Snap Out Of It

Oh dear. I am not happy. I am not happy AT ALL.
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Roger Federer, get your head in the game. I know you lost at Wimbledon and that was bad - but that's in the past now. This is NOW.
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It's rare that I ever speak harshly of Roger, but this is not normal. This is just not good. He never makes excuses for himself, and I need to stop making them for him. Because this is just not good enough right now.
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What will it take to get you back on track, Roger? I have no doubt that you will get back on track, because that is the kind of man you are. But I am not ready for you not to be #1 just yet. But that's out of your hands now. It's in Rafa's. And let's face it - the last few months have been in Rafa's hands.
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This may work out well in the long run, with some added rest in the leadup to the Olympics and the US Open, but that does not make it good.
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And look, no one can say that Rafa does not deserve to be #1 at this point. He has been the best player of the last few months, undoubtedly. And it would be very sad for him to have such a distinguished career and not have a little run at #1. Even Sampras only managed 286 weeks at the top, and that was not consecutive. No one has even come close to Roger's run of 235 - and no one will come close to it for a long time.
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But I am just not ready for it to be over just yet. I know Roger can get it back. I know he probably will. But I don't want him to have to.
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But I refuse to wish ill on Rafa Nadal. Because he has deserved what he has done. And he is, at this point, playing better than anyone else in the world.
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Today's Results
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Western and Southern Financial Group Masters
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Ivo Karlovic def. Roger Federer, 7-6 (8-6) 4-6 7-6 (7-5)

Rafael Nadal def. Tommy Haas, 6-4 7-6 (7-0)

Novak Djokovic def. Andreas Seppi, 6-1 6-2

Ernests Gulbis def. James Blake, 6-4 1-6 6-3

Andy Murray def. Dmitry Tursunov, 6-3 6-3

Nicolas Lapentti def. Fernando Verdasco, 6-3 7-5

Philipp Kohlschreiber def. Robin Soderling, 7-6 (7-4) 5-7 7-6 (12-10)

Carlos Moya def. Igor Andreev, 6-4 7-6 (7-2)

Carlos Moya def. Nikolay Davydenko, 7-6 (10-8) 4-6 6-2

Rafael Nadal def. Florent Serra, 6-0 6-1

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Rogers Cup (Montreal)

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Tamira Paszek def. Ana Ivanovic, 6-2 1-6 6-2

Jelena Jankovic def. Stéphanie Dubois, 6-3 6-2

Svetlana Kuznetsova def. Michelle Larcher de Brito, 7-5 2-6 6-4

Marion Bartoli def. Anna Chakvetadze, 4-6 7-5 7-6 (7-4)

Dinara Safina def. Patty Schnyder, 6-2 6-2

Victoria Azarenka def. Virginie Razzano, 7-6 (7-4) 2-0 retired

Dominika Cibulkova def. Nadia Petrova, 7-6 (7-2) 6-2

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Nordea Nordic Light Open (Stockholm)

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Caroline Wozniacki def. Emma Laine, 6-1 6-0

Anabel Medina Garrigues def. Barbora Zahlavova Strycova, 6-1 6-0

Iveta Benesova def. Sania Mirza, 4-6 6-3 6-3

Camille Pin def. Johanna Larsson, 6-3 6-2

Virginia Ruano Pascual def. Maria Elena Camerin, 6-3 6-2

Flying the Gulbis Flag

Well, Arnaud Clement, who somehow accidentally became my pick for the final due to Stan withdrawing and me not realising, has lost. Surprise, surprise. So looks like I won't be winning the bracket challenge this time. I'm still doing pretty well, though - 139th out of 11,000 odd. Go me.

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Of course, the boy Arnaud lost to is one of my favourite Stars of the Future, Ernests Gulbis. I was flying my Cilic flag all last week, but Ernests is getting raised up the Stars flagpole this week, I think. It was a tight match - third set tiebreaker - but Clement is a wily old fox and I'm very proud of Ernests for winning. Even if my bracket is now dead in the water.

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Ernests will meet the winner of the Blake/Simon match... which has been played, and is Blake. So the Simon Streak (tm) has faded away a bit. That should be an interesting match... actually, didn't Gulbis beat Blake at the French Open? That's over five sets, which makes it a bit different, but if the kid can do it once...

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Another player who has been impressive lately is Mr Maria Kirilenko, Igor Andreev. He beat John Isner today - and with the Isner serve, that's not exactly a cakewalk. Andreev has made, what, two finals in the recent future? My bracket has him reaching the semis, and though I got the other half of the draw wrong - Wawrinka/Cilic, which somehow became Clement/Cilic without me noticing - I could get this one right, because I picked Federer/Andreev, and that's a real possibility. Igor will play the winner of Davydenko/Moya, which you'd probably guess would be Davydenko... but Kolya hasn't been that great lately. If Carlos can't take him, I bet Igor will.

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Meanwhile, Dmitry Tursunov just put a major beatdown on Richard Gasquet. The first set was tight - a breaker, in fact - but the second set was a bagel blowout. I guess Richou will have to go back to whimpering under the bed... for the duration of the whole Olympics, because he's too cool to go.

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And what is with Gael Monfils retiring? Does he ever play even half of the tournaments he enters? Blink and you miss him, but not because he loses - because he freaking retires. I hate that. Do you know how many times Roger Federer has retired in his career on the ATP circuit? Zero. Not once. That is because he is an EXCELLENT SPORT.

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Speaking of people that retire all the time, Djokovic won his match in two breakers. Ugh.

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Today's Results

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Western and Southern Financial Group Masters (Cincinatti)

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Igor Andreev def. Radek Stepanek, 7-6 (7-4) 6-7 (4-7) 7-6 (7-3)

Philipp Kohlschreiber def. Woong-Sun Jun, 6-2 6-2

Novak Djokovic def. Simone Bolelli, 7-6 (7-2) 7-6 (7-2)

Nicolas Lapentti def. David Ferrer, 7-6 (7-2) 3-6 6-3

James Blake def. Gilles Simon, 6-4 6-3

Andy Murray def. Sam Querrey, 7-6 (7-3) 6-1

Ernests Gulbis def. Arnaud Clement, 6-4 3-6 7-6 (7-5)

Tommy Haas def. Gael Monfils, 5-1 retired

Andreas Seppi def. Tomas Berdych, 5-7 7-5 7-5

Igor Andreev def. John Isner, 3-6 7-6 (10-8) 7-5

Dmitry Tursunov def. Richard Gasquet, 7-6 (10-8) 6-0

Fernando Verdasco def. Chris Guccione, 7-6 (7-4) 7-6 (7-4)

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Rogers Cup (Montreal)

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Ana Ivanovic def. Petra Kvitova, 6-3 4-6 6-3

Anna Chakvetadze def. Jill Craybas, 6-2 7-5

Dinara Safina def. Anastasia Rodionova, 6-2 6-4

Patty Schnyder def. Monica Niculescu, 6-1 7-5

Marion Bartoli def. Alisa Kleybanova, walkover

Victoria Azarenka def. Sybille Bammer, 6-2 6-2

Nadia Petrova def. Tamarine Tanasugarn, 6-3 6-2

Stéphanie Dubois def. Maria Kirilenko, 6-2 2-6 7-6 (7-4)

Michelle Larcher de Brito def. Flavia Pennetta, 6-3 0-6 6-3

Ai Sugiyama def. Shahar Peer, 6-2 6-2

Tamira Paszek def. Melinda Czink, 6-4 7-5

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Nordea Nordic Light Open (Stockholm)

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Agnieszka Radwanska def. Mariya Koryttseva, 6-1 6-1

Vera Dushevina def. Agnes Szavay, 6-4 7-6 (8-6)

Katarina Srebotnik def. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, 6-3 6-4

Sania Mirza def. Emilie Loit, 6-3 6-2

Gear Shift

I am very, very glad that I wasn't around watching the scores when Federer played Ginepri. I think I might just have exploded. Roger Federer does NOT lose three times in a row.

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Luckily, he didn't, for anyone who might not have seen the result yet. The first two sets were tie-breakers, Ginepri winning the first, Federer the second, with a big ol' bagel in the third. So the real Roger, the awesome Roger, is clearly still there. The talent hasn't gone away, nor the ability, nor the fitness, nor the anything. He's just having a few issues with his gear shift. And I'm pretty confident he can sort that out.

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And to tell the truth, I'd be worried if he were playing Supreme Almighty God Tennis in the first round anyway. That would be a sure sign of peaking too early.

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He's facing Karlovic in the next round, which I think should be a really good match for him. Karlovic has that huge serve, but otherwise plays reasonably predictable percentage tennis. I think it'll give R-Fed a bit of a chance to work himself out and settle down a bit - before the inevitable glorious future.

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Meanwhile, my bracket is totally shot... as I somehow now seem to have picked Clement to reach the final, as Stan has disappeared mysteriously from the draw. I have this vague sensation that that... oh, I don't know, maybe won't happen? I'm still doing all right at the moment, but Cilic lost, and I picked him to reach the semis. I hope Stan is all right... he is important to Roger and the doubles and Switzerland and stuff! And also he is a nice boy in his own right.

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But seriously, Clement/Cilic disaster aside, I am still doing pretty all right on this bracket thing. I have 22 points - the leaders have 26. That's not too bad. I really am getting better at it! Though I will inevitably lose 90,000 million points when Clement loses. Though it would be pretty neat if he made it to the final. I would look really smart, and it wouldn't even have anything to do with me!

