Roland Garros: Another Serving of DelPo-Berdy, Coming to You on Sunday

del Potro d. Cilic, 6-3 7-6(7) 6-1 

Photo: Getty Images

In the battle of big, hairy and leggy giants, DelPo pulled through yet again, defeating Cilic by the straight-sets scoreline of 6-3 7-6 and 6-1.  This pulls his H2H against the Croatian player to 7-2.

In the opening set, DelPo kept his serve well-consistent (68%) and he punished the slightly more inconsistent Cilic serve.  He also defended his second-serve quite well, winning 83% off the 2nd serve in the first set.  After breaking, DelPo hit a nose-dive volley in front of the net, to hold for 5-3.  That’s when Cilic’s nerves betrayed him, which allowed DelPo to break and take the set.

The 2nd set seemed to proceed in similar straightforward fashion.  DelPo was serving well, and he had used a sweetly angled FH to break for 4-2.  Given the open questions surrounding the state of DelPo’s knee, I was surprised by the ease with which he seemed to be cruising past Cilic.  Alas, my concerns soon proved to be true, as DelPo began to play much more passively.  He was standing as far back as possible to receive the Cilic service—any observer of Cilic would know that despite the Croatian’s height, he’s one of the least effective tall servers.  DelPo’s court positioning was thus worrisome.  Cilic broke back and the set went to a TB, which DelPo has not been comfortable with this year.  Prior to the TB, there was a delightful sequence where 6 consecutive shots involved a dropshot.  DelPo emerged the winner in most of those.

On to the TB: True to his past record, DelPo went up a mini-break in the 2nd set TB, only to concede it.  Cilic then went up a mini-break, to serve for the 2nd set, only to be broken again.  Finally, after a flurry of seemingly never-ending exchanges, DelPo took the 2nd set on his 8th SP, winning the TB by the scoreline of 9-7.  After an 82-minute set.

Having seen the dramatic portion of the match that seems to accompany DelPo everywhere this week, I hoped for a less volatile 3rd set.  DelPo must have felt this unease among his fans, because he broke early in the 3rd set to go up 2-1.  From there, he held and broke again, to close out the match and guarantee his passage to R4.

Photo: Getty Images

DelPo looked genuinely effervescent and joyous after his win.  There was this light-hearted quality to his low-key victory celebration that (oddly) gives me hope for the upcoming match against Berdy

Compared to his matches against Monty and Roger-Vasselin, DelPo did not seem as bothered by his knee.  True, there were some points where he would stop and wince over his knee for a few seconds.  However, the only time he called for the trainer was after he’d gone up a break in the 3rd set—it was only to re-apply the knee tape, which had slipped over his hairy knees.  Given the circumstances, that’s a slightly positive sign.

Overall, he was 6/14 on BPs this match, while Cilic was 1/1.  People can take heart at his 72% first-serve percentage, as it means his knee is still working properly enough to hit a good serve.

DelPo’s R4 opponent will be Berdy, the guy he lost to in a close match at the Madrid SF.  This match-up will be exciting, possibly a contender for match of the R4s.  For DelPo, it’s  match that’s loaded with meaning and importance.  DelPo’s loss to Berdy in Madrid, following a previously successful run against the bottom half of the top 10, was tough to shake off.  Furthermore, the Davis Cup SF between Argentina and the Czech Republic takes place in September.  It’d be a significant re-boost to DelPo’s confidence if he could restore order and reclaim his winning ways over Berdy.  For what it’s worth, Berdy also had trouble overcoming Anderson in R3, winning in the decider.  Berdy also seems to have a minor leg injury concern (since Dusseldorf), although the full extent of it is as yet unknown.

Photo: Getty Images

Despite Berdy being taken to 5 sets against Anderson, he managed to hit 57 winners and 36 UFEs.  This will be a tough match-up for DelPo.  Luckily, he has two days of rest to prepare for the match that determines the quarterfinalists.  Vamos!

***

In other news, the Gasquet-Dimitrov match proved to be engaging and turned out some very interesting points.  Here’s one point that made the news — it’s a seriously must-see point: a 32-shot rally that ends with Dimitrov on the ground, cramping and barely able to stand up, while Gasquet vomits on the other end of the court.  I disagree with the majority view that this point is evidence of everything that’s wrong with both players.  I’m not sure how anyone could blame Gasquet or Dimitrov for reacting the way they did to the point.  It’s not as if people can summon themselves to vomit or cramp.

