The Prince Who Will Become King

Today is the last of my reports. Not sure I'm going to the tournament anymore and most of the fun stuff on the outside courts has finished.

Saturday is the busiest day of the tournament in what I like to call "Bogan Saturday". As it was a very warm day, there was lots of alcohol consumed, the crowd was very loose as more liquid flowed .

Tennis with a bunch of drunks is a very fluctuating experience, sometimes it can be fun and others not so fun. Yes, the siiu needs to get in the bin. Kidney punching is an acceptable punishment for this nonsense, of course Danil Medvedev trolled these gronks expertly.


Bautista Agut vs. Fritz

Definite contrast of baseline styles in this one. RBA who is very solid whereas Fritz is a lot more aggressive and now coached by the legend Michael Russell. With players coached by Mikey Russell, they will be well prepared.

Fritz just came out smoking in the first set. He was slapping forehand winners for fun as RBA was struggling to handle the bouncier conditions. Fritz hands out a bagel with a ration of 12 winners and 4 unforced errors, it's very unlikely to lose a set .



Bautista Agut is a tough competitor and is holding some long service games as Fritz is making a few more errors. RBA was able to get some better depth on his strokes, but still not at his best level where it is almost impossible to hit through. The match is levelled at 1 set all and the same pattern continues in the 3rd set, where both players aren't playing well at the same and struggling with serve. RBA takes the 3rd set, but still under his usual level.

At 2 sets t 1 the match was still up in the air. There wasn't a feeling that RBA was going to run away in the 4th, as he was struggling on serve. Once he was missing serves, Fritz was all over it like a cheap suit and besides the huge forehands is hitting some solid backhands as well to open the court up. .

Fritz is swinging freely, anything slightly short has been getting punished as he turns the match around in the 4th set which he takes. RBA is broken at the start of the 5th set and Fritz unlike in previous sets has been holiding comfortably. The match ends with a double fault from RBA. Fritz definitely deserved the win he had more winners than errors as RBA wasn't able to stem the tide.

Daniel vs. Sinner

The Taro Daniel show continues on with him playing "The Prince" Jannik Sinner. This one is a much different challenge to previous. Sinner is a huge talent with a very professional and excellent attitude.

Daniel started a bit nervously and lost his first service game. It took him a few games to settle into the match. Sinner was a bit up and down and started getting behind in early service games but managed to do enough to take the first.

Jannik Sinner

The Prince had a bit of a letdown as Daniel who improved his level using his beefed up serve to get free points and to open up the court moving Sinner around. Daniel was very solid from the baseline with the forehand dominating stretching Sinner who is making more errors under pressure. Daniel takes the 2nd set 6-1 to level at 1 set all

Even though Daniel took the second set, the feeling of the upset wasn't really apparent. Both guys are starting to play at around the same level. It's great watching tennis as you can see how well balanced Sinner is when he is moving and it's clear the skiing background helped a lot. Daniel still continuing to serve well and has not gone into his shell .

Taro Daniel

Daniel went down 0-40, managed to serve three quality serves to get it to deuce. Sinner was able to break in this service game taking the 3rd set. Once Sinner took a 2 sets to 1 lead, he stepped up with level being a bit more agressive and make the move. He was winning the extended rallies with forays to the net and takes the final set 6-1.

Sinner Winner was too good, he now plays de Minaur. Let's hope he continues in the event. As for Daniel, this was a great tournament for him to continue his excellent start to the year. Thankfully Daniel has been very good in relation to injury prevention and may that continue, he is making changes to his game which are necessary to improve. Based on what I've seen, there is a fantastic base for the year.

Cilic vs. Rublev

Not going to do a full match report on the Cilic vs. Rublev game but what a performance from Marin Cilic. The first two sets he turned back the clock to his US Open title form. Cilic nailed it tactically, which isn't something you would always associate with.

Rublev is the classic example of someone who hits tennis balls and is not a tennis player. He only has the one style, the classic see ball, hit ball and not much else. When it's not working, it tends to be hit it harder. Cilic was getting the first strike in, which was successful if not then he'd be chasing the shadow of the ball.

Cilic stuck to the plan and while Rublev has a sneaky good first serve. The second serve still doesn't have much speed or spin, and Cilic teed off. The great man Fernando Vicente will need to add a few different dimensions. Sometimes take pace of the ball to set up for the big play. Cilic playing FAA next will be interesting.

