Time to Take a Break

Wow, am I tired!

Even five hours behind London time, the late nights at the All England Club over the last week sure have left me exhausted, both physically and emotionally. Favorites have fallen, Cinderellas have emerged, and almost everyone was pushed to the limit. So this Middle Sunday, with the courts at Wimbledon are dark and the final thirty-two just barely decided, it might be a good time to step back, catch our breath, and reassess where we stand now.

The strength still runs deep in the top half of the women's draw -- world #1 Maria Sharapova and four-time Grand Slam titleist Kim Clijsters may be the most recognizable names remaining, but they'll both have their work cut out for them going forward. MaSha will need to survive a rematch of last year's semifinal against Sabine Lisicki, who's playing well here despite a season fraught with injury. And Clijsters, coming off a couple months of physical troubles herself, meets Eastbourne finalist Angelique Kerber, one of the fastest-rising stars this year. The eighth-seded German has never met the veteran before, but she's been relentless all week and arguably faced tougher opponents than Kim who, despite dismissing two seeds didn't meet anyone playing at her best. The two ladies who survive will certainly have earned it.

In the other side of the draw, Aggie Radwanska has reached her fifth fourth round here without enduring any struggle. And her streak might just continue, as her next opponent will be qualifier Camila Giorgi -- the young Italian pulled off a solid upset over Den Bosch champ Nadia Petrova on Friday and might not have it in her to go any farther. And Maria Kirilenko and Shaui Peng, the last two women left in the half, both have the chance of their lifetimes -- neither has made the quarters here before, and with their portion of the bracket cleared out for them, they might be able to go even farther. But I stand by my call that this is Radwanska's opportunity to shine. And if she can make her first Major semi, she'll have shown she's really one to be feared.

There are a few more technical interlopers left in the bottom half of the ladies' draw, but five of the eight know what it's like to hold a Grand Slam trophy above their head. Former world #1 Victoria Azarenka is again playing like she did at the start of the year, having not dropped a set and dominating each opponent. But against fellow one-time Major winner Ana Ivanovic, also flying somewhat under the radar here, she could face a tougher test. Meanwhile defending champion Petra Kvitova meets former French Open winner Francesca Schiavone next, and four-time Wimbledon champion Serena Williams, though tested by Jie Zheng on Saturday, nevertheless looks strong enough to be considered a favorite despite her sixth seeding.

But it might be the underdogs in this half that have the better stories. Grass court specialist Roberta Vinci hasn't been playing as well as she was this time last year, but she was relentless against one-time Wimbledon semifinalist Mirjana Lucic and has now made her first ever Major fourth round. Tamira Paszek, her next opponent, has been here before and is riding a solid eight-match win streak -- one that claimed three top-ten players as victims. The battle between these two could establish a new star for the rest of the season. But the bigger spoiler here might be Yaroslava Shvedova, putting together her second straight Slam of upsets. Early on Saturday she earned the elusive golden set against French Open finalist Sara Errani -- that is, she didn't lose a point in the first six games. Not one point. That's something no woman's done since the 1940s. It'll be tougher against Serena in the fourth round, of course, but she's proven she's capable of some great things on grass -- so why not one more surprise win?

There are slightly more surprises in the men's draw this year than we've been accustomed to -- though maybe that's all just relative -- and that's really shaken up the brackets. Defending champion Novak Djokovic and six-time titleist Roger Federer are both still alive, the latter by the skin of his teeth. But plenty others have fallen by the wayside. Mikhail Youzhny, on the comeback trail, dismissed eighth seeded Janko Tipsarevic in the third round, and world #29 Florian Mayer benefitted from the early exit of 2010 finalist Tomas Berdych to make his first Major fourth round since 2004.

Meanwhile the non-seeds have been putting together some impressive performances of their own. Viktor Troicki who fell just out of seeding territory started off by ousting Marcel Granollers in a surprisingly tight five set match. His victory over Juan Monaco Friday was comparatively easy. And veteran Xavier Malisse has been on fire recently -- ranked a low #75, he's beaten top-twenty players in each of his last two matches. Both men will have tough roads going forward -- Troicki against countryman Djokovic and Malisse versus Federer -- but the champions have been tested recently, so nothing should be assumed. That attitude might most help Denis Istomin who made his first Major fourth round with a win over Alejandro Falla Friday. He's got a date with Youzhny Monday, a far less intimidating foe than most others, so it could be the best opportunity he's had in a second week.

