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Power Ranking for the Week of April 15-April 21

16 Apr

Dan Martin’s 2012 Power Rankings for the

Week of April 15 through April 21 – Not a lot of change this week

1.  Novak Djokovic – Novak is clearly the number one player in the world.

2.  Roger Federer – Fed’s 2012 titles in Dubai, Rotterdam and Indian Wells have him holding the number two spot.

3. Rafael Nadal – Will Rafa win 8 in a row? We know he can, and I think there is a good chance that he will win Monte Carlo yet again.

4.  Andy Murray -  Could Andy breakthrough on clay where the pressure and expectations on him are lower?

5.  David Ferrer – Ferrer looked great in Davis Cup play.

6. Juan Martin del Potro – Delpo paced Argentina with two singles wins.

7.  Nicolas Almagro – Almagro also looked solid in Davis Cup.

8. Juan Monaco – Monaco beat Isner so he swaps places with big John.  His play in Miami and Houston have Monaco looking like a true top 10 player.  Change from last week +1

9.  John Isner - He is still playing well despite his runner-up finish in Houston.  I am sad he will not be playing Monte Carlo, but I think stamina is something John has to be mindful of during this clay court season.  Change from last week – 1

10. Tomas Berdych - Two singles wins in Davis Cup signal his return to my non-binding top 10.

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Youtube Tennis for the Week of 4-15 through 4-21-2012

16 Apr

1. 

Great Backhands

2. 

Isner Highlights vs. Nole

3. 

The man of the hour Juan Monaco ends this week’s selected highlights

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Houston Prediction for 4-15-2012 (Morocco info inside too)

15 Apr

Predicted Winner in BOLD

C = Correct, X = Incorrect

Grand Prix Hassan II- Casablanca, Morocco

Final
Pablo Andujar (3) vs. Albert Ramos (7) 6-1, 1-1 in-progress – I will not make a prediction as the match is already in progress.  I am ill today and did not get to posting early enough.  Still, if the score holds Andujar will have a title under his belt.  He has played great tennis all week.

I did rebound from my awful early week picks in Morocco to finish the event picking 9 out of 17 matches correctly.  My Casablanca picks were not much better than flipping a coin.

U.S. Men’s Clay Court Championship – Houston

Final

John Isner (2) vs. Juan Monaco (4) – After Monaco’s strong showing in Miami and Isner’s Davis Cup domination, I put a poll question out about who would be more likely to win on clay between these two.

I think a three out of five set match that Monaco would benefit as he may have time to figure out how to return Isner’s serve more effectively.  This match will afford Monaco less time.  My guess is that any point that goes beyond four strokes will favor Monaco heavily.  Short points will favor Isner.  If Big John can dictate, he will win the match.  If Monaco can prevent Isner from dictating, the Argentine will win the match.  Isner has improved his return game and movement, but Monaco should be focused on holding serve and trying to make the big man move.

I think John Isner will win this match in two or three tight sets.  However, I think that Monaco would win  if they meet in a three out of five set clay court match in Paris.  I do think it is great that both men are building on recent successes in Houston.  Too often a player shows some fight in an event or two and then fades back into the pack.  Both men seem to be carving out a strong 2012.  X- I like both Monaco and Isner a lot.  This was a hard one to pick, and I got it wrong.  I do think this match shows why Isner will struggle to push past great South American and European baseline players to make a deep run in Paris.  His three clay court Davis Cup wins this year and near miss versus Rafa last year demonstrate that he can win on clay, but the road will be hard.  Monaco could be a final eight player in Paris.  Great showings in Miami and now Houston boost his career.

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Morocco and Houston Predictions 4-14-2012

14 Apr

Predicted Winners in BOLD

C = Correct, X = Incorrect

Grand Prix Hassan II – Morocco

Semifinals
Albert Ramos (7) vs. Igor Andreev – No pick as it is in progress.

Pablo Andujar (3) vs. Flavio Cipolla – Andujar has been impressive.  C

Daily Total: Correct – 1, Incorrect – 0

Tournament Total: Correct – 9, Incorrect – 8

U.S. Men’s Clay Court Championship – Houston

Semifinals
Juan Monaco (4) vs. Michael Russell – Russell has put together a great week, but I think Monaco has too much game for him to handle.  C - The tenacious Russell came close to advancing. 

John Isner (2) vs. Feliciano Lopez (3) – John Isner will continue his strong 2012 with a win over Lopez.  C - Last week’s poll question looks prophetic.  We’ll find out tomorrow.

Daily Total: Correct – 2, Incorrect – 0

Tournament Total: Correct – 19, Incorrect – 7

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Morocco and Houston Predictions 4-13-2012

13 Apr

Predicted Winner in BOLD

C = Correct, X = Incorrect

Grand Prix Hassan II – Morocco

Quarterfinals
Benoit Paire vs. Flavio Cipolla C

Igor Andreev vs. Guillermo Garcia-Lopez – Andreev is playing well this week.  Still, I am going to think Garcia-Lopez will advance.  X

Albert Ramos (7) vs. Jeremy Chardy  – Chardy won big yesterday and should have momentum today.  X

Second Round – I am sticking with my picks from yesterday for these matches
Lamine Ouahab vs. Sergio Gutierrez-Ferrol C – Another one-sided victory.  These two second round matches put me above .500 for my Morocco picks. 

