Congrats to Bianca Andreescu, 2017 Tennis Canada Female Player of the Year
Bianca Andreescu, 2017 Citi Open (Photo: Tennis Atlantic)
Toronto, December 5, 2017 – Tennis Canada announced Tuesday that Bianca Andreescu has been named the 2017 Tennis Canada Female Player of the Year, in addition to receiving the singles player and junior player of the year honours. Rounding out the female high performance awards is Gabriela Dabrowski with the female doubles player recognition for the fifth straight year and Carol Zhao as most improved player.
Andreescu transitioned from the junior circuit this year to become one of the top up-and-coming players of the women’s tour. She captured two Slam titles at the Junior Australian Open and Junior French Open, winning the girls’ doubles trophies alongside fellow Canadian Carson Branstine. Andreescu also made her maiden Fed Cup appearance for Canada. First, she posted a 6-0 record in Americas Group I zonal action en route to receiving the Fed Cup Heart Award. In April, she earned the clinching win over world No. 51 Yaroslava Shvedova of Kazakhstan to send Canada to World Group II for 2018.
Bianca Andreescu, 2017 Citi Open (Photo: Tennis Atlantic)
The 17-year-old was named WTA Breakthrough of the Month for July following her WTA main draw debut in Washington. There, she became the first player born in the 2000s to oust a Top 20 player, beating then-world No. 13 Kristina Mladenovic en route to the quarter-finals. She also made her Grand Slam debut at Wimbledon in July, won two $25,000 Challenger titles on the ITF Pro Circuit, and reached her first WTA doubles final at Quebec City with Branstine. She debuted in the Top 150 rankings at a high of No. 143 in August and is currently sitting at No. 189.
“I want to thank Tennis Canada for these amazing honours,” said Andreescu. “By its very nature winning all three of these awards this year tells you this was a transitional year for me. Honestly, the learning curve was intense and steep. However, when I look back at my two Grand Slam championships with Carson and qualifying for Wimbledon, my first WTA quarter-final, my first Rogers Cup main draw, an amazing Fed Cup victory on the WTA circuit and several ITF accomplishments, I am very pleased with the year overall. I want to thank my team of coaches and trainers for their support and hard work throughout the year. Without them this would not be possible.”
Dabrowski and Zhao recognized for their seasons as well
At world No. 18, Dabrowski is Canada’s highest-ranked doubles player and one of the premier players on the WTA tour. She made history by becoming the first Canadian woman to win a Grand Slam in June when she captured the Roland Garros mixed doubles championship alongside India’s Rohan Bopanna. She won the biggest WTA title of her career at Miami in March and later added another trophy at New Haven to bring her grand total to five. Her best year on the circuit so far was capped off by qualifying for the season-ending WTA Finals with Xu Yifan as one of the Top 8 pairs of the year.
After starting the 2017 season at world No. 491, Zhao improved over 300 spots this year and currently sits at No. 147. She took home the biggest title of her career last month at the $100,000 Shenzhen Challenger in China. She also won her first pro singles title two months earlier at a $25,000 event in Nanao, Japan. The 22-year-old, a former standout NCAA player at Stanford University, also was a semifinalist at the $100,000 VanOpen in August.
“A big congratulations to Bianca, Gabriela, and Carol on phenomenal seasons,” said Michael Downey, president and CEO, Tennis Canada. “Bianca is a deserving player of the year, as she is proving herself to be one of the top players of her generation and at 17 years old she is just getting started. Gabriela and Carol had years to remember as well; we will never forget Gabriela’s history-making Roland Garros win while Carol’s dedication and persistence is shining through with her results this year. This was a benchmark season for all three athletes with much more to come in the future; we are excited to follow along in 2018.”
2016 ATP Rogers Cup Preview and Predictions Steen Kirby, Tennis Atlantic
The summer hard court season will kick into high gear with the 2016 Rogers Cup ATP Masters 1000 tournament in Toronto, as many ATP players make their final preparations for the Olympic games in Rio that are coming up in August. Here is a preview and predictions.
Rogers Cup
ATP World Tour Masters 1000
July 25-July 31, 2016
Toronto, Canada
Surface: Hard
Prize Money: $4,089,740
Top 8 seeds (who all receive first round byes) (ATP ranking in parentheses)
1: Novak Djokovic (1)
2: Stan Wawrinka (5)
3: Kei Nishikori (6)
4: Milos Raonic (7)
5: Tomas Berdych (8)
6: Dominic Thiem (9)
7: David Goffin (11)
8: Marin Cilic (12)
Andy Murray, Roger Federer, Rafa Nadal, Richard Gasquet, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, David Ferrer, and a host of other top 30 players are skipping Toronto this year, making this one of the weaker Masters 1000 fields, while also creating more opportunities for those in the top 50 who are playing.
A first time meeting between this fan favorite pairing. Paire should prevail, but Stepanek is a difficult opponent to defeat when he rushes the net well, and Paire is dependent on his backhand clicking to win matches.
Ivo Karlovic vs. Taylor Fritz
Fritz looked a bit overwhelmed and overmatched in D.C., it won’t get any easier against the big serving Karlovic in Toronto. Ivo is the heavy favorite, but it will be interesting to see if the young Fritz can fight hard and show some bounce back in this match.
