Stats for 1983 FO Final (Noah-Wilander)

[Moose Malloy]

Noah d Wilander 6-2, 7-5, 7-6(7-3)

Noah served at 54% (56 of 104)
Wilander served at 67% (75 of 112)

Noah won 39 of 56 pts on 1st serve(70%)
He won 26 of 48 on 2nd (54%)

Wilander won 40 of 75 pts on 1st serve(53%)
He won 23 of 37 on 2nd (62%)

Noah had 41 non service winners(5 fh, 3 bh, 20 fhv, 7 bhv, 6 ov)
Wilander had 36 (9 fh, 17 bh, 2 fhv, 3 bhv, 5 ov)

Winners by set:
Noah 10, 16, 15
Wilander 5, 14, 17

Wilander had 23 passing shot winners, 7 fh & 16 bh.
Noah had 3, 1 fh & 2 bh.

Noah had 5 aces, 1 double
Wilander had 2 aces, 2 doubles

Noah had 11 unreturned serves, 2 were service winners
Wilander had 8 unreturned serves

Noah was 6 of 17 on break points
Wilander was 3 of 9

Dick Enberg said Noah's final net stats were 56 of 82(68%) but I had him at 64 of 101(63%)

Noah really didn't serve & volley all that much(I'm guessing no more than 15 times) just worked his way into net later in the rallies(great slice bh's) A lot of the times he did S&V Mats blew returns by him.

I had Wilander at 23 of 36 at net (64%)

In the 1st game of the 3rd NBC had Noah with 26 volley winners, 5 errors, & 11 times passed.

They flashed some rather strange stats late in the match(4-3 in the 3rd):

FH Winners
Noah 28
Mats 13

BH Winners
Noah 10
Mats 12

No idea where these numbers came from, esp since my stats were pretty close to the stats they had after 2 sets:

Noah 32 winners, 11 unforced errors
Wilander 17 winners, 14 unforced errors


This was the first time a French Open final was broadcast live in the US. Noah received $88,000 as the champion.

I was surprised at how well behaved the crowd was, they rarely cheered Wilander errors, even when they came on crucial points. They got quiet soon after the points ended, the umpire didn't have to constantly ask for silence like they so often have to do today. And the umpire didn't get out of his chair to check even one mark during the match.

Was amused to see the future Mrs. Edberg identified as Mats' girlfriend.

 

[krosero]

From the New York Times:

Noah, who is 23 years old, said that he first thought about winning a title at Roland Garros Stadium 10 years ago, a year after he had come from Cameroon in Africa to live in France. He had been recommended by Arthur Ashe to the French Tennis Federation as a champion in the making. Then, Noah said, the thought of a title was ''a dream.''

The dream looked attainable in the last few years when he was a regular quarterfinalist here. Always, however, his acrobatic, gambling game went up and down. Some days he played as if he were the best in he world, other days it looked as if he would be happier sitting in a cafe reading his favorite romantic philosophy.

Prepared Differently

This year, Noah said, his preparation was different. He reached three successive finals this spring, winning two. He beat the 18-year-old Wilander in a tournament, ending his streak of 20 victories and another streak of 43 on European clay. Noah felt ready.

''I worked hard,'' he said of his physical routine leading to the French Open, ''but I did that before. This time, though, I practiced to win. I thought about winning, not only a few matches but the tournament. That was the difference. The difference was in my head, in my mind. I was ready to fight to win the tournament.''

The strategy of the two seemed obvious. Wilander was expected to stay at the baseline, hit deep enough to keep Noah from the net, and pass him when he ventured forward. Noah was expected to fire in his first serve and go to the net at every opportunity, using his wide reach to frustrate Wilander's attempts to pass him.

Instead, Wilander tried to press his opponent by going to the net, using the volley he said he has improved in the last year. That strategy was necessary, he said, because otherwise Noah would be the aggressor. He could not expect his passing shots to work all the time.

''To beat Yannick, my passing shots have to work better,'' Wilander said. ''Today they didn't work 100 percent. Maybe he'd have been impatient at the baseline. But still he'd have come in a lot and I'd have had to pass him, and I wasn't doing that too well.''

Scores With His Volley

In the first two sets, Noah's crisp, angled volleys were winning point after point. Once at the net, he was difficult to pass. The crowd chanted his name, spurring him on. He pumped himself up, first after winning games and then after almost each point he won.

He quieted in the third set. His legs began to cramp, and his play became tighter. ''Not because I was tired,'' he said, ''but because I was nervous. I was so close to winning. I knew if I lost that set, it would maybe be something else.''

They exchanged breaks to start the third set, and then Wilander had an opportunity to change the course of the match when he led, 2-1, and had triple break point at 15-40. An ace by Noah, one of his total of four, brought him to 30-40, and a forehand volley made it deuce. Wilander had another break point when Noah's forehand was long, but the Swede hit an errant backhand for another deuce. A big serve by Noah put him ahead in the game for the first time, and he won it when Wilander made another backhand error.

