Raonic, Murray, Tsonga Win 1st Titles of 2012

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Andy Murray and Milos Raonic won their first titles of 2012 this weekend. Tsonga defeated Gael Monfils 7-5 6-3 to win the Qatar Open, Murray defeated Aleksandr Dologopolov 6-1 6-3 to win the Brisbane International Open and Raonic defeated Janko Tipsarevic 6-7(4) 7-6(4) 7-6(4) to win the Chennai Open.

Qatar: Monfils Beats Nadal; Faces Tsonga In Final

Karim Jaafar/AFP/Getty Images

Gael Monfils of France stunned World #2 Rafael Nadal in the semifinals of the first official ATP tour event of the year in Doha, Qatar by winning their semifinal match in straight sets 6-3 6-4. Monfils' win sets up an all-French final since World #3 Roger Federer was forced to forfeit his match against Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga due to a back injury. It was only the second time in his career Federer had been unable to play a match due to an injury.

It was Monfils' first win against the 10-time major champion in 10 tries and bodes well for the prodigiously talented Frenchman to breakthrough to the Top Tier of Tennis in 2012. Tsonga continues his stellar play from the end of 2011 into 2012 and has a 2-1 head-to-head career record against his fellow countryman.

Best (Men's) Tennis Matches of 2011

Here are my picks for the "best" (or most memorable) tennis matches by men in 2011. These are basically the matches that had the most impact on me while they were occurring, feature some of the best play or most amazing shots, had the most impact on the rest of the tennis season or are matches that I would most likely to watch again in the future. You can see my previous lists: Best Men's Tennis Matches of 2010, Best Men's Tennis Matches of 2009 and Best Men's Tennis Matches of 2006. (There were no men's lists in 2007 or 2008 for some reason.) I have also compiled lists of the Best Women's Tennis Matches for 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009 and 2010. These can all be accessed at my MadProfessah.com Tennis tab.

1. N. Djokovic SRB d. R. Nadal ESP, 6-2 6-4 6-7(3) 6-3, 2011 U.S. Open final, New York.

For the sixth time in 2011 the World #1 and World #2 met in tournament final, this time at the last grand slam of the year (with the ranking positions reversed from the 5 previous meetings), in New York where Rafael Nadal had had his career defining success the year before, completing the career slam by defeating this same opponent at this very same tournament.  After surviving a double match point against the Greatest Player of All Time in the previous round Novak Djokovic was playing with "house money" in the final. Surely the new #1 player from Serbia would be unable to snatch another major tournament title from the Spanish defending champion? The most amazing part of this match was that in my estimation Nadal played better tennis than Djokovic for the majority of the first two sets but somehow managed to lose them both. Djokovic seemed impervious to the score and just refused to go away in the first two sets, repeatedly responding to ridiculous shots and enervating rallies from Nadal with one more clear strike of the ball on or near the lines. The mental stakes of this match were even more important than the physical impact. By winning this match Djokovic showed that there was no question that he was the best player in the world, and that he had truly demolished the Federer-Nadal duopoly at the pinnacle of tennis, and was in the process of filling new pages in the tennis record books with the name of the new kid on the block, Novak Djokovic.

2.  R. Federer SUI d. N. Djokovic, 7-6(5) 6-3 3-6 7-6(5), 2011 Roland Garros Semifinal, Paris. This match was the only result standing between Novak Djokovic's astonishing 2011 season of three major titles, 5 Masters series shields, a record $12.6 million dollars and 70 tour wins and the rare, sheer perfection of a calendar year slam, which only a handful of male or female tennis players have ever accomplished. After all, Roger Federer has thrice won 3 of the 4 major tournaments in a year (2004, 2006 and 2007) while Nadal did it last year in 2010. Players like Mats Wilander (1988) and Jimmy Connors (1974), who are superb champions but arguably not indelible names in the tennis pantheon, have been able to win 3 major titles in a calendar year. But no man sincethe great Rod Laver has been able to win 4 in a year or 4 in a row. In this match, Federer demonstrated, for the umpteenth time, that he is the second-best clay court player of his generation, behind Rafael Nadal who is the Greatest Clay Court player of all-time, when he faced off against a Djokovic who had not lost a match for the entire year and who had dismissed Federer relatively easily (3 times!) in his 42-match winning streak through the first 5 months of the year. Djokovic's confidence was at its peak and he (and most observers) believed that he would win this match to face Nadal in the final. I sincerely believe that if Djokovic had won this match he would have beaten Nadal in the Roland Garros final and won the elusive calendar Grand Slam to cement his superlative year in the record books for ever. 2011 was the first year since 2002 that Federer did not win a major title but handing Djokovic his only defeat in a Grand Slam match all year long is something the Swiss will long remember and treasure even if his total remains stuck at 16 major singles titles.

3. N. Djokovic SRB d. R. Federer SUI, 6-7(7) 4-6 6-3 6-2 7-5, 2011 U.S. Open semifinal, New York.
Just to get to the final of the U.S. Open for the second year in a row, Djokovic had to face the best hard-court player of his generation, Roger Federer. Amazingly, for the second year in a row Federer held two match points against Djokovic and managed to lose! For Djokovic he had the added mental pressure that he was also facing the only player who had beaten him at a major tournament all year long. However, in the fifth set, having made the herculean effort to overcome a 2-set deficit to even the match, Djokovic faced a match point with Roger Federer serving at 5-3, 40-15. On a pretty good first serve Djokovic hit a forehand go-for-broke service return winner, smacking away a match point in jaw-dropping, history-making fashion. The second match point was lost on a difficult half-volley by Federer (caused by another Djokovic excellent service return) which hit the net and bounced out of bounds. It was this point, 5-3, Deuce in the5th set of the 2011 US Open semifinals that Federer will remember for decades. He should have been able to regroup and serve out the game by finding a way to win two points in a row on his serve but instead he lost the next two points and before he knew it Djokovic had held serve and the match was dead even at 5-all with a complete momentum switch and soon it slipped away completely. It is precisely these very small moments and individual points which extremely close matches can be decided on, and these kinds of matches often decide major championships which are remembered forever.


