Crying For Kiwi

I never used to think much of Nicolas Kiefer, but my heart is absolutely breaking for him right now. Germany stood such a good chance of getting through to the Hopman Cup final, even though Lisicki did lose her match against Cibulkova, and then he had to go and just about snap his ankle in half... seriously, I nearly cried when he got wheeled off court with all that ice strapped to his leg. He just looked so sad - and it is such a crying shame, because that Germany/Slovak Republic tie was shaping up to be a real cracker. And this has to put him in doubt, if not totally out of contention, for the Aussie Open, and even though he hasn't been winning much this week, he has shown some superlative form and had some great battles. Poor Kiwi - and, by extension, poor Sabine Lisicki, robbed of her shot at the final because of some stupid accident.

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That means, of course, that the finalists of the Hopman Cup will be the Slovak team of Cibulkova and Hrbaty, and (hurrah!) Russia, who went 3-0 in the group stages, despite going 2-1 every time. This time the 1 was Safin losing to Simon, but that wasn't wholly unexpected - not only is Marat Marat, but Simon is a top ten player and in pretty good nick right now. So it all hinged on the doubles - a Russian win would see them through, a French straight sets win would see the French through and a three set win would see the Italians through. But even though I stand firmly by my claim that Marat = crap at doubles, he turned it up a notch (thanks Dinara - I think we have you to be grateful for!) and they pulled it out, those plucky siblings. So of course I am madly excited for the final tonight - though it is a shame that we won't see the Germans there. I was looking forward to a Lisicki/Safina rematch, considering what happened at last year's Aussie Open... and also I think Lisicki is a genuine Star of the Future. Actually, she is going to be my first female inductee into the Stars club. You heard it here first!

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Meanwhile, how about fuzzy Gael Monfils taking out the Rafinator in Doha? I so did not expect that one. I suppose Monfils is a genuinely dangerous player when he's on song, but he's on song so rarely that I thus rarely consider him a major danger - and Rafa isn't someone that has many off-days. I didn't see the match so I can't really comment, but what happened? Did La Monf play insanely well or did Rafa crash and burn?

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Roger, on the other hand, got through pretty comfortably against Kohlschreiber by the looks of things. He'll meet Murray now, and with Rafa out, this really is the final. You've got to back whomever comes through this one to take out the winner of La Monf and Roddick - and my money is, as always, on the Mighty Mighty Fed. This'd be a great start to the season - and the more points he can put between himself and that damn beatnik Djokovic the better, in my book, especially now Djokovic has that wildcard into Sydney... I hope he loses early there too. Because that would be funny.

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Marin Cilic is flying the Star flag high and proud in Chennai - here's hoping he can fly it all the way to the title! Kei Nishikori, unfortunately, went down to Paul-Henri Mathieu in Brisbane, but I suppose we can't have everything. Paulo really has been a Star-killer this week, taking out two of my best boys! But he has been playing very well - he was outstanding in his match against Gulbis. He has a great backhand - I'd never really noticed before. He'll play Verdasco next, and I would not be surprised if Nando went the same way as his girl - that is, down. Apparently Ana is seeking treatment for stomach problems... I would be seeking ball toss therapy if I were her. Not to belittle the rest of her game or anything, but if you have such a fundamental part of your serve so manky, then surely it's going to affect everything else...?

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And kudos to Anne Keothavong for being the first British woman in about nine thousand years to make it to the semis of a tournament - even if it was by retirement! I'll be pulling for her to win the title... yeah, it's the Brit in me. So sue me.

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Today's Results

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Harry Hopman Cup (Perth)

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Russia 2, France 1

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Dinara Safina def. Alize Cornet, 6-3 6-2

Gilles Simon def. Marat Safin, 7-6 (7-5) 6-3

Safina/Safin def. Cornet/Simon, 6-4 6-3

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Slovak Republic 3, Germany 0

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Dominika Cibulkova def. Sabine Lisicki, 7-6 (7-3) 6-4

Dominik Hrbaty def. Nicolas Kiefer, 1-3 retired

Cibulkova/Hrbaty def. Lisicki/Kiefer, walkover

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USA 2, Australia 1

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Casey Dellacqua def. Meghann Shaughnessy, 6-3 6-4

James Blake def. Lleyton Hewitt, 6-2 6-2

Shaughnessy/Blake def. Dellacqua/Hewitt, 6-3 5-7 10-6 (match tiebreaker)

