June 2008 Archives

In between previewing Wimbledon, I had the privilege to cover the Celtics win their 17th NBA title at the Garden in Boston:

Another impressive outing for Roger Federer, on his favorite surface, as he wins the Gerry Weber title, thanks to the ATP Tour media department for a closer look at the big win by "Club Fed."

Singles Finals

[1] R Federer (SUI) d P Kohlschreiber (GER) 63 64 

 

Doubles - Final
M Youzhny (RUS) / M Zverev (GER) d [4] L Dlouhy (CZE) / L Paes (IND) 36 64 10-3

 

SINGLES FINAL – FEDERER DISMISSES KOHLSCHREIBER FOR FIFTH HALLE TITLE

·         Top seed Roger Federer captured his fifth title at the Gerry Weber Open in Halle on Sunday with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over German Philipp Kohlschreiber.

·         World No. 1 Federer now extends his Open Era record winning streak to 59 matches on grass; his last loss came to Mario Ancic in the first round at Wimbledon in 2002.

·         The 26-year-old has also tied Pete Sampras' Open Era record by winning 10 grass court titles. Federer has a 10-0 record in grass court finals, winning Wimbledon five times since 2003 to add to his five titles in Halle.

·         The Swiss also improved his stellar record in Halle to 25 matches unbeaten; he captured four straight titles from 2003-06, defeating Nicolas Kiefer, Mardy Fish, Marat Safin and Tomas Berdych in the respective title matches.

·         Federer served six aces, converted two of four break points on Kohlschreiber’s serve, and saved both break points against him to wrap up his 32nd straight victory over German opponents in 1 hr., 13 min., in Sunday’s final. Federer has remained unbroken all week in 49 service games, marking just the second time in 55 career titles that he hasn’t dropped serve, together with his title at 2005 Doha.

·         Federer, who has a 55-20 record in ATP finals, now has two titles to his name in 2008. The Oberwil resident captured his first title of the season on clay in Estoril (d. Davydenko) in April, before finishing as runner-up to Rafael Nadal at ATP Masters Series tournaments in Monte-Carlo and Hamburg and, for the third successive year, at Roland Garros, denying the 12-time Grand Slam champion a career Grand Slam.

·         World No. 40 Kohlschreiber was contesting his first ATP grass court final and his second ATP final of the season after winning his second ATP title in Auckland in January (d. Ferrero).

·         The 24-year-old, who was a semifinalist in Halle last year (l. to Baghdatis), was looking for his second title on home soil after clinching the Munich title on clay last year (d. Youzhny).

·         The Altstaetten resident, who defeated No. 7 James Blake in the semifinals, now slips to a 9-19 lifetime record against players ranked inside the Top 10 of the South African Airways ATP Rankings.

WHAT THE PLAYERS SAID

Federer: “I am really excited about the way I played, never dropped a service game throughout the week. I couldn’t be more happy. I beat quality players and also my level of play was very good. So, I’m really pleased with my performance. From the baseline I was playing very smart, very well, not missing much and when I attacked, I attacked well. So, it was a good performance."

Kohlschreiber: “He’s (Federer) very strong. Everybody is expecting him to win. Also for me it’s just a small percentage, a small chance to maybe beat him. Of course, it was a nice memory. I think it’s always an honour to play against the best player in a sport. Today, it was a great honour. I had a very small chance in the beginning to change a little bit the game plan from him, but I could not take it. Finally, he was too strong."

How does he do it?...How does Rafa do it?!  He was able to dominate Novak Djokovic again, this time on grass, and this time for the Stella Artois Championship; a major statement for the Spaniard leading up to Wimbledon, maybe he can beat Roger Federer on grass?!