It sure makes for an interesting story, when you claim an under-performing player is creating his own problems — the visual evidence of the vomit/cramping certainly aids that view.  Does it make sense though, ultimately?  I say it doesn’t.

***

In any case, the draw has quickly weeded itself out and now there will be much less tennis to observe.  There have been some fun surprises from players like Benoit Paire, Andreas Seppi (who just defeated Verdasco in R3), Adrian Ungur, Kevin Anderson, and all the like.  From now though, it looks like the familiar faces will once again frequent the 2nd week (possibly including Milos, who is annoyingly starting to become a familiar name).  One player I’m happy to see in R4 is Stanislas Wawrinka.  He toughed out a truly interminable 5-set match against Gillou—surely, he deserves a medal of sorts for that?

Let’s see what happens on Sunday and after — it’s crunch time!

Roland Garros: Calm Before the Storm

del Potro d. Roger-Vasselin, 6-7(5) 7-6(3) 6-4 6-4

Photo: AP Photo

The double-lawnmower fistpump celebration

In dramatic fashion, DelPo eeked out a win over Edouard Roger-Vasselin and secured his passage to R3.  Much like his R1 win over Monty, this match featured a visit from the doctor, moments in which it seemed possible that DelPo might throw in the towel, before DelPo somehow made a comeback in the 2nd set TB that eventually saw him through to the win.  I have to say, after DelPo’s first two matches at RG, I can empathize with the excruciating roller-coaster that is being a Muzz fan.

Photo: Getty Images

DelPo actually was serving quite well in the 2nd and 3rd sets, but his movement in the rallies was a half-step slow. The left knee again. He had trouble retrieving balls, which may explain his 13/30 on net approaches in the match—DelPo played an amazing game to break in the 3rd set, with Roger-Vasselin pushing him to all corners of the court. Yet for the most part, DelPo seemed intent on shortening the points. Roger-Vasselin put in a spirited performance and there were close rallies where a few millimeters to the left or right could well have dampened DelPo’s spirits. Fortunately, it was not to be.

One strange observation from the match: Roger-Vasselin is French. In fact, he’s the son of former RG semifinalist Christophe Roger-Vasselin (who beat top seed Jimmy Connors in the 1983 QFs). You would think the crowd would be firmly on RV’s side. Guess who they were cheering for though? I guess the RG crowd does occasionally cheer for the player with a pained left knee

Photo: Reuters

Afterwards, in his presser, DelPo’s status update on his knee was neutral. He acknowledged the pain in his knee, but affirmed he’d continue to keep playing on. He faces his first noteworthy challenge in Cilic in R3. This is their fourth encounter this year, and it’s likely to be closer than their previous ones. Cilic seems to have found something resembling consistency, as he saw off ’03 RG champion Ferrero in straights. One interesting stat comparison: Cilic had 35-23 winners-to-unforced error ratio, while DelPo had 50-39 in his R2 match. If there’s one encouraging sign that DelPo may just manage another win over Cilic, that would be it.

As for Berdy, who likely awaits the winner of DelPo-Cilic in R4, he had a truly terrifying W-UFE ratio of 42-6 in his straight sets win over Llodra. Even if DelPo beat Cilic (which I think is unlikely), I’m not sure it’d be healthy for his confidence to face Berdy, so soon before the Davis Cup SF in September. But I’m thinking too far ahead. DelPo will have plenty of work to face with Cilic in a day’s time.

***

Fun tidbits:

Nalbandian’s Road to Roland Garros

• Nalby lost to Romania’s Adrian Ungur in R1. It was a bit of an upset, although the surprise is tempered by the fact that this was Nalby’s first showing at Roland Garros in four years. Since hip injury, Nalby’s had a tough time playing on clay and he referred to this fact in his post-match presser. He played too defensively during the match and his serve deserted him on the important points. Ungur played a solid match, which saw him close out the match—Ungur proved himself a surprise challenger when he pushed Fed to four sets yesterday in R2.  He’s acquitted himself quite well these past few days.  Soon after Nalby’s loss, RG released a “Road to Roland Garros” video with Nalby. It’s a nice, lighthearted moment and required viewing for those journalists who’ve long-persisted in dubbing him a surly, uncharismatic character.  Observe Nalby’s “Eye of the Tiger” face. There may be something slightly problematic with the fact that Nalby will oblige almost every interviewer request, but you can’t say he’s uncooperative.

