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Sports & Gaming Moderators: ghostfreak
Wimbledon 2008
- Thread starter eDDe9
- Start date
Chaos Butterfly
Bluelight Crew
well Wimbledon is here... was gonna start a thread, but went to trivia and got drunk instead 
N.B all of my commentary will have an Aussie bent
Hewitt, Stosur and Dellacqua are through the first round
Casey taking out Patty Schnyder, which is a bit of an achievement!!
Other than that, the only major upset to date was Nalbandian getting dumped out.
I'll be following this tournament, mens and womens, singles, doubles, mixed and juniors all the way through to the end (as long as there are Aussies still involved)
CB
N.B all of my commentary will have an Aussie bent
Hewitt, Stosur and Dellacqua are through the first round
Casey taking out Patty Schnyder, which is a bit of an achievement!!Other than that, the only major upset to date was Nalbandian getting dumped out.
I'll be following this tournament, mens and womens, singles, doubles, mixed and juniors all the way through to the end (as long as there are Aussies still involved
)CB
Nal-beerBelly-Baldian losing wasn't an upset at all to me.
He has been on the decline for a while, and was fighting Dancevic, a very talented young Canadian, future top 20-30. He got owned fair and square.
Nadal was solid but not dominating like on clay. Nothing is certain for him on grass, even if the court is slower.
He has been on the decline for a while, and was fighting Dancevic, a very talented young Canadian, future top 20-30. He got owned fair and square.
Nadal was solid but not dominating like on clay. Nothing is certain for him on grass, even if the court is slower.
PinholeStar
Bluelighter
I was gonna start this thread with pictures & everything......in fact I still am, so fuck y'all. 
This is looking like being potentially the most open Wimbledon for years in the men's.
There's no doubt that Federer's dominance at the top of game is under threat. His aura of invincibility has been dented this year & although illness & injury have contributed greatly to a (by his stellar standards) fairly indifferent year, both Djokovic & Nadal have stepped up their games since last time round.
Having taken him to 5 sets in last year's final & utterly destroyed him in the French Open final a few weeks ago Nadal will be buoyed by confidence & have every expectation of winning the tournament. He's improved his serve, which was a definite weak point of his game, the courts are playing slow & bouncing high which suits his style & he's the one with all the momentum.
And, having claimed his first grand slam title & moved firmly into the top tier Novak Djokovic will consider this year his chance to shine. He has every tool needed to win this tournament & although he lost to Nadal in the Artois final a week ago he played some exceptional tennis & showed that he is more than ready to mount a serious challenge.
One of these three will win the tournament, I'm fairly sure. Having equalled it last year I would love to see Roger break Borg's record of straight wins but it's going to be tougher than ever for him. His status as red-hot favourite that he's enjoyed for the past half decade is no longer set in stone & the general feeling is that he may be there for the taking. I'm not so sure though...
If there's anywhere that Federer is going to reassert his dominance it's on the grass of Wimbledon. He's the most natural grass-court player of all time, he seems to glide across the surface & for me, watching him play here is just sheer poetry in motion. All this talk of him being third favourite sounds a little premature to my ears.
Avoiding any major upsets we're looking at a Federer v Djokovic semi-final which is a mouthwatering prospect. I can't wait. %)
The women's is also wide open.
With the shock retirement of Justine Henin (we'll never get to see that sublime backhand again
) in Ana Ivanovic we have a new world no.1, a new French Open champion & a girl that I would bang seven ways from Sunday. :D The cleanest striker of the ball around, she too has improved in the last year & I would place her as favourite, but not by much.
Scary Mary Sharapova will be a massive threat, it's a fool who writes off the Williams' sisters & there's a whole host of top ten players such as Jankovic & Kuznetsova who could also, if they find their form, mount a genuine challenge.
Difficult one to call, I think.
One final aside: hopefully Andy Murray will be knocked out early & then we won't be swamped by endless coverage of this over-hyped arse.
This is looking like being potentially the most open Wimbledon for years in the men's.
There's no doubt that Federer's dominance at the top of game is under threat. His aura of invincibility has been dented this year & although illness & injury have contributed greatly to a (by his stellar standards) fairly indifferent year, both Djokovic & Nadal have stepped up their games since last time round.
Having taken him to 5 sets in last year's final & utterly destroyed him in the French Open final a few weeks ago Nadal will be buoyed by confidence & have every expectation of winning the tournament. He's improved his serve, which was a definite weak point of his game, the courts are playing slow & bouncing high which suits his style & he's the one with all the momentum.
And, having claimed his first grand slam title & moved firmly into the top tier Novak Djokovic will consider this year his chance to shine. He has every tool needed to win this tournament & although he lost to Nadal in the Artois final a week ago he played some exceptional tennis & showed that he is more than ready to mount a serious challenge.
One of these three will win the tournament, I'm fairly sure. Having equalled it last year I would love to see Roger break Borg's record of straight wins but it's going to be tougher than ever for him. His status as red-hot favourite that he's enjoyed for the past half decade is no longer set in stone & the general feeling is that he may be there for the taking. I'm not so sure though...
If there's anywhere that Federer is going to reassert his dominance it's on the grass of Wimbledon. He's the most natural grass-court player of all time, he seems to glide across the surface & for me, watching him play here is just sheer poetry in motion. All this talk of him being third favourite sounds a little premature to my ears.
Avoiding any major upsets we're looking at a Federer v Djokovic semi-final which is a mouthwatering prospect. I can't wait. %)
The women's is also wide open.
