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Things We Learned on Day 4 of Wimbledon 2015

By Changeover Writing Staff on July 2, 2015

Andrew

1. Aga Radwanska has maybe learned how to play tennis again

Fresh from her final at Eastbourne, Radwanska is looking good so far in the Wimbledon draw. Currently sitting at world no.13 which is FAR too low a ranking for Aga and with fourth round points to defend*, she’ll be hoping her Eastbourne form has come to stay as she works through the draw.

She made short work of Tomljanovic in round 2 today, keeping her game solid and holding firm on service points. The more wins the better going forward – confidence has been a huge issue in 2015, which has been difficult to watch. She’s a perennial fan favourite winner for a reason, her A-game is a delight that the tour has been sadly missing.

Radwanska through, 6-0 6-2

2. There will be a quarter-final featuring one of these names…

James Ward. Vasek Pospisil. Dustin Brown. Viktor Troicki.

I’m not going to go into Nadal’s loss to Brown in too much detail, I’ll leave that to Lindsay who I think saw more of the match than I did, but Brown’s win was not altogether a surprise. A few of us raised our eyebrows when we saw the possibility of that draw, and it’s certainly made this little section fascinating.

Technically, TECHNICALLY, an all British quarter-final is possible. But I don’t think that will happen. So it probably will.

3. Bacsinszky versus Lisicki could be a really good match, you guys

With Timea having been in good form all year and Sabine brilliant on the Wimbledon grass, this one could be a real thriller between two of the tournament’s big dark horses. McHale gave Lisicki a good challenge today, but the German was able to hold on in a tight second set before her engine kicked up a gear and she rolled through the third. Bacsinszky made easier work of Soler-Espinosa, winning in straight sets in just 61 minutes.

On paper, Lisicki ought to win this third round match up, but you just never know what miracle Bacsinszky is able to pull off these days. I can’t call it.

Lisicki through, 2-6 7-5 6-1

Bacsinszky through, 6-2 6-1

4. Mahut lost and that’s sad

It’s not sad for Tomas Berdych, who will be pleased to get past the talented Frenchman who is always a massive threat on grass, but it’s sad for…well, everyone else, really. Mahut is always a fun guy to have around a tournament, especially when chatting with buddy and fellow nonsense-match survivor John Isner, so there was a lot of goodwill for his wildcard placement into the draw.

Honestly, I expected Berdych to fall pretty early in this draw but he’s good on grass himself and he has a very winnable third round versus Pablo Andujar so he could be sticking around at Wimbledon for a while yet. Good for him, he’s been having an under-par year.

Berdych through, 6-1 6-4 6-4

5. Everyone stay calm, the Greatest Of All Time is still in the draw

Not Roger. MONICA.

Monica Niculescu took care of an injury-hampered Cepelova, who had defeated Simona Halep in round 1. There is nothing, nothing, better in this world than watching Niculescu slice her opponents into submission. Nothing. Destroy every pizza in the world if you must, no slice can compare to Monica’s. Screw Netflix, we’d rather watch Niculescu.

TINA FEY WISHES SHE WAS NICULE- okay i’ll stop. She’s great.

Niculescu through, 6-3 6-3

6. If Jelena Jankovic gives you a banana and some juice, you’ve had a good day

This woman is all of us in the presence of the Empress:

Lindsay:

1. Hey guys! I have certainly missed you this week, and am so thankful for Andrew holding down the fort until I can be fully back in action on Monday. It’s weird being completely clueless about what is going on in a Slam, but sometimes family stuff is simply more important.

2. I did see a bit of the Nadal loss today, and so I wanted to stop by and comment. I’m completely torn about the State of Rafa. On one hand, I’m panicked about his future and doubtful that he’ll ever get back to his dominant form. On the other hand, I’m completely confident that the will win many more majors. On one hand this loss was shocking, on the other hand it wasn’t at all.

I truly do feel like 85% of Nadal’s problem right now is confidence, or MOJO as I like to call it. Unfortunately, there’s really no quick fix for that. I do think that a change in his team could help him, a new voice to give him a boost and shake things up. But this is Rafa, and he likes his routines, so that’s a big ask. It’s really just going to take time. And I think that he’s going to have to learn to fake confidence, to find that belief deep within himself, and not wait on his form to give him the confidence.

We’re stuck in a bit of a chicken-and-egg situation right now: What comes first, the confidence or the winning? Dustin Brown played a fantastic match on Thursday, but this was not a red-lining Lukas Rosol situation. This was a hesitant, slow, and defensive Nadal who simply looked lost out there. My gut still says not to panic, that we will see Nadal and his mojo reunited before it’s all said and done. But the process will be a laborious one, and many more rough days are on the horizon.

3. Some tweets from the match:

 

*Andrew initially wrote that Radwanska had semi-final points to defend, because his heart is still stuck in Wimbledon 2013.

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3 Responses

  1. Mitchell
    Mitchell July 2, 2015 at 8:29 pm |

    Correction: Radwanska has fourth round points to defend. She lost to Makarova last year.

    1. Andrew Eccles
      Andrew Eccles July 4, 2015 at 3:34 am |

      Thanks – have added a note. Clearly I’m struggling to let go of Wimbledon 2013, which is of course when she lost in the semi-final.
      A

  2. Benjamin
    Benjamin July 3, 2015 at 3:00 am |

    Berdych having “an under-par year” – what’s with all the Tomas hating guys ?
    Ok he hasn’t won a tourny yet this year, but his record is 4 semis and 3 finals
    Losses have come to: Feds x2, Murray x2, Djoko x2, Nadal, Tsonga, Ferrer and Karlovic

    He’s 5th in the race, and since he’s been ranked between 6 and 8 every year since 1986
    (ok tiny exaggeration but it feels like that sometimes), I’d say for the moment he’s
    having a slightly above par year…?

    Tomas rules. So, yeah.

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