Marin Cilić

[Lleyton]

[Damian]

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WKxprfq ... A&index=45[/youtube]

[Damian]

[arti]

[Barty]

[Damian]

[DUN I LOVE]

AO18 to już 11. wielkoszlemowy turniej, gdzie Marin ogarnął minimum ćwierćfinał (4-6 w takich meczach). Trochę tego nazbierał, trzeba przyznać.


The Indian Express

Australian Open (2): 2017, 2010 (SF)
Roland Garros (1): 2017 (QF)
Wimbledon (4): 2017 (F), 2016 (QF), 2015 (QF), 2014 (QF)
US Open (4): 2015 (SF), 2014 (W), 2012 (QF), 2009 (QF)

[Damian]

Cilic Records 100th Grand Slam Win To Reach Last Eight

Spoiler:

World No. 6 reaches 11th Grand Slam quarter-final
Marin Cilic won his 100th Grand Slam match to beat Pablo Carreno Busta 6-7(2), 6-3, 7-6(0), 7-6(3) and reach the Australian Open quarter-finals on Sunday.

The 2010 semi-finalist recovered from a set down, hitting 73 winners, to defeat Carreno Busta and become just the second Croatian man to reach multiple Australian Open quarter-finals (Goran Ivanisevic). The 29-year-old, who reached the final at Wimbledon last year (l. Federer), also equalled Ivanisevic’s record for most Grand Slam quarter-final appearances by a Croatian man (11).

Cilic will meet Rafael Nadal for a place in the semi-finals, after the World No. 1 defeated Diego Schwartzman later in the day. The Spaniard leads their FedEx ATP Head2Head series 5-1, having most recently squared off in the semi-finals of the Abierto Mexicano Telcel and Rolex Shanghai Masters in 2017. Nadal took both encounters in straight sets.

"I'm very pleased," said Cilic. "I felt that I played all four matches on a good quality. Today, I was looking at some small details. I was a little bit up and down on some service games, and he was returning quite good. It was a little bit more difficult. But overall I'm feeling good with the game. I'm hitting the ball really nicely, taking chances, playing aggressive, taking the ball as early as I can. So overall, feeling good."

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World No. 11 Carreno Busta established a one-set lead, coming from 2-5 down to force a tie-break, which he closed out with four consecutive points from 3/2. The 2014 US Open champion responded in the second set, hitting seven aces and dropping just three points behind his second serve to level the match.

The Spaniard would serve for a two-sets-to-one lead at 6-5 in the third set after fighting from a break down, but could not convert with Cilic breaking to enter another tie-break. The disappointment of missing that chance was clear, as the Croat raced to the third set with seven clinical points won, and none lost.

Cilic’s hot streak would continue, as he won the first three points of the fourth set on his rival’s serve and converted his second break point to lead 1-0. Bidding to reach his first Australian Open quarter-final, Carreno Busta fought back to level the set at 3-3 and eventually took the match to a third tie-break in four sets.

Cilic, as he had in the previous set, rose to the occasion. With two points against the Spaniard’s serve, one at either side of the change of ends, the Croatian served the match out after three hours and 27 minutes to reach his second Australian Open quarter-final.

"It was difficult," Cilic added. "I should have won the first. I should have lost the third. I should have won quicker the fourth. So it was up and down a lot. It was a difficult match. First, the conditions today were a little bit more humid than all the other days before. And plus from the other side of the net, Pablo was playing really good, very solid, and served really well today, I would say, and backed it up with good groundstrokes from the back. He's got a very solid game. He keeps the ball quite low and is very solid off the backhand.

"It was not easy. But especially after losing that first set just being mentally there and knowing that physically it can go three, four hours. But I was staying that in the moment and just trying to focus on what I have to do. He started to lift up his game. So it was a little bit of a challenge in that way."

