Top seeds advance to Quarters in Roland Garros

So far so good, for Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic. All 3 of the top seeds have made it into the quarter-finals with the loss of only 3 sets (all by Djokovic.) At this point, a Nadal/Federer final seems imminent but Soderling and Almagro could put a stop to it. Soderling, last year's French Open finalist, has an explosive game and he's capable of completely hitting people off the court. So far, it's been completely unsuccessful against Roger who owns their head-to-head 12-0 but tomorrow is a new day and you never know what might happen. Roger, has been in great form since losing, Estoril to Montanes, so I'm picking him to win this match in 4.

As for Nadal, he's kind of in the same position with Almagro, a dangerous player, with explosive ground strokes, yet completely unsuccessful against the world #2. Just two weeks ago Almagro, won a set off Nadal in Madrid and it turned out to be the only set that Nadal lost, for the entire tournament. Yes, I think Almagro, has the game to trouble Nadal, but it remains to be seen if he's good enough to beat him. I'll go with Nadal to win this one in 4 as well.

The Berdych/Youzhny match is tough to call. The head-to-head between these two players is very tight but slightly favors Youzhny. Youzhny, is also the higher ranked player although Berdych, is in better form than years gone past. This could be a close competitive match.

Finally there's Djokovic vs Melzer and I have to take Djokovic, for this match. He's the higher ranked player, who's familiar with reaching the later rounds of the majors. The Austrian, Melzer, played a tremendous match in the fourth round to take care of Teimuraz Gabashvili in 4 sets. It was impressive but I don't think it's enough for him to beat the high ranked Serbian. I'm picking the Djoker, to win this in 4 sets.

Round 2: Fognini upsets Monfils, Murray survives again

In a stunning turn of events, Fabio Fognini, upset the 13th seed Gael Monfils, in a five set, come from behind victory, that lasted over 4 hours. Initially, it looked like Fognini, would be no match for the Frenchman. He quickly fell behind, two sets to love but the Italian, refused to give in and mounted a comeback to bring the match to 2 sets all. Late in the fifth set Fognini, had two match points, but he couldn't put Monfils away. Then the match was suspended at 5-all due to rain and the players, had to come back the following day, to finish up. Once play resumed, Fognini, played brilliantly, coming up with some epic drop shot winners. Despite being ranked 92 in the world he completely out-performed Monfils, breaking his serve at 7-8, to seal the victory.

This was a crazy match, I think the tournament organizers made a mistake by allowing it to continue into the night, where neither player could see the ball. They definitely should have stopped it sooner. Aside from that, it was very entertaining.

Andy Murray, was tested in his match against Juan Ignacio Chela. The Argentine, took the second set in a tie-break, before being overwhelmed by the world #4. Murray played a solid match but still hit too many unforced errors. I'm hoping that he extra sets, won't take their toll on him. I'd really like to see a Murray vs Federer semi, but it may not happen if he continues to struggle against the early round opponents.

Speaking of Roger, I know that I promised to review his match against Allejandro Falla, but unfortunately, I didn't get to see it!!!:( So, it turns out that I won't be able to give too much insight as to how Roger is playing. He seems, to be doing good, he hasn't dropped a set in his first two matches. Hopefully, next time I'll be able to watch the match and give an opinion on it.XP

Day 3 at the French

Yet another tough day for the home favorite, French tennis players. Indeed, Gianna Mina and Jeramy Chardy, proved to be no match for the veteran pros Rafael Nadal and Lleyton Hewitt, who stormed into round 2 without dropping a set.

Now, to be fair Gianna Mina, really did play great tennis under the circumstances. He's 18 years old, making his first appearance, in a grand slam tournament and he was up against the 4 time champion, in the first round. Nobody expected him to win, nobody gave him a chance and even though this match wasn't close, Mina, played amazingly well considering how new he is to the pro-tour. It's obvious this guy, has huge potential, think of him as James Blake, Gael Monfils, and Nadal all rolled into one. I'm almost certain, after what I saw today, that he's got a future in the top 10, maybe even the top 5. His ground strokes were explosively powerful and he's extremely fast. I think in a couple of years, he'll have the game needed to beat Nadal at the French Open. That's how much potential, I see in this guy and I'm sticking to that statement.

