TearTheRoofOff
G.O.A.T.
*Claps*
AO’20 3R Men’s Singles: (3) R Federer (SUI) vs J Millman
- Thread starter Feather
- Start date
Raul_SJ
G.O.A.T.
Millman talks too much with his box after every point. That has to throw off his concentration. Just focus and play the game. Could have easily won this.
Millman is an absolute embarrassment with this choke. Nobody likes him. Even the Aussie crowd was cheering for Federer.
I was praying for Millman in the fifth set but now I hate him too.
mike danny
Bionic Poster
It's also not the first time he loses a GS match against Novak from MP up.
TearTheRoofOff
G.O.A.T.
Come on... Like his shot was suddenly invalid against Djoker. Just because losing with MPs happened doesn't really change my view. Nole came up with a decent pass. It's like the 2012 semis, where Fed hits a mediocre serve and Nole dumps the return in the net. If that was returned a'la US Open 2011, Fed'd be lambasted for hitting a powder puff serve.
Fedinkum
Legend
Me: from a Fed fan to become a Millman hater during this match.Millman talks too much with his box after every point. That has to throw off his concentration. Just play the game.
Millman is an absolute embarrassment with this choke. Nobody likes him. Even the Aussie crowd was cheering for Federer.
I was praying for Millman in the fifth set but now I hate him too.
rh310
Hall of Fame
The thing I was surprised the umpire didn't mention to him was how much talking back Hewitt was doing. There was clear communication and interaction, throughout the match.
mike danny
Bionic Poster
You're Roger f'in Federer on CC. Your serve has barely been broken, you have been the better player the entire match and you finally get to take advantage of your strong serve at MP up.
Let's stop finding excuses when this literally only happens him. Nadal or Novak would never lose such a match at any age against anyone.
Fed881981
Hall of Fame
Millman is annoying on court. I’m happy that he’s out, and not just because I’m a Fed fan.Millman talks too much with his box after every point. That has to throw off his concentration. Just focus and play the game. Could have easily won this.
Millman is an absolute embarrassment with this choke. Nobody likes him. Even the Aussie crowd was cheering for Federer.
I was praying for Millman in the fifth set but now I hate him too.
TearTheRoofOff
G.O.A.T.
Meh, what's the point? We're done here.
The Green Mile
Bionic Poster
Phew....
icedevil0289
G.O.A.T.
i think there might have been a few people cheering on fed's errors which lmao i mean thats not a big deal to me but probably in their mind 50/50 split seems like 10% because its very rare
Krish0608
G.O.A.T.
Just stop it! Millman almost did.
vive le beau jeu !
Talk Tennis Guru
i think that's an accurate analysis
(although it might benefit from a little geometric mean, of course)
tenisdecente
Hall of Fame
I dont see Nadal or Djokovic arriving at a Wimbledon's final at almost 37 years old. Then, maybe, we can talk about this. I think you over react too much on this
StrongRule
Talk Tennis Guru
The key word is "almost". But he choked 3 times in the fifth set, the last time being after being 8-4 up on the tie break. This is pathetic. It doesn't matter how bad Federer plays, for some reason only Djokovic can beat him.
Pheasant
Legend
I'm only going to take the positives from this match. Federer, despite having the worst forehand I've ever seen him have, clutched out a win. Despite having 45+ errors from that wing alone, he hung in there. Millman recognized this and he targeted that wing nearly 70% of the time. Now imagine somebody targeting 2006 Fed's forhand wing that often. It'd be a very high carb diet at the end.
Federer came back from a break in the 5th. He came back from 0-30 on his own serve to hold. He also came back from 15-40 on his own serve to hold. And lastly, he came back from 8-4 in the tiebreaker with 6 straight clutch points.
Federer played about as badly as I've seen him play in a while. But he clutched out a win. This victory felt amazing.
As another fan said, it's quite tough being a fan of a 38 year old player. You just don't know which version of that player will show up.
Congrats to Fed for a gritty win. Hopefully, this clutch win will give him the confidence to gut-out another close match much later in the tourney. But I have to take this one match at a time. For Federer these days, there are no guaranteed wins.
