Wk.41- And Here is Another One

Hey, all. Galileo here.

No, I won’t discuss a certain top player who has finally gone too far, and nor will I discuss the world number one who should know better.

Rafa and Roger are out of the top four for the first time since dinosaurs walked this earth, and we’re talking millions of years ago, not Isla Nubar. Rafa’s demise has had more words written about it than the fact Trump is a racist. Both are true, but both are disputed. Yes, one could talk about Andy Murray, but what he did this week is what he did last week.

No, let’s talk about Roberto Bautista Agut and then go into the matches. Now that the WTA is coming to a close this BACKSPINNER is thinking longingly of the lovely box Todd puts me in where I can shut down for six weeks before booting back up again in January. But for the next few weeks it is nose to the grindstone time. Did you know we’re just nine Mondays from Christmas. If you have not heard it yet, the Christmas music is coming. It is coming for me and for you.

But tennis, tennis is still to be played. Forget just for a second the likes of Moya, Ferrero and Nadal. Leave Bruguera to one side. Apart from their big guns, Spain has had some fantastic bit role players over the years. Lopez and Robredo dazzled for different reasons. Robredo made, what, six French Open quarterfinals? And in the last one he won three matches in a row down two sets to love. Lopez is just beautiful in every way and Verdasco’s forehand could knock down buildings. Even Garcia-Lopez has had some superb moments. Ferrer needs his own BACKSPIN post, and that’s just for his clay achievements. Almagro at the height of his powers was pretty fearsome. To say nothing of Granollers, and even Montanes.

And here is another one.

Bautista Agut has had the kind of career that is sneaky good. Fourth round twice at every slam except Wimbledon. Four finals this year, two won, which gives him a 4-6 mark overall. He is at a career high of 13 and has three top ten wins already this year. He also has back to back finals at the Kremlin Cup and is going for a third consecutive final there this week. He lost the last two to Cilic 6-4, 6-4.

That’s the background, and after rankings updates we’ll look at his week.

=RANKINGS WATCH=
Top 32 - Kohl falls two but stays at 32. At 31, it is Ramos-Vinolas who dropped four places. Lopez clings onto thirty despite also falling two.
Top 10 – RBA up six places to 13th, as mentioned above. With a good finish to the year the top ten may be in play. Cilic is at 11, but is some 400 points adrift of Thiem and has not done much recently.
Top 8 – Federer and Monfils swap. Monfils should overtake Nadal, too, and end up at six.
Top 4 – Huge change for once. Raonic up two places with points totalling 4,690. Nishikori is 4,650. Wawrinka leads them by 1100, but the number one ranking is now in play. Murray has to win out while Nole takes a break until Paris. Of course any early loss and Murray will have to wait until next year. At this point, it is a certainty Murray will be number one. The question is when.

*WEEK 41 CHAMPIONS*
SHANGHAI (Hard)
S: Andy Murray def. Roberto Bautista 7-6(1)/6-1
D: Isner/Sock d. Kontinen/Peers


PLAYER OF THE WEEK: ROBERTO BAUTISTA-AGUT, ESP
...What he does -- and don’t worry this BACKSPINNER is not the one who can get technical -- is he pins you in places. He hits not just deep, but consistent deep and in a different way than Simon does. He just puts you under constant pressure, which grows exponentially as the rally goes on. He has a deep slice, though not in the same league as Federer or even Lopez, it is still plenty good. He can also volley more than sufficiently and is clever. He works points over and serves pretty well. But all this gives him a Halep-esque quality. I frequently watch her matches and frequently wonder how she won 6-2, 6-2. What he does doesn’t feel dominant, it feels measured. The problem for him is when he comes up against a really creative player who can mix it up, well, like Thiem or some of the Frenchies. Tomic, who has pretty much disappeared down the back-half of the year, retired down 6-3, 6-0 with a wounded pride. The Spaniard had a good 6-4, 6-4 win over qualifier Fritz in the second round before taking on Troicki. The Serb had beaten, no it’s not an upset, Nadal the round before, but went down tamely 6-3, 6-3. In the next round Tsonga was the favourite but never got it together in a 6-3, 6-4 loss. Agut was turning it on.


When he has confidence everything is just 20 per cent improved, it seems. In the semi-final, Djokovic imploded, but Agut was calm and saw his way through in two straight sets. He also did this on match point.


