Premier League - 6th December 2014

In this weekend Premier league games, Newcastle United beat Chelsea by two goals to one. This was unbelievable win for Newcastle and it ended Chelsea unbeaten run. 

A lot of people including me had already given Chelsea the title, so this loss was a reminder that anything can happen the premiership. 

Stoke City beat Arsenal by three goals to two and it was another embarrassing loss for Arsenal. 

I have no idea why Arsene Wenger thought it was wise to play Olivier Giroud after he has only just come back from injury. 

However Arsenal biggest problem is the back four. I think it's the worse back four that Arsenal has ever had. Which means we now have to score at least three goals to be assured of a win. 

Manchester United beat Crystal Palace by two goals to nil and this win has helped them back into the top four.

It was only a matter time before Manchester United started performing and after all they spent close to hundred million pounds on players.

Manchester City beat Everton by one goal to nil and this win closed the gap between them and Chelsea to three points. 

Champions League - 25th/26th November 2014

In this weeks Champions League Manchester City beat Bayern Munich three goals to two. It was an amazing match and I have to admit part of me wanted Manchester City win. 

When they scored the last minute winner I was happy for them. I guess from a British prespective it is quite nice to have all the British teams in the knock out stages. 

Chelsea won by five goals to nil which was a good win. Ok they beat a team that most of have never heard of but a win is a win especially in the lucrative Champions League. 

Liverpool are really making a meal of qualifying for the knockout stages. They drew two all to a team most of have never heard of. It won't be long before some fans start banging the drum for Brendan Rogers. 

Arsenal beat Brussia Dortumand two goals to nil and it was a much needed win. Most importantly this win meant that Arsenal qualified for the next round. 

Arsene Wenger used the 4-4-2 formation which he has not used for like ten years. He started up front with Ya Ya Sanogo who got the first goal. 

I am hoping that Arsene will return to the 4-4-2 formation and ditch this 4-5-1 formation he has been using. 

Hopefully now that Arsenal have qualified for the second round they now focus on the premiership. 

Premiership 22nd/23rd November 2014

In last weekend premiership games Chelsea beat West Bromwich Albion by two goals to nil. It was another good win for Chelsea who cannot stop winning! 

The premiership is really theres is to lose and I suspect if they are still leading by Christmas then it will be difficult to see them not winning title. 

Manchester City beat Swansea City  by two goals to one and this was good win as they came from behind to win this match and they still have every chance of winning the premiership. 

Manchester United beat Arsenal by two goals to one and it was embarrasing loss for Arsenal. 

The makeshift defence struggled to contain Manchester United and what compounded Arsenal embarrassment was it Manchester United first away win all season. 

Arsene Wenger insistence on play 4-5-1- formation is doing more damage than good that Olivier Giroud came off the bench to at least score a goal. 

Overall poor Arsenal performance and it seems like Manchester United have played themselves back into form. 

Premiership 8th and 9th November 2014

In this weekend football Swansea beat Arsenal by two goals to one. It was a pretty inept performance by Arsenal. I felt bad for Alexis Sanchez who scored an amazing goal and ended up on the losing side.

Arsene Wenger really needs to get a grip of the back four as Nacho Monreal is not and centre back and if he continues to play him in that position it could get even worse for Arsenal 

Chelsea beat Liverpool by two goals to one and this was another good win for Chelsea. 

Liverpool now seem to be in a terminal decline and if they don't start stringing some results together there season will be over very quickly. 

Manchester United beat Crystal Palace by a goal to nil. Man U fans will be relieved to get this win under their belt.

 

But this win has done little to improve their standing in the league. But I am sure it will be welcome relief for the players and fans. 

Man City drew two all with Queens Park Rangers and this was a bit of surprise. I really did not expect Queens Park Rangers to get anything out of this match. But it's one point that QPR needed. 

Man City they should really should be winning these kind of matches. If they want to retain the title they won last season. 

Stoke City beat Tottenham by two goals to one and Tottenham are languishing in the bottom part of the table. 

They too cannot seem to string results together and they need to turn it around quickly or before they know it they will be fighting relegation. 

Premiership 1st/2nd November 2014

Arsenal beat Burnley by three goals to nil. The man of the match Alexis Sanchez he has played really well in the last few games. 

It was probably Arsenal most clinical win in a while and good thing was that Arsenal did not concede in any goals. 

Manchester City beat Manchester United by one goal to nil in the Manchester derby and this was always going to be difficult match for Manchester United who have had their worst start to season in over twenty years. 

Manchester City were fortunate to also have a man advantage as Chris Smalling was sent off. 

Newcastle beat Liverpool by a goal to nil and this was bad loss for Liverpool after doing so well last year. This season has been nothing more than a damp squib. 

Chelsea beat Queens Park Rangers by two goals to one and Chelsea excellent start continues and are leading the premiership by five points. Now they are looking pretty unbeatable. 

Final - WTA Finals - Singapore

In yesterday finals at the WTA finals Serena Williams beat Simona Halep straight sets. 

The first set was reasonably competitive and they traded breaks early on but once the match settled down Serena went on to win the first set and bagled Simona in the second set.

This came after Simona beat Serena very comfortably in the Round Robin stages and it had the world tennis media excited that Simona had ended Serena winning streak. 

Serena regrouped and became more focused and this I am sure helped to beat Simona in the final and retain her title. 

Semi-finals - WTA Finals - Singapore

In the semi finals of the WTA finals Simona Halep beat Agnieszka Radwanska in straight sets. 

To be fair Aga was very fortunate to get out of the Round Robin stage with just one win. 

So it was always going to be a tough ask to expect Aga to beat an in form Simona Halep. It was a routine win for Simona where she will face Serena Williams. 

Serena Williams beat her new best friend Caroline Wozniacki in three sets. It was a tops turvy match  and it was the last couple points of the in tiebreak that Serena was able to take control and win the third set and the match. 

I am not sure that being Serena's new best friend is helping Caroline who has a difficult year both personally and professionally. 

But in the latter part of the season Caroline improved and made the final of the US Open where she was beaten by Serena. 

Caroline is still young I can now see her winning a couple of Grand Slams in the next couple of years. 

Serena has so far had an indifferent tournament and hopefully this win will inspire her to play better tennis in the final. 

Premiership - 25th - 26th October 2014

In this weekend Premiership games, Arsenal beat Sunderland by two goals to nil. To be fair it would have been one hell of shock if the result had been any different. 

It's really good to see Alexis Sanchez playing well and scoring two goals. it has been a while since the defence has kept a clean sheet that was nice to see. 

My main concern is that Arsene Wenger is still leaving some of our best players on the bench and if he is not careful when the next transfer window opens again the likes of Lukas Polodski will be off. 

The shock result of the weekend was West Ham beating Manchester City. It was a game that Manchester City will probably regret losing but that loss helped Arsenal to stay in to touch the top four. 

Liverpool had a goal less draw with Hull City and this was the season that their fans really believed something could happen so far it has been nothing short of pitiful. 

Manchester United and Chelsea drew one all. This was good result for the chasing pack because had Chelsea won that game they would it would have made it a real uphill task to catch them.

Premiership - 18th October 2014

So the premiership returned this weekend and Arsenal drew two all with Hull City.

 This was one match I expected Arsenal to win but as I said preseason, Arsene Wenger failure to strengthen the defense will be very costly. 

To be fair Arsenal were lucky to come out with one point after a ninety minute equaliser curtesy of Danny Welbeck. But with all the talent that Arsenal had on the pitch getting a draw seems quite ridiculous.

Elsewhere Manchester City hammered Tottenham by four goals to one. This was always going to be a tough away game  for Tottenham so I was not too surprised by the score line.

Chelsea beat Crystal Palace by two goals to one and I thought Crystal Palace really held their own and it is shame there efforts went unrewarded. 

Premiership 4th/5th October 2014

In last weekends premiership games Chelsea beat Arsenal by two goals to nil. It was a shocking performance by Arsenal. 

Upfront something seemed to be lacking and the typical Arsenal way of trying to walk the ball in the back of the net was evident. 

However I question why Arsene Wenger chose to drop Alex Oxlade Chamberlain to the bench especially as he had played well in the previous European game. 

Chelsea were not brilliant but they did what they needed to do to secure the three points. 

Manchester United beat Everton by two goals to one and Everton where on unlucky if they had converted the penalty then it may have ended differently. 

I am not surprised Manchester United have started stringing results together. After all the assembled a hundred million pounds team. 

They done have to have worry about European games and they can focus on winning the premiership. 

Manchester City also got a good win as they beat Aston Villa by two goals nil. Manchester City continue to look impressive as they want to defend and win their title back.

