← Served with Andy Roddick
Loading summary
Transcript53 lines
- [00:02]
Mike
Support for the show comes from Amazon Prime. You might think of prime as only a way to get fast free delivery or maybe as the place to stream movies, shows and sports, but it's actually way more than that. Maybe you've got a passion or a hobby, prime can help you get the most out of it. Whether you're streaming documentaries on marine animals, ordering action figure stands with free one day delivery, or finding the perfect playlist to impress that special someone, prime makes it easier and faster to do what you love. Whatever you're into, it's on Prime. Visit Amazon.com, to get more out of whatever you're into.
- [00:41]
Hiro
Support for this show comes from Pure Leaf iced tea. When you find yourself in the afternoon slump, you need the right thing to make you bounce back. You need pure leaf iced tea. It's real brewed tea made in a variety of bold flavors with just the right amount of naturally occurring caffeine. You're left feeling refreshing and revitalized so you can be ready to take on what's next. The next time you need to hit the reset button, grab a pure leaf iced tea. Time for a tea break. Time for a pure leaf.
- [01:17]
Mike
Hey everyone, welcome to Quick Served. Just keeps rolling. Got a little Alcaraz Sinner 2.0. Gosh, we had to wait weeks for this, didn't we? Crazy. I mean, center using his nine lives, obviously getting out of trouble against Dimitrov, you know, playing well against Shelton. Novak looked compromised today and we can get into that because I think every time Novak loses now we start the what if game right. He's 38 years old and you know, even if that's not fair and I don't think he knows what he's going to do at this point. But like you wonder, 12 months is, gets, gets further and further away right when you're, when you're 38 years old. Taylor Fritz, I thought put up a hell of a fight against, against Carlos Alcaraz. I, I, my respect for, and I, I kind of want to spend some time on time on the, the two guys that lost matches today before we get to the, the preview of this heavyweight fight. But Taylor Fritz, like my respect for him kind of keeps growing and growing and growing and the base setting was pretty good, you know, in the last however many years. He talks very clearly about what his goals are. Right. And I give a lot of value to guys that go out there state what their goals are. You know, Taylor's the first guy I've heard of, you know, stays a long time that Goes, hey, listen, if I don't win a slam, I'm going to think about it for the rest of my life. Like, I want this. Like, you feel like he's not scared to take it on the chin, go give his best effort, and you feel like there might be a belief system there that matches someone who, who wins a slam. You know, I, I watch the matches and I, I can, I kind of sympathize a little bit because Taylor is, has perfected almost what he's good at, right? He's, he's a great server, he's a great ball striker. Is he ever going to be as fast as an Alcaraz or as nimble as a sinner or be able to, you know, play the, the slices and the chips and the kind of the floating stuff that we see Alcaraz do? Probably not. And I sympathize because it's like, okay, I couldn't even hit topspin on a backhand yet I was trying to beat these people who were, you know, it looks, the racket looked. It looked less like a racket, more like a wand in the hands of the people you're trying to beat. But, like, I have so much respect for the way that Taylor goes about his business. He's a workhorse. He shows up, he competes hard every week. He doesn't shy away from the craziest goals. Right. I feel like he leans in and I thought he played a great match today. Jw, what's the feeling about kind of that match on site there?
- [04:02]
JW
Yeah, you. You opened the door. So as we say in the law, so now it's, it's. No, I mean, I think there is this sort of Sisyphusian element, right? He's, he's got this challenge and he's got these two guys and they're, you know, the guy pushing up the rock. And it seems like, no, no, I.
- [04:19]
Mike
Didn'T go to college, but no, I.
