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. 

Australian Open - Day four

Day four of the Australian Open and Agnieszka Radwanska beat Johanna Larsson in straight and it was not much of a contest and Aga barely broke sweat to win this match. 

However she has got a tough draw ahead and reastically it will be hard for her  to beat both Venus and Serena to make to the final were could face either Simona or Maria so it could be a tough ask. 

Serena Wiliams beat Vera Zvonareva in straight sets and it was tough first set for Serena who came two sets down to win the set and ultimately the match. 

Venus Williams beat Lauren Davis in straight sets and it was pretty routine win for Venus who did not have to expand much energy to get this win. 

Victoria Azarenka beat Caroline Wozniacki in straight sets and this was a bit of a surprise result for me as I thought that Caroline was going to win as Victoria is still coming back from injury. But it was a very comfortable win for Victoria. 

In the men's draw Novak Djokovic beat Andrey Kuznetsov in straight sets and it was another routine win for Novak and I would not bet against him from winning the title. 

Stan Wawrinka beat Marius Copil in straight sets and as the defending champion there must be a lot of pressure on his shoulders which he seems to be handling very well. 

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. 

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.  

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. 

Indian Wells - Day three

Day three at Indian Wells and Aga Radwanska beat Heather Watson in straight sets. 

Whilst I was disappointed to see Heather lose she was up against Aga who is a top five player.

 

Heather was able to break Aga's serve on numerous occasions but was not able to consolidate any of those breaks. 

 

The shock of the day was Lauren Davis beaten Victoria Azarenka in straight sets. Albeit Victoria was not a 100% but a win is win. 

Roberta Vinci beat Madison Keys in straight sets and I would have expected Madison do a little better but I guess she still on a learning curve. 

 

Australian Open - Day Ten

Day ten at the Australian Open and Agnieszka Radwanska beat the Victoria Azarenka in three sets. 

It definitely was a surprise for me as I thought that as Victoria had been playing reasonably well and I had expected her to least get to the final. 

Agnieszka has done a lot better than I expected but she has played a lot of three set matches at this tournament so don't think she will have any energy left if she does make it to the final. 

Dominika Cibulkova hammered Simona Halep in straight sets. This result was not too much of a suprise as Dominika has a good all round game which is slightly better than Simone's game. 

In the men's draw Rafael Nadal beat Grigor Dimitrov in four sets. Although Grigor pushed Rafa I would have been surprised if Grigor had won. 

Roger Federer beat Andy Murray in four sets. The first two sets where not competitive but Roger played incredibly well. However the third and fourth set where very different. 

In the third set Roger made more unforced errors which helped Andy to win the set.

 But in the fourth set Andy's lack of match fitness started to tell and Roger went on to win the set and the match. 

Australian Open - Day Eight

Day eight at the Australian Open and Dominika Cibulkova beat Maria Sharapova in three sets. 

This result was not a huge surprise for me as Maria has been struggling with her serve for a while now and against a player like Dominika it is understandable that her serve would break down. 

 

Victoria Azarenka beat a very poor Sloane Stephens in straight sets. Sloane was desparately disappointing and did not mount any kind of significant attack on Victoria's serve. 

Victoria now goes through to face Agnieszka Radwanska who beat Garbine Muguruza in straight sets. 

In the men's draw Roger Federer beat Jo-Wilfred Tsonga in straight sets. Jo- Wilfred did not play badly just that Roger was able to win those big points when it mattered. 

Andy Murray beat the 'lucky loser' Stephane Robert in four sets and he will now play Roger Federer in the quarters for a place in the semi- finals.

Rafael Nadal beat Kei Nishikori in three marginally close sets to make it to the quarter finals. 

Kei had chances to win at a least set and he could not take them as Rafa was always able to raise his level and win the match. 

 

Australian Open - Day Six

Day six at the Australian Open and Victoria Azarenka hammered Yvonne Meusburger in straight sets. 

It was a very routine win for Victoria who played well but didn't have to over extend herself to win the match. Next she plays Sloane Stephen and this match could be a very good match. 

Maria Sharapova beat Alize Cornet in straight sets. But Maria was made to work considerably harder in the second set.

In the men's draw, Rafael Nadal beat Gael Monfils in straight sets. It was the kind of game where Rafael was in completely in control and never any worry about him losing.

