Nalby is playing a number of exos in South America to test how his surgically repaired hip is doing. So far so good. He beat Gaudio and Massu and he's set to play next week in Buenos Aires.
We need a healthy Nalby. I miss playing "So, which Nalby will we get this week?" It's a fun game and 10 out of 10 times, I'm wrong.
Nalby and Mario have officially withdrawn from the USO. No surprises really, but still bummertastic.
Nalby underwent hip surgery today and is going to be out for at three to four months. That's just in time for the indoor season. In otherwords, perfect timing, Nalby.
And in honor of the Curious Case of David Nalbandian, please let the awesomeness of Gauloises' Nalby Tribute wash over you.
I'm so getting a picture book made of that.
Methinks I have a brilliant idea for Gilly for next year's Monte Carlo talent show...
The Great Boobed Owl survived a second set challenge from Kendrick to get through in straight sets. He's the top seed in Estoril. Scawy.
But the big news was Nalby crashing out to Capdeville, 2 and 2, and now the rumors are flying that he won't be fit for RG. That hip isn't looking good.
Singles - First Round
[1] [WC] G Simon (FRA) d R Kendrick (USA) 63 76(7)
P Capdeville (CHI) d [5] D Nalbandian (ARG) 62 62
[6] M Fish (USA) d T Gabashvili (RUS) 63 64
M Gicquel (FRA) d P Andujar (ESP) 76(6) 64
O Hernandez (ESP) d [WC] R Machado (POR) 75 16 75
Doubles - First Round
[3] F Cermak (CZE) / M Mertinak (SVK) d [Alt] P Capdeville (CHI) / I Navarro (ESP) 63 62
Nalby might need hip surgery. Not sure whether he'd have it before RG or after Wimbly, but they're talking about him missing the Davis Cup tie in July.
A decision will be made in a few days.
Here's the thing. If you were to ask me what my favorite matches were this past week it would actually take some time to even recall what matches I attended. For me, the tournaments aren't really about the tennis that's played in stadium court (though, the Simon/Lu and Rafa/Nalby matches were rad). I can and do watch tennis matches all the time. The real action is around the practice courts and near the player areas.
A rare smile from Nalby on the practice courts.
Old Man Fed holding his back. THAT must be why he lost to Murray.
Shirtless Viktor.
Sam and his Querrey Hand under the watchful eye of Jose Higueras.
The only thing we liked about Vika: Her shoes.
Flavia Stink Eye is the best.
LaMonf playing some footie.
Sveta on her way to practice. She stuck around for a few days after she lost. Good. She needed the work. Unfortunately her practices were not great.
Aww...puppy.
Creepy tennis paparazzi. I think this is after Ana apologized to Victoria for not being able to stop for an autograph. "No, sorry." Adorbs.
For *this* you don't put a towel over your face?
(Pics for Forty Deuce by Love All and C Note)
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Hey look! Nalby lost in the first round of Acapulco to an Austrian qualifier, 16 63 64. So...there's that.
Q] D Koellerer (AUT) d [1] D Nalbandian (ARG) 16 63 64
[2] G Monfils (FRA) d [Q] O Patience (FRA) 76(4) 64
[3] T Robredo (ESP) d [Q] R Ramirez Hidalgo (ESP) 64 36 63
[4] N Almagro (ESP) d [WC] S Gonzalez (MEX) 64 62
[5] J Acasuso (ARG) d B Dabul (ARG) 63 75
[7] M Granollers (ESP) d F Fognini (ITA) 76(3) 75
[8] C Moya (ESP) d P Andujar (ESP) 64 67(2) 62
A Martin (ESP) d M Daniel (BRA) 64 75
K Kim (USA) d J Monaco (ARG) 16 30 ret. (left leg)
Gorgeous pic.
Venus and Flavs won. But the big news?
Lucky Loser Agnes Won A Match!!! Down is up, right is left. This is her first win of the year.
