Davydenko d. Federer??? Has he ever beaten Fed? This is a highly unlikely outcome and clearly engineered to create comments (I've obviously taken the bait). I watched Federer in Hamburg and he's definitely returning better that I've ever seen him do in the past.

He still has a tendency to get too passive against Nadal which leads to the painful pattern of hitting increasingly short backhands from around his ears until Nadal takes mercy and ends it with a winner. Maybe Federer will never beat Nadal on clay but it's mainly because of his own lack of belief. In spite of his travails this year, he has played himself back to a good place and has a legitimate shot, but only if he believes it.

Call me crazy, but I think this is the year Fed does it.

First! I don't think Davydenko will beat Federer
Federer d Davydenko
Nadal d Djokovic

Federer d Nadal

whoa, what an interesting draw analysis. I think that Djokovic and Sharapova will take the trophies (and I'm no fan of either of them, but they are both gritty warriors (Djokovic to way less of an extent))

Steve, Steve, Steve;

Davy taking out Roger? omg. Do you really think that's possible in a month of Sundays?

The man is 0-12

This is not the time. No.

I agree with Steve. It's not crazy at all to see Davydenko upend Federer here. They played in the Semis here last year and Kolya was up a break in all three sets before choking that match away. And Federer was playing much better last year than he is now, for whatever the reason. If other players thought Federer was vulnerable after those losses in Dubai & Indian Wells, then having watched him lose control of matches in Monte Carlo and Hamburg will only embolden them more.

please don't say you "think" anyone other than nadal will win. just say that you are "delusionally hoping."

Great analysis. I really enjoy it when we finally come to the beginning of a GS. The only part I don't get is Davydenko beating Federer, I really don't see that happening! I can see Ferrer beating Daydenko and then Federer. I know that Davydenko must get his chance to get his own back somewhere but in a GS semi-final against a(by then) geared-up Federer? I can't imagine the chances of that happening being very high, but that's just IMO.

Guys:

Nadal over Nole.
Roger over Ferrer.
Nadal over Roger (in 4).

No point trying to predict the girls, they are flawed some way or another to be claimed a champion. If they all play their best tennis I think Serena takes it. Justine's retirement will hit us for good when we're watching a hideous final.

Jonathan T-I'd love to say that I can see Fed defeating Nadal but I can't. 8-1 says it all. I think the best I can hope for is that Nadal somehow loses before the final and then Federer and Djokovic get their chance to battle it out.

Wertheim has Fed losing to Ferrer in the semis, and Steve has him losing to Davydenko ? Oh, dear me ! What has the world come to? The last couple years, it was a given that Fed would reach the finals against Nadal. I mean, I can understand people placing him below Nadal and Djokovic, what with Djokovic playing with more confidence this year. But to place him below even Davydenko and Ferrer? I never thought I would see this day arrive this soon !

Just some of my comments from another post on the Women's side, with some additions. To quote Sharapova: "Let the fun begin!"

If your talking prevailing in the quarters, if you have Serena in your quarter, regardless of who you played before, you have the toughest opponent and quarter even when Serena is not playing her best. If your talking getting to the quarters than that is a slighly different story. Ivanovic should get there but she has been shaky lately. Wozniacki almost beat Sharapova in Rome and Bondarenko gave Sharapova a tough time in US clay court season. So if Ivanovic has trouble beating these two, even if she does get to the match up with Serena it will be a good test of her cometitive spirit and will to win. If she prevails over Serena, I think she will win the whole ball of wax. However, this is the toughest quarter by far to previal in.
Second: Jankovic - Venus match up. While she beat Venus in Rome it was a three set toughy.
Third: Sharapova - Will have to beat either compatriot Zvonareva or Dementeiva. Both good on clay while Sharapova most vulnerable on clay. However, this is the grand slam and one that Sharapova wants to win bad, so they will have to work hard to overcome the toughly competitive Sharapova.
Fouth: Kuznetsov - should beat Chavetadze
Getting to the quarter:
Actually, I think Janovic will have the toughest time getting to the quaters as Cibulkova is on the rise and has a game similar to Jankovic's. Then she would have to meet the winner of the Radwanska/Cornet matchup, which should be interesting.
Second: Sharapova. She should roll over Kirilenko, but it will be the style match up of the tournament (Big Masha and Little Masha). However, she will have to get past a resurgent Safina.
Third: Dementieva will have to get past her resurgent compatriot Zvonareva.
Fourth: Chakvetadze. She is shaky. She possibly might play Pironkova who just beat Ivonovic and almost beat her in Rome. Median Garrigues is a clay court specialist. And then there is Szavay who can be tough.
Fifth: Serena. Srebotnik gave her a run for her money in Charleston but I don't think that will repeat at a grand slam and Schnyder can be tricky on clay.
Sixth: Venus. I think Mauresmo, even though not playing well, should roll to the round of 16 but she won't beat Venus.
Seventh: Ivanovic as discussed above.
Easiest: Kuznetsova. Petrova is dying. This only leaves the up and comer Azarenka or Schiavone to challenge. I think it's a cake walk for Kuznetsova.

