2014 Australian Open
- Thread starter mascho
- Start date
Also, the #1 women's doubles team of Errani and Vinci are also the #7 and #12 seeded singles players and would have drawn each other in the round of 16 here. Presumably thinking that would be too much of a strain on their partnership, they instead chose to both lose in straight sets on the first day. At least they can focus on doubles now. 
Yeah, Errani is terrible in Australia for some reason, second straight year bounced in the first round.
FYI, if you see Tournament Director/CEO of Tennis Australia Craig Tiley and he looks a little tired, cut him some slack. His wife gave birth to twin boys (Archer and Weston) on 12/23 and his MIL is still in town from Chicago.
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Straight-set wins for:
(Men)
Djokovic
Ferrer (seeded 3rd ahead of Murray, 4, and Federer, 6)
Wawrinka (opponent retired in 2nd)
Berdych
I guess Nadal, Del-Po, Federer etc play tomorrow.
(Women)
Serena
Li Na
Australia's own Sam Stosur
Lisicki
Kvitova and Kerber had rough 3-setters including the latter getting bageled in the 2nd. Errani got bounced as mentioned, as did Venus.
(Men)
Djokovic
Ferrer (seeded 3rd ahead of Murray, 4, and Federer, 6)
Wawrinka (opponent retired in 2nd)
Berdych
I guess Nadal, Del-Po, Federer etc play tomorrow.
(Women)
Serena
Li Na
Australia's own Sam Stosur
Lisicki
Kvitova and Kerber had rough 3-setters including the latter getting bageled in the 2nd. Errani got bounced as mentioned, as did Venus.
Here's an interesting story about players losing matches but winning more points http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2014/01/what-every-pro-tennis-player-does-better-than-roger-federer/283007/
Lleyton Hewitt... always entertaining. Down two sets to none, comes back to even it up at two sets apiece. Then goes out and gets broken in the first game of the fifth set and hasn't really come close to breaking back yet. It's now 4-3 with Seppi on serve.
Oh, did I mention it's been between 104 and 107 degrees and we're about four hours into the match? It's cooled down now to a chilly 105. It's supposed to be hotter in the next couple of days. That's horrifying.
I say Hewitt's got to break now or it's over. Break chance at 30-40! And... Hewitt buries it into the net. Followed immediately by a Seppi double fault and break chance number two! Now a Seppi unforced error and Hewitt breaks back!!!
Fuck, I love watching Lleyton Hewitt play. He may be a kinda racist jackass, but he always provides some good value tennis. COME ON!!!!
Edit: Hewitt saves a break point or two and holds for 5-4, including making an incredible shot down the line from outside the doubles box. It's remarkable how fit both of these guys look. It's 105 degrees and neither of them look all that fatigued.
Seppi's now down 30-40, match point for Hewitt and the crowd is going nuts... ACE! (Challenged, but well in.) Deuce. Then a couple huge serves, 5-5. No tiebreaks, folks!
Hewitt's having a hard time holding serve now. Advantage Seppi, break point chance... and on second serve. Hewitt forehand error into the net, Seppi serves for the set.
Seppi has an easy hold at love and wins the match: 7-6, 6-3, 5-7, 5-7, 7-5. Time of match: 4:18 minutes. Temperature got as high as 107, and the first few sets were played in the sun, so it probably felt more like 115. Ridiculous.
I'm bummed that Hewitt's out, just because I love watching him play. Oh well.
Over on the women's side, Sloane Stevens comes back from a 5-1 deficit against Shvedova to win the first set, 7-6. Now Shvedova's lying on the court, covered in ice towels and appears to be in heat distress. They're on an outer court that's still partly in the sun. It's apparently dropped to 100 degrees. It's 8 pm, local time. Good lord.
Oh, did I mention it's been between 104 and 107 degrees and we're about four hours into the match? It's cooled down now to a chilly 105. It's supposed to be hotter in the next couple of days. That's horrifying.
I say Hewitt's got to break now or it's over. Break chance at 30-40! And... Hewitt buries it into the net. Followed immediately by a Seppi double fault and break chance number two! Now a Seppi unforced error and Hewitt breaks back!!!
