Actually- sorry. My post was classless. I don't hate Nadal. And if Roger ends up winning (which I doubt), I think he personally would have rather faced Nadal in the final- otherwise, it will be an asterisk to some degree.

I actually love Rafael Nadal- but I am always one to root for the underdog... just need some fresh blood at The French Open.



Hey two-hander- this comment wasn't directed at you or anyone else on here at all. A general commentary for ESPN, tennis experts, etc who constantly indicate Nadal's fallacy on the clay.

Well, if you throw enough shit against the wall ... something's got to stick.

I'm stunned, though. Robin Soderling? I haven't watched the match yet, so i don't know what went wrong. Was Rafa tired?

If Roger doesn't win this year, he can probably forget about ever doing it. ... which means the pressure on him just rose to the nth degree.

¡¡¡IMPRESIONANTE!!!

Can someone who did watch it post it on Youtube for all to see and enjoy?!!

Kick--I thought your response was appropriate, especially in light of the circumstances. Mine would be something more along the lines of OMYGAWD. or posibly even WTF???
Snicks, genius indeed. Absolutely prescient. I never would have guessed. 4th round isn't exactly early, but considering it was Nadal, that is early enough. And against Soderling? You cannot be serious!! He COULD have lost to a better man from what I have heard of this guy. This is totally crazy. I can't wait to watch the match. I'm sure NBC will pick that one to feature.

The only thing that I could think of was that Soderling was the guy to make fun of the ass-picking...and do it publicly. That's not cool. Maybe it intimidated, pissed off Nadal. I don't know. He is so physically strong. Could it be he is not that strong emotionally??

Their history:

"In the third round at Wimbledon in 2007, Soderling pushed the No1 to five sets. The tension was palpable during the match, with the Swede imitating the Spaniard’s habit of fiddling with his shorts between points. The two men met again in Rome on clay last month with Nadal showing no mercy, taking the match 6-1 6-0. "

Djoko gone, Nadal gone, Certainly Rogers best chance at adding a French Open title to his career record. I hope he can hang on through the rest of the week and be victorious in the Final.

Todays match was pretty amazing. Dont know anything about Soderling but he was all over Nadal today and deserved to win.

Once again, brilliance.

Listening to the interview with Nadal now. He says that he just have to prepare better. Huh??
And he says the Roger is now the favorite to win. And then the signal was lost.

Hey kick, no problem or need for edits. This is sports, you're supposed to go $)*(@&*& when crazy stuff happens.

I feel weirdly blank about Nadal's loss, maybe because I'm delirious from cold medication. Being sick has allowed me to watch way too much of the French Open.

This day was inevitable. I've always wondered what it's be like when Nadal was beaten, since until today he was undefeated. In particular I wondered how the crowd would be to him when it happens. I'd guess they were rooting for Soderling during the match because Nadal has always been viewed as Federer's spoiler in RG even though his dominance has been akin to Federer at Wimbledon.

It's pretty absurd to loathe a tennis player, but I can't stand Soderling. Even in Rome a month ago when Nadal beat him 1 and 0, Soderling tried to cheat by pointing to wrong line marks. Those two obviously hate each other, and there's no way this loss isn't going to do a number on Nadal's head. We'll see how he deals with it.

It's this kind of stuff that makes the sport interesting. 2009 has already been a wild year.

Thanks.

Have the TENNIS GODS smiled on Roger? They got rid of his two biggest obstacles to the title, Rafa and Novak.
Who's left?

Andy Murray. Playing great tennis. Very dangerous. But I will be pulling for Roger all the way.

Haven't seen it yet, coverage won't start 'til 3:00 PM on NBC for me....no Tennis Channel.


I'm bummed, obviously, it would have been somewhat less painful (though not much) if it happened in a later round and if he'd lost to someone not as repugnant as Soderling, but it happened. This year, the screams of "untouchable" and "unbeatable" were louder than other years, so I'm sure it did nothing but heap more pressure on to Rafa, who's always done well with pressure, but hey, he's had an amazing run. Odd that both the men's and women's champs from last year are both out on the same day, and both before the QFs even bagan. Who would have thought?


