Now that the US Open has ended, the excitement of the tournaments kind of slows down until the Year End Masters Cup or the Davis Cup finals. In my opinion, Spain, is very likely to win the Davis Cup, especially if they play the finals on clay. At the moment they just have the best players on their team, Nadal, Verdasco, and Ferrer. Verdasco's, game is well suited to hard courts and Nadal is just about unstoppable on clay. They're already the defending champions and they're such a well rounded team I think it's pretty much a foregone conclusion that they will win the Davis Cup 2009.
As for the other smaller tournaments, something kind of surprising happened this past week. Gael Monfils claimed an ATP title. That might sound kind of harsh but it's been a long time since he's won an ATP level tournament. Unfortunately, I didn't get to see it, but when I found out about it later on, I was thrilled. Monfils, is one of my favorite players and I'm surprised that he hasn't won more title by this point in his career. He's been in 6 finals since winning the Prokom Open, in 2005 but this time, he was the one, walking away with the trophy. Maybe this is the start of something new for him or maybe it's just a surprise win that won't amount to much of anything. I hope it's beginning of something good for him, but we'll have to wait and see.
Most of the top players are now playing in Bangkok, Thailand. The French guys seem to be doing pretty well over there. Gasquet and Monfils, both had strong performances in the early rounds and the defending champion Tsonga is now into the quarter-finals, even though he had to struggle to get past Ernests Gulbis. As for Thailand, I like Tsonga's, chances of retaining his title there, although I could see Gilles Simon, taking it from him. Personally, I hope that Simon does win, he's #9 in the world right now and a victory here would pretty much solidify his chances of qualifying for the Year End Masters Cup.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Friday, September 25, 2009
Britten loses in the opening round of the Davis Cup
Despite having the power-house Andy Murray, on their side, Britten, was overwhelmed in their opening round match for the Davis Cup. This was a sad display from everyone except Murray. Murray, even risked further damage to his left wrist, (which is currently recovering from a strain) by coming out to play in the Davis Cup. Britten's Dan Evans, was put in the final match against Poland, but he clearly wasn't ready for that responsibility and he lost Michal Przysiezny in straight sets, giving Poland a narrow victory over Britten 3-2.
I think that maybe in a few years Evans, will be a better player, but I also wouldn't be surprised if he suffers the same fate as Donald Young. A talented player, with great touch who just doesn't have a big enough game to stay competitive in the important matches. I could be wrong about Evans and I hope that I am. Britten, desperately needs someone to back them up in the Davis Cup. Had it not been for Andy Murray, this would have been an absolutely humiliating defeat for them.
I think that maybe in a few years Evans, will be a better player, but I also wouldn't be surprised if he suffers the same fate as Donald Young. A talented player, with great touch who just doesn't have a big enough game to stay competitive in the important matches. I could be wrong about Evans and I hope that I am. Britten, desperately needs someone to back them up in the Davis Cup. Had it not been for Andy Murray, this would have been an absolutely humiliating defeat for them.
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Juan Martin Del Potro wins the US Open
At first I wasn't really sure how I felt about Del Potro winning the Open. I mean I was kind of happy to see a new champion, and knowing that Del Potro is 20 and Roger is 28 it's not really that surprising that a younger player taking over Roger's reign as US Open Champion. Del Potro will be the future of the tennis world and will probably and I'm pretty sure that this US Open title is just the beginning of things to come for him. So while it seemed kind of fitting that Del Potro beat Roger, I was kind of sad to see Roger lose. He's been the US Open champion since I started watching tennis and it's strange, for me, now that he's not.
Many people, including myself, think that Roger is the greatest player of all time, although when it comes to five set matches at the majors, he has shown some vulnerability. This is now the third time that he's lost a 5 set match in a grand slam final. If you compare his five set record in slam finals 2-3 to his four set record (5-2) or 3 set record ( 7-1) you can see that he tends to win more often in shorter matches. I think that his mediocre 5 set record is mostly due to his lack of mental fortitude. Don't get me wrong, Federer is still a strong mental player, but sometimes he gets frustrated by an opponent or his own tactical decision making and instead of trying something different he tends to repeat the same mistake, a good example of this would be in Miami against Djokovic. Or a few years ago at the French Open, when he refused to use a drop shot against Nadal.