Premiership - 27th September 2014

In this weekend Premiership games Arsenal drew one all with Tottenham Hotspurs. This was a very winnable match for Arsenal but somehow it did not happen. 

As soon as I saw the line up I knew it was going to be struggle. Arsene Wenger has a bad habit of putting Arsenal's best players on the bench and then bringing them on when it is too late and he did exactly that in this match so it was two dropped points for Arsenal. 

Liverpool drew one all with Everton and it was probabl a fair result but for either of these teams it does not really help their title aspirations. 

Liverpool did incredibly well last season and it was always going to be interesting to see if they could one better and win the title. But so far they have been very inconsistent. 

Chelsea beat Aston Villa by three goals to nil and they are back to their winning ways after last weeks draw with Manchester CityManchester City who beat  Hull City by four goals to two and they had to come back from two goals to nil. 

Manchester United also had a better weekend they beat West Ham by two goals to one. It would have been an excellent win if Wayne Rooney had not got sent off. 

But I am sure Luis Van Gaal feels like very relieved Man just to get this win under his belt. 

Premiership league - 20th - 21st September 2014

In last weekend's premiership games Arsenal beat Aston Villa by three goals to nil and it was a game that Arsenal even at a this stage every point is going is going to matter. 

Arsenal played much better than previous weeks and their passing game was much better. 

Elsewhere West Ham beat Liverpool beat by three goals to one. It was definitely a surprise result I did not see that coming at all. 

Manchester City drew one all to Chelsea and it was another surprise result. Chelsea had been doing so well and this was their first dropped points. 

In another shock result Leicester beat Manchester United by five goals to three. This was a surprise of the weekend for me as I did not see how Leicester could beat Manchester United let alone by two clear goals. 

This does now add pressure on Luis Van Gaal to get results because anymore bad results like that and tenure at Manchester United could be a short one. 

Premier League -13th September 2014

In the weekend premiership fixtures Arsenal drew two all with Manchester City. This was after Arsenal threw away two to one goal lead. 

Arsenal have got a new back four that have not completely gelled yet and hence why they have been conceding some silly goals. 

Chelsea beat Swansea City by four goals to two and it was a good win for Chelsea.

 Chelsea have got a really strong team with good players in each position and this will help to them to have a real chance of winning the premiership.

The surprise of the weekend was Liverpool losing by one goal to nil to Aston Villa. 

I did not see Aston Villa beating Liverpool if anything I thought that Liverpool where going to hammer Aston Villa.

 

Manchester United beat Queens Park Rangers by four goals to nil. This was a much needed win for Manchester United as they needed this win just to be in the top ten. 

I still think they are going to have a tough year and it's not going to be easy for Luis Van Gaal to emulate Sir Alex Ferguson . 

Day Fifteen - US Open

Day fifteen of the US Open and Marin Cilic beat Kei Nishikori in straight sets and it was a pretty routine win for Marin. 

Kei was unable to play the kind the tennis he had played in previous rounds and seemed a little overwhelmed by the occasion. 

Marin was able to hold his nerve and win the key the points and match. This win will change Marin's life as he has always been a good player but did not have any trophies to show for it. 

So I am sure he is hoping that  now he has won his Grand Slam that he will be able to win more Grand Slams in 2015. 

Day fourteen - US Open

Day fourteen at the US Open and the ladies final day and Serena Williams beat Caroline Wozniacki in straight sets.  

This was a pretty routine win for Serena however I was expecting a bit more from Caroline.

But she seemed a little overwhelmed by the occasion and did not really look like she had the game to trouble Serena. 

For Caroline she probably wished she had been a little more competitive and given a better account of herself. 

For Serena everything went according to plan and she was able to win her eighteen Grand Slam. She has now tied with Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova. 

So now the pressure is off and I hope she will be get back to playing free flowing tennis that I loved about her game. 

Day thirteen - US Open

Day thirteen of the US Open and it is men's semi finals day and Kei Nishikori beat Novak Djokovic in four sets to make to the final. 

This was definitely a totally unexpected win and somehow I kept thinking that Novak would come back but the come back never came. Kei was able to win this match and get into his first Grand Slam final. 

In the second semi final Marin Cilic beat Roger Federer in straight sets. It was another huge surprise first time that in about six years that Marin has defeated Roger. 

I thought with the favourable draw that Roger had he was dead cert to at least reach the final and claim his eighteen Grand Slam title. 

However this did not happen so the final will be between Kei Nishikori and Marin Cilic and I definitely did not see either of these two making to the final. 

To be fair neither of these players player exciting tennis so let's just hope the final is not boring. 

Day twelve - US Open

Day twelve at the US Open and it was ladies semi finals day. In the first semi-final Caroline Wozniacki beat Shuai Peng after Shaui retired in the second set. 

It was rather tragic way to get to the finals for Caroline but she played well and sized her opportunity. 

Second semi finals Serena Williams beat Ekaterina Makarova in straight sets and a Serena played a near perfect game of tennis to secure the win and move to the finals. 

Day eleven - US Open

Day eleven at the US Open and there two  men's quarter finals matches. Marin Cilic beat Tomas Berdych in three sets. This was big win for Marin and takes him  closer to being in the final. 

Roger Federer beat Gaels Monfils in five sets and it has been while since Roger has come back from two sets to love down to win a match. 

It was brilliant come back for Roger and only time will tell if the energy he expanded will hurt him in the later rounds. 

 

For Gaels he threw away a two sets to love lead away and it might haunt him in years to come. 

Day Ten - US Open

Day ten at the US Open and Serena Williams beat Flavia Pennetta and it was a routine win for Serena who is now into the semi finals. 

Ekaterina Makarova beat Victoria Azarenka in straight sets and it was great win for Ekaterina. Victoria is still coming back from injury and it will take time to get back into form.  

In the men's draw Kei Nishkori beat Stan Wawrinka in five sets and this a huge win for Kei against player that many including me thought Stan had an outside chance to win. 

In the other men's match Novak Djokovic beat Andy Murray in four sets and Andy his chance to take control of the match but he was unable to do so and lost the match. 

Day nine - US Open

Day nine at the US Open Shuai Peng beat Belinda Bencic in straight sets and this ended the good run that Belina had made. 

However this run that Belinda has been excellent for career and I am sure it will motivate her to work harder to get the top of the game. 

Caroline Wozniacki beat Sara Errani in straight sets and it was a very  uncomfortable for Sara and quite an embarrassing scoreline. 

In the men's draw Roger Federer beat Roberto Baustista Agut in straight sets and it was a fairly routine win for Roger against player that I have never heard off.

Like I said in my previous blog I think Roger has been a beneficiary of favourable draw and this may help him make it to at least the final. 

The surprise result of the day was Gael Monfils beating tournament favourite Grigor Dimitrov in straight sets. It was three very close sets with Gael winning the key points and the match. 

Day eight - US Open

Day eight at the US Open and Serena Williams beat Kaia Kanepi in straight sets and this was a hard fought win for Serena. Kaia made Serena work and fight for every point. 

This was a good strong win for Serena who is now in her first quarter finals of the year. 

Victoria Azarenka best Aleksandra Krunic in three sets and this was a good win for Victoria and she needs to make it to least the semi finals to ensure that she stays in the top twenty. 

In the men's draw Andy Murray beat Jo Wilfred Tsonga in straight sets and this was a good win for Andy as he lost to Jo Wilfred at Canadian Open. 

Kei Nishikori beat Milos Raonic in five sets and it was a surprise win as I was expecting Milos to make it to at least the semi-finals. 

Day seven - US Open

Day seven at the US Open and Caroline Wozniacki beat Maria Sharapova in three sets.

 This was a really good result for Caroline as I did not think she would have fire power to beat Maria.

It was a shocking result for Maria and a certainly a result that I did not see coming but Caroline has been playing for quite well for some time. 

Belinda Bencic beats Jelena Jankovic in straight sets and that this was a great win for Belinda and very much unexpected. 

Before this tournament I had not really heard of Belinda and I think it's good that she is having a strong tournament. 

But I am always little wary of players who have done nothing for the whole tennis year turn up at one a Grand Slam and all of a sudden are able to get amazing wins. 

It will be interesting to see if Belinda can go all the way in this tournament and these days with the women's draw never say never. 

In the men's draw Roger Federer beat Marcel Granollers in four sets and I really think Roger has had a good draw and surprised he dropped against Marcel. 

The surprise of the day was Giles Simon beating David Ferrer in four sets and I was not expecting David to win the title but was expecting him to get past Giles. 

