[1]Djokovic v Goffin
Dodig v Pella
Alex Kuznetsov v Pouille
Falla v [26]Dimitrov
[22]Dolgopolov v Tursunov
Tomic v Hanescu
Bolelli v Lu
Qualifier v [16]Kohlschreiber
———————
[12]Haas v Rufin
Qualifier v Garcia-Lopez
Andrey Kuznetsov v Harrison
Berlocq v [19]Isner
[29]Youzhny v Andujar
Delbonis v Qualifier
Verdasco v Gicquel
Mahut v [8]Tipsarevic
=============
[3]Nadal v Brands
Klizan v Russell
Qualifier v Rosol
Qualifier v [27]Fognini
[24]Paire v Baghdatis
Kubot v Qualifier
Zemlja v Giraldo
Levine v [13]Nishikori
———————
[9]Wawrinka v De Bakker
Qualifier v Zeballos
De Schepper v Haase
Ramos v [21]Janowicz
[28]F.Mayer v Istomin
Serra v Davydenko
Qualifier v Qualifier
Stakhovsky v [7]Gasquet
=============
[5]Berdych v Monfils
Gulbis v Dutra Silva
Sijsling v Melzer
Zopp v [32]Robredo
[20]Seppi v L.Mayer
Kavcic v Qualifier
Alund v Roger-Vasselin
Qualifier v [11]Almagro
———————
[14]Raonic v Malisse
Qualifier v Llodra
Qualifier v Donskoy
Qualifier v [23]Anderson
[31]Granollers v Lopez
Sousa v Soeda
Qualifier v Montanes
Matosevic v [4]Ferrer
=============
[6]Tsonga v Bedene
Nieminen v Mathieu
Bautista-Agut v Muller
Becker v [25]Chardy
[17]Monaco v Gimeno-Traver
Troicki v Blake
Stepanek v Kyrgios
Petzschner v [10]Cilic
———————
[15]Simon v Hewitt
Mannarino v Cuevas
Hajek v Qualifier
Lacko v [18]Querrey
[30]Benneteau v Berankis
Kamke v Lorenzi
Qualifier v Qualifier
Qualifier v [2]Federer
Well guys it’s that time of the year again when the clay court season reaches its pinnacle in Paris at the second grand slam of the year, the French Open. And Roger’s draw couldn’t have been any better. Of course the big news is that Nadal and Djokovic are in the same half. This is the scenario we have been waiting for since the rise of Djokovic 2.0 in 2011. In 2011 Djokovic was in Roger’s half and the GOAT epically ended Djokovic’s incredible run of victories in the semis. Of course he then had to contend with Nadal in the final, and although he gave a good account of himself, he came up short in the mental department again. Then last year Roger was in Djokovic’s half again, and again they faced off in the semis. This time Roger didn’t look very eager to meet Nadal in the final again and bowed out in straight sets.
And who can blame him? They had already met 5 damn times at the French and Roger lost every one of them. I swear if it was anyone else than Nadal in that final then Roger would have won something like 5 French Opens by now. But that’s all water under the bridge. At least Roger got his one French Open title to complete the career slam, and very deservedly so. At least Roger have been in the French Open final 5 times, while Nadal have managed only 2 finals at the US Open where he completed his career slam. And Nadal did so under suspicious circumstances. First his draw until the final was one of the easiest in grand slam history. And second he developed a Sampras-like serve for the two weeks of his title run, after which the serve disappeared never to return. Wtf?! Some haters have put an asterisk behind Roger’s French Open title.
It’s laughable when he has made 5 French Open finals and the year he won it he had to battle past both Haas and Del Potro in 5 sets, who were both playing some of the best tennis of their lives. Not to mention the tough four setters against Acasuso and Mathieu. No one worked harder for and deserved that title more than Roger. While the same definitely can’t be said for Nadal. He cruised to the final with a laughable draw and then in the final beat Djokovic 1.0 with a serve which was quite inexplicable(although I can think of a possible explanation…). I have drifted off the topic of this post somewhat which is the 2013 French Open draw. The point was that it was about time that Nadal and Djokovic was in the same half. This makes the scenario possible that Djokovic can beat Nadal in the semis and we can have a Djokerer final, with Djokovic possibly being tired in the final.
