US Open 2011 Preview

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Heavy rain falls on a tennis ball as Hurricane Irene heads up the east coast during previews at USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center on August 27, 2011 in New York City.



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The draws are out, the wind and rain will subside, and tomorrow, in the concrete jungle known as New York, the last Slam of the year will begin.



I tend to find men's tennis more compelling than women's, but for at least the fourth Slam in a row, Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray are in the same half of the draw, while Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer reside in the other half. And while I haven't checked about, I bet the fanged Scot is most pundits pick to win the title.



Yawn.



Two-time defending champion Kim Clijsters is nursing an injury, so most will probably tell you that Serena Williams is the favorite in New York. No big surprise, but I agree. Unless there's a major upset, she'll face Victoria Azarenka in the third round. I'm sure that match will be hyped to the hilt, but I sincerely doubt it will live up to it. From what little tennis I've seen this summer, Serena is on a mission. I don't see anyone in the draw stopping her from claiming her fourth US Open crown and 14th major title. I'm not suggesting it's going to be a run to winner's circle without the loss of a set, but who would be shocked if it were?



As for a few of the rest: Will Juan Martín del Potro find his best form at his favorite tournament? How recovered is Robin Söderling? Are there any Americans other than Serena ready to thrill the home crowd with an appearance on the final weekend? Will the reigning Roland Garros and Wimbledon champions on the women's side get their groove on in Flushing Meadows, or will Li Na and Petra Kvitova have to be satisfied with a lone Slam title this season? Who's going to defeat the top-ranked player on the women's side? Which youngster on either tour has the best chance to steal the show?



I'm ready to find out. Are you?

Face Of The Day

by Craig Hickman


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Another emotional victory for a woman on the mend. Another great match under the roof on Centre Court. The slugfest between Sabine Lisicki and Li Na didn't have quite the variety from both sides of the net as did the Venus Williams Kimiko Date-Krumm instant classic, but boy were the rallies scintillating.

The woman who was carried from the court in a stretcher in Paris outlasted the woman who won the whole thing 3-6, 6-4, 8-6 after saving two match points on her serve. Li served for the match twice. Like Serena Williams, Lisicki cried in her towel on the sidelines when it was all over.

Another player the WTA needs to keep it real is back and taking names.

Standing O.

Match Of The Day

AP


I wasn't able to see most of it, but from what I saw and the match reports that followed, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga's four-set defeat of Grigor Dimitrov was a high-quality, dramatic affair that the crowd lapped up like cream.

Surprise Of the Day


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Robin Söderling rallied from two sets to love down to defeat Lleyton Hewitt. The result wasn't exactly a surprise, but the path to victory certainly was. Surely Hewitt wouldn't squander such a big lead. Surely Söderling wouldn't dig deep to beat a former Wimbledon champion on a surface he's not particularly fond of. They did. My eyebrows rose.

Roland Garros 2011 Day 4 Open Thread

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Today, second-round matches begin.

Yesterday, Patty Schnyder retired, John Isner pushed Rafael Nadal to 5 sets, lucky loser Ryan Harrison pushed Robin Söderling to 4, Sam Querrey upset Philipp Kohlschreiber, Vania King maintained her perfect record against Dominika Cibulkova, and the French crowd booed indiscriminately.

Schedule for Day 4: Wednesday, 25 May 2011 Singles Only

Court Philippe Chatrier 11:00 AM Start Time

1. Women's Singles - 2nd Round
Caroline Wozniacki (DEN)[1] v. Aleksandra Wozniak (CAN)
2. Men's Singles - 2nd Round
Guillaume Rufin (FRA) v. Gael Monfils (FRA)[9]
3. Men's Singles - 2nd Round
Victor Hanescu (ROU) v. Novak Djokovic (SRB)[2]
4. Women's Singles - 2nd Round
Vesna Dolonts (RUS) v. Francesca Schiavone (ITA)[5]

Court Suzanne Lenglen 11:00 AM Start Time

1. Men's Singles - 2nd Round
Maxime Teixeira (FRA) v. Roger Federer (SUI)[3]
2. Women's Singles - 2nd Round
Nuria Llagostera Vives (ESP) v. Alize Cornet (FRA)
3. Women's Singles - 2nd Round
Marion Bartoli (FRA)[11] v. Olga Govortsova (BLR)
4. Men's Singles - 2nd Round
Igor Andreev (RUS) v. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA)[17]

Court 1 11:00 AM Start Time

1. Women's Singles - 2nd Round
Simona Halep (ROU) v. Samantha Stosur (AUS)[8]
2. Men's Singles - 2nd Round
David Ferrer (ESP)[7] v. Julien Benneteau (FRA)
3. Men's Singles - 2nd Round
Richard Gasquet (FRA)[13] v. Marcel Granollers (ESP)
4. Women's Singles - 2nd Round
Vera Zvonareva (RUS)[3] v. Sabine Lisicki (GER)

Court 2 11:00 AM Start Time

1. Women's Singles - 2nd Round
Lucie Safarova (CZE) v. Julia Goerges (GER)[17]
2. Women's Singles - 2nd Round
Irina-Camelia Begu (ROU) v. Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS)[13]
3. Men's Singles - 2nd Round
Juan Martin Del Potro (ARG)[25] v. Blaz Kavcic (SLO)
4. Men's Singles - 2nd Round
Stephane Robert (FRA) v. Fabio Fognini (ITA)

Court 3 11:00 AM Start Time

1. Women's Singles - 2nd Round
Bethanie Mattek-Sands (USA) v. Varvara Lepchenko (USA)
2. Women's Singles - 2nd Round
Jelena Jankovic (SRB)[10] v. Vera Dushevina (RUS)
3. Men's Singles - 2nd Round
Mikhail Kukushkin (KAZ) v. Mikhail Youzhny (RUS)[12]
4. Men's Singles - 2nd Round
Stanislas Wawrinka (SUI)[14] v. Thomas Schoorel (NED)

Court 5 11:00 AM Start Time

1. Women's Singles - 2nd Round
Edina Gallovits-Hall (ROU) v. Anastasia Rodionova (AUS)
2. Women's Singles - 2nd Round
Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez (ESP) v. Rebecca Marino (CAN)
3. Men's Singles - 2nd Round
Ruben Ramirez Hidalgo (ESP) v. Albert Montanes (ESP)

Court 6 11:00 AM Start Time

1. Men's Singles - 2nd Round
Kei Nishikori (JPN) v. Sergiy Stakhovsky (UKR)[31]
2. Women's Singles - 2nd Round
Shuai Peng (CHN)[29] v. Polona Hercog (SLO)
3. Men's Singles - 2nd Round
Andreas Seppi (ITA) v. Thomaz Bellucci (BRA)[23]

Court 7 11:00 AM Start Time

1. Men's Singles - 2nd Round
Janko Tipsarevic (SRB)[29] v. Pere Riba (ESP)
2. Women's Singles - 2nd Round
Sara Errani (ITA) v. Daniela Hantuchova (SVK)[28]
3. Men's Singles - 2nd Round
Steve Darcis (BEL) v. Philipp Petzschner (GER)

Court 17 11:00 AM Start Time

1. Women's Singles - 2nd Round
Tsvetana Pironkova (BUL)[32] v. Gisela Dulko (ARG)
2. Women's Singles - 2nd Round
Mona Barthel (GER) v. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (RUS)[14]

Under The Radar

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Robin Söderling won his third title of 2011 with a 6-7(8), 6-3, 6-3 victory over Marin Cilic at Open 13 in Marseille.

