Indian Summer

I suppose I should talk about Davis Cup today. But in another installment of my mindblowing Cherbourg coverage, can I get a F%^& YEAH NICOLAS MAHUT? He is in the final there, where he will meet top seed Grigor Dimitrov. Nico won this tournament last year, so for points purposes, I would really like him to win it again, but I am very happy that he's a finalist full stop. My man Nico is on fire, and don't you forget it.

Right. Davis Cup.

The most interesting tie - to my mind, anyway - is this one between Serbia and India. From the outset, you might think that this is the most boring of all the ties - I know I certainly did. But even though the Serbs are pretty much on top now, the Indian dudes have BROUGHT IT like whoa. And without Bhupathi and Paes, which is a massive handicap.

Let's recap. Day One singles, first rubber. Viktor 'vile' Troicki lines up against Rohan Bopanna, whom he is expected to beat easily. Troicki is not exactly the captain of the consistency bandwagon, but this looks like an easy one for him. Right?

WRONG.

Bopanna takes him to five. It all seems smooth sailing for the first two sets, but the worm, oh, how it turns! This match so, SO easily could have gone Bopanna's way. And we all know how I feel about Troicki, so I wish it did.

Oh well. It's only natural for a team to get the yips a little, n'est-ce pas? And Serbia came away with the point anyway, so surely we are headed right down 5-0 blowout lane from here. Right?

WRONG.

Janko Tipsarevic walks out on court against Somdev Devvarman. And walks off three sets later a defeated man.

Would that be 1-all? Why YES, it would be. And it so, so easily could have been 2-0 India. A few points Bopanna's way, and...

The Serbs pulled out the doubles on Saturday, but it was a tight, tight thing - 12-10 in the fourth set tiebreaker. And you really, really have to wonder what would have happened if Bhupathi and Paes had been there...

This is basically an object lesson in don't underestimate the underdog. I think the Serbians have been that underdog for so long that adjusting to being the top dudes might have messed with them again. And much as they love the home crowd, probably playing in Serbia - after what happened the last time they played in Serbia - was intense, intense pressure. Last time it was glory, and now the populace expects no less.

But let's be realistic. This one wasn't all on the Serbian racquet. The Indian dudes have played OUT OF THEIR FREAKING MINDS awesome. Bopanna and Devvarman have a lot to be proud of here. And you know what? It's not over yet. And I, for one, will be cheering for Team India all the way.

The other really intriguing tie going on is Croatia vs Germany, where Marin Cilic pulled out an absolute heartbreaker against Florian Mayer only to have Germany take the next two points. But Croatia, with their singles team of Cilic and Dodig, are more than capable of getting two points on the morrow by taking out Kohlschreiber and Mayer respectively... we shall see, we shall see. Oh, and Karlovic beat that fast serve record of Andy Roddick's. Well done, Dr Ivo.

Disappointment of the Davis Cup week is obviously Russia. What an awful performance. Kudos to him for pulling out the win, but no one should really be losing to Joachim Johansson right now. (Out of interest, why didn't Sweden field Nick Lindahl? I thought that was, like, the whole reason he defected.)

Oh, and before I go - MASSIVE shoutout to Jelena Dokic, who is in the final of Kuala Lumpur, where she will take on Lucie Safarova. This is a crazy-excellent result and I hope she is SUPER proud!

The Little Nation That Could

You know what? I think I can probably squeeze another day out of Davis Cup blogging after all. So here goes!

Even though, as we all know, I am definitely not Novak Djokovic's biggest fan, I kind of love the story of Serbia and the Davis Cup. It reminds me of Croatia five years back - it's a sort of Little Nation That Could story. It's the story of a country who managed to topple countries much bigger with much deeper pools than they have with what seems like heart alone.

Of course, that isn't one hundred percent true - the Serbian team is totally talented and it's more than just will that's got them this far. But the incredible driving force of the will of the nation - correct me if I'm wrong, but tennis is the most popular sport in Serbia, yesno? - was definitely a big deal.

By rights, France should have taken this one. Serbia may have Djokovic, but France has got about ten dudes in the top hundred (or something similarly ridiculous). And France was also the team that knocked Spain - the nation which is clearly the world's tennis powerhouse at the moment - out of contention. France has the depth which Serbia lacks - while Djokovic is excellent and Tipsarevic and Troicki are very good and Zimonjic is a world class doubles player - if one of them is out, then there are REAL problems. But Serbia - well, it's the little nation that could.