- [04:21]
JW
Mean, you remember the story about the guy who's pushing the boulder up the hill, and it seems like a futile endeavor, but there's honor in just trying to do it again and again. And, you know, I mean, I think, I think you're totally right. I mean, first of all, the fact that he's come out and so he's, He's a total realist. He. He's a total tennis nerd. And this is not someone who was touched by the gods. This is not someone who was blessed with great athleticism. And he's basically going to say, this is what I'm committed to. And I'm going to do everything in my power, control everything I'm going to control. He's got the coaching, he's got the fitness, he plays all the time, he studies video. I mean this is a total pro to the point of almost being like a tennis obsessive. And you're right, he's like, I'm not. There's a really nice life to be had as like an 18 to 24 ranked tennis player, 8 to 24 ranked tennis player. And you make a couple million bucks and you get to travel around the world and you make occasional quarter, semi, play some exos. That's not what Taylor Fritz wants. And he, I mean, I don't know, I think you're right. I mean, one thing, it ought to give him a sense of pride and honor, but the fact that I'm not sure he can play a whole lot better against Alcaraz than he did today. He took a set, he had chances. I mean you look at the serving stats and they're not that bad. It reminded me a little bit of the US Open final where it just, it's two players that right now aren't on the same level. And I think Taylor, I'm glad you said that about giving. Let's, let's dwell on the players who didn't win today because I think in their own way each were really honorable. But yeah, I have a ton of respect for Taylor Fritz and I think it's what you say too, articulating it is somehow different. I mean, he's come out and basically said exactly what you said, that the goal here is to win majors and if he doesn't fulfill those goals, there'll be some disappointments and he's going to, whatever the cliche is, turn over every rock Alcaraz was in. You guys, you guys see the video, the, the NHL goon that beat up the golf. I mean, Alcaraz was sort of in, you know, whatever his name is, Nick Tarnaski mode today. I mean, just bang, bang. I mean this was great stuff. He sort of, Alcaraz has built into his game. He's kind of baked in these lulls. So he'll lose the second set and you get the feeling it doesn't shake him at all because he's kind of baked into the equation. There are going to be some times when he'll, he'll go through a 40 minute stretch and he won't be at his best. Comes back, wins the third and the fourth. But, but I think Taylor Fritz should Leave here, head high, and, you know, I mean, it's sports. A lot can happen. Draws can take on strange directions. I mean, I, he may get that major eventually, and Lord knows it will be honestly and honorably won.
- [06:45]
Mike
Yeah, I hope he gets it. I really do. Even after the US Open final last year, you know, he just leaned into unprompted. He didn't have to say anything to it, but he just said, I wanted this so badly to kind of end this, this drought that these, these guys have to talk about ad nauseam, which I'm sure is extremely annoying. And also, like, it's not easy playing against ghosts, right? Like, you know, not meaning people are dead, but like my career, I can relate to going through, you know, the best generation from one country at that time, preceding it. Right. And so, you know, that, that uphill battle in the rock, and I, I relate to a lot of that. But Taylor more than anyone I've seen, you know, at least on the, on the American side for a long time, it leans into it and doesn't shy away from that kind of thing hanging over and that. I just, I have a lot of respect for the way that he, Linds. Leans into it.
- [07:43]
JW
What would you, you know, this wasn't the point of today's swimmer and semifinal rap show, but as long as we're here, you know, I mean, you, you, you won one of these, so you're in a bit of a different boat. But there's some parallels. What, what would you tell him in terms of coexisting at a time when you just have this, this extraordinary talent just above you? What would you tell him about this whole pursuit?
- [08:02]
Mike
I don't know that I would have to tell him much. It seems like he has, it seems like he has the right attitude. I, I, I think there's room for improvement. There's a hot serving day, there's someone's off at some point, you know, And I knew this. I was clear eyes when I, when I was playing. And the thing that brought me comfort, motivation is I knew that I didn't have to be better than these guys 52 weeks out of the year. You know, the thing that kept me going and kept me waking up and wanting to train and do all the things that I felt like I was a professional and I feel like Taylor Fritz is the same way is you want that look at the basket, right? You don't have to win more grand slams than Alcaraz. You don't have to win more grand slams than center to accomplish your goal. Which is winning a Grand Slam. You know, we, we talk about this streak and I got asked about it and when we didn't know what center suspension was going to be, I was like, well, you know, Carlos is, you know, it's tough to say he's up and down after winning 24 matches in a row, but he did the same thing last year, but on cement. And you know, over the course of a year, that might have. Wouldn't have been crazy to say that, that that streak gets broken then. But anyways, just as far as attitude and you know, before we get into balls and strikes and obviously the, the. The wizardry of, of. Of