4. J-W Tsonga FRA d. R. Federer SUI, 3-6 6-7(3) 6-4 6-4 6-4, 2011 Wimbledon quarterfinal, London. 
Roger Federer had won 178 Grand Slam matches in a row when he had won the first two sets of a 5-set match at a major tournament, never losing a match with such a huge lead. He was playing at Wimbledon, in the quarterfinals, on a surface he had dominated for the better part of a decade, collecting 6 titles (2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009). On the other side of the net was the wildly talented Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga who had lost to Federer the last three times they had played but who had acquitted himself well in the Queen's Club warm-up tournament, losing a hard-fought final to Andy Murray. Somehow, after facing a breakpoint in the 1st set Tsonga was able to raise his service effectiveness to stratospheric levels and never even faced a break point in the subsequent 4 sets, managing to break Federer three times, once each time in the three final sets, which was enough to win the match. Federer did not play badly, but he did not play aggressively enough to jar the Frenchman from his self-conceived (and self-confident) game plan once he gained that 2-0 set lead. I believe that Federer was hurt by the fact that he had won so many times due to his opponent basically giving up at the thought of trying to win 3 consecutive sets against The Greatest Player of all Time that he was unprepared for the stiff resistance put up by Tsonga. It was literally a very unfamiliar position for Federer to be in. This match was critical to demonstrate to the rest of the field that Federer, like everyone else, can lose a match despite holding a commanding a lead, and providing a reminder that a match is ot ove runtil the final point is played. Tsonga also exposed the truth that Federer was no longer at the very top of the game, and that there were other players besides former and reigning Grand Slam champions, who could defeat the Swiss Maestro.

5. N. Djokovic SRB d. A. Murray GBR, 6-1 3-6 7-6(2), 2011 Italian Open semifinal, Rome.
Clay court tennis is almost a completely different sport from tennis played on harder, faster surfaces. It requires more patience, more guile and (often), more physical tenacity than hard court tennis. Amazingly, the best clay court match of the year did not feature the presence of the King of Clay Rafael Nadal, but instead was a brutal, brilliant 3-hour slugfest between the 3rd and 4th best clay court players in the world. Some observers call this semifinal clash between Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic the best match of the year but I would disagree. For pure tennis entertainment, it probably is the best match of the year, featuring some of the longest rallies of the year but as for overall significance on the future of tennis or impact on me while I was watching it, matches that occur at majors have an inherent advantage of historical significance. I would also argue that the matches higher on the list may not have as many ridiculously long rallies (although the #1 match does) but they each have more eye-popping shots attempted (and frequently made) with tennis posterity on the line. That being said, this was a heck of a match, clearly the best non-final, non-major match of the year. Murray served for the match in the third set and his play throughout was able to partially erase his disappointing performance(s) in major finals and show why he belongs to be in the conversation when discussing the best players in tennis, but in the end, he again fell heart-wrendlingly short of the win, which is all most people will ever remember.


 6. N. Djokovic SRB d. R. Nadal, 4-6 6-3 7-6(4), 2011 Sony Ericsson Open final, Miami.
This match was played a mere few weeks after Indian Wells where Djokovic had beaten Nadal for the first time in a final, after losing to him in the five previous finals they had contested. However, it was this match that really cemented in my mind that Djokovic had reached a brand new level of tennis.  Djokovic had a bad (16 losses 8 wins) head-to-head record overall with Nadal but all his 8 wins against the Spaniard had come on hard courts (but never in an important final). Nadal was the defending US Open champion and had shown that he could find a way to win on all surfaces, against anyone when it really counted, even the reigning Australian Open champion who was on a 24 match winning streak. The result was a very physical, tactical war of attrition played on a tennis court. And at the end of it all the tennis world was stunned to see Novak Djokovic standing victoriously while the indomitable Rafael Nadal looked exhausted and defeated. This was the match (along with the US Open semifinal win against Federer) that gave Djokovic the confidence to know that he could beat Nadal even if he was not playing his best tennis. After this match it was clear that would only be a matter of when, not if, Djokovic would shatter the Federer-Nadal duopoly at the pinnacle of tennis.


7. R. Nadal ESP d. R. Federer SUI, 7-5 7-6(3) 5-7 6-1, Roland Garros final, Paris.
This was the 25th career meeting between Federer and Nadal, two of the greatest players of all time. It was the 4th time they met in the final of Roland Garros and their 8th major final showdown (Nadal winning 5 times.). Nadal  had never lost a final at Roland Garros (in fact so far in his career he has only ever lost one match there!) and thus no one really expected this match to be close. Nadal lead their career head-to-head with 16 wins to 8 losses and had won all 3 previous clay court major finals, their only hard court final in Australia and also won their greatest match (which many people call the greatest match of all time), the 2008 Wimbledon final. There's no question that the physical match up between Nadal's lefty spin and power on both wings with Federer's shot-making and serving prowess is a bad one for the Swiss, but the mental challenge is even more devastating. No one else on tour wins 2/3rds  (and expects to win that many) of their matches against the 16-time major champion. So it was quite surprising for everyone watching this match when the first set was clearly on Federer's racquet after he played 40 minutes of crisp, aggressive clay court tennis to blunt and thwart Nadal's many advantages on the surface. An attempted drop shot winner from the baseline on set point which just bounced centimetres wide is what separated the two gladiators this time. Realizing that he had played better than Nadal for large stretches of the first set but had still lost it sapped Federer's mental resolve and he meekly succumbed to the inevitable defeat in four sets of elegant but futile tennis.


