ATP Masters 1000: Montreal

This time last year, the Olympic Games were starting in London, and doesn't if feel like it all happened sooo long ago...

Originally, I liked the idea of tennis as an olympic sport, but after being there last year, I realised it is actually a big miss, so am quite glad that Rio looks like another lifetime away.

So even on the soulless, humid concrete courts of US & Canada, tennis somehow feels at home. Last year Toronto, this year Montreal.

Coupe Rogers without Roger though, mmmm.....somehow just does not feel right. 

Monfils, Tsonga, Cilic, Troicki, Fish not participating either, all for very different reasons, of course  

So....

ATP Masters 1000, Montreal, outdoor hard

Since 1881, the best players in the world have showcased their skills on Canadian courts. Only Wimbledon and the U.S. Open have longer histories than this important Tour event. Every year, Montreal and Toronto share the task of hosting, in alternation, the Rogers Cup presented by National Bank, one of two ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournaments held in August during the Emirates U.S. Open Series. The impressive list of past champions for this Canadian stop bear such legendary names as Bjorn Borg, Ivan Lendl, John McEnroe, Andre Agassi, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and two-time defending champion Novak Djokovic.


Players:
Djokovic, Murray, Ferrer, Nadal, Del Potro, Berdych, Gasquet, Wawrinka

Draw:
http://www.rogerscup.com/men/pdf/draws/2013/MDS_aug3.pdf


Order of Play:

http://www.atpworldtour.com/posting/2013/421/op.pdf







https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qq7ncjhSqtk

First round matches not to miss:

Kohlschreiber-Paire
Baghdatis-Fognini
Simon-Davydenko

Potential 2nd round matches:

Murray-Dimitrov
Djokovic-Tomic

Any word on how slow the courts are playing-- because you know they are slow :-)

They better keep Cinci fast.

I don't know how the courts are playing, but they are traditionally medium fast ( read slow).
Last time I saw fast hard courts was in Bercy, 2011, and in Boisie when team USA laid fastest legal hard court in their DC match against Serbia.
Washington looks nice and fast, but Nadal is not playing there, so no need for sand in the paint...
Even O2 last year was very slow for indoor.

So, I am not holding my breath, all hard courts play slow these days, most have high bounce on top, ultra light racquets, modern strings...tennis is a different sport now.
Even Haas v Dimitrov, both SBH-ers were slogging it from the baseline last night in Washington.

The very fact Nadal won USO says everything.
Depressing.

Order of play out for tomorrow, match of the day:

Kohlschreiber-Paire  
also in action:

Gulbis-F.Mayer
Tomic-F.Lopez
Seppi-Rosol

A quick look at this week's ranking, Delpo with a good chance of overtaking Berdych after Montreal as he has only 90 points to defend.
Federer's number 5 looking under threat as well if he skips Cincy.
After dropping out of top 10,Tipsarevic now close to losing the top 20 status, as well.
Raonic still quite high considering his poor results this year.
Fognini doing well at 16 where he more than belongs compared to others.
JJ has a great chance to break through in top 10 after USO.
I wonder how long Cilic's silent ban is going to last and keep him in top 20...

1 Djokovic, Novak (SRB) 12,040 0 18
2 Murray, Andy (GBR) 8,610 0 18
3 Ferrer, David (ESP) 7,120 0 24
4 Nadal, Rafael (ESP) 6,860 0 19
5 Federer, Roger (SUI) 5,515 0 21
6 Berdych, Tomas (CZE) 4,865 0 24
7 Del Potro, Juan Martin (ARG) 4,660 0 23
8 Tsonga, Jo-Wilfried (FRA) 3,480 0 24
9 Gasquet, Richard (FRA) 3,045 0 23
10 Wawrinka, Stanislas (SUI) 2,915 0 23
11 Nishikori, Kei (JPN) 2,405 0 21
12 Haas, Tommy (GER) 2,275 0 27
13 Raonic, Milos (CAN) 2,225 0 24
14 Almagro, Nicolas (ESP) 2,090 0 24
15 Cilic, Marin (CRO) 2,075 0 21
16 Fognini, Fabio (ITA) 2,075 0 28
17 Simon, Gilles (FRA) 2,030 0 25
18 Janowicz, Jerzy (POL) 2,029 0 21
19 Tipsarevic, Janko (SRB) 2,000 0 27
20 Isner, John (USA) 1,935 0 27

I have just renewed my TennisTV subscription and can finally watch tennis without those idiotic adds!!!
YIPPPPPPPEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE               

And it's Paire v Kohlschreiber


ALLEZ BENOIT!!!!!!!!!!!! 