The bottom half of the men's bracket has gone a little more according to plan. Despite one obvious exception, players like Andy Murray, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and David Ferrer have all advanced with relatively little drama. Even Mardy Fish, playing his first event since illness halted his season in the spring, and Marin Cilic, who needed a thirty-two game, two-hour fifth set against Sam Querrey on Saturday, have lived up to their rankings to make the second week. And Juan Martin Del Potro, who'd struggled during the clay court season with a knee injury, looks to be winning matches much more easily these days.

But with two-time champion Rafael Nadal out of the picture, the very bottom of this draw holds the best potential for a Cinderella. Phillip Kohlschreiber is no double a fierce competitor and with a win over Rafa in Halle there's no reason to believe he wouldn't have repeated the feat at the All England Club. But the player everyone will be watching is qualifier Brian Baker, a veteran playing his first ever Wimbledon, attempting to make the main draw at Majors for the first time since 2005. He made a glorious run to the final in Nice and defeated Xavier Malisse at Roland Garros. With main-draw wins here against Jarkko Nieminen and up-and-coming Benoit Paire, he's certainly playing well above his #126 ranking. He's been largely unstoppable in all his matches here, and while the German will certainly be his biggest test to date there's no reason to believe he won't survive this one.

As we brace for what is often referred to as the most exciting day in tennis -- all sixteen fourth round matches will be played tomorrow -- there's plenty of opportunity for all those who've survived this far. History and experience will certainly favor some more than others, but nothing should be taken for granted. The first week of action has shown that no one is safe, and the ones left standing are more than capable of taking a few more scalps.

It's kind of nice to get this day off to regroup -- when everyone comes out on court tomorrow, you can be sure they'll swing with whatever power they have in them.

Where the Strong Survive

We may be in that short lull of the tennis season between the Grand Slams and the major Masters or Premier events, but there was still plenty of star power on the courts this weekend. And the eventual winners were the ones who proved they're (still) a cut above the rest.

By the time the final was set up in San Jose, it should have been no surprise that defending champion Milos Raonic was the odds-on favorite. The third seed at the SAP Open may have been a hair of his career-high ranking, but after taking the title in Chennai and winning a handful of matches at the Australian Open, he finally looked like he was fully recovered from that hip injury he sustained last year at Wimbledon. He had a fairly easy road to championship Sunday, losing serve just once in his first three matches and facing no one in the top thirty on the way.

There he met Denis Istomin, who'd defeated an ailing Andy Roddick in the quarters and backed it up with a three-set win over veteran Frenchman Julien Benneteau. But he was no match for the big-serving Raonic on Sunday -- though things stayed close in the first set, neither man allowed even a chance to break, after the Canadian won the tiebreak it was all Milos. Losing just one point on serve in the second, Raonic closed out the match quickly and became the first two-time champion on the ATP Tour this year. If he can stay healthy, it sure looks like he's ready to resume the momentum he had at this time twelve months ago -- and that's going to make him quite a threat to the top players in the weeks to come.

The final in Rotterdam had the potential to cause more sparks to fly. In a rematch of the epic 2009 U.S. Open championship, world #3 Roger Federer took on Juan Martin Del Potro, newly re-entered into the top ten. The champion here seven years ago, Federer has been a little touch-and-go of late. One of my favorites to win the Australian Open, he fell fairly quickly in the semis to Rafael Nadal and suffered a shocking loss to John Isner in Davis Cup. He seemed to be turning things around this week, though, down a set and a break to Nikolay Davydenko in the semis, he came back strong to make his first final of the year.

Del Potro was in the middle of re-establishing himself, too. Since wrist injury took him out of the game when he was at the top of his, the tall Argentine has had a hard time making a dent among the elite. But he scored a big win over world #7 Tomas Berdych on Saturday and could have put up quite a fight in the final today. But Federer got the better of him again, winning the first five games of the match and thoroughly dominating the opening set. Things were a little closer in the second -- Del Potro had chances on the Swiss serve, but wasn't able to convert. Despite mediocre serving and improved play by his opponent, Federer was able to secure the only break and win his first title of the year. With momentum back on his side, he should be able to make a real play to climb back to the top.

