Apologies if this is covered in another thread, but I couldn't find anything else in the mens' Wimbledon section on reaction to the draw.

1st round:

- Nadal against Fish - that's a tough one for Nadal - Fish may have been injured recently, but he's a decent grasscourter, and Nadal will need to start right out of the blocks. A potential upset.

- Henman v Moya - Not a terrible 1st round draw for Henman - could have had a lot worse considering his ranking these days. An attractive match, and one which could go either way.

- Childs v Qureshi - Queshi has had decent results, but Childs gets a fairly nice reward for getting through the qualifiers. A 2nd round match-up against Safin would be a nice goal for Childs to go for too.

- Tursunov v Almagro - a few seem to have mentioned this for some strange reason, but I foresee a straightforward match for Tursunov, as Almagro seems less adaptable to faster surfaces than some of his Spanish compatriots.

- Blake v Andreev - Blake has been touted as a good bet to go far, but Andreev is a rather tricky 1st round encounter, although I would expect Blake to have the edge.

- Ginepri v Gonzalez - potential shock. Gonzo's not been brilliant recently, and Ginepri tends to do well when he's an underdog.

- Clement v Mahut - a repeat of Queens' semi-final. Shame though that either one of Gasquet and Mahut will be out by 3rd round though, but that 2nd round match should be a beauty. There seem to be a lot of French players drawn against or near each other in draw.

- Jamie Baker v Roger-Vasselin - another reasonable 1st round match for a Brit.

- Becker v Chela - A shock on the cards here - Chela can play on fast surfaces, but I'd give Ben Becker the edge here.

- Goodall v Lopez - Although Lopez has been rubbish for ages, I still think he'll have too much firepower for Goodall.

- Murray v Lapenti - Nice 1st round draw for Murray, providing he can actually play it.

- Davydenko v Korolev - I had Davydenko marked down as losing 1st round before the draw, but he may be OK here.

- Bogdanovic v Guccione - Boggo avoids Nadal and Federer at last. Guccione is the perfect test for Boggo to show whether he is ATP level or not. Guccione may have a decent serve, but he's exactly the sort of player Bogdanovic needs to beat if he is to progress.

- Vliegen v Monaco - Monaco is one of the most vulnerable seeds - I much prefer Vliegen's chances on a grasscourt - one to put down as part of an accumulator bet I'd say.

- Hewitt v Bloomfield - very one-sided I reckon - could be embarrassing for Bloomfield.

- Volandri v Kiefer - Along with Monaco, Volandri is a very vulnerable seed. I'm chuffed Kiefer is in the draw - didn't realise he was still ranked high enough to gain direct entry. I'd seriously do an accumulator on Kiefer and Vliegen to win their 1st round matches.

- Santoro v Karlovic - The unbreakable serve against the French wizard - could be horrendously one-sided, or it could be a magical contest. Karlovic the favourite here though.

- Robredo v Kendrick - Tough match for Tommy in the 1st round - another vulnerable seed I'd say.

- Marray v Grosjean - Marray could possibly take a set here, but Grosjean has a nice 1st round match to ease himself back into form.

Will be back with more thoughts later.

toss up between henman and moya. the spaniard slight favourite. could well go 5 sets. i'm sure tim would be happy considering the alternatives. and he hasn't gone out in the opener in more than a decade if memory serves.

there could conceivably be a henman/murray match at wimbledon this year. what an occasion that would be.

but i don't think that will happen btw. tsonga will put murray out if he shows up.

If Federer can get past Gabashvili, it could be an interesting matchup against Del Potro. And if Safin doesn't make the third round with that draw, he should instantly retire from the sport; if he does, he may give Federer problems. If the Swiss can get through those potentially tricky matches, I don't see his professional sycophants Blake or Gonzo halting him in the QF, nor Haas in the 4th round. And obviously not Roddick in the semis.

Roddick has a cakewalk to the quarters and probably the semis, unless Murray or Gasquet hit form, which is unlikely.

Djokovic should make the semis, but Karlovic (who may well lose to Santoro), Hewitt and possibly Nalbandian stand in his way.

Nadal's draw will show us a bit more about his grass court credentials; he may have to beat Fish, Soderling, Youzhny and Berdych to reach the semis.

Wise, you crack me up - "if" Federer can get past Gabashvili....

Surely you expect him too?

the Henman match and the Mahut match are the ones I am looking forward too...

and I wouldnt mind catching my fav eye candies in action either :P

Is it me again? or do you also think that Nadal's draw is relatively easy compared to the top draw?

Of course Wise doesn't believe this, he's a wind up merchant not a moron.
He's the Boris Johnson of tennis sites, wacky and eccentric and not to be taken too seriously, still he know's how to keep himself in the headlines!

