A F%^& YEAH Weekend

There are so many people I want to say F%^& YEAH about today, but first, I have to blow your mind with the last installment of my Cherbourg coverage. It was not good times today - my main man Mahut lost both in the singles final and in the doubles final. But let's take a moment and go, hey, actually, the fact that you were in both of these finals is pretty damn shiny! Then let's holler F^&* YEAH.

My loudest, unconditional and most heartfelt F^&* YEAH, however, has to go out to Jelena Dokic. Lady, you rocked my freaking socks today. How many players are there who can go for eight years without a title and still have the heart to come back? Dokic is a player who has had an awful lot of bad luck in her career - more, I think, than just about anyone else. But one thing she does not lack, especially in this post-Damir world, is heart. And she demonstrated this not just in winning the Kuala Lumpur final, but the way she won it - she was literally a few points from defeat in the second set breaker. She could have gone down tamely in straights, and everyone would have been like, oh well, well done Lucie, what a great week for Jelena.

But no. Jelena Dokic is not having any of that nonsense. She clawed her way out of that breaker and then she pounced. She was a total third set tiger and that got her the trophy. And I don't think it's controversial to say that Jelena has one of the best smiles in tennis. F^&* YEAH JELENA DOKIC!

And then there is Davis Cup.

The Indian boys weren't able to keep the momentum going - they went down 4-1 to Serbia in the end - but I think they deserve a F^&* YEAH anyway, because they have played awesomely this weekend. So too does Jeremy Chardy, who went from not winning a single ATP match all year to being France's Davis Cup hero. I'm not normally a massive Chardy fan, but that kind of heroism (especially from someone stuck so deep in such a big rut) deserves a F^&* YEAH.

But the biggest Davis Cup F^&* YEAH goes to Kazakhstan in general and Andrey Golubev in particular.

I haven't talked much about Andrey this year - largely because his results haven't been that great. (But don't worry, I haven't dumped him for Mahut. I can love them both.) But this match was a powerful reminder of why I love him so much. If he plays well, he is capable not just of beating anyone, but of freaking demolishing them. Doesn't matter where, doesn't matter when, doesn't matter who. If Andrey Golubev has his eye in, he will make you hurt.

Just ask Tomas Berdych.

The Czech crowd were totally stunned. Who was this surprise ranga beating their main man? Berdych was their guaranteed pointmaker for the weekend! He was supposed to win both his singles matches in a snap of his fingers, and just hope that one of the others could pick up another point somewhere. It was supposed to be easy.

But Andrey Golubev was not on board with this idea at all. And four sets later, Tomas Berdych limped off the court, pulverised and broken. And then Mikhail Kukushkin went out there and made history against Jan Hajek.

This was Kazakhstan's first ever appearance in the World Group. If they can continue turning in these kinds of performances, they are going to be a force to be reckoned with. And I, for one, think that deserves a F%^& YEAH.

This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things

I'd like to register my complete lack of surprise at Kim Clijsters losing to Li Na in the Sydney final. I saw Li play when I was there on Monday, and after that display against Kleybanova from Kim, well...

...I don't think it will damage her Australian Open chances at all. Indeed, I think she will go in the favourite, and she merits that. This loss might actually be good for her in a way - the way she was being talked about was as a favourite so overwhelming any misstep would have brough enormous pressure down on her head.

She has an interesting first round opponent at the Open - one Dinara Safina. Remember her? I hear she used to be #1 in the world... once upon a time. This is an awful draw for Dinara, who is trying to make her comeback... and the sad truth of the matter is that if I were Kim, I wouldn't really be worried at all. That's not a good thing to say about a former #1 in the world - but it's also a true thing.

Now, the draw has just been done, and I could spend some time looking at it and breaking it down like I often do before Slams. But a) everyone else has already done this and b) I couldn't be bothered, as I am writing this on a train, so what I will do instead is this:

Things I Find Interesting About The Draw
- Federer has a nasty second round match, whether he gets Gilles Simon or Yen-hsun Lu... not to mention his first round match, against Lukas 'I fed Rafa a bagel' Lacko.
- Hewitt/Nalbandian should be an absolute cracker... but will probably be disappointing.
- Tsonga/Petzschner is the Thinking Tennis Fan's favourite first round match up.
- There is no way in hell Caroline Wozniacki is winning the Australian Open, and I don't even particularly like her chances of getting past the first round.
- Poor Dinara.
- Will the real #4 please stand up? I love that Muzz and Sod are in the same quarter. I love it a lot.

Okay, that's done. Now onto the far more interesting bitching about the draw ceremony.

Seriously, WHO KEEPS LETTING BRUCE MCAVANEY OUT OF HIS BOX? This is why we can't have nice things. Not only is he not one of great tennis minds of our time, he is FREAKING ANNOYING. I'm sure Jeremy Chardy and Anna Chakvetadze really enjoyed being trask talked by this nasty little man. And I'm sure all the people in the room who were genuinely interested in tennis all wanted to punch him.

Because, let's face it, Ivan Lendl certainly did. I now love Ivan Lendl.

I know the draw is not the Oscars and I was not expecting it to be anything of the ilk. But please, ye powers that be, get rid of McAvaney. You have actual tennis players floating around - tons of them. USE THEM.

Maybe now #wildcardformahut has wound up (though #supportmahut still lives) I should start #firebruce...

Ernie Rolls Onwards

So Jeremy Chardy has some serious cojones on clay. Remember a few years back when he knocked out Tursunov and Nalbandian in a row at Roland Garros on his way to the round of sixteen? (Leastways, I'm pretty sure it was those two - what's up with Dmitry Tursunov these days anyway? He used to be one of my favourites.)

Ernests Gulbis knocked him out in cruise-y straights today.

He had his mojo going on hard courts - his mojo took him all the way to the title at Delray Beach, where he overcame some serious opponents, not least of whom was Ivo Karlovic. And now in Barcelona, it's Jeremy Chardy who's fallen to the Gulbis train. And beating Chardy on clay - that's not the easiest thing in the world.

I know Ernie has a bit of the dirtballer around him as well - it might have been the same year, actually, when he rode the train all the way to the quarters before falling to old friend Djokovic. I know that it's easy to read too much into Ernie wins, but this is a seriously good sign, especially coming off that title in Delray Beach. If Ernie can do well on the clay, then everything is looking good.

I know I am a chronic optimist about this boy, but I am so eager for him to do well. He has so much talent - I want him (finally) to deliver.

Clinging to the Bandwagon

Haha! I knew I wasn't feeling Nando Verdasco for a reason. First round loss in Memphis to Jeremy Chardy - what up? I mean, I know Chardy is a serious talent, but Nando is top ten, or practically top ten, and he won a tournament last week. He shouldn't be losing the next week first round, no matter how tired he is. So yeah, you've got a ways to go to become Nadal-challenger of '09 Nando again.

There were a few interesting results in Memphis, actually - not least of which was Ernests Gulbis actually scoring a win. Like, a whole one.

Yes, I know it's not fashionable to be on the Gulbis bandwagon any more, but I just can't quit this kid from Latvia has got something. I still believe that he can be top ten, once that certain something clicks - whatever that certain something might be. I'm not quite sure. But once that switch goes, I reckon he can still be great. Even if he is moving into late bloomer territory.

It was Robbie Kendrick who he beat, who is probably best known for nearly beating Rafa at Wimbledon one time (Gulbis nearly did the same thing one time. There you go.) Kendrick isn't exactly Mr Tennis, but this is still a pretty solid win. But damn it, Ernie - go deep. Please.

I also thought Evgeny Korolev had a great result, overcoming Philipp Kohlschreiber in straights. I like Korolev's heavy metal style of tennis - he's got some big shots but he's got some mad skillz also, which is also a fun combo. I'll be interested to see how he follows up this win.

Oh! Oh! And David Nalbandian came back on the clay in Buenos Aires! And he had a win over Potito Starace. Touch wood... but... is Bandy back?

The Zeballos Mystery

Feddy McFeddenpants won his match in Basel overnight! Hurrah! In fine form! Hurrah! I do so love it when the R-Fed is cruising. It makes me feel like something is right with the world.

