Halle
Singles – Semifinal: (1) R Federer def. (3) T Haas 3-6 6-3 6-4
The rematch definitely lived up to its predecessor a year ago. But, this time, the result was reversed. Good news for Roger Federer, who will be the clear favorite to finally win his first title of the year. But tough for Tommy Haas, since he was defending champion’s points. This immediately dropped him to #12 in the ranking, with the possibility that Marin Cilic could still pass him. And, worse, it means he’ll be stuck with the #13 Wimbledon seed, because Cilic is already ahead of him in that contest.
Singles – Semifinal: M Youzhny def. (2) R Gasquet 6-3 6-2
This was a pretty thorough thumping; Mikhail Youzhny won almost 60% of the points. Too bad that, yet again, he did it at an optional event. He rises perhaps one ranking spot. More in the Wimbledon seedings, but not enough to gain a seeding tier. Richard Gasquet will stay at #9.
Doubles – Semifinal: Bracciali/Erlich def. Kohlschreiber/Youzhny 4-6 6-1 10-4
Perhaps it’s not surprising that this ended badly for Kohlschreiber/Youzhny. After all, Youzhny in the singles cost Kohlschreiber his shot at the #16 Wimbledon seed.
Queen’s
Singles – Semifinal: (1) A Murray def. (3) J Tsonga 4-6 6-3 6-1
It was another of Those Days: Drizzle for a few minutes, stop, wait forever for the ground to dry, repeat. It did that all day; they didn’t get started until evening — meaning that they had to open up all the courts and play three matches at once. And Jo-Wilfried Tsonga seemed to be liking the conditions a lot better than Andy Murray. But as the match got longer, Murray got stronger — obviously.
Singles – Semifinal: (5) M Cilic def. L Hewitt 6-4 4-6 6-2
Could all that rain have slowed the court just enough to have cost Lleyton Hewitt? We can’t know, but it wouldn’t be too big a surprise. Still, he will be dangerous at Wimbledon. As will Marin Cilic. This win will let him keep the #12 ranking; a title would make him #11. And the Wimbledon formula will promote him higher still. Here is our current Wimbledon Seeding Formula estimate. This is final as far as the tiers are concerned, although we might still see Cilic or Youzhny move a little.
1 (ATP: 1) Djokovic: 14558
2 (ATP: 2) Murray: 10793
3 (ATP: 3) Federer: 10138
4 (ATP: 5) Nadal: 8174
5 (ATP: 4) Ferrer: 7723
6 (ATP: 7) Tsonga: 5646
7 (ATP: 6) Berdych: 4796
8 (ATP: 8) Del Potro: 4575
9 (ATP: 9) Gasquet: 3476
10 (ATP: 12) Cilic: 3041
11 (ATP: 10) Wawrinka: 2866
12 (ATP: 11) Nishikori: 2848
13 (ATP: 13) Haas: 2803
14 (ATP: 14) Tipsarevic: 2690
15 (ATP: 16) Almagro: 2454
16 (ATP: 15) Raonic: 2390
17 (ATP: 18) Kohlschreiber: 2334
18 (ATP: 21) Isner: 2326
19 (ATP: 17) Simon: 2161
20 (ATP: 28) Youzhny: 2109
21 (ATP: 19) Querrey: 2003
22 (ATP: 26) Seppi: 1881
23 (ATP: 20) Monaco: 1844
24 (ATP: 22) Janowicz: 1677
25 (ATP: 23) Anderson: 1628
26 (ATP: 24) Dolgopolov: 1564
27 (ATP: 31) Dimitrov: 1540
28 (ATP: 25) Paire: 1538
29 (ATP: 27) Chardy: 1475
30 (ATP: 30) Fognini: 1416
31 (ATP: 32) Benneteau: 1414
32 (ATP: 29) Robredo: 1365
Doubles – Semifinal: (1) Bryan/Bryan def. (3) Bhupathi/Bopanna 6-4 6-2
Interesting that the Bryans had their easiest match in the semifinal. Probably not good news for their opponents in the final.
Doubles – Semifinal: (4) Peya/Soares def. (6) Benneteau/Zimonjic 7-5 6-2
In the mad rush to play all four of the day’s matches simultaneous, Peya/Soares finished before anyone else, singles or doubles. Presumably that will be at least a slight advantage in the final.
****** TODAY’S FEATURE ******
Men’s Look Forward: Eastbourne, ‘s-Hertogenbosch
Call it delayed gratification.
The results from this week’s two events, Eastbourne and ‘s-Hertogenbosch, make little immediate difference. The Wimbledon seeds are set, and the events this week are 250s anyway; the short-term rankings effects for the top players will be small.
But, next year, they’ll count toward the Wimbledon seeding formula. To the far-sighted players (and those who expect to be seeded in England a year from now), those points could be big.
