Murray and Lendl End Successful Partnership

 

The tennis world was bought to shock today when Andy Murray and Ivan Lendl ended their unbelievable 2 years together.

 



Lendl said "Having helped him achieve his goal of winning major titles, I feel like it is time for me to concentrate on some of my own projects"

Murray added "I'm eternally grateful to Ivan for all his hard work over the past two years, the most successful of my career so far"

Recent results for Andy have been under par as he has not reached a final since Wimbledon 2013. He has been knocked out early at Indian Wells and fell to no.6 in the world rankings.

Murray has been certainly playing his best tennis under Lendl as he has won 7 titles including the Olympics, US Open and Wimbledon. Murray has also climbed back to no.2 in the rankings under Lendl.

One thing is certain, tennis fans will miss this formidable partnership.

Djokovic Beats Federer In Tight Final

Novak Djokovic fought back to beat Roger Federer in a deciding tie-break 3-6 6-3
7-6 (7-3) in the BNP Paribas Open final in Indian Wells.

The Serb, 26, lost the opening set but, despite not being at his best, clawed
his way back to win the event for the third time.

Djokovic failed to serve out for the match at 5-4 in the third, but kept his
nerve to comfortably win the tie-break.

Djokovic said: "It was a proud achievement. It was not just winning the trophy
but the way I came back from a set down in a couple of matches. That gives me a
lot of confidence."

The run to the final was a big positive for Federer as he had a miserable 2013 season.

In total, Djokovic won 99 points, Federer won 98 points in the tight match.

Pennetta Wins Biggest Title of Her Career

Italian Flavia Pennetta overcame injured Agnieszka Radwanska 6-2 6-1 in the final of the BNP

Paribas Open in Indian Wells.

The 20th seed was aided by the Pole's knee injury that required a lengthy
medical time-out in the second set. Pennetta, who is now  12th in the rankings, wrapped it up with six
games in a row after an hour and 13 minutes.

Pennetta became the third oldest winner of Indian Wells as a result of winning at the age of 32. It's the Italians first title since 2010.

She also became the lowest ever seed to win in the Californian Desert as the 20th seed beat the #1 and #2 seeds back to back.

Pennetta became the third-oldest winner of the desert tournament after Martina Navratilova, who won at age 33 and again at 34 in 1990-91. It was Pennetta's first title since winning at Marbella in 2010.
Read more at http://www.espn.co.uk/tennis/sport/story/292083.html#b9VFYZJ2mquieFMU.99

Pennetta became the third-oldest winner of the desert tournament after Martina Navratilova, who won at age 33 and again at 34 in 1990-91. It was Pennetta's first title since winning at Marbella in 2010.
Read more at http://www.espn.co.uk/tennis/sport/story/292083.html#b9VFYZJ2mquieFMU.99

Pennetta became the third-oldest winner of the desert tournament after Martina Navratilova, who won at age 33 and again at 34 in 1990-91. It was Pennetta's first title since winning at Marbella in 2010.
Read more at http://www.espn.co.uk/tennis/sport/story/292083.html#b9VFYZJ2mquieFMU.99

Pennetta became the third-oldest winner of the desert tournament after Martina Navratilova, who won at age 33 and again at 34 in 1990-91. It was Pennetta's first title since winning at Marbella in 2010.
Read more at http://www.espn.co.uk/tennis/sport/story/292083.html#b9VFYZJ2mquieFMU.99

Pennetta became the third-oldest winner of the desert tournament after Martina Navratilova, who won at age 33 and again at 34 in 1990-91. It was Pennetta's first title since winning at Marbella in 2010.
Read more at http://www.espn.co.uk/tennis/sport/story/292083.html#b9VFYZJ2mquieFMU.99

Pennetta became the third-oldest winner of the desert tournament after Martina Navratilova, who won at age 33 and again at 34 in 1990-91. It was Pennetta's first title since winning at Marbella in 2010.
Read more at http://www.espn.co.uk/tennis/sport/story/292083.html#b9VFYZJ2mquieFMU.99

Federer v Djokovic: Indian Wells Final Preview

 

It's been a great fortnight at the BNP Paribas Open. We've seen the defending champion knocked out early, Murray still on the search for his form and Dolgopolov breaking though.

 

Only Federer and Djokovic stand.