Re Karlovic v Santoro

:cry: :cry: :cry: stupid draw.....

blake v andreev looks like a fantastic first round match.

henners for the semis!!

seriously. watch it happen.

:pray: :ok: :kiss2:

I also think Federer's draw looks pretty dangerous, to be honest.

Gaibashvili isn't a simple first-round opponent considering Roger doesn't have any preparation on grass, and they've never played before. However, it shouldn't be such a tough test for Fed.

Del Potro is another proposition --- he could be quite dangerous in a second-round encounter. I doubt Safin in the third round is Federer's dream draw either.

The matches being best-of-five should mean that Roger will get through, but I wouldn't be surprised if he loses some sets in the first few rounds.

Nadal's first round against Fish could be a test as well, though. The second and third rounds, on the contrary, look far less dangerous than Roger's to me. However, Youzhny and Berdych could be a real test for Rafa on a fast surface.

So overall, some challenges ahead for both of the top seeds. Let the games begin!

I'm sad that Mahut gets Clement in R1 as that might go Clement's way. And also that by round 3 we lose either him or Gasquet.

I don't like the idea of losing Santoro, another nice French flair player, or Karlovic - a great grass serve volleyer - in round 1.

Assuming Murray can play, it's a shame him and Henman would meet so early on if they progressed.

Henman might actually beat Murray this time given his injury lay off, assuming they get that far

Could do. If Murray does play I hope him and Tim do well. Moya isn't a walkover for Tim. Moya is not good on grass and he's had bad form but he's had more matches than Tim of late cos he had a decent run at the FO. If Tim isn't sharp he could easily lose to Moya. I'd like to think Tim woudl get through this match easily enough but we all knwo what he's been like of late.

Yes - I thought that putting 3 Frenchmen to sort it out between themselves in the first 2 rounds was a bit harsh. I know it is simply bad luck, but still.

personally i like good competitive opening round matches. i think it does highlight the gap that exists between atp and wta tennis when it comes to strength in depth. there are just way more excellent players in mens tennis imo. not that i'm knocking women's tennis. i love women's tennis.

but just to elaborate my delusional point about henman. there is a case to be made for him making the 2nd week.

there's no fed, no grosjean, no ancic (obviously), no tursunov, no bandy an no canas in his part of the draw. he's dodged all the guys that knock him out of slams. the first match is the key. if he wins that, he's laughing. the highest seed in his part of the draw is murray. andy won't be a factor this year. i hope he does show up just so they won't shake up the draw in his absence. murray won't beat the winner of the tsonga/benneteau match imo. not in the shape he's in.

if (and it's a big if) henman gets inspired by the tournament he loves best, he can reach the quarters. his opponent would be roddick, nailed on (barring injuries).

and that is the moment when tim henman gets a chance to prove himself. and i pray with every ounce of my strength that that match happens because i've been waiting for it for years.

and you may say that i'm a dreamer, :whistle:
but i'm not the only one,
i hope one day you'll join me,
and the world will live as one.

I like your attitude :D

it's a shame Tim didnt; get this kind fo draw last year cos he'd have walked to the Quarters IMO. Boy was he on form last grass season, well Stella week anyway. :D I mean look what happenad with Jonas Bjorkman last year - and all credit to the guy, I realyl like him - semi finals. His opponents were beatable fo rhim if he dug deep, I think the draw opened up a bit for him too if I remember right. And he's 35 and never had Tim's singles success. I realyl hope so to Flame, we've all been waiting a while so let's keep everything crossed. :ok:

Yep, I must say that on grass I really tend to enjoy the Fenchmen. Gorsjean is another I like and Matthieu. They do seem to play with some flair. And I enjoyed watching Patience at the FO.

I tell you what I can not wait for Monday! I have the week off, I have the snacks in and Im feeling emotional just thinking about the theme tune!! BRING IT ON!!! :party: Please be kind weather!!!!!!!!!

Heyyup WA :D

I can't beleive it is here. :o Is it really June again already? :blink:

I am looking forward to it, I have fears this week could be disrupted by rain, btu as long as t is not rained out all day I don;t mind. I hate it when the first week gets all the rain because we get robbed of seeing more matches cos they start cramming them in in fear fo not gettingn through the draw. Much better to rain in week 2 when there are less matches to reschedule. :D

No rain in week 2!!!!! :angry: That's when I'm going!

AH - SB, the more I read you, the more I like you. :hug:

I am not that much a fan of French players even though I recognise they have some flair/talent...but the lack of maturity/nerves is a bit frustrating......Just today again, Gasquet losing to Clement....so tamely as well :moody:

Well thats me sold Flame - maybe you should email this to Tim as a bit of a pep talk eh? ;)

deluded, educated or what, I just hope it happens - he deserves it.

