[5:57] Very good from Tsonga. Third set. Did well to earn the break and serving well. Got hit by an Andy shot in a rather unfortunate place… dude is doign well to be standing.

[5:14] Tsonga isn’t moving well and really having trouble hitting his big shots. First serve percentage is up but it’s not always effective. Only one error from Murray, absolutely focused.

[5:06] Simply too good from Murray. Hasn’t taken his time out of the gate and is seeing the ball and moving wonderfully. Jo not getting the first serve. Curious if there’s some back issues. Doesn’t much matter. This is over soon.

[4:37] Great patterns of play from both. Interested in playing their games and dictating on serve, which they are. Early bonehead break from Jo means he tosses away the first set. Can’t afford one of those. Far from over.

[4:13] These are the types of matches where not having a coach may cost Jo. Has come out swinging in his earlier matches, but Murray will keep the ball low and likely keep Jo from unleashing some of his bigger shots. Looks like he’s interested in coming to net to keep points short, which is good. Has found success there in this tournament. Already down a break. Needs to get out of first gear. 0-3 to Murray.

[4:03] Tough match to call. Kamakshi Tandon was right on when she said that Federer played at a B+ level while Novak played at a B-. Movement sub par from Novak and couldn’t quite get the footing on some shots. Looked a bit like me out there at times, if I’m honest (that is not a compliment). Still, Fed very rarely needed to up his game into top gear and when he did, he often found success. Tough to know how good he will be for Sunday, but regardless of the second semifinal, we will have a match on our hands.

[3:10] Commentators not trying to get ahead of themselves, but I think you can. Fed serving well, and in a fast rhythm. Up 1-4, needs two more holds. Don’t want to say it’s in the bag, but pretty damn close.

[3:00] Some terrible, terrible misses from Djokovic, it has to be said. Federer in complete control and not by his own doing, but he’ll take it. 4 holds away from another final.

[2:57] It seemed like vintage Federer there. Not the shot making, but that his opponent cracked under the pressure, and the momentum was all his. A terribly missed overhead, and a straight forward break. Two sets to one.

[2:45] Federer digs out of trouble. My oh my. Quality of returning has gone up, both players obviously realize how crucial of a point in the match this is. Djokovic to serve, 4-5.

[2:35] IT. IS. ALIVE. Real urgency, incredible points. Djokovic really showing his movement here. It’s helped. Both guys looking to go for it a little bit more on the return as well.

[2:21] Sorry about that. Had to take care of something. Set all, 2 all. Nice and juicy.

[1:33] Well that was fast. Insanely fast, in fact. 6-3. Comfortable, and very little energy spent by either. 24 minutes.

[1:27] Is it the court? The roof? Djokovic looks focused but not quite… settled. Making some strange decisions to come to net and his footing has not been fantastic so far. Crowd will get behind Federer quickly here. Up a break, 4-2.

[1:20] 2-2. First serve percentage is going to be key, particularly for Federer. Djokovic will start to pounce if he can get a few second serves, and his return looks on. Djokovic noted that he felt returning was easier under the roof as well.

[1:13] Ceremonial holds from both, then.

[1:09] Hi! Let’s do it.

[7:12] A terrible third set on so many levels. I don’t even know how Kerber won that, but she did. The Kerber/Azarenka final is still on! Lord. That’s it for me for today, I need to shower (off the idiocy of that third set) and get on with the day or something. Post or two later, and back tomorrow, of course. Enjoy Azarenka/Paszek!

[7:01] What a third set. Again, negative from Kerber who double faults to break herself, then hits some fantastic shots to get the break back. No tiebreaks. If she holds here, it will be 5-5. Jeebs.

[6:43] Have to say, good chance Kiri/Aga don’t finish today. Covers on. Hard to know but tight for time now, with light also an issue.

[6:41] Battle of who really wants it now. Traded breaks, traded holds. Kerber has such terrible body language but the intensity of Lisicki is gone and she’s back to making a lot of errors. Similar problems for both. Kerber needs to just crank a couple of big shots in a return game and get pumped up again.