US Open - Day six

Day six of the US Open and Serena Williams beat Vavara Lepchenko in straight sets and it was little more competitive than her previous round but I didn't ever see her losing this match. 

Eugenie Bouchard beat Barbora Zahlavova Strycova in three sets and this was a good win for Eugenie. 

There is a lot of hype around Eugenie but I think she does have the talent to break through and win.

At the the moment she is getting a lot of favourable draws this is really helping her cause. 

The shock of the day was Aleksandra Krunic beating Petra Kvitova in a straight sets. This was an embarrassing loss for Petra against someone I have never heard of. 

Especially now that Petra is a two time Wimbledon Grand Slam winner she should be doing a lot better. 

In the men's draw Andy Murray beat Andrey Kuznetsov in four sets and this was a good win for Andy but he definitely faces tougher opponents the later rounds. 

Jo Wilfred Tsonga beat Pablo Carreno Busta in straight sets and I would like to believe Jo Wilfred can mount a serious challenge for the title but when it comes to those big games he often found wanting. 

Milos Raonic beat Victor Estrella Burgos in three tight sets and he is quietly making is way through the draw and would not be so surprised if he ended up in the final.  

US Open - Day five

Day five at the US Open Jelena Jankovic beat Johanna Larsson in straight sets that included a bagel. 

Maria Sharapova beat Sabine Lisicki in straight sets and it was pretty much a routine and an expected win for Maria. 

But there were many shocks today, firstly Sara Errani beat Venus Williams in three sets. Sara played well when it mattered but for Venus these days winning a three set match is a real challenge and again I wonder how long she can carry on.

Mirjana Luicic Baroni beat Simona Halep in straight sets and this was an embarrassing defeat for Simona. 

As I have said in my previous blog, there seem to be a lot of hype around Simona and she does not seem to be living up to the hype.

She is a good player but she is well over ranked is more of a top twenty player than a top five player. 

Belinda Bencic beat Angelique Kerber in straight sets and this was another surprise result. Angelique has had a good summer so I was expecting her to make to at least the quarter finals. 

In the men's draw Roger Federer beat Sam Groth in straight sets and it was a pretty routine win for Roger. Roger should at the very least make to the final his side of draw of full of guys he has routinely beaten. 

Grigor Dimitrov beat Dudi Sela in straight sets and this was a good solid win and Grigor could have a very good run at this years US Open. 

US Open - Day four

Day four at the US Open and Serena Williams beat Vania King in straight sets and to be honest it was more of a practice match than a round two match. 

Serena seems to win this match by expanding little energy and made it all look very easy. 

Eugenie Bouchard beat Sorana Cirstea in three sets and it was not an easy match for Eugenie but importantly she got through it but their will be tougher matches ahead for her. 

The shock of the day for the women's draw was Karolina Pliskova beating Ana Ivanovic in straight sets. I was expecting Anna to do a lot better than this so I was surprised by this result. 

In the men's draw Novak Djokovic beat Paul-Henri Mathieu in straight set and it was a routine win for Novak who would have conserved his energy for the later rounds. 

Andy Murray beat Mattias Bachinger in straight sets and to be fair I have never heard of his opponent before but all the same it was a good strong win.

 

US Open - Day three

Day three at the US Open and Venus Williams beat Timea Bacsinszky in straight sets.

 It was a good routine win for Venus and to be fair Timea did not really pose much of the threat. So Venus did what she needed to do to win the match. 

Maria Sharapova struggled to beat Alexandra Dulgheru in three sets and  it was match that I thought Maria would breezed through so I was presently surprised when she dropped the first set. 

The shock of the day in the ladies draw was Shuai Peng beating Agnieszka Radwanska in straight sets. 

Now I knew Aga was not going to win this title but I expected her to get to at least the quarter finals so this was a surprise defeat. 

However I say that it was a surprise defeat but at the same time the kind of tennis Aga plays makes it more likely that she will get beaten in the earlier rounds. 

Joanna Larsson beat Sloane Stephens in three sets and it  was a match that I expected Sloane to win. However her game is too predictable and she needs to change fast before she drops out of the top thirty. 

In the men's draw Stan Wawrinka beat Thomas Bellucci in four sets and it was a good win for Stan. 

I am surprised he dropped a set against a player that I have never heard of I hope for is sake it was a blip and not a sign of things to come. 

Grigor Dimitrov beat Ryan Harrison in straight sets and it was a good win for Grigor who should at least make it to the quarter finals and beyond. 

English Premiership - Week two

In week two Premiership games, Arsenal came back from two nil down to draw two all with Everton.

 To be fair was a good draw as last year Everton thumped Arsenal three nil at home. So I was relieved that we where at least able to come home with a point. 

What I am not so comfortable with is Arsene Wenger team selection as I think we look vulnerable at the back and a better team will be able to exploit that. 

Manchester City beat Liverpool by three goals to one and this was a surprise result. I thought the scoreline was going to be a lot closer as Liverpool have got a title challenging squad. 

However Manchester City have a very good team and were able to score the goals when it mattered to win the match.  

Chelsea beat Leicester City by two goals to nil and this season Chelsea have added some key players to their squad but I am not entirely convinced about their defence. 

Manchester United drew one all with Sunderland and their lean spell continue it could be very tough season for Man United fans. 

Tottenham beat Queens Park Rangers by four goals to nil and it could be the start of a great season for Spurs fans. 

US Open - day two

Day two of the US open and Petra Kivitova beat Kristina Mladenovic in straight sets. Petra is somewhat back to her best and does have a realistic chance  of winning it. 

Serena Williams beat Taylor Townsend in straight sets and it was always going to be a difficult match for Taylor who has only recently started playing at the main a Grand Slam tournaments. So long term this would have been good experience for Taylor. 

The shock of the day for me was Sorana Cirstea beating Heather Watson in straight sets. I was very disappointed for Heather as it was a real chance to win a match and a round against someone she has beaten twice. 

It was a painful result for Heather, hopefully she would have learnt her lesson from this embarrassing display.  

Eugenie Bouchard beat Olga Govortsova in straight sets and it was a routine win for Eugenie who will face much tougher oppositions in the later rounds.  

In the men's draw Roger Federer beat Marinko Matosevic in straight sets and it was a fairly routine win for Federer who vying for his eighteen grand slam. 

US Open - Day one

Day one at the US Open and Venus Williams beat Kimiko Date Krumm in three sets. 

It was a tough match for Venus and if I am totally honest these days I find Venus's games painful to watch because there is little chance of her actually winning the trophy. 

I think if Venus makes it to the quarter finals then would be a very successful tournament for her. 

Maria Sharapova beat Maria Kirilenko in straight sets and this was a routine win for Maria Sharapova against Maria Kirilenko who is a former top twenty player. 

Agnieszka Radwanska got off to a great start and beat Sharon Fichman in straight sets. Aga has not had a great year so the US Open maybe her opportunity to try and win the first Grand Slam. 

Simona Halep beat Danielle Collins in three sets and Simona had to work had to come back from one set down to win the match.

Now Simona has to live up to hype she will find it a real task to win her first Grand Slam will be tough. 

In the men's draw Stan Wawrinka beat Jiri Veslet in straight sets and it was a relatively routine win for Stan. 

Novak Djokovic beat Diego Schwartzman in three sets. It was a good routine win for Novak but tougher challenges lay ahead. 

Andy Murray got off to a great start when he beat Robin Haase in straights and hopefully Andy will string consecutive wins together and at least make the semi-final. 

Preview to the US Open 2014- my take

So the US Open starts today and it is the last Grand Slam of the year. In the men my favourite Rafael Nadal has pulled out due to injury. 

I was disappointed because his style of tennis makes the men's game exciting to watch. But now Rafa is out I think that Novak Djokovic is my firm favourite to win the title. 

I would like to see Andy Murray do well but I am not quite sure if he is hungry enough to win his second US Open title.  

I think that Roger Federer and Stanislas Wawrinka are both dark horses to win this title and I suspect Roger will make it to at least the semi-finals. 

The women's draw is much more open but I would not bet against Serena Williams. 

She has not had a great grand slam year but this would be great way to end the year. 

Outside of Serena, Maria Sharapova could win her second grand slam of the year. I think Petra Kivitova has got a good draw and could do quite well. 

The dark horse to win women's title is Simona Halep and there is always a lot of hype around Simona interesting to see if she can live up to the hype. 

Another of my personal favourite is Britain's Heather Watson, Heather has never won round at senior level so hopefully this she will win a round and make it to at least the third round. 

Premier League - Opening Weekend!

So the Premiership returned this weekend and the shock of the weekend was Swansea City beating Manchester United by two goals to one. 

