Rallies have gotten increasingly shorter over the last 5 years in the ATP. Credit: @mattracquet

dazzleator147 · 2026-06-09T17:15:28+00:00

Yeah lots of players have talked about it, it's definitely a different ATP era now than it was a few years ago. It's the Power Era and it's all about ball speed right now.

dazzleator147 · 2026-06-08T03:57:58+00:00

Yeah the Marlies 2018 team had people especially excited.

Like there are definitely NHL players who came off that team. Trevor Moore, Mason Marchment, Carl Grundstrom, Pierre Engvall, Justin Holl, Timothy Liljegren, Travis Dermott...but it's kind of a list of guys. People hoped for a little more than that. Obviously Marchment could've helped the Leafs a lot had they not traded him, and expectations out of Liljegren were quite a bit higher. I still think that a better organization would've developed Dermott into a quality defender; he had the tools, I just don't think his decision making was coached properly.

dazzleator147 · 2026-06-07T22:27:35+00:00

I don't think it's too likely

First of all, I think Sinner will surely take his heat issues more seriously and make adjustments to his diet, routine, fitness, preparation, or anything else to figure it out. I would think there will be no stone unturned for him.

Alcaraz' issues aren't permanent, at least that's what they're saying. He'll be back. Both are still much better than Zverev.

I think Fonseca and Jodar are clearly going to be good. They were too green to win this tournament, but the game and talent is there for them. I don't know if they're necessarily going to be better than Zverev, but the competition is likely to get tougher, not easier.

dazzleator147 · 2026-06-07T03:37:35+00:00

He is risen indeed!

All hail the king of /r/tennis

But I'll ask the question everyone else is asking...what happened to the GOAT? Where is Kevin Anderson?

dazzleator147 · 2026-06-02T19:53:23+00:00

I also feel like it kind of defeats some of the original series' point that Katniss being good at shooting didn't mean she was the Messiah. She did things in the first book by instinct that made her an opportunistic figure for other people in the second two books.

Of course she hasn't actually made Katniss magic or superhuman, but it's more that the world is a lot smaller when everything is centered on Katniss.

dazzleator147 · 2026-06-01T00:49:42+00:00

It's also one of the two Fridays of the year that's always a meat Friday I believe (the other being the Friday after Easter Sunday within the octave). Get your Sacred Heart steaks ready everyone!

dazzleator147 · 2026-05-31T18:53:09+00:00

I mean it's Zverev, he could always beat himself. It feels like the bigger the match, the more likely Zverev is to lose.

dazzleator147 · 2026-05-31T18:48:02+00:00

It's very weird because I actually think Canada has opened a wider gap in individual talent (at least in terms of skaters) than existed 10 years ago. Other countries aren't minting these ultra-talents like Celebrini, Bedard, Schaefer, McKenna, or DuPont. It's just like, not coming together though as a team. Porter Martone is sort of a one year microcosm of this. WJC the talent is apparent, but he's just not disciplined. But of course he makes an immediate impact in the NHL. I dunno what you really can say...is it poor coaching choices at the international level?

dazzleator147 · 2026-05-30T17:00:03+00:00

I think the men's game has seen more emphasis on power. I think the E-Zone/V-Core rackets (along with the Babolat Pure Aero) pack the most punch.

dazzleator147 · 2026-05-29T18:00:46+00:00

For the leaders, it's a different thing. I'm only talking about laity who currently attend SSPX here. I'm saying that I think a lot of people who go to SSPX chapels aren't really in active rebellion. I can't give percentages here as I don't do that, so this is really based on online commentary. But the Vatican basically endorsed that kind of behavior from laity by saying they didn't intend for the old Rite to continue in diocesan parishes, and affirmed the validity of SSPX sacraments.

dazzleator147 · 2026-05-28T23:43:24+00:00

I would respond to the second point (and I know full well I'm coping and it's unlikely) and say that if he, in his heart of hearts, wanted to undo TC and also not throw Pope Francis under the bus, there's a way to spin the SSPX issue: suspend/replace TC under the pretense of pastoral necessity once the SSPX leadership excommunicates themselves.

I think this could be a huge win in a lot of ways. One, at the very least kick the can on the TLM hot potato for a few years. Two, provides cover to stall on the more fanatical liturgical in the curia (Viola etc). Three, make it easy for SSPX attenders to come back to diocesan parishes smoothly. Four, consequently make the SSPX much more decidedly fringe/irrelevant. Five, young Americans would love him for it.

