* !Picby Pete Bodo*
I must confess, I really enjoy what I've come to think of as the ATP and WTA "diaspora weeks." That is, weeks when the pros are scattered all over the current global hot-spots of tennis (these weeks often precede high-octane events like the current Madrid combined). And with the exception of the Munich tournament, all the action was in what might be called secondary markets, like Belgrade, Budapest, and Estoril.
Honorable mentions in the thumbs-up category this week go to Philipp Kohlschreiber, who won Munich for the second time in his career on Sunday, and Juan Martin del Potro and Kaia Kanepi, who won the singles titles at Estoril. As always, I'm looking to single out performers and institutions because their actions or words were particularly distinctive or comment-worthy, not necessarily of utmost significance.
!6a00d83451599e69e20168eaf0dc2e970c-800wiMelanie Oudin: Oh, I know, "all" she did was have a good little run in two Challenger events and thus earn the USTA wild card into Roland Garros. What's the big deal, what with Serena whirling like a dervish on the blue clay, Maria Sharapova banging forehands and backhands as in the days of yore, and Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal circling each other once again?
Well, you'd be hard put to write a tougher script for an aspiring player than the one the diminutive Oudin (she's listed at 5'6" but that may be, ah, stretching it) has had to live out ever since reached the quarterfinals of the U.S. Open in 2009. Oudin absorbed 13 first-round losses in 2011 and five straight at the start of 2012—one of the most prolonged slumps of a "name" player in recent memory. Soon after that enchanted Open, Oudin also had to deal with having the details of her parents' divorce raked through the public coals. Her ranking plummeted to No. 370, but is now back up to No. 275.
But Oudin is going to the French Open. It's time to break out that word she had written on her multi-colored tennis shoes during that U.S. Open run that riveted the nation—Believe. And hey, she's of French descent, so anything can happen at Roland Garros, right?
!6a00d83451599e69e20168eaf0dc2e970c-800wiTommy Haas: He started this year ranked No. 205, and won just four matches at tour-level events going into Munich last week. But Haas, a whopping 34 years old and long plagued by various injuries, clearly was inspired by the opportunity to play before his countrymen. He made it all the way to the semis, with wins over Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Marcos Baghdatis before yielding to Marin Cilic. The performance raised Haas' singles ranking to a solid No. 109—and clay isn't even his best surface.
It's sometimes easy to overlook that Haas is on the short list of "Best player never to win a Grand Slam." Almost exactly a decade ago, he was the second-ranked player in the world. He has 12 career singles titles, including the Stuttgart Masters Series event of 2001. I wouldn't put it past Haas to halve his current ranking, perhaps even make it back into the Top 30, before the year is out.
!6a00d83451599e69e2016304fb391a970d-800wiSvetlana Kuznetsova: I know she's a free spirit and a charming, quirky personality, but Kuznetsova ought to be told that if you want to keep your job, it pays to show up at work. Sveta, just 26 and thus in no danger of being over the hill (at least not physically), is down to No. 27 in the rankings and has already lost in Madrid, albeit to top-seeded Victoria Azarenka.
Given that Kuznetsova is a two-time Grand Slam champion (and, based on that alone, almost a lock to make the International Tennis Hall of Fame), her lack of consistency is borderline astonishing. She hasn't won back-to-back matches since Doha, and lost this year to the likes of then-No. 46 Iveta Benesova and No. 47 Jie Zheng. Sure, life is tough out there, and every opponent is hungry—but that's only because it's part of the job description. And there is this little thing called pride as well.
!6a00d83451599e69e20168eaf0dc2e970c-800wiBenoit Paire: This jasper is young, but he just reached the ATP final in Belgrade. He stands 6'5", and hails from Avignon, France—can those "Ace of Avignon" headlines be far behind? But he's a guy to keep an eye on in the coming weeks, because he's got an excellent backhand and despite that big serve, his favorite surface is clay. You'd almost call him somewhat. . . Isner-ish.
Ranked a lowly 96th at the start of Belgrade, Paire beat five players ranked above him in, starting with Fabio Fognini, the winner of one of the previous week's ATP events. It took 28-year-old veteran and ATP No. 46 Andreas Seppi to finally end Paire's run in a 6-3, 6-2 final (you can see the highlights here). But you have to like Paire's attitude. After the match, he said: "I only had hard matches against tough players this week. I'm not used to playing so many hard matches against great players in a row. It was a great week for me but of course I'm disappointed that I couldn't do better in my first final. I have my birthday in two days and this would have been the perfect gift." Paire will be 23 tomorrow.
!6a00d83451599e69e2016304fb391a970d-800wiRafael Nadal: Rafa is in danger of becoming the ATP's Complainer-in-Chief. It seems that the only time his name pops up in the headlines is when he wins a tournament (which is frequently), or levels some criticism at the structure of the calendar, the attitude of his fellow elite players, his own body (knees), or the color of a clay court. Which also seems to be frequently.
I know his beefs are heartfelt, and at some level I appreciate Rafa's honesty. But at the same time he seems, well, increasingly disgruntled and disillusioned by his everyday life as one of the greatest players who ever graced a tennis court.
While Djokovic seems to revel in his the role as ATP top dog and tennis ambassador-at-large, and Roger Federer seems to be just plain loving loving life (he's been telling reporters in Madrid that he's all fired up about his continuing shot at breaking Pete Sampras's record for most weeks ranked No. 1), Nadal is in danger of becoming—or at least appearing—something like the embittered idealist, always ready to see the glass half empty rather than half full, even though his own cup is overflowing.
Nobody has been more vocal in his criticism of the blue clay in Madrid, which regardless of its validity just seems part of the larger pattern of discontent. More and more, it looks like this guy just needs a hug.
!6a00d83451599e69e20168eaf0dc2e970c-800wiSara Errani: What is it with these Italian women? They've really come on strong these past few years, while the men continue to be mediocre, which is surprising given that Italy has a long and rich history as a tennis power. Now, Errani has stepped in to pick up where recent French Open champ Francesca Schiavone and Fed Cup star Flavia Pennetta left off.
Errani has won the last three tournaments she's played on clay (Acapulco, Barcelona, and Budapest) and she's posted wins over Julia Goerges as well as two of her more well-known countrywomen, Roberta Vinci and Pennetta. In Budapest, she triumphed in the final over Elena Vesnina, 7-5. 6-4. That brings Errani's winning streak on clay to 15 matches. I have a feeling we will hear a lot more from her before the tours decamp for the United Kingdom.