February 22, 2023 • 29 mins
Is Novak Djokovic primed to complete the elusive Calendar Slam? Round Table panellists Todd Woodbridge and Casey Dellacqua discuss his potential for 2023 and put on the record their early-season predictions including Top 10 new-comers and season-ending World No.1s, Jim Courier explains the keys and pitfalls of the on-court interview and shares some of his highlights from the past 18 years, and Simon Rea from the Game Insight Group reveals the biggest hitters of Australian Open 2023.
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Speaker 1 (00:01):
The time for talking is over.
Speaker 2 (00:03):
The match clock showing four hours and twelve minutes.
Speaker 1 (00:06):
It's all locks.
Speaker 3 (00:07):
Him four Indian inside Marie the Erotic.
Speaker 1 (00:13):
What's the smash like? Its gold? It's about eight.
Speaker 4 (00:20):
Colap, says a love Lada at ten of the Absolute Questa.
Speaker 2 (00:30):
Hi everyone, and welcome to the AO Show for a
week that's already seen Danil Medvedev conquer Yannick Sinner in
Rotterdam and Igish Fiontek take the title against Jesspergoula in Doha.
Here's what's ahead on the AO Show. Our experts make
some bold predictions on the round table.
Speaker 5 (00:46):
The best opportunity he has ever had to win the
Grand Slam.
Speaker 2 (00:50):
Jim Courier on the art of the on court interview
and who are the biggest hitters? At A three?
Speaker 6 (01:01):
I don't think many would have him in the top five.
In fact, he sits at number three.
Speaker 2 (01:05):
That's all ahead on the AO Show. Well, it's time
to get the band back together and welcome to the
roundtable for the first time in twenty twenty three. Would
you believe Casey de Laqua and Todd Woodbridge. Hello friends,
Hi guys, Hi, we've had you in Cotton wool for
the past few weeks. But how have your summers been
(01:26):
in respective recoveries.
Speaker 5 (01:27):
Well, I'll jump in because I feel human again, which
is a good feeling after an enormous month of tennis
that was incredibly exciting, particularly on the ground and on
the ground, I mean by the venues having full crowns
back and particularly at the Australian Open, and then all
of the stories that unfolded.
Speaker 1 (01:47):
So I've got to say.
Speaker 5 (01:52):
It's much easier being a player, Casey, I think than
it is doing this television and media gig.
Speaker 1 (01:57):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (01:57):
Absolutely, Look my energy levels are have to say, they
are just slowly still creeping up.
Speaker 1 (02:02):
It was an enormous summer.
Speaker 4 (02:03):
Like Todd said, you know, we're there to teach the
public and encourage the public to you know, follow our
great game, and I think we did a great job
Todd doing so with the great tennis that we were
able to see.
Speaker 2 (02:17):
And we've kept the ship sailing while you guys have
been away. But great to have you back. And we're
going to have a bit of fun today by looking
through the crystal ball, so to speak, and making some
possibly bold predictions about what we might see for the
rest of the twenty twenty three season, So let's crack
straight into it. And I'm interested to hear about who
you guys think might win their first ATP or WTA
(02:39):
titles in twenty twenty three. Who wants to go first?
Speaker 4 (02:43):
Look Alster, maybe Todd on the women's side, And someone
that is at a career high ranking of twenty four
is the Chinese player of Xien Quinn. I just feel
like she's on her way up. Absolutely, she was WTA
newcomer in twenty twenty two. She had a fabulous in
your career. She's made a couple of WTA finals before,
(03:03):
but I just feel like she's on the verge of
getting her first WTA title. She's a great player, she's
actually her game was inspired by Lena. She strikes the
ball incredibly well from Wuhan, and I feel like she's
on the verge of not only her first WTA title,
but also cracking the world's top twenty. So look out
(03:24):
for this fabulous young and up and coming Chinese player.
Speaker 1 (03:29):
I'm going to jump deep in here.
Speaker 5 (03:31):
I'm not going to go for the question that you
gave me, like in politician does, I'm going to take
it the direction I want it John fair enough and
say that I think that Novak Djokovic has the best
opportunity he has ever had to win the Grand Slam.
Speaker 1 (03:47):
I think all four majors are on the table for
him this year.
Speaker 5 (03:51):
Given what we saw at Melbourne Park, I think there
is still some small question marks amongst the guys that
are chasing him, and I believe that that is the
absolute goal for him this season.
Speaker 1 (04:06):
I think he's going to look at his schedule.
Speaker 5 (04:08):
He's going to orchestrate it so that he is at
peak performance in all four majors we now know. It
is likely he will be back at the US Open.
Raffa isn't at his best. He's got a long way
to come back and be physically ready to be able
to win another role in Gaross And I just think
the stars might be aligning for him given everything that's
(04:30):
unfolded over the last few years. And he was just
so far above anybody else on the men's side at
the Australian Open. I haven't seen that gap so wide
in my time.
Speaker 2 (04:42):
Very interesting prediction, Todd. Would you say he's closer to
it this year than he was in twenty twenty one
or any time earlier?
Speaker 1 (04:49):
In his career, I actually would.
Speaker 5 (04:51):
And the reason I say that is I think that
mentally he's learned to cope with an amazing amount of stress, anxiety,
the things that have been thrown at him through COVID,
a lot of it from his own decision making of
what he's chosen to do, but they're all past him,
and I think he's got this open window now where
he hasn't got to worry about.
Speaker 1 (05:11):
Any of that. He can just go out and play
and pull it all together.
Speaker 5 (05:16):
And I think the most important part is that unless
there is something that stands out from the field in
terms of a player that can rise and equal him,
it is going to be difficult to not see that happening.
Speaker 1 (05:29):
Because of the levels that he's brought.
Speaker 5 (05:31):
I don't think the playing group below him is quite
at those levels, and I think the stresses are completely different. Now.
Speaker 4 (05:38):
Yeah, I mean, I absolutely think Todd was right. I mean,
his level in terms of where he was at this
AO was just phenomenal and well above I mean, obviously
we're all excited with the Taylor Fritzes and all these
younger players coming through, but when you look at Novak
and the type of tennis he was able to produce.
It was extraordinary. So I'd like that you didn't answer
the question, Todd, and I like that you just went
(05:59):
on your own tangent and just and gave us a
very bold prediction, but a really, you know possibility, a
real possibility on the tennis tour.
Speaker 2 (06:09):
My next question again relates to the top ten. Who
could we see break in or maybe make her return
to the top ten.
Speaker 4 (06:17):
Casey, Yeah, I did have a bit of a think
about this question, and I kind of there was a
number of players on my radar, but someone that who
played really well during the AO was Donnavekicch and she
actually played really well through the United Cup. I feel
like she's just been around for so long, but she
is actually only twenty six years of age, and she
just I feel like she's got, you know, Pamshriver there
(06:38):
now as a mentor, and she's got a good team
around her, and just from speaking with her, I feel
like she's really matured. She had that anticipation as a
junior of someone that was potentially going to be a
top ten player, but she's never quite got there. So
I'm kind of hoping. I really like Donna as a
person as a player, and I'm kind of, I guess,
manifesting in a way that she gets because I do
(07:00):
feel like she puts in the work, you know, she
leads from the front. She's on the player council now,
and I feel like she's one of those players that
can really, you know, put her best foot forward in
twenty twenty three and really break top ten where I
believe even from eight to ten years ago was somewhere
where she was going to get to.
