Rome, Italy

by ATP Staff

 | 

17.05.2012

© Getty ImagesRichard Gasquet reaches the Rome quarter-finals for a second straight year.

Rafael Nadal brushed aside fellow Spaniard Marcel Granollers 6-1, 6-1 on Thursday in Rome to secure his place in the quarter-finals of the Internazionali BNL d’Italia.

Nadal, a five-time champion at this ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournament, broke Granollers five times and saved all three break points faced on serve for the one hour, 28-minute victory. He became the fourth player to reach 30 match wins this season (30-4), joining Juan Martin del Potro, David Ferrer and Nicolas Almagro.

“I started the match bad with two double faults with my serve, but after the first two or three games, I started to play well – good forehand, control of the point and going to net,” he assessed. “Conditions were difficult and windy but I think I found rhythm and after third game I played very solid.”

The World No. 3 will next face last week’s Madrid finalist and seventh seed Tomas Berdych, who defeated Almagro 7-6(3), 6-3 earlier in the day. “His level is fantastic on clay and hard and grass,” said Nadal. ”He is a complete player and so tomorrow will be a difficult match for me. If I play my best, it will be possible.”

World No. 4 Andy Murray failed to reach the quarter-finals for just the second time this season, falling to 16th-seeded Frenchman Richard Gasquet 6-7(1), 6-3, 6-2. Both players created 17 break point chances; Gasquet capitalised six times and Murray twice.

“It was a big match and I was a little disappointed for losing the first set,” admitted Gasquet. “One hour, 20 minutes is tiring for me and very tough, but then I started to play well and I broke him in the first game of the second set and I started to feel comfortable with my serve.”

Murray had also been tested in his opening match against David Nalbandian on Tuesday, before overcoming the Argentine with a late break in the third set. ”Similar to the other night,” reflected the British No. 1. “Long match and sore back towards the end, but I was expecting that coming to the tournament. I didn’t take a break from training and playing a lot, but the muscles are more tired and fatigued.”

Gasquet, a recent finalist at the clay-court tournament in Estoril (l. to del Potro), recorded two Top 10 victories en route to the Rome semi-finals last year. He upset Roger Federer in the Round of 16 and Berdych in the quarter-finals before losing to Nadal.

He will take a 1-6 FedEx ATP Head 2 Head record into his next match against World No. 6 Ferrer, who posted his circuit-best 20th match win on clay this season by defeating 11th-seeded Frenchman Gilles Simon 6-0, 7-6(5)

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Article source: http://www.atpworldtour.com/News/Tennis/2012/05/20/Rome-Thursday-Nadal-Advances-Murray-Upset.aspx

Rome, Italy

by ATP Staff

 | 

17.05.2012

Top seed Max Mirnyi and Daniel Nestor clawed into the quarter-finals of the Internazionali BNL D’Italia Thursday after a 6-3, 3-6, 10-7 win over Italian duo Gianluca Naso and Filippo Volandri. Mirnyi and Nestor, who recently moved into a tie for the No. 1 ATP Doubles Ranking, will play Mahesh Bhupathi and Rohan Bopanna in the quarter-finals.

The Indian duo late Thursday breezed through its opening round match with Italians Daniele Bracciali ad Andreas Seppi 6-2, 6-1. Earlier in the day Seppi had toiled for more than three hours to beat Richard Gasquet to reach the singles quarter-finals.

‘Polish Power’ Mariusz Fyrstenberg and Marcin Matkowski, who last week won the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 title in Madrid, also needed three sets Thursday to reach the quarter-finals. The Poles upset former Wimbledon champions Jurgen Melzer and Philipp Petzschner 6-3, 3-6, 10-6 after firing six aces and cropping just four points on first serve.

Article source: http://www.atpworldtour.com/News/Tennis/2012/05/20/Rome-Thursday-Doubles-Mirnyi-Nestor-Advance.aspx

Rome, Italy

by ATP Staff

 | 

17.05.2012

© AFP/Getty ImagesRoger Federer notches his 30th match win of 2012.

Roger Federer finished strong to defeat Juan Carlos Ferrero 6-2, 5-7, 6-1 in a meeting of former World No. 1 players on Thursday night at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia.

Ferrero had extended the match after breaking for a 6-5 lead in the second set, but the Swiss made a quick recovery in the third. He rolled out to a 3-0 lead and added an insurance break in the sixth game.

The 30-year-old Swiss improves to a 30-3 season record, with wins in 23 of his past 24 matches. He has won a circuit-best four titles during that span, including the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 title last week in Madrid.

Federer is chasing his first title in Rome after runner-up finishes in 2003 and ’06. He next confronts Italian No. 1 Andreas Seppi, who saved six match points to edge Swiss Stanislas Wawrinka.

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Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga defeated Juan Martin del Potro for the second time in six career meetings, recovering an early service break to dismiss the Argentine 6-4, 6-1. Del Potro had won his first 10 matches on clay this season (12-2), highlighted by the Estoril Open title, before losing to Tomas Berdych in the Madrid semi-finals last week.

World No. 5 Tsonga is through to his second clay-court ATP World Tour Masters 1000 quarter-final this spring; he reached this stage in Monte-Carlo, where he lost to countryman Gilles Simon in straight sets.

He next meets top seed and defending champion Novak Djokovic, whom he leads 5-4 in the FedEx ATP Head 2 Head series despite losing three of their past four meetings. This will be their first encounter on clay.

