Week 24: Halle; Queen's; Nottingham

[Mister Wright]

Great to get a win there in the singles. Also great to get a thumping win in the doubles as a bit of payback. Although, would have preferred to have that result in the Roland Garros final.

 

[Johnners]

Dire

 

[SirBloody Idiot]

Gerry Weber Open II
PTA World Tour 250 - Thursday (2nd Round) - Halle,

Germany - Grass

• While the mental toughness wasn't there in Paris, it was present in Hall as the second seed Sven Oxenstierna survived a tough three-set workout against Pierre L'Estrange of France. The French Open finalist led the first set 4-1, but failed to capitalise on the big chance to take an early lead as L'Estrange fought back and with the big left-hand forehand took the first set in a tiebreaker 8-6. Oxenstierna is one of the best defensive baseliners in the game, but his shotmaking ability is perhaps underrated as he matched fire with fire to take the second set 6-3. While L'Estrange was beginning to falter, his massive groundstrokes continued to cause Oxenstierna some trouble as the Westerner struggled to keep the pressure on with a failure to get in enough first serves. But his defence - coupled with some fantastic backhands off the back foot - allowed him to save break points and stay in the set before taking his big chance at 5-5 to secure the decisive break. As a top four player, he easily served out the match 6-7(8), 6-3, 7-5. He faces a different challenge next against local hope Becker Haas who prevailed in a tight three-set match against Viktor Vuriak of the Ukraine 6-2, 5-7, 7-6(3).

• In the third quarter final, defending champion Rasmus Olesen meets Jamaican sixth seed Oneil Stewart.

• Seeded players out: None.

• Third seeds Ashim Kumar and Seby Kumar were the only seeds in action in the doubles, and they won.

• Seeded players out: None.

 

[HeathDavisSpeed]

Swwwweeet. Some great wins for the CWLanders there, and a massive match against The Drake next up.

 

[dontcloseyoureyes]

I must drink my milk (vodka) to be as strong as the Davis train.

 

[roseboy64]

Done well so far.

 

[SirBloody Idiot]

AEGON Nottingham Challenge II - Singles
PTA World Tour 250 - Thursday (3rd Round) - Nottingham,

United Kingdom - Grass

• A poor start wasn't enough to stop the unseeded run of Pierre Rose as the West CWLander stormed home to beat qualifier Hau Li-an. After an impressive start to the week, Rose was caught on the back foot early as Hau came to the net regularly and broke three times en route to taking the first set 6-2. Rose's serve, which looked so lacklustre in the first, continued to be inconsistent in the second set, but it was nothing compared to Hau who failed to hold at all as the wind played havoc with his confidence. The third set was less one-sided, but only slightly so as Rose moved into the quarters 2-6, 6-1, 6-2.

• There he will meet Ishan Narang in a battle of East vs. West after Narang prevailed in a serve-a-thon against second seed Mark Harmel. The Belgian isn't really known for his serve, but was broken just once in the match as he and Narang engaged in a drab battle of the serves. In three tiebreakers, Narang needed four match points to put the second seed away in a marathon decider to advance to a showdown with Rose 6-7(1), 7-6(3), 7-6(8).

• In the West vs. East battle in the third round, Roy Daniels put in a trademark collapse as Rick Langley the third seed was all over him like the symptoms of a poorly chosen night out in Thailand. Daniels looked tired and lethargic - understandable after playing a whole two matches in three days - as he fell away from 2-2 to drop ten games on the trot. Langley was clinical as he took advantage of his many opportunities, setting up a meeting with the altogether tougher seventh seed Yevgeny Pushkov 6-2, 6-0.

• Seeded players out:
  
  Roy Daniels;
  
  Anothy Ficher;
  
  Mark Harmel;
  
  Adem Tadic.