(11)Nick Kyrgios vs. (WC)Denis Shapovalov
Kyrgios is far and above better than the young Wimbledon junior champ Shapovalov in this one, but the Canadian will have home support, and both guys play aggressive battlers tennis. If Kyrgios loses the plot, Shapovalov has the strokes, especially with his one handed backhand, to notch an upset, however Kyrgios serve should dominate play. Expect to see more of Denis in the years to come.
Both players are veterans in poor form who badly need a win, and with Anderson’s penchant for playing (and as of recently losing..) tiebreaks, expect a close battle that is likely to go to three sets. Anderson gets a lot of points this time of year, but if his poor play continues he’s going to drop out of the top 50 sooner than you’d expect. The h2h is tied 1-1.
Donald Young vs. Alex Dolgopolov
Young found some decent form as of late and he hasn’t lost his opening match at a tournament since Roland Garros. Dolgopolov is a tricky shotmaker who could dominate Young in this one, or show signs of weakness and give the American an opening. At a very minimum these two will battle and hit some great shots from the baseline.
Novak Djokovic hasn’t won the Rogers Cup since 2012, but with all of the recent champions absent this year he’s the favorite to improve on his 46-4 record on the season and take home the title. He should ease past Newport finalist Gilles Muller (who opens with a struggling Dmitry Tursunov), then defeat most likely Washington quarterfinalist Benoit Paire in round 3. Paire opens with Stepanek with either Peter Polansky or Tim Smyczek to follow. He’s unpredictable, but he’s likely to win a pair of matches, then bow out meekly to Djokovic.
John Isner and Tomas Berdych look set to meet in the third round for the right to face Djokovic in the quarters, Isner fell in the quarterfinals of Washington, but his form should still be good enough to dispatch Dudi Sela and either Andrey Kuznetsov or in-form qualifier Ryan Harrison to reach round 3. Wimbledon semifinalist Berdych will face either Borna Coric or Ivan Dodig in his second round match, Coric is a solid young player, but didn’t play well enough in D.C. to suggest he will upset Berdych. Berdych over Isner is my pick, given Berdych’s power game should edge Isner matchup wise, although it will be close and could go either way.
Milos Raonic is set for a tricky second round match against Washington semifinalist Alexander Zverev, who is rising quickly up the ranks on all surfaces. Zverev needs only to defeat Rendy Lu in round 1. The home hero Canadian should be bailed out by crowd support and his big serve to prevail however, and likewise Steve Johnson is a difficult opponent in the third round, but Raonic is the favorite to prevail. Johnson knocked off John Isner in Washington and reached the semifinals, showing he can deal with big servers. He’s in great form and should defeat Umag champion Fabio Fognini, and either Jared Donaldson or John Millman to reach round 3. A spot in the quarterfinals would earn Raonic his 20th hard court win of the season.
The fates of Gael Monfils and Sam Querrey are somewhat up in the air, while David Goffin is the player that gets a bye. Goffin has a pair of semifinals in the hard court Masters this year and would face the Wimbledon and Washington quarterfinalist Querrey in round 2, presuming Sam dispatches Frank Dancevic. Querrey is playing some of the best tennis he’s ever played, and his power could be too much for Goffin. They met in Montreal last year and Goffin advanced in a close straight setter. Goffin is my pick though, as he’s proven his mettle in Masters tournaments this season, and likely has the clutch factor.
The Washington champion Monfils should defeat Joao Sousa and then Jeremy Chardy or Vasek Pospisil, both of whom are struggling in recent months. Fatigue could play a factor for Monfils, but he’s playing so well right now I have to pick him over Goffin for the quarterfinals. His movement and serve were exceptional in Washington, while Goffin hasn’t played a match in weeks.
Nishikori’s quarter:
Kei Nishikori and young Frenchman Lucas Pouille look set to do battle in round 3 as Kei would be bidding for 40 match wins on the season. Federico Delbonis or Dennis Novikov should provide little resistance for the efficient Nishikori while the Wimbledon quarterfinalist Pouille faces qualifier Emilio Gomez with Ernests Gulbis or serve and volleyer Rajeev Ram to follow. This smooth path for Pouille will abruptly end against Nishikori, and although the Frenchman is a great young player, on hard court Nishikori should have the shots he needs to advance.
The Kyrgios/Shapovalov winner will face either Yuichi Sugita or a continually struggling Grigor Dimitrov in round 2, for the right to face most likely Marin Cilic in round 3, although Washington finalist Ivo Karlovic, or Fritz are also possible opponents. Karlovic has been dominant on serve in recent weeks, but fatigue will likely catch up to him at his age, while Cilic was a quarterfinalist at Wimbledon and has a great opportunity in this Masters tournament with some of the big names absent. Cilic’s power should get him past Karlovic, and Kyrgios, who is good enough to defeat Dimitrov, but likely below Cilic’s level, despite Kyrgios win in Marseille this year indoors.
Wawrinka’s quarter:
Stan Wawrinka looks set to face Jack Sock in the third round, presuming Sock defeats struggling fellow American Denis Kudla and the Young/Dolgopolov winner, a tricky but favorable prospect. Wawrinka is 14-3 on the season on hard court, and either Mikhail Youzhny or Stephane Robert are unlikely to provide much resistance in round 2, although a match with Youzhny would treat fans to a battle of great one handed backhanders. Sock was a quarterfinalist in Washington, and I wouldn’t put an upset of Wawrinka past him, but Stan is the favorite in his section with Dolgopolov serving as a bit of a dark horse. Sock’s great forehand will clash with Wawrinka’s great backhand.