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Italy 3, Chinese Taipei 0

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Flavia Pennetta def. Hsieh Su-Wei, 7-5 6-3

Simone Bolelli def. Lu Yen-Hsun, walkover

Pennetta/Bolelli def. Hsieh/Lu, walkover

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Brisbane International (Brisbane)

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Men's Draw

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Fernando Verdasco def. Florent Serra, 4-6 6-0 6-3

Paul-Henri Mathieu def. Kei Nishikori, 6-3 6-4

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Women's Draw

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Amélie Mauresmo def. Ana Ivanovic, 6-3 6-2

Victoria Azarenka def. Lucie Safarova, 7-6 (7-5) 6-4

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

Sara Errani def. Olga Govortsova, 6-3 6-3

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Chennai Open (Chennai)

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Marin Cilic def. Denis Istomin, 6-0 6-4

Ivo Karlovic def. Ivo Minar, 6-1 6-4

Rainer Schuettler def. Simon Greul, 6-4 6-2

Somdev Devvarman def. Carlos Moya, 4-6 7-5 6-4

Janko Tipsarevic def. Dudi Sela, 7-6 (7-3) 6-4

Marcel Granollers def. Andreas Beck, 6-4 6-1

Bjorn Phau def. Flavio Cipolla, 6-1 6-2

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Qatar Exxonmobil Open (Doha)

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Gael Monfils def. Rafael Nadal, 6-4 6-4

Roger Federer def. Philipp Kohlschreiber, 6-2 7-6 (8-6)

Andy Murray def. Sergiy Stakhovsky, 6-4 6-2

Andy Roddick def. Victor Hanescu, 6-3 6-2

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ASB Classic (Auckland)

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Elena Dementieva def. Shahar Peer, 6-3 6-1

Elena Vesnina def. Caroline Wozniacki, 6-3 0-6 6-3

Anne Keothavong def. Ayumi Morita, 6-0 retired

Aravane Rezai def. Edina Gallovits, 6-3 6-2

Fighter

It never rains but it pours. Eleven months of the year, I'm lucky if I see two seconds of tennis on the news. At the moment? All day tennis on two channels. It's amazing.

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Let's start with the Brisbane International, where there were really some pretty cracking matches. Nieminen against Baghdatis was a bit of a heartbreaker - I really thought Marcos was going to come back and win the thing at the end there, but it was just not to be. His fitness is a bit of a worry, however - I hope he's better for the Open, because it is so special to see him playing there. But all credit to Jarkko, who hung in there beautifully after losing the first set - his consistency is excellent, and I also really, really like his backhand. It doesn't have the explosiveness of Safin's, but it's really a weapon.

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Kudos to Bernard Tomic as well, who did lose in his ATP-level debut against Fernando Verdasco in Anando Night at Pat Rafter Arena, but who did himself credit. He started wonderfully (much better than Brydan Klein, whom I am currently watching getting smashed like a guitar by Tomas Berdych) and I think he's proved he can mix it - or at least, he's going to be able to mix it. He shouldn't hurry himself too much - not everyone is a Lleyton-like prodigy - but he's going to be good. And speaking of Anando Night, Ana herself was seriously pushed by Petra Kvitova, though the scoreline might not reflect it. Kvitova is one to watch out for, for sure.

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But for me, the match of the day in Brisbane had to be Amelie Mauresmo against Jelena Dokic. Mauresmo took it in two breaker sets, but I really liked what I saw from Dokic. She struggled on big points (bad) but she was going toe to toe with Mauresmo, and it ain't just anyone can do that. She was ahead for most of the first set (had a set point at one point) and if she'd been able to close it out, I think the match might have had a whole different complexion. She's certainly intriguing to watch, Jelena Dokic - and if she keeps playing like this, she can get her ranking back up a bit for sure. Probably not to #4 in the world or whatever it was she used to be, but top fifty definitely. I really liked what I saw from her.

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Now over to my baby, the Hopman Cup. Australia went down to Germany, but it was a really, really good tie. It was a shame that Dellacqua couldn't hang on against Sabine Lisicki, but I was so impressed with what I saw from her. I saw her play a set at the Open last year when she beat Dinara Safina, and she's really a talent. She never went away mentally (then or against Dellacqua) and that was what was really different. You always here about tennis players being 'fighters' and I often think that word gets overused, but applying it to Lisicki is not a stretch. It could have been so easy for her to go away after losing the first set against Dellacqua, the hometown girl, but no. She fought the crowd and she fought Dellacqua, but she never had to fight herself - she had great concentration just about the whole way. I would not be surprised to see a lot more of her in the future.