 

[SirBloody Idiot]

AEGON Championships II
PTA World Tour 250 - Friday (Quarterfinals) - Queen's Club, London,

United Kingdom - Grass

• Third seed Jefferson Drake has survived Hurricane Heath Davis at Queens to ease into the semifinals of the prestigious grass court tournament. The World No. 8 continues his impressive start to his Wimbledon preparation by surviving a difficult quarterfinal draw; countering the big hitting Davis with some extraordinary ball-striking of his own in an entertaining contest. Davis had chances to serve for the set, but failed to get the breaks of serve he needed and ultimately was broken by the third seed who showed greater composure under pressure. Taking the first set 7-5, he got a break early in the second and did not let go of it as he sent the big man tumbling out of the singles draw 7-5, 6-3. He will have to contend with the weight of a parochial English crowd tomorrow, though, after seventh seed Henry Charles ousted defending champ Darcy Cowan 6-4, 6-3 to make his second semifinal in as many years.

• In the first semifinal, Jojo Mustard will test his mettle against the World No. 1 after smashing Atthaphol Sae-ul in straight sets. The sixth seed has been rarely troubled this week, and was in majestic form as he polaxed the Thai player 6-0, 6-2. The defining moment came at 4-2 in the second set where Mustard showed some awesome defence to keep what should have been winners in play before retrieving a drop shot to go ahead 40-0. It will be a boost to his confidence before meeting Jason Hall tomorrow after the American beat David Champion of Australia 6-3, 6-4.

• Seeded players out:
  
  David Champion;
  
  Darcy Cowan;
  
  Heath Davis.

• Second seeds Heath Davis and Jojo Mustard also picked up a semifinal spot in the doubles after coming from a set down to beat Henry Charles and Oscar Highsmith. Dropping the first set 3-6, Davis and Mustard looked like crashing out as they fell a break behind in the second set at 3-4. They broke back immediately, though, and played a dominant tiebreaker to send the match to a deciding first-to-ten point eliminator. Too good too early, the two-time Slam champs kept their week alive with a 3-6, 7-6(2), [10-4] win. They will meet fourth seeds Andrej Konc and Evgeny Maximov next.

• In the top half, defending champions Hayden Onwye and Ross Onwye meet two-time Roland Garros winners Hugh James and Ralph Robinson.

• Seeded players out:
  
  Jean-Alain Depuis &
  
  Björn Donaldson.

 

[SirBloody Idiot]

Gerry Weber Open II
PTA World Tour 250 - Friday (Quarterfinals) - Halle,

Germany - Grass

• For the second match running, second seed Sven Oxenstierna has come from a set down to easily account for local hope Becker Haas. After his compatriot Gunther Heug was bundled out earlier by Miroslav Brdar (who tomorrow meets Carlo Amato in the first semifinal), Haas was the last remaining German in the draw. The World No. 39 took the first set 6-4, but after that was humbled by the World No. 4 who eased through the next two sets in under three-quarters of an hour. In high tempo tennis, Oxenstierna benefited from a number of errors from the German and hit enough winners to send him packing quickly. The 4-6, 6-2, 6-1 win sets up a showdown with defending champion Rasmus Olesen on Saturday. Olesen also came from a set down; beating sixth seed Oneil Stewart of Jamaica 4-6, 6-1, 6-3.

• Seeded players out:
  
  Oneil Stewart.

• Following up in the doubles, there was no love for The Ox as he and Brett Read were beaten by little known German pairing David Kestenholz and Daniel Zwygart. In a tight contest, Kestenholz and Zwygart proved just too good for their fellow wildcard entrants as they advanced to the semifinals 7-6(3), 6-4.

• Seeded players out:
  
  Sanchez Emelio &
  
  Paolo Mandonna.

 

[dontcloseyoureyes]

The vodka (milk) worked wonders.

I mean, wat.

 

[HeathDavisSpeed]

Davis Train wreck.

 

[SirBloody Idiot]

AEGON Nottingham Challenge II
PTA World Tour 250 - Friday (Quarterfinals) - Nottingham,

United Kingdom - Grass

• Third seed Rick Langley has played his way into the semifinals in Nottingham with a straight sets win over Yevgeny Pushkov. In probably his most complete performance of the week, Langley took out an in form opponent who had dropped just seven games in his first two matches. Langley began the match with a break of serve, and although he gave it up soon after had no troubles in taking the first set 6-3. The second set continued in a similar fashion, only this time Pushkov was unable to break back as Langley advanced 6-3, 6-2. The convincing win sets up a semi final meeting with tenth seed Pablo Scalforo after his win over Estonia's Taavi Aleksejev. Scalforo has dropped two sets this week.

