Crazy Tuesday with 4am finish

This will be a very long report and I might have to break it down into 2 parts, this is the famous Aussie Open day where play finished at 3.42am and yes I was there for the whole day. They had the heat policy rule in and I personally I think it’s a croc as pro players should be able to adjust to the conditions put in front of them.

Lets start the shenanigans.

Dlouhy vs. Gabashvili

This match didn’t start off as anything special, but that changed eventually and thankfully for that. Big dropshot Dlouhy started off very well and he is keeping the big Georgian-Russian who is based in Spain off balance with deep groundstrokes and drop shots and volleys and Lukas is an aficionado of the dropshot.

Dlouhy gets a break in the 3rd and I go for a walk thinking this match is done and dusted, then I come back and see Teimur has taken the 3rd set. As in the 3rd Dlouhy had another break, but wasn’t able to hold it and it went to a tiebreaker which Teimur took and he is hitting his forehand a lot better than the first 2 sets and is battling hard and takes it to a 5th set.

The games go on serve and are hard fought, Lukas is still playing his sneaky dinks and Teimur is fighting hard and the crowd are loving it who are watching from another court where they can see from the top of the temporary stand and there are just 2 rows of seats on this court. Dlouhy breaks at 13-12 and hands it back quickly and then he breaks at 15-14 and holds to win 16-14. This was played in great spirit and a bit of showmanship as well, there was a hot Myskina lookalike who is Russian descent and if I find a photo I might send it along.

Berdych vs. Lee

This had the potential to be a challenging match on paper, but matches aren’t won on paper and the potential challenge was snuffed out quicker than free food vouchers in a malnutrition clinic. It was an excellent performance from Berdman and in the heat as well, he operated on the theory of get out of there as quickly as possible. This was a good strategy against such a fit and competent hardcourter as Lee.

Nalbandian vs. Tipsarevic

Nalle has tendonitis in the knee, then again motivation isn’t something he is always known for outside of Davis Cup. In the 1st set Nalle had a break and served for it at 5-4, but lost the game and the next 3 to lose 7-5. Tipsa gains in confidence and Nalle looks bored, disinterested and wants to be somewhere else and Tipsa takes the second set. The 3rd continues in the same manner in the stupidly warm conditions and Tipsa leads 5-2 and has 2 chances to serve for the match and fails to do so and Nalle switches on the light and takes the 3rd and Janko runs out of legs and gives up in the 5th with heat exhaustion.

Gaudio vs. Muller

This was a match that I thought Gaston could win and he had a good draw considering that Muller has been hideously out of form as well. This match started catastrophically for Gaudio wouldn’t hit a ball in court and Muller couldn’t miss one and then it’s over 6-0.

In the second set Gaudio is able to hit more balls into court and find a better length and takes it 6-4. As I had to go to the Russell match, from the man known as Sammy he told me Gaudio looked confused on court and was trying and not tanking and Muller was going for it and it worked for him. Gaston might have to drop down to challengers soon to gain some confidence.

Gonzalez vs. Korolev

The first time I have seen Korolev in the flesh and I am impressed. He is very raw and has a lot of power on both sides. He is a bit like Gonzo in his younger years trying to murder the ball without even considering a defensive game. This will come in time with the right coaching and he should progress barring attitude problems or major injuries.

Korolev took the 1st set and once Gonzo took the second, then he was able to establish control of the match and used his greater experience. Herr Korolev will be a future MTF Bandwagon Player of the Month.

Hewitt vs. Russell

Big Mike the only American player currently I like and I have to support him after all the shit he has been through and he qualified easily and got the most difficult opponent available. All the pressure was on Hewitt and no one else in this match.

Russell started very well and has a definite gameplan to stretch Hewitt and hit behind him and keep him off balance. He is using his slice backhand as a good change up and this varied play lead him to the 1st set and is winning the long rallies and took his chances when the break points were on offer.

