Nicolás Almagro Sánchez Rolle (ur. 21 sierpnia 1985 w Murcji) - tenisista hiszpański.
Praworęczny Hiszpan oficjalnie rozpoczął karierę zawodową w 2003 i w tymże roku po raz pierwszy wystąpił w turnieju zaliczanym do cyklu ATP Tour. W 2004 awansował do pierwszej setki rankingu światowego, głównie dzięki wynikom z turniejów challengerowych. Zaliczył także debiut wielkoszlemowy, przegrywając jednak już w I rundzie French Open z Gustavo Kuertenem. W 2005 był po raz pierwszy w ćwierćfinale turniejowym ATP Tour (w Buenos Aires), a w Italian Open doszedł do III rundy, eliminując m.in. czwartą rakietę świata Marata Safina.
W sezonie 2006 zaliczył półfinał w Acapulco, by następnie w kwietniu tegoż roku świętować pierwsze turniejowe zwycięstwo. W Walencji pokonał m.in. Juana Carlosa Ferrero i ponownie Marata Safina, który zdegustowany radością okazywaną przez Almagro po wygrywanych piłkach (szczególnie po tzw. niewymuszonych błędach) odmówił po pojedynku podania ręki rywalowi. Almagro zaliczył następnie półfinał w Barcelonie (zwycięstwa nad Guillermo Corią i ponownie Ferrero, porażka z Rafaelem Nadalem) oraz ćwierćfinał w Rzymie (w meczu z nim skreczował Rosjanin Nikołaj Dawydienko, później Almagro uległ Rogerowi Federerowi), a start we French Open zakończył na II rundzie, pokonany przez Jamesa Blake'a. Wyniki te dały mu w czerwcu 2006 r. 36. miejsce w rankingu światowym.
Wygrane turnieje:
#1 - Valencia 2006
#2 - Valencia 2007
#3 - Costa do Sauipe 2008
#4 - Acapulco 2008
#5 - Acapulco 2009
Przegrane finały:
2007 - Bastad
2008 - Valencia
Najwyższy ranking: 11 (7.7.2008)
Wywiad po przegranym meczu 4 rundy AO10:
An interview with:
NICOLAS ALMAGRO
THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.
Q. Well done. You survived a couple of breaks in the third and fourth. What happened in the last? How hard was the last set?
NICOLAS ALMAGRO: The last set, I think he was serving unbelievable that two points. I couldn't do nothing. I put the racquet like this, and the ball fly out.
Q. Do you think he has the game to be able to go on and maybe take the title this year?
NICOLAS ALMAGRO: Maybe. He's in the tournament. Me not. I go home. This is the most important. He's playing well. I think he has many chance to be on the semifinal or in the final.
Q. What about for you? The game was so long. How are you feeling now and is there a bit more belief for you?
NICOLAS ALMAGRO: I feel now a little bit sad. No, but I'm happy. I was playing very good in the third and the fourth set. In the fifth I have ‑‑ I was very unlucky with that ball.
But now I want to think in my person, and my person said I need to go South America to play in clay courts and to be in top 10. But I need to work more now.
RG 2010 - wywiad po zwycięstwie w 4 rundzie
Q. Do you think you're playing the best tennis of your career at the moment?
NICOLAS ALMAGRO: Well, I don't think so. I play very well that match. I'm very happy with my tennis at the beginning of the match, and at the end of the second set and at the beginning of the third, too.
Well, I happy I play so good. I didn't do many mistakes. But I think I can do better with my serve, because I couldn't play with a lot of first serves. I think I can do better.
Q. You face Nadal in the quarter. You met him in Madrid. Do you have a special game plan? And if yes, is it the same one as in Madrid?
NICOLAS ALMAGRO: No, I think I will try to play at the same as Madrid, but I need to play more than one set and a half. Here I need to play five sets. I think it will be difficult to beat him, but I will try at the same every time I play him.
THE MODERATOR: Questions in Spanish, please.
NICOLAS ALMAGRO: It's much easier for me to speak Spanish, so questions in Spanish.
Q. Was it more difficult, less difficult? Because it looked very easy to us.
NICOLAS ALMAGRO: Well, maybe it looked easy, but it wasn't. It was a very difficult match against a player like Verdasco. He's part of the top players in the world, and I managed to lead the match for the two first sets.
I knew exactly what I had to do, I was very much focused, and I knew this was the key in the match. I played an almost perfect match. I played very good tennis at all times in the match.
Maybe the only problem was my first serve. But I need to work on my first serve. That's my weak point. I'm very happy I won, but I want to make progress. I think I'm on the right tracks, and obviously I still have a few more days ahead of me.
Q. Well, congratulations, to start with. This is the second time you've reached the quarterfinals here in Roland Garros. It's an opportunity for you. What's the most important difference between your shape this year and last year?
NICOLAS ALMAGRO: Well, I think there is a lot of difference. As compared to 2008, my physical shape has improved a lot. From a mental standpoint, I also am much stronger now.
But the next match is going to be very difficult because I'm playing Rafa. He is above all the other players on this surface. But I think I'll be able to play very good level of tennis, and I hope this will be the case for many, many years.
If I can win, that's gonna be even better.
Q. Do you remember the match you played against Rafa in Madrid? What did you learn from this match so that you can avoid making the same mistakes?
NICOLAS ALMAGRO: I think my matches against Rafa are always very long and very difficult. In Madrid I played at a very good level. I think it was at 5 1, 6 4, and in the second set when I was 2 1 up and there was the breakpoint, and I played my two best points in the match.
