Who Is Jerzy Janowicz?

Who was Jerzy Janowicz yesterday?

• 21 year old from Poland
  
• 2.03 m tall (6ft 8 in)
  
• right-handed (DBH)
  
• career record- 15-15
  
• round 3 this Wimbledon
  

Who is Jerzy Janowicz today?

Well, the guy who beat Murray in Paris Bercy, of course!

Who will Jerzy Janowicz be tomorrow?

• an unusually agile and athletic 2m plus tall player
  
• devastating serve
  
• attacking tennis
  
• gutsy, fearless attitude (complained to Bernades about not timing Murray's taking extra time between the points)
  
• doesn't look cumbersome like other tall players (Isner etc) and moves really well, you wouldn't know how tall he was
  
• ruthless power on forehand side and soft & delicate drop-shots
  
• future of tennis
  

Remember this face, and learn to spell his name fast

Great win for the youngster I hope to see big things from this kid. It seems that the london favorites murray and Novak just didn't have the same focus in this tournament. Yet, a big 4 win for 21 year old kid signals big league talent.

After today's win:


"It's not easy for me to talk about this week because I had really tough moments in my life and this is really like a movie forme," the 21-year-old Pole, who also beat Marin Cilic and Philip Kohlschreiber in Paris, told a news conference following his 5-7 7-6 6-2win over the Briton.

Asked to elaborate, world number 69 Janowicz took a sip from an energy drink and paused for some 20 seconds and said: "Well, I had problems in my life. First of all, I have always had problems with sponsors.

"I didn't have money for my career; all the time my parents were helping me. They were selling their shops, they were selling the few apartments, so they decided to go all in to help me as much as possible."
Janowicz had other problems, but he would not say more."This is the problems actually I can tell you," he explained.
The son of two former professional volleyball players, Janowicz picked up his first racket while he was still wearing nappies.

"When I was like two years old I was running already with a tennis racket on the court," he said."I couldn't basically hit one ball but I was holding this racket all the time."

Becoming a professional tennis player is no easy feat and Janowicz is well aware of that.

"I just would like to have few days off to think about what happened this week, because this week is really not easy to take for me because I'm from Poland and I know it's not easy to become professional tennis player," he said.

While no one would have blamed Janowicz if he had decided to paint the town red in celebration following his unexpected win on Thursday, the Pole has more pressing concerns. He is still looking for a sponsor.

"I have problem with sponsors. I was fighting my whole life with money, so this week is really important for me to get some sponsors, to get some help," he said.

Janowicz will face eighth seed Janko Tipsarevic for a place in the semi-finals and Murray warned the Serb to expect some more fireworks from the Pole.

Like most tall players on the circuit, Janowicz is a big server, having already served at 251 kph. However, he is not just a one-weapon player.

"He is maybe a little bit more unpredictable than a few of them from the back of the court," said Murray.

"He tried a lot of dropshots and went for winners maybewhen he was out of position that maybe some of the others don't."

Janowicz, who has been working with a fitness coach since the beginning of the season and has changed his racket, is not looking for excuses anymore.

"My behaviour on the court is also a little bit different. I decide not to give up, whatever the situation," he explained.

"I'm fighting right now for every single ball. Doesn't matter if I feel good or not, if I have good day or week. I'm just
trying to play my tennis."

"For sure this was the most unbelievable day in my life,” he said afterwards.
“I beat Olympic champion, US Open champion. Unbelievable feeling for me.
Still, I have a feeling in a few minutes I’m going to wake up and
everything’s gonna be gone.”

Today's match highlights:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I6Q-cS09okY

Nice post., nice hopeful player.

But I am still unconvinced about his many drop shots and Murray could have won in 2 and we woudl not be talking about him ...yet. Let's see v Tips.

Tenez wrote:Nice post., nice hopeful player.

But I am still unconvinced about his many drop shots and Murray could have won in 2 and we woudl not be talking about him ...yet. Let's see v Tips.

Now that Tips has qualified for WTF, I look forward to JJ in the semis.

The magic continues, JJ is in Masters 1000 semifinal facing Simon tomorrow

He reminds me young Safin.

This is pretty exciting this kid coming out of nowhere and reaching the semi of the masters and taking out a top 4 player. I know I will be rooting for this kid to win. All the london bound boys really laid an egg in this tournament. Again the smartest out of all of them was fed who just didn't show.

Yes, it's not surprising though that those 21yo making a difference have a hige physical advantage.

