Tennis News

The 14th edition of The Boodles exhibition event is set to begin Tuesday, June 23 and will feature a star-studded line-up of some of the world’s top male tennis players. Atop the roster for the 2015 edition is world No. 1 Novak Djokovic, who is yet to step out on court for a professional grass court contest this season.

In a last minute addition to the event, former world No. 1 Rafael Nadal will also take part in the pre-Wimbledon exhibition event as he continues to work his way back to formidable form.

“We are delighted to have received the phone call from Rafa which just adds to an already excellent line-up. We are happy to do whatever we can to help Rafa finalise his Wimbledon preparations here at The Boodles 2015.” said Tournament Director and Founder Patricio Apey.

After losing just his second match ever at the French Open this year to be denied a 10th title at Roland Garros, Nadal fought valiantly all week in his first grass court tournament of the season Stuttgart to claim the title following a straight sets victory against Victor Troicki. He won the match 7-6(3), 6-3 to earn his first title on grass since the 2010 Wimbledon Championships. However, he followed that up with a opening round loss to Alexandr Dolgopolov at the Aegon Championships, which is likely why he is keen to get a few more matches in before Wimbledon, where he will be seeeded 10th this season.

Along with Djokovic and Nadal, both of whom are former Wimbledon champions, the tournament will also feature former Wimbledon semi-finalist Richard Gasquet and John Isner, as well as exciting youngsters Jack Sock, Thanasi Kokkinakis and Alexander Zverev.

The Boodles 2015 takes place from Tuesday 23rd – Saturday 27th June at Stoke Park.

The full player line-up for The Boodles 2015 is:

Novak Djokovic
Rafael Nadal
Richard Gasquet
John Isner
Milos Raonic
Tommy Robredo
Fernando Verdasco
Jack Sock
Thanasi Kokkinakis
Alexander Zverev
Lucas Pouille
Fabio Fognini
Philipp Kohlschreiber
Robin Haase
Jerzy Janowicz
Kevin Anderson
Janko Tipsarevic
Lukas Rosol
Mischa Zverev
Goran Ivanesevic
Cedric Pioline

Order of Play for Tuesday 23rd June – first match 12.30pm:

12.30pm
Janko Tipsarevic v Lucas Pouille
2.30pm
Jack Sock v Philipp Kohlschreiber
followed by
John Isner v Thanasi Kokkinakis
not before 5pm
Lukas Rosol v Kevin Anderson

Rafael Nadal poses on the Winner’s Car with the Mercedes Cup trophy

Rafael Nadal has not always been at ease on a grass court but managed to win his first grass-court title since 2010 by lifting the Mercedes Cup in Stuttgart. Bouncing back from his French Open disappointment, the top seeded Spaniard triumphed 7-6 (7-3), 6-3 against Serbia’s Viktor Troicki in just under an hour and a half, winning the $118,000 first prize.

It was his 66th ATP Tour title & 4th title on grass, but just his second in a year where the former world No. 1 has dropped to 10th in the rankings. He won Wimbledon for the second time in 2010 and lost for the third time in a final there the subsequent year, but has not gone passed fourth round since.

While most of the top men’s players took a pause after Roland Garros, the 29-year-old went straight back into the fray at the German tournament which he won in 2005 and 2007 — this season it switched from clay to a grass surface and moved to after the French grand slam. After winning in Stuttgart, Nadal headed to Britain for the Queen’s Club Championships (Aegon Championships) in London, the event which Nadal won in 2008 before beating Federer at Wimbledon in perhaps Tennis’ greatest battle. He was ousted in the 1R by Ukrainian Alexandr Dolgopolov (ranked 79th), losing 3-6 7-6 (8-6) 4-6 in two hours and 13 minutes in front of an audience that included José Mourinho and the former king of Spain, Juan Carlos.

Nadal’s fall from the pinnacle of the game has been at a ferocious pace. With just 2 titles and no Grand Slam finals to show-off this season, the Spaniard has looked more vulnerable and susceptible to embarrassing losses.

Apart from his physical struggles and injury-plagued career, his on-court form in 2015 has been far less steady than what we are used to. He lost half-dozen matches on his beloved clay this season and went 21-6 on the red dirt this year. Compare that with 292-14 record from 2005-2014, this yardstick comparison clearly illustrates that “RAFA is STRUGGLING in 2015”.

