Wk.19- When in Rome

Hey Y'all. Galileo here.

You're thinking this will be all about Djokovic dominating in the Masters again. Well, it isn't. Nor is it about Nadal being poor. It isn't even about Ferrer or the world number two. No this is about Wawrinka.

Wawrinka made the quarterfinals of the French in 2013. He was ousted by Garcia-Lopez in 2014 in four in the first. It was a horror draw. But after an enormous slump the former top four player is back and he looks just as dangerous as he always does. And that is the confusing thing about Wawrinka. He can be good and bad in equal measure. He should be a dark horse for the French Open but he does tend to lose to players he should beat. And he has a serious match-up issue with the top four. He especially struggles with Federer. There is some kind of a mental block there.

With no points to defend coming into Paris, he has the chance to come back into the top five. Wawrinka should be given a favorable Wimbledon seeding if he can win just a few matches at the French. Vavsy needs a kind draw. Should he get it he would be the classic dark horse. If I were Wawrinka I would want Murray or Berdych as the big seed near me. Raonic or Nishikori is also a good draw for Vavsy. Even Djokovic he may be able to unseat. He should fear only Federer and Nadal, but for very different reasons.
As for the French Open, who knows what will happen? Neither Murray or Federer can win it right now, although a deep run for both of them is not out of the question. The problem for Murray is he is so susceptible to losing to a crafty clay courter in the first or being pushed to five. If he gets pushed to five in either of the first two rounds that is essentially game over.

Djokovic is the favorite and he should win it but he has a habit of choking. He just doesn't seem to be able to win it. No surprise player or dark horse is well placed to take it, either. And Rafa? Well, who knows? Rafa should win the French, but can he will hold it together and win 21 sets? Has he won 21 sets on clay all year?

See at the 29 minute mark and just before the 30 minute mark here:


Rafael Nadal Vs Novak Djokovic SF Roland-garros... by KingNadal

Djokovic lost his forehand in that match, too. The other thing to remember is that the traditional Big Four probably only have between two and four more shots to win this event.

But we are not in Paris yet...


*Rankings Watch*
Top 32: Troicki goes up two places to 32. Verdasco rises two and is at 33. He has just missed out on a seeding. He is exactly the kind of player you don't want in the first or second round. Sock and Klizan both fall. Mannarino is at 31, Kyrgios at 30 and Fognini at 29. All are dangerous.

Top 10:- Simon and Lopez swap. Lopez is 12th but is only 25 points ahead of Simon. Neither are defending many points. Dimitrov remains at 11 with the gap widening on both sides. He is isolated at 11. Ferrer, Wawrinka and Cilic all remain unchanged at 8, 9 and 10.

Top 8: Rafa and Ferrer still at 7 and 8. A Djokovic/Rafa quarterfinal would make the battle for number one interesting. Battle for number two is interesting if Rafa is in Roger's bit. Raonic down to six from four.

Top 4: Murray is well off the pace. By ten points Berdych sneaks into the fourth seeded spot ahead of Nishikori. Could go further if Murray bombs out.



*WEEK 19 CHAMPIONS*
ROME, ITALY
S: Novak Djokovic def. Roger Federer 6-4/6-3
D: Cuevas/Marrero d. Granollers/M.Lopez 6-4/7-5


PLAYER OF THE WEEK: CUEVAS/MARRERO
...Does anyone on the singles side really deserve this? No. They have no right to make it hard for people to pick the winner of the French. Usually the French is the only slam one feels confident in picking. And now that has gone up in smoke. On the men's doubles, chaos ensues on clay and so it is there where nothing has changed that Backspin will look. Being unseeded in a Masters is tough. But it's on clay and anything can happen in clay tournaments, especially in the doubles. Cuevas is 4-4 in clay doubles finals and has even won the French, though it was back in 2008. Marrero is 9-8 in doubles finals on the surface. They had the talent and the game to do it. They edged Klizan/Oswald 13-11 in their opening match before dismissing sixth seeds Nestor/Paes 6-2, 6-4. Third seeds Rojer/Tecau faded toward the end of their third round match as the Latin duo won 7-6[2], 4-6, 10-5. Anderson/Chardy had defeated the Bryans but in the semi-finals they succumbed 6-4, 6-4. Fifth seeded Granollers/Lopez are one of the top pairs on clay but they lost in straight sets 6-4, 7-5. The Latin duo will be seeded thirteenth at the French Open. Dlouhy/Vizner made the semi-finals in 2006 but since then the thirteenth seeds have never won more than two matches. That really is an unlucky number.

QUESTION: Who won the title in 2006? Answer is below!

