BOTTOM HALF OF THE DRAW-- bet on; Coria to WIN QUARTET and Coria TO REACH FINALS, Coria furthest Argentinian In TOURNEY. Just an ideal draw for El Mago. He should be very 'fresh' come qtrs and semi's. Can he win it all? well, he WONT have to beat Nadal AND Mutant, so certainly yes. However, odds not in his favour as he is 0-4 collectively vs Nadal/mutant; he simply doesn't have anything in his game that can hurt these two, IMHO. His UTTER COLLAPSE at Rome up 3-0 TWO BREAKS vs an injured, tiring Nadal is more evidence to support that he cant win the big one, cant get rid of the demons.
top half of the quartet;
favs-- Coria, Juan Carlos Ferrero, Marat Safin
danger looms with- T Haas (great job at The World Cup!!, beat Gaudio!), Davydenko
frauds- Robredo
This is Coria and only Coria. Only will be tested in the qtrs vs J C Ferrero or M Safin. Safin ha SHOWN NOTHING since Melbourne, he doesn't have the patience for this 2 week marathon on clay.He has a fair track record here at RG. I was DEAD wrong about Ferrero in my 'preview for 2005'; he WILL NOT be a top 5 player again, IMHO. It's not that he 'has lost it' but moreso that there are better players around (Coria, Nadal, Mutant). Coria handled him easily at Monte Carlo, there is no evidence to support otherwise, if these two were to meet in the qtrs. El Mago has BUILT HIS ENTIRE YEAR TO LAND IN THE BALANCE OF THIS ONE TOURNAMENT; he wants it so bad he can smell it and this burnign desire may ultimantly due him in. Last yr's debacle in the final is a tall order to overcome; one of the biggest chokes in the modern sporting era. Is he tennis' version of G Norman? he hired a full time trainer that travels with him for '05. Coria's tounrey is looking like this;
1st round- K Carlsen- NO WAY 5d puts agmes line on it. If they do, take it. Kenneth should have declined RG, give someone who is deserving to play here. He simply has been awful on clay ytd. HE IS TOAST HERE, I mean TOAST!!!!!!!!!!!! -8.5 games, take it!!!!!LOL!!!!
2nd rd-Ginepri/Dvorak-- he moves on , VAMOS!!!
3rd rd- Melzer/ Youzny-- he moves on, still hasnt lost a set, VAMOS!!!
4th round- Haas, Costa, Davydenko- moves on, may drop a set, VAMOS!
qtrs-- Safin, Ferrero-- sorry just cant see him go down. Better form than both these players. OFF TO THE SEMI'S!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
IMHO, i cannot fathom Coria not getting out of this, and this is the ONLY place for a 'tourney wager' as listed in the above.
I 'hope' Coria does well. I 'hope' he can get rid of the demons. Second place is not acceptable for him.
GOOD LUCK EL MAGO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
first round matchup to eye;
T Johannson vs S Draper-- Scott Draper?? I thought he's playign on the Australian golfl tour,lol. No chance here, Thomas is in form. parlay material, gamesline.
Haas vs F Mayer-- the German fans will find their way to this match-up. Mayer is COMPLETELY unpredictable and he also has a tendency to 'throw in the towel' in matches that arent gogin in his favor. Stay clear from this match
N Djokovic vs Ginepri-- the American may go down here. If he doesnt he will get trashed by Coria in round two--back up the truck on the games line in that potential match
Kuerten vs Sanchez-- GUGA's last chance at glory? He is LOVED at Roland Garros, and rightfully so. A 3-time champion and SINCE 1999 HE HAS NOT LOST BEFORE THE QUATER FINALS; FANTASTIC past record at RG, HOWEVER, his current form is dreadful and his storied career appears to be comign to an end.
M Safin vs R Sluiter-- Marat can you blow this one? Sluiter has a win over Davydenko on clay in '05......
back with the bottom half of the quartet |