PeRFect Federer Flies Past Murray, Setting Up Rematch With Djokovic In Wimbledon Final

by Sean Randall | July 10th, 2015, 4:11 pm
  • 62 Comments

Roger Federer is about to turn 34. And today he had one of his best serving days of his career, flying by Andy Murray 7-5, 7-5, 6-4 in a breathtaking performance on tennis’s center stage at Wimbledon.

Wow.

Federer had been serving great all grass season, but today against a top-notch returner in Murray he was as devastating as ever, landing 76% of first serves winning 84% of those with 20 aces. It really wasn’t much of a match.


In the 10th game of the second set, the two battled for 15 minutes in one of the best games you will see. Murray eventually won it, saving five set points but the damage was done. Federer followed with a quick love game then finally got the break over Murray.

“I’m unbelievably happy,” Federer said after his fourth straight win over Murray. “People maybe expected it to go four or five, me as well.

“I played well in the biggest occasion today.

“I think on my serve, I’ve been serving very well the entire tournament. I don’t think I faced a break point today against one of the best returners in the game.

“I went for my shots and I was able to mix it up.”

As I said and you saw, Federer served incredibly well. Murray served good, but he just didn’t show much on offense. He was happy to let Federer attack and play the odds, hoping for errors.

“He served fantastic. Apart from the first game where I had the chance there, I didn’t really have any opportunities. That puts pressure on you,” said Murray.

“Obviously I got broken right at the end all of the sets. But I didn’t actually play a bad match. A lot of guys prefer to serve first. A lot of guys receive first. It really depends on what your preference is. The guy served unbelievable. That was the difference, not the fact that he served first.”

For Murray, there were few big forehands, fewer big backhands, few shots at the net. Had Ivan Lendl been coaching him he would have been furious with his lack of force off the ground. And the loss drops him to 1-14 vs the Big 3 since his back surgery. That’s a very serious issue going forward.

“I feel like this is my best chance to win a Slam. When I played here, I feel like it’s my best surface. I played consistently well here throughout my career. So it’s tough in that aspect,” the 28-year-old Murray said.

“I still have a few years left. I do genuinely feel like I’m improving my game, as well.”

In the early semifinal, Novak Djokovic outclassed Richard Gasquet 7-6, 6-4, 6-4. Gasquet actually played pretty well, grabbing chances early on breaking Serb in the first set, but more were had on the day.

“The first set was really close,” said Djokovic. “I thought Richard played some really good tennis, especially from the backhand side. It was really difficult for me at times to play any kind of ball to his backhand side because he was really going for it, especially down the line. He made a lot of winners. He used the chipped backhand, slice variety as well… Winning the first set tie-break was psychologically very helpful for the rest of the match.”

About the only issue Novak had was some treatment he received on his left shoulder late in the match. But it didn’t have any impact in his 10th straight win over Gasquet.

“I tried to do my best,” said Gasquet. “I played a good first set. I hit some great backhand… It was tough to do better. It was 2/2 [in the tie-break], then it was 7/2. It wasn’t good. He never miss on some returns. He serves well. That’s why he’s World No. 1.”

So it’s Federer and Djokovic for the second straight year. Djokovic has won the last two taking titles at Indian Wells and at Rome, but Federer has played him tougher than anyone the last year.

“Roger is one of the people that made me a better player,” Djokovic said. “He helped me understand what I need to do to become a better player and to win against him and win Grand Slam trophies.

“He’s so good and so consistent. He is the greatest ever. There’s not enough praise for what he does. This is where he plays his best tennis I think. It’s probably going to be the biggest challenge I can have.”

I’ll have my pick on this final later.