Lol…
Another French Open title is a bit of a long shot for Roger at this stage of his career, but if nothing else he certainly deserves it. He is one of the the top 5 best clay court players of the open era and has only 1 French Open title due to playing in the same era as the clay GOAT. I would love for Roger to win a second French Open. It would just make his slam resume a bit more balanced. I’m not quite ready to give up on that dream just yet. He is in with an outside chance this year, but this time Djokovic would have to come to the party. I have been somewhat disappointed with Djokovic during the clay season. I had high hopes for him after he beat Nadal in the Monte Carlo final, but then he basically disappeared off the map. The losses he had wasn’t all that disappointing, but he has to step it up at the French Open.
The five set format will help him, where his fitness and experience will count in his favor. He is drawn to meet Dimitrov in the 3rd round again. I think Dimitrov will be eager to start making his mark in the slams and he could be a potential threat to Djokovic again, but I would like to think Djokovic gets it done this time. Dimitrov will probably be Djokovic’s biggest threat before the semis. If he gets by that hurdle he should make it to the final to meet Nadal. I am already assuming Nadal is in the semis, although I guess if Stan makes the quarters he is in with an outside shot at beating Nadal. Stan has had a good clay court season but I doubt he takes out Nadal, especially in a tournament of this importance. He doesn’t have the balls like Soderling had. We will be able to tell more about Djokovic’s chances after a few rounds.
I thought this will be for sure his year to win his first French Open, but there is just a slight doubt in my mind now. Both Dimitrov and Berdych played out of their minds to beat him though. It is as though he just lacked a certain edge. But maybe he was already thinking about the French Open and saving his energies up for a title run. You can’t really say anything about those losses. If he raises his game for the French Open, those losses could have been a blessing in disguise by saving him energy. We might well see an on fire Djokovic in Paris who doesn’t drop a set until the semis, takes out Nadal in 4 sets, and then wins his first title. So I wouldn’t deduct much from Djokovic’s last two tournaments. Like I said he may have already been thinking about Paris, and felt that beating Nadal in Monte Carlo was enough to make him the firm favorite for the French Open.
Some people are already claiming that Nadal is unstoppable and only a miracle will stop him from winning an 8th French Open. I wouldn’t be so fast to make such claims. Djokovic made pretty short work of Nadal in the Monte Carlo final which is Nadal’s home on tour. That was a big thing, and I wouldn’t be surprised if Djokovic takes over Nadal’s second home on tour in Paris as well. But of course if he does beat Nadal in the semis he could be up against a rampant Federer again. You can’t underestimate Roger in these situations. He comes off a final in Rome which is perfect preparation, and the fact that Nadal is not in his half is an emotional boost. He can just focus on making the final now and hope Djokovic does his business. I’m not sure which half plays their semis first because that could make a difference in Roger’ mindset, but we are far from that anyway.
Roger’s draw starts really nicely as he will play a qualifier in the first two rounds. I guess the French have really smiled on Roger once more. Then in the 3rd round he could face Benneteau who has been a bit of a tricky opponent for him in the past, but not something I would worry about too much. In the 4th round it looks like Roger could face Simon again, who he beat 6-1, 6-2 in Rome. So I don’t see Roger’s quarter final streak being broken just yet, although nothing is certain. Again in the quarter finals I see no one who can seriously threaten Roger, although Tsonga or maybe Cilic may have something to say about that. Roger’s first test is likely to come in the semis, although if Berdych doesn’t make semis it doesn’t have to be a test. Berdych actually has a pretty tough draw. He plays Monfils in the first round who has slipped in the rankings of late, but just won a challenger.