Semis

(1)
Russian rematch of Indian Wells
Sharapova/Kuznetsova
Reverse result: Sharapova
(2)
Mud-fight of Miami rematch - actually played in the dirt this time
Jankovic/Serena

Leading to the "Earring Final"

"Sharapova has signed a deal to wear Tiffany earrings at the French Open"

If it is Serena and Sharapova who get to the final, we can call it the Earring Final. It's louder than the shrieking!

Tennis Fan - I totally agree LOL Since Serena has her own brands of one in a million earrings and btw I am a Serena fan too so I wouldn't mind that ;-)

To close to call. Depends on which set of earrings weighs heavier on the wearer.

May the best earrings win!

It would be quite extraordinary if the four semifinalists from last year were to repeat again this year. The top four seeds again.also.

Nalbandian could possibly prevail over Nadal in the quarters.

Thanks for the write up. In addition to Nadal, two other Spanish men that are of particular interest to me are Ferru and Almagro.

With Ferru I am wondering if his mind is back on track and if he is able to deal with the reported personal problems that have been plaguing him.

With Nico I am wondering if his wrist is fully healed and if he can get his brain together for a big tournament. I think talent wise he is a top five player on clay. Between the ears- he can make Berych look like Steady Sam. I would love to see him finally make his presence felt on the big stage and make it to the quarters (where I hope that he loses to Rafa...hee hee)

I really don't see anyone in Nole's quarter who can tobble him. If Tipsy plays to his ability that could be a very good match. But Tipsy seems to have started this (annoying) trend of playing lights out one match and then stinking up the joint in his next match.

For the laides- if the Jankovic/Williams semi comes to pass I have to tip the winner of that as the champion. I just hope that Jelena does away with her 2008 routine of getting broken when she should not be.

No way anyone but Nadal is taking home the trophy. RG is Nadal's baby and he will not give it up easily.
I think the women's champion will be Jankovic or Serena. Most likely Serena. I believe we will all miss Justine among those shriekers and heavy-hitters.

And I forgot, Great analysis. I agree with your picks.

Hahaha Steve always knows he'll get heat for not picking Federer to make it to the Semis, hey! That might be as well a good thing, everyone thinks he is just going to make it to the semis. The supreme madness of all time...

From Media Day at RG:

Roger Federer
“All the games are big games now. I’m happy I was able to play quite a bit on clay before the tournament. I’m feeling confident coming into these big tournaments which is good because I need to be ready. I hope I play well here. What matters is playing well now. I’m happy with my season so far. You may think it’s been an average season but I think it’s been better than average. And I’m really looking forward to the coming months. ”

Rafael Nadal
“Physically I’m feeling very very good. But this tournament is a very tough one. At the moment I’m concentrating on being fresh going into the 3rd round at least.”

Rosangel: Djokovic was not one of the top 4 seeds last year.

'Physically I'm feeling very very good.'
Uh-oh. Hopes of anyone else wearing the crown are receeding rapidly.

'But this tournament is a very tough one. At the moment I'm concentrating on being fresh going into the 3rd round at least.'
In that case I feel sorry for his first two opponents...I think they're going to get nailed!

Ah, a Grand Slam--it's been too long!

I really hope we get to see Nadal-Nalbie. I'm already anticipating that match!

I'm with Steve: Davydenko over Federer: just crazy enough to happen!

I would love to see Safin & Safina both holding those trophies...alas, I am very well aware this fantasy of mine may end in the first round--for both!

davy never can beat fed. the spins are too much on clay to handle on-the-rise. i thought, steve, u played tennis or squash! amazing prediction mate. and try changing directions on-the-rise and u know what i mean.

davy's too flat and hit-thru to win against quality opposition on clay. and he has a weird gameplan-retreating after what one wud see as a perfect volley set-up. if u retreat on clay, u gotta have rafa's legs, or mate, it's over. when the ball jumps and there are bad bounces, u gotta give it time. rushing inside the baseline aint no good.

steve i expect u to keep the content rich, unlike that rabble rouser megalomaniac sidey u have on the other blog. he thinks his game-rich-andes post merits attention! whew! sure he's got tari who'd hug a lamp-post, unfortunately we are sane.

i've a futures fixture to play next week. i hope u keep the level up. from a player's view, quite a lot of what u wrote is nonsense.

holam,

If Davydenko can't play on clay with his style of hitting, why has he gone semi, quarter, semi in the last three Frenches?

