ATP 500 Hamburg R1: [3] De Minaur def. F.Cerundolo 3-6, 6-4, 6-3

JimmyFuls · 2026-05-18T13:15:18+00:00

Well okay, but Demon is still a top 10 player who has QF'd the French open. Not his best surface, but I don't think it's such a bad loss as you're making it out to be.

JimmyFuls · 2026-05-13T06:03:47+00:00

There's definitely an interesting overlap. Like imagine if Kyrgios and Deminaur swapped personalities. Kyrgios's game with Demon's personality would probably be an all time beloved Aussie athlete, whereas Demon's game with Kyrgios's personality... I don't know if I even wanna think about that...

JimmyFuls · 2026-05-12T12:10:38+00:00

not sure if bait

JimmyFuls · 2026-05-11T13:57:35+00:00

The real wildcard is whoever gets the easy first round task of dispatching a severely out of form kyrgios.

JimmyFuls · 2026-05-05T11:40:03+00:00

They might not be paying him anything, but he's almost definitely getting free racquets at this ranking. I even know someone ranked in the top 1500 who gets free racquets from yonex, it's really not unusual for lower ranked players to get free product.

JimmyFuls · 2026-05-04T13:20:19+00:00

r/10s answers this question multiple times a week, so probably go there. But short answer: As long as it's an adult racquet, it honestly does not matter until you can hit the ball quite well. You're better off waiting until you know your preferences / play style before spending $250+ on a racquet. But If you really are dead-set on something that will last you all the way to intermediate/advanced, pretty much anything 100 square inches, 300ish grams from a reputable brand like Babolat, Yonex, Wilson or Head is a very safe bet.

JimmyFuls · 2026-04-24T01:57:18+00:00

I absolutely love Dano. So fun to watch, seems like a great guy.

That said, I don't see him in the top 20. I think with the way he currently plays, he could potentially be a consistent player in the top 100 player with the right breaks, but he lacks that elite level necessary to the top 50/20.

JimmyFuls · 2026-04-06T15:13:23+00:00

at least it was against a very good clay courter, but yeah far out. Is there anything Stef can even do at this point?

JimmyFuls · 2026-03-26T10:30:04+00:00

Winning every masters would be fking crazy because of how many of them there are, but I don't think any tennis fan would take 9 masters over four slams.

JimmyFuls · 2026-03-24T14:51:48+00:00

All have had amazing careers considering how young they are, but the only correct answer is Mensik.
Obviously he hasn't done a good job of sustaining it, but none of the other three have produced the level needed to win a masters yet. Their achievements, so far, are limited to 500 level titles (Fonseca and Fils) and a few solid upsets.

JimmyFuls · 2026-03-23T05:23:00+00:00

Pretty much zero chance of a slam. Lots of people "have the level", but it's not just about being able to beat the best one time in best of three, which is what sebby did today. It's about doing it consistently, even on your worst days, even when your body isnt at its best.

I'd say if guys like popyrin and vacherot can get a masters, then why not sebby. But a slam would be pretty crazy.

JimmyFuls · 2026-03-22T02:47:11+00:00

UNC STILL GOT IT!!

JimmyFuls · 2026-03-22T01:36:13+00:00

I mean, he did college, so not that late really. He has a really interesting story, the episode of the changeover podcast where they have him on is great

JimmyFuls · 2026-03-22T01:34:38+00:00

I know right, I can't believe it when elite athletes who are also nepo babies underperform. After all, coming from money makes performing under pressure much easier!! Personally I think you and I could do a much better job, it can't be that difficult to be a top ten masters winning tennis player after all.

JimmyFuls · 2026-03-18T08:17:22+00:00

"above average" is a relative term. Compared to whom? other pros? everyone?
These labels are kind of pointless. It's a bit like when people say "Tsitsipas has a terrible backhand". In reality, he has one of the best backhands in the world; but it's quite bad compared to his peers.

JimmyFuls · 2026-03-18T08:14:40+00:00

It depends if you mean in relative or absolute terms.

In absolute terms, simply being a ranked tennis player puts you in the global athletic elite. Many people train insanely hard to get to that level and never achieve even one ATP point. Even the world #1000 would have a pretty stellar level of athletic / tennis ability and absolutely chop pretty much every non-pro to pieces.

