Rafael Nadal beat Andy Murray in the second semifinal of the day. He held off the Scotsmen 6-2 7-6(4). Nadal struck first in the second game of the match, but Murray broke back. The Spaniard then struck again. This time he held for 4-1. He cruised to take the first set easily 6-2.
In the second set, Nadal struck first in game four and jumped out to a 5-2 lead before you knew it. Serving for the match, Nadal was broken by Murray to stay in the match. Murray then won another two games to level the set at 5-5. Murray continued to hold on and sent the set to a tiebreak where the Spaniard held off the Scotsman to take the match.
Nadal will now play Novak Djokovic in the final. Nadal leads their matchup 11-4. Djokovic has never beaten Nadal on clay. There is always a first time for everything, but I doubt it will be tomorrow.
Djokovic win and Murray’s loss today allows Murray to chip away another 50 points against the Serb's number-three ranking. If the Serb wins tomorrow, he will buy him some more time to hold onto his position.
Finally, I would like to discuss my current pet peeve in men’s tennis that really has nothing to do with the players. I usually turn the sound off because most of the sportscasters are terrible. American sportscasters are the worst. Actually, Chris Evert is really good, but I guess she has better things to do.
Usually, the Brits and Aussies are mildly tolerable except when it comes to Andy Murray, who is probably the most oversold player that I have ever seen on the men’s side. They had to calm the ridiculousness down when they were overhyping Murray and making ridiculous proclamations at the Australian Open. He lost in the quarterfinals to Fernando Verdasco and then they finally toned it down. Now Murray has won some titles and has really improved on clay, so their ridiculousness went into overdrive today.
We were treated to British sportscasters, Jason Goodall and some other guy, who were completely delusional about reality and making excuses for the impending Murray loss, from his blister to the ball falling out of his pocket (clue, he should take the ball out his pocket, which he did). They kept going on about Murray’s “successes” against Nadal. For the record, Nadal is 6-2 against Murray before the match. A twenty-five percent winning percentage is not success. Murray is a good player and is improving, but Nadal is the best player right now so let him have his time in the sun.
They finally shut up and came back to reality after Nadal went up 4-1 in the first set. While Murray was making his second-set run, they then tried to act like it was the 2008 Wimbledon final. He is the second best player on tour this year, and he SHOULD not be blown off the court. He also SHOULD be trying to take a set from Nadal. There were other gems, but you probably get the point.
I actually like Andy Murray as a player, but this tomFOOLery just turns me off. He would probably have more fans if the Anglo sportscasters would tone it down. Moral to the story, turn off the sound during Andy Murray matches.
(Image: AP/Claude Paris)
Novak Djokovic bested Stanislas Wawrinka 4-6 6-1 6-3. In the opening set, the two went toe-to-toe from the baseline, and the Swiss got the better of the two players. After four break points, Wawrinka broke Djokovic after the Serb double faulted in game nine. Wawrinka then held serve to take the set.
In the second set, Djokovic tightened up his serve and groundstrokes. He also started coming into the net, and the changes paid off. Djokovic broke early in the second game and then jumped out to a 5-0 lead. He then cruised to take the set easily.
Now tied with a set apiece, Wawrinka struck first in the second game of the final set. After a long rally, Djokovic broke back and held to level the set at two. Djokovic would win another two games in a row and go on a four-game winning streak. Wawrinka stopped the Serb’s run by holding serve. In the ninth game, the Swiss had a sloppy game and allowed Djokovic to break him for the match.
Djokovic now awaits the winner of the Nadal-Murray match. This will be his first Monte-Carlo final.
(Image: AP/Claude Paris)
After the rain caused havoc yesterday, the tournament got back on track. Rafael Nadal’s half of the draw had to play twice because they did not finish their matches yesterday. At the end the day, all of the qualifiers and wildcards were knocked out of the draw while the usual suspects, minus Roger Federer and plus Stanislas Wawrinka, advanced to the semifinals.
Rafael Nadal finished off Nicolas Lapentti 6-3 6-0 in the morning and beat Ivan Ljubicic 6-3 6-3 in the afternoon to advance. H
e will meet Andy Murray, who beat Fabio Fognini and Nikolay Davydenko today, in the semifinals. It will be a rematch of the Indian Wells final, except on clay. Alex Corretja has done a good job with Murray for the clay season, and this is Murray’s best result on clay to date.
Novak Djokovic resisted a challenge from Fernando Verdasco and beat the Spaniard in straight sets. The Serb is starting to get back to form and is playing with a lot more confidence than at the beginning of the year. Djokovic will meet Stanislas Wawrinka in the next round where he leads the Swiss 5-2. He has won their last four meetings.
At the end of the day, it was good to see veteran players like Ivan Ljubicic and Nicolas Lapentti make a run in the tournament. Nikolay Davydenko and Juan Monaco returned from injury and played well this week. Hopefully, the young qualifiers, Andreas Beck and Fabio Fognini will be in the mix in the future.
Friday’s Results
Singles Quarterfinals
1 Rafael Nadal (ESP) def. WC Ivan Ljubicic (CRO) 6-3 6-3
3 Novak Djokovic (SRB) def. 7 Fernando Verdasco (ESP) 6-2 4-6 6-3
4 A. Murray (GBR) def. 8 N. Davydenko (RUS) 7-6(1) 6-4
13 Stanislas Wawrinka (SUI) def. Q Andreas Beck (GER) 6-2 6-4
Singles Round of 16
1 Rafael Nadal (ESP) def. Q Nicolas Lapentti (ECU) 6-3 6-0
4 Andy Murray (GBR) def. Q Fabio Fognini (ITA) 7-6(11) 6-4
8 Nikolay Davydenko (RUS) def. 12 David Nalbandian (ARG) 6-4 5-7 6-3
WC Ivan Ljubicic (CRO) def. Simone Bolelli (ITA) 7-5 7-6(2)
Doubles Quarterfinals
1 B. Bryan (USA)/M. Bryan (USA) def. 6 M. Fyrstenberg (POL)/M. Matkowski (POL) 4-6 6-2 10-4
2 D. Nestor (CAN)/N. Zimonjic (SRB) def. M. Cilic (CRO)/N. Kiefer (GER) 6-7(3) 6-4 10-8
3 L. Dlouhy (CZE)/L. Paes (IND) def. 7 J. Knowle (AUT)/A. Ram (ISR) 7-6(3) 6-3
N Djokovic (SRB) / V Troicki (SRB) def. 4 M. Bhupathi (IND)/M. Knowles (BAH) 6-4 4-6 12-10
Doubles Round of 16
4 M. Bhupathi (IND)/M. Knowles (BAH) def. F. Lopez (ESP)/F. Verdasco (ESP) 6-4 6-4
Saturday’s Matches
Singles Semifinals
1 Rafael Nadal (ESP) vs. 4 Andy Murray (GBR)
3 Novak Djokovic (SRB) vs. 13 Stanislas Wawrinka (SUI)
Doubles Semifinals
1 B. Bryan (USA)/M. Bryan (USA) vs. 3 L. Dlouhy (CZE)/L. Paes (IND)
2 D. Nestor (CAN)/N. Zimonjic (SRB) vs. N. Djokovic (SRB)/V. Troicki (SRB)
Saturday’s Order of Play
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(images: Getty Images, AFP)
The rain caused havoc in Monte-Carlo today. It caused delays throughout the day. The tournament had to move some matches from the show courts to the outer courts, causing me to not see the Beck-Monaco match. Boo!
