Also, BB beat Moya soundly the round before, only spotting him 3 games in the match. I know Moya has not played in a couple of months, and, is older, but still a former GS champion? Just a point to posters who were saying BB was not in form, sometimes your opponent does that to you….no?

Otherwise, besides Rafa, a lot of interesting matchups tomorrow, IMO

Ferrer vs Baggy
AR first match on clay against a tough spaniard…..
Murray drew a tough first rounder also in Chela
Almagro vs Soda Pop

And of course, the “strawberry and cream” for the ladies, Gulbis vs Youzhny :)

Should be fun!

May 12th, 2010 at 1:36 am

Gulbis dismantling Montanes is straight sets really shows that this guy is no fluke. His service and his no bars hold type of play would make him a dangerous player.

May 12th, 2010 at 3:20 am

Watch out for this Giraldo character too. That 0 and 3 win over in-form Ferrero was a warning shot. Looks like he might meet Rafa if he wins today.

May 12th, 2010 at 6:33 am

Roddick just withdrew so F-Lo will be playing Oscar Hernandez today.

May 12th, 2010 at 8:11 am

NELTA,

why did roddick withdrew? Has he got an injury?

May 12th, 2010 at 8:38 am

*withdraw*

May 12th, 2010 at 8:39 am

due to a virus…

May 12th, 2010 at 8:41 am

Madmax: http://www.timeslive.co.za/sport/tennis/article446598.ece/Ailing-Roddick-withdraws-from-Madrid

Poor Roddick. Von, I hope your guy will be fine for FO.

May 12th, 2010 at 8:52 am

Roddick, Cuevas, Andreev, now Petzchner retired (added to the list of already ill/injured).
My question to the statistic fiends is: Is the magnitude of ‘trend’ at least a little unusual?
One can’t just rag on Djokovic, right?
One cannot say they are all afraid of Nadal, right?
What gives?

May 12th, 2010 at 8:59 am

great first set of tennis- youz v gulbis

but i wonder if gulbis has the patience to win. he blew two match points last game

tie breaker time

c’mon ernie. stay cool

May 12th, 2010 at 9:05 am

oh god.

EG has 6 set points in the tie break.

May 12th, 2010 at 9:07 am

make it 4 set points.

yessssssssss! good job ernie!

May 12th, 2010 at 9:09 am

Rsutherland-

they are all afraid.

meanwhile- youzy and ernie are not afraid.

gulbis is headed for a trainwreck. i feel it. even though he won that first set….in a tie break. he was mad at himself the whole time.

youz is cool. he lost the first to lackos. this is far frim not over *nail biting*

May 12th, 2010 at 9:18 am

wow.

great sportsman, mikhail youhzny.

EG serve was called out on game point and youz over rulz, gives it to ernie

i can’t cheer against youz.

May 12th, 2010 at 9:27 am

gulbis breaks! …….Yes I am up :)

May 12th, 2010 at 9:29 am

Isner is living dangerously. He saved all 7 break points in the 2nd set and had none against Giraldo’s serve, but squeezed out a tiebreak. Giraldo has won 18 more points and the match is even.

May 12th, 2010 at 9:42 am

skeezer-

that was an impressive win over the llama to reach your 1a ranking. heheheee

loved your post. WTF?

May 12th, 2010 at 9:49 am

skeezer, somebody ? margot? kimmi? ; )

yaaaaaaaay! gulbis! ( though i hate watching youz lose )

i’m out.

May 12th, 2010 at 9:57 am

Congrats to Ernie! He’s on a roll contador.

A number of withdrawals and retirements so far at this event: who’s withdrawn so far? Djoko, Berdych, Nalby (or is he playing?) and now Roddick.

May 12th, 2010 at 9:58 am

Gulbis is certainly one to watch come FO time – he’s swinging pretty freely & appears to fear no one.

Has anyone noticed that all of last week’s ATP tourney winners are out of Madrid now?

As far as the Yanks go, it all comes down to Andy getting over his bug & Quisner getting comfy on the dirt.