(1) Venus Williams (USA) d. Nuria Llagostera Vives (ESP) 64 46 62
(2) Flavia Pennetta (ITA) d. Mariya Koryttseva (UKR) 63 61
(3) Carla Suárez Navarro (ESP) d. (Q) Viktoriya Kutuzova (UKR) 75 63
(5) Gisela Dulko (ARG) d. (Q) Ioana Raluca Olaru (ROU) 63 62
(8) María José Martínez Sánchez (ESP) d. (Q) Arantxa Parra Santonja (ESP) 62 63
Barbora Zahlavova Strycova (CZE) d. Andreja Klepac (SLO) 26 61 64
Mathilde Johansson (FRA) d. Rossana de los Ríos (PAR) 64 61
Maret Ani (EST) d. Patricia Mayr (AUT) 46 76(1) 64
(Q) Greta Arn (HUN) d. Edina Gallovits (ROU) 62 63
(LL) Agnes Szavay (HUN) d. (WC) Anna Orlik (BLR) 75 75
WOW. We have our first big upset of the tournament.
Randy Lu came from 2-1 down to beat Nalby in a 5 set match that took 3 hours and 55 minutes. This is arguably the biggest win in Lu's career. After all, he did beat Andy Murray in the first round of the Olympics.
But Nalby was just inexplicable in this one. He dropped the first set, went on to win the next two, and then started playing fast and loose to virtually give the match to Lu. All credit to Lu though, he hung in there. I really thought he would go away after he dropped the third set.
Hide the Ding Dongs, Australia. Fat Dave needs some chocolatey lovin'.
Congrats to Nalby, who beat a pregnant Jarkko, 6-3 6-7 6-2. It wasn't a very clean match and Nalby was having fits serving. Let's hope he tightens things up in Melbourne. I'm really rooting for him to do well.
Ew. Put it away.
Jarkko beat a very frustrated but very fired up Nole in straight sets, 64 76. Jarkko was lights out. He just wasn't missing. And the wind was really affecting play and Jarkko just dealt with it better. And before everyone starts piling on Nole, let's not forget that Jarkko almost took out Tsonga last week in Brisbane, losing 06 76 76. The guy is in form. Well, minus that disgusto belly.
Jarkko will face Nalby in the final. He beat Reeshard 64 63 in 81 minutes. He played flawlessly.
In a nutty, tense, bipartisan affair, Nole regrouped and rebounded numerous times to beat Mario 63 64. The Serb and Croatian crowd were loud and rowdy and play was interrupted by rain twice. But the story of the match was Mario's inability to convert 14 of 15 break point chances. It was really remarkable.
Whoever is holding Nole's puppy hostage needs to stop though. He's alternates between melancholy and pissy and it's just so not fun to watch. He doesn't look like he wants to be playing. Everything is a chore that he does begrudgingly. I want Joker back. This Djokovic guy is lame sauce.
Nole will face Jarkko, who benefitted from Jo's withdrawal.
The other semi will see the intriguing matchup between underachievers Nalby and Reeshard. Nalby had a tough fight with Lleyton, but eventually won 76(3) 75, and Reeshie put away Chardy 62 76(4).
I don't know if Reeshie has his gameplan written on his hand but whatever he's doing it's working. He beat #2 seed Gilly in straight sets 64 64.
That's more like it. Nole was en fuego today (even in his dorky hat). He beat PHM easily 61 62 and he looked great.
Nalby also came out strong, beating Llodra 61 63. Still looks fat though. And how about a shout out to Getting Close To Super Mario! He beat Disco 2 and 1. Not too shabby.
[1] [WC] N Djokovic (SRB) d P Mathieu (FRA) 61 62
[3] J Tsonga (FRA) d S Bolelli (ITA) 64 61
[4] D Nalbandian (ARG) d M Llodra (FRA) 61 63
[Q] J Chardy (FRA) d [5] I Andreev (RUS) 64 46 64
M Ancic (CRO) d [7] T Robredo (ESP) 62 61
[WC] L Hewitt (AUS) d J Tipsarevic (SRB) 75 64
J Nieminen (FIN) d [WC] C Guccione (AUS) 76(8) 63
R Gasquet (FRA) vs [2] G Simon (FRA) 63 64
With Sveta's withdrawal (Ai is into the quarters) only three ladies matches were played in the oppressive heat of Sydney. Dina dispatched of the overheating Cone 3 and 4, and Lena fought off Agi 62 57 64. Serena and Boots are playing right now.
