2017 French open contenders pick preview

OK, I figured its time to do a preview of the 2017 French open and here is my list of contenders for the title and if not to win the title, then those who could go on a deep run into the event.

So let's see who is on top of the list and who's nearer the bottom...

1. Rafael Nadal

Well at the top of this list is this man, Rafa, the King of Clay, who this year has had a stellar one on the red dirt so far (as I type this) he remains unbeaten on a 17 match winning streak on clay (and that is more wins than Andy Murry has had all year so far!).  Rafa right now is looking unstoppable and very much like his old self on his favourite surface as he has got his fire back and so far has already won three titles on the trot in Monte Carlo, Barcelona and Madrid and another title in Rome this week could even be on the cards.


The only thing that might hamper Rafa however is maybe fatigue as he has played so many matches throughout the clay season so far that there is a danger he could burn himself out before he get's a proper chance to win the title.  However given how great a player Rafa is and his current form I don't quite see that happening right enough.

Anyway for me, right now, Rafa is the man to beat on clay this season and has been in the past for so many others and the way I see it is that Rafa will most likely claim a record 10th title at Roland Garros in a few weeks time.  Prediction: champion.

2. Dominic Thiem

Next up is a rather surprising inclusion of Dominic Thiem, who so far has had a red hot clay season and the only man he has really come up short against is the man I have in this list at the top!  Yes, its safe to say that Thiem's strongest surface is clay however he such an adept player that he plays well on all surfaces.  Thiem already has chalked up some pretty impressive wins this season too that include a victory over World No.1, Andy Murray in Barcelona.


The only issue I have with Thiem winning this event comes down to experience in the latter stages of the slams, which he is pretty short on and that could prove to be his own undoing here as he has only reached one grand slam semi final and that was at the French last year where he lost convincingly to eventual champ, Novak Djokovic.

Despite this though if Thiem has a good draw and things go according to plan then I would not be surprised if this young Austrian found his way into the final although to get there he will still have to play exceptionally well but its something he is capable of all the same.  Do I see him as the eventual champion??? No.  The reason why is simply cos of Rafa, who so far I can't see not reach the final given his current great form and if him and Thiem play each other, Thiem most likely will come off second best, but reaching his maiden final in Paris I do think is still a good possibility.
Prediction: finalist.

3. Novak Djokovic 

At No.3 is Novak Djokovic, who is the defending champion at Roland Garros, having made history by becoming one of the very few men to hold all four slams at once last year.  However since then, Novak's career has taken a bit of a turn for the worse as he started to suffer a series of surprising losses to players he would normally beat with ease.  It seemed apparent after his victory at the French Open last year, it had all taken its toll on him and Novak admitted himself that he felt empty in his career for the first time afterward.

Right now however Novak seems to be finding his feet again as his results have slowly been improving this season and despite an early season dip after he lost in the 2nd round of the Australian open, Novak managed to reach the semis last week in Madrid before he lost to Rafa.  Novak went on to improve that record as he reached the final last week in Rome where he lost out to Alexander Zverev.  

However the problem is just now, Novak is just trying to find himself again and I don't think he's quite ready to defend his title given the red hot form that Rafa is showing this season, who already has one win over him on clay last week in Madrid.  This is also backed up by his loss to Zverev in Rome on Sunday there, which would suggest his grand slam winning form isn't quite there yet. 

So for now I don't see Novak as the eventual champion but I still think he could reach the final or indeed the last four if he plays to form.  Prediction: semi finals or final.

4. Alexander Zverev

So up next is the German rising star, Alexander Zverev, who has had a meteoric rise over the last 12 months or so and just at the age of 20, he's already ranked in the top 10 and he is fast improving all the time.  And Zverev just there at the weekend capped the biggest win of his career as he won his first ever Masters title in Rome after stunning Novak Djokovic in straight sets, who appeared to be on a comeback during that event only to be stopped by a red hot Zverev.  

The only problem I see with Zverev however is his inexperience and given that he is only 20, when it comes to playing the experienced elite guys, Zverev will give his all against them and probably a tough match with it, but its trying to beat them is where he will come up short.  However Zverev is fast improving and there is every chance he could make a deep run in Paris before he could go out.