Then he came back. He played much better. This is probably where I couldn't react. He was playing much longer balls. And for the next match it's going to be battle. It's the one who can fight the longest that can win.
Q. How would you explain someone who's not seen you playing? How would you explain your second set?
NICOLAS ALMAGRO: How do you want me to answer? In Spanish or in English?
Q. As you wish.
NICOLAS ALMAGRO: Well, I served better, and that's something I've been working on since I was a child. And you want to ask my coach. He explained to me these things. That's a natural serve to me. I make sure the ball bounces very high, and I want it to be very fast, as well.
But this is how I try and win the point. Did you understand what I said? But if you didn't, ask my coach. He'll give you explanations.
Q. What about the pressure for the next match? Would you say Rafa is unbeatable, or do you think you have opportunities to win this match?
NICOLAS ALMAGRO: Well, if I thought he was unbeatable I'd pack up and go home. But not at all. I know how to attack him. I've done so in Madrid, and at many times in the match. So I'll continue on the same tracks.
I do think that this is going to be a much longer match than in Madrid, so I have to be very much focused during the entire match. I need to play my best tennis, which is probably what I did today.
If I do so, I have a good opportunity.
Q. Would you say that Rafa is the worst case scenario?
NICOLAS ALMAGRO: Well, it's going to be a very tough, very difficult match. I don't think anyone has defeated him on clay this season. But that's right. That's the draw that decided I would play him in the quarterfinals.
But this is a Grand Slam tournament, you know. Playing the biggest player in the world on clay, well, that makes me feel very happy, because that's an opportunity for me to beat him.
If that was the case, I'd be very happy. Otherwise, as each time I played him, I'll do my best to walk out of the court with my chin up.
Q. I don't know when you were a junior if you had already played him and won. Would this have a psychological impact?
NICOLAS ALMAGRO: Well, as I said, each match is totally different. Each match is a physical fight and a mental fight. I get ready, I prepare for each of my matches, and I've never won against Ferrer, and so you see, I won. One you win; one you lose.
And the last times I've played Rafa he won because he was stronger than me, but I will try and change the scenario this time.
Q. Who has more to lose?
NICOLAS ALMAGRO: I think we both have a lot to lose.
Q. Are you saying he's going to win until he's 60, also?
NICOLAS ALMAGRO: No, not at all. I know he plays a very good level of tennis, but I won't wait till I'm 40 to beat him. I hope I can win him when I'm 24. But we'll see that tomorrow or, no, on Wednesday. But trust me, Wednesday is going to be a wonderful match.
I really want to play that one and be amongst the top players in the world.
Q. I don't know how you prepare your matches with Jose, but from now till next Wednesday, are you going to watch the videos of the matches in 2008?
NICOLAS ALMAGRO: I never watch matches on TV. That's Jose who does that, and then he tells me about the important points because he knows tennis much better than I do.
So I just follow his instructions.
Q. What did Jose say about Rafa?
NICOLAS ALMAGRO: Well he said nothing. He said, Congratulations; you played very well. You were at the challenge. You have to continue on the right tracks and improve on your weaknesses.
Honestly, I didn't talk about the future match against Rafa.
Q. How does it feel, this future match?
NICOLAS ALMAGRO: Well, he says I need to be very aggressive. I need to attack on his serve as soon as I can and be as aggressive as possible.
But I have to be consistent, as well.
If Nicolas Almagro were the Davis Cup…
Who says history never repeats? As in 2008, world No.19 Nicolas Almagro is up against Rafael Nadal in the French Open quarter-finals. Beforehand, the Spaniard sharpens his wits with our “if you were” questionnaire.
If you were a country?
Spain .
If you were a city?
Murcia .
If you were a dish?
Fried eggs.
If you were a film?
Gladiator.
If you were a song?
"Besos" by the group El Canto del Loco.
If you were a moment in time?
Every day is a moment in time.
If you were a car?
A BMW X5.
If you were a restaurant?
Hortamira – a restaurant that belongs to some friends of mine.
If you were a drink?
Diet Coca-Cola.
If you were an historic event?
The Davis Cup.
If you were a tournament?
The Davis Cup.
If you had special powers?
To have even more power!
If you were a footballer?
Cristiano Ronaldo.
If you were a sport other than tennis?
Football.
If you were an airport?
Alicante.
If you were a time of day?
Night-time.
If you were a website?
This one! www.rolandgarros.com.
If you were a French word?
"Beaucoup" [meaning a lot].
If you were a romantic location?
Paris.
If you were a book?
Anything by Paolo Coelho.
If you were a concert?
El Canto del Loco, some friends of mine.
If you were a piece of jewellery?
A watch.
RG 2010 - wywiad z Nicolasem po porażce w ćwierćfinale
Q. How would you evaluate the situation?
NICOLAS ALMAGRO: Well, my evaluation of this situation? Well, the situation is here in Paris, and what I can say after the match is that I feel good. I played a good match. My arms feel good. My legs, as well. I have two arms, two legs.
No, I'm kidding, of course. But frankly, no, it's terrible. Really, it is terrible.
Let's face it, as I said yesterday, I said I wanted to finish being proud of what I did, even though I might be defeated, which is what happened. I played the match I had to play. I had the right attitude throughout the match. I wanted to win; yet I couldn't.
But in any case, the most important thing is that the tournament will continue. I'm on the right tracks. I know I still have to practice the way I've always done.
