Tsonga Succumbs To Nishikori In Paris, Sends Federer To Finals; Djokovic Wins 13th Straight

It’s a sad life when you have to depend on someone else losing to qualify.

Real Champions get there in style by winning.

October 29th, 2013 at 11:02 pm

Grandpappy fans no fear. Your Great Davy send tapes to the Old One of 2009 WTF for the great inspiration. Only a GOAT can beat the 4 slam winners in same tournament to win ‘best title in tennis’

October 29th, 2013 at 11:28 pm

Humble rafa….u r humble enuff for posting such a humble post for one arrogant one….no?

Rly wish dat old-age treat u humbly well for living such a humbly-tumbly life….no??

October 29th, 2013 at 11:30 pm

Love how psuedo Rafa’s and the like point to how this all reflects on Fed. No worries, these types typically are unemployed with a computer and seeking blog attention and self advertisement. Worried much? Fed can only play who made to his rd, if he gets through. So funny how dirt baggin the GOAT @32 is still goin on. Just proves the jealousfanatics at large.

How about congrats to Nishikori? Out played the Tsongan, plain and simple. Ya gotta get through each rd till the finals, no matter what player or excuses lie ahead. Unless of course, your opponet is not in the top 50. till qtrs or semis… hehe. Who has consistently faced that? Lol.

Trivia; who, as one of the top players of all time, has the all time record of losing in 1rst or 2nd rds and lost to players ranked 75 or worse?

October 30th, 2013 at 12:35 am

Lol skeezer ;).

Reckon the staff has it right, but what happens if Raonic wins Paris, Wawa and Gasquet reaches the semis (beating Rafa and Nole respectively) after Federer loses to Anderson.. With a quick glance that was the one and only scenario where I thought Fed would miss the cut.

October 30th, 2013 at 2:08 am

Congrats to Roger on qualifying for the YEC,sometimes you need a slice of luck for things to go in your favour and theres no harm in that,i thought Joe would cruise through his match especially after that 1st set,however Kei had other ideas,hes an exciting player to watch when hes on,and he straight setted Tsonga at one of the GS earlier this year cant remember which though.

October 30th, 2013 at 3:17 am

Well, the fact that Roger is no. 6, and played really well during the first part of the season, stood him in good stead for qualifying in London. No luck involved in my view. Just hard work at the start, then when he took all that time off, could well be a blessing in disguise, now that we are finishing the season off.

Sorry that Tsonga couldn’t close it out? What do you say to that one Giles? Why couldn’t Tsonga close it out?

If Anderson gets through fed today, I wonder if Fed (now knowing that he is through), kind of takes his foot off the gas. I would hope not, as this is the time to get all the practice in before London.

Chico Says:
Lol skeezer ;).

Reckon the staff has it right, but what happens if Raonic wins Paris, Wawa and Gasquet reaches the semis (beating Rafa and Nole respectively) after Federer loses to Anderson.. With a quick glance that was the one and only scenario where I thought Fed would miss the cut.

October 30th, 2013 at 2:08 am

chico,

is fed definitely through now, or are there still permeatations where he is dependent on others?

I still can’t get my head around it to be honest. THink it’s weird.

October 30th, 2013 at 3:31 am

Humble Rafa : it’s a sad life when you only have a few brain cells in your head, to even try and make such a statement! We feel sorry for you, and can only hope that your level of intelligence improves with time.

October 30th, 2013 at 3:46 am

Anna, you will be hoping a long time. Humble Rafa was never funny in the first place. Just seeking a cheap laugh every now and again.

October 30th, 2013 at 3:56 am

Alison says” .. . sometimes you need a slice of luck …..”
You are certainly right there. Fed has the Midas touch and IMO that would account for his 17 Grand Slams tally.
Are you listening @madmax??

October 30th, 2013 at 4:12 am

Yeah Giles, I am. Problem is, you aren’t! ….as still waiting a response for why you think Tsonga couldn’t close it out? and also Rafa earlier…but guess it just falls on deaf ears.

