Week 20: Madrid Masters [Blanco]; Busan [Langley]; Sarasota [E.Henson]

[SirBloody Idiot]

Mutua Madrileña Madrid Open II - Doubles
PTA Masters 1000 - Thursday (2nd Round) - Madrid, Spain - Clay (Red)

• Henry Charles and Spas Delev have failed in their bid for a quarter final spot; going down in a tight one to Ion Andueza and Sanchez Emelio. In a fine performance, the makeshift duo put together a spirited display but lacked the team polish the Spanish pairing had who secured a 6-4, 7-5 win. Charles and Delev combined well and may consider a Roland Garros combination, but it was Andueza and Emelio who advanced to a quarter final matchup with Jefferson Drake and Martti Korpinen. The fourth seeds put some recent poor form behind them with a 6-1, 6-3 thrashing of Aussies David Champion and Toby Brookes.

• Second seeds Heath Davis and Jojo Mustard will meet Antonio Bachunelli and Jean-Alain Depuis in a rematch of their Rome final on Friday following a straight sets win over Denis Isaev and Pierre L'Estrange. The West CWLanders faced their biggest test in a while in the form of the Franco-Belarusian duo and found themselves trailing 3-5 in the first set. But a composed performance allowed them to take ten of the last eleven games to secure a good win 7-5, 6-1 and another meeting with Bachunelli and Depuis.

• Finally, Rob Bowenburg and Jarkko Maxum advanced to the quarters but will need to lift their game considerably if they are to beat top seeds Hugh James and Ralph Robinson. The CWLanders expected an easy win against continental allocations Donovan Burbach and Ben Turner but were taken deep in both sets by the determined Americans. Eventually they won 7-6(5), 7-5, but face the world's best pairing who finally turned it on in their match. After an indifferent year, the top seeds made a statement that they intend to defend their Roland Garros crown with a 6-0, 6-0 demolition of Artem Krohmal and Merab Shvelidze.

• Seeded players out:
  
  Sandro Bachunelli &
  
  Hicham Hadir.

 

[SirBloody Idiot]

Busan Open Challenger Tennis II
PTA Challenger Tour - Quarter Finals - Busan, Korea Republic - Hard

• Rick Langley has won the battle of the West CWLanders as he booked a place in the semi finals in Busan with a come-from-behind win over Brett Read. It was only the second set which separated Read from the eighth seed in a largely even contest characterised by long rallies and some conservative tennis for the most part. After Read took the first set 7-5 after claiming his third service break, Langley turned it on in a dynamic second set display as he took it 6-1 in just over half an hour. A shell-shocked Read needed time to compose himself in the third set and quickly found himself in big trouble at 0-3. However the veteran found his feet with a fortuitous break of serve courtesy to an ill-timed double fault from Langley. With the score at 5-6, Read led 30-0 and looked likely to take a big run of momentum into the deciding tiebreaker. However in a dramatic turnaround Langley played some sensational tennis to claim four points in a row and in the process the match to book a semi 5-7, 6-1, 7-5 and leave his compatriot reeling after a massive missed opportunity.

• At least one West CWLander will be in the final after Scotland Rivers finally announced his presence as top seed with a 6-0, 6-4 mauling of Kim Roger Olsen. Rivers had ambled his way through his two matches so far, but faced a man who had dropped a set in both of his matches this week. Making a statement, Rivers was dynamite in the first set as he dominated the Norwegian in just twenty-four minutes with clean hitting and his finest serving of the week. Leading 4-0 in the second, Rivers missed a chance to take a double bagel and despite a late fightback coasted to his straight sets win to go a win away from the final.

• In the other semi, Korea's Lee Inmin meets Dieter Bonhof of Germany.

• Seeded players out: Tu Haifeng.

 

[Magrat Garlick]

Oops. Well done Jojo

 

[morgieb]

At least I lost to a fellow CWLander.

 

[SirBloody Idiot]

Mutua Madrileña Madrid Open II - Singles
PTA Masters 1000 - Friday (Quarter Finals) - Madrid, Spain - Clay (Red)

• Jojo Mustard put up a brave performance, but was ultimately beaten by World No. 1 Jason Hall in straight sets. Mustard, whose ranking with rise to World No. 15 after this week, matched the American top seed right throughout the match but failed to provide enough break point opportunities on the Hall service. Hall, meanwhile, created thirteen break points in his 6-4, 6-4 win and though he converted just three of them it was enough to overcome the West CWLander in straight sets. Hall now meets eighth seed Rasmus Olesen who beat Patrick Pascaul 7-5, 7-6(4).