May 12th, 2010 at 10:06 am

thanks jane. grinning from ear to ear on my way out the door.

was hoping to catch a glimpse of dolgo in action but rafa’s match isn’t on yet, er, it’s just starting and i’ll miss it. not that i imagine olek will get many points, let alone a game.

can’t believe all the players deserting madrid.

skeezerweezer, isn’t there a WTF network explanation?

cheers

May 12th, 2010 at 10:07 am

contador.

Congrats to you and EG, lookin good & a good win. Yous is no slouch :)

TY on “my win” :)

May 12th, 2010 at 10:10 am

Nice to hear conty; enjoy your day.

Gulbis was in the FO quarters in 2008 when he was playing well and he and Djoko had a cracker of a match. I agree with tennismonger. Gulbis could be a dangerous character at the FO. I just don’t know how he does over 5 sets, but he has talked about his improved fitness.

May 12th, 2010 at 10:11 am

Von,

If your out there sorry to hear about AR, was looking forward to seeing him on the red dirt :(

May 12th, 2010 at 10:13 am

Wow! Dolgo up 1-0 against Rafa, Rafa getting bageled so far…..:)

May 12th, 2010 at 10:15 am

Ok, ok, so much for Rafa getting bageled…..

May 12th, 2010 at 10:19 am

The ball looks like it’s jumping like crazy out there, and of course it is because they’re playing in altitude.

I remember playing tennis in Madrid one time and thinking is there something weird about the court, the balls? What is going on because I feel like Pete Sampras out here, with every well-hit serve I hit virtually unreturnable?

Of course Madrid is nothing like Mexico City or Bogota or Kitzbuhel but it’s still much thinner air than just about anywhere else, certainly at any of the major sites around the world.

Rafa said after playing Querrey in Madrid in DC than no one had ever won that many easy points with the serve against him on clay.

May 12th, 2010 at 10:23 am

I know – Isner had over 20 aces today, on clay. Meanwhile, Rafa’s already hit a couple of double faults.

Wawrinka’s opponent just retired: that’s 2 retirements today and 2 yesterday.

May 12th, 2010 at 10:38 am

Dolgopolov is making Nadal work…even though he does kinda look like a cross between Martin Hingis and Svetlana Kusnetsova

May 12th, 2010 at 10:40 am

Wawrinka is looking in good form although Mayer just retired from the match. Should be a good matchup against Fedex tomorrow. H2H is 3-1 in Federer’s favor but wawrinka won the only match played on clay court (Rome) in straight sets.

May 12th, 2010 at 10:41 am

For me, this is a clear case of money winning out over what’s best for the players and the game. The tournament that should’ve be elevated to WTM 1000 status was Barcelona. It’s a traditional event, at sea level. Instead, you’ve got this monstrosity :) masquerading as a serious tournament. We’re at an important juncture of the season and the players are being put in totally different playing conditions here only to go back to normal again when they go to Paris.

May 12th, 2010 at 10:43 am

Mayer – yet another retirement. Dropping like pigeon-doo in Central Park.

May 12th, 2010 at 10:45 am

Rsutherland

Imo, the guy’s only making Nadal work because Rafa’s having trouble with the conditions. If this match were in Monte Carlo, it would probably be 6-1, 6-0. Look what Rafa did to Berrer and De Bakker, who are both better than this guy.

May 12th, 2010 at 10:45 am

David -

You are probably right – but good for Nadal to have to work anyway.

May 12th, 2010 at 10:47 am

Does anyone know if they’re using pressureless balls? I assume they must be, but the rallies are noticeably shorter here than at the other tournaments, which makes me think the balls are still too lively for these conditions.

May 12th, 2010 at 10:51 am

“even though he does kinda look like a cross between Martin Hingis and Svetlana Kusnetsova” – LOL Rsutherland. : ) I am not sure the ponytail AND lady’s headband are working for me either, but the guy can play some decent tennis. He’s holding his own with Rafa so far.

That said, these conditions do seem different – hybrid between hard court and clay??

