who can beat djokovic in 2020 us open ?
- Thread starter skypadq
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3loudboys
G.O.A.T.
Depends how fit he is post Covid. Obviously a favourite for the hard courts but Nadal can push him. Med as well.
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burma_shave
New User
Tsitsipas.
tennis_pro
Bionic Poster
Tons of players, everyone's rusty.
PerilousPear
Professional
Hypothetical peak Berrettini will demolish Novak 6-0 6-1 6-0
socallefty
G.O.A.T.
I think there will be a lot of upsets this year as players will be rusty and this could happen to Djokovic in the early rounds also. Dimitrov says that he has been affected physically still by his illness and who knows how fit and healthy Djokovic will be from a respiratory capacity standpoint - can he play 4-hour matches back-to-back if needed? Also, he was serving very well at the start of the year and it remains to be seen if he can keep that up after the lengthy break.
If Novak is healthy and playing normally, I think only Thiem or Nadal or a healthy Wawrinka can beat him especially in the later stages of the tournament and he still would be favored over them based on his hard-court track record. I don’t see Tsitsipas, Zverev or Medvedev beating a healthy, non-rusty Djokovic in a best-of-5 Grand Slam match as they cannot out power him like Thiem/Wawrinka or play defense toe-to-toe like Nadal can.
If Novak is healthy and playing normally, I think only Thiem or Nadal or a healthy Wawrinka can beat him especially in the later stages of the tournament and he still would be favored over them based on his hard-court track record. I don’t see Tsitsipas, Zverev or Medvedev beating a healthy, non-rusty Djokovic in a best-of-5 Grand Slam match as they cannot out power him like Thiem/Wawrinka or play defense toe-to-toe like Nadal can.
TearTheRoofOff
G.O.A.T.
Bread.
Aussie Darcy
Bionic Poster
Covid-19.
Nadal_Django
Legend
If Djokovic actually wins the US Open, will be a huge slap in a face for all the Covid fanboys out there. 
junior74
Bionic Poster
Berry easy, no?
Subway Tennis
G.O.A.T.
Has anyone been looking at the training footage of Novak since he has recovered from the virus? He looks very sharp.
The long-term effects of the virus are still undetermined, and we have clear evidence of how truly devastating and immediate the impact can be on even elite level athletes, but Novak looks to be a case of someone who doesn't show the symptoms as dramatically. The long-term effect on him is anyone's guess, though.
Thiem is the current US Open favourite for me. Before the shutdown he was the second best hardcourt player in the game, and he is the only one who has almost not stopped playing matches, even during the pandemic.
If my count is correct, he has played at least 30 matches at near tour level even while all this has been going on. With his game at the stage it is now, and the match fitness he has maintained during the shutdown, he has a massive advantage over the field.
The long-term effects of the virus are still undetermined, and we have clear evidence of how truly devastating and immediate the impact can be on even elite level athletes, but Novak looks to be a case of someone who doesn't show the symptoms as dramatically. The long-term effect on him is anyone's guess, though.
Thiem is the current US Open favourite for me. Before the shutdown he was the second best hardcourt player in the game, and he is the only one who has almost not stopped playing matches, even during the pandemic.
If my count is correct, he has played at least 30 matches at near tour level even while all this has been going on. With his game at the stage it is now, and the match fitness he has maintained during the shutdown, he has a massive advantage over the field.
ForehandCross
G.O.A.T.
The guy who almost took him down on his hometurf.
Phoenix1983
G.O.A.T.
tennis_pro
Bionic Poster
who becomes the new berrettini for nadal here
MichaelNadal
Bionic Poster
I kinda wouldn't mind a Djokodal match at the US Open, it's been too long 
mental midget
Hall of Fame
my pick as well. if he keeps improving i see him as the clear next #1. has all the shots on all surfaces, and real power.
PeoplesChamp
Legend
It can't really be called the UO, but I'll say Thiem with a small chance.
BeatlesFan
Bionic Poster
You're not concerned about his history of choking big matches? He had Djokovic on the ropes at the AO this year and choked another match he should have won in four sets. He may have the game to win the USO (if it's played), but not the mentality. Until he wins a major, I pin no hopes on him.
Explain to me why Thiem should've won in 4 sets! He never broke serve in the last 2 sets, and was broken twice. And unlike Nadal, who lost 3 tiebreaks to Thiem at the same tournament, Djokovic actually knows how to play tiebreaks! Just ask Federer, and Nadal!
BTW, I heard this from Fedfans and Rafans before, and it mystified me. Thiem never came anywhere close to victory! He came within a set, but not any closer than that!
BTW, Medvedev in '19 USO and Thiem in '20 AO lost by the same score in the final set, 6-4. But Medvedev distinguished himself more by taking the next 2 sets after losing the first two. And no Djokfan has ever stated that Medvedev should've taken that match, much less repeatedly.
It's weird how Rafans blame Thiem for losing to Djokovic at AO the only time they met. Yet Nadal has never managed to beat Djokovic at 'AO. In '12, Nadal even held one break lead in the fifth. (Rafans, that's coming close to victory, and then choking it all away!) And just a year earlier than the 5-set Djokovic-Thiem battle, Djokovic blasted Nadal in 3 sets. So why was Thiem a lame loser, when he did much better than your hero at the same stage a year apart?
For a guy who came back from 2 match points down to Federer, 3 times, coming back from 2 sets down to Thiem once, is no big deal, don't you think? And yet Rafans and Fedfans keep piling on!
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MichaelNadal
Bionic Poster
1999 was a long time ago 
burma_shave
New User
I think that might be a bit harsh. Djokovic raised his level at the key moments in that match.
Medvedev really did choke though, in the 5th set of last year's USO.
burma_shave
New User
Also, Thiem also came from behind to beat Federer at Indian Wells last year, so I don't think he has a problem with the big occasion.
StrongRule
Talk Tennis Guru
Lol, please explain how exactly did Medvedev "choke". Nadal saved 4 break points out of 5 in that set (lost on the fifth one) himself, not even one unforced error from Medvedev. Even in the last game Med didn't do anything wrong, Nadal won all 5 points himself. Med also wasn't up a break at any point in this set. So where is the choke? Med was actually very clutch during his whole USO 2019 run.
DSH
Bionic Poster
donkus_the_3rd
Rookie
Kyrgios. He is the best thing in tennis right now. He just doesn't want to play.
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