Nadal Wins, Federer v Raonic In Halle; Tsonga Injured At Queen’s

Nadal will have it easy against Kohlscrieber while it will be quite a tricky one for Roger. It all depends on how well Raonic serves. If he serves well, he might go on to win. If not, Roger will have his chances. Meanwhile, I expect Roger too to add some sting to his service which is now-a-days broken more often. Where is that Roger who will serve three aces continuously when he is down 0-40 ??????

June 15th, 2012 at 12:17 am

“He’s a very complete player,” Nadal said. “I played him a few times. You cannot say his serve is not good. You cannot say his forehand is not good because he does everything well. He’s not the kind of player where you can say, I have to hit against his backhand because he will do mistakes. He has a good chance from every place.”

But I am 8-0 against him. Just so you know despite that it will be nearly impossible and very difficult if I win, I am so humble so I have to discount my chances, as you all know. Humble is as Humble does. Where is the box of Chocolates?

One night David Letterman invited me on his show, and challenged me to Tic Tac Toe. He is a very complete player.

You cannot say his moves are not good, Nor when he thinks before he moves. U cannot say he is not thinking. His arm movement proves he can make a good movement, but my forehand of course is supreme. He has a good chance at every place. But he will make mistakes when he moves with the other arm. That is my life long strategy. Of course above all reasons I am humble.

Signed,

Your humbleness.

June 15th, 2012 at 12:37 am

In these smaller events, it’s kind of weird when top seeded players get a “bye”, play one match, and then boom – they are already in the quarter finals! :) Halle has some good matches tomorrow but there are a couple I want to see at Queens too. I thought Nalby played tomorrow.

June 15th, 2012 at 12:47 am

Halle: Only 4 matches, and you are the champion
Queens: You have to win 5 matches to be the champion.

June 15th, 2012 at 1:09 am

Skeezer: Now, now…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mYKWch_MNY0&feature=related

Grass is Florian Mayer’s best surface — he reached the Wimbledon quarterfinals in 2004, and at least the second or third round in every Wimbledon he has played. Mayer is an experienced German player ranked No. 29 (with 165 victories in the ATP), with a career high of No. 18 last year. Yet Federer finished his match 2 minutes faster than Nadal and Roger never dropped his serve even once. Once he gave the crowd their money’s worth in each set, Federer duly broke Mayer’s serve to win each set and the match. Mayer was left to rue an “unlucky draw” against Federer: “It is really frustrating that I got such a tough draw in the second round. It was just an unlucky draw. I am sure that I would have beaten most of the other players today.”

Nadal was lucky he got the No. 58 puffball Lucas Lacko — only 39 victories in the ATP, grass is not his best surface — instead of the unorthodox Mayer. Nadal’s next easy opponent is No. 34 Kohlschreiber. Now the betting begins: will Nadal choose to tank to No. 34 Kohlschreiber or to No. 7 Berdych, just like he has been doing in the past at Queens to get back to Mallorca? Or does his larger appearance fee require him to remain in Halle until the finals?

Federer’s next opponent No. 21 Milos Raonic (for the third time this year) is one of the most dangerous players on a grass court.

June 15th, 2012 at 1:18 am

Bird’s eye view of the Halle grounds
http://tinyurl.com/8a55jgf

June 15th, 2012 at 1:28 am

Dave, the halle grounds look good :)

June 15th, 2012 at 1:50 am

jane/Dave/skeezer —
how do queens and halle compare with wimbledon in terms of court and ball speeds? clearly wimbledon has slowed down over the last 10 years… so do they (queens/halle) calibrate their speeds to wimbledon?

there was also this bit that somebody posted here a month back about wimbledon balls being made lighter (consequently faster?) for this year. i wonder if you know something about this…

i am sorry if these were repeat questions…

June 15th, 2012 at 2:02 am

harry: Based on visual impressions, I think Queens is slightly faster than Halle which is faster than Wimbledon center court in the first week. By the second week, Wimbledon’s center court becomes even slower, given the extra wear from best-of-five set matches over two weeks. Overall Wimbledon seems higher bouncing to me. I don’t have actual player experiences, but Nadal should know best on this topic.

Jason Goodall showed that Federer’s 126-mph first serves hit in 2003 Wimbledon and in 2008 Wimbledon — after bouncing on the progressively firmer and slower grass courts — reached the returner at slower speeds in 2008 Wimbledon than at 2003 Wimbledon. The courts are just getting slower and higher bouncing with each passing year, caused by the firming of the soil due to natural settling as well as rolling of the soil.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704103904575336920883530594.html

Halle said it uses the same grass as Wimbledon, except it grows the grass on pallets. Before the event it fits the pallets to make the center court for this event.

Not sure about this year’s Wimbledon’s balls.

June 15th, 2012 at 3:26 am

harry: yeah, the tennis grounds do look enticing, probably lots of spa treatments going on in the clubhouse building. The Webers did well. In the rest of Halle, population about 20,000 people, I can’t imagine there’s much to do there other than buy Gerry Weber clothes or go sightseeing.
http://rheintennis.files.wordpress.com/2011/01/gws_juni-2008-christian-ring-luftbildfotografiegrc3bcn-bielefeld.jpg

June 15th, 2012 at 3:31 am

thanks Dave for the information on halle vs queens vs wimby.

by the way, i had read this article a year or two back ;) there was another article — i dont remember the link — which counted the average number of aces per year at wimbledon and came to a similar conclusion.

having lighter balls at wimbledon could change the narrative this year… but i think i am jumping the gun on this one…

June 15th, 2012 at 3:43 am

“I can’t imagine there’s much to do there other than buy Gerry Weber clothes or go sightseeing.”

lol Dave!

June 15th, 2012 at 3:45 am

Dave, Kohls isn’t a schlub, and he’s quite good on grass. Don’t forget he is in fact the defending champion here! (Whereas Raonic lost to the man Kohls beat in the final…) Anyway, the luck changes in the next round: Rafa should face Berdych while Roger faces Steps or Youzhny.

June 15th, 2012 at 4:09 am

The last post was for Michael, too. (And did you watch his match against FM today? He served three aces in a row at least once, just not in the same game…)

June 15th, 2012 at 4:11 am

federer vs nadal at wimby would be great!!! i still feel he needs one more big win vs nadal at a grand slam as long he still has it…

it has been 4 years since their last time at wimby…so keep fingers crossed that it will happen again

June 15th, 2012 at 5:21 am

RAFA,,,RAFA,,,OH NADAL!!!
YESTERDAY YOU WERE LUCKY, TODAY YOU ARE LUCKY, TOMORROW YOU WILL BE LUCKY AGAIN!!!!!!!
Would you share your luck with others pleasssssse, otherwise we are going to have war very soon!

@skeezer, you are amazing, the other thread you became rafa’s Clay, now you become rafa’s moved, can’t believe it man!!!!

June 15th, 2012 at 5:44 am

”But I am 8-0 against him. Just so you know despite that it will be nearly impossible and very difficult if I win, I am so humble so I have to discount my chances, as you all know. Humble is as Humble does. Where is the box of Chocolates?”

2012 Doha
Qatar Hard R32 Nadal, Rafael
6-3, 6-7(2), 6-3

2010 ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Canada
Toronto, Canada Hard Q Nadal, Rafael
3-6, 6-3, 6-4

2010 Australian Open
Australia Hard R32 Nadal, Rafael
6-4, 6-2, 2-6, 7-5

2008 Dubai
U.A.E. Hard R32 Nadal, Rafael
3-6, 6-1, 6-4 Stats

it’s certainly an easy opponent when every hard court 3set match goes the distance.
how inaccurate of nadal!
it’s a sign of utter domination when you are consistently pushed to 3sets! when your australian open match goes 4hours. you should pretend these are easy matches where the opponent has no chance!

hint:try following the tour.

June 15th, 2012 at 6:17 am

and how long did nadal spend picking his bu77 in those 4hrs? i am guessing 2hrs.

hint : try getting your head out of rafa’s bu77

June 15th, 2012 at 7:11 am

Dave/Roy – This is what Szeezer does; plays the role of a civil poster (‘congrats to Rafa fans for’…yada yada’) then periodically posts the snarky anti-Nadal remark. Skeezer is far more disingenuous then the typical Nadal hater. The pattern, however is really rather obvious and predictable.

A bigger point to this:
No one on here knows what the motivations of any of these players are.
Roger Federer is not arrogant as some say. His fans that claim insight into Nadal’s heart are arrogant.