8.  N. Djokovic SRB d. R. Nadal ESP, 6-4 6-1 1-6 6-3, Wimbledon final, London.
This was the match that really reflected the fact that the changing of the guard was complete at the top of men's tennis and the new #1 was not named Federer or Nadal but Djokovic. This was Djokovic's first match after clinching his lifetime goal of being universally (and officially) acclaimed the best tennis player in the world. He was facing a 2-time Wimbledon defending champion who had not lost since the 2007 Men's final (having skipped the 2009 tournament due to injury). Did Djokovic really have the ability to take away a major title from a defending champion on that champion's turf? The answer was clearly yes as Djokovic showed how his game with an improved serve, flawless groundstrokes combined with unmatched confidence and stunning movement were a much more problematic match-up for Nadal than what he was used to facing against his arch-rival Roger Federer.  Surely having previously lost five finals in a row to Nadal in his career, Djokovic would not be able to beat Nadal in five finals in the same year? Again, the Serbian responded to the question in the affirmative and marked the official beginning of the Djokovic era by winning the most prestigious title in tennis in a convincing fashion.




9. N. Djokovic SRB d. R. Nadal ESP, 7-5 6-4, 2011 Madrid Masters final, Madrid.
Rafael Nadal has gone through entire clay court seasons (2006, 2010) without losing a match on the surface in which he is almost universally acclaimed as the greatest of all time. So, when earlier this year Nadal faced a still undefeated Novak Djokovic it was a canonical example of an unmovable object facing an irresistible force. Most observers felt that Nadal's clay court magic would carry him to victory in this match as it had in the 10 previous times the two had met on clay. This final is most important for the significance of the result: The first time Nadal was beaten by Djokovic in a clay court final.



10. A. Roddick USA d. M. Raonic CAN, 7-6 (7), 6-7 (11), 7-5, Regions Morgan Keegan Championships final, Memphis.
 This match is the only one not featuring any of the Top 4 players in the world, Djokovic, Nadal, Federer or Murray. However, it does feature one of the most incredible shots on match points ever (although I would still argue the 2010 US Open Fernando Verdasco-David Ferrer match has the best match point of all time). It also features Milos Raonic, who is almost certainly going to be joining the Top 4 within the next few years. The 21-year-old 6'5" hard-serving Canadian ended the year at #31 and reached a career high of #25 during the year. In this match he faced off against Andy Roddick, a player who was unlucky to be playing in the era of two of the greatest players of all time (Federer and Nadal), in the throes of a hot streak which included winning his first ATP Tour title the week before in San Jose. Roddick's performance in the 2009 Wimbledon men's final is still fresh in a lot of people's memories, where Federer finally broke Sampras's record of 14 major singles titles by outlasting a determined challenge from the American. After his one major win in New York in 2003, Roddick has amassed an impressively consistent record of winning at least one ATP tour title for the last 9 years, a record he shares with Federer thanks to his amazingly gutsy effort on the final point of his match against Raonic.

HONORABLE MENTIONS

The following matches are ones that should not be forgotten, but because of mathematical limitations, could not be in the Top 10 matches of the year. However each one either featured some amazing shots or extended periods of high-quality tennis or were entertaining or important to me as a tennis fan. (They are provided here, in no ranked order, for your perusal, and to jog your memory.)
J.-C. Ferrero ESP  d. G. Monfils FRA, 7-6 (5), 5-7, 6-7 (5), 6-4, 6-4, 2011 U.S. Open 2nd Round, New York

D. Nalbandian ARG d  L. Hewitt AUS, 3-6 6-4 3-6 7-6(1) 9-7 , 2011 Australian Open 1st Round, Melbourne.
R. Federer SUI d. R. Nadal ESP, 6-3 6-0, Barclays ATP World Tour Finals round-robin, London.

A. Dolgopolov UKR d  R. Soderling SWE, 1-6 6-3 6-1 4-6 6-2, 2011 Australian Open 4th Round, Melbourne.

N. Djokovic SRB d. A. Murray GBR, 6-4 6-2 6-3, 2011 Australian Open final, Melbourne.

N. Djokovic SRB d. R. Federer SUI, 6-4 6-2 6-3, 2011 Australian Open semifinal, Melbourne.

A. Murray GBR d  A. Dolgopolov UKR, 7-5 6-3 6-7(3) 6-3, 2011 Australian Open quarterfinal, Melbourne.

N. Djokovic SRB d. T. Berdych CZE, 6-1 7-6(5) 6-1, 2011 Australian Open semifinal, Melbourne.

F. Lopez ESP d. A. Roddick USA, 7-6(2) 7-6(2) 6-4, Wimbledon 3rd Round, London.

K. Nishikori JPN d. N. Djokovic SRB, 3-6 7-6(4) 6-0, Swiss Indoors semi-final, Basel.

N. Djokovic SRB d. R. Nadal, 4-6 6-3 6-2, BNP Paribas Open final, Indian Wells.

D. Ferrer ESP d. R. Nadal ESP, 6-4 6-2 6-3, 2011 Australian Open quarterfinal, Melbourne.

R. Federer SUI d. F. Lopez ESP, 7-6(13) 6-7(1) 7-6(7), 2011 Madrid Open 3rd Round, Madrid.

N. Djokovic SRB d. R. Nadal ESP, 7-5 6-4, 2011 Madrid Open final, Madrid.

R. Gasquet FRA d. R. Federer SUI, 4-6 7-6(2) 7-6(4), Italian Open 3rd Round, Rome.

R. Nadal ESP d. J. Isner USA, 6-4 6-7(2) 6-7(2) 6-2 6-3, Roland Garros 1st Round, Paris.

A. Murray GBR d. J-W. Tsonga FRA, 2-6 7-6(2) 6-4, Queen's Club final, London.

J. Isner USA d. N. Mahut FRA 7-6(4) 6-4 7-6(6), Wimbledon 1st Round, London.

R. Nadal ESP d. J-M. Del Potro ARG, 7-6(6) 3-6 7-6(4) 6-4, Wimbledon 4th Round, London.

D. Young USA d. S. Wawrinka SUI, 7-6(7) 3-6 2-6 6-3 7-6(1), U.S. Open 2nd Round, New York. 

R. Federer SUI d. J-W Tsonga FRA, 6-4 6-3 6-3, U.S. Open quarterfinal, New York.
A. Murray GBR d. J. Isner USA, 7-5 6-4 3-6 7-6(2), U.S. Open quarterfinal, New York.
J-W Tsonga FRA d. M. Fish USA,6-4 6-7(3) 3-6 6-4 6-2, U.S. Open 4th round, New York.

