The Way To My Heart Is Through Stupid Trick Shots

I've been adopting quite a few players from the satellite circuit as Favourites Beyond The Baseline lately. Challenger tennis is fun times. And sometimes these dudes go and play on the big stages. And sometimes, even when they lose, they are a little bit excellent.

I am talking, of course, about Benoit Paire. He ate a bagel in the first set against Ljubicic in Rotterdam today, and then he went down in the second pretty tamely too. It happens. Paire is young and Ljubicic is a class player.

But two points from defeat, he played a shot that made me love him forever.

It wasn't a sensible shot. He didn't even win the point. But come on, how am I not going to love who plays a dropshot from between his legs jumping a metre in the air while in a dead sprint?

It's just silly. And that's why I love it. I like a bit of silly in my tennis sometimes. And while I wouldn't have liked the shot if he didn't make it, he did make it. Sure, he got beaten the very next shot, but maybe if he hadn't fallen over...

Benoit Paire, you are going to have a little bit of love from me forever now. I love a man who can play a tweener.

Benoit Paire first came to my attention when he got the reciprocal wildcard from the French Federation into the Australian Open. I was angry because a) Mahut should have got it and b) I'd never heard of Paire, which meant Mahut should have got it even more. And while I still think Mahut deserved a goddamn wildcard, Paire was not a bad choice. He is young and talented and full of promise and he played a dropshot tweener from a metre in the air on the full stretch.

Benoit, there'll always be a line or two for you here beyond the baseline. You might not get Mahut-level coverage, but there's always going to be a little space for you. Because I think you're awesome.

Oh, and I saw him play in the first round of the Australian Open and I was all, like, impressed and stuff. You can go back and read the blog entry if you like. It is totally true. It isn't just because he played a stupid trick shot and I'm easily impressed by showy low percentage tennis.

...though yeah, that is a big part of it.

A Festival Of Maybes

Reaching a Grand Slam final is a big damn achievement. Even if you lose, simply reaching the final is something massive. Ask Marcos Baghdatis. Ask Fernando Gonzalez. Ask Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. Ask Guillermo Coria, Arnaud Clement, Martin Verkerk, Mariano Puerta. Even though these players all lost the one Slam final they made, I'd bet that loss still rates as the high point of their career - and that their runner up cookie tray is one of their most prized possessions.

Andy Murray has three cookie trays now. And I'd say that getting those cookie trays probably rate as some of his worst memories ever.

Let's revisit Murray's three Slam finals. His first one was in the US Open, 2008. He faced some dude called Roger Federer, who was going for his fifth consecutive US Open crown. Federer had not had his bestest year ever - he hadn't won a Slam yet - and a year without a Federer Slam, well... the world was definitely not ready for that to happen in 2008. Federer had the experience and knew how to win a Slam, especially in New York. Murray was green and maybe a little tired coming off his two day big win over Rafa Nadal. And also beating Nadal and Federer back to back? You'd have to be a wizard to do that.

Murray went down in straights. But not everyone can be Roger or Rafa and win in their first ever Slam final. Djokovic lost the final of the US Open in 2007 in straights before going on to win the Australian Open in 2008. Surely it was only a matter of time for Murray.

But then he didn't make a single Slam final in 2009. Oh well. It's still only a matter of time. Murray has got the goods. He will win a Slam. This was hammered into our heads over and over again. It's not a question of whether, but of when.

Australian Open, 2010. Murray makes the final playing absolutely scintillating tennis. And who is waiting there for him? Roger Federer again. But this time, Murray is ready. Oh yeah. He's pumped. He knows it's only a matter of time before he wins a Slam. And he can take Federer. He's beaten him a bunch of times before. He can do it again. This is his moment - the Murray moment.

Except it's not.

Roger Federer takes Andy Murray to school. Straight sets, down Murray goes. He shows a flicker of life in the third set tiebreaker, but it is too little, too late. There is no performing CPR on this match. The trophy is in Federer's hands and once again, Murray holds the cookie tray. And then he enters a slump so pervasive that it takes him till around Wimbledon to recover.

But he's still going to win a Slam. It doesn't happen in 2010, but it's still going to happen. Maybe the break he took was too long. Maybe he should have come back sooner. There is a festival of maybes.

