A relatively depleted Montreal draw is not without Rafael Nadal, who is still alive and going up against surprising quarterfinalist Marinko Matosevic on Friday. Milos Raonic and Ernests Gulbis are also bidding for a spot in the last four.
(4) Rafael Nadal vs. Marinko Matosevic
Nadal and Matosevic will be facing each other for the second time in their careers and for the second time this season when they clash in the quarterfinals of the Rogers Cup on Friday. They just met on Nadal’s clay-court stomping grounds of Monte-Carlo, where the Spaniard dominated 6-1, 6-2. Less than four months later, Nadal’s 2013 record stands at 45-3 with its only real blemish a stunning first-round Wimbledon loss to Steve Darcis. The world No. 4 is back on track in Montreal with straight-set scalps of Jesse Levine and Jerzy Janowicz.
Matosevic’s sudden hot streak has come out of nowhere. Prior to last week in Washington, D.C. he had not won a match since the Queen’s Club first round–a span of five straight losses. The 74th-ranked Australian, though, reached the quarterfinals of that event and he finds himself at the same stage this week thanks to victories over Benjamin Becker, Tommy Haas (via first-set retirement), and Benoit Paire. Matosevic needed two hours and 30 minutes to hold off Paire 7-6(7), 6-7(10), 6-3, so that will not help his already-slim chances. The underdog will have a better shot on hard courts, but Nadal should dominate from the back of the court early and often.
Pick: Nadal 7-5, 6-2
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(11) Milos Raonic vs. Ernests Gulbis
Raonic and Gulbis will be squaring off for the fourth time in their careers during quarterfinal action on Friday. All three of their previous encounters have gone in Raonic’s favor and he has never even lost a single set to Gulbis. The Canadian prevailed 6-4, 7-5 at the 2011 Monte-Carlo Masters, 6-2, 7-6(3) on the indoor hard courts of Memphis in 2012, and 6-2, 7-6(6) earlier this season in Barcelona. Gulbis, however, has not only displayed flashes of brilliance in 2013 but he has also been surprisingly consistent. The 38th-ranked Latvian’s 27-12 record features a title in Delray Beach, a fourth-round showing at the Indian Wells Masters, and a 6-4, 6-3 upset of Andy Murray on Thursday.
Raonic’s third-round triumph was also a straight-set ousting of a higher-ranked opponent (Juan Martin Del Potro), but it was not without controversy. With Del Potro serving at 4-3 in the second, Raonic hit a winner but touched the net with his foot. It went uncalled, Raonic broke one point later, and he also won the next two games to end it in abrupt fashion. The world No. 13 improved to 24-13 for the year, which includes a title in San Jose and a semifinal finish in Barcelona. Raonic had cooled off considerably since Barcelona prior to his arrival in Montreal, but his past history against Gulbis and home-court advantage in Canada should give him a slight edge.
Pick: Raonic in 3
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This has really been one crazy tournament. I don’t know how a guy like Matosevic got to the quarterfinals, but hopefully Rafa will be able to deal with him in straight sets. Rafa never takes anyone for granted and that’s a good thing.
As far as what will happen should Rafa and Djoker meet in the semis, there is no way that Rafa won’t go all out to win. He’s been off for a while and hasn’t played much. So he won’t kill himself if it’s a tough match. He needs match play right now. Rafa doesn’t like to lose. Period. He won’t want to give up a win to Djoker on hard court before the USO, if at all possible.
Djoker’s performance against Istomin was dreadful. I assume it will be a wakeup call to let him know that he actually does have to show up for these matches. I still think he is the slight favorite over Rafa in the semis.. But I not writing Rafa off by any means.
I just wanted to clarify the sentence – he won’t kill himself if it’s a tough match. That sounds like he won’t go all out, which is precisely what I was NOT saying. I mean that it won’t kill him physically.
Wouldn’t put it past the Djoker to tank it against Reeshad tonight, the better to avoid Rafa……..
Now that IS an interesting theory. And it wont be obvious because most people will assume he is merely conserving energy.
#WhatAreTheBettingOdds
……..or that he is playing badly, laid the foundation for that line of thinking by dropping a set against……..whatshisname, Istomin?
*wink, wink*
This dancing routine of Novak’s is just way too much. I just dont understand why he must try so hard!!!! Wonder if he will still do a jig if he loses?!!
Geeze, Gulbis lost the first set! Seems destined to be an all Canadian semifinal!!!
I’m not so sure it’s a foregone conclusion. I think there may be a carryover effect from the ‘net’ affair last night which could be praying on Raonic’s mind. He has a tendency to overplay at times and is clocking up the UFs. Gulbis is playing conservatively and waiting for Raonic to tighten up.