With the shock retirement of Justine Henin (we'll never get to see that sublime backhand again
) in Ana Ivanovic we have a new world no.1, a new French Open champion & a girl that I would bang seven ways from Sunday. :D The cleanest striker of the ball around, she too has improved in the last year & I would place her as favourite, but not by much.Scary Mary Sharapova will be a massive threat, it's a fool who writes off the Williams' sisters & there's a whole host of top ten players such as Jankovic & Kuznetsova who could also, if they find their form, mount a genuine challenge.
Difficult one to call, I think.
One final aside: hopefully Andy Murray will be knocked out early & then we won't be swamped by endless coverage of this over-hyped arse.
PinholeStar
Bluelighter
Wow. Bye-bye Djokovic then.
Safin was always going to be a potential stumbling block (he is a former world no.1 & two-time grand slam winner, after all) but I never expected a straight sets defeat.
That makes it a little easier for Federer though, who looked great today.
Ivanovic had a scare too. She was fortunate to get through that match.
Safin was always going to be a potential stumbling block (he is a former world no.1 & two-time grand slam winner, after all) but I never expected a straight sets defeat.
That makes it a little easier for Federer though, who looked great today.
Ivanovic had a scare too. She was fortunate to get through that match.
Safin was good back in his day, but Djokovic can't even seem to deliver a pizza.
he needs to shut his mouth and play tennis. I have no problem with people who talk, so long as they can walk. it seems that this guy just talks, talks, talks.
Djokovic, is of course, a good player. there is no reason for Safin upsetting him.
he needs to shut his mouth and play tennis. I have no problem with people who talk, so long as they can walk. it seems that this guy just talks, talks, talks.
Djokovic, is of course, a good player. there is no reason for Safin upsetting him.
Chaos Butterfly
Bluelight Crew
I think the supremely and ridiculously talented Safin turned up today, as opposed to the confused, self-destructive, angry Safin.
He is such a good player when he is on, and I don't think Novak had really had to play against that before.
Well Hewitt moved on, so did our Casey
No other major upsets...
He is such a good player when he is on, and I don't think Novak had really had to play against that before.
Well Hewitt moved on, so did our Casey
No other major upsets...
hewitt is in federers way though, unless Hewitt can do a 5 set comeback extraordinaire he is toast. I just dont think he has the weapon/s required to beat the best anymore but he is always a threat as a fit fighting former champion at wimbledon I guess.
If Safin keeps turning up to play he will loom larger on the draw, guys like him you can't look at his ranking/seeding just look at his weapons and if he plays at his peak he will make a big dent in the tournament imo. Nadal, Roddick, Blake and Murray can all go far also.
If Safin keeps turning up to play he will loom larger on the draw, guys like him you can't look at his ranking/seeding just look at his weapons and if he plays at his peak he will make a big dent in the tournament imo. Nadal, Roddick, Blake and Murray can all go far also.
Chaos Butterfly
Bluelight Crew
Yeah, I'm almost 100% sure that Lleyton won't make it past Roger.
But stranger things have happened
I'm not eternally optimistic, so I won't hold my breath
CB
But stranger things have happened
I'm not eternally optimistic, so I won't hold my breath
CB
Chaos Butterfly
Bluelight Crew
Gruntapova and Roddick both gone... Very very early exits for both of them. Very uncharacteristic...
PinholeStar
Bluelighter
LOL @ "Gruntapova". She was dreadful today.
Surprised at Roddick's early exit too. A one-dimensional game he may have, but it's well suited to grass & you would have put money on him going further than he did.
Surprised at Roddick's early exit too. A one-dimensional game he may have, but it's well suited to grass & you would have put money on him going further than he did.
PinholeStar
Bluelighter
Now Ivanovic is gone as well. Grass is her weakest surface but still, they're dropping like flies.
Chaos Butterfly
Bluelight Crew
Grass!! My biggest weakness!!! *falls over dramatically clutching at chest*
lol...
Anyway, Hewitt vs. Federer in the 4th round... I'm hoping that at least it is competitive, at best is a Hewitt win, at heart-pounding excitement level, going to 8-6 in the 5th...
CB
lol...
Anyway, Hewitt vs. Federer in the 4th round... I'm hoping that at least it is competitive, at best is a Hewitt win, at heart-pounding excitement level, going to 8-6 in the 5th...
CB
i'm rooting for federer. he's been looking very human lately but i'd love to see him beat nadal in the final.
alasdair
alasdair
duck_racer
Bluelighter
Although Andy Murray is currently in the Tim Henman situation (ie a top 10 player but not really likely to get past the semi's at best) you've got to love his aggression.
Great to watch :D
Great to watch :D
PinholeStar
Bluelighter
duck_racer said:
Full credit to him for his overturning of a two set deficit (and it was great) but I cannot stand the guy, I really can't. Such a horrible individual both on the court & off. The sooner Nadal blows him away in the quarters, the happier I'll be. Now there's a guy whose aggression & tenacity is channelled & displayed in a mesmerising fashion. I just find Murray ugly in everything he does. Gasquet's one of my favourite players also, so I was doubly gutted to see him lose, but he does have a tendency towards mental fragility, as was evident tonight. But again, I don't want to sound too churlish, so round of applause for Andy.
How good did Roger look today though? Ooooof, if we get another final between him & Nadal (which is what I would love to see) we've potentially got another classic on our hands. Safin's the dark horse still left though...