Gaston Gaudio returns to the winner circle in Tunis

This is an interesting entry, because personally I didn't think that I would be writing something like this after a short period of time. Gaston Gaudio returned to the winners circle for the first time in 4 years, by winning the Tunis Challenger, which is one of the larger Challenger events in terms of ranking points. He defeated Frederico "Gilberto" Gil in the final, who is top 100 now and has been in good form all season. The toughest match of the week was the second rounder against "How Now" Björn Phau where he was down 3-1 and 4-2 in the 3rd set, but luckily was able to break at will and then served it out.

Once he got through that, the weight on the shoulders seemed to be lifted, as he made cassoulet out of Sidorenko for the loss of 2 games in the quarter finals. He played a very solid match, good serving, not much short stuff when it came to length and controlled everything. The semi with Nieminen he continued with the good form, though it was very disappointing that Nieminen had a major problem with the wrist. The readers and myself wish him a speedy recovery, as he is one of the nicest guys on the circuit, a fair sportsman and generally a decent individual.

The final, well like many matches, there were a few key moments and the main two involved Gaudio service games. The first service game of the match, went to a few deuces, and Gaudio had to save break points, once he did that, he was able to settle down into his rhythm and then break Gil straight away and played quality clay tennis with good length, using the angles to get Gil moving and then hitting winners with the backhand. The second set Gil stepped it up and Gaudio had a lapse of concentration and was punished for it, and Gil took the set easy, while Gaudio was preparing for the 3rd set.

Both guys played clownish service games at the start, both served 2 double faults in their games for 1-1, then Gaudio held a big game to take a 2-1 lead saving 4 break points, one with an ace and another dropshot. Gaudio fixed the serving problems to an extent, was able to place it better and then take a more offensive position on the baseline to limit Gil's aggression, but Gil was fighting hard and trying to be more aggressive. The vital break came at 4-3, it was combination of some poor play from Gil and quality groundies from Gaudio lead to the break. Gaston doesn't have a great record in serving out matches, but after going down 0-30 and was able to do it after the 2nd match point, to surprisingly win this event.

What to make of this result. Well, Gaudio has played a few events already with the benefit of wildcards. Interestingly enough this was his first challenger event and he won it, this is the path that he should have taken originally, apart from the Buenos Aires event. Got to play matches to get the match practice and it's easier to achieve this at Challenger level than on the main tour, at the same time playing on the main tour, he had some good performances considering where he came from and this was able to give an indication of where he was at. Winning this challenger, should give him greater confidence and hopefully the organisers will give the man a wildcard to Roland Garros and he can keep doing well in the events leading into Paris, where he can hopefully win a match.

Interesting twist that his great rival Guillermo Coria retired from tennis in the last week, he hasn't been the same since 2005 and Gaudio won an event, I wonder if this helped him, that is unless the individual believes in conspiracy theories.

Lionel Messi, Gaudi Barcelona Preview and hopefully fan reports from the venue

This week we move to one of my favourite events on the calendar the Godo Barcelona Open. Sure Tiriac the mafia don managed to get a TMS for Madrid, more on that later, but this event is held in the spiritual home of Spanish tennis in Barcelona, so many players learned their craft at this club and many great winners of the event. It’s a tennis club and not a multi purpose venue and for people calling for Nadal to remove this from his schedule, are pissing in the wind, the conditions are favourable, he feels at home there and it also helps his preparation for RG domination.

Now onto to the event itself, the Bye continues his strong work ethic and is enjoying life on La Rambla. The qualifying field was quite strong this time. The warrior Lapentti coming through qualifying for Monte Carlo losing on Friday, then playing qualies here, knocked out Cuevas in 3 sets of course, running away with the last one 6-0. Pere Riba takes out Massu 4 and 4, he must have had a good serving day. Daniel Gimeno-Traver been taken to 3 sets by Bohli, not so good, but the result counts. Kuku the Kazak is back again and hope he makes the MD.

No need to comment too much more on Nadal as he will win the event. Onto the other matches, this will be done on order of the draw down. Gasquet is allegedly playing this event and he got a very kind section playing Hernych with his flat game and the only way Chris Rochus or Devilder would beat him, if Gasquet is injured or he withdraws. Richie getting another pummelling on clay from Rafa, not sure what it would to do the psyche of Mozart.

Next section is the one with el cabezon Almagro, Ferrero and Nalbandian, there are some potential good matches here. Almagro needs to lift his game and Hanescu isn't the best or worst match for him, then Chela or ballbashing Bellucci in the next round. Bellucci sometimes should take a bit of pace off the shots now and then, he will get short replies and then work from there. Ferrero playing Kunitsyn is good 1st rounder for him, then with Nalle anything can happen. He might turn up to play or not give a shit.

Davydenko doesn't have a great record here, but he showed some good signs in his comeback match and potentially a Cañas match would be good for him, as he will get to hit plenty of shots and gain his groove, as he loves playing events to get him into his rhythm. Willy has been average of late, but at least he won 2 matches in a row in Houston and Clement is far from the worst draw. Speaking of poor form the friendly Finn Nieminen needs to get back on track and playing LaLo on clay is always a good place to do it. Hope he gets heckled because he is a cat who deserves heckling all the time.

Gaudio got a WC to the main draw, they haven't forgotten that great display of tennis in 2002 where he was on fire and won the event, then the final in 2004, where he lost to Boredo in very dodgy circumstances. History might repeat itself, because Gaston got Junquiera in the 1st round, who is very beatable, but at the same time Gaston not playing matches and getting proper match conditioning won't help at all. It would be fun if he won, then I wonder if Robredo would feel the need to make a medical timeout for a massage when serving for a match. Tommy, one of the last people to criticise anyone for sportsmanship.

Seppi who is having a poor year playing big Andreev, who he doesn't have a great record against. Acasuso is having some back issues, but has played well here before, playing Sela on clay should be the right match for him, then playing Gonzo who is a bit cold on the clay, might give him some momentum, though he matches up poorly there.

Berdych (who will be the subject of a write up next week) is still his inconsistent self, he could easily thrash Vassallo Arguello or lose handily as Martin has improved in the last 2 seasons and had a good week in Monte Carlo, saving match points against Andreev, then serving for the match against Wawrinka. What ifs are just that, but Vassallo Arguello in a TMS semi would be interesting to say the least.

The King and Schwank will get the pulses ready for the ladies of Barcelona. Oscar needs to perform well in front of his friends and family and this is a good chance for him against Schwank whose form and confidence have gone quicker than free vodka shots. He has some points to defend as well, but that doesn't matter so much, if the mental side of things aren't right and they can be in many different guises, then it's going to impact on their play.

To finish up Pico Monaco playing former champ Safin in the first round on paper looks like the match of the round, things don't always work out like that and it would be good for Monaco to take out Mr.Wildcard.

Monte Carlo the beginning of the destruction by Nadal ( Possible fan reports)

Yes, it's that time of year again, which used to be so fun, but is not the case anymore for a multitude of reasons, which will be explained later or maybe explanation isn't the right word. I wasn't sure whether to do a preview of Monte Carlo or not, mainly because we already know the winner of the event, so this will mean that other possibilities have to be found before the ending which will be more predictable than a Hollywood movie.

The clay season only exists in name, because the utter and total domination by Nadal has rendered it almost useless. He is so far ahead of everyone else at the moment, it's not funny. Yes, it has helped that any potential competition for him Kuerten, Ferrero, Coria, Gaudio have all disappeared, when you have Ferrero who won his first tournament since 2003 in Casachallenger last week, it doesn't say much. Then you have guys Andreev who has the game, but not the execution, Almagro seems to have stagnated and worships Nadal, no chance there. Ferrer is brave, but not at his top level. Del Potro just a hardcourter who can play on clay, but when it gets tough, he will go missing. In fact Berdych just has much chance as the others and that isn't saying so much. Should they just not turn up to the event, well of course not, but it doesn't look good.

Decline will set in, but the question is when. Considering that art of claycourt tennis isn't really around anymore, due to the homogenisation of surface speeds, that players are able to play their hardcourt games on clay for the most part. To see that Federer has been the second best player for years on clay highlights how the game has changed on clay and not for the better either. Yes, without a doubt for an attacking player he is good on the surface this is clear enough, but his backhand just gets worked over and over by Nadal and it breaks like an egg when you make an omelette, the previous generation of guys hit heavy off both sides and Federer wouldn't be getting anything under shoulder high from guys like Bruguera, Corretja. The game has changed and has been taken advantage of, but numbers can only reveal so much.

Onto Federer, it was very poor form for him to take a WC here. He should just have committed to the event, then again he must have got some good money and also thinking about the possibility of ranking points as well, that he would lose. It's time for him to focus on winning Slams, if he gets the number 1 ranking back great, if not, then no less. play well and win then the ranking looks after itself. Lucky, I am not the Tournament Director, he'd have got a wildcard into the qualies only.

Now the event itself. The King will be first on court and the Monegasque ladies, might forget about walking their poodles and hanging out with the George Hamilton types with the huge suntan and the grey hair. Nico Lapentti qualified and always good to see the Ecuadorian still around the tour and he plays sexy Stepanek, there will be many slices, dropshots and court craft on show there. Seppi will need to be on his best game against Melzer, both aren't in great form, but the South Tyrolean legend needs some wins and if he does I get to see him play Federer on TV, though he must be sick of seeing him on the other side of the net, would love it if he won, but dreams are free.

As for the hopes of this event, at least some interesting early round matches, because last years clay season, especially with the events that Nadal played were more painful than root canal surgery without anaesthetic.

Andreas Vinciguerra making a comeback to the tour. The King hands down a royal beatdown

Time for another entry, it has been too long in coming, some of this news maybe already known and some of it not, so just read what you think is relevant. In other words, it could read as some random comments, but here goes.

