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Brian Swartz · 12-24-2017, 08:06 PM

2056 Roland Garros

The pursuit of the #2 ranking doesn't look good right now on the surface. Zarco leads by 1410 points going into RG, but the situation is not nearly as good as that. He's badly overplayed and made the finals last year, while Dudwadkar was knocked out in the QFs. Add those up and Ritwik actually has quite a good chance to get right back in the battle for #2. The next two weeks on the French dirt will be very vital.

A second-round double bagel isn't exactly what Anil Mehul was looking for, and not against one of the top teams either. He also qualified in singles, and won just two games against Cordova in his main-draw match there. It's the way things are now for Anil. Senepathy got thumped by Livio Kaspar, 6-2, 6-0, 6-1, in his first-round match. So that all ended real quickly. All the seeds won their first, though Espinoza was pushed to five, and (5)Hsuang-tsung Teng had a big-time scare, surviving dangerous floater Damian Cortecedo 8-6 in the 5th. Almost a near-unthinkable early defeat there, but he survived.

Lots of smooth sailing in round two, and a pair of upsets. The latest fail for (12)Milos Schmucker came to Italian WC Gabriele Cacadino, 6-7(1), 6-4, 3-6, 7-5, 11-9. That's about as epic as they get. 29th-seeded Manee Paschal was a very typical early loser, an aging player going out to a rising young one, Finland's Veini Aikio. On to the third then, and mostly intact. Valentin Rosenberg continues to prove he was a flash in the pan, losing in four to Varas. Dick Blake(14th, USA) was surprised by 27th-ranked Vinnie Cone, one of a couple of All-American matchups. Dudwadkar lost a set against (31)Matteo Zimmolo but looked in control the whole way, while (13)Alexey Nikitin went to 9-7 in the 5th before escaping in the match of the day.

Fourth round, and an interesting first encounter with Sigmund Kronecker bidding to take down Kaspar again. He won the first set, but that was it; lightning did not strike twice. It was a tough four though. Expected results all the way through; Mooljee was the only other favorite to even drop a set in this yawner of a round of 16. He lost the first to (15) Gregory Mackenzie, then bounced back to advance in four. Top 8 players, all on the quarterfinals. Time for the real show to start.

Kaspar trounced Ruben Piazzola, who is getting rather sick of this(0-9 lifetime, second clay loss in a month). Of course he's got lots of company there around the tour. Teng's early struggles seemed prophetic as he was trounced 6-2, 6-3, 6-1 by Dircx, an ugly lack of showing there. Zarco had a bit of trouble with Prakash Mooljee, getting pushed to four, while Dudwadkar easily disposed of Gillo Fangio. Another batch of routine results, and once again no upsets.

First semi was a little closer, but routine for the King over [b]Guus Dircx[b]. And then there was the second one. Everything on the line here. Dudwadkar came into the semifinal clash having won all three meetings this year to even the H2H at 8-8. That would mean little though if he didn't win this one as well. Ritwik started fast, surviving a bit of an early hiccup in his first service game and winning five straight games to secure a quick first set. After breaking again to start the second, he looked to be in command of the match. Down 4-1, Zarco started to rally and got one break back, but it was too big a mountain to climb and soon Dudwadkar was up two sets, needing only to clinch his spot in the final with one more. He lost the first three games of the next set though, having served two of them -- but then ran off the next three, the last a break to love to level it at 3-all. After losing his serve again at 4-all, he broke back and the third set became the tight battle that I expected from this match going in. A tiebreak became a chance to finish this off now, but he blinked first, double-faulting at a key juncture and losing a close one. Two sets to one, and now the Spaniard had the momentum.

Both men dropped their serve to start a fourth set that proved to be another battle of wills. Dudwadkar was the first to consolidate at 3-1 -- all he needed to do was keep his nose in front and the match would be his. Down 0-30 at 4-3, he reeled off four straight points to bring himself one game away, and finished it off on return in his second match point after a tough struggle in the next one. 6-2, 6-3, 6-7(5), 6-3 is the final scoreline. Superior preparation played a big part in this match.

If Ritwik lost the final, he would still be just behind Zarco -- a 90-point gap. If he won it, his first Slam title would be accompanied by ascending to the #2 spot in the rankings. And of course this is the one surface on which he has a legitimate shot at knocking off Kaspar. A tight match at the start, but for once Mateo Kaspar was the one to fold: Ritwik Dudwadkar wins a stunning first Slam of his career, 7-5, 4-6, 6-2, 6-2! The last couple of sets he just made the French legend look old there. The record streak of 11 straight Slam tournament wins is over; Mateo almost looks human here, if only for a day.

