Tennis News

A compelling quarter-final will take place on Sunday afternoon, as World No. 1 Serena Williams and Italian No. 1 Sara Errani will meet for an eighth time on the professional tour at the prestigious Roland Garros Grand Slam event. Serena leads the head-to-head series 8-0 and has been entirely dominant throughout the series.

In a match that many expected to end in straight sets based on the remainder of their rivalry, Serena Williams had to claw her way back from a set and a break down to defeat Sloane Stephens in three sets to work her way into the quarter-final round. In the end, Williams was able to regroup in the third set and closed out the match 1-6, 7-5, 6-3.

“I felt like if I had made a shot here or made a shot there, then maybe the first set could have been different. But today I started out slowly, even though I was really warmed up and really ready,” Williams said. “But it’s not how you start, I guess it’s how you finish. That’s kind of how I’m looking at it.

“Obviously I’m disappointed. Usually I’m winning in straight sets, and I’m business both on and off the court. Now I’m just winning, and that’s a good thing too, but there’s always room for improvement.”

In a far simpler match on court, Sara Errani continued her impressive run in Paris with a 6-2, 6-2 win against Julia Goerges. She struck five winners and broke serve on five occasions to earn her place in the final eight.

Williams leads Errani 8-0 in the head-to-head series, with four of those wins taking place on clay, including their most recent three encounters. While the Italian is coming off a fantastic week in front of her adoring fans, it is not likely to give her much of a boost against Williams, who has overpowered her in all of their previous meetings.
 

The biggest rivalry in men’s tennis will write another chapter on Wednesday afternoon, as nine-time champion Rafael Nadal and world No. 1 Novak Djokovic meet for a unprecedented 44nd time on the professional tour. The Nadal vs Djokovic Head to Head stands at 23-20, but has lost the most recent match against Djokovic at Monte Carlo Masters event. The two players have already surpassed John McEnroe and Ivan Lendl and will likely continue to add to their rivalry’s ever-growing legacy, yet the stakes are high at the French Open, as Nadal attempts to close in on his 10th title at Roland Garros, while Djokovic will get one step closer to completing his career Grand Slam.

Djokovic’s fourth round match against Richard Gasquet ended in straight sets to hand the Serb his 26th victory of the season. Djokovic struck 47 winners and saved eight break points faced on serve to close out the match 6-1, 6-2, 6-3 in just under two hours.

“Of course it is a different approach mentally when you play Nadal in quarter-finals than any other player,” said the Serb. “There is no doubt about that. I’m going to try to keep my routine the same and not give so much importance to the match.

“I know what I need to do to have a chance to win. That doesn’t mean that I will win. The future is unpredictable.”

Rafael Nadal looked as though he was about to cruise into yet another French Open quarter-final but faced some resistance from Jack Sock when he attempted to serve out the match. From there, he had his serve broken and was forced to contest a fourth set before securing the 6-3, 6-1, 5-7, 6-2 win. He will now go on to face Djokovic in the final eight of the tournament.

“It is not the final, you know,” said Nadal, who will turn 29 on Wednesday. “It’s a quarter-final. And, no, the winner of that match will not be the Roland Garros champion.

“They will be a semi-finalist of Roland Garros. That makes a big difference. Even if it’s a special match, it’s a quarter-final match.”

Following their three meetings last year and one meeting so far this season, Nadal leads Djokovic 23-20 in the head-to-head series. Rafa is 14-5 against Djokovic on clay but the gap has closed to 5-5 on that surface since 2011, which certainly evens out Djokovic’s chances on Wednesday afternoon. Given that he has a proven track record against Nadal at clay court Masters 1000 events, Djokovic will now need to find the confidence in himself to complete a historic upset of Nadal at Roland Garros.
 

After meeting on three occasions in 2014, Andy Murray and David Ferrer will meet for an opportunity to further their quest for a first French Open crown on Tuesday afternoon in Paris. Of their previous encounters, Murray leads the head-to-head series 9-6, including wins in two of their last three meetings.