Thanks to everyone who read the Peter Luczak interview, it was great to read the comments and it was very much appreciated. It was a great interview to do and hopefully I can get some more subjects during the year, though I don't expect them to all go like that. On the Luczak front, he and his wife Catarina welcomed their second child, so now Seb has a sister. He will now return t the tour in France next week and is 2nd alternate in Athens the week after. He was just getting some match practice as well before the break, but some things are more important than ranking points.

Lucho Horna another blogger favourite, finally won 2 matches in a row for the first time this year in Barletta. He has had a difficult time since coming back from his injury problems, it's the old classic chicken and the egg. A player needs to play and win matches to get confidence, but losing early, then can ebb away at the confidence, it only needs a good result somewhere and that can do wonders for the mental state. Horna is in a strange position, where last season he had great success in the doubles, while this is good, he considers himself a singles player and his results in singles were spasmodic at best. He did his usual beat a top 10 player routine, he has an excellent record when playing top 10 players, but hasn't been able to consolidate on it. He does have a lot of injury problems, not say like Massa or Russell for example, but more the annoying ones that keep him out for a month at a time, and don't allow any momentum to build up. When a guy like Bobby Reynolds is in the top 100, then Horna should be there.

Speaking of Americans. Michael Russell made a good move in playing the qualies of Indian Wells and Miami, even better that he made the main draw of both. He has played well in Indian Wells in the past, there is a bit of altitude, but it's far from quick. He won his 1st match and then lost to Tursunov in three which was a bit disappointing, nothing against Tursunov. It's that he would have played Nadal and it would have given me a reason to watch a Nadal match, not that the result matters. Russ took out Lurch Hanescu in Miami and now plays the "panther" Monfils, they had a tight one a few years ago at the US Open, anything can happen in a Monfils match. Russell has to concentrate on the ball and not the Monfils shenanigans. All small steps so

Miami had some interesting results last night, which is good for the game, considering the clay season coming up, which will be even more obvious that sun rises in the east, that as long as Nadal is breathing, he is going to be dominating the clay season, which renders it almost useless except for the events he isn't playing, but that's another entry.


Best result of Miami was "King Oscar" Hernandez defeating Ljubicic 6-4 6-4, the Latino community appreciate the King, he makes Tony Montana look like a block of wood when it comes to the charisma department. There have been no reports of Oscar saying to Ljubo "you are so bad", though there would be some nutty Croatians, who want to nail Ljubo's balls to a wall, of course they forget that he carried Croatia to a Davis Cup win, something Argentina hasn't been able to do as of yet.

Gaston Gaudio who has a place in Miami decided to play qualies and lost after having a match point against Korolev. He has been playing quite well since his comeback, though he hasn't been getting the results. He used to serve a few foot faults, but the problem does seem to be quite entrenched, sure he could move back from the line a few centimetres. It's not like he is going to get a great advantage with the serve, though Gaston dances to his own tune and this is not a bad thing at times. He has got a wildcard for Houston qualies, he should be grinding out in the challengers trying to get match practice that way, getting a WC and not winning matches results in 0 pointers, at the same time he can save his protected ranking. I would love to see him at Roland Garros, but there needs to be some significant improvement.

To finish, there is an update on Andreas Vinciguerra and it's good news. It was a big surprise that Wilander called him up for Davis Cup in Malmö after not playing for 2 years due to various knee problems. Sadly for him he lost both of his matches in 5 sets against Sela and Levy, the fact he got so close after so long out, says a lot about his ability, though the lack of matches cost him in this situation. A player can have all of the off court training, but that doesn't replicate playing matches. He is in good spirits and is going to play some Challengers shortly, just hope his body can hold up. He has a protected ranking and will use this for some of the events, of course he has a guaranteed wild card to Båstad, as long as he is fit enough to play, this is the key, the ability is still there.

Peter Luczak Interview Part 3

This is the final part of the interview that addresses issues in the current game, it was a pleasure to do this interview.

What do you think about the length of season? They have been talking for years about reducing the season, but nothing has changed in this regard. What steps can they take to fix the calendar?

This is bit of a tricky one. If you would have asked me the same question 8 years ago when I first started playing on the tour I would have answered it very differently. The only thing I wanted to do back then was play tournies and I'd be upset if there wasn't one on in a particular week. But now being a bit older the body getting a few injuries from all the pounding over the years and having a family I wish I could see more changes my view. I'd love it if we got bit more of an off season, that one month in December doesn't really cut it especially when you are training through it trying to get ready for the Aussie summer.

I'd love it if the season would be shortened to maybe 9 months, but how do you do that. Do you just cram all the tournies into that time period, or do you cancel 1/4 of the tournies. I know they have been talking about making the season shorter but the question is how you do it. Maybe you just gradually do it over many years. I know the Oz Open started a week later this year, maybe you just push it back one week every year and cut one week off at the end of the year for the next few years. But doing that is screws up other things. Like the Aussie would no longer be played during our holidays. Maybe less people and definitely less kids would be able to come out and watch. How do you fit all the tour events and DC in a 9 month period etc. So as nice as it sounds it would be a pretty difficult thing to do. In the end the players choose how long or short they make their season. But I think I could crap on about this question for a long time.

You were a vocal critic of the flawed Round Robin concept. It seems the ATP aren’t looking out for or listening to the interests of the players, and working more so for the tournament directors. What’s your take on it?

Round Robin was rubbish, it wasn’t a fair system. They said it was meant to be for the fans. I mean you win, you progress, you lose, and you go home, what is simpler than that. It makes little sense that you lose 2 matches and have a chance of still being in. They realised it wasn’t working and had to be scrapped.

Currently with the Council having the big 3 on there, they have more of a say than in the past. Problem is that a lot of the guys didn’t know that you could approach a Council member, if they are unhappy with any issue. In theory the Council should raise the issue at the next meetings, and then they can decide on whether to vote on the change or leave as it is.

Willy Cañas said “The ATP practices discrimination from an economic standpoint, like any multinational corporation. It’s just another of millions that there are in the world. Point being that I accept it, but I'm not buying into it that it is a group of players that decide (players union) because it isn't like that”. Do you believe that Willy is correct on this particular issue?

Yes, I agree to an extent. The tournament directors (TD’s) and the players are in conflict. An example of this was that the players voted for players that have come back from a drug ban, shouldn’t be awarded wild cards on the comeback, but the tournament directors didn’t want that and then the deciding vote went in favour of the tournament directors.

The TD’s are worried about putting on a show and it’s a business for them, they have a different agenda, no tournament = no players, no players = no tournaments. The TD’s had too much power and it was important that the ATP won the lawsuit against Hamburg, we should be attempting to work together. At the moment there is too much conflict between the two groups, who are standing off against each other and I am unsure of how to fix it.

What’s your view of the new Entry Ranking system? It does not seem to be universally popular, but as they have to complete the 2009 season with this system. Is it possible to return to the old system in 2010?

They could go back to the old system, but the year has to be completed first. The ATP tried to make it simpler, but they have given too many points for the winner and the finalist relative to the other positions. The Top 50 will be harder to crack and with the greater weighting towards the winner and finalist, it penalises the consistent performer who makes a lot of quarter final appearances.

The players that did well early in the year are disadvantaged and it’s almost impossible to defend their points from 2008. An IS win was 175, once this is doubled it becomes 350 that has to be defended and to win an IS event this year the most that can be had is 250, therefore losing 100 points.

The ATP has not increased the points for the challengers to the same level for a 50k Challenger it has gone from 50 to 75. The TMS events have increased from 500 to 1000 and the Grand Slam from 1000 to 2000 points. It was easier to pad the ranking in challengers like Lu or (Marcos Daniel), but you should be rewarded for doing well in the big events.

Do you think the ATP are doing a good job in trying to combat match fixing or is it just for show, because the players that have been suspended for betting, have been lower ranked and bet minimal amounts for the most part?

I'm really not sure if the ATP are doing a good or bad job. I think the difficult part is trying to catch and prove these guys are betting. The guys tanking and betting large amounts are not stupid and there is no way they would have any accounts linked to their name. So what can you do and the guys that were suspended were silly enough to not only bet on tennis in the first place but have an account in their name.

What are your short term goals for 2009, professionally and personally?

Make the main draw at Wimbledon, get back in the top 100 and stay healthy.

Now we’re at the end of the interview.

Word Association or 2 words in some cases.

Lleyton Hewitt – Competitive
Collingwood (Aussie Football Team) - Annoying
The ATP – Love Tennis
Båstad – Favourite event
Grasscourt tennis – Enjoyable, but difficult
Clay – Claydogs, grinding
Kevin Rudd (Aussie PM) - Champion
Borscht - Shocking

This is the end of the interview and people might have worked out, the stuff in brackets is what I have added and aren't Peter's words.

Peter Luczak Interview Part 2

Talking about injuries and Australian tennis.

How much of a setback was the stress fracture of the pelvis last year? You were ranked in the top 100 at the time and were unable to build upon your ranking during the clay season?

It was frustrating, as I worked hard, playing Challengers and was ranked between 70-80 and the start of 2008, made all the main draws of the clay events. I knew I wasn’t at 100 percent, but I kept playing and I didn’t know what it was. I had no clue and kept struggling with it, poor movement for 3-4 months, some days it was good and other days it was terrible, then it was all terrible. Then after losing to Melzer in the 1st round of Roland Garros, I had CTC scans, MRI scans, x-rays, they picked up that it was a stress fracture of the pelvis. Not knowing what the problem was after all that time, I was glad to find out and did the upper body rehabilitation.

During the enforced time away from the tour, what did you do to fill in the time?

I spent the time with the family, doing rehab. It was such a relief after a year to be pain free. It gradually got better after 3 and bit months. Hopefully it’s fine now and being able to play, compete, takes the pressure off whether I win or lose, it’s much better than being at home injured.

Did you come back too soon from injury to help Australia in the Davis Cup tie playoff?

