Week 18 - ATP Madrid Masters - Clay

Madeline · Admin:Moderator + Tennis Legend

Week 18 - ATP Madrid Masters - Clay

indiana · Tennis legend

Not bad at all.

Armchair · County player

Really looking forward to this one, bring it on !

Spectator · All-time great

Hmm. I would have thought that draw was actually not the easiest . . . .

Madeline · Admin:Moderator + Tennis Legend

The first match certainly could be a banana-skin. Not too bad after that, if he gets through to play them.

The Magician Santoro · Top national player

Muzz plays Simon, who overcame Ljubicic 7-5, 7-6(8)

Murray leads the H2H 5-1, with their most recent meeting being in Monte Carlo this year

Ratty · County player

Yo, Gilles Simon, eh?

Miriambee · Futures level

I don't think Murray's section (his 8th) should give him any problems, I'm more bothered about Berdy's section, as I think there are some decent clay courters there.

I've just had a look at the full draw, the seeds 1-8 are all there, most have hardly played in all fairness, however all the seeds who are 9 to 16 have gone!

Stircrazy · Tennis legend

The start of the match was delayed by rain, but it's now under way. Andy got an immediate break, but has since surrendered it: *2-3. hmm

Miriambee · Futures level

http://www7.livetv.ru/webplayer.php?t=tvope&c=uytiiii&lang=en&eid=73653&lid=85392&ci=101&si=4

live stream without a login or a betting site.

spanish commentary however.

Ratty · County player

Mmm, a crushing win for Del Potty against a very fine player, could he prove to be another barrier to our hero's winning of a Slam, I wonder ....

Stircrazy · Tennis legend

Andy finally engineers a second break in the ninth game & serves out the first set: 6-4. Better... wink

Stircrazy · Tennis legend

Well, he got there in the end, by 6-4 3-6 6-0! smile The Brazilian, Thomas Bellucci, lies in wait in the thrid round...

Madeline · Admin:Moderator + Tennis Legend

Grrrr! I was watching Andy's match on tennistv, but had to pause it when Andy got broken at the end of the second set to make a meal for an impatient husband. Never mind, I thought, I can just watch the match from where I left it. Came back, started it up, sure enough it carried on from where I left it. Then at the end of the mammoth 3rd game of the 3rd set, the stream suddenly went live to the next match! So I missed the last 3 games.

I remain to be convinced that the first-round bye is an advantage. You come out cold against somebody who has won a match and got used to the conditions. Plus, although Andy has a commanding lead in the H2H with Gilles, all their matches tend to be very close points-wise. Never mind, he came through 6-4 3-6 6-0, though I don't know how close those last 3 games were!

I don't think either of them played very well, but job done, Andy!

indiana · Tennis legend

Well done to Andy on getting the win and hope that match does him good after his latest time out and he can build on it.

I was thinking cracking final set when I saw the scoreline. Actually while still good, looking at the scoreboard, Simon may have suffered one of the most unlucky bagels in a long time.

Mad mentions a marathon 3rd game and I had aleady worked out that all the games in the set were won by just 2 points i.e. Simon got to at least 30 in every game, and there must have been I make it 10 deuces in all, sounds as if quite a few of these were in that 3rd game. The points score was 34 - 22 to Andy ( more points in total than in the 2nd set ). If he'd won all the games to 30 it would have been 24 - 12. Simon also had 5 unconverted BPs in the set and Andy converted 3 out of 6.BPs.