Thanks for posting them, I was waiting for them. This is great!
About the match from yesterday, everybody seems to be taking it pretty well.
My opinion is just as Ivars said on Z’s site : the talent is there but still he’s out in the second round. So this means that talent is not enough. I couldn’t agree more.
I don’t know about the coaching problem, but the lack of focus is obvious. Ivars also said something about Ernests having to put tennis first in order to do better in tournaments. That reminded me about the posts referring to ‘wild days’ in Ernests past days (recent or not, doesn’t really matter). I also remembered about Cath mentioning a certain sense of superiority when she met Ernests.
Now I’m not passing judgments nor am I pointing fingers but as disappointed as I am what I can make of this is that these results are some kind of consequence after the good results at the FO. I mean he’s had massive media exposure this year, following some great results, the press was all over him with questions (mostly the same every time), the fans are more and more (mostly girls
). He’s a guy, he’s just 20 yo, it’s almost impossible not to let that go to his head. Plus, he said himself in interviews that sometimes he’s not focused at practice so he trains for nothing when he doesn’t concentrate. Maybe there’s something to be learned from these losses (in R1 and R2). I just hope he’s smart enough to see that and make the necessary adjustments.
I remember reading somewhere here a girl’s post, she said something like she hopes he gets like Safin. Well, I hope to God he doesn’t get like Safin. I’ve been crazy about Safin for more than 4 years now and that victory at the 2005 AO was so special, it is a very happy memory for me. BUT, all that talent he’s got is so wasted just because he’s got a temper and he won’t deal with it it's my opinion). Dinara has dealt with it and she’s top 5 now if I’m not mistaken. He could be top 5 but he’s not. The point is the talent is there (big time!) but there’s something missing. With Safin is dealing with his temper, with Ernests I don’t know exactly what it is, but there is definitely something missing.
Maybe if he could distance himself from the media frenzy, no matter how difficult that would be, maybe that would keep him (more) grounded. I’ve seen and I’ve read part of his interviews and I know he’s very well trained when it comes to answering questions (especially after the Q & A session in Metz
)but media frenzy can eat you up. That is if you don’t have a balance, of course. I hope he does have that.
Well, these are my thoughts after last night’s loss. I feel a little bit sad because he went so well in the match against Ancic. I had my hopes high again. I don’t know if there’s much left to be done this year carrier wise, I hope the next one will be better.
My post is maybe a little too aggressive but pls don’t shoot me
. Some feedback would be nice thought.
PS BTW, mentioning Safin’s victory at the 2005 AO put a big smile on my face. The win was on Safin’s birthday (January the 27th) and then Nadal did exactly the same at the RG on his bday, June the 3rd. I remember looking at other players bdays to see which one would be the next one to beat Federer in a final.
PS2 Sorry for the length of the post. Dunno how that happened! But if you got here then
for being tenacious
Ok, the post came off too harsh, I see that now. Maybe we should be concerned rather than disappointed. But all that ‘maybe newt time’ can easily become a habit and at the end of the year, when you draw that line, you’re left with a bunch of ‘maybe next time’-s. That is not going to bring a smile on your face, is it?
It is so frustrating! As for the comparison between Safin and Ernests, I still think it’s not a good idea. They both looked great in that practice they did together, but I still can’t help thinking that lately I haven’t been able to watch a Safin match all the way through because he always gets mad and inevitably loses the match. They seem to be at the extremes, Safin with too much temper, Ernests - too much zen attitude (sometimes).
Man, I so wish Ernests would have more of Nadal’s drive when it comes to playing tennis!
That being said, I’ve decided I’ll stick to supporting Ernests and go back to that old ‘maybe next tournament’. As the man himself said, ‘what can you do?’