Observations

Now the Aus Open is over for me. I did enjoy my time, some of the results were shit but Taro Daniel making the 3rd round is a bonus. It was fun to watch tennis live, there are just so many little things you don't see on TV. In addition there are 2 cats who I want to give a shout out to Lance and Owen, these guys are hardcore fans, a love of the obscure and kept me on my toes. .

Hopefully I can get some interviews done this year, but ambition doesn't always match reality.

Day 4 : Taro Daniel making history and Foki loses a heartbreaker

Sorry for the lack of reports yesterday, it was a one match deal and will add the information to the odds and ends bit.

It was a very warm day thankfully not too much humidity, a big contrast to the cool conditions on Tuesday. Then again Melbourne weather is as temperamental as a teenager. Now, on that note time to start reporting.

Bautista Agut vs. Kohlschreiber

This was a glorious beatdown, as Kohli is definitely in the deep south of his career. RBA didn't play that well in the 1st round, but this was better for sure and will need to in the next round against Fritz.

Davidovich Fokina vs. Auger Aliassime

This match had a lot of potential as both are shotmakers and apart from the result, it didn't disappoint. Foki and FAA ae well known to each other as they grew up in juniors. Foki won the Wimbledon juniors and FAA the US Open.

While both are shotmakers, they definitely do it differently. Auger Aliassime is very calm on the court except when he is playing finals where he seems to be very withdrawn. Foki on the other hand is a bit volatile and moody, there are some days when he is under pressure he brings the fight and others he'd be somewhere else.

Both settled fairly quickly in the warm conditions. Foki got an early break with a combination of good play and errors. Unfortunately at 4-3, he plays that one dumb service game which he's liable to do and FAA breaks back not through any great pla. The thing with Foki is very up and down, it's a question of when peaks and troughs happen. Both guys held serve to the first tiebraker, which is the equivalent of the penalty shootout. FAA was more solid and took it.

The second set continues in a similar vein to the 1st. Both guys are hitting the ball well. FAA using his forehand to dictate and Foki working the angles and using the dropshot occasionally. They take care of their serves in the set and Foki had the peak during the buster to level at one set all.

Foki forehand winner


Definitely wasn't expecting two tiebreakers nor what was to come. Usually in a best of 5 set matches there tends to be a slight dip in quality, a flat patch at some point which is understandable given the context. This was not the case here and we enter another tiebreaker. The unusual thing here is the quality of serving from FAA. Foki dropped an early point, and was unable to get it back after a miss hit from FAA landing on the corner of the baseline where Foki just misses the backhand.


After the match there was a great embrace at the net where it was played in the proper way. Both guys served over 65% first serve. The fact that FAA's serve held up under pressure which is what got him the win here. Foki had 2/9 break points where FAA had 2/5. Foki had his chances, but FAA peaked where it counted.

Daniel vs. Sir Andy Murray

The Taro Daniel show continues on with him playing Murray. Daniel played Murray once before in Davis Cup and got chopped badly, but this is a different time.

As anyone who has been following this blog knows there is some Taro Daniel appreciation and he has been playing very well this year. Murray after having the new hip and a huge week in Sydney, there were some questions about his physical state after a 5 set win in the first round.

This was a very different match for Daniel for two specific reasons. One he was not favourite and in essence was playing with the houses money. Two, while Murray maybe gassed he still has the experience and his style of game can throw people off.

Taro Daniel taking it all in

Daniel had settled into the match quickly. Serving well against one of the best returners and used his heavy forehand to move Murray around to expose the physical limitations. Once, Daniel managed serve out the first set convincingly, he settled down and stuck to the plan and was rewarded with another straight sets win.

For sure, I am delighted with the Taro Daniel result. Personally, you want to see good people having success, which is happening here. 2022 has been good so far. Qualified for the week 1 in Adelaide, defeated Musetti in 1st round without facing break point before losing a tough match to Tommy Paul. That has been built on here with 5 wins without dropping a set. Going to very tough in the next round against Jannik "The Prince" Sinner but whatever happens, the first time in a third round of a major is a fine achievement.

Day 2 : Sometimes maybe good, sometimes maybe shit

Day 2 was much busier than yesterday in the amount of tennis and as the Loaf would say 2 out of 3 ain't bad.

