ATP Monte-Carlo Masters: the Final

First topic message reminder :

---

Thanks for this Green

Good luck to Baggy

Youzhny is out I had him getting to the quarters

I think all my picks need to be very afraid!!

socal1976 wrote:I think Nicky Almagro can do some damage on this surface he could be a dark horse in my mind to get to the semis and possibly the final. Good serve, good mover, great power off both sides, and hits the ball very heavy. Love his one-handed backhand. He just seems to be a little up and down with his game.

Nico´s home town is very near to where I live and so I have a "little soft spot " for him. Trouble is with him Socal he has little in the way of self-belief... he plays like a deamon until the finishing post is within reach and suddenly he gets the wobbles and then chokes.. He has a great serve, wonderful backhand and is a natural on clay Good temperament....He could do some damage on route but I dont think he will beat Fed and if he does he may get Ferrer and I think little Daveeeeeed will make short work of him.

Almagro's made short work of a potentially troublesome opponent there, good for him. He did very well (as usual) during the South american clay court swing as well.... potential dark horse indeed!

Gasquet vs. Istomin looks set to go to the wire!

Davydenko an early break up on Haase as well. I kinda thought Haase might win that one; neither are particularly good on clay but Davydenko in particular hasn't looked great since coming back from injury....

Baggy's been breadsticked in the 2nd set after winning the first 6-3

Baggy breaks to go 3-1 3rd set But then he did have problems holding his serve last time out

Quite a nasty fall there by Stepanek. I imagine all that dirt getting into scrapes would be quite painful - ouch.

Baggy Snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. Well done Stepanek :applause:

When all was said and done I think Steppie deserved that match.. there were times when Baggy played too many sloppy shots.. far too many unforced errors cost him the match.

Davydenko's out... again!

I agree Haddie-nuff. On his day Baggy can beat the best (and has done), but he can get sloppy and it does cost him matches he should be winning. Quite frustrating

Green wrote:Davydenko's out... again!

And Green's picks go up in smoke... again!

Actually, that's true. He did that to me for the 2nd time in a row. I ain't picking him ever again.

However, my picks did not go up in smoke, I won - by one pick. And that was Tsonga!

Apart from a few exceptions most of the first round matches were drawn out affairs going to three sets. Almagro, Robredo and Cilic amongst others appear to be in good form.

Haddie, that is pretty cool Almagro is from your hometown , I didn't know. I have a soft spot for him as well. He kind of looks like a younger, taller, skinnier version of me. He had Nadal on the ropes last year during one of the clay master's series and just like you said he fell apart in the end.

Yes, I think little David would be a tough opponent, but if Nicholas plays well he could be David and give Roger troubles. I am still sticking with my pick for him to get to the Semis.

Socal he comes from Murcia... I live approx 12 miles away...
I always think Nico is in there with a chance... he did have Rafa running like a hare for most of that match... but I always get the feeling that at the end of the day he doesn´t have the belief he can finish it., This is where David scores... he does believe and never stops believing and if ever a player deserves more success than he gets.. it is Ferrer. I hope your prediction is right... No one would more tickled pink than me.. let me assure you

hello everyone, tsonga vs Ljubicic is looking interesting

What is Gulbis doing?!

Down a set 4 - 6 and 1-1- when I last checked.

Gulbis finally breaks, only to get broken right away ! Raonic to serve for the match once more...

Too little tool late from Gulbis

Gulbis was to be the future of tennis! - please don't jinx Raonic by saying this.

However he may just have the edge re skill 8)

And with that result Raonic strides ahead of Gulbis in the rankings.

So, I suppose that means he's the futur-



On another note, i'm very impressed with how the Canadian has taken to clay, he seems to have movement that belies the 'big serve' reputation he's developed. OK, he's not Tommy Robredo but he can handle the stuff.

THIS_IS_THE_NEWS wrote:And with that result Raonic strides ahead of Gulbis in the rankings.

So, I suppose that means he's the futur-



On another note, i'm very impressed with how the Canadian has taken to clay, he seems to have movement that belies the 'big serve' reputation he's developed. OK, he's not Tommy Robredo but he can handle the stuff.

Yet strange I read that his coach said he did not think he would do well on clay.. so even a coach can be wrong obviously.

Haddie-nuff wrote:

THIS_IS_THE_NEWS wrote:And with that result Raonic strides ahead of Gulbis in the rankings.

So, I suppose that means he's the futur-



On another note, i'm very impressed with how the Canadian has taken to clay, he seems to have movement that belies the 'big serve' reputation he's developed. OK, he's not Tommy Robredo but he can handle the stuff.

Yet strange I read that his coach said he did not think he would do well on clay.. so even a coach can be wrong obviously.

I guess so! That said, he's only faced Gulbis and Llodra so far, who are both obviously top players, but neither excel on clay, especially Llodra. He's likely to face David Ferrer next, and his performance, if not necessarily the likely result, will speak volumes about his potential on clay.

Certainly he will need to move a bit better than he did today.. for sure David will give him the runaround.

