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    Sliding around on smashed up bricks

    Let's go with the usual starting point for a Slam Tennis thread, the nominal third round draws.

    Men's Singles

    Rafael Nadal Esp [1] vs Richard Gasquet Fra [27]
    Denis Shapovalov Can [24] vs Jack Sock USA [14]
    Diego Schwartzman Arg [11] vs Philipp Kohlschreiber Ger [11]
    Feliciano Lopez Esp [28] vs Kevin Anderson RSA [6]

    Marin Cilic Cro [3] vs Adrian Mannarino Fra [25]
    Fabio Fognini Ita [18] vs Kyle Edmund GBr [16]
    John Isner USA [9] vs Tomas Berdych Cze [17]
    Albert Ramos Vinolas Esp [31] vs Juan Martin del Potro Arg [5]


    David Goffin Bel [8] vs Gael Monfils Fra [32]
    Nick Kyrgios Aus [21] vs Pablo Carreno Busta Esp [10]
    Roberto Bautista Agut Esp [13] vs Novak Djokovic Srb [20]
    Fernando Verdasco Esp [30] vs Grigor Dimitrov Bul [4]

    Dominic Thiem Aut [7] vs Gilles Muller Lux [29]
    Kei Nishikori Jpn [19] vs Sam Querrey USA [12]
    Lucas Pouille Fra [15] vs Stan Wawrinka Sui [23]
    Damir Dzumhur BiH [26] vs Alexander Zverev Ger [2]



    Women's Singles

    Simona Halep Rou [1] vs Kristina Mladenovic Fra [29]
    Daria Gavrilova Aus [24] vs Elise Mertens Bel [16]
    Angelique Kerber Ger [12] vs Kiki Bertens Ned [18]
    Zhang Shuai Chn [27] vs Caroline Garcia Fra [7]

    Garbine Muguruza Esp [3] vs Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova Rus [30]
    Magdalena Rybarikova Svk [19] vs CoCo Vandeweghe USA [15]
    Julia Goerges Ger [11] vs Ashleigh Barty Aus [17]
    Maria Sharapova Rus [28] vs Karolina Pliskova Cze [6]


    Jelena Ostapenko Lat [5] vs Barbora Strycova Cze [26]
    Johanna Konta GBr [22] vs Venus Williams USA [9]
    Madison Keys USA [13] vs Naomi Osaka Jpn [21]
    Mihaela Buzarnescu Rou [31] vs Elena Svitolina Ukr [4]

    Petra Kvitova Cze [8] vs Anett Kontaveit Est [20]
    Anastasija Sevastova Lat [20] vs Sloane Stephens USA [10]
    Daria Kastakina Rus [14] vs Carla Suarez Navarro Esp [23]
    Alize Cornet Fra [32] vs Caroline Wozniacki Den [2]


    British players segments, that will need to be won for the players to make the R16

    Fabio Fognini Ita [18] vs Pablo Andujar Esp [PR]
    Dudi Sela Isr vs Q/LL TBC
    Vasek Pospisil Can vs Marton Fucsovics Hun
    Alex de Minaur Aus [WC] vs Kyle Edmund GBr [16]

    Lucas Pouille Fra [15] vs Daniil Medvedev Rus
    Peter Gojowczyk Ger vs Cameron Norrie GBr
    Karen Khachanov Rus vs Andreas Haider-Maurer Aut [PR]
    Guillermo Garcia Lopez Esp vs Stan Wawrinka Sui [23]

    Daria Gavrilova Aus [24] vs Sorana Cirstea Rou
    Bernarda Pera USA vs Elena Vesnina Rus
    Heather Watson GBr vs Oceane Dodin Fra
    Vavara Lepchenko USA vs Elise Mertens Bel [16]

    Johanna Konta GBr [22] vs Yulia Putinseva Kaz
    Jennifer Brady USA vs Amandine Hesse Fra [WC]
    Petra Martic Cro vs Wang Yafan Chn
    Wang Qiang Chn vs Venus Williams USA [9]


    And one for a notable non-seeded non-Brit...

