****** EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ******
* Gasquet passes Tsonga to reach #9 in Race
* Haas wins Vienna but goes nowhere
* Dimitrov stuns Ferrer to take first title
* Veterans lose both doubles finals
****** TODAY’S MEN’S NEWS ******
Moscow
Singles – Final: (1) R Gasquet def. (Q) M Kukushkin 4-6 6-4 6-4
Richard Gasquet, we have good news and bad news for you.
The good news is, of course, that he won the title here. It’s the tenth title of his career, and his third of 2013. That matches the best previous year of his career, in 2006. More, it gives him a big boost in the Race. He moves past countryman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga into the #9 spot in the Race (which would qualify him for London), and is close behind #7 Stanislas Wawrinka and #8 Roger Federer.
The bad news is, this took two hours and 24 minutes. And although his situation has improved, he will surely still need more than this to earn the last London spot. If this hurts his results at Basel and Paris, it may cost him more than it is worth.
In the immediate term, it doesn’t help Gasquet; he remains #10 in the rankings. But he is right on the tail of #9 Tsonga and even #8 Wawrinka; he has a real chance to reach #8 next week, and of becoming the #1 Frenchman.
Mikhail Kukushkin failed to win his second career title, but he reached his first final in three years. It’s a big boost for him; he should rise from #102 to around #70. Which means a lot fewer qualifying matches in the next year!
Stockholm
Singles – Final: (7) G Dimitrov def. (1) D Ferrer 2-6 6-3 6-4
There really does seem to be something wrong with David Ferrer this fall. He just can’t win things! In this case, he led in the first set. He had multiple break chances early in the third set, didn’t convert, and collapsed from there. He’s still looking for his first title since Buenos Aires in February.
In the short term, it doesn’t matter. He stays #3, and he has clinched for London. But he has a huge pile of points to defend in the next few weeks. And he failed to add any here — this doesn’t even count toward his ranking. A couple of weeks ago, we felt it probable that he would end the year at #3. But now #4 is looking more likely, and with Ferrer going nowhere and Juan Martin del Potro doing so well, it might even be #5.
But that’s the future. For now, the news is Grigor Dimitrov. He wins his first career title — and, as a result, ought to rise to a career high #22. He had been in a funk for a few months, having lost his last four matches coming here. It sure looks as if he’s out of it!
Doubles – Final: (1) Qureshi/Rojer def. (WC) Bjorkman/Lindstedt 6-2 6-2
Up to this point, Bjorkman/Lindstedt could earn a certain amount of success just based on shock value. But, when they faced Qureshi/Rojer, they were up against a team that is trying to qualify for London. That presumably helped to block out the distractions.
It is only the second title this year for Qureshi/Rojer — the other was Miami. But, in a way, that’s good news. They had room for a title. They came in #7 in the Race. It appears they will rise to #6. That’s far from clinching for London. But they’re doing what they can.
Vienna
Singles – Final: (2) T Haas def. R Haase 6-3 4-6 6-4
We have a strange pattern this week of guys winning titles without it doing them any good. Two of this week’s champions will not move in the rankings! Tommy Haas came here at #12, and he stays at #12.
Still, Haas wins his second title of the year (following Munich); it’s the first time since 2006 that he has won multiple titles in a year. It is also the first time since 2007 that he has won a title outside Germany; his last four titles were Munich 2013, Halle 2012, Halle 2009, and, more than six years ago, Memphis 2007. (To be sure, Austria is a German-speaking country, but it isn’t actually Germany.) That could be important as he tries to stay alive in the contest for London. He came in at #12 in the Race, just as in the rankings, and he stays #12, and because Richard Gasquet also added points, Haas didn’t gain much ground. But he didn’t lose any ground, either.
Robin Haase, despite losing, gains ground. After seeing his ranking erode slowly over the last couple of years, this should take him from #63 to just below #45.