Other Basel winners include Mighty Marin Cilic and Swiss Mister Stan Wawrinka, so congratulations to both of them. I also am glad when they are winning - especially Stan, for whom times have been a little lean 0f late. Star of the Future Jeremy Chardy also won, knocking out seventh seed James Blake - and, may I ask, why is James Blake seeded? Because really, he has not done one single thing this year. One. Single. Thing. Chardy beating him was technically an upset, but I would have thought Chardy was higher in the rankings any day. Oh well. Evidentally not.

One question about Basel, though - who is this Horacio Zeballos fellow? He seems to have suddenly emerged from nowhere over the last few weeks and bam! finals in St Petersburg and assorted other results of goodness. He went out here in Basel (Richard Gasquet did the deed) but I just don't understand where he came from. Anyone got any answers for him?

Meanwhile, in Valencia, Tsonga is out injured. I'm pretty sure he was one of the contenders for the last spot in the Masters Cup, and so an injury at this stage = so not good. Other contender Fernando Verdasco has stayed alive, though, so maybe he will clinch that eighth spot. (Has Kolya officially scored that seventh spot yet? I'm not sure.)

And in the land of the women, I still don't know what exactly this Bali tournament is or what it hopes to achieve, but it seems to have a very arbitrary group of players playing there. Interesting ones, however, so I'm not complaining. Sabine Lisicki, my special favourite, took a loss (boo) but Sam Stosur had a solid win over Agnes Szavay, and that made me quite happy.


Today's Results

Valencia Open 500 (Valencia)

Gilles Simon def. Tomas Berdych. 6-4 4-6 6-3
Guillermo Garcia-Lopez def. Gael Monfils, 6-2 7-5
Mikhail Youzhny def. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, 6-7 (3-7) 6-0 3-0 retired
Fernando Verdasco def. Oscar Hernandez, 6-1 0-1 retired
Janko Tipsarevic def. Victor Hanescu, 6-4 6-3
Feliciano Lopez def. Alberto Martin, 7-5 6-3


Davidoff Swiss Indoors Basel (Basel)

Roger Federer def. Andreas Seppi, 6-3 6-3
Radek Stepanek def. Florent Serra, 3-6 7-6 (7-1) 7-6 (7-1)
Marin Cilic def. Philipp Petzschner, 6-4 6-4
Stanislas Wawrinka def. Ivan Ljubicic, 6-7 (5-7) 6-3 6-4
Jeremy Chardy def. James Blake, 7-6 (7-4) 6-7 (6-8) 6-4
Richard Gasquet def. Horacio Zeballos, 7-6 (7-3) 6-4


Commonwealth Bank Trophy of Champions (Bali)

Marion Bartoli def. Magdalena Rybarikova, 6-4 6-4
Samantha Stosur def. Agnes Szavay, 6-2 3-6 6-1
Yanina Wickmayer def. Kimiko Date Krumm, 7-6 (7-5) 6-3
Aravane Rezai def. Sabine Lisicki, 1-6 6-3 6-4

Consistent Chardy

We talked about weekend winner Robin Soderling yesterday - today I'd like to devote a little space to the winner of Stuttgart. He's a member of the Stars club, a French rising player - Jeremy Chardy.

*

The first time I remember hearing about Chardy was Roland Garros last year, when he made that fabulous run to the fourth round, beating Tursunov and Nalbandian and a variety of bigname players. It's not unusual to see random players make deep runs - we've seen it a lot in our sport - but Chardy has maintained his run, and this, I think, is testament to his consistency.

*

Consistency is really an underrated quality. We often laugh off players like Davydenko, who consistently makes it deep but rarely wins. That's how Jeremy has been playing for the last year or so - going well, but not winning. But the important thing about consistency is that it pays off, and now it has.

*

This is Jeremy's first tour title, but I'm sure it won't be his last. I'm sorry this isn't a more in-depth analysis of the Chardy career, but he's so young that I don't know if analysis is fruitful. Instead, I think we need to applaud him for what he's done very well - he's been consistent - and applaud him for the fruits of that labour. Well done, Jeremy - may this be the first title of many for you!

*

*

Today's Results

*

Indianapolis Tennis Championships (Indianapolis)

*

Marc Gicquel def. Ernests Gulbis, 6-2 6-3

*

*

International Hamburg Open (Hamburg)

*

Teimuraz Gabashvili def. Andreas Seppi, 6-3 6-1

Daniel Brands def. Victor Crivoi, 4-6 6-4 6-1

Pablo Cuevas def. Bjorn Phau, 7-6 (7-0) 6-4

Ivan Navarro def. Steve Darcis, 6-4 6-4

Philipp Petzschner def. Florent Serra, 7-6 (7-3) 6-2

Pere Riba def. Evgeny Korolev, 7-6 (7-3) 6-2

Potito Starace def. Maximo Gonzalez, 5-7 6-4 6-3

Guillermo Garcia-Lopez def. Christophe Rochus, 6-4 6-2

Jan Hernych def. Kevin Krawietz, 6-0 4-6 6-3

Simon Greul def. Janko Tipsarevic, 2-6 6-3 6-3

Marcel Granollers def. Martin Vassallo Arguello, 6-4 6-4

Andreas Beck def. Oscar Hernandez, 6-7 (3-7) 6-4 6-4

*

*

Banka Koper Slovenia Open (Portoroz)

*

Dinara Safina def. Tadeja Majeric, 6-0 6-4

Olga Govortsova def. Kaia Kanepi, 6-1 6-2

Lucie Safarova def. Katie O'Brien, 6-4 6-4

Rossana de los Rios def. Viktoriya Kutuzova, 5-7 6-4 7-6 (8-6)

Klara Zakopalova def. Masa Zec Peskiric, 6-2 6-4

Petra Martic def. Kristina Barrois, 6-3 6-4

*

*

Nurnberger Gastein Ladies (Bad Gastein)

*

Tatjana Malek def. Carla Suarez Navarro, 2-6 6-2 6-4

Ioana Raluca Olaru def. Marta Domachowska, 5-7 6-4 6-3

Andrea Petkovic def. Sandra Kloesel, 6-4 6-3

Acasuso's Gallery of Disappointments

Whoa, whoa, whoa, Roger Federer! You owe me a manicure, monsieur! I am not really cool with this being-a-set-and-a-double-break-down-to-some-random lark you seem to think is so much fun. What was this, some kind of bet with Andy Murray about who could dig themselves a deeper hole in the third set and then still come back to win in four? I've got no nails left, I was biting them so much.

*

Of course, after putting himself in this most unadmirable of positions, Federer did the admirable thing and dug himself out of it handily - after being down 5-1 in the third set, he reeled off five straight games and ended up winning the set in a breaker. It's an object lesson that anything can happen in tennis and you should never let your guard down when one of the great champions of sport is playing, because when Roger had a double break in the fourth, you knew there was no way Acasuso was coming back from that. So the comeback itself = good. The hole itself - I wasn't a fan.

*

All credit to Jose Acasuso - he played out of skin well. But he did choke majorly on a few huge occasions - the breaker in the first, where he had four set points, springs to mind, as well as, oh yeah, the double break he gave back. Sure, Federer lifted his level, but he should have won that third set. I guess this will be another one to add to his gallery of disappointments with those two Davis Cup rubbers he lost in finals.

*

But we all know I care much more about Federer than Acasuso. What effect will this have on him? None, I hope - and if it is an effect, I hope it will be positive. It certainly won't wear him out, that's for sure - he's fitter than that. I'm hoping it will give him some mental toughness here at Roland Garros - he proved himself capable of digging himself out of a position where he was losing badly, and he did it with style.

*

Other exciting matches included Safarova and Venus Williams - both had match points, though Williams pulled it out in the end - and Jeremy Chardy and Simone Bolelli, which went the full distance, with Chardy coming out the victor there (score one for the Stars!) Heartbreaking matches... well, the cake here goes to Dokic/Dementieva. Dokic was looking like she was going to win - she won the first set 6-2 - and then she had to retire. I was very sad for her.

*

Of the Aussies, Olivia Rogowska also went out in a tough three setter to Kateryna Bondarenko - she has a lot to be proud of there! - but Sam Stosur and Jarmila Groth are both through. With Hewitt, that means we have three Aussies in the third round. That isn't too shabby at all - it still means one sixteenth of the women's draw is Australian!

