Lots of play today at the Shanghai Masters. It's the second round and the top seeds were mostly in action today. It's not unusual for players that do well in a previous tournament to fade in the next one. Raonic and Nishikori were finalists in the Japan Open last week. Nishikori lost to Querrey in
2012 hasn't been the same kind of year that 2011 was to Novak Djokovic. Djokovic hasn't won as many tournaments. He hasn't won as many Slams. But one plus out of this is his health. Historically, Djokovic plays pretty well after the US Open. Last year, however, the toll of winning so much, many of
The Australian Open used to be the one tournament where you'd have surprise finalists. Maybe the Christmas holidays lead many a pro to complacency. Throughout the early 2000s, you had finalists like Schuttler, Clement, and Fernando Gonzalez. These are all solid players, but compared to other Slams, they are not the best of the best.
Some early round news before we head to today's quarterfinals. Many of last week's players that did well in Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok faded this week showing how hard it is for players outside the top few to maintain levels of excellence from week to week. Often, a player ranked in the teens who wins
Ivan Lendl had it rough. When he started, he was the new kid on the block. There was Connors. There was Borg. And although he and McEnroe were quite close in age, McEnroe matured earlier, so there was McEnroe. Lendl played well starting about 1981 when he reached the French Open final. He would make
Gilles Simon is a peculiar player for a high-level tennis player. Male tennis players have a certain machismo when they play tennis. Perhaps no one embodies this more than players like Fernando Verdasco or Fernando Gonzalez. These two would rather hit you off the court with big shots than to win playing finesse. Some players,
The main ATP site keeps track of two races. The rankings, as they stand now, which include one year of ranking points, and the rankings starting from January 1. Despite Roger Federer being number 1, Novak Djokovic has a healthy lead in the 2012 rankings. Novak Djokovic (9910) Roger Federer (8905) Rafael Nadal (6840) Andy
1936. Before World War 2. 76 years. That was the last time a British male won a singles Slam is so long ago that the world was a different place then. No cell phones, no computers. Plane travel was a rarity. Players would take boat trips to play Slams at other venues. People worried about
Let's start quickly. My prediction is for Novak Djokovic to win. Many people who make predictions base it on who they like or often who they dislike. I'm basing the selection primarily on form. Let's take a look at the matches that Djokovic has played so far: d. Lorenzi, 61 60 61 d. Dutra da
What a difference a day makes. Yesterday, not only was there rain, there was wind. The wind was so severe that it altered how both semis were played. In the first semi, Murray dealt with the wind better. In second, it was David Ferrer. Ferrer ended up 2 breaks and 5-2, ready to serve for