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RISER: DJOKOVIC
...Djokovic is finally the French Open favorite. His performance in Rome has hardly been encouraging. In fact, it has been the opposite. He has played some poor tennis at times. He has been inconsistent and passive. He has also been tough and may have played his way into form. What if he gets Verdasco, Seppi, Garcia-Lopez, Wawrinka, Nadal, Berdych and Federer as his draw? Would he still be the favorite then? Djokovic has won a lot this year but he has not looked imperious while doing it. It's the mark of a good player that they can somehow dominate when not always at their best. But Djokovic won't win Wimbledon or the French this year. I'm almost definitely wrong but I have a feeling it just won't happen.
Djokovic edged Almagro 6-1, 6-7[5], 6-3. Almagro could have won that third set, too. Next he held off Bellucci 5-7, 6-1, 6-3. He got stronger as the tournament progressed. Nishikori pushed him but fell short 6-3, 3-6, 6-1. He beat Ferru 6-4, 6-4 before beating Federer 6-4, 6-3. He improves to 4-2 in Rome finals. Djokovic is once more the top seed in a slam. But really who knows what is going to happen at the French. Even Todd's crystal ball isn't sure. In fact, it is crisis in the Backspin office because the crystal ball and the magic eight ball are both being unclear.
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SURPRISE: ANDREA ANARBOLDI
...Yes a part of this is just so I can mention that name. And what a name it is. He beat Kukushkin in qualifying 2-6, 7-5, 6-2. The Kazakh was the second seed in the qualies. Stefano Napolitano was next and he was also duly dispatched. Andrea had made the main draw. And he celebrated that fact by taking the first set off Goffin 7-5. He got only three more games the entire match. The 27-year old made the main draw of the French last year but he lost to Bolelli inn three sets. He also has a passing resemblance to Lopez.

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FRESH FACE: KOKKINAKIS
...Thanasi qualified for the Primrose Bordeaux event. His Georgian opponent retired in the first round and Thanasi faced Coppejeans. Coppejeans had upset second seeded Groth but he wouldn't beat two Australians in a row. Next Kokkinakis bested Baena 4-6, 6-3, 7-5. Zopp challenged the Aussie but to no avail. Thanasi won 6-4, 7-5 to get to his maiden challenger final. He beat De Bakker 6-4, 1-6, 7-6[5] to win his first 'big' title.



He rises 15 spots to 83. He is one of the youngest guys in the 100 and has been given a deserved wild card into the French. If he wins one match he should crack the top 80. He wins two and he cracks the top 70. Win three, which is highly unlikely, and he will sit on the cusp of 60.
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DOWN: NADAL
...Nadal has stayed in this spot for so long and it is simply unbelievable. But he has to stay here a little while longer. And, in fact, he could be in here indefinitely. Rafa looks tired. He looks like he has had enough. In some ways Backspin feels sorry for him but at the same time pity can be quite insulting. We'd like the old Rafa back please.
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UPSET: WAWRINKA
...This was a bizarre match. Wawrinka and Nadal traded breakers early in the first set before Nadal took a 6-2 lead in the breaker. Wawrinka won it 9-7 and then the match 7-6, 6-2. This shouldn’t be happening. Wawrinka shouldn't be beating Nadal. Nadal should not be doing so badly on clay. Nadal should be doing better than this. Wawrinka played out of his skin, but that was still a match Nadal should never have lost.
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Five things I liked this week...
1 - Kokkinakis wins his maiden title on the challenger tour
2 - South Korea has a player in the top 70 for the first time in a while in Chung. He could prove to be the real deal.
3 - Seeing Berdych hit a career best ranking is good. But will he really make the semi-finals of the French?
4 - How young the top 50 is continues to amaze me. So many young stars are proving they have it and not going down the Dolgopolov route.
5 - Suarez-Navarro is achieving her potential. It's good to see. She has a great game.


1. Rome Final – Djokovic d. Federer 6-4, 6-3
...Federer cannot wait to get onto grass. Djokovic proved his number one credentials again. Novak was fantastic at neutralizing Federer. But how is Novak going to defend all these titles next year? Every year it gets harder to do so.
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2. Rome R2 – Djokovic d. Almagro 6-1, 6-7[5], 6-3
...Almagro played some fabulous shots but it was not enough to unseat Djokovic. Nicolas hit the ball brilliantly off both wings and threw everything at Djokovic. The Serb escaped relatively unscathed and moved through anyway. An entertaining match between two players with contrasting styles. On another day the Spaniard would have got it.
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3. Rome QF - Ferrer d. Goffin 6-2, 4-6, 6-3
...Ferrer has been finding flashes of his old self here and there this year. A grinding three set win over a more talented opponent on the dirt looks like Ferrer. It feels like Ferrer. It must be Ferrer.
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4. Rome R3 – Berdych d. Fognini 6-3, 3-6, 7-6[2]
...Consistency beats excitement once again and yet what is the one match I remember from last year? This one.
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*Nice*
=SF=
Simon [1] d. [8] Monaco
Isner [2] d. [6] Kyrgios
=FINAL=
Simon [1] d. [2] Isner

...These pre slam tournaments are always whacky. Fireworks could happen....

*Geneva*
=SF=
Wawrinka [1] d. [3] Andujar
Cilic [2] d. Ramos
=FINAL=
Wawrinka [1] d. [2] Cilic

...Home tournament for Vavsy.


Dellacqua is back in action for the French. She and Shvedova are seeded 13. She is not seeded in the French Open singles.


ANSWER: Bjorkman/Mirnyi defeated the Bryans in 2006. It was a long three set final.

Thanks all and visit WTA BACKSPIN please.

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