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

Rafael Nadal was going for his 13th Masters title, and Andy Murray was in his way. It looked like Murray would give the Spaniard some trouble since he had beaten Nadal in their last two meetings. Murray appeared to have uncovered Nadal’s number.

It did not help matters that the Spaniard struggled with his serve and unforced errors in his last three matches and almost lost to David Nalbandian in the round of 16. If you were betting on the upset, it would not have been a bad move. Luckily, Nadal saved the best for last.

It was a windy afternoon in Indian Wells. Not letting the conditions bother him, Nadal was all business.

The beginning of the match was a real slugfest with long rallies between the two players. With Nadal, long rallies equals the opponent running around the court. Murray was visibly out of breath by game 4 in the first set, which lead to a Nadal break. After being broken, Murray was talking to himself and arguing with the umpire. The Spaniard then coasted to take the first set 6-1.

The second set was a repeat of the first. This time the old Murray was back with the Scotsman slouching his shoulders and verbally abusing himself. At 15-15 in game 5, Murray dropped the F-bomb after a missed shot. Incidentally, Nadal broke Murray in the same game. Murray did not put up much of a fight after the break, and the Spaniard went on to win the set 6-2 and the match.

This is the 22 year old’s 13th Masters title and his 33 ATP career title. This was also a dominant win for Nadal, so I guess everyone is on notice for Miami.

Singles Championship
1 Rafael Nadal def. 4 Andy Murray 6-1 6-2

(image: Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)

Singles Semifinals
1 Rafael Nadal (ESP) def. 7 Andy Roddick (USA) 6-4 7-6(4)
4 Andy Murray (GBR) def. 2 Roger Federer (SUI) 6-3 4-6 6-1

Doubles Final
M. Fish (USA)/A. Roddick (USA) def. M. Mirnyi (BLR)/A. Ram (ISR) 3-6 6-1 14-12

Rafael Nadal defeated Andy Roddick in the second semifinal of the day 6-4 7-6(4). This was a highly anticipated matchup since Roddick is playing well this year. In the end, Nadal prevailed, but it was a respectable loss for Andy since he remained competitive with Nadal.

Nadal struggled in the first game of the match but was able to hold onto his serve. He then began to hold easily during the next couple of service games. Roddick served well throughout, and all was even until the seventh game. Roddick started to serve and volley, and Nadal responded by playing target practice around the American for the break. In turn, Roddick then jumped ahead to 0-30 during Nadal’s next service game, but Nadal started flattening his shots and pushing Roddick around the court to hold serve. The Spaniard cruised to win the first set.

It looked like Roddick had shaken off the first set loss, but Nadal struck Roddick for the break in the third game of the second set. Roddick returned the break to level the set to 3-3 after Nadal had four unforced errors in his service game. After a long game and a series of long rallies, Nadal broke Roddick again in the seventh game.

Nadal began to wear down Roddick, and it looked like the match was over. While Nadal was serving for the set, Roddick broke back to level the set at 5-5 and then held serve. The Spaniard tightened up his service game to take the set to a tiebreak.

In the tiebreak, Nadal went back to business by stopping the errors and tightening up his serve. He jumped ahead to 5-2. Roddick held onto his two service points to bring the tiebreak to 5-4, but Nadal responded by holding onto his service points to take the set and the match.

All is not lost for Roddick. He will play in the doubles final with partner Mardy Fish against Max Mirnyi and Andy Ram. As for Nadal, he will play Andy Murray in the final and have a rematch of the Rotterdam final. The Spaniard currently leads their head-to-head 5-2, but Murray has won the last two meetings at the US Open last year and this year in the Rotterdam final.