No doubt the simple facts you mention account for his losing to Federer at RG last year by the totally one-sided score of 7-5, 7-6 (5), 7-6 (7), hunh?

Please, "mate."

Wait a minute - you chose the top 4 seeds to make it through to the semis for the men. Where is the wisdom in that? Maybe you can tell us when the last time the top 4 men's seeds made it to the Semis? Wait - and you are predicting Davydenko to beat Fed? Fat chance that happens.

I want to get some heat too! So I'll make my predictions...

First Quarter

There is no doubt Federer feels some sort of relief not seeing Djokovic on his half of the draw so a positive sign for the man trying to become The GOAT in paris on June 8th right from the start. I'd be particularly interested to see his potential 4th rd. match against Monaco but by that moment Federer will be on a roll.

Semifinalist: Federer
_______________________

Second Quarter

I don't agree with Steve seeing Davydenko in the finals for 3 reasons: 1. He is playing the week before THE event that is 2 weeks long, 3 out 5 set matches and on the surface that demands you to be at the very top of your physical form; 2. In order to make it to the SF's against Federer, Davydenko would have had to go through Ferrer (which I think he will) on what seems to be one hell of a QF and finally, because of the tremendous titanic effort that would represent the challenge of beating Federer for the very first time.

Semifinalist: Davydenko
____________________________

Third Quarter

The Serb's quarter of the draw should represent good preparation for what he foresees in the horizon: another shot at Nadal in the SF's of the tournament that the Spaniard has dominated for so long. But not only that, Djokovic would be extremly motivated knowing that should he outperform Nadal he would be taking over the no. 2 spot and this perfect case scenario is what he needs in order to avoid falling on Federer's half of the draw coming into Wimbledon.

Semifinalist: Novak Djokovic

____________________________

Fourth Quarter

Every possible expression of personal opinions become pointless when is about Nadal on his turf. His form is intimadating at the moment and no one should represent a threat to him UNTIL the QF's when he could potentially meet Nalbandian. The best backhand on tour against the best CLAY-forehand on tour, what a matchup! If the Argentinean happens to find his "i-beat-everyone-when-nobody-expects-me-to" form their QF match should be a blockbuster and could go either way but I'd give to Nadal only because it is clay.

Semifinalist: Rafael Nadal
__________________

Semifinals:

Federer d. Davydenko, 6-4, 2-6, 6-3, 7-6(4)
Djokovic d. Nadal, 7-6(6), 3-6, 6-4, 2-6, 7-5

Final

Federer d. (a somewhat tired) Djokovic, 6-4, 7-6(5) and 6-3

I think Roland Garros will be crazy this year! I would like to see some dark horses making the quarters.

Steve
this is the boldest prediction I have ever seen anywhere:

Semifinals: Davydenko d. Federer; Nadal d. Djokovic

Final: Nadal d. Davydenko

are you serious?
you think Davydenko will beat Fed in a semi in RG?

wooo hoooooooooooooo!

Swiss Maestro,

your scenario is even bolder!but of course it is what you want!
I love that you have predicted the tie-break scores as well!

I can't seem to let this go. Davydenko at RG the last three years:

2007: beat Canas, Nalbandian, lost very tight semi to Federer.

2006: beat Moya, Gaudio, lost four-set quarter to Nalbandian.

2005: beat Haas, Coria, Robredo, lost five-set semi to a juiced Puerta.

The guy has game!

I really dont see Davydenko beating Roger...sorry-not gonna happen

As for the women...i think we will get a clearer picture as the days go on...i have a feeling there might be a few upsets...clay is a bit tricky

I have a feeling Safin will beat Davydenko in the second round. Federer-Safin semifinal.

Interesting predictions on the ATP so far from Nadal losing in the semis(Swiss Maestro) to Federer losing in the semis(Steve and Asad)

Here are my ATP predictions:
First quarter : Roger Federer will(should) cruise through with losing only one set at the most
Second quarter : Nikolay Davydenko will survive his match with
Mart Safin, Ivan Ljubicic, Juan Carlos Ferrero, and David Ferrer. If Ferrer loses early, I would not be shocked because he has played every week since Valencia started. Before Rome, he lost only to Nadal in MC and Barcelona while winning Valencia but since then, he has crashed earlier than normal. I do not understand why he decided to play in Dusseldorf this week instead of resting. He does not have a go to weapon when the going gets tough and he relies on his speed and agility to get to the ball.

