McIntyre Tennis

Women's Wimbledon Quarterfinal Preview

By Mike McIntyre

Manic Monday lived-up to its name and saw some fantastic fourth round action of tennis from the remaining sixteen women who have now been narrowed down to the final eight. They will be back at it on Tuesday so let's take a quick look at the four matches on the schedule.

Garbine Muguruza vs Svetlana Kuznetsova

Muguruza has been to the finals at Wimbledon before (2015) and came up short against Serena Williams. With that Williams on the sidelines perhaps the Spaniard can make amends for the loss. The 23 year old leads her head-to-head against the 32 year old Kuznetsova by a 3-1 margin. Kuznetsova is in the quarterfinals at Wimbledon for the fourth time but has never made it any further. The Russian has only dropped 20 games through her four matches thus far and the 7th seed appears to be rejuvenated over the past year on tour. The winner from this match will be considered a heavy favorite to make the finals compared to the other two players who are left in this half of the draw.

Magdalena Rybarikova vs Coco Vandeweghe

Rybarikova is currently ranked 87th in the world but that is due to her absence to injuries. If we focus on recent results it is clear that she is comfortable on grass with a 17-1 record on the surface this summer. At 28 years old she seems ready to make the most of this Grand Slam run. In 36 career Grand Slam appearances Rybarikova is into the quarterfinals for the very first time. Her opponent is 25 year old hard hitting American Coco Vandeweghe who made the semifinals here in 2015 and is currently benefiting from the coaching tutelage of 1987 Wimbledon winner Pat Cash. Vandeweghe turfed Caroline Wozniacki 7-6(4), 6-4 in the fourth round but has never previously beaten Rybarikova in their two career matches including most recently at the French Open where it was the Slovakian who won easily 6-1, 6-4.

Venus Williams vs Jelena Ostapenko

The two bottom half quarterfinals are going to both be really interesting battles for a variety of reasons. The Williams vs Ostapenko one pits an ageless wonder with 49 career titles against a young upstart with but a single tournament victory. That being said, the 20 year old Ostapenko's lone victory was the last Grand Slam at Roland Garros. Ostapenko is aiming to be the first player on the WTA Tour since Jennifer Capriati in 2001 to follow-up her maiden Grand Slam win with the following major as well. She captured the Junior Wimbledon trophy in 2014 and doesn't seem to be phased one bit by the pressure of the moment. Venus on the other hand is trying to become the oldest player to reach the finals at Wimbledon since Martina Navratilova in 1994. Fun fact: Venus turned pro in 1994 while Ostapenko wasn't even born until 1997!

Johanna Konta vs Simona Halep

Konta is carrying the pressure of an entire nation on her back and doesn't appear to be having any problems with that so far. Past the second round at Wimbledon for the first time in her career, she is attempting to be the first British woman to win at the All-England Club since Virginia Wade in 1977. Already she is the first from her country into the quarterfinals since Jo Durie in 1984. Progress, right? Konta is going to face Simona Halep for the first time since Great Britain fell to Romania in a tense Fed Cup tie in April. Both players were rather frosty in their recollections of that encounter which should give their match Tuesday a little extra drama. While Halep won that last match to seal the victory for her country, Konta has won their previous two matches - both on hard courts. For extra motivation, Halep knows that if she can make the final this weekend she will take Angelique Kerber's place as the World Number One.

Rogers Cup WTA Draw Analysis

By Mike McIntyre

The Rogers Cup is ready to begin in Toronto on Monday where Petra Kvitova is the defending champion and Serena Williams is the number one seed. With both Vika Azarenka and Maria Sharapova having to withdraw due to injuries, many will be expecting a Serena victory by the time Sunday comes around.

As one of the top eight seeds in the tournament, Williams received a first round bye and will play the winner between qualifier Chanele Scheepers and Francesca Schiavone. Schiavone won the French Open in 2010 and then lost there in the finals in 2011, the same year she reached her career high ranking of 4th in the world. Clearly stronger on clay, the Italian is now ranked 55th in the world but still represents a quality opponent should she face Serena in round two.

This quarter of the draw has not just one, by two Williams sisters in it. Venus makes her first tournament appearance since the French Open and could face Serena in the third round. The two will play in a doubles exhibition on Monday night against former world number one Monica Seles and Canadian sensation Genie Bouchard. They are not however entered in the office Rogers Cup doubles draw.