Opera analogy – Franco Corelli was sone of the all-time great tenors – with great looks and high notes that would make Pavarotti’s sound small. Audiences went crazy for him. YET, he practically had to get pushed out on stage, he was so insecure.
Once he got out there, he was a singing phenom. Off the stage, he was a mess.

Nadal was brought up in a small town with an intimate relationship with his family. He also has a veritable dictator for a coach who often is telling him he is not good enough.

The problem is; to admit that Nadal actually might be shy or humble or even insecure does not gel with the need to resent him/his success.

However if one were:
1) informed of the background of an individual
2) not so seemingly (as I cannot actually know why you write such remarks) motivated to find any reason to dislike the individual and
3) not so arrogant to pretend he/she can look into the soul of an individual they do not personally know, that person might actually believe Nadal’s words to be genuine.

June 15th, 2012 at 7:55 am

Tipsy 5-4 on serve in the 3rd. If he wins, plays qyuarters today – plus h’e in the doubles. And there’s rain.

Tsonga’s gone back to France to seek attention for his finger, hurt whilst slipping. he’s reported to be distraught that it might put him out of Wimbledon. I think the rest of us might be, if not distraught exactly, very disappointed – Tsonga was surely built for grass. medical report later today.

June 15th, 2012 at 8:13 am

Dave, you conveniently forgot to state that Kholshcriber is the present defending champion of Halle.Anyway, your arguments are mostly twisted.

June 15th, 2012 at 8:16 am

King stupider is so deep into Nadal’s ,that he cannot stop blurting about Nadal’s ass.

June 15th, 2012 at 8:28 am

Well, Tipsy’s work load is dramatically cut down as Lu takes it on the tiebreak – coming back from 2 minibreaks.

On the evidence of the little i saw of this match, it’s really not such a big surprise that Lu should have beaten Roddick at Wimbledon. he likes the grass, and he’s completely nerveless when he’s in trouble – consistently goes for very difficult shots, creaming the lines as often as not. And he is sporting – Lu looked like breaking following a good approach, but Tipsy denied him with an acrobatic volley, which Lu applauded.

June 15th, 2012 at 8:35 am

my apologies – this already posted on wrong thread by mistake.

Gosh, Dimitrov is serving accurately these days. But one serve going very wide for, I thought, a certain winner Anderson connected with and won the point. Illustrating two things – the advantages of a wide wing span (not many could have reached the ball) and also the comparative lack of pace on the Dimitrov serve. he has to rely very heavily on accuracy. Question is – can he keep it up?

June 15th, 2012 at 8:53 am

bo0by – it is a fact! rafa does keep picking his bu77 in public. while most raf@tards might find it “humble”, a lot of other people find it disgusting.

i did not make this stuff up like raf@tards made up about Federer being arrogant and nadal being oh-so-humble. you can see it every fre@king time rafa serves, nowadays he is digging his bu77 even when returning.

June 15th, 2012 at 9:03 am

3-3. Dimitrov struggling to hold each time – Anderson is a very solid baseliner who hits the ball a good deal harder than Dimitrov. Two typical points in that game. Dimitrov had plenty of time to put his bh down the line, but somehow contrived to put it wide. next point, Anderson went for it, putting his opponent under huge pressure. You just waited for the dolly into the net when Dimitrov pulled a magic a bh out of the hat to pass Anderson.

Anderson to me looks like the professional’s professional. he does everything well, hits consistently hard, is never surprising. Can’t help liking him, salt of the earth sort of thing. He’s giving Dimitrov a very searching test, and if the young man comes through, this will be a significant step in his career I suspect.

June 15th, 2012 at 9:15 am

medical time out alert:

nadal down a break in halle!

June 15th, 2012 at 9:23 am

One difficult service game too many, I’m afraid, and Anderson takes the set. One bit of bad luck, Dimitrov in good position by net but slips to give 0-30. One set point, Dimitrov puts himself in excellent position to win the point, but takes a wild swing – and the set is Anderson’s.
Measured aggression – that’s what Dimitrov has yet to learn. At the same time, he’s giving away so much weight of shot, it’s bound to just weary the man, or frustrate him in the end. Anderson is like a consistent steamroller. if you can deal with steamrollers – they do lack subtlety – fine. Otherwise, you go under.

June 15th, 2012 at 9:26 am

skeezer :

good post about humbleness! they should make all the kids read rafa’s pressers so that we can have a world full of “humBULL” people!

LOL!

June 15th, 2012 at 9:26 am

roy

Hint; a win is a win. I follow the tour, not just look in wikis.

Rsutherland,

You are far too serious. You watch Opera. I watch Seinfeld reruns.

June 15th, 2012 at 9:34 am

Kohlschreiber is pushing Nadal around. Had chances for a double break and will serve for the first set.

June 15th, 2012 at 9:35 am

And PK takes the first set with ease. Interesting.

June 15th, 2012 at 9:37 am

medical time out alert:

nadal down a break in halle!
—
I just want to get a few matches under the belt on grass. I have collected a hefty appearance fee, so it was worth it. See you Wimbledon.

June 15th, 2012 at 9:39 am

kohls wraps up 1st set. i guess things are not so easy for the hum-bull, when the surface is not red clay – where you can rally till the cows come home or should i say the bulls come home.

shame on you atp for slowing down the conditions and favouring defensive players. it’s like making the goal smaller in football to favor boring defensive football playing countries like italy over argentina/brazil.

June 15th, 2012 at 9:46 am

Halle plays faster than Wimbldon, and this type of surface really exposes Nadal’s game, which is clearly suited for slower, higher-bouncing courts. PK is a good grasscourt player in his own right, but he’s certainly not regarded as a stand-out grass competitor. He’s just got the game to push Nadal around. On a good day, Djokovic would probably double-bagel Nadal on Halle’s center court.

June 15th, 2012 at 9:49 am

nadal will win in 3

June 15th, 2012 at 9:55 am

grendel, I posted to you on the thread where we were posting yesterday.

Just waking up, catching up with tennis results. And play is suspended at Queen’s. Have to get a Halle stream.

June 15th, 2012 at 9:55 am

lol @ the mind reels!

fed did bagel rafa, even after he crossed 30! if djokovic is in the mood on london’s indoor courts, you could make some serious money by betting on a double bagel!

June 15th, 2012 at 9:56 am

grendel, thanks for the update on Tsonga; I hope it’s not broken, because if it is then there is a good chance he’ll miss Wimbledon. Also enjoyed your play-by-play on Dimitrov – just too early to wake up for it. Anderson is tough indeed. But you make points about Dimitrov’s efforts that maybe account for his dramatic cramping by the second set in the Gasquet match! I’ve seen that sort of thing in 4th and 5th sets of long matches, but the 2nd set?!

June 15th, 2012 at 10:02 am

PK needs to get his first-serve percentage back up. He’s not made many in this second set. Nadal is getting outplayed on his backhand side, so he needs to make that adjustment if he wants to win this match.

June 15th, 2012 at 10:06 am

Gorgeous crosscourt bh by Dimitrov to hold for 1-1 after rain break. But again deuces – no easy service games for Dimitrov. be amazing if he can pull this one off. Oddly, Anderson the giant has a firmer footing than Dimitrov who is sliding all over the place.

June 15th, 2012 at 10:09 am

Special K’s first serve percentage is 53% for the match; on the one hand, I was thinking that Nadal will attack that second serve soon enough and break, but on the other hand, Nadal has lost in the QFs of Queens during all of his appearances there except for one: in 2008 he won the tournament. So Nadal going out at Halle today wouldn’t be a shocker, all things considered.

June 15th, 2012 at 10:12 am

if they did not slow down playing conditions, it could be possible that djokovic would have had more slams than rafa by now.

it is fairly obvious that a slower court favors rafa than djokovic!

June 15th, 2012 at 10:13 am

Anderson for once misses some first serves,result – break point (courtesy, too, of excellent bh down at the feet of incoming server). And what is Anderson’s reply? 3 aces.

June 15th, 2012 at 10:14 am

My Queens stream keeps cutting out – annoying.

June 15th, 2012 at 10:17 am

since 2006, the only year rafa won wimbledon, after losing in a grasscourt warm up is in 2010. so, all things considered, there is a greater likelihood he will NOT win wimbledon if he loses to PK.

June 15th, 2012 at 10:17 am

PK played a really nice few points from 40-15 in Nadal’s last service game to break and then consolidate. He leads 5-3 in the second set. Nadal will serve to stay in the tournament.