And it’s a bit immature that you should even criticise Roger in any way. I guess that must been because, as skeezer said earlier somewhere, people like you are unemployed and have nothing better to do than blog “the unnecessaries” of tennis or try to make friends on a virtual tennis site.

October 30th, 2013 at 4:31 am

Skeezer, we had a discussion a while back about Pat Cash, a good while back and I said I didn’t know whether this guy knew what he said from one day to the next. Full of himself in every way. After criticising Federer on a daily basis, he now says this – how fickle some can be –

Pat Cash, the former Wimbledon champion, was impressed enough by Federer’s showing to suggest that he could not only qualify for London – so equalling Ivan Lendl’s record of 12 appearances at the season’s finale – but win it for a seventh time.

“I think he does [have a big tournament left in him],” Cash told TalkSport on Tuesday, “and it could be this one.”

Great read by Simon Briggs about Fed’s draw appeal too:

Admittedly, there is an autumnal feel about Federer this season. He is the grand old oak tree, buffeted by storm-force winds. Pieces of his game have fallen away, notably his ability to pounce on the short ball and deliver a zinger of a forehand.

Yet he remains an iconic draw, and for as long as Federer remains officially unconfirmed for next week’s Barclays ATP World Tour Finals, there will be disquiet among the organisers at the O2 Arena. They still remember how, last year, London’s polyglot crowd cheered louder for him than they did for Andy Murray.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/tennis/rogerfederer/10413318/ATP-Tour-Finals-2013-Roger-Federer-keeps-fans-on-edge.html

October 30th, 2013 at 4:35 am

Has Federer “officially” qualified yet?

October 30th, 2013 at 5:58 am

^^^ Not yet, has to win today against Anderson

October 30th, 2013 at 6:10 am

… some people are trying to downplay Roger saying he’s just lucky to qualify in WTF… the fact is, they’re just afraid of Roger being there in WTF… If he’s in the 9th position after Paris… then u may called it lucky… no!

October 30th, 2013 at 6:26 am

This is the problem. Some reports say Roger has already qualified as Tsonga lost his match yesterday. So, yes. Roger has already qualified. unless what chico says happens:

Chico Says:
Lol skeezer ;).

Reckon the staff has it right, but what happens if Raonic wins Paris, Wawa and Gasquet reaches the semis (beating Rafa and Nole respectively) after Federer loses to Anderson.. With a quick glance that was the one and only scenario where I thought Fed would miss the cut.

October 30th, 2013 at 2:08 am

October 30th, 2013 at 6:52 am

Roger Federer finally clinched his spot in the year-end ATP Finals after contender Jo-Wilfried Tsonga lost to Kei Nishikori in the second round of the Paris Masters today.

October 30th, 2013 at 6:52 am

thomas, this seems to be the clearest explanation:

It’s rare for so much to be undecided going into the final week before the season-ending event, but things tightened up because of Federer’s struggles combined with a recent string of good performances from those stacked up right behind him — Wawrinka (US Open semifinals), Gasquet (US Open semifinals, Moscow title), Tsonga (Shanghai semifinals, Vienna semifinals), and Raonic (Montreal semifinals, fourth round US Open).

But the plot thickened further last week as Raonic and Tsonga pulled out of their scheduled events in Basel and Valencia, and Gasquet and Wawrinka both lost in their opening matches at Basel, leaving the field clear for Federer. Federer took advantage by getting all the way to the final (only his third this year), but he stopped just short of clinching a London spot. Winning the final would have done it, but he lost to Juan Martin del Potro in three sets.

That leaves the players heading into Paris with some complex calculating to do about whether they will make the final eight, as the following unofficial scenarios illustrate. (Points up for grabs are as follows: W 1000, F 600, SF 360, QF 180, 3R 90, 2R 45, 1R 10. The top eight seeds receive a bye into the second round, with 10 points for losing in the opening round.)

Roger Federer (3,445 points) — win a match
The way he can qualify is very simple — win one match. The way he cannot is complicated — he loses his first match, and Wawrinka reaches the semifinals and Gasquet reaches the semifinals and Raonic wins the tournament. As long as all four of those things don’t happen, Federer will make the year-end event for the 12th straight year.