Wimbledon champion Marion Bartoli will bring her two-handed forehand and backhand to Toronto and is also in this section of the draw as the 7th seed. She will face the winner between qualifier Lauren Davis and former Grand Slam champion and lucky loser Svetlana Kuznetsova. Oddly enough, Davis defeated Kuznetsova on Sunday in the final round of qualifying, but as the Russian was the highest ranked player in the qualifying draw, she takes a spot that was vacated in the main draw by Vika Azarenka's last minute withdrawal. Look for the veteran to make the necessary adjustments to earn the victory over Davis this time.

First Quarter Prediction: Serena Williams d. Bartoli

In the next quadrant of the draw, Agnieszka Radwanska will look to get her confidence going as she aims for her first Grand Slam title at the U.S. Open later this month. The third seed will have a tough opening match as she will face the winner between Yanina Wickmayer and Laura Robson. Wickmayer was once ranked as high as 12th in the world and has three career titles to her name. The 23 year old has still not reached her peak and while currently only ranked 57th in the world I feel that she is due for a breakthrough at some point. Robson for her part represents the future of British tennis on the WTA Tour and at only 19 years of age is the 32nd ranked player in the world. Wickmayer defeated Robson in their only career meeting back in 2010 on grass and should expect a much tougher match this time around. This match-up is one I would recommend to anyone attending on Monday and has three sets written all over it.

Up and coming American Sloan Stephens is the 14th seed and also in the second quarter of the tournament. Lookout as well for the future Mrs. Alexander Ovechkin - Maria Kirilenko that is, along with 5th seeded Sara Errani who will threaten Radwanska for a spot in the semi-finals.

The 26 year old Errani is one spot below her career best ranking in singles and has made the finals of two clay court and two hard court tournaments proving she can play well on either surface. She got to the semi finals of the French Open where she was humbled by Serena Williams 6-0, 6-1. Her record at the Rogers Cup is a mediocre 1-5, so I'm not sure if playing in Canada agrees with her too much. Still, given her 5-1 record against Kirilenko I would expect her to make her way to the quarter-finals to face Radwanska against whom she has struggled with a 2-6 head-to-head.

Second Quarter Prediction: Radwanska d. Errani

In the third quarter of play Li Na of China is the 4th seed and made the finals of the event a year ago while Angelique Kerber of Germany is the 8th seed. Kerber has had a solid but not spectacular season and is 1-6 lifetime vs Na. Former French Open champion Ana Ivanovic is also in this section and the 16th seed could also put together a good run here in Canada where she won the event all the way back in 2006 in Montreal. 

I'd look a little bit beyond the top seedings in this part of the draw to 11th ranked Italian Roberta Vinci to have a strong outing here. She has made the quarter-finals the past two years and knocked off some quality players while on Canadian soil. Her last tournament appearance was nearly a month ago but she won that event in Palermo on clay.

Don't overlook Dominika Cibulkova as well who could face Kerber in the second round and is currently ranked 21st in the world. The Slovak just won the event in Stanford last week where she knocked-off Radwanska in the final. The win was particularly meaningful to Cibulkova as she was double "bageled" earlier in the year by Radwanska 6-0, 6-0 in the finals in Sydney. Her confidence levels should be enough to carry her through a few rounds.

Third Quarter Prediction: Vinci d. Ivanovic

In the last part of the draw, Caroline Wozniacki replaced 2nd seed Azarenka late Sunday night and will receive a bye even though she is the 9th seed in the event. Azarenka lost for the first time in nine career meetings on Sunday to Sam Stosur in the finals of Carlsbad, California. Her official reason for withdrawing in Toronto was due to a lower back injury. 

The 23 year old Wozniacki is still the youngest player in the top ten in the rankings even though it seems she has been there for quite some time now. She brings a modest 21-16 record on the WTA Tour into this event and has been struggling to find consistency all season long. The Dane was 3-6 during the clay court season and then fell in the second round of Wimbledon. Getting back onto hard courts is probably the best thing for her at this point.

Wozniacki, who won here in 2010, could face Jelena Jankovic in the third round and then either defending champion Kvitova or Sam Stosur in the quarter-finals. Jankovic is 29-12 on the season but has lost in the first round of the Rogers Cup in each of the past three years. Stosur made the finals in Toronto two years ago but has also been inconsistent since her U.S. Open victory that same summer. Kvitova meanwhile has won a hard court event in Dubai earlier this year and made the quarter-finals of Wimbledon.