Third quarter: Novak Djokovic will cruise to the semifinals more than Roger Federer will. There is only one trap match for him and that is against Guillermo Canas

Fourth quarter: Rafael Nadal will hold off the strong challengers in his quarter to advance. Looking at the draw again, his only challenge will be the David Nalbandian/Nicolas Almgaro winner.

SEMIFINALS:
Roger Federer wins in 4 over Nikolay Davydenko : Nikolay had his chance to win every set against Roger but somehow lost the set(and match). This year Roger has played better on clay and this will make the difference in this match.

Rafael Nadal wins in 4 over Novak Djokovic : Rafael will and determination will outlast Novak in another grueling affair like it was in Hamburg. Novak will start off by hitting BH winners but Rafael will make that subtle adjustment.

FINALS: Roger Federer vs. Rafael Nadal
In the first 4 sets of this matchup, Roger has led by at least a break in every set but could not close the deal. The best Rafael played against Roger was the deciding set in Hamburg. Roger is 61-11 in clay since the beginning of 2005 but is 1-8 against Rafael. Rafael is 108-2(Roger 2007 Hamburg and Juan Carlos Ferrero 2008 Rome) on clay since he lost to Igor Andreev in Valencia. Only losses were due to fatigue and blisters. Question is who is going to beat Rafael when healthy. One thing to watch for is how bad is his hamstring that occured when playing Roger in Hamburg.

Result of match - Nadal defeats Federer 1-6,6-4,7-5,6-3 and ties Bjorn Borg for winning the French Open for the 4th consecutive time.

Federer wins it all!

Typo amnesty on Marat Safin in my last post

Tough draw for Rafa, we´ll see if that quarter final against Nalbandian comes to happen. If it does I am sure that it will be a hell of a match. But before that, Nalbandian will probably have to face Almagro. I am sure that Rafa would be relieved if he has to face Almagro or Murray instead of Nalbandian. If Rafa reaches the semis he is the clear favourite to defeat Novak.

I think that Kolya is more confident this year but his serve is still inconsistent and that hurts him often against Roger.

I hope Coria-Robredo is a featured match on TV. I cannot wait to see Coria play again.

zolarafa-

Davydenko beating Federer is a bolder statement than Djokovic beating Nadal. Fo Sho!

By the way, Rafa be careful if Kolya reaches the final, he has an outstanding record in finals ...

Davydenko plays in Austria???
Does he miss any tournament at all???

linex-

Davydenko is a machine. Is there anyone who hits the bal cleaner or who can take the ball so early off both wings and change directions at will? Davydenko IS FUN TO WATCH

No way Djokovic has it in him to slug it out with Rafa for five sets.
If it is a five setter no way anyone beats Nadal!!

I still firmly believe we are going to see a Federer-Nadal final with Nadal triumphing.

I would say Novak to win the gents trophy and Maria the ladies trophy !! They are both big figthers and want to go for there 2nd GS win !! Nadal, next year again ? Serena, is bluffing !

ava-

Federer and Nadal have played 3 five setters. Federer has won 2 of those (Miami '05 and Wimbledon '07) and on the other one he had 2 match points (Rome '06) so Federer CAN beat Nadal on a five setter! It might just be though that he is the only one capable of doing it.

Steve Tignor just doesn't want to jinx Federer.

Kim

***Steve Tignor just doesn't want to jinx Federer.***

I agree 500%!

magdas-

sharapova has 3 GS's, but i assume you mean 2nd one for the year

This is the year Roger wins the French Open. He just needs to get over the hurdle of allowing Nadal to come back after he's broken him.

Serena for the women if she isn't injured before the final

i have been reading and never posting. today i would like to give something.

firstly sorry for my bad english. do you all remember how that last year Hewitt gave a little resistant to Nadal and almost won that tight match,, i think that match was in Hamburg, in the semi... and then there was talks about how Hewitt has a resurgance bla bla bla and can take a set out of Nadal, going into RG then they met again and Nadal had absolutely no prob against him, won in straight sets....

this year the same thing happens again with Djokovic... because of the strong showing in Hamburg. may the same thing happens this time.. only time will tell us in a fortnight.

sorry that post @ 4:13 is mine

I don't agree in one thing Steve: there is no way davydenko is going to win over federer!!!!

Vamos Rafa, hasta la vitoria
(let's go get them, xD togetherxDDD, again)
(1year... 1love....1winner only you)

No way Novak is beating Rafa. Last week was the only time he ever took a set of him, and in case I'm the only one who noticed, he looked absolutly exausted. There is just no way he's gonna build up the stamina(in a week and a half) to take three sets off the king.

Rafa's winning, anyone who thinks he isn't is really, just kidding themselves.

