that's quite....something.

The ATP is in an awkward transition phase. Although it's been feeling like that for a couple of years now.

Well I was cautious, though not for injuries reasons.

Hopefully just a temporary setback.

Re: Roger news - bummer for him and his fans. Not sure we'll see him properly contending for slams again, it was even of a long short him winning. If he's happy to carry on playing for the love of the game, then fair play to him. However I wouldn't be surprised if he's thinking about retirement.

I agree Konta is heading towards the top 10. She disguises both her serve and groundstrokes really well.

But I still feel there's a kind of... rigidity to her game. If that's the right word. When her timing is spot on she can be relentless, but when it goes off she leans towards overhitting the ball an awful lot. She's very systematic with her techniques as opposed to being a natural ball-hitter with flair. Which I guess works for her and has taken her this far, so what do I know...

Anyway, we need to see for another 12 months to know if she can keep hold of what she's already achieved, just to maintain this ranking next year. Let alone taking her game to another level.

It's hard to say whether this is optimal Konta we're seeing or if there's an even more improved version. It'll be interesting to find out over the next year.

Not sure if this has already been posted.

Andy and Rafa practising

Forget about them practising, Rafa is in a sleeveless top! That's cheered me up today.

Lovely. I was hoping they had got together and it was a reason for training in Mallorca.

I think she plays tennis by numbers to a certain extent. She lacks a bit of flair. Although I am sure she is a lovely young woman I find her very bland. I don't think she is much of a team player.

Think that is a little unfair on both points.

1. Lacks a little bit of flair,
I can think of a few players who had plenty of flair but flair alone does not translate into winning matches. Konta has made the most of her talent, and if she plays the way she does and wins matches maybe that should be cheered a bit more

2. Team player
Again think this is unfair, I know she did not play Fed Cup this year but if she is not 100% she did the right thing. Just imagine had she played and lost, would this have possibly led to comments of playing someone who was not fully fit/well

So much to say about Federer's withdrawal from the season, so many streaks being broken and potential records that won't be fulfilled. One of the most interesting aspects is that when or if he returns at the Australian Open next year he probably won't be a top 16 seed, meaning he could play Djokovic or Andy as early as the 3rd round, imagine that!

I thought after I had written it I was being a bit mean. I do support her it's just she seems so self contained but if that's her formula for winning so be it.

Well said

Montreal today first matches on all courts

Agnieszka Radwanska v Monica Niculescu on Court Centrale
Roberta Vinci v Camilla Giorgi on Court Banque Nacional
Carla Suarez Navarro v Kristina Kucova on Court 9
Christina McHale v Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova on Court 5

Other matches today

Second and third on Centrale
Venus Williams v Barbora Strycova
Dominika Cibulkova Navara v Eugenie Bouchard

Johanna Konta v Vania King, third match on Court 9

No, for this I think the PR will help him and he be seeded top 4?

Oh really? Not entirely sure how the PR actually works, but that seems like it could be right. Although I think to be eligible for one you have to be absent for at least six months?

How does that work then? I thought it just meant you could go to the tournament's, I didn't think you actually got the seed you were.

I agree with your description, not the team player bit, I don't know her that well, but on her game.
From what I have seen she does have a paint by numbers game, it's how I described her the other day, she looks produced in a way, 'do this, do that'. Not any flair or anything. Not my style of player to watch.

However, I really have a great admiration of how far she has risen and also the fact she sets the next goal for herself and then moves forwards. I think some of the more gifted players could learn an awful lot from the way she goes about her business. She will be top ten I believe, very soon.

So yeah, although her game doesn't appeal to me, I think she has a quality to be admired.

I think a protected ranking means that if you are out injured then when you return to the circuit you can use a protected ranking to play in a tournament, if the time away means that a player would not get a direct entry

I think that is how it works, but if I have got it wrong then please do correct me

100% correct no correction required

Thankyou

So with that in mind it looks like Federer would not be able to use a protected ranking in the Australian Open, as he is not likely to have any problems in getting direct entry into the draw.
However it also means that Federer is possibly going to be outside top 16 seeds

Is Johanna Konta on a televised court today? I think she's on Court 9.

Not sure if it is a televised court or not

Hope Cibulkova can beat Bouchard today

Yeah, that was my understanding of it too, so Roger won't need it and those who do use it, you are not seeded where they were.

TBH for somebody like Federer even if he dropped like a stone to 250 in the world would have no problems as tournaments would want him and would provide wildcards regardless of ranking due to his pulling power and past record

Fed news was proper depressing, especially because Fed/Hingis has gone up in smoke.