Noah had not only lifted his game when necessary, but also had shown the effectiveness of a big serve and an aggressive style in such a situation. His serve not only gave him quick points, but also gave him a lift when he needed it.

Swede Forces a Tiebreaker

Wilander's best game came with Noah serving for the match at 6-5. Three times Wilander came up with service returns so powerful that they skidded past Noah or through his legs. Noah managed just 1 point in the game, and Wilander observed wryly afterward that ''if I hit winners, I have a good chance to win.''

That break by Wilander forced the tiebreaker, which Noah won, 7 points to 3. On the last point, Wilander returned a serve long. Noah fell to his knees, a gesture reminiscent of Bjorn Borg, a six-time champion here who watched the match from a courtside broadcasting booth, where he was doing commentary for NBC.

 

[pc1]

That match was the most emotional match I think I've ever seen. I would have thought Noah served and volleyed more than what you had listed. It surprises me the total was that low.

Moose, could they have included the FV winners as part of the forehand winners?

 

[krosero]

Noah had 41 non service winners(5 fh, 3 bh, 20 fhv, 7 bhv, 6 ov)

This looks like one of our matches where McEnroe had an extreme number of winners on his FHV side.

I thought Noah’s volleys were firmer in this match than when he beat Lendl at Forest Hills in '86. His groundstrokes look a little flatter, too.

Noah really didn't serve & volley all that much(I'm guessing no more than 15 times) just worked his way into net later in the rallies(great slice bh's)

I noticed this too, it wasn't really a serve-volley performance.

 

[borg number one]

I saw Noah play live Indoors at a WCT event in about 1978-1979. He obviously had immense talent when you watched him play. He had great athleticism and sheer range due to his height/physique. In some ways, I would say he was an even better French Tennis athlete than Monfils.

Short Video Clip about Noah's Win

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qBfw...7F842B15&playnext_from=PL&playnext=1&index=51

With His Dad After the Win

Young Yannick Noah

 

[pc1]

Funny thing about Noah is that people used to comment that with his jumping ability (very apparent with his jumping overheads) that he had the talent to play in the NBA and now his much taller son is playing for the Chicago Bulls of the NBA.

 

[abmk]

interesting, I haven't watched this match and from what I had read before, I was under the impression that noah SnVed quite a lot in this match

 

[Winners or Errors]

interesting, I haven't watched this match and from what I had read before, I was under the impression that noah SnVed quite a lot in this match

Um, he went to the net 101 times in three sets. He must have S&V'd quite a bit.

 

[abmk]

Um, he went to the net 101 times in three sets. He must have S&V'd quite a bit.

see this part of the post by moose

Noah really didn't serve & volley all that much(I'm guessing no more than 15 times) just worked his way into net later in the rallies(great slice bh's) A lot of the times he did S&V Mats blew returns by him.

 

[Moose Malloy]

Noah really didn't serve & volley all that much(I'm guessing no more than 15 times) just worked his way into net later in the rallies(great slice bh's) A lot of the times he did S&V Mats blew returns by him.

went back & got S&V stats for Noah - 18/25(72%)

 

[SusanDK]

Was amused to see the future Mrs. Edberg identified as Mats' girlfriend.

 

[Moose Malloy]

my stats for this match
1983 French Open QF - Noah d. Lendl 76(7-5) 62 57 60

Noah served at 49%(57 of 116)
Lendl served at 38%(51 of 135)

Noah won 42 of 57 points on 1st serve(74%)
He won 38 of 59 on 2nd(64%)

Lendl won 36 of 51 points on 1st serve(70.5%)
He won 43 of 84 on 2nd(51%)

Noah had 7 aces, 2 df's
Lendl had 4 aces, 5 df's

Noah had 25 unreturned serves(6 on 2nd serve, 5 were service winners)
Lendl had 8 unreturned serves(3 on 2nd serve, 2 were service winners)

Noah had 38 non service winners: 6 fh, 7 bh, 12 fhv, 6 bhv, 7 ov
Lendl had 37: 10 fh, 15 bh, 6 fhv, 2 bhv, 4 ov

Noah had 4 passing shot winners, all bh's
Lendl had 21, 7 fh & 14 bh

Noah was 7 of 19 on bp's, Lendl made 1st serves on 8 of them
Lendl was 3 of 8, Noah made 1st serves on 2 of them

Noah was 54 of 87 at net (62%) He made 17 S&V attempts
Lendl was 32 of 48 (67%) He made 12 S&V attempts

I had both players with 35 unforced errors

Noah had 2 match points on Lendl's serve at 5-2 in the 3rd. Lendl saved both with serve & volley attempts on 2nd serves. Noah made 3 unforced errors when serving for the match at 5-3.

Lendl's serve % by set: 30, 30, 44, 50

He had some incredibly low %'s in 3 of his 4 losses in majors in '83. I'm curious what it was vs Wilander in '82

 

[krosero]

my stats for this match
1983 French Open QF - Noah d. Lendl 76(7-5) 62 57 60

So what happened here, how did Lendl get bageled in the fourth? If he won the third set from 2-5 down, he should have had all the momentum.