As for Del Potro, this title is a huge win for him. Now that he's won a major he's proven that he's a viable threat for the upcoming slams and that he's capable of beating the world's best, on the biggest of stages. I guess time will tell with this guy, he could be a major dominating player in years to come or he could be a flash in the pan who burns out after a few years at the top, kind of like Lleyton Hewitt. A lot will also depend on what kind of rivals Del Potro has during his peak years. I mean think about how many majors Andre Agassi and Andy Roddick would have won, had it not been for Pete Sampras and Roger Federer. Andre, would have possibly doubled the amount of slams that he ended up with and I'm pretty sure Roddick could have won at least 7 or 8. That same kind of fate could befall Del Potro, if he winds up playing in the same era as a player, far superior to him.
Many people, including myself, think that Roger is the greatest player of all time, although when it comes to five set matches at the majors, he has shown some vulnerability. This is now the third time that he's lost a 5 set match in a grand slam final. If you compare his five set record in slam finals 2-3 to his four set record (5-2) or 3 set record ( 7-1) you can see that he tends to win more often in shorter matches. I think that his mediocre 5 set record is mostly due to his lack of mental fortitude. Don't get me wrong, Federer is still a strong mental player, but sometimes he gets frustrated by an opponent or his own tactical decision making and instead of trying something different he tends to repeat the same mistake, a good example of this would be in Miami against Djokovic. Or a few years ago at the French Open, when he refused to use a drop shot against Nadal.
As for Del Potro, this title is a huge win for him. Now that he's won a major he's proven that he's a viable threat for the upcoming slams and that he's capable of beating the world's best, on the biggest of stages. I guess time will tell with this guy, he could be a major dominating player in years to come or he could be a flash in the pan who burns out after a few years at the top, kind of like Lleyton Hewitt. A lot will also depend on what kind of rivals Del Potro has during his peak years. I mean think about how many majors Andre Agassi and Andy Roddick would have won, had it not been for Pete Sampras and Roger Federer. Andre, would have possibly doubled the amount of slams that he ended up with and I'm pretty sure Roddick could have won at least 7 or 8. That same kind of fate could befall Del Potro, if he winds up playing in the same era as a player, far superior to him.
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Del Potro destoys Nadal, Roger battles past Djokovic
Wow, and I thought the loss Nadal had to Murray last year was bad. This was the worst loss that I've seen for Nadal since the Australian Open semi-finals last year. Nadal, was far too defensive against Del Potro and he paid for it. Del Potro, had him on the run through out most of the match. I never felt like Rafa had a good chance of winning the match after he lost a break early in the first set and was then broken again for Del Potro to win the first set 6-2. Del Potro then repeated that pattern twice and had Rafa beat in 2 hours and 20 minutes.
Even though Nadal, lost pretty badly this was still a good result for him, to make the semi-finals at the US Open. He didn't lose any points from last year and he actually regained his number 2 ranking thanks to Murray losing in the fourth round. I hope that next year he plays with some more aggression though. It's the only thing that will get him past these powerful flat hitting baseliners.
Federer played a good match against Djokovic. He had an acceptable first serve percentage, and had 49 winners to 33 unforced errors. Djokovic, played well too but he didn't have enough winners to make up for the 31 errors. As for the match, it was a lot like their US Open Final in 2007. Djokovic managed to stay competitive with Roger in all 3 sets but in the moments when he needed it most, Roger was able to come up with the answer he needed to take the set. This was a pretty enjoyable match though.
By the way, did any of you guys see Shaq VS last night when he took on Phelps? I would love to see Shaq, take on Andy Roddick or John Isner, in tennis. I think that would be awesome.
Even though Nadal, lost pretty badly this was still a good result for him, to make the semi-finals at the US Open. He didn't lose any points from last year and he actually regained his number 2 ranking thanks to Murray losing in the fourth round. I hope that next year he plays with some more aggression though. It's the only thing that will get him past these powerful flat hitting baseliners.
Federer played a good match against Djokovic. He had an acceptable first serve percentage, and had 49 winners to 33 unforced errors. Djokovic, played well too but he didn't have enough winners to make up for the 31 errors. As for the match, it was a lot like their US Open Final in 2007. Djokovic managed to stay competitive with Roger in all 3 sets but in the moments when he needed it most, Roger was able to come up with the answer he needed to take the set. This was a pretty enjoyable match though.
By the way, did any of you guys see Shaq VS last night when he took on Phelps? I would love to see Shaq, take on Andy Roddick or John Isner, in tennis. I think that would be awesome.
Monday, September 14, 2009
Nadal finishes Gonzalez. Serena disqualified from her match!
Well, I don't really have a whole lot to say about the Nadal vs Gonzalez match. Nadal, came out and pretty much dominated Gonzo, right from where they left off. Gonzalez, played terribly in the third set, his forehand was missing constantly and he lost the set and match 7-6, 7-6, 6-0.
