Argentina thought it would lose this weekend without their star players of Juan Martin del Potro, Juan Monaco and David Nalbandian. Nalbandian attended the Davis Cup tie as a cheerleader because of a recent leg injury.

On the first day, Argentina was able to split the singles rubbers. Argentina then activated Nalbandian for doubles with Horacio Zeballos the following day. The pairing proved to be successful, and they beat the Swedes in straight sets. Robin Soderling then came out today and defeated Leonardo Mayer 6-2 7-6(4) 7-6(5) to level the Davis Cup tie at 2-2.

The tie would be decided in the final rubber. Argentine coach Tito Vazquez activated Nalbandian again to face Andreas Vinciguerra. The Argentine veteran took the first-two sets. The Swede cleaned up his game in the third set to keep even with Nalbandian and broke in game 10 to keep hope alive.

Vinciguerra had a lot of momentum in the beginning of the fourth set. The Argentine stomped on Vinciguerra’s momentum by breaking in game three after Nalbandian came up with a couple of huge returns and went up 2-1. Nalbandian never looked back and beat the Swede 7-5 6-3 4-6 6-4 to clinch the first-round tie for Argentina.

Team Argentina will meet Russia in the quarterfinals in July. If Russia can get back Nikolay Davydenko and Argentina can get back Juan Martin del Potro and Juan Monaco, that quarterfinal could be highly entertaining.

Sunday’s Results
R4 – Robin Soderling (SWE) def. Leonardo Mayer (ARG) 6-2 7-6(4) 7-6(5)
R5 – David Nalbandian (ARG) def. Andreas Vinciguerra (SWE) 7-5 6-3 4-6 6-4

(Image: AP)

After winning the title in Johannesburg last week, Feliciano Lopez had the unfortunate task of running into second-seed Nikolay Davydenko in the first round. The world no. 6 had his way with the Spaniard and beat him 6-4 6-2 after just 75 minutes of play. The Russian moves on to play Marcos Baghdatis, who beat James Blake. The Cypriot is 2-1 over Davydenko.

Lopez’s compatriot Tommy Robredo did not have much luck either. German Florian Mayer upset the fifth-seed 6-4 3-6 6-3 in their second-round match. Mayer now awaits the winner of the Monfils-de Bakker match.

Despite losing today, Lopez and Robredo still have doubles. They draw the top-seeds Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjic tomorrow.

Wednesday’s Results
Singles Second Round
3 WC Robin Soderling (SWE) def. Q Igor Sijsling (NED) 7-6(6) 6-2
Florian Mayer (GER) def. 5 Tommy Robredo (ESP) 6-4 3-6 6-3

Singles First Round
2 Nikolay Davydenko (RUS) def. Feliciano Lopez (ESP) 6-4 6-2
4 Gael Monfils (FRA) def. Olivier Rochus (BEL) 4-6 6-1 6-2
Jurgen Melzer (AUT) def. 8 Viktor Troicki (SRB) 6-3 3-0 RET. (right arm)
Marcos Baghdatis (CYP) def. James Blake (USA) 6-4 6-2
Michael Berrer (GER) def. Arnaud Clement (FRA) 7-6(16) 4-6 6-4

Doubles Quarterfinals
J. Knowle (AUT)/R. Lindstedt (SWE) def. 3 M. Fyrstenberg (POL)/M. Matkowski (POL) 6-3 4-6 10-8

Doubles First Round
S. Aspelin (SWE)/P. Hanley (AUS) def. S. Bolelli (ITA)/A. Seppi (ITA) 6-2 6-3
M. Llodra (FRA)/A. Ram (ISR) def. J. Benneteau (FRA)/A. Clement (FRA) 6-7(0) 6-4 10-4

Thursday’s Order of Play

(Image: Getty Images)

Roger Federer took no time in taking apart Andy Murray in this straight-set snoozer. The world no. 1 triumphed over the Scotsman 6-3 6-4 7-6(13) after just 2 hours and 41 minutes of play. The win extends Federer’s grand-slam titles to 16.

Last year, Federer was inconsolable in his five-set loss to Rafael Nadal in their epic thriller. Now, Nadal is no threat with his knee issues that began last May. We now see the tennis great atop the stand with yet another trophy.

