Should Djokovic skip the clay season from this point on in his career?
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Aabye5
G.O.A.T.
No - he won the French Open this year, and a Slam is a Slam is a Slam. Especially with Rafa out for an unknown time period, why not show up and see?
Although I won't be surprised if he skips almost all of the smaller tournaments like he did this year. That was smart, in retrospect. I'm not sure how much he would have had left in the tank had he played more.
Edit: although if Thiem is back and in good form, the dynamics change
Although I won't be surprised if he skips almost all of the smaller tournaments like he did this year. That was smart, in retrospect. I'm not sure how much he would have had left in the tank had he played more.
Edit: although if Thiem is back and in good form, the dynamics change
MeatTornado
Talk Tennis Guru
I think he should skip the grass too, just to be safe.
Bender
G.O.A.T.
Federer and Del Potro
Bionic Poster
Why would he skip Clay when Ralph's health is a serious question mark? Makes no sense.
Who/what is scared of Tsitsipas...besides the toilet?
Who/what is scared of Tsitsipas...besides the toilet?
MeatTornado
Talk Tennis Guru
Now this is podracing
ForehandCross
G.O.A.T.
Depends on Timothy.
If Timothy is in good form, Djokovic then has Tsitspas and Zverev to deal at "60-40 chances of winning" and Thiem at "40-60 chances of losing" level.
Any combination resulting from one of Stef, Z and one of Thiem and Nadal is going to be too much for him.
If Timothy is in good form, Djokovic then has Tsitspas and Zverev to deal at "60-40 chances of winning" and Thiem at "40-60 chances of losing" level.
Any combination resulting from one of Stef, Z and one of Thiem and Nadal is going to be too much for him.
Aabye5
G.O.A.T.
AO13
Hall of Fame
No, I feel he has better chances at RG and Wimbledon than on hard courts, starting from the next season. The game of tennis, as well as in every other sport actually, is being revolutionised by tall people - guys that are 190 cm and taller have much more power and strength than shorter guys, and yet they have great court coverage and mobility. I'm talking of course about Medvedev (198 cm), Zverev (198 cm), Berrettini (196 cm), Tsitsipas (193 cm) and Felix Auger-Alliasime (193 cm). Might as well put Sinner there with 191 cm and both him and Felix can grow a couple more cms taller in next few years.
In comparison, Federer and Nadal are 185 cm tall, Djokovic is 188 cm and Andy Murray is 190 cm.
Still, I think Djokovic has the perfect build for tennis player, bearing in mind his great flexibility due to his hard work and dedication. He should've had better serve through his career though, but he's working on it and I think he'll have best year service wise next season.
In comparison, Federer and Nadal are 185 cm tall, Djokovic is 188 cm and Andy Murray is 190 cm.
Still, I think Djokovic has the perfect build for tennis player, bearing in mind his great flexibility due to his hard work and dedication. He should've had better serve through his career though, but he's working on it and I think he'll have best year service wise next season.
Cupcake
Hall of Fame
Yes, the US Open too. He didn't look so good the other day. Time for him to switch to playing golf.
MeatTornado
Talk Tennis Guru
If Nadal keeps winning more tournaments on the links, you know he'll be coming for him.Yes, the US Open too. He didn't look so good the other day. Time for him to switch to playing golf.
BeatlesFan
Bionic Poster
Fed played at the FO for 17 straight years before he skipped it at age 35.
Djokovic is a year younger and the defending FO champion. There's no way he'll skip clay or especially RG. But his age, he should play only MC and Rome beforehand. He's shown that he's paring down his schedule which is the wise move.
Djokovic is a year younger and the defending FO champion. There's no way he'll skip clay or especially RG. But his age, he should play only MC and Rome beforehand. He's shown that he's paring down his schedule which is the wise move.
Nadal_Django
Legend
No why. He is one of the biggest favourites for the RG title if not the biggest. Why should he skip anything?
Standaa
G.O.A.T.
I'll try top spinning, that's a good trick
junior74
Talk Tennis Guru
Skipping is the only way to further evolve as a tennis player. A year's rest here and there and he'll return better than ever!
PMChambers
Hall of Fame
His fayher
His father.
GoldenMasters
Semi-Pro
No, he should continue to hunt all Slams as long as he can be competitive. This CYGS stuff finally put off the pressure and just needs to not let the loss get to him.
Nadal_Django
Legend
Don't you think that this mantra of yours is becoming somewhat stale after so many years of extreme usage!? Yes we know, the current generation is sh**t, the 2006 was the pinnacle of tennis, everything else after that was a spectacular devolution, peak 2006 Robredo better than 21 Medvedev, peak Bagdhatis would smoke current Djokovic. Am I doing right?
BGod
G.O.A.T.
I'd say the same for Federer on clay or Nadal on grass and the thing is, you only skip if the chances of victory are slim to none. For Federer this was pretty damn evident after 2015 and indeed he started skipping then but returned for 2019 for literally zero benefit (still lost Wimbledon, hate me). Nadal did have a surprise in 2018-19 at Wimbledon and certainly wins in 18 so shows what I know but in the end he still lost. But with Nadal I'd say he should have skipped AO after 2019 and that may have helped him say at the French this year.
Novak is defending champ and there is a rarity in defending champions being healthy but skipping the tournament.
