Roddick Clinched for Masters Cup; Davenport Can Re-take No. 1
Posted on October 17, 2005
Nadal Out Front at ATP Masters-Series MadridA top-tier event on the ATP, the Masters Series-Madrid is lacking in star power this week with the slew of current injuries: world No. 1 Roger Federer (leg), and former No. 1s Marat Safin (knee), Lleyton Hewitt (foot), and Andre Agassi (back).
Now the favored status falls to No. 2-ranked Spaniard Rafael Nadal, whose 2005 hardcourt resume includes titles at the Masters Series-Canada and Beijing, and a runner-up effort at the Masters Series-Miami where he led Federer two sets to none in the best-of-five final before the Swiss pulled a rabbit out of his hat.
A title at Madrid would pull Nadal level with Federer at 11 titles on the year, though the Swiss has already secured the year-end No. 1 ranking.
Joining Nadal among the Top 8 seeds at Madrid are Andy Roddick, Nikolay Davydenko, Guillermo Coria, David Nalbandian, Mariano Puerta, Gaston Gaudio and Ivan Ljubicic.
Roddick hasn't competed at an ATP event since his shocking first-round exit at the US Open in August, while Nadal's last hardcourt event was his title at Beijing.
The No. 8-seeded Ljubicic will be especially dangerous after a restful first-round bye, allotted to all 16 seeds, with the Croat coming off consecutive title runs at Metz and Vienna. An opening-round win would likely match the bald-pated Ljubicic with countryman and No. 12 seed Mario "Baby Goran" Ancic in the third round.
Other potential opening-round matches of note for the seeds are (13) Tommy Robredo vs. Carlos Moya in an all-Spanish, (10) Radek Stepanek vs. the winner of Tim Henman-Taylor Dent, (3) Nikolay Davydenko vs. the hot-handed Nicolas Kiefer, (16) Robby Ginepri vs. the winner of Sebastien Grosjean and Feliciano "F-Lo" Lopez, (11) Dave Ferrer vs. (WC) Al Costa in an all-Spanish, (6) Mariano Puerta vs. the winner of Max "The Beast" Mirnyi and Juan Carlos Ferrero, (12) Ancic vs. Tomas Berdych, (15) Fernando "Gonzo" Gonzalez vs. the winner of Paul-Henri Mathieu and (WC) Fernando "Hot Sauce" Verdasco, (4) Guillermo Coria vs. Gael "Force" Monfils, (9) Thomas Johansson vs. 2004 Olympic winner Nicolas Massu, (14) Dominik "The Dominator" Hrbaty vs. the winner of Tommy Haas and Andrei Pavel, and (2) Roddick vs. "Grinning" Greg Rusedski.
Ferrero (2003) is the only returning champion in the field.
The seeds in the formerly-cancelled doubles draw are (1) Bryan-Bryan, (2) Black-Ullyett, (3) Knowles-Nestor, and (4) Llodra-Santoro, with unseeded standouts Lopez-Nadal, Gaudio-Puerta, and Roddick-James Blake.
Davenport With No. 1 in Reach at WTA Zurich
With Maria Sharpaova and Kim Clijsters on the sidelines, Lindsay Davenport can steal the No. 1 ranking from the Russian poster girl this week at the WTA Zurich Open.
Davenport is joined among the top seeds by Amelie Mauresmo, Mary Pierce, Elena Dementieva, Nadia Petrova, Patty Schnyder, Anastasia Myskina and Alicia Molik.
Davenport, Pierce and Myskina are running on all cylinders while Mauresmo, Dementieva, Petrova and Schnyder are their spotty selves, and Molik continues her slow comeback from illness.
Opening-round matches of note are (1) Davenport vs. Daniela Hantuchova in a potential second-rounder, (5) Petrova vs. Conchita Martinez, (4) Dementieva vs. Svetlana Kuznetsova in a potential all-Russian second-rounder, (7) Myskina vs. Vera Zvonareva in another all-Russian, (8) Molik vs. Top 20-er Jelena Jankovic, Ana Ivanovic vs. Tatiana "Hot Pants" Golovin in an all-teen future-of-tennis showdown, and (2) Mauresmo vs. Dinara Safina in a potential second-rounder.
On court Monday in Zurich are Maleeva vs. Chakvetadze, Zvonareva vs. Myskina, and Likhovtseva vs. Farina Elia.
Blake Trounces Thai for ATP Stockholm Title
James Blake won his second title of 2005, the third of his career and his first in Europe Sunday at the ATP stop in Stockholm, with the No. 6 seed defeating unseeded Thai Paradorn Srichaphan 6-1, 7-6(6).
"That first set was definitely not his best tennis and I didn't expect that to continue but sometimes it's tough to pick your game up when someone has such a bad set and then they pick their game up," Blake said. "I really didn't want it to go to three sets because I knew how well he was starting to play and he can really get rolling. It was a great match and a great tiebreaker at the end."
Blake raised his career record to 3-4 in ATP finals, while Srichaphan is 0-2 in 2005, and 5-6 in career finals.
"I think that it was a really slow start for me again today, just like since the quarterfinals," Srichaphan said. "I still believed that I was going to play better in the second set, which I did. His game is really on especially at the moment, so he's tough to play."