J-W Tsonga FRA d. J. Isner USA, 3-6 7-6(1) 7-6(3), BNP Paribas Paris Masters semi-final, Bercy.

R. Federer SUI d. J-W. Tsonga FRA, 6-3 6-7(6) 6-3, Barclays ATP World Tour Finals final, London.
R. Nadal ESP d. J-M del Potro ARG, 1-6, 6-4, 6-1, 7-6(0), Davis Cup Final.

ATP World Tour Finals 2011: Federer Ends Year 17-0; Wins 6th YEC

As I predicted yesterday, Roger Federer ended his 2011 season like he has 5 times before (2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2010), winning the very last competitive match of the year in the year-end championship for a record 6th time. This time he defeated Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 6-3 6-7(6) 6-3 in one of the best matches of 2011, winning his 70th title in 100 tour finals. It was his 2nd consecutive tournament final win over Tsonga, and somewhat bizarrely his second match win over Tsonga in the tournament, due to the round-robin nature of the early rounds of the year-end championship.

Federer improved to a 8-3 career head-to-head record over Tsonga, and 6-2 in the astonishing 8 matches the two played this year. He ended the year with a remarkable 17-match winning streak in the indoor hard court season which netted the former #1 (and now #3) 3 titles, in Basel, Paris  and London. He demolished his arch-nemesis Rafael Nadal in straight sets and never even got the opportunity to meet Novak Djokovic at this year's year-end championship due to the Serbian's mental and physical collapse.

Federer's 807th career win places him ahead of Stefan Edberg at #6 on the all-time wins list, behind Andre Agassi at 870. His 6th year-end championship breaks the tie Federer had with Ivan Lendl who won his 5 titles with a 39-10 record, Federer's is 39-7, also losing in the final in 2005 to David Nalbandian. He won $1.635 million and cemented his place at #3 in the rankings behind Djokovic and Nadal.

In 2011, Federer was the only player to have match points in two separate occasions against the player of the year in Djokovic (70-6), ending with a relatively pedestrian (by his standards) 64-12 record. Bizarrely, in 2009 Federr's record w 61-12 and he ended the year at #1. In 2010 it was 65-13 and he ended the year at #3.

In 2012, Federer will be playing to win his record 17th major title and his first singles Gold medal at the London Olympics. I wouldn't bet against him!

ATP World Tour Finals: Federer vs Tsonga

AP Photo/Sang Tan

Roger Federer defeated David Ferrer in straight sets 7-5 6-3 to reach his 7th year-end championship final of his career, his 100th career tournament final (69-30 record). A few hours later Jo-Wilfried Tsonga outlasted Tomas Berdych 6-3 7-5 to join Federer in the final, which will be a reprise of the very first match of the tournament where Federer beat Tsonga in a tight 3-set match 6-2 2-6 6-4 .

I had predicted Federer would face Berdych and Ferrer would face Tsonga, since Ferrer won 5 sets and lost 3 while Berdych won 5 sets and lost 4 but I guess on game percentage Berdych ended up being the #1 player in Group A so he played the #2 player in Group B (Tsonga) while the #2 player in Group A ( Ferrer) was stuck playing the undefeated #1 player from Group B (Federer). The result was Federer improved to 12-0 lifetime against Ferrer while Tsonga won his first career match against Berdych (now 1-1).

By winning today Federer assures he will end the year at #3, behind World #1 Novak Djokovic and World#2 Rafael Nadal. Federer becomes the 5th player in ATP history to reach 100 tour finals, behind Jimmy Connors (163), Ivan Lendl (146), John McEnroe (108) and Guillermo Vilas (104).

Federer is trying to become the only person to win the year-end championship 6 times, which I believe he will do, in a very tough 3-set match on Sunday.

ATP World Tour Finals: Djokovic Loses 2nd Consecutive Match

AFP PHOTO / GLYN KIRK

World #1 Novak Djokovic amazing 2011 season ended with a whimper on Friday when he lost his second consecutive match at the ATP World Tour finals in London, failing to qualify for the semifinal round. Djokovic lost 3-6 6-3 6-3 to compatriot Janko Tipsarevic a few days after he was demolished in straight sets by David Ferrer 6-3 6-1. Djokovic's only win was a 3rd set tiebreak win where he saved match point against Tomas Berdych. Berdych and Ferrer will be in the semifinalis from Group A, since both the original higher ranked players, Andy Murray and Djokovic failed to make it through the round-robin plays (with Murray withdrawing from the tournament after losing in straight sets to Ferrer).

Earlier, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga had qualified for the semifinals by eliminating Rafael Nadal 7-6(2) 4-6 6-3 and Roger Federer became the first player to qualify while remaining undefeated (and now on a 15-match winning streak) by dismissing Mardy Fish.

Djokovic's 2011 season was still remarkable ending with a 70-6 record (losses to Federer, Murray, Juan Martin del Potro, Kei Nishikori, Ferrer,  and Tipsarevic) that includes 3 major titles and 5 Masters series titles and a 41-match winning streak.