I do think that Manchester United will suffer at the back from the departure of both Vidic and Rio and it will take time for them to jell which could mean letting in a few more goals. 

Arsenal beat Crystal Palace by two goals to one but Arsenal where fortunate enough to get the winning goal in extra time. 

It wasn't Arsenal best performance but to be fair it was better than last year where Arsenal where beaten on the opening day. 

Manchester City beat Newcastle United by two goals to nil and this was good win for them.  

But to be fair it always going to depend on which Newcastle team will turned up. Some fans are desperate to get rid of Alan Pardew maybe the players now feel the same. 

Chelsea beat Burnley by three goals to one and it was a win that I expected Chelsea to get. Burnley are newly promoted team into the Premiership and it make take a few games to find their feet. 

Southern & Western Open - Cincinnati - Day seven

Day seven of the Southern and Western Open and in the final Serena Williams beat Ana Ivanovic in straight sets.

 The first set was pretty competitive but once Serena had won the first set, the second set was much more one sided affair. 

Serena was just in her zone and there are'nt many tennis players that can challenge her when she is in that zone. 

Serena's serve was very consistent and she served at least ten aces and there where also the unreturnable serves. 

Ana played reasonably well but simply did not have the power or the serve to realistically compete with Serena. 

So Serena won this title her fifth title of the season and she also won US Open series trophy and she could get four million dollars if we wins the US Open. 

Southern & Western Open - Cincinnati - Day six

Day six at of Southern & Western Open and in the first semi-final Serena Williams beat Caroline Wozniacki in three sets. Apart from the fact that Caroline is Serena new best friend. 

Caroline was dictating a large part of this match and Serena seemed a step slower and a little tired. 

However she increased her energy levels and cut down the rallies to finish off the points quicker and this lead to winning the set and the match. 

In the second semi final Ana Ivanovic beat Maria Sharapova in three sets. This match had controversial end when Ana took an injury time out in the last couple of games.

However Ana went on to win the game and this was a very good win for Ana and I knew it was going to be tough for Maria but I thought she would get through. 

So I was surprised that Ana won but she was a little more consistent than Maria who had a lot of unforced errors.

Southern & Western - Cincinnati - Day five

Day five at the Southern and Western Open and Serena Williams beat Jelena Jankovic in straight sets.

 It was a fairly routine win for Serena and this surprised me because I thought that the match was going to be a little but more competitive. 

It also at the stage of the competition that Serena gets into her zone and she is very difficult to beat.

Maria Sharapova beat Simona Halep in three sets and it was quite a controversial game with Maria's gamesmanship being questioned. 

If I am honest glad that Maria beat Simona as I have yet to be convinced that Simona is worthy of her world number two ranking. 

Simona is what I call a percentage player good at everything but outstanding at nothing. 

Ana Ivanovic beat Elina Svitolina in straight sets and this was a good win for Ana as Elina is slowly rising up the rankings and is an in-form player. 

Preview of English Premier League

The Premier League returns today....yes! So I thought I would share with you guys my expectations and predictions for this season. 

For the first time in about thirteen years I am actually excited about the Arsenal team. Arsene Wenger has spent some money and now Arsenal can realistically challenge for the title.

I say this but with a caveat I am still not sure about the defence and only time will tell if this defence is good enough. 

To be frank I have no idea whether Manchester United will even finish in the top four. The experience defenders like Rio and Vidic have gone and I am not entirely sure who they have been replaced with. 

It not enough to have a world class manager like Van Gaal you also need the players that can perform on the pitch. 

Liverpool will have an interesting season and now Luis Suarez has been sold to Barcelona this has reduced their fire power. 

Last season Liverpool where very close to winning the league but they did not have the distraction of European games so it will be interesting to see how they cope. 

Chelsea will always be favourites to win the title but to be fair they have not spent to much money this season. 

Last champions Manchester City should get a top four finish if they are consistent as they where last year. 

They where a bit fortunate to win last season but it was primarily down to their consistency which no other team had. 

Ok so with my analysis complete the following teams will finish in the top five:

1. Arsenal !!!

2. Chelsea 

3. Manchester City

4. Manchester United

5. Liverpool

Okay who is your top five? 

Southern & Western Open - Cincinnati - Day four

Day four of the Southern & Western Open and Agnieszka Radwanska beat Sabine Lisicki in straight sets.

 This was a good win for Agnieszka but I still don't believe she has the talent to get past Maria Sharapova or Serena Williams. 

Jelena Jankovic beat Sloane Stephens in straight sets and Sloane's summer just gets worse. She has been hardly able to string more than two wins together and if she is not careful she will be dropping out of the top thirty. 

Caroline Wozniacki beat Angelique Kerber in straight sets and this was a good win for Caroline and will be heading back to the top ten very soon. 

Serena Williams beat Flavia Pennetta in straight sets and for Serena she is hoping to win this Southern & Western title for the first time ever. 

Southern & Western Open - Cincinnati -Day three

Day three at the Southern & Western Open and Svetlana Kuznetsova beat Eugenie Bouchard in three sets.

 This was a good win for Svetlana whilst Eugenie is now realising that she has to live up to the hype that has formed around her and it will not be easy. 

Flavia Penetta beat Taylor Townsend in straight sets and this would have been a disappointing loss for Taylor. But at the same time she is young and building some valuable on-court experience. 

Serena Williams beat Samantha Stosur in straight sets but these sets were very close and Serena had to play very well to win both tie breaks to win. 

This was the first real test that Serena has had to face in this tournament and she came out of it with flying colours. 

Southern & Western - Cincinnati - Day Two

Day two of the Southern and Western Open and Maria Sharapova beat Madison Keys in three sets.

 I thought this match was going to be difficult for Maria but in the third set Maria showed her true championship quality. 

Lucie Safarova beat Venus Williams in three sets and whilst Lucie has improved her game. 

Venus simply ran out of energy and this would have been her third consecutive tournament which is probably too much when factor in the medical condition that she has got 

I hoping she will get lots of rest from now until the US Open and show some of the form that got her to the Montreal final. 

Sloane Stephens beat Andrea Petkovic in straight sets and this was a very good win for Sloane. 

Who has had a very indifferent summer and is hoping for a good run in this tournament. 

Southern & Western Open - Cincinnati - Day one

Day one of the Southern and Western Open and Taylor Townsend beat Klara Koukalova in straight sets and this was an excellent win for Taylor who is getting closer to being in the top one hundred . 

Taylor has a good summer and did especially at French Open and she is hoping to have a similar run at the US Open. 

Shuai Zhang beat Heather Watson in three sets and Heather did not play well for a lot of this match. 

She also looked very tired and was struggling with her serve. These days she she is able to get a lot of cheap points from her serve but today her serve let her down badly. 

Whilst it was a disappointing exit I think the rest will do Heather the world of good to prepare for the US Open. 

Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova beat Dominika Cibulkova in straight sets and so far it's been a poor US Open serious for Dominika who should be doing alot better than going out in first and second rounds. 

She is hoping that her form will pick up before the US Open which starts in under two weeks time. 

Rogers Cup - Montreal - Day seven

Day seven of the Rogers Cup and in the final Agnieszka Radwanska beat Venus Williams in straight sets. Venus looked worn out and made over forty unforced errors. 

But credit where credit is due Agnieszka had a game plan excuted  it to perfection to win the match and the title. 

The positives for Venus are that she made the final which was probably beyond her own expectations and she banked some ranking points and she is now back into the top twenty. 

Rogers Cup - Montreal - Day six

Day six at the Rogers Cup and It's semi-finals day and Venus Williams beat her sister Serena Williams in three sets. 

It was a high quality match and to be fair I did not see how Venus was going to be able to get pass Serena. But some how she kept unforced errors down and was able to win the match. 

It is hard watching Venus and Serena play against each other because I want them both to win. 

So it's nice that they play each other but at the same time it's all rather bittersweet for me. 

Agnieszka Radwanska beat Ekaterina Makarova in three sets and this was a match that I was expecting Ekaterina to win so I was surprised that Agnieszka was able to win. 

Rogers Cup - Montreal - Day five

Day five at the Rogers Cup and Serena Wiliiams beat Caroline Wozniacki in three sets and it was tough match for Serena who scrapped through by the skin of her teeth against an in-form Caroline. 

Venus Williams beat Carla Suarez Navarro in three sets and this was an incredibly tough match for Venus who had to go up several levels to beat Carla. 

By the third set it more less looked like Venus was going to win and hopefully Venus will have enough energy left for a tough semi-final match against her sister Serena Williams. 

