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)
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga rallied from behind to beat Novak Djokovic in the final quarterfinal of Wednesday evening. The last Frenchman in the draw upset the third-seed 7-6(8) 6-7(5) 1-6 6-3 6-1 after 3 hours 52 minutes of work on the court. The tenth-seed was out for the count until Djokovic came down with a mystery illness and was visibly ill on the court.
According to Djokovic:
It was unfortunate that I couldn't perform on the level that I wanted to in the fourth and fifth set. I don't want to find excuses for my loss, but, you know, I went to vomit and I had diarrhea before the match. Just a terrible feeling.With the win, Tsonga books a date with the world no.1 Roger Federer, who pretty much dismantled Nikolay Davydenko in four sets, in tomorrow's other semifinal. The two players are 1-1 in head-to-head meetings with the Frenchman winning their last meeting in Montreal last year. Tsonga is trying to be the first Frenchman to win the tournament since Jean Borotra won in 1928. It would be nice to see a Frenchman win the trophy, but Tsonga has two tests to past first.
You know, it's been a great tournament for me, so it's just a bad way to not to be able physically go through the whole match.…………………………I had a little problems with the stomach even before the match as I said. No, the big deal I started feeling after third set when I just I couldn't hold on.
After two games I had to go to the toilet. There was no way, otherwise I would throw up on the court. That's when I had to do it.
Wednesday’s Results
Singles Quarterfinals
1 Roger Federer (SUI) def. 6 Nikolay Davydenko (RUS) 2-6 6-3 6-0 7-5
10 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA) def. 3 Novak Djokovic (SRB) 7-6(8) 6-7(5) 1-6 6-3 6-1
Doubles Quarterfinals
2 D. Nestor (CAN)/N. Zimonjic (SRB) def. A. Clement (FRA)/J. Erlich (ISR) 6-4 1-6 7-6(6)
I. Karlovic (CRO)/D. Vemic (SRB) def. 3 L. Dlouhy (CZE)/L. Paes (IND) 6-3 6-4
Thursday’s Matches
Singles Semifinals
5 Andy Murray (GBR) vs. 14 Marin Cilic (CRO)
Doubles Semifinals
1 B. Bryan (USA)/M. Bryan (USA) vs. M. Kohlmann (GER)/J. Nieminen (FIN)
2 D. Nestor (CAN)/N. Zimonjic (SRB) vs. I. Karlovic (CRO)/D. Vemic (SRB)
Thursday’s Order of Play
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(Image: Getty Images/AFP/Paul Crock)
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)
Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Andy Roddick, Serena Williams, Kim Clijsters, Lleyton Hewitt and Samantha Stosur took part in the Hit for Haiti fundraiser at Rod Laver Arena yesterday afternoon. The 90-minute exhibition has brought in over $200,000 so far.
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)
The Spanish Davis Cup team posed with Spanish PM Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero after recapturing the title this past weekend.
Spanish camaraderie won in the end. Plus, there are details of Ferrer’s bathroom break right after he lost the first-two sets to Radek Stepanek (NYT)
Tignor takes a harsh look at the Davis Cup final participants. He is really hard on Tomas Berdych and kind of hard on Radek Stepanek. It is a little too severe considering the fact that, on paper, the Czechs should have never made it that far, but they did. Other teams allowed the Czechs to get past them when they should have won. Spain just did what it was supposed to do (Tennis.com)
Freep this poll! Ronaldo vs. Nadal (TMZ)
Viktor Troicki beats Novak Djokovic in a Serbian exhibition 7-6. Djokovic does some impressions and talks tennis (Blic)
Andy Murray commits audio terrorism against the world. You have been now warned (The Pop Cop)
Guga will be honored by Brazil's President Lula. I will now be holding my own parade to honor the honors (ATP)
Pat Rafter wins AEGON Masters title (BL's Tennis News)
Roddick rehabs knee after injury (TSN)
The Austrian Open is dropped from the ATP calendar, and the ATP transferred the rights to Nice, France (TSN)
Roger Federer finishes the year No. 1 in singles, and the Bryan brothers finish no. 1 in doubles (ESPN)
(Image: Pedro Armestre/AFP/Getty Images)
It was not an easy day at the office for the top three. Julien Benneteau upset top seed Roger Federer 3-6 7-6(4) 6-4. In their two previous meetings, the Frenchman never topped the current world no.1, but he broke through today. Hopefully, the 27 year old makes a run this week in front of the hometown crowned.
