Stan The Man (Part 2)

[jim360]

Goodness me! Stanislas Wawrinka becomes a Grand Slam Champion! Seems like Rafa was injured but still... wow. Beat both Nadal and Djoker on the way to his first title, and becomes one of only two people other than Del Potro outside the Big Four to have won a Grand Slam since 2005.

[janbee]

I watched the match and it was sad to see Rafa struggling so badly with an injury. It was amazing he kept going wasn't it? I KNOW that Stan won and well done to him... but, I can't help feeling it was something of a hollow victory in the end.

[murraymints]

Agree with Jan ...I don't think he deserves the accolade when Nadal was obviously injured , and as for his very unprofessional tantrum ....Well.....

[jim360]

He deserved to be in the final, and while a fit Nadal would surely have steamrollered him you ought to give Stan credit for even being there, no?

[Brenden]

A very worthy winner, great match am delighted that Stan the man won - but it has its drawbacks - will he become the Swiss no,1 and relegate my favourite Federer and now he has become no.3 in the world that puts Roger even further down the list and Stan is still a young man in the world of tennis.

[janbee]

Yes Minty, he was a bit stroppy to say the least. Very poor sportsmanship I think. However, the books will record a win and won't mention the injured opponent.

[Brenden]

Rafa had the blisters when he disposed of Roger - blisters or not he played a blinder and I fully expected him to win the final - credit to him - he did not mention the injury in his speech - Rafa will be a force to reckon with in the coming year - he wants to top Rogers record - and he still has the time to do it.

[jim360]

I'd fancy Rafa to defend his French Open title with one hand tied behind his back, and maybe the US Open too. He's been a bit muted at Wimbledon recently, I wonder if that will change this year?

[aelmpvw]

and federer is the second best swiss player in the world, who would have thought it

[Brenden]

Stan has a way to go to beat Rogers record of grand slams

[jomifl]

Stan played very well but not well enough to beat the top four if they were fit. A good trophy to get in the twilight of his career.

[Butterbun]

Stan will never ever reach Roger's record Brenden, let alone beat it. I'm glad he won his first, He has worked very hard and had some tough matches. His attitude disappointed me but hey, he was fired up. Nadal still have time to equal Sampras' record. I think they will all be pleased for Stan. It's only one compared to the big four.

[Brenden]

Agree butterbun, but there are a few youngsters coming through ie. Dimitrov and Raonic to name but two. Roger is now on the decline of his career although he can still produce a few surprises (especially since having Edberg as his coach) and not to be underestimated by any player. He will imo go down as the greatest tennis player ever (he is in my books). I have a great disliking for the time wasting of Rafa (nothing that a big clock on court starting at 20 seconds so the server can see) it is almost like he suffers with OCD - he picks his shorts out of his backside the his crotch next he lifts the shoulder of his top on the left, then the right, next stroke his nose then eyebrows then forehead then repeats the nose eyes and forehead before tucking a tress of hair behind his ear - now he serves - all this with a time limit of 20 seconds - no wonder Roger complained -

[craft1948]

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jomifl

Stan played very well but not well enough to beat the top four if they were fit. A good trophy to get in the twilight of his career.

Was Djokovic injured when Stan beat him?

[Butterbun]

No, he wasn't injured but Stan had had a walkover, and the match before that, his opponent retired after a set and a half, the he beat Robredo, then Djokovic. He was fresher having had more rest.
Breden, You could have spared us the detailed description, we can all see his 'routine'. lol

[Brenden]

It almost turned into a novel butterbun lol.

[jomifl]

If we are going to criticise players for their rituals then we could spentd the rest of the evening on that topic alone.

[jomifl]

janbee, I suspect that rafa kept going because he didn't want people to think that he retired because he was losing.

[diddlydo]

Would Nadal have taken a medical time out if he'd been one set up and with a break of serve early in the 2nd set? I doubt it very much. He was being slaughtered by Wawrinka and didn't like it one little bit. Gamesmanship at its worst.

[Butterbun]

diddlydo, he had a back injury.

[jim360]

It seems harsh to judge someone based on speculation that can never be confirmed -- because, after all, Nadal wasn't a set and a break up, so who knows how he would have reacted? One thing worth mentioning is that people have retired from winning positions before, albeit rarely, so it's not like ever injury in sport is just an excuse for bad play.