Some had said that Federer may find it difficult to win a major title again, a habit that he had developed to the annoyance of all the other players for most of his career. Last rites had been performed, obituaries written, statues started to be built in memory of the once great master of the game.
However there is something romantic about Paris not only in Spring but in the Summer of 2011. The romantic tale generated here to out sell all others is the rebirth of Roger. Rated a chance by most experts of reaching the semi finals but losing to the impregnable Djokovic, Federer defied all and sundry by playing the best tennis of the tournament to reach the semi final match up, and failing to drop a set on the journey there.
What we witnessed on Friday evening and into the night was every positive adjective one could find in a thesaurus and some more that have yet to be invented. Facing an opponent who had not lost to anyone since last November, Roger Federer played imperiously from the outset, forcing the Serbian star to come and join him on the ride to donate to the paying audience possibly the greatest semi final in mens Grand Slam tournament play since Federer's loss to Marat Safin at the 2005 Australian Open.
The surface was clay, but it may as well have been a kitchen floor because the shots that the players created made nonsense of any environmental determinants that may have existed. Despite exchanging service breaks, it was Novak who had to draw from the well more times to stay with the Swiss maestro, and yet all of a sudden the Serb stood at set point 4-5 on Roger's serve. But as Sampras used to do so immaculately, and Roger has continued in his footsteps to do, big points were played with the best tennis and Roger saved himself. A tiebreak was appropriate and Federer proved his capacity to control these better than the rest as he won through to take the set 7-6.
The Swiss are neutral but the crowd was anything but as they erupted when Roger grasped the significant early advantage. Of course early being the operative word. Still plenty with which to be concerned on the other side of the net. Federer had been dictating with his serve and the return of Djokovic, expected to expose Roger, had not reeked as much havoc as predicted.
A subdued Serb suffered at the hands of a rampant Roger early in the second set. Down a break, Roger did not want to let Novak back - a two set break would be a huge mountain to climb. At 2-5, Djokovic summoned all his willpower to struggle out of a service game of trouble and even then to have a chance to break Federer, but once more the Swiss superstar blocked the opportunity, and clinched a 6-3 second set to add to the earlier first set that he had collected.
Now there was a doubt whether the match could conclude should Novak make a comeback. No way could 5 sets be completed before darkness so we could have been back to watch more of this cracker of a match. As expected of a top player, Djokovic did make the comeback, and through exhilarating tennis that has been his trademark all season, he troubled Federer, reading his slice and handling his serve much better. Against all the crowd support, the Serb took the set 6-3, and the match was closer to back in the balance but still with Federer the favorite.
The fourth set couldn't be any better. Oh yes it could! We saw some of the best rallies of the tournament in this part of the match, including the single best rally I personally witnessed ended with an astonishing winner from Roger at a key stage of the set. Djokovic achieved the break in the ninth game due to the worst service game from Roger for the match, but when serving for two sets all, the pressure showed, and experienced Roger went for the kill and the break back for 5-5.
The two exchanged serves, but not before at 30-30 and 5-6 Novak played the bravest and best of drop shot winners to reach game point which could have set up a match point for Roger.
A tie break followed, and Roger led early again before the Serb fightback. An ace from Djokovic made it 5-6 giving Roger centre stage to serve for the match, having had 2 match points saved by Novak. What better way to place an exclamation mark on a famous victory in a tremendous match than to serve yet another ace.
Vintage Roger outplayed a player who may one day be classed in the upper echelons of the games, but only marginally. A year or so ago, these matches would have been over for Novak in a lot shorter time than the three and a half hours it took Federer to subdue him. Fight and talent are both key to the Serbian game now.
For Roger he has yet another date with Rafa in a Grand Slam tournament final - the first time they have met at such a stage since the 2009 Australian Open. If Sunday is anywhere near as great as that five setter, then we can expect another treat, and I love being spoilt here in Paris!
Saturday, 4 June 2011
Now girls that is a hard act to follow!