Benneteau continues the tricolor surge. He will play compatriot Gael Monfils in the third round. Monfils leads their head-to-head matchup 3-1.
Second-seed Rafael Nadal had never lost to Nicolas Almagro in their four previous meetings, but Almagro almost put an end to all of that today. Nadal was not helped by the fact that he really struggled in the first part of the match. The Majorcan was able to steer the ship clear of disaster after he saved five match points in the second set. After three hours and 15 minutes of play, he staved off disaster by beating Almagro 3-6 7-6(2) 7-5. Nadal will now meet another compatriot Tommy Robredo in the next round.
Novak Djokovic's day was not as tragic as the other two, but Juan Monaco did give him a test. The world no. 3 had an easy first set against Monaco, but the Argentine made him work for it in the second. Djokovic topped the Argentine 6-3 7-5. Arnaud Clement, who upset Tommy Haas in three sets today, will be the Serbs next opponent.
Wednesday’s Results
Singles Second Round
Julien Benneteau (FRA) def. 1 Roger Federer (SUI) 3-6 7-6(4) 6-4
2 Rafael Nadal (ESP) def. Nicolas Almagro (ESP) 3-6 7-6(2) 7-5 - Saved 5 M.P.
3 Novak Djokovic (SRB) def. Juan Monaco (ARG) 6-3 7-5
4 Andy Murray (GBR) def. James Blake (USA) 6-3 6-7(5) 7-6(4)
5 Juan Del Potro (ARG) def. WC Marat Safin (RUS) 6-4 5-7 6-4
9 Robin Soderling (SWE) def. Ivo Karlovic (CRO) 6-4 7-6(6)
10 Fernando Gonzalez (CHI) def. John Isner (USA) 7-5 7-6(3)
12 Marin Cilic (CRO) def. Q Lukasz Kubot (POL) 6-7(3) 6-4 6-2
13 Radek Stepanek (CZE) def. Viktor Troicki (SRB) 6-4 6-0
14 Tommy Robredo (ESP) def. Tomas Berdych (CZE) 6-4 6-4
15 Gael Monfils (FRA) def. Q David Guez (FRA) 6-4 7-5
Q Arnaud Clement (FRA) def. 16 Tommy Haas (GER) 5-7 6-3 7-6(8) - Saved 1 M.P.
Doubles Second Round
S. Aspelin (SWE)/P. Hanley (AUS) def. 3 M. Bhupathi (IND)/M. Knowles (BAH) 6-4 6-7(6) 10-7
J. Kerr (AUS)/T. Parrott (USA) def. 4 L. Dlouhy (CZE)/L. Paes (IND) 6-7(5) 6-4 10-5
M. Granollers (ESP)/T. Robredo (ESP) def. 5 W. Moodie (RSA)/D. Norman (BEL) 6-4 7-5
7 M. Fyrstenberg (POL)/M. Matkowski (POL) def. J. Brunstrom (SWE)/J. Rojer (AHO) 6-4 7-6(5)
8 F. Cermak (CZE)/M. Mertinak (SVK) def. B. Soares (BRA)/K. Ullyett (ZIM) 6-3 6-4
Thursday’s Order of Play
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(Images: AP)
Novak Djokovic upset the current world no. 1 6-4 4-6 6-2 in Basil. Federer fell apart in the final set. The Swiss champion is 8-8 when his matches go to a final set this year. An underreported fact is Federer’s record dips to 4-8 when it is against top ten players. Three of those four wins came against Andy Roddick, who has some limitations when it comes to strategy. So, the moral to the story is if you are a top ten player and you take Federer to a final set, he will fall apart, except in the case of Andy Roddick.
For Djokovic, the victory marks a fourth title of the year and 15th career title. This win is his third 500-level title of the year. The Serb has yet to triumph in a 1000-level tournament this year, though Federer, Nadal and Murray dominated this year’s Masters title wins. This week’s title win should be a good tune-up for the Serb in the upcoming Masters tournament in Paris.
