In Melbourne he pulls a strange air current and it is not just a meteorological question. In short: the Happy Slam does not seem very happy this year, since controversy, suspicions and ailments have ruined the environment. In this climate, in the true sense of the words, we also put the time to make the tantrums: we move from over 30 degrees of the past few days to 17 yesterday, so that here is Jannik Sinner takes care of indoors to protect himself from the wind e with prying looks. Training against the left -handed Bolt to try the trajectories of Ben Shelton, the opponent who would like to bar the way for the final in our morning (I start not before 9.30). “I like to hear the sound of the ball to understand if everything is fine,” Jannik explained in the last indoor training, and therefore weapons are sharpened, indeed the rackets. And not only. To say: Shelton (who yesterday trained with the son of Lleyton Hewitt) had the opportunity to take it out with interviewers, commentators and journalists, because – according to him – there is too much negativity around. «I am shocked – he is blurted out -, I noticed behaviors that I don’t like, not only in the case of Djokovic but also with me and others. Comments on the post -game post interviews were made. How do you ask me EHI, Ben, how do you feel to play with Monfils who looks like your father?, Or how do you feel like nobody in the next game will cheer for you?. It could also be true, but who asked me to be one that I have never seen in my life: it would take a little more respect ».
In the midst of all this, of course, there is always Djokovic, who – after having accused the Australians of having poisoned him during the detention of 2022 on the eve of the tournament -, new friends were made. Faithful to the line, Novak spent a good part of the time arguing with the spectators who cheer them against him, and so the local media do not miss the opportunity to target him: after having revealed that they had played (and won) against Alcaraz despite a thigh injury (match from that he came out without utmost to utter a word because he was offended by the behavior of the journalist Tony Jones, who then apologized), he prepared himself for the challenge (started at 4 now in Italian) with Zverev being completely at rest. Without pitying anyone, however: Australian newspapers accused him of pretacty (“he is pretending to put pressure on the opponent”). And even John Mcenroe has redeemed the dose: «The Malanno di Nole? I don’t believe it”. In short: only pretactics, they say, and on the other hand he did the same two years ago with Fritz before winning the tournament.
In this climate, in the end, we are the most peaceful, which we already have a final in the pocket. Bolelli and Vavassori tries again a year later against Heliovara and Patten, “we trained for this, our goal this year is to bring people closer to the double and become the numbers one in the world”.
Hoping that it is just an appetizer: Jannik, whether it was a virus or not, after the match won with De Minaur promised that everything would pass in a couple of days: “I am not yet 100% but I will get there”. For Shelton, this could be negative.
Donne, semifinali: Sabalenka-Badosa 6-4, 6-2; Keys-Swiatek 5-7, 6-1, 7-6. TV: Sky Ed Eurosport