Meanwhile Victoria Azarenka is doing more than her part to show us all why she's at the top. Playing in her first tournament since winning the Australian Open and claiming the #1 ranking, she was out to break the recent streak of first-time Grand Slam champions spending the next several months battling a hangover. She dropped just a game to breakout star Mona Barthel in her Doha opener, bagelled Yanina Wickmayer in their quarterfinal first set and powered through an ankle injury to take out Aggie Radwanska in the semis.

In the final she met a finally resurgent Sam Stosur, who's struggled a bit since winning her maiden Major in New York last fall. The third seed here, she got revenge over her Melbourne vanquisher Sorana Cirstea in her opener and lost just won set on her way to the championship round. But Vika, who's had Stosur's number on all five of their previous meetings, took it to the Australian again. She won nine games in a row to establish a 6-1, 3-0 lead and never gave her opponent a break opportunity. Nearly three-quarters of her first serves found their mark and she won nearly eighty percent of the ones that did. After just over an hour, she'd claimed her third trophy of the year, extended her win streak to seventeen matches and pulled even farther ahead of the rest of the pack.

Some of this week's winners had been out of the spotlight a while, others have just recently risen to it. But the way they're each playing, they've told us they're neither to be forgotten, nor dismissed as a flash in the pan. And as the season continues, expect them all to spend a lot more time on the winner's stand.

Keeping Focus Amid the Storm

If the theme for the first part of the week at the U.S. Open was the blazing heat, then the theme for the this weekend is the pending arrival of a hurricane named Earl, who promises to wreak havoc on the play today.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed, but some of the late night matches are clearly at risk -- if not for cancellation, then certainly for suspensions and delays. And that might give players like Rafael Nadal and John Isner, Venus Williams and Flavia Pennetta a few fits as they try to wrap up their day.

Pennetta's will be the last match on the Grandstand this afternoon, and she takes on Shahar Peer in what could be a very close game. The two have only played on hardcourts, with Peer -- ranked slightly higher at #19 to the Italian's #21 -- battling to victory in their last meeting at Indian Wells. A few months ago I might have chosen Flavia to power through this match easily -- if only for revenge -- but a foot injury that forced her out of New Haven puts her prospects in question. We know the girl can handle disruption, though, as she famously survived a meltdown by Vera Zvonareva at last year's Open. If she can find the power that got her past Jie Zheng in Cincinnati and Daniela Hantuchova in Montreal, I like her chances to win here too.

Big-hitting American John Isner should start his second-round match with Marco Chiudinelli before the rain starts, but if their five-setter at Roland Garros is any indication, he might not close it out in one shot. Isner certainly knows how to handle delays in a match -- the winner of the three-day Wimbledon marathon was able to keep himself loose and focused even through multiple over-night breaks. More comfortable in front of the hometown crowd, he might have the advantage over the Swiss, and hopefully this time his efforts will not be stopped short immediately after the initial win.

Venus headlines the night session on Arthur Ashe tonight, taking on her second qualifier in a row in Luxembourg's Mandy Minella -- a twenty-four year old who ousted Venus's foil Tsvetana Pironkova in the second round. You have to hand it to an unknown that can make it through three matches before even seeing a main draw and then continue her streak. And though Venus should be able to handle her easily, the two-time U.S. Open winner will have to remain focused on returning a solid serve and keeping up with an agressive baseliner. Battling injury herself, you can expect Williams to make a statement early -- she doesn't want to face the prospects of interrupting any momentum she gains by aggravating her knee any more.

Top-seeded Rafael Nadal hopes to cap off the action Friday night on Ashe, but the coming rains are not his only obstacle. Uzbek Denis Istomin made the finals in New Haven last week with a win over a tough Viktor Troicki in the semis, and he took a set from Rafa back at Queen's Club. He had a solid win over Maximo Gonzalez in the first round of the Open and fired off six aces to his opponent's zero. Nadal, on the other hand, was pushed to two tiebreaks against a feisty Teimuraz Gabashvili Wednesday and might be less comfortable on the quick courts. Admittedly, I'm a little nervous about this match -- two years ago, Rafa was unable to come back during a rain-disrupted semi against Andy Murray and ended up losing the match over two days. Hopefully this year he'll be able to keep his cool and, if needed, return to the court even stronger.

It sure looks like we're in for a lot of stop-and-start play today, and that could surely play with the momentum and focus of even top players. But when the day is done, hopefully no one will be too bruised and battered, and we'll only see better play to come.