Indifferent form this year

After being stripped of his French Open crown and losing only for the second time in 72 matches in Paris, Nadal has plummeted to 10th in the ATP rankings, the first time his rank is a 2-digit number since 2005. Nadal will try to use grass as a catalyst in his quest to regain his lost mojo. His performance over the next month on the lawns will decide whether he can come back from such a situation.

Rafa after winning the epic 2008 Wimbledon Final defeating Federer

Grass has perennially been Rafa’s Achilles heel over his entire career taking a huge toll on his knees. In 2006, Nadal made it to his 1st non-clay major final in Wimbledon losing to rival Roger Federer in 4 sets. A year later, he lost a 5 setter to Federer in the Wimbledon Final but did take confidence from the fact that he managed to push the 5-time Champion to a deciding set. Then his moment arrived in 2008.

After winning Queens Club, he managed to hold off Federer in the 2008 Wimbledon Final in arguably the greatest match of all-time. Although he had to withdraw from the 2009 Championships because of tendinitis in both of his knees, he came back in 2010 to win his second title at the All-England Club before losing to Serb Novak Djokovic in the 2011 finals. Ever since his final loss in 2011, he is just 5-5 on the lawns (before last week’s Mercedes Cup) which includes 3 bamboozling losses at the All England Club.

Nadal’s woes on grass

In 2012, after winning a record 7th Roland Garros title, he lost to German Philipp Kohlschreiber in Halle which served as a bad warning for Wimbledon. In Wimbledon, he was shocked by unheralded Czech Lukas Rosol, a player ranked 100th in the world then. This turned out to one of the biggest upsets in Grand Slam history and was the first time since the Wimbledon 2005 championships that Nadal had failed to progress past the 2nd round of a Grand Slam tournament.

This was the beginning of his miseries on grass. The following year, he skipped the grass court tune-up events and suffered another shocking loss to Belgian Steve Darcis (ranked 135th) in the first round at Wimbledon 2013. This was his 1st ever loss in the opening round of a Major.

His struggles continued in 2014, as he lost his 3rd consecutive match on the surface to heavy-hitting German Dustin Brown in his opening match at Halle. Although he survived four-set battles in each of the first three rounds, his 2014 Wimbledon run came to an unforeseen end against big-hitting Aussie teenager Nick Kyrgios (Nadal was World No.1 and Kyrgios was ranked 143 places below him). The most bewildering element of those results was he lost to low-ranked, unheralded players who were supposedly way below his league.

Rosol and Nadal walk off the court after Rosol shocked Nadal in 2012 Wimbledon

A tough transition from clay

Nadal who began his career as a clay-court specialist managed to scale the lawns of Wimbledon by defeating Federer in 2008’s fiesta. He was being compared to Swede legend Bjorn Borg after completing his 2nd Channel Slam in 2010 (Borg won 3 consecutive Channel Slams 1978-1980). After making the final every time he entered between 2006 & 2011, he’s struggling to even to make it to 2nd week now.

The switch from clay to grass is possibly the most difficult transition in tennis and even more laborious for Nadal. He’s forced to sacrifice his fierce defensive skills to a more subtle approach and better footwork. He loses the punch in his top-spin shots on the low-bouncing turf and allows big hitters to hit more aggressively. When the lawns are still lush green at the start of Wimbledon, Nadal’s the most susceptible.

The courts operate at a ferocious pace, and the ball skids more because of the slipperiness, making offensive-minded opponents even more dangerous against him. The only way he can end his recent lull on grass is to make it to the 2nd week at Wimbledon as the baseline grass is chewed off to dust and plays relatively slower giving Nadal more time to pace his game.

Don’t discount Rafa’s chances

With his victory in Stuttgart, Nadal’s looking to build the lost momentum on the surface. He’ll need to be extremely focussed and sharp once Wimbledon kicks off. Due to his tumble in rankings and Wimbledon’s unique seeding system, Nadal will possibly have to go through Stan, Andy, Roger and Novak to lift a 3rd Wimbledon title. “A NIGHTMARISH DRAW awaits perhaps”.

Nadal is undoubtedly at a crossroads in his professional career and is finally succumbing to the inevitable aging progression – an undisputed force which even the great RAFA will not conquer.