The third seed at this year’s Roland Garros event maintained his undefeated clay court streak on Monday afternoon when he defeated Jeremy Chardy in four sets to advance to the final eight in Paris. It was not the easiest of matches, as Murray had to withstand 49 winners and four breaks of serve to secure the 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 win.

“I wasn’t overly concerned,” he said. “I had a lot of chances in the second set. He had one break point, which he obviously won, but throughout the course of the match I was creating many more opportunities than him. I just had to take my chances when they came. I did that in the third and fourth sets.”

In one of his more impressive matches of the season so far, David Ferrer cruised past US Open champ Marin Cilic in straight sets to advance to his sixth quarter-final at the French Open. It was also his 40th win overall at the prestigious Grand Slam event. He won the match 6-2, 6-2, 6-4 in one hour and 53 minutes.

“When asked about Murray, Ferrer admitted, “He’s much more aggressive. When he uses the different shots he has to play, he’s one of the best players in the Top 3. If, in addition to this, you were to count his talent, I think that he’s more aware of what’s happening. Not just on quick surfaces, but also on clay. He’s much more serene and calm.”

This is the 16th time that Murray and Ferrer will cross paths on the professional tour, with Murray leading the series 9-6. While the Spaniard is more than capable of earning the victory, Murray will likely add to his title win last week with another victory over Ferrer.

When the nine time Roland Garros champ Rafael Nadal steps onto the Philippe Chatrier court Wednesday afternoon to face world no.1 Novak Djokovic for a place in the French Open semi-finals, the whole world will be watching closely. The Spaniard is still 23-20 ahead in the Head to Head series, but the Serbian has been closing the gap in the last 18 months.

For many tennis fans, this clash between the two heavy weights will feel like a final, despite Rafa downplaying the fact that the winner of this showdown will go on to clinch this year’s title: “This is not the final, you know. It’s a quarter-final. The winner will not be the champion of Roland Garros. That makes a big difference. Even if it’s a special match, it’s still a quarter-final.”

The Spanish superstar and undisputed champion of Roland Garros (his only defeat came in the 2009 R16 against Robin Soderling) has produced some high quality clay court tennis during last week here in Paris. After defeating the French youngster Quentin Halys in the opener, he then dismantled Nico Almagro and Andrey Kuznetsov in straight sets before dropping a set to American Jack Sock 6-3 6-1 5-7 6-2. Having been a break up in the third set at 5-3, it almost feels like Rafa lost a bit of focus before regaining his footing and storming into the quater-finals.

However, his next opponent will be the Serbian machine Novak Djokovic, who is missing only the French Open title from his collection of 8 Grand Slam trophies. After defeating Andy Murray in this year’s Australian Open final, he will fancy his chances here in Paris too. Without dropping a set, he overcame Jarkko Nieminen, Gilles Muller, Thanasi Kokkinakis and Richard Gasquet to book his place in the quarters. Djoko’s shot making and movement have been immaculate so far and Rafa will have to come up with something very special if he wants to break down the Serbian’s rock solid defence.

If we look at the stats, Novak has won 5 out of the last 6 encounters against the Spaniard, recently defeating him in the Rome Masters semi-finals in straight sets 6-3 6-3. However, Rafa’s only win came in last year’s French Open final when he overcame the Djoker 3-6 7-5 6-2 6-4 and without a shadow of a doubt, Nadal’s best chance of beating the world no.1 is on his beloved Philippe Chatrier court central, where he still remains undefeated against Djokovic, holding a 6-0 record. Novak said in his press conference: “Playing him here and playing him in any other tournament in the world is completely different. Conditions are very suitable to his style of the game.”

If history is any guide, one would expect for Rafa to find a way past Nole, no matter what it takes. On the other hand, the majority of tennis pundits favour Novak to break the six match losing streak vs Rafa here in Paris and march on to claim the well desired title that has been eluding him up until now.