June 15th, 2012 at 10:18 am

van orton –

What did you base your prediction on?

June 15th, 2012 at 10:19 am

Did Nadal have 2 double faults in that last game in which he was broken? Definitely 1.

June 15th, 2012 at 10:19 am

@jane: he had 1, and I think his other double came in the first set.

June 15th, 2012 at 10:20 am

Thanks, TMR. I missed the first set so I am trying to get up to speed. I kind of feel like Kimberly is right that Nadal brings only his “B” game to these pre-Wimbledon warm ups. But then again, I haven’t watched the whole match and special K is good on grass, obviously he is the defending champion, and didn’t he get a set from Fed one year at Wimbledon? I remember a nice match between them. Still, I am surprised Nadal hasn’t been able to take advantage of second serves more often.

June 15th, 2012 at 10:23 am

Another little rain break, and the ballgirl holding up the umbrella for Dimitrov has an extended chat with him. Great beams emanate from her, a sly grin from Dimitrov.

they might be struggling to finish this tournament. this rain has been persistent most of the summer, and it’s no better this week. Endlessly grey and drab.

June 15th, 2012 at 10:24 am

van orton the 5 word prophet –

“nadal will win in 3”

Wrong again.

June 15th, 2012 at 10:26 am

PK wraps it up in straights. 3 hours or so of Wimbledon warm-up for Nadal this year.

June 15th, 2012 at 10:27 am

ok …he lost…so what…he will be minimum in the semis at wimby so who cares about halle

June 15th, 2012 at 10:28 am

And Nadal loses on “real grass”, not like Wimbledon. What a surprise!

June 15th, 2012 at 10:29 am

i did base my prediction on the choke qualities of PK!!!! this time he proved us all wrong.

June 15th, 2012 at 10:30 am

Oh I see Nalbandian won at Queens again. Maybe he can win the tournament? :)

Roddick/Hewitt about to play Nestor/Mirnyi in doubles.

June 15th, 2012 at 10:30 am

oh ok! so that’s the latest excuse? he brings his b-game to the warm-ups?

maybe he is not THAT great when the grass is green and fast. he has often struggled even in the 1st week in wimbledon. it is only after the grass gets drier and the bounce gets truer and higher that rafa gets going on grass.

i hope he brings his “A game” to wimbledon!

June 15th, 2012 at 10:31 am

Kohlschrieber is always a good pick to play spoiler with his occasional upsets. I was looking forward to a Roger-Rafa final at Halle. Oh well…

June 15th, 2012 at 10:31 am

Is Rafa out in doubles too?

June 15th, 2012 at 10:35 am

It was so funny to see Rafa put back the ball in neutral position and Kohlschriber hit a winner out of that. He must be thinking like “These shots were perfect a week ago. Is it possible to hit a winner on this court?” :-)

June 15th, 2012 at 10:36 am

Nadal lost because he won 10% of points on PK’s first serve and got his own second serve munched on. PK did a nice job of keeping the points relatively short, hitting deep to Nadal, and putting away the inevitable short ball.

June 15th, 2012 at 10:45 am

Dimitrov finally breaks after some surprisingly weak tennis from Anderson. Mind you, there were 3 more break points, to each of which Anderson replied with an ace. It was beginning to seriously annoy me, and I thought of sending my man to have a word with him. “Now look here, Anderson” he’d have said, “you’re not playing fair. You’re getting beat but yo’re refusing to lie down and take your medicine. That’s not how we do things in England, Anderson. Do’you understand?” And he’d have given old Anderson the look. That look never fails.

However, as it happens, none of that was necessary.

June 15th, 2012 at 10:46 am

The title of this article say it all. When Nadal lose, “Nadal wins”. When I lose, nobody care. When I win, nobody care.

Even when I was number 3 in the 2006…

June 15th, 2012 at 10:51 am

RELAX FOLKS- rafa losing oday is no big deal at all!

he’s only ONCE ventured beyond qtrs at a pre-wimby warmup- so no surprise really.

rafa got what he wanted- time on a grass court.

4 matches in a pre wimby tourny is good enough.

Now some r & r for 9 days, along with practise and he’ll be ready for wimby!

June 15th, 2012 at 10:59 am

Dimitrov serves out for the 2nd set nicely.
Very difficult to predict who’ll win. But I feel Dimitrov is stronger than he was. Maybe the apprenticeship these days is longer than it used to be – perhaps on account of their being far more players of quality in the top 100 than even 10 years ago, say.

June 15th, 2012 at 11:03 am

P.S: give kohls some credit- defending champion on home turf, he played really well.

He’s proving last year wasn’t no fluke- good on him!

June 15th, 2012 at 11:03 am

harry: ‘ “I can’t imagine there’s much to do there other than buy Gerry Weber clothes or go sightseeing.” lol Dave!’

OK, maybe hoping to catch a sighting of soon-to-be-Seal’s-ex-Heidi Klum, the German supermodel whose birthplace is a neighboring town.

***

Eric Says: “Dave, Kohls isn’t a schlub, and he’s quite good on grass. Don’t forget he is in fact the defending champion here! (Whereas Raonic lost to the man Kohls beat in the final…) Anyway, the luck changes in the next round: Rafa should face Berdych”

Bobby: “Dave, you conveniently forgot to state that Kholshcriber is the present defending champion of Halle.Anyway, your arguments are mostly twisted.”

No need to wait till the next round to collect your appearance fee and run.

This year Raonic is a better player than last year. Last year Raonic lost to Philipp Petzschner, but this year he beat him in straight sets. Last year Kohlschreiber won when Petzschner retired in the second set. Petzschner had beaten Raonic (quarterfinals) and Berdych (semifinals) in back-to-back three-setters.

I agree with the mind reels, who said that Kohlschreiber “is a good grasscourt player in his own right, but he’s certainly not regarded as a stand-out grass competitor.” Kohlscriber and Florian Mayer have similar grass court winning percentages (64% and 62%) but Florian Mayer has a better Wimbledon record than Kohlscreiber.

Kohlscreiber does well at Halle, but Roger Federer has easily straight-setted Kohlscreiber all three times at Halle… and only dropped one set to Kohlscreiber in six matches (when Roger went on walkabout after winning the first two sets easily).
http://www.atpworldtour.com/Players/Head-To-Head.aspx?pId=F324&oId=K435

Bobby, all your arguments are totally twisted.

***

Rsutherland : “Dave/Roy – This is what Szeezer does; plays the role of a civil poster…Skeezer is far more disingenuous then the typical Nadal hater. The pattern, however is really rather obvious and predictable.”

No, I don’t think skeezer is the devil incarnate. No, not at all.

June 15th, 2012 at 11:08 am

Brando says:

“4 matches in a pre wimby tourny is good enough.”

By my count, Nadal got only 2. He played Lacko yesterday, which was his first match, and then PK today. Yes?

June 15th, 2012 at 11:09 am

Meanwhile, Federer and Raonic are engaged in a serve-a-thon. Both guys winning approximately 100% of first-serve points.

June 15th, 2012 at 11:11 am

@TMR:

rafa also played doubles- he won the first match, don’t know what happened in the 2nd, but nonetheless totalled 4 matches under his belt during halle. Not bad at really. Singles only would give you 4, so in a way rafa got what he wanted: as much court time on grass as possible.

June 15th, 2012 at 11:18 am

^ Rafa is playing doubles too TMR; maybe that’s what Brando meant? As far as I can tell, Rafa/Granollers are still alive in dubs. They play later on Court 1.

June 15th, 2012 at 11:18 am

No big deal. The bounce is higher at Wimbledon so it is slower. Nadal’s risk at Wimbledon is early in the tournament when the grass is fresh and a little greasy. If he gets a tough draw then he could have some close matches. Late in the tournament when you have tougher matches it is a combination of dry grass and dirt which is slower.

Fed will have his hands full against Raonic.

June 15th, 2012 at 11:19 am

Dimitrov breaks! One cracking return sets up break point – and no ace to follow. However, what really did for Anderson were 3 slow slices. Innocuous looking, but presumably there was something on each of them because they all induced the error – there was something pleasingly teasing about these low slices, and old Anderson looked a bit out of his depth.

June 15th, 2012 at 11:19 am

Ah, OK. I suppose that’s fair, although I’m not sure how much these guys consider doubles to be useful practice for a singles tournament.

A loose forehand from Federer on the first point of the tiebreaker. That could prove costly against Raonic.