12-24-2017, 08:06 PM	#733
Brian Swartz Grizzled Veteran Join Date: May 2006	2056 Roland Garros The pursuit of the #2 ranking doesn't look good right now on the surface. Zarco leads by 1410 points going into RG, but the situation is not nearly as good as that. He's badly overplayed and made the finals last year, while Dudwadkar was knocked out in the QFs. Add those up and Ritwik actually has quite a good chance to get right back in the battle for #2. The next two weeks on the French dirt will be very vital. A second-round double bagel isn't exactly what Anil Mehul was looking for, and not against one of the top teams either. He also qualified in singles, and won just two games against Cordova in his main-draw match there. It's the way things are now for Anil. Senepathy got thumped by Livio Kaspar, 6-2, 6-0, 6-1, in his first-round match. So that all ended real quickly. All the seeds won their first, though Espinoza was pushed to five, and (5)Hsuang-tsung Teng had a big-time scare, surviving dangerous floater Damian Cortecedo 8-6 in the 5th. Almost a near-unthinkable early defeat there, but he survived. Lots of smooth sailing in round two, and a pair of upsets. The latest fail for (12)Milos Schmucker came to Italian WC Gabriele Cacadino, 6-7(1), 6-4, 3-6, 7-5, 11-9. That's about as epic as they get. 29th-seeded Manee Paschal was a very typical early loser, an aging player going out to a rising young one, Finland's Veini Aikio. On to the third then, and mostly intact. Valentin Rosenberg continues to prove he was a flash in the pan, losing in four to Varas. Dick Blake(14th, USA) was surprised by 27th-ranked Vinnie Cone, one of a couple of All-American matchups. Dudwadkar lost a set against (31)Matteo Zimmolo but looked in control the whole way, while (13)Alexey Nikitin went to 9-7 in the 5th before escaping in the match of the day. Fourth round, and an interesting first encounter with Sigmund Kronecker bidding to take down Kaspar again. He won the first set, but that was it; lightning did not strike twice. It was a tough four though. Expected results all the way through; Mooljee was the only other favorite to even drop a set in this yawner of a round of 16. He lost the first to (15) Gregory Mackenzie, then bounced back to advance in four. Top 8 players, all on the quarterfinals. Time for the real show to start. Kaspar trounced Ruben Piazzola, who is getting rather sick of this(0-9 lifetime, second clay loss in a month). Of course he's got lots of company there around the tour. Teng's early struggles seemed prophetic as he was trounced 6-2, 6-3, 6-1 by Dircx, an ugly lack of showing there. Zarco had a bit of trouble with Prakash Mooljee, getting pushed to four, while Dudwadkar easily disposed of Gillo Fangio. Another batch of routine results, and once again no upsets. First semi was a little closer, but routine for the King over [b]Guus Dircx[b]. And then there was the second one. Everything on the line here. Dudwadkar came into the semifinal clash having won all three meetings this year to even the H2H at 8-8. That would mean little though if he didn't win this one as well. Ritwik started fast, surviving a bit of an early hiccup in his first service game and winning five straight games to secure a quick first set. After breaking again to start the second, he looked to be in command of the match. Down 4-1, Zarco started to rally and got one break back, but it was too big a mountain to climb and soon Dudwadkar was up two sets, needing only to clinch his spot in the final with one more. He lost the first three games of the next set though, having served two of them -- but then ran off the next three, the last a break to love to level it at 3-all. After losing his serve again at 4-all, he broke back and the third set became the tight battle that I expected from this match going in. A tiebreak became a chance to finish this off now, but he blinked first, double-faulting at a key juncture and losing a close one. Two sets to one, and now the Spaniard had the momentum. Both men dropped their serve to start a fourth set that proved to be another battle of wills. Dudwadkar was the first to consolidate at 3-1 -- all he needed to do was keep his nose in front and the match would be his. Down 0-30 at 4-3, he reeled off four straight points to bring himself one game away, and finished it off on return in his second match point after a tough struggle in the next one. 6-2, 6-3, 6-7(5), 6-3 is the final scoreline. Superior preparation played a big part in this match. If Ritwik lost the final, he would still be just behind Zarco -- a 90-point gap. If he won it, his first Slam title would be accompanied by ascending to the #2 spot in the rankings. And of course this is the one surface on which he has a legitimate shot at knocking off Kaspar. A tight match at the start, but for once Mateo Kaspar was the one to fold: Ritwik Dudwadkar wins a stunning first Slam of his career, 7-5, 4-6, 6-2, 6-2! The last couple of sets he just made the French legend look old there. The record streak of 11 straight Slam tournament wins is over; Mateo almost looks human here, if only for a day.