In the doubles final, Aussies Arthurs/Hanley defeated Paes/Zimonjic 5-3, 5-3 under the ATP's experimental doubles scoring system for their second title of the year in their fourth consecutive Stockholm final.
"We've been in the final three times now," Hanley said. "I was a little nervous today but we've been playing really well this whole week and it's a great feeling to finally get here and win. It's a great feeling to come back to Stockholm and finally get over the line for once."
Kiefer Keeps Choke Streak Alive at ATP Moscow
Surging No. 7 seed Russian Igor Andreev came back from a 5-7, 0-4 deficit to win his third title of the year Sunday in Moscow, stunning No. 6 seed Nicolas Kiefer 5-7, 7-6(3), 6-2.
"It was a lot of luck, and maybe he believed a little bit too early in his victory," said Andreev, who struggled with a knee injury during the match. "The crowd was supporting me win or lose and finally I could turn around the match. After the second set I felt more confident in myself that I could win this match."
The championship-choking German has now lost his last eight ATP finals, with his last title coming in 2000.
"This is very tough to digest, but Igor played very well when he was down and fully deserved to win," Kiefer said. "I did not play too well this week but still reached the final. There are many things I can still improve so I am hopeful for the future."
In the doubles final, No. 3 seeds Max "The Beast" Mirnyi and Mikhail Youzhny rolled unseeded defending champs Andreev and Nikolay Davydenko 5-1, 5-1 under the ATP's experimental doubles scoring, Youzhny's career-first doubles title.
Second Straight 2005 Title for Ljubicic at ATP Vienna
No. 4 seed Ivan Ljubicic won his second title in two weeks Sunday at the ATP final in Vienna, straight-setting former world No. 1 and No. 7 seed Juan Carlos Ferrero 6-2, 6-4, 7-6(5) in the best-of-five final.
"I had some unbelievable results this week," said Ljubicic, who dropped 21 aces on Ferrero over three sets. "I didn't drop serve all week and I saved all break points I faced, it's incredible. I was a little bit worried in my fitness in the final but fortunately I managed to win in three sets."
Top-seeded Mark Knowles and Daniel Nestor won their third title of the year in the doubles final, defeating No. 2-seeded Israelis Jonathan Erlich and Andy Ram 5-3, 5-4(2) under the ATP's experimental doubles scoring system.
Pierce Eases to 2nd 2005 Title at WTA Moscow
Mary Pierce will return to the elite Top 5 on the WTA Rankings Monday after her second career title in Moscow, converting all five of her break point opportunities in a 6-4, 6-3 win over Francesca Schiavone for her second 2005 title.
The 30-year-old Pierce didn't face a seed en route to the title yet played two three-setters and saved six match points in the quarterfinals.
"The hard work is definitely paying off, that's for sure," Pierce said. "I have said before that last year I wasn't sure if I would play again and after much thought, decided I had more to do in tennis and really this year has just been amazing...This tournament was not on my original schedule for this year, but I saw last month that I might qualify for the WTA Tour Championships, so decided to stay in Europe and play the big events to try to get my points up."
Schiavone's upset run came to an end after wins over Amelie Mauresmo, Svetlana Kuznetsova and Elena Dementieva.
"She really played her best tennis, and I have to give her credit for playing a great tournament," Schiavone said. "I have been working very hard on my fitness and my game, and I hope to get another chance soon. I am very happy with my week and hope to continue my form next week in Zurich."
In the doubles final, the American-Aussie combo of Lisa Raymond and Sam Stosur beat top seeds Cara Black and Rennae Stubbs 6-2, 6-4 for their fourth title of the year.
Petrova Kept Winless by Vaidisova at WTA Bangkok
Czech teen Nicole Vaidisova won her 15th consecutive match and third straight title Sunday, ending the quest of Russian veteran Nadia Petrova for her first title with a 6-1, 6-7(5), 7-5 win.
It appeared to be the best chance for Petrova, now 0-4 in career finals, to end her drought after beating Vaidisova in their previous meeting last month at the US Open.
"It feels good," Vaidisova said. "I don't think it could get any better than this. I was pretty consistent today, and I'm happy with the way I played overall. I think I challenged her today and showed that I could beat a higher-ranked player when I'm on my game."
Petrova attributed the loss to the new injury du jour on the women's tour, a chest muscle malady.
"I couldn't serve today," Petrova said. "I've been struggling with a right pectoral strain since my last tournament, and yesterday after my three set match it seemed to get worse. I tried to fight through it, but in the third set it really started to hurt. Then my serve was just very off."
It was the third consecutive title for Vaidisova after Seoul and Tokyo, with the Czech becoming the sixth WTA player to win five career titles before her 17th birthday, joining Tracy Austin, Andrea Jaeger, Monica Seles, Jennifer Capriati and Martina Hingis.
Petrova remains the only Top 20-ranked players without a career singles title.
No. 2 seeds Shinobu Asagoe and Gisela Dulko won the doubles title, defeating top seeds Conchita Martinez and Virginia Ruano Pascual of Spain 6-1, 7-5 for their first title as a team.
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