Top 10 ladies tennis matches of 2013

Right OK so the men's top 10 has been done now its time for the ladies and this will see my pick of the best matches from the ladies set of net.  Its not easy to compile this but its alot of fun all the same, so here goes...

10. French open quarter finals, Sara Errani d. Agnieszka Radwanska, 6-4, 7-6(6)

In this day and age of tennis it has to be said that it can be all a bit too one dimensional, however this is an accusation that could never be raised at this match in which two counterpunchers tried to outfox one another much to the pleasure of the Parisian crowd in this very entertaining quarter final clash of Sara Errani and Agnieszka Radwanska.  Errani was last year's finalist so she came into the French in fine form again but she was up against some stern resistance against Radwanska who is every inch as tenacious and wily as Errani is and the match produced some wonderful rallies of great variety which included slices, lobs, drop shots, vollies, you name it.  Errani took the first set by a break but in the 2nd set it was a very close contest and there breaks of serve aplenty until the deciding tiebreak which featured the point of the match from Radwanska, but it was Errani that went on to shut down the Pole and seal her place in the semi finals.  While neither player has much in the way of raw firepower, they proved you don't need it to produce an entertaining match and in fact Errani and Radwanska's variety is nothing but a breath of fresh air to the game and to see them play such tennis together in a match such as this was a real treat so it deserves it place in here.

9. Porsche Grand Prix Tennis Stuttgart semi final, Maria Sharapova d. Angelique Kerber, 6-3, 2-6, 7-5.

At number 9 we have another very entertaining clay court match except this time its between the battle of the big hitters, well one big hitter and a strong hitter (i.e. Kerber is the strong hitter, but more of an aggressive counterpuncher than anything else).  And this being on German soil, Kerber naturally got alot of home support as she tried to dethrone the defending champion, Maria Sharapova in a real tussle which saw some terrific rallies from both players and Kerber showing she was more than up for this scrap against one of the game's ultimate warriors.  Sharapova took the opening set as Kerber double faulted to hand it over but Kerber fought back in the 2nd set by grabbing a double break to push it to a decider.  In the decider we got a thrilling contest between the two women as Kerber went a break down she battled back to level terms until 6-5 where she suffered a final lapse and handed Sharaova three match points, which Maria gladly took to reach her second final in Stuttgart.  This was an excellent high quality match from the beginning and it featured some terrific points and it was a pity for Kerber that she wasn't quite able to win but she was up against one of the biggest fighters in the ladies game and in the end it was Maria that pulled out the win.  Great stuff indeed.

8. KDB Korea Open Seoul final, Agnieszka Radwanska d. Anastasia Pavyluchenkova, 6-7, 6-3, 6-4.

This high quality final clash at the Korea open in Seoul was between Radwanska and the Russian No.3 player Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (cool name!) which proved to be quite an epic lengthy battle between the power hitter in Anastasia and the tenacious counterpuncher in Aga.  And from the outset there was some great hitting on display in this match with Aga taking an early break, however Pavly was not to be outdone as she eventually broke back and pushed the first to a tiebreak which she won to grab the 1st set.  The 2nd set saw a fightback from Aga who broke Pavly's serve and went on to level the proceedings.  In the decider both players played wonderful tennis and there were plenty of tight deuce games and it was simply a case of who would blink first, and as it happens it was Pavyluchenkova that did just that to let Aga win her 13th career title.  It is no wonder people draw to see Agnieszka Radwanska play as she is delightful to watch in a match as the tennis she can produce is at times almost magical as her creativity and ability to construct points on court is incredible.  Pavlyuchenkova showed her grit in this match as she pushed Aga all the way but in the end it was the wily Pole that wore the Russian down, but bother players played their part here and give it their all in this very entertaining match.

7. US Open 4th round, Carla Suarez Navarro d. Angelique Kerber, 4-6, 6-3, 7-6.

There is no doubt this match is one of the most purely entertaining and thrilling contests of the year which was between Angelique Kerber and the Spanish player, Carla Suarez Navarro.  This superb clash took place in the sweltering heat in New York and both players gave it their absolute all throughout.  Kerber in the first set got off to the better start as she broke Navarro and went on to nab the opening set.  However Navarro is well known to be a very tough player to put away as she proved here and she fought back to level the match at a set all.  And in the 3rd set there were twists and turns aplenty as Kerber twice had the opportunity to serve for the match but she blew both of them as play went to a tiebreak it was Navarro that made her move to clinch the match and her first quarter final at the US Open.  This was a terrific encounter and each rally had to be at least 20+ shots as both players pushed themselves to the limit here with some incredible lung bursting exchanges.  Kerber had her chances and its a pity in a way she lost the match and it continued to show her dip in form that she had struggled with in 2013.  However Carla proved to have a never say die attitude and she deserved to win this terrific clash, its just a pity she went on to face Serena Williams in the next round who handed her a double bagel for her troubles.  But hey ho that's tennis.

6. Wimbledon championships semi final, Sabine Lisicki d. Agnieszka Radwanska, 6-4, 2-6, 9-7.

2013 was one of the strangest years in the history of the Wimbledon championships as so many top players exited really early on in both the men and ladies side of the net.  On the ladies side we had Sharapova and Azarenka both dumped out early who both succumb to injury having slipped badly on the courts among many other plays who complained of the same thing.  So this left some fairly unlikely names in the business end of the draw, two of which included Sabine Lisicki, who stunned Serena Williams in their 4th round match, and well ok Radwanska was last year's finalist so she had a real opportunity here.  The match itself was a titanic struggle as both women knew what was at steak here and they put it all on the line and played some terrific tennis for an enthralled crowd.  After both players levelled the match at a set apiece the final set was a tense affair and it was Lisicki that took the first crucial break at 5-4 to serve for the match, but Radwanska soon broke back.  Play went by serve until 7-7 when Lisicki broke again and this time she held on after a tense final game she served out to secure her first Wimbledon final.  This was a great encounter with plenty of drama throughout and I'm sure Aga must have been fuming after losing it as she gave Lisicki a pretty frosty quick handshake just after the match wrapped up and she probably knew that was her best shot to win Wimbledon gone.  As for Lisicki she did a terrific job in holding her nerve to reach her first Wimbledon final, and many people tipped her to be the favourite to win the title, however Marion Bartoli, the other finalist had other ideas, but that's a whole other story.

5. Australian Open 2nd round, Laura Robson d. Petra Kvitova, 2-6, 6-3, 11-9. 

In 2012 Laura Robson started to make a name for herself as she made her breakthrough in beating some top players in the game, particularly Kim Clijsters who's career she ended at the US Open last year and followed that win up with a victory over Li Na.  So this year promised much for Laura and while 2013 didn't quite go all the way she wanted it to, Laura did get off to a fine start here as she upset the former Wimbledon champion and semi finalist from last year, Petra Kvitova in an immense battle on the Rod Laver arena in an intense night match that lasted well over three hours.  After a slow start in the first set, Laura started her comeback in the 2nd set as she broke Kvitova to go on and level the scores at one set all.  And in the 3rd set was a big battle as both players slugged it out in an erratic but nonetheless engrossing set which finally saw Laura do the unthinkable in breaking Petra at 9-9 and she went on to serve out the match and in doing so taking another big scalp to add to her growing collection of big names to reach the 3rd round in Melbourne.  While the quality of the match was up and down at times this was still an enthralling encounter which kept the audience guessing which way it would swing and it was testament again to Laura's talent and growing belief as a player that she came through this one.  2013 however didn't quite turn out the way Laura wanted it to, this match did signal that she is very much still a player to watch in the future.

4. 2013 Qatar Total Open Doha final, Victoria Azarenka d. Serena Williams, 7-6, 2-6, 6-3.

OK I have to admit the last few posts will actually cover matches between Serena Williams and Victoria Azarenka and the reason why is simply because they have sparked something that is much needed in the women's game, and that is a proper rivalry.  So why not go with this one for starters which was a simply superb and thrilling encounter out in Doha where Vika who won the final last year came back to defend her title.  However one woman stoood in her way and that was Serena Williams and with only one win her favour against the mighty American, things looked sort of bleak for Vika in finding a way past her rival.  But this proved to be the exception to the rule as Vika proved once again that she is just about the only player that can live with Serena's powerhouse game out on the court and she took the first tight set on a breaker.  In the 2nd set Serena nabbed a double break to take the match to a decider where it was a tense affair but Serena was not serving her best and ended up getting broken by Vika.  And Vika did the almost unthinkable in beating her rival and serving out for the title to claim only her 2nd win against Serena Williams in a remarkable match.  Despite a few ups and downs the level of play in this match was terrific and Victoria deserved tremendous credit for her fighting spirit in dealing with whatever Serena threw at her and she proved she is just about the only person that can get into her head.  So in all this was a great encounter and for me one of the best matches of the year.

3. US Open final, Serena Williams d. Victoria Azarenka 7-5, 6-7, 6-1.

In what was the last grand slam of the season the US Open final hope to provide an incredible finale for the ladies tournament.  And in the end they got just that as the world's two best players went toe to toe once again for the second year running with Serena and Vika battling it out for the title.  The match itself was a bit erratic in quality which was mainly down to the wild and windy conditions on the court as Serena in particular struggled to play through the gusty wind and she started off horribly going a break down.  However as Vika looked confident in serving out for the set it wasn't long before Serena broke straight back and she went on to manufacture a break of her own to claim the opening set.  The second set had more breaks as it was Vika's turn to go a break down but she also managed to turn it around and the crowd by then were treated to a thrilling display from both women as the 2nd set was pushed to a tiebreak, which Vika won to take the match the distance.  In the final set after a confident start Vika soon lost her way on serve and before she knew she was a double break down, and despite a last ditch effort, Serena served out the title with fair ease to claim her 4th US Open title.  There is no doubt this was a riveting match for the most part and it was a great finale to the grand slam season with neither player giving an inch for the first two sets.  It was just a pity that it got away from Victoria in the end however as she failed to hold onto her serve in the last set as it could have been even better.  But regardless of that it was still a great one.

