2015 ATP Atlanta

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Isner Captures 2015 BB&T Atlanta Open Title, Bryan Brothers Take Doubles Crown
Steen Kirby, Tennis Atlantic

John Isner defeated a hobbled Marcos Baghdatis in routine fashion 6-3 6-3 to capture his third straight BB&T Atlanta Open title. The ATP 250 trophy is his first of 2015 and the 10th total ATP title of his career, all of those trophies coming in 250 events.

Baghdatis showed signs of a leg injury early, as he was shaking his leg and trying to get it flexed, he fought hard and came out with the will to fight, but he was under pressure on serve in his first service game, holding to deuce for 1-1. Isner pumped out a routine hold, and then broke at 15 for a 3-1 lead. From there he wouldn’t look back as he raced through service holds and took the opening frame 6-3 in less than a half hour.

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During the set change Baghdatis took an off court medical timeout, but his leg never sorted itself out and the trainer couldn’t really do much for him. Credit to him for walking out for the second set and still playing his best, but it was clear Isner had the match under his thumb. The American didn’t face a break point all match, while Baghdatis had to fight out a hold for 2-1, got broken at 30 to go 3-2 down, and then was broken again in the final game of the match for a 6-3 6-3 defeat.

There was question whether Baghdatis would retire midway through the second but he continued to play on, unable to move well and slicing most of his returns back. Isner thumped aces and forehand winners, and was clearly pleased to have a routine final as he successfully defended his ranking points. Isner won 27/28 first serve points, and was 9/11 on second serve points while Baghdatis was broken three times in his injury scarred loss. All in all it was an excellent bounce back tournament for Big John as he began the Emirates Airlines US Open Series with a title, erasing the memory of his bad round 1 defeat in Newport. His serve was on point all week and he still has a chance to get back into the top 15 by the end of the season.

As for Baghdatis, he played excellent this week and cemented himself as back in the top 50, it was his first final in years, and when fit and focused, he’s one of the best aggressive ball strikers in the game. Hopefully his injury was only a short term problem and nothing serious, given he’s been bothered by injuries throughout his career. Marcos is likely in doubt for DC, but he could be a dark horse throughout the rest of the US Open Series. He was great with fans, and really showed passion this week.

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The doubles final between the Bryan Brothers and Fleming/Muller was more competitive, and in fact lasted as long as the singles final did, but the world #1 team rose to the occasion and captured their first Atlanta trophy in the clutch. Fleming/Muller went 5-2 up and took the first set 6-4, but the second set was all on serve, and the Bryans took the tiebreak 7-2. The final third set super tiebreak was also dominated by the brothers as Fleming/Muller strugled to hold serve and the Bryans won 4-6 7-6(2) 10-4. The final two tiebreaks won by the American legends by a combined score of 17-6. The Bryans have now won four titles on the season, three of which have come on American soil.

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Our appreciation once again to the BB&T Atlanta Open and their entire team for a fantastic tournament at Atlantic Station, and for providing us with media credential access. The 250 stop in Atlanta is one of the best tournaments in North America, and one of the best ATP tournaments of that level in a variety of ways, Tennis Atlantic looks forward to covering the tournament next year as well! The BB&T Atlanta Open lived up to their motto of “World Class Field, World Class Fun” in 2015.

Steen Kirby (Marseille)

Isner to Vie for Threepeat BB&T Atlanta Open Title vs. Baghdatis in 2015 Final
Steen Kirby, Tennis Atlantic

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It was a great day of tennis on semifinal Saturday in Atlanta as John Isner setup what promises to be a great final against Marcos Baghdatis. Both players had to battle for wins, and look to be in excellent form going into the championship singles match.

Isner took part in the first semifinal against Denis Kudla, a match he won 4-6 6-2 7-5. Kudla’s career best form was on display in the early going as Isner was under pressure on his serve in both the 2-2 game and the 3-3 game. Isner fended off a break point for 3-2, but Kudla broke him on his third break point chance for a 4-3 lead in the opening set. The American baseliner was hitting the ball with aggressive flat power off of both wings and coming forward, making Isner stumble about on his footwork, and taking the match to Isner, which was the key.

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Kudla would serve out the set after fending off a break point, but getting that first break point chance seemed to energize Isner, who began to mix up his style a bit and bother Kudla on serve more. Kudla was hampered by a tense, and at times weak serve, and the second set was all Isner. The big man was bombing aces, and scored a double break for a 6-2 second set, the final break game also giving Isner the benefit of serving first in the third set, meaning the pressure was always going to be on Kudla every time he stepped up to the service line.

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In the third both players battled admirably, but Kudla simply failed to generate chances on the Isner serve like he did in the first set, holds were easily had, but Kudla had to fend off a break point in a long game at 3-4, as Isner was looking for a chance to serve out the match. It would eventually go to 6-5 Isner, and then Kudla simply got tight, as he had to save a break point/match point, and then promptly double faulted to setup Isner with another. This time Kudla’s return was sent long and that was the match as Isner continues to dominate the BB&T Atlanta Open. Stats wise, Isner fired 25 aces, Kudla had 4 double faults. and Isner won a remarkable 89% of his first serve points, that proving to be the difference.

Kudla fought hard and deserves to be commended for his amazing recent run of form, and another career best result in reaching this ATP semifinal as a qualifier. He may not be quite up to the level of a top 20 player like Isner yet, but this match and his results in Atlanta show he’s on the rise and he can get to that level. It will be interesting to see what Kudla brings to the table for the rest of the Emirates Airlines US Open Series, which next goes to his home tournament in Washington D.C., the Citi Open.

In the second singles semifinal veterans Marcos Baghdatis and Gilles Muller were both seeking to reach their first ATP final in over three years, and Muller was bidding to reach his second BB&T Atlanta Open final, however Baghdatis prevailed in a close match 6-7(4) 6-3 7-6(4).

Muller served first against Baghdatis, and as expected was firing aces or unreturnable serves right off the bat. He didn’t return as well as he had in his previous wins, but Baghdatis was a step above his other opponents in terms of level as they battled to 5-4 Muller. In the 5-4 game Muller had a 0-30 lead, but he didn’t advance any further than that as Baghdatis fended him off and from there the opening set went to a tiebreak.

Powered by 9 of his 15 aces coming in the first set, a couple of good return points Muller took that tiebreak 7-4, as he was 5-2 and 6-4 up in the breaker, while Baghdatis never had a lead.

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In the second set, Muller’s serve began to dip in quality a bit, and the ballstriker Baghdatis pounced with talented shotmaking. Marcos broke for 2-0, then saved a break point in the next game for a 3-0 lead. He would have another break point chance at 4-1, but Muller scratched through the game. The Cypriot didn’t face any sort of pressure on his own serve after the third game of the set and served the match into a third set with relative ease 6-3.

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The third set surprisingly featured breaks for both players as Baghdatis took a 2-1 and 4-2 lead, and had a break point for a 5-2 lead. However Muller continued to hang on though his serve was clearly letting him down. The Luxembourger broke back for 4-4 with surprising efficiency and then held for a 5-4 lead, meaning the pressure would be on Baghdatis the rest of the way. Marcos rose up and broke in a very long 5-5 game, but then failed to serve the match out, as he got tight under pressure, something he also did in the quarterfinals against Pospisil, as his level has dropped in tense moments this week.

In that breaker Baghdatis won the first point, and then held serve from there to take it 7-4.The Cypriot also earned the win in the stats column, as Muller won just 50% of his second serve points (compared to 66% for Baghdatis). It was a close match, but Baghdatis had a more well rounded game, and was better able to deal with adversity compared to Muller’s more one dimensional style. On key points Muller’s shot selection was also lacking.

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It’s been a fantastic week for a passionate and motivated Baghdatis, he seems fitter than he’s been in years, and he’s shown glimpses of the form that once made him a Grand Slam finalist nearly a decade ago. Regardless of the outcome of the final, he has a chance to make noise the rest of the hard court summer, and also in the US Open as he remains one of the games best offensive baseliners, and a true talented shotmaker with good groundstrokes and a solid serve.

Previewing the Singles Final

Isner will be a heavy favorite in the 2015 singles final, not only has he won the last two BB&T Atlanta Open’s, his serve has been on point this week and he has yet to lose a tiebreak (3-0). On top of that he’s 5-0 in his career against Baghdatis and all of those wins came on outdoor hard courts, the most memorable being their 2011 US Open Round 1 meeting that saw Isner win two tiebreaks and advance in four sets. Their last meeting came in 2013 in the DC quarterfinals and Isner won that one in three sets, though he lost a tiebreak.