*

*

Today's Results

*

French Open (Roland Garros)

*

Men's Draw

*

Roger Federer def. Jose Acasuso, 7-6 (10-8) 5-7 7-6 (7-2) 6-2

Gael Monfils def. Victor Crivoi, 6-4 6-3 6-3

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga def. Juan Monaco, 7-5 2-6 6-1 7-6 (10-8)

Nikolay Davydenko def. Diego Junqueira, 4-6 6-3 6-0 6-2

Jeremy Chardy def. Simone Bolelli, 6-2 6-3 4-6 4-6 6-1

Paul-Henri Mathieu def. Pablo Andujar, 6-2 6-3 6-4

Christophe Rochus def. Arnaud Clement, 6-1 7-5 4-6 6-3

Andy Roddick def. Ivo Minar, 6-2 6-2 7-6 (7-2)

Tommy Robredo def. Daniel Gimeno-Traver, 6-4 6-4 6-3

Jurgen Melzer def. Guillaume Rufin, 6-2 7-5 6-4

Igor Andreev def. Martin Vassallo Arguello, 1-6 7-5 5-7 6-3 6-4

Maximo Gonzalez def. Andreas Seppi, 7-6 (10-8) 6-3 6-3

Tommy Haas def. Leonardo Mayer, 6-3 7-6 (7-2) 3-6 4-6 6-4

Juan Martin del Potro def. Viktor Troicki, 6-3 7-5 6-0

Marc Gicquel def. Andreas Beck, 6-4 6-7 (6-8) 7-6 (7-3) 7-5

*

*

Women's Draw

*

Tathiana Garbin def. Marion Bartoli, 6-3 7-5

Serena Williams def. Virginia Ruano Pascual, 6-2 6-0

Venus Williams def. Lucie Safarova, 6-7 (5-7) 6-2 7-5

Jelena Jankovic def. Magdalena Rybarikova, 6-1 6-2

Sorana Cirstea def. Alize Cornet, 6-3 6-2

Virginie Razzano def. Anabel Medina Garrigues, 6-2 6-2

Elena Dementieva def. Jelena Dokic, 2-6 4-3 retired

Caroline Wozniacki def. Jill Craybas, 6-1 6-4

Svetlana Kuznetsova def. Galina Voskoboeva, 6-0 6-2

Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez def. Viktoriya Kutuzova, 3-6 6-3 6-3

Jarmila Groth def. Mariana Duque Marino, 6-2 7-6 (11-9)

Samantha Stosur def. Yanina Wickmayer, 6-3 4-6 6-4

Agnieszka Radwanska def. Mariya Koryttseva, 6-1 6-4

Lourdes Dominguez Lino def. Alexa Glatch, 7-6 (7-0) 7-5

Melinda Czink def. Sybille Bammer, 4-6 6-3 10-8

Kateryna Bondarenko def. Olivia Rogowska, 4-6 7-5 7-5

Aleksandra Wozniak def. Petra Martic, 6-3 6-3

Lost Souls, Lucky Losers, Stars and a Russian Rematch

Well, well, well. There were a couple of very interesting results overnight - maybe not necessarily at first glance, but... yeah, I thought they were interesting.

*

#1: James Blake is through to the semi-finals in Estoril. That would be the semi finals of a tournament on clay, where he had to beat actual players to get there. Excuse me while I stumble around in shock for a moment. He beat Florent Serra overnight - and pretty handily as well - to get into the semis. I totally didn't see him sneaking through this draw, but I'm glad he has. I inducted him into the Club of Lost Souls a couple of weeks ago: this could be a good step for him to get out.

*

#2: Another Club of Lost Souls inductee, Tomas Berdych, is also through to the semis - in Munich, in this case - after a win, but it's not the win I want to focus on, it's the opponent. Lleyton Hewitt pushed Berdych all the way to a third set breaker in the quarter finals - on clay, which has never been Hewitt's forte, and especially not in this stage of his career, where his body is giving out. I didn't see the match, so I don't know if Hewitt lifted his level or Berdych dropped his, but even though Hewitt lost, I think this is a good result for him going into the French Open.

*

#3: In a battle of the Stars, Jeremy Chardy beat Marin Cilic. Wouldn't have picked that one, but I'm now gunning for Jeremy to take the title!

*

#4: Lukasz Kubot, a lucky loser, is through to the semis in Belgrade. How about that?

*

#5: And last but definitely not least - we're going to have a rematch of the final in Stuttgart last week in Rome. Svetlana Kuznetsova beat Victoria Azarenka (excellent result for Sveta) and Dinara Safina beat Venus Williams (also an excellent result) to make it to the final, and it's going to see who walks away with this one. Whoever would have picked Sveta to make two finals in a row, after she's been such a non-entity for the last little while? And I am so glad that Dinara seems to have picked herself up and dusted herself off - even though the on-court coaching facility, which seems to be helping her a great deal, will not be available to her at Roland Garros. Great results for both girls - am pulling for Dinara to take this one, but if Sveta won... maybe she's going to be a contender at Roland Garros after all.

*

*

Today's Results

*

Estoril Open (Estoril)

*

Men's Draw

*

Albert Montanes def. Gilles Simon, 5-7 6-4 7-6 (7-4)

Nikolay Davydenko def. Mardy Fish, 6-4 6-3

James Blake def. Florent Serra, 6-4 6-1

Paul Capdeville def. Oscar Hernandez, 4-6 6-1 6-4

*

*

Women's Draw

*

Ekaterina Makarova def. Anna-Lena Groenefeld, 6-3 6-1

Yanina Wickmayer def. Shahar Peer, 3-0 retired

*

*

BMW Open (Munich)

*

Jeremy Chardy def. Marin Cilic, 3-6 7-5 6-4

Tomas Berdych def. Lleyton Hewitt, 4-6 6-3 7-6 (7-4)

Mikhail Youzhny def. Paul-Henri Mathieu, 7-5 3-6 6-3

Daniel Brands def. Potito Starace, 6-4 1-1 retired

*

*

Serbia Open (Belgrade)

*

Ivo Karlovic def. Flavio Cipolla, 6-3 6-3

Andreas Seppi def. Marcos Daniel, 6-4 7-5

Lukasz Kubot def. Kristof Vliegen, 7-6 (8-6) 6-3

Novak Djokovic def. Viktor Troicki, 6-3 6-2

*

*

Internazionali BNL d'Italia (Rome)

*

Dinara Safina def. Venus Williams, 6-7 (3-7) 6-3 6-4

Svetlana Kuznetsova def. Victoria Azarenka, 6-2 6-4

Go See Sebastien

One from three on Stars today - Marin Cilic beat Flavio Cipolla, but both Jeremy Chardy and Eduardo Schwank were first round casualties. Not too fussed about Schwank - he was, I think, only a flash in the pan, and is only hanging on to Star status by his teeth. But Chardy... I'm a bit disappointed by his performance over the last couple of weeks. He was the fourth seed in one of the tournaments last week, and I thought he had quite a good shot at winning... but last week was the week of the old guy, I suppose. Here's hoping Jeremy gets back on his feet again soon.

*

Speaking of a disappointing performance, Alize, where art thou? She was the top seed in Barcelona, and got absolutely pulverised by Stephanie Cohen-Aloro. If she isn't injured... God, I hope she's injured. This performance is absolutely inexcusable otherwise. Ever since she had those match points against Safina in Australia, she has absolutely crumbled. Perhaps she should go and have a word with countryman Sebastien Grosjean. He knows a thing or two about choking.

*

...though he probably couldn't give her many useful points on how to stop.

*

But seriously, it is so disappointing! She is a great little player and she's great on clay especially. What's gone on here? This is something that clearly needs to be addressed. I hate to see promising young guns, who should be off conquering tennis Everests with Victoria Azarenka and Caroline Wozniacki and co, succumbing to the paralysis currently sweeping the WTA. I thought it was only the more 'senior' members of the top ten (feels strange to call players like the Serbians senior - they haven't been round that long!) but Alize's caught the disease too.

*

Who is going to fix the WTA? That has got to be the biggest question in tennis right now. Where did it go wrong, and who is going to set it right?