Agnieszka Radwanska beat Victoria Azarenka in straight sets and this was going to be a very tough match for Victoria so I was not surprised that Agnieszka won. 

Ekaterina Makarova beat Coco Vandeweghe in three sets and I thought this was going to be an easy win for Ekaterina but Coco is in great form and pushed Ekaterina all the way. 

Rogers Cup - Montreal - day four

Day four at the Rogers Cup and Venus Williams beat Angelique Kerber in three sets. It was pulsating match that could have gone either. 

Venus gave her everything in the match and it was just a few points that won her this match and put beyond doubt that Venus is back. 

Victoria Azarenka beat Heather Watson in straight sets and Heather was distinctly flat and looked completely overwhelmed by the occasion. 

Victoria is just returning from injury and it would have been good time for Heather to beat her. 

But Heather did not take her chance and proceeded to lose the match in straight sets. To be fair Heather did well to reach the third round and is still on a steep learning curve.

Serena Williams beat Lucie Safarova in straight sets and to be honest never looked like she was in danger of losing this match and stays on course for retaining her title. 

The shock result of the day was Carla Suarez Narravo beating Maria Sharapova in three sets. 

I did not see this result coming and I thought Maria would make it to at least the final so it was surprise result just go show that these days anything can happen in women's tennis. 

Agnieszka Radwanska beat Sabine Lisicki in three sets and this was a good for Agnieszka who has had quite a poor year winning no titles. 

Beating an in-form player like Sabine should give her much needed confidence  to progress in this tournament.  

Rogers Cup - Montreal - Day three

Day three of the Rogers Cup and Heather Watson beat Dominika Cibulkova in three sets. It was another up and down match for Heather she could have closed it out in two sets but threw away a three game advantage and had to win in a third set tie break.

I am hoping this is down to Heather's inexperience of tier one tennis and she will learn how to close out matches in straight sets. 

Venus Williams beat Yulia Putintseva in straight sets and it took a little while for Venus to handle Yulia "moon balls" but once Venus found her rhythm she was smacking the moons balls away and getting winners. 

Jelena Jankovic beat Sloane Stephens in three sets and Sloane had been playing reasonably well. But I think she lacks those killer instincts to win a tier one title.

Serena Williams beat Samantha Stosur in straight sets and it was a real demolition job by Serena who took apart Sam's game whilst in second gear. 

It was a little embarrasing to watching considering Sam only beat Serena in the US Open final three years ago. 

Angelique Kerber beat Caroline Garcia in straight sets and Anglique has been in some fine form and plays Venus Williams next. 

Rogers Cup - Montreal - Day two

Day two of the Rogers Cup and Venus Williams beat Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in three sets. To be honest it was a match that could have gone either way and in the end Venus was able to break at the right time to win the set and the match. 

However Venus looked very tired so I am not sure how much she has got left in the tank to realistically even make the semi-finals but I am hoping that she will surprise me. 

Casey Dellacqua beat Kirsten Flipkens in three sets and this was a surprise result as Kirsten has been playing well so surprised to see her lose so early. 

But the big shock of the day was Shelby Rogers beat Eugenie Bouchard in three sets and that included two bagels.

This would have been extremely embarrassing for Eugenie as this is her home tournament so fans where expecting her to do well. 

To be fair she has not played match since Wimbledon so was probably a little rusty still no excuse for getting bageld twice in front of her home crowd. 

Rogers Cup - Montreal - Day one

Day one of the Rogers Cup and Sloane Stephens beat Aleksandra Wozniak in straight sets. 

This was a much needed win for Sloane who has not by own standards not had a good year and has been falling down the rankings. 

So hopefully this win will give her some much needed confidence and get her back up the rankings. 

Heather Watson beat Tereza Smitkova in three sets and this was one of the poorest matches I have seen Heather play but most importantly she won the match and some valuable ranking points. 

Sabine Lisicki beat Sara Errani in straight sets and this was a tough first round match for Sabine but came out of in flying colours. 

Citi Open - Washington - final

Day seven of the Citi Open and Svetlana Kuznetsova beat Kurumi Nara in three sets and it was an enthralling final which saw Svetlana win her first WTA tour title in four years! 

For Kurumi getting to the final was some achievement in itself and it was always going to be a big ask to beat someone like Svetlana but she did well and most importantly bagged some valuable ranking points. 

For Svetlana this win might give her the confidence to believe she can win the US Open title. 

She will be a contender for the title but I suspect once she is playing at a Grand Slam she challenge is great and I am not sure is she still has the fitness to win seven rounds. 

But she has done well to win this title I for one would not have imagined before this tournament that she would have been the winner. 

So Svetlana wins the Citi Open title and valuable ranking points. 

The Bank of West Classic - Day seven

Day seven of The Bank of West Classic and in the final Serena Williams beat Angelique Kerber in the straight sets. 

Shocking part of this win was that a Serena was five games to one in the first set down but still managed to win this set by seven games to five. 

To be fair Serena probably played the whole match in third gear and still managed to win with ease. 

Whilst Angelique played out of her skin to hang with Serena and didn't even manage to take set. 

However Angelique is having a good year and can take pride in the fact that she is the first German to reach the final in over twenty years. 

For Serena she has retained her title and hopefully it be a good start to a successful hard court season. 

The Bank of West Classic - Day six

Day six at The Bank of West Classic and it is semi-finals day and Serena Williams best Andrea Petkovic in straight sets.

The first set was reasonably competitive but the second set was all Serena and she completely bossed the game. 

Serena put on a real display and this should hopefully have silenced her critics for at least another day. 

The second semi-final Angelique Kerber Varvara Lepchenko in three sets. I was expecting Angelique to have a rather more routine win. 

It shows Vavara has really developed her game because this time last year she was getting knocked out in round one. 

Angelique has had a good year too has made it to finals of key tournaments and has now established herself as top ten player. 

The Bank of West Classic - Day five

Day five at The Bank of West Classic and Andrea Petkovic beat Venus Williams in three sets. Venus had several opportunities to win this match but she simply ran out of energy. 

Once her energy levels dropped she was   unable to compete at the highest level and this situation ultimately led to Andrea winning the third set and the match. 

Angelique Kerber beat Garbine Muguruza in straight sets and this was good win for Angelique and she is now hoping to be the First German to win this title in over twenty years. 

Serena Williams beat Ana Ivanovic in three sets. This was a good win for a Serena chance for her to retain her title. 

Varvara Lepchenko beat Sachia Vikoery in three sets and this was good experience for Sachia who can hopefully build on it. 

Citi Open - Washington - Day three

Day three at the Citi Open and Kristina Mladenovic beat Taylor Townsend in straight sets. Taylor had been having a good summer so I was half expecting her to win this match. 

But the reality is she probably needs to be a little more experienced on the tour before Taylor can really start making her mark on the tour. 

Bojana Jovanovski beat Sorana Cirstea in three sets and Sorana has been having a bad year she was once ranked as the top Romanian player but things are not going well for at the moment. 

The Bank of West Classic - Stanford - Day four

Day four of the Bank of West Classic and Venus Williams beat Victoria Azarenka in straight sets. This was a good solid win for Venus beating Victoria who is good player. 

This win will also help Venus to continue to rise back up the rankings and she should now be on the cusp of being a top twenty player again. 

I hoping she will become a top ten player by the US Open and then be eligible to play in the end of year tournament taking place in Singapore. 

Ana Ivanovic beat Carol Zhao in straight sets and this was another good win for Ana who faces tougher opposition when she plays Serena Williams in the next round. 

Angelique Kerber beat Coco Vanderweghe in three sets and this was a topsy turvy match in which Coco bagled Angelique in the second set but somehow managed to lose the third set. 

Bank of West Classic - Stanford - Day three

Day three at The Bank of West Classic and Andrea Petkovic beat Naomi Osaka in straight sets. As Naomi best Samantha Stosur in the first round I was expecting this match to be a little more competive. 

But it was not meant to be, Naomi is only sixteen years old and will hopefully have many more years on the tour to get the big wins. 

Sachia Vickery beat Monica Puig in three sets and this was a big win for Sachia who had to play three tough qualifiers to make it to the main draw. 

Sachia is still only a teenager so is gaining valuable experience with every round. 

The shock of the day was Vavara Lepchenko beating Agnieszka Radwanska in three sets. Before this match Vavara had only recorded one win against Agnieszka in there six meetings.

This was a bad loss for Agnieszka who has had a bad year and I don't think the year will get any better for her unless she changes her game strategy and plays a more attacking game. 

Serena Williams beat Karolina Pliskova in straight sets and this was Serena first match back since Wimbledon and it was a good solid win. 

