The First Tennis Power Ranking of 2017: Fedal Rise Andy Murray – Based upon his torrid finish to 2016 and his runner-up finish in Qatar Murray tenuously holds on to his #1 spot. He did not handle the pressure of being the #1 seed at a Grand Slam particularly well. Novak Djokovic – Novak’s #2 spot is…
Month: January 2017
Australian Open 2017: Federer Changed the Narrative
History Roger Federer’s career has been marked by a lot of record setting. Yet, his head-to-head deficit versus Rafa Nadal has been the source of a lot of debate. Roger won their first 5-set major final by taking the 2007 Wimbledon final in an epic fashion. The 2008 Wimbledon final was a sequel that surpassed…
Australian Open 2017: Federer vs. Nadal – Championship Prediction
#RogerFederer showers praise on #RafaelNadal before #AusOpen final, declaring he’s Rafa’s No. 1 fan! >> https://t.co/ApstH0M3Iv pic.twitter.com/A3OZXGVLBk — Live Tennis (@livetennis) January 28, 2017 Roger Federer vs. Rafael Nadal This match is a blast from the past and historically significant. Federer and Nadal have only played twice since Roger switched racquets. Nadal won a…
Australian Open 2017: Serena vs. Venus One More Time
Hey, let’s do this again in 2017 Championship Match: Serena Williams vs. Venus Williams Venus Williams holds 7 major singles titles and an 8th would be a great capstone for a career that shines. Serena Williams is seeking sole possession of the all-time singles major total in the Open Era. One way or another the…
Australian Open 2017: Rafael Nadal vs. Grigor Dimitrov Semifinal Prediction
Rafael Nadal vs. Grigor Dimitrov Grigor Dimitrov is riding a 10 match winning streak, is 6’3″, has a big serve, is a shot-maker, and beat Rafael Nadal in their most recent meeting. That all bodes well for the Bulgarian. What does not bode well are his 6 losses to Nadal, the 3 of 5 set…
Australian Open 2017: Roger Federer vs. Stan Wawrinka Semifinal Prediction
ROD LAVER ARENA [4] Stan Wawrinka (SUI) vs [17] Roger Federer (SUI) Stan Wawrinka ended 2016 with a bit of a wobble after winning the US Open in September. Roger Federer missed the final 6 months of the 2016 season. I did not expect either man to be in the semifinal, but I am only mildly surprised…
Australian Open 2017: Venus Williams vs. CoCo Vandeweghe
ROD LAVER ARENA [13] Venus Williams (USA) vs CoCo Vandeweghe (USA) Each player enters this semifinal with a head of steam. I think CoCo has played a tougher slate of opponents to reach the semifinal round. Venus has an experience edge and has been in many major semifinals. Therefore, we could be looking at a 50-50 match. Venus…
Australian Open 2017: Serena Williams vs. Mirjana Lucic-Baroni
ROD LAVER ARENA Partying like it is 1999 [2] Serena Williams (USA) vs Mirjana Lucic-Baroni (CRO) It is a great story to see Mirjana Lucic-Baroni in her second career major semifinal spanning July 1999 to January 2017. It also speaks to Serena and Venus Williams’ longevity. Venus reached her first major final in September 1997 and Serena…
Australian Open 2017: January 25th Men’s Quarterfinal Predictions
ROD LAVER ARENA (11 a.m. start) [11] David Goffin (BEL) vs [15] Grigor Dimitrov (BUL) – I think Goffin is less likely to have a bad outing. Otherwise this seems to be a 50-50 match. There are multiple reasons to pick either player to win, but Goffin’s return and consistency seem less likely to breakdown. Expect a…
Australian Open 2017: January 25th Women’s Quarterfinal Predictions
Predicted Winners in BOLD ROD LAVER ARENA (11 a.m. start) [5] Karolina Pliskova (CZE) vs Mirjana Lucic-Baroni (CRO) – Pliskova has now won 10 of her previous 11 matches at majors. Her serve should help her to dictate play. ML-B’s comeback has been fueled by wins Halep and now Radwanska. Pliskova is not that style of player….
Tennis Abides: Dan Martin on Tennis and Life 