As one who purchases tickets to every Australian Open, and now a couple of US Opens and this year Roland Garros, experience suggests that quarters, semis and finals can be slightly less inspiring than the potential that they demand.
However, we were pretty certain that Friday 3 June 2011 was not going to fall into that category. The final analysis will show that the top 4 men's players in the world gave us far more than even we could possibly have expected, the spectacular day ending as night was falling on Paris on breathtaking, pulsating tennis that the Women's Final will find difficult to follow.
First it was king of the clay - and while he is the French Open champ he remains king - Rafa Nadal to have a hit of tennis on his birthday with young mate Andy Murray who he'd invited over to one of the local courts he'd booked for a few hours. Being a good sport, Scotsman Murray granted Nadal first use of a break of serve in the match which had attracted quite a few onlookers from around the neighbourhood.
Andy seemed to be striking the tennis balls rather harshly, as if there was something personal against them, yet the Spaniard concentrated on retrieving almost all of them and sending them back to Scotland with interest, and the interest was great for us in the crowd. Murray could not make inroads into the match largely due to the arsenal which the Spaniard had brought with him, including one of the highest calibre legally available forehands, this latest model with the super top spin option included.
At 1-5, Andy needed to hold serve to at least keep Nadal honest and hold serve for the set which appeared headed his way. Not only did Andy keep his end of the bargain, but finally converted a break point in Rafa's next game. Despite having more chances as Nadal served a second time for the set, Murray could not succeed, and the big point winner took the opening set 6-4. Murray had made his statement, though - he was now playing well enough to win.
The second set was a smorgasbord of delightful tennis fare for which we went back for seconds and thirds - we could not have enough of the splendid rallies, highlighted by the power serving and deft touch of Murray and the running capacity of Nadal who reached all but a few of the Scot's ground strokes then adding some Spanish flavor of his own before returning over the other side in a usually more difficult form with which to deal.
Twice Nadal broke, only for Murray to break straight back, but at 5-5 the champ struck, and unfortunately Murray at 5-6 could not prevent Rafa serving to take a two set lead in a match that while close was feeling a million miles out of reach for Andy.
Any chance of an heroic comeback was dashed immediately in the third set when an apparent mental lapse led to a break of serve - yet again it required Andy to come from behind to win a set. More elite tennis from both players as the clock ticked over 3 hours - shots that surely are not meant to be made by mere mortals were being struck as if in practice by Rafa and Andy, but as much as the break points kept coming for Murray, so the conversion necessary to continue the match did not.
Rafa Nadal served his way into a sixth French Open final with a straight sets but anything but straightforward victory over gallant Andy Murray 6-4 7-5 6-4.
However, we were pretty certain that Friday 3 June 2011 was not going to fall into that category. The final analysis will show that the top 4 men's players in the world gave us far more than even we could possibly have expected, the spectacular day ending as night was falling on Paris on breathtaking, pulsating tennis that the Women's Final will find difficult to follow.
First it was king of the clay - and while he is the French Open champ he remains king - Rafa Nadal to have a hit of tennis on his birthday with young mate Andy Murray who he'd invited over to one of the local courts he'd booked for a few hours. Being a good sport, Scotsman Murray granted Nadal first use of a break of serve in the match which had attracted quite a few onlookers from around the neighbourhood.
Andy seemed to be striking the tennis balls rather harshly, as if there was something personal against them, yet the Spaniard concentrated on retrieving almost all of them and sending them back to Scotland with interest, and the interest was great for us in the crowd. Murray could not make inroads into the match largely due to the arsenal which the Spaniard had brought with him, including one of the highest calibre legally available forehands, this latest model with the super top spin option included.
At 1-5, Andy needed to hold serve to at least keep Nadal honest and hold serve for the set which appeared headed his way. Not only did Andy keep his end of the bargain, but finally converted a break point in Rafa's next game. Despite having more chances as Nadal served a second time for the set, Murray could not succeed, and the big point winner took the opening set 6-4. Murray had made his statement, though - he was now playing well enough to win.