Alcaraz, which is maybe as complete as I've seen it. The serve is, is night and day. That from a. When he won Wimbledon two years ago, he's hitting all the spots. He's pitching a go ball game. He's up to 135 wide on the ad side. His, you know, he's rounded out the bottom of his serve where it used to kind of go up and down like a V, like a. Almost like a jackknife. And now it's like a U at the bottom, which is a lot gentler. It's not straight up and down with that little curve. He's able to get a lot more motion on his slice, right, by getting around the ball and not kind of having to adjust his body at the last second to kind of save a slice serve. But some of the shots that, that Alcaraz was hit, there's one in the fourth set where he served and volleyed and Fritz stuck the return and he got caught. The ball got behind him, right? So you're already beat and the ball's coming hot. It's above your waist, so it's easier to hit drop volleys from below your waist, right from up here. You kind of have to still elevate it while taking pace off of it, which was one of the hardest things to do in tennis. He does it so easily that we don't give credit to what he just did. Like, it's kind of like the Roger thing a little bit, right where he would do stuff and you're going, wait, that's. I don't think people understand what he just did because it looked simple anyways. He takes the pace off of it. He's on the service line, hits a perfect drop volley. There's no bit like, I'm. I was a good tennis player. If I tried that, I would look like a idiot. Like, it is. It's so fun to watch. And he's complete. He has the chip. He's playing D on the backhand. Andre made a really good observation during the French Open. He noticed, as I noticed, the kind of soft hollowing out of the serve a little bit at the bottom. Andre noticed that his, his right arm looks a little straighter on the backhand, so he's able to kind of hit that flat and flighted ball a little bit more often. I guess when you have one of the best backhands ever, you realize that stuff. I would have never seen it, but, you know, it's just, it's just amazing to watch him when he gets that fluidity and he gets that, like, I can grind out points as well as rip your head off. It's. And he gets there, you know, a couple times a year. And it's just, It's. It's awesome to see it in full flight. But Fritz took it to him, wasn't scared of the moment. You know, may not have executed perfectly all the time, but that's largely because of Alcaraz, right? He had nine double faults throughout the tournament. And he played a bunch of. He played some five setters the first two rounds. Nine double faults in the tournament. Coming in against Alcaraz, I think he had five or six today. That's not because Taylor doesn't know how to hit a second serve. It's because. What do I always say when you're playing against the greats? You have to up your risk profile. You have to take chances. Those, like, medium pace balls where Taylor can just kind of beat someone on pace and is, is. Is kind of comfortable in that rally. He has to turn everything up 10%. You have to. Neutral. Neutral ain't gonna win.
- [12:15]
JW
No, I mean, he took, he took some, you know, 19 aces and six double faults against exactly what you said. Your, Your margins. And you're gonna go for more. And that's one reason why Novak is always so effective. You're going for more because, you know you have to. But I, I just, I mean, I looked at the way Taylor Fritz competed. Competed to the end. There were times where he was surely shaking his head, but, you know, he got another point to play. I got, I got one crazy one on Alcaraz for you real quick. Remember that match at Roland Garros a few years ago where you, you picked this up and I don't know if you were texting us the cramping thing.
- [12:47]
Mike
I was tweeting.
- [12:48]
JW
You were tweeting that the finger's going. He's going to go into cramps pretty soon. That is the last major match played not on a hard court. So on clay and grass, obviously, that's the last match at a major not played on hard court that he lost.
- [13:03]
Mike
That's nuts. That's a big.
- [13:05]
JW
That was 26 months ago.
- [13:07]
Mike
Yeah. That's crazy. I mean, but what are we learning here, honestly? Because it's, it's like after Australia on cement, we know that Sinner's the best hardcore player in the world, right? And going into the clay court season, we said, okay, Alcaraz is probably the best in the world on anything that's slippery and Sinners the best on anything in the world. When his feet are underneath him, nothing's changed. It's just more impressive when they keep doing it. Like, it's, it's, it's like he's, it's like Borgian, if he can pull this off, you know, it's this, this double. They were showing the stats of who's done it. Like, Roger did it one time, Rafa did it twice. He's going to do it two years in a row. Like, this is, this is pretty heady stuff. If he, if he gets through. And obviously that's a big if. We, I mean, Yannick Sinner has earned every bit of our attention and respect. Right? I, and I understand people are going to say, you know, Dimitrov had him. That's fine. You can only deal with that day. Like you, you know, sometimes that, that was, that was, you hate to say lucky when someone else gets hurt, but that was really lucky for Sinner. He would tell you that. He did tell us that. And since then, he's played his best tennis in this tournament. Right? He was, I, I thought, I thought he was a little sloppy early in the tournament. And listen, if you give, you give him another life, he's going to, he's going to take advantage more often than not.