Singles – Final
[1] R Nadal (ESP) d [2] N Djokovic (SRB) 76(6) 75
Doubles – Final
[2] D Nestor (CAN) / N Zimonjic (SRB) d [5] M Melo (BRA) / A Sa (BRA) 64 76(3) 

 SINGLES FINAL – NADAL CLINCHES HISTORIC TITLE AT QUEEN’S CLUB

• Top-seeded Spaniard Rafael Nadal clinched his first career ATP grass-court title after defeating second seed Novak Djokovic of Serbia 7-6(6), 7-5 in a memorable final at The Artois Championships on Sunday. Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Gloucester presented Nadal with his fifth trophy of the year.
• World No. 2 Nadal is the first player to win Roland Garros and The Queen’s Club in the same year since Romanian Ilie Nastase captured both titles in 1973 - winning Roland Garros and the London Grass Court Championships.
• The 22-year-old is also the first player to win at Roland Garros and a grass-court title the same year since Sweden’s Bjorn Borg in 1980.
• Nadal is the first Spanish winner of a grass-court title since Andres Gimeno at Eastbourne in June 1972. Gimeno was also the last Spanish winner of the tournament, formerly known as The London Grass Court Championships in 1960. The event began in 1890 at The Queen’s Club.
• He is the first left-handed champion at The Artois Championships since Australian Scott Draper in 1998 (d. Laurence Tieleman). Nadal has a 24-7 career mark on grass-courts
• World No. 3 Djokovic started the first set in confident fashion and converted his fourth break point opportunity in the second game to move into a 3-0 lead. He held one break point in the fourth game, but Nadal recovered and ensured the set would be decided upon a tie-break.
• In a tense tie-break Djokovic moved into a 3-1 lead and served for the opening set at 6-5. However, the 21-year-old Serbian fell behind the baseline during a long rally, which gifted Nadal an easy forehand winner. Nadal clinched the 75-minute first set by winning 50 points to 49 points for Djokovic.
• Buoyed with confidence, Nadal took a 2-0 lead in the second set but Djokovic responded immediately with a break of his own. Nadal then paid the price for failing to convert two break point opportunities in the eighth game as Djokovic broke to love for a 5-4 lead. Again, the Spaniard fought back by sealing his third break point chance for 5-5.
• Nadal won his first match point and fell to his knees in celebration. The final of the 30^th edition of The Artois Championships lasted two hours and 16 minutes.
• It was the pair’s fourth meeting in 2008 and 12th overall. Nadal, who now holds a 9-3 lead, also beat Djokovic at ATP Masters Series Hamburg and Roland Garros in recent weeks.
• It was the first final between the top two seeds at The Queen’s Club since 2002 when Australian Lleyton Hewitt defeated No. 2 Henman.
• Nadal was appearing in his seventh final of the year (5-2). He has an ATP-best 49-7 record on the season and has now won at least five ATP titles for four years running.
• In 2008, Nadal had previously won four clay-court titles at ATP Masters Series Monte-Carlo (d. Federer), Barcelona (d. Ferrer), ATP Masters Series Hamburg (d. Federer) and Roland Garros (d. Federer), where he became the first player since Borg from 1978-81 to win four straight titles in Paris.
• Djokovic drops to 3-1 in ATP finals this year. He was trying to become the first player this year to win ATP titles on three different surface, have lifted trophies at the Australian Open (d. Tsonga) and at ATP Masters Series events in Indian Wells (d. Fish) and Rome (d. Wawrinka).  
• He drops to 37-8 on the season and 16-6 lifetime on grass-courts.
• Nadal received a cheque for €84,500 and 225 South African Airways ATP Ranking points, while Djokovic collected €49,750 and 155 points.

 

WHAT THE PLAYERS SAID

Nadal: “The tournament here was very, very tough. I [couldn’t] imagine I [would] be here winning the title before the tournament. You know, when you are tired coming here, sometimes it's tough mentally to be a hundred percent. I am playing very well, no, for I beat [Ivo] Karlovic, [Andy] Roddick, especially Djokovic today.  If I'm not playing very well, is impossible, no?  

“The important thing is the title here. Later probably that's give me more confidence.  But I have the confidence. I give my confidence, full confidence, in Roland Garros, too. The last few years I [have] played quarterfinals here, and I went to Wimbledon and I played very well.  And this year I won. And you never know what's going on in Wimbledon.”              

Djokovic: “This is not the first time I have [had] a lot of chances against him. But, you know, again, he managed to come through. Partly was my fault and partly was luck as well. You got to have a little bit of luck. I didn't go for the shots in 5‑4 second set. And even in the set point, in tiebreaker, I was bit defending too much. This is wrong tactic against him. I should have been a little bit more aggressive and maybe I would get positive outcome. But it was a great achievement, so I'm happy in general.