And one of the maybes that starts to creep in is this one - maybe Andy Murray won't ever win a Slam.

But no. It's 2011. It's a new year, a new Murray. He's recovered from the scars of last year and he is playing magic tennis. He is cutting through the draw like a hot knife through butter, and destiny seems to be on his side. Soderling is swept from his path. Nadal is swept from his path. He has a couple of tough moments with Dolgopolov and Ferrer, but it is largely a ticker tape parade straight to the final.

And it's Djokovic he's facing this time. Only Djokovic, people want to say. It's not a finals thing Murray has - he's won tons of finals! He has a bag full of Masters and 500s and 250s. No, it's just a Federer thing. Federer lights up when he gets to finals. Murray can take Djokovic. Only Djokovic.

Except he couldn't. I don't know if anyone could have taken Djokovic down in this tournament, but Murray was barely there at all. The dude that showed up in the final was not the normal Andy Murray. It was the scared little boy that got his arse kicked by Federer.

If Andy Murray - the Andy Murray, the one that has been in the top five for about 150,000 years now - showed up in a Slam final, he would have a fighting chance. But I've never seen him. Not even once. And while there are plenty of great players who have never won a Slam, the effects of these finals on Murray is affecting his normal play. We saw the long slump after the Australian Open final this year. Now Murray has just gone down to Baghdatis in Rotterdam.

One loss is not that big a deal. But when you look at the way Murray's 2010 played out after the Australian Open, this is not a great sign for 2011.

Murray's first Slam final loss was not, I think, that big a deal. He was new and green and one Slam loss to a guy like Federer is very honourable. I think the rot really set in in 2010, and that scar tissue has lasted a lot longer than we thought. And now that Murray's lost to a guy not named Roger Federer in a Slam final, who knows what could happen?

It's an awful thing to say, but in a way, Murray's career might be better if he stopped making those Slam finals. The cookie trays are not for him a prize, but a burden - a reminder of how close he came and how he didn't come through. They're a tangible sign of failure - because for him, I think, not winning must feel like a failure, even though just making the final is a massive, incredible achievement.

We all know that I'm not a massive Murray fan, but I don't want to join the litany of media condemning him. I fully believe that Andy Murray can win a Slam. He has the game and the brain and the tools he needs. But the first thing he needs to do is to somehow shed this scar tissue and turn up. Even if he turns up and loses, I think that would be better. If he'd turned up against Djokovic and still lost, I don't think the pain would have been so bad. But if he turns up, there is a lot of Slam finals he can win. The turning up is the problem.

He needs to get rid of the maybe - the maybe is what is killing him. Because the more people say 'maybe Andy Murray will win a Slam' (or worse, 'maybe he won't') that pressure is going to continue to mount.

Going Nuts

So when Robin Soderling comes back from not-winning-an-ATP-match-all-year-no-not-even-at-the-Australian-Open, he does it in style. He is into the final in Rotterdam after beating Nikolay Davydenko, he who has been talked about more this year already than probably any other year in his career.

Not having seen the match, I don't know if this is a case of Soderling stepping up his game or Davydenko falling off his a bit - Kolya is still obviously a form player, but I think it's going to take us a while to tell how that quarter final loss in Australia after being in such a commanding position is going to treat him. It's not often that you dominate a match like he dominated that match against Federer only for it to turn around in the blink of an eye and for you to find yourself totally crushed instead. But Kolya is a tough nut. I think he'll be OK - even if this round in Rotterdam went to Soderling.

Djokovic, on the other hand, is not exactly what I would call a tough nut. He's more an almond, or a pine nut, or some other really soft nut. He obviously hasn't always been like this in his career, but it's really been a while since Novak seriously looked like winning... which is a problem, considering he is the #2 player in the world in one of the strongest eras of all time. He got edged by Mikhail Youzhny in two tiebreakers today. Youzhny will now go on to play Soderling in the final.

Best of three tennis is difficult in that, yes, you can lose two tiebreakers and find yourself out of the tournament without having done that much wrong. But while a few of these two-breaker upsets do exist, they're not an epidemic. Players like Federer, Nadal, Murray - Roddick is another one you definitely see this with - do end up in breakers, sure, but for them to lose both of them? Two in a row? Not something you see too often.