2. BNP Paribas Open Indian Wells semi final, Caroline Wozniacki d. Angelique Kerber 2-6, 6-4, 7-5. 

This match provides a welcome gap between the Serena and Vika clashes that I will cover, which are great of course, but so was this match up between Caroline Wozniacki and Angelique Kerber who engaged in a riveting battle.  The match up between Caroline and Angie wasn't too kind to Caroline of late as she had lost her last three meetings to the German.  And things looked to be the same here as Kerber got off to a strong start by breaking Caroline twice, although she showed some resistance as Kerber tried to close out the first set.  In the 2nd set Caroline fought back but her serve was under constant threat by Kerber and at 3-3 both players were locked into a thrilling mini battle, which saw Caroline stave off 5 break points in a hard fought game that lasted 17 minutes.  After this Caroline managed to get a break and served it out for the 2nd set pushing the match into a decider.  In the final set both players battled it out with Caroline grabbing the break to move ahead, but Kerber was not to be outdone as she soon broke again to level.  And at 6-5 with Kerber serving to take it into a final set tiebreak, Wozniacki seized her chance to break for the last time and she sealed her place in her second Indian wells final.  The level of play throughout this match was top notch and both women slugged it out as hard as they could.  The match also marked an impressive win for Caroline who had struggled badly against top 10 players of late and she took advantage of Kerber's difficulty to cope with high balls (or moon balls) which was quite funny as there were some rallies were they played nothing but moon balls!  So overall this was a superb encounter and it saw Caroline reach the biggest final of her career since the same tournament two years ago, just a pity that she had to face Maria Sharapova in the final, but well that's for another post.

1. Western and Southern Open Cincinnati final, Victoria Azarenka d. Serena Williams 2-6, 6-2, 7-6(6).

Well this match for me was by far the best ladies tennis match of 2013 as it had everything and it saw the world's two best players, Serena Williams and Victoria Azarenka hammer it out on the centre court in Cincy.  This match actually eclipsed all their encounters this season as the level of play from both women was just aboslutely staggering and while Vika got off to a poor start, once she got motoring the belief she showed was nothing short of remarkable as no one else but her could have pulled off this one.  So once the match went a set all in the 3rd set we were treated to some absolutely riveting stuff and both women were going toe to toe with virtually not much in it.  And the match finally culminated with a spectacular tiebreak which took twists and turns, with Serena continually threatening to gain the upper hand, but in the end it was Vika that caused another upset after playing a superb drop volley to bring up championship point, Serena netted the next one to allow Vika to clinch her first title in Cincy and second win of the year over her rival.  There is no doubt this was an absolutely terrific encounter and its a perfect example of just how good Serena and Vika's rivalry has become in 2013 alone.  And if it carries on like this we are sure to be provided more classics in the future and here's to that as this definitely one to watch.  It also showed that Serena finally has a proper rival in the game as Vika is just about literally the only other player that can live with her on a tennis court and trade with her blow for blow.  And that in itself is why this match is at the top of the tree.

So that's it for my look at the ladies best tennis matches of 2013, it was tough to compile but it was good fun and hopefully it will make for a good selection that represents the season. 

And with that I shall say goobye fer now.     

     

Top 10 men's tennis matches of 2013

Right as the 2013 tennis season is officially over with the ATP world tour finals done and the Davis cup now out the way (congrats again to the Czeck Republic defending their title) I thought I would do a post on my pick of the best matches of the year.  This will cover all three surfaces (well four if you count indoor hard court!) so let's give it a looksee, so this will take some thought so please bear with me....

10. Wimbledon Championships final, Andy Murray d. Novak Djokovic 6-4, 7-5, 6-4.

OK while this match isn't quite a classic it still does deserves its place as it is a very important and entertaining one as well.  In the Wimbledon final Andy Murray reached his second successive final in so many years and this time it was against his old rival Novak Djokovic so after their epic US Open final from last year we had to expect something special here.  And did it deliver???  Well to an extent it did as while Nole was clearly a bit under par having played the longest semi final in Wimbledon history two days before, both men still traded some fine quality points and played some excellent rallies.  After Andy secured the first set he looked to come under fire in the 2nd set as he went down a break to Nole but it wasn't long before Andy broke back and soon secured a break of his own to take a two sets to love lead.  In the 3rd set Andy went down a break again but yet again broke back and went on to break Nole once to serve for the title.  And the last game proved to be 12 minutes of sheer nail biting tension which must easily rank as the single best game of the season as Nole made a brave last ditch attempt to try and break back and get into the match.  However Andy held his resolve and went on to serve it out as Nole's backhand hit the net, the British No.1 dropped his racquet and cap and shook his fists in sheer delight at becoming the first British singles player to win Wimbledon in 77 years.  Overall this was a highly entertaining match and it marked a real high for the British public and media who were delighted at their man finally making the breakthrough, and Andy Murray after winning Wimbledon no doubt will have so much more to give and surely more slams will be on the way.  As for Novak well it was a disappointing loss but he played his part in it and while it was a straight set scoreline it was anything but an easy match.  And Andy summed up the final game himself by saying "imagine playing it! imagine indeed.  Great stuff.  


9. French Open 4th round, Stanislas Wawrinka d. Richard Gasquet 6-7, 4-6, 6-4, 7-5, 8-6.

This was an epic 4th round encounter at the French Open which stands as one of the great highlights of the tournament, which saw Richard Gasquet hammer it out against Stan Wawrinka in an effort to reach his first ever French Open quarter final.  The match itself proved to be absolutely spectacular stuff and in the first two sets Gasquet looked to be in the driving set as he took the two set lead.  However Stan was far from done as he went on to level the scores at two sets all before play went into a pulsating decider where the crowd were treated to some staggering stuff from both men.  And in the end it was Stan that just had a little bit more in the tank as Gasquet started to cramp and Stan broke Gasquet to win the match with an amazing backhand down the line which saw him reach his first French Open quarter final.  This was a terrific match from start to finish and the level of play throughout was just exceptional and it was a pity for Gasquet that he came so close yet so far from winning it.  But in the end this continued to signal what an incredible year Stan Wawrinka was having.  Just a pity he faced Rafa in the next round, but that's another story.

8. Cincinnati Western and Southern open quarter final, Rafael Nadal d. Roger Federer, 5-7, 6-4, 6-3. 

In what has been one of the defining rivalries in the open era of the sport, Roger and Rafa's clashes of late had been a bit sedate and rather one sided, especially their last couple where Rafa thrashed Roger so easily at Indian Wells and in Rome.  But here we were finally treated to a match that gave us a great reminder of the rivalry they once had in a terrific quarter final clash at the Cincinnati Masters, Western and Southern open quarter final.  Roger after having suffered the worst dip in his career for 10 years, put all that behind him as he dished out some of the best tennis he had played in quite some time to push Rafa to the limit as he put on a great display to take the opening set.  In the 2nd set more of the same followed but Rafa finally found an opening and broke to take it to a decider.  In the decider however Rafa broke Roger again and it looked to be all over but Roger made one last brave attempt to break Rafa in a thrilling last game which eventually saw Rafa emerge triumphant to keep his American hard court winning streak going and a chance to win an elusive title in Cincy.  It was long overdue that we were to be treated to a match of this quality from these two great rivals and who knows how many more they will play like this but let's hope they do as it was a real treat.

7. ATP World Tour Finals, Round Robin, Roger Federer d. Juan Martin Del Potro, 4-6, 7-6, 7-5.

This remarkable battle saw Roger take on one of his biggest (literally!) nemesis in the game just now, Juan Martin Del Potro who had beaten him three times in their last four meetings, with Rog having won the most recent in Paris.  And throughout the match Roger had to play catch up as he dropped the opening set, he then had to come from a break down in the 2nd to eventually level in an incredible tiebreak which saw Rog take full control to take it to a decider.  In the 3rd set Roger went a break down again but eventually showed some great resolve to break back and he eventually went on to manufacture a break of his own against Delpo to go on and close out a dramatic and hard fought encounter to reach the semi finals of the world tour finals.  This match really proved that no matter you cannot write off Roger Federer as he had to use all his experience to fight through this one and ensure his place in the semi finals of the o2.  And after struggling badly throughout 2013, this match signalled that Roger would be set to probably make a strong comeback in 2014 and here's to him in doing just that.

6. Shanghai Rolex Masters final, Novak Djokovic d. Juan Martin Del Potro, 6-1, 3-6, 7-6.

Last year's Shanghai final between Novak Djokovic and the then defending champion Andy Murray was one of the greatest finals in 1000 Masters series history and this one would take some doing to beat it.  And while it would tough to argue that it did, it certainly wasn't far off as big Delpo took on a back in form Novak Djokovic who was determined to keep his unbeaten run in Asia going in a thrilling match.  Djokovic made an imperious start as he broke Delpo twice to nab the first set with great ease and he looked on course to lift another title in Asia.  However in the 2nd set Delpo started his fightback and he took advantage of a wobbly service game (literally!) from Nole that saw him rocked off his feet, which let Delpo eventually level the match.  And in the 3rd set both men put on a terrific spectacle for the crowd with Delpo living life dangerously on serve as he faced break points that would have ended the match, but ultimately play went to a final tiebreak.  And in the tiebreak it was Nole that took control and he got the crucial minibreak and went on to deny Delpo another shot at a maiden 1000 Masters series title with an incredible title defence.  It was a great pity to see Delpo lose out once again in a Masters final as he had already been denied by Rafa earlier in the year at Indian Wells, but for Djokovic it showed he was truly back on form and after his summer dip in form, he was just getting started again.

5. US Open semi final, Novak Djokovic d. Stanislas Wawrinka, 2-6, 7-6, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4.

After their mammoth epic clash in Melbourne Stan Wawrinka's form and belief as a player rose dramatically throughout 2013.  And prior to this clash with Nole, Stan had thrashed the defending champion Andy Murray in straight sets to reach his first grand slam semi final.  But to take on Nole is no enviable task at the best of times, but Stan was more than up to the task once more as he got off to a superb start and broke an admittedly erratic Novak twice to take the first set.  In the 2nd set Nole went down a break, but he eventually wrestled his way back into the match and broke back to go on and level the match at a set all.  However Stan was still not yet done as he seized the initiative again and broke Nole once more and grabbed a two sets to one lead.  But Djokovic once again proved his tenacity as he levelled the match at two sets all and in the decider we were treated to a thriling 21 minute game where Stan had to fight off a slew of break points before he finall held serve.  However in the end it was in vain as Nole finally wore Stan down and broke the Swiss to finally close out another epic five set battle.  After their phenomenal encounter in Melbourne this clash definitely lived up to expectations and didn't disappoint and for the most part of the match, it had to be said that Stan was the better player.  But in the end it was all down to Djokovic and he went on to reach yet another major final but both players played their part in this terrific match which well deserves its place in the list.

