[hemanth.anand]

Originally Posted by Emvi

Hello tennis fans, how many of you missed yesterday's French Open men's semis?

I watched both matches live till the end. While Zverev was down and out (or so I thought), that one wrong call by the line umpire really woke him up and he was back with a vengeance after that. That 5 setter was amazing to watch.

Then the Djoko-Nadal match definitely matches up to the expectations. Two absolute legends fighting it out. While Nadal just went breezed past the first set, Djokovic came back and how! That 97minute 3rd set was the highlight with a 23 shots rally point included in that. Finally too many unforced errors which was highly unlikely of him, cost Nadal the Match.

[Emvi]

Originally Posted by hemanth.anand

I watched both matches live till the end.

Finally, I have some company

[kavensri]

Originally Posted by Emvi

Finally, I have some company

Even i watched that second match
Being a Federer fan, I generally do not watch many of the matches that does not include him. But for some reason, I had the feeling that Nole is going to give a fight in this match and hence started watching it as soon as he broke Nadal in the first set. Though he lost that set, the momemtum was already there with Nole going into second set. And then, that 3rd set was just incredible. Having missed a easy forehand at 5-4, 30-0 and then to play that incredible drop shot when facing set point, this set has all the things!
Glad that Nole won the match and if he wins tomorrow, he would just be one slam away from those 2 guys.
I still think that Nole is going to end up winning many more grand slams, unless the new brigade start showing some fight against Nole and Nadal in grand slams.

[ABHI_1512]

I was switching channels between the tennis and football. Nadal v/s Djokovic is something that should not be missed and we were not disappointed at all. These are rare players and the result didn’t matter for us since we got to see some brilliant tennis as always.

The third set apart, what firmly sealed the match for Djokovic is how he got back his serve at the start of the fourth set. I am now of the belief that he will end up with the maximum number of slams amongst all surpassing even Federer provided he remains fit and which he is. Absolutely sublime tennis yesterday worthy of a final, sheer ecstasy.

[Mik]

Being a Djoker fan since 2007, it has been incredibly frustrating to see him bottling it against Rafa in the French (his head to head on clay beyond the French has been somewhat competitive)
Yesterday was just magical. These two bring out the best in each other. Its Ali vs Frazier, 58 times over.

The final will be competitive. The only other time Djoker beat Rafa in the French, he got blitzed in the final by Stan man.
The 19th beckons. And possibly the three GOATs will tie it at 20 all at Wimbledon considering his form and track record on grass. The US open has been split very evenly. Fedex at 5, Rafa at 4 and Djoker 3.
2021 should see one edge ahead.

[fhdowntheline]

Quite frankly, after having played and watched tennis for over 30 years, I think this last decade has been a bit of a disappointment. Its time that someone from the gen Next takes over from this trinity. Its been a long time coming, and points to the sad lack of depth in the mens tour. So Djoker winning against Tsitsipas will be no joy for me as an afficionado.

[Emvi]

"Cometh the hour, Cometh the man"
What a player, what a match! Djokovic looked down and out at the end of second set. Incredible stuff from the great Serb to comeback from 2 sets down and lift his 2nd French Open title. His tenacity and mental resilience is second to none. A stupendous effort from Tsitsipas in his maiden GrandSlam final, nonetheless.

Federer+ Nadal+ Djokovic= 59 Majors!
All eyes on Wimbledon now..

[hemanth.anand]

What a match...worthy of a final!

Both Tsitsipas and Djokovic played hard but in the end there can only be one winner and the World#1 proved why he is World #1. This is his 2nd at Rolandgarros and 19 totally - just one behind Rafa and RF.

Djokovic is the first man in 52 years to win all four Grand Slam titles twice. This takes him alongside Rod Laver and Roy Emerson to have conquered the four Grand Slams more than once. What an achievement...what a player!

If he gets one more French Open title, he'll be the first ever to win all four titles thrice!!

[Chetan_Rao]

Matches like this make it incredibly difficult to accept only one can win.

Tsitsipas played as well as he could, Djokovic dug deep into his world-class experience (and virtually superhuman fitness) to make it through.

Tsitsipas' time will come, and Novak may very well be 20-all once Wimbledon is done.

[Bibendum90949]

Djoker, The seraphic Serb !
Triumphant and one away from the pinnacle.