Thinking of young players, I can't help comparing JJ to Raonic, and I do like JJ's game more, it's cleaner and more natural & instinctive.

Raonic has tried to upgrade his game by adding some rallying skills, but he lacks the movement for it despite the strength he clearly has in his legs.
As a result, rather than relying on his main weapons, he has reverted his game to some hybrid neither here nor there watered down version quasi-attacking baseline scrambling "complete package".
I think in the heart of hearts he is a safe type of character and his game shows it less and less subtly.

I don't know whether that was just a tactical mistake with his coach, but in my opinion he needs to trim down all the unneccessary frills he has added on in the last 6months. Back to basics.

And back to basics is what JJ is playing. Not a single shot waisted. Very nice!

noleisthebest wrote:Thinking of young players, I can't help comparing JJ to Raonic, and I do like JJ's game more, it's cleaner and more natural & instinctive.

For those reasons he does not remind me Rao. He moves so well that it makes him look shorter than he is....again a bit like Safin. Safin was big but very agile.

Tenez wrote:

noleisthebest wrote:Thinking of young players, I can't help comparing JJ to Raonic, and I do like JJ's game more, it's cleaner and more natural & instinctive.

For those reasons he does not remind me Rao. He moves so well that it makes him look shorter than he is....again a bit like Safin. Safin was big but very agile.

I never said it reminded me of Raonic, on the contrary. The highlighted part is what separates them. Raonic appears to be attacking, JJ is attacking.
I really like his forehand.

You've got to love the passion:

JJ slept little after the Murray win, and expects to be up until the early hours again following his latest upset.

"It doesn't matter if I sleep. I don't eat. Right now I'm playing best tennis of my life."

Trying to explain himself to himself & the world:

"Mentally, I'm a really tough guy," Janowicz said. "I remember in my match against Andy Murray in Great Britain during Davis Cup three years ago, whole crowd was against me, over 5,000 people. I didn't really care."

"It's really not easy for me to realize actually what is going on in my life right now. I did something magical. I just played really like I can put every single ball in, and I'm in semifinal ... my family was crying after yesterday's match and after today's match."

"I was bad boy at the school. High school I was fighting with everyone, with teachers. I was really bad guy/ It's really not easy for me to explain why I'm that kind of guy, why, for example, yesterday I played against Andy Murray and I didn't feel pressure at all."

He seems to have a wild mind. That might be his biggest hurdle to success, or full accomplishment.

Yes, something a bit eery there, esp the sounds he makes. Well, the way he plays definitely different and exciting.
In my opinion, the key will be his IQ, he looks OK so far.

Definitely not a softie.

A nutcase like Safin maybe?



Anyway his role will be to create upsets at worst...a potential number 1 at best.

Tenez wrote:A nutcase like Safin maybe?



Anyway his role will be to create upsets at worst...a potential number 1 at best.

Definitely got a nutcase potential, seems to like a good brawl. Rough and raw on the inside and yet it all translates well to such great skills with the racquet.

He could be on some hot vein of form and fizz out esp as he faces a long off-season after the weekend, or he could equally continue to build on, which I'm more inclined to believe.
In all honesty I can't say I have noticed anything to worry about with him. He has a great potential, and is clearly over the moon with this break-through. I'd like to believe he won't let it slip away.
I think he is more serious/darker than Safin by nature almost a touch of Lendl in his demeanour.

Looks like by getting 600 points JJ will jump from 65 to 26th in the world!!! BUt by gaining another 400 points (shoudl he win the final tomorrow) he will only finish 4 places higher to 22. Not such a big deal.

Tenez wrote:Looks like by getting 600 points JJ will jump from 65 to 26th in the world!!! BUt by gaining another 400 points (shoudl he win the final tomorrow) he will only finish 4 places higher to 22. Not such a big deal.

I think a win would mean the world to him, more than the jump in the rankings (the few ones if he wins). It would be such a glorious and fantastic end to the ATP 2012 season, to end with a brand new face in tennis and what a face!
We haven't had such an inspiring story for a long, long time, and I am sure it will be a great motivation for the rest that linger in the rankings to get their act together.

Yes. Nadal, Delpo, Rao and now JJ... just shows talented youngsters won't go anywhere without an exceptional physique.

Tenez wrote:Yes. Nadal, Delpo, Rao and now JJ... just shows talented youngsters won't go anywhere without an exceptional physique.

I haven't thought that one through, but I'll take your word for it.

Tenez wrote:Yes. Nadal, Delpo, Rao and now JJ... just shows talented youngsters won't go anywhere without an exceptional physique.