The Big Swede has lost exactly one match this year.

Robin Söderling Defends Rotterdam

by Craig Hickman


Reuters

For the first time in his career, Robin Robin Söderling defended an ATP title with a 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 victory over Jo-Wilfried Tsonga to win his second ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam.

I watched most of the match and the one thing the big Swede continues to do well is return huge serves. Maybe because he's so big himself, he has good reach and can get his racquet on more serves than it seems he should. Maybe his anticipation on the return of serve is hard to see from the angles we see it. Whatever the case, his return of serve may be the most underrated part of his big game.

As for Tsonga, he played with little discipline, as has become his way. Yes, it made sense to go for big first shots to try to take control of the point before his opponent, but trying to strike outrageous winners when completely out of position remains the talented Frenchman's biggest weakness.

Still, it was a good match between two power players in the finals of a relatively big event indicating once more than the power game has not completely lost its, well, power in men's tennis.

On another continent, Nicolas Almagro beat Alexandr Dolgopolov 6-3, 7-6(3) to claim the Brasil Open crown, his eighth career title.

Australian Open 2011 Men's Quarterfinal Preview

BY MAD PROFESSAH


Reuters

From top row left to right: Rafael Nadal of Spain, Roger Federer of Switzerland, Novak Djokovic of Serbia, Andy Murray of Britain. From bottom row left to right: Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic, David Ferrer of Spain, Stanislas Wawrinka of Switzerland and Alexandr Dolgopolov of Ukraine.

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Here are my predictions for the men's quarterfinals at the 2011 Australian Open.

Rafael Nadal ESP (1) vs. Milos Raonic CAN David Ferrer ESP (7). I thought that the 6'6" 2010 Australian Open semifinalist from Croatia would have followed up on his 5-set win over John Isner with a better showing against Rafael Nadal. However, the World No. 1 came out with a strong game plan since Cilic had beaten him in their one meeting in October 2009 and dismantled the Croatian in straight sets 6-2 6-4 6-3. David Ferrer has been called the best service returner in the world by both Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal and he demonstrated that ability against the huge serving 20-year-old, 6-foot-5-inch Canadian. Ferrer is only 5'9" but has optimized the amount of tennis success a male player can extract from such a slight frame. He is also one of the fittest players on tour and very speedy. The problem is, everything he can do, Nadal can do better, and Nadal is a lefty. Head-to-head the two have played 14 times with the more celebrated Spaniard winning all but 3 of their meetings. Ferrer does have a notable win over Nadal in the 2007 US Open quarterfinals, but unfortunately he will be playing the vastly improved 2011 version. The difference will be very clear. PREDICTION: Nadal in 3 sets.

Robin Soderling SWE (4) Alexandr Dolgopolov UKR vs. Andy Murray GBR (5). The only unseeded player in the final 8 is the 22-year-old counterpuncher from Ukraine. From the way World No. 4 Robin Soderling was dismissing his opponents and hitting the ball in first three rounds I had expected him to have few problems getting past Dolgopolov but Soderling has never done well at the Australian Open and also doesn't like to play in windy conditions. That being said, the biggest problem he had on court was not the weather but the phenomenal defense and gigantic serving of the Ukrainian. Soderling was not playing his best tennis and ran into an opponent who could take advantage of this opportunity to reach his first major quarterfinal. Andy Murray has been playing some of the sharpest tennis of any of the legitimate contenders. He demolished crafty lefty Jurgen Melzer and has yet to lose more than 3 games in a set through four rounds! Melzer at No. 11 and Guillermo Garcia Lopez at No. 32 are the only seeded players the Brit has faced on his way to an inevitable showdown with World No. 1 Rafael Nadal in the semifinals, whom he was on track to dismiss in the quarterfinals last year when Nadal retired. Of course the Spaniard went on to win every other Grand Slam for the rest of 2010, but I think that Murray does not fear Nadal on a hard-court. Will we see a reprise of the 2010 Australian Open final between Murray and Federer or a reprise of the 2009 Australian Open final between Nadal and Federer or something else? Only time will tell. PREDICTION: Murray in 3 sets.

Tomas Berdych CZE (6) vs. Novak Djokovic SRB (3). This should be the best battle of the quarterfinal round, a showdown between the 2010 Wimbledon finalist and the 2010 US Open finalist. Djokovic has won this title before (over Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in 2008) although the Frenchman was able to get revenge last year in this round. Head-to-head Berdych has only beaten Djokovic once, but it was a blowout in the 2010 Wimbledon semifinals. Since then, the Serbian has had multiple breakthroughs, including an epic 2010 US Open semifinal win over Roger Federer and anchoring his country to their first ever Davis Cup title. Berdych played near-perfect tennis in a tremendous 3-set dismissal of Fernando Verdasco in the 4th round (featuring a final set where the Czech was crushing the ball and had either 1 or 2 unforced errors). If Berdych plays like that, even a prodigiously talented ball-striker and mellifluously mobile player as Djokovic will have trouble surviving the onslaught. Another factor is that Djokovic's results are often sensitive to the weather conditions; if this match is played during the day then even a 3-set win will be unlikely for the Serb. PREDICTION: Djokovic in 3 sets or Berdych in 4 or 5 sets.

Stanislas Wawrinka SUI (19) vs. Roger Federer SUI (2). These two are best friends and share a lot in common: they come from the same country, are both young fathers and are both undefeated in 2011 so far. Together they won the Gold medal in men's doubles at the Beijing Olympics in 2008. Head-to-head the two have played 7 times, with Wawrinka winning once on clay. They have only played once in a grand slam, with Federer winning that as well. Wawrinka has come up with some good upsets in the last two Slams (defeating Andy Roddick and Gael Monfils in this tournament and Andy Murray and Sam Querrey in the 2010 US Open) but I doubt that storyline will continue with the defending champion. This match should feature some exquisite one-handed backhands: my favorite shot! PREDICTION: Federer in 4 sets.

Inaugural Champions

by Craig Hickman

Hat's off to the year's first crowned.


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Robin Söderling of Sweden is reflected in the winners trophy as he celebrates 6-3, 7-5 victory against Andy Roddick of the USA, during day eight of the Brisbane International at Queensland Tennis Centre on January 9, 2011 in Brisbane, Australia.

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I decided not to wait until the delayed match, so I watch the final live online. All I can say for Roddick is that if he doesn't commit to playing aggressive tennis, and I don't mean rushing the net for his transition game is still lacking, but hitting the ball hard and going for winners off both wings as he did, say, to win Miami last year, 2011 is going to be another Big Disappointment. It may be the first year in forever that he fails to win a title.

As for the Big Swede, there's no ball he doesn't want to crack open. The big wind ups, the flat shots, the improving accuracy. He, too, can improve his transition game, but he was in full control of the match from the first ball. He stood on the baseline, controlled the middle of the court, and made Roddick look as though he didn't even belong across the net.

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Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic holds the trophy after defeating Andrea Petkovic of Germany in the women's final at the Brisbane International tennis tournament, in Brisbane on January 8, 2011. Kvitova won the final 6-1, 6-3.