This section of the draw is extremely tough, with rising Canadian sensation Genie Bouchard also present. Bouchard opens with a tough match against Russian Alisa Kleybanova who was once ranked as high as 20th in the world before Hodgkin's Lymphoma forced her to withdraw from the game. Kleybanova played in only one event in 2012 and has only played in three this year that have all been challenger type events. Currently ranked 602nd in the world, it will be a real test for her to get back up in the rankings but something we'd all love to see given the difficulties she has faced.

Fourth Quarter Prediction: Kvitova d. Jankovic

Semi-final predictions:

Serena Williams d. Radwanska

Kvitova d. Vinci

Final Prediction:

Williams d. Kvitova

Serena will be hungry to reclaim the Rogers Cup title and show that her loss at Wimbledon a month ago was just a small blip on the screen in her otherwise stellar 2013 season.

Check back with us often throughout the week as we will be covering the tournament live from the Rexall Centre in Toronto. Follow us on Twitter as well for timely updates on all of the action both here and in Montreal.

French Open Draws Revealed

By Mike McIntyre

The French Open draws were announced this morning. Defending men's champion Roger Federer opens against Peter Luczak of Australia while women's defending champ Svetlana Kuznetsova begins versus Sorana Cirstea.

The men's draw can be seen here. The women's meanwhile is here.  

I'll be away for the long weekend here in Canada and without internet access. In my absence please enjoy Rob Woudwyk as guest writer for the 2010 French Open Preview. Rob is the host of Topspin Radio, a Canadian based tennis internet-radio show that is broadcast every Monday at 12:30pm ET.

A bientot!

Sony Ericsson Round Two Update

By Mike McIntyre

The second round of play came to a conclusion at the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami on Saturday and while the women's draw seems to be unfolding according to plan, the upsets continued on the men's side.

A day after second seeded Novak Djokovic went down in defeat, the third seed, Andy Murray followed suit. Murray was dropped in straight sets by American veteran Mardy Fish, 6-4, 6-4. Since reaching the Aussie Open finals in January, Murray has looked listless on court failing to advance past the quarter-finals of any event he has played. While I'm sure that this is just a blip on the screen for Murray, it has to be concerning for his camp as the hard court swing is coming to an end - a time where Murray usually shines. As we progress to the red clay of Europe it will only become harder for the Scot to find his rhythm.

The men's draw now opens up considerably and gives the Roger and Rafa show a great chance to re-assert itself on the stage in Miami. The greatest tennis rivalry of the 21st Century has yet to hit the court in 2010 and is due for another riveting installment. Federer won their last encounter, in May 2009, at the Masters event in Madrid while Nadal had won the five battles prior to that.

Federer's draw looks like smooth sailing for the world number one player, with little opposition expected from Florent Serra in the third round. Tomas Berdych and a potential rematch with Marcos Baghdatis (who defeated Roger in Indian Wells last week) are on the horizon. Federer should have shaken off all of the post-Aussie Open rust by that point.

For Rafa, a tough third round tussle with David Nalbandian is on deck which should be a real treat to watch. Nalbandian has historically done well against Nadal - a feat that few players on tour can boast. The Argentine owns a 2-1 head-to-head advantage over Rafa, all on hard courts. I give the edge to Nadal in this one due to the fact Nalbandian has only recently returned from a lengthy injury layoff. It should still make for great tennis, so catch it if you can.

American Andy Roddick has a favorable draw with the 18th seeded Tommy Robredo his highest ranked potential opponent between here and the semi-finals. Sweden's Robin Soderling also has a nice path now that Andy Murray has been taken out of the equation in his section.

As for the WTA Tour, number one seeded Svetlana Kuznetsova is defending her lead position in the draw and advanced to the fourth round with a victory over Agnes Szavay. I must admit that seeing Kuznetsova hold the top seed in a tournament of this depth is somewhat surprising. While she did win the French Open a year ago, her play in 2010 has been abysmal. A fourth round loss at the Aussie Open and first or second round losses in each of her other appearances does not bode well for her season. Of course now that I've said that look for Kuznetsova to make a real run in Miami. My Murray vs Djokovic final prediction has already blown up in my face.

One player I've got a great feeling about at this tournament and for her career in general is Belgium's Yanina Wickmayer. Since bursting onto the scene with her U.S. Open semi-final appearance in 2009 this kid has been on a real tear. She won her first tournament of 2010 and then had a strong run at the Aussie Open where she endured three tough qualifying matches and made it to the round of sixteen before bowing out in three tight sets against returning country-woman Justine Henin. She's had a bit of a tough go since then, but has a nice draw here to turn things around. At only twenty years old she represents a very bright future for women's tennis in Belgium - already brimming with talent due to the returns of Henin and Kim Clijsters.

