Smash pow-wow: has Djokovic restored order?

This week, we welcome doubles legend Todd Woodbridge as he joins us for our latest edition of the Smash Pow-wow!

And there’s plenty to talk about, thanks to Novak Djokovic’s latest title, Simona Halep’s return to form and an exciting week of tennis to come in Rome. Our editorial panel of Woodbridge, Vivienne Christie, Matt Trollope and Leigh Rogers give their thoughts on these storylines and more ahead of the Internazionali BNL d’Italia.

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Until last week, Novak Djokovic was 0-1 on clay in 2016 while Rafael Nadal carved up the opposition en route to two titles and a 13-match winning streak. Yet by the conclusion of Madrid, Novak Djokovic walked away with yet another title while Nadal fell earlier than expected. Has the natural order of men’s tennis been restored?

TW: Personally I don’t think you can take anything out of last week’s results in Madrid. Although it’s clay, it is played in altitude and plays nothing like what Rome and Roland Garros will. It certainly helps Andy Murray be more aggressive and useful; as for Rafa, the confidence is returning but after watching the match against Murray I’m not sure he really believes totally that he is back to his best. Worth remembering is that it was perfect timing for Novak to have a loss in Monte Carlo; as a Monte Carlo resident there is an expectation that he plays that event, yet losing early meant almost two weeks to sit back and recharge the batteries. Last year he went into Roland Garros with a lot of attention on his winning streak, which was using a lot of his energy. This time around he has built the perfect preparation.

VC: There’s no question that it was the more familiar Novak Djokovic who survived a tough two-setter against Kei Nishikori in the semis and was similarly steely after Murray tested him in the final. As for Rafa? Well, we might be missing a key point: who’d have though that Murray – and not Djokovic – would be the one to disrupt Rafa’s clay momentum ahead of the French Open?

MT: It would appear so. Although we’re constantly told that results in Madrid come with an asterisk due to the fact the tournament is contested in far different conditions – read: altitude – to Roland Garros, Djokovic had his swagger back. The way he tore through the draw – losing just one set against five impressive opponents – supported the theory that his loss in Monte Carlo was just a strange little bump in the road. Nadal, meanwhile, showed signs of the nervy play that has plagued him in the past 18 months. He did everything right to break Andy Murray’s serve in the second set of their semifinal, but when he had the chance to level it up and get back in the match, he faltered against an opponent he owns on clay. And boy, did he look anguished. We have to wait and see whether he regains his confidence in Rome, but I must admit I expected Rafa to win in Madrid.

LR: Djokovic winning the Madrid title was not a surprise. Murray’s defeat of Nadal in the semifinals was the more unexpected result. It reiterates that the order in men’s tennis has not changed – Djokovic is still miles ahead of the rest of the pack and Nadal’s recent return to form hasn’t lessened the gap like many were predicting. It would have been interesting to see them face off in the final – but we could still get that chance in the Rome quarterfinals this week.

Another week, another erratic display by the WTA’s top tier. Simona Halep is the latest to emerge from the wreckage with a trophy, winning in Madrid for her 12th career title. In the perhaps most open of women’s fields ever, is the Romanian now firming as a favourite for Roland Garros?

TW: There has never been a better time in women’s tennis for someone to step up with some self-belief and win a handful of Grand Slams. Will it be Halep? It should be, but I doubt it, given the players she beat meant she should have won Madrid anyway. Personally the only player who has form and that really does believe is Azarenka, and she is due to win something other than the Australian Open.

VC: Who knows? If Madrid is the measure, then it’s hard to see where Simona Halep’s competition will come from. But then, it’s been near impossible to identify any long-lasting trends in the women’s game this season. Halep is certainly a French Open favourite – if that’s what we’d call it in this wildly unpredictable time – but she’s far from the only one. Can I get back to you after we see how Serena Williams fares in her return to competition this week?

MT: I’ll be frank – until I see a better showing from her at a Grand Slam event, I’m not sold on Halep. A win in Madrid is impressive, and she looked in fabulous form all week, but too many times now we’ve seen strong showings from the Romanian at big WTA events, only for her to falter on the biggest stage. Having never fully embraced pressure and expectation, she’ll nonetheless find the spotlight well and truly re-trained on her now following a 12th career title. She is a magnificent clay courter. And she should theoretically be one of the favourites in Paris. But I’m not convinced.

LR: It was a great week from Simona Halep – as for the rest of the top 10, it was very disappointing. After a 14-month title drought, it was a much-needed confidence boost for the Romanian. Is she a Roland Garros favourite though? No way. Halep’s recent Grand Slam performances have been uninspiring and she needs to prove she can handle pressure better before she can be considered a leading title chance.

All eyes now turn to the Internazionali BNL d’Italia, where the stars of the game will battle it out at the tour’s prestigious ATP-WTA stop in Rome. What’s the one thing you’re most looking forward to at the Foro Italico this week?

TW: I love crowd watching at this event. No other crowd has the ability to get as involved in a match and influence the outcome. I would love it particularly if Fognini can get it going. I vividly remember seeing bread rolls thrown onto court along with wolf whistles and other abuse when it looked like Jason Stoltenberg – the world’s top junior at the time – looked like he would beat home favourite Paolo Cane on the Stadium court. The crowd and Cane went onto win that night 3-6 7-5 6-4.

VC: How will the stacked top half of the men’s draw play out? For the first time ever, we’ll see Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal competing in one half. Strange to think that such celebrated rivals will meet before a final but it makes for an intriguing week. And in the women’s draw, I’m looking forward to the return of world No.1 Serena Williams, who hasn’t competed since her fourth round loss in Miami.

MT: The stacked top quarter of the men’s draw – it’s ridiculously laden with talent. It’s headed by Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal and contains in-form seeds Milos Raonic and Gael Monfils. Also lurking are unseeded dangers like Nick Kyrgios, Philipp Kohlschreiber and Pablo Cuevas. Oh, and Serena and Venus pairing up in doubles. If they somehow progress to a final against Hingis and Mirza, I’ll drop everything to watch that.

LR: Serena is finally back and it will be interesting to see what sort of form the world No.1 is in. This is her only clay tournament before the French Open so she desperately needs matches under her belt. It would be huge for her confidence to win a title before heading to Roland Garros too – but trying to predict what will happen in a WTA event seems a futile practice this season. Who knows what this week will bring?