It seems that neither Murray nor Novak Djokovic -- and we can now add Nikolay Davydenko to the list -- will step up to break up the Federer monotony with the Spaniard consumed with his issues. Being peers with the Majorcan, Murray and Djokovic bring their A-game when Nadal is playing well. When Nadal is not really a threat or around, you can look forward to them being content with getting to the semifinals or playing runner-up to Federer. It is officially annoying.

In Murray’s case, he wins when it does not really matter. The Scotsman has beaten Federer, Nadal and Djokovic in Masters tournaments and has four career titles at that level. It is at the grand slams where he has yet seal the deal.

There is no reason why Murray should leave the grand slams titleless. Juan Martin del Potro was able to take care of business at the US Open last year at the tender age of 20. It is starting to look like the Scotsman is the new Andy Roddick but with more talent.

With Nadal neutralized, all the Scotsman has to do is take out Federer in the final, but that is too much to ask. You would think it would be an easier path to a grand slam title. Since Nadal’s problems began, Murray lost in the semifinals at Wimbledon to Roddick, of all people. Murray then turned around and lost to Marin Cilic in the fourth round at the US Open where he is away from the British media and the pressure.

Murray has all the physical and technical skills to win a grand slam. Everyone respects his game. The problem may lie somewhere between his ears. Luckily for the Scotsman, he is still young at 22 and can learn from these grand slam losses.

Give Federer credit. He is always consistent and always brings his A-game to the slams. His confidence is back with a vengeance with Nadal is out of the way.

On the doubles side, the Bryan brothers have successfully defended their Australian Open title. They bested second-seeds Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjic 6-3 6-7(5) 6-3 on Saturday. The win is their third Aussie title. The Bryans have now won 57 career titles. Ten of those titles come from grand slams. They earned themselves a career slam in 2006.

Sunday’s Results
Singles Championship
1 Roger Federer def. 5 Andy Murray 6-3 6-4 7-6(11)

Saturday’s Results
Doubles Championship
1 B. Bryan (USA)/M. Bryan (USA) def. 2 D. Nestor (CAN)/N. Zimonjic (SRB) 6-3 6-7(5) 6-3

Friday’s Results
Singles Semifinals
1 Roger Federer def. 10 Jo-Wilfried Tsonge 6-2 6-3 6-2

Thursday’s Results
Singles Semifinals
5 Andy Murray (GBR) def. 14 Marin Cilic (CRO) 3-6 6-4 6-4 6-2

Doubles Semifinals
1 B. Bryan (USA)/M. Bryan (USA) def. M. Kohlmann (GER)/J. Nieminen (FIN) 6-1 6-4
2 D. Nestor (CAN)/N. Zimonjic (SRB) def. I. Karlovic (CRO)/D. Vemic (SRB) 6-4 6-4

(Images: AP/Rick Rycroft, AP/Andy Wong)

Nikolay Davydenko has been the best player on tour from the since the indoor season. Since last year’s US Open until now, the Russian has won four tournaments. Added to that, the world no. 6 has not dropped a set for the first-three rounds of the tournament.

Davydenko had the unfortunate task of drawing Fernando Verdasco in the fourth round. The Spaniard does not have the consistency of the Russian, but he seems to save his best play for Australia.

The sixth seed was able to get the best of Verdasco in the first-two sets. The Spaniard had his back against the wall and came out swinging in the third set. Verdasco was then able to win the next two sets. In the final set, both players stayed on serve until the sixth game where Davydenko broke for the final time to effectively close the door on the match. He won 6-2 7-5 4-6 6-7(5) 6-3 after 3 hours and 57 minutes of play.

Now, he is faced with the monumental task of playing Roger Federer in the quarterfinals. Federer, who crushed the Aussie dreams of a Lleyton Hewitt resurgence, beat the 22-seed 6-2 6-3 6-4 after just 1 hour and 55 minutes of play. Davydenko has effectively been on the court two hours longer than the top seed. On top of that, Federer leads their head-to-head 12-2 with Davydenko winning their last-two meetings.