May 12th, 2010 at 11:03 am

Pretty close match so far. Only difference is that Nadal had only one break point which he converted to take the first set.

May 12th, 2010 at 11:05 am

These excuses for “conditions” are inexcusable. Everyone has to play on the same surface during the tourney. In fact, I wish the surfaces year round played more differently, thus proving even more so the best all around player(s).

But it is what it is. Windy, cold, hot, humid, dry, fast, slow…High places. Low, everyone has to play in the same “conditions”. If this is your case for Rafa, why can’t he adjust and shorten or change his stroke accordingly? Why do the conditions have to change just for him?

May 12th, 2010 at 11:06 am

skeezer

I admit I don’t like it because it screws Rafa up, but I just think tennis is meant to be played at sea level. Every tournament of any significance all year is played at the same elevation. And this is just crap to watch. It’s one thing if we’re going to have the “altitude season” and play a bunch of tournaments in a row in altitude. But I think with Madrid being a one-off we’re just going to see a bunch of 5-6 ball rallies or less. Every time someone hits a big serve or a huge forehand the point is won because you just can’t control the stupid ball on defense. I know because I live in Medellin, Colombia and it’s really annoying when you just have to play careful all the time because the ball is flying all over the place.

May 12th, 2010 at 11:14 am

Skeezer- especially ironic in the case of Rafa defenders who are otherwise at such great pains to insist that Rafa is not just a great clay courter.

May 12th, 2010 at 11:14 am

Skeezer, speaking for myself, I wasn’t trying to make excuses for anyone; I was saying only that this clay court seems to play differently than what I’ve watched at the other events – Estoril, Barcelona, Rome and Monte Carlo. Lots of aces in Madrid, shorter rallies, balls seem to be flying, etc.

Of course they ALL have to adjust and play accordingly. And Verdasco still be Dr. Ivo. : )

May 12th, 2010 at 11:15 am

skeezerweezer – Big Nadal fan but I agree about the conditions/excuses comment. Last year the ‘word’ was that he was already having knee problems (unlike now) yet he made it to the finals in the same conditions.

May 12th, 2010 at 11:15 am

Tennis Vagabond – beware of stereotyping (Nadal fans or otherwise) …not a good idea historically or now….

May 12th, 2010 at 11:17 am

Also about these “conditions” – they could actually work in Rafa’s favour if, as had been said previously by some, the FO surface has changed and is now playing faster. In other words, it could work as good preparation for Rafa and others, rather than going from “slower” clay or whatever. It forces the player to adjust. And as Skeeze said, more different surfaces = more variety and challenges.

May 12th, 2010 at 11:19 am

oops … Verdasco still *beat* Dr. Ivo.

May 12th, 2010 at 11:20 am

rafatards rehearsing their excuses incase rafa gets roped in madrid.

i thought rafa was invincible on all clay? oh only at sea-level. any more asterisks? when his parents are not divorcing? when he is picking his @ss? come on rafatards, you can do it….

May 12th, 2010 at 11:23 am

peeking in on livescore.

it’s surprising. i thought rafa would be done with dolgo by now.

and soda is having difficulty holding serve.

altitude. ponytails and little headbands. dolgo has great hair and knows how to manage it well on court from the little i have seen. imo

May 12th, 2010 at 11:26 am

Jane,

I got that Hot sauce beat Dr. Ivo :) the first time, and a good win it was! Dr. Ivo is always a monster to play against :)

May 12th, 2010 at 11:27 am

Contador,

“altitude. ponytails and little headbands. dolgo has great hair and knows how to manage it well on court from the little i have seen. imo”

Lol…”Classic”

Rafa just broke, looks like he’ll get through. IMO good workout for him, kid is tough :)

May 12th, 2010 at 11:32 am

Lion – still saying Rafatard? Do you somehow feel elevated by using what amounts to a grade-school taunt?
And for all you who carry own about Nadal’s ‘ass-picking’…geez!
Nadals backside is legendary nor for the picking but for the hoards of women (and some men) who would do just about anything to pick it for him. Get over your envy and get a grip

May 12th, 2010 at 11:32 am

LOL.. Its so funny how Lion always magically appears when Rafa is in trouble in his match or Federer wins a match and then disappears equally magically as soon as Rafa wins or Federer loses.

