Maria Sharapova - meldonium

This week Maria Sharapova confessed that she had failed a drug test and had been use a drug called meldonium for ten years! Yes ten years!

WADA banned the use of drug on January and Maria claims she did not read email sent to her December advising all tennis players that the drug had been banned.

Consequently failed a drug test during the Australian Open. 

What I was most suprised about was Maria's attitude in the press conference where she more concerned about the carpets in the hotel as opposed to shameful admission she has just

 made.

Judging by the pictures I have seen of Maria since this shameful admission she is carry on like nothing has happened and almost give you the impression that she is expecting a light ban and to be playing tennis within a year. 

I hope she is banned for at least two years. She is a role model to million of aspiring tennis and she has just given them that you can do something like that and almost get away with it. 

The full story has yet to come out but I have heard so far disgust me I do not understand why Maria would choose to take a drug that banned in USA after getting it from her family doctor in Russia when she resides in the US. 

Then taking the drug for ten years sounds very excessive and almost like she became dependent on it. As influential figure in tennis world this has made me wonder who else is secretly taking this drug that we are not aware of. 

Hopefully it will start and end with Maria and we get back to focusing on tennis games. 

Wimbledon - Semi finals 2015

In the women semi finals Serena Williams beat Maria Sharapova in straights sets and it was a routine win for Serena against someone she had beaten seventeen time in a row. 

Maria did not have the demanour of someone who believed she could win the match and so it was little straightforward than most people expected. 

In the women's semi finals Garbine Murguruza beat Aga Radwanska in three sets and it was a very good win for Garbine and Aga could simply not cope with the power of Garbine's shots. 

Garbine had a little wobble in the second set which allowed Aga back into the match but she regrouped and was able to win the third set. 

So the women's final will between Serena Wiliiams and Garbine Murguruza and it should be very interesting to say the least. 

In the men's semi final Roger Federer beat Andy Murray in straight sets and to me Andy was way below par and was not very tactical so it was quite a routine win for Roger. 

In the other semi final Novak Djokovic beat Richard Gasquet in straight sets and this Novak easiest and most convincing and to be fair it would have been a surprise if Richard had won. 

So the men's final will be between Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer and this a repeat of last year finals. With Novak hoping he can retain his title and Roger wanting to win his eighth Wimbledon title. 

Wimbledon 2015 quarter finals

In yesterday quarter finals match Serena Williams beat Victoria Azarenka in three sets and it was a pretty competitive match but I never really sensed that Serena was going to lose.  

Serena served well as she has done for most of this tournament and Vika played well and is now back to full fitness which help get her ranking up. 

Maria Sharapova beat Coco Vandeweghe in three sets and Maria really struggled with her serve against a player it should have been a straight forward match. 

Garbine Muguruza beat Timea Bacsinszky in three sets and this was good win for Garbine who is in her Wimbledon semi-final. 

Agnieszka Radwanska beat Madison Keys in three sets and Aga did will to beat Madison is learning and developing her game all the time. 

In the men's draw Andy Murray beat Vasek Pospisil in straight sets and this was a good routine win for Andy who is back in a Wimbledon semi final. 

Novak Djokovic beat Marin Cilic in straight sets and this was a good win for Novak. 

The shock of the quarter finals draw was Richard Gasquet beating Stanislas Wawrinka in five sets and this was big win for Richard as Stanislas has just won French Open. 

Roger Federer beat Gilles Simon in straight sets and this was nice routine win for Roger who has not be tested in this tournament. 

So the quarter final matches were good but I am expecting to see more exciting matches in the semi finals. 

Wimbledon 2015 - Day one

Day one at Wimbledon and in the women's draw Serena Williams won her match in straight sets and Serena really found her range in in the second set and went on to get a comfortable victory. 

Venus Williams doubled bagled Madison Brengle and it has been a while since Venus has doubled bagled anyone.

Maria Sharapova beat Johanna Konta and it was expected victory for Maria but it's sad that Johanna had to exit the tournament so early. 

The surprise of the day was Carla Suarez Navarro getting knocked out in three sets.  She is now a top ten player so I was expecting to do reasonably well. 

In the men's draw Novak Djokovic got a straight sets win against.., and it was good first win for Novak who is hoping to make it to the final and win it.

Stanislas Wawrinka won in straight sets and he is through to the second and as the winner of the French Open he is looking to get is third grand slam.

Day one is only had one real surprise but all the players who have real potential of winning the tournament made it to the second round. 

Wimbledon 2015 preview

Ok to my shame I didn't complete the review of the French Open.. However it was truly wonderful to see Serena Williams win her 20th grand slam and it was nice to see Stanislas Wawrinka get is  2nd Grand Slam. 

But I am sure that Wimbledon challenge will be very different for both of these champions. 

The women's draw looks quite competitive this year but I cautiously optimistic that Serena will get the 6th Wimbledon title and her 21st Grand Slam. 

However it's not going to be easy and she will probably need to beat Maria Sharapova in the semis to even make it to the final. 

