leicsmac

You have no idea man. I honestly feel for most of the kids here.

Nadal comes through once again...he really is sensational at RG. 7 titles and only one loss in 8 years. Amazing. Now the serious business begins though....grass court season!

Could be an interesting finale here...still can't see Nadal losing though. In other news, looks like the first two days of Queens could be washed out...looking like a massive schedule pileup imminent there.

Another Nadal - Djoko final. Ho hum. Still, I reckon it'll be entertaining in a brutal kind of way. NB. Is there really any point in any Spanish players playing against Nadal at GS events? They may as well just retire pre-match and give him the walkover because that's what happens anyway. Happens at all the Slams too.

Good call - Ferrer is a pain in the arse for just about anyone on clay. Except his old pal Nadal, who he'll promptly roll over for in the semi-final. Another Djokovic - Nadal final coming up, as I called. Murray made far too many errors. You can't do that against someone of Ferrer's calibre and get away with it....on clay Ferrer is way too consistent. He needs to look to the grasscourt season where he'll be a bit stronger.

Sounds like two fantastic matches there. Told you they'd be difficult to call. Will try to check out the highlights later. You seem to be of the opinion that I like it when such things happen. I don't - I dislike gamesmanship, but I don't complain about it because I know it's a part of sport that's going to always be there. Some people find it frustrating, especially when their player or team is on the receiving end...I just shrug. It's a sign of the times. As long as the rules are not broken, it's deemed acceptable. And people (this is not directed at you btw ScouseFox, people I've met IRL) do seem to use 'gamesmanship' as an excuse to have a go at people they don't like, while neglecting the fact that practically all top-level sportspeople indulge in it to a degree - even the ones they support. So it can appear to be a bit hypocritical. Also I believe that as a top-level sportsman you have to cultivate the mental attitude to deal with any 'mind games' - be it Drogba going down like a sack of spuds, or the Aussies giving you lip when you're at the crease, or Murray appearing injured - that your opponent tries. A true test of a sportsman is to be entirely focussed on the game. Entirely. If a player is worrying too much about what their opponent is doing to focus on what they themselves are doing, they don't deserve to win.

Totally agree with that - it's a pretty good last 8 lineup. Still can't look past a Nadal win though - bunnies all the way to the final from here (assuming Ferrer beats Murray) and then a final against one of four players who will probably have knackered themselves out in epic clashes in QF and SF (top half of the draw is very even to me). And in what is essentially his own backyard too. Still, could be wrong. I'm just looking forward to some (hopefully) epic matches!

Almagro is one of the Spanish bunnies whose sole duty it is is to lay down for Nadal when he plays them in Grand Slams. Lopez, Almagro, Verdasco and Ferrer all do the same thing vs Nadal in GS's - fold. Expect a straight sets victory for Nadal dropping no more than 12 games. Djoko v Tsonga and Fed v Del P will both be extremely interesting. Wouldn't really want to call either. And one more thing...in 459 matches on the ATP Tour, Murray has had to retire during a match once. 1 match. And that was because he'd practically broken his wrist during the match (bad sprain which kept him out for six months). So I don't think he'll retire out of this one. Ferrer definitely favourite though...first set will be crucial IMO. Think it'll be either straight sets Ferrer (more likely) or 3-1/3-2 Murray (less likely).

Fair enough mate, but the last time I checked what he did wasn't against the rules, and it's not like the rest of the Tour is whiter than white (Djoko's MTO's, Nadal's excessive time-wasting etc) either. Don't quite understand why everyone's jumping on Murray's back (no pun intended) for this when gamesmanship is part of sport (as all top-level sportsmen understand) and Gasquet should have had the stones to not let it get to him and close the match out when he had Murray down at the start of the second set. As I said before, sport is about the mind as well as the body. The days of "It's the taking part that counts" are long gone now. Agree with you about Ferrer beating him next round (in all likelihood) though.

He won't get that far...if he beats Ferrer Nadal is likely waiting in the semifinal, and that will be where the smashing will probably occur.

Sorry peeps, but sport is about the mind as much as the body...if Gasquet was daft enough to get wound up by Murray's tricks - feigned injury or not - he didn't deserve to win this. Psychological warfare has always been a part of top-level sport, and always will be. I'm not saying I agree with it, but it's a fact. Djoko is partial to the odd tactical injury timeout to put pressure on his opponent too. Gasquet should have used the crowd more too - like Murray did against him in Wimbledon 2008. Anyhow, brilliant from Murray in the final two sets, but Ferrer will be another few notches up the scale. I'd make Ferrer favourite. And Nadal looks utterly destructive right now.

Normal business was eventually resumed, but both Federer and Djokovic were given an almighty scare. Tsonga - Wawrinka and Del P - Berdych have been cracking to watch too, and neither of those matches were completed - they're both going to finish tomorrow. Good day of tennis.

