Nearing the End

There sure seemed to be a lot of veterans in action on the men's Tour this week. More than a handful of thirty-plus players took to the court, and one very special one said good-bye for good. And that makes me wonder how many more will throw in the towel in the months to come.

Nikolay Davydenko has been trying to stay relevant for much of the last three years. After peaking -- in form, at least -- at the 2009 year-end championships, he struggled to come back from a wrist injury the next season and, despite some decent wins this year, he hasn't won a title since Munich last year. His ranking has straddled both sides of the top fifty for the last twelve months, and the one-time world #3 has only won one match at a Major in 2012. He had a promising start this week in Basel, taking out fourth-seeded Stanislas Wawrinka in his opener, but hit a stumbling block today against fellow veteran Paul-Henri Mathieu. Having missed the entirety of 2011 with a knee injury, the Frenchman saved five of six break chances to make his second quarterfinal of the year, but his win might have meant more for Davydenko. It was his seventh loss of the year to a lower-ranked player and keeps him from trying to improve a 0-9 record against top-ten players this season. Unless the Russian is able to turn those stats around soon, it might not be long before he's pulling the retirement switch.

Lleyton Hewitt has been making similar bobs in and out of the power game recently. Having battled one injury after another for years, he's only just climbed back into the top hundred for the first time since last June. But the two-time Major winner has pulled off wins over Marin Cilic, Milos Raonic and Andy Roddick this year, and with a run to the Newport final in July he's shown he's still hungry for a title. This week in Valencia he too kicked off his campaign with some fireworks -- he needed just two sets and less than two hours to dispatch fourth seed Juan Monaco, and with always tricky Philipp Kohlschreiber out with his own opening round loss, things looked good for the Aussie to advance. But qualifier Ivan Dodig had other ideas -- firing off ten aces the world #110 survived a second set surge from Hewitt and closed out the decider with three breaks of serve. Lleyton might not be down for the count quite yet, but he'll need to raise his game to new level in the upcoming season if he's going to make another push into the sport's elite.

And while these guys may be running on fumes, one veteran decided to call it a career this week. Juan Carlos Ferrero announced last month that Valencia would be his final tournament, and immediately you could see the tennis world mourn. The thirty-two year old Spaniard and 2003 champion here had a couple comebacks since he first hit the scene. He reached his first Grand Slam final ten years ago in Paris, returned the next year to win the title and was a runner-up in New York later that season, pushing him to #1 in the world. A sickness and injury-plagued 2004 took him well out of the spotlight -- he didn't win another title until 2009 in Casablanca -- but he didn't give up there. From out of the top hundred, he climbed to #14 less than a year later, claimed four more trophies in the next two years and reached at least the fourth round of three Majors. He struggled with more injuries the last year and a half, and with just five wins on the season, it seemed time to go. JCF put up a fight against countryman Nicolas Almagro in his first round in Spain, actually getting a solid seventy-plus percent of first serves in. But his younger, sprier counterpart was able to get the better of him, and fans were forced to say good-bye to the graceful star.

Whether they play on or have already called it quits, no one can say any of these guys didn't fight 'til the end. Wherever they stood or stand in the rankings by the time they formally retire, we've seen them put in some big results throughout their time on Tour, and the titles and the records may not do justice to what they've accomplished. Unfortunately this is not a career anyone can have forever, and we will eventually see all these guys go. And what they've left behind shows just how great they are.

U.S. Open: First Round Matches I Wish I'd Watched

I've been on vacation since before the draws for this year's U.S. Open came out, and though I hoped to bring you the same first-round matches to watch I have for the other Grand Slams this quarter too, I'm a little late to the game.

But there sure has been some excitement in the first two-plus days of play, and the upsets, breakthroughs and clean games -- in both openers and some second round matches -- have set up what could be an interesting week. So, in a slight deviation from my previous posts, I'm going to take a quick look back at what's happened so far and what it means for the rest of the week. Maybe more.

The Men First Quarter Second Quarter Third Quarter Fourth Quarter

The Women First Quarter Second Quarter Third Quarter Fourth Quarter

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The Men

First Quarter

It's a little weird to see Novak Djokovic's name heading up the top quarter at a Slam, but that's where he is right now. He didn't seem to show many signs of trouble from that shoulder injury that forced him out of the final in Cincinnati in his first round match, only dropping a game before Conor Niland retired. His bigger tests will surely come further down the road. Gael Monfils, the second man in this part of the bracket, also had an easy opener against up-and-comer Grigor Dimitrov -- it should have been a tough match, but the Bulgarian dropped in straight sets.

More interesting were some wins by players trying to work themselves back in the game. Juan Carlos Ferrero, a runner-up in New York back in 2003, is somewhere in his tenth career and now ranked out of the top hundred. But the veteran stayed strong when trailing Pablo Andujar and took the five-set match in three and a half hours. And former world #3 Nikolay Davydenko, trying to climb back from a wrist injury that's made him a non-contender for almost two years now, forced just-seeded Ivan Dodig to the limit before sending the Croat home. Either has a chance to extend his streak, but with JCF next meeting Monfils and Kolya on track to face Djokovic in the third, it will only get harder.

The late-round match-to-watch: Djokovic could very well meet Tomas Berdych in the quarters. Remember the Czech, who stunned Nole last year at Wimbledon to make the finals, had to retire a few weeks back in the Cincy semis. I'd love to see that match to completion -- with both men healthy.

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Second Quarter

Defending champion Rafael Nadal was pushed down a quarter and so headlines the #2 section again. He was a bit challenged last night by Andrey Golubev, but was able to make it through. And David Ferrer, after dropping the first set to Igor Andreev, battled back quickly to advance.

But there were a bunch of big upsets in this quarter as well. World #10 Nicolas Almagro, actually having one of the best years of his career, was upended in straight sets by Julien Benneteau, while Mikhail Youzhny, a semifinalist here last year, was taken down by Los Angeles champion Ernests Gulbis in less than two-and-a-half hours. I'm not sure the losses clear out the draw for the true contenders, but it certainly could open the road for some others along the way.

The late-round match-to-watch: Andy Roddick, the 2003 champion here, comes to New York with his lowest ranking at a Major in ten years. He could be the sleeper in the draw, and while I'd love to see a battle with his friend James Blake in the fourth round, it would be more fun to match him up with Rafa for a semi spot. It would do a lot to pump up the American as he looks to extend his career a little bit longer.