I hoping that she can retain the title she won last year and this would be excellent preparation for the defence of her US Open title.  

Citi Open - Washington - Day four

Day three of the Citi Open and Svetlana Kuznetsova beat Kirsten Flipkens in straight sets. To be honest after Kirsten tough first round match with Heather Watson I wondered how much she would have left in the tank to compete in this competition. 

So I was not overly suprised that Kirsten lost in straight sets plus Svetlana is a Grand Slam winner and can beat anyone on a good day. 

Ekaterina Makarova beat Lauren Davis in straight sets and this was a good win for her as she is seeded second is somewhat favourite to in the title. 

WTA - Bank of West Classic - Stanford - Day two

Day two of the Stanford Open and Venus Williams beat Paula Kania in straight sets. This was a good solid win for Venus who has put the Wimbledon disappointment behind her. 

Venus now plays Victoria Azarenka in the second round and if she can get past Vika then I can see her at least making to the semi-finals and beyond. 

Ana Ivanovic beat Sabine Lisicki in straight and It was a very competitive first set. Which Sabine set the World Record for the fastest serve. 

However the second set was a not very eventful and Ana won the set comfortably and the match.

WTA - Citi Open - Washington

Day two of the Citi Open and Taylor Townsend beat Julia Georges in three sets. This was a fantastic win for Taylor who is certainly inform and at this rate she will be top one hundred before the end of the year. 

Kiki Mladenovic beat Lucie Safarova in three sets and Kiki is also inform and has been have a reasonable summer and seems have put the Wimbledon disappointment behind her. 

Kirsten Flipkens beat Heather Watson in three sets and I was disappointed that Heather didn't win this match. It was a match I feel she should have won. 

At this stage in Heather's career the reality is she needs to be getting wins like this or before she knows it she will go from a potential Grand Slam winner to a journey women. 

I hope she can get some decent wins before the US Open starts as this the time when she can pick up some points and at least make into the top fifty. 

World Cup - A review of the beautiful game.

The World Cup is over now and  for the winners Germany it is probably just sinking in what they have achieved. 

I thought the the some of the group games where fantastic and teams played without fear. 

One of the group games  I enjoyed watching was when France beat Switzerland by five goals to two and the French played amazing free flowing footballs. 

The game that I found most exciting was the Ghana versus Germany match and this match could have gone either way but ended up in the draw. 

However the match that almost put me sleep was Nigeria versus Iran was an incredibly boring match with both teams trying hard not to score....

So I thought the knock out games where going to be just as good and sadly it was not the case. The free flowing football had been replaced with edgy and defensive football. 

The stand out game of the knock out stages was Germany beating the host Brazil by seven goals to one. It was a little embarrassing to watch and this was compounded by the crying fans in the stadium. 

So the two most efficient and consistent teams of the tournament Germany and Argentina who made it to the final. 

However it was a little bit of a damp squib with little or no entertainment but the German team where the worthy winners. 

Argentina v Germany - Final review

The final took place yesterday and Germany beat Argentina by a goal to nil in extra time. 

It was a pretty dull match with both teams being very careful but somehow you got the feeling that this was more of an advantage for Germany.

Argentina's Lionel Messi failed to shine and Argentina did not have a single shot on target in the whole match. 

Germany had few chances but where unable to convert them into goals and it took the sub Mario Gotze to come on and break the deadlock late into the second half of extra time. 

For me it was more defending that lead to the goal but the BBC pundits where waxing lyrical about it being an amazing goal. 

Yes it was a well taken goal but I don't think it would even be in my top five goals. 

So Germany won the World Cup and it was well deserved but  I don't like their style of football. 

Which has very little to do with being entertaining and is more about being clinical and efficient. 

But at they end of the day they won the World Cup so they must be doing something right. 

Holland v Argentina - Semi final review

In the second semi final match Argentina beat Holland by four goals to two on penalties. It was a pretty dire affair with little interesting parts. 

This was a surprise as Holland had been playing fantastic free flowing football with Arjen Robben doing some amazing runs and as well as trying to dive for the odd penalty. 

Whilst Argentina had Lionel Messi scoring some very good goals. But I think the fact that all the play went through Lionel Messi somewhat stifled their creativity. 

So in the end it had to be decided on penalties and Argentina where more clinical and therefore won the game. 

World Cup - Brazil v Germany review

In the semi-finals match Germany beat Brazil by seven goals to one! It really was a shocker of a match. 

Brazil defended so poorly and the Germans capitalised on this and where scoring goals at will. 

I thought that Brazil would wake up and start scoring goals but once it became  five goals to nil, the likelyhood of them having any impact on the game looked remote. 

I think Brazilian fans realised this and television pictures captured a lot of crying Brazilians. It was Brazil worst World Cup and too much for many of their fans to take. 

Without Neymar and the suspended Thiago Silva it was always going to be a difficult and this was compounded by there inability to score and desparately poor defending. 

However the Germans will be very pleased with themselves and will hoping that they can carry this form into next weeks final and win the trophy. 

Wimbledon - review from the sofa:)

This years Wimbledon was almost as strange as the previous year. In the ladies draw the top two seeds Serena Williams and Li Na went out early. 

The women'sdraw was uneven and this is how Petra Kvitova managed to get to the final without playing a single top ten seed. 

The women's final was a little embarrassing to watch and Petra did what she needed to do to win the match. 

But it was rather painful watching Eugenie Bouchard making the same errors over and over again. 

It was one of those finals that few will be talking about as players were so unevenly matched. 

The men's draw was a little better but it was sad to see both Andy Murray and Rafael Nadal go out early. 

But at least the final between Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer was entertaining.

 However I would say that both play quite a predictable game and so it took the match a while to warm up and when it did it was well worth the wait.

So it was a a rather strange Wimbledon especially in the women's draw but the men's draw definitely lived up to expectations. 

Wimbledon - Day thirteen

Day thirteen at Wimbledon and it is the Men's final day and Novak Djokovic beat Roger Federer in five amazing sets. 

It was a bit of a slow burner to start of with but that soon changed and by the fourth set it became an incredibly tense match that could have gone either way. 

Roger served well and served about twenty nine aces but he is now a step slower and he was unable to move round the court like could maybe three or four years ago. 

Novak played well and physically he was struggling and in the fourth set he had match point but nerves got the better of him. 

However he was able to regroup and win the final set to take the title. Although it was a gripping game both Roger and Novak can be very one dimensional hence why it took about four sets for the match to really get going. 

It was a hard fought but deserved victory for Novak who like I said could have won it earlier if his nerves had not got the better of him in the fourth set. 

Wimbledon - day twelve

Day twelve at Wimbledon and it is the Women's final day and Petra Kvitova beat Eugenie Bouchard in straight sets. 

It was the most one sided final since 1992! Petra controlled the game from tbs start to the end. Eugenie could barely get her racket on Petra's serve. 

Petra broke Eugenie's serve with such ease that it was embarrassing to watch. Time and time again Eugenie made the same errors and Petra got the same winners 

To be fair Eugenie made Petra look better than she is. Petra has not had a great year so far but must have saved all her best tennis for Wimbledon!

It was a bit of demolition job but Eugenie has a lot to be proud of. it is not easy to get to a Grand Slam final and Eugenie was able to do that. 

She now needs to work on improving her serve and her fitness to have any real realistic chances of winning a Grand Slam.  

Wimbledon - Day eleven

Day eleven at Wimbledon and it is the men's semi - finals day and Novak Djokovic beat Grigor Dimitrov in four sets. 

It was a highly entertaining match and however hard Dimitrov tried to win this match Novak never looked like he was going to lose the match. 

Novak was solid tnroughout match and made few errors. Whilst Grigor played well he served quite a few double faults which in the end proved quite costly. 

Only time will tell if Grigor can live up to the hype round him and actually get a grand slam title. 

In the second semi- final Roger Federer beat Milos Raonic in straight sets and this was a routine win for Rogerer who barely broke sweat to win this match. 

However in the final he faces a tough a opponent in Novak Djokovic and will have to work alot harder than he did today.  

Wimbledon - Day ten

Day ten at Wimbledon and it is Women 's semi-finals day and Petra Kivitova beat Lucie Safarova in straight sets. 

To be fair on paper it always looked like a routine win for Petra and with the strong serve that she has it always going to be a real challenge for Lucie. 

In the second semi final Eugenie Bouchard beat Simona Halep in straight sets and this was a surprise result. However Simona get and ankle injury in the fourth game made it Eugenie's challenge a lot easier. 