*

*

Today's Results

*

Monte Carlo Rolex Masters (Monte Carlo)

*

Marin Cilic def. Flavio Cipolla, 6-3 6-2

Nicolas Lapentti def. Radek Stepanek, 6-3 1-6 6-3

Oscar Hernandez def. Julien Benneteau, 6-4 6-4

Juan Igancio Chela def. Igor Kunitsyn, 6-4 2-6 7-5

Victor Hanescu def. Alberto Martin, 6-2 6-3

Andreas Seppi def. Jurgen Melzer, 6-2 6-0

Marcel Granollers def. Jose Acasuso, 7-6 (7-4) 7-6 (7-2)

Juan Monaco def. Jeremy Chardy, 6-2 7-5

Marc Gicquel def. Eduardo Schwank, 3-6 6-1 7-6 (7-2)

Andreas Beck def. Nicolas Kiefer, 1-6 7-6 (7-1) 6-4

Ivan Ljubicic def. Kristof Vliegen, 6-4 6-7 (5-7) 6-4

*

*

Family Circle Cup (Charleston)

*

Peng Shuai def. Anastasia Pivovarova, 6-0 6-2

Alona Bondarenko def. Anne Kremer, 6-4 6-0

Virginie Razzano def. Mallory Cecil, 6-1 6-2

Vania King def. Olga Govortsova, 6-7 (3-7) 7-6 (7-5) 6-3

Tamira Paszek def. Julia Schruff, 7-5 6-2

Patricia Mayr def. Yan Zi, 6-2 6-2

Rossana de los Ríos def. Carly Gullickson, 6-1 6-4

Varvara Lepchenko def. Galina Voskoboeva, 6-1 6-3

Julie Ditty def. Ayumi Morita, 6-1 6-1

Anastasia Rodionova def. Madison Brengle, 6-2 7-6 (7-4)

Lenka Wienerova def. Alexa Glatch, 6-4 7-5

Melanie Oudin def. Olga Savchuk, 6-4 6-0

Anastasija Sevastova def. Marta Domachowska, 6-1 1-6 6-4

*

*

Barcelona Ladies Open (Barcelona)

*

Stéphanie Cohen-Aloro def. Alizé Cornet, 6-0 6-3

Flavia Pennetta def. Petra Kvitova, 6-3 6-3

Sara Errani def. Mathilde Johansson, 2-6 7-5 6-3

Lucie Safarova def. Tsvetana Pironkova, 6-1 3-6 6-0

Magdalena Rybarikova def. Klara Zakopalova, 6-1 7-6 (9-7)

Roberta Vinci def. Pauline Parmentier, 6-4 7-6 (9-7)

Chardy Over Mardy, Roger Rolls and Anastasia Attacks...

Not an especially good day for my Stars yesterday - Gulbis and Bellucci both went out, and now Cilic is the last man standing. Oh, and Jeremy Chardy! Almost forgot about him! He upset Mardy Fish today - he is looking very good. Maybe not so bad after all.

*

And of course it wasn't so bad over all, because Federer won, and it's like the world has been set to rights. It is so nice to see him with a racquet in his hand again! The scoreline belies it - I think it looks tighter than it was - but he played absolutely beautifully. It's more evident in the stats, I think - only 59% of first serves in, sure, but he won 91% of the time... I think he only lost three points in the entire match on his first serve. And they were all in the first set as well. I was quite pleased.

*

He comes up against Dr Ivo next round - is it just me, or do they play all the time? Anyway, Karlovic may have got him once last year, but I'm cheerfully optimistic. Roger Federer: doing it for the kid.

*

And over on the women's side, you know who I'm picking to win? I'm extremely prepared to be wrong, but I really liked the look of Ana Ivanovic yesterday. I know she hasn't won a title in the last, like, ever, but the tournament here, to be fair, doesn't have that much depth because everyone is playing pretty badly right now. The one really solid player, Elena Dementieva, is already out of the tournament, and who knows what the rest of the WTA top ten can bring... Sveta Kuznetsova is out as well, and Jelena Jankovic got absolutely trounced yesterday by Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova. So can Ana do it? She was looking strongest of the lot yesterday... here's see what Dinara Safina can do, because one would imagine she would be the biggest competition.

*

More on Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova - if she is not in the top ten in the next two years, I will be very surprised. I am officially inducting her into the Stars program (as only the second female inductee, after Sabine Lisicki.) She came up in that same crop as Alize Cornet (also knocked out) but hasn't managed to make too much of a splash yet, despite winning just about every junior Grand Slam for a couple of years. But I think her time is coming... and beating Jelena Jankovic is a great warning sign!

*

Oh, and has anyone seen head or tail of Marcos Baghdatis? Don't tell me he's injured again...

*

*

Today's Results

*

BNP Paribas Open (Indian Wells)

*

Men's Draw

*

David Ferrer def. Todd Widom, 6-4 7-5

Jeremy Chardy def. Mardy Fish, 7-6 (7-4) 7-6 (7-1)

Nicolas Kiefer def. Bobby Reynolds, 6-4 6-2

*

*

Women's Draw

*

Vera Zvonareva def. Petra Kvitova, 6-3 6-1

Caroline Wozniacki def. Kaia Kanepi, 6-3 3-6 6-3

Stars in the California Sky

In all the excitement of the recent Federer news, I completely forgot what I was going to write about yesterday, which is my Stars. And I have to say, I'm glad I waited until today, because we had some very very good results yesterday!

*

We'll start with the bad - we had one very disappointing Star loss, I thought, which was Kei Nishikori going down to Ivan Ljubicic. I mean, sure, Ivan Ljubicic has certainly been up there as far the game is concerned - he's been as high as #3 - but he's not exactly Wonderboy right now. Kei seems to have gone a little bit off the boil in the last little whiles - he's taken a couple of tame losses. But it happens to everyone - and I think we all know he'll be back up there in time.

*

But we have had some pretty nice wins! Marin Cilic won't be action for a day or two yet, but Ernests Gulbis, Jeremy Chardy and Thomaz Bellucci have all been doing quite well. Chardy is in action as I write this, one set to love up against Victor Hanescu. Gulbis had a good win over Kevin Kim - hardly the toughest opponent ever, but it was a good solid job nonetheless. Note how I am not asking whether this is the tournament where Gulbis will finally make a good deep run. I'm convinced it jinxes him. We'll just let things unfold.

*

Bellucci probably had the best win of the lot of them - I am really liking what I've seen come off his racquet in the last little while. I don't know if many people would have picked him to beat Janko Tipsarevic, but he did, in a tight three set match. It was very nice. He's going to be one to watch in coming months, particularly on clay...

*

So all in all, some nice early round action. But the tournament still hasn't really begun yet, it seems to me. I think we're all waiting to see what will happen when the big boys come out to play!

*

*

Today's Results

*

BNP Paribas Open (Indian Wells)
*

Men's Draw

*

Todd Widom def. Ivan Navarro, 6-4 7-6 (7-4)

Michael Berrer def. Kevin Anderson, 6-3 6-3

Daniel Koellerer def. Mischa Zverev, 2-6 7-5 6-2

Ryan Sweeting def. Wayne Odesnik, 1-6 6-4 7-6 (7-5)

Sam Querrey def. Guillermo Canas, 7-6 (7-2) 6-2

Andreas Seppi def. Juan Ignacio Chela, 6-2 4-1 retired

Jeremy Chardy def. Victor Hanescu, 6-4 3-6 6-2

*
*

Women's Draw

*

Caroline Wozniacki def. Timea Bacsinszky, 6-1 6-1

Shahar Peer def. Marion Bartoli, 1-6 6-4 7-5

Amélie Mauresmo def. Anna-Lena Groenefeld, 5-7 6-3 6-4

Kaia Kanepi def. Virginie Razzano, 7-6 (7-2) 1-0 retired

Peng Shuai def. Olga Govortsova, 6-3 3-6 6-4

Alexa Glatch def. Carla Suárez Navarro, 6-3 6-1

No Name Alert

Ha ha ha, I bet the organisers of Dubai are absolutely wringing their hands with despair. Not only is Andy Murray, one of their last great drawcards, out of the tournament, he's out with a walkover - so he didn't even play. Another great player promised, another not delivered. That's four huge names now out - Federer, Nadal, Murray and Roddick.

*

So can Djokovic carry the profile of the tournament? He's a pretty big name, but when you consider that we've had a Federer/Nadal final (aka. the ultimate final) in this tournament before and should have been on that track again this year, I'll bet the organisers are weeping silently into their dinner plates.

*

At least the other three guys left - Ferrer, Simon and Gasquet - are not total no names. If you had total randoms there, I'd bet there'd be a lot more weeping.