Monday’s Matches

Singles Round of 16

1 Roger Federer (SUI) def. 22 Lleyton Hewitt (AUS) 6-2 6-3 6-4

3 Novak Djokovic (SRB) def. Lukasz Kubot (POL) 6-1 6-2 7-5

6 Nikolay Davydenko (RUS) def. 9 Fernando Verdasco (ESP) 6-2 7-5 4-6 6-7(5) 6-3

10 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA) def. 26 Nicolas Almagro (ESP) 6-3 6-4 4-6 6-7(6) 9-7



Doubles Quarterfinals

3 L. Dlouhy (CZE)/L. Paes (IND) def. J. Isner (USA)/S, Querrey (USA) 6-3 7-5

F. Gonzalez (CHI)/I. Ljubicic (CRO) def. 11 S. Aspelin (SWE)/C. Kas (GER) 6-4 6-3

M. Kohlmann (GER)/J. Nieminen (FIN) def. Simone Bolelli (ITA)/A. Seppi (ITA) 4-6 7-6(3) 7-6(6)

Tuesday’s Order of Play

Tuesday's Matches
Singles Quarterfinals
2 Rafael Nadal (ESP) vs. 5 Andy Murray (GBR)
7 Andy Roddick (USA) vs. 14 Marin Cilic (CRO)

Doubles Third Round
5 L. Kubot (POL)/O. Marach (AUT) vs. I. Karlovic (CRO)/D. Vemic(SRB)

Doubles Quarterfinals
1 B. Bryan (USA)/M. Bryan (USA) vs. E. Butorac (USA)/R. Ram (USA)
M. Kohlmann (GER)/J. Nieminen (FIN) vs. F. Gonzalez (CHI)/I. Ljubicic

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(Image: AP Photo/Shuji Kajiyama)

City: Melbourne, Australia
Surface: Outdoor Hard
Championship Points: 2000
2009 Singles Champion: Rafael Nadal
2009 Doubles Champions: Mike Bryan and Bob Bryan

It is the first grand slam of the season. This particular tournament should be an interesting affair because there are many more players who can get passed Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal this year. Rafael Nadal defends his title this year, but any of the top six could take it.

From the end of last season until the present, Nikolay Davydenko looks like the one to beat. The Russian has won four Masters titles and 16 other titles in his career but has yet to convert at the grand slam. Some players do well all year but then come up empty-handed in the grand slams. Andy Murray fits into this category as well, but Davydenko is playing more solidly at this point in the year.

Federer and Nadal are the only two, until very recently, who can consistently win on the big stage. Federer’s dominance wanes. To his credit, the Swiss master prolonged it for two years. With Nadal, we will truly see what condition he is in. If he is in back to his dominant form, then this will greatly complicate things for the others.

With more able players, the draw is even for the first time in years. No one will waltz into the semis or the final this year. It will definitely be on from the quarterfinals onward. Whoever wins this title is going to have to a long slog ahead of him. This is bad news for whomever, but good news for us.

Tournament Draw
Singles / Doubles

Tournament Evils
16 Tommy Robredo (ESP) vs. Santiago Giraldo (COL)
20 Mikhail Youzhny (RUS) vs. Richard Gasquet (FRA)
Feliciano Lopez (ESP) vs. Pablo Cuevas (URU)
Viktor Troicki (SRB) vs. Nicolas Lapentti (ECU)

(Image: Getty Images)

At the end of last week, Nikolay Davydenko took the ATP World Tour Finals. He surpassed Juan Martin del Potro 6-3 6-4 in the final. The title is his sixth of the year and 19th of his ten-year career.

The win helped the Russian overtake Andy Roddick in the year-end rankings. Davydenko started out the year no. 6 and fell to no. 12 in July. He had a great indoor season and is now back to the no. 6 position behind del Potro.

(Image: Carl De Souza/AFP/Getty Images)

Marat Safin upset top-seed Nikolay Davydenko in his first-round matchup with the recent Shanghai champion at the Kremlin Cup. The retiring veteran has not been playing well as of late, but he is always dangerous when he is feeling it. I guess today was one of those days.

The upset marks the fifth exit of the seeded players. Only Mikhail Youzhny, Pable Cuevas and Janko Tipsaravic are left in the draw. With the upset of the top seed, the draw is now wide open on Safin’s side of the draw.