Pablo Andujar (3) vs. Potito Starace – C Andujar wins easily.

Daily Total: Correct – 3, Incorrect – 2

Tournament Total: Correct – 8, Incorrect – 8

U.S. Men’s Clay Court Championship – Houston

Quarterfinals
Michael Russell vs. Ryan Harrison – This is the hardest match for me to pick on today’s slate.  Russell is playing well, fights hard and has a ton of experience.  Harrison is still learning but is more talented than Russell.  On a surface other than clay, I’d pick Harrison with the idea that he could win easily or could figure Russell out over time.  On clay, this is a 50-50 type of match.  Harrison has won two matches here so I think he has his clay legs under him.  I will pick the youngster although I would love to see Russell win the entire event.  X – Happy I was wrong on this.

John Isner (2) vs. Ryan Sweeting  – The defending champion is in some trouble here.  I think Isner advances. C

Feliciano Lopez (3) vs. Carlos Berlocq (6) – I think Berlocq will win in a mild upset.  X – Berlocq was injured and defaulted mid-match.  

Juan Monaco (4) vs. Kevin Anderson (5) – Anderson’s serve gives him a chance, but Monaco is playing good tennis and is more suited to this surface.  C

Daily Total: Correct – 2, Incorrect – 2

Tournament Total: Correct – 17, Incorrect – 7

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Morocco and Houston Predictions for 4-12-2012

12 Apr

Predicted Winner in BOLD

C = Correct, X = Incorrect

Grand Prix Hassan II – Morocco

Second Round

Pablo Andujar (3) vs. Potito Starace – This is not an easy match to predict, but  will take Andujar to advance.

Florian Mayer (1) vs. Jeremy Chardy – Chardy has a big future right?  Beating the number one seed would say something, but I do worry some about his mobility and stamina.  I will take Mayer.  X - Another incorrect pick in this tournament.  This was a good win for Chardy.

Lamine Ouahab vs. Sergio Gutierrez-Ferrol – This is a guess.

Albert Ramos (7) vs. Victor Hanescu – This match could go either way, but I think Ramos will win.  C – I have one right at least.

Daily Total (Thus Far): Correct – 1, Incorrect – 1

Tournament Total: Correct - 6, Incorrect - 7

U.S. Men’s Clay Court Championship – Houston

Second Round

Bobby Reynolds vs. Ryan Sweeting – Sweeting has the pressure of defending points in Houston, but I think Ryan will win.  C

John Isner (2) vs. Horacio Zeballos – Isner should maintain some momentum from his Davis Cup wins.  C

Mardy Fish (1) vs. Michael Russell – I’d love to pick Russell, but I think Fish’s live arm will give him more opportunities to end points than Russell will have.  Fish’s serve and backhand are world class.  So long as his forehand stays on the grid, Fish should win.  X – Russell crushed Fish.

Juan Monaco (4) vs. Tatsuma Ito – I expect for Monaco to build on the  momentum he gained in Miami.  C

Igor Kunitsyn vs. Ryan Harrison – Harrison was pretty shaky in his first round match and absorbed two losses in Davis Cup.  I think he is still learning how to play on clay at this level.  X – My Morocco picks are bleeding into Houston.

Kevin Anderson (5) vs. Sam Querrey – Sam Querrey needs good results and this is a winnable match.  Both players have big serves.  If Sam can get into a typical clay court match, his ground game should be strong enough to advance.  X – This match was extremely close, but Anderson got it done.

Daily Total (thus far): Correct – 3, Incorrect – 3

Tournament Total: Correct – 15, Incorrect – 5

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Youtube Tennis for the Week of 4-10 through 4-14-2012

10 Apr

1. Edberg vs. McEnroe at Wimbledon 1989

2.  Muster vs. Sampras 1995

3.  John Isner vs. Gilles Simon 2012

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Power Ranking for April 8 – April 14

9 Apr

Dan Martin’s 2012 Power Rankings for the

Week of April 8 through April 14 – Not a lot of change this week due to Davis Cup

1.  Novak Djokovic – Novak is clearly the number one player in the world.

2.  Roger Federer – Fed’s 2012 titles in Dubai, Rotterdam and Indian Wells have him holding the number two spot.

3. Rafael Nadal – How healthy is Rafa?

4.  Andy Murray -  Andy can potentially be a strong clay court player.

5.  David Ferrer – Ferrer looked great in Davis Cup play.

6. Juan Martin del Potro – Delpo paced Argentina with two singles wins.

7.  Nicolas Almagro – Almagro also looked solid in Davis Cup.

8. John Isner – Isner’s wins against Gilles Simon and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga have some labeling him as the most destructive force in tennis.  Isner as Godzilla?

9.  Juan Monaco -If Monaco gets a favorable draw or at least a manageable draw, I think he will be in the final eight at the 2012 French Open.

10. Tomas Berdych -Two singles wins in Davis Cup signal his return to my non-binding top 10.

Dropped Out – Jo-Wilfried Tsonga – France neeeded him to win vs. Isner. Tsonga said that he is not in good shape.(?!?)

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Tennis Poll – Monaco vs. Isner on Clay

8 Apr

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Link to watch the USA – France Davis Cup Tie live

6 Apr

The USTA live stream

Tennis needs to use new media to get the sport out there as often as possible so this is cool.

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