*

Speaking of no names, who is this Daniel Koellerer? And Leonardo Mayer? I've vaguely heard the names before, but I definitely couldn't put faces to them or tell you anything at all about them, but now they're both in the quarter-finals at Acapulco. I (probably unlike the organisers of Dubai) like a good no name here and there, so I'll keep a bit of an eye on them. I'm always looking for new inductees into my Stars fold - and Lord knows I need one this week. As far as I can tell, the last Star standing is Jeremy Chardy... and I'm going to stop right here, before I repeat every single thing I said about Ernests Gulbis yesterday.

*

Oh, actually, I lied. One more thing. Very nice to see Agnes Szavay doing well in Acapulco. I had her earmarked for success a while back, and then she seemed to disappear - she's in this tournament as a lucky loser, case in point. I'd like to see her realise her potential - and prove me right.

*

*

Today's Results

*

Barclays Dubai Tennis Championships (Dubai)

*

Novak Djokovic def. Marin Cilic, 6-3 6-4

Richard Gasquet def. Andy Murray, walkover

Gilles Simon def. Fabrice Santoro, 7-6 (7-3) 6-1

David Ferrer def. Igor Andreev, 7-5 6-1

*

*

Abierto Mexicano Telcel (Acapulco)

*

Men's Draw

*

Gael Monfils def. Thomaz Bellucci, 7-6 (7-4) 6-7 (5-7) 6-1

Tommy Robredo def. Kevin Kim, 6-2 6-0

Nicolas Almagro def. Potito Starace, 7-6 (7-1) 6-7 (5-7) 6-3

Jose Acasuso def. Juan Ignacio Chela, 7-5 6-3

Daniel Gimeno-Traver def. Albert Montanes, 7-6 (7-5) 7-6 (7-5)

Martin Vassallo Arguello def. Marcel Granollers, 6-4 6-3

Leonardo Mayer def. Carlos Moya, 6-4 7-5

Daniel Koellerer def. Alberto Martin, 6-4 5-7 7-6 (7-4)

*

*

Women's Draw

*

Venus Williams def. Greta Arn, 6-3 6-7 (3-7) 6-4

Flavia Pennetta def. Pauline Parmentier, 6-1 6-3

Barbora Zahlavova Strycova def. Carla Suárez Navarro, 6-4 7-5

Iveta Benesova def. Klara Zakopalova, 4-6 6-4 7-6 (7-3)

Maret Ani def. Gisela Dulko, 7-6 (8-6) 6-3

Petra Cetkovska def. María José Martínez Sánchez, 3-6 6-4 6-1

Agnes Szavay def. Roberta Vinci, 7-6 (7-1) 6-4

*

*

Delray Beach International Tennis Championships (Delray Beach)

*

Mardy Fish def. Vince Spadea, 6-4 6-1

Little Guys in the Big Time

All this talk of the Fed Cup and Aussie women's tennis has made me forget to write about one of the staples of this blog - my Stars! And two of them in particular have done very well this week, so - a little tribute.

*

Let's start in Johannesburg, with my Frenchman, Jeremy Chardy. Not one of the more active of my Stars, it is fair to say - he hasn't been burning quite as brightly as some of the others. Nonetheless, whenever I forget about him, he comes out and proves that, yes, he does belong in my Stars program, and this week he did it by reaching the final in Johannesburg, where he did lose, yes - but it was to fellow Frenchie Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, and even though he's a Star, Jo-Dub is a bit spesh right now. He was seeded fifth in this tournament, which shows you how he's sneaking up the rankings - so well done, Jeremy. Hope to see more of you.

*

And not only did we have a finalist in South Africa, we had a winner in Zagreb. I think it's fair to say that second seed Marin Cilic, who cruised home over fellow Croat Mario Ancic, has well and truly made it. I think he's the first of my Stars that I can legitimately say I picked when he was way down in the rankings and has since made the big time. Seriously, how good is this boy? Two titles this year already, and it's only February. I think we can expect big things from Marin this year - big things. He might even be this year's surprise Juan Martin del Potro, the random young guy who suddenly becomes a gun and makes it to the season-ending championships. Though I do hold out hopes that Gulbis will give him a run for his money...

*

And meanwhile, back to Fed Cup - I expected Russia to sweep China, even though neither Safina nor Sharapova were playing the tie, but Italy sweeping France? I never would have picked that one. On one side, you have Schiavone and Pennetta, the other, Cornet and Mauresmo. A sane person would pick the French girls to win every time, yeah? How bizarre. But good work to the Italians, nonetheless.

*

*

Today's Results

*

SA Tennis Open (Johannesburg)

*

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga def. Jeremy Chardy, 6-4 7-6 (7-5)

*

*

Movistar Open (Vina del Mar)

*

Fernando Gonzalez def. Pablo Cuevas, 6-3 6-2

*

*

PBZ Zagreb Indoors (Zagreb)

*

Marin Cilic def. Mario Ancic, 6-3 6-4

Hats Off To Jeremy!

We have one Star who is really shining bright this week, and it's not one I would have picked. Hats off to Jeremy Chardy! He was admitted to the fold pretty much on the strength of his performance in the French Open, but he clearly still has something, because he has beaten some quality players this week. First it was Radek Stepanek, and now it's Igor Andreev. He's in the quarters now - can Jeremy take it further?

*

One of Australia's last hopes, Chris Guccione, is out, but it was a bit much to ask him to repeat his performance of last year. Lleyton Hewitt, on the other hand, is playing quite nicely - I very much enjoyed his match against Janko Tipsarevic. Even though he's objectionable when he speaks, I really do like watching him play - maybe it's because his counter-punching style seems to draw points out, and long points are good viewing. Anyway, I like watching him, and I'm sure his quarter final match against David Nalbandian will be entertaining, if nothing else.

*

I very much liked the look of Caroline Wozniacki yesterday, even though she did go down to HMAS Serena. She played beautifully - especially in the first set. She's one to keep an eye on for sure - her and Dominika Cibulkova! The Dinara Safina freight train rolled on as well, steamrolling Alize Cornet for the second time in two weeks. It'd be interesting to see who came up trumps in a match between her and Serena - no quarter would be asked, and no quarter given.

*

Meanwhile, another one of my favourite tournaments has begun - the AAMI Classic in Kooyong. Marcos Baghdatis was not looking good at all in his match against Stan Wawrinka, who was - how sweet is his backhand? Nando Verdasco also looked good beating my Star Marin Cilic, but the real class act was, of course, Roger Federer. He was just cruising around, looking supreme, making shots, pulling shapes, being the ultimate front man, anything you can ask. He looked so casual and yet his tennis was so beautiful... I think (and hope!) that he's been playing the B or C game all these weeks and will bring the real stuff at the Open. Especially as I might get to see him play live!

*

*

Today's Results

*

AAMI Classic (Kooyong)

*

Stanislas Wawrinka def. Marcos Baghdatis, 6-2 6-2
Roger Federer def. Carlos Moya, 6-2 6-3
Fernando Verdasco def. Marin Cilic, 6-2 7-5
Fernando Gonzalez def. Ivan Ljubicic, 6-4 6-3

*

*

Medibank International (Sydney)

*

Men's Draw

*

Novak Djokovic def. Paul-Henri Mathieu, 6-1 6-2

Richard Gasquet def. Gilles Simon, 6-4 6-4

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga def. Simone Bolelli, 6-4 6-1

David Nalbandian def. Michael Llodra, 6-1 6-3

Jeremy Chardy def. Igor Andreev, 6-4 4-6 6-4

Mario Ancic def. Tommy Robredo, 6-2 6-1

Lleyton Hewitt def. Janko Tipsarevic, 7-5 6-4

Jarkko Nieminen def. Chris Guccione, 7-6 (10-8) 6-3

*

*

Women's Draw

*

Serena Williams def. Caroline Wozniacki, 6-7 (5-7) 6-3 7-6 (7-3)

Dinara Safina def. Alizé Cornet, 6-3 6-4

Elena Dementieva def. Agnieszka Radwanska, 6-2 5-7 6-4

Ai Sugiyama def. Svetlana Kuznetsova, walkover

*

*

Moorilla Hobart International (Hobart)

*

Iveta Benesova def. Gisela Dulko, 6-4 6-4

Petra Kvitova def. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, 1-6 7-5 6-3

Magdalena Rybarikova def. Melinda Czink, 6-0 1-6 7-6 (9-7)

Virginie Razzano def. Tsvetana Pironkova, 6-4 6-1

No Repeat Performances

Well, we're not having a repeat of last year's final at the Medibank International. Chris Guccione is through on the strength of a really quite excellent performance against perennial underachiever Tomas Berdych, but Dmitry Tursunov is out. He didn't exactly get bundled out, but he went down in a tight two-setter to Richard Gasquet, who is looking better than I've seen him for a while. It's going to be interesting to see how that one works out for him.