Doubles – Final: Mergea/Rosol def. (3) Knowle/Nestor 7-5 6-4
It was a good day to be a veteran in singles, but a lousy day in doubles. First Bjorkman/Lindstedt lost, then Knowle/Nestor. And that after the old guys blew a lead.
It’s big for Florin Mergea, though. You may recall that he came up with Horia Tecau, with whom he played a lot in his early years. Tecau, even though he has struggled this year, has gone on to become a significant doubles player. Mergea has gone nowhere. At age 28, he came here with no doubles titles and a career record of only 14-27. Even this year, the best of his career, he was only 8-13. He still has a losing record — but he has a title. He’ll take it.
For Lukas Rosol, it’s career doubles title #2, his first having been Doha 2012 with Polasek. He doesn’t make his living in doubles the way the rest of these guys do, but still, it’s a nice thing for the trophy cabinet….
******** THIS WEEK IN TENNIS ********
THIS WEEK ON THE ATP WORLD TOUR:
Valencia (500/Indoor Hard). Defending Champion: David Ferrer
Basel (500/Indoor Hard). Defending Champion: Juan Martin del Potro
NEXT WEEK ON THE ATP WORLD TOUR:
Paris (1000/Indoor Hard). Defending Champion: David Ferrer
******** STATS AND FACTS ********
RANKINGS
Estimated ATP World Tour Rankings
As of October 20, 2013
Rank &
Prior…Player………..Points
1..(1) Nadal………….11520
2..(2) Djokovic……….11120
3..(3) Ferrer………….6800
4..(4) Murray………….6295
5..(5) Del Potro……….5275
6..(7) Federer…………4245
7..(6) Berdych…………4090
8..(9) Wawrinka………..3240
9..(8) Tsonga………….3235
10.(10) Gasquet…………3220
11.(11) Raonic………….2860
12.(12) Haas……………2425
13.(13) Almagro…………2200
14.(14) Isner…………..2070
15.(15) Janowicz………..2060
16.(16) Simon…………..2060
17.(17) Fognini…………1965
18.(18) Nishikori……….1885
19.(19) Robredo…………1830
20.(20) Anderson………..1775
21.(21) Youzhny…………1735
22.(28) Dimitrov………..1500
23.(23) Melzer………….1460
24.(24) Kohlschreiber……1445
25.(26) Gulbis………….1431
26.(25) Paire…………..1425
27.(22) Seppi…………..1395
28.(27) Tipsarevic………1310
29.(29) Dodig…………..1295
30.(30) Lopez…………..1275
**DRAWS
Moscow — Week of October 15
WINNER: Richard Gasquet
……………QF…………….SF…………F
1 Gasquet……(1)Gasquet……..Gasquet…….Gasquet
8 Mannarino….Gabashvili(WC)
3 Tipsarevic…Khachanov(WC)
5 Istomin……Karlovic……….Karlovic
6 Zeballos…..Golubev(Q)
4 Dolgopolov…Kukushkin(Q)……Kukushkin…..Kukushkin
7 Sousa……..Roger-Vasselin
2 Seppi……..(2)Seppi……….Seppi
STATUS OF SEEDS:
1 Gasquet…….WON TOURNAMENT
2 Seppi………lost SF (Kukushkin)
3 Tipsarevic….lost 2R (Khachanov)
4 Dolgopolov….lost 2R (Kukushkin)
5 Istomin…….lost 2R (Karlovic)
6 Zeballos……lost 2R (Golubev)
7 Sousa………lost 1R (Stakhovsky)
8 Mannarino…..lost 1R (Gabashvili)
Stockholm — Week of October 15
WINNER: Grigor Dimitrov
……………..QF………….SF………F
1 Ferrer………(1)Ferrer……Ferrer…..Ferrer
8 Dodig……….Verdasco
3 Janowicz…….(3)Janowicz