Article source: http://www.atpworldtour.com/News/Tennis/2012/05/20/Rome-Thursday-Tsonga-Tops-Delpo-Federer-Faces-Ferrero.aspx

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After winning their first four meetings in straight sets, Williams lost to Stosur in the quarterfinals of Charleston last month; but the former No.1 got back on the horse in Rome with another straight set win, surviving a bizarre first set where there were only three holds in 10 service games, then rallying from 3-1 down in the second set to close the No.5 seed out in an hour and 32 minutes.

Williams also had a Top 5 win over Petra Kvitova in Miami, her very first tournament back after a seven-month lay-off from the tour due to illness.

“Every match is a lesson and a challenge for me. I think that all wins are great wins nowadays,” Williams said. “I’ve had to get used to a lot of things and I’m still figuring out a lot. I’m making adjustments at the beginning of every week.

“All I can do is be positive when I’m down.”

Serena Williams, the No.9 seed this week, also moved through, cruising to a 63 61 victory over Anabel Medina Garrigues and extending her clay court winning streak to 16 matches in a row, tying Dinara Safina (in 2009) and Sara Errani (this year) for longest clay court winning streak since Justine Henin won 27 matches in a row on the dirt between the 2005 and 2006 seasons.

“I’ve played here for a long time and I’ve had a lot of memorable matches on Pietrangeli court,” Williams said. “Today reminded me of when I was young.”

Williams was asked about her sister’s win over Stosur. “Venus has been through so much, but she’s still so great,” she said. “I think of her whenever I’m down or tired. I’ve never been so motivated to continue on my journey.”

Both Williams sisters are former champions in Rome, Venus Williams in 1999 and Serena Williams in 2002. They are on opposite halves of the draw.

Elsewhere, the two best lefties in the game set up a quarterfinal clash, as No.4 seed Petra Kvitova cruised through the first and third sets for a 62 57 62 victory over Sorana Cirstea, and No.12 seed Angelique Kerber won nine of the last 10 games of the match to beat fellow German Julia Goerges, 64 61.

“Sorana made many mistakes and her shots were flying in the first set, but then she started to be more precise in the second set,” Kvitova said. “I tried to come back in the second set, I was down 5-1 and got to 5-all, but she won it. But I started waiting for the right shots again in the third. I’m happy to win today.”

Kvitova beat Kerber in their only previous meeting, just last month, a 64 64 win in the quarterfinals of Stuttgart. It was Kvitova’s 15th win in her last 16 quarterfinal matches on the WTA, her only loss in that stretch coming in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open last year (to Vera Zvonareva).

Kerber has won five of her last nine matches against Top 10 players, and if she beats Kvitova on Friday she will not only improve that to six of 10, she will join the Top 10 herself, passing current No.10 Zvonareva – she would become the seventh German ever to rank Top 10 (after Sylvia Hanika, Bettina Bunge, Claudia Kohde-Kilsch, Steffi Graf, Anke Huber and Andrea Petkovic).

Article source: http://www.wtatennis.com/news/20120517/venus-downs-stosur-kerber-eyes-top-10_2256076_2775840

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Rome, Italy

by ATP Staff

 | 

15.05.2012

© Getty ImagesNovak Djokovic was a straight-sets winner over Bernard Tomic on Tuesday evening.

World No. 1 Novak Djokovic opened his title defence at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia on Tuesday evening with a 6-3, 6-3 win over Australia’s Bernard Tomic. The Serbian broke serve four times and won 71 per cent of points behind his first serve to claim victory in 69 minutes. He also defeated Tomic in the 2011 Wimbledon quarter-finals.

“It was a good first match,” said Djokovic. “I played against player with talent, you don’t know what to expect from him, he’s always changing his game. I’m happy about the game and the conditions, also another big crowd tonight.”

The 24-year-old Djokovic is looking to bounce back from the quarter-final defeat he suffered last week at the hands of countryman Janko Tipsarevic in Madrid. He is chasing his third tour-level title of the season, following triumphs at the Australian Open (d. Nadal) and Miami (d. Murray). Also a runner-up in Monte-Carlo (l. to Nadal), he has a 27-4 match record on the season.

Twelve months ago Djokovic triumphed at the Foro Italico by dethroning five-time former champion Rafael Nadal. He also won this ATP World Tour Masters 1000 clay-court tournament in 2008 (d. Wawrinka) and reached the final in 2009 (l. to Nadal).

In an all-Spanish second-round contest, sixth seed David Ferrer defeated Fernando Verdasco 6-3, 7-6(3). Ferrer, who also defeated Verdasco in the 2010 Rome semi-finals and this year’s Acapulco final, converted three of eight break points to prevail in just under two hours.

The 30-year-old Ferrer reached the final at the Foro Italico two years ago, finishing runner-up to Nadal. He has already won two ATP World Tour clay-court titles this year, in Buenos Aires (d. Almagro) and Acapulco (d. Verdasco), and reached the final in Barcelona (l. to Nadal).

Former champion Juan Carlos Ferrero recorded back-to-back wins for the first time since reaching the Valencia quarter-finals in November by defeating 13th-seeded Frenchman Gael Monfils 7-5, 6-3 in one hour and 42 minutes. The Spaniard, who lifted the Rome trophy in 2001 (d. Kuerten), capitalised on five of his 11 break point chances to record his third win in three meetings with Monfils.

French No. 16 seed Richard Gasquet cruised into the second round with a 6-1, 7-6(6) victory over Austria’s Jurgen Melzer. Recent Estoril finalist Gasquet broke serve three times and won 76 per cent of points behind his first serve to claim victory in one hour and 40 minutes.