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Speaking of fighters and people I was impressed by... I rarely say this, but even though I find his personality objectionable, I really like watching Lleyton Hewitt play. His match against Nicolas Kiefer was eminently entertaining. Lleyton may be annoying offcourt when he, like, talks and stuff, but I really admire the way he stays in a match mentally, especially after gruelling tiebreakers like the one in the first set, which he lost. Kiefer faded a bit mentally in the third set and Lleyton pounced. I like his counterpunching style of tennis - he always makes him opponent play just one more shot, and more often than not, that draws the error. It's the best I've seen him play in a number of years, and if he can hold this level, he might make a few rounds at the Open, which I'm sure he'd enjoy.

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And how 'bout the Slovak Republic? I don't think anyone predicted that they'd take out the USA 3-0. I would have picked Cibulkova over Shaughnessy any day, but who would have picked Hrbaty over Blake? That opens this group wide. Group B will be a dogfight between Russia and France, but Group A, where you have the USA, the Slovak Republic, Germany and Australia, could go any which way. Who knows? Maybe Australia might make the final. I think Paul McNamee might go into paroxysms of delight if that happened!

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Today's Results

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Harry Hopman Cup (Perth)

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Germany 2, Australia 1

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Sabine Lisicki def. Casey Dellacqua, 4-6 6-2 7-5

Lleyton Hewitt def. Nicolas Kiefer, 6-7 (6-8) 6-3 6-2

Lisicki/Kiefer def. Dellacqua/Hewitt, 6-7 (2-7) 6-3 10-5 (match tiebreaker)

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Slovak Republic 3, USA 0

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Dominika Cibulkova def. Meghann Shaughnessy, 6-2 6-2

Dominik Hrbaty def. James Blake, 6-3 4-6 7-6 (7-1)

Cibulkova/Hrbaty def. Shaughnessy/Blake, 6-4 7-6 (7-4)

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Brisbane International (Brisbane)

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Men's Draw

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Fernando Verdasco def. Bernard Tomic, 6-4 6-2

Jurgen Melzer def. Mardy Fish, 6-4 4-6 7-6 (7-4)

Radek Stepanek def. Igor Kunitsyn, 6-2 6-2

Jarkko Nieminen def. Marcos Baghdatis, 5-7 6-1 6-4

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Women's Draw

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Ana Ivanovic def. Petra Kvitova, 6-4 6-2

Sara Errani def. Daniela Hantuchova, 6-7 (1-7) 6-4 6-0

Amélie Mauresmo def. Jelena Dokic, 7-6 (11-9) 7-6 (7-5)

Olga Govortsova def. Francesca Schiavone, 7-5 6-2

Samantha Stosur def. Ai Sugiyama, 6-2 6-3

Tathiana Garbin def. Sofia Arvidsson, 6-2 6-3

Lucie Safarova def. Isabella Holland, 6-4 6-3

Roberta Vinci def. Anna-Lena Groenefeld, 0-6 6-3 6-1

Melinda Czink def. Alona Bondarenko, 7-6 (7-3) 6-1

Sesil Karatantcheva def. Iveta Benesova, 1-6 6-4 6-2

Julie Coin def. Yanina Wickmayer, 7-5 6-7 (5-7) 7-6 (7-3)

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Chennai Open (Chennai)

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Marin Cilic def. Alberto Martin, 6-4 6-4

Rainer Schuettler def. Prakash Amritraj, 6-2 4-6 6-1

Marcel Granollers def. Hyung-taik Lee, 6-4 7-5

Bjorn Phau def. Santiago Ventura, 6-2 7-5

Simon Greul def. Daniel Gimeno-Traver, 6-3 6-4

Lukas Dlouhy def. Go Soeda, 3-6 6-2 6-4

Dudi Sela def. Ruben Ramirez Hidalgo, 4-6 7-6 (7-3) 6-1

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Qatar Exxonmobil Open (Doha)

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Andy Roddick def. Ivan Navarro, 6-1 6-3

Gael Monfils def. Jan Hernych, 6-2 6-2

Nicolas Devilder def. Abdulla Hajji, 6-0 6-3

Victor Hanescu def. Viktor Troicki, 6-4 6-2

Sergiy Stakhovsky def. Christophe Rochus, 2-6 6-3 7-6 (7-3)