Yet people cannot write him off. The Mallorcan Matador is one of the fiercest competitors sport has ever seen. These defeats and painful losses will only fuel him to practice harder and prove all his detractors wrong.

A strong performance at Wimbledon may just be the perfect medicine to cure his recent infirmities and reignite his already historic career.

VAMOS RAFA

For the eighth time in his professional career, Roger Federer is a champion at the Gerry Weber Open in Halle.

The 17-time grand slam champion lifted his latest title on the grass courts in Halle following a straight sets win against Andreas Seppi. He beat the Italian 7-6,6-4 in an encounter that lasted an hour and 48 minutes.

“I think that I did very well here in the tie-breaks,” said Federer. “I served well which you have to on the grass. I was able to mix it up, so I created a good pattern going into the tie-break. My opponent wouldn’t quite know where it’s going to go and if he knew where it was going to go it was going to be tough for him to defend. I think I did a really nice job this week on these situations.

“I think one big secret on grass is when to hit which shot and playing the score the right way. You might be playing perfect but then in one moment you take a bad decision and grass makes you pay for it all. So, this week has been great if I look at the whole thing. I don’t think I got broken anymore the last four matches I played. The first match was extremely close but I won all the tie-breaks this week, which gives obviously big confidence knowing that in the crucial moments my game was right there.”

It is an important win for Federer, who’s 51st win in Halle made him the the third player in the Open Era to claim at least eight titles in a single tournament, alongside Rafael Nadal and Guillermo Vilas. Nadal holds nine titles at  Roland Garros.

Federer, who has now won 86 titles on the tour, pocketed €381,760 and 500 Emirates ATP Ranking points.

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Back in 2013, Andy Murray kicked off a historic grass court season with a title win at the Aegon Championships. He would go on to become the first British male singles winner at the Wimbledon Championships in over seven decades. Now, two years later, Murray has won yet another title at Queen’s Club and has his sights set on a second Wimbledon crown.

Not only does it appear as though history is on course to repeat itself, but Murray himself has added fuel to the fire by stating that he feels he is better prepared this season than back in 2013.

“I feel I have improved. Physically I’m definitely in a better place than I was then, when I was having problems with my back – not so much on the grass but on the other surfaces.”

“I feel I’m using my variety very well now, something that maybe I wasn’t the past couple of years. [I have] more experience, more matches. There are a few things I’m doing a little bit better.”

For Murray, his continuous growth was to be expected, as a player cannot remain competitive if he stagnates during his peak years. If you don’t evolve, someone else will come around and usurp your spot.

“You just have to improve, otherwise I wouldn’t still be in the same position,” Murray said. “I was ranked [No. 2 in the world] around that time and I’m still there now

“Sport and life, everything moves on. If you don’t get better, there are people who will take your spot.”

The 2015 Wimbledon Championships begins on Monday, June 29 at the All England Club.

Andy Murray continued his remarkable return to form on Sunday afternoon at the Aegon Championships when he won back-to-back matches on the same day to claim his fourth title at Queen’s Club.

It was no easy task for the Scotsman, as he was forced to contest nearly two full matches on the same day en route to the title. However, he appeared to have played himself into form on Sunday, as his final against Kevin Anderson was easily his best contest of the week.

Murray managed a 6-3, 7-6(4) win over Troicki in the semi-final before he stepped back on court a few hours later to defeat Anderson 6-3, 6-4.

“I served extremely well,” said Murray. “I wasn’t expecting to have loads of opportunities with the way he had been serving this week and the way the courts were playing, so thankfully when the [break point] chances came, I managed to come up with some kind of instinctive shots and guess the right way on a couple of shots, and managed to get the breaks.

“I felt like once I got into the rallies I was doing really well, but it was obviously tough to do that some of the times. He served an extremely high percentage of first serves and was serving big. But it was a good performance.”

Murray is now 34-16 in ATP World Tour finals and pocketed €381,760 and 500 Emirates ATP Rankings points for his efforts on Sunday.

Following up on her impressive clay court run recently, Angelique Kerber survived a rollercoaster affair against Karolina Pliskova to lift the Aegon Classic Birmingham title.

Seeded fourth at this year’s event, Kerber was forced to rally her way out of trouble several times during the match. After dropping the opening set in a tiebreak, Krber rallied back to snatch the second set and go up 5-3 in the third. It was here that she allowed her Czech adversary back into the match to lead 6-5. It was only during the decisive tiebreak that Kerber actually stormed to victory on the heels of three straight points. She closed out the match 6-7(5), 6-3, 7-6(4).

