By Chris Oddo | Monday, April 21, 2014
The German Fed Cup team reached the World Group final for the first time in 22 years on Sunday, but they weren't the weekend's only heroes.
Photo Source: Patrick Hamilton, AFP
Another crazy week of tennis is in the books. So what did we learn? Well, the road to Roland Garros might be more circuitous than we were expecting, and the road to Fed Cup glory will run through the Czech Republic. Some of it's still a bit foggy, but it was clear who the heroes and zeros were.
Without any further ado...
Hero: Stan Wawrinka
Stan Wawrinka continued to single-handedly rearrange the narrative for the 2014 ATP season by imposing his bash-and-crash baseline badness on Roger Federer in yesterday’s Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters final. After “the Stanimal’s” dreamy Australian Open run, it appeared that Wawrinka had woken up to cold water in the face as he stumbled, bumbled and fumbled through Indian Wells, Miami and, most notably, Switzerland’s home Davis Cup tie versus Kazakhstan.
The Leading Man: Stanislas Wawrinka First in Race to London
On that Davis Cup weekend Stan had to be carried by Federer, but on Sunday in Monte-Carlo, Wawrinka needed no assistance—he knew exactly what to do to win his first career Masters 1000 title and improve his record to a remarkable 6-0 against the Top 10 in 2014. The clay has apparently rekindled some of Wawrinka’s magic, and he’ll march on to Madrid considered by many to be a somewhat serious contender for the Roland Garros title.
There has been a lot of talk about younger and less proven players gaining belief from Wawrinka’s Australian Open victory, but in reality, it has been a one-man show by Wawrinka. After ransacking David Ferrer’s kitchen in the Monte-Carlo semi, Wawrinka overcame nerves and a slow start to run away from Roger Federer in the final for just his second win in fifteen tries against the Swiss maestro.
It’s a brave new world for Wawrinka right now, and while his No. 3 ranking looked like an aberration based on a one-time, somewhat fluky result after Australia, the 29-year-old looks like he might actually take up residence in the top five for a while.
Zero: Fabio Fognini
Fognini’s rise to the cusp of becoming the first Italian to carve out a spot in the ATP’s top 10 since Corrado Barazzutti in 1978 has been a wild ride. He’s inspired with pristine clay-court tennis and become a reliable leader of the Italian Davis Cup team, but his meltdown against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the Monte-Carlo round of 16 pointed to everything that is still wrong with the Italian’s psyche at the moment.
Not So Fab: Fognini Taking Heat for On-Court Antics
Sure, the fabulous Fognini is preternaturally gifted on the clay, and he’s got a moxie that often carries him through tough matches on any surface. But his proclivity for choosing clown antics over mental toughness against the game’s elite could leave him perpetually on the outside of the top 10 looking in. He completely tanked (no other way to put it) during the third set of his match with Tsonga—and that is an unforgivable act at any level. Showmanship is one thing. Being a head case is another. But quitting? That’s simply inexcusable.
Hero: Donna Vekic
It was third time lucky for WTA rising star Donna Vekic at the BMW Malaysian Open on Sunday night, as the 17-year-old Croatian won her very first WTA title. Just for good measure, Vekic notched her first Top 10 win over Dominika Cibulkova in the process.
At 17 years, 10 months and 23 days, Vekic, who is now 3-0 in tour-level semifinals, is the first player under 18 to win a WTA title since Vania King won Bangkok in 2006 as a 17-year-old.
Hero: German Fed Cup Team
Angelique Kerber and Andrea Petkovic combined take down the Stosur-led Aussies in Brisbane, landing the German team in the Fed Cup final for the first time since 1992. The following quote by Kerber, who won both her singles rubbers, sums up the German mindset for the weekend quite nicely:
“After the first set I was just thinking, just play every single point for your team, you’re playing for Germany, your country, and keep fighting and keep fighting till the last point. I really tried that and I’m just so happy."