Now, of course, it's a bit sad. I played against Rafa during these quarterfinals. Had I been playing against another opponent, who knows what might have happened? Only God knows.
Q. The other day you said that with Verdasco you had played a match which, according to you, was almost perfect. If it were to continue along the same lines, you could have done better, but you played really well.
NICOLAS ALMAGRO: Well, I think you have to play even better than with Fer. The first set was okay. The second one, as well. But then I thought I could control, whereas here, it started well. It was 3 0.
Then it was a draw, and I lost the tiebreak. Then I was break into the second set; the same story happened during the second set but with no break.
During the third one I wanted to be more offensive, because so far it was good for me. Then I made mistakes, so much so, that these were the three bad points I played.
That's how I lost the match, I think. And to win against Nadal, to answer your question, is that I still have to practice, to continue to train and improve my game, and I hope that one day I can answer differently.
Q. It was 3 0, two tiebreaks, and what happened?
NICOLAS ALMAGRO: Well, I missed my tiebreak. I didn't really play it well with my second serve. When you play with your second serve, you know, Rafa was very offensive, he could play really well, very important and turning points better than I did.
And then during the second tiebreak it was 5 1 on my forehand, and what else can you say? I was always trying to follow, and it's a strange feeling, you see, because I was controlling the match, I think. I had a breakpoint.
But then he served so well and then he volleyed. As you know, he took the pressure a lot easier than I did, because he's No. 2. He played the right points at the right moment.
Q. There was a moment when he returned a ball that hit the net. How did you feel at that time?
NICOLAS ALMAGRO: I think you mean when we were 3 1 and before the break. We all know that Rafa returns all the points. He strikes strongly.
So this is when we were on a draw, and I thought I should still continue being offensive, I should take the initiative on these points. I didn't want to change my strategy all of a sudden. And I played good points, as well, but I made a few mistakes.
Q. Now, you play at a very high level, and my question is: Why is Rafa invincible? Why couldn't you defeat him?
NICOLAS ALMAGRO: Well, I couldn't win because each time well, at any moment he was leading. And as I said, he won the two tiebreaks during the first set; there was a break during the third one, and I couldn't catch up. That's the reason.
What I have to do is to continue and play the way and play. I have to continue and work and practice. I have to think that I'm a winner against Rafa or Verdasco. I have to respect them because they are excellent sportsmen and they're friends as well, but I have to continue and practice and do what I prefer in life. That is playing tennis.
It was not my best of days, I know, but I think in any case it was an excellent match.
Q. I was looking at you, and I saw that sometimes you were really furious, very angry. Did you think until the very last moment that the match could have changed totally?
NICOLAS ALMAGRO: Well, as I said yesterday, had I not believed in my tennis I would have taken the first plane yesterday with my suitcase, and I wouldn't have spent I would have spent a few hours. I would be with my fiancée, my mother, and my nieces. I would be enjoying a barbecue at home.
But I believe in my tennis. I believe in my game. He won. This is it. When he won the very last point, the only thing I had to do is congratulate him and continue on the same tracks.
Q. What do you think about this tournament? What do you think about the match?
NICOLAS ALMAGRO: Well, all tournaments, all important matches for a great sportsman are important. It all started in Australia for me when I had problems with the scaphoid . Despite this injury, I realized that I could continue the competition with the best players.
I trusted myself more, and then I grew as a tennisman, day by day, day after day. And in Madrid even last year I realized I played well even though I couldn't meet the objectives I had set to myself.
Yet I reached the quarterfinals at a very high level, so I still continued to believe in myself. Thanks to this confidence, I played a very good tournament. Even though during the first day I had very bad results, I always thought that I could continue and play more and more matches.
This gave me even more confidence in myself. I think that my team will also gain more trust in me. They'll believe me. They'll agree with me when I say I'm on the right tracks. I'll continue and train and work consistently and coherently, because I'm certain that what I've done so far was good, because I've reaped the fruit of this.
One of these days I'll be able to reach the final at Roland Garros and win the Grand Slam tournament.
Q. Could you try and analyze the match between Rafa and Melzer?
NICOLAS ALMAGRO: Well, I've not seen the end of their match, but Melzer has played a very tiring match, I think. But this is a Grand Slam. He'll have one day off. Nadal, as well. They'll be able to rest.
The two of them are lefties, but Melzer has an excellent serve. We all know that Nadal returns all the points. It's going to be very tight, very tough.
I think the one who's got the best physical condition and the best mental preparation will win the victory.
#6) Bastad 2010
R32 BYE
R16 Jarkko Nieminen 6-4 6-4
Q Franco Skugor 4-6 6-4 6-0
S Tommy Robredo 6-1 6-3
W Robin Soderling 7-5 3-6 6-2
Daję Mu spore szanse na wygranie 10 turniejów. :D
A dajesz mu szanse na wygranie turnieju na innej nawierzchni jak clay ? ;)
Bizon napisał:
A dajesz mu szanse na wygranie turnieju na innej nawierzchni jak clay ? ;)
Tak, w Paryż-Bercy. :D
xDD
Almagro Denies Soderling To Capture Sixth Title
World No. 20 Nicolas Almagro captured his sixth ATP World Tour title Sunday as he defeated top seed and defending champion Robin Soderling 7-5, 3-6, 6-2 in the final of the SkiStar Swedish Open, an ATP World Tour 250 clay-court tennis tournament in Bastad.