(image: Robyn Beck/AFP/Getty Images)

Singles Quarterfinals
1 Rafael Nadal (ESP) def. 6 Juan Martin Del Potro (ARG) 6-2 6-4
7 Andy Roddick (USA) def. 3 Novak Djokovic (SRB) 6-3 6-2

Doubles Semifinals
M. Mirnyi (BLR)/A. Ram (ISR) def. 1 B. Bryan (USA)/M. Bryan (USA) 6-2 6-4
M. Fish (USA)/A. Roddick (USA) def. R. Gasquet (FRA)/S. Wawrinka (SUI) 6-4 7-6(4)

Saturday's Matches:
Singles Semifinals
1 Rafael Nadal (ESP) vs. 7 Andy Roddick (USA)
2 Roger Federer (SUI) vs. 4 Andy Murray (GBR)

Doubles Final
M. Mirnyi (BLR)/A. Ram (ISR) vs M. Fish (USA)/A. Roddick (USA)

It appears that Andy Roddick may have Novak Djokovic's number this year. Their last meeting was in the Australian Open when Djokovic retired after trailing Roddick in the quarterfinals. In their rematch today, Roddick emerged victorious again by beating the Serb decisively in straight sets 6-3 6-2.

Roddick had an overall solid match. He served well with a first serve percentage of 81%. On the other side of the ball, he broke the Serb four times in the match.

Unforced errors killed Djokovic. The Serb could not find the inside of the court if he tried. He looked lethargic, lacked the intensity and looked like he could not wait to get off the court. Luckily, Roddick put him out of his misery after 68 minutes of play. This was Roddick's first of two wins today because he also won the doubles semifinal with Mardy Fish against Richard Gasquet and Stanislas Wawrinka.

In the other quarterfinal, Juan Martin Del Potro came out hitting big in the first couple of games and looked like he was going to go toe-to-toe with Rafael Nadal. The Argentinian young gun was then broken by Nadal in game three of the first set. After securing the break, Nadal was off to the races and sent Del Potro packing in straight sets 6-2 6-4.

Roddick and Nadal will now meet in the singles semifinal on Saturday. Nadal currently leads their head-to-head 4-2.

(images: AP)

Singles Quarterfinals
2 Roger Federer (SUI) def. 10 Fernando Verdasco (ESP) 6-3 7-6(5)
4 Andy Murray (GBR) def. Ivan Ljubicic (CRO) 7-5 7-6(6)

Doubles Quarterfinals
1 B. Bryan (USA)/M. Bryan (USA) vs 5 M. Fyrstenberg (POL)/M. Matkowski (POL) 6-2 7-6(10
M. Fish (USA)/A. Roddick (USA) def. J. Del Potro (ARG)/D Nalbandian (ARG) 6-1 6-1
M. Mirnyi (BLR)/A. Ram (ISR) def. R. Hutchins (GBR)/A. Murray (GBR) 6-4 7-6(4)

Roger Federer finally got a chance to play the new and improved Fernando Verdasco. Aside from the Nadal-Nalbandian matchup, I really wanted to see how Verdasco matched up against Federer and see if he was ready to get into the mix with the top four on a regular basis.

Federer prevailed in this matchup and took no time dismantling the Spaniard in a straight set victory 6-3 7-6(5) in 92 minutes of play. Verdasco played a very good match but did not play at a high level the entire match, like players have to do against Federer. He had a couple of sloppy service games in the match, and Federer took advantage.

After being down 4-1 in the second set, Verdasco rallied to put himself back into the match. He broke Federer during the seventh game of the second set and then held serve to level the set at 4-4. Verdasco broke Federer in game eleven to serve for the second set, but Federer took back the break to send the set into a tiebreak.
Verdasco then fell apart in the tiebreak. He made a mini run, but Federer eventually shut the door on the tiebreak and the match.

Though this match was not like his Australian Open performance, it was a respectable performance for Verdasco. Hopefully, he will continue improve with his new team around him and start giving the top four some trouble.

Federer will meet Andy Murray in the semifinal. Murray currently leads their head-to-head matchup 5-2. That match should be a real shootout on Saturday.

(images: AP)

Due to a series of autopranks, I missed the Nadal-Nalbandian match last night. When I awoke this morning, I discovered that the match was another Nadal classic. Aargh!

Apparently, Nadal fought off five match points and rallied to win the match:

Five times David Nalbandian held match point against the man he had beaten soundly in their two previous meetings and it was not until 2am, with a crowd of some 2,000 still in attendance, that Nadal was able to turn it around and pull off an amazing victory 3–6, 7–6, 6–0.