Now let's talk about Nadal. His performance, was relatively clean but definitely not his best. It looks like he's lost some speed or perhaps his aurora of invincibility. He's still a phenomenal clay courter but he's got a lot of room to improve. Also, his winners to unforced errors ratio, was a little pedestrian. Especially by Nadal standards.

Next up was the Lleyton Hewitt/Jeramy Chardy match, which turned out to be good. Hewitt was in great form and Chardy's forehand was a mess. He hit 20 unforced errors, off that side alone and lost the match 7-5, 6-0, 7-5. Chardy's, one break against Hewitt, came late in the third and by this point it, the tables were turned, so strongly in Hewitt's favor that it didn't matter. Hewitt took this one, without too much grief.

Ordinarily, based on Hewitt's solid performance, I'd favor him to make a deep run in the draw. The only problem is that he's scheduled to meet Nadal, in the third round, so his run in this years French Open, will most likely be short lived.

Well, tomorrow, we'll see Roger back in action against Alejandro Falla. Should be exciting, I'll be back to give my thoughts on it. Till, then. Peace out.

Day 2 at Roland Garros

Today, was a tough day for the French tennis players. Arnuad Clement, fell in 5 sets to rising star, Oleksandr Dolgopolov. Richard Gasquet, lost in five sets to Andy Murray. And Gael Monfils squeezed by Dieter Kindlmann, in 4. However, the quality of tennis, played in all 3 of these matches was outstanding.

Gasquet and Murray, were first up. Gasquet, was a force to be reckoned with, right from the start of the match. He pounded away at Murray, eventually breaking him and going up two sets to love, taking the second set in a tie-break. In set 3 Gasquet, managed to gain another break on Murray, but this time the Scott answered him, by returning the favor. Murray, won the set 6-4. From that point on Murray was able to dominate Gasquet, putting him away in 5.

The Clement/Dolgopolov, match was also closely contested. At first, I thought Clement, was going to run away with it because he won the first set, rather convincingly, 6-3. However, Dolgopolov, remained determined, not to lose in the first round. He held strong and forced a second set tie-break, where he overcame Clement, with some deftly placed drop-shots. The players split the next two sets and in set five, youth prevailed, as Dolgopolov, was clearly fresher than his 33 year old opponent. Clement, didn't go down easily though, he made Dolgopolov, earn it by saving several break points. Still, it wasn't enough to prevent the inevitable. After 3 hours and 45 minutes, Dolgopolov, prevailed, making this his first grand slam match victory.

Finally, there was the match between Gael Monfils and Dieter Kindlmann. This was probably my favorite of the 3 that I saw, because Monfils, is such a talented athlete, you never know what kind of shot he's going to come up with. I was kind of surprised to see Kindlmann, win the third set, especially since he had to come from behind to do it. Monfils, was the over-all better player for most of the match. I think he's got the potential to go a long ways in this tournament, especially given the draw. He will have to face Federer in the fourth round but given Roger's recent inconsistencies he may even have a shot at winning that match.

Anyway, there should be a lot more interesting matches, in the coming rounds. I'll be back tomorrow, with my thoughts on Nadal's form. Until then, adios.

Madrid final: Federer vs Nadal

This was the final, that we've all been waiting for. A classic showdown between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. Or was it? The first set, really wasn't up to the usual Federer/Nadal par. Which probably explains why these guys, no longer dominate the tour. Both of them have slipped a few gears, in the last year or so. Don't get me wrong, it was a great match, but nowhere near the best I've seen from Roger or Nadal.

Roger, started off the match as the fresher player, he put pressure on Nadal serve and managed to get an early break point. Nadal, sensing the danger, served his way out of trouble and held for 1-all. Then in the next game it was Nadal who broke serve only to lose it back immediately afterward, evening out the match at 2-all. As the match progressed both players appeared stuck in third gear. Rafa, had another break point against Federer at 4-all and converted on it. Then he managed to fend off a last ditch effort from Roger to win the first set 6-4.

