David Ferrer helped Spain advance into the Davis Cup quarterfinals against France and thus begins Spain’s road to its second-consecutive title defense. Ferrer took no time in taking apart Stanislas Wawrinka and any Swiss hopes with a 6-2 6-4 6-0 victory. Nicolas Almagro finished up strong in his emphatic victory over Marco Chiudinelli at 6-1 6-3 after 75 minutes of play.

It goes to show how deep Team Spain is. Even without Rafael Nadal, Fernando Verdasco and Juan Carlos Ferrero, they still were able to advance comfortably. Hopefully, Spain will be much healthier in their quarterfinal matchup.

Team Spain is much deeper than France. France could be a formidable foe if Gael Monfils and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga can stay healthy and play well. Team France now has a great doubles partnership in Michael Llodra and Julien Benneteau, which can now handle any of the Spanish pairings.

Tsonga had to retire with a mild foot injury in his dead rubber match against German Simon Greul this afternoon. Why Guy Forget would play Tsonga in a dead rubber matchup seems kind of crazy to me. Luckily, they won the first round in their first-three matches. If they were in a dogfight with Spain, this would definitely be a problem. Injuries are really France’s Achilles heel.

No matter what happens, the France-Spain matchup in July will be entertaining.

Sunday’s Results
R4 – David Ferrer (ESP) def. Stanislas Wawrinka (SUI) 6-2 6-4 6-0
R5 – Nicolas Almagro (ESP) def. Marco Chiudinelli (SUI) 6-1 6-3

(Image: AP)

Gael Monfils get Frenchie love from teammates Julien Benneteau and Richard Gasquet after his straight-sets victory against Philipp Kohlshreiber.

(Image: AP)

What a difference a year makes. France now leads Germany 2-0. Gael Monfils won his first Davis Cup match. He put in a solid performance against Philipp Kohlschreiber and defeated the German 6-1 6-4 7-6(5). Monfils is now 1-1 in Davis Cup play.

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga then followed up Monfil’s win with another French victory over Benjamin Becker. The top-ranked Frenchman was on his way to a dominant win until he had a hiccup in the third set. In the fourth set, Tsonga was able to wrap it up with 6-3 6-2 6-7(2) 6-3 win. The victory brings the world no. eleven’s Davis Cup record to 7-0.

Julien Benneteau and Michael Llodra are up for France in doubles tomorrow. The French duo has proven to be a winning combination. They will meet Christopher Kas and Philipp Kohlschreiber and could easily put France through to the quarterfinals.

France vs. Germany
Friday’s Results
R1 – Gael Monfils (FRA) def. Philipp Kohlschreiber (GER) 6-1 6-4 7-6(5)
R2 – Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA) def. Benjamin Becker (GER) 6-3 6-2 6-7(2) 6-3

Saturday’s Match
R3 – R. Benneteau (FRA)/M. Llodra (FRA) vs. C. Kas (GER)/P. Kohlschreiber (GER)

(Images: AP)

Feliciano Lopez rallied to upset top-seed Gael Monfils. The Spanish lefty beat the world no. 13 3-6 6-1 7-6(1) after 92 minutes of play.

Monfils started out well in the first set. The Frenchman served 11 of his 19 match aces on the Spaniard in the first set and made 62% of his first serves, but his play dropped dramatically in the second set. Lopez, on the other hand, was consistent for the entire match. The Spaniard was also helped by the Frenchman’s injury, which slowed Monfils down in the second set.

The Frenchman managed to pick up his play in the third set and held his serve for the duration of it. Lopez proved too much and took over in the tiebreak. With today's win, Lopez is in the hunt for his second-career title. His only title came in Vienna in 2004.

The real shocker of the day was David Ferrer’s ouster. The Spaniard is one of the fittest players on tour and is usually so consistent. He usually beats the players he should beat. Today, Stephane Robert, the world no. 100, upset the world no. 18 7-5 6-4 after 96 minutes of play.

The 29-year-old Frenchman seeks his first ATP World title of his career. Robert usually plays on the challenger and futures tours. By making it to the final of an ATP World tournament, the Frenchman is having a dream run this week. He has only played in 2 other ATP World tournaments and 2 grand slams in his entire career. Before he would lose in the first rounds (Houston 2004 and Roland Garros 2004), this year he made it to the second round at Chennai and the Australian Open. His run this week marks his best career performance to date.