From Tom Tebbutt's dispatch from Sydney:
So don't fret Ana fans. He's still around and could work with her in Melbourne. And it sounds like he's the one that couldn't spend time with her. So it's not like she thinks she doesn't need a coach. He just wasn't available like last year.
Nice to hear that Nads is back on court. Pissed to hear that despite the fact that Nole's been out of the Brisbane tourney since Tuesday, he's not arriving in Sydney until Saturday for a tourney that starts Monday. Here's a hint to Team Nole. In order to defeat jet lag and get your body accustomed to conditions, courts, etc., YOU HAVE TO GET THERE EARLY. Idiots.
Well, holy crap. They did it, they actually did it. Against all odds when pretty much everyone was writing them off, they pulled it out. It wasn't pretty and Lady Luck was on their side, but you know what they say, you make your own luck.
Who would have thought that the heroes of the team that would bring home Spain's first Davis Cup won on foreign soil would be FeLo and Nando? The boys better known for the their looks and their black books (and more than occasional HoYay) sealed this one up for Spain. FeLo with his gutsy win over Elf on Friday, both of them for their doubles win yesterday, and Nando, whose win today avoided a deciding tie between FeLo and Nalby. And let's face it, Nalby would have taken that one.
But boy, it wasn't easy. Because of Elf's leg injury, Mancini subbed in Acasuso and Emilio responded by tapping Nando over Farquaad. I was streaming the match from my hotel room and at the airport and I was one tense mothercrapper. Fer came out of the gate firing on all cylinders and clearly overmatched a very nervous Chucho, taking the first set 64. But then the serving yips (one of the few things he has in common with his girlfriend) hit him and the second and third sets were just ugly. Fer and Chucho broke each other back and forth, and just when one seemed to have the momentum they would go on stretches of gutless play. It really was infuriating.
But Nando righted the ship in the fourth, and as I predicted, Chucho just didn't have anything left in the tank. They guy hadn't played a match in weeks and he was clearly not match fit. By the time the fourth set was over, Chucho was on the Argentine bench begging his abs rubbed down for something, and he was barely there in the deciding fifth set. Nando would eventually win 6-3, 6-7 (3), 4-6, 6-3, 6-1.
Yeah, he was pretty excited.
Get ready, Ana. You better start stretching now. Daddy's coming home and he had a pretty big day.
Not enough can be said about the fantastic job Emilio did with this team, especially in contrast with Argentina's Mancini. People will always second guess Argentina's choice of surface (indoor over clay). The supposed infighting within the team, with reports of Fatty being pissed at Elf for going to Shanghai instead of focusing on Davis Cup, allegedly coming to blows with Calleri after their doubles loss, and blowing off the post match presser and getting fined. All this should have been nipped in the bud early. I feel bad for Mancini. He got dealt a shitty hand with the injuries and what not. But a huge part of being a good captain is managing your personnel. I get that Fat Dave wanted this more than anyone, but dude, it's a team competition and you have to be a good teammate. So immature. I hope you enjoy your Twinkies. Just remember, they're food, not feelings.
In contrast, Emilio, much like Patrick McEnroe last year, built a team that put country first. They were true teammates. They liked each other (some might say they *more* than like each other). It was a smart move from him to tell Rafa to stay home. Genius to tap FeLo over Fer in the second rubber against Elf. Nando and Fer clearly took their doubles roles seriously, as they had been entering tournaments all year to hone their teamwork. And then, tapping Nando to face Chucho instead of the slumping Ferrer. So smart.
Unfortunately Emilio announced that he'll be stepping down as Captain after this. So no more hottie McHottie pics of Emilio. Sad face.
This is a hard one for Argentina and their fans to swallow. They came in as such presumptive favorites. But really, their chances pretty much went out the window the minute Elf pulled up lame on Friday. I think the assumption has always been that Spain would taket he doubles tie but Argentina would dominate in singles. So without Elf, it was an uphill battle. I really really really thought they were going to pull it out though. I didn't think Nando had the balls to gut it out against Chooch.
Well, that picture pretty much sums it up, don't you think?
The draw took place this morning. Nalby and Daveed will kick things off in the first match on Friday.
Spain has officially tapped FeLo for the second singles match, and he'll face Crazy Shaven Hot Train in the second singles rubber.
