I'll start with some of my thoughts on today's results at the Italian Open in Rome from the ATP Masters/WTA Premier 5 events.
To start with Djokovic breezed through his 2nd round opener match against an unseeded player Lukasz Kubot in 6-0, 6-3, although tomorrow he will face Swedish No.2 Stanilas Wawrinka, which could be a tricky match for him if Wawrinka plays well. However I get the feeling after Madrid Djokovic has started to really adjust well to the clay so a demolition might be on the cards, I hope not, because Wawrinka is a really strong player so hopefully it will be a good one. Federer eased through too against Jo-Wilfred Tsonga in straight sets 6-4, 6-2. Rafa however in his 2nd round match had a real scare as he played against an unseeded player Paolo Lorenzo who pushed him to a 3rd set, after Nadal lost the first set tiebreak, however he did come through it in 6-7(5), 6-4, 6-0.
This is a concern because normally Nadal never drops a set in an opening round on clay, so I do think his confidence has been shaken by his defeat to Djokovic last week. Rafa said that himself as he was not playing his best because he felt a bit tired, drained and a bit sad that he lost the Madrid title. The worry here is the tougher the players get will Rafa be able to maintain his concentration? As this means he will need to work harder. His next opponent will be fellow native Feliciano Lopez, which could be another really tough match, as Lopez was on form of late and took Federer to a 3 set tiebreak in Madrid, and even Djokovic to a 1st set tiebreak in Serbia.
I think like Andy Murray, Nadal has also been a bit shaken by his defeats from Djokovic, as he no longer appears so confident on the court as he plays him, after pushing him all the way in Miami and still not coming through, must have made Rafa realise how much he is up against it with this guy. And losing to him in Madrid slammed that home even more so. I think he will pull through his matches till the final, but I don't predict he will win against Djokovic this time either. And if Nadal loses before reaching the final he will lose his World No.1 ranking to Djokovic, but I think its inevitable that he will lose it. No doubt unless Rafa can pull off a surprise defeat on Sunday and end Djokovic's winning streak, we will see the Serb scream out in joy, holding his hands up in glee (as he does!).
No offence to Djokovic, his winning streak is highly impressive but I think its a case of one man with an excess of good fortune. It also leaves no room for unpredictability with Djokovic winning all the time either, some of Djokovic's clay court matches have been quite tough so far, but if he gets into a rhythm of winning matches quickly it can get tedious real quickly. Hopefully Djokovic can continue to be pushed more on the clay like he was last week, and to be fair to Djokovic the challenge for him I'm sure is just as enjoyable for us to watch as it must be for him, as I'm sure he feels more satisfaction coming through a tough but good win.
Anyway moving onto the Muzza, who faces his next opponent tomorrow, the italian Petito Starace, who defeated the Serb Victor Troicki tonight 6-4, 6-4. This again could be a potentially dangerous match for Andy, Starace is a good clay court player and he also has the home advantage, so it could work against him. However Andy has played and beaten Starace in the past so he does at least know this time who he is up against unlike with Thomaz Bellucci (who has been put out!) who he never played before. So hopefully we will see Andy come through this won, or maybe not, but it would be great if he can.
That's it the now!
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