Almagro, who improved to a 6-2 record in ATP World Tour finals, earned 250 South African Airways 2010 ATP Ranking points and €72,150, while runner-up Soderling received 150 points and €37,900 in prize money.
“It’s a great feeling to win here,” said Almagro. “It’s always amazing to win a final and I’m very happy with the week. I’m going to enjoy this moment and then prepare for next week in Hamburg.”
Victory gave Almagro his first ATP World Tour title since triumphing at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel in 2009 with victory over Gael Monfils. All six of the Spaniard’s titles have come on outdoor clay, beginning with victory at the Valencia Open 500 in 2006 before it was moved to indoor hard court. The Murcia native is the seventh different Spaniard to win an ATP World Tour title this season and the sixth Spanish champion in the past 10 years in Bastad.
The fourth-seeded Almagro fell short in the 2007 Bastad final against David Ferrer but has impressed throughout the week with his smooth progress through the draw and carried his high-level into the final against Soderling, whom he defeated in their previous meeting on clay in Madrid.
After saving two break points in the second game of the match, Almagro took his fourth opportunity to break Soderling’s serve in the 12th game and seal a one-set lead. Soderling hit back strongly, though, racing to a 3-0 lead in the second set before going on to level the match, saving one break point as he served out the set in the ninth game.
With the match finely poised on serve in the third set, Almagro lifted his level to win the final four games from 2-2 to seal victory in just less than two hours. Victory saw him level his career series with Soderling at 3-3, avenging the defeat he suffered to the Swede in the 2009 Bastad quarter-finals.
“I didn’t play very well in the 2007 final here, but today I fought very hard and I’m really happy with the physical and mental sides to my game,” reflected Almagro. “It was a big match, a big fight and we were both battling like gladiators. Robin is a great player and I’m sure he will have many more chances to win this tournament in the future.”
The 24-year-old Almagro improved to a 33-17 mark for the season and 23-10 on clay. The right-hander’s strongest results this season have come on the crushed brick; he also reached the semi-finals in Madrid (l. to Nadal) and the quarter-finals at Roland Garros (l. to Nadal), Munich (l. to Cilic) and Acapulco (l. to Ferrero).
World No. 5 Soderling was bidding to become the second player in the past 17 years to successfully defend the Bastad title. He defeated Juan Monaco in the final last year to win his first and so far only ATP World Tour clay-court title.
The 25-year-old Soderling dropped to a 5-10 mark in tour-level finals, including a 1-3 record this season. The Tibro native won his fifth ATP World Tour title in Rotterdam (d. Youzhny) but has finished runner-up in three clay-court finals, also losing out at Roland Garros (l. to Nadal) for the second year in a row and Barcelona (l. to Verdasco).
"Too bad that I didn't get the break early in the first set. I played OK in the second set but I gave away a break in the decisive set, and that's why I lost the match," assessed Soderling. "I was very disappointed after having lost in the final."
"I have some very important tournaments coming up, and a stretch that suits my game really well," added the Swede.
#7) Gstaad 2010
R32 Marcel Granollers 7-6 3-6 6-3
R16 JMichael Lammer 3-6 6-3 6-2
Q Jeremy Chardy 6-2 7-6
S Daniel Gimeno-Traver 7-6 3-6 6-3
W Richard Gasquet 7-5 6-1
The Last Word: ATP No. 15, Nicolas Almagro
Almagro may hit his one-handed backhand
harder than any player in the game.
Best of 2010
He completed the Confusion Double, winning at Gstaad and Bastad (his only two titles of the year). We’ll go with the latter, where he beat Robin Soderling on his home turf for the title.
Worst of 2010
Then ranked No. 18, Almagro had a first-round bye in Hamburg but failed in his next match—on the surface he likes best, clay—against No. 59 Dennis Istomin.
Year in Review
Almagro started the season auspiciously, reaching the fourth round of the Australian Open for the first time in his career. He lost a heartbreaker at that stage to former Oz finalist Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. As expected, he found his groove during the European clay-court swing, and it took Rafael Nadal, the eventual champ, to stop his run at Roland Garros (in the quarterfinals). Almagro didn’t do much on grass, but soon after won Bastad and Gstaad, then declared his goal in blunt terms—get into the Top 10 and stay there (he got a sniff of the position in 2008, when he hit his career-high ranking of no. 11). He was solid on hard courts but couldn’t build on his momentum, spending much of the second half of the season protecting his ranking.
See for Yourself
You can see Almagro’s big, roundhouse swings that are so effective on clay—and such a liability on faster surfaces—here:
The Last Word
Almagro is a blooded, cradle-to-grave clay-courter. It’s been said that if he were two inches taller and a few steps quicker, he’d be another Nadal. While that may be stretching it, there’s no doubt that the Spaniard could be a suitable role model for aspiring dirtballers. Those big cuts he takes will always hurt him on faster surfaces, so reaching his goal of being a consistent Top 10 player demands that he maximize his opportunities on clay. But with so many fine slow-court players around today, he has his work cut out.
