BNP Paribas Masters, Paris

[CR14] Feliciano Lopez (ESP) always appears lethargic on court; yet, today he was more so than usual, almost appearing asleep. Although he had occasional bursts of energy in the first set, the expenditure was too much to sustain and he lost the set 5-7.

[CR5] Tomas Berdych (CZE) kept him in the match with some nervous play of his own, pushing a few forehands long and failing to serve out the first set; however, it was only a matter of time before Berdych won the match and it appeared that it would be a blow-out in the second set when Lopez dropped his first two service games.

Lopez found another burst of energy and mounted a mini-comeback, breaking serve and holding to win three games. Match point summarizes Lopez’s game today, unforced errors, this one an easy forehand that he tamely pushed into the net.  Yet, was it resignation at the realization that he was too tired to realistically have a chance of mounting a successful comeback or is Lopez too apathetic?

SCORE: Berdych d. Lopez 7-5, 6-3