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Third Quarter

Roger Federer has a #3 next to his name for the third Slam in a row, and it still seems strange. But with both Nole and Rafa in less-than-top form, he could sneak his way through and make a real statement. After his drubbing of Santiago Giraldo on Monday night, he's well on his way to do just that. And top-ranked American Mardy Fish keeps improving his game at the Majors. He knows how to beat the big guys, and with his section of the draw opening up nicely, he could make a big run here too.

Two of the most interesting early matches here are actually right next to each other on the draw sheet. Veteran Tommy Haas won only his third match of the year against qualifier Jonathan Dasnieres De Veigy on Monday and his first at a Slam since Australia 2010, after which hip surgery ended his season. And Alejandro Falla, who nearly beat Federer at Wimbledon last year, endured another five-setter against fifteenth-seed Viktor Troicki to earn only his second career win in New York. The two meet each other next, and with one likely exhausted and the other largely untested, there's no telling what sparks will fly. For sentimental reasons, I'm hoping for a Haas win.

The late-round match-to-watch: Though he'd have to get past Fish to do it, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga could set up another quarterfinal match with Federer. He's won their last two meetings -- at a Slam and a Masters event -- so momentum is on his side. It would be fun to watch Roger try to turn the tables.

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Fourth Quarter

Andy Murray comes to New York with momentum on his side, having won in Cincinnati and putting up his best Major performances all year -- a final and two semis. His win over Somdev Devvarman earlier today was fairly routine, and with sixth-seeded Robin Soderling withdrawing from the tournament with illness, the road to the final four has never been clearer.

But that holds true for a couple others in the mix. Juan Martin Del Potro, champion here in 2009, reminded us what a force he can be with a sub-ninety minute drubbing of Filippo Volandri earlier today. And John Isner, who just beat Marcos Baghdatis in four sets, worked his way back into seeding territory with a successful summer run. In fact...

The late-round match-to-watch: The two big servers have played three times in their careers with all those matches -- all those sets actually -- going to the Argentine. But if they meet in the fourth round this time around, it could be a battle.

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The Women

First Quarter

Caroline Wozniacki is back on the winning track after four-peating in New Haven, and she should bring some of that confidence with her to New York. It only took her eighty minutes to dismiss doubles specialist Nuria Llagostera Vives on Tuesday. But the other favorite in the top quarter, French Open champion Na Li, did not fare so well, falling in straight sets to tough teenager Simona Halep. The young Romanian is one to watch, too, and might get a few more wins out of this fortnight.

I'm a little disappointed by the performance of Tamira Paszek, though -- the Wimbledon quarterfinalist had been having a decent year before Akgul Amanmuradova stopped her run short. And Sara Errani, who often has sparks of brilliance, probably had a good shot at breaking 2004 winner Svetlana Kuznetsova, but she too lost in less than an hour-and-a-half. What could have been a great opportunity for either ended up sending both home far earlier than necessary.

The late-round match-to-watch: The top two seeds left in the bottom half of this quarter, Andrea Petkovic and Roberta Vinci, are slated to meet in the third round. Both are having the best years of their careers and it's a shame one will be sent packing before the week is up, but Petko is on the verge of the elite and could make her biggest argument with a win.

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Second Quarter

Last year's runner-up Vera Zvonareva isn't playing the best tennis on Tour these days, but she's held on to the #2 seed and fought past her first two opponents in New York. And with eighth-seed Marion Bartoli losing her second-round match to Christina McHale today, Bepa is facing a much easier draw.

Of course there are still obstacles left. Veteran Anabel Medina Garrigues, consistently ranked in the top thirty for the past seven years -- a small blip in 2010 notwithstanding, will be next up, and after losing her first set to Karin Knapp she's been playing well again. And Sam Stosur's one-sided wins over Sofia Arvidsson and Coco Vandeweghe show she's not one to be counted out. And we can't forget Maria Kirilenko who made the quarters here in 2009. She survived a tough match against feisty Ekaterina Makarova to open her campaign and could make a deep run here as the seeds continue falling.

The late-round match-to-watch: Sabine Lisicki got a big break today when two-time titleist Venus Williams sadly had to withdraw from their second rounder. With that challenge lifted, she should meet Zvonareva in the fourth round, a rematch of Roland Garros, where the German very nearly caused the upset. Now it much better physical shape, and coming off a trophy in Dallas, she might be my favorite in this section of the bracket.

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Third Quarter

Maria Sharapova leads this quarter and is playing the best tennis she has in years. She was tested by Heather Watson on Tuesday, but has a much easier outlook since her Wimbledon vanquisher Petra Kvitova lost early. The young Czech was handled on Monday by former top-thirty player Alexandra Dulgheru who, in turn, was handled today by Monica Niculescu.

I was impressed by Flavia Pennetta's win over Aravane Rezai in their first round. The Italian hasn't won a lot of matches recently and that she could turn things around bodes well for her tournament. She further followed it up with a straight set dispatching of Romina Oprandi earlier on Wednesday and is certainly on a bit of a roll. Julia Goerges, too, who'd started the year off with so much promise, only won two matches since Wimbledon. But she had impressive wins over both Kristina Barrois and Laura Pous-Tio to reach her first U.S. Open third round. Playing well again, she could cause damage further down the line.

The late-round match-to-watch: If seeds play out, Sharapova should play Shuai Peng in the fourth round. The Chinese woman is sitting at her highest-ever ranking and has pulled off upsets at Slams already this year. I'm not sure she's completely back in top form, but she could put up quite a challenge if the favorite's going to advance.

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Fourth Quarter

Victoria Azarenka is just aching for a big Grand Slam result -- she has the talent to do it, but something always gets in the way. In 2010 she had a frightening collapse in the middle of her match with Gisela Dulko -- surprise, her second round opponent this year -- and twice at the Australian Open she's squandered leads to Serena Williams -- surprise, probably her third round opponent here. Sorry, Vika. And Francesca Schiavone, never known for her hard court prowess, was already tested by Galina Voskoboeva in her opener. I'm not sure how much further she'll go.