4. French Open semi final, Rafael Nadal d. Novak Djokovic, 6-4, 3-6, 6-1, 6-7, 9-7. 

In what was easily the toughest match Rafa has ever played on a clay court against any player, he and Novak created a truly epic encounter with this one in the French open semi final, which so many people hoped would have been the final.  However this wasn't to be given that Rafa's ranking was lower at the time and he was still having to defend alot of points during the clay court season from last year so he couldn't accumulate enough to bump up his ranking.  But all that aside the match itself featured some incredible tennis from both men and it was Rafa who made the move to break and take the first set, before Novak went on to level up the scores in the 2nd.  In the 3rd set however Novak took his eye off the ball (quite badly!) as he suffered a double break and trailed two sets to one.  In the 4th set however Nole fought back and despite Rafa serving for the match at 6-5, Nole used all his resolve to break once again and pushed the match into a tiebreak which Nole won.  In the deciding 5th set it was Nole that got an early break however he made a clumsy error at 4-3 when he stumbled into the net and he automatically lost a point, which lead to Rafa breaking back.  Play then went by serve until the 8-7 where a fatigued Nole found himself three match points down and before we knew it he lost again to the king of clay who would go on to secure an 8th title at Roland Garros.  This match lead to a post French open hangover for Nole who struggled somewhat for the rest of the summer in trying to win the remaining majors at Wimbledon and the US Open.  And while it wasn't to be yet again for Nole what counts is of course the tennis that was on display in this one really does stand out and it easily earns its place as one of the best matches of the year.

3. Wimbledon semi final, Novak Djokovic d. Juan Martin Del Potro, 6-4, 5-7, 7-6, 6-7, 6-3.

Epic battles seem to be all the rage these days in tennis grand slam matches and on that note here is another which was a cracker of a match between Nole and Delpo who met in the Wimbledon semi final.  And right from the get go the quality of play here was quite tremendous from both men who slugged it out on centre court in front of an enthralled crowd in what turned out to be the longest Wimbledon semi final in the open era.  With Novak taking the first set, Delpo went to level the proceedings by taking the 2nd set, with Nole then taking the 3rd, in the 4th set Delpo fought back again and pushed play to an incredible tiebreak which saw the big Argentine fight from a minibreak down to level the match at two sets all.  In the 5th set however fatigue had set in for Delpo as the big guy found it tough to keep up with Novak who eventually wore his opponent down to reach his 2nd Wimbledon final.  There is no doubt this was a terrific contest and it remains the highlight of the grass court season with Djokovic once again taking the plaudits for playing his part in yet another classic match.  God he seems to be hogging them all these days isn't he!

2. Australian Open semi final, Andy Murray d. Roger Federer 6-4, 6-7, 6-3, 6-7, 6-2.

I had to put this as my second favourite match of the year as it was flat out the best grand slam match that Andy Murray and Roger Federer have ever played.  Last year in the Wimbledon final, Andy showed promising signs of his new found mental belief under the coaching of Ivan Lendl as he took a set off Federer for the first time in his career in a major final.  And here Andy went two better as he took three off the maestro to secure his place in his 3rd Melbourne final.  The match itself had some terrific rallies and wonderful points from both players, and there were times were you had to marvel at the tennis these two men can produce together on a tennis court.  Andy was the better player in the key sets, but Federer put up some great resistance in the tiebreak sets, as he dominated Andy in them and lead to eventually levelling the match at 2 sets all.  But in the 5th set Andy made the decisive move and he broke Roger twice to seal the deal and reach the final where he would meet his old friend and rival, Novak Djokovic.  This match pretty much had it all, as there were so many highly entertaining points, and Andy showed a new level of aggression against Roger that we hadn't seen since the Olympics last year as he bludgeoned the ball back and forth, and the victory in itself was a very important one, as it once again showed that he could beat Roger Federer when it really counts.  The match also had a rather amusing moment where in the 4th set with Andy serving for the match that Federer got annoyed at him and cursed at him over the net, and Andy gave him an old fashion glare (possibly because it dawned on Roger that he was about to finally be beaten by Andy in a major match??).  So overall this was a highly entertaining match and it thoroughly deserves its place in this list as one of the best matches of 2013 and it just maybe could have done with a better 5th set, but apart from that you just about couldn't ask for anymore out of this thrilling contest.

1. Australian Open 4th round, Novak Djokovic d. Stanislas Wawrinka, 1-6, 7-5, 6-4, 6-7, 12-10.

Ok if the honours for the best match of 2013 deserve to go to any particular match its undoubtedly this one. In this spectacular 4th round encounter between the defending champion Novak Djokovic and the 16th seed Stan Wawrinka, it seemed like Nole would garner a fairly comfortable win. However it was far from it as these two men produced an absolutely epic marathon that lasted over 5 hours that was the match of the tournament.  And it was Stan that got off to a great start as he raced through the opening set. In the 2nd however Nole eventually found his feet and broke to level the scores and he went on in the 3rd to take a 2 sets to 1 lead. In the 4th however it was an even battle as Stan pushed play to a tiebreak which he won to level an incredible match at 2 sets all. And in the 5th we were treated to an epic decider where it went by serve up until 11-10 when Nole made his move on Stan and made a backhand passing shot to seal the deal and afterward he ripped off his shirt and roared with delight just like he did last year after winning the final. There is no doubt this match deserves this spot and Wawrinka despite his loss played the match of his life and it signalled the start of the best season of his career so far where he has developed into a terrific player. As for Novak well it was sheer testament to his skill, talent and above all belief that he was able to come through this one. And Nole's post match celebration was almost like he had won the title there and then, and in a way he did just that as he wouldn't be tested like that again, well not in Melbourne anyway! :-)

So that's it for my exhaustive look at the best men's tennis matches of 2013.  Next up will be the ladies but that will take some more figuring out first.

But for now that's it.

Bye! 

2013 ATP World Tour Finals Part 3: Rafa and Nole

Right so now we get onto the final part of my posts on the ATP world tour finals, which will cover the final between Novak Djokovic, the defending champ and 2010's finalist, Rafael Nadal.  Sooooo let's give it a looksee....

So we are no strangers to these two and this being their 39th career meeting (which is more than any two players have played each other in the history of the open era!) they both know each others games very well, so it promised to be a classic.  But..... it didn't quite live up to expectations as Rafa was unable to get anything going as he struggled on serve and he went 3-0 down to Nole straight off, who proved to be too sharp on his own serve in comparison.  However Rafa wasn't quite down and out as he managed to fight back and level the scores at 3-3 but after this Nole reasserted himself and after an amazing rally, Djokovic broke to go 5-3 up and serve out the set with ease.  In the 2nd set Rafa struggled yet again on serve as he handed an early break to Djokovic, who continued his clinical form and nearly breaking Rafa at 4-2 to go 5-2 up, however Rafa valiantly managed to battle on and save the break points.  With Rafa trailing at 4-5, Nole served it out with a last ditch effort from the Rafa to try and break back, but it was in vain as Rafa fired a forehand wide, with Djokovic triumphantly holding his arms aloft as he won his 3rd ATP world tour finals championship with a comfortable 6-3, 6-4 win.

Well there was no doubt this final while it had its moments and had some very entertaining rallies it was a bit of a letdown in the end as Rafa struggled badly on his serve and as it is well established that indoor hard court is his worst surface, it certainly showed in the final tonight.  Rafa also appeared to whince in pain from his knee again at some points especially as Djokovic pulled him from pillar to post, testing his movement to the limit, which might raise one or two question marks about his knee in the future, however that remains to be seen and might not be the case.  And despite his defeat Rafa has overall had an amazing comeback this year having regained the World No.1 spot from Novak and having two out of the four slams and 10 titles overall, he has been at the top of his game and no doubt this has been one of the best seasons of his career, and after such a long absence its great to have him back this year.

As for Nole well its amazing just how well he has bounced back after his US Open final defeat to Rafa, he has not lost a match since and has put together another remarkable winning streak, which now stands at 22 matches.  And having won 7 titles this season, Nole has capped off his year in fine style, and its not quite over yet as he still has to play the Davis cup final in Belgrade against the current champions, the Czeck Republic and I'm sure Nole will be more than up to the task as his fierce patriotism will see him do all he can to bring home the Davis cup crown to Serbia once more.  So in the meantime Nole deserves much credit for winning the ATP World Tour Finals for a third time and it sees him back on top and as he is no stranger to winning streaks I think its safe to say he will carry this one well on into next year which could see him yet again defend his title in Melbourne, but we can save that for next year.

Anywayyyy so that's it for the ATP tour season, which has been a great season once again and having Rafa back on the scene has been a real highlight alone.  Next up I will do a post on the Davis cup and that will probably be it for the year.  And with Andy Murray out of the game for now let's hope he will be able to come back in time for the Australian open next year, as he has just started his training again, his involvement in the Barbados exhibition event in two weeks time remains in doubt but even if he doesn't play I'm sure he will back in action soon.

And with that, that's it for noww and I'll say ta ta to the 2013 ATP tour season, which has been a real blast and I'll look forward to 2014 already.

So that's it!   

2013 ATP World Tour Finals Part 2: Clash of the big uns

Right OK now we get onto the next part of my coverage of the ATP World Tour Finals which will cover days 6 and 7 which sees the final rubber rounds played out and the semi finals.  So let's get a move on and have a look at them...

Right starting with Day 6 and the first match of the day was between Roger Federer and Juan Martin Del Potro in a match that promised to be a real classic encounter.  And the match itself more than lived up to expectations as Rog and Delpo battled it out on the centre court infront of 17000 plus crowd who were enthralled by some incredible tennis.  And it was Delpo that got off to the better start as he broke Roger in the first set twice, but Roger managed to get one of the breaks back before Delpo served out the set.  The 2nd set saw Roger having to battle from behind once again as he went a break down but he managed to wrestle his way back and pushed the set to a tiebreak where Roger dominated the play.  In the 3rd set Roger once again was forced to come from a break down to eventually level the scores and Rog got a break of his own on Delpo's serve and finally went on to serve out the match to reach another semi final at the o2 with a remarkable 4-6, 7-6, 7-5 victory.