Juan Monaco, the No. 14 seed from Argentina, needed 88 minutes to dismiss Romanian qualifier Adrian Ungur 6-2, 6-2 in the first round. Elsewhere, a pair of qualifiers advanced to the second round as Guillermo Garcia-Lopez defeated fellow Spaniard Pablo Andujar 6-4, 6-1 and American Sam Querrey edged Jarkko Nieminen of Finland 7-6(4), 5-7, 6-4.

Marcel Granollers won a main draw at the Foro Italico for the first time as he ousted 15th seed and Spanish countryman Feliciano Lopez 6-4, 6-4. Granollers won 44 per cent of his return points to break serve three times and wrap up victory in one hour and 45 minutes.

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Article source: http://www.atpworldtour.com/News/Tennis/2012/05/20/Rome-Tuesday-Ferrer-Opens-Campaign.aspx

Rome, Italy

by Greg Sharko

 | 

16.05.2012

© Getty ImagesAn chalk artist sketches Roger Federer on a pavement at the Foro Italico.

WEDNESDAY PREVIEW – TWO OF BIG THREE, FEDERER NADAL OPEN ROME CAMPAIGNS

• Two of the all-time greats – one a 16-time Grand Slam champion and the other a 10-time Grand Slam title winner, and both former No. 1s – will play their opening matches at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia on Wednesday. It’s first time since 1971 that two players with at least 10 Grand Slam titles are competing in Rome in the same year. In ’71, Aussies Roy Emerson (12) and Rod Laver (11) led the way.

• First up on Centrale is Spain’s Marcel Granollers against Italian wild card Fabio Fognini. It has been almost a year since Fognini reached his first Grand Slam quarter-final at Roland Garros, and he has had a struggle since then, winning back-to-back matches at only two of 21 ATP World Tour events since (reaching the semi-finals of Umag last summer and the final of Bucharest last month). Granollers and Fognini have met twice before, both on clay, and the series is tied, 1-1 (Fognini won their last meeting in Brazil two years ago).

• Next up is Roger Federer against Argentina’s Carlos Berlocq in a first-time meeting. Federer is coming off a dream week in Madrid, where he not only won his 20th ATP Masters 1000 title (tying Rafael Nadal for the record) but also returned to the No. 2 ranking (switching spots with Nadal). Last week Federer defeated three Top 10s en route to the title – No. 6 David Ferrer (QF), No. 8 Janko Tipsarevic (SF) and No. 7 Tomas Berdych (F).  This is one of only three current ATP Masters 1000 events he has never won (Monte Carlo, Shanghai others). His best results in 11 previous attempts are  two finals (2003 and ‘06). Berlocq, who is making his second straight showing in Rome, is 0-7 against Top 10 players. In February he advanced to his first ATP World Tour final in Vina del Mar.

• At night, World No. 3 Rafael Nadal takes on Germany’s Florian Mayer for the second time. Though Nadal is coming off a third round loss in Madrid, he looks to rebound back in Rome, where he has won the title in five of his seven previous appearances (31-2 mark). He is 11-1 on clay this season with back-to-back titles in Monte Carlo for the eighth straight year and in Barcelona for the seventh time.  Mayer had a career year last year, reaching the quarter-finals or better 11 times and breaking into the Top 20, but he is only 5-11 this year and comes in ranked No. 28. However, he had a solid first round win over Milos Raonic, and did beat Nadal in their only previous meeting in Shanghai last year.

• On SuperTennis Arena, No. 10 seed/No. 9 ranked Juan Martin del Potro brings a 3-0 mark against Russian Mikhail Youzhny followed by No. 16 seed Richard Gasquet of France takes a 2-0 record against Italian wild card Paolo Lorenzi. In the evening match, Swiss No. 2 Stanislas Wawrinka and No. 8 Janko Tipsarevic of Serbia meet for the first time.

• On Pietrangeli, No. 7 and Madrid finalist Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic takes a 2-0 mark against Lukasz Kubot of Poland and No. 9 seed John Isner looks for his second win in as many meetings against top Italian Andreas Seppi. There are also two matches on Court 1, with No.14 seed Juan Monaco 1-3 vs. Radek Stepanek and No. 12 Nicolas Almagro vs. qualifier Sam Querrey (tied 2-2).  On Court 1, No. 11 Gilles Simon of France meets Spanish qualifier Guillermo Garcia-Lopez.

WEDNESDAY SECOND ROUND FEDEX ATP HEAD 2 HEADS – In Order of Play by Court

Centrale

Marcel Granollers (ESP) vs (WC) Fabio Fognini (ITA) Tied 1-1
09 Acapulco (Mexico) Clay R32 Marcel Granollers 7-6(3) 7-5
10 Costa do Sauipe (Brazil) Clay R16 Fabio Fognini 0-6 6-1 7-6(1)
Other meetings:
07 Barletta CH (Italy) Clay R32 Fabio Fognini 6-4 6-4
07 San Remo CH (Italy) Clay R16 Fabio Fognini 6-0 6-2

GRANOLLERS FASTFACTS

Tournament Highlights:
• The 26-year-old Spaniard won his first main draw match in Rome in three appearances on Tuesday, defeating No. 15 seed and countryman Feliciano Lopez 64 64
• In his previous visits, lost in the first round in 2009 (l. to Soderling) and following year (l. to Berdych)

2012 Highlights:
YTD W-L: 6-9 (4-4 on clay)
YTD Tie-break: 1-2
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 3 (2 on clay)
Date of Birth: April 12, 1986
South African Airways ATP Ranking: 26 (Career-high No. 23 on February 20)