    Julia Goerges Ger [11] vs Dominika Cibulkova Svk
    Alison Van Uytvanck Bel vs Isabelle Wallace Aus [WC]
    Kristyna Pliskova Cze vs Serena Williams USA
    Natalia Vikhlyantseva Rus vs Ashleigh Barty Aus [17]

    #2
    A few comments.

    de Minaur is a dangerous R1 draw for Edmund. If he gets through it, clay court specialists Fognini or Andujar in R3 looks a big hurdle as well.
    Norrie should be decently happy with drawing Gojowczyk, who is an all-courter. Also there will be little difference in tiredness between the two of them; Gojowczyk is into the Semis in Geneva this week.
    Watson could easily get overpowered by Dodin, who hits a big ball. It's likely to be on the Frenchwoman's racquet, either a stream of winners or a bunch of errors. If Heather does get through, Elise Mertens in R2 looks particularly tough.
    Konta ought to be delighted with what she has landed. She has a 2-0 record against Putinseva, both of which were on clay. If ever there was a chance to break the Roland Garros duck... Brady and Hesse in R2 also look beatable, and Venus has the sort of game that Jo likes to play against hence their numerous battles in recent years.

    As for Serena, a fellow big server like Pliskova isn't ideal for someone who has been off the Tour for months and whose reactions might not be at their sharpest. Oh, and I have no problem with Serena not being seeded; either she is somewhere near her old level in which case it won't matter where she is in the draw (and bad luck to Goerges and Barty for landing this particular dangerous floater), or she is not yet fully fit and firing and not actually among the top 32 players on current form. Which is what the seedings are about. Also it remains noticeable that people only talk of Serena being given a protected seeding and not Azarenka, who was World No.8 when she stopped to have her baby. If it's true of one, it should hold for both.

    There are a lot of Lucky Loser spots on offer, particularly in the Men's draw which has four on top of the 16 qualifiers. Not everyone is as respectful of their fellow pros as Milos Raonic, whose withdrawal announcement came just before qualifying was due to start so allowed someone else to be bumped up to direct entrance.

    Nadal could potentially drop to no.3 in the rankings if Zverev wins the title and the final is against someone other than Rafa or (extreme long shot) Nadal loses in R1 and Dimitrov storms to the Coupe des Mousquetaires. There is a vague chance that the first option may happen. However if it did, it would be the first time for eons that the top two haven't been drawn from Federer, Nadal, Djokovic and Murray.

    Comment


      #3
      With the 17th, 19th, 20th and 23rd seeds being Berdych, Nishikori, Djokovic and Wawrinka, there are some 3rd rounds that are considerably spicier than you might expect.

      Comment


        #4
        Anybody feel like making some tips?

        Comment


          #5
          I think Nadal will win the men's, beating Thiem. Zverev will again fail to excel in a slam.
          No idea for the women. Possibly Ostapenko.

          Comment


            #6
            On the men's side, I can't picture anyone beating Nadal. And there's nobody in the other side of the draw who's at all compelling, but Etienne's prediction of Thiem is as good as any.

            On the women's, I have this weird naggy feeling that it's finally going to be Halep's tournament. Beating Suarez Navarro, who's going to have one of those tournaments that otherwise just OK players sometimes do.

            Comment


              #7
              Agreed that the Men's is all in Nadal's hands. If he plays at 95% on clay then Zverev, Dimitrov and Cilic can't touch him, and Djokovic and Wawrinka are just way off their best so won't get close for that reason. The one player who just might beat Rafa, who both has the game and carries less baggage about playing Nadal than almost anyone else is del Potro, but he is very doubtful with a groin injury. So I also cannot see beyond an 11th crown. With the decline or absence of the other multi-Slam winners, this feels like even the hottest favourite that Rafa has ever been.
              I reckon the final will be Nadal vs Goffin, and it will be as swift and brutal as the Nadal-Ferrer final of ~5 years ago.

              And by contrast the Women's is wide open. A case can be made for most of the seeds, and the occasional non-seed! It feels a bit needle in a haystack, but given that Garbine Muguruza has won Slams of very limited form before I'll go with her, beating Daria Kasatkina in the final.