This really was one of the most entertaining matches of the tournament and throughout Roger looked down and out and its testament to his incredible fighting spirit and experience that he was able to come through it.  It also marked his second win over a Delpo this year after beating the big guy for the first time in their previous meetings until Paris just two weeks ago, which sees that Roger is starting to get his game back on form which is good to see.  And this also set up a mouth watering semi final clash between Roger and Rafa which would see the two greatest rivals in the sport face each other again, but more on that soon.

Next up in the evening match Novak Djokovic faced off Richard Gasquet in his last rubber match before the semis.  And despite Nole's assertive dominance over the Frenchman, Gasquet came out strong and played some wonderful and varied tennis for the crowd against a rather fatigued looking Djokovic.  And Gasquet after dropping the opening set in the breaker went on to nab the 2nd set before Nole went on to close out the spirited fight from Gasquet with a break in the 3rd to seal his 20th match win in a row with a hard fought 7-6, 4-6, 6-3 win.  This was one good last hurrahh from Gasquet who has failed to win a match this year at the o2 but he has proven that he is back on true form again especially as he has managed to get himeself back in the top 10 this year as well reaching the semis of the US Open final, things are looking bright for the Frenchman.  As for Nole it shows just how damn good he is that even able to fight through fatigue to win and given that he knows a thing or two about winning streaks, it looks like this one won't be ending anytime soon.

So this brings me onto day 7, which had two potentially cracking semi final clashes in prospect as first up we had two legends of the game face each other, Roger and Rafa in what promised to be a mouth watering encounter.  However it didn't quite end up that way as Roger suffered from another case of unforced errors on both sides, particular his backhand, and despite tight 2st set, Roger faded badly in the 2nd which let Rafa grab the win in 7-5, 6-3.  The match itself had some good moments and some vintage flashes of the old Roger, but in the end Rafa proved to be just too consistent and that made the difference. 

So this sees the end of Roger's season in 2013, which hasn't been kind to him and has easily been the worst season of his career for over 10 years in which he has failed to win another grand slam and fell even further back sustaining tough early round defeats at Wimbledon and the US Open.  Roger also only managed to secure one title this year as he won the Gerry Webber Open in Halle, prior to Wimbledon.  But despite that Roger still managed to finish fairly strong this season in reaching the finals of Basel, and the semis of Paris and London, and his level has started to pick up again and hopefully in 2014 he will come back stronger and ready to take on the challenges that lie ahead. 

Which brings me onto the night match which was between Novak Djokovic and Stan Wawrinka, who already this year have had two epic battles in the slams at the Australian and the US Open, both eventually won by Djokovic.  But this match proved not to be of the same calibre, but despite that it was still a very entertaining encounter as Stan did his best against an almost invincible Nole, who just kept getting everything back into play, and with Wawrinka hitting a brick wall time and time again.  And in the end Nole breezed his way to victory as he broke Stan to win in 6-3, 6-3 to reach his 3rd ATP world tour finals finale.

While the match was a brief one it still had some great rallies from both players and despite his loss, Stan still showed some of the incredible form that has brought him to the foreground of men's tennis this year.  And without a doubt Stan Wawrinka really has announced himself as a great player this year, which was spearheaded by his amazing fight in his 4th round match against Nole at the Australian Open an should he continue that form he will no doubt pose an even bigger threat next year.  As for Novak well this match saw him put aside his fatigue from the previous Gasquet match and come out razor sharp as he played some of his best tennis to dismiss Stan and there is no doubt that he is looking really good to win the title again.

So that's it for now, and the final is set between Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal, which promises to be a great one and I will cover that in the next post which is just coming right up.....!

2013 ATP Wolrd Tour Finals Part 1: The big uns clash!

OK so the ladies tennis season is over but the men's isn't quite yet over but it will be come this Monday as the ATP World Tour Finals draws to a close then which sees the men's top 8 players in the world battle it out for a right to win the ATP WTF champions trophy.  So let's have a look at the matches so far...

Starting with Day 1 first up we had Stanislas Wawrinka take on Tomas Berdych in what looked likely to a pretty even match up as their head to head was fairly close with Wawrinka leading 7-5.  And the match itself proved to be just that as Stan took the initiative in the first set breaking Berdy, who fought back and took the 2nd set to push it to a decider.  In the 3rd set Stan broke again and sealed his first match in his debut at ATP world tour finals with a 6-3, 6-7, 6-3 win.  In the 2nd match of the day, Juan Martin Del Potro took on Richard Gasquet in what proved to be a terrific contest between the two players, which saw Gasquet push the big Argentine all the way to a 3rd set where it could have went either way but eventually Delpo got crucial broke and won the match in 6-7, 6-3, 7-5.  

So onto Day 2 we had the World No.1 Rafael Nadal take on Spanish No.2, David Ferrer.  Ferrer stunned Rafa only the weekend before at the Paris Masters as he beat the might Raf in the semi finals to reach the final where he was beaten by Djokovic.  However this match was a complete role reversal as Rafa got his revenge in an emphatic fashion by beating Ferrer in straight sets with a comfortable 6-3, 6-2 victory which saw the World No.1 take his first confident stride toward winning the one big title that eludes him.  In the second match of the day, Novak Djokovic the defending champion faced off against the former six time champion, Roger Federer, in what promised to a classic encounter.  However both men seemed to be suffering fatigue after their efforts in Paris the week before, and they both produced a ropey match filled with unforced errors and play that was simply hit and miss.  But it was Nole that came out on top as he won the match 6-4, 6-7, 6-2 to claim his first match win of the event.

Which brings us looming onto day 3 which started with Rafa taking on the in form Stan Wawrinka in what proved to be a highly entertaining and competitive contest in which both men brought their best to the court.  Stan in their head to head has never won a set never mind a match against Rafa, so beating him was a big big ask, but Stan nonetheless laid it all out on the court as he battled with Rafa and pushed him to two tiebreak sets before the man from Mallorca shut the door, winning a very tight two set 7-6(5), 7-6(6) match.  This match win ensured that Rafa will reach the semi finals no matter the outcome of his next match and again shows the mighty impressive form that the Spaniard has shown this year continue even into his weakest surface, indoor hard courts. As for Stan you can't help but feel gutted for him that still hasn't even taken a set off Rafa yet, but if anyone deserves to it: its him and he will have his day yet I think, where he will get two.

Next up was David Ferrer who faced Tomas Berdych in an intruiging clash which promised to be quite entertaining, however for Ferrer it was ultimately the end of the road as he struggled to keep up with huge hitting from the big Czeck and he suffered a straight set defeat in 6-4, 6-4.  This was a pity for Ferrer who only the week before reached the final in Paris where he was the defending champion.  So at this point Ferrer is out of the championship with nowhere to go, but he will still have one match left to play.

Moving on to day 4, Roger Federer was up against Richard Gasquet, and Federer at last managed to crank up the gears and bring out a classy performance to dismiss the Frenchman in straight sets with a much needed 6-4, 6-3 win which kept Roger's hopes alive in the tournament.  Novak Djokovic in the evening match played Del Potro in another potentially mouth watering clash, however Nole came out serving sharp leaving a rather fatigued looking Del Potro out to dry in the first set.  In the 2nd set Delpo fought his way back into the match as Nole suffered a lapse in concentration and the big guy levelled the match at a set all.  In the 3rd set though parity was restored for Djokovic as he broke Delpo's serve and went on to close out the match two secure a two match lead in his group with a 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 scoreline.

So onto day 5 in the first match there was Stan the man who played against David Ferrer, which if Stan were to win it would give two match wins and a chance to reach the semi finals.  The match itself was quite competitive with Ferrer doing his best to leave the tournament with his head held somewhat high as he nabbed the first set in a tiebreak after coming back from a break down.  However Stan regrouped and managed to break Ferrer in the 2nd set, which saw Ferrer in a rare outburst of anger smash his racquet on the court.  In the 3rd set play raced away fast from Ferrer as Stan grabbed the match by the throat with a double break and he closed it out with a 6-7, 6-4, 6-1 victory.  Well this sees Stan make a terrific debut at this event as he now stands closer than ever to reaching the semi finals of the year end championships which would be decided by the winner of the next match...

Which was between Rafa and Berdych in the evening match and for this match Rafa was the hot favourite, having won their last few encounters in straight sets.  However Rafa didn't have it all his way in this one as after he took the first set, Berdych seized the initiative in the 2nd set as Rafa's level dipped dramatically and the big Czeck took a double break to his first set against the Spaniard since the Aussie Open last year.  In the 3rd set it was pretty competitve and all even until Berdych served a double fault at 3-4 as he handed the vital break to Rafa who went on to serve out the match to be the outright winner of Group A with a 6-4, 1-6, 6-3.  Its hard to imagine Rafa in better form going into this stage of the tournament and his win also was warmly welcomed by Stan Wawrinka as he sealed his place in the semi finals as Rafa beat Berdych, and he said in a text that he owes Rafa dinner! ;-)

So that's it for now I will report back with updates on Day 6 and 7 once they are over.

Till then bye the now.  

2013 WTA Istanbul: The queen of the WTA

Well its time for an update on the ladies tennis tour as it has now come to an end (well actually not quite as the Sofia tournament of champions is still to be played this week and there are one or two other smaller tournaments as well still to wrap up).  But the main showpiece of the WTA tour is now over which is what I mean as the WTA Championships from Istanbul took place last week where the world's top eight players went at it to try and lift the trophy that label them queen of the WTA tour (or the year end championships).  So let's have a look at some the matches...

Starting with the first day we had Serena Williams, the defending champion take on Angelique Kerber and for Serena it was nothing more than a quick workout as she ruthlessly disatched Kerber in straight sets 6-3, 6-1 to quickly stamp her authority on the proceedings.  Also on the first day we had Victoria Azarenka face Sara Errani in a hard fought match with the first set going on for nearly an hour and a half which finally saw Vika battle past the plucky Italian.  And in the 2nd set, Errani suffered a calf injury, which hampered her chances and she went down a double break as Vika sealed the match in 7-6, 6-2.  And in the last match of the day there Agnieszka Radwanska who faced the former champion, Petra Kvitova, and Petra showed her champion qualities as she easily dispatched Aga in straight sets with a 6-4, 6-4 win. 