No, I hadn’t played for 4 months. I had 10 days there in Chile with training 3 hours a day, great food, great hotel, being with the Aussie team. It was the perfect preparation.

Who are your best friends on tour?

The Gooch (Chris Guccione), Shannon Nettle, my former coach and still fishing companion, Stephen Huss, Ashley Fisher and Lleyton Hewitt, most of the Aussie guys.

Since we have some ladies, who read this blog. Can you tell us how you met your wife Catarina?

She was working at the ATP event in Munich, doing the accreditation and at the practice court desk. I saw her daily and thought she was hot. A group of 7 including Wayne Arthurs, Jordan Kerr and Graydon Oliver, went out after we lost. I went up to her and had a crack and she knocked me back. She just thought I was like some of the other players, that wanted to have fun for the evening and then that’s it. Somehow I got her phone number and we just texted on and off for a few months. We met again at Kitzbühel, where she was working again. We met for lunch and dinner, then for the next four days we were hanging out. At the end of the week she asks “Does this mean we are going out”. I just answered, “Yeah, ok”. I was 26 at the time, it was my first serious girlfriend, it happened so fast, 3 months later she was pregnant, and it got very serious. My parents were shocked at first, being my first serious girlfriend and all. Mum was worried at first, but once she met Cat, then all was fine and our families get along very well.

How do you enjoy living in Sweden and how are your Swedish language skills these days?

I like it, the people are great. They have a similar sense of humour to the Aussies and are great to get along with. For now it’s a base, but once I finish with tennis, then we will return to Australia. My Swedish is terrible, 6 months ago when I was injured I was doing an intensive course and making some good progress, but the problem is the Swedes speak excellent English, making it harder to learn the language.

I know you are a big AFL fan (the Dons). What did you think of the Aussies qualifying for the World Cup in Germany? If the World Cup bid is successful how good would it be for football in this country?

I had pneumonia during the World Cup in 2006 and was Sebby (Sebastien) was born 2 weeks earlier. So I was on the couch enjoying the tournament, with my Aussie flag, going crazy, and fist pumping when the Aussies defeated Japan 3-1. I was gutted after the Italian match, going out like that, but the tournament was great.

It would be possible for Australia to hold the World Cup and it would be great for the country if it happens.

How would you explain the lack of current depth in Aussie tennis?

It’s cyclical. 15 years ago there were plenty of Aussies in the top 100, now we don’t have any male in the top 100. South America wasn’t so strong then. France and Spain have good programs. There are 20 money events in France all year round and there are many Futures events in Spain, that they must be able to produce some players.

What’s your view on Tomic. Do you think the media are putting too much pressure and expectations on him?

A bit, but he is handling it well. He enjoys the hype and the press. He easily was the most popular player in Burnie. He has a good temperament, but there is a long way to go, he is going in the right direction.

How much do you value Davis Cup? When you went to Argentina in 2002 as a hitting partner who was that for?

Davis Cup, then followed by the Slams. I would love to play in an Olympics one day. There was a mistake where it said I was the hitting partner for the Argentines, but it was for Australia.

Do you think it’s fundamentally wrong to give ranking points for Davis Cup?

The Aussies have always played it (The Poo has been indifferent), it’s natural. If you don’t have enough passion to play, then it’s ridiculous to have points for Davis Cup to motivate them to play. Guys like Nieminen can’t get points because of his nationality and a Spanish player ranked around 50 because of their depth, he isn’t likely to play Davis Cup and can’t get points.

Peter Luczak Interview Part 1

Recently I conducted an extensive interview with Peter Luczak, the clay loving Australian born in Poland, who came to Australia at a very young age via Sweden. He is known for his work ethic, down to earth manner and since this interview is comprehensive, it will be broken into different sections to make it easier reading.

First of all I have to thank Peter for taking time out to answer these questions and also I hope the readers will get a better insight as to what goes on at the lower end of the tour and other factors not just what happens on the court.

A sidenote, as I am lazy, usually when I do a tournament entry, I have all the discussion in that one post, as I can't be bothered updating.

This section will deal with the early parts of Peter's life and tennis career.

How and when did you get into tennis?

I started playing tennis at around 5 or 6 years old, Ola my older sister played, we rode our bikes down to the club after school, they weren’t the greatest bikes, but whoever won got to ride the better bike. In addition to that we used to play on en-tout-cas ( a surface similar to clay, but cheaper), whoever lost had to sweep the whole court and lines after the match, instead of just doing your side of the court, initially it was me that sweeping the court and riding the worse bike home.

My uncle and father didn’t play the game in Poland, they played football and volleyball, as tennis was not a big game in Poland when they were children, but they played as well.

What were your memories of growing up in Melbourne, before you left for the USA ?

It was a normal childhood. I used to hang out with the guys, go to the horse races, watching the football (Australian football), went to the parties, but didn’t drink as I usually had tennis the next day and I always wanted to play the game. I wasn’t a childhood prodigy like Bernard Tomic, I used to have group lessons, mixed in with some private lessons before and after school. Then at the age of 18 there was drastic improvement and once I left school, I wanted to play tennis.

How did playing on the US college circuit help you as a player and as a person ?

My dad said that I should continue going to school and he didn’t have the money to support my career. So a tennis scholarship in the USA was perfect, getting an education and also developing my tennis without the financial burden. I had 3 offers, but chose Fresno, mainly because of an Aussie coach there called Michael Hegarty a Mount Waverley boy, which wasn’t far from me in Melbourne. He talked it up and was very convincing in getting me there.

When I got there it rained 10 days in a row, when on average it rained only 5 days a year in Fresno. I called home and said get me out of here, what’s going on, but I was very happy to have stayed on. It was a great experience, the units, the courts, gym was a 50m walk to all of the facilities. The team environment helped my overall development, it wasn’t just tennis, tennis, tennis, and there was a good social life, in addition to doing uni work. Yes, I was focused on tennis, but had other distractions, which were positive.

The college coach was great tactically, though he didn’t do much technically to my game. He made you feel good about yourself, worked very hard with brutal training sessions and he instilled the brutal training and hard work in me that continues today.

How were the early years of being on the ATP tour and did you have doubts that you’d be able to make it?

The final exams, I left with a smile on my face that lasted 3 days. It was a mixture of excitement, high confidence level and I thought it was just normal, competing, traveling and getting ready for the experience.

24 hour Greyhound bus rides, as I was not a rich kid at all. There were a group of 7 of us in a basement of a house, 2 beds, 1 couch, and the rest slept on the floor. Before the tournament we would play games of cards or chess to decide who would get a bed, once you lost your singles match, and then you were on the floor. I got the nickname of “Lucky Looch” and “Diablo” because I was always winning these games and getting the bed. One of the guys traveled with a stringer, so he was able to do all of our racquets. When it came to food, there were the 29c McDonalds burgers, I would have 5 of them in one sitting, eating 2 minute noodles and the free player lunch.


What are your favourite tournaments?

Båstad, Kitzbühel and the Australian Open.

What’s your worst hotel experience?

In Fes, Morocco. It was a single room, no window, dirty towels, cobwebs, TV didn’t work. 10 out of 32 players got food poisoning, it was a terrible week, but I won the tournament.


What are the best and worst ever matches you have played?


Hopefully the best ones are still to come, the ones in the past are hard to remember. But here are two of them. Playing Oli Rochus in Melbourne. I got a standing ovation from the crowd and I had goose bumps, looking up at the crowd singing the national anthem and Waltzing Matilda. Also in Melbourne 2005 when I took Thomas Johansson to 5 sets, I had psycho fitness levels, doing runs on the sand dunes, stair runs and there is a trail in Melbourne called the Kokoda trail. That year I was not going to lose a match because of fitness.

The worst was playing the Srich (Srichaphan) at Monte Carlo, before that I played my match against Michael Llodra, during the warm up, we were hitting serves, I lost concentration and hit him in the ear with a serve, and he was daydreaming. At 1-1 in the 1st set he retired as he lost his balance and I got booed off the court.

I totally choked against the Srich. It was my first big tournament and I thought I am going to beat the number 12 in the world. I couldn’t get a first serve in at 5-4 when serving for the match. I tried only to hit kick serves and served 4 double faults in the game, yet still held match point. It was very difficult to get over it, for the next few months I had flashbacks to that memory, we’ve all had experiences like that, such a tough mental experience.

You’re the Lone Ranger in the context of being an Aussie, which has clay as his favourite surface, which is the domain of the Spanish and South Americans. How do you get along with those guys and do you think there is a mutual respect for you going to play there on their surface?

For sure I have a huge respect for those guys but I can't talk for them but hopefully they respect me as well. I love the way they compete and give it there all on the court but still at the end of the day can look their opponent in the eye, shake hands and have a beer and a bite to eat.

The Return of Gaston Gaudio to Buenos Aires

Here we are, this is a tournament preview and yes there are plenty of mentions of the Gaudio, so either it could be very invigorating or tepid depending on the viewpoint.

Now the Latin American swing is heating up with the best two tournaments in Buenos Aires and Acapulco coming up next week. These are the events with the best fields and unlike Costa da Sauipe, there will be people in the stadium and give the place some atmosphere.

This leads to the biggest moment of the week the return of Gaston Gaudio to the Buenos Aires Lawn Tennis Club, this is the definite highlight of the week, well this and King Oscar at the event as well. Gaudio has had a tough time recently, he had some injury problems with the ankle, but a bigger factor was that he was mentally burnt out and this impacted on his tennis. It's not difficult to fathom that if you are unhappy in your place of work or have other distractions, then it's going to impact in other areas, it was a good thing that Gaudio took a break from the game, had fun, played poker, went skiing.

The crowd reaction will be interesting, as he has been able to bring out the extreme reactions of his countrymen. After the Malaga Davis Cup fiasco, he was booed, jeered and heckled, then after he came from nowhere and won Roland Garros, he was feted and embraced as hero. The circle is almost complete, he got booed off the court when he played poorly against Ramirez-Hidalgo. At the end of last year at the Argentine Cup exho, where Gaston came back and won a couple of matches, he had the crowd eating out of his hand. It takes a unique individual to create such reactions.