- [14:29]
JW
Jw, we're going to do a whole show sometime. We vow to do this right about these tennis myths, and you're going to tell us what's bullshit and what's real. This whole notion, though, that went around that, oh, now that sinner, the cat's nine live. Now that Sinner got a second life. Now that Sinner got through that fourth rounder, he's going to suddenly soar and you roll your eyes and yet he's looked pretty good the last two years. Yeah, but like, we're acting like, save that for the.
- [14:55]
Mike
Yeah, but dude, like, you're. When you say, oh, yeah. Now he's going to go like he hasn't been fucking going for two years.
- [15:00]
JW
I'm not, I'm not saying that. I'm just saying there was this whole sentiment drop match saying Sinner's gonna win now because he got his break. And you roll your eyes, but he's been pretty good.
- [15:11]
Mike
Let's, let's be simple about this. Let's be very simple about this. If we could choose to play well all the time, we would make that choice. Michael Jordan's career field goal percentage was less in the postseason than it was during the regular season. It's not like you, you prepare to where you do your best on a given day. Center was not at his best against Dimitrov. He got another life. But Sinner was number one in the world the day before he played Dimitrov. He was number one in the world the day after he played Dimitrov. Right. It's not as if we're looking at someone who's 12 in the world and like now they're going to go, I mean, Sinners won three. I mean, whatever. I get, I get the sentiment.
- [15:51]
JW
But you want to take a 60 second detour with me? Because there's actually a tennis theme here. I hate that Jordan stat that he shot better in the regular season. Why would he shoot better in the regular season, in the playoffs? I thought this guy was money. And the answer is because the best defending teams are in the playoffs and the schlubby Clippers don't make the playoffs. And I think it's same, we have the same thing in tennis sometimes where we don't consider the opponent and we say, oh, he's the ace leader for through three rounds.
- [16:17]
Mike
100%. 100%.
- [16:20]
JW
This was just a detour.
- [16:21]
Mike
Like you, you, you take those stats, it's like, well, he has, he hasn't lost serve. Like I, yeah, I mean I wouldn't lose serve much right now against Pechy Paracard. Like I, I, I get it. Like the guys is, the guy is a massive server. I'd also lose to him. But like there are certain, you know, they're like, Fritz's serving statistics have been great. I'm like, yeah, he's played great. He had the toughest draw the first two rounds. Let's not even, let's not sugarcoat that. It's no disrespect to those players at all. And they are players who he is going to hold serve against. Right. Like I always say, jw, to your point, like, I would love a stat that existed for, okay, holds and then holds against top five opposition, top 10 opposition, as opposed to just boiling the ocean with, you know, treating the statistics the same first round of, you know, Washington as we do first round of, of or the semifinal of Wimbledon. When you're playing Andy Murray, who literally gets every single return back in the court, the other thing that just needs to be said and it's, it's like an impossibility because we have to pay attention on a given day. Novak at 38, like, just, just think about this, JW. Do you remember your feelings when Connors, which was the, my favorite tournament of my childhood, when he made the semis at 39 years old at the US Open, and it was as if someone, you know, flew to the moon.
- [17:48]
JW
Like it was, it was, it was literally, it was like the reverse of baby. It was this absolute anomaly. And it was. Everyone's making jokes, hey, grandpa, have some Geritol after you get done winning. It was this absolute sort of freakish occurrence. And the natural order of things was thrown so out of whack because that 39 year old was crazy.