“Karolina is a great player,” Kerber said. “She served unbelievably well in the important moments, and she was hitting the balls so close to the lines. I had no chance in the big moments in the first set.

“But I just kept fighting point by point, and it’s just an unbelievable feeling to win today.”

Kerber has now won her third Premier-level title of the season following consecutive wins in Charleston and Stuttgart. Serena Williams is the only player who has done better this season. This should give Kerber some confidence ahead of the Wimbledon Championships.

“This gives me a lot of confidence,” she said. “My goal coming to Birmingham was to get a lot of matches, and now I had my fifth of the week, so it couldn’t be better preparation before Wimbledon. I’ll just enjoy the day today, and we’ll see what comes next, and we’ll see what happens there.”

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Just a few days following her first proper tennis match in 17 months, Laura Robson has been awarded a wild card entry into the 2015 Wimbledon Championships.

According to the BBC, Robson was given a wild card into the Championships after not being included in the first set of wild cards announced last week.

The former British No. 1 was forced onto the sidelines in January with a left wrist injury and watched her hard work and ranking deteriorate whilst other competitors rose to prominence over the year. Having not played tennis since her first round loss to Kirsten Flipkens in the opening round of the Australian Open, Robson returned to court last week at the Eastbourne qualifying tournament, where she lost to one of the tour’s rising competitors Daria Gavrilova.

Robson reached a career-high of No. 27 on the tour and reached the fourth round of Wimbledon Championships, as well as the third rounds of the Australian Open the French Open and the U.S. Open. However, since her absence from the tour, she has dropped from No. 27 to No. 916.

The qualifying round at the All England Club begins this week, while the main draw begins Monday, June 29.

Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal pose for the cameras before their clash at the 2012 Australian Open final

India vs Pakistan, Real Madrid vs Barcelona, Lin Dan vs Lee Chong Wei, Senna vs Prost, Frazier vs Ali, Lakers vs Celtics, Red Sox vs Yankees and then there is Nadal vs Djokovic.

These are arguably some of the best rivalries that sport has ever witnessed and ardent fans have felt the pressure of these match-ups. When it comes to modern day tennis, perhaps the Rafa-Novak rivalry stands out as the distinct representative match-up that tennis fans all over the planet want to see.

The 44th installment of their celebrated rivalry was played in the QF of the French Open 2015 with too much on stake. Ironically, 43 matches ago they met for the first time in the QFs of the 2006 French Open. Since then, the two gladiators have met in numerous encounters redefining tennis as a war of skill, fortitude, physical brutality and mental toughness. Djokovic was finally able to shake the monkey off his back as he thwarted Nadal in straight sets 7-5, 6-3, 6-1. It was Nadal’s second defeat in 72 matches in Paris and his record now stands at 93-2 in best-of-5 set matches on clay.

Although the match-up on Wednesday did not live upto everyone’s expectation, here is a look at 5 unforgettable matches in the Rafa-Nole rivalry that have not only gone onto outline their individual careers but also rewritten the history books of Tennis.

2008 Masters Series Hamburg SF – Nadal def. Djokovic 7-5, 2-6, 6-2 

Coming into the match: Djokovic has stunned the tennis world by winning his 1st Grand Slam title at the 2008 Australian Open defeating defending champion and World No.1 Federer in the SFs and getting the better of Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the finals. He had also won 2 Masters titles coming into this match, Indian Wells & Rome Masters. He was the in-form player coming into the Hamburg Masters.

Nadal has also made a steady start to the season reaching the SFs in Melbourne (l. to Tsonga), reaching the finals in Miami (l. to Davydenko). During the clay-court season, Nadal had won Monte-Carlo Masters and Barcelona. Prior to this match, Djokovic had won their only meeting of the season in the SFs of the Indian Wells Masters (6-3, 6-2). Nadal was leading the head-to-head 6-3 till date. The World No. 2 ranking was on the line in this match.

The Battle:

Rafael Nadal came out on top in the battle for the No. 2 position in the ATP Rankings with a 7-5, 2-6, 6-2 victory over Novak Djokovic in a colossal battle which lasted over three hours and three minutes. It was the greatest match of their rivalry to date. In a first set featuring five breaks of serve under the roof on Centre Court at Rothenbaum, Djokovic began in scorching form, breaking Nadal early to lead 3-0. Nadal come back roaring to level the match at 3-3.