Four of the match points for the Argentinian had come at 3–5 on Nadal's serve and one a game later when Nalbandian, suddenly looking nervous, opened with a double fault as he served for the match. Only one of the match points was surrendered with an unforced error – the remainder were snatched from Nalbandian with the kind of rip-roaring, defiant winners that have become the Spaniard's trademark.

Here are some highlights in Spanish just in case you missed the match like me:

Singles Round of 16
1 Rafael Nadal (ESP) def. 14 David Nalbandian (ARG) 3-6 7-6(5) 6-0
2 Roger Federer (SUI) def. 17 Fernando Gonzalez (CHI) 6-3 5-7 6-2
3 Novak Djokovic (SRB) def. 16 Stanislas Wawrinka (SUI) 7-6(7) 7-6(6)
4 Andy Murray (GBR) def. 15 Tommy Robredo (ESP) 6-2 3-0 Ret’d
6 Juan Martin Del Potro (ARG) def. WC John Isner (USA)
7 Andy Roddick (USA) def. 12 David Ferrer (ESP) 7-6(5) 3-6 6-3
10 Fernando Verdasco (ESP) def. Philipp Kohlschreiber (GER) 6-4 3-6 6-1
Ivan Ljubicic (CRO) def. [22] Igor Andreev (RUS) 4-6 7-6(5) 7-6(4)

Fernando Verdasco played Philipp Kohlschreiber in the round of 16 today. After the Spaniard won the first set 6-4 and his first-service game in the second set, he appeared to have the match on cruise control until the German rallied to win five games in a row. Verdasco battled back a bit but lost the second set 6-3. In the third set, Verdasco returned to his first-set form and tightened up his game to take the third set 6-1 for the win.

The Spaniard did not play particularly well but did enough to move on. He will play Roger Federer, who beat Fernando Gonzalez today in three sets, in the quarterfinals. Federer leads their matchup 2-0. If Verdasco is going to win tomorrow, he is going to have to step up his game.


(image: AP)

Singles Third Round
1 Rafael Nadal (ESP) def. 26 Dmitry Tursunov (RUS) 6-3 6-3 3
Novak Djokovic (SRB) def. Tommy Haas (GER) 6-2 7-6(1) 6
Juan Martin Del Potro (ARG) def. 30 Juergen Melzer (AUT) 6-2 2-6 7-6(2)
7 Andy Roddick (USA) def. 31 Nicolas Kiefer (GER) 6-4 7-6(4)
12 David Ferrer (ESP) def. Jeremy Chardy (FRA) 3-6 6-4 6-4
16 Stanilas Wawrinka (SUI) def. Sam Querrey (USA) 2-6 7-5 7-6(8)
WC John Isner (USA) def. 24 Marat Safin (RUS) 6-4 6-4 14
David Nalbandian (ARG) def. Viktor Troicki (SRB) 6-4 6-2

Doubles Second Round
1 B. Bryan (USA)/M. Bryan (USA) def. WC M. Lopez (ESP)/R. Nadal (ESP) 6-4 6-3
R. Hutchins (GBR)/A. Murray (GBR) def. 8 M. Melo (BRA)/A. Sa (BRA) 6-1 6-3

Rafael Nadal emerged victorious in his match against Dmitry Tursunov today. The Spaniard bested the Russian 6-3 6-3. Nadal's train rolls on into the round of 16 after 78 minutes of play. On the bright side for Tursunov, he did keep the Spaniard on the court for over 70 minutes, which is quite a feat when playing Nadal of late.