So, I would say for Zverev that he has an excellent chance of reaching the 2nd week and even possibly making it to the last four before he goes out, cos even though he won the title in Rome, a grand slam at this stage might still be out of reach for young German.  Prediction: semi finals.   

5. David Goffin

At No.4 is the talented Belgian player, David Goffin, who has had a pretty impressive year so far in 2017 and he too is becoming a seasoned clay court player as it remains also his strongest surface although Goffin is no slouch on any surface.  Goffin has also reached two finals already this season in Sofia, Bulgaria and Rotterdam although he lost out to Grigor Dimitrov and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga respectively.  He also went on to reach the semi finals at Monte Carlo where enroute he enjoyed victories over Dominic Thiem and Novak Djokovic before he lost to Rafa.

The only problem however for Goffin is, despite how good a player he is, he doesn't have any big weapons to threaten the guys at the very top of the game, so he has to rely on his speed and athleticism to stay with his opponents.  Goffin is also pretty inexperienced at playing in the latter stages of the slams so that might go against him also.

Despite this though, I think this year could be one where Goffin can stand to make a deep run into Paris as last year he already reached the quarter finals, so this year I think he could go one better and reach the last four before he might check out in Paris. Prediction: semi finals.

5. Stan Wawrinka 

Next is Stan "the man" Wawrinka, the former 2015 champion at Roland Garros, who is already a three time major winner, so he knows a thing or two about how to win the big events.  Stan however has not really had a stellar season so far in 2017 although he did reach the final at Indian Wells where he faced his good friend, Roger Federer in the final and lost to him in straight sets.

And the problem for Stan is of course his consistency as he really is up and down throughout any tennis season, yet the guy remains a bit of a puzzle as he can go out of a tournament early one week and win a grand slam the next!  And if only Stan was able to bottle those good weeks then he could certainly give himself a chance of later completing that career slam sooner or later, if he can triumph someday at Wimbledon.

However if Stan were to quietly work his way into the draw then he might be able to just pull off another victory in Paris but given Rafa's indomitable form on clay this season, right now, Stan would come off second best.  However Stan might still go far if he finds his feet and form in time he might just get to the last eight or four.  Prediction: quarter finals or semi finals.

7. Kei Nishikori 

Next up is Kei Nishikori, who has previously reached the quarter finals at the French two years ago before he lost out to Tsonga in five sets.  Kei however is no stranger to playing in the latter stages of the big events and he was already a US Open finalist three years ago, where he beat Djokovic enroute to get to the final, so there is a chance that Kei could play well here too again.

The main problem however for Nishikori this season has been injury as he has been struggling with a wrist injury in recent weeks and injury could seriosuly hamper his chances of making a deep run, so he must try and stay fit and healthy if he is to go far in Paris.

So for me, I think Nishikori has a good shot at going deep here if he can stay injury free but I don't see him being the eventual champion given that when it comes to slam finals, he has only reached one and that is where inexperience of the biggest stages might leave him short, if he doesn't fall to injury first.  But I still think Kei, if he stays fit will go far and reach maybe the last eight.  Prediction: quarter finals.

8. Andy Murray

OK, so you might ask just why is the No.1 player in the world so far down this list???  Well, if you have been following Andy's rather underwhelming season so far then you will know why he's 8th on the list instead of in 1st or 2nd place.


Yep, 2017 has not been kind to Andy so far, having just won a single title in Dubai and despite reaching a final in Doha and semi final in Barcelona, which are both smaller tournaments, Andy has failed to make any impact in the bigger events.  Andy so far in 2017 has been stunned in the 4th round of the Australian open by Mischa Zverev (Alexander's older bro) and has gone on to suffer a string early losses in the Masters events in Indian Wells, Monte Carlo, Madrid and Rome where his best result out of any these tournaments is in reaching the 3rd round.  This is hardly the stuff of any World No.1 and right now, Andy is only really the World No.1 in name and has simply not been playing the tennis to back it up.

However, Andy is also a great champion and a fighter and in the past he has suffered his share of slumps and found a way back from them and the French open just might be the starting point for him.  Andy will also be working again with Ivan Lendl with whom he has not really seen in four months since losing in Australia, so they will be putting hard work in before the French open starts no doubt and let's hope from that hard work we might see a bit of belief come back into Andy's game.