Speaker 1 (07:18):
So I'm going to go with, you know, a bit
of someone that's.
Speaker 4 (07:21):
Potentially a little bit older at twenty the age of
twenty six, but I'm really hoping my break inside that
top ten.
Speaker 5 (07:27):
Now. Well, I'll take a sort of down the men's
path if I can with that question because and I'm
going to keep it local in terms of Australian now,
I think Alex Dimanor this year has that ability to
break into the top ten. That is his absolute goal,
and it's going to be difficult for him because we
saw even at the Australian Open against Novak as an example,
(07:48):
the weaponry isn't as big as perhaps it needs to be,
but the determination is and the drive to be successful
is and I think I think he has a window
here to be able to continue with his consistency and
break into a top ten. And of course to do that,
he's going to have to do some extra special work
at the Majors. But nobody, I think, is any better
(08:12):
prepared than what he is to be able to do that.
So I'm hoping to see him in that space. The
other player this is almost that I would like to
because I enjoy watching him, is Dennis Shapovalov. I'd like
to see him get the consistency that I'm talking about
with demon Or to be able to get back to
those levels, to be able to go deep into the
(08:32):
Majors again and actually worryor play a player like a Djokovic,
for instance, who, because of his ability to make any
shot from any part in the court, if he can
pull it all together, he's capable of big upsets. And
I think, though the word consistency is important to both
of them, particularly for Shapovalov to be able to do this,
and I think get the very best out of the
(08:55):
potential that he has in his game.
Speaker 1 (08:56):
Yeah, and I was just going to ask you, Todd.
Speaker 4 (08:58):
I was thinking about Alex and how important scheduling is
for a player like Alex and where he maps out
his runs in terms of what types of tournaments he plays.
Do you ever kind of thought on that, because I
feel like that for a player like Alex is critical.
Speaker 5 (09:12):
Yeah, definitely to surface. I mean, clay isn't his best
as you know, and he plays well on it. It's
just harder for him because he has the flat of ball.
So look, he plays well in the quicker clay, he
played well in Barcelona, he looked to play well in Madrid,
and then he's got a hope for a reasonable draw
to get through at Roland Garross.
Speaker 1 (09:30):
That's the key.
Speaker 5 (09:31):
But then really it's a bit like Curios last year,
where the hone in has to be on the grass.
That's where you know he can win tournaments in the
lead up. But also he was so close to getting
into a quarter at Wimbledon last year in the singles.
That's where I think he can really utilize his game
style to the surfaces, so he's pretty smart with that.
(09:52):
I think the thing too also is that because he
is so physical Casey he actually has to make sure
he has enough breaks to work on keeping his body
robust to be able to take on all of the
difficult matches that he has to play to be able
to win, because sometimes he has to grind win matches,
and to do that you need to be bath fresh
mentally but also physical with that recovery.
Speaker 2 (10:14):
Well, the next question has already partially been answered by
virtue of Todd's earlier prediction, but I wanted to have
a discussion about who might win their first major title.
We've already seen Sabolenka secure hers in Melbourne. Todd thinks
Novak's going to win the whole box and dice, but
Casey perhaps on the women's side, and Todd, we will
throw it back to you for a men's prediction if
(10:35):
Novak falters in one of the slams.
Speaker 4 (10:37):
Yeah, look, I think for me, I think a Jessica
Bogoula has got to be up the top of the list.
Speaker 2 (10:43):
I think.
Speaker 4 (10:45):
I think she's still continued some great form post Ao
over in Doha. She's made another final. I think she's
got it all there. Obviously, we know how many matches
you've got to win over the length of two weeks
at a Slam, and things to your way in terms
of draw but I do believe that she's putting herself
in the best position with the right people around her,
(11:06):
and physically she's in a in great condition as well,
So I kind of feel like a Pagoula perhaps you
know Maria Sakari as well. Again, a lot of things
have got to fall away, but the women's game is
obviously a lot more open in terms of I feel
like the amount of women that can put themselves forward
to win a Grand Slam title. There's no doubt about that.
(11:28):
So look, I think Sabolenka could go on and win
multiple this year as well. There's no doubt about it
in terms of making sure she continues to keep herself
mentally and emotionally in a position where she was during
the AO, because that was just incredible.
Speaker 1 (11:42):
She's done the work.
Speaker 4 (11:43):
So and then you've obviously got Shviontek, who's won a
title already since AO and still playing some great tennis.
So lots of contenders, probably on the women's side, but
if there's a one that might win their first I'll
go with Pagoula.
Speaker 5 (11:56):
Well, I'm going to go with the two players that
I actually picked to potentially break through at the Australian Open.
Speaker 1 (12:03):
I think they're still on track.
Speaker 5 (12:04):
To do that.
Speaker 1 (12:05):
And for the women's side, for me, that's Belinda Bencic.
Speaker 5 (12:07):
I think that it's all about belief at the back
end of the Major for her right now, and I
know she's got it because she's won Olympics, She's faced
all of the pressure that you get when you play
for your country and Billy Jean King Cup and I
think that's the next step, that's the finishing point for Belinda,
is to be able to win a Slam. Then on
(12:28):
the men's side, it is Janick Sinner, who I think
is just maturing at the right rate incrementally, just small bits,
and the rise is continual, and I think the belief
is continual with him also. But with him, he's working
with Darren Kale, one of the most successful coaches that
(12:49):
the game has seen over the last twenty five years,
and Darren is just putting into his mind all of
the experience of what he knows those major winners need
to have. And I think that if things fall right
for Janick, he certainly is a player that could win
his first Major in this season if Novak doesn't get
(13:10):
through on that men's side.
Speaker 1 (13:11):
The big bold prediction.
Speaker 2 (13:13):
That I've made and which Slam. Would that be, Well, I.
Speaker 5 (13:16):
Think it's less likely to be Wimbledon, more likely to
be Rolling Gaross or probably the US Open where we saw,
you know, the incredible Tennessity played. He reached the quarter
with Carlos al KaAZ. I think that that suits him.
That US Open at the moment, the best of the
ones that are to come.
Speaker 2 (13:34):
Okay, And finally, this is just a pretty quick fire question,
which one player will finish the year as world number one?
Perhaps Casey start with you with your women's prediction.
Speaker 4 (13:45):
Ah, yeah, Look, it's tough. It's a tough one, isn't that.
But I think I'm actually going to go with Sablenka.
I'm going to go with her because, yeah, I just
believe that she'll carry on from Ao, and I feel
like she's done the work, as I said, to make
sure that she stays consistent across those bigger tournaments. And
(14:06):
Novak on the men's side, I mean, I feel like
Todd's prediction was bold, but I feel like the number
one for Novak's probably in the bag for someone like him,
who's going to be you know, I still feel well
above a lot of the other the men in different
tournaments yep.
Speaker 5 (14:24):
I'm not moving off where the rankings sit right now.
I just don't see those players coming off their levels.
So Egustchiontek, who's just cleaned up another tournament victory winning
six love sets, with the ease of Stephie Graft back
in the day is continual for me, and I think
she's going to be hard to get out of that position.
Speaker 1 (14:41):
And the same with Novak.