The second set was a smorgasbord of delightful tennis fare for which we went back for seconds and thirds - we could not have enough of the splendid rallies, highlighted by the power serving and deft touch of Murray and the running capacity of Nadal who reached all but a few of the Scot's ground strokes then adding some Spanish flavor of his own before returning over the other side in a usually more difficult form with which to deal.
Twice Nadal broke, only for Murray to break straight back, but at 5-5 the champ struck, and unfortunately Murray at 5-6 could not prevent Rafa serving to take a two set lead in a match that while close was feeling a million miles out of reach for Andy.
Any chance of an heroic comeback was dashed immediately in the third set when an apparent mental lapse led to a break of serve - yet again it required Andy to come from behind to win a set. More elite tennis from both players as the clock ticked over 3 hours - shots that surely are not meant to be made by mere mortals were being struck as if in practice by Rafa and Andy, but as much as the break points kept coming for Murray, so the conversion necessary to continue the match did not.
Rafa Nadal served his way into a sixth French Open final with a straight sets but anything but straightforward victory over gallant Andy Murray 6-4 7-5 6-4.
Friday, 3 June 2011
Francesca must have had a red clay pit growing up
For a player who has been labelled ever since winning her maiden Grand Slam tournament here at Roland Garros last year as a first time/last time success due to her stage of tennis life and other unfathomable parameters (and I count myself as one of the labellers) Francesca Schiavone sure is doing a lot of "I told you so's" one year on from her red letter day on the red clay in Paris in 2010.
It is not just the calibre of opponent but the methodology employed to eventually take control of proceedings, even if with Jelena Jankvic it was at the very last breath. Schiavone had to play a French player in the semis, and so could expect a crowd heavily in favor of Marion Bartoli. The local girl was hyped as one may expect but I mean really over the top. Between points she looked as if she was practicing fencing with her tennis racquet and by the expressions on her face her preferred prey was the Italian facing her over the net.
Anxious for first blood - not to stretch the sabre/epee analogy too far - Bartoli always seemed to be needing to try too hard to find the necessary repertoire of shots to worry Schiavone. As for a plan of action, tactics were missing from the French preparation, or they were not instituted.
The advantage for Schiavone, amongst many, lay in her willingness to structure a point whether it be from a position of advantage or otherwise and more times than not we saw the result being a frantic French athlete running all over the court attempting to connect a portion of racquet on ball.
Francesca is not all textbook, but she has a single handed backhand that may be copyrighted from a leading tennis manual. Her serve is also damaging and she loves serving slice to her opponents, not just vanilla and strawberry. The single tactic employed by Bartoli was to hit the ball as hard as she could and hope that it would be enough to burst through the defence of the Italian. For a few games it could be shown to have effect but that was all. In the 8th game the break of serve arrived and the cleverly played consolidation game to follow sealed the set for Schiavone and the fate for Marion Bartoli.
Only the scoreline was the same in set number two. What the crowd witnessed was a defending champion becoming an increasingly ominous threat to winning back to back titles here, the first female since Justine Henin, another great player with a single handed backhand.
It is not just the calibre of opponent but the methodology employed to eventually take control of proceedings, even if with Jelena Jankvic it was at the very last breath. Schiavone had to play a French player in the semis, and so could expect a crowd heavily in favor of Marion Bartoli. The local girl was hyped as one may expect but I mean really over the top. Between points she looked as if she was practicing fencing with her tennis racquet and by the expressions on her face her preferred prey was the Italian facing her over the net.
Anxious for first blood - not to stretch the sabre/epee analogy too far - Bartoli always seemed to be needing to try too hard to find the necessary repertoire of shots to worry Schiavone. As for a plan of action, tactics were missing from the French preparation, or they were not instituted.
The advantage for Schiavone, amongst many, lay in her willingness to structure a point whether it be from a position of advantage or otherwise and more times than not we saw the result being a frantic French athlete running all over the court attempting to connect a portion of racquet on ball.