Stanislas Wawrinka (3,150 points) — outlast Gasquet or Tsonga, stay within a round of the rest
Wawrinka can afford to have one player overtake him but not more, so he must try to finish a round ahead of Gasquet or Tsonga (at least one of the two will go out by the third round). And if Raonic, Haas or Almagro gets to the finals or wins, Wawrinka must try to finish not more than a round behind them (semifinals if any of them reach the final, final if any win the title).

Richard Gasquet (3,120 points) — match or outlast Tsonga and get to the later rounds if those behind do
Since Gasquet is in the last qualifying position, he cannot give up any ground. He must try to beat Tsonga, if Tsonga reaches the third round. If Raonic reaches at least the semifinals, Gasquet must also try to finish not more than a round behind. If Haas, Almagro or Youzhny win the title, Gasquet must try to reach at least the semifinal.

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (3,055 points) — outlast Gasquet or Wawrinka, stay close to Raonic
Tsonga needs to move ahead by at least one spot, so he must try to get further than Gasquet or Wawrinka and stay ahead of those behind him if they make a move. That means winning at least one match if Haas or Almagro or Youzhny win the tournament, or reaching at least the third round if Raonic reaches the semifinals, and no more than a round behind Raonic if he gets any further.

Milos Raonic (2,770 points) — try to make the final
If he can reach the final, Raonic is in unless Gasquet makes the semifinals and Wawrinka makes the semifinals or Haas wins the title. If he can’t reach the final, there’s little chance.

Tommy Haas (2,425 points) — win title, get early losses from others
Must win the title, have Gasquet and Tsonga lose before the semifinals, and Tsonga before the final.

Nicolas Almagro (2,200 points) — win title, get early losses from others
Must win the title and have Gasquet lose by the third round or Wawrinka lose his opening match.

Mikhail Youzhny (2,135 points) — win title, get early losses from others
Must win title, have Gasquet lose his opening match and Raonic not reach the final.

All these goings-on mean that the overarching storyline on the men’s tour this season — the resumption of the rivalry between Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal — is not on center stage as the week begins. But Djokovic is the tournament favorite after dominating the Asian events and still has a chance to overtake Nadal for year-end No. 1 if he doesn’t lose more than a match or so. The Serb also has the additional task of trying to remain fresh for the Davis Cup final after London, so there is still a lot left in the season for him. Nadal, meanwhile, will be trying to end his season strong after a so-so post-US Open swing coming in.

On top of everything, the Paris Masters is known for throwing up surprises. David Ferrer beat qualifier Jerzy Janowicz in the final last year — so there could easily be some unexpected events in store as well.

The curtain may be coming down on this tennis season, but the stage is set for an intriguing finish.

http://espn.go.com/tennis/story/_/id/9892617/tennis-roger-federer-final-chance

October 30th, 2013 at 7:04 am

Madmax…wat r u doing here among us….u shud be blogging & writing articles, seriously!

pretty cool analysis here….thanx for sharing :)

October 30th, 2013 at 7:17 am

http://alturl.com/5q45f
Long story short, fed will qualify for WTF if he beats Anderson today. We don’t need 100 lines !!

October 30th, 2013 at 7:25 am

Giles….Madmax is telling all the possibilities in coming few days, even for other players like wawa & gasquet (i guess, there r many fans of them who might be interested)….not jus abt fed.

He thought of giving a clear picture to all the enthusiasts….maybe a lotta ppl already aware but still thr may be few who r happy to know this here….isn’t it?

Giles….no offence but i like some rafa fans like Brando who also loves to give some detailed analysis or possibilities, which i really appreciate.

October 30th, 2013 at 7:45 am

Giles, lol. Iliad worthy.

ATP interwebs main page sums it up easy peasy…

http://www.atpworldtour.com/

Ahhh, yet more GOAT banter from the usual federazzi suspects.

Striiiiike threeeeeeeeeee!!!!!

I’m back, baby, I’M BACK!!!! As Jimmy Connors would say, give them what they want! Genie in a bottle!

