Topic: Tennis: Australian Open 2020 - page 3. (Read 743 times)

Nadal still has a very good chance at Roland Garros, provided he is completely healthy and ready to play.
Federer was stopped by age and injuries and Djokovic by his decision not to get vaccinated.
In fact, I am most sorry for Djokovic. Because of his attitude towards vaccination, he risks the possibility of performing at the other 3 GSs this year.
With that, he loses the chance to officially become the greatest tennis player of all time.
Medvedev, ZVerev and other young players are already here and winning the biggest tennis tournaments so they are no longer the future but the present of tennis and the big three have reached the end of their careers, although Djokovic can win a few more GS if he is allowed to play.

About Nadal and Federer probably.
I  think they are too old for winning more slams. Maybe Rafa has some chances in some pitches but I don't think Roger can win anymore.

But Djokovic if not banned , will win for many years, I can't see anyone at his level yet.

Maybe Sinner can reach him in 2 years when he will probably decrease in performances.

Through to the 4th round are:

Medvedev
Tsitsipas
Cressy
Fritz
Cornet
Sabalenka
Swiatek
Cillic
Halep

Finally, the last British player has been knocked out, Dan Evans was beaten 6-4 6-1 6-1 by Felix Auger-Aliassime.

Nadal is playing well in the tournament so far but I think the Federer, Nadal and Djokovic will find it very difficult to win any more tournaments because the younger players are finally believing they will win grand slams and other tournaments.

Federer has been recovering from injury for some time now, he did not make it to Melbourne. He might be back in time for the French Open but will definitely want to make it back in time for Wimbledon. Nadal won a tournament in the run up to him getting to the Australian Open. Djokovic was deported and might not be able to compete in Paris.

This is the first tournament in a long time that the next generation has a chance to stamp their authority and leading the pack will be Thiem and Zverev. Let us not forget current US Open champion Medvedev is also a hot favourite to win.

@JollyGood how well do you rate Nadal chances of his winning since his arch rival Djokovic is absent, or do you feel he’ll be eliminated soon?. Also I was expecting you to post some predictions for the matches, as it’s always good to see more opinions before wagering on a particular player so kindly consider posting some predictions for the upcoming matches.

Some of the names through to the 3rd round are:

Nadal
Osaka
Barty
Zverev
Shapovalov
Krejcikova
Monfils
Ostapenko
Berrettini
Keys
Azarenka

The tournament is underway.....

Through to the next round after 1st round wins:

Osaka
Nadal
Barty
Ostapenko
Svitolina
Berrettini
Azarenka
Shapovalov
Keys

Lost at 1st round and not going through to the next round:

Kenin
Gauff
Querry

This thread has been updated to discuss all things related to the Australian Open 2022 and the important news about the tournament to date has to be Djokovic being deported on COVID related grounds before the main draw even started.

I definitely agree about Thiem. Back to back Roland Garros (in 2018 and 2019) and now already an Australian Open finalist (in 2020). I think he is a Grand Slam champion in waiting.

Of the current younger crop waiting to break through (Medvedev, Zverev, Tsitsipas, Kyrgios and alike) I think Thiem has been the most consistent and he seems to be the most well balanced on a mental level out of them too. I am quite confident Thiem will win Roland Garros this year (2020) whether or not he meets Nadal in the final.

Australian Open: Djokovic
French Open: Thiem
Wimbledon: Federer
US Open: Federer, Nadal, Djokovic, Thiem, Zverev

About Djokovic and his gamesmanship, I remember too many instances I lost count but when he did it against Murray on this one occasion I think Murray got very angry. Djokovic returned from a medical break but Murray was on course to win the match yet end up losing it. I might have it wrong but from what I recall it was partly because it appeared at first Djokovic started losing points allowing Murray to make winners without contesting them (thus reeling him in) while complaining he was injured then all of a sudden he upped the tempo. Even the commentators were shocked how Djokovic was almost limping in the first two points of the game and then all of a sudden rushed to the net faster than Usain Bolt to make a drop shot etc

In the Grand Slams many players including Federer, Nadal and Djokovic have been known to go off for toilet breaks if the match heads off in to a 5th set with them losing the 4th, or even when they lose the 3rd set after being 2-0 up. Going off for medical breaks and calling the doctor out on court when losing either the match or momentum - sadly that is something Djokovic will always be associated with and though it was not cheating it was simply a technique to upset the rhythm of his opponent.

Anyway, as much as Djokovic is respected because of his winning record, he is not respected by his peers and colleagues for any other reason. Here is was Kyrgios said about Djokovic in last year in 2019: https://metro.co.uk/2019/05/15/nick-kyrgios-tells-cringeworthy-novak-djokovic-will-never-surpass-roger-federer-9560173/

‘I just feel like he’s got a sick obsession with wanting to be liked’ Kyrgios said of Djokovic on the No Challenges Remaining podcast.

