Day One AO Recap

00:00:13
Speaker 1: All right, hi everybody, and welcome to the Rene Stave Senes Podcast. I am joined here in Australia as my roommate by Andrea Pekovic. Andrea Okay, first day of the Austrain Opener is in the books, and what a random first day on Sunday before Monday, because the Autrain Open decided to attack on an extra day to make it a little extra cash to make up for all the money they lost in the pandemic. But having said that, wow, the crowds were crazy yesterday. But of course it's a Sunday, so all the kids were out. It was a great atmosphere. It was incredible and we had some great matches. Notably, we have to start with, of course, what Novak Djokovic had to go through last night, and give me your thoughts on his opponent.

00:00:54
Speaker 2: What a young little superstar we might have on our hands with.

00:00:58
Speaker 3: This guy, absolutely, I mean young prismtch like Croatian guy. He last year won the Australian Open and Roland Garros and the juniors, so this is kind of mind blowing, similar to a Carlos Alcaraz that he made the transition to the seniors so quickly. I wonder what your thoughts on that, because, especially in the men, this had has gotten increasingly difficult with how physical the game has gotten to make that transition from the juniors and seniors, and to see him this quickly at such a high level was really really mesmerizing. I had him on my somewhere in the back of my mind as a good junior, but to see him on this stage this good.

00:01:36
Speaker 1: Because no, it doesn't translate often, not often, but sometimes people can do really well in Genius, especially the men, because it's, as you said, it's such a physical game and it's really hard to jump from like being seventeen eighteen to you know, you're playing against thirty five year old men. So but this guy, I mean his legs alone, thighs, I mean, my god, I mean.

00:01:56
Speaker 2: He had to cut it short, shorter, yes, just so to fit into his pants.

00:02:01
Speaker 3: And I was like, hello, thy chrismache thigh prismich.

00:02:06
Speaker 2: Anyway, he was.

00:02:08
Speaker 1: I was so impressed with I mean, yes, you impressed it the way he hits the ball and all that sort of stuff. But the thing that impressed me the most, I mean his movement. My god, like Novak was afraid to come into the NAT as well because of this incredible open stance back end that he hits.

00:02:22
Speaker 2: But it's more about the heart.

00:02:24
Speaker 1: Like even when he got down for love in the fourth set and you think, okay, it's over, You've given Novak a great match, and you should be proud of yourself. You played against your idol. You've done really well. You're a little bit injured. He didn't look one hundred percent, but he still fought. And I mean Novak had to like have what four or five match points just to win the match in the end. So certainly a young superstar that's going to be making lots of noise on the tour. I mean when you think we drove out last night, didn't we And we said about it and we said, oh, it's going to be great. We've got al Karaz, We've got this young kid, We've got Sinner. I mean, all these really young guys, but they're still to get through the old Novak.

00:03:01
Speaker 3: Can I tell you what my internet name in Brooklyn is, but Yannick's Internet, Okay, And I'm so proud.

00:03:12
Speaker 4: Of that one.

00:03:13
Speaker 2: Why is that?

00:03:14
Speaker 3: Because I wanted to have a pun and I wanted to have it tennis related. Well, he saw Yani's internet and he had a great win. Just before we move on to Yannick and the others, what did you think of Novak's We saw him at the United Cup.

00:03:29
Speaker 4: He had some.

00:03:30
Speaker 3: Wrist injury or wrist problems, let's say not injury. He seemed fine yesterday. He was wearing a sleeve, did you He didn't wear a sleep in the match though, No, But then the practice and the warm up he was wearing a sleeve. Do you think that he did he look bothered to you or did he?

00:03:45
Speaker 2: I don't think so.

00:03:45
Speaker 1: I mean he wasn't squamish or sort of grabbing at it, so no, I don't think so. I mean maybe it interrupted his warm up sort of his his lead in as far as like not getting more tennis, I don't know, but you know that's all speculation. But I saw and practicing the day before and he wasn't grabbing at it. So look, I think that match is certainly going to.