Federer came back from a break in the 5th. He came back from 0-30 on his own serve to hold. He also came back from 15-40 on his own serve to hold. And lastly, he came back from 8-4 in the tiebreaker with 6 straight clutch points.
Federer played about as badly as I've seen him play in a while. But he clutched out a win. This victory felt amazing.
As another fan said, it's quite tough being a fan of a 38 year old player. You just don't know which version of that player will show up.
Congrats to Fed for a gritty win. Hopefully, this clutch win will give him the confidence to gut-out another close match much later in the tourney. But I have to take this one match at a time. For Federer these days, there are no guaranteed wins.
AnOctorokForDinner
Talk Tennis Guru
The 2012 approach was quite a bit better, watch them side by side. Not perfect either, but the mental situation was also very different in 2012 as Federer was strongly the better player in the last two sets, putting Murray under consistent pressure/strain.
TearTheRoofOff
G.O.A.T.
I'll agree it was a bit better, but some sub-optimal execution isn't really something I'm going to lambast him for as highly as others here wish to.
AnOctorokForDinner
Talk Tennis Guru
That I agree with, as it was still only one point and Federer didn't do anything particularly poor on the other three points (of the four he lost in a row to get broken). He wasn't that tentative, Djokovic was just more daring - as expected :< The final tiebreak, that was poor but unfortunately it's not Djokovic-specific, our TBGOAT has a negative record in deciding TBs.
tenisdecente
Hall of Fame
Incredible match to go through, but make no mistake, I dont see Federer going to win this, not even if Djokovic is playing well or not but because I am not sure if he will arrive with gas in the tank to that hypothetical SF. Anyway, great win and great fight from grandpa. And I loved the Mirka and co. celebration, I think they know the end is near and are enjoying the ride while it lasts
TennisFan3
Talk Tennis Guru
Yeah but Thiem IS in ascendancy. He ACTUALLY beat Novak in a slam. He also pushed Nadal to 5 sets at the UsOpen which included a bagel too. He also pushed Nadal to 4 sets at Nadal's backyard.
Also Medvedev is the future #1 for sure. He almost beat Nadal at the UsOpen and has troubled Novak too all the time.
So those two guys are definitely dangerous EVEN for Novak. And think about Kygrios too, who could beat pretty much anyone.
Yeah, Tsitspas has never done much against Novak at slams. But he would at least be WAY HARDER than Raonic or Cillic. Both of those won't win a set vs Novak.
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roysid
Hall of Fame
Yes it will torment for the rest of our lives.
Just think he was 15-40 down in 2017 AO final. He came up with winners when he could have easily lost the game and then the match.
Last year at 40-15 the play was too passive I'm afraid
TennisFan3
Talk Tennis Guru
It's good to have faith. It's good for our health and for our mind. It's nice to feel passionate about your favorite. So I'm happy for you.
That said, I would put 85-15 in favor of Novak vs Fed in the SF. But hey, lightning can strike and even pigs can fly. So who knows, that's why they play.
And I hope Roger reaches the SF. He deserves to, after all the fight against Millman. I can't help but admire how much Federer loves this game. I used to watch him when I was in college. Almost 17 years later, he's still there. Unbelievable.
a10best
Hall of Fame
He's the only 15+ slam champ who plays the same way as 7-10 yrs ago. The others play a little more conservative or inconsistency shows up (Fed,Rafa, SW). I think his second serve has improved too.
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Ray Mercer
Hall of Fame
Federer is really showing his age from the back of the court. Millman kept dragging him into long gruelling crosscourt rallies. Anytime he gets dragged into those you are just waiting for the Fed error or coughed up short ball. With these slow court conditions and his age he just can’t blast the winners anymore. Too much of that buggy whip forehand.
oldmanfan
Legend
One can look at this win optimistically, pessimistically, or somewhere in between. I'm very optimistic about Fedr after seeing his 2019, much more so than at the end of 2018.