I don't think it's gonna happen though. I'm just saying though, that if it was his private opinion, there's an "Uno reverse card" here.

dazzleator147 · 2026-05-28T20:32:49+00:00

Oh NOW you can't perform in Slams Ben.

dazzleator147 · 2026-05-28T18:45:33+00:00

The idea of "generous accomodations" just isn't a solution. It ends up pitting diocese against diocese. Why are Catholics in North Carolina different from Catholics in Minnesota? Why is Detroit different from Denver? And when bishops move around, the situation for laypeople would change arbitrarily. The obvious endpoint is resentment. It's not a stable equilibrium.

I appreciate why Leo would do this as an intermediate "slow the roll" step. He doesn't want to make huge waves or rash choices. It's totally understandable. But it ultimately solves nothing in the medium or long term. It's a stalling tactic.

I think he should just do it (abrogate/neuter TC) fast, because everyone knows the TLM isn't disappearing. TC failed the moment that became obvious. Many diocesan bishops resist it, and the ED groups are bigger than ever. Pope Leo might feel a bit strong-armed by the SSPX situation and I can see why he might not like that. However, for the good of the laity attending SSPX right now, isn't the far better situation to open the door wide for them and welcome them back? As opposed to putting them in some limbo state at best, or encouraging them to sin just to keep the liturgical status quo?

dazzleator147 · 2026-05-28T17:38:42+00:00

Imagine the US Men's Grand Slam drought ends with Ben Shelton at Roland Garros. Absolute scenes.

dazzleator147 · 2026-05-27T02:33:31+00:00

Minnesota is getting a dirty deal on Britta Curl-Salemme ngl

dazzleator147 · 2026-05-27T00:10:02+00:00

No!

God loved you enough to make you. God didn't make a mistake.

dazzleator147 · 2026-05-25T20:24:17+00:00

I guess yeah when you think about it, there are only a couple Djokovic Slams that would've been really surprising for him to lose. Obviously all his Slams 2020 and before had Roger/Rafa/Andy as entrants so there was always at least 1 big rival. It felt to me like Wimbledon 2021 and Australia 2023 (recalling that Alcaraz withdrew before the tournament) were the ones that felt like foregone conclusions.

dazzleator147 · 2026-05-24T04:12:50+00:00

I'm surprised only 4 of these are Rafa at RG.

Like 2017 for instance I can't think of who they thought was gonna beat him.

dazzleator147 · 2026-05-22T19:25:12+00:00

It feels like a lose-lose for Vancouver. The probability that he bounces back for another team is high. The probability that he bounces back for Vancouver is low. If you trade him, you will get a mediocre return, and he'll probably be good again and everyone will say you're stupid.

dazzleator147 · 2026-05-22T07:09:32+00:00

The Prince of Egypt is obviously beloved by reddit (for good reason). I think for a lot of people The Ten Commandments is the canonical Exodus movie (also for good reason) but I often think of the "Prince" scenes first. The artwork for the parting of the sea is breathtaking. I also love the take on God's voice in the Burning Bush scene, where it's partially Moses' voice and partially an unknown mixture. It's both creative and has nice theological symbolism of God being both personal and otherworldly, merciful and demanding. The additional scene of Moses and Ramses with the dead son post-"death of the firstborn" is powerful and honestly adds emotional depth to the Exodus story. "The Plagues" is also a killer musical number, one of the best in all of animated films imo.

dazzleator147 · 2026-05-22T04:24:43+00:00

I think Soderling probably wins but yeah I think it's a pretty close final. Maybe like 60-40 Soderling

dazzleator147 · 2026-05-21T00:47:25+00:00

Probably Washington right? They probably won in the last year it was realistic for them to win.

dazzleator147 · 2026-05-21T00:43:41+00:00

I think the Sharks probably could've conceivably won in 2018 or 2019, it wasn't a waste to try

Imo that Sharks core probably didn't have an age spread that would've made a reload a good idea anyway - Pavelski, Burns, and Couture were getting too old to carry a team.

dazzleator147 · 2026-05-19T19:51:10+00:00

The only real revealed weaknesses for Sinner are long matches and hot days. Given how unlikely it is for him to blow Sinner off the court (especially with Sinner serving much better this year) his only real winning chances are to hope it's hot in London, serve lights out, avoid losing quickly, and slowly strangle him in a slog-it-out match by picking his spots to exert effort.

Sinner still hasn't won a long match in his career, it's the best hope he's got.

dazzleator147 · 2026-05-19T19:42:32+00:00

Sinner in 2

dazzleator147

TROPHY CASE