Other notable results of late include Henin knocking off 5th seed Elena Dementieva while Vera Zvonareva schooled American youngster Melanie Oudin 6-1, 6-2. I sure hope that kid is taking this all in stride because in the long haul I think she's going to be a great player.

Hope you're all enjoying the tennis if you have television access or are lucky enough to be in Miami for this great tournament. Keep checking back for more updates.

Australian Open Day Seven Preview

By Mike McIntyre

Time for fourth-round matches to get underway in Melbourne and there are some fantastic battles on deck for Sunday from the bottom-half of the men's and women's draws.

John Isner, Ivo Karlovic and Andy Roddick are proving that a big serve still goes a long way on the men's side. Karlovic leads the tournament with 93 aces through three matches, while Isner is second with 81 and Roddick in sixth position with 47. Karlovic and Isner have both played several more sets than Roddick which explains their elevated numbers. Sunday could be the day of the tie-break as it is going to be a challenge to break these serves for their opponents.

Karlovic and Isner face tough matches against Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray respectively. While Karlovic is in over his 6'10'' head in this one against Nadal, Isner has a chance to make his encounter with Murray a meaningful one. The American is playing the best tennis of his professional career and is fresh off an impressive victory over 12th seeded Gael Monfils. While I expect Murray will advance, Isner will provide him with his toughest test of the tournament thus far.

Roddick should be able to knock-off Fernando Gonzalez as the erratic Chilean just barely made it past Igor Korolev in five tight sets in the previous round. Roddick has been playing terrific tennis so far this season and is still undefeated in 2010.

The fourth round match to watch is between youngsters Juan Martin Del Potro and Marin Cilic and has the best odds for a five set match on Sunday.The two have only met twice before and both times were at Grand Slams in 2009. Each time, Del Potro dropped the opening set before prevailing in four. Cilic has yet to come into his own but expect him to remain a fixture in the top-twenty for years to come. Both are twenty one (in fact Del Potro is only five days older) and they each tower over most of their opponents at 6'6''. While Del Potro already has a Grand Slam title to his credit, nobody would have expected that from him a year ago. My point is that much can change within the frame of one year. With one title already in 2010, maybe this is Cilic's year to make a name for himself. 

On the women's side, Sunday has the all-Belgian battle between Justine Henin and Yanina Wickmayer. While it might not be the all-Belgian match-up that we looked forward to when the draw was announced, it is still going to provide some fireworks. Wickmayer is undefeated so far this year after winning the title in Auckland and going through three rounds of qualifying action in Melbourne as well. She has more match-play under her belt in 2010 than anyone else on tour and is capable of giving Henin a real push. When Henin lost the first set of her match against Alisa Kleybanova, it showed that she is still shaking off some post-retirement rust. I think Wickmayer has a great shot at taking her out.

Aside from the Belgians, we have a couple of all-Russian matches on Sunday to look forward to. Nadia Petrova meets reigning French Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova while second-seeded Dinara Safina faces Maria Kirilenko.

Kuznetsova leads Petrova 5-1 in career meetings, but Petrova seems to be on a nice role in this tournament and her lopsided victory over Kim Clijsters has certainly given her a confidence booster. 

Don't expect another upset out of Maria Kirilenko. While she played terrific against Maria Sharapova in the first round, I think she is in tough against a very fit Dinara Safina who seems to be keeping the mental aspect of her game in check lately. Kirilenko has matched her career-best result in a Grand Slam, as she also made the fourth round here in Australia in 2008. I don't see her going any further at the moment.

The remaining women's match on Sunday has Ukrainian Alona Bondarenko against Jie Zheng from China. Both are ranked in the top thirty and have played each other three times before. Zheng won the first two times back in 2003, while Bondarenko came out on top 7-5, 7-5 two weeks ago in Hobart en route to her second career title. 

I have always thought that Alona's younger sister Kateryna was the one to watch between these two, however it is Alona who is on fire so far this year as evidenced by her title in Hobart and her straight-sets victory of Jelena Jankovic in the previous round. She doesn't have much power to her game, but it won't be needed against Zheng and I think she'll take her in two sets to advance to the quarter-finals.

Women's 2010 Australian Open Preview

By Mike McIntyre

When was the last time the women's game had this much depth? I'm not knocking the WTA Tour, which in fact has had more depth in recent years than the men's Federer vs. Nadal show. When I look at the Australian Open draw though, I'm just floored with the amount of talent out there. This is a fantastic way to kick-off the 2010 Grand Slam calendar.

