There has been a lot of speculation that this will be the year (again) of Novak Djokovic or even a quickly improving, Lendl-coached Andy Murray. But Melbourne is about to prove the doubters wrong.
Rafael Nadal has had a mixed start to the season, showing some good form in the early rounds in Qatar before succumbing to a fired up Monfils in the semis. He has complained of a sore shoulder, and admitted to a flagging state of mental readiness in the latter part of 2011.
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But the Davis Cup gave him an injection of fun and morale, and he has less to defend or prove in the early stages of 2011.
I expect to see him coming out firing and surprise many by reaching the final.
Roger Federer is now well past 30, and has not won a Grand Slam for over a year. Unusual indeed, but he looked great at the end of last year, and once again, can come out with little to prove and everything to play for.
I pick him to make semis, and if he can make it past whoever the draw throws at him there (Nadal, Djokovic or Murray probably) then I could see him claiming the title.
Draw is coming Friday 13th, looking forward to it and the ensuing action!
If their hopes ever faded given the recent form of Djokovic and Murray, surely Rafa and Roger should be pleased with the draws handed to them for the US Open.
The US Open tennis 2011 mens singles draw is out, and here are the potential opponents (based on seed/form) that our two champions would have to beat before meeting each other in an eventual final:
Rafael Nadal:
1st Round: Andrey Golubev
2nd Round: Nicolas Mahut
3rd Round: Ivan Ljubicic
4th Round: Jurgen Melzer
Quarterfinal: David Ferrer
Semifinal: Andy Murray
Final: Novak Djokovic or Roger Federer
Roger Federer:
1st Round: Santiago Giraldo
2nd Round: Thomaz Bellucci
3rd Round: Marin Cilic
4th Round: Viktor Troicki
Quarterfinal: Mardy Fish
Semifinal: Novak Djokovic
Final: Rafael Nadal
Given their early exits in Montreal, is it premature to hope that Nadal and Federer can make the final in Cincinnati?
Well the draw at least allows for this possibility, though Nadal and Federer have some difficult matches to win if they are to progress so far. Here are their potential partners (based on seed/form):
Rafael Nadal:
2nd Round: Guillermo Garcia-Lopez
3rd Round: Fernando Verdasco
Quarterfinal: Mardy Fish
Semifinal: Andy Murray
Final: Novak Djokovic
Roger Federer:
2nd Round: Juan Martin Del Potro
3rd Round: Viktor Troicki
Quarterfinal: Tomas Berdych
Semifinal: Novak Djokovic
Final: Rafael Nadal
Novak Djokovic has a better draw, let’s hope that he is drained from all that tennis at Montreal . He’ll probably have to beat Gael Monfils to reach that potential semifinal against Roger Federer.
UPDATE – Results – Federer beat Pospisil 7-5, 6-3, but Nadal was upset by Dodig 1-6, 7-6, 7-6 and crashes out of the tournament
Roger Federer will be hoping to belatedly celebrate his 30th birthday by beating the 21 year old Canadian, Vasek Pospisil who he will play for the first time.
Rafael Nadal will play Ivan Dodig, ranked 41 in the world. The Croatian has been in good form lately, and is near his all time high ranking having reached the semifinals in Barcelona where he was beaten by Rafa in their only previous encounter.
Below are the best links for free TV streams over internet that we could find in our wide scan and evaluation of various sources. We do our best to check these and update these as the games start, so do hit refresh in your browser from time to time.
Montreal – Rogers Cup – Live TV Streams (Free)
Roger Federer vs Vasek Pospisil, Wednesday, 12 midday local time (4pm GMT) Rafael Nadal vs Ivan Dodig, Wednesday, not before 5:30pm (9:30pm GMT)
The Montreal main draw starts today, but as second and third seeds respectively, Nadal and Federer have a bye for the first round and so will have their first matches on Wednesday.
Rafa has decided again to get some extra time on the court by playing doubles, and will join his good friend Marc Lopez against Tomas Berdych and Florian Mayer today.
Below are the best links for free TV streams over internet that we could find in our wide scan and evaluation of various sources. We do our best to check these and update these as the games start, so do hit refresh in your browser from time to time.
