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General Discussion => Sport => General Discussion Boards => Tennis => Topic started by: Sine on January 18, 2020, 05:51:14 pm

Title: Australian Open 2020
Post by: Sine on January 18, 2020, 05:51:14 pm
So the main draws came out a couple of days ago.

Tips/Predictions?

Who will everyone be supporting?
Title: Re: Australian Open 2020
Post by: ArtyDreams on January 18, 2020, 06:56:21 pm
Oooooooo yes!! Finally time for me to be glued to the TV for the only two weeks for the entire year  ;D

I'm not really in touch with mens tennis (but would love to see Federer get another slam, but as for the new gen, I'd like to see Thiem go far), so I won't comment on that, but I'm super pumped for the womens draw  :D
For first round matches I'm excited to see if Gauff can beat V.Williams again, and replicate her Wimbledon success.

I've always loved watching Kerber play so I will be supporting her, also curious to see how well Barty does, and to see if she can win her home slam ;D

What about you??


Title: Re: Australian Open 2020
Post by: WackyWill on January 18, 2020, 09:09:42 pm
(but would love to see Federer get another slam, but as for the new gen, I'd like to see Thiem go far)

Although, Federer's class, I feel like he hasn't played enough games (pretty sure he only played one set, which wasn't even competitive) to prepare well to go deep into the AO.
I feel like Thiem, along with others, such as Medvedev, Tsitsipas and Shapovalov are all knocking on the door but I think Djokovic has had a great summer so far (winning the ATP Cup) and will go back to back.

For first round matches I'm excited to see if Gauff can beat V.Williams again, and replicate her Wimbledon success.


Gauff has a better chance of winning in my opinion. Venus is just too old and probably isn't fit to play at a high level throughout the game.

In terms of who has a chance of winning the AO from a women's point of view, I feel as though Halep, Osaka (defending champion) and Pliskova have a chance but I predict Ash Barty to win it after winning the Adelaide International.

My predictions:
Mens: Novak Djokovic
Womens: Ash Barty
Title: Re: Australian Open 2020
Post by: Sine on January 19, 2020, 08:19:38 pm
Oooooooo yes!! Finally time for me to be glued to the TV for the only two weeks for the entire year  ;D

I'm not really in touch with mens tennis (but would love to see Federer get another slam, but as for the new gen, I'd like to see Thiem go far), so I won't comment on that, but I'm super pumped for the womens draw  :D
For first round matches I'm excited to see if Gauff can beat V.Williams again, and replicate her Wimbledon success.

I've always loved watching Kerber play so I will be supporting her, also curious to see how well Barty does, and to see if she can win her home slam ;D

What about you??



Not predictions but who I would like to get far:

For Men’s definitely Federer as always. As for “next-gen” I like Zverev, but he is in horrible form and has done quite badly in Grand Slams for his rankings over the past few years.

As for the Women’s side of things I don’t really have a current favourite, but I would like to see someone like Muguruza (unseeded) to do well especially since she has struggled a bit in the last couple of years.
Title: Re: Australian Open 2020
Post by: Sine on January 25, 2020, 12:55:58 am
Fed scrapes by  :D

Was looking bad, down 8-4 in the 5th set "super-tiebreaker".
Title: Re: Australian Open 2020
Post by: Aaron on January 25, 2020, 01:01:17 am
Fantastic effort by Millman though against a quality player.
To match Fed in most if not all aspects.

Great Aussie talent.
I think all Aussies should be supporting home grown talent - was disappointing from my point of view to see so many supporting Fed. Don't get me wrong, I love Fed and think he's an amazing player but jeez, would've been great to see more. Not to mention the fact i'm sick of seeing the same people in finals. This year seems to be a year where this might change, though! Here's hoping.
Title: Re: Australian Open 2020
Post by: Jimmmy on January 25, 2020, 10:48:23 am
Fantastic effort by Millman though against a quality player.
To match Fed in most if not all aspects.