May 12th, 2010 at 11:39 am

Good match – Dolgo was entertaining, kept it close.

May 12th, 2010 at 11:43 am

eeewwwww

please. *fingers in ears. lalalala*

skeezer- dolgo i hope is setting the new hair trend in mens tennis.

i seriously prefer the little headbands to the big thick ones now. they are sooo out, imo.

of course pony tails…if one has hair…flaunt it!

i dunno who will win? almagro or soda? score line looks tight.

c’mon robin!

May 12th, 2010 at 11:46 am

Rsutherland,

Respect what your saying. I am a big Fed fan, but I think Rafa and Fed together make the game better, not worse. It’s fun to trash talk, within reason, but I think everyone knows you don’t need to do it with name calling and personal attacks. Hint: use less “adjectives” :). Just my IMO….

BTW the pickin stuff is old already. We went through this months ago. Do I wish Rafa would stop that? Yes. But hey, Fed plays with his nose too much….so WTF? I say are you watching tennis or is your mind on other things?

May 12th, 2010 at 11:48 am

Contador,

Re: Dolgo hair style :)

Check this out: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oleksandr_Dolgopolov_Jr.

May 12th, 2010 at 11:50 am

the butt picking bugs me too. but so do a lot of other manners on court.

i’m okay with racquet tossing (except federer ) and cursing ones self. some tasteful arguing with the ump makes for good watching.

attempting to shut up your opponents home crowd by imitating their faves bad habits is high risk. but it is entertaining, as is telling your opponents wildly excited family box,” shhhh,” in a gs semi-final.

May 12th, 2010 at 11:59 am

The commentator early in the match said Dolgo had a “metrosexual” look.

He looks like Lewton Hewitt back when he had longer hair except their nose is different.

May 12th, 2010 at 11:59 am

c’mon soda! don’t be afraid.

skeez

“oleksandr the great” kinda long for a nickname. and that has to be an old, very old picture. i watched dolgo play last fall in moscow or st petersburg and was mystified by his hairdo. i thought he had it in cornrows with little dot tatoos at the hairline. then i saw a close up photo ( link? i will try to find later) and realized he wears a thin headband with teeth…you know? well, i do. cos i wear one often. i thought it was clever, good management and trendy, imo.

was too interested in his hair to notice how he played tennis, even while he won the match!

i lost my livescore.

May 12th, 2010 at 12:09 pm

Rsutherland – OMG, Dolgopolov looked so familiar but I couldn’t put my finger on it. I think my brain just wouldn’t stretch all the way to the wta. He could be Hingis’ twin.

This could have been one of the nightmare “first” matches everyone was talking about at Rome. Rafa was pretty pissy. Erratic court + erratic player (the guy has a 2-11 win/loss record)=anything can happen. Just glad he’s through.

Tomorrows match between Fed and Gulbis will be telling. Pesonally, I don’t think Fed is looking forward to it.

May 12th, 2010 at 12:21 pm

it’s fed and wawa.

gulbis and f-lo, again, like in rome

May 12th, 2010 at 12:22 pm

@ Anna

Irs Fed vs Wawrinka tomorrow. Gulbis is still one round away.

May 12th, 2010 at 12:23 pm

thinking it might be wise to schudle a light day tomorrow if gulbis AND federer are in matches. *gulp*

May 12th, 2010 at 12:27 pm

s/b schedule

May 12th, 2010 at 12:28 pm

I don’t think Soderling has a drop shot. He could really use one.

May 12th, 2010 at 12:29 pm

Skeeerweezer – ‘It’s fun to trash talk, within reason’ yes and I have certainly been guilty of ‘descending below the belt’ (yes the innuendo speaks for itself) and I am usually the 2nd person to call myself on it.
BUT – what I have trouble understanding is the lack of boredom in the sheer repetition of so much of it. Even young children get tired of saying “I know you are but what am I” after, say, the 18th time.