Fuck, I love watching Lleyton Hewitt play. He may be a kinda racist jackass, but he always provides some good value tennis. COME ON!!!!
Edit: Hewitt saves a break point or two and holds for 5-4, including making an incredible shot down the line from outside the doubles box. It's remarkable how fit both of these guys look. It's 105 degrees and neither of them look all that fatigued.
Seppi's now down 30-40, match point for Hewitt and the crowd is going nuts... ACE! (Challenged, but well in.) Deuce. Then a couple huge serves, 5-5. No tiebreaks, folks!
Hewitt's having a hard time holding serve now. Advantage Seppi, break point chance... and on second serve. Hewitt forehand error into the net, Seppi serves for the set.
Seppi has an easy hold at love and wins the match: 7-6, 6-3, 5-7, 5-7, 7-5. Time of match: 4:18 minutes. Temperature got as high as 107, and the first few sets were played in the sun, so it probably felt more like 115. Ridiculous.
I'm bummed that Hewitt's out, just because I love watching him play. Oh well.
Over on the women's side, Sloane Stevens comes back from a 5-1 deficit against Shvedova to win the first set, 7-6. Now Shvedova's lying on the court, covered in ice towels and appears to be in heat distress. They're on an outer court that's still partly in the sun. It's apparently dropped to 100 degrees. It's 8 pm, local time. Good lord.
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MentalDisabldLst
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Serena plays 2nd tonight, with the 1st match starting at 7:00, meaning she'll be on around 8:30 or 9:00pm.
Hewitt and Tomic are always interesting because a lot of Australians watch them play, half hoping they win and half desperate to see them lose. Because they are both fuckwits.
But at least Lleyton's wife killed it on "Home & Away." I can't really explain why I enjoy his matches so much, he seems like an ass. He's mellowed through the years. I think I just like emotional players, because I find Federer ridiculously boring. Still, I also find it very amusing that Hewitt comes off a tournament win over Roger Federer and then loses in the first round.
I do feel bad for Tomic, though. He is a total fuckwit, but I also think his father is a hideous human being. He never really had a chance. I hope he's less fuckwitty in the future.
Cool today. Only like 96 degrees.
I do feel bad for Tomic, though. He is a total fuckwit, but I also think his father is a hideous human being. He never really had a chance. I hope he's less fuckwitty in the future.
Cool today. Only like 96 degrees.
The Sharapova/Knapp match has been entertaining, but neither one of them can serve. Double faults, service breaks, and it's now 5-5 in the 3rd. Knapp just fought off three match points and broke Sharapova again.
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Bob Montgomery's Helmet Hat said:
That was a great 3rd set to watch. Neither of them had anything in the tank at the end there. At 8-7 Knapp, Sharapova at 30-all, I really thought she was going to crack and lose two points and the match. Instead, 3 straight games and wins it. Some rare mental toughness from her there.
Crazy third set for Sloane Stephens, who was finally taking command of her match at 3-0 when there was a fairly lengthy lightning delay (and then a torrential storm). After they came back, she lost 5 games in a row before regaining form just in time and winning 4 in a row of her own to pull it out 7-5.
This Kyrgios (18 year old Aussie) versus Paire match they are showing now on ESPN2 is just absolute insanity. Just so loud there at Margret Court.
Kyrgios is starting to cramp near the end of the second set, so that doesn't bode well for the rest of the match
Kyrgios is starting to cramp near the end of the second set, so that doesn't bode well for the rest of the match
looking at the Accuweather, Melbourne hit 107 degrees on Thursday, which is absolutely frosty compared to the 116 it hit on Tuesday
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Serena plays noted hottie and former top-10 player Daniela Hantuchova, the #31 seed, at 7:00pm ET. As a fellow seeded player, Hantuchova might actually win a couple games off of Williams. Worth a watch - it may be a while before we see another such dominant player in tennis.
Li Na just fought off a match point and then won the second set tie breaker. On to the 3rd set.
EDIT--which she wins.
I like Li Na.
EDIT--which she wins.
I like Li Na.
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Bob Montgomery's Helmet Hat said:
She looks great against anybody not in the top 5.
Against the likes of Azarenka (5-6) and Radwanska (6-5) she looks downright under-powered and inconsistent, and the less said about her matches against Sharapova (5-9) and Serena (1-10), the better.
