Getting the better of Rafael Nadal on a clay court takes some doing. At Masters 1000 level the Spaniard has won 184 matches and lost just 21 matches now one of the 21 is Diego Schwartzman. Rafa who owns 25 Masters 1000 titles on the clay courts around Europe will be heading to the French... Continue Reading →
No top player played more tennis matches in lockdown than Dominic Thiem. In a 6-8 week period the Austrian played in around 30 matches but on his first match back on the ATP tour at Cincinnati which was held in New York no one probably played worse than he did. I can't think of many... Continue Reading →
Roberto Bautista Agut has become a nightmare for top players especially Novak Djokovic beating three times and nearly a fourth in a row on a hard court. At 32 he has been playing his best tennis including multiple wins over Novak, Stan, Andy, Khachanov, Medvedev, Cilic and many other top players over the last year.... Continue Reading →
Sloane Stephens winning the US Open seems a bit of a lifetime ago now. When I saw she was up against qualifier Leylah Fernandez in Lexington I did worry for her. Sloane's last match on the tour was a convincing defeat to the Canadian teenager and it was the same result on return. Leylah Fernandez... Continue Reading →
There are performances that just stick in the mind, despite beating Roger Federer in a thrilling match at Flushing Meadows weeks before the performance of the season from Grigor Dimitrov came at the home of Cirque du Soleil in Paris last November. On route to the quarter finals at the Paris Masters he executed a... Continue Reading →
For many years Novak Djokovic has been operating at the highest level in tennis, we can wax lyrical over many shots but one shot we don't talk about too much is the drop shot. It's been there for many years, here's one from Shanghai a fair few years back. This image doesn't show the disguise... Continue Reading →
During this time off for tennis it has been a good opportunity to look back at matches and shots that have really stood out and made a difference. One shot in particular that I will begin with is one of Serena Williams'. We can only imagine what it is like playing someone like Serena. What... Continue Reading →
In 2014 Serena Williams turned up at Roland Garros as defending champion. 2013 was the first time Serena had been successful in Paris since 2002. Serena powered past home wildcard Alize Lim 6-2 6-1 but then came up against what turned out to be an incredible tough, confident and determined 20 year old Garbine Muguruza.... Continue Reading →
Adapting your game from clay to hard court can be one of the most difficult things in tennis. Dominic Thiem over the last twelve months or so has had exceptional results on the hard courts at Indian Wells, ATP Finals and London and it's simply down to his proactive character and his forehand. Dominic on... Continue Reading →
Throughout his career I have loved the game of David Goffin. He plays tennis with incredible pose and a plan with his standout shot being his backhand, down the line. A problem during his career has been injuries and consistency. He has shown he can put on a performance to beat the best but has... Continue Reading →