Obviously, Lopez and Robert have never played. On paper, Lopez should win the final tomorrow. It shall be seen if the Frenchman can follow up today’s upset.

Singles Semifinals
3 Feliciano Lopez (ESP) def. 1 Gael Monfils (FRA) 3-6 6-1 7-6(1)
8 Stephane Robert (FRA) def. 2 David Ferrer (ESP) 7-5 6-4

Doubles Semifinals
K Beck (SVK) / H Levy (ISR) def. S. Darcis (BEL)/X. Malisse (BEL) 7-5 4-6 10-7

Championship Sunday
Singles Final
3 Feliciano Lopez (ESP) vs. 8 Stephane Robert (FRA)

Doubles Final
K. Beck (SVK)/H. Levy (ISR) vs. R. Bopanna (IND)/A. Qureshi (PAK)

Sunday’s Order of Play

(Image: Reg Caldecott)

In semifinal one, we have second-seed David Ferrer of Spain versus eighth-seed Stephane Robert of France. Ferrer had an easy time with Somdev Devvarman, and Stephane Robert shutdown Jamaican sensation Dustin Brown, who had knocked out fourth-seed Marco Chiudinelli in the first round.

In semifinal two, we have Frenchman Gael Monfils and Spaniard Feliciano Lopez in a marquee matchup -- style versus flash. To get to tomorrow's semifinal, Monfils took out Yen-Hsun Lu, and Feliciano beat fifth-seed Rajeev Ram today. Surprisingly, Monfils and Lopez have never met in ATP competition.

The second semifinal should be a good match. Too bad it cannot be seen live on television in the US. As a consolation, Tennis Channel will show the first semifinal on Monday and the second on Tuesday. Check your local listings.

Friday’s Results
Singles Quarterfinals
1 Gael Monfils (FRA) def. 7 Yen-Hsun Lu (TPE) 6-1 6-4
2 David Ferrer (ESP) def. Somdev Devvarman (IND) 6-1 6-3
3 Feliciano Lopez (ESP) def. 5 Rajeev Ram (USA) 7-6(2) 6-3
8 Stephane Robert (FRA) def. D. Brown (JAM) 7-6(5) 6-3

Doubles Semifinals
R. Bopanna (IND)/A. Qureshi (PAK) def. 3 E. Butorac (USA)/R. Ram (USA) 7-6(5)

Saturday's Matches
Singles Semifinals
1 Gael Monfils (FRA) vs. 3 Feliciano Lopez (ESP)
2 David Ferrer (ESP) vs. 8 Stephane Robert (FRA)

Doubles Semifinals
S. Darcis (BEL)/X. Malisse (BEL) vs. K. Beck (SVK)/H. Levy (ISR)

Saturday’s Order of Play

(Image: AP)

Gael Monfils and David Ferrer advanced easily. Monfils steamrolled Dominik Hrbarty 6-2 6-1. Ferrer did not have it quite as easily but triumphed nonetheless in straight sets over Slovakian Karol Beck 6-1 7-5.

Third-seed Feliciano Lopez had a difficult time with Benjamin Balleret, a qualifier from Monaco. After three sets, the Spaniard eventually prevailed 6-1 6-7(5) 6-3. Lopez acknowledged in his press conference after the match that the heat and altitude bothered him during his match. Hopefully, he will get used to the conditions in time for his second-round match.

Now, the three move on to the next round. Monfils will play his good friend Josselin Ouanna. Ferrer will meet a Swedish qualifier Filip Prpic. Lopez draws another qualifier Blaz Kavcic.