Great that Jaite hasn't forgotten what Gaston has done for tennis in Argentina and giving him a wildcard, and he will be play the very likeable Daniel Gimeno-Traver. It could have been a lot worse, Dani hasn't been in great form, but this is his surface and has a massive and heavy forehand. Gaston will have to get to his backhand and if he can engage in the BH/BH rallies, then he has a big chance to win the match. At the same time, the results aren't relevant as long as Gaston can enjoy his tennis and not suffering like he is having his teeth pulled without anaesthetic.

This tournament isn't just about the Gaudio, there are some other good matches and names here. Nalbandian is back defending his title from last year and needs to make up for the disappointment of his early exit at the Aus Open, also a possible second round match with Gaudio does look tasty.

Calleri, who hasn't been in great form for the last few months, usually plays well at this event and he is up against Ferrero. He should always have positive memories of the beatdown he gave the then number 1 in the world, it would be too much to expect something like this, though a good run here is needed to get a confidence boost.

Chucho Acasuso, has been twice a losing finalist here, though he lost to Guga and Nalbandian, not exactly two monkeys of the sport. He has started the season well, though he had a poor loss to Boredo in Brazil, he should have freshened up a bit. Gaby Markus has to work the big man hard, lets see what happens here.

As for the others the King got "El Cabezon " Almagro in the first round, it won't be easy for Oscar, maybe he can get the crowd on his side and they can heckle Big Head, get him off his game. Oscar has had a tough start to the year and needs to get a W on the board, it's all about that precious commodity confidence, some habits are better than others.

Cool that Escopeta Roitman got the third wild card, he is in a similar situation to Hernandez, he didn't do that much at the start of last year, so he doesn't have a great amount to defend, part of the fun of the main tour. Too bad the cool dudes of Brzezicki, who blew his match against Maxi Gonzalez and Zabaleta couldn't make it through, though Cuevas and Koellerer is definitely an interesting qualie match.

Forza Seppi, time to get back on track.

The Aussie Open Adventure is Over

Yes, that's the Aussie Open adventure for another year and so this means the match reports are going to be over and this is the whole reflective and sentimental stuff, well maybe not.

Like anything there were highlights and lowlights, but overall I enjoyed the experience, but as we age, things tend to be seen differently. It's definitely more about the money making now than the moniker "The Friendly Slam", so I will get the shit out of my system now with the lowlights.

Lowlights: The main one has been the increase of crowd trouble in the last few years. Sadly it seems to be the Serb fans who are involved in the shit, a few years ago they had issue with the Croats. This year they were at it again going around trying to stir shit with Croats and Bosnians. These clowns haven't been in Serbia, especially during the war, they are searching for an identity. The Aus Open never had a problem before with people from all over the world having fun and cheering their favourites, but this lot aren't interested in tennis and the Serbian players have expressed their disappointment with these idiots.

The other main problem is the venue congestion at the moment. There are way too many people for the size of the venue at the moment, which was state of the art in 1988, but now looks very tired. They have some big plans for redevelopment and it's meant to be ready by 2016, but lets see what happens. In addition to this, the ticketing policy by charging extra for Hisense/Vodafone arena tickets, they really have dropped the ball there. The policy they used to have was the bottom tier was reserved seating, which is fine, but the top tier at sides of the court, was general admission for Ground Pass holders, now they don't do that and there is a distinct lack of atmosphere and the courts aren't close to full, plus it creates congestion elsewhere.

Enough of the shit and onto the good stuff. Yes, it was a good experience for me, going to the qualies is great, because you see true tennis fans, it's free and also the slow build up to the main event starting on Monday. There were quite a few players that I like, that weren't there, but there are always enough matches to watch to keep entertained.

It was great to catch up with up friends, watch some tennis, check out the women and writing these reports have been fun and I have to thank all these people who helped me during my time in Melbourne.

Peta and Kristen : No wonder Tom Tebbut likes the long lost sisters, always a pleasure to meet and hang with you for any length of time.
Sammy : Long term friend and one day Karlovic might win a 5 setter.
Imran : The Americans didn't want to show up this year, just hope Mikey Russell makes it back in 2010.
Glen : Hope you enjoy Acapulco, never know you might get a winner that you like this time around and being there seeing the King win his first match on hardcourt not to be forgotten.
Felix Mantilla : It was great to see him again and hope he succeeds in his job with the AIS teaching the Aussies how to play on clay.
Jimbo : For all the comedic moments, especially when Nalle and Kohli decide to gift Roddick a dream run to the quarters.
Big Brad: Thank you very much for letting me stay at your place and will make an appearance next year or during the year even.
Safaro and Jimmy Smith: Didn't get to see enough of you Safaro, hope your player makes the MD next season and Smith get your act together and work the 2010 event.

Then the others like tournament director Craig Tiley, when I asked him where I can send my feedback about the event, he gave me his card and it will give me something to write about next week, though I have enough subject matter for now.

Hope the readers have enjoyed what I have written, it's not for everyone and that's a good thing. It's always better being at the event yourself and yes that even includes ducking chairs and overpriced beer, but one can't have everything.

Berdych is from the Czech Republic and not the choke republic

The 4th round singles, though in my next and last post, I will be mentioning doubles and other random stuff associated with the event, some will be good and others won't be so good, but life is like this.

Del Potro vs. Cilic : This match up is one that has been happening for many years throughout the juniors and now the seniors. Both of these guys are giants, del Potro has filled out and got stronger, which is something Cilic needs to do. I spoke to one of the Croats that knows him, he says Cilic does the work everywhere, but doesn't like gym, sounds like to me that he thinks squats are what you do when you are on the toilet.

The first set was fairly close in the heat, Cilic did well to take the 1st set while only serving at 33 percent of first serves, whereas del Potro was in the high 60s, but at 30 all, the tall Tandil tree mishit a forehand and then threw in a double fault to take the set.

del Potro remained fairly calm and was able to control the rallies and he handled the heat better than Cilic with his extra strength and once he got the second set, he was able to control the tempo of the match and both men were even on unforced errors count in the middle of the third set. Then "the Tandil tree" tightened his game up and Cilic who was getting tired from the heat and the ground he covered, started making more errors, it was his forehand that broke down, towards the end, Cilic was gone and a solid win for del Potro.

Only a matter of time before Cilic makes the top 10 and he needs to get stronger.

Federer vs Berdych : As the old English commentator John Barrett loves to say, most tennis match are lost rather than won, well this statement isn't cryptic, well not to people who read this rather off centre blog, it's not.

This statement basically sums up the match in total, though the term choke gets thrown around loosely. In this case, it had all the hallmarks of a choke, except the part where Berdych was leading a double break in the third set, but he had that in the first set, fortunately he was able to close it out.

The Berdman started very well with groundstrokes from both sides penetrating through Federer’s defences and he even managed to double break in the first set, but no surprise that he fucked one of them up, at least it didn’t harm in the end.

Fortunately these two old ladies had enough for the day and they were generous enough to give me their ticket, though it was in the sun, but beggars can’t be choosers. Berdych continues where he left off with the outstanding shots, showing his ability as a pure ballstriker which is different from being a tennis player, he managed to get through the seconf set.

This match had the potential to make Berdych as a player, there are certain matches in a career that players are known by, whether they win or lose, sometimes this is fair and other times not the case. Both were having fun breaking each others serves, then the big turning point of the match.

Berdman needed to show some balls and mental strength, and this is where it’s even more important to play it point by point, sadly this didn’t happen. The said game was 3-3, where the Berdman missed three easy volleys, at best these were wooden volleys at worst, they were as clumsy as a horny teenage boy trying to get off a bra off his lady friend for the first time.

After this Federer was able to take the 3rd set, change the momentum in his favour, Berdych got the trainer out for his hamstring, but the trainer can’t cure mental fragility at big points in matches. If the player outplays you on big points, then that is just too good, but when it comes down to making schoolboy errors, then it’s a disappointing way to go.

Federer didn’t let the initiative go and that was to be expected and raced to a 4-0 lead over a mentally disintegrated Berdych, who showed some excellent signs in the match, but Tomas Krupa has some work to do with the big Prostejov man.

As for Federer this match was good for him, and he still is the man to beat here in Melbourne.

Gonzo and Gasquet steal the show and Norm Chryst wants to be a star

Cilic vs Ferrer : This one had the potential to be a long match, but just because something has potential doesn’t mean it’s going to happen.

Ferrer was able to get an early break in the first two sets, but wasn’t able to consolidate, with Cilic breaking back easily in both of the sets. Cilic for a tall man moves very well laterally and can defend when he has to, in addition to being aggressive.

During the match Cilic was able to manoeuvre Ferrer around the court and with more firepower he broke down Ferrer’s forehand and just too solid all around, the baseline game and the serve worked well and the 3rd set was comfortable in the end.

Del Potro vs. Muller : Good match, with Muller living it up on the big stage, got the first set with some good serving and volleying, but once delPo took the second set, he was able to overpower Muller, it ended up being an unspectacular win, but a win is a win.

Berdych vs Wawrinka : Stani came out firing and showing that classic backhand off, hitting with good length and was able to break early and run through the set 6-4.

Berdych then lifted his game and was hitting some heavy balls and able to move Stani around the court, even using the slice backhand with purpose and not as an afterthought, hope Tomas Krupa can work on that side of things, because he does need the odd bit of variation. Berdman was on fire in the second set, very clean hitting from him, it's even more noticeable when you are in the first level watching hearing the sound of the ball and seeing the movement.

Stani called for the trainer, but it didn't seem too serious and Stani fought very hard as usual, the Berdman was able to handle the "real Swiss #1"'s game and make it through to another 4th round.