“It makes a difference being a Grand Slam champion at any tournament, not just Wimbledon.  You have a lot of confidence. You approach every tournament in a different way, with more belief. In my case, I'm happy that I can play a great tennis on all kinds of surfaces, which makes me an all‑around player, which is very important in today's tennis.”

      Roger Federer had no problems disposing of Kiefer en route to the finals at the Gerry Weber, extending his grass court winning streak to 58 matches.  Roger proved at Roland Garros that he can still storm through Grand Slam brackets, despite losing to Rafael Nadal in the finals.  Deep down I really wasn't expecting Roger to make the French Open finals without one or two 5 set grinds, granted Monfils pushed him to the limit, but ultimately it was pretty routine.  Federer is now on a more favorable surface (grass) and will most likely roll through most of his matches at Wimbledon.  The prediction still stands, if Roger doesn't win Wimbledon this year, Sampras' record is looking A LOT safer than originally expected.

      How about James Blake losing to Kohlschreiber?!  Just yesterday I was thinking to myself, "man, James is finally getting things together, and could be okay for the summer grass and hard court events!"...apparently he still has a few things to prefect before Wimbledon; Blake NEEDS to make a run there, it's been a long time coming, no excuses.

      And at Stella Artois, Rafa took down Roddick in straight sets!...wow....how does he do this on grass?!  Andy seems to be ready for Wimbledon which is a good sign for American tennis.  Tomorrow it's a match up between Novak Djokovic and Nadal, very interesting to see who pulls through, Novak has a deceivingly strong grass court game.

     On the ladies side, Bethanie Mattek made the semifinals in Birmingham.  The young American went three sets with Sharapova at the French and could be a solid darkhorse at the All England Club.  Bethanie's career is turning out to be a younger version of Jill Craybas': an American who can hang with anyone and is a solid "journey woman" so to speak.

 

RESULTS - SATURDAY, JUNE 14, 2008
   
Singles - Semifinals
[1] R Federer (SUI) d N Kiefer (GER) 61 64
P Kohlschreiber (GER) d [2] J Blake (USA) 63 75

 Doubles - Semifinals
M Youzhny (RUS) / M Zverev (GER) d [WC] C Kas (GER) / P Petzschner (GER) 57 64 10-7

ORDER OF PLAY - SUNDAY, JUNE 15, 2008

 STADIUM start 12:45 pm
[4] L Dlouhy (CZE) / L Paes (IND) vs M Youzhny (RUS) / M Zverev (GER)
Not Before 3:00 PM
[1] R Federer (SUI) vs P Kohlschreiber (GER)

RESULTS - SATURDAY, JUNE 14, 2008

 Singles - Semifinals
[1] R Nadal (ESP) d [3] A Roddick (USA) 75 64
[2] N Djokovic (SRB) d [4] D Nalbandian (ARG) 61 60

Doubles - Semifinals
[2] D Nestor (CAN) / N Zimonjic (SRB) d [7] F Cermak (CZE) / J Kerr (AUS) 63 76(3)
[5] M Melo (BRA) / A Sa (BRA) d [6] M Mirnyi (BLR) / J Murray (GBR) 63 67(4) 10-6

 ORDER OF PLAY - SUNDAY, JUNE 15, 2008

 CENTRE  start 2:00 pm
[1] R Nadal (ESP) vs [2] N Djokovic (SRB)

followed by   
[5] M Melo (BRA) / A Sa (BRA) vs [2] D Nestor (CAN) / N Zimonjic (SRB)

What an impressive win for Rafael Nadal over the "grass court player," Ivo Karlovic.  Ivo's game is among the toughest to "read" on the ATP Tour, and he is among the most dangerous grass court players in the world, it took 3 tie break sets, but Rafa proved that he can still battle anyone on grass.  How about Andy Roddick, moving his way through the Stella draw, it appears that me made a good decision to skip Roland Garros, get healthy, and focus on Wimbledon [an event that he could win this year].  It would be great to see Andy move through the draw at the All England Club, as he's done many times in the past [with that rocket serve, why not?].

