Shotmaster Roger Federer easily advanced to the second round with a straight set victory over American Devin Britton. Wimbledon finalist Tommy Haas made it through to the second round as did James Blake, Robin Soderling, and Tommy Robredo. In terms of excitement Turkey’s Marsel Ilhan put on a show on court 6 squeaking past stalwart journeyman Christophe Rochus 7-5 in the fifth set. The match of the day goes to Germany’s Simon Greul who outgunned qualifier Giovanni Lapenti (brother of Nicholas). Greul showed a lot of heart, but will have to pull off a miracle in his next match. He will face the world’s number one Roger Federer.
The bottom half of the draw looks menacing in terms of firepower. There’s Andy Murray, Raphael Nadal, Marin Cilic, Fernando Gonzalez, and Juan Martin Del Potro. Look for a Murray to square off with Nadal in the semis. Federer owns the top half. His main challenge will come from Roddick in the semis, but Roger will most likely draw Robin Soderling in the quarterfinals. The Swede will look to avenge his French Open loss. The edge goes to the all-time champ.
As for sentimental picks, I’d love to see Haas go the distance. Federer has already made history so each cup he claims now is merely gravy. Haas has never fully reached his potential what with all the injuries he has been nagged by his whole career, but this season he has been fantastic. It may be his last shot at capturing a slam.
No comments:
Post a Comment