• Federer, following his shaky R2 win over Ungur, met with Argentinean journalists for his presser.  When asked about the Argie players, he said his favorite was Nalbandian. This makes sense, given their age similarity and the fact they played as juniors together.  He said he had a soft spot for Nalby’s game.  Right said, Fed.  Fed also threw in a sly observation about DelPo’s game as a junior (DelPo’s serve was a weak link before he met Davin).

• Marinko Matosevic ran into the back fence during qualifying rounds.  I like Marinko’s eccentricity, so this shouldn’t be funny.  But it is.

Roland Garros: Del Potro Overcomes Montanes, Outlook Cloudy

del Potro d. Montanes 6-2 6-7(5) 6-2 6-1

Del Potro played his R1 match at Philippe Chatrier court, straight after Samantha Stosur’s straight-set win over Irina Falconi.  The first two matches at Roland Garros’ central court featured two surprise U.S. Open winners, who have also gone far on the red clay at Roland Garros—Stosur, a finalist in 2010 and DelPo, a semi-finalist in his groundbreaking year, 2009.

Photo: Getty Images

The scoreline for DelPo’s R1 match indicates a second-set letdown, but it’s the manner in which said letdown occurred that makes me worry.  I’d been worried about DelPo’s form, given his oft-shaky play in Rome, along with the increasingly prominent role his knee injury has been playing.

Photo: Getty Images

In many of DelPo’s losses, he starts out strong in the first set.  He plays as if he’s red-lining, and many of his shots, particularly the FH, are smack on-the-line and paean-inspiring.  However, the 2nd set is where he tends to suffer a lull.  I think it’s tough to attribute this to his mental focus, especially given his recent knee concerns.

Photo: FFT

Let’s take a look at his knee injury yesterday: DelPo’s first and second serves lacked their bite and his double-fault count was higher than normal.  Also, he gave up an early break in the 2nd set and then went up 5-2 in the TB, only to lose the TB through Montanes’ on-the-mark shotmaking.  Granted, DelPo hasn’t exactly been stellar in TBs recently, but this showing at Philippe Chatrier felt like it owed more to his knee injury than anything else.

Credit to Montanes, who was hitting impressive BHDTL winners.  For most of the match, I kept thinking that if DelPo had met a slightly higher-caliber, more mentally sturdy opponent, he could very well have lost the match after the 2nd set.  However, Monty’s unraveling at the hands of Fognini last year is a memory etched in the minds of many hardcore tennis fans.  Alas, he was not able to redeem himself on that count this year either.  Credit also goes to DelPo here, for re-emerging after the shambles of the 2nd set.  Whether it was the painkillers given to him during the match, or his wish to at least fight his way to R2, DelPo upped his level and managed to take out Monty 6-1 in the 4th set (after three hours of play).

Afterwards, DelPo was characteristically calm and he did not comment on the knee, beyond saying that he wasn’t worried about it and that he would take the 2 days to recover and be in shape for his next match.  He plays Edouard Roger-Vasselin, who actually has a leading 1-0 H2H over DelPo (they played on HCs in Tokyo in 2009).  Roger-Vasselin played Nice last week, falling in R2 to eventual champion Almagro.  Hopefully, DelPo’s knee will be in good shape to get past Roger-Vasselin.  He will have defended last year’s R3 points, if he manages to win his next match.

***

RG released a fun interview with DelPo, who talks about cheering “like a madman” when his beloved Boca Jrs team defeated Real Madrid in 2000.  He brings up his good friend Martin Palermo’s name quite often.  When asked to compare Messi’s 73 goals this season to Djokovic’s 40-win streak last year, DelPo says that Messi’s record is better (because no other football player is capable of doing better, whereas Fed or Rafa could match Djokovic).

Previously, DelPo was also asked about his presence at RG Kids’ Day, when he umped the match between Fed, Santoro, Grosjean and Escude.  When asked why he didn’t jump around and cheer like the other players, DelPo responded, “I’m a bit more shy than Djokovic.  I’m not going to start jumping & shouting as he did in the Children day.”

As you know, DelPo played chair umpire during that match.  DelPo also said, “Well, I was a referee, so I was supposed to be serious.”  Quit trying to turn DelPo into a happy cheerleader, it’s not his style!

Roland Garros: What Did DelPo (and Nalby) Ever Do To You?

Observe this scenic photo of Reeshard lounging on his chair, flipping through a magazine.

