[Annie R U OK?]

Hell no.

[Maria4Ever]

Both finals were very average. Lets be honest Vika played the WORST she could possibly play, it was the only way it was close, some of the most diabolical serving I have seen in a GS final! The mens was just boring but I feel they had better matches (Federer-Murray & Warinka-Novak to name 2 obvious ones). Apart from Serena's loss, were there any decent QUALITY matches?

It was just an average tournament, enough really said. It happens, hopefully the FO is better quality (it usually is)

[edificio]

I bailed as soon as Andy lost the second set TB.

[Jalil Sherman]

They were both boring.

[Patrick345]

I think the 3rd set between Vika and Na Li was actually pretty good tennis, but at that stage everybody was so soaked into the match by all the ankles, concussions, crowd behaviour and fireworks that it was hard to pay any attention to the quality. All you wanted was the "right" outcome in your mind. Nevertheless

Wertheim made a good point for once in his 50 thoughts:

[...]

• This will fall on deaf ears. It always does. But at some point a responsible, unconflicted adult (anyone? anyone?) will address injury-mania. The year is less than a month old, and the litany of injuries is already growing. Nadal -- knee/illness. Andrea Petkovic -- knee. Isner -- knee. Robson -- back injury. Hampton -- back. Kerber -- back. Kevin Anderson -- elbow. Baker -- knee. Serena -- ankle. The women's final resembled a UFC cagefight. This doesn't include the welter of players (including juniors) you see marching through the tunnels, bandaged and swathed in ice. After his interminable third-round match, Gilles Simon wasn't able to get from the court to the locker room under his own power. And he won!

Yes, injuries are part of sports. Yes, it's a physical endeavor. But something is seriously wrong when, four weeks into the season, the players are already yelling "medic!" Is it hard courts? Is it the polyester strings? Is it runaway racket technology? Is it the lack of standardized balls? Is it the rigor of five sets, which, I still maintain is both anachronistic and sadistic? Is it overtraining?

I don't know. But I know this: if I were in a position of power, I'd be a lot more concerned about the work conditions than the current leaders, such as they are, appear to be. And if I were an athlete competing without a guaranteed contract, I'd be more concerned with work conditions than per diems and courtesy cars.

Read More: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/ten...#ixzz2JFl4X425
[...]

So if you want better quality, you need to change the schedule, the balls and the surface.

[Talula]

I think this poll is not reflective of the view of life outside this Forum! Azarenka's win barely made the press and I don't know anyone else who watched it.

As for the matches, there was no comparison. Novak was amazing. I don't think the equal pay issue will go away as the gulf between the two Tours is widening with each tournament.

[Talula]

Originally Posted by Patrick345

I think the 3rd set between Vika and Na Li was actually pretty good tennis, but at that stage everybody was so soaked into the match by all the ankles, concussions, crowd behaviour and fireworks that it was hard to pay any attention to the quality. All you wanted was the "right" outcome in your mind. Nevertheless

Wertheim made a good point for once in his 50 thoughts:

[...]

• This will fall on deaf ears. It always does. But at some point a responsible, unconflicted adult (anyone? anyone?) will address injury-mania. The year is less than a month old, and the litany of injuries is already growing. Nadal -- knee/illness. Andrea Petkovic -- knee. Isner -- knee. Robson -- back injury. Hampton -- back. Kerber -- back. Kevin Anderson -- elbow. Baker -- knee. Serena -- ankle. The women's final resembled a UFC cagefight. This doesn't include the welter of players (including juniors) you see marching through the tunnels, bandaged and swathed in ice. After his interminable third-round match, Gilles Simon wasn't able to get from the court to the locker room under his own power. And he won!

Yes, injuries are part of sports. Yes, it's a physical endeavor. But something is seriously wrong when, four weeks into the season, the players are already yelling "medic!" Is it hard courts? Is it the polyester strings? Is it runaway racket technology? Is it the lack of standardized balls? Is it the rigor of five sets, which, I still maintain is both anachronistic and sadistic? Is it overtraining?

I don't know. But I know this: if I were in a position of power, I'd be a lot more concerned about the work conditions than the current leaders, such as they are, appear to be. And if I were an athlete competing without a guaranteed contract, I'd be more concerned with work conditions than per diems and courtesy cars.

Read More: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/ten...#ixzz2JFl4X425
[...]

