Sportsnob – Critics Corner

2008 has been a remaskable year for the sport of Tennis. There has been no shortage of drama right from retirements to memorable finals to new grand slam winners. Just in case the tennis fans weren’t satisfied, this was also the year of the Olympic Games where Tennis found a new lease of life thanks to the presence of leading players. 

Henin’s Retirement:

No one saw this coming. The 7-time slam Champion called it quits days after her loss to Dinara Safina at the German open.Henin’s retirement which came two weeks before the French Open reminded tennis fans of the retirement of her compatriot Kim Clijsters not too long ago. Henin’s reason that she had given her everything to the game and now needed to  focus on life outside tennis made sense considering all the personal trauma she had been through. Henin had absolutely no regrets in her mind- including not winning Wimbledon-  (Henin lost in the final twice to Venus Williams (01) and Amelie Mauresmo (06). Post Henin’s retirement, the WTA tour had no clear number one. Also, tennis was deprived of its most beautiful shot (as McEnroe put it) – the Henin single-handed backhand

Nadal’s Ascent to Number 1 and that final: 

In January 2008, things did not look too great for Nadal. Novak Djokovic was closing the gap and the young Serb went on to win the Australian Open and Nadal only managed the semi finals. While post the Australian Open he did have some consistent results he did not win a title till he moved to his preferred clay courts. He quickly accumulated titles at Monte Carlo, Barcelona, Hamburg and clinched his fourth French Open title with an ultra dominant performance. Post Roland Garros, the action shifted to London where Nadal won his first grass-court title, the Artois Championships and carried the momentum to Wimbledon where he beat the five-time defending champion Roger Federer in a five-set classic. The final which was in stark contrast to the one played at Roland Garros between the two few weeks earlier, was hailed as the greatest tennis match ever played. Following that incredible match, Nadal went on to add the Olympic singles title at Beijing making it an absolutely memorable year for him.  

The Roger Slump (!) and Resurgence:

How does reaching a semi final and two other slam finals equate to a slump? In general terms it may not, but when it comes to gauging Roger Federer it does. For the past four and a half years he has dominated the sport like no other player, thus redefining goals and benchmarks again and again. During that time, every other player on the tour was subjected to that standard and they invariably fell short. Only this year Roger found himself being constantly compared to the Roger of the past years and he found himself falling short.

The main reason for his losses can be summed up in one word- mononucleosis, a glandular fever that he was diagnosed with a fortnight after the Australian Open, but one which was affecting his system right from the beginning of the year. In retrospect, it was surprising that Federer could even manage to play, let alone walk onto the court. He lost in the Australian Open semis to the eventual winner Novak Djokovic and then failed to win a title till the clay-court season began. During that lean phase he had loses to Andy Murray in his opening match at Dubai, Mardy Fish at Indian Wells and Andy Roddick at Miami. Federer still was suffering from the effects of the illness and the lack of match practice did not help. He went on to win his first title of 2008 at the Estoril Open on clay, beating Nikolai Davydenko in the final.After not winning any other title on the surface, Roger moved to his favourite surface- grass. He won the pre-Wimbledon warm-up at Halle without dropping a set or his serve.After the loss at Wimbledon to Nadal in the final, Federer continued to struggle with early losses to Frenchman Gilles Simon and Ivo Karkovic at the Rogers Cup and Cincinnati Masters respectively.

Perhaps the biggest post-Wimbledon disappointment came in the form of the quarterfinal loss to American James Blake in the quarterfinals at the Beijing Olympics. Federer however recovered quicker than he was expected to and won the Olympic doubles gold medal with his counterpart Stanislas Wawrinka. This medal proved to be sufficient motivation for the Swiss Champion as he defended his US Open title successfully. Doing so, he became the first player to win two slams successively for five years. The victory at New York meant that Roger was just a slam short of equalling Pete Sampras’ record of 14 slams. 