June 15th, 2012 at 11:21 am

Anderson holds for 3-4, but although it’s tempting fate, it now looks like mirro imaga of first set – this time, Anderson struggling to hold, Dimitrov winning his serves easily. oooh, did I hear the whisper of those gods who like to punish hubris…..

June 15th, 2012 at 11:26 am

Raonic takes the first set in a tiebreak. Federer now has his work cut out for him.

June 15th, 2012 at 11:31 am

That was a tough, tough service hold, with anderson pulling all the stops out. Excellent composure from Dimitrov under pressure. Good to see.

June 15th, 2012 at 11:33 am

Dave,

Just got around to reading some of your stuff. That link to Jason( 3:36am post) was something every blogger up here should read. So many misunderstood facts on the surfaces that have went around, ugh.

June 15th, 2012 at 11:34 am

come on Grigor! The crowd collectively groans when Grigor loses a point.

June 15th, 2012 at 11:34 am

Federer breaks to start the second set! After missing on 3 break-point opportunities at 0-40, Federer converts after Milos double-faulted at deuce.

June 15th, 2012 at 11:35 am

^3:26….sorry. Yeah and the balls, rackets, strings are another discussion…..

June 15th, 2012 at 11:35 am

@Dave: the aerial picture you posted earlier of the Halle grounds is awesome. I had the good fortune of attending this event back in 2007 (unfortunately, Federer withdrew that year, having contested a 4-set final at RG). It’s a beautiful place, and the beer/bratwurst combo for every meal is a win! I watched the semis and finals. If I recall, Berdych beat Baghdatis in the finals that year. Good stuff.

June 15th, 2012 at 11:37 am

Are you all watching on TV or online?

June 15th, 2012 at 11:39 am

Just can’t understand the opinions going around the importance of Nadal’s early loss. Has there ever been a player taken a 250 tournament seriously after winning the GS.

When Roger won FO, he did not even bother to play Halle.

Just because it’s a eventful year for Halle, he was convinced to come and make an appearance, which NAdal did. His only bother is to practice some volleys, which he will get by playing 2 doubles matches.

Rafa did not win any pre grass tournament except Queens in 2008, but been an finalist in all the Wimbledons he had played starting 2006.

His lack of grass match practice shows up in his first few rounds, but anyway it does not bother him much. It only helps him to get better in the second week.

One thing is for sure, atlease we can name one finalist at Wimbledon and it would be Nadal. Let’s see who is going to face him.

June 15th, 2012 at 11:39 am

MMT, online – try sport lemon or live score hunter.

June 15th, 2012 at 11:40 am

Dimitrov is through; he has a big chance at Queens this year, with the upsets and all. Who does he play next round? Lu?

June 15th, 2012 at 11:41 am

Yay, Grendel, his 1st atp semi-final!! Dimitrov.

But could those commentators take it easy on all the ‘Federeresque’ comments. poor kid.

June 15th, 2012 at 11:42 am

conty, Milos tried one of Nole’s cartwheel returns; didn’t work. :)

June 15th, 2012 at 11:42 am

Dimitrov takes it on 3rd match point. Phew! I could tell that those gods were determined to exact revenge for hubris, and it looked for a moment like they might succeed. But it was alright, after all: I sent my man after them, and they fled in terror. He has that effect on people, don’t know what it is quite.

Dimitrov is such a clever player. He’s got a lovely crafty bh down the line which you don’t often see (apart from Federer). And he sliced and dinked and generally denied the big man pace – and that did the trick.

Now, it’s Nalbandian. Should be fascinating, and a real tutorial for Dimitrov.

June 15th, 2012 at 11:47 am

Oh, I forgot Federer was on! Watching Dimitrov and stream for Time Trial, Tour de Suisse.

June 15th, 2012 at 11:47 am

Not sure Roger remembers this is a pre-tournament for Wimbledon. He is not making any attempt to come forward to the net.

Milos is a pretty average returner, Roger can play a S & V game so comfortably against him. Not sure what’s going on Paul Annocone’s mind while preparing Roger for such matches.

June 15th, 2012 at 11:49 am

You think Dimitrov already has too much hubris, grendel? I know many would say Federer but I don’t think Federer is so bad. Lance Armstrong is on another level of hubris. But he’s a slippery one, LA.

June 15th, 2012 at 11:51 am

Oh it’s Nalby for Dimitrov. Too bad: I was kind of hoping Nalby and Dimitrov were on route to the finals. I think Dimitrov will win their match unless the better Nalby shows up. He has been struggling at bit in his matches here – 2 of the 3 have gone the distance. Hopefully it turns out to be a good match.

June 15th, 2012 at 11:51 am

Really good match, maybe: Dimitrov v Nalbandian. Dimitrov really good with the ball boys and charmed the crowd. Nalby has to get by X-man 1st.

Federer up a break in the 2nd.

June 15th, 2012 at 11:58 am

Better for Rafa to lose this match than lose to Berdych and open the door for Berdy. Sounds terrible but it is for the best.He will need his mental edge against Berdych for Wimbledon.

June 15th, 2012 at 11:58 am

@Kimberly:

i agree. better to lose today than against tbird. had they played berdych would, most likely, have gone all out for the confidence boosting win.

June 15th, 2012 at 12:00 pm

OMG, poor ‘ol Nalby, plays twice today. I doubt he’ll win versus Xman but Nalby never ceases to surprise. Cheering for Cilic over Lu, but Lu already breaks Marin’s serve. :/ I wish Cilic would do something. Sometimes he plays so well, and you just think, why isn’t he winning more!?

Fed/Milos proceed pretty much on par with the Madrid match, except I thought the Madrid match was more exciting as there were a few more rallies. This has mainly been about serves.

June 15th, 2012 at 12:03 pm

jane?

June 15th, 2012 at 12:03 pm

Super glad Fed is playing Milos before Wimby on Grass. Win or lose, good warm up for WImby and against a future great!

June 15th, 2012 at 12:03 pm

Milos really has a terrific inside out forehand. Fed handled it well in that last point, keeping his slice low and forcing Milos to go up the line.

June 15th, 2012 at 12:08 pm

jane, are you watching Federer and Raonic? or Cilic and Lu?

June 15th, 2012 at 12:08 pm

“I said it was going to be tough,” said Nadal. “He plays well on this court. You just have to congratulate him.
“He played very aggressively, served well, returned well. He played better than me. I was suffering when he was serving. I didn’t have that energy to change the situation.”
Nadal confirmed he would now be heading home to Mallorca to rest ahead of Wimbledon, which starts on 25 June.
“I can’t practice on grass there but it’s better not to practice for a few days. It’s time to rest with my family, friends, to relax,” he added.
“I’ve played almost every match possible since Indian Wells. When I’m ready to come back, I’ll go to Wimbledon.”

June 15th, 2012 at 12:11 pm

conty I am watching Fed/Milos on some non-English stream. I don’t know the language. Think it’s the first one on Sport Lemon. But I am following scores for Cilic/Lu. Cilic now up a break! Maybe I should switch to Queens? Which are you watching? I had two streams on earlier but it’s too confusing, lol.

June 15th, 2012 at 12:12 pm

sorry, mistake. Dimitrov meets winner of Nalby/Malisse. Nalbandian has already played today – match held over from last night, I suppose.

conty, no definitely not Dimitrov with hubris. It was me – you know how it is. The fellow you want to win breaks, and all he has to do (all!) is to keep holding and he wins. You assume that’s what’s going to happen – hubris big time! the gods are alerted, they collect their hunting gear and set out to get you. But I am always prepared; I have my man. He knows how to deal with these buggers.

With regard to all the Federesque stuff – I expect it did harm Dimitrov when he was a bit younger. But he seems more mature now, and I think he can take it with a pinch of salt. And there is no denying – in some respects, Dimitrov’s game is startlingly reminiscent of Federer’s. I think that can be said without putting pressure on the young man. All we are saying is that to a degree, he models his game on Federer. We are implying nothing about how successful he will be in this endeavour.

June 15th, 2012 at 12:12 pm

N. Kiefer is there watching. He was a fun player to watching sometimes. I recall a nice late run in Canada one year.

June 15th, 2012 at 12:15 pm

*watch.

June 15th, 2012 at 12:16 pm

@ Brando & Kimberly. Rafa and Marcel have pulled out of doubles match which was scheduled for later today. Apparently it was Marcel’s decision to pull out. More rest time for Rafa.

June 15th, 2012 at 12:16 pm

jane – I didn’t watch Dimitrov/gasquet. Sounds like it might have been an entertaining encounter. Yes, cramp is odd – can happen any time, I believe. b.t.w. Lu is a very good grasscourter. Cilic will have to earn his win – I see he is a break ahead.

