It will be a very interesting to see in the Laver Cup survive. Oh yes, this weekend, there is a ton of terrific players, but that doesn’t mean that next year, right after the US Open, they will play another time.
Many of them want to rest after the summer, when they had to play three of the Grand Slams: Roland Garros, Wimbledon and the US Open. The summer season starts late in May, and then it ends in the beginning of September. It is three and a half months, a real grind. Especially with the very good players, because they always go deep at the tournaments, most of the time. That is why their bodies can be very sore, or extremely hurt.
At the Laver Cup, the players are competing for Team Europe, and, for all other continents, Team World.
Yes, it was a dramatic end. They were all there: Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Dominic Thiem, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Kevin Anderson, John Isner, Alexander Zverev, Denis Shapovalov, Milos Raonic, Fabio Fognini and Nick Kyrgios, among others, and more.
In Sunday, the last match, Zverev beat Raonic 6-4 3-6 10-4 and Europe won cemented the win. Earlier, in the doubles, two Americans, Jack Sock and John Isner, overcame Roger Federer and Stefanos Tsitsipas. Then, another young American, Taylor Fritz, upset Dominic Thiem 7-5 6-7(3) 10-5. Then, Federer turned it around in singles by beating Isner 6-4, 7-6. Zverev has not had a great year, but he played much better this week in the Laver Cup
There were three days, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Was it very serious, or just having fun? That’s a toss-up.
Believe it or not, in singles, early on, Sock beat Fabio Fognini 6-1 7-6(3). Sock hadn’t beat anyone this year, in singles. That is a shocker, because in the fall of 2017, he reached No. 8, in singles at the ATP Finals. Yes, last year and this year, he was hurt, but he tried in singles and doubles. Clearly, now, he loves doubles, as he won a could majors with Mike Bryan. But, in singles, Sock has so much work to do, certainly in his head and beyond.
With the third Laver Cup in the books, I would think that many people had a fine time and attendance is strong. But again, outside of the Slams, it is not easy to sell it, year after year. My suggestion is a reevaluation and make some changes.
Notes
But the way, Kyrgios and Sock are good friends. They are controversial, and maybe, during the fall, they can win a lot of singles matches in Asia.
Here is a good quote from Zverev: “I had two great coaches [Federer], one on the court and one [Nadal] on the sidelines. I could just shut off my brain and do whatever they told me to do.”
In St. Petersburg, there are some good players last week. No. 4 Daniil Medvedev was there, and without a doubt, the fans were cheering for him. A year ago, not many people knew who he was. Now they do, after he reached the final at the US Open. And then, he beat Borna Coric 6-3, 6-1 to win on Sunday, He is a huge hitter, and he hustles…
Croatian Coric is ranked No. 14. Five years ago, he looked very good, and many thought he would go very far. But he has sort of stopped. Yes, he can win matches, but can he take down the best players? He is a true grinder, which is good, but he needs to be more aggressive and thoughtful.
Another top 10-er, Karen Khachanov, lost in the first round. He is slipping a little bit…
In
Metz, France, the veteran Jo Tsonga won the title, beating Aljaz Bedene. In his
long career Tsonga has been somewhat close to winning a Slam, but he hasn’t. I
have said this so many times, that certain people become injured all the time.
It is hard to stop it. But at least Tsonga keeps trying, and he can focus. He
goes have a terrific forehand and his first serve, too. Now he is back in the
top 40. He has won a bunch of events, winning 18 trophies. Yes, he was won two
ATP 1000s, in Paris and Canada. But, can he win a Grand Slam for the first time
next year? He is a nice, terrific person, but can he grab his first major when
he is 34 years old? That is extremely difficult, but he can push, hard.