Things look even easier for the Fed now, but that's when he's always stumbled. Easier draws that have become even easier for him at the slams the last two years have actually been more of a curse for him...but with the two best clay court players of this year gone, how can anyone bet against him? Will Murray be a threat? Will the winner of Scary-Hair/Roddick do some damage??

Pressure's the word now for Rafa and the Fed. How will Rafa bounce back from this, and what will the Fed do now with the pressure of expectations to easily take this title and possibly become a GOAT?

But on clay? Not sure if Murray is ready for that. If they do meet it wouldn't be til the final.There are some dangerous guys for Roger to get through first. Monfils, for one.

I would still put my money on Murray, although I would love to see a final with Monfils and Fed. Roger winning, of course.

Interesting comment in the Soderling interview...that Swedish angels were sent to protect the Bjorn Borg record. I hadn't thought of that. Borg also had 4 in a row. Nadal would have broken that with a win in this tournament.

Both defending champions are out before the quarters. when was the last time that happened?

Actually, nothing really went wrong. Nadal lost on the square. Soderling was racking up winners by the carload, and Nadal was on defense most of the match. Soderling made sure to keep as many points as short as possible. He went for broke going for winners, and they went in. It's time to just credit him. He played better.

Not sure about Nadal fatigue, but a thought occurred to me in the aftermath that might be worth all of us weighing. I'm thinking it's not an accident that the two guys who had the greatest success throughout the clay season, Nadal and Djokovic, are now both gone from The French. Rafael won three titles and was in a fourth final; Djokovic won one title, made two finals and had a marathon semi final. Maybe it's me, but is it possible that 4-plus hour Semi-Final in Madrid between them, coming at the end of their successful clay seasons, cumulatively caught up with both of them? Just a thought.

Boyfriend and I are sitting in LAX coming back from a west coast vaca and I had to pull out the laptop cuz I just heard. HOLY f**kING SHIT!!! I can't believe it. I have just reviewed all of the posts on this thing and yeah snicks you did call it. But had I seen it after you wrote it I would've told you that you were full of it. I didn't think ANYONE could've prevented Rafa from winning this thing. WOW!!! This has to be one of the biggest upsets EVER!!!!!!!!

I guess Roger is doing the happy dance somewhere with no Djokovic and now no Rafa to worry about. Holy crap. This is his best chance to win it with no Rafa standing in his way. Hopefully he can. I'd love to see Rogelio win the French. Some will say but he didn't have to beat Rafa to do it but oh well. Roger can only play his part of the draw and win the matches needed to hold the trophy. Hopefully he can do it because there are still some dangerous guys left who could take a more vulnerable than before 2009 Federer out. We'll see though. Hope all of you have been well.

Next interesting match--Roddick v. Monfils. The winner to play Fed/Haas winner. I give little chance to Roddick.

If Nadal referred to preparing it's probably that he didn't want to play Madrid but did anyway. It was a new tournament on the calendar, at a high altitude. Before the tournament he'd made various remarks hinting he might not play it, but went ahead and did it, I'd guess because it's in Spain.

I know from recent experience that scheduling matters nil to some voices on the board, but we're seeing the players who played this year's full Masters/1000 schedule with strong to decent results -- Djokovic, Nadal, now Verdasco -- hit the wall. On second thought, how lame, pathetic, etc. etc. Wow. I'm sure it doesn't matter.

Another factor is that the courts/balls/conditions must be somewhat different. For Soderling to hit through Nadal -- which must have been what he did -- and for Davydenko to straight-set Verdasco, flatter hitting is gaining results in a way it hasn't in many years. (Davydenko and Verdasco must have sensed/known what went down on Chartrier, and flat-hitting Kolya, who matches up better against Soderling, sensed an opportunity.)

Federer put together his clay schedule -- and results (frankly, I think he tanked against Djokovic in Italy) very smartly this year. He arrived in Madrid earlier than the other top players and better-rested, and began really preparing there.