Francesca is not all textbook, but she has a single handed backhand that may be copyrighted from a leading tennis manual. Her serve is also damaging and she loves serving slice to her opponents, not just vanilla and strawberry. The single tactic employed by Bartoli was to hit the ball as hard as she could and hope that it would be enough to burst through the defence of the Italian. For a few games it could be shown to have effect but that was all. In the 8th game the break of serve arrived and the cleverly played consolidation game to follow sealed the set for Schiavone and the fate for Marion Bartoli.
Only the scoreline was the same in set number two. What the crowd witnessed was a defending champion becoming an increasingly ominous threat to winning back to back titles here, the first female since Justine Henin, another great player with a single handed backhand.
Na Li into another major final as Maria finds fault (plenty)
A perfect sunny day for what should have been a showcase of women's tennis, and to all intents and purposes we received that. However, the form that Sharapova had displayed a mere 48 hours prior to today was spoiled by her abundance and poor timing of double faults. It left the Chinese Na Li with less work to have to do, but do it she did with maximum efficiency and skill to burn. Pity that Maria left her form in the locker because she looked immaculate and photographers remained interested long after tennis followers had left her fan club and were rooting for the efforts of Na Li.
Mitigating circumstances for the lower than normal standard for a semi final at a Grand Slam tournament included the wind which intervened whenever it felt and with whatever speed and annoyance that could guarantee discomfort for playing personnel. Feeling the pain in a scoring sense most was the taller blonder one who slipped behind straight away 1-4, representing only one service break but still not the drag off the line for one searching for a career Grand Slam.
Of course Maria has weapons and footwork aside managed to break back for 3-4. Service being held in this stage of the match definitely did not rate a priority and just for good measure the girls exchanged one more break each for Na Li to lead 5-4 and have the Russian serve to stay alive in the set. OK that is over dramatic - no one had threatened Maria's life should she fail to hold her serve, though that sentence of death would have had to be carried out because as sure as she served double faults and committed unforced errors, Sharapova donated the tenth game to the Chinese girl who led by a set 6-4.
The real Sharapova, or something close to a facsimile, emerged from her racquet bag for the start of set two, and this confused Na Li who dropped serve and couldn't even break the real Maria's serve - the first time in the match this had failed to happen. For the next little while, the girls played solid tennis, with Na Li's forehand still causing major concern for Sharapova but not as threatening to the Russian serve. Meanwhile, Sharapova had worked out ways that she could use her thundering groundstrokes to pass the Chinese number one, again not creating too many break chances.
Finally, in the eight game, a service break was achieved, Na Li doing the damage to level at 4-4. Sharapova had chances to break in the ninth game but failed, and this in hindsight signalled the end. Na Li raced to 6-5 and Maria crumbled in the 12th game, the low point the final point - yet another double fault to hand the game set and match to Na Li who becomes the first player since Kim Clijsters (2010 US Open, 2011 Australian Open) to play in successive Grand Slam tournament finals. Kim won her finals. Can Na Li go one better than Melbourne and become China's first major champion? After thrashing Azarenka and handling the wind and Maria you would have to rate her a good show.
Mitigating circumstances for the lower than normal standard for a semi final at a Grand Slam tournament included the wind which intervened whenever it felt and with whatever speed and annoyance that could guarantee discomfort for playing personnel. Feeling the pain in a scoring sense most was the taller blonder one who slipped behind straight away 1-4, representing only one service break but still not the drag off the line for one searching for a career Grand Slam.
Of course Maria has weapons and footwork aside managed to break back for 3-4. Service being held in this stage of the match definitely did not rate a priority and just for good measure the girls exchanged one more break each for Na Li to lead 5-4 and have the Russian serve to stay alive in the set. OK that is over dramatic - no one had threatened Maria's life should she fail to hold her serve, though that sentence of death would have had to be carried out because as sure as she served double faults and committed unforced errors, Sharapova donated the tenth game to the Chinese girl who led by a set 6-4.
