Rd. of 16 Recap

The Rd. of 16 of the 2010 Australian Open finally had some classics on the men's side. The women...not so much.

In what has to be maybe the deepest men's draw ever, the Rd. of 16 didn't disappoint. 5 set marathons seemed to be contagious, but most of the main contenders seemed to survive.

Why mention?

Fed DEF Hewitt 2, 3, 4- Well, I wish I could say I am surprised. Hewitt could play Roger 1,000 times in a row starting tomorrow and I don't think he'd win once.

Murray DEF Isner 6, 3, 2- Although the big American did have a set point in the 1st set, this was a pretty comfortable win for the determined Scot

Novak DEF Kubot 1,2, 5- Who has Novak paid off to get this draw? Seems like he hasn't played a guy I've heard of yet.

The Battles

Rafa DEF Karlovic 6-4,4-6,6-4,6-4- It took Nadal some time to figure our Dr. Ivo's serve, but eventually he grinded him down.

Davydenko DEF Verdasco 6-2,7-5,4-6,6-7,6-3- This was an interesting match where neither guy was playing up to their capabilities. Verdasco served 20 double faults and was very erratic from the ground, but Davydenko, the normally rock solid Russian, also struggled a bit with his form. Both guys were fighting some demons out their but eventually Davydenko moved on.

The Classics

Roddick DEF Gonzalez 6-3,3-6,4-6,7-5,6-2- A gritty match from both guys. Both did battle under the lights, with Roddick finally imposing his will in the 5th.

Cilic DEF Del Potro 5-7,6-4,7-5,5-7,6-3- Maybe it was only a matter of time before Del Po went down. His wrist seemed to be bothering him the whole tournament, and after surviving for 3 rounds, he finally ran into a guy who was ready to beat him. He didn't go out quietly though, this was a slug fest of two giants.

Tsonga DEF Almagro- This was the most fun Rd of 16 match. Two guys with electric personalities and unreal shot making capabilities. Tsonga went up 2 sets to love against Almagro, who was playing with a broken left wrist. OK, so he is one handed and a righty, but still. Almagro fought back and forced Tsonga to play his first 5th set ever, Jo-Willy took it 9-7.

Stay tuned later for much more on the 2010 Australian Open.

TT