Dominic Thiem crashed out of Kitzbuhel, a home tournament for him, in singles, and he has a tough round 2 match on tap with Troicki/Anderson with the winner set to face Bernard Tomic, presuming a streaky Bernie beats qualifier Alejandro Gonzalez, and either Kyle Edmund or wild card Steve Diez. Thiem is 14-5 on hard courts on the season, and he’s played a brutal schedule that may have left him a bit winded recently. With neither Troicki nor Anderson playing well, Thiem over Troicki is my pick, and then Thiem over Tomic, although Bernie could really use a confidence boosting upset on hard court such as that. Thiem beat Tomic earlier this season in Acapulco.
Querrey will need to upset Goffin, and Monfils to reach the quarters, but if he does, even Milos Raonic should be on alert. The American is playing freely right now, and that serious but relaxed attitude is doing his game wonders. Karlovic is unbreakable on serve right now, fatigue likely catches up with him but he could defeat anyone in the draw right now if he can win tiebreaks, and he could reach the quarters.
Predictions
Quarters: Djokovic d. Berdych
Raonic d. Monfils
Cilic d. Nishikori
Thiem d. Wawrinka
Djokovic, despite his shock loss at Wimbledon, is far and above better than Berdych, Raonic vs. Monfils is a tough match to predict, but given the fatigue factor, Raonic likely edges Monfils in a close one. Nishikori could have a better tournament than the quarterfinals, but Cilic should be hungry, and his power likely gives him the edge. Thiem vs. Wawrinka is a battle of one-handers, Wawrinka hasn’t been super impressive this year, and Thiem will look to continue to make his move into the ATP’s elite with some of the other big names absent this tournament.
Semis: Djokovic d. Raonic
Thiem d. Cilic
It’s a bold and gutsy move to go with Thiem in the final, but the Rogers Cup looks likely to produce a few surprises. Djokovic should break Canadian hearts and defeat Raonic with his superior return game given their result this year in the IW final.
Final: Djokovic d. Thiem
In ATP Masters 1000’s right now I can’t go against Djokovic, he’s simply the best player in the game right now, and in best of 3 there is little margin of error for his opponents to defeat him unless he has a bad day, and that’s rare for him.
2015 ATP Montreal Preview and Predictions Steen Kirby, Tennis Atlantic
2015 ATP Montreal Preview
Rogers Cup
ATP World Tour Masters 1000
Montreal, Canada
August 10-August 16, 2015
Prize Money: $3,587,490
Top 8 seeds (who all receive first round byes) (ATP ranking in parentheses)
1: Novak Djokovic (1)
2: Andy Murray (3)
3: Stan Wawrinka (5)
4: Kei Nishikori (4)
5: Tomas Berdych (6)
6: Marin Cilic (8)
7: Rafael Nadal (9)
8: Milos Raonic (10)
Roger Federer is skipping Montreal this year, while David Ferrer is out with an elbow injury. Otherwise the rest of the ATP top 25 is taking part.
Sock has a solid track record on hard courts this year and has played both of the North American stops this Summer in Atlanta and Washington, reaching the quarters in Washington. The young American continues to rise up the rankings and this match represents a good opportunity for him. Mannarino, a finalist in Bogota, has also had a good record on hard courts this year and took a week off after an early exit in Atlanta. His solid play all season has earned him a career high ranking and this should be a competitive match. Presuming Sock is fit, he should have the edge, though Mannarino is streaky. Sock has a 2-1 h2h edge on hard courts.
(14)Grigor Dimitrov vs. (Q)Alexandr Dolgopolov
Dimitrov has a h2h edge on Dolgopolov but his poor form since splitting with coach Roger Rasheed is evident, as the Bulgarian has failed to progress his game in any manner this season. Grigor had a poor week in Washington, losing round 2, and now he’ll have to face a dangerous shotmaker as he hopes to avoid a round 1 exit in Montreal. Dolgopolov qualified and is 4-1 in his last five matches, thus his form seems better than it was when he plunged down the rankings. This matchup should feature some great ball striking and winner creation, and I not only give Dolgo a chance to advance, I have him winning this one in an upset, as Dimitrov seems lost at the moment.
Fernando Verdasco vs. Nick Kyrgios
The veteran Spanish lefty has had some tough draws in recent tournaments and he returns to hard court tennis with a 7-5 record in 2015. Kyrgios is returning from a poor showing in Davis Cup duty and his consistency and focus has been lacking at times this year outside of Grand Slams. This matchup should feature big hitting and big forehands, and it’s hard to tell the form of ether player, that said I give Kyrgios, if focused, the edge to advance in what should be an exciting match.
(13)David Goffin vs. Steve Johnson
Goffin, who is just 6-5 on hard courts in 2015, is ranked higher than Johnson, but the hard court surface should balance this matchup, and the h2h is split 1-1. Johnson comes into Montreal with a 15-9 hard court record this year, and a semifinal in Washington where he played excellent tennis, as the American continues to improve. This is another matchup where the seed could suffer an early exit, Goffin’s form was good on clay (reached Gstaad final), but Johnson won’t have to switch surfaces and he’s playing great right now, I have Stevie pulling of the upset.