June 15th, 2012 at 12:18 pm

oh. referring to yourself, lol, grendel. But I doubt you on anywhere near the behaving badly scale of Armstrong.

I agree with you about Dimitrov. He’s used it, even though he’d prefer not to have those comments, as he said.

jane, still sounding a lot Italian. But not quite – the commentator for Fed-Raonic. I can strangely understand much of it, better than if it were in German.

June 15th, 2012 at 12:18 pm

Federer knows he has to hold serve and pray for getting a break. NO TIEBREAK, please.

But I don’t mind Raonic beating Federer here. Something right about it.

June 15th, 2012 at 12:25 pm

I’m only getting bits and pieces of this, because the stream is not clean for me, but it appears to me that Federer is playing very sloppily.

June 15th, 2012 at 12:29 pm

Dimitrov/Gasquet was a very entertaining match grendel: it was on during the Mathieu/Isner marathon but I was watching both! At one point Gasquet was throwing up on the court while Dimitrov was writhing around on the clay cramping. Phew. Drama.

This Raonic/Fed match hurtling towards a tiebreak?

Cilic now up a break in the second set.

June 15th, 2012 at 12:30 pm

Wouldn’t be surprised if Raonic broke to win the match here – he seems to be getting much more of a bite on Federer’s serve than Federer is getting on his.

June 15th, 2012 at 12:31 pm

yes, if Fed can hold serve. Raonic, look at him; cool, confidence, smart- looks like a future Wimbledon champ. Not this year, but someday soon.

June 15th, 2012 at 12:33 pm

Looks like Lu’s done. Too much tennis. you can watch too much, too. Time for a break.

June 15th, 2012 at 12:33 pm

According to the stats Fed is doing well on Milos’ second serve, winning 45% of return points, but only 11% on firsts. Meanwhile, Milos only 13% on Fed’s second serves and 21% on firsts. So Fed is definitely taking advantage when he sees a second serve, which is more often than Milos. Fed’s first serve percentage up at 71% for the match; Milos at 63%.

5 all.

June 15th, 2012 at 12:34 pm

Is it just me or is this match a real snoozer? Not particularly inspired tennis at all from either player.

June 15th, 2012 at 12:37 pm

MMT, I find it much less interesting than their Madrid encounter. 2 errors in a row from Milos.

June 15th, 2012 at 12:39 pm

Hmm – very telling stats – it looked like Raonic was more doing better than those stats, but that was just the last 4-5 games. Neither one seems to be playing well.

June 15th, 2012 at 12:39 pm

Tie-break – advantage Raonic, I think.

June 15th, 2012 at 12:40 pm

But if I had to guess, jane. If Fed can hold here. Raonic wins the TB….and it is a TB now. we shall see!

June 15th, 2012 at 12:40 pm

Raonic seems to be playing better at the end of the set. This TB should be 50-50.

June 15th, 2012 at 12:41 pm

Another error Milos = mini break Fed.

June 15th, 2012 at 12:42 pm

What the hell? My stream cut out at 5-2. Grrrr.

June 15th, 2012 at 12:44 pm

Same here…sportlemon’s a real lemon…BTW – how did such a lovely fruit get associated with things that are just crap anyway?

June 15th, 2012 at 12:46 pm

Back on in time to see them shaking umps hands. Fed moves on. Youz nexus; should win that. Looking like a Berd/Fed final perhaps? Maybe special K can beat Berd but doubt it as their H2H is 7-1 for Tomas.

June 15th, 2012 at 12:47 pm

Ciao grendel. You missed a good TB by Federer, he won! tough match.

June 15th, 2012 at 12:47 pm

Yeah Berd v Fed final, I’m guessing.

June 15th, 2012 at 12:48 pm

Ugh so many typing errors. Ump’s hand (not hands); next not nexus.

I don’t know MMT: good question. Here’s one take on it.

http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=lemon&searchmode=none

June 15th, 2012 at 12:50 pm

Fed wins. Milos hits 25 aces but never could get a whiff at Feds service games. Milos has got to learn to bend his knees more on the grass…

June 15th, 2012 at 12:50 pm

Roger thru to next round. A good win for Roger. Though it would have been better if he tried to play more all court game for the rest of the tournament.

June 15th, 2012 at 12:50 pm

Fed did hit some nice passing shots when Milos came in though Nirmal; so staying back wasn’t a bad strategy versus him.

June 15th, 2012 at 12:53 pm

The Arrogant One Welfare Society which dominates this website must be relieved. close call in a 250 tournament! Sign of the times.

Don’t read too much into my loss. I came here for the half million dollar appearance fee.

June 15th, 2012 at 12:55 pm

good win for fed- hope he wins halle. methinks he needs the confidence boost it may provide in order to have a solid challenge at wimby.

June 15th, 2012 at 12:55 pm

@HR:

LMAO!

June 15th, 2012 at 12:56 pm

Happen to love Sportlemon. It has saved me from no live tennis too many times. I don’t mind reloading the page and listening to foreign commentating.

But no stream for Nalby-Malisse that I can find, so that’s it for me until the replays on TC later.

June 15th, 2012 at 12:58 pm

Jane, I’m not sure why you want Roger to practice passing shots. He should be more aggressive and press into the net when he faces Rafa or Nole. He is not going to win matches staying back. Even against Big hitters, he should try to get into the net and finish the points.

June 15th, 2012 at 1:00 pm

A good run for Milos will get him into the top 16 and then The guys at the top can avoid him until – obviously – the round of 16. No one wants to play this kid and he is getting better every time out. It is just a matter of time before he makes a significant run through a slam.

June 15th, 2012 at 1:00 pm

Lu retired second set so Cilic is through; Nalby lost the first set. I doubt he’ll make it – two matches in one day?! :) Too bad as Nalby and Dimitrov both playing well on grass could be something. Malisse often does well at Queens though doesn’t he?

June 15th, 2012 at 1:00 pm

Maybe that’s true Nirmal – but just saying it seemed to work today.

June 15th, 2012 at 1:02 pm

jane, these are the type of opponent where Roger can try different tactics. Raonic is not going to break Roger with the kind of rhythm he was serving today. It would have been wise for hims to throw in more S & V tactics. This was a match played without any rhythm. So no point in sticking around baseline.

Roger may not have needed 3 sets had he taken the initiative early in the tie breaker in the 1st set. He let Raonic rip a FH playing on the baseline.

But this was a decent match by Roger, but difficult to judge his form with such opponents.

June 15th, 2012 at 1:10 pm

@NK:

roger played with the right tactics today imo. I mean if he were to play rafa or novak at wimby the first thing he needs is to be serving well- and he did do so today.

He needs more confidence, so it was more important to win today and stay in with a chance of a confidence boosting win at halle rather than try various tactics.

That is a privilege which he doesn’t have at the moment since he’s trying to iron out his game atm.

i really want to see roger v novak at wimby- just to see if what i think is true- that novak has the edge over roger at slams now just like rafa does.

wimby could be crucial for roger going forward……..

June 15th, 2012 at 1:15 pm

Some of you are saying the loss by Nadal was “no big deal”. Well, if I’m a fan of Rafa, I would be worried that he has not one a tournament outside of clay in over a year. Now that’s a stat that would be ‘a big deal’, especially since the clay season is over. After he won the French last year, people were predicting him to roll through the next 2 grand slams. Well, not only did he not win those – he didn’t win another tournament the rest of the year and on through this year until we got to the clay season. This is something that you can’t ‘overlook’.

Now as far as Roger’s match. Raonic is that kind of player others hate to play (especially on a fast surface). He reminds me of being a better “Ivo”. BUT – in spite of that big serve he has – he had ZERO break point chances, so Roger was also taking care of his serve.

June 15th, 2012 at 1:16 pm

Oops…should be “he has not won…” instead of ‘one’.

June 15th, 2012 at 1:17 pm

Brando,

You try S & V, only when you serve well. It’s not a tactic with which Roger is going to lost match against Raonic. Roger tries S & V against Raonic at Madrid, when his serve was not clicking. So what’s the risk in trying when the serve is working.

Ina match against Raonic, I’m not sure what sort of game he can work out, when there is no rhythm on the baseline. It’s always a first strike tennis match.

I’m not saying Roger played a bad tactic match, but this is more off a standard style he plays, not something unique to grass. Throwing in a S & V would have been a better tactic, on a quicker grass.