Stay tuned.

October 30th, 2013 at 8:40 am

Giles and Hippy Chic:

Thanks for your nice words!

Tennis-x Staff:

That Tsonga and Dolgopolov picture is very scarring for guys. I guess the gals are lapping it up. No pun intended!

October 30th, 2013 at 10:39 am

I think Federer’s WTF berth was sealed when Tsonga lost yesterday, no? :)

FWIW, here are our analysts’ picks for the Paris Indoors or as @donaldtendulkar refers to it as “Indoor French Open”

http://sportzcosmos.com/2013/10/30/battle-for-the-indoors-french-open-title/

October 30th, 2013 at 11:22 am

^^^ So far one bad choice. Wawa beat Lopez, not the other way round. Lol

October 30th, 2013 at 11:32 am

@Giles: That is not his worst pick, @donaldtendulkar picked Tsonga for final, unofficially that is…. before he finalized the picks today! Thanks for reading. I think we will have another Rafole final :)

October 30th, 2013 at 11:42 am

@ID Fan. Hope you are right.

October 30th, 2013 at 11:48 am

@hawkeye. The drop date dor the WTF ranking points is quoted as being 11/11/2013 but I have been reading tweets that this date is in fact a computer error and the drop date will be 4 November. Do you know which date is correct?

October 30th, 2013 at 12:21 pm

*for*

October 30th, 2013 at 12:22 pm

Giles Says:
http://alturl.com/5q45f
Long story short, fed will qualify for WTF if he beats Anderson today. We don’t need 100 lines !!

October 30th, 2013 at 7:25 am

Perfect fan Says:
Giles….Madmax is telling all the possibilities in coming few days, even for other players like wawa & gasquet (i guess, there r many fans of them who might be interested)….not jus abt fed.

He thought of giving a clear picture to all the enthusiasts….maybe a lotta ppl already aware but still thr may be few who r happy to know this here….isn’t it?

Giles….no offence but i like some rafa fans like Brando who also loves to give some detailed analysis or possibilities, which i really appreciate.

October 30th, 2013 at 7:45 am

sweet perfect fan.

Wish I could claim it was me giving you all the different scenarios…but you can read more in the link.

http://espn.go.com/tennis/story/_/id/9892617/tennis-roger-federer-final-chance

Giles, you don’t have to read more than a line, obviously you are not capable of reading more than this.

October 30th, 2013 at 1:10 pm

Ha! Just saw your post Giles. Maybe you are on “time delay” (or sometimes not at all) like me! Badge of honour amongst the, shall we say, “livelier” Rafans lol.

Not sure what you mean by WTF ranking points.

This is the last week to qualify for WTF but Davis Cup (after WTF) is the last week to add points for year end ranking.

October 30th, 2013 at 1:17 pm

@madmax. I certainly do not enjoy reading long winded posts especially when it is of no interest to me. @Thomas asked a one line question and I gave him a one line answer, straight and to the point, not 100 lines like you have done.
Btw are you trying to compete with Dave, a former long winded poster whose only aim was to inflate fed? I used to scroll down his posts as I will do yours if you continue writing 100 lines!!
#Boring

October 30th, 2013 at 1:26 pm

@ hawkeye. Maybe I didn’t make myself clear enough, sorry.
Ok, joker has 1500 points to defend from 2012 Barclays World Tour Finals. If you look at the rankings breakdown on the ATP site you will see the drop date for each tourney and these points are supposed to drop on 11/11/2013 but as I said I have been reading tweets that these points will in fact drop on 4/11/2013 because of a computer error. Just wondered if you could offer any clarification on the date the points dropped off.

October 30th, 2013 at 1:34 pm

Giles Says:
@madmax. I certainly do not enjoy reading long winded posts especially when it is of no interest to me. @Thomas asked a one line question and I gave him a one line answer, straight and to the point, not 100 lines like you have done.
Btw are you trying to compete with Dave, a former long winded poster whose only aim was to inflate fed? I used to scroll down his posts as I will do yours if you continue writing 100 lines!!
#Boring

October 30th, 2013 at 1:26 pm

Giles, you are writing a little bit longer at the moment, obviously got wind.