2012 in Review:
• The Barcelona native enters with a 6-9 match record on the season (4-4 on clay) and he’s looking to win back-to-back matches for the first time on the ATP World Tour
• He is playing in his 10th ATP World Tour tournament and his best result was a third round at Indian Wells (after bye, d. Haas, l. to Nadal) in March
• Also reached 2nd Rd. four times, including Australian Open, Acapulco and Madrid last week (d. Berlocq, l. to No. 13 Almagro)…Two weeks ago played in Tunis Challenger and reached SFs

FOGNINI FASTFACTS

Tournament Highlights:
• The 24-year-old Italian is making his fourth straight tournament visit (2-4 mark) and on Monday opened with a 62 62 win over Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis…His previous win came three years ago (d. Volandri, l. to No. 7 Simon)…One of three Italians (Lorenzi, Seppi) to reach the second round
• Last year lost in the first round to Stanislas Wawrinka in three sets

2012 Highlights:
F: Bucharest (l Simon)
YTD W-L: 7-8 (6-5 on clay)
YTD Tie-break W-L: 3-1
YTD Titles: 0/Career Titles: 0
Date of Birth: May 24, 1987
South African Airways ATP Ranking: 45 (Career-high No. 32 on June 20, 2011)

• The No. 2 Italian (behind No. 30 Seppi) enters with a 7-8 match record on the season (6-5 on clay) and last week lost in the first round to Gilles Simon in three sets in a rematch of the Apr. 29 Bucharest final
• In Bucharest, posted wins over Joao Souza 75 76(5), No. 5 seed Marcos Baghdatis 75 76(4), countryman/No. 6 seed  Seppi 64 67(4) 64 in three hours, three minutes (longest match of week) and qualifier Attila Balazs 63 61 before falling in the final to Simon
• Was sidelined for two months (in February-March) with a foot injury before returning April 2 at Barletta Challenger (2R)…This is his seventh straight tournament week (sixth ATP World Tour event)
 
(3) Roger Federer (SUI) vs Carlos Berlocq (ARG)  First Meeting

FEDERER FASTFACTS

Tournament Highlights:
• The 30-year-old Swiss native comes in with a  20-11 career mark in Rome and last year defeated No. 18 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in opening match (after bye) before losing in third round to No. 16 Richard Gasquet in a third set tie-break
• Has appeared in the semi-finals or better three times in 11 previous outings…He reached the final in 2003 (l. to Mantilla) and 2006 (l. to Nadal in fifth set TB), his best results, and semi-finals in 2009 (l. to Djokovic)…He also was a quarter-finalist in 2008 (l. to Stepanek)
• Two years ago he suffered his first opening round loss since 2002 to Ernests Gulbis in three sets
• He made his debut in 2000 and lost to Andrei Medvedev in the first round…Also lost in the first round two years later to Italian Andrea Gaudenzi

2012 Highlights:
W (4): Rotterdam (d del Potro); Dubai (d Murray); ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Indian Wells (d Isner); ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Madrid (d Berdych); SF (2): Doha (W/O vs Tsonga); Australian Open (l Nadal)
YTD W-L: 28-3 (5-1 on clay)
YTD Tie-break: 9-4
YTD Titles: 4/Career Titles: 74 (10 on clay)
Date of Birth: August 8, 1981
South African Airways ATP Ranking: 2 (Career-high No. 1 on Feb. 2, 2004)

2012 in Review: 
• The Swiss superstar is coming off his ATP World Tour-best fourth title of the season last Sunday in Madrid (d. Berdych) and 20th career ATP World Tour Masters 1000 crown…He is also the first three-time winner in Madrid…Afterwards went from No. 3 to No. 2 for first time since week of March 14, 2011
• He enters with a 28-3 record (5-1 on clay) this season…Prior to Madrid, his last outing was a third round three-set loss to Andy Roddick in  Miami on Mar. 26…The loss broke a 16-match winning streak
• His only previous clay match was a four-set Davis Cup loss to American John Isner on Feb. 10
• Has captured at least one ATP World Tour title for 12 straight years, best among active players (Roddick has 11 but yet to win this year) and his 74 career titles is No. 4 in the Open Era
• He won consecutive ATP World Tour titles in Rotterdam (d. del Potro) on Feb. 19, Dubai (d. Murray) on Mar. 3 and his 19th career ATP Masters 1000 in Indian Wells on Mar. 18 (d. No. 9 del Potro, No. 2 Nadal, No. 11 Isner in final three rounds without dropping a set)
• During 16-match winning streak, only dropped three sets, to Nikolay Davydenko in semi-finals of Rotterdam and to Milos Raonic (3R) and Thomaz Bellucci (4R) in Indian Wells
• Has won 45 of past 48 matches and seven of 10 tournament titles since falling in five sets in last year’s US Open semi-finals (l. to Djokovic)
• With Madrid title, he surpassed $70 million in career prize money (most in pro tennis)

BERLOCQ FASTFACTS

Tournament Highlights:
• The 29-year-old Argentine earned his first main draw win on Monday, defeating Slovenian qualifier Blaz Kavcic 61 63
• Last year in debut came in as a lucky loser and lost in opening round (after bye) to Marin Cilic 64 63

2012 Highlights:
F: Vina del Mar (l Monaco); QF: Sao Paulo (l Almagro); Buenos Aires (l Nalbandian); Acapulco (l Giraldo); Houston (l Lopez)
YTD W-L: 16-11 (13-7 on clay)
YTD Tie-break: 3-3
YTD Titles: 0/Career Titles: 0
Date of Birth: February 3, 1983
South African Airways ATP Ranking: 38 (Career-high No. 37 on March 19)