The Serbian Rise Continues:

Serbia got its first singles grand slam champion in the form of Novak Djokovic at this year’s Australian Open. The young Serb cemented his status as one of the three best players in the world with this win and led to the coinage of the phrase Big Three of Tennis. What Novak might not have achieved till date, his countrywoman Ana Ivanovic managed to do: reach the number one position. She did so by winning the French Open by beating Russian Dinara Safina in the final. While Novak and Ana have had slam success this year, Jelena Jankovic proved to be the most consistent of them. Jelena, a strong contender for the year-end number one ranking,  reached the final of the US Open and has the most number of wins on the women’s tour this year.The Ways of the Williams sisters:

Not playing day-in day-out and playing only when they really felt and ready seems to be the secret of the Williams sisters’ success at the slams. While Venus clinched the Wimbledon title (beating Serena in the final) without dropping a set, Serena did the same at the US Open and took over the number one ranking for the first time since 2003. The sisters also tasted success in doubles winning the title at Wimbledon and also the Olympic gold medal in Beijing. 

This has been considerably tougher than the Men’s list, since I feel there are clearly two planes, one with the each incomparable top four, and the remaining six who seem to have very little to separate each other . I certainly think, this ranking is going to elicit more contradicting opinions, so, bring it on folks!

10.Martina Hingis – When Graf was fading out, the tennis world had gotten used to a single woman dominating the court and it was no surprise that this teenager, who claimed to be named after Navratilova herself, usurped the throne nonchalantly setting in the wake, a series of “youngest ever…” records. But, the early start led to an early demise, when injured and scandalized with drug abuse, Hingis was forced to quit the game prematurely. More than her entry, it was on her exit thus that a void was created at the top, leading to a series of pretenders, none of whom have adequately impressed. The dainty Swiss Miss today is a forgotten star; her countrymen have since then found, Roger Federer.

9. Justine Henin – What can you say about a great player who decided at her very best, that enough was enough? The fragile Belge belied her competence against Serena and Venus with a peanut sized frame. With a perfect backhand, nimble toes reaching out to complete volleys and a harsh, ruthless forehand, Henin was just about to capture the throne, when in the midst of it all, she called it quits. Henin battled personal troubles, injuries, accidents and illness to make it to the top. When she reached there, I suppose she no longer wanted it.

8. Serena Williams – During the interregnum after Graf, Serena Williams has come across as the most impressive women’s player by far. Not only has she won herself all the four majors, she has radically altered the game with her brutal, assaulting style that would easily be competitive even in the men’s game. If ever there was a move to make the women’s game a grueling five set one, it would suit Serena best. However, a complete lack of consistency and apparent fitness problems keep Serena from being at her best in most contests and also keep her eighth in these rankings.

7. Monica Seles – While Graf ascended the throne of women’s tennis with her supreme technique and crisp style, a pint sized double handed pretender from troubled Yugoslavia was grunting her way up with sheer aggressiveness and unmatched agility. Just when Graf’s throne was up for grabs, tragedy struck and Seles became the victim of the most infamous regicide in tennis, effectively “assassinating” her career. An overweight emotionally drained Seles made a return after her backstabbing incident only to feel ill at east on the court and never ever to play at her best. Needless to say, the world never got to see the best of Seles and thus she never achieved what she could have. Despite a short career, her achievements merit a place on this top-ten list.

6. Evonne Goolagong Cawley – It was not easy to notch up 14 grand slams in an era when Margaret Court was ceding way to Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert. It was even tougher when key opponents like Billie Jean King and Navratilova were starting to use power and aggression over speed and skill. Evonne Goolagong Cawley was the last of the Aussie greats, winning 14 grand slams across three majors, narrowly missing out, four times in New York.

 5. Billie Jean King – Billie Jean is best remembered for her infamous victory over Bobby Riggs. While Riggs had earlier beaten the top ranked Margaret Court, thus adding to his chauvinism, Billie Jean King’s power and aggression foreshadowed much of what the William’s sisters would do to tennis in the future. Billie Jean amassed twelve grand slams across all majors with forceful ground strokes and  aggressive lobs which allowed her to dominate both in doubles and singles. Billie Jean, rather curiously never won the Australian Open in the Open Era, winning it instead in 1968 when it was still called the Australian Championship.

4. Chris Evert – Chris Evert has the best win-loss record in the history of the game and has a career grand slam to her name. Chris Evert also appeared in the most number of finals ever and never lost in the first round of a tournament. She is best remembered for an intense rivalry with Martina Navratilova, while ruling the clay court, often caving in at the grass of Wimbledon to the left hander.