Umm...
You sure about that?

Amritia3ee wrote:

Tenez wrote:Yes. Nadal, Delpo, Rao and now JJ... just shows talented youngsters won't go anywhere without an exceptional physique.

Umm...
You sure about that?

That's the trend isn;t it? The younger not so physical talented players will have to wait 23 or 24 in order to achieve something. Currently they have not got the stamina or weapons despite some being very talented. If you look at Federer he was also a late bloomer cause you had fitter and more consistent players like Hewitt, Nalby and Ferrero stopping him on the way. A 21yo Fed would really struggle today to make the top 10 nd more so to win a TMS. At his time it was pretty physical but nothing like it's today at the very top.

Personally, I'm not too bothered with players' age.
It's nice to have young ones come through early, but that is such a rare thing, prodigies aren't born every year.
I don't think JJ is a prodigy, but a pretty good player with a lot of potential, very good material that could be transformed into a slam winner.
I just hope he doesn't panic and start going safe like Raonic, although I really can't imagine him do it, he's got a very bold character, is not vain and is not scared of losing.

Depends what you mean by prodigy. I'd say they all are prodigies...physical prodigies certainly.

Prodigy can only mean one thing: an exuberant talent.
Prodigies make things look effortless and are always creative out of the sheer overabundance of talent: Navratilova, Henin, Federer etc.

I'd never consider physical attributes as prodigal.

Well, I think the whole tennis world now knows the answer to the question who Jerzy Janowicz is.

It was nice to hear his intelligent and thoughtful speech at the trophy presentation, and to see a big smile transform his otherwise overcast face.

So much of overwhelming emotion has flooded the young man's life last week.

From somebody who slept in his car during challenger tournaments to a (qualifier) runner up at a Masters 1000 event, no wonder it feels like a dream.
I am glad Bercy crowd took to him. He will treasure his time there all his life, and will be going over it in his mind a thousand times in the coming months.

I look forward to seeing his smile in AO.

I took a second look today and you could tell he was getting tired after all those matches in a short period so that was hard for him to deal with. But i have doubts he will play like this week in week out. He can hit winners but he does not have the slack technique to do it consistently or to do it under great pressure. It takes great talent to remain loose when the pressure builds. Like when Ronny o’Sullivan is about to score a maximum break: he would switch from right-handed to left-handed without blinking an eye.

To me it’s not a certainty Jerzy will repeat results like this more often

JJ played 2 qualifying matches last week, so that's 7 matches almost 7 days in a row. I think we can cut him some slack.

gallery play wrote:I took a second look today and you could tell he was getting tired after all those matches in a short period so that was hard for him to deal with. But i have doubts he will play like this week in week out. He can hit winners but he does not have the slack technique to do it consistently or to do it under great pressure. It takes great talent to remain loose when the pressure builds. Like when Ronny o’Sullivan is about to score a maximum break: he would switch from right-handed to left-handed without blinking an eye.

To me it’s not a certainty Jerzy will repeat results like this more often

But those kind of players just need to get a t8iny bit fitter and more confident and then can simply become unplayable. For them it;s easy to hurt their opponent on every shot and though they are not sure they can do it week in week out, suddenly they can get that extra confidence setting them apart. He has not got the garce and talent of Federer and I doubt he will achieve near as much but he has 2m of fitness and easy power to make up fro some of the talent.

He however needs to cut out on those ridiculous drop shots and work again on those legs. Once he can move a bit more, he is going to balst those top players off the court. He may however have more trouble playing the quick hands players like Dolgo/Federer who will keep him on the move and force him into errors.

But how confident can one get if the technique is not something you can rely on? Great fitness would help (Murray, Djoko, Nadal) but wouldn't bring a tall guy to the top.
Delpo is as good as tall player can play, but he's a very talented ballstriker. He can rally at Fed's pace. But like you say: can't see Jerzy doing that

I must admit, I have not noticed Delpo being able to rally at Fed's pace. He blows him off with his ground strokes at best, but is far too cumbersome to sustain Fed's A pace.

To blow one off court you have to get your racket real clean on the ball. Usually not easy while being rushed.
Fed likes a flat ball (Delpo's) and that's why has such a good record against Delpo, it gives him a better opportunity to move Delpo around.
But i'm sure Fed is not keen on trading fh's with Delpo at a high pace.