Speaker 5 (14:42):
When you look at Novak's schedule and how limited it
was over the last year.
Speaker 1 (14:47):
He doesn't even have a point to defend at the
US Open.
Speaker 5 (14:49):
He's got no points in the lead up to the
US Open if he chooses to play any of those events.
Obviously he could go deeper at rolling Gaross to accumulate
some more.
Speaker 1 (15:00):
It's going to be hard to move either of them.
Speaker 5 (15:02):
I think their contracts are well in place as the
number one player in the world.
Speaker 2 (15:07):
So one vote for Sabolenka, one vote for sch Fiontek,
and then two votes for Novak Djokovic. Before I let
you go, we're about to play a feature from Jim
Courier about the art of the on court interview. What
do you reckon? The key to a good on court
interview is Casey, Well, I think.
Speaker 4 (15:22):
It might have been even todd that you maybe pass
this info on to me or something. But I think
the key is making sure that you ask the player
are how, what or why kind of question so that
they get that understanding of what they're actually being asked,
because sometimes in those interviews, one they can potentially not
speak the best of English, but then also they like
to be asked direct questions, and you want them to
(15:44):
be able to respond to a certain question. So I
think that was the best piece of advice that I
had in terms of those on core interviews, and making
them very direct so that you were there, the player
was there, ready with a question to actually answer and
not just a statement yep.
Speaker 5 (15:59):
Good.
Speaker 1 (16:00):
It sounds like I've given Casey there.
Speaker 5 (16:02):
And I would also say, I mean, I think the
important part, you know, particularly working alongside Jim for so
long now, is preparation. His interviews don't happen by accident.
He has his questions in his mind that he'd liked
to go. He also has anticipated what some of the
answers might be, so he can take the interview off
into a various directions so that it becomes entertaining for
(16:24):
the people that are watching at home, and I think
one of the most important parts to that is listening
to the answers so that you are prepared to be
able to get more out of the person that you're interviewing,
so that it becomes fun, it becomes colorful, and.
Speaker 1 (16:39):
That's the basis of it.
Speaker 5 (16:40):
And you know, sometimes it doesn't go as well as
you would have liked, and that's where the preparation comes in,
so that you've got an extra couple of questions up
your sleeve to maneuver if you have to great advice.
Speaker 2 (16:51):
Well, let's see what Jim has to say in this feature.
The art of the on court interview.
Speaker 3 (17:00):
Thoughts on playing Madison the Keys to Keys If you will,
that's good for me.
Speaker 2 (17:05):
Yeah, that's cheesy, isn't it.
Speaker 1 (17:07):
It's terrible.
Speaker 3 (17:08):
Rule number one, if you are asked to do an
on court interview, insist you will only interview the winning player.
Rule number one. They're always in a better mood. Do
you train really hard in the off season? Can you
give me any tips anything that you can talk about.
Speaker 1 (17:24):
Oh, it's old talent that don't work. I'll just sit
on the couch.
Speaker 2 (17:29):
Take care.
Speaker 1 (17:32):
Now you've really upset me.
Speaker 3 (17:34):
Players these days, they know that they're still performing when
they're in the interview. They know they're still selling themselves
to the audience and showing a little bit more of themselves.
And it's really because Roger Federer showed that it was
okay to do that. He was the one who showed
that it's okay to laugh at himself and to show
a little bit more talk a little bit more about
himself off the court.
Speaker 7 (17:53):
Yeah, I like my ice cream and I like my chocolate,
and that's my diet. So that's nothing normal. Don't tell
me that it's like an everyday thing. I like my
treets absolutely, so I don't feel even bad about it.
I feel good that I could do it and play
tennis at the same time.
Speaker 3 (18:08):
Well, the audience does let you know whether you're having
a good interview or not. If they're engaged and involved,
then you know that they're getting something out of it,
and that's that's a good barometer. It's been an amazing ride.
It's been incredible to watch this journey that you've been on.
It started as a boy playing tennis. You turn into
(18:28):
a junior champion, then a world champion, and then you
became a sporting icon. What has that journey been like
for you?
Speaker 2 (18:37):
It was never supposed to be that way. It's just
happy to play tennis and.
Speaker 7 (18:44):
Spend time with my friends, really and in an end here,
so it's been a perfect journey. I would do it
all over again.
Speaker 3 (18:51):
That one has a lot of deep meaning because of
what it sort of represents, the kind of end of
his career. It represents him giving sort of a synopsis
in many ways of his career, and then the people
that got him there, and it was an emotional moment
that will never happen that I'll never be involved in
(19:11):
an interview again. I can't imagine. You had a great
team behind you all the way. You had your family
behind you all the way. How much did their support
help you get right here? Yeah?
Speaker 1 (19:22):
I mean we have to go there now, I've got
more questions.
Speaker 3 (19:27):
We can move on.
Speaker 7 (19:28):
It's okay, I don't okay so far, I feel at
least I'm at least able to talk.
Speaker 1 (19:34):
In my vision, I was never able to talk, So
I'm doing way better.
Speaker 3 (19:38):
The best part about these is that they're unscripted to
I mean, you're scripting them to a certain extent, but
you don't know what the answers are really going to
be and it's live, so anything can happen, and the
players can burn you, they can just disregard your question
and go somewhere else. There's any number of things that
can happen, but it's never boring.
Speaker 7 (19:57):
I'll tell you that my wife's been so supportive and
she could have stopped me a long long time ago,
but you didn't.
Speaker 2 (20:06):
She kept me going and allowed me to play.
Speaker 7 (20:08):
So it's amazing. Thank you for.
Speaker 3 (20:14):
All players wear masks when they're playing, and you want
them to take that mask off and show who they
really are and give some emotion, give some humor, and
give some sense of why people should care about them.
Speaker 2 (20:33):
There's so much activity at the Australian Open and right
throughout the Australian Summer of tennis, and busy in the
engine room, as we like to call the nerve center
of the Australian Open is the Game Insight Group, the
data analyst, the sports scientists, all working together to bring
us insights into our wonderful sport. And leading the pack
is Simon Ray from GIG who joins us. Welcome back
(20:55):
to the AO show, Simon, how's your recovery?
Speaker 5 (20:58):
Bean?
Speaker 2 (20:58):
Post Aoh hi jok.
Speaker 6 (21:00):
So having me back, I like it the engine room,
the nerve center. I like the way you're thinking there. Now. Look,
it's been a nice chance to catch my breath a
little bit and for the team to catch their breath
after a big month. But happy to be back into
it and delving back in and reflecting a little bit
on what we saw across the month of January with
you today.
Speaker 2 (21:17):
And we now have the benefit of looking back at
the AO twenty twenty three leaderboards. This is a collection
of data encompassing the two weeks of the main draw
for both the men and the women. And we're going
to start with fourhand heaviness, which is a metric that
you told us about right at the start of the summer,
which takes into account speed and spin.
Speaker 6 (21:37):
Yeah, so that notion of and you recall John from
when we spoke about it pre summer, that notion of
commentators or analysts or experts in the world if you like,
talking about heavy fourhands, and everyone would have a slightly
different version of what constitutes a heavy forehand, but in essence,
I think it's that notion of a ball jumping or
rearing off the cord or being notoriously hard to handle
(21:58):
if you're on the receiving end of it. So the
rhetoric has always been that Nadal's forehand has been so
heavy and such a handful to try to deal with.