Nadal passed Evert's record for most wins in a row at Roland Garros earlier this week, though the media pretty much ignored it. Wonder if if NBC realizes/notes it today? (Swedish angels must have also protected Borg at Wimbledon last year.)

If Federer and Monfils were to meet, it would be in the quarterfinal, not final. And it would be one of the matches of the tournament. Federer might just carve Gael the showman up in no time. Or Monfils could make it a different kind of style and grace vs. athleticism battle than people expect from Federer-Nadal.

For me, Federer now becomes a prohibitive favorite. Haas surely won't trouble him in the least. To be honest, Monfils is the only player I can see really rising to the occasion to test him, unless Del Potro -- who Federer doesn't like much, if scores are any indication -- pulls a Soderling.

Federer has been on and off so far, but when on, he's looked more dialed in and dangerous than he has in years, like he's rediscovering his game. It goes to show how silly all the talk of his downfall has been. It was fun to hear Martina call the Federer-Mathieu match because it was almost as if she was wanting to be him -- she was guessing his tactics shot for shot. Great champions think alike.

Will this loss to his worst enemy on his favorite court do a total number on Nadal's fighting spirit? This match changes the year's -- and Nadal's career's -- momentum more dramatically than any loss he could have suffered.

Hats off to him for remaining undefeated at a slam so long. Not sure if anyone has before.

I said I would love to see a final with those 2, but I know it isn't possilbe in this tournament. See next post about the qtrs.

Monfils makes the game very interesting with his all out and expressive style. Contrasts well with Roger. I never warmed up to Murray. Or Roddick, although I think he could at least win a major someday. He hasn't even cracked the top 4 lately. I was watching a 2007 tribute to Sampras yesterday, where the commentators said "it's not a matter of if but when Andy wins Wimbledon."

I blame the pink shirt. You don't win tournaments dressed like that. It's like Federer's Captain Cardigan outfit at Wimbledon last year or Venus's curse of the yellow dress.

Agreed, they need to switch. Rafa should wear the Cardigan, Venus should wear the pink shirt, and Roger should wear the yellow dress.


Forgive me, I'm obviously still in shock...

Bjorn Borg is one lucky guy. He has now seen his consecutive title records equalled, but not surpassed, at both Wimbledon and Roland Garros, and Fed and Rafa were pretty much the only players of a calibre on their respective surfaces to ever have been able to break them for generations, probably.

Unfortunately, as much as I feel some vague interest that somebody new will win the French (which once upon a time was the flukiest one-title Slam wonder trophy there was owing to its uniqueness - Exhibits A & B, Gaudio and Myskina), it completely dissipates because absolutely nobody will challenge Fed's coronation as Teh Gratest Player Evah!!!111! The only player with the hunger and ability and belief to do it, Murray, is out of his element here and would have to grapple with only his second Slam final to do it. (In fact, his only two losses to Fed have come in his first tour final and first Slam final.)

Let's recap, folks - other than Djoko at last year's AO (relax Mr Courier - I can hear you spastically shouting 'Mono! Mono! Mooooonoooo!' in the back row there), NO OTHER PLAYER HAS DEFEATED FEDERER AT A SLAM SINCE FOUR YEARS AGO besides Rafael Nadal. It's interesting how the 'end' to Fed's dominance was really just a mirage in the shape of a Majorcan. I, for one, do not welcome the return of our Swiss overlords but whaddya gonna do.

I still want to know why he abandoned the muscle T, or sleeveess shirt. I liked that. Did not like the clam diggers. But agreed, the pink and yellow made me think I was looking at a cherry/banana popsicle.

Fed's ego is counterbalanced by other factors for me. There's no one left in the draw who I'm rooting for more than him, really. May the best man win.

Though Urban Suede you bring up an interesting point in that now the rest of the tour REALLY gets to feel what Nadal has had to play down or ignore all these years at Roland Garros (and elsewhere, but especially here): that special unacknowledged by the media taking-candy-from-a-baby feeling.

I don't think any of these other guys left in the draw are up to that task mentally, and I don't think they have the game, either.