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62 Comments for PeRFect Federer Flies Past Murray, Setting Up Rematch With Djokovic In Wimbledon Final

sienna Says:

dont bother your pick will be djoker in 5 grueling sets.

but it wont. It will be Federer in 3 maybe 4 and less difficulty then today.


brando Says:

An all time great performance I was privileged to watch today, thank you RF. As jaw droppingly good as wawrinka in FO final but actually more complete in all facets of the game: serve, return, FH, BH, net game, depth of shot, intensity of play, mental consistency. This maybe my favorite Fed performance topping FO SF 11. It was just astonishing tennis on a level that really I have not seen from anyone else in a long while. Players dominate? Yes, but sheer and absolute brilliance in all facets of the game? Not on this scale no. IF Fed reproduces this level: he totally warrants the win on Sunday, and truthfully speaking: most tennis lovers want such brilliance rewarded with a title.


chris ford1 Says:

Brando – that is presuming Djokovic cannot be brilliant as well on occasion. He can be. His matches where he elevates to be the Serbinator.
As is, suitable respect from Djokovic on how good he thinks Fed as been..and how tough the challenge of beating Roger on grass is at times. Novak’s toughest challenge for years was beating Rafa on clay at Roland Garros. Finally did that – so at the moment the new “toughest challenge” is taking Fed down at Wimbledon.

I just hope for a match as good as Roger-Nole last year, or Nole-Delpo the year before.
The fans and the sport wins if it is so.
May the best man win.
May Rafa work out his issues and be back as good as ever soon…


skeezer Says:

Hope giles enjoyed her main meal. It was delicious no?


Hippy Chick Says:

Skeezer actually i think Giles said he thinks Fed will win W,me too,and i hope he does,as hes played the best GC tennis of the two men….


brando Says:

@CF1: I agree hopefully it’s a good match. As brilliant as Fed was, tomorrow is a new day. It’s hard for a 33 years old to repeatedly such a level. If federer was 28: automatic pick for me in this form. But I cannot believe fully he’ll bring this level on Sunday: it’s tough to maintain. I hope he can as we would be in for a treat I’m just not 100% certain he will. As for novak: have we even seen his best yet? Really from R16 to know he’s been at average for his level at best. He needs to improve I feel. Surely he will. I think he’s got a few gears that he has not steamed roll into yet. It’s close with a lot of grey area.


Hippy Chick Says:

To add that was superb tennis that he played today,really rolling back the years,and as Brando said seeing tennis like that is a privalege to watch….


Markus Says:

Clever title, Sean. Indeed, there is RF in “perfect”.


Hippy Chick Says:

He plays beautiful tennis no doubt,but i cringe when i see that expression used in Rogers name,its all rather trite,i just hate some of the fawning that goes on when used to describe these players sometimes….


RZ Says:

I hope peRFect Fed shows up on Sunday.
(Sorry Hippy Chick for the use of peRFect.) :-)


Markus Says:

Hippy Chick, it isn’t fawning, just a clever play on words. Besides, Roger indeed played as close to perfect as I have seen anyone play. I am not fawning by saying that. It’s simply the way it is.


Hippy Chick Says:

RZ i prefer the title brilliant Federer,i just dont think there is such a thing as perfect….


Hippy Chick Says:

Markus fair enough,no harm or foul,i just dont believe there is such a thing as perfection,ill say he played brilliant,amazing or fantastic tennis,and leave it at that….


Markus Says:

Hippy Chick, we all know nothing is perfect (except my wife who is right about everything), but in the context by which “perfect” was used, it was not literal but rather as a figure of speech, a hyperbole, to emphasize a point the writer was trying to drive home.


FedExpress Says:

Listened to murrays PC

Cant understand one thing what he said. He said he doesnt know whether fed is the greatest. Okay till here it is okay.every1 has his opinion. But what he said afterwards is bullocks. He said SERENA has a fair shout to be called the best ever. WTF andy. Did u really compare mens tennis with women and serena stands above fed. Just wow.


brando Says:

Wow some major praise: 7 major winner Mats Wilander” that is the best I have EVER seen Federer play. Not only was his traditional strengths like serve and FH at a peak level, but he showed new dimensions such as an aggressive return, hitting BH return winners. He was amazing”. 6 majors winner Stefan Edberg” Roger surprised me. I knew he had a high level in him but not THAT level at this age, it was unbelievable”. I’m going to have to go all Donald Trump (‘re Obama) and demand to see Federer’s birth certificate since to perform like that at 33 just does not happen at all. Unprecedented level!