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A good win for our Mr Moya as well, taking out ever-dangerous Tipsarevic - also picked in the Jodi Bracket of Excellence, though perhaps more from wishful thinking than anything else. Still, sometimes wishful thinking does the job done. Carlos doesn't seem to have been doing that well this year, but he's still hanging about in the top thirty, so he must be doing something right. Good on him. I like Carlos. He's my poster boy for thirty-something tennis.

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And Dmitry beat Marat, which was always going to be bittersweet. I had picked Marat, but no one can say Dima didn't deserve it. I would really like to see him make a big run for it at this year's US Open. He is so talented and so good on hard courts that it's almost surprising he hasn't gone hugely deep at the US or the Australian before. But I have a wee feeling... and we know my feelings aren't always to be trusted, as they get mixed up with wishful thinking, but sometimes they're right on the money.

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Oh, and meanwhile, I SO don't believe this. Roddick has just pulled out, to be replaced with Woong-Sun Jun. I bet that American crowd watching those two warm up is super thrilled about that. What's wrong now, Andy? Is this all about US Open preparation too?

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And on a nicer note, congrats to Chris Guccione. I didn't know he was even in the draw, but he totally won his match today. Though speaking of Australians... where's Lleyton? Is he doing that thing he does where he doesn't play any tournaments except Slams? Because I don't like that thing at all.

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Today's Results

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Western and Southern Financial Group Masters (Cincinatti)

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Roger Federer def. Robby Ginepri, 6-7 (2-7) 7-6 (7-5) 6-0

Jose Acasuso def. Paul Capdeville, 5-7 6-2 6-2

Dmitry Tursunov def. Marat Safin, 7-6 (7-5) 6-4

Gael Monfils def. Donald Young, 6-1 6-1

Carlos Moya def. Janko Tipsarevic, 7-6 (7-5)

John Isner def. Andrea Stoppini, 7-6 (7-2) 6-3

Richard Gasquet def. Michael Llodra, 3-6 6-1 1-0 retired

Gilles Simon def. Rajeev Ram, 7-6 (7-5) 6-4

Arnaud Clement def. Thomas Johansson, 7-6 (7-4) 6-7 (5-7) 6-3

Simone Bolelli def. Kevin Anderson, 6-3 7-6 (7-1)

Nicolas Lapentti def. Marin Cilic, 7-6 (7-5) 6-2

Chris Guccione def. Jesse Levine, 6-3 6-4

Fernando Verdasco def. Victor Estrella, 6-3 7-5

Florent Serra def. Benjamin Becker, 4-6 7-6 (8-6) 6-4

Ivo Karlovic def. Jose Acasuso, 6-3 7-6 (7-3)

Robin Soderling def. Tommy Robredo, 7-6 (8-6) 6-4

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Rogers Cup (Montreal)

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Svetlana Kuznetsova def. Alla Kudryavtseva, 6-1 1-0 retired

Victoria Azarenka def. Jamea Jackson, 6-1 6-1

Nadia Petrova def. Marie-Ève Pelletier, 6-0 6-1

Maria Kirilenko def. Anne Keothavong, 6-1 7-5

Flavia Pennetta def. Olga Savchuk, 1-6 7-5 6-3

Ai Sugiyama def. Nicole Vaidisova, 6-3 3-6 6-2

Sybille Bammer def. Monique Adamczak, 6-7 (6-8) 6-1 6-2

Alisa Kleybanova def. Ahsha Rolle, 6-4 6-2

Jill Craybas def. Sharon Fichman, 6-4 6-3

Marta Domachowska def. Bethanie Mattek, 7-5 6-2

Melinda Czink def. Julie Ditty, 7-6 (7-4) 6-0

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Nordea Nordic Light Open (Stockholm)

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Agnieszka Radwanska def. Nathalie Dechy, 6-2 6-3

Katarina Srebotnik def. Anna Lapushchenkova, 6-2 6-1

Caroline Wozniacki def. Angelique Kerber, 6-3 6-4

Anabel Medina Garrigues def. Sandra Roma, 6-3 6-1

Maria Elena Camerin def. Marina Erakovic, 6-3 6-4

Mariya Koryttseva def. Ekaterina Makarova, 6-3 6-4

Vera Dushevina def. Lucie Safarova, 7-6 (7-4) 6-3

Virginia Ruano Pascual def. María José Martínez Sánchez, 3-6 7-6 (7-5) 6-2

Barbora Zahlavova Strycova def. Petra Cetkovska, 6-4 6-7 (2-7) 6-4

Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova def. Ekaterina Bychkova, 6-4 3-6 6-1

Johanna Larsson def. Julia Goerges, 3-6 7-6 (7-5) 6-4

Incy Wincy Cincy

No rest for the wicked - or the tennis players of the world. I'm not sure how I feel about all the Masters Series events being clustered up like this. They come in wee groups - Indian Wells/Miami, Monte Carlo/Rome/Hamburg, Toronto/Cincinatti, Madrid/Paris. Is this really the best way to play them - bang bang bang?

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Geographically, it makes sense, I suppose, to keep the tour in one place at a time. But that does raise a whole other issue - why are four out of these nine major events in North America? Especially considering they get their own Slam too? And the other five are in Europe - how 'bout them other continents, eh? Even the Masters Cup will be in Europe soon, when it shifts to London next year. As a representative of the Asia Pacific - apparently the Australian Open is the Slam of the Asia Pacific, which I only learned recently - I'm a tiny bit disgruntled.

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But, unfortunately, my opinion means very little. Just like the Asia Pacific, apparently. And South America. And Africa.

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But... onto tennis. And can I say that I am OWNING the bracket challenge at the moment. I know it's only Monday, but still! Ownage! I am 58th out of 11471 - which I think basically means second, as I have nine points and the leaders have ten. The only match I picked wrong was Bellucci/Karlovic. I went with Star of the Future Bellucci, but Star of the Present Karlovic got him. In straights. Oops.

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But still, I got all the rest of them right! How good am I!? Even Kohlschreiber didn't let me down, and he ALWAYS lets me down. Haas pulled his upset over Youzhny, just like he was supposed to. Same with Berdych over Gonzalez, Querrey over Mathieu and Gulbis over Nieminen. And Soderling is looking good - maybe he'll do better this week. My bracket has him survive till he runs in with Federer. Because the Rog is going to win this week. I feel it in my bones - and I'm pretty sure it's not wishful thinking.

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I've picked a Roger/Stan final, which I think might be wishful thinking, because Stan is in the same half as Rafa and Novak, and he'd be due to meet said Novak in the quarters. But I believe in Stan. He's a good boy. My four semi finalists are Roger, Andreev, Stan and Cilic. I believe in Marin too.

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Speaking of Stars of the Future, Gulbis had a win today - as predicted by yours truly! Unfortunately, he meets Stan in the next round, and I don't know if he's up to beating the Swissie just yet. But still... nice work Ernests. We're going to be seeing a lot more of that boy in the future. If I haven't said it enough.

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The Safin/Tursunov match is just about to start, and that one's going to be really interesting. I've picked Marat to win, but either way, one of my boys is going to come through. Unfortunately, one of them isn't, but them's the breaks, I guess...

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And on a brief digression to women's tennis - shocking, I know! - may I ask just why Agnes Szavay is playing the Tier IV event in Stockholm rather than the Tier I in Montreal? Something is just not right with that. She's top twenty, yesno? She should be where the big guns are. Pfft. I am unimpressed.

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Today's Results

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Western and Southern Financial Group Masters (Cincinatti)

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Robby Ginepri def. Jonas Bjorkman, 6-0 7-6 (7-5)

Ivo Karlovic def. Thomaz Bellucci, 6-3 6-4

Tommy Robredo def. Mardy Fish, 6-2 6-2

Robin Soderling def. Julien Benneteau, 6-0 6-3

Philipp Kohlschreiber def. Michael Yani, 6-3 6-4

Sam Querrey def. Paul-Henri Mathieu, 6-4 4-6 6-3

Ernests Gulbis def. Jarkko Nieminen, 7-6 (9-7) 6-2

Tomas Berdych def. Fernando Gonzalez, 6-3 3-6 6-3

Andreas Seppi def. Feliciano Lopez, 7-5 7-5

Tommy Haas def. Mikhail Youzhny, 7-6 (7-2) 2-6 6-4

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Rogers Cup (Montreal)

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Marion Bartoli def. Melanie South, 6-3 6-7 (5-7) 6-0

Virginie Razzano def. Aravane Rezai, 6-1 6-2

Dominika Cibulkova def. Elena Vesnina, 6-1 6-1

Petra Kvitova def. Aiko Nakamura, 6-2 6-4

Monica Niculescu def. Varvara Lepchenko, 6-1 6-2

Michelle Larcher de Brito def. Vania King, 2-6 6-3 6-3

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Nordea Nordic Light Open (Stockholm)

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Agnes Szavay def. Yanina Wickmayer, 7-5 7-6 (7-2)

Camille Pin def. Kateryna Bondarenko, 6-4 7-6 (7-3)

Iveta Benesova def. Tatiana Perebiynis, 6-2 6-2

Emma Laine def. Alexandra Panova, 6-1 6-3

The Ship Sails On

So Rafa won. How nice. For him.

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Ahem.

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Seriously, I really do like Rafa. I'm just not doing a very good imitation of it at the moment.

