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Desperate Verdasco Fighting For ATP Survival
5 Comments · Posted by Scoop Malinowski in Articles, Scoop
Former ATP star Fernando Verdasco is 39 now and ranked 338 but he’s desperately trying to revive his tennis career. This weekend he got a wildcard into qualies in Mallorca on grass but lost to Pavel Kotov 61 76.Mallorca was the eleventh tournament Verdasco has played this year.
Last weekend he got into Parma main draw on clay as an alternate but was defeated in the first round by Albert Ramos Vinolas 62 63. Alternates just show up at tournaments and hope to get into the draw because players pull out with an injury.
Fernando is struggling big time with his results. The Spanish lefty had lost first round at six straight tournaments before finally winning this month vs Cem Ikel in Bratislava Challenger 75 64, but then he lost next round to a 17 year old raked 228 Jakub Mensik 16 64.
In February Verdasco won two quali matches in Dallas vs Mitch Krueger and Evan Zhu but the lost first round to Mackenzie McDonald 63 60. Then came the 0-6 slump.
Verdasco, who began the year ranked 123, also won a qualies match at AO vs Nino Serdarusic in three sets but then lost second round to Jerry Sheng in three sets.
Verdasco, the former world no. 7 and winner of seven ATP titles and a former AO semifinalist, is no. 4 in the ATP list of active players who have engineered the most comebacks from two sets down. He will need to draw on those survival instincts in order to accomplish one last hurrah in the ATP.
adidas · AO · Fernando Verdasco · Spain
Cory · June 26, 2023 at 1:50 pm
Is Verdasco getting a WC for Wimbledon? Grass is his 2nd best surface if you went by stats alone.
Johnson another loss in Wimbledon qualies today to Stricker in straights… now in dire straits. He was up a break, too, late in the first. IDK what’s going on with him, it’s sad to see. Grass is by far his best surface. Coulda used a run here.
Scoop Malinowski · June 26, 2023 at 5:31 pm
Cory, I see no justification in giving Verdasco any kind of WC into Wimbledon, he cant win anymore. It would be a waste of a WC for a guy who doesn’t need the money and he’s accomplished enough in two decades. Johnson also has hit the wall, he cant win anymore. A lot of mileage on those Johnson legs and covering for that backhand. At least Pablo Cuevas won today, the old timers didn’t get totally smoked.
Cory · June 27, 2023 at 3:36 pm
Good call on the Johnson backhand, it’s ineffective which is why he slices so much (altho that’s a top slice). He’s always running around the backhand, people can see it a mile away and hit him on the empty court. Joao Sousa does that all the time too. There’s another guy on an overall decline (but did gain some poiints this year). Hoping to see Cuevas stick around, he’s one of my favorites to watch… but grass is not his surface.
Scoop Malinowski · June 27, 2023 at 4:56 pm
Cory, grass today plays like hard court, Kozlov told me that about a decade ago after he played Wimbledon junior final (lost to Noah Rubin). Maybe now it’s even more like hard court. Johnson was so close to being a top ten player, he had some great battles, my most memorable are when he beat Sandgren in the Houston final and the match vs Medvedev in Washington DC when Med called an injury timeout just after the changeover ended, as Johnson was about to serve for the match. Johnson was understandably livid and ended up losing the set and match at like 1 am after a big rain delay. )
Scoop Malinowski · June 29, 2023 at 9:24 pm
Hsieh lost to Stefinini 76 in the third set TB 11-9, three hours and nine minutes. Marozsan came back from two sets down to level it vs Marterer 57 64 76 75 57 (Time of match was 3:19). Two heartbreakers. Coco Vandeweghe lost to Carol Zhao in SS. Kenin beat Townsend. Mirra Andreeva qualified.