AO Day 6: Quotes and Things

Hey Y'all. Galileo here.

The funny thing about slams is how much there is going on. Only Miami and Indian Wells come close. The only event where there is more going on is the Olympics and, well, duh. There is more to see than can ever be seen and more to do than can ever be done. So it is easy to miss that which is not immediately obvious. A great example of that is quotes.

Which players are comediennes? Or comedians? Which players are boring and which never watch any tape? Who can speak multiple language? We know the answers to all these because we can ask. We can find out, we can see for ourselves.

"The last few days I couldn't really talk, maybe too many cigar, I don't really need my voice, if I can talk, I talk too much sh#t," he said.

"I can tell I just had a cold a little bit, but nothing serious, nothing big. As long as I'm feeling good on the court, that's the most important thing."

Stan has a cheeky sense of humour, though he also has a more serious side. He even swears in the media room, which shows he knows how to relax, how to be himself, in an interview situation. That is a really good trait to have.

The other thing that can happen is that players can talk about each other. It is almost always friendly, especially on the ATP tour, but sometimes it can be a little nastier. Some of the ladies on the WTA have been known to take swipes. Federer does it sometimes, but it is usually tongue in cheek.

This past week Federer has been talking about Tomic, about how he never makes the top ten and he hasn’t shown ‘it yet,’ which was a little uncalled for though it is true in some respects. Tomic responded by saying he was certain to get into the top ten. He also said Federer isn’t there against Djokovic. Which is not true and very petty.

But these are a just a couple of examples. I’m sure you could go look and find a lot.

So what else happened during the day? Well, let’s find out.

*Suicide Picks*
MS 1st Rd: Dimitrov d. Lorenzo {W}
MS 2nd Rd: Kyrgios [29] d. Cuevas {W}
MS 3rd Rd: Tomic [16] d. Millman {W}
MS 4th Rd: Monfils [23] d. Kuznetsov
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WS 1st Rd: Gavrilova d. Hradecka {W}
WS 2nd Rd: Mladenovic [28] d. Gibbs {W}
WS 3rd Rd: Beck d. Siegemund {W}
WS 4th Rd: Keys [15] d. Zhang


ROD LAVER: WAWRINKA D. ROSOL
...Wawrinka managed to survive a late fightback from Rosol to come through 6-3, 6-2, 7-6[3]. He just continues to dominate all before him. Rosol actually played a solid match, but really he had no chance. With 45 aces and four breaks, Wawrinka cruised to victory in under two hours. With Raonic up next, the Swiss is riding high. That will be a test but Stan is certainly up to it. In fact, he is more than up to it, he could well dominate. Raonic will have to serve huge the whole match and attack at every opportunity. I would expect very few breaks of serve in their fourth round match. Wawrinka returned well but needs to serve better with regards to accuracy. He has to do better than 58 per cent on the first serve. He should also attempt to come to net more. If he can take the net away from his younger opponent, he will be able to limit one of his methods of attack. It has been a good tournament from Rosol but he will not be the last to fall to Wawrinka here.
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ROD LAVER: TOMIC D. MILLMAN
...Tomic is back in the fourth round here. He has made it there twice before, but was schooled by Federer in 2012 and convincingly sent packing by Berdych in 2015. He now has Murray. He spent two hours getting rid of Millman 6-4, 7-6[3], 6-2. Murray has never lost to Tomic, going 3-0 and the Aussie has not even taken a set. There were times when people compared the two, excepting the fact Tomic hits flatter and Murray moves better. Hitting 48 winners, breaking five times and even returning well, Bernie looks set to at least challenge the world number two. If Murray does lose, he will forfeit his world number two position to Federer. If Tomic wins he could crack the top 15. What he needs to do against the Scot is serve as he has been doing but also attack Murray when he drops it short. Murray is predictable and can sometimes get passive. If he does then Bernie can use his good court knowledge to try and control the rallies. He also has to serve bigger in general. I think Murray wins in four.
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MCA: RAONIC D. TROICKI
...You can tell a player is confident when he dismisses a recent title-winner in a grand slam without breaking a sweat. Raonic rolled through 6-2, 6-3, 6-4. He hit 37 winners in just over an hour and a half. It was a remarkable performance from the world number 14. He won 84 per cent of his first serve points and broke five times. He did lose his serve but his opponent could only manage to win 17 receiving points. The Canuck is in impressive form, but I think it will be the variety of the Swiss that will be the deciding factor. The different spins and slices will be difficult to deal with. Combining all those different looks with the kind of raw power Stan has is a potent mix.
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MCA: MURRAY D. SOUSA
...It took Murray over two hours to finally subdue Sousa 6-2, 6-2, 3-6, 6-2. He volleyed well but did not serve particularly well. He also lost serve twice. This was a grind, a slog. But Murray is used to doing that. He can play these dirty matches, he can get his clothes mud-streaked so to speak. This was a physical, rough match which Sousa was able to shine in. The Portuguese man is a tricky opponent and he really pushed Muzza throughout the tighter-than-it-looks four setter. But Murray is now through to face Tomic. It could go four but the Aussie is looking for his first set in the fourth round of this tournament. He has yet to win one.
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HISENSE: ISNER D. LOPEZ
...This was a mature performance from the tenth seed. He won 6-7[8], 7-6[5], 6-2, 6-4. But this match was a dud. It should have been an epic five-setter. Isner hit 44 aces but Lopez hit just 18. The Spaniard was just, well, disappointing. Lopez never found a break point but Isner got 7, converting three. Out of 124 points returning, Lopez won 27. Isner won twice, in percentage terms, that amount. If Isner is returning alright then the rest of the field is in trouble. It is another disappointing slam for Lopez but a second fourth round here for Isner. Can he beat 8th seeded Ferrer? Probably not, as he is 1-6 all-time versus the Spaniard. But if he could make a second slam quarter-final, wouldn’t that be good for him and for American tennis?
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OUTER COURT SELECTION: MONFILS D. ROBERT
...Monfils continues to cruise, though he has had an easy draw. He plays at a standard that is just higher than his opponents can play. Every match is in his hands. He can only lose if he mucks up. Stay solid and he is golden. He was on court for an hour and three quarters but won 7-5, 6-3, and 6-2. But don’t feel sorry for Robert - he get 97, 500 dollars for making the third round. Kuznetsov, Monfils’ Russian fourth round opponent, will get $200,000. Those two are sorted until the French Open with regards to finances. It gives them options, gives them choices. That’s why these runs are so important to the underdogs. Monfils has Kuznetsov, then Wawrinka and then Murray. He is in with a legitimate shot to make the final. And he is playing like it.
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Kiki and Garcia continue to dominate in the doubles, though it is against lesser opponents. Still, you can only play whomever is in front of you. They beat Sanchez/Vogt 6-2, 6-1. With 18 winners and 6 breaks, they run rampant. They even served at a 79 per cent first serve mark. The French ladies do have a test coming up. Thirteenth seeded Goerges/Pliskova are next and they’ve yet to lose a set here. They will also hold their serve more, unlike the opponents of the third seeds yesterday.


Thanks and visit WTA BACKSPIN.

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