Great Aussie talent.
I think all Aussies should be supporting home grown talent - was disappointing from my point of view to see so many supporting Fed. Don't get me wrong, I love Fed and think he's an amazing player but jeez, would've been great to see more. Not to mention the fact i'm sick of seeing the same people in finals. This year seems to be a year where this might change, though! Here's hoping.
That wasn't a 'fantastic effort', it was about as close as you can get to a choke in Tennis. The problem we face is every time a decent player has a close loss against one of the Big 3, we commend them, when in fact we should ask the question, how are they able to weasel their way out of a difficult situation so often?

Millman made several elementary backhand errors (pushing them long) after being 8-4 in the super, even for his standards. I don't think he'll look back at that match with many fond memories, but more an aura of what could've been.

I do agree with you about the Aussie support, and as Jim (Courier) mentioned in commentary last night, it unfortunately comes down to the number of international visitors at the AO, and how many secure RLA tickets to catch Fed/Rafa/Novak, hence the bipartisanship. You put that match in Melbourne Arena (not that it'll ever happen), and it'll be 75% Millman, 25% Federer IMO.
Title: Re: Australian Open 2020
Post by: caffinatedloz on January 26, 2020, 08:53:59 pm
Did anyone else watch the Barty/Rosie game. If I’m honest after the second set, I was not expecting that Barty would win, but she did in the end. Seemed a bit off her game though.
Title: Re: Australian Open 2020
Post by: ArtyDreams on January 26, 2020, 09:11:43 pm
Did anyone else watch the Barty/Riske game. If I’m honest after the second set, I was not expecting that Barty would win, but she did in the end. Seemed a bit off her game though.

Yep did watch - she seemed to be overhitting everything in the second set - I'm glad she got through though.

Whats everyone thinking about the finals after the first week has passed?
Title: Re: Australian Open 2020
Post by: WackyWill on January 26, 2020, 09:47:42 pm
Whats everyone thinking about the finals after the first week has passed?

This one's a bit weird for me tbh after all the upsets yesterday. Though even after these upsets, there's still a number of seeded players left.

There's two players who have surprised me up to this point:
1. Tennys Sandgren: a powerful and underestimated player imo, beating Berrettini (8th seed) and Fognini (12th seed) to make it to the quarters.
2. Marton Fucsovics: currently playing Federer as we speak, beating Shapovalov (13th seed)

There's also been three players who have impressed me:
1. Dominic Thiem: someone who is usually a clay court specialist playing really well every time i watch him. Sort of a combination of Rafa (powerful) and Federer (quality of shots).
2. Milos Raonic: won all his 4 matches so far in straight sets, playing CIlic and 6th seeded Tsitsipas along the way.
3. Nick Kyrgios: his attitude's changed and I genuinely believe he has a chance to beat Nadal tomorrow night after beating him in Acapulco last year.

My prediction remains the same: Novak Djokovic who faces the inform Milos Raonic tomorrow. Though I genuinely believe Dominic Thiem has a shot.

On the women's side, I believe Barty will make it to the finals but who she plays will obviously determine if she wins or not. I believe it'll either be Kerber, Muguruza or Halep. Haven't been watching enough womens to say who it will be but it'll be a tough match for Barty nonetheless.

Again, my prediction remains the same: Ash Barty to win.
Title: Re: Australian Open 2020
Post by: turinturambar on January 26, 2020, 09:57:21 pm
That wasn't a 'fantastic effort', it was about as close as you can get to a choke in Tennis. The problem we face is every time a decent player has a close loss against one of the Big 3, we commend them, when in fact we should ask the question, how are they able to weasel their way out of a difficult situation so often?

Millman made several elementary backhand errors (pushing them long) after being 8-4 in the super, even for his standards. I don't think he'll look back at that match with many fond memories, but more an aura of what could've been.