Tsonga is the defending champion of the Rogers Cup, but he could well bow out in round 1 the next year as the young gun Coric is a dangerous opponent. The teenager is 9-8 on outdoor hard in 2015, and upset Andy Murray in Dubai this year. Tsonga struggled in Davis Cup and has barely played on hard courts this year, I still have Jo winning this but it should be close, and he is another seed who could bow out early.
Djokovic’s section:
Three time Rogers Cup champion and undisputed world #1 Novak Djokovic will look to improve on his 25-2 outdoor hard court record in 2015, and he should have a clear path to the quarterfinals. Thomaz Bellucci is likely his first opponent, presuming Bellucci gets past dirtballer Pablo Cuevas like he did in Miami this year, Bellucci took a set off of Novak in Rome on clay this year, but I don’t see that repeating himself. After Bellucci it will be Dolgopolov/Dimitrov or Sock/Mannarino, in an interesting section. I have Dolgopolov beating Dimitrov and Sock before falling to Djokovic like he did in a great Miami match this year (lost in 3 sets).
Tomas Berdych could have a tough time, with Denis Kudla likely to be his first opponent. Kudla, a semifinalist in Atlanta, faces fellow qualifier Donald Young in round 1, and has been in fantastic form over the past couple of months. Dynamite Denis is playing the tennis of his life right now and I wouldn’t put an upset of Berdych past him, that said Berdych is 19-5 on outdoor hard this year and is still the favorite. In round 3 we should see Berdych/Kudla against Kevin Anderson, as Anderson and Berdych tend to find each other in draws.
Anderson suffered a shock loss in Washington early on, but given this is a surface he likes he should recover and beat Lukas Rosol, who simply isn’t as good as him on hard courts, and then the winner of Dominic Thiem/Ernests Gulbis. Gulbis qualified after seeing his ranking drop, and Thiem is one of his best friends on tour, coming off a fantastic run on clay. Thiem is 3-0 against Gulbis since their first meeting, though he may struggle to adjust surface after great results on clay, and I have Gulbis pulling a minor upset before falling to Anderson. Berdych dominates Anderson in the h2h, and thus look for Tomas in the quarters.
Wawrinka’s section:
Stan the man Wawrinka could bow out to Kyrgios/Verdasco right off the bat, though he handled Kyrgios well on grass when they met earlier this year. Wawrinka struggles with consistency compared to the other top 5 players, but so do Kyrgios and Verdasco and it’s a hard section to predict. That said Wawrinka is 10-3 on hard this year and I don’t trust Kyrgios to keep his cool thus I have it Wawrinka vs. John Isner round 3.
Isner, the champion in Atlanta and a finalist in Washington, may be fatigued but he’s playing fantastic on the US Open series and his booming serve should push him bast Benjamin Becker, who hasn’t been healthy recently, and the winner of Rendy Lu/Vasek Pospisil. Big John is now 16-5 on hard courts in 2015 and he just beat Pospisil, his likely round 2 opponent, at the Citi Open. A fresher Wawrinka likely has the edge on Isner in round 3, but with the American serving so well right now, he could be a dark horse. I have Wawrinka in the quarters myself. Isner is 2-1 against Wawrinka in the h2h but they haven’t played in multiple seasons.
Milos Raonic, the home hero, has a tough opening match ahead against either Jerzy Janowicz or Ivo Karlovic, likely Karlovic who has been in great form in recent tournaments. Big servers will collide, and this is another matchup where the seed could go out. I have Karlovic reaching round 3 where he is likely to face Richard Gasquet. Gasquet opens with Jeremy Chardy, his countryman (2-0 h2h) and then will face the Hyeon Chung/Leo Mayer winner. Gasquet, who lost round 2 in Washington, is a better hard court player than Mayer, and the qualifier Chung is still an inexperienced young gun. Chung is in good form so I have him upsetting Mayer before falling to Gasquet. Gasquet has won his last three meetings against Karlovic, and I also see him beating Raonic if Raonic blazes the same path, so I have Gasquet reaching the quarters. Both Raonic and Gasquet are former finalists at the Rogers Cup.
Nishikori’s section:
Washington champ Kei Nishikori is in excellent form and has an easy early draw that should allow him to conserve his energy a bit. He should roll past Pablo Andujar/Frank Dancevic and do the same to Goffin/Johnson unless he’s fatigued, as I don’t feel either player is up to his caliber, though both are quality ballstrikers and could trouble him. The winner of Goffin/Johnson faces Martin Klizan/Sam Querrey round 2, both of whom are inconsistent big hitters. I have Johnson beating Querrey before falling to Nishikori. Nishikori beat Johnson this year in Brisbane.
Three time Rogers Cup champion Rafael Nadal is also in this section, but he’s a rather pedestrian 8-4 on hard courts in 2015, he last played on clay where he took the title in Hamburg. Rafa should be able to defeat Sergiy Stakhovsky or young Canadian Filip Peliwo, a wild card, but Gilles Simon could prove trouble in the third round. Simon has been competitive on hard courts this year and he faces a possibly injured Andreas Seppi round 1, and then likely Viktor Troicki, who he dominates the h2h with in round 2. Troicki will face qualifier Mikhail Youzhny, who found some form this weekend after a bad slump, in round 1. Nadal would have the edge against Troicki, and also should beat Simon who he is 7-1 against in the h2h. As long as Rafa has himself healthy and together look for him in the quarterfinals.
