Mondays with Bob Greene
STARS
Rafael Nadal beat Novak Djokovic 6-0 4-6 6-1 to win the Internazionali BNL d’Italia men’s singles in Rome, Italy
Karolina Pliskova beat Johanna Konta 6-3 6-4 to win the Internazionali BNL d’Italia women’s singles in Rome, Italy
Filip Krajinovic beat Arthur De Greef 63 6-1 to win the Neckercup in Heilbronn, Germany
Bernarda Pera beat Anna Blinkova 7-5 7-5 to win the Empire Slovak Open in Trnava, Slovakia
SAYINGS
“What means most to me is this trophy. Rome is one of the most important tournaments of the year. (It’s a big) part of the history of our sport. To be able to win here again is the main thing.” – Rafael Nadal, who won the Internazionali BNL d’Italia for the ninth time.
“The shots that you can win the rally or a point against 99 per cent of players, with him it doesn’t work. It takes an extra shot more.” – Novak Djokovic, after losing to Rafael Nadal.
“Nobody really gave me chance for this tournament – even me.” – Karolina Pliskova, after winning the Italian Open women’s singles.
“There’s rarely really a rhythm to the match. She plays with big shots, quite flat, and big serves. It can feel sometimes you’re fighting an uphill battle. That was the case today.” – Johanna Konta, after losing to Karolina Pliskova.
“I feel like when you win tournaments, things go your way. That’s the way it is. I don’t know what it is, I don’t know how to explain it. … When it’s yours, it’s yours.” – Robert Farah, who teamed with Jean Sebastian Cabal to win the men’s doubles in Rome.
“The funny thing about playing tennis is you always raise the bar, and I think that would be sort of us reaching another team goal, doing something we haven’t done yet.” – Raven Klaasen, who with partner Michael Venus reached the men’s doubles final in Rome.
“I think we improve when we improve our singles, and then we come together and just have fun in doubles.” – Victoria Azarenka, who with teammate Ashleigh Barty won the women’s doubles in Rome.
“Grand Slams to me are like a playground, I have a lot of fun there.” – Naomi Osaka, who has won the last two Grand Slam tournaments.
“I think it’s better to not have a Plan B. … My mental coach says always the Plan B can ruin your Plan A. I think you have to trust in what you have. Right now, since I feel good, since I’m winning lots of matches, there is no doubt no Plan B.” – Karolina Pliskova.
SUCCESS, FINALLY
Rafael Nadal finally won a title in 2019. Not surprisingly, it came on clay. The Spaniard known as the “King of Clay” beat Novak Djokovic in three sets to win a record 34th ATP Masters 1000 title, the Internazionali BNL d’Italia. “To have the chance to come back and win this trophy after so many years means everything,” Nadal said. “It wasn’t an easy week for me.” It was the ninth time the Spaniard has captured the Rome title. And he did it be demolishing the world’s top-ranked player in the first and third sets. “I’m really glad that I managed to get into the third set, considering the first set where I was blown away from the court,” said Djokovic, who had been tied with Nadal with 33 ATP Masters 1000 titles. “Obviously the third set was not much different from the first. I was just running out of fuel a little bit.” Nadal was perfect in the first set, the first time there has been a 6-0 set in a meeting between the two rivals. And while the Serb was able to win the second set, he again was at Nadal’s mercy in the third. “Just kind of missed that half a step, especially on the backhand side,” Djokovic said. “He used it very well. He’s been playing some terrific tennis throughout the entire week. He was just too strong today.” It’s a perfect setup for Nadal, who will be seeking a record 13th French Open title when the clay-court major begins on May 26.
STRONG PERFORMANCE
After winning the biggest title of her career, Karolina Pliskova looked into the future and the French Open. “I just hope to take the tennis I was playing here to Paris,” Pliskova said. “For sure there’s going to be a chance for me if I play this way.” After beginning the year by winning the title in Brisbane, Pliskova reached the semifinals of the Australian Open and the Miami Open final. But she came into Rome after losing in the second round of her last two tournaments. “Before the tournament, I was not super confident, not thinking about the final at all,” she said of Rome. “I was just happy with every match which I played. So, it’s a little like a miracle for me.” Pliskova had help from her opponent, Johanna Konta, who double faulted, then slammed a backhand into the net to drop serve to begin the match. Pliskova used a swinging forehand volley to break in the seventh game of the second set. When she converted her third championship point, Pliskova went over to slap hands with her coach, Conchita Martinez, a four-time Rome winner. “She loved clay so she knows exactly what I should do,” Pliskova said of Martinez. “I know she loved this tournament. I think she prayed so I could win today.”