Nadal seemed to have got the better of Novak and the Spaniard broke back again to lead 5-4. With Nadal serving for the first set, Djokovic began to go for his shots and again leveled the match at 5-5. Nadal started to produce exceptional tennis and again broke Djokovic for a 6-5 lead. This time he did not falter and took the opening set which lasted 72 minutes. Djokovic was much more aggressive in the second set and was able to edge out a break of serve to lead 3-2. With Nadal serving to stay in the set at 2-5, Novak’s baseline intimidation finally got the better of Rafa as he surrendered the set to the Serb. Djokovic’s momentum was short-lived as Rafa pounced back and immediately earned a break of serve to lead 1-0. Djokovic’s hopes began to dissolve and Rafa seized the opportunity to win the match after converting on his 5th match point and thus holding onto the No.2 ranking.

Reverberation: Nadal went on to avenge his 2007 Hamburg Masters defeat to Roger Federer in the final (Federer had ended his record 81-match win streak on clay in 2007). Furthermore Nadal went to win both French Open & Wimbledon (first man to win the Channel Slam since Bjorn Borg in 1980) and capped off his greatest summer till date by winning the Olympic Gold in Beijing. Nadal also enjoyed a 32-match win streak in 2008 starting in Hamburg, which is longest winning streak across 3 surfaces in the Open-Era. Djokovic also managed to have a solid season and finished the season by winning his 1st Masters Cup/ATP World Tour Finals.

Honorable mention: A year later the two met in the SFs of the Madrid Masters. It was a melodramatic battle which Rafa managed to win 3-6, 7-6(5), 7-6(9) after saving 3 match points. This match had held the record for the longest best-of-3 sets match in the Open-Era at 4 hrs and 3 minutes until the record was bettered by the 4hr and 26 min marathon between Federer and Del Potro in the SFs of the London Olympics in 2012

2010 US Open Final – Nadal def. Djokovic 6-4, 5-7, 6-4, 6-2

Coming into the match: Nadal was perhaps playing the best tennis of his career having being undefeated on clay (22-0) winning Monte Carlo, Rome & Madrid Masters. He went on regain the World No.1 ranking from Federer after winning Roland Garros for a 5th time before becoming only the 2nd man after Bjorn Borg to win multiple Channel Slams. He entered the US Open trying to complete the Career Grand Slam.

Djokovic had struggled this season winning only 1 title (Dubai) and lost his No.2 ranking. He had also ceased his partnership with coach Todd Martin who had tried to change Novak’s Service motion. He had beaten Roger Federer in the SFs after saving 2 Match Points. Nadal was on a 3 match losing streak against Djokovic going into this match.

The Battle:

World No.1 Rafa Nadal defeated Novak Djokovic 6-4, 5-7, 6-4, 6-2 and became the 7th man to complete the career Grand Slam (youngest to accomplish the feat in the Open Era at 24 years old). He also became the first man since Rod Laver in 1969 to win 3 straight Grand Slam events in the same season. Though rain delayed their meeting by a day, Nadal made a confident start to the championship match Monday as he broke Djokovic.

Though the Serbian drew level at 2-2, Nadal regained the lead as he converted on his sixth break point opportunity of the next game. The pair was locked at 4-4, 30/30, in the second set when rain suspended play for one hour and 57 minutes. When they returned, Djokovic broke the Spaniard for a third time to force a set off of Nadal for the first time during the 2010 US Open.

Djokovic was unable to maintain the momentum, however, with Nadal continually putting pressure on his serve. The top seed created 16 break point chances through the final two sets and converted on three of them (6 for 26 during the match). He claimed the victory as his opponent’s return sailed wide on championship point after three hours and 43 minutes.

Reverberation: Nadal went on to clinch the Year End No.1 for the 2nd time in his career and enjoyed arguably his greatest season (71-10; 7 titles). But on the other hand, it was the start of Djokovic’s ascendance to the top of Men’s’ Tennis as went on to win his 1st Davis Cup title with Serbia and would start one of the most impressive winning streaks in the Open-Era (43 matches unbeaten run).