5 Gulbis………(5)Gulbis……Gulbis
7 Dimitrov…….(7)Dimitrov….Dimitrov…Dimitrov
4 Anderson…….de Schepper
6 Paire (WC)…..(6)Paire…….Paire
2 Raonic (WC)….(2)Raonic(WC)
STATUS OF SEEDS:
1 Ferrer……..lost F (Dimitrov)
2 Raonic (WC)…lost QF (Paire)
3 Janowicz……lost QF (Gulbis)
4 Anderson……lost 2R (de Schepper)
5 Gulbis……..lost SF (Ferrer)
6 Paire (WC)….lost SF (Dimitrov)
7 Dimitrov……WON TOURNAMENT
8 Dodig………lost 1R (Verdasco)
Vienna — Week of October 15
WINNER: Tommy Haas
……………..QF…………SF……..F
1 Tsonga………(1)Tsonga…..Tsonga
6 Monfils……..Thiem(WC)
3 Fognini……..(3)Fognini
7 Pospisil…….Haase………Haase…..Haase
8 Rosol……….(8)Rosol……Rosol
4 Kohlschreiber..Bemelmans(Q)
5 Stepanek…….(5)Stepanek
2 Haas………..(2)Haas…….Haas……Haas
STATUS OF SEEDS:
1 Tsonga………lost SF (Haase)
2 Haas………..WON TOURNAMENT
3 Fognini……..lost QF (Haase)
4 Kohlschreiber..lost 2R (Bemelmans)
5 Stepanek…….lost QF (Haas)
6 Monfils……..lost 1R (J Pospisil)
7 Pospisil…….lost 2R (Haase)
8 Rosol……….lost SF (Haas)
Basel — Week of October 22
1 del Potro
Laaksonen (WC)
Becker (Q)
Baghdatis
Mathieu (Q)
Kudla (Q)
Llodra
5 Gasquet
4 Wawrinka
Roger-Vasselin
Hanescu
Kamke (Q)
Gimeno-Traver
Kubot
Brands
7 Seppi
8 Dimitrov
Stepanek
Dolgopolov (WC)
de Schepper
Istomin
Zeballos
Mannarino
3 Federer
6 Nishikori
Chiudinelli (WC)
Berlocq
Dodig
V Pospisil
Haase
Karlovic
2 Berdych
Valencia — Week of October 22
1 Ferrer
Monfils
F Lopez
Benneteau
Garcia-Lopez
Qualifier
Qualifier
5 Janowicz
3 Almagro
Andujar
Verdasco (WC)
Qualifier
Tipsarevic
Granollers
Klizan
7 Fognini
8 Anderson
Bautista Agut
Montanes
Tursunov
F Mayer
Chardy
Gulbis
4 Isner
6 Simon
Qualifier
Nieminen
Paire
Youzhny
Tomic
Kohlschreiber
2 Haas
******** SCORES ********
SUNDAY
Moscow
Singles – Final
(1) R Gasquet def. (Q) M Kukushkin 4-6 6-4 6-4
Stockholm
Singles – Final
(7) G Dimitrov def. (1) D Ferrer 2-6 6-3 6-4
Doubles – Final
(1) Qureshi/Rojer def. (WC) Bjorkman/Lindstedt 6-2 6-2
Vienna
Singles – Final
(2) T Haas def. R Haase 6-3 4-6 6-4
Doubles – Final
Mergea/Rosol def. (3) Knowle/Nestor 7-5 6-4
___________________
****** EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ******
* Halep beats Stosur for fifth title of 2013
* Wozniacki wins Luxembourg to qualify for Sofia
* Vogt wins first WTA doubles (or singles) title
****** TODAY’S WOMEN’S NEWS ******
Moscow
Singles – Final: (5) Simona Halep def. (7) Samantha Stosur 7-6(7-1) 6-2
It has been less than half a year since Simona Halep won her first title, and with this, she already has five trophies. And the last two of them Premier titles. Will she ever have a year like this again?
The amazing thing is that, with all those titles, she still finds herself only #14. Still, that is a career high. And she’ll be seeded at effectively every event she plays from now on. She will almost certainly go higher — she is on a Top Ten pace.