On Day 2 we had Li Na face against Sara Errani in what turned out to be a real topsy turvey match which saw momentum swing one way then the other.  However in the end it was Li Na who closed it out in a tough straight set win of 6-3, 7-6.  Jelena Jankovic, who has made a great return to form this year continued to show her fine form as she outclassed an ailing Victoria Azarenka who appeared to be struggling badly on serve, but Jankovic managed to close down the Belarusian with a 6-4, 6-3 victory.  And the last match of the day turned out to be the most entertaining as Serena took on Radwanska in a cat and mouse game, which saw Serena struggle on serve and let Radwanska take her to duece on several games, and the sly Pole managed to even get a break of serve off the World No.1 as well as produce some wonderful shots.  But in the end Serena's might was just too strong and she went to break Aga to win the match with a comfortable 6-2, 6-4 victory.  While it wasn't the result Radwanska wasn't hoping for it did at least let her show the crowds once again what a delightful player she is to watch and her guile and ingenuity remain a breath of fresh air in the ladies game, which makes for a good depature from all the baseline bludgeoning you get these days.

Getting on day 3, Li Na took on Jelena Jankovic in the first match of the tournament that went the distance as the two players battled it out, but in the end it was Li Na that made the crucial move and broke in the 3rd set to win the match in 6-3, 2-6, 6-3.  In contrast to that however Kerber had no trouble in getting past a jaded Radwanska, who in her final match struggled to get anything going and the German made short work of her, which saw Angie win in 6-2, 6-2.  This was a disappointing end for Radwanska and I personally thought she was handed a raw deal with the schedule as she had to play three days in a row and she really suffered as a result, and it was also a great pity to see her lose without even taking a set, but hopefully she will have a better 2014.  Serena Williams in the last match of the day made short work of Petra Kvitova as she put in an unbelievable serving performanec and hit the Czeck player off the court to win 6-2, 6-3.

Moving onto Day 4, Li Na was up against Victoria Azarenka in what could have been a really competitve match, however it turned out to be the opposite as Vika struggled badly with a back injury throughout.  But rather than retire Vika struggled on into the 2nd set where Li Na whitewashed her and took the match with a 6-2, 6-1 emphatic win.  So this was another disappointing end to the season for another player in Azarenka as she had gotten off to a strong start early on this season winning in Melbourne for the 2nd time, but after losing out in the US Open final just there, Vika certainly has lost some of her fire, but here's hoping she will get it back next year.  Petra Kvitova went on and had a real humdinger of a match against Angelique Kerber which went to three sets but it was Petra managed battle past the German in the end winning in 6-7, 6-2, 6-3.  And in the last match of the day Sara Errani managed to nab the consolation prize as she defeated Jelena Jankovic in straight sets 6-4, 6-4, however after this it was Jankovic who went through to the semi finals, and Errani and Azarenka both went home.

On day 5, the semi finals started with Li Na taking on Petra Kvitova for a place in the final and as they are both big hitters it promised to be quite a contest.  However in the end it was Li Na that was the better player as she went on to close it out and take her place in the final with a straight set 6-4, 6-2 win that see Li reach her first ever WTA Tour Championships final.  Now onto the second semi final of the day, which was between Serena Williams and Jelena Jankovic, which turned out to be the most bizzare match of the tournament, as Serena looked badly out of sorts for half the match as her movement was sluggish as anything and she went a break down early on in the first set, and she was even at one point sobbing into her towel.  However Serena soon turned it around as she broke back and went on to nab the 1st set with a break of her own.  In the 2nd set however Serena started to wobble badly again and she looked fatigued and barely able to move around the court she had to resort to hitting big winners from the back of the court to stay in the points.  However Jelena managed to grab the initiative and a double break to level the match at a set all.  In the 3rd set things got weird and we were treated to an at times thrilling set with quite a few twists and turns but Serena eventually closed it out after much difficulty to reach another final in Istanbul with a 6-4, 2-6, 6-4 win. 

So this set up the final between Serena Williams and Li Na, which again saw Serena get off to a puzzling slow start as she moved sluggishly around the court and Li Na got the perfect opportunity to win her first ever set against Serena since 2007!  So with a set up, in the 2nd Li Na looked to be the favourite if she could keep her momentum going, however it was soon cut short as Serena weaved her web and broke Li to grab the 2nd set and level the match.  And in the 3rd set it was all Serena as Li Na struggled badly on her serve and served some very costly double faults and before we knew it, Serena was 5-0 up.  But Serena didn't have it all her way in trying to serve it out as Li made a last ditch effort to break back and pushed Serena to deuce a few times before the American finally nailed it and she sanks to her knees in delight as she won her fourth WTA Tour Championships title with a 2-6, 6-3, 6-0 victory.

Well once again Serena Williams is the year end championships WTA champion and it caps the perfect end to yet another near perfect year for her as she has won nearly 13 million dollars in prize money and 11 titles, among with are two grand slams at the French and the US Open.  And in another scary statistic Serena has only lost four matches all year (two of those were to Azarenka) and she has won 78 out of 82, which is something in itself!  And from here it is difficult to see how she can get any better as she is light years ahead of the rest of the field and the rest of the players on the tour are going to have mighty tough time trying to get anywhere near her.  But in the meantime all the credit has to go to Serena for her incredible talent and showing that she really is one of the all time great players to have played the game and I'm sure there will be more to come.

And that's it for now and the for WTA tour for this year, which will start back again in January and its been a great season with plenty of drama, great matches, upsets and good stuff all round.  And in the meantime the men's ATP season is almost close to an end as well as there are only two more weeks left and this week there is the Paris Masters and the next week will be the ATP world tour finals from the O2 in London, so I can't wait to see that.  This week will also be crucial for Roger Federer as he lost to Del Potro in the final of the Swiss Indoors in Basel just there on Sunday, so in order to qualify for the o2 next week he will have to win his first match this week in Paris, which will be against either Mikhail Youzhny or Kevin Anderson, so he will have his work cut out, but hopefully he will win as the World Finals will never be the same without him.

Anyway that's it for now, more will follow on the ATP world tour finals next week and also the Paris Masters final as it comes up.

Until then bye for now!  

ATP/WTA tour catch up

Right well it has been a long time since I've updated this blog so I thought I would finally get to it and have a quick update on what's been happening in the ATP/WTA tour.

OK so starting with the lasses, we had in recent weeks the Asian swing of the ladies tour, which started with the China open in Beijing, which was the last Premier mandatory event of the season, for which there was a 1000 points up for grabs for the winner.  And the eventual winner turned out to be none other than Serena Williams, the world No.1, who won the 10th title of the year against Jelena Jankovic in the final as she won with an emphatic 6-2, 6-2 scoreline.  Serena's achievement in Beijing was in itself remarkable purely because she had been suffering from back pain and the fact that she was able to pull through shows just how good she is even when she isn't playing her best.  And it also sees her taken an emphatic lead over any of her competitors and the current world no.2, Victoria Azarenka who trails an increidble 5000 points behind her!  So with the WTA Championships next up for Serena in Istanbul, where she is the defending champion, it will be difficult to see anyone get near her or knock her off the top spot anytime soon. 

In other tournament events on the ladies we had some good results such as in the HP Open in Osaka, where Sam Stosur in the final battled from a set down against Eugenie Bouchard to win her 2nd title of the year with a 3-6, 7-5, 6-2 victory.  It was great to see Sam Stosur win another title again as she has suffered a real drought in her career and it was two years between her US Open title and her first title of the season in Carlsbad in California earlier this year, so it will see her finish her year in fine form, which isn't quite over yet as she will next play the Kremlin cup in Moscow, where she was last year's finalist losing out to Caroline Wozniacki in a closely fought contest, so maybe she could do a hattrick, but we will see.

Also last week in Austria we had the Generali Ladies in Linz in which Angelique Kerber had a great as she not only walked away with the title but she also secured her place in the WTA Championships as she nabbed the last place in the top eight to play in Istanbul.  Its also good to see that Kerber is back on form as she had taken a dip in form this year after her stellar rise last season up the rankings.  And in the final Kerber was given a stern test from the former Linz champion, Ana Ivanovic as she was pushed hard by the Serb but eventually came through in 6-4, 7-6(6).  Kerber was set to play in Moscow this week but she was forced to pull out with abdominal injury so no doubt she will saving herself for the big finale in Istanbul, where we will just need to wait and see what impact she can make on the other seven players.

So now onto the men's starting with the bad news for Andy Murray who decide shortly after his Davis cup triumph for Great Britain in securing their team a place back in the world group, to undergo back surgery to correct a disc problem in his lower back, which had aggravated his back injury for nearly two years.  This decision was undoubtedly the right one for Andy as he has to consider his careeer for the long term and in undergoing the surgery it will hopefully ensure it will stay corrected.  And as a result of his surgery and rehab recovery time, Andy has been forced to withdraw from the events for the rest of the season, which includes the ATP world tour finals at the o2 arena in London, which is pity, but undoubtedly the right decision.  But Andy however has said he will hope to be ready again for an exhibition event in Barbados, the dream cup at the end of November, which will be a four man event including Juan Martin Del Potro, Richard Gasquet and Nicolas Almagro as well as the Abu Dhabi exhbition event at the end of the year in December.  So let's hope the Muzza will recover real soon for those events.

Now for the men's atp tour events, starting with the China open at which Novak Djokovic, now the former World No.1, lost the top spot to Rafa afer the Spaniard managed to reach the final of the event, as did Nole.  And given Rafa's hot form in 2013 you would expect with having reached 13 finals out of the 14 tournaments that he has played in this year that he would emerge victorious here.  However Nole had other ideas as he has been unbeaten in China since 2010 (he didn't play in 2011 where Tomas Berdych won) and he managed to continue that run as he put in a superb display of serving, as Rafa for the first time in quite a while faltered badly and before we knew it Nole served it out to win in 6-3, 6-4.  This was Nole's 4th title of the year and it saw him get back on form after suffering a dip in form since losing to Rafa at the French Open earlier this year in their epic semi final.

And Nole managed to continue his fine form in Shanghai at the Rolex Masters where he was also the defending champion after he defeated Andy Murray last year in an amazing final.  And in the final this year we were treated to a real cracker, as Novak reached the final again and despite Rafa being the odds on favourite opponent for him, it was big Juan Martin Del Potro that put in a stunning performance which knocked out Rafa in straight sets to reach the final.  And in the final Nole as expected came out firing as he blasted past Delpo as tore him up to nab a double break to close out the first set.  In the 2nd set however Nole literally started to wobble on serve as he played a bizarre service game which gave Delpo the chance he needed to get himself back in the match as he broke to move ahead with a 3-0 lead.  After this Delpo managed to consolidate his break and he ended up serving out the second set with relative ease to level the match and take it to a decider.  And the decider proved to be a thrilling contest between both men with not much in at all, and even Delpo defied the odds as he managed to rescue his serve at 4-5 down being 15-40 own on his serve, giving Djoko two championship points.  However in the end as play was pushed to a final set tiebreak it was Djokovic that took the initative and he ended Delpo's hopes of winning his first Masters title for a third time with a superb 6-1, 3-6, 7-6(3) victory.

