Ward agonisingly close to qualification

Britain's Alex Ward was denied a place in the main draw of his first of three tournaments in the Carribean after he suffered a straight sets defeat in the final qualifying round of the Dminican Republic Futures event.

Ward had been in impressive form throughout the qualifying campaign as he reached the final round for the loss of just games seven games, but the 18 year old went on to lose 6-3 6-3 German Cedric-Marcel Stebe at the final hurdle.

Ward admitted he was outclassed by the seventh seed, but remained upbeat going into the next two tournaments, "Stebe played a good match and outclassed me but i still feel i am in good form and I am looking forward to the next tournament."

The Brit spoke to me about the importance of this experience and how it will benefit him in the future, "This is new for me, i am travelling without my coach and it is a good learning curve for me, this expereience is valuable for me and i am enjoying it."

Ward will be looking to qualify for the F3 Futures event in the Domincan Republic this week as he looks to amass some more ranking points at the end of 2008.

Wardy sets off to the Caribbean!

Northamptonshire's Alex Ward has jetted off to the Dominican Republic to participate in three futures events to try and improve his ranking going into 2009.

The 18-year-old trains in the Sanchez Casal Academy in Barcelona and Ward sensationally broke onto the scene in May of this year. Ward not only claimed his first ranking points, but he went onto to brilliantly reach the final of the futures event in Balaguer, Catalonia.

Ward has enjoyed a successful year and is currently ranked 988 in the world and 24th in Britain. Ward will be looking to improve on this in the coming weeks and he feels that this is an excellent opportunity to do so: "I have had a great year and I believe that the Dominican Republic is an excellent opportunity for me to earn some more ranking points. I feel I am playing well enough to have some good results over the next three weeks and it will certainly be a fantastic experience."

Ward will be keeping me updated throughout the three weeks and i will be reporting on how he fares in these tournaments.

Davydenko ends Murray's title hopes

I probably picked a good time to be away as i missed Andy Murray's fantastic year being brought to an end by a resurgent Nikolay Davydenko in the Masters Cup semi-finals. The Russian booked a place in the final against Novak Djokovic after a relatively comfortable 7-5 6-2 win over the tired Scot.

From what I gather, Murray was clearly showing signs of fatigue after his hard-fought dramatic win over Roger Federer 24 hours earlier and this match up proved to be one step too far. One thing is for sure, if you are feeling fatigued then the last person you want to ome up against is Davydenko who is extremely consistent and one of the most intense players on the tour.

The Russian baseliner has clearly proved me wrong this week and despite actually losing in the final to worthy winner Novak Djokovic, he will have gained alot from this impressive run to the final in such a competitive tournament. Many have criticised Davydenko for only really excelling in the "smaller" tournament so this week will make a lot of people take notice and see that he can compete with the so called "big boys".

As for Djokovic, his excellent 6-1 7-5 final win over Davydenko has capped off a superb year for the Serb and he will look to build on this going into 2009 where he will look to overtake Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal next year.

Murray will most definitely be hurt by this defeat but there is no denying that it draws to a close what has been an absolutely outstanding 2008 for the world number four. The future looks extremely bright for the British number one!

(Picture provided by momovieman)

Murray knocks out Federer in epic encounter

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/tennis/7729083.stm

Andy Murray preserved his 100% record with a sensational 4-6 7-6(7-3)7-5 victory over Roger Federer to knock the world number two out of Shanghai at the expense of Frenchman Gilles Simon.

The Scot ensured that he would finish top of the Red Group with this superb performance which sees him now face Russian Nikolay Davydenko in the last four, whilst Simon will face the highest seed left in the draw, Novak Djokovic, in the other semi. Djokovic will go into his semi-final as the favourite but Simon has been in good form and has interestingly won their only previous encounter.

Simon had earlier put the pressure on Federer after an emphatic 6-`1 6-4 victory over Radek Stepanek. Simon has done incredibly well to reach the last four, especially considering the fact that he was only in Shanghai as a replacement for Rafael Nadal.

Despite this, it looked as though Federer was on course to go through as he took a close first set, but Murray demonstrated his sheer grit and demonstration to keep up the fight despite the fact he was already through to the semi-finals. The Brit really showed real professionalism throughout the match as he was determined to knock out a tired Federer who appeared to nursing a back injury.

It was Murray who was then rewarded as he sealed his fourth victory over the former world number one on his eigth match point to end top of the group.

Tomorrow's semi-final showdown between Murray and Davydenko should prove to be fascinating as they have both been in great form this week, and with them each winning three of their previous six encounters. However, if Murray can reproduce the form that he showed today then he should prove to be too strong for the world number five, providing he has enough left in the tank. But judging by my predicitions this week, what do i know?

(Picture provided by Hettie McFarlane)

Sensational Murray into last four

Andy Murray continued his excellent run of form to breeze past Gilles Simon and book his place in the last four if his first ever Masters Cup.