The year's last tournament will conclude with Federer facing Berdych and Tsonga facing Ferrer in the semifinals

Federer-Nadal XXVI: Federer Demolishes Nadal 63 60

AFP PHOTO / GLYN KIRK

World #4 Roger Federer played his arch-rival World #2 Rafael Nadal for the 26th time on Wednesday, and as I predicted, he won his first match against the Spaniard in 2011. However, no one could have predicted the 30-year-old Swiss maestro would pull off his most comprehensive defeat of Nadal in their long rivalry.

Federer won 6-3 6-0 in just over 1 hour. The result was never in doubt after the 5th game of the match. Nadal did not play badly (he had a Wozniacki-like 4 winners and 7 unforced errors) but Federer was dominant in every category, blasting 28 winners to only 8 unforced errors. Federer broke Nadal 4 times in 6 chances, one of his highest breakpoint conversions ever. Nadal was able to win only 9 points in the second set (to Federer's 28). This was the third time that Federer had won a 6-0 set against Nadal (the others being the 2006 Wimbledon final and 2007 Hamburg Masters final). Nadal still leads their career head-to-head with 18 wins to 8 losses.

By winning so easily (dropping only 1 set and winning 4) Federer became the first player to qualify for the semifinal elimination round. The winner of the match between Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Nadal will decided the other semifinalist from Group B. Federer is the defending champion and is on a quest to become the first player to win the tour's year-ending championship for the 6th time.

In Group A, Andy Murray withdrew from the tournament due to the groin injury he was nursing in his loss to David Ferrer, which means that either Novak Djokovic, Ferrer or Tomas Berdych will be the 2 semifinalists. Janko Tipsarevic will replace Murray but since the tournament is a round-robin which has already commenced he has no chance to advance but he could get some serious cash. On Wednesday, Tipsarevic will face Berdych and Djokovic will face Ferrer.

World Tour Finals 2011: Round-Robin Draws Set

The two groups are set for the round-robin matches at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals in London.

GROUP A
Novak Djokovic
Andy Murray
David Ferrer
Tomas Berdych


GROUP B
Rafael Nadal
Roger Federer
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga
Mardy Fish


The matches will begin on Sunday November 20th with Federer vs Tsonga and Nadal vs Fish, then on Monday Djokovic will play Berdych and Murray will play Berdych. The Top 2 players from each group will advance and the Top player in one group will play the second player in the other group. I suspect a Murray v Federer final will be occurring on Sunday November 27th.

Federer Wins Paris Masters Title Over Tsonga

PHOTO CREDIT: MIGUEL MEDINA

Roger Federer won his 69th ATP tour title in the Bercy suburbs of Paris (one week after winning his 68th in Basel) by defeating Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 6-1 7-6(3). Tsonga may have been slightly tired due to his thrilling three-set win against John Isner in the semifinals, while Federer has looked extremely sharp all week, becoming only the fourth player to win the tournament without dropping a set and the second, after Andre Agassi, to win both important tournaments played in Paris (Roland Garros and the Paris Masters).

It was Federer's 3rd title of the year and 69th of his career, playing in his 99th career final. It was the Swiss Great's 18th career ATP Masters title, one behind Rafael Nadal's 19 (which is the all-time record). In 2011, Novak Djokovic won 5 Masters events (the most anyone has ever won in a single season), followed by Andy Murray with two (Shanghai and Cincinnati) and Federer and Nadal with one each (Paris and Monte Carlo, respectively). It was Federer's first title in Bercy, and he has now reached the finals of all 9 Masters series tournament (but has never won in Monte Carlo).

The most prestigious tournament of the year starts Sunday November 20th with the top 8 players (Djokovic, Nadal, Murray, Federer, David Ferrer, Tsonga, Tomas Berdych and Mardy Fish) who qualified for the year-end Barclays ATP World Tour Finals in London. Federer is the defending champion (defeating Nadal last year) and enters the round-robin tournament on a 12-match winning streak.

Tsonga Saves 3 MPs Against Isner To Reach Paris Final

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France reached the final of the Paris Masters by saving three match points against 6'9" American John Isner and winning the match 3-6 7-6(1) 7-6(3). Tsonga had 7 break points on Isner's serve but was never able to convert, while Isner was able to break Tsonga in the 8th game of the first set and easily hold his serve again to take the first set.

As the match progressed, Isner's groundstrokes, which were hit with surprising authority on both wings, started to lose their bite and Tsonga began to win more of the baseline rallies. Still,with his booming serve, the American was able to keep the match close, and it took the rabidly partisan Parisian crowd to provide the last push to get their countryman into the victor's circle.

Tsonga will face Roger Federer, who demolished Tomas Berdych 6-4 6-3 in just 80 minutes and is in his first Paris Masters final. Tsonga won the tournament back in 2008. Federer and Tsonga have met 5 times this year so far, in some rather important matches. Federer leads their 2011 series 3-2 but lost 2 consecutive matches against the Frenchman at Wimbledon and then in Montreal this summer. Surprisingly, the two have never met in a final, where Tsonga has an excellent 7-3 career record, while Federer has an incredible 68-30, with his last title coming last week in Basel. Tsonga has never lost a 3rd set in Bercy but I suspect that streak will end on Sunday when Federer wins his 69th title.

PREDICTION: Federer.

Djokovic Gives Tsonga Walk-Over in Paris Masters

Novak Djokovic withdrew from the Paris Masters tournament on Friday before his quarterfinal match against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, handing the Frenchman a walk-over into the semifinals, where he will face John Isner (who beat World #5 David Ferrer 6-3 3-6 6-3). Djokovic published a statement on his official website, NovakDjokovic.rs, which said (in Serbo-Croatian): "Sadly I have to inform you that I have withdrawn from the tournament. I have pushed myself to the limit by playing, and after the match yesterday my shoulder got worse."