The Berdych Army rule, they are a great support group, actually come up with chants that were witty, fun and a bit different, plus they support them through the shit and the good stuff as well. After the match, they were celebrating and gave a few of the Swiss fans the "Na, Na Na Hey Hey Goodbye" serenade.

Stepanek vs. Verdasco ; Radek started off well with a break of serve, doing what he normally does to Verdasco changing it up and breaking the rhythm up, but Verdasco broke back straight away, then this happened when Steps was up 4-3 and to serve for 5-3, then the huge change came over the match. Verdasco wasn't making mistakes and Stepanek had lead in his hands, with dropshots landing on the service line and Verdasco was dealing with the rubbish as it should be dealt with.

The last two sets, well Steps seemed a bit deflated and lacking energy, but you can have all of the energy in the world, but it doesn't matter when the ball is getting drilled past you from both sides with a combo of pace and angles. This was an outstanding performance from Verdasco, he has been showing signs of consistency for some time and winning the Davis Cup match under trying circumstances and not playing well, yet still coming through at the end. Hope he can give Murray a few proiblems in their next match.

Best of all were a group of about 8 guys that were chanting and singing about Carlos Ramos the umpire. He was embarrassed about ir, but deep down I think he appreciated it, all the tunes and support for the man himself.

Monfils vs. Almagro : Mucho didn't play that badly and hopefully he can use this as a springboard for better results on hardcourts. The Monfils was his usual part showman, part moonballer, showing his blistering pace around the court that can only be matched by Karlovic and Roddick at top speed, also selectively using the power to put away the short balls.

Just a case of Monfils being better on this surface. One hilarious incident and of course it involved the dickhead umpire Norm Chryst. The guy is such an arsehole and he wants to be involved in the show, but he is there to apply the rules with commonsense, something he lacks. There was a call and Mucho looked up at his camp and wanted it challenged, then Norm wouldn't allow it and "el cabezon" is far from happy with this and of course this is just Norm being part of the show. Monfils is bored with this and has fun during this session, but this was never in doubt.

Blake vs Andreev: Like all of their matches Blake loves the pace of the Andreev shots and is able to hit it back and with lower trajectory and rush Igor, in the process getting shorter balls which he can tee off on.

Now the best till last, when it comes to the matches.

Gonzalez vs Gasquet : Great move that this was put on the MCA (Margaret Court Arena) this is a great court to watch matches, very close to the action and not a multipurpose venue like Hisense which is shit for the most parts. The court was very packed, plenty of Chileans of course who made it like a Davis Cup match, also there were a few Frenchies in the crowd, plus the ones who love tennis there and it was the best match outside.

There was this usher in my aisle, lets call him the giraffe, mainly because he had a neck that was 1m long and was very distinctive. He was very good and took pride in his work, trying to get as many people into the court and finding seats quickly, good to see him take pride in his work.

Onto the match Gasquet started very well and was tactically smart, moving the ball around and eventually getting it to the weaker Gonzo backhand and able to exploit the weaker side and either winning the point on an error, the quality backhand or at the net. This was the best he played in a while, the backhand was firing and his forehand which can go off when stretched was holding up. Gonzo didn't start off poorly, he was just being outplayed and Gasquet deservedly took the first 2 sets.

The Chilean fans were doing their best to get Gonzo fired up and it worked, he was able to use that multi dimensional forehand. He can do whatever with that forehand, want some angle, there will be some quality angles, need some heavy spin, yes got that covered and when we wants to lay the smackdown and hit through it, then that is there as well. He started to make more winners and serve better, he was up a break twice and gave it back straight away.

Gonzo was able to take the 3rd set eventually after having a host of chances. Gasquet was having issues with blisters and he is a bit soft at the best of times, but Gonzo rode the momentum and ran through the 4t, while Gasquet was getting over the initial blister problem.

The 5th set was quality, extended rallies, plenty of fighting from Gonzo, who was struggling on serve, whereas Gasquet was strong in the majority of service games, plenty of winners from both players with their signature shots and their weaker sides were holding up fairly well. Gonzo kept holding on and then in the 11th service game of Gasquet, for once he was able to get the first point and he didn't relinquish the advantage and instead of the forehand, it was the backhand down the line that won the match.

The Chileans were going crazy after the match and a flare was released, so there was some smoke around the venue, glad it didn't get on anyone's clothing as that stuff can burn and kill people. They were very loud and the applause for both players was deserved and a long applause it was.

At the end of the match, there were some glum faces of the Gasquet fans, but many of the Chileans went up to them and shook their hands, both sets of fans enjoyed the match as a spectacle and a 88 mn final set isn't a bad thing, depending on the result.

Later today I will do the 4th round matches and these will be my last reports.

Igor Andreev hit 3 slice backhands in a row

Went out last night, so I didn't get a chance to write this report, thought I am doing my best and that's all that counts.

Didn't watch as many matches as I would have liked, then again I am not as rich as I would like either.

Gonzalez vs Canas: Canas improved on his performance against Kindlmann, but he was always a step behind Gonzo, who rarely looked threatened. Gonzo had some great mishits going into the crowd, but also some huge forehands. Willy is still very fit, but he has lot a bit of speed around the court, this plus his backhand when rallying is falling very short. He saved a few set points in the 1st set, but this was a good match for Gonzo to get some rhythm before he plays Gasquet, now Canas will stay away from the clay until Europe.

Almagro vs. Fognini : Much better from "el cabezon" today, even though the conditions were very shitty with heavy winds and hazy skies. This impacted on the timing of their strokes, but in a way it helped Fognini as it kept some of his wild shanks into the court. After the 2nd set which was fairly close, the Fog checked out mentally and was thinking about the clay in South American and finally Almagro wins 2 matches in Australia.

Monfils vs. Koubek: Not sure what to make of this match. Monfils was his usual self from the baseline, content to play balls with nothing on them, do a lot of running and then all of a sudden rip a huge backhand or forehand down the line. The first set was tight, with Koubek not making many mistakes, but he got punished for the lapse from 15-15, when he made 3 unforced errors in a row to lose serve.

The rallies were quite long, but Koubek wasn't using enough angles to open the court and hit behind Monfils, but the Panther had too many guns for a semi passive Koubek, should be interesting to see whether Almagro can expose the Monfils backhand.

Andreev vs. Gulbis: Plenty of big hitting in this match was to be expected and this was the case. Andreev started the better, using his serve and big forehand to dominate play and Gulbis was hitting some big shots from both sides, but also some big errors and the love of the dropshot is still apparent.

Igor took the first two sets 4 and 4, then not long into the 3rd set, he called the trainer to rub some magic potion on his stomach and after that he was serving significanly slower and Gulbis was able to take advantage and lifted his play to take the next 2 sets.

Looked like he had the momentum and took the break in the 5th, but Andreev was brave and fought hard, this in addition to some poor shot selection from Gulbis helped his cause. One rare Andreev backhand down the line winner was a crucial shot in getting the final break, it was a rare feat to see Andreev hit so many backhands, even the 3 slices in a row. Slice to Andreev is what he does to his bread, not the low spinning shot on a tennis court.

It was an excellent win for Andreev, who needed to improve his 5 set record and hopefully he takes out Blake in the next round.

When it falls, it all falls down the foibles of Wednesday

Better get the rants out of the way first of all. Good to see the organising people have no fucking brains. They used to allow Ground Pass holders into the Vodafone arena, but they decided to charge a bit more for specific Vodafone or whatever they call the crappy thing now. Problem is that there is a big court with no atmosphere, then the other courts suffer from overcrowding to the max. These idiots either need to limit the amount of tickets being sold, not happening or expand the seating capacities of the other courts to fit in with the demand and that is something that they can easily do and sshould.

Ferrer vs. Hrbaty : Ferrer was impressive, first time in a while I could say that, hit very good length and played very solid from the baseline. I expected this one to be a grindfest, but Hrbaty's forehand broke down big time, in Perth he was coming over it again, but here he couldn't do that and Ferrer exposed that side especially and Hrbaty was done in around 80 minutes.

Berdych vs. Dabul : The Berdman was just toying around with Dabul, and doing what he should be doing to lower ranked players that you are clearly better than, then again Nalbandian hasn't learned this lesson.

Mathieu vs. Delic : This Mathieu what a guy, he can only come back against Koubek, Seppi and Hernandez, but when you want to him to win, he does the opposite.

Seriously, he is up 2 sets to love and 4-1 in the 4th against Delic and he can't close it out. Delic loves playing here, because he gets great support from the Bosnian community, who are pretty good unlike the idiot Serb fanbase that is here, at least they don't scream out in the middle of the rally when the ball hasn't bounced. Mathieu got tight and was just popping up mid court balls with nothing on them and Delic took advantage of them as he should have and deserved his victory.

Safin vs GGL : Yes, I sat through some of this and good performance from Safin, he realises it's his last time here, so he decided to put on a show and it was a good show at that, Friday night blockbuster waits for him.

Santoro vs Kohli : This was a high quality match with Santoro doing his usual slice and dice stuff and Kohli being aggressive, it was hard to get a seat, but eventually we got in. Plenty of French fans there, who weren't there for the Mathieu match.

Fab was fighting hard and Kohli had this match in his hands, when he served for it at 5-4, but wasn't able to forclose the deal and Fab managed to get the fourth set and he rode the crowd momentum home. Plenty of quality rallies, moves to the net and Kohli hit 90+ winners and around 60 unforced errors. Santoro loves his big matches in Melbourne, only problem is now with Roddick winning, Kohli has a better chance of taking him out.

Norm Chryst was umpiring this match, and we were giving him stick, when he was overruling a call he shouldn't have and failed to overrule the one he should. Yes, the old "get the hair out of your eyes" comment was made.

Roddick vs. Malisse: Malisse blew this one, seriously some dumb unforced errors on rally balls. He had a break in the 3rd set, really Roddick shouldn't be outhitting Malisse from the baseline, and he wasn't coming up with big shots at all. Malisse was hitting the off forehand to late and if he wasn't, then he was rolling the ball into the net.