Stella Artois Singles - Quarterfinals
[1] R Nadal (ESP) d [8] I Karlovic (CRO) 67(5) 76(5) 76(4)
[2] N Djokovic (SRB) d [11] L Hewitt (AUS) 62 62
[3] A Roddick (USA) d [6] A Murray (GBR) walkover (right thumb)
[4] D Nalbandian (ARG) d [5] R Gasquet (FRA) 64 36 76(3)

Doubles - Quarterfinals
[2] D Nestor (CAN) / N Zimonjic (SRB) d [8] M Bhupathi (IND) / R Bopanna (IND) 64 64
[7] F Cermak (CZE) / J Kerr (AUS) d [3] J Bjorkman (SWE) / K Ullyett (ZIM) 63 64
[6] M Mirnyi (BLR) / J Murray (GBR) d E Butorac (USA) / R Ram (USA) 76(7) 46 10-3 

Gerry Weber Singles - Quarterfinals
[1] R Federer (SUI) d [5] M Baghdatis (CYP) 64 64
[2] J Blake (USA) d [WC] A Beck (GER) 76(4) 76(5)
N Kiefer (GER) d M Llodra (FRA) 40 Ret (left arm)
P Kohlschreiber (GER) d R Soderling (SWE) 64 76(4)

 Doubles - Semifinals
[4] L Dlouhy (CZE) / L Paes (IND) d I Ljubicic (CRO) / R Soderling (SWE) 64 06 10-4

 

 

Unfortunately Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer won't be meeting on grass this week, as they are both playing in different warm up events.  Rafa seems to be playing solid grass court ball (which I still find hard to believe, simply because laws of physics say that topspin doesn't work as effectively on grass); Roger had a surprising grind today against a player WAY outside of the top 150!  Tomorrow Fed faces Marcos Baghdatis which will be very interesting; Rafal plays Ivo Karlovic tomorrow, BIG TEST for Nadal on grass.  Here are the Weber/Stella results:

  
Singles - Second Round
[1] R Federer (SUI) d [Q] J Vacek (CZE) 75 63
N Kiefer (GER) d [4] M Youzhny (RUS) 62 57 63
[5] M Baghdatis (CYP) d F Santoro (FRA) 64 63
M Llodra (FRA) d S Darcis (BEL) 76(6) 76(3) 

Doubles - Quarterfinals
[4] L Dlouhy (CZE) / L Paes (IND) d M Berrer (GER) / T Haas (GER) 63 64

RESULTS – THURSDAY, JUNE 12, 2008

Singles - Third Round

[1] R Nadal (ESP) d K Nishikori (JPN) 64 36 63

[2] N Djokovic (SRB) d [13] J Tipsarevic (SRB) 26 61 64

[3] A Roddick (USA) d [15] M Fish (USA) 76(5) ret. (left ankle)

[4] D Nalbandian (ARG) d N Mahut (FRA) 64 61

[5] R Gasquet (FRA) d M Ancic (CRO) 76(5) 64

[6] A Murray (GBR) d E Gulbis (LAT) 57 61 64

[11] L Hewitt (AUS) d [7] P Mathieu (FRA) 64 64

[8] I Karlovic (CRO) d [10] F Gonzalez (CHI) 63 75 

Doubles - Quarterfinals

[5] M Melo (BRA) / A Sa (BRA) d [1] B Bryan (USA) / M Bryan (USA) 64 16 10-7

Doubles - Second Round

[2] D Nestor (CAN) / N Zimonjic (SRB) d P Hanley (AUS) / T Perry (AUS) 75 62

[7] F Cermak (CZE) / J Kerr (AUS) d M Ancic (CRO) / J Melzer (AUT) 76(1) 62

[8] M Bhupathi (IND) / R Bopanna (IND) d F Gonzalez (CHI) / N Lapentti (ECU) W/O (Lapentti - shoulder)

 

The clay court season is in the past, and in the blink of an eye let's hit the grass court circuit.  A hand full of Wimbledon warm-up events are taking place as players chase their Wimbledon dreams....one major result, Rafael Nadal is already back to his winning ways, picking up an impressive 2&2 win over Jonas Bjorkman at the Stella Artois; the Spaniard apparently can't be stopped on grass either [Wimbledon won't be easy for Rafa, more to come on that].

