TennisPlanetBlog

Nadal's Sixth Straight at Monte Carlo!

Unfortunately, it was again no contest at Monte Carlo!  Fernando Verdasco was unable to fight-off the Rafa onslaught - it was a 6-0, 6-1 thrashing.  And I say to you, Fernando did not play that bad.  He was just overwhelmed by the power, precision, and just viciousness of a fit and determined Rafael Nadal.  The Clay Court King is back.  This upcoming week, Rafa is off to defend his Title in Barcelona, Spain where he has multiple wins as well.  The Tennis World is definitely hoping for a motivated as "Everer  - Roger Federer".  Otherwise, this Clay Court Season may turn out to be a One Man's Feast.  Roger - from what I have seen thus far - is excited and working hard on his Clay Court Debut week-after-next in Italy.  The prospect of re-kindling a strong rivalry with Rafa is something that excites and motivates him.  Roger will make his first Clay Court Appearance on April 25th at the Italian ATP 1000 Tennis Tournament.  Roger follows that up with a return to the Estoril 250 event where he played and took the Title in 2008 - that's a good scheduling for Roger - play a less intense week in between two intense 1000 Events - the Madrid joint affair follows Estoril for Roger.  This is the last main event before Roland Garros!  The Madrid facilities are fabulous - they were built specifically for this new tennis Tour venue - it has 3-tennis courts under one dome-like a retractable roof that's used only when it rains. Last year was the first year of the change in venue for the Madrid Masters - it changed from both indoor hard courts to clay as well as from an ATP Men's event only to a ATP/WTA joint event like at Indian Wells and Miami. 

VIDEO LINK TO VERDASCO'S INTERVIEW AFTER LOSS TO RAFA . . .

http://www.tennistv.com/tennistv/20100418/fernando-verdasco-monte_2252208_2028329

Kohlschreiber Oust Murray; Rafa & Novak Moves-on!

Philipp Kohlschreiber had no problems dismantling Andy Murray, who put up a dismal showing on Day Three at Monte Carlo.  Kohlschreiber will face Philip Petzschner in the Round of 16.  Murray showed no energy at all in his 6-2, 6-2 loss to "Kohle" - it's the second ATP 1000 Round-One Exit for Andy since the disappointing loss to Roger Federer in the Finals at the Australian Open.  It was nonetheless a good win for the "Kohle" who definitely contributed to his success today by playing a very tight match - he kept study; made very few errors; and just played really well! . . .  Kudos to Philipp Kohlschreiber for a great performance.  

Rafael Nadal just breezed through his tennis match against the 21 year old Thiemo Debakker from the Netherlands crushing the lad 6-1, 6-0.  Debakker is a newcomer to the ATP Tour - having played just 2 other ATP tour events.  Debakker who is already ranked 77 in the World is an excellent new talent to the tour - but he was just overwhelmed in his first encounter against Rafa. It was just a 'clinic' for Rafa, who - although not yet really tested - appears to be in "great form."  Also, Novak Djokovic moved on today with a good win over the Frenchman Florent Serra in 3-sets. Other tennis winners today include Jo-Wilfried Tsonga over the tough Spaniard Nicolas Almagra.  They first met in January at the Australian Open where Tsonga won in a very tough 4-setter. With this win Tsonga leads the head-to-head 2-0.  Congratulations to the Frenchman "Jo-Willie."  Other winners today include: Ivan Ljubicic over Llodra; David Ferrer over Golubev; Juan Carlos Ferrero over Benjamin Becker and Michael Berrer over the Argentine Juan Monaco. 

Tomorrow's marquee tennis matches include a clash between Novak Djokovic and Stanislas Wawrinka from Switzerland.  Novak holds a 7-2 win record over Stan - however, if not too exhausted from his victory  last week at Cassablanca, the Swiss Number 2 should put up a good fight.  If both are playing well - I give Novak the edge but would not count out Stan the Man! . . . .Should be a good match!  Other match-ups for tomorrow include; Marin Cilic against Albert Montanes; Tommy Robredo against David Nalbandian; and Thomas Berdych against the Spaniard Fernando Verdasco.  With his second win over Roger Federer since the 2004 Olympics [8-2 win-loss in favor of Roger]; and with his finalist performance last week in Miami [loss to Andy Roddick] - Thomas Berdych is in peak form and as yet has shown no signs of running out of steam, so expect him to give Fernando a tough match tomorrow.  The win-loss record; Berdych vs. Verdasco is 6-2 in favor of the Czech Thomas Berdych.  Although Verdasco is also playing good tennis these days; It may still prove tomorrow to be a 'tough day at the office" for the Spaniard.  Hope both players can bring their best game.