Rafa was a mess out there today: the hair, the bits of towel on his face, the inability to mix things up. He's been the wall and now he hit the wall.

Someone at Nike deserves to be fired (or more likely get a raise in terms of the big Federer picture) for that outfit Nadal wore this year. Sartorial choices mean something, in terms of luck or superstition, the way you feel in what you're wearing, and the message/meaning sent by your clothes. Federer crashed over the flamboyant wall at Wimbledon last year, and Nadal did here.

In past years, Nadal was dressed as the bull. In past years, Federer's white headband/kerchief made him look like he had a head wound playing Nadal on the red clay. Ain't happening in 09. This year Nadal was dressed as a garish matador, and he got speared.

Nadal's press conference was fairly direct about why he lost. He said that he thought Soderling looked all that much better because he played his shots way too short. So understandably, Sodelring ran into the court and knocked off winner after winner (he had over 60 for the match). Nadal actually started to get fatigued from answering this same question about 6 different times during the presser. But at root, he dropped too many of his shots near the service line, he understood it, and he paid the price for it. That's the one thing I always know he'll do: honestly assess himself when he loses.

He got irritated when people started suggesting he was too tired because he played too much this year, and he barked back that this wasn't so - saying his preparation is what it's always been. He played only 3 warmups and did skip the final clay event in Hamburg in 2005 & 2006, when the Masters Series Finals were still Best of 5. When they changed to Best of Three in 2007, he started playing the extra event. So maybe in the end he wasn't too tired. Maybe he's right that Soderling played great and took every advantage of all the short balls he forced Nadal to keep coughing up.

Who knows. The weird thing is Soderling made Nadal hit weak and short shots a lot in Rome, too. But Nadal won 0 and 1. I think Rafa just went out there complacent and unfocused today, probably thinking he had it won because of that Rome match. He paid the price. It happens.

The thumbs up gesture from Soderling at the end goes to show that Nadal will always be an acquired taste and unorthodox champion, not worthy of respect in a lot of players' and crowds eyes.

For a lot of reasons, I'll be surprised if Soderling makes it past Davydenko. The way Kolya played today, he could have taken out Nadal, and he's got a more solid game and mind than Toad.

I cautiously agree. Davydenko is a two-time Semi-Finalist here, and he made Verdasco look very ordinary today, which is no small feat given his results this year. Kolya does have a tendency to choke away the big occasions. In his 2007 Semi here, he had Federer up against the wall in all three sets they played, up a break in each. But pressure is not what Kolya has handled exceptionally well in his career. He needs to believe he can win this, because his game is more than enough on this surface. His career, having been parked in the Top 10 for six years and in the Top 5 for three of them, is more than deserving of a Major trophy.

Okay, I'll have to completely part ways with you on that. There is a compelling storyline for Murray picking up his first major at the unlikeliest of places to put the cap on what has been a year of steady world-class improvement since last year's coming-of-age moment at Wimbledon and truly confirm himself at the No 3 spot, since Djoko won't be reclaiming it anytime soon I think. But then I've been a fan of his since he was a nobody in early 2006, because there was nobody out there who played quite like him and I liked his crafty and varied approach to the game, even though I've never quite warmed up to him until he recently smoothed out the rough edges to his Napoleon Dynamite ways (not to mention grew into his features, started to get an actual haircut and got the gym-fit bod).

So even if Federer randomly lost to Monfils/Roddick or pulled out due to injury or whatever and Murray's victory had nothing to do with stopping him in his tracks, I'd still fully get behind it. But I do think if there is any cosmic justice, just like Rafa was not able to finally win Wimbledon until he bested Fed, it would be anticlimactic and tough to appreciate if Fed cruised to his first FO title simply thanks to Rafa's bewildering upset loss. Of course, at the end of the day, records are records and the asterisks get overlooked, so if Fed pulls off the feat, more power to him.