Just had a look in slo-mo, Paire passes my very strict talentometer test!!!
No grimacing AT ALL at the point of ball-contact 
It's only Roger, Serena and him so far....

Most valid way I've seen anyone define talent so far !!

Paire wins the first set in the tie-breal (7:1) playing some fantastic tennis, real pleasure to watch him.
Most talented and gutsiest of all French players by far.

You know American hard court season has begun when you see those linesmen with enormous gut....

Such a shame nobody seems to be watching this match, Paire's tennis is so good and such a breath of fresh air, he makes even Kohli look like a mundane basher.

If only he could steady himself in self-belief, he'd be a definite top tenner very soon.

noleisthebest wrote:Such a shame nobody seems to be watching this match,

 I am

noleisthebest wrote:
Paire's tennis is so good and such a breath of fresh air, he makes even Kohli look like a mundane basher.

Not sure about that, they both are quite fun to watch. Wouldn't say it makes Kohli look like a mundane basher.

noleisthebest wrote:
If only he could steady himself in self-belief, he'd be a definite top tenner very soon.

Don't think so, to be honest he'll get top 20 max.

Wonderful win for Paire, 7:6 7:5, a little mid-set wobble caused by a double fault, but pulled himself up immediately, the match was on his racquet all the time,  hit some gorgeous shots; he has everything in his arsenal loved pulling off some extreme slices and as usual, in playful mood, really enjoyed watching the match.  
Stan awaits next.

Julia Santamaria wrote:

noleisthebest wrote:Such a shame nobody seems to be watching this match,

 I am

I am glad you saw the match, and hope you were able to recognise and enjoy Paire's talent.
Such beautiful variety and natural ball-striking. No need for any silly muscles and running like a rabbit....

noleisthebest wrote:

Julia Santamaria wrote:

noleisthebest wrote:Such a shame nobody seems to be watching this match,

 I am

I am glad you saw the match, and hope you were able to recognise and enjoy Paire's talent.
Such beautiful variety and natural ball-striking. No need for any silly muscles and running like a rabbit....

LOL you bring Rafito Nadal up more than I do

For the record muscles or no muscles really don't make a difference for me. As for 'running like a rabbit', I suppose that is a funny comparison- not sure how accurate it is though. Are rabbits that fast?

Yesterday's results:

Mayer d Tomic in 3 
Istomin d Tipsarevic in 2
Seppi d Rosol in 3rd set TB
Gulbis d Lopez
Dodig d(emolished) Zemlja
Klizan d Bellucci (also 3rd set TB)
Nishikori thorugh in 3, Mallise out to a WC....

Today:

Bennetteau-JJ
Chardy-Raonic
Nishikori-Seppi
Stepanek-Almagro
Youznhy-Melzer
Simon-Davydenko
Fognini-Baghdatis
Anderson-Dolgopolov
Klizan-Gasquet
Dimitrov-Granollers
Haas-Goffin
and last but not the least
Djokovic-F.Mayer

GO NOLEEEEEEE!!!! 

JJ-Benneteau starting, will be happy for JJ to win (and shred Nadal to pieces  ), but in the meantime.... ALLEZ BEN!!!!!!

Good battle taking place between Benneteau and JJ, 5 all in the 3rd!
Benneteau looking very tired, 2 DFs in a row, takes a lot of time between the points, 2 BPs for JJ, Benneteau saves both!
Another one coming. And JJ uses this one with Benneteau serving another DF ( in the net both times)

JJ serving for the match, heaving been a break down at 2:4, looking fresh as a daisy, too.

And he does it to love, very good win for him, mature attitude, can 't wait to see him take on Nadal.

Stepanak also through, d. Almagro in 3,

Fognini-Baghdatis next, come on Fabio!!!

And O Sole Mio Fabio does his usual drama, loses the first set 1:6 only to win the next two with the same result....what a guy!
Shame the match was not on any show-courts....instead they are showing Isner vs this Canadian Pospisil...who wants to watch THAT... 
Nole's last on central court at 1 AM...that will bring me right back to my AO sofa mode...missed it a bit after the European spring/summer stretch which I also loved, great how tennis season has its time-zone pleasures and challenges like this, I can't think of any other sport which brings so much to the fans.
Long live glorious and beautiful game of tennis 

I must admit, it feels unreal to be awake and watching tennis at this time again...definitely need time to "adjust" ...

Come on Nole!!!