It was the first meeting between Cilic and Carreno Busta since 2016 - their lone previous encounter won by the Croatian in Basel.

http://www.atpworldtour.com/en/news/cil ... 018-sunday

[arti]

[Damian]

Marin Cilić: To smutne zakończenie dla Rafy

Spoiler:

- To oczywiście dla niego niefortunne i smutne zakończenie - powiedział Marin Cilić o Rafaelu Nadalu, który z powodu kontuzji nie dokończył ćwierćfinałowego meczu Australian Open 2018 przeciw Chorwatowi.
Marcin Motyka
Marcin Motyka
23 Stycznia 2018, 18:02
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Getty Images / Michael Dodge / Na zdjęciu: Rafael Nadal

Australian Open: Rafael Nadal nie dokończył meczu z Marinem Ciliciem. Chorwat w półfinale
Fantastyczny ćwierćfinał Australian Open 2018 pomiędzy Marinem Ciliciem a Rafaelem Nadalem został zakończony przedwcześnie. Hiszpan przerwał grę przy prowadzeniu rywala 3:6, 6:3, 6:7(5), 6:2, 2:0. - Rafa walczy naprawdę mocno i zawsze daje z siebie wszystko na korcie. Przyjechał tutaj dobrze przygotowany i grał świetnie. To oczywiście dla niego niefortunne i smutne zakończenie - mówił Cilić na konferencji prasowej.
Chorwat przyznał, że robił wszystko, by kłopoty rywala nie wybiły go z rytmu. - O tym, że coś mu dolega, zdałem sobie sprawę dopiero wtedy, gdy poprosił o przerwę medyczną. Ale ja nie rozpraszałem swojej uwagi. Koncentrowałem się na sobie i na swojej stronie kortu oraz próbowałem utrzymać wysoką intensywność gry.

REKLAMA

29-latek był we wtorek nastawiony wyjątkowo ofensywnie. W ciągu trzech godzin i 47 minut gry posłał aż 83 zagrania kończące. - Jestem niezwykle zadowolony ze swojej postawy. Zaprezentowałem bardzo wysoki poziom. Przez cały mecz chciałem grać swój tenis, być coraz lepszy i wywierać na nim presję. Trzeciego seta przegrałem nieco pechowo, nie wykorzystałem w nim kilku szans, ale od początku czwartego zacząłem grać z większą energią.

Dla Cilicia to piąty w karierze awans do wielkoszlemowego półfinału. W 1/2 finału Australian Open zameldował się po raz drugi. Poprzednio w 2010 roku, gdy uległ Andy'emu Murrayowi. O finał, w czwartek, zmierzy się z Kyle'em Edmundem. Z Brytyjczykiem grał dotychczas jeden raz - w październiku 2017 roku w Szanghaju zwyciężył 6:3, 7:6(5).

- Będę przygotowywał się do tego meczu, jak do każdego innego. Kyle przeszedł tutaj wspaniałą drogę i wygrał wiele trudnych pojedynków. On gra świetny tenis, ogląda się go z przyjemnością. Potężnie uderza piłkę, świetnie serwuje i zagrywa z forhendu. Oczywiście, na papierze lepiej zmierzyć się z nim niż z Rafą, ale on zasłużył, by dojść do miejsca, w którym się teraz znajduje. Mam nadzieję, że rozegram kolejny dobry mecz - ocenił Chorwat.

https://sportowefakty.wp.pl/tenis/73374 ... e-dla-rafy

[Lleyton]

[Lucas]

[DUN I LOVE]

AO18: 5. wielkoszlemowy półfinał.

29-letni Chorwat wraca po 8 latach do półfinału Australian Open.


smh.com.au

Australian Open (2): 2018, 2010
Wimbledon (1): 2017 (F)
US Open (2): 2015, 2014 (W)

[Barty]

[DUN I LOVE]

AO18: 3. wielkoszlemowy finał.


www.abc.net.au

Australian Open (1): 2018
Wimbledon (1): 2017 (F)
US Open (1): 2014 (W)

[arti]

[arti]

[Lleyton]

Cilic Seals His Spot In Australian Open Final

Spoiler:

Croatian hits 32 winners, including 11 aces, for historic victory

Marin Cilic was superb on serve and played with great focus on Thursday night to become the first Croatian to reach the Australian Open final, which represents his third Grand Slam championship title match (also 2014 US Open, 2017 Wimbledon).

The 29-year-old, competing in a semi-final at Melbourne Park for the second time (also 2010), used his big-match experience at key moments to defeat Kyle Edmund of Great Britain 6-2, 7-6(4), 6-2 in two hours and 18 minutes on Rod Laver Arena.