Andreas Seppi def. Denis Gremelmayr, 6-4 6-2

Philipp Petzschner def. Jeremy Chardy, 7-6 (7-2) 6-3

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ASB Classic (Auckland)

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Caroline Wozniacki def. Alberta Brianti, 6-1 6-0

Carla Suárez Navarro def. Nathalie Dechy, 6-4 6-0

Elena Vesnina def. Aiko Nakamura, 6-1 6-0

The Worm Does Shanghai

I'm sorry, but what is the Worm doing in Shanghai?

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It didn't occur to me yesterday when I was writing about Nicolas Kiefer being one of the alternates to think of whom the other one might be - stupid mistake, I know. But had I thought about it, I certainly wouldn't have picked Radek Stepanek, the scary man of tennis. Why did he decide to come, anyway? Shouldn't he be off ruining some female player's career, like he did with Hingis and Vaidisova? Or is he not done with Nicole yet?

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It certainly didn't look like the Worm was thinking about playing - it says he was on holiday in Thailand before coming to Shanghai. (In which case, was he actually an alternate? Or was he just the nearest convenient player? But Kiwi's in Shanghai - why not use him?) His tennis stuff got stuck at customs and he had to borrow a racquet from Novak Djokovic (imagine if he'd broken a string - would he kindly have asked Roger for a lend of one of his? On court?) and socks from Andy Murray and get an emergency prescription of contact lenses. Kudos to him for being so resourceful and stuff, but seriously, why him? You've got a perfectly good alternate in Kiwi - I presume he is actually in Shanghai as well. I just don't get it.

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None of this meant that the Worm actually did that well - Roger took him out in straights, keeping himself in contention for the semis. Now, all he has to do is beat Murray... and I suppose it would help if the Worm beat Simon. (How does that work, exactly? What is the tie system?) I hope Roger can pull it out against Andy - he's certainly capable of beating him, and this would level their head-to-head, instead of Andy pulling ahead 4-2. We certainly don't want Roger to acquire another Rafa, that's for sure!

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Speaking of Andy, he beat Simon pretty handily in the other Red Group match today - he's certainly looking the guy to beat. I suppose he will finish top of the group regardless (yes? no?) which is a shame, because I guess Djokovic will finish top of the other group, which means they couldn't possibly meet until the finals. As I want Roger in the final, this is not a good circumstance, and I would really like to see Andy take it to Novak. I don't think they've played since Murray has put himself up there as the fourth guy in the three-guy domination squad, and I would really like to see him challenge for that #3 spot. Not that he can take it, I think, but it would be nice to see a struggle begin which might be very intriguing all through next year...

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Today's Results

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Tennis Masters Cup (Shanghai)

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Red Group

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Roger Federer def. Radek Stepanek, 7-6 (7-4) 6-4

Andy Murray def. Gilles Simon, 6-4 6-2

Kiwi Does Shanghai

And so the first player to the semi-finals is Novak Djokovic. You can imagine how thrilled I am about that one. Overjoyed. I'm sure my ecstasy is transcending the bounds of the screen, so overwhelming is it.

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That was sarcastic, in case no one picked up on it.

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Yes, Djokovic is through after beating Kolya Davydenko, who will fight it out with Juan Martin del Potro for the final berth in the Gold Group. What a disappointing showing from Jo-Wilfried Tsonga - I felt sure he was going to step it up and go through. Oh well. He still has to play Djokovic in the final round robin match, and Djokovic has been Jo-Dub's bunny of late, so hopefully he can smash him like a guitar. Again. Just because it would be funny, and something needs to go right at these year-end championships, damn it!

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I think I'm picking del Potro over Davydenko. He's just been in better form, and even though Kolya seems to have screwed his head on to a degree after his reprehensible spat earlier this year, he's just - and always has been - a terribly uninspiring tennis player. Then tomorrow I'm going with Roger over Roddick (hopefully without the match-points that Roddick had last year which could have turned into a fiasco) and Murray over Simon. Murray really is the one to beat, I think - he's the form player. However, I thought Tsonga was the form player of the Gold Group, and look how that turned out.