The match against Kudla was Isner’s toughest of the week however, and Kudla is in some ways a poor man’s Baghdatis, as they both have powerful ground strokes and try to play aggressively, while Baghdatis has a better serve. Marcos has had to win four singles matches this week as he didn’t get a bye, so fatigue could play a factor though he seems fit, as the match will be played in hot afternoon conditions. The key factor to me is the fact Baghdatis has gotten tight when facing the pressure of closing out opponents, and his struggles to do that against Pospisil and Muller should dent his chances. However, he did beat the big serving Groth, and Muller in three sets, so he’s already beaten two of the best servers on the ATP tour in the same week, on the same court, and Isner is right up there with them.

We could be looking at three sets, but with the h2h and his current form all helping him out, it’s hard to see Isner not winning a third Atlanta title.

Muller finds success in doubles, Bryans Dominate Again

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Gilles Muller needed the literal definition of suitable rest after his grueling three set semifinal in singles, and surprisingly he did reach one final this week, that coming in doubles as he and his partner Colin Fleming beat Eric Butorac/Artem Sitak 6-3 5-7 10-3. Muller/Fleming got off to a strong start in the first set going up 3-0, and though there were a lot of break point chances on all sides in the first set, they got the key break and served out the first set.

In the second Muller/Fleming faced four break point/set points serving 4-5 down after routine holds in the second, and though they survived that, Butorac/Sitak break for 7-5 after not facing a break point chance in the second set. The super tiebreak was then dominated by Muller/Fleming as they went from 1-1 to 6-1 and from 6-2 to 9-2 rather quickly. This team featuring a doubles specialist and a big server will prove to be an interesting foil in the final to the Bryan Brothers.

The aforementioned world #1 team ended the surprising run of Chris Eubanks/Donald Young 6-2 6-4 in a dominant showing that only lasted 49 minutes. The Bryan’s have simply looked to be a cut above this tournament and haven’t really felt the heat this week, as a result, they should be strong favorites to add yet another trophy to their storage locker sized career haul on Sunday, as they vie for their first BB&T Atlanta Open final.

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The doubles final comes first and then the singles in the final day of tournament action from Atlanta in what has been yet another successful edition of the Atlanta Open.

Steen Kirby (Marseille)

Isner, Kudla, Muller, and Baghdatis Reach 2015 BB&T Atlanta Open Semifinals
Steen Kirby, Tennis Atlantic

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Two Americans and two ATP World Tour European veterans reached the semifinals of the 2015 BB&T Atlanta Open, here is a recap of the action, and what to look forward to today.

John Isner showed signs of knee soreness but he still put up a fantastic performance against Lithuanian ball striker Ricardas Berankis. Berankis, who lost 7-6(5) 6-4, didn’t play poorly, but he simply lacked the physical stature to be able to deal with big John’s serve, and he didn’t put enough variety in his game to really shake Isner up.

In the first set zero break points were faced by either player as they held steady but Berankis lost just one point in the tiebreak to go down 4-2, and after that the result was practically sealed as Isner served his way to capturing the first set. Berankis lacked the power to keep Isner back and the match was always the on the American #1’s racquet, presuming his knee was ok and he had mobility. Berankis continued to lose steam dealing with Isner’s diving kick serve, and after failing to break on Isner’s first service game of the second set, with two break point chancs gone, he got broken on his own in the next game to go 2-1 down. From there the result was again predictably sealed as Isner held his serve in dominant fashion the rest of the way, including a love hold in the final game to post another quality result in Atlanta. Isner finished with 19 aces and won well over 70% of his service points, including 84% on first serves.

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Denis Kudla moved to 17-2 at all levels since he started working with coach Billy Heiser (of Tim Smyczek fame), Kudla is playing at a career best presently, and it showed against Israeli veteran Dudi Sela in a brisk 7-5 6-0 win. Sela started slow, going 5-1 down in the blink of an eye, and he never really recovered as you got the vibe he lacked the power needed to bother Kudla’s groundstrokes and he was never really fit going into the match. Kudla suffered a collapse as it went back to 5-5 from 5-1, but he recovered and won the next two games, including a break of serve to take the first set 7-5.

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In the second Sela generated no break points and was promptly bageled in a mere 22 minutes, his final statline showing just 1 ace in what was a miserable performance for him, and a fantastic one for Kudla, who by virtue of being a qualifier, has won two more matches than any other player left in the Atlanta field.

In the night matches, Gilles Muller continued to have a dominant week in Atlanta under the radar. The big serving veteran has yet to play a difficult match as he beat Go Soeda 7-5 6-1 in just over an hour. Surprisingly, Muller is routinely breaking serve this tournament in his matches, though he normally struggles to generate breaks statistically. Muller hit 16 aces, and was an amazingly perfect 27/27 on first serve points. He faced just one break point and broke three times on his own as Soeda was under pressure on serve all through the first set, and finally wilted under it. He faced break points (x2) at 2-3, then three more, that were also set points at 4-5, only to be broken serving 5-6. He failed to win another game from 1-1 in the second set.

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Marcos Baghdatis put on a fantastic performance against the #2 seed Vasek Pospisil winning 6-4 7-6(5). Baghdatis dominated the flow and pace of the match more than the scoreline would suggest, but Pospisil was a pesky customer who wasn’t easily closed out.

The aggressive offensive baseliner Baghdatis roared out to a 5-1 lead after an extremely long first service game for Pospisil. Vasek was struggling with his serve, and after fending off four break points, he caved on the fifth, then caved again to go down 3-0, a double break. However Baghdatis seemed to lose focus and wasn’t playing with the steady aggression that built up his lead, he had three break point/set points at 1-5, and couldn’t convert as Vasek played great up against the wall. He was then broken after two more set point chances in another long service game. Pospisil generated his first break points in this game and finally broke on his third chance in the game, holding with ease to go to 4-5.

With his final chance to close the set out looming, Baghdatis upped his service speed and did what he needed to do to take the first set. Even with the shift in momentum towards a more balanced match, he did get it done on set point #6 for a 6-4 set.

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The second set was far more competitive and the match looked like it might go a third set, Pospisil had broken out of his haze, and Baghdatis was starting to post more errors with is aggressive game. With his serve not as much of a weapon, and Pospisil serving better, Baghdatis had to fight to win the groundstroke battle, as he saved the lone break point chance of the set serving 1-2. From there, not another game in the match would even go to deuce.

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In what was a close tiebreak Pospisil was 5-4 up at one point, but then Baghdatis reeled off three points in a row, with a fantastic volley coming forward, and an incredible forehand passing shot winner that buzzed Pospisil. Baghdatis took the breaker 7-5, and with a passioate scream reached the semifinals. Throughout the tournament the veteran has been passionate, fired up, and incredibly motivated, looking to get the crowd into the match and fuel himself with fist pumps, and energetic shouts, as he’s cemented himself as a fan-favorite.

Fish/Roddick Fall in Doubles

In doubles the Mardy Fish/Andy Roddick pairing finally lost the plot, falling 7-5 6-2 to professional doubles specialists Eric Butorac and Artem Sitak in the late match. Chris Eubanks and Donald Young extended their surprising doubles success 4-6 7-6(5) 10-2 against Austin Krajicek/Nick Monroe, as the GA Tech product is earning some meaningful ATP experience this week.

Isner vs. Kudla, Muller vs. Baghdatis in Saturday Semifinals

Four players who are all in excellent form and have more or less dominated this tournament will meet in the semifinals, while in doubles Eubanks/Young will look to pull off a miracle against the world #1 Bryan Brothers, and Butorac/Sitak will face Fleming/Muller, as Muller pulls double duty on the day.

Isner and Kudla will be meeting for the first time, which is as surprising to me as Muller and Baghdatis also meeting for the first time, the former being American circuit regulars, and the latter being ATP veterans.

Isner’s serve has been utterly dominant this week, though knee swelling could be an issue, while Kudla has been great from the ground and has hit the ball with a lot of pop. He’s playing the tennis of his career, and he should have enough power and the physique to bother Isner, but it’s still Isner in Atlanta on an outdoor hard court, and it’s hard to see how he’s going to lose a pair of tiebreaks in a match. The key for Kudla will be to stay aggressive on return, hold his serve, and go for a break, because Isner is simply too good in breakers.

Baghdatis, who already chopped down Sam Groth with his massive serve, will get to deal with Muller’s in a match that should feel a bit like groundhog day for him. Muller has been on fire on serve and coming to net, but he’s also found it rather easy to break serve this week. Baghdatis is playing some of his best tennis of the season and seems passionate, motivated and fit, but Muller still poses a difficult ask as his clean ball striking and baseline play isn’t the best matchup. Muller will likely jump on his serve enough to squeak out the match as we should be looking at a lot of holds in the semifinals.