And the players seem to like the tournaments. It shows in the rather high cutoffs for direct entry — above #100 for Eastbourne. That leaves players like James Blake and Ryan Harrison and Michael Russell in qualifying. In ‘s-Hertogenbosch, Rajeev Ram and Steve Darcis and Lukasz Kubot and Nicolas Mahut are in the qualifying.
Eastbourne is highlighted by Milos Raonic — whose serve is obviously quite a weapon on grass, although it didn’t do him much good last week. #2 Gilles Simon isn’t much of a grass fan, and neither is #4 Juan Monaco, but #3 Philipp Kohlschreiber likes it a lot. Those four have byes; the lower seeds — #5 Kevin Anderson, #6 Alexandr Dolgopolov, #7 Andreas Seppi, and #8 Fabio Fognini — do not. Seppi, who has been champion and finalist here, may be the biggest threat of that list.
There are some pretty good unseeded players, too. Raonic will open against Denis Istomin or Ivan Dodig. Fognini’s second round will be against Viktor Troicki or Martin Klizan. Monaco’s opener is likely to be against Feliciano Lopez. Dolgopolov starts against Fernando Verdasco. Kohlschreiber might start against Radek Stepanek. And Anderson starts against Julien Benneteau, then maybe Bernard Tomic.
Overall, ‘s-Hertogenbosch is the weaker of the two events, but it’s the one with the bigger names at the top — even though it offers no byes. David Ferrer, the top player in action this week, is the #1 seed, and #2 Stanislas Wawrinka gives the event two Top Ten players. John Isner, whose serve is obviously an incredible weapon on grass, is #3 and in Ferrer’s half (and won’t that be a fascinating meeting if it comes off). Benoit Paire is #4. Jeremy Chardy has the #5 seed, Marcos Baghdatis is #6, Victor Hanescu #7, and Daniel Gimeno-Traver is #8. Even though that means the cutoff for seeding is around #50, we may well see several seeds challenged. Ferrer opens against Xavier Malisse, who is still a danger on grass if perhaps not anywhere else. Hanescu starts against Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, then probably Daniel Brands. Paire’s first opponent is Michael Llodra, whose game is excellent for grass. And Wawrinka has to start against Igor Sijsling, who isn’t quite as hot as he was earlier in the year but who probably likes the surface better.
The Rankings
Last year, the title at Eastbourne went to Andy Roddick, who of course won’t be defending. The finalist was Andreas Seppi (who won the title before that). Steve Darcis and Ryan Harrison were semifinalists. At ‘s-Hertogenbosch, the title went to David Ferrer, over Philipp Petzschner, with Benoit Paire and Xavier Malisse semifinalists.
Given that Darcis and Harrison are in qualifying this week, and Petzschner is hurting, and Malisse is facing Ferrer in his opener, we could see a lot of big falls. Not for Ferrer, though. His #4 ranking is safe. Indeed, there will be no movement in the Top Ten. The first substantial movement will likely be in the #15-#20 range, where Raonic and Simon and Kohlschreiber and Monaco are in action. Simon can’t climb, but Kohlschreiber could pass him. Monaco could overtake Sam Querrey — if he overcomes his dislike of grass.
Paire’s Top 25 spot is in danger, although the guy right behind him is Seppi, and he is in even greater danger of falling. Ryan Harrison’s Top Hundred spot is insecure, and Philipp Petzschner and Steve Darcis look like toast.
KEYWORDS: Men’s Look Forward: Eastbourne, ‘s-Hertogenbosch
******** THIS WEEK IN TENNIS ********
THIS WEEK ON THE ATP WORLD TOUR:
Halle (250/Grass). Defending Champion: Tommy Haas
Queen’s (250/Grass). Defending Champion: Marin Cilic
NEXT WEEK ON THE ATP WORLD TOUR:
Eastbourne (250/Grass). Defending Champion: Andy Roddick
‘s-Hertogenbosch (250/Grass). Defending Champion: David Ferrer