Again, I didn't actually see the match, so I can't make any profound comment on how well Youzhny played or what went on with Djokovic. But it just worries me that Novak really hasn't looked like a real contender in a while - even in Australia, where he made the quarters. He didn't play a seeded player till the quarters, where he lost. Sure, Jo-W Tsonga has his number and it went five sets, but I would argue that Djokovic probably wouldn't even have got that far if he hadn't had such a total cakewalk draw.

So there's one to keep an eye on. Soderling/Youzhny is not the final most people would have wanted in Rotterdam, but I think it will be a good match nonetheless. These two, if nothing else, are tough nuts.

ETA: Welcome to the world, Alexia Wawrinka! Congrats to Stan and Ilham. And Myla and Charlene... I bet you'll have a new friend in the tournament creche soon enough!

Awesome Andrey

Oh man, my boy Andrey Golubev was SO CLOSE to pulling a big upset in Rotterdam and knocking out sixth seed Mikhail Youzhny. He cantered away with a breadstick in the first but then lost the next two sets in tiebreaks. Clearly he has still got his awesome game going on and it wasn't just an Australian fluke - but he's got to close out these matches instead of coming OMGSOCLOSE. Because I firmly believe that he can skyrocket - and I mean skyrocket - up those rankings. If he keeps playing the way I saw him play in Perth...

...I can't get over how awesome he is and how low his ranking is by comparison. Though he did improve it by about thirty places over the Australian summer - and when you consider that he totally only played the Australian Open, as the Hopman Cup (where he was arguably at his awesomest) has no ranking points attached, that is totally awesome.

If he can only win matches like this one against Youzhny instead of coming agonisingly close, then we will really be cooking with gas. But watch this kid, guys. Andrey Golubev is going places.

Another result from Rotterdam I thought was interesting was Marsel Ilhan's win over Guillermo Garcia-Lopez. Garcia-Lopez can really ball on the red stuff, so this was a good win. But what I want to know is - where did Ilhan come from? I could swear I had never heard of him before the beginning of this year... or maybe late last year. Point is, he popped up so suddenly. Suddenly Turkey is all about tennis. I noticed the same OMGlookatme! appearance of Horacio Zeballos as well - I'd never seen him before and suddenly he was everywhere.

Goes to show you can write about tennis every day and still things surprise you.

One thing that does not surprise me, however, is Alize Cornet losing in Paris. Seriously, when was the last time she actually won a match? Did losing that match to Safina at AO '09 really do this much damage?

Dutch Courage

One of the things I love about Roger Federer is that he never gives up in a tennis match, even in times of injury. "Roger Federer doesn't retire - otherwise he doesn't walk out on court," he said once (possibly slightly paraphrased). Who can forget the final of the Masters Cup '05, when he gamely fought out a five-set, five-hour battle with David Nalbandian - effectively on one leg? All to make sure the match finished in a true fashion - that he either pulled off a spectacular victory, or his opponent won, fair and square.

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Well, now we can add Rafael Nadal to the fold, because he just did exactly the same thing in Rotterdam. After injuring his knee in the second set, he continued to play - and continued to try to win. And he damn near almost succeeded, too, though he obviously did fade in the third set. But you have to admire the man's guts. I'd say that if this had been a semi or a quarter or something, he'd have retired - but it was a final, and he wanted it to be decided properly (ie. not the Justine Henin AO '06 way).

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The injury happened in the first game of the second set, and it was followed by one of the most bizarre things you will ever see in a game of men's tennis - eight consecutive breaks of serve. And it was Rafa who came out on top, winning the set 6-4. It's incredible that he could do that - he couldn't serve properly because of his knee, so he adjusted and went for broke on Murray's serve, almost breaking him at will. He is a real champion, that man.

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In the end, I think it's almost better that he lost, because he showed his true colours even more clearly. He wanted to give Andy the win properly, and not just hand it to him on a plate. He wanted it to be earned, to be deserved. And he was not at all averse to being the deserver. Hats off, Rafa.