Tennisfan Says:

Yeah Murray bringing in Serena came across as pandering to the PC crowd.


ABerg Says:

The winner? Cilic, of course.


muhammad nizam Says:

Wowwwww…. stunning and amazing performance the maestro , federer.. hope the maestro win the wimbledon title this year.. forever legend


Wog Boy Says:

“I thought Richard played some really good tennis, especially from the backhand side.”
And yet you kept sending him the balls on his BH side just to be punished almost entire to sets, you could not adjust your BH (sometimes FH) when Gasquet was moonballing making bunch of UEs, and your choice of shots was wrong quite often, altogether for this Nole fan that was Nole’s “B” game. For me the problem is that Nole hasn’t shown his “A” game, for whatever reason, yet. On the the other hand what I’ve seen last night from Roger was scary good, 2011 Fo SF performance. Andy fans, don’t give hard time to Andy, no player at their best would beat last night Roger.
If Nole doesn’t find the way to raise his game it will be over quick..in three sets.
One more thing and I hope Andy’s fans won’t t get me wrong, is Andy becoming advocate for feminists or what, he is making statments that I don’t understand why. I still remember his unnecessary tirade, at on court interview after he beat Berdych at AO, about female coaches, praising the and how he was criticized for hiring Mauresmo and nobody asked him about that


chris ford1 Says:

Yeah, that bit of Andy saying Serena is better than Fed perhaps had me thinking Andy has gone a little too far over to the feminist/PC side of things.

What Andy seems to be implying is – if he is using only Slam Counting – Fed is 6th. Court has 24, Steffi 22, Serena 20 so far, Chrissie Evert 18 and Martina Navratilova 18.
Of course by that Murray logic, he is not quite the player Capriati was (3), or Linday Davenport or Virginia Wade (each also with 3), but Andy is about as good a player presently as Vika, Tracy Austin, Li Na, Mauresmo, Kuznetsova, Kvitova and Mary Pierce (2 Slams each).

Serve the tool right if any future Slam wins happen for him , Andy gets slotted next to the woman he matches. Can Andy ever be as good a British player as Virginia Wade? Will he match Capriati some day???
Can Andy hope to rise to the level of Arantxa Sanchez Vicario (4) some day? Even match Sharapova in his tennis skills?
Does Andy need to start screaming like Sharapova??


Gee Says:

Murray in denial. He was almost as bad as novak in the ’13 final.
The difference is novak doesn’t require many grass warm up events to be a big legend.


jane Says:

i like that andy is sticking up for the ladies. remember that he was brought up and coached by his mom. novak too was coached first by jelena gencic. besides which, andy’s right that – if we go by slam count alone – there are ladies who have more slams than some of the gentlemen. maybe he was just trying to “complicate” the whole “GOAT” debate a little, or maybe he didnt want to answer a bunch of “federer is the best” questions right after losing? in any case, we should cut him some slack. let him say what he wants. again, i think it’s cool that he’s supporting the female players – unlike, erm, Staks!


jane Says:

wog boy, i agree about novak’s game today – especially in set 1. i was cringing at times. but he himself said after that he was “not happy” with how he played and that he hoped he’d find another gear. on the plus side, he did play a bad semi last year versus dimitrov and then he played great in the final. on the negative side, fed’s first serve percentage has gotten higher the last 3 matches in a row! :O

i have to say, though, that i am proud of novak regardless. did you know he’s the first player since federer in 2009 to reach the first 3 slam finals of a season? yes, i know fed won 2 of 3 of those in 2009 and perhaps novak won’t, but it doesn’t matter. he has 8 slams and he keeps putting himself in contention to win more. let’s be proud of him, come what may. : ] (of course I really really want him to win notwithstanding that level-headed stuff i just said! ;)) idemooo!