I don't think Djokovic functioned quite in the way that Ivan Ljubicic did for Croatia in 2005 - I don't think he provided quite the same kind of extreme rallying point than Ljubo did, though his matchplay record is clearly comparable. No, the Serbian triumph was, I feel, much more of a team effort. I feel almost a bit bad for Djokovic, actually, because his excellence was sort of assumed. It was just sort of assumed that he would win both his singles rubbers and that the team would try and take care of that one remaining point... and the people that did take care of that point were the ones who were the heroes (Tipsarevic in the semis, Troicki in the final.) The Ljubicic story was almost the story of How One Man Won The Davis Cup (with a bit of help from Mario Ancic). The Serbian narrative is different.

But I don't think it's necessarily a bad thing that it was this way. Actually, I think it's a good thing that the Serbian victory has been a team deal. Novak Djokovic winning a big tournament? Well, that's not that exciting. But a tiny nation with a handful of talented players and a whole lot of heart winning it? Now that is a story.

Superb Serbia

Well, I did not expect this. I would have sworn that France was going to win this one. I was convinced that Llodra would have the guns to pull through and that Monfils might get a sneaky one in over Djokovic. But I was totally, utterly wrong. Sorry about that, Serbia. And congratulations.

It's hard to pick a hero for this tie - I mean, you can safely say it wasn't Tipsarevic, but beyond that, not so much. You really do have to go with Djokovic, I think, who won those crucial two points and gave Troicki a fighting chance going into the fifth and deciding rubber. You can throw Troicki's name into the ring as well - he did, after all, win that rubber - but his serve was the yippy one in the doubles. So Novak gets the honours, I think - but it was a big team effort.

Let's talk about the two matches for a second. I think they both would have been terribly anti-climactic - especially after the epic doubles match - if it wasn't, you know, the Davis Cup final. I definitely wasn't expecting Djokovic to put the hurt on Monfils the way he did. I definitely was expecting more from Monfils than he brought. It seems like he left it all on the court against Tipsarevic... he should have saved some up for this match, because with the way Tipsarevic was playing, he didn't need to use it all then.

I think the crowd definitely drove Djokovic on, but I think it also negatively affected Monfils... which it didn't in the first match, so I found this surprising. I thought that Monfils sort of enjoyed being the antagonist then. Today... not so much. Maybe it's different because it's Djokovic. I don't know. But Gael won't be too happy with himself.

And neither will Michael Llodra, and I am really sad about this one, because I would have totally backed him against either Troicki or Tipsarevic. Unlike Obradovic, I would have played Tipsarevic here, but his choice was obviously a good one, because it paid off big time. Troicki had the match of his life out there. He was definitely spurred on by the crowd here, because he had an absolute blinder. I have never, ever seen him play that well.

...and I can't remember the last time I saw Llodra play so poorly.

This one breaks my heart, because I am in love with Llodra's game. He epitomises French tennis - the flair, the style, the everything. But today he epitomised the bad side of that - the erraticness. And it was horrible to watch.

This is the kind of match that can break a man, and I will be so, so sad if it breaks Llodra. He is so much better than this. He has so much more ahead of him. Here's hoping he can just put Davis Cup behind him and rock 2011 like the French tennis god he is.

But for now, congratulations to Serbia. Talk about a fairy tale.

Serbia Gets Slapped

Okay. Now we have some action. A fightback from two sets down? That is what I'm talking about.

I bet Obradovic is fiercely glad he didn't play Djokovic here, even though the Serbs didn't get the point, because if Djokovic had gone five sets today? No way he'd be up to it against Monfils tomorrow. That just wouldn't be happening.

Troicki and Zimonjic put up a good match here - they won the first two sets, after all - but they're both going to be bitterly disappointed. To lead two sets and then go down, in front of a home crowd? Geez. That is like a slap in the face with a fish and no mistake. And if I'm Nenad 'I love doubles' Zimonjic, I am a bit annoyed about being let down by the weak serving of my partner. Because that, at the end of the day, was the clincher. So in that sense, maybe Obradovic is regretting he didn't play Djokovic. I doubt he would have got as yippy as Troicki did.

But let's talk about the dudes that really pulled it out. Clement. Llodra. I love these dudes. They might be one of my favourite doubles teams ever. They are GOOD TIMES. I don't really have a side I'm pulling for in this tie, but in terms of this match? I was pulling for these two all the way. Forget did a really good job putting these two together - though I doubt it was a rocket science decision.

What I always admire in a comeback like the one they pulled is the ability to not panic and to not give in. It must be so easy to fold when you're two sets down - the way back seems insurmountable. But for Arnaud and Michael? Not so much. They rocked it. And I bet that Serbian crowd was NOT happy.

This leaves us in a very interesting place for tomorrow. The long and short of it is that if Djokovic loses, Serbia are screwed. But let's assume that rankings hold and Djokovic beats Monfils (even though I have a sneaky suspicion Gael might pull that one out). The fifth rubber is due to be contested by Tipsarevic and Simon. But will it actually be these two?

If I'm Forget, I'm definitely considering picking Llodra, even though he played five sets today. Simon was overwhelmingly disappointing in the first singles rubber... but then, he was playing Djokovic. Llodra has had a great time of it lately and should be high on adrenaline, if on nothing else. So despite the five sets, I'm going Llodra.

But if I'm Obradovic, I'm sort of between a rock and a hard place. Troicki was definitely the weak link in the doubles, and he's coming off five sets. But then Tipsarevic was terribly disappointing in the first singles match. Neither option is particularly attractive. Yesterday, I would have got Troicki in a second. But today, I think I'm leaning towards Tipsarevic. Maybe he can make something happen through talent alone...

The New Ivan

A 5-0 loss, Switzerland? Really? Really?!

We are SO not speaking.

But Serbia! How about you?! Novak Djokovic, you done good, but how about you, Janko Tipsarevic? You are a freaking HERO.

This is going to be a really interesting final. France have the talent to beat just about any squad in the world - scratch that, France can beat anyone if they play well. They have amazing depth and an ability to substitute quality players that only Spain can really come close to matching. I mean, look at the talent in their stable - Monfils, Gasquet, Tsonga, Llodra, Benneteau, Clement... and that's just off the top of my head. Those Frenchies can play.

But the highest ranked player in that tie is going to be Novak Djokovic, and unless Tsonga is back and playing awesomely, I don't see him getting beaten in either singles rubber. And Janko Tipsarevic, well... if he can beat Tomas Berdych in a clutch singles rubber and then come back a couple of days later and win a live fifth in convincing fashion... such is the stuff that Davis Cup heroes are made of. That is Ivan Ljubicic level stuff right there. And Janko, I think you just might be the new Ivan.

France on Fire, Serbia to the Wire

Well, that didn't go too well for Switzerland. Well done, Kazakhstan, but Switzerland, really?

Enough about that. I suppose the playoffs pale in comparison to the real deal, the semi-finals, and I probably should at least mention that they're happening.

The regular Davis Cup heroism of David Nalbandian could not save Argentina this time - they have been absolutely taken apart by the French team. It would not be unfair to say, I think, that France are on fire. And given that the level of tennis talent in France is nothing short of immense, it is not unfair to say that they should always be on fire. They should be a fixture in the finals, not breaking a major drought.

But now isn't the time to lambast them - now that they have actually made good for once. France are a super deserving finalist for this year's Davis Cup - taking out Argentina and, moreover, Spain, is nothing to sneeze at. Their draw has been many things, but cupcake-y is not one of them. Allez!

And then there is Serbia vs the Czech Republic, and a tighter tie it would be hard to imagine. If Serbia had had Djokovic on the first day, one might imagine that the whole thing might have been a lot less tight. But no, Serbia have to win both matches on the final day to go through.

And they so easily could have been out in straights like Argentina - if Serbia go through to the final this year, they need to give Janko Tipsarevic a ticker-tape parade. His win over Berdych was some of the best clutch play around. And now the Czech Republic may be up a point, but if Djokovic can make good on his ranking and beat Berdych, and if Tipsarevic can keep his level up against Stepanek, well... what a tie this could end up being!

Talent Isn't Everything

As I have absolutely nothing else to talk about, I'm going to talk some more about Davis Cup. And what I have to say is this: if France don't win it this year, they are missing a huge opportunity.

Think about it. They have beaten Spain, the out and out favourites. They have so many players who can be so good on any given day... but who can also be terrible on any given day. If they all come out firing - can you imagine a France with a switched-on Jo Tsonga and Gael Monfils playing singles? - then nothing short of a miracle can stop them.

Of course, they're playing Argentina in the semis, and the Argentinians have a miracle up their sleeves. He goes by the name of David Nalbandian, and as just about any Davis Cup playing nation can tell you, he can derail the fiercest of challenges. But he is but one man, and the French squad is packed with talent.

What the French squad is not packed with is consistency. If they could find this like they did against Spain, they would be unstoppable. There are reasons why one man squads like Nalbandian's Argentina and Djokovic's Serbia can do so well, and that is maximising the consistency of a star player. France have a whole bunch of stars... but none of them seem to shine at the same time.

I hope, for their sake, much as I want Bandy to do well at this Cup they call Davis, that all the French guns fire in the semis. Because to have that much talent in a tennis nation and not have anything to show for it? That is a bit of a tragedy.

Davydenko and Other Disappointments

Spain have been sufficiently kept real. No Davis Cup threepeat for them. One tennis journalist wrote that while the defeat wasn't necessarily surprising, the 3-0 blowout was. I agree totally. Any nation is at risk against the hyper-talented France, but I would have expected Spain to have at least won one of the first three rubbers.