Photo: FFT

I’d wanted to use that photo as an opening to my very brief analysis of the RG draw.  It would have been nice, as Reeshard actually has a very nice draw: He plays Jurgen Zopp, the winner of Young/Dimitrov, and then a possible meeting with Dolgopolov.  I’d really like to see Reeshard in the 2nd week, so this is a draw that’s favorable to those wishes.

Then, I saw the rest of the draw.  Frantically, I had to find a new photo.  At first, I was like this:

DelPo faces clay-court dangermouse Albert Montanes in R1. That will be tough, despite DelPo’s win over him in Estoril.  The condition of DelPo’s knee is probably still not 100%, although he is capable of stepping out onto court and playing matches.  As the old saying goes, if you step onto the court, then you’ll take the losses just as you’ll take the wins.  DelPo cannot lose to Monty.  If DelPo gets past the fully respectable clay-courter Monty, then he has a R2 date with Roger-Vasselin/Pospisil, which will then likely be followed by a R3 date with Marin Cilic.  The Cilic, who keeps chipping away at DelPo this year.

If DelPo gets past Cilic in R3 (which would be an accomplishment), he has a likely meeting with Berdych in R4.  Berdy has been acting up lately—after his win over fellow Argie Carlos Berlocq at the Power Horse Cup in Dusseldorf this week, he posted the “Don’t Cry for me, Argentina” song on his Facebook.  He was deservedly barraged by offended Argentines/tennis fans, and duly deleted his post.  Still, his feelings are noted and I hope DelPo feasts on this growing hostility to avenge his loss to Berdy at Madrid.  TOTALLY DOABLE.  Berdy also lost to Tipsy in Dusseldorf this week, which I may interpret as a positive sign that his streakiness is starting to show through again in his game.

The reward for possibly defeating Berdy would be a QF date with Federer.  All in all, DelPo’s road to the final looks like this: Montanes, Roger-Vasselin/Pospisil, Cilic/Ferrero, Berdych, Federer, Djokovic, Nadal.

Take a look at Tipsy’s utter joke of a draw!  That could have been DelPo.  Pardon me if I can’t summon enough positive feelings for this post.

***

The elder Argie David Nalbandian has a clunker of a draw the next two weeks.  He has a R1 opponent in Adrian Ungur, for the chance to face off with Federer in R2.  If insanity is the act of repeating the same action, only to run into the same Swiss wall, then this year’s Roland Garros draw is insane.

However, the only way to deal with this insane draw is to grin and bear it:

For DelPo, I hope 1) his knee doesn’t bother him too much, 2) he can defend his R3 points from last year and 3) Most importantly, that he puts Berdy firmly in his place.  I will rewatch his beatdown of Berdy at Rotterdam, as a form of encouragement.  Let’s get to the QF, DelPo!!  Vamos!

I look forward to some high-quality tennis between Nalbandian and Fed, no matter the result.

***

Ignoring the draw, Roland Garros has been incredibly nice to DelPo.  They assigned him to central court for his opening match against Monty.  I can’t remember the last time a Slam gave him center court for an opening match.  This is always a welcome sign.  He plays the 2nd match on center court today (starts at approximately 12-1 pm local time).

DelPo took some time to throw an entertaining exho for Kid’s Day at RG.  DelPo, along with Fed, Santoro (the Magician), Grosjean (he of the funky forehand) and Escude took to the court for an entertaining exho.  Well, they did.  DelPo played the umpire

Federer, Grosjean, Escude and Santoro have just began their exhibition on the central court. The umpire is Del Potro. http://t.co/i9zaH5jM

—
Roland Garros (@rolandgarros) May 26, 2012

He had the finest seat in the house to observe Fed on the clay.  I like to think DelPo used his umping experience as a way to avoid conflicts with the umpire in the future

Photo: Getty Images

Fed shows off in front of DelPo

Photo: Getty Images

DelPo + Serena + Federer + Grosjean = Awesome

Photo: Getty Images

Bless Sabine Lisiki’s heart for being the only player to spot DelPo in the far corner and high-five him (he’s practically shoving his hand in her face).  He only wants to be loved.

Vamos to the Argie contingent!!  Pico recently got his hair cut, to the dismay of tennis fans everywhere.  I actually prefer the new clean-cut version.  What say you?  Unfortunately, Pico and Berlocq have been drawn to play each other in R2—let’s hope the match happens.  I have a feeling it will be one of the more entertaining R2 match-ups.

Roland Garros: Who is Ready?

The draw ceremony will take place later today.  Meanwhile, most players have arrived in Paris and have been training on the courts.  DelPo was seen training on Court 18, which is probably 5 kilometers outside wherever everyone else was training.  Court 18 is the best, clearly.