May 12th, 2010 at 12:29 pm

soda out. : (

oh well, altitude.

and my piece with the bracket challenge was over yesterday.

go Kimmi!

May 12th, 2010 at 12:32 pm

Tennis-x fans by and large seem like very intelligent and civil folk, but in my 3 hours-a-week of entering into the land, i find an utter lack of imagination in the taunts (as a Nadal fan, I notice more the Rafatard and butt picking comments)
The predictablity factor becomes tedious at times too. (Sorry for the one-sided example as I know they exist on both sides)
How many times is it interesting to type the number 16?
The achievement is absolutely to be commended and history will judge it – and in all probability a higher number – quite favorably.
But really, is it like some tonic to keep repeating this or any other statistic ad nauseum.

May 12th, 2010 at 12:35 pm

R,

Agreed :)

May 12th, 2010 at 12:36 pm

And my curiosity regarding both the number 18 and 16 is:
If Nadal does win this (a huge ‘if’, granted), we will soon see the number 18 (fine! it would be a new statistic). But how soon after we see the number 18 will someone relax the gnashing of their teeth enough to type the number 16 (a tangent at best)?
Maybe I am just a lousy sports fan.

May 12th, 2010 at 12:39 pm

Holy heck, Lion, at least mix it up a little with the juvenile attempts at humor and sophomoric insults. Ah yeah. Nadal picks his butt. Your persistence in throwing it out there like it’s comedy gold for the umpteenth time shows a real lack of imagination on your part, and an obsession that is, frankly, a little worrisome.

Anyway, that Dolgo kid looked great out there. Certainly one to watch. Glad Nadal made it through. Still hoping for a Fedal match. That would be glorious.

May 12th, 2010 at 12:49 pm

I’m “out” for awhile, have fun gang…..

May 12th, 2010 at 12:55 pm

Anna – “OMG, Dolgopolov looked so familiar but I couldn’t put my finger on it. I think my brain just wouldn’t stretch all the way to the wta. He could be Hingis’ twin”
Yes, but he has Svetlana’s shnoz.
Thanks – for noticing. It is for profound observations such as these I would prefer to be associated.

May 12th, 2010 at 12:55 pm

I don’t have a problem with the occasional name calling as I indulge in it myself from time to time(see next paragraph). As long as the message boards don’t get overrun with back and forth insults.

For the most part the Fedtards and Rafatards excoriate each other while ignoring it when their own side is talking nonsense.

May 12th, 2010 at 1:05 pm

NELTA,

Came back for a sec to say “Well said” :)

Really out….

May 12th, 2010 at 1:09 pm

Nelta – ‘I don’t have a problem with the occasional name calling…’ Once again, it is about the utter lack of imagination (anything ‘tard’ is so grade-school) and endless repetition (you did write ‘occasional’), regardless of whose side it is that is unfortunate.

May 12th, 2010 at 1:12 pm

I’m sure you would be heaping praise on Lion for creativity if he was calling Rafa different names every time he posted. Why don’t you help out the mentally challenged Lion with some new names that he can use if creativity is so important to you. That can be your contribution to the board.

May 12th, 2010 at 1:28 pm

I think a good word for the diehard Nadal brigade is “Rafanatics”.

May 12th, 2010 at 1:30 pm

Not bad Colin. How about Fedaholics for the diehard Fed fans?

May 12th, 2010 at 1:42 pm

haha, rafatards getting their panties or whatever they wear in a bunch.

It is most certain rafa’s rope is imminent. cannot wait!

R-rafatard you know what is boring? a guy in theatre. no wonder you would love to pick rafa’s butt! there is a rumour that feliciano lopez/ verdasco does so for rafa. hope you find that interesting.