Wog Boy Says:

Oh jane, I am more than proud and happy for what Nole has done this year, after all he made finals of all but one tournament he entered and won five of them, finally beat Rafa at FO…but in the wrong round, but I just don’t want to see him in the mood he is at present, that’s all.


jane Says:

i hear you wog boy. well, let’s hope for the best. today is his wedding anniversary. :)


brando Says:

@Wogboy: you are on a roll! Your post on this thread and pre SF matches were spot on! I agree: novak needs to step. Period. Andy Roddick was saying in commentary that novak seems passive, not at his best and at times: almost uninterested. I think against everyone else he does not need his A level. But IF Federer performs like he did today then nothing less than A Game will suffice. I think Novak will bring it. I cannot see how he will not step up in a grand slam final. He’ll step up for sure. And I agree: sometimes you chastise your guy for not doing x,y,z in a loss But in this loss I feel Andy was faultless; he performed very well just he got hit with a storm no one even Fed saw coming.


Markus Says:

Murray was bamboozled in the semifinals and probably could not think straight, hence those comments. I won’t get discombobulated by his remarks. Besides, there is really no way you can compare the ladies with the men unless they all play against each other.

The question is: why are there so many women who are able to accumulate so many majors as compared with the men?


Wog Boy Says:

“…and at times: almost uninterested…”

Thanks Brando, and that is exactly what I see in Nole’s performance throughout this Wimbledon campaign.

jane,
I am going tonight to watch my footy (rugby) team, that could be good indicator how Nole will perform tomorrow;) but I won’t tell you the result until after the final.


brando Says:

‘re Serena > Federer: come on now, how did Andy say anything wrong there? He said if you look at players in game history, then if you consider both sexes, then ofcourse Serena has a shout. What’s controversial about that? She could end up with a calendar slam and go on and win 25 majors- she ain’t no joke! So I don’t see any controversy and remember: Andy said Serena has a shout NOT that she’s his 1. I’m sure even Andy will admit like rafa and novak (even in this thread post): with men’s Federer is 1. The ONLY crime Andy may have committed is consider both sexes, is that really a sin peeps? Come on let’s chill it. I bet even fed doesn’t want players pumping him up all the time. No drama I believe


chris ford1 Says:

Jane – “besides which, andy’s right that – if we go by slam count alone – there are ladies who have more slams than some of the gentlemen. maybe he was just trying to “complicate” the whole “GOAT” debate a little.”

===================
No real complication to it. Fed and Serena are the same age. Let them play a set.
I think Fed has a good shot of winning that..
Only lesson is you simply cannot compare men and women’s sports. Apples and oranges.
Yes there are many women that can beat a less athletic, less trained guy in marathons, golf, tennis. But its all bell curve stuff. 98% to the right in bell curve ability women with equivalent training and practice can beat a 30% man in some sports situations.
But beating a Fed or a newly feminist Murray in the 98 and above bell curve potential for men? Not a chance in hell.


Tennisfan Says:

I agree that Serena is the GOAT for the WTA and she’s obviously an amazing athlete. But it really is apples and oranges comparing the men’s and womens’ game. Especially with majors where men have best-of-5 matches that require more fitness and mental focus than best-of-3 ones (esp. when top players are against each other.)
Regardless, the sentiment behind Murray’s statement was respectable but imo he was incorrect.


Wog Boy Says:

Ok, I’ll do Andy and praise the ladies, actually one lady, Martina Hingis made TWO Wimbledon finals!
Besides, she is extremly good looking lady, I saw her in Sydney this January, standing next to her…I was about to buy her a drink but she was in a hurry for her double’s match and I didn’t have a time to wait for her to finish the match;)


funches Says:

Djokovic and Federer actually both played like crap in last year’s final, an incredibly overrated match. This year will be much higher quality, with the edge to Fed. He has played well against Djokovic on fast surfaces and is on fire right now.


chris ford1 Says:

Funches – Actually, you don’t know what you’re talking about. Though I hope you will take this as a polite rebuttal maybe on slipped memory.
Djokovic 68 Winners, 27 UFEs.
Federer 73 Winners, 29 UFEs.

It was a match of the highest quality.


FedExpress Says:

To even compare serena with federer is an insult to federer. Let alone to call her the greatest.


Tennis Fan Says:

Sean Randall only mentions Federer’s fantastic serving today … giving no mention of the fact that he also had a superior Forehand, Backhand, Volley and every other shot in the book although I will give the two or three lobs margin to Andy. Andy played well however .,,

Federer is simply better than Murray. nuff said


Tennis Fan Says:

Truth be told Navratilova if she came back to the circuit at age 60 would probably be no 1 again, Such is the consistency in level of woman’s tennis today.