Tuesday's Results
Singles First Round
1 Gael Monfils (FRA) def. Dominik Hrbaty (SVK) 6-2 6-1
2 David Ferrer (ESP) def. Karol Beck (SVK) 6-1 7-5
3 Feliciano Lopez (ESP) def. Q Benjamin Balleret (MON) 6-1 6-7(5) 6-3
Dustin Brown (JAM) def. 4 Marco Chiudinelli (SUI) 6-4 3-6 6-4
Somdev Devvarman (IND) def. 6 Xavier Malisse (BEL) 6-4 6-2
7 Yen-Hsun Lu (TPE) def. Jarkko Nieminen (FIN) 6-3 6-2
Thiago Alves (BRA) def. Oleksandr Dolgopolov Jr. (UKR) 5-7 6-2 6-3
Josselin Ouanna (FRA) def. Harel Levy (ISR) 7-6(4) 6-2
WC Izak Van Der Merwe (RSA) def. Q Noam Okun (ISR) 7-6(5) 7-6(2)
WC Raven Klaasen (RSA) def. David Guez (FRA) 6-4 6-3
Bjorn Phau (GER) def. Q Fritz Wolmarans (RSA) 6-4 7-5
Q Filip Prpic (SWE) def. Ivan Navarro (ESP) 6-3 7-5

Doubles First Round
2 J. Brunstrom (SWE)/J. Rojer (AHO) def. R. de Voest (RSA)/Y. Lu (TPE) 6-3 6-4 3
E. Butorac (USA)/R. Ram (USA) def. P. Marx (GER)/I. Zelenay (SVK) 7-6(6) 6-3
P. Amritraj (IND)/J. Cerretani (USA) def. WC R. Roselofse (RSA)/N. Scholtz (RSA) 6-4 6-1

Wednesday’s Order of Play

(Image: AFP)

Novak Djokovic looked like he would cruise to the title this afternoon. It appeared that he had resumed his form from yesterday. The Serb jumped out to a 6-2 3-0 lead.

His opponent, Gael Monfils came out flat in the first set but then was able to keep more balls in play a third of the way through the second set. This change caused Djokovic to make more errors. Monfils then went on a run by holding twice and breaking back to even the set at 3-3. They battled back and forth on serve until the Monfils broke again in game eleven and served for the set. The hometown crowd went wild after the Frenchman went from being on the ropes to leveling the match in eight games.

After Djokovic struck first in the third set, the visibly winded Frenchman ran out of steam but hung in there. Serving at 4-2, Djokovic had a very sloppy game that allowed Monfils to break back. The Frenchman leveled the set to 4-4 and eventually pushed the match to a deciding tiebreak. In the tiebreak, Djokovic won a point on Monfil’s serve for 4-2. It was lights out from there and victory at 6-2 5-7 7-6(3).

Djokovic won his first Masters title of the year and fifth of his career. Paris is his fifth title of the year and 16th title of his career. The Serb finished out the year strong with wins in Beijing, Basel and Paris and looks like the player to beat in London next week.


Championship Sunday
Singles Final
3 Novak Djokovic (SRB) def. 15 Gael Monfils (FRA) 6-2 5-7 7-6(3)

Doubles Final
1 D. Nestor (CAN)/N. Zimonjic (SRB) def. M. Granollers (ESP)/ T. Robredo (ESP) 6-3 6-4

(Images: Clive Rose/Getty Images)

Novak Djokovic played exceptionally well today and had no trouble with Rafael Nadal. He upset the second seed 6-2 6-3 after 76 minutes of play. Djokovic is back to his form before he changed racquets last year.

The Serb played to perfection today. He simply hit, served and volleyed better than his opponent. Nadal had no answers today and seemed shocked. At one point in the match, Djokovic won seven games in a row after he broke Nadal in game six of the first set.

Nadal has had knee issues and now struggles to get back to top form. Earlier in the week, Nadal got into trouble in the second and third rounds but was able to get out of it. You were able to see where he stacks up against the other top-tier players. He still has to get back to feeling comfortable with his shots, in particular playing the lines. Hopefully, he will be able to get his feel back in the off-season.

Djokovic will play Gael Monfils. In the other semifinal, Monfils beat Radek Stepanek 6-4 5-7 6-4. Monfils can flake out at times, but he managed to close it out against the Czech. The Frenchman served for the match game 10 of the second set, but Stepanek broke back to level the match and take the second set. It looked like the Frenchman might let the match get away from him. To the contrary, Monfils was able to be patient and attack Stepanek at the opportune moments.

The French went wild when Monfils converted on match point. Though the defending champion Jo-Wilfried Tsonga lost yesterday, Monfils will try to keep the title in France with a win tomorrow.

Whoever wins the title will be a first-time Masters champion this year. Federer, Nadal and Murray have had a monopoly on Masters titles this year. Nikolay Davydenko broke up their cartel first in Shanghai. Tomorrow’s winner will be the second person to breakthrough. Should he win tomorrow, Monfils will win his first Masters title of his career.