Montreal – Rogers Cup – Live TV Streams (Free)
Rafael Nadal and Marc Lopez vs Tomas Berdych and Florian Mayer, Monday, fifth match of the day – probably after 6pm local time (10pm GMT)
Federer and Nadal must be secretly smiling as they see Novak Djokovic getting a very tough draw in Montreal
The draw is out, and if Nadal and Federer are to meet, it would be in the final – however a lot stands in their way. Here are their potential partners (based on seed/form):
Rafael Nadal:
2nd Round: Ivan Dodig
3rd Round: Fernando Verdasco
Quarterfinal: Tomas Berdych
Semifinal: Andy Murray
Final: Novak Djokovic
Roger Federer:
2nd Round: Juan Ignacio Chela
3rd Round: Jo-Wilfried Tsonga
Quarterfinal: Nicolas Almagro
Semifinal: Novak Djokovic
Final: Rafael Nadal
Novak Djokovic on the other hand faces a very tough run – he will probably have to overcome Nikolay Davydenko, Juan Martin del Potro, Gael Monfils, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal if he is to win the title. Wow!
Here are the likely (my guesses by seeds and form) opponents that each will have to beat before meeting each other in the final:
Rafael Nadal:
First Round: Michael Russell Second Round: Ryan Sweeting Third Round: Milos Raonic Fourth Round: Juan Martin del Potro Quarter Finals: Tomas Berdych Semi Finals: Andy Murray Finals: Novak Djokovic or Roger Federer
Roger Federer:
First Round: Mikhail Kukushkin Second Round: Adrian Mannarino Third Round: David Nalbandian Fourth Round: Nicolas Almagro Quarter Finals: David Ferrer Semi Finals: Novak Djokovic Finals: Rafael Nadal or Andy Murray
Wimbledon seeds announced, draw out today, Friday.
What are the Wimbledon seedings for 2011? Rafa is seeded first for the first time in his career (the seeding does not follow ATP rankings, but adjusts for recent performance on grass). Roger starts at No. 3 – here is the top ten:
1) Rafael Nadal (ESP)
2) Novak Djokovic (SRB) 3) Roger Federer (SUI)
4) Andy Murray (GBR)
5) Robin Soderling (SWE)
6) Tomas Berdych (CZE)
7) David Ferrer (ESP)
8 ) Andy Roddick (USA)
9)Gael Monfils (FRA)
10) Mardy Fish (USA)
The French Open draw is out and Nadal shares one side of the draw with Murray, while Federer and Djokovic are on the other half.
So that’s got to be good news for Rafa, tougher for Roger, and great news for those of us wanting to see the very best tennis in Paris.
Rafa’s biggest hurdles along the way could be Davydenko in the third round, followed by Verdasco and Soderling in a possible replay of the famous quarterfinal of two years ago when the Swede upset Nadal.
Federer on the other hand has a potential banana skin first up in Feliciano Lopez but then easier matches and possibly Wawrinka and Ferrer later in the draw.
Here is who I pick Roger and Rafa will have to face if they are to meet in the final in two weeks time:
Rafael Nadal potential opponents:
First Round: John Isner Second Round: Pablo Andujar Third Round: Nikolay Davydenko Fourth Round: Fernando Verdasco Quarterfinal: Robin Soderling Semifinal: Andy Murray Final: Novak Djokovic or Roger Federer
Roger Federer potential opponents:
First Round: Feliciano Lopez Second Round: Vincent Millot Third Round: Janko Tipsarevic Fourth Round: Stanislas Wawrinka Quarterfinal: David Ferrer Semifinal: Novak Djokovic Final: Rafael Nadal
If all goes to seed we are in for a scintillating last four. Going to be a lot of fun!
The French Open first round kicks off on Sunday May 22nd, and the seedings have already been announced (following the ATP rankings). The draw will come out today and be available here as soon as it is released.
Rafael Nadal will be looking at notching up his sixth Roland Garros title, to equal Bjorn Borg at the very top of the clay major mountain.
He will face tough competition though, most obviously from the seemingly unbeatable Novak Djokovic, but also let’s not count out Roger Federer, Andy Murray and Robin Soderling as possible winners.
According to the tournament website, Rafa practiced yesterday and his back was playing up a little, and he was less than happy with the way he was hitting the ball – let’s hope that the next 3-4 days training and rest will get him in shape.
Roger Federer has been putting in the hours – training on the main court since Monday and feeling comfortable with the surface and new balls. He must benefit from the lighter playing schedule than his other top four colleagues who played tough matches into the semifinal weekend at Rome last week.
This must be the most open Roland Garros in many years.
Who is your pick? I’m of course picking Rafa in the final over Nole, in five sets .
There has been a lot of speculation that this will be the year (again) of Novak Djokovic or even a quickly improving, Lendl-coached Andy Murray. But Melbourne is about to prove the doubters wrong.
. He’ll probably have to beat Gael Monfils to reach that potential semifinal against Roger Federer.
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