- [18:07]
Mike
They're competing, okay, so let's, let's wind that back just to put things in perspective. And so we don't place Novak expectations on everything that he does, right? It's like we kind of get used to it. Therefore, we adjust expectations, but just on a base level. A 38 year old who's been pretty much physically compromised the entire year in different ways, making the semis of the first three majors of the year. It's absurd. And I understand there are two players that are better than him pretty much every day now. Like, I get that. So that counter is stupid to me. I don't want to hear it based against 38 year olds. There are a lot of good players, people who were good players, you know, myself included, who never add three semis in a year in slams. Actually, that's a lie. I did one time, but not the first three of the year, but like it's. But the point is the same, right? He's doing stuff that great players have never done in their entire career. And he's doing it at 38 years old on a body that's compromised more often, right? More and more. And that's the way that time is undefeated. And he's fought it longer than anyone in the history of our sport consistently. Right? And we just need to acknowledge, yes, people are gonna be, oh, he lost three, three and four. You know, is it the end? Is it? And those are natural Conversations and those are natural tendencies to have. And also, let's be sober for a second when we're looking at what he's actually doing at 38 years old, right? Almost winning Masters one, almost winning Masters one. Thousands. Making the Wimbledon final last year on one leg. You know, he had a shot in Australia. Beat Alcaraz in Australia. He beat Alcaraz in a major this year. This year. It's, it's absurd. I hope we see him for as long as he wants to play. You know, for me it's like, does he, he knows how to win majors. Does he believe he can do it against these two? I don't think we'll ever get a sober answer. And who knows, right? We can't answer for them and I would never even try to.
- [20:19]
JW
But yeah, let's cover our asses and timestamp. This Novak hasn't gone into press. He looked pretty down the last few points of that match. Maybe he'll, I mean, I'm just sort of curious to hear how he's processing today. I mean, obviously he was very disappointed. Obviously he was physically compromised. I like what you said, you know, a 38 year old guy. This should be the story of the year. And instead we're all, and I'm as guilty as this as anyone, but we're all like, it's like the Pruder film. We're all sort of looking for little tells and is he going to kiss the ground? Is he going to turn back and take in the applause? Applause. We're all sort of wondering where his head is and what sort of little clues we can glean. And yet we should be marveling at a 38 year old man who's, he's like a third party candidate, right? I mean, he's not, he's not Alcaraz, he's not sinner, he's 15 years older. It's pretty clear those guys are sort of ruling the roost right now. This will be, you know, the last seven majors will have been won by one or the other. But man, I think Novak's next.
- [21:17]
Mike
Mike, he's actually doing his press conference right now and he actually did say, I would be sad if this was my last, but hopefully it's not my last match on center court. I'm not planning to finish my Wimbledon career today. I'm planning to come back. Great. Definitely at least one more time. I love it. And, and also if he takes what I don't, what I, what I'm gonna cringe at and be pretty pissy about is Is his body going to be better in a year? He might be healthier for moments in time, but is his movement going to all of a sudden, you know, is he going to look like 2011? Novak? Probably not. And I don't. That shouldn't be a controversial take. If anyone. If he plays next year and we're all better for it in the tennis world. If he plays next year, all of us. If he plays next year and somehow loses in the round of 16 or a quarterfinal of a slam and any jackass goes, man, this, he should fucking retire. Stop. You have to be really good at your job to criticize any part of what we see from Novak from here on out. What he has accomplished at 38 years old is, is, is, is unbelievable. It's, it's, it's phenomenal. Listen, I hope he does a. You know, even if he doesn't feel like he can stack up against these guys and he's just enjoying playing. Like I used to argue with people when they were like, Murray should retire. I'm like, whatever, Murray won a tournament this year. Like, what are you talking about?
- [22:47]
JW
You know, who should retire? I think you should retire.
- [22:51]
Mike
I said that one time.
- [22:52]
JW
Go Google that. That's an Andy quote. No, I don't, I don't know if you guys, I mean, you know, this, this is not obviously in the same vein necessarily, but there was an announcement today that Venus Williams is going to play Washington D.C. i don't know if she shows up, I don't know if she wins a point and it doesn't matter. She finds some sort of something. Nourishment, spiritual nourishment. Fulfillment. Playing tennis and not retiring. Knock yourself out.
- [23:18]
Mike
I'll tell you one thing about Venus in Washington. If we. That's not a waste of a wild card. That's not. That's not a waste of a wildcard. You five time Wimbledon champion. Great. Come play fit fills your cup up, right?
- [23:35]
JW
That's. Isn't this what, this is what wild cards are for?