Now, as for Serena and Kim Clijsters, I have a lot to say about their match. Ordinarily, I don't comment much about the WTA, so something pretty important has to happen for me to make a post on it. Well, something incredible did happen. Serena, got herself disqualified by verbally abusing a lineswoman after she incorrectly called a foot fault against Serena.
The lineswoman's, call was a bit questionable but Serena just snapped and went off on this woman. Here's the video in case you haven't already seen it:
I think that Serena's reactions during the whole match were inappropriate. She acted more like a bitter, vengeful, maniac than a former 3 time champion. After losing the first set she threw her racquet on the ground, picked it back up, and then proceeded to smash it against the court until it broke. That was just a warm up, for what came next. Starting in the second set Serena, started to get more verbally aggressive. She started using more 'come on's' after winning points against Kim's serve and in between points, she would pace around the baseline, talking to her racquet, with her body language becoming increasingly negative. Finally with the end of the match, in sight, Serena snapped. The line judge called a foot fault against her when she was serving at 15-30, on her second serve. It gave Kim ,two match points, but she never got to play them because Serena went right over to the line judge and started swearing at her and threatened to ram one of the balls up her ass.
The lines judge went over to tell the chair umpire what Serena had told her and the chair umpire motioned for Serena to come over to them. They brought out two officials and Serena basically tried to deny what she had said. They told her she was disqualified and she walked over to shake Kim's hand and then left, with the crowd booing her as she went. In the press conference, after the match, Serena, pretty much denied what she had said but she did later give an apology to the woman on her website.
I was disgusted by what I saw from Serena Williams. Like I said before, she acted more like a bitter, vengeful, woman with a serious anger-management issue, than a 3 time US Open champion. I hope that she is fined for her outburst, and maybe even a temporary ban from some of the tournaments.
Serena's outburst shouldn't be tolerated and what would it say about the WTA if they just allowed one of their players to get away with something like this. It would show where their priorities really are and how little they care about the lines people who are trying to do their job.
Now, as for Serena and Kim Clijsters, I have a lot to say about their match. Ordinarily, I don't comment much about the WTA, so something pretty important has to happen for me to make a post on it. Well, something incredible did happen. Serena, got herself disqualified by verbally abusing a lineswoman after she incorrectly called a foot fault against Serena.
The lineswoman's, call was a bit questionable but Serena just snapped and went off on this woman. Here's the video in case you haven't already seen it:
I think that Serena's reactions during the whole match were inappropriate. She acted more like a bitter, vengeful, maniac than a former 3 time champion. After losing the first set she threw her racquet on the ground, picked it back up, and then proceeded to smash it against the court until it broke. That was just a warm up, for what came next. Starting in the second set Serena, started to get more verbally aggressive. She started using more 'come on's' after winning points against Kim's serve and in between points, she would pace around the baseline, talking to her racquet, with her body language becoming increasingly negative. Finally with the end of the match, in sight, Serena snapped. The line judge called a foot fault against her when she was serving at 15-30, on her second serve. It gave Kim ,two match points, but she never got to play them because Serena went right over to the line judge and started swearing at her and threatened to ram one of the balls up her ass.
The lines judge went over to tell the chair umpire what Serena had told her and the chair umpire motioned for Serena to come over to them. They brought out two officials and Serena basically tried to deny what she had said. They told her she was disqualified and she walked over to shake Kim's hand and then left, with the crowd booing her as she went. In the press conference, after the match, Serena, pretty much denied what she had said but she did later give an apology to the woman on her website.
I was disgusted by what I saw from Serena Williams. Like I said before, she acted more like a bitter, vengeful, woman with a serious anger-management issue, than a 3 time US Open champion. I hope that she is fined for her outburst, and maybe even a temporary ban from some of the tournaments.
Serena's outburst shouldn't be tolerated and what would it say about the WTA if they just allowed one of their players to get away with something like this. It would show where their priorities really are and how little they care about the lines people who are trying to do their job.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Mens quarter-finals tennis matches
Well, I was wrong. I really thought that Verdasco would have won the match against Djokovic and I still think that he should have won it. He had two break points/set points when Novak was serving at 4-5 15-40 but he failed to convert one of them. Then he lost the tie-break against Novak but managed to break his serve 3 times in the second set. Then he broke his serve again in the third before Novak returned the favor. Finally, he cramped late in the third set and from that point forward the match was over, Novak easily beat Verdasco after he strained his abdomen winning the fourth set 6-2.
If Verdasco, had won one of those two points at 4-5 he would have been up two sets-to-love at the start of the third set and Novak, probably wouldn't have been able to come back from that. It's kind of too bad that the match ended the way it did, I was hoping for more.
