Wk.30- Another Final for Fognini, but Isner Stands the Tallest

Hey Y'all. Galileo here.

Fabio Fognini had won 13 matches in a row, winning Stuttgart and Hamburg and reaching the final of Umag, too. However, Tommy Robredo was just far too good, rolling to a love and 3 victory. Robredo has moved up to 23 in the world whilst Fognini has rolled to 16 in the world, his highest ranking, I might add. Meanwhile in the US of A, in Atlanta, Georgia -the city and state in which the classic movie "Driving Miss Daisy" was set- John Isner was winning another title and, indeed, another one on American soil, but he did need three breakers to see off big hitting South African Kevin Anderson in a final featuring the top two seeds.

Isner is now 7-7 in finals but he has won his last four titles in a row. He is now the sole American ranked in the top twenty, at twenty. Anderson drops to 2-4 in finals, but he is knocking on the door of the top twenty, just 30 points behind Isner.

Roger Federer crashed once more, but this time in Gstaad. He was too impatient to win points, his construction deserted him and he was punished by Brands. He needs to grit out these tournaments until his level starts to improve. It was a good week for the one-handers, as they won the clay titles up for grabs and, as usual, the serve was dominant in Atlanta. Anyway...



*Week 30 CHAMPIONS*
ATLANTA, GEORGIA USA
S: John Isner def. Kevin Anderson 6-7/7-6/7-6
D: Roger-Vasselin/Sijsling d. Fleming/Marray
GSTAAD, SWITZERLAND
S: Mikhail Youzhny def. Robin Haase 6-3/6-4
D: J.Murray/Peers d. Andujar-Alba/Garcia-Lopez
UMAG, CROATIA
S: Tommy Robredo def. Fabio Fognini 6-0/6-3
D: Klizan/Marrero d. Monroe/Stadler


PLAYER OF THE WEEK: John Isner, USA
...He saved match points in the final, but before that he had to face several stern tests. He edged Christian Harrison in three epic sets 7-6, 4-6, 7-5 and then took out James Blake in two tiebreak sets. He then exchanged a pair of 6-4 sets with Lleyton Hewitt before winning that 7-6 in the third to move through to the finals, where he won an epic tussle with Anderson 6-7, 7-6, 7-6. None of those tie-breaks were close, however. Isner may yet be a high(er) seed for the US Open if he can do well on the US hard courts like he usually does. He served big, hit aces and generally dominated on his serves. He has hit 558 aces in 36 matches this year. That is an average of 15.5 aces per match, which is roughly four games worth of aces. Next is Anderson with 472 aces in 46 matches. That is just over ten aces per match. When you crunch the numbers, you realise just how big a weapon Isner's serve is if you didn't know it already.
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RISER: Tommy Robredo, ESP
...10-1 in sets throughout his successful Umag campaign. He beat seeds two and three -both Italians- back to back and won his 12th title to put him tenth in the active titles count, tied with Almagro. He smashed Viktor Troicki 6-0, 6-4 in what will be the Serb's last match till 2015 because he has been found guilty of substance abuse or doping and been handed a hefty ban. Anyway, the question for Robredo will be whether or not this good form will continue heading into the hard court swing. I hope so because I, at least, love his game.
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SURPRISE: Robin Haase, NED
...He beat Joao Souza then smashed third seed Janko Tipsarevic 6-2, 6-2. He then edged Marcel Granollers 7-6 in the third before upsetting Feliciano Lopez in three tight sets. He was swept aside by Mikhail Youzhny, but that final has pushed him up to world number 68. Haase has proved to be inconsistent, but perhaps this will give him confidence and enable him to improve and perhaps a place in the world's top fifty is not far away.
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VETERAN: Mikhail Youzhny, RUS
...He has moved up to 27th in the world with his eighth title. However, he is now 31 and I would class him as a vet. He has titles on clay and hard surfaces and reached his maiden grass final this year, losing to Fed in Halle. I didn't expect him to win Gstaad, though I did think a player with one hand on his backhand would triumph. He edged Paul-Henri Mathieu and Pablo Andujar-Alba in similar tight three-setters. He edged Juan Monaco 7-6 in the final set in the quarters before dispatching Victor Hanescu and Haase to win his first title of 2013.
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COMEBACK: Tommy Robredo, ESP
...Again, I think it worth remembering that Robredo has made a tremendous comeback. He has made a slam quarter and won three titles- two in singles and one in doubles in Brisbane earlier this year.
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NEW FACE: Ryan Harrison, USA
...When Venus told people that her little sister would be even better than she was, people scoffed and laughed. Maybe Christian will outshine his brother, but that remains to be seen. He beat Alejandro Falla 6-1, 6-7, 6-2 and then had his chances against Isner before finally falling in three very tight sets 7-6, 4-6, 7-5. It looks rather as if Harrison is the real deal. Actually both Harrisons look the real deal right now.
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DOWN: Switzerland
...Yes, Switzerland is down this week. I will give Richard Gasquet the benefit of the doubt for now, but that was a bizarre loss to Albert Montanes. Federer is really struggling and, even worse for Switzerland, Vavsy withdrew this week because of injuries. He hurt his back, but he did beat Daniel Gimeno-Traver in straight sets and even took a set off Lopez, but was always in discomfort. Federer has been in difficulties for a while and the new racket did not seem to help matters. He really appears to be struggling.
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CHALLENGER: Dudi Sela, ISR
...The top seed, Sela dropped no sets on his way to the final against sixth seed Mikhail Kukushkin. However, he faced a tough test there and finally won 5-7, 6-2, 7-6. The Presidents Cup held in Uzbekistan was the biggest challenger up for grabs and he won it beating the 7th seed, 4th seed and sixth seed. He is now 74 in the world but has been as high as 29.
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1. Atlanta Final - Isner d. Anderson
...6-7/7-6/7-6. I have already talked about this match, but it was a real humdinger and the quality of play was high, though three sets with no breaks may not have the drama of some of the WTA matches, for example. NOTE: This was the tallest singles final in ATP history, with Isner standing six-feet-ten inches (2.08m), and Anderson six-feet-eight (2.03m).
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2. Umag SF - Fognini d. Monfils
...6-0/3-6/7-6. In a bizzare match, Monfils got bageled but somehow still came back before finally losing in a third set breaker. Aaah La Monf! the ATP needs you.
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3. Umag Final - Robredo d. Fognini
...6-0/6-3. I think this needs to be mentioned for sheer domination.
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*KITZBUHEL, AUT*
=SF=
Verdasco [3] d. [8] Granollers
Monaco [2] d. [4] Melzer
=FINAL=
Verdasco [3] d. [2] Melzer

...I have a feeling that Verdasco could do exceptionally well here.

*WASHINGTON, DC USA*
=SF=
Del Potro [1] d. [3] Haas
Isner [8] d. [4] Raonic
=FINAL=
Del Potro [1] d. [8] Isner

...Look for Isner to continue his American success, but Delpo should come through in the end.

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