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LHX1990 Jul 18 '19
In the cat-and-mouse game of postmatch interviews in London, Novak Djokovic has been driven to testiness on several occasions when questioned closely. John Lynch Womens Jersey. After defeating Milos Raonic in a round-robin match earlier this week, he was asked if there were times in the past when he felt unbeatable -- and if he now felt more vulnerable.Well, I never felt unbeatable, and I never will, Djokovic said. First of all, its not my mindset. Second, I dont think its fair to say youre unbeatable. There are few athletes ever in their career that have retired unbeatable.I did have certain periods of my career, especially in the last five years, when I really felt very confident on the court, and I was dominating the play.What about vulnerable?I dont feel vulnerable, Djokovic snapped.Heading into the last mens ATP match of the year, he looks like something approaching unbeatable. As difficult as it is to fathom given his second-half results, the No. 2-ranked Djokovic is a single victory from regaining the No. 1 ranking.He meets old friend and recent nemesis Andy Murray in the championship final of the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals on Sunday at 1 p.m. ET on ESPN2 & WatchESPN. For the first-time in year-end history, the seasons No.1 ranking will be decided in a winner-take-all final.It would be an unprecedented fifth consecutive year-end title for the 29-year-old Serb in a year when he won at least seven titles for the fourth consecutive year and two of the four majors this year.Does this sound like a vulnerable man?Djokovic obliterated Kei Nishikori 6-1, 6-1 in Saturdays second semifinal. The match was over in a blazing 66 minutes and couldnt have been more different than the first semifinal.That exquisite piece of performance art was a 5-7, 7-6 (5), 7-6 (9) Murray victory against Milos Raonic.Very glad, obviously, that I get to experience that [dominance] the last couple matches, Djokovic said in his on-court interview. Pretty much flawless.Murray, meanwhile, looked world-weary at times and saved a match point in that extraordinary third-set tiebreaker. The question must be asked: Does Murray have anything left for Djokovic?Three days earlier, Murray and Nishikori played a 3-hour, 20-minute match -- the longest three-set match in the history of the year-end event. Saturdays epic ran a scintillating 3 hours, 38 minutes, which turns out to be the longest three-set match of the 2016 season.Thats a lot of mileage this close to the finish line.I dont know how Ill feel tomorrow, Murray said after the match. Obviously, tired just now because it was a really hard match. It wasnt just that it was physically hard, it was mentally a tough match, too.It was pretty stressful.Murray, who made the one-hour commute to his suburban home when he played day matches, will be staying at a Thames-side hotel. After the match, he immersed himself in an ice bath, stretched and had a massage from his physio. Murray said hed go through another round of recovery and try to sleep in as late as possible. Hes scheduled to practice at 2:30 local time, 3? hours before the final.Murray, riding an enormous wave of momentum, has won 22 consecutive matches, matching his career high set earlier this year.But his personal on-court history with Djokovic -- they first met 18 years ago in junior tennis -- is not terribly pleasant. Djokovic has a commanding 24-10 record in their head-to-head matches, and upon closer examination, its even more lopsided in recent years.After Murray broke through with his first Grand slam singles title at the 2012 US Open, Djokovic held an 8-7 advantage. Since then, the Serb has won 16 of 19, including the finals of the two majors hes won this year, the Australian Open and French Open.And theres this delicious symmetry: After beating Murray in four sets to win the long-sought-after career Grand Slam in Paris, Djokovic lost his way. Here, he has a chance to beat Murray again, finish the season on a breathtaking high and set himself up for the 2017 season.Since the beginning of 2011, Djokovic has dominated mens tennis, winning 11 of 24 Grand Slam singles titles. For context, consider the other 13 major winners over the past half-dozen years: Rafael Nadal (5), Stan Wawrinka and Murray (3 each), and Roger Federer and Marin Cilic (1 each).In that span, the only time Djokovic finished with the No. 2 year-end ranking was 2013, when Nadal won two Slams. Djokovic regained the top spot the following summer after winning Wimbledon, and for 122 weeks, he did not relinquish it. That glorious run ended two weeks ago in Paris, when Murray -- after slowly reeling Djokovic in following Roland Garros -- took the No. 1 ranking for the very first time.In this year-end event that is without Federer and Nadal, its appropriate these two are in the final with so much at stake. They are the best in mens tennis, and it seems likely they could continue their dominance for a few more years.Hopefully, we can have a good final, Djokovic told the pro-Murray crowd. Its really a privilege to be part of this history with Andy. There are two of us on the court.Lets try to enjoy the occasion. Anthony Nelson Jersey. Oyama had six birdies and two bogeys at Kintetsu Kashikojima in the event also sanctioned by the Japan LPGA Tour. "I have been having this neck ache thats been affecting my golf recently," Oyama said. Mike Evans Jersey.ca! Hi Kerry, Heres an interesting one. I know its common knowledge that all players are responsible for their sticks. We witnessed that when Zack Kassian hit Edmontons Sam Gagner in the face after a missed check. http://www.authenticbuccaneerspro.com/...a-buccaneers-jersey/. Meanwhile, there