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One thing I found really interesting about the Masters Cup - did you know Nicolas Kiefer is one of the alternates? Apparently none of the twenty-five or so players ranked above him wanted to schlep to China, so he got the call up. I found this very bizarre. Look at Doha last week - you had the #9 and #10 players in the race (if you discount the injured Maria Sharapova) more than willing to go. Radwanska and Petrova both got a match too. I can understand not wanting to go all the way to China if you're not going to play, but seriously... when you have to go to the twenty-sixth player on your list, that's a bit dodgy. Why is it so different for the blokes?

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I bet Kiwi will be a very happy guy if someone pulls out... I can just picture him dancing about saying, 'I told you so!'

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Today's Results

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Tennis Masters Cup (Shanghai)

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Gold Group

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Novak Djokovic def. Nikolay Davydenko, 7-6 (7-3) 0-6 7-5

Juan Martin del Potro def. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, 7-6 (7-4) 7-6 (7-5)

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

A Week For The Newbies

This is what I said about Richard Gasquet and his chances in the Stuttgart final yesterday:

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'So I'm being cautious in my Gasquet-supporting right now. His finals opponent, Juan Martin del Potro, should be no match for him. But let's just wait and see, shall we?'

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And who won the final? In straight sets?

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That would be Juan Martin del Potro, ladies and gentlemen. The Argentine teenager has won his first ever ATP title, at the expense of Monsieur Gasquet. Now, I don't want to disparage Juan Martin, because I think he's a fabulously talented player - who knows? maybe I'll profile him as a star of the future one of these days. But really, let's look at Gasquet. If we're just going on raw talent, Gasquet has got to be up there with the best on the circuit. He's not Federer or Safin, but he's heading in that direction.

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So where has he gone this year? What has happened to Richou?

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This tournament is on clay, which earns him a tiny reprieve. He is not a claycourter, and Juan Martin is. But Richou is also #15 in the world - which even then belies his true talent, because he's been lurking around #8 or #9 - while Juan Martin is currently #65 with a career high of #44. That is a big difference. I know they always say that any guy in the top 100 can beat any other guy or any given day, ra ra ra, but really, there is a reason that the guys in the top ten are there. It's because they win. And Richard Gasquet no longer deserves to be in the top ten.

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I used to really like Richard Gasquet. His game, when he plays it, is beautiful. He's not called Baby Fed for nothing. But if he is going to continue being as mentally fragile as he is, then he is not going to have much of a career. Get thee to a sports psychologist, Richou, and sort yourself out. Hey, I know! You can do it in the time when you're busy not representing your country in the Olympics!

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That really annoys me. There are so many people who would do anything to represent their nations in the Olympics. It's one of the few times I find myself truly patriotic - in the sports other than tennis, of course, where I will always support my favourites (aka Federer, only Federer and no one but Federer.) How could you possibly give that chance up? A chance to wear Olympic gold? I know Slams are important and all, but this is the fricking Olympics! The most important sporting event in the world - so important it only happens every four years!

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If Gasquet (and Roddick) were refusing to play on human rights grounds, then I would be 100% behind them, all the way. But they're not. They're saving themselves. And I don't like it. I don't like it at all.

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Anyway, enough of the negativity. One Frenchman I am happy to support (and always have been) is the French wizard, little Fabrice Santoro, who won the Newport title. Allez Fabrice! Seriously, this guy is awesome. He's one of the cleverest tennis players on tour, I think, and he plays such a pretty little game. He's thirty five years old, and he's showing no signs of stopping. I think he's just fantastic. And he was born in Tahiti. That is also very cool. I think he's just fabulous, and it warms the cockles of the heart to see him doing well.

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Congratulations also to Victor Hanescu, who won the tournament in Gstaad. I've never really paid much attention to Hanescu. I have no great insights about him. He's one of those guys that sits there in the top hundred and is a bit of a fixture, but I confess I wouldn't know him if I fell over him in the street. Congratulations anyway, though. Maybe I'll start taking a bit more notice of you now, Victor.

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It was Robredo who came out on top in the Battle of the Underwhelmers in Bastad. Considering this is clay, it was pretty much expected that Robredo would win that one - though if I had to pick, I might say that Berdych is actually the better player of the two. I think he has more talent, anyway. But that's all well and good for me to say - talent means nothing if you don't perform. I like Tomas. I like his game. And, unlike Hanescu, I always pay attention to Berdych, mainly because he often plays Hopman Cup, which is one of my favourite tournaments to watch. I just wish he would, you know, play better. Because he can. He's totally capable of it. I think he's best on hard courts, so watch out, Tomas. I have expectations of you in the hardcourt season, and I would like you to live up to them, please.