As for doubles, interestingly, Nalby hasn't been tapped for that right now, but that can change depending on Friday's results (he could be subbed in up to an hour before the start of the match).
So no Granola and Spains hopes rest on the beautiful shoulders of FeLo. Yeah, if I were Ana, I'd stay home too.
The Davis Cup Final begins on Friday, which means we should be getting
five days worth of awesome pictures of the boys sweating it up in Mar
del Plata.
Nando, I beg of you, shave that longish ratty tail thing you've got going on in the back. I'm sure Ana likes to twirl it around in her fingers, but still.
Daveed's racquet never fails to crack me up. It looks like something Barbie would have.
Here's hoping the trainer next attempts to tackle Granola's "Clooney circa 1994" Roman Centurian hair.
I'm so swooning over Emilio.
Nice to see Argentina actually hitting the courts, seeing as everyone has all but handed the trophy over to them at this point.
Not that they're all that stressed. Acasuso's drinking herbal tea for god's sake.
Well, at least Blah is out. Phew.
Nalby and Jo took care of business today. Nalby beat Kolya, 61 57 64, and Jo took care of Blah, 64 63.
With Jo's win over Blah, Crazy Train has now clinched the #7 spot to Shanghai. As for the last remaining spot? That will be decided tomorrow, as the winner will take it. But given all the chatter regarding players possibly pulling out of Shanghai, the situation among the alternates is also pretty relevant:
So here are your Sunday Scenarios:
One word: Relief.
(What's Nads doing on the right?)
There were a lot of people doubting whether Ana could pull off the win against an in-form Bepa. Ana struggled mightily yesterday against Agi, while Bepa bageled and breadsticked Mono. A poll over on Tennis Forums showed the vast majority of folks believing Vera would win, probably in 2 sets. And given AI's form over the past few months, you couldn't blame them.
But if there is one weird quirk about Ana, it's that she gets up to play top players. Sure, she may lose to qualifiers and lower ranked players, but if you're in the top 10, a switch gets flicked and she dials in. It's like clockwork. She destroyed Bepa 62 61.
Ana was just solid today. She played just as aggressively as she needed to without taking stupid chances. The forehand was clicking, the backhand was solid, she came to the net when necessary, and her serve was clicking, notably because she was taking something off the first serve and just making sure it went it. Bet the game plan worked.
Poor Bepa. As well as Ana played, Bepa didn't make her work for it. 30+ unforced errors is embarassing in a final. That said, I do think Bepa's sub-par performance is due to Ana. Someone over at TennisWorld was saying that Ana didn't so much win this match as Bepa handed it to her. I always get annoyed when people do this, take away from one player's accomplishments by saying the other player didn't show up. In this case, Bepa's failure to execute is obviously linked to Ana's early form. The way Baby E shot out of the gate, Bepa had to realize that she had to go for more than what she was used to. It's the same mentality as when you play JJ, or Serena, or Venus. The crap you're hitting keeps coming back and with interest, so you go for too much and bang an UFE. For lot of the top players, they're already in your head before you step on the court.
But enough with the negative. Ana won!!!
As for Roger this was a solid tournament for him. He was tested early in the tourney by a few no-names, but when push came to shove (just like Ana) he stepped it up with some quality wins. Today he beat an in-form Nalby, 64 63, in a very high quality match wherein The Mighty Fed reared his head and showed his hometown why he is (to me inarguably) the GOAT. Absolutely beautful tennis.
The Muzzah train just keeps on going, as he successfully defended his St. Pete's title and wins back to back titles. Can he three peat in Paris? That would be impressive and to be honest, I wouldn't rule it out.
And Lena had a pretty epic struggle against Ski Boots, finally winning the third set 76(6). I'm bummed Ski Boots couldn't pull it out, but this type of match is just what Lena needed to tune up for the YECs. But did she know she would be winning a trophy that looked like a vagina? Probably best if they didn't tell her that.
Oh yeah, this fucker won. Whatever.
Fat Dave is finding his form at just the right time. He dispatched of fellow Argentine Crazy Train, 64 64 and finds himself in his second final in three weeks. He'll face Hometown Fed, who beat FeLo 63 62. Finally an easy win for Fed, who has had a couple of tough ones in Basel.
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