W2W4 at Wimbledon – A big rivalry, a pair of semifinals

WIMBLEDON – The contrast between the two men's semifinal at Wimbledon could not be bigger. First, a pair of Ace machines on Wimbledon 's green turf will be terra incognita, despite Kevin Anderson and John Isner each having a decade of experience at Wimbledon.

a very different story. In addition to having the most prolific – and perhaps most compelling – rivalry on the ATP Tour, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic are titans from the baseline, adding new feats to the records.

Djokovic took second place in the semifinal Grand Slam, with only 32 seconds for Roger Federer (43). Nadal is now tied with Ivan Lendl in fifth place, with 28.

Let's take a closer look at the clashes, starting with the headline:

No. 2 Rafael Nadal vs No 12 Novak Djokovic (Djokovic leads the series, 26-25)

The disturbing statistic for Djokovic, especially though it's superstitious, is that Nadal has never lost a semifinal at Wimbledon, and that includes a 2007 win over Djokovic, who retired infected blister on his toe. Nadal has just won a huge victory in the quarterfinal affair against Juan Martin del Potro a performance that the Big Four cohort Andy Murray called "the best live match of my life". Simona Halep supported the motion in a tweet

Nadal entered this Wimbledon feeling obliged to do so. Players who win here usually lead a little charmed lives, but not Nadal. His lucky tales of recent years were highlighted last year. Just when he thought his luck at Wimbledon had turned, he found himself playing a huge hitter at Gilles Muller as a fourth-round opponent. Nadal fell into a loser by 15-13 in fifth place

This can happen to anyone, but that is not the case. Not with such frequency. But this continued to happen to Nadal even though, as a five-time finalist and double champion in London, he should have radiated a beautiful Federer-esque karma. Now, Nadal may be about to put everything behind him.

Djokovic also has beef. In fact, he has had a lot of beefs during the fortnight, and they seem to have made him a sharper, more dangerous and confident contender. There was this scandalously bad call in his match with Kyle Edmund, and the fans who heckled him to bounce the ball too many times. On, there was the late start in the winds blowing on Court # 1 on Manic on Monday. "I have played this year only once in the first four matches of the Center Court," said Djokovic after winning this one. "It helps [to play there] as you progress through the tournament."

In the quarterfinals against Kei Nishikori, Djokovic incurred a violation of the code for racquet abuse. The chair umpire said that Djokovic damaged the grass when he threw his racket, but the player said that he barely scratched the grass. The distinct flavor of the playground has permeated Djokovic's assertion that Nishikori also threw his racket into the fourth set, but that went unpunished

"[The official] claims not seeing Nishikori but apparently he still sees what I'm doing, "snorted Djokovic." Something I do not think is right. "

How about news that the US Open will use a field shooting clock for main match matches, a decision that went wrong with Djokovic because neither he nor the other

Overall, it was a tough tournament and difficult for the beleaguered Serbian star, but maybe that's a good sign after the way he circulated earlier this year, uncertain and rummaging through his soul.His game is probably getting into place; every man that he shot and those who look at him have the impression of 39, be at or very close to the pre-cut level.

"I've seen matches from him," Nadal said Wednesday. "He plays very well."

These men know each other thoroughly, but if any of them has a surprise, it is probably Nadal. He made great use of the shot dropped in his victory over Del Potro, and made a big deal to keep up the tactics.

"Sometimes it's a good way to change the pace of the point against a player who hits so hard," Nadal said. "Here on the grass, if you make a good shot, it is very difficult, it is very difficult to stop your legs when you arrive, the second bounce falls very, very fast."

Djokovic does not hit as big a ball as Potro del, but as a big defender, he is likely to be taken further behind the baseline on more occasions. Stopping after a full sprint is also difficult for all players. Do not be surprised to see Nadal use the drop shot with a certain frequency.

No. 8 Kevin Anderson c. No. 10 John Isner (Isner leads, 8-3)

This is the Wimbledon of a lifetime for Isner. The only hitch in the fairy tale is that it's the same for Anderson – and only one of them will experience the thrill of being a Wimbledon runner up.

The head-to-head record suggests that it will be Isner, who has dominated the rivalry, winning their last four meetings and five of their last six years. The biggest advantage of Anderson could be that he participated in a Grand Slam final, having lost the US Open Championship in Nadal last September.

Isner, 33, is the oldest of this semifinalist. He has a career year. By his own admission, he had a difficult start in 2018, winning only two games for the Miami Open Masters 1000. But in previous days, his coach David Macpherson convinced Isner in a series of conversations to get rid of his fear of lose and just swing, play freely, and have fun. Isner has done this – and won – since that time.

Anderson did not experience such an epiphany. It is a saga of hard work and diligence, gradually reaping more and more rewards. The best so far has been a stunning quarter-final against Federer. The remaining question is how much emotional capital Anderson left there after this five-set win, in which he lost the first two sets and looked down on a third set match.

Isner and Anderson are in first and third place, respectively, for most of the Aces served at the tournament this year. (Isner blew 160, Anderson 124.) Each of these men played a five-setter on the way to the semifinals. Anderson played five tiebreakers (winning three) to the seven of Isner (he won four).

Anderson's bottom-line shots were impressive in his victory over Federer, but Isner's service was not broken in this tournament. Anderson has some work to do, but after meeting Federer a few days ago, he is used to this feeling

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No. John Isner says he's delighted to be in the semifinals of Wimbledon for the first time after playing some of his best major tennis tournaments.