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Brian Swartz · 10-31-2015, 11:37 PM

Canada Masters

Girsh had a somewhat unlucky draw, going up against 13th-seed David Prieto in the first round. Still, at this stage of their respective careers, it should be an even match, maybe the slightest edge even to Girsh. Didn't work out that way, with a fairly one-sided 6-4, 6-3 defeat with the outcome never really in doubt. His slump continues; he's lost the first match in three of his last four events(Wimbledon the exception).

Mehul fared better, of course, with a first-round bye. It was pretty much a cake early draw with a qualifier and then Swede 16th-seed Vito Bonamoni in the third. He had a hard time getting to the veteran's serve, but was never really threatened despite a tight 7-5, 6-4 scoreline. In the quarters Hogue awaited, having won their last four meetings going back over a year. He took the first set, but Mehul reversed that with a very strong comeback, winning 4-6, 6-1, 6-2! At the same time, Hammerstein shocked Iglar, the no. 1's first hardcourt loss in a year and a half!!

That set up an interesting semifinal with Mehul's Austrian shadow. His spectacular return game reversed the usual result, a pretty quick straight-set win to reach the final against Benda. They hadn't played since their epic semifinal at the Australian, and this one didn't last as long. All week long Anil Mehul has returned and rallied brilliantly, and that continued. After a tight first set he raced home for a 7-5, 6-2 victory, earning a stunning first Masters Shield here!! Throughout the tournament he won at least 42% of his return points, even going up against some of the very best servers in the game.

This is a huge step beyond his 250 in Stockholm last year and the 500 crown in Japan the year before that. At this level all the best are here, so to come through shows he has really arrived at the top. It also launched him to a new career-high of #4 in the rankings. The feeling over the spring clay season that he had really turned a corner was definitely validated here -- but he's a little tired now.

Cincinatti Masters

Girish Girsh pretty much had his fate chosen for him. Qualifier Arnaldo Barranco of Peru took just four games as he managed to avoid another first-round setback at least, but then Hogue was a little too much in a straight-sets second-round loss.

Mehul's first challenge came from Marcek in the quarterfinals. Like the matchup with Hogue the previous week, he dropped the first set only to come back for the win, 3-6, 6-2, 6-4. Already a bit tired, he edged ahead in their H2H matchup, still a perfect 3-0 against the Czech no. 2 on hardcourts but winless on the dirt.

His fine run was unceremoniously ended by Iglar, who was clearly disappointed by having lost the previous week and reminded everyone who is the boss in a comprehensive straight-sets bludgeoning. Hogue took a set off him in the final but was served up a third-set breadstick as a further reminder.

Coming Up ...

The final Slam of the year, the US Open, will see Mehul go in with a full head of steam. There are some strange goings-on with Almagro & Topolski not playing the last couple of weeks. They've missed big events before, but not like this: neither has been seen in the several weeks since Wimbledon. It appears their manager might be MIA. If the pair is gone for good, it'll certainly dilute the competition at the top, which would be a shame -- both still had something to give tennis. If Almagro doesn't play in Flushing Meadows, Mehul is almost certain to rise to the #3 spot, though that certainly wouldn't be the preferred way to do it. That's not a real goal for him anyway. Third or fourth doesn't matter for seeding, and at 30 Almagro's days are numbered. The real next target is catching Benda in the #2 spot, and now that he has a Masters Shield to his name, giving himself as many chances as possible to grasp a Slam champion's trophy.

Girsh meanwhile is simply looking to get out of his current funk. The transition to playing top players week in and week out has proved difficult, maybe because he came to it a bit sooner, I don't know. There's no major danger in terms of his long-term, but the sooner he snaps out of it and finds his A game again the better of he'll be.

Prakash Mooljee lost in the Sokhumi semis in doubles, and in the final to the much higher-ranked top seed Khasan Zhakirvo(UZB). He'll be playing a tier-2 next week, with the top players being at the junior USO there wouldn't be many quality practice partners to be had anyway.

