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By Chris Oddo | Monday, June 8, 2015

 
Lucie Safarova Roland Garros 2015

Spirits soared and hearts were broken at this year's French Open. It's all in a fortnight's work.

Photo Source: AP

Before we say goodbye to clay and hello to grass let’s reminisce a bit, shall we? Here are 25 takeaways from the 2015 French Open

1. Let’s talk calendar Slam : For the first time since 1992 we were one match away from having a man and a woman each heading to Wimbledon with a shot at the calendar Slam. A big, bristling man by the name of Stan Wawrinka put an end to that idea on the men's side, so Serena will have to brave the pressure all by herself at Wimbledon this year. The American is the first woman to win the first two majors of the year since 2001. Can she become the fourth woman to win the calendar Slam? If she does she’ll finish the year tied with Steffi Graf’s 22 major titles. Are we getting ahead of ourselves? And can you blame us?

2. Wawrinka’s win really was for the ages: As far as performances in Grand Slam finals rank, where does the Stanimal’s takedown of Novak Djokovic come in? His level was so high, his tennis so brutally efficient, his competition so highly regarded and motivated to win. He made it look easy by bludgeoning 60 winners and effectively untying the track shoes of the game’s greatest defender, but surely it was not. Can you think of a more impressive vanquishing in a major final?

3. Best applause for a runner-up, ever?  Fans in Paris may be fickle, plucky and even disrespectful at times. But the way they showered Novak Djokovic with applause as he stood on the runner-up podium shows that they resonate emotionally with the story within the story. In short: they get it. Thanks to the Chatrier faithful, who roared its approval for Djokovic for well over a minute as he broke down and cried (for the second consecutive year), we got a glorious lasting impression of r-e-s-p-e-c-t from the year’s second major. What else compares? Maybe Andy Murray’s tear-stained runner-up speech after losing to Federer in the 2012 Wimbledon final? But Murray prompted that applause with his emotions. This one just spontaneously happened.



4. Best post-match handshake ever?  Tennis fans love those post-match handshakes, and Stan Wawrinka and Novak Djokovic’s embrace at the net was an instant tearjerker. How does Wawrinka, in his greatest, most elevated moment as a player, have the wherewithal to devote so much attention and energy to consoling Djokovic? And how does Djokovic, after suffering what might be the most disappointing loss of his career, have the capacity to congratulate Wawrinka so warmly? Surely, I’m not the only one who melted when watching this. Whether you supported Wawrinka or Djokovic for the win, you had to love them both after this delightful moment.

5. How cool was it that Lucie Safarova won the Doubles?  What a brilliant French Open for the Czech, capped off with a second consecutive Grand Slam doubles title. It’s nice to see a well-liked player like Safarova persevere. She’s certainly had her difficulties on the big stages in the past, but in her 2015 French Open, we get more proof that hard work pays off. Safarova may be a late bloomer, but in Paris she proved that while in full bloom, she’s one of the best in the world.

6. Where does Rafa go from here? Now at a ten-year low in the rankings, Rafael Nadal desperately needs an upside surprise, either on the grass or on the North American hard courts. He managed to avoid a big upset in Roland Garros, but was snowballed by Novak Djokovic in the quarterfinals, despite hitting the ball pretty solidly. It's hard to tell what's next for Nadal. Will he ever dominate the game again?

7. What to make of Djokovic’s legacy now? For those who were reaady to elevate Novak Djokovic into possible GOAT contender: Not yet, and maybe not ever. The Serb's legacy took a hit as he dropped to 8-8 in Grand Slam finals and walks away from Paris still lacking the career Grand Slam. It would have been a completely different picture if Djokovic’s wins Sunday’s final: Then he’s a nine-time major champion with the career Grand Slam and a chance to be the first player since ’69 to win the Calendar Slam. Amazing what one match can do to the perception of a man’s legacy.