I think a nightmare to be facing is kind of
how I think of it. And a few things grabbed
my mind when or grabbed my eyes straight away when
we're looking at fourhand heaviness and just what we saw
across the Australian Open as compared to zooming out any
(22:19):
further than that. So certainly from an Australian perspective, there's
a name at the top of the list there. So
the heaviest forehand that we saw at the austrain Open
in January on display the Nassi cock and Arcus. So
that combination of speed and spend and being a nightmare
or difficult to play against and really proving a handful
to try to deal with, the Nassikock and Arcus at
the top of the plane group on the mail side.
Speaker 2 (22:41):
Yeah, it's a prime. I mean, we know he has
a big game, but did we know he had the
biggest forehand on the tour? At least this is what
the data tells us across the well, he played two matches, didn't.
Speaker 6 (22:50):
He Yeah, he did at the Austrain Open. So yeah,
we knew, you know, if we extend the data or
extrapolate the data out to previous years or where we've
got access to other data over the journey, we knew
up there somewhere. So it's certainly a foehand that has
got significant firepower on display. And it's not a fourhand
to be taken lightly. It's a fourhand to be reckoned with.
And then there's some really typical or some of the
(23:12):
usual suspects up there on the men's side. So Rood's
in there at second place in the leaderboard. Ozi earlier
seams in at fourth, and then we start a conversation
about a couple of our finalists, and I think there's
some surprises in mind here.
Speaker 2 (23:23):
Yeah, looking at this list, we see Stefan Arsitsipa sitting
in fifth place. He's just marginally behind kochin Arkas on
the heaviest fourhand metric. But this is the big surprise.
Novak Djokovic is in at number twelve on fourhand heaviness,
which is something that is quite surprising. I would have
thought he'd be further down the list.
Speaker 6 (23:43):
Yeah, And I think it's an area that we might
often undersell Novak in. So you know, we go to
the returner serve, or we go to the defense, or
we go to there is no obvious hole or no
obvious floor in the game. But perhaps we overlook at
times the offense of cape ability that this guy brings
to the court and the weapons that he does have,
(24:03):
and as well as those things that I mentioned in
terms of being really hard to get at holes that
don't exist or where would you start if you're formulating
a game plan against him, This guy can generate and
do some damage as well. And we'll get to pure
speed in a minute. But this notion on foehand side
of a combination of speed and spin described here as
fourhand heaviness number twelve in the field, that's right up there.
(24:26):
So I think that's something to be really noted down.
That's a noteworthy conversation to be having.
Speaker 2 (24:32):
And just from a point of clarification perspective, are these
baseline groundstrokes as opposed to volleys at the net other
types of shots.
Speaker 6 (24:40):
Great call out and great clarification. So we take the
return to serve out because we want to look at
the return separately, So we look at the serve, we
look at the return, and then we look at all
of these forehands thereafter from the back of the court,
So from the third shot of the rally onwards, we
take out anything that could be classed as an overhead
because that could give us a bias towards speed or spin.
And exactly as you've described, we definitely don't want to
(25:01):
be looking at volleys or even top spin volley, so
the ball has to have bounced for it to be
classified in this way. So a really good clarification to make.
Speaker 2 (25:09):
Okay, let's zoom in a little bit then and examine
the speed of shot, which is one of the two
elements that make up fourhand heaviness.
Speaker 6 (25:19):
Yeah, so I suspect if I took a straw pole
of the experts that we're in town here across the
month of January and went across the media center or
delve down into the player and coaching areas and took
the straw pole as I described, if I were to
ask where Novak Djokovic might sit, If I were to
ask those experts where Novak Djokovic might sit, from a
(25:39):
fourhand speed perspective. So now just disregard spin or leave
that to one side. Let's just talk about speed. We
know how good this guy's ball striking is. Sure, I
don't think many would have him in the top five.
In fact, he sits at number three from the Australian
Open in twenty twenty three.
Speaker 2 (25:55):
On speed alone. Yeah, looking at the numbers here, one
point thirty one point nine kilometers per hour on average.
Speaker 6 (26:00):
Which I think is again it's more testament to his
ball striking, the weaponry, the phenomenal timing coordination, and the
ability to produce the easy power, of the efficient power
that we see from him under pressure and under duress.
And then you marry that up with some of the
physicality that you know we often do sing his praises
on and it becomes almost an impenetrable fortress. Where do
(26:24):
you turn to get past this guy? And then pivoting
and having a look at the female side of the game.
So there's some familiar suspects at the top of these lists.
So Camilla Georgie, who we know is a ferocious ball
striker and doesn't hold back, I think that's fair to
say sits right up the top at number one hundred
and twenty six point one kilometers an hour on fourhand
side terms of speed across the Australian Open, Madison Keys
(26:46):
is a name that we often have at the top
of these lists from her ball striking one hundred and
twenty five kilometers now, but our two finalists on the
female side, and what a final it was that we
saw Sabolenka and Rubaikener. Well they're right up there too.
Saballenka is at number seven one hundred and twenty three
point seven kilometers an hour and Rabikna at number eleven
in the field one hundred and twenty two kilometers an hour.
(27:07):
So that's kind of that rare breed as well, where
they're bringing a lot of heat and in tent and
speed on the ball. And they're also both up there
when we look on the female side in terms of
heaviness as well. Sabalenka number three on the female side
at seven point five. That's the combination of speed and spin.
Rebiken a number eight. So top ten in terms of
heaviness and top ten are very very close in terms
(27:30):
of just pure speed. Says a lot about those two fourhands.
Of those two women.
Speaker 2 (27:34):
Absolutely, and overall it is Jeng chin Wen who heads
the four hand heaviness for the women. She has a
factor of eight, which is higher than anyone else fonte
Igersfiontek is second with seven point six, and then Sabolenka.
As you mentioned, keeping in mind that the women's average
has six point seven. Is the is the average? Would
(27:58):
you say quotient or facto?
Speaker 3 (27:59):
What?
Speaker 5 (28:00):
What do you use?
Speaker 1 (28:00):
Yeah?
Speaker 2 (28:01):
Rating?
Speaker 6 (28:01):
Yeah, we classify that as a heaviness rating if you like,
across the field, So six point eight for the men's average,
and keeping in mind two we're comparing the men to
the men and the women to the women, so it's
an entirely different data set that we use across the
two groups. But I think that is noteworthy to have,
you know, sits passing Djokovic at five and twelve respectively
in the field and sabal Anka and Rubaiken at three
(28:23):
and eight, so both sitting comfortably inside the top ten.
Some heavy forehands on display from our finalists as we
look back in January and the twenty three.
Speaker 2 (28:32):
AO fascinating insights from the Gig team. These are the
AO twenty three leaderboards and next week on the show,
we're going to have a chat to you about spin,
specifically all right fourhand and backhand spin.
Speaker 6 (28:44):
Looking forward to that conversation and we'll try to bring
some quality information to the table.
Speaker 1 (28:50):
That's all for this week's episode.