              Comment


                #8
                Both Konta and Venus have been ousted.

                Comment


                  #9
                  And also the Women's defending champion is heading home, true to her all or nothing reputation 'til the end.

                  Konta losing was no great shock. Neither particularly was Ostapenko. Wang Qianq topping Venus is the big news of the day, assuming that David Goffin (currently a set down) doesn't lose to veteran Robin Haase.
                  Last edited by Janik; 27-05-2018, 17:30.

                  Comment


                    #10
                    It always feels a bit odd for players to be out before the first Monday, unless they withdraw such as Nick Kyrgios. Which has denied us a potentially explosive clash between him and Bernie Tomic.

                    Comment


                      #11
                      We are up to 8 Lucky Losers in the Men's draw, btw. The well of those willing to hang around may be running close to dry. I wonder if Jay Clarke is still in town?!?

                      Comment


                        #12
                        Another potential shock first up on Chatrier: Kvitova vs Cepede Royg. The Paraguayan is a clay specialist who made R4 last year, Kvitova has a relatively poor record in Paris despite her decent history on clay elsewhere.

                        Comment


                          #13
                          Norrie into round 2 after Gojowcyzk retires midway through set 2. Kvitova-Cepede Royg is 4-4 in the final set.

                          Comment


                            #14
                            Kvitova trailing 4-5 and serving at 15-15, produces three straight aces, the last of them a second serve. That is multiple Slam champion clutch.

                            Comment


                              #15
                              And won the next two games to claim the decider 7-5.

                              Comment


                                #16
                                Originally posted by Janik View Post
                                It always feels a bit odd for players to be out before the first Monday, unless they withdraw such as Nick Kyrgios. Which has denied us a potentially explosive clash between him and Bernie Tomic.
                                Originally posted by Janik View Post
                                We are up to 8 Lucky Losers in the Men's draw, btw. The well of those willing to hang around may be running close to dry. I wonder if Jay Clarke is still in town?!?
                                Apparently it has run dry - all the others have left town. Tomic is now playing a bloke who was in Barcelona yesterday morning and drove through the day to get back. And Marco Trungelliti has gone two sets to one up.

                                Comment


                                  #17
                                  We don't have an in-play R3 draw yet, do we? Let's rectify that.

                                  Men's Singles

                                  Rafael Nadal Esp [1] vs Richard Gasquet Fra [27]
                                  Denis Shapovalov [i]Can[/i] [24] Maximilian Marterer Ger vs Jack Sock [i]USA[/i] [14] Jurgen Zopp Est [LL]
                                  Diego Schwartzman Arg [11] vs Philipp Kohlschreiber [i]Ger[/i] [11] Borna Coric Cro
                                  Feliciano Lopez [i]Esp[/i] [28] Mikhail Zverev Ger vs Kevin Anderson RSA [6]

                                  Marin Cilic Cro [3] vs Adrian Mannarino [i]Fra[/i] [25] Steve Johnson USA
                                  Fabio Fognini Ita [18] vs Kyle Edmund GBr [16]
                                  John Isner USA [9] vs Tomas Berdych [i]Cze[/i] [17] Jeremy Chardy [i]Fra[/i] Pierre-Hugues Herbert Fra
                                  Albert Ramos Vinolas Esp [31] vs Juan Martin del Potro Arg [5]


                                  David Goffin Bel [8] vs Gael Monfils Fra [32]
                                  Nick Kyrgios [i]Aus[/i] [21] Marco Cecchinato Ita vs Pablo Carreno Busta Esp [10]
                                  Roberto Bautista Agut Esp [13] vs Novak Djokovic Srb [20]
                                  Fernando Verdasco Esp [30] vs Grigor Dimitrov Bul [4]

                                  Dominic Thiem Aut [7] vs Gilles Muller [i]Lux[/i] [29] Ernests Guilbis [i]Lat[/i] [Q] Matteo Berrettini Ita
                                  Kei Nishikori Jpn [19] vs Sam Querrey [i]USA[/i] [12] Gilles Simon Fra
                                  Lucas Pouille Fra [15] vs Stan Wawrinka [i]Sui[/i] [23] Guillermo Garcia Lopez [i]Esp[/i] Karen Khachanov Rus
                                  Damir Dzumhur BiH [26] vs Alexander Zverev Ger [2]