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And finally, congratulations to another first time title winner - my favourite French girl, Alize Cornet. Allez Alize! And nice work to Sara Errani as well, who won her first title in Palermo. It's clearly a week for the newbies!

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Today's Results

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Mercedes Cup (Stuttgart)

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Juan Martin del Potro def. Richard Gasquet, 6-4 7-5

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Allianz Suisse Open (Gstaad)

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Igor Andreev def. Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, 7-6 (7-2) 5-7 7-6 (7-5)

Victor Hanescu def. Igor Andreev, 6-3 6-4

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Catella Swedish Open (Bastad)

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Tommy Robredo def. Tomas Berdych, 6-4 6-1

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Campbell's Hall of Fame Tennis Championships (Newport)

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Fabrice Santoro def. Prakash Amritraj, 6-3 7-5

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Gaz de France Grand Prix (Budapest)

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Alize Cornet def. Andreja Klepac, 7-6 (7-5) 6-3

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Internazionali Femminili di Tennis di Palermo (Palermo)

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Sara Errani def . Mariya Koryttseva, 6-2 6-3

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And in today's Stars of the Past, Stars of the Future feature: Nicolas Kiefer.

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Like Marat Safin and Roger Federer, Nicolas Kiefer was a member of the New Balls generation - the young guns of 1999, 2000, 2001, the ones who were going to be great sometime in the future. Like these two, Kiefer was blessed with a ridiculous amount of talent. But unlike these two, Kiefer never seemed really to be able to make much of it.

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Kiefer has never been an especially popular player. The general attitude to him can probably be summed up by looking at the Australian Open in 2006, where Kiefer was part of two memorable moments. One was in the semi finals, where he was on the receiving end of what has been called the best second serve ever - a kicker from Roger Federer that went spinning into Row H, leaving Kiefer with nowhere to go. The other moment was from an earlier match, where Kiefer faced Sebastien Grosjean. A wonderful point left Kiefer at the net, stretching for a volley so far that he ended up throwing his racquet at the ball. Grosjean, distracted, ended up playing the next ball into the net. Kiefer did not cede the point, and was publicly condemned for poor sportsmanship. This did not gain him any fans.

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Like Safin, Kiefer too has been plagued by injury - in particular, his wrist, which has proved so troublesome and lingering that at one point he dropped right out of the ATP rankings (that is, he was no longer within the top thousand players in the world.) But he has fought his way back - and that courage has certainly gained him some fans, especially in his native country, Germany. He is now well within the top fifty and is part of a three way battle with Tommy Haas and Philipp Kohlschreiber to be the #1 German player. He has performed well in his last few tournaments, including a run to the semis at Halle, where he was stopped by Roger Federer.

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But he withdrew from the tournament in Gstaad this week, handing a quarter final berth to Guillermo Garcia-Lopez. His complaint this time is a foot injury, which one would hope is not as chronic as the wrist that spoiled his last few seasons. He says he is still enjoying his tennis and that he tries to win with all his might, but at 31, one begins to wonder whether it is not a little late for Nicolas Kiefer. His star, it seems, is largely in the past - but he is determined not to burn out just yet.

Saturday Night's All Right For Fighting

The top three men in the world all played last night - Federer in Halle, Nadal and Djokovic in Queen's. All three won. All three did it in straight sets. I feel like I should be going somewhere with some sort of comparison between the three of them, but as I haven't seen the matches, I can't really do that, can I?

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So I wrote myself into a bit of a hole there. Let's start again.

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Halle, Germany. Federer roared past Nicolas Kiefer, 6-1 6-4. I was able to see a few points - just a few - on a highlights reel, and from those few points, I'm calling it. My boy is back in town. That forehand down the line he hit from about ninety four kilometres out of court... (the score was 4-1 Federer in the first set, Kiefer serving)... that was, to quote some commentators, a 'sick shot.' That's the kind of god tennis that got Federer where he is today - the sublime movement, the total control, the absolute knowledge of court positioning... it's incredible.

