Monte Carlo: Muzz’s Sticky Patch.

The Big Guns were finally out today – though not all entirely in full force.

"I wasn't very good today," said Murray, whose first-serve percentage fell as low as 32% during the second set.

"It was the first time in a few years that the court felt so small. I just could not find the court. When it's like that, it's difficult to play.

…

"I tried different things. I tried serve and volleying a couple of times. I tried hitting some high balls. It did not really make a whole lot of difference."

-- BBC Tennis

It’s official. Muzz is going through what in polite circles is delicately referred to as "a sticky patch”.

Kohlschreiber d. Murray 6-2, 6-1

He’d murmured something about not having “a clear head” and being "subconsciously annoyed" since that loss in the final of Oz – to which I’d, accordingly, only paid the most subconscious of attention.

Quite how out of sorts however, became excruciatingly apparent today.

First things first. Kohlschreiber in your first match of the clay court season!?? Really!?

Particularly telling however, was the lack of any apparent emotion at being bundled out of that first set 6-2 –no gnashing of teeth, none of the familiar agonised thrashing or writhing around he’s been so heavily criticised for and which has arguably dug him out of similar situations in the past.

We all saw what happened to Djokovic after he elected to tone things down – Murray’s not half as brash at the worst of times.

Gnash away I say. Anything but this nightmarish, nugatory no-show.

Nadal d. de Bakker 6-1, 6-0

Seemingly a rebuff to the concerns I raised in my last post.

I’m not intent on raining on anyone’s parade – but please it’s Thiemo de Bakker people, not Novak Djokovic.

Djokovic d. Serra 6-2 6-3

Not the easy win the score line would suggest.

Unlike Murray, Djoko did elect to berate himself out of the stupor that had threatened to settle in during the early parts of the second set – sometimes quite vociferously.

I always look to clay for an upturn in Djoko’s fortunes – especially after the spell he had last year – the only time during the entire season he actually looked the part of a top five player.

But for now, he’s still serving like this.

We’ve Todd Martin to thank for that.

Nalbandian d. Youzhny 4-6 6-3 7-6

"This is maybe the start of another career for me", he said at the start of Miami.

Nalbie continues to defy medical science with what I've now no qualms in thinking of as the best return I've ever seen from hip surgery.

Youznhy and Daveed salvaged what I was otherwise set to write off as an unimpressive days tennis.

***

This is Jo-Willy after putting out an embittered Nicolas Almagro in a riveting two set corker yesterday.

MUHAHAHAAHA…my thoughts exactly.

What’s probably more significant is he termed the win his “best match on clay”.

I dunno much about Jo’s own estimation of his prowess on dirt – he strikes me as an all-courter that can do damage on any surface - but it had to have been good for him to say something like that. It was.

It’s unlikely to be any more competitive than in Miami (I should say it’s far likelier to be significantly less so), but he’s in Rafa’s quarter.

Duly noted I hope.

MUHAHAHAAHA.

(Photos: Getty)

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Indian Wells: Playstation II

(Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)

Zheng d. Sharapova 6-3 2-6 6-3

"She's like a ball machine," Sharapova said. "She hits a lot of balls back, hits them hard and deep.

"I mean, I'd say I should have done a much better job on her serve, because her serve is definitely one of her weaker parts of the game, but… "

--Yahoo Sports

WTA – you have your Playstation.

Quite similar to what Ivanovic had to say of her after her 2008 loss to Zheng at Wimbledon. Particularly the hard and deep part.

Zheng definitely troubles the tall girls – especially those that can’t keep themselves from firing 14 double faults and 49 UFEs.

I’m no longer much convinced that shoulder biomechanics have anything much to do with this. The injury may be what got her into this position in the first place, but this particular malady just became systemic, and it’s currently working it’s toxins into her groundies.

(Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)

Djokovic d. Kohlschreiber 6-3 2-6 7-6 (7-3)

Yeah…I’m actually kinda glad I got hold of this shot, because since late last year, I put it to you all that Djoko’s service action has become more and more…..‘clubby’ – by which I mean that there’s now barely any bend in his arm at all.

His serve was always a little nuanced like that – the effect has been more pronounced in recent months. Viewed side on, it’s almost like he’s pushing the ball over.

None of which had any bearing on the match of course

Kohlschreiber’s always a good bet to bag a top ten scalp – today he held three match points, before going down in three.