In the second round he could face a very tough opponent in Gulbis. If Gulbis takes out Berdych then you really have to start believing that Roger was destined to be in this final. Ferrer is also in that quarter of the draw. So I think Roger’s probable semi-final opponent should he get that far will be one of these 3 players. I’m actually amazed at how likely it looks that Roger will make the final, although if it’s Berdych in the semis then you do expect a tough match for Roger. I think Roger is getting a little tired of losing to Berdych though, and if that match happens you better believe he will break a leg to win. Then of course everything depends on who waits in the final. If it’s Nadal then all bets are off. If it’s Djokovic then at the very least we will have a good match. And at best Roger plays another blinder of a match and wins his second French Open.
But that is looking wayyyyy ahead. I am just really happy with Roger’s draw and his preparation for Paris. This should be a good one folks!
Hi Fedfans. So Roger didn’t end up winning his first Rome title and it was a disappointing display from him, but as I said in my preview post I view this as a freebie match for Roger and I will not go back on my word and bash him for not showing up in the final. It wasn’t close, with Nadal breadsticking Roger 6-1, 6-3. It was funny because last night there was a tornado in my town. The power lines got torn up which meant there was no electricity in my town and I couldn’t watch the match. So when I woke up this morning I quickly drove to the next town to find a Wi-Fi spot, where I got a $128 ticket for speeding and I also ended up missing the first set. When I started watching I could immediately see Roger was not into the match. So it cost me $128 to watch the second set of a blow out. Haha! Still I wasn’t very upset.
I was disappointed that Roger did not at least try to make the match competitive, but I wasn’t mad. It has been a good week for Roger regardless of what happened in the final, and I won’t let one disappointing match spoil that for me. I honestly though that there was nothing for Roger to lose in this match however, and that he would at least go out there and be competitive and just enjoy it. Even if he then loses it will be better for his confidence than not even trying and being blown off the court. Lets say he plays really well and Nadal wins 6-4 in the third. That is still a really good result and would have given him confidence. But it didn’t work out that way. It was really a lackluster performance from Roger. His whole body language said ‘I don’t want to be here’. So yes I am disappointed that I lost $128 for nothing but in the big picture I am still satisfied.
After this performance you feel there is a much slimmer chance that his quarter final streak will be broken at Roland Garros anyway. And he made his first final of the year, including a much needed 60o ranking points. After this loss I hope people understand better when I say that Roger sometimes sub-consciously tanks to avoid Nadal. I don’t think people realize the emotional scars Roger have from matches against Nadal. You have to look no further than the 2006 Rome final which I posted about yesterday to understand that. It is because of matches like that that Roger showed up disinterested today and appears disinterested when he knows Nadal is in his draw. Another important thing to realize is that Nadal is currently in the ascendancy. He has been riding a wave of confidence while Roger has been struggling.
In 2012 it was the other way around when they faced off in Indian Wells and that time Roger won 6-3, 6-4. So from that perspective today’s result was pretty much expected. Roger is not in the ascendancy right now. Making the final here is one good result, but it doesn’t mean that Roger 3.0 is back all of a sudden. I mean Nadal has just won his 6th title from 8 finals since his comeback. He is clearly on a serious roll. How he does it I don’t know. He constantly complains about his knee problems and downplays his chances in spite of having won an event 6-8 times and being the clear favorite. He plays year after year and wins tournament after tournament with the most taxing game style in history, but neither tires nor burns out. He also lives in a country where doping has been legal in sport until 2006, and blood bags gets destroyed by court order.
The situation borders on the absurd. As a Fedfan you may be disappointed by Roger’s performance today. But let me put things in perspective for you. What does Roger represent as a human being? What does Nadal represent as a human being? Here, let me help you out with that. Let me start with tennis. In tennis Roger is the artist, the lover. He plays for the love of the sport and he is a creator. He creates things on a tennis court that has never been created and he entertains unlike any player in the history of the sport. He leaves tennis fans around the world in awe of the beauty he creates, and he leaves them breathless with the impossible things he does on a tennis court. He hits tweeners, shots behind his back, smashes from smashes, any shot you can possibly think of, and he hits them not in practice but in competitive matches and during important points.