Thankfully all of the matches were on the same side of the complex, though walking to the other side is a good cardio exercise.


Bautista Agut vs. Travaglia

On paper this match looked like it would be a routine straight setter. Then tennis isn't played on paper, if it was just rankings based then the lower ones wouldn't turn up.

Bautigol started slowly, making an unusual amount of unforced errors due to perhaps some nerves and Travaglia was successfully going for broke. He served for the first set and was broken. RBA played a solid tiebreaker and took the set.

Bautista Agut

Bautigol settled into a bit of a groove and improved his level a bit, whereas Travaglia's dropped as the big shots weren't going in as previously, comfortably took the 2nd set.

Based on the above, you'd have believed RBA was going to win it easily. Travaglia raised his level, hitting more winners and took his chances to take the 3rd set. He was unable to sustain that level and Bautigol was there to take advantage to win in 4. Not the best performance but got the W, which is all that counts.


Sinner vs. Sousa

Was watching this match while waiting for the other ones to start.

This was a perfect 1st round match for Sinner as he got to hit a lot of balls but the result was never really in doubt here. As for Sousa, I don't think he will get back in the top 100, but there were some good signs..

Daniel vs. Barrios Vera

This was a qualifer vs. qualifier match. Daniel was the most impressive player in qualies whereas Barrios got through for the first time in Melbourne

The first set of this match was crucial. Both players weren't at their best. It's a big match for them and nerves played a part. Daniel was shanking a lot of forehands and Barrios was just getting the ball in for the most part, but hit some excellent volleys.

The turning point in this match was the 1st set tiebreaker. Barrios was up 5-1 and through a combination of passive play and more aggression from Daniel, the Japanese player was able to turn it around winning 7-5.

Once Daniel had won the breaker. He started serving better, hitting more freely which allowed him to hit more penetrating strokes to keep Barrios pinned behind the baseline.

Halfway through the 2nd set it was obvious that Barrios was gassed and there was little resistance in the last 2 sets, which Daniel took for the loss of 2 games. He plays Andy Murray in the next round, prepared to be junked around.

Davidovich Fokina vs. Bolt

This was a good draw for Foki as Bolt has been in very poor form. Even then Bolt will always get a wildcard as caudillo Lleyton Hewitt is a huge fan and what he says goes.

Davidovich Fokina

The only people who were cheering for Foki were his two coaches, myself and a couple of other people. There really isn't too much to say about this match. Conditions were cool and windy. Foki did enough to keep the crowd quiet and didn't have too many emotional foibles. He should have won in straight sets and he did. He's excited about the next match with Auger Aliassime, whereas today was get the win and get out .

Seppi vs. Majchrzak

This sums up the match perfectly.
Not a good performance from the King of South Tyrol and this maybe the last time we see him in Australia. Hopefully this is not the case, but time is the one thing we can't cheat and every generation has its own disease, which needs to be regenerated.

The cool conditions definitely didn't help Seppi at all, as he has a reasonably flat game the timing needs to be spot on. It was definitely off as there were errors flowing like Santa on speed at Christmas.

In addition the young Pole was swinging very hard and the shots were going in. There were some audacious winners and even the mis hits were landing in good positions..

In tennis just as in life, sometimes maybe good, sometimes maybe shit.

Main Draw Day 1: The Mailman delivers a win and Bublik brings the entertainment

Today was the first day of the main draw and the crowds were not as large as previous year, then the beer virus will do that. Of course there were some drunk bogans around, but it wouldn't be an Aussie sporting event without them.

Today there weren't as many matches on the card that interested me, but at this stage, there are always matches to watch. It's a question of interest and what courts aren't too full.


Martinez vs. Delbonis

Pedro Martinez who was previously coached by the great man Daniel Gimeno Traver who has now moved on to Bautista Agut. DGT did a great job with Martinez getting him to be more aggressive on the forehand, establishing himself in the top 100. Now, Gerry Granollers is working with him. Delbonis is predominately a clay courter, though he has had his moments on this surface.

Martinez started slowly through nerves as he was expected to win this easily. Delbonis was serving well initially and using his forehand to open up the court, going up a break. Martinez breaks back and gets it to a tiebreaker.

In the buster there was an incident where the ballkid collapsed on Martinez's set point. Both players stopped play, waiting with the ballkid to receive treatment before contnuing. Martinez takes the breaker 17-15.