The big Russian now has a good shot at winning his first Kremlin Cup trophy. He will have to get past his second-round match with Anna Kournikova’s cousin, Evgeny Korolev first. The two players have never met in ATP or grand slam competition.

(Image: AP)

City: Moscow, Russia
Surface: Indoor Hard
Championship Points: 250
2008 Singles Champion: Igor Kunitsyn
2008 Doubles Champions: Sergiy Stakhovsky and Potito Starace

Defending champion, Igor Kunitsyn will defend his title this year. He will participate in the Moscow tournament along with top-seeds Nikolay Davydenko, Victor Hanescu, Mikhail Youzhny, Igor Andreev and Pablo Cuevas. In the 18 years of this tournament, Russians have dominated singles by winning 12 of the 18 titles awarded.

Top-seed Nikolay Davydenko will try to win this title for a fourth time coming off of his win in Shanghai. He will also try to go for his fifth title of the season, thus tying Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray as the top title holders of the year.

Marat Safin will also participate in the tournament for the final time. The veteran has never won this title and was runner up last year. I am sure he will be a sentimental favorite of the crowd. Janko Tipsarevic, Fabio Fognini, Evgeny Korolev and the retiring Fabrice Santoro round out the draw.

Tournament Draw
Singles / Doubles

Monday’s Order of Play

(Image: Kremin Cup)

Nikolay Davydenko out-hit Rafael Nadal today to upset the Spaniard 7-6(3) 6-3 after a little more than two hours of play. The Russian captured his first Masters title and fourth title of the year. Davydenko becomes the first player to win a Masters title that is not named Nadal, Federer and Murray.

In doubles, French troublemakers Julien Benneteau and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga upset Polish duo and sixth-seeds Mariusz Frystenberg and Marcin Matkowski 6-2 6-4. Les enfants problèmes had to knock off some tough teams along their way to the championship, mainly 1 Nestor/Zimonjic and 3 Bhupathi/Knowles.

This is their fourth pairing and first title together. They should stay together since it looks like the pairing is working. The French need another doubles couple since Arnaud Clement and Michael Llodra towards the end of their careers.

Championship Sunday
Singles Finals
6 Nikolay Davydenko def. 1 Rafael Nadal (ESP) 7-6(3) 6-3

Doubles Finals
J. Benneteau (FRA)/J. Tsonga (FRA) def. 6 M. Fyrstenberg (POL)/M. Matkowski (POL) 6-2 6-4

(Images: Philippe Lopez/AFP/Getty Images, Andy Wong/AP)

Nadal had no troubles dismissing Feliciano Lopez 6-1 3-0 today in Shanghai. Lopez had problems with his ankle in the first set and retired at 3-0 in the second set after just 50 minutes of play. This is the eighth retirement in the tournament this week.

Though the match was not very competitive, Nadal was able to get in some target practice. The Spaniard really started to feel it with his shots, which will be bad news for is opponent tomorrow. If this continues, he could really light it up tomorrow.

In the first semifinal of the day, somehow Novak Djokovic let Nikolay Davydenko get passed him at 4-6 6-4 7-6(1). To Davydenko’s credit, the Russian has a good all-around game and is always dangerous. The win marks his first final appearance in a Masters tournament or grand slam this year. The world no. 8 will now try for his fourth title and first Masters title of the year.

Should he win tomorrow, he would be the first player outside of the Nadal-Federer-Murray axis to win a Masters title this year. To do so, he will have his work cut out of for him tomorrow against Nadal. The Spaniard leads their head-to-head matchup 4-2.

The current world no. 2 is trying for his fourth Masters title of the year. The final will not be a shoe-in for Nadal since he is still trying to get back to top form, but he should be able to win another title if he continues to improve his shotmaking capabilities as he did today.

(Image: AP)

Feliciano Lopez knocked off sixteenth-seed David Ferrer in the second round, and today he took out ninth-seed Robin Soderling 7-6(4) 6-3. The Spaniard's semifinal appearance is his best showing in a Masters event or grand slam EVER. The current world no. 41 will play against his friend and top-seed Rafael Nadal in a lefty showdown tomorrow.

Lopez will have his work cut out for him, as Nadal has beaten him four-consecutive times. Anything is possible since Lopez did beat Nadal once in 2003. It should be a good match tomorrow.