I don't think Sharapova's going to make it out of her section. Safina hasn't played since Berlin; she's kept the positive energy going. That's HUGE for a Safin family player. The Zvonareva-Dementieva match should be interesting, too, as they were the 2nd and 3rd best Russians in '03, and then slipped to 4th and 5th in '04, and then...well, you know. The Safina/Sharapova vs Dementieva/Zvonareva (has there ever been such a Russian quarter of the draw before?) winner goes out easily to Kuznetsova. Add to the mix Maria Kirilenko, who is finally playing about as good as she looks, and the top quarter is trickier than it seems, especially for a hardcourt girl like Sharapova. I'm putting my money on Zvonareva, who has won matches but not against big players, and is poised for a 2nd breakthrough.

Kuznetsova has to be happy knowing she doesn't face anyone major until the Schiavone-Azarenka winner (I'm guessing Schiavone after Azarenka falls apart in the 2nd set), with Petrova know relegated to that long list of once-good players know playing merely well half the time. The bottom section of this quarter looks far more interesting to me. Peer goes up against Stosur, and neither is in great form, but Peer can springboard this match into a nice, tidy little run. I can imagine a very good 3-setter between Peer and Szavay (backhands galore), with the winner beating Yung-Jan Chan or Pironkova. Chan is in terrific form, and Pironkova as well. Pity they meet 1st round. Chakvetadze is virtually a non-factor; she's looked off all year, and clay isn't her favorite surface. Kuznetsova beats Szavay or Peer in the quarterfinal.

Venus is on top of this draw (with Jankovic the best seeded down at the bottom), but I'd be surprised if she made it to the semifinal. Pennetta, Mauresmo, and even Bartoli are capable of knocking her out on clay, and then she has to face Jankovic (whose week off will serve her well; Cibulkova, Cornet, and Radwanska can all make her run). Hard to go against Jankovic, but I'd love to see Cornet push her in the 4th round. Jankovic beats Mauresmo in the quarterfinals; Mauresmo retires after the '09 French (2nd round). You read it here first.

Poor Katarina Srebotnik. She plays great in Istanbul, likely winning the title, and then has to lose to Virginia Ruano Pascual (who is destined for the 3rd round) early in France. Serena is obviously the top half pick, beating either Timea Baczinsky or Tamira Paszek in the 4th round, while the bottom half is more fun. Ivanovic is the high ranked player, but it's conceivable for her to go out to Lucie Safarova (always dangerous, never a safe bet) or Caroline Wozniacki (whose played well all year without beating anyone too good), and I'd be cautious betting for her against Alona Bondarenko in the 4th round. Bondarenko is a tremendous clay courter, and her movement keeps her at home against the big hitters. Regardless, Ivanovic will be tired out if she makes the quarters.

swissfans-

you're right, that was in the SF's of hamburg when i think it went 7-5 in the 3rd, but the difference is that djokovic is easily the best player in the world as of 2008, he won rome, beat nadal handily in IW, so people are probably giving him a better shot to beat nadal at the FO(i think nadal will still win in straights), but yeah, 2008 Djokovic is much different than 2007 Hewitt just IMO

Asad Raza, you are always saying Nikolay lost to Roger.

No, Roger beat Nikolay in 3 straight sets last year in semis, overcame some deficits, stepped up his level like usual, and you ignore Roger's 12-0 undefeated head to head record versus Nikolay too.

Roger also in the FO in the last 3 years on HIS WORST SURFACE, Clay, was still much better than Nikolay's results the last 3 years.

Roger lost a 4 setter to Rafa Nadal in SEMIS in 2005.
Roger lost a very tight 4 setter to Rafa Nadal in FINALS in 2006 (yes, very tight loss).
Roger lost another (3rd straight) 4 setter to Rafa Nadal in FINALS in 2007 for 3rd sraight year.

SEE Roger's 3 year consistency and that he lost to the 3 time champion all 3 years, twice in finals, and all 3 in 4 sets with 2006 being a very close loss.

thanks all...
nice thoughts, nice posts...
for some reason, i think that probably two out of those four mentioned top seeds will not make the semifinals. don`t ask me why!

if ferrer has relatively easy first few rounds then he will take out davy in quarters.. no question of davy reaching semis let alone defeating fedex

i don't think Asad Raza is claiming that davydenko is the favorite against Roger at the FO, he's just saying that it's not completely far fetched to pick Davydenko over Fed given his past results

i agree

Pressure will really be on Roger to make the final, but he's responded well to that before.

Nadal vs Nalbandian (an in-form Nalbandian) could be a classic. This means that Nalby will win 7 games in a loss in the second round.

I think Querrey vs. Federer could be a good match to watch. Reasons:

1) Querrey had a good result in Monte Carlo, which gives him some confidence on clay. Plus he had a good March, so in general his tennis has been improving.