Pedro Martinez


Martinez had a mental letdown, which Delbonis took advantage of and was able to take the 2nd set. During the set there was a medical timeout for Martinez, relating to a foot issue.

The match is at one set all, yet there was never really a feeling that Martinez was in trouble. Delbonis was having footfaultitis, providing too many opportunities to Martinez which he took to take a 2 sets to 1 lead.



In the 4th set Martinez was hitting some excellent groundstrokes, showing his superior hardcourt ability to take the match. He has a big chance against Garin in the next round.

Bublik vs. Escobedo

When in doubt about to watch, there is never a bad time to watch the unpredictable Bublik.

I got there during the 2nd set tiebreaker. Escobedo takes the 1st set. Bublik, he will never change, he had some great strokes and hilarious misses. He's difficult because of his unpredictabiity.

Once Bublik levelled at 1 set all, that was vital for the match. The Russian was able to relax, start playing more consistently, hitting big serves, with the drop shots. Bublik did a great drop shot and lob combination, which is one of the best things in the sport.

Bublik

After taking a 2 sets 1 lead. Bublik steps it up and Escobedo can't live with the heat. One of the enjoyable things about Bublik besides not knowing what you will get is the running commentary he provided. Normally it's in Russian and English, but this time mostly English and joking with the fans after hitting a huge winner.

Bublik closes out the match without too many issues. He's definitely one cat who doesn't like the heat, thankfully today was not too hot.

Observations

The nice Lopez aka Marc Lopez Tarres is loving life as a father. He's joined the Rafa Nadal Academy as a coach, which is good for him as he has an extra mouth to feed, we all need job security in addition Nadal respects him as an individual. Glad he has landed on his feet.

Roberto Bautista Agut was hitting with DGT today. Gimeno Traver hasn't played much, but he still hits a mean forehand. It's interesting watching them coach.

Marinko Matosevic is back on tour, he is working with Chris O'Connell. It's a definite contrast of characters there. O'Connell is one of the best people on tour, will be interesting to see what Matosevic can offer. He has always danced to his own tune, he's a vegan, living in Bali.

Matosevic


Ending the report on a positive note the Mailman John Millman gets his first win of the year over Feliciano "Pretty Boy" Lopez in 4 sets. Millman struggled mentally with Covid last year and the harsh restrictions of entry into Australia until recently. The Aussies and the South Americans are the ones who are away from home the longest time, but the South Americans could get home. Millman hasn't had a break or a pre season, but he delivered a win which is good for the sport.

Final Qualifying Round Musings

Apologies for the lack of reports, a combination of feeling average and a lack of sleep. So, decided not to write rubbish, well even more than usual. Now onto the fun stuff.

Final day of qualies where it's all on the line. The points and first round prizemoney covers the cost of the trip to Australia. It also helps with the finances that many players outside the top 100 struggle with as life on the Challenger tour is far fom glamorous.


Tabilo vs. E.Ymer

Elias Ymer when he makes the final round of qualies normally makes the main draw. Tabilo qualified here for a couple of years ago, played one of the best 1st round matches against Galan in a festive atmosphere. Both guys had got through to this stage, while not playing that well.

Conditions were a bit different than previous days. Even allowing for this, the scoreline was unexpected at best .

Alejandro Tabilo

Tabilo stepped up this level from the previous two matches. He doesn't have a massive serve but was moving it around to keep Ymer off balance when the rallies started.

Once Tabilo got the early break, he wasn't missing from the baseline and Ymer was making errors. Ymer did not try anything different, no balls down the middle to prevent the angle or a high forehands. If you're getting smoked, then try something different, there are days it will help and others it wont. Tabilo way too good.

Skatov vs. Elias

Came over to this match in the 2nd set. Skatov who was number 1 junior in the world and defeated Seppi for his first professional win. He has been training in Spain .

Elias had a very tough second round match over Varillas with plenty of extended rallies in hot conditions. Skatov definitely looked fresher, he played a very intelligent match and the big points well.

Skatov, you can tell he has been trained in the Spanish school. Mostly used a heavy kick serve to open the court up, using his forehand to push Elias behind the baseline where he was retreating and attacking the weaker backhand side.