 

Federer has made an unbelievable run to the final. He has not dropped a single set!

Djokovic however, has had a shaky tournament by being taken the distance by Gonzalez, Cilic and Isner.

 

The Swiss is slight favourite to claim the title over the Serb as their most recent meeting was at the Dubai semi finals where Federer prevailed in 3 sets. He is also on a 11 match win streak. We have to see which Djokovic turns up but Federer must be prepared in their 33rd meeting!

 

 

Indian Wells 2014: Top 4 Seeds Analysed

 

With Indian Wells starting, all the top players will be in for the win. The defending champions Rafael Nadal and Maria Sharapova are looking good to retain their title. The top 4 seeds on both tours are real title contenders though, so be prepared for another amazing 2 weeks!



ATP -

#1 Seed - Rafael Nadal

Best Result - Champion '07, '09, '13
2013 Result - Champion

Worst Possible Draw -
R1 - Bye
R2 - Radek Stepanek
R3 - Alexandr Dolgopolov (28)
R4 - Fabio Fognini (13)
QF - Andy Murray (5)
SF - Stanislas Wawrinka (3)
F - Novak Djokovic (2)

Comparing his draw to others, the defending champion has certainly got the toughest draw. The world number 1 will be looking to have a rematch against Australian Open champion Stan Wawrinka and avenge his defeat to the Swiss. If the Spaniard can produce the performances he produced last year then he can certainly go all the way!



#2 Seed - Novak Djokovic

Best Result - Champion '08, '11
2013 Result - Semi Finalist

Worst Possible Draw -
R1 - Bye
R2 - Victor Hanescu
R3 - Ivan Dodig (31)
R4 - Tommy Robredo (16)
QF - Juan Martin del Potro (6)
SF - Tomas Berdych (4)
F - Rafael Nadal (1)

The Serbs run to the final looks fairly routine apart from the shadow of Juan Martin del Potro. The Argentine knocked out Novak at the semis last year and it looks almost certain that they'll meet again. Djokovic will be definite favourite to make the final but that's as far as it goes for the number 2 seed as his recent form has dipped.



#3 Seed - Stanislas Wawrinka

Best Result - Quarter Finalist '08, '11
2013 Result - Round Four

Worst Possible Draw -
R1 - Bye
R2 - Ivo Karlovic
R3 - Andreas Seppi (29
R4 - Mikhail Youzhny (14)
QF - Roger Federer (7)
SF - Rafael Nadal (1)
F - Novak Djokovic (2)

If the Swiss is to win the title, he's going to have to do it the hard way and maybe defeat 3 of the Big 4. The Australian Open Champion is in hot form but has not played in a tournament since the Aussie Open but he is unbeaten this year with 2 titles. The world number 3 will produce fine perfomances but his Swiss compatriot might get the better of him on this occasion.



#4 Seed - Tomas Berdych

Best Result - Semi Finalist '13
2013 Result - Semi Finalist

Worst Possible Draw -
R1 - Bye
R2 - Roberto Bautista Agut
R3 - Florian Mayer (26)
R4 - Grigor Dimitrov (15)
QF - Richard Gasquet (8)
SF - Novak Djokovic (2)
F - Rafael Nadal (1)

Tomas Berdych will be delighted he is in a top 4 seeding but it's no easy run to his second potential Masters crown. The Czech is unfortunate to be in the same eighth of the draw as in-form Grigor Dimitrov who is hot off a win in Acapulco but Berdych played well to get to the Dubai final and you never know, anything is possible.




WTA -

With no Serena again Indian Wells is pretty much open this year as the pool is very equal.


#1 Seed - Li Na

Australian Open champion Li Na has got to be the favourite for the title in Indian Wells. Her first challenge will be in the 4th Round where she might play Wimbledon finalist Sabine Lisicki who will definiltey give her a battle. Then maybe 2011 Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova. The potential semi final between Li Na and defending champion Maria Sharapova is destined to be an amazing spectacle but on recent form, Li is set to win her first title in Indian Wells.



#2 Seed - Agnieszka Radwanksa

The Pole has been playing very consistently over the last 2 years. Her performances in Australia were good and in Indian Wells she should be able to continue that form. However in Dubai she was very poor as she lost in her first match so we don't know which Radwanka will turn up. The shadow of Jelena Jankovic lures in the quarters and that shadow will probably defeat the Pole.



