Australian Open 2016 - Men's draw

This year winner was fairly predictable to say least! Novak Djokovic beat Andy Murray in straight sets. This was a match that Andy got soundly beaten the first set but had opportunities to break in the second and third set and he could not take them. 

This is now Novak's eleventh Grand Slam and it's only a couple years ago he only had five Grand Slams. Now he is only six behind Roger Federer to equal the record! 

There where no real surprises in the men's draw other than Rafal Nadal going out in the first round. I think Rafa can still win a couple more Grand Slams but he has to want to break the record to have any chance of winning more Grand Slams. 

Roger Federer did well but he does not have the energy to win Grand Slams in the best of five sets. However he still doing well enough to make to the semi - finals. 

US Open - review 2015

So I didn't get to blog daily about the US Open, however I didn't miss a match! The first week of the US Open was eventful in the women draw at least three of the top ten seeds went out very early and I think that really set the tone for the championships. 

The British number one Heather Watson went out on day one and it was a very disappointing tournament for her. I think it was largely down to poor preparation and still lamenting about the loss to Serena at Wimbledon. 

However the British number two Johanna  Konta did very well and she made it to the fourth round before being knocked out by Petra Kivitova.

The men's first week was largerly uneventful the only real shock was the early exit of Rafael Nadal. Rafa is in a real slump and he threw away a two set lead in a match that he should have won comfortably. 

 

The second of US Open became more eventful in the semi-finals as Serena Williams who was expected to beat Roberta Vinci lost in three sets. 

Serena had looked very nervous and unsure of herself in previous rounds and rightly so Roberta pounced on Serena's uncertainty and was able to win the match and end Serena's bid to win four Grand Slams in a calendar year. 

The other semi final Flavia Panetta beat Simona Halep in straight sets and this too was largely unexpected but Flavia just proved too strong for Simona. 

The men's semi finals was more straight forward both Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer recorded comfortable wins to reach the finals were it would be number one versus number two. 

The women's final was an all Italian affair and Flavia Panetta beat Roberta Vinci in straight sets and rightly so. Has been reasonably well in the last couple of years  so to me richly derseved this title. 

The Men's final Novak Djokovic beat Roger Federer to win his 10th Grand Slam title. I think it's only the disgraceful behaviour of the fans that marred his victory. 

The fans where so desperate to see a Roger win that they were clapping a Novak errors which was not nice to see.. However Novak overcame the hostility from the crowd to claim his 10th Grand slam.

US Open - Preview 2015

The US Open starts today and as usual it promises to be the best ever.. In the Women's draw Serena Williams is going for the Grand Slam record and vying for her 22nd Grand Slam..

This is not going to be easy and she is up against history and the burden of expectation and only time will tell if she can overcome the pressure and burden of expectation to win this 22nd Grand Slam. 

Another challenge for the title would be Petra Kivitova and after winning the New Haven this weekend she is now fully fit and could contend for title. 

Simona Halep is another contender for the title and she is yet to win a Grand Slam so she may win her maiden title. 

Garbine Murgurza is another contender for the title and after getting to the final Wimbledon, I would not be surprised if she made it to this final 

From a British prespective I am really hoping that Heather Watson can at least make it third round of this would be great from ranking points of view as she has never been past the first round. Which is a surprise as she won junior US Open. 

Johanna Konta has also made the main draw and I think she can realistically make it to the second round. 

Laura Robson is also in the main draw but she has been out so long with injury and has not played any warm up tournaments so should be interesting to see how well she does. 

The men's draw is more competitive and any of the top four men can win the title. I am hoping that Rafa Nadal will get his act together and get back to his winning ways. 

Roger Federer would love to win his 18th title however I don't believe that these days he can consistently win five set matches. 

Novak Djokovic is the firm favourite to win his 10th Grand Slam title and I personally would not bet against him but anything can happen. 

From a British prespective Andy Murray has a real realistic opportunity of winning his second US Open title. Hopefully he will overcome his semi -final problems  to make it to the final and win. 

Wimbledon 2015 finals

In the women's finals Serena Williams beat Garbine Murguruza in straight sets. Garbine played well however she was up against an inform Serena Williams who was determined to get her 21st Grand Slam title. 

It was a good match and Garbine made Serena work hard for the victory but Serena serve and movement around the court was just a better than Garbine's serve and movement. 

So this win takes Serena to one Grand Slam title behind Steffi Graff and I think it is realistic possibility for Serena to win at least two or three more Grand Slams before retiring. 

In the men's final Novak Djokovi beat Roger Federer in four sets and despite the crowd and the media desparate attempts to get Roger to the win. Novak was just too good and proved why he is the world number one. 

Roger played well but Novak played the big points better and when Novak went two sets to one up both Roger and the crowd seem deflated. 

Novak looked like could have easily have gone to five sets and still won the match whilst Roger would have needed to win this match in four sets as he came across someone who did not have the energy for five sets. 

So Novak won his third Wimbledon title and his ninth Grand Slam title and if he wins in the US Open then he will be into double figures in Grand Slams which would be very impressive. 

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 4th round

Fourth round matches took place on Monday Serena Williams beat Venus Williams in straight sets.

 It was a great match of high quality however it evident Venus illness affected her energy levels so she was not able to play at the same level. 

So Serena progressed to the quarters final which is probably about right and hopefully this will inspire to keep her form and win the title on Saturday. 

Maria Sharapova beat Zarina Diyas in straight sets and this was not much of a challenge for Maria and it was a routine wins for her. 

Garbine Murguruza beat Caroline Wozniacki in straight sets and even though Caroline is high ranked player I was not surprised because Garbine it's the ball well and has a good serve. 

Agnieszka Radwanska beat Jelena Jankovic in three sets and it was good win for Aga considering has had a poor year. 

In the men's draw Andy Murray beat Ivo Karlovic in four sets and it was good win for Andy who dropped a set but was able  come win the match. 

Roger Federer beat Roberto Bautista Agut in straight sets and in this tournament Roger has had little challenge playing players that I have never heard of. 

So the fourth round matches were good now hopefully the quarter final matches will be better. 

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. 

French Open - First week review

So it's been an eventful first week at the French Open and in the ladies draw Eugene Bouchard and Simona Halep have both been beaten. 

To be fair neither of them was a major surprise and I personally don't think either of them are top ten and they will both be lucky to still be in the top ten by the US Open. 

Heather Watson made to the second round before she was beaten by Sloane Stephens. By all accounts Heather was a bit of a disappointment and her serve and game was way off. 

I hoping she will turn this around for the grass court season and get back to being healthy and competitive on the court. 

Another surprise exit first round exit was Venus Williams and with her health problems and advancing age it was always going to be challenge.

 However Venus still believes she has a chance of winning and her best results have come in both the grass court and hard court season so we just have to wait to see. 

Venus's sister Serena Williams has had an up and down week. She has struggled both her second and third round matches, however would not bet against her reaching at least the final. 

The men's has been less eventful with all the favourites still in there. I am hoping Rafa Nadal can really turn his season around by winning this title. 

Andy Murray has been having a good clay court season so I would not bet against him making to to the final. 

Novak Djokovic has been really consistent so I would not bet against him making it to the final either. 

Then there is Roger Federer who has sailed through the first three rounds but I suspect when he comes up a better player it will be a real challenge for him to beat a better player in five sets. 

So both the men's and women's draw is looking exciting we should know by this time next week who the champions are. 

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 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 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 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 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 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. 

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. 

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.