In a switch of transmission here,they are about to broadcast this...

Plyaers are walking onto the court!

Warn up in progress.....

Uncle Tony there in full flight...Nadal wearing a sea green almost Turquoise vest!

Chela Vs Nadal
0-1
Nadal Breaks.....

Its like he never left the clay!

Poor Chela! Just the prospect of playing Nadal ...on clay.....and under such hot conditions....would simply kill me.

Chela had a chance to break back in game 4, but couldn't convert.

3-1

And we have lost satellite feed due to an electrical storm here...

Keep the scores going here guys!

Well, the first set is about over, as Nadal breaks again for a 4-1 lead.

Vamos Rafa! 4-1 already.

I don't want to speak too soon, but it looks like his and Roger's entry into the clay couldn't be more different. Doesn't bode so well for Fed fans such as myself ... but let's hope he rises to the challenge!

Gonzo lost the first set to Andreev 6-2 :o but won the second with the same score.

Now 0-1 on serve early in the third.

Gooo Gonzo!

Nalby is about to start against Kohlschreiber. I'd really like Kohly to pull off a (huge) upset here, which could really put him on the map. And Robin Soderling also did great today! :bow:

Chela is putting some pressure on Nadal, though. It's deuce now, and Chela had a break point in Nadal's previous service game. He could still make a match of it, if he doesn't get discouraged.

There's nothing more annoying than people reading too much into one match. Lets not judge Federer purely on the Seppi match, or for that matter, Nadal purely on the Chela match.

For Federer, his match against Seppi was his first on clay this year. Federer's 1st match at Halle tends to be a scrappy affair too each year. Seppi on the other hand was more in the claycourt groove.

Chela has had a great year by his standards so far, but his game doesn't match up well at all to that of Nadal (its a v similar game he plays, but Nadal does it better - bigger serve, better movement, better stamina, better temperament).

Now what does surprise me is Davydenko losing to Soderling - that is quite a bad loss - Soderling does not tend to perform so well on clay, and that is one match Davydenko should not have lost.

I still don't think we've learnt that much about the form of players in the claycourt season yet - by the end of Monte Carlo though we'll have a much clearer picture.

And for a cheeky bet, how about putting a small wager on Djokovic to win the title? Everyone is talking about Federer and Nadal, but Djokovic looks the most likely to win the title should these two slip up...

I agree, MrI, but it's pretty understandable that Fed fans are a bit concerned about his play. They're not used to see him going out of tournaments before the final.

Meanwhile, Chela gets a comfortable hold for 2-5 and then goes up 0-30 on Nadal's serve.

Back to 30-all now, though. Nadal will win this set, but I still think it might be a tight second set.

....especially if Chela gains a little confidence after finally securing a break.

5-3.

INDEED Fully agree With MrI :ok: :ok:

As I posted this morning:

It is might be interesting, as a conclusion to have the post match comments of both players: The best I found is the following (in Italian because it was published on famous Gazetta Dello Sport, the default sport newspaper reference in Italy):

FEDERER «Il primo turno, per di più dopo 10 mesi senza terra rossa deve essere così, soprattutto per me. Si fanno più errori e ci sono più break. E poi c'erano dei cattivi rimbalzi»,

Translation: FEDERER: "the first round, after 10 months without clay, needs to be like that in particular for me. You are doing more errors than usual there are more breaks. And moreover there was bad bounces."

SEPPI: «Non avevo nulla da perdere, venivo da tre buone partite e non avevo la tensione d'Israele, mentre Roger era all'esordio sulla terra e steccava tante palle: ho fatto una buona figura e, se avessi fatto qualcosa di più sul 5-4, magari avrei vinto il secondo set»

SEPPI: "I did not have anything to lose, I was coming from three good matches so I did not have the pressure like in Israel(Tie in the DC), meanwhile Federer was at his first match on clay and he was making a lot of errors: I did a good match and, if I would be able to play a little be better on the 5-4,might be I would be able to capture the second set."

And :bow: Chela :bow: is back Go Chela Go

..At least let's hope he will fight a max :pray:

He was able to save a first set point for Rafa..