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It was a weird tournament... Rafa faced no top ten players the whole tournament. The closest he came was Andy Murray - actually, is Andy Murray top ten yet? Sometimes he is, sometimes he isn't. I always forget. So here's hoping Cincy is a bit different. I have my fingers crossed, that's for sure!

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And there still is time for the annual Rafa slump... he won this tournament in 2005 and still had a slump. I'm waiting for it, Rafa. Please. For Roger's sake.

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Oh God. What a horrible thing to say. Sorry, Rafa.

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Go Roger. That's a bit nicer, I think.

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Our poster girl Dinara Safina went on to win the tournament in Los Angeles, which is happier news. She took out Flavia Pennetta in the final in straight sets. She's looking good, looking dangerous. I reiterate my US Open prediction.

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I should do gold medal predictions too, hey! Roger Federer (duh.) And... hmmm. One of the Serbian girls. Actually, no. I'm going to be a bit daring and say Svetlana Kuznetsova. Sveta is due for a big win this year. Roger and Sveta. What do we think of this?

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Oh, and congratulations to Sara Errani for winning the tournament in Portoroz - which is her second victory in a row!

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Today's Results

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Rogers Masters (Toronto)

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Rafael Nadal def. Nicolas Kiefer, 6-3 6-2

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East West Bank Classic (Los Angeles)

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Dinara Safina def. Flavia Pennetta, 6-4 6-2

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Banka Koper Slovenia Open (Portoroz)

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Sara Errani def. Anabel Medina Garrigues, 6-3 6-3

Ladies and Gentlemen, Miss Dinara Safina

How 'bout that Dinara Safina, eh? This has been SUCH a career year for her. If anyone is the #1 slayer this year, it is her. Who was it that defeated Justine Henin in her last ever match? They would be Dinara. Who slew Maria Sharapova, the new #1, in an epic fourth round match at Roland Garros to take that ranking away? D-Saf again. And now, who has ruined Jelena Jankovic's chances of becoming #1 this week? Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Miss Dinara Safina.

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Dinara is still a long way off becoming #1 herself - about 1600 points, in fact - but she is doing all the right things right now. She is gaining that thing which has been so elusive for her elder brother Marat - consistency. How many finals have we seen Dinara in this year? It's been quite a few. I don't follow women's tennis all that much, but even I've noticed that it's been a few.

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Winning that Tier I tournament in Berlin just before the French Open was a real turning point for Dinara, I think. She has never really looked back. That narrow defeat in the third round of Wimbledon could have destroyed her confidence, but clearly she hasn't let it. She has just beat Jelena Jankovic - and that is not easy to do, especially considering Jelena is so close to being #1 she can practically smell it. Who would have picked Dinara Safina to make the French Open final? Not me, certainly - but I am so glad she did! She is my favourite women's player right now.

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In fact, I'm going to make a bold, sweeping statement. The winners of the US Open this year will be Roger Federer and Dinara Safina. I have spoken. So shall it be.

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Over in Toronto, we have a Nadal/Kiefer final. I don't know if anyone picked that final. Nadal, maybe, but not Kiwi. I'm not a huge Kiwi fan, but this has got to be so good for him - and he really has showed some grit in coming back from that debilitating injury. And even though I do like the Raf, I think I'm going to be cheering for Kiwi. Because I don't want Rafa gaining any more nasty rankings points, even if he does deserve them. Because my heart belongs to Roger.

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Even still... better Rafa than Novak! I would like to point out that Roger is not the only one losing points this week - Novak will lose a hefty swag as well. Add that to the hefty swag he lost at Wimbledon, and... it might just be all about the Big Two again. This Big Three thing might have been a bit of a flash in the pan. Djokovic is still miles ahead of Davydenko and Ferrer, but the gap is narrowing, just a bit. And I like that. Djokovic is the anti-Federer, in my books... what is bad for Roger will always be good for Novak, in my books! If Roger had to drop points this week, I am very glad he wasn't alone.

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Yes, I am a horrible person, wishing ill on a tennis player I've never even met. At least I know it.

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Today's Results

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Rogers Masters (Toronto)

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Rafael Nadal def. Andy Murray, 7-6 (7-2) 6-3

Nicolas Kiefer def. Gilles Simon, 6-7 (4-7) 6-3 7-6 (7-5)

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East West Bank Classic (Los Angeles)

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Dinara Safina def. Jelena Jankovic, 7-6 (7-3) 6-1

Flavia Pennetta def. Bethanie Mattek, 3-6 6-2 7-5

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Banka Koper Slovenia Open (Portoroz)

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Sara Errani def. Caroline Wozniacki, 6-4 6-4

Anabel Medina Garrigues def. Julia Goerges, 6-3 2-6 6-4

To Be Due

So Cilic lost. So now I have nothing left in this tournament, pretty much. My bracket is pretty much destructo. Not one of my four semi final picks made it through. I was pretty certain with Federer at least... but alas, these things happen. Think of the Olympics. Think of the Olympics.

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My picks were Federer, Youzhny, Soderling and Ferrer. Instead, we have Simon (who beat my Marin!), Kiefer, Murray and Nadal. Not the four you would have picked - and indeed, I picked none of them. I like Rafa, but I really, really wish he hadn't made it through. My heart belongs to Roger, and I do not like this threat to the #1 ranking, no, I do not.

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You've got to have your money on Rafa winning the tournament now, but both Federer and Djokovic have suffered 'odd' losses this tournament... Djokovic's potentially a little less odd, but you'd normally put your money on him over Andy Murray any day. We all know my extreme loathing for Djokovic, but did it have to be Andy Murray that beat him? I don't like Andy Murray either, and I really want to go for him in the semis because I don't want Rafa to win because of the Roger thing but I just cannot justify it to myself.

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Oh, the drama of things I am in no way involved in.

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Wouldn't it be nice, though, for some random to win the tournament? I'm still bearing some ill will against Simon for the whole Federer thing, but it wouldn't be so bad if he were to go on and win. Hell, it might even make me feel better about the whole Federer thing. Or Kiefer. I'm not a huge Kiwi fan, but he has worked so hard coming back from that injury that it might be a nice reward. Or, sigh, Murray. He really deserves a big tournament win - he's not had one yet, not a BIG tournament.

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Ironically, of these four, I like Rafa the best. But I desperately, desperately want him not to win. Because I will always like Roger more. (Not to be confused with Roger Moore... oh, what an awful pun.)

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But Djokovic lost. And oh, that made my day.

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Today's Results

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Rogers Masters (Toronto)

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Richard Gasquet def. David Ferrer, 6-3 6-3

Nicolas Kiefer def. James Blake, 6-1 6-2

Gilles Simon def. Marin Cilic, 3-6 6-2 6-3

Andy Murray def. Novak Djokovic, 6-3 7-6 (7-3)

Rafael Nadal def. Richard Gasquet, 6-7 (10-12) 6-2 6-1

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East West Bank Classic (Los Angeles)

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Jelena Jankovic def. Nadia Petrova, 7-5 6-4

Dinara Safina def. Victoria Azarenka, 6-3 6-1

Flavia Pennetta def. Sybille Bammer, 7-6 (7-3) 3-6 6-1

Bethanie Mattek def. Yuan Meng, 6-2 7-5

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Banka Koper Slovenia Open (Portoroz)

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Sara Errani def. Maria Kirilenko, 6-1 7-5

Caroline Wozniacki def. Vera Dushevina, 6-0 6-1

Anabel Medina Garrigues def. Elena Bovina, 6-3 6-2

Julia Goerges def. Petra Martic, 6-3 4-6 6-4

Think of the Olympics

I don't want to talk about the Federer loss. I don't even want to think about it. So well done, Gilles Simon. I hate you a lot right now, but well done. And now Roger's out of the doubles too. Oh well... All the more time to prepare for Cincy and the Olympics, I suppose. Sigh.

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And Marat's out too, and Dmitry. And Stan. All my boys are gone. Not a good week for me... my bracket bites now. I'm going for whoever beats Djokovic. Oh, and also praying Rafa doesn't win the tournament. I'm carefully ignoring anything to do with points and the race for #1, but I know that this isn't really very good.

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Actually, I'm going for Cilic. He's done me proud this tournament, upsetting Roddick like that. He's a good kid. Star of the Future, I say! Star of the Future! I've always been harping on and on about Gulbis as the biggest possible Star of the Future, but I am liking Marin Cilic more and more. I want him to win the tournament. Wouldn't that be something else! Actually, Djokovic and Nadal are in the same half, so with Federer out - sob - we're going to have at least one random finalist. How about Cilic, eh? He faces Simon in the next round - that bastard - and I will be cheering for Marin all the way. If I can't have a Federer victory, I'll settle for a new guy breaking through.

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Sigh. Stupid tennis. Stupid Simon. I'm just going to think of the Olympics and how fresh Roger will be. Think of the Olympics. Oh yeah.

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Given as I refuse to write about Federer as I'll upset myself, I don't actually have a whole lot to say today. Go Marin. Go you good thing.