A tower of strength in a world full of sell outs…
There is never a boring moment when he is on court because you are waiting with bated breath for the next impossible shot he is going to come up with. He is a genius. He is an artist. He is the Michelangelo of the sport. The greatest tennis artist that ever lived. Then you have Nadal which is pretty much the exact opposite. Nadal is the ultimate warrior. He is the gladiator of the Roman colosseum days. Where Roger plays for the love of tennis, he plays for the love of the competition. He likes to intimidate and destroy his opponents. Where Roger creates Nadal destroys. You have the universal forces of creation and destruction and in the tennis universe you have Federer and Nadal. Federer builds up, Nadal tears down. You could call those forces good and evil. What is important to realize is that both is necessary.
You can’t have one without the other. Nadal has allowed us to appreciate Roger more. He provided that contrast. Whether we hate him or accept him for what he is, he has provided that contrast. So in a way we should be grateful for him. You would like to think that good eventually wins over evil, and in a sense that is true, but actually in the manifest world the forces of good and evil play out eternally against each other. Without both those forces you can’t have creation. Both order and chaos is necessary. In short there would be no hero without a villain. Roger is the hero and Nadal is the villain. If you are looking for perfection you won’t find it in the manifest world. I believe there is such a thing as perfection but it includes all imperfection. Anyway I don’t want to make this a philosophical post.
This is a tennis blog. If you look at Federer and Nadal as human beings you have someone who is honest and has integrity, and then you have someone who is the opposite of that. You have someone who is deceitful and immoral. I have no doubt that Nadal would use any means to gain an advantage over his opponents, even if it is illegal and cheating. He doesn’t have any real pride or integrity. He represents the world which is full of greed and corruption. It is a world full of temptations and false promises. It is also a world that is utterly empty. It has no substance or meaning. Then you have Roger who is a rare individual who has risen above this world. A tower of strength in a world full sell outs. This individual has true strength because he doesn’t judge his inner worth by what society thinks of him, how much money he has in the bank, or how famous he is.
His inner worth depends on honesty and integrity. He is happy within himself because he doesn’t sell out. He is at peace because he is not trying to impress anyone. There is no lies or deceit to be found within him. I hope you understand now where I come from when I say enduring a few losses to Nadal is nothing when you consider the bigger picture. Who would you rather be a fan of? A tower of strength or a little wooden shack that can fall apart at any moment? And you know that will happen when Nadal gets busted for doping. Nadal fans are the worldly type. They live for the moment with no thought of the consequences of their actions. There is no substance about them. They are utterly dominated by people and circumstances. There is no inner strength or stability. I am just trying to give you some perspective and trying to make a loss like today easier on you guys.
Federer represents strength of character to me and Nadal weakness of character, and therefor it is not difficult for me to deal with a loss like today. I know who I am and what I stand for. I will never be seduced by the dark side. I am a ultimately a lover, not a fighter. I am a Fedfan through and through. There is not a shadow of a doubt about my allegiance. The blood of truth and honesty pulses through my veins and there is no turning back for me. I am on the side of good and I am on the side of R0ger Federer.
Hi guys. Before I continue with my post let me just say for a change how much I still enjoy this blog after all these years, even though I can’t post as much these days. It’s a privilege to be writing about the greatest of all time and having such a loyal and knowledgeable reader base. Today I am up to over 1000 page views for the day again after a long break in posts when Roger was not playing. And of course it helps when Roger makes deep runs in events. Today he went as deep as he can get when he defeated Paire 7-6(5), 6-4. I got the weekend off from work which I am delighted about. I watched the match from the tie break onward, but I saw on the highlights that Roger actually got broken at 3-3. He broke right back however. I could see Roger was not playing as well in his first three matched because he was exchanging breaks with Paire in the breaker.