Nando Verdasco is going to wear this back home and no mistake. All the previous Davis Cup heroics will be forgotten in the face of his new found bunny status. I guess he'll just be hoping that Spain is too focused on the World Cup to care (which, to be fair, is probably true).


The Czech Republic are also through - without Berdych and Stepanek, which is a massive result for them - but the real battles going on are the two that are still alive, Russia vs Argentina and Croatia vs Serbia. They're both technically anyone-can-win, but you really have to like the team that took the doubles rubber in both situations.


In the former, that is Argentina. A lot is going to rest on Nikolay Davydenko, and he doesn't sound incredibly optimistic. He was phenomenally disappointing against David Nalbandian in the first singles rubber. I mean, sure, Nalbandian is awesome and all and he always brings it at Davis Cup, but Kolya was totally under par. Very disappointing. I'd be putting my faith in Mikhail Youzhny if I were the Russian Davis Cup captain - he seems like Russia's best bet for an equaliser.


And for Croatia, who are down one rubber to two, it's all on the shoulders of mighty Marin Cilic. He is certainly capable of taking out Novak Djokovic, but Djokovic is coming off a great Wimbledon and Cilic has not been in great form of late. However, if he brings it, if he throws the kitchen sink at Djokovic, he definitely has a chance. I thought Davydenko/Nalbandian was going to be the match of the weekend and it was totally disappointing. Maybe Cilic/Djokovic will be the one to remember instead...

The I-Don't-Want-To-Say-Renaissance of Ana Ivanovic

One tournament does not a comeback make. One string of wins does not equal a Renaissance.

But when you've been winning as few matches as Ana Ivanovic - when those wins have come so few and far between - then a tournament like Rome can herald the beginning of a whole new player. Of course, it can also be an enormous fluke, so here's hoping that's not the case - for Ana's sake.

But I like the way she's playing. I know Vesnina was, well, Vesnina, and Azarenka was injured, and Dementieva didn't turn up, and now Petrova went all shank-happy, but still Ana hasn't cracked. I wouldn't be prepared to say that she's been undoubtedly 'winning' her matches, but she hasn't been handed them on a silver platter, and, most importantly, she hasn't lost them. The WTA can be, and has often been of late, a game not of who wins but of who loses first. And Ana - well, Ana is great at losing first.

But this week? Not so much.

I don't really like her chances of coming through Maria Jose Martinez Sanches, but I wouldn't rule it out, either, and a week ago, I would have ruled it out for sure. So this is a good thing. This is progress. And progress is good. Progress is how you get to a Renaissance.

It's been a merry day for the Serbs, with Djokovic progressing in Belgrade and Jankovic going absolutely mental on Venus, hammering her into the ground. This is the best she's played in a long, long time. But I want to reserve my final praise today for another Serb - young Filip Krajinovic. He's had his first ATP wins this week and he deserves it roundly - he has some excellent, excellent game going on!

Demuscling Her Way Back To The Top

I kind of love that Jelena Jankovic wasn't able to lift the trophy when she won Indian Wells. Because I think it means she's moved a long way towards shedding the excess muscle bulk that slowed her down so badly last year.


This means, my friends, that Jelena Jankovic could be on her way back.


It's pretty rare that I say anything positive about any of the Serbian players, what with Jelena being all defensive and Novak being a) irritating and b) suddenly a grinderman and Ana being, well, a big trainwreck. So pay heed to this rare occurrence - I think Jelena Jankovic just might be on the up and up.


I'm not certain about this, but Jelena certainly played better to come through Indian Wells than I have seen her play in a long time - particularly in her final two matches, against Stosur and Wozniacki respectively. Stosur fell apart to an extent, but Jelena really capitalised and never let her get back on her feet. Against Caro, she found the weakness - the forehand - and picked on it over and over again.


She played smart, and I haven't seen her play quite so cleverly for a long, long time.


This is exciting going into the clay season because I think her game is definitely very well suited to clay. And to win a tournament by beating Wozniacki, who plays quite a similar game, is a Very Big Deal Indeed. Sure, you can make the case that Jelena was simply the one that didn't lose, in the way of some WTA tournaments - but I'm not feeling that. Jelena won this one. And my gut says... it says look out, rest of the WTA, because Jelena's going to have a Serbian resurgence all on her own.

Stepping Up In Davis Cup

Davis Cup is over for another badly-scheduled round, and while I don't think we've had any huge upsets per se, there have certainly been some interesting results.

Exhibit A: Spain vs Switzerland. I think we knew that Spain was going to win this one and win it easy... and some of us were secretly hoping Spain would win so that Switzerland that there could be a home tie in Australia in the playoffs. Which is very possible now. Woot.