Andy Murray beat Feliciano Lopez in straight sets it was a comfortable victory and nothing like the mini drama he had in previous match. 

 

Australian Open Day Two - A very hot day!

Day two at the Australian Open was all about the hot weather. It got has hot as forty two degrees and yet the tournament Doctor thought it was safe to carry on playing. 

Sloane Stephens beat Yaroslava Shvedova in straight sets. However it was no ordinary straight sets victory and in the first Sloane got off to a very slow start and had to come back from being five games to one down to win the set.

Sloane was able to win the match but it was not a very convincing win and she really need to step it up in the next round. 

Victoria Azarenka and Maria Sharapova both recorded straight sets victories to put them in the next round. 

In the men's draw both Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal recorded wins. Rafael was up against Bernard Tomic and some pundits where hyping this match up. 

However it never really an exciting match as Bernard retired with an injury after the first set. 

Australian Open - Preview

The Australian Open starts tonight and it is the first grand slam of the tennis calendar. 

In the women's draw Serena Williams is the hot favourite to take the title. As was the case last year but Victoria Azarenka ended up winning it. 

This year barring injury I can't imagine Serena not winning this title. Outside of Serena, Victoria Azarenka could still retain her title.  

Elsewhere Heather Watson made it to the main draw after winning three qualifying matches. 

Her first round is against the former top five player Daniela Hantuchova. This will be a tough match for Heather but if she keeps her unforced errors down she will prevail.

Laura Robson faces 18th and Wimbledon semi-finalist Kirsten Flipkens in the first round. 

This will be tough match for Laura especially as she is recovering from a wrist injury. 

 

The men's draw is a little more open than the women. As there is a number of men that can realistically win the title. 

Last years champion Novak Djokovic has the ability to retain his title. US Open champion Rafael Nadal has a big shot at this title but he has a very tough draw. 

Roger Federer probably as an outside chance of winning but personally I think it is an outside shot. 

Lastly the current Wimbledon champion Andy Murray as a chance at this title. However he did spend the latter part of the year injured so I am not sure if he is match fit. 

My prediction is that Serena Williams will win the women's title and Novak Djokovic will win the men's title. 

What are your predictions? 

WTA Championships - Review

The WTA Championships did not really live up to its high profile billing. This because players like Victoria Azarenka and Aga Radwanska did not play as well as they where expected to.

This meant that players like Petra Kivitova, Jelena Jankovic and Ni La who have had relatively quiet year where then able to shine.

After reading the comments that both Jelena Jankovic and Ni La made about Serena William's gamesmanship I was a little surprised. 

Both Jelena and Li Na have had average year and Serena has won eleven tournaments. As a fan I can understand why she would have been tired. 

I suspect some players might be already fed up with playing on tour with someone who some fans have given legend status. 

However Serena Williams has worked incredibly hard to achieve this and things have not always gone so well for Serena. 

But the fact she is still playing at such high level and at the age that most of her  

contemporaries have retired or thinking of retirement is amazing in itself. 

Serena's perseverance to win this tournament even though she was not feeling 100%. To me can only be admired so it is little disappointing to read comments made by fellow professionals. 

Serena to me was a worthy winner and whilst her contemporaries where falling apart. 

Serena weathered her own storm and retained her title and it was amazing to watch and to think that I was witnessing history.

WTA end of year tour championships - Podcast

Please click on the link below to listen to my preview of the end of year championship.

VR Online Service: 2013-10-21 15_00_32

Toray Pan Pacific Open - day two

Day two at the Toray Pan Pacific Open definitely had its element of surprise. 

Eugenie Bouchard beat Sloane Stephens in three sets. This was a surprise as Sloane is just two hundred ranking points from being in the top ten. 

So a good run in this  tournament would definitely have brought her closer but it was not meant to be.

The major surprise of the day was Venus Williams beating Victoria Azarenka in straight sets. 

Victoria did not seem herself as she was not grunting or making a real effort to chase the balls. 

But at the same time Venus has this long term debilitating  illness. So to me they came across as evenly matched.

 Venus served incredibly well and kept the  points short and her return game was on fire ! It was a real pleasure to watch two women  really competing at the highest level.

 Venus now plays Simona Halep and I hope she will carry the same desire and intensity into her that match. 