Moretime . . . Saraunia

Monte Carlo Day Two Results/Day Three Preview!

Hello There Tennis Fans!

There were no upsets in Day Two at Monte Carlo.   'Second-Tier' Top Seeds Marin Cilic (d. Igor Andreev; Joe-Wilfried Tsonga (d. Nicolas Almagro); Fernando Verdasco (d.Julian Benneteau); and Thomas Berdych (d. Richard Gasquet) - have all moved on to the Next Round.   The 'Tier-One'  Top Seeds are on for tomorrow.  Defending Champ and World No. 3 - Rafael Nadal - will play his first match tomorrow - which is Rafa's first tennis match this season on the Clay. [Rafa is also scheduled to defend his title next week in Barcelona; and the following week at the ATP 1000 at Madrid - where he lost last year in the finals to Roger Federer - Whew! . . . that's a lot of tennis for Rafa leading up to Roland Garros - Rafa played actually really well during the hard-court season - he looked near top form - hopefully he can pace himself and manage his schedule so as to keep his body 'in tact'.'  That I believe will be Rafa's greatest challenge.

And let's not forget Novak Djokovic, last year's Monte Carlo Runner-Up and World No. 2 - he's also in tomorrow's line-up;  along with World Number 4 Andy Murray, who will have a very "tricky" first round; he's matched-up against the German Philip Kohlscreiber.  If he's on his game, the German could cause Murray some troubles.  Hopefully Andy has recovered from that 'heartfelt' loss at the Australian Open.  According to some reports he is still "not quite fully recovered."  let's hope he can get it all-together during this Clay season - which of course is not where Andy has had his best results in the past - but he does know how to play on Clay.  Good luck Andy.

Wow, Stan Wawrinka and Victor Hanescu will square off again at Monte Carlo!  They just played each other in the Finals at Cassablanca where Wawrinka came away with a "hard-fought" win.   They are both playing really good tennis these days.  This should be a good match.  I'd say Victor may be out looking for a bit of revenge. Hopefully they are both 'in good form' and can have a good tennis match! 

Two other completed matches of note - the Spaniard Albert Montanes beat the Zypriot Marcos Baghdatis, who upset Roger Federer Round 16 at Indian Wells.  Let's hope Marcos can continue to get better - he had a very tough opponent today in Montanes.  Also the Austrian veteran Juergen Melzer moved on to the next round with a win over the Frenchman Paul-Henri Mathieu. 

Moretime . . . Saraunia.

Venus Williams wins King Cup

Venus Williams took home the Billie Jean King Cup at Madison Square Garden.  This was Venus' third title in two weeks, having won Dubai week before last and the Abierto Open in Acapulco this week.  Venus flew into New York right after her win in Alcapulco and went straight to work at Madison Square Gardens.  In the semis she won against Svetlana Kuznetzova and then took on Kim Cjlisters in the finals.  Kim beat Anna Ivanovic in the semis.  Last year Venus lost in the finals at MSQ to her sister Serena who did not play this year due to an injury she sustained at the Australian Open.  Venus defeated Kim Cjlisters in a 3-set thriller. Venus will get a rest for the next two weeks because she and Serena always skip the big tennis tournament at Indian Wells.  Remember some five years or so ago they were unjustly booed by the fans there and that was "all she wrote" for the William Sisters at that particular tournament.  Congratulations Venus.

Tennis News

Jean Martin Del Potro Awakened by Chilean Earthquake

The Argentine and 2009 U.S. Open Champ DelPotro says that "everything in my apartment was shaking" when that massive 8.8 earthquake hit in neighboring Chili. DelPo, who lives on a high floor of an apartment building was sleeping when the quake hit at 3:30 a.m. He says everything in his apartment was shaking and it went on for 5-6 minutes . . . whew that's a long time. Del Potro who has been nursing a wrist injury hasn't played since losing in the quarters at the Australian Open, but he is hoping to be fit for Indian Wells.