SICK BAY
A right leg injury forced Roger Federer to withdraw from his Italian Open quarterfinal match against Stefanos Tsitsipas. The 37-year-old Swiss had won his first two matches against Joao Sousa and Borna Coric. “Unfortunately, King Roger had to withdraw from the tournament due to an injury to his right leg,” the tournament organizers wrote on Twitter. “We wish him a fast recovery. Thank you for the incredible emotions.” Federer blamed his injury on court conditions. “The lines are wet. Wet playing lines mean you slide. When I slid I hurt myself,” Federer said. The injury comes a little more than a week before the start of Roland Garros where Federer would be seeking his second French Open title. He will go into the year’s second Grand Slam tournament with having played only five matches on clay.
Top-ranked Naomi Osaka said she was “between sad and disappointed” when she had to pull out of the Italian Open before her quarterfinal match because of an injury. “I woke up this morning and I couldn’t really move my thumb,” the 21-year-old Japanese player said. “I can’t move my hand. I can’t move my thumb and I’m not sure I can play my match. I tried to practice and grip my racquet, and I just felt this pain every time I tried to move my hand in different directions.” Osaka, who has won the last two Grand Slam tournament women’s singles titles – the US Open and the Australian Open – did not rule out competing in Roland Garros.
The latest battle between the Williams sisters was wiped out when Serena Williams pulled out of the Italian Open with an injured left knee. It’s the third straight tournament the 37-year-old has had to withdraw due to physical problems. “I must withdraw from the Italian Open due to pain in my left knee,” Serena announced on the WTA website. “I’ll be concentrating on rehab and look forward to seeing you all at the French Open and next year in Rome.” Williams had won her opening match, beating Swedish qualifier Rebecca Peterson, and was scheduled to face her older sister, Venus, in a second-round match.
Two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova retired from her third-round Italian Open match against Maria Sakkari of Greece with a left calf injury.” The 29-year-old Kvitova was trailing 7-5 5-7 4-0 when she called it quits. “It was a left calf injury, but she is hopeful that it’s nothing serious,” Kvitova’s spokeswoman told Reuters in an email. “(It) was a tough schedule with the rain and two matches on one day in Rome.” Kvitova had beaten Yulia Putintseva 6-0 6-1 earlier in the day, then returned to play Sakkari. Before the Rome tournament, Kvitova had said she was recovering from a recent abdominal injury.
SIDELINED
John Isner won’t be playing Roland Garros this year. The American ended his streak of 24 consecutive Grand Slam tournament appearances when he pulled out of the French Open with an injured left foot. The 34-year-old is, at 11th in the world, the top-ranked American man. But he has not competed since hurting his foot during the Miami Open final on March 31. Isner had his best Grand Slam tournament performance last year when he reached the Wimbledon semifinals. He has reached the fourth round at Roland Garros three times, including last year, and is one of only two men to push 11-time champion Rafael Nadal to a fifth set on the Paris clay. He is best known for winning the longest match in tennis history, 70-68 in the fifth set against Nicolas Mahut in a first-round match at Wimbledon in 2010. The match lasted more than 11 hours over three days.
SAID YES – PERHAPS
Rafael Nadal has somewhat confirmed rumors that he will marry his longtime girlfriend Maria Francisca Perello later this year. “Anybody handles his private life with different sensitivity, they are very personal moments,” Nadal told Gazzetta dello Sport newspaper. The marriage reportedly will be either in June or in October.
