By Thomas Swick
swickt@bellsouth.net
The French Open seems to be proving what women have been saying for centuries: Men are so predictable.
The women’s draw at Roland Garros has been a bracketologist’s nightmare, with the early departure of the top three seeds: Caroline Wozniacki, Kim Clijsters and Vera Zvonareva. Clijsters, admittedly, was coming back from time off (necessitated by the increasingly common dance floor injury). But she was beaten by a woman, Arantxa Rus, who possessed a ranking of 114 in the world and the imposing physique of a runway model. (A word of advice to the young Dutchwoman: Stay out of the clubs.)
Maria Sharapova survived a second-round scare from a 17-year-old, Caroline Garcia, who promptly went and played in the juniors tournament. In the quarterfinals, the #6 seed Na Li defeated, naturally, the #4 seed Victoria Azarenka.
Even the advance of the 2010 women’s champion, Francesca Schiavone, has been unexpected. Very few people watching last year’s final thought, as they did watching Rafael Nadal: “See you here next year.” The happiness we felt for the then 29-year-old Italian was very much tied to the fact that it was a once-in-a-lifetime moment. Or so we thought.
The men, by contrast, have been all status quo. In the quarterfinals, Nadal prevailed easily over Robin Soderling, the only man ever to beat him at Roland Garros (and the man he defeated in last year’s final). Perhaps the biggest revelation in this match was McEnroe’s announcement, during the one-sided second set, that his father had just sent him an e-mail saying he was sitting in Soderling’s box.
Nadal will meet Andy Murray in the semifinals, a man who won his last three matches playing on an injured ankle (not the result of dancing). While in the other semifinal, Roger Federer will play not a Maltese teen or a journeyman Jordanian but the hottest player in the world, Novak Djokovic. The top four are in the semis and all’s right with the world.
This is not to say the men’s matches have been devoid of surprises. During the Murray-Troicki match a ball boy ran onto the court, mistakenly thinking the point was over. The drop shot, thanks in large part to Murray, has returned with a vengeance. And in probably the biggest shock, the only player yet to lose a set is not Nadal or Djokovic but the gracefully-aging man from Switzerland.
Countless deductions will be made about the chaos on the women’s side and the order on the men’s. But one thing is certain: It’s good for the game. Among casual tennis fans, there are two types: Those who complain that it’s always the same faces, and those who complain they don’t recognize any of the names. This year’s French offers something for both.