00:04:05
Speaker 2: Test his body.

00:04:05
Speaker 1: There's no question about that because it was really bloody physical match. So anyway, he's through, and you know, I'm sure there were some players in the drawer thinking, oh god, you know, maybe we do have a chance here, but then it was snatched away once again. But Janixtenner looked really great. He was, and that's a tough first round, tough first round, very dangerous of vander Danishlop, but he managed to get through pretty comfortably in the end.

00:04:29
Speaker 2: So I think that's got to give him tons of confidence. Obviously.

00:04:32
Speaker 1: I talked to Darren a bit about it yesterday and he's really happy, really happy with the way he's playing. So you got to be pretty pumped about that. And Maria Sakari finally gets a win at Grand Slam level.

00:04:43
Speaker 2: It's only taken a year to do it.

00:04:44
Speaker 3: Yeah, looked a little nervous in the first step, but then went on a roll and looked really comfortable. Had a good lead up beat Angiekaba at the United Cup in a very comfortable manner. What did you think of Arena Sablenka. I had the for that one.

00:04:58
Speaker 4: Yeah, I don't know.

00:04:59
Speaker 3: If I had the blessing or the curse because I was in the other corner with a young German who has qualified. Was her first Grand Slam tournament, a major tournament ever, first main.

00:05:07
Speaker 4: Draw ever qualified.

00:05:09
Speaker 3: I had a good qualifying had good qualifying rounds. But man, Arena Saballenka looked great today.

00:05:15
Speaker 1: She was well, I mean, going on the court at like what eleven thirty at night. I mean, it's a defending champion. That's kind of some bullshit. I think, you know, I think I think if I had to do that again, or the tournament has to but what are you gonna do. You're gonna put Eager Shantech there as well as and I'm wont player in the world second one. I mean, sadly the women have to play after the man after best of five and if you're playing a four hour match, you're kind of.

00:05:35
Speaker 2: Getting screwed there.

00:05:37
Speaker 1: But you know, I think that they should probably stagger the defending champions on certainly now Sunday and Monday.

00:05:43
Speaker 2: But whatever, I'm not doing.

00:05:45
Speaker 1: The tournament schedule, and you know, they've got a lot on their plate.

00:05:48
Speaker 2: But she looked unbelievable.

00:05:50
Speaker 3: But she was serving one hundred and ninety k's an hour, that's what. And you know the miles per hour better, it's one hundred and ten more seventeen hundred and seventeen miles an hour, one hundred and ninety k's an hour at a rate of seventy five percent for serf. Yeah, that's something to really pay attention to. If she can keep that up, it's going to be really hard to beat her.

00:06:14
Speaker 1: And if she does do that, considering last year, you know, or two years ago, she couldn't get a serve in the court, So I mean, yeah, listen.

00:06:23
Speaker 2: Unfortunately for Arena sometimes it just goes off. Yeah, you know, so because her serve is quite mechanical.

00:06:29
Speaker 1: It's not that natural sort of you know, beautiful Roger Federer sort of serena.

00:06:34
Speaker 2: Just beautiful motion. So it's if it goes off, it can go off.

00:06:38
Speaker 1: So if she keeps it like that, as you said, then good luck meeting her here at the Strain Open, especially as defending champion.

00:06:44
Speaker 3: I did see a few improvements in her game too. She came forward with my which will make you very happy. She came forward when she had a shot ball, she followed it to the net, and the few important points at the net, if you can talk about important, that as six six love six one result. But it looks like they worked a little bit on that. She used her forehand cross cord anglemore rather than hit through the court, so you can see the adjustments and the things they have been working on in the off season, which I always love to see at the Australian Open, those top players improving. What have they you know, what have they adjusted in their game? What have they worked on?

00:07:18
Speaker 4: And you really could see a step ahead for her.

00:07:20
Speaker 2: Well, don't you know That's what makes a great player. It's not a player that's just.