June 15th, 2012 at 1:35 pm

Fed played the right strategy vs Milos. Once the ball was in play, Fed can easily out duel him most times for m the. Ack court. I agree NK, in that he can’t do this style against the top 2. He has to be more aggressive and attack when he can. If he stays back and just goes into Rally mode with Rafole( I hates when he does that ), he is usually on the losing end nowadays ..

June 15th, 2012 at 1:43 pm

Yay, Nalby wins the second set! Have to run out, but I hope he can win the match. Sam also won his first set; I guess he’ll play Cilic if he wins this match. They had a great 5 setter once at Wimbledon so that semi could be one to watch as well.

June 15th, 2012 at 1:44 pm

Well I haven’t gotten to watch any of today’s tennis, but I can’t believe they made Nalbandian play a three-set match and then turn around and play his QF the same day! I know there’s a schedule to be kept and all, but….

Nice to see Federer’s win over Raonic, who could have been trouble if Fed had any weakish spells on serve. Looks like the Canadian kept it very close.

Rafa’s loss to Kohls. Well, not that shocking. Like I said, Kohls is very good on grass, and Rafa only plays his pre-Wimbledon tournament with about 70 or 80%. (Maybe today it was more like 60% – straight sets, Rafa?) There’s no way in the world he wanted to play Roger in the Halle final before heading off to Wimbledon, anyway.

June 15th, 2012 at 1:44 pm

…most times from the back court….

Spell check anyone? Ugh

June 15th, 2012 at 1:45 pm

FOT–he was runner-up of four other tournaments, three of them being grand slams. For me as a fan of him, I would rather him play in a grand slam final (even losing) than win at Basel or Shang Hai or Montreal. I was fine with his results last year post Roland Garros. If you are in the final you have a chance to win. So he was outplayed/unlucky last year. The key is to put yourself in the position to win. If he makes the next three GS finals then I feel he should win at least one.

I would have rather he won than lost today but I will be honest, I would rather him lose today then lose to Berdych or Federer and give them the belief going into Wimbledon. Nadal has lost to some unimpressive people at the grass court warmups and struggled in early rounds v. some unimpressive people at Wimbledon, while transitioning to grass. The key for him is to avoid the upset and get through. By the later rounds the change in conditions+his adaptation make him a different player.

June 15th, 2012 at 1:47 pm

LOL at the Rafa haters on this forum. If he says an opponent is going to be difficult to beat, it’s false modesty, and if he then loses to said player he must have tanked. Alternatively, he stinks and isn’t going to win a title for another year! Yeah, I’m not “worried.” I’m not saying he’s going to win Wimbledon, but he does have the best record there after Federer, doesn’t he? When he’s stuck in a five-setter in the first or second round at Wimbly, I’ll worry. Until then, no hay problema.

June 15th, 2012 at 1:48 pm

“When he’s stuck in a five-setter in the first or second round at Wimbly, I’ll worry. ”

So you must worry every year, then?

June 15th, 2012 at 1:52 pm

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Haase and Petzchner ring a bell? Rafa doesn’t cruise through the early rounds like RG. He plays some ugly matches. Be prepared. He needs to grind out the wins and eventually the on switch seems to come.

June 15th, 2012 at 1:53 pm

Eric, yes, yes, I do. I worry every time Rafa is in a tight match. I had to pace around in circles drinking a bloody mary during the FO final.

June 15th, 2012 at 1:54 pm

I wasn’t being sarcastic — I was seriously saying that WHEN Rafa is stuck in a tight match early in Wimbledon, I WILL be worried! I remember Petz and the accusations of Rafa taking a MTO to break save his a**.

June 15th, 2012 at 1:56 pm

^sorry, combined “break momentum” and “save his a**”.

June 15th, 2012 at 1:57 pm

Oh, yes, I see. Love the bloody mary technique…

June 15th, 2012 at 2:01 pm

I am not one of these arrogant a-holes who spouts off that their player is going to win everything always. My fault is more likely to be not having enough faith in my guy. Still, I’m not worried in this case because Rafa has rarely performed well in the grass warm-up tourneys, and then done well at Wimby anyway. Anyhow, there’s no point to be nervous over a week before the tournament starts. I’m just happy that Rafa defended his castle at RG!

June 15th, 2012 at 2:02 pm

Personally I don’t think Rafa “tanked”. He said himself he didn’t have the “energy” to turn the match around, and considering he wins Roland Garros 99% of the time, it’s no wonder he doesn’t do super well at the warm up tournament that starts a couple of days later. Typically he’s able to reach the quarters and then he runs out of gas, or runs into a hot opponent; maybe he could lift it a gear higher and go all out but just doesn’t have it in him or it could just be that he hasn’t yet adjusted to the grass hence the loss.

Arrrgh really have to run, but it looks like it may not be a Fed/Berd final after all. Haas with the first set…

June 15th, 2012 at 2:03 pm

Rafa needs to go home and celebrate his 7th French Open victory properly. And that is what he will do and have some much needed rest. MR SHUT UP is welcome to toil away in a 250 event.

June 15th, 2012 at 2:07 pm

Rafa may be ‘tired’, but then why does he enter into doubles as well? Now I see he had to withdraw from that.

June 15th, 2012 at 2:12 pm

@Lulu and kimberly:

i agree with you guys. im happy with how things are for rafa atm.

@Jane:

Thanks for saying what i feel re rafa’s loss and general post RG performance.

Personally i think there’s NO NEED to worry- exactly how does that help one anyway?

I mean if you look at post RG scenario for the top 4 you could say:

– Novak: no grass warmup, wobbly at times in RG

– Rafa: lost in straights to someone who he had never lost to previously

– Andy: poor clay season and a 1st round loss at queens.

Considering all this, do we really see it as all doom and gloom for them at wimby? NO- of course not.

so let’s just leave it as it is- rafa lost to a better opponent on the day, a loss that frequently happens for him pre wimby, something that he usually ends up improving on.

IF the naysayers of rafa want to add a greater importance to this loss- then LMAO, go ahead be my guest!

June 15th, 2012 at 2:19 pm

Had lunch and was going out. But Haas and Berdych match on livestream? Go Tommy! Better get a stream. Those guys play fast anyway.

Raonic seems like a better Berdych to me. Milos is still a work in progress but mentally, imo, potentially tougher.

Okay,Haas, broken. Berdych serving for 2nd set

June 15th, 2012 at 2:19 pm

@Fot. Because he is playing doubles with Marcel in the Olympics so I guess they just wanted a bit of practice.

June 15th, 2012 at 2:20 pm

Ralf Weber is very, very relieved. At least one of his big appearance fee players fought to stay around. Otherwise daddy Gerhard (Gerry) might not be pleased.

Nadal has signed a three year contract with Halle to appear from 2012 to 2014. According to the British press, Nadal is getting a higher appearance fee from Halle than the $million plus per year that Andy Murray is getting. Based on the $1.5 million appearance fee that Nadal charged 2010 Bangkok (one-third of that tourney’s budget), it’s my guess that Nadal is getting about $1.5 million per year from Halle. Pretty good for two days (and four sets) of work. And Rafa pays less taxes than he did at Queens.

Roger ‘Mr. Professional’ Federer deserves a pay raise. He has dutifully played Halle since 2000. In 2006 and 2008, Federer made the effort to win Halle despite playing the French Open final against Nadal. Indeed, between 2003 and 2010, Federer reached the Halle final six times, winning five titles. Federer withdrew from Halle in 2007 and 2011 due to groin injuries. He also withdrew from Halle in 2009 when he won the French Open to complete his career grand slam and was acclaimed the Greatest Of All Time. In the ATP rulebook, when you are acclaimed GOAT, you get off from your next tourney :)

Nadal surely did not want to lose to Berdych or Federer. Anyways, it remains to be seen whether Nadal will reach the Wimbledon finals. There are at least six players who can beat him before the finals, unless he has another easy (‘rigged’) draw.

****

Raonic and Del Potro need to stop running into Federer and start meeting Djokovic and Nadal on grass and hard courts — they are ready to cause some damage.

