Rafael Nadal Wins Barcelona To Match Guillermo Vilas’ Record - Mondays with Bob Greene

Mondays with Bob Greene

STARS

Rafael Nadal beat Kei Nishikori 6-4 7-5 to win the Barcelona Open BancSabadell in Barcelona, Spain

Angelique Kerber beat Laura Siegemond 6-4 6-0 to win the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart, Germany

Cagla Buyukakcay beat Danka Kovinic 3-6 6-2 6-3 to win the TEB BNP Paribas Istanbul Open in Istanbul, Turkey

SAYING

“I had goosebumps. It’s simply been a perfect week.” – Angelique Kerber, after repeating as Porsche Tennis Grand Prix champion.

“It happened exactly as I feared it would: God pulled the plug on me.” – Laura Siegemond, a qualifier who beat three consecutive top 10 players before falling to Angelique Kerber in the final in Stuttgart, Germany.

“When you play against players with such a high level, the match is often decided by a few moments. So I feel happy that I handled all these important moments well mentally.” – Rafael Nadal, following his victory over Kei Nishikori in the Barcelona Open final.

“I told myself, ‘Enjoy the time,’ because last year when I was watching the ATP event it was packed because of (Roger) Federer. Today, I knew it would be packed because of me, and I told myself, ‘It’s such a big honor for me to pack a stadium.’” – Cagla Buyukakcay, who became the first Turkish player to win a WTA Tour event when she captured the Istanbul Open.

“As I think everyone could see, I was really tired today. I really wanted to win this one, but it wasn’t enough because my body couldn’t follow my mind. In the end, I’m a bit disappointed, but I wasn’t 100 percent fit today.” – Danka Kovinic, after losing the Istanbul Open singles final. She also withdrew from the doubles final with a hamstring injury.

“I’m overwhelmed and speechless. And that doesn’t happen very often.” – Laura Siegemund, after pulling off her third consecutive upset by beating Agnieszka Radwanska to reach the final in Stuttgart, Germany.

“We feel like we’re starting to play some really great tennis again. This week we put together four qualify matches against some really tough teams.” – Mike Bryan, after he and twin Bob won the Barcelona doubles title for the third time.

“Tennis is not really a traditional Olympic sport. If you ask Roger (Federer), I don’t think he dreamed of winning Olympic gold. He probably dreamed of winning Wimbledon seven times, like he has … Our biggest events are the Grand Slams and are always going to be the Grand Slams.” – John Isner, announcing he will skip this summer’s Game in Rio de Janeiro.

“I know that I can’t play forever, that’s normal, and ever since my twins were born seven years ago I began to question my future. However, my body is feeling good and my family supports me a great deal and are happy to travel the world with me. When my body doesn’t hold up any longer and I’m tired when I’m at home, I’ll stop. However, I don’t think that will happen any time soon. I still really enjoy playing, so you will see me for a few years.” – Roger Federer.

STAGGERING NUMBERS

The numbers are becoming staggering. By winning his 49^th clay-court title, Rafael Nadal has equaled the record set by Guillermo Vilas. By beating two-time defending champion Kei Nishikori, Nadal won his ninth career Barcelona Open, equaling his title cache at both Roland Garros and Monte Carlo, the latter coming a week ago. No other player has won a tournament nine times. “I’m very happy because besides this being one of the most important tournaments that I have won, this is another week that I am playing very well,” Nadal said. “These have been two fantastic weeks, weeks I have been striving for for a long time.” Nadal saved seven of eight break chances in the first set while converting the two chances he got. He then bettered his Japanese opponent in several superb rallies in the second set to win the key points. “I was playing against the number six player in the world, and if you don’t play at your best you aren’t going to win,” the fifth-ranked Nadal said. Both players showed off their excellent baseline games. It was just that Nadal came up with the final unanswered shot in most of their rallies. “This is truly special,” Nadal said of his records. “I don’t know if it is repeatable. If I have done it, it is possible, but it will be truly difficult.”

SPECIAL WIN

Angelique Kerber has another 2016 tournament title to go with her Australian Open crown. And she did it by winning her second straight Porsche Tennis Classic in Stuttgart, Germany. “It’s amazing to be able to defend my title here,” Kerber said. Kerber’s surprising foe in the all-German final was qualifier Laura Siegemund, who reached the title match after eliminated three players ranked in the top 10: Simona Halep, Roberta Vinci and Agnieszka Radwanska. “I have never felt so much emotion out on the tennis court as I have in the last few days,” Siegemund said. “I haven’t had a day off here and no time to enjoy my results, so I’ll definitely do that now.” A trained psychologist who is working towards her doctorate, the 28-year-old Siegemund reached her first career final without dropping a set. She appeared she would keep it up by winning the first three games. Instead, she won only one more game in the entire match.