Heroes: Canadian, Polish and Romanian Fed Cup Teams
Canada, Poland and Romania each cracked Fed Cup milestones over the weekend, climbing to new heights thanks to inspired performances from their big names.
Eugenie Bouchard won two points to lead Canada past Slovakia:
Sorana Cirstea downed Ana Ivanovic and Bojana Jovanovski to lead Romania past Serbia:
And, our favorite ninja Agnieszka Radwanska contributed three points to her country’s cause just as she had against Sweden in Group 2 play in February. She was, deservedly, happy.
Hero: Mike and Bob Bryan
98 doubles titles and counting from the Bryans. Five titles in a row, and 21 consecutive match wins to boot. Will they wait until Roland Garros to get No. 100?
Hero: Caroline Garcia
Frenchwoman Caroline Garcia became France’s official one-woman wrecking ball over the weekend, taking down higher-ranked Sloane Stephens and Madison Keys in singles, then pairing with Virginie Razzano to win the tie-clinching doubles rubber for the French against Team USA in St. Louis.
Hey, if Darren Cahill is impressed, we're impressed...
A week ago, Garcia was winning her first career title in Bogota, taking out Jelena Jankovic in the final. This week she took America by storm. It's only logical to think that the world will be next...
More Studs and Duds from the Week that Was:
Dud: The Injury Bug
Novak Djokovic’s surprisingly serious wrist injury put the kibosh on what we expected to be a rollicking semifinal between the world No. 2 and Roger Federer. With the doctor ordering the Serb to rest for the next eight days, his clay-court season is, for the moment at least, cloaked in doubt. It’s been a tough year for the big boys on tour. Murray’s back had him limping at the starting gun, Nadal’s back curtailed his momentum in Australia, Del Potro's wrist has already cut his season short, and now Djokovic’s problems. Just not cool for fans who love to see the best at their best.
Stud: Nick Kyrgios
In his first event since falling prey to injury in Memphis in February, 18-year-old Aussie Nick Kyrgios claimed the 100k Sarasota Challenger, dropping only one set in the process. He’s now the only teenager in the top 200, and he’ll have a year to improve upon his current status (171):
Dud: Jack Sock
The Nebraskan dropped his first-round match to Andrea Arnaboldi of Italy in the Sarasota Challenger. After dropping the second set in a tiebreaker he was clobbered in the third, and fed a breadstick from the world No. 181.
Stud: Guillermo Garcia-Lopez
The 30-year-old Spaniard came into Monte-Carlo like a house on fire, knocking off Alexandr Dolgopolov and Tomas Berdych in back-to-back tilts, then giving Novak Djokovic a run for his money in the quarterfinals (his first Masters QF in four years), while playing some truly scintillating tennis along the way. Could Guillermo be the dark horse of the 2014 clay season? Sure seemed like it this week…
Dud: American Fed Cup Team
The American women have had their share of hype and praise, but after dropping home ties to Italy and France and being relegated to World Group II, is it simply growing pains or is time to wonder what is going wrong?
Stud: Roger Federer
Federer fell to stormy Stan in the Monte-Carlo final, but back-to-back wins over Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Novak Djokovic are further proof that Federer is a) striking the ball exceptionally well and b) the most consistently fit player in the world. Guys keep dropping like flies because of injuries, but Federer always seems to have his physical house in order. How does he do it? He trains and plays intelligently. He’s built a relatively low impact game from the ground up, and he’s reaping the rewards now at 32.
Notes, Quotes, Quips and Blips:
Donald Young is a hero for screaming “Son of a Biscuit” and getting warned by the umpire for it. Thanks for the levity, Mr. Young.
Don’t think Stan Wawrinka has improved? Check this stat:
Nice pic, Roger...
Hot. Shots. Need we say more?
Novak Djokovic had a tough week in Monte-Carlo, but he set the example by not pouting on Easter Sunday, spending it with friends and family--an exampe we all can follow when things get tough in our lives.