It was never going to be easy, perhaps even incomplete to leave Djoko with anything other than another three set win.

(Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)

Federer d. Hanescu 6-3 6-7 (5-7) 6-1

Fed’s victory over Hanescu was another ‘routine’ affair. By which I mean the obligatory lapsed set.

Douglas Perry preferred to focus on the lapse. Tignor preferred to debunk the cool clinical mystique– painting Fed as “agitated” and “making the most of getting scared” (he should know, seated up front with the bigwigs, only a row or two behind Larry Ellison).

There’s a lot to agree with in both those analyses – I just found it all a little blah.

Which is probably a good thing at this stage in the game.

And it might be the new choppy hairdo, but that’s the most un-Federer like Federer photo I’ve seen in a while.

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Melbourne: Days 4 & 5 – “Shock Infested” Swamps

So it all happened out there yesterday.

It was hot, it was muggy and some of the play looked to have been extricated from a swamp.

Petrova d. Clijsters 6-0, 6-1

A shocker, but perhaps also something of required reality check. Cupcake Kim she’s most certainly no more, but even the most ardent of her fans would concede she’s not immune to the odd bad day at the office.

Perhaps more interesting was the the way she dealt with it in the presser:

"It sucks," she said. "I was completely off. She was good but I made all the mistakes and she didn't really have to do much. She served really well and was aggressive in the rallies, but that's because I let her play. It sucks that it has to happen at this stage of this tournament. If it happens in another tournament, then you can say: 'OK, it's not a big deal, just keep working hard.' Matches like this happen maybe once a year.

"You just try to stay calm because there were points where I really wanted to break my racket into pieces, but that's not going to help either, so you really just try to stay positive. At some points I was just happy I was hitting a ball in. That's how bad it was."

The Guardian

Yowza, Yowza, Yowza!

Kimmie 2.0 has very much arrived – with not a cupcake in sight.

She’s picked up on court largely where she left off after her first Slam, but it’s off court that the real transformation has taken place.

Kimmie 2.0 is a darker, more edgy figure, with a more Hingis-like, caustic world view of her opponents. She's also more comfortable using words like ‘suck’.

The rest of the year suddenly got more interesting.

Bondarenko d. Jankovic 6-2 6-3

First things first.

What on earth is going on with Jelena’s serve?

There seems to be a viral marketing campaign currently doing the rounds in women’s locker rooms, that like any properly constructed sales pitch, is disturbingly effective in signing up consumers for stuff they don’t need.

Jelena’s first serve was a liability………back in 2007.

It was never going to assume B-52 proportions but since then I did think she successfully fashioned it into something more competent, something she might use to do more with than simply start the point.

I’d put up a clip except I had my first run-in with Tennis Australia who insisted I take down those two Henin clips from my last post (You know you’ve arrived on YouTube when that happens for the first time, though whether a 50 second tennis clip actually infringes copyright or should come under what most would consider ‘fair use’ remains open for debate).

For now I’ll attempt to describe it as best I can.

From the peacock-like head cocking, to the bending of the knees to an angle so acute, you’d think she needs the type of knee protection Moto Rally GP drivers are routinely issued with.

The pay off for such excessive re-architecting? Darned if I can see it.

She may even have regressed.

As for the rest of her game, it’s not entirely in tatters – but a visit to the drapers wouldn’t go amiss.

What little rhythm she did manage to create, was quickly quashed by Bondarenko who I’m sure has come on leaps and bounds since the last time I saw her.

Sign me up as a fan.

Kuznetsova d. Kerber 3-6 7-5 6-4

Sveta left it all out on court in round two. It was smooth, it was dreamy and as always when she’s on song, so cruel it was cute – Pavlyuchenkova didn’t know what had hit her, with no idea how to respond even once she did.

I was even deluded into believing she might have taken that next vital step up to becoming comfortable in her skin as a two time Slam Champion.

She must have left it all out on court – because last night, there was nothing left.

She made Kerber look as good as she did, by letting loose a total of 43 UFEs (peanuts compared to Shaza’s first round outage, I know) – shoot anyone that tries to convince you otherwise.

This one should have been over in 1:25, instead it lasted over two hours.

Maybe starting after the Nadal match at 12am had something to do with it.