2012 in Review:
• The veteran Argentine is playing in his 12th tournament of the year and his best result is a first career  ATP World Tour final in Vina del Mar (l. to countryman Monaco) in February
• Also a QF in four other clay tournaments, Sao Paulo, Buenos Aires, Acapulco and Houston…He retired with leg injury vs. Lopez in Houston and following week retired again in Monte Carlo (vs. Starace)…Also reached 2nd Rd. three times (incl. Australian Open); fell 1st Rd. three times
• Comes in with a 16-11 match record on the season (13-7 on clay) and already has surpassed his wins total of last year (14-23 record)
• Looking for his first career Top 10 win (0-7) and has never won a set (0-17)…Last Top 10 opponent he faced was No. 1 Djokovic in second round of US Open last year (lost 60 60 62)
 
Florian Mayer (GER) vs (2) Rafael Nadal (ESP) Mayer Leads 1-0
11 ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Shanghai Hard R16 Florian Mayer 7-6(5)   6-3
Other meeting:
02 Spain F20 (Gran Canaria) Carpet F Rafael Nadal 7-6(3)  6-4

MAYER FASTFACTS

Tournament Highlights:
• The 28-year-old German improved his career mark to 4-3 on Sunday, defeating top Canadian Milos Raonic 76(5) 64
• Last year he reached the quarter-finals (d. No. 8 Melzer-ret., l. to No. 4 Murray)  and his previous Rome visit was in 2005 (l. to Horna in 1R)…Also lost in 1R in ’04 (l. to Henman)

2012 Highlights:
YTD W-L: 5-11 (2-7 on clay)
YTD Tie-break: 2-3
YTD Titles: 0/Career Titles: 1 (1 on clay)
Date of Birth: October 5, 1983
South African Airways ATP Ranking: 28 (Career-high No. 18 on June 6, 2011)

2012 in Review:
• The German No. 2 (behind No. 22 Kohlschreiber) is playing in his 10th ATP World Tour tournament of the season with his best result thus far a 4th Rd. in Miami (l. to No. 6 Tsonga)…Also reached 2R five times (fell 1R three times); withdrew from Australian Open w/hip strain and was bothered early in year
• Has a 5-11 match record on the season (2-7 on clay) and wit first round win on Sunday, broke a four-match opening round losing streak…His last win came over No. 10 John Isner in third round of Miami
• Looking for his 10th career Top 10 victory (9-29 career record)
 
NADAL FASTFACTS

Tournament Highlights:
• The tournament’s only five-time champion (2005-07, ’09-10) is coming off a runner-up showing last year (l. to Djokovic 64 64) and has a 31-2 career record
• Two years ago came in No. 3 and defeated countryman David Ferrer 75 62 in the final…In 2009, he defeated No. 3 Novak Djokovic in the final to improve to 7-0 against Top 10 opponents… He became the first player to win four titles in tournament history…Thomas Muster (1990, ’95-96), Martin Mulligan (1963, ’65, ’67) and Jaroslav Drobny (1950-52) are the only three-time winners
• His first loss here came in the opening round (after a bye) in 2008 to Juan Carlos Ferrero 75 61
• In 2007, he defeated Fernando Gonzalez 62 62 in the title match and in 2006, prevailed in a fifth set tie-break over No. 1 Federer (saved two match points in 5:05 marathon)…In 2005, defeated Argentine Guillermo Coria in a fifth set tie-break (in five hours, 14 minutes) for his first Rome title

2012 Highlights:
W: ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Monte Carlo (d Djokovic); Barcelona (d Ferrer); F: Australian Open (l Djokovic); SF: Doha (l Monfils); ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Indian Wells (l Federer); ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Miami (W/O vs Murray)
YTD W-L: 28-4 (11-1 on clay)
YTD Tie-break: 4-3
YTD Titles: 2
Career Titles: 48 (34 on clay)
Date of Birth: June 3, 1986
South African Airways ATP Ranking: 3 (Career-high No. 1 on August 18, 2008)

2012 in Review: 
• The 25-year-old Mallorcan enters with a 28-4 match record (11-1 on clay) and two ATP World Tour clay titles…He is ranked No. 3 for the first time since week of May 10, 2010…Last week he lost in the third round to countryman Fernando Verdasco in Madrid (after holding a 5-2, double break lead in third set)…The loss ended a 22-match clay winning streak since losing to Djokovic in last year’s Rome final
• Prior to last week, he captured his seventh title in Barcelona on Apr. 29 (d. Ferrer) and the previous week he captured his eighth straight ATP Masters 1000 Monte Carlo crown (d. Djokovic)
• Has a 48-21 career record in ATP World Tour finals (34-4 on clay)
• Opened the season by reaching semi-finals in Doha (l. to  Monfils) and followed with runner-up at the Australian Open, falling to Djokovic 57 64 62 67 75 in a record 5:53 marathon…Has reached the last four Grand Slam finals (1-3 mark) going back to Roland Garros (10-5 lifetime in finals)
• Prior to Monte Carlo, his last match was Mar. 28 in Miami where he defeated No. 6 Tsonga in the quarter-finals before withdrawing from SF (vs. Murray) due to left knee injury…It was only second walkover he gave in 777 matches (’04 Estoril)
• In Indian Wells, he reached the singles semi-finals (l. to Federer) and captured his eighth career doubles title (w/M. Lopez) in Indian Wells…Did not drop a set in five matches during doubles play

CLAY COURT MASTER – Nadal has the best career match record on clay in the Open Era with a 242-19 mark (.931) and he’s 34-4 in clay finals. Here’s a year-by-year look at Nadal’s clay court supremacy since 2005, compiling a 215-9 match record (.963) and 33-4 mark in clay court finals on the ATP World Tour:
           