—Peter Bodo
2010 w liczbach
Ranking: 15
Turnieje: 2 (Bastad, Gstaad)
Finały: 0
Mecze: 44-26
Zarobki: $1,205,538
#8 ) Costa Do Sauipe 2011
R32 BYE
R16 Joao Souza 6-2 6-2
Q Rui Machado 6-2 6-4
S Juan Ignacio Chela 1-6 6-2 6-4
W Alexandr Dolgopolov 6-3 7-6(3)
7 dni później... ;-)
#9) Buenos Aires 2011
R32 - Pablo Galdon (ARG) 6-1 6-2
R16 - Leonardo Mayer (ARG) 6-7(3) 6-1 6-3
Q - Jose Acasuso (ARG) 7-5 6-3
S - Tommy Robredo (ESP) 7-5 6-1
W - Juan Ignacio Chela (ARG) 6-3 3-6 6-4
Nico zanotował wczoraj swoje 200 zwycięstwo w zawodowej karierze na szczeblu ATP Tour. Znakomite ukoronowanie tego wyczynu w postaci 9 trofeum. ;) Brawo.
Almagro Earns 200th Win, Second Successive Title
Nicolas Almagro wins his fifth
title on the "Golden Swing".
World No. 13 Nicolas Almagro earned his 200th tour-level match win as he captured his second ATP World Tour title in as many weeks with a 6-3, 3-6, 6-4 victory over Juan Ignacio Chela in the Copa Claro final on Sunday in Buenos Aires.
“It’s a very good feeling, I’m very happy after winning here and I hope it won’t just be nine titles in my career but a lot more,” said Almagro. He added about his milestone win, “It's a very high number and I hope I can keep getting to higher numbers in my career.”
The Spaniard was coming off his eighth career ATP World Tour title in Costa do Sauipe (d. Dolgopolov) last week and is on a nine-match winning streak. It is the first time in his career that he has won ATP World Tour titles in back-to-back weeks.
As winner of the ATP World Tour 250 clay-court tennis tournament, Almagro received 250 South African Airways 2011 ATP Ranking points and $82,800 in prize money.
All nine of Almagro’s ATP World Tour titles have come on clay courts, with five of those trophies coming during the Latin American “Golden Swing”, which incorporates four tournaments in South America during the month of February. As well as his successes this year, he also won back-to-back trophies in Acapulco in 2008-2009 and triumphed in Costa do Sauipe in 2008.
“It’s great to play the Latin American swing every year,” he said. “I’ve always had great results. When I was younger I made some semi-finals and lately I’ve won a lot of titles. I hope I can keep getting more here.”
The top seed Almagro squandered an early break advantage in the first set, but from 3-3 broke serve twice more to clinch the opener. Home favourite Chela was quick to respond, though, taking an early 2-1 break lead in the second set before breaking serve again in the ninth game to level the match. Breaks were exchanged early in the deciding set before Almagro broke decisively in the seventh game to wrap up victory in just over two hours.
“I knew it would be tough, but I was in good shape,” said Almagro. “It wasn’t easy because of the wind and we both had trouble with it. In the first set I was really aggressive, but in the second I made a few unforced errors that cost me the set. In the third I had to repeat what I did in the first set and happily I could do it to win.”
Chela said: “The key game was at 3-3 of the third set because I broke him the game before with great tennis but I couldn’t keep it up. I had to be more aggressive with my serve during the match because his is very good.”
Both Almagro and Chela had pulled double duty on Saturday, winning both their quarter-final and semi-final matches after rain had washed out the majority of play on Friday. In completing his quarter-final win over fourth seed Albert Montanes, the 31-year-old Chela earned his 300th tour-level match win.
The No. 35-ranked Chela was bidding to win his seventh ATP World Tour title and dropped to a 6-6 record in finals. He won two ATP World Tour clay-court titles last year in Houston (d. Querrey) and Bucharest (d. Andujar).
“It was a great week, I had a great level,” said Chela. “Of course I’m sad because I lost but I’m happy with the tennis I played.”
3 finał w 2011, pierwsza porażka.
Nico nie wykorzystał szansy na wygranie 3 z rzędu turnieju zaliczanego do cyklu "Golden Swing". Hiszpan, po sukcesach w Costa do Sauipe i Buenos Aires, mógł zostać pierwszym w historii tenisistą, który wygrałby w jednym roku 3 z 4 turniejów rozgrywanych na kortach ziemnych w Ameryce Łacińskiej. Niestety, w Acapulco w meczu finałowym zatrzymał go David Ferrer. Co ciekawe, w 3 przegranym przez Almagro finale w karierze po raz 3 jego pogromcą okazał się popularny "Ferru".
Nicolas Almagro - finały (3)
2011 Acapulco
2008 Valencia
2007 Bastad
Nico gra znakomity sezon. Na tę chwilę bilans jego tegorocznych gier to 18 zwycięstw i 3 porażki.
ALMAGRO CLOSES ON TOP 10
Nicolas Almagro is on a mission to break the Top 10 of the South African Airways 2011 ATP Rankings this week, and is one win away from doing so after reaching the third round of the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell on Tuesday.
The eighth-seeded Spaniard opened his campaign at the ATP World Tour 500 clay-court tennis tournament with a second-round win over fellow Spaniard Pablo Andujar 7-5, 7-6(1) in just under two hours.
The No.11-ranked Almagro improved to a 16-2 mark on clay this season, the best record on tour. He dominated the Latin American “Golden Swing” in February, winning back-to-back titles in Costa do Sauipe (d. Dolgopolov) and Buenos Aires (d. Chela), but was denied a clean sweep as he lost to David Ferrer in the Acapulco final.
There was more success for homegrown players on Tuesday as left-hander Feliciano Lopez struck 16 aces in a 6-2, 6-7(7), 6-4 victory over Kazakhstan’s Mikhail Kukushkin. He will next meet 12th-seeded Spaniard Guillermo Garcia-Lopez.