May 12th, 2010 at 1:57 pm

~sigh~

May 12th, 2010 at 2:02 pm

I’m not sure that Rs was looking for “creative name calling” but maybe some creative thinking, and I don’t think anyone’s going to be praising Lion for a whole lot anytime soon, unless maybe you have some praise to heap on him. I skimmed through an arguement as old as dirt here yesterday. Fed/Nadal, who was hurt/who wasn’t hurt. You could see Maxi going to her file cabinet and picking out arguement 35 and writing it out again for the umpteenth time. It’s OLD. It’s past it’s due date. It’s repetitive. There are no winners. Let’s talk about what’s relevant in tennis NOW, not a year ago.

May 12th, 2010 at 2:18 pm

Nelta – My last post was meant for you. Oh look, another fun Lion post, and that’s one of his very favorite messages. Now I’m having fun.

May 12th, 2010 at 2:23 pm

Murray just got through his first match (against Chela) but then, he got through his first match in the last tournament. As he said at the start of Madrid, it may sound boring, but he has to take one match at a time and can’t get ahead of himself. He needs to string some results together and get his confidence back. I certainly hope he does. I changed to a new service provider earlier this year, and have unlimited download with better broadband speed. I was looking forward to watching some Murray matches online – and he promptly went into a slump. I think he did it on purpose, just to annoy me!

May 12th, 2010 at 2:28 pm

Oh boy. Lion is on a role today. All we need is Skorocel to balance it out.

Ezorra,

You are one of the few level headed rafanatics

May 12th, 2010 at 2:29 pm

Anna,

Yesterday it was actually the rafanatics that pulled out the old argument trying to diminish Fed’s accomplishments for the upteenth time and then madmax pulled out response #35.

May 12th, 2010 at 2:37 pm

I know Nelta, but to me it doesn’t matter who’s pulling what, at some point you just have to get past “crap”. As soon as I recognized that age old arguement I just thought “same ol, same ol” and skimmed through. I have the option to do that (skim through) but at the same time I thought, what a waste of time rehashing old hash. I guess maybe I’m venting today. Nothing personal.

May 12th, 2010 at 2:54 pm

Nelta – It will take 5 Skorocels to balance out 1 Lion.

May 12th, 2010 at 3:00 pm

Anna,

that’s fine. but you know what? I dont particularly care – because I SAID IT WAS OLD NEWS. so thanks for agreeing with me.

by the way, next time this “old news” comes up, do yourself a favour and don’t respond to it.

Easy. because if you read the previous post, you’ll see that another poster brought it up and I responded. “old news”, so I dont really see what you point is, Anna?

“Fed/Nadal, who was hurt/who wasn’t hurt. You could see Maxi going to her file cabinet and picking out arguement 35 and writing it out again for the umpteenth time. It’s OLD. It’s past it’s due date. It’s repetitive. There are no winners. Let’s talk about what’s relevant in tennis NOW, not a year ago.”

May 12th, 2010 at 2:18 pm

May 12th, 2010 at 3:06 pm

nna Says:
Nelta – It will take 5 Skorocels to balance out 1 Lion.

- – - – - – - -
LOL.

May 12th, 2010 at 3:14 pm

Tsonga is gone too

May 12th, 2010 at 3:39 pm

Just got back home – Murray won! Phew, margot & Kimmi!! Now I can go check the other results. : )

May 12th, 2010 at 4:43 pm

Oops, Soda pop is out – sorry conty.

May 12th, 2010 at 4:44 pm

YAY! jane and margot.. Murray wins. C’mon muzza. madrid is faster, should suit him. He has a good draw too..great chance to go to the semi here I think. OK, there is ferrer but fast courts favors Muzza..You can do it muzza.

contador..I was on cloud nine yesterday with my challenge. Today I got messed up big time but still better that Rome.

Gulbis, YES! love the guy..very funny if you listen to his interview (yesterday) at tennistv. the way he was talking about montanes faking that injury thing..lol.. funny guy.

Just got a new computer, my comments took a while to show yesterday..i think its good again today.

Serena is out jane..petrova took her out.