Steen Kirby (Marseille)

Undersized Berankis and Sela Pull off Big 2015 BB&T Atlanta Open Victories (Thursday Recap)
Steen Kirby, Tennis Atlantic

ATP Atlanta 2015 Skyline

Two of the smallest players on the ATP World Tour, Ricardas Berankis and Dudi Sela pulled off big wins on Thursday at the 2015 BB&T Atlanta Open.

Berankis reached just his second ATP quarterfinal of the season with a surprisingly dominant upset of world #48 Steve Johnson 6-4 6-2 in just over an hour. The first set was cagey and close with two early breaks of serve but Johnson was the one who blinked in a crucial moment at the end of the first set, as he was broken to go down 5-4 and the tenacious Lithuanian ball striker followed that break up with a love hold to take the first set.

Berankis in action

There was a rain delay that last less than a half hour in between sets, and Johnson cmae out struggling in the second, as he promptly went down a double break and 4-0, and looked entirely rattled, firing errors off his forehand side and failing to do damage with his serve. By contrast Berankis was moving well, striking the ball with both speed and slice, and his serve was a tough customer as Johnson shanked a lot of returns. The American failed to recover from a slow restart and slumped to a 6-2 second set loss.

Defending finalist Dudi Sela of Israel reached his first ATP quarterfinal of 2015 as he scored a quality win over fellow veteran Benjamin Becker for the second year in a row in Atlanta. Played on the sunbaked grandstand Sela prevailed 7-5 6-3.

Sela

The match began with consistent and routine holds of serve by both players, Becker had the stronger serve and was untroubled through three games, while Sela did well with is one handed backhand and mixed in variety 3-3. At 3-4 Sela had to save a break point in what was a long and tough deuce game with the first set hanging in the balance. Becker simply lacked consistency on his groundstrokes and wasn’t rallying well on the day, as he failed to break, and broken in his own right at 5-5, eventually dropping the first set 7-5.

In the second Sela continued to battle away and keep the pressure on Becker, as the German’s level dropped considerably. Becker got broken for 2-1, had to save 5 break points from 0-40 down at 2-4, and then was broken one final time to drop the second set 6-3. His back didn’t seen to be bothering him, but Sela showed superior fight and had a more interesting game. In the final game of the match he approached the net on a netcord and hit a no look volley. The Israeli, who has a full team this with him this week, clearly enjoys playing in Atlanta as he stays alive in the quest to defend his final points from 2014.

Sela with fans in Atlanta

Two Americans also advanced in singles, John Isner edged out two tough tiebreaks against Radek Stepanek 7-6(3) 7-6(7) in two hours of play. The first set featured multiple rain drop interruptions as Stepanek couldn’t hold onto an early break. Stepanek had to save two break points at 5-5, and had a half chance at a break up 6-5 but he couldn’t convert and Isner played a more consistent and superior tiebreak.

Isner on serve

The Czech’s first serve was lacking, and he had more double faults than aces. Given Isner applies a lot of pressure on his opponents by holding serve nearly every time, Stepanek was consistently under the gun when he had to serve up so many second serves. Additionally Stepanek, who normally plays an aggressive brand of tennis and enjoys coming to net, was pushed back, and kept back to the baseline by Isner’s imposing size. Stepanek, who hasn’t played a lot of matches this year, didn’t seem comfortable in his rallying abilities side to side and thumped more groundstroke errors than you’d normally see from him. Forced back, and facing a serve that kicked and spun at or above his head on a constant basis, he appeared frustrated and searching for answers, answers that he never found as he was clearly out of sorts.

Stepanek vs Isner as fans watch on

Stepanek, as in the first set, went up an early break in the second and was 4-2 up, with two chances at a 5-2 double break lead, however Isner beared down and with the fans behind him kept fighting in the set. He broke on his third break point chance in the game for 4-4, then with the momentum swinging in his favor forced Stepanek to save two match points serving 4-5.

Going into the tiebreak it seemed likely Stepanek’s inconsistent serve would let him down, and that it did as the only minibreak went to Isner, and he went on to serve out the tiebreak 9-7, his match win boosted by 33 aces. The twice defending champion remains not only a fan favorite, but a top talent in this tournament, and a difficult opponent to get past.

#3 seed Jack sock proved to not be a difficult opponent to get past for his countryman Denis Kudla. Kudla may well be in the best form of his career as he upset Sock 7-6(6) 6-3. The match began with the players trading breaks, and they would do that handoff once more as it went to 5-5. From there Kudla had to save three break points to prevent Sock from being able to serve from the set, and then it went to a tiebreak. The baseline battler Kudla was hitting the ball with flat pace, while Sock appeared rushed for time on his returns, and his forehand especially was posting uncharacteristic errors and shanks.

Sock vs. Kudla

Both players had weak serves and the tiebreak was all about rallying and return, Kudla had to save a set point, but he did so comfortably and took a lead over Sock he wouldn’t relinquish.

In the second Kudla went up an early break, and held easily to 4-3. Sock had two break point chances to dig himself back into the match there but oncemore he couldn’t convert, and with the unforced errors piling up Sock lost his fighting spirit and collapse out of the tournament in straight sets. For such a rising young talent, Sock has to be aiming for more in the rest of the Emirates US Open Series tournaments.

In doubles Fleming/Muller beat Baghdatis/Jaziri 7-6(8) 6-2, as Muller continues his winning ways. Additionally the Bryan brothers had a surprisingly tough 7-6(5) 7-6(4) win over Huey/Johnson. The Bryans started off on fire and clicking, 5-1 up, but Huey/Johnson fought their way back and had a legitimate chance at a shocking upset, however the chemistry and consistency of the brothers resulted in them winning the pair of tiebreaks.

Baghdatis-Pospisil Marquee Friday Match

Baghdatis

Four singles quarterfinals, and two doubles matches will take place on Friday. In doubles Eubanks/Young will face Krajicek/Monroe, and Fish/Roddick will look to continue their winning partnership over Butorac/Sitak.

The four singles quarterfinal matches are headlined by the first ever meeting between former top 15 veteran Marcos Baghdatis, and the tenacious Vasek Pospisil, who survived cramps to get this far. Pospisil is a battler with a big serve, and Baghdatis has been in excellent form this tournament, upsetting the big serving Sam Groth in the previous round.

Additionally the big serving Gilles Muller will look to move to 5-0 against defensive baseliner Go Soeda in a match that should be a style clash. Kudla will face the undersized Sela in a match that should feature variety ball striking, and Berankis will try to topple John Isner after a three set loss against him in Houston 2013.

Steen Kirby (Marseille)

Cramping Pospisil Survives, Baghdatis Engineers Comeback @bbtatlantaopen 2015 Wednesday Recap
Steen Kirby, Tennis Atlantic

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One of the strangest matches of the 2015 ATP World Tour took place today in Atlanta, as a cramping Vasek Pospisil pulled off a minor miracle to beat Yen-Hsun (Rendy) Lu 6-4 6-7(3) 6-4. Pospisil was suffering greatly in the brutal heat after the first set. In that first set he held his serve with ease, and broke Lu once for 4-3, going on to serve the set out 6-4 without facing a break point thanks to his booming serve and quality forehand.

In the second Pospisil was broken and went down 4-1 and 5-2, but Lu, who was steady from the baseline but too passive in rallies, had trouble closing the set out. Lu was broken for 5-4, and then Pospisil saved a set point to get it to 5-5. At this point signs of cramping began to show in Pospisil, with the 90 plus degree temps wilting him. The second set went to a close tiebreak but Lu took four straight points from 3-3 to take it. At this point it looked as if Vasek may well retire with the match at one set each, as he was struggling to move and serve.

However, after taking a bathroom break and getting out of the sun, the Canadian #2 seed decided to trudge on, and what unfolded was a dangerous, but tenacious third set. Pospisil amazingly got through four holds of serve without facing a break point, as Lu was totally thrown off his rhythm. The veteran appeared bewildered as to what to do to force Pospisil to throw in the towel, perhaps assuming Vasek would simply beat himself or retire, Pospisil saved three break points even while he felt like lying down on the court in agony to go up 5-4, at one point falling down on his serve and laying on the ground, along with feeling his shoulder cramping.

Pospisil’s serving was incredible and Lu frankly played a terrible third set against an opponent who looked like his soul melting in the heat. Lu was broken in the next game, going down 0-40 and with that, Pospisil shockingly advanced to the quarterfinals with a limp, though it’ll take an incredible recovery for him to be able to perform well in the next round.

One has to question whether Pospisil was wise for continuing on in a medical sense, but his fight was a classic ATP world tour performance. Stats wise he popped 24 aces and faced just five break points while Lu has to be kicking himself for squandering a chance at another ATP quarterfinal.