SIR ANDY
Two-time Wimbledon champion Andy Murray has been knighted by Prince Charles, more than two years after he was awarded the honor by Queen Elizabeth II. Murray’s knighthood was announced the year after he won his second Wimbledon title, won his second straight Olympics singles crown and finished t4he season ranked number one in the world. But recipients are allowed to choose when to collect their honor, and Murray passed it up because of his hectic schedule and the effect of the knighthood ceremony on his career-threating hip problem. Murray, who turned 32 last week, has since undergone hip surgery and it is still unclear whether he will be able to play Wimbledon this year.
SIGNED
Three rising stars – Christian Garin of Chile, Casper Ruud of Norway and Jaume Munar of Spain, along with veteran Fernando Verdasco of Spain have signed up to play the Swedish Open in Båstad this year. The 22-year-old Garin, who has won two titles this year, failed twice to qualify for Båstad, while Munar and Ruud played each other in the first round last year, with the Norwegian coming from a set down to win. The 35-year-old Verdasco will be making his 12th appearance in the clay-court tournament, reaching the final in both 2013 and 2016. The Swedish Open will be held July 15-21.
SALUTÉ
One of the newest graduates from Indiana University East is Anastasia Rodionova, who now has a Bachelor Science degree in Business Administration. While she is not the first WTA player to graduate from IU East, Rodionova is the first player to attend the commencement ceremony in person. There are 17 WTA players currently enrolled at the university through an educational agreement between the campus as the Women’s Tennis Benefits Association (WTBA). Other graduates from the school include Venus Williams, Sloane Stephens, Alla Kudryavtseva, Irina Falconi, Katalin Marosi, Sandra Zaniewska and Ivana Lisjak.
SURGERY FOR GIBBS
American Nicole Gibbs will miss Roland Garros while recovering from salivary gland cancer surgery. The 26-year-old wrote on Twitter that her goal is to return to the WTA tour in time for Wimbledon qualifying in late June. An NCAA singles champion while at Stanford, Gibbs is currently ranked 116th in the world. According to the player, her dentist noticed a growth on the roof of her mouth about a month ago. She said her surgeon is “confident that surgery alone will be sufficient treatment.”
SUSPENDED
Miguel Tobon, a former Davis Cup captain for Colombia, has been handed a one-year suspension and fined USD $20,000 for accepting payoffs in return for tournament wild-card entries. The Tennis Integrity Unit said Tobon was found guilty of “negotiating to sell, or attempting to sell, wild cards for singles and doubles events in Colombia to six individuals” in 2017. He also was ordered to pay USD $6,000 for the money he received from the sale of the wild cards. Tobon has coached some of Colombia’s best payers, including Alejandro Falla and Santiago Giraldo, as well as Nicolas Massu of Chile.
Nigerian Henry Atseye has been provisionally suspended from tennis because of alleged breaches of the Tennis Anti-Corruption Program. The 30-year-old is currently 1,928th in the International Tennis Federation World Tennis rankings. The Tennis Integrity Unit (TIU) said the provisional suspension relates to its investigation. No other details were announced.
SHARED PERFORMANCES
Heilbronn: Kevin Krawietz and Andreas Mies beat Andre Begemann and Fabrice Martin 62 6-4
Rome (men): Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah beat Raven Klaasen and Michael Venus 6-1 6-3
Rome (women): Victoria Azarenka and Ashleigh Barty beat Anna-Lena Groenefeld and Demi Schuurs 4-6 6-0 10-3 (match tiebreak)
Trnava: Anna Blinkova and Xenia Knoll beat Cornelia Lister and Renata Voracova 7-5 7-5
SURFING
Geneva: https://banqueericsturdzagenevaopen.com/
Lyon: https://openparc.com/
Nürnberg: http://www.nuernbergercup.de/
Strasbourg: https://www.internationaux-strasbourg.fr/fr
Paris: https://www.rolandgarros.com/fr-fr/
TOURNAMENTS THIS WEEK
MEN
$658,247 Banc Eric Sturdza Geneva Open, Geneva, Switzerland, clay
$658,247 Open Parc Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes Lyon, Lyon, France, clay
WOMEN
$250,000 Nürnberger Versicherungscup, Nürnberg, Germany, clay
$250,000 Internationaux de Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France, clay
TOURNAMENTS NEXT WEEK
MEN and WOMEN
Roland Garros (French Open), Paris, France, clay (first week)