                                  Women's Singles

                                  Simona Halep Rou [1] vs Kristina Mladenovic [i]Fra[/i] [29] Andrea Petkovic Ger
                                  Daria Gavrilova Aus [24] vs Elise Mertens Bel [16]
                                  Angelique Kerber Ger [12] vs Kiki Bertens Ned [18]
                                  Zhang Shuai [i]Chn[/i] [27] Irina-Camelia Begu Rou vs Caroline Garcia Fra [7]

                                  Garbine Muguruza Esp [3] vs Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova [i]Rus[/i] [30] Samantha Stosur Aus
                                  Magdalena Rybarikova Svk [19] vs CoCo Vandeweghe [i]USA[/i] [15] Lesia Tsurenko Ukr
                                  Julia Goerges Ger [11] vs Ashleigh Barty [i]Aus[/i] [17] Serena Williams USA [PR]
                                  Maria Sharapova Rus [28] vs Karolina Pliskova Cze [6]


                                  Jelena Ostapenko [i]Lat[/i] [5] Katerina Siniakova Cze vs Barbora Strycova Cze [26]
                                  [b]Johanna Konta [i]GBr[/i] [22][/b] Yulia Putinseva Kaz vs Venus Williams [i]USA[/i] [9] Wang Qiang Chn
                                  Madison Keys USA [13] vs Naomi Osaka Jpn [21]
                                  Mihaela Buzarnescu Rou [31] vs Elena Svitolina Ukr [4]

                                  Petra Kvitova Cze [8] vs Anett Kontaveit Est [20]
                                  Anastasija Sevastova [i]Lat[/i] [20] Camila Giorgi Ita vs Sloane Stephens USA [10]
                                  Daria Kastakina Rus [14] vs Carla Suarez Navarro [i]Esp[/i] [23] Maria Sakkari Gre
                                  Alize Cornet [i]Fra[/i] [32] Pauline Parmentier Fra [WC] vs Caroline Wozniacki Den [2]
                                  Last edited by Janik; 01-06-2018, 08:46.

                                  Comment


                                    #18
                                    Djokovic wins but says afterwards he's flat and rusty, let's see what he can do in round two.

                                    Comment


                                      #19
                                      His seeding of 20 is about right, probably going out in R3 unless he finds a groove.

                                      Comment


                                        #20
                                        An interesting fourth round tie is potentially the mum and probably greatest female player ever versus the doping cheat. Has Serena said much about the cheat?

                                        Comment


                                          #21
                                          Bit of a bummer that being number 1 seed actually means you get your game postponed and have to wait until day 4 of the tournament and presumably (depending on winning) have to play a much more concertinaed schedule

                                          Comment


                                            #22
                                            Nothing much. Anodyne to the point of being vaguely supportive at the time of the ban and at it's end, from what I remember. There have been one or two more cutting allusions since then, mostly in response to Sharapova feeling the need to make things personal. But even then nothing direct. For sure though Serena hasn't called Maria out like Bouchard, Cibulkova, Mladenovic et al who have all said they consider her a cheat or words to that effect.

                                            Serena would really rather not talk about drugs at all, I suspect. She has nothing to gain from that topic being discussed.

                                            Comment


                                              #23
                                              Quick quiz question. Who was the only player in either of the RG main draws born on the British mainland?

                                              Comment


                                                #24
                                                Originally posted by ad hoc View Post
                                                Bit of a bummer that being number 1 seed actually means you get your game postponed and have to wait until day 4 of the tournament and presumably (depending on winning) have to play a much more concertinaed schedule
                                                Way things have started it's not going to be an issue for the number 1 seed.

                                                Comment


                                                  #25
                                                  Originally posted by ad hoc View Post
                                                  Way things have started it's not going to be an issue for the number 1 seed.
                                                  She turned that round quickly. 5-0 in the first set when I wrote that, then won 14 out of 17 games.

                                                  Comment

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