"I think in the second set I was a bit up and down with my game and not getting enough returns back," Cilic told Jim Courier, in an on-court interview. "He started to serve quite good. I stayed mentally very focused and tried to play every single point. It was crucial in the tie-break to keep that pressure. I noticed in the third game in the third set, [that] he let a couple of balls go. I was seeing that his movement was restricted, so I was trying to move the ball around."

Sixth seed Cilic has reached the Australian Open final on his 10th appearance, equalling the Open Era record (since April 1968) of Kim Warwick. He awaits the winner of five-time champion Roger Federer, the second seed from Switzerland, and South Korea’s Hyeon Chung, who will play their semi-final on Friday night.

Cilic will now rise to a career-high No. 3 in the ATP Rankings – behind No. 1 Rafael Nadal, whom he beat in the quarter-finals, and No. 2 Federer – when the new list is published on Monday.

“I think overall, consistently, I'm playing better,” said Cilic. “I think I am performing better when you look at match after match. I think [at the 2014] US Open, I played just amazing tennis. But it was more difficult for me to keep it for a long period of time. Now I feel that with this kind of tennis, I can keep it throughout the season. That's my goal, at the end of the year, that I can look back and that I am happy about my performances at a consistent level.”

World No. 49 Edmund had been attempting to become the fourth British man to reach a Grand Slam championship final in the Open Era – after Andy Murray (11 finals), John Lloyd (1977 Australian Open) and Greg Rusedski (1997 US Open).

"Obviously, I'm just disappointed I lost, but it's been a really good couple of weeks for me," said Edmund. "I just got the experience of going deep in a [Grand] Slam for the first time and all the stuff that comes with it... I played a lot of tough matches, won some tough matches [and] beat good players. This type of tournament just gives you the bug to want more. I definitely go away from the whole week feeling positive."

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How The Australian Open Semi-final Was Won

First Set
Cilic came under pressure immediately, falling to 15/40, largely because of two groundstroke errors. But Edmund, who had moved Cilic out from his favoured backhand corner, was unable to capitalise. Cilic grew in confidence to break to 30 in both the sixth and eighth games, courtesy of a backhand error from Edmund and a forehand winner for Cilic, his eighth of the 35-minute set. Edmund soon departed the court for a medical time-out, which lasted eight minutes. Cilic won 12 of his 14 first-serve points, including one ace.

“When playing in the semi-finals, when there is a lot at stake, and not losing a serve during the match is obviously big,” said Cilic. “I was two break points down in the first game, and those first three, four games were not the best level, but I think I… found my way and I played my way into the match.”

Second Set
Edmund returned with greater focus and in the fifth game, when a line judge had called Cilic's serve wide, the 23-year-old challenged the Hawk-Eye decision that went his opponent’s way. Edmund believed the point should have been replayed and called for the referee, having claimed his return was affected by the call as he played the stroke. It fired the Briton up and the set was decided on a tie-break, which went with serve through the first six points until Edmund missed a forehand close to the net at 3/3. A focused Cilic, moving and serving well, soon roared with delight as he struck a stunning forehand winner for a two-sets-to-love advantage.

“We didn't hit too many balls off the back of the court,” said Cilic. “That second set was relying more or less on the serve and first shot to be in control. I played a great tie-break. very focused to win every single point.”

Third Set
Pumped up and sensing an opportunity to hammer home his advantage, Cilic broke in the third game courtesy of a concentration lapse from Edmund, who was attempting to recover from a 0-2 set deficit for the first time. Despite an injury concern, Edmund continued to fight and saved a break point in the fifth game, but at 2-4, Cilic converted his second break point opportunity with a forehand winner. Moments later Cilic completed an historic victory. He also beat Edmund 6-3, 7-6(5) in October 2017 at the Rolex Shanghai Masters.

Did You Know?
Cilic is 11th in the Infosys ATP Stats

Leaderboards Serving Category for the past 52 weeks, with a serve rating of 284.0. Learn more
http://www.atpworldtour.com/en/news/cil ... 8-thursday

[Damian]

[Damian]