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Schu · 01-20-2008, 04:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rafas_grl

he could have played better for sure though.....

nice to see that at the end of the match they were back on being best friends

Unfortunately I think that was part of the problem the whole match. Richie is just too sweet

- forget the friends, forget what fans and press think and just PLAY. But then he wouldn't be Richie would he.

PinkFeatherBoa · 01-20-2008, 05:44 PM

Sigh, I'm disappointed at him reverting back to such passive play again...

At least he defended his points and played a pretty good tournament really (and on a selfish note, I'm glad he lost to someone who I like also, makes it easier to deal with).
Kudos to Jo!

tennis lover · 01-20-2008, 08:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by blackgirltennis

Hopefully not for long.

I mean, I love what he's done to Andy's backhand and return.. but NOT what he's dont to the forehand.

That wasn't Jimmy's fault, the damage was done long before he came along!

so, can anyone give me a brief summary of the match? Did Richard play well/badly? did he lose the match or did Jo-W win it?

Pimmchanok · 01-20-2008, 08:24 PM

Jojo won it, Richie was playing alright, but far from his best, he was definitely too passive

EternalxJourney · 01-20-2008, 08:59 PM

During Richard's match against Andreev, the commentators said something very interesting. One of them mentioned the fact that Richie comes from Beziers, one of the largest wine-producing regions in France where the atmosphere is very laid-back. The other commentator then said, "it's a good place to go to but probably not a good place to come from." I took his words to mean that having grown up in such a laid-back environment perhaps doesn't instill the same intensity, killer instinct or drive as someone that came from let's say a war-torn country. Now I'm not saying Richie doesn't have the fighting spirit required in virtually every sport (recently example in Wimbly 07 match against Roddick), my point is that he doesn't "fight" consistently enough. I realize this is not the only area he needs to work on, but the mind has such a big impact on a player's performance, especially in matches where he's playing against his compatriots and friends.

Pimmchanok · 01-20-2008, 09:19 PM

that's actually an interesting thought, I'd have to agree, the "fire" isnt always there, and you can never know which Richard is coming out on court

here's a quote I found on the BBC after his match.

Quote:

"I prefer to lose against a French player. It's not a big problem for me to lose against a friend."
Patriotic Richard Gasquet looks on the bright side after losing to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.

Schu · 01-20-2008, 09:28 PM

It's pretty obvious that Richie does not have the Nadal/Djoke fighting spirit and never will. I did see a little positive in his match with Tsonga - He keep trying things to turn it around and didn't cave after the horrid 1st set. Even "Killer Cahill", the ESPN commentator, mentioned several times the improvement/maturity he sees in Gasquet's game in that he didn't just cave as he would likely have done last year. Now he didn't stage an amazing comeback like Nadal would likely have but it's a start. Guess Richie just has to get so good that he wins inspite of his laid-back spirit.

I think Ihave a tennis hangover after the last few days of the AO. I'm watching pro football playoffs in the U.S. today - being a real couch potato, trying to recover form serveral very late nights/early mornings of marathon tennis and taking it easy. Good thing these Grand Slams only happen 4 times a year

Allure · 01-20-2008, 09:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Schu

It's pretty obvious that Richie does not have the Nadal/Djoke fighting spirit and never will. I did see a little positive in his match with Tsonga - He keep trying things to turn it around and didn't cave after the horrid 1st set. Even "Killer Cahill", the ESPN commentator, mentioned several times the improvement/maturity he sees in Gasquet's game in that he didn't just cave as he would likely have done last year. Now he didn't stage an amazing comeback like Nadal would likely have but it's a start. Guess Richie just has to get so good that he wins inspite of his laid-back spirit.

I think Ihave a tennis hangover after the last few days of the AO. I'm watching pro football playoffs in the U.S. today - being a real couch potato, trying to recover form serveral very late nights/early mornings of marathon tennis and taking it easy. Good thing these Grand Slams only happen 4 times a year

That's just it. Despite how talented I think he is, I don't think he's ever going to be good enough where he can win with a laid back attitude. Only Roger can do that.

