Right well the French Open is very nearly at an end and today we had the men's semi finals, which promised a great deal, but let's have a closer look at the matches.
Starting with Rafa and David Ferrer, the two Spaniards went head to head, and naturally Rafa was the overwhelming favourite as they had already played 19 times prior to this match with Rafa having won 15 of those matches. But as this was a grand slam we expected it to be quite a tough match, but it turned out to be a cakewalk for Rafa. And despite a tight first four games in the first set, Rafa got the decisive break and after that there was no way back for Ferrer, as Rafa ruthlessly dominated his compatriot with an incredible display of power and precision. And before we knew it, 1 hour and 46 minutes later, Rafa wrapped an emphatic victory up over Ferrer, winning in a crushing 6-2, 6-2, 6-1.
This match really was a big disappointment, as I was hoping it would be more tightly contested as Ferrer and Rafa have had some fairly tight matches in the past, and their match in Barcelona was air tight, even though it was straight sets. But this was just a demolition job from the king of clay, and it reaffirmed his frighteningly good form on the clay this year. And there is no doubt the fact that he will be the favourite going into the final on Sunday. As for Ferrer well has had an excellent Roland Garros this year and he deserved his place in the semi finals, and it was a pity he wasn't allowed to play his best tennis. In fact it makes you wonder if Andy Murray had gotten to the semi finals if he could have done any better, probably worse!
So onto the second match, which was between the World No.1 Novak Djokovic and the No.3, Roger Federer, in a re-match of their 2011 semi final, which was one of the most stunning matches in recent times. However it would take quite some following to top it, and unfortunately today's match didn't live up to expectations. In the match Djokovic played really well from the baseline, whereas Federer made too many unforced errors, and despite breaking serve several times, just like Andy Murray, he kept getting broken back. The match also wasn't helped by the very difficult windy conditions, and there was a rain delay before play commenced, and that was something Roger struggled with as well as his first serve. And Djokovic in each set managed to break Federer to close out the match in straight sets, which saw him reach his first Roland Garros final, and a chance to achieve his dream of holding all four grand slams at the same time. The final score being 6-4, 5-7, 6-3, and Djokovic wrapped it up in just over 2 hours. So this match also fell a bit short of expectations, but it did have its moments and the two men traded some very good rallies, particularly one at 30-40 on Djokovic's serve in the 1st game of the 2nd set, which was an unbelievable point, where the two players traded around the full length and width of the court, right after Djokovic tries a hotdog lob, which Federer puts away with a net volley. Classy point and one of the points of the tournament.
But Federer has struggled throughout this tournament with his serve and his form was way below what we expected from him, especially considering how great he played last year. And it also begs the question, will Federer win another major???? Well the answer to that is not so clear, as Federer could go on and win Wimbledon for all we know, but it looks like the top two players in the world could keep on denying Federer his chance. This is probably why Federer has focused more of his time on playing well in the ATP tour, as he probably knows his chances of winning another major are slim, so instead he goes after the Masters and the year end championships, which he has excelled in, last year and this year alone. But regarding Roger's tennis at the French Open, it has been somewhat erratic as well, just like Andy's was, and in a way, his tennis in this match wasn't any better or worse than Andy's, as they both had their fare share of unforced errors.
Well this sets up another tantalising final between the world's two best players, Rafa and Djoko, but who will win?????? Well the odds are definitely in Rafa's favour and his clay court form has been great this year, and so far at the French, his performance has been outstanding, especially as he hasn't even dropped a set, and only 35 games on the way to the final. However Djokovic has won the last 3 grand slams, and he has been so determined to reach the final of the French Open, so he can complete his career slam. And given his past performances in slam finals, he will give Rafa hell in the final, but he has also not performed as well in his last two meetings against Rafa on clay, having lost in straight sets in Monte Carlo and Rome, so Rafa could even defeat him in straight sets. But the way I see it is, if Rafa wins it will be in 3 or 4 sets, but if Djokovic wins it will be in 5 sets. So whichever way it goes, it promises to be quite a match and either way a very historical and memorable final.
Anywayyyyy that's it for now. I will report back on the result of the ladies final tomorrow, between Maria Sharapova and Sara Errani (who will make her top 10 debut as a result of reaching the final). Errani has already won the ladies doubles title today with her partner, Robert Vinci, so can she do a double whammy tomorrow??? (No pun intended!). We will soon find out.
OK that's eeeeeeeeeeeeeet.
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