s QB Philip Nelson has been dealing with shoulder | Forum
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Feb 5 '20
NEW YORK -- Gael Monfils knew he probably couldnt match Novak Djokovics game, so he tried to get into his brain. DeAndre Houston-Carson Jersey .The result was a bizarre semifinal Grand Slam match that had most pundits and commentators up in arms and fuming, while Monfils argued that his only crime was daring to depart from convention and doing everything in his power to reverse his dismal 0-12 record against Djokovic.Even Monfils borderline outrageous tactics were insufficient to bamboozle Djokovic, who survived some anxious moments to win in 2? hours, 6-3, 6-2, 3-6, 6-2.The match began predictably, and depressingly, enough for Monfils. Djokovic leaped to a 5-love lead. Then Monfils adopted a rope-a-dope suite of tactics. He stood flat-footed and seemingly disinterested to receive serve, then looped back short moon balls, daring Djokovic to attack. Sometimes he took reckless swipes at serves or foolishly charged the net at inexplicable times.Commentators, spectators, pundits all were baffled, unsure if Monfils was tanking or pursuing some silly strategy. ESPNs John McEnroe called it the Dont Try strategy. Others used words like bizarre and absurd.The odd thing? It worked. Djokovic was clearly rattled and his game ran off the rails for a while. From 0-5, Monfils bunted and slashed and rope-a-doped his way back to 3-5, 15-40, with Djokovic serving. Monfils bought himself some much-needed breathing room. The process wasnt pretty, but it was effective.The iconoclastic Frenchman later said his strategy was valuable but that critics dont want to see it because theyre too hung up on convention.Everyone is like, Play tennis like this. Do this, he said. But when the guy is too good, you change. I am not academic; I try to be better.Many witnesses to the match had trouble understanding -- or perhaps it was sympathizing -- with the way Monfils chose to play. Clubbing 52 unforced errors, as Monfils did in this match, is not a very good way to win friends and influence people. Its also undeniable that Monfils dramatic shift of tactics turned a potentially ghastly blowout into a strange, sharp-edged and fairly competitive match.Monfils was similarly slapdash in the second set, by the end of which the crowd was getting restless and demanding better tennis. Spectators periodically booed Monfils. When he fell behind 0-30 in the first game of the third set, someone cried out, Play tennis! When he lost the next score to make it 15-40, Monfils was roundly booed.Given that a large number of spectators were listening to McEnroe and his fellow commentators on earpieces, theres a good chance they were egged on by the dismay of the experts.If at the end I had the mic, I would say to the audience, Stop saying that Im unprofessional, Monfils said. The guy is killing me, you know. Im just embracing the fact the guy is too good for me and trying to switch strategy.Monfils did begin playing a more familiar brand of tennis soon after that early break and a Djokovic hold. Monfils won four games in a row with the kind of electric shot-making that makes him such a popular figure. He won the set, but his own analysis was confirmed. Djokovic was just too good for him if the both played straight up, conventional tennis.I could have expected it in a way, Djokovic said of the odd match, without a trace of anger. I was caught off guard. But thats Gael. He loves defense, impossible shots, long rallies.Shortly after the match, McEnroe summed up his disappointment in Monfils performance. He predicted that the players in the locker room would have nothing but contempt for it. He called it the ultimate backdoor effort.Monfils offered a responseIm very sad to learn that such a legend criticize me, Monfils said, because at the end, what I can say to John is, You know, John, I want to be the best. Its tough, you know. And I try my best.Monfils might have added that when the front door is always locked, theres no choice but to try going around the back.Custom Bears Jerseys . He was followed closely by David Clarkson, donning red, seconds later. Clarksons actions one night earlier, leaping off the bench in defence of Kessel during a pre-season game against the Buffalo Sabres, will cost him the first 10 games of the regular season. Alex Bars Jersey . Bjorn, who had a 36-hole total of 8-under 134, made a testing six-foot putt to save par on the 16th and a birdie on the 17th before bogeying the final hole after a misjudged approach shot. American Kevin Streelman was in second place after shooting a 69. http:///...sey-large-1066t.html . Third-seeded Murray had the easiest path to victory on New Years Eve, barely breaking a sweat during his 6-0, 6-0 win over 2,129th-ranked Qatari wildcard recipient Mousa Shanan Zayed. GREENVILLE, N.C. -- Only one thing stands between Navy and a division title -- an East Carolina team that the Midshipmen have dominated on the road.Navy will clinch the American Athletic Conferences West Division with a victory over the struggling Pirates on Saturday.First-year East Carolina coach Scottie Montgomery says hes using his teams spoiler status as motivation.Were going to try to pull motivation from everywhere we can get it from, Montgomery said.After beating Tulsa last week , the Midshipmen (7-2, 5-1) need only to beat East Carolina (3-7, 1-5) or SMU next week to wrap up the division title and a spot in the Americans title game on Dec. 3.Beating the Pirates hasnt exactly been much of a problem in Greenville: Navy has won both visits here by scores of 76-35 in 2010 and 56-28 two years later, averaging 516 yards rushing in those blowouts.And while Navys scheme remains the same, coach Ken Niumatalolo says those results dont mean anything this year.I dont know the reason -- we happened to play well those games, Niumatalolo said. Its a new year, new game, new team, new coach. ... Everythings different. I mean, we cant look at that. Im sure theyre not looking at it. The past is the past.The present has been rough for Montgomery in his first season as a head coach. The Pirates have lost two straight and seven of eight, and are coming off a 55-31 loss to SMU . East Carolina ranks 124th nationally in turnover margin, with 22 giveaways to just eight takeaways.Those are definitely things we are going to have to clean up if were going to move forward with everything that were trying to get done, Montgomery said.---Some other things to know about the Navy-East Carolina game:NAVYS OFFENSE: With their triple--option, ball-control offense, the Midshipmen always seem to rank among the nations best teams on the ground. David Montgomery Jersey. Navy is fourth nationally -- but behind the other two service academies -- with an average of nearly 310 yards rushing. This is going to be a possession game, Montgomery said. We can slow the game down, and we can speed the game up, but it comes down to possessions.ZAY DAY: East Carolina WR Zay Jones leads the nation in yards receiving (1,473) and receptions (139) -- and enters the Navy game needing just eight catches to break the NCAA career record held by a former Pirates teammate, Justin Hardy, who caught 380 passes from 2011-14. Its conflicting to start with because this isnt where we want to be, Montgomery said. There are a lot of things that we want to do better. In the middle of it all, I see the shining light that Zay has been in. I know its been tough for him and its especially tough when youre a senior.MIDS HEALTH: Niumatalolo says starting CB Elijah Merchant (head) is doubtful, RB Calvin Cass (ankle) is probable and FB Chris High (ankle) remains questionable. High, whose 71 carries are second only to QB Will Worth (215), started the first eight games but missed the Tulsa game.FULL OR HALF NELSON? Montgomery says QB Philip Nelson has been dealing with shoulder tenderness. Nelson was 11 of 19 for 144 yards with two interceptions, one returned 70 yards for a touchdown, in the loss to SMU. Gardner Minshew replaced him and was 18 of 30 for 170 yards with a touchdown and also threw a pick-six.---More AP college football: http://www.collegefootball.ap.org ' ' '
