Week 1 Recap: Fear the Swede

Week 1 of the Australian Open is in the books. Aside from an entirely disappointing tournament from the American males and a bizarre 7 point retirement from Venus Williams, the cards have fallen pretty much where they should have. With that being said, here’s my take on the past week:

Bernard Tomic Impresses 
Hewitt was ousted and Australia’s attention shifted to their next best hope, 18 year old Bernard Tomic. What did he do? He decisively handled Jeremy Chardy and Feliciano Lopez, two solid players with loads of grand slam experience. Needless to say, I was impressed. While he got manhandled by Nadal in the next round, Tomic’s confidence should be at an all time high and with a few more tournaments and matches under his belt, I’d say his future looks bright.

Sharapova gets Crushed
A few years ago, Sharapova was on top of the tour and it looked like she might have a dominant several year run in her. Not so much the case nowadays. Whether it’s injuries or going home to the greasiest basketball player in the NBA, she’s not the same as she was. Can you imagine what would happen if her current form was playing a few years ago with a the Williams sisters in their prime? Let’s just say that she likely would not have as many endorsement deals.  Bottom line: If things don’t dramatically change, she can’t win and she won’t win anything important ever again.

Wawrinka Rolls On
Stanislasaslaslas Wawrinka just ate America’s last hope for breakfast. In dominant fashion, he steamrolled Andy Roddick and did the same thing to Gael Monfils the round before. And yet nobody is talking about him!! Well I see you Wawrinka and I see what you are doing to your colleagues and it scares me. Federer is up next and if he doesn’t bring his fightin pants to the match, he could be in real trouble.

Clijsters Declares Safina DOA
I’ll make this shorts because it’s sad. On day 1, Clijsters basically suggested that former #1 Dinara Safina should find a new job by dismantling her 6-0, 6-0 in 44 minutes.

Soderling Cruising Quietly
Robin Soderling is flying under the radar and couldn’t be happier. Nobody is talking about him, nobody is paying attention to him and barring any major catastrophe, he will face Andy Murray in the quarters. Two things - 1) Murray embarassed Soderling at the year end championship, don’t think Soderling won’t remember that. 2) The Australian Open is a breeding ground for the unexpected. Bagdhatis and Tsonga’s improbable runs to the finals, Murray’s last year and of course Djokovic’s only grand slam win. Don’t be surprised if we have another one this year with Soderling.