Michael Says:

What Roger is doing at his age is incredible. At 34, well past his prime, he is beating a player who is in his prime and who considers grass court as his home ground and forte in straight sets. I do not think anybody can be served with a bigger humiliation than this ?

It is understandable for Andy to lose, but not in this ham handed fashion to be belted down in straight sets even considering Roger is playing some of the sublime Tennis that he is normally capable of producing in frequent intervals especially at the famous Lawns where he is the Supreme Emperor. The score line is a bit deceiving as Andy was never in the match. He just had one break point to boot in the whole match which he couldn’t convert while Roger had many going abegging which is one of the major weakness in his game. Andy was very lucky in the second set too when Roger had many break points and many of the shots of Andy during that critical juncture was just catching the tip of the line or may be even going wide (we never know ?) considering that the Umpire who officiated the match, Mansoor Lahyani is one of the worst umpires who gets it mostly wrong. Even in this match in one of the points, he overruled the linesman calling a serve from Andy as in while the hawk eye showed that it was clearly fault.


skeezer Says:

@markus re; 8:54
I thought the same of Murray statements. And thought they both looked and talked a little bamboozled after the match and fumbled some of there statements. I was bamboozled after just watching that amazing match.


ABerg Says:

Murray lost before the match started. He walked on the court ready to go home with a bagel or two, just like he did the last time they played in London.

A year ago Federer got 70% of the first serves in. He hit 29 aces, but he generated only 7 break points, converting 3. Djokovic generated 15 BP’s, converting 4. Novak won 73% first serve points and 65% 2nd serve points. This year he is serving and generally playing better than a year ago. Strangest things have happened, but Roger’s victory would be bigger upset than Stan’s win at RG.


Michael Says:

I do not think there is anything wrong in Andy’s comments as it is being blow up here.
When queried if Roger is the GREATEST, he said you never know who is the GREATEST which is ofcourse a sane opinion and his perception. Even I agree with Andy that one can never know who is the GREATEST as that terminology is used mostly for describing some of the out of World achievements like what Roger has done at Wimbledon and Rafa at Rolland Garros.

And regarding his description of Serena as the best ever, again this terminology is often used by players not in the context of being the GREATEST but to highlight the extraordinary achievements of the player. May be Andy would have answered quite differently if the newsmen had queried him as to whether he considers Serena to be the GREATEST women’s player.

I definitely do not see even vague impression here of Andy comparing Serena with Roger here !!


Nirmal Kumar Says:

Whatever Andy says after such a beatdown, we should excuse him.


Michael Says:

Is Bamboozled the right word to use ?


Margot Says:

If Fed had been playing anyone else I would’ve enjoyed that match! Yes, his serve was formidable but some of his other shots were simply breathtaking. That little wristy backhand winner from a good drive volley that Andy had sent into the corner of the baseline….Wowzer!
I don’t think Andy played that badly tbh, just 3 poor service games…unfortunately they were pretty crucial games.
And what was that about electing to receive? It immediately put tremendous pressure on his own serve at exactly those crucial moments. Idiot!
Surely if he thinks Serena is the GOAT, he is entitled to that opinion? Or do SOME Fed fans want grovelling too?
BTW Conditions on Sunday are apparently going to be vastly different- cloudy and cool with some rain.


Jock-KatH Says:

Andy made a mistake from the very beginning by choosing to serve second – it created a catch-up situation from the outset. Had he succeeded in taking Fed’s first serve game it might have worked by taking set one to a tie-break.

That said, nothing would have worked because Federer played conqueror – sublime tennis, shockingly good and despite Andy’s composure, tenacity and his own good tennis he could not break through the brick wall facing him.

Really well done by Federer – have never seen him play at that level ever before.

Fed v Nole: I’ve thought there was something slightly missing from Nole’s play in this tournament – if Fed. brings that quality of play on Sunday, Nole will need to up his game quite a bit – at least he is fore-warned which might help.


