ATP

Roland Garros: Ernests Gulbis stuns Roger Federer in the 4th round

Published

10 years ago

01/06/2014

TENNIS ROLAND GARROS – Gulbis ignored all talk about this match and clearly stated that he had a game plan and felt capable of beating the all-time major winner. For those who might have earlier seen this talk as cockiness and over confidence are now forced to commend the Latvian on his convincing dismissal of Federer in 5 sets 6-7 7-6 6-2 4-6 6-3. Cordell Hackshaw

Interviews, Results, OOP, Draws from the Roland Garros

When the men’s draw came out, many thought that the potential Roger Federer (4) v Ernest Gulbis (18) match up had the makings of an upset. Some doubted that Gulbis, known for his dramatic flare ups on the court, would be “mature” enough to score such a huge upset at this major tournament. However, Gulbis ignored all talk about this match and clearly stated that he had a game plan and felt capable of beating the all-time major winner. For those who might have earlier seen this talk as cockiness and over confidence are now forced to commend the Latvian on his convincing dismissal of Federer in 5 sets 6-7 7-6 6-2 4-6 6-3. Gulbis summed up this win by saying, “[F]or my confidence and just for me as a tennis player, a fiveset win over Roger Federer, it’s really big…If you see the rankings, you see everything. It’s a big upset. It’s a big win for me.”

Federer’s fans would have noticed that he was off; well off from the start in fact. Throughout much of the match, Federer was playing from the back of the court and Gulbis was the one dictating play. Federer would later state, “[I]t was a tough match and I’m disappointed I lost it…I’m not mad, but I’m not happy, either. Because I missed too many opportunities. I did not play like I wanted to play.” Federer began making careless errors in the opening service game giving Gulbis an easy hold. Gulbis too sensed this general unease about the Federer game today; “Yeah, but he’s also a human being, you know…he’s Roger Federer, but he also gets tight.” Federer up 40-15 in the 5^th game, missed an easy overhead to be broken but he broke back to remain on serve 3-3. There were no more breaks of serve and the set was forced into a tiebreaker. Federer was only slightly better there than Gulbis but it was enough to take the 1^st set 7-6(5).

Federer missed another easy overhead to be broken in the first game of the 2^nd set but broke back immediately. He seemed to have raised the level of game as he began constructing points more effectively on court and broke Gulbis again in the 8^th game to serve for it 5-3. Mr. Federer was up 40-0; triple set points in hand and then simply collapsed. Gulbis spoke of this moment later on: “There I was lucky, I have to say. I was really lucky then. In the second set he had a smash and I guess the place, the place where he could…I don’t know, I guess I just didn’t move a lot. I stayed in one place. He smashed right onto me. So, yeah, that was a bit lucky.” Gulbis seized upon this distracted Federer and broke him to stay alive in the set. Federer barely managed to get it to a tiebreaker where he lost it 3 points to 7. Gulbis clearly had the momentum and took that with him into the 3^rd set where he simply dominated the 2009 French Open champion.

Within an hour time, Federer moved from having points for a 7-6 6-3 lead to being down 7-6 6-7 2-6. It seemed almost like a doppelgänger was on court pretending to be Federer. He even went for a showboating shot between the leg winner. However, Gulbis was not allowing any trick shots at his expense on his watch. Of all the sets in the match, the 3^rd set was the most damning for Federer. Despite getting 80% first serves in, he only won 60% of the points and 20% on his second serve. He committed 12 errors to 10 winners. He had no chances to break the Gulbis’s serve which was in peak performance at this point in the match. Gulbis, on the other hand won 71% of his first serve points and 83% behind his 2^nd serve. He had 9 winners but only 2 errors. He was 2/2 on break points. “Ernests was also doing a good job of keeping the pace up on his serve and also trying to play aggressive with his backhand from the baseline,” Federer stated.

In the 4^th set, vintage Federer appeared. He was definitely constructing points far better than the previous sets as well as getting deeper more penetrating shots into the court. He would break Gulbis twice to serve for the set 5-2. However, Gulbis took a medical time out at this time for “lower back” issues and went off court for several minutes. He returned rejuvenated. He went on a 8-1 points run breaking Federer and holding serve in the process. Federer looked befuddled and flat during this run. The crowd and viewers suspected poor gamesmanship on the part of the Latvian. Gulbis explained this seemingly ‘unusual phenomenon’, “I don’t like to see it that way. I like to see I went for my shots and I made winners. If you see those two games, I was really aggressive on my return, and I just went for the shots.” Federer eventually closed out the set 6-4 and forced the match to a decisive 5^th set.

The 5^th set would prove not to be an epic thriller as it was between Andy Murray and Philipp Kohlschreiber earlier on the day for it was “done and dusted” in the opening game when Federer was broken. He never recovered from this blow. Gulbis remained solid on serve winning 93% of his first serve in the set, never facing a break point in the set. Federer’s backhand went wide down match point and with that, Gulbis goes through to the quarterfinal with a 6-7 7-6 6-2 4-6 6-3 victory. Gulbis finally revealed his game plan for the Federer game: “I had more or less the clear game plan, you know. I had to play on his backhand, you know. And from backhand he makes these unforced errors.” Gulbis equals his best ever performance in a major as he made it to the quarterfinals here in Paris back in 2008.

Related Topics:ernests gulbis Roger Federer roland Garros 2014

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ATP

Rafael Nadal To Play Laver Cup In Berlin

Published

20 hours ago

22/04/2024

Adam Addicott

Rafael Nadal has eased speculation that he might be retiring from the sport soon after signing on to play in the Laver Cup later this year.