Stella Artois RESULTS – WEDNESDAY, JUNE 11, 2008 

Singles - Second Round

[1] R Nadal (ESP) d [WC] J Bjorkman (SWE) 62 62

[2] N Djokovic (SRB) d R Karanusic (CRO) 62 76(7)

[3] A Roddick (USA) d R Ginepri (USA) 67(6) 61 61

[4] D Nalbandian (ARG) d V Troicki (SRB) 64 76(4)

[5] R Gasquet (FRA) d S Bolelli (ITA) 63 63

[10] F Gonzalez (CHI) d M Safin (RUS) 63 76(3)

[11] L Hewitt (AUS) d [WC] X Malisse (BEL) 63 62

E Gulbis (LAT) d [12] A Seppi (ITA) 63 67(7) 63

[13] J Tipsarevic (SRB) d I Minar (CZE) 36 63 64

[15] M Fish (USA) d C Guccione (AUS) 46 76(0) 64

K Nishikori (JPN) d O Patience (FRA) 76(8) 63

N Mahut (FRA) d J Isner (USA) 75 64

Doubles - Second Round

[1] B Bryan (USA) / M Bryan (USA) d M Cilic (CRO) / I Karlovic (CRO) 64 62

[3] J Bjorkman (SWE) / K Ullyett (ZIM) d [WC] A Murray (GBR) / D Vallverdu (ECU) 64 64

E Butorac (USA) / R Ram (USA) d [4] J Coetzee (RSA) / W Moodie (RSA) 46 63 10-5

[5] M Melo (BRA) / A Sa (BRA) d R de Voest (RSA) / C Haggard (RSA) 76(3) 76(6)

[6] M Mirnyi (BLR) / J Murray (GBR) d C Guccione (AUS) / L Hewitt (AUS) 67(6) 76(5) 10-5 

Doubles - First Round

M Ancic (CRO) / J Melzer (AUT) d F Lopez (ESP) / F Verdasco (ESP) 75 64

 

You have to take a double take when you look at the French Open final score, with Rafael Nadal routing Roger Federer 6-1, 6-3, 6-0 for his 4th consecutive Roland Garros title. Firstly, it just looks odd to see a #2 [seeding] next to Rafa's name, and a #1 next to Fed's, while the score is so lopsided, furthermore, what a score it is! All-time Roland Garros great, Bjorn Borg said it best to John McEnroe after the match: "It wasn't even really a match, Rafa dominated." Truth be told, Nadal is the best clay court player of all-time, and he is the ultimate Gladiator on tour. To go from having serious knee/blister issues just 2 weeks before the tournament, and not drop a set against other all-time greats, is uncanny and deserves a double round of applause. I made a prediction on Tennis Live Radio last year at this time, stating that if Roger doesn't win the French in 2008, he never will, due to age, Nadal, young stars like Djokovic and many other factors, so that is still my opinion. Furthermore, every year when you watch Rafa beat Fed in Paris, doesn't it strengthen Andre Agassi's career Grand Slam feat of winning all four majors? Sampras, McEnroe and Roger couldn't do it, yet Andre did, which is why he has to be in the debate for best player of all-time honors (atleast in the debate, which he often isn't). In short, Rafa is a class act, a true warrior, a role model and a hero in all of sports for never giving up, never whining, staying close with his family and keeping an even/humble mentality....Congrats to the young Spaniard, and for Rafa fans, "the show has just begun!" PS- if Federer wins Wimbledon this year, Sampras's 14 Grand Slam is toast, but if he doesn't then we'll have something to think about!

