ANDY MURRAY is like any other poor sportsman from ENGLAND.all the sports in ENGLAND ARE JINXED.their sportsmen have brilliance but they ARE CURSED to LOOSE,MAY BE!
So much discussion has been taking place in this forum when there has been no action at Flushing Meadows. God knows what Aishwarya Patil and Vasudevan V would have done if there had been some actual play at the US Open!
Roger Federer's downslide will now begin from 2010...i see a lot of dangerous floaters like Del Potro, Cilic, Verdasco and one of them will become the nemesis of Fedex and hasten his slide...it happens to the best and no player, no matter how great he is, is immune to those forces of change...
We all thought that Lendl the metronome was unconquerable but Ivanisevic literally ground him to dust repeatedly at Grand slams and Grand prix tourneys....
Similarly, in Soderling and Del Potro, i see the end of Federer.....in a couple of years time, he will be struggling to stay afloat and may even get a parting kick from some rookie upstart!!
Re: Federer's downslide will now begin!!
by VASUDEVAN V on Sep 12, 2009 02:20 PM
Well Mr.Khan, I am back again. In a couple of years Federer will be 30 and others you have named will be in their early or mid 20s. Naturally they will have the advantage of age and fitness. So, Federer is bound to fade away as Father age catches up with him and his movements slow down. So, to me it is not downslide (2008 was downslide because he was just 27 and at his peak - but even then he reached all four Slam finals and won one. As Roddick ironically put it, what a bad year which he (Roddick) would love to have had)but fading away with age. A sportsman never wishes to stop playing (Dravid, Ganguly, even Tendulkar for example). Federer may continue to play and may lose to lesser mortals. But those losses will be because of age and slower movements. I, as an ardent fan of Federer, wish he retires when at his peak!
Re: Re: Federer's downslide will now begin!!
by kareem on Sep 13, 2009 05:43 PM
my dear vasudev..everybody know ,disnace between federer and other players..he is not 30..just wash ur head once, he can dominate at leat 2-3 years..after that u can think about fade and all..i wonder jayasurya still playing...sachin and darvid still top sorer in indian batting..skill and young..litle difference is there, delpetro never become a federer..dhoni never become a sachin..
Re: Re: Federer's downslide will now begin!!
by aishwarya patil on Sep 12, 2009 03:14 PM
Hi Professor At least give Nadal some credit for displacing Federer from his peak. Sooner or later, a Champion has to fade, and a new one has to take over, but instances of a Champion being dethroned while still playing at his peak are rare. Nadal is the one who has performed this rare feat.
Re: Re: Re: Federer's downslide will now begin!!
by RS RAVINDRA on Sep 13, 2009 03:45 PM
...so what does that prove??----it requires a super-human effort to dethrone federer, which nadal did manage to do last season (for which he deserves his due share in history books); but it's like an upcoming player who is hailed as the greatest for winning against, say his ageing, champion elder brother/father; even though he has not achieved even half of what his father has!!! let him go through all the crests and troughs over the years and then only we can comment on his greatness...same situation in case of nadal-federer...
dear aishwarya, i am sure that even you yourself know deep within your conscience that ROG has no match...but alas you won't admit it!!
Re: Re: Re: Re: Federer's downslide will now begin!!
by aishwarya patil on Sep 13, 2009 06:54 PM
Who can argue with statistics. Only the insane and the bully will deny Federer the credit he deserves, but for all his trophies, greatness and elegance, he is afraid of Nadal. Had it not been so, he would not have lost the Australian Open final, despite being the better player. Playing against Nadal, all kinds of things happen to him: like4 he lost his serve completely on that fateful day in Melbourne. Even here, all Federer supporters know in the heart of their hearts, that if Nadal is able to make it to the final (A difficult task-beating Del Potro in this kind of form), he is going to lift the Trophy.
Re: Re: Re: Federer's downslide will now begin!!
by VASUDEVAN V on Sep 12, 2009 03:39 PM
Patilji: Dethroning is linked to points garnered in tournaments other than Grandslams also. I would not like to go into it. Just look at Andy Murray. Just before US Open he dethroned (to use your own word) Nadal and became world no.2 with a performance which included pre-quarters in Australian Open, quarters in French and Semis in Wimbledon and without ever winning a Grandslam! Hence, I would not enter into an argument on this dethroning controversy. Suffice it to say, Federer is the best of his time in Grandslams and, perhaps, of all time, given his consistency and track record. Nos.1, 2 etc. are merely numbers and have no meaning.
