Grand Slam Professional Tennis Predictions and Picks by Nick Bollettieri. US Open, French Open, Wimbledon, Australian Open » Estoril

Federer waists little time to advance

Nick's Picks — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 17:58:01 +0000

Seeking his first tournament title of the year, Roger Federer only needed 61 minutes to dispense of Victor Hanescu 6-3, 6-2. With the win, Federer has now secured his spot in the quarterfinals of the Estoril Open in Portugal. He will now face either Joao Sousa or Ferderico Gil, both of whom he has never met before.

Mired in one of the worst slumps of his career, Federer has already lost four matches in 2008 and has now turned to coach Jose Higueras for help. So far, the Higueras move seems to be positive but we will have to wait and see before we can make a firm judgment. One thing is for sure, Higueras is a great coach who really knows the ins and outs of the game, especially on the clay.

Federer gets back on track

Nick's Picks — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 18:45:12 +0000

Roger Federer made his Estoril debut count, beating Olivier Rochus in the first round. The match wasn’t all smooth sailing for the world #1, as Rochus took the opening set 6-4. Federer was able to rebound, wining the next two sets 6-3, 6-2 and advancing to the second round. The big difference in this match was Federer’s 17 aces to Rochus’ 1. Where Federer struggled, was capitalizing on break chances. He had 13 break opportunities and only converted on three of them. This is a lower percentage than we have become accustomed to from the Fed.

Federer, don’t forget, is working with a new coach this week in Jose Higueras. This could be a very beneficial relationship, especially during the clay-court season (because of Higueras’ expertise on the dirt). Next up for FedEx will be Victor Hanescu, who beat another Olivier Patience 4-6, 6-3, 6-2. Federer is 2-0 against Hanescu, but the two haven’t met since 2005.

Larcher de Brito, Elias fall

Nick's Picks — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 14:19:53 +0000

Amidst much anticipation among the Portuguese fans and press, both Michelle Larcher de Brito and Gastao Elias both lost their first round matches at Estoril. Larcher de Brito fell to Croatian Sanda Mamic 2-6, 6-0, 6-4 while Elias lost to eighth-seeded Michael Berrer 6-4, 7-5.

Tough losses for both players, especially in front on their native fans. They are both still young though (15 and 17 respectively), so their is no reason to get down. Each is extremely talented and has great potential. In the future, I see more wins than losses for these two.

Young Portuguese pros to take the court tomorrow

Nick's Picks — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 15:40:47 +0000

Since she made her great run to the third round at Miami, many of you have asked about Michelle Larcher de Brito, and when she is going to play again. Well, the 15-year old NBTA student will look to recapture some of that magic this week in Estoril. She will be playing in front of her home crowd in Portugal, and will face Croat Sanda Mamic in the first round. This is a good draw for Larcher de Brito, as she will be the favorite to win a WTA match for the first time in her career. Up until now, Larcher de Brito has always been the lower ranked player, but not in this match. Mamic comes in ranked #471, while Larcher de Brito is #234. It will be interesting to see how she handles the pressure of being the favorite as well as playing in front of her family and friends.

Another young Portuguese native, Gastao “Pepe” Elias, received a wild card on the men’s side. Elias, 17, also makes the NBTA his home. He comes into the tournament ranked #613 in the world, and will face eighth-seeded Michael Berrer in the first round. Yesterday, Elias got to practice with Roger Federer on the stadium court. What a thrill for the young man to get to hit some balls with the world’s best. If you haven’t gotten a chance to see Elias play, please do. The kid is so smooth and his talent level is right up there with the best in the world. The way he moves and hits the ball, he reminds me of Richard Gasquet.

Federer turning to Higueras?

Nick's Picks — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 13:57:20 +0000

Mired in one of the biggest slumps in his career, Roger Federer is looking to Jose Higueras for some help this week at Estoril. Higueras has worked with some of the games best players, including Jim Courier, Michael Chang, Sergio Bruguera, Pete Sampras and Jennifer Capriati. He most recently was helping Shahar Peer and Robby Ginepri.

While Higueras right now will only with be Federer this week at Estoril, we could see the pair stick together. “I am excited as I have asked Jose Higueras, one of the most respected and accomplished coaches in the world of tennis, to join me,” the top-ranked player said on his official Web site Monday. “We are going to spend the week together to see if we could make a good team.”

Federer hasn’t had one since he split with Tony Roche last May, and I don’t think it could hurt him. Higueras is a great coach, and someone that has excellent experience. I think this is a good move for the Fed, and we will see what kind of dividends it pays this week.

Movers & Shakers – April 7, 2008

Nick's Picks — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 15:13:47 +0000

WNow that Miami is over, it’s time to take a look at those players that are making moves on both the ATP and WTA Tours…

ATP

Paul-Henri Mathieu climbed four spots to #12 in the world (a new career high). The Frenchman, who spent time at the NBTA, has always been talented he just has had too many injuries. Maybe this is the year he cracks the top 10.
Julien Benneteau made a big leap from #72 to #58. He still has a long way to go if he wants to best his career high of #35, but if he continues to play the way he did in Miami he is a tough out in any tournament.
Ivo Minar got back into the top 75, moving up 12 spots to #74. The 23-year old Czech reached the third round in Miami, and is now only five spots away from reaching a career high.
We can’t leave out Novak Djokovic-beater Kevin Anderson. The 21-year old South African stunned everyone by beating Djokovic in the second round, and with that he is now ranked a career high of #110 in the world. That is up 12 spots from his ranking before he entered the tournament.
May not be a big move (up only 2 spots), but NBTA student Kei Nishikori continued his climb reaching a career high of #118 in the world. He is also still on target for “Project 45.”

WTA

Elena Dementieva moved back into the top 10, reaching #8 on the rankings list. She had been at #11 before Miami, but will need to keep the train rolling if she wants to surpass her career high of #4.
Key Biscayne semifinalist Vera Zvonareva jumped six spots from #20 to #14. Like Dementieva, she still has some work to do to get back to her career high of #9 in the world.
American Lindsay Davenport continued her steady climb, reaching #30 in the world (up three spots). It will be interesting to see how much time she spends playing on the clay this spring.
NBTA student Sabine Lisicki used a fourth round run to jump 35 spots from #137 to #102. This is a new career high for Lisicki, who continues to get better each week.
Lastly, another NBTA student, Michelle Larcher de Brito, moved up 23 spots from #255 to #232. The 15-year old’s ranking is a career high. Look for her to play next week in Estoril.

Any players you want to highlight?