A Serbian has won each of the first two Grand Slam singles titles in 2008, with Novak Djokovic taking the Austrailian Open and now Ana Ivanovic capturing her first major at Roland Garros. 2 months ago we held a vote asking: "Could Ana ever become #1 in the world?" Many people voted "NO" due to the fact Justine Henin still had a stronghold on the WTA Tour, but with Justine on the sidelines, there's a new #1, and a new ladies star atop the game. Congratulations to Ana and Dinara on a great final and an epic victory (PS - watch for Rafa Nadal to dominate the men's finals, he is in the zone):

• Serbian star to become 17^th player to reach No. 1 spot in Tour history, following extraordinary battle between three Roland Garros semifinalists, all bidding to become No. 1 for the first time

• 20-year-old Ivanovic is first player representing Serbia to top the rankings in professional tennis history

PARIS, FRANCE – The Sony Ericsson WTA Tour will crown a new World No. 1 on Monday, June 9 when the latest rankings are published, following Ana Ivanovic’s nail biting win over compatriot Jelena Jankovic in the semifinals of Roland Garros today. Ivanovic replaces Maria Sharapova at the top of Sony Ericsson WTA Tour rankings after a three week reign by the Russian and becomes the first player representing Serbia to hold the No. 1 ranking, adding yet another milestone to her already long list of remarkable accomplishments. 

At 20 years and seven months, Ivanovic becomes the seventh-youngest player to reach No. 1 since Tour rankings were created in 1975, behind Martina Hingis (1997), Monica Seles (1991), Tracy Austin (1980), Steffi Graf (1987), Maria Sharapova (2005) and Kim Clijsters (2003) who were all at least 20 years and three months or younger when they reached No. 1. The Serbian sensation also becomes the 17^th top-ranked player in women’s tennis history, joining a distinguished list that is comprised of Chris Evert, Evonne Goolagong Cawley, Martina Navratilova, Tracy Austin, Serena Williams, Venus Williams, Justine Henin, Kim Clijsters, Jennifer Capriati, Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario, Amélie Mauresmo, Monica Seles, Steffi Graf, Martina Hingis, Lindsay Davenport and Maria Sharapova. 

“Being No.1 is a dream come true for me,” Ivanovic said. “It was a big surprise because I was so focused on the tournament. This is a great achievement and something that I'm very proud of. It hasn't exactly hit me yet because it won't be official until Monday. I'm sure we'll have a big celebration then.”

“We have all witnessed the dramatic rise in Serbian tennis during the last few years and on Monday that will reach a new pinnacle when Ana Ivanovic is recognized as the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour’s new No. 1 player,” said Larry Scott, CEO of the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour. “Ana is both a remarkable player and person, and no doubt the best is still yet to come in her still young career. It is inspiring to see Ana’s years of hard work and determination being rewarded.’’  

Ivanovic has had a remarkable 12 months posting particularly strong results at the major events, reaching the finals of the Australian Open and Roland Garros in 2008, while being a semifinalist at Wimbledon and the season-ending Sony Ericsson Championships in 2007, all told, she’s reached the semifinals or better in nine of her 18 events in the last 52 weeks.   

This year alone, the 20 year-old Serb has won one title already at the prestigious Pacific Life Open in Indian Wells California, defeating Jankovic and Kuznetsova en route. She was runner-up to Sharapova at the Australian Open in January and a semifinalist at two other Sony Ericsson WTA Tour stops in Sydney and Berlin en route to compiling a 26-6 match win-loss record coming into the Roland Garros final.

PLAYER	DATE REACHED No.1	Years	AGE Months	Days	WEEKS*
Steffi Graf (GER)	August 17, 1987	18	2	3	337
Martina Navratilova (TCH/USA)	July 10, 1978	21	8	22	332
Chris Evert (USA)	November 3, 1975	20	10	13	260
Martina Hingis (SUI)	March 31, 1997	16	6	1	209
Monica Seles (YUG/USA)	March 11, 1991	17	3	9	178
Justine Henin (BEL)	October 20, 2003	21	4	19	117
Lindsay Davenport (USA)	October 12, 1998	22	4	4	98
Serena Williams (USA)	July 8, 2002	20	9	12	57
Amélie Mauresmo (FRA)	September 13, 2004	25	2	8	39
Tracy Austin (USA)	April 7, 1980	17	3	26	21
Kim Clijsters (BEL)	August 11, 2003	20	2	3	19
Jennifer Capriati (USA)	October 15, 2001	25	6	16	17
Maria Sharapova (RUS)	August 22, 2005	18	4	3	17
Arantxa Sánchez-Vicario (ESP)	February 6, 1995	23	1	19	12
Venus Williams (USA)