Daily Men Tennis News – Madrid, Estoril, Munich, Belgrade

Written by: Staff on 7th May 2012

Belgrade

Singles – Final: (2) A Seppi def. B Paire 6-3 6-2

There isn’t really much to say about this. Benoit Paire arguably got lucky in the semifinal when he faced a superior but very tired opponent. This time, he didn’t have that help. He managed to save several match points, but it was mostly a matter of waiting for it to be over. At least he made his first final.

And Andreas Seppi won his first clay title. It’s his second overall, following Eastbourne last year. This must have felt a good deal more natural! Rankings-wise, he is in a very interesting situation. We show him right at #32. Can he earn a seed at Roland Garros? He is obviously close…..

Doubles – Final: (3) Erlich/A Ram def. Emmrich/Siljestrom 4-6 6-1 10-6 (Match TB)

It wasn’t exactly a spectacular win over a top team at a big event, but these days, Jonathan Erlich and Andy Ram will take anything they can get. It’s their first title of the year, and only their third since Erlich’s long, slow comeback began. And it was on clay! The two had fourteen titles together — and none on clay. In fact, neither had ever won a clay title with anyone; they had only one clay final (Rome 2006). So they not only add some useful points, they also add an interesting footnote to their resume: They now have a team surface sweep.

Estoril

Singles – Final: (1) J del Potro def. (2) R Gasquet 6-4 6-2

And so the week’s most predictable event stayed right on track: Top four seeds in the semifinals, top two in the final, #1 takes the title. Pretty easily; the match lasted only about an hour and a half. It’s the second title for del Potro already this year, and the fourth of his comeback. They’re all 250s, however.

Formally, del Potro merely defended his title; he won Estoril last year also. But those points were off. So he should rise to #11. And he much improves his chances of earning the #8 Roland Garros seed. He will almost certainly be in the Top Twelve.

Richard Gasquet has been waiting almost two years to win career title #7. He does add some points, but we show him still at #18. Can he earn a Top 16 Roland Garros seed? It’s very possible but far from certain.

Doubles – Final: (1) Qureshi/Rojer def. (4) Knowle/Marrero 7-5 7-5

It was a nice day for #1 seeds; they won at both Estoril and Munich. It was a big day for Qureshi/Rojer, too, since they finally won a title after struggling all year. It’s the first title for Qureshi since he won Paris 2011 with Bopanna, and the first for Rojer since he and Eric Butorac won Kuala Lumpur last fall.

Julian Knowle is still looking for his first title since Tokyo 2009, but at least he made the final — his first since Bucharest 2011, also with Marrero. At least it should help him keep his career going.

Munich

Singles – Final: (4) P Kohlschreiber def. (3) M Cilic 7-6(10-8) 6-3

It was a pretty solid match for Philipp Kohlschreiber — he was broken only once, and won 55% of the points. It took more than an hour and three-quarters, but he picks up career title #4. And #2 at Munich. It is the only title he has won twice. His 2007 victory was his first title. A nice place to come back to! He said it himself, in response to a question about being the first German to win the event twice: “It’s tough to find the words when you win your home tournament. The win at the BMW Open in 2007 gave me a great start in my career. Now, in the later stages of my career, it’s an amazing feeling to win in front of my home fans.”

The points are nice, too. Our rough cut — and remember that this is a very tricky week — is that he just edges into the Top 25. His Roland Garros seed now looks certain.

So does Marin Cilic’s. He won’t quite make the Top Twenty, but he seems finally to have rediscovered his form. We’d expect much more over the coming months.

Doubles – Final: (1) Cermak/Polasek def. Malisse/Norman 6-4 7-5

Cermak/Polasek seem to be like Alexander the Great, looking for new worlds to conquer. Last year, they won Belgrade at about this time — the first of three titles they won in 2011. But did they go back? No, they headed for Munich instead. Of course, Belgrade 2011 was already off. But this gets them back to about where they were a week ago. It may in fact be bigger news for Malisse/Norman. They have the Olympics to think about….

Madrid

Singles – First Round: N Davydenko def. I Karlovic 7-6(7-4) 6-3

The way Nikolay Davydenko’s ranking has been sliding, this was by no means inevitable. Even with this win, there appears to be no practical possibility that Davydenko can earn a Roland Garros seed this year.

Singles – First Round: K Anderson def. A Bogomolov Jr. 6-3 6-2

If Alex Bogomolov can’t shake this slump soon, he isn’t going to get direct entry into many more Masters….