That's spot on, tbh. Nobody who's met him has a bad word to say about him.


Well, he moves very well, but defo has a defensive mindset. Clearly doesn't have confidence in his FH and he's too patchy on return. Currently he wins 20% of return games...the elite returners win over 30%. His fighting spirit/mindset is very good too, which is disappointingly rare among the yoof.


The DC win must've taken it out of Kyle emotionally, as they were feelings he'd never experienced before. It's also a big transition to make from soggy, heavy Euro clay to a medium paced HC in North America.

Personally, I think Kyle will prefer the slower HC like IW/Miami as they give him time to set up his deadly FH. He is the second coming of Courier


Yep, he has a nice game. Very effective wide serve to both deuce and ad, and he's a OHBH lefty who can hit a decent topspin BH. Feli and Llodra could nevah...


Evo wants to play DC when it's not on clay. Which is fair enough really.


Athletics is a farce though, for many reasons. Just depressing to see all and sundry in Qatari vests, shamelessly grabbing 'dem petrodollars.


Heh, I saw that too. These youngsters broadcast every thought that enters their head on social media, and damn the consequences...

Would you see the big four admitting this publically? Hell no. Sends out a terrible signal to the tour and undermines their aura. Nick's got much to learn, but I'm not sure he'll manage it...


Nick wouldn't take up the offer. He can't be arsed to get a coach and gets homesick if he's away from Oz for more than 5 minutes. I feel that to make the best of yourself, you either have to love the game, or being on tour and going to new places. Nick's first love is basketball and he clearly dislikes being on tour.

Compare him with someone like Delpo, who was out for really long periods but clearly missed tour life so much that he came back prematurely from his injuries on many occasions. The difference is stark.

Thing is, I doubt Nick will fundamentally change now. Either you fundamentally love tennis/tour life, or you don't. It ain't for everyone. As a result, I wouldn't be surprised if he hung his racket up by 25. Would be a massive waste of talent but it is what it is.


I agree with ya. Given what the players say about the Olympics these days, I'd rank it ahead of M1000s and even the WTF actually. It's the fifth major.

Andy has strong love for the Olympics, going back to Beijing even. Beating Fed on home soil four years on just cemented his love affair with it, and I'd say was the catalyst for him finally winning a slam. Who knows if he'll have strong feelings in Rio, but he gonna try, no?


BT Sport need to stop playing silly buggers with scheduling, so many times I'd tried to watch a match there and it wasn't as advertised.


Innit. If as a player you have good connections with the top players, you can have the inside track and then inherit a very cushy draw as a result. All you need to do is make it to the final qualifying round. Pretty sure Pouille benefited from Tsonga's withdrawal in Rome, for example. He rode it all the way to the semis and seriously boosted his ranking. The way to stop it is by having a random draw for the final round qualy losers, as opposed to just giving the nod to the highest ranked loser.


The future of the ATP was always likely to be bleak when the big four departed. Remains to be seen if Fedal fans take to any of the next gen. If they don't, I can see them speeding the courts up and doing away with homogenisation.


I'd probably put Milos as #3, he's very consistent when healthy and rarely has bad losses now. Stan's too up and down and Kei spends half the year in the treatment room.


This is a good assessment. Someone compared Konta with Pliskova, but I think she's the female Cilic. Awkward looking but big serve, powerful and consistent BH (especially CC), FH comes and goes. Move pretty well considering their height. Not really keen to change pace or use variety. Biggest threat on grass/medium-fast HC where they can get many free points with their serve. Hell, they are even similar emotionally - never going too high or too low, preferring to remain on an even keel.

Flair only gets you so far, particularly in the women's game. Weapons matter much more...especially serve. Matches are slugfests from the baseline, and you can't bring a knife to a gunfight. Robotic as it is, Konta has a very effective game for modern conditions. It won't change until the conditions change, or poly strings are banned.


I think Fed would, er...magically land in another section. Organisers know which side their bread is buttered

Cherry, I wouldn't put it as the fifth major.

8 of the top 20 will be missing at the Olympic's, IW markets itself as the fifth major and you wouldn't get those kind of numbers there on a regular year and the WTF will usually yield all of the top eight or possibly seven of them if one is injured.

I think the past two Olympic's it has seemed that it was growing in tennis, there are a few who love it of the big names like Roger, Andy and Rafa, but this year seems to be showing that it's not all important to the players as it is in other sports.