(Image: Fabrice Coffrini/AFP/Getty Images)
Bernard Tomic wins Junior title (Fox Sports)
The 61-year-old ballboy at the US Open speaks (Boston Herald)
Roger Federer fined for use of profanity (ESPN)
Scattered seeds questioned at USO (WSJ)
Dick Enberg’s awkward moment. Ultimately, the tennis broadcast mafia should be broken up. New blood is desperately needed (NYT)
USO scheduling is always under debate. They need to scrap the one match on Saturday and let both match play on Friday. I know they would like to milk their broadcast deals, but the practice is unfair (LA Times)
USO scores ratings winner during the men’s final (CBS Sports)
Bricker’s CBS report card (Tennis News)
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.-me
Someone finally granted my wishes. Juan Martin del Potro won the US Open singles title over five-time defending champ, Roger Federer 3-6 7-6(5) 4-6 7-6(4) 6-2. I did not watch it because I am superstitious, but I am so thrilled the 20-year-old Argentine won his first title.
Del Potro is the first Argentine to win the title since Guillermo Vilas did it in 1977. He also breaks up the Federer-Nadal monopoly since Djokovic won the Australian Open in 2008. It is nice to see new blood step up to the plate. Let's hope there are more titles for the kid to come.
(Image: Emmanuel Dunand/AFP/Getty Images)
No thanks to the tournament, Nadal took charge of his destiny today at the US Open in just 33 minutes. The Spaniard was locked in the dogfight with Fernando Gonzalez when rain suspended his match at 7-6 6-6(3-2) after 2 hours and 3 minutes of play on Thursday.
After being rained out all of yesterday, the tournament resumed play this afternoon. The question would be which player could come out immediately and resume his level of play without having chance to play his way into the match. This would be most important since the match would resume in the middle of the second-set tiebreak.
Unfortunately for Gonzalez, he came out rusty. His biggest weapon, his forehand let him down. Gonzalez missed three forehands in a row and immediately found himself 2-6 in the tiebreak. Nadal won set point when Gonzalez could not return his serve and was able to wrap up the second set in less than two minutes.
After losing the second set, the Chilean was visibly frustrated and inconsolable. He never got his head back into the match and basically melted down in the third set. Nadal, on the other hand, managed his points well by playing conservatively. He allowed Gonzalez to make all the errors that lead to him bageling the 29 year old and winning the match at 7-6(4) 7-6(2) 6-0.
Nadal secured the final spot in the semifinals and will meet Juan Martin del Potro tomorrow. Nadal is 4-2 over del Potro, but the Argentine has won their last two meetings. Sometimes the stats are useless when you are talking about grand slams.
In the last four years, Federer and Nadal have had the advantage and had a basic monopoly over the other players. Some players play well all year and then get to the slams and crumble. It will be interesting to see if del Potro is able to overturn the Spaniard’s big advantage. The same will be true for Novak Djokovic in his semifinal against Federer. He did it once at the Australian Open in 2008, but will he reassert himself and do it again? We will see tomorrow.
(Image: Emmanue Dunand/AFP/Getty Images)
Rain caused the suspension of the Nadal-Gonzalez quarterfinal Thursday evening. The weather was worse today and caused the tournament to cancel play. Now, the Open is looking to finish the final quarterfinal tomorrow. The final has already been pushed to Monday.
Poor Rafa. This is the third grand slam where Nadal gets caught in rain delays. It happened in Wimbledon 07, US Open 08 and now US Open 09. Now, “Mr. Goat” gets to patiently rest to play him.
At Wimbledon 07, Nadal had to play every day during the second week because of the weather, and Federer received almost a week off after he played early and Haas pulled out of his fourth-round match. The Spaniard still made it to the final and almost beat him if it was not for his knees.
So when our crack "sports analysts" get on air and lecture Nadal about playing too much, they should first look at some of these tournament schedules. Nadal has been continually been on the short end of the scheduling -- and do not get me started on the draws. It has become ridiculous and unfair not to just Nadal, but to the other players. It was after Wimbledon 2007 where I became turned off by Federer because I felt he was being propped up by the scheduling at the tournaments.