Now we know how all the Graf fans felt in 1990 when Monica Seles came along :lol:

Nadal tries to take a little wind out of the Argentine's sails, though, by earning another break point for a chance to take the set here.

But Chela saves a break point for the first time.

And the second time . . .

Rafa finally takes it, 6-3, on his fourth set point.

I can't view scores/match at the moment :angry:

How is Rafa doing??

I wouldnt be concerned for Federer another cake walk draw has been given to the swiss, unfortunately there is no canas.

Has anyone noticed how the seed are dropping like hot potatoes? Gonzo looks set.

Like the ones of Nadal last year at Wimbledon and at the USO I guess roflmao

Anyway..3-0 for Rafa now against Chela..Rafa :bow: is really a great man on clay :)

I swear Nadal played tennis on clay before he could even speak!! He's a genius on that surface - I can't see anyone really challenging him...still, I anticipated a really competitive cc season, and I stand by that. There are some great players coming through, and I think Roger will be in place to give Rafa a run for his money....

Besides, regarding Federer, yesterday was his third poor match in a row. Something unseen for 3 and a half year. So I understand to some entend those who over react.

I didn't mean to make too much of it --- and I still expect Roger to come through here and finally find his form again. And I'll say that I said before the match that it could be tricky, given Seppi's good form and three matches under his belt.

Nonetheless, Nadal often is a slow starter himself, so I think that this match tells us something about how hungry he is for the clay season. Now surely Fed must be just as hungry, and it would be nice to see it translate to his performance in a similar way!

You'll get good odds on Djokovic, now that Gaudio has just beaten him!!!

And a few seeds are going out...Davydenko, Gonzalez...

Nadal may be a slow-starter, but not so much on clay, where he has less things to adjust than Federer. Agreed though that Federer will need to step it up a bit in his next match - who does he play next by the way?

I think Fed plays the korean chap .... Lee and he beat Youzney. So he must be in some form. BTW, has Djokovich and Gonzo crashed out? IS so thats a shame as I was so looking forward to see Fed playing Djokovich.

Nope Djoko is there he beat Gato in three sets...FED Djoko still on the cards B)

I think its the other way round,Djoko beat Gaudio!!!! In any event I dont see him as a winner of this event because he was dismall today against a staight jacket opponent!

Federer will really need to get his act together and by the end of Monte Carlo if not during.Like you pointed out Nadal has nothing much to adjust and having seen him at Indian Wells and Miami he is very much a threat on his favourite surface again this year!

:unsure:

Djoko is one to watch, without a doubt. Fed will have to up the game against him...

Not surprised about Davydenko - reliable, solid game can only take you so far...he doesn't possess enough winning shots...no artillery...

Sorry for spreading mis-information about Gaudio and Djokovic match! I misread a score that someone had put up on another thread! Djoko is indeed still in Monte Carlo tournament.

Looking at Gasquets backhand Federer ought to be ashamed of himself for being number 1.

Thanks TV. Its just that Mrinvisible said Gaudio beat Djokovich! (2 posts earlier than yours). IF both reach that far, it has to be a great one . Djokovich is in great form and Fed is not at his best. That brings both of them closer to eachother in levels of play. What do you think of thematch up? (I know its a bit premature..)

I think Djokovic won? :wacko:

Hmm, Lee beat two of my favorite players (Jonas and Misha), so he's definitely one to watch ...

Nonetheless, he's been around for more than 10 years, I think, and I guess it's fair to say he hasn't really made a splash - I think his run at this tournament has been as good as it gets for him. If Roger doesn't pick up his game, it's remotely conceivable that Lee can win a set, but I really can't see him pulling off the upset.

Fed in straight sets over Djokovic for me, please. :) :pray:

roflmao roflmao You are talking about the same Gasquet who are still searching some balls to send back at Wimbledon in his first round against ... roflmao roflmao


BTW: Clearly hoping to the see the match between Djoko and FED with FED winning after a three sets, i.e. a magic fight :D , i.e. similar to their last match in Dubai ( and even at the AO) :rolleyes: