The 2015 tennis season is just getting started, and in the span of just two matches, tennis fans have had reason to freak out… or make the far more rational decision to accept the fact that after the offseason, rust is going to skew plenty of results in the warm-up tournaments before the main event, the 2015 Australian Open.
When we get to the start of the Australian Open, a lot of sports fans are going to take an interest in tennis. Betting on tennis is starting to heat up and a good place for tennis odds is the Top Bet sportsbook which accepts US players. Top Bet also offers a wide range of bets for Super Bowl 2015 which is Sunday, February 1st, 2015 at the University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. That day (February 1) just happens to be the same day the Australian Open men’s singles final will be held.
Two of the men who hope to participate in that singles final are obviously Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, who contested the 2009 championship in a memorable match and have locked horns in multiple other Australian Open semifinals, all won by Nadal. Aspirations are powerful things, and when held by two men who have combined to win 31 major titles, they acquire a pull much deeper than what you would see from a journeyman player. Yet, as powerful as the pull of desire in fact is, the reality of rust can and does enter the equation at the very start of each tennis season.
Both Federer and Nadal learned in their first main-draw matches of 2015 that they need to shake off their rust. The rest of the tour is coming for them and the other targets at the top of the ATP.
Federer had to fend off Australian John Millman in his opening match in the Brisbane ATP 250 event. Federer trailed by a set and a break before rallying to dig out a 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 win. Nadal actually won the first set of his match in the Doha 250 event against Michael Berrer, but then lost steam and was ousted in three sets, 1-6, 6-3, 6-4.
It’s worth recalling at this point in time that a year ago, Federer lost to Lleyton Hewitt in Brisbane, inspiring very little confidence for the Australian Open and the rest of his 2014 season. Yet, we all saw what Federer did by the time 2014 came to an end. He wasn’t the second most successful player on tour behind Novak Djokovic (Stan Wawrinka deserves that honor after winning his first major, first Masters 1000 tournament, and first Davis Cup title; Nadal and Marin Cilic also won majors), but Federer was the second most consistent player on tour over the course of the full calendar year.
One should similarly avoid the inclination to panic with respect to Nadal. He’s spent a lot of time away from the court due to the injuries that sidelined him for nearly the entire post-Wimbledon portion of the 2014 calendar. If anyone should be cut a little slack — and be allowed to slowly work his way back into form — it’s Nadal.
Cool your jets if your panic is inclined to take flight — that’s not just good mental health advice; it’s good tennis advice, in 2015 and any other year.