I jest Top-10, od poniedziałku będzie w zasadzie. :D
ALMAGRO BREAKS TOP 10 WITH DAVYDENKO WIN
Spain’s Nicolas Almagro broke new ground in his career on Thursday when he defeated Russian Nikolay Davydenko 7-6(2), 6-3 in the third round of the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell. In reaching the quarter-finals of the ATP World Tour 500 clay-court tennis tournament, the 25-year-old Almagro will crack the Top 10 of the South African Airways 2011 ATP Rankings on Monday.
Murcia native Almagro will be the 17th different Spaniard to reach the Top 10 in the history of the South African Airways ATP Rankings (since August 23, 1973). He will join No. 1 Rafael Nadal and No. 6 David Ferrer as the third Spaniard amongst the game’s current crop of elite players.
"I knew that today's match could have a special reward," said Almagro. "It was the third time I had a chance to get to the Top 10, after Acapulco and Monte-Carlo first. It's an incredible feeling. There’s no better place to achieve it than in my home club in front of my own people and my family and all the home support. It’s a great reward for myself and the work of my whole team.”
Almagro can attribute much of his success in 2011 to his achievements on clay. The right-hander dominated the Latin American “Golden Swing” in February, winning back-to-back titles in Costa do Sauipe (d. Dolgopolov) and Buenos Aires (d. Chela) before finishing runner-up in Acapulco (l. to Ferrer).
25.04.2011
Najwyższa pozycja w karierze: 10
2.05.2011
Najwyższa pozycja w karierze: 9
THE TEMPERAMENTAL TALENTDEUCE
Spain’s Nicolas Almagro finally broke into the Top 10
of the South African Airways ATP Rankings this past April.
Jose Perlas likens his protégé Nicolas Almagro to nuclear energy. If used for war, it’s bad. If used for power production, it’s good. The trick, he says, is to channel the volatile Almagro towards peaceful purposes to achieve maximum potential.
Watching Nicolas Almagro play tennis is like watching a tempest in a teacup. When he hits the ball one is never really sure if he is grunting, groaning or just simply shouting curses. Like a hammer pounding an anvil, Almagro prefers to bash the ball into a million little pieces. For the most part it is not pretty tennis, but whoever said that the Spanish prized beauty over brute force? No, they prefer to leave the aesthetics of the game to their French neighbours while they are content to march off with the gold.
In 1985, the year that Almagro was born, Spain had zero players in the Top 10 of the ATP Rankings and only four players in the Top 100. Today, Spain boasts three in the Top 10 – including Almagro – and 22 in the Top 100. In the years between then and now, the Spanish perfected a system of defensive minded tennis built around kick serves and footwork that ran from east to west in order to hit heavy topspin forehands. Yards behind the baseline they camped, rallying back and forth till either darkness halted play or the umpire died of old age.“He was not known so much as a fighter as much as a terminator”
Maybe Nicolas Almagro did not get the message. He might have confused “keep the ball in play” with “smack the damn ball away”? Or more likely he was going to hit the ball however and wherever the hell he wanted. You can only imagine the headache his junior tennis coaches must have had trying to get little ‘Nico’ to simply rally with the other kids. Proud or insolent, confident or cocky, whatever names Nicolas Almagro was called back then nobody dared to say that he did not have loads of talent.
Antonio Martinez, long time coach of Juan Carlos Ferrero, remembers Nicolas Almagro as a junior.
“I saw him play when he was young,” recalls Martinez. “He was not known so much as a fighter as much as a terminator. He wanted to win the point very quickly. I remember once in an ITF Junior event he won the final 6-1, 6-0. Impressionate, hombre. Very impressive.”
“He always had a lot of talent,” claims Toni Nadal. “And he hit the ball very hard as a little boy.”
The youngest of three sons, Nicolas Almagro grew up playing tennis with his two older brothers in their hometown of Murcia. Murcia is the end of the line of the Iberian Peninsula, a region of hard rock scrub pines and vast plateaus better known for breeding bulls than producing tennis players. Nicolas Almagro showed promise early. By the age of 14 he bagged his first ATP point, and three years later he won six ITF Futures in seven finals and even won an ATP Challenger. But by then the Spanish had become spoiled. Winning Futures was mere child’s play for a nation dominating the tennis tour and often labelled the ‘Spanish Armada’ by the press.
To say that Almagro has a flair for dramatics would be putting it lightly. One only has to look at his technique. A service motion that looks like a Greco-Roman archer shooting an arrow high into the sky and a backhand that resembles more a matador performing with the cape than a tennis stroke. Just how Almagro manages to create so many acute angles off the backhand that result in clean winners defies logic. He takes the racquet back high up over his shoulder with a windmill windup that could power half of Spain. When and where he actually decides to hit the backhand is anyone’s guess, but it seems that he makes up his mind somewhere between falling off his back foot and the point of contact. His target is now easy enough to see, the spot on the court farthest from his opponent.
“He has one of the best backhands in the world,” claims Toni Nadal.“Almagro was the hot-headed, hard-hitting bad boy, and Nadal was the hard-headed, hot-hitting little gentleman”
“Many people think he can be in the Top 5,” says Antonio Martinez, “because he has two big weapons with his ground strokes and his serve – especially the second serve, which is great. But that backhand, that is special.”
For all the praise of Almagro’s power, it is his character that draws the most attention. Often times over the years, it seemed as if he was Don Quixote waging wars against windmills.