The quality of the match steadily improved in set 2. Nadal, broke Fed's, serve midway through and then Federer returned the favor to level the set again. The set went to a tie-break, with both players, playing exceptionally well. Federer, took a temporary lead in the tie-break but he couldn't fend off the fury of Nadal and he miss-timed a fairly easy forehand on match point to give Nadal, the victory in just over 2 hours.

Over-all this was a very enjoyable match. Roger, has improved tremendously since Estoril and now seems ready for the French Open. It's going to be a tough for him but given his performance in Madrid, I think he'll reach at least the semi-finals in Paris. Nadal, looks ready to win the title, although he seemed vulnerable at times against Federer. He'll need to cut down on the unforced errors if he wants to reclaim his title in Paris.

Roger and Rafa through to the semis, Almagaro and Ferrer join them

Well, Roger did come through against Gulbis. It wasn't easy or pretty for that matter, but in just under 2 hours he had the Latvian, beat 3-6, 6-1, 6-4. Roger's performance in the first set wasn't stellar by any means. I thought Gulbis had the match won for sure, when he broke Fed to start the second set but Gulbis choked badly and allowed Roger back into the match. He started hitting the balls shorter and allowed Federer to attack them. Roger, wheeled off six straight games to claim the second set easily. Gulbis, started to come back to life in the third set but by this point it was too late. Federer's level had greatly risen and he was easily holding his own service games, he broke Gulbis one time and served out the match just before the rain hit.

Then came the David Ferrer/Andy Murray match, which was tightly contested. Ferrer, started off strongly, by breaking Murray, in the second game and he eventually lead 4-1, only to see it slip away, as an angry Murray stormed back into the set, hitting winners and raising his game several notches to match Ferrer's. Ferrer, broke Murray's serve at 5-all, then served out the set at the 1 hour mark. Set 2, was pretty much the same as set 1, Ferrer, took an early lead, Murray leveled it out but then Ferrer broke again and finished off the Scott 7-5, 6-3.

Ferrer, was truly superb for most of the match. I believe he stands a great chance against Roger, even though their head-to-head suggests otherwise. I didn't get the chance to watch the other two semis, so unfortunately this is all I've got for now.:(

Top 3 seeds into the quarters of Madrid

Roger, has found his rhythm. At least that's the way it looks for now, after beating his fellow country man Stanislas Wawrinka, in straight sets, Federer, progressed to his first masters series quarter-final, in nearly two months. Could it be here at last? Another rematch in the Federer/Nadal rivalry? Well, I must admit, that it seems likely to happen. There's just one problem. Ernest Gulbis, stands in Roger's way and he clearly has the game to give Roger all sorts of problems. His hard hitting style landed him a spot in the semi-finals of Rome (and a set off Nadal.) The surface in Madrid is noticeably faster than the clay in Rome. I've also heard that the ball bounces a bit higher. Which makes Gulbis' game, all the more dangerous. If Federer, can get past Gulbis, he's scheduled to meet Ferrer or Murray in the semis. Both of which could also be tough for him.

Andy Murray, started his clay campaign on a down streak but he's turned that around in Madrid and he's now back to his usual dangerous level. Ferrer, if anything has been better than ever. After witnessing him demolish Marin Cilic, I'd have to put him as a very strong contender to win Madrid. If he can get over the hurdle of the top two seeds (he's 3-20 against Roger and Nadal) he's got a great chance of winning. I'll give Ferrer, the edge going into the match with Murray, he leads their head-to-head 2-1 and clay is probably his strongest surface. Murray, does have a chance but if he's going to win he'll need to take the ball early and hit Ferrer off the court. Again, this match could go either way but I'm leaning towards Ferrer.

Then there's the match between Nadal and Monfils. To be honest I'd be surprised if Monfils, is able to make this close. He's been off for two months nursing a hand injury from the BNP Paribas Open. Nadal, shouldn't have any problem with Monfils here. He might have a run in with Almagro in the semis and even though Almagro is playing some of his best clay court tennis ever, I still feel confident in saying Nadal, will win in straights.

