Federer reaches Dubai QFs the hard way

Originally posted on rogerfedererfan:
Late night roller-coaster match + long day at work the next day = no time for a proper post. So I will make this my fastest recap ever. Roger Federer defeated Radek Stepanek in 3 sets, 6-2, 6-7, 6-3 in a little over 2 hours. He will face Lukas Rosol in…

Whisper It Quietly, But British Men’s Tennis Is On The Up…

Originally posted on danieleckersley:
…and not before time, either. If you really must, then call it the ‘Murray effect’, but the men’s game from a British perspective is becoming less of a one-man show. The clearest example of this is the recent Davis Cup match victory over the USA, the first win by a British…

Does Andujar’s Close Call Mean Something?

Pablo Andujar pushed Rafael Nadal to the limit in last week’s semifinal match in Rio. Andujar is not the young clay-court player I keep expecting to break onto the scene and make matches wars of attrition.  He is actually older than Rafael Nadal.  Still, It is a big deal for a baseline player to have…

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Tennis is Better when Venus is a Factor

  Venus Williams is approaching 35 years of age.  Her 1997 US Open runner-up finish placed her in the top tier of tennis.  Health problems pushed her out of the top tier.  Venus’ career is not going to continue forever, but it is encouraging to see her win matches and reach a tournament final this…

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Quick Hits 16 February 2014

Holding Form Each of today’s ATP finals were won by the favorite.  Tomas Berdych took out a surprisingly (to me at least) resurgent Marin Cilic.  I figured the PED suspension would hurt Marin’s game for some time.  Instead, he’s started 2014 well.  Berdych builds on a strong Aussie Open showing.  A lot of people have…

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The 5 Least Important Federer-Nadal Matches

A lot was made about the recent Australian Open match between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.  Notable tennis observers even called it a career defining match. Sometimes reality works out in ways that tennis analysts would not predict.  Federer lost to Nadal again, but Rafa getting to 17 majors seems like a more uphill affair…

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Wawrinka marks the return of the one-handed backhand

Originally posted on Play with Flair:
Watching Stanislas Wawrinka’s stunning performance at this year’s Australian Open has been one of the highlights of 2014 so far. If his victory in the final was arguably spoilt by the injury of Rafael Nadal, nobody could deny his brilliant win against four-time victor Novak Djokovic. He has been…