In my opinion the only player who can live with Fed's A pace is Novak. Remember AO 2011 SF first set ?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EwPSh79m0RY

i would rather mention Nalbandian and Davydenko. But they lack a competitive serve in the end (too little easy points)

Novak had his moments but in general lives with Fed's pace the Nadal way, and also needs a rather slow court to do so.

gallery play wrote:i would rather mention Nalbandian and Davydenko. But they lack a competitive serve in the end (too little easy points)

Novak had his moments but in general lives with Fed's pace the Nadal way, and also needs a rather slow court to do so.

I disagree.

noleisthebest wrote:

I disagree.

Why?

Good points from both sides here. I just think that JJ is an extreme version of Delpo. Delpo for instance lacks the extra power on his serve and grounds shots to really put the like of MUrray/Nadal/Djoko away. One feels that one shot from JJ really hurts (a bit like Rao when on form). If he can really hurt his opponent on most shots he is going to have quite a few easy balls to put away and that is what will give him the confidence. He is very young (21 is young nowadays) and reaching a TMS final is going to boost him tremendously. I had never seen him play before this week but he was already ranked 65 and went completely under the radar was already doing something right obviously.

I guess they will have to change the nominees for the "most improved player this year". It's got to be him.

noleisthebest wrote:

gallery play wrote:i would rather mention Nalbandian and Davydenko. But they lack a competitive serve in the end (too little easy points)

Novak had his moments but in general lives with Fed's pace the Nadal way, and also needs a rather slow court to do so.

I disagree.

i knew you would.

The way Nalby beat Fed is not quite like how Djoko beat Fed

see for yourself:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lJN2NKfY8eU

The thing I like about JJ is that he doesn't like to hang about too much on the baseline . He is a true instinctive attacking player.
That serve obviously gives him great confidence to play like that, and I just hope he can keep it up.
Rao looks completely toothless when his 1st serve goes.
Delpo doesn't mind moving laterally and that's why he is less dangerous that JJ.

gallery play wrote:

noleisthebest wrote:

gallery play wrote:i would rather mention Nalbandian and Davydenko. But they lack a competitive serve in the end (too little easy points)

Novak had his moments but in general lives with Fed's pace the Nadal way, and also needs a rather slow court to do so.

I disagree.

i knew you would.

The way Nalby beat Fed is not quite like how Djoko beat Fed

see for yourself:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lJN2NKfY8eU

OK, how many times did Nalby beat Fed in slams?
btw, did you see Skyfall?

noleisthebest wrote:

gallery play wrote:

noleisthebest wrote:

gallery play wrote:i would rather mention Nalbandian and Davydenko. But they lack a competitive serve in the end (too little easy points)

Novak had his moments but in general lives with Fed's pace the Nadal way, and also needs a rather slow court to do so.

I disagree.

i knew you would.

The way Nalby beat Fed is not quite like how Djoko beat Fed

see for yourself:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lJN2NKfY8eU

OK, how many times did Nalby beat Fed in slams?

How many times did Nadal beat Fed in Slams?

Nalb's slam record is not impressive anyway, so that's not relevant in this debate. Besides: Djoko outlasts Fed at the slams, that's not exactly Nalb's cup of tea

I haven't seen it yet (skyfall that is), you?

gallery play wrote: Besides: Djoko outlasts Fed at the slams

Oh cmon Federer fans always say this it's brutally unfair.

Watch the clip of AO 2011 SF, or RG F 2008.

gallery play wrote:Nalb's slam record is not impressive anyway, so that's not relevant in this debate. Besides: Djoko outlasts Fed at the slams, that's not exactly Nalb's cup of tea

I haven't seen it yet (skyfall that is), you?

NO , not yet, will after the WTF.
I'm not buying the outlasting excuse, sorry. What would need to happen for you to think otherwise, a straight sets win in a slam?
How often do we see that kind of score these days in the finals or semi-finals (Murray being trounced by Novak and Fed excluded)?

I am with GP there. It's clear that is how Djokovic does it. It is more obvious in that CIncy match where after being bagelled Djoko strated to throw long rallies. Federer himself mentions it in his post match interview.

But anyway no-one can stay with Fed's A game and I agree the closest I have seen is Nalby...or even Blake in one of those days.

Djoko hasn't got the shots. Just need to see WTF 2010 and 2011 to see what Fed can do.

The problem with teh AO clip is that the conds are dead slow and the bounce is high and that turns Fed SHBH weapon into a liability...not very fair is it?

In my opinion, Nalby is massively overrated.
As for the rest, we'll agree to disagree.

His shots are not over rated. Just compare the quality of his shots with Djoko and Murray for instance. Simply much better.