Dolgopolove

Alexandr Dolgopolov is going to be a top ten player. Maybe even top five. And it is going to happen soon.

Robin Soderling did not know what hit him when he walked out on Rod Laver Arena. At first, I'm pretty sure he thought it was fat nothing, when he walked all over his opponent 6-1 in the first set. And even when he was broken in the second set - hell, even when he lost the second set - I'm pretty sure he was still feeling all right.

We were all applauding. 'Wow, Sasha got a set!' we cheered. 'A set from Soderling! He really is going to be something special one of these days!'

But Sasha was not content with 'one of these days'. No, Sasha wanted today.

And that is what he got.

When Soderling lost the third set... he knew he was in a match. And even after Soderling won the fourth set, and when he went up a break in the fifth... this was somehow Sasha's match. After he won the third set, there was not a moment in this match when Dolgopolov was going to lose.

Andy Roddick called him 'aggressive to the point of psychosis'. Sasha Dolgopolov has all the shots. He can rip winners from anywhere in the court - like, ANYWHERE, in that manner that only Federer and Nadal can do on a consistent basis. I can see how, on an off day, it could all go horribly wrong, and I suppose that's why he isn't higher ranked right at this second, but (first set aside), it was all going right for Sasha against Soderling. And if he can play like this on a consistent level, it is hard to imagine too many people who could stop him.

He has a huge forehand. He has a scintillating backhand. He can volley and slice and has a nice serve too. He can hit with spin, he can hit flat. I saw his match against Becker the other day live and after his match against Soderling, I haven't seen a shot he can't hit and hit with panache.

He plays the type of tennis which is most watchable when it's on and agonisingly painful when it's off. His mission, should he choose to accept it, is to make sure he can keep his level up week in, week out. Because if he can play like he played against Soderling all the time, he will be into the top ten with a rocket.

In other news, Nadal seems to have recovered from his illness woes - he really played a good match against Cilic, who couldn't really hurt him too much. Murray absolutely mauled Melzer in a terrifying way - that will be a really tough match for Sasha next. And a Murray/Nadal semi - that could be an absolute cracker. (Or totally anticlimactic, depending on how well both dudes play.)

In the ladies, the Kim Clijsters train rolls on - she put out Ekaterina Makarova, whom I really liked the look of and hope we see more of in the future. Vera Zvonareva continued to slice through the draw quietly (hot knife, butter, etc) and Agnieszka Radwanska had a very good win as well and Petra Kvitova is looking very nice as well...

#wildcardformahut and Other Animals

WILDCARD FOR MAHUT WILDCARD FOR MAHUT WILDCARD FOR MAHUT GIVE HIM A WILDCARD NOW WILDCARD FOR MAHUT. #wildcardformahut

...wow, sorry about that. I've been typing #wildcardformahut and various permutations so often for the past couple of days that it has become second nature. It takes a bit of dedication to captain a Twitter campaign to (hopefully) victory. But if anyone with the wildcarding power happens to read this - make my day! make the day of everyone else who wants a wildcard for Mahut! and, most of all, make the day of Nicolas Mahut! WILDCARD FOR MAHUT 2011. It's a thing.

Now, other business.

The Hopman Cup has finished up, with the USA very deserving winners. The John Isner/Ruben Bemelmans match was a bit of a non-event - which is not surprising, given the ranking difference - and it certainly wasn't the best mixed doubles match ever, but the match between Justine Henin and Bethanie Mattek-Sands was as good as I've ever seen.

I kind of love Bethanie Mattek-Sands. I never expected to, and I've laughed my arse off at her crazy fashion over the years, but I've discovered this week I sort of love her. I love her totally aggressive game, and her determination, and I especially love her backhand down the line. She seems pretty chilled out and yet totally focused on tennis all at the same time, and she was a really great addition to this year's Hopman Cup. If she can play in Melbourne like she did in Perth, then she can definitely get to at least the fourth round. It all depends on draw, of course, but there's no reason why she can't put up a great show.

And it was a great performance from Isner as well. He came back well from his shellacking by Murray to play very well against Bemelmans. Good stuff. Well done, USA - this was a very well-deserved win. And well done Belgium, on a well played final. And well done Hopman Cup, for bringing Nicolas Mahut into the spotlight for a week... #wildcardformahut.

Ahem. Back on track.

Petra Kvitova won in Brisbane, which was a great result for her, and she did it in style - she played an absolutely great match. Like Mattek-Sands, if she keeps her head in the game, there is no reason she can't make a tilt at a second week appearance in the Open. She totally dominated Petkovic and if she continues to play like this, well... with the state of the WTA, there is no reason why she couldn't be top ten rather quickly.

