By Caroline Cameron

We have a lot to talk about.  Why?   Well, here’s a preview of what has happened in the past couple of days:

-       Roger Federer keeps breaking records (seriously, it’s like he can’t help it)

-       Serena Williams cried on court (and with good reason)

-       Canadians keep doing well (which makes my job a lot more fun)

And in no particular order, here we go…

Serena Williams:

Serena Williams does not lose in the first round of a Grand Slam.  I repeat; Serena Williams does not lose in the first round of a Grand Slam.  It doesn’t happen.  Well, it never used to happen.

In the first round of the French Open Serena was down a set and up 5-1 in the second against Virginie Razzano.  And then something weird happened.  Really, that’s the best way to describe it: weird.  Williams fell apart.  Serena lost the second set and even broke down crying at the changeover before the third set began.  Serena is the most intimidating player on the WTA tour.  Falling apart physically and emotionally in a match like this is not usual for her.

For the first time in her career, Serena lost in the first round of a Grand Slam and to make matters worse, she was the favourite to win it all.  The loss is a really tough break for fans, the tournament, and most of all, Serena herself.  As for the other WTA players, they must be letting out a collective sigh of relief.

Roger Federer:

Federer keeps adding to the record books.  He’s now won more Grand Slam matches than any player in the Open Era.  After beating Adrian Ungur in four sets in the second round, he’s now 234-35 in the majors.  He’ll play Nicolas Mahut in the third round.  Federer hasn’t been playing his best tennis this week, but I have a feeling he’s just getting warmed up.

Milos Raonic:

Milos Raonic is set to take on American Jesse Levine in the Roland Garros second round.  If he wins he’ll likely play Juan Monaco, a strong clay court player, in the third round.  But mark your calendars, because next Monday Raonic could face Rafael Nadal in the round of 16.  I’m trying not to get ahead of myself, but let’s be honest, that would be pretty exciting to watch.

Raonic has been looking more and more comfortable on clay this year.  Many say it’s because he’s training more in Spain and on the clay.  But last year was his breakout season; everything was a new experience.  This year, he knows a lot more about the tour, the grind of the schedule, practice, and how his body handles it all.  He’s now coming into Slams not just to reach the second round, but to try and contend.

Aleksandra Wozniak:

Canadian Aleksandra Wozniak is through to the third round of the French Open and she’s playing well.  Wozniak took out Zheng Zie in straight sets in the second round but she’ll have a tougher opponent in the third round when she’ll take on World No. 1, Victoria Azarenka.

Olympics:

Daniel Nestor and Vasek Pospisil will be partners for the men’s doubles at the Olympics this summer.  Some people are surprised by the move, wondering why Pospisil was partnered with Nestor instead of Milos Raonic.  But the move makes sense.  Pospisil and Nestor have played doubles together many times in the Davis Cup.  Pospisil is also a better doubles player than Raonic, and Raonic can now focus all of his attention on the Olympic singles competition.  This will be the first Olympics for both Raonic and Pospisil.

By Caroline Cameron

Rafael Nadal is the clear favourite at Roland Garros and here’s why:

-      He’s 45- 1 at Roland Garros

-      He’s won 7 straight French Open titles

-      He’s the King of Clay, so as the Blue Jays would probably put it, he’s pure #BeastMode

Nadal also has a favourable draw, which could include a matchup with Canadian Milos Raonic in the last 16 and possibly Andy Murray in the semis.

Roger Federer, meanwhile, has a more difficult draw where he could face Feliciano Lopez in the last 16 and Tomas Berdych or Juan Martin del Potro in the quarters.  To make matters worse for the Fed Express, he is mostly likely to face Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals, a rematch of last year’s semi in which Federer won.  Djokovic is looking to become the first man to win all four majors in a row since 1969.

On the women’s side, I’d say Serena Williams is the favourite.  In most Grand Slams, the only person who can beat Serena is, well, Serena.  Serena has a tough route to the final which could see her face Caroline Wozniacki in the fourth-round and Maria Sharapova in the quarters.  But I think Wozniacki and Sharapova are more worried than Serena is.

By Caroline Cameron

Relaxed and composed.

That’s how 21-year-old Milos Raonic looked against Roger Federer in the second round of the Madrid Open.

Unlike other young players on the tour, Raonic doesn’t seem intimidated facing off against the top players in the world.  Raonic’s serve and forehand are often mentioned as his biggest strengths, but it’s his mental game that is putting him over the edge this year.  Raonic believes he can beat anyone, and he can.  But on Wednesday, he couldn’t beat Federer.

Raonic looked calm and collected as he took the first set 6-4 and kept the match close as Federer took sets two and three 7-5, 7-6.  Raonic’s inside-out forehand was crushing, he hit 21 aces, he was playing great defense, and his footwork looked great.

So what lost him the match?  Federer.

If a couple points went Raonic’s way, I’d be writing about the Canadian’s greatest career victory.  But Federer is clutch and he won the points when he needed to.  While Raonic had 8 break points, Federer saved 7 of them.

I have no doubt that Raonic is a future top 10 player.  Raonic is playing better than his no. 23 ranking suggests, and with more match experience he’ll only get better.

By Caroline Cameron

After an impressive 6-4, 6-4, win over David Nalbandian, no. 23 Milos Raonic is set to face Roger Federer in the second round of the Madrid Open.

“You respect him,” Raonic says of Federer.  “But you don’t respect him too much.”

Federer and Raonic have only met once before, in the third round at this year’s Indian Wells where Federer came out the victor in three sets.

But this is a different match.  Federer hasn’t played a match since March, so he’s well rested.  On the other hand, Raonic has had plenty of matches on clay so far this season and he’s coming off a great tournament in Barcelona where he beat Andy Murray on his way to the semifinals.

Federer goes in the favourite.  Why? Cause he’s Roger Federer.  But this is the perfect opportunity for Raonic to get his second top four win.  Raonic’s confidence is high, he’s already had a match on Madrid’s blue “Smurf” courts, and his clay court game has significantly improved in the past month.

The match starts at approximately 2pm on Sportsnet ONE.

Quotes from ATP

By Caroline Cameron

The Madrid Open is getting plenty of attention thanks to their new blue clay courts.

But that was part of the plan, right?  Change the classic clay surface and hopefully get more TV viewers?

The surface change was past French Open doubles champ Ion Tiriac’s idea.  The argument is that it’s easier for players and spectators to see the ball on a blue court, no matter the surface.

But many of the top players are against the change.  Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, and Novak Djokovic are all traditionalists; they don’t like major changes to the game and I can understand why they don’t like this one.

Leading up to the French Open, top players don’t want to make any more adjustments than they have to.  At each tournament the ball bounces differently depending on the conditions.  Having to adjust to a different colour court is just another thing to worry about.

Milos Raonic’s coach, Galo Blanco, tweeted that the ball bounces “lower than usual” on the Madrid courts, but other than that it’s the same as the red clay.  Raonic tweeted that the blue “Smurf clay” courts are “a bit more slippery” than the red clay.

Change is inevitable.  It wasn’t long ago that the green hard courts were changed to blue.  But sometimes the changes go too far.

Blue Wimbledon courts? Let’s hope not.