Speaker 2 (28:51):
Join me again next week for the latest tennis news,
views and interviews before we go. Happy birthday to Rinky, Hitjacutter,
Jess Bigour, late In Hewitt and Lina. And if you've
got a birthday coming up, let us know via ozopen
dot com, slash listen, or email The Aoshow at tennis
dot com dot au. Don't forget to subscribe, and as always,
(29:11):
if you like what you're hear, please leave us a
rating and review so more fans can enjoy the AO
Show
The time for talking is over.
Speaker 2 (00:03):
The match clock showing four hours and twelve minutes.
Speaker 1 (00:06):
It's all locks.
Speaker 3 (00:07):
Him four Indian inside Marie the Erotic.
Speaker 1 (00:13):
What's the smash like? Its gold? It's about eight.
Speaker 4 (00:20):
Colap, says a love Lada at ten of the Absolute Questa.
Speaker 2 (00:30):
Hi everyone, and welcome to the AO Show for a
week that's already seen Danil Medvedev conquer Yannick Sinner in
Rotterdam and Igish Fiontek take the title against Jesspergoula in Doha.
Here's what's ahead on the AO Show. Our experts make
some bold predictions on the round table.
Speaker 5 (00:46):
The best opportunity he has ever had to win the
Grand Slam.
Speaker 2 (00:50):
Jim Courier on the art of the on court interview
and who are the biggest hitters? At A three?
Speaker 6 (01:01):
I don't think many would have him in the top five.
In fact, he sits at number three.
Speaker 2 (01:05):
That's all ahead on the AO Show. Well, it's time
to get the band back together and welcome to the
roundtable for the first time in twenty twenty three. Would
you believe Casey de Laqua and Todd Woodbridge. Hello friends,
Hi guys, Hi, we've had you in Cotton wool for
the past few weeks. But how have your summers been
(01:26):
in respective recoveries.
Speaker 5 (01:27):
Well, I'll jump in because I feel human again, which
is a good feeling after an enormous month of tennis
that was incredibly exciting, particularly on the ground and on
the ground, I mean by the venues having full crowns
back and particularly at the Australian Open, and then all
of the stories that unfolded.
Speaker 1 (01:47):
So I've got to say.
Speaker 5 (01:52):
It's much easier being a player, Casey, I think than
it is doing this television and media gig.
Speaker 1 (01:57):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (01:57):
Absolutely, Look my energy levels are have to say, they
are just slowly still creeping up.
Speaker 1 (02:02):
It was an enormous summer.
Speaker 4 (02:03):
Like Todd said, you know, we're there to teach the
public and encourage the public to you know, follow our
great game, and I think we did a great job
Todd doing so with the great tennis that we were
able to see.
Speaker 2 (02:17):
And we've kept the ship sailing while you guys have
been away. But great to have you back. And we're
going to have a bit of fun today by looking
through the crystal ball, so to speak, and making some
possibly bold predictions about what we might see for the
rest of the twenty twenty three season, So let's crack
straight into it. And I'm interested to hear about who
you guys think might win their first ATP or WTA
(02:39):
titles in twenty twenty three. Who wants to go first?
Speaker 4 (02:43):
Look Alster, maybe Todd on the women's side, And someone
that is at a career high ranking of twenty four
is the Chinese player of Xien Quinn. I just feel
like she's on her way up. Absolutely, she was WTA
newcomer in twenty twenty two. She had a fabulous in
your career. She's made a couple of WTA finals before,
(03:03):
but I just feel like she's on the verge of
getting her first WTA title. She's a great player, she's
actually her game was inspired by Lena. She strikes the
ball incredibly well from Wuhan, and I feel like she's
on the verge of not only her first WTA title,
but also cracking the world's top twenty. So look out
(03:24):
for this fabulous young and up and coming Chinese player.
Speaker 1 (03:29):
I'm going to jump deep in here.
Speaker 5 (03:31):
I'm not going to go for the question that you
gave me, like in politician does, I'm going to take
it the direction I want it John fair enough and
say that I think that Novak Djokovic has the best
opportunity he has ever had to win the Grand Slam.
Speaker 1 (03:47):
I think all four majors are on the table for
him this year.
Speaker 5 (03:51):
Given what we saw at Melbourne Park, I think there
is still some small question marks amongst the guys that
are chasing him, and I believe that that is the
absolute goal for him this season.
Speaker 1 (04:06):
I think he's going to look at his schedule.
Speaker 5 (04:08):
He's going to orchestrate it so that he is at
peak performance in all four majors we now know. It
is likely he will be back at the US Open.
Raffa isn't at his best. He's got a long way
to come back and be physically ready to be able
to win another role in Gaross And I just think
the stars might be aligning for him given everything that's
(04:30):
unfolded over the last few years. And he was just
so far above anybody else on the men's side at
the Australian Open. I haven't seen that gap so wide
in my time.
Speaker 2 (04:42):
Very interesting prediction, Todd. Would you say he's closer to
it this year than he was in twenty twenty one
or any time earlier?
Speaker 1 (04:49):
In his career, I actually would.
Speaker 5 (04:51):
And the reason I say that is I think that
mentally he's learned to cope with an amazing amount of stress, anxiety,
the things that have been thrown at him through COVID,
a lot of it from his own decision making of
what he's chosen to do, but they're all past him,
and I think he's got this open window now where
he hasn't got to worry about.
Speaker 1 (05:11):
Any of that. He can just go out and play
and pull it all together.
Speaker 5 (05:16):
And I think the most important part is that unless
there is something that stands out from the field in
terms of a player that can rise and equal him,
it is going to be difficult to not see that happening.
Speaker 1 (05:29):
Because of the levels that he's brought.
Speaker 5 (05:31):
I don't think the playing group below him is quite
at those levels, and I think the stresses are completely different. Now.
Speaker 4 (05:38):
Yeah, I mean, I absolutely think Todd was right. I mean,
his level in terms of where he was at this
AO was just phenomenal and well above I mean, obviously
we're all excited with the Taylor Fritzes and all these
younger players coming through, but when you look at Novak
and the type of tennis he was able to produce.
It was extraordinary. So I'd like that you didn't answer
the question, Todd, and I like that you just went
(05:59):
on your own tangent and just and gave us a
very bold prediction, but a really, you know possibility, a
real possibility on the tennis tour.
Speaker 2 (06:09):
My next question again relates to the top ten. Who
could we see break in or maybe make her return
to the top ten.
Speaker 4 (06:17):
Casey, Yeah, I did have a bit of a think
about this question, and I kind of there was a
number of players on my radar, but someone that who
played really well during the AO was Donnavekicch and she
actually played really well through the United Cup. I feel
like she's just been around for so long, but she
is actually only twenty six years of age, and she
just I feel like she's got, you know, Pamshriver there
(06:38):
now as a mentor, and she's got a good team
around her, and just from speaking with her, I feel
like she's really matured. She had that anticipation as a
junior of someone that was potentially going to be a
top ten player, but she's never quite got there. So
I'm kind of hoping. I really like Donna as a
person as a player, and I'm kind of, I guess,
manifesting in a way that she gets because I do
(07:00):
feel like she puts in the work, you know, she
leads from the front. She's on the player council now,
and I feel like she's one of those players that
can really, you know, put her best foot forward in
twenty twenty three and really break top ten where I
believe even from eight to ten years ago was somewhere
where she was going to get to.
Speaker 1 (07:18):
So I'm going to go with, you know, a bit
of someone that's.
