Roger Federer will kick off his Gstaad campaign on Thursday against familiar foe Daniel Brands. Janko Tipsarevic and Robin Haase are also looking for a spot in the quarterfinals. Chris Skelton previews the action.
Roger Federer vs. Daniel Brands
Welcome to Part 2 of this home-and-home series between the Swiss superstar and the German journeyman. Despite his lowly status, Brands often has risen to the occasion against elite opponents. He took a set from Rafael Nadal at Roland Garros this spring, for example, and just last week he won a set from Federer at Hamburg in their only meeting to date.
Federer’s morale must languish at its lowest ebb in many months after he sustained two losses in two tournaments to opponents outside the Top 100. The upsets secured by Sergiy Stakhovsky and Federico Delbonis will have emboldened underdogs like Brands. And the relatively fast, slippery clay in the mountainous setting of Gstaad will not help a player searching for rhythm, as Federer is this week. Home-court advantage may boost his confidence, but he must serve more impressively than he did in Hamburg, where a back injury may have troubled him again.
But Federer will know what to expect from Brands this time. He should enter their rematch more on guard, aware of the massive serve and fearlessness of his opponent. Federer also may know what to expect from his own racket. Testing a larger, more powerful Wilson frame at Hamburg, he struggled at times with control. The additional time to practice with it should smoothen the transition as Federer looks to give his home fans something to cheer.
Skelton pick: Federer in 2
Dimon pick: Federer in 2
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Robin Haase vs. (3) Janko Tipsarevic
Like Federer and Brands, Haase and Tipsarevic have met only once before. Both men probably would rate clay as their least favorite surface, so they may battle the court as much as each other—and themselves.
Tipsarevic has watched his ranking plummet outside the Top 10 this year as he has suffered seven opening-round losses. Playing smaller tournaments like Gstaad usually helps top players emerge from slumps, but he has crashed out of such events just as ignominiously. The top seed at a 250 in Bogota last week, Tipsarevic lost his second match to unseeded Alejandro Falla. Now he faces a rapid transition from hard courts to clay, a strange decision considering his preference for hard courts and the additional travel involved.
Never a threat of Tipsarevic’s quality, Haase earned himself some attention this year of the dubious variety. He set the ATP record for consecutive tiebreaks lost, and he long has been one of the worst players in the Top 100 at closing out matches after he wins the first set. Staying in Europe after Wimbledon, Haase took the much more formidable Jerzy Janowicz to a final-set tiebreak in Hamburg (which, of course, he lost). One round before, though, he went to 7-5 in the third set against the anonymous Diego Sebastian Schwartzman. That pair of results shows how much Haase’s mind and game can fluctuate from one day to another.
Considering the generally unreliable form of both men all season, one can expect a match of modest quality in which both men struggle to capitalize on opportunities. Haase probably owns the superior serve, which may give him an edge at this altitude. But it’s nearly impossible to choose between two slumping, enigmatic competitors too fond of low-percentage tennis.
Skelton pick: Haase in 3
Dimon pick: Haase in 3
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on another note, even delpo thinks he played better in qimb semi than USO 09 final 🙂
http://www.atpworldtour.com/News/Tennis/2013/07/27/Wimbledon-Friday-Del-Potro-Reaction.aspx
#ToldYou
Rafa ‘might ‘ skip cincinnati, reports marca !!
would be expected. No reason for him to play there.
marca also reports playing too much heading into USO could damage rafa’s sore knee and left elbow (which he picked up at wimbledon)…depending on his monreal run, rafa will decide on cincy.. marca also reports that rafa was willing to play stuttgart/hamburg/gstaad but chose to work…he is practising in monacor nowadays and prearing…i feel rafa is being very very cautious now…move wisely rafa ! good luck
vamosrafa,
Doesn’t this concern you? Cincy is a Masters tournament and mandatory. So how does Rafa get out of it? His knee or elbow? I know that the conditions at Cincy have always been unfavorable for Rafa, but I don’t know how he skips another Masters tournament.
Also, why does he have to be so cautious? Is the knee still a problem? This just makes me worry.
vamosrafa!