Murray’s section:
Andy Murray suffered a shock loss to journeyman Teymuraz Gabashvili in Washington but he’s still won the Rogers Cup title twice and had an excellent season, hard courts included. In his first Montreal match he’ll face either Feliciano Lopez or Tommy Robredo, Robredo has barely played on hard courts this year, but Lopez isn’t in great form and has a poor h2h record. I have Murray beating Lopez in round 2 and pushing his h2h to 11-0 before beating either Gilles Muller or Gael Monfils in round 3. Tbe big serving Atlanta semifinalist Muller is in good form and should defeat Canadian wild card Philip Bester to setup a meeting with Monfils. Monfils faces Fabio Fognini, who hasn’t won a hard court match this year, round 1, before Muller. It’s tough to predict a winner there, but I have Muller pulling it out, before falling to Murray, who beat him on hard courts and grass this year. Murray vs. Monfils, if it were to happen, would be highly entertaining though with speed on showcase. It has to be mentioned Monfils and Fognini are both entertainers on court, and it should be a fun, though possibly clownish round 1 match.
Look for Washington semifinalist Marin Cilic to continue his good form as he preps to defend the US Open title, and defeat either Bernard Tomic, who is inconsistent and lost right now on court, or Joao Sousa in his first match. After that it should be Cilic against Tsonga/Coric unless Roberto Bautista Agut interrupts proceedings in round 2. RBA has a poor hard court record this year, but should build confidence with a win over the struggling Janko Tipsarevic round 1. I see Cilic over Tsonga in the third round after Tsonga beats RBA. Cilic is in better form and has won his last three meetings against the Frenchman.
Dark Horses: Denis Kudla, Ivo Karlovic, Steve Johnson, Gilles Muller
A crop of hard court players should serve as dark horses for the Rogers Cup. Kudla is in the form of his life and if he can upset Berdych he could reach the quarters. Karlovic with his tricky and powerful serve could upset Raonic and Gasquet to reach the quarters, and perhaps Wawrinka as well to the reach the semis.
Kudla’s fellow American Johnson would need to get past Goffin and Nishikori, but if Kei is fatigued he could also reach the quarters. The same goes for Gilles Muller, who would need to upset Monfils and Murray. He’s a big server like Ivo and when he’s on, tiebreaks tend to decide matches, a those are always risky propositions, even for top players.
Quarterfinals: Djokovic d. Berdych
Gasquet d. Wawrinka
Nadal d. Nishikori
Murray d. Cilic
Novak dominates the h2h with Berdych, including this season, Gasquet vs. Wawrinka is probably the most competitive quarterfinal if it takes place, and it should feature fantastic backhands. I have Gasquet pulling off an upset because Wawrinka may be a bit rusty and Gasquet won their Wimbledon meeting not long ago.
Nadal is 7-0 against Nishikori, and Kei is likely fatigued, Nadal is great at returning and chasing balls around, thus I give him the edge in what could be a good hard court tournament for him. Murray has the h2h edge pretty consistently over Cilic, and I don’t feel the poor match in D.C. was a genuine concern for him, so I have him sorting things out and reaching the semis.
Semifinals: Djokovic d. Gasquet Murray d. Nadal
Djokovic could avenge his loss to Wawrinka in the Roland Garros final, but I have him beating Gasquet instead, as he’s simply the better player and it’s shown in their meetings. Murray should be superior to Nadal on hard courts.
Final: Djokovic d. Murray
Djokovic is the clear favorite for this title, especially with Federer absent. Murray fights hard against Novak and could win, but he’s a heavy underdog if this is the final, and I have Novak taking the 2015 Rogers Cup.
Report from the ATP Rogers Cup Draw Ceremony Featuring Stan Wawrinka Leich Sinha for Tennis Atlantic
The draw ceremony for the 2015 Rogers Cup was held early Friday evening at the 4 star Queen Elizabeth Hotel. World number 4 Stanislas Wawrinka was on hand to inaugurate the proceedings, which was followed by a brief Q&A with the reigning French Open Champion. The draw took place following the previous week’s news of the withdrawals of World number 2 Roger Federer, who cited scheduling issues as the prevailing cause of his absence, as well as top 10 stalwart David Ferrer, who is still hindered by an elbow injury.
The news bumped Japanese star Kei Nishikori to 4th seed, avoiding potentially dangerous quarterfinal matchups against former winners at this event Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray. The latter pair, as top two seeds, were drawn in separate halves where they may respectively face Tomas Berdych and Marin Cilic in the quarterfinals. Murray in particular will be looking to amend his hard court season after a shocking opening match loss to Teymuraz Gabashvili at the Citi Open.
Notes on the draw
A very intriguing matchup awaits three time champion Rafael Nadal, who is set to face Nishikori in the quarters. The two have not played each other since the Madrid Masters final in 2014 and this matchup may very well provide the clearest gauge as to where either of them stand amidst the very upper echelon of the game. A win for either would cement (or in Nadal’s case) reaffirm their status amongst the very elite and may fuel a deep run at the US open. In the last quarter, Milos Raonic is on a collision course with Stan Wawrinka. Raonic is coming off an injury plagued grass campaign and is looking to regain lost ground in the top 10.