Veteran Marcos Baghdatis also showed tremendous fight as he joins Pospisil in the quarters, the Cypriot played an excellent first set against serve and volleyer Sam Groth and took it 7-5, after failing to break Groth from 0-40 at 2-2. Groth was clearly the player in worse form in the first set but his massive serve kept him in it, and he actually had three break point chances of his own at 3-4, which he likewise failed to convert with a poor ground game. Baghdatis would break for 6-5 at 15, and then serve the set out, as he appeared to be well on his way to a win.

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Groth flipped the script in set 2 however as Baghdatis level of play dropped a bit, Marcos got broken after saving two break points to go 3-1 down, and Groth held serve after saving a break point to go up 4-1. The final game for 6-3 Groth was a battle, but the Australian did force a third set and seemed to have the momentum.

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Baghdatis appeared to coming off the tracks going into the third, he got broken at love and nearly was broken again serving 0-2, but suddenly he flipped the script and engineered a surprising comeback. Groth was broken at 15 in the next game, throwing his hat to the ground, and from there he totally came off the rails, winning just one more game as Baghdatis broke and held once more to capture the match in a hard fought three sets. It’s always high risk tennis with Groth, and when his serve failed him, he lacked the game to compete with Baghdatis. Presuming he can recover from the three setter Baghdatis has played solid tennis through two matches.

Two more quarterfinalists were determined in routine fashion, Gilles Muller dispatched an exhausted Jared Donaldson 6-3 6-2, as he’s played excellent tennis this week, returning especially well, and Go Soeda took advantage of Adrian Mannarino’s fatigue and won 6-2 6-4, as Mannarino played poorly in both singles and doubles this tournament.

Georgia Tech’s Chris Eubanks also proved to be of no threat to veteran Czech Radek Stepanek, though hopefully it was a good learning experience for the soon to be Sophomore. In the other round 1 match, Ricardas Berankis saved two break points in the first set, and didn’t face any break points in the second as he beat Tim Smyczek 6-4 6-4, breaking at the end of the second to seal the win.

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Bryans, Fish/Roddick Make Winning Start in Doubles

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The Bryan Brothers rolled past Groth/Guccione 6-2 6-1 in the night session, as Mardy Fish and Andy Roddick joined them as winners 7-6(2) 6-4 over Lu/Marray. Additionally Krajicek/Monroe beat Daniell/Demoliner 13-11 in the third set tiebreak, Baghdatis/Jaziri beat Becker/Lacko 7-6(3) 6-3 as Marcos won twice on the day, and Huey/Johnson crushed Martin/Raja 6-1 6-3.

Isner to Begin Title Defense Thursday, Joined by Three Other Americans in Singles Matches

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John Isner will begin his quest for a third consecutive Atlanta title as he’ll serve it up under the lights at Atlantic Station against the well-traveled veteran serve and volleyer Radek Stepanek. Isner dropped his last two hard court meetings against Stepanek and is on a two match losing streak, so he’s far from a lock to win.

The fifth professional meeting between Jack Sock and Denis Kudla will take place earlier on in the day, Sock, like Isner is higher ranked, and he comes off the semis in Newport but Kudla won their last two hard court h2h meetings and he’s been in excellent form in the past month.

Steve Johnson, the fourth American who will play singles Thursday will face Ricardas Berankis for the first time, and Benjamin Becker (34) will take on Dudi Sela (30) hoping to avenge his loss to Sela last year in the Atlanta semis. Prior to that Becker won four meetings and presuming his back is healthy he’s likely a small favorite.

Marcos Baghdatis will return to court for the third consecutive day as he and Jaziri will play Fleming/Muller, and the Bryans will be back at it against Huey/Johnson, as Johnson will have to pull double duty on the day.

Steen Kirby (Marseille)

Americans Kudla, Johnson, and Donaldson Reach 2015 BB&T Atlanta Open Round 2 (Tuesday Recap)
Steen Kirby, Tennis Atlantic

Kudla advances over Harrison

Tuesday at the 2015 BB&T Atlanta Open saw three American men book their spots into round 2, while four more in total were sent packing on a day in which all but one singles match featured at least one American player.

Denis Kudla narrowly survived Ryan Harrison 3-6 6-4 7-6(5), but all the same he continues his good form from Wimbledon and appeared happy to get the win coming from behind. Harrison got off to a strong start in the first set and was winning the baseline rallies with pace going 5-1 up before Kudla could start playing himself into the match.

Kudla started steadily improving as both players, but especially Kudla, who at times was rolling in 70 mph second serves, were leaving points to be won on rallies. The American rivals slapped the ball back and forth on the baseline, with Harrison mixing in the occasional 130+ mph plus serve when he could. Harrison was a fantastic counterpuncher on his best points of the match, lulling Kudla to sleep with his defensive slice and then delivering a stunning accelerating winner, but unfortunately he couldn’t maintain that level and had issues with his shot selection.

Given the difficult conditions it seemed both players were content to let their rival hold serve if they didn’t win the opening point of the service game as a returner. A pair of breaks in set 2 saw it go to 5-4 Kudla, and then Harrison was promptly broken under pressure to be forced into a third set 6-3 4-6.

The third set remained competitive and close, and though it went by quickly, Kudla had to save a break point and Harrison had to save two, as Kudla had a point to go 5-3 up in the third and serve for the match, but was quite unclutch in that moment. Eventually the match ground itself to a third set tiebreak and it was Kudla who was slightly steadier from the ground who won it.

Harrison’s footwork tended to be lacking and he slapped an easy forehand into the net on a crucial point as Kudla needed just 1 match point to close things out. All in both both players showed a relative lack of inventive shotmaking, and Harrison with his footwork troubles demonstrated why his ranking has slipped from where it used to be.

Steve Johnson played a sloppy second set tiebreak, but otherwise had the better of Lukas Lacko as he advanced 6-1 6-7(3) 6-2 in close to 2 hours. Johnson, who was effective with his serve, dominated a slow starting Lacko in the first set, going up 5-0 with minimal effort required before Lukas even woke up from his slumber. The talented but underachieving Lacko did wake up though, holding it together in set 2 after saving four break point chances at 2-2, and one more at 3-3 to eventually force a second set tiebreak. Johnson was tight and tense in that tiebreak, and Lacko forced a third set 7-3, after the tiebreak went to 3-3 even, the Slovak railed off four straight points.

Johnson serving against Lacko

Lacko, who hit some nice forehand winners, showed the ability to hit through and past Johnson, but Johnson was simply more consistent from both wings, as Lacko would hit a nice winner followed by multiple errors. The wheels really came off for Lacko at 2-3 in the third set, and he failed to win another game (though he had one more break point), as Johnson escaped what could have been a longer and more competitive battle.

Though pushed to three sets Kudla and Johnson both survived and advanced and appear to be in solid shape going into the next round.

This can also be said of Jared Donaldson, as the American teen moved his win streak to four matches in a row with a main draw win over Somdev Devvarman 6-1 3-6 6-4. Donaldson played incredible tennis in the first set against the steady but relatively weaponless Devvarman. The wheels came off for the Taylor Dent coached Californian in set 2, and he was dealing with cramping in the hot conditions, but in the end the fans seemed to pull him through. In the third set after a bunch of routine holds Donaldson had two match points from 15-40, Devvarman got lucky and saved one of them in incredible fashion with a defense to offense running forehand winner, but Donaldson won the next point, and earned a big win for his new career.

The composure that Donaldson showed in an ATP main draw match was not demonstrated by his fellow American teenager Frances Tiafoe, to the chagrin of Tiafoe’s many fans at Atlantic Station. Tiafoe fell to Sam Groth 7-6(3) 6-4 in a little under an hour and a half. As is to be expected Groth’s massive serve was present from the beginning of the match, and since it never left him, Tiafoe found himself frustrated and neutralized when returning. The D.C. area resident was solid on his own serve as Groth lacked much of a ground stroke game and moved poorly, but when it came down to crunch time Groth saved the only break point he faced serving 5-5 in the first set, and then slipped through the tiebreak.

Groth rocketed first serves past a stunned Tiafoe, while he used kick on his second serve to either finish points at the net, or force Tiafoe to concede an ace or reply with an error of a return. The 17 year old’s body language was awful, especially after losing the first set, he was slumping and moping about, and it was visible to everyone that his inability to mount any sort of a return game had infected his mind with doubts.

Tiafoe checked out in the second as he quickly went down 7-6 2-0 to Groth. He did avoid the double break and stayed in touch with Groth the rest of the match, but Groth appeared content to just hold serve like a silent assassin while Tiafoe, with his lost focus, slammed his racquet late in the second, and before you knew it it was Groth who was into round 2.