So for Andy its hard to predict where exactly he might get to in the tournament, it could all depend on how kind or cruel a draw he get's. In Rome he got one of the most horrendous draws imaginable as he took on the Italian seasoned clay courter, Fabio Fognini, who whitewashed him and brought his title defence to a sudden halt and it would be ironic if Andy were to face him this early on or in the 2nd round even!  But if Andy get's a fairly decent draw, he could use that to his advantage to try and slowly work his way into the tournament.

And while alot of people are currently writing him off, I wouldn't be so quick to write-off Andy's chances of a decent run in Roland Garros as I think with Lendl's help he might just make it to the 2nd week.  But it is also safe to say at the same time he could go out at any stage and maybe even in the first round (he nearly did last year right enough to Radek Stepanek!).  However for me, I'm willing to wager that Andy may put in a decent showing at this year's tournament although I definitely don't see him being the eventual champion.  Prediction: 3rd round, 4th round or quarter finals.

9. Lucas Pouille

At No.9 is Lucas Pouille, who enjoyed his first slam quarter final at the French open last year, so this year all eyes will be on him in the French capital once again.

However can Pouille replicate that same form as he did before then we might see him put in another strong run to the last eight but I probably don't see him getting beyond that, so the last round of 16 or quarters might be a good bet.  Prediction: 4th round or quater finals.

10. Albert Ramos-Vinolas 

And last of all is this talented Spaniard, Albert Ramos-Vinolas, who has had a strong clay court season so far this year and he stunned Andy Murray in the 2nd round of Monte Carlo, which lead to him going on a killer run into the final where he eventually lost to Rafa.  Andy however would go on to get revenge over Ramos-Vinolas in Barcelona a week or two later.


The only thing is though, can Ramos-Vinolas replicate that great form at the French open??  Well it is altogether possible that he can but I guess we will just have to wait and see but I wouldn't be entirely surprised if he made it to the 2nd week and maybe the last round of 16 or 8 before his exit.
Prediction: 4th round or quarter finals.

As for a few other contenders there is of course Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, the home favourite, who can be a bit inconsistent but he has still reached the last four twice in the past, so he could do well again this time round.  Jack Sock, had a decent run two years ago at the French and he could do the same here, too as he seems to have a good feel for clay.  Marin Cilic might also put in a good showing but he can also be a little unpredictable and inconsistent at times.  Grigor Dimitrov put in a strong effort at the Australian open earlier this year but he has suffered a dip in form since but he could still scale it back in time for Paris to do well.  And last of all Milos Raonic is always worth considering at the slams but he has had some injuries of late, which could see him go out sooner rather than later but if he is fit and well then it could be a decent run for the Canadian.


Right, so that's it for now and I will be back again on here once the French open get's under way.

Till then its bye for now!

Being No.1 isn't what its cracked up to be......

Well, this is another post, which relates to the previous one except this time it is more specific to the current World No.1 tennis player in the men's game, Andy Murray, who right now is having a real horror of a tennis season in 2017.  So in this post I ask just where has it all gone wrong and can Andy repair the damage done???

THE SLUMP SO FAR

Well anyway to start off I thought I would mention how Andy's 2017 season has gone so far - well to put it mildly and sum it up in one word: badly!

Yes, 2017 has been far from kind to Andy Murray, who after a very successful 2016 season, which saw him reach the summit of the game by becoming the World No.1, has now suffered a series of perplexing and now frankly, very worrying results.  But let's take a quick look at his defeats so far this year....

1. Lost to Novak Djokovic in the Doha final - this was actually not a bad defeat by any means as it was a good close match between the two good friends and rivals with Andy losing out in a close 3 set match.  This also saw Andy's 28 match winning streak come to an end.

2. Lost to Mischa Zverev in the 4th round of the Australian open - in this match, Andy was stunned by the older brother of the young rising star, Alexander Zverev in a surprise result in which the World No.1 struggled in the heat and against Zverev's hot serve and volley game.

3. Lost to Vasek Pospisil in the 2nd round of BNP Paribas open in Indian Wells.  This was a tournament that historically Andy had never played his best at, so his loss here was not a major surprise although Posposil was ranked 129 in the World, 128 places below him.

4. Lost to Albert Ramos-Vinolas in the 3rd round of the Monte Carlo masters, which was shock defeat given that Andy was 4-0 up in the decisive set, Vinolas broke back twice and went on to break Andy to win the match.

