Tennis News

The second round of the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix will feature a blockbuster match-up between Simona Halep and Garbine Muguruza. It will mark the third ever encounter between the pairing, with the Spaniard leading the head-to-head series 2-0. This will also mark their first ever clay court encounter, so it will be interesting to see how different this turns out to be.

Following an excellent start to her 2015 season, which included title wins in Dubai and Indian Wells, Simona Halep most recently reached the semi-final stage in Miami, where she lost to Serena Williams. She will now begin her clay court season with an exceptionally tough obstacle in Garbine Muguruza.

“A tough match is awaiting me tomorrow,” Halep said on Tuesday. “I want to adapt myself to the clay, find my game a little bit and see how I have to play in the next tournaments. But here it’s pretty tough. Everyone is playing good tennis on a high level. It will be difficult, but I will fight for it, for sure.”

“I have to change some things from hard to clay courts, and maybe first I need a match to remember my style from the last years, my game,” she said. “But on clay you have time to think about the points, and I like to think. I always like to know what I’m doing for every shot. I like to be a little creative on the court. It’s my style. If I see something that’s not working for me in a match, I’m changing it.”

The Spaniard began her campaign in Stuttgart with a 6-1, 6-4 victory against Barbora Zahlavova Stycova. She won 76% of her first service points to close out the match in one hour and 15 minutes.

This marks the first time that these two competitors will meet on the professional tour and could make for an entertaining and unpredictable contest between two of the top competitors on the WTA tour. The Spaniard leads the head-to-head series 2-0 and will look to remain undefeated against the Romanian in their first ever clay court encounter.

Last Saturday, Nadal took on his longtime rival Novak Djokovic in an entertaining battle, and while he succumbed to the in-form Djokovic 6-3, 6-3, it was a far more competitive battle than the scoreline suggests. Overall, while he was pushed to three sets against the likes of John Isner, Nadal finds solace in the fact that he was able to pull through various obstacles en route to the final four of the tournament.

“For me, is a very positive week. The most positive week of the season, without any doubt,” said Nadal. “I think, if I am able to keep doing that in the next tournament in Barcelona, and I have a tough draw, I will say that I am very well again.”

“The way that I played yesterday and for moments today is the way that I want to play. Just with more matches playing like this, I will be confident enough to play. That level will not be the exception; it will be the normal thing. That is the thing that I need to make happen.”

His upcoming opponent, Nicolas Almagro, breezed into the second round by playing less than four games in his opening match against Paolo Lorenzi. The Italian retired 10 minutes into the match, which allowed the Spaniard easy entry into the following stage of the tournament.

This marks the 13th time these two competitors will clash on the ATP World Tour, with Nadal holding a solid 11-1 record against Almagro. The record includes an 8-0 clay court record, including ones in Barcelona and Acapulco in 2013. However, Almagro shocked the tennis community last season when he rallied from a set down to beat Nadal in the decider of the Barcelona quarter-final. Nadal will have an opportunity to right that wrong on Wednesday afternoon.

In an intriguing second round Barcelona Open encounter, reigning US Open champion Marin Cilic will step across the net from the oldest player to win a maiden ATP World Tour title in Victor Estrella Burgos for their first professional meeting on Wednesday afternoon.

Following an extended spell on the sidelines recovering from an injury, US Open champion Marin Cilic began his 2015 season this week in Indian Wells, where suffered a premature exit in his opening match in the desert but he was able to make up for it over the coming weeks with better showings in Monte Carlo.

After the world No. 9 lost to Juan Monaco in straight sets 6-4, 6-4 , he revealed that he was pleased with his performance, as he didn’t have high expectations for his first match back on tour. He even had some lingering pain in his shoulder, which is why he was unable to serve well.

“I wasn’t expecting that I’m going to be playing great tennis, which is always difficult in the first couple of matches,” he said. “Some players do feel great from the beginning, but I’m the kind of player that needs a few matches to get into it.”

He then surprised many when he was able to put on an impressive showing at the Monte Carlo Masters event to reach the quarter-final stage of the tournament. He defeated Florian Mayer and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga to secure his spot in the final eight alongside Novak Djokovic. While he was absolutely no match for the top ranked Serb, it was still a dramatically improved week than that at Indian Wells.