10-31-2015, 11:37 PM	#177
Brian Swartz Grizzled Veteran Join Date: May 2006	Canada Masters Girsh had a somewhat unlucky draw, going up against 13th-seed David Prieto in the first round. Still, at this stage of their respective careers, it should be an even match, maybe the slightest edge even to Girsh. Didn't work out that way, with a fairly one-sided 6-4, 6-3 defeat with the outcome never really in doubt. His slump continues; he's lost the first match in three of his last four events(Wimbledon the exception). Mehul fared better, of course, with a first-round bye. It was pretty much a cake early draw with a qualifier and then Swede 16th-seed Vito Bonamoni in the third. He had a hard time getting to the veteran's serve, but was never really threatened despite a tight 7-5, 6-4 scoreline. In the quarters Hogue awaited, having won their last four meetings going back over a year. He took the first set, but Mehul reversed that with a very strong comeback, winning 4-6, 6-1, 6-2! At the same time, Hammerstein shocked Iglar, the no. 1's first hardcourt loss in a year and a half!! That set up an interesting semifinal with Mehul's Austrian shadow. His spectacular return game reversed the usual result, a pretty quick straight-set win to reach the final against Benda. They hadn't played since their epic semifinal at the Australian, and this one didn't last as long. All week long Anil Mehul has returned and rallied brilliantly, and that continued. After a tight first set he raced home for a 7-5, 6-2 victory, earning a stunning first Masters Shield here!! Throughout the tournament he won at least 42% of his return points, even going up against some of the very best servers in the game. This is a huge step beyond his 250 in Stockholm last year and the 500 crown in Japan the year before that. At this level all the best are here, so to come through shows he has really arrived at the top. It also launched him to a new career-high of #4 in the rankings. The feeling over the spring clay season that he had really turned a corner was definitely validated here -- but he's a little tired now. Cincinatti Masters Girish Girsh pretty much had his fate chosen for him. Qualifier Arnaldo Barranco of Peru took just four games as he managed to avoid another first-round setback at least, but then Hogue was a little too much in a straight-sets second-round loss. Mehul's first challenge came from Marcek in the quarterfinals. Like the matchup with Hogue the previous week, he dropped the first set only to come back for the win, 3-6, 6-2, 6-4. Already a bit tired, he edged ahead in their H2H matchup, still a perfect 3-0 against the Czech no. 2 on hardcourts but winless on the dirt. His fine run was unceremoniously ended by Iglar, who was clearly disappointed by having lost the previous week and reminded everyone who is the boss in a comprehensive straight-sets bludgeoning. Hogue took a set off him in the final but was served up a third-set breadstick as a further reminder. Coming Up ... The final Slam of the year, the US Open, will see Mehul go in with a full head of steam. There are some strange goings-on with Almagro & Topolski not playing the last couple of weeks. They've missed big events before, but not like this: neither has been seen in the several weeks since Wimbledon. It appears their manager might be MIA. If the pair is gone for good, it'll certainly dilute the competition at the top, which would be a shame -- both still had something to give tennis. If Almagro doesn't play in Flushing Meadows, Mehul is almost certain to rise to the #3 spot, though that certainly wouldn't be the preferred way to do it. That's not a real goal for him anyway. Third or fourth doesn't matter for seeding, and at 30 Almagro's days are numbered. The real next target is catching Benda in the #2 spot, and now that he has a Masters Shield to his name, giving himself as many chances as possible to grasp a Slam champion's trophy. Girsh meanwhile is simply looking to get out of his current funk. The transition to playing top players week in and week out has proved difficult, maybe because he came to it a bit sooner, I don't know. There's no major danger in terms of his long-term, but the sooner he snaps out of it and finds his A game again the better of he'll be. Prakash Mooljee lost in the Sokhumi semis in doubles, and in the final to the much higher-ranked top seed Khasan Zhakirvo(UZB). He'll be playing a tier-2 next week, with the top players being at the junior USO there wouldn't be many quality practice partners to be had anyway. Last edited by Brian Swartz : 10-31-2015 at 11:38 PM.