 W-L    Clay Finals
2012 – 11-1    2-0    2008 – 24-1 4-0
2011 – 28-2   3-2 (l. to Djokovic twice) 2007 – 31-1 5-1 (l. to Federer)
2010 -  22-0   4-0    2006 – 26-0 4-0 
2009 -  23-2         3-1 (l. to Federer)  2005 – 50-2 8-0

SuperTennis Arena

(10) Juan Martin del Potro (ARG) vs Mikhail Youzhny (RUS) Del Potro Leads 3-0
07 ATP Masters 1000 Miami (USA) Hard R32 Juan Martin Del Potro 7-6(2) 6-4
11 ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Madrid Clay R64 Juan Martin Del Potro 6-1  3-6 6-3
12 ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Madrid Clay R32 Juan Martin Del Potro 6-4 7-6(1)

Del Potro FastFacts:
2012 Highlights:
W: Marseille (d Llodra); Estoril (d Gasquet); F: Rotterdam (l Federer); SF: Dubai (l Federer); ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Madrid (l Berdych); QF: Sydney (l Baghdatis); Australian Open (l Federer); ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Indian Wells (l Federer)
YTD W-L: 32-7 (11-1 on clay)
YTD Tie-break: 9-9
YTD Titles: 2/Career Titles: 11 (4 on clay)
Date of Birth: September 23, 1988
South African Airways ATP Ranking: 9 (Career-high No. 4 on January 4, 2010)

*Rome History: 3-2 record Best Result: Quarter-finals (2009, l. to No. 3 Djokovic)

Youzhny FastFacts:
2012 Highlights:
W: Zagreb (d Lacko); QF: Doha (l Nadal); Dubai (l Federer); Munich (l Cilic)
YTD W-L: 14-6 (4-3 on clay)
YTD Tie-break: 6-5
YTD Titles: 1
Career Titles: 8 (2 on clay)
Date of Birth: June 25, 1982
South African Airways ATP Ranking: 34 (Career-high No. 8 on January 28, 2008)

*Rome History: 5-8 record Best Result: Third Round (2007, l. to No. 2 Nadal)

(16) Richard Gasquet (FRA) vs (WC) Paolo Lorenzi (ITA) Gasquet Leads 2-0
11 ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Miami Hard R64 Richard Gasquet 6-2 6-3
12 Estoril (Portugal) Clay R16 Richard Gasquet 6-1 6-1

Gasquet FastFacts:
2012 Highlights:
F: Estoril (l Del Potro); QF: Sydney (l Istomin); Montpellier (l Kohlschreiber); Rotterdam (l Davydenko); Marseille (l Del Potro)
YTD W-L: 17-10 (6-2 on clay)
YTD Tie-break: 4-3
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 6 (2 on clay)
Date of Birth: June 18, 1986
South African Airways ATP Ranking: 22 (Career-high No. 7 on July 9, 2007

*Rome History: 9-5 record Best Result: Semi-finals (2011, l. to No. 1 Nadal)

Lorenzi FastFacts:
2012 Highlights:
YTD W-L: 3-6 (3-4 on clay)
YTD Tie-break: 1-2
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 0
Date of Birth: December 15, 1981
South African Airways ATP Ranking: 96 (Career-high No. 78 on May 7) 

*Rome History: 3-2 record Best result: Second Round (2010, l. to No. 7 Soderling, 2011, l. to No. 1 Nadal, ‘12)

Stanislas Wawrinka (SUI) vs (8) Janko Tipsarevic (SRB)   First Meeting

Wawrinka FastFacts:
2012 Highlights:
SF: Buenos Aires (l Almagro); Acapulco (l Verdasco); Estoril (l Del Potro); QF: Chennai (l Soeda); ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Monte Carlo (l Nadal)
YTD W-L: 18-9 (14-6 on clay)
YTD Tie-break: 3-3
YTD Titles: 0/Career Titles: 3 (2 on clay)
Date of Birth: March 28, 1985
South African Airways ATP Ranking: 20 (Career-high No. 9 on June 9, 2008)

*Rome History: 14-7 record Best Result: Runner-up (2008, l. to No. 3 Djokovic in three sets)
 
Tipsarevic FastFacts:
2012 Highlights:
F: Chennai (l Raonic); SF: Marseille (l Llodra); ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Madrid (l Federer); QF: Dubai (l Djokovic); ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Miami (l Murray); Barcelona (l Nadal)
YTD W-L: 22-10 (7-4 on clay)
YTD Tie-break: 8-9
YTD Titles: 0
Career Titles: 2 (0 on clay)
Date of Birth: June 22, 1984
South African Airways ATP Ranking: 8 (on May 7)

*Rome History: 1-3 record Best Result: Second Round (2009, l. to No. 13 Gonzalez)
 
Pietrangeli Court

(7) Tomas Berdych (CZE) vs Lukasz Kubot (POL) Berdych Leads 2-0
06 Mumbai (India) Hard R32 Tomas Berdych 6-2 6-2
11 ATP Masters 1000 Indian Wells Hard R64 Tomas Berdych 6-4 6-1

Berdych FastFacts:
2012 Highlights:
W: Montpellier (d Monfils); F: ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Madrid (l Federer); SF: Rotterdam (l Del Potro); ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Monte Carlo (l Djokovic); QF: Australian Open (l Nadal); Dubai (l Murray)
YTD W-L: 26-7 (9-2 on clay)
YTD Tie-break: 13-3
YTD Titles: 1/Career Titles: 7 (2 on clay)
Date of Birth: September 17, 1985
South African Airways ATP Ranking: 7 (Career-high No. 6 on October 18, 2010)