Speaker 4 (07:21):
Potentially a little bit older at twenty the age of
twenty six, but I'm really hoping my break inside that
top ten.
Speaker 5 (07:27):
Now. Well, I'll take a sort of down the men's
path if I can with that question because and I'm
going to keep it local in terms of Australian now,
I think Alex Dimanor this year has that ability to
break into the top ten. That is his absolute goal,
and it's going to be difficult for him because we
saw even at the Australian Open against Novak as an example,
(07:48):
the weaponry isn't as big as perhaps it needs to be,
but the determination is and the drive to be successful
is and I think I think he has a window
here to be able to continue with his consistency and
break into a top ten. And of course to do that,
he's going to have to do some extra special work
at the Majors. But nobody, I think, is any better
(08:12):
prepared than what he is to be able to do that.
So I'm hoping to see him in that space. The
other player this is almost that I would like to
because I enjoy watching him, is Dennis Shapovalov. I'd like
to see him get the consistency that I'm talking about
with demon Or to be able to get back to
those levels, to be able to go deep into the
(08:32):
Majors again and actually worryor play a player like a Djokovic,
for instance, who, because of his ability to make any
shot from any part in the court, if he can
pull it all together, he's capable of big upsets. And
I think, though the word consistency is important to both
of them, particularly for Shapovalov to be able to do this,
and I think get the very best out of the
(08:55):
potential that he has in his game.
Speaker 1 (08:56):
Yeah, and I was just going to ask you, Todd.
Speaker 4 (08:58):
I was thinking about Alex and how important scheduling is
for a player like Alex and where he maps out
his runs in terms of what types of tournaments he plays.
Do you ever kind of thought on that, because I
feel like that for a player like Alex is critical.
Speaker 5 (09:12):
Yeah, definitely to surface. I mean, clay isn't his best
as you know, and he plays well on it. It's
just harder for him because he has the flat of ball.
So look, he plays well in the quicker clay, he
played well in Barcelona, he looked to play well in Madrid,
and then he's got a hope for a reasonable draw
to get through at Roland Garross.
Speaker 1 (09:30):
That's the key.
Speaker 5 (09:31):
But then really it's a bit like Curios last year,
where the hone in has to be on the grass.
That's where you know he can win tournaments in the
lead up. But also he was so close to getting
into a quarter at Wimbledon last year in the singles.
That's where I think he can really utilize his game
style to the surfaces, so he's pretty smart with that.
(09:52):
I think the thing too also is that because he
is so physical Casey he actually has to make sure
he has enough breaks to work on keeping his body
robust to be able to take on all of the
difficult matches that he has to play to be able
to win, because sometimes he has to grind win matches,
and to do that you need to be bath fresh
mentally but also physical with that recovery.
Speaker 2 (10:14):
Well, the next question has already partially been answered by
virtue of Todd's earlier prediction, but I wanted to have
a discussion about who might win their first major title.
We've already seen Sabolenka secure hers in Melbourne. Todd thinks
Novak's going to win the whole box and dice, but
Casey perhaps on the women's side, and Todd, we will
throw it back to you for a men's prediction if
(10:35):
Novak falters in one of the slams.
Speaker 4 (10:37):
Yeah, look, I think for me, I think a Jessica
Bogoula has got to be up the top of the list.
Speaker 2 (10:43):
I think.
Speaker 4 (10:45):
I think she's still continued some great form post Ao
over in Doha. She's made another final. I think she's
got it all there. Obviously, we know how many matches
you've got to win over the length of two weeks
at a Slam, and things to your way in terms
of draw but I do believe that she's putting herself
in the best position with the right people around her,
(11:06):
and physically she's in a in great condition as well,
So I kind of feel like a Pagoula perhaps you
know Maria Sakari as well. Again, a lot of things
have got to fall away, but the women's game is
obviously a lot more open in terms of I feel
like the amount of women that can put themselves forward
to win a Grand Slam title. There's no doubt about that.
(11:28):
So look, I think Sabolenka could go on and win
multiple this year as well. There's no doubt about it
in terms of making sure she continues to keep herself
mentally and emotionally in a position where she was during
the AO, because that was just incredible.
Speaker 1 (11:42):
She's done the work.
Speaker 4 (11:43):
So and then you've obviously got Shviontek, who's won a
title already since AO and still playing some great tennis.
So lots of contenders, probably on the women's side, but
if there's a one that might win their first I'll
go with Pagoula.
Speaker 5 (11:56):
Well, I'm going to go with the two players that
I actually picked to potentially break through at the Australian Open.
Speaker 1 (12:03):
I think they're still on track.
Speaker 5 (12:04):
To do that.
Speaker 1 (12:05):
And for the women's side, for me, that's Belinda Bencic.
Speaker 5 (12:07):
I think that it's all about belief at the back
end of the Major for her right now, and I
know she's got it because she's won Olympics, She's faced
all of the pressure that you get when you play
for your country and Billy Jean King Cup and I
think that's the next step, that's the finishing point for Belinda,
is to be able to win a Slam. Then on
(12:28):
the men's side, it is Janick Sinner, who I think
is just maturing at the right rate incrementally, just small bits,
and the rise is continual, and I think the belief
is continual with him also. But with him, he's working
with Darren Kale, one of the most successful coaches that
(12:49):
the game has seen over the last twenty five years,
and Darren is just putting into his mind all of
the experience of what he knows those major winners need
to have. And I think that if things fall right
for Janick, he certainly is a player that could win
his first Major in this season if Novak doesn't get
(13:10):
through on that men's side.
Speaker 1 (13:11):
The big bold prediction.
Speaker 2 (13:13):
That I've made and which Slam. Would that be, Well, I.
Speaker 5 (13:16):
Think it's less likely to be Wimbledon, more likely to
be Rolling Gaross or probably the US Open where we saw,
you know, the incredible Tennessity played. He reached the quarter
with Carlos al KaAZ. I think that that suits him.
That US Open at the moment, the best of the
ones that are to come.
Speaker 2 (13:34):
Okay, And finally, this is just a pretty quick fire question,
which one player will finish the year as world number one?
Perhaps Casey start with you with your women's prediction.
Speaker 4 (13:45):
Ah, yeah, Look, it's tough. It's a tough one, isn't that.
But I think I'm actually going to go with Sablenka.
I'm going to go with her because, yeah, I just
believe that she'll carry on from Ao, and I feel
like she's done the work, as I said, to make
sure that she stays consistent across those bigger tournaments. And
(14:06):
Novak on the men's side, I mean, I feel like
Todd's prediction was bold, but I feel like the number
one for Novak's probably in the bag for someone like him,
who's going to be you know, I still feel well
above a lot of the other the men in different
tournaments yep.
Speaker 5 (14:24):
I'm not moving off where the rankings sit right now.
I just don't see those players coming off their levels.
So Egustchiontek, who's just cleaned up another tournament victory winning
six love sets, with the ease of Stephie Graft back
in the day is continual for me, and I think
she's going to be hard to get out of that position.
Speaker 1 (14:41):
And the same with Novak.
Speaker 5 (14:42):
When you look at Novak's schedule and how limited it
was over the last year.
Speaker 1 (14:47):
He doesn't even have a point to defend at the
US Open.
Speaker 5 (14:49):
He's got no points in the lead up to the
US Open if he chooses to play any of those events.