[6:37] Very negative tennis from Kerber. Looks pretty terrible, really. Big hold needed here.

[6:31] So inconsistent from Sabine, but she can turn it up when she needs to, and it tends to work. Kerber incredibly negative despite being up a break, and Sabine breaks back. Funny old sport. Short cross court forehand working incredibly well for Kerber, when she hits it clean.

[6:01] Kiri and Aga are so close. Kiri starting to take the chances she gets. Good hold from her too. Bloody hell the scream is out of control though. On serve, Aga 2-3.

[5:47] Amazing stuff from Radwanska. So creative, so steady. Can be overpowered, but you need to be patient enough and deadly in your shot making. If not, the ninja will punish you, and she’s doing just that.

[5:31] Lisicki is hanging in, but by her finger nails. Still down a break. Not much hope. Raining on court 1 the second I turn it on. Of course.

[5:14] Trainer for Sabine, little hand problem. Dropped the first set without much trouble. The wild, looping swings are back and the timing is off. Again, footwork not really getting her into the right position so the ball ends up with a life of its own.

[5:08] Much better from Sabine. More energy and more control because of it. Kerber having more trouble going down the line and the court is opening up. Not terrible for Sabine who is always willing to punish when she has the chance.

[4:54] Virginia Wade is always this bad, isn’t she? Not a lot of concentration or energy from Sabine. It takes a lot to play the type of game she does. There needs to be a lot of adjusting, in the feet, grip, swing etc. in order to consistently get on top. Not quite happening.

[4:49] Oh dear. Sabine totally lacking in intensity, not moving nearly as well, particularly in her footwork, getting down to lower balls. Really needs to hack her way through these next few games to try and get something going.

[4:40] Woops! Forgot to hit the update button. Great match-up for Serena, through in straights. Moving better and with supreme confidence. Off we go with Lisicki/Kerber.

[4:07] Good stuff from Petra. At times, footwork that resembles mine and not a top tennis player, but she is fighting hard which is great to see. Serena cracked under pressure a bit. 4-5 then.

[4:02] This is what you hoped to see when you signed up. Some close games but some determined hitting when it matters, and all on serve in the second. Very good chance this could come down to a tiebreak. Hard to call.

[3:41] First set to Serena and still looking dangerous. It’s one of the things that often puts her apart from other big hitters. She almost barely ever fades in the second set. Still, Petra has come out swinging in this second set. As she should. 1-2.

[3:17] All Serena. Kvitova forgetting to move her feet at times. Was afraid this could happen to her. She hasn’t quite been the same since last year’s win. This match-up is perfect for Serena as well.

[3:02] Flipped to the slugfest of Petra/Serena. Duh. Power meets power.

[2:51] Kiri playing incredibly well but blowing some big time chances here. Should have had a break. If she can keep hitting this hard and well she can win, but if she can’t, she’ll have other things to think about.

[2:46] Rain. Still rain. Misty by the looks. Still makes things wet. Sam Smith makes a great point. An ump can’t feel how the grass feels with her hand, it’s about the feel on the shoe. Indeed. Play about to start back up again.

[2:37] Ladies quarterfinals, then! Kiri/Aga under way.

Stuck at work? Without Twitter? Need a place to follow along? Catching up? I’ve got you covered! I’ll be on Twitter as well, but this will be my place for catching up with all of the days action. Tell a friend! Comments welcome.

[4:55] Rain. Good news for Tsonga. Maybe he can find his first serve in the locker room. Roof will have to close on centre. Also good news for Ivanovic. Could use the coach help more than anything.

[4:53] Ivanovic seems like she’s been on a walk about since the match started. Overwhelmed by Azarenka’s power. Not returning or serving well. Azarenka is hitting a lot of balls deep, but Ivanovic has no interest in trying to get on top of some of the shorter ones. Not a good sign. Tsonga living very dangerously as well, largely due to his first serve disappearing.

[4:50] Flipping Ivanovic off. Would really need Azarenka to drop her level and I don’t see that happening. Again, Tsonga struggling to find his serve. Very well may be his undoing.

