Ricky Dimon of The Grandstand and Steen Kirby of Tennis Atlantic preview and pick the four best men’s singles matches on Saturday at the French Open. Fast-rising stars Jack Sock, Borna Coric, and Nick Kyrgios are all on the schedule.
Jack Sock vs. Borna Coric
Ricky: If you aren’t excited for this one, well, you’re not a hardcore tennis fan. Sock and Coric should be battling deep into Grand Slams–much deeper than the third round, in fact–for years to come. Both rising stars have already posted mammoth wins at Roland Garros. Sock upset No. 10 seed Grigor Dimitrov in the first round and Coric outlasted 18th-seeded Tommy Robredo in five sets during second-round action. As you might expect, that one was an absolute war. Coric’s fitness is no kind of question mark, but at 18 years old he is not accustomed to five-setters. Surviving another one–and withstanding Sock’s offensive barrage–may be too much to ask. Sock 6-7(5), 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2.
Steen: I for one am pleased Jack Sock made it this far after a pair of quality wins, and it’s even more intriguing that another young gun, Coric, has done the same (though his wins were more expected in my book). This should be a close match that has the makings of a future rivalry regardless of the outcome. Sock’s forehand on this clay is a threat, while Coric has a slight edge in the all-around game. It could be a classic battle in which both will lay it all on the line. I tend to wonder how the five-setter will affect Coric fatigue-wise, and with that being the case I’m going with Sock in five sets. Sock 7-5, 4-6, 2-6, 6-4, 6-3.
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(3) Andy Murray vs. (29) Nick Kyrgios
Ricky: Holy smokes this one looks good on paper. Murray is undefeated with a 12-0 record on clay this season. Kyrgios is a human highlight reel who thrives on big stages. Unfortunately, this matchup might not live up to the hype. It certainly has not in the past. Murray cruised 6-2, 6-2 last summer in Toronto and 6-3, 7-6(5), 6-3 in the quarterfinals of this year’s Australian Open. This just isn’t a good matchup for Kyrgios. Even with his firepower, the young Aussie still struggles to his through Murray’s defense. It will be even tougher to do so on the red stuff. Murray 6-2, 7-6(5), 6-4.
Steen: Murray has twice defeated Kyrgios on a hard court, as the Aussie doesn’t seem to match up as well against him as he does with Rafael Nadal or Roger Federer. That said, Kyrgios has played only three sets of tennis as he comes off a walkover, while Murray has played seven this tournament and Joao Sousa gave him a test for at least a couple of sets in their match. Kyrgios should be fresher, and given that Murray has a habit of starting slow, I could see the underdog roaring out of the gate and winning the first set or maybe even first two sets. That said, in the long run the arc of this match should favor Murray on the clay, so I have him advancing in five. Murray 4-6, 5-7, 6-4, 7-6, 6-4.
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(9) Marin Cilic vs. (23) Leonardo Mayer
Ricky: Interestingly, their only previous encounter also came in the same round of this same event (Cilic prevailed 6-4, 3-6, 7-5, 6-7(5), 6-4 in 2010). The 2014 U.S. Open champion, who is on the way back from a lingering shoulder injury, said earlier this season that he hoped reach peak shape in time for Wimbledon. He appears to be on the right track with two routine victories so far in Paris. This is a tough one to call, but Mayer struggled at times with Jiri Vesely and Jerzy Janowicz. That’s not what the Argentine needed coming off a long week in Nice (finished runner-up to Dominic Thiem). Cilic 7-6(5), 6-2, 3-6, 7-5.
Steen: When they played at the 2010 French Open, it went five sets. Cilic is a weaker player than he was then, while Mayer has improved. Thus we could have the makings of an instant classic, as the style clash will be evident. Mayer has beaten tougher opponents so far in Paris, while Cilic has looked more fashionable in his wins. It’s a difficult pick, but I’m going with Cilic’s experience to win the day. Cilic 6-3, 7-5, 5-7, 6-4.
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(20) Richard Gasquet vs. (15) Kevin Anderson
Ricky: This is the seventh time Gasquet and Anderson will face each other and the seventh time they will face each other in a round of 32. But it is the first time they will square off on clay, which favors Gasquet. The Frenchman already leads the head-to-head series 4-2 even though all six of their previous encounters have come on hard courts. Gasquet has endured the tougher week so far, needing five sets to get past Carlos Berlocq in a darkness-delayed match. But he required only seven total games to win the fifth set on Friday and should have plenty left in the tank to treat the home crowd to another win. Gasquet 6-7(6), 6-2, 6-4, 7-5.