Groth vs. Tiafoe

Tiafoe showed promise with his abilities but he still has a lot to learn and improve upon in coming years, hopefully the challenger tour will help mold his game, including self-belief, and the mentality side of the pro game. His shot selection, with questionable drop shots, and his ability to pass a net-rusher like Groth also came accross as holes in his game.

Veterans Baghdatis, Sela Earn Wins

The match performance of the day goes to Marcos Baghdatis, the Cypriot veteran was given a noon time match, and it was clear he had little interest in staying on court for an extended period of time. Baghdatis comfortably went about his business dispatching qualifier Austin Krajicek 6-4 6-0. Krajicek simply lacked the weaponry to deal with a creative and aggressive shotmaker in Baghdatis. Marcos broke in the opening game with crafty play, and then held serve through the first set without facing a break point, even though he missed a chance to go up two breaks.

In the second Krajicek was broken in the opening game again, but had two break points to even things back up, he failed to do so, and from there it was routine one-way traffic for Baggy who had some great angles on his forehand and also played some quality drop shots.

Krajicek was forced to hit weak slices well behind the baseline as Baghdatis appears to be in great form for his next match. It’s also worth noting he appears to be fit, after previously lacking fitness in recent years, and he seems serious about playing tennis these days.

Baghdatis was in good spirits

Joining Baghdatis in round 2 is fellow veteran Benjamin Becker, Becker won the first set over Michael Berrer and then Berrer, who had spent the week in Bogota the week prior, retired 7-5 down. It appears that Becker is past the back injuries that were ailing him in recent weeks.

Last but certainly not least in Tuesday singles, Dudi Sela and Mardy Fish played the night session singles match, a match that would prove to be Fish’s final singles match in Atlanta as he lost 6-4 6-4. The defending finalist Sela was shaky at times in what was a sloppy error-strewn match from both players, but at the end of the day Fish, who hadn’t played an ATP match since March, was the rusty one.

Fish vs. Sela

The fan-favorite Fish found himself broken to go down 3-1 at the start, he broke back for 4-4, but then got broken once more as Sela held on to take the first 6-4. Very few rallies went longer than five shots as it was a serve+ short rally type of match with break points peppered throughout, as neither player featured a particularly strong serve, Fish simply rusty with his first serves, and Sela lacking weaponry.

Sela saved four break points in the second set in clutch fashion, while Fish saved two before again being broken late for 5-4 and then surrendering the match as he couldn’t break Sela in his final service game. Both players got ovations from the crowd post match, while Sela mused he wasn’t a big fan of the court conditions. It’s also worth noting Fish showed spark, even on his farewell tour, as he had a rather lengthy argument with the chair umpire during the second set.

Fish exchanged words with the chair

Pospisil/Sock Shocked in Doubles

In doubles, surprising results were the norm, the #4 seeds Pavic/Venus fell to Atlanta’s Young/Eubanks 6-2 3-6 10-5, Mannarino/Ebden were run out of the building by Butorac/Sitak 6-2 6-0, and the defending champion team of Pospisil/Sock were stunned by Fleming/Muller 6-4 4-6 10-6 as the draw opens up for that interesting pairing.

Pospisil to Feature on Wednesday in Singles, Big Servers Groth, Muller Return to Court

Matches on Wednesday include Vasek Pospisil against Rendy Lu in their first head to head meeting, Baghdatis against Groth in a battle of baseline attack against serve and volley, Ricardas Berankis and Tim Smyczek in a first round match, Chris Eubanks against Radek Stepanek in the other remaining round 1 match, Go Soeda, who appears to be rounding into form, against Adrian Mannarino, who may struggle in these conditions, and an in-form Gilles Muller against Jared Donaldson who may lack the ability to recover after four matches in four days this week.

A whole host of doubles matches will also take place as the first round gets going in earnest with the doubles draw as well.

Steen Kirby (Marseille)

Soeda Upsets Dolgopolov, Muller Crushes Young 2015 @BBTAtlantaOpen Monday Recap
Steen Kirby, Tennis Atlantic

Another scorching day in Atlanta was interrupted by afternoon rain showers, but they passed, and before 9 P.M. main draw singles and doubles play was completed, additionally final round qualies were completed and the qualifiers were placed into the bracket, setting up an exciting batch of matches for Tuesday.

Three main draw singles matches were complete on the day, the biggest of which was Go Soeda‘s 5-7 7-6(5) 6-3 victory over fan favorite Alex Dolgopolov. The match was interrupted by the rain in the first set, and after a lengthy delay after a pair of breaks of serve, both players returned to court and began holding their serves relatively easily.

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Soeda, a defensive baseliner who feeds his opponents a steady diet of groundstrokes, lacked the weapons to bother Dolgopolov with his quick footwork, but Dolgopolov was struggling to keep his error count down, as he often does, and eventually on serve it went to 5-5. Dolgopolov would then save a key break point chance for Soeda and go up 6-5, and in the next game he broke on his second chance to do so in the game, and took the first set with a running start. .

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Even up a set Dolgopolov’s body language didn’t seem confident or promising at this point, and it was visible he may have been struggling in the hot conditions. Soeda was a bit of a brick wall, and generally is hard to break down as he returned ball after ball side to side. Dolgopolov had more shotmaking prowess, especially with running forehand winners but the second set held true to form, Soeda saving a lone break point serving 1-2 as it went all the way to a tiebreak without another break point dangled before either player. Soeda was under pressure having to serve behind all set, and Dolgopolov at times looked like he might put the match away, but when it got to the tiebreak Soeda was the steadier player and took it 7-5, even after Dolgopolov hit a fantastic winner 4-6 down in the breaker.

Soeda had the momentum at this point and remained unfazed and unrattled as Dolgopolov began to slow down. The Ukranian’s quick strike serve generated more aces, but Soeda eventually read Dolgo’s shots and angles, forcing his opponent to become increasingly reckless. The break came for 3-1 in set 3, and Soeda never looked back, Dolgo had to save another break point serving 1-4, and Soeda held on with relative ease for a 6-3 3rd set. It’s the first ATP main draw win for Soeda since April, as Dolgopolov again demonstrated why his ranking has fallen out of the top 70. He has the talent but mentally and physically he struggles to maintain a consistent level throughout an entire match.

Joning Soeda in round 2 is another player who has always enjoyed playing in Atlanta, Gilles Muller. Muller was totally dominant as Donald Young continued to struggle, slumping to a 6-2 6-1 defeat. The loss was particularly bad as the match only last an hour and Muller is normally a player who struggles to break his opponents serve. DY was plainly flat while Muller was happy to work quickly in the heat.

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Yen-Hsun (Rendy) Lu had an interesting time of it against Malek Jaziri in the first main draw match, winning it 6-1 7-6(12). Jaziri stumbled badly out of the gate, and appeared listless. His serve and his groundstrokes weren’t effective at all, and he appeared totally out of shape. Lu, a steady counterpunching baseliner who is solid from both wings was happy to let Jaziri stumble through a breadstick in 24 minutes, but the Tunisian didn’t give up so easily in the second set.

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Jaziri went up a break 3-2, and served for a third set at 5-4, but plainly choked, getting broken at love under the pressure. From 5 all they held serve and went into a tiebreak where Jaziri had six set points and couldn’t convert a single one, including from 6-4 up. Lu needed three match points, but finally he got into round 2, escaping his streaky opponent in the nick of time, as Jaziri clearly let his nerves get the best of him against such a steady opponent.

Americans Krajicek, Donaldson, and Kudla qualify for the main draw

All four final round qualifying matchups were rather routine affairs as the heat seemed to be limiting many of the player’s fighting spirit after they fell behind. Austin Krajicek blitzed Yuichi Sugita 6-2 6-1, as Sugita played much worse than expected. Denis Kudla sent the slumping Marinko Matosevic packing 7-5 6-2. Matosevic continues to struggle to return to ATP quality form, while Kudla extended his positive momentum from Wimbledon.

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Jared Donaldson beat Guido Pella as the young gun American has made another ATP main draw as a teenager, Pella’s 6-2 7-6(6) defeat demonstrated why he prefers clay as the more aggressive Donaldson was able to rattle him. Indian Veteran Somdev Devvarman also reached the main draw with a 6-3 6-3 over Shuichi Sekiguchi in just under an hour and a half. Devvarman is also showing good form and all of the qualifiers certainly deserve their spots in the draw.

Those spots are Kudla against Ryan Harrison in an All-American battle where he should be the favorite, the winner to face American Jack Sock, the #3 seed, the veteran Devvarman against the teenager Donaldson, and Krajicek against the veteran Marcos Baghdatis as he will look to pull off a big win against the formerly top 10 #5 seed.