5. Lost to Dominic Thiem in semi finals of the Barcelona open, this was a much better result as Andy put in a good fight against the World No.9 but he ultimately can undone on his own serve after a tight three setter.

6. Lost to Borna Coric in the 3rd round of the Madrid open, this match was were alarm bells started to really ring as Andy lost in straight sets and didn't put up much of a fight against the young Croatian, who was ranked 59 in the world and was also even a lucky loser in the event.

7. Lost to Fabio Fognini in the 2nd round of the Italian open, Andy was the defending champion here and he was handed the worst opening round opponent you could not hope for on a clay court in Fabio Fognini.  Fognini went on to hand Andy a thoroughly convincing defeat as he blew the World No.1 off the court in straight sets (you would think someone at that tournament had it in for Andy!).   

So there we go, Andy is now 16-7 in 2017 so far and that is by his standards, not a good result at all.  In fact these results are even worse than those back in 2014 when he returned to tennis after his back surgery, but to be fair that was to be expected that he would have poorer results due to his back issues.  But what's even more alarming is that last year, Andy only suffered 9 defeats in all and this year we're only into May and he's already up to 7! 

SO, WHAT NOW????  IS NO.1 THE PROBLEM OR IS IT STILL INJURY??? 

Well, now what happens in the meantime before the French and the grass court season is anybody's guess and only Andy knows what's going on inside his head, but whatever it is, its certainly not producing the results he wants or indeed we should expect from him.  And the question has to be really asked: is Andy struggling to cope with the pressure of being the World No.1 just now???  Is that the real issue?  Well its hard to say but on the evidence of how he is playing you would probably have to say yes, even though Andy most likely would deny this himself.


The only other thing that could be the issue is that his elbow injury is still a real problem and Andy is playing it down and trying to play through the pain.  Andy has been known to be stubborn of course but I do think that he wouldn't play if he knew he was putting his health at risk, so surely the elbow at this stage can't be the real problem.

For me at this point, I think this is now become a psychological issue for Andy as he has had in the past when he has hit some slumps in form, he usually finds that his confidence is low and that is when he starts to lose matches.

However there is also another possibility and that could be Andy is still feeling the effects of the shingles virus that he caught while he was over in Melbourne earlier this year.  And shingles can certainly linger in the body long after it is contracted and can take months to fully recover from, so there is still a possibiltiy that he is suffering from those after effects.  And this could well be the case as Andy had stated how his movement had been poor in his last two matches over the past two weeks in Madrid and Rome, which could suggest the leftover effects of the virus could be plauging his muscles and causing fatigue.  But this is just speculation of course.  

CAN ANDY TURN A CORNER????

Well that is indeed the key question because right now he sure needs to but on the plus side, Andy is about to reuinte with his part-time coach, Ivan Lendl as they will prepare together for the French open and right now he needs him more than ever given his dire results so far in 2017.  But can even Lendl save Andy's poor form???  Well you can but only hope so, as he is the man that did lead him to win his three grand slams and also any other successes that stem from that such as the two Olympic gold medals and indeed the No.1 spot and the ATP World Tour finals trophy last season.

But right now, Andy seems to be suffering a crisis of confidence in himself on the court and I wonder if it is similar to the crisis that Novak Djokovic went through after he won the French open last year.  Basically after reaching the summit of the men's game, it took a tremendous effort, which only Andy or Novak could understand and its one that for Andy seems to have come at a price of his own current form.  And when you become the No.1, you become the hunted and right now everyone is hunting him down with ease.  

SO HOW WILL ANDY FAIR AT THE FRENCH OPEN????

Well in light of Andy's three dire defeats on clay so far this season in Monte Carlo, Madrid and Rome, the French open does not bode well for him at all.  However with Lendl temporarily back in his camp, there is still the possibility that the ailing World No.1 can try and recover enough form to win a few matches and if he does there is at least a chance of Andy reaching the second week of the tournament.  But does he have a chance of winning the French?  Right now, none in hell!  In fact it wouldn't surprise me if Andy were to face Fognini again in the first round at the French or indeed some other clay court specialist given his luck so far!  