• Neither CWLander will appear in the semi finals as Jefferson Drake missed a golden opportunity to test himself against the best clay courter in the world; stunned by World No. 49 Dmitry Orlov. Orlov made it three straight two-set wins by completely outclassing the wayward fourth seed 6-2, 6-3 with some sublime hitting against a cavalcade of unforced errors from Drake. Drake now has the doubles and Nice to get himself primed for Roland Garros, while Orlov meets second seed Daniel Páez Blanco who beat Carlo Amato 6-4, 6-1.

• Seeded players out:
  
  Jefferson Drake;
  
  Jojo Mustard;
  
  Rasmus Olesen.

 

[Mister Wright]

Bummer. However, bonus with a very good seeding in the French Open, and hopefully can get the doubles title with Davis.

 

[SirBloody Idiot]

Mutua Madrileña Madrid Open II - Doubles
PTA Masters 1000 - Friday (Quarter Finals) - Madrid, Spain - Clay (Red)

• Second seeds Heath Davis and Jojo Mustard have eased through their rematch with Antonio Bachunelli and Jean-Alain Depuis as they recorded another straight sets victory. The West CWLanders were on the money right from the start as they broke early and combined beautifully to take the first set 6-3. They never let up as Bachunelli and Depuis failed to overcome the high quality doubles unit as Davis and Mustard advanced to a semi final match against Hayden and Ross Onwye 6-1, 6-3.

• Fourth seeds Jefferson Drake and Martti Korpinen had it a bit harder in their three-set win over ninth seeded locals Ion Andueza and Sanchez Emelio. Both teams had produced some good results this week, and in a see-sawing affair it was little surprise that the match went to a match tiebreaker. Drake and Korpinen saved their best until last as they got the jump on the Spaniards and secured a semi final spot to reverse their ordinary form as of late 6-2, 3-6, [10-5].

• They'll meet World No. 1 pairing Hugh James and Ralph Robinson as the Americans survived a mighty shock against Rob Bowenburg and Jarkko Maxum. The CWLanders blew a 7-3 match tiebreak lead after stealing the second set and in the process dropped seven points in a row to a top seeded team who could not believe their luck. Many of those were through unforced errors at the net as James and Robinson stumbled into the semis 6-4, 3-6, [10-7] and left Bowenburg and Maxum disappointed at a substantial choke.

• Seeded players out:
  
  Ion Andueza &
  
  Sanchez Emelio.

 

[Mister Wright]

We must have faced the Onwye brothers a few times now. Pretty sure we have a winning record against them.

 

[dontcloseyoureyes]

Standard Drake choke. Hopefully I can keep going in the doubles, been a lean year.

 

[HeathDavisSpeed]

Dammit. Need those Yanks to lose if we're going to take the #1 ranking.

 

[SirBloody Idiot]

Busan Open Challenger Tennis II
PTA Challenger Tour - Semi Finals - Busan, Korea Republic - Hard

• Eighth seed Rick Langley will compete in his fourth Challenger final of the year after a hardfought win over top seed Scotland Rivers in Busan. In one of his biggest career victories, the World No. 117 outlasted his 52nd ranked compatriot in a highly entertaining three-set affair. After Germany's Dieter Bonhof earlier made light work of local hope Lee Inmin 6-4, 6-3, the Korean crowd were entertained by the two CWLanders. But it was Langley who surprised everyone by clawing back from a break down in the third set to tame Rivers with some classy hitting in a 6-4, 5-7, 6-4 win.

• Seeded players out:
  
  Scotland Rivers.

 

[SirBloody Idiot]

Mutua Madrileña Madrid Open II
PTA Masters 1000 - Saturday (Semi Finals) - Madrid, Spain - Clay (Red)

• Daniel Páez Blanco will meet sixth seed Rasmus Olesen in tomorrow's final with Madrid robbed of a showdown between the world's top two players. Blanco showed why he is an overwhelming favourite to claim another French Open title as he literally wiped the floor with Dmitry Orlov in a 6-1, 6-0 thrashing, while Olesen ousted top seed Jason Hall 6-2, 3-6, 6-3.

• Seeded players out:
  
  Jason Hall.

• Fourth seeds Jefferson Drake and Martti Korpinen failed to convert key opportunities as they fell to a straight sets loss to Hugh James and Ralph Robinson in the semi finals of the doubles draw. For the second match in a row, James and Robinson pulled themselves out of an awkward situation as they came from a break down on two occasions in the first set to secure it in a tiebreak. After their sluggish start, the world's top doubles pairing finally found their rhythm and took advantage of some less-than-stellar volleying from the Australian Open finalists as they surged ahead 5-1. Drake and Korpinen had break points when James and Robinson served for the match, but could not convert them as the top seeds moved to the final 7-6(5), 6-2.