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Today's Reuslts

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Rogers Masters (Toronto)

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Gilles Simon def. Roger Federer, 2-6 7-5 6-4

Jose Acasuso def. Fernando Gonzalez, 6-3 3-6 6-3

Nikolay Davydenko def. Tommy Haas, 6-3 7-6 (8-6)

Nicolas Kiefer def. Mikhail Youzhny, 7-6 (7-4) 7-5

James Blake def. Jonas Bjorkman, 1-6 6-1 6-2

Stanislas Wawrinka def. Marat Safin, 6-3 6-4

Rafael Nadal def. Igor Andreev, 6-2 7-6 (7-1)

Novak Djokovic def. Robin Soderling, 6-4 6-4

Nicolas Kiefer def. Nikolay Davydenko, 4-6 6-4 6-4

Marin Cilic def. Andy Roddick, 6-4 4-6 6-4

James Blake def. Dmitry Tursunov, 4-6 6-1 6-4

Andy Murray def. Stainslas Wawrinka, 6-2 0-6 6-4

Gilles Simon def. Jose Acasuso, 6-3 6-4

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East West Bank Classis (Los Angeles)

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Sybille Bammer def. Anna Chakvetadze, 6-4 5-7 6-2

Nadia Petrova def. Vera Zvonareva, 6-4 7-5

Victoria Azarenka def. Samantha Stosur, 6-4 7-6 (7-4)

Flavia Pennetta def. Ai Sugiyama, 7-6 (7-5) 6-3

Yuan Meng def. Melanie South, 6-2 6-3

Jelena Jankovic def. Melinda Czink, 6-3 6-2

Bethanie Mattek def. Olga Govortsova, 7-5 6-2

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Banka Koper Slovenia Open (Portoroz)

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Maria Kirilenko def. Roberta Vinci, 6-1 6-2

Julia Goerges def. Katarina Srebotnik, 6-4 6-2

Sara Errani def. Mara Santangelo, 6-2 6-4

Elena Bovina def. Camille Pin, 6-3 5-7 7-6 (8-6)

The Good Ship Rafa

Well, the good ship Rafa seems to be on course. I wouldn't call it a demolition - not with Rafa, who knows all about demo jobs - but he pretty handily dismantled Jesse Levine. I mean, Levine is hardly a top ten player, but a good player is a good player. Rafa's looking good. This is when he normally starts to fade off - but things have been different for the Raf this year, what with the - oh, don't make me say it - Wimbledon victory. Maybe he can keep it up. Who knows.

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I like Rafa, and I like him a lot, but I like Federer more, and so I'm hopinh against hope that the traditional fade starts to kick in. Not that Federer can't overcome Nadal, but it would be nice if Nadal sort of overcame himself. Rafa's got the winner of Andreev and Berdych in the next round - they're neck and neck in the third at the moment, so whoever it is might be a little tired, I suppose... but let's get real. If any tennis player is all fatigued after a three set match there's something a little amiss. In Slams I can understand if you back up on huge five setters - kind of like Djokovic (spit spit) in Wimbledon last year, with the Hewitt/Baghdatis double. Either Andreev or Berdych should give Rafa a better game than Jesse 'who?' Levine, methinks... though I still like Rafa to win. My bracket says so! Beware of Ferrer, remember. That's when the problems will start. Mark my words.

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And... watch Rafa go on to win the tournament. And he'll face Andreev in the third round, who just pulled it out over Berdych. Guess it's bye bye to blogger boy... he's not playing doubles, is he? But it is another victory for the Jodi Bracket!

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But things are looking up vis a vis my bracket. I mean, I still suck, but as we go a little deeper into the tournament, I'm getting better at picking. And you heard it here first - Cilic over Robredo. Did I not say that would happen? And did it not happen just as I said? That would be 6-3 6-4, wham, bam, thank you ma'am. The bracket is looking better. Jodi says Cilic is a Star of the Future. Watch him start to shine. That's my boy Marin. And my semi-final pick Soderling just upset Nando Verdasco. Maybe I'm not so dumb, eh?

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Actually, I did really well on the Davydenko/Blake quarter - I only got one wrong, where I picked Ancic over Dancevic... and then Djokovic beat Dancevic, going through to the third round, just as I predicted. Here's hoping I can keep up my good run.

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There's actually not a whole lot of matches to write about, as there was six hours of rain delay before play started. The meat of the matches are going on now as I write this, at about 9am Australian time. Still, it means I get to watch the scores (oh, what a treat) and feel like I'm at the cutting edge of tennis... at least until my boss gets here.

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Oh, before I go... kudos to my Russian boys. Dmitry and Marat are both looking good! Dmitry we knew was good, what with the Indy final last week, but Marat is always the question mark. Querrey is a dangerous player, and Marat took care of business in straight sets like a real champ. And speaking of dangerous players, Dima just took out Feliciano 'Fidgiano' Lopez in straight sets! Davai, boys! And also to Dinara, who won her match in LA. See, look, women's tennis! I mention it... occasionally.

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Today's Results

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Rogers Cup (Toronto)

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Rafael Nadal def. Jesse Levine, 6-4 6-2

David Ferrer def. Robby Ginepri, 6-4 6-4

Marin Cilic def. Tommy Robredo, 6-3 6-4

Dmitry Tursunov def. Nicolas Lapentti, 6-3 6-4

Marat Safin def. Sam Querrey, 6-3 6-3

Novak Djokovic def. Frank Dancevic, 6-4 6-4

Igor Andreev def. Tomas Berdych, 6-4 3-6 6-4

Robin Soderling def. Fernando Verdasco, 6-4 6-7 (4-7) 6-4

Dmitry Tursunov def. Feliciano Lopez, 6-3 7-6 (8-6)

Richard Gasquet def. Alexandre Kudryavtsev, 7-5 6-3

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East West Bank Classic (Los Angeles)

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Dinara Safina def. Peng Shuai, 6-2 6-2

Ai Sugiyama def. Patty Schnyder, 6-4 7-5

Victoria Azarenka def. Chan Yung-Jan, 6-1 6-3

Nadia Petrova def. Akgul Amanmuradova, 6-1 3-6 6-1

Bethanie Mattek def. Nicole Vaidisova, 6-4 6-0

Sybille Bammer def. Stéphanie Dubois, 6-3 7-5

Samantha Stosur def. Regina Kulikova, 7-6 (7-4) 7-5

Melanie South def. Petra Kvitova, 6-4 6-2

Melinda Czink def. Olga Savchuk, 6-4 2-6 6-4

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Banka Koper Slovenia Open (Portoroz)

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Caroline Wozniacki def. Karolina Sprem, 6-1 6-1

Anabel Medina Garrigues def. Julia Vakulenko, 6-4 6-4

Petra Martic def. Klara Zakopalova, 6-3 4-6 7-6 (7-3)

Vera Dushevina def. Katie O'Brien, 6-3 6-2

Bracket Woes

My sucky run at the bracket challenge continues. I got a few more right than I did yesterday, but still nothing to write home about. I'm usually pretty decent at making predictions once we get to the quarter finals, etc, but the first round... well, stands to show it's pretty bad. No major upsets or anything. Just me picking wrong among the little guys.

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Though some of these first round matches were hardly matches of the little guys. How often have you seen Jarkko Nieminen and Tomas Berdych play in the first round of a major event? That might just be to the left side of never. There is real depth in men's tennis when these two can meet in a first round. That one was a tall order.

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Berdych was the one that walked away the victor - obviously, I picked Nieminen. I should just start picking the opposite of who I think is going to win and then maybe I'll do better. I really hope this is the beginning of a return to form for Tomas - who is this week's ATP blogger - because I really think he has an excellent game, even if he is, as discussed here at length, a perennial underwhelmer.

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Meanwhile, what has happened to Carlos Moya? To my eyes, he's had a pretty ordinary year, but he's still floating about at #28, so he can't be doing that badly. But #28 or not, looks like he got a bit pulverised by Tommy Haas. Haas has been looking quite good lately - maybe he's going to make a run for it in this tournament. Let's have a look at his draw... he's up against Davydenko next round. Sensible people would put their money on Kolya, but I could see Haas coming through it if he plays like he did today. Indeed, I have picked him to come through in my bracket... which is probably a sure sign he is going to lose. But let's say that I actually manage to get one right and he does - he would face the winner of Kiefer and Youzhny, which one would think would be Youzhny. That could be an interesting match up indeed...

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Another player impressing me of late - well, of last week - is Gilles Simon, who won in Indy and who won his first round match against Donald Young pretty handily, but I don't see him coming through the second round... he's up against the big man, R-Fed. And we all know how I'm cheering there.

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My semi final pick Soderling made it through, as did Igor Andreev. I also picked the minor upset victory of Feliciano Lopez over Radek Stepanek, which I was pleased about, because we all know Stepanek is kind of weird. One second round match which I think is going to be very intriguing is Tommy Robredo against Marin Cilic... Robredo is a good player and all, but I think I like Cilic to come through this one. He has impressed me a whole lot of late. And considering Ernests Gulbis went out in the first round, I have to have one young gun to follow, and he really is the only one left, as Thomaz Bellucci went out as well. Meanwhile, Philipp Kohlschreiber just lost to Alexandre Kudryavtsev in straight sets. First, I would like to say, who? Is he some relation to Sharapova-slaying tuxedo-hating Alla Kudryavtseva? And secondly, I really need to stop overestimating Philipp Kohlschreiber, as I invariably get disappointed.

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Not a whole lot of doubles action today - actually, they only had one match yesterday and two today. How are they planning to squeeze it all in? Two teams I had talked about as intriguing both went out - the French duo of Gasquet and Mahut to the Murray brothers, which was hardly surprising... oh, I bet Richou loved that. He must hate Andy Murray so much now after Wimbledon. And then Nieminen and Ferrer went out to Mathieu and Youzhny. Quite why Mathieu and Youzhny are playing together is beyond me, but they obviously seem to have something going for them.