“He is aggressive, and he can get mad quickly,” states Albert Costa. “He moved to Barcelona to be with Jose Perlas and they are improving. He is trying to calm Almagro’s temperamental character and it appears to be working.”
”In the beginning of his tennis, his character was a bit complicated,” comments Martinez. “Inside the court he can be difficult, but outside he is great. Now that he has been with Perlas, he has improved his character muchísimo.”
Not everyone saw Almagro’s temper as a negative.
“What I feel about Nicolas Almagro is that he has a touch of Latino in him, much more than your normal Spanish player,” says Nicolas Pereira, current ESPN commentator and former ATP player. “I love his game.”
So that was the situation when famed Spanish coach, Jose Perlas, took over.
“I knew him a little before we started, and I had heard about his personality and temperament,” says Jose Perlas. “He has a very strong character, the youngest of the family and he is used to getting his way. He had many years of behaving one way, and it is not easy to change quickly. He has made a big improvement, but the biggest change was from the inside and not from me. He made an agreement with himself to improve. That was the first step. Secondly, his fundamentals are very good. Antonio Gonzales Palencia was the one that has created all his tennis. I don’t know about his past, but since he has been in Barcelona, he has done all that we asked and even more. I am very pleased with Nico’s effort. He is a lovely person, and a great person to travel with.”“Almagro slapped his ground strokes around the court like he was smacking a bull on the butt”
“Pepe (Perlas) was an important change in my life,” admits Almagro. “He has given me all that was inside of him so I can get better. He brought a new working philosophy and since then everything is going well.”
“The only thing that I want is to be at peace with my tennis,” continues Almagro. “If people talk about me or not, I don’t know, the only thing I want is to keep on working. Working like I am doing. And for sure the results are going to keep on coming.”
If you are apt to believe that all roads lead to Rome, then figuratively speaking the same could be said that any major clay-court conquests must run through Rafa. Back in the juniors, Almagro was the hot-headed, hard-hitting bad boy. And Nadal was the hard-headed, hot-hitting little gentleman. That they would clash and clash hard was inevitable.
“It was always difficult when they played,” recalls Toni Nadal.
The years passed and they grew from boys to men and so it came on a warm sunny spring day back in May of 2010 that the man from Mallorca met the man from Murcia in the middle of Spain. Call it high noon in Madrid. Nicolas Almagro entered the stadium court with his high forehead tilted back like royalty, prominent Roman nose up in the air and hard-set jaw jutting out in defiance. Rafael Nadal marched in like, well, like he always does: A gladiator about to kill or be killed.
From ball one Rafa began whacking one brutal forehand after another, sending Almagro scrambling side to side with clouds of clay whirling up around his shoes. Almagro slapped his ground strokes around the court like he was smacking a bull on the butt. As the battle heated up you could almost hear the crowd singing ‘ole’ with every ground stroke. At one point early in the third set it got so intense that the Policia Nacional was put on alert.
As he usually does on clay, Rafael Nadal won the match, but not before Nicolas Almagro served notice that he was finally fit; physically and, most importantly, emotionally.“My intensity and emotions can be a strength and a weakness at times”
“My intensity and emotions can be a strength and a weakness at times,” admits Almagro. ”I have noticed since working with Pepe (Perlas), I am much more serene and relaxed on the court. And that allows me to play my best tennis.”
“Sometimes he gets too violent,” claims Perlas. “But this is not all bad. It is like atomic energy. If we use it for war, then it is bad. But if we use it to make electricity then it is good.”
Almagro was finally getting the message. And when the ATP World Tour swung through Latin America, he was firing on all cylinders. Almagro is no stranger to success in Latin America, having won there before, but this time was different.
“The biggest difference between the past and now,” admits Almagro, “is that I believe much more in my game and in me as a player.”
Nicolas Almagro would go on to win 13 straight matches and two titles, Costa do Sauipe and Buenos Aires. And now, Almagro found himself in a third consecutive final in Acapulco versus David Ferrer. But there was much more on the line than just a trophy.
“We knew that if he beat Ferrer in the final of Acapulco he would be Top 10,” says Perlas. “Of course that is one of the goals of any tennis player, but we did not talk about it. If we think only of getting into the Top 10 it can destroy all of our work. Yes, we are conscious of the points and rankings, but what is on our minds and in our mouths is the here and now. And our main objective is for Nico to continue improving as a player. The ranking will be a result of his evolution as a professional athlete.”
A surefire way to see what a man has under the hood is to check his record in the final set. Whether it be the third or the fifth makes no difference. Winning the final set is as good a gut check as it gets in tennis. And so far this year, Almagro has shown the grit and grind that Spanish players are known for. Almagro has won the decisive third set seven out of 11 matches. And he won the only fifth set he has played so far, a thriller against Igor Andreev, in Melbourne.
“The biggest difference this year is that he has matured,” claims Perlas. “And he did a great physical training in the pre-season that allowed him to maintain a high level during all those tough matches in three weeks in Latin America.”
Nicolas Almagro finally entered the Top 10 of the South African Airways ATP Rankings in Barcelona this year. It has been a long journey for Almagro and to make that final step at the club where he began training with Perlas made it all the more special.
“He has made big improvements the past year,” says Costa. “Perlas knows what to do and how to do it. Credit to Nicolas for doing the work.”
Power can be a two-edged sword. The challenge, as Nicolas Almagro has learned, is how to wield it. By controlling his temper and building his body, Almagro has risen to meet the expectations that for so long seemed just out of his reach.
