Right so now I'm onto part four of my posts on the BNP Paribas Open from Indian Wells, which features the finest of men's and ladies tennis fighting it out to win that rather bizzare (and very heavy!) star shaped glass trophy! So in this post I will cover the remaining men's quarter final matches and the ladies semi finals.
So starting up with the WTA (i.e. ladies) tour, the first semi final was between the 8th seed Caroline Wozniacki and the 4th seed Angelique Kerber. Kerber came into this match as the favourite, especially as she had beaten Wozniacki in their last three encounters, so it promised to a real uphill battle for the Dane. The match itself proved to be just that, as Kerber broke Caroline twice in the opening set to take it, and in the 2nd set, Caroline trailed 2-0 down, but she fought back as both player's traded breaks aplenty (14 in total in the match) and she went to clinch the set to level the match. In the 3rd set, Kerber clearly feeling the pressure of the prospect of reaching the biggest final of her career, went 4-1 down, but she fought back to level the scores at 5-5, but in the final game, Wozniacki made her move as Kerber made a few unforced errors, which saw Wozniacki reach the Indian Wells final for a fourth time in her career, with a hard fought 2-6, 6-4, 7-5 victory.
This was a terrific result for Caroline Wozniacki, and I think it definitely sees the beginning of her slow ascent back to the top. And the match itself despite some erratic play was overall a terrific encounter with some great shot making from both players, and I don't think I've seen as many moon balls in one match than here! But I think what made the difference in the end was of course Caroline's mental toughness, and it was great to see her breakthrough and beat Kerber after three straight defeats. And that is one thing about Kerber, is that she does seem to feel the pressure in trying to break through in the big matches, and in that regard I kind of equate her to Tomas Berdych on the men's tour, as she has all tools at her disposal to beat the big names, but she can't quite get past them. So this sees Caroline reach her biggest final for two years, since she reached the final of Indian Wells back in 2011, and here's hoping she comes out on top, but it will be far from easy.
So onto the next ladies semi final, which saw Maria's Sharapova and Kirilenko face each. However Sharapova had less trouble in breaking through her Russian compatriot as he she broke Kirilenko once in both sets as she made a comfortable straight sets victory in 6-4, 6-3. Sharapova so far looks to be in pretty sharp form in Indian Wells and she is yet to drop a set in the desert so far. But Caroline Wozniacki awaits her in the final, and no doubt this could be a cracking match, although if I had to pick a favourite, I would definitely pick Sharapova. And Caroline has not beaten Sharapova (that I'm aware of) since this very event two years ago in the semi finals, although this could give Caroline an advantage as she plays really well at this event, she might have a chance of beating the mighty Sharapova. But whichever way it goes, I'm sure it promises to be a really good final, so let's hope it lives up to its billing.
Now onto the men's quarter final matches, starting with Tomas Berdych who took on the big South African, Kevin Anderson. The two men have had some pretty tough matches in the past, and Berdych had won all of them. And the result was no different here as Berdych eased to a straight sets win in 6-4, 6-4. Berdych so far has shown impressive form in 2013 and he continues to do well here in Indian Wells, but from here it doesn't get any easier, so the big Czeck will need to stay on top of his game to reach the final.
Which brings me onto Berdych's next opponent, who would be the winner of the next match I'll cover, which was between one of the greatest rivalries in tennis, Roger and Rafa. This was the first time both players had met each other in a year, at the same event, where Roger came out on top with a straight sets win. But this time the tables were turned as Rafa, went on to further dispel any fears over the condition of his fitness and his knee, as he blasted his way past Roger with a devastating display of ruthless aggression. And after a tight first set, Roger faded away in the 2nd set, as his back problems started to play up, he had no answer to the might of Rafa, who sealed the victory in 6-4, 6-2, in just under 1 hour and 25 minutes.
I think its safe to say that with this result that Rafa is well and truly back, as he dismantled Roger on the main stadium at Indian Wells, and his game and movement were both top notch, although admittedly Roger was well below par, I still think the result would have been the same, even if Rafa faced Roger in form. And next up for Rafa will be Tomas Berdych, which promises to be a really good match, but its one I'm pretty sure that Rafa will come out on top, and let's hope so as its great to see the king of clay back in action, and edging closer to his best.
Now onto Novak Djokovic, the world no.1, who scarily enough remains on course to maintain his winning streak, just like he did in 2011, as he is now up to 22 matches in 2013, still unbeaten. And his 22nd match was against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, who despite an even start in the 1st set, soon capitulated on serve, as the Serb ruthlessly dismissed him in the 2nd set, conceding only one game, as an ailing Tsonga had no answer for him, which saw Nole extend his winning streak with a 6-3, 6-1 victory. Djokovic so far in 2013, has shown nearly his very best, although his standard isn't quite as amazing as it was in 2011, its not far off, and he looks to be in no mood to be stopped. And I think its safe to say should he remain on course (which he most likely will!) he will be lifting that BNP Paribas Open trophy on Sunday.
Which brings me onto the final men's quarter final, which was between Andy Murray and the 7th seed, Juan Martin Del Potro. Andy prior to this match had a convincing lead over Del Potro with a 5-1 record. However this was their first match together in nearly four years, and Del Potro has been showing great form this week so far in the desert, so it was never going to be easy. And in the 1st set we were treated to a high quality set of tennis with both players being tactical, if a little tentative in their games, with Andy serving superbly at 70% 1st serves in, by taking the speed off his first serve. The 1st set went by serve until the tiebreak, where it was Andy that made the breakthrough, as both men wrestled with minibreaks, Andy nailed the 1st set breaker 7-5. In the 2nd set however that's when Andy's problems started, as he failed to hold onto his serve in the opening game, with Delpo taking the first serve break of the match, he went on to confidently hold and level the match. And in the decider Andy's misery continued on serve, as he was broken twice by the Argentine to go 5-1 down, and in the final game, to add vinegar to his wounds, he double faulted to hand the match to Del Potro, after a gruelling two and a half hours of tennis as Delpo sealed the win in 6-7, 6-3, 6-1.
It has to be said that this was a pretty woeful performance from Andy Murray, who despite a strong start, with his first serve percentage being as high as 75%, went downhill badly from the 2nd set, and he served up a whopping 8 double faults, the last one which cost him the match. And whether it was a mixture of tiredness and the blazing heat on the court, Andy was never going to break the big Argentine's cast iron serve, and he needed to hold his own to have any chance of winning the match (i.e. he would needed to have push a 3rd set tiebreak). And this forever remains a problem for Andy, as his serve has always been erratic, and more often than not many of his losses have been attributed to his poor service percentage, which needs to improve if he wants to beat the big hitters such as Raonic, Del Potro and Berdych on the ATP tour not to mention those other three guys. Regardless of his loss, Andy did well to reach the quarter finals of Indian Wells, and it was a big improvement over his previous two years early exits, and maybe its a tournament that doesn't quite suit his game. But Del Potro deserved the win as he played a really solid match to secure his 2nd career win over Andy Murray and I'll wish all the best to him for the semi finals.
So this sets up the men's semi finals on Saturday, both of which sound great on paper, as Rafa will play Berdych, and Djokovic will take on Del Potro. And if I had to guess I would say we are in for another Djokovic vs Rafa final, at least let's hope so, because that will be quite a match.
So more to follow later. Till then bye the now.
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