He manages to get to the 3rd set tiebreak, has a mini break and then decides to hit 6 unforced errors, then gets pissed off and Roddick runs it through from there. The fact that both Kohli and Nalle lost, means Roddick walks into the quarter finals.

Other notes, during the day Bolelli was his usual quality returning self, the guy couldn't return a phone call. Nalbandian was clownish in Nalbandian ways. Del Potro is loving it at the moment.

The Toad is a classic Grand Slam midget and up a set and 2 breaks, losing in 4 sets never in doubt.

The Five Set Feast on Day 2 at the Aus Open

Another long day at the tennis, but this is never a bad thing, unless the results don’t go the way that you would like and we know that this is subjective of course.

Almagro vs Massu : This was the first of the 5 set feast that happened today and it was a high quality match, with plenty of fighting and extended rallies. Almagro had the better of it and was handling the match comfortably, using his big serve effectively to open up the court and then have Massu on a string. The backhand was working very well, but Massu is gritty fighter and Almagro had a lapse of concentration and Massu was able to hit some big forehands and then broke serve and won the 3rd set.

The match had plenty of atmosphere with the Chileans of course and there was a small Spanish contingent, which made plenty of noise, but knew when to shut up as well. Both were hitting the ball well, Massu was hitting the off forehand well and even his backhand was quite acceptable, as Almagro’s lazy footwork on the forehand side was exposed again. Massu continued with the momentum to take the 4th set and it went down to 5 sets, which this deserved.

The 5th set started with both players hitting good length, Almagro with the heavy forehand, waiting for the short ball from Massu, so he could pin him with the down the line backhand and Massu trying to mix the off forehands with cross court ones to expose Mucho. Almagro got the early break and was able to hold his serve all the way through, though in the final game, he was very nervous, pulling off the ball and not accelerating through the ball, which happens when they are tired and nervous. A fun match to watch and Massu grunting on slice backhands, haha.


Granollers vs. Gabashvili : The apprentice started very well and got an early break. I thought this match could have gone 5 sets, but Marcel handled the heat much better than Gabash. There were some long rallies with Gaba trying to be aggressive, mainly because he didn't want to be out there for that long, but Marcel was defending very well and when he had the chance to move forward to the net, he took it and showed excellent feel at the net, by finishing off the points.

The second set was the key here Gabash was up 2-0 40-0 on serve, but he lost serve and then Granollers held and got it to the TB, which he won. Gabash was getting annoyed, though he went for it more and it went in for him and took the 3rd set, but Granollers hung in there and ground down the Georgian and ran away with it in the 4th set.

Karlovic vs. Gimeno-Traver: This was my comedy match of the day, not because I dislike Gimeno, in fact he is a good guy. It was more for the fact that with his very Western grip on the forehand in addition to the fact that the court was taking bounce very well factoring in Karlovic's serve. He was 3m behind the baseline and jumping in the air on the forehand side to return serve and it wasn't getting in, but Dani was a good sport about it.

Koubek vs. Youzhny : This was the best performance of the day for me. Koubek started very well and was in the mode where nothing was going to get past him and also he wasn't being passive, which can happen at times, when he gets in the lead. Had a positive feeling about this match beforehand, not exactly sure why, but glad this one worked out.

Youzhny didn't look himself, but confidence is a funny thing, great when you have it and when you don't, the opposite is just as true. It was still warm when they played and a bit of a swirling breeze, which Koubek used to keep Youzhny off balance and also changed the spins which helped him. Koubek the times he lost serve, he broke back straight away, he had to be careful not to throw away the 3rd set, and have the momentum shift against him. Excellent all round performance from the El Fashionista, his match with Monfils should be entertaining, if he brings this form.

Polansky vs. Andreev : Roman (Polansky) went in there with nothing to lose and it showed for the first 2 sets as Andreev was struggling with his game and the tactics Roman used effectively. Instead of backing off when Igor was hitting his monster forehands, he was stepping into them taking it on the rise and going to the forehand, then finishing the points off at the net. This worked for the first 2 sets.

Andreev served for the set at 5-3 after getting the break, but Roman broke back straight away, then Igor broke to take the set 6-4, from there Andreev was able to impose his game, this and a lack of experience on this stage from Polansky contributed to Andreev getting the cash here, but Polansky has a good base to work from, needs to get a bit stronger, but hope he can do well on the main tour.

Hanescu vs. Herynch : Lurch was down 2 sets and Hernych served for the match in the 3rd set and on one of his match points, he double faulted it away. Hanescu started serving better and using his backhand with more impact and was able to take the next 2 in tiebreakers.

Herynch was struggling in the conditions and Hanescu looked fresher, big Vic was broken, when Hernych took chances and it came off and Hernych had another chance to serve it out at 6-5, but was broken easily. Hanescu then won the next 3 games, not making errors and taking advantage of Hernych's tiredness.

Canas vs Kindlmann : Got here a bit late for this one, but it was the classic Canas getting through on courage, and not on the way he played. Kindlmann was hitting flat and Canas is making more errors than he used to, he looks like he has lot a bit of speed around the court. I mean he is still fit as, even fitter physically, but doesn't quite have the same spark.

The 5th set there were a few breaks and Canas served for the match at 5-4, but he played a weak game and got too far behind the baseline in the rallies and Kindlmann broke back. Even then it didn't feel like Canas was going to lose, but going 5 sets with Kindlmann isn't a good sign for Gonzalez. He broke him and then able to serve it out.

Serra vs Karanusic: Great win for Roko, this was a funny match, there were a few Aussies cheering for Roko, they had money on him for sure. Serra was getting pissed off with the fans, and after the match he wanted to have some words with these guys.

Serra got a couple of dead netcords and didn't acknowledge. Roko pulled off a couple of screamers, he was on the backhand side, then Serra placed it in the forehand corner and he hits a squash shot forehand angle that landed on the line for a winner. He was struggling with cramps, he broke for 5-3 and Serra was up 40-0 and then when Roko served for the match, he was down 0-40 and got out of it.

Stepanek vs. Lapentti : Excellent match here that didn't involve ballbashing, a lot of slices and Thunder Lips was quite restrained in this one, mainly because I think he had this one under control, but Lapentti played a solid match, definitely no lack of slice in this one.

In the 3rd set there was a hilarious service game from Lapentti that went 20 minutes at least, but which Lapentti ended up winning saving around 8 break points, but Radek was able to eventually break Lapentti's serve, he was excellent around the net and Lapentti's passing shots weren't up to the level they used to be, with this being said, he would have defeated a lot of players in this draw, but that goes into the what if scenarios.

Speaking of what if, it's time to submit this entry and go and watch some matches for the day.

Aus Open Day 1 Main Draw Reports

Honestly I couldn't think of a more snazzy or funky title, so this is going to have to do under the circumstances.

Got to the grounds just before the start of play, might make it there earlier, if all works out or not. It was fucking hot, but at least it was dry heat, which is a lot better than humidity. Now onto the matches.

Berydch vs. Ginepri : One can never tell with the Berdman, what is going to happen, but he had this under control. Berdych broke in the middle of the 1st set and was able to take it to 6-4, then he turns on the style to lead 4-0. He then gets bored and decides to clown around a biut and Gineprick comes back to level at 4-4, then Berdych wakes up and breaks him and takes the set 6-4, then in cruise control for the rest of the match.

Malisse vs. Llodra : Since I can't be at all of the matches, there are a mix of people that help me, these are Glen, Jimbo and Sam when it comes to some details in matches. Malisse was looking sharp and after a hard fought set, he turned on the style and was played some of the high quality tennis that he is very capable of and then annihilated Llodra continuing from his good finish against Dancevic.


Muller vs LaLo: Not the match that I expected to spend the most amount of time at, but hey the thought of seeing LaLo lose is always good, plus unlike Adam I don't have a problem with Gilles Muller, in fact he has always been fine whenever I had any dealings with him.

He started well and was able to get the early break and hold on to take the 1st set, then got his chance in the tiebreaker, funny enough the 3rd and 4th sets won by LaLo, happened the same way Muller played some poor shots in his first service game and then it just went with serve to end the sets. There were very few baseline rallies and the ones that were, Muller was the better player, though he did lift off the forehand too often for my liking and LaLo was volleying well when he had to.

The 5th set was more of the same some big serving, Muller had a couple of half chances, but LaLo snuffed them out with some big bombs when it counted. It was dragging on in the heat, but there were some interested spectators like Pim Pim Johansson, who thinks maybe in two months he can play tennis again, Darcis, Rochus and some other players as well, alonng with Albert Costa. Big hold for Gilles at 15-14, then finally he was able to get a hold of the LaLo serve and hit two excellent returns and ripped a forehand past him to get to match point. LaLo saved one, but couldn't save the next one. ESPN ran onto the court to interview Muller and both of these guys are going to be tired as.

One hilarious moment, was the crowd were lacking some major brain power and both guys were waiting to play and this no talent arse clown just walks in at a non change of ends right in their eye line and LaLo said something and so did Muller, got to love these idiots without a clue, which lead to the majority of Serb fans during the Tipsarevic and Hernandez match later on.

Calleri vs Garcia-Lopez: I didn't get to see the start, so thanks to Roberto for filling me in with the stuff I missed. Gordo started off very well winning the first set 6-3 and leading 4-1, then he starts going a bit silly because of some shit line calls and then loses the 2nd set in a tiebreaker. After this GGL got some momentum, he placed the ball deep and then Calleri just self destructed hitting a clownish amount of unforced errors to only win 2 games in the last 2 sets, which was poor to say the least. Glad for him that he signed for some fans after he lost, but poor result.