Hello @delpotrojuan :-) http://t.co/KaedGsI2

—
Roland Garros (@rolandgarros) May 24, 2012

Juan Martin del Potro leaving court 18 after practice today. #RG12 http://t.co/hMT9E6JK

—
Adeline A. (@adel1609) May 24, 2012

His lingering knee problem hasn’t cleared up entirely.  At his exho match against Simone Bolelli, DelPo played in somewhat lackluster fashion to lose in straight sets.  Reports say that the knee still appears to be a problem, although it’s perhaps not a full-scale alarming one yet.  Also, Muzz lost to Ernests Gulbis at the same exho, so maybe the players aren’t taking the warm-up tourny seriously enough.

For now, DelPo looks bright and cheery on the clay courts of Paris.  Let us hope it stays that way!

**

In other news, Feli seems to be busy training with his new friends Mario & Luigi.  Check out his new ad for a Nintendo game, called the “Mario Tennis Open”:

In this ad, Feli, Mario & Luigi play tennis on a beach, a hockey rink, and then a children’s playground. I’m not used to Feli looking so calm and relaxed (he falls down on the ice at 1:08.  I giggled).  Maybe he will be a dangerous contender at RG this year?

**

Here’s another photo I wanted to post here, of Reeshard and his lovely backhand practicing at Roland Garros:

One of the most beautiful backhands on tour: Richard Gasquet's. #tennis #RG12 http://t.co/cdE5Luyd

—
Adeline A. (@adel1609) May 24, 2012

One of the sweetest moments from RG last year was when Reeshard defeated Thomaz Bellucci to reach R4, in front of his home crowd:

Given how uncomfortable Reeshard has been playing at home in the past, it was so nice to see the happiness mixed with validation on his face when he reached R4 (the farthest he’s gone yet at RG).  He’s been playing solid tennis this year (with a win over Muzz at Rome).  I’d cautiously like to say the outlook is good for Reeshie!

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I will update with news of the draw, once it’s released!

5 Days Before Main-draw Play Begins at Roland Garros

Apologies for the lack of DelPo updates.  I’d been busy with non-tennis-stuff lately, and hadn’t had the time to update.  I’m back on course now!

DelPo’s scheduled to play the Mary Cohr exhibition warm-up to Roland Garros.  However, it’s been reported that he may skip the first day of the exho on Wednesday, if his knee is still aching.  This only adds to the concern that he may not be at full gear, come Roland Garros.  He is defending R3 points from last year.

Photo: AP Photo

Madrid, where DelPo’s knee problem first reared its head

Last week, DelPo lost in rather tepid fashion to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in Rome.  Therefore, he misses the cutoff for a top 8 seeding at Roland Garros, which means he could potentially play a top 8 player in R4.  All in all, these past couple of weeks have been somewhat disappointing, as DelPo had two very makeable chances to be a top 8 seed—the match against Berdy in Madrid was winnable, as was the match against Tsonga in Rome (Against Tsonga!  On clay!  Oh, I still reel from the humiliation of that loss!)

However, the issues with DelPo’s scheduling came into full focus during Rome.  While clay may be softer on the joints for some players, it also has a tendency to draw out injuries due to the grinding.  Just as it was last year, DelPo had an injury flare up on clay.  His left knee is the issue this year.  In his match against Tsonga, he seemed to be removed from the action taking place on court.  He’s now receiving treatment on his knee.  He picked up the injury in Madrid, although I wouldn’t hop too easily to the conclusion that it was the blue clay that injured him—for DelPo, it just seems to be clay in general.

Playing Davis Cup, then Estoril, Madrid and Rome (and going far at each tournament, excepting Rome) clearly took its toll on his health.  It will be curious to see how he schedules his clay season in 2013, because I feel like he’s reached a point in his career where he could drop smaller tournys like Estoril (although that would be sad, because I have an irrational affection for Estoril).  In any case, I feel like he could take the leap and divert more focus to the Masters/Slams.

***

In first world tennis news, Rafa defeated Novak in the Rome final (which was delayed a day, due to the rain).  This is not to imply that DelPo is second-world.  If anything, DelPo is like a fast-emerging BRIC country.

Anyway, Rafa takes back his no. 2 ranking and will be the 2nd seed for his beloved Roland Garros.  It’s a major accomplishment and it certainly adds to the build-up ahead of Roland Garros.  With his win, Rafa also overtook Bjorn Borg in all-time clay court victories.  He’s one-upped Fed in overall Masters titles (21 to 20).