Nice to hear Robbie's voice again...even though he is talking about manuka honey.
I see...he is talking about Nole's book that came out recently.
Just from the first few points, I can see that Nole is moving beautifully, despite the BP for Mayer.
Nole is in business here, looking very, very sharp esp bearing in mind this is his first match since Wimby.

Oh, a beautiful SBH from Nole!
Where is Tenez to see it?
He'll have to take my word for it

(Unless he's found a little bar on his holiday and is awake watching this match   )

Wow, even S&V point!
Nice to see Nole bossing the baseline aggressively and pressing forward again!
Looks like it's very humid in Montreal.
Court playing medium speed, but like a proper hard court unlike Indian Wells.
Nole in complete control, 3:0.

He moves so much better on hard courts than on grass, like fish in water! Definitely his best surface by faaaaar!

Great serving, looks improved from Wimbledon, looking rested and very fresh, fit as a fiddle, and above all quite confident!
Nole is ready for the rest of the season  

First set in 28 minutes, 6:2.
If he wasn't trying to please the crowd with some playful shots, it could have easily been a bagel. Completely demolishing Mayer here.
Expecting more of the same in the second set.
Hopefully he'll stay focused and not do one of his usual "I've destroyed him so I can chill out" .
Go Nole!!!  

Nole has really improved his volleys, esp on the BH, he strikes them with such command now, and they are not put-always any more.
Job done! 6:3, 6:1 !  

And, as if that nice all court-ish hard court tennis was not enough, Nole does a big dance as a post match good-vibe release, he's one happy soul, happy to be alive and share it with the world, love it !!!  

A masters tournament is going on and I'm not watching. Clearly tennis is just not the same with Fed not playing. 

Today I'll try to watch some matches.

Oh, YESSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!
Paire just beat Wawrinka       

Time to do some catching up.
Yesterday: 5 Canadians made it through to the 2nd round, Raonic scraped through past Chardy,
Pospsil d. Isner 
Gasquet d. Klizan
Haas d. Goffin
Granollerd d. Dimitrov
Youzhny d. Melzer
Dolgopolov d Anderson
Davydenko d. Simon in 3
Dancevic, Nishikori also through.

So  far today, 
Murray d. Granollers
Gulbis d. Fognini in 3
Pospisil d. Stepanek
Berdych d. Dolgpolov
Paire d Wawrinka  

Nadal playing Levine atm. Saw a game, too painful to watch.
Matosevic seems to be demolishing Haas, 5:0 in the first set.


Later on Raonic v. Youzhny and Dancevic JJ could be interesting.

Hello again otf  did ya miss me?
Hope everyone is good, IM GREAT

luvsports! wrote:Hello again otf  did ya miss me?
Hope everyone is good, IM GREAT

Hello LS, and welcome back from faraway lands and days of leisure...

Here, as you can see, it's still summerish, a bit less continental than it was a few weeks ago though, still, can't complain.
Tennis has picked up againand I am enjoying watching it in little hours again.

Hope you have enjoyed your holiday and have stored many special memories from it.

raiders_of_the_lost_ark wrote:A masters tournament is going on and I'm not watching. Clearly tennis is just not the same with Fed not playing. 

Today I'll try to watch some matches.

No player is bigger than the game, not even Federer.
He has given us moments of unrivalled opulence and lavish enjoyment. He has really spoilt us, fooled us into living a dream. The ride was great and it is still going on, even when he is not playing.
He is just teaching us to appreciate him more and moan less when he returns.

In the meantime, forehands and backhands are sailing to and fro painting the lines, volleys are being bravely ventured, aces pulled off....double faults buried into the net.
They are all playing the game and trying to tame that ball so hard. We have to appreciate that effort.

It's just that unlike the rest, Federer gets on with that ball so well, like he has some special pact with it. Truly wonderful.
Times when he is not playing are there to remind us of the hard reality we all live in, reality in which we all try and manage to have only very, very few moments of that dream now and then.

noleisthebest wrote:

raiders_of_the_lost_ark wrote:A masters tournament is going on and I'm not watching. Clearly tennis is just not the same with Fed not playing. 

Today I'll try to watch some matches.

No player is bigger than the game, not even Federer.
He has given us moments of unrivalled opulence and lavish enjoyment. He has really spoilt us, fooled us into living a dream. The ride was great and it is still going on, even when he is not playing.
He is just teaching us to appreciate him more and moan less when he returns.

In the meantime, forehands and backhands are sailing to and fro painting the lines, volleys are being bravely ventured, aces pulled off....double faults buried into the net.
They are all playing the game and trying to tame that ball so hard. We have to appreciate that effort.