Fresh from his fantastic victory over number one seed Roger Federer, many expected Simon to pose the Scot problems. But Murray got off to a simply breathtaking start, winning the first four games, and never looked back.

Murray clinched the 6-4 6-2 win which now means he will reach the semi-finals regardless of whether he beats Federer in his last match of the group stages. The intriguing encounter provides Murray with a huge incentive however, as he will look to knock out the top seed, who must defeat the Scot to pogress to the last four.

Safe in the knowledge that he is through, it will be fascinating to see how Murray goes about the match up, with Nadal withdrawing before the tournament, Murray has a real chance to claim the Masters Cup at the first time of asking.

This was a much improved overall performance from the British number one who despite defeating Andy Roddick, seemed to be suffering from fatigue in the tough three-set battle. Murray appeared to haver adapted to the conditions and the surroundings far better against the Frenchman, which stands him in good stead as he looks to end the year on a massive high.

Murray goes into tomorrow's match against the top seed full of confidence and despite already begin through i really feel that the Scot would be wise to really try and make it three wins out of three. Not only would he knock out one of his main rivals for the title, but it will continue the momentum he has impressively built up over the past few weeks. It would definitely give him even more of a confidence boost as he goes into the semi-finals.

As far as Federer is concerned, the match is a must win for the Swiss star if he is to guarantee his passage to the last four. Federer was in many respects quite fortunate that Roddick pulled out because Federer was presented with an arguably easier match up against Radek Stepanek. After his surprising opening loss to Simon, Federer did play a much better match in the 7-6 6-4 win over Stepanek but he needs to step it even more of he is to overcome the in-form Scot and i am going to stick my neck out on the line and say that i fancy Federer to do so.

Simply, because there is more at stake for Federer as he needs to win to progress. Simon will be looking to put the pressure onto the world number two by defeating Stepanek, to ensure that if Murray wins then the Frenchman will be the one to advance.

Elsewhere, in the Gold Group, Novak Djokovic and Nikolay Davydenko have advanced to the semi-final stage after they both won two out of their three matches. Djokoivic's passage was ensured after his first two matches after he defeated Juan Martin Del Potro and Davydenko before losing a tight three set battle against Jo-Wilfred Tsonga. Whilst Davydenko went against my prediction and went through after he took care of Del Potro 6-3 6-2 in their decisive encounter after the Russian had already beaten Tsonga in his opening match.

I must confess that whilst i expected Djokovic to advance, i am surprised that Davydenko overcame both Tsonga and Del Potro. It will therefore be extremely interesting to see how the Russian fares in the semi-finals. The last four match ups will be completed after tomorrows exciting matches.

(Picture provided by Koramchad)

Robson claims maiden senior title

Teenage sensation Laura Robson claimed her first maiden title after beating fellow Brit Samantha Vickers 6-3 6-2 in Sunderland's final.

This victory, along with her WTA tour debut in Luxembourg last month has capped off, what has been a fantastic year for the 14-year-old. Many claimed that her sensational junior Wimbledon win was going to be a hard act to follow, especially considering the weight of expectation that has been placed upon her.

I must say that Robson has really dealt with the pressure with a great deal of maturity and has continued to climb up the ranking and should finish 2008 within the top 550 in the world. This would be a fantastic achievement considering her age, but it is important not to expect so much so early, in many ways lets hope she is not a victim of her own success.

It is important not to get carried away but it is also important to compliment her on what has been a fantastic year for the teenager. The win in Sunderland was made even more incredible by the fact that it was only her fourth event in the second tier of professional tennis.

Robson's victory in Sunderland will give her a huge amount of confidence and the belief that she can compete at this level. The 14-year-old clearly has an extremely promising future ahead of her!

It was double success for British Women's tennis as Anne Keothavong won a £100,000 ITF tournament in Krakow, Poland. The British number one defeated Monica Niculescu in a closely contested final, 7-6(7-4) 4-6 6-3 to claim her fourth ITF title of the year.

Masters Cup is wide open

There is no doubt that the Masters Cup in Shanghai will miss World Number One Rafael Nadal, but his withdrawal has certainly thrown the tournament wide open. Nadal has unquestionably been the best, and most consistent player of 2008, highlighted by his Grand Slam title successes at Roland Garros and Wimbledon. The Spaniard is deservedly going to end the year at the top of the game, but this end of season cup is now a real chance for one player to end the year on a real high going into 2009.
Here are my thoughts on the eight player's chances next week:

Group A
Roger Federer- Despite not having the best of year's by his standard and having to endure, in my opinion, some harsh criticism, the Swiss star has won four titles this year and seemed to be playing back to his best when he won the U.S. Open. The world number two had a rough start to 2008 when he was struck down by Glandular Fever which clearly seemed to have an effect on him as he failed to defend his Australian Open title when succumbed to a straight sets loss to Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals. Despite many critics, Federer has had a good year by anyone's standards and goes into next week as the favourite and is most definitely the one to beat.