[4:40] When serving and volleying works, boy does it work. First set to Mardy Fis who is just ripping the cover off the ball and leaving Tsonga with zero options.

[4:38] Back. Tsonga and Ivanovic. Let’s do this.

[3:08] When you can hit this big and command the court this well, it doesn’t much matter who is on the other side of the net. Truly. Absolutely mesmerizing stuff from the powerful German.

[3:01] Set and a break to Lisicki, 0-3. Sharapova really against the wall now.

[2:56] Lisicki looks like she never stopped moving. Sharapova a total mess. Two double faults.

[2:53] Sharapova and Lisicki back on.

[2:10] Most play stopped for the rain. Shvedova/Serena carry on. 30-30 now.

[1:58] Double fault, return forehand winner, error. Sharapova was at 40-30 to go 5-all, suddenly it’s the first set for Lisicki. Needs to keep the intensity up if she wants a shot.

[1:45] Kvitova hanging in the second set with Fran. Serena in the third set with Slava. Lord.

[1:43] Sharapova dropped the first set against Sabine in Australia this year, but Sabine’s level and intensity dropped significantly after. Not sure if it will after this set. She’s spent a lot less energy on grass too. Sharapova, 2-5. Federer’s movement apparently not what it normally is.

[1:38] Medical timeout to Fed. That… never happens. Like actually. It doesn’t happen. Too many matches going on right now. Lisicki at 4-2.

[1:35] Second tournament in a row I have picked one player to win the ladies title and taken another in tennis pool. Last time I took Sharapova to win it, didn’t pick her in pool. Took her in pool, didn’t pick her to win it. Right. Lisicki looks like she has a legitimate chance at the upset. Still early, and Sharapova’s mental strength will test the German. Might hit it so hard it won’t matter.

[1:27] Not sure this “Lisicki’s confidence is low” thing really works. She lost four straight matches, but loves grass and always has the right idea. Good service game from her. 102.

[1:24] Break right back to Lisicki. Like the idea. Looks interested in moving Sharapova forward when possible. Forehand looks on.

[1:21] A little late getting going here, but what can you do. Sharapova/Lisicki and whatever else I can keep an eye on. Crazy day. Opening break to Sharapova, commentators already writing off Lisicki. Right then.

Stuck at work? Without Twitter? Need a place to follow along? Catching up? I’ve got you covered! I’ll be on Twitter as well, but this will be my place for catching up with all of the days action. Tell a friend! Comments welcome.

[4:58] Big thanks to those who have read the live blog. It’s a nice place to scratch down random thoughts as they come. Going to close it up for today. Working on a big post on tennis tactics (and the similarity to football) and off later to watch the second Euro semfinal (go figure). I’ll be back tomorrow, and then all of next week. Thanks for reading!

[4:01] Good win for Ivanovic. Playing very erratically. It’s good though. She’s going for it, which she needs to on grass… and every surface. Making a lot of errors because of it, but so be it. She has next to no success when she tries to hold back and feel her way through rallies. She’s not that type of player, and never will be. In that sense, you have to give props to Li Na. She goes out, goes for it, and if she burns out, so be it. Has to be a similar approach for Ivanovic, I think. She’s doing enough to get through, and putting pressure on her opponents. That’s what matters at the end of the day. She’ll get Goerges in the next round, which should be a great, forehand destroying match.

[3:39] Only a matter of time before Ivo bored me to death. To Ivanovic. 5-6 in the second. Tiebreak could be a messy affair.

[3:29] There really is little in this match. Some interesting points, some unreturnable serves, some service holds. Duh. 1-2.

[3:17] What an odd set. Double fault from Ivo, set to Murray. Murray moving quite well, returning well. Good signs.

[2:45] Focusing on Murray. Bit too frustrating from Ana, if I’m honest. Good hands from Karlovic. Murray doing a great job to get stuff back but Ivo is ready for it. Still amazes me how laboured yet fluid Karlovic’s motion is.

[2:41] Ha. Ivo comes to net, lucky net cord, ball goes flying past him and lands in. On serve again, 1-1. Right. Should be an odd match. Bit of a wind in the stadium too by the looks.