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Today's Results

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ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament (Rotterdam)

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Andy Murray def. Rafael Nadal, 6-3 4-6 6-0

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Brasil Open (Costa do Sauipe)

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Tommy Robredo def. Thomaz Bellucci, 6-3 3-6 6-4

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SAP Open (San Jose)

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Radek Stepanek def. Andy Roddick, 3-6 7-6 (7-5) 6-4

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Open GDF SUEZ (Paris)

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Amelie Mauresmo def. Elena Dementieva, 7-6 (9-7) 2-6 6-4

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PTT Pattaya Open (Pattaya City)

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Vera Zvonareva def. Sania Mirza, 7-5 6-1

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Barclays Dubai Tennis Championships (Dubai)

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Zheng Jie def. Anastasia Rodionova, 6-1 6-1

Kaia Kanepi def. Tamira Paszek, 2-6 6-2 6-0

Sybille Bammer def. Mariya Koryttseva, 6-1 6-4

Alisa Kleybanova def. Anna Lapushchenkova, 3-6 6-3 6-2

Sara Errani def. Chan Yung-Jan, 6-4 6-4

Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova def. Maria Kirilenko, 6-2 6-4

Tsvetana Pironkova def. Viktoriya Kutuzova, 6-2 6-3

Elena Vesnina def. Li Na, 1-6 6-4 6-4

Julia Schruff def. Petra Kvitova, 6-3 2-6 6-4

Vera Dushevina def. Yan Zi, 2-6 6-4 6-3

Rafandy

What a blockbuster final we have in Rotterdam! The organisers must be beside themselves with excitement/relief (unlike the organisers of Brisbane when their big gun, Novak Djokovic, got culled in the first round and their #2, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, got bundled out not long afterwards). It's going to be a very intriguing match, I think - it's Nadal/Murray, incidentally, which I should probably add before I start ranting on and on about it.

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The big matches recently have gone the way of Murray, I think you'd say - there was the semi at the US Open last year (imagine - if Nadal had won that match and gone on to beat Federer for the title he would have a career Grand Slam right now... a 'Rafa Slam,' actually!) and then more recently there was that big exo in Abu Dhabi where they both went at it guns blazing. But then you consider that Rafa's coming in off one of the biggest victories of his career... and seriously, at this point in time, you'd have to be a silly fool to beat against the Boss.

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Though the Rafandy match up interesting match up because of the psychology of it, particularly on Murray's side - I don't think Rafa is in Andy's head like he's in, say, Roger's. Andy has no doubts that he can take Rafa out, and he's willing to go for it. It's the sort of fearlessness that Novak Djokovic (spit spit) used to have, though I think he's lost it now. So it will be an interesting one (as I have said about forty times now). I'm not betting against Rafa, but I'm not counting Andy out.

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Work that one out.

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Something I am not impressed with is the final in Paris - we were all set to get Serena/Jankovic, which could have been awesome, and instead we're getting Dementieva/Mauresmo. Not that these ladies don't deserve it and not that it won't be a good match, but... please, Serena. Injured already?

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And I would like to give out a shoutout to Thomaz Bellucci, who just made it to his first career final in Costa do Sauipe. Nice to see the Stars shining!

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Today's Results

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ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament (Rotterdam)

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

Andy Murray def. Mario Ancic, 6-1 6-2

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Brasil Open (Costa do Sauipe)

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Thomaz Bellucci def. Frederico Gil, 7-6 (7-3) 7-6 (7-4)

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SAP Open (San Jose)

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Mardy Fish def. James Blake, 6-3 6-2

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Open GDF SUEZ (Paris)

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Elena Dementieva def. Serena Williams, walkover

Amélie Mauresmo def. Jelena Jankovic, 6-2 0-6 6-1

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PTT Pattaya Open (Pattaya City)

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Vera Zvonareva def. Shahar Peer, 6-1 6-4

Sania Mirza def. Magdalena Rybarikova, 6-4 5-7 6-1

Black and Blue?

Couple of interesting results overnight - not ground-breaking or anything, but interesting nonetheless. I would have paid a lot of money to have been able to see that match in Rotterdam between Rafa 'The Boss' Nadal and Jo-Dub Tsonga. It looked like a tight one - and thinking back to the semi of the Aussie Open in '08, it's a pretty good match up for Jo-Willy. I think I'm right in saying he'd rather play Rafa than Roger. He still lost, but he gave the Rafabot a good run for his money. I'd bet Rafa isn't in his scintillating Open form here, but still a challenge is a challenge. That one would have been interesting, I think.