For what it's worth, my impression was that overall Federer was the better player, though he made too many mistakes.  I still didn't expect him to win from 4-8 down in the tiebreak...

Quote
I do agree with you about the Aussie support, and as Jim (Courier) mentioned in commentary last night, it unfortunately comes down to the number of international visitors at the AO, and how many secure RLA tickets to catch Fed/Rafa/Novak, hence the bipartisanship. You put that match in Melbourne Arena (not that it'll ever happen), and it'll be 75% Millman, 25% Federer IMO.

Federer has the reputation of having a worldwide home crowd.  I remember Andy Murray complaining about it (maybe after the 2012 Wimbledon final?) when he was the home player and yet Federer got more support.
Title: Re: Australian Open 2020
Post by: Sine on January 27, 2020, 02:33:09 pm
Federer has been the ATPTour fans favorite tennis player every year since 2003 (17 years in a row) no surprise he is going to get a lot of crowd support wherever he plays in the world.


Huge match tonight Nadal vs Kyrgios. Predictions/Thoughts?

Nadal leads the Head to Head 4-3 but on hard court is behind 2-1

Title: Re: Australian Open 2020
Post by: ArtyDreams on January 27, 2020, 02:38:05 pm
Federer has been the ATPTour fans favorite tennis player every year since 2003 (17 years in a row) no surprise he is going to get a lot of crowd support wherever he plays in the world.


Huge match tonight Nadal vs Kyrgios. Predictions/Thoughts?

Nadal leads the Head to Head 4-3 but on hard court is behind 2-1

Pretty tough to decide, both seem to be in decent form! Thinking Nadal will get through since he's won his first 3 matches quite comfortably. I'm thinking it'll go to 4/5 sets  ;D
Title: Re: Australian Open 2020
Post by: Aaron on January 27, 2020, 02:38:45 pm
Don't think Nick will be able to recover fully from his previous match. That in combination with Rafa's form... can't see it happening but will be a good match nonetheless. I will be a keen observer and I think if he manages to beat Rafa it will be a significant win for him personally on home soil.

Nick has stated publically he prefers Melb Arena rather than RLA so the change of venue too I think will affect him.
Title: Re: Australian Open 2020
Post by: Sine on January 27, 2020, 04:54:46 pm
Pretty tough to decide, both seem to be in decent form! Thinking Nadal will get through since he's won his first 3 matches quite comfortably. I'm thinking it'll go to 4/5 sets  ;D
Was thinking the same, something like Nadal in 4.
Title: Re: Australian Open 2020
Post by: Aaron on January 27, 2020, 11:03:58 pm
Jeez Nick gave it a fair crack even with that previous match. Kudos to Rafa... sharp shooter.

Title: Re: Australian Open 2020
Post by: Joseph41 on January 28, 2020, 03:20:10 pm
The Nadal v. Kyrgios match was some of the best (or at least most engrossing) tennis I've seen in a long time.
Title: Re: Australian Open 2020
Post by: Sine on January 28, 2020, 07:04:41 pm
Federer manages it once again ........ somehow (saving 7 match points) ;D

Gonna be a tough semi-final regardless of the opponent.

Title: Re: Australian Open 2020
Post by: ArtyDreams on January 28, 2020, 08:00:28 pm
Federer manages it once again ........ somehow (saving 7 match points) ;D

Gonna be a tough semi-final regardless of the opponent.

That match literally had me at the end of my seat...was super good tennis though! I'm excited to see how Fed will fair at the semis.
Barty had a solid performance today too!!

Whats everyone thinking for tonights game with Djokovic/Raonic?

Title: Re: Australian Open 2020
Post by: Aaron on January 28, 2020, 08:43:13 pm
Quote
Whats everyone thinking for tonights game with Djokovic/Raonic?
Would love for Raonic to get up.