Novak is defending champ and there is a rarity in defending champions being healthy but skipping the tournament.
junior74
Talk Tennis Guru
Didn't mention any of that with a single word in my poast, and you sound like a raving maniac, as always
Start da Game
Hall of Fame
if these thoughts are entering people's mind, it means he is nearing fraudesque levels of caution and insecurity........and that essentially means beginning of the end.......it amazes me that nadal with all these injuries is the one actually watching fraud and ultron slide downhill before him........truly a mental giant our rafito.......
spottishwood
Hall of Fame
For your kind information, the OP's not a fedfan
van_Loederen
Professional
DJ has no natural enemies at Wimbly and the tournament isn't so endurance-heavy. he doesn't have to save energy for it. the grass season also is short and it may be good to get more matchplay.
another argument is that he doesn't have to win RG. draining a lot of energy from Nadal in a SF might result in success too.
another argument is that he doesn't have to win RG. draining a lot of energy from Nadal in a SF might result in success too.
Nadal_Django
Legend
Maybe you should check your other 20000 posts then. Yes we understood already after the first time, Federer is the best, his 2004-07 opponents are the best, Mirka is the most beautiful, the current era is the weakest in history, everything on the tour is sh**t nowadays, stagnation and devolution since 2006 everywhere. You don't need to repeat it for 19999 times more. We got it!Didn't mention any of that with a single word in my poast, and you sound like a raving maniac, as always
Chanwan
G.O.A.T.
And the US. Sole focus should be to be fresh for the AO
yokied
Hall of Fame
I gotta say the grief of the OP is crispy, nutritious and delicious, like tears at a changeover. I noticed he’s not so keen on using a teary Novak as his avatar, just the ol’ semi-retired but fully RentFree.
Let’s share the OP’s journey through the stages of grief towards acceptance. So far he’s created a thread for denial, saying Med can thank XYZod for wearing Novak out. Then he created the angry revenge thread, saying Novak’s gonna study him and destroy him. Now we’re in the reconstruction phase where we need a thread about how Novak needs to completely rework his schedule.
It’s pretty textbook stuff bro. Maybe just have a break for a while and get some perspective and self-knowledge instead of teeing off with thread after thread of utter nonsense.
Let’s share the OP’s journey through the stages of grief towards acceptance. So far he’s created a thread for denial, saying Med can thank XYZod for wearing Novak out. Then he created the angry revenge thread, saying Novak’s gonna study him and destroy him. Now we’re in the reconstruction phase where we need a thread about how Novak needs to completely rework his schedule.
It’s pretty textbook stuff bro. Maybe just have a break for a while and get some perspective and self-knowledge instead of teeing off with thread after thread of utter nonsense.
junior74
Talk Tennis Guru
I never comment on the looks of their wives.
I have never said 04-07 have the best players.
We got it; you are a troll!
Everybody knows this
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D
Deleted member 762343
Guest
The clay season should skip Djokovic.
junior74
Talk Tennis Guru
3 slams and a slam final with "long covid" is decent.
Bartelby
Bionic Poster
But he keeps dropping sets, and that lost him the fourth. The difference may be small, and not even measurable, or it may just be old age. But he needs to win quicker and stay fresh! And get luckier with the draw.
junior74
Talk Tennis Guru
Perhaps... Anyway, Novak got careless. Should have gone through the draw easier.
The final loss seemed like "something else" than physicality to me. He wasn't really there. Strange.
He did really well to win especially RG, after being down 0-2 twice and beating Rafa... Great achievement!
Third Serve
Talk Tennis Guru
Should the defending RG champion skip the clay season?
jeez
jeez
Shu-Pak
Rookie
No, I don't think he should skip clay. I believe he still has one more RG in him. Nadal is a beast but the physical decline is real.
My hot take is that Nadal get's knocked out of RG in 2022 by someone else and Novak has a shot at defending.
Novak should be skipping more masters IMO.
My hot take is that Nadal get's knocked out of RG in 2022 by someone else and Novak has a shot at defending.
Novak should be skipping more masters IMO.
Perhaps, or just play Paris and one other warm up, for another year or two. The same is true for Rafa. No clay for Roger, period!
Perhaps, Daniil's great play had something to do with Novak's loss?
ScentOfDefeat
G.O.A.T.
Probably not.
Paradoxically, I think at this point in his career it might be harder for him (and his body) to win a hardcourt Slam than a natural surface Slam.
At Wimbledon there are not many players who can challenge him yet, so I would say he still has a good chance of winning an extra Slam there.
At Roland-Garros his chances have vastly improved: Nadal is in a downward spiral, he has beaten him multiple times there, and he has finally won the tournament by going through him. Tsitsipas, however, could prove a tougher challenge in years to come, as well as a few other players (I'm thinking mostly of Alcaraz).
But the hardcourt marathons, that's what he should be trying to avoid at this point in his career.
Even at the AO, which he has won 9 times, it's quite rare to see him breezing through the draw.
Believing that he's the greatest hardcourt player and that, because of that, the AO is in the bag for him could be a huge mistake in the latter part of his career.
The effort might not be worth it.
Paradoxically, I think at this point in his career it might be harder for him (and his body) to win a hardcourt Slam than a natural surface Slam.
At Wimbledon there are not many players who can challenge him yet, so I would say he still has a good chance of winning an extra Slam there.
At Roland-Garros his chances have vastly improved: Nadal is in a downward spiral, he has beaten him multiple times there, and he has finally won the tournament by going through him. Tsitsipas, however, could prove a tougher challenge in years to come, as well as a few other players (I'm thinking mostly of Alcaraz).
But the hardcourt marathons, that's what he should be trying to avoid at this point in his career.
Even at the AO, which he has won 9 times, it's quite rare to see him breezing through the draw.
Believing that he's the greatest hardcourt player and that, because of that, the AO is in the bag for him could be a huge mistake in the latter part of his career.
The effort might not be worth it.
Chanwan
G.O.A.T.
We saw this when he beat Rafa physically to an extent where Rafa could barely move only to make a magical comeback vs. Sissy after going 0-2 down. Two of the clearest signs of a fading stamina, that I've ever seen
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