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Whenever I think of Nicolas Kiefer, there are two moments in particular that always spring to mind. One is that rally against Sebastien Grosjean in Australia where he threw his racquet during (I think) a diving volley at the net, which completely put Spaz off, which meant Kiwi won the point, even though it was horrendously unfair. I hesitate to say that Kiefer did it on purpose, but it would have been good sportsmanship to concede the point, at least. With Kiwi off the circuit for a year, I haven't seen him play enough to form a well-rounded opinion of him, but this didn't exactly canonise him in Jodi's Hall of Tennis Saints.

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My second Kiwi memory is from that same tournament - Australian Open 2006, one of my favourite tournaments ever. The semi final, Federer versus Kiefer. Federer hits a first serve, misses. He sits a second serve. It's a kick serve ace. It has so much pop on it that it skids into about Row H. It has widely been recognised as the best second serve of all time. Kiwi had this great bemused look on his face. I laughed mightily.

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Federer might not have hit the best second serve of all time in his match against Kiefer today, but he did serve well. Actually, his service has been rock solid all week - he hasn't been broken once. And that isn't for lack of opportunity. Both Baghdatis and Kiefer have had him at 0-40 down. He's fought back to deuce. Don't quote me on this, but I think both Baghdatis and Kiefer had ad in during those deuce games. Federer has saved every break point against him. And that is pretty swell.

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The French Open final is in the past. Federer has said that in his pressers, and we can see that it is totally true. Federer might not have played one of the Nadals of the world on grass yet, but this is a different player than the one that stepped out onto Philippe Chatrier on Sunday. This is Roger Federer, who has won Wimbledon five times. This is the king.

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Rafa has also been acquitting himself well over in Queen's - not as well as Roger, perhaps, but considering Rafa is the King of Clay and Roger is the King of Grass, the expectations are not quite the same. I know a lot of Federer fans have been praying for him to lose this week in Queen's, but I like to see Rafa doing well. If there is one tennis player in the world who has managed to make me totally change my opinion of him, it is Rafa. He had a very handy win against Andy Roddick. Roddick is an excellent grasscourt player, but I'm beginning to think that the day of Roddick might be beginning to pass. Either that, or that injury is still bugging him. Or he's suffering lack of match play... actually, that is a very credible explanation. He had a bye in the first round, then Fish retired against him after a set, and then Murray didn't even walk onto the court. Not the best Wimbledon preparation that Roddick could have hoped for.

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I feel a bit sorry for Andy, actually. Remember back in '03, when he was the next big thing? He and Federer were racing for the #1 spot. Juan Carlos Ferrero was hanging about then as well, and he had a bit of the mystique that Roger and Rafa have now. Federer won Wimbledon and the Masters Cup, but Roddick won the US Open, and he finished the year #1. But then on February 2, 2004, after winning the Australian Open, Roger Federer became #1, and he has held that ranking every week since.

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Who ever would have thought that that US Open would be the only Slam Roddick would ever win? He's been to the final of a couple more - Wimbledon '04 and '05, and the US Open in '06 - but he has fallen to same man in all three of those finals. Roddick made a charge to be re-recognised at the beginning of '07. He played Federer in the semis of the Australian, and everyone thought it would be this huge barnburning popcorn match. It was a popcorn match (for me!), but in a different way. Federer destroyed Roddick. He put him down like a dog.

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It isn't that Roddick has been playing badly over these last few years. He is still an excellent player, and he has held his spot in the top ten pretty solidly. It's just that everyone else is better. What kind of career might Roddick have had if he had not existed at the same time as Federer? I don't think Nadal and Djokovic as players have had particularly large impacts on his career - certainly not the way Federer has - but their results have relegated Roddick to being #4, #5, #6, #7.

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A lot of people assume I don't for some reason, but I actually quite like Andy Roddick. I think he has a great attitude. He's very funny, he respects Federer (which gets you a lot of bonus points in my book!) and he has an excellent attitude. He can take a loss like a man and doesn't become arrogant when he wins. I feel sorry, for his sake, that he had to exist in such an era as this: the Federer era, the return of a golden age of tennis.

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Looking at it from a Fedfan point of view, though, it is hard to be sorry. Federer's domination of Roddick (and, in particular, the Roddick serve) has been one of the hallmarks of his domination of the game. But I will always wonder: what would have Roddick been like without Federer?

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How on earth did I get onto Roddick? Oh, that's right, Rafa. Rafa beat Roddick last night, and now he is in the final. And oh! how I will be cheering for him to win. Because he is playing the man who bumped off Lleyton Hewitt and Andy Murray as my least favourite tennis players of all time.