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I love it when one of my Gonad Award winners from the previous season impresses at the start of the new year. Petra's swinging serves, her bullet groundstrokes, her improved court sense and patience and movement. Her composure. I already knew she could outhit 99% of the women on tour, but now she's backing it up with consistency. 2011 could be a great year for her.

And then there's Andrea, another recipient of a Gonad, albeit an anti-Gonad to be sure, who fought her way into a final with her own blistering ground strokes and will. I won't know for sure if she's recovered from Roland Garros until she's in a similar position against a big name at a Slam. But she ralled from a 0-4 deficit in the first set of her semifinal against Frenchwoman Marion Bartoli, indicating she's got some mettle. The fans were clearly behind her in this final, but Petra was simply not going to be denied.


AP

Greta Arn of Hungary holds the winner's trophy after her 6-3, 6-3 victory over Yanina Wickmayer of Belgium in the final of the ASB Classic Women's Tennis Tournament at ASB Tennis Centre in Auckland, New Zealand, Saturday, Jan. 8, 2011.

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In a previous Drive By, I asked what Maria Sharapova was doing losing to Greta Arn. I got my answer watching this final.

Yes, Yanina was worn out from her 3-hour battle against Peng Shuai in the semifinals, but the 31-year-old veteran with a back story as compelling as Francesca Schiavone's showed the WTA that older can mean wiser and more courageous between the lines.

Most of the match was a baseline battle, but Greta knew when to attack the forecourt to secure a point. Despite her height, she moved effortlessly about, making it seem there was no ball she couldn't retrieve. Sticky Wicky simply had no answers as winner after winner whizzed by her slumping frame.

"I feel unbelievable. I'm so happy, I don't even know what to say. My dream come true," Arn said. "I just tried to do my thing. I played my tennis and took it one ball after another. I wanted to move her around because she had a tough match yesterday; she looks fit to me, but it seemed to work today."

Indeed.

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In other parts of the world, it was all about the Swiss. I didn't watch either final. I've absolutely no desire to see another single encounter between the top Swiss and top Russian and the Chennai tournament has never piqued my interest.


Reuters

Roger Federer of Switzerland holds the golden eagle trophy after defeating Nikolay Davydenko of Russia 6-3, 6-4 at the Qatar Open tennis tournament in Doha January 8, 2011.

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Swiss tennis player Stanislas Wawrinka poses with the winner's trophy after winning his match against his Belgian opponent Xavier Malisse, during the final match at the ATP Chennai Open 2011, in Chennai on January 9, 2011. Wawrinka won the Chennai Open title and defeated Malisse 7-5, 4-6, 6-1.

Face Of The Day

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Matthew Ebden of Australia hits a backhand return during his loss to Robin Söderling of Sweden in their quarterfinal match at the Brisbane International tennis tournament, in Brisbane on January 7, 2011.

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Brisbane International

Men's Singles - Quarterfinals
[2] A Roddick (USA) d [5] M Baghdatis (CYP) 62 63
K Anderson (RSA) d S Giraldo (COL) 26 63 64

Men's Singles - Second Round
[1] R Soderling (SWE) d M Berrer (GER) 63 76(7)
[Q] M Ebden (AUS) d [8] D Istomin (UZB) 64 64

Men's Doubles - Quarterfinals
[3] L Dlouhy (CZE) / P Hanley (AUS) d A Clement (FRA) / M Mertinak (SVK) 64 76(3)
[4] R Lindstedt (SWE) / H Tecau (ROU) d [WC] M Ebden (AUS) / P Luczak (AUS) 63 67(2) 13-11
P Petzschner (GER) / A Peya (AUT) d [WC] C Ball (AUS) / C Guccione (AUS) 62 62

Women's Singles - Quarterfinals
(4) Marion Bartoli (FRA) d. Barbora Zahlavova Strycova (CZE) 62 61
(5) Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (RUS) d. Lucie Safarova (CZE) 62 67(4) 63
Andrea Petkovic (GER) d. Jarmila Groth (AUS) 63 64
Petra Kvitova (CZE) d. Dominika Cibulkova (SVK) 60 64

Women's Doubles - Semifinals
Kleybanova/Pavlyuchenkova (RUS/RUS) d. (1) Black/Rodionova (ZIM/AUS) 63 75

Women's Doubles - Quarterfinals
Jans/Rosolska (POL/POL) d. Dulgheru/Savchuk (ROU/UKR) 61 64

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ASB Classic

Singles - Semifinals
(2) Yanina Wickmayer (BEL) d. Peng Shuai (CHN) 36 76(3) 75
Greta Arn (HUN) d. (4) Julia Goerges (GER) 76(3) 63

Doubles - Semifinals
Arvidsson/Erakovic (SWE/NZL) d. Cornet/Gallovits (FRA/ROU) 63 61

World Tour Finals 2010 Day 1 Open Thread

by Craig Hickman


Reuters

Tennis players (L-R) Tomas Berdych, Roger Federer, Robin Söderling, Andy Murray, Rafael Nadal, Andy Roddick, Novak Djokovic and David Ferrer are pictured standing together with British Prime Minister David Cameron (4th L) outside 10 Downing Street in London, November 18, 2010.

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The final ATP event of yet another long and grueling year is upon us. Because I haven't seen enough tennis in the latter half of the season, I can make no predictions whatsoever.

Savannah's World has an excellent and artistic preview posted. Those interspersed head shots are lovely.

Tell us what you think about the draw and who you believe will prevail.

Enjoy tennis.

Soderling Wins First Masters Title

Swedish Robin Söderling holds his trophy after winning the Paris masters 1000 ATP tournament final on November 14, 2010 at the Paris Bercy in Paris.

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Still haven't watched a lick of tennis. So much farming to catch up on before the ground freezes and I'm a farmhand short to boot.

I wish I had caught the Gael Monfils - Roger Federer semifinal. That scoreline was loaded.

I see The Sod beat a pair of homeboys back-to-back to take the title, not to mention the one he ousted in his first match. Can you say Frenchmen killer?

A nice penultimate year-end finish for the Big Swede. Let's see if he's got any energy left for London. Surely his confidence will be sky-high.

Wimbledon 2010 Day 2 Open Thread

(Savannah's World)

A slew of unexpectedly long matches yesterday, and while a few huge upsets were avoided, unpredictable was the word for the day.

The women's defending champion and world No. 1 Serena Williams takes Centre Court today. I'm looking forward to the game of her screaming opponent. And virtual defending champion Rafael Nadal plays his first match in two years.

Andy Murray opens on Court 1 while Robin Söderling (and Robby Ginepri!) opens on Centre Court? Interesting. Guess the man in the photo above had something to do with the scheduling.

