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  • Olympics round 2: James Blake vs Domnik Hrbaty

    8/12/08 1:27 AM | David Cox
    - The fiercely patriotic Blake is making his Olympic debut while at the age of 30, Hrbaty's probably playing his last. The Slovak is past his peak now and by London 2012, he'll almost certainly be over the hill

    They had contrasting first rounds. Blake was very solid against Chris Guccione, served very well and found some moments of brilliance when it mattered. Hrbaty was involved in a right scrap against Brazil's Thomas Belluci. The heavy hitting Belluci took the opener 6-2 but Hrbaty used all his experience to grind out a 2-6, 6-4, 6-2 result

    Hrbaty did reach 12 in the world and a masters series final but an elbow injury plagued him during 2007 and he's currently ranked outside the top 250. He's a close friend of Roger Federer and has been quick to come to the Swiss' defence when asked about his downturn in form

    This Olympic win came slightly out of nowhere as recently he's been struggling to win challenger matches. He last played Blake 5 years ago on clay, losing a close match in Monte Carlo

    For me, Blake has unachieved in the slams and masters series given his talent and record against the likes of Nadal on outdoor hard until recently. Far less talented players than him have made semis and finals but he always seems to slip up before the business end of the tournament. The Olympic event is known for throwing up a few surprises and producing unlikely winners so if the American can hang tough mentally and nemisis Federer goes out early, then who knows.

    Prediction: Blake in 2

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