Tennis thread: it's almost the off-season, but the tennis chat continues!

[PrivateSpidey]

It's not quite time to don your woolly jumpers or stoke up your log fires for the winter - still some tennis to be played this season!

An exciting, mathematically challenging WTFs continues, new Davis Cup soon, etc...

Actually that would be Tsitsipas - who will play Dom.

See- I'm turning into AC now. Totally confused

Daniil is not starting as I would like.

Raahh I think we'll give you more credit than that!!

Sascha is looking quite determined ATM...

This would ordinarily be a match that I could watch, and be reasonably happy either way.
But there is a lot at stake.

Would be rubbish for Rafa to go out, having won 2 great matches, really.

Spidey

The crowd seems subdued. A bit more on Zverev's side. I wonder how much losing from match point down is playing on Med's mind?

Come on Dan!!

(no Kazza, not that one).

What, what....?

Is it the Davis Cup already?

This is a weird match so far...

Ahh thanks Jane for putting the Rafa video up - I’m rubbish at finding things on the internet. Rafa’s speech was so sweet - it is actually an amazing achievement for him to end the year at no 1 and to have won 2 of the Grand Slams this year - especially at the age of 33 and a 1/2 .

Hmm yes this match isn’t going quite as planned - it would be a shame for Rafa to go out at this stage

The 33and a half thing made me think of Adrian Mole.

Maybe he's a fan

It is an odd match, and despite everything, I'm not as enthralled as i would like to be.

I don't want Rafa to go out.

Boris always looks so red in the face, even in the winter. (though he probably goes on lots of holidays).

I worry about his blood pressure. .

ooh, could this be a turning point?

'anywhere in the box' good idea Tim.

Yes Boris is not really a good advert for being a former athlete is he? I think I’ll add Tim to the list of people who shouldn’t even be paid in washers

No, Tim needs to stick to being a handy man, and worrying about fines and stuff.

It's a bit rubbish, really (even though it's what I want) that the commentators are sitting there wanting Sascha to lose too - because a Rafa/Fed semi will be big box office .

Come on Daniil!

Well, that's that then.

At least Rafa won 2 matches.

I just don't want Fed to win the tournament.

You'd better not let us down now Sascha.

Uh oh no more Rafa . I’d like to see Thiem or Stefanos to win now I think - then people might know who they are

The way Thiem has been playing, I think he deserves to win. He's my Rafa substitute now. Rafa is destined never to win the tour finals, but tbh- there are some big names who never won the year end event either.

Would have been a different story, had the event moved around as it used to- and played on clay once or twice. It was always going to favour indoor players.

Oh well he did much better than we expected at the start.

He did- I was expecting him to either withdraw after his first match, or lose at least another 1.

Ah that is a shame for Rafa, you feel as the No1 he should go further. But still, it turned out to be a decent feel-good sort of few days for him anyway. Now he can head to his yacht

I want Thiem to win it now, I feel like he deserves it after his wins over Djok and Fed.

Spidey that's how I feel. I just hope he isn't ill.

I'm in the 'anyone but Fed' camp now. I would be happy really with any of the other 3- but Dom has put the years in, and Stef will get another chance (and Sascha needs to do some washing- the towels are piling up).

Are both semi finals on the Beeb?