Some interesting early round matchups should also take place, defending champion and 12th seed Jo Wilfried Tsonga will have a tough task ahead of him if he wants to repeat last year’s run in Toronto. He will face rising star Borna Coric in the first round and will potentially play against Marin Cilic in the round of 16, Murray in the quarters, Nadal/Nishikori and Djokovic in the final, he has his work cut out for him for sure.
Milos Raonic and Ivo Karlovic may just about club each other to death with serves should the Croatian prevail in his opening round match against Jerzy Janowicz. A potential 2nd round encounter between Nick Kyrgios and Stan Wawrinka, who has a poor record at this event, could finally be the right setup for the young Aussie to break through at the masters level.
The draw composition consisted of 64 players, of whom the top 8 seeds received first round byes while 44 others received direct acceptances on account of their ATP ranking. 4 Wild cards were given to Canadians Philip Bester, finalist at last week’s Granby Challenger, Canadian Davis cup mainstay Frank Dancevic, Vasek Popisil and two time junior grand slam champion Filip Peliwo. In addition, the tournament will feature 7 qualifiers who will be selected amongst the winners of the qualifying draw.
The draw ceremony featured a short Q&A session with a relaxed Stan Wawrinka in which he discussed his health, Roger Federer and the big four. Wawrinka revealed that he had spent 10 days treating a shoulder problem following his quarterfinal exit at Wimbledon. He followed that statement up by asserting that the problem was cleared up and that he had spent the last 3 weeks preparing for the hard court season with his coach Magnus Norman. He furthermore lamented Federer’s decision to withdraw from the event but understood that the Swiss great needed to pace himself in order to be fresh for the US open.
Wawrinka was adamant in squashing any comparisons to the big four, saying that the reality is “they’ve been dominant for the last 10 years, I’m just trying to improve and compete with them”. When asked of his potential 2nd round matchup against Kyrgios, he praised the youngster’s game and conceded that sometimes the nature of the draw is such that “sometimes you have to play good players in the early rounds.” As the only ATP player present at the ceremony, Wawrinka appeared unburdened and at ease throughout the session, taking pictures and warmly greeting tournament organizers.
Look for my reports on the qualifying rounds this weekend!
2015 Hopman Cup Preview Steen Kirby and Niall Clarke, Tennis Atlantic
2015 Hopman Cup Preview
The 2015 ATP and WTA Season will officially kickoff with another edition of the Hopman Cup from Perth, Australia. Eight star studded national teams featuring an ATP and WTA player will battle it out in a split groups format to determine this years champion. Here is a preview of all the action.
Hopman Cup
ITF Team Event
Perth, Australia
January 4-January 10, 2014
Prize Money: $1,000,000
Group A: Canada, Czech Republic, Italy, United States
Canada
The second best Canadian male player, Vasek Pospisil, will form part of the Canadian tandem at the Hopman Cup. He reached a career high ranking of 25 last season, but ended up finishing the year just outside the top 50, with a 20-23 ATP level singles record. He struggled in the second half of the season, not winning consecutive matches at any tournament after making the final in Washington. That said he reached one ATP final, an ATP semifinal and three ATP quarterfinals in 2014 and appears close to capturing his first ever ATP title. Vashy also is a very accomplished doubles player as he won 3 doubles titles, partnering with Jack Sock in 2014, including the Wimbledon title. Overall, the talented doubles pairing reached five ATP doubles finals, including a Masters final in Cincinnati. Given Pospisil’s ability to be successful in both doubles and singles, along with Bouchard being a top player herself, team Canada looks to be one of the favorites to take home the Hopman Cup.
The WTA representative for Canada is their number 1 ranked player, Eugenie Bouchard. Bouchard translated her junior success to senior success in 2014. Genie had a breakthrough year where she reached the Wimbledon final and ended the year as world number 7. The 20 year old has an aggressive game, and looks to take the ball as early as she possibly can. Bouchard will be making her second straight Hopman cup appearance. In 2014 she partnered Milos Raonic, but they couldn’t make the final as Canada finished second in group A.
Czech Republic
Adam Pavlasek, who has yet to break the worlds top 200, and at age 20 is the lowest ranked male participant in this years Hopman Cup, will team up with Lucie Safarova to represent his country. Pavlasek is most notable for formerly dating Czech tennis star Petra Kvitova and beyond a pair of futures titles, failed to do anything particularly notable in 2014. That said, unheralded players have stepped up and performed well in the Hopman Cup before, and perhaps Pavlasek can put some good matchplay together and pull off some surprises.
Partnering the youngster will be the experienced Lucie Safarova. Safarova knows how it feels to win for her country, as she was part of the Czech Republic team that won the Fed Cup last year. The 27 year old previously competed in the Hopman cup in 2008 where she partnered Tomas Berdych. Lucie had her best season to date in 2014, reaching the Wimbledon semi-finals and finishing a career high, 14 in the world rankings. The leftie proved a difficult opponent for everyone on tour during the year
In one of the most interesting pairings at this year’s Hopman Cup, the combustible Fabio Fognini will be partnering with his girlfriend, the veteran Flavia Pennetta as they look to put up a good showing for the Italian team. Fognini peaked just inside the top 15 in 2014, but finished the year at number 20 as he tanked the second half of the season and failed to win consecutive matches after reaching the quarterfinals in Cincinnati. Given the Italian team is better suited for a clay court surface, they are underdogs in this group, and are likely to be most interesting for the fireworks they might produce.