Should he do really well here, do you think he will find that a good incentive to carry on like he said he would, or see it as the high to go out on?

Oh well! More to watch on the TV though in week one. I often think week one is the best week

Why thank you Tenez :D The feeling is mutual :)

I agree abotu the lack of maturity in Gasquet's case especially. I find him so frustrating. Today he blamed his loss on being indoors and not liking the surface. I see his point but maybe Clement was not so keen either. In any case he shoudl have definitely won that match. Not necessarily easily, as Clement has had a sudden run of form, but you know, even if he lost it a good fight and a close match was called for.

If you ask me he got upset because he wa snto playing the big stage and the crowds. t's abotu winnign the match and being professional and he ha smade a big cock up here I think.

Oh - I did not realise. They did not play the match on grass? What was it?

As a first draw reaction...one realises that you are better off being seed number 23 (Nalby) than being seeded number 1 or 2!!!

Yes, that is a real shame. Generally the French players add a bit of spark to Wimbledon.

On form, Mahut looks a decent bet to make round 3..

I think that both Roger and Rafa have interesting draws.

Roger's isn't straightforward, but he's been there before in terms of tough draws at SW19, and it really is a big 'ask' for any players in his half of the draw to take 3 sets off him on grass. Last year's draw was more challenging imo.

Rafa.. well, as is already documented, Fish might not be a pushover (remember Kendrick?).. and Berydych and Youzhny could well cause problems, and maybe even Djoko later on? Whichever way, it's a much tougher draw for him than last year, and in many ways this will be good for him in achieving his aim of becoming a world class grass court player. If he makes the final this year, then no-one can say that he had a cakewalk of a draw this year.

Nice to have more of an element of uncertainty than there was at the snoozefest that was RG though :)

Fully agree...

It is not so easy for Fed..I really believe Del Potro can test him in the second round..I do not believe Safin will do the same in the third (if he reach that stage in any case)...BTW: I will not eliminate Gonzo from the picture so fast: he can be a thread and even a serious one for a change.

In any case I definitely hope a semi FED against AROD..On grass with Connors in his side, it could be very interesting..

I do not see Andy Murray do anything: Be back from a long stop in a slam: well if he is able to move on and do a quarter against AROD..Well..Just great and very happy for him (I will cross my fingers..I like his attitude-more than his Tennis style-so...)

The Rafa side is just so exiting..I really hope to see him against Youzhny and Berdy if he will able to handle and pass these two main players then yes we can definitely say he has improved a lot on fast surface..I really hope for these two matches..

Finally...fully agree with BIG-TODGER:

But IMO Wise is A WIND UP MERCHANT BUT ALSO AN IDIOT. See what is doing at the BBC Tennis discussion board under the nickname of Impartial_Lion ...He is now creating news about Sampras come back and Wimbledon..A shame really the master troll.. :crazy1:

Ah, TV, the beeb is pretty much unmoderated, ergo trolls will post there. :rolleyes:

Shame as the beeb board could have been so much better with just a little care and attention paid to it by hte beeb folk. But my guess is that they don't care about it that much and let it run amok.. wild and feral!!

Hope the forecast improves for Monday or it will be a wash out like last year. Agree SB that 1st week is generally better as loads more matches to see. Last year I had the 2nd week off and it wasn't as good. Although 2nd Monday is always the best day of the lot I think.

a quick peek at the weather forecast doesnt bode well - for all those going the first week, I'll keep my fingers crossed for you

The weather does not look promising, does it..

:lmaao: like those Petalp!

I'm quite interested by the section with Davydenko at the topa nd Djokovic at the bottom. We've gt Hewitt in Djoko's half and Baghi and Nalby in Dvay's half. If Baghi is gonna have a shot then with Nalby off form anf Davy no demon on grass, this could give him a chance to set up an enticing quarter with Djoko. And in the bottom half with Djoko sits Hewitt, who I hope will do well and coudl have a 4th round match with Djoko which I think could be quite an encounter. And I'd enjoy it if Baghi met Hewitt also. Karlovic in good form is also in the mix in Djoko's half. so he has th epotential to cuase upsets, I think he coudl meet Hewitt in round 3 maybe and we saw what eh did to Lleyton a few years ago.

Just hope Baghi comes through the top half though cos I realyl don't want to see a Nalby borefest in the later stages.

the order of play for monday will be out in a few minutes!

assuming there is any play on monday. :P

I know! Looks like it's gonna be a pretty disrupted schedule. I'm in the London area and the rain has worsened over the last 2 days. It's almost non stop, and when it does stop it isn't for long enough to allow covers to come off, players to warm up etc!

yes it's like pat cash often says: "they really should play this thing in the summer."

ho, ho, ho.