Skatov

Unlike the Varillas match, the Elias backhand was being broken down and the slice wasn't as effective. Skatov was patient, going to the forehand at the right time to stretch Elias, then work him over. Deserved win for Skatov, as for his potential who knows. One thing I like the way he constructs points, there is a thought process there unlike some players who are "see ball, hit ball".

Daniel vs. Caruso

The man Taro Daniel who previously played 2 Italians without losing a set against Salvatore "Don't Call Me David" Caruso who had two long matches.

This match had a court change and missed the first few games. Daniel was a bit nervous, not striking the ball or serving well. Caruso is doing what Caruso does, he manages to get the early break.

Taro Daniel flying through to the main draw.

It's never really a break serve unless the player holds their next game. Daniel took his break chance to level up the scores. Once he managed that, he started to settle down and play like he has in the previous two matches. Daniel starts serving better which allows him to use his forehand to work Caruso over . The momentum has changed and Daniel takes the first set.

Caruso is starting the feel the cumulative fatigue from the previous matches. Daniel is playing aggressively working Caruso side to side. He is defending well when he needs to. Daniel finishes the job, qualifying for the main draw without losing a set.

Observations

During the 2nd round match of Elias Ymer and Martinez. In the final set tiebreaker where Elias up 7-0, younger brother Micke was celebrating the win. The physical trainer and myself told Micke, it's a champions tiebreaker here. Either he truly forgot or didn't know.

Gombos what an effort to qualify for the main draw. He definitely dances to his own tune, he's erratic. Capable of world class play mixed in with some rubbish. His 2nd round match with Olivo went to a 3rd set tiebreaker. In this case it's was Gombos being more proactive that got him win, whereas Olivo was too defensive.

Matt Ebden was the last remaining Aussie in the qualies. He and Gombos had a very long match with a contrast of styles. Ebden, doesn't have huge power or spin in his game. He gets by with a bit of craft, using changes of pace and moving to the net. It's a different style that not many are used to playing on the tour these days. Gombos winning in 3 sets after being inspired by the Slovak fans whereas Ebden was irritated by them.

Andrey Rublev really hates tennis balls from the way he smacks them. He and Carlos Alcaraz were having a contest to see who can hit the hardest. Coach Fernando Vicente hasn't given up smoking.

Rublev and Vicente

The Lleyton Hewitt stranglehold on Aussie tennis is still as strong as ever. Maxi Purcell is going to either have to make the top 100 or just play so well he can't be ignored. Interesting that his favourite Alex Bolt got a WC and he turned up to his training session with King of South Tyrol. Not even I stuck around for that.

Speaking of South Tyrol, watching the Prince hit with Auger-Aliassime was a pleasure. Sinner has a great attitude, knows when it's time to work and when to have fun. Sinner will be the Prince until Seppi retires, yes he could have won 4 majors and still be the prince. The next step for him is to go deeper in majors and have more wins against top 10 players.

Sinner Winner

In some bad news the great man Pablo Cuevas has withdrawn from the tournament due to catching Covid. He arrived on Wednesday, trained on Thursday and didn't train on Friday, then he released a video of him in quarantine. This time I don't expect 14 days of entertainment unlike last year. He looked and sounded awful.

Pablo Cuevas

I was going to do a preview but couldn't be bothered. All I know is most of the matches I want to see are on Tuesday. For those who are going to the event, just a note on the mask policy. No mask if you are sitting down, but walking between the courts and indoors then you need to wear a mask. On that note time to get ready for Monday, yes there's a big dark cloud but it will pass eventually.

To end on a positive the Kokk aka Thanasi Kokkinakis won his first ATP title in Adelaide. Winning your first ATP title would be a great moment, even more so when it's your hometown in front of friends and family.

The Kokk has had so many injuries and setbacks, but he has showed resilience and knows which people were there during the dark times. Kokkinakis instead of relying solely on wildcards, decided to play a full season on the Challenger tour last year.

The Kokk

Kokkinakis got stronger physically and was able to play a full season. It definitely helped the first two tournaments were in Adelaide. As for his ranking ceiling this will depend on his body. The tennis game was never in doubt, but the durability is. Let's hope no more injuries for the Kokk.

Day 2: It's Taro Daniel Day

Today was Taro Daniel day and the man did not disappoint, but more on that later. Thankfully the order of play was good enough for me to have a late start. There wasn't anything that needed me to be there at 10am, this plus I could wash my clothes because if I didn't, then they would start walking by themselves. Enough of the jibber jabber and onto individuals hitting round balls over a net in between a set of lines.