Re: Re: Re: Re: Federer's downslide will now begin!!
by Vijay on Sep 12, 2009 04:35 PM
Hi Dr Vasudevan. I didn't know you were a Professor. Why should such a learned man as you engage in an unnecessary duel with a brash girl (or boy as some would like to believe) over a non-issue? Let her brag. Federer is the greatest. Those who cannot see it should get their eyes examined. They do not deserve attention and comment from a Professor like you.
It is very difficult now for Nadal to win U.S.Open since QF has been delayed, Will have To play FIVE setter on Saturday, Sunday, and IF he wins SF , Final on Manday. No time for rest, Time is running out for Nadal, where and how to get fresh for Next match ??. Federer has Clear advantage upto 80% of winning the Slam.
Re: Very Difficult !!!
by aishwarya patil on Sep 12, 2009 03:17 PM
One needs to recall the Australian Open, where Nadal had to play a grueling five-setter against Fernndo Verdasco barely 24 hours before the final against Federer, who was fresher, having had a day's rest. And yet, Nadal found enough energy to not just beat Federer, but to make him cry. Nadal is still capable of doing it.
Re: Re: Very Difficult !!!
by VASUDEVAN V on Sep 12, 2009 03:51 PM
Patilji: Federer cries when he wins, he cries when he loses. It is an emotion of a sportsman who is so fond of his game and should not be belittled by writing `made him cry'. Agreed, Nadal had the energy to play two gruelling 5 setters and win the Australian Open. Thereafter he had a gruelling Clay court season winning everything before him (except at Madrid). Then what happened? His knees gave away, his body gave away and he himself has said that his bad knees are at the back of his mind whenever he is playing and that is why he withdrew from Wimbledon. Well, he certainly plays one extra ball than every single player including Federer, but it was bound to tell on his body. And now it has. The million dollar question is: Will he have the courage the mental toughness to continue with that gruelling style of game? Only time will tell.
Re: Re: Very Difficult !!!
by Kelvin on Sep 12, 2009 04:23 PM
Ash.Patil, It is true that Nadal faced similar situation in 2009 Australian Open, but at that time Nadal Was NOT facing Knee injury, today the story is different, Nadal had to skip big WIM. due to same.Moreover Nadal has to complete /win QF first and then think of SF , both may be five setter.That is why U.S.Open is so difficult.
Re: Great player, not so great mannerisms
by aishwarya patil on Sep 12, 2009 10:34 AM
You have the observatory skills of Sherlock Holmes, and I must compliment you for being very thorough in observing and describing Nadal's mannerisms quite accurately. But it seems you deliberately close your eyes the moment he starts playing Tennis, otherwise you would have commented on the unique brand of Tennis which he plays between the activities you have described. He is not as much talented as Federer, but what he lacks in talent, he makes up by hard work. Please use your Observation skills in decribing his game also.
Re: Re: Great player, not so great mannerisms
by VASUDEVAN V on Sep 12, 2009 01:24 PM
Well said Patilji. All that a talented person has to do is just come and stand on the court, the rest will follow automatically! Is it so? Remember, talent has to be coupled with hard work, dedication and the desire to be the best for achieving success in the chosen field. There have been a number of talented persons, much more talented than Federer, in Tennis, Football and various other sports. But, because they did not put in the hard work required to go with their talent to be successful, they ended as also rans. Federer is an amalgam of extraordinary talent, hard work, mental toughness and the desire to be the best. Take the case of Agassi. He had as much talent as Federer, but he did not achieve the results that Federer has achieved. The reason? He wasted his talent in a wayward manner and never realised his full potential. Federer is not only more talented than Nadal, but he is also as hard working and as mentally tough as Nadal. This is the reason he has reached 22 consecutive Semi-finals in Grandslams (the next best is 10 of Lendl, a Nadal like player and Sampras' best is 3 in a row!) and if all goes well against Djokovic, he will reach the 17th of the last 18 Grandslam finals! I also admire Nadal, but he certainly has a long way to go (his body permitting) to reach the heights achieved by Federer!
Re: Re: Re: Great player, not so great mannerisms
by Bhasmasur Khan on Sep 12, 2009 01:33 PM
Can you tell me who are those blessed gentlemen who are or were more talented than Federer??
Don't make any airy fairy statements...i have been watching tennis keenly from the Wilander/Lendl/Becker Edberg era........
And i can assure you even John McEnroe, Borg, Lendl, Sampras.....no one had the talent that Fedex has!!
And Aishwariya Patil has only spoken about the tremendous commitment and efort that Nadal puts in terms of the nature of his game, which is physical and brutal...nowhere has he spoken about Nadal's greatness vis a vis Fedex.....he has only said that Nadal is not as talneted as Federer but still gets the most out of himself.....
Federer's game is more smooth and sublime and he keeps rallies down to a bare minimum while Nadal plays a brutal exhausting game in which he outslugs opponents.....