But there's plenty other stuff to talk about here. U.S. Open Series winner Serena was unstoppable against Bojana Jovanovski in their late night match yesterday, and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova seems to cleaned up her serve a bit, taking out rising star Anna Tatishvili in straight sets. Plus former #1's Jelena Jankovic and Ana Ivanovic droped a total of eight games between them in their first round matches. It would be nice to see either make a stab for this quarter.

The late-round match-to-watch: You can't avoid it. Vika and Serena always put on a great show and if they meet in the third round, I expect nothing less.

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Seeds have fallen, underdogs have emerged, and in just about three days of action we've learned that just about anything can happen. I'm not sure I've picked my favorites to bring home the titles quite yet, but it's clear some old champions and new have the chance to get it done.

And it'll sure be fun to watch it all happen.

An End to the Dry Spell

We're just about ready to make the full shift to the summer hardcourt season, and as the dust from the soon-to-be abandoned clay settles, a couple players brushed the cobwebs off themselves as they made the return to the winner's circle this weekend.

Two-time French Open finalist Robin Soderling has been a little quiet on Tour since the early part of the year, when he captured three titles in four events. And though he was the top seed in Bastad, he had a tough road with players like Potito Starace and Tomas Berdych in his path. Still he was able to advance to the final without dropping a set and made surprisingly quick work of David Ferrer in Sunday's championship. Only dropping three points on his first serve and limiting his opponent to less than thirty percent on the return, he was able to lift the trophy in his homeland for the second time and claim his first title since February -- not exactly a drought, but a bit of a relief given how absent he was from the winner's podium during his best part of the year.

Anabel Medina Garrigues had been mired in a slightly longer dry spell, losing a slew of first round matches over the last eighteen months, but she finally won her first title in almost two years this past April in Estoril. She's climbed her way back into the top forty since then and earned the fifth seed in Palermo, where she avenged a semifinal loss to Irina-Camelia Begu in the third round. With many of the higher-ranked players eliminated for her, she marched to the final without much drama and summarily ended Bastad champion Polona Hercog's nine-match win streak in about eighty minutes. The victory -- her fifth in Palermo -- made Anabel the winning-est clay court player still active on Tour, surpassing Venus Williams with her tenth title on the dirt. Not a bad way to remind us all she's still a force to be reckoned with.

The same can be said for the action in Stuttgart last week, where uber-veteran Juan Carlos Ferrero was trying to make his latest career comeback. Since knee and wrist surgery late last year, he's only played a handful of matches in 2011, making a nice run in Barcelona, but skipping the Majors, and has seen his ranking fall back out of the top eighty. JCF is not a man to be ignored, however, and though he was unseeded in Germany, he handled his biggest challenge in world #17 Mikhail Youzhny and never looked back. Against quickly rising Pablo Andujar in the final, Ferrero took advantage of weak serving and seven double faults, blanking his countryman in the second set. It was his first crown since last July and, at thirty-one years of age, the latest announcement that the Spaniard is still relevant.

A little further east in Bad Gastein, the draw had been opened early, but it was really some seasoned talent that made its way through the week. Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez, who reached a career high rank of #19 in the world after a title in Rome last year, had struggled to rebound from a knee injury and didn't progress past a second round this year until Wimbledon. In Austria she battled through a close first round against qualifier Paula Ormaechea, but saw largely smooth sailing after that. In Sunday's final against Patricia Mayr-Achleitner, she fired off nine aces and, though she missed a bunch of first serves herself, she broke her opponent six times in nine return games, securing her first championship in over a year.

As these ladies and gentlemen next move to U.S. Open prep, it's encouraging to see them each show they can still make an impact. Whether that translates into more titles this year is yet to be seen. But a return to the spotlight for each at least ensures that no one will take them lightly.

Time Warp

I've never understood the rationale, these few weeks after the end of Wimbledon, of taking players directly from the super-short grass court season, just weeks away from the hard court U.S. Open, and sticking them back on the red clay, a surface on which they won't be chasing any big titles again for another eight months.

It's a jarring shift for the athletes, I'd wager, but one which suits some significantly more than others -- and it's not necessarily the ones who'd been favored to win.

There were very few surprises in Palermo, Italy, where a struggling Flavia Pennetta took the top seed here. She'd only won a handful of matches since Dubai and fell in four straight openers during the spring. But she seems to have regained her footing in her hometown, reaching the quarters along with six other seeds. She'll next face Tsvetana Pironkova, another semi-elite player trying to rebuild her year -- and though the Bulgarian has more recent success, I feel Pennetta's prowess on the surface should help her through.

The only big surprise of the tournament so far has been the loss of red-hot (okay, maybe just pink-hot) Roberta Vinci. A three-time titleist already this year, the twenty-eight year old was sitting on a career-best ranking of #23 in the world. But in a rematch of last Sunday's final in Budapest -- which she won -- Vinci didn't have many answers to rising star Irina-Camelia Begu this time, getting less than half her first serves in and only making a slight dent in her return games. Begu's recently beaten her next opponent, too, but Anabel Medina Garrigues could easily avenge that loss and further make the case for the veterans in Italy.

The seeds have had similar luck in Sweden where two-time French Open runner-up Robin Soderling looks to reverse some of his recent luck. After kicking off the year winning three trophies in four tournaments, he lost in the quarters at Roland Garros and was summarily upset in the third round of Wimbledon. He only lost one game in his opener in Bastad, and didn't allow Potito Starace a break chance in the quarters. From here it'll be difficult for someone else to wrest the crown in his homeland from the world #5.

But that's not to say it can't be done. David Ferrer is coming off a solid Davis Cup showing last week, and had one of his best clay court seasons this year. And Nicolas Almagro, a winner of three titles on dirt himself in 2011, should have a fairly easy road until at least the semis. And with so much talent left in the field, we should see at the very least some high-quality matches the next few days.

Things have been a little more surprising elsewhere this week. In Bad Gastein only one seed made it out of the first round -- defending champion Julia Goerges and top-thirty player Jarmila Gajdosova, among others all lost their openers, leaving world #61 Ksenia Pervak as the on-paper favorite. The twenty-year-old has won a couple ITF titles and has wins over Goerges and Andrea Petkovic already this year. But though her future road is less bumpy thanks to her colleagues' losses, some with more experience may win out in the end.

Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez has been climbing her way back from injury after a stellar start to 2010. Last year's champion in Rome, MJM hasn't won more than two matches at one event all year, but as a former top-twenty player, she's probably the most accomplished of the field. And Carla Suarez Navarro, who lost most of last season with an ankle injury, has been marking time this year at ITF events. She still hasn't won a Tour title, but with wins over Svetlana Kuznetsova and Venus Williams on her record, she certainly has the ability to make her mark.

It was just as hard a road for the favorites in Stuttgart. Mikhail Youzhny and Guillermo Garcia-Lopez both won their first round matches, but that was as far as either made it. In their place qualifier Federico Del Bonis and wildcard Cedrik-Marcel Stebe have emerged as the big spoilers. But here, again, it might be the journeymen who are standing at the end of the day.

Juan Carlos Ferrero, making his umpteenth career comeback, took out Youzhny on Thursday and has fought back from breaks down against Marcel Granollers to get the win in his quarterfinal. And twenty-nine year old Lukasz Kubot, who caused upsets this year at both Roland Garros and Wimbledon, seems to be putting out his best career performances these days. With a battle against Santiago Giraldo for a spot in the semis, he has a more-than-likely shot at getting the win.

The return to clay has proven something of a comfort for these players as they get back to their winning ways. Hopefully it won't be too tough a transition when they begin their U.S. Open prep in earnest, but with the wins they've accumulated, they should at least bring the confidence they need when they come back to the present.

Back From the Dead

If you were thinking of giving up on the couple of players who've struggled to gain their footing post-injury, you might have to put your short bets on hold, at least a little while longer. Some have been back weeks or months, while others are setting foot on court for the first time in ages. But all are pulling off victories on clay that should get fans to take notice again.

Former world #1 Dinara Safina has been staging her comeback in fits and starts for a while now, and though she made a nice run to the fourth round in Indian Wells, it's been a long time since we've seen signs of the woman who made three Grand Slam finals in 2008 and '09. She's unseeded this week in Fes, but the Russian has managed to climb back into the top hundred over the course of the year. And given her drubbing of veteran Jill Craybas in the first round Tuesday -- she only dropped nine points on her own serve -- she might be climbing even further in the weeks to come. Next up she'll face Alize Cornet, another player who's fallen from elite status and one Safina has beaten in both their previous meetings. She should have plenty of confidence going into the match, and a win may set the stage for a much more successful clay court season.

Over in Stuttgart another player is trying to re-establish herself on Tour. Sabine Lisicki, who had risen into the top twenty-five less than two years ago, missed a big chunk of 2010 after an ankle injury she sustained at the BNP Paribas Open. She returned to the circuit in Cincinnati with minimal success, but finally started putting together back-to-back wins earlier this season, qualifying for Auckland and making the third round in Miami. This week in Germany, fresh off an impressive Fed Cup win over Christina McHale in the World Group Playoffs, she opened with a stunning win over feisty Dominika Cibulkova and followed it up with a straight set defeat of Australian Open finalist Na Li. It will get more difficult, of course, as a quarterfinal date with countrywoman Julia Goerges looms large on Thursday, but Lisicki is playing impressively again, and could make a legitimate run for this title.

On the men's side we've seen top-three player Nikolay Davydenko suffer all sorts of pain since a wrist injury reversed all the success he had in 2009. He made the finals in Doha this year, but still wasn't quite playing at his best and hasn't advanced past the second round of any tournament. He seems to have gotten back on track in Barcelona though -- after upsetting rising star Alexandr Dolgopolov in the first round, he survived a second set surge by Edouard Roger-Vasselin earlier today and has now made the quarterfinals, only his second of the year. He'll have a tough task against Nicolas Almagro, a man who could break the top ten with a win on Thursday, but the two familiar faces haven't played each other in almost four years, so Davydenko could take him by surprise.

Possibly even more impressive this week has been the run of uber-veteran Juan Carlos Ferrero, a one-time Roland Garros champion and former #1 who's launched so many comebacks that I've lost track. The Spaniard had been beyond lethal in the first half of last year, winning three clay court titles and clawing his way back into the top twenty before problems with his wrist and knee took him out of contention in August. Playing his first match since the U.S. Open in Barcelona this week, he quickly dismissed Xavier Malisse and then took care of Mischa Zverev on Wednesday. With a third round meeting against qualifier Simone Vagnozzi, you have to like JCF's chances to go further, and that may reiterate just how much he can still threaten through the spring.

Of course we can't expect all comebacks to proceed without a hitch, but the efforts all these guys and gals are putting forth sure gives me hope that they've caught their second -- and sometimes third -- wind. With a couple more victories under their belts they could not only put up a fight at their respective tournaments this week, but they might be able to change the course of the clay court season in their favor.

After all if we've learned anything it's that nothing is impossible this time of year.

No One Said It Would Be Easy

It's not always that a strong clay court game can translate well to the much speedier grass, and in the first few days at Wimbledon this year we certainly saw a few players struggle with the shift. While some like Rafael Nadal, Maria Sharapova and both Williams sisters all advanced in straight sets and barely had to break a sweat, the road was not as smooth for others.

Of course most famously, defending champion and five-time titleist Roger Federer was pushed to the limit by Alejandro Falla, who took the first two sets from the top seed and was serving for the match in the fourth before he finally succumbed to the power of the world #2. But he wasn't the only one -- Nikolay Davydenko, playing only his second tournament since a wrist injury took him out of contention for most of the spring, and Novak Djokovic both found themselves in precarious deficits before rallying for the over-time wins.

But if yesterday was a story of champions triumphing in the face of danger, today might have been just the opposite.

We started to see a shift in the momentum a day ago when French Open winner Francesca Schiavone tumbled out of her first round match with a three-set loss to Vera Dushevina, marking her winless since that big day about two weeks ago. She was quickly followed by the woman she beat, Sam Stosur, who on Tuesday was stunned by world #80 Kaia Kanepi in less than ninety minutes.

Andrea Petkovic, who didn't actually win a title in the spring, nevertheless proved what kind of force she is on clay this year. She beat Flavia Pennetta in Madrid, took a set from Serena Williams in Rome and held match points against Svetlana Kuznetsova in Paris. And though she made a run to the finals in 's-Hertogenbosch just last week, she found herself flummoxed just when she should have been making a statement on the Tour -- after taking the first set from former top-ten player Anna Chakvetadze, she somehow managed to lose the next two despite eleven aces and one more point than her opponent.