And then there was Doha. F^&* YEAH ROGER FEDERER.

It was a good win for Davydenko to beat Nadal - even an ailing Nadal - but Federer showed here today why he really is a worldbeater. He played very aggressive - and accurate - off the return, and it made a huge difference. That banana paddlepop outfit he's rocking is clearly giving him good mojo - and whatever Paul Annacone has been telling him, it's been good. I don't think there's going to be anywhere near the same amount of buzz this year about Davydenko as there was last year - which is a bit sad, in a way, because he is constantly over looked - but that doesn't mean that this wasn't an awesome win over a tough opponent for Federer. I loved every second of it. He played wonderfully. Even if he could do with upping his break point conversion rate.

And you know what else would be wonderful? AN AUSTRALIAN OPEN WILDCARD FOR MAHUT. DO IT. #wildcardformahut 2011! It's a thing.

Breaking Out

Let's talk ladies' tennis. I'm actually pretty excited for this final - given the rate of knots that seeds have fallen at during this tournament, ending up with a Serena/Zvonareva final is better than any of could have expected.

To be honest, I think Serena's going to romp home with very little trouble at all. Vera is an awesome player, but I don't know if she has the chops to take down Serena on grass. Serena has been playing super solidly all week and she's definitely looked to be the best player here, in my opinion. Getting through the Sharapova match was key - that was the match which really announced her as the firmest of favourites. So yeah. I think Serena's going to win.

This is not to say, however, that this tournament has not been a breakout tournament for many others. Zvonareva, for one - after all this 'oh no, the Russians are fading fast' palaver, here we have one in the final, which is a massive achievement for her. I'm really hoping that Bepa puts up a good account of herself, because boy can she play. It will be mostly mental for her, I think - if she can keep her head together, it should be an entertaining match.

But let us pause for a moment and consider the enormity of this tournament for Petra Kvitova and Tsvetana Pironkova.

I think this result is going to be a big springboard for Kvitova. I think she is going to rocket up the rankings and do great things. I hadn't seen a lot of her play before this week but now I am convinced that she has top ten potential. The Czech Republic has produced a lot of very-nearly-almost-but-not-quite women of late - there's Safarova and Benesova, not to mention Kvitova herself. But I think is really going to take her places. Watch out for Petra!

Pironkova, on the other hand... I can't really see her going to top tennishness or anything, which is sort of counter-intuitive, because I actually like her game more than Kvitova's. Scratch that, I love the way Pironkova plays. Her variety is a massive asset, and she's outstanding to watch. But I guess I feel with her that she's been doing the same thing for a while now, and this has been the first really big result she's pulled since she beat Venus back in, what, 2006? She's the kind of player who is always dangerous but never quite there - a Philipp Kohlschreiber, if you will. I think that if she was going to be glorious, it would have happened already...

...but Tsveta, in the tiny chance that you ever read this, don't listen to me. Prove me wrong. Because I love, love, love your game!

Anything Can Happen. Literally, Anything.

So, um, if anyone picked a Zvonareva/Pironkova semi in their bracket they just made a killing. Hell, people that picked a Serena/Kvitova semi also made a killing. We've seen some weird results in the WTA lately, but this just takes the case.

You thought Stosur vs Schiavone was a weird Slam final? What, then, would you call Kvitova vs Pironkova? Because this could happen.

I was very disappointed with the performance of my title pick, Kim Clijsters. Vera Zvonareva totally got her act together in the second two sets, but Kimmie was spraying that forehand something fierce. This was not the Kimmie we saw beat JuJu. It also wasn't the Kimmie that lost to Petrova in Australia, but it was closer to her than the Kimmie we saw in the last round. Saddening.

But hey! at least this result shows that all is not lost for the Russians. Their big guns, Sharapova, Safina, Kuznetsova, Dementieva... all gone. But up pops forgotten little Vera with the big result. Never underestimate a Russian lady.

But upset of the day surely has to go to Tsvetana Pironkova. She has, I would like to note, beaten Venus before. But Venus at Wimbledon is a whole other kettle of fish. Venus is the queen of this tournament. And yes, she was looking a little out of sorts, but Tsveta absolutely schooled her in that match. It was quite remarkable. Beating Venus on grass isn't quite beating Federer on grass or Nadal on clay, but it's in the ballpark next door. This is a massive, massive result for Tsveta.

And now only Serena is left upholding what remains of WTA normalcy. You have to think that her path to the title is pretty clear now, but we know perfectly well that anything - and I mean anything - can happen. Tsvetana Pironkova, Wimbledon champion. IT COULD HAPPEN.