponent

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RainDelay


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Ach well another french open final i won't bother watching.

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JonH comes home


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Not mens singles . Or at least the main mens singles - wheelchair singles . Alfie Hewett is in the final and it is being played on Chatrier, great accolade and I hope Wimbledon follow suit and let them play on centre court

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Neil Gee


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Carlos Alcaraz admits that the stress of facing all-time great Djokovich caused him to cramp up at the beginning of the third set.

Screenshot 2023-06-10 at 17-05-20 Stress of facing Djokovic caused cramps - Alcaraz.png

Later in the same article Djokovich admitted that when he was young he suffered similar experiences playing against people he was in awe of. It's all part of the learning curve for Carlos.



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christ


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I was totally unaware that cramp could be stress related.

Every day is a school day.

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