Re: Re: Re: Re: Great player, not so great mannerisms
by VASUDEVAN V on Sep 12, 2009 01:45 PM
Mr.Khan: I am a keen fan of Tennis since 1968! There have been a number of players - Marcillo Rios for one, even experts feel so, Agassi when he began, even John McEnroe for that matter and there was a Czech player Milslov Mecir - as talented or more talented than Federer. You can talk of Vinod Kambli (Sachin's buddy) in Cricket, Paul Gascoigne in Football etc. The difference was, they did not have the dedication nor did they put in the hard work that Federer does. My posting is just to counter Patilji to show that mere talent is not enough. It has to be coupled with hard work and dedication to achieve full potential. Thus, Federer also puts in as much hard work as Nadal and the results show. Federer shows as much commitment as Nadal, especially in the Grandslams. Federer also takes care of his body, not merely his game!
Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Great player, not so great mannerisms
by myself on Sep 12, 2009 02:38 PM
I have been following since last 2 decades. Sampras had it in him. He even defeated Roger 2-1 in charity match (after he retired).
Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Great player, not so great mannerisms
by Bhasmasur Khan on Sep 12, 2009 01:54 PM
I agree with all that you say but would never agree on your comment about Miloslav Mecir or Marcelo Rios having as much talent as Federer...
Talent is about execution of every conceivable shot in tennis in every possible postion on court with a high degree of accuracy and Fedex just scores over all his peers in that area....
I have seen Mecir toying with Wilander only to be toyed with by Edberg in next round...do you call that talent??
And Marcelo Rios did not have the mental makeup to be a chmapion at the highest level so let us not even get into that wastrel Chilean!!
Re: Re: Re: Great player, not so great mannerisms
by tanmoy on Sep 12, 2009 01:39 PM
I agree with u Vasudevan.........federer is not only more talented than nadal he is also as hard working as nadal.......but 1 thing I disagree with you.....federer may be mentally tough against other players,but he is not mentally tough against nadal.......thats why he lose so many matches against nadal,that is the only weakness of federer I am eager to see again the grandslam final between these two,but 1st both has to make it
Re: Re: Re: Re: Great player, not so great mannerisms
by VASUDEVAN V on Sep 12, 2009 01:55 PM
Well the goat Mr.Tanmoy! I think, about Federer losing to Nadal, we are forgetting that more often than not Federer has lost to Nadal on Clay. On Clay Nadal is considered to be the best (even better than Borg, they say, though I felt at his peak Borg would have had the edge, having watched him play on Clay). Going by this analysis, Federer is the best on other surfaces other than Clay and the second best on Clay. Are we penalising him for being the second best on Clay, by saying that Nadal has a positive result against Federer, so Federer is mentally weak? Probably the results on clay courts has given Nadal a mental edge, which any winner carries forward. But that mental edge of Nadal is not converted into consistency in the Grandslams, whereas Federer is just outstanding in Grandslams. Nadal gave his everything in 2008 and in the clay court season of 2009 and his body gave away. That is why I said, Federer not only takes care of his game, but also his body. The million dollar question is, if Nadal does not put in the same mental effort, will he be the same Nadal? Or, if he puts in the effort, will his body last? Well, only Tony uncle can answer this question!
Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Great player, not so great mannerisms
by myself on Sep 12, 2009 02:38 PM
have been following since last 2 decades. Sampras had it in him. He even defeated Roger 2-1 in charity match (after he retired).
Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Great player, not so great mannerisms
by aishwarya patil on Sep 12, 2009 03:10 PM
Hi Professor You are trying to say that Nadal's victories on Clay do not matter because he is a Clay Court expert. First of all, calling Nadal a mere Clay Courter after his victories at Wimbledon and Melbourne, is derogatory, and secondly, does Federer dominate over Nadal on other courts; like Nadal dominates over him on Clay? You are unnecessarily assuming that Nadal's career is going to be short-lived. I too have read a report published in the Guardian that said that Nadal's knees were aged 33 years, and were likely to give in very quickly, but that is an individual's assessment, which can be wrong. The way Nadal has been despatching one tough opponent after the other at the US Open, it is quite clear that the knee injury is a thing of the past, and the lion is ready to roar again. I cannot say how long his body is going to last, but till it does, he is going to tower over Federer.
Re: Nadal will be the king in US open
by Prakash on Sep 12, 2009 09:27 AM
No way! Nadal is the best player when he is fit.But he has now fitness problem and it will be almost impossible to manage three days of play.So I think again it be Federer or may be Patro.
Re: Re: Nadal will be the king in US open
by deep dar on Sep 12, 2009 10:11 AM
Federer is waiting for Nadal to make it to the finals, for once in his life!!!