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And then in San Jose, we have Mardy Fish not just challenging, but actually beating Juan Martin del Potro. And in pretty comprehensive fashion as well. Now, I would not have picked that one at all. I wouldn't have thought Mardy Fish was anything like a match for the big Argentine.

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People have talked a lot about what the loss to Nadal must have done to Federer's confidence after the Australian Open. But that was a five set match, and Federer could have won if he played better in the big moments. Has anyone stopped to think what must have happened to Juan Martin del Potro's confidence? I mean, sure, hello, quarter finals = great achievement, but can there be anything more crushing for a player than an absolute beatdown like that? We haven't a deconstruction like that quarter final. It was an absolute demolition job. And JM is supposed to the world #6. He's supposed to be close to guys ranked #2. Federer comprehensively showed that that wasn't the case.

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I think Federer is a special case - for him, the closely-fought epics (ie. the Aussie Open and Wimbledon) hurt more than the beatdowns (ie. Roland Garros). But for everyone else? You get beaten three, love and love, and your confidence is going to take a beating. This has got to be the first time in a while JM has lost to someone ranked significantly lower than him. Did he just have an off-day or is his confidence bruised black and blue?

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Today's Results

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ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament (Rotterdam)

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Rafael Nadal def. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, 6-4 6-7 (5-7) 6-4

Andy Murray def. Marc Gicquel, 7-6 (7-2) 4-6 3-0 retired

Gael Monfils def. Julien Benneteau, 7-6 (7-4) 6-1

Mario Ancic def. Mikhail Youzhny, 6-4 6-2

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Brasil Open (Costa do Sauipe)

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Tommy Robredo def. Jose Acasuso, 6-2 6-1

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SAP Open (San Jose)

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Mardy Fish def. Juan Martin del Potro, 6-3 6-4

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Open GDF SUEZ (Paris)

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Serena Williams def. Emilie Loit, 6-4 6-1

Jelena Jankovic def. Alizé Cornet, 5-7 6-4 6-4

Elena Dementieva def. Nathalie Dechy, 6-3 6-2

Amélie Mauresmo def. Agnieszka Radwanska, 6-2 6-0

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PTT Pattaya Open (Pattaya City)

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Vera Zvonareva def. Peng Shuai, 6-2 6-3