*Rome History: 8-6 record Best Result: Quarter-finals (2007, l. to Volandri;  2011, l. to Gasquet)

Kubot FastFacts:
2012 Highlights:
QF: Memphis (l Becker); Bucharest (l Simon)
YTD W-L: 11-12 (4-4 on clay)
YTD Tie-break: 4-5
YTD Titles: 0/Career Titles: 0
Date of Birth: May 16, 1982
South African Airways ATP Ranking: 54 (Career-high No. 41 on April 12, 2010)

*Rome History: 2-2 record Best Result: Second Round (2011-12)

(9) John Isner (USA) vs Andreas Seppi (ITA)  Isner Leads 1-0
10 Australian Open (Australia) Hard R128 John Isner 6-3 6-3 3-6 5-7 6-4

Isner FastFacts:
2012 Highlights:
F: ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Indian Wells (l Federer); Houston (l Monaco); SF: Delray Beach (l Anderson); QF: Memphis (l Melzer)
YTD W-L: 21-8 (8-2 on clay)
YTD Tie-break: 16-7
YTD Titles: 0/Career Titles: 3 (0 on clay)
Date of Birth: April 26, 1985
South African Airways ATP Ranking: 10 (Career-high No.  9 on April 16)
*Rome History: 2-2 record Best Result: Second Round (2010, ‘12)

Seppi FastFacts:
2012 Highlights:
W: Belgrade (d Paire); QF: Doha (l Federer); Rotterdam (l Berdych); Bucharest (l Fognini)
YTD W-L: 15-13 (9-3 on clay)
YTD Tie-break: 5-2
YTD Titles: 1/Career Titles: 2 (1 on clay)
Date of Birth: February 21, 1984
South African Airways ATP Ranking: 30 (Career-high No. 27 on July 27, 2008)
*Rome History: 5-7 record Best Result: Second Round (2005, ’08-09-10, ‘12)

Court 1

Radek Stepanek (CZE) vs (14) Juan Monaco (ARG) Stepanek Leads 3-1
05 Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam) Carpet QF Radek Stepanek 6-3 6-4
08 ATP Masters Series Madrid (Spain) Hard R64 Radek Stepanek 6-1 6-1
09 CZE vs. ARG WG QF (Czech Republic)Hard RR Radek Stepanek 7-6(5)6-3 6-2
11 US Open (U.S.A.) Hard R64 Juan Monaco 6-4 6-1 2-0 ret

(Q) Sam Querrey (USA) vs (12) Nicolas Almagro (ESP) Tied 2-2
09 Auckland (New Zealand) Hard QF Sam Querrey 6-3 6-2
10 US Open (U.S.A.) Hard R32 Sam Querrey 6-3 6-4 6-4
11 ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Rome Clay R32 Nicolas Almagro 6-3 7-6(4)
12 ATP Masters 1000 Indian Wells  Hard R64 Nicolas Almagro 5-7 6-4 6-4

Court 4

(Q) Guillermo Garcia-Lopez (ESP) vs (11) Gilles Simon (FRA) Simon Leads 3-0
07 Bucharest (Romania) Clay R32 Gilles Simon 7-6(3) 6-4
11 US Open (U.S.A.) Hard R64 Gilles Simon 6-4 6-7(4) 7-5 6-3
12 ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Madrid Clay R32 Gilles Simon 6-4 6-3

Article source: http://www.atpworldtour.com/News/Tennis/2012/05/20/Rome-Wednesday-Briefing.aspx

Rome, Italy

by ATP Staff

 | 

16.05.2012

© Getty ImagesMike Bryan cleans up at the net, as Bob (background) looks on.

Second seeds and two-time former champions Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan bounced back from last week’s opening-round loss at the Mutua Madrid Open with a 6-3, 6-2 victory Wednesday over Santiago Gonzalez and Christopher Kas at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia in Rome.

The American twins dropped just 10 points on their serves and converted four of 10 break point opportunities for victory in just 54 minutes on Court 1. They are now 24-9 lifetime at the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournament.

Bob Bryan admitted to ATPWorldTour.com, “We were pretty eager to get out there as it was a tough loss last week [to Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi and Jean-Julien Rojer].

“We worked hard the past five days and played extremely well. We capitalised on our break points and served well. It was a good match.”

In the quarter-finals, they will next meet either fifth seeds Leander Paes and Radek Stepanek or Lukasz Kubot and Janko Tipsarevic. Paes and Stepanek beat the Bryans in the Australian Open final in January.

Fourth seeds Robert Lindstedt and Horia Tecau also advanced, saving all four break points faced on serve in a 6-4, 6-3 win over Juan Sebastian Cabal and Eduardo Schwank.

“It was a very tough match,” Lindstedt said. “They are a really good team, especially on clay. I thought I started pretty good, but I went down a bit and Horia picked it up. The second set, Horia was unbelievable and he won the match for us.”

The pair has reached the final in two of their past three clay-court tournaments, including a runner-up effort last week in Madrid. “There is always a few things you have to work on,” said the Swede. “I’m never happy with the way I play, but we started with a new coach, Ashley Fisher, in Bucharest. We won the title there and got to the Madrid final last week. We are winning a lot of matches, so we are happy with that, but we know we have to improve to win our first Grand Slam.”

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Article source: http://www.atpworldtour.com/News/Tennis/2012/05/20/Rome-Wednesday-Doubles-Bryans-Bounce-Back.aspx

Watch live from Rome all week on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!