The 22-time Grand Slam champion is the latest player to join the line-up for this year’s team competition which features Europe taking on the rest of the world over three days. It will be Nadal’s fourth appearance in the competition and his first since 2022. He competed in the inaugural edition of the event back in 2017 alongside co-founder Roger Federer.

“I am very happy to be playing Laver Cup in Berlin for Team Europe,” Nadal said in a press release. “I have some really special memories from my Laver Cup experiences, including all the emotions from London two years ago playing alongside Roger for the last time.”

Nadal’s decision to play comes amid questions about his future in the sport. The former world No.1 has previously indicated that this year could be his last on the Tour but he has stated that no decision has been made. In recent months he has been sidelined from action due to injury setbacks and has only been able to play in two tournaments so far this year.

“At this stage in my career I really want to go out there and make the most of every opportunity I am given,” he explains.
“Teaming up is always an incredible experience and I have always enjoyed it, the competition is different and exciting. I’m looking forward to going to Berlin and helping Team Europe win back the Laver Cup.”

Other European players confirmed to be playing are Carlos Alcaraz, Daniil Medvedev and Alexander Zverev. Meanwhile, Alex de Minaur, Taylor Fritz and Tommy Paul have agreed to play for Team World. This year’s event will be held in Belin at the Uber Arena between September 20-22.

The Laver Cup was inspired by golf’s Ryder Cup. It was co-founded by Federer’s Team8 management company (which he formed with agent Tony Godsick), businessman Jorge Paulo Lemann and Tennis Australia. In 2019 it became an official ATP sanction event and now has a place on the official calendar.

Nadal is set to return to competitive action at the Madrid Masters which he has won on five previous occasions. He has been drawn to play teenage wild card Darwin Blanch in the first round. If he wins, Nadal will then play Alex de Minaur who knocked him out of the Barcelona Open last week.

ATP

Carlos Alcaraz In Doubt For Madrid Open Title Defence

Published

7 days ago

16/04/2024

Adam Addicott

Carlos Alcaraz admits that he is not certain if he will be ready in time to play at next week’s Madrid Masters.

The 20-year-old is yet to play a clay tournament in Europe due to a forearm injury which ruled him out of both Monte Carlo and Barcelona. He hurt his right arm whilst training shortly before the Monte Carlo event began.

It is the latest in a series of injury issues that has affected Alcaraz throughout his young career. Since the start of 2023, he has also been derailed by issues with his abdominal, hamstring, post-traumatic arthritis in his left hand and muscular discomfort in his spine.

“My feeling isn’t right, but it is what it is. Now I’m fully focused on recovery and I have a little more time,” Alcaraz told reporters in Barcelona on Monday.
“My goal is to try and go to the Madrid Open, but at the moment nothing is certain. I was given specific recovery times and I’ve respected them, but I haven’t felt good. I don’t want to get ahead of myself.
“I can’t say I’ll be 100% in Madrid, but that’s my intention. We’ll train and do everything we can so that the feelings improve so I can play a match … It’s also a very special tournament for me.”

Alcaraz has won the past two editions of the Madrid Open, which is classed as a Masters 1000 event. In 2022 he defeated Alexander Zverev in the final and then 12 months later he beat Jan-Lennard Struff in the title match.

The setback comes after what has been a steady start to the year for Alcaraz who has reached the quarter-finals or better in four out of five tournaments played. He successfully defended his title in Indian Wells and then reached the semi-finals in Miami.

Should he not play in Madrid, it is likely that the Spaniard will lose his No.2 spot to Jannik Sinner who is just over 100 points behind him in the standings. He will still have the chance to play a clay-court event before the French Open with Rome taking place early next month.

ATP

Olympic Qualification Is Not the Only Goal For French Veteran Gael Monfils

Published

2 weeks ago

10/04/2024

Adam Addicott

Gael Monfils (image via https://twitter.com/atptour)

Gael Monfils admits he doesn’t have too many years left on the Tour but this doesn’t mean his targets are any less ambitious.

The 37-year-old has enjoyed a rapid rise up the rankings over the past 12 months following battles with injury. At his lowest, he was ranked 394th last May but is now in 40th position. As a result, he is closing on securing a place in the Olympic Games which is being held in his home country of France for the first time since 1924. The tennis event will be staged at Roland Garros.

“When I was 400, I was thinking the Olympics would be great, but it’s going to be tough,” Monfils told reporters on Tuesday.
“There are younger players playing well. If I don’t qualify, I don’t mind. It will just mean I’m very close to the ranking I want to be. That ranking will allow me to find another goal.”

Monfils is already a three-time Olympian but has never won a medal at the event. He reached the quarter-finals of the singles tournament twice in 2008 and 2016.

Another goal of Frenchmen is the Wimbledon championships which concludes just three weeks before the Olympics begin. The proximity of these tournaments will be a challenge to all players who will be going from playing on clay to grass and then back to clay again.

“I really want to go and play Wimbledon. I don’t have so many Wimbledons to play in the future. The Olympics is one goal, not the only goal.” Monfils states.
“My dream is of course to be part of the Olympics. I played three times at the Olympics. I’d like to be there again. But I also really want to do well in Wimbledon this year. To reach my goal, it has to be including Wimbledon.” He added.

Monfils is currently playing at the Monte Carlo Masters where he beat Aleksandar Vukic in his opening match. In the next round, he will take on Daniil Medvedev in what will be their first meeting since 2022. He leads their head-to-head 2-1.

Medvedev has openly spoken about his roller-coaster relationship with playing on the clay. He admits it is not his favourite surface but how much of a factor could this be in his upcoming clash with Monfils?

“Of course, it’s not his favourite one, but he’s still Daniil Medvedev, and whatever the surface, it’s always very complicated to play him,” Monfils concludes.