#3 Seed - Victoria Azarenka

Vika will look to retain her title she won in 2012 to bounce back from her fail to defend her 2 Australian Opens. The draw looks extremely good for Azarenka and it is pretty much certain she'll reach the final as her possible semi final opponents are Jelena Jankovic or Aga Radwanksa. Whether she'll win the title remains to be seen in the next 2 weeks but the final looks like a potential finish for the number 3 seed.



#4 Seed - Maria Sharapova

The defending champion will be looking for her 3rd consecutive Indian Wells final. The Russian has been struggling to find her form lately because of her injury at Wimbledon but her run to the 4th Round in Melbourne showed promise. For Maria Sharapova, the draw looks fairly easy as her hardest opponent before the semi finals will be Angelique Kerber. Unfortunately her possible semi final opponent will be Australian Open champ Li Na and her title defence will probably end there but you never know, Maria could make a comeback.

ATP Rankings 3.03.14

1 Nadal, Rafael (ESP)	14,085
2 Djokovic, Novak (SRB)	10,260
3 Wawrinka, Stanislas (SUI)	5,650
4 Ferrer, David (ESP)	5,160
5 Berdych, Tomas (CZE)	4,890
6 Murray, Andy (GBR)	4,885
7 Del Potro, Juan Martin (ARG)	4,870
8 Federer, Roger (SUI)	4,625
9 Gasquet, Richard (FRA)	2,950
10 Tsonga, Jo-Wilfried (FRA)	2,785
11 Raonic, Milos (CAN)	2,485
12 Haas, Tommy (GER)	2,435
13 Isner, John (USA)	2,320
14 Fognini, Fabio (ITA)	2,230
15 Youzhny, Mikhail (RUS)	2,145
16 Dimitrov, Grigor (BUL)	2,130
17 Robredo, Tommy (ESP)	2,005
18 Anderson, Kevin (RSA)	1,940
19 Almagro, Nicolas (ESP)	1,840
20 Janowicz, Jerzy (POL)	1,750

Fed & Baby Fed Dominate

 

Roger Federer won his 6th Dubai title on Saturday.



Federer fought back from a set down to beat Novak Djokovic for the first time in 18 months in Friday's semi-final.

A 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 over 3rd seed Tomas Berdych victory secured the 78th title of the Swiss' career - and first for nine months. With his 78th title, it moved Federer ahead of John McEnroe to go 3rd in the all time title list, behind  Jimmy Connors and Ivan Lendl.

 

 Meanwhile in Mexico, Grigor Dimitrov or "Baby Fed" won his second career title in fine fashion.

 

The Bulgarian played one of the matches of his life as he defeated Andy Murray in the semis in 3 sets.

 

The 22 year old took a tight first set on a tie-break before his big-serving rival took the second.

Anderson, 27, went a break up in the deciding third but, at 4-3, double-faulted when facing a break point.

The match was settled by another tie-break and world number 22 Dimitrov kept his nerve to win his second ATP title.

ATP Rankings 24.02.14

1 Nadal, Rafael (ESP)	14,580
2 Djokovic, Novak (SRB)	10,580
3 Wawrinka, Stanislas (SUI)	5,560
4 Ferrer, David (ESP)	5,370
5 Del Potro, Juan Martin (ARG)	4,960
6 Berdych, Tomas (CZE)	4,890
7 Murray, Andy (GBR)	4,795
8 Federer, Roger (SUI)	4,305
9 Gasquet, Richard (FRA)	2,950
10 Tsonga, Jo-Wilfried (FRA)	2,785
11 Raonic, Milos (CAN)	2,485
12 Haas, Tommy (GER)	2,435
13 Isner, John (USA)	2,320
14 Fognini, Fabio (ITA)	2,260
15 Youzhny, Mikhail (RUS)	2,100
16 Robredo, Tommy (ESP)	2,050
17 Almagro, Nicolas (ESP)	1,930
18 Gulbis, Ernests (LAT)	1,788
19 Janowicz, Jerzy (POL)	1,750
20 Nishikori, Kei (JPN)	1,715

Rafa Wins No. 62 & Cilic is on Fire

Two titles were won yesterday.

First was Rafael Nadal winning his 62nd career title in the Rio Open defeating Alexandr Dolgopolov in straight sets.