Djoko in all kinds of trouble right now - two sets down to Andreas Seppi. To be honest I still expect him to come back and win in 5 here but he's making it tough for himself...

What really gets me about this whole business is that most Koreans I know or have seen here are friendly, pretty outgoing and interested in talking about foreign culture. And there's never a shortage of girls wanting to 'study English'... . And then an article like this makes them look like knuckle-draggers. (Another thing with that video - it's degrading towards Korean women as well...implying that they're all weakminded - so racism and sexism in one neat package.) The problem is that the xenophobia here is held by many people that have positions of power...so in some ways it's institutionalised in a way I've not seen anywhere else.

You thought the English media could be a bit xenophobic? Check out this beauty by MBC - one of Korea's biggest broadcasters. [media=]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nsNHYYrvMrk&feature=youtu.be[/media] What really frustrates me is that it's only a small amount of smallminded morons (like the BNP/EDL in the UK) that buy this stuff, yet a national broadcaster can spout this utter bullshit without fear of reprisal. Probably some racist nutbag high up at MBC decided "hey, let's make the weigukin (foreigners) look bad again" and everyone else went along with it for fear of losing their jobs. I'm :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: right now.

OK - Murray still moving like a 90-year old but is somehow about to go two sets to one up. Honestly...it's unreal. He's made of iron! Can't understand how he's still playing this match, let alone winning it.

That injury to Murray more serious than I thought...he's barely moving in his match right now. God only knows why he's continuing to play - he's hobbling around like a fvcking geriatric. Just hope he can recuperate in time for Wimbledon and the Olympics...

I did say in the Quarters of a Slam Slams are a different beast, even for Murray, dontcha know. And incidentally that last time was here in 2010 to Berdych. Agree with you about him being weak on clay though, Berdych, Ferrer and possibly Del P I'd all put as favourites against him in a match here. It's never been his strongest surface, and I don't think he'll ever get to a standard to challenge the top 3 on it. Grass and the US hardcourts are where it's at for Murray. This is just going to be him trying to make a SF and defend his ranking points.

Quarter to Ferrer or semi to Nadal, I reckon. That's depending one whether the knock he's carrying makes it even more difficult for him As for the perennial 'top 4' question...here's my take. Djokovic Nadal Federer DECENT SIZE GAP Murray MASSIVE MASSIVE MAHOOOOOOOSSIIIIIVVVEEEE GAP Everyone else. Statistically Murray is quite a bit behind the top 3, and way ahead of everyone else. In terms of head-to-heads, the gap between Murray and the top 3 is a little bit closer, and he's further away from everyone else. I saw enough in the Aus Open SF against Djokovic to suggest in one-off encounters the gap might be closing, but whether that's just a flash in the pan remains to be seen. PS. Know you were being laconic but 'Quarter final exit' is a wee bit disingenuous - when was the last time Murray actually lost in the QF of a Slam?

Can't look past Nadal here this year - he's beaten Djokovic twice on clay this year already. Think Nole would make him work for it though.

Grand Slam time again folks - this time on the red dirt of Paris. Expect rowdy fans, endless baseline rallies and another Nadal - Djokovic final. Murray plays Tatsuma Ito of Japan later today in the first round - has a decent draw but he's carrying a back injury (apparently). Got a tough potential quarter final against world no.6 Ferrer who is very handy on clay. Also some potential banana skins earlier on too. Federer and Djokovic both won their respective 1st rounders yesterday, and Nadal is playing his later today. Federer could potentially play either Del Potro or Berdych in the QF which could be tasty. Djokovic has claycourt specialist Verdasco and home favourite Tsonga in his quarter. Nadal...well, Nadal isn't going to face anyone who can trouble him on this surface until the semifinal, most likely. Should be a good six weeks coming up - French Open, Queens and Wimbledon!

Living in Korea, when I visit any city with a subway system I see this all the time. Amazing eh? The herd mentality is strong here.

Fantastic match...Djoko showing why he's world no.1.

Agree with you about the top 3 being better then Murray, particularly at the Slams (the record speaks for itself). Disagree with your insinuation that it's always going to be that way. I think the gap is closing.

Murrays game in the first set wasn't anywhere near his best - his serve was all over the shop. And in the fourth he just didn't seem to want to try. In the other three sets I think he was playing at about the limit. Agree with you on Djokovic looking a little tight at times too - thing is because of that it became a very close game, and what's to say Djokovic won't go into his next match with Murray feeling the same way? What I'm saying is based on that match the margin in ability between Murray and Djokovic in Slams appears to have decreased. What's to say it won't continue to do so? Come on man, don't be facetious. I'm assuming you watched the match and saw how damn close it was, especially considering how Murray got wiped out by Djokovic the last time they met in a Slam. What's to say the next match won't be even closer? Last night showed a lot of progression, particularly in Murrays mental state - and that's key.