Order of Play for Tuesday 22 June 2010

CENTRE - SHOW COURT - 1.00 PM START

1. Serena Williams (USA) [1] vs Michelle Larcher De Brito (POR) 2
2. Kei Nishikori (JPN) vs Rafael Nadal (ESP) [2]
3. Robin Soderling (SWE) [6] vs Robby Ginepri (USA)

COURT 1 - SHOW COURT - 1.00 PM START

1. Robert Kendrick (USA) vs Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA) [10]
2. Jan Hajek (CZE) vs Andy Murray (GBR) [4]
3. Caroline Wozniacki (DEN) [3] vs Tathiana Garbin (ITA)

COURT 2 - SHOW COURT - 12.00 NOON START

1. Akgul Amanmuradova (UZB) vs Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS) [19]
2. Nicolas Kiefer (GER) vs David Ferrer (ESP) [9]
3. Anastasia Pivovarova (RUS) vs Maria Sharapova (RUS) [16]
4. Juan Carlos Ferrero (ESP) [14] vs Xavier Malisse (BEL)

COURT 12 - SHOW COURT - 12.00 NOON START

1. Anne Keothavong (GBR) vs Anastasia Rodionova (AUS)
2. Andreas Beck (GER) vs Jamie Baker (GBR)
3. Fernando Verdasco (ESP) [8] vs Fabio Fognini (ITA)
4. Serena Williams (USA) and Venus Williams (USA) [1] vs Julie Ditty (USA) and Renata Voracova (CZE)

COURT 18 - SHOW COURT - 12.00 NOON START

1. Sergiy Stakhovsky (UKR) vs Sam Querrey (USA) [18]
2. Kaia Kanepi (EST) vs Samantha Stosur (AUS) [6]
3. Romina Sarina Oprandi (ITA) vs Heather Watson (GBR)
4. Nicolas Mahut (FRA) vs John Isner (USA) [23]

COURT 5 - SHOW COURT - 12.00 NOON START

1. Melinda Czink (HUN) vs Agnieszka Radwanska (POL) [7]
2. Robin Haase (NED) vs James Blake (USA)
3. Marcos Baghdatis (CYP) [24] vs Lukas Lacko (SVK)
4. Na Li (CHN) [9] vs Chanelle Scheepers (RSA)

COURT 6 - 12.00 NOON START

1. Gilles Simon (FRA) [26] vs Guillermo Alcaide (ESP)
2. Marco Chiudinelli (SUI) vs Alexandr Dolgopolov (UKR)
3. Dominika Cibulkova (SVK) vs Lucie Safarova (CZE) [25]
4. Iveta Benesova (CZE) vs Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (RUS) [29]

COURT 7 - 12.00 NOON START

1. Marc Gicquel (FRA) vs Paul-Henri Mathieu (FRA)
2. Monica Niculescu (ROU) vs Gisela Dulko (ARG)
3. Blaz Kavcic (SLO) vs Lukasz Kubot (POL)
4. Sara Errani (ITA) [32] vs Julie Coin (FRA)

COURT 8 - 12.00 NOON START

1. Mikhail Youzhny (RUS) [13] vs Dudi Sela (ISR)
2. Jarkko Nieminen (FIN) vs Stefan Koubek (AUT)
3. Magdalena Rybarikova (SVK) vs Aravane Rezai (FRA) [18]
4. Bojana Jovanovski (SRB) vs Casey Dellacqua (AUS)

COURT 9 - 12.00 NOON START

1. Tobias Kamke (GER) vs Guillermo Garcia-Lopez (ESP)
2. Sorana Cirstea (ROU) vs Petra Kvitova (CZE)
3. Michael Russell (USA) vs Pere Riba-Madrid (ESP)
4. Arantxa Rus (NED) vs Kai-Chen Chang (TPE)

COURT 10 - 12.00 NOON START

1. Oscar Hernandez (ESP) vs Ivan Dodig (CRO)
2. Timea Bacsinszky (SUI) vs Edina Gallovits (ROU)
3. Ioana Raluca Olaru (ROU) vs Alize Cornet (FRA)
4. Frederico Gil (POR) vs Marcel Granollers (ESP)

COURT 11 - 12.00 NOON START

1. Illya Marchenko (UKR) vs Michael Berrer (GER)
2. Alberta Brianti (ITA) vs Jill Craybas (USA)
3. Jeremy Chardy (FRA) vs Daniel Gimeno-Traver (ESP)
4. Sybille Bammer (AUT) vs Roberta Vinci (ITA)

COURT 14 - 12.00 NOON START

1. Anna Chakvetadze (RUS) vs Andrea Petkovic (GER)
2. Ricardo Mello (BRA) vs Thomaz Bellucci (BRA) [25]
3. Alexandra Dulgheru (ROU) [31] vs Kimiko Date Krumm (JPN)
4. Thiemo De Bakker (NED) vs Santiago Giraldo (COL)

COURT 15 - 12.00 NOON START

1. Lisa Raymond (USA) and Rennae Stubbs (AUS) [7] vs Polona Hercog (SLO) and Petra Martic (CRO)
2. Ilija Bozoljac (SRB) and Harsh Mankad (IND) vs Juan Ignacio Chela (ARG) and Eduardo Schwank (ARG)
3. Kirsten Flipkens (BEL) and Yanina Wickmayer (BEL) vs Vera Dushevina (RUS) and Ekaterina Makarova (RUS) [13]
4. Arantxa Parra Santonja (ESP) vs Olga Govortsova (BLR)

COURT 16 - 12.00 NOON START

1. Go Soeda (JPN) vs Martin Fischer (AUT)
2. Kristof Vliegen (BEL) vs Julien Benneteau (FRA) [32]
3. Tamarine Tanasugarn (THA) vs Ayumi Morita (JPN)
4. Mariana Duque Marino (COL) vs Kurumi Nara (JPN)

COURT 17 - 12.00 NOON START

1. Jie Zheng (CHN) [23] vs Pauline Parmentier (FRA)
2. Simon Greul (GER) vs Florent Serra (FRA)
3. Klara Zakopalova (CZE) vs Yvonne Meusburger (AUT)
4. Julian Reister (GER) vs Rik De Voest (RSA)

COURT 18 - 12.00 NOON START

1. Sergiy Stkhovsky (UKR) vs Sam Querrey (USA) [18]
2. Kaia Kanepi(EST) vs Samantha Stosur(AUS)[6]
3. Romina Sarina Oprandi(ITA) vs Heather Watson(GBR)
4. Nicolas Mahut(FRA) vs John Isner(USA)[23]

COURT 19 - 12.00 NOON START

1. Flavia Pennetta (ITA) [10] vs Anabel Medina Garrigues (ESP)
2. Nicolas Almagro (ESP) [19] vs Andreas Seppi (ITA)
3. Philipp Petzschner (GER) [33] vs Stephane Robert (FRA)
4. Barbora Zahlavova Strycova (CZE) vs Elena Vesnina (RUS)

Back On Top

Reuters

Reuters

Queen Sofia of Spain poses for a photograph with Spain's Rafael Nadal after he won in the men's final match in the French Open tennis championship at the Roland Garros stadium, on June 6, 2010, in Paris.


Getty

A few of you may remember me commenting that when Roger Federer got back his Wimbledon crown last year and the No. 1 ranking, it was as though nothing had ever changed.

Just shy of a year later, the tour is almost back to where it was before Rafael Nadal had to sit out with injury: the Spaniard sits atop the rankings and holds the Roland Garros trophy.

Robin Söderling, unwittingly I suppose, played the third side of this tennis triangle. Buoyed by a crowd that wanted so desperately to see Federer win their title and complete the career Slam, he hit a struggling Nadal off the court last year, ultimately made it to the final, and gave the fans what they wanted. This year, he hit an in-form Federer off the court in the quarterfinals, denying him the chance to remain No.1 and break Pete Sampras' record, and then fell to an in-form Nadal in the final. If someone had told him three years ago he would play such an important role in the fate of the top two players in the world, he'd probably have shrugged it off as stupidity.