Flavia Pennetta will partner The Fog in this year’s competition. The 32 year old will be making her third Hopman cup appearance, and will be partnering Fognini for the first time on the court. Pennetta has tons of experience with this being her 15th year as a pro, and 2014 was one of her best on tour. The Italian finished 13th in the world and made the Quarter Finals in two majors. Flavia has also showed doubles prowess by reaching the US Open final with Hingis. She will no doubt be a threat in this tournament.
United States
John Isner didn’t have his best season in 2014, but he still earned a couple of titles and finished inside the top 20 with a very positive 39-20 singles record. Isner had a pretty balanced year overall and of course he will be playing on his favorite surface, with the best WTA player in the game, so team USA will have a chance to add to their Hopman Cup resume this year. Isner doesn’t play doubles often, but he’s known to be at least component.
You don’t get any better than Serena Williams in women’s tennis. The world number one has dominated the tour for years, and cemented that by winning her 18th major at the US Open. Serena has previously competed in the Hopman cup in 2003 and 2008. She won the title both times. If the past is anything to go by, the USA might just be favourites to win the tournament. With Williams you have the biggest serve on the WTA tour, and partnered with Isner you have a team that will be extremely difficult to break.
Group B: Australia, France, Great Britain, Poland
Australia
Formerly a top 70 player, Aussie Matt Ebden will be looking to bounce back in 2015, after a poor 2014 season that saw him finish outside the top 200 for the first time in over 3 seasons. The 27 year old Aussie baseliner went just 5-21 at the ATP level last season and didn’t make it past the second round of any tournament he played last year. The Aussies will have plenty of fan support, but have one of the weaker teams in this years tournament and are unlikely to win a lot of matches. There one strength is the fact both players have doubles ability, Ebden has won four ATP doubles titles in his career, including one last season, and Dellacqua has also had success with that side of the game.
Left hander Casey Dellacqua is heading into the tournament off the back of a good 2014 season which saw the 29 year old crack the world’s top 30. The Australian has also shown her talents in doubles, where she has reached the final of all four Grand Slam tournaments during her career. Dellacqua went one further in the mixed doubles in 2011, where she won the French Open title. The Perth native will be returning home to compete in her second Hopman cup. She only won one of her matches in the 2009 edition of the annual event.
Benoit Paire, a talented underachiever at this point in his career, who struggled with knee problems in 2014, after formerly being ranked as high as 24 in the world in 2013, will be looking to rise back to that level in 2015. Paire, who is now 25, posted a pair of ATP quarterfinals last season and as usual provided a lot of excitement and passionate antics with his tennis. He has one career doubles title, but I would be surprised if team France repeated as Hopman Cup champions with this pairing of Paire and Cornet.
The defending champion is back to defend her title. Alize Cornet partnered Jo Wilfried Tsonga as the French team proved too much for the competition last year. That win was just the start for Alize, as the French woman went on to have one of her best seasons to date. Cornet won her 4th WTA title in Katowice and defeated top 10 players such as Serena Williams and Simona Halep during the year. The 24 year old will look to kick off her 2015 season in the same vein as last year, and defend the Hopman Cup title.
Great Britain
Andy Murray, who went through a transition year in 2014, as he was rehabbing from back surgery, and replaced Ivan Lendl with Amelie Mauresmo as his coach, will be looking to re-enter the top 5 in 2015. Murray went through some other changes in his coaching team in the offseason, but he finished 2014 on a strong note, winning all three of his ATP titles in 2014 after the US Open to help his bid to eventually qualify for the World Tour Finals. Murray faces some formidable talent ranked in front of him, and players like Grigor Dimitrov and Milos Raonic are pressing on his heels from behind in the rankings, but he has a chance to get 2015 off to a great start and win the Hopman Cup for team GB. He’s the strongest singles player in the field, and has always done well for team GB in Davis Cup doubles. Murray comes off winning the Abu Dhabi exhibition, which will certainly be a boost for his mojo.
Fellow British number one Heather Watson will partner Andy Murray in this year’s tournament. Watson recently suffered from mononucleosis, which saw the Brit fall outside the top 150. But the 22 year old rallied back to finish the year inside the top 50. Watson will bring a good blend of attack and defence to her maiden Hopman Cup tournament. Partnered with Andy Murray, Team GB will be hard work for anyone.
Poland
Jerzy Janowicz still has room to improve his tennis for sure but he slumped in 2014, and finished the year just 24-26 at the ATP level. He reached one ATP final, one ATP semifinal and a pair of ATP quarterfinals, in what was a disappointing season for the Polish male number one. Like many other participants, Janowicz is a capable doubles player, and with Radwanska being one of the best players on the WTA side of the field, team Poland will be one of the favorites.
Aga Radwanska is returning to Perth for her second Hopman cup appearance. She made the final in her debut last year and will look to go one better with her new partner, Jerzy Janowicz. The 25 year old is one of the craftiest players on the WTA tour, and that craft has seen her finish inside the top 10 yet again. The former Wimbledon finalist will be looking to express any improvements she has made under new coach Martina Navratilova.
Group A:
Canada d. Czech Republic
USA d. Italy
Italy d. Czech Republic
USA d. Canada
Canada d. Italy
USA d. Czech Republic
Group B:
Poland d. Australia
Great Britain d. France
Poland d. Great Britain
France d. Australia
Poland d. France
Great Britain d. Australia
The USA should finish 3-0 in Group A, with their strongest test coming from team Canada in their second match. Canada likewise is likely to do well against Italy and the Czechs, as the USA and Canada have the strongest combined teams for a hard court surface.