Back on track. What I actually wanted to talk about here was the great effort that David Ferrer that put in. If you read the write up on the Davis Cup website it seems to blame Switzerland's showing all on Wawrinka playing poorly, which I think is a bit unfair. I mean, sure, he didn't play great, but I think David Ferrer played really, really well, especially in that decisive reverse singles rubber. He hasn't the bestest Davis Cup history in the past, as I have discussed before, so I like to see him bring it for his nation.

Ferru had that great year a couple of years back where he was up at about #4 in the rankings and then fell right back down again. I haven't seen him play this well for a long time - he's reached two finals of late, winning one, and now he's brought it at DC. He seems delightfully upwardly mobile!

The other really interesting result - and the only one that might even vaguely be called an upset - is the Serbia/USA tie. With Djokovic playing for Serbia and without Roddick, I think this one was always on the Serbian racquet. And I don't want to imply that US boys didn't bring it, because I think we can say they brought it. Especially John Isner. He very, very nearly knocked Djokovic off his perch. But this one had Serbia written all over it, and it really was Viktor Troicki that stepped up. I've been sort of following him since I saw him play Rafa in the first round of Australia a few years back, and he's really grown up excellent.

I felt really sorry for the US boys - they did a great job - but there was just not too much they could do about drawing the Serbians. (Hey, maybe if the Davis Cup were scheduled better, then someone like, say, Roddick, might be able to play! Mull on that, Davis Cup. Mull on that).

Bad Luck for Lady J

So if I were Jelena Jankovic, I would be in a massive snit right now.

I've been pretty critical of JJ in the past, but she really brought it all to the table in Fed Cup at the weekend. She played some stellar matches to beat first Alisa Kleybanova and then, more tellingly, Svetlana Kuznetsova. And, if we are to believe her website, she came within a hair's breadth of pulling out injured and yet she played and won anyway. Quality work for Lady J.

Ana Ivanovic, on the other hand, has no such excuse. She isn't exactly match tired, given as she managed to win a grand total of a set at this year's Australian Open. She isn't injured, as far as anyone's aware. All she seems to do is lope around on golf courses with Adam Scott, though I presume, she, like, trains and stuff. And she contributed absolutely nothing to the Serbian team on the weekend. She got steamrolled by both Kuznetsova and Kleybanova before dragging Jankovic down with her in the doubles. Who else is on the Serbian team? Couldn't Jankovic have played with a different partner?

It is such a shame, because the Serbian Fed Cup team should be, by all rights, awesome. How did the Ana who won Roland Garros in 2008 and reached the final year before turn into this pale shadow of what she was? What exactly went wrong?

Sigh. Alas for them.

You know who I was impressed with, though? (Apart from Lady J, obviously?) Yanina Wickmayer. Belgium could be such a force in Fed Cup this year if they get Kim and Justine back in the side - or even just one of them, because Yanina is seriously awesome. I really like her chances of breaking into the top ten this year. She has some moves. That match she played against Agnesizka Radwanska has to be the match of the weekend. And Kirsten Flipkens definitely did not disappoint either. Imagine Kim, Justine, Yanina and Flipper making up a Fed Cup team. Now that would be sweet.

Something else that could also be sweet is the Russia/USA match up in the next round. What we should be seeing is some combination of Safina/Dementieva/Kuznetsova/Zvonareva/Sharapova taking on the Williams sisters. What I suspect we'll see is Melanie Oudin vs Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, but I can hope...

The Other Fed in Tennis

I really wish Fed Cup was more awesome. I also wish Davis Cup was more awesome, but it's not struggling with quite the same level of not-awesome as Fed Cup is. It's not that the tennis is any less good (within the normal ATP/WTA parameters anyway, considering that men's tennis is in a golden age and women's tennis is not) but hardly any of the top players seem to have a desire to play Fed Cup, and that is not good.

The Davis Cup is one of those accessories that players like to have, a good trophy to have on the shelf. It's not a Slam or anything, but it is a rare opportunity for players to represent their nations and play as a team, not an individual. Even Federer, a pathological non-player of Davis Cup, has said he would like to win it one day... though this may be because it is the only trophy his decorated mantlepiece is missing. It's played at stupid times and is not well organised, but Davis Cup has prestige.

Whereas Fed Cup... not so much.

Look at Russia, powerhouse of women's tennis. They have Safina, Sharapova, Dementieva, Kuznetsova, Zvonareva... a virtually inexhaustible stream of top women. Yet who is playing? Sveta, sure, after she declared herself available at the last minute, and Alisa Kleybanova, who, while not crappy, is not exactly top ten. They're playing Serbia, who do have two former #1s in Ana Ivanovic and Jelena Jankovic, but with the form of these two players at the moment, Russia should be crushing them. Instead, it's one-all.