You can make this stuff up.

Rafa is back. I hadn't seem him weep like that in his chair after a tennis match since he lost that grueling Wimbledon final in 2007 because his knees failed him. He won every big title there was to win on clay this season, a first even for the Ruler of the Red Stuff. Sure, his camp is now saying the focus is on the US Open, but no one will convince me Nadal won't move heaven and earth to win back a title he was unable to defend last year on the lawns of London.

Roland Garros 2010 Men's Final Open Thread

AP

Argentina's Agustin Velotti, left, holds his first place trophy next to runner up USA's Andrea Collarini after a boy's finals match for the French Open tennis tournament at the Roland Garros stadium in Paris, Sunday, June 6, 2010.

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From peytonallen:

So we get the “other” final everybody wanted. Personally, this one is more fascinating to me than another Fed/Nadal matchup. Roger wasn’t winning that one, no matter how many people gathered hands and prayed. We’ve seen that match too many times. Why would it change now when Fed is a year older? Madrid proved it wouldn’t. But Sunday we find out if Soderling is Nadal’s Panatta.

A lot on the line for both guys. I don’t see Soderilng becoming a future #1 player or really even a Slam champion at any point, but there have been late career surges before. Rafter isn’t an all-time talent but for a couple of years there he was Pete’s main rival and the best player in the world. I can see why the Swedes would push the hype, though I think Robin’s career path has already been set. But as Peter Korda proved anyone can rise up and win a slam.

If he wins it certainly would be the most interesting/explosive 12 month run at the French. Beating the new Borg, then ending Fed’s streak and taking home the title. Who would’ve thought Soderling at any point in his career would be regarded as the best clay court player?

If Nadal loses it’s the end of the Federer/Nadal stranglehold on tennis. They may both win another slam, but a loss at the French, in his element, would signal a slight end for Rafa. It’d be a sign he’ll always struggle against the ‘power merchants’ for the rest of his career.
If he wins, he’s #1 and on his way to 10-11 slams and proves his break last year was just that, a pit stop while on the road to more glory. He’d have the rest of his career to chase Borg’s French mark and he’d be the overwhelming favorite to defend his Wimbledon crown.

Soderling may be a little less nervous than last year, but I still think he’s got an uphill battle to win this title. He was hitting winners from everywhere last year and like his win over Federer serving out of a tree. He’ll play well Sunday but he has to match his performance from last year, if not exceed it to win. I’m not sure he can do that. If he has an average service day, he’s out in straights.

Rafa has to save his BP’s against and show his new aggressive game was worth it. If he repeats last year’s performance and gives Robin a steady diet of short balls he’ll be in for a long day.

A few weeks before their match last year Nadal beat Soderling 6-1, 6-0. It’s hard for me to believe suddenly he’s the only man Nadal can’t beat in Paris.

Nadal in 4.

Power Trumps Variety

Reuters

When the power merchant doesn't miss on the big moments, doesn't become overwhelmed by whatever situation he faces, he wins.

On any surface. Even in thick-as-pea-soup conditions.

The proof is in the result.

Roger Federer played well, but Robin Söderling did to this year's defending champion exactly what he did to last year's:

He hit him off the court with such relentless power and precision, Raja had no idea what hit him.

The only difference? The crowd wasn't at all rooting for the underdog to dethrone the champion.

Make of that what you will.

I, for one, will enjoy the top-half semifinal thoroughly, what with Tomas Berdych following up his dismantling of Andy Murray with a crushing victory over Mikhail Youzhny.

May the hardest hitter win.

Roland Garros 2010 Day 10 Order Of Play

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Spain's Nicolas Almagro eyes the ball after hitting a forehand to Spain's Fernando Verdasco during their men's fourth round match in the French Open tennis championship at the Roland Garros stadium, on May 31, 2010, in Paris.

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We have arrived at the final eight. MadProfessah has posted his predictions and we'll talk about them here as the action unfolds.

Conventional wisdom states that Elena Dementieva is the best active player on the WTA never to have won a slam. I reject that. That honor goes to Miss Nadia Petrova. No, she's never been to a Slam final, never won an Olympic Gold, but she has the most talent and most complete game of the non-Slam winners in the women's field. And she can serve. We know what her deadliest weakness is and I, for one, am hoping she can smother it this week and make her first Slam final.

I'm also rooting for Francesca Schiavone, one of the most imaginative players on the tour who fights to the bigger end. She'll have her work cut out for her against the backboard that his Caroline Wozniacki, but if the veteran can frustrate the youngster enough, she'll advance to her first Slam semifinal in the latter days of her career. What a story that would be.

As for the men, it probably goes without saying but I'll say it anyway: I wanna see Robin Söderling play Tomas Berdych in the semifinals. Let it be, let it be.

Schedule for Day 10: Tuesday, 1 June 2010

Court Philippe Chatrier 14:00 Start Time
1. Women's Singles - Quarterfinals
Francesca Schiavone (ITA)[17] v. Caroline Wozniacki (DEN)[3]
2. Men's Singles - Quarterfinals
Roger Federer (SUI)[1] v. Robin Soderling (SWE)[5]
3. Men's Doubles - Fourth Round
Marc Lopez (ESP)/Pere Riba (ESP) v. Wesley Moodie (RSA)/Dick Norman (BEL)[4]

Court Suzanne Lenglen 14:00 Start Time
1. Women's Singles - Quarterfinals
Elena Dementieva (RUS)[5] v. Nadia Petrova (RUS)[19]
2. Men's Singles - Quarterfinals
Tomas Berdych (CZE)[15] v. Mikhail Youzhny (RUS)[11]
3. Men's Doubles - Fourth Round
Lukasz Kubot (POL)/Oliver Marach (AUT)[6] v. Daniel Nestor (CAN)/Nenad Zimonjic (SRB)[2]

Court 1 11:00 Start Time
1. Men's Doubles - Fourth Round
Lukas Dlouhy (CZE)/Leander Paes (IND)[3] v. Mariusz Fyrstenberg (POL)/Marcin Matkowski (POL)[8]
2. Women's Doubles - Fourth Round
Monica Niculescu (ROU)/Shahar Peer (ISR) v. Nuria Llagostera Vives (ESP)/Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez (ESP)[2]
3. Mixed Doubles - Third Round
Vania King (USA)/Christopher Kas (GER) v. Tathiana Garbin (ITA)/Marcin Matkowski (POL)
4. Women's Doubles - Fourth Round
Kveta Peschke (CZE)/Katarina Srebotnik (SLO)[12] v. Alona Bondarenko (UKR)/Kateryna Bondarenko (UKR)

Court 2 11:00 Start Time
1. Men's Doubles - Fourth Round
Marcelo Melo (BRA)/Bruno Soares (BRA) v. Julian Knowle (AUT)/Andy Ram (ISR)[10]
2. Girls' Singles - Second Round
Nastja Kolar (SLO)[4] v. Charlene Seateun (FRA)
3. Mixed Doubles - Third Round
Yaroslava Shvedova (KAZ)/Julian Knowle (AUT) v. Cara Black (ZIM)/Leander Paes (IND)[2]

Day 4: Delays and Drama

by KarenFed

Match points saved, match points wasted, head shaking moments, cramping, bad light, raucous crowds, rain delays and to top it all off awesome press conference moments. This summed up Day 4 of the French Open at Roland Garros.