Fernando Verdasco halted David Ferrer, who had been cruising in the draw under the radar. Verdasco took care of his compatriot 6-2 6-1 after 62 minutes of play. He will next meet Novak Djokovic, who dismissed Spaniard Albert Montanes. Their head-to-head matchup is 2-2, with Djokovic winning the last two matches last year.
The match of the day was on the outer courts with a surging Andres Beck and a resurgent Juan Monaco. Each player split the first two sets then dug in the final set. Juan Monaco was ahead 4-2 until Beck rallied to even the set. Beck then broke Monaco, for the final time, at the end of the set to take the match, thus continuing his upset tour of Monte-Carlo. The German will meet Stanislas Wawrinka, who upset Roger Federer. The two players have never met in ATP competition.
Fabio Fognini was ahead 5-3 in the first set, but Andy Murray broke him and held serve to level the match. Murray took the set when he saved three set points and outlasted the Italian in the first-set tiebreak. Rain delayed their match until tomorrow, as well as the Nadal-Lapentti, Nalbandian-Daydenko and the Bolelli-Ljubicic matches.
Tomorrow will be wacky. Verdasco may have to play three times because of doubles.
Thursday’s Results
Singles Round of 16
13 Stanislas Wawrinka (SUI) def. 2 WC Roger Federer (SUI) 6-4 7-5
3 Novak Djokovic (SRB) def. Albert Montanes (ESP) 6-1 6-7(4) 6-0
7 Fernando Verdasco (ESP) def. 10 David Ferrer (ESP) 6-2 6-1
Q Andreas Beck (GER) def. Juan Monaco (ARG) 3-6 6-2 7-5
4 Andy Murray (GBR) vs. Q Fabio Fognini (ITA) 7-6(11) 1-0 To Finish
1 Rafael Nadal (ESP) vs. Q Nicolas Lapentti (ECU) 0-1 To Finish
8 Nikolay Davydenko (RUS) vs. 12 David Nalbandian (ARG) To Finish
Simone Bolelli (ITA) vs. WC Ivan Ljubicic (CRO) To Finish
Doubles Round of 16
F. Lopez (ESP)/F. Verdasco (ESP) vs. 4 M. Bhupathi (IND)/M. Knowles (BAH) To Finish
Doubles Quarterfinals
2 D. Nestor (CAN)/N. Zimonjic (SRB) vs. M. Cilic (CRO)/N. Kiefer (GER) To Finish
Friday’s Matches
Singles Round of 16
4 Andy Murray (GBR) vs. Q Fabio Fognini (ITA) 7-6(11) 1-0 To Finish
1 Rafael Nadal (ESP) vs. Q Nicolas Lapentti (ECU) 0-1 To Finish
8 Nikolay Davydenko (RUS) vs. 12 David Nalbandian (ARG) To Finish
Simone Bolelli (ITA) vs. WC Ivan Ljubicic (CRO) To Finish
Singles Quarterfinals
7 Fernando Verdasco (ESP) vs. 3 Novak Djokovic (SRB)
13 Stanislas Wawrinka (SUI) vs. Q Andreas Beck (GER)
1 R. Nadal (ESP) or Q N. Lapentti (ECU) vs. S. Bolelli (ITA) or WC I. Ljubicic (CRO)
4 A. Murray (GBR) or Q F. Fognini (ITA) vs. 12 D. Nalbandian (ARG) or 8 N. Davydenko (RUS)
Doubles Round of 16
F. Lopez (ESP)/F. Verdasco (ESP) vs. 4 M. Bhupathi (IND)/M. Knowles (BAH) To Finish
Doubles Quarterfinals
2 D. Nestor (CAN)/N. Zimonjic (SRB) vs. M. Cilic (CRO)/N. Kiefer (GER) To Finish
1 B. Bryan (USA)/M. Bryan (USA) vs. 6 M. Fyrstenberg (POL)/M. Matkowski (POL)
3 L. Dlouhy (CZE)/L. Paes (IND) vs. 7 J. Knowle (AUT)/A. Ram (ISR)
N Djokovic (SRB) / V Troicki (SRB) vs. 4 M. Bhupathi (IND)/M. Knowles (BAH) or F. Lopez (ESP)/F. Verdasco (ESP)
Friday's Order of Play
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(Image: AP)
Today was more orderly than yesterday. It looked like the Grimaldi curse had struck the seeded players, but most of them advanced today without too much trouble.
Tenth-seed David Ferrer was extra efficient in his victory. He played like he had better things to do. The Spaniard beat the last Frenchman in the draw, Marc Gicquel 6-1 6-0 after just 49 minutes of play.
Juan Martin del Potro met a surprise from wildcard Ivan Ljubicic, former ATP World No. 3. After losing the first set, Ljubicic rallied to upset the fifth-seed 4-6 6-1 6-4.
Marin Cilic met an Italian surprise in the form of Fabio Fognini. The fourteenth-seed lost to the qualifier in straight sets and won only two games in the entire match. As consolation, Cilic still is in doubles contention with Nicolas Kiefer.
In doubles, the seeded teams took care of business except for the eight-seeds Jeff Coetzee and Jordan Kerr who lost to Novak Djokovic and Viktor Troiki 4-6 4-6. The Serbs advance to the quarterfinals where they await the winner of the Verdasco/Lopez-Bhupathi/Knowles match.