Champions sometimes have a stinker in the first week – but are conditioned into putting it behind them and playing their subsequent matches with such panache, you sometimes think they were undergoing necessary detox.

I’d like to think it’s that way with Sveta – except I’ve been wrong so many times.

Safina d. Baltacha 6-1 6-2

Brits have been busy celebrating the first time two women have reached the second round of a Slam outside of Wimbledon since 1992.

But Dinara poured hot tar over all of that yesterday - just like she has been in all her matches so far.

The difference in class was all too evident.

I’m rather liking the look of Safina’s groundies since the beginning of the event.

That serve however...

Henin d. Kleybanova 3-6 6-4 6-2

Justine dropped a set and has picked up a leg inflammation – no doubt from all those hours spent 'comparing notes' with Elena on court – could she be the next big story with a flat ending?

Nadal d. Kohlschreiber 6-4 6-2 2-6 7-5

Oh the unqualified joy of seeing the ‘Declinist’ position on Rafa’s game, being sequestered in it’s proper place.

I have no idea whether or not Rafa will go all the way – at this point I’d say that’s not all that likely, nor for that matter as important as the question of whether his play resembles something like that of Pre Wimby 2009: It does.

If there’s one thing Kohlschreiber deals in, it’s BIG-UPSET tennis.

This might just have gone the same way as his match with A-Rod did two years back, if Phillip didn’t run out of gas somewhere near the beginning of the fourth set.

We were all waiting to see Rafa go up against credible opposition, and Phillip might just have been the tonic with which to put a seal on Rafa’s revival.

The confidence very evident in the way he shunted back a once-in-a-career wide angled backhand winner that was so far out of court he had to go round the net post.

Yeah that’s what comes of not being able to post up YouTube clips anymore. Boo.

Cilic d. Wawrinka 4-6 6-4 6-3 6-2

This one had five set bruiser written all over it.

I didn’t get to see it – but it’s kind of the result I expected.

Stanislas has been all at sea since Wimbledon last year, a period that’s coincided rather nicely with Marin’s upward march.

Marin is “the new Delpo” according to some – a view I would almost share were it not for the fact that their styles of play are a little like oil and water.

But there’s no doubting Marin is the best placed to have a Delpo like breakthrough year.

Somewhat befitting then, he should be playing “Mr Breakthroughs-are-so-2009” himself, in the next round.

A match that could go either way if you believe there’s anything behind that wrist injury Delpo came into the event with.

***

I didn’t catch very much of the action from day four.

I’ll try and be quick.

Davydenko d. Marchenko 6-3 6-3 6-0

Kolya’s the man of moment right now, and something tells me this is different from the surge Nalbie experienced at the end of 2007. One that was promptly extinguished in Oz the following year (nice to have you back Daveed, almost).

I’m still not confident of him going all the way, but Davy looks awfully close to embracing at least some of the attention that goes along with taking out the best two players on the planet at consecutive events; he definitely has a different look about him this year – one that was in full show yesterday against poor old Marchenko , who to his credit didn’t play a poor match.

The top ten is sometimes a dark, murky place; full of untold misery for any hapless intruder unfortunate enough to blunder into the wrong party (remember Fed performing live vivisection on Delpo last year?), and Davy is currently it’s arch-executioner.

I do so want him to go all the way, but will for now be content with the knowledge that seeing him face off against Fed in the quarters might turn out to be every bit as good as the Rafa/Sod encounter we won’t now get to see.

Federer d. Hanescu 6-2 6-3 6-2

Normal service ‘resumptionalised’. For the time being.

Djokovic d. Chiudinelli 3-6 6-1 6-1 6-3

Having not seen any of Djoko’s matches so far, I’m not entirely sure where he is (yeah, that old chestnut). I’d like to think he’s been bolstered by that win in Paris last year.

Until I see him face off against Tsonga, Haas or Youzhny, who all lurk menacingly in his quarter of the draw however, I can’t be completely certain of that.

Not crazy about the “Hell’s Angel meets Kung-Fu Fighting” edition Sergio Tacchini have kitted him out with either. Though it’s far more preferable to the incoherent slather of colour Murray’s been daubed with. Especially beneath those ‘pits’.

V. Williams d. Bammer 6-2 7-5

This time last year I was highly optimistic of Queen V’s chances of fixing that gaping hole on her CV, by winning her first Slam on a blue surface since the early Noughties.