May 12th, 2010 at 4:57 pm

Really Kimmi? I had thought Serena would do better here, that her serve might be more effective. I haven’t checked the ladies, but when I left JJ had beaten Ana in a 3 setter and Venus was down one or two breaks in the first. I think Sanchez was eliminated yesterday or today too, and Dementieva. Anyhow, I’ll have to check the WTA results.

May 12th, 2010 at 5:04 pm

I thought serena could do well here too, maybe the altitude is troubling her. She struggled in her first match with dushevina, just scrap out of it in three tie breaks.

Now the ladies tourny is open..defending champ safina is ofcourse out. Wozniacki is also out. Henin, sharapova and now serena. sanchez was beaten yesterday by stosur.

Who can win this, your guess is as good as mine.

May 12th, 2010 at 5:12 pm

hi jane.

yeah, soda fizzled flat at altitude. he was really struggling to hold his serve, according to what i saw watching livescore.

congrats to you jane and the other muzza fans here (margot and kimmi.. think he can take down hanescu?

though i haven’t been the biggest murray fan, i have to admit i miss him playing strong and to his ability. hope he has it “sorted” mentally.

congrats to rafa fans. i was able to see a bit of his match and dolgo gave him a bigger challenge than i expected.

i wonder if isner is afraid. : )

go gulbis! and c’mon federer! please, please let there be a rome rematch.

can gulbis get past f-lo again? and federer has a tough match with wawa. okay, all feddy’s matches are tough lately. uhhhg.

May 12th, 2010 at 5:13 pm

conty, let there be a gulbis federer rematch? and for the love of god, let the fed win this time.

Why is gulbis always on federer side of the draw? OK, I am on his bandwagon and tired of seeing him beat the fed :(

Bracket is messed up with withdrawals conty..the time I start to do a little better..everyone withdrawals or retires..what is going on? Tsonga retired too today..arrrrg!

May 12th, 2010 at 5:20 pm

Yep, that’s pretty wide open Kimmi! I wouldn’t mind seeing JJ win another big one. She came so close last weekend, and won IW. She’s really been playing well again.

Hi contador, I doubt big John Isner is afraid. I think he likes big wins. He’s a feisty competitor. I tend to prefer Sam’s game overall, but somehow I think Isner might develop into more of threat due to his hunger. Sam’s got that surfy, southern Cali laidback thang going on. Which is also why I like him, : )

I hope we get to see a Gulbis v Fed rematch too!

May 12th, 2010 at 5:23 pm

Tsonga retired? I totally missed that when I checked results. So that’s 5 in the the last two days, not even counting at least 4 withdrawals. Sheesh – it’s getting to look like the *end* of last year!

May 12th, 2010 at 5:25 pm

kimmi -

gulbis straight talk. angel face has no problem with candid answers; no concern in him about how he comes across. LOL!

curious to know what he has to say about youzy. youhzney is pure class and a delight to watch. both of them AHHHHH! tennis.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R6-yDCwDc9M

gulbis on montanes. in case anyone missed it and is curious.

May 12th, 2010 at 5:25 pm

Thanks for posting contador. His haircut is great and when he smiles, wow. It just lights him up like a christmas tree. Anyhow, he was also quite complimentary of Montanes, saying he will be a threat at the FO, played well in the first set, etc.

Hope Gulbis can beat F-Lo.

May 12th, 2010 at 5:31 pm

I think with his results here and the withdrawals, he will definetly be seeded at the FO. He is ranked 34 at the moment. seeds are 32, aren’t they?..I am happy for him. That should give him opportunity to do well there.

May 12th, 2010 at 5:37 pm

margot, what do you think about Cameron (off topic of tennis, I know)? NYT’s said “first coalition government” in Britain since WWII. Wow – must be big news over there…

May 12th, 2010 at 5:43 pm

John and Sam are being refered to as “Quizner” on some blogs. I love these American boys. They’re not afraid of claycourts and they’re not afraid of Rafa. Well, maybe a little bit afraid of Rafa.