Magdalena Rybarikova def. Caroline Wozniacki, 6-4 6-1

Sania Mirza def. Tamarine Tanasugarn, 7-5 6-4

Shahar Peer def. Vera Dushevina, 6-4 4-6 6-2

250: Almost But Not Quite

So does anyone understand this new ATP system?
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I was totally down with it before - you had your Grand Slams, you had your Masters Series events, then you had all the other ones (International Series, I think they were called.) But now we've seemed to move into some whicketty-whack new age. Grand Slams are still the same - I think there would be some serious protesting if that got messed around with - and I think I get that 1000 events are analogous to Masters Series events, but what, WHAT is the difference between a 500 event and a 250?
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My interest is piqued after reading a story about Rafa presenting a plaque to the tournament director of Rotterdam to mark the first 500 event on the ATP world tour. Fine and dandy - but what does that mean? Why does Rotterdam get to be a 500 while Costa do Sauipe and San Jose are only 250? Who made that call? Why did they make that call? Rotterdam is sweet, yeah - but is it special?
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You know what's going to happen, yeah? The top guys are all going to flock to the 500 tournaments and not play the 250s, which means we're basically going to create another circuit level between ATP and Challenger, the almost-but-not-quite. I appreciate that the tier system has worked okay over in the WTA… but seriously, what was wrong with the old system, ATP guys?
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(Oh, and kudos to Brydan Klein for winning a Challenger tournament! Onya!)
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Today's Results
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ABN Amro World Tennis Tournament (Rotterdam)
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Andreas Seppi def. Thiemo de Bakker, 6-7 (5-7) 6-2 7-6 (7-1)
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Brasil Open (Costa do Sauipe)
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Nicolas Almagro def. Ricardo Hocevar, 7-6 (7-4) 7-5
Marcel Granollers def. Flavio Saretta, 6-2 2-6 6-1
Eduardo Schwank def. Diego Junqueira, 6-1 7-5
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SAP Open (San Jose)
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Radek Stepanek def. Dominik Meffert, 5-7 6-3 6-1
Christophe Rochus def. Igor Kunitsyn, 6-2 7-6 (9-7)
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Open GDF SUEZ (Paris)
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Agnieszka Radwanska def. Oxana Lyubtsova, 6-1 6-1
Alizé Cornet def. Anastasija Sevastova, 6-1 6-3
Alisa Kleybanova def. Tsvetana Pironkova, 6-2 7-6 (7-3)
Monica Niculescu def. Timea Bacsinszky, 6-4 6-3
Emilie Loit def. Nicole Vaidisova, 6-1 6-4
Karolina Sprem def. Petra Kvitova, 6-3 6-1
Daniela Hantuchova def. Ekaterina Makarova, 6-2 6-2
Nathalie Dechy def. Sorana Cirstea, 6-2 1-6 6-2
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PTT Pattaya Open (Pattaya City)
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Vera Zvonareva def. Andreja Klepac, 6-4 6-3
Caroline Wozniacki def. Chan Yung-Jan, 6-3 6-0
Sybille Bammer def. Urszula Radwanska, 6-4 3-6 6-1
Yaroslava Shvedova def. Tamira Paszek, 6-3 6-4
Sania Mirza def. Nicha Lertpitaksinchai, 7-6 (7-4) 7-5
Neuza Silva def. Jessica Moore, 6-2 6-1
Yuliya Beygelzimer def. Anastasia Rodionova, 6-2 6-2
Ivana Lisjak def. Sesil Karatantcheva, 6-2 4-6 6-3

The Amazing Disappearing Act of Mikhail Youzhny

Whatever happened to Mikhail Youzhny?

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I noticed this when I was at the Australian Open, actually, but there was so much else going on that I didn't give any more thought to it. A couple of years ago he was making major semis and beating Rafa and doing all kinds of things, including accidentally smashing his head open with his own tennis racquet. Now - where is he?

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It's kind of silly to ask the second he turns up again - he had a first round win against a qualifier in Rotterdam. But seriously, has he been injured? He lost first round at the Aussie - I can't remember who to, but I was surprised. Has he just been out of form? He's certainly taken a dive down the rankings - I'm not sure exactly where he fits in now, but he's unseeded in Rotterdam, and he was certainly unseeded at the Australian Open. That certainly never used to be the case. I can't remember him ever actually making it into the top ten, but he was certainly up there in the #11, #12 region for a while, and I remember him being the Russian #2 (behind Davydenko) was a long time. He's definitely behind both Safin and Tursunov now - oh, and Andreev, and maybe even Kunitsyn and Gabashvili. Anyone know what went down with him?

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And in the women's side, the mysterious one has got to Agnes Szavay. I heard all these good things about her last year, and yet every name her name pops up, it seems to be a first round loss. So what's going on there?

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Today's Results

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ABN Amro World Tennis Tournament (Rotterdam)

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Julien Benneteau def. Feliciano Lopez, 6-4 5-7 6-2

Mikahil Youzhny def. Laurent Recouderc, 6-4 6-4

Dmitry Tursunov def. Arnaud Clement, 6-0 6-3

Nikolay Davydenko def. Igor Andreev, 6-3 6-2

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SAP Open (San Jose)

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Florent Serra def. Jarkko Nieminen, 7-5 6-7 (1-7) 6-4

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Movistar Open (Vina del Mar)

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Fernando Gonzalez def. Jose Acasuso, 6-1 6-3

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Open GDF SUEZ (Paris)

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Li Na def. Agnes Szavay, 7-6 (8-6) 6-2

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PTT Pattaya Open (Pattaya City)

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Peng Shuai def. Mara Santangelo, 3-6 5-2 retired

Vera Dushevina def. Elena Bovina, 6-4 7-5

Galina Voskoboeva def. Jarmila Groth, 4-6 6-2 6-1

Ksenia Pervak def. Tomoko Yonemura, 6-1 6-1