And his highest service % was in the fourth set, strange.

It's just interesting that a few months later he got bageled in the fourth set again, in the USO final. And at '84 Wimbledon he lost the fourth set 1-6, to Connors again.

 

[SusanDK]

I don't remember Lendl being much of a come-from-behind player, certainly not like a Becker or Connors, particularly earlier in his career (early 80's). As I remember, he usually started strong and was nearly unbeatable for a number of years, but when he was 'off' or behind, I don't recall the killer instinct, never-say-die kind of effort to fight and claw his way back into a set or match once he was far behind.

Of course, once I post this I'm sure others will come with plenty of examples of Lendl fighting his way back into a match. But in comparison to the fighting spirit of Connors or Becker, I think he was more likely to let a set or match slip away when he was too far out of it.

 

[krosero]

At RG in '81 he saved a match point when he beat Clerc, and some months later he won the Masters final from two sets and match point down to Gerulaitis. Those are just two that come to mind. I do think Lendl had some trouble in the Slams, and some of that was mental. I just wonder how much of it was physical too, because I know he was working hard to improve his fitness in '83 and '84. Somewhere I remember him talking about needing better endurance. He did say that he had stomach problems at the end of the '83 USO final (a brutal match in the heat), though it's difficult to separate the physical from the mental in a case like that.

Just wondering what happened against Noah.

 

[Moose Malloy]

So what happened here, how did Lendl get bageled in the fourth? If he won the third set from 2-5 down, he should have had all the momentum.

And his highest service % was in the fourth set, strange.

Yeah, it was sorta strange statistically. And Lendl had a break point in the 1st game of the 4th set.

Much of his comeback in the 3rd was due to Noah's poor play though (Noah ended the set with quite a flurry of errors, and I wonder if Lendl S&Ving on 2nd serves down match point was almost like a "I give up' sort of play like Djokovic's 'lucky' return winner down match point vs Fed at USO)

I had Lendl with 5 winners, 1 ace, & 7 ue's in the 4th set.
Noah with 8 winners, 2 aces, 5 ue's

here is how Lendl **** in each game of the set
Game 1 - had break point
Game 2 - was broken at 30
Game 3 - Noah holds at 30
Game 4 - had a game point
Game 5 - Noah holds at 30, was down 0-30
Game 6 - was broken at 30(& again S&Ves on a 2nd serve on match point)

At RG in '81 he saved a match point when he beat Clerc,

do you know when in the match Clerc had a match point? would like to see that match.

 

[krosero]

He had some incredibly low %'s in 3 of his 4 losses in majors in '83.

38% here and in the 40s at USO and AO. But above 70% at Wimbledon when he lost to Mac.

Much of his comeback in the 3rd was due to Noah's poor play though (Noah ended the set with quite a flurry of errors, and I wonder if Lendl S&Ving on 2nd serves down match point was almost like a "I give up' sort of play like Djokovic's 'lucky' return winner down match point vs Fed at USO)

I've seen him do that fatalistically in other matches (maybe 83AO?)

do you know when in the match Clerc had a match point? would like to see that match.

I've read that it was in the fourth-set tiebreak.

 

[krosero]

Noah was 54 of 87 at net (62%) He made 17 S&V attempts
Lendl was 32 of 48 (67%) He made 12 S&V attempts

One other thing, everyone talks about Noah SVing to win this title, but the vast majority of his net points were not SV. Even Lendl gave him a run for his money in the SV stat.

 

[kiki]

I don't remember Lendl being much of a come-from-behind player, certainly not like a Becker or Connors, particularly earlier in his career (early 80's). As I remember, he usually started strong and was nearly unbeatable for a number of years, but when he was 'off' or behind, I don't recall the killer instinct, never-say-die kind of effort to fight and claw his way back into a set or match once he was far behind.

Of course, once I post this I'm sure others will come with plenty of examples of Lendl fighting his way back into a match. But in comparison to the fighting spirit of Connors or Becker, I think he was more likely to let a set or match slip away when he was too far out of it.

You are right but, still 2 of Lendl´s most memorable matches were his first Masters ( 6/7,2/6,7/6,672,6/4 over Gerulaitis, having saved a match ball in the third set tie breaker) and, of course, his 1984 FO ( 3/6, 2/6, 6/4,7/5,7/5 against John Mc Enroe, who also hold a match ball in the third set) and he also was 1-2 sets down to Pat Cash at the 1984 USO...

 

[kiki]

I am not able to proof that, but some journalists I talked about that time said Noah had a bunch of coke before his final match against Wilander.From what I saw, the way he looked, his eyes, and his reactions, I would also suspect that.

 

[subban]

Yes, he was notorious for taking mushrooms and smoking pot before matches. would'nt be surprised if he did take coke before the final. One of the biggest underachievers in tennis. Had the most natural ability. could have won many more grand slams.