Monte Carlo Masters Series Ready for the Kings of Clay

The 2008 US $2,450,000 French Masters Series event played in Monte Carlo, Monaco has just began. This senior championship basic started back in 1897 and throughout the caducity has gathered the best human race tennis players from around the globe.

Amongst some of the major clashes that have already taken place are the Murray vs Lopez game which brought lots of expectation; specially on the young Britton who was an little known option to advance to a second round due to his retiring from the Valencia Open formerly due to injuries. In spite of the odds Murray was able to pull off a relaxing victory over the Spaniard Feliciano Lopez 7-6, 6-4.

Other clay surprises were those of Volandri vs Mahut match which finished 6-2, 6-3 in favor of the Italian player; followed by the ousting of the ninth seeded Frenchman Mathieu who lost to Serbian Janko Tipsarevic 6-4, 2-6, 6-4.

From what we have witnessed until now it is ideal viable this year's tournament will bring quota of action and interesting matches as the big names in the ATP top ten activate to be present on the scheduled list. 2008 Australian Exposed and Indian Wells winner Novak Djokovic could be a possible competitor for Murray in a third round match. Djokovic has made it sunny to all of us that he is in active pursue of the number one position as he possesses all the tools and skills to achieve such goal. Nevertheless; the Serb is very aware of the fact he testament encounter the human race who has dominated the bloodshot surfaces over the past years; Spaniard Rafa Nadal and who is not ready to surrender his crown any day soon.

Nadal is the 3-in-a-row Monte Carlo King on account of his first win back in 2005 over Argentinean Coria 6-3, 6-1, 0-6, 7-5 followed by two consecutive defeats over nature number one Roger Federer in 2006 and 2007 respectively. Nadal holds a 93-1 clay-court record which he persistently kept to 81-0 previously to his loss at the German Open to counterpart Federer latest year. Nadal's record also includes three French Grand Slam titles besides wins in Rome and Hamburg. On the other hand this year, the Spaniard will include to juggle a modern trick in array to continue his reign due to the common European clay tournament calendar changes because of the Beijing Olympic Games next month of August.

The Spaniard fabricated a statement regarding the current bearings ... "The calendar is completely crazy," Nadal said yesterday in Monte Carlo. "I estimate it's not impartial to the European players and the clay-court players, too. Three Masters in four weeks, it is very much. They [the ATP] say this is an Olympic year, that is very nice, but the dope is they place Indian Wells and Miami back [actually forward] because of the school [basketball]."

It will be very engaging to see whether the Nadal era will prevail if he is able to gold his fourth uninterrupted title; a win-streak which had not been witnessed in that 1971 when Ilie Nastase won three consecutive times.

However; there are quantity of factors to take into account; to begin we have a recovered Federer who has just won at the Estoril Open in Portugal; then there are Spaniard David Ferrer whose pastime is most aggressive on clay and he seems to be going on ice the capital hour in his career; just this weekend he grasped the coronet at the Valencia Sincere winning over fellowman Almagro in three sets.

As a tennis fan I must admit this tournament is a tough telephone as more players cache lining up to take the trophy home and gratify on circuit to the French Grand Slam at Roland Garros next month.

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