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Today's Results

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Rogers Cup (Toronto)

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Feliciano Lopez def. Radek Stepanek, 4-6 6-3 6-4

Andy Roddick def. Nicolas Mahut, 6-1 6-7 (6-8) 6-3

Alexandre Kudryavtsev def. Philipp Kohlschreiber, 6-2 7-6 (9-7)

Fernando Verdasco def. Thomaz Bellucci, 1-6 6-3 6-2

Tomas Berdych def. Jarkko Nieminen, 6-3 6-1

Tommy Haas def. Carlos Moya, 6-3 6-2

Igor Andreev def. Gael Monfils, 7-6 (7-5) 7-6 (7-3)

Gilles Simon def. Donald Young, 6-1 6-3

Marin Cilic def. Lukas Dlouhy, 6-3 4-6 6-3

Jesse Levine def. Peter Polansky, 6-2 6-4

Robin Soderling def. Guillermo Canas, 7-5 6-1

Thomas Johansson def. Andrey Golubev, 7-6 (7-4) 6-1

Jonas Bjorkman def. Arnaud Clement, 6-3 3-6 6-0

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East West Bank Classic (Los Angeles)

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Nadia Petrova def. Alina Jidkova, 6-0 6-4

Flavia Pennetta def. Aleksandra Wozniak, 6-1 6-0

Dominika Cibulkova def. Monica Niculescu, 6-4 6-3

Peng Shuai def. Julie Ditty, 6-4 6-2

Regina Kulikova def. Elena Vesnina, 6-4 4-6 6-2

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Banka Koper Slovenia Open (Portoroz)

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Maria Kirilenko def. Nika Ozegovic, 6-1 6-1

Katarina Srebotnik def. Sanda Mamic, 6-2 6-2

Camille Pin def. Marina Erakovic, 7-5 5-7 6-3

Sara Errani def. Maria Elena Camerin, 6-7 (4-7) 6-2 6-1

Roberta Vinci def. Alberta Brianti, 6-1 6-3

Julia Goerges def. Ekaterina Bychkova, 6-4 6-3

Mara Santangelo def. Yanina Wickmayer, 4-6 7-6 (7-2) 6-4

Karolina Sprem def. Evgeniya Rodina, 4-6 6-3 6-3

Elena Bovina def. Tatiana Perebiynis, 6-3 6-4

Double Speed

Well, I guess we all know where I'm going to start, because Federer was in action yesterday. He and Stan Wawrinka look like they're getting their groove on with the doubles - they made pretty light work of Julien Benneteau and Frederic Niemeyer. That said, Benneteau and Niemeyer aren't exactly the Bryans... but this is Roger and Stan's first team win! Obviously it is cause for bigtime celebration!

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It will be interesting to see how they go against a 'proper' doubles team - they meet Paes and Dlouhy in the next round. But I have faith in the Rog/Stan combo. They will be AWESOME!

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Oh yeah. Roddick and Fish won too. Against Clement and Llodra. I think Clement and Llodra are awesome, so I was sad.

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I don't know if you'd call Clement and Llodra a specialist doubles team, as they both have pretty successful singles careers, but they've won a Slam and they're pretty decent. And Roddick and Fish beat them in straight sets. Would the realm of doubles be a lot different if the top guys played more often? I'm not sure if singles success always translates onto the doubles court - I mean, tennis is tennis, but there are different skills involved. Like sharing. And knowing when to let something go for your partner. The really good doubles teams you see develop a sort of psychic connection. That's part of why the Bryans are so good - quite apart from being twins, they have played together so long that they know exactly what the other one is doing.

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But I like doubles, even if I don't usually give it the kudos it deserves. I saw the men's doubles final at the Medibank International in Sydney, where Richard Gasquet and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga defeated the Bryans - henceforth known as BryanBryan, because that is what the umpire called them.It was a great match - went the whole distance in the match tiebreak. I probably have a post about it somewhere back in January - but knowing me, I probably focused on the singles match... not least because Tursunov won. But the doubles was awesome fun. There's something about it that's not quite as serious as singles. I know I'm always like, 'yeah, tennis is great because it's so gladiatorial, ra ra ra, mental struggle, one on one, no one to blame but yourself, etc etc' but doubles isn't like that. It's a little more light hearted. I mean, sure, when it's a Slam final and you have the Bryans against Bhupathi and Knowles or something, it's serious then, but on the whole, you just get the feeling the guys are having a total blast.

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Which is why it's so much fun when the top guys play. Seven of the top ten are playing this week - one team which I thought was interesting which I didn't talk about yesterday was David Ferrer and Jarkko Nieminen. I'm not quite sure WHY they're playing together - it can't be for Olympic reasons, why with the one being Spanish and the other Finnish - but I think it will be a really fun team nonetheless. It's always interesting to see who plays together... because you'd want to play with your mates, wouldn't you? And it's interesting to see who's friends with who.

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And, oh yeah, there were some singles matches yesterday too. I picked a few... which apparently places me 9439th in the bracket challenge. So looks like I'm not going to be doing too well... again. But it might pick up. Gasquet won - I predicted he would lose, but that's a good sign for Richou. I also picked Benneteau over Gonzalez... yeah, I don't know what I was thinking either. And then Dancevic had to go and beat Ancic... I thought Super Mario would win that easy, but I suppose Dancevic has home town advantage, for what that's worth. And Ginepri beat Mathieu, and Mahut beat Tipsarevic, and Acasuso beat Gulbis... but Kiefer won! And Wawrinka! And Youzhny! I got those ones right!

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Yeah, so I suck at the bracket challenge. So sue me.

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Today's Results

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Rogers Cup (Toronto)

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Stanislas Wawrinka def. Simone Bolelli, 6-4 7-6 (7-4)

Richard Gasquet def. Michael Llodra, 6-2 4-6 6-3

Tommy Robredo def. Frederic Niemeyer, 7-6 (7-4) 6-1

Fernando Gonzalez def. Julien Benneteau, 6-2 6-1

Mikhail Youzhny def. Andreas Seppi, 7-6 (7-1) 6-2

Nicolas Kiefer def. Mardy Fish, 7-5 7-6 (7-4)

Robby Ginepri def. Paul-Henri Mathieu, 6-3 4-6 6-4

Nicolas Mahut def. Janko Tipsarevic, 6-3 6-7 (5-7) 6-2

Frank Dancevic def. Mario Ancic, 6-3 6-4

Jose Acasuso def. Ernests Gulbis, 6-7 (1-7) 6-3 7-5

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East West Bank Classic (Los Angeles)

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Sybille Bammer def. Ahsha Rolle, 6-0 6-4

Chan Yung-Jan def. Aravane Rezai, 6-1 6-4

Tamira Paszek def. Aiko Nakamura, 6-4 6-2

Olga Savchuk def. Gisela Dulko, 6-4 6-3

Jill Craybas def. Anne Keothavong, 6-3 6-2

Olga Govortsova def. Darya Kustova, 6-3 6-4

Marta Domachowska def. Coco Vandeweghe, 6-3 6-3

Petra Kvitova def. Alisa Kleybanova, 6-4 1-6 7-5

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Banka Koper Slovenia Open (Portoroz)

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Caroline Wozniacki def. Andreja Klepac, 7-5 6-0

Anabel Medina Garrigues def. Ekaterina Makarova, 6-1 6-3

Katie O'Brien def. Tsvetana Pironkova, 7-6 (8-6) 4-6 6-2

Klara Zakopalova def. Carla Suárez Navarro, 6-4 6-4

Vera Dushevina def. Virginia Ruano Pascual, 6-3 6-3

Julia Vakulenko def. Polona Hercog, 5-7 6-4 6-4

Petra Martic def. Angelique Kerber, 7-5 6-2

Bethanie Mattek def. Abigail Spears (USA) 62 64

Not A Week For The Defending Champions

We had two defending champions in action in finals this week - Steve Darcis in Amersfoort and Dmitry Tursunov in Indy. Neither of them won. I doubt this is indicative of any major change in tennis, but I thought it was kind of interesting.

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I remember when Darcis won Amersfoort last year, actually. He was ranked something stupid like #297, came up through qualies and won the tournament. Obviously that sent him rocketing up the rankings, and he's been hanging about ever since. He won a tournament earlier in the year, I think, so he wasn't a one tournament wonder. Good for him. I don't actually know much about him except that he's Belgian and kind of weird looking (though not as weird as Radek Stepanek... no one is that weird looking). So I know more about him than Potito Starace (for example) but not that much, really... although now I know that he lost in the final of Amersfoort this year to Albert Montanes. There's not much you can learn about someone when you're not actually watching their matches. Maybe if Mr. Darcis (or Mr. Starace, for that matter) played Hopman Cup, I would be able to make proper judgments about them. Because that's what every tennis player needs, obviously... a Judgement from Judge Jodi.

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I apologise for that awful pun.

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Our other dethroned champion was my old friend Dmitry Tursunov. I can make no comment about the match... but judging by the stats, a story was told in Tursunov's points won on second serve percentage (34%) and the fact that he converted none of his break points. Alas, Dmitry. Even after his bad behaviour in Nottingham, he's still one of my favourites... even if he has been eclipsed a little by Marat Safin for me. But I like Dmitry's attitude. Well, mostly I like his blog. I don't know indicative of his actual attitude that is. But he is one of those people I would like to have a drink with one time, just because he sounds like he'd be fun.