After having the oppurtunity to watch the match on mainstream TV, I would have to say that this was pure tennis where one guy suddenly played like there was no tomorrow. Nadal usually can come up with an answer to everything, but Soderling was so zoned in, it was scary. I was glad to see little of the bad sportsmanship stuff. The worse thing mr. sod did was not acknowledge net cords... Tennis has its fussy little polite traditions... it's part of what makes it special. I do not think he has many friends in the lockerroom because of his brutish behavior. So unpleasant.
I cannot see Mr. Sod playing that way again next round. I think he had something to prove and was just really determined.

Snicks! How much did you have to pay Rafa to make your prediction come true? lol Unbelievable. Great call. Now, send my my lottery ticket picks quick.

Rafa: I was noticing how short his balls landed, but didn't really hear much said about it. Kept thinking he's always on the defensive. Since he can do so much from there, didn't think it'd be too much of a problem for him to overcome. Alas, he didn't have the extra gear. And Sonderling had the belief the whole way through.

Rafa was not tired from his schedule. Unless he's been tired the past several years. He always plays hard and a lot on clay leading up to the French. Now, anyone can get fatigued. Even Rafa, who previously did not seem to hit the wall....so it is possible. But it hasn't been a block for him before.

Roger can be beaten. But that would be a big surprise if it happened. And there would be no asterisk if Roger were to win it, since Rafa got beaten in the tournament. Now, as far as that goat thing....that's the talking heads anyway. What would happen is #14, career grand slam, 7th year in a row winning a major==no pressure at Wimbledon. And Roger under no pressure is a very dangerous tiger. So, as long as form holds for him, it's all mapped out. Funny thing about form.....so Roger with pressure is human. Makes for an interesting series of matches. Especially since the other guys have to be thinking....if Rafa can be beaten on clay, in 4 sets!, then Roger certainly can.

As much as Roger would have loved to win the FO by beating Rafa, this is a dream scenario for him. He doesn't have an easy road ahead but a career grand slam is within sight, barely a week away. Everyone who's left is playing well and I wouldn't count out Soderling as a contender. He just beat the best. Rafa seemed mentally tired to me today and he didn't adjust to Soderling's relentless power.

If the Fed wins this thing, there will be absolutely no asterisks attached to it whatsoever. The better players have to prove they're better, and if someone else takes them out beforehand, that's par for the course. If the best available at the time lost in an earlier round throughout history, there'd be quite a few asterisks attached to quite a few titles. Trust me, I'm hoping the Fed doesn't win this because of his ego, excuses, past histrionics and snottiness....all of which I've found so unbecoming of someone who'd be considered a GOAT...but even I don't want anyone to diminish his career slam if he gets it here, just because a natural phenomenon of tournament play occurred while getting it.

I reserve asterisks for something unfair, such as the titles Steffi racked up after Monica was stabbed.

With viewing time so limited on days I work, I opted to watch the Davydenkp/Verdasco match first (more on that one later). Since it was getting late and my DVR fills up so damn fast what with 12+ hours a day of Roland Garros coverage, I assumed that Rafa would crush Soderling. So I went ahead and deleted the NBC coverage, thinking I'd just check the score upstairs on the Internet ... aaaaaaiiiiiieeeeeeeeeee!!! CRAP!! Needless to say, there is no "undelete" button on the DVR. Well, further discussionn on today's shocking result would be most welcome since I blew my chance to see the biggest tennis upset in the last five years

Not that I regret watching the Nikolai/Fernando match, but obviously it plays second fiddle to the big event of the day. Anyway, for those who did watch it, wow, Davydenko went into his "Psycho Kolya" mode for a while there. For the first two sets, Nikolai was hugging the baseline so tight, taking the ball so early, and almost toying with Fernando. In a burst of frustration, Fernando looked at his box and started making sarcastic "ping-pong" gestures, because that's the game ND was playing out there. In the 3rd, Fernando started playing better while Nikolai stepped off the pedestal to some degree. But Fernando played comme merde on all his break point chances in the 3rd set and then made a bunch of UEs to lose serve in the 9th game. Kolya served it out easily.

Holy sh*t, talk about an unpredictable Roland Garros! The two most consistent claycourters of the 2009 season are out before the QFs!! Normally I would say that Roger is a lock to win this thing, but something tells me that we still have some surprises in store.