Has Rafa set the stage for winning his 7th Coupe de Mousquetaires trophy in two weeks?  What to make of Novak?  Lately, Novak’s been missing the extra 2% he had last year—it’s good enough to beat a somewhat tired Fed, but not Rafa on clay.  Is Novak saving an extra gear for Roland Garros?  Does he even have an extra gear in store?  He sounded awfully cranky in his post-loss presser.  Can Fed pull off a surprise, or are expectations set too high after he’s won 2 Masters this year at the grand age of 30?  What is going on with Muzz? I’ve forgotten Muzz even plays tennis.  Will some brash upstart I’m totally not on board with make a surprise run?  Or will DelPo or Berdy or say, Tsonga be a threat? (I figure if Tsonga’s going to beat DelPo on clay, he may as well defeat other players too—it’s called utilitarian misery—everyone gets a share).

Photo: Getty Images

The qualifying rounds for Roland Garros start today and main draw play starts in five days.  The draw will be made this Friday.  It’s time to get rested before the sleepless nights and frantic cheerleading!**

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**Fans should take lessons from Mirka Federer on how to cheer for their player.  At the Fed-Ferrero match in Rome, Nico was cheering valiantly for Ferrero.  He was a nervous wreck as he watched Ferrero   Meanwhile, Mirka was cool as a cucumber and giving free lessons on “How to (Calmly) Cheer Like a Boss.”  Observe (GIF courtesy of@triplebagel!!)

Which style of fan are you—a Mirka or a Nico?  I think I need more years of experience before I could be a Mirka-type cheerleader.  I am most definitely a nail-biter/wall smacker/palm gripper when I watch tennis matches   That makes me a Nico!

Rome: DelPo vs. Jo-Willy? Top 8 Seeding On the Line!

On a scale of 1 to 10, DelPo’s had a 4-5 week so far.  The good part is that he’s still in the draw, and he cruised to a very straightforward victory over Youzhny, 6-4 6-2.

Photo: Getty Images

The bad news is that he’s hurting in his left knee.  The trainer had to visit him during his R1 match against Llodra, and DelPo was seen stretching and bending that area in between points.  He ended up edging out a very close match with Llodra, that was entertaining in quality of points and the contrast in styles.

For his R2 win over Youzhny, DelPo showed up with heavy taping on his left knee.  So far, he’s mentioned that he picked up the knee twinge in Madrid.  He says the problem is not too serious (although he did have a similar knee twinge at the Davis Cup final last year).

This is likely the result of him playing 3 consecutive tournaments.  Starting with his win in Estoril, DelPo went on to reach the SFs in Madrid, before landing in Rome to play the last warm-up Masters event before Roland Garros.  Perhaps next year he’ll consider whether or not playing Estoril is the best decision.  Last year, DelPo picked up a hip injury in Estoril that made him withdraw from Madrid.  This year, DelPo picked up a slight knee twinge in Madrid and it’s bothering his play in Rome.  While he is a player who needs a lot of match play in order to settle into a great rhythm, I think his form is also solid enough that he can skip Estoril and gun for the big points at Masters tournys.

For now, DelPo plays Tsonga for a spot in the QFs.  This is a very important match, as a top 8 Roland Garros seeding is on the line.  Wawrinka endeared himself to me by defeating Tipsy, which means a QF appearance from DelPo would be enough to make him a top 8 seed at a Slam.  Given DelPo hasn’t truly been challenged in his first two matches, I’m guessing DelPo-Jo will be a tough match.  Let’s hope he makes the most of it!!

Blurry DelPo blows a kiss to the camera, after his win over Youzhny.

Rome: Big Man Arrives in Rome

DelPo arrived in Rome, and began training on the courts.  Here he is with Marc Lopez, watching Rafa train with Pico:

Mark and DelPo watching Rafa http://t.co/iveqvh5V

—
  (@RAFAddicted) May 14, 2012

I like how incredibly foreboding he looks in the photo.

DelPo plays his R1 match today against Frenchman Michael Llodra.  DelPo beat Llodra twice this year, at Rotterdam and Marseilles.  However, Llodra can be a tricky player and their match in Rotterdam was a very tight affair.  The winner of this match will face Youzhny in R2.

Much is being made of Fed’s rise to the no. 2 ranking and whether or not he can maintain that position to be a top 2 seed at Roland Garros.  This will have implications for which half of the draw each top 4 player lands.