were huge victories for Sunderland and West Ham over fellow relegation rivals, leaving the battle to avoid the drop up for grabs with the bottom 11 teams separated by just six points. Eden Hazard and Fernando Torres scored second-half goals to seal a fourth straight victory for Chelsea, which climbed above Arsenal and Manchester City in the standings ahead of their games on Monday and Sunday respectively. SPRINGFIELD, N.J. -- Fifteen days after he played one of the most flawless rounds of golf in his career, Phil Mickelson stood on the first tee Friday afternoon at Baltusrol Golf Club and proceeded to pound his drive onto one of the few New Jersey streets without traffic.Hours later, Robert Streb, who hasnt finished in the top 10 in a year, whose name doesnt exactly evoke fear when it appears on a leaderboard, became the latest player to shoot 63 in a major championship. And in an interesting bit of trivia, Streb became the fourth to do so here.Mickelson barely made the cut; Streb is tied for the lead through two rounds of the PGA Championship.Sometimes, golf is impossible to explain, and two days at Baltusrol shows why it is exceedingly difficult to handicap.Streb joined Jimmy Walker atop the leaderboard at 9 under par, with Argentinas Emiliano Grillo 2 shots back along with defending champion Jason Day, who had a stretch of eight holes with seven birdies.Meanwhile, Rory McIlroy, who has won this tournament twice and was considered a pretournament favorite, butchered the relatively benign 18th hole to miss the cut. This is the second major championship this year in which he has not qualified for the final 36 holes.I think if you had given anyone else in this field my tee shots this week, they would have been up near the top of the leaderboard, McIlroy said. It just shows you how bad I was around the greens. Ive hit the ball really well and Im walking away not playing the weekend.Its really disheartening. I need to go back to the drawing board and see where we go from here.Then theres 29-year-old Streb, a one-time PGA Tour winner who missed the cut in the previous three major championships this year and who hasnt finished better than a tie for 20th in his previous 17 starts.Streb opened the tournament with a 68 on Thursday. Then, beginning on the back nine for the second round, he played nicely, shooting a 33 that included four birdies and a bogey. But he also birdied the second hole, the sixth and the seventh. And all of a sudden, when he knocked in a 20-footer at the ninth, it added up to 63.Happy to join the club that seems to be ever-growing, Streb said.Going into The Open at Royal Troon, the feat of a single-round 63 at a major had been accomplished 27 times by 25 players.Now it has been done 30 times by 28 players, with Open champion Henrik Stenson doing it in the final round at Royal Troon when he outplayed Mickelson in their epic duel.Stenson has maintained his momentum after capturing the Claret Jug, posting consecutive 67s at Baltusrol to be in fifth place, 3 strokes back of the leaders.Of course, confidence level is always going to go up when yyou manage to accomplish what I did at Troon, the Swede said. Sean Bunting Jersey. Youre going to feel a bit more confident, and trusting yourself more that you can do it again if youve done it once. I guess thats natural and I do feel that.I cant guarantee that its going to happen again, if Im in a similar situation. But at least youve got the belief that you can do it.None of the 20 PGA of America club professionals in the field made the cut, which came at 146, 2 over par. So if McIlroy needs a putting lesson, there are plenty of club pros around who have the time to offer some help.While McIlroy will have to watch the weekend on television, one who will be spending less time doing commentary is Rich Beem. The 2002 PGA champion has a full-time gig with Sky Sports in the U.K., working some 25 events a year.He had not played a competitive round of golf on a major tour since last years PGA Championship at Whistling Straits, where he missed the cut. And due to tendinitis in his right shoulder, Beem, 46, has not played much golf this year. He started to play and practice again only in the past month.But he shot 69-72 to make it to the weekend. It means a lot to do this at this point, Beem said. But it kind of messes up my job.A lot of things seem messed up at the moment.Three 63s in majors in a matter of 15 days. No. 2 Dustin Johnson, perhaps the hottest player in golf, and McIlroy, missing the cut. No. 1 Day, ill once again on the eve of a big tournament and getting in but one practice round, shooting 68-65 to be in contention. Jordan Spieth with a lengthy rule issue.And then theres Mickelson, who won the PGA here in 2005 and came oh-so-close to a sixth major title two weeks at Royal Troon. Over four days in Scotland, Mickelson made just four bogeys, twice going bogey-free for entire rounds.On Friday, he went 3-over-par on one hole, and it was fortunate it wasnt worse. His first tee shot found the road, his re-tee nearly went just as far off the fairway to the other side and was fortunate to be in play. From there, he knocked another wayward shot, chipped short of the green, then got-up-and-down for a triple-bogey 7.I think in the history of the PGA Championship, thats the worst start of anyones round, Mickelson said. Id have to look that up.Actually, about 30 minutes after Mickelson, Nicolas Colsaerts made an 8 at the first hole. But it wasnt his first hole of the day.It was probably after I did it, Mickelson quipped. So I had it for a while.There is that. Which is strange, yet seemingly normal in the midst of all the other absurdities. ' ' '
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