SHOCKER

When Cagla Buyukakcay captured the Istanbul Cup, she made history by becoming the first Turkish player to win a WTA Tour title. The 26-year-old Buyukakcay had to come from behind to down Danka Kovinic 3-6 6-2 6-3. Spurred on by a partisan crowd, Buyukakcay dominated the second set, then broke Kovinic’s serve in the fourth game of the decider. “It’s an incredible week for me to win the title at home, to break into the Top 100 with this tournament, to play against someone with my crowd,” the winner said. “It was an amazing atmosphere today. I was playing better and better every day, but of course every day is another day, so I didn’t expect to win at the beginning of the week. I’m so excited and so happy for today.” The 26-year-old Buyukakcay lost in straight sets to Kovinic two weeks ago. This time, she saved 10 of 12 break points she faced during the two-hour, 23-minute final.

Kovinic also reached the doubles final with partner Xenia Knoll. But following a lengthy on-court concert, Kovinic was forced to withdraw because of a left hamstring injury. That gave the title to Turkey’s Ipek Soylu and Romania’s Andreea Mitu.

STAYING HOME?

There’s a slight chance Andy Murray might skip Great Britain’s Davis Cup quarterfinal tie in Serbia scheduled for July 15-17. With Murray leading the way, Britain last year won its first Davis Cup title in 79 years. The Scot has a hectic schedule with three Grand Slam tournaments – the French Open, Wimbledon and US Open – as well as the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro to go this year. Serbia’s top player, world number one Novak Djokovic, could also skip the Davis Cup tie.

STOPPED BY RAIN

Rain washed out both singles and doubles title matches at the BRD Nastase Tiriac Trophy, pushing the ending of the Bucharest, Romania, clay court tournament back to Monday. Home favorites Florin Mergea and Horia Tecau won the opening set of the doubles final 7-5 over Chris Guccione and Andre Sa before the rain began. Tecau was seeking his fourth title on home soil with a fourth different partner. He won with Robert Lindstedt in 2012, Max Mirnyi in 2013 and Jean-Julien Rojer in 2014. By winning the final, Tecau would claim his 300^th career match victory. The singles final pitted Lucas Pouille of France against Spaniard Fernando Verdasco. The 22-year-old Frenchman had reached his first ATP World Tour final.

SAID WHAT?

A young Russian was disqualified from a tennis tournament for questioning the impartiality of the umpire because of her race. The case has drawn comparisons to Lleyton Hewitt’s comments during a second-round US Open victory over American James Blake in 2001, the year Hewitt won the year’s final Grand Slam tournament. Daniil Medvedev of Russia was disqualified from the Savannah Challenger in Savannah, Georgia, USA, a USD $50,000 event, while trailing American Donald Young 4-1 in the opening set. In the fifth game Medvedev thought he had broken Young with a forehand down the line at 15-40. But it was called wide by chair umpire Sandy French. Medvedev, who had already gone to his chair for what he thought was a changeover, was told to resume play. As he returned to the court, he told the umpire: “I know that you are friends. I am sure about it.” Both French and Young are African Americans. At the end of the game tournament supervisor Keith Crossland came onto the court and, following a lengthy discussion with Medvedev, supported the default call against the Russian for “racist comment.”

At the 2001 US Open, Hewitt, then 20 years old, was twice called for a foot fault in the third set by line judge Marion Johnson. When he lost the game, Hewitt demanded that Johnson be replaced. “I’ve only been foot-faulted up one end,” Hewitt told chair umpire Andreas Egli. “Then, while gesturing towards Johnson and Blake, Hewitt said, “Look at him and you tell me what the similarity is. Get him off the court. Look at what he’s done.” Hewitt has always stressed that his call for the linesman to be removed had nothing to do with the color of his skin. The linesman was changed and Lleyton was cleared by the International Tennis Association (ITA), which found there was no evidence to bring charges against the Australian for making a racist comment. Hewitt went on to win the US Open, his second and last Grand Slam tournament title.