Toray Pan Pacific Open- day one

The Toray Open started yesterday and Venus Williams beat Mona Barthel in straight sets. 

I was surprised by the ease  in which Venus beat Mona. However in the next second round she faces world number two Victoria Azarenka and that will be a lot tougher. 

Laura Robson lost in straight sets to Ayumi Morita. I think Laura is now going through a mini slump, hopefully she will get out of this mini slump soon. 

The young Canadian Eugenie Bouchard beat Monica Puig in straight set. Eugenie is already top thirty so a good run in this tournament could see climb further up the rankings.

US Open - Women's Final

The US Open women's final took place yesterday between Serena Williams and Victoria Azarenka and it was certainly an action packed match. 

Serena Williams beat Victoria Azarenka in three sets to retain her title. It wasn't the best final I have ever watched  but it was certainly the most gripping to say the least.

Serena came across as nervous and tentative in both the first and second set and she served about six double faults.

 In the third set, she was able to regroup and win the set and the match convincingly with a few more aces and winners.

This was always going to be a tough match for Victoria Azarenka and her serve do not help matters.

Victoria served about five double faults and in the third set she looked a little tired and was making more unforced errors. 

However there are many good things about Victoria's game like her coverage of the court was excellent.

If Victoria works on her serve and her fitness I'm sure she will win many more grand slams.

Alternatively  Serena  now has an  opportunity not only to establish her legacy but to make tennis history.

If she wins one more grand slam she will be tied with Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova and I am confident that in the next year or so Serena will achieve this.  

US Open - day twelve

Day twelve at the US Open was the women's semi - finals day.

In the first semi - final Victoria Azarenka beat Flavia Pennetta in straight sets. This result was not unexpected and Victoria was able to win and set up a final match against Serena Williams.

In the second semi - final Serena beat Na Li in straight sets and I was little surprised with the ease in which Serena won this match.  

In the first set Na Li did not win a game and the second set only really became, competitive at the end by this time it was a little too late for Na Li.

The final between Serena Williams and Victoria Azarenka will take place about 9.30pm UK time. 

Shortly after winning her singles semi-finals match, Serena then played doubles with her sister Venus. They lost in straight sets to Andrea Hlavackova and Lucie Hradecka.

Serena appeared to be a little tired from her earlier singles match, however Lucie and Andrea played well to win this match.

US Open- Women's semi-finals preview

The women's semi-finals is due to take place tomorrow.

Serena Williams will take on Na Li and they have played each other nine times and Serena is currently leading eight to one.

 This does not mean that Serena will win as Na Li has been playing some really good tennis. If Serena serves well then she will probably make it to the final. 

However if Na Li is able to consistently return Serena's serve then that will also increase her chances of winning.

In the second semi-final Victoria Azarenka takes on the unseeded Flavia Pennetta. On paper it would look like a clear win for Victoria.

 However Flavia has had a great tournament so the momentum she currently has could help her to win the game.

I think the women's final will be between Serena Williams and Victoria Azarenka but would not be surprised if either Na Li or Flavia Pennetta caused an upset.

US Open - day ten

Day ten at the US Open and the men's draw still has it's top three seeds and the women's draw still has it's top two seeds.

Rafael Nadal beat Tommy Robredo in straight sets. This was a clinical match from Rafael who did not allow Tommy to get into the match at all. Rafa will now face Richard Gasquet in the semi-finals.

Richard Gasquet beat the fourth seed David Ferrer in five sets. Richard won the first two sets then had to come back to win in the fifth set for his place in the semi finals.

In the women's draw the unseeded Flavia Pennetta  beat the tenth seed and her compatriot Roberta Vinci in straight sets. To reach the semi-finals where she will face Victoria Azarenka. 

Victoria Azarenka beat Daniela Hantuchova in straight sets to make it to the semi-finals against the unseeded Flavia Pennetta.

Meanwhile in the women's doubles Venus and Serena Williams beat Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and Lucie Safarova in straight sets to reach the doubles quarter finals.

 However in the second set Venus Williams ran out of energy and both Venus and Serena did well to close it out in straight sets. As I suspect that if the match had gone to a third set it would have been a real challenge for Venus to finish. 

They now face the number one seeds Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci this match is going to be a real challenge for Venus especially and hopefully they will win it and make it to the semi-finals.