Barcelona champ Fernando Verdasco, on the other hand, found himself playing catch up all day. After a first set that lasted nearly an hour and consisted of no breaks of serve, Italian giant killer Fabio Fognini claimed an early lead, one he extended quickly when he took the second 6-2. Verdasco got his serve back on track in the third, and after another hour finally started to pull even, but he continued to struggle on his opponent's serve. In the fourth and final set, he was only able to win four of twenty-four receiving points and made his earliest exit at a Major since 2005.

Even more surprising was Juan Carlos Ferrero, a quarterfinalist at Wimbledon last year. He worked hard to stay even with Xavier Malisse in the early going, taking the second set tiebreak after dropping serve a few times in the first, and holding on to a break lead in the fourth after losing a tight breaker in the third. But with the sun setting on Court 2 as play was being suspended on other courts, Ferrero's game seemed to fall apart in the decider as Malisse, who hasn't made it past the second round of a Slam in more than three years, fired off aces and capitalized on his opponent's errors to win it in less than half an hour.

There were some survivors today, of course. Robin Soderling and David Ferrer both advanced in definitive straight set wins, and Aravane Rezai withstood losing a first set tiebreak before rallying to beat Magdalena Rybarikova in three. None have ever been real forces at Wimbledon though, so we have yet to see if they're able to keep their momentum going.

In the meantime, it seems, they may want to take some lessons from those who can move from the dirt to the lawn fairly seamlessly -- whether they pull off wins easily or know how to come back from the brink, these guys sure have the marks of true champions.

Going for a Hat Trick

Hockey fans, anyone? Anyone? Well, me neither, but with the U.S. men's team playing Finland for a spot in the finals today in Vancouver, I can't help getting caught up in the excitement.

But in much warmer climes, last night in Acapulco two men were looking to achieve a different, but just as venerable feat -- a feisty Nicolas Almagro was in search of his third straight Mexican Open trophy while countryman Juan Carlos Ferrero, boasting his highest ranking in almost four years, was looking to capture his third championship in three weeks after taking home titles in Argentina and Brazil. When they met on the clay in the quarterfinals, obviously one's quest would end while the other's would live at least another day.

Former world #1 Ferrero is the fourth seed at the tournament, Almagro the sixth, but the one-time U.S. Open winner lost two of the pair's three previous meetings. Almagro, too, had proven his fortitude over the last few weeks, battling through three five-setters at the Australian Open with a broken wrist.

Juan Carlos rolled through his first set, breaking Almagro three times and winning more than eighty percent of his first serves. But the younger Nicolas fought back in the second, securing that set despite poor serving. Ultimately, though, it was the thirty-year-old vet who was victorious in the two-hour match, taking fifty-six percent of the points and converting five of thirteen break chances.



He's still a few wins away from getting his hat trick -- Argentina's Juan Monaco, a man he beat earlier this month in Buenos Aires, is his first obstacle in the semis. And two plucky opponents, Fernando Gonzalez and Costa Do Sauipe runner-up David Ferrer, are still battling in the bottom half of the draw. But after a long absence, it sure is nice to see JCF back at the top of his game.

And though it's probably still too early to get excited about Roland Garros, he's got a perfect record on clay this year, and I wouldn't be surprised to see him challenge in Paris. And I hope his success continues!

In the meantime, go Team U.S.A.!

Between Friends and Teammates

Strangely, for two men who came of tennis age in the same era, cracking into the sport's elite around the same time, facing challenges from the same players, Americans John Isner and Sam Querrey have never played each other on a singles court.

That's not to say they're strangers, by any means. They'll be leading the U.S. Davis Cup team this year and have paired together for more than a few doubles matches -- in fact, they're playing on the same side of the net for the championship in Memphis as I type. But one-on-one, their record was clear until this afternoon.

From the start the Regions Morgan Keegan final promised to be a great match-up. Isner, the sixth seed and now the second best player in the country behind Andy Roddick, had gotten past another big server in Ivo Karlovic and overcame a challenge presented by Philipp Petzschner in the semifinals. Querrey, for his part, avenged his loss to Roddick last week in San Jose on his way to his seventh career final.



For the first two sets neither man was able to break the other's serve -- not surprising when Sam, at six-foot-six, is the short one of the two. They split the tiebreaks and fittingly forced a third set with more than the scoreboard showing how even things were. They'd both scored seventy-three points, fired off fifteen aces, won an incredible percentage on first serves. It wasn't until early in the third that Querrey converted his first break point and, just for emphasis, broke one more time for a 6-3 score in the decider.

It was certainly a great result for Sam -- after a strong start to last summer, he struggled when playing for the title, only winning once in four attempts. Isner, who won his first title in Auckland this year, was certainly on more of a roll, racking up a nice 8-1 record before this tournament. But it was a better result for a country that has been struggling to find its next generation of stars. Clearly both John and Sam proved that there is plenty of talent still to come out of the U.S.

Meanwhile in Buenos Aires two other Davis Cup teammates were battling for the Copa Telmex title. David Ferrer and former world #1 Juan Carlos Ferrer hadn't met since the 2008 Australian Open, but with JCF clearly on the comeback trail while Ferrer continues to falter, you had to give the second seed the advantage, despite David's higher ranking and better head-to-head record.

Ferrer did in fact take the first set, but Ferrero came back to take the second set and ultimately broke his compatriot in the final game of the third to take his second title of the year -- he'd won the Brazil Open just last week. It was a solid victory for a man who, a year ago, had fallen out of the top hundred. You certainly can't count him out as a threat going forward.



What's great about today's title matches is that, results aside, before long all these guys are going to find themselves on the same side -- some sooner than others -- fighting for the same cause. It's nice to see that kind of camaraderie in a sport, especially when you're talking about some of the most talented athletes in the field.

And it certainly makes for great games to watch!

Year in Review: The Gentlemen

We all know the stories of the top men in tennis this year -- of course Roger Federer regained his year-end number #1 ranking on the heels of earning the career Grand Slam and setting the record for Major titles. And we know of Rafael Nadal's struggles during the latter part of the year.