This really was a terrific match between two great players, and it shows along with Stan Wawrinka that Del Potro also poses a serious threat to the Serb.  And Del Potro himself deserves a great deal of credit for his performance in this final as he gave it his absolute all and I was pretty gutted for him myself that he came up short in the end, especially as he has been fighting so hard in his career to win that elusive Masters title.  And in a way seems a bit funny that as Delpo has already won a grand slam, it almost feels like winning a Masters is more important to him.  But I'm sure Del Potro will have many more chances ahead of him to win his first Masters title and with the last one of the season ahead in Paris, he might just end up taking it.  Del Potro also in having reached the final of Shanghai has secured his place in the ATP world tour finals at the o2 in London so it will be great to see how he will do there as well, and given his current form he is sure to do some real damage there.

As for Nole well his victory in Shanghai contines to show he is back on form, just like he did last year as he regrouped toward the end of the season, and so far he has defending two out of the three title he has played at so far in this part of the tour, and all he needs to do is defend at the o2.  And in between that is the Paris Masters where Novak suffered an early exit last year but this year he has chance to make some extra points which might help him in his quest to regain the No.1 spot but that will still all depend on how Rafa will do.  And it has to be said in the last two tournaments Rafa has taken a slight dip in form, so just maybe the effects of his hugely successful season are starting to catch up with him, so time will tell how well he will respond for the reaminder of the year in Basel, Paris and London.

And lastly for Roger Federer well its safe to say that he is having the worst season of his career in the last ten years or so, as this year alone he has failed to win a major and has suffered a worrying lapse in form in the majors at Wimbledon and the US Open where he went out early on.  This has also affected him in the tour events as well as this week alone he suffered another early exit at the hands of Gael Monfils, who beat him in three sets.  And Roger has also announced his split with his coach Paul Annaconne, whom he has worked with for the last three years, as I'd imagine he felt he needed a change of direction, however whether or not that will make any difference to his game or not seems doubtful.  Perhaps at this point in his career Roger just has to face up to the fact that his best days are behind him and while its impossible to write him off, it will be tough to see him make another strong comeback like he did last year.

Anywayyyy that's it for now, more to follow on the WTA championships which are not far away now as they start next week in Istanbul, which sees the full line up of Serena Williams, Victoria Azarenka, Agnieszka Radwanska, Petra Kvitova, Sara Errani, Jelena Jankovic, Li Na and Angelique Kerber.  Now that is quite a line up to look forward to!

So until then bye for now.  

Davis cup weekend catch up

OK just for a change I thought I would do a post on the Davis cup weekend which was just there and it saw the world group teams play out the semi final stages to see who would reach the final, and I will also cover the world group play offs, to see who would reach the world group. 

So let's start with the world group semi final matches, and to begin the defending champions, the Czeck republic who were up against Argentina.  In their first singles match, Radek Stepanek, the hero of the Czeck republic's triumph last year, took on Juan Monaco of Argentina, and it was Stepanek who impressed once again as he beat the Argentine in straight sets 7-6, 6-3, 6-2 to give his team a winning start.  In the second singles rubber we had Tomas Berdych face Leo Mayer in a tight four set match which saw Berdych finally win through as he gave his team the 2-0 lead after a 6-4, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4.  And in the decisive rubber, the doubles one, Stepanek and Berdych both teamed up and put on impressive show to dismiss the Argentine team of Carlos Berlocq and Horacio Zeballos in 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 to seal their place in their second consecutive Davis cup final.  This really shows just how impressive the Czeck republic team are, especially as they are really the combination of Tomas Berdych and Radek Stepanek, who both together won the title for the country last year.  And on the evidence of their performance here, in the final they will be tough to stop.

However that might all change as in waiting for the Czeck republic would be the winner of the next tie, which was between Serbia and Canada.  In the first match Novak Djokovic, the world no.1, who had just come off the receiving end of a stinging defeat in the US Open final, bounced back in fine style here as he dismissed Vasek Pospisil in straight sets, conceding only six games with a 6-2, 6-0, 6-4 victory.  However in the 2nd rubber, things didn't quite go according to plan for Serbia as Janko Tipsarevic was defeated by Milos Raonic in a very tight battle, with Raonic just edging Tipsy in the 5th set to win the match 5-7, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 10-8.  And on the second day, the doubles rubber would give either team a pivotal lead, and the match itself was another epic battle as the Canadian team edged Serbia again as Daniel Nestor and Vasek Pospisil won in 6-7, 6-4, 6-3, 6-7, 10-8 to give Canada a 2-1 lead.  Going into the final day, things looked mighty precarious for Serbia, however Djokovic confidently levelled the scores as he beat Raonic in their singles rubber 7-6, 6-2, 6-2.  And it was up to Janko Tipsarevic to try and win the tie for Serbia in the crucial final rubber, who did just that after a tight straight set win against Vasek Pospisil in 7-6, 6-2, 7-6, which saw the Serbs reach their second Davis cup final.

Well this sets up a very intruiging clash for the Davis cup final between the Czeck republic and Serbia, and no doubt it promises to be quite a cracker.  But who will win it??????  Well I have to go with Serbia as they have Novak Djokovic, who will play a key part in both singles matches, although where the odds might tip in the Czeck team's favour is that Stepanek and Berdych have never lost a doubles match so far in Davis cup, and if Berdy or Stepanek can win two of the other singles rubbers then it might just see them come through.  But however it goes I'm sure it promises to be one hell of a final and one to remember I'm sure, but my money is on Serbia for a possible 3-2 victory.

Right now let's get onto the world group play-offs, starting with Spain who were dumped out of the world group earlier this year, so this is where they were looking to fight their way back in and in their way stood the Ukraine.  With Rafa being on top form this year in his comeback, his team were keen to get him back on their side, and despite concerns that Rafa might have skipped the Davis cup in order to recover from his tremendous efforts on the hard court swing, Rafa turned up to play.  And in the first singles rubber, Rafa showed no trouble whatsoever in getting past Serigy Stakhovsky, as he looked a home on the clay (back on the Manolo Sonata stadium in Madrid) and raced to victory with a 6-0, 6-0, 6-4 win.  Fernando Verdasco (sorry this was the second singles rubber!) played against the Ukraine No.1, Alexandr Dolgopolov in what was a tighter match but it eventually saw Verdasco win in 3-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-2, which saw Spain take a decisive 2-0 lead on day one.  On the second day in the key doubles rubber, the Spanish team made their move with doubles pairing of Rafa and Marc Lopez sealing their place back in the world group after a hard fought four set win in 6-2, 6-7, 6-3, 6-4.  So that's Spain back in the big time again, and let's see who else would join them.

So other teams that came through to the world group included Switzerland, who featured Stan Wawrinka, the in form Swiss player, who filled in for Roger Federer, as he played his part leading his team to victory with a 4-1 result against Ecuador.  Australia also managed to power through to the world group as they won 4-1 against Poland, with the help of Lleyton Hewitt and Bernard Tomic who won both their rubber singles matches, although the Aussies lost their doubles tie, the deal was clinched by Tomic on the final day as he took out Lukaz Kubot in straight sets.  Japan had a much tighter tie on their hands as they managed to edge their way past Colombia, with Kei Nishikori doing his part to win both his singles rubbers, after the team lost one single and the doubles rubber, Go Soeda clinched the deal with a four set win against Allejandro Falla to reach the world group with a 3-2 result.

Which brings me onto the last tie I will mention which was Great Britain who took on Croatia in an away match on Croatian soil in Umag, on clay courts.  It was a long road for Great Britain to get this far to the world group play-offs as they hadn't been there since 2008, so in order do do it they really need their best man, and thankfully for them he showed up, i.e. Andy Murray.  So let's have a look at the tie, starting with on day one in the first singles rubber match, Andy Murray took on a 16 year old juinor player, Borna Coric, who had just won the US Open junior title.  And despite it looking like a very one-sided maatch, Coric actually showed some very promising signs as he managed to push Andy fairly hard in the first set, before Andy closed it out with a break.  However in the second set, Andy breezed through to hand Coric a bagel, and in the 3rd set, despite going a break down, Andy quickly pulled it back as he sped to victory to claim the first win for GB in 6-3, 6-0, 6-3.

In the 2nd rubber however fortunes changed for GB as Dan Evans, who has recently been on impressive form by reaching the 3rd round of the US Open, but he couldn't find a way past the Croatian No.2 (well No.1 in Marin Cilic's absence, who has been suspended due to failing a drug test) Ivan Dodig.  Dodig who is by far the more experienced player (and five years Dan's senior at 28) sped to victory against Dan taking the match with a straight forward 6-3, 6-2, 6-3 win, which saw both teams level pegged 1-1 on day one.  On day two, the pivotal doubles rubber proved to be the toughest match of the tie so far, which saw team GB's doubles partnership of Andy Murray and Colin Fleming face off Ivan Dodig and Mate Pavic.  Andy and Flemo got off to a strong start as they took a two set lead, and despite being a break up in the 3rd set, they surrendered the break and let the Croats back in and play went to a tiebreak, which saw the Croatians nabs the 3rd set, courtesy of a double fault from Flemo's racquet.  In the 4th set however, normality was restored as the Brits broke the Croatian team twice and sped to victory to take the decisive 2-1 lead. 

And on the final day, Andy Murray did his bit for GB as he played Ivan Dodig in what was to be the crucial singles rubber.  The match itself was a very entertaining one, and Dodig put up a good fight but Andy in the end outclassed him and played the big points way better, and Andy also put in a surprisingly good serving performance as he landed in over 70% of his first serves in for the match, which is virtually unheard of! ;-)  And after going two sets to love up, Andy broke early in the 3rd set to take a further lead, although there was a bit of drama in Andy's last service game when serving out for the tie at 5-4. This was when Dodig tried to make his move to break back and he hit a couple of cracking winners, and he hit what appeared to be another that would bring up a break point, but the umpire called it out.  And with Dodig looking desparately at the umpire and disagreeing with the call, he had to relent as the point went to Andy, which gave him match point, and with a hostile booing crowd in the background Andy served out the match with no problems as Dodig went long with his return to give team GB their place in the world group with a 6-4, 6-2, 6-4 victory, giving Great Britain the decisive lead 3-1. 

