After the first five days of perfect results from the top players Venus came out flat and was knocked out of the event by  the talented Hungarian Agnes Szavay. Venus struggled with her forehand and her movement was poor.  Venus has lost in the third round at Roland Garros four of the last five years.   She did get some payback beating Szavay later in the day in doubles. 

Safina has only dropped four games in the first three rounds and is starting to show the swagger that comes with the number one ranking.   Somebody is going to have to step up big to beat her.   I’m starting to belive that there is a very good chance that we will see Maria advance to her first semifinal at Roland Garros.  A prediction that I would not have made a week ago.

There were whispers around the grounds that Nadal was not at his sharpest.  He dispelled that myth yesterday by putting a total wood shed beat down on Hewitt.  Nadal sent a very clear message to the rest of the field that they are still playing for second.

If Roddick would have gone into the back room he could not have made a better draw for himself for the first week.   His match with Monfils on Monday will be the marquee match of the event so far and the Parisian fans will be at a fever pitch.   Even thought he has a losing record against the Frenchman, I expect this to be an epic encounter. Roddick is moving better and playing with more confidence than ever on the clay and will push Monfils to his limits.

Big day for the William sisters, as the lone two American women left in the singles draw.

Venus got up off the canvas after losing the first set yesterday and ended up in a complete dog fight with Lucie Safarova in the third set, which was the best set we’ve seen so far in the women’s event. Venus saved a match point with a beautiful backhand down the line and closed out the match 7- 5 in the third.

After her first round hiccup, today was batting practice for Serena, as she put a total beat down on the oldest woman in the draw, Virginia Ruano Pascal. When the sisters get tested early and get through they are rough customers and when they also play doubles together in at the majors it seems to help their singles especially as the tournament progresses.

Talk about somebody flying under the radar, double J has quietly gone about her business advancing to the third round. Last year she came in as the number seed and I think this year she feel less pressure.

Fed was pushed to the brink today and just like Murray the other day at one set all he found himself down 1-5 in the third set. Fed made a few key adjustments—moved back on his return of serves and started playing more aggressively. The next thing you know he was in total control and won the match in four sets. Acasuso has an 11-27 record in Slams, but today he looked like contender for a few sets.

 The French resistance is looking strong. There are seven Frenchman still left in the draw lead by Gilles Simon, Gael Monfils, and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.

Andy Roddick had a convincing win today and won his second consecutive straight setter. I believe that for the first time in his career he will be around in the second week at Roland Garros.

Friday’s popcorn match features two Spaniards—Almagro and Verdasco. I’m picking Tabasco in four sets. I’m definitely going to pull up a chair and watch that one. I’m also picking Venus in straight sets.

I don’t trust the weather men here they said it was going to be sunny and in the 70’s and we got more of the cold and blustery conditions.

What an incredibly interesting match from Murray today. He completely dominated the first set, only losing three points on his serve. I’m thinking ok, here comes a total route. There is nothing in Starace’s bio that tells you anything special.  And inexplicably Murray ends up trailing 1-5 in the third set but broke Starace three straight times to close it out. Murray was able to righten the ship by playing more aggressively.  I think this was a match he will grow and learn a lot from.  

Verdasco and Almagro both won today set up an epic all Spanish third rounder.

We’re down to only one American left in the draw—Andy Roddick. I  believe with his draw that he will be around for the second week  Another workman like effort from Nadal who will get stronger by the set.

I saw a much better effort from Ivanovic today, she still needs to work on her ball toss. What a massive win for Maria over compatriot Nadia Petrova. The third set provided fans with some great drama and solid tennis.   Who would  have thought that she makes it to the third round after such a long layoff?

15 year old Michelle Larcher De Brito has to been seen and heard to be believed.  Her grunt can be best described as a violent scream in a league of its own and talk about a huge forehand, she’s got it.

Look for Serena to come out with both guns blazing on Thursday after yesterdays wake up call. A happy B-day shout out to my man Cliffy D they say is 67, but I never knew a cat that age to be so hip and cool.

After two days of stellar weather the blustery, cold, and brutal conditions arrived today, which is one of the reasons this event is so mentally and physically demanding.

Serena’s match was a great example of this. She was cruising along 6-3, 5-3 and had five match points on Zakopalova’s serve and the Czech just clawed her way back into the match. After Zakopalova won the second set Serena looked completely disheveled. Then in the third set she let three more match points slip away. Serena finally captured the match on her ninth match point. It was one of those matches that will actually make Serena stronger and she’s had a history of these early scares in slams and this has given her the resolve on more than a few occasions to claim the title.

Very disappointing loss for Fish after a decent clay court season. Djoker is playing with a lot more confidence and has his swagger going strong. I was looking at the men’s field and realized that we have 21 guys over 30 in the draw led by Stepanek and the elder statesman Santoro at age 36, I think that’s very cool especially considering the physicality of today’s game.

The French Open is upon us and the draws are out.  

On the Men’s Side:  Nadal’s quarter is the roughest by far.  It is loaded with the heavy hitters like David Ferrer, Nikolay Davydenko, Stanislas Wawrinka, Nicolas Almagro and Fernando erdasco. Nadal I’m sure will be able to navigate it, but nonetheless, a very tough task ahead of him.  Bad luck for the guys in his section.