Tipsarevic vs Hernandez : Oscar started very well, using his serve effectively and opening up the court from there he was using the forehand to run Gattuso (Tipsarevic) around the court and was playing not too far behind the baseline and took the first set 6-4. Gattuso started to concentrate a bit better, plus he got some classy dead netcords at 30 all points twice in the second set and was able to break in these games, while making less errors.

Gattuso was bothered by some blisters and the heat and was pulling some classic timewasting tactics, but the umpire wasn't pulling up on anything, there were some bad line calls that went both ways. Oscar had a few words with Gattuso letting him know he wasn't impressed with the antics. Oscar and the umpire had a running dialogue. Oscar says to him "What is have you against me"? The umpire doesn't say anything and Oscar says that's the problem "you don't say or see anything", when it comes to linecalls.

Gattuso gets the early break and holds on in the 3rd set, then the hilarious sight, when both guys are getting treated by the trainer at the same time. Oscar with a back problem and not sure about Gattuso. The King starts playing like he did in the 4th set and was able to defend resolutely under the attacks of Gattuso.

The King loses his first service game with a shank that lands on the line from Gattuso and another netcord. Then he has a huge chance to break back, but the shoulder rotation on the backhand wasn't quick enough to get through the ball and it went metres wide or shanked. Gattuso gave him enough second serves and the King ended up a conversion rate of something like 4/20 break points which is not going to get it a done. This was a combo of his passive play and a good shots by Tipsarevic.

This matrch had a lot of things, some humour mostly from Oscar, a bit of niggle, clownish officiating, worst of all a bunch of absolute nationalistic moronic deadheads who only supported Tipsarevic because of his nationality. They know totally nothing about the game, just go there to be seen, just walk around in between points, pissing off both players.

Kudos for placing on this on a very small court so hardly any people could see it, this was more genius wotk from Craig Tiley.

Phau should consider retirement losing to Brydan Klein in any form and as for Starace, well hang his head he had more than enough chances to take this match, but Tomic has more go than Klein. As long as Muller is fresh enough, he should be able to take Tomic and expose his poor movement.

Of course thanks to glen, Jimbo, Sammy, Imran who helped with this as well.

The Random Stuff

The King is truly a nan of the people, he helped out the needy and hope he beats Gattuso Tipsarevic.

My Bulgarian mate, put me up to this and yes I watched Sesil Karantancheva, it also confirmed why I don't like womens tennis. At the same time it was good to see Sesil actually talk with the fans for a good 10 minutes after she won her matches. One of the funniest was her second round opponent Brengle. She is this American with a big rack and skinny legs. She was whining about the 10 Bulgarian fans, and complaining she was going to have a migrane after the match and wanted to use a gun, all class.

Clown fan moment was when one of the Bulgarian fans who was very excited after Sesil qualified. He stands on this pot plant and wants to do a back sommersault, he over rotated and instead of landing on his feet, he landed on his lead. Yes, all his friends laughed at him, then after a few minutes, they told to get it checked out, but he refused.

Mats Wilander and Babsi Schett were doing their Eurosport preview and then Sveta is training on the court behind them and starts pulling these faces, great work Sveta, Sharapova wouldn't do this.

Good to see Luczak isn't above pushing the pram around with Sebby, who is getting bigger and also his wife is going to have a daughter in March.

Felix Mantilla is around and it has been great to see him. It's easy to spot him with the foreign legion hat, he has a tough job helping the Aussies on clay. He is with his girlfriend and she seems pleasant.

Now onto some serious business. The Players Meeting on Saturday was very heated and had some vigorous discussion about the impact of the new ranking system. There was defintiely plenty of dissent there naturally, when the system didn't need to be changed, and tries to protect certain players and disadvantaging others who have no chance of defending their points.

Ljubo isn't in a great position and there is talk that he might resign his position, though this is more of a watch this space kind of thing, but the new ranking system is a load of bullshit, how can something that was said to be easier to understand for fans, yet come across so ham fisted in its explanation.

Off to do some tennis things now.

The End of Qualies Round 2 and Final Round

Due to a few factors and none of them at all were alcohol related, these reports have been delayed, so in other words you are going to get to two helpings in the one post, so that might be good for some people, it might not be, but we'll see how it goes.

Malisse vs. Lammer : Xavi was quiet and not bitching about everything, funny how this is when he is playing at a good level. Lammer made too many errors and made it a difficult match for him, even harder, the extra class gap between the two was clear.

Lopez vs Desein : Marc followed up his good performance from the other day against Lee in this match. He hardly made errors and frustrated the hell out of Desein who has some big shots, but he lacked the patience and execution, for which Lopez took advantage of.

Luczak vs. Ascione: Much better from Luczak, who lost concentration at the end of the 1st set to lose serve, this plus Ascione was going for broke and making the winners. In the last 2 sets, it was a combo of Luczak serving better, being more aggressive and running the big Frenchie around, who after 6 shots just wants to belt winners, he was huffing and puffing halfway through the 2nd set. He definitely had too much cassoulet during Xmas.


Sela vs. Zemlja : On paper this should have been a comfortable win for Sela, but this was anything but the case, in fact this is what is known as an old fashioned choke. Zemlja had four match points and on two of them the likable Slovene really duffed them. The first one was a smash that was taken inside the service line, the smash was well hit, but it lacked direction. The court was packed now and there was a small but vocal section of Israelis supporting Dudi, and the other side were mostly Zemlja fans on the second match point that he choked away, there was a big rally with Zemlja bossing the point and was able to hit a big forehand and Sela hit a weak return and Zemlja came in for the put away volley, but had lumberjack hands and instead of hitting a short angle to win the point, he hit it long and his chance was lost. Sela then was able to come back and then break and eventually serve out the match. Zemlja must have been so down after this match, especially the way he lost it.


Lopez vs. Rehnquist: This smelled of 3 set dogfight and this was what happened. It wasn't always the greatest tennis, but there were many gruelling rallies with plenty of net clearance, there were even a few that would not have been out of place at Roland Garros in the mid 80s. Rehnquist got off to a flyer, as Lopez was nervous and raced through the 1st set. Once Lopez settled down and hit more balls into the court and Rehnquist became more reactive than usual, Lopez was able to control the rallies and keep Rehnquist on the run, able to get the ball high to his backhand and then Lopez used his slice backhand as a change up and it worked, as he was able to take the 2nd in a breaker.

The third set was far from pretty in fact it was a breakathon, 3 out of the first 4 service games were breaks of serve. In the 5th game Lopez was serving at 3-1 40-15 and he got a hideous call, which was clearly out, but it was not called, that gives him 4-1, but he lost his marbles and got shitty and managed to lose 4 games on the trot and Rehnquist served for the match 5-4. Needless to say Rehnquist choked and played an average game and Lopez got back into the match, but he was starting to cramp and tried to come over the backhand and not having great success with it and he lost serve at 6-7. Rehnquist was able to serve it out, though Lopez at 30-30 didn't manage to make an easy ball into the court, very hard fought match, which was last round qualies should be.


Luczak vs. Odesnik : Total baseline battle here with Luczak getting off to a flier. He was serving very well getting some excellent kick and movement off the serve and Odesnik was hitting short shit, which was getting punished by Luczak as he ran through the first set 6-1. Odesnik took a toilet break, maybe to have a piss, but also to contemplate his thoughts and the break did him the world of good. He was able to move the ball around and started using his serve a bit better than before, this and the fact that Luczak lost a bit of concentration and wasn't able to keep up the intensity, helped Odesnik take the second set 6-2. The third set was hard fought, long rallies, some good winners from Odesnik, woeful dropshots by Luczak, some landing on the service line and another bounced twice before the net. Odesnik got the vital break at 4-2 and the when serving for the match he was down 30-40, short second serve which Luczak dumped a backhand halfway up the net, then after that Odesnik served two aces and through to the MD.


Ventura vs deChaunac: Jesse Ventura is the better player out of these two, but basically this match came down to Jesse getting hooked on a shocking line call at 4-4, the ball was clearly out. Granollers and Almagro were watching as well and they shook their heads and laughed. Ventura freaks out has the shits and basically cats the rest of the match.

Malisse vs. Dancevic : This should have been a first round main draw match, especially with some of the dudathons that have been dished up like Chardy/Daniel for example. Malisse started well got the early break, then Dancevic took 6 out of the next 7 games to take the set. Frankie's serve wasn't as effective and Malisse is putting more balls into court and breaks at the end of the second set to take it 7-5, then after that Frankie loses confidence and Xavi gains it and is able to run through the last set easily, lucky for Frank, he got in as a Lucky Loser.

Michael Berrer, the guy who should be a weightlifter got through to the main draw, he had been playing average, but he peaked when it counted and crushed Dorsch. Looking forward to seeing the smashes from the 100kg weightlifter.

Aus Open reports Day 1 Qualies

Aus Open report qualies Day 1

Yes, it's that time of the year again, where I front up to the Aus Open qualies, of course it took me a while to discover the benefits of going to qualies, besides it being free. Once the trick is learned that you need to stock up on the food as there are very limited options then it's a good thing.

One thing that is noticeable at qualies is that the players are pretty much next to the court waiting to go on after the next matches. It's not like they have many people around at the best of times. Ran into Peta and Kristen, which is never a bad thing. Peta or Petea as her beloved Andrei Pavel calls her, was a very happy little vegemite when she saw Andrei there and he is now Romanian DC captain and playing for fun, hope he can draw some gimp like Volandri or Junquiera, then he will win a round for sure, and yes there has been some Carlos Ramos appreciation from her. Kristen was very happy to see Oli Marach who disappointingly has decided to give the singles up and just going to play doubles with the Kubot.

It's always a more relaxed atmosphere during this time and yes there are certain players not down this year, that I would have like to have seen, but there are enough to keep me entertained and amused, so that's always a good thing. Then the funny moments from qualies always come back. Baghdatis qualifying and only 10 people watching his matches, then Simple Simon making it as well and then beating Massu in 5 sets in the first round and had to be carried off court, seeing Djokovic making it through as well. Koellerer's antics among other things.