Djokovic leads their matchup 3-0. Plus, he is in top form. Monfils has a few tricks of his own and will have the crowd behind him. It should be another good match tomorrow.

Saturday’s Results
Singles Semifinals
3 Novak Djokovic (SRB) def. 2 Rafael Nadal (ESP) 6-2 6-3
15 Gael Monfils (FRA) def. 13 Radek Stepanek (CZE) 6-4 5-7 6-4

Doubles Semifinals
1 D. Nestor (CAN)/N. Zimonjic (SRB) def. 8 F. Cermak (CZE)/M. Mertinak (SVK) 6-7(2) 6-4 10-2
M. Granollers (ESP)/ T. Robredo (ESP) def. 7 M. Fyrstenberg (POL)/M. Matkowski (POL) 6-4 6-2

Championship Sunday
Singles Final
3 Novak Djokovic (SRB) vs. 15 Gael Monfils (FRA)

Doubles Final
1 D. Nestor (CAN)/N. Zimonjic (SRB) vs. M. Granollers (ESP)/ T. Robredo (ESP)

Sunday’s Order of Play

Watch Live
Tennis Channel – 9:00 AM

(Images: AP)

Rafael Nadal looked a lot better today after living dangerously earlier this week. He put in a pretty solid performance against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and surpassed the defending champion 7-5 7-5 in under two hours of play. Nadal’s win not only allowed him advance into the semifinals, but it also assisted his compatriot Fernando Verdasco in qualifying for the year-end tournament while dashing Tsonga’s hopes at the same time.

Nadal advances to play a familiar foe, Novak Djokovic, who surpassed the troublesome Robin Soderling 6-4 1-6 6-3. These two players have not played each other since Cinicinnati in August where Djokovic came out on top. Nadal leads their head-to-head overall 14-5.

Djokovic has played the better in the last couple of weeks, while it looks like Nadal maybe coming into a late surge. It is hard to tell who might be tops tomorrow, but it will be a heck of a match to watch.

Gael Monfils and Radek Stepanek will play in the second semifinal matchup tomorrow. Stepanek benefited from Juan Martin del Potro’s retirement over an abdominal strain. Ay, Dios mio! Monfils overcame a one set deficit to upset Marin Cilic 3-6 6-4 6-4. La Monf leads his head-to-head with Stepanek 2-1.

Friday’s Results
Singles Quarterfinals
2 Rafael Nadal (ESP) def. 8 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA) 7-5 7-5
3 Novak Djokovic (SRB) def. 9 Robin Soderling (SWE) 6-4 1-6 6-3
13 Radek Stepanek (CZE) def. 5 Juan Martin del Potro (ARG) 4-0 ret. (abdominal strain)
15 Gael Monfils (FRA) def. 12 Marin Cilic (CRO) 3-6 6-4 6-4

Doubles Quarterfinals
1 D. Nestor (CAN)/N. Zimonjic (SRB) def. C. Kas (GER)/P. Kohlschreiber (GER) 6-3 7-6(3)
7 M. Fyrstenberg (POL)/M. Matkowski (POL) def. 2 B. Bryan (USA)/M. Bryan (USA) 6-4 7-6(7)
M. Granollers (ESP)/ T. Robredo (ESP) def. S. Aspelin (SWE)/P. Hanley (AUS) 6-3 6-7(3) 10-7

Saturday’s Matches
Singles Semifinals
2 Rafael Nadal (ESP) vs. 3 Novak Djokovic (SRB) – 8 AM ET
13 Radek Stepanek (CZE) vs. 15 Gael Monfils (FRA)

Doubles Semifinals
1 D. Nestor (CAN)/N. Zimonjic (SRB) vs. 8 F. Cermak (CZE)/M. Mertinak (SVK)
7 M. Fyrstenberg (POL)/M. Matkowski (POL) vs. M. Granollers (ESP)/ T. Robredo (ESP)

Saturday’s Order of Play

Watch Live
Tennis Channel - 8:00 AM – 1:00 PM

(Images: AP)

City: Metz, France
Surface: Indoor Hard
Championship Points: 250
2008 Singles Champion: Dmitry Tursunov
2008 Doubles Champions: Arnaud Clement and Michael Llodra

Defending champion, Dmitry Tursunov will not defend his title this year, as he is out because of ankle surgery. Gael Monfils tops the seeds and is the hometown and crowd favorite. Mostly French and German players join him this week.

