2015 Tennis Thread: the Nadal farewell tour?

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Apisith

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MentalDisabldLst said:
 
If so, that makes two of us.  The only talk I heard of at all in the last decade was when Marin Cilic won the US Open last year, after having previously been suspended for PEDs and then suddenly surging to take a prestigious title in the sport.  My understanding is that they test the shit out of the top 200 or so players on the tour.
Your understanding is wrong. Tennis is one of the least tested major sports, IMO. And the number of out of competition tests, which are recommended by WADA, are extremely low.

Basically if anyone wants to take PEDs in tennis, they can get away with it pretty damn easily.

Some of the stuff in the website I linked to is suspect and some of it is just conspiracy type rubbish but even in the tennis world, there's an acceptance that there isn't anywhere near enough testing done.
 

jon abbey

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Serena didn't take advantage of some break chances early and now is down a break in the first at 3-2. 
 
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Serena is clearly ill, although the first serve has more zip and accuracy than it did a week ago.

Lost the first set after that break, and early in the 2nd, seemed bizarrely lethargic. would hit a brilliant winner and not even react, just hang her head and walk to the other side slowly. then Bacsinszky (who clearly deserves better than "some fool") plays the game of her life at 2-2 to break Serena, hitting 3 return winners that clipped the line.

Serena has responded by getting more accurate on her cross-court shots and generally raising her game. broke back, held, broke again, and now is serving for the 2nd set. Amazing.
 

jon abbey

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The announcers made a good point that the players can't take cold medicine like you or I because it would show up on drug tests, evidently Sharapova had bad flu this week too.
 
Serena is certainly a drama queen at times, but she looked pretty zonked today, she even seemed to be crying on one changeover. Amazing she somehow won the last ten games anyway.
 

BigMike

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They should have some system in place where they can be tested prior to seeking doctor approval, then have the medicine monitored in some way
 
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jon abbey said:
Serena is certainly a drama queen at times, but she looked pretty zonked today, she even seemed to be crying on one changeover. Amazing she somehow won the last ten games anyway.
 
Seriously, man.  She gets broken after an epic back-and-forth, to go down a set and a break, against a seeded player playing out of her mind.  She then rattles off 10 games in a row to take the set and the match.  That's unbelievable.  I'm still struggling to believe it.  It's like Nadal-Federer in the 2008 RG Final... you never expect to see a bagel at this level, much less after a big comeback, much less while the winning player is sick and lethargic.
 
And BigMike: I agree, I was shocked that they're not even allowed to take a lot of standard over-the-counter stuff.  A little Sudafed would have done her a world of difference today (and, it must be said, probably Sharapova too).
 

BigMike

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MentalDisabldLst said:
 
Seriously, man.  She gets broken after an epic back-and-forth, to go down a set and a break, against a seeded player playing out of her mind.  She then rattles off 10 games in a row to take the set and the match.  That's unbelievable.  I'm still struggling to believe it.  It's like Nadal-Federer in the 2008 RG Final... you never expect to see a bagel at this level, much less after a big comeback, much less while the winning player is sick and lethargic.
 
And BigMike: I agree, I was shocked that they're not even allowed to take a lot of standard over-the-counter stuff.  A little Sudafed would have done her a world of difference today (and, it must be said, probably Sharapova too).
 
 
There are a couple of things in play here relative to the 10 game winning streak.    Obviously Serena was wiped and playing through it was amazing, but once the tide turned it completely crushed Bacsinszky. SHe is a great story getting where she did from where she was, but there is a mental toughness you don't get without having been in finals and semifinals before.
 

jon abbey

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Wawrinka into the final, Djokovic/Murray coming up in a bit. 
 
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Djokovic/Murray is on.  I think they're delaying playing it on NBC, but you can stream online.
 

jon abbey

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Djokovis is really frustrating Murray, who is making a lot of unforced errors. Up two sets, bad weather threatening. 
 

jon abbey

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Play is suspended at 3-3 in the 4th, Djokovic up 2 sets to 1. It was getting dark, but then it started raining also, and they lost their last 30-45 minute window of potential play, so they'll pick it up tomorrow. 
 
No one is happier about that than Wawrinka, I'm sure.
 

jon abbey

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Djokovic/Murray start again tomorrow at 7 AM EST on NBCSN, the women's final will be on NBC at 9 AM EST as previously scheduled. 
 

jon abbey

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Incredible quality of play from the start today in Djokovic/Murray, Murray just broke to go up 6-5, serving to take it to 5 now. 
 

jon abbey

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5th set, one set for their legacies now, both trying to win their first French. 
 

jezza1918

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Serena & Safarova have to be nervous that this thing goes 18-16 in the 5th, while that would be a dream for Wawrinka who is going to be incredibly fresh compared to either of these guys. 
 