Djokovic has only lost 4 times all year, compared to 69 wins. His 69th win was a come-from-behind win against Viktor Troicki. By playing in Paris even though his shoulder injury is clearly not recovered from his shocking loss to Kei Nishikori last Saturday in Switzerland, the World #1 won a $1.6 million bonus from the ATP for playing in the Paris Masters as part of an incentive for the top players to play all 8 Masters tournaments in a year. Djokovic had already wthdrawn from the Shanghai Masters so if he withdrew from Paris his potential $2 million bonus for winning the most Masters series titles in 2011would have been reduced to nothing. Djokovic's 2011 winnings are well above $10 million because he has won 3 Major titles and 5 Masters series titles so far. His financial haul could increase even more if he does well at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals which start on Sunday November 20th in London.

Meanwhile back in Paris, World #4 Roger Federer is the highest remaining seed left in the only Masters tournament he has never won in his long storied career. He will face Tomas Berdych (who eliminated World #3 Andy Murray) in one semifinal while Isner and Tsonga face off in the other. A Federer-Tsonga final on Sunday in Paris would be an incredible moment.

Murray Routs Young To Win 19th ATP Title

AFP PHOTO / Pornchai KITTIWONGSAKUL

World #4 Andy Murray of Great Britain dismantled American youngster Donald Young 6-2 6-0 to win his 19th ATP Tour title of his career at the PTT Thailand Open. It was Young's first ATP Tour final of the year (and career) but his opponent's 4th of the year and 29th of his career.

Murray lost the  2011 Australian Open final to Novak Djokovic but won the Cincinnati Masters title after the Serbian retired and the Queen's Club final against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga on grass. The win today was Murray's 3rd title of the year.

Djokovic's Body Fails Him

In last week's Davis Cup matches, World #1 Novak Djokovic was unable to carry his team to victory, unlike last year. Djokovic retired from Serbia's semi-final tie with Argentina, allowing the South American country to reach another Davis Cup final. It should be interesting to see if the difference in results will have an impact on Djokovic's 2012 (or perhaps even the rest of 2011).

Argentina's Juan Martin del Potro was his country's Davis Cup hero, and they will face the indomitable Spain in the final tie in December which will of course be on red dirt in Spain, presumably Madrid. World #2 Rafael Nadal, who Djokovic has beaten in 6 very important finals this year so far, was devastatingly effective against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Richard Gasquet, serving up a bagel set in each of his straight set thrashings of the French players.

World #3 Roger Federer boarded a plane to Australia a mere hours after his heart-wrenching loss to Djokovic in the U.S. Open semifinals (up two match points for the second consecutive year) and to try and get Switzerland back into the Davis Cup World Group (and confirm his eligibility for next year's London Olympics. Switzerland was able to win their tie 3-2 with Federer contributing wins over Bernard Tomic and Lleyton Hewit and then teaming up with Stanislas Wawrinka to lose a tight doubles match against Hewitt and Chris Guccione. Wawrinka became the star for the Swiss team when he won a 5-set match against Hewitt 6-3 (after the match was suspended for darkness at 5-3!) to clinch the win for the Swiss and eliminate the Australians.

It will be interesting to see what impact, if any, these Davis Cup results have on the 2012 Grand Slam results (and the 2012 London Olympics).

US OPEN 2011: Men's Semifinals Preview

The Fabulous Four meet again:
Djokovic (1) v Federer (3), Nadal (2) v Murray (4)

This year I correctly predicted 3 of 4 men's quarterfinals and 2 of 4 women's quarterfinals. Here are my predictions for the men's semifinals, with the women's semifinals preview also available. Last year I correctly predicted 2 of 2 women's semifinals and 2 of 2 men's semifinals.

Novak Djokovic SRB (1) v. Roger Federer SUI (3). This is of course a repeat of last year's instant classic Men's semifinal won by Djokovic after saving 2 consecutive match points in the 5th set. The question is, will this year's result be the same as last year's? Arguably, Djokovic is playing much better now than he did then, but so is Federer. (But clearly Djokovic's improvement over 2010 is larger than Federer's.) Is the fact that Federer is one year older (and now over 30, playing someone who is 24) more significant than the fact that he is the only player to have beaten Djokovic in a best of 5 set match all year? Or is the Serb's juggernaut record of 62-2 for the year more salient? Amazingly, Federer and Djokovic have met during the last weekend of the US Open for the last 5 years and Federer is 3-1 so far (including one final, in 2007). In fact, the Swiss great leads their career head-to-head 14-9, but has lost three times to Djokovic on hard courts this year (including the 2011 Australian Open semifinal where Federer was defending champion). In New York, Federer has actually had the toughest draw of the Top 4 players, facing Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (11) and Marin Cilic (27). Djokovic has had a much easier time with two retirements in his first 5 rounds and a double-bagel match.  Djokovic's competition has been Nikolay Davydenko, Aleksandr Dolgopolov and an inspired Janko Tipsarevic. Interestingly, his matches have gotten tighter (in the score) as the tournament progresses, while Federer has basically played at the level he needs to win, relative to whoever is on the other side of the net. As most readers know, I am a decided Federer fan and when I started this write-up I intended to make a clear call for The Greatest Of All Time. I'm convinced he can win this match, but I am unsure as to whether he will. Doing the research for this piece has shown me that Djokovic is more likely to win this match, and the title. However, if Federer comes out early playing the kind of tennis he played against Tsonga and Juan Monaco I believe he can win in straight sets. Regardless, I doubt it will match last year's semifinal's shot-making and drama. MadProfessah's pick: Federer in 3 sets OR Djokovic in 4 or 5.