‘He just wants to be Federer. I feel he wants to be liked so much that I just can’t stand him. This celebration thing is so cringeworthy.

‘He’s unbelievable, a champion of the sport, one of the greatest we will ever see. I think he will get the Grand Slam count and overtake Federer. ‘[But] we’re talking about a guy who pulled out of the Australian Open one year because it was too hot. No matter how many Grand Slams he wins, he will never be the greatest to me. ‘I’ve played him twice and I’m sorry but if you cannot beat me, you cannot be the greatest of all time. Look at how much I train and put in… it’s zero compared to him.

‘For me Federer will always be the greatest of all time. What Rafa has done has been pretty scary too. ‘But Novak just riles me the wrong way. He always says what he thinks he needs to say rather than his actual opinion. ‘The celebration just kills me. Every time it does… it kills me. If I play him and beat him again, I’m doing the celebration in front of him [laughing]… that would be hilarious!’[/b]

For a lot of people, Kyrgios made a lot of sense with what he said.

Congratulations to Djokovic for winning the tournament in this tough game.
But, we have to congratulate Thiem for facing equally Djokovic in this match. He is very lucky for playing this game against him and he has gained a lot of experience by just one game.

I've noticed that negatively, too.
I can't tell you what treatment he received on the court when the doctor was at his bank for a short time. And when he left the court and came back a few minutes later he was a different person.

Of course nothing illegal was done and it was within the allowed range. But such things can be used to unsettle the opponent or to get him out of the rhythm.
and he managed that. it diminishes his great performance a bit but he still deserved to win. it was a great game and next time thiem wins

Actually, honestly speaking they are both competitive enough to win the championship but this is an individual game and only one person can win into this tier and that is Djokovic.I was amazed by their different performance because their scores are almost the same and also they are both good into that sport. They both wanted to win but only one can last until the end of the championship and that is Djokovic.

Congratulations to Novak Djokovic, what a big comeback from him, the 4th and final set tells us the real Djokovic and this guy deserves all the praise of the hearts he showed in the game. I have a mix feeling watching the game, I thought he is feeling something as he got dominated in the 2nd and 3rd set.

with that he is back to the no. 1 rank now.

https://www.atptour.com/en/news/djokovic-thiem-2020-australian-open-final-sets

I was right Djokovic would really win against Thiem, Djokovic really has the heart of an eight-time champ and from his comfort zone Thiem really didn't stand a chance from a Melbourne player, and looking at the percentage of the serves Djokovic had he sure dominated all of it from their match, and he even dominated 3 sets even though I thought it will be 4 but aside from that Novac Djokovic really deserves this win, but Congratulation to the both of them both player do their best and Thiem really did what he could to stop Novac Djokovic but still Djokovic ends up victorious in their match.

Lots of chats online about the so-called gamesmanship (or cheating) when Djokovic kept going off court. It was not the first time he has done it and to be honest that is the reason why neutrals cannot hold him in the same regard as Nadal and Federer.

Nadal has his own fan following and as for Federer he is way beyond anything that tennis has seen before. Had Djokovic conducted himself differently on court throughout his career then he would have been much more loved as well as respected. What cannot be taken away from him is his success so congratulations to him but as for him being adored and loved in the way Nadal is that is not going to happen. Furthermore for him to even get close to getting the love and adoration Federer gets - impossible.

Unfortunately I was too hasty with my prognosis.
In the middle of the game I thought he had grabbed Djokovic.

But towards the end it turned out that he had not won 8x for nothing. Djokovic has really deserved it. But at the next big tournament Thiem will be on the spot

Djokovic defeats Thiem: 6-4 4-6 2-6 6-3 6-4 

Novak Djokovic is the Men Australian Open Champion after he defeated Dominic Thiem in the final.

Congratulations to both of them

It was great match, tournament...
And congratulations to Djokovic... We have a winner...

Djokovic has just broke the service now in final set.
About to win this game... Another victory for Djokovic is coming...

An excellent finale so far, as it is supposed to be. Their overall record is 6-5 for Djokovic so as expected this match is close.

I also thought that Thiem has it and that it's over after getting 2-1,it looked like he is competely controlling this match, but  somehow Djokovic is coming back, he has 5-3 in the 4th set, so it looks like we might see the  5th set.

Edit:Djokovic has huge advantage in the 5th set, leads 3-1 and looks great!
And it's over, great comeback by Djokovic, he completely dominated last set for his 17th grand slam!