This year I saw nothing leading into the event that would suggest that’s even a remote possibility.

Dulko d. Ivanovic 6-7 7-5 6-4

It’s becoming difficult to avoid at least considering the possibility that Ana’s set to go the same way as Vaidisova, and understanding the root of her problems sometimes feels like a niche Philosophy.

I’m not about to embark on either.

There were some good signs in her play, but not very many, and more disturbingly an action that almost suggests she’s made her peace with wonky service tosses – they seem to have fused themselves into her game so stealthily, she’s now more inclined to adapt to an errant ball toss than she is to continue to try and work it out of her game.

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It Had To Happen Sometime...

Well the unthinkable's happened....

I don't even know what to say.

Still processing my thoughts.

I could give you some meaningless drivel about Rafa being off his game, his balls landing too short, being imposed upon, playing too far back, but the simple fact of the matter is he was outplayed, by a man playing out of his very thick skin...

There's little love lost between these two.

You didn't need to get a look in at the contemptuous handshake at the end of the match, to infer that strangely significant iota of trivia.

The scary part is how infrequently Robin came to the net, the supposed recipe to bringing down Rafa on clay.

There's a strange eerie silence that descended across all of the stadium, that still hasn't lifted despite play being well under way in the Sharapova and Li Na 4th round encounter, the next scheduled match on court.

I heard all of the players came out into the players lounge to witness the biggest upset in clay court history.

Will Roger be buying Robin drinks this evening? Doubt it. I should imagine he wanted this particular win for himself. Maybe he also doesn't want the very large asterisk that will inevitably be placed against his name, should he go on to win this thing.

Can you imagine the emotion laden atmosphere in the changing rooms right now?

Here's hoping the two are kept well apart. A calming presence like Nikolay might be needed, except he's playing Nando out on Lenglen.

Rafa looked as upset as I think I've ever seen him as he left court, refusing to sign any of those annoyingly large tennis balls being waved around in his face.

Can you believe Elena Dementieva predicted this? Or near abouts. Are you in touch with the netherworld girl!? The funny thing is she mentioned how 'physical conditioning' was responsible for her upset yesterday; fitness and Dementieva are virtually synonymous in some lesser known dialects of Russian - so I wasn't taking anything she was saying that seriously, much less a prediction of the greatest clay court upset of all time.

As I say it's pretty meaningless to make any analysis right now, but I will offer up these few post-Rafa thoughts, though you're free to shove them straight through your virtual paper shredder:

-- Once again it's a flat hitter that causes Rafa trouble, deeply pummelling virtually everything that came his way, keeping Rafa pushed well back behind the baseline - and we all know what happens then...

-- Robin Soderling played like he was in league with forces not entirely of this world, somewhat similarly to Phillip Kohlschreiber yesterday. The commentary team were trying to think of a player left in the draw that hits so flat, so aggressively and and so consistently off both wings: No joy. Zip. Nada. Or should I say Nada(l).

-- And he did it with the UGLIEST forehand I've seen in around 20 years worth of tennis viewing. I hope that colour expresses just how ugly I think it is.

-- I can't help thinking that the mutual dislike between these two subtly played on Rafa's mind. The only parallel I can think of is Roger losing to Djoko - a loss that caused him to break his racquet in Miami. No love lost there either. It's just that as the match progresses, and more and more balls whizz past you, the thought that 'I really don't wanna lose to this particular guy', just has to prey on your mind. And that only makes the pressure worse. I would say Roger's loss at Wimbledon last year was a little less painful, coming as it did against Rafa, a guy he likes and respects. I believe he said as much when he lost the #1 ranking to him.

-- And on that subject, Roger, if you don't win this thing now -- with Rafa AND Djoko out -- I might just reconsider that bandwagon arrangement you and I have...

-- It's either that dislike of Robin or the pink shirt wot did him in. I really shouldn't make light of this. Au Revoir Rafa. My heart goes out to you. Read More...

The Second Tier Strikes Again,,,

Inconsequential trivia for the day: Paul Henri Mathieu was the last man to defeat Pete Sampras before Pete went off in that ill-fated attempt to find tennis-free solace on the golf course.

Past his prime? Undoubtedly, except he went on to win the US Open less than a month later. Since then Mr Mathieu has very much been the nearly man of French tennis. An undoubted talent, but justifiably seen as way too flaky.