However if Andy can claw his way back and try and win a few matches at slam level this might give him some sort of belief before he heads to the grass courts.  Put it this way, if Andy can somehow drag himself into the 2nd week at the French open, despite his poor form on the red dirt so far this season and reach the 4th round or even the quarter finals, that would certainly be a step in the right direction. 

WHAT ABOUT THE GRASS COURTS???

So, what about the grass courts for Andy??? Well, if Andy suffers a pretty dire French open campaign, he can at least try and make up for his poor form on his most preferred surface to play on: grass.  However whether or not, Andy can make an impact on the grass courts of Queens and Wimbledon this season remain to be seen.  Andy also has a hefty amount of points to defend this year also on the grass courts at both events with 2,500 on the line and should he lose early there then it could be curtains for Andy's No.1 spot.

SUM UP

So to sum up for now, Andy Murray is in a pretty grim place right now in his sport, he's the top man but in name only and he is far from playing top tennis and he is short on belief and confidence.  And from here Andy must simply try and start finding ways to arrest his slump and get back on his feet and let's hope with Lendl's help over the next forthcoming weeks that he can start that process.  But if recent tennis history has taught us anything, Andy Murray is a fighter and he will find a way to bounce back. 

Right, so that's it for now and I will be back again soon with my preview of my pick of the top contenders for the French open.

Until the next one, its bye for now!     

The old rivals rise again and its tough being at the top

Right, well its been ages since I last updated this blog but I thought I would do a post on a couple of things, first up on the resurgence of Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal in the men's game this year and also Andy Murray's struggles with being the World No.1.

So let's grab a racquet and take a closer look at these topics....

ROGER AND RAFA ARE BACK!

OK so first up I'll talk about how Roger and Rafa have made a strong comeback this year as both men struggled last year with injury and poor results, however this season we have seen flashes of the two rivals at their very best again.


First off with Roger, well he had been out with a knee injury for 6 months last season and he came back strong in Melbourne this year and he claimed his 18th major when he won the Australian open.  And to back this up, Roger then went on to win what is known as the "sunshine double" which is basically the first two Masters series events of the season in Indian Wells and Miami, which really showed that Roger's victory in Melbourne was no one-off this season.  So in short, Roger is back and he really means business and he is out to win more slams and big titles for sure.

Roger however had made the decision to miss out the warm up clay court tournaments this year prior to the French open although he has now confirmed that he will play at Roland Garros.  So for Roger this is a mixed blessing as he will go into the second slam of the season fully fit and fresh but he will also go in with no clay court matches under his belt.  However given the red hot form that Roger has been in so far in 2017, I really don't think this will be a problem for him at all, in fact I would almost go as far as to say he could possibly win his 2nd French Open title this year.

As for Rafa, well he too has been in great form, however he has struggled in a few finals earlier in the season having been beaten by Roger at both the Australian open and in Miami and this means that Roger has in fact beaten Rafa in their last four meetings.  This could prove to be a bit of a mental block for Rafa should they face off each other at the French open, although given Rafa's pedigree on the surface it may well not.

And in Roger's absence, right now Rafa feels like the World No.2 instead of Novak Djokovic, as both these guys right now are the top two players in the world playing the best tennis this season unlike Andy and Novak, despite their official top two rankings, they have had their struggles so far in 2017 (but more on that soon).

Rafa also has made a great start to the clay court season where he has dominated the surface so far having won two titles back to back in Monte Carlo and Barcelona and won his last 10 matches in a row.  And with two clay court Masters events coming up in Madrid and Rome, you would favourite Rafa as the strong favourite to win both of them and go unbeaten into the French open and right now for me, Rafa is the favourite to win Roland Garros this season.

Not only that after the clay court season is over, I can see both Roger and Rafa being the two main guys competing for the remaining two slams at Wimbledon and the US Open.  Andy Murray however might well be in the mix for Wimbledon but given his struggles so far this season and no doubt Roger's great form, I would have to put Roger as the top favourite for winning his 8th title at the All England Club.

ANDY'S STRUGGLES AT THE TOP 

Now we get on to the current World No.1, Andy Murray, who put in a monumental effort last year to climb to the top of the world rankings in the second half of the season, he was unquestionably the best player on the planet as he wrestled the No.1 spot from his friend and rival, Novak Djokovic.  However this season has been far from plain sailing for Andy, who despite that he still remains in the top spot, he has had several struggles with his form so far due to an elbow injury and also illness.