Steen: Given this is clay, and in France, Gasquet should probably cruise. But Anderson has dropped just one set over two matches (against weak opponents, but still…), while Gasquet is coming off a difficult five setter against Berlocq, perhaps saved to some extent by the fact the fifth set got postponed due to darkness. Gasquet was incredibly shaky at times and got bossed around by Berlocq in their match. Anderson could dictate play similarly with his forehand, but I still have to go with Gasquet to advance. Gasquet 7-6, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3.
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where is all this negativity stemming from?!!
RAfa’s playing great tennis. His backhand is brilliant at the moment and he is making progress. I know his forehand was shaky in sets 1 and 2 and he missed some easy ones , esp DTL and inside out,. He has surely gotten more consistent with his CC and inside-in forehands though. Rafa MUST iron out his forehand mistakes if he is to beat djokovic.
Well, djokovic is one match away and we have Jack Sock now! The guy imparts almost as much spin on his forehand as rafa does on his forehand!!! Sock is going to test rafa’s forehand sternly. Plus, he will go after rafa’s vulnerable second serves too!
Rafa’s performance in the third set today was quite strong. Even stats reflect that (12 winners to 4 UE). The disappointing stat was points won on first serve.
Sock will surely be a tough one but rafa is raising his level and getting steadier and steadier. I am loving his backhand ! Rafa will beat him in 3 or 4 tough sets. I am glad he has a tough match before he meets nole! Not taking Sock for granted given how well he is playing but I have faith in rafa wo get the win here.
I so wish rafa vs djo was in the semi as rafa is getting better and better. Anyway, just hit the practice courts , rafa , and clean up your forehand! vamos
vamosrafa, glad you see things more positively! I am not much of a judge when I get too agitated….I did think that his backhand was very solid, as it was against Almagro…..
don’t you think he played better last round? he seemed to be missing easy forehands today.. and his second serve return was very poor in the first set….
amy, yes, his forehand was steadier in the last match. But, he started hitting his forehand much more cleanly in the third set and rafa always loves it when he finishes a match playing better!
Two things he needs to take a notch up are : forehand, and quality of first serve.
He does not have enough confidence on his DTL and esp inside out forehands (judging by the amount of air he is giving a lot of his inside-out forehands). He needs to get that lethal combination of spin and pace back WITH CONSISTENCY.
There is no doubt he is playing A LOT better than he did in the entire clay season!
If you are able to win Three best of five set matches without any trouble, you are surely on the right track. The opposition has not been too good so Sock will give us a fair idea!
Rafa especially struggled to find first serves when he was serving for sets. Any negativity is because of the high standard he will be held to against Nole. He is still quite a distance from that level IMO.
well , as I said, the first serve definitely needs to improve and so does the forehand! Otherwise, he will lose to Nole. However, he never quite peaks this early at RG so this is something not too unusual. I expect him to get better by the time he enters the second week. A couple of practice sessions and a tough match is what rafa has to improve his game.
“Rafa especially struggled to find first serves when he was serving for sets. ”
Nerves?
vamosrafa, like hawkeye I was watching the match with a view to the quarter final so of course I was very worried! I really wish he was playing Nole in the final or even semis….I still think he can beat Nole but he could do with more time. I have been too chicken to watch earlier in the season so honestly last match I was thinking what have you guys been talking about! because I thought he played well against Almagro. but against Almagro he was putting in great first serves on break points or when under threat..so although he didn’t serve that well overall he was putting in the serves when it mattered. Not today. His forehand was a lot better then especially DTL and inside out – DTL is usually the key to his game….when that’s on you know he’s going to win.
It’s good that he will get tested against Sock…..
Vamos Rafa!!
amy, you seem to have very good understanding of rafa’s game! you are aware what he needs to do to get back to his best.
Your points are valid . But like you said, it’s a good thing he will be tested against Sock. We must keep in mind that it is not easy to forget the horrors of past month and all of a sudden start playing his best tennis!
vamosrafa, yes true (ie the previous horrors)..and so I guess his positivity is all to the good….
do you believe that he can beat Novak in the quarters? it’s a much tougher test than if he had more matches….I do believe that he can, but am a bit worried I am deluding myself given that I haven’t watched him in the European clay season. (I am starting to understand how things went wrong though given that he switched rackets….that probably unsettled him…)
Kuznetsov played a good third set by the way
Can I ask if you all have any opinions about the torrential sweating? it worries me…..
Who thinks Djoker is relishing the prospect of playing Rafa in te QF?