[2:38] One day you’re killing it on centre court as the only match in play, the next day you’re playing Alize Cornet on court 14. Funny sport this. Murray broken against Karlovic, set is basically over already.

[2:31] Amazing interview from Baker. Guy has come such a long way to get back to playing tennis, and really is playing well. Inspiring stuff. Murray up coming. Ivanovic grinding away on court 3 against Bondarenko. Backhand actually looks pretty good. Getting through the zone quick, relatively confident with it.

[2:17] Pressure does strange things to people. Sharapova put all the pressure on Pironkova, and that was it really. Well played. Murray is up coming as Serena is through easily, and Ivanovic up next as Malisse downs Simon. I’ll have both of those. Curious to see how Murray will do.

[2:04] Pironkova is without a sniff. Has the game to trouble Sharapova, but if Masha can just crush the living crap out of the ball, there’s little anyone can do. About to be 4-0. This one is all but done. Ice Queen ahoy.

[1:57] Very good hitting from Sharapova. Not trying to crush it, just controlling it and placing it where it needs to go. Pressure clearly on Pironkova and she’s not dealing very well. Early break, 1-0.

[1:48] Well. Pironkadonk and here wonky game have pushed Masha into a third. This might get… loud.

[1:46] Apparently repeatedly getting less than 6 hours of sleep each night catches up with you. Who knew. Up now! Masha/Tsveti on then.

[12:15] Back in a few.

[12:02] Lots of big name players on tap for today, not the most exciting of matches. However, there is likely to be an upset somewhere, so keep an eye open.

Stuck at work? Without Twitter? Need a place to follow along? Catching up? I’ve got you covered! I’ll be on Twitter as well, but this will be my place for catching up with all of the days action. Tell a friend! Comments welcome.

[8:09] Well. Good hold from Sorana. Still down a break, 3-2.

[8:01] Crap. Bound to happen eventually. Break for Na…. Li. Li Na. 2-1. Sounds like she was hitting a ton of errors. Sorana will have to up her game here, then.

[7:54] Great straight forward hold from Sorana. Keep the momentum going. What she needs.

[7:51] Breaks to take the set. Lovely. Will serve first in the second. That’s good. If she gets further in that set, it’s basically guaranteed she will tighten up. Helps to serve first.

[7:47] Blows it. Bloody hell. Set points in both games. Definite momentum swing not owning it up to go 6-1. Still has a break.

[7:41] Had my freak out tweet ready. Not yet. Li Na saves some set points, Cirstea will have to come back out to serve it out, up 5-2.

[7:35] 1-5. Bloody frickin’ hell.

[7:28] What the fricky frack? Double break to Sorana, 4-1. Right. Keep er goin’, girl.

[7:24] Quite a long game for Sorana. Not sure if it’s good or bad. Has saved four break points in it.

[7:20] Deuce… ad Sorana… deuce… ad Li. I’m starving and have had too much coffee. Portugal/Spain soon. Fantastic combo.

[7:15] Li Na holds by… hitting the tennis ball. I don’t know, I can’t freaking see it. Sorana to serve. 30-0. Bloody hell.

[7:12] 0-2 Sorana to start. Breathing.

[7:09] Sorana breaks to open. Yes. Great. Get my hopes up.

[7:07] Sorana is on the board. Hope. Here we go. Oh, and two sets to Gulbis now. Think he’ll be fine, if I’m allowed to say that. Clijsters up a set too.

[6:52] I’ve toned my fandom down a lot over nearly three years of the blog, mostly because I want to be able to have followers who are fans of all sorts of players and won’t get tired of my fanboying. Makes sense. And to be honest, I have become more of a fan of the sport for what it is than individual players over the years, and I’m quite ok with that. My Sorana love is not likely to ever fizzle out though. She plays Li Na on court 4 next. She’s probably going to get crushed, but don’t tell me that.
Read the rest of this entry »

Stuck at work? Without Twitter? Need a place to follow along? Catching up? I’ve got you covered! I’ll be on Twitter as well, but this will be my place for catching up with all of the days action. Tell a friend! Comments welcome.