Tiafoe, Fish Highlight Tuesday Order of Play

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Tuesday in Atlanta will feature one of the retiring greats of American men’s tennis, Mardy Fish, in a night session match against defending finalist Dudi Sela, and prior to that, one of the most promising American teenagers Frances Tiafoe against the big serving Sam Groth as American players will have the spotlight put on them. Tiafoe played a Monday night exhibition against the retired Andy Roddick and lost 6-3 6-4, Roddick’s big serve, even as a retiree, foiled hm, and Groth is even better at those same tactics.

Besides those late matches, the aforementioned Baghdatis-Krajicek match will take place, as it will be interesting to see how Baghdatis adapts to the 90+ degree noontime conditions, given that his fitness has previously been in question throughout his career. At the same time Lukas Lacko will face Steve Johnson, with Kudla vs. Harrison, Devvarman vs. Donaldson, and also an all-German veteran battle between Michael Berrer and Benjamin Becker completing the schedule for singles.

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In doubles the marquee nightcap on Stadium is Mate Pavic/Michael Venus against Atlanta’s Donald Young and Christopher Eubanks. Additionally, Matt Ebden/Adrian Mannarino will face Eric Butorac/Artem Sitak and prior to that the defending champion pairing of Vasek Pospisil/Jack Sock will face Colin Fleming and the in-form Gilles Muller.

Look for a report on those matches after Tuesday night or Wednesday morning!

Steen Kirby (Marseille)

2015 ATP Draw Challenge Week 28 (Hamburg, Gstaad, Atlanta)
Staff, Tennis Atlantic

Two clay court tournaments, a 500 in Hamburg, and a 250 in Gstaad, take place this week and then there is the hard court 250 in Atlanta that kicks off the Emirates Airlines US Open Series.

Hamburg

2015 Bet-at-home Open Predictions

Steen Kirby’s picks

Round 2 matches: Nadal vs. Vesely, Janowicz vs. Cuevas, Klizan vs. Montanes, Bolelli vs. Garcia-Lopez, Fognini vs. Ramos, Bedene vs. Bautista Agut, Monaco vs. Pouille, Kohlschreiber vs. Robredo
Quarterfinals: Nadal vs. Cuevas, Klizan vs. Garcia-Lopez, Fognini vs. Bautista Agut, Monaco vs. Kohlschreiber
Semifinals: Nadal vs. Klizan, Bautista Agut vs. Kohlschreiber
Final: Nadal vs. Bautista Agut
Champion: Nadal

Niall Clarke’s picks

Round 2 matches: Nadal vs. Haider-Maurer, Janowicz vs. Cuevas, Klizan vs. Montanes, Bolelli vs. Garcia-Lopez, Fognini vs. Almagro, Bedene vs. Bautista Agut, Monaco vs. Pouille, Kohlschreiber vs. Robredo
Quarterfinals: Nadal vs. Cuevas, Klizan vs. Garcia-Lopez, Almagro vs. Bautista Agut, Monaco vs. Kohlschreiber
Semifinals: Nadal vs. Klizan, Bautista Agut vs. Kohlschreiber
Final: Nadal vs. Kohlschreiber
Champion: Nadal

Chris de Waard’s picks

Round 2 matches: Nadal vs. Haider-Maurer, Danil vs. Cuevas, Klizan vs. Mayer, Bolelli vs. Garcia-Lopez, Fognini vs. Almagro, Bedene vs. Bautista Agut, Gulbis vs. Cervantes, Kohlschreiber vs. Robredo
Quarterfinals: Nadal vs. Cuevas, Klizan vs. Bolelli, Fognini vs. Bautista Agut, Gulbis vs. Robredo
Semifinals: Nadal vs. Bolelli, Fognini vs. Robredo
Final: Nadal vs. Fognini
Champion: Fognini

Jeff McMillan’s picks

Round 2 matches: Nadal vs. Vesely, Janowicz vs. Cuevas, Seppi vs. Mayer, Bolelli vs. Garcia-Lopez, Fognini vs. Ramos, Gimeno-Traver vs. Coric, Monaco vs. Pouille, Kohlschreiber vs. Robredo
Quarterfinals: Nadal vs. Cuevas, Seppi vs. Bolelli, Fognini vs. Coric, Monaco vs. Robredo
Semifinals: Nadal vs. Bolelli, Fognini vs. Robredo
Final: Nadal vs. Fognini
Champion: Nadal

Rafael Nadal is the favorite in Hamburg

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Gstaad

2015 Swiss Open Gstaad Predictions

Steen Kirby’s picks

Round 2 matches: Goffin vs. Rublev, Istomin vs. Sousa, Andujar vs. Lajovic, Souza vs. Bellucci, Carreno Busta vs. Haase, Delbonis vs. Thiem, Giraldo vs. Kuznetsov, Reister vs. Lopez
Quarterfinals: Goffin vs. Sousa, Andujar vs. Bellucci, Carreno Busta vs. Thiem, Giraldo vs. Lopez
Semifinals: Goffin vs. Bellucci, Carreno Busta vs. Lopez
Final: Bellucci vs. Lopez
Champion: Bellucci

Niall Clarke’s picks

Round 2 matches: Goffin vs. Rublev, Istomin vs. Sousa, Andujar vs. Lajovic, Souza vs. Bellucci, Carreno Busta vs. Granollers, Delbonis vs. Thiem, Giraldo vs. Kuznetsov, Kavcic vs. Lopez
Quarterfinals: Goffin vs. Sousa, Andujar vs. Bellucci, Carreno Busta vs. Thiem, Giraldo vs. Lopez
Semifinals: Sousa vs. Bellucci, Thiem vs. Giraldo
Final: Bellucci vs. Giraldo
Champion: Giraldo

Joe Craven’s picks

Round 2 matches: Goffin vs. Rublev, Istomin vs. Sousa, Andujar vs. Lajovic, Souza vs. Bellucci, Carreno Busta vs. Haase, Delbonis vs. Thiem, Giraldo vs. Kuznetsov, Reister vs. Lopez
Quarterfinals: Rublev vs. Sousa, Andujar vs. Bellucci, Carreno Busta vs. Delbonis, Giraldo vs. Lopez
Semifinals: Rublev vs. Bellucci, Carreno Busta vs. Giraldo
Final: Bellucci vs. Giraldo
Champion: Giraldo

Chris de Waard’s picks

Round 2 matches: Goffin vs. Rublev, Istomin vs. Sousa, Andujar vs. Lajovic, Robert vs. Bellucci, Carreno Busta vs. Haase, Delbonis vs. Thiem, Giraldo vs. Ilhan, Reister vs. Lopez
Quarterfinals: Rublev vs. Sousa, Andujar vs. Bellucci, Carreno Busta vs. Thiem, Giraldo vs. Lopez
Semifinals: Sousa vs. Andujar, Thiem vs. Giraldo
Final: Andujar vs. Thiem
Champion: Thiem

Jeff McMillan’s picks

Round 2 matches: Goffin vs. Rublev, Istomin vs. Sousa, Andujar vs. Lajovic, Souza vs. Bellucci, Carreno Busta vs. Haase, Delbonis vs. Thiem, Giraldo vs. Ilhan, Kavcic vs. Lopez
Quarterfinals: Goffin vs. Istomin, Andujar vs. Bellucci, Haase vs. Thiem, Giraldo vs. Lopez
Semifinals: Goffin vs. Bellucci, Thiem vs. Giraldo
Final: Goffin vs. Thiem
Champion: Goffin

A mixed group of possible champions in Gstaad

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Atlanta

2015 BB&T Atlanta Open Predictions

Steen Kirby’s picks

Round 2 matches: Isner vs. Stepanek, Berankis vs. Johnson, Sock vs. Kudla, Sela vs. Berrer, Muller vs. Donaldson, Dolgopolov vs. Mannarino, Baghdatis vs. Groth, Lu vs. Pospisil
Quarterfinals: Isner vs. Johnson, Sock vs. Berrer, Muller vs. Dolgopolov, Groth vs. Pospisil
Semifinals: Isner vs. Sock, Muller vs. Pospisil
Final: Isner vs. Muller
Champion: Isner

Niall Clarke’s picks

Round 2 matches: Isner vs. Stepanek, Smyczek vs. Johnson, Sock vs. Harrison, Fish vs. Becker, Muller vs. Donaldson, Dolgopolov vs. Mannarino, Baghdatis vs. Groth, Lu vs. Pospisil
Quarterfinals: Isner vs. Johnson, Sock vs. Becker, Muller vs. Dolgopolov, Groth vs. Pospisil
Semifinals: Isner vs. Sock, Muller vs. Pospisil
Final: Sock vs. Pospisil
Champion: Sock