The real Sharapova, or something close to a facsimile, emerged from her racquet bag for the start of set two, and this confused Na Li who dropped serve and couldn't even break the real Maria's serve - the first time in the match this had failed to happen. For the next little while, the girls played solid tennis, with Na Li's forehand still causing major concern for Sharapova but not as threatening to the Russian serve. Meanwhile, Sharapova had worked out ways that she could use her thundering groundstrokes to pass the Chinese number one, again not creating too many break chances.
Finally, in the eight game, a service break was achieved, Na Li doing the damage to level at 4-4. Sharapova had chances to break in the ninth game but failed, and this in hindsight signalled the end. Na Li raced to 6-5 and Maria crumbled in the 12th game, the low point the final point - yet another double fault to hand the game set and match to Na Li who becomes the first player since Kim Clijsters (2010 US Open, 2011 Australian Open) to play in successive Grand Slam tournament finals. Kim won her finals. Can Na Li go one better than Melbourne and become China's first major champion? After thrashing Azarenka and handling the wind and Maria you would have to rate her a good show.
Thursday, 2 June 2011
Final Quarters - Rafa's favorite veg is a Swede
2009 was a dark year for young Rafael. He not only did not win the French Open which is his birth right; he had the opportunity denied him before the final by an upstart called Soderling, and so saw a career Grand Slam completed by that ace from outer space who calls Switzerland home.
Since then, sanity has resumed, aside from Novak Djokovic going a little crazy in the winning department of late. Rafa is number one, he is once again the reigning Roland Garros champ, and he won the final last year against the same Robin Soderling, who was recently voted the most atypical Swedish tennis player since Mikael Pernfors. I confess that was me.
Soderling has been a little hit or miss this year but has won titles, and form coming into a Grand Slam he likes was significant. No surprise then that the 5th seed should meet Nadal in the quarters. Pity about the contest because Nadal ensured that there would not be one. Scoreboards can relate something different to what occurs on court, and the match that Soderling played, while not from his top shelf, didn't totally suck. It just could not compete with the intensity of a champion, who as Na Li had done earlier, just took all the power of shot making from his opponent, and turned it magically into something special.
Much of this came on the back of some remarkable (for humans) top spin forehands which crushed the tennis balls and Soderling's spirit. After losing a reasonably tight first set - though Nadal always looked to have in the bag - the Swede was overwhelmed 1-6 in a match defining and maybe tournament defining stanza of tennis.
Showing plenty of Scandinavian courage - which is different from other bravery I know not how - Soderling broke Rafa as he served for the match in set 3, and at 5-5 had multiple break points on Nadal's serve. The champ kept saving them, and with a game point of his own won possibly the point of the match with shots from both players world standard and the final clincher from Nadal a down the line winner etched in the memory.
At 30-30 Soderling again showed pluck as he produced on serve to guarantee a tie break, but unfortunately that only ensured a tie break for Rafa to enjoy.
Nadal in three 6-4 6-1 7-6 - playing even better tennis than Federer had in his quarter final and needing to at times because Soderling presented OK.
Next for Nadal is Murray so we have all top 4 men's seeds through to the semis and none of the 4 top women's seeds to that point.
Since then, sanity has resumed, aside from Novak Djokovic going a little crazy in the winning department of late. Rafa is number one, he is once again the reigning Roland Garros champ, and he won the final last year against the same Robin Soderling, who was recently voted the most atypical Swedish tennis player since Mikael Pernfors. I confess that was me.
Soderling has been a little hit or miss this year but has won titles, and form coming into a Grand Slam he likes was significant. No surprise then that the 5th seed should meet Nadal in the quarters. Pity about the contest because Nadal ensured that there would not be one. Scoreboards can relate something different to what occurs on court, and the match that Soderling played, while not from his top shelf, didn't totally suck. It just could not compete with the intensity of a champion, who as Na Li had done earlier, just took all the power of shot making from his opponent, and turned it magically into something special.
