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law90026 · 03-16-2016, 12:48 PM

Year 320 in Review

Valentino Dotto won the Australian Open, beating Mario Avendano in a 5-setter in a thrilling finals and a repeat of last year's result. This makes it 3 consecutive finals for Dotto and back-to-back wins wins for him. It's Avendano's 3rd final in 4 years, although he's come up 2nd to Dotto twice now.

At Indian Wells, Dotto was the winner, beating Nikolai Balk in the finals. Similarly, it's Dotto's 3rd consecutive finals and 2nd consecutive win here. For Nikolai, he's supposed to be on the downswing of his career but he's showing he can still compete.

Next up was Miami and Dotto did not participate! Nikolai Balk was able to take advantage of this by winning the tournament, beating American Glenn Southwell in the finals. It's Balk's 4th win here, although his previous 3 wins came in years 315, 316, and 317.

Monte Carlo saw the return of Dotto as he beat Svetislav Jarenovich in the finals. Jarenovich was the winner here last year so he will be disappointed he wasn't able to repeat.

In Madrid, world #2 Antonio Filho finally made his first Masters final for the season and he beat Jarenovich in the finals. This is Filho's 5th consecutive win here on homesoil. Jarenovich has actually made 3 finals here in 6 years but never won.

Rome saw a repeat of the Madrid finals as Filho beat Jarenovich again. It's Filho's 3rd win here in 5 years. Bizarrely enough, Jarenovich has reached the last 3 finals here and lost every single one. Talk about being a bridesmaid.

These strong clay court performances led to Filho beating world #3 Gianluca Barrafuldi in the French Open finals. It's Filho's 4th finals appearance in 5 years, of which he has won 3. For Barrafuldi, it's his 3rd consecutive finals but he's only won 1 (last year) and he's now lost to Filho twice in the past 3 years here.

Wimbledon saw the return of Dotto to dominance as he beat Filho in 5 sets in the finals. The 5th set went 9/7, showing how tight the match was between the top 2 players in the world. For Dotto, it's his first finals appearance in 5 years and his first Wimbledon title. Filho has appeared in 4 of the last 5 finals here, although he's only won 1 of them.

The Olympics was won by Dotto and he beat Balk in the finals. Filho was 3rd.

Heading into hardcourt season and first up is Canada, where Avendano beats Dotto in the finals. This is Avendano's first finals appearance and win here while Dotto has appeared in 4 of the last 5 finals (although only winning 1).

In Cincinnati, Dotto re-established his dominance by winning it, beating world #9 Eddy Pratt in the finals. It's Dotto's 4th consecutive finals appearance here and his 2nd win. It is Eddy's first ever Masters finals.

At the US Open, Dotto won his 3rd Slam of the year, beating Balk in the finals. It's Dotto's 4th consecutive finals here and he has won back-to-back titles (and 3 out of 4) here. Balk has made 5 of 8 finals here and won this three times previously.

Shanghai saw the continued dominance of Dotto as he beat Avendano in the finals. It's Dotto's first ever finals and win while Avendano has now come in 2nd here for a 2nd consecutive year.

At Paris, Barrafuldi beat Filho for his first Masters title of the season. It's Barrafuldi's first ever finals appearance and win here while Filho was the winner at Paris 2 years ago.

Finally, the WTC Finals saw Barrafuldi beat Dotto in the finals. This is Barrafuldi's 3rd consecutive win here!

Summary:

Really, this year was all about Valentino Dotto, as he won 3 out of 4 Grand Slams and 4 of 9 Masters titles. He's the clear world #1 and it doesn't look like anyone is ready to challenge him yet.

We also saw the continued excellence of Antonio Filho, who must be cursing his luck as he was 2nd fiddle to Nikolai Balk for a long time before taking the world #1 for a short'ish period prior to Dotto's rise to dominance. Balk also had a career resurgence as he ended the year as the world #4, surprising many who thought he was on the way down.

Barrafuldi was expected to be a serious challenger to Dotto but he was disappointing for most of the year and really only picked up his game at the tailend of the season. Avendano was another disappointment as he slipped to world #5 despite possibly being the best player in the world on talent.

We are starting to see some of the old stalwarts drop out of the top 10 now, such as Adel Adkins, and some of the younger stars are making their move. Anatoly Cherny and Danil Mamine are both already in the top 10 and Tony Archer is lurking at #12.