Giannesi vs. Heusler

This was an all leftie battle which aren't too commonplace and that has its own interest levels. The classic patterns they use especially on the ad side swinging the serve to the right handers backhand to open up the court, isn't as effective. On a sidenote the great man Pablo Cuevas is the only right hander to win a tournament defeating only left handers.

There was not much between the two players. In fact they played a very similar gamestyle. Pretty much the standard Challenger level, lots of long rallies and moving the ball around moreso waiting for the opponent to make a mistake instead of being proactive.

Marc Andrea Heusler

Unfortunately there was a controversial incident that had a negative influence on the match. There are automatic line calls at this event, whether this is right or wrong, it depends on your perspective.

Heusler had a break, lost it and then Giannessi broke to serve for the match at 5-3. At 30 all, Giannessi serves a clear let that anyone with functioning hearing would have heard. For some reason the let cord machine doesn't go off and Giannessi wins the point. Heusler is naturally very urined off, he gives the umpire a serve and they are unable to overrule the machine. It's a common thing seeing kick serves clearly over the net, yet being called. Needless to say Huseler couldn't behind him and Giannessi closes the match out. Technology is great when it works..

Kamke vs. Gaio

Just a few years ago Tobias Kamke was part of the best matches at the Aus Open with Dolgopolov in 5 sets. He has an excellent game for faster surfaces whereas Gaio is much better on the clay.

Kamke started off quickly with the double break as Gaio was unable to get into the match. Today, Kamke was stroking the ball with good timing and adjusted to the conditions better. There isn't really too much to say about this match. The better hardcourt player won the match. While Kamke played well, the highlight of the match was the presence of the great man Franky Moser.

Daniel vs. Arnaboldi

Daniel had a good week in Adelaide, qualifying for main draw defeating Musetti before losing to Tommy Paul. Arnaboldi is another Italian leftie , not that they play in a similar way but I am always reminded of Alessi "Too Good" di Mauro.

Taro Daniel

Court 15 is right in the back of the complex, which is a great thing. As today was warm, the court was a bit lively and this help Daniel on serve. He was serving well, hitting spots and not being under pressure at all.

Daniel was able to put pressure on Arnaboldi's service games through his heavy forehand dominating and not making errors from the backhand side. Eventually Arnaboldi's serve was broken and continually on the defensive where he had a few good moments but in reality he got bullied around by Daniel .

This was an excellent straight sets win by Daniel. He did everything well, yes including making some volleys. Definitely went for the serve more, got some pace and positioning, once he got the short replies was able to put the Italian on the run with the forehand. If he plays like that, Daniel will easily qualify for the main draw.


Random

Blaz Rola murdered his match against Caruso. He only converted 2/14 break points, had multiple match points in the 3rd but unable to convert through a mixture of passive play and well played points by Caruso. The final set advantage should be played, but the champions tiebreak is the least shit version.

Shout out to Andres "Gringo" Schneiter he is an underrated coach for sure. He did excellent work with Christian Garin who hasn't improved since he left and Londero who has gone backwards after their collaboration ended. Gringo has no issue working with 2 players at the same time.

Now, he is working with Federico Coria who reached his best ranking. Before, he could win at Challenget level, but once he stepped up to tour level he was a walking bye. For sure Coria is best on clay, through Gringo he managed to get him to be more aggressive where has improved their results.’

Gringo Schneiter

Just as I leaving the grounds Matt Ebden was praxctising just after he finished his match. He was very unimpressed with the performance and he won. Ebden is definitely a different cat, makes things interesting. He's playing doubles with Max Purcell if they had a team name it would be the Pariahs, that or the not Lleyton Hewitts.

On that note that's enough for Taro Daniel Day.”

Day 1 Qualies : Here We Go Again

Yes, it's that time of year when this quirky blog actually has some action. I thank the very niche audience who reads this stuff. For sure there was some tennis news relating to anti vaxxer, idiotic government and an organisation who are sketchy at best. My only comment on that subject is, once you get the money, you get the power and that helps.

Ok, enough of the shit and onto the important matters. Today was the first day of the Aus Open qualifying event, which is my favourite day of the event. You get a mix of the hardcore fans who give a shit about the game, the professional gamblers, the wannabes, friends and support staff of the players. It's so peaceful and will be a huge contrast compared to next Monday, so got to enjoy when I can.