 Andy Murray GBR (4) v. Rafael Nadal ESP (2). Nadal holds a significant 12-4 career head-to-head over Murray, including a slight 4-3 edge on hard courts. However, their more recent matches on hard courts have been very close, with the most famous being their electric 3-set thriller at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals in London in 2010, won by Nadal. In matches at the majors, Nadal leads 5-2 but at the 2010 Australian Open Murray was beating the Spaniard like a drum in the quarters when Nadal pulled the ripcord and retired from the match. However, I think what matters most is the match-up today and how they have been playing to date in New York. Nadal has had to get through Andy Roddick (21), David Nalbandian and Gilles Muller. Murray has had to get past John Isner (28), Donald Young and Feliciano Lopez (25). Really both players have had a relatively easy path to the semifinals, although Murray had to survive a 5-set scare against talented Robin Haase in the second round. The Brit is clearly starting to cement his "Fab 4" status, by making the semifinals or better of every major played in 2011(something Djokovic has also managed for the first time this year while Nadal has only done it once, in 2008 and Federer did for five consecutive years in a row from 2005 and 2009). He is showing his consistency and letting his innate talent shine through. Murray also has confidence, being one of two players to have defeated Djokovic in 2011, something Nadal hasn't done. I believe Murray is going to do something he hasn't done before (and which a lot of people don't expect him to do), and beat Nadal in a major semifinal. MadProfessah's pick: Murray in 3 or 4 sets OR Nadal in 5.

US OPEN 2011: Men's Quarterfinals & R16 Preview

Due to a complete rain out of play on Tuesday September 7 the men's draw has been thrown into disarray. Because the US Open is the only major which does not have a day off between the semifinals and final, losing a day in which quarterfinals were supposed to be played complicates things dramatically.

Last year I correctly predicted 4 of 4 2010 men's quarterfinals and 4 of 4 2010 women's quarterfinals.
My predictions for the 2011 women's quarterfinals are also available. Below are my predictions for the two of the 2011 men's quarterfinals hat are set (and four of the Round of 16 matches).

The plan for today, Day 10 of the 2011 US Open, is to both finish off playing the last four round of 16 matches (which just happens to feature three American players: John Isner, Donald Young and Andy Roddick) AND the first two men's quarterfinals, on the same day.

Novak Djokovic SRB (1) v. Janko Tipsarevic SRB (20). The World #1 has only lost two matches all year long, and is having one of the all-time great seasons, with a record of 61 win, 9 tournament titles (including 2 majors). It's true that Djokovic almost lost his first set of the tournament in difficult conditions against the funky game of Aleksandr Dologopolov but that does not reflect any diminution in his powers. Tipsarevic is a player whose game Djokovic knows well, since they are from the same country and are fellow Davis Cup team members. Tipsarevic is a very smart player and knows how to be dangerous but it is very doubtful he can end Djokovic's streak in his very first major quarterfinal appearance unless Novak is having a very very bad day. PREDICTION: Djokovic.


 Roger Federer SUI (3) v. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga FRA (11). This is the best potential quarterfinal match up and should probably be the best match of this action-packed day. Federer is in his jaw-dropping 30th consecutive major quarterfinal while Tsonga is in his 6th quarterfinal of his career, and his first in New York City, a major which Federer has won more times (5) than Tsonga has been in the draw (4). Because of his injuries and absences from the sport Federer and Tsonga have only met 7 times, 4 of which have come this year, with 2 wins each. However, Tsonga has won the last two times they played, including an amazing result at Wimbledon where he came from 2-sets down to beat Roger in 5, the first time ANYONE had ever done that at a major tournament, let alone on Roger's best surface of grass (which is probably also Tsonga's best surface). So clearly Tsonga now does have the game to beat Roger and can do it if he is playing his best while Roger is not. Happily for Federer, the Swiss showed that he still has some of his best tennis left in him when he dismantled Juan Monaco 6-1 6-2 6-0 in a late-night match prior to Tuesday's deluge. Federer also enjoys a challenge, as evidenced by his glee in handling Djokovic his first loss of the year in Paris to end the Serb's undefeated season. I believe tonight's match will be very close, almost definitely 4 or 5 sets, with Federer coming through for a rematch with Djokovic in the semifinals on Saturday. PREDICTION: Federer.


The following fourth round matches are also being completed today.

Gilles Simon FRA (12) v. John Isner USA (28). For the second round in a row French counterpuncher Simon is taking on a giant, huge serving player. Simon was able to dismiss 6'6" 2009 US Open champion Juan Martin del Potro in four sets on Sunday (which I watched from the fourth row courside in Armstrong) while 6'9" John Isner was able to overcome stiff resistance from speedy Alex Bogomolov, Jr. Simon is a much better player than Bogomolov and unless Isner plays very well, he will face the same fate as Del Potro.This is the match where Isner needs to prove he is not just (in the words of Roger Federer, about another huge-serving American) "a great server" but a great player. Having also seen Isner play close up (from first row courtside in Armstrong) I would say he is not yet a great player, though he is a great competitor. That might be enough against the Frenchman, but I doubt it. PREDICTION: Simon.


Donald Young USA v. Andy Murray GBR (4). Amazingly, the young African American phenom has a win this year over a player named Andy Murray. However, that Andy Murray was recovering from his 3rd consecutive major final loss and is not the same player who handed new World #1 Novak Djokovic only his second loss of the season a few short weeks ago in Cincinnati. Young has finally lived up to his potential to reach the last 16 of a major tournament for the first time, beating 2 seeded players Juan Ignacio Chela (24) and Stanislas Wawrinka (14). By reaching the 4th round Young will receive the largest paycheck of his career. Hopefully he uses it wisely to invest in his game so that his 2011 US Open results are just the beginning of good results and not a fluke. PREDICTION: Murray.