3. Steffi Graf – Graf reached her peak form rather early, winning her famous Golden Slam way back in 1988, coupling all four majors with the Seoul Olympic Gold. Graf’s effortless game was rarely challenged and she was perhaps the most complete player in recent times, equally at ease across all surfaces. Graf also holds the all time record for maximum time spent as the top ranked player, a record 377 weeks. However, Graf put the game at loss when she decided to call it quits in 1999 when she felt her rankings were slipping although many felt she still had years left in her.

2. Margaret Court-Smith – Margaret Court dominated the game effortlessly for more than a decade, winning all possible majors both in doubles and in singles both before and after the Open Era began. Court also is one of the few mothers to have won a grand slam, US Open 1973. The all time record that still stands in her name is that of 24 grand slam singles titles. Her all pervasive achievements in singles and double, have not ever been equalled either, except by one person.

1. Martina Navratilova –The all start resumes of Margaret Court and Martina Navratilova seem eerily similar, a cut above the rest. Martina Navratilova is the only other player, apart from Court to have dominated both the singles and the doubles games equally, earning her the “boxed” set of Grand Slams, winning all four majors in singles and doubles. She was perhaps the best known serve and volley player in the women’s game.  There are two reasons why I put Navratilova above Court, one is that Navratilova had the fortune of winning on hard court, the other is sheer longevity, playing her last match at nearly fifty, and who can forget that emotional Wimbledon final in 1994 at 37?

After 252 weeks, Roger Federer will finally lose the number 1 spot to Rafael Nadal. New contributor Hari thinks its a good time to rank the best male tennis players of the open era.

10. Jimmy Connors:

The games first showman, shows up at the top ten rankings as the winner of the maximum number of ATP tour titles. He did manage a couple of Wimbledon titles and was often stopped by the peak performance of Bjorn Borg. Despite Connors never winning the French Open, he could be called an all court player since he did dominate the US Open which was played on clay back then. He is in fact one of the three players, Andre Agassi and Mats Wilander being the others, to have won grand slams on hard courts, clay and on grass.

9. Rafael Nadal:

The charming Rafa makes it as the world’s best ever clay courter and the latest achiever of tennis’ toughest double – back to back grand slams on grass and clay. The mighty Majorcan has also broken the jinx of past clay court titans like Gustavo Kuerten and Sergi Bruguera and adjusted himself to all court play. Rafa’s journey has just started and if all goes well and he avoids injuring himself, we could well be witnessing some historic achievements. Those interested in tennis betting wouldn’t bet against him surprassing many of the other legends on this list in terms of most grand slams won.

8. John McEnroe:

He is given credit for elevating serve and volleying into a fine art and then making centre court more than just an exhibition of tennis talent. Most old timers, lament the fact that tennis has become too much of a gentleman’s game since the exit of the foul mouthed super brat. His grand slam exploits notwithstanding, McEnroe was also one of the greatest ever double’s players. And so if you question his ranking, ‘You cannot be serious!’<

7. Andre Agassi:

While most players start in their late teens and peak in their early twenties, Andre Agassi was the exception, improving as he aged like pure wine. In an era when big servers dominated, Agassi became the world’s greatest ever baseliner and proved his point winning all four majors albeit in different years. Personal troubles led to inconsistent performances in his early career and the tennis world could have actually missed out on seeing his very best

6. Ivan Lendl:

A genuine all rounder, Lendl was no specialist in any court but instead honed his skills to be equally sound on any surface. However, Ivan Lendl ended up the game’s greatest runner up.Winning the Australian, French and US Opens, he made the final of Wimbledon twice, against unheralded (at that time), Boris Becker and Pat Cash, only to choke on both occasions. Had he one any match out of those, his ranking would have been higher than 6 on this chart

5. Ken Rosewall:

Since this is an Open Era ranking, it is easy to forget the all pervasive achievements of the Australian. There were no hard courts at that time but Ken Rosewall was unarguably the best proponent on both grass and clay during the sixties. It was after the Open Era began that Rod Laver stole his thunder . Complications surrounding him being a professional player disallowed him from many key tournaments throughout his career. And so, his open era performances were often on the wrong side of thirty. Nevertheless, Rosewall’s backhand has never yet been equaled, as has his long twenty five year career. Rosewall makes it here as an exception to the Open Era rule since although his best performances might not have been during the Open Era, he certainly did play in it as the second best at a time when the world’s best ever player was king.

