This would be an epic backbreaker for Nole

winstonplum

Hall of Fame
If Nole beats Dimi in the semis and faces Fed in the finals (when I see giant pigs flying down my street tomorrow, I'll know Milos beat Fed), he has got to win. Since his annus miribabilis, he's lost five slams finals. Six if you count the slam "final" at RG in 2013 (sorry Daveed, but it was).

Holy mackeral; he cannot lose six finals in the less than three years. Or can he? Anyway, I'll be rooting for Nole if he gets there. I've always liked him. A few of his fans on this site are horrible, but as a whole the Nadal haters (fed fans) make them look like geniuses.

If Nole were to lose another slam final . . . holy smokes. Across all surfaces, across all members of the big four. It just can't happen. Many of his fans were throwing in the towel after RG this year, claiming he was a mental midget, etc. I never saw it that way. From my fetal position on the floor, all the finals between him and Nadal have appeared to me fought on the edge of knife, with a few points deciding it. I even tried to console some Nole fans that he's far from done, and next time the bounces will go this way.

If he loses this one, there's a whole lot of truth to their concerns. There's something wrong mentally if you lose six ("seven") slam finals in less than three years, but you kick *** across the rest of the ATP world tour. Boris makes his money now or hits the bricks.
 
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If Federer does indeed play Novak in the final he'll be once again (like their clash in the semi's in 2012) anxious to avoid be 'slammed' at all 4 majors by a player.


... Up until now no player has beaten Federer in all of the 4 slams and when they met that time 2 years ago both players were looking to complete the set.
 

Kerber_Lover

New User
If it is Fed-Djok final I'm rooting for Fed to win it. Nole's young he's got plenty of slams ahead of him. Fed's chances of winning another are getting slimmer each time. Federer needs to win this and secure no. 18.
 
Federer is head and shoulders above Djokovic on grass and is playing way better than he did when he was injured midway through the tournament (hurt back against Malisse in the Round of 16) in 2012 and then healed in the latter stages to wax Novak in 4.


... The good thing (if you can say that) for Novak is due to all the recent grand slam final losses it might steel him for something really big come this time around.Federer's overall superior transition game might still not be enough if Djokovic wants this title really really badly.


If they do indeed meet it will be a pleasant one for me to watch in 2 ways

1.No Nadal
2.I like both to win... Federer gets his 18th and most likely final slam... moves ahead of Sampras as the supreme title holder of Wimbledon (8) and/or.. Djokovic: With the win reclaims the Number 1 ranking and wins his 2nd Wimbledon.Regains confidence and a spring in his step and will be oh so hungry to utilise that success in the upcoming hardcourt season by firstly completing the Masters Series resume by winning that elusive Cincy title.
 
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Down_the_line

G.O.A.T.
I agree.

While I think the other semifinalists have a shot at the title, if Djokovic doesn't ultimately overcome them and win the title...I don't know what to say. He could be mentally fried. He really should win this.
 

ACE of Hearts

Bionic Poster
I still dont feel that grass is one of joker's strongest surfaces.He was really awful last year in the final against murray.Alot of break of serves.I think dimi could surprise him tomorrow
 

veroniquem

Bionic Poster
Then that's ok. Apparently only losing a GS final makes you mentally weak.
Raonic would have to be the final (he's playing Fed in the semi).
I agree OP.
RG, what can you do? Rafa Nadal is THE clay phenomenon of the century (millenium?) and if there is failure, it is shared by every single other ATP player (including Fed).
AO: at least 1 slam with a perfect record: 4-0
The real heartbreaker is the USO one. That stat is depressing and shocking. 5 finals at the USO, superlative consistency but 4 of those lost: what a shame. In a perfect world, Novak would have picked up where Fed left and become the new dominant player at USO, with a success rate matching his exceptional consistency.
What is it that went wrong there? On his best surface? I wonder if Nole sometimes wakes up in the morning and ponders the same question. I humbly confess I haven't found the answer.
ATM, W is a tie: 1-1.
If he won another title there, it would become 2 slams with a positive record (AO and W) and 2 with a negative one (RG and USO).
Very different story than going negative in 3 slams out of the 4.
OTOH, Fedal are probably the best players ever (by a good margin), that's the mitigating circumstances. 3rd in Fedal era would probably take you to #1 in a lot of other eras.
ETA: one admirable stat is how Djoko doesn't really have a weak surface. Regularly makes finals of all slams. (As well as all masters + WTF). he's very polyvalent
 
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veroniquem

Bionic Poster
Actually, I was just thinking his USO record is not that far away from Rafa's record at W: 5 finals/2 won.
If we do a breakdown of his USO finals: 2007: Fed still very dominant and Djoko very "green", no regrets to have there. Same for 2010, this time Rafa very dominant (with a new "supersonic serve" to boot) and Djoko struggling all year with his own serve: no regret either. That leaves 2012 and 2013 when one might say that he could have/should have won at least 1 of the 2. Of course easier to say from a comfy couch than trying to do one's best on court vs tough opposition.
Novak never had the luxury of a slam final vs a non big 4.
 

Hollywood401k

Semi-Pro
Novak's had to earn the hardest slams by far. I liked his answer at the FO when he said in an interview that Fedal made him the player he is today. That being said, I do think a loss in the final here would be hard for even him to stomach.

I'm happy for any of the contenders to win Wimbledon though. Except Raonic--that guy cheated Delpo. Who does that? Not a fan.
 
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