How Swede It Is: Soderling Shocks Nadal in Paris

By Mike McIntyre

Has it sunk in yet? For Rafa, for Robin, for you and me? For the first time in his illustrious young career, Rafael Nadal has been defeated at Roland Garros. Beaten by the 23rd seed from Sweden, Robin Soderling, 6-2, 6-7(2), 6-4, 7-6(2). What we saw today was, in my opinion, one of the most shocking upsets in the history of the game. Sure, it had to happen some day, but who thought that it would be today?

Yesterday I suggested that if Nadal were to be upset on clay it would likely be against a player like Soderling. A player with enormous talent who had thus far failed to live up to his potential on tour. I spoke with Jonas Bjorkman last summer in Toronto about the future of Swedish tennis and he said that Soderling was the one, "that we all rely on at the moment." Still, at the age of 24 he had yet to accomplish anything of true significance. Whether he wins another match in Paris or not, he has surely just completed the greatest victory of his career, no?

So how did he do it? The element of surprise certainly factored into it. After thrashing Soderling 6-0, 6-1 a month ago in Rome, Nadal never saw this one coming. With a winning streak of 31 games at Roland Garros dating back to May 23, 2005, Nadal's confidence was enormous and rightly so. This was his tournament and his court. Perhaps he simply took Soderling too lightly?

Maybe Soderling got into his head? At Wimbledon in 2007 the pair had a four hour, five set marathon match where Nadal barely prevailed by a score of 6-4, 6-4, 6-7(7), 4-6, 7-5. More interesting than the score in that encounter was the bad blood between the two that spilt over into the post-match press conference. The usually calm and collected Nadal revealed that, "In the locker room, for the other players, (Soderling) is not the best guy in the locker room." Upset over some on-court antics where Soderling mocked Nadal's pre-serve rituals, the Spaniard hinted that Soderling would get his justice one day. He went so far as to say, "In the end, we will see what's happening in the end of life, no?" Alright so it's safe to say they were not the best of friends, but that was a long time ago. There were no distractions in this match, it was all about the tennis.

In the end I believe today was simply not Nadal's day. Everyone has a bad day at some point at their favorite tournament. John McEnroe at the U.S. Open in 1983 versus Bill Scanlon in the round of sixteen. Pete Sampras at Wimbledon in 1996 in the quarters against Richard Krajicek. These guys bounced back to win again at each venue, and there is no doubt Rafa will do the same and likely several times over. He was simply outplayed today by Robin Soderling. With booming serves that forced Nadal to step back, punishing groundstrokes that hit the lines, and swift volleys that could not be returned, he earned this victory. The numbers back it up - 140 mph serves, 61 winners and 27/35 at the net for Soderling.

What lies ahead for Soderling? Can he continue his amazing run on the red clay? My guess is that he's in for a reality check against Russian Nikolay Davydenko in the quarter finals. I don't think we're witnessing a great emergence here, and that's okay. Soderling has already had a huge moment that will undoubtedly help him in the future during big matches like his one against Nadal. At the very least, he has earned the right on this day to be the best guy in the locker room.

Men's Round of Sixteen Preview (con't)

By Mike McIntyre

As equally enthralling as the four matches in the top half of the draw, the bottom half should also be a treat to watch. There could very well be a first time Grand Slam semi-finalist emerging here which is always nice to see. Losing Novak Djokovic seriously opened up everyone's chances in this section including those of Roger Federer. So lets take a look at what we've got.

Del Potro/Tsonga

No doubt who the French crowds will be cheering for here. One of two Frenchmen left in the draw, Tsonga will have his work cut out for him against Del Potro whom he has never defeated in two previous tries. This will be their first meeting on clay and with the crowd behind him I'd say Tsonga has a good chance to advance. I give the edge to the winner of this match to make it through to the semi's.

Robredo/Kohlschreiber

Since winning back-to-back clay court titles in February in Brazil and Argentina, Tommy Robredo has not really wowed me. He hasn't faced anywhere near the type of opposition that Phillipp Kohlschreiber has thus far in the tournament, and despite a 3-0 record against the German, I don't like his chances here. Momentum and confidence are two powerful weapons in tennis. Kohlschreiber played the role of giant-killer against Djokovic who many felt had an excellent chance of giving Nadal a run for his money in Paris. Kohlschreiber also knocked off former French Open champ Juan Carlos Ferrero in round two. Experience would dictate a win for Robredo who has three times before made the quarters in Paris. A good chance for five sets in this one.