[7:30] Brutal, brutal luck. Net cord that flopped over on a return for Querrey. Break point. Long rally. Excellent forehand from Pospisil off a slice, ball comes back, panics and drop shots into the net. Quick hold from Querrey. 2-5. Terrible for the Canadian.

[7:23] Zzz. Nothing in this third set. Both content to sit back for the tiebreak. Both guys are total money on serve so far.

[7:11] Great tiebreak from Pospisil. This match may not finish today. Finally takes it on his sixth set point. Querrey really had so many chances to break and should have taken it, but excellent work under pressure from Pospisil. Really believes in his serve, as he should. Confident dude.

[7:04] Tiebreak.

[6:54] Three set points gone for Vashy. Absolutely destroying the second serve of Querrey. Ton of pressure on both guys serves. I dare say Querrey has had the better chance to win this, having had so many set points.

[6:51] Ridiculous winners from Pospisil. Has no business being in this set and now has two set points.

[6:48] Pospisil making things incredibly difficult for himself. Break points against. Again.

[6:41] Back to back breaks for Querrey. Far from done, with Querrey’s track record. But if he keeps serving like he is, that will be two sets for him. 7-5, 1-0.

[5:50] Both players making some in roads on the return game then. Both using the big serve to get out of jail though. Of course.

[5:45] Bit of an opening for Querrey there. Terrible miss. Makes a weird face. Spins the racquet. Ace. Nevermind then. 2-3.

[5:41] The chance of there being any breaks in this match, ever, at all, seems low. Both guys killing it on serve and with zero interest on the return. So far.

[5:39] Pospisil/Querrey time. Great to watch a match on a real outer court. Feels a bit like being there. Quite the atmosphere.
Read the rest of this entry »

Stuck at work? Without Twitter? Need a place to follow along? Catching up? I’ve got you covered! I’ll be on Twitter as well, but this will be my place for catching up with all of the days action. Tell a friend! Comments welcome.

[7:10] What a win for Gulbis! Three tiebreaks, massive serving and great creativity. Huge upset that will destroy a bracket or two.

I’m off for the day! Thanks to all of those who read. I’ll be here every week day of the tournament. Tell a friend! See you tomorrow. The matches should be great.

[7:01] Kim through, 6-2, 6-4. Shaky at times but never any doubt. Some positive signs from Jankovic, particularly her backhand, which will serve her well on hard courts. Desperately needs to sort the forehand, however. Will not be good enough for the summer like that.

[6:57] Game Clijsters. On serve, as the clock is about to strike 7. I’m not sure why that is significant. Berdych has saved 3 match points, one with the help of hawkeye. Serving for a third set tiebreak.

[6:50] Messy from Kim. Very typical. Can play so fast. When stuff gets tight, it gets really tight. Struggles to hold, finally broken. JJ at 3-4.

[6:48] Positive stuff from JJ’s backhand. Good in offense and defense. Digging a lot out while coming forward, which is harder to do than it looks. Forehand is still failing her though, and struggling to get on top of points.

[6:40] Mentally, Lu hasn’t had it today. Hard to know if it’s tied with the groin issues or not. Still a lovely match with a lot of great shot making. Harrison in four sets. Novak next.

[6:32] JJ is playing better. Kim is still really good at tennis. Lu hanging in.

[6:18] Such an opportunity missed by Lu. First break points since the first set. Surely has to take those. Needs to keep believing in himself on the next return game. Clijsters in freak mode right now.

[6:14] Amazing lack of plan from JJ. Not sure whether to come to match, bash, or what. Being embarrassed by Kim. 6-2. Gulbis two tiebreaks to love versus Berdych. Wow.

[6:06] Another set with no break chances for Lu. Creating a bit on Harrison’s serve but a few too many errors. Big serving from Harrison, very confident on serve. Both players off to the washroom. Right. Clijsters up a break, 4-2.

[6:01] Pressure gets the Lu. Saves two break points, but Harrison manages to get a good serve back on break point, and Lu buries it into the net. Trouble. 5-4 Harrison. Clijsters in cruise control. As you were.

