An Exercise in Predictability

Talk about totally predictable. In the quarter-finals in Barcelona we have the #1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6, #7 and #9 seeds. The one odd man out is Radek Stepanek, #9 seed, who knocked out the #8 seed, Stan Wawrinka, last week's Federer conqueror. How long has it been since we saw a tournament fall so cleanly?

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It's not a bad thing that we rarely see a clean fall of the draw like this - unlike the WTA, where it is a symptom of the headcaseness sweeping the top #10. In the ATP, it shows the level of depth - because there is a huge level of talent going all the way down through the top twenty... maybe even the top fifty or hundred. We usually see some of that top echelon through - you can generally bet at least two of that top four make it through, if not three or all of them - but the rest of the quarter/semi finalists? Could be anyone.

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One thing did surprise - and disappoint - me in Barcelona, though. I've talked before about clay being a leveller - you have more specialist players on this surface than on any other, who really come into their own on the red stuff. And the captain of the dirtballing crew - Rafa aside, who totally transcends the title of captain and has become something like an emperor or a god - is Nicolas Almagro, the Prince of Clay. And what has he done so far this season? Big fact nothing.

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He went out to David Nalbandian in the round of sixteen - who promptly handed his quarter final match to Rafa in a walkover with a hip injury. So, although no one can gainsay the prowess of Nalbandian, this has been Almagro's turf for quite some time now. And Dave beat him. On one leg. Something's not quite right with this picture.

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Perhaps I'm expecting too much of Almagro. I'd never make this kind of demand on him in any other part of the season. But he has brought so much in the previous couple of seasons - c'mon Nicolas, bring it back and bring it on!

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Today's Results

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Barcelona Open Banco Sabadell (Barcelona)

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Rafael Nadal def. Christophe Rochus, 6-2 6-0

Fernando Verdasco def. Tomas Berdych, 7-5 5-7 6-4

Nikolay Davydenko def. Feliciano Lopez, 7-6 (10-8) 3-6 6-4

David Ferrer def. Potito Starace, 4-6 7-5 6-2

Fernando Gonzalez def. Juan Monaco, 7-6 (8-6) 6-3

Tommy Robredo def. Igor Andreev, 4-6 6-2 6-3

David Nalbandian def. Nicolas Almagro, 6-3 6-4

Radek Stepanek def. Stanislas Wawrinka, 6-4 1-6 7-5