2016 Australian Open

[dak4n6]

IMO, one of the more enjoyable tennis majors. Start of a new year, the players are refreshed and healed, and the surfaces are fast.

Watching Novack and Wawrinkia right now. Some great points and great shots on both ends. Stan's backhand is one of the most beautiful in the game. Just now he hit a stinger cross-court BH winner. Plus, I love the way Nole applauds his opponent's great shots. Truly a good sport, unlike someone who's name rhymes with Badal.

Tomorrow is Fed vs Murray. That's gonna be a battle.

Post observations and picks here.

I think Fed will win #18. His new strategy of serve/volley and even return/volley had been really effective recently.

Stan just won the 2nd set with one service break, and the announcers called him 'The Stanimal'. Never heard that one, made me snort...

[Golfingdad]

Your post really confused me because I love the Australian Open and I was like "if those guys are already playing each other then it's gotta be nearing the end - how the heck have I missed it?!?!"

Alas, I realized it hasn't started yet.  Phew.

Its my favorite tennis major for the same reason I love the Aussie and SE Asia golf tournaments - live sports on week nights after the kids have all gone to bed!!!

[dak4n6]

Well it is the quarter finals, Nole #2 vs the Stanimal #8, so the tournament is about half over. It looks like most of the top seeded men are headed into the semis. 

Nole and Stan at deuce 3-3 in the 5th set right now, and Stan just served a 135 ace to go Ad. awesome. And....after a 15 shot rally Nole just hit it 2" deep out at the ad corner so it's on serve in the 5th set...and I need to get to sleep but that's not going to happen...

[Golfingdad]

10 minutes ago, dak4n6 said:

Well it is the quarter finals, Nole #2 vs the Stanimal #8, so the tournament is about half over. It looks like most of the top seeded men are headed into the semis. 

Nole and Stan at deuce 3-3 in the 5th set right now, and Stan just served a 135 ace to go Ad. awesome. And....after a 15 shot rally Nole just hit it 2" deep out at the ad corner so it's on serve in the 5th set...and I need to get to sleep but that's not going to happen...

I'm so lost.  The Australian Open doesn't start until next Monday.

http://www.ausopen.com/en_AU/scores/schedule/tv_schedule.html

[dak4n6]

Wait, what? I'm the one who is lost. I'm on travel right now and the hotel's cable feed doesn't have a guide with a description of each program, so I must be watching last year's, but you would think that the ESPN coverage would indicate that.....

OK, well I set up the thread for next week. And I was really getting into this match and yelling at the TV, feel like a tool now. Who won last year? I should just delete this thread out of existence...

Thanks GD, I'm gonna delete this thread. I need a big red-faced embarrassed emoticon. I'll start another up next week, unless you get to it first... 

[Golfingdad]

7 minutes ago, dak4n6 said:

Wait, what? I'm the one who is lost. I'm on travel right now and the hotel's cable feed doesn't have a guide with a description of each program, so I must be watching last year's, but you would think that the ESPN coverage would indicate that.....

OK, well I set up the thread for next week. And I was really getting into this match and yelling at the TV, feel like a tool now. Who won last year? I should just delete this thread out of existence...

Thanks GD, I'm gonna delete this thread. I need a big red-faced embarrassed emoticon. I'll start another up next week, unless you get to it first... 

LOL, no worries ... the thread title is still accurate, we just have to make people ignore these few posts. ;)

I don't ever really root for any particular player, I just like watching good matches.  Drama in tennis is nothing like any other sports, IMO.  It's so much more intense when you get to that point in the 3rd set where the its 6-5, ad in, and that guy is up two sets, and the match is quite possibly 2 seconds away from ending OR two HOURS away from ending.  No other sports are remotely like that.  :)

And my favorite part is the middle rounds, where the matches are all starting to get good and anybody can win, but there are still several matches each day.  And I like rooting for those guys who are close but never seem to break through, like Tsonga or Monfils, but amongst the top players, my favorite is Djokovic.

And I like watching the women too! :)

[dak4n6]

Yeah the drama in tennis is like the last match in a tied Ryder Cup all square coming down the last 4 holes. Yes, those 10 - 30 seeds are the ones who make things interesting. 

BTW, Wawrinka won 9-7 in the 5th, incredible match. I don't remember that last year.

I can't figure out how to delete a thread, so I'll just let this stand as testament to my duhness, and we can start posting for real next week...

[Golfingdad]

8 minutes ago, dak4n6 said:

Yeah the drama in tennis is like the last match in a tied Ryder Cup all square coming down the last 4 holes. Yes, those 10 - 30 seeds are the ones who make things interesting. 

BTW, Wawrinka won 9-7 in the 5th, incredible match. I don't remember that last year.

I can't figure out how to delete a thread, so I'll just let this stand as testament to my duhness, and we can start posting for real next week...

Had to look it up ... Appears as though you just watched a 2014 quarterfinal.  Wawrinka beat Berdych in the semis and Nadal in the finals to win the whole thing. :)

[Golfingdad]

Ok @dak4n6, we're ready now ... The first match of the tournament is underway right now (Kvitova).  The beginning of two weeks of live late night sporting fun!!!

[dak4n6]

Watching Nadal v Verdasco now. Had to wait for the coverage banner saying it was live 2016 feed before I posted.

So Verdasco is seeded so low that he is playing 1st round against a top seed? He is holding his own right now...

[dak4n6]

Holy Moses, Verdasco beat Rafa! I think that is his first time being knocked out in the first round of a major. I watched the first two sets and Fernando was playing tough.

Oh no, they're showing Azarenka. I might have to watch basketball; I really can't take her shrieking.

[dak4n6]

Sharipova looked a little old and tired in her face, like she aged 10 years since the US Open. She also had a ton of unforced errors and dropped the 2nd set to young American Lauren Davis, but then her shrieking took over and she bageled her in the 3rd.

[Thrash13]

Novak Djokovic is on an insane run right now. Murray had a few openings today to make the Aussie Open Final close, but it wasn't to be. If Djokovic wins Roland Garros, he'll accomplish the career grand slam and Djokovic Slam. He's unreal right now!

On a side note, it looks like Milos Raonic is close to joining the top group. I'm excited to watch him in 2016.