Well Roger may need a miracle...he dropped the first two sets to Haas 7-6 and 7-5.

Did someone call for a miracle?

Actually, when i left to run an errand, Roger was two sets down, and i prayed when i got back (about an hour later) that they'd still be playing. they were, and Roger was up 5-2 in the fifth. what the hell happened???

As far as I can tell, at 3-4 in the third, 30-40 down, Roger hit a nice serve, Tommy a bit of a short reply, and Roger an inside-out forehand winner that pretty much got him going. Tommy started second-guessing himself and it was all over but the crying. Only 2 more games for Haas after that.

Geez, I'll bet that was interesting to watch. I'd be all over the map, first with despair and then relief. I wonder ...was the Fed nervous, since we are all looking to him now? I still think Murray has the goods.

You might have been right yesterday, Snicks. When Nadal went out the expectation, and hopefulness, have turned up the spotlight on Federer. And he's probably feeling it with every swing, and that's why he got down early in this match. He really was serving well. Most of his errors were early. Once Haas blew the break point in the third, as tealsee said, he mentally went away and Federer fought his way back into it..

Yeah, yeah. Another close 'escape' for Fed. I think he's doing it on purpose to get more match practice in before facing the top players. Haas was never going to win that match. He took Fed to five sets at the AO '06 too, and he was never close to winning that one either.

Nice to see Del Potro go out and take care of business, as well as not getting discouraged after dropping the second-set tiebreaker. He didn't face a single break point the entire match, I believe, which is quite a feat on clay. He should be favourite against the fading Robredo, but Tommy can kind of be a tenacious opponent who wins when you least expect him to do so. I hope for the sake of this upset-happy event the No 5 seed is into the semis, even if he will be a sitting duck for Fed for the twentieth time in a row (and second Slam running).

Roddick and Monfils will almost certainly be playing three consecutive days thanks to Je-lame-a's flop leading to their late start. Andy's matches usually go quickly but I'd be surprised if either man won it in straights. It's a tough match-up for him because Gael is a class returner on clay - Karlovic didn't hit a single ace against him when they played at one of the clay Masters events last year! (Contrast that to 55 aces against clay against a player who was one of the best returners in his day, Hewitt.)

I think Murray is probably the guy who would give Federer the most trouble. He has an excellent head-to-head against him and I think Roger's conspicuous arrogance toward Murray--he's taunted Murray for not bringing at the majors and even criticized his play after LOSING to him--could bite him, even on clay.

However, Murray's half of the draw is far more dangerous, even with Nadal gone. Davydenko has been to the semis several times before here (and made only SIX errors in his last match) and Gonzalez is playing lights out stuff so far (181 winners vs 76 unforced errors). I'm still not confident Murray can get there.

On Fed's side, Roddick has looked good but had a very soft draw. Since it doesn't appear Monfils' knee is hindering him, I have to favor LeMonf in that match. And I think LeMonf can definitely challenge Federer--if the Fed's tight, if he gets fazed by not getting the usual fan adulation, he could lose that match. Del Potro on the other hand has looked mentally unglued by the Fed in past matches. I'm still bullish on him long-term, but his attitude against the top players needs to improve. As to Tommy R., the last real claycourter remaining in the draw, he might get by JMDP, but I can't see him threatening the Fed.

BTW, it's not four years since somebody other than Nadal beat Fed in a slam. Djokovic did it in Australia last year. Of course, that's moot, since he's out to.

Federer can beat Haas in his sleep. That theory is worth entertaining.

When I say 'may the best man win', I mean I don't have strong feelings who wins, Urban Suede, so we don't disagree that much. I prefer Murray off court to Federer, but this is tennis, and Murray needs to grow up and stay solid to be worth rooting for.

As for the rest of the remaining field, if Davydenko made the final, what's his price? JMDP is slowly but surely improving and maybe peaking, but his game is quite unimaginative in comparison to Federer.