- [23:38]
Mike
It's. Yes, well, it's, it adds value. Yeah, right. It's. It adds value. And I guarantee you whoever Venus plays isn't going to just go out there and play customer tennis. I guarantee you that. Anyways, glad to hear that she's going to play again. Yannick Sinner. Like, I don't know, like down against Dimitrov. But I mean, the guy's just a machine. He's clinical and, you know, he, he is emotional. But I just from like a really tough year, from a tennis perspective, well, not a test because he won everything, but like the suspension, I'm guessing the PR side of it was the most difficult part. You know, having to live a secret for a second and then coming back and not being welcome right away. I don't know that he misses many notes in, in the, in the, in the kind of undertow of, of this suspension. We're not even talking about it right now and I think if he was a jackass, we would still want to talk about it.
- [24:37]
JW
What about also in, in that whole mix? What about the fact he came within a point of winning a major, couldn't close, and ended up losing one of the great matches of the last 25 years or so? I mean, you talk to Roger Federer about that 2008 Wimbledon final and he'll say, you know, I went to, to the Olympics and this was still on my mind. And thankfully I won the US Open because I finally was able to exercise this. I mean, Jannik Sinner comes back, what are we, five weeks later and is back in another final. And I feel like we kind of gloss over the fact that's a great match and all, but pretty devastating loss. And he snapped. We've talked a lot about Sabalenka sort of regaining some goodwill and repairing some damage there. What about Sinner coming within a point of winning a major, not being able to close, and then he's right back in another final facing the same guy. It's really slamfire. Fourth stream. Yeah, exactly.
- [25:28]
Mike
Yeah, he, he wins that point of.
- [25:30]
JW
Roland Garros and he's going for his four. He's going for the non calendar year major.
- [25:34]
Mike
Yeah, that's a, that's a bit, that's a big point. That's. I didn't, I didn't. I hadn't even put that together yet. But also like even in his. The. What's probably the most painful moment of his career so far and it's all relative. Like, like I'm sure he was devastated not to make it to a quarterfinal five years ago of something. And you know, it's different now. You get to a final that's better, but like he was no notes. You feel like it's authentic. He was great immediately after that final. And I've, I've. I haven't been Sinner. I'm not as good as Sinner. I've been in that situation where you actually have to handle yourself and like remind yourself, you know, that this moment is bigger than your feelings and respect, you know, who you just lost to in that whole thing. And that's not an easy thing. Whereas no other sport where you have to fucking talk to everyone in your worst moment right afterwards. Doesn't happen. Right? Doesn't happen. And I just think he's doing a lot for himself just by the way that he is carrying himself. You know, with the Dimitrov situation post Roland Garros, the way that he kind of goes about his business. I think we would be more attached to the controversy around his suspension if we, if. I mean, I speak for myself, if I didn't believe that this version of him is completely authentic, which I do. And it seems like reputationally, at least that's the case, you know, except for a couple of yahoo jackasses who just want to pop off for clicks, you know. But it. I, I just, I'm so excited for this final. As we kind of preview the, the men's final. I, I think Alcaraz is the favorite. I think is a clear favorite. I think, I don't think that's changed since the beginning. The movement is, is, is the biggest piece here, right? The variety that Alcaraz has that you can't trip center up on a, on a hard court, like, right. If you hit a drop shot and he reads it, he's off of the edge of his shoe and he's bursted. You can hear. We've seen him on the mat numerous times. We saw Dimitrov working that slice in and out. We saw the corners in, you know, he's sliding into balls. But then that recovery isn't as easy after he slides into his shots. And Alcaraz looks, you know, a fluent mover on grass. The vein of Roger Novak prime Rafa. Like he, he, his feet understands what they're supposed to do with him actually having to send the conscious thoughts down to him, right. It just feels like he's in full flow, I think. Sinner. It's, it's weird when he has to take those big cuts it against a player when he feels like the entire court is open. I think you kind of, he kind of misses them early in, you know, tournaments sometimes he still smothers people. But against Novak today, and I know Novak was compromised, I know you're not going to beat center if you can't explode out of the corners. You know, if you're, if you can't do kind of like the, you know, I'm flowing through my movement type thing against center, you got to be explosive. Um, but I mean, he was just cold cocking winners today, you know, backhand line, you know, when he knew exactly what he had to do. And there's almost clarity when it's the only way that you can play to beat someone. But yeah, I don't know. You changing, you changing any picks there.