And Belgium! Clijsters and Henin, hello? But no, it's Wickmayer and Flipkens stepping up to the plate. USA? Should be Williams and Williams. But no, it's Oudin and Mattek-Sands. The top women just don't play Fed Cup.

But you know the very first step to making Fed Cup more appetising for these top players? Do not schedule it the week after a Slam. This is not rocket science. Davis Cup is also guilty of this. If you want your top players in there, you have to schedule it at a time wherein they haven't, say, played seven five set matches in a row.

This is not a new rant. But that does not make it any less true. If Davis and Fed Cups are going to become truly awesome, then they need to schedule it better.

The Boss

Was just reading Tennis Australia's little 'Off the Court' article, and at the bottom, there was a little story about how Rafa is planning to play Davis Cup in the first round - to effectively get straight back on the horse after his disappointment about not playing the final last year. All fine and dandy - nice one, Rafa - but what I found very intriguing (aka. what I did not realise) was that Spain are taking on Serbia.

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Now that is going to be a good tie.

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We haven't seen Rafa play Djokovic for a while now, and I really hope we get the opportunity to see it here, because I feel, and have long felt, that Novak sort of forgets about Rafa, even now when he's #1. Sure, there was that battle they had last year where the winner of the match got the #2 spot (Rafa won) but you always feel that Djokovic is focused wholly on overtaking Federer. When Federer was #1, he was all about toppling the king. Now Federer is #2, it's all about sticking it to him. And Rafa? Well... um... hfhweirfhj.

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I hope Rafa sticks it to him. I think he needs to show him who's boss. And that's all I have to say about that.

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Meanwhile, in Fed Cup action, looks like Jelena, Sam, Casey and Stubbsy will be taking on Switzerland for a spot in World Group II. This could be an interesting one. The highest ranked player out there will be Switzerland's Patty Schnyder, with Timea Bacsinszky presumably playing the other singles rubbers. The match up I would really love to see? I want David Taylor and Nicole Bradtke to take a punt and put Casey Dellacqua out there against Schnyder. Dellacqua beat her at the Aussie Open last year, and I think it's primarily because they're both lefties - Schnyder, who relies so heavily on placement, has a lot of advantage taken away. The Swiss girls lost 3-2 to Germany last week, with Schnyder being the 2 and the rest of the team being the everything else, so if the Aussie girls can negate Schnyder...

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Ugh. Look at me talking about tennis like a team sport - especially since I practically am Swiss when it comes to tennis. Shame on me.

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(Oh, and since my post of a couple of days ago, Mikhail Youzhny seems to have found a bit of form, taking out Ferru in Rotterdam. This is all obviously due to me.)

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Today's Results

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ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament (Rotterdam)

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Mikhail Youzhny def. David Ferrer, 6-2 3-6 6-2

Rafael Nadal def. Simone Bolelli, 4-6 6-2 7-5

Gilles Simon def. Philipp Kohlschreiber, 7-5 7-6 (7-1)

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga def. Jesse Huta Galung, 7-6 (7-4) 7-6 (7-4)

Mario Ancic def. Rainer Schuettler, 7-5 6-2

Michael Llodra def. Ivo Karlovic, 4-6 6-3 6-4

Marc Gicquel def. Evgeny Korolev, 3-6 6-3 6-2

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Brasil Open (Costa do Sauipe)

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Tommy Robredo def. Thiago Alves, 6-4 6-2

Juan Carlos Ferrero def. Albert Montanes, 6-7 (4-7) 6-2 6-2

Jose Acasuso def. Juan Monaco, 7-6 (7-3) 6-4

Nicolas Devilder def. Daniel Silva, 7-6 (7-5) 6-2

Thomaz Bellucci def. Potito Starace, 6-3 6-4

Brian Dabul def. Paul Capdeville, 6-1 retired

Pablo Cuevas def. Oscar Hernandez, 4-6 6-4 6-1

Rui Machado def. Ivan Navarro, 6-4 6-1

Frederico Gil def. Pablo Andujar, 3-6 6-4 6-3

Fabio Fognini def. Caio Zampieri, 0-6 7-6 (7-5) 6-2

Lukasz Kubot def. Daniel Gimeno-Traver, 7-6 (9-7) 1-6 6-3

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SAP Open (San Jose)

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Radek Stepanek def. Chris Guccione, 6-2 7-6 (7-1)

John Isner def. Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, 7-6 (11-9) 6-4

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Open GDF SUEZ (Paris)

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Emilie Loit def. Kaia Kanepi, 2-6 6-3 6-1

Serena Williams def. Iveta Benesova, 6-1 6-4

Jelena Jankovic def. Francesca Schiavone, 7-5 7-6 (7-2)

Elena Dementieva def. Aravane Rezai, 6-4 6-3

Patty Schnyder def. Alona Bondarenko, 6-4 7-6 (7-3)