4. Pete Sampras : Pistol Pete changed the game like no one else ever has. Apart from the elegance that all the players on this list have, Sampras’ key weapon was his power. Sampras dominated the tennis world for an entire decade, possessed possibly the greatest serve ever and was never beaten at his best. Even those possessing a free bet would have never bet against him! If he ever was, it was attributed to under par performance due to some injury. But his gross underachievement on clay keeps him ranked at 4

3. Roger Federer:

Take the old world charm of a Fred Perry, the baseline skills of Agassi, the poise of Borg and the supreme technique of Pete Sampras, Roger Federer has been often called the most complete tennis player of all time. He also is the fastest achiever of the modern era running up very close to Sampras’ grand slam record in almost half the time. The Sampras vs Federer question is a hard one to answer. I put Federer above the Floridan for him being at least the second best clay court player for most of his career and not having lost at his best to anyone other than Rafael Nadal. And he still has his chances.

2. Bjorn Borg:

The Iceman ruled the courts as a baseliner when serve and volleying was the norm. He used both his hands when self respecting professionals were expected to slice their backhands with one hand. In a world that was fast changing tilting towards power over grace, Borg defied with elegance, chasing down the ball with the rarest of anticipation that one has to be born with, not acquired, returning at angles never again seen, winning points (and hearts) without ever breaking a sweat, Borg made tennis look easy. He ruled grass and clay with equanimity and came excruciatingly close four times on hardcourts. Following two successive grand slam upsets, the impassive Swede silently drew back from competing saying that he did not wish to be number 2. Well, on this list, he is.

1. Rod Laver:

The only player ever to have won the Grand Slam in the strictest sense of the word in 1969 and 1962 (amateur) is almost an automatic choice to be number 1 for most tennis experts. He is renowned for his feather touch serve and volleying, wristy groundstrokes and being the inspiration for a whole generation of players from where sprang John McEnroe and Pete Sampras. Though the latter generation’s power would probably have beaten Laver had they ever met, it is Laver’s dominance at his time that keeps him at the top and not how he would have fared against future generations.

- Psycho(the moderators don’t understand why he wants to be called that!)        

The Australian Open 2008 will always be remembered for the fact that it was the first grandslam when the juggernaut that is Roger Federer was stopped in over three years. The talented Serbian Nole Djokovic stopped Federer in the semifinals and then went on to win the tournament defeating another youngster Jo Wilifried Tsonga in a pulsating final. The woman’s final was a young man’s dream, two dazzling beauties in Maria Sharapova and Ana Ivanovic fighting it out for the top prize. Sharapova of course took the match easily. The tournament through up a lot of surprises, great matches, controversies and of course a lot of new faces and set the tone for the rest of the year. Here are some of the talking points of the event.

Best Match (men): Roger Federer vs Janko Tipsarevic. Federer won 6-7 (5-7) 7-6 (7-1) 5-7 6-1 10-8.

Before Nole Djokovic took Federer out in the semifinals, another Serb almost did just that in the third round. Tipsarevic looked class and has a good career ahead of him.

Best Match (women): Casey Dellacqua vs Amelie Mauresmo 3-6 6-4 6-4 in round 3.

Dellacqua sent the home fans into delirium by ousting the former champion. Mauresmo now faces a big fight to break back into the top 10.

Surprise of the tournament (men) : No doubt Jo Wilifried Tsonga.

Tsonga defeated the great Brit hope Andy Murray in Round 1, Chennai Open winner Mikhail Youzhny in the 4th Round and pulled off a massive upset in the semifinals when he defeated Rafael Nadal. Djokovic went on to win the tournament but the tennis world had discovered a new star (and whats more a star with a striking resemblance to Muhammed Ali!)

Surprise of the tournament (women) : Daniela Hantuchova.

At the ripe old age of twenty four Hantuchova finally overcomes her biggest the obstacle- the grand slam quarterfinal. And she might have just gone on to the final if she hadn’t blown her big lead in the semifinal against Ana Ivanovic.