Three double faults from Gulbis in the first game of 3rd set. Unbelievable. And an ugly exchange with the umpire to boot.
no. it was four double-faults in the third game. double-faulted entire game away.
First Gulbis starts to unravel in the first game of 3rd set. Followed by Raonic in the next game. Weird match.
Rafa has done some serious homework on his ROS ..he has vowed not to be get blown away by djoker in the semi….good aggression so far… the mindset is surely to be more aggressive than usual
Rafa playing dreadful so far. at least he’s being aggressive.
dreadful? LOL…not at all..he is playing great…the errors he has made have been caused by more-than-usual aggressiveness …ROS is far more aggressive than it usually is and forehand is also quite aggressive… just cut down the errors rafa…
not good at all. but has improved in the last 3-4 games. he was dreadful in the second and third games.
you are judging his game solely on how many errors on how many U.E he is making ….U.E are NOT the best of indicators at the moment because rafa is playing quite aggressive, he made some silly errors in the beginning but had he adopted his conservative play, you would have said rafa has been ‘decent’ but nothing special
….ahh 71% 2nd serve pnts won, 10/14 that is… good job rafa…
I am now hoping he can cut down the errors because aggression alone cant help him against djoker
i have no idea what his winners and UEs are. those are 2 of the dumbest statistics in all of tennis.
rafa just getting used to playing this aggressive brand of tennis..he has not played much tennis lately but he has been getting better and better….I hope this match and tomorrow’s training session make him sharp enough 🙂
Yes, Rafa’s playing super aggressive but his placement needs to be sharper than this. I think this is a combination of the fast court and his opponent taking the ball on the rise which is “dimming” Rafa’s anticipation. He needs to adjust fast to the fast courts, cut down on the errors.
6-2 6-3
lol a love hold, …so be it 6-2 6-4 rafa 🙂
playing pretty well now
NNY, i agree with you ! remember when we agreed on emphasizing on HOW rafa plays in montreal…for me, he is absolutely on the right track ! With more practise, he’l get more comfortable..boy he was beating the hell out of the ball…best thing is that I hardly say any short balls.. yes he made some bad errors but I can understand where they are coming from…..
rafa should just bring out this super aggressive version out there against novak and hope for some luck .. this mindset of his has now given me more hope so I give rafa a decent chance of winning the semi BUT, djoker is the favourite for me…wont be surprised if he wins in 2 sets…. rafa is doing things right though….by the time of USO, he will be in really dangerous form 🙂
So 8 pm local time it is !
I hardly saw*
semifinal previews and picks – https://tenngrand.com/2013/08/10/rogers-cup-sf-previews-and-picks-djokovic-vs-nadal-raonic-vs-pospisil/
I don’t agree with Ricky’s thoughts. Although he did say that Rafa was playing pretty well later in the match. I think that Rafa might have been testing out his aggressive game and also standing on or inside the baseline when receiving serve. There’s a reason why he is doing this. I wonder if he will do it against Djoker. He is making a lot of errors, but this is the way it always is when he’s been off for a while. Also he is trying to go for more.
I thought that Rafa came out wanting to smother Matosevic and not let him get into the match. I think Rafa realized he didn’t have any real weapons to trouble him, so he just wanted to get that first set easily and then get the early break in that second set and get the easy win. I think Rafa did just enough to win in that second set. He didn’t want to waste any more energy than necessary on this match.
vamosrafa,
I think Rafa is looking better than expected. I also think that he may have some surprises in store for the USO. Rafa said in his post match on court interview with Pam Shriver that this may be too soon to play Djoker and it’s his best surface and how he takes the ball early and returns well. But Rafa never talks himself up before a match. He said that he knows he has to be aggressive and play well.
I think ideally it is too soon for Rafa to meet Djoker. That’s the only reason I am making Djoker the slight favorite. But I have this feeling that Rafa is not going out there to lose tomorrow night. The thing is, no matter what Rafa can come away feeling good. If he wins, then it’s a big boost before the USO. If he loses, then he will know what he needs to work on for the USO.
In his post match interview Rafa himself said it was too soon for a meeting with Novak and remember, Rafa doesn’t sand-bag so this is how he truly feels. Interestingly, he also said the same on the eve of his finals match with Djokovic in Monte Carlo. Not suggesting a repeat of the MC result but I think Rafa is spot on, given that this is his first tournament after a long break, much like it was at MC. But let’s not forget, Rafa pushed Djokovic at MC and I thought Rafa’s attitude in that final sucked! Here, he looks hungry and motivated so I expect him to push Novak. If the Novak who turned up in the Istoman match turns up in the semi, Rafa will win.