2011 Wimbledon Final – Djokovic def. Nadal 6-4, 6-1, 1-6, 6-3

Coming into the match: Djokovic was perhaps producing the greatest season in the Open-Era. He had won the Australian Open and 4 Masters Titles (Indian Wells, Miami, Madrid and Rome). He was 47-1 coming into the finals of Wimbledon. Federer has defeated him in the SFs of Roland Garros to hand Novak his only loss of the season and end his 43 match unbeaten run. Djokovic had taken over the No.1 spot in the rankings after beating Tsonga in the SFs of Wimbledon.

Nadal had made a relatively tough start to the season. At the Australian Open, he was trying to become the first man since Rod Laver in 1969 to win all the 4 Grand Slams, but lost to David Ferrer in the QFs (apparent hamstring injury). Although Nadal did manage to win his 6th French Open (also won Monte Carlo & Barcelona), he had struggled against the Serb losing 4 consecutive finals.

The Battle:

The current World No. 1 Rafael Nadal, the 2008 and 2010 titlist met the soon-to-be No. 1 Novak Djokovic in the Wimbledon final. For two sets, Djokovic was superb hitting 22 winners past Nadal, who was unable to hit top form in lengthy baseline rallies. But Nadal hasn’t won 20 straight matches at the All England Club for nothing. The top seed battled back to win the third set to raise hopes of a first two-sets-to-love comeback in a Wimbledon final since 1927, when Henri Cochet defeated Bill Tilden.

Both players exchanged breaks of serve at the start of the fourth set, before Djokovic regained control to complete a 6-4, 6-1, 1-6, 6-3 victory in two hours and 28 minutes of play to lift his third Grand Slam championship title. It capped a dream fortnight for the Serbian, who became the World No.1 after Wimbledon.

Reverberation: Djokovic finished off one of the Open Era’s greatest calendar season (70-6) by winning the US Open defeating Nadal in the final. He bulldozed the Spaniard in the entire season beating him in 6 consecutive finals. Nadal meanwhile had no answers to Djokovic’s onslaught even though he managed to win his 4th Davis Cup title with Spain.

2012 Australian Open Final – Djokovic d. Nadal 5-7, 6-4, 6-2, 6-7(5), 7-5

Coming into the match: Djokovic was at the pinnacle of the ATP rankings as he entered the Australian Open in 2012. He had won the last 6 encounters against the Spaniard. Djokovic entered the match after winning a brutal SF against Scot Andy Murray in 4hrs and 50 min. Nadal was trying to get back in this rivalry and had gained some momentum after winning his 4th Davis Cup. He was through to his 2nd Australian Open Final after beating old nemesis Roger Federer in the SF.

The Battle:

World No. 1 Novak Djokovic extended his winning streak to seven straight matches over No. 2-ranked Rafael Nadal in the longest Grand Slam championship final on record over five hours and 53 minutes. It surpassed the previous record of four hours and 54 minutes when Mats Wilander defeated Ivan Lendl at the 1988 US Open. In a pulsating contest on Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne, Djokovic rallied from a 2-4 deficit in the fifth set, to fight back and claim a dramatic victory. He continued to narrow the gap in his head-to-head against Rafa to 14-16. Nadal had never previously lost a Grand Slam final after winning the first set.

Reverberation: Though Djokovic managed to win the final, Nadal actually began to neutralize this rivalry and got back against the Serb. The Mallorcan Matador managed to win 6 of the next 7 matches against his arch-rival.

2013 US Open Final – Nadal def. Djokovic 6-2, 3-6, 6-4, 6-1

Coming into the match: Nadal was making a historic comeback in 2013 after an injury plagued 2012. He had won 9 titles (including his 8th French Open and also the Canada-Cincinnati double). He had lost just 3 matches all season and was attempting to win his 2nd US Open title.

Djokovic had won his 3rd straight Australian Open title (4th overall) but lost out in the SFs of the French Open to Nadal. He lost to Andy Murray in the finals of Wimbledon thus losing 4 of the last 5 GS Finals he had contested. He had also lost last 5 of the 6 meetings against Nadal.

The Battle:

In their third US Open final meeting (also 2010-11) and an Open Era record 37th meeting, Nadal exerted the early pressure, but it was Djokovic who turned the tables in the sixth game of the second set. The intensity rose early in the third set, as Djokovic broke Nadal in the third game only for Nadal to bounce back for 3-3 and ultimately break once again. Nadal stretched his lead to 3-0 in the fourth set and by the time he celebrated his 13th major crown, Djokovic had committed 53 unforced errors.