GOAT's gotta run out of steam sometime..... he's played a few five setters now, can he go all the way (again)?
Title: Re: Australian Open 2020
Post by: turinturambar on January 29, 2020, 12:00:12 am
GOAT's gotta run out of steam sometime..... he's played a few five setters now, can he go all the way (again)?

From memory, in 2017 he set the record for the most five-setters won en route to a Slam (four).  He's not there yet, though he's also not as young as he was then (and, honestly, in historical terms even then he was too old to be expected to win - up until a few years ago wins by over-thirties were fairly rare...).

I still think Djokovic has to be the favourite.  Though it would be nice to see Zverev or Thiem break through and win it.
Title: Re: Australian Open 2020
Post by: Sine on January 29, 2020, 02:48:48 pm
Thoughts on today's games??

Zverev vs Wawrinka
Kind of conflicted on this one - supporting Zverev but wouldn't mind Wawrinka as he will probably be a bigger threat to the big 3 if he wins today.

As for Nadal Vs Thiem
Should be interesting - a repeat of the last 2 french open finals. Hoping Thiem can make it but not that likely.
Title: Re: Australian Open 2020
Post by: ArtyDreams on January 29, 2020, 11:57:55 pm
What. A. Match.

Excellent performance by Thiem!! Such an enjoyable match to watch  ;D

Exciting set of semis! It'll be nice to see a next gen in the finals, excited to see what will happen!!
Title: Re: Australian Open 2020
Post by: Aaron on January 30, 2020, 12:09:31 am
Love Rafa but it's so refreshing to see Thiem win and progress. Who knows what might happen.
Title: Re: Australian Open 2020
Post by: Sine on February 01, 2020, 10:00:45 pm
As for the Women’s side of things I don’t really have a current favourite, but I would like to see someone like Muguruza (unseeded) to do well especially since she has struggled a bit in the last couple of years.
Can't say I expected Muguruza to win 2 weeks ago (or even make the final). I thought something like the quarters would be a big achievement. Disappointing to see how she finished given how well she was playing in the first 5 matches (semis were not great). Hopefully, she will be back to her best consistently soon.

Men's final tomorrow:

Djoker or Thiem??

Title: Re: Australian Open 2020
Post by: Aaron on February 01, 2020, 10:06:46 pm
Heart says Thiem, head says Djokovic.
Title: Re: Australian Open 2020
Post by: AaronAnton on February 01, 2020, 10:16:55 pm
I'm rooting for Dominic. :)
Title: Re: Australian Open 2020
Post by: ArtyDreams on February 01, 2020, 10:18:19 pm
Can't say I expected Muguruza to win 2 weeks ago (or even make the final). I thought something like the quarters would be a big achievement. Disappointing to see how she finished given how well she was playing in the first 5 matches (semis were not great). Hopefully, she will be back to her best consistently soon.

Men's final tomorrow:

Djoker or Thiem??

Interesting womens final...but i'm super pumped for mens tomorrow.

Really hoping Thiem, but I think Djokovic will get through. He's also had an extra day to rest, so I'm curious to see how that factor will affect.

Djokovic in 4.
Title: Re: Australian Open 2020
Post by: AaronAnton on February 01, 2020, 10:21:43 pm
Interesting womens final...but i'm super pumped for mens tomorrow.

Really hoping Thiem, but I think Djokovic will get through. He's also had an extra day to rest, so I'm curious to see how that factor will affect.

Djokovic in 4.
From what I've heard, Djokovic is unbeaten at Aus open finals so it's very likely he will take the trophy however Thiem seems capable of giving Djokovic a very hard time on the court.
Title: Re: Australian Open 2020
Post by: Jimmmy on February 01, 2020, 11:47:35 pm
I'll give Dominic more credit through my heart than what my head tells me.

Novak in 5.
Title: Re: Australian Open 2020
Post by: Sine on February 02, 2020, 03:51:10 pm
I agree with everyone on - it is likely Djokovic will win but wanting Thiem to win.

So I'll say Thiem in 5 :P