With Gasquet he needs his game and fighting spirit. He can not win on talent alone.

williaer · 01-20-2008, 11:14 PM

Richard didn't bring out his best stuff yesterday and in a way that's kinda a good feeling to have coming out of a loss. He didn't play well and still in my opinion could have won that. The comments coming from Richard and Eric are very encouraging; they're admitting to the fact that he was playing far too defensively and admitting is the first step to fixing; I'm sure they'll spend the time between the AO and Davis Cup working on that.

Still a very positive tournament for Richard and I was 'awwing' so badly at the hug after the match

Schu · 01-21-2008, 12:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by williaer

Richard didn't bring out his best stuff yesterday and in a way that's kinda a good feeling to have coming out of a loss. He didn't play well and still in my opinion could have won that. The comments coming from Richard and Eric are very encouraging; they're admitting to the fact that he was playing far too defensively and admitting is the first step to fixing; I'm sure they'll spend the time between the AO and Davis Cup working on that.

Still a very positive tournament for Richard and I was 'awwing' so badly at the hug after the match

Unfortunately they have been in the admitting stage for a LONG time - time to move on to the fixing stage. But yes, it is good to know that he was in a least 2 of the sets despite playing so defensive.

my0118 · 01-21-2008, 01:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Schu

Unfortunately they have been in the admitting stage for a LONG time - time to move on to the fixing stage. But yes, it is good to know that he was in a least 2 of the sets despite playing so defensive.

Tell me about it.

Yes the problem is they haven't been much changing even though they're admitting. And when Richard has a pressure, he tends to be much more defensive.

williaer · 01-21-2008, 01:25 AM

Schu, you're right. With some players I have the feeling that things will never change but for some reason with Richard I just have that feeling that he will improve and become the player he was against Andy at Wimbledon CONSISTENTLY.

I was sitting on-court watching Richie's match yesterday and I really got the feeling that whoever won the 3rd set TB would go on to win the match, and unfortunately that just wasn't Richard on the day. The occasional loss isn't horrible and at least Richard didn't get schooled. There are still many positives to take from the tournament, which, in this stage of his career is all you can ask for.

my0118 · 01-21-2008, 01:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by EternalxJourney

During Richard's match against Andreev, the commentators said something very interesting. One of them mentioned the fact that Richie comes from Beziers, one of the largest wine-producing regions in France where the atmosphere is very laid-back. The other commentator then said, "it's a good place to go to but probably not a good place to come from." I took his words to mean that having grown up in such a laid-back environment perhaps doesn't instill the same intensity, killer instinct or drive as someone that came from let's say a war-torn country. Now I'm not saying Richie doesn't have the fighting spirit required in virtually every sport (recently example in Wimbly 07 match against Roddick), my point is that he doesn't "fight" consistently enough. I realize this is not the only area he needs to work on, but the mind has such a big impact on a player's performance, especially in matches where he's playing against his compatriots and friends.

I'm not offending you, Val, but when I read your post, I just thought where Nadal came from.

He's Mallorcan where is a popular vacation destination.

EternalxJourney · 01-21-2008, 04:49 AM

Mia, I don't feel offended. I brought that up to introduce my point that Richard sometimes lacks something that's very important for all athletes: that hunger to win and compete. Obviously we can't gauge a person's fighting abilities solely on his/her place of origin but I think it does play a factor.

And to respond to your point, if I recall correctly, Rafa comes from a very athletic family, didn't Uncles Toni and Angel play soccer professionally? And since Rafa's very close to his family, I'm sure they instilled in him that competitiveness very early on. So it's not just about the place but the people that surround you.

EternalxJourney · 01-21-2008, 05:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pimmchanok

here's a quote I found on the BBC after his match.

"I prefer to lose against a French player. It's not a big problem for me to lose against a friend."
Patriotic Richard Gasquet looks on the bright side after losing to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.

Oy. Once you step that foot on the court, you can't think of your opponent as your friend, you gotta think of your friend as the opponent. I'm sure he knows all this but has a real difficult time dealing with it. I don't know if we can take his words seriously but if his words are to be believed, I have a problem with him not having a problem with losing, even against a friend.