It was an eventful week in Rome where upsets occurred and big names reigned on the top. This recap has all of that and everything in between.
Andy Murray can handle the clay in Rome
The Scottish player demonstrated his ability to play on clay in the past few years. Up until Munich last year, Murray had yet to reach the final of a clay tournament let alone win one. Now he has placed himself at the top of the contenders of Roland Garros. He went untroubled throughout most of the fortnight as he straight-setted Jeremy Chardy, David Goffin, Lucas Pouille, and the world no. 1 Novak Djokovic. This is his first win over Djokovic on clay, now hoisting wins over the Serb on all three surfaces.
He went untroubled throughout most of the fortnight as he straight-setted Jeremy Chardy, David Goffin, Lucas Pouille, and the world no. 1 Novak Djokovic. This is his first win over Djokovic on clay, now hoisting wins over the Serb on all three surfaces.
This is Murray’s first title of the year and 36th overall. It was also his second masters on clay as well as his 12th masters overall.
Serena is still in charge
After struggling for a while in the opening rounds, Serena blitzed through strong clay court opposition in Irina-Camelia Begu and former Roland Garros winner Svetlana Kuznetsova. She then took out the surprise finalist Madison Keys 7-6 6-3.
This was Serena’s first title of the year, her fourth in Rome. After failing to win a title in the first quarter of the season, many believed that the 21-time grand slam winner was on the downfall since failing to close the door on history in New York last summer. She was upset by Angelique Kerber and Victoria Azarenka in the Australian Open and Indian Wells finals respectively and taken out in three sets in Miami by Kuznetsova, a loss she avenged this week. All in all, it has been a lackluster year for the impossibly high standards she has set, and while this does not redeem it, it places her year in a positive direction.
Djokovic is not invincible
Along with his shocking loss in Monte Carlo, Rome demonstrated that the world no. 1, while still far ahead of everybody else, can still be beaten. In his semi final match against Kei Nishikori, he injured his foot by smacking it with a racket, hindering his movement for a long duration of the match. Nevertheless, he was able to overcome his opponent, who let the occasion get to him in the third set tiebreaker.
Furthermore, his human characteristics showed in his fatigue in which less recovery time than his opponent was shown in the final in which Murray brushed him aside. He no longer possesses that aura of invincibility and unbreakable confidence that he had going into last year’s Roland Garros. As a result, it shakes up the possibility of a surprise champion.
Madison Keys can play on clay
The American took out two big names en route to the final in Rome this week: Petra Kvitova and Garbine Muguruza. This run surprised many people as many believed that her uncomfortable movement and lack of patience would nullify all her weapons. However, she demonstrated that “big babe tennis” can work well on clay as long as it is executed with patience. To succeed on clay, a play needs to be willing to build the points, something Keys was able to harness her weapons into being able to do this week.
She would go on to lose the final to compatriot and all-time great Serena Williams, but this will give her confidence going forward and give her ranking a nice boost.
Even top players can be embarrassed
In terms of shocking results in Rome, few could possibly top the double bagel scoreline David Goffin dropped on Tomas Berdych.
The Czech was ranked no. 8 as opposed to the Belgian’s no. 13 ranking. In addition, Berdych held a 2-0 lifetime record against his opponent. That did not stop this match from being one-way traffic. Berdych won 15 points in the entire match and held game points only once in the entire match. Goffin hit 21 winners and five unforced errors as opposed to Berdych’s six winners and 14 unforced errors.
The result was a shock even for Goffin who gave off a big shrug once the match was finished.