The No.9-seeded Williams had lost her last two meetings with Petrova, as well as two of their three previous clay court meetings, and an upset loomed as the big-serving Russian won the first set, 6-4, and held triple break point at 1-all in the second set; but Williams came back swinging, saving five break points in that game and never looking in danger again, eventually winning, 46 62 63.

“When I lost the first set, I just thought, ‘Stay in there and just don’t give up, you’ll have a chance,’” Williams said afterwards. “I just didn’t want to give up. I never do want to give up, nor have I ever wanted to give up. I wanted it today.”

Williams is now 15-0 on clay this season, going 5-0 to win Charleston, 2-0 in Fed Cup play, 6-0 to win Madrid and 2-0 so far here. The last time anyone pulled off a perfect clay court season was Justine Henin‘s 24-0 run in 2005.

“I love Europe and to be able to play the whole swing here is really cool,” Williams said. “I’ve definitely developed a lot of confidence on clay. I like it a lot. Well, I’ve always liked it. It’s just that I haven’t won a lot of tournaments on it, but now I’m getting more wins and hope to change that going forward.”

The 13-time Grand Slam champion continued to describe her passion for the sport. “I am so inspired to be out there,” she said. “The only incentive I have is that I love tennis and I love playing. There are a lot of times in life you don’t get the chance to do what you do best, but this is definitely where I belong.”

Next up for Williams is Anabel Medina Garrigues. Curiously, the two veterans – Williams is 30, Medina Garrigues 29 – will be playing for the first time.

Speaking of veterans, Venus Williams also moved through to the third round, battling back from 5-3 down and needing six set points to close out the first set but then rolling past Ekaterina Makarova for a 76(7) 61 victory.

“I really had to buckle down and stop making so many mistakes in the first set. Once I did that, it was good,” Williams said after the match. “Rome is my favorite city in the world – but as much as I would love to be exploring it, it’s definitely better to be playing in Rome. So I am very happy to be here.”

Since losing to Monica Seles in the quarterfinals of the 2002 Australian Open, Williams has gone 36-2 against left-handers, her only losses coming to Petra Kvitova at Memphis in 2008 and to Angelique Kerber at Madrid last week.

Next up for Williams is No.5 seed Samantha Stosur. Williams leads the overall head-to-head, 4-1, but Stosur won their only 2012 meeting.

Other winners on Day 3 were No.13 seed Ana Ivanovic, Chanelle Scheepers and Sorana Cirstea. Ivanovic cruised past Spanish qualifier Sílvia Soler-Espinosa, 62 61, and next has No.2 seed Maria Sharapova. Sharapova leads the head-to-head, 4-2, but Ivanovic won their only clay court meeting.

“It’s nice to get back-to-back wins here, especially after a tough first round against Svetlana,” Ivanovic said. “The next one will be even tougher. Maria and I had a great first set in Indian Wells before I had to retire, and she has been playing better and better on clay. But I’m playing well right now too.

“I hope we can take the level up.”

At night No.1 seed Victoria Azarenka beat Shahar Peer, 61 62, never facing a break point and winning nearly twice as many points in the match (57 to 29).

Azarenka withdrew from the tournament afterwards with a shoulder injury.

Article source: http://www.wtatennis.com/news/20120516/serena-edges-petrova-venus-advances-too_2256076_2774867

Rome, Italy

by ATP Staff

 | 

16.05.2012

© Getty ImagesRoger Federer is a two-time finalist in Rome.

Roger Federer began his quest to win the Internazionali BNL d’Italia for the first time with a confident 6-4, 6-3 victory over Argentine Carlos Berlocq Wednesday in Rome. Federer, who last week won a record-tying 20th ATP World Tour Masters 1000 title on blue clay in Madrid, will next face fellow former World No. 1 and 2001 Rome champion Juan Carlos Ferrero.

Federer dropped just six points on his first serve and was broken once in the 70-minute match.

The Swiss entered Rome at No. 2 in the South African Airways ATP Rankings, having overtaken Rafael Nadal following his Madrid triumph. “I have a good win under my belt and I might be No. 3 next week, but that doesn’t matter for me and Rafa,” he said. “I know it is an interesting time right now and that there is a lot to talk about rankings. I know that I have a shot until the US Open with the [No. 1 South African Airways ATP] Rankings and you will see.”

Joining Federer in the third round is 10th seed Juan Martin del Potro. The 6’ 6” Argentine set a big-hitting showdown with Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga after a 6-4, 6-2 win over Mikhail Youzhny. Del Potro, who reached the semi-finals in Madrid last week, saved the lone break point he faced.

“I am confident with my game at the moment and am looking forward to the season and I want to have a good Roland Garros,” he said.

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In a good day for the seeds, No. 7 Tomas Berdych, No. 12 Nicolas Almagro and No. 14 Juan Monaco also advanced.

Berdych, who reached the Madrid final last week, broke serve four times in a 6-4, 6-1 win over Poland’s Lukasz Kubot. Almagro broke big-serving American qualifier Sam Querrey five times in a 7-5, 6-2 win.

Juan Monaco, playing his first tournament since injuring his ankle in Monte-Carlo, enjoyed a 6-4, 6-2 win over Czech veteran Radek Stepanek. Before his injury Monaco was playing arguably the best tennis of his career, reaching the semi-finals of the Sony Open Tennis in Miami and winning the US Men’s Clay Court Championships title in Houston.

Article source: http://www.atpworldtour.com/News/Tennis/2012/05/20/Rome-Wednesday-Federer-del-Potro-Win.aspx