• In the Trans-CWLand clash, fifteenth seed Ishan Narang made it through to another semifinal with a good win over Pierre Rose. After his third round match went to three tiebreak sets, Narang relished a cruisy start as he claimed the first set 6-2. Rose, however, recovered from a poor start and began to find his rhythm - admittedly this was assisted by the sometimes overly defensive play from Narang on the baseline. Taking the second set 6-4, Rose had the chance to break immediately in the third at 15-40, but failed to convert either break point. Narang, meanwhile, answered with an immediate break of his own and took the set and the match 6-2, 4-6, 6-3. He now meets unseeded South African Oliver Thursfield who upset fourth seed Zbiginiew Boniek 6-3, 6-3.

• Seeded players out:
  
  Zbiginiew Boniek;
  
  Yevgeny Pushkov.

 

[SirBloody Idiot]

AEGON Championships II
PTA World Tour 250 - Saturday (Semifinals) - Queen's Club, London,

United Kingdom - Grass

• A straight sets win has put Jefferson Drake into an impressive ninth tour final after he dashed the hopes of the British crowd with a win over Henry Charles. In a tough contest between two possible Wimbledon contenders, Drake showed great resilience as he seemed to relish the scorn heaped upon him by the parochial Queens Club crowd. Down a break early in the first, the World No. 8 fought back well to take the set to a tiebreaker. In just his second tiebreaker of the week, Drake served exceptionally well and took his chances to take the breaker 7-3. The second set was just as close as the first as the two players looked rock solid on serve and neither man was broken. That was until the ninth game as Drake brought up two break points by firing a forehand straight at Charles at the net. He needed only one of them, and after a brief scare at 0-30 came back well to convert his second match point with an ace to advance to tomorrow's final. His career record is 6-2 in singles finals, and he looks tomorrow to claim his first tour title on grass.

• He will meet World No. 1 Jason Hall after the American signaled his intentions to add to his two Grand Slam titles with an impressive win over sixth seed Jojo Mustard. The West CWLander clearly has some demons to deal with as he continues to freeze against the world's top players. It plagued him in the clay season, and against Hall he was awful. Despite a charity break in the first set, Mustard was far too passive against the American whose power can sometimes be understated by many pundits. With that crisp forehand working well, Hall had no troubles in making the final 6-3, 6-1 to set up a most interesting meeting with Drake.

• Seeded players out:
  
  Henry Charles;
  
  Jojo Mustard.

• Despite a disappointing end to his singles campaign, Mustard continues his great success with Heath Davis in the doubles as the pair shot into tomorrow's final with a straight sets win over fourth seeds Andrej Konc and Evgeny Maximov. Trailing 2-5 in the second set, it looked as if the Westerners would be heading to another match tiebreaker. But the Belarusian-Slovak duo were hit by an assault from the second seeds who claimed five of the next six games to send the set to a tiebreaker. Avoiding the Russian Roulette that is a match tiebreaker, Davis and Mustard moved into the final 6-3, 7-6(4). They will meet defending champs Hayden Onwye and Ross Onwye as the third seeds ousted top seeds Hugh James and Ralph Robinson 3-6, 6-2, [11-9]. The Wimbledon finalists look intent on rectifying their shock loss last season by beginning their Season II campaign strongly.

• Seeded players out:
  
  Hugh James &
  
  Ralph Robinson;
  
  Andrej Konc &
  
  Evgeny Maximov.

 

[Mister Wright]

Disappointing to bow out in the singles, but hopefully can add another Doubles title to the trophy cabinet.

 

[dontcloseyoureyes]

Would love to beat someone ranked higher than me for once.