Wednesday’s Results
Singles Second Round
1 Rafael Nadal (ESP) def. Juan Ignacio Chela (ARG) 6-2 6-3
2 WC Roger Federer (SUI) def. Andreas Seppi (ITA) 6-4 6-4
WC Ivan Ljubicic (CRO) def. 5 Juan Martin del Potro (ARG) 4-6 6-1 6-4
7 Fernando Verdasco (ESP) def. Philipp Kohlschreiber (GER) 6-3 6-4
8 Nikolay Davydenko (RUS) def. Ivo Karlovic (CRO) 6-4 6-3
10 David Ferrer (ESP) def. Marc Gicquel (FRA) 6-1 6-0
12 David Nalbandian (ARG) def. Marcel Granollers (ESP) 4-6 6-3 6-1
13 Stani Wawrinka (SUI) def. Martin Vassallo Arguello (ARG) 2-6 7-5 6-2
Q Fabio Fognini (ITA) def. 14 Marin Cilic (CRO) 6-2 6-0
Simone Bolelli (ITA) def. Janko Tipsarevic (SRB) 7-5 6-3
Q Nicolas Lapentti (ECU) def. Marat Safin (RUS) 7-6(6) 2-6 7-6(6)
Albert Montanes (ESP) def. WC Jene-Rene Lisnard (MON) 6-2
Doubles Second Round
2 D. Nestor (CAN)/N. Zimonjic (SRB) def. WC M. Gicquel (FRA)/P. Mathieu (FRA) 6-3 6-7(5) 10-4
3 L. Dlouhy (CZE)/L. Paes (IND) def. A. Montanes (ESP)/T. Robredo (ESP) 2-6 7-6(5) 10-8
6 M. Fyrstenberg (POL)/M. Matkowski (POL) def. N. Davydenko (RUS)/O. Marach (AUT) 6-3 6-4
7 J. Knowle (AUT)/A. Ram (ISR) def. S. Aspelin (SWE)/W. Moodie (RSA) 7-6(3) 6-2
N. Djokovic (SRB)/V. Troicki (SRB) def. 8 J. Coetzee (RSA)/J. Kerr (AUS) 6-4 6-4
Thursday’s Matches
Singles Round of 16
1 Rafael Nadal (ESP) vs. Q Nicolas Lapentti (ECU)
2 WC Roger Federer (SUI) vs. 13 Stanislas Wawrinka (SUI)
A Montanes (ESP) vs [3] N Djokovic (SRB)
4 Andy Murray (GBR) vs. Q Fabio Fognini (ITA)
7 Fernando Verdasco (ESP) vs. 10 David Ferrer (ESP)
8 Nikolay Davydenko (RUS) vs. [12] D Nalbandian (ARG)
Q Andreas Beck (GER) vs. Juan Monaco (ARG)
Simone Bolelli (ITA) vs. WC Ivan Ljubicic (CRO)
Doubles Round of 16
F Lopez (ESP) / F Verdasco (ESP) vs [4] M Bhupathi (IND) / M Knowles (BAH)
Doubles Quarterfinals
2 D. Nestor (CAN)/N. Zimonjic (SRB) vs. M. Cilic (CRO)/N. Kiefer (GER)
Thursday's Order of Play
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(Image: AP)
Rafael Nadal resumed his clay-court domination today. The unfortunate victim was Juan Ignacio Chela. He beat Chela 6-2 6-3. This win was his 23rd consecutive win in Monte-Carlo.
Nadal jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the first set. Chela then won 11 consecutive points to cut Nadal’s lead 4-2. Nadal tightened the hatches and cruised to take the next two games and the set. A similar scenario happened in the second set, but Nadal took control again and cruised to victory.
The Spaniard will meet qualifier Nicolas Lapentti of Ecuador, who dismissed Marat Safin in a 3 ½ hour epic match. Safin lost 6-7(6) 6-2 6-7(6). Safin lost the first set, but cruised to take the second set.
It look like Safin had rallied to send the ATP World No. 98 home after being up 4-0 in the final set. The Russian served for the match at 5-2, but somehow Lapentti dug in to fight off two match points. The Ecuadorian broke Safin and then rattled off another three consecutive games and saved another match point along the way.
It looked like they were headed to a tiebreak, but then Lapentti broke Safin in the eleventh game. He then served for the match and had three match points, but Safin broke the Ecuadorian to send the match to a tiebreak.
Lapentti jumped out to a 4-0 lead, and then later Safin missed a forehand for 5-1. Safin took a minibreak and held serve for 5-4. He then mishit a forehand to give Lapentti three match points.
Naturally, Safin saved two match points to tie it at 6-6. Lapentti dug in again, and it did not help that Safin double faulted to give Lapentti match point number 6. This time Lapentti converted to upset the Russian in his final Monte-Carlo appearance.
This is Lapentti’s first round of 16 appearance this year. His last round of 16 was in 2008 in Cincinnati where he eventually lost in the quarterfinal to Rafael Nadal, incidenttally. That was their last meeting. Their only other meeting was in 2003 in Bastad where Lapentti won in three sets.
(Images: AP)
Marat Safin was in good form as he beat Hewitt, who is fresh off his Houston title. He bested the Aussie 6-4 7-5 in routine fashion. Safin will play Nicolas Lapentti of Ecuador in an old-school matchup. Safin currently leads their head-to-head match 1-0 after the Russian beat Lapentti in Barcelona in 2000.