Relishing? NO WAY
I ask because of the way Rafa is being portrayed as very much the underdog. Yes, Rafa has been struggling with his form but he only barely won Madrid last year and still beat Djoker at RG.
Right now I think it’s 50/50 if they meet; notwithstanding the fact that Rafa is 6:0 against Djoker at RG and Rafa has won their last 4 GS matches.
I understood the negative comments as people were watching, because they are understandably thinking about Novak waiting in the quarterfinals. We all know where Rafa’s game needs to be when he faces him. I didn’t take it in any way as derogatory about Rafa at all. People are just being human and reacting in the moment.
I only saw the third set and Rafa looked good to me at that point in the match. As I said earlier up thread, Paul Annacone gave his succinct summary of how Rafa looked in the match when asked. He said that he was good, except for that blip in the second set when he was up 5-1 serving for the set. Then he said that Rafa ticked off all the boxes today. I like hearing what he has to say because he is very objective and fair. He’s also respectful of Rafa.
Rafa is not playing well enough now to beat Novak. But he isn’t facing him just yet. Sock will be the first real test for Rafa. The guy is playing outstanding tennis and will definitely make this a match. Rafa needs to be pushed to raise his level of play.
I think Rafa is vulnerable because of his serve and also the mental letdowns at key points. The inability to serve out set is a clear indication of nerves and a lack of mental focus.
It’s the media and the pundits who are portraying Rafa as the underdog against Novak. They are the ones who are talking up Novak as though he is God. As I said previously a few days ago, they make it seem as though he can walk on water.
For what it’s worth, I do not think Novak is looking forward to playing Rafa in the quarterfinals. It will force him to also raise his level of play because that is what he will need to beat Rafa. I am sure he would rather have faced anyone else! However, he has been playing extremely well this year and has the titles to give him a good deal of confidence and belief. That counts for a lot. He has the titles that Rafa has so desperately needed.
Looking ahead is dangerous. Rafa has to get through his next match.
What are Socks strengths? He seemed to crush Coric.
Is he the ace man or does he have a good on ground game too?
Sock is on a roll right now. He has the groundstrokes to back up his serve. His forehand is supposed to be one of his strengths. He’s had quite the run here, starting with a good win over Dimi. Now he just beat a young guy who has been playing really well.
He’s got a big serve, but also the game to back it up. The key is that he will come out with nothing to lose. He’s got nothing on the line. So he can play freely, aggressively, going for his shots.
Rafa knows that he’s been playing well. He’s been around long enough to know what to expect. He will need to play better than he did today. But Rafa needs a test before Novak.
I think Djoker will be under pressure if they meet in the QF not wanting to lose yet again to Rafa especially as everyone says Rafa is below par. Rafa on the other hand knows much is not expected of him so will be more relaxed.
Anyway, we are not there yet. They both have their 4th round matches to win.
1 match at a time. Remember Nick Kyrgios last year Wimby and what happened? That came out of nowhere. 1 match at a time
absolutely Sanju….! Sock has an excellent forehand and very good serve so he’s not going to be a pushover. He has as much spin on his forehand as Rafa!
What I don’t like is that Rafa hasn’t played him before – we know that Rafa doesn’t like that….
I was surprised to read so much negativity on this thread about Rafas match after seeing the score.
I think it’s to be expected when people are live blogging. I am not going to call anyone out for what they say in the heat of the moment. I think when Rafa was serving for the second set and then was broken and finally won it at 6-3, that concerned people. It’s normal. Nothing wrong with that. We know that Rafa will have to do better against Novak.
I didn’t see the first two sets, so I can’t speak to that. I can only talk about what I saw and that was the third set. I thought in that set Rafa played well.
No matter how he played, a win is a win. He moves on.
@Sanju
That coming from you Sanju is pretty rich!!!!!!!!!!!!
I was definitely guilty of negativity during the match but have had time to reflect now. It was largely the result of disappointment he was not playing with the confidence he showed against Almagro compounded by the yawing stats (particularly his serve) and concern at his profuse sweating which is often a symptom of his nervousness.
As Amy has reminded us, he nearly always gives us a fright during the first week! I was taken by surprise by the number of free points he donated. It wasn’t I had any doubt he would pull through but I was frustrated by his lapses in concentration and the length of multiple deuce games on his own serve. Overall it was a pretty tedious match and a long way from the Rafa we are used to seeing at RG.
Maybe you were too anxious, ed. I had no doubt that Rafa would win the match from the 2nd game onwards. Kuznetsov was overwhelmed most of the time and I thought Rafa got a little blaze at times that’s why he missed and dropped his serve on a couple of occasion.