Roddick/Monfils

Probably the match I'd most want to watch in the entire round is between American Andy Roddick and Frenchman Gael Monfils. I don't say this for patriotic reasons, as I am not American myself, but rather because of the wonderful contrast in styles that this matchup will offer. It is also quite refreshing to see an American make it this deep into the draw and I'm happy for Andy that he is enjoying this somewhat surprising run in Paris. Roddick has already knocked off two local hopes, can he do it one more time? He certainly seems as confident as he has ever been on clay and perhaps we can attribute this to his new coach Larry Stefanki. Or maybe it has to do with his recent wedding? Either way, Roddick has nothing to lose and the pressure is squarely on the shoulders of Monfils. Their head-to-head stands at 3-3, though Monfils has taken both previous matches on clay. He has been battling injury issues of late, so the match favors Roddick if it goes into a fifth set. This one is too close to call I think.

Haas/Federer

I've always had an affinity towards German tennis players ever since I was a kid growing up watching Boris Becker and Michael Stich. They always seemed to have plenty personality and exciting games to watch as well. Once Becker and Stick retired I immediately started to follow Haas and Nicolas Kiefer. Now a veteran in the twilight of his career, it's nice to see Tommy having a good run on clay. Certainly more of a hard court tennis player, Haas has enjoyed a relatively easy draw - until now. After a few tough opponents in a row, Federer now gets a likely straight sets victory facing Haas. It is interesting to note that in ten previous matches the pair have never before met on clay. With a 2-8 record against Roger, playing him on clay won't help his winning percentage. Federer now has a great chance to build some steam heading into the much anticipated final against Nadal.

Men's Round of Sixteen Preview

By Mike McIntyre

It may seem a little early for a preview article, but I don't think I'm alone in saying the men's round of sixteen match-ups look terrific. Even without fourth seeded Novak Djokovic, who went down stunningly in three sets to Philipp Kohlschreiber (explanations anyone?), I think we've got plenty of engaging head-to-head battles on the horizon. Lets take a closer look and then talk about which pairings have captured your attention the most. I'll tackle the top half today, and the bottom half tomorrow.

Nadal/Soderling:

If anyone is going to give Rafa a challenge at Roland Garros I feel it has to be somewhat of a wildcard who has yet to live up to his potential on tour. Hello, Robin Soderling! Now before you all remind me that Nadal recently humiliated the Swede 6-1, 6-0 in Rome, I admit I am going out on an extremely long limb here. No, I'm not predicting an upset - how can anyone ever suggest Nadal will lose at Roland Garros? Yet at some point Nadal will lose in Paris and his incredible streak will be halted. I feel like this will happen before Nadal's dominance wanes and it will involve a high degree of shock factor. Someone is going to surprise Rafa at some point or catch him having an extremely off day. Soderling just came off a solid clay court victory over David Ferrer and has absolutely nothing to lose going in to his match against Nadal. Why do I feel like I'm going to get butchered for writing this?

Davydenko/Verdasco:

While Nikolay Davydenko hasn't exactly lit up the tour since his return from a two month layoff, he has performed admirably enough and just handled Stan Wawrinka with relative ease in the third round. Nik has been to the semi's twice before at Roland Garros, and in 2005 came oh-so close to defeating Mariano Puerta and reaching his first Grand Slam final. His battle with Verdasco has enormous five-set potential and likely will leave the victor exhausted and at the mercy of Nadal in the quarters. Davydenko leads the series 4-1, but the pair of split the last two encounters on clay. If this match goes the distance, I think it will be physically very tough on Davydenko.

Murray/Cilic:

Neither player here is a clay court expert, so this should be a match where anything can and will happen. Both Murray and Cilic are young and still searching to reach their enormous potential. Murray obviously has a leg up on the young Croat in that department and his experience should be able to get him through in four tight sets.

Gonzalez/Hanescu:

With a record of 9-15 in 2009, Victor Hanescu is the surprise fourth rounder at this year's French Open. At twenty-seven years old he is no spring chicken, but has some solid victories under his belt this past week. Defeating Mikhail Youzhny and Gilles Simon must be a boost to his confidence as he advances past the third round of a Grand Slam for only the second time in his career. The other occasion was at this same tournament in 2005 where he went down to Roger Federer in the quarters. The good news for Hanescu is he is up against Fernando Gonzalez whose game all depends on which side of the bed he wakes up on. I expect the 12th seeded Gonzo to move on, but I wouldn't be surprised if Hanescu's nice run continues either.