- [28:48]
JW
JW No, I think if, you know, if Alcaraz gets him on clay, I think it stands to reason he probably is the better grass corps player. I mean, I'm really impressed with how you have. We always think of clay and grass as these diverse surfaces, but there actually is a lot of overlap there. And Alcaraz has managed both. But we used to say, oh, this. It's what you said for literally, I think from Borg to Roger Federer, no one had pulled off that channel double. And now you watch Carlos play on clay and then you watch him play on grass and you're like, oh yeah, he's, he looks equally comfortable on both.
- [29:23]
Mike
Well, I just think the movement has become crazy. There's no weak sides anymore. Like, you used to have to commit to a playing style based on surfaces being really fast or really slow. I think just as we're developing and I think also it's a tip of the cap backwards, right? We saw we're on the heels of the, probably the most complete generation, right? Like Rafa, Roger, where do you go, where do you go on Novak? You know, they renegotiated how you go about a match. And it's not even weaknesses, it's like micro weaknesses. It's like, okay, he'll finish me off on both sides, but he's less likely to finish me off all the time with a certain shot, a certain ball height, you know, in that. And that's kind of probably what Taylor Fritz is going through right now. It's like his stock game is great. And also you have to kind of be extra like with, with when you're executing. And it's. These guys are, you know, they're building on the legacy of, of, of the Big three and how, how complete they.
- [30:19]
JW
Were and innovating, right? I mean, Carlos, you know, the drop shot used to be like the party trick, right? It used to be like something you, you do for fun. And it's sort of this novelty car. I mean, they don't give stats here the way they do it. Roland Garros on the drop shot. But there were in Paris, I mean, Carlos was trying drop shots double digit times a set. And it wasn't to get oohs and ahs from the crowd. It was to totally change the court positioning. And I think that's something that Roger Rafa And Novak didn't deploy the way he does. It's like they're taking this base. This threshold was raised, and Carlos and Sinner in two different ways are building on it. It's really. I mean, it's kind of the natural progression of things. Right? I mean, things would be really weird if that weren't the case, but it's kind of a joy to behold.
- [31:04]
Mike
Yeah. And I got another question for you, jw. There's no right answer. I have an opinion on it. But Carlos, at 22 years old, I think it's pretty safe to say that he has the best drop shot of all time. Like, it's completely changed the way that other people are doing it. And also, people are going to say they're going to name someone who has great feel and say their drop shot was great. His ability to set the table with the forehand that he has makes the drop shot unbelievable. And the fact that he uses it in huge moments, that's it. He's not scared to pull the string on a drop shot at 30. All he's like. He's kind of equivalent to Steph Curry, who can take shots from, like, ridiculous, irresponsible distances. And you're like, yeah, that makes sense. He's. Now that makes sense. Whereas before, it's like, oh, drop shot at that. That's. That's a. Like you said, it's a party trick question I have for you, jw. I think it's. I don't think it's controversial to say that Alcaraz has the best drop shot of all time at 22. Is there any other shot where you could say that about a player at 22 years old?
- [32:12]
JW
Maybe Serena serves Gio Pecci, card serve. No, no, it's a good. I mean, could you have said something about Roger and. Well, I mean, 22. He was just getting warmed up. No, I think you're right, and I think. I think you were in keeping with our theme or a theme for the show. It's not like Fabrice Santoro, who's the fun magician, but, you know, he's. He's barely winning rounds at majors. He's unfurling that drop shot in major finals for a tactical advantage. This is not being put on. This isn't the behind the back pass for. For kicks. I mean, this is part of his arsenal. Yeah, that's a great question. I'm trying.
- [32:48]
Mike
I got an answer.
- [32:49]
JW
Serena, Sir. Steph is. Let's keep it Stephanie.
- [32:52]
Mike
Serena serves, but I have another one on the men's side. Let's say, launched onto the scene, mid-80s. No Boris Becker serve. I think he launches on at 17 years old. I think by the time 1990 gets here before Pete comes onto the scene, I'd never. I mean, you look back, you know, you watch the documentary. His serve at the time, I think was so ridiculous. Like, you know, that. That would be the one that I would think. And then Pete comes along. It's like, okay, maybe he serves better than Becker. And it went away, you know, quickly there. But I think Becker, at 22 years old, you might have been able to look at him and say, yeah, this guy has the best serve that we've seen so far in tennis.