#Yawn

October 30th, 2013 at 2:08 pm

^^^ Yeah it’s catching!

October 30th, 2013 at 2:10 pm

obviously still awake tho’ Giles?

October 30th, 2013 at 2:25 pm

Another neuter entered the Tour Finals? WTF?

October 30th, 2013 at 3:34 pm

Giles, I believe that both Paris and WTF points will drop off on Nov. 4th. ATP site currently says Nov. 4 for Paris and Nov. 11 for WTF but I believe that the Nov. 11 date is incorrect. I thought that WTF points actually drop off prior to the start of the tournament. Seems like ATP is not taking WTF too seriously though as it’s a glorified exho.

October 30th, 2013 at 4:03 pm

I personally like WTF.It’s diferent then other tournaments-you don’t have privilege of having a BUY in a first round or playing against qualifier and slowly getting in to rhythm. You have to fight from a first day with the best in the world.Its bit tacky, like a Superbowl and kind of Gladiators atmosphere, but every tennis player wants to be there (just look this year how they are scrambling to be in there ) and has a heavy 1500 as a prize (+ good financial prize ).
To me, it’s fitting for the end of the year.

October 30th, 2013 at 5:00 pm

@hawkeye. Thanks for the info.

October 30th, 2013 at 5:04 pm

Well, Roger “officially” through now to London. :) Great, great News! So pleased.

but not pleased about the last couple of games he played against Anderson!: also, just listened to his interview and he was brutally honest. Said he seemed to think he lost concentration, or that Anderson stepped it up a bit, and he didn’t know how to handle the shots at that time, may be lost some confidence. I thought that was extremely honest of Roger and the fact that he realises he hasn’t clicked just yet. I do believe that will come over the next couple of matches.

Said he would look at the tapes with his coach and take it from there.

So proud of Federer though, I see a more realistic side to his mental attitude. He is both aggressive on court but also tends every now and again, to over play his shots. I dont know whether that is over confidence or a lack of confidence if I am honest. I think it shows that he isn’t trusting himself as much as he used to do, previously.

Appreciates that he still has the shots to do battle, but he faces confidence issues now, I think, when he tries to close out the match. I really hope he works on this, but I think the more wins for him, will allow him to make the right choices from instinct more than anything.

May be he has doubted his ability, when he tried the new racquet. I respect him for that, but I think he was never really comfortable trying to change and that has perhaps put him back a month to 6 weeks. I don’t know.

Roger has never been a big hitter and may be he is trying to be something he is not. I don’t think he needs to become anyone else.

It is just rediscovering the federer that is there, just needs to build on that confidence. I really think a sports psychologist would help Roger here and i wonder whether he has ever considered this?

I don’t think he would lose out at all by employing one of these guys to help his game.

October 30th, 2013 at 5:13 pm

How utterly disrespectful for any one to describe WTF as a glorified exho.

Guess these types really do not understand tennis.

October 30th, 2013 at 5:15 pm

@madmax Wait… who’s his coach?

October 30th, 2013 at 5:23 pm

Fed doesn’t need a “sports psychologist”, he needs a younger body! The man is 32 and these types are still expecting him to play like superman! Really!!

October 30th, 2013 at 5:39 pm

He can have my body if he really needs it… Ha!

October 30th, 2013 at 5:42 pm

So he can have my mind and Josh’s body and it’s all sorted…

October 30th, 2013 at 6:23 pm

Ufff… tomorrow.I’ll set up ” Upset Alarm”…
Isner vs Novak
Nadal vs Jerzy

October 30th, 2013 at 6:24 pm

@courbon. I don’t mind the first one but not the second. Lol

October 30th, 2013 at 6:30 pm

Isner vs Novak – definite upset alert if Isner is serving very well and Novak’s a little bit off.
Prediction: Djoko wins 7-6, 6-7, 6-2

Nadal vs Janowicz: I think it play out like Montreal. Janowicz and Nadal might exchange early breaks, then Nadal wins a 1st set tie-break. Then Jerzy might go up a break in the second, be close to going up 2 breaks, but Rafa somehow turns it around.
Prediction: Rafa wins 7-6, 7-5

October 30th, 2013 at 6:37 pm

WTF is tennis madmax

October 30th, 2013 at 6:52 pm

Izzy is dizzy outside the US.