I would say that the standard of tennis for both semi-finals was low in the first semi -final it was all about the serve and in the second semi final Eugenie and Simona slugged it out from the baseline and it certainly did not showcase women's tennis. 

Wimbledon - Day nine

Day nine at Wimbledon and Simona Halep beat Sabine Lisicki in straight sets. After leading four games to one in the first set Sabine fell away and never recovered. 

Euguene Bouchard beat Angelique Kerber in straight sets and this was a good win for Eugene. Who used her strong serve and court craft to out manoeuvre and out power Angelique. 

In the men's draw Roger Federer beat Stanislas Wawrinka in four sets and it was a good win for Roger against Stan who was not well and needed a medical time out. 

Roger was able to capitalize on Stan's health problems to win the fourth set and the match. 

The shock of the day was Grigor Dimitrov beating Andy Murray in straight sets. Andy did not look himself and I have never watched a match where he has lost the first set so easily. 

Andy looked distracted and this was in a sharp contrast to how he had played his previous rounds. But credit goes to Grigor for playing a sound match and getting this important win. 

Wimbledon - Day eight

Day eight at Wimbledon and Angelique Kerber beat Maria Sharapova in three sets and it was three very tight sets and could have gone either way. 

However Angelique was able to serve better when it mattered and was able to put away some amazing winners. 

Petra Kivitova beat Barbora Zahlavova Strycova in straight sets and to be fair it would have been a bigger surprise if Barbora had won. 

Petra has a big serve so it is incredibly difficult to get the ball back and out of her hitting zone. But Barbora gave it her all and put up an amazing fight which was sadly not good enough. 

Simona Halep beat Zarina Diyas in straight sets and it was a tough match for Zarina who was unable to show case her talent and I think this was probably not helped by nerves and this being her first fourth round draw. 

In the men's draw Roger Federer beat Tommy Rebredo in straight sets and it was a routine win for Roger but he faces tougher challenges ahead. 

The shock of day was Nick Kyrgios beating Rafael Nadal in four sets and it was difficult day for Rafal as Nick's serve was a little too hot to handle.

Rafael seemed a little tired and did not seem to have the energy to run around and Nick just seem to have little more energy and that great serve. 

World Cup - Day twenty

Day twenty of the World Cup and Argentina beat Switzerland one nil after extra time. 

The Swiss team where very unlucky to concede a goal so close to the end of extra time and they will look back at their missed chances with regret. 

However Argentinans seems to have a little bit more and where able to score that important goal when it mattered. 

Elsewhere Belguim beat the USA by two goals to one and after extra time. If it had not been for the heroic efforts of the USA goalkeeper Tim Howard they probably would not have made it to extra time. 

However I for one question the team selection of Jurgen Klinsman. He seemed to have an awful lot of talent on the bench and other than the injured players, he seemed to be chopping and changing players around a lot which I don't think help them. 

However Belguim had the most of the possession and richly deserve to go through. They will now face Argentina and will be present them with different set of problems and hopefully they will be more clinical in front of goal. 

World Cup - day nineteen

Day nineteen at the World Cup and France beat Nigeria by two goals to nil. It was a very high tempo and competitive match but in the end the French had that little more cutting edge and where able to get the goals and win the game. 

The French are my personal favourites to win the World Cup as they have the best players and seem to have at least two players for ever position. 

Nigeria did well but at this stage of the competition they lacked that clinical finish that could have seen them into the quarter finals. 

Elsewhere Germany beat Algeria two goals to one but this was after extra time. The Algerians gave everything and defensively they where brilliant but they did not have that clinical finish that is needed at this stage of the competition. 

The Germans will be breathing a huge sigh of relief that they are still in this competition but they face France who can attack and defend so pose a different problem to the German team. 

World Cup - Day eighteen

Day eighteen at the World Cup and Costa Rica drew one all with Greece but beat them five goals to three on penalties. 

This has been an amazing World Cup for both Costa Rica and Greece most people did not see either of these countries getting out of the groups.

But they both prevailed and Costa Rica just had a little bit more and beat them on penalties to win the match and progress to the quarter finals. 

Netherlands beat Mexico by two goals to one and it was a controversial scoreline mainly because Arjen Robben looked like he dived to get The Netherlands their second goal which ulitmately helped them to win the match. 

World Cup - day seventeen

Day seventeen of the World Cup and it is now the knock out stages. So Brazil drew one all with Chile but beat them three goals to two on penalties. 

I think that others are now beginning to realise that this Brazil team is average and they are definitely not the Brazil of old. 

I suspect if this World Cup had not been held in Brazil then might have been knocked out already. 

 Colombia beat Uruguay by two goals to nil and Colombia probably would have got this win. 

However Uruguay being with  their banned striker Luis Suarez made it even harder for Uruguay but Colombia very much deserved this victory. 

World Cup - Day fifteen

Day fifteen at the World Cup and Germany beat the USA by a goal to nil, however curtesy to other group results going their way USA where able to qualify for the knock out stages. 

In the other group game Portugal beat Ghana by two goals to one. This was tough match for both countries because result could have gone either way. 

However I was disappointed with the way the World Cup ended for Ghana. Two players sent home in disgrace and the others demanding their bonus. 

It has embarrassed Ghana and the focus should have been on how to beat Portugual. Hopefully these discpline and financial issues will not be repeated at the next World Cup. 

Elsewhere Algeria drew one all with Russia and with this win, Algeria qualified for the knock out stages.

Algeria where two of the only African countries to make it through to the knock out stages. Which is an amazing accomplishment for them. 

Now they face Germany in the knock out stages and this will probably see them bow out but it does not take away from there amazing achievements and they certainly have made Africa proud.  

World Cup - Day fourteen

Day fourteen at the World Cup and Argentina beat Nigeria by three goals two and this was a very entertaining game. 

In the first hour Nigeria looked like they where going to win this match, however somehow Argentina just seemed to have a little bit more in terms of attack and defence. 

France drew nil nil with Ecuador and France had already qualified so this draw meant that they would finish as group winners. 

Like I said in my previous blog France definitely had the strength and depth to do very well at this World Cup. 

Switzerland beat Honduras by three goals to nil and this win helped Switzerland to qualify for the knock out stages. 

Wimbledon - Day seven

Day seven at Wimbledon and Eugenie Bouchard beat Alize Cornet in straight sets. 

This was a good win for Eugenie and she  is having a great year after reaching the quarter finals in both the French and the Australian Open. 

Sabine Lisciki beat Ana Ivanovic in three sets and it was a good win for Sabine as Ana has had a good year. It was also a much needed win for Sabine as she has a lot points to defend for making it to the final last year. 

Petra Kivitova beat Shuai Peng in straight sets and this was a good routine win for Petra. Petra has that huge serve which is very effective on grass and it's difficult for any player to get it back.

In the men's draw Andy Murray beat Kevin Anderson in straight sets and this was a nice routine win for Andy who has been winning in clinical fashion. 

Novak Djokovic beat Jo Wilfred Tsonga in straight sets and he won the first two sets with ease but Jo Wilfred put up more of an effort in the third set. But Novak seem to have a little bit more to win the set and the match. 

Stan Wawrinka beat Denis Istomin in straight sets and this was a nice routine win for Stan who is aiming to win second grandslam of the year. 

Wimbledon - Day six

Day six at Wimbledon and it was a bit of a rainy day so not all the matches where completed. However Maria Sharapova beat Alison Riske in straight sets. 

It was a routine win for Maria who has yet to lose a set and Alison did get an early break but was unable to consolidate and Maria went on win the set and the match.

Eugene Bouchard beat Andrea Petkovic in straight sets and this was a good routine win for Eugene who will face tougher challenges as the tournament progresses. 

The shock of the day was Alize Cornet beating Serena Williams in three sets. It was a weird match Serena barely moved her feet and took all the power out of hitting the ball. 

I suspect that either there is a lingering injury or things are not great with her current coach Patrick. 

However it was a good win for Alize and her second consecutive win against Serena this year. This should give her the confidence to believe that she can do well this year. 

In the men's draw Rafael Nadal beat Mikhail Kukushin in four sets and Rafa dropped the first set on a tie break but on the next three sets and the match with ease. 

Roger Federer beat Santiago Giraldo in straight sets and this was a nice routine win for the seven time champion.

Wimbledon - Day Five

Day five at Wimbledon and Petra Kivitova beat Venus Williams in three sets and this was probably the match of the tournament. 

Venus played incredibly well and only dropped her serve once in the entire match. But sadly these days Venus does not have the movement that she once had. 

Therefore had to overly rely on her serve and to be fair Petra has a fantastic serve and it's difficult to get her serves back!

