Wimbledon

[stotty]

Hurkacz up 6-3 in the first-set tiebreaker against Djokovic, then goes full Sabine Lisicki in her Wimby final- can barely put a ball in play next five points.

Unfortunate.

That was an almost perfect set of tennis by Hurcatz, and he almost won the set.

He couldn't have played a better set; big serving and short rallies, which is the way to beat Novak if you're ever going to do it. As Jim suggested...he just choked, choked badly. I have been so impressed with him thus far, however, let's hope Hurcatz can keep it up.

[jimlosaltos]

Hurkacz up 6-3 in the first-set tiebreaker against Djokovic, then goes full Sabine Lisicki in her Wimby final- can barely put a ball in play next five points.

Unfortunate.

[stroke]

Hurcatz hit 39 first serves and missed only 5...but still lost the set. Incredible1st serve percentage. That's the best serving I have seen at SW19 for years. His forehand under pressure just fell apart...choked.

That was an almost perfect set of tennis by Hurcatz, and he almost won the set.

[stotty]

Hurcatz hit 39 first serves and missed only 5...but still lost the set. Incredible1st serve percentage. That's the best serving I have seen at SW19 for years. His forehand under pressure just fell apart...choked.

[stroke]

Hurcatz has a great serve, along with Berrenttini, the second and third best serves left in the tournament.

[stotty]

Watched Matteo Berrettini last night beat Zverev in straight sets. It's like the Italian looked in his sock drawer and suddenly found his A game, "Ah, that's where I left it."

Yes, Berrettnii served lights out. But it was his supposed-liability backhand that was the difference IMHO. Zverev attacked and attacked it over and over and then, with a set on the line, Berrettini would blast a backhand passing shot, lightning down the line kicking up titanium paste. Time and again.

Reminds us that he was a finalist here.

Zverev's forehand just doesn't work on grass. I have sat a few yards away from Zverez playing on grass and he has big trouble with sliced balls into his forehand. He's a tall man with a western grip (with the whole palm on the grip...nothing hanging off) and a high backswing. This combination of factors makes low, shooting balls a problem and Zverev doesn't trust his forehand when this kind of ball is coming in. On grass in particular, it's a technical weakness and a fatal one.

Agree, Berry's serving was immense.

[jimlosaltos]

Svitolina finally prevailed over Vika in a third-set tiebreak 11-9.
Hard fought match. The difference in total points was those final two tie-break points. 2 hours 46 minutes for 3 sets.
Ran 2.6-2.7 miles of sprints.

So, Djoko -Hurckaz is about to start now. Made number 2 and 17 seeds wait for the women to finish <g>.

It's 8:45 PM in London. I'm leaving to get lunch. Strawberries and cream, to pretend I'm physically there? Nah, too early for a Pim's Cup.
If this fourth rounder takes as long as the women's it could run to tomorrow morning.

[stotty]

NYT's Futterman on why many tennis pros no longer make Wimbledon a priority. Wimbledon is a victim of its own doing: Slowing and homogenizing the courts between events mean the same players win everywhere making Wimbledon stand out less. Then, there is the difficulty of preparing. With "the grass court season evolving into a quirky, roughly one-month detour from the rest of the tennis calendar, many top players can’t find the time or the head space to make being good on grass a priority. If it costs them tennis immortality, so be it."

Strange thinking. Why not split form the herd and get good on a surface that few are much good on. The rewards are potentially huge!

Many of the lowly ranked Brits do well at Wimbledon because they have a lot of experience on grass. Sure, grass is a short season, but the Brits play every inch of it, and, being local, get access to grass to practice on well in advance of the grass court swing.

That said, great players adjust darn quick. Alcaraz is getting better on the surface by the match. Nadal soon mastered grass too.

[jimlosaltos]

Mira Andreeva, top candidate for Wimbledon Cinderella coming in, is playing out the role.

At 16 yo youngest to make main draw since Coco, now youngest into 4th since ditto.

Will Madison Keys, once the young IT Girl herself, send Mira, her coach (the one with horses), and glass slippers packing?

At the other end of the chronological spectrum, in, dare I call it, The Mommie Bowl are 33 yo Vika and 28 yo Svitolina. Vika appears on her way to the first set, while on a nearby court Belinda Bencic leads Iga Switek after a tiebreak. Vika-Bencic would be a throwback.

Had to look it up. They first met at Wimbledon in 2015 with Vika winning to make the quarters.

[jimlosaltos]

Watched Matteo Berrettini last night beat Zverev in straight sets. It's like the Italian looked in his sock drawer and suddenly found his A game, "Ah, that's where I left it."

Yes, Berrettnii served lights out. But it was his supposed-liability backhand that was the difference IMHO. Zverev attacked and attacked it over and over and then, with a set on the line, Berrettini would blast a backhand passing shot, lightning down the line kicking up titanium paste. Time and again.

Reminds us that he was a finalist here.

[jimlosaltos]

NYT's Futterman on why many tennis pros no longer make Wimbledon a priority. Wimbledon is a victim of its own doing: Slowing and homogenizing the courts between events mean the same players win everywhere making Wimbledon stand out less. Then, there is the difficulty of preparing. With "the grass court season evolving into a quirky, roughly one-month detour from the rest of the tennis calendar, many top players can’t find the time or the head space to make being good on grass a priority. If it costs them tennis immortality, so be it."


Has Wimbledon’s Beguiling Grass Robbed the Grand Slam of Its Magic?
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/08/sports/tennis/wimbledon-grass-all-england-club.html?smid=url-share


Andrey Rublev, “You feel so confident, and then you go on court and the guy, he makes four aces, two returns, unreal — out of nowhere, he breaks you, and the set is over,” Rublev said. “And maybe sometimes you feel super tight, like, I cannot move, I cannot put one ball in the court. And then the guy does two double faults, and the ball hits the frame of your racket and goes in, you break him, and then you win a set.”


Daniil Medvedev doesn’t even think playing the preparatory grass tournaments makes much of a difference, because grass is different in Germany, the Netherlands and the various locales in England. He said that the field courts at the All England Club played extremely fast and that the stadium courts were slow.

{This is also a major advantage for some seeds who get everything scheduled on center court, while others have been there for years without stepping on its surface - then suddenly have to play a seed on the slower, less worn court.}

Will he ever feel at home on the grass? After his second-round win on Friday, he said he might be getting closer.

“Maybe at the door,” he said. “Not inside, but at the door.”

[stroke]

The oddsmakers might be right. Tsitsipas has played some great matches to get where he is in the draw. He's hitting massive and going to be difficult to beat...for anyone. Huge forehands and huge serving against Murray.

With his service return, I can see a huge roadblock in trying to break Chris. Chris' serve impact reminds me of Nick last year. I would not bet on this match, but Chris really looks like a smart money play.

[stotty]

Tsitsipas is a solid favorite over Eubanks, with an implied probability of winning at 76%.

The oddsmakers might be right. Tsitsipas has played some great matches to get where he is in the draw. He's hitting massive and going to be difficult to beat...for anyone. Huge forehands and huge serving against Murray.

[stroke]

Tsitsipas is a solid favorite over Eubanks, with an implied probability of winning at 76%.

[stroke]

Eubanks looks just as spectacular today in win over O'Connell(65 winners, 25 unforced errors). Next up for Chris, Tsitsipas in the match of tournament so far to me. I like Chris to win it. It will be very interesting to see the betting line on this one. Tsitsipas will be the favorite no doubt, but I think Eubanks has the oddsmakers full attention.