Russ continues with the grinding style of play and has a very low unforced error count and is mixing up his passes when Hewitt comes to the net. Hewitt is hitting shorter in the court and Russ takes advantage and has control of the match for a 2 sets to love lead.

Russell needs to be vigilant as Hewitt isn’t someone who hands out presents for nothing. The diagnosis looks good so far and he breaks early in the 3rd set, but the turning point was when Russ lost his serve just after breaking and that small sniff was enough for Hewitt to take advantage and the initiative to win the 3rd set 6-3.

The overall sense of the inevitable that Hewitt was going to win in 5 sets was in the air, though I was hoping against it. Russ is noticeably slower around the court and heavier in the legs in the 4th set and that of course is a negative impact on his game, this plus Hewitt is more aggressive on serve and hitting lines.

At the start of the 5th he is getting a massage and his massager for this thighs, trying to get blood circulation happening. He starts playing better and it's a tight set but Russ misses an easy volley into the net, which cost him the break and Hewitt was able to hold out and his greater experience got him over the line in this one.

I was very proud of Russell's efforts inspite of the result and if he remains injury free there are good signs for 2007. After the match he signed autographs for everyone and did the press and he was on court longer after the match than Hewitt. He is a class act and just hope he can win a big 5 setter before he retires.

Horna vs. Mirnyi

After dealing with the frustration of the good performanc of Russell though a shit result. I decided at around 1am to watch this match. Lucho just won the 3rd set to take a 2 sets to 1 lead and the contrast of styles made this interesting. Horna with the heavy topspin forehand and underrated serve against Mirnyi the chip charge merchant who comes in on everything.

There was some good quality tennis in this match. The 4th set was tight, but Max got a break and was able to hold it together and we saw Jimbo there who was still pissed off with Malisse losing to Clement.

The 5th set is tight and Lucho has chances to break, but he couldn't convert them, through a combination of not getting the 1st serve in at the right moment and Max hitting winning backhands down the line. Mirnyi hasn't hit 5 backhands down the line in his life let alone one match.

After Lucho failed to capitalise on his chances and in the 9th game, there was this pissed Yank who kept heckling Lucho. He finally got the shits after being put off as he was about to serve. It worked as he went over to the umpire and said. "Are you going to get this guy out of the court or not? If not there is going to be a mess." He played another point and lost it and the heckler was it again. "He is still here and you do nothing about it, and if you don't get him out, it will be a big mess, a big mess". Lucho loses focus and is broken and then Mirnyi serves it out 6-4.

Excellent match and Lucho's poor returns cost him badly in this match, his passing shots were working well, but not the returns.

Seppi vs. Reynolds

This was an unforgettable match starting at 11.30pm and finishes it around 3.35am. I was there from the 3rd set onwards. Seppi who has little or no confidence at the moment, he should have closed it in 4 sets, but this was not the case.

Seppi takes the 1st easily and loses the breaker in the 2nd. In the 3rd set Seppi leads 5-2, but somehow lets it get to a breaker and loses against the feisty Reynolds. I thought faen this is getting late, but I am not leaving unless I get to see the last point.

The 4th set is tight and Seppi has made inroads into Reynolds service games, but can' t quite breakthrough to break, but Seppi found himself 3 match points down and he saves them and the wins the 4th set in another tiebreaker. The 5th was very tough to watch at the best of times, especially at 2,50am and it's a combination of ego and masochism plus I like Seppi and have to watch right to the end.

Reynolds plays with a lot of topspin, but hates clay, typical Americans. The 5th set starts with both trying to move the ball around, but Seppi has better length and I can see why his game isn't there at the moment. Too upright on the ball and not staying down, but Seppi does well to break serve and hold it through to win the final set.

At the end of the 1st Tuesday 40+ degrees and watching a match finish at 3,34am. This could be explained as crazy, pissed off, ironical, unforgettable and the organisation might need to look at themselves. Starting matches at this time is crazy, but this day won't be forgotten.

Seppi vs. Reynolds