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But alas, Dmitry lost. The winner was Gilles Simon - actually, did you know that Simon is only the third Frenchman this year to win a title? Given the amount of Frenchmen in the top hundred, that absolutely mystifies me. Llodra has won two titles, and Santoro won Newport last week. But what about Gasquet? Tsonga? Monfils? Clement? Grosjean? Mathieu? There are so many - an insane amount, more than the Spaniards - and this is only their third player to take a title this year? That is vaguely unbelievable.

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Apart from the staple Clement/Llodra, there is an interesting French doubles team in the Toronto draw next week - Gasquet is playing with Mahut. Why oh why didn't they play together on grass? Actually, maybe they did... I don't pay much attention to doubles normally - which is bad, because I should. Doubles rules and all. But Gasquet and Mahut would be an awesome grass court team. Just a theory.

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The reason I am paying attention to the Toronto doubles is because some of the big guys are playing. I am really, really excited about the Federer/Wawrinka doubles team - I suppose they're playing together now to practice for the Olympics, but practice or not, I think this is going to be really good fun. Their first match is against Julien Benneteau and Frederic Niemeyer, which I'm pretty confident they can win... which would bring up against bye-beneficiaries Lukas Dlouhy and Leander Paes. Just below them in the draw are the also interesting pairings of Roddick/Fish and Clement/Llodra - just why aren't Clement and Llodra seeded? I am mystified.

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That first round match promises to be a corker, but even more interesting is a little higher in the draw - Nadal and Robredo against Davydenko and Andreev. That one should be a big battle. (Andreev lost his final yesterday, by the way... in a third set tiebreak! Poor Igor.) With the Olympics coming up, a lot of people are pulling double duty, and it's led to one of the most interesting doubles draws I've seen in a long time. It'll be really interesting to see who wins... I will be cheering for Roger and Stan all the way! Hopp Suisse! And that goes for the Olympics as well - I'll be gunning for the Aussies in just about every other sport, but when it comes to tennis, I think that I might well be Swiss.

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Just before I go - big kudos to Juan Martin del Potro, who won his second straight title in Kitzbuhel. This kid might just be here to stay!

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Today's Results

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Austrian Open (Kitzbuhel)

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Juan Martin del Potro def. Jurgen Melzer, 6-2 6-1

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Dutch Open Tennis (Amersfoort)

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Albert Montanes def. Steve Darcis, 1-6 7-5 6-3

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Studena Croatia Open (Umag)

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Fernando Verdasco def. Igor Andreev, 3-6 6-4 7-6 (7-4)

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Indianapolis Tennis Championships (Indianapolis)

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Gilles Simon def. Dmitry Tursunov, 6-4 6-4

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Bank of the West Classic (Stanford)

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Aleksandra Wozniak def. Marion Bartoli, 7-5 6-3

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Gastein Ladies (Bad Gastein)

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Pauline Parmentier def. Lucie Hradecka, 6-4 6-4

Beware of Ferrer

The draw for the Rogers Cup in Toronto has just been released, and it features some intriguing matches - as well as byes for the top eight seeds, which, as we have discussed are bad. I wonder how many of those top eight we will see fall in the second round - which for them is the first?

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Not Federer, I am quite certain - as I have picked him to win in the ATP bracket challenge, and my boy never disappoints. Blessedly, he's not in the same half as Djokovic. Not because I don't want to see them play - I want to see Roger put the two hoof beatdown on Novak so bad it's not funny - but maybe next tournament. Or the Olympics. Or both. And hey, they might meet in the final - that's what happened last year. But if that happens this year, I am positive the result will be different. Positive, I say!

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Along the way, my beloved Federer could run into a couple of young troublemakers that I recently featured as Stars of the Future (tm.) He has a possible third round (second for him... stupid byes) with Ernests Gulbis, and a possible quarter final with Marin Cilic. I don't think either of these boys has what it takes to beat the Rog quite yet - that's why they're Stars of the Future and not Stars of the Present - but it should be interesting to see how those two go, if they make it that far. I'd like to see them play well - though my heart, as always, is aboard the Federer Express.

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Even though Nadal and Djokovic are in the same half, I've actually picked someone different to come through to the final. I think everyone in that half should beware of Ferrer - hey, that rhymes! That could be his new slogan or something. Anyway, David is my finals pick. He could meet Rafa in the quarters, and we know he has the game to take him down on hard courts - look at the US Open last year. This is traditionally the time of year when Rafa begins falling away and becomes a bit of a non-event. This year has been different in many respects, but I'm not sure if Rafa can break this trend quite yet.

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I've picked an upset for Djokovic in the third round against Robin Soderling. I don't know whether or not this is just wishful thinking on my part. This is quite possible. But Soderling really does seem due a big break - he's such a dangerous player. If Djokovic does get through Soderling, however, he could have a potential quarter final with Marat Safin, and boy, wouldn't THAT be interesting. That's quite a tough little quarter, actually - not only is there Djokovic and Safin and Soderling, there's Murray and Wawrinka and Ancic, and the dark horse Querrey, as well as up and comer Thomaz Bellucci. It'll be REALLY interesting to see who makes it through to the semi there. My bet is that it won't be one of the random two qualifiers, but you never know. Verdasco is always a shot, as is Canas, and there's Dancevic and Bolelli as well, who don't suck. Man, looking at it, that quarter is MAJORLY tough. I have picked Soderling to make it through, but I don't have a very good history with these bracket challenges, so don't listen to me.

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So my three semi finalists so far have been Federer, Ferrer and Soderling - who is the fourth, I hear you ask? That would be GI Mikhail, Mr. Youzhny, who, as we know, is pretty good on hard courts, even if he could use a bit of an image makeover. This quarter is considerably weaker than the Djokovic quarter, though it isn't weak by any means. The significant seeds are Davydenko and Blake, neither of whom have been especially impressive of late - though you can never count Kolya out. Look at Miami. But I am feeling the Youzhny feeling here... it's characterised by the irresistible urge to salute.

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So will Jodi be right? Or will she, as usual, totally suck at the ATP bracket challenge? Read for the next week and you will find out.

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In brief coverage of the tournaments actually going on this week, we have some interesting final match ups... in the sense that they're not really people you expect to make finals a whole lot, but it's not like we had the cream of the crop playing this week. In Kitzbuhel, we have local boy Jurgen Melzer against Juan Martin del Potro. I doubted Juan Martin last week - I believe I gave him next to no shot against Gasquet - and I was wrong, so it's del Potro all the way here. And also I know nothing about Jurgen Melzer, as discussed yesterday... actually, he knocked out Potito 'Potato' Starace in the semi. Go figure.

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In Amersfoort, we have Steve Darcis against Albert Montanes. What a tantalising match that will be. I am so excited I just can't hide it. I'm about to lose control and I think I like it.

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(That was a joke, in case I wasn't clear enough.)

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I'm going to say Darcis purely on the grounds that he won last year so this is a good place for him. But I wouldn't listen to me.

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In Umag, we have Fernando Verdasco against Igor Andreev - finally, players I know something about! This two fit into different categories in my mind - I consistently underestimate Nando, and overestimate Igor. I really, REALLY like Andreev's game - but he suffers from the common Russian malady of inconsistency. However, this is his second final in a row, so he's got the hot hand at the moment - so I'm going with Andreev. But never underestimate Nando... even though I always do.

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And then in Indy, this week's sensible tournament, we have Simon against Tursunov. I'm going with Tursunov because he won here last year, has a great hard court game, and, oh yeah, he's one of my favourites. But Simon is another Nando for me - I underestimate him a lot. However, Tursunov has really proven himself in the heat - he won Sydney this year in absolutely sweltering conditions (I should know, I was there!) and then I think he won Mumbai last year. So I'm going Dmitry all the way.

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Oh, and women's tennis... um... no comment.

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Today's Results

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Austrian Open (Kitzbuhel)

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Jurgen Melzer def. Potito Starace, 6-4 6-7 (6-8) 6-3

Juan Martin del Potro def. Victor Hanescu, 6-3 7-6 (7-5)

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Dutch Open Tennis (Amersfoort)

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Steve Darcis def. Marc Gicquel, 7-6 (7-3) 3-6 7-5

Albert Montanes def. Oscar Hernandez, 6-1 6-3

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Studena Croatia Open (Umag)

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Fernando Verdasco def. Fabio Fognini, 6-1 6-3

Igor Andreev def. Maximo Gonzalez, 6-2 7-6 (7-2)

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Indianapolis Tennis Championships (Indianapolis)

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Dmitry Tursunov def. Paul Capdeville, 3-6 6-3 6-1

Gilles Simon def. Sam Querrey, 6-3 4-6 6-4

Dmitry Tursunov def. James Blake, 4-6 6-3 6-4

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Bank of the West Classic (Stanford)

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Aleksandra Wozniak def. Serena Williams, 6-2 3-1 retired

Marion Bartoli def. Ai Sugiyama, 6-3 6-3

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Gastein Ladies (Bad Gastein)

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Pauline Parmentier def. Agnes Szavay, 6-4 6-2

Lucie Hradecka def. Mariya Koryttseva, 6-3 6-2

Potato

Some players just fly under the radar. You know their names, you know they float around in the top hundred, and usually you know where they come from, but you wouldn't know them if you fell over them in the street and you couldn't name their significant career wins if someone paid you. On the whole, they have never been very deep at Slams - maybe an occasional round of sixteen, but rarely more than that. They do well in the IS and ISG tournaments, but are not particularly remarkable.