However, I insist the real drama center on which player clinches the 8th seed spot at Roland Garros.  It’s a tight race between DelPo and Tipsy.  Assuming DelPo gets through Llodra, he would play Youzhny.  The winner of that match would play Tsonga or Troicki.  All in all, it’s a manageable path to R3, but given DelPo’s past two weeks, I’m not nearly as confident that his path to R3 is assured.  *If* DelPo made it to R4, he would likely play Djokovic (assuming Djokovic hasn’t already taken an issue with the red clay at Rome).

As for Tipsy, he plays Wawrinka in R2 and then he likely plays Isner in R3.  The winner of R3 would play either Fed or Monfils in R4.

Currently, there’s a 120-point differential between Tipsy and DelPo and the points awarded for reaching R2, R3 and R4 are 10, 45 and 90.  A QF appearance gives 180 points.  It’s a very tough task, as it looks like DelPo would at least have to reach the QF (defeating Novak en route) in order to secure top 8 seeding at Roland Garros.

Big man, big task ahead for him.  Vamos DelPo!

Madrid: Fed Wins 20th Masters Title in Madrid

Federer d. Berdych, 3-6 7-5 7-5

After a dramatic week, Fed defeated an in-form Berdych to win his record-equalling 20th Masters title (tied with Rafa, who’d own his 20th at Monte Carlo).  He also becomes the only player in the Open era to have won at least 10 titles each on clay, grass and HCs (Madrid is Fed’s 10th clay court title).

Photo: Getty Images

Fed also moves up to no. 2 in the ranking.  However, he is still considering whether or not to play Rome.  Fed did have to call for a trainer during the Madrid final, taking pills for an injury concern in the hip area.  Although it’s tough to say, he wasn’t playing as aggressively and seemed to be stretching out the area in between points.

Berdy played well, showing his aggressive play yet again.  However, his serve was not on the level of his previous matches.  It played an important role in his win over DelPo in the SF, yet it let him down in the final.

Photo: Getty Images

The Federer twins showed up to see Fed win and they were plainly adorable.  You can see a clip of Fed celebrating his win with his family here.

Overall, the tournament has had its share of problems, but the tennis on-show has been high-quality.  Perhaps it’s not what you’d expect of a clay surface, but nonetheless I liked watching the reward-aggression type of tennis.  This is Fed’s 2nd Masters title this year.  No one knows what this means in terms of the bigger picture, but he continues to have a great year.

Onwards to Rome now, which has already started!

Madrid: Berdy Ends DelPo’s Clay Streak

Berdych d. Del Potro, 7-6(5) 7-6(6)

Photo: Getty Images

It was a very closely fought and entertaining match between the two giants, but Berdy edged out the win in two TBs.  The stats for this match show that both DelPo and Berdy won 79 points—however, Berdy was especially strong with his serve and that proved to be the decisive factor.  The aggressive tennis on-show was delightful.  Final W/UFEs for the match: Del Potro, 30/19 and Berdy, 41/27.

Despite the fact that DelPo lost this match, I will probably watch this match on replay in the future.  The hitting was splendid—DelPo’s running forehands, his anticipation of Berdy’s CCFH and his on-the-line winners had me grinning at the computer stream.  For a brief stretch until 3-1 in the 1st set, DelPo was serving above 85% and he was keeping Berdy planted firmly behind the baseline.  The first few games showed just how DelPo had managed straight-set wins over Berdy in their previous 3 matches — the depth of DelPo’s shots kept Berdy off-balance.  For awhile, Berdy looked truly uncomfortable dealing with the depth and pace of DelPo’s shots.  In their previous matches, DelPo would usually take command with his forehands to break down Berdy’s game.

However, the slightly slippery conditions of the court favored Berdy, as Berdy is perhaps more adept at moving on this surface than DelPo.  Berdy was hitting his FH at an average of 10km/hr faster than DelPo.  This is a fairly surprising stat, because in previous DelPo-Berdy matches, DelPo is the one who hits the stronger FH—that was certainly the case in Rotterdam, but sadly it was not to be in Madrid.  Given how DelPo fell and stumbled his way through a few points, I’d say his lack of firm footing on the surface took the edge off his ground strokes.  Mind you, this is not an attempt to make an excuse for DelPo’s loss—if anything, it’s a credit to Berdy for staying upright while blasting his shots.  It’s common knowledge that some players will move better on HCs, while others will be gazelle-like on the grass.  DelPo is still Bambi-on-ice when playing slippery courts (see: Queens, Wimbledon), so it’s nice to see that he was moving as well as he did.  I don’t want to go overboard with the praise (especially since he lost the match), but DelPo played some truly marvelous defense and he took advantage of his wingspan to keep the ball in play.