Spaniard dominated the extended rallies of five shots or more, winning 64 of 111 such points. The World No. 2 was lethal in the return game as well, converting on seven of 12 break point chances. Queen Sofia of Spain congratulated Nadal in the locker room after winning his second US Open crown.

Reverberation: Nadal regained the World No.1 ranking from Djokovic and went on to win 35+ matches on both Hard and Clay in the season (only player in the Open Era to achieve this). Djokovic had lost the last 5 Grand Slam finals out of the 6 he had contested. The Serb went on to reverse the losing streak against the Spaniard beating him 4 more times before losing in the 2014 French Open Finals. He also added German tennis legend Boris Becker to his coaching staff.

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Stan Wawrinka and Serena Williams hogged the limelight in Paris when they managed to win Coupe des Mousquetaires and Coupe Suzanne Lenglen respectively.

While Serena was expected to win her third title in the French Capital, Wawrinka’s triumph over overwhelming favourite World No.1 Novak Djokovic was more of a shock to the tennis fraternity. Wawrinka defied the odds to beat Djokovic in four sets at Roland Garros and claimed a second Grand Slam title to add to the Australian Open and Davis Cup which he won last year.

Both Williams and Wawrinka give credit to men who have stood beside them – French Patrick Mouratoglou and Swede Magnus Norman respectively. Both men have inspired their tutee to capture the title in Paris and rule supreme on the red dirt.

Mouratoglou – Masterstroke for Serena

Serena Williams with coach Patrick Mouratoglou

Incredible turnaround under the Frenchman

Three years ago, Serena Williams suffered her first ever loss in the opening round of a Grand Slam tournament at the French Open against Virginie Razzano of France. She was short on confidence and had not won a Slam since 2010 Wimbledon. This is when she decided to practice at the Mouratoglou Tennis Academy, run by French Patrick Mouratoglou and get back to the form that saw her win 13 majors.

She hired the French tennis coach of Greek descent and it turned out to be a stroke of genius as the American has gone on to win 7 Grand Slams (in the last 12 majors she has entered) taking her overall tally to 20. Since then, Mouratoglou has steered Williams to her fifth Wimbledon title, the Olympic Gold Medal, her fourth, fifth, and sixth US Open titles, her second and third French Open titles, three consecutive year-end championships titles, her sixth Australian Open title and lifted her back to World No. 1 in the WTA rankings.

She’s held the top spot in the rankings since Feb 18, 2013 – 121 weeks and counting (oldest woman in the Open-Era to hold the ranking). Now with 20 majors in her bag, Williams’ quest for Graf’s Open-Era record of 22 continues and at this ferocious pace, she could perhaps have that number come September at this year’s US Open.

Serena is mentally tougher now

Williams, who fought through flu to win her third French Open title and her third successive Grand Slam trophy, has arguably been the best player in the world for the past decade and half but her partnership with Mouratoglou has hustled her ascension towards the top of the all-time great pile.

Williams, who is known for her never-say-die attitude, always manages to dig herself out of trouble. She played 5 three setters in Paris and managed to stave off all her opponents. This attribute in Williams’ can be acknowledged to her coach who has galvanised her into being more consistent and mentally stronger. She’s won 67 career titles and almost won 40% of them in the last 3 seasons with Mouratoglou compiling a staggering 193-14 (93%) win-loss ratio in the process since hiring Mouratoglou. He seems to have stimulated Williams into all-time great and made her realise her true potential.

Will we see Serena repeat her 2002 season?

The win in Paris against Czech Lucie Safarova made her only the third person in history to win each major at least three times, joining Margaret Court and Steffi Graf. She’s the first player to win three straight majors since she did it herself during the Serena Slam. She is also the first player to win the Australian-French Open double since Jennifer Capriati in 2001.

All eyes will be on Wimbledon when Williams will try to hold all the 4 Slams at the same time again, a repeat of the 2002-03 “Serena Slam”. Should she win in London next month, she would go to New York chasing “No. 22” and try to become the fourth woman to win the Calendar Grand Slam. Williams’ partnership with Mouratoglou could make her the most successful tennis player of all-time with the all-time record of 24, held by Margaret Court, looks in serious jeopardy.