Obviously he could go deeper at rolling Gaross to accumulate
some more.
Speaker 1 (15:00):
It's going to be hard to move either of them.
Speaker 5 (15:02):
I think their contracts are well in place as the
number one player in the world.
Speaker 2 (15:07):
So one vote for Sabolenka, one vote for sch Fiontek,
and then two votes for Novak Djokovic. Before I let
you go, we're about to play a feature from Jim
Courier about the art of the on court interview. What
do you reckon? The key to a good on court
interview is Casey, Well, I think.
Speaker 4 (15:22):
It might have been even todd that you maybe pass
this info on to me or something. But I think
the key is making sure that you ask the player
are how, what or why kind of question so that
they get that understanding of what they're actually being asked,
because sometimes in those interviews, one they can potentially not
speak the best of English, but then also they like
to be asked direct questions, and you want them to
(15:44):
be able to respond to a certain question. So I
think that was the best piece of advice that I
had in terms of those on core interviews, and making
them very direct so that you were there, the player
was there, ready with a question to actually answer and
not just a statement yep.
Speaker 5 (15:59):
Good.
Speaker 1 (16:00):
It sounds like I've given Casey there.
Speaker 5 (16:02):
And I would also say, I mean, I think the
important part, you know, particularly working alongside Jim for so
long now, is preparation. His interviews don't happen by accident.
He has his questions in his mind that he'd liked
to go. He also has anticipated what some of the
answers might be, so he can take the interview off
into a various directions so that it becomes entertaining for
(16:24):
the people that are watching at home, and I think
one of the most important parts to that is listening
to the answers so that you are prepared to be
able to get more out of the person that you're interviewing,
so that it becomes fun, it becomes colorful, and.
Speaker 1 (16:39):
That's the basis of it.
Speaker 5 (16:40):
And you know, sometimes it doesn't go as well as
you would have liked, and that's where the preparation comes in,
so that you've got an extra couple of questions up
your sleeve to maneuver if you have to great advice.
Speaker 2 (16:51):
Well, let's see what Jim has to say in this feature.
The art of the on court interview.
Speaker 3 (17:00):
Thoughts on playing Madison the Keys to Keys If you will,
that's good for me.
Speaker 2 (17:05):
Yeah, that's cheesy, isn't it.
Speaker 1 (17:07):
It's terrible.
Speaker 3 (17:08):
Rule number one, if you are asked to do an
on court interview, insist you will only interview the winning player.
Rule number one. They're always in a better mood. Do
you train really hard in the off season? Can you
give me any tips anything that you can talk about.
Speaker 1 (17:24):
Oh, it's old talent that don't work. I'll just sit
on the couch.
Speaker 2 (17:29):
Take care.
Speaker 1 (17:32):
Now you've really upset me.
Speaker 3 (17:34):
Players these days, they know that they're still performing when
they're in the interview. They know they're still selling themselves
to the audience and showing a little bit more of themselves.
And it's really because Roger Federer showed that it was
okay to do that. He was the one who showed
that it's okay to laugh at himself and to show
a little bit more talk a little bit more about
himself off the court.
Speaker 7 (17:53):
Yeah, I like my ice cream and I like my chocolate,
and that's my diet. So that's nothing normal. Don't tell
me that it's like an everyday thing. I like my
treets absolutely, so I don't feel even bad about it.
I feel good that I could do it and play
tennis at the same time.
Speaker 3 (18:08):
Well, the audience does let you know whether you're having
a good interview or not. If they're engaged and involved,
then you know that they're getting something out of it,
and that's that's a good barometer. It's been an amazing ride.
It's been incredible to watch this journey that you've been on.
It started as a boy playing tennis. You turn into
(18:28):
a junior champion, then a world champion, and then you
became a sporting icon. What has that journey been like
for you?
Speaker 2 (18:37):
It was never supposed to be that way. It's just
happy to play tennis and.
Speaker 7 (18:44):
Spend time with my friends, really and in an end here,
so it's been a perfect journey. I would do it
all over again.
Speaker 3 (18:51):
That one has a lot of deep meaning because of
what it sort of represents, the kind of end of
his career. It represents him giving sort of a synopsis
in many ways of his career, and then the people
that got him there, and it was an emotional moment
that will never happen that I'll never be involved in
(19:11):
an interview again. I can't imagine. You had a great
team behind you all the way. You had your family
behind you all the way. How much did their support
help you get right here? Yeah?
Speaker 1 (19:22):
I mean we have to go there now, I've got
more questions.
Speaker 3 (19:27):
We can move on.
Speaker 7 (19:28):
It's okay, I don't okay so far, I feel at
least I'm at least able to talk.
Speaker 1 (19:34):
In my vision, I was never able to talk, So
I'm doing way better.
Speaker 3 (19:38):
The best part about these is that they're unscripted to
I mean, you're scripting them to a certain extent, but
you don't know what the answers are really going to
be and it's live, so anything can happen, and the
players can burn you, they can just disregard your question
and go somewhere else. There's any number of things that
can happen, but it's never boring.
Speaker 7 (19:57):
I'll tell you that my wife's been so supportive and
she could have stopped me a long long time ago,
but you didn't.
Speaker 2 (20:06):
She kept me going and allowed me to play.
Speaker 7 (20:08):
So it's amazing. Thank you for.
Speaker 3 (20:14):
All players wear masks when they're playing, and you want
them to take that mask off and show who they
really are and give some emotion, give some humor, and
give some sense of why people should care about them.
Speaker 2 (20:33):
There's so much activity at the Australian Open and right
throughout the Australian Summer of tennis, and busy in the
engine room, as we like to call the nerve center
of the Australian Open is the Game Insight Group, the
data analyst, the sports scientists, all working together to bring
us insights into our wonderful sport. And leading the pack
is Simon Ray from GIG who joins us. Welcome back
(20:55):
to the AO show, Simon, how's your recovery?
Speaker 5 (20:58):
Bean?
Speaker 2 (20:58):
Post Aoh hi jok.
Speaker 6 (21:00):
So having me back, I like it the engine room,
the nerve center. I like the way you're thinking there. Now. Look,
it's been a nice chance to catch my breath a
little bit and for the team to catch their breath
after a big month. But happy to be back into
it and delving back in and reflecting a little bit
on what we saw across the month of January with
you today.
Speaker 2 (21:17):
And we now have the benefit of looking back at
the AO twenty twenty three leaderboards. This is a collection
of data encompassing the two weeks of the main draw
for both the men and the women. And we're going
to start with fourhand heaviness, which is a metric that
you told us about right at the start of the summer,
which takes into account speed and spin.
Speaker 6 (21:37):
Yeah, so that notion of and you recall John from
when we spoke about it pre summer, that notion of
commentators or analysts or experts in the world if you like,
talking about heavy fourhands, and everyone would have a slightly
different version of what constitutes a heavy forehand, but in essence,
I think it's that notion of a ball jumping or
rearing off the cord or being notoriously hard to handle
(21:58):
if you're on the receiving end of it. So the
rhetoric has always been that Nadal's forehand has been so
heavy and such a handful to try to deal with.