It's just that unlike the rest, Federer gets on with that ball so well, like he has some special pact with it. Truly wonderful.
Times when he is not playing are there to remind us of the hard reality we all live in, reality in which we all try and manage to have only very, very few moments of that dream now and then.

 True. No player is bigger than the game. I just am finding it hard to face the reality that Fed won't forever be the player he once was. But glad he hasn't hung up his racquet as yet.

luvsports! wrote:Hello again otf  did ya miss me?
Hope everyone is good, IM GREAT

 Welcome back LS. Glad to see you again on otf.

An important win for Glubis. He rarely plays a bad game, but good that he can reach the finishing line as well.

Wawrinka looks still injured and not fit at all. So was Haas. 

Saw Delpo-Dodig in the morning and this one one classic choking example by Dodig.In 3rd set he was  Double break up 4-1 and serving, Delpo struggling to stay in the match and nothing to  guess what happens next. Dodig chokes big time. It looked like he may win the match handing a donut to Delpo, but he completely failed.

Delpo anyhow isn't going far here. He still hasn't managed to play 2 weeks in full fitness.

Cheers raiders and nitb. I am going to do a travel blog soon, so i'll keep ya posted .

luvsports! wrote:Cheers raiders and nitb. I am going to do a travel blog soon, so i'll keep ya posted .

I am just going to travel soon. Poetry writing only, though: blog of the soul!
Got my tennistv ipad app sorted yesterday, so just hope I'll be able to get hold of some WI-FI, I don't want to miss any action tennis saddo that I am

We've got round of 16 today, always my favourite at any tournament, so much promise and guaranteed good matches, one look at today's line-up, and we have some sumptuous tennis battles

Starting at 5PM UK time:

Nadal-Janowicz
Murray-Gulbis
DelPotro-Raonic
Djokovic-Istomin

On Court 1:

Matosevic-Paire  
Berdych-Pospisil
Davydenko-Bogomolov
Gasquet-Nishikori


Go JJ, Go Gulbis!!!

Watching Paire Matosevic, what a disgusting pusher Matosevic is.

ALLEZ BEONIT!!!!!!!!!!!!   

And Paire wins the 2nd set TB, what a crazy tie-break that was!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Adrenaline ride to end all adrenaline rides     

I would so love him to win this match and take on Nadal tomorrow.

I find it unusual to be cheering loudly&madly for someone in French, but it's fun, my neighbours are used to my tennis passion, I once heard them refer to me as Mrs Tennis 

Gulbis wins the first set against Murray. Time to tune in!

C'mon, Earnie, send the Wimbledon champion home 

Earnie playing smartly from the baseline, not biting into Murray's pushing game at all, patience, Earnie, keep it up 

Murray is playing the same as Nadal, the only difference is he is not moon-balling it from 4 m behind the baseline, just pushing the ball back in playforever waiting for an UE.
I still can't believe he won Wimbledon with such tennis....

JJ and Paire both blew it
Seems gulbis is up to the task though, takes the first 6-4 and has an early chance to break in the 2nd!

luvsports! wrote:JJ and Paire both blew it
Seems gulbis is up to the task though, takes the first 6-4 and has an early chance to break in the 2nd!

I'm still getting over Paire's loss, how on earth did he do it...that B grade pusher Matosevic was there for the taking, Paire played his risky attacking game, missed a few points and that was it, horrible.
Nadal is going to mince-meat him so easily tomorrow.

Didn't see JJ match, must have been close, only saw the score in the 1st set TB, JJ was 4:2 up, don't know how he managed to stuff it up from there....

Murray playing ugly trying all he can to wind Gulbis up and unsettle him. Such a turn-off of a player.

He also had a chance to serve for the 1st set and was 2;0 up in the 2nd JJ .
I apparently have to update my adobe flashplayer to watch it on stream
3 bp's gulbis!

How frustrating was that ultra-pushing break back point from Murray!!! 


Earnie breaks back in style and now serving for the match.

GO EARNIEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!  

And Earnie does it in style....with an ace! I liked his BH today, didn't notice it before, started attacking with it a bit like Paire does all the time, very good. 


Raonic - Del Potro next.

luvsports! wrote:
I apparently have to update my adobe flashplayer to watch it on stream

LS, just to warn you- I'm pretty sure those 'adobe' messages are nearly always viruses. I've never clicked on them, but my friends have and it fecked up their computer.
Sometimes streams are fake and just there to spread viruses, if you want a reliable one- message me lol.