The Spaniard, who survived two match points in the semi-final against Pablo Andujar, never looked under any threat as he cruised to a 6-3, 7-6(3) victory.

It was Nadal's 43rd clay title and stretches his record on the surface to 298-21, the best of the Open era.

Dolgopolov hit several exquisite winners, especially from the backhand wing, but struggled to find a consistent enough game to trouble Nadal, who made only a handful of unforced errors in the whole match.

In the USA, an in-form Cilic won his 2nd title in 3 weeks. The Croat is certainly playing his best tennis ever as he defeated 4th seed Kevin Anderson 7-6(6), 6-7(7), 6-4.

"These three weeks have been very long for me," said Cilic, the winner in Zagreb and runner-up last week in Rotterdam. "I'm going to enjoy it for a while and have a little rest."

Venus Wins Dubai

Venus Williams beat Alize Cornet in straight sets to win the Dubai Championships title for a third time.

Venus had to avenge her sisters straight set defeat to Cornet in the semis.

Venus used all of her experience to record a 6-3 6-0 victory against the world number 26 in Saturday's final.

This was her first WTA Tour title since she won in Luxembourg  in October 2012.

Cornet's impressive victory over Serena in the last four means the Williams sisters have still not met in a final since 2009.

Venus was not in a mood to join her sister in defeat, however, and beat the 24-year-old Frenchwoman in a match lasting 91 minutes.

Key to the victory - her 45th on the WTA Tour - was the fact she converted five of eight break points against the Cornet serve, while her French opponent only took advantage of one out of six such opportunities to come her way.

In the rest of the draw, Venus had to fight past incredibly good players in the shape of Ana Ivanovic, Flavia Pennetta, Caroline Wozniaki and Alize Cornet. Remarkably, Venus did not drop a single set.

ATP Rankings 17.02.14

Rank, Name & Nationality	Points
1 Nadal, Rafael (ESP)	14,085
2 Djokovic, Novak (SRB)	10,580
3 Wawrinka, Stanislas (SUI)	5,620
4 Ferrer, David (ESP)	5,440
5 Del Potro, Juan Martin (ARG)	4,960
6 Berdych, Tomas (CZE)	4,950
7 Murray, Andy (GBR)	4,795
8 Federer, Roger (SUI)	4,305
9 Gasquet, Richard (FRA)	2,950
10 Tsonga, Jo-Wilfried (FRA)	2,885
11 Raonic, Milos (CAN)	2,440
12 Haas, Tommy (GER)	2,435
13 Isner, John (USA)	2,320
14 Fognini, Fabio (ITA)	2,260
15 Nishikori, Kei (JPN)	2,170
16 Youzhny, Mikhail (RUS)	2,100
17 Robredo, Tommy (ESP)	2,050
18 Almagro, Nicolas (ESP)	1,930
19 Janowicz, Jerzy (POL)	1,785
20 Dimitrov, Grigor (BUL)	1,675

Ferrer Wins 3 Straight Titles in Argentina

Top seed David Ferrer became the first player to win three straight Copa Claro titles, defeating second seed Fabio Fognini 6-4, 6-3 in the final on Sunday in Buenos Aires.

World No. 5 Ferrer ended a seven-match losing streak in ATP finals, winning his first title since last year's Copa Claro and his 21st overall.

Ferrer said, "I’m happy for my new title. The last seven finals I lost, and this time I can change my luck so I’m happy for that. I try to always do my best and finally I can win again another title."

The 31-year-old will climb to fourth in the world rankings on Monday, displacing Argentine Juan Martin del Porto who played in Rotterdam this week.

The loss snapped Fognini's 10-match winning streak and marked just his second in his past 25 clay-court matches.

Simona Halep Triumphs in Qatar

Seventh seed Simona Halep of Romania won her first title of the year with a 6-2, 6-3 victory over sixth-seeded Angelique Kerber of Germany in the Qatar Open final on Sunday.

It's the seventh career title for Halep, with the other six all won last year.

"I think it's the best, because it's the biggest tournament which I won," Halep said.

For the first time Halep defeated three top-10 players at the same event -- No. 7 Sara Errani in the quarterfinals, No. 4 Agnieszka Radwanska in the semi finals, and the ninth-ranked Kerber.