The Croat will next encounter Victor Estrella Burgos, who reached the second round in Barcelona with a straight sets victory over Dominic Thiem in their first round match. He defeated the Austraian 6-3, 7-6(3) in a match where he struck six aces, won 71% of his first service points and saved eight break points to finish in one hour and 20 minutes.

This marks the first time that Cilic and Burgos will cross paths on the ATP World Tour and could make for a more intriguing match-up than many fans and pundits could expect. The Dominican Republic native has already won his first title on the tour this season and will be motivated to secure a win against the reigning US Open champion.

While many have contemplated whether former world No. 1 Rafael Nadal will be fit enough to continue his remarkable streak at the French Open, his coach and uncle, Toni, is quite confident that the June Grand Slam result will be the same as it has been over the past few years.

“I firmly believe that if we walk this way, Rafa can win the Roland Garros. He’s not physically at 100%” Toni said told Canal + (via tennisworldusa.org) ’The problem is to maintain this level for a long time. Roland Garros courts fit with his way of playing, but the first goal is to come back feeling good on the court, hitting with high intensity and never letting the guard down, which is one thing we haven’t done in the recent tournaments.”

Most recently, eventual champion Novak Djokovic toppled Nadal in the semi-final round of the Monte Carlo Masters event. While the final score was 6-3, 6-3, it does not adequately represent the competitiveness of the encounter. The Spaniard held a break lead at the start of the match but was unable to maintain that lead as the contest went on.

While the end result was not what they wanted, the pair left Monte Carlo with positive emotions about their week there.

“We leave Monte Carlo in a better way than when we arrived here. We approached in the right way even if we knew that Rafa wasn’t playing at his best. Against Djokovic he wasn’t enough physically prepared, he wasn’t used to such high intensity. Moreover, the tough match against Ferrer prejudiced a bit his physical form. To play against the best player in the world you have to be perfectly prepared, and we weren’t. Until the physical form supported him, he played in a good way.”

Even Nadal himself expressed his satisfaction with his performances this past week in Monte Carlo, although he refused to project into the future.

“For me, is a very positive week. The most positive week of the season, without any doubt,” said Nadal. “I think, if I am able to keep doing that in the next tournament in Barcelona, and I have a tough draw, I will say that I am very well again.

“The most important thing, what’s helping me really, is that I am with the right motivation to play tennis, the right motivation to work hard every day, and with the right attitude. That’s why I was able to play better this week than the previous weeks.”

Few players have ever taken part in the roaring start that world No. 1 Novak Djokovic secured for himself during the first third of the year. In fact, no one has ever managed to win the first three Masters 1000 titles of the year I consecutive fashion, which is just what he completed on Sunday afternoon in Monte Carlo. To top that off, he also won the season-opening Grand Slam in Melbourne, which only serves as more proof that the Serbian star is in near-unstoppable form at the moment.

With much to be thankful for in his life, both personally and professionally, Djokovic has formulated a new outlook on life, which he believes has helped him compartmentalize his success and use it to his advantage.

“I’m 27,” said Djokovic. “Obviously I’m experiencing the time of my life on the tennis court, and also private life is very good. I became a father. I’m just trying to sometimes pinch myself and say, ‘Where am I at this point in my life?’ I’m very grateful for this, for everything that I have. That’s the kind of philosophy.”

Following his 6-3, 6-3, victory over clay court specialist Rafael Nadal, Djokovic overcame a determined Berdych in the tournament final to close out the victory in three sets in a total of two hours and 43 minutes. While it was not the prettiest of matches for the top seed, he was able to fight through it and secure the victory, even when not playing his best tennis.

“I was just trying to stay with the right intensity and focus for each point because obviously you get tense when you’re not feeling so comfortable on the court. When you start missing, you kind of back up. I had to adjust my position and movement on the court several times. In the end I’m sitting here with this trophy that is very special to me. This is what matters. Sometimes winning ugly is necessary. It’s been a remarkable start of the season for me. I couldn’t ask for a better start of clay court season.”

Now that he has armed himself with a fresh perspective on himself and his life, Djokovic plans on using his recent success as a form of motivation and incentive to complete the year in grand fashion.

“The fact that now I won (the first) three Masters 1000 in a row and nobody ever has done that, of course I’m aware of that. That has given me more motivation. I’m very proud of what I have achieved. It can only serve as an incentive, imperative for what’s coming up.”