So if you want better quality, you need to change the schedule, the balls and the surface.

And the men have to play 5 sets - it says a lot about the fitness of the women coming into a slam.

[Chrissie-fan]

For me the womens final was more enjoyable than the mens because of all of the drama and beause Djokovic vs Murray is my least favorite rivalry involving the big four. About the tournament as a whole I'm not so sure. It's hard to beat matches like Djokovic vs Wawrenka and Federer vs Tsonga. Still, I usually end up enjoying both events about equally and this time was no different.

[Patrick345]

Originally Posted by Talula

And the men have to play 5 sets - it says a lot about the fitness of the women coming into a slam.

It says nothing, because men are physically superior to women and they haven´t played best of five since August either.

[stromatolite]

Neither final was very good quality-wise, but the women's final at least had some drama.

I quite like both Djokovic and Murray, but thought their final was a bit of a yawn really.

[Chrissie-fan]

Originally Posted by stromatolite

Neither final was very good quality-wise, but the women's final at least had some drama.

I quite like both Djokovic and Murray, but thought their final was a bit of a yawn really.

Well, they are both awesome players, but they are also a bit similar. That's why I enjoy their matches against Federer and Nadal, and even delPotro and Tsonga more than when they play each other. I can't get emotionally involved when they play each other because I really don't care who of them ends up winning.

[wtftennis]

I voted for womens. To me it was a crushed young talented player coming in who had to defend herself against a nototious mob. From the press to the disrespectful crowd, rigged draws, etc. All for no reason just absurd allegations because of the hate for a player, and promote asian tennis by helping Li Na win who got the experience of the other side of the coin: Supportive crowd, supportive media, cake walk draw. (note: initially I was rooting for Li Na from the beginning)

You could see a broken down Vica in contrast to a confident Li Na when walking to the arena. The first set reflected this as Vica constantly hit the net, made easy UF errors, that we never saw before. CLearly the dirty playbook was working. However what made this match great was this young talent in Azarenka sprouting from the second set to the third, her vigor, concentration, and confidence came back. You could see it in the intensity in her eyes when Li Na was serving to her, that she was ready, she wasn't going to give it to them, she had to soul search hard to find her game again. She thought back and won the match. Tears pouring out because she knew she knew what she had just achieved.

I couldn't be more happier with both the mens and womens results. Because I like to see the best players rewarded, and thats what happened imo. Although Murray played great tennis as well, I'm sure he will improve.

[Talula]

Originally Posted by wtftennis

I voted for womens. To me it was a crushed young talented player coming in who had to defend herself against a nototious mob. From the press to the disrespectful crowd, rigged draws, etc. All for no reason just absurd allegations because of the hate for a player, and promote asian tennis by helping Li Na win who got the experience of the other side of the coin: Supportive crowd, supportive media, cake walk draw. (note: initially I was rooting for Li Na from the beginning)

You could see a broken down Vica in contrast to a confident Li Na when walking to the arena. The first set reflected this as Vica constantly hit the net, made easy UF errors, that we never saw before. CLearly the dirty playbook was working. However what made this match great was this young talent in Azarenka sprouting from the second set to the third, her vigor, concentration, and confidence came back. You could see it in the intensity in her eyes when Li Na was serving to her, that she was ready, she wasn't going to give it to them, she had to soul search hard to find her game again. She thought back and won the match. Tears pouring out because she knew she knew what she had just achieved.

I couldn't be more happier with both the mens and womens results. Because I like to see the best players rewarded, and thats what happened imo. Although Murray played great tennis as well, I'm sure he will improve.

You make her sound like Pollyana or Little Orphan Annie!

[stromatolite]

Originally Posted by Chrissie-fan

Well, they are both awesome players, but they are also a bit similar. That's why I enjoy their matches against Federer and Nadal, and even delPotro and Tsonga more than when they play each other. I can't get emotionally involved when they play each other because I really don't care who of them ends up winning.

I think Murray is a far more creative player than Djoko, who is very very good at what he does, but unfortunately what he does is not very enjoyable to watch.

Murray was great against Federer, but maybe that took too much out of him, because in the final he looked pretty flat and uninspired to me. But I'm still hoping for him, rather than Djoko or Nadal, to be the dominant player in the post-Fed era.

[wtftennis]

Originally Posted by Talula

You make her sound like Pollyana or Little Orphan Annie!

Just putting into words what was shown