On the other side of the draw, Novak Djokovic held off Gilles Simon 6-3 2-6 6-3 in probably the best match of the tournament -- the second best was Blake-Nadal. Nikolay Davydenko defeated Radek Stepanek 6-1 4-6 6-1. Djokovic and Davydenko will now face off in the other semifinal tomorrow. The Serb leads this matchup 2-1. It what should be another good match tomorrow.

(Image: Phillipe Lopez/AFP/Getty Images)

Sam Querrey is enjoying a good summer and great week. With yesterday’s win, he won the US Open Series and could possibly bank a million bucks. Today, he took out top-seed Nikolay Davydenko 6-3 3-6 6-4 in New Haven.

His win single-handedly opens the draw for the American. Querrey will awaits to play the winner of the Acasuso-Serra match. Either winner should not give him trouble, but Jose Acasuso is the more dangerous of the two. He now has a good shot at the title, and a great opportunity to make it to the final.

On the other side of the draw, Igor Andreev and Fernando Verdasco both advanced into the semifinals tomorrow. Verdasco leads their head-to-head 3-1 with the Spaniard taking all their clay-court meetings and they split their hard-surface meetings. Andreev though did win their last encounter in the third round of the US Open last year.

(Image: AP)

City: New Haven, CT, USA
Surface: Outdoor Hard
Championship Points: 250
2008 Singles Champion: Marin Cilic
2008 Doubles Champions: Marcelo Melo and Andre Sa

Marin Cilic will not defend his title this year. Nicolay Davydenko is the top-seed and the one to beat in this tournament. He has a good draw and should be able to advance into the quarterfinals. Sam Querrey, who has been playing well, could give him trouble there.

In the semifinals, the Russian could possibly meet Tommy Robredo, Jeremy Chardy or Mardy Fish. Their quarter of the draw is probably the most competitive of all the quarters.

Second-seed Fernando Verdasco anchors the other side of the draw. The last-minute wildcard should have no trouble getting through his quarter. The Spaniard could possibly meet Igor Andreev in the semifinals. Andreev has a good quarter and could go far if there are no surprises.

It should be a good week and good warm up for the US Open.

Tournament Draw
Singles / Doubles

(Image: Elsa/Getty Images)

City: Montreal, Canada
Surface: Outdoor Hard
Championship Points: 1000
2008 Singles Champion: Rafael Nadal
2008 Doubles: Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjic

Rafael Nadal is back on tour and will defend his title. This tournament everyone will get a chance to see how fit the Spaniard is. Hopefully, the Mallorcan champ is back in fine form because I missed watching him beating up on everyone.

Again this tournament will be between the top four. Between the top four, they have won all of the Masters titles this year. It should be interesting to see if someone else can break up their monopoly.

Of late, Nikolay Davydenko and Andy Roddick have had the hot hand and are always dangerous. It is only a matter of time until Juan Martin del Potro breaks through. Tommy Haas has had a great summer, but we shall see if he is still holding up since he has played a lot of tennis in the last month. Robin Soderling has had a good spring and summer, but he injured his elbow this past week.

It should be a good tournament this coming week. Hopefully, someone else steps up and shakes up the tournament up this year.

Tournament Draw
Singles / Doubles - TBD

Tournament Evils (formerly Tournament Malfeasance)
8 Gilles Simon (FRA) vs. Frank Dancevic (CAN)
10 Fernando Verdasco (ESP) vs. Feliciano Lopez (ESP)
13 Gael Monfils (FRA) vs. Marat Safin (RUS)
14 Marin Cilic (CRO) vs. Mikhail Youzhny (RUS)
David Ferrer (ESP) vs. Viktor Troicki (SER)
Dmitry Tursunov (RUS) vs. Igor Andreev (RUS)

Sunday's Order of Play

(Image: Getty Images)

Nikolay Davydenko had an easy time disposing of Juan Carlos Ferrero. The Russian totally dismantled the Spaniard 6-3 6-0 after 70 minutes of play. This is second title of the year and second-consecutive title in two weeks for the 28 year old.

(Image: Getty Images/AFP/Hrvoje Polan)

Juan Carlos Ferrero has advanced into the final of the Croatian Open. He outlasted Andreas Seppi of Italy 6-1 7-6(1) 7-5 after a grueling, 158-minute match.