I think a nightmare to be facing is kind of
how I think of it. And a few things grabbed
my mind when or grabbed my eyes straight away when
we're looking at fourhand heaviness and just what we saw
across the Australian Open as compared to zooming out any
(22:19):
further than that. So certainly from an Australian perspective, there's
a name at the top of the list there. So
the heaviest forehand that we saw at the austrain Open
in January on display the Nassi cock and Arcus. So
that combination of speed and spend and being a nightmare
or difficult to play against and really proving a handful
to try to deal with, the Nassikock and Arcus at
the top of the plane group on the mail side.
Speaker 2 (22:41):
Yeah, it's a prime. I mean, we know he has
a big game, but did we know he had the
biggest forehand on the tour? At least this is what
the data tells us across the well, he played two matches, didn't.
Speaker 6 (22:50):
He Yeah, he did at the Austrain Open. So yeah,
we knew, you know, if we extend the data or
extrapolate the data out to previous years or where we've
got access to other data over the journey, we knew
up there somewhere. So it's certainly a foehand that has
got significant firepower on display. And it's not a fourhand
to be taken lightly. It's a fourhand to be reckoned with.
And then there's some really typical or some of the
(23:12):
usual suspects up there on the men's side. So Rood's
in there at second place in the leaderboard. Ozi earlier
seams in at fourth, and then we start a conversation
about a couple of our finalists, and I think there's
some surprises in mind here.
Speaker 2 (23:23):
Yeah, looking at this list, we see Stefan Arsitsipa sitting
in fifth place. He's just marginally behind kochin Arkas on
the heaviest fourhand metric. But this is the big surprise.
Novak Djokovic is in at number twelve on fourhand heaviness,
which is something that is quite surprising. I would have
thought he'd be further down the list.
Speaker 6 (23:43):
Yeah, And I think it's an area that we might
often undersell Novak in. So you know, we go to
the returner serve, or we go to the defense, or
we go to there is no obvious hole or no
obvious floor in the game. But perhaps we overlook at
times the offense of cape ability that this guy brings
to the court and the weapons that he does have,
(24:03):
and as well as those things that I mentioned in
terms of being really hard to get at holes that
don't exist or where would you start if you're formulating
a game plan against him, This guy can generate and
do some damage as well. And we'll get to pure
speed in a minute. But this notion on foehand side
of a combination of speed and spin described here as
fourhand heaviness number twelve in the field, that's right up there.
(24:26):
So I think that's something to be really noted down.
That's a noteworthy conversation to be having.
Speaker 2 (24:32):
And just from a point of clarification perspective, are these
baseline groundstrokes as opposed to volleys at the net other
types of shots.
Speaker 6 (24:40):
Great call out and great clarification. So we take the
return to serve out because we want to look at
the return separately, So we look at the serve, we
look at the return, and then we look at all
of these forehands thereafter from the back of the court,
So from the third shot of the rally onwards, we
take out anything that could be classed as an overhead
because that could give us a bias towards speed or spin.
And exactly as you've described, we definitely don't want to
(25:01):
be looking at volleys or even top spin volley, so
the ball has to have bounced for it to be
classified in this way. So a really good clarification to make.
Speaker 2 (25:09):
Okay, let's zoom in a little bit then and examine
the speed of shot, which is one of the two
elements that make up fourhand heaviness.
Speaker 6 (25:19):
Yeah, so I suspect if I took a straw pole
of the experts that we're in town here across the
month of January and went across the media center or
delve down into the player and coaching areas and took
the straw pole as I described, if I were to
ask where Novak Djokovic might sit, If I were to
ask those experts where Novak Djokovic might sit, from a
(25:39):
fourhand speed perspective. So now just disregard spin or leave
that to one side. Let's just talk about speed. We
know how good this guy's ball striking is. Sure, I
don't think many would have him in the top five.
In fact, he sits at number three from the Australian
Open in twenty twenty three.
Speaker 2 (25:55):
On speed alone. Yeah, looking at the numbers here, one
point thirty one point nine kilometers per hour on average.
Speaker 6 (26:00):
Which I think is again it's more testament to his
ball striking, the weaponry, the phenomenal timing coordination, and the
ability to produce the easy power, of the efficient power
that we see from him under pressure and under duress.
And then you marry that up with some of the
physicality that you know we often do sing his praises
on and it becomes almost an impenetrable fortress. Where do
(26:24):
you turn to get past this guy? And then pivoting
and having a look at the female side of the game.
So there's some familiar suspects at the top of these lists.
So Camilla Georgie, who we know is a ferocious ball
striker and doesn't hold back, I think that's fair to
say sits right up the top at number one hundred
and twenty six point one kilometers an hour on fourhand
side terms of speed across the Australian Open, Madison Keys
(26:46):
is a name that we often have at the top
of these lists from her ball striking one hundred and
twenty five kilometers now, but our two finalists on the
female side, and what a final it was that we
saw Sabolenka and Rubaikener. Well they're right up there too.
Saballenka is at number seven one hundred and twenty three
point seven kilometers an hour and Rabikna at number eleven
in the field one hundred and twenty two kilometers an hour.
(27:07):
So that's kind of that rare breed as well, where
they're bringing a lot of heat and in tent and
speed on the ball. And they're also both up there
when we look on the female side in terms of
heaviness as well. Sabalenka number three on the female side
at seven point five. That's the combination of speed and spin.
Rebiken a number eight. So top ten in terms of
heaviness and top ten are very very close in terms
(27:30):
of just pure speed. Says a lot about those two fourhands.
Of those two women.
Speaker 2 (27:34):
Absolutely, and overall it is Jeng chin Wen who heads
the four hand heaviness for the women. She has a
factor of eight, which is higher than anyone else fonte
Igersfiontek is second with seven point six, and then Sabolenka.
As you mentioned, keeping in mind that the women's average
has six point seven. Is the is the average? Would
(27:58):
you say quotient or facto?
Speaker 3 (27:59):
What?
Speaker 5 (28:00):
What do you use?
Speaker 1 (28:00):
Yeah?
Speaker 2 (28:01):
Rating?
Speaker 6 (28:01):
Yeah, we classify that as a heaviness rating if you like,
across the field, So six point eight for the men's average,
and keeping in mind two we're comparing the men to
the men and the women to the women, so it's
an entirely different data set that we use across the
two groups. But I think that is noteworthy to have,
you know, sits passing Djokovic at five and twelve respectively
in the field and sabal Anka and Rubaiken at three
(28:23):
and eight, so both sitting comfortably inside the top ten.
Some heavy forehands on display from our finalists as we
look back in January and the twenty three.
Speaker 2 (28:32):
AO fascinating insights from the Gig team. These are the
AO twenty three leaderboards and next week on the show,
we're going to have a chat to you about spin,
specifically all right fourhand and backhand spin.
Speaker 6 (28:44):
Looking forward to that conversation and we'll try to bring
some quality information to the table.
Speaker 1 (28:50):
That's all for this week's episode.
Speaker 2 (28:51):
Join me again next week for the latest tennis news,
views and interviews before we go. Happy birthday to Rinky, Hitjacutter,
Jess Bigour, late In Hewitt and Lina. And if you've
got a birthday coming up, let us know via ozopen
dot com, slash listen, or email The Aoshow at tennis
dot com dot au. Don't forget to subscribe, and as always,
(29:11):
if you like what you're hear, please leave us a
rating and review so more fans can enjoy the AO
Show
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