I haven't been posting previous tournaments because I have found myself struggling to find interest in posting those tournaments, I believe from now on I will only post select tournaments rather than the whole calendar as it does wear me down. So of course I had to post on the US Open (sorry for being late because I just got off a plane yesterday night).
Well isn't it refreshing to see Nadal at No.1 seed, I wonder how well he'll do, being his first Slam where he is seeded No.1 I'm predicting a semifinal possibility but I haven't seen the draw yet so I shouldn't put judgement that quickly.
Nadal's first match against Phau wasn't that clean and to be honest I think he would much rather have played an easy match to show he has got what it takes on Hard courts. He has American De Heart next, who I've never heard of and possibly Nadal will not have heard of. Troicki could be slightly. Kohlschreiber shouldn't be a problem if Nadal was to meet him. The next section sees Berdych and Karlovic leading the upset pack. I don't think Berdych is having a good enough year to cause a threat. I wouldn't right Karlovic off but I don't think Nadal would lose to him either.
James Blake's bad start to the Open could mean an opening for Mathieu or Grosjean which benefits Nalbandian or Monfils the most, however Blake is still a strong candidate to take on Nadal. Nalbandian doesn't have the best of results in the US and on top of that his year isn't going greatly either but Nalbandian does normally produce his best tennis towards the end of the year. But all in all this should make for easy pickings for Nadal.
Sadly Monaco lost out early (one of my Top 10 favourites of the ATP Tour) but at least it was Nishikori who I'm liking a lot these days. Ferrer got to the semis last year so I wouldn't cut him out but before the semis he had a poor record in the US so anything could happen but I don't think anyone in his part of the draw will cause too much of a trouble for him. With this draw Murray could really capitalize. Firstly this is Murray's breakout year winning his first Masters and jumping to 6th in the rankings, secondly he has got the easiest opponent out of the Top 4 in his quarters and thirdly he doesn't have to go through a vast amount of tough players before he could get to the semis. All in all if Murray is on form we may see him in the Semis. But what I have to say is - does he have what it takes to beat Nadal? Personally I'd say No. Nadal has the game that beats Murray in nearly every way possible, it isn't really how good of a player Nadal is on Hard courts but how much he dominates Murray's game. I think Murray would have to pull off a huge shock to beat Nadal. Sadly Feliciano Lopez lost in the first round so my hopes will be on Murray here, but wait a sec I nearly forgot Youzhny who got into the semis in 2006. Well this year has definitely not been a good one for him compared to the last so he is a dark horse to get to the quarters.
The third quarters see Roddick and Djokovic pulled into one draw, possibly the most exciting one. Roddick would have rested a lot so he should be fresh, hopefully he could emulate the success he had at the start of the year. If he is in form I really don't see any possible upsets. The next section sees the quickly falling Robredo and one of my favourite players Safin. Though both don't seem to be a threat here. Tsonga is also on this section - amazing isn't it that it seems like such a short time since Tsonga did what he did in the Australian Open and subsequently died out of any contention whatsoever in any other competition! Personally nobody should really threat Djokovic or Roddick so I'm waiting to watch this match (though I do hope Safin does well here).
Davydenko and Federer round off the draws, Davydenko has been a semifinalist here for two years but I think he doesn't have enough to beat Federer, however good he is on hard courts. Besides those two I will also be looking to watch out for Tursunov and Gasquet (who will be playing another one of my favourites Tommy Haas). But besides that I'll see what happens before I make any judgement on possible winners, but Djokovic to win!
Tuesday 26 August 2008
Mens US Open Draw
I haven't been posting previous tournaments because I have found myself struggling to find interest in posting those tournaments, I believe from now on I will only post select tournaments rather than the whole calendar as it does wear me down. So of course I had to post on the US Open (sorry for being late because I just got off a plane yesterday night).
Well isn't it refreshing to see Nadal at No.1 seed, I wonder how well he'll do, being his first Slam where he is seeded No.1 I'm predicting a semifinal possibility but I haven't seen the draw yet so I shouldn't put judgement that quickly.