For starters, Andy lost out in the Australian open as he exited in the 4th round to a serve and vollyer, Mischa Zverev (the older brother of Alexander) which was his earliest exit at the event in almost 10 years.  He then went out to suffer early exits also in Indian Wells and Monte Carlo as it was revealed that he had been struggling with an elbow injury.

Andy however did manage better results in the smaller tournaments so far this year, as he reached the final in Doha where he lost out to Novak in a tight 3 setter, he won his first title in Dubai and he also put in a respectable effort in Barcelona last week by reaching the semi finals where he was defeated by one of the world's top clay courters, Dominic Thiem.

But Andy will need to be wary of his results in the forthcoming events as from hereon he will have many points to defend and if he keeps losing out early on, he will certainly lost his No.1 ranking.  The signs however are a bit more encouraging given that he was able to reach the semis in Barcelona and having played at Monte Carlo, it has allowed him to play a few matches on clay to get himself used to the surface.  But whether or not Andy can make an impact on the red dirt this season remains to be seen and his chances of winning his first French open title remain doubtful.

As for looking beyond the clay courts, come the grass court season, this is usually Andy's time to shine and last year he went unbeaten throughout the grass court tournaments he played at Queens and Wimbledon.  However with Roger Federer now playing in great form this season, he will seriously be gunning for another Wimbledon title and he could very well spell the end for Andy's unbeaten run at SW19.

Also beyond this the US Open remains a tournament that Andy has had mixed results at over the last few years having not made it past the quarter finals for five years since he won it and claimed his maiden grand slam.  And again after the US Open, Andy will have an awful lot of points to defend having won five titles on the trot last year, he stands to lose a great should he fall short in these tournaments.

So for Andy's sake, we can only hope that he can pick up his form again as the year progresses and is able to either defend his titles or reach the latter stages to keep any potential damage to keep his No.1 ranking to a minimum.  Time will tell though and the good news is that he has said his elbow is better and he will try and concentrate on improving his serve over the forthcoming events (well it has to be said the serve was never the best of his game!).  So things may yet turn out brighter for the World No.1 in 2017.

WILL NOVAK EVER MAKE A COMEBACK???

As for Novak Djokovic, well....he really has been struggling since his French open victory last year where he was the undisputed World No.1, having held all four grand slams at once and completing his career slam.  And Novak has since said that the tumultous effort it took for him to get there was ultimately what took its toll on his game and form as he has suffered a string of disappointing losses since and lost his top spot to Andy Murrray.

And despite making a good start to the year in Doha by defeating Andy in the final, Novak was unable to maintain it as he was stunned by Denis Istomin in the 2nd round of the Australian open, a tournament he has dominated over the last six years or so.  Novak also went on to suffer two losses at the hands of Nick Kyrgios, who beat the Serb in Acapulco and Indian Wells (where he was the defending champion).  And Novak since has withdrawn from Miami and exited in the quarter finals at Monte Carlo to David Goffin, which again showed his signs of vulnerability, despite leading in the final set of the match. 

So heading into the French open, can Novak defend his title from last year???  Well, right now its looking doubtful as he really is not playing the tennis of the level needed to defend such a title.  Also given that clay is usually considered the most physically punishing of all surfaces in the sport, Novak may find it tough to grind down other in form opponents, who have already either beaten him or are confident in taking him down. 

Then there is of course the question of Roger and Rafa, who have both been playing like the real World No.1 and No.2 players judging by the high standard of play they have shown this season and can Novak in his current form live with either of them on clay???  The chances are possibly not.  So Novak will need to improve much more in his form if he is to stand a chance at the French open this season.

The good news however for Novak after the clay season is over he will have less points to defend as that was when his slump began last year at Wimbledon, so if he can pick up his form, he stands a fairly good chance of reclaiming the No.1 spot or at least get closer to it.  And given the calibre of player Novak is, there is no doubt that one day he is sure to return to form, although right now its hard to say when.  I guess we will just need to wait and see.

SIGN OFF 
 
Right, well that's it for now and I will be back on here again shortly before the French open is due to start with my preview look at the 2nd slam of the season and who I think might be the top contenders to win the title and go deep into the event.

So, until the next one its bye for now!