She might even go higher yet this year. Although she is only #14, she is a mere hundred points behind #11 Sloane Stephens. And Stephens is done for the year (unless she plays Istanbul as the #2 alternate). #12 Marion Bartoli is also done for 2013. Whereas Halep will be playing Sofia. It doesn’t appear she can make the Top Ten this year. But she could yet climb.
As could Stosur, who by winning Osaka last week also qualified for Sofia. This loss ends Stosur’s winning streak at nine, but she managed to reach the Moscow final for the second straight year, meaning that she will keep her #19 ranking. With the possibility of gaining one or two more spots in Sofia.
Doubles – Final: Kuznetsova/Stosur def. (2) Kudryavtseva/Rodionova 6-1 1-6 10-8
Officially an upset, but is anyone really surprised? After all, Kuznetsova and Stosur are the ones with Slams in their history. They just haven’t played that much doubles lately. For Svetlana Kuznetsova, in fact, this is her first doubles title since she won the 2012 Australian Open with Zvonareva. Stosur had been waiting even longer; it’s her first title since Stuttgart 2011 with Lisicki. It will be interesting to see how much they decide to play next year.
Luxembourg
Singles – Final: (1) Caroline Wozniacki def. Annika Beck 6-2 6-2
It was, frankly, a pretty lousy final. Annika Beck is probably better than she showed here, but it was her first final, and her play seemed pretty nervous (she said afterward, “Caroline and I practiced once here and I was very nervous, and I was nervous today too!”). Caroline Wozniacki won more than 60% of the points.
And, notably, her first title since she won Moscow 2012. That means no rankings help — she loses points, since Luxembourg is smaller than Moscow, and we show her falling from #9 to #10 (although this is a tricky week because Istanbul and Sofia are coming off as well as Moscow and Luxembourg, meaning that some players lose two events). Wozniacki finds herself as the #1 Istanbul alternate. But… since she won an International title, this means that she qualifies for Sofia. As an Istanbul alternate, she has some options about Sofia, but if she plays, the Sofia field is Wozniacki, Vinci, Halep, Kirilenko, Stosur, and Vesnina (plus Pironkova and whoever gets the other wildcard). If someone pulls out, Pavlyuchenkova is next in, then Cornet. So Wozniacki, since she still gets to play this year, has an outside shot at ending the year above #10. Her Top Ten spot looks just about secure; the next players down the rankings to still be active, Vinci and Halep, are hundreds of points behind her.
Annika Beck failed to win her first WTA title, but after stalling out for much of this year, she finally showed some flashes of the talent that had sent her rocketing up the rankings last year. We show her up to #48. If she doesn’t regress again, we’d expect her to go higher.
Doubles – Final: Vogt/Wickmayer def. Barrois/Thorpe 7-6(7-2) 6-4
A big day for everybody. Not one of the four finalists had ever won a doubles title, and only Yanina Wickmayer had won a WTA title of any type.
It’s a nice thing for Stephanie Vogt. Four or five years ago, she looked like a promising youngster, but then physical problems tripped her up. She’s now 23, and we thought she was washed up. But maybe there is hope after all.
Yanina Wickmayer has looked a little washed up herself. And doubles isn’t really her thing. But maybe finally winning another title will help her get back on track.
****** TODAY’S FEATURE ******
Women’s Look Forward: Istanbul
If you don’t look closely, you could be forgiven for thinking that this year’s WTA Championships is the same as 2012’s. We have seven of the same eight players: Serena Williams, Victoria Azarenka, Agnieszka Radwanska, Li Na, Sara Errani, Petra Kvitova, and Angelique Kerber. Only Maria Sharapova failed to return (and she qualified; she just isn’t able to play). The only player in the field who wasn’t here last year is Jelena Jankovic — and she has played in the past. We have no first-timers at all. It makes it a little hard to find something to talk about.