Marca reports that Rafa didn’t consider to play any clay tournaments in July! Probably the organizers of the tournaments (Stuttgart, Hamburg, Gstaad) wanted him to play.
http://www.marca.com/2013/07/27/tenis/1374921629.html?cid=MENUDES3601&s_kw=tenis_nadal-se-probara-%3Cbr%3Een-montreal
but chose to rest **
of course NNY, it does concern me :/ I am not sure but I think rafa is never too excited about cincy and he just wants to be extra cautious because of what has been happening at wimbleldon for two years..and about skipping masters 1000, dont worry these guys can manage 😉 fed is also likely to skip montreal..
the knee is always a problem for rafa IF he is not careful ! i dont think his knee would have suffered at wimby had he not played 9 consecutive finals heading into wimby ! remember rafa’s doctor saying after acapulco that rafa needs to take it slow and easy !He just wants to be fit for USO and have a full go..but I honestly want him to play cincy and reach the semis to gain some points…i know for many finishing no.1 does not matter but i really want rafa to end as no.1 🙂
@wc
Wanted to say one of the many things I miss about TT was the ease with which you could check the latest results. Seemed much easier than the ATP site. I regularly used to tune in, just to get the latest. 🙁
eh ATP site is/was way better for scores, IMO
deucey!
I suggets to check the results (and live score) on the LiveScoreHunter site.
http://www.livescorehunter.com/Livescores/Livescore-Tennis.html
vamosrafa,
Thanks for your thoughts. You know that I value your opinion very much. I do know that Cincy is a terrible tournament for Rafa. He hasn’t done well there even when he’s been 100% healthy. It’s a much faster court than the USO, I do know that. The conditions are awful with the oppressive heat and humidity in Cincy.
Why do you think Fed will skip Montreal? Because of his back trouble? It sounds to me like this may be the underlying cause for him having such a terrible year. Maybe the back has become more of a problem, particularly since Fed is almost 32. I don’t remember how he did at Montreal/Toronto last year. Does he have a lot of points to defend? Also he does have 1000 points to defend at Cincy, so he may have no choice if his back isn’t good. If he doesn’t do well at Cincy, he could drop even lower in the rankings.
The thing about Rafa having a problem at Wimby is that he hasn’t played that much as it is this year. Is it because he just came back from seven months off and those nine tournaments were all he could handle? Because in the past Rafa has been able to play at the early year warmup tournaments and the AO, then come back for the I/W and Miami and then play the clay court season and grass. I believe that Rafa must play a warmup tournament before Wimby. I don’t know how they are going to do that, but he just can’t go cold into Wimby. He’s said it himself.
I feel comfortable sharing with you here that I also want Rafa to get back the #1 ranking. He lost a big opportunity at Wimby and hopefully he can capitalize now.
Cheers again Augusta, 🙂 will do.
@wc
TT didn’t give point by point true, but much easier to get an overview of everything that was going on.
I feel worried about Rafa. Left elbow giving trouble?
The Marca report is contrary to an eye witness who saw Rafa practicing with no apparent difficulty yesterday, according to VB. Marca also categorically said that Rafa wouldn’t play IW and Miami.
Thanks nadline! I hope Marca is wrong. I don’t mind Rafa missing Cincy but missing not because of knee or elbow problems but because he wants to conserve his energy for the US Open.
Although Ricky thinks Rafa has no chance, I think he is the favorite for USO if reports of his knee and elbow troubling him ( more than at IW) are false.
he’s CERTAINLY not the favorite. He’s the third favorite AT BEST.
And i didn’t say he has no chance. I said he has the fifth best chance to win it. Fifth best IF HEALTHY. He has no chance if not 100 percent.
Picking a favourite is also based on opinion. When Rafa was told that he was not the favourite for Madrid by a journalist, this was what he said:
“I don’t care at all,” he said through a translator. “Frankly, what words could I find to tell you? I mean, what else can I say? I try and play my best tennis, and the least of my concerns is to know if I’m favoured or not. These are words that will be carried away by the wind”.
well it’s a players opinion because they don’t care but who the favorite is, but all you have to do is go google the official odds. I haven’t looked yet, but Djokovic and Murray are definitely 1-2 in some order. They might be tied for first.
And, even if that was the case, that qualifies as “no good” on fast hard courts???
#LoftyStandards
+600 to win the US Open
Djokovic +150, Murray +160
saying you think Nadal is going to win the US Open is fine. that is an opinion and one that is plausible.
saying that you think Nadal is the favorite for the US Open is a statement that is factually incorrect.
Nadal is the 3rd favourite behind Nole and Muzz to win the USO according to current oddsmakers. USO is not fast like Cincy, Doha or indoor courts.
And as far as having to be 100% to win the USO, that applies to every player.
Everybody, guys, those of us who have known Ricky for a long time know full well that he only picks Rafa as favourite on clay. There is no way he’ll pick him to win on h/c.
Again, I don’t pick who the favorites are. I don’t set the odds.
Posted by Rafael Nadal Fans
29th Jul 2013
Rafael Nadal was seen practicing on a hard court in Manacor on Saturday. According to Rafa’s french fan Mathilde, he looked to be in top form, working on his attack and volley. Rafa did not have tape on his knee and did not show any signs of pain. His cousins were also on hand to show support. In all, it seemed like a great practice session.
http://rafaelnadalfans.com/2013/07/29/rafael-nadal-eager-for-summer-hard-court-season/
There are no references or quotes from Rafa’s team.
