Mixed doubles Analysis
Once again, Jon Wertheim has missed the boat in his analysis of the mixed doubles draw at the Olympics. He discounts the top seeded team of Victoria Azarenka and Max Mirnyi as a shotgun team of an accomplished singles player and an accomplished doubles player. The Belarussian pair is one of three teams to have won a Major ("Grand Slam"), having done so at the 2007 US Open having lost in the Australian Open final earlier that year. Azarenka enjoyed a successful partnership with Russia's Maria Kirilenko that included 2 Premier Mandatory/Premier 5 titles, and the 2011 Australian Open final. The team finished fifth in the Race to Istanbul for the year End Championships.
He also mentions how the delayed draw tactic backfired because neither Williams sister played. If entry was closed before the start of the competition, neither would have played. The U.S. already has two capable teams, so with both sisters alive in singles and doubles, they made the right choice not to play mixed doubles. This is far better than them being in the draw and then having to withdraw rather than play 3 matches in one day and have another country gain entry into the competition.
The draw features five of the top 10 women, including the top 2 in singles and No. 3 in doubles. Bartoli isn't at the Olympics while Wozniacki has no one with whom to play. Petra Kvitova was expected to play with Radek Stepanek, but he is playing with Lucie Hradecka instead. Radwanska might have played with Matkowski regardless, but had she and her sister defeated the top seeds in the doubles, she might not have played. Sam Stosur got her first win of the Olympics partnering with former No. 1 men's singles player Hewitt today after she lost in the first round in both singles and doubles.
On the men's side, only two of the top 10 in singles are entered, but you've got seven of the top ten from doubles. Federer has no partner and Nadal isn't playing. Djokovic and Tipsaravic are both still alive in singles, but playing with Ana Ivanovic didn't seem like a great chance to win a medal, so they left it to 8th-ranked Zimonjic. Ferrer was still alive in both singles and doubles as in Tsonga, although the latter would have had difficulty finding a partner that could get him into the draw. With del Potro partnering Dulko, Monaco and Suarez might have entered and just not gotten in. Wertheim mentions Andy Murray's loss in the men's doubles, but ignores the obvious home cooking that got the British pair into the draw. Had the Olympics been anywhere other than London, he probably wouldn't have had anyone with whom to play.
He also failed to mention the controversial paring of Leander Paes and Sania Mirza of India. Mirza has partnered with Mahesh Bhupathi to win two Majors, but ended up playing with Paes in a deal brokered by the AITA. Interestingly, Paes playing with Russia's Elena Vesnina, reached the Wimbledon mixed doubles final beating the Belarussian team in the quarterfinals. A rematch looms in the second round if the Indian pair can get past the Serbians.
With the draw rigged to put the American team in separate halves, the biggest question going in was, with both team having a combined ranking of 4 which team would get the #2 seed? Somehow, the Wimbledon champions ended up with the #3 seed and are paired with the top seeds in the semifinals while Bob Bryan and Leizel Huber have #2 seed where the Australians have already knocked out the 4th-seeded Polish team.
So the pick is the Belarussian-Mike Bryan/Raymond winner for the gold with the loser taking the bronze while Bob Bryan and Huber take the silver.
He also mentions how the delayed draw tactic backfired because neither Williams sister played. If entry was closed before the start of the competition, neither would have played. The U.S. already has two capable teams, so with both sisters alive in singles and doubles, they made the right choice not to play mixed doubles. This is far better than them being in the draw and then having to withdraw rather than play 3 matches in one day and have another country gain entry into the competition.
The draw features five of the top 10 women, including the top 2 in singles and No. 3 in doubles. Bartoli isn't at the Olympics while Wozniacki has no one with whom to play. Petra Kvitova was expected to play with Radek Stepanek, but he is playing with Lucie Hradecka instead. Radwanska might have played with Matkowski regardless, but had she and her sister defeated the top seeds in the doubles, she might not have played. Sam Stosur got her first win of the Olympics partnering with former No. 1 men's singles player Hewitt today after she lost in the first round in both singles and doubles.
On the men's side, only two of the top 10 in singles are entered, but you've got seven of the top ten from doubles. Federer has no partner and Nadal isn't playing. Djokovic and Tipsaravic are both still alive in singles, but playing with Ana Ivanovic didn't seem like a great chance to win a medal, so they left it to 8th-ranked Zimonjic. Ferrer was still alive in both singles and doubles as in Tsonga, although the latter would have had difficulty finding a partner that could get him into the draw. With del Potro partnering Dulko, Monaco and Suarez might have entered and just not gotten in. Wertheim mentions Andy Murray's loss in the men's doubles, but ignores the obvious home cooking that got the British pair into the draw. Had the Olympics been anywhere other than London, he probably wouldn't have had anyone with whom to play.
He also failed to mention the controversial paring of Leander Paes and Sania Mirza of India. Mirza has partnered with Mahesh Bhupathi to win two Majors, but ended up playing with Paes in a deal brokered by the AITA. Interestingly, Paes playing with Russia's Elena Vesnina, reached the Wimbledon mixed doubles final beating the Belarussian team in the quarterfinals. A rematch looms in the second round if the Indian pair can get past the Serbians.
With the draw rigged to put the American team in separate halves, the biggest question going in was, with both team having a combined ranking of 4 which team would get the #2 seed? Somehow, the Wimbledon champions ended up with the #3 seed and are paired with the top seeds in the semifinals while Bob Bryan and Leizel Huber have #2 seed where the Australians have already knocked out the 4th-seeded Polish team.
So the pick is the Belarussian-Mike Bryan/Raymond winner for the gold with the loser taking the bronze while Bob Bryan and Huber take the silver.