Halleluiah, Baghdatis through to the next round at the Olympics

He had me real worried there. Κάμ του γιούαρ σένσες ρε Μάρκο... (= come to your senses in Greeklish).

With our skeet shooters wide of the mark and virtually out of contention, Marcos remains our last hope for our first ever Olympic medal. Richard Gasquet in Round two. Beaten him once before, when were on top of the world.

In play post - Baghdatis playing Go Soeda

OK following this online… WTF????????????? Who is this guy Go Soeda? Thank God for the rain.

Marco, come to your senses. We want a medal. We want a medal. I know how much this means to you, saw your interview on TV prior to your departure to London.

Baghdatis and the Flag

Marcos paraded into Stratford, bearing the Cyprus flag. Hopefully he will leave with a medal hanging round his neck.

Baghdatis will bear the Cyprus flat at the 2012 Olympics

Marcos will lead the Cypriot team in the opening ceremony to the 2012 London Olympics. Although Cyprus has at least 3 more medal contenders, Marcos is vying to be the first to earn an Olympic medal under Cypriot nationality. It is probably his last chance, he will be over 30 in 2016. Sadly he missed 2008 Beijing Olympics when arguably he was at his peak, through injury.

Baghdatis marries Karolina Šprem.

Marcos is not scoring well on the courts but he’s scoring well elsewhere. Money goes to money, and tennis often goes to tennis. Marcos has married his medium to long term girlfriend, Carolina Sprem (Karolina if you go by Wikipedia) What’s more, rumours have it, there is a bun in the oven. But she still looks great in the wedding dress. Sorry girls, he's now taken...

Karolina is the same age as Marcos, 27. I do hope she changes her name to Karolina Baghdatis. Not to Karolina Šprem-Baghdatis. For their kids’ sake.

Baghdatis beats Feliciano Lopez in straight sets

Bravo to Marcos, who made light work of Lopez. Straight sets against Numero 15th in the world. Yes, surprisingly, Marcos is beating players way above his ranking. Next is the Ukrainian, Alexandr Dolgopolov a player ranked 21st in the world. This is our 4th encounter; the Ukrainian is 2-1 up…

Baghdatis smashes 4 rackets

This little known company makes Marcos’ rackets. Or made them. Four of them, gone in 60 seconds. It did make him (and me) smile!

Murray beats Marcos

Marcos last beat Murray about 250 years ago. This time he clipped our wings. The rather talent-less Murray showed the rather fitness, concentration-less Baghdatis, how it’s done. Marcos, watch an learn dude, Murray is the example to follow. I have said this umpteen times. 

Watch the full embarrassment here.

Baghdatis – 2012 off to a good start. Andy Murray up next.

Australia, Brisbane, here we come. Our favourite place in the world, the only place we’ve really achieved anything worth mentioning. The place that catapulted us to stardom.

OK only two victories, but emphatic none-the-less. Nishikori is no pushover any longer, he was seeded higher than Marcos. Let there be more, especially at the Open. 

Andy Murray next, can't wait.

Baghdatis - 2011 in a nutshell

The season is over and Marcos ends on a low again – ranked 44^th, with a total prize money of $603,356 for 2011. Enough to buy him yet another Porsche perhaps (we all know that’s his weakness), but another disappointing season overall. The years are slipping away. At the tender age of 26, in tennis terms, Marcos might well be over the hill. He sure looks like he is.

Last week in London, Federer showed the world how comebacks are done. That’s how its done dude, watch carefully and learn (without your popcorn or mixed kebab). Cos we’re tired of waiting and we are still dreaming of 2006.

Baghdatis at Wimbledon

So far, Marcos has taken out Blake in 5 sets and Seppi in straight sets. However next up is Mr Djokovic and I fear it will be the end of the road... 

Indian beats Baghdatis at Indian Wells

Apologies for the pun.

No posts recently cos I’m annoyed. With Marcos, and his perennial underachievement. No disrespect to any opponent but how could a top 20 player surrender to a qualifier like this? Straight sets, 7-5, 6-0 (!). Apparently it was an ingrowing nail.

Baghdatis beats Lopez

Well done Marcos. Surprisingly, unseeded Lopez appeared to be harder work than last month's Australian Open finalist. Rotterdam is no mickey mouse tournament, with 2 of the top 5 ATP ranked players signing up.

Baghdatis vs Murray

I regard Murray as an exceptional player. What he lacks in talent, he more than makes up with dedication and extremely hard work. He is the epitome of a sports professional and has not been loitering in the top 5 for the last few years by chance.

On the other hand we have Marcos, who is dripping with talent, yet has the discipline of a toddler. Marcos has a lot to learn from Andy Murray - but not today in Rotterdam. Marcos started by dropping 3 games, coming back to win the set 6-4 and the next one 6-1. Well done Marcos, may this become the rule not the exception we have gotten used to.

Feliciano Lopez up next, 1-1 in encounters to date. I have to admit, I am amazed at his current ranking (44th).

Bye Bye Australia

Wrist problems. Here is another video to watch.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxZG1cnlrN8

Baghdatis takes another scalp - Del Potro's

In the Rod Laver Arena! More convincing than the 1st round win over a qualifier. 15 aces! Admittedly Del Potro has been struggling with his wrist for ages.

Marcos now faces No. 11 seed Jurgen Melzer in the Hisense Arena, 7pm local time (8am GMT / 10am Cyprus/ 3am ET). He's not played the 29 year old Austrian before.