Kerber was unable to break Halep's serve despite four break point opportunities in the match. Simona played great aggressive tennis and ended up winning 6-2, 6-3.

In the updated rankings, Halep will move from a current career-high 10th to ninth. Kerber will go from ninth to eighth.

Berdych Wins First Title in 16 Months!

World #7 Tomas Berdych won his first title since his triumph in Stockholm in October 2012! The Czech defeated Marin Cilic who was in hot form knocking out both Andy Murray and Jo-Wilfred Tsonga. The Croat was looking for his second title in as many weeks as he was on a 9 match win streak.

As a result of clinching his 9th career title, Tomas Berdych  will move ahead of Andy Murray to number 6 in the ATP Rankings.

"It feels absolutely amazing," Berdych said. "It's been a while, actually 16 months since I won a title. To win a title in Rotterdam it's a nice bonus. I'm extremely happy with the way I handled it throughout the week. I've been serving pretty well, which has been the strong part of my game."

In the entire match, Tomas only faced 3 break points and he saved all of them. He fired 20 winners and benefitted from 22 unforced errors by Cilic to claim the victory in 75 minutes.

Murray targeting World #1

World #6 Andy Murray is admitting that he wants the #1 ranking although it is not his main goal. The Scot was a late entry in Rotterdam and Murray says his main goal is getting back to full fitness by entering the event.

Andy said:
"The number one thing for me this year though is to get myself healthy again, get my body ready to compete in the grand slams. Yes if I have an opportunity to do it then I'll definitely go for it but right now that's not an immediate goal"

The no.2 seed is definitely the favourite to retain the title he won in 2009 (with a win over Rafael Nadal) although he has got a tough draw ahead of him. He may have to face Jo-Wilfred Tsonga, Richard Gasquet and defending champion Juan Martin del Potro.

Andy Murray starts his campaign today with a first round match against Édouard Roger-Vasselin.

ATP Rankings 10.02.14

Rank, Name & Nationality	Points
1 Nadal, Rafael (ESP)	14,330	0
2 Djokovic, Novak (SRB)	10,580	0
3 Wawrinka, Stanislas (SUI)	5,710
4 Del Potro, Juan Martin (ARG)	5,370
5 Ferrer, David (ESP)	5,280
6 Murray, Andy (GBR)	4,795
7 Berdych, Tomas (CZE)	4,540
8 Federer, Roger (SUI)	4,355
9 Gasquet, Richard (FRA)	2,950
10 Tsonga, Jo-Wilfried (FRA)	2,885
11 Raonic, Milos (CAN)	2,690
12 Haas, Tommy (GER)	2,495
13 Isner, John (USA)	2,320
14 Fognini, Fabio (ITA)	2,260
15 Youzhny, Mikhail (RUS)	2,100
16 Nishikori, Kei (JPN)	1,965
17 Robredo, Tommy (ESP)	1,960
18 Almagro, Nicolas (ESP)	1,930
19 Dimitrov, Grigor (BUL)	1,810
20 Janowicz, Jerzy (POL)	1,705

Titles for Monfils, Fognini & Cilic

Monfils, Fognini & Cilic all won their first titles of 2014 yesterday.

Gael Monfils or La Monf outclassed defending champion and world #9 Richard Gasquet in the Open Sud de France event in Montpellier 6-4, 6-4. The fans loved to see an all French Final as the top seed Gasquet took on 5th seed Monfils. La Monf dominated the entire match getting one crucial break in each set. Monfils' serve was a real weapon and he did not face a single break point and he served up 9 aces as Gasquet hit 0. Gael also hit 34 winners, much more to Richard's 17. Monfils won his 5th ATP title with a service winner.

At the Chile Open, Fabio Fognini easily dispatched Leonardo Mayer of Argentina in the final to collect his 3rd ATP title. Fabio defeated the Argentine 6-2, 6-4 eventually converting his 5th match point. Fognini has won all his titles in the past year all on outdoor clay and the Italian will be looking forward to the clay court season.

Marin Cilic won a native tournament at the Zagreb indoors winning his 4th title at the event. The Croatian defeated top seed Tommy Haas of Germany with a comfortable score of 6-3, 6-4. Marin is making a fierce run back to the top 20 after dropping out because of a ban set from the ATP after Cilic failed a drug test.