Somewhat surprisingly, there were a few big movers even among the most elite players -- Juan Martin Del Potro leapt into the top five while both Robin Soderling and Fernando Verdasco made their top-ten debuts. And as they rose, other must fall of course -- unfortunately that group included my dear James Blake, who ended the year at #44.

But those moves are nothing compared to some other players who made a big name for themselves this year, both through success and through failure. I'm going to start with the good news.

• Biggest Comebacks
• Biggest Debuts
• Biggest Droppers
• Biggest Fizzlers
• The Closest Calls
• My Predictions

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Biggest Comebacks

Forget Kim Clijsters and Justin Henin. The world of men's tennis in 2009 was also one of comebacks.

Lleyton Hewitt fell out of the top 100 for a brief time in February -- the first time he'd hit double digits since the turn of the decade. Recovering from a hip injury, the Australian lost in the first round of his hometown Grand Slam, but proved to be a formidable threat to seeded players in tournaments after that. He won his first title in over two years by beating Wayne Odesnik in Houston and narrowly missed the semis at Wimbledon after a nearly four-hour match with Andy Roddick. While he had some trouble cracking the most elite players, he did notch a tough win over James Blake, back when he was ranked #13, and a straight-set victory over DelPo at the All England club. For his efforts, he rose forty-five spots to end the year at #22.

Tommy Haas has had some tough luck recently, but you'd never know it from his performance on the court. First he was allegedly poisoned during Germany's Davis Cup match against Russia a few years back, and then a few weeks ago he was diagnosed with swine flu. Even still the gorgeous German had a stand-out year, winning his first championship since 2007 in Halle by beating Novak Djokovic in the final and taking the first two sets from Roger Federer in the Roland Garros fourth round. He made the semis at Wimbledon, his best-ever performance there and climbed back into the top twenty after starting the year at #82.

Even more impressive was the performance of Juan Carlos Ferrero. The former #1 and one-time French Open champ had languished in the mid tiers of the sport for years and hadn't claimed a trophy since Monte Carlo in 2003. His five-plus year drought ended in Casablanca back in April, but he didn't stop there. He scored key wins over Hewitt, Gilles Simon and Gael Monfils that helped propel him back to #20. A couple of opening round losses to end the year dropped him back a few spots, but Ferrero's thirty-plus spot jump puts the almost-thirty year old Spaniard back amongst the contenders for the big titles.

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Biggest Debuts

There was another class of upward movers this year -- those who seemingly came out of nowhere to grab headlines, or at least ranking points, in 2009. Some had made their first appearance years ago while others had ploughed their course at smaller events. Either way, they all saw their rankings jump out of the triple digits and into solid contender territory.

I've already opined on John Isner's phenomenal year, but it's worth repeating one more time. The 6'9" American jumped 110 spots to end 2009 with his highest career ranking thanks, in part to a solid summer and a third-round defeat of Andy Roddick at the U.S. Open. He earned his first seed in a professional tournament in Bangkok and, not so quietly, became the third best player in this country. Isner's got a lot of things going for him, including a rocket serve, and he's been working on his ground game as well, which could make him a force Down Under. Here's hoping he helps usher in the next generation of greats.

Rajeev Ram is also doing his part for American men's tennis. Along with his second Challenger title, the Indiana native won both the singles and doubles trophies in Newport. After a career of playing players mostly ranked in the triple-digits, Rajeev broke through this year, beating Sam Querrey and Mardy Fish among others. His successes allowed him to jump one more position than even Isner as he finished the year #79.

If you thought these guys made big strides in 2009, it's nothing compared to what Horacio Zeballos did. The twenty-four year old Argentine has been pro since 2003 but didn't play on the main Tour until this year. He didn't even qualify for a tournament until Rhode Island, but he won four Challenger events and even his opening round at Flushing Meadows. Then in St. Petersburg he made his very first final by winning only his second through fifth Tour matches and sky-rocketing from #199 last year to #45 today. Sure he hasn't beaten a great player yet, but for someone no one's ever heard of yet, he's not doing too bad.

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Biggest Droppers

Of course for every rank gained, one must be lost.

I have to say I'm a bit surprised that Russia's Dmitry Tursunov didn't have a better year. Once ranked #20 he had a slow start to the year, getting upset in more than a few first rounds. Last year's finalist in Indianapolis, Tursunov fought to the title in Eastborne, the sixth of his career. He made the quarters in Indy, but despite a good seeding and a few bye rounds, he proceeded to lose four matches in a row, ending 2009 after a four set loss to Marc Gicquel at the U.S. Open. His recent results caused him to fall farther than anyone else in the top hundred -- from #22 to #89.

Mario Ancic's move was only slightly less dramatic. The former top-ten player is now ranked #95, fifty-nine spots below where he started the year -- though it's not really his fault. Early in the year he didn't lose to anyone he should have beaten, but a recurrence of the mono that sidelined him for part of 2008 took him out of the season in May. The six-foot-five Croat said he'll make his return to the Tour in January, tuning up for the big leagues by playing a few challenger events.

Then there's David Nalbandian who kicked off 2009 by winning his tenth trophy in Sydney and making the semis in Buenos Aires. But hip surgery took him out of commission after Estoril and knocked him down to #64 -- he'd ended 2008 at #11. Nalbandian will be back though, the twenty-seven year old Argentine plans to compete in the next Grand Slam, where he was once a semifinalist. Hopefully he'll be back in good enough shape to get himself back to the top.

By the way, I've limited my commentary here to players still ranked in the double digits, but I'd be remiss if I left out Kei Nishikori. Last year's biggest positive mover and a quarterfinalist in Brisbane, he got off to a slow start in 2009. After that he only won a single match (over Gilles Muller in San Jose). Forced to pull out of the last three Majors with an elbow injury, the Japanese star is now ranked #420. Here's hoping for a quick recovery and return in the new decade.

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Biggest Fizzlers

Perhaps more frustrating than falling steadily is when you get so close, but just can't make it. A couple players this year gathered up a ton of momentum, started to look like they could cause some damage, and then sputtered, spewed and ended up not really making much of a mark at all.