The day started off well enough with veterans Venus Williams opening up against Arantxa Parra Santonja. Venus won in a match that had little or no drama. She won in straight sets 6-2, 6-4.

The second match up on Centre Court pit the defending Champion Roger Federer against Alejandro Falla from Colombia. This match went on serve until 5-5 all in the first set. During the first 10 games, not only was Federer struggling to hold serve, but Falla was holding with ease and seemed quite relaxed and ready to take this to the defending champion. I was nervous. At 5-5 all Federer serving, Falla finally broke and led 6-5 with the opportunity to serve after the changeover. This was not to be. After holding serve comfortably during the first 10 games of the match, Falla not only opened his account by making some shaking your head plays but ended up being broken at 15 to get the first set to a tie-break. Federer got the early mini break which Falla was able to get back and they changed ends at 3-3. Falla, ,who had been serving very well, standing up on the baseline and taking time away from Federer, all of a sudden started playing as if he remembered where he was and who he was playing. Federer took the first set 7-6 (4) and then from there barring the 2 rain delays seemed to find his groove and finished off the match 6-2, 6-4.

Out on court Suzanne Lenglen, the other gentleman from last year's final, Robin Soderling took poor Taylor Dent to the woodshed. He won the first set in 17 minutes. His serve was huge, forehand even bigger and backhand was on song. Poor Dent had no idea what hit him. Luckily for Dent, Soderling took his foot off the gas somewhat and Dent was able to win 2 games. The final score in a little over 1.5 hours was 6-0, 6-1, 6-1 and it was not even that close.

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga played compatriot Josselin Ouanna. Ouanna lit up my life a few years ago when I saw him play for the first time at the French Open. I thought then that his career would have been zooming and he would have been in the top 20 or 30. Now I know why he has been getting wild cards. Big Jo beat Little Jo like he stole something. It wasn't pretty. Big Jo served big, hit big and moved exceptionally well on the clay. The final score was 6-0, 6-1, and 6-4.

Aravane Rezai hits the ball hard on every single point. I think she probably hits her drop shots hard. I saw her hit one today but I think that was more due to luck than an attempted drop shot. She won in 3 today over Angelique Kerber of Germany. The French crowd are really pulling for this young woman and unlike Amélie Mauresmo she is loving the attention. I am yet to see her press conference on the Roland Garros website but from what I understand, it would seem that there is no love lost between her and Marion Bartoli, the French No. 2. The French really feel that Rezai can win the French this year and it will be interesting to see if she gets to the final against the people’s champion, for whom will they cheer loudest. Final score was 6-2, 2-6, 6-3.

Julien Benneteau who played the match of his life against Ernest Gulbis succumbs as he usually does in the very next round to Leonardo Mayer of Argentina. It was a dull, lifeless match. The final score was 6-7, 6-3, 6-4 and 6-4.

Match of the Day


Reuters

This is the match of the day not because it was good, but because of all the head scratching moments that occurred. Andrea Petkovic came to play today against Svetlana Kuznetsova who finally seemed to have found her game when facing 3 match points and seeing her ranking drop like the Titanic. Sveta started hitting hard and deep, pushing Petkovic all over the court and forcing errors. Petkovic needs to know how to hold her nerve in these pressure situations. No way do you serve for a match, have 4 match points on your own serve and lose the match. No way. I have been following Petkovic since Paris indoors and I have seen this apple stuck in my throat moment too many times from her. I thought when I saw her serving for the match and hold 3 match points on the first go round that she had conquered those demons. Clearly she has not. She lost in 3 sets to Sveta 4-6, 7-5 and 6-4. Sveta will either build on this victory or get dumped in the next round. She has not won 4 matches in succession all season so perhaps the chance to defend a title will motivate to find whatever it is that ails her.

Drama of the Day

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The most intriguing match that was called due to bad light involved drama queen Gael Monfils and Fabio Fognini. I am not sure why the officials felt the need to ask the players whether they wished to continue. It was 9:30 pm local time, the only lights that were available were the exit signs and it was clear that neither player could see where to hit the ball hence we saw quite a lot of off-pace shots in the middle of the court. This is a Major not some two-bit tournament. Either the officials install lights or they fast track plans to relocate the current venue.

Tomorrow, Day 5 has some very intriguing match ups. Cannot wait.

Roland Garros 2010 Day 4 Open Thread

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Oracene Price watches Venus Williams and Serena Williams of the United States during their women's doubles first round match against Kirsten Flipkens of Belgium and Tamarine Tanasugarn of Thailand on day three of the French Open at Roland Garros on May 25, 2010 in Paris, France.

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The field has been halved. Venus Williams just dismissed Arantxa Parra Santonja in straight sets on Chartrier and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga is playing compatriot Josselin Ouanna on Lenglen. Always a sight to see two Black players take the court at the same time. But then I had to look at the clock and see that whatever match preceded theirs must have gone quickly. I check the scores and Robin Söderling wiped the dirt with Taylor Dent to the loss of only two games.

I guess the Söd wasn't kidding when he said he felt good to be back in Paris.

Schedule for Day 4: Wednesday, 26 May 2010

Court Philippe Chatrier 11:00 Start Time
1. Women's Singles - Second Round
Arantxa Parra Santonja (ESP) v. Venus Williams (USA)[2]
2. Men's Singles - Second Round
Roger Federer (SUI)[1] v. Alejandro Falla (COL)
3. Men's Singles - Second Round
Fabio Fognini (ITA) v. Gael Monfils (FRA)[13]
4. Women's Singles - Second Round
Elena Dementieva (RUS)[5] v. A. Medina Garrigues (ESP)

Court Suzanne Lenglen 11:00 Start Time
1. Men's Singles - Second Round
Taylor Dent (USA) v. Robin Soderling (SWE)[5]
2. Men's Singles - Second Round
Josselin Ouanna (FRA) v. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA)[8]
3. Women's Singles - Second Round
Aravane Rezai (FRA)[15] v. Angelique Kerber (GER)
4. Women's Singles - Second Round
Tathiana Garbin (ITA) v. Caroline Wozniacki (DEN)[3]

Court 1 11:00 Start Time
1. Men's Singles - Second Round
Leonardo Mayer (ARG) v. Julien Benneteau (FRA)
2. Women's Singles - Second Round
Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS)[6] v. Andrea Petkovic (GER)
3. Men's Singles - Second Round
Andy Murray (GBR)[4] v. Juan Ignacio Chela (ARG)
4. Women's Singles - Second Round
Stephanie Cohen-Aloro (FRA) v. Na Li (CHN)[11]

Court 2 11:00 Start Time
1. Men's Singles - Second Round
Marin Cilic (CRO)[10] v. Daniel Gimeno-Traver (ESP)
2. Women's Singles - Second Round
Flavia Pennetta (ITA)[14] v. Roberta Vinci (ITA)
3. Men's Singles - Second Round
Edouard Roger-Vasselin (FRA) v. Tomas Berdych (CZE)[15]
4. Women's Singles - Second Round
Francesca Schiavone (ITA)[17] v. Sophie Ferguson (AUS)