David Ferrer ESP (5) v. Andy Roddick USA (21). This is the toughest match for me to predict in this round. I have not been that impressed with Roddick'splay and I haven't seen a single point of Ferrer's. But I know the Spaniard is always a rough customer, and against Roddick he leads their career head-to-head 5-3 including two crucial Davis Cup wins for Spain over USA (one from 2011). Presumably, Roddick will try and turn this encounter into a home court advantage Davis Cup match as well, but can his 29-year-old game match up to Ferrer's feistiness? PREDICTION: Ferrer.


Gilles Muller LUX v. Rafael Nadal ESP (2). Nadal will be interested in making a statement about his fitness after the world saw him cramping up after a press conference after his last match. Muller will be lucky to win a handful of games in each of the three sets played. PREDICTION: Nadal.

US OPEN 2011: DAY 6 Recap (What I Saw)

Italian tennis player Fabio Fognini, practicing shirtless on
the outer courts (photo credit: Ron Buckmire)

So, yes I was at the US Open yesterday. I had a grounds pass, so I was just walking around when I saw this incredibly hot guy, hitting balls, shirtless. Who did it turn out to be? None other than Italian stallion Fabio Fognini, who we last saw withdrawing from a quarterfinal match with Novak Djokovic at this year's french Open (and some say giving the Serbian 5 days off so that he then lost his first match of the year to Roger Federer).

Anyway, it was way out on Court 10 with some unknown female junior practicing with her coach on Court 9 next door. Fabio was hitting balls with his coach and playing some points with his doubles partner, Simone Bolelli (who is also gorgeous, but sadly was not shirtless). I was literally less than 10 feet from the players. The above picture was taken seconds before Fognini threw his racket into his bag and complained to his coach about his playing. There was quite a crowd around but almost nobody knew who the players were, except that they were speaking Italian. I recognized Fognini immediately and later figured out it was Bolelli he was hitting with. Leaving the court dazed, I literally walked into 80-year-old(?) Nick Bolleteri (watch where ya going, kid!) as he dashed off to another press interview I guess.

Oh, yeah what about the tennis?

I don't have more money than sense, so I didn't see the Serena Williams - Victoria Azarenka match in Ashe stadium, but you could literally hear it all over the grounds. Ashe is so big so that unless you are willing to spend 3 figures, you are better off watching the match on television. Bizarrely, the big screens around the grounds were mostly showing Mardy Fish's blase' dismissal of South African beanstalk Kevin Anderson in 3 sets. There was a huge line to get into Grand Stand to see the 3rd round match between Juan Monaco and Tommy Haas. Why, you ask? Because next on that court was Fernando Verdasco playing Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and there are no assigned seats. First come, first served! About 5 thousand people sat patiently through Haas hitting some 71 unforced errors to lose to Roger Federer's next victim in order to experience the magic of Tsonga-Verdasco. Sadly, we didn't get to witness repeat magic of last year's incredible Verdasco-Ferrer match (with one of the greatest match points of all time). This time, Tsonga was just too good for 'Nando on the day. The Frenchman was routinely hitting serves into the 130s at will and showing incredible defensive skills. Still even with a scoreline of 6-3 7-5 6-4 it was two hours that were well worth the price of admission. I was in the 2nd courtside row, close enough to Tsonga I could see what color underwear he was wearing (brightly colored boxers). It was quite a treat to see two once and future Top 10 player in such a small stadium. I know there's a lot of hype about Mardy, but I suspect there's going to be another Federer-Tsonga grand slam quarterfinal. Surely he can't beat the Swiss great three times in a row?

Djokovic Wins 9th Title; Serena Wins 2nd Consecutive

As I predicted yesterday, Novak Djokovic and Serena Williams won their final matches to win their respective Canadian hardcourt titles this weekend. Djokovic beat Jo-Wilfried Tsonga to reach the final and Serena dispatched Victoria Azarenka.

Serena defeated Samantha Stosur 6-4 6-2 to win her 39th career title and her 2nd in 3 weeks following her 49-week absence from the sport following her 13th major title win at the 2010 Wimbledon Championships. She was unseeded in Toronto because she was ranked #80 in the world, and is projected to be World #31 on Monday. The US Open, the last major of the year, begins in two weeks.

Djokovic is having a season for the ages. He won his 9th title by beating Mardy Fish 6-2 3-6 6-4 and has lost only once (to Roger Federer) in 54 matches, an incredible record of 53-1 for the year (and he should really get credit for a walk-over versus Fabio Fognini in Paris). Fish did well to win a set off of the Serbian, which just goes to show well the American is playing, having reached his 3rd consecutive final in the North American hardcourt summer season.

2 Great Semis: Serena v Azarenka, Djokovic v Tsonga

Getty

AP

The US Open Series continues in Canada this week with the men playing in Montreal and the women in Toronto (the two tournaments alternate between the two major cities every year). In Toronto, Serena Williams is the last big name standing (after Sharapova, Li Na, Clijsters and Bartoli all lost early); she survived a scare from go-for-broke Lucie Safarova to win 4-6 6-3 6-2 in 2 hours 4 minutes to book a place in the semifinals against Victoria Azarenka. The other semifinal will be Aggie Radwanska versus 2010 French Open finalist Sam Stosur.

On the men's side, World #1 Novak Djokovic continues to play at a different, superior level from the rest of the field, demolishing an in-form Gael Monfils 6-1 6-2 to set up a semifinal with one of the few players on the tour who own a head-to-head advantage over him, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. Earlier in the week, Murray, Nadal, Federer and Del Potro all lost. Djokovic and Tsonga last met in the Wimbledon semifinals, where they played the most entertaining match of the tournament before Djokovic won in 4 sets. Curiously, both in that tournament and in this one, Tsonga had beaten Roger Federer in an earlier round. Tsonga leads the head-to-head 5-3 but lost their most important match-up, the 2008 Australian Open final.

They should both be two excellent matches, but I predict Serena and Djokovic will be left standing and will probably win their respective tournaments on the way to the 2011 US Open (which I just got tickets to for 3rd and 4th round action!)