[5:58] Just incredible stuff from Kim. Amazing wrist strength, able to create such pace with spin out of nothing like no other. Such intelligent shots, too. Beautiful to see. Lu goes on a bit of a walk about but saves two break points. Very brave.
Read the rest of this entry »

It’s not raining anymore! Word! It’s 17 degrees out, yikes. No sun, but the rain is supposed to hold off for now. Bepa/Vika are on the second court, so I won’t have anything from that match, sorry. Caro/Kuz and then the final.

17:17 …*Tumbleweed*… Sorry about that. Caro won pretty easily, obviously.

14:28 Up a break, Caro is looking in total control. Bepa can’t buy a first serve (under 40%) and is on the edge of total collapse.

14:17 Caro takes the first set, but Bepa has come out focused in the second, and has upped the power.

14:03 Bepa is finding her way into this set, but she’s a bit late to the party. Moving her feet better, but still getting done in by Caro’s defence. Bepa to serve to stay in it at 2-5.

13:55 Swing volley city for Caro, and she holds. Bepa really trying to get the juices flowing, whacking at her leg and the usual business. Both players are serving well below 50%, would have to guess the wind is having a little something to do with it.

13:52 Some solid power and aggression from Caro going out wide gives her a couple of easy net put aways and she’s up a break. 3-1.

13:46 Mishit from Vera and Caro holds. Bepa is already swatting at the air…

13:43 Double dosage of double faults at 15-30 for Bepa… aaand one game all. Okie dokie.

13:41 Winner for Bepa and some errors… she breaks to open. 1-0.

13:36 Hey all. Players warming up, Mariana in the chair. Time. 22 degrees out. Stadium starting to fill up.
Read the rest of this entry »

Morning guys. Just settling in with the matches, waking myself up and the business.

10:49 Sorry guys, not up to doing the Rafa match. Not feeling well enough, need to eat and some other stuff. Thanks for reading my minimal updates, I’ll have lots of posts later as per usual, and be back tomorrow.

10:36 Unreal! Sam takes it, 8-6 in the third. She’s beaten Justine and Serena to get to the semis. WOW.

10:22 Sorry folks. Not feeling the greatest. A bit better now though. Epic intensity here at 5-all in the third. Sam just saved a match point. Serena holding easily now.

09:44 Oh. JJ just won. If you could hear me, you would hear the overwhelming enthusiasm I have for that match. Obviously.

09:42 Serena is back in this. Takes the tiebreak easily, and has found her forehand. Not good news for Sam.

09:27 Sam clearly nervous, Serena going for broke, and she picks a good time to get her first break of the match. She’ll serve at 4-5 to stay in the match.

09:22 Serena is ready to cry. Errors everywhere. Has zero solutions against Sam, and she’s trying to make things happen. Sam to serve for the match.

09:18 Not much to say. Sam is using the kick serve and variety to keep Serena off balance, and then running around forehands, creating angles, and holding easily. Serena losing most points off the second serve but fighting to stay alive.
Read the rest of this entry »

Hey guys. You know the deal.

1:52 That’s it for today people. Thanks for reading. I’ll be back again tomorrow for the other quarterfinals, and will have lots of blog posting later on tonight. Cheers!

1:43 With an epic fist pump, at 7:42pm local time, Soderling d. Federer. Holy. Hell.

1:41 ONE POINT AWAY.

1:38 ROBIN BREAKS. An error long. Sod will serve for the match at 5-4. Be still my heart. Fed looking calm and cool. So is Sod. This guy sure knows how to ruin a party, no?

1:37 Fed serving huge, but Sod is getting balls back, and then firing them at the second chance to push Fed back. It brings the errors. Fed saves one of two BPs with an ace.

1:34 Tomas up serving 4-1 in the third. Sod serving absolute bombs. 4-all, Fed to serve.

1:33 A 225km/h serve from Sod. Unreal considering the cold, dark, damp conditions. Over powering.

1:30 Huge serve followed by a second huge serve and Sod nets one. He’ll serve at 3-4. This is intense.
Read the rest of this entry »