In 2011, Rafa had three very tough matches to start with. Starting with Isner then Andjuar and Lorenzi who both took sets of Rafa so in my mind today was a walk in the park.
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ROLAND GARROS 2015
NADAL SETS SOCK SHOWDOWN IN FOURTH ROUND
Paris, France
by ATP Staff | 30.05.2015
http://www.atpworldtour.com/~/media/80A0CDBD57CA4734B3D7ABF70B4DEC77.ashx
© Getty Images
Rafael Nadal blasted into the fourth round Saturday at Roland Garros.
Rafael Nadal continued his ruthless run of form Saturday at Roland Garros, dismissing Andrey Kuznetsov 6-1, 6-3, 6-2.
Nadal, who is bidding for an unprecedented 10th title in Paris, will face Jack Sock in the Round of 16. It will be their first meeting.
The Spaniard was indomitable in the early stages, reeling off nine of the first 10 games. He broke Kuznetsov in the Russian’s first five service games, taking a two-set lead in just 90 minutes. He secured the decisive break in the third game of the third set The sixth seed fired 33 winners, converting on eight of 14 break points in total.
“It will be not fair if I say that I am not happy about what happened this first week, being fourth round without losing a set,” said Nadal. “I think playing solid, consistent. That’s what I need to. Then I arrive the second week and you know that you have to go that extra step to have chances. So I hope to have a good practice tomorrow and be ready to play a great match on Monday, because I will need it.”
Concerning the Sock encounter, how tough he will try to make this for Rafa depends largely on whether he is prepared to jeopodise the chances of a second Popsocks Slam.
#SomethingHasToGive
That has to be a joke right? Doubles is nothing compared to joining Soderling in the record books. You don’t even need full energy to play doubles.
Sock has never beaten a big name player – except for Dimitrov who is ultra-flaky….
Does he really believe he can beat Rafa? He sure as hell is more likely to believe he can win in the doubles and mind-set is everything.
^^^@ filter
I simply posed the hypothesis – which of the two will he jettison?
You are adamant it will be doubles. I’m not 100% certain. I’m not suggesting he would tank for the sake of the doubles but he is too good a sportsman to want to kill himself in the effort just for the spurious glory of being only the 2nd man to beat Rafa at RG.
BTW: I disagree playing singles AND doubles in the 2nd week of a slam is the doddle you suggest.
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The only thing that auto filter is adamant about is abandoning Federer to climb on the Nole train. Worse kind of fedfan. Tsk Tsk Tsk
Speaking of Fed, he better get his match in today or a request from The Chosen One will see Rafa playing on lenglen tomorrow which will not help him vs Sock.
I was thinking of same. However by the way I have seen matches at Chartier played till 9 PM, so Fed has plenty of time 🙂 Hope he atleast gets started today. Djokovic is def playing on Chartier tomm as he has Gasquet (home player)
I doubt tonight though. There is another bank of black rain clouds heading towards Paris and the light is already poor. I think it is more likely Federer will object to the state of the courts as it has rained on and off all day and they look like ploughed fields ! Tsonga (who is playing with his mind as well as his muscles for a change) is already two sets up. Berdy looks unlikely to mount a comeback but there is still another set to be played.
Fed very well knows that if he delays todays match, Gael will get more rest..Gael has played 2 five setters..He wont want more recovery time for Gael.
Though I frankly feel Fed will beat Gael easily..maybe in straights too or max 4..It wont be the thriller all are expecting.
“The scheduled 4R matches between Sharapova-Safarova & Muguruza-Pennetta have been cancelled for today: rg.fr/RG15Sched#RG15,” tweeted the organizers.
So the last match of the day already pushed to Monday on both PC & SL courts
Popsocks are still in the doubles! Just dispatched Mahut/Bermann in straight sets.
British tv are saying that Fed-Monfils is still on next….surely Fed doesn’t want to give Gael another day’s rest…
Why is Berdy the fourth seed at any slam??!
The court conditions will be very heavy now..so whom will it benefit? Fed or Gael?
I am surprised Tsonga is thrashing Berdy in straights
It’s been a while since I last posted. It’s surprising to see Tsonga winning so easily.
good to see you here tj600
Who do you guys think will offer stiffer opposition to Fed? Simon or Wawrinka?
Simon took Fed to 5 the year before last. But Wawa has the bigger game….still Mirka will be there with some healthy encouragement for Stan to make sure he stays on the right track…. (Wawa was up on Fed at Wimby before he nosedived….)