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I can't remember the last time I cheered for David Nalbandian in a tennis match. I think it might be just before never. But I was cheering for him last night. We all know my feelings on Novak Djokovic.

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Unfortunately, my cheering didn't work. Djokovic crushed Nalbandian. LameDave totally showed up. But let me put this question out there: if GoodDave had shown up and had gone up 6-1 in the first set and a break in the second, would Novak have suddenly discovered an injury? An ingrown hair on his left shin, maybe? An urge to sneeze? Or perhaps he might retire because this particular match was mussing up his hair.

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Obviously, I exaggerate a little there, but my point still stands. If I asked that question about pretty much any other tennis player, it would be incredibly insulting. About Djokovic, it is perfectly valid. Think of Monte Carlo, the semi against Federer. Djokovic was fine, apart from the fact he was being beaten. So he retires.

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Let us look at his career history of retirement. His ATP career is only a couple of years old. He has retired something like nine times. I can think of at least four off the top of my head - Roland Garros '06 (against Rafa), Wimbledon '07 (against Rafa), Umag '06 (against Wawrinka) and Monte Carlo this year. Now let us look at Federer's career history. He has been around a whole lot longer than Djokovic - his career is three or four times as long. And how many times has he retired?

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Not once.

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'Roger Federer does not retire,' Federer said once (possibly slightly paraphrased.) 'Otherwise he doesn't walk out on the court.' And he has stuck to it.

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Think back to the Masters Cup in 2005 - the final, against David Nalbandian. Nalbandian won a five set thriller. Federer was basically playing on one leg, and yet he still went on, playing five hours, even staging an almost-comeback from 4-0 down in the fifth.

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Now put Djokovic in that position. I think it is safe to say that Djokovic would never have even played the tournament.

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And that is one of the things that is always going to separate these two. Even if Djokovic does become #1 in the future, he is never going to be the champion Federer is, not if he maintains this kind of attitude. To be fair, Federer's zero retirement thing is pretty unusual, and I'd have understood a few. But Djokovic is just out of hand. Guess what, Novak? You can't retire your way to #1.

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Not that Djokovic retired last night, or this discussion has anything to do with Queen's... where Djokovic, unretiring, beat LameDave Nalbandian 6-1 6-0. He will face Rafa Nadal in the final. But his retiring complex is just one of the myriad aspects of his personality that I dislike.

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I don't like Nalbandian very much either, of course... he of the monosyllabic press conferences. But I will say this for him: he provides many opportunities for amusing nicknames! Not only do we have GoodDave and LameDave, but there is also FatDave floating around. (Not that David is fat. I defy anyone to find a fat tennis player. But sometimes certain photographic angles can make him look that way.) Then there is always Dayveeeeed Nalbaaaaaaaandiaaaan... no other tennis player has a name it is so fun to stretch out! My personal favourite at the moment, courtesy of Drew Lilley's Roland Garros blog, is Headbandian... because he wears headbands.

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Well, I think it's funny.

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Two finals tonight. In Halle, Roger Federer vs Philipp Kohlschreiber... who I always find underwhelming. I am hoping tonight to find Federer overwhelming instead. And in Queen's, Rafael Nadal versus Novak Djokovic. #2 against #3.

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I don't think it will come as any surprise to hear that I will be shouting 'Vamos Rafa!' and 'Hopp Roger!' at the top of my lungs!

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Today's Results

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Artois Championships (Queen's Club, London)

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Rafael Nadal def. Andy Roddick, 7-5 6-4

Novak Djokovic def. David Nalbandian, 6-1 6-0

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Gerry Weber Open (Halle)

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Roger Federer def. Nicolas Kiefer, 6-1 6-4

Philipp Kohlschreiber def. James Blake, 6-3 7-5

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Orange Warsaw Open (Warsaw)

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Nikolay Davydenko def. Fabio Fognini, 6-2 6-3

Tommy Robredo def. Juan Monaco, 6-4 6-4

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DFS Classic (Birmingham)

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Kateryna Bondarenko def. Marina Erakovic, 6-3 6-2

Yanina Wickmayer def. Bethanie Mattek, 7-5 7-6 (7-2)

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Campeonatos Internacionales de Tenis Femenino de Espana (Barcelona)

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Maria Kirilenko def. Stephanie Cohen-Aloro, 7-5 6-3

Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez def. Nuria Llagostera Vives, 2-6 6-3 6-1