We are at the end of the seven most intense weeks in the history of professional tennis, with two Slams and two Masters 1000/Premier 5 taking place. All this time, Ubaldo Scanagatta and Steve Flink’s videos have accompanied the reprisal of the action after months of hiatus. Now that that the French Open is concluding as well, they have met for one last time, discussing the women’s final and taking a stance on who will win what Flink has dubbed “the biggest final of their career.” Here’s their chat:
00:00 – Swiatek became the first Polish player to win a Major – a surprising feat? “Kenin just got outplayed, Iga is such a complete player.” On Monday, she will be N.17 in the world – will she make it to the Top 10?
03:40 – “Swiatek had never won a WTA title, just like Wilander did in 1982, also at the French Open.” Will she win more Slams in the future, and who could stop her? “She lost just 28 games in 7 matches; this is what you call ‘dominance’…”
07:48 – Kenin required an MTO and looked downtrodden throughout the match – was she injured, and if so, how much of an impact did her struggles have on the outcome of the match?
11:40 – The men’s final. “This was probably the most predictable final match-up in the history of the tournament!” What do the numbers tell us about their previous encounters at this lofty stage? “Nadal won their two finals in Paris, but they were both a long time ago, while Djokovic won their most recent final…”
17:16 – “Yannick Noah said that, as much as you can love a movie, you will never watch it 50 times – does he have a point?”
18:42 – “Djokovic is 11 years older than Tsitsipas, but he looked a lot fresher by the end of the match!” Will Friday’s five-setter affect the Serbian’s fitness and/or confidence?
19:50 – “This is a particularly tough match to call, because I never felt like they were playing their best, either because their opponents were too inferior or because they had some lapses in concentration like Djokovic did. However, they both agreed on who is favoured by the conditions…”
24:35 – Nadal and Djokovic played an epic French Open semifinal in 2013, which the Spaniard won 9-7 in the fifth set – should something similar be expected for tomorrow’s bout? “I think so, because they both have some good reasons to feel confident going in, so they will give all they have.”
28:06 – Both players have lost just once while leading by two sets to love – should one of the two be counted out if the other take a commanding lead?
29:16 – Prediction time: who will win?
33:30 – “I want to conclude by going a little off-topic, because both the American and the French tennis federations (the USTA and the FFT), and especially the latter, were scorched for following through with their respective events. However, despite the difficulties and the criticism they drew, they managed to give us two great tournaments without exposing the players to the danger of contracting the virus.”