Nadal's first match against Phau wasn't that clean and to be honest I think he would much rather have played an easy match to show he has got what it takes on Hard courts. He has American De Heart next, who I've never heard of and possibly Nadal will not have heard of. Troicki could be slightly. Kohlschreiber shouldn't be a problem if Nadal was to meet him. The next section sees Berdych and Karlovic leading the upset pack. I don't think Berdych is having a good enough year to cause a threat. I wouldn't right Karlovic off but I don't think Nadal would lose to him either.
James Blake's bad start to the Open could mean an opening for Mathieu or Grosjean which benefits Nalbandian or Monfils the most, however Blake is still a strong candidate to take on Nadal. Nalbandian doesn't have the best of results in the US and on top of that his year isn't going greatly either but Nalbandian does normally produce his best tennis towards the end of the year. But all in all this should make for easy pickings for Nadal.
Sadly Monaco lost out early (one of my Top 10 favourites of the ATP Tour) but at least it was Nishikori who I'm liking a lot these days. Ferrer got to the semis last year so I wouldn't cut him out but before the semis he had a poor record in the US so anything could happen but I don't think anyone in his part of the draw will cause too much of a trouble for him. With this draw Murray could really capitalize. Firstly this is Murray's breakout year winning his first Masters and jumping to 6th in the rankings, secondly he has got the easiest opponent out of the Top 4 in his quarters and thirdly he doesn't have to go through a vast amount of tough players before he could get to the semis. All in all if Murray is on form we may see him in the Semis. But what I have to say is - does he have what it takes to beat Nadal? Personally I'd say No. Nadal has the game that beats Murray in nearly every way possible, it isn't really how good of a player Nadal is on Hard courts but how much he dominates Murray's game. I think Murray would have to pull off a huge shock to beat Nadal. Sadly Feliciano Lopez lost in the first round so my hopes will be on Murray here, but wait a sec I nearly forgot Youzhny who got into the semis in 2006. Well this year has definitely not been a good one for him compared to the last so he is a dark horse to get to the quarters.
The third quarters see Roddick and Djokovic pulled into one draw, possibly the most exciting one. Roddick would have rested a lot so he should be fresh, hopefully he could emulate the success he had at the start of the year. If he is in form I really don't see any possible upsets. The next section sees the quickly falling Robredo and one of my favourite players Safin. Though both don't seem to be a threat here. Tsonga is also on this section - amazing isn't it that it seems like such a short time since Tsonga did what he did in the Australian Open and subsequently died out of any contention whatsoever in any other competition! Personally nobody should really threat Djokovic or Roddick so I'm waiting to watch this match (though I do hope Safin does well here).
Davydenko and Federer round off the draws, Davydenko has been a semifinalist here for two years but I think he doesn't have enough to beat Federer, however good he is on hard courts. Besides those two I will also be looking to watch out for Tursunov and Gasquet (who will be playing another one of my favourites Tommy Haas). But besides that I'll see what happens before I make any judgement on possible winners, but Djokovic to win!
Well isn't it refreshing to see Nadal at No.1 seed, I wonder how well he'll do, being his first Slam where he is seeded No.1 I'm predicting a semifinal possibility but I haven't seen the draw yet so I shouldn't put judgement that quickly.
Nadal's first match against Phau wasn't that clean and to be honest I think he would much rather have played an easy match to show he has got what it takes on Hard courts. He has American De Heart next, who I've never heard of and possibly Nadal will not have heard of. Troicki could be slightly. Kohlschreiber shouldn't be a problem if Nadal was to meet him. The next section sees Berdych and Karlovic leading the upset pack. I don't think Berdych is having a good enough year to cause a threat. I wouldn't right Karlovic off but I don't think Nadal would lose to him either.
James Blake's bad start to the Open could mean an opening for Mathieu or Grosjean which benefits Nalbandian or Monfils the most, however Blake is still a strong candidate to take on Nadal. Nalbandian doesn't have the best of results in the US and on top of that his year isn't going greatly either but Nalbandian does normally produce his best tennis towards the end of the year. But all in all this should make for easy pickings for Nadal.