Bob Lewis Says:

Federer played an incredible match. Djokovic is lucky that he wasn’t on the other side of the net today. Main question is: can Federer repeat that performance? He’s gonna need to in order to win. If he does, he deserves the championship.

But people are celebrating like the title is already Federer’s. Be careful there. At his age, he can wake up on the wrong side of the bed and come out flat. But this is one of the faster surfaces, similar to indoors and Dubai. There aren’t too many places he has a chance against Nole. It’s basically now or never, but Nole has no problems playing the spoiler. Nole has been winning the bigger titles h2h in the past few years: Rome, Wimbledon, Indian Wells x 2, ATP World Tour Finals x2.


sienna Says:

Bob Lewis just messing with the djoko fans. Nobody in tennis (players/trainers/friends/family) reads this site , comment sections.
tennis X how many readers/reactions?
it is insignificant in the big scheme.

So of course Djokovic will enter as big favorite because #1 all master and hardly losing.
But the thruth is within us all.
We know Fedfans / Djokerfans/ Murrayfans/ even Nadalfans bow their head when TMF plays like yesterday.

Roger is completing his quest and doing it in alle way that unites all tennisfans across the world.


FedExpress Says:

Again the now or never stuff. Fed will get chances to win gs till he retires. So much talent he has


brando Says:

@Margot: I had the same thought as you during the match but Andy said post match its a preference thing. Some players feel comfortable serving first and others receiving. I thought immediately of Rafa. Rafa ALWAYS receives first no matter what. Used to hate him for it but eventually accepted: comes part of the package. Ditto with Andy here: it’s part of his game and one must accept. He did the right thing since it was true to him. Honestly: I don’t fault him on a single point. He left it all out there, gave a excellent performance its just Federer produced something never saw coming or ever seen him from him for some. This one is easy to accept and get over, I’m sure Andy will be fine.


jalep Says:

Federer played the tennis that I’ve see him play before. Commentators and fans are forgetting how hard, accurately and confidently he used to hit his breath-taking backhand. Also Rafa came along and somewhat neutralized Federer, or at least did enough damage to Federer’s confidence when versus Rafa himself. And Rafa showed a good template to beating Federer. Anti-feds, those who weren’t paying attention or couldn’t stomach Federer at the time, will have it that he was playing a lesser field and thus, his prime era made him appear better than he was. I’ve never thought that to be correct, as we see in glimpses now.

Everyone has their opinion, though. That’s mine.

What I saw was someone with the speed and power of his prime on the day. However he has refined and added to his shots, experience, and had certain cool vs Andy, anyway, and yes, the added elements make him better than in his prime in that match. And yet, I do wonder how his recovery time is after a such match, at the end of a GS, at age 33 almost 34. Can that also be as good as it was in his prime 20’s? Have not seen that yet. He’s played efficiently and he’s healthy, that’s for sure – can he execute such a performance for one more match on Sunday?

And can he go 5 sets with that level at this point in the GS if he has to?

Maybe he won’t have to, as I think and watch Nole, I’m not watching a man on a mission but a man fulfilling a responsibility to excellence as the number 1. He’s willing and able but his mind and spirit are in question. The Anderson match showed me that.

(IF) Federer had played Nole for the title on Friday, Federer would have won and probably with a score similar to the Murray match – Nole may have won a set. Those are just my questions and speculation about it.

So we’ll see on Sunday. It will be interesting.

PS. And the commentators gushing that they’ve never seen Federer serve this well also have short memories. Have not seen him serve this well over an entire course of a GS tournament in some time…but he has definitely served as well and better on key points during his career.


Margot Says:

@brando
Thanks for those nice comments.:)
But no, he doesn’t “always” and when he elects to serve first his winning % is better than when he chooses to receive. His team need to sort this.
And I did wonder if he was emulating Rafa tbh, we all know Andy admires him greatly.


Viki Says:

@jalep

That’s right. Roger has always great serve. During his hey days, anybody can see his pre 2011 matches, 90 percent will not loose important points/game on his serve.

because of this in those days, if he got some guys on hot streak like wawa and cilic, he will not loose easily atleast he keep his serve intact to have great match.