Andy Murray- British number one Andrew Murray goes into the Masters Cup full of confidence after a fantastic end to the year which saw him comfortably qualify for Shanghai. 2008 has been extremely successful for the Scot, with him capturing 5 ATP titles including two Masters Series titles. Murray will end the year at a career high ranking of number four regardless of what happens this week, and will really fancy his chances of adding to his number of career titles in Shanghai.

Andy Roddick- The American has had a relatively quiet year by his standards despite comfortably cementing his place in the Masters Cup. The US number one has been relatviely consistent this year, without doing anything spectacular. The world number six has picked up three titles so far this year in San Jose, Dubai and Beijing. Roddick will be looking for a fantastic end to a rather uneventful season for the American.

Gilles Simon- The Frenchman, who has replaced the fatigued Rafael Nadal, has had by far the best year of his career. The 23 year old has captured three titles this year in Casablanca, Indianapolis and Bucharest and has shown great consistency throughout the season. Simon's greatest triumph this year came in Madrid three weeks ago when the Frenchman beat Rafael Nadal in the semi-finals before losing to Murray in the final of the Paris Masters. Simon will look to continue this rich vein of form going itno the Masters Cup.

Group B
Novak Djokovic- The Serb had a phonomenal start to the year which saw him win his first Grand Slam title in Australia earlier this year. Djokoivic continued this marvellous run of form throughout the year, picking up two masters series titles in Indian Wells and Rome along the way, thus clearly establishing himself within the top three in the world along with Federer and Nadal. Despite not performing as well in the second half of the year, if Djokovic can rise to the pressure then he is a serious contender for the title.

Nikolay Davydenko- One of my least favourite players on the tour due to his distinct lack of charisma, the Russian has had a typically consistent season. Without doing anything remarkable, and being surrounded by match-fixing allegations, the Russian has picked up three titles this year and has stayed comfortably as world number five. I don't really see Davydenko has a contender for this week's title so if you are reading this you might want to put a bet on him!

Jo-Wilfred Tsonga- Despite being plagued by injuries, 2008 has still been a real breakthrough year for the talented Frenchman. After winning the Paris Masters last week Tsonga could really be the surprise package in Shanghai and no one will relish the prosepct of facing him. Tsonga really demonstrated his credentials by reaching the Asutralian Open final and will look to end the year as he started it, if not one step better!

Juan Martin Del Potro- The Argentine has had a memorable 2008 which has included an incredible 23 match winning streak. The streak contained four consecutive titles for the 20 year old over the summer as he demonstrated the credentials which show that Del Potro really has a chance of going far in Shanghai. The world number eight is a real confidence player so it is vital that he starts off well in the group stages, and if this is the case then he realy has chance of causing a shock in the Masters Cup.

Overall, i feel that the tournament is extremely close to call and it will be fascinating to watch as the events unfold. In Group A I believe that Murray and Federer will go through reach the semi-final, but Group B is much harder to call, with all four players in with a real chance of getting through. On current form i would suggest that Djokovic will go thorugh, with the last semi-final place being between Del Potro and Tsonga, with Davydenko only having a slim chance of going through. If i am going to stick my neck on the line, i think that Del Potro will make the semis.

In terms of the overall winner my tip is that Murray will claim Shanghai glory, with Del Potro being the one to look out for next week. It should prove to be a fantastic tournament with the best players in the world battling it out in China as they look to gain a psychological edge going into 2009 and win one of the most prestigious titles of the season.

(Picture provided by Brenda Kong)

Murray Madrid Slideshow

Murray defeat- not a surprise

Murray's 7-6 6-3 quarter-final defeat to David Nalbandian in the Paris Masters brought to an end a sensational run from the British Number One and perhaps gave him some extra time to recover from a successful, but tiring few weeks.

The loss came as no real surprise against the in-form Argentinian as Murray must have been feeling fatigued after the past few weeks which had seen him successfully claim back-to-back titles in Madrid and St.Petersburg.

What the loss has done, has given Murray time to reflect on what has been a sensational run towards the end of this year. The Scot had won 14 consecutive matches and has really cemented his place in the top four, which is, no doubt, a magnificent achievement.

The quarter final against Nalbandian just proved to be a match far and you really have to be at 100 per cent to beat the Argentine, especially considering the form he has shown in the last couple of weeks. Murray surely won't be too disheartened by this defeat after such an amazing run, and will go into the end of season Masters Cup full of confidence after such a brilliant year.

No matter what happens in Shanghai, it has been a fantastic year for Murray and he has proved to the world that he is the real deal.

I feel that the key for the Brit has been his consistency. Earlier on in his career, many criticised Murray for suffering too many defeats against lower ranked opponents, but this year he has eradicated this and gone far in most of the tournaments he has participated in, only really losing to highly ranked players.

Not only has Murray been more consistent, but he has put in exceptional performances this year which have resulted him beating the three players ahead of him in the world rankings, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic. This deminstrates that Murray has the credentials to break into the top three over the next few years and he will no doubt challenge for grand slam titles througout his career.

(Picture provided by James Martin Phelps)