Amélie Mauresmo def. Sara Errani, 6-2 6-0

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PTT Pattaya Open (Pattaya City)

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Vera Dushevina def. Sybille Bammer, 6-4 7-5

Peng Shuai def. Galina Voskoboeva, 7-6 (7-4) 6-0

Tamarine Tanasugarn def. Akgul Amanmuradova, 6-2 7-6 (7-4)

Shahar Peer def. Noppawan Lertcheewakarn, 6-1 6-0

Magdalena Rybarikova def. Kimiko Date Krumm, 6-2 4-6 6-4

Vitalia Diatchenko def. Ryoko Fuda, 6-3 1-6 6-3

Something Fishy

Why oh why oh why does Mardy Fish play from so far behind the baseline?

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I'm watching the men's singles rubber of the Hopman Cup final at the mo, and it's crippling him. Djokovic is killing him with the drop shot. In fact, Djokovic could even use the drop shot more. I appreciate that Fish is a baseline slogger, but surely this should be a case of horses for courses. Stand in a little, Mardy. Please.

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Though Fish is holding his own a whole lot better in the second set. Though, to tell the truth, I can't tell if it's a case of Djokovic playing badly or Fish playing well. Djokovic has certainly fatigued in the second set - not physically, I think, but mentally. This is something I think he might have a tendency of doing - the US Open final against Federer comes to mind, where he had set points in the first two sets (five in the first set, I think) and yet Federer took the sets in tie breakers. He's down 4-0 in the second set breaker as I write this. No one can doubt Djokovic's technical prowess as a player. In the first set of this rubber (where he spanked Fish 6-2) he was brilliant. His eye was in, and he has such an unreadable technique - you can't tell if he's hitting crosscourt or down the line until the ball leaves his racquet. More than that, you could see he was determined. He wanted to win. Now... he looks too tired to care. I appreciate that he's doing about 80% of the work for the Serb team at the mo, with Jankovic injured - if he loses this rubber, then Serbia loses the cup - but honestly. He's the Number 3 player in the world. Shouldn't he be able to keep his head in the game just a little better?

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I've never really warmed to Djokovic, to tell the truth, though I'm going for him in this match - more for the sake of Jankovic (and for the detriment of Serena Williams) than anything else. I find him a little arrogant - particularly galling when his mind goes like that. I remember when he played Federer in the fourth round of the Australian Open last year, and he was making all this noise about how he was going to take Federer out. There was an interview I remember really clearly with him that they showed before the match where he said (possibly slightly misquoted), 'I have just three words. He is going down. Oops, that's four.' I think that kind of sums up Djokovic, in a way. He's got all this determination... and then there's something he missed, or he didn't think about.

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(Federer caned him in the match, incidentally. It was beautiful to watch - almost as great as the semi-final where I think he nearly made Andy Roddick cry!)

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Djokovic has just lost the second set, and so we're heading to a third. The trainer is on court, but I somehow find it hard to believe Djokovic is seriously injured. A bit sore, sure, but totally incapacitated...? From watching, I get the feeling that Djokovic plays at hypochondria to give himself time. He does it serving as well - he'll bounce the ball fifteen, twenty, twenty-five times before he throws it up. Dirty tactic, but he's not the only one that pulls stunts like that. Nadal comes to mind, and I can certainly recall an occasion last year when Safin tried to delay! (Third round at the Australian Open against Roddick, if memory serves.) I know that 'everyone' does it, but I wish they wouldn't. It doesn't really seem like sportsmanlike conduct.

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But then, tennis is an individual sport, and I guess that means self-serving to some degree!

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Hopman Cup final wrap tomorrow!

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(Meanwhile, this ongoing match at the Adelaide International between Jarkko Nieminen and Vince Spadea looks like a potboiler. I wish I could see it! They've split two tiebreak sets and it's on serve in the third... will be interesting to see who pulls that one out of the hat!)

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Today's Results

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Hopman Cup (Perth)

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Final

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Serena Williams def. Jelena Jankovic, walkover

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Round Robin

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Serbia def. Argentina, 2-1

Jankovic/Djokovic def. Dulko/Chela, 6-1 3-6 10-4 (match tie break)

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France def. Chinese Taipei, 3-0

Arnaud Clement def. Lu Yen-hsun, 7-6 (7-2) 6-4

Golovin/Clement def. Hsieh/Lu, 6-4 4-6 10-6 (match tie break)

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Mondial Australian Women's Hardcourts (Gold Coast)

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Li Na def. Patty Schnyder, 3-6 6-3 7-5

Victoria Azarenka def. Shahar Peer, 6-4 6-2

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ASB Classic (Auckland)

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Lindsay Davenport def. Tamira Paszek, 6-4 6-3