For Federer Fans

According to the Zurich newspapers, Roger's recovery from his lung infection has progressed enough for him to start planning to travel next weekend to California with plans to return to tennis for the Indian Wells 1000 Point Masters Tournament. However, it all depends on a "clear to go" diagnosis from his doctors. It's good that Roger only has 300 points to defend at Indian Wells. So if he doesn't play or if he plays and goes out early, he will still be in good point standing.

AND THE WINNERS ARE . . .

Ernesto Gulvis of Latvia Wins Maiden ATP Tournament at Delray Beach!

The promising young 21 year old from Latvia beat the big Croat Igo Karlovic in straights sets in the finals at Delray Beach, Florida. A great win for Ernesto; it was his first ATP tennis title. Ernesto earned 250 South African Airways ranking points and $75,000. The 72nd-ranked Gulbis will definitely be moving up the ranks after that big win. Congratulations Ernesto!

Bryan Brothers

The delightful Bryan brothers clinched their 600 match win at Delray Beach, by taking the doubles tennis title over fellow Americans Taylor Dent and Ryan Harrison. Congrats Bryan/Bryan!

Novak Djokovic Defends His Title in Dubai Tennis Tournament

Novak Djokovic had a grueling run to the title, rallying from a set down against Marcos Baghdatis in the semis, and against Ivan Ljubicic in the quarters. Appearing in his first tournament final of the 2010 season, Novak won his 17th career tennis title; and became only the second player in the Dubai tournament history to win back-to-back titles - the other being Roger Federer who won three in a row from 2003-2005. The tournament has been around since 1993. Congratulations Nole!

David Ferrer Takes the "Abierto Mexico" in Acapulco!

David Ferrer avenged his loss to compatriot Juan Carlos Ferrero in last week's Buenos Aires title match. It was an excellent win for Ferrer, his eighth ATP World Tour title, and his first since 2008. Congratulations David.

Venus Williams Wins Acapulco

Venus Williams successfully defended her tennis title at Acapulco [a joint event] by coming from a set down to beat Polana Hercog 2-6, 6-2, 6-3. Wow! . . . that's back-to-back wins for Venus [who won the ladies championship last week in Dubai] - and this one was on clay, her least favorite tennis surface. A good sign for the French Open??

Kuala Lumpur

In other WTA news Jelena Dementieva was upset by her Russian compatriot Alisa Klebanova at the Kuala Lumpur tournament in Malaysia.

Tennis Tournament Updates

Melzer Upsets Cilic in Dubai

The Dubai tennis semis are set! The hot dessert sun and wind was just a bit too much for Cilic who was upset in straights 7-6(8), 7-5 by the the Austrian veteran Juergen Melzer. Marin was clearly disturbed by the tough conditions.

Novak Djokovic dropped the first set to Ivan Ljubicic but rallied to take the next two sets with relative ease.

Mikhail Youzhny took out Janko Tipsarevic - who upset Andy Murray in the round of 16.

Good news for Marcos Baghdatis who moved through to his first tennis semis match in a very long time, as he defeated the Michael Berrer from Germany in straights.

And then there were 4

In the semis Dojokovic will square off against Baghdatis; and Melzer will play Youzhny.

Abierto Mexico!

There is a pretty strong ATP field currently playing in the Mexican Open in Acapulco this week. The top seed Fernando Gonzales is through to the quarters where he will face Juan Monaco from Argentina. Richard Gasquet lost to that tough Spaniard Nicolas Almagro who will take on his countryman Juan Carlos Ferrero in the quarters. The second seed Fernando Gonzales is also through to the quarters where he will face Eduardo Schwank; and David Ferrer will face Pablo Cuevas.

Venus William appears to be "on course" to defend her title in Acapulco, if she doesn't run out of steam after coming off of her big win in Dubai.

For Fed Fans

Here's a video clip of Roger Federer talking about his lung infection.

