Shanghai Day 1: Spain in the House

Blowing A Gasquet
It’s all about momentum. Richard Gasquet had it in his match against Rafael Nadal, but then let it go, losing 3-6, 6-3, 6-4.

Coming into this match, the Frenchman had never beaten the Spaniard, but all their previous matches were contested on clay.

Richie used the faster indoor courts to his advantage, serve-and-volleying, attacking the net behind his vicious backhand and keeping Rafa off balance. He won the first set by a single break of serve in the fifth game.

But in the fourth game of the second set, Richie blew a gasquet. Up 40-0 on his serve, he played braindead, threw in two errors, and then got too cute on an overhead at 40-30. His smash ended up in the net. Three points later, he was down 3-1.

Rafa failed to hold serve to consolidate the break, but there was little doubt momentum had shifted. Richie dropped his next service game to love, losing 9 consecutive points on serve, and that was all she wrote. Rafa, who struggled with his footwork early in the match but never failed to fight, woke up and finally found his rhythm. His court coverage also improved. Richie reverted to baseline tennis, not a winning strategy against such a dogged competitor.

Arguably the most naturally gifted tennis player on the tour, Richie remains so mentally vacant he's unable to drop down the hammer on the top players in high-stakes situations when he's earned a lead. But when you have a player down, especially one you've never beaten, you have to keep him down.

Richie capitulates better than anyone.

He also appears to get so caught up in how pretty his own shots are that he often chooses flashy over effective. When he makes a stunning shot, it’s all good. But when he misses one like, say, on a big point, he shrivels in embarrassment as though he’s just been caught masturbating. He ought to learn that less is sometimes more.

Baseline Battle
In the second match, David Ferrer humbled world No. 3 Novak Djokovic in straight sets 6-4, 6-4 without dropping his serve.

Just as he did in the US Open semifinal, Ferrer broke Djoke's opening service game for a 2-0 lead. But t his time, he held on, closing out the set without facing a break point, without surrending momentum.

Djoke didn't play any loose service games in the second set and the overall quality of play picked up. A battle of baseliners, the match highlighted David's devastating return of serve and his penchant for playing like a human backboard. Djoke had to open up the court with shots that painted both sidelines just to get a winner by the Spaniard.

Both players could take advantage more of their groundstrokes by coming to the net to finish off points when their opponents are stretched wide. They play a similar game, but in the end, Ferrer proved tougher. Djoke didn't resort to any injury timeouts, stalls or bathroom breaks and he couldn't find a way to win the tight encounter without them.

The first day in Shanghai belonged to Spain. And it's David, not Rafa, in the lead at the end of the day. Who woulda thunk it?