The biggest disappointment: David Nalbandian

The Argentinian lost to Juan Carlos Ferrero in the third round in straight sets. A big let down considering his form in the indoor season in 2007 when he won both the Madrid and Paris masters (defeating both Federer and Nadal in the process)

Nasty Parent of the Tournament: Yuri Sharapov

There was no competition for Maria Sharapova in the woman’s side of the grand slam and her father Yuri wins this award hands down. Already one of the most hated parents on the woman’s tour, he was in the news for the wrong reasons during the tournament when cameras caught him gesturing to slit-her throat after Sharapova’s match against Henin. If he doesn’t curb his behaviour, he could just go the way of Damir Dokic (father of Jelena) and Jim Pearce (father of Mary) by getting banned from the tour.

Get a good job with good pay and you’re okay- Money, Pink Floyd

Lindsay Davenport became the highest-earning female athlete (over $21 million) during the course of the tournament. Davenport has always been a fantastic professional and has recently come back to the tour after becoming a mom. Here is hoping she has a great 2008.

The Sania Mirza Verdict:

Sania had a good run in the singles event reaching round 3 before running into multiple grand slam champion Venus Williams. The Indian put up a great fight matching Venus stroke for stroke in the first set before running out of steam. Sania also had a good run in the mixed doubles reaching the final with Mahesh Bhupathi.

Quotes of the tournament:

Stay in school, kids, or you’ll end up being an umpire,”- Andy Roddick yells at the umpire during his round 3 loss to German Philipp Kohlschreiber

“Nadal tried to hit Tsonga in the nuts with that ball but somehow he managed to get some wood on it.” – Jeff Tarango on 5 Live Sports Extra during Nadal-Tsonga at the Australian Open.

There’s a lot of resemblance to Uma Thurman, actually. Everyone who meets my mom says she looks like Uma Thurman.”– Sharapova on being asked about her low-profile mother

” I know you guys wanted him to win. Its ok. I still love you” – Nole Djokovic, after the final vs Tsonga where the crowd was pretty much behind the underdog the entire match.
A big thanks to Aja  for helping out with this list.

In a one-sided final of the 2008 Australian Open, Maria Sharapova won her third grand slam by beating the new world no.2 Ana Ivanovic from Serbia 7-5, 6-3. Masha, as she is fondly called by her fans went through the entire tournament without dropping a set. Sharapova’s victory seemed inevitable after the form she showed in beating world no. 1 Justine Henin (Sharapova won 6-4, 6-0) in the quarterfinals.

Through the final [tag]Sharapova[/tag] was the aggressor controlling most of the rallies. Her court coverage, though not the best in the game, has improved tremendously and coupled with her never-say-die attitude ensured that she had no serious problems in any of her matches at Melbourne. From the beginning of the final it looked clear that Masha wanted to erase the memory of last year’s final (she was ruthlessly drubbed by Serena Williams 6-1, 6-2).

Ivanovic was leading 5-4 30-30 on Sharapova’s serve in the first set, but the Serb was unable to win the set as the Russian fifth seed held her serve confidently. From then on, Ana was left playing catch-up for the rest of the match. Through the final, it seemed as if Sharapova was against an Australian player considering the support Ivanovic received from the fans. Like Kim Clijsters before her, Ivanovic has been adopted by the fans at Melbourne and Ivanvoic’s column through the tournament i an Australian newspaper certainly helped.

Maria Sharapova now has to win the French Open to complete a career slam and if she is playing at this level she has a good chance to better her last year’s semi-final appearance at Roland Garros. This is the second time that Ivanovic has ended up bridesmaid but she has the game to win on any of the four surfaces and could just end up going all the way in one of the three remaining slams.

The first grand slam of the year has just started to get into the business end of the event. Here is a quick update of all the action so far:

Best match of the first two rounds: 

2006 runner up Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis beat 2005 champion Marat Safin in a fabulous five setter- 6-4 6-4 2-6 3-6 6-2 in a tough five setter that could have gone either way. Baghdatis now finds himself in a very promising third round match against Lleyton Hewitt.