The man, the legend, and one of the bloggers all time favourites Felix Mantilla was there and what a pleasure to see the man. I haven't told him that I wrote his Wikipedia page yet, hehe. He is there in his role of coach for the AIS when it comes to Aussies on clay. He had the special hat for him, to guard against skin cancer, but it was good to speak to him, though mostly it was about how well Barcelona are playing.

Now onto the tennis part.

Ventura vs Huta Galung : Jesse Ventura was just good for Huta Galung, he played a solid match, without being spectacular, but that's reallly it all takes sometimes, hope he makes the MD.

Sirianni vs. Soeda: Saw a bit at the start of the match and then came over when Sirianni was down 0-5 in the 3rd set and he stepped up his game, was more patient and varied the pace of shot as Soeda was just pushing the ball back, doing nothing, except running and being very passive. Then Sirianni started to get some momentum and that backhand down the line which is his signature shot was firing big time and most importantly he was playing it at the right moment, instead of waiting for the ball, he stepped into it and bang down the line winners were flying everywhere. Once he got it back to 5-6 on serve, he had to save a few match points, he played some good tennis and Soeda helped by not making a second serve return on one of the match points. The crowd were getting behind the local boy and he managed to pull it through, this should free him up and hopefully make the MD.

I spoke to Joe after the match and asked him about what was going on with the 0-5, he was just pissed off with things around him. He wasn't happy about missing out on the WC to the main draw, though not just for himself, also for his friend Peter Luczak, who really should have got a wild card after what happened to him this season and they give it to a no hoper cockchimp like Klein.

Marc Lopez vs HT Lee : Surprising result for Lopez beating Lee on this surface, though the courts are really reacting to the heat and Marc was able to get the ball to jump out of Lee's hitting zone especially on the backhand which helped him win this match, this an there was a huge service game at the start of the 3rd from which Lopez was able to hold, then from there got the confidence from his recent win in Doha and was able to pull the upset here.


Luczak vs Coelho: This was a hideous performance from Luczak, but he got the W and that's all that counts. He was never in trouble on serve at all, and then he played a dumb game to lose serve at 5-4 and give the set to Coelho, who was playing a bit better. Luczak was making errors off normal rally balls and bad ones as well, backhands hitting the bottom of the net. The turning point was at 3-3 when Luczak was serving he was down break points, through serving 4 double faults, but a second serve ace on break point down and also a forehand that was clearly on the line, but the lineswoman called it early and corrected herself after that. Once Peter held, he then relaxed a bit and hit a backhand winner finally and then was able to get through against a player he has struggled against.


Montcourt vs. Lopez Jaen: Got to love hard fought matches, they are good for the game and this one was. Montcourt was his prick self to the ballkids, he hit a ball back with the back flick and hit the kid in the face and said nothing. Lopez Jaen was giving him the huge fistpumps, but at 6-6, he called for the trainer as he was only able to hit backhands, the magic spray couldn't work for the blond Spaniard and Adam's fave Frenchman le Montcourt was able to make it through this one.


Dlouhy vs. Fleischman : Dropshot Dlouhy had an excellent conversion on break points, but had this match in control, even though he had a couple of poor service games, but he controlled the tempo, kept Fleishmann off the balance and then moved the net to execute the volley, good performance and will need to be at this level against Delic.

Sela vs. Posposil : Never in doubt this one, the biggest highlight was seeing sexy Snobel at this match.

Gio Lapentti vs Matosevic : Didn't see much of this and I am disappointed not to, because from what I saw, it was an intense and good match. Gio will always be known as Nicolas Lapentti's brother and he does play a similar style of game, except not as good and Matosevic was very expressive and fiery, but Lapentti's experience got him through, one thing about Gio he has Mr Tenis Pro Marcaccio as his coach.

Malisse vs Ram : Rajeev played quite well, but Malisse had the extra class to get through. Malisse was bitching about everything people walking around, the ballkids orange shirts, a speck of dust that came across the court, he'd have seen it and whined, but he got through it.


Capdeville vs Middelkoop : This was on late and that Capdeville was grunting very loudly, though not to Massu level and this Middelkoop was trying to salvage an average day for the Dutch players. I saw Van Gemerden around seems like he is coaching one of the players, but he was around for the Dutch matches, only saw bits of it and heard more through the sound effects of Capdeville and Middelkoop. A surprise that Capdeville lost.

Olejniczak vs Cipolla : Lucky this was a tennis match and not a boxing match. Olejniczak is in the wrong sport, he should either be a nightclub bouncer, playing for the Polish rugby team or chopping wood for something. This being said glad it was a tennis match, Cipolla basically took the piss with this lack of pace and short slices and moved the big Polish tank around the court, then drop shotted him. The bouncer did well to get a game, maybe he intimidated Cipolla at the change of ends and told him to give him a game, or he'd beat him up.

Kubot vs Roger-Vasselin : Only saw a bit of this as I was about to leave, Kubot had turned it around and was hitting very good length and was able to move Roger-Vasselin around and then knock off the volleys.

Amitraj vs. Devvarman : The battle of India, this was a good quality match, the clash of styles made it so. Big Dev was running and running everything down and Prakash was waiting for the right chance to come into net, he had some very good approach shots, but Somdev was able to either hit the passing shot and make some quality lobs. I remember one point towards the end of the 1st set, Prakash hits an excellet drop volley and Somdev is about 2m behind the baseline, he just makes it and is pissed off that he didn't get it over. Somdev has a great attitude and fighting spirit, which can't be taught, but he definitely needs to get stronger physically to progress further and get a bit more power on his groundies.

Sela vs. Posposil : Never in doubt this one, the biggest highlight was seeing sexy Snobel at this match.

Gio Lapentti vs Matosevic : Didn't see much of this and I am disappointed not to, because from what I saw, it was an intense and good match. Gio will always be known as Nicolas Lapentti's brother and he does play a similar style of game, except not as good and Matosevic was very expressive and fiery, but Lapentti's experience got him through, one thing about Gio he has Mr Tenis Pro Marcaccio as his coach.

Radek Stepanek lights up Brisvegas, Marc Lopez carries Nadal in Doha and Cilic enjoys the vindaloo

Here is a review of the opening week of the season.

We have completed the first week of the ATP circus, it's always the great unknown, because players are in theory meant to be starting from zero, but it doesn't always work like that. Since the season started a week later, some players were still back at home drinking too much, and others were in training and it showed, but this was the week that the ATP announced its new fearless leader, that's a topic for another post, because this one should be about the tennis.

In the Gulf state of Qatar, the home of Al-Jazzera, the attempt to buy Olympic gold medals by buying athletes, footballers and swimmers who are doing it for Qatari pride, enough of the tourist promotion. The King played here and lost to the Flea (Vliegen) in 3 sets and was leading 5-4 in the final set TB. The South Tyrolean sex machine finally won a match in Doha, before losing 3 and 3 to Federer, though he made it go for 89 minutes.

The Panther (Monfils) took out Nadal in straight sets, though he failed to back up the big win against Roddick, who seems to be a rare thing, a successful American in the Middle East, well the part not linked to Israel. Monfils has a lot of ability, but still doesn't know how he should play, he has Roger Rasheed in the corner which could be of benefit, if used the right way and he is a qualified fitness trainer, so Panther is going to have to work. The highlight of the week was Marc Lopez carrying Nadal to win the doubles title and on a sidenote Dunblane's finest defended his title.

Marc Lopez


Marin Cilic was successful in Chennai, though the event suffered a couple of withdrawals. The PMK withdrew against the Czech maestro Lukas Dlouhy with a heel problem and he had to pull out of the Aussie Open, hope he doesn't come back too soon. The other was Schuettler who has a wrist problem and withdrew against Somdev who made the final. It was great for the event that a local made the final. The man from the Assam province that borders Bhutan and not far from China, had an outstanding week, though his performance in the final wasn't great, he made too many mistakes and couldn't get enough length on the groundies. He is 23, but he went to university and played his way through the challengers and Futures and will make a good ranking jump into the 100s and hope he can qualify for the Aus Open.

Cilic didn't play a great match, but it was enough to get the job done and that's all it needs to happen to get the win. The young Croat is on the way to the top 10 barring injuries, but his forehand can be put under pressure in tight moments. The ceremony was well done and both of the guys were very respectful in victory and defeat.

Brisbane will only be a shortish write up, because there is an MTF poster krystelt who did an outstanding job of writing and I will link her blog. We had some good coverage and Marcos Baghdatis was back on tour, a dumb move by sacking Lundgren and he is always weak up from a long break, losing to the Shark (Nieminen). This will be a tough time for the Shark as he lost finalist points last year from Adelaide and also he has the QF points to defend from the Aussie Open. Nieminen started very well against Tsonga, leading a set and a break, but wasn't able to forclose the deal sadly.

But Brisvegas this was the week of Radek Stepanek (Thunder Lips), who gesticulated, wiggled the hips, screamed and used plenty of variation to take the title over Fernando Verdasco in the final, he also defeated the Toad (Söderling) and Gasquet (showpony) in the preceding rounds. He gave them all the first set, and then worked his way into the match, and was able to use his strengths, the solid and underrated serve, excellent volleys and the old Continental forehand wasn't breaking down. There were definitely some gamesmanship antics from Stepanek, he will do what is necessary to win and it's up to the opponent to deal with it. He has come a long way from 2002, when he was just a doubles player.

The ladies of Brisvegas, will be dripping in their underwear tonight, after they see Thunder Lips, though Vaidisova could learn from Radek about winning matches. As for the fashions, well good to see that a man is comfortable with himself to wear lavender, so in this week he showed why he is the "Lavender Lothario" or the "Purple Pimp".

All Hail Radek Stepanek


As for a preview for this weeks tournaments perhaps, but best of all I will be in Melbourne having fun at the AO qualies.