In Group B, Radwanska should be enough to give Poland an edge over team GB, and like the USA, Poland should finish 3-0. Team GB with Murray is also formidable, while the Aussies will do well to win a match.
Final:
USA d. Poland
With Serena Williams in the ranks, Team USA will be too strong for the competition. Poland will once again reach the final, but fall short for the 2nd straight year as Isner and Janowicz effectively cancel each other out with their similar big serving styles, and Williams should defeat Radwanska.
Raonic wins first title of the season in ‘O Canada Citi Open Final
Milos Raonic (Photo: Chris Levy @Tennis_Shots for TennisEastCoast.com)
ATP Washington
Milos Raonic has had an excellent season thus far and he won a well-deserved first title of the season at the Citi Open in DC 6-1 6-4 over a tired and sluggish Vasek Pospisil. Vashy was blitzed by a fast starting Raonic and never recovered, though he gave a better account for himself in the second set before being broken in the final game of the match, as their final marked the first time ever two Canadian players have contested an ATP tour final.
Raonic made maple leaf flag waving fans happy this week with wins over Jack Sock, Lleyton Hewitt, Steve Johnson and Donald Young this week, in addition to the Pospisil victory, and he didn’t drop a set all week, winning five tiebreaks in his first three matches. He did all this while keeping his hair combover in place too. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O4QSZgGN5eY
Photo: Chris Levy @Tennis_Shots for TennisEastCoast.com
Pospisil, who endured a long losing streak after the Australian Open, has to be thrilled with reaching his first ATP final this week after wins over Rajeev Ram and Tomas Berdych in straights, and 3 set wins over Santiago Giraldo and Richard Gasquet. The match with Giraldo spanned two days, and after winning the third set in that contest he had to also beat Gasquet in a comeback 3 set victory, which should explain his fatigue this Sunday.
Vasek Pospisil (Photo: S. Fogleman, TennisEastCoast.com)
Vashy has always been talented and it’s been difficult seeing him struggle for a large part of this season. Hopefully, the surprise run this week will give him the confidence and form he needs to keep his ranking up the rest of this season and perhaps produce more final appearances and possible victories.
Jean-Julien Rojer and Horia Tecau beat Sam Groth and Leander Paes to take home the doubles hardware.
A Perfect Start for @Tennis_Canada @HopmanCup #HHC14
Bouchard and Raonic beat Australia 2-0
Montreal, December 28, 2013 – For the first time since 2004 Canada is among the eight countries competing in the Hopman Cup, an ITF team exhibition event taking place from December 28 to January 4 in Perth, Australia.
On the first day of action Saturday Canada, represented by Eugenie Bouchard and Milos Raonic, took on the Australian team of Samantha Stosur and Bernard Tomic. Raonic and Tomic opened the tie with their first ever meeting. A tight first set went the way of Raonic in a tiebreak and the Canadian carried the momentum through to the second set to post a straight sets victory 7-6(5), 6-1.
Canadian Armada perfect in Day 1 Down Under
Bouchard could seal the tie for Canada against world no. 18 Stosur in the second match. The players have split their two previous meetings. After dropping the first set, Bouchard fought back to score a 4-6, 6-2, 6-3 win. The world no. 32 broke Stosur’s serve four times in the match playing offensive tennis.
“It’s a good way to start my season,” said Bouchard. “We played a close match in Osaka earlier this year, so I was excited to have the chance to play Sam (Stosur) again. It’s always a good match.”
Canada will play their next tie on Sunday against Poland, the top seeds in the tournament.
FILIP PELIWO TO BE COACHED BY GALO BLANCO
Former top-ranked junior to join respected coach in Barcelona
Filip Peliwo
Toronto, October 24, 2013 – Tennis Canada confirmed Thursday that former junior world No. 1 Filip Peliwo (Vancouver) will be teaming up with Spanish coach Galo Blanco, who will begin coaching 19-year-old Peliwo on a full-time basis on November 15 in Barcelona.
Peliwo, who captured the Junior Wimbledon and Junior US Open titles last year, is one of Canada’s top up-and-coming talents. In his first season as a professional, he has climbed from outside the Top 500 to a high of No. 251. A member of Tennis Canada’s National Training Centre (NTC) in Montreal for the past four years, Peliwo will now join Blanco at his home base and academy 4SlamTennis in Barcelona. Blanco will travel with Peliwo on a full-time basis and will work as a team with Louis Borfiga and Tennis Canada national coaches. The Montreal NTC will also offer Peliwo supplemental training as needed.
“Galo is a very well-respected coach, who has enjoyed a lot of success throughout his career,” said Borfiga, vice-president, high performance, Tennis Canada. “We are very happy to have him back with the Tennis Canada team and are excited to have him continue his great work with Filip, who has an immense amount of potential.”
Blanco also coached top-ranked Canadian Milos Raonic (Thornhill, Ont.) for two-and-half years from late 2010 to May 2013, helping him rise from outside the Top 200 to a high of world No. 13.
After concluding their off-season training in December, Peliwo and Blanco will begin the 2014 season in Australia.
Tennis Atlantic 