Tuesday’s Matches Singles First Round
Janko Tipsarevic (SRB) def. 9 Gael Monfils (FRA) 6-3 6-1
10 David Ferrer (ESP) def. Feliciano Lopez (ESP) 6-2 6-3
12 David Nalbandian (ARG) def. Paul-Henri Mathieu (FRA) 6-4 3-6 6-3
Albert Montanes (ESP) def. 16 Nicolas Almagro (ESP) 7-6(6) 4-6 7-6(5)
Q Fabio Fognini (ITA) def. Tomas Berdych (CZE) 1-6 6-3 6-3
Marat Safin (RUS) def. WC Lleyton Hewitt (AUS) 6-4 7-5
Ivo Karlovic (CRO) def. Florent Serra (FRA) 6-4 6-4
WC Jean-Rene Lisnard (MON) def. Christophe Rochus (BEL) 6-2 6-2
Martin Vassallo Arguello (ARG) def. Igor Andreev (RUS) 2-6 7-6(5) 6-2
Singles Second Round
3 Novak Djokovic (SRB) def. Q Oscar Hernandez (ESP) 6-1 6-2
4 Andy Murray (GBR) def. Victor Hanescu (ROU) 6-3 6-2
Q Andreas Beck (GER) def. 6 Gilles Simon (FRA) 7-5 6-1
Juan Monaco (ARG) def. 11 Tommy Robredo (ESP) 6-2 6-4
Doubles First Round
N. Davydenko (RUS)/O. Marach (AUT) def. J. Chardy (FRA)/G. Simon (FRA) 6-4 6-1
WC M. Gicquel (FRA)/P. Mathieu (FRA) def. L. Arnold Ker (ARG)/P. Cuevas (URU) 7-6(5) 6-3
S. Aspelin (SWE)/W. Moodie (RSA) def. R. Lindstedt (SWE)/R. Soderling (SWE) 6-2 6-4
Doubles Second Round
M. Cilic (CRO)/N. Kiefer (GER) def. 5 B. Soares (BRA)/K. Ullyett (ZIM) 6-4 1-6 10-7
Wednesday’s Matches Singles Second Round
1 Rafael Nadal (ESP) vs Juan Ignacio Chela (ARG)
2 WC Roger Federer (SUI) vs. Andreas Seppi (ITA)
5 Juan Martin Del Potro (ARG) vs. WC Ivan Ljubicic (CRO)
7 Fernando Verdasco (ESP) vs. Philipp Kohlschreiber (GER)
8 Nikolay Davydenko (RUS) vs. Ivo Karlovic (CRO)
10 David Ferrer (ESP) vs. Marc Gicquel (FRA)
12 David Nalbandian (ARG) vs. Marcel Granollers (ESP)
13 Stani Wawrinka (SUI) vs. Martin Vassallo Arguello (ARG)
14 Marin Cilic (CRO) vs. Q Fabio Fognini (ITA)
Janko Tipsarevic (SRB) vs. Simone Bolelli (ITA)
Marat Safin (RUS) vs. Q Nicolas Lapentti (ECU)
Albert Montanes (ESP) vs. WC Jene-Rene Lisnard (MON)
Doubles Second Round
2 D. Nestor (CAN)/N. Zimonjic (SRB) vs. WC M. Gicquel (FRA)/P. Mathieu (FRA)
3 L. Dlouhy (CZE)/L. Paes (IND) vs. A. Montanes (ESP)/T. Robredo (ESP)
6 M. Fyrstenberg (POL)/M. Matkowski (POL) vs. N. Davydenko (RUS)/O. Marach (AUT)
7 J. Knowle (AUT)/A. Ram (ISR) vs. S. Aspelin (SWE)/W. Moodie (RSA)
8 J. Coetzee (RSA)/J. Kerr (AUS) vs. N. Djokovic (SRB)/V. Troicki (SRB)
Wednesday's Order of Play
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(Image: AP)
Qualifier Fabio Fognini, who is currently ranked number 108, rallied to upset Tomas Berdych 1-6 6-3 6-3. The 21-year-old has not advanced passed the round of 16 this year and is 6-7 as of today. He will play Marin Cilic in the next round. The two players have never met in an ATP event.
Albert Montanes upset Nicolas Almagro 7-6(6) 6-4 7-6(5). After Nadal, Almagro is probably Spain’s second best player on clay. This victory is Montanes’ second-consectutive victory over Almagro. He will play wildcard Jean-Rene Lisnard of Monaco.
In the rematch of the Buenos Aires final, Juan Monaco exacted revenge on the eleventh-seed Tommy Robredo 6-2 6-4. He will play the German troublemaker, Andreas Beck in the round of 16. The two players have never met in ATP competition. This could be an exciting match. Both players are vying for the chance to play Roger Federer, should he make it through the next two rounds.
With all of the upsets, Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray, David Ferrer and David Nalbandian restored some order with their victories.
In doubles, Nikolay Davydenko teamed up with Austrian doubles-specialist Oliver to beat the French duo of Gilles Simon and Jeremy Chardy 6-4 6-1. Next up for Davydenko and Marach are sixth-seeds Frystenberg and Matkowski.
Some good news for France today, Marc Gicquel and Paul-Henri Mathieu bested the doubles specialists Arnold Ker and Cuevas from South America. They will play second-seeds Nestor and Zimonjic.
After his upset in singles yesterday, Nicolas Kiefer and partner, Marin Cilic upset fifth-seeds Brunno Soares and Kevin Ullyett.
(images: AP)
It is a bad day for the Musketeers and another bad day for France in general. Yesterday, French hopefuls Julien Benneteau and Jeremy Chardy were bounced from the tournament. Today, Argentine David Nalbandian dismissed Paul-Henri Mathieu 6-5 3-6 6-3.
Ninth-seed Gael Monfils crashed out of the tournament after 67 minutes of play. He lost to Serbian Janko Tipsaravic, ATP world number 56, 6-1 6-3. Sporting a new haircut, the Frenchman was up a break 3-1 in the first set until Tipsarevic rattled off five straight games to snatch set from the Frenchmen. The Serb then cruised to take the next set and match in front of a stunned crowd.
Qualifier Andreas Beck, the troublemaker of Monaco, already sent Nicolas Kiefer home yesterday. The ATP world number 89 upset sixth-seed Gilles Simon 7-5 6-1.
Beck broke the Frenchman early in the first set, but Simon rallied to tie the set 3-3. Simon did his usual gig of hanging out behind the baseline while Beck punished any short return and cut off points quickly. The German then broke Simon in the ninth game to serve for the set, but Simon broke back. Beck then struck again to take the Frenchman’s serve, but this time Beck held serve for the first set. In the second set, Simon won the first game and then the 23-year-old qualifier won the next six games for the set and match.
Simon continues to struggle this year. He clearly needs to step up his game and stop hanging out behind the baseline. Luckily for Simon, most of his points are at the end of the season, and he has some time to get it together before he starts really sliding in the rankings.
Monfils has had a pretty good season in the smaller tournaments, but just average in the larger tournaments. Then there is this performance where he is sent home in the first round of a Masters tournament.
If this keeps up, Musketeer Watch might become Musketeer Intervention. There seems to be less swashbuckling and more buckling of late. Luckily, Tsonga is scheduled to play in the next tournament.
(Images: AP)
Nicolas Kiefer was bounced by countryman Andreas Beck 1-6 7-6(1) 6-4. Kiefer won the first set handily and somehow lost the next to sets to the 23-year-old qualifier.
