Men Tennis Update – Munich, Oeiras, Madrid

Written by: Staff on 5th May 2013

Men Tennis Update - Munich, Oeiras, Madrid |

Munich

Singles – Final: (3) T Haas def. (4) P Kohlschreiber 6-3 7-6(7-3)

There are some ATP players too young to even remember the first time Tommy Haas came to Munich. Now, finally, he has won it: “It’s a sensational feeling to be quite honest. It was another one of those milestones that I hoped for, to maybe win this title one year. To have done that, this late in my career, is a big highlight for me. Every time you win a title, it’s a reflection of putting everything together the whole week. It doesn’t happen that often. You’re really proud of those moments.”

In terms of points, it’s no big deal. He came in at #14, and rises only to #13. And he would need a big result at Madrid or Rome to rise to #12 and gain a seeding tier at Roland Garros. Still, at 35, he’s posting the sorts of results that inspire a lot of other old-timers…. It has been five years since the last time a 35-year-old won a title.

Philipp Kohlschreiber fails to defend his title, and it will cost him — although only slightly. #21 coming in, he falls to #22. That does raise a slight possibility, though, that he will fall short of the #24 Paris seed. Had he won this, he would have been a pretty sure thing. As it is, he has cause to worry about his results at Madrid and Rome.

Doubles – Final: Nieminen/Tursunov def. Baghdatis/Butorac 6-1 6-4

This is turning into a pretty good turnaround year for Jarkko Nieminen. He has his singles ranking back into the Top Fifty — and he picks up his first doubles title since Gstaad 2010 (with Brunstrom). It has been almost as long for Dmitry Tursunov (his last title was Moscow 2010 with Kunitsyn), and he probably needed the money even more. He had an interesting explanation for his success: “It helped us that the courts were a little bit slow with the weather and conditions, so we were able to hit a lot of ground strokes and it’s tough for the doubles guys, they’re so used to high-paced shots. We were able to take our time and pick our spots.”

Oeiras

Singles – Final: (2) S Wawrinka def. (1) D Ferrer 6-1 6-4

David Ferrer faced an interesting conundrum this week. Barcelona had shown that he wasn’t match fit, so he really needed matches. But he could’t earn any points here; he has 250 point titles coming out his ears. With Rafael Nadal looking very impressive — and quite capable of winning both Madrid and Rome — Ferrer still needs a few points to clinch the #4 Roland Garros seed. So how much energy did Ferrer want to expend in Oeiras?

This probably qualifies as the worst possible outcome: Lots of effort, no points. But it’s the best possible result for Stanislas Wawrinka, who earns career title #4 (three of them on clay). It’s his first since Chennai 2011. And it will take him from #16 to #15.

Doubles – Final: S Gonzalez/Lipsky def. Qureshi/Rojer 6-3 4-6 10-7

The team of Gonzalez/Lipsky is one of those pairings that seems to fly under the radar very well. In the last year, they have three titles on three different surfaces: Newport 2012, Winston-Salem 2012, and now this. The problem, of course, is that they’re all 250s, and 250s don’t matter much for top players. Still, they’re just below the Top Ten in points earned this year. Keep this up and they might have an actual chance to qualify for London.

Madrid

Singles – First Round: (WC) P Andujar def. (10) M Cilic 6-7(6-8) 6-4 6-1

This eliminates Marin Cilic’s faint chance for the Top Ten. Indeed, it’s likely to cost him his current #11 spot, although we won’t know until tomorrow at the earliest.

Singles – First Round: (16) G Simon def. J Benneteau 2-6 7-5 6-3

Julien Benneteau remains right on the cusp of Roland Garros seeding. We don’t know how many times we’ve said this, but we have to keep saying it: He still has a shot, but this doesn’t help his chances.

Singles – First Round: F Verdasco def. D Goffin 7-6(7-2) 6-2

Finally some evidence of life from Fernando Verdasco (unless it’s another sign of meltdown from David Goffin). But Verdasco will need more if he is to stay Top Fifty.

Singles – First Round: J Chardy def. H Zeballos 6-4 7-6(7-3)

Horacio Zeballos continues to struggle. In practical terms, we’d guess that that kills his Roland Garros seed hopes.

Singles – First Round: R Stepanek def. B Tomic 6-3 6-2

Slowly, slowly Radek Stepanek is getting his form back. He doesn’t really have a shot at a Roland Garros seed, but at least it appears his injury was not fatal to his career.

RANKINGS

Estimated ATP World Tour Rankings

As of May 5, 2013

Rank &

Prior…Player………..Points

1..(1) Djokovic……….12900

2..(2) Federer…………8670

3..(3) Murray………….8570

4..(4) Ferrer………….6920

5..(5) Nadal…………..5985

6..(6) Berdych…………4760

7..(7) Del Potro……….4680

8..(8) Tsonga………….3875

9..(9) Gasquet…………3260

10.(10) Tipsarevic………3000

11.(11) Cilic…………..2615

11.(12) Almagro…………2615

13.(14) Haas……………2375

14.(13) Raonic………….2225

15.(16) Wawrinka………..2165

16.(15) Nishikori……….2090

17.(17) Simon…………..1940

18.(19) Querrey…………1870

19.(20) Monaco………….1785

20.(18) Seppi…………..1735

21.(22) Isner…………..1690

22.(21) Kohlschreiber……1680

23.(23) Dolgopolov………1590

24.(24) Janowicz………..1404

25.(25) Fognini…………1345

26.(26) Chardy………….1331

27.(27) Mayer…………..1305

28.(28) Anderson………..1295

29.(29) Dimitrov………..1272

30.(30) Klizan………….1240

Topics: David Ferrer, Fernando Verdasco, Julien Benneteau, Marin Cilic, Philipp Kohlschreiber, Stanislas Wawrinka, Tommy Haas

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