The Favorites:

Number one ranked Serena Williams has a pretty sweet ride to the quarter-finals from the looks of it. I don't expect her to drop a set for the first week that's for sure. There's simply nobody in her section of the draw that can keep up with her power, experience and winning-attitude. If she truly did tweak something against Elena Dementieva in Sydney, this draw gives her some time before she has to bring out her 'A' game. Williams will be the favorite to add to her existing collection of four Aussie Open titles, the most recent being a year ago.

A nice third round match-up in the top-half could include Vera Zvonareva against Ana Ivanovic. Either one of these players could use a good Grand Slam showing to correct their career progress after a disappointing 2009. Zvonareva started strong in 2009 with a semi-final showing in Australia, but after missing two months in the middle of the year with injury she never returned to top form. Ivanovic's season was a total disaster and it was hard to believe she was ever the number one ranked player in the world. One of these two should still be able to push through to the quarters.

U.S. Open finalist Caroline Wozniacki has a great path to perhaps a semi-final berth in Australia. Only Daniela Hantuchova may cause her some trouble before the quarters, although Hantuchova has not had a big win in quite some time.

Wozniacki may meet the winner of an intriguing fourth round match between Americans Venus Williams and Melanie Oudin. A Williams/Oudin match would give tennis fans a nice glimpse of the past, present and future of American tennis and perhaps that future is now. Oudin has some winnable matches early on while Venus has looked mediocre since Wimbledon and as she approaches thirty, is only a huge threat on grass.  

In the bottom-half don't get your hopes up for second-seeded Dinara Safina. The mentally fragile Russian attained the number one ranking for a period of time in 2009, but will most be remembered for tanking in two Slam finals in Australia and Paris, along with a brutal defeat in the semi's at Wimbledon. A back injury hampered the last portion of her season and was acting up again at the start of 2010 to keep her out of Brisbane. Safina does not have enough match-play under her belt to be considered a major threat here in Australia nor is her mental game ready to compete in this first Slam of the season.

There are plenty of other top-level players ready to contend for the title in the bottom section of the draw however, and the Belgians are leading the charge. 

Kim Clijsters, Justine Henin and Yanina Wickmayer are all in the same quarter of the draw, which is unfortunate because they could all have easily advanced quite far given their play of late. Clijsters has the most favorable path and should get past Svetlana Kuznetsova to make the quarter-finals. A second-consecutive Slam is a distinct possibility for her.

Henin, entered as a wild card, is not going to enjoy the same Grand Slam return that Clijsters had at the U.S. Open. After a first round match with up and coming Sorana Cirstea, Henin will most definitely face fifth seeded Elena Dementieva - the same Dementieva who just won in Sydney defeating Serena in the finals. Henin leads their head-to-head battles 9-2, but will have to fight hard to beat the in-form Russian. I think Henin can beat Dementieva, but expecting her to have a similar Cinderella-run like Clijsters did in Flushing Meadows is unlikely.

The third Belgian, and the future of tennis in that country, Yanina Wickmayer, has already fought through three qualifying matches in order to secure entry into the tournament. Wickmayer was not allowed to take the 16th seeded spot that she is due because of the timing of her return from a mishandled doping violation. She may face Italian Flavia Pennetta in the second round and either Henin or Dementieva in the fourth round. Regardless of how she fares here in Australia, the twenty year old has a bright future ahead of her.

In the very last quarter of the draw we've got the unpredictable Jelena Jankovic. Fairing no better than the fourth round of any Slam in 2009, Jankovic has much to prove this year. She has a nice section of the draw and should stay untroubled until the quarter-finals. Don't expect her to move much farther than that however, as the Serbian is not the huge threat she used to be.

Do keep an eye on Maria Sharapova to have a big Aussie Open. The talented Russian has come back admirably from shoulder surgery last year and has the power game to defeat anyone on tour. If she can keep her serve consistent and free of double-digit double faults, then she is more than capable of winning this tourney. If she does come up against Safina in the round of sixteen, I see Sharapova advancing with ease. There are more Grand Slam titles within her and this could be the next one on her list. 

Anticipated First-Round Matches:

Kimiko Date-Krumm vs Yaroslava Shvedova: The 39 year old veteran Date-Krumm has been very impressive since returning to the tour in 2008 and has worked herself back into being a dangerous player to face. Her return is even more impressive given the fact she was away from the sport for twelve years. She'll face a difficult player in Shvedova, who impressed in the late stages of 2009 with victories over Daniela Hantuchova in Toronto and Jelena Jankovic at the U.S. Open.