Aravane Rezai def. Marina Erakovic, 6-3 7-5

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Next Generation Adelaide International (Adelaide)

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Michael Llodra def. Benjamin Becker, 7-6 (7-5) 6-4

Joseph Sirianni def. Paul-Henri Mathieu, 1-6 6-1 7-6 (8-6)

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga def. Lleyton Hewitt, 6-4 6-2

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Qatar Exxonmobil Open (Doha)

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Nikolay Davydenko def. Dmitry Tursunov, 7-5 6-3

Andy Murray def. Thomas Johansson, 7-6 (7-4) 6-0

Ivan Ljubicic def. Philipp Kohlschreiber, 6-3 6-7 (4-7) 6-3

Stanislas Wawrinka def. Agustin Calleri, 6-3 6-0

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Chennai Open (Chennai)

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Rafael Nadal def. Rajeev Ram, 6-2 6-1

Marin Cilic def. Nicolas Mahut, 6-2 6-4

Guillermo Garcia-Lopez def. Werner Eschauer, 4-6 7-5 7-6 (7-3)

Robin Haase def. Lovro Zovko, 6-1 7-5

Power play

My righteous anger over the Serena Williams/Meghann Shaughnessy debacle has abated a little - a bit of research shows that Shaughnessy is off to play the tournament in the Gold Coast next week, and dropped in to cover for Serena as a favour. But still, I think it's extremely poor form of Serena. Mild illness... forgive me, but that's hardly an impressive excuse.
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I actually sat down and watched a match from beginning to end today - the first for the '08 season! Jelena Jankovic versus Hsieh Su-Wei... it was actually really interesting. I like Jankovic and I like the way she plays but I was gunning for Hsieh from the start - not because she's an underdog and I'm wired to go for her (like all good Australians are supposed to be) but because she had this really unusual game that I found really appealing.
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Jankovic is 3 in the world. Hsieh is 157. Hsieh had nothing to lose - and she was really going for it, especially in the first couple of games. She was actually up an early break in the first, but then it was like she got all nervous when she was ahead. I don't think she was the strongest player mentally, but she had some great shots. She went for the corners and created some beautiful angles. And she had a few Clijsters/Jankovic-esque splits moments as well... though I have to say that I always wince whenever I see players doing that. It's like you can almost hear the muscles tearing. Actually, Djokovic did a couple of times in his match and it made my skin crawl. I'm not Djokovic's biggest fan, but it'd be really sad if he were to injure himself and put himself out of the Australian Open.
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But back to Hsieh Su-Wei. She's a tiny person - the commentators were discussing how much bigger and heavier that her Jankovic was, and how it must make such a huge difference in terms of power - and her serve had nothing on it. But she still hung in there really well. It reminded me of a first round match Maria Sharapova played last year - it might have been at the Australian Open, actually. She was playing this tiny little Frenchwoman, Camille Pin, and got taken to something like 8-6 or 9-7 in the third, and it was so obvious that Pin would have won if she had anything even vaguely resembling a serve. If Hsieh had a bigger serve... Jankovic still would have won, I think, but Hsieh would have been able to put her under much more pressure. A great serve combined with that ability to scramble... and she clearly has a decent strategic mind as well. At set point in the first (I think) she was serving, and she just randomly pulled out this serve and volley. It was great - and it caught Jankovic totally off guard. She changed it up really well - she had really soft hands for the finesse shots... a bit of a strange playing style though. Effectively, she had no forehand - her 'forehand' was a really a left-handed backhand. Considering the forehand is generally one of the biggest shots in the arsenal, that's got to be crippling.
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But you don't need to have the most power to be a great tennis player. Look at Martina Hingis.
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I didn't watch the men's match as closely, but it was great to see Lu Yen-hsun take Djokovic to three sets. Good on Chinese Taipei - they did themselves proud. Meanwhile, is it just me, or is Djokovic always injuring himself? I don't think I've ever seen a match where he hasn't called a medical timeout. I wonder if he's a) a hypochondriac, b) accident prone or c) faking it... he wouldn't be the first to do it.
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Today's Results
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Australia def. Czech Republic 2-1

Tomas Berdych def. Peter Luczak, 7-6 (9-7) 6-4
Molik/Luczak def. Safarova/Berdych, 7-5 6-3
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Serbia def. Chinese Taipei 3-0
Jelena Jankovic def. Hsieh Su-wei, 6-4 6-4
Novak Djokovic def. Lu Yen-hsun, 7-5 2-6 6-3
Jankovic/Djokovic def. Hsieh/Lu, 3-6 6-2 7-6 (10-8)
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France vs. Argentina 1-1
Tatiana Golovin def. Gisela Dulko, 6-4 6-3
Juan Ignacio Chela def. Arnaud Clement, 6-3 6-1