For the third time this season, Ana Ivanovic and Caroline Garcia will cross paths on the WTA Tour, and this time, the Serb will attempt to right the ship and steer herlsef towards her first victory against the Frenchwoman this season. Of their three previous meetings on the tour, Garcia leads the head-to-head series 2-1.

Apart from solid showings at Brisbane and Monterrey, where she faced low-ranked talent en route to the latter stages of the respective tournaments, Ana Ivanovic has failed to follow up on her tremendous 2014 season. Recently, Ivanovic alternated between wins and losses during the month of March at Indian Wells and Miami before salvaging herself with a single win at the Fed Cup World Group Playoff tie against Paraguay. She beat Montserrat Gonzalez 6-2, 6-0 to help lead her nation to victory.

Since her last win against Ivanovic at the Indian Wells Masters event, Garcia has gone 1-5 on the professional tour. She lost to Sabine Lisicki in the following round of that Premier Mandatory event at Indian Wells, fell in the first round in Miami, lost her second match in Charleston and failed to win a single encounter in the Fed Cup tie against the Czech Republic. She will look to rebound from her recent slump when she faces Ivanovic yet again.

This is jus the fourth time that Ivanovic and Garcia will meet on the WTA Tour, with the French native leading the series 2-1. Both her victories took place on hard courts this season, which is a testament to Ivanovic’s lack of form on the tour following her strong 2014 season. However, while Garcia holds the lead in the series, her only loss to the Serb was on clay at the French Open last year. Given that the red dust is where Ivanovic was traditionally most comfortable, it will be interesting to see if she is able to level the h2h series when they cross paths.
 

The clay court season continues on with Barcelona as Rafael Nadal looks to bounce back from the disappointment of failing to win the Monte Carlo Masters for the third time in a row. Nadal had previously won the tournament on each of his last eight appearances, only missing out in 2010 when he withdrew with fatigue and losing to Nicolas Almagro in last year’s QF. 2014 saw Kei Nishikori pick up the title and the Japanese star will be No.1 seed this week.

Check out the Full Draw Here: ATP Barcelona 2015 Draw

Watch the matches live: ATP Barcelona Live Streaming

Nishikori was outstanding on Spanish clay last year, winning this event and then making the final of Madrid where he controlled the match against Nadal before his body broke down and he was forced to retire. Also defending finals points this week is Santiago Giraldo who is 15th seed this week. The Colombian looks likely to suffer a rankings fall with Nishikori looming in round three. Nishikori should see off either Teymuraz Gabashvili or Pablo Carreno Busta easily but Alexandr Dolgopolov may prove a tough opponent for Giraldo if the Ukranian can defeat Joao Sousa.

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Pablo Cuevas returns to his favoured clay after going 1-2 during Miami and Indian Wells. The Uruguayan did not play Monte Carlo but is back for this event and opens against either Jan Lennard Struff or wildcard Roberto Carballes Baena. It will be the third year in a row that Baena gets a wildcard and he is winless in his first two outings. Roberto Bautista Agut will be Spain’s best hope of a quarter finalist from the top quarter of the draw. The 7th seed took Nishikori to three sets last year in Barcelona and also made the semi finals of Madrid. He will most likely open against Thomaz Bellucci. The Brazilian plays Yuichi Sugita who has never won an ATP match on clay.

Marin Cilic shook off some rust in his second tournament of the year, making the quarter finals in Monte Carlo. He was brushed aside with ease by Novak Djokovic there but did pick up a win over Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. Tsonga can avenged the straight sets loss in the quarter finals here but will probably need to make it past two Spaniards to get that far. Marcel Granollers should be favoured to beat Marinko Matosevic to set up his opener with 9th seed Tommy Robredo next up should he outlast Joao Souza or Mikhail Kukushkin. However, Robredo had been far from stellar in South America on the clay, going just 2-3 and may be there for the taking in that match.

Cilic begins against either Dominic Thiem or Victor Estrella, the latter of which retired in his last match at Monte Carlo. Meanwhile, Thiem disappointed in his first match at the same event with a straight sets loss to Lucas Pouille. Martin Klizan comes into this tournament with a clay title this month in Casablanca but followed it up with defeat to Victor Troicki at Monte Carlo. Klizan should face Juan Monaco in round two, hoping to improve on his 0-6 4-6 loss in their only other meeting.