00:07:24
Speaker 1: Sitting back on their laurels and not trying to change anything or not trying to work on anything, just like, oh, well, I'm good. Why do I need to change anything? Well, because you need to add because other players are adding. So you know, we're seeing Chiantek for examples, change your service motion a little bit like number one player in the world. Why do you need to change anything, well, because it needs to get better. So she looked really good, but Bori Korjikova, one of the seeds, she barely got through three exacs. I mean that was a little ugly.

00:07:48
Speaker 2: She looked bad, down and out.

00:07:51
Speaker 1: Yeah, but you know, she keeps so calm that she was managed to get through that. And on the same court, we almost had another upset with Andre rublavvered that match and oh my god, he was up two sets to love. Thought it was over, and then how do you say that guy's name officially?

00:08:07
Speaker 2: It's like.

00:08:11
Speaker 3: It's like keep with Portuguese. So this is the one language I can I have no ear for. If you have no ear, I'm yeah fucked because I'm terrible.

00:08:20
Speaker 1: But it was such a fun match, and it really two sets of love up. You thought it was over and done with, and then you know, the Algo managed to fight back to get it into the fifth set, and then he really had an opportunity in the match. He had was down love forty five six, pulled out some unbelievable serving, second serves, served in, vollied a couple of times, got into the tie break, got up early in the tiebreak. But with those ten point tie breaks, you cannot rest on your laurels. You got to just keep the hammer down. And his biggest issue in that match tiebreak was that he served like shit. He did not get the first serves in. He threw in a couple of maybe I think I think he threw in one or two double faults. He just he didn't have it on the surf. And rube Lev, on the other hand, hung in there and served unbelievable in.

00:09:04
Speaker 3: The time, especially thinking that that lost that heartbreaker in the fifth set tiebreaker last year against Nas, so that.

00:09:11
Speaker 4: Must have been in his head.

00:09:12
Speaker 3: But I wonder he was up Sabot Wilt or se Bush Wilts.

00:09:16
Speaker 4: I'm so sorry.

00:09:18
Speaker 3: Yeah, let's say Chiago, he was up for to one in the in the champions tae break.

00:09:24
Speaker 2: Or in the tiebreak only one mini break, though, do.

00:09:26
Speaker 3: You think that would have been enough if it was a regular tiebreak or not. You don't think that would have been even enough?

00:09:33
Speaker 1: Maybe maybe maybe just because if you get for one, you you just feel, you feel like you're almost there and you can sort of, you know, get limp over the line, per se. But in the match ten point tiebreaks, and I played so many of them doubles, obviously, you gotta keep going. You gotta focus on the next one, next one, next one. Literally you can be up nine to four and still feel really tight.

00:09:56
Speaker 2: So I don't know.

00:09:57
Speaker 1: It's a weird format, but I think it's a really good format, Frank. But he rube Lev served great and he kept his shit together. He kept his cool, which we know he has a tendency not to, so maybe he's working on that. Look, he still lost his shit a little bit, but comparative to what you can see from him.

00:10:12
Speaker 4: What did you think before we take the turn?

00:10:14
Speaker 3: End?

00:10:14
Speaker 4: Because I have to head to the courts. We are very lately.

00:10:16
Speaker 2: Fernandez look great.

00:10:18
Speaker 3: Leila Fernandez looked really good against another young Czech player seventeen years old, coming.

00:10:23
Speaker 1: From Kim popping out like unbelievable, Sarah Beileck.

00:10:27
Speaker 3: But I wanted to hear your thoughts because you called the Francis tiafle match and Taylor Fritz, another American, the two Americans a little wobbly, little wobblysial for Francis.

00:10:37
Speaker 2: Yeah, I thought Francis did a good job in the end.

00:10:40
Speaker 1: But you know, as I said after the match to her, to his agent Joe Schmoller, you know, people don't realize how hard it is to keep your focus for that long, right, I mean in the best of three, which is why so many upsets happened in best of three as opposed to best of five, because in best of three you can sort of you can mentally keep it together for an hour and a half two hours, but keep it together for three or four hours. It's really mentally hard in best of five, and so that's why the greats always managed to get three matches like that, like.