Congrats to Novak for making the semis, for the third straight year. He should give Roger a pretty good match and he definitely has the ability to upset him. I'm sticking with Roger to win it though.
Roger's quarter-final battle with Soderling, turned out to have a very surprising ending. Roger, absolutely dominated Soderling in the first two sets and played some of his vintage best tennis towards the end of the third set but Soderling kept himself, alive in the match by winning his service games in the third set and late in the tie-break he was able to seize advantage of a momentary lapse from Roger, to bring the match to 2 sets to 1. The fourth set also went to a tie-break, and Soderling, was coming on strong. Roger did manage to win the fourth set but only just barely. Soderling, played great after the second set and a match like this proves that he has the ability to beat Roger. He's just going to have to play his best tennis all the way through.
I was kind of disappointed by the Cilic vs Del Potro match. Mostly because Cilic, beat himself. He did a great job taking out Murray in the fourth round but he hit way too many unforced errors against Del Potro. 53 errors to 29 winners is a terrible stat. Del Potro, played well in this match, nothing super special but enough to win pretty cleanly after getting the break back from Cilic in the second set. Cilic, seemed to play more inconsistently as the match went on and only won 3 games in the last two sets.
As for the Nadal vs Gonzalez match, I haven't currently seen the end of it yet, because it's been suspended by rain. So far, Nadal is up 1 set to love and they're in the second set tie-break at 3-2. This match has been extremely entertaining. Gonzalez has been streaky but when his forehand has been on, it's produced some incredible winners. Rafa, has looked good, I think he's playing well enough that if he does win this match, he should be able to over-come Del Potro and make the US Open finals for the first time in his career. I'm not sure how he will do against Djokovic or Federer, in the finals. That's probably going to be the big test for him.
If Verdasco, had won one of those two points at 4-5 he would have been up two sets-to-love at the start of the third set and Novak, probably wouldn't have been able to come back from that. It's kind of too bad that the match ended the way it did, I was hoping for more.
Congrats to Novak for making the semis, for the third straight year. He should give Roger a pretty good match and he definitely has the ability to upset him. I'm sticking with Roger to win it though.
Roger's quarter-final battle with Soderling, turned out to have a very surprising ending. Roger, absolutely dominated Soderling in the first two sets and played some of his vintage best tennis towards the end of the third set but Soderling kept himself, alive in the match by winning his service games in the third set and late in the tie-break he was able to seize advantage of a momentary lapse from Roger, to bring the match to 2 sets to 1. The fourth set also went to a tie-break, and Soderling, was coming on strong. Roger did manage to win the fourth set but only just barely. Soderling, played great after the second set and a match like this proves that he has the ability to beat Roger. He's just going to have to play his best tennis all the way through.
I was kind of disappointed by the Cilic vs Del Potro match. Mostly because Cilic, beat himself. He did a great job taking out Murray in the fourth round but he hit way too many unforced errors against Del Potro. 53 errors to 29 winners is a terrible stat. Del Potro, played well in this match, nothing super special but enough to win pretty cleanly after getting the break back from Cilic in the second set. Cilic, seemed to play more inconsistently as the match went on and only won 3 games in the last two sets.
As for the Nadal vs Gonzalez match, I haven't currently seen the end of it yet, because it's been suspended by rain. So far, Nadal is up 1 set to love and they're in the second set tie-break at 3-2. This match has been extremely entertaining. Gonzalez has been streaky but when his forehand has been on, it's produced some incredible winners. Rafa, has looked good, I think he's playing well enough that if he does win this match, he should be able to over-come Del Potro and make the US Open finals for the first time in his career. I'm not sure how he will do against Djokovic or Federer, in the finals. That's probably going to be the big test for him.
Monday, September 7, 2009
US Open fourth round, Americans are gone and Verdasco looks strong
I hope you guys have been enjoying the tennis matches over Labor day weekend. Some of them were really exciting like Oudin vs Sharapova match and the Verdasco vs Haas match. Others weren't as quite as good, Nadal vs Almagaro and Federer vs Hewitt. Still, I enjoyed watching the matches in general.
Verdasco, has been doing great at the Open. His shot making has been at it's best throughout the tournament and he's managed to make the quarter-finals of a major for the second time in his career. His next opponent is Djokovic and that's going to be a really tough match for him but I actually think he has a chance. Djokovic, probably won't be able to over-power him and he doesn't really have any tools that are tremendously better than Verdasco. If Verdasco, continues his excellent shot-making and serves well, I think he's got a good chance of making the semi-finals.