Sadly Monaco lost out early (one of my Top 10 favourites of the ATP Tour) but at least it was Nishikori who I'm liking a lot these days. Ferrer got to the semis last year so I wouldn't cut him out but before the semis he had a poor record in the US so anything could happen but I don't think anyone in his part of the draw will cause too much of a trouble for him. With this draw Murray could really capitalize. Firstly this is Murray's breakout year winning his first Masters and jumping to 6th in the rankings, secondly he has got the easiest opponent out of the Top 4 in his quarters and thirdly he doesn't have to go through a vast amount of tough players before he could get to the semis. All in all if Murray is on form we may see him in the Semis. But what I have to say is - does he have what it takes to beat Nadal? Personally I'd say No. Nadal has the game that beats Murray in nearly every way possible, it isn't really how good of a player Nadal is on Hard courts but how much he dominates Murray's game. I think Murray would have to pull off a huge shock to beat Nadal. Sadly Feliciano Lopez lost in the first round so my hopes will be on Murray here, but wait a sec I nearly forgot Youzhny who got into the semis in 2006. Well this year has definitely not been a good one for him compared to the last so he is a dark horse to get to the quarters.
The third quarters see Roddick and Djokovic pulled into one draw, possibly the most exciting one. Roddick would have rested a lot so he should be fresh, hopefully he could emulate the success he had at the start of the year. If he is in form I really don't see any possible upsets. The next section sees the quickly falling Robredo and one of my favourite players Safin. Though both don't seem to be a threat here. Tsonga is also on this section - amazing isn't it that it seems like such a short time since Tsonga did what he did in the Australian Open and subsequently died out of any contention whatsoever in any other competition! Personally nobody should really threat Djokovic or Roddick so I'm waiting to watch this match (though I do hope Safin does well here).
Davydenko and Federer round off the draws, Davydenko has been a semifinalist here for two years but I think he doesn't have enough to beat Federer, however good he is on hard courts. Besides those two I will also be looking to watch out for Tursunov and Gasquet (who will be playing another one of my favourites Tommy Haas). But besides that I'll see what happens before I make any judgement on possible winners, but Djokovic to win!
Friday 8 August 2008
Catchup on ATP Tour
Firstly I'll talk about the Western and Southern Financial Group Masters, definitely the shock of the year I think. Where do I start! Ok firstly lets do what I always do, I'll split it into sections. 1st Section was headlined by Roger Federer, Andy Roddick having retired. We all thought that Federer would find it easy here but oh no it wasn't. Firstly we must have felt slightly shocked when Federer took so long to dispatch of Ginepri, it must have cast a shadow on our minds and then the tall Ivo Karlovic solidified are worries as he beat Federer in a tight three sets. For the people who don't believe that Federer is losing his dominance this is one of many steps that have made him lose grace. Down below Davydenko and Murray were the main seeds with Gasquet a very possible threat, however both Davydenko and Gasquet lost in Round 2. Tursunov having beaten Safin in the first round took another scalp in the draw by defeating Gasquet. It was left to Murray to save some grace for the seeds. Murray did just that by getting to the finals. The third section was headlined by Blake and Djokovic, Blake suffered like many of the seeds and went in Round 3. Novak Djokovic however ran past his competitors until having to go against Nadal. However Djokovic took little time in dispatching the reigning Wimbledon and Roland Garros champion beating Nadal 6-1,7-5. On the fourth section Ferrer had also lost out early along with Youzhny. Haas did well but was unable to beat Nadal in the 4th round. Honestly I don't remember the last time a Masters was played without the prescence of either Nadal or Federer. Also I have to say it's August (only a few months left) and Federer has only won one small title in Germany! How much more do I have to say before people think Federer is gone.