Of course, in the final Murray had too much, especially after winning the opening set. But it was still a superb week from the world number 13. Here’s another reason to like him. He does not fear the net.

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RISER: ANDY MURRAY, GBR
...Back to back titles for Murray in his career year. Boy, does he have some major points to defend next year. He just keeps getting better and better. He could take the world number one ranking this year, but this BACKSPINNER says he wins it in February of next year. Of course, Murray really is putting all his eggs into one basket. With his injury history, any long period of absence next year could see him plummet. He has won 23 sets in a row, but he hasn’t played anyone. It’s all very well going on the streak, but the players he has beaten have not been at his level. It shows how far he has come. He is looking the clear cut world’s best player. But he has to win slams. He has to prove he can consistently win slams rather than capitalise on weak opposition in slam finals. His record in slam finals is pretty abysmal. He has been amazing this year, but there are still areas in which he could improve. This week it was another easy ride. 6-3, 6-2 over Johnson, 6-1, 6-3 over Pouille and then 6-2, 6-2 over Goffin. Of course, these are all good players and all have had hot streaks this year. They can all challenge on their day, but none is in the top ten, none is at the level of even Berdych. In the final, he was tested but finally saw off Agut 7-6[1], 6-1. Another impressive win from Murray. How long can he hang onto that top ranking? Still, going into Valencia, Murray is red hot. Can anybody stop the Scot?
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FRESH FACE: ISNER/SOCK, USA/USA
...What a week Sock has had. Not only did he make a Masters quarterfinal, he also rode Isner’s serve to a doubles title. Beating Gong/Zhang was a solid enough start, but then coming back to beat seventh seeded Huey/Mirnyi 1-6, 7-6[6], 1-0[10-5] was even better. And they proved it was no fluke in the next round by seeing off the Lopez’s 6-7[4], 6-4, 10[10-7]. After the win against the fourth seeds they then faced the second seeds - the Bryans. But they have looked distracted for a while and went down quietly 6-2, 7-6[2]. Isner and Sock had proved to be surprisingly good at the net during the run and it helped them win in the final against Peers/Kontinen. They won 6-4, 6-4 to cap a sparkling week.
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VETERAN: GILLES SIMON, FRA
...Long a BACKSPIN villain, for no good reason, like most of the villains, Simon posted another good result in Shanghai. He made the finals two years ago and this year. Wins over Sock, in a third set breaker, and Wawrinka, in straights, no less, were highlights of another solid win. Simon used to have the best record in tennis finals, percentage wise, among active players, but has since let that slip. That year, 2014, he beat Wawrinka, too. And Berdman. Since becoming a factor some ten years ago, Simon has slowly built his points and his legacy. It’s another solid run for a grizzled vet. The "Villains of BACKSPIN" is a decent feature idea, actually. Wonder if chief BACKSPINNER would buy into it? I can think of several candidates on the ATP and a couple on the WTA tour, too.