Baghdatis beats Grega Žemlja 3-2

A win is a win, but you'd expect it to come a bit easier vs a qualifier...

Baghdatis and the 2011 Australian Open

Marcos is seeded 21st and our first game is vs Grega Žemlja currently ranked 141st. No previous encounters with the Slovenian, on paper this should be just a warm up.

Australian Open 2011

Is it over before it even started? Marcos has pulled out of Sydney with a groin injury.

Brisbane

We have touched on this before, but I think he means he stopped eating those infamous kebabs.

Injured Baghdatis pulls plug on season

From the Cyprus Mail, Nemanja Bjedov.

MARCOS Baghdatis has called a premature end to his 2010 season after he withdraw from the Swiss Indoors Basel and the BNP Paribas Masters in Paris.

The Cypriot suffered a right shoulder injury in Vienna last week and was advised by his physio to rest for a fortnight in order to avoid aggravating the injury.

“I am very sorry that I will not be able to see my fans in Basel and Paris this year. I injured my right shoulder in Vienna and have been advised to rest so as not to cause any further damage,” said Baghdatis in a statement published on his official website.

“I am disappointed that the season has come to an early end, but I am very happy with my progress in 2010 and look forward to seeing you all on tour next year. Thanks for your support,” he added.

After recovering, the world number 20 will work hard during the short off season in preparation for the 2011 campaign which he will commence at the eagerly-anticipated Mubadala World Tennis Championship in Abu Dhabi featuring an all-star line up of Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Robin Soderling, Tomas Berdych and Jo-Wilfred Tsonga.

The tournament will be held at the recently upgraded Abu Dhabi International Tennis Complex at Zayed Sports City.

“Abu Dhabi is a very special place to me. I have enjoyed the best season of my career so far and it all started with a victory in Abu Dhabi, so it holds great memories,” said world number one Nadal.

“The early season momentum gained in Abu Dhabi is good preparation for the Australian Open,” the Spaniard added.

“Everything about Abu Dhabi and the tournament - from the weather, facilities and the atmosphere in the stadium, make it the ideal place to start my season. Having seen the strength of the field, I look forward to returning to defend my title in a fantastic city that loves tennis and is emerging as one of the world’s great sporting destinations,” concluded the 24-year-old..

Returning to Abu Dhabi for the third straight year, Federer said he is also looking forward to the tournament. “To win against such a strong field will be the perfect start to the 2011 season, as this world class tournament has put Abu Dhabi on the global tennis map,” he said.

“It’s personally rewarding to play here and Abu Dhabi is a place where I always want to win.”

Baghdatis in Malayisa (again)

Marcos is playing in Malaysia this week. Too many decent players there for just 250 points – I wonder if it is worth the trip. He lost to Youzhny here last year and Youzhny is here again, on even greater form.

Baghdatis and the Davis Cup

I think I agree with Marcos in dropping out of the Davis Cup. It is a one man bandwagon much like the British one. But I doubt it will help his performance. He needs to drop the kebabs.

Anything is possible with enigma Baghdatis

Look what I found
(Published in the Cyprus Mail, on August 24, 2010)

CYPRIOT tennis star Marcos Baghdatis is a bit of an enigma. Big things were expected of the Limassol native after he reached the final of the Australian Open in 2006, and he reached a career high of number eight in the rankings after making it to the last four at Wimbledon later that year.

Since those heady heights, the 25-year-old has suffered from inconsistency and injury. A crowd favourite wherever he plays around the world due to his infectious enthusiasm and breathtaking shot-making, Baghdatis is capable of a stunning win one day, followed by a dismal defeat to a lower-ranked opponent the following day.

Despite a respectable four career titles, the latest coming in Sydney in January, nobody really knows what to expect when Baghdatis steps out on court. However, he has been showing signs of getting back to his best this summer, reaching the final in Washington a couple of weeks ago and the semi-finals of the prestigious Cincinnati Masters last week. Upsets are nothing new to Baghdatis, who knocked off four of the hardest hitters on Tour since he opened play in Ohio last Sunday. He defeated Marin Cilic, Thomaz Bellucci, Tomas Berdych and world number one Rafa Nadal for the first time.

A semi-final clash with Swiss maestro Roger Federer was a step too far though, the Cypriot making no impression on the 16-time Grand Slam champion as he was swept aside in only 70 minutes. Television commentators made a good point about Baghdatis’ game following the loss.
“There is a marked difference in the quality of his first and second serve,” they said. “When he is serving well, (as he did against Nadal with 18 aces), he can dictate play.
“But when the serve is not working, he can really struggle.”

Nevertheless, his recent performances have seen the national icon, who proudly displays the island’s flag all over his clothing, rise to number 18 in the rankings. He is also the only player on Tour to beat two world number ones this season, after his victory over then top-ranked Federer at Indian Wells in March. “It was a great week for me and I am now back in the Top 20 and I feel great,” Baghdatis said on Sunday. “I am fit and playing the top guys well.
“I am working hard and being patient and more success will come.”

With only a week to go before the final Grand Slam of 2010 - the US Open - there is one last stop on the Tour before we get to Flushing Meadows. This week offers the Pilot Pen Tennis tournament in New Haven where Baghdatis is the number one seed. But will he crash out early or end up lifting the trophy? With his track record, anything is possible.

Baghdatis beats Federer (finally!)

So Marcos has beaten Him. After half a dozen attempts.
Here are the highlights:

And here is Marcos talking all about it.


Tommy Robredo up next. Why do they have to play in the middle of the night in America? Jee. On Novasports 4 for the privileged.