*

On the men's side, it was a good day for Australia - both Gooch and Hewitt are through. That Hewitt match was really good to watch - no matter what one might think of his personality, he's dynamic on court, and you have to admire his chutzpah. Julien Benneteau should be fiercely disappointed to lose that one. Another loser was Radek Stepanek, who did retire, yes, but who was being pummelled by Jeremy Chardy (a Star!) when he called it quits. He cites illness... I have my doubts. Mostly because I don't like him. Which is a fair enough reason. But good on Jeremy!

*

Speaking of Stars, Ernests Gulbis is looking pretty decent over in Auckland over a good three-set win over Marcel Granollers, who is no slouch - he has a title to his name, and you don't get that by being a schlep. However, Ernests is going up against the #1 seed today, Juan Martin del Potro... can he upset two #1 seeds in consecutive tournaments? I like to think he can - here's hoping he does!

*

And how dangerous is Dinara Safina looking over on the women's side? I wouldn't want to come up against her anytime soon. After pounding on Cirstea yesterday, she turned Vera Dushevina into mincemeat. (Ironically, Cirstea and Dushevina are doubles partners. They can share their woes together.)

*

Meanwhile, more wildcards for the Aussie Open have been announced, and I have to say that I like their choices. Discretionary wildcards have been handed to Bernard Tomic, Sam Groth, Brydan Klein and Carsten Ball in the men's, and Monica Wejnert, Isabella Holland, Olivia Rogoswka and Jessica Moore in the women's. All young guns, all with potential. My goal is for one of these eight to win a match - actually, make it ten, we'll include Colin Ebelthite and Jelena Dokic, who won the playoffs. I have a particular feeling about Isabella Holland... she might just make good!

*

*

Today's Results

*

Medibank International (Sydney)

*

Men's Draw

*

Chris Guccione def. Tomas Berdych, 6-3 6-4

Janko Tipsarevic def. Mardy Fish, 6-4 3-6 6-4

Paul-Henri Mathieu def. Andreas Seppi, 6-2 2-6 6-3

Lleyton Hewitt def. Julien Benneteau, 5-7 6-2 6-4

Jeremy Chardy def. Radek Stepanek, 6-4 3-0 retired

Richard Gasquet def. Dmitry Tursunov, 7-6 (7-4) 6-4

*

*

Women's Draw

*

Serena Williams def. Sara Errani, 6-1 6-2

Dinara Safina def. Vera Dushevina, 6-3 6-0

Elena Dementieva def. Jarmila Gajdosova, 6-2 6-4

Svetlana Kuznetsova def. Kaia Kanepi, 6-2 2-6 7-6 (7-3)

Agnieszka Radwanska def. Daniela Hantuchova, 6-3 7-5

Caroline Wozniacki def. Melanie South, 6-2 6-0

Alizé Cornet def. Alisa Kleybanova, 7-6 (7-5) 6-1

Ai Sugiyama def. Anabel Medina Garrigues, 2-6 6-1 6-2

*

*

Heineken Open (Auckland)

*

Philipp Kohlschreiber def. Dominik Hrbaty, 6-1 6-2

John Isner def. Albert Montanes, 7-6 (7-4) 7-5

Juan Monaco def. Victor Hanescu, 6-3 6-4

Gilles Muller def. Florent Serra, 6-3 6-4

Yen-Hsun Lu def. Steve Darcis, 7-6 (7-5) 6-2

Ernests Gulbis def. Marcel Granollers, 6-4 6-7 (5-7) 6-1

Bobby Reynolds def. Oscar Hernandez, 7-6 (7-4) 5-7 6-2

Marc Gicquel def. Agustin Calleri, 3-6 6-4 6-4

*

*

Moorilla Hobart International (Hobart)

*

Magdalena Rybarikova def. Flavia Pennetta, 7-5 6-3

Gisela Dulko def. Zheng Jie, 6-3 6-3

Petra Kvitova def. Alona Bondarenko, 6-2 6-1

Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova def. Carla Suárez Navarro, 6-4 6-1

Iveta Benesova def. Mara Santangelo, 6-3 6-1

Virginie Razzano def. Anne Keothavong, 4-6 6-0 7-5

Melinda Czink def. Urszula Radwanska, 4-2 retired

Tsvetana Pironkova def. Olga Govortsova, 6-1 6-2

Damn It, Marat!

MARAT!!!!!!!

*

That's all I have to say about that. Marat, what is WRONG with you? Why can you go from beating Nikolay Davydenko and owning other excellent players one week to losing to Andrey 'who' Golubev? Why can't you just be consistent? Just for once?

*

Jesus Christ, man, why can't you be more like your sister?

*

It's just so damn frustrating, because he's SO GOOD. Seriously, if they did a top ten of the most talented players on tour, he and the Fed would be fighting it out for the top spot. (I think Roger might get him, but it'd be a close thing.) Remember the semi final of the Australian Open in 2005, a match that has to be one of the highest quality matches played... oh, I don't know, ever? The only match I can think of to rival it is this year's epic Wimbledon final. So why can't Marat just do it any more? The talent is still there - he proved that by reaching the Wimbledon semis and the final of the Kremlin Cup. All that Marat goodness is still there - I know he has a chronic knee injury, but you can't blame everything on that. He's a headcase, plain and simple. So why can't he just... stop being a headcase?

*

I want him to sit down with whoever it is that wrought this amazing change in Dinara. Because if it works for her, it has to work for him... yeah? They have the same genetic makeup and everything.

*

Speaking of the Safin siblings, I am RIDICULOUSLY excited about next year's Hopman Cup. I was flicking through Australian Tennis magazine yesterday, and it was a pretty boring issue, apart from a feature on tennis siblings on the very last page, where, in its little Marat and Dinara section, it mentioned that they're going to team up for the first time ever to play Hopman Cup next year. I am so excited! Hopman Cup is probably my favourite tournament in the year, and to see Marat and Dinara play mixed doubles will be RAD! I am really tempted to go, even though it is in Perth, which is on the opposite side of the country, and my boss will probably get really annoyed if I take more time off for tennis... add to which I will have no money. But... the Safin(a) siblings! How can I resist?

*

And on the subject of my favourite tennis players, my Stars Gulbis and Chardy went down today - sigh - but my beloved Federer Express got through in Basel in two tiebreaker sets against Jarkko Nieminen. Here's hoping for a fourth title this year to add to the US Open, Halle and Estoril!

*

*

Today's Results

*

Davidoff Swiss Indoors (Basel)

*

Roger Federer def. Jarkko Nieminen, 7-6 (8-6) 7-6 (7-1)

David Nalbandian def. Kristof Vliegen, 6-4 5-7 7-6 (7-4)

Juan Martin del Potro def. Stephane Bohli, 6-3 6-3

James Blake def. Oscar Hernandez, 6-7 (4-7) 6-2 6-4

Simone Bolelli def. Marcel Granollers, 6-4 6-2

*

*

St Petersburg Open (St Petersburg)

*

Andy Murray def. Ernests Gulbis, 6-4 6-2

Andrey Golubev def. Marat Safin, 6-4 6-2

Janko Tipsarevic def. Jeremy Chardy, 6-4 7-6 (7-3)

Victor Hanescu def. Mikhail Kukushkin, 6-3 7-6 (9-7)

Mischa Zverev def. Mikahil Youzhny, 7-5 6-4

*

*

Grand Prix de Tennis de Lyon (Lyon)

*

Andy Roddick def. Robby Ginepri, 7-6 (7-5) 7-6 (7-3)

Steve Darcis def. Richard Gasquet, 6-4 3-6 7-6 (7-5)

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga def. Fabrice Santoro, 6-2 5-7 6-3

Gilles Simon def. Andreas Seppi, 7-6 (7-5) 5-7 6-4

Robin Soderling def. Christophe Rochus, 6-1 6-2

Juan Carlos Ferrero def. Paul-Henri Mathieu, 6-4 6-1

*

*

Generali Ladies Linz (Linz)