******** STATS AND FACTS ********
RANKINGS
Estimated ATP World Tour Rankings
As of June 15, 2013
Rank &
Prior…Player………..Points
1..(1) Djokovic……….11830
2..(2) Murray………….8460
3..(3) Federer…………7640
4..(4) Ferrer………….7220
5..(5) Nadal…………..6895
6..(6) Berdych…………4515
7..(7) Tsonga………….4155
8..(8) Del Potro……….3960
9..(9) Gasquet…………3135
10.(10) Wawrinka………..2810
11.(13) Nishikori……….2495
12.(12) Cilic…………..2470
13.(11) Haas……………2425
14.(14) Tipsarevic………2390
15.(15) Raonic………….2225
16.(16) Almagro…………2195
17.(17) Simon…………..1985
18.(18) Kohlschreiber……1885
19.(19) Querrey…………1810
20.(20) Monaco………….1740
21.(21) Isner…………..1735
22.(22) Janowicz………..1591
23.(23) Anderson………..1510
24.(24) Dolgopolov………1500
25.(25) Paire…………..1450
26.(26) Seppi…………..1440
27.(27) Chardy………….1416
28.(29) Youzhny…………1415
29.(30) Robredo…………1355
30.(31) Fognini…………1345
**DRAWS
Halle — Week of May 10
……………….QF……………..SF……..F
1 Federer……….(1)Federer………Federer…Federer
7 Janowicz………Zverev(WC)
3 Haas………….(3)Haas…………Haas
5 Raonic………..Monfils
6 Kohlschreiber….(6)Kohlschreiber
4 Nishikori……..Youzhny………..Youzhny….Youzhny
8 F Mayer……….(8)F Mayer
2 Gasquet……….(2)Gasquet……..Gasquet
STATUS OF SEEDS
1 Federer
2 Gasquet
3 Haas…………lost SF (Federer)
4 Nishikori…….lost 2R (Youzhny)
5 Raonic……….lost 1R (Monfils)
6 Kohlschreiber…lost QF (Youzhny)
7 Janowicz……..lost 1R (Basic)
8 F Mayer………lost QF (Gasquet)
Queen’s — Week of May 10
………………..3R……………QF………..SF……..F
1 Murray…………(1)Murray……..Murray…….Murray….Murray
15 Andujar……….Matosevic
12 Rosol…………Becker………..Becker
7 Dolgopolov (WC)…(7)Dolgopolov
4 Tsonga…………(4)Tsonga……..Tsonga…….Tsonga
14 Istomin……….Sijsling
9 Paire………….Kudla…………Kudla
[Bopanna(LL)]…….de Schepper
6 Querrey………..(6)Querrey
10 Dimitrov………Hewitt………..Hewitt…….Hewitt
13 Nieminen………Evans (WC)
3 del Potro………(3)del Potro…..del Potro
5 Cilic………….(5)Cilic………Cilic……..Cilic……Cilic
11 Benneteau……..F Lopez(Q)
16 Zemlja………..(16)Zemlja
2 Berdych………..(2)Berdych…….Berdych
STATUS OF SEEDS
1 Murray
2 Berdych……….lost QF (Cilic)
3 del Potro……..lost QF (Hewitt)
4 Tsonga………..lost SF (Murray)
5 Cilic
6 Querrey……….lost 3R (Hewitt)
7 Dolgopolov (WC)..lost 3R (Becker)
8 K Anderson…….WITHDREW (replaced by Bopanna)
9 Paire…………lost 2R (Kudla)
10 Dimitrov……..lost 2R (Hewitt)
11 Benneteau…….lost 2R (Lopez)
12 Rosol………..lost 2R (Becker)
13 Nieminen……..lost 2R (Evans)
14 Istomin………lost 2R (Sijsling)
15 Andujar………lost 1R (Llodra)
16 Zemlja……….lost 3R (Berdych)
Eastbourne — Week of May 17
1 Raonic (WC)
–bye
Istomin
Dodig
Troicki
Klizan
Zemlja
8 Fognini
4 Monaco
–bye
Nieminen
Lopez
Ramos
Qualifier
Verdasco
6 Dolgopolov
7 Seppi
Qualifier
Qualifier
Mathieu
Stepanek
Matosevic
–bye
3 Kohlschreiber
5 Anderson
Benneteau
Tomic
Ward (WC)
Edmund (WC)
Qualifier
–bye
2 Simon
‘s-Hertogenbosch — Week of May 17
1 Ferrer
Malisse
Roger-Vasselin
Lu
Bautista Agut
Qualifier
Berlocq
6 Baghdatis
3 Isner
Donskoy
L Mayer
Haase
Qualifier
Berankis
And. Kuznetsov
8 Gimeno-Traver
7 Hanescu
Garcia-Lopez
Brands
Huta Galung (WC)
Qualifier
Goffin
Llodra
4 Paire
5 Chardy
Qualifier
Dutra Silva
Copil (WC)
Lorenzi
de Bakker (WC)
Sijsling
2 Wawrinka
******** SCORES ********
SATURDAY
Halle
Singles – Semifinal
(1) R Federer def. (3) T Haas 3-6 6-3 6-4
M Youzhny def. (2) R Gasquet 6-3 6-2
Doubles – Semifinal
Bracciali/Erlich def. Kohlschreiber/Youzhny 4-6 6-1 10-4
Queen’s
Singles – Semifinal
(1) A Murray def. (3) J Tsonga 4-6 6-3 6-1
(5) M Cilic def. L Hewitt 6-4 4-6 6-2
Doubles – Semifinal
(1) Bryan/Bryan def. (3) Bhupathi/Bopanna 6-4 6-2
(4) Peya/Soares def. (6) Benneteau/Zimonjic 7-5 6-2
©Daily tennis news wire
Topics: Halle, Jo Wilfried Tsonga, Lleyton Hewitt, Marin Cilic, men tennis news, Queens, Roger Federer, Sports, Tennis, Tennis News, Tommy Haas