So all credit to Petra for getting this win and for Venus the furthest she has progressed in a grandslam in three years.

Simona Halep beat Lesia Tsurenko in three sets and it was a really topsy turvy match which really Simona should have won in straight sets. 

Especially as Lesia is ranked a hundred and seventy in the world. But Simona prevailed and won the third set and the match. 

The shock of the day was Barbora Zahlavova Strycova beating Li Na in straight sets. Li Na was not able to play her game  against Barbora who was able to win the big points when it mattered.  

In the men's draw Novak Djokovic beat Gilles Simon in straight sets and it was another routine win for Novak who has yet to be tested in this tournament. 

Andy Murray beat Roberto Bautista Agut in straight sets and it was a routine win for Andy who has been playing without the pressure he was under last year. 

However he will face tougher opponents as he progresses through the draw. He may face Novak in the semi finals and who will be different to the kind of player to the ones he has faced so far. 

Wimbledon - Day four

Day four at Wimbledon and Serena Williams beat Chanelle Scheepers in straight sets. 

This was a routine win for Serena as she tries build momentum to win her eighteen grand slam and her sixth Wimbledon.

Maria Sharapova beat Timea Bacsinszky in straight sets and this was a routine win Maria and her serve seem to hold up better than in the previous round. 

Angelique Kerber beat Heather Watson in three sets and Heather played reasonably well but had too many unforced errors. 

Heather's serve seem let her down and she was unable to get the free points she would have normally gave gotten from her serve. 

However Heather will have many positives to take out of the match and most importantly the ranking points she would gained from making it to the second round. 

In the men's draw Rafael Nadal beat Lukas Rosol in four sets and Rafa really had to pull out all the stops to win this match.

Rafa played well and he kept his unforced errors down although I got the impression that he was quite nervous. 

Roger Federer beat Gilles Muller in straight sets and this was another routine win for Roger. 

Stan Wawrinka beat Yen Hsun Lu in four sets and this the first time in the tournament that Stan has been tested and he managed to dig deep and win the match. 

Wimbledon - Day three

Day three at Wimbledon and Venus Williams beat Kurumi Dara in straight sets    and this the best I have seen Venus play in quite while. 

Venus's serve was dominant but she backed it up with some powerful groundstrokes and she was a real joy to watch. 

Li Na beat Yvonne Meusburger in straight sets and this was a routine win for Li Na who quietly making her way through the draw. 

Agnieszka Radwanska beat Casey Dellacqua in straight sets and this a routine win for Aga who is also quietly making her way through the draw. 

In the men's draw Andy Murray beat Blaz Rola in straights and Andy wrapped up the win very quickly as he aims to retain the title he win last year. 

Novak Djokovic beat Radek Stepanek in four tough sets and this Novak had to dig deep to win this match which hopefully help him in the later rounds. 

Wimbledon - Day two

Day two at Wimbledon and Serena Williams beat Anna Tashivilli in straight sets and this was quite a routine win for Serena has adapted nicely to the grass. 

Maria Sharapova beat Samantha Murray in straight sets and although the score line would suggest that it was routine win. Maria really struggled with her serve committing three double faults in the first game. 

Maria was rather fortunate to be playing someone that was unable to take advantage of her serving problems and went on to win the second set and the match. 

Britain's Heather Watson beat Ajla Tomljanovic in straight sets and this was good win for Heather. Heather struggled on her serve and was holding on but managed to close it out in straight sets. 

The surprise of the day was Caroline Garcia beating Sara Errani in three sets. Caroline has had a good year but it's good to see that her game can be played well on all surfaces.

 

In the men 's draw Roger Federer beat Paolo Lorenzi in straight sets. This was a routine first round win for Roger as he aims to win his eighth Wimbledon title. 

Stan Wawrinka beat Joao Sousa in straight sets and it was a routine win for Stan who always seems have a bit more than Joao. 

World Cup - Day thirteen

Day thirteen of the World Cup and Uruguay beat Italy by two goals to one. This match had everything goals, a sending off and a biting incident. 

I was surprised when the Italians lost there previous group match because I thought that this match against the Uruguayans was going to be tough. 

The loss to Uruguay meant that the Italians where out of the tournament. but this match will not be remembered for the football but Luis Suarez biting the shoulder of the Italian defender. 

This is the third time in his footballing career that Luis Suarez has bitten an opponent hopefully FIFA will give him a long term ban.

 

England drew nil nil with Costa Rica and this ended there worst tournament in over fifty years. 

World Cup - Day twelve

Day twelve of the World Cup and Brazil beat Cameroon by four goals to one. This helped them to qualify top of the group. 

However Cameroon where poor and some of there defending was just embarrassing and as a nuetral watching the game. 

I was not entirely convinced that Cameroon wanted to at least get something out of the game before exiting the World Cup. 

So Brazil won the game relatively comfortably but they where not playing the free flowing football that we are accustomed to seeing them play. 

If they are to win this tournament then they need to up there game and play more attacking free flowing football that made them footballing giants. 

Elsewhere Mexico beat Croatia by three goals to one to qualify the the knock out stages. 

World Cup - Day eleven

Day eleven of the World Cup and USA drew two all with Portugual and this result was a cruel blow to the USA. 

As the USA were leading the matching by two goals to one and it was only in the last thirty seconds that Portugual got there gut wrenching equaliser. 

However both USA and Portugual can still qualify if both win their last games by high margins then this could both progress on to the knock out stages. 

Elsewhere Algeria beat South Korea by four goals to nil and this was an excellent victory for Algeria and they only need a point to qualify for the knock out stages. 

World Cup - Day ten

Day ten of the World Cup and  Germany and Ghana drew two all and this was a match that could have gone either way. 

However at two goals to one to Ghana Andre Ayew had the chance to square the ball and make it three one. But he selfishly decided to take a shot which was saved by the German goalkeeper. 

I think this selfish act was quite costly as soon as Germans went down the other end they scored the equaliser and by the end Ghana was literally holding on to the draw. 

But not many people expected Ghana to even get a point and so to get a draw exceeded many people expectation and was a good result. 

Nigeria beat Bosina- Hercegovina by two goals to one and this was a good win for Nigeria and they now only need a point to qualify for the knock out stages.

Argentina beat Iran by one goal to nil and they literally scored the winner in stoppage time. This was a cruel blow to Iran who had where looking to get at least a point out of the game. 

However Iran are not out and if they win there next game against Bosnia Hercegovina and this could still go through.  

Wimbledon - day one

Day one at Wimbledon and Venus Williams beat Maria-Teresa Torro Flo in three sets.  

Venus's serve was on point and she was served about eleven aces and most importantly had no double faults. 

Venus had a bit of a stutter in the second set but totally took control of the third set and the match.  

Elsewhere Maria Kirilenko beat Sloane Stephens in straight sets and Sloane had a poor match. 

She was always on the back foot and when she finally got a set point in the second set she was unable to take it. 

After this embarrasing loss Sloane needs to regroup as she will fall out of the top twenty and is going to need to work to get back into the top twenty and beyond. 

Li Na beat Paula Kania in straights sets and this good routine win for Li Na as she attempts to win her third grand slam and after her terrible first round loss in the French Open. 

In the men's draw the current men's champion Andy Murray beat David Goffin in straight sets. This was a good routine win for Andy who has quite a tough draw but will hoping to make at least the semi finals.

Novak Djokovic beat Andrey Golubev in straight sets and he will be happy to have had a nice routine and win will be hoping to win his second Wimbledon title. 

World Cup - Day nine

Day nine of the World Cup and France beat Switzerland by five goals to two. The French played total football and have now become my tournament favourite to win the World Cup. 

The French seems to have extra player for every position and I was particularly impressed with there player Karim Benzima. 

The shock of the day was Costa Rica beating Italy by one goal to nil. Italy seemed to be very relaxed and there finishing in the final third was woeful. 

I think this will be costly loss for the Italians as I think they will struggle to get a win against Uruguay which would take them into the knock out stages. 

World Cup - Day eight

Day eight of the World Cup and Uruguay beat England by two goals to one. England's defence were all over the place  and struggled with crosses and corners. 

I think the blame lies solely with Roy Hodgson as his selection for this World Cup was puzzling. As was his decision to leave experienced defensive players like Ashley Cole and John Terry. 

Elsewhere Colombia beat Ivory Coast by two goals to one and I was little suprised with this result because it was game that I was expected Ivory Coast win. 

It seemed that Colombia just seemed to have a little bit more in terms of defending and most importantly finishing. 

However Ivory Coast can still qualify with there last game whilst Colombia have now qualified for the knock out stages.