The next was the Rogers Cup and yet again shocks galore. Ok in the first section Federer and Roddick were drawn together again, but who would have thought neither would get to the quaters! Federer lost to Gilles SImon this time, in actual fact he lost in his first match here! Marin Cilic (the rising Croat) was the conqueror of Roddick. Blake and Davydenko were the top seeds in section 2. Haas yet again played well whilst this time Kiefer was the man. Tursunov also yet again did well. Murray and Djokovic were drawn together whilst Safin and Ancic were also drawn in section 3. Murray showed his determination to break the shadow of Djokovic and beat him twice in a row (in actual fact I feel slightly sad that he beat him as Djokovic must be hurt by the two losses, I hope it doesn't take his chances of winning the US Open away, I'd much rather Djokovic do well in the US than Murray as Djokovic needs to catch up with Nadal. Anyway DJOKOVIC I'm cheering for you in the Olympics and US Open. Gasquet did better here but lost to Nadal the eventual winner. I think if Djokovic beat Murray he would have got the finals as Murray's game doesn't work with Nadal whilst Djokovic has better chances of winning especially when he beat him last week and also because Nadal is weaker on hard courts. Anyway to people who still don't believe Federer has gone then I don't have anything else I could say to you but face the facts. I won't talk about the Country Classics yet because they haven't finished.
The next was the Rogers Cup and yet again shocks galore. Ok in the first section Federer and Roddick were drawn together again, but who would have thought neither would get to the quaters! Federer lost to Gilles SImon this time, in actual fact he lost in his first match here! Marin Cilic (the rising Croat) was the conqueror of Roddick. Blake and Davydenko were the top seeds in section 2. Haas yet again played well whilst this time Kiefer was the man. Tursunov also yet again did well. Murray and Djokovic were drawn together whilst Safin and Ancic were also drawn in section 3. Murray showed his determination to break the shadow of Djokovic and beat him twice in a row (in actual fact I feel slightly sad that he beat him as Djokovic must be hurt by the two losses, I hope it doesn't take his chances of winning the US Open away, I'd much rather Djokovic do well in the US than Murray as Djokovic needs to catch up with Nadal. Anyway DJOKOVIC I'm cheering for you in the Olympics and US Open. Gasquet did better here but lost to Nadal the eventual winner. I think if Djokovic beat Murray he would have got the finals as Murray's game doesn't work with Nadal whilst Djokovic has better chances of winning especially when he beat him last week and also because Nadal is weaker on hard courts. Anyway to people who still don't believe Federer has gone then I don't have anything else I could say to you but face the facts. I won't talk about the Country Classics yet because they haven't finished.
Catchup on WTA Tour
Ok so I have been away for about two weeks or so well I finally got something to get onto the internet with, my cousin had this Wi-Fi, HSDPA and 3G gadget thing which he lent me. Well a lot has happened since I have been gone and I am so dissapointed I wasn't able to follow it; I will talk about each and every detail that shocked me during these weeks and I'm sure all of you would know what I am talking about.
Well let's start off from the beginning the Banka Koper Slovenia Open, Maria Kirilenko was the to seed but sadly fell to eventual winner Sara Errani. Besides that I congratule Katie O'Brien for making the second round. Now the Nordea Nordic Light Open. Radwanska was the top seed but lost to eventual winner Caroline Wozniacki. Agnes Szavay also continued her unremarkable year losing to Dushevina this time around. The main tournaments of interest are the East West Bank Classic and the Rogers Cup, both amazingly won by Dinara Safina - go girl you finally show your potential that I knew was in there.
Well first let's talk about the East West Bank Classic. Now that Justine Henin is gone I find that the womens draw is blank, anyone could win now! I think nobody is going to dominate the scene this year, maybe Sharapova will fight for the spot next year but this year I find it very gloomy unless the William's sisters have anything to say. Well Jankovic played easy opponents until Nadia Petrova got in her way (I see her as a resurgent power in the womens game currently), Jankovic was eventually stopped by Safina in a humiliating second set. Alla Kudryavtseva is also showing some promise taking her fellow russian Dinara Safina into a tense three sets. On the other side FLAVIA PENNETTA got to the final - great! I was in slight shock when I saw her name at the finalist section. Anyway that draw was weak so anyone could have come out the victor really. Sadly Nicole Vaidisova has still not found her form or she would have been able to capitalize on this weak draw. I feel so sad nowadays because she has been overtaken by fellow teens. Anyway congratulations to Bethanie Mattek and Melanie South for achieveing good results. Rogers Cup was packed with more top seeds but as I have said without the Williams or Henin the draw seems vacant.