@DjokerNole in two.

October 30th, 2013 at 7:09 pm

He can have my body if he really needs it… Ha!
—
He can have mine too. Trust me, you get a really good deal on my knees. They “refresh” every year.

October 30th, 2013 at 7:34 pm

You’re such a magician HR.

October 30th, 2013 at 7:46 pm

So….if the draw in WTF goes the same path as it did las couple of years….like even and odd….then most probably it wud look like this:

Team A: nole-ferru-berdych-wawa

Team B: rafa-delpo-fed-gasquet

Milos chances looking bleak to me…btw, if it turns out this way what a cupcake draw will it be for nole….compared to the tough one last year. Seriously, muzza is making his absence felt….but nevertheless, will be an exciting fight for the supremacy.

October 30th, 2013 at 10:49 pm

^ my bad….rafa and nole will swap positions and rafa is in team A.

So cupcake draw for rafa….sry nole.

Possibly fed and berdych cud swap….but seems improbable.

October 30th, 2013 at 11:05 pm

“So cupcake draw for rafa…”
Yep. Nothing new there.
2010.

October 30th, 2013 at 11:26 pm

^^ True that;)
what would Rafa do without his cupcake draws, no? Thanks ATP/ITF :)

October 31st, 2013 at 1:05 am

James,
Cup Cake draw or Helltowin draw, each player needs to play the match and no one knows for certain that those draws is a guarantee for lift up the title at the end.

October 31st, 2013 at 1:18 am

@metan,

I was joking. Rafa has a positive H2H vs almost every player on the ATP Tour. Every draw can be a cupcake for him. His cupcake draws usually include Federer or Djokovic :)

October 31st, 2013 at 2:08 am

Josh39485 Says:
@madmax Wait… who’s his coach?

October 30th, 2013 at 5:23 pm

The swiss davis cup captain, Luthi.

Giles Says:
Fed doesn’t need a “sports psychologist”, he needs a younger body! The man is 32 and these types are still expecting him to play like superman! Really!!

October 30th, 2013 at 5:39 pm

Do be quiet Giles.

October 31st, 2013 at 4:37 am

@ James, SMH!

October 31st, 2013 at 5:06 am

Regarding the cupcake draw thingy,they all get them from time to time Rafa,Roger,Novak,Andy so what?no big deal who cares?whos complaining?fans dont care if its their own favorite,yet have an issue when its someone elses,all you can do is try to beat whomever is stood in front of you.

October 31st, 2013 at 5:25 am

No draw is a cup cake draw and if any player sees that as such, then they are in for a dangerous time, Roger’s “cup cake” draw at Wimby – out seocnd round, Rafa’s “cup cake” draw at Wimby – out first round.

If any player has the belief they can beat one of the greats, then it’s the adrenalin and the belief that can give anyone outside the top 10 a chance of toppling down the favourite.

We all use that term, “cup cake” sometimes tongue in cheek, but at the end of it all, if any player is having an ‘off’ day or taking things a little bit too lightly, then they set themselves up for a potential fall.

The way that everyone is playing right now, top 100, I believe they are all in with a chance.

October 31st, 2013 at 6:10 am

Madmax well exactly tennis is very fickle,what looks easy on paper,aint always that easy in the real world,Rafa/Darcis or Roger/Starkovsky i dont think many people saw that coming did they?

October 31st, 2013 at 6:19 am

BTW im not unemployed i actually have a couple of days off work.

October 31st, 2013 at 6:21 am

Since he’s the GOAT, there are no difficult draws for Rafa by definition.

Besides WTF just a hit and giggle. No biggie.

Chillax y’all.

October 31st, 2013 at 11:07 am