Last year winner Petra Kivitova is a contender to retain her title she has a very good grass court game and as there normally isn't many rallies on the grass it suits her game perfectly.

From a British prespective both Heather Watson and Johanna Konta have very tough draws and it will not be easy for either to progress to the second round. 

Heather faces Caroline Garcia and who has some powerful ground strokes and for Heather to win she will need to be aggressive and her serve has to be on point. 

Johanna faces Maria Sharapova and the chances of her winning are even more remote. Maybe if the crowd get behind her that might help to get one set! 

 

The men's draw is much more open and realistically either Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray, Stanislas Wawrinka or Rafael Nadal can win the title. 

Rafa is my personal favourite but he has been having a torrid time of lately so is chance of winning the title do not look great. 

Andy Murray is home favourite and a former winner and he knows how to win so I would rule him out of at least getting to the final. 

Novak Djokovic is current champion and I would not bet against him making it to the final as the three time winner he can do it again. 

Stanislas Wawrinka will be feeling very confident so I would not rule him out of getting to at least the finals. 

Roger Federer is a Wimbledon favourite and has won at least six times but he is older now and he cannot win matches like he used and he is unlikely to win a tough five set matches like he used to and but as a former champion I cannot totally rule him out. 

So it should be a another great Wimbledon and hopefully a record breaking Wimbledon for Serena Williams. 

Australian Open - Day thirteen - Women's Final

Day thirteen and in the women's final Serena Williams beat Maria Sharapova in straight sets to win her nineteenth grand slam. It was an amazing match and the second set could have gone either way. 

It started with both Seren and Maria "posing" for there final picture and neither could raise a smile and it was one of most awkward final pictures I have seen in a while. 

In the first Serena broke Maria in the first and more or less maintained her advantage to win the set. The second was  a lot more competitive and could have gone either but Serena held to win the second set tie break and the match.

This win was a historic victory for Serena as she now only three grand slam titles behind Steffi and it is now looking like she could realistically get as many titles as Steffi.

Both Serena and Maria played very good tennis but for Maria her best was not good enough.

 Serena did incredibly well considering she was not feeling a 100%. So very excited to see she can get anymore grand slams in 2015. 

Australian Open - Day Five

Day five of the Austrialian Open and Maria Sharapova beat Zarina Diyas in straight sets. This was much easier match for Maria and needs to wins like this if she has any hope of winning the title.  

Eugenie Bouchard beat Caroline Garcia in straight sets. This was a straight forward win for Eugenie and the first set was competitive but after that Eugenie totally controlled the match. 

Yanina Wickmayer beat Sara Errani in three sets. This was a bit of surprise result but as Sara is the higher ranked player most people would have expected her to win. 

However Yanina is good player and can get these types of results but she doesn't do it consistently that's she is not ranked higher.

In the men's draw Andy Murray beat Joao Sousa in straight sets. This was a nice routine win for Andy and it to be honest it would have been more of surprise if he had lost. 

Rafa beat Dudi Sela in straight sets and this was routine win for Rafa and it would have been more of a surprise if he had lost.  

The surprise of the day Andreas Seppi beating Roger Federer in four sets. Roger won the Brisbane tournament so many thought this title was his. But with his advancing age I think winning a Grand Slam title is looking more remote. 

Australian Open - Day three

Day three at the Australian Open Maria Sharapova beat Alexandra Panova in three sets. It was really hard fought win for Maria to get this result.

It was a surprise Maria struggled because on paper this should have been a comfortable win. Maria is nice part of draw and should really make to the final. 

Simona Halep beat Jamila Gajdosova in straight sets and this was a comfortable win for Simona. Simona has also in the nice part of the draw so she should make to at least the semi finals. 

In the men's draw Rafael Nadal beat Tim Smyczek in five sets and it was tough old match for Rafa who eventually came through it to make the third. 

Rafa is coming back from injury so I guess he still a little rusty so I guess he trying to slowly build momentum. 

In the men's match Roger Federer beat Simone Bolelli in four sets and it was a tough old match for Roger who eventually came through it. 

This is the kind of player that Roger used to beat in his sleep so it was little surprising that he took Roger to four sets. 

I  think it will be a big ask to expect Roger to win this title as he would have to beat at least three top ten players and so it would be a big ask to expect him to win. 

Australian Open 2015 - Day one

Day one of the Australian Open and it is the first Grand Slam of the calendar year and some of the players are still not ready to play. 

There were lots of surprises in the women's draw and the first high profile seed to go out was Ana Ivanovic who lost three sets to Lucie Hradecka   

Next Angelique Kerber lost in three sets to Irina Begu the first day shock kept coming and it ended with eight female seeds going out in one day. 

However there were wins for Simona Halep, Eugenie Bouchard and Maria Sharapova. 

In the men's draw the main title contenders all made it successfully to the second round and these were Andy Murray, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer. 

There were few shock losses in the men's draw and I think the women's draw has changed a lot in the last five years and now its not too much of a surprise for a top ten seed to go out as these days women are much closer in ability. 

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 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 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. 

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. 

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. 

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. 

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.  

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. 

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.