1R: M. Niculescu def. K. O'Brien 6-4 6-4

Finally! <3 Two sets and nearly 3h, amazing... :rolleyes:

LOL. :tape:

Unlucks, Katie. :hug:

Niculescu 'chops' her way past another lower ranked player, and once again her ranking will benefit because of it :o

Katie :hug: Still a good week

:) Good job Monica, you are more than capable of winning your next round.

I was scared she was going to lose but she proved me wrong!

:woohoo:

Pity Katie...

Well done Monica :bounce: :rocker: :dance:

Keep it going now. :yeah:

Katie :sad:

Niculescu 'chops' her way past another lower ranked player, and once again her ranking will benefit because of it :o

Katie :hug: Still a good week

basically.

Monica :bounce: First win of 08, finally!

2nd GS win of your career :banana:


LOL. :tape:

Unlucks, Katie. :hug:

why the tape? :o

Niculescu 'chops' her way past another lower ranked player, and once again her ranking will benefit because of it :o

Katie :hug: Still a good week

If Katie can't beat a "chopper" in Monica, then she doesn't deserve to be higher ranked than Monica. :shrug: Clearly the way Monica plays is effective and she deserves to be where she is.

Monica :clap2:

Should have closed out the 2nd set earlier :o, but still a nice win :yeah:

If Katie can't beat a "chopper" in Monica, then she doesn't deserve to be higher ranked than Monica. :shrug: Clearly the way Monica plays is effective and she deserves to be where she is.

:rolls: Stop being so defensive.

:rolls: Stop being so defensive.

People need to learn. :)

If Katie can't beat a "chopper" in Monica, then she doesn't deserve to be higher ranked than Monica. :shrug: Clearly the way Monica plays is effective and she deserves to be where she is.

:confused: When did I say that Katie deserves to be higher ranked than Monica? I think her current ranking is generous enough to be honest :lol: I'm just not a fan of Monica and her way of playing, simpy because it frustrates me. I think people give her too much credit. That chop forehand she uses is actually quite mindless, but people say its 'crafty' or 'smart'.

When she is striking the ball well, her shots are extremely effective crafty and beautiful. Otherwise she wouldn't be winning matches.

I agree that her backhand is a good shot, but I'm not convinced about the forehand. She resorts to the chop because it is the most simple shot to use. I should know, I actually do it myself when I play :lol:

Monica :bounce: First win of 08, finally!

2nd GS win of your career :banana:




why the tape? :o
Because how a 6-4 6-4 match could be close to 3 hours is beyond me. :tape:

:confused: When did I say that Katie deserves to be higher ranked than Monica? I think her current ranking is generous enough to be honest :lol: I'm just not a fan of Monica and her way of playing, simpy because it frustrates me. I think people give her too much credit. That chop forehand she uses is actually quite mindless, but people say its 'crafty' or 'smart'.

Well you said Monica's ranking is benefited because she beats another lower ranked player, as if that's a bad thing (at least that's how I read it). Surely any top 50 player should beat anyone out of the top 100, regardless of how they do it. :shrug:

The only people that seem to give Monica any credit on here are her few fans. Everytime she wins a match there are always more criticisms of her game than positive comments.

Yes, maybe Monica can't hit a proper forehand for whatever reason, but I respect that she has put together an alternative that is effective, and interesting to watch. It's not like she is moonballing. :lol: Plus she uses it smartly.

Well you said Monica's ranking is benefited because she beats another lower ranked player, as if that's a bad thing (at least that's how I read it). Surely any top 50 player should beat anyone out of the top 100, regardless of how they do it. :shrug:

The only people that seem to give Monica any credit on here are her few fans. Everytime she wins a match there are always more criticisms of her game than positive comments.

Yes, maybe Monica can't hit a proper forehand for whatever reason, but I respect that she has put together an alternative that is effective, and interesting to watch. It's not like she is moonballing. :lol: Plus she uses it smartly.

OK, I apologise about the ranking issue. I understand now how I kind of contradicted myself :lol: But I still have to disagree about the smart forehand issue. I just don't get the feeling she thinks too much before playing the shot and simply uses it because she has nothing else. I think she gets credit from her fans where her opponents should get criticism.

edit - and yes I suppose it is better than moonballing :lol:

What a fighter, love you Monica :rocker2:

Monica :bounce:

Katie :hug:

When she is striking the ball well, her shots are extremely effective crafty and beautiful. Otherwise she wouldn't be winning matches.

Well said :)

Monica :woohoo: good luck against Errani.

:(

Monica PHEW! :banana: Relieved. This match took ages :o

Katie :sad:

expected :( i want a brit win ffs!

i like niculescu's game actually, fun to watch and its also nice to see someone that doesn't just hit the ball hard

I like Monica :) Good Katie was able to play anyway...

how old is she?

how old is she?

How old is who?

Anyway, Monica is 21 and Katie is 22. ;)

Monica!!! :D :woohoo: wish i could have seen the match :(

thanks

Katie :sad: Was always going to be a tough match with your style of play against Monica and her unique technique. Decent showing against a top 50 player and hopefully qualifying here will give you the confidence to move back on up to where you were pre-Wimbledon 08. Well done Monica, hope she can beat Errani now