****

Federer played a smart, tactical match, making Raonic run and stretch. Despite Raonic’s power first serve and 25 aces, Federer was actualy better in all areas except first serve points — overall Federer won a higher percentage of total serve points than Raonic, a higher percentage of total return points, allowed no breakpoints and won more total points (see link). Raonic had four to five extra days to practice on grass over Federer and played an extra round at Halle than Federer (since Roger got a bye in first round), yet Federer remain mostly focused and stepped up when needed. It’s good to see the improvement in Fed’s serve — probably an indication his hip injury has improved — as well as see Federer’s court craft on grass.
http://www.protennislive.com/frameset.asp?year=2012&wkno=24&lang=en&tabno=1&eventid=0500&ref=www.atpworldtour.com/

Next up for Fed is No. 31 Youzhny. Grass is Mikhail’s best surface, and he has reached the Wimbledon fourth round six times between 2001 to 2011. He fought Nadal to a five setter at Wimbledon, and has beaten the unbeatable Rafa four times on hard courts. Youzhny has also taken two (first) sets off Federer on grass at Halle and Wimbledon, so it’s no gimme. Youzhny’s motto: no one beats me thirteen times in a row.

****

Federer is Mr. Consistent when it comes to beating low ranked players. Since 2010 Estoril Federer has beaten 103 players ranked above No. 19 (i.e., No. 20 and up) except for two players: No. 32 Lleyton Hewitt at 2010 Halle and No. 34 Roddick at 2012 Miami (both former No. 1 players who were grand slam champs on those surfaces). Djokovic nor Nadal have both lost more matches to low ranked players than Federer has: during the same period Nadal lost 7 matches to players ranked above No. 19 and Djokovic lost 5 matches, all to unheralded players. This just shows Federer’s professionalism, consistency and dominance of this part of the tour.

****

skeezer: “Dave, Just got around to reading some of your stuff. That link to Jason( 3:36am post) was something every blogger up here should read. So many misunderstood facts on the surfaces that have went around, ugh.”

Yeah, it’s incredible how much misinformation there is on the issue of surfaces. What’s funny is that I once debated a couple of posters here and gave the Jason Goodall link, AELTC (Wimbledon) links, other solid links — yet they still insisted it was not true and that the Wimby surface was one speed since 2001. As if factors like grass, soil, soil settlement, rolling pressure and frequency, rain, sunshine, number of sets, player size, etc, etc. do not affect the grass court surface. Case of ignorant brain that thinks it is too smart.

****

the mind reels: “@Dave: the aerial picture you posted earlier of the Halle grounds is awesome. I had the good fortune of attending this event back in 2007 (unfortunately, Federer withdrew that year, having contested a 4-set final at RG). It’s a beautiful place, and the beer/bratwurst combo for every meal is a win! I watched the semis and finals. If I recall, Berdych beat Baghdatis in the finals that year. Good stuff.”

Thanks. It’s a beautiful setting. Hey, post pictures if you have any and tell us more. It’s good to get a feel of the tourney from someone who’s been there.

In 2007, Ralf Weber announced that Federer withdrew from Halle because he had a groin injury from the French Open. Roger himself said nothing about his injury, just announced he needed to rest. Apparently Federer got injured in the french quarterfinals against Tommy Robredo.

June 15th, 2012 at 2:20 pm

“Federer’s court craft on grass”. LMAO. Gets beaten by Tsonga in Wimbledon 2011 whilst 2 sets to love up. Some court craft methinks!!! Hehehe

June 15th, 2012 at 2:52 pm

Well, there’s exactly 2 weeks for Rafa to make sure all body parts are working and get a procedure if needed. Seems his recovery time post injections is very rapid,(thinking of the time between Miami and Monte Carlo). Getting that rocket serve would be helpful too, especially before hc season – to make this one like 2010 season.

Hopefully Djokovic is getting good training in before the contest. I expect another Djodal final at Wimbledon.

I think the thing with Nadal’s humbleness is it has become very canned and phoney by this point in his career.

Rafa was cute and adorable with the genuine humbleness back in 2005- 2008. And the broken English was cute too. But it’s not exactly genuine any more at age 26, with his resume. No one can see into anyone’s soul but that’s how he appears and comes across to me, at this point; the innocence and Rafa-speak seems rehearsed. Federer is arrogant to anti-feds. I think he comes off more genuine, an attitude fitting his success; sure he has a high opinion of himself. Djokovic comes across genuinely upbeat and confident. We all have our own opinions, which makes us cheer for them or not. Again, I don’t know these guys. Have seen them practice close-up and play. But I couldn’t hate Rafa. And watching part of the match v special K, it did seem he was not going for the win or trying to get his A game on. Federer had to bring his best out to get by Milos.

June 15th, 2012 at 3:02 pm

Mark, Roger’s win lost on grass is something like 102-15… so yes, he is a pretty good grass court player.

June 15th, 2012 at 3:02 pm

Tsonga’s finger sprained, not broken
Ticker – Friday, June 15, 2012

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga’s team says on Facebook that he did not break his finger when he fell in a loss to Ivan Dodig at Queen’s Club. “Tsonga suffered a severe sprain of the little finger of his right hand without tearing,” the statement read. “He will have a new scan on Monday. His participation in Wimbledon is currently not in doubt.”

This was reported on: http://www.tennis.com/articles/templates/news.aspx?articleid=18228&zoneid=25

June 15th, 2012 at 3:03 pm

” His participation in Wimbledon is currently not in doubt.”

EXCELLENT.

June 15th, 2012 at 3:07 pm

Haas wins!! hehe… It will be a special K v Haas semi.

June 15th, 2012 at 3:12 pm

Berdy out Tommy in! Come on Tommy – win Halle!!

June 15th, 2012 at 3:12 pm

one day milos will get by fed…but very impressive that roger is still holding him off despite the massive serves. nice win by Philip over nadal.

June 15th, 2012 at 3:17 pm

I would Cheer for Tommy to win Halle.

June 15th, 2012 at 3:19 pm

Mark, if Fed can’t win Halle, Haas is my second choice!

Andrea, Milos certainly is close! A little more experience and he’ll start winning these final set tie-break encounters.

June 15th, 2012 at 3:20 pm

Fun semi’s at Queens, too.

Dimitrov v Nalby
Cilic v Querrey

Well on call from tonight, which means live matches won’t be possible.

Go Tommy and Grigor!

June 15th, 2012 at 3:26 pm

Special Public Service Announcement

Your Humble Highness has more fans on facebook today than some Arrogant One from a neutral country, proving once again that real,humble talent is followed more online rather than fake charisma and sheer arrogance.

June 15th, 2012 at 3:29 pm

Good news about Tsonga, too. Sprained pinky finger; he should be good to go.

June 15th, 2012 at 3:30 pm

hahaha….HR

Facebook doesn’t “prove” anything. Perhaps the age range of FB users, length of time they are logged onto FB and the multiple times they hit “like.”

June 15th, 2012 at 3:32 pm

Conty, good point about the fun semis. For all the upsets at Queens, that’s still a pretty good line-up!

Fed vs. Youzhny and Haas vs. Kohlschreiber over at Halle isn’t too shabby either.

June 15th, 2012 at 3:35 pm

I know, RZ. Actually don’t mind missing the matches live, because all players left in both Tournaments are favorite players. Love Youzhny, Nalbandian, Querrey or Cilic as well as Haas, Federer, and special K.

But oh so hoping Grigor can get his 1st ATP final…or better yet a win. But even if he gets by Nalby, it will a tough match with Cilic or Querrey. Querrey is due for some better results and climbing the ranks. He’s coming off some sort of prolonged injury, I don’t remember what.

June 15th, 2012 at 3:45 pm

I remember a lot of raf@tards convincing themselves that nadal’s 4 and 4 loss to fed in madrid 2009 was due to tiredness/fatigue etc.

ofcourse they will maintain to this day that soderling’s win was a fluke.

let us hope rafa will not require another “injury time out” like he needed against delpotro last year after getting “rest/recovery”. we can all dream, can’t we?

June 15th, 2012 at 3:46 pm

Nalby’s gonna be tired tomorrow after playing six sets today! And who would have thought CILIC would be the highest seed left at Queens, haha!

June 15th, 2012 at 3:46 pm

i hope kohls gets to play nadal again in wimbledon and gives him a good beatdown, so that these raf@tards will give his win some credibility.

let us all remember that great raf@tard saying “no one beats nadal when he is fit”

June 15th, 2012 at 3:54 pm

King Federer, imo, that is actually nearly true about, “no one beating Rafa when he is fit”; on clay, especially. But indoor hard, end of season could be disputed. Or, no one beats Nadal when he is fit, except a fit and prepared Djokovic.

But I don’t strictly adhere to excuses not being valid reasons. It’s considered not politically correct to talk about an injury or illness in a post match pressor; but fact reamians, illness and injury happens, including emotional losses, which have the potential to upset sleeping and training patterns.

