TENNIS: Davis Cup QFs
Jul. 18th, 2016 07:43 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
feather_ghyllIt is a bit hit and miss if I remember the Davis Cup is on, but I did this weekend, although I was a bit surprised to catch the second rubber on Saturday morning – play had been delayed because of bad weather. Still, Edmund had won his first match, they were playing on clay in Serbia in variable weather, and Djokovic and Murray (and also Troicki) weren’t playing. Serbia’s ‘No. 1’ (really its No. 3) was thrashing James Ward when I swtiched my television on, so it wasn’t very interesting.
It was 1-1 when the doubles started, and as the Serbians were putting their third-choice singles player of the weekend's team in with the quality Njiemonic, it felt like it was doubles specialists Murray and Inglot’s to win. On court, we had two former no. 1s in doubles, but one of them was forty and it doesn’t matter how good you are if your partner, however decent a tennis player, doesn’t have doubles instincts or experiences.
The Brits were better at doubles, really. There were quite a lot of amazing volleys, which is what you want. Although there was a period where they could not take a break point and thus lost a set, they did come through in four, although Inglot found the last service game hard, as this would be his first win in Davis Cup (we were oft reminded that the only other times he’d been allowed to play because Andy Murray didn’t want to, it had been against the Bryans and they had been close losses).
And so, on Sunday, young Kyle Edmund would be playing against Ward’s conquerer, Lajovic, as their countries ‘strongest players’. Both were in the top 100, Edmund ranked slightly higher, but his opponent was more experienced on clay. This we knew before the match started, but the young’un looked composed from the beginning, and his weight of shot and amazing forehand (so impressive in damp conditions) were real weapons. His opponent didn’t have much to offer in opposition – I think a better player might have tried a plan B, but set by set, Edmund broke, until in the third, tension crept in and the partisan crowd called out and whistled, which is very Davis Cup, but even after a minibreak in the tie break, he was still too strong. And so it was 3-1.
I didn’t hear the commentators discuss how good they think Edmund could be, but I look forward to finding out - that forehand will stand him in good stead, as will this experience.
I absolutely don’t blame the top players for not turning up just after their efforts at Wimbledon, Queen’s, Paris and other clay courts, in an Olympic year.
It was 1-1 when the doubles started, and as the Serbians were putting their third-choice singles player of the weekend's team in with the quality Njiemonic, it felt like it was doubles specialists Murray and Inglot’s to win. On court, we had two former no. 1s in doubles, but one of them was forty and it doesn’t matter how good you are if your partner, however decent a tennis player, doesn’t have doubles instincts or experiences.
The Brits were better at doubles, really. There were quite a lot of amazing volleys, which is what you want. Although there was a period where they could not take a break point and thus lost a set, they did come through in four, although Inglot found the last service game hard, as this would be his first win in Davis Cup (we were oft reminded that the only other times he’d been allowed to play because Andy Murray didn’t want to, it had been against the Bryans and they had been close losses).
And so, on Sunday, young Kyle Edmund would be playing against Ward’s conquerer, Lajovic, as their countries ‘strongest players’. Both were in the top 100, Edmund ranked slightly higher, but his opponent was more experienced on clay. This we knew before the match started, but the young’un looked composed from the beginning, and his weight of shot and amazing forehand (so impressive in damp conditions) were real weapons. His opponent didn’t have much to offer in opposition – I think a better player might have tried a plan B, but set by set, Edmund broke, until in the third, tension crept in and the partisan crowd called out and whistled, which is very Davis Cup, but even after a minibreak in the tie break, he was still too strong. And so it was 3-1.
I didn’t hear the commentators discuss how good they think Edmund could be, but I look forward to finding out - that forehand will stand him in good stead, as will this experience.
I absolutely don’t blame the top players for not turning up just after their efforts at Wimbledon, Queen’s, Paris and other clay courts, in an Olympic year.