00:11:08
Speaker 2: Francis got it done.

00:11:09
Speaker 4: He born a George tough, tough job.

00:11:12
Speaker 1: And Borner hasn't really played that much, so that's been his issue.

00:11:15
Speaker 2: So I think that's what hurt him in the end. Laila look great, and I just want a.

00:11:18
Speaker 4: Few words on Amanda.

00:11:21
Speaker 2: I did cover that match for Espiano.

00:11:23
Speaker 1: I thought, oh my god, she is such an unbelievable ball striker.

00:11:28
Speaker 2: Her backhand down the mine.

00:11:29
Speaker 3: Is just and can you please explain what we mean because we sometimes forget to explain.

00:11:34
Speaker 2: We have Cleannis.

00:11:35
Speaker 3: Yes, we have this tennis terminology where we're like, oh, lindsayn't she hits the ball?

00:11:41
Speaker 4: Yay, me too. That's why I think of her, Amanda. She hits the barsal clean.

00:11:45
Speaker 3: What do we mean when we say somebody hits the bar so clean?

00:11:49
Speaker 1: They literally don't hit it out of the middle of the strings, and they just their timing on the ball is so perfect. I mean I remember, for example, with Lindsay, are playing doubles with the one time and she shanked her forehand and she looked at me and she goes, oh my god, I don't think I've.

00:12:03
Speaker 2: Ever done that in my whole life, and she was dead serious. I'm like getting used to her. Girl, might watch watch me hit my forehand. You're gonna know what it's like to not hit a foehand in the middle of the strings.

00:12:14
Speaker 1: But it's just the purity of her ball striking, very much like Jessica pa Gula, very clean hitter of the ball. You think about Cocoa Gough. Yeah, on the forehand, not a clean.

00:12:25
Speaker 2: Hit right backhand, very clean.

00:12:27
Speaker 1: But there's certain players that just have this ability to be able to hit the ball in the middle of the strings every single time.

00:12:32
Speaker 2: And her her technique on her backhand is so good.

00:12:35
Speaker 1: To forehand's still a little dodgy, very sort of mechanical, but when she is in place.

00:12:41
Speaker 2: She's got to get a little bit quicker and fitter. There's no question about it.

00:12:43
Speaker 1: She'll be the first to probably tell you that similar to what Donna Vickich was going through coming back from her like sabbatical away from injuries and stuff. But when she gets her match fitness and oh my god, she's so good.

00:12:54
Speaker 4: And it has to be not just because we didn't.

00:12:56
Speaker 2: And she beats some of us.

00:12:58
Speaker 3: She bad some son of our thirteenth see it's here at the Austrian Opera, which will also open.

00:13:02
Speaker 4: Up her job a little bit.

00:13:04
Speaker 3: Renee, I have to go if you want to take this to an end, I'm going to go pee and then I'm going to head to the chorus.

00:13:08
Speaker 4: I'll see you there.

00:13:09
Speaker 1: I don't think we needed to hear all of your situation, but no. Overall, look, yesterday was pretty amazing. Clearly we know that there were some amazing matches already in the first first round, and we were just happy and excited. I'm super excited for Lala Fernandez, who's back to being a thirty two seed. I think she can do some really good things here. I think a drawer is not bad. So for all the Canadians out there that follow our podcast, get excited because she is back. But anyway, Alicia Park's also another American that got through in three sets yesterday against a qualifier, but a good qualify in Snieger from Ukraine. And as I said, just some amazing matches, and there's some amazing matches today and Patco and I will bring you a little update on all of them tomorrow or tonight or whatever the hell whenever we get time.

00:13:56
Speaker 2: But thanks for joining us today here in Melbourne. We'll see you soon.

00:14:00
Speaker 1: Bye, say bye, PECKRD Jews Okay, cheers, H.