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2008-08-23 11:23:15
Tennistalk’s Ricky Dimon is previewing the four quarters of the U.S. Open draw leading up to the start of the year’s last Grand Slam on Monday. Part 2 covers the second quarter, where David Ferrer is the No. 4 seed.
Rafael Nadal in the top spot and Roger Federer seeded No. 2 isn’t the only thing that looks a little different when it comes to the 2008 U.S. Open draw.
It’s been over a year since the “other” quarter of a Grand Slam draw has not been referred to as Nikolay Davydenko’s quarter. The last time Davydenko wasn’t seeded No. 4 at a major was Wimbledon 2007, when Andy Roddick was seeded third and Novak Djokovic fourth.
Now David Ferrer and Davydenko have flip-flopped in the rankings and it paid off for the Spaniard immediately. While Ferrer, as No. 4, escaped any danger of being in the same quarter as one of the “Big 3,” Davydenko was left at the mercy of the draw and it cost him. The Russian is seeded fifth and would play Federer in the quarters should both make it that far.
That’s not to say Ferrer has an easy road to the semifinals. Not even close. Ferrer is not the favorite to make it out of his section of the draw, and he isn’t even the second favorite. He might not even be the third or fourth favorite, although it becomes debatable after one and two.
One and two, in no particular order, are No. 6 seed Andy Murray and 17th-seeded Juan Martin Del Potro. Murray won the Masters Series Cincinnati title earlier this month and he is fifth in the 2008 points race. The Scot also reached the quarterfinals of Wimbledon and the semifinals at the Masters Series Canada before heading to Cincinnati. Murray faces no significant danger early in the U.S. Open and his nearest seed is No. 27 Feliciano Lopez. Assuming he cruises into the fourth round, Murray could face either Stanislas Wawrinka or Mikhail Youzhny for a spot in the quarters. Murray is in line for a big payday having tied Nadal for the U.S. Open Series crown.
Del Potro, third in the U.S. Open Series, is the hottest player in tennis (not counting Nadal) at the moment. The 6’6’’ Argentine has not lost a single match since falling to Wawrinka in the second round of Wimbledon. Since then he has won four straight tournaments (Stuttgart, Kitzbuhel, Los Angeles, and Washington D.C.) and 19 consecutive matches. Del Potro, still only 19 years old, gets Guillermo Canas in round one and could meet in-form Gilles Simon in the third. The winner of that would most likely take on Ferrer for a place in the quarterfinals.
Also keep an eye on John Isner and Nicolas Lapentti in this section of the draw. Isner, who took a set off Federer in the U.S. Open third round last year, has a qualifier in round one and then would get Ferrer. Lapentti, who reached the quarterfinals in Cincinnati, will be favored over Yen-Hsun Lu before probably meeting Youzhny.
Rick’s Picks:
Third round – Ferrer over Nishikori, Del Potro over Simon, Wawrinka over Lapentti, Murray over Melzer
Fourth round – Del Potro over Ferrer, Murray over Wawrinka
Quarterfinal – Murray over Del Potro
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He is. He won at Delray Beach, saved match points against Querrey in the semis and then beat Blake in the final.
He just beat an out-of-form Monaco, as expected. Had back problems in the fourth, but nothing serious. As long as that isn't an issue he should crush an easy second-round opponent.
His serve did not look good at all at Delray but it looked much improved today against Monaco. Other than that I don't see any real weakness. Ferrer vs. Nishikori would be battle.
RickyDimon , 8/25/08 9:25 PM
besides he lost with nadal.. in queens but in 3 sets very hard.. he will be top 50 soon..
dusko82 , 8/28/08 11:33 AM
Now I definitely didn't expect him to beat Ferrer and am very impressed. Well done. Would love to watch him and Del Po play. Good luck to both of them. Any thoughts on who might take this one RD? I haven't watch either man play so have no idea.
Nishikori in top 50 soon would be great to see.
tenstar , 8/31/08 4:57 AM
Del boy I'm pretty sure.
sstay , 8/31/08 6:06 AM
That's what I'm thinking...but than I had the same assurance about Ferrer. SHould be a tight one.
tenstar , 8/31/08 7:48 AM
wasn't surprised with ferrer upset, he's been patchy most of this year. has a bad temperament too. was sad that simon lost as I love watching him. His backhand is solid and he's calm and even tempered. Not pleased that Del boy won. He'll probably steamroll the Korean and will pose a threat to rafa, as I predicted.
sstay , 8/31/08 9:12 AM
sstay: am puzzled by your comment that Ferrer has a bad temperament. What makes you say this? I take it you are referring to his tennis temperament rather than his personality.
ed251137 , 8/31/08 11:34 AM
sstay: you mean Japanaese don't you? ;) I like Simon too.
tenstar , 8/31/08 12:16 PM
Yep,I meant Nishikori, the Japse. Just saw the replay of the match. amazing. mentally so strong for a 17 year old.
Ed, I saw Ferrer playing only one other time, this year, I think it was Toronto, and he was really aggro towards the end when he was losing. It was just the once tho' and with Nishikori, he wasn't like that at all.
sstay , 8/31/08 1:57 PM
KEI at 17 has the potential to be TOP 50 next year. Cool headed, mentally strong and intelligent strokes. KEI over Del Po in 5. This is the guy to watch until he reaches 19.
RAFBFF , 8/31/08 3:17 PM
An avid sports fan, Ricky writes internet articles on football, baseball, and basketball, but his first love is professional tennis. He writes tennis ...
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i'm curious about the japanese guy, kei nishikori? appears to have been rumblings about his potential (as with many others). think he won in delray beach this year; turned pro only last year. just wondering is he's one to watch in the near future..
tenstar , 8/25/08 5:59 PM