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I feel so bad for Murray, he deserved to get one of these vs Novak. maybe it'll be different at Wimbledon.

Serena has come out firing on all cylinders, no visiblw cough. 4-1 up in the 1st.
 
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Serena falling apart. Worst woman ever to play tennis.
 

cromulence

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Looking like this will be a fitting end for Serena - a mirror image of the tournament. Came out great, then completely lost it.
 

Schnerres

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There´s no reason why i want Serena to win.
This is far from over, but i hope Safarova wins this thing. She´s dominating now (2-0). Let´s see how Serena reacts if this goes on.
 
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Safarova is irrelevant, just like nearly all of Serena's opponents are. Serena will win or lose based on whether she holds it together and minimizes the errors and double faults. Safarova is a prop in Serena's drama, like Bacsinszky and Errani before her.
 

cromulence

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MentalDisabldLst said:
Safarova is irrelevant, just like nearly all of Serena's opponents are. Serena will win or lose based on whether she holds it together and minimizes the errors and double faults. Safarova is a prop in Serena's drama, like Bacsinszky and Errani before her.
 
Bingo. It's truly unique in sports - she can truly beat anyone she wants to. It's entirely up to how she plays - if she's on and at her best, no one can beat her. That's why when she loses or plays poorly it's so frustrating - you know she could be winning.
 

cromulence

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AMS25 said:
 
Serena says "Take that, haterz!"
 
Hope you're not saying I'm a hater...if anything, I'm a Serena defender. It just really looked that way at the time - she tooooootally lost it for a while there.
 

Schnerres

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Is there a reason to like Serena or give applause for this win? She behaves like the court is hers and like she has no respect for other players. It would be nice to have something like empathy for others. I know it´s a battle against another player and it may help to "hate" your opponent. But she just behaves like an a** out on the court, screaming around like there is nobody else around.
 
 
[i admit i´m biased towards other Tennis players.]
 

AMS25

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cromulence said:
 
Hope you're not saying I'm a hater...if anything, I'm a Serena defender. It just really looked that way at the time - she tooooootally lost it for a while there.
 
Nah, I knew what you meant. I really thought she lost it, too!
 

AMS25

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Schnerres said:
Is there a reason to like Serena or give applause for this win? 
 
Serena's not everyone's cup of tea, and she does get emotional on the court. But, she's an awesome tennis player who grew up without many of the advantages that her opponents were blessed with. As her dad put it, she's "straight outta Compton!" She's lived the American Dream.
 

cromulence

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Schnerres said:
Is there a reason to like Serena or give applause for this win? She behaves like the court is hers and like she has no respect for other players. It would be nice to have something like empathy for others. I know it´s a battle against another player and it may help to "hate" your opponent. But she just behaves like an a** out on the court, screaming around like there is nobody else around.
 
 
[i admit i´m biased towards other Tennis players.]
 
Her attitude, body language, etc on court sucks and has always sucked. That said, the sport's been going that direction since Lleyton Hewitt came on the scene and at this point I think it's just the way it is. She was definitely in rare form today with the cursing, though.
 

johnmd20

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cromulence said:
 
Her attitude, body language, etc on court sucks and has always sucked. That said, the sport's been going that direction since Lleyton Hewitt came on the scene and at this point I think it's just the way it is. She was definitely in rare form today with the cursing, though.
 
Yeah, she's terrible with all that cursing but she's won 20 majors and that is truly an amazing achievement. When she's on, nobody can touch her. Still.
 
edit - Just looked it up, she won her first major 16 years ago. That is insane.
 

cromulence

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One reason I continue to root for her is that she's refreshingly honest - just now in an interview she flat out said that she choked. Rare to hear that from an athlete.
 

jon abbey

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Schnerres said:
Is there a reason to like Serena or give applause for this win? She behaves like the court is hers and like she has no respect for other players. It would be nice to have something like empathy for others. I know it´s a battle against another player and it may help to "hate" your opponent. But she just behaves like an a** out on the court, screaming around like there is nobody else around.
 
 
[i admit i´m biased towards other Tennis players.]
 
Well, not trying to change your mind, one doesn't really need a good or rational reason to root for or against tennis players, but since you asked...
 
It's almost impossible to remember at this point, but Venus and Serena are really the ultimate underdogs, not just coming from outside the established system of coaches/juniors/etc. but black women from Compton. Their lack of junior play is probably the main reason why their sportsmanship leaves something to be desired at times (more in the earlier days than now), but even today, she hit a mishit clean winner off Safarova's serve, and raised her racket in apology like players do on net cords. Someone who has 'no respect for other players' wouldn't do that. 
 
Edit: I see AMS made similar points.