Pacino and De Niro go for ice cream.

Tracking four contenders at Monte Carlo.

Joker	Aces.	Sets lost	Ist serve pct.	Tie-breaks/ bagels dished	Bk pt conv pct.	Time on court	Matches played
Federer	15	2	56	1/0	62	6:32	4
Nadal	1	0	74	0/1	52	4:37	3(Stats on 1 match NA)
Djokovic	8	0	63	0/2	53	3:39	3  OUT
Nalbandian	4	0	66	0/1	49	2:28	2  OUT

Who is this? No, it’s not Djokovic – yet!!!!

Another first title winner of 2008. From Jenny. Thanks.

 

 

 
Jenny

Another first title winner of 2008.

20.4.2008
“David Ferrer is the champion of the sixth edition of the Open de Tenis de la Comunidad Valenciana
The champion of the sixth edition del Open de tenis de la Comununidad Valenciana already has a name, David Ferrer. The performance that we have seen on the clay court has benn spectacular. Nicolas Almagro´s quality and fighting spirit made it very difficult for world’s number five player in the ATP Ranking who was finally stronger and won the match”.

Well done David, he fought like a tiger, great clay court tennis.

Federer-Davydenko final in photos.

 
 
 

 
 

 

 
 
 

 

 

 
 

Tennis fans exhale a huge sigh of relief alongwith Federer and Jose. But could he have won if Davy had not retired?

 

It’s tough to say. But it would surely have been very very close. But one thing I am sure of: If the match had gone the distance, irrespective of the result, it would have done a world of good to Federer in his bid to regain his form, lot more than what this win brought.

Nevertheless, Federer should be happy to have come out the right end after the gruelling up and down week. Most importantly this tournament validates his decision to play here before moving to the big events. This play provided him with the much needed cushion to absorb the shock of the big stage. There is no question of what would have happened if he had landed at Monte Carlo without this experience.

If you look at this match purely from the stats of the first set, it could have gone either way. Federer served at 64 percent, had four aces and could not convert any of the five break points he had in that set. Davydenko on the other hand, was faring much better compared to his previous matches against Federer. Davydenko was serving above his average at 72%, had two aces and had four break points, although he was also not able to convert any one of them.

But Federer’s record at this event, would have helped him as the match progressed. He had come twice from a set down to win the match here, after having almost a blow out set in the third. So clearly he felt much better as the match wore on.

It must have been a huge relief for Federer to win his first title this season, irrespective of who he faced and how it was accomplished. Loss here would have been devastating for a variety of reasons, least of which being knocked out of the No. 1 perch by mid season.

What are some of the obvious lessons from this experience?

-Federer has to be more conscious of his shot selection when he has a break point. He converted just 44 percent here. That won’t get it done.

-He cannot lose the first freaking set anymore. It’s too much pressure for where he is right now physically and mentally.

-First serve percentage has to be over 65 percent at least, for each set.

-Ace count is the easiest and guaranteed way to ride this slump till the horses come back.

Iglesias says Kournikova keeps rebuffing marriage proposals. Could it be because you are not good in the ‘long’ run?

Moron, keep banging your head on the door, it may eventually turn into a window. Move freaking on, you knucklehead.

Click here for more.

Monte Carlo Draw is out. From Anand. Thanks.

Anand 101

Congrats on #54 and Monte Carlo Draw is out:

Fed seemed to be holding his own vs kolya at Estoril, although the jury is still out, due to the retirement.

Monte Carlo Draw:
http://www.atptennis.com/1/posting/2008/410/mds.pdf

It will be intersting to see how Fed stays the course at Monte Carlo. He has stern tests but it escalates gradually:
– Nalby in the QF
– Djoker in the SF
– Rafa in the F

Here’s hoping Fed is there on Sunday and what’s more, holds up the trophy for the first time!

Two funny “movie trailers” starring Federer as Julius Caesar. From aeniclud. Thanks.

aeniclud

Two funny “movie trailers” starring Federer as Julius Caesar. Rafael Nadal and Ana Ivanovic co-star in the second part. I’m new to this site, so I apologize if these have been posted before.

P.S. If the above links didn’t work, try these:

Part One: Conquests

Part Two: Love&Death

Conan O’Brian beats Serena at tennis. From A Tennis Fan. Thanks.

A Tennis fan

Conan O’Brian beats Serena at tennis! Very funny!
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8266797288451201272

Federer Snaps Title Drought in Estoril. From Jennifer. Thanks.

Jennifer

Federer Snaps Title Drought in Estoril

ATP World No. 1 Roger Federer snapped a five-month title drought by winning his 54th career ATP trophy at the Estoril Open on Sunday.

The Swiss was leading World No. 4 and 2003 champion Nikolay Davydenko of Russia 7-6(5) 1-2 after one hour and 20 minutes, when Davydenko retired due to muscle strain in his left leg that he sustained towards the end of the first set.

Federer extends his perfect 12-0 record over Davydenko, who captured his second career ATP Masters Series shield at the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami, Florida, two weeks ago. It was the pair’s third clay-court meeting.

The 26 year-old Federer put Davydenko under pressure from the start, failing to convert two break points in the first game and three more in the fifth game. Davydenko went 0-4 into the tie-break.

Federer moved into a 5-1 lead in the tie-break and eventually won 7-5 in 62 minutes.

Davydenko received treatment for his injury at the end of the first set, but returned to Central court

While Davydenko responded with a break of the Federer serve in the opening game of the second set, the 26-year-old retired minutes later.

Federer has now won 54 ATP titles in 17 different countries, the most among active players on the ATP circuit.

The Swiss has also reached the semifinals of three events this year at the Australian Open in January (l. to Djokovic) and ATP Masters Series events at Indian Wells (l. to Fish) and Miami (l. to Roddick).

He improves to 16-4 on the season, with his first ATP title since capturing his fourth Tennis Masters Cup title in Shanghai in November 2007.

Federer has been working at the Estoril Open with Spaniard Jose Higueras, the coach to former Roland Garros champions Jim Courier and Michael Chang.

Davydenko, who was on an 11-match winning streak going into his ninth career clay-court final, drops to 24-6 on the season.

Having made his debut at the Estoril Open in 2001, the Russian has a 13-5 record at the Estadio Nacional. He captured the 2003 title (d. Calleri) and finished runner-up in 2006 (l. to Nalbandian).

Davydenko drops to 17-39 against Top 10 players.

Federer wins €59,100 in prize money and 175 points in the South African ATP Rankings, while Davydenko collects €31,000 and 120 points.

http://www.estorilopen.net/1/en/news/newsarticle_993.asp

If they had won all of their GS finals how many majors would these jokers end up with?

Clown	GS won	GS finals	Total
Lendl	8	11	19
Sampras	14	4	18
Laver	11	6	17
Borg	11	5	16
Emerson	12	3	15
Connors	8	7	15
Agassi	8	7	15
McEnroe	7	4	11
Wilander	7	4	11
Edberg	6	5	11
Becker	6	4	10
Federer	12	2	14