With everything going so swimmingly, that’s when DelPo played a very loose game, when he was serving for the set at 5*-4.

Photo: Reuters

He missed 8 of his 9 first serves and Berdy broke to level the set.  The TB was a topsy-turvy affair.  DelPo was playing with much less authority and Berdy took the cue to move in and dictate the play—Berdy went up 5-1 in the TB, before DelPo woke up and reinvoked his super-striking of the ball to level the TB at 5-5!  However, the mini-comeback ended up being a false hope, as DelPo played too tentatively again to give Berdy SP, which Berdy took.

The 1st set TB was close, and DelPo definitely had his chances.  Unfortunately, he let a controversial line call get to his head.  He argued with the chair ump over a mark on the clay, and was miffed about the call from that point onwards.  He was seen mumbling angrily at himself and the umpire, after losing the 1st set.

We’ve seen DelPo completely lose his head over a controversial call, as was the case when he lost in disappointing fashion to Fed at IW this year.  I feared something similar would happen, especially when Berdy broke DelPo early in the 2nd set.

Thankfully, DelPo revived himself and he got his head right back in the game.  Although the errors off his BH wing were starting to pile up (his BH is usually more consistent), he was playing with the more of the conviction he’d shown through most of the 1st set.  He missed BP chances, but Berdy was also doing a stellar job of mixing up his serves.

The 2nd set TB proved to be even more dramatic than the first.  Berdy took an early mini-break, only for DelPo to break back.  DelPo hit what he thought was an ace, that would have given him SP.  The umpire ruled the ball to be out, and DelPo was predictably angry.  TV replay showed that the serve was indeed out.  However, DelPo was still angry and he ended up losing the subsequent point.  Berdy closed the match out from there.

In his anger, DelPo refused to shake the umpire’s hand after the match, and he instead waved his finger in the umpire’s face.  This is clearly not the right thing to do and I won’t try to defend it.  DelPo surely knows by now that not only was the umpire correct on both calls, but that his subsequent outbursts may have cost him the important points of the match, which was decided by the slightest of margins.

Look at the beautiful linear positioning of DelPo’s finge–!  I mean, not cool, DelPo.  You have to shake the ump’s hand.  

How egregious people judge DelPo’s non-handshaking to be, will ultimately depend on which camp they’re in and whether or not they like him.  I like him, and I’d like it better if he could get a metaphorical smack on the head—it’s pretty obvious by now that he gets overly wound-up over issues that absolutely have to be forgotten and looked past, in the greater interests of the match.  Easier said than done, but maybe this match will finally drive home the point for our friendly (d@mmit-most-of-the-time-he’s-friendly!) giant.

Overall, I am gutted over this loss.  DelPo had taken so many strides and he’d recently established a pattern of beating everyone outside the top 5.  He’d carved out a nice niche for himself, being consistent enough to outplay those in the lower half of the top 10.  A win over Berdy in Madrid (which was totally manageable) would have cemented DelPo’s progress, and it would have placed him in a Masters final.  That his temper played a role in losing is also somewhat disheartening, but hopefully it will add more (constructive) fuel to the fire and ramp him up for the rest of the season.  I’d love to listen in on DelPo and Franco’s conversation after this loss, to see how they discussed the line call incidents.

Irony of ironies, at the conclusion of this match, DelPo walked off the court looking like he needed a lesson in sportsmanship, while Berdy came off looking like an angel.  Not for long, however.  Observe Berdy’s FB update, straight after his win over DelPo.  It says, “7/6 7/6 pokora…/…7/6 7/6 humility.”  I don’t know what Berdy means by humility—is he saying his own humility let him win the match, or that he humiliated DelPo?

Let’s just put it this way: Way back when, Nalby-Hewitt hated each other.  Given their rancorous relations, Hewitt chose to bring bodyguards with him to Argentina, when Australia were visiting Argentina for a Davis Cup tie (which ARG won, convincingly).  Perhaps Berdy may want to hire bodyguards, when Argentina host the Czech Republic at Buenos Aires?  I’m joking, of course!

Berdy will play Fed in the Madrid final—will the same clean-hitting Berdy show up, or will the Berd-brain rear its head?  We will see.