Philip Kohlschreiber, Paul-Henri Mathieu, Philipp Petzschner, Fabrice Santoro, Benjamin Becker, Andreas Beck and Ivan Ljubicic round out the other seeds. Richard Gasquet will also be on hand to try to return to form. Fabrice Santoro puts in his last appearance at the tournament since he will retire at the end of the year. On the doubles side, Arnaud Clement and Michael Llodra are back together and will defend their title for the second-straight time.

As stated before, it is harder to tell the clear favorites, as injuries and burnout become the tale of the season. This should be an exciting tournament, as there are plenty of quality players duking it out this week.

Tournament Draw
Singles / Doubles

Monday’s Order of Play

(Image: Open de Moselle)

Rafael Nadal and Gael Monfils have to be two of the most entertaining and athletic players on tour. It was a lot of big hitting, long rallies and ridiculous gets. As billed, this match did not disappoint, at least for two sets.

Monfils came out hitting big and running down everything. The Frenchman was getting into long rallies with Nadal and winning them. His defense-to-offense was amazing. The question of the evening would be if the Frenchman could sustain that kind of play for three to five sets.

On the other side of the net, Nadal looked tentative and made a lot of forehand errors. The Spaniard started coming into the net. It looked like he was trying to shorten points because of his physical condition since there were lots of questions about it before the match.

Early in the first set, Monfils struck first by breaking Nadal during his second service game, and he quickly jumped out to a 4-1 lead. Things looked bleak for the Spaniard until he changed rackets in game eight and started finding his range with his shots. Nadal broke back in the ninth game and then held serve to level the set at 5-5. In the tiebreak, Nadal made two costly errors, and Monfils came up with some really big shots. This allowed the Frenchman to win the tiebreak and the set.

All was even in the second set. In game five, the Frenchman has a bad game, and you know who took advantage. Next game, it was Nadal’s turn for a sloppy game, and Monfils accepted the charity. After a set and a half of pounding it out with the Majorcan, Monfils was tired and was keeling over at the end of points. On cue, Nadal broke back and served for the set at 5-3. Nadal held to win the set. Most importantly, Nadal already wore Monfils down.

Nadal drew blood first in the third set and was off to the races. The Spaniard was back to wearing his opponent down, and then steamrolling his way over him for the victory. The former no. 1 eventually chopped down Monfils 6-7(3) 6-3 6-1 6-3 to advance into the quarterfinals and sent home the lone Frenchman in the draw.

This was the first match since his return where Nadal started to look like his own self and seemed more confident. He was back to his deep, penetrating shots and pushing his opponent around. Hopefully, he can continue to play his way into the tournament.

In the short-term, he will have to contend with Fernando Gonzalez and his big forehand in the quarterfinals. The Chilean played really well in his fourth-round match with Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. Nadal leads their matchup 6-3. It will be another challenge for him, but he will definitely win if he is up to it. With his win and Murray’s loss yesterday, the Spaniard is now back in the number two slot.

At the end of his match, a fan ran onto the court and tried to kiss him. The fan would later be arrested for interfering with a sporting event. Nadal was a sport about it. When asked about the incident in his press conference:

Rafa: For me, it wasn’t a problem. The guy was really nice.
Question: Did he say anything?
Rafa: Yes, he was a great fan. He said, “I love you,” and he kissed me.
Question: Was he speaking in Spanish or English?
Rafa: No, in English but I understand that.

(Image: Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)

Musketeer extraordinaire, Gael Monfils during his tricolor match with Jeremy Chardy.