I will say this: Soderling deserves credit for psyching out Rafael Nadal. No one else has done that. Right down to leaving the court before Rafa to avoid any kind of deference to Rafa's streak (sealed with a thumbs up). I don't like it, but I have to admit it worked.

Nadal got played. For him to claim that this isn't one of his worst defeats, if not the worst, is denial. (I'm guessing because he and Soderling dislike each other, and he's still stuck in that mindset.) It's going to be interesting to see how and if he rebounds.

I made that exception in my original post - 2H left it out of the quoted portion. And as I jokingly said, Courier would undoubtedly pop up to tell us hysterically that that loss doesn't count - MONO!

The way it's shaken up, my ideal semis would look like: Davydenko v Murray, Del Potro v Monfils. We'd have a brand new Slam winner, each of whom has come close here before (Davy and Monf) or is on the way up (Murray and DelPo). This surely means I'm going to get Soderling v Gonzalez, Robredo v Federer. Pfffft. I can live with that scenario though. Gonzo's been at this stage of a Slam before, Soderling conquered the four-time champion, Federer is the three-time runner-up, and Robredo ... well, Roland Garros demands at least one Spaniard in the semis, doesn't it?

Oops-sorry about that.

As to Soderling. Yep, he deserves a great deal of credit, and not just for a psych-out. He did a tremendous job of staying on the attack, even on his second serve, and it's not that uncommon for Rafa to feed a fair number of short balls. The problem is you need to be able to kill those balls consistently, and Soderling did that. He's helped by being tall and having a two-handed backhand, but he still played very well. He's a good player; I've touted him to do well at slams before and he's never come through. I wouldn't have expected the French to be his spot, but I always thought it strange that he'd never made it past the 3rd round of a major.

I still think he's going to have a tough time against Davydenko, but you never know.

JC, something I was surprised to find out this morning: Soderling has beaten Davydenko both times they've played on clay.

If the scoreline is any indication, Monfils is toying with Roddick. Which makes me wonder:

Facing fellow home crowd favorite Federer, will Gael Monfils play to win, or will he play to entertain?

Ugh. I'm not a huge fan of Roddick, but Monfils is acting like such a brat, i'm hoping Andy can somehow pull the third set off so they have to come back tomorrow.
oh well, he didn't. maybe Roger can spank the brat.

Not to make an excuse for Roddick because I'd feel this way about anybody but they never should have even started a best of 5 set men's match for a spot in the Qfs at that hour knowing they'd only have 2 hours of quality light plus 45 minutes of questionable light. Or they should have moved it to Chatrier as soon as del Potro-Tsonga ended and they could have started almost an hour earlier.

LOL @ John McEnroe thinking Roddick actually had a shot at the title. Please. This is the first time the prick even got to the second round at the French and now all the sudden he needs to be part of the conversation as the winner. Yes, Nadal's loss opened up the field but it meant nothing where Roddick was concerned. He's out as expected. Nice to see Monfils straight set him.

Phew re: Federer today. I think this may be the match that can ultimately help Federer win this championship. Navrat wondered last night if Federer would play better or worse with Nadal's loss. I mean the guy didn't really do anything wrong in the first set on his serve until the tiebreak. But, his returning was abysmal and after two sets down and knowing mental midgit Haas, I wasn't really THAT nervous. I figured Fed would find a way to pull this out. Being so close to defeat and coming through could really help him going forward. Its been said by the commentators but it really needs to be highlighted what an amazing run Federer has had. 19 straight grand slam semifinals made. He hasn't had a day the way Nadal had at a grand slam, on his favorite surface, as the #1 player, as defending champion. So once again we see how spectacular Federer is. Glad he made it through and he's still my pick.

I was watching the Monfils-Roddick match via ESPN360 so the audio wasn't perfect but at some point early in the third set, did Andy yell something to Monfils about being cocky? I want to say it was after his serve was broken AGAIN to start the third so he was already butt hurt because his one weapon goes for shit these days. I just think it's funny, if he did say something, that Roddick comment on anyone's cocky attitude...he should be the last person to say anything.