Roger Federer, no match for Estoril defending champion, Alberto Montanes

I'm starting to get a little bit worried about Roger. His game, was way off in this match against Montanes and the French Open is only a few weeks away. Roger, said in his post match interview, that he wasn't worried about the loss and that the French Open was still far off but as things currently stand, it seems unlikely that he's gotten enough match practice, to be set, for Roland Garros. He also, has to worry about keeping his #1 ranking, which will be up for grabs after Madrid. Federer, is currently 3,950 points ahead of Nadal. which would ordinarily be a huge lead, but he has to defend all of his points from Roland Garros and Wimbledon. That, combined with Madrid, means he'll have 5,000 points to defend. Nadal, only has to defend a relatively modest 580 points. Put simply, if Nadal wins RG and Madrid and Federer fails to reach the finals in one and the semis in the other, he will lose the #1 ranking. So as you can tell, this is a very precarious position for him to be in. On top of all that, he's 5 weeks away from breaking the record for longest reign at #1.

Federer's, first opponent in Madrid will be Benjamin Becker, who just squashed an out-of-form Carlos Moya in straight sets. I'm thinking this could be a tough opponent for Roger, given that Becker played a great match against Moya. He's also a huge server, with an explosive forehand. His game isn't best suited to clay but it could still present some serious obstacles for Federer. This match should be telling, as to how ready Roger is for the French Open.

Wrist surgery could bring an early end to the season for Del Potro

I have some bad news, regarding Del Potro's recent wrist injury. It turns out that it's more serious than was initially thought and it's going to require surgery, which will put him out for at least 4 months. Needless to say this will be detrimental to his ranking, I don't even want to think how far he's going to fall, at least out of the top 20.

On a positive note, he is still young and will probably have some great days ahead of him, but this wrist injury is quite serious. I know that Andre Agassi and Venus Williams, both had wrist operations, and were able to make a full recoveries. I would assume the results will be similar for Del Potro but it's going to take some time to get through the rehabilitation and then getting back to practice and fitness training. I expect this will take him until the end of the year to recover from.

He's definitely got a long path in front of him and I'm sure it won't be an easy one. I wish him the absolute best, for his journey ahead.

Who are Nadal's biggest threats on clay?

This is a question that probably bugs a lot of tennis fans, since practically no one can get in this guy's head and beat him on his best surface. But there are a few players good enough to give him some trouble and I'm thinking Gulbis has now joined this club.

It seems like the tall, hard hitting, aggressive baseliners are the players that Nadal, struggles with most. Over the past year he's faced Soderling, Del Potro, Djokovic, yeah, I'll throw in Davydenko and they've all given him problems, even on clay. If Nadal were, to lose the French Open this year, then my guess, is that it would be to one of these powerful baseliners and not to Roger Federer.

Lately, there's been two different Roger Federers, on tour. The Roger, who plays in the masters series and the Roger, who plays the majors. They're both strikingly different. Masters Series Roger, has an error ridden game and is prone to losing in the early rounds of tournaments. Grand Slam Roger, is a great player who sometimes struggles, in the early rounds but usually finds, his best game and simply confounds his opponents, with incredible shot making.

Grand Slam Roger, is a serious threat to Nadal but he's still at a disadvantage because his game relies on timing, where as Nadal's does not. Even if Roger comes at Nadal with everything he's got, Nadal will probably still win the match. Roger's backhand has been his Achilles heel and Nadal knows that he just has to work it over until the errors start surfacing in Federer's game. Nadal is just a bad match-up for Roger, especially on clay.

Finally, there is one more player that I wanted to talk about, Thomas Berdych. Berdych, is a tall guy with a huge serve, excellent ground strokes, good consistency, and pretty solid movement. On paper he has all of the tools needed to beat Nadal and he's even had some success again him, although it's mostly been on hard courts. I think Berdych can beat Nadal, but I'm not sure if he believes he can do it. Berdych, has a reputation for not staying focused throughout matches and for blowing leads (like in the 2009 Australian Open, when he lost to Federer, after being up 2 sets to love.) In my opinion, Berdych needs to come to the French Open, focused and ready to blow Rafa off the court and if he does everything right, while keeping his focus, he stands a great chance to force the upset.