Much of this came on the back of some remarkable (for humans) top spin forehands which crushed the tennis balls and Soderling's spirit. After losing a reasonably tight first set - though Nadal always looked to have in the bag - the Swede was overwhelmed 1-6 in a match defining and maybe tournament defining stanza of tennis.
Showing plenty of Scandinavian courage - which is different from other bravery I know not how - Soderling broke Rafa as he served for the match in set 3, and at 5-5 had multiple break points on Nadal's serve. The champ kept saving them, and with a game point of his own won possibly the point of the match with shots from both players world standard and the final clincher from Nadal a down the line winner etched in the memory.
At 30-30 Soderling again showed pluck as he produced on serve to guarantee a tie break, but unfortunately that only ensured a tie break for Rafa to enjoy.
Nadal in three 6-4 6-1 7-6 - playing even better tennis than Federer had in his quarter final and needing to at times because Soderling presented OK.
Next for Nadal is Murray so we have all top 4 men's seeds through to the semis and none of the 4 top women's seeds to that point.
Final Quarters - Vika can go shopping now
We could talk for days about Nadal and his obsession with Court Philippe Chatrier. However, it should be left for a while as we devote long overdue praise to the efforts in Grand Slam tournaments of China's Na Li. Yes we know that she has made a number of quarter finals, but in the midst of a most inconsistent year, she has been the only female to successfully reach consecutive semi finals in 2011 majors.
Almost defeating Kim Clijsters in the Oz Open final, Na Li could not buy a win for some time - however today she would outclass Victoria Azarenka, and in doing so stamp her claims for the French title. Vika had been the clay court queen this season, and was powerless to stop the Chinese deft placement, uncanny retrieval ability and frustrating (for Azarenka) habit of clearing the net by mere millimeters.
When Vika could not find a way to push past Na Li's defences, the effect on her own game became apparent, with service consistency no longer a strength. At 5-6 in the first set the serve went to pieces and without having to do much at all, Na Li gracefully accepted the gifted game and set 7-5. Although Azarenka seemed to have rallied early in set 2, it was a mirage in the beaming sun. Down a break, the Chinese star lost no more games and faces off against Sharapova in the semis, the Russian having obliterated Germany's Andrea Petkovic who from latest reports may be able to be rebuilt.
Almost defeating Kim Clijsters in the Oz Open final, Na Li could not buy a win for some time - however today she would outclass Victoria Azarenka, and in doing so stamp her claims for the French title. Vika had been the clay court queen this season, and was powerless to stop the Chinese deft placement, uncanny retrieval ability and frustrating (for Azarenka) habit of clearing the net by mere millimeters.
When Vika could not find a way to push past Na Li's defences, the effect on her own game became apparent, with service consistency no longer a strength. At 5-6 in the first set the serve went to pieces and without having to do much at all, Na Li gracefully accepted the gifted game and set 7-5. Although Azarenka seemed to have rallied early in set 2, it was a mirage in the beaming sun. Down a break, the Chinese star lost no more games and faces off against Sharapova in the semis, the Russian having obliterated Germany's Andrea Petkovic who from latest reports may be able to be rebuilt.
Wednesday, 1 June 2011
Roger coasts - Djokovic awaits
Roger Federer loves creating history - most of tennis records have either been set or broken by him. So nothing would give him greater pleasure at this year's French Open than to spoil Novak Djokovic's record sequence of victories and also deny the Serb his second leg of a Grand Slam. Nothing greater except winning the whole event and defeating nemesis Nadal in the decider.
He is well on his way to achieving those goals following yesterday's masterly display against Gael Monfils. Apart from very early when shots were paying dividends for the local lad, his necessary risk taking won Monfils fewer and fewer points, and coincided with a progressively dropped head and belief in his ability to compete with the top three. For Roger it was a case of working that backhand into trim for the one hopefully two challenges ahead. It certainly created headaches aplenty for Monfils. Straight sets appeared a formality until some resistance in the third set from Gael. A tie breaker became necessary but Federer is pretty good with these, and so the fine French resistance ended up with the garbage and that's where the final French male singles hopes also lay rotting after Federer's flurry.