It looked like the Spaniard would run off with the match after he won the first set easily. Somehow Seppi got back into the match and was able to sneak off with the second set in the tiebreak. The match was even in the third set until Ferrero was able to break in the twelfth game to advance into the final on Sunday.

The former French Open champion has now booked his second final of the year. Ferrero won his first final in Casablanca this year after an almost 6-year title-drought. It is well documented that he has had trouble over those years with injuries, but he has been able to be healthy enough this season to book quarterfinals appearances in Brazil, Argentina and Wimbledon and a semifinal appearance at Queen’s Club. He also helped place Spain in the Davis Cup semifinals with a clutch win in the fifth match against Germany in the quarterfinals.

Ferrero now awaits the winner of the Davydenko-Melzer match. I am sure he would prefer to play Melzer, as he leads 4-2 in their meetings. Ferrero is even at 2-2 against Davydenko with the Russian winning the last-two encounters, which were on clay incidentally. Davydenko has also been playing extremely well over the last three weeks with a title-win in Hamburg last week.

(Image: Getty Images/AFP/Hrvoje Polan)

City: Umag, Croatia
Surface: Outdoor Clay
Championship Points: 250
2008 Singles Champion: Fernando Verdasco
2008 Doubles Champions: Michal Mertinak and Petr Pala

Nikolay Davydenko, David Ferrer, Viktor Troicki, Jurgen Melzer, Juan Carlos Ferrero, Nicolas Almagro, Andreas Seppi and Mischa Zverev round out the seeded players in this tournament. Fernando Verdasco will not defend his title this year. Davydenko is fresh off of his tournament win in Hamburg, and we shall see if he can continue his winning ways.

Tournament Draw
Singles / Doubles

Tuesday’s Order of Play


(Image: ATP Studena Croation Open)

Nikolay Davydenko took this week's title in Hamburg (SkySports)

Robby Ginepri won the Indy title this week (Miami Herald)

Tommy Haas and Juan Carlos Ferrero are ranked 20th and 34th respectively. Some order is restored (ATP)

Roger Federer is now the father of twins (Huffington Post)

Rafael Nadal is set to return in time for Rogers Cup. Yeah! The ATP needs him desperately, as the tour is pretty dull without him (Rafael Nadal)

Richard Gasquet has been cleared of charges and will return to the tour (ESPN)

Jeremy Chardy won his first career title at the Mercedes Cup in Stuttgart. Jeremy! Jeremy! (Mercedes Cup)

Rober Soderling captured the Swedish Open title. A Parrott-less, Filip Polasek recovered from the swine flu and won the Swedish doubles title with Jaroslav Levinsky. Polasek also made it to the final in this week's Hamburg doubles final (Swedish Open)

Spain, Croatia, Israel and the Czech Republic advanced into the Davis Cup semifinals (Davis Cup)

Roger Federer took the Wimbledon title, broke Pete Sampras' record and retained the ATP No. 1 ranking from an injured Rafael Nadal (Wimbledon)

(Image: Mercedes Cup)

There are quite a few today:

Juan Carlos Ferrero (ESP) def. 10 Fernando Gonzalez (CHI) 4-6 7-5 6-4 4-6 6-4
24 Tommy Haas (GER) def. 11 Marin Cilic (CRO) 7-5 7-5 1-6 6-7(3) 10-8
20 Tomas Berdych (CZE) def. 12 Nikolay Davydenko (RUS) 6-2 6-3 6-2
23 Radek Stepanek (CZE) def. 16 David Ferrer (ESP) 7-5 7-5 3-6 4-6 6-4

(Images: AP, AP, AFP/Getty Image, AP)

Fernando Verdasco outlasted countryman Nicolas Almagro 6-2 7-6(4) 7-6(8) after 2 hours and 47 minutes of play. Verdasco pretty much had his way with Almagro until the third set, which lasted 85 minutes. He could not quite closeout the match but was able to eventually get the job done in the tiebreak.

Next up for Verdasco is tenth-seed Nikolay Davydenko. Davydenko leads their head-to-head matchup 4-1, but the last time they played was in Rome in 2006. A lot has changed in three years, so this matchup should be a good one.

(Image: FFT)