#10) Nicea 2011
R32 BYE
R16 Carlos Berlocq (ARG) 6-7(5) 6-4 6-3
1/4 Pablo Andujar (ESP) 6-1 6-4
1/2 [2] Tomas Berdych (CZE) 6-4 6-4
F Victor Hanescu (ROU) 6-7(5) 6-4 6-3
ALMAGRO CAPTURES THIRD TITLE OF 2011
Nicolas Almagro won his 10th ATP World Tour title.
World No. 12 Nicolas Almagro confirmed his status as an outside contender for Roland Garros when he won his third ATP World Tour clay-court title of the season on Saturday. The Spaniard came from a set down to defeat Romanian Victor Hanescu 6-7(5), 6-3, 6-3 in the final of the Open de Nice Côte d’Azur.
“I think I’m ready for Roland Garros," declared Almagro. "I want to rest a little bit now, tomorrow I want to practise, and we’ll see what happens on Tuesday. It’s the most important clay-court tournament of the year and I go with a lot of confidence in my tennis and we’ll see what I can do in Paris.”
Almagro has enjoyed a career-best start to the season, highlighted by breaking the Top 10 in the South African Airways 2011 ATP Rankings for the first time on 25 April. In February he went on a 13-match winning streak during the Latin American “Golden Swing”, taking in back-to-back titles in Costa do Sauipe (d. Dolgopolov) and Buenos Aires (d. Chela) before finishing runner-up to David Ferrer in Acapulco.
As winner of the ATP World Tour 250 clay-court tennis tournament in Nice, Almagro received 250 South African Airways 2011 ATP Rankings points and € 72,600 in prize money.
The Murcia native goes into Roland Garros as the No. 11 seed and opens his campaign against Poland’s Lukasz Kubot. He is a two-time quarter-finalist in Paris, losing out to Rafael Nadal both times in 2008 and 2010.
Almagro was made to work hard for victory in his fourth meeting with the No. 69-ranked Hanescu. After three service breaks were exchanged, the Romanian clinched the opening set on a tie-break. Almagro hit back strongly in the second set, though, breaking serve twice and only dropping four points on his own delivery to level the match.
Roland Garros: Rywal Kubota jak Terminator i energia nuklearna
"Oglądać go w akcji to jak oglądać burzę w szklance. To nie jest ładny tenis, ale Hiszpanie zostawili piękno w grze swoim francuskim sąsiadom, sami zadowolając się marszem po złoto" - pisze o Nicolásie Almagro magazyn "Deuce".
We wtorek Almagro szczególnie zainteresuje polskich fanów tenisa, gdy po południu na korcie nr 6 stadionu Roland Garros w Paryżu zmierzy się z Łukaszem Kubotem w I rundzie międzynarodowych mistrzostw Francji.
Almagro w oczach znających go trenerów jawi się jako tenisista niezwykle charakterny.
- Ma jeden z najlepszych bekhendów na świecie - zapewnia Toni Nadal, stryj i trener Rafy. - Zawsze miał mnóstwo talentu. A już jako mały chłopiec uderzał piłkę bardzo mocno.
José Perlas, trener Almagro: - Jest jak energia nuklearna. Ta użyta do wojny jest złem. Użyta to produkcji elektryczności jest dobrem. Sztuka polega na tym, by przekierować zmiennego Nicolása tak, by jak bardziej wykorzystać jego potencjał. Ma bardzo silny charakter, był najmłodszy w rodzinie i przyzwyczaił się do walki o swoje. Ale także dzięki mnie wyraził zgodę na poprawę.
O wpływie trenera Perlasa mówił także sam Almagro: - Pepe przyniósł nową filozofię pracy - mówi zawodnik pochodzący z Murcii, leżącej po zachodniej stronie Półwyspu Iberyjskiego.
Antonio Martínez, wieloletni trener Juana Carlos Ferrero, o Almagro w czasach juniorskich: - Był znany nie tyle jako wojownik, co Terminator. Chciał wygrać szybko każdy punkt. Dziś wielu myśli, że może być w Top 5, ponieważ ma dwie wielkie bronie: mocne przyłożenie i serwis, szczególnie drugi. Ale czymś szczególnym jest jego bekhend.
O temperamencie Almagro mówi w końcu Albert Costa, kapitan Hiszpanii w Pucharze Davisa: - Jest agresywny, bardzo szybko wpada we wściekłość. Przeniósł się do Barcelony, by być z Perlasem i trzeba przyznać, że robią postęp.
RG 2011 - konferencja po porażce w 1 rundzie.
http://www.rolandgarros.com/en_FR/multi … 000d7.html
Nico Almagro: Nie wiem, co się stało...
Po porażce w I rundzie Roland Garros Nicolás Almagro kategorycznie zaprzeczył, jakoby był zmęczony po ubiegłotygodniowym turnieju w Nicei. Hiszpan wskazał na coraz lepszą w trakcie meczu grę Łukasza Kubota.
- Nie wiem, co się stało - tłumaczył po porażce w pięciu setach z lubinianinem. - On zaczął grać coraz lepiej, lepiej ode mnie w końcówce trzeciego seta. Nie pokazałem najlepszego tenisa i poległem. To był bardzo trudny mecz - dodał. Jeszcze na temat Kubota: - Jest bardzo agresywnym zawodnikiem. Dziś naprawdę dobrze uderzał piłkę.