2) Querrey has had some time to rest since then which is an opportunity to be in good shape.

3) I like Querrey's demeanour on court, he is kind of loose but at the same time goes for his shots.

4) Federer can sometimes have runs of flakiness in his early round matches.

I am not calling for any groundshaking upset, but it could be interesting, Querrey has a good serve which can often keep a match close.

lol Ryan,

and that's exactly what separates Federer from other super talented guys, he responds to the pressure and blows people away while players like Nalbandian and Safin crumble

The reality is that even at the French Open, Roger's results have clearly been better than Nikolay's the last 3 years.
Roger got further all 3 years, lost to the same person all 3 years, and beat Nikolay last year, despite Roger playing poorly.

Roger is also a perfectly undefeated 12-0 versus Nikolay head to head in career so far, and they are both the same age.

The reality, facts and truth hurts sometimes, but it's factual, so deal with all them facts, people.

i think we can all agree that Roger is a better player than Davydenko, and the clear #2 clay court player in the world. the point is that Davydenko is CAPABLE of beating Fed on clay and it's not completely ridiculous to think otherwise.

if Roddick played Federer at Wimbledon or the USO this year, people would still know that he is CAPABLE of beating Roger despite their 2-15 record(or whatever ridiculous H2H it is), even though everyone can agree that Roger is a superior player

That's all Asad Raza was saying, that it's possible

Men's picks are easy. The first four seeds will cruise through the semi-finals. The only two who could have been a bit at risk, Davydenko and Djokovic have the easiest of the draws. That's also because the rest of the field is sucking now days. The very few ones who could give some troubles like Wawrinka, Nalbandian, Verdasco, Gonzalez, Almagro are all in Federer's or Nadal's side of the draw. It remains only Ferrer to challenge Davydenko, but he looks like burned out from playing too much lately.
My prediction:
Semifinals:
Federer d. Davydenko
Nadal d. Djokovic
Final:
Nadal d. Federer

On women's side things are a lot less clear. In the first quarter if Safina plays the way she did in Berlin I see her beating Sharapova and reaching the semis. I predict a clash between her and Zvonareva in the quarters.
Second quarter is wide open. Neither Kuzzy nor Chakvetadze are playing well at the moment. I see an outsider in the semis from this quarter. I think it will be Azarenka beating Medina Garrigues in the quarters.
Third quarter should see Venus and Jankovic getting through with the latter having a tougher time. This time I think Venus would prevail and reach the semis.
Forth quarter is Serena's to lose. Ivanovic is awfull recently and she won't pass the fourth round. Serena beats Bondarenko in the quarters.
Semis:
Safina d. Azarenka
S.Williams d. V.Villiams
Final:
S.Williams d. Safina

How do you know that something is possible when it's never happened before, not once?
What evidence is there that there's a possibility of a first time, unless Roger plays horribly or chokes the match away, which is very unlikely?

I think that Federer will beat Davydenko, and Nadal will beat Djokovic to reach teh finals. I think Nadal will beat Federer in four sets.

so Roger has never beaten Nadal at the French Open before, are you saying that it's impossible since it's never happened before, not once?

Yeah, Federer beats Davydenko and meets Nadal in the final. It will be a real suprise if this years final is any different than last year. Only thing, if Novak can save up his energy/stamina for two weeks and then give Nadal a tough fight in the semis, there is a chance we could see a 5 set final. Either way, Nadal should be the champion.
It's almost like we know what's going to be happen, nevertheless, the excitement is all there. I guess for the French Open, on "any given Parisian day", there could be an upset.

Roger's beaten Rafa 6 times before and once on clay and is clearly the better and more talented overall player as proven many times already, so that is certainly more possible and likely even at the FO than Roger losing to Nikolay or Andy anywhere since he's rightfully dominated both on all surfaces and is clearly better than both too when he's playing and feeling well, not this year so far, obviously.

your logic was that something isn't possible if it's never happened before, so how do you defend that idea when Roger's never won the FO before. not possible?

Nadal is not going to make the FO finals this year- injury or whatever he is not making it past Djokovic.

hi steve

it SUCKS that nole is in rafa's half of the draw but tickled silly that you predict kolya to take out roger! oh yes! i would love to see that happen :)

kolya can give rafa fits a la puerta in 2005.

i think serena will take it all, too, but hope jelena stands some kind of chance, no matter what. am not too hot about ana's chances but hail, i'll give her the "benefit" of the doubt as she did make it to the final last year. still, we know how that went down. :)

i am excited already, i got myself a pair of binoculars for week one action! whooooppeeeeee!