Nadal will be at a great disadvantage should he make it to the final. If Federer wins the title, everyone will pretend that is was great skill when it is really that he is just better rested than the other players. Remember he was the only male player to play before the women’s match at night, which was pretty bold.
(Image: AP)
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)
The top three have now revealed their US Open kits over the last two days. Fred Perry has done a good job with Andy Murray over the last year. The Scotsman definitely had the best kit at Wimbledon this year.
Nike always makes good kits for Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer. There are no real surprises here or faux pas yet. The problem lies somewhere with Federer’s outwear and accessories where they, without fail, are always over the top.
We will not see these accoutrements until his first match. I always forget about this small detail until he walks out in some ridiculous jacket with handbag. Luckily, he has to remove them before playing, or it would be distracting for everybody involved.
It will be a small victory for everyone if he stays away from military-inspired jackets and patent leather bags this coming fortnight, but we shall see next week if he can restrain himself.
(Images: Fred Perry, Nike, Nike)
Roger Federer won his second Masters title yesterday in Cincinnati. He beat Novak Djokovic 6-1 7-5 to deny the Serb his first Masters title of the year. This is Federer’s third Cincinnati title and 16th career Masters title.
Championship Sunday
Singles Final
1 Roger Federer (SUI) def. 4 Novak Djokovic (SRB) 6-1 7-5
Doubles Final
2 D. Nestor (CAN)/N. Zimonjic (SRB) def. 1 B. Bryan (USA)/M. Bryan (USA) 3-6 7-6(5) 15-13
(Image: AFP)
City: Cincinnati, OH, USA
Surface: Outdoor Hard
Championship Points: 1000
2008 Singles Champion: Andy Murray
2008 Doubles: Mike Bryan and Bob Bryan
Andy Murray will be on hand to defend his title in Cincinnati. He will have his work cut out for him because his half of the draw is chalked full of contenders.
He could meet Juan Martin del Potro in quarterfinals. The Scotsman has had the Argentine’s number, but it is only a matter of time before del Potro turns the corner and surprises the defending champion. Del Potro did have physical problems during their Rogers Cup match, so he might be less of a threat this week. Murray could also have to deal with Federer in the semifinals.
Federer’s quarter of the draw is as difficult as Murray’s. The Swiss champ could have to contend with Robin Soderling or Andy Roddick in the quarterfinals. He then, of course, could meet with Murray or the surging del Potro in the semifinals.
Rafal Nadal has a pretty good draw. For someone who needs to play their way into contention, this draw could be a good way for the Spaniard to make it to the semifinals or finals because he desperately needs the points. He may have to see Jo-Wilfried Tsonga or Fernando Gonzalez in the quarterfinals and then maybe Nikolay Davydenko or Novak Djokovic in the semifinals.
Tournament Draw
Singles / Doubles
Tournament Evils (formerly Tournament Malfeasance)
Singles
10 Fernando Gonzalez (CHI) vs. Tomas Berdych (CZE)
14 Marin Cilic (CRO) vs. Juan Carlos Ferrero (ESP)
16 Tommy Robredo (ESP) vs. Jeremy Chardy (FRA)
Igor Andreev (RUS) vs. Nicolas Kiefer (GER)
Doubles
T. Parrott (USA)/F. Polasek (SVK) vs. J. Chardy (FRA)/G. Simon (FRA)
(Image: Eric M Spohn/WSFGM)
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga rallied to beat Roger Federer today in Montreal after the Swiss champion was up 5-1 in the third set. The Frenchman came from behind in the last set to tie and then put away the match 7-6(5) 1-6 7-6(3) after 2 hours and 19 minutes of play.
It was a good win for the Tsonga, and it is good to see a Frenchman in the mix. At the beginning of the year, there was talk of the Musketeers, but that has not lived up to fruition between Gasquet’s suspension, Monfils injuries and Simon’s lackluster play. Tsonga won two titles in Johannesburg and Marseille earlier this year, but his season stalled. After Miami, he has yet to advance into the round of 16 until now.
Tomorrow, Tsonga will play Murray in the first semifinal match of the day. Hopefully, he can build on this win and give Andy Murray some trouble. The two players are even at 1-1 with Tsonga winning their last meeting in Australia in 2008. Tomorrow’s match should be a good one.
(Image: Denise/tennisfiend)
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)
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