Caroline Wozniacki vs Aleksandra Wozniak: It amazes me how often these two near-identical names get paired together in so many tournaments. Unfortunately for the Canadian Wozniak, it rarely ends up in her favor. The fourth seeded Wozniacki has won five of their six meetings although the pair have usually produced closely contested matches. Wozniak is ranked 34th in the world right now, so this is a fairly strong first rounder.

Jelena Dokic vs Alisa Kleybanova: While it was nice to watch Dokic have her fairy-tale run to the quarter-finals in last year's edition, the same fate will be difficult to duplicate. Dokic faces hard-hitting Russian Kleybanova whom she defeated here in the fourth round last year by a tight score of 7-5, 5-7, 8-6. Kleybanova's court movement is limited due to her stature, but she can really hit the ball and was able to defeat Venus Williams, Vera Zvonareva and Jelena Jankovic (twice) in 2009.

 

 

Mauresmo vs. Kuznetsova in Beijing

ETA: Kuznetsova 6-4 6-0 actually. Well done, Svetlana! What's up with Amelie, though? ANOTHER bagel? It must be said: that's no way for a world Number 1 to go out, no matter how well Sveta's playing right now. Here's a match review, with quotes from the players.

I'm gonna go with Mauresmo in three. This is live right now...I hear it's on CCTV5...will look for a stream...

ETA: There are lots of options here. Just scroll down.

ETA: ...none of which seem to work. Anyway, there's a rain delay at 4 all in the 1st set.

Baghdatis and Kuznetsova Win!

Marcos Baghdatis took out Mario Ancic 6-4 6-0 (ouch) for his FIRST ATP TITLE! (yay!) It also moved Baghdatis up to number 8 in the rankings for the race to Shanghai. But what a great comeback from Mario--he did say that he was tired by that last set, and how can you blame him? Here's a match report. And here are interviews pre-the final; watch for post-final interviews to be added soon.

Props to Mario for shaking off the fatigue and playing the doubles final essentially right after losing his singles match--and winning it with Mahesh Bhupathi. Not a bad first week back, huh?

In more predictable news, Sveta Kuznetsova bested Marion Bartoli for her third Bali title. Bartoli claims that Sveta hit a ball straight at her in the warm up and it seemed to shake her up a bit. I find it hard to believe that the Kuze would do any such thing on purpose. She always seems so personable and sanguine in her press conferences, at least. Here's an article about the match.

In other news, lackadaisical Austrian Jurgen Melzer beat Italian Fillipo Volandri for his first career ATP title at the BCR Open in Romania.

Kuznetsova def. Davenport in Bali

Svetlana Kuznetsova's through to the final, taking out Lindsay Davenport in two tie-break sets. She'll face Marion Bartoli for the championship. Vamos, Sveta!

Here's a match report.

US Open 2nd Tuesday

Well, yesterday was just balls out tennis, folks. Mauresmo's incredible comeback after losing the 2nd set to Serena 0-6; Tommy Haas' marathon win over Robby Ginepri (whose ranking will now take a steep tumble into oblivion); the resurrection of Marat Safin, as well as Lleyton Hewitt prevailing over Richie Gasquet in a 5-setter that seems to be an instant classic (I wouldn't know, of course. Silly me fell asleep at 3-1 in the 5th and missed the 2 matchpoints Gasquet saved that seem to have converted all of NYC into Francophiles. Damn. It.). Also Kuznetsova falling to the charismatic primadonna Jelena Jankovic, Davenport squashing Schnyder, and Justine Henin-Hardenne making a bid for her own Federer-like H-H Express with a comprehensive beatdown of Shahar Pe'er. Who can stop that train?

Hmm, that's all yesterday stuff, isn't it. On to tuesday, which should be another stellar day of match play:

How much fun will Tommy Haas v. Marat Safin be? I mean, these guys can turn up the court crazy like nobody else. The two of them together? I'll need to take a valium just to sit through it. I'm picking Safin over Haas, mostly because I want a few more press conferences from the gloomy and ever quotable Russian.

I'm going to pick Blake over Berdych in the trickiest 4th round match; Murray over Davydenko in a very very tight one, Federer over Giquel (duh). I think Jankovic is ready for her close up and will upset Dementieva; and sorry, Lindsay, but Justine's unstoppable. Just like the Citizen Eco-Drive watch and the people who wear it. Unstoppable.