Although it looked to be quite a comfortable victory for Andy, the match itself was quite a competitive one, and Dodig deserves alot of credit for showing his fighting qualities on the court, but in the end Andy proved to be just too good for him.  And it would be hard not to feel sorry for Dodig as that break point went begging, which could have got him back in the match.  However the crowd didn't deserve much sympathy as they kept booing throughout the last point of the match as Andy was trying to serve it out, which was well out of line, and while you can appreciate their annoyance, its not right that they should continue to boo when the player is trying to serve!  Regardless of that though this sees Great Britain back among the big boys, and they can now compete against the biggest teams in the world, but in order to do well they will need Andy Murray that's for sure, so he will need to try and make himself available when he can.  This victory will also hopefully help Andy in getting over his Wimbledon comedown and maybe he can get back on form for the rest of the season, as he is set to start the Asian hard court swing in Thialand next week.

So that's it for now, more to follow soon on the Asian hard court swing for the men and the ladies tour in the next few weeks.

Bye for now!  

2013 Flushing meadows Part 7.2: The King of New York

Right this is my final post on the 2013 US Open from Flushing Meadows in New York, which will cover the men's final, which was between Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal, in probably the most anticipated slam final of the year.  So let's start by having a look at the match....

OK so the match had a lot riding on it as both men were looking to clinch their 2nd US Open title, and although both Nole and Rafa were in contention for the No.1 spot (i.e. Rafa gaining it and Nole keeping it!) this battle was decided when Nole reached the final as he defended his points from last year, it meant he could remain at No.1.  However the match itself promised to be a real thrilling contest and just possibly one of all time great classics, just like their amazing 2011 final was at Flushing meadows.  But did this match live up to those expectations?????  Well to be honest not quite, the match itself was a very entertaining and gripping one, but it was clear from the very start that the better and more aggressive player was Rafa, who came out strong and broke Nole's serve twice to grab the first set with ease.  In the 2nd set however Nole started his comeback and after an incredible 54 shot rally, Nole broke Nadal's serve for what was only the 2nd time in the whole tournament to go 4-2 up.  However Novak ended up surrendering the break back to Rafa, but he was not yet done as he broke again to go 5-3 up and from here he managed to level the match at a set all.  In the 3rd set the momentum at the beginning was firmly with Djokovic as he nabbed an early break as he raised his level and played some incredible shots against Rafa.  But Rafa after a very tough and thrilling service game on to trail 2-1, Rafa managed to break back to go even on serve again at 3-3, and from here Rafa fashioned another break at 5-4 to grab a two sets to one lead.  And in the 4th set we witnessed some of the most intense and ferocious play we have ever seen from Rafa on a tennis court as he ruthlessly overwhelmed the World No.1 to nab the double break and he served out the match with ease as he fell to the ground and wept with joy as he clinched his 2nd US Open title after a gritty 6-2, 3-6, 6-4, 6-1 victory.  

While it fell short of the mark of the classic we might have hoped for, the match nonetheless had plenty of terrific rallies and great points and it had the hugely enthusiastic New York crowd whooping and hollering all the way throughout.  And without a doubt the most impressive thing about this match was Rafa himself and how he showed tremendous grit and determination and he played with about as much aggression and ferocity as I have ever seen him play with on a tennis court, and his venomous, blistering forehand consistently found its mark throughout the match.  And what's even more remarkable is that Rafa even found a way to push back Nole when he was a break down in the 3rd set and he went to rentelessly pummel his rival into submission in the 4th.  And there is no doubt that he is the best player in the world just now, and while Nole is ahead of him in the rankings for now at the No.1 spot, its only a matter of time before Rafa grabs it back for the first time in two years.  Another scary thing about Rafa's stats in this tournament is that he only had his serve broken four times in total (and three of those were by Djokovic, one by Gasquet) and that shows just now that he is virtually invincible on serve.   

Not only that given Rafa's absence from the tour this time last year, Rafa really has a golden opportunity to clean up even more here as with four tournaments ahead of him with the China Open, Shanghai Masters, Paris Masters and the ATP world tour finals in London, he is sure to finish as the world No.1 if here were to win all four of those titles.  And if he does it will make for possibly the most successful season in the history of his career not to mention any player's career if he wins 14 titles in one season, surely that has to be a record!  And as Rafa has shown sizzling form on the hard courts this year, and with the remainder of the season being on hard court, it would be tough to see him not win every event he will play for the rest of the season.  But whether or not he is capable of that remains to be seen, but for now Rafa is looking unstoppable and he is showing no signs of slowing down.

Although after winning the title Rafa said that he felt tired and fatigued after the intensive rigours of winning so many matches over the last month in Montreal and Cincinnati as well.  And Rafa also said that while he is committed this week to play at the Davis cup in Spain's tie against the Ukraine, he felt concerned about changing surfaces from hard court back to clay could disrupt his progress for the remainder of the hard court season (as the tie will be played in Madrid on clay courts).  And Rafa's main concern is of course in trying to remain on course to win the year end championships and end the season as the world no.1  And akin to Andy Murray after his historic win at Wimbledon, who felt mentally drained in his efforts after winning the title, there is also the possibility that Rafa might be feeling the same way after putting so much effort into his hard court season and winning at the US Open.  And if that's the case then Rafa will need to be careful that he doesn't suffer a comedown in the forthcoming weeks, otherwise his attempt to finish as No.1 in the world will be thwarted.  

As for Djokovic well its hard not to sympathise with him, as he really struggled to find his best form in the final, even though he produced some terrific tennis at times in the match, he suffered badly due to making too many unforced errors (53 in all) and his best shot, the backhand down the line was just misfiring on the day, as was his serve.  And it does show a slightly alarming dip in Djokovic's form this year, that ever since losing to Nadal in their epic semi final match at the French Open earlier this year, he has just looked a bit flat as a player.  Novak has however still managed to produce some terrific tennis even when he wasn't playing his best as he proved against the likes of Del Potro at Wimbledon and Stan Wawrinka at the US Open, and that is what makes him a great champion.

However Novak has to be careful as he goes into the remainder of the season as he has a lot of points to defend as he is the champion in the three of the four events left in his calender on the tour, in China, Shanghai and the o2 in London.  And a certain Rafael Nadal is coming right after him and unless Nole can really step up his level, he's going to find it hard just to cling onto these titles.  However Novak has a way bouncing back after defeats, and that is something he did really well last year after the disappointment og losing in the French Open final, and losing his title defences at Wimbledon and the US Open.  And if Rafa is going to take that No.1 spot, then I'm sure Nole is not going to give it up without a real fight and that's we will hope to see from him in the next couple of months.

And while Andy Murray has nothing really to do with this post I thought I would ask the question again: when is Rafa going to play him????  It has now been two years since they last played in Tokyo where Andy upset Rafa in the final of the Japan open, and it would be absolutely fascinating just to see how both men's games will stack up against one another.  With Nadal and Djokovic we know firmly where they stand with one another just now game wise, but with Andy its completely different, as he is not the same player since they last played.  And if there IS one man that could upset the odds against Rafa then that one man is Andy Murray and I simply cannot wait to see them play again, and its been a long time waiting but hopefully whenever they finally meet again, it will be well and truly worth the wait.

So that's it for my posts on the 2013 US Open, which has been a terrific tournament for both the men and ladies events and they both featured some terrific matches and two strong finals to finish up the slam season this year.  Next up for the men will be the Davis cup, and this week Andy Murray will be back in action with the Great Britain team, as they will take on Croatia in a world group play-off for a chance to get back into the World Group.  The tie is however away from home, which will prove to be quite tough for them, and with clay being Andy's weakest surface, this could leave them at a disadvantage.  However I'm sure that team GB can hopefully pull off a win here and let's they do as it would be great to see them get through to the world group once again.

Rafa also may be in action this week at the Davis cup as well as the Spanish team wait to see if he will be ready to play in their tie against the Ukraine.  And Djokovic will also be in action in the Davis cup as Serbia take on Canada in the semis final where he will most likely play against the giant serving Milos Raonic, which should make for a mouth watering clash.  So the slams may be finished but there is still plenty of great tennis left to look forward to this week and in the forthcoming weeks. 

So once again I shall say bye for now, and bye bye to the US Open, which has been great this year.

Until the next post, bye the now!   

2013 Flushing Meadows Part 7.1: Clash of the female titans

OK so this will be my penultimate post on the 2013 US Open as it draws to a close and the focus of this post will be on the ladies final, which was set to be an epic clash between the world's two best players, Serena Williams and Victoria Azarneka.  So let's have a look at this match then......

Rrrrrrrrrright well the match itself was played in tough windy conditions, akin to the same conditions of the men's final last year, so play was bound to be error bound and scrappy.  However both Serena and Vika with so much at stake in this final were more than up to the challenge, and it was actually Vika that got off to the more solid start as despite going a break down, she broke back and went on to hold more confidently than Serena did who's generally top class serve was going all over the place.  However play went by serve until 5-5, and against all the odds it was Serena who broke Vika to move ahead 6-5 to then close out the first set.  In the 2nd set the conditions played their part again (not to mention the wind kept blowing up Serena's skirt!) and there were breaks aplenty in what turned into an absoltely thrilling contest as Vika fought back from 4-1 down to push the set into a tiebreaker.  The breaker itself was magnificent also as both players pushed themselves to the limit as their grunting grew more vociferous as each point was played, particularly at 6-5 for Vika and Serena levelled by hitting a ferocious winner to go 6-6.  However it was Victoria that made the crucial minibreak and sealed the breaker 8-6 to level the match at a set all.  The 3rd set promised to deliver more of the same and to an extent it did, however Vika's serve let her down badly as she served to try and go 2-2, she surrendered her serve and let Serena take the break, who confidently moved ahead.  And Vika continued to struggle on her serve as she went down a double break, leaving Serena the golden opportunity to serve it out.  However Serena did suffer a few minor jitters in doing so as Vika made a last stand by pushing her 40-30, but in the end Serena won the game, set and match to claim her 5th US Open title, with a superb 7-5, 6-7 (6-8), 6-1 victory.