May 12th, 2010 at 5:44 pm

your welcome. it’s nice to have a few gulbis’ fans here or at least some interested.

yep- a real charmer, that ernie. tells it like it is (safin- style) and follows up with a compliment to montanes.

i watched the match and thought it played out exactly as ernie explains.

you are right, kimmi. he is a “lock” to be seeded at the FO., according to ricky dimon form TT’ ( a closet gulbis’ fan ). sorry i don’t have the link at hand.

later. back to work for the next couple houts.

May 12th, 2010 at 5:46 pm

Anna, thanks for clarifying Quisner for me! LOL. When someone used it here earlier, I had assumed it was a funny nickname for Isner (after Quizno’s Subs or something ha ha). Anyhow, now I know. Duh. : /

May 12th, 2010 at 5:50 pm

Quizner is funny

May 12th, 2010 at 6:11 pm

Jane, Kimmi, Contador,

The three Lady Musketeers :)

May 12th, 2010 at 7:30 pm

Serena after her loss:

“This isn’t a player-favorite tournament, just to be honest. None of the players are really gung-ho about playing here.”

She could get fined for talking like that. (Not that she will care) Davydenko got fined for bad mouthing Sydney when he lost a couple of years ago.

May 12th, 2010 at 7:40 pm

Skeezer: “The three Lady Musketeers :)”

Cool! i like them both. You too :)

May 12th, 2010 at 8:04 pm

Did Del Potro’s US Open motivate Querrey and Isner? I know the have decided to go for big things (the Davis Cup commitment says as much) but it seems their sights (much as Verdasco’s in some ways) target “big things”.

Roddick is an influence (sorry to knock Blake again, but Querrey and Isner are “leaving him in the dust” as the U.S. legitimate #2 and #3).

I wonder what role Pat Mcenroe has in this. They seem to be ready to seize the U.S. top position – Isner especially enjoys the big stage and the big moment, though Querrey owns him in their meetings (ok, so what if it’s 2-1. I bet he also wins in practice).

May 12th, 2010 at 8:24 pm

Yet another “classic” from WTF network correspondent and #1a player on the ATP tour. Maybe we could be racketeers? ; )

——————–

Andrew, I do find it interesting that Sam has won the last two finals against Isner, in both cases, where Isner seemed like the likely winner for a lot of the match but with Sam coming back. Wonder if it’s a friendship thing? But Isner does seem to be the hungrier one overall. I am hoping Sam can play well again at Wimbledon; even though he didn’t get deep, his 5- setter versus Cilic at Wimby last year was great. (as was Cilic v. Haas – come to think of it, Cilic is a 5 setter kind of guy, and again at the AO this year).

May 12th, 2010 at 8:41 pm

How did Isner lose first set 1-6 today, with THAT serve and the conditions being faster at madrid? he needs to serve well from get go tomorrow. Should be able to make it close against nadal..

May 12th, 2010 at 9:13 pm

Jane,

I like that better too, “racketeers” :)

May 12th, 2010 at 9:17 pm

Jane-do you think Del Potro’s victory showed that, even in the new world of “athletic all court tennis” (vs the baseline/serve volley era) that a big power player could win Slams?

Del Potro is huge – bigger than Querrey and not much smaller than Isner. Did they look at Del Potro and say, “Hey, we’re not Roddick but neither are we Karlovic, but this del Potro guy is showing that big dudes can win Slams.”

May 12th, 2010 at 10:17 pm

I just wonder why Isner and Querrey are so fired up and ready to win. They are becoming players that “nobody wants to face.”

May 12th, 2010 at 10:18 pm

Andrew, you have a very good point about Delpo’s win, and I think he’s even younger than Querrey and Isner? Moreover, Cilic has been stepping up a bit at the slams since the FO last year, and Roddick’s Wimbledon run must’ve been inspiring for them too. Finally, these two have had to step up at Davis Cup this season as well, with Blake and Roddick out. So probably all of these events could’ve inspired the “Quisner” upswing. And good on them if they can keep it going.

May 12th, 2010 at 11:10 pm