World Top 10

1. Valentino Dotto, 26 years - 13,470 points
2. Antonio Filho, 28 years - 9,540 points
3. Gianluca Barrafuldi, 27 years - 8,020 points
4. Nikolai Balk, 30 years - 7,210 points
5. Mario Avendano, 28 years - 7,080 points
6. Svetislav Jarenovich, 29 years - 4,795 points
7. Anatoly Cherny, 25 years - 4,150 points
8. Danil Mamine, 24 years - 3,890 points
9. Eddy Pratt, 27 years - 3,205 points
10. Timmy Toy, 26 years - 3,185 points

03-16-2016, 12:48 PM	#65
law90026 College Benchwarmer Join Date: Jan 2006	Year 320 in Review Valentino Dotto won the Australian Open, beating Mario Avendano in a 5-setter in a thrilling finals and a repeat of last year's result. This makes it 3 consecutive finals for Dotto and back-to-back wins wins for him. It's Avendano's 3rd final in 4 years, although he's come up 2nd to Dotto twice now. At Indian Wells, Dotto was the winner, beating Nikolai Balk in the finals. Similarly, it's Dotto's 3rd consecutive finals and 2nd consecutive win here. For Nikolai, he's supposed to be on the downswing of his career but he's showing he can still compete. Next up was Miami and Dotto did not participate! Nikolai Balk was able to take advantage of this by winning the tournament, beating American Glenn Southwell in the finals. It's Balk's 4th win here, although his previous 3 wins came in years 315, 316, and 317. Monte Carlo saw the return of Dotto as he beat Svetislav Jarenovich in the finals. Jarenovich was the winner here last year so he will be disappointed he wasn't able to repeat. In Madrid, world #2 Antonio Filho finally made his first Masters final for the season and he beat Jarenovich in the finals. This is Filho's 5th consecutive win here on homesoil. Jarenovich has actually made 3 finals here in 6 years but never won. Rome saw a repeat of the Madrid finals as Filho beat Jarenovich again. It's Filho's 3rd win here in 5 years. Bizarrely enough, Jarenovich has reached the last 3 finals here and lost every single one. Talk about being a bridesmaid. These strong clay court performances led to Filho beating world #3 Gianluca Barrafuldi in the French Open finals. It's Filho's 4th finals appearance in 5 years, of which he has won 3. For Barrafuldi, it's his 3rd consecutive finals but he's only won 1 (last year) and he's now lost to Filho twice in the past 3 years here. Wimbledon saw the return of Dotto to dominance as he beat Filho in 5 sets in the finals. The 5th set went 9/7, showing how tight the match was between the top 2 players in the world. For Dotto, it's his first finals appearance in 5 years and his first Wimbledon title. Filho has appeared in 4 of the last 5 finals here, although he's only won 1 of them. The Olympics was won by Dotto and he beat Balk in the finals. Filho was 3rd. Heading into hardcourt season and first up is Canada, where Avendano beats Dotto in the finals. This is Avendano's first finals appearance and win here while Dotto has appeared in 4 of the last 5 finals (although only winning 1). In Cincinnati, Dotto re-established his dominance by winning it, beating world #9 Eddy Pratt in the finals. It's Dotto's 4th consecutive finals appearance here and his 2nd win. It is Eddy's first ever Masters finals. At the US Open, Dotto won his 3rd Slam of the year, beating Balk in the finals. It's Dotto's 4th consecutive finals here and he has won back-to-back titles (and 3 out of 4) here. Balk has made 5 of 8 finals here and won this three times previously. Shanghai saw the continued dominance of Dotto as he beat Avendano in the finals. It's Dotto's first ever finals and win while Avendano has now come in 2nd here for a 2nd consecutive year. At Paris, Barrafuldi beat Filho for his first Masters title of the season. It's Barrafuldi's first ever finals appearance and win here while Filho was the winner at Paris 2 years ago. Finally, the WTC Finals saw Barrafuldi beat Dotto in the finals. This is Barrafuldi's 3rd consecutive win here! Summary: Really, this year was all about Valentino Dotto, as he won 3 out of 4 Grand Slams and 4 of 9 Masters titles. He's the clear world #1 and it doesn't look like anyone is ready to challenge him yet. We also saw the continued excellence of Antonio Filho, who must be cursing his luck as he was 2nd fiddle to Nikolai Balk for a long time before taking the world #1 for a short'ish period prior to Dotto's rise to dominance. Balk also had a career resurgence as he ended the year as the world #4, surprising many who thought he was on the way down. Barrafuldi was expected to be a serious challenger to Dotto but he was disappointing for most of the year and really only picked up his game at the tailend of the season. Avendano was another disappointment as he slipped to world #5 despite possibly being the best player in the world on talent. We are starting to see some of the old stalwarts drop out of the top 10 now, such as Adel Adkins, and some of the younger stars are making their move. Anatoly Cherny and Danil Mamine are both already in the top 10 and Tony Archer is lurking at #12. World Top 10 1. Valentino Dotto, 26 years - 13,470 points 2. Antonio Filho, 28 years - 9,540 points 3. Gianluca Barrafuldi, 27 years - 8,020 points 4. Nikolai Balk, 30 years - 7,210 points 5. Mario Avendano, 28 years - 7,080 points 6. Svetislav Jarenovich, 29 years - 4,795 points 7. Anatoly Cherny, 25 years - 4,150 points 8. Danil Mamine, 24 years - 3,890 points 9. Eddy Pratt, 27 years - 3,205 points 10. Timmy Toy, 26 years - 3,185 points