There is no doubt this was one of the greatest ladies US Open finals for many years, and its also remarkable that prior to their previous terrific final last year, there hadn't been a ladies final at Flushing Meadows that went the distance for 16 years!  So the fact that we managed to get another that was of such high quality was a real treat, and there is no doubt that the two best players in the world were out there last night slugging it out.  And while the quality of play was mixed at times due to the wild and windy conditions, there was no doubt that it really was a thrilling contest, and both women played some magnificent points for the enthralled full capacity crowd at Flushing Meadows.  And when you have a great final in New York, there is no better a crowd behind two players, as the noise is just unbelievable and the atmosphere nothing short of electrifying.  
And while Serena once again showed her true fighting champion qualities, it was Victoria Azarenka that really announced her arrival to the world in this match as she put up such a tremendous fight against perhaps the greatest player to have played the game.  And I think Vika deserves a great deal of credit for showing her fighting qualities and such great heart against a real thoroughbred champion.  However it was a pity that she dropped her serve early on in the 3rd set as it really could become an even better contest if she hadn't, and in the end the double faults on Vika's serve cost her.  But this match also continues to cement this thrilling and growing rivalry between Serena Williams and Victoria Azarenka, and there is no doubt that the last four hard court matches they have played have all been classics.  And this is something the women's game desparately needs and at last its great to say we have one as if carries on like this, Williams and Azarenka's rivalry could become one of the great modern rivalries in the ladies sport.

So once again the spoils go to Serena Williams, and there is no denying that deserves it as early on in the match she really struggled in the conditions and found it difficult to even get her serves in, but as the match progressed, like all great champions, she found a way to get it done.  And as for Victoria Azarenka well she can take great heart in knowing she gave her opponent a real battle and she is literally the only player in the world that can give Serena a match and go toe to toe with her, and withstand her power and pace in long rallies.  And I really think that one day Vika will get her chance to win against Serena in a major final as each time they play you see her get that bit better.  And with the year end championships in Istanbul not too far off, which will be at the end of October, I'm sure these two will have a chance to compete again, and we will see how it goes there.

Right so that's it for now, and that's one final over with and it was some final, next up is the men's between the two former champions Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, who both have a chance to claim their second title in New York.  And there is no doubt this should be a real classic, but time will soon tell all, but if its anything near as good as their 2011 final, we are going to be in for a longggggg night. :-)

Anyway that's it for now and a big congrats once again to Serena Williams for winning her 5th US Open title and to Victoria Azarenka for putting up such a great fight.  So I'll report back with the result of the men's final and who will lift the champions trophy. 

Until the next one, bye the now!   

2013 Flushing meadows Part 6: US Open rematches

Right well its time for another post on the US Open, which is getting really into the deep end now as I will cover the ladies and men's semi finals, which will see who will reach the final to have a chance to lift the champions trophy.

So to start as usual with the ladies we first up had Victoria Azarenk, last year's finalist, take on Flavia Pennetta, which turned out to be an error strewn but entertaining encounter, which had a real topsy turvey opening set with both players struggling on serve.  However it was Vika that finally moved ahead to go 5-4 to then close out the first set, but in the 2nd Pennetta made too many errors, and she struggled to deal with Vika's searing baseline exchanges.  And despite a last ditch effort at pushing Vika to 40-30 on her serve, Vika closed it out to reach her 2nd US Open final with a 6-4, 6-2 win.  Vika's lack of form at the US Open it has to be said has been a bit troubling and in this match it continued as she really struggled on serve in this match, and that is something cannot afford to do against the likes of Serena Williams in the final.  But we will just have to see how Azarenka will cope in the final and with two major titles already in the cabinet she is sure to raise her game.  For Flavia Pennetta however despite her loss, she has had a great tournament and its great once again to see someone different in the last four in a slam in the ladies game, which is always a welcome change up, and her ranking will no doubt sky rocket after this. 

Next up we had Serena Williams, the defending champion, who played against Li Na for a place in the final and this promise to be a cracker.  However it wasn't really to be in the end and Serena was way too good for Li Na as she handed her a bagel in the first (she seems to have been doing that alot in this tournament!).  In the 2nd set things started to look a bit more encouraging for Li Na as she managed to break Serena's serve early on, but ultimately it was to no avail as the American broke straight back and she went on to nab a break herself to go 4-2 up.  And from here it was easy street with Serena closing it out with no real problems to reach yet another US Open final with a very convincing 6-0, 6-3 scoreline.  Well there isn't a great deal to say about this match other than it highlights just how far ahead of the competition Serena is, and to say she isn't the favourite to lift the title on Sunday would be mad.  As for Li Na well its a shame she was able to get more involved in the match as she is more than capable of it, but it just didn't materialise on the day. 

So this sets up yet another mouth watering final against the world's two best players, Serena Williams and Victoria Azarenka.  And who will win it??????  Well its hard to bet against Serena, however Vika has managed score up two wins this year against her, both of them on hard courts and it would be silly to dismiss Vika's chances of causing an upset.  Also Vika is the only player that can really go toe to toe with Serena just now as no one else is capable of it, and she is also the only player that can get into her head.  However it also has to be said that Azarenka has not been serving that well in this tournament so far and she will need to against Serena otherwise the match will be over real fast.  But given their past two matches and last year's final, I think this will be another belter and Azarenka will push Serena hard, and just maybe if she does serve well, she will have a chance to beat her rival and clinch her first US Open title.  So despite Serena being overall favourite, and given their last two matches I'm going to be bold and go with Azarenka in three tough sets, but it will depend purely on how well she plays, if she doesn't well its going to be a straight set drubbing with Serena lifting the title once again.   But whatever happens I think the match if its anything like their previous Cincinnati final then it will be a real classic and one of the great US open finals.

Right so onto the men's semis starting with the first one (and why not) which was a rematch of the Australian open 4th round match between Novak Djokovic and Stanislas Wawrinka, which was easily one of the best matches of the year, so this one had quite alot to live up to.  And it sure did that as both men produced yet another thrilling epic battle, which saw Stan start off where he finished against Andy Murray, by playing some magnificent tennis against a very flustered World No.1 in Nole.  The Swiss's power and precision once again left Djokovic speechless and without answers in the first set, which Stan took with a double break.  In the 2nd set Stan continued his dominance over the Serb with another break, however the tide soon turned as Nole broke back and play went on serve into a tiebreak, which Nole take int 7-4 to level the match.  In the 3rd set however, Stan was far from done as Nole once again played a sloppy service, allowing Stan to break and go 5-3 up and he went on to serve out for a two sets to one lead.  In the 4th set however Nole was not done yet as he fought back and broke Stan to level the match at two sets all.  And in the 5th we were treated to a thrilling contest, especially in an epic 21 minute game on Stan's serve, as he battled to hold onto his serve to go 2-1 up.  But in the end against all the odds it was Djokovic that made the final break and managed to serve out the match with an ace to reach his 4th consecutive US Open final after a monumental epic 2-6, 7-6, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory.

There is no doubt this was one of the best if not the best match of the tournament so far, and it was yet another epic clash between two great players, which saw Stan Wawrinka throw everything at the World No.1, yet he still came up short.  And I think in the end it was testament to Djokovic's sheer belief, will, and incredible fitness that got him over the finish line.  But Stan once again deserve tremendous credit for putting up yet another great fight against the world's best player, and there were several moments in the match where it looked like he had Nole's number.  And his performance at this tournament has shown what a great player he has become and just maybe he himself could one day become a contender for a slam, not only that he will no replace Roger Federer in the rankings as the Swiss No.1.  Now who would have thought that!  Anyway so well done to Nole as he has shown once again that really is the world's best player, or at least for now he is, as there is one man who might just have his number...

And that man was in the second semi final, Rafael Nadal who took on the talented Frenchman, Richard Gasquet for a place in the final.  This was only Gasquet's second major semi final (the last being at Wimbledon six years ago) and he had a mammoth task ahead of him in trying to beat Rafa, who he has never beaten in his professional career.  And this match proved to be no different as Gasquet had real answer for Rafa in the first set as he went a break down straight away and before we knew Rafa served it out to take the lead.  In the 2nd however, there were more glimmers of hope for Gasquet as he broke Rafa's serve for the first time in the whole tournament, after going a break down himself.  And play in the 2nd set went to a tiebreak, but in the breaker, Rafa took full control again and Gasquet choked on serve to hand a two set lead to the Spaniard after serving a double fault.  In the 3rd set Gasquet looked like a spent man and there was no way back for him against Rafa's might who took the break, and the match came to a tame end when Gasquet capitulated on serve with a double fault to hand Rafa a place in his 3rd US Open final, with a comfortable 6-4, 7-6, 6-2 victory.

Well this match doesn't really do Novak Djokovic any favours (who claimed after his match he would watch from his hotel room with a bowl of popcorn!) as it sees Rafa in unstoppable form, and while he had one minor blip on serve, he never looked in any danger at all from the Frenchman.  Rafa's form in his comeback this year has be absolutely exceptional and so far with the exception of Wimbledon, he has reached the final of every tournament he has played in, having lost only two.  And given those stats it would be hard not to see him as the favourite for the final.  As for Gasquet, well he looked a spent man by the end of this match, however he also did really well in reaching the last four at the US Open, and he too this year has shown some great form, which should stead him well in the future.

Sooooo that's the US Open final set between yet again, like the ladies, the world's top two players, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal.  And the question must be asked: who will win the title??????  This one is really tough to call, as they have both played each other more times any other two players have on the tour (this being their 37th encounter) and they both know each others games so well.  Rafa has the advantage of having spent less time on court than Nole (at least I think so!) and with a comfortable win over Gasquet he will far more left in the tank for the final on Monday.  And just like Juan Martin Del Potro did against Nole at Wimbledon, he might have left Djokovic tired out enough for Rafa to deliver the knock out blow or at least slow him down enough to eventually overpower him.  But if Djokovic's fitness and form at the Australian open last year was anything to go by this won't be a factor (and possibly not one at Wimbledon either) and he will try and give his all in this match.  But for me I'd pick Rafa to win the title in five hard fought sets, and although I don't know if they can eclipse their amazing 2011 final, I think it will come real close to match it in quality, particularly if it goes to five, it could well be one of the all time great finals.

So that's it for now, we have two potentially great US Open finals ahead of us in the men's and ladies events, which are both rematches of previous finals, and I will report back once we know who the champions are.

Until then by for now!