That said, there’s still a canyon between Nole and the rest of the field at the moment. And there’s a lot of tennis to be played in 2015. But he has his work cut out for him in the next two years, if he wants to finish his career and be considered an equal to Federer and/ or Nadal. At this point, based on his record in major finals, and his projected Grand Slam title total (12, or something in that neighborhood if things go remarkably well?) he’s a notch below.

8. Will either Rafa or Roger ever win another major? : Is that even a legitimate question? Does it have to be to be asked? Rather than babble, let’s put it to a vote:



9. Biggest Roland Garros disappointment?  Tara Moore, who used the word “pathetic” to describe Serena Williams’ semifinal performance on Twitter. Perhaps bad publicity is better than no publicity for the world No. 400.



10. Biggest surprise?  Alison Van Uytvanck, who improved upon a career record of 1-5 at the majors to reach her first career quarterfinal at Roland Garros. Remember naysayers, a player can only beat the players that she’s drawn to face.

11. Worst shorts that ended up being the best shorts: : Funny how winning has turned the ugliest shorts in the history of tennis into the most tweeted about and most loved shorts in tennis history. You are lying if you say you don’t want a pair of them…


12. Can Andy Murray win the career Grand Slam? Based on Murray’s recent uptick in clay form, the Scot most certainly has a shot to win the career Grand Slam. He’s been close in Australia on several occasions, and now he’s close in Paris.

13. Was that Francesca Schiavone’s last great Roland Garros moment?  It happened early in week one, but Francesca Schiavone’s throwback victory over Svetlana Kuznetsova was one of the emotional high points of this year’s French Open. We don’t know how much the legendary Italian still has in the tank, but her match point-saving epic reminded us that we shouldn’t count her out just yet (and that we love, love love her).

14. Will Victoria Azarenka’s comments about tennis needing replay help the cause?: Victoria Azarenka was on the short end of a bad call in her third-round loss to Serena Williams but she advocated nicely for instant replay in tennis after the match, and got much support from the media and other players. Is it time for tennis to let replay into the game? Or would it make life too difficult for already swamped umpires (imagine the outcry if an umpire misinterprets the video and still makes the wrong call)?

15. How the hell do you hit 60 winners against Novak Djokovic on clay?  Just wondering… Bow down to Stan Wawrinka.

16. What’s wrong with Grigor Dimitrov?  Jack Sock is one heck of a clay-courter, but Grigor Dimitrov’s first-round loss to the American doesn’t bode well for the Bulgarian’s state of play right now, regardless. What’s missing? It would be tremendously sad if an electric star-in-the-making like Dimitrov didn’t find a way to take the next step.

17. It was the best of times, it was the worst of times: Tomas Berdych is having a great year. He’s undergone a transformation after hiring Danni Vallverdu as his coach and he’s incredibly consistent. There’s that, yes, but there’s also the fact that he’s 2-9 vs. the Top 10 and 0-3 in finals this season. The Czech could do worse than getting deep in virtually every draw he enters, but he needs to watch the video of Wawrinka’s win over Djokovic and start using his power as a weapon against the top players.

18. Biggest upside surprise, ATP: Jo-Wilfried Tsonga reaching the semis was a great effort. It’s fantastic to see that the Frenchman still has a fire for the big stage.

19. Biggest upside surprise, WTA: Ana Ivanovic back in the semis of a major for the first time since 2008. This could have easily happened last year, but the Serb kept coming up short at the Slams. Now that she’s finally broken through the mental block, will we see more of the same in future majors?

20. Biggest disappointment, WTA: Simona Halep was bounced early in Paris, in the second-round by Mirjana Lucic-Baroni, on what many believe is her best surface. Many wrote this off as a bad matchup for Halep, and were quick to focus on the positive element of Lucic-Baroni’s big win, but Halep is at the level where any exit before the second week at a major is a significant disappointment.

21. Scariest moment : This, by far


22. Craziest French Moment : Gael Monfils’ five-set victory over Pablo Cuevas raised the decibels to glass-shattering levels during week one.



24. Heavy Metal Moment: Leave it to Mikhail Youzhny to bang his head:


25. Shot of the French Open, hands down:

 

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