All is not lost for the German, Kiefer will play doubles tomorrow with Cilic. The pair beat the clay power-duo of Nicloas Almagro and David Ferrer. Kiefer and Clilic will play fifth-seeds Bruno Soares and Kevin Ullyett tomorrow.
Monday’s Results
Singles First Round
14 Marin Cilic (CRO) def. Q Flavio Cipolla (ITA) 6-3 6-2
Q Nicolas Lapentti (ECU) def. 15 Radek Stepanek (CZE) 6-3 1-6 6-3
Q Oscar Hernandez (ESP) def. Julien Benneteau (FRA) 6-4 6-4
Andreas Seppi (ITA) def. Jurgen Melzer (AUT) 6-2 6-0
Juan Monaco (ARG) def. Jeremy Chardy (FRA) 6-2 7-5
Juan Chela (ARG) def. Igor Kunitsyn (RUS) 6-4 2-6 7-5
Marc Gicquel (FRA) def. Edwardo Schwank (ARG) 3-6 6-1 7-6(2)
WC Ivan Ljubicic (CRO) def. Q Kristof Vliegen (BEL) 6-4 6-7(5) 6-4
Marcel Granollers (ESP) def. Jose Acasuso (ARG) 7-6(4) 7-6(2)
Q Andreas Beck (GER) def. Nicolas Kiefer (GER) 1-6 7-6(1) 6-4
Victor Hanescu (ROU) def. Q Alberto Martin (ESP) 6-2 6-3
Doubles First Round
A. Montanes (ESP)/T. Robredo (ESP) def. T. Berdych (CZE)/F. Cermak (CZE) 6-4 7-5
F. Lopez (ESP)/F. Verdasco (ESP) def. I. Andreev (RUS)/M. Safin (RUS) 7-6(3) 6-4
G. Monfils (FRA)/S. Wawrinka (SUI) def. WC G. Couillard (MON)/J. Lisnard (MON) 7-5 6-3
N. Djokovic (SRB)/V. Troicki (SRB) def. M. Melo (BRA)/A Sa (BRA) 6-1 6-4
Tuesday’s Matches
Singles First Round
9 Gael Monfils (FRA) vs. Janko Tipsarevic (SRB)
10 David Ferrer (ESP) vs. Feliciano Lopez (ESP)
12 David Nalbandian (ARG) vs. Paul-Henri Mathieu (FRA)
16 Nicolas Almagro (ESP) vs. Albert Montanes (ESP)
Q Fabio Fognini (ITA) vs. Tomas Berdych (CZE)
Marat Safin (RUS) vs. WC Lleyton Hewitt (AUS)
Ivo Karlovic (CRO) vs. Florent Serra (FRA)
WC Jean-Rene Lisnard (MON) vs. Christophe Rochus (BEL)
Igor Andreev (RUS) vs. Martin Vassallo Arguello (ARG)
Singles Second Round
3 Novak Djokovic (SRB) vs. Q Oscar Hernandez (ESP)
4 Andy Murray (GBR) vs. Victor Hanescu (ROU)
6 Gilles Simon (FRA) vs. Q Andreas Beck (GER)
11 Tommy Robredo (ESP) vs. Juan Monaco (ARG)
Doubles First Round
J. Chardy (FRA)/G. Simon (FRA) vs. N. Davydenko (RUS)/O. Marach (AUT)
WC M. Gicquel (FRA)/P. Mathieu (FRA) vs. L. Arnold Ker (ARG)/P. Cuevas (URU)
R. Lindstedt (SWE)/R. Soderling (SWE) vs. S. Aspelin (SWE)/W. Moodie (RSA)
Doubles Second Round
5 B. Soares (BRA)/K. Ullyett (ZIM) vs. M. Cilic (CRO)/N. Kiefer (GER)
Tuesday's Order of Play
Watch Live
The Tennis Channel 4:30 AM EST
(Image: AP)
Nicolas Lapentti upset fifteenth-seed Radek Stepanek 6-3 1-6 6-3. It is his first win over the Czech, who has a 3-0 record over Lapentti prior to this match.
The former world number 6, who had to qualify this weekend, is currently ranked 98th. He awaits the winner of the Hewitt-Safin match. This year, Lapentti has yet to pass the round of 32 and has a 5-6 singles record to date.
Could he be inspired by JCF this week? We shall see.
Fernando Verdasco and Feliciano Lopez of Spain (pictured left) beat the Russian duo of Marat Safin and Igor Andreev (pictured right watching the Cilic match with Youznhy before their doubles match) 7-6(3) 6-4. The Spaniards will meet the fourth-seeds Mahesh Bhupathi and Mark Knowles in the next round.
Not to be outdone, the Serbian team of Novak Djokovic and Viktor Troiki took out the Brazilian doubles-specialists Marcelo Melo and Andre Sa 6-1 6-4. In the second round, the Serbs will encounter the eighth-seeds Jeff Coetzee and Jordan Kerr.
(Images: Montreal Gazette)
Juan Monaco emerged victorious over Jeremy Chardy 6-2 7-5 after 99 minutes of play. It was a pretty solid win despite the Frenchman having near home-field advantage. Monaco jumped all over Chardy’s serve and broke early thereby taking the crowd out of the equation. He then cruised to a straight-set victory in spite of a late Chardy run in the second set.
The victory marks a sort of comeback for the 25-year-old Argentine, who has suffered from a series of injuries late last year and early this year. He retired from a first-round match in Mexico and missed Indian Wells this year. The Argentine was ranked 14th last February and has slipped to his current ATP world rank of 60. He was in good form today, and hopefully he will be back in the mix this year.
Up next for Monaco is Tommy Robredo in what could be a grunge match of the Buenos Aires final. Robredo is currently playing well this year and leads their head-to-head matchup 2-1.
(image: AFP/GettyImages)
What do you know about 18-year-old Leonardo Lapentti? Is he the 3rd brother? Is he cute?Your guess is correct. To answer your first and second questions, Leonardo Lapentti is apar
- Mrs. Polasek
t of the Lapentti Gomez clan of Ecuador. He is the younger brother of Nicolas and Giovanni Lapentti (pictured right). Their father is an Ecuadorian politician and former college basketball player. They are distant cousins of Andres Gomez, who is the 1990 French Open champion, on their mother's side of the family.Nicolas Lapentti, 32, is a veteran player of the ATP tour. He stormed onto the scene when he won the junior Orange Bowl tournament in 1994 and then won the junior French Open doubles title with Gustavo Kuerten the same year. In 2000, he achieved his highest ATP ranking of world number 6. He has won five ATP titles, the last title coming in 2002 in St. Poelten. Nicolas is currently ranked 95 and just qualified for the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters tournament. In late 2000, he established the Nicolas Lapentti Foundation to help bring tennis to underprivileged children and develop future champions.