*

Ana Ivanovic def. Sybille Bammer, 6-4 6-2

Vera Zvonareva def. Nuria Llagostera Vives, 6-2 6-0

Alona Bondarenko def. Patty Schnyder, 6-2 2-6 6-1

Nadia Petrova def. Katarina Srebotnik, 6-4 7-6 (9-7)

Marion Bartoli def. Petra Kvitova, 7-6 (7-4) 1-6 6-3

Flavia Pennetta def. Dominika Cibulkova, 6-3 6-1

*

*

FORTIS Championships Luxembourg (Luxembourg)

*

Elena Dementieva def. Gisela Dulko, 6-2 6-2

Amélie Mauresmo def. Anna-Lena Groenefeld, 6-3 6-1

Anabel Medina Garrigues def. Catalina Castaño, 6-2 4-6 7-5

A Win Is A Win

All the headlines this morning are about how Federer had a scare in Basel and how he barely scraped through by the skin of his teeth against Bobby Reynolds, but it didn't look like he gave too bad an account of himself to me. Sure, he could have closed it out earlier - he had a match point in the second set - and sure it went to three, but he never exactly looked like he was going to lose, did he? It's probably good for him to sort of play his way into the tournament.

*

Not that I wouldn't have been happier if he had cruised his way through. But a win is a win.

*

Speaking of wins, one guy that did not get one was Marin Cilic... he was upset by Mikhail Kukushkin. Still, it's exciting that he has now ranked high enough to be able to upset. You know you're getting somewhere when you're the one getting upset rather than being the upsetter. Even if a win, on the whole, would have been preferable.

*

But we did have some Star victories today - Jeremy Chardy pulled an upset over seventh seed Mario Ancic, and very remarkably, Ernests Gulbis stomped all over Guillermo Garcia-Lopez. I bet Federer wouldn't have minded having a 6-0 6-2 cruise in Basel instead of a lengthy battle. Maybe this is Ernests's tournament. It has to come sooner or later, right? However, even though seeds like Cilic and Ancic were upset, we still have Davydenkos and Youzhnys and the like milling round... but Ernests can beat them. I know he can. Even if Davydenko has just qualified for the Tennis Masters Cup.

*

*

Today's Results

*

Davidoff Swiss Indoors (Basel)

*

Roger Federer def. Bobby Reynolds, 6-3 6-7 (6-8) 6-3

David Nalbandian def. Albert Montanes, 6-4 6-2

Juan Martin Del Potro def. George Bastl, 6-2 6-4

Simone Bolelli def. Tomas Berdych, 6-4 7-5

Andreas Beck def. Nicolas Devilder, 6-4 6-4

Philipp Kohlschreiber def. Denis Gremelmayr, 6-4 7-6 (7-5)

Oscar Hernandez def. Lukas Dlouhy, 7-6 (8-6) 6-7 (5-7) 6-1

Stephane Bohli def. Jose Acasuso, 6-3 6-2

*

*

St Petersburg Open (St Petersburg)

*

Nikolay Davydenko def. Chris Guccione, 6-4 6-4

Fernando Verdasco def. Teimuraz Gabashvili, 1-6 6-4 6-3

Mikhail Youzhny def. Ivan Navarro, 6-2 6-1

Mikhail Kukushkin def. Marin Cilic, 7-6 (7-4) 4-6 7-6 (8-6)

Jeremy Chardy def. Mario Ancic, 6-4 3-6 6-4

Ernests Gulbis def. Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, 6-0 6-2

Janko Tipsarevic def. Potito Starace, 6-3 7-6 (7-4)

Michail Elgin def. Filippo Volandri, 6-4 6-4

Karlis Lejnieks def. Alexandre Kudryavtsev, 3-6 7-6 (7-1) 6-3

Mischa Zverev def. Florent Serra, 6-4 6-2

*

*

Grand Prix de Tennis de Lyon (Lyon)

*

Andy Roddick def. Nicolas Mahut, 7-6 (7-5) 6-4

Richard Gasquet def. Santiago Giraldo, 5-7 6-3 7-6 (7-3)

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga def. Marc Gicquel, 7-5 4-6 6-3

Nicolas Lapentti def. Ivo Karlovic, 7-6 (7-4) 6-3

Fabrice Santoro def. Fabio Fognini, 6-4 6-1

Andreas Seppi def. David Guez, 6-2 7-5

Robby Ginepri def. Sebastien Grosjean, 6-7 (4-7) 6-4 6-4

*

*

Generali Ladies Linz (Linz)

*

Nadia Petrova def. Kateryna Bondarenko, 3-6 6-3 6-1

Marion Bartoli def. Ai Sugiyama, 6-4 2-6 7-6 (10-8)

Dominika Cibulkova def. Yvonne Meusburger, 6-4 6-2

Maria Kirilenko def. Olga Savchuk, 6-2 7-5

Alona Bondarenko def. Ekaterina Makarova, 6-3 6-3

Nuria Llagostera Vives def. Samantha Stosur, 2-6 6-4 6-2

*

*

FORTIS Championships Luxembourg (Luxembourg)

*

Elena Dementieva def. Tatjana Malek, 7-6 (7-5) 6-2

Caroline Wozniacki def. Timea Bacsinszky, 6-2 6-3

Sorana Cirstea def. Yuliana Fedak, 4-6 6-2 6-2

Iveta Benesova def. Laura Robson, 1-6 6-2 6-3

Gisela Dulko def. Tathiana Garbin, 6-4 6-2

Mariya Koryttseva def. Tsvetana Pironkova, 3-6 6-3 6-3

Catalina Castaño def. Marta Domachowska, 6-0 6-2

Lose the Spanner, Ana

Remember when Ana Ivanovic used to win matches? I certainly can't remember the last time she did. When was the last time she won a match? Honestly, it isn't even an upset any more when she loses matches. Dominika Cibulkova is a good player, sure, but she's not in Ivanovic's league - at least, not in the league of the old Ivanovic, who was winning things and making it to the final of the Australian and winning the French. So whither Ana? I thought not being #1 would take the pressure off, but this clearly hasn't been the case. I mean, the old Ana would never have lost to Dominika Cibulkova, let alone Julie Coin and the ilk.

*

So what is the spanner in the works? What is wrong? I hope to God it's an injury, because if it's all in her head, she is officially the biggest basket case EVER. It must be so upsetting to see Jelena Jankovic winning things all over the place while Ana can't even win a single match. She needs to take time off, even if it means missing Doha and the Australian and hell, all of next season. She needs to get better - to either rehabilitate whatever injury she has, or to move in with her sports psychologist and rehabiliate her mind. She needs to lose the spanner.

*

Meanwhile, how 'bout my Stars? Ernests Gulbis lost to Fernando Gonzalez, but he had five match points - I wish he had hung on, but the game is clearly there. Thomaz Bellucci lost a tight three-setter with Jarkko Nieminen, but today's best performer was Jeremy Chardy, who upset Igor Andreev. Allez Jeremy!

*

And nice work to my Russian girls, Dinara and Nadia, who both had great wins in Moscow. Davai!