David Ferrer is still up there, ranked #17, a mere five positions below where he ended 2008. I'd complained much of last year that the Spaniard had held on to an unnecessarily high rank despite some mediocre performances. He began this year as if out to prove me wrong -- he did well in the early months, making the semis in Johannesburg and the title matches in Dubai and Barcelona. But once the summer came Ferer struggled to put together back-to-back wins. Outside his miraculous win in Barcelona during the Davis Cup finals, he couldn't beat the top players and often lost to those ranked far lower than him. Going into 2010 needs to get his act together if he wants to stay in the top twenty.

It's a little unfair to put 6'10" Croat Ivo Karlovic in this group, since he was part of so many classic matches this year, but for a man who served 890 aces this year -- more than a hundred more than any other player -- he sure lost a lot of matches. That's not to say he didn't put up a fight -- he famously fired off a record fifty-five bombs in his first round in Paris only to lose to Hewitt, and he spent nearly six hours on court with Radek Stepanek in the Davis Cup semis. He's played an inordinate number of five-set matches this year -- and only won one of them. Though he got himself close to the top twenty, he's only had a single match victory since Cincinnati, where he lost in the second round. Now ranked thirty-seventh in the world, Karlovic has to show he's got more than a big serve, as he's already proven that's not enough to win.

Israel's Dudi Sela had the chance to be a real force on the men's Tour this year. After finishing the runner-up in Beijing in 2008, he put in a solid performance as a qualifier in Melbourne, causing two upsets before losing in the third round. He followed that up with a semifinal in Memphis and two big Davis Cup wins against Sweden. He climbed from #112 to start the year all the way to #29 in July. But seven opening round losses in a row, including one to Shao-Xuan Zeng ranked #393 in the world, dropped him back down fourteen spots. Kind of makes you wonder if he can really compete with the big boys.

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The Closest Calls

Well, maybe not the closest, but of course there were a ton of players I've missed here. On the positive side Fernando Gonzalez and Taylor Dent both put their names back in the ring while Marco Chiudinelli and Leonardo Mayer made their own names known. On the down side Mardy Fish and Robby Ginepri both suffered some precipitous drops while Ernests Gulbis and Dennis Istomin came so close to notching big wins, only to falter again. Though they didn't make my lists this year, I will give them all a year of probation -- hopefully in twelve months they'll be able to either back up their performances or turn them around.

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My Predictions

So back in April I made a forecast about what the top five would look like at the end of 2009. Of course I was wrong, but everyone in my top four certainly had their chance to make a run for #1 this year. That being said, here's my call for year-end 2010 -- feel free to heckle:

1. Roger Federer
2. Novak Djokovic
3. Juan Martin Del Potro
4. Rafael Nadal
5. Andy Murray
6. Robin Soderling
7. Nikolay Davydenko
8. Marin Cilic
9. Andy Roddick
10. Gael Monfils

Be sure to check back next year to see how I do, and tell me who you think will be on top in the new decade!

See you then!

Under the Radar

It's easy to overlook some of the tournaments going on in Europe over the last couple weeks -- they seem so two months ago, forcing players to get back on the red clay ages after the French Open and just weeks away from Flushing Meadows. But nevertheless they've provided some much needed experience -- and a few trophies -- to players that might not have otherwise been ready for the hard court season.

In Gstaad, Switzerland the top seeds were eliminated early, allowing qualifier Thomaz Bellucci and fifty-first ranked Andreas Beck to advance to the final. Neither had ever won a title, though Bellucci came close in his native Brazil earlier this year, getting up a set but then falling to Tommy Robredo. And Beck has become something of a fixture on the men's tour, playing eleven tournaments and five challenger events already this year -- his best result was a quarterfinal appearance in Monte Carlo.

The road to the final was quite different for these two players -- Thomaz upset heavy favorite Stanislas Wawrinka and Igor Andreev on his way to the championship match while Andreas benefited from a draw opened up by his opponents. And maybe the easier week made Beck a bit complacent -- while the match was tight, ultimately decided by only one break of serve, Andreas had a first serve percentage of only fifty-six while Bellucci fired seven aces. In the end it was the twenty-one year old Brazilian who got to bring home his first title -- with a definitive second set tiebreak, Bellucci made the case to climb into the top one hundred for the first time in his career.



The players in Umag, Croatia might be a little more recognizable than those in Switzerland. Between them, Nikolay Davydenko and Juan Carlos Ferrero have twenty-seven titles, including a U.S. Open win for the Spaniard. But both have had their troubles recently. Plagued by a heel injury, Davydenko fell out of the top five for the first time since 2005 earlier this year, and Ferrero even dropped into triple-digits.

Both are surging through the summer, though -- Nikolay won his first title of 2009 last week in Hamburg and Juan Carlos made the quarters in Wimbledon, beating two top-ten players to get there. Having split their previous four meetings, this should have been a tough match.

But Davydenko has been in prime form all week -- his only "stumble" was a first set tiebreak in the quarters, where he needed twenty-two points to overcome Simon Bolelli, but then he rolled over Jurgen Melzer 6-1, 6-1. Ferrero on the other hand has dropped a couple sets here and there, and while he's certainly on the upswing, he continued to struggle today against the higher-ranked Russian. He only won thirty-six percent of his first serves and was broken six times, giving Nikolay his second trophy in as many weeks.



While this week's European winners may not be grabbing quite as much attention as the players on this side of the Atlantic, their victories certainly are garnering them some momentum as they head stateside.

And who knows? Maybe that's all they need to pull off a couple of much bigger wins here!

Sneaking Into The Home Stretch

There are only sixteen players left in the singles draw after today's electric fourth round at Wimbledon -- some you'd expect to see and others' names you may have forgotten long ago. And on both the men's and women's sides there are a couple who have gotten to this point with very little fanfare.

Former world #1 Juan Carlos Ferrero is a wildcard in his ninth appearance at the All England Club, and he's very quietly made it to the quarterfinals for the second time. He's had an up-and-down year so far, falling out of the top 100 for a few weeks here and there, but also taking home the trophy in Casablanca -- his first title since 2003! But in London he's beaten four players ranked higher than him, including fan favorite Fabrice Santoro and eighth seed Gilles Simon who, frankly, I didn't expect to make it as far as he did. Next up he's got Andy Murray, who played an amazing match today under the shiny new roof on Centre Court. Juan Carlos lost their only previous meeting a few weeks ago at Queen's Club, but if he can elevate his play to its former level he could stand a chance -- though I don't think he'll be able to do so quite as anonymously as he has so far this tournament!