Giovanni, 26, is a fixture on the challenger tour when he is not qualifying for ATP tournaments. He is currently ranked 190. His best ranking came in 2005 when he was ranked 110. This year he helped Ecuador, with the help of Nicolas, overcome a 0-2 deficit to upset Canada in Davis Cup action.
Leonardo Lapentti hit the futures circuit following in his brothers’ footsteps. His current record is 0-5. There is not really going to be much written about him until he is around longer and/or wins something.
To answer your third question, is he cute? I guess beauty is in the eye of the beholder. He is the one the left with his brother Giovanni.
The top thirty slots are the same as last week. The players, who did well last week, received a pay off this week. The movers this week are:
- Fueled by his title win yesterday, Juan Carlos Ferrero rockets 40 spots to 75. Phew!
- Evegeny Korolev jumps 11 spots to 72.
- German Bjorn Phau skips 7 spots to 70.
- Tommy Haas moves up 5 to 81.
- American Wayne Odesnik jumps 23 spots to 77.
- Lleyton Hewitt moves up 31 spots to 57 after winning Houston yesterday.
Sunday’s Results
Singles First Round
11 Tommy Robredo (ESP) def. Rainer Schuettler (GER) 6-1 6-4
13 Stanislas Wawrinka (SUI) def. Viktor Troicki (SRB) 6-2 6-3
Philipp Kohlschreiber (GER) def. Ernest Gulbis (LAT) 6-1 6-3
Simone Bolelli (ITA) def. Robin Soderling (SWE) 6-4 1-6 6-3
Doubles First Round
M. Cilic (CRO)/N. Kiefer (GER) def. N. Almagro (ESP)/D. Ferrer (ESP) 4-6 7-6(3) 10-8
Monday’s Matches
Singles First Round
14 Marin Cilic (CRO) vs. Q Flavio Cipolla (ITA)
15 Radek Stepanek (CZE) vs. Q Nicolas Lapentti (ECU)
Julien Benneteau (FRA) vs. Q Oscar Hernandez (ESP)
Andreas Seppi (ITA) vs. Jurgen Melzer (AUT)
Jeremy Chardy (FRA) vs. Juan Monaco (ARG)
Igor Kunitsyn (RUS) vs. Juan Chela (ARG)
Marc Gicquel (FRA) vs. Edwardo Schwank (ARG)
Q Kristof Vliegen (BEL) vs. WC Ivan Ljubicic (CRO)
Jose Acasuso (ARG) vs. Marcel Granollers (ESP)
Q Andreas Beck (GER) vs. Nicolas Kiefer (GER)
Victor Hanescu (ROU) vs Q Alberto Martin (ESP)
Doubles First Round
T. Berdych (CZE)/F. Cermak (CZE) vs. A. Montanes (ESP)/T. Robredo (ESP)
F. Lopez (ESP)/F. Verdasco (ESP) vs. I. Andreev (RUS)/M. Safin (RUS)
WC G. Couillard (MON)/J. Lisnard (MON) vs. G. Monfils (FRA)/S. Wawrinka (SUI)
M. Melo (BRA)/A Sa (BRA) vs. N. Djokovic (SRB)/V. Troicki (SRB)
Monday's Order of Play
Watch Live
The Tennis Channel 4:30 am EST
(image: AP Photo/Lionel Cironneau)
Juan Carlos Ferrero finally won his first title since 2003 and overcame his almost six-year title drought. The win gives Ferrero his 12th ATP title and moves him into the ATP top 100. The Spaniard bested Frenchmen Florent Serra 6-4 7-5 to capture the Casablanca title. This win was also Ferrero’s first win over Serra, who had a 2-0 record over the Spaniard.
There were 10 service breaks in the entire match, so it was a race to see which player could break and hold serve consecutively. Ferrero broke Serra in the first game of the match, and Serra broke back immediately. After a series of breaks, Ferrero turned up the heat in the tenth game and held at love for the set.
In the second set, both players held serve for the first couple of games. This time Serra struck first in game four, but Ferrero broke back and held to tie the set at 3-3. Serra stepped up his attacks on Ferrero’s second serve and was aggressive to keep the counterpuncher on his heels. After another series of breaks, Ferrero turned it up again to break Serra in game 11. He then held serve to win the set, the match and the title.
Nicolas Lapentti (ECU) def. Mikhail Youzhny (RUS) 6-3 6-4
Fabio Fognini (ITA) def. Steve Darcis (BEL) 3-6 6-1 6-1
Flavio Cipolla (ITA) def. Jarkko Nieminen (FIN) 6-4 6-3
Alberto Martin (ESP) def. Ruben Ramirez Hidalgo (ESP) 6-1 6-3
Andreas Beck (GER) def. Nicolas Devilder (FRA) 6-2 6-2
Kristof Vliegen (BEL) def. Pablo Cuevas (URU) 1-6 7-6(5) 6-4
Oscar Hernandez (ESP) def Pablo Andujar (ESP) 3-6 7-6(5) 6-2
(image: Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters)
City: Monte Carlo, Monaco
Surface: Outdoor Clay
Championship Points: 1000
2008 Singles Champion: Rafael Nadal
2008 Doubles Champions: Rafael Nadal/Tommy Robredo
Now that Roger Federer is back in contention, he has a good chance of advancing to the final. His half of the draw is chalked full of the top Spaniards and Djokovic, so it will be no cakewalk for him to get there.
Novak Djokovic is in a slump but showed promise in Miami when he knocked off Federer in the semifinals. He could meet Federer again in the semifinals. If he is in good form, he could upset Federer again.
Andy Murray is always in the mix, but clay is his weakest surface. He hired Alex Corretja to work with him during the clay court season. Murray could meet Nadal in the semifinals. The Scotsman though has never been passed the round of 16 in an ATP tournament on clay, but there is always a first time for everything.
Spaniards David Ferrer, Tommy Robredo and Nicolas Almagro could cause a lot of damage. Robredo is already having particularly good year with two clay tournaments under his belt. Almagro won one clay tournament this year. Verdasco could be a threat but has yet to breakthrough after showing promise in the Australian Open. All of these players are in Federer’s side of the draw.