*

*

Today's Results

*

Kremlin Cup (Moscow)

*

Men's Draw

*

Fabrice Santoro def. Denis Istomin, 6-2 6-4

Jeremy Chardy def. Igor Andreev, 3-6 7-5 6-4

Teimuraz Gabashvili def. Mikhail Youzhny, 7-5 4-6 7-6 (7-1)

Paul-Henri Mathieu def. Sergiy Stakhovsky, 6-3 6-2

Mischa Zverev def. Denis Gremelmayr, 6-3 7-6 (9-7)

Igor Kunitsyn def. Mikhail Kukushkin, 6-1 4-6 6-1

*

*

Women's Draw

*

Dinara Safina def. Amélie Mauresmo, 6-7 (2-7) 6-4 6-4

Elena Dementieva def. Katarina Srebotnik, 6-3 4-6 7-6 (7-2)

Dominika Cibulkova def. Ana Ivanovic, 3-6 6-2 7-6 (7-4)

Svetlana Kuznetsova def. Sara Errani, 7-6 (7-0) 6-1

Caroline Wozniacki def. Anna Chakvetadze, 2-6 6-1 6-4

Nadia Petrova def. Anna Lapushchenkova, 6-2 6-1

*

*

If Stockholm Open (Stockholm)

*

Rainer Schuettler def. Nicolas Lapentti, 7-6 (8-6) 6-3

Oscar Hernandez def. Jose Acasuso, 2-6 6-3 6-4

Jarkko Nieminen def. Thomaz Bellucci, 6-7 (5-7) 6-3 7-5

Robin Soderling def. Benjamin Becker, 7-5 6-3

Albert Montanes def. Thomas Johansson, 6-3 4-6 6-3

George Bastl def. Frederik Nielsen, 7-6 (8-6) 3-6 7-6 (7-4)

Arnaud Clement def. Bjorn Rehnquist, 6-2 6-1

*

*

Bank Austria Tennis Trophy (Vienna)

*

Fernando Gonzalez def. Ernests Gulbis, 4-6 7-6 (13-11) 6-1

Fernando Verdasco def. Guillermo Canas, 6-1 6-2

Philipp Petzschner def. Jan Hernych, 6-3 6-4

Carlos Moya def. Eduardo Schwank, 6-2 6-3

Juan Martin Del Potro def. Martin Fischer, 7-6 (9-7) 7-6 (7-5)

Gael Monfils def. Alexander Peya, 3-6 6-1 6-3

Pim-Pim Returns

So what's this I hear about Joachim Johansson having a wildcard in Stockholm this week? Didn't he retire?

*

...a little research shows that he's making a comeback. I don't really know that much about Pim-Pim, but hasn't he tried this comeback lark before? I seem to recall it didn't work so well. He has a chronic shoulder injury or something. I mean, I'm sure all this rest will have done him a world of good, but will it really work out, if the injury was bad enough to force him into retirement?

*

I guess he and his doctors know better than me. I will watch his comeback with scepticism - though I have no objection to being wrong. It'd be nice to see a comeback go right, since they so rarely do.

*

I had two of my Stars in action today, and both of them won, which was nice. One of them, Jeremy Chardy, is one of my forgotten Stars - he's kind of been relegated to hanger-on status with Eduardo Schwank, so it's nice to see him back in action and doin g well. He took out Potito Starace, who I am under the impression is no slouch, so nice work there, Jeremy: keep it up, and you can be back in with the big boys in the Stars club.

*

One of the Stars who definitely is one of the big boys is wee Kei Nishikori, and he had a great victory today over Marcel Granollers, who was the eighth seed. Isn't this kid just something else? He may have suffered a tough loss in Tokyo, but it was a few rounds in, and he had some good victories first. That's what's so good about him - and also about Marin Cilic in particular. They may not win titles all the time, but you can rely on them to make it in a round or two. They very rarely suffer first round losses, unless they're playing someone really excellent, like Federer or Nadal or someone. This is a very good omen for the future, I think: consistency is one of the most important attributes a player can have, in my humble opinion.

*

And how about Juan Carlos Ferrero upsetting Ivo Karlovic? He's a Star of the Past, for sure - his heyday was about 2003 - but I do like seeing him do well. He keeps hanging in there - he's tenacious, and I dig that. Good on you, JC!

*

*

Today's Results

*

Kremlin Cup (Moscow)

*

Men's Draw

*

Jeremy Chardy def. Potito Starace, 3-6 6-1 6-4

Guillermo Garcia-Lopez def. Nicolas Devilder, 6-2 6-4

Fabrice Santoro def. Yuri Schukin, 4-6 7-6 (7-2) 6-4

Igor Andreev def. Yen-hsun Lu, 6-2 retired

*

*

Women's Draw

*

Dominika Cibulkova def. Marion Bartoli, 6-1 4-1 retired

Amélie Mauresmo def. Alizé Cornet, 6-7 (3-7) 6-3 6-4

Vera Dushevina def. Nicole Vaidisova, 6-1 3-6 6-3

*

*

If Stockholm Open (Stockholm)

*

Dominik Hrbaty def. Pablo Andujar, 6-2 6-1

Nicolas Lapentti def. Ivan Navarro, 3-6 7-6 (7-5) 7-5

Kei Nishikori def. Marcel Granollers, 2-6 6-4 6-2

*

*

Bank Austria Tennis Trophy (Vienna)

*

Juan Carlos Ferrero def. Ivo Karlovic, 6-4 7-6 (7-4)

Fernando Verdasco def. Victor Crivoi, 6-4 6-4

Guillermo Canas def. Andreas Seppi, 7-6 (7-2) 6-3

Jan Hernych def. Roko Karanusic, 4-6 6-4 7-6 (7-5)

Feliciano Lopez def. Agustin Calleri, 7-6 (7-2) 7-6 (7-4)

Carlos Moya def. Michael Berrer, 7-6 (7-5) 7-6 (8-6)

The Hidden Circuit

One of the lead stories on the Tennis Australia website today is that Monique Adamczak and Nick Lindahl (both young Australian players, for those of you who don't know the names) have won events on the '2008-09 Pro Circuit.' Now, I'm mystified. What on earth is this so-called Pro Circuit?

*

Adamczak and Lindahl are not very highly ranked players - Adamczak is somewhere in the late #100s and Lindahl in the #200s, so presumably this Pro Circuit is not especially prestigious. The tournament that they won the men's and women's singles in was in Rockhampton, so it's hardly a travel-around-the-world international affair. Oh, wait - I've found a page on Tennis Australia about it. It says:

*

'The tennis Pro Circuit is a series of international entry level events onto the professional tour. These events provide an opportunity for players to earn their first world ranking points, which is a players' livelihood as a professional player. The tennis Pro Circuit is a vital step for all tennis players as they embark on professional careers. Positioned as a bridge between junior events and the elite WTA and ATP tournaments the circuit, it is the breeding ground for future champions.'

*

That makes sense, I suppose - but surely Monique Adamczak is a bit past that stage? She's played in Slams - surely she should be playing ITF events... her ranking is high enough to get into most of those, yeah? She's professional, not jumping the gap between the two - though looking at her profile, she hasn't been playing much tennis, either at WTA or ITF level. She's made it to some semi-finals, but that's about it. She was born in 1983 and turned pro in 1998, by the looks of it... she's had some career success on the ITF circuit with four title but not that much recently - and now she's back playing on the Pro Circuit. She was the top seed in Rockhampton.

*

That's really a bit demoralising, but well done Monique Adamczak, nonetheless.

*

Nick Lindahl is a bit of a different story... I remember him playing in juniors a couple of years back, and he was no Tomic, but he was pretty good. I haven't really seen him since - the ATP has no record of him turning pro, though presumably he did, because he played quarter finals in a Challenger event... do you have to be a professional to play Challengers? Maybe you don't. He was the second seed in the event at Rockhampton.

*

It's funny, isn't it, to actually see the evidence of the work that players do to get to the top? You sort of assume they have to work their way up, but I've never really thought about how they did that. It'd be the rare junior that jumped straight onto the ATP or WTA circuit - I suppose, in recent memory, Alize Cornet has done it, and maybe Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, but let's have a look at recent junior Slam winners for boys, and see where they are now. In 2007, Donald Young won the US Open for boys, and in 2006 Thiemo de Bakker won junior Wimbledon, but we have to go back to 2005 before we start getting any really familiar names - the champions that year were Young, Marin Cilic, Jeremy Chardy and Ryan Sweeting. That was 2005, and now we're in 2008, and if we take Cilic as our example case, it has taken him about three years to be a regular on the ATP circuit. He didn't even qualify for the US Open last year.

*

So where was Marin in these few years? Playing Challengers and Futures, no doubt, but maybe he was hanging about on the Pro Circuit too. So maybe I should pay more attention to this hitherto unheard-of circuit... perhaps I can claim I saw the next Roger Federer play before he was famous!

*

*

Today's Results

*

TOE Life Ceramics Guangzhou International Women's Open (Guangzhou)

*

Olga Govortsova def. Yan Zi, 6-3 6-2

Mariya Koryttseva def. Akgul Amanmuradova, 6-4 6-4

Karin Knapp def. Zhang Shuai, 7-6 (8-6) 1-6 6-1

Alla Kudryavtseva def. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, 6-4 4-6 6-3

Ioana Raluca Olaru def. Aniko Kapros, 6-7 (5-7) 6-4 6-1

Lu Jingjing def. Ekaterina Dzehalevich, 7-6 (7-4) 6-2