She's pretty cute for age 31, though.
Sloane Stephens with an easy win into the round of 16, where she'll play Azarenka if she wins tonight. Stephens knocked out Serena here last year (and has now made five straight Grand Slam round of 16s) but could do her a big favor by taking out Azarenka, the two-time defending champ here.
If you are into that sort of thing, the official Australian Open instagram has some great shots.
http://instagram.com/australianopen/
http://instagram.com/australianopen/
She looks great against anybody not in the top 5.
Against the likes of Azarenka (5-6) and Radwanska (6-5) she looks downright under-powered and inconsistent, and the less said about her matches against Sharapova (5-9) and Serena (1-10), the better.
She's pretty cute for age 31, though.
She has an interesting story, too. I heard a story on the radio that talked (IIRC) about how she had opted out of any support from the Chinese government's sports program in order to be able to keep the lions share of any career earnings she receives.
So even though she's one of, if not the best Chinese tennis players in history, she gets minimal recognition for it at home for separating herself this way.
Against the likes of Azarenka (5-6) and Radwanska (6-5) she looks downright under-powered and inconsistent, and the less said about her matches against Sharapova (5-9) and Serena (1-10), the better.
She's pretty cute for age 31, though.
She has an interesting story, too. I heard a story on the radio that talked (IIRC) about how she had opted out of any support from the Chinese government's sports program in order to be able to keep the lions share of any career earnings she receives.
So even though she's one of, if not the best Chinese tennis players in history, she gets minimal recognition for it at home for separating herself this way.
Yeah, I kind of love everything about Li Na.
Anyway, Ivanovic just broke Serena and has played her tough so far. She's up 3-2 in the first and serving. It would be fun to see a competitive match.
Anyway, Ivanovic just broke Serena and has played her tough so far. She's up 3-2 in the first and serving. It would be fun to see a competitive match.
Wow, Ivanovic looks great. Breaks Serena again and wins the second set. This match is a great contrast--the power of Serena vs the athleticism of Ivanovic. It will be interesting to see the nerves in the 3rd set--this is the first set she's ever won against Williams
Ahhhh....she went for it on Match Point and missed. Serena holds. 5-3 with Ivanovic serving for the match.
Maybe it is overboard. But she pretty much dominated Serena, who has looked unbeatable. It's a short list of players who have done that.
It is the third straight year Serena has lost before the semis here, and she didn't practice yesterday as she was supposedly nursing an injury. That being said, two great matches in a row from Ivanovic, the Stosur win in front of the partisan crowd was impressive but this was obviously well beyond that.
Berdych into the quarters against Ferrer, he still hasn't lost a set. They're probably just playing for the right to lose to Djokovic in the semis, but still should be a good match.
Berdych into the quarters against Ferrer, he still hasn't lost a set. They're probably just playing for the right to lose to Djokovic in the semis, but still should be a good match.
And now Serena's camp has "leaked" a back problem for Serena. Give props to Ivanovic, who gained confidence as the match went on and outplayed Serena.
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I watched every minute of Serena's 3rd-round match against Hantuchova. She appeared disinterested and lethargic the entire match, except for a few moments when she was risking losing her serve, where the adrenaline hit, she cranked some aces, and ran around like 5th Gear Serena. For most of the match, she was only 2nd or 3rd Gear Serena, which is enough to beat qualifiers and people outside the top 20, but clearly was not enough to beat Ivanovic, herself a grand slam champion and frequent top player.
It was strange to watch. A seemingly give-a-shit attitude from Serena on the court, when we've come to expect the court to be the only place she seems to give any shits at all. She just didn't have all her energy or focus out there this week, and whether it was an injury or the loss of her top gears, she's going to have to rethink a lot of things between now and Roland Garros in May. Or just rehab her back, one or the other.
It was strange to watch. A seemingly give-a-shit attitude from Serena on the court, when we've come to expect the court to be the only place she seems to give any shits at all. She just didn't have all her energy or focus out there this week, and whether it was an injury or the loss of her top gears, she's going to have to rethink a lot of things between now and Roland Garros in May. Or just rehab her back, one or the other.