As for the Musketeers, Gilles Simon and Gael Monfils are scheduled to play. Gasquet pulled out of the tournament with a shoulder injury, and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga is not scheduled to play. Simon and Monfils have been pretty underwhelming this year. Simon, in particular, has struggled early this year. He did beat Federer twice last year and leads their matchup 2-0. Simon could meet the Big Swiss Cheese in the quarterfinals. Let’s hope this is the week Simon gets back on track.
The Argentines are also capable of mixing it up. Juan Martin Del Potro and David Nalbandian could be trouble for Nadal, as they are in his half. Del Potro beat Nadal for the first time in the semifinals of Miami. This tournament is on clay, so I am sure Nadal will be exacting some street justice on Del Potro in the quarterfinals as payback.
Despite all of the contenders in the field, Nadal should be able to take the title if he is healthy.
Tournament Draw
Singles / Doubles
Tournament Malfeasance
Singles First Round
Feliciano Lopez vs. David Ferrer
Jeremy Chardy vs. Juan Monaco
Doubles First Round
F. Lopez/F. Verdasco vs. M. Safin/I. Andreev
D. Ferrer/N. Almagro vs. M. Cilic/N. Kiefer
A pastry shop in Barcelona makes a life-size sculpture of Nadal out of chocolate cake in time for Easter in the video above (Rafael Nadal)
Roger Federer gets married (Roger Federer)
Tommy Robredo organizes a wheelchair tennis tournament in honor of a friend (Tommy Robredo)
Ernest Gulbis parts ways with his coach (Importance of Being Ernest)
Richard Gasquet pulls out of Monte Carlo due to a shoulder injury (Reuters)
Federer take a last-minute wildcard for Monte Carlo (CBS)
Davis Cup venues announced (ESPN)
Ivo Karlovic will make a hip-hop album (Croatian Times)
Marat Safin's sister will be the women's number one (BBC)
Bob and Mike Bryan demolished American youngsters Jesse Levine and Ryan Sweeting 6-1 6-2 after 49 minutes of play. The Bryans broke first in the second game of the match and were off to the races. This win gives the brothers their fourth title of the year.
Levine and Sweeting have much to look forward to and should cause plenty of trouble in the future, as this was their first ATP pairing. They managed to take out more experienced, seeded teams and make it all the way to the final.
Saturday’s Results
Singles Semifinals
Wayne Odesnik (USA) def. Bjorn Phau (GER) 6-4 6-3
Lleyton Hewitt (AUS) def. Evgeny Korolev (RUS) 7-6(4) 6-4
Doubles Final
1 B. Bryan (USA)/M. Bryan (USA) vs. WC J. Levine (USA)/R. Sweeting (USA) 6-1 6-2
Sunday’s Match
Singles Final
Wayne Odesnik (USA) vs. Lleyton Hewitt (AUS)
Watch Live
3 PM EST
(image: Melissa Arcache)
Doubles top-seeds Lukasz Kubot and Olivier Marach beat Simon Aspelin and Paul Hanley 7-6(4) 3-6 10-6 for the doubles championship title. This is the first ATP doubles title for the World No. 4 team.
Saturday’s Schedule
Singles Semifinals
Juan Carlos Ferrero (ESP) def. 1 Igor Andreev (RUS) 7-6(9) 6-3
5 Florent Serra (FRA) def. 3 Albert Montanes (ESP) 6-4 6-4
Doubles Championship
1 L. Kubot (POL)/O. Marach (AUT) def. 2 S. Aspelin (SWE)/P. Hanley (AUS) 7-6(4) 3-6 10-6
Sunday’s Match
Singles Championship
5 Florent Serra (FRA) vs. Juan Carlos Ferrero (ESP)
Sunday’s Schedule of Play
Watch Live
Juan Carlos Ferrero pulled out a tight match against top-seed Igor Andreev. He upset the Russian 7-6(9) 6-3. The two players traded two breaks apiece in the first set, and then Ferrero was able to squeak by Andreev in the tiebreaker. There were no breaks in the second set until Ferrero broke Andreev in the eighth game. He was able to hold serve for the set and the match.
Ferrero now advances to the final against fifth-seed Florent Serra, who upset Spaniard Albert Montanes earlier. Serra leads Ferrero 2-0 in their head-to-head matchup. Their last meeting was this year on the hard surfaces of Brisbane, and the other meeting was at ‘s-Hertogenbosch on grass. This will be their first meeting on clay. For Ferrero, this will be his first final since Auckland in 2008. Should he win, it will be his first title since his 2003 ATP Masters Series Madrid title.
After his 2003 French Open win and 2003 US Open final appearance, Ferrero’s career has been plagued with injuries. It all started when Spaniard came down with the chicken pox after a trip to the 2004 Australian Open semifinals. After being off the tour for two months, he fell during practice injuring his rib and wrist in May 2003. From there his year was shot, and he went from being ranked world number 2 to world number 31. In the years 2005-2007, he played more consistently and was able to end each year ranked somewhere within the top twenty-five.
For 2008, the last half of the year was marred with injuries (muscles, leg, and shoulder), which caused him to sit out most of the late summer. Ferrero retired from a second-round Wimbledon match and missed Toronto, Cincinnati and the US Open. This year, he sat out two months after suffering a leg injury in Argentina. His ranking has suffered since he has not consistently played in the last calendar year, and he is now ranked 115.
Tomorrow’s final appearance will move the Spaniard within the top 100, and a win will move his ranking to the 70s range. Win or lose tomorrow, let’s hope he is able to play consistently for the rest of the year.
(Image: El Khiat)
Friday’s Results
Singles Quarterfinals
Wayne Odesnik (USA) def. WC John Isner (USA) 7-5 3-6 7-6(5)
Bjorn Phau (GER) def. WC Tommy Haas (GER) 6-3 3-6 6-3
Evgeny Korolev (RUS) def. Guillermo Canas (ARG) 2-6 6-3 6-4
Lleyton Hewitt (AUS) def. Guillermo Garcia-Lopez (ESP) 6-3 6-4
Doubles Semifinals
1 B. Bryan (USA)/M. Bryan (USA) def. J. Blake (USA)/M. Fish (USA) 7-5 6-7(5) 10-4
WC J. Levine (USA)/R. Sweeting (USA) def. 2. Fisher (AUS)/J. Kerr (AUS) 3-6 6-3 10-4
Saturday’s Matches
Singles Semifinals
Bjorn Phau (GER) vs. Wayne Odesnik (USA)
Evgeny Korolev (RUS) vs. Lleyton Hewitt (AUS)
Doubles Final
1 B. Bryan (USA)/M. Bryan (USA) vs. WC J. Levine (USA)/R. Sweeting (USA)
After previously having two drag-out matches, Igor Andreev took less than an hour disposing of Marc Gicquel. He bested the Frenchman 6-1 6-3. Andreev will now face the former world number one, Juan Carlos Ferrero in the semifinals.