In the women's bracket it's easy to have missed the ascendancy of Francesca Schiavone. The lowest ranked player still left in that draw hasn't beaten any big names yet, but she has managed to upset three seeded players plus Michelle Larcher De Brito, a Portuguese teenager who had her breakout performance last month at Roland Garros. Schiavone has suffered a couple of early-round losses this year, but did manage a semifinal appearance at 's-Hertogenbosch, where she beat fifth seed Alona Bondarenko. Her win today earns her the right to meet Elena Dementieva, who's playing some of her best tennis at Wimbledon, but the two have evenly split their previous eight meetings. Schiavone has already notched her best appearance at Wimbledon -- one more win would send her to a Grand Slam semi for the first time in her career.

With all the attention being concentrated on a handful of big names and a few small Goliath-killers, both Ferrero and Schiavone might be grateful that they haven't had to deal with too much media pressure -- look what it did to poor Melanie Oudin! But in the last few days of Wimbledon, there's no more hope of avoiding the spotlight. Can't wait to see if these guys do as well on the big stage!

Good luck to them!

By the way, notice my brand new site! I've got all the same great articles at a cool -- and, need I say, very appropriate -- address: http://www.tennisspin.net! And thanks for sticking with me!

Reaching a Milestone

I have a confession to make.

I have this really bad habit of starting something with a bang and then letting my interest fizzle out and eventually dropping the project entirely. I've started multiple novels but haven't finished one; I took up surfing after a trip to Mexico in 2005 but my board's been sitting idle in my front hallway for over a year.

But here I am, just about eight months into my latest endeavor, and I've reached my landmark 100^th posting!

Yay, me!

Don't worry, I'm not going to celebrate by running through my top 100 moments in tennis or anything crazy like that -- obviously I don't have that kind of patience. Instead I choose to look at a couple players who are poised to make their own jump over the #100 line -- though for them, the lower the number the better.

Within a stone's throw of the top hundred is Kazakhstan's Andrey Golubev, who reached his first tour final in St. Petersburg last year before losing to Andy Murray. That performance brought him to a career-high ranking of eighty-ninth in the world, but some early round losses in 2009 have pushed him down again. Andrey lost trying to qualify for Rome this week, but a turnaround in the coming weeks could get him back on track.

Currently ranked #112 Victor Crivoi was slightly more successful in Italy. After reaching the quarterfinals in a challenger event here last week, he made it through the qualifying rounds of the Masters tourney and then unceremoniously outsed James Blake in his first main round match. Though he was subsequently dismissed by Robin Soderling he did put up a fight and took the second set in a tiebreak. If he keeps it up, his first week in the top hundred isn't that far away.

On the women's side the low single digits are dominated by a group of American girls who are trying to prove there are more players in the country than the Williams sisters. Julie Ditty, Alexa Glatch and Melanie Oudin are all coming off a busy Fed Cup weekend where Glatch helped secure the team's first final appearance since 2003. She and Melanie are actually both in the double digits when it comes to race points thanks to recent strong showings, but still have a ways to go in the broader rankings. As clay court season is traditionally difficult for the Americans, it may take some doing, but there's no reason these youngsters couldn't rack up some points over the summer.

Of course as some rise, others must fall and there are inevitably some names that are dangerously close to falling out of the top one hundred.

Despite the fact that former #1 Juan Carlos Ferrero broke his five-year title drought last month in Casablanca, he fell back thirty ranking points to #100 with early exits in Barcelona and Rome. Even more shocking, the eight-plus month absense of Maria Sharapova from the Tour has brought her down to #64. According to the WTA she's not planning to return for at least two weeks, which will shave almost two hundred points from her twelve-month score -- and could drop her to her lowest ranking in six years.

So good luck to all these players as they fight to retain their place or break into a whole level of talent. There are thousands of players just dying to take their spot among the tennis elite.

And just like me, a hundred articles in, once you make it this far the pressure to keep it up is that much more!

A Blast From the Past

After almost a month of high-intensity matches in Indian Wells and Miami, dominated by current all-stars and rising talent, this week some smaller tournaments were able to bring some not-so-new names to back into the spotlight.

Early exits by top seeds in Houston could have allowed players like Jurgen Meltzer and Jeremy Chardy get into their own groove. Instead, it was even lesser-known players like Bjorn Phau and Wayne Odesnik who made it to the semifinals. The #100-ranked American triumphed over the German Phau in straight set to make his first ever ATP final.



There he'll face the winner of a match that pits twenty-one year old Evgeny Korolev against former #1 Lleyton Hewitt, who's trying to recapture his one-time success in Houston. So far, he seems to be on a roll and hasn't dropped a set on his way to the semis. A win later today would earn him his first final round match since Las Vegas in 2007.



A little further east in Marbella, Spain, where Serena Williams lost her #1 ranking and her #1 round in the same day, a struggling Jelena Jankovic was able to get back on track. She lost her first match at her last two tournaments and has been upset by players like Kaia Kanepi, Marion Bartoli and Amelie Mauresmo, all of whom she should be able to beat. With Serena gone, though, she might have been able to pull together the confidence she needed to make her first final this year.

There she'll face Carla Suárez Navarro, who famously defeated Venus Williams in the second round of this year's Australian Open. Since Melbourne she hasn't been able to put together back-to-back wins and has lost to players ranked #71, #134 and #136 in the world. But this week she gained entry to the first WTA final of her career with a win over Sorana Cirstea. A title in Spain could give either woman the momentum she needs to start the clay-court season off strongly.

But some of the biggest comebacks were in Casablanca, where 22nd-ranked Igor Andreev claimed the top seed. He was ousted this morning by former world #1 Juan Carlos Ferrero who, six years later, is now in the triple-digits. Ferrero pulled off upsets of Christophe Rochus, Victor Hanescu and Andreev all in straight sets. As a prize, he gets to meet France's Florent Serra, a man who hasn't won a title since Adelaide in 2006, but also hasn't dropped a set this week in Morocco.



So as one-time stars try to make another play for tennis's elite, current #1's might be getting a little nervous. The last few weeks have done nothing if not shown just how tenuous the grip on the top spot is.