STAYING HOME

John Isner won’t be heading to the Olympic Games this summer. America’s top-ranked male player says he will focus instead on the American hard-court season. “It’s a decision I didn’t take lightly,” said Isner, who is ranked 16^th in the world. The 30-year-old Isner plans instead on playing at the Citi Open in Washington, DC, from July 16-24 and The BB&T Atlanta Open, which is played Aug. 1-7, the week before tennis begins in Rio. “Logistically it would be pretty much impossible for me to do both,” he said. Unlike recent Olympics, players at Rio will not be awarded ranking points. “We can confirm that there will be no ranking points for men or women at the 2016 Olympic tennis event,” said Nick Imison, an International Tennis Federation spokesman. “However, we believe that players are honored to play the Olympics and that ranking points are not a consideration for their participation.”

SIEGEMUND’S RUN

She’s 28 years old, a qualifier ranked 71^st in the world who had never won a WTA tournament and only qualified for the main draw of a Grand Slam tournament for the first time at Wimbledon last year. Yet Laura Siegemund pulled off surprise after surprise at the Stuttgart Open to reach the final. Her first victim was Simona Halep, who fell 6-1 6-2 in the second round of the clay court tournament. “I think it’d be presumptuous to say (the match) was perfect, because there is always something to improve,” Siegemund said of her win over her Romanian opponent. “But that was very good and of course I’m mega happy. I have not expected that it would go so smoothly. I just played point by point. Sure, it’s definitely the biggest win of my career, but now after the match I can only say I have made few mistakes.” Then came Roberta Vinci, a US Open finalist last year. And again Siegemund triumphed, this time 6-1 6-4. Top-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska was next in line – and the next one to fall before the German qualifier, 6-4 6-2. In the title match, she faced her fourth straight Top 10 player: reigning Australian Open champion Angelique Kerber.

SANIA MIRZA INFLUENTIAL

Time Magazine has listed Sania Mirza of India among the 100 most influential people in the world. The only tennis player on the list, Mirza made history in 2015 when she became the first Indian woman to achieve a number one ranking in tennis, win a Grand Slam tournament title and a second WTA Finals title. In his tribute to her in the magazine, Sachin Tendulkar, one of the greatest cricket players of all time, wrote: “The Mirzas probably knew what the future held for their daughter. Her name, Sania, means brilliant.”

STRASSE FEDERER

Roger Federer is now a destination. At least Allee Roger Federer is. Switzerland honored its greatest tennis player by naming a street in Biel the Allee Roger Federer. The street will connect the new Swiss Tennis Centre at the Tissot Arena, which will open in 2017, with the Champs-de-Boujean. When he was a junior, Federer trained in the region. “I am very moved,” the 17-time Grand Slam tournament winner said. “I never thought I would see a street named after me. I hope that we will see future champions on the Allee Roger Federer.” It’s not the first time Federer has had a street named for him. In Germany, the city of Halle unveiled “Roger-Federer-Allee” in 2012 after he had won the grass court tournament there five times. He has since won the Halle tournament three more times.

SUSPENDED

Majid Abedini of Iran was provisionally suspended after he chased a tournament official off the court at a USD $10,000 Futures event in Antalya, Turkey. Trailing in his qualifying match 6-0 2-0, the 29-year-old Abedini chased the official, who ran off the court and shut the gate behind him. Abedini kicked the gate and beat it with his racquet while screaming at the official. Abedini was defaulted from the match, giving Imran Aswat of Great Britain the victory. The International Tennis Federation (ITF) said Abedini faces an investigation for a possible “major offense of aggravated behavior” and any long-term sanction will be announced after the investigation is complete.

SHARED PEFORMANCES

Barcelona: Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan beat Pablo Cuevas and Marcel Granollers 7-5 7-5

Istanbul: Andreea Mitu and Ipek Soylu beat Xenia Knoll and Danka Kovinic, walkover

Stuttgart: Caroline Garcia and Kristina Mladenovic beat Martina Hingis and Sania Mirza 2-6 6-1 10-6 (match tiebreak)

SURFING

Munich: http://bmwopen.de/

Estoril: www.millenniumestorilopen.com/en/

Istanbul: http://istanbulopen.kozawos.com/

Prague: www.jtbopen.cz/en/news

Rabat: http://frmt.ma/frmt/

Madrid: www.madrid-open.com/

Busan: www.busanopen.org/new/main.html