A look at Monfils, Tsonga, Simon & Ouanna's bond on and off the court. They, as a group, put in a respectable showing at Flushing Meadows after having a rough last couple of months. Two of the four are now into the second week (NYT)

An examination of Safin’s career that was plagued by questions of what if (SI)

The top ten dominate, but really the top three REALLY dominate (WSJ)

The always smart and thoughtful, Mats Wilander likes Juan Martin del Potro (Busted Racquet)

His run for the USO title my be difficult and hampered, but Nadal is winning the shirtless poll hands down (PopSugar)

A crazy story about Canada’s Peter Polansky's freak accident and recovery (NYT)

What a difference 18 months makes for Serbian players (New York Observer)

Rafa-mania at the USO (Straight Sets)

(Image: Denise/tennisfiend)

City: New York, NY USA
Surface: Outdoor Hard
Championship Points: 2000
2008 Singles Champion: Roger Federer
2008 Doubles: Mike Bryan and Bob Bryan

This is the final grand slam of the year, and Roger Federer will go for his sixth-consecutive US Open title. Between Rafael Nadal’s rehabilitation and everyone else just flaking out, this is the first tournament in two years where I am pretty certain Roger Federer will win. Federer is the most consistent player on tour at the moment. He has also won 16 grand slam titles, so he knows he has that advantage over the others in the slams, with the exception of a top-form Nadal.

Once again, Federer has an easy quarter where he could possibly take meet Robin Soderling or Nikolay Davydenko in the quarterfinals. Davydenko had problems this week in New Haven with his wrists, so he should not really be a threat. Soderling is capable of being dangerous, but it looks like he does not know it yet.

Federer’s possible semifinal matchup could be with Novak Djokovic or Andy Roddick. We know Djokovic is still flakey, and Roddick just cannot beat the Swiss champion for a host of reasons. This quarter of the draw is also chalked full of people. Tommy Haas and Fernando Verdasco should be in the mix. Anyone of the fore-mentioned players could end up in the semifinals, so this is the hardest part of the draw.

Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray anchor the second half of the draw. Nadal has a good quarter for his predicament since he is still trying to find his original form. His first-round match is with Richard Gasquet, who is probably rustier than Nadal is, so that is a good scenario for him. In the round of 16, the Spaniard could possibly have to contend with Gael Monfils. The Musketeer has been tame this year, but he could start feeling it at any time.

The top half of his quarter is littered with Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Tomas Berdych and Fernando Gonzalez. These four players are going to have to duke it out for the chance to possibly play Nadal in the quarterfinals. Nadal’s trouble begins here because he has to meet one of them. The old Nadal would have no problem, but the more vulnerable Nadal could have trouble with anyone of these four.

Murray’s quarter is kind of precarious. This first part of it will be very manageable, but his possible quarterfinal meeting with Juan Martin del Potro could be a giant headache for him. Whoever is left standing will have to possibly deal with Nadal -- who could find his form at anytime -- and then head to the final. For this reason, it is probably better for Nadal that he is seated third rather than second.

At the end of the day, the tournament is really Federer’s to lose. Nadal is still nowhere near where he needs to be to be a real threat. The Spaniard probably will not be better until next season to be realistic. When he was playing in Cincinnati, the announcers pointed out that he was still gingerly moving on his forehand side.

As for Murray, he should win this tournament, but he is going to have to stop flaking out in the slams. He wins everything else, so it is time. If we are going to have to be subject to Brad Gilbert, Darren Cahill and Robbie Koening go on-and-on about him, the Scotsman better get it done this year. I still think he should have won Wimbledon this year, but he pulled a flakey-jake routine.

It would be nice if Verdasco found his Australian Open form. It would also be nice to see Andy Roddick solve his Federer riddle. It would be really nice to be pleasantly surprised about Nadal’s form. It would be really, really nice if Juan Martin del Potro took the whole enchilada. I guess a girl can dream. Let’s hope this fortnight is exciting and chalked full of surprises.

Tournament Draw
Singles / Doubles

Tournament Evils (formerly Tournament Malfeasance)
3 Rafael Nadal (ESP) vs. Richard Gasquet (FRA)
4 Novak Djokovic (SRB) vs. Ivan Ljubicic (CRO)
13 Gael Monfils (FRA) vs. Jeremy Chardy (FRA)
26 Paul-Henri Mathieu (FRA) vs. Mikhail Youzhny (RUS)
Fabio Fognini (ITA) vs. Jarkko Nieminen (FIN)
Michael Llodra (FRA) vs. Nicolas Kiefer (GER)

(Image: Rob Loud/usopen.org)

Fourth-seed Gael Monfils and seventh-seed Marat Safin have both pulled out of the tournament. Monfils suffered a wrist injury – possibly from all the diving from his previous match. With the Frenchman’s pullout, Steve Darcis received a walkover into the quarterfinals. Safin pulled out due to a back injury and was replaced by lucky loser Rik De Voest of South African.

