Roger Federer joined the legendary Pete Sampras on seven Wimbledon titles today with a fascinating four set win over Andy Murray which also so the Swiss rise to world number one yet again. The two weeks of Wimbledon always attracts people to their tv's and people become enthralled by the sport. For many, now that it is over they won't watch more tennis until the Olympics and then the US Open. It was a great fortnight of tennis and although it has come to an end we don't have to wait until the Olympics to see some of the top stars take to the court again. This week we have no less than four tournaments taking place where a number of top quality players are participating. Three of this week's events (Umag, Bastad and Stuttgart) are on the red clay which many players who had disappointing grass court campaigns will use to boost their confidence and raise their rankings ahead of the upcoming hard court swing. The other event is in Newport and is on grass and has attracted some big hitters who are still looking to fine tune their game for the Olympics. So for this post I'm going to be previewing those events briefly and discuss who the likely contenders for each title will be. So let's start with the tournament in Stuttgart.
Stuttgart is a 250 event on the red clay and has attracted some big names to it this year. Defending champion Juan Carlos Ferrero has not chosen to return so we will have a new champion by the end of the week. Top seed Janko Tipsarevic will be hoping to recover from a disappointing Wimbledon which promised so much. On the clay I don't thinkhe will win the title however as there are some clay court specialists in the field who might just outclass him. I think second seed Juan Monaco might be the favourite for the title here. He has had a phenomenal season so far and on clay he should be too good for the remainder of the field. There is one player in his quarter he won't want to face though and that's veteran Tommy Haas who has impressed in his form this season and although he lost in the first round of Wimbledon he has won on German soil already this year beating Federer in the final of Halle. Another contender is Spaniard Pablo Andujar who has got some clay court credentials himself but it will take a great effort for him to win his way through the week. Unseeded Thomaz Bellucci is another who can cause trouble for anyone on this surface and he is one to watch this week as is third seed Bernard Tomic but for me the favourite is Argentine Juan Monaco and I expect him to take another clay court title.
Umag, Croatia is the venue for the second of our tournaments this week and contains a number of talented clay courters. Top seed Fernando Verdasco might consider himself a contender but I don't think the seeding is reflective of the form or ability of the field as I don't see Verdasco as a main contender. I see him losing to 2010 champion Juan Carlos Ferrero in the quarter finals as Ferrero has had a great year is one of the best clay courters around even at his age. I don't think Ferrero has got a full week in him to win the title but it wouldn't be a major shock if he did pull off the title win. Defending champion Aleksandr Dolgopolov will be looking to hit some form by defending his crown but he will face some stiff competition from a number of top players. Second seed and beaten finalist twelve months ago Marin Cilic has been great this year so far and I could see him going one step further this year and winning the title. Unseeded Italian Fabio Fognini has been surprisingly consistent this year and so has been very successful and I could see him having a good week on clay but I think they main man this week is Marin Cilic and I see him beating either Ferrero or Marcel Granollers in the final.
The red clay in Bastad, Sweden is a much more predictable tournament this year. I think the top seed David Ferrer will be very difficult to topple. Of those trying I like a few players who are capable of big things on clay. Second seed Nicolas Almagro is a great clay courter and will fancy his chances of making another final at the very least. He won the title in 2010 and is now eleventh in the world and playing some of the best tennis of his career. Third seed Albert Ramos is a player I really like and he's having a good year. He's reached a final this year on clay and will be looking for a first ATP title to back it up. He's got the ability but I don't think he will go all the way. Italian Filippo Volandri is another potentious player on clay and might cause a few shocks during the week as could Jarkko Nieminen but I don't see either winning the title. Tommy Robredo is looking for a third title here but might be found wanting in the fitness area. Talent wise Robredo can match anyone in the draw but his lack of tour level match fitness might cost him a win here. There is some great talent in the tournament but David Ferrer is the man I think will win the title.
Finally to Newport, USA where the grass court season continues with some of the game's biggest hitters are taking part. Top seed and defending champion John Isner returns this year with a chance to get his final competitive practice before heading to the Olympics in a few short weeks. Isner was very disappointing at Wimbledon but I would expect him to be much better here and go very close to defending his title. Kei Nishikori is second seed and I would expect him to follow up his good play at SW19 with a run here this week but I would be highly surprised if he managed to win the title. Having said that, I think he will be a top ten player in the coming years as he finally starts to develop into the talent we saw when he was first breaking onto the scene. Sam Querrey was outstanding at Wimbledon and I would imagine he will follow it up here with another strong showing as he continues his return to the top twenty. Ryan Harrison is another going to the Olympics looking to hit some form and I thought he was very good against Djokovic at Wimbledon last week and I think he might be taking another step towards the top ten this week. I have no doubt he will be a top ten player at the very least in the next year or two. Another player certain to join him is Canadian Milos Raonic. I think Raonic is a future Grand Slam winner and future top five player. I expect a semi final battle between Raonic and Isner this week and the winner of that will go on to lift the title. Picking one over the other is tough but giving Isner's poor run at Wimbledon I think this means more to him to play near his best so I will give John Isner a slight nod over Raonic.
That's my predictions for the week and I hope that above all results we see some great tennis that leaves us looking forward to the remainder of the season. Anyone wanting to express their views please visit my facebook page or twitter page and leave comments or feel free to e-mail me.
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