Biggest Upset: 

We haven’t witnessed too many upsets so far but the biggest one definitely has to be Jo-Wilfried Tsonga’s defeat of Andy Murray. Murray has come off a very difficult 2007 and the new year hasn’t started on a very promising note.

Other upsets: 11th seed Tommy Robredo lost to American Mardy Fish and Australia’s Casey Dellacqua defeated Patty Schnyder in three tough sets. (8-6 in the third!)

Some good links:

Why Todd Woodbridge believes Roger Federer is the greatest of all time! (GOAT): Here

The Australian police use pepper spray on fans after racism allegations:  Here

What is an anti-grand slam? Really interesting read and a lot of research! Here

This year’s Australian Open, could just prove to be the perfect start for a special year for Roger Federer. 2008 is the year of the Beijing Olympic Games and Federer has the best possible chance to achieve a Golden Slam (4 slams plus the Olympic gold medal). Here in Melbourne, the defending champion is not taking things easy. His biggest concern right now is his physical condition; he is recovering from a stomach infection and has arrived at Melbourne without any match practice. He missed playing at the Kooyong Classic exhibition tournament.

On the other hand, the draw has been very favorable to Federer. His first real test is a potential fourth round clash against Tomas Berdych, the thirteenth seed. The world no.1 is likely to face last year’s runner-up Fernando Gonzalez or his friend American Davis-cupper James Blake in the quarters. Both Gonzalez and Blake have not been in great form in the tune-up events. Blake lost to Santoro in Sydney International and Gonzalez didn’t fare too well in the Kooyong Classic, losing to Marcos Baghdatis

Novak Djokovic, the current world no.3 is the second favorite for the title. Nole, as he is affectionately called by his fans started the year on a positive note winning 4 matches at the Hopman Cup, in spite of playing with a back problem. He is seeded to face Federer in the semi-finals, but his path is filled with very dangerous opponents and he could face 5th seed, David Ferrer or the hottest player in the 2007 fall- David Nalbandian in the quarters. Nalbandian on his part is fighting his own battle of recovering from his back injury. Djokovic could face Tursunov in round 3 and 2006 finalist Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis or local hope Lleyton Hewitt in round 4.

Nadal heads the bottom half of the draw and would hope to better his last year’s performance, where he reached the quarterfinals. The year has started well for Nadal as the Spanish world no.2 reached the final of the Chennai Open where he was felled by Russian Mikhail Youzhny. The new Plexicushion surface – supposed to be a lot quicker than the Rebound Ace surface previously used – is right now playing slow. It is expected to become faster once sufficient matches are played on it during the first week. If that happens Nadal could have his task cut short. However, he has been presented with a fairly easy draw and his first real challenge could be Andy Roddick, the sixth seed in the quarterfinals – assuming he gets past Carlos Moya or the talented young Frenchman Paul-Henri Mathieu in round 4.

Fourth seed Nokolay Davydenko is seeded to face Nadal in the semis and the Russian did not have an ideal start for the year (only won a match at the Kooyong Classic) and lost in the semis of the Qatar Open to the eventual tournament winner Andy Murray, the 9^th seed here.

Predictions:

Semi-final 1: Roger Federer Vs Novak Djokovic

Semi-final 2: Andy Roddick Vs Nikolay Davydenko

Final: Federer Vs Roddick

Winner: Federer

Best Outside Chance: Andy Murray

Womens Singles:

Justine Henin arrives at the 2008 Australian Open with the best possible tune-up – she defeated world no.2 Svetlana Kuznetsova in the final of the Sydney International – thus establishing herself as the firm favorite for the first slam of the year. Her draw also appears to be easy till the quarterfinal stage, where she is expected to clash with Russian Maria Sharapova, provided the Russian gets past American Lindsay Davenport in round 2. Davenport has been in fine form since her return to tennis last year end, winning three titles- one of them this year at Auckland

Henin is seeded to face defending Champion Serena Williams in the semi-finals. Serena too is coming off a good preparation at the Hopman Cup, where she helped U.S. win the title. Serena would be looking for some serious revenge over the Belgian world no.1, to whom she has lost in the quarterfinals at the last three Grand Slams.