How do you know for certain with evidence that it's possible if it's never happened? You don't know for certain it's possible. You think it is.
However, you have to admit there is (no) 0 evidence to support your thinking (0-12), meanwhile there is a lot of proof to support my knowing(12-0).
How do you defend yor idea?

Federer is having a so-so year by his standards, which is understandable since he had mono to start it off. Even so, he won one clay tournament, lost two finals to the supreme Nadal; only inexplicable match was the tight loss to Radek -- huh?

otherwise, roger is playing himself into form. If you look at his losses the last 4 yrs, he's only fallen to a RG champ -- Nadal 3 yrs running, and former champ Guga in 2004, i think. So i don't expect roger to lose to Davydenko; unfortunately i don't think he'll win, either.

How do you know for certain with evidence that it's possible if it's never happened? You don't know for certain it's possible. You think it is.
However, you have to admit there is (no) 0 evidence to support your thinking (0-12), meanwhile there is a lot of proof to support my knowing(12-0).
How do you defend your idea with no evidence of history to support it?
How?

what idea do you speak of? the idea that it's possible that davydenko can beat federer at the French Open this year?

i believe it's possible because davydenko is a great clay court player, has had very close matches with federer on clay(i.e. last year's FO semi), and oh yeah, this is the French Open. ANYTHING is possible

anyways, sorry guys for that little scuffle. i gotta run. i think it'll be Fed over Davy/Ferrer in the semis and Nadal over Djokovic in the other semis to lead up to an epic 5 set final. may the best man win!

Roger has always found ways to beat Nikolay (always, 12-0) even when Roger is playing badly, like last year.
You also say Davydenko is a great clay court player, when he's never won anything important on clay or been to any Grand Slam final even once. If he's great on clay, then what's Roger on clay since his records and results are all clearly much better and more consistent with many more titles, even on clay, than Nikolay's are?

You consider straight sets close and Roger still won all of them.

Did I miss something here? When I watched the draw this morning, Federer's first round is against Fish, not Querrey. Querrey has drawn a first round against Hewitt. Has this changed sometime in the last few hours?

crazyone: yes, Djokovic was ranked 6 this time last year. But on clay, I had him ranked in the Top 4, hence the slip:
http://tennisworld.typepad.com/tennisworld/2007/05/clay_rankings.html

Sam Querrey got demolished by Djokovic in Monte Carlo clay quarterfinals, and Roger is better than Novak, so, even though Sam Querrey is young, improving and dangerous, I don't see Roger losing a single set against him, maybe one set, in 1st round. Sam is certainly the best and youngest player and opponent of the top 4 in the 1st round. However, Roger even on clay, should beat him easily. Should.
Novak did, so Roger should too.

I love this word "Should". I love how people throw it around like it really means something. Anything could happen at this years RG, regardless of how things "should" go. Personally, i'd like to see a bit of a shake-up.

serena or jankovic will win it. hopefully serena. but never count venus out....

SwissMaestro,

"Federer d. Davydenko, 6-4, 2-6, 6-3, 7-6(4)
Djokovic d. Nadal, 7-6(6), 3-6, 6-4, 2-6, 7-5

Final

Federer d. (a somewhat tired) Djokovic, 6-4, 7-6(5) and 6-3"

Very Wishful thinking :)

Nadal losing to Djokovic and thereby having the path relatively clearer for Federer is quite a stretch of imagination.

Don't get me wrong, am an avid Federer fan and and have wanted him to win the French Open every year. But again, I believe he would have to go through Nadal (which is a very tall order as well).

Go Justine!

I'll pick Kuz to win this year, simply because she's the best clay player in the world now. If she plays to her potential, she can beat the rest of them. That's certainly not to say she will. She is the hallmark of inconsistency, but she knows she won't have to face Henin, and that should keep her focused.

If Serena and Maria can survive 7 matches at RG, I'll be surprised. This is going to be a grind, where big serves aren't going to win that many points. I'm not sure Serena will hold up physically, and I'm not sure Maria can win on the red clay, again, with potential physical problems.

Ana will deal with the physical part easily, as will JJ, so I think they will make the semis, but I think JJ will play Kuz for the title.

Go Patty!

I just hope that Nadal will stay healthy :)

Swiss Maestro:

I think we can all agree that a 5 setter on hard court or grass is not played like a 5 setter on clay at all.

I believe Miami that year was a learning experience for Rafa (blessing in disguise) and in Wimbledon we has definitely another player after the 4th set (yes, I do think it had something to do with the knee).

Curiously enough, I think Rome was Roger's to give away...and luckily he did.

I just don't see Rafa losing any 5 setter on clay, ever.