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One day, I am going to find out what makes these unremarkable players remarkable. Because they must be remarkable. You don't get to be in the top one hundred in the world without being a little bit remarkable. Let's name names. Potito Starace. Fabio Fognini. Jurgen Melzer. These guys have all been round for a while, but I could tell you next to nothing about them, except that Starace and Fognini are Italian and Melzer is Austrian. Oh, and Starace's name sounds like 'potato.' But that hardly takes rocket science to work out.

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Let's take Starace. He is 27. I know that. He comes from Cervinara. He plays right handed. And that's it. That is the extent of my knowledge.

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But there are other players, ranked in the same sort of area, that I know loads more about. Take Tommy Haas. Actually, he might be a bad example, because he's been up there in the top ten. According to the ATP website, Starace has never been higher than #27. Let's look at Robin Soderling, then. He's ranked #48, with a career high of #23. He plays right handed and lives in Monte Carlo.

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But I can also tell you that Soderling hates Nadal, and that it's apparently reciprocated. Soderling is considered a danger man on tour. He's quite good on grass. He's Swedish, and sometimes plays doubles with Jonas Bjorkman. Not many facts, sure, but some.

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Why do I know about Soderling? Because he's played a big match at a Slam. And I'm not just talking about a match against a big player, because Starace has played his share of those. I remember coming up against Rafa a couple of times, and losing pretty dismally. Soderling, however, was one half of that marathon five day match at Wimbledon last year, where his dislike of Rafa was fomented. And those are the things that make you remember people.

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So what can Potito do, if he wants people to remember him? He already has the advantage of a memorable, vegetablesque name. Actually, I wonder how famous he is in Italy? Is he a Hewitt or a Guccione? Or a Sirianni? There are quite a few good tennis players from Italy - there's equally forgettable Fognini and Bolelli and Seppi and Volandri. (I just went on the ATP website to see if there were any famous Italians I'd missed, and I was stunned to discover that Filippo Volandri is now ranked #138 in the world. When did that happen? He was about #30 last time I checked. What happened?) I wonder what kind of profile tennis has in Italy. How famous are these boys? And it's not like they're totally deficient in the women's draws, either - Flavia Pennetta springs inexorably to mind.

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But I'm talking about Potito's international recognition, not homegrown Italian fame. And not even household name status - just within the tennis community. (Look at me talking like I am one of the tennis community... Potito's probably done loads of wacky things that people talk about.) If you look at the press conference archive on ASAP sports, there is not one single conference from Starace. Not one.

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So if Starace wants to be famous, he has to either:

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- do well at a Slam.

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- do something stupid to get himself in the tennis news.

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- play a really, really long match at a Slam sometime.

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I don't know. Hell, why am I even writing about this? I know nothing about Starace - including whether or not he wants to be famous. Maybe he's content flying under the radar. But we'll never find out unless he does something remarkable.

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Today's Results

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Austrian Open (Kitzbuhel)

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Jurgen Melzer def. Rainer Schuettler, 2-6 7-5 7-5

Potito Starace def. Eduardo Schwank, 6-1 6-2

Juan Martin Del Potro def. Nicolas Devilder, 6-2 6-3

Victor Hanescu def. Brian Dabul, 6-3 6-4

Rainer Schuettler def. Jan Hernych, 2-6 6-4 7-5

Juan Martin Del Potro def. Sergio Roitman, 6-2 6-4

Nicolas Devilder def. Alexander Peya, 6-4 6-4

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Dutch Open Tennis (Amersfoort)

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Marc Gicquel def. Teimuraz Gabashvili, 6-4 6-1

Steve Darcis def. Christophe Rochus, 7-5 6-3

Albert Montanes def. Jose Acasuso, 6-0 6-2

Oscar Hernandez def. Marcel Granollers, 7-5 6-2

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Studena Croatia Open (Umag)

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Fernando Verdasco def. Mischa Zverev, 7-5 7-5

Fabio Fognini def. Carlos Moya, 6-4 6-3

Igor Andreev def. Guillermo Canas, 7-5 6-4

Maximo Gonzalez def. Roko Karanusic, 2-6 6-3 7-6 (7-4)

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Indianapolis Tennis Championships (Indianapolis)

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James Blake def. Woong-Sun Jun, 6-3 7-5

Sam Querrey def. Vince Spadea, 4-6 6-3 6-4

Gilles Simon def. Tommy Haas, 4-6 6-4 6-2

Sam Querrey def. Bobby Reynolds, 6-1 3-6 6-3

James Blake def. Yen-Hsun Lu, 6-2 6-0

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Bank of the West Classic (Stanford)

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Samantha Stosur def. Vera Zvonareva, 6-3 6-2

Patty Schnyder def. Alisa Kleybanova, 7-6 (10-8) 6-4

Marion Bartoli def. Anne Keothavong, 6-3 1-6 7-5

Aleksandra Wozniak def. Sybille Bammer, 6-4 7-5

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Gastein Ladies (Bad Gastein)

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Agnes Szavay def. Melanie Klaffner, 3-6 7-6 (10-8) 7-6 (7-3)

Mariya Koryttseva def. Caroline Wozniacki, 6-4 4-6 7-6 (7-5)

Pauline Parmentier def. Anna-Lena Groenefeld, 7-5 4-6 6-4

Lucie Hradecka def. Timea Bacsinszky, 6-1 6-4

Iveta Benesova def. Galina Voskoboeva, 6-4 4-6 6-1

Yvonne Meusburger def. Maret Ani 6-2 2-6 6-3

Tereza Hladikova def. Karolina Sprem, 6-3 1-6 6-4

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And in the last installment of Stars of the Past, Stars of the Future (for now!): Ernests Gulbis.

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Ernests Gulbis is the potential #1 that the world never saw coming. Like Jeremy Chardy, he exploded on the scene at Roland Garros 2008, but he's been making inroads for a lot longer than that. He attended the same tennis academy as world number #3 Novak Djokovic, the academy run by Niki Pilic. Djokovic graduated and went on to great things, as we have all seen - but it was for Ernests Gulbis that Pilic actually left the academy for a time so he could focus on one-on-one training. This teenager from Latvia has got a very special talent - perhaps one seen only once in a generation. Roger Federer turned out to be the king of his generation, the New Balls generation. Could Gulbis be the king of his?

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It seems a little pre-emptive to make this claim - and one feels that there is a man by the name of Rafael Nadal that might have something to say about that. But Ernests Gulbis has clearly got something going on. And it does seem unfair to put him in the same generation as Nadal or even his old friend Djokovic. Age is not necessarily the correct demarcation of generation. Gulbis belongs to the generation of Chardy, Cilic and Schwank - and of the four, it seems likely that he will turn out to be the best.

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Gulbis was the only man apart from Roger Federer to take a set from Nadal at Wimbledon this year. Despite the massively powerful groundstrokes of Nadal, Gulbis proved himself capable of dominating at the baseline. He is tall and thin and there seems to be little of him, but he is deceptively strong. He does not play the tennis of Fabrice Santoro, but he clearly has a very high tennis IQ. It seems only a matter of time before Gulbis breaks through with a big tournament win - and after that, who knows? The sky may well be the limit for Ernests Gulbis.

Throwing Mud

The ATP headlines from Umag are about Guillermo Canas's 'marathon' win over Boris Pashanski. I don't know if you can call a three set match of any description a marathon, but that's a different matter. I'm going to talk about Canas today. Because I can.

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I'm under the impression that Canas is not a very popular player, and I have to say that I am not really a fan. I think that whenever a drugs scandal clouds someone's career, they're going to lose a lot of fans, fast, even if they turn out to be innocent. Canas did his time and came back - and kudos to him for having the guts to come back - but when you throw mud, it sticks, and Canas is never going to get rid of that. Ever.

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I'm not going to weigh in on the issue of whether or not he did the drugs, because I don't know and I don't follow him closely enough to care. But the thing is, it is his defining characteristic. I couldn't tell you a single thing about him and his career other than he served out a drug suspension, and came back to beat Federer twice in two weeks at Indian Wells and Miami last year. So what makes Willy tick? I have absolutely no idea.

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In retrospect, that fact considered, it didn't make a lot of sense to try to write a blog post about him. I'm kind of out of things to say.

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Sadly, Ivan Ljubicic - about whom I am quite capable of writing a post! - had to retire before his match began, handing Roko Karanusic a free pass into the next round. He said he felt sharp pains in his back at dinner, and although he tried to get himself ready to play, it was just about impossible. You've got to wonder what kind of injury that is - a back injury that shows himself at dinner. How bizarre. But poor Ivan.

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Kitzbuhel got basically rained out again. That will learn them for having a clay tournament this week. Because clay and rain are clearly connected.

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I'd really love to write more about Indianapolis, but as I write this, the matches of the day are still continuing there. Which is sort of a pain. The one tournament I give my blessing to, and they have to carry on at such unsuitable hours.

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You may be able to tell that I don't have very much to say today. I'll stop now and end the misery!