Norman – Wawrinka’s key to triumph

Wawrinka and Norman with the French Open Trophy

Before 2013, Stan Wawrinka was always recognised as Federer’s Davis Cup team-mate, gold medal winner with Federer at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and Swiss No.2. He was enormously talented but was clumsy at the same time. Some people said that he lacked the grace and poise that Federer had. Then he hired former World No.2 Magnus Norman of Sweden and rest as they say is history.

Magnus Norman was a former French Open finalist losing to Brazil’s Gustavo Kuerten in the 2000 finals. He was more known for his exploits with Robin Soderling as a coach, who managed to beat Rafael Nadal in the famous 4R encounter in Roland Garros (Rafa’s 1st defeat in Roland Garros). Soderling managed to reach back-to-back French Open Finals in 2009 and 2010 (defeated Federer in the QF ending his consecutive SF streak at 23) under Norman.

Soderling also reached a career-high World No.4 ranking before suffering injuries and glandular fever that have troubled his career since. Norman had also teamed up with fellow former Swedish tennis players Mikael Tillström and Nicklas Kulti to run the Good to Great Tennis Academy, which has had among its students Wawrinka and rising Bulgarian star Grigor Dimitrov.

Norman instilled belief in Wawrinka

In 2013, Wawrinka began working with new coach Magnus Norman. The Swede has made Stan mentally stronger apart from being a beast already and guided him to his 1st major SF at the US Open 2013 after toiling through 34 majors (main draw) without making the last 4. At the 2013 Australian Open, he made it to the fourth round before losing a gruelling five-set thriller against Novak Djokovic which lasted just over five hours.

This match perhaps started the rise of Stan towards major glory. This partnership has been recognized with improvement in Wawrinka’s performance in significant matches and was evident in his victories over Andy Murray at the 2013 US Open, and Djokovic at the 2014 Australian Open (both were defending champions), as well as his improved consistency in big matches.

Wawrinka’s mental game has also been seen to improve over time, culminating in his win over No. 1 seed Rafael Nadal at the 2014 Australian Open Final in which Wawrinka survived a fight back from Nadal to clinch the title. He also survived a fight back from No. 1 seed Djokovic at the 2015 French Open final last Sunday, being down one break of serve in the fourth set, before breaking Djokovic’s service twice to clinch the title.

Apart from winning 2 majors, his first Masters title & Davis Cup with Switzerland, Wawrinka has managed to exorcise his demons against the Big 3. He ended momentous losing streaks against Djokovic (2014 AO; 14 match losing streak) and Nadal (2014 AO; 12 match losing streak) beating the Spaniard for the first time in 13 matches (having never won a set against him in 12 attempts).

He managed to also defeat good friend Federer in the finals of the Monte Carlo Masters ending his 11 match losing streak against the Swiss legend. Norman has gone on to change Wawrinka’s attitude towards tennis and this aided him in reaching a career high ranking of No.3 in the world.

Wawrinka is here to stay

Wawrinka has revealed that a pep talk from Norman helped him to get hold of the pre-match jitters and inspired him to glory in the French Open final against Djokovic. The Swede has had a phenomenal record with Stan which persuaded another Swedish tennis great Mats Wilander to regard him as the “Best Coach in the World”. Norman has transformed his game and perhaps got him out of Federer’s shadow for the best part of his professional career.

Stan has still been underperforming in smaller events on a regular basis and is not consistent as the “Big 4”. Amid personal disturbances and broken marriage, Wawrinka struggled to find form before arriving in Paris. But with Norman around, Stan’s game went notches up given the turmoil of his life and form.

With a clean & straightforward game along with a thinker like Norman, Wawrinka could possibly be part of a “Big 5” and dominate the game for a longer period. Norman’s main focus now will be to ensure Stan is more consistent at the Masters level and avoid any possibly dip in form. Wawrinka’s backhand is a weapon of mass destruction and on his given day, he could demolish top players by replicating the lights-out game he produced against Djokovic on Sunday.

Wawrinka’s victory was more fruitful for Norman as he had come close to lifting the title in Paris on 3 separate occasions (2000 as a player and 2009/2010 as a coach with Soderling).

Come next month, we could perhaps see another historic chapter of the Norman-Wawrinka affiliation on the grass-courts of Wimbledon.

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