Federer, started the tournament off in third gear but after losing the first set to Hewitt in his third round match, he's gradually improved his game and he's now playing pretty good tennis. Like before, I think Roger's probably going to win the US Open but if there's one player likely to upset him it's Murray.
Nadal, has seemed to be kind of inconsistent. He looked great in his match against Gasquet but he was broken 5 times when he played Almagaro. Three of those breaks came in the first set.
If he's going to make the semis again, he going to have to improve his first serve percentage and cut back on his unforced errors. He also needs to put some power into his serve and not play as defensively. Gonzalez and Tsonga, are both lurking in his quarter of the draw. They're big hitters who are capable of overpowering Nadal on the faster courts, especially when he's playing too defensively. I'm not sure how Nadal's going to do at this point. Let's wait and see how he does against Gael Monfils.
Verdasco, has been doing great at the Open. His shot making has been at it's best throughout the tournament and he's managed to make the quarter-finals of a major for the second time in his career. His next opponent is Djokovic and that's going to be a really tough match for him but I actually think he has a chance. Djokovic, probably won't be able to over-power him and he doesn't really have any tools that are tremendously better than Verdasco. If Verdasco, continues his excellent shot-making and serves well, I think he's got a good chance of making the semi-finals.
Federer, started the tournament off in third gear but after losing the first set to Hewitt in his third round match, he's gradually improved his game and he's now playing pretty good tennis. Like before, I think Roger's probably going to win the US Open but if there's one player likely to upset him it's Murray.
Nadal, has seemed to be kind of inconsistent. He looked great in his match against Gasquet but he was broken 5 times when he played Almagaro. Three of those breaks came in the first set.
If he's going to make the semis again, he going to have to improve his first serve percentage and cut back on his unforced errors. He also needs to put some power into his serve and not play as defensively. Gonzalez and Tsonga, are both lurking in his quarter of the draw. They're big hitters who are capable of overpowering Nadal on the faster courts, especially when he's playing too defensively. I'm not sure how Nadal's going to do at this point. Let's wait and see how he does against Gael Monfils.
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Marat Safin loses in the first round of his final US Open
In the year 2000 a young Russian player named Marat Safin, upset the tennis world, by dethroning the king of the US Open Pete Sampras, in straight sets. At the time, Safin, was new to the tour and looked to be a very promising player of the future. 9 years later, a grizzled veteran emerged on court, worn out from his surgeries and time spent playing, Safin, had declared this would be his last US Open. His opponent, was Jurgen Melzer. Melzer, had beaten Safin in 3 of their 4 career meetings and despite his lack of achievements at the majors, he was still the favorite in their match. Safin, got off to a powerful start easily taking the first set from Melzer, but Melzer rallied back hard and used his superior fitness and good shot making to win the second and third sets. In the fourth set Safin, tried his best to stay with Melzer, and he was able to keep the set level until he served at 4 games all. Melzer, sensed a weakness and came up with a few extraordinary shots to break Safin. Melzer, then proceeded to serve out the set, both wining the match and ending Safin's career at the majors. Melzer, won their match 1-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-4.
Marat's, career has had a lot of ups and downs. Some people think that he never lived up to his full potential and that's probably true, especially, because of his injuries. However I feel that he's had a solid career for the most part. Safin, made four grand slam finals and won 2 of them. He also managed to win 5 masters series and made 27 finals throughout his career.
Even if he had been injury free I'm not convinced that he would have been able to win any more slams. Half of his career was during the Federer Nadal era and it's unlikely that he would have been able to break that up and steal a few majors from them, except for the one in 2005.
I think Marat Safin, has a lot to be proud of. He's been able to hold his own against the best players in the world and on his best days, he was capable of beating them. He'll definitely be missed but it's obvious he's ready to go, I hope he finds something else that he enjoys doing to replace tennis.
Marat's, career has had a lot of ups and downs. Some people think that he never lived up to his full potential and that's probably true, especially, because of his injuries. However I feel that he's had a solid career for the most part. Safin, made four grand slam finals and won 2 of them. He also managed to win 5 masters series and made 27 finals throughout his career.
Even if he had been injury free I'm not convinced that he would have been able to win any more slams. Half of his career was during the Federer Nadal era and it's unlikely that he would have been able to break that up and steal a few majors from them, except for the one in 2005.
I think Marat Safin, has a lot to be proud of. He's been able to hold his own against the best players in the world and on his best days, he was capable of beating them. He'll definitely be missed but it's obvious he's ready to go, I hope he finds something else that he enjoys doing to replace tennis.
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