• Tomorrow's final will decide whether Jojo Mustard moves to World No. 1 on the doubles entry list rankings after he and Heath Davis survived a thrilling second set tiebreaker to beat Moroccan rivals Hayden and Ross Onwye. The pairs have been involved in some entertaining meetings in the past, but it was the second seeds who struck first blood as they took the first set after an entertaining exchange with all four men up at the net. They looked home and hosed at 5-3, but there was a twist in the tale as the Moroccans broke back and took the set to a tiebreaker. There both teams had a number of chances to take the set, but after five match points were squandered Davis and Mustard secured a finals berth with a 6-3, 7-6(12) win including a 14-12 tiebreak scoreline.

• Seeded players out:
  
  Jefferson Drake &
  
  Martti Korpinen;
  
  Hayden Onwye &
  
  Ross Onwye.

 

[HeathDavisSpeed]

Yus! Solid win against a decent team there... Now to help El Mustardo take that coveted #1 ranking for the Wessies!

 

[SirBloody Idiot]

Busan Open Challenger Tennis II
PTA Challenger Tour - Final - Busan, Korea Republic - Hard

• Rick Langley has claimed his second Challenger title of the season with a hard fought three-set win over Germany's Dieter Bonhof. Knowing a victory would put him just a handful of points outside of the top hundred, Langley produced a fantastic display in a see-sawing match as the dangerous German produced plenty of highlights with his compact and powerful style. Langley held a good four or five inches on his opponent, but only won the first set through some fantastic defensive play against the punching forehand drives from the dimunitive Bonhof. Those groundstrokes enabled the unseeded German to take the second set 6-4, and send the match to a deciding third set. Both players had early opportunities to break, but it was Langley who took his as he cooly took the title 7-6(7), 4-6, 6-4 to move to No. 104 in the world.

• Seeded players out: None.

 

[SirBloody Idiot]

Mutua Madrileña Madrid Open II - Singles
PTA Masters 1000 - Sunday (Finals Day) - Madrid, Spain - Clay (Red)

• Sixth seed Rasmus Olesen has let a golden opportunity to become the second player to beat Daniel Páez Blanco on clay as he blew a two-set-to-love lead; capitulating in five tense sets in front of a fiercely patriotic crowd in Madrid. That crowd was stunned into silence as the clay court legend Blanco misfired completely after a dominant week as the Dane took a 6-2, 6-3 lead. But the World No. 2, who had dropped just one set before the final, fought back strongly and showed his undoubted clay class as he powered his way into a fifth set through sheer brute force. It was clear then that Olesen was done as he wilted under the strain of an almost Davis Cup like atmosphere and the second best player in the world hitting his straps; Blanco mowing through him in the decider to claim a hat trick of titles 2-6, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-1.

• Seeded players out:
  
  Rasmus Olesen.

 

[SirBloody Idiot]

Mutua Madrileña Madrid Open II - Doubles
PTA Masters 1000 - Sunday (Finals Day) - Madrid, Spain - Clay (Red)

• Jojo Mustard will be named the No. 1 ranked doubles player this Monday after he and Heath Davis stormed to their third title as a team this season with a straight sets victory over Hugh James and Ralph Robinson. In a battle of the top two doubles pairings in the world, Davis and Mustard were spoiling for a scrap early as both teams exchanged breaks of serves to be level at 3-3. After letting an early break slip, the French Open champs were stunned into submission by the second seeds who claimed another break of service to lead 5-3. While Davis failed to serve out the set, James gave the Westerners three set points with a badly timed double fault and it was Mustard who pounced with a roaring forehand into the tramlines.

The second set promised more of the same as both Mustard and Robinson served out to love, but the promise was quickly shattered as Davis and Mustard left the Americans in their wake. There was to be no match tiebreaker as they secured five straight games to snatch the doubles title 6-4, 6-1 and allow Mustard to become the first CWLand player to make it to the number one ranking on either board.

• Seeded players out:
  
  Hugh James &
  
  Ralph Robinson.

 

[SirBloody Idiot]

Congratulations to Rick Langley for some fine consistent tennis being rewarded with a career high ranking. A top notch player for the future. Also, with Mustard shooting up to No. 1 in the doubles rankings we now have the top two teams having a seeding score of 5 (1+4 and 2+3). What this means for French Open seeding I have nfi at this point, but at a guess I'd say Mustard/Davis get the top seed.

Amazingly, they've gone eight matches without dropping a set in doubles play. Last defeat came to Machado/Rodrígues at Miami where they blew a first set bagel to lose 6-0, 3-6, [9-11].

 

[Mister Wright]

Proud as punch to take out the number one ranking. Has been a great season for Mustard. Big thanks to Davis as well who has been a great partner.

 

[HeathDavisSpeed]

Proud as punch to take out the number one ranking. Has been a great season for Mustard. Big thanks to Davis as well who has been a great partner.

Big ups to El Mustardo as well - such an excellent player. We've had an excellent run of form on the doubles court and hopefully we can continue that at Roland Garros.

 

[SirBloody Idiot]

That's also Mustard's sixth title of the season. Immense.