Court 3 11:00 Start Time
1. Women's Singles - Second Round
Agnes Szavay (HUN) v. Nadia Petrova (RUS)[19]
2. Men's Singles - Second Round
Guillermo Garcia-Lopez (ESP)[32] v. Thiemo De Bakker (NED)
3. Men's Singles - Second Round
Marcel Granollers (ESP) v. Marcos Baghdatis (CYP)[25]
4. Women's Singles - Second Round
Aleksandra Wozniak (CAN) v. Kateryna Bondarenko (UKR)[32]

Court 4 11:00 Start Time
1. Women's Doubles - First Round
Vania King (USA)/Michaella Krajicek (NED) v. Ioana Raluca Olaru (ROU)/Olga Savchuk (UKR)
2. Women's Doubles - First Round
Chia-Jung Chuang (TPE)/Alicia Molik (AUS) v. Iveta Benesova (CZE)/Barbora Zahlavova Strycova (CZE)[13]
3. Women's Doubles - First Round
Elena Baltacha (GBR)/Liga Dekmeijere (LAT) v. Dinara Safina (RUS)/Agnes Szavay (HUN)
4. Mixed Doubles - First Round
Lisa Raymond (USA)/Wesley Moodie (RSA)[7] v. Vania King (USA)/Christopher Kas (GER)

Court 5 11:00 Start Time
1. Women's Singles - Second Round
Dominika Cibulkova (SVK)[26] v. Varvara Lepchenko (USA)
2. Women's Doubles - First Round
Vera Dushevina (RUS)/Ekaterina Makarova (RUS)[14] v. Tatiana Poutchek (BLR)/Ipek Senoglu (TUR)
3. Women's Doubles - First Round
Darija Jurak (CRO)/Petra Martic (CRO) v. Claire Feuerstein (FRA)/Stephanie Foretz (FRA)
4. Women's Doubles - First Round
Sara Errani (ITA)/Roberta Vinci (ITA) v. Kristina Mladenovic (FRA)/Selima Sfar (TUN)

Court 6 11:00 Start Time
1. Men's Singles - Second Round
Mikhail Youzhny (RUS)[11] v. Lukas Lacko (SVK)
2. Women's Singles - Second Round
Chanelle Scheepers (RSA) v. Gisela Dulko (ARG)
3. Men's Singles - Second Round
John Isner (USA)[17] v. Marco Chiudinelli (SUI)
4. Men's Doubles - First Round
Ross Hutchins (GBR)/Jordan Kerr (AUS) v. Daniel Nestor (CAN)/Nenad Zimonjic (SRB)[2]

Court 7 11:00 Start Time
1. Men's Singles - Second Round
Carsten Ball (AUS) v. Viktor Troicki (SRB)
2. Men's Singles - Second Round
Olivier Rochus (BEL) v. Julian Reister (GER)
3. Women's Singles - Second Round
Polona Hercog (SLO) v. Lucie Safarova (CZE)[24]
4. Men's Doubles - First Round
Lukas Dlouhy (CZE)/Leander Paes (IND)[3] v. Johan Brunstrom (SWE)/Jean-Julien Rojer (AHO)

Court 8 11:00 Start Time
1. Women's Doubles - First Round
Alicja Rosolska (POL)/Yaroslava Shvedova (KAZ) v. Lisa Raymond (USA)[7]/Rennae Stubbs (AUS)[7]
2. Men's Doubles - First Round
Rik De Voest (RSA)/Dmitry Tursunov (RUS) v. Frantisek Cermak (CZE)/Michal Mertinak (SVK)[9]
3. Men's Doubles - First Round
Jonathan Marray (GBR)/Jamie Murray (GBR) v. Simon Greul (GER)/Peter Luczak (AUS)
4. Men's Doubles - First Round
Nicolas Almagro (ESP)/Santiago Ventura (ESP) v. Xavier Malisse (BEL)/Olivier Rochus (BEL)

Court 9 11:00 Start Time
1. Women's Doubles - First Round
Sarah Borwell (GBR)/Raquel Kops-Jones (USA) v. Kveta Peschke (CZE)/Katarina Srebotnik (SLO)[12]
2. Women's Doubles - First Round
Edina Gallovits (ROU)/Melanie Oudin (USA) v. Anastasia Rodionova (AUS)/Arina Rodionova (RUS)
3. Men's Doubles - First Round
Sebastian Prieto (ARG)/Kristof Vliegen (BEL) v. Jonathan Erlich (ISR)/Dudi Sela (ISR)
4. Men's Doubles - First Round
Michael Kohlmann (GER)/Jarkko Nieminen (FIN) v. Leonardo Mayer (ARG)/Horacio Zeballos (ARG)

Court 10 11:00 Start Time
1. Men's Doubles - First Round
Martin Damm (CZE)/Filip Polasek (SVK) v. Daniele Bracciali (ITA)/Potito Starace (ITA)
2. Men's Doubles - First Round
Victor Hanescu (ROU)/Gabriel Trifu (ROU) v. Oleksandr Dolgopolov Jr (UKR)/Denis Istomin (UZB)
3. Women's Doubles - First Round
Sybille Bammer (AUT)/Kristina Barrois (GER) v. Andrea Hlavackova (CZE)/Lucie Hradecka (CZE)[16]
4. Men's Doubles - First Round
Mardy Fish (USA)/Mark Knowles (BAH)[13] v. Carsten Ball (AUS)/Chris Guccione (AUS)

Court 11 11:00 Start Time
1. Men's Doubles - First Round
Marc Lopez (ESP)/Pere Riba (ESP) v. Jonathan Eysseric (FRA)/Benoit Paire (FRA)
2. Men's Doubles - First Round
Santiago Gonzalez (MEX)/Travis RettenMayer (USA) v. Robert Lindstedt (SWE)/Horia Tecau (ROU)[14]
3. Men's Doubles - First Round
Benjamin Becker (GER)/Scott Lipsky (USA) v. Eric Butorac (USA)/Rajeev Ram (USA)[16]
4. Mixed Doubles - First Round
Rennae Stubbs (AUS)/Robert Lindstedt (SWE) v. Su-Wei Hsieh (TPE)/Bruno Soares (BRA)

Court 14 11:00 Start Time
1. Men's Doubles - First Round
Mahesh Bhupathi (IND)/Max Mirnyi (BLR)[5] v. Jurgen Melzer (AUT)/Philipp Petzschner (GER)
2. Women's Doubles - First Round
Monica Niculescu (ROU)/Shahar Peer (ISR) v. Sophie Lefevre (FRA)/Aurelie Vedy (FRA)
3. Men's Doubles - First Round
Julian Knowle (AUT)/Andy Ram (ISR)[10] v. Arnaud Clement (FRA)/Nicolas Mahut (FRA)
4. Men's Doubles - First Round
Viktor Troicki (SRB)/Dusan Vemic (SRB) v. Jeff Coetzee (RSA)/Andreas Seppi (ITA)

Court 16 11:00 Start Time
1. Women's Singles - Second Round
Akgul Amanmuradova (UZB) v. Johanna Larsson (SWE)
2. Women's Singles - Second Round
Alexandra Dulgheru (ROU)[31] v. Timea Bacsinszky (SUI)
3. Women's Doubles - First Round
Akgul Amanmuradova (UZB)/Galina Voskoboeva (KAZ) v. Yung-Jan Chan (TPE)/Jie Zheng (CHN)[10]
4. Women's Doubles - First Round
Jill Craybas (USA)/Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (RUS) v. Alberta Brianti (ITA)/Alexandra Dulgheru (ROU)

Court 17 11:00 Start Time
1. Men's Singles - Second Round
Albert Montanes (ESP)[29] v. Tobias Kamke (GER)
2. Women's Singles - Second Round
Yvonne Meusburger (AUT) v. Maria Kirilenko (RUS)[30]
3. Men's Singles - Second Round
Stanislas Wawrinka (SUI)[20] v. Andreas Beck (GER)
4. Women's Doubles - First Round
Mathilde Johansson (FRA)/Camille Pin (FRA) v. Nuria Llagostera Vives (ESP)/Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez (ESP)[2]

Day 1: Hot & Dry

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The sun hung high in the sky. The courts played like they do in Rome. Or, better yet, on the imported red clay of Houston in years past. Fast and slick.