Paire was actually serving at 5-4 in the breaker, but Roger reeled off the next three points to win the first set. Paire lacked the balls to close the deal, but I thought he played well anyway. I could sense that this was Roger’s ‘off’ day though. It is just very hard to maintain the same level he did through the first three rounds. Of course he still played at a high level, but from the match stats it was clear that he was just slightly off his game compared to the previous matches. In the second set Roger broke at 1-1 after a double fault from Paire and held onto serve for the rest of the set to advance to the final. It was nice to see a full match for a change. Even though Roger may not have been at his best I still enjoyed it a lot. There were good rallies and Roger had an air of confidence about him. I liked the way he came in to the net as well, which is something he has improved since working with Annacone.
I’m not usually a big fan of French players but I liked Paire’s game and on court demeanor. I think he has a good future. There were some question marks over Roger’s mentality today knowing that he will have to face Nadal in the final, but I think he proved that it is no problem for him. Like I said the fact that he played at a slightly lower level was because of his ‘off’ day, and not because he knew he had to play Nadal in the final. I said in my last post that I don’t expect Roger to trade a final spot for not having to become Nadal’s turkey. It is important that he made his first final of the year here and regardless of the final outcome, this result will not only give Roger a minimum of 600 ranking points but also much needed confidence. This week has been Roger 3.0 all week, which has been encouraging.
And the 600 points means he is back up to 11th in the race as well. So regardless of the result tomorrow this has been a very positive week for Roger. I think Fedfans write Roger off too easily. I said after Indian Wells that Roger will be back and here he is back already. Ok he hasn’t showed us the consistency of Roger 3.0 week in and week out yet, but at least he has been Roger 3.0 for a whole tournament. I have no doubt that he will put in a positive performance tomorrow as well. Of course today Nadal beat Berdych and it wasn’t even close, 6-2, 6-4. Yet another no show by an opponent for Nadal like Stan in the Madrid final. But like I said I expect Roger to show up tomorrow and to at least push Nadal to three sets. I think he will be back to a high level again after his off match against Paire. I am actually looking forward to this match because I don’t feel Roger has anything to lose.
He can just go out there and take a few risks and swing freely. He is expected to lose by just about everyone. This is clay and Nadal is supposed to win. I for one don’t think it is a foregone conclusion that Nadal will win. Yes he is the favorite but Roger has beaten him on clay before. In tennis you can never be certain about any result anyway. Roger’s game just have to click on the day and Nadal must be slightly off his game, in which case Roger will be in with a shot. Of course Roger will have to play just about the perfect match, but if he plays like he did in his first three matches he will make this competitive. His first serve percentage must be up there in the 70′s again, which is not easy against Nadal. Nadal makes a lot of returns and as we have seen in the past, that puts pressure on Roger to go for more on his serve and then his first serve percentage takes a dive.
It is the same with the rest of his game. Nadal plays the percentages and makes you go for more and more until you miss. He is like a boa constrictor. The key for Roger is to stay relaxed and not let it get to him if he misses a few shots. That has always been the problem for Roger against Nadal. He hits a great shot and Nadal makes an unbelievable return, after which Roger loses his cool. Roger must be relentless like Nadal. He must expect for Nadal to make unbelievable returns and mentally prepare himself for it. He cannot afford to get down on himself like he did in the past. Yes it’s easier said than done but he just has to keep coming at Nadal and make him come up with unbelievable returns again and again until he starts missing them. Either way I am happy with what Roger has done this week and I look at tomorrow as a ‘freebie’ where Roger can just go out there and enjoy himself.
Highlights:
The classic 2006 Fedal final highlights: Notice how Roger had two match points at 6-5 in the 5th sets and then misses two regulation forehands. In the tie break he has a chance to redeem himself when serving at 5-3 and a chance to go up 3 more match points, but misses another regulation forehand. Hopefully tomorrow he can get some respite for that heartbreaking loss and finally claim this title. Now wouldn’t that be special?
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