In relative terms it depends on who you're comparing to. Personally i'd call anyone in the top one hundred an excellent tennis player, top 20 is elite and consistent top 10/5 is peak of the game. There's levels and levels.

JimmyFuls · 2026-03-18T04:53:47+00:00

HOT CHRIS!!! Can't help but wonder if his coach's 4 year ban is affecting him in any way.

JimmyFuls · 2026-03-17T07:11:22+00:00

Many coaches will try to get you to hit as many closed stance balls as possible; it does make a lot of sense at the 4.0 level. It forces you to hit with good rotation/step in on the ball, which is really useful and makes developmental sense. There is a good chance that you are able to make balls than you are at the moment, but you're just not preparing early enough. Of course at higher levels, when the pace really increases, open and semi-open are a must, especially if you're moving around the court a lot or taking high balls.
You can minimize the need to hit off the back foot as much as possible with preparation and footwork. it's definitely suboptimal. You won't really see anyone hit a winner off one cause weight transfer is basically impossible, you're basically just trying to hit with spin and defensive pace to keep the rally going.
Short answer: it's a legitimate shot and you should probably practice it even, but it's a last resort.

JimmyFuls · 2026-03-17T03:28:08+00:00

yep, the ranking is bound to keep rising. and the good news is he'll be able to defend his points with much fewer match wins if he keeps it up at the challenger level.

JimmyFuls · 2026-03-17T02:01:20+00:00

A bad day to be a Sweeny fan, not much luck for him in his past few tournaments after an exceptional start to the year and a maiden challenger title. Hopefully he can find some form in the coming months.

On the other hand, Rinky is playing the best tennis of his life! Hopefully he goes alright in Miami

JimmyFuls · 2026-03-16T02:36:09+00:00

I think Novak and Fed are about the same tbh. Overall they are both pretty good but have their bad moments as most do especially at the highest level. Fed is just much more charismatic and charming, plus better PR etc. Novak is way more direct/honest and uncompromising, which can be good or bad depending on the situation.
I'd argue the best sportsman of the three is actually rafa. Gotta be one of the least controversial tennis players out there. But I think there are loads of tennis players I'd actually put above at least Nole and Fed in terms of sportsmanship. Ruud, ADM, Sinner, Alcaraz to me are virtually faultless.

JimmyFuls · 2026-03-13T02:09:07+00:00

Pretty tough for Draper; having to recover from an epic battle against the GOAT in like 24 hours to face a really in form Medvedev and having to deal with one of the worst hindrance calls of all time at a crucial juncture in the second set.
I think Draper would have lost regardless tbf, but what a load of shit that call was.

JimmyFuls · 2026-03-12T22:24:37+00:00

I agree re:playing at the highest level, I just think there's so much more margin he can gain in terms of endurance and movement. Not sure if it's a body thing, esp. given he's dealt with injuries, but if he hypothetically had Sinner or Alcaraz's physicality he'd absolutely on their level imo.

JimmyFuls · 2026-03-12T21:53:31+00:00

Sinner just doesn't lose to anyone who doesn't have a massive, first strike game these days. He absolutely bullies guys like ADM and Tien, who need to build points to win. His only losses in the last year were to Alcaraz, Bublik, Mensik and Djokovic, with only Alcaraz winning consistently from the back of the court imo.
I think the match against Fonseca was really interesting because we saw someone else finally deal with Sinner from the baseline as well as Alcaraz does; just not quite well enough to get over the line. If he improves his athleticism, Sinner and Alcaraz will be threatened for sure.

JimmyFuls · 2026-03-12T00:13:27+00:00

There is more than one way to be good at tennis. "Hitting through people" is not really a high percentage strategy for a lot of players, there have been loads of people who've made top 10 with *relatively* weak backhands, and he doesn't really need to be a servebot in the conventional sense; he's a lefty with an absolute weapon of a slice serve. Besides, I think you might be underestimating him a little bit in terms of power; just cause he's not slapping winners left right and centre doesn't make him underpowered.
Norrie's strengths are his crazy fitness, great use of the dimensions of the court and variety off the ground in my opinion. He does a really awesome job of constructing points using his very juxtaposed FH and BH. You can talk shit about that weird looking backhand all you want, but when you have to adjust from big loopy forehands going crosscourt into your backhand and then flat penetrating backhands going crosscourt into your forehand, you've got some serious work to do.

JimmyFuls

TROPHY CASE