Doha Tournament

[Murat B.]

Just caught the last point...and the announcer saying this would be Nole's first Doha? Really? Or maybe I misheard?

 

[Front242]

^ Yup, it's his first Doha title.

 

[nehmeth]

And Carol's left the building...

 

[herios]

Just caught the last point...and the announcer saying this would be Nole's first Doha? Really? Or maybe I misheard?

No, you heard it well. Why surprising?

 

[DarthFed]

And Carol's left the building...

If last year didn't scare her away nothing will.

 

[herios]

This is just the second time Nole played in Doha. Last year was the first when he lost to Karlovic.

 

[Murat B.]

Just caught the last point...and the announcer saying this would be Nole's first Doha? Really? Or maybe I misheard?

No, you heard it well. Why surprising?

Well...it is hard courts and he is one of the best on that surface . Did he play Doha regularly? If he did, then I find it surprising. It is not like Cincy fast and even the Cincy situation is an anomaly.

 

[herios]

And Carol's left the building...

If last year didn't scare her away nothing will.

She was actually all optimistic as Rafa kept improving at the end of the season.
Now she is getting a reality check

 

[Riotbeard]

And Carol's left the building...

If last year didn't scare her away nothing will.

She was actually all optimistic as Rafa kept improving at the end of the season.
Now she is getting a reality check

Great way to start the season for Novak. I think for Rafa, what will be most telling is how he fares against the rest of the top 5/10 this year.

 

[herios]

Just caught the last point...and the announcer saying this would be Nole's first Doha? Really? Or maybe I misheard?

No, you heard it well. Why surprising?

Well...it is hard courts and he is one of the best on that surface . Did he play Doha regularly? If he did, then I find it surprising. It is not like Cincy fast and even the Cincy situation is an anomaly.

He did not play in Doha before 2015. This was only his second appearance.

 

[Front242]

If last year didn't scare her away nothing will.

She was actually all optimistic as Rafa kept improving at the end of the season.
Now she is getting a reality check

Great way to start the season for Novak. I think for Rafa, what will be most telling is how he fares against the rest of the top 5/10 this year.

He looked to be playing well enough to challenge/beat other members of the top 5 but I honestly can't see him beating Novak again unless Novak has a really bad day. It really has become Williams v Sharapova out there. Same with Murray, just can't beat Djokovic anymore and Toronto was an anomaly since Novak was more focused on Cinci and the USO. Novak has won 9 out of the last 10 matches against Rafa and 10 of the last 11 against Andy. That's not even competitive anymore.

 

[the AntiPusher]

It today's play a prelude to the foreseeable future for these two then it's gonna be a long year for the Nadal camp. I guess he didn't learn from last year.

 

[pavlik89]

[video=youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ESxhaxyXkgQ[/video]

 

[nehmeth]

It today's play a prelude to the foreseeable future for these two then it's gonna be a long year for the Nadal camp. I guess he didn't learn from last year.

AP, I think it's just that Novak has learned how to handle his spin and is hitting winners off it at will.

 

[Front242]

It today's play a prelude to the foreseeable future for these two then it's gonna be a long year for the Nadal camp. I guess he didn't learn from last year.

AP, I think it's just that Novak has learned how to handle his spin and is hitting winners off it at will.

The loopy forehands from Nadal are getting punished by everyone these days. On clay they're still much tougher to handle than on other surfaces but on hard courts they're sitting ducks. The difference is their respective net clearance is huge. Novak's are way flatter and skim over the net, whereas Rafa's glide miles above the net like a condor or an eagle.

 

[Murat B.]

No, you heard it well. Why surprising?

Well...it is hard courts and he is one of the best on that surface . Did he play Doha regularly? If he did, then I find it surprising. It is not like Cincy fast and even the Cincy situation is an anomaly.

He did not play in Doha before 2015. This was only his second appearance.

See, now it makes sense I am not going to complain about a 50% average.

 

[Front242]

Just saw this stat on tennis.com. "This marked Djokovic's 16th straight final since the Serbian lost in the Qatar Open quarterfinals last year." Mighty impressive.

 

[herios]

Well...it is hard courts and he is one of the best on that surface . Did he play Doha regularly? If he did, then I find it surprising. It is not like Cincy fast and even the Cincy situation is an anomaly.

He did not play in Doha before 2015. This was only his second appearance.

See, now it makes sense I am not going to complain about a 50% average.

When Roger used to play in Doha, Novak was not. Once Roger's contract ended and he did not renew it, I think Novak was offered one and it seems to me he has accepted it. Therefore sort of exchange of a baton between them to participate in this cash rich event.

 

[the AntiPusher]

It today's play a prelude to the foreseeable future for these two then it's gonna be a long year for the Nadal camp. I guess he didn't learn from last year.

AP, I think it's just that Novak has learned how to handle his spin and is hitting winners off it at will.

Nehmeth,it's the Gods honest truth.Thanks,

 

[nehmeth]

It today's play a prelude to the foreseeable future for these two then it's gonna be a long year for the Nadal camp. I guess he didn't learn from last year.

AP, I think it's just that Novak has learned how to handle his spin and is hitting winners off it at will.

The loopy forehands from Nadal are getting punished by everyone these days.

McMillan stated as much that the other players on tour had begun to figure it out. He noted the two three set matches Rafa had earlier in the week. He also was wondering why Novak wasn't hitting to it more often.