TennisLovaLova
Hall of Fame
Ok, I'm going to try to translate what I read in L'Equipe today:
1st: Wawrinka's tennis on clay
Wilander thinks that Wawrinka is even more powerful on clay, since he has more time to prepare his shots and he can also handle Djokovic's offensive shots much better then when they meet on HC.
2nd: Djokovic's movement and placement on clay
Wilander says that Djokovic has a weakness: his court position is not adapted to clay, it's good for HC but not clay, especially vs Wawrinka's power. Djokovic likes to stay on the baseline and never leave it. This clear advantage on HC or Grass becomes a big weakness on clay, because when he leaves the baseline he's not confortable in that 3 meters zone between the baseline and the backcourt (Murray and Nadal are great there). So when he launches his counter attacks, it doesnt hurt Wawrinka.
3rd: ball height and variation
Wilander says Djokovic didnt vary enough (not enough slice) and didnt play high enough on Wawrinka's backhand. Yes Djokovic used some dropshots and S&V but that didnt have any effect on Wawrinka, cause it wasnt enough.
Wilander concludes that Djokovic didnt choke, he didnt mentally lose, Djokovic knew that Wawrinka was a bad matchup for his tennis and that he needs to progress in order to defeat him on clay.
Man defeats machine.
1st: Wawrinka's tennis on clay
Wilander thinks that Wawrinka is even more powerful on clay, since he has more time to prepare his shots and he can also handle Djokovic's offensive shots much better then when they meet on HC.
2nd: Djokovic's movement and placement on clay
Wilander says that Djokovic has a weakness: his court position is not adapted to clay, it's good for HC but not clay, especially vs Wawrinka's power. Djokovic likes to stay on the baseline and never leave it. This clear advantage on HC or Grass becomes a big weakness on clay, because when he leaves the baseline he's not confortable in that 3 meters zone between the baseline and the backcourt (Murray and Nadal are great there). So when he launches his counter attacks, it doesnt hurt Wawrinka.
3rd: ball height and variation
Wilander says Djokovic didnt vary enough (not enough slice) and didnt play high enough on Wawrinka's backhand. Yes Djokovic used some dropshots and S&V but that didnt have any effect on Wawrinka, cause it wasnt enough.
Wilander concludes that Djokovic didnt choke, he didnt mentally lose, Djokovic knew that Wawrinka was a bad matchup for his tennis and that he needs to progress in order to defeat him on clay.
Man defeats machine.