Marca doesn’t seem very credible to me.
so the odd makers have also placed rafa at no.3 ! I have muzz, nole, rafa, delpo, fed as the top 5 favourties..yes I have delpo above fed…
NNY,i also value your opinion highly 🙂 .. and federer did not play toronto last year ! and I just think he’ll skip montreal this year..he wont risk his back and fed did not seem to be eager to play montreal during his presser at Gstaad…
and about marca, well yes we cannot be that sure..but marca does not say rafa ‘will’ miss cincy ..it just says rafa might skip it and we have read the translation from spanish .. Rafa having problems in left elbow is not new..we all know about the left knee..I think its all about rafa being cautious ! If he feels good after montreal or if he gets out early he’l go for cincy, otherwise not !
Nadline, thanks for the info..I would prefer to believe a bystander if he is telling the truth… but we should remember that it is not easy to figure out if a player is suffering from some minor injury during practise sessions..its just not that noticeable..
anyway, I hope rafa is fit ! I am confident of a good showing at the USO 🙂
vamosrafa,
Yes, I did find out on another site that Fed didn’t play Toronto last year. So it makes sense that he would skip it if the back is an issue. He will want to be ready for Cincy, where there’s 1000 points at stake.
I think Delpo is definitely in the mix, provided that his knee is now healthy. He was in formidable form at Wimbledon, the closest I have seen him to the way he looked before he hurt his wrist. I think Fed’s going to have a tough time. He will be going in ranked at least 5th. He has been having trouble even with easy draws. I know that he’s won a bunch of USO’s but this has been a terrible year for Fed. We’ll have to see how he looks at Cincy.
I am hearing that Marca is not reliable. However, I do agree that a bystander won’t be able to tell if something is bothering Rafa. These are practices and Rafa’s not going all out. It’s not the same as actually playing conditions in a match.
If Rafa is fit and healthy and has the chance to play himself into good form at Montreal and maybe Cincy, then I am looking forward to seeing him at the USO!
Well, it is my opinion that Rafa will win the USO. I am not interested in knowing who is the favorite.Was Rafa ever the favorite for a hard court slam?
i’m not particularly interested in it either. but I’m also not going to just sit here and not correct someone when they make a factually incorrect statement.
and no, Rafa has never been favored at the US Open. I can’t remember if he was favored at the 2009 or 2010 Australian.
Rafa is my favorite to win – always and everywhere.
Rafa is my favorite to win – everywhere and always.
I’m testing. My previous post hasn’t shown up in around 45 minutes.
you entered your name in wrong, so I had to approve the comment before it showed up
Thanks, Ricky (July 30, 2013 at 12:26 pm)!
Rafael Nadal confirms Montreal and Cincinnati
JUL 30
Posted by Rafael Nadal Fans
In an interview at the football match that he kicked off on July 29, Rafael Nadal told reporters that he will play at Montreal and Cincinnati this summer, to ensure that he is in his best shape for the US Open. Recent reports have been circulated by Marca and a popular tennis reporter about Rafa withdrawing from Cincinnati, but these claims have not been substantiated by either Rafa or his team, and it is unclear where these claims originated from.
http://rafaelnadalfans.com/2013/07/30/rafael-nadal-confirms-montreal-and-cincinnati/
I did not make a factually incorrect statement. When I said I think he is the favorite, it means, I think he is most likely to win, not that others think he is most likely to win. So really Ricky you must question your bias and understanding of the situation. Favorite means most likely to win. The bookies might have Nole or Muzza as the favorite as most people think Nole or Muzza are the favorites, I have Rafa as the favorite.
Despite his having more hard court slams than everybody except Fed and Nole among current players, you claimed he is bad on hard courts!
Also while your justification for not having Rafa as fave is that his record on hard courts is not as good as that of the other two, Rafa’s record on clay did not matter to you when last year you kept predicting Nole as the winner on clay!!!
then he say you think he is most likely to win. You said he is the favorite. Those statements are completely different.
Hi everyone! I enjoyed Ricky’s writings and comments from all three years. I was sorry it was over. I’ve never written before. Glad to here everyone. Rafa anywhere, anytime chance of winning! In exceptional.
haha… i think both of you are saying slightly diff things.. anyway, as both of you said, it does not matter who the favourite is. Even if we want to plant favourites, wht not wait till cincy.. If rafa fares really badly in both montreal and cincy, then of coures his chances will be slim but these are all speculations.
Thanks nadline, I also saw that video on youtube. Finally some confirmation from rafa 🙂
I would love to see him winning doing well in both..
BRING IT ON