Joe Craven’s picks

Round 2 matches: Isner vs. Stepanek, Smyczek vs. Johnson, Sock vs. Harrison, Fish vs. Berrer, Young vs. Devvarman, Dolgopolov vs. Mannarino, Baghdatis vs. Groth, Lu vs. Pospisil
Quarterfinals: Isner vs. Johnson, Sock vs. Berrer, Young vs. Dolgopolov, Groth vs. Pospisil
Semifinals: Isner vs. Sock, Dolgopolov vs. Groth
Final: Sock vs. Dolgopolov
Champion: Sock

Chris de Waard’s picks

Round 2 matches: Isner vs. Stepanek, Smyczek vs. Johnson, Sock vs. Kudla, Sela vs. Becker, Muller vs. Donaldson, Dolgopolov vs. Mannarino, Baghdatis vs. Groth, Lu vs. Pospisil
Quarterfinals: Stepanek vs. Johnson, Sock vs. Becker, Muller vs. Dolgopolov, Groth vs. Pospisil
Semifinals: Johnson vs. Sock, Dolgopolov vs. Pospisil
Final: Sock vs. Dolgopolov
Champion: Sock

Jeff McMillan’s picks

Round 2 matches: Isner vs. Stepanek, Smyczek vs. Johnson, Sock vs. Kudla, Sela vs. Becker, Young vs. Devvarman, Dolgopolov vs. Mannarino, Baghdatis vs. Groth, Lu vs. Pospisil
Quarterfinals: Isner vs. Johnson, Sock vs. Becker, Young vs. Dolgopolov, Groth vs. Pospisil
Semifinals: Isner vs. Sock, Dolgopolov vs. Groth
Final: Isner vs. Dolgopolov
Champion: Isner

Jack Sock and John Isner are expected to compete for the title in Atlanta

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Week 27 standings

Umag
1: Steen (58 points) (+250 overall)
2: Chris (54 points) (+150 overall)
3: Niall (54 points) (+150 overall)
4: Joe (0 points) (+0 overall)
5: Jeff (0 points) (+0 overall)

Bastad
1: Chris (68 points) (+250 overall)
2: Joe (42 points) (+150 overall)
3: Niall (42 points) (+150 overall)
4: Steen (28 points) (+90 overall)
5: Jeff (0 points) (+0 overall)

Bogota
1: Chris (48 points) (+250 overall)
2: Steen (44 points) (+150 overall)
3: Niall (30 points) (+90 overall)
4: Joe (0 points) (+0 overall)
5: Jeff (0 points) (+0 overall)

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Overall standings (after week 26)

1: Steen: 12,440 ranking points (+490 points overall)
2: Niall: 11,140 points (+390 points overall)
3: Joe 10,640 points (+150 points overall)
4: Chris: 9,245 points (+650 points overall)
5: Jeff: 8,590 points (+0 points overall)

Kudos to Chris who had a strong week and gained the most points, otherwise Niall and Steen increased their grip on first and second by a few points.

ATP Draw Challenge (London Queens)

World Class Doubles Field Stars in 2015 BB&T Atlanta Open
Steen Kirby, Tennis Atlantic

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The 2015 doubles field for the BB&T Atlanta Open is truly world class, as some of the best doubles teams in the world have entered this ATP 250 event. Atlanta tennis fans and recreational players love doubles, and clearly this high quality field is their reward for appreciating a lesser-recognized part of the pro game.

Bob and Mike Bryan headline top half

That starts of course with the Bryan Brothers, the greatest doubles team of all time and the #1 seeds. They haven’t had as strong of a season this year as previous ones but they still have three ATP titles (including the Miami and Monte Carlo Masters), and reached the Roland Garros final. The brotherly pair is now well past 30, but they continue to compete at the highest level and set records. In round 1 they will face the Aussie pairing of Sam Groth and Chris Guccione.

The lanky Gooch, and the big serving Groth are both likeable guys and Groth’s massive serve aids his double game. Groth recently helped Australia win their Davis Cup tie with a doubles win while Gooch has one ATP doubles title this year.

The winner of the Bryans vs. the Aussies will take on either Treat Huey/Steve Johnson or Fabrice Martin/Purav Raja. Huey is a doubles specialist and former University of Virgina product, while Martin/Raja are a full time professional doubles pairing, Johnson of course a singles player looking to get som practice in. From this section it’s likely the Bryans will win both their matches to reach the semifinals.

The #4 seed is the pairing of Mate Pavic/Michael Venus. Venus is a former LSU product from New Zealand who has gravitated towards being a doubles specialist while the tall Pavic, just 22, has been in great form as of late on the doubles circuit. They come off of the final in Bogota as a pairing, and Pavic reached the Newport final prior to that, Venus/Pavic also won the title in Nice on clay back in the spring. Pavic/Venus will face local favorites Donald Young/Christopher Eubanks in the opening round, Eubanks from Georgia Tech, and Young of course an Atlanta native.

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The winner of Pavic/Venus vs. Eubanks/Young could face doubles specialists Marcus Daniell (another New Zealander)/Marcelo Demoliner or Americans Nick Monroe/Austin Krajicek. The veteran Monroe has reached two ATP doubles finals this year (Bucharest and Newport), and the American team should be slight favorites to advance on home soil, while Pavic/Venus are the favorites in the section. Krajicek has shown clear interested in excelling in both doubles and singles as the rising American is in the top 130 in singles, and the top 80 in doubles.

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Pospisil/Sock in bottom half as #2 seeds, Fish/Roddick to say farewell

The fan favorite and talented pairing of Vasek Pospisil/Jack Sock, who were in the top 5 in the world in doubles as recently as April (4 titles together including Wimbledon and Atlanta in 2014 and Indian Wells in 2015) are back together again and playing in Atlanta as the #2 seeds. They tend to perform at their best on North American hard courts, as evidenced by their back to back finals in Indian Wells and Miami this year, and the title in Indian Wells, as Sock was returning from hip surgery, and both have been on the rise in singles as well (Pospisil making a run at Wimbledon and Sock generally having a solid season including his first ATP title).

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“Popsock” will open with Gilles Muller/Colin Fleming in a tough round 1 match as they seek to defend their title. Muller is a big server who enjoys playing in Atlanta, while Fleming is a veteran Scottish doubles specialist though he’s struggled this year besides one ATP doubles final. It’s likely the young North Americans will get through though and setup a meeting with either Benjamin Becker/Lukas Lacko or Marcos Baghdatis/Malek Jaziri. Both are singles players who are playing doubles this time, and Baghdatis/Jaziri are a pair of talented veteran shotmakers. Regardless of who wins that, Pospisil/Sock should be favorites to at least reach the semis.

The #3 seeds are the veteran pairing of Artem Sitak/Eric Butorac, Sitak, the third Kiwi in the draw reached a career high this year in doubles at #39 in the world. He’s transitioned to a doubles specialist and appears to be succeeding at it, with an ATP title and two finals this year. Butorac is 34 and a long term doubles specialist, he’s struggled this season though and Matt Ebden/Adrian Mannarino will have their chances in the opening round. Ebden has had success in Atlanta in doubles before while Mannarino’s funky game is good for the discipline, they both focus on singles but it’s an open draw if they catch fire.

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One of the two teams remaining to discuss are Jonathan Marray/Rendy Lu with the doubles specialist and former Wimbledon doubles champ Marray coming off of a title in Newport. Previously Lu and Marray took the title in Chennai at the start of the season. Last but certainly not least are the very popular farewell pairing of Andy Roddick/Mardy Fish.

Roddick came out of retirement only to play ATP doubles, as a special favor to his good friend Fish, and Fish is of course on his farewell tour during the Emirates Airlines US Open Series this summer, in both singles and doubles. Given their rust, it’s hard to tell how well they will play, but they will certainly have a good time and treat fans to some exciting matches for as long as they last.

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All in all it promises to be an exciting doubles tournament in Atlanta, and the matches are absolutely worth checking out as we should be treated to some great semifinals and perhaps a star studded final in Atlanta.

Steen Kirby (Marseille)

2015 ATP Atlanta (BB&T Atlanta Open) Weekend Qualifying Wrap: Americans and Veterans Prevail
Steen Kirby, Tennis Atlantic

Somdev Devvarman vs. Treat Huey

Qualifying rounds 1 and 2 were completed over the weekend at the 2015 BB&T Atlanta Open. The side courts were utilized for qualifying (grandstand, Court 1, and one of the practice courts), as stadium court was used for the Commodores concert Saturday night and now after finishing touches the showcase court is ready for use for play on Monday when the main draw begins.