In regards to this win, what some don't realize is that, just like @StrongRule said, Fedr has won quite a few titles after near-loss scares like this in the past (even slams!), unlike journeymen who tend to lose soon after such close-wins (see Fedr's RG09 against Haas and Delpo, WB12 against Benneteau, Shanghai14 against L.Mayer, among others). I'm not saying Fedr will be 50/50 against Djokr if they meet, but he will have his chances if they meet. Also, many seem to forget Djokr's AO16 win against Simon after committing 100UEs. Djokr with 100UEs? Fedr's 82UEs in this match seems tame compared to the 100UEs committed by a metronome like Djokr. He ended up winning AO16.
There are definitely positives to take from a tough, AND lucky, near-loss like this. In fact, Fedr just said in his 2R press that learning from losses is a huge factor in being successful, in any field. This wasn't a loss, but it was close enough. And if Fedr follows his own advice, he'll do better going forward, and I look forward to it.
I don't expect any wins at AO20 from him after this match, to be realistic. But Fedr is playing with house money now. I'm not sure you know, but a free-flowing Fedr is the most dangerous type of Fedr.
In regards to this win, what some don't realize is that, just like @StrongRule said, Fedr has won quite a few titles after near-loss scares like this in the past (even slams!), unlike journeymen who tend to lose soon after such close-wins (see Fedr's RG09 against Haas and Delpo, WB12 against Benneteau, Shanghai14 against L.Mayer, among others). I'm not saying Fedr will be 50/50 against Djokr if they meet, but he will have his chances if they meet. Also, many seem to forget Djokr's AO16 win against Simon after committing 100UEs. Djokr with 100UEs? Fedr's 82UEs in this match seems tame compared to the 100UEs committed by a metronome like Djokr. He ended up winning AO16.
There are definitely positives to take from a tough, AND lucky, near-loss like this. In fact, Fedr just said in his 2R press that learning from losses is a huge factor in being successful, in any field. This wasn't a loss, but it was close enough. And if Fedr follows his own advice, he'll do better going forward, and I look forward to it.
I don't expect any wins at AO20 from him after this match, to be realistic. But Fedr is playing with house money now. I'm not sure you know, but a free-flowing Fedr is the most dangerous type of Fedr.
TennisFan3
Talk Tennis Guru
No basis in reality. No logic in the posts of that poster. Even the most rabid fans of Fed, don't make him the favorite for the title after a 5 set 3rd round win against a journeyman.
Not that any of this is relevant to the thread lol, but I just went back and watched the 2012 shot. It’s got much greater depth and angle, just 3-4 feet from Murray’s forehand corner, while the one in the Djokovic match landed about on the service line and was hardly pulled wide at all. That said, I don’t think Fed’s approach against Novak was terrible – he didn’t leave Djokovic much angle to work with and it’s to Novak’s credit he found about the only angle that was going to get the ball past Roger. Not a great approach, but a very good passing shot, if that makes sense. But in hindsight, Fed definitely could have put more depth, angle, or pace on his forehand and had an even better shot at winning the rally.
Also how similar were those two service games. Fed goes down 0-15 against Murray, then from 15-15 blasts two big serves, an ace and an unreturnable, for 40-15. Missed the first match point off a second serve and played an almost identical point at 40-30, only Djokovic made the pass while Murray missed it.
TennisFan3
Talk Tennis Guru
One can look at this win optimistically, pessimistically, or somewhere in between. I'm very optimistic about Fedr after seeing his 2019, much more so than at the end of 2018.
In regards to this win, what some don't realize is that, just like @StrongRule said, Fedr has won quite a few titles after near-loss scares like this in the past (even slams!), unlike journeymen who tend to lose soon after such close-wins (see Fedr's RG09 against Haas and Delpo, WB12 against Benneteau, Shanghai14 against L.Mayer, among others). I'm not saying Fedr will be 50/50 against Djokr if they meet, but he will have his chances if they meet. Also, many seem to forget Djokr's AO16 win against Simon after committing 100UEs. Djokr with 100UEs? Fedr's 82UEs in this match seems tame compared to the 100UEs committed by a metronome like Djokr. He ended up winning AO16.
There are definitely positives to take from a tough, AND lucky, near-loss like this. In fact, Fedr just said in his 2R press that learning from losses is a huge factor in being successful, in any field. This wasn't a loss, but it was close enough. And if Fedr follows his own advice, he'll do better going forward, and I look forward to it.