The women's singles quarter final on Centre Court gave us much more intrigue - last year's winner Francesca Schiavone had displayed champion qualities when playing all the right shots at the right time to hold out Jankovic in a tight three set fourth round match. So to see her display the total antithesis when battling the longest name in top 20 women's tennis shocked most of us. Yes, the normally crafty Italian missed every line conceivable against young Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, and the first set lasted a mere 24 minutes and won't rate highly in Roland Garros folklore.
Ana Pav didn't mind, and was even more chuffed as she conservatively moved her way through the beginnings of set 2, noticing that whatever she did right, Francesca had the opposite to deliver just as reliably. Down a set and a service break and with spots of rain falling and dark clouds above (not just figuratively for Schiavone) the tide turned, as if it could possibly be noticed this far inland on the clay surface.
Playing too conservatively, and not prepared for an improved effort from Schiavone, Pavlyuchenkova at 4-1 fell into the Italian trap - Schiavone showed why she could win this thing again with classy sliced back and forehands, occasional brave drop shots, and that amazingly deceptive serve. All these attributes that were missing features of the first set and a half. The match was squared off at a set all 1-6 7-5, but the money was all for Francesca now.
The final set proved one way traffic and Schiavone with experience, guile and skill to win the key points yet again, raced to 5-1. She showed us that she is human after all because she required 3 attempts to serve for the match - some credit to Anastasia in that regard too.
But serve it out she did and it will be French favorite Marion Bartoli in the semis next. Bartoli happened to defeat the other former winner of this title in the draw this year - Svetlana Kuznetsova - in another quarter final.
He is well on his way to achieving those goals following yesterday's masterly display against Gael Monfils. Apart from very early when shots were paying dividends for the local lad, his necessary risk taking won Monfils fewer and fewer points, and coincided with a progressively dropped head and belief in his ability to compete with the top three. For Roger it was a case of working that backhand into trim for the one hopefully two challenges ahead. It certainly created headaches aplenty for Monfils. Straight sets appeared a formality until some resistance in the third set from Gael. A tie breaker became necessary but Federer is pretty good with these, and so the fine French resistance ended up with the garbage and that's where the final French male singles hopes also lay rotting after Federer's flurry.
The women's singles quarter final on Centre Court gave us much more intrigue - last year's winner Francesca Schiavone had displayed champion qualities when playing all the right shots at the right time to hold out Jankovic in a tight three set fourth round match. So to see her display the total antithesis when battling the longest name in top 20 women's tennis shocked most of us. Yes, the normally crafty Italian missed every line conceivable against young Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, and the first set lasted a mere 24 minutes and won't rate highly in Roland Garros folklore.
Ana Pav didn't mind, and was even more chuffed as she conservatively moved her way through the beginnings of set 2, noticing that whatever she did right, Francesca had the opposite to deliver just as reliably. Down a set and a service break and with spots of rain falling and dark clouds above (not just figuratively for Schiavone) the tide turned, as if it could possibly be noticed this far inland on the clay surface.
Playing too conservatively, and not prepared for an improved effort from Schiavone, Pavlyuchenkova at 4-1 fell into the Italian trap - Schiavone showed why she could win this thing again with classy sliced back and forehands, occasional brave drop shots, and that amazingly deceptive serve. All these attributes that were missing features of the first set and a half. The match was squared off at a set all 1-6 7-5, but the money was all for Francesca now.
The final set proved one way traffic and Schiavone with experience, guile and skill to win the key points yet again, raced to 5-1. She showed us that she is human after all because she required 3 attempts to serve for the match - some credit to Anastasia in that regard too.
But serve it out she did and it will be French favorite Marion Bartoli in the semis next. Bartoli happened to defeat the other former winner of this title in the draw this year - Svetlana Kuznetsova - in another quarter final.
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