The conditions played a major factor in the match results, as it was blisteringly hot and sunny over both days, with only the occasional breeze making things more hospitable for players, officials, and spectators alike. All of the players who battled hard in their matches, win or lose, serve as a testament to the grit and will required to reach the ATP level in professional tennis, as all the qualifying participants certainly hope to reach that level, or get back to it.

Saturday Recap

On Saturday two of the young gun Americans, Jared Donaldson and Tommy Paul won hard fought matches, while 15 year old Trent Bryde shocked in his round 1 qualifying win, and Reilly Opelka didn’t have as much luck as his three fellow Americans and fell in defeat.

Donaldson maintained his composure, and confident attitude against Gastao Elias on grandstand, the first set lasted over an hour, though things were comfortably on serve up to 4-4. At that point Donaldson generated a break point and three deuce points against the Elias serve, only to fail to convert, and face a break point of his own at 4-5 serving, that game likewise going to three deuces before Donaldson held on.

The young American and his more experienced Portuguese rival both played high quality tennis overall, showing deft touch. Donaldson, given his background on fast surfaces was the more aggressive player, coming to net more often, while Elias moved well and imparted spin on the ball, given his background on clay. The first set went to a tiebreak, and serve proved relatively meaningless in that tiebreak with a total of five minibreaks created. Eventually Elias won three points in a row to get it to 6-3, and though he needed three set points, he did close out the first set.

Donaldson was disappointed but resolute as he battled back, perhaps helped by superior conditioning for the American summer weather. He broke Elias for 3-1 in set 2, and after saving a break point that would have given the break away in the next game, he would sail through the set without facing another breakpoint, closing it 6-3, after failing to convert three break point chances 4-1 up.

Jared Donaldson was clutch

Set three took a similar path as the previous two sets, play was calm and on serve until Elias got broken easily for 4-3 Donaldson, Donaldson would have two break points in the next game to go up 5-3, and then Elias was mentally and physically beaten at that point, getting broken on Donaldson’s third match point of the game the result finishing 6-7(5) 6-3 6-3. One thing to note is both players served poorly in terms of first serve % and the number of double faults they posted, but still generally held their serves.

Prior to that match Tommy Paul beat what is ranking wise the second best player in his American high school recruiting class, Walker Duncan 6-3 7-6(9) in a little over an hour and a half. Duncan had a lot of fans in the stands as he’s a local player and a future Georgia Bulldog, but the fans certainly respected the play of Tommy as well, and overall it was an exciting atmosphere for a round 1 qualifying match.

Both players started very tight and their serves were not up to ATP quality by any measure, Duncan especially as he posted just one ace and six double faults in the match. Duncan, who made efforts to get the crowd into the match and on his side, started out the stronger of the two players, as he had a break point at 2-3. However when he had a chance to put the point away and go up 4-2, he slipped and fell on the court instead, and after that the momentum entirely shifted to Paul’s favor.

The Jersey boy decked out in Nike apparel broke Duncan in the next game as Walker totally went off the boil and seemed to check out mentally. From 2-3 Duncan lost the next four games rather routinely, and after the first set it looked like he might be headed for the showers rather quickly.

However, to his credit the teenager fought back and pulled himself back into the match. Paul, who is a good mover and plays good defensive tennis, would have improved his chances by being more aggressive and moving up the court, as Duncan’s big hitting, including a powerful forehand, started to do damage in the second set, as he kept the errors down, unlike set 1. Duncan’s impressive power got him a break for 2-1, but he would give up that break serving 3-2, and from there things were straightforward on serve until 5-5.

The end of the second set is where things got rather hairy, and the match was hanging in the balance, Paul got broken again and Duncan had a chance to serve out the set and force a third set, a third set he may well have won, but with his poor serve he couldn’t take advantage of the opportunity. Paul broke and forced a tiebreak and though Duncan would have two more set points, Paul finally advanced on his 4th match point, taking it 11-9 after multiple minibreaks of serve.

Paul is a talent but needs to add weapons to his game to compliment his defense and strong footwork while Duncan has firepower from the baseline but must improve his serve and work on playing with controlled aggression, rather than just aggression. Still on hard courts at least, they both showed signs of promise, and it will be interesting to see how they develop.

Paul signing for fans post win with @sharkotennis standing by

Trent Bryde, 15, joined ranks with Felix Auger Aliassime, a 14 year old Canadian, as notable young teens to win against major pro opponents. Bryde shocked veteran journeyman Catlin Gard 7-6(4) 6-2 as Gard was 5-2 up in the first set and collapsed from there, winning just three more games the rest of the match.

Shuichi Sekiguchi is making his move at this BB&T Atlanta Open, and his wins over the weekend have moved him one match away from qualifying for his first ATP main draw tournament. The Japanese player has a game similar to his national counterparts, and many Asian men’s players. He’s a speedy counterpuncher who relies on moving his opponents around the court, but lacks the size and strength to impose himself, and thus has to stick to the baseline, and rallies over big serves. This approach worked deceptively well against the big American young gun Reilly Opelka, who is built similar to players such as John Isner and Kevin Anderson. Opelka, with is tall frame, is a big server, and has a powerful forehand to go with that, but his footwork was lacking, and he struggled to adjust his body around the court as Sekiguchi absorbed his power and moved the ball around.

Opelka winces from a tight shoulder

Opelka failed to generate a break point until the last game of the match and appeared to be bothered by pain in his shoulder/neck throughout, as he kept rolling his head and shoulder and wincing while toweling off. Sekiguchi broke at 3-2 in set 1 (the set finished 6-4), and then one final time for 5-4 in set 2, as he saved two break points, likely caused by nerves, and served out the match 6-4 6-4.

In other Saturday results doubles specialist Treat Huey beat Ryan Haviland 7-6(8) 6-3, Yuichi Sugita joined Sekiguchi as Japanese winners, Sugita advancing over local favorite Kevin King 6-4 3-6 6-3 as King put up a hard fought in front of friends and family. Evan Song blitzed Takanyi Garanganga 6-4 6-1, Evgeny Korolev survived a surprisingly close match with Antonio Ruiz-Rosales 6-2 2-6 7-6(3), and Andrew Carter got an automatic walkover vs. Matias Castro.

Sunday Recap

Sunday saw the qualifying seeds take to the courts and most of them performed well. #1 qualies seed Denis Kudla rolled past Bryde 6-1 6-1 in what was a great learning example for the teen, Marinko Matosevic beat Carter 6-3 6-2, as he tries to find form and snap his run of poor results, Guido Pella was skillful against Song 6-2 7-6(5) as the difference in ranking showed, and Sugita played a better match than Saturday and got past the still maturing Paul 6-3 6-3. American Austin Krajicek also played a great match, while Evgeny Korolev continued to show rust, Krajicek winning 6-3 6-3.

Two seeds fell in defeat however, Matt Ebden struggled in the heat and Sekiguchi upset him 7-5 5-2, conditioning explaining the upset, and Jared Donaldson played an extremely hard fought match and toppled J.P. Smith, an opponent he had lost two twice previously this year, 6-7(5) 7-6(3) 6-4. The match was close throughout, and Donaldson has twice engineered clutch comebacks in his matches.

In regards to Donaldson, he’s not only a clutch, and talented tennis player, he also comes across as a true class act on and off the court. Respectful to opponents, ball kids, and the officials, and very accommodating with fans, including a family that is a bit of a legend at the BB&T Atlanta Open as they are the spirit of the tournament. After his win over Smith, Donaldson was approached by the famous group that I’ve cataloged previously on this site as the young man is a huge fan of John Isner, loudly declaring it to anyone within earshot during matches, and the girl simply supports young American men on the rise, formerly Ryan Harrison, and now Jack Sock (and of course Donaldson).

He posed with them for photos, autographed their items, and went above and beyond, as he handed out his sweatbands and headbands for the kids, who reacted with glee. He then kindly posed for a group photo, and quipped back “Jack Sock, not me?” when the girl said her favorite player was now Sock, and Donaldson overheard, resulting in laughter from everyone. Simply put it’s great to see a young talent have such a humble and friendly attitude, and it should serve him well and win him many new fans.

Donaldson with BB&T Atlanta Open Superfans (note the head and sweatbands from JD)

In the other interesting match of the day Somdev Devvarman beat another former University of Virginia player Treat Huey 7-5 6-3. The first set was long, though the points themselves were quick, but eventually Huey’s serve and volley game couldn’t stand up to Devvarman’s superior ground game as the Indian advanced to final round qualifying. Eight players remain in qualies, and are competing for the final four qualifying spots on Monday.