I don't expect any wins at AO20 from him after this match, to be realistic. But Fedr is playing with house money now. I'm not sure you know, but a free-flowing Fedr is the most dangerous type of Fedr.
Excellent post. Fed will get to the SF. I don't see him choking again in R4 or QF.
But the trouble is that Djokovic is deadly on this court. Even peak Fed would have his hands full. The current Fed will be a heavy underdog.
But yeah, if Fed somehow beats Djokovic, he will win the title. He won't be stopped in the final for sure.
Poisoned Slice
Bionic Poster
Djokovic_is_the_best#1
Bionic Poster
I can. Especially Djokovic!
marc45
G.O.A.T.
One can look at this win optimistically, pessimistically, or somewhere in between. I'm very optimistic about Fedr after seeing his 2019, much more so than at the end of 2018.
In regards to this win, what some don't realize is that, just like @StrongRule said, Fedr has won quite a few titles after near-loss scares like this in the past (even slams!), unlike journeymen who tend to lose soon after such close-wins (see Fedr's RG09 against Haas and Delpo, WB12 against Benneteau, Shanghai14 against L.Mayer, among others). I'm not saying Fedr will be 50/50 against Djokr if they meet, but he will have his chances if they meet. Also, many seem to forget Djokr's AO16 win against Simon after committing 100UEs. Djokr with 100UEs? Fedr's 82UEs in this match seems tame compared to the 100UEs committed by a metronome like Djokr. He ended up winning AO16.
There are definitely positives to take from a tough, AND lucky, near-loss like this. In fact, Fedr just said in his 2R press that learning from losses is a huge factor in being successful, in any field. This wasn't a loss, but it was close enough. And if Fedr follows his own advice, he'll do better going forward, and I look forward to it.
I don't expect any wins at AO20 from him after this match, to be realistic. But Fedr is playing with house money now. I'm not sure you know, but a free-flowing Fedr is the most dangerous type of Fedr.
"just like @StrongRule said"
dear lord, did you hit your head during the match?
The last part makes it sounds like Fed being more experienced has something to do with him winning today. Not at all. We’ve seen him lose close encounters more than enough to know that experience doesn’t mean everything. I’m happy that he won but he was extremely lucky to win and it mostly happened by simply hanging on and for some reason an otherwise solid Millman started making uncharacteristic errors. It also should be said that Fed played horrendously today.
Oh I miss that shot. I imagine him adding some shape to his forehand has helped in other tournaments, and perhaps even with the "new surfaces". However, I feel the timing of this shot in the psat was great.
What a grind out. I was almost going to write him off... props to him for proving me wrong. I was scoreboard watching at 8-5.. and was surprised when he held MP.
soundofatrain
Rookie
Court conditions looked slow today, there was no weight on Federer’s routine ground strokes, he was forced to swing harder and to flatten out his shots. This reduced his margin for error resulting in all the unforced errors. He played like a grinder, not his usual attacking free flow game. Credit to Millman for playing tough, he had a clear game plan to attack the fed forehand side, his counterpunching style is suited to playing attacking opponents, he doesn’t generate his own pace, conditions were in his favor and he had the support of the crowd. In the end the better player won. Exciting tennis !
jklos
Professional
Everyone has their off days.
I Am Finnish
Bionic Poster
That is one the reasons I love TTW
I Am Finnish
Bionic Poster
When millman wasted 2 break points at 40-15 in the 7th game I knew gramps would win
I Am Finnish
Bionic Poster
More than Berrettini?
a10best
Hall of Fame
yes but you have more off days when you get older. Then it can no longer be considered off. The reality is your level (peak) has simply dropped.
BeatlesFan
Bionic Poster
I watched the match on replay and Hewitt is just as annoying as a coach as he was as a player. Millman needs to stop looking at his box after every single point, he's worse than even Murray with that. Hewitt was blatantly coaching Millman throughout the match, especially the first two sets. He was using hand signals, pointing to his ears and mouth, it was overt coaching, he wasn't even bothering to hide it. Millman should have been warned and then point penalties should have ensued. People think Toni was coaching from the box need to watch Hewitt- egregious scenes.
tennis_pro
Bionic Poster
I like berrettini
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