Dubai Tennis Tournament Updates

• NOVAK DJOKOVIC and MARIN CILIC were made to work but they both made it successfully through to the quarters. Cilic will face Juergen Melzer; and Djokovic will play Ivan Ljubicic the veteran from Croatia.


• ANDY MURRAY was upset by JANKO TIPSARVERIC, Serbia's number 2 player, in a close two setter. Tipsarveric will face Mikhail Youzhny in the quarters.


• Congratulations to MARCOS BAGHDATIS who has made it to another quarter finals. Baghdatis will face Michael Berrer of Germany who beat NIKOLAY DAVYDENKO who retired after losing the first set 6-2. Looks like Nikolay has come to the end of his fantastic winning streak - good luck Nokolay on "returning to form."

The quarters will be televised on the Tennis Channel starting 5:00 a.m. EST. Also, www.channelsurfing.net is streaming the games from Dubai.

Dubai Tennis Tournament Updates

Baghdatis Ousts Simon at Dubai!

Well, the first day of play for the men in the Dubai tennis tournament witnessed one significant upset . . . Marcos Baghdatis took out the tough Frenchman Giles Simon. I am happy for Baghdatis, I would like to see him make a comeback . . . he's such a fan favorite . . . great personality.

Other Matches

Novak Djokovic got off to a winning start towards defending his title in Dubai by beating Garcia-Lopez of Spain 6-4. 6-4. Andy Murray also won his first round match against Igor Kunitsyn. Although the score line was 6-2,6-2; Murray ran into opposition in the second game of the first set which took a record 24 minutes and 30 seconds to complete; that one game had 14 deuces and 9 break opportunities for Andy before he finally prevailed. This was definitely a big game for Andy to win.

Other winners today were Jurgen Melzer over Simone Bolelli of Italy and Koubek over the Spaniard Feliciano Lopez.

Roger Federer

In other news, Roger Federer made an appearance at the tournament to apologize and express his disappointment for being unable to play again this year. Roger has won the tournament 4 years in a row; but had to pull out last year as well with a back injury. Here's a video clip of Roger and Novak from today's opening day!

Dubai Women's Tennis Tournament

Well the women are into the semis in the Dubai tennis tournament this week. Shaher Peer shall square off against Venus Williams, the defending champion. However, its Peer who is the "talk of the tournament," as she was not allowed a visa last year into the Arab Emirates out of "fear of upheaval" because she's Jewish. This year she is there and has knocked out two top seeds, the last being Wozniacki in the quarters, and will face Venus tomorrow. She has been taken very good care of, according to Shaher, she has her own locker; plays all of her matches on court two - this should be a bit of a disappointment for many who will not get to see the tennis match because of the small court two stadium; but should give some advantages to Shaher and disadvantages to Venus who's always played on Center Court - this should be interesting.

Men start play on Monday the 22nd in Dubai - with Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray heading the billing . . . Federer's first tennis match back since his glorious win at the Australian Open. Murray and I believe Novak [as well] have not played either since "down under".

TennisPlanetBlog Tournament Updates

This weekend saw several mini upsets around the tennis circuit. Here's a summary of the latest:

• At this year's first ATP 500 tournament in Rotterdam, The Netherlands, Robin Soderling upset Nikolai Davydenko in the semis, while Novak Djokovic upsets Novak Djokovic in a close encounter in the other tennis semis. Then Soderling went on to take the title by beating Youzhny in the finals. Congratulations Robin - seems you have recovered from your elbow injury and back in great form.
• Fernando Verdasco just upset Andy Roddick in the finals of the SAP Open in San Jose. Fernando lost the first set but rallied to break Roddick in both the 2nd and 3rd sets to take the title. This is Verdasco's first appearance in San Jose and his first win on Indoor Hard courts. Props to the Spaniard!
• In Fed Cup Competition . . . the U.S. moved into the semis by beating France in Round-1 of the World Group. It was a convincing win as Mattic Sands and Melonie Oudin combine with the doubles pair in a 4-1 defeat of France. Also, Serbia lost in a close encounter against Russia. It was a 2-2 tie after the singles competition. But Russia managed to take the doubles to win the Round. The other two teams to move to the semis are Italy and Czech Republic. The semis match ups will feature U.S.A. v. Russia; and Italy vs. the Czech Republic.