- [33:41]
JW
Good call. I mean, some of that is technology driven in a way. It drops all of it.
- [33:45]
Mike
Yeah, well, I don't know that that's true because I think the strings where you can hold a forehand to the last second and then manipulate the ball, that sets up the drop shot, right? That softer string base, that's technology based, in my opinion. You could make that argument. But it's all to say it's really fun to watch. And Sinners incorporated it into his game. He normally hits his drop shot when he's like, moving right to his forehand and then kind of chips a cross court, which is a little different than Alcaraz. He likes to kind of hit it line and inside out. But it's. It's just great. We get it. We're spoiled. I mean, the game. We get these two again. We get Novak in the semis. You know, we. I think IGA in Ana Samova is going to be phenomenal. Shout out to the US Women. Fourth straight final. Fourth different player, like, just phenomenal. Pegula, Maddie, Coco, and now Ana Samova. The depth of US Women's tennis is just something to be really proud of. You know, I think tomorrow, Anna Samova, there's no mystery. She's going to go line as early and often as she can. She does not want the ball crossing iga's body. That brings in movement. That brings in iga's ability to switch directions, which Anisimova doesn't want to. I think this match is largely going to come down to serve. They've both been serving great. EGA has been serving better than I've ever seen her serve. If she continues that, I think it's going to be really tough. One, she gets on the front foot. She gets confidence. And two, Ana Samova is wrecking second serves. IGA is as well. First serve percentage is going to be a massive statistic. And just if Anisa Mova lands those line shots early and it's going to force IGA to make adjustments, it's going to force her to, to be aggressive to the point where Anna Samova is not being set. If she's not landing those, I think IGA can settle in a little bit more and kind of have less fear of, of, of, of forcing the issue. Who you got in that final.
- [35:34]
JW
Jw, I, I think iga, but I think you're right and I think these contrasts between the, the clean ball striker and the better athlete are always fun to watch. IGA never having lost a major final. For our tennis mythbuster show, Anisa Mova is playing in her first major final. How will she handle the occasion? You know what, a lot of players, including IGA won the first major final in which they appeared. I don't think Anisimova is going to like turn to jello when she walks out in front of the Royal box. But I think, I'll tell you, I'll tell you a quick, quick stat. If Anna Samova wins, she will be the fourth straight Wimbledon women's singles winner outside the top 10. But I think, you know, I don't know, 55, 55, 45. Iga I'd say. But no, this should be fun. That should be good. They never played before either.
- [36:21]
Mike
Yeah, I was watching this grainy footage they were showing, I guess. Yeah, they played like when they were 14 or 15 and some like I love, I'm a sucker for those old videos of, of professionals that we recognize and then seen like what the 14 year old version of their strokes look like. I think it's so cool. I can't get enough of that stuff. I think it's really fun. Listen, should be, should be a great weekend. We have two great finals. I can't wait to see it. Alcaraz and IGA both undefeated in Grand Slam finals. Yahtzee. Thanks for watching Quick serve. Support for the show comes from Amazon Prime. Prime is more than just fast free delivery. It's your go to for streaming music, movies and sports. Plus it's also a great way to connect with the things you love. Into skiing. Stream ski films on prime video even when the slopes are bare. Love fishing. You can get new gear delivered fast and be back by the water in no time. Planning your next big trip. Prime helps you get everything you need faster than you can write your out of office email. Whatever you're into, it's on Prime. Visit Amazon.comprime to get more out of whatever you're into.
- [37:42]
JW
Fox Creative.
- [37:45]
Hiro
This is Advertiser content from IM's pet food. Hey, humans. My name's Hiro. I'm a cat. I'm here to give you a crash course on how we went from fierce hunters to the floofy friends you can't live without. Although, let's be honest, we could probably live without you. Around 10,000 years ago, humans started farming, which accidentally created a rodent hunting bonanza that meant full time employment and activity for us. Humans were like, okay, these guys are chill. They can stay. So unlike dogs.
- [38:25]
Mike
Ew.
- [38:26]
Hiro
Sorry. We basically domesticated ourselves. We chose you. Fast forward to today. Some of us may not get as much hunting in and okay, I admit maybe we can get a little chunky. But you can help keep us healthy and active with Ein's Healthy Weight cat food now available in stores and online.