French qualifier Nicolas Mahut took out fifth-seed Marin Cilic. Juan Carlos Ferrero posted win #401 and took out eleventh-seed Paul-Henri Mathieu 6-4 6-4. Ferrero will play the Belgian qualifier Xavier Malisse in a battle of the veterans. The two have surprisingly have never met in an ATP match.

On the doubles side, second-seeds Mike and Bob Bryan were taken out by British wildcards Colin Flemings and Ken Skupski (pictured). Wesley Moodie and Mikhail Youzhny took out the third-seeds Bruno Soares and Kevin Ullyett. The Croatian duo over Ivo Karlovic and Lovro Zovko upset Brazilians Marcelo Melo and Andre Sa.

Andy Murray, Gilles Simon and Ivo Karlovic restored order on the singles side by getting through their second-round matched. Simon was able to get passed wildcard and Bulgarian phenom Grigor Dimitrov 7-6(7) 7-6(5). He will now face Mikhail Youzhny, who got passed Marcos Baghdatis in the round of 16. Youzhny leads their head-to-head matchup 2-0 and beat the Frenchman at Wimbledon in 2007.

(Image: EFE, Aegon Championships)

Gael Monfils upset Andy Roddick 6-4 6-2 6-3 in just under two hours of play. The Frenchman now advances into the quarterfinlas to play Roger Federer, who went down to the wire with a resurgent Tommy Haas in five sets. Federer leads their head-to-head matchup 4-0.

Let’s hope La Monf get inspired by the home crowd on Wednesday.

(Image: FFT)

Jeremy Chardy celebrates his victory over Simone Bolelli. He bested the Italian 6-2 6-3 4-6 4-6 6-1. The Frenchman advances with compatriots Gael Monfils and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga into the next round, where he will play Tommy Haas.

(Image: FFT)

Rafael Nadal is not the only person with a new Nike kit. Juan Martin del Potro and Gael Monfils also get new Nike kits.

(Images: FFT)

Today was a cooler day than other two days. Play was suspended for two hours due to a rain delay. Most of the matches were completed, but the Clement/Tursunov and Santoro/Rochus matches were not completed due to lack of light and will finish tomorrow. The winners of both of these matches will play each other, so there will be no rest advantage.

Novak Djokovic, Juan Martin del Potro and Tommy Robredo advanced in straight-forward fashion. Djokovic only played two sets after Nicolas Lapentti had to pull out after spraining his left ankle. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga advanced but dropped a set in a tricolor battle with compatriot Julien Benneteau.

James Blake was the only top-seeded casualty of the day. This was no surprise since he has been struggling, in general, of late. He is also part of the latest incarnation of no-clay-playing Americans. The deadly combination resulted in a first-round boot out of Roland Garros this year.

The surprise of the day was Juan Carlos Ferrero’s win over Ivan Ljubicic. Ljubicic had been playing well over the last couple of weeks, and Ferrero has been struggling for years with injury and lack of play. The former French Open champ and current world no. 103 upset Ljubicic 2-6 6-4 6-4 3-6 6-3 after three hours and 17 minutes of play.

Ferrero will meet German Philipp Kohlschreiber in the second round. Kohlschreiber leads their head-to-head matchup 2-1. His wins come courtesy of the hardcourts of Auckland for the last two-consecutive years. Ferrero’s victory came at Roland Garros three years ago.

(Images: FFT)

Andy Murray teams up with David Beckham for an anti-malaria campaign (Sky News)
Wimbledon gets lights and a roof (Herald Sun)
Gael Monfils could miss the French Open with a knee injury (The Guardian)
Other than Daniel Nestor, Canada had a bad tennis week (Open Court)
The India-Australia match will be held in Chennai (Tennis)
An excerpt from Monica Seles's autobiography (Times Online)

Les Mousquestaires is a docu-series that follows Gilles Simon, Richard Gasquet Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Gael Monfils around on tour. This episode follows the foursome from their Davis Cup tie against the Czech Republic to the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami. Luckily, it ends before the apocalypse of Monte-Carlo.

To warn you, it is in French, but I am sure you will get the gist of it even if you do not speak French. More than anything, it is pretty funny.

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4