It was an impressive and convincing win for the Spaniard, who will play David Nalbandian in the next round. Nalbandian beat Victor Troicki 6-4 6-2 today. Currently, Nalbandian leads Nadal 2-0 in their head-to-head matchup. Both victories came on hardcourts in 2007 at Masters events in Paris and Madrid. Since Nadal has improved dramatically on hard surfaces, this matchup should be an exciting one.
(image: AP)

Singles Third Round
2 Roger Federer (SUI) def. 27 Ivo Karlovic (CRO) 7-6(4) 6-3
4 Andy Murray (GBR) def. 32 Paul-Henri Mathieu (FRA) 6-3 6-2
Ivan Ljubicic (CRO) def. 8 Gilles Simon (FRA) 6-3 7-6(3)
10 Fernando Verdasco (ESP) def. 23 Richard Gasquet (FRA) 6-3 6-2
22 Igor Andreev (RUS) vs 11 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA) 7-5 6-4
17 Fernando Gonzalez (CHI) def. 13 James Blake (USA) 7-5 6-1
[15] T Robredo (ESP) vs [19] M Cilic (CRO) 7-5 6-1
Philipp Kohlschreiber (GER) def. Nicolas Lapentti (ECU) 6-2 3-6 6-3

Doubles First Round
8 M. Melo (BRA)/A. Sa (BRA) def. Alt P. Mathieu (FRA)/M. Safin (RUS) 6-7(4) 6-2 10-8

Doubles Second Round
M Mirnyi (BLR) / A Ram (ISR) def. [3] M Bhupathi (IND) / M Knowles (BAH) 7-6(2) 6-4
J .Del Potro (ARG)/D. Nalbandian (ARG) def. 4 L. Dlouhy (CZE) / L Paes (IND) 7-6(6) 7-6(5)
5 M. Fyrstenberg (POL)/M. Matkowski (POL) def. D Ferrer (ESP) / A Montanes (ESP) 4-6 7-6(6) 10-4
R. Gasquet (FRA)/S. Wawrinka (SUI) def. L. Kubot (POL)/O. Marach (AUT) 7-5 3-6 10-6
M Fish (USA) / A Roddick (USA) def. M Llodra (FRA) / R Stepanek (CZE) 6-4 7-6(6)

The last musketeer left standing, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga was upset by Russian Igor Andreev last night 7-5 6-4. Andreev will play Ivan Ljubicic in the round of 16 where Ljubicic leads their match-up 3-1.

The Croat won their last meeting in Monaco in 2006, but a lot has changed since then. That year Ljubicic had his best year and was ranked world number three. Since then, Ljubicic has slid in the rankings to 74, and Andreev finished 2008 with his highest ranking at 19.




(image: AP)

Fernando Gonzalez decisively beat James Blake 7-5 6-1 in 65 minutes of play. The Chilean will advance to play Roger Federer in the next round.

Fernando Verdasco, in all his super-fauxhawk glory, beat Richard Gasquet handily 6-3 6-2. The Spaniard will play Philipp Kohlschreiber in the next round. Kohlschreiber currently leads their head-to-head 3-1. Their last meeting was in Austria in 2008 where Kohlschreiber won in straight sets. Verdasco is now a different player, so I am sure the German's advantage will begin to fade.

The day was not a total loss for Gasquet. He did win in doubles with Swiss partner Stanislas Wawrinka. The duo will play Fernando Gonzalez and Tommy Robredo in the quarterfinals.

Former world no. 3, Ivan Ljubicic upset Gilles Simon 6-3 7-6(3). The current world no. 74 has struggled of late, and this win puts an end to three-consecutive, first-round losses. Ljubicic awaits the winner of the Tsonga-Andreev match.

Tommy Robredo beat Marin Cilic 7-5 7-6(2). The Spaniard ousted the Croat, who has won two ATP titles already this year. Robredo has been on a hot streak of late by winning two South American titles last month. Now on hardcourts, he advances to play Andy Murray into the round of 16. Robredo currently leads their head-to-head 2-0.

