Federer vs. Agassi QF - Does Andre have a chance?

[Matt H.]

Andre wins.

Possibly his last US Open or 2, a night match on Ashe.....that's undoubtedly a Davis Cup like Atmosphere for Agassi. Plus, Federer hasn't handled the New York atmosphere to begin with.

[callitout]

if Beydrich can beat Fed you gotta give Andre a chance. Its pretty much the same as when Pete used to play Andre: If both players are on Andre will lose--because he doesnt have the serve to get easy points at crucial moments. But if Andre is on top form and Fed is a little off he'll win.

[sarpmas]

On paper, Fed is the fav. This is a very crucial match. I think the winner will stand a high chance of moving into the final. I think AA recognizes this. This will be the best opportunity (maybe last?) for him to pull a Pete. I believe AA will start off very strongly to impose himself in the match. If AA can sustain the pressure throughout the match, he may cause an 'upset'. However, if Fed can weather the storm, he will take out AA.

[yee]

Whether Federer can handle the rowdy night crowds will be the key. Either way, hopefully they both will make it there for this match to happen. Will be a treat to the fans.

[AndyC]

actually I don't think the crowd will bother Federer.. the Federer of this year is much more focussed and I doubt he'll even hear them.. where the crowd WILL have an effect is on Agassi.

[yee]

AndyC, I certainly hope so but I am not exactly convinced Federer won't be affected but it's good that he had gotten to play few night matches so far, that should prepare him.

[arosen]

I am surprised noone mentioned it so far, but Fed has not looked like much going into his potential match vs Agassi. He just has not been the same magical self we have seen at Wimby or in Australia or in that last final of his against Roddick. A big questionmark, that's what he is right now. Fabrice almost took him to 4, who knows what could have happened there if Santoro had won that tiebreak. On the contrary, Agassi has been stellar going into US Open and all the way through it. So, shapewise Agassi is definitely a favorite. BIG one.

[callitout]

I hope arosen is kidding when he says Fed doesnt look strong going into match with Agassi, because he almost dropped one set. Wow. I dont even think Pete ever won wimbledon without dropping a single set. Forget the aberration at the olympics, because most top players didnt perform well there. Fed looks like a strong favorite--Agassi needs some luck, and poor Federer serving to win.

[Chadwixx]

if agassi doesnt do it, federer should win the tourney (unless he plays terrible, 12 double faults in a 5th set would be an example).

federer hits way to heavy and hard for henman, if he hit like a williams sister (light ball, moderate spin) henwan would eat him up.

id say federer in 4, he is a nice guy and likes to keep the fans happy.

[AndyC]

Arosen.. have u watched all of Fed's matches from start to finish? I certainly have and Fed may not be playing at his best.. but he's certainly hitting the ball cleanly and crisply. And when he's had to raise his game, he's raised it enough to get the job done.

Remember Toronto? He cruised through to the final and then dismantled Roddick.

[Chanchai]

Indeed, Roger is doing enough (or more than enough depending on who you ask, I guess) to get through his matches so comfortably. In some ways, it's more intimidating than running through the early rounds completely on fire.

Keep the momentum moving upwards, not necessarily a constant.

Roger is looking very good, though I do wonder if not playing today will have an adverse effect. It's unlikely, but it can sort of sift off that momentum, especially when the next match is an Agassi that's been in very good form this tournament with heavy momentum. But I think Roger is a disciplined enough guy to really get the training and practice on in lieau of Pavel's withdrawel.

Don't know if he's still practicing with Haas, but they certainly were practicing together earlier or before the USO from what I heard. While Haas doesn't play exactly like Agassi, he can certainly emulate similar heavy baseline rallies and much more intimidating netplay (though Agassi's netplay seemed like it had found a full on upgrade earlier this summer).

I'm still expecting Federer-Agassi to be a really good match. I certainly hope it won't be a dismantling of either player for any reason.

Also, I'm glad all of my 5 picks (same 5 picks as so many others) for favorites have been performing very well in dominant form (well, Haas hasn't been dominant, but his last match was pretty darn strong). If Henman makes the semifinals, I think that's great (new US Open record for him, two semifinals in a year, still a very good part of a very good year), but I think he'll get rolled over by either Federer or Agassi.

I do like how among the various dynamics of primary strategy, overall game, and attitude... you also have different ways players can carry momentum in a tournament. When Federer has won his major tournaments, he's been like a silent killer that starts off casually and casually raises his game throughout the tournament--but it's subtle enough that it's not necessarily the talk of the tournament despite people expecting him to take the thing. Fed's momentum, to me, seems to be as smooth as his game. Agassi seems fairly consistent with his momentum these days--just running through the draw like a machine... when he's having a good major that is. Roddick generally has really strong starts. In fact, the impact on his starts is that he's playing above previous expectations and demolishes the early opponents. Maybe he gets early rest and hyped up confidence, but he's also using up a lot of energy--or so it seems. However, what's surprising is how he does raise his game further towards the end of the tournament. Whether he raises his game enough, or how long he can sustain what seems to be uber-peak performance is probably up for debate. I can't comment too much on Hewitt, but it seems consistent with him being a "fighter." The guy makes good adjustments and seems to really know his opponents' games.

-Chanchai

[wt888usa]

is anyone planning on recording this match? and posting it? what time is the match going to be?

[bravestennis]

Well i know i didn't post the nadal/roddick match, but i will try this one. I had probelms getting it off my DVR, so this time i'm going to screw it and just record it straight to my PC.

[Rafter4ever]

Agassi fans are going to hate me. I would love to see AA win it all, I think RF is too smart and will come out attacking. RF in 3, 7-5, 7-5, 6-3.