Only exception is his matches with nadal on clay. Otherwise 2008 match in which nadal was on his hot streak on grass or his matches with in form del potro at french open semifinal and US open final, he is able to have competitive because of his serve only.

Only exception is berdych match at wimbledon which federer himself said that he was injured. Earlier i have taken that statement with pinch of salt but now after seeing all the things in perspective that may be right.

Now federer already prove if he is in God mode then aggressive djokovic will also not able to take him down easily which he had shown in 2011 french open and US open.

They are event at their best. Lets hope both of them bring their best and we have great match. I am hoping for aggressive djokovic to show up otherwise he plays like defensive mindset which he is doing after 2011, he will loose.


Giles Says:

Blaming poor Rafa Margot? Hope not. 😉


Brando Says:

@Margot:

Thanks, no worries about it! :-)

I’ll defer to your opinion since you know Muzza’s game better than I. Honestly speaking though: I was not really dejected with Andy at all since I was very, very pleased with the performance. Let’s just forget the result for a moment:

Pre-match my biggest fear was Andy would show up lethargic, start slowly, maybe implode mentally if things are going south.

Yet there was none of that on display.

From the first point till the last one he fought excellently, brought a brilliant performance to the court and kept his head very sharp and clear.

He progressed greatly and the simple truth is:

He lost to a all time brilliant performance.

A performance that would beat Rafa, Nole, wawa: it was just something ridiculous he unfortunately was hit with. Even Fed said it post match: I did not know that was in me aged 33.

And the stats show actually Andy played a excellent match and fought very valiantly. Pushed Fed as strongly as one possible could in this situation.

Therefore:

I’m actually VERY CONFIDENT about the next time Andy is in this situation in a slam. I think his consistency is back so he fully expect atleast a SF appearance in USO, and honestly he’s improved leaps and bounds on his performance in AO final, FO.

All the weaknesses he had for me, he’s seemingly eradicated them. He’s improved in my book and that ain’t no small thing. Put simply:

I’m 110% confident and genuinely of the believe that a Slam is sooner rather than later coming towards Andy’s mantle piece since the performance i’m seeing is already.

Re Rafa:

Could be. I doubt it though. I just think Andy felt he wanted to return serve first which when you think about it was not a bad decision initially. His return is phenomenal, he got his eye in early, and he almost broke Fed.

It’s just the way the scorecard went he unfortunately was in a position where he had to serve to stay in the set, match but honestly speaking whilst that’s not ideal, I do not think it cost him the match. He left it all out there.

All he was, for me, was unfortunately at the other end of performance no one saw coming. Cannot fault him for that: IF anything it was good to see so many pluses in Andy’s game up against THAT level.

The pluses outweigh the minuses for sure, and I think Andy will get over this easily and actually feel very good about his game quite soon.

He’s definitely can look towards the future with excitement and ambition!


Margot Says:

Cheers Brando. I do hope you’re right. Don’t feel as confident tbh. He’s gotta start beating Fed/Nole soon.
Actually Giles, that’s clever. How’d you do it? Reminded me of a pop art picture by Julian Opie in the National Portrait Gallery. Walked up to it and it winked at me. I jumped out of my skin! Eeek!


Tennis Fan Says:

Yes Murray played as well as I have seen him play. And he can probably win another GS once Fed retires :)


Margot Says:

^ Well…. if Fed doesn’t retire till he’s 40, I reckon Andy might have a good chance long before then…


Giles Says:

Eeeeek Margo, you do go to some strange places.😎


Margot Says:

@Giles
You’re just showing off now…;)
@Brando
Terrific start to the Ashes. Our bowlers were outstanding, especially Broad, and the Aussies fell like ninepins….:) :) :) Root is my favourite tho., can do everything…wub.


Skeezer Says:

Jalep great post @11:39


Rishi Says:

@ Brando…Thank you very much for your “July 10th, 2015 at 4:59 pm” post.

@ Hippy….Thank you for your congratulatory words and support to all Fed fans in this forum. You posted on the other thread, but I wanted to say it here.

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