(images l-r, l-r: AP, Jeff Gross/Getty Images, Jeff Gross/Getty Images, AP)

Singles Second Round
1 Rafael Nadal (ESP) def. Q Michael Berrer (GER) 6-2 6-1
3 Novak Djokovic (SRB) def. Martin Vassallo Arguello (ARG) 7-5 6-4
6 Juan Martin Del Potro (ARG) def. WC Ryan Sweeting (USA) 6-7(6) 6-3 6-1
7 Andy Roddick (USA) def. Q Daniel Koellerer (AUT) 6-1 7-6(3)
WC John Isner (USA) def. 9 Gael Monfils (FRA) 6-7(5) 6-1 6-4
12 David Ferrer (ESP) def. Q Todd Widom (USA) 6-4 7-5
14 David Nalbandian (ARG) def. Q Robert Kendrick (USA) 6-4 6-4
16 Stanislas Wawrinka (SUI) def. Andreas Seppi (ITA) 6-1 6-3
Sam Querrey (USA) def. 18 Radek Stepanek (CZE) 6-4 6-3
Jeremy Chardy (FRA) def. 20 Mardy Fish (USA) 7-6(4) 7-6(1)
Viktor Troicki (SRB) def. 21 Tomas Berdych (CZE) 6-3 6-1
24 Marat Safin (RUS) def. Nicolas Massu (CHI) 6-3 7-6(2)
26 Dmitry Tursunov (RUS) def. Q Michael Russell (USA) 7-6(5) 4-6 6-3
Tommy Haas (GER) def. 29 Rainer Schuettler (GER) 6-7(4) 6-2 6-4
30 Juergen Melzer (AUT) def. WC Taylor Dent (USA) 7-5 6-2
31 Nicolas Kiefer (GER) def. Bobby Reynolds (USA) 6-4 6-2

Doubles First Round
1 B. Bryan (USA)/M. Bryan (USA) vs WC Y. Allegro (SUI) / R. Federer (SUI) 6-2 6-0
R. Gasquet (FRA)/S. Wawrinka (SUI) def. 2 D. Nestor (CAN)/N. Zimonjic (SRB) 7-6(7) 6-4
F. Gonzalez (CHI)/T. Robredo (ESP) def. T. Parrott (USA)/F. Polasek (SVK) 7-6(4) 7-6(6)
M Mirnyi (BLR) / A Ram (ISR) def. M Damm (CZE) / R Lindstedt (SWE) 6-3 6-7(5) 12-10

Doubles Second Round
5 M. Fyrstenberg (POL)/M. Matkowski (POL) def. F. Lopez (ESP)/F. Verdasco (ESP) 6-7(7) 6-1 10-2

In his first match after his Davis Cup showing, Rafael Nadal’s beatdown tour continued today, but this time it was on a hard court. He gave the business to German Michael Berrer by winning 6-2 6-1 in just 67 minutes of play. The Spaniard dominated the German in all areas, and even won points he should not have won. Berrer tried to come to the net, but Nadal just played target practice.

Nadal was so relentless that he wanted to win every point and every game. When the German won his second game in the first set after facing a breakpoint, Nadal was furious that he did not seize another break opportunity. That kind of focus is scary and makes one frightened for his next opponent.

That lucky person will be Dmitry Tursunov in the third round. Nadal currently leads their head-to-head 1-0 where he won their last meeting in Rotterdam in 2008. Tursunov is a much better player than Berrer, so we shall see if he gives Nadal a little more trouble.
(image: AP)

Fernando Verdasco returned to the tour after being out with an ankle injury. This was his first match since his great showing at the Australian Open earlier this year. He is back sporting a more severe fauxhawk and a new coach, Darren Cahill.

The Spaniard played this year’s Brazilian Open finalist and fellow lefty, Thomaz Bellucci. Verdasco looked good and moved well on the court. The young Brazilian stayed with Verdasco in the first set and had a big serve of his own until Verdasco broke him during the twelfth game. After losing the first set, the Brazilian lost steam. Bellucci was broken the second game of the second set and then Verdasco cruised to victory to win the match 7-5 6-1.

Verdasco will face Richard Gasquet in the third round. Gasquet currently leads their head-to-head 4-1. In their last meeting, Verdasco beat Gasquet in Canada in their 2007 meeting.

Gasquet beat fellow countryman, Michael Llodra prettily handily 6-4 6-0. Gasquet did everything well. Llodra tried to come to the net, but that did not seem to rattle Gasquet.

(images l to r: EFE, Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)