Venus Williams is in the bottom half of the draw and would be looking for her first Australian Open crown. She appeared in the finals once losing to sister Serena Williams in 2003. Venus is likely to face Indian Star Sania Mirza in the third round and in-form Serb Ana Ivanovic in the quarters.

Second-seed Svetlana Kuznetsova had a good 2007, where in spite of winning just one title she has managed to attain the world no.2 ranking. The highlight of her year was her appearance in the finals of the U.S. Open. She is seeded to face compatriot Anna Chakvetadze (6 seed) or 9th seed Daniela Hantuchova in the quarterfinals.

Predictions:

Semi-finals 1: Justin Henin Vs Serena Williams
Semi-finals 2: Venus Williams Vs Svetlana Kuznetsova
Final : Henin Vs Venus

Winner: Henin

Best Outside Chance: Lindsay Davenport

Roger Federer came to Melbourne for the year’s first grand slam – with “insufficient” match practice. At the beginning of the year he choose not to play at the Qatar Open, despite being the defending champion. His only real-match preparation for the Aussie Open was the Kooyong Classic, an exhibition tournament. And after wins over Radek Stepanek ( a tough three-setter) and Marat Safin, he lost in the final to Andy Roddick. Any other player would not classify such a lead-up before a slam as a good warm-up. But Roger Federer is not exactly any other player, is he?

Read the rest of this entry »

How things change! It was about 30 months ago that we saw an extremely pretty Russian girl play on the hallowed center court at Wimbledon against the Serena. Nobody gave her any chance of beating Serena but in a display of absolutely confident tennis, Serena was stunned and a star was born. 30 months hence, women’s tennis has seen major changes: Davenport is gone, Clijsters about to go, Henin spends more time injured, Mauresmo actually won a grandslam (!), Sharapova has shown us she is no Kournikova and the Williams sisters are more interested in fashion than tennis.

Deja vu

The showdown will be repeated a few minutes from when I write this post. Serena, overweight and in bad shape has scraped and scratched her way into the finals and Sharapova has been scorching on court at times.

I had written about Serena here: “…Nobody, ever, can wake up one fine day, come out on court and expect to win.” I think Serena has the capability to prove me wrong, I guess by getting as far as she has, she already has proved her point. She is far too good for me to write her off but I don’t expect her to do a Sharapova. Will Serena make me eat my words again?

Go Maria. Let’s watch some good tennis.

Talking of good tennis, what did you guys think of the men’s semi-finals. Federer demolishing Roddick and Gonzalez repeating that against Haas. Would it be too much to expect that both of them will turn in those kind of performances come Sunday?

- Prof

Technorati Tags:
Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova, Federer, Gonzalez

Sania, disappointment

Sania Mirza disappointed yet again and crashed out of the Australian Open in the second round. She lost to Akiko Nakamura of Japan who is ranked 10 places below her in the WTA rankings. Coming off a good run in the Hopman Cup and the other lead-up tournaments, there was a promise of better things to come at the first grandslam. But unfortunately for her “billion fans” and her, an inconsistent performance proved inadequate. Let us see how she handles this loss and how the rest of this season shape up.

Roddick versus Safin

 

 

If there is any player in the Australian Open draw that Roddick should want to avoid like the plague (other than Federer ofcourse), it is Marat Safin. The Russian who is making his billionth comeback is probably the second most talented man on the ATP circuit. And, he is the only guy to have beaten Federer in a Grandslam on a surface other than clay since the beginning of 2005. It is unfortunate for both players that this matchup had to happen so early in the tournament. Blame it on the mercurial Russian whose performances belie the talent he possesses.

 

Roddick is in the finest form he has been in for 12 months now. The serves are powerful and clicking, the powerful backcourt shots are in place and he appears fairly confident of his place on the court. Even given all this, he would be well advised to take Safin seriously. That man coming off two exhausting five set matches must be feeling like a polar bear in Chennai. But give him an opening and he will demolish you, if he fails to self-destruct that is. Safin is his own cyanide pill. You can find a previous post on Safin here.

Given current form, Roddick should win. But I would rather watch Safin progress in the tournament because he is capable of better tennis and in my opinion, has a better chance of beating Federer. Go Marat (ideal point to crack a Borat joke or pun… none come to mind right away)!

- Prof