I didn't see an awful lot of tennis, though I enjoyed thoroughly the Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 5-set victory over Daniel Brands.

KarenFed provides today's recap.

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Today was the first day of play in the 2010 French Open. There were not many upsets today. The only top seed to go out was No. 8 Victoria Azarenka who was taken out in straight sets by Gisela Dulko. All other seeds held to move on to the second round round.

The Women

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Venus Williams looked good in her straight-set win over veteran Patty Schnyder. A little shaky on serve but her ground strokes seemed to be holding up well and her net game as always was impeccable. Liked her outfit as it was different from the usual stuff the women wear.

Svetlana Kutznetsova started off slowly losing the first 3 games in the first set but steadied the ship and reeled off 9 straight games before Sorana Cirstea was able to get on the board again. That would be it as far as Sorana was concerned as Sveta took the match in straights. I just have to say that I think that Sven Gronefeld is way over rated as a coach as is the Adidas Player Development Program. Sorana has been slumping since last year and looking at her this morning she has no Plan B. This one is going back to the ITF circuit faster than you can say Sorana who?

Aravane Rezai v. Heidi El Bhaki was a one sided affair between the Madrid champion and the qualifier. Heidi is a Canadian player by way of Egypt. First time I saw her play. She has a good game but as with most young players she needs to work on her serve as well as her groundies. Solid forehand and good movement. Hope to see more of her as she is stunningly beautiful with a wonderful mocha complexion and a body that is reminiscent of Serena Williams circa 2001-2002. Slamming.

Maria Kirilenko v. Karolina Sprem was a looker. For some reason every time I see Kirilenko I am struck by how ineffective her game is yet she seems to get so much out of it. I also wonder about her supposed beauty until I do a double take and I am like, Whoa, she is really beautiful. She beat Sprem today in straights but the match was a lot closer than the score suggests.

There were a few women’s matches I would have loved to see: Andrea Petovic v. Elena Vesnina, Agnes Szavay v. Stephanie Foretz (there was a live stream but the camera was all the way on another planet), and Nadia Petrova v. Shuai Zhang (too busy to watch).

Another upset occurred today when Rome champion María José Martínez Sánchez (she of the ball did not hit my hand but my racquet gate) was ousted by Akgul Amanmuradova in straight sets. Didn't see one point of that match.

The Men

Robin Soderling looked good today. Let me say that another way. Robin Söderling looked damned good today. He was playing within himself and I can see how he took out Rafael Nadal last year. He played controlled, aggressive tennis. Very good effort by him today. His opponent was a French wildcard that I had never heard of. The French really need to stop giving wild cards to these players.

Marin Cilic - I am slowly but surely coming off the side car on this one. I just do not see him winning a major, not with the personality that he now has. He has to step it up if he wants to make me a believer. He beat Ricardo Mello in 4 sets. Most tennis fans thought Mello had retired.

The big upset of the day on the men’s side was clay court wunderkind Ernest Gulbis who had to retire in his match against Julien Benneteau. The fact that he retired had no bearing on the match. He would have been beaten regardless. Like Mike Tyson said, to be a champion you have to be able to do it day in and day out.

The last men’s match I watched was Jo-Wilfried Tsonga v Daniel Brands. Very good match that Tsonga won in 5 sets. There is something to be said for Tsonga who having never played a 5 setter before this year’s AO, has now won all 3 5 set matches that he has played. Good on you, Jo.


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Miami Semifinals Open Thread

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The women's final is set. Venus Williams trounced Marion Bartoli and Kim Clijsters edged Justine Henin. Saw some of the second match, none of the first. Will Clijsters ever learn that her matches with Justine are always on her racquet? Will Justine ever regain enough of her core strength, if she ever had core strength to begin with, to close out a kill when she smells blood? Their matches are a car wreck I can't seem to look away from.

Today, the top half of the men's draw features a match-up between two power merchants that I've always wanted to see. Tomas Berdych impressed with his follow-up victory over Fernando Verdasco in a match apparently as ugly as the one between the Belgians. I missed all of it. And here is Robin Söderling deep in another big event. When one can use the word consistent to describe the lumbering Swede....

Andy Roddick and Rafael Nadal will face off in the other semi, making the organizers and fans alike ecstatic, I've no doubt. The two former No. 1's, who could use a long vacation with each other to share woes, unwind, and help each other remember how to win, could play a match that goes on forever if one of them doesn't just step up and close out the thing. Both may have losing to Ivan Ljubicic last event on their minds. I'll watch, but I'll probably have my eyes closed most of the time.

Who's going to win?

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Women's Singles - Semifinals
(3) Venus Williams (USA) d. (13) Marion Bartoli (FRA) 63 64
(14) Kim Clijsters (BEL) d. (WC) Justine Henin (BEL) 62 67(3) 76(6)

Men's Singles - Quarterfinals
[5] R Soderling (SWE) d [13] M Youzhny (RUS) 61 64
[16] T Berdych (CZE) d [10] F Verdasco (ESP) 46 76(5) 64

Men's Doubles - Semifinals
[3] L Dlouhy (CZE) / L Paes (IND) d N Almagro (ESP) / T Robredo (ESP) 63 60

Men's Doubles - Quarterfinals
[4] M Bhupathi (IND) / M Mirnyi (BLR) d A Clement (FRA) / J Tsonga (FRA) 64 67(5) 10-4

First-Time Finalists

AP

Andy Roddick celebrates his win over Robin Söderling, of Sweden, during their match at the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament in Indian Wells, Calif. , Saturday, March 20, 2010.

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Getty

Ivan Ljubicic of Croatia celebrates match point against Rafael Nadal of Spain during the semifinals of the BNP Paribas Open on March 19, 2010 at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden in Indian Wells, California.

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As predicted, 2010 is proving to be quite an unpredictable season. Indian Wells features four new finalists: Caroline Wozniacki, Jelena Jankovic, Andy Roddick, who has faltered in desert semifinals more times than I can count, and biggest surprise of them all, Ljubicic, celebrating his 31st birthday with arguably the biggest win of his career.

Who will win?

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Men's Singles - Semifinals
[20] I Ljubicic (CRO) d [3] R Nadal (ESP) 36 64 76(1)
[7] A Roddick (USA) d [6] R Soderling (SWE) 64 36 63

Men's Doubles - Final
[WC] M Lopez (ESP) / R Nadal (ESP) d [1] D Nestor (CAN) / N Zimonjic (SRB) 76(8) 63

Women's Doubles - Final
K Peschke (CZE) / K Srebotnik (SLO) d [3] N Petrova (RUS) / S Stosur (AUS) 64 26 10-5