Ed.NOTE: I actually did something similar to that a few years ago called my "Anti-Backspin" Team. Of course, "villains" do fill important roles, and even sometimes evolve into, at least, "anti-heroes." The funny thing about that list is that the top spot on the "Anti-" First Team was filled by the same player who was named my "All-Time MVP" four months later, and the only other player who was in consideration for MVP honors, as well as a few who'd later become favorites, had at one time been "villains," only to ultimately be elevated to "beloved" status. - tds
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SURPRISE: ZVEREV, GER
...No, not that one. Mischa Zverev had his turn this week. He rolled through to the quarters and had Djokovic, but finally collapsed to 3-6, 7-6[5], 6-3 loss. Up a set and 2-0, this had been a Rosol-like performance. There were no nerves and no hesitations from the German. But Djokovic, as he always does, found a way back. He began to hammer the slice backhand and from there eventually came back. But wins over Zhang, 6-1, 6-2, and a certain Aussie were big for the qualifier. He also beat Granollers 6-7[4], 6-4, 6-1. Plus, he had two tight three setters against Khachanov and Harrison in the qualies. It was an impressive week.
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DOWN: NOVAK DJOKOVIC, SRB
...Tearing his shirt open, smashing his racket and looking ill-tempered. Sure, a certain Aussie should be here, but we expect this from him. Not from our best player. Never from Nole. It needs to stop. If the world number one is going to have a Ferrero-esque collapse he could at least do it with dignity. Hopefully Djokovic can sort it out before next season.
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UPSET: JACK SOCK, USA
...Sure, Granollers beat Berdman and Nadal lost to Troicki, but those felt different. Berdych is still coming back and he went down in a couple of breakers. Nadal is a non-factor and has been for a while now. Sock seeing off Raonic 0-6, 6-4, 7-6[8] was a different category altogether. Despite the dramatic collapse, Raonic is now our number four. With rest and improved fitness he will be a huge factor at the Australian Open. But this week it is Sock who came up with possibly the most dramatic upset.
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Notes from the Week...
1 - When it comes to a certain Australian player, this BACKSPINNER;S official stance is finally one of rejection. He has rightly been banned. He could have cut it short with a visit to the psychologist, but he refused. Says it all, really.
2 – On that topic, no more will this BACKSPINNER defend Kyrgios. No, I refuse to sound like a Trump supporter. That’s my new season’s resolution. Resolution number two is to respect Radwanska more. (Ed.Note: Oh, my. - tds) Yep. Perhaps one day this BACKSPINNER will even get to like Murray.
3 – Not all bad for Nole. He has 179 weeks at number one, passing Seles. I won’t list the four men or five women still ahead of him but he is in the top ten now at number ten. Hingis at 209 is next on the list. He should crack that, but the top five will be trickier.
4 – With Serena withdrawing from the WTA Finals either Kuznetsova or Suarez Navarro could sneak in with a win in Moscow. Game on.


1. Shanghai QF - Simon d. Sock 4-6, 6-4, 7-6[5]
...In this eye-catching clash of styles, Simon pulls out another one. How does he continue to pull out these tight matches?
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2. Shanghai SF - Bautista Agut d. Djokovic 6-4, 6-4
...A performance of this calibre cannot go unremarked upon. It was the coolness and calmness the Spaniard had that was perhaps the most impressive.
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3. Shanghai R2 - Zverev d. Cilic 3-6, 6-3, 6-2
…An early gem here ad yet another feather in the German’s cap. Just how good is this guy? …
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*KREMLIN CUP, MOSCOW*
Agut [1] d. [4] Troicki
Kohl [3] d. [2] Ramos-Vinolas
=FINAL=
Agut [1] d. [3] Kohl

...Third final lucky for the Spaniard. Kohl is kind of close to Germany which bodes well. Seeds look strong in all this week's events.

*ANTWERP*
=SF=
Goffin [1] d. [4] Cuevas
Gasquet [3] d. [2] Ferrer
=FINAL=
Gasquet [3] d. [1] Goffin

...It is a home tournament for Goffin. It is late enough both in the year and at night that I don’t have any qualms about picking Gasquet. He usually picks up a tournament in February and one late in the year. For once not in Moscow, could the answer lie closer to home?

*STOCKHOLM*
=SF=
Monfils [1] d. [4] Zverev
Del Potro d. [2] Dimitrov
=FINAL=
Monfils [1] d. Del Potro

...Lots of boring going with the seedings this week. Could La Monf, the 2011 Stockholm champ, still qualify for the WTF? Del Potro is due a run, so why not end his year on a high note?


Mladenovic does well for once in the singles and it isn’t previewed here. No mention of her in Hong Kong. But it is because she and Garcia did not play the doubles. For what reason is unclear. Perhaps fatigue? So, yes I missed her appearance in that draw. She made the final and rose from 54 to 42 in the rankings.

She escaped against Jakupovic 7-6[6], 6-1. It was similar against Hibino, Stosur’s conqueror, as she won 7-6[5], 6-2. And against Mattek-Sands it was again incredibly close, as she scraped through 3-6, 6-3, 7-6[3]. In the semis, she dismissed Gavrilova 7-5, 6-3 before going down to the Woz in three. She at least won the second set breaker to push the Dane all the way. So the queen of breakers had quite the week.

Mladenovic is in Moscow while her partner is in Luxembourg. Really makes no sense to this BACKSPINNER. Had they entered Moscow and won it would’ve put big pressures on the top ranked women in the doubles. But who am I to question the Frenchies' motives? She opens with Kalinskaya.

ALSO THIS WEEK: A look back at my preseason predictions!

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