F. Cerundolo vs. Cachin

The all Argentine battle was played in good spirit. Cachin is your standard Challenger player, fights hard, no real huge weapons, makes you work hard to beat him and his level doesn't deviate too much.

The Cerundolos are known in the Argentine tennis community, sure they aren't ubiquitous like the Ingebritsens. Francisco is the elder brother who plays totally different from his higher ranked younger brother.

Unfortunately today it was more of the bad side. He was easily the more talented and aggressive player with what he can do with the ball. Took a hard fought first set, but then lost his concentration making a lot of cheap errors to allow Cachin back in the match. Cachin took the 2nd set and maintained his level, unlike Cerundolo who was getting irriated with his own play going for big shots when he hadn't earned the right.

Cachin was solid and played to his strengths and deserved the win today.

Varillas vs. Uchiyama

This wasn't a bad match and on court 5 which was built around trees. It's good for fans but the court services are forever cleaning up the leaves.

Juan Pablo Varillas

Varillas is the lone Peruvian player in the top 200. Peru needs a successor to the great Luis Horna, Varillas like Horna is coached by an Argentine Diego Junqueira who back in the day was very good at Challenger level but couldn't win on tour.

Uchiyama was fighting hard as Varillas was using his heavy forehand to open the couer to dominate the match and stretch Uchiyama. It was a close match on the scoreboard but there was that feeling that Varillas was never losing this match. I do hope he can make the main draw.

E.Ymer vs. Kovalik

This was played in the new Kia Arena. This is not a bad court but definitely there was a lack of air today. Hope it's not a factor when the huge crowds arrive next week, then again I don't see the main courts very often.

The eldest of three Ymer brothers is a veteran of Grand Slam qualies. If he makes the final round, then he makes main draw. When I arrived at the match he was making a lot of errors on the forehand side. Kovalik wasn't doing too much but enough to have a break.

Elias Ymer

Ymer breaks back in the 1st set to level it up and starts to tighten up his game with less errors. After he takes the 1st set, then Ymer settles down and starts to play better. Kovalik is struggling with the low balls on the forehand side and is handing out the errors like Santa on LSD at Christmas time. Ymer keeps playing that side and Kovalik smashes his racquet.

Ymer isn't the most dynamic player but you know that he will grind and he did that to Kovalik.

Marchenko vs. Watanuki

Tennis's favourite Youtuber Ilya Marchenko I hadn't seen him play live for years against the young Japanese.

Marchenko


Marchenko lost the opening service game, well that will happen when you miss every first serve. Watanuki he isn't very tall but has an excellent serve which he used very well in this match, hitting high 190s consistently. Marchenko had a lot of break chances in the 1st set but Watanuki for the most part was able to play an excellent serve to get him out of trouble and take it.

In the second set Marchenko started serving better and had a bit more pop on the groundies. Watanuki was serving well and using the forehand to push Marchenko around. Games were going on serve and then Marchenko takes the 2nd set 6-4 after Watanuki double faulted.

Marchenko was not able to take the momentum from taking the 2nd. He served poorly and was looking gassed as Watanuki kept up his high level of play to run out an easy winner in the 3rd set. After the 3 setter Watanuki asked for some of the match balls as he didn't have enough practice.

Comment Of The Day

Max Purcell wins the day with the best comment about not getting a wildcard into the Aus Open. Credit to Mark McGowan for this.

“I actually was told I’d know on Thursday,” Purcell explained. “[Then] I’m hearing whispers in the Australian locker room from Lleyton saying something to [Australia coach Jaymon Crabb].

“Then, at like 11pm, I messaged Wally [Masur, Tennis Australia performance director] saying, ‘Mate, I’ve got three hours to pull out of [the Sydney Tennis Classic], otherwise I’ll be stuck playing Sydney instead of quallies – what’s going on?’

Hewitt vs. Purcell

“He’s like, ‘Oh, no, Lleyton was supposed to tell you. I wasn’t supposed to tell you. I told him to tell you considering he was the one who didn’t want you to have it’.

“So, I didn’t end up finding out until 11pm Thursday, because I guess he didn’t have the balls to tell me in person.”

Tomorrow is Taro Daniel day.