ATP M1000 WTA 1000 Madrid 4/25 - 5/7 2023

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A little fun at the net

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Thiem was up 3-1 in the third set TB. It's now 6-5 in favor of Stefanos who takes the TB 7-6(5) and the match. Thiem is looking disgusted with himself.

[ponchi101]

He should be, but later tonight he should see that that was a good loss. He played toe to toe with a top 5 player. Let's hope it brings in better things.

[ti-amie]

Sakkari dropped the first set 3-6 but is up 5-3 in the second vs Masarova.

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Sakkari won the second set and Masarova seems to have disappeared into the ether. The chair is asking where she is while Sakkari paces. She was gone for 6 minutes.

[ponchi101]

"Game, set, match, Ms Sakkari, by default".
That should not be so hard.

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[ashkor87]

That point shown a bit earlier 'Oh Carlos' is incredible.. i really think Carlos Alcaraz is the best player I have ever seen - he seems like a blend of Federer and Nadal..he actually reminds me of Agassi a bit but of course has a much better serve and volleys much better than Agassi ever did..

[ashkor87]

Sakkari vs Badosa...how do they compare? Badosa is in better form right now but ...I have always felt Sakkari is better defensively than Badosa but will that matter on this surface? Hard to tell ...if it gets close, Badosa is tougher mentally than Sakkari is..
Of course, in the larger scheme, it may not matter..it will still come down to Swiatek and Sabalenka, probably...

[ponchi101]

That point shown a bit earlier 'Oh Carlos' is incredible.. i really think Carlos Alcaraz is the best player I have ever seen - he seems like a blend of Federer and Nadal..he actually reminds me of Agassi a bit but of course has a much better serve and volleys much better than Agassi ever did..

To which I can only say.... curb your enthusiasm
I know, the guy can play at an incredible level. But "BEST player I have ever seen" is quite a statement, especially since you have obviously seen a lot of players.
Better than Roger at his peak? Better than Novak? I say that, if you only take the peak of a player's career, he is still below Roger's version between 2005-2007. Those three years in which he was basically invincible anywhere except when facing Rafa on clay.
I don't know if you saw the first set of the Ruusovuoru match. Carlitos was spraying balls all over. That point was amazing, indeed. But he played plenty that were less than sterling.

[ponchi101]

Sakkari vs Badosa...how do they compare? Badosa is in better form right now but ...I have always felt Sakkari is better defensively than Badosa but will that matter on this surface? Hard to tell ...if it gets close, Badosa is tougher mentally than Sakkari is..
Of course, in the larger scheme, it may not matter..it will still come down to Swiatek and Sabalenka, probably...

Claiming that Badosa is tougher than Sakkari forgets Badosa's penchant for retirements. I will borrow from your "Tier" system and will say that they are both Tier 2 players, with Badosa having one important tournament that Sakkari lacks (that IW win) and Sakkari being a bit more consistent, with deeper results at slams.
Very similar. I included Sakakri in my TSiP team because of that consistency. But that match may go a long way, because I don't see either being able to hit through the other. Very long rallies, and most likely 3 sets.

[ashkor87]

That point shown a bit earlier 'Oh Carlos' is incredible.. i really think Carlos Alcaraz is the best player I have ever seen - he seems like a blend of Federer and Nadal..he actually reminds me of Agassi a bit but of course has a much better serve and volleys much better than Agassi ever did..

To which I can only say.... curb your enthusiasm
I know, the guy can play at an incredible level. But "BEST player I have ever seen" is quite a statement, especially since you have obviously seen a lot of players.
Better than Roger at his peak? Better than Novak? I say that, if you only take the peak of a player's career, he is still below Roger's version between 2005-2007. Those three years in which he was basically invincible anywhere except when facing Rafa on clay.
I don't know if you saw the first set of the Ruusovuoru match. Carlitos was spraying balls all over. That point was amazing, indeed. But he played plenty that were less than sterling.

i dont get to see any matches here at this level, only Slams.. so yes, I am going by snippets..

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