There is one interesting question, though: What will Caroline Wozniacki do? She is the #1 alternate here (meaning she has a fair chance to play later in the week). But she has also qualified for Sofia. The alternate has the option to play the “other” championships. Will she? (It doesn’t come up for #2 alternate Sloane Stephens; she isn’t qualified for Sofia.)
We do note that Errani is the only player to qualify in both singles and doubles. But indoor surfaces are not friendly for her; she may well be out of singles contention by the time she plays her first doubles match.
As far as the groups go, Serena heads the Red Group, along with Radwanska, Kvitova, and Kerber. The White Group consists of Azarenka, Li, Errani, and Jankovic. Given Errani’s history, and the fact that Jankovic hasn’t won a match here since Doha 2009 (her overall Championships record is 4-10), Azarenka and Li really look like favorites to take the White Group. Errani last year went 1-2, Azarenka has a career record of 7-8 (but has made the final and the semifinal in the last two years), and Li is 2-4.
The Red Group is a lot ore interesting, with a lot of people picking Serena and Kvitova, rather than Serena and Radwanska, as the favorites. Of course, a lot depends on Kvitova’s immune system…. But she does have a 5-1 record in Istanbul, with a title in 2011. Radwanska is 5-4, but three of those wins were as an alternate; her record when she qualified directly is only 3-4. Kerber last year went 0-3. So Kvitova certainly has the best record. Other than Serena, anyway, who has a Championships record of 20-5 — in other words, almost as many wins (20) at the year-end event as the other seven players in the field combined (24)!
The Rankings
It will be a surprisingly quiet week, rankings-wise. That’s in large part because the points from last year are already off. A huge pile of points will come on, but no one loses anything (except her sixteenth event score). So we know that Serena Williams will end the year at #1, with Victoria Azarenka #2. #3 is somewhat up in the air. Maria Sharapova won’t get it, since she’s done for the year. So Agnieszka Radwanska is the obvious candidate. But Li Na still has a shot, although she will need at least a final and probably a title. Sharapova will likely be #4, but might end up at #5 if Li does well enough.
Serena, Azarenka, Sharapova, and Radwanska are sure to be in the Top Five. Li is likely, but Petra Kvitova or Sara Errani could still move up. Odds are, though, that Kvitova, Errani, Jelena Jankovic, and Angelique Kerber are contesting the #6-#9 spots. Kvitova and Errani come in close to tied, by the standards of this event; Jankovic is a little further back, not much ahead of Kerber. As between Kvitova and Errani, it’s probably a case of whichever does better ends up #6, with ties to Kvitova. Ditto for Jankovic and Kerber. If either of the latter pair can reach the final, she could pass Kvitova and Errani also.
KEYWORDS: Preview Istanbul
******** THIS WEEK IN TENNIS ********
THIS WEEK ON THE WTA:
Istanbul (Championships/Indoor Hard). Defending Champion: Serena Williams