 

[SirBloody Idiot]

Gerry Weber Open II
PTA World Tour 250 - Saturday (Semifinals) - Halle,

Germany - Grass

• Sven Oxenstierna is through to a maiden tour final on grass after putting a stop to defending champion Rasmus Olesen's form in impressive style. The World No. 4 put in undoubtedly his best performance of the week against a high quality opponent as he cruised into the final in straight sets. Olesen struggled with his serve in gusty conditions, and his lanky frame was punished by the constant Oxenstierna onslaught. While he too had some troubles with serving consistency, he was a heck of a lot better than his Danish opponent to hand him his first loss at Halle 6-3, 6-2.

• Tomorrow he will meet eighth seed Carlo Amato who went one better than his Season I semifinal with an impressive 7-5, 4-6, 6-3 win over sixth seeded Croat Miroslav Brdar.

• Seeded players out:
  
  Miroslav Brdar;
  
  Rasmus Olesen.

• In tomorrow's doubles final, third seeds Ashim Kumar and Seby Kumar go in as favourites as they meet Belgian duo Roel Hervelle and Yves Parmentier.

• Seeded players out: None.

 

[SirBloody Idiot]

AEGON Nottingham Challenge II
PTA World Tour 250 - Saturday (Semifinals) - Nottingham,

United Kingdom - Grass

• Fifteenth seed Ishan Narang is through to the final of the Nottingham Challenge after a straight sets win over South Africa's Oliver Thursfield. The World No. 126 played well for the most part against a lively opponent as he fired down eleven aces to keep Thursfield from breaking serve. While the match wasn't the most enthralling contest (even at this level), Narang did his best to keep a modest crowd entertained as he sought to play an "unmakeable" shot between his legs on match point. Unfortunately for him, the ball rolls along the ground before trickling into the net. He won with his second match point 6-3, 7-5.

• He meets tenth seed Italian Marco Pellegrini who stunned third seed Rick Langley of West CWLand. Langley led a set and 5-2, and at 15-0 on serve looked a sure thing to advance to tomorrow's final. Unfortunately, the World No. 99 capitulated in entertaining spectacular fashion to drop the next four games before doing just enough to send the set to a tiebreaker. He dropped that 2-7, and the fight continued in the third in a WTA-esque run of six service breaks. In a set decided by who would hold first, Pellegrini secured a meeting with Narang 6-7(5), 7-6(2), 7-5.

• Seeded players out:
  
  Rick Langley.

 

[ripper868]

Gah...was never going to get past Hall but at least there were a couple of wins there.

 

[SirBloody Idiot]

AEGON Championships II
PTA World Tour 250 - Sunday (Final) - Queen's Club, London,

United Kingdom - Grass

• Wimbledon favourite Jason Hall has claimed his first title on grass with a straight sets win over World No. 8 Jefferson Drake at Queens. In a hotly anticipated final between the first and third seeds, Drake started slowly as he was broken by the world's top player who moved to a 4-1 lead. But after a sluggish start, the East CWLander managed to string some games together and with a great reaching backhand volley levelled the set at 5-5. However he couldn't hold to take the set to a tiebreaker, as Hall capitalised on another short forehand from Drake to crack a backhand winner down the line. Hall continues to show impressive power off both wings, and again opened up a lead early in the second set as Drake's powerful groundies failed to hit their mark consistently enough. While he took Hall to deuce on the American ace's serve in three games in the second set, he couldn't secure the break he needed to stay alive. Serving at 2-5, he handed Hall three championship points with a double fault of which he needed just one to start his Wimbledon campaign with a 7-5, 6-2 title victory.

• Seeded players out:
  
  Jefferson Drake.

• Season I champions Hayden Onwye and Ross Onwye failed to defend their Queens title as second seeds Heath Davis and Jojo Mustard picked up an impressive victory in the final. In a watertight contest, both teams provided a highly entertaining display of tennis for the many fans still in attendance after the singles final and, after dropping the first set, Davis and Mustard ensured the final would go to a match tiebreaker. They shot to a 9-5 lead, but needed three match points to secure the win 6-7(5), 7-5, [10-7].

• Seeded players out:
  
  Hayden Onwye &
  
  Ross Onwye.

 

[HeathDavisSpeed]

Another win! Beating those stalwarts of Moroccan tennis too. We'll soon be overhaulin' those cheeky Yanks for the World #1 slot in doubles.

Drake clearly forgot his milk before this match.