On the other hand, Andy Murray got a very gratuitous draw.  He couldn’t have gotten a better opportunity as his section looks to be the easiest.  Last year he got his career best at the third round, I’ll be shocked if he doesn’t surpass last years results.  I’m looking to put him in the semifinals.  Third quarter, should come down to a Djokovic - Del Potro match up, with a dangerous Frenchman Tsonga standing between them.  I like the way Djoker is playing and I think he’ll come through his section fairly unscathed.  

On the bottom quarter: Andy Roddick has a great opportunity to make his first second week of the French Open having never gotten past the third round in his career.  Making the quarterfinals of the Madrid Masters and playing well on clay, he should be stepping on the court with some confidence.  He’s got nothing to lose. Good news, Roger Federer looks to have regained his form.  I see him coming out of this section and bringing the veteran vibe with some class.  I’ll be shocked if anyone outside the big four wins this event.

First Round Popcorn Match:  Young Gun Sam Querrey vs. Ernests Gulbis. This should be the best first round men’s match to watch, I know I’ll be checking it out. Look for some massive hitting between these two and I predict shots will be flying.

On the ladies side, the first thing that jumps to mind while I look at the draw is to see Serena on one side and Venus on the other.  That always seems to put a little more pep in the step of the Williams sisters.  Serena comes into the French Open on a four match losing streak for the first time in her career.  She’ll be eager to get a couple of wins under her belt.  Dinara Safina, the No. 1 seed, is packing lots of confidence and a great swagger.  Since gaining the No. 1 ranking she’s solidified her spot by winning her last two tournaments back to back. I see potential for lots of different scenarios, with any one of ten different women taking the trophy home.  In my mind, the women’s event is still wide open.  My dark horse on the ladies side is Svetlana Kuznetsova.  I watched her practice today and she looked impressive.  It’s just a hunch, but if she plays like she practiced today, I like her chances.  But, I can’t say it enough, it’s a anybody’s race for the ladies.  

HUUUGE win for Roger Federer. First Masters Series Title since ‘07 has to do a world of good for his confidence with the added bonus of beating Nadal. Albeit, it was a pretty darn-tired version of Nadal, nonetheless, good effort. A couple of days rest oughta refresh Nadal and he still comes into the French Open as a massive favorite to claim a record 5th straight open. His preparation couldn’t be any better.

Dinara Safina has really stepped up her game the last couple of weeks. She comes in as the favorite on the women’s side. Safina is playing with much more poise and presence since gaining the No. 1 ranking. Having said that, the ladies side is still wide open. Nice to see Maria Sharapova back playing her first event in Warsaw. I’d like to see her get a couple of matches under her belt before next week’s French. Her star appeal was surely missed - welcome back.

Are you kidding me? 

That was the longest 3-set match in ATP history.  The last two sets alone took 3 hours, 17 matches. Total match time:  4 hours and 2 minutes! 

In one of the most epic ATP matches I have ever seen,  Rafael Nadal withstands 3 match points, twice hitting amazing winners  on match point down…the onslaught from the Djoker was as good as  I’ve ever seen Djokovic look against Nadal on clay. 

There was  no loser today. Djokovic, who’s always had trouble physically during long matches, showed no signs of fatique, good effort with the off court training of late.  He’s ready for the French. Another thing to think about, Djokovic is the first player to take Nadal to a third set tievbreaker in a three set match since 2003.

As we thought, Fed just rolls DelPo. He’s won an amazing 12 sets in a row against DelPo, who has never taken a set from Fed.  He owns DelPo. The Big Argie has had no answers against Fed.

Just like in Australia, you figure Nadal has got to be dead tired with a one day turn-around facing Fed tomorrow.  This is why I must be crazy, if Fed is ever gonna get him, it’s gonna be tomorrow, but I’m still sticking with Nadal.

Safina has stepped up all tournament long and plays the young Wozniacki.  This Danish 18-year-old, who will rise to a career-high No. 10 in the world when the new rankings are released on Monday, looks like she’s getting ready to make her move on the elite women.  Should be a good test for Safina, but I like Safina in two tight sets to solidify her No. 1 ranking.

Huge step up today for 20-year old Juan Martin del Potro with a huge victory over Andy Murray, denying us the first all big 4 semi this year. Del Po has clearly established himself now as the 5th best player in the 
world. If anybody is going to put a dent in the big 4, it’s the Argentine who still has a lot of upside in his game.

Nadal-Djokovic tomorrow, I said it from the start of the week, I don’t think anyone can win a set from Nadal, but Djoker is playing as well as I’ve seen him play on clay. Fed with a comfortable three-set win over Roddick sets up for his match against Del Po. I like Fed in straight sets, very much looking like a Nadal-Fed final.

On the ladies, Safina looks in total control of the event. Nice to see Mauresmo post her best result in a long time, but I feel like Safina is playing as well as anyone right now and should step up and win this.

For the fourth time this season the men have 7 of top 8 seeds in the quarterfinals.  Big win for the wily vet Ljubicic - stopping Simon’s third bid to reach the quarters of a Master Series event this year.

I think Federer is playing better ball on the dirt than he has on the hard courts this year, as he’s not be pressing as much.  Fed plays Roddick for their 20th career meeting tomorrow and will win in straights.  

I think that Verdasco is the only guy with a puncher’s chance of taking a set off of Nadal.  Tomorrow’s must see match is Murray/del Potro.  I’m telling you that there no love lost between these two guys.  I’m picking Murray.

The ladies event is finally starting to see some consistency, but what we desperately need from the ladies is dramatic and compelling tennis.