Andy breaks back!

what a way to get to a tiebreaker.

I hope Andy pulls this match off, though he will probably have to go 5 to do it. Cilic is playing some really good ball right now. As for Murray/Nadal, I want Andy to win and finally get a breakthrough by beating a top player in a major, but like bloon said, rafa always comes up huge at some point.

damnit.

Roddick's done. I'm not even sure he finishes the match at this point.

if he goes down two sets to love i could def see him retiring.

i bet he popped some serious pills during that ITO and they're kicking in. looking a little better now.

What a strange match... Cilic is kind of choking right now.

Can he actually win this?

If he keeps this up and Cilic keeps playing like crap, then yes, definitely.

love the way andy is playing now. cutting loose on his forehand return, flattening out his backhand dtl, getting more free points on serve. cilic is in a shell.

a break to start off the fifth would be huuuge.

[This message has been edited by road not taken (edited 1/26/2010 1:20a).]

squandered that 0-40 lead. would be nice to get an easy hold and an early break.

No matter what, he just HAS to hold serve.

First serve abandoning Andy at a very bad time.

And there's the break for Cilic. Come on Andy, work hard!

That sucks. Credit to Cilic for waking up in the 5th and finally finding his serve, though.

Ugh, good job by Andy to come back, but Cilic finally upped his game in the end.

andy got tentative after blowing those three break points to start the fifth. cilic picked up his movement, as well.

Well at least I can stop losing sleep trying to watch Roddick.

Cilic v Murray might be a really good match, big hitters battling it out

what a crazy match with Roddick and Cilic. It looked like Cilic was in cruise control, then stumbled around for a while.

Let's talk Nadal guys...

I know it's tough to discuss with him being so young, but elite tennis players(multi-slam winners) either have those very short careers, or they are able to play into their late 20's and early 30's at a high level.

With Rafa's injuries, and the pain he puts on his knees/joints...are we seeing the end of him as an elite force that is a challenge in every major?

I feel so bad for the guy, he flies around the court and just kills his body doing it. To his credit, it appears he has really let up in that department in the US and even in the Aussie Opens...but this is not good for Rafa.

I was worried about that at the end of last year. Some people are just never the same after injury

I guess it's just as much a testament to Federer, who just "glides" across the court, and has seemingly never been slowed by injury in his entire career. Sure there are times where soreness and certain things may have kept him off his A+ game, but nothing major at all to where he's withdrawing in the 2nd week of slams, or even calling the trainers out. He really does move around the court while putting the least amount of pain and pressure on his body.

I think the difference is that Nadal is more of a grinder, he doesnt look to close out points early on. He would rather wear you out and wait til you miss. Playing that style of game is hard on your body.

Fed, on the other hand, is more of an all court player. He will close in on the net and take advantage of a short ball. He will serve and volley some to make the points short. Therefore, his points and matches dont take as long, not as many shots and chasing balls down. This style of play is way easier on the body. Think about reducing each point by 1-2 shots, and then multiplying that by an entire 4-5 set match, then multiply that by 4-7 matches a tournament. Thats a lot less running and chasing.

agree completely. Fed can take control and shorten a match with his style. I also think Roger knows exactly when to push it, and when not to. He knows what balls he has a realistic shot at chasing down, and which ones to let go, and just live for another day...while Rafa is flying everywhere and constantly making very tough cuts across his body all over the court. Obviously, that's why the clay is such a better surface for him.

It's tough to see this happening, but tennis truly does have about 7 guys who are very, very, very good right now...so that helps.

[This message has been edited by J Peterman (edited 1/26/2010 10:24a).]

what does everyone think about tonight's matchups?

Tsonga and Djokovic? Could be a tough one for the Djoker.

The big one obviously Fed v Davydenko. The "best of all time" vs. the "best of the last 6 months"

Davydenko's unbelievable dominance was tested the other night, but he got through it. Tonight should be a bit tougher as Fed is playing seemingly outstanding tennis.

I like Djokovic in 5, and Fed in 4.

Novak is more rested, but that's going to be a great match. I don't know who wins, but I'm sure it will be a very fun 5-setter. I'll take Fed in 4 as well. I think Roger brings his best tennis and breaks the streak Davydenko is on. He's too good at this point to give up his 3rd loss in a row to the Russian.

well Venus went down, and her sister looks to be in a dogfight.

Azarenka should be dominating Serena at this point, but she's had so many unforced errors. She's broken Serena twice, and finally held.

Up 4-2 in the first set.

Serena looks terrible, and as much as I hate Azarenka's stupid shrieking, I wouldn't mind seeing Serena follow Venus out of the singles draw.

I'd love to see them both go packing tonight.

But yes, Azarenka is annoying to listen to...however most of the top female players are these days. It's so brutal trying to watch with the volume even remotely high.

No kidding. I would put it on mute, but I enjoy the commentators, except for Pam Shriver when she brags about her height or her glory days.

Haha, yeah Shriver and her height. I feel like Shriver is the only commentator not getting any action down under(figuratively and literally) when I watch the coverage.

On another light note...I'm absolutely enjoying watching Serena get dominated. I'm sure we'll hear about her nagging injuries and her mistakes today more than Azarenka just whooping her ass though. I hope she ends this quick so Fed can get on the court at a decent hour.

[This message has been edited by J Peterman (edited 1/26/2010 10:49p).]

Listening to Pam and pat riding serena's nuts reminds me of Brent musberger and colt. They were just saying how she looked horrible, now pat just said you can never count her out. I would love to see both the William's BROTHERS lose in one day.

****ING Serena. Get over yourself and LOSE already! this girl is 2 games away from the semi's...let her move on!

[This message has been edited by J Peterman (edited 1/26/2010 11:00p).]

Azarenka better hold serve. Serena's quickly gaining more confidence.

Crap.