Freddy Cat
Professional
Ohhhh yeah!!!!
Bautista Agut and now Isner making the last two Masters1000 finals just highlights how embarrassing this year has been for the ATP. No disrespect to them both but just wow.
Rumor is Raonic has called a press conference. Walkover to number 1?
4 years ago and both were in America where he always does well, usually bombs out everywhere else. This one tournament and Isner making the final doesn't make the entire field weak, it's a combination of many things. Although, Isner will make the final by defeating just one top 10 player and that's Marin Cilic at #10. Last year at Shanghai Tomic had to defeat then top 10 Ferrer + Gasquet who was 11th and that was just to reach the QF of a Masters.Isner has made masters finals before. It didn't make 2012 or 2013 weak did it?
Bautista Agut and now Isner making the last two Masters1000 finals of the year just highlights how embarrassing 2016 has been for the ATP. No disrespect to them both but just wow.
Stan is our number 3, has he won a single Masters this year? Has he even reached a Masters final?? How about Berdych? Raonic? Thiem?
Mostly nah but bloody John Isner can. Bloody hell.
My favourite player? That's Tomic.. Not really sure what you're getting at there?Don't be so harsh. Your favorite player was dominating era were everyone was making Master/Slam finals left and right. Isner is a great indoor paper with great results in the past.
Oh and both times Isner made a Masters final, he defeated world top seed Novak Djokovic. I repeat, Isner defeated one top 10 player to make this final and that was Cilic at #10Isner has made masters finals before. It didn't make 2012 or 2013 weak did it?
4 years ago and both were in America where he always does well, usually bombs out everywhere else. This one tournament and Isner making the final doesn't make the entire field weak, it's a combination of many things. Although, Isner will make the final by defeating just one top 10 player and that's Marin Cilic at #10. Last year at Shanghai Tomic had to defeat then top 10 Ferrer + Gasquet who was 11th and that was just to reach the QF of a Masters.
This is the final we are talking about here! The level has dropped.
My favourite player? That's Tomic.. Not really sure what you're getting at there?
You're making my point for me! When he reached those Masters finals, he did so by defeating A+ opponents. Meanwhile in 2016 it reads more like an ATP250. Struff, Ferrer, Sock, Cilic. That's not a strong field to reach a Masters final.Last year Isner defeated Federer in Paris, the previous he pushed Djokovic. In his both Master finals he defeated Djokovic to reach them, he also defeated Federer on indoor clay in 2012. Last year he reached the SF in MIami with wins against Dimitrov, Raonic and Nishikori in a row. John is not a nobody and certanly is not that suprising that he reached the final here.
My bad, was thinking about Hewitt
You're making my point for me! When he reached those Masters finals, he did so by defeating A+ opponents. Meanwhile in 2016 it reads more like an ATP250. Struff, Ferrer, Sock, Cilic. That's not a strong field to reach a Masters final.
My point is that this year has just been one laugh after another and the level of the entire tour has dropped so much.
Ivanisevic "fluked" one after multiple other finals and semis.If Wimby went back to the kind of court speeds it used to have in the 90s and early 00s then isner would have been a good shout for a title there. Ivanisevic fluked one, don't see why he wouldn't.
I'm not whinging about the big 4. I'm complaining that top 10 players can't make these finals and yet bloody Bautista Agut and Isner can.Paris 16 SF - Murray, Cilic, Isner, Raonic
Paris 15 SF - Djokovic, MUrray, Wawrinka, Ferrer
Paris 14 SF - Djokovic, Nishikori, Raonic, Berdych
Paris 13 SF - Djokovic, Ferrer, Nadal, Federer
Paris 12 SF - Ferrer, Janowitz, Llodra, Simon
Paris 11 SF - Federer, Tsonga, Berdych, Isner
Paris 10 SF - Soderling, Llodra, Federer, Monfils
Paris 09 SF - Djokovic, Monfils, Stepanek, Nadal
Paris 08 SF - Tsonga, Blake, Nalbandian, Davydenko
Paris 07 SF - Nalbandian, Nadal, Gasquet, Baghdatis
In the last ten years - 0 times 4/4 Big 4, 1 time 3/4 Big 4, 2 times 2/4 Big 4, 5 times 1/4 Big 4, 2 times 0/4 Big 4. It's just variation - this year specialy Federer, Nadal, MOnfils didn't enter the draw at all
Well the Wimbledon grass back then did play to his advantage which was why he went deep in those tournaments plus he had a servebot rep like Karlovic and Isner do right now. No one ever thought he could win the whole damn thing though, even when he did it it came as a surprise. Rafter was a big favorite.Ivanisevic "fluked" one after multiple other finals and semis.
Does isner have more than 1 slam QF?
I'm not whinging about the big 4. I'm complaining that top 10 players can't make these finals and yet bloody Bautista Agut and Isner can.
Where's top 10 Thiem making a Masters final? Nah he lost in his first match.
Stan? He's a multi slam champion and our world number 3, yet didn't make a Masters final all year! He should be winning these! Not losing to Struff!!
Top 10 Berdych? Nah he lost.
I read that list and apart from 2012, they were all great sounding top 10 SFists.
Nostalgia, romanticism .... the angles Isner finds amaze me more than Ivo's. Technically I find his serve more impressive to watch even though Ivo's serve is slightly more effective it seems if we look at numbers. That is also because Isner has more bad days on serve, but yesterday he was almost unplayable. Actually Murray is the worst draw for him in the final, not because he is the new number 1 but because even peak Djokovic is a better match up for the american.I still can't get enough if it, it's bloody ridiculous, this serving.... Watching at 3-3 in the 2nd. I don't know why it bothers me so much, people saying Sampras had a better serve. Quite honestly nothing else bothers me...
80% 1st serve, 86% 1st serve win. Sampras's best against a notable player would be 1996 Wimbledon 2R against Philippoussis - 75% 1st serve, 93% 1st serve win, that's better. But Isner's best 1st serve performance is still better - 2012 Olympics 3R vs Tipsarevic, 83% 1st serve, 91% 1st serve win. To add, Karlovic's best serving performance against someone good is 2008 Queen's 3R vs Gonzalez - 79% 1st serve, 92% 1st serve win, 90% 2nd serve win (!!). This is still only his 2nd best serving performance; 2007 Zagreb R1 against Jiri Vanek (6-3 6-2) may well be the greatest servebotting of all time: 30/38 1st serve, 28/30 1st serve win, 8/8 2nd serve win for 36/38 total serve points won, 20 of those 36 were aces. Although Vanek probably tanked that.What a ridiculous serving display from John. You would struggle to find a Sampras match, where he served as well as this.
Another little thing is that Sampras had to rely more on the shot after the serve. Generally a volley, but maybe a forehand as well. Whereas Ivo and Isner could just bomb down at brilliant angles, more unreturnable serves.80% 1st serve, 86% 1st serve win. Sampras's best against a notable player would be 1996 Wimbledon 2R against Philippoussis - 75% 1st serve, 93% 1st serve win, that's better. But Isner's best 1st serve performance is still better - 2012 Olympics 3R vs Tipsarevic, 83% 1st serve, 91% 1st serve win. To add, Karlovic's best serving performance against someone good is 2008 Queen's 3R vs Gonzalez - 79% 1st serve, 92% 1st serve win, 90% 2nd serve win (!!). This is still only his 2nd best serving performance; 2007 Zagreb R1 against Jiri Vanek (6-3 6-2) may well be the greatest servebotting of all time: 30/38 1st serve, 28/30 1st serve win, 8/8 2nd serve win for 36/38 total serve points won, 20 of those 36 were aces. Although Vanek probably tanked that.