I can't argue with that, but continue to enjoy the guy's intensity (often is own undoing) which I think French tennis could do with a bit more of. He lacks Gasquet's stylishness but is no less the natural shotmaker for it.

That damage he's capable of inflicting may have been part of the reason why he seemed a lot more relaxed - happy even - after managing to pinch a set off Roger Federer today, who seems to be clicking into gear, though you never know these days.

No, you never know. Do you Novak? Yes you, 2nd best clay courter in the world. Made-the-semis-at-RG-these-past-three-years-only-to-be-dumped-out-in-the-third-round-by-a-tier-two-player Novak.

That's pretty harsh actually, as the guy he went out to happens to be one of my favourite players, a real Custodian of the single handed backhand.

(Photo: JACQUES DEMARTHON/AFP/Getty Images)

Which brings me to the question of why Phillip Kohlschreiber has not made a breakthrough these past few years. You see, both Mathieu and him have been filed under 'Coulda Been a Contender' within Tennis Is Served's dusty archives for some years now. The third guy there is Andreas Seppi.

The common feature with these three, that arguably sit at the top of a great mountain of players known as the 2nd tier, is that every so often you can depend on them to come out of (not quite) nowhere, and play a match (sometimes at the expense of a top tenner) that leaves you wondering why they've never been a top ten player.

Andreas (highest ranking #27) did it against Safin last year at Wimbledon - still my 2nd best match of that event.

Mathieu (highest ranking #12) , besides that big win against Sampras, played one of the best clay court matches we've had in recent years when he lost to Nadal at RG in 2006, in an encounter lasting nearly 5 hours.

And as to Kohlschreiber (highest ranking #22), well you probably remember him taking out the A-Rod at Melbourne last year. And then you had today.

Yet for all these wondrous exploits, there they are, languishing away year after year as top 40 players.

And in Phillip's case, I've never been able to figure out what, if anything is holding him back. Apart from that obscene hip swivelling motion he goes through when serving, which should be subject to some sort of censorship. 'The following second serve has been rated 15, and features hip-swivelling from the outset, that some viewers may find offensive'.

I first saw him in person at Wimbledon in 2006, playing on an outside court against a Columbian player whose name I can't remember. Admired the backhand even then, but off I went puffed up with my own importance, a ticketholder of a well placed seat on court number 1 where I'd get to see Agassi, Venus and Hewitt.

He plays Tommy Robredo next, a match I expect him to win. But there I suspect this run, like many before it will come to an end. Or will it?
See, if he wins that he plays one of Tsonga or Del-Potro. Great run both these guys have been having but neither of them the most natural clay courter. And then who? Roddick? Monfils? Haas? Federer?

That part of the draw suddenly got very interesting. Though not as interesting as the question of whether we'll see 'The Pink Pounder' deliver a bagel to Soderling tomorrow. I'll be satisfied with a well-timed stink-eye. Not convinced any Babolat-embossed hatchets have been buried just yet.

***

Quick hits on the womens side.

Elena Dementieva went out to Sam Stosur and in one of the more bizarre quotes I've heard this year, cited 'physical conditioning' as the reason for not producing her best tennis. That's about as believable coming from someone as supremely fit as her as it is from David Ferrer.

That means that there's now only three ladies standing in my list of RG picks for this year. The remaining three being Dinara, Svetlana and Jelena. Not too concerned just yet, with the straight sets wins these girls have had.

Serena Williams eventually came through a three set match marred by an incident in the first set that saw Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez hit by a ball Serena drilled her way. That 'return' sailed past Serena and the point was awarded to Maria, despite Serena's protestations that the ball came off her body. Maria kept schtum. Make of that what you will - I only saw one replay that wasn't too clear.

Lastly, Wozniacki's stay at RG came to end today in a straight set defeat to the Romanian Sorana Cirstea. The story here of course was the back injury that caused Caroline to call an injury timeout just two points away from defeat. But I want instead to call attention to the firepower of the young Romanian who was matching (and sometimes outhitting) Caroline shot for shot. It's as unimaginative as ever, but is I'm pretty sure, amongst some of the most accurate hitting on tour today. Some of the rallies these two were having were preposterous. Not surprised Caroline's back gave way. Keep an eye on that one.
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