For the men, it will be Federer over Nadal, finally. In my dreams, in any event.

another thing I would like to add, is Jankovic had to win in 3 sets against Venus, and that was Venus' first tournament of the Clay season, so I think Venus has a good chance...

this is a good analysis. Davydenko has the game to beat federer but not the mental makeup. Nadal will win the whole thing.

Have you seen this video on the main page?
http://tinyurl.com/4zt7zc

Pete and Steve and the rest of tennis.com/ESPN....give their picks for men and women. It is really nice. well done !

P.S: Steve looks much better without a beard!

Steve,
can you make a comparison between Rafa 05/06 and Rafa 08 on clay? Has he added much to his game?
The same for Federer.

I was watching MonteCarlo 05 last night and thought Fed was playing well and doing all the right things, using angles, coming to the net, going around his backhand, attacking, ...Rafa was playing from the baseline defending. Fed serves better and attacks more now. but seems to me that RAfa's game on clay has improved more than Fed's. He is more comfortable around the net and has a better serve.maybe because I am biased!

zola- I am going to have to disagree with you, I like Steve with the beard (sorry for talking about ya Steve). It makes him look like one of those little musician guys that I see running around here in Austin.

Glad to see Almagro getting some metions in the video. Now that I have expectations for him I expect he will do the usual and flame out/disappoint. Sigh...

Two days and counting. Go Novak!

Not sure why, but it feels like Fed will fall before the final. Whether it's to Davy or Ferrer or someone else. Too bad Djoker's in Rafa's half. At least if Nole and Fed were in the same half we would (almost) be guanteed a sensational final.

Nadal has been beaten twice out of 110 games on clay only because of fatigue and injury. Come on - we're all kidding ourselves if we think that anyone can beat him on clay if he keeps injury free. A Djokovic/Nadal semi will be tough but Djokovic could never last if it went to 5 sets. A Nadal/Federer final with a clear win for Nadal. Vamos Rafa!

Hmmm -- just as I feared - Djokovic vs Nadal in the Semi. That, for me, would be the best match of Paris. Nadal has to be at his best to beat Djokovic. If Rafa plays well (and is 100% physically fit) and therefore beats Nole - I don't see any problem with the final against fed. I'm sure even a 90% Nadal can finish TMF. It's just one of those mind games that Roger can't just overcome right now.

However - If I am Roger, I would pray that Djokovic plays the match of his life and overcomes Rafa in 5 ( it has to go the distance - for Rafa to loose. No one beats Nadal in 3 or 4 sets at the French Open)..I'm sure TMF can beat Djokovic - should Djokovic reach the finals.

My prediction still goes with Rafa for the champ this year. However- it will be a tougher road this year.
Look forward to some amazing tennis in the Semis vs Djokovic.

How about this prediction...

Novak Djokovic wins the French Open

Ana Ivanovic wins the French Open

Say what you want but these two are at the top of their game in 2008.

I don't expect anything less than Championship.

If anyone here watched Hamburg, then you would know that that match was Novak's match. He demolished him in the second set. He was also leading 3-0 30-love and somehow lost his composure. He won't lose it in the French Open. I'll garuntee that.
I don't see Nadal beating Nole. Federer will def. not beat Novak.
Garuntee you that.

It's going to be very interesting. Novak has a perfect road to the semi. Federer got some bumps on his way, but Nadal has a tough time. This is a real test for him. Can he keep it up?

I don't know. We'll see. But, if he wins it this time it's going to be a sweetest victory for him... so far. His road is almost impossible.

However, I cannot see Federer holding the trophy. The winner is going to come from Nadal's half. So likely, it will be Nadal or Djokovic. If Nadal beats Novak in their semi, given his road, he must be at absolute top of his game... more than ever before. That gives slim chances to Federer.
Novak has an easy road to the semi where he will face the biggest challenge in his career so far. If he beats Nadal, that will be a turning point of:
a) his career
b) Nadal's career
c) entire ATP season.

I say there is no chance he would lose a final against Federer or Davidenko after beating Nadal. No way... and if he wins it, guess who is going to start feel the real heat?

Some guy named Roger...

Anon@7:35
***If anyone here watched Hamburg, then you would know that that match was Novak's match. He demolished him in the second set. He was also leading 3-0 30-love and somehow lost his composure.****

somehow Djoko has this unique ability of losing "while in control of the match" . Hamburg was notthe first time. He was in control while losing in RG 06 too.

Strangely, Fed has said the same thing ( On the Ground... Eventually thread). He could control to win or lose a point.

maybe this is an emerging trend in tennis, but just against RAfa!

Ok the winners of RG will be RAFAEL NADAL for the men and PATTY SCHNYDER for the women!! Krazy, I think not!! :D Vamos RAFA y PATTY!!wooohooo...