Friday’s Results
Singles Quarterfinals
1 Igor Andreev (RUS) def. 6 Marc Gicquel (FRA) 6-1 6-3
3 Albert Montanes (ESP) def. Frederico Gil (POR) 7-6(5) 6-4
Juan Carlos Ferrero (ESP) def. 4 Victor Hanescu (ROU) 6-3 7-5
5 Florent Serra (FRA) def. Teimuraz Gabashvili (RUS) 6-0 6-4
Doubles Semifinals
1 L. Kubot (POL)/O. Marach (AUT) def. D. Skoch (CZE)/L Friedl (CZE) 6-2 4-6 12-10
Saturday’s Schedule
Singles Semifinals
1 Igor Andreev (RUS) vs. Juan Carlos Ferrero (ESP)
3 Albert Montanes (ESP) vs. 5 Florent Serra (FRA)
Doubles Final
1 L. Kubot (POL)/O. Marach (AUT) vs. 2 S. Aspelin (SWE)/P. Hanley (AUS)
Saturday’s Order of Play
Watch Live
(Image: El Khiat)
Juan Carlos Ferrero beat Victor Hanescu of Romania 6-3 7-5 and won in pretty convincing fashion. The Spaniard was broken once in the first set and faced no break points in the second set.
On the other end, Hanescu was broken three times in the first set and had to fight off 5 break points in the second set. If you give someone that many chances, they are going to eventually to take advantage you. Ferrero’s persistence finally paid off when he broke Hanescu for the set and the match after Hanescu was up 40-0 in the last game of the second set.
I had a chance to watch the second set. Sometimes players return from injury and do not look so well, but Ferrero looked like he was in good form. He moved well and looked like the old “Mosquito.” Being a baseliner, Ferrero was often drawn in by Hanescu’s dropshots. Ferrero had no problem running down dropshots from the baseline and coming up with winners at the net. His groundstrokes were solid, and he was really pushing Hanescu around on the court.
Ferrero advances to the semifinal where he awaits the winner of the Andreev-Gicquel match. Ferrero leads Andreev 3-1 in the their head-to head matchup, with the Spaniard winning their last three meetings. In the other matchup, Gicquel leads Ferrero 1-0.
(image: Grand Prix Hassan II)
Tommy Haas defeated the defending champion Marcel Granollers 4-6 6-2 6-3. This is a good win for the former ATP world number two. He struggled with injuries over the last couple of years, and he is currently ranked number 86.
Haas will play countrymen Bjorn Phau in the quarterfinals. The two players have never met in ATP play. The bottom part of the draw is starting to open up nicely for Haas, who won the title in 2004.
On the other side of the draw, Evgeny Korolev bested Daniel Gimeno-Traver 6-3 7-6(4) after 80 minutes of play. He advances to the quarterfinals to meet Guillermo Canas, who gave Taylor Dent a beatdown today. Canas currently leads Korolev 1-0 in their head-to-head matchup.
Thursday’s Results
Singles Round of 16
Evgeny Korolev (RUS) def. Daniel Gimeno-Traver (ESP) 6-3 7-6(4)
Bjorn Phau (GER) def. Q Scoville Jenkins (USA) 6-4 7-6(2)
WC Tommy Haas (GER) def. 6 Marcel Granollers (ESP) 4-6 6-2 6-3
Guillermo Canas (ARG) def. WC Taylor Dent (USA) 6-2 6-2
Doubles Quarterfinals
2 A. Fisher (AUS)/J. Kerr (AUS) def. S. Lipsky (USA)/D. Vemic (SRB) 6-2 6-4
WC J. Levine (USA)/R. Sweeting (USA) def. J. Levinsky (CZE)/P. Vizner (CZE) 7-6(6) 6-4
Friday’s Order of Play
(image: Aaron M. Sprecher/River Oaks CC)
Top-seed Igor Andreev has really battled his way through the last two rounds. First, he had a tight match with hometown favorite Rabie Chaki. Today, he had a drag-out fight with Frenchman Nicolas Devilder. In the end, Andreev prevailed 6-7(11) 7-6(5) 6-4 after 197 minutes of play. There were no breaks of serve in the first set, and they traded breaks in the second set. Andreev eventually broke Devilder and held in the final set for the win.
Andreev will meet sixth-seed Marc Gicquel in the quarterfinals. Andreev currently leads their head-to-head 2-1, where all of the Russian’s wins were on hard surfaces. Gicquel’s only victory over Andreev was on clay in Bucharest in 2007.
Thursday's Results
Singles Second Round
1 Igor Andreev (RUS) def Nicolas Devilder (FRA) 6-7(11) 7-6(5) 6-4
5 Florent Serra (FRA) def. Olivier Rochus (BEL) 6-3 6-3
6 Marc Gicquel (FRA) def. Mischa Zverev (GER) 6-4 7-5
Teimuraz Gabashvili (RUS) def. Ruben Ramirez Hidalgo (ESP) 6-4 6-4
Doubles Quarterfinals
D. Skoch (CZE)/L Friedl (CZE) def 4 J. Brunstrom (SWE)/J.J. Rojer (AHO) 6-4 6-3
1 L. Kubot (POL)/O. Marach (AUT) def. A. Montanes (ESP)/S. Ventura (ESP) 6-4 4-6 10-6
Doubles Semifinals
2 S. Aspelin (SWE)/P. Hanley (AUS) def. 3 C. Kas (GER)/R. Wassen (NED) 7-5 6-2
Friday’s Matches
Singles Quarterfinals
1 Igor Andreev (RUS) vs. 6 Marc Gicquel (FRA)
3 Albert Montanes (ESP) vs. Frederico Gil (POR)
4 Victor Hanesco (ROU) vs. Juan Carlos Ferrero (ESP)
5 Florent Serra (FRA) vs. Teimuraz Gabashvili (RUS)
Doubles Semifinals
1 L. Kubot (POL)/O. Marach (AUT) vs. D. Skoch (CZE)/L Friedl (CZE)
Friday’s Order of Play
(Image: El Khiat)
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