NEXT WEEK ON THE WTA:
Sofia (International Championships/Indoor Hard). Defending Champion: Nadia Petrova
************ STATS AND FACTS ************
**RANKINGS
Estimated WTA Rankings As of October 20, 2013
Rank &
Prior
Rank….Name…………..Points
1..(1) SWilliams ……… 12040
2..(2) Azarenka ………..7676
3..(3) Sharapova ……… 5891
4..(4) ARadwanska ………5890
5..(5) Li ……………..5120
6..(7) Kvitova ……….. 4315
7..(6) Errani ………….4190
8..(8) Jankovic ………..3860
9.(10) Kerber ………….3715
10..(9) WOZNIACKI ……… 3530*
11.(12) STEPHENS ………..3185
12.(13) Bartoli ……….. 3172
13.(11) VINCI …………. 3170
14.(18) HALEP …………. 3085*
15.(15) LISICKI ……….. 2920
16.(14) IVANOVIC ………..2765
17.(17) SUAREZ NAVARRO …..2735
18.(16) KIRILENKO ……… 2611
19.(19) STOSUR ………….2580
20.(20) FLIPKENS ………..2495
21.(23) KUZNETSOVA ………2341
22.(22) Cirstea ……….. 2170
23.(21) CIBULKOVA ……… 2076
24.(24) Makarova ………..2066
25.(25) VESNINA ……….. 1960
26.(30) PAVLYUCHENKOVA …..1890
27.(26) CORNET ………….1790
28.(27) Hampton ……….. 1781
29.(28) SAFAROVA ………..1775
30.(29) KANEPI ………….1752
**DRAWS
Moscow — Week of October 15
WINNER: Simona Halep
……………….QF…………..SF……………F
3 Kirilenko……..Pavlyuchenkova..Pavlyuchenkova
9 Cibulkova……..Hantuchova
5 Halep…………Halep………..Halep…………Halep
6 Suarez Navarro…Kleybanova
7 Stosur……….(7)Stosur……..Stosur………..Stosur
4 Ivanovic……..(4)Ivanovic
8 Kuznetsova……(8)Kuznetsova….Kuznetsova
2 Vinci………..(2)Vinci
STATUS OF SEEDS:
1 Kerber………..WITHDREW
2 Vinci…………lost QF (Kuznetsova)
3 Kirilenko……..lost 2R (Pavlyuchenkova)
4 Ivanovic………lost QF (Ivanovic)
5 Halep…………WON TOURNAMENT
6 Suarez Navarro…lost 2R (Kleybanova)
7 Stosur………..lost F (Halep)
8 Kuznetsova…….lost SF (Stosur)
9 Cibulkova……..lost 1R (Dolonc)
Luxembourg — Week of October 15
WINNER: Caroline Wozniacki
…………….QF……………SF……….F
1 Wozniacki…..(1)Wozniacki…..Wozniacki…Wozniacki
8 Jovanovski….(8)Jovanovski
3 Lisicki…….(3)Lisicki…….Lisicki
7 Bouchard……Knapp
5 Safarova……Beck………….Beck……..Beck
4 Flipkens……Piter(Q)
6 Barthel…….Voegele……….Voegele
2 Stephens……(2)Stephens
STATUS OF SEEDS:
1 Wozniacki….WON TOURNAMENT
2 Stephens…..lost QF (Voegele)
3 Lisicki……lost SF (Wozniacki)
4 Flipkens…..lost 1R (Piter)
5 Safarova…..lost 2R (Beck)
6 Barthel……lost 1R (Voegele)
7 Bouchard…..lost 1R (Petkovic)
8 Jovanovski…lost QF (Wozniacki)
Istanbul — Week of October 22
RED GROUP
1 S. Williams
3 A. Radwanska
6 Kvitova
8 Kerber
WHITE GROUP
2 Azarenka
4 Li
5 Errani
7 Jankovic
******** SCORES ********
SUNDAY
Moscow
Singles – Final
(5) Simona Halep def. (7) Samantha Stosur 7-6(7-1) 6-2
Doubles – Final
Kuznetsova/Stosur def. (2) Kudryavtseva/Rodionova 6-1 1-6 10-8
Luxembourg
Singles – Final
(1) Caroline Wozniacki def. Annika Beck 6-2 6-2
Doubles – Final
Vogt/Wickmayer def. Barrois/Thorpe 7-6(7-2) 6-4
Topics: 10sballs, Agnieszka Radwanska, Annika Beck, Atp, Caroline Wozniacki, David Ferrer, GRIGOR DIMITROV, Jo Wilfried Tsonga, Juan Martin Del Potro, Li Na, Maria Kirilenko, Mikhail Kukushkin, Petra Kvitova, Richard Gasquet, Roger Federer, Samantha Stosur, Sara Errani, Serena Williams, Simona Halep, Sports, Stanislas Wawrinka, Tennis, Tennis News, Tommy Haas, Wta