Tennis!

[Colly]

 

2 hours ago, Szumi - A Polack said:

I fully get the magic of it! But tennis also very clearly has a problem with how long some matches go. They keep talking about ways to change that because it can hurt their viewership - which is what the ATP/WTA cares about the most - and this would definitely be one way to help improve with how long matches go.

Just drop everything to 3 sets until the final. And have a halftime show after the third set, but it's Cliff every year until he dies and is replaced by hologram Cliff.

Edited July 16, 2023 by Colly
Made a right hash of quoting...

[Baddar]

Got the US coverage of the US Open on, and there must be a shortage of ex pro's available to do analysis

[Bobfoc]

All the British players won their first round matches. That's rather encouraging.

[Szumi]

Johnny Isner won yesterday ❤️❤️

[Bobfoc]

Murray and Burrage are out, but Draper, Boulter and Norrie have reached the third round.

[Szumi]

Hey few tennis fans! Aussie Open is up and running!

 

Unfortunately for the Brits, Andy Murray went down in straight sets, albeit to a seeded opponent. Naomi Osaka made her long waited return, but she also went down to 16 seed Caroline Garcia. The women's side has Angelique Kerber returning too, as well as Caroline Wozniacki back on tour too. Iga Swiatek has a murder's row of a draw pretty much, Sabalenka will look to continue to try and dominate, and Coco Gauff is in incredible form.

 

For the men's...I mean, it's pretty much Djokovic's tournament. Unfortunately. Alcaraz is still the best chance to beat him, but Sinner is someone the experts think could upset him again having done so late last year.

[Bobfoc]

Neither Djokovic nor Alcaraz were looking amazing in their first tournaments of the year, for what little that's worth, but I do agree that Djokovic ought to be the most likely champion. I wouldn't be surprised if Sinner reached a Grand Slam final or two this season, and I hope that Jack Draper can stay injury-free because he's good enough to be a top 20 player in the near future.

[Chris2K]

If this is what 2024 Andy Murray is then he really needs to consider calling it a day at Wimbledon. His physical limitations in recent years were always somewhat balanced out by his mental toughness, but this time out he looked like he'd run out of that as well.

[Bobfoc]

I'd still like to see him have a doubles run with his brother. That would be a little less taxing on his body and would round off his career nicely. The prize money probably isn't enough to motivate him, though.

Whatever he ends up doing, the fact that he's been able to do as well as he has in his mid-to-late-thirties with an injury that would ordinarily be career-ending is seriously impressive. That's on top of the ten Grand Slam finals he reached and the three he won, all during an era with three all-time greats in their prime. Spending time at the top of the world rankings shouldn't be forgotten either.

[Bobfoc]

Sinner beat Djokovic and will play either Medvedev or Zverev. A new winner is guaranteed.

[Adam]

I did think, if anyone was going to beat Djokovic here, it'd be Sinner. Good on him.

Zverev is a set up on Medvedev, unfortunately.

[gunnar hendershow]

Medvedev has roared back winning 2 tiebreaks and now has just broken Zverev in the 5th.

[Bobfoc]

Medvedev won in the end. Great comeback. It will either be third time lucky for Medvedev or Sinner becoming Italy's first male singles Grand Slam winner.

[Adam]

The ATP has sold its soul to Saudi Arabia and the PIF now.

[Lineker]

Quote

Britain's Andy Murray says he is not planning to "play much past this summer" but hopes to compete at another Olympic Games before he retires.

The future of the three-time Grand Slam champion, who turns 37 in May, has come under increased scrutiny after he has struggled for wins in recent months.

Murray lost to France's Ugo Humbert in the Dubai second round on Wednesday.

Before the 6-2 6-4 defeat, the Scot said he hoped to play at the Paris Olympics in the summer.

Afterwards, when asked again about his retirement plans, the former world number one gave his most definite answer yet.

"I get asked about it after every single match that I play, every single tournament that I play," added Murray.

"I'm bored of the question, to be honest. I'm not going to talk more about that between now and whenever the time comes for me to stop.

"But I don't plan on playing much past this summer."

Wimbledon, which runs from 1-14 July, marks the end of the British grass-court summer and the Olympics start in Paris on 24 July.

The US Open is the final Grand Slam tournament of the season and starts on 26 August in New York.

Murray won gold in the men's singles at London 2012 and Rio 2016, and told BBC Radio 4's Today programme he wants another shot at Olympic glory in Paris.

Murray ranks his gold medal from London 2012, when he defeated Roger Federer in the final, as the top achievement in his career.

"Hopefully I can get the chance to compete at another one," said Murray, who is ranked 67th in the world.

To earn direct entry into the Olympic men's singles, Murray must be inside the top 56 of the ATP rankings on 10 June.

Murray also indicated he plans to return to the French Open this year for what would be the final time.

Since returning from hip resurfacing surgery in 2019, which he thought would end his career, Murray has only played once on the Roland Garros clay, losing in the 2020 first round to Switzerland's Stan Wawrinka.

The clay-court tournament, which is the second major of the season, starts on 26 May.

On how he might bow out, Murray added: "There's no right way of finishing your career and everyone is different so what might be the right way for Federer might not be the right way for [Rafael] Nadal, might not be the right way for [Novak] Djokovic."

Murray won his first Grand Slam title at the 2012 US Open, ending Britain's 77-year wait for a Wimbledon men's singles champion in 2013 and adding a second victory at the All England Club in 2016.

Murray is also a five-time Australian Open runner-up, as well as a French Open finalist in 2016.

A frustrating start to the 2024 season, where Murray has now won just two of eight matches, has led to further questions about when he might decide to retire.

After losing his opening four matches of the year, the Scot said he was in a "terrible moment" but added he "won't quit".

Murray ended a run of six straight defeats by beating France's Alexandre Muller in Doha and claimed another win in Dubai on Monday against Canada's Denis Shapovalov.

But the 2017 champion was unable to trouble in-form Humbert, whose sharp attacking shots were too much for Murray's defence.

Murray was broken twice in the first set and, after losing serve again early in the second, his annoyance was clear on court.

"I don't have a clue what I'm doing. Awful feeling," shouted Murray, who did not earn a single break point.

The Scot continued to struggle in the returning games - winning just seven receiving points throughout the match - as recent Marseille champion Humbert served out to secure a straight-set win.