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Today's Results

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Austrian Open (Kitzbuhel)

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Jurgen Melzer def. Leonardo Mayer, 6-4 6-2

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Dutch Open Tennis (Amersfoort)

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Jose Acasuso def. Edouard Roger-Vasselin, 6-3 6-4

Marcel Granollers def. Ivan Navarro, 6-4 6-4

Albert Montanes def. Pablo Cuevas, 6-4 6-4

Oscar Hernandez def. Jesse Huta Galung, 6-3 6-2

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Studena Croatia Open (Umag)

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Roko Karanusic def. Ivan Ljubicic, walkover

Guillermo Canas def. Boris Pashanski, 6-7 (3-7) 6-3 7-5

Maximo Gonzalez def. I Karlovic, 3-6 6-3 6-4

Igor Andreev def. Daniel Gimeno-Traver, 6-2 7-6 (7-3)

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Indianapolis Tennis Championships (Indianapolis)

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Bobby Reynolds def. Alejandro Falla, 6-1 6-1

Yen-Hsun Lu def. Rajeev Ram, 6-1 7-6 (7-1)

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Bank of the West Classic (Stanford)

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Aleksandra Wozniak def. Sybille Bammer, 6-4 7-5

Patty Schnyder def. Alisa Kleybanova, 7-6 (10-8) 6-4

Serena Williams def. Michelle Larcher de Brito, 4-6 6-3 6-2

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Gastein Ladies (Bad Gastein)

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Patricia Mayr def. Rossana de los Ríos, 6-3 6-3

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And today in Stars of the Past, Stars of the Future: Fabrice Santoro.

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Marat Safin, at the height of his dominance, said that being told he had to play Santoro was like being told he had to die. He was not the only player who felt like that. The little Frenchman was never going to hit anyone off the court, but the wizard of the men's game was capable of some shots that were nothing short of amazing. A recent article for DEUCE magazine called him the Harry Potter of men's tennis. He plays with cunning and cleverness, not with power.

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Santoro is one of the oldest men on the tour, but he is still going strong. This is because his game is not as hard on his body as that of the power players. He is almost Federesque in the way he glides round the court - and while he has never attained the heights that the current #1 has, he is by no means the poor man's Federer. Santoro has his own brand of magic. His racquet is his wand, and with it he creates spins and angles to bamboozle the best in the world.

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For example, in his quarter final match against David Nalbandian at the 2006 Australian Open, Santoro hit a drop shot of such exquisite precision and with such incredible spin, that by the time Nalbandian had reached it, it had bounced back onto Santoro's side of the net. Santoro did not win that match - the second two sets were 6-0 6-0 in Nalbandian's favour - but it is points like that that people remember. That is what Fabrice Santoro brings to tennis - his Gallic charm, his big grin and a little bit of magic.

Reconciliation, Double Time

Now, forgive me if I'm wrong, but I was under the impression that Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi hated each others' guts. But now they're suddenly playing doubles together in Indy. What's with that?

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Maybe India made them reconcile so they can play doubles at the Olympics. But that's naive - you can't just MAKE people reconcile... unless they haven't, and they're just doing this because they've been made to. I would love to know what's gone on behind the scenes there. Are there secret police in the mens' locker room, forcing them to shake hands and talk tennis strategy? Not that I'm suggesting India has secret police. Not that I'm suggesting they don't have them, either.

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Thing is, India has another really good doubles player in Rohan Bopanna. I've never seen him play men's doubles, but I saw him play mixed with Sania Mirza at the Hopman Cup this year, and they were pretty extraordinary. I don't know whether that was just with Sania or whether he's just a good doubles player, but I'm going with the latter. So if the Indian Sporting Federation (or whatever they're called) wants a doubles team for the Olympics, they could partner either Paes or Bhupathi with Bopanna - whichever they preferred. But I suppose that Bopanna probably has a better singles career at the moment than either Bhupathi or Paes, so I guess it wouldn't be fair to cut out either one...

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In which case, the Bhupathi/Paes reconciliation might actually be genuine. Maybe they're both trying to ensure that they get to play in the Olympics - which is a pretty decent motivation. (Cough Roddick cough Gasquet cough.) But surely, if they hated each other as much as I was under the impression that they did, they would be trying to backstab each other and stuff to ensure they got the one spot on offer. Who knows?

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You've got to feel sorry for Rohan Bopanna. No matter what's going on, it's got to be hard for him.

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You never really think of India as a powerhouse of tennis, but they have a few good players coming through now. In the women's game, you obviously have Sania Mirza, but Sunitha Rao is coming up, and she's not half bad. In the men, there are Bhupathi, Paes and Bopanna, and now Prakash Amritraj, who made the Newport final. So on the whole, they're not doing too bad.

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Although, when you consider that approximately one seventh of the earth's population comes from India, you would expect a much higher proportion of good players. I don't think there's any racial disposition that lends itself especially to tennis. So why are there so few Indian tennis players - and Chinese players? I mean, there are a few, but not as many as you would expect.

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The answer, I suppose, is to do with poverty and the lack of opportunity for people in these countries. And it makes you wonder - how much talent is there in the world that goes unrealised, how much potential untapped? Maybe somewhere in the slums of Varanasi or the suburbs of Shanghai, there is someone with talent that could rival Federer - but we will never know, because they have not had the opportunities. Imagine if Roger Federer had somehow never been introduced to the game of tennis. All that talent, all that potential gone to waste. What a tragedy that would have been - except no one would ever, ever know. Not even Roger.

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Kind of makes you question your own life, hey. What box are we not thinking outside of? Maybe you or I or anyone has an amazing talent that we just don't know about. Maybe I could have been, oh, I don't know, the world's best bridge player or aerial skiier, but I'll never know, because I've never tried either. The lesson is, I suppose, to try everything, because you never know what you might be good at.

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Wow. That was deep.

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Today's Results

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Austrian Open (Kitzbuhel)

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Potito Starace def. Daniel Koellerer, 6-4 6-3

Eduardo Schwank def. Daniel Brands, 6-1 6-4

Victor Hanescu def. Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, 6-2 6-1

Brian Dabul def. Ivo Minar, 6-4 6-3

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Dutch Open Tennis (Amersfoort)

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Marc Gicquel def. Thiemo de Bakker, 7-6 (8-6) 6-3

Steve Darcis def. Alberto Martin, 6-1 7-6 (7-5)

Teimuraz Gabashvili def. Martin Vassallo Arguello, 6-4 6-0

Christophe Rochus def. Philipp Petzschner, 6-3 6-4

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Studena Croatia Open (Umag)

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Fernando Verdasco def. Mathieu Montcourt, 7-6 (7-5) 6-1

Carlos Moya def. Viktor Troicki, 3-6 7-6 (7-2) 7-5

Fabio Fognini def. Filippo Volandri, 6-4 6-4

Mischa Zverev def. Marcos Daniel, 6-4 6-2

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Indianapolis Tennis Championships (Indianapolis)

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Sam Querrey def. Go Soeda, 6-4 6-4

James Blake def. Dudi Sela, 7-6 (7-2) 6-2

Vince Spadea def. Donald Young, 6-2 6-4

Gilles Simon def. Benjamin Becker, 7-5 3-6 6-0

Dmitry Tursunov def. Wayne Odesnik, walkover

Tommy Haas def. John Isner, 6-3 6-4

Paul Capdeville def. Joseph Sirianni, 6-3 6-4

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Bank of the West Classic (Stanford)

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Anna Chakvetadze def. Shahar Peer, 6-3 6-4

Ai Sugiyama def. Daniela Hantuchova, 6-3 6-1

Dominika Cibulkova def. Kateryna Bondarenko, 6-2 6-3

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Gastein Ladies (Bad Gastein)

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Agnes Szavay def. Viktoriya Kutuzova, 6-4 6-2

Rossana de los Ríos def. Alizé Cornet, 2-6 6-2 3-2 retired

Caroline Wozniacki def. Hsieh Su-Wei, 6-1 6-1

Timea Bacsinszky def. Liana Ungur, 6-3 3-6 6-3

Karolina Sprem def. Vera Dushevina, 6-3 6-4

Mariya Koryttseva def. Tzipora Obziler, 6-2 6-1

Yvonne Meusburger def. Stéphanie Cohen-Aloro, 7-5 6-2

Lucie Hradecka def. Zhang Shuai, 6-3 6-0

Tereza Hladikova def. Nuria Llagostera Vives, 3-6 7-6 (8-6) 7-5

Anna-Lena Groenefeld def. Julia Vakulenko, 6-1 6-1

Patricia Mayr def. Martina Müller, 6-3 6-3

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And today in Stars of the Past, Stars of the Future: Eduardo Schwank.

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Eduardo Schwank won three Challengers on clay in a row coming into Roland Garros, where he defeated Carlos Moya and was the last Argentinean left standing. However, he is perhaps best known for accidentally starting a fire in a hotel in Paris, which saw other players (including the Ratiawana twins and Rik de Voest) fleeing for their lives, and sent Schwank's winnings from the Rome Challenger up in smoke. It was his own fault, one might argue, but one can't help feeling a bit sorry for him. For a player on the satellite circuit, those winnings can be lifeblood.

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But Schwank appears to have left the satellite circuits behind him. His third round finish at the French Open gave him automatic entry into Wimbledon, and although he lost in the first round, it looks like Eduardo Schwank is here to stay. He is seeded this week at the ATP tournament in Kitzbuhel - a far cry from the Challengers. He is back on clay, his favourite surface. He was the Challenger circuit's Rafael Nadal this season, and it will be interesting to see how he will perform on clay next year, when he won't be playing those satellites, one assumes. No, Schwank is playing with the big boys now - and one gets the feeling that he likes it.

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The real test for Schwank will be the upcoming US hard court season. He is virtually untested on hard courts in the main ATP draw, and his performance here could determine whether or not he falls back to playing those Challengers, or whether he continues his rise towards the upper echelons of tennis. Perhaps it will be a test of Eduardo's character rather than his game - getting to the ATP level is one thing. Staying there is quite another.