Yeah, I tend to agree with Haddie although impressed with Raonic, I think David is going to give him a clay court lessan. From the first time I saw him play I thought he was a real strong contender for future grandslam honors. He is no Ivo Karlovic, big serve yes, but a pretty solid mover, good off the ground especially the forehand and also a very good volleyer. He is a good all around player, it is just hard when you watch him to think of anything other then his monster serve.

Still I think David takes in two tough sets. I look for little David's return and defense, and scrambling ability, to neutralize that power on the slow courts of Monaco.

Ahem ... Daveed has to beat Feli yet

We have tickets today for the Grandstand, but are hoping to be able to get in for that match. Some good ones on 2nd today.

Will drop in with reports.

Wooffie, i am so envious of you must be hard having to travel to the south of france to watch tennis? Anyway, I think David will take down Feli on clay, either way it should be great match, enjoy yourself.

Verdasco down a set as Robredo finally converts his break point to nick it 6-4. Not a great tournament for Verdasco to lose the first round in, this one, but it's a nasty opponent to have in the 1st round as well!

Nadal is busy being being Nadal, impressive old result for Monfils today, too. Nice to see him back from injury yet again.

Murray-time

Murray finally breaks serve at the fourth time of asking

He's getting good depth on his shots and is controlling the rallies with his forehand

and double break

Murray looking a lot better than he has for a while

I really hope Andy can get a few wins under his belt and get his confidence back a bit.

Very much enjoyed Rafa's match earlier. Couple of those rallies were crackers. Always a lot less stressful watching him play on clay

Set point... And Murray in the way we know and love steps in and demolishes the second serve to take the set 6-1, lovely stuff.

Murray hit 12 winners and just ONE unforced error in that set.

Watched the second set of Nadal earlier, and he looked very impressive. Tell you what, that forehand of Murray's is looking pretty good out there today.

That's great news on Murray for the first set at least, fingers crossed he can keep it up! Would love for him to get back into form again!

At 30-15, Murray produces his third UE of the day when a forehand down the line goes wide, but at 30-30 he produces a remarkable passing shot which Stepanek has no answer to. Stepanek then nets and Andy has the break

Well it was getting a bit too easy, so Murray slips to 0-40 down. Fear not though, as he produces a fine drop shot, a well-placed backhand and an ace to save all three BPs. Another forehand winner follows and when Stepanek goes long he has consolidated the break.

Mad for Chelsea wrote:Well it was getting a bit too easy, so Murray slips to 0-40 down. Fear not though, as he produces a fine drop shot, a well-placed backhand and an ace to save all three BPs. Another forehand winner follows and when Stepanek goes long he has consolidated the break.

Signs of his form returning, and on clay - keep it Andy

Andy played a great match really looked sharp. Lets hope he is back to his best. Although Stepanek is a poor clay courter and over the hill, he still has some ability. And Andy's movement and forehand looked wonderful today.

Let's keep it realistic. He beat a Serve and Volleyer on clay. That's not really giving us any real signs for the future, is it?

A win is a win, though. I bet he's chuffed to finally get that loss streak off his back.

The second round at Monte Carlo was characterised by one sided matches. It is pleasing to see Richard Gasquet playing well (amongst others).

Fernando Verdasco's form is a bit concerning too... 3 losses on the bounce, I believe.

I think Fernando is not the same player he was two years ago. He hasn't looked right to me all year. He doesn't seem to have the same penetration on his shots.

Yeah, he's looked unconvincing so far this year. I think the Davis Cup and Australian Open 2008 was his 'peak' period if you like; he never played like that before and hasn't since, but he is still a top player; look at the clay court season he had last year, won Barcelona, came close in Rome and lost only to the imperious Nadal in Monte Carlo.

This year however he's just looked poor. Brief flashes of brilliance in the Aussie Open aside he's just not cut the mustard, and if that continues in the clay court season, where he did so well last season, then he'll be tumbling down the rankings.

I think Nando has had a niggling foot problem for the last couple of years
He was undecided last year whether to have an operation.
A tricky decision.. foot injuries (I can say with conviction) are notoriously difficult to fully recover from.. he has stuck with it but it shows. Sad I like Nando when he is playing at the top of his game but I fear this might be one he wont get over so easy.

No surprises for Raonic and Ferrer. Decent tournament for Raonic though; breaks the Top 30 now.

Ljubicic and Berdych is a different though, disappointing result for Berdych, he had a good chance to go a decent distance in the tournament with his draw.

Predictions for the rest of the day:

Nadal bt Gasquet in 2
Federer bt Cilic in 2
Monfils bt Gil in 3
Simon bt Murray in 2
Robredo bt Troicki in 2
Melzer bt Almagro in 3

30-30 at 6-2, 5-4 to Nadal against Gasquet. Gasquet had a chance at 15-30 but Nadal powered his way back.

Match point to Nadal............ he takes it. Nadal through the quarters.

Robredo retires injured, even though he was a set up!