Still, give props to those who can recognize and seize the opportunity to beat a top player when they aren’t quite on form. In that regard, there are no asterisks.

June 15th, 2012 at 4:08 pm

King Fart. Do you ever listen to yourself? If not, you ought to try it sometime and only then will you realise what a MORON you really are!!

June 15th, 2012 at 4:28 pm

@King Federer/Mark:

Can you guys just take your squabbles out to the sandbox — your farts, borderline derogatory nicknames, and all — and settle things there by whatever means you like? Since numbers, facts, reasonable points of view, etc. all seem to be lacking from your respective quivers…

http://www.omdoubleg.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/baby-hulk-hogan2a.jpg

June 15th, 2012 at 4:37 pm

Extra-Special Public Service Announcement:

Humble Highness gets even more fans on Facebook after his latest Facebook page update:
“Loss to Kohlschreiber does not count because stadium roof was closed during match. It was therefore an indoor match. Since Humble Highness does not play indoor matches and does not accept losses on indoor courts, therefore Humble Highness did not lose today.
PS. It pays to also use high-tech to boost your Facebook friends….”
http://www.trendhunter.com/trends/facebook-friending-software-boost-that-network

****

Mark: ‘ “Federer’s court craft on grass”. LMAO. Gets beaten by Tsonga in Wimbledon 2011 whilst 2 sets to love up. Some court craft methinks!!! Hehehe’

Since you’re not a hypocrite, let’s apply your principle to “Nadal’s court craft on clay”. LMAO. Gets straight-setted by rival Federer in Spain’s capital at 2009 Madrid. Second, gets straight-setted by other rival Djokovic at 2011 Madrid. Third, gets beaten on clay by mentally-weak underling he otherwise owns at 2012 Madrid. Fourth, has only one Madrid clay title in four attempts. Some court craft methinks!!! Hehehe.

Do you now realize how ludicrous your logic is?

June 15th, 2012 at 5:15 pm

Nirmal, this: “one thing is for sure and Nadal will be finalist in Wimbledon is little to cocky” for my taste, even for a fan of a guy who just won a 7th Trophy in the same Slam.

If we go by this logic Fed should be in the final in 2010, which was not the case. Some day Nadal will not make another Wimby final, and everytime he plays, may well be the time.

June 15th, 2012 at 5:21 pm

I would just like to point out that the remaining semifinalists in Halle all play with single-handed backhands. As for Queens, go Dimitrov!

June 15th, 2012 at 5:30 pm

Haas has won in Halle,2009 I think: beat Nole in the final and then beat Nole again in the QFs of Wimbledon that year if I recall correctly. So Haas, Fed and special K all former Halle champs. Only Youz isn’t, but he can’t write “I’m sorry” in the grass.

As for Queens I am utterly torn: both Sam and Cilic need wins, as conty said, Sam is coming off that freak wrist thing and has never really bounce back from that, and Cilic hasn’t won anything in a while either. To see Nalby win would be sentimental; I really don’t know how much longer he’ll play. But this is a golden opportunity for Dimitrov to finally live up to some of the hype. He can win the whole thing if he plays well.

June 15th, 2012 at 5:54 pm

jane: “Only Youz isn’t, but he can’t write “I’m sorry” in the grass.”

Dr. Youzhny could still smash a racquet on his head.

June 15th, 2012 at 6:00 pm

The win over Raonic was huge for Federer in another way. Regardless of what happens next, if Nole and Federer land in the same half at Wimbledon and if Federer wins Wimbledon, he will be # 1 after Wimbledon.

June 15th, 2012 at 7:22 pm

does anyone know a good link to watch halle live as wouldn´t like to lose federer´s match

June 15th, 2012 at 8:03 pm

I know you are a Tignor fan. Did you read his adieu to Paris: Impression, Sunset?

Enjoyable. But I also just read the comment section and was tempted to register and log on to comment to one of the posters, ‘moi’ about a link they put up to the French pop singer, “Zaz” For some reason you came to mind, and might like this.

I haven’t met many Zaz fans except myself; went looking for French pop music. This is so off topic now but tangentially has to do with FO, maybe and missing Paris; the French language being one of my favorites, but I’m not very good. Anyway… here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VWbdcNmGYJU

my last post for the day, maybe the weekend. cheers.

also her song “Le Long de la Route” and “Les Passants”, I bought on itunes. couldn’t find her anywhere here else. Such a happy voice!

June 15th, 2012 at 8:13 pm

^^^^^ post was to jane.

June 15th, 2012 at 8:13 pm

hello, fedeRER.

Every time recently when I post a link to live streams it gets perma moderated.

Tennis Channel if you have access to it has the matches from Halle and Queens on delayed coverage, not live.

Live go to: livescorehunter.com or lemonsport.com

Halle doesn’t have any links at the above sites in English. But Queens is in English, of course.

Check your time zone and ATP match schedule – if the above livestream links don’t have the matches listed yet, they will; before the matches start. hope that works for you.

June 15th, 2012 at 8:36 pm

thanks^^

June 15th, 2012 at 8:43 pm

conty – never heard of Zaz, but enjoyed that (and liked the accompanyment too.) What struck me as odd was that the timbre of this young woman’s voice (though not the music itself of course) very much put me in mind of Edith Piaf, the little sparrow who always seemed to be terribly old but presumably was young once.

Since you are pining for Paris, here’s an extract from one of my favourite poems, T.S.Eliot’s Portrait of a Lady. The speaker is a late middleaged or even elderly woman, a society hostess who is over sensitive and isolated. The jaundiced young man (Mr.Eliot, I think we can assume) who comes to see her is riddled with guilt and barely disguised aversion.

“Yet with these April sunsets, that somehow recall
My buried life and Paris in the Spring,
I feel immeasureably at peace, and find the world
To be wonderful and youthful, after all.”

the young man comments:
The voice returns like the insistent out-of-tune
Of a broken violin on an August afternoon.

And later, after wondering “how can I make a cowardly amends/For what she has said to me?” he remarks:”I keep my countenance
I remain self-possesed
Except when a street piano, mechanical and tired
Reiterates some worn-out common song
With the smell of hyacinths across the garden
Recalling things that other people have desired.
Are these ideas right or wrong?”

Well, it’s not Zaz and is perhaps a touch gloomy – but it has a smell of France….

Fingers crossed for Dimitrov tomorrow.
Off to catch my dreams now. What horrors lie in store, I wonder? Although, come to think of it, last night’s had a certain nostalgic sweetness, the sort where you try, hopelessly, to prolong the effect….

June 15th, 2012 at 8:55 pm

conty, no I didn’t read it; I will go right over. I am enjoying that video right now. Thanks – you’re a thoughtful gal. :) Vid makes me want to watch “La Vie En Rose” again. This girl Zaz, she can “scat” or whatever it is she’s doing there. Have a nice weekend, if we don’t “hear” from you again, conty.

June 15th, 2012 at 8:58 pm

Ah grendel, that reminds me of “April is the cruellest month breeding / lilacs out of the dead land…”

June 15th, 2012 at 9:00 pm

Congrat to khol, he did good job,, Ah Vamos Rafa lost, finally he shared some of his luck, at least we have some PEACE in this forum. Wait for wimby….

June 15th, 2012 at 9:15 pm

To be honest part of the reason I am ok with rafa loss to kohlschreiber is that Phillip was nice to colinO7 in miami he took a very nice picture with him and chatted as well. So he deserved a nice win in my opinion.

June 15th, 2012 at 9:36 pm

Presently watching, LIVE, a man walk over the Niagara Falls on a tight rope. It’s crazy!

June 15th, 2012 at 10:23 pm

a man did it jane. amazing!

June 15th, 2012 at 10:48 pm

Kimmi did you watch? Eeek I was so nervous for him. :) I am worried about Murray, too, but he is apparently planning to pick up some exos (Nole played these last year too) before Wimbledon so hopefully he’ll be okay and ready to go on the grass.

June 15th, 2012 at 10:58 pm

Yeah, i was nervous waiting for something to happen. thank god it went OK. he was so calm.. and talking while doing that? and fist pumping..confidence!

June 15th, 2012 at 11:01 pm

Yes, truly inspiring hey Kimmi. I’d never do something like that, but what was inspiring is, as you say, his calm, polite, confidence. Wow.

June 15th, 2012 at 11:13 pm

grendel, this is just to let you know that i replied to your post on the other thread, which is getting pushed off the main page by the minute…

others, sorry for barging in…

June 16th, 2012 at 4:50 am