[kavensri]

If he stays injury free, I feel that Joker will definitely own most of the major records in tennis. This year itself, he has a chance to achieve 'golden slam' (all 4 major + solympics), lead the overall singles grand slam titles, lead 'year end championships' titles, lead 'masters series' titles.
He may as well end up with most singles titles by the time he retires. He is already leading number of weeks at #1.
Though I am a Federer fan, even I appreciate and acknowledge how tough & incredible this guy is.

[ninjatalli]

Originally Posted by fhdowntheline

Quite frankly, after having played and watched tennis for over 30 years, I think this last decade has been a bit of a disappointment. Its time that someone from the gen Next takes over from this trinity. Its been a long time coming, and points to the sad lack of depth in the mens tour. So Djoker winning against Tsitsipas will be no joy for me as an afficionado.

+1

During the match, I was looking down the top 100 rankings and wondering the same. These 3 are well in the mid 30s (39 for Federer) and well in their aging years. Where is the young blood?

Two decades ago, while Sampras and Agassi were in their twilight years (similar age range as these 3), new blood such as Federer and others were already hunting for top ranks. Unless I'm missing something, there aren't clear indications on who are going to be the next set of champs.

Having said that, these 3 are still holding their ground well, but not sure for how much longer. Tsitsipas is a clear 10 years younger than Djoker, but on the court, no one could see any difference in physical or mental efforts.

[fhdowntheline]

There was a time when Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert dominated the women's tour, from late 70s to 1986 or so. Tennis had become predictable on the women's side, whereas it was quite the opposite on the mens tour, there were Connors, Borg, McEnroe, Lendl (in that order), followed by semi-generation-nexts like Edberg, Wilander and Becker, who were making their mark. Then came Steffi and pretty much like Federer, demolished the opposition for the first 4-5 years ,before Monica Seles and a few others mounted resistance.
So lets see. Perhaps there is a teenager lurking in the shadows somewhere, inspired by the holy trinity of the mens tennis.

[kavensri]

Originally Posted by fhdowntheline

So lets see. Perhaps there is a teenager lurking in the shadows somewhere, inspired by the holy trinity of the mens tennis.

What is your take on women's tennis? After Serena retires, i can only think of Osaka as a potential next big star. Rest all feel like they are just 'one slam' wonders. Last 6 French Open winners are all first time winners.
I am still not able to make out, whether this is due to deteriorating quality of the tennis? or women's tennis is so much competitive?

I have been following tennis since Steffi days and I have never felt that there were lack of big stars (Graf, Arantxa, Seles, Hingis, Sharapova, Clisters, Henin, William sisters). But now, except for Serena and Osaka, I can hardly remember anyone else's game!

[Emvi]

Originally Posted by ninjatalli

+1
Two decades ago, while Sampras and Agassi were in their twilight years (similar age range as these 3), new blood such as Federer and others were already hunting for top ranks. Unless I'm missing something, there aren't clear indications on who are going to be the next set of champs.

Having said that, these 3 are still holding their ground well, but not sure for how much longer. Tsitsipas is a clear 10 years younger than Djoker, but on the court, no one could see any difference in physical or mental efforts.

What you have said is true. But let us not forget Rafa, Roger and Novak are 'once in a lifetime players' and it is a previlage to witness them playing together in the same era. Also, it is important to note that not many 'all time greats' have managed to play highest level of tennis in their mid to late thirties, which the trio are still managing to do. The next-gen players, mainly Tsitsipas, Zverev and Medvedev are definitely catching up and it's just a matter of time before they start winning big matches consistently. IIRC, Medvedev defeated both Rafa and Novak in the ATP tour finals late last year and went on the win the trophy eventually, which is no mean feat. Just a couple of months ago, Zverev did the unthinkable by defeating Rafa on clay in the Madrid Open. Throw Thiem, Dimitrov, Berrittini, Rublev, Shapovalov into the mix and the field is actually more stronger than what it seems.

I am a big fan of Federer and Djokovic is my second favourite. Given their incredible achievements, I would personally like Roger,Rafa and Novak to end up with same number of grand slam trophies, which I know is not likely to happen. While over the years, Novak has reigned supreme at the Australian Open, Rafa at the French Open, Roger at the Wimbledon, interestingly the trio have shared the spoils at the US open with 3,4 and 5 trophies respectively.