As far as the commentators (PMac, especially) go...any chance they get to praise the dwindling status of American tennis, they'll take it. It's kinda pathetic seeing as though the highest quality of opponent he'd faced before today was Marc Giquel and they were so anxious to talk about his attitude had changed about clay and how he was adapting. Give me a break.

I think the winner of the French will come out of the Fed-Monfils quarter. As always, I'm rooting for Roger but if he comes out as flat as he did against Haas (who is aging very nicely, btw), Monfils won't have a similar letdown especially with the crowd behind him. I was hoping for a Fed-Tsonga final but JW crapped out today. Gonzo-Murray should be good viewing tomorrow.

OK, I'm done...

I'm surprised how seriously people have been taking Tsonga on clay. I saw on one site people were talking him up as a potential French open champion and I just can't see it. I think his game is very poorly suited to clay. I thought he did very well to get past Juan Monaco and was a clear underdog to Del Potro and would be against Monfils, too.

Of course, i wouldn't say Soderling's game was well suited to clay either, but at least he was playing well coming into the tournament...

I think this match showed the pressure Federer is feeling because Nadal is out. The fact he was playing well and still down two sets to love tells us that. Haas is 31 years old, and is better on hard courts than clay. That Federer struggled as mightily as he did early today shows us that his racquet is getting heavier to lift with each round. The world expects him to win now. And many many people hope he wins. That's a lot of weight. And Federer feels things in general, and when matches get tight, he's shown us often he gets tight too.

The truth is even though Federer's been winning here he hasn't looked especially great doing so, except in the first round. His other three matches have been a lot of work. In fact, he's had to work harder to get to the Quarters this year than he has in any of the last four years. His road to the Final in both 2006 & 2007 consisted of one 4-set match (although in his 2006 Semi-Final he caught a break when Nalbandian was on his was to a straight set win over Federer and then had to quit when his back went out). In 2008 he reached the Final having to play three 4-setters in six matches, and those were against nobody ranked inside the Top 25. This year in his first four matches, three of them (to #45 Acasuso; #35 Mathieu and # 63 Haas) have all gone to either four or five sets already, and against Haas & Acasuso he was within a few inches of going home. Year after year, he's having to work more and more to keep going as deep as he used to. And his next match will pose more than a few problems for him.

Monfils has played some of the best looking tennis of the tournament. Last year here he was ranked #81 and got the to the Semis to face Federer, losing 7-5 in the fourth set. But that was then. Monfils is now ranked #11, and his work with Roger Rasheed has been rewarded with some terrific results, like beating Nadal in Doha this year prior to the Australian, and his win over Roddick today. Two Top Ten scalps in 2009 for him. It's not the kind of match Federer should come in to when he's not playing Federer-like tennis, and to this point he hasn't been. So his QF to Monfils will be a much tougher match than it would have been for him a year or two ago. It's a 50-50 proposition for him to get through a match against someone who's playing as well as Monfils.

Should Federer dig deep and get through, the match is likely to be another long one of 4 or 5 sets. And maybe not so much Del Potro in a Semi, but Robredo could prove troublesome for him again. Tommy's accomplished on clay. They met in a 2007 French QF, where Robredo actually took a set from Federer at 6-1. It could end up being another grueling match for him to get through, if he does. It's not exactly ideal to come to the French Final having a string of long 4 and 5 Set matches behind you, especially when nobody left in the top half has had to work anywhere near that hard. Worse still for Federer is for him to reach the Final and have to face Murray, who's not only not afraid of him, but has been playing some pretty good looking tennis on his worst surface.

Going into the French Tsonga had scarcely won five ATP-level matches on clay. Soderling's played well on clay before.

Tsonga feeds off a crowd, but the fact that he was around to even be talked about at the start of the second week speaks to the fact that the courts are playing faster and rewarding flatter hitting (ie Soderling; Davydenko, and Great Clay Hope Andy Roddick).

It's kinda funny how little notice has been taken of this shift, considering all the recent snarky outcry on tennis boards about "blue clay' hardcourts and petitions etc. about Wimbledon's grass.