Four times finalist David Ferrer will like his section of the draw, given the number of wildcard and qualifier entries. The first of those to face him could be Albert Montanes, who plays Ricardas Berankis in round one. Montanes is at home on the clay, much unlike Berankis who has played sparingly on the surface in recent years. Nick Kyrgios will have the opportunity to test himself at a higher level on clay this year although either Thiemo de Bakker or Elias Ymer provide him with a far from tough beginning to his tournament. Kyrgios won two clay events back to back in April last year although they were on the green clay in America, which plays quite differently to traditional European clay.

With Ernests Gulbis terribly out of form and potentially still carrying an injury, an opportunity is there for a player to make a nice run to the quarter finals. Benoit Paire has managed to force himself back into the top 100 after falling to 149 early in the year. He will play the young qualifier Jaume Munar, who surprised Daniel Munoz de la Nava and Pedro Cachin to earn his spot in the draw. Philipp Kohlschreiber may also play a qualifier in Martin Fucsovics. Fucsovics is 1-0 against Andrey Kuznetsov whom he plays in round one, but the Russian is slightly more accomplished at the highest level. Kuznetsov and Kohlschreiber played at this event in 2013, Kohlschreiber winning a third set tiebreak.

Rafael Nadal heads the final quarter of the draw with what looks like the toughest route of any of the top four seeds to the semi final. He was outplayed by Novak Djokovic for large parts of the Monte Carlo final after a fast start and will be keen to bounce back by taking the title here.

He most likely will have to play the man who defeated him at this event last year. Nicolas Almagro would lose the semi final after but his win in the quarters ended a long losing streak. Almagro is 2-0 against Lorenzi whom he plays in round one. 2014 French Open winner Andrey Rublev plays his first ATP clay event and couldn’t have asked for a much tougher opening round opponent. The qualifier plays 2010 winner Fernando Verdasco in what will likely be a step too far but should at least give an indication of what he can expect on the surface in the year to come. Fabio Fognini awaits the winner and given that the Italian already has a clay win over Nadal this year, there is no doubt that he can take advantage should the No.2 seed be below par.

Feliciano Lopez is one of three other Spaniards in the bottom quarter of the draw and the one with the best chance of progressing to a projected quarter final with Nadal. Qualifier James Ward or Marsel Ilhan are first up, the latter of which is coming off a final on the clay in Mersin Challenger. However, it is more likely to be Leonardo Mayer who poses the first threat to the World No.12. Mayer lost their only meeting at the 2012 Australian Open but will have a much better chance this time round, assuming he sees off either Pablo Andujar or Albert Ramos.

For match previews and predictions, click Here: ATP Barcelona 2015 Tips

For Rafael Nadal, the simple fact that he was able to contest a competitive match against the undisputed world No. 1 Novak Djokovic in a semi-final round of a Masters 1000 event is a very positive sign for just a few weeks before the start of the French Open.

The seven-time champion at Monte Carlo took on his longtime rival in an entertaining battle on Saturday afternoon, and while he succumbed to the in-form Djokovic 6-3, 6-3, it was a far more competitive battle than the scoreline suggests.

“For me, is a very positive week. The most positive week of the season, without any doubt,” said Nadal. “I think, if I am able to keep doing that in the next tournament in Barcelona, and I have a tough draw, I will say that I am very well again.”

Nadal even started the match with an early break for a 2-0 lead but was unable to hold onto it.

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“The way that I played yesterday and for moments today is the way that I want to play. Just with more matches playing like this, I will be confident enough to play. That level will not be the exception; it will be the normal thing. That is the thing that I need to make happen.”

Overall, while he was pushed to three sets against the likes of John Isner, Nadal finds solace in the fact that he was able to pull through various obstacles en route to the final four of the tournament.

“In general, from where I came one week ago, two weeks ago, after what happened in Miami, I go to the next tournament with the feeling that I made a big improvement in my game, in my mental part. I hope this tournament is a key moment for my season.

“We cannot forget that I got injured last year for six months. So for six months, I didn’t play one match of intensity, because when I came back I played two tournaments (in 2014). It is difficult to have a feeling after that. Then Basel, having that appendicitis… So there were six months without playing that kind of (high) level matches.”

The Spaniard still refuses to project into the future, opting instead to think positively about his gradual return and focus on each step along the way.

“The most important thing, what’s helping me really, is that I am with the right motivation to play tennis, the right motivation to work hard every day, and with the right attitude. That’s why I was able to play better this week than the previous weeks.”