Well where do I begin, Ivanovic as I have always said is probably the weakest No.1 (or least dominant) we have ever seen, she is not ready for this title and I think it would hurt her more than help her as the pressure will build on her to keep this title - she has also got it easy as her competition are all falling by the wayside. However it did shock me when Tamira Paszek beat her! Anyway on the other side the dominant Safina took the stage again and went straight to the finals, other notables include Flavia Pennetta who sadly lost to Larcher De Brito - probably because of fatigue. On the other side my demons began! MARION BARTOLI got to the semis!!!! Well I have to sauy it is mainly because of a weak draw, out of the top 8 Chakvetadze is the weakest to be honest and then Sugiyama is much too old to make a threat to the draws. Sharapova retiring also solidified my opinion that the womens game is weak currently. I thought with Justine gone at least Sharapova would take the spot but she looks so out of sorts lately, come on William's sisters play more - if you do I am sure that you would win most competitions you play in. However the spotlight was on Cibulkova, she thrashed Vesnina in the first round and then took out Dementieva, Petrova, Jankovic and Bartoli - a total of four seeds. As I said the womens game is the weakest I have ever seen it.
Well let's start off from the beginning the Banka Koper Slovenia Open, Maria Kirilenko was the to seed but sadly fell to eventual winner Sara Errani. Besides that I congratule Katie O'Brien for making the second round. Now the Nordea Nordic Light Open. Radwanska was the top seed but lost to eventual winner Caroline Wozniacki. Agnes Szavay also continued her unremarkable year losing to Dushevina this time around. The main tournaments of interest are the East West Bank Classic and the Rogers Cup, both amazingly won by Dinara Safina - go girl you finally show your potential that I knew was in there.
Well first let's talk about the East West Bank Classic. Now that Justine Henin is gone I find that the womens draw is blank, anyone could win now! I think nobody is going to dominate the scene this year, maybe Sharapova will fight for the spot next year but this year I find it very gloomy unless the William's sisters have anything to say. Well Jankovic played easy opponents until Nadia Petrova got in her way (I see her as a resurgent power in the womens game currently), Jankovic was eventually stopped by Safina in a humiliating second set. Alla Kudryavtseva is also showing some promise taking her fellow russian Dinara Safina into a tense three sets. On the other side FLAVIA PENNETTA got to the final - great! I was in slight shock when I saw her name at the finalist section. Anyway that draw was weak so anyone could have come out the victor really. Sadly Nicole Vaidisova has still not found her form or she would have been able to capitalize on this weak draw. I feel so sad nowadays because she has been overtaken by fellow teens. Anyway congratulations to Bethanie Mattek and Melanie South for achieveing good results. Rogers Cup was packed with more top seeds but as I have said without the Williams or Henin the draw seems vacant.
Well where do I begin, Ivanovic as I have always said is probably the weakest No.1 (or least dominant) we have ever seen, she is not ready for this title and I think it would hurt her more than help her as the pressure will build on her to keep this title - she has also got it easy as her competition are all falling by the wayside. However it did shock me when Tamira Paszek beat her! Anyway on the other side the dominant Safina took the stage again and went straight to the finals, other notables include Flavia Pennetta who sadly lost to Larcher De Brito - probably because of fatigue. On the other side my demons began! MARION BARTOLI got to the semis!!!! Well I have to sauy it is mainly because of a weak draw, out of the top 8 Chakvetadze is the weakest to be honest and then Sugiyama is much too old to make a threat to the draws. Sharapova retiring also solidified my opinion that the womens game is weak currently. I thought with Justine gone at least Sharapova would take the spot but she looks so out of sorts lately, come on William's sisters play more - if you do I am sure that you would win most competitions you play in. However the spotlight was on Cibulkova, she thrashed Vesnina in the first round and then took out Dementieva, Petrova, Jankovic and Bartoli - a total of four seeds. As I said the womens game is the weakest I have ever seen it.
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