Pacific Life Open 2008 — Federer v. Haas, Nalbandian v. Fish Quarterfinal

The Pacific Life Open is shaping up for a fantastic finish with two quality quarterfinal matches slated for Friday in Federer v. Haas and Fish v. Nalbandian, as well as the expected titanic meeting in the lower half of the draw between second-seeded and defending champion Rafael Nadal and third-seeded Novak Djokovic. The final four if seedings hold will be Federer v. Nalbandian and Nadal v. Djokovic, which has the look of a preview of a quality clay-court quartet in the coming months.

(1) Roger Federer v. Tommy Haas
Image Credit: AP Photo/Mark Avery
Do NOT let the lack of seeding next to Haas’s name fool you: the German is a fantastic player, one whose game bears similar flourishes and stylistic marks to his opponent, the world No. 1. Haas has always been a phenomenal talent and when healthy a perennial top-15 player, and now that he’s hooked up with Dean Goldfine, he’s been razor-sharp here in the desert. Just look at the guys Haas has taken out in order: Benneteau, Roddick, Verdasco, Murray.

Image Credit: AP Photo/Mark Avery
Haas is no joke, and the surface here in Indian Wells suits his playing style — heavy topspin off both wings, an excellent down-the-line backhand to give the opponent’s inside-out forehand something to think about, and comfort from all parts of the court. If Federer’s serve is off, he will be in for a dogfight in this one, and given Haas’s string of strong performances and penchant for going deep into sets, it wouldn’t be surprising to see this go three. Ultimately, there’s no upset special here, as Federer does everything Haas does, but slightly better, and I just don’t see how Haas at this point has any new tricks to reveal. It’s simply going to be a matter of executing gameplans here, and as well as Haas has played, I see Federer moving on to the semifinal. Prediction: FEDERER, tight but straight sets.

(7) David Nalbandian v. Mardy Fish

Image Credit: Harvey Rubin
Nalbandian is a very tough guy to figure out because, as most tennis fans are aware, he is a world-beater whose game goes toe-to-toe with anyone’s on tour, even Roger Federer’s. He can blow through the top three players in the world with relative ease, and he can just as easily post confounding losses, and in some cases drop love sets, to lesser players (as he did in his match against Stepanek earlier this tournament). On point Nalbandian should be able to overwhelm Fish because Fish’s game just does not match up well with Nalbandian’s.

Image Credit: AP Photo/Mark Avery
But don’t discount the veteran American out completely, at least not yet. Fish has been relying all tournament on huge serves (frequently in the 130+ mile range), his world-class backhand, and a surprisingly penetrating, if somewhat erratic, forehand to carry him so far. Against Hewitt, Fish played three close sets and repeatedly served his way into strong positions, only to make occasional costly mistakes on his forehand side. That will not be enough against Nalbandian. For Fish to win he will have to have a very good serving day, and he will have to take on risk by going line-to-line frequently. He will not be able to hang with Nalbandian off the ground so he’s got to look to damage Nalbandian early by going up the line off Nalbandian’s cross-court forehand, and then go back up the line with his backhand on the reply, and then look to close out the point off Nalbandian’s forehand pass. This combination is going to be essential to Fish’s success. If Fish can press Nalbandian and avoid getting engaged in those brutal groundstroke exchanges in which Nalbandian thrives, and if Fish can continue to be aggressive on his serve and put Nalbandian under a lot of heat, then he’ll have space to move Nalbandian around and follow up with his best shot, the down-the-line backhand. Again, as above, it’s all about execution. These two are veterans and Fish knows that to survive against a premier player like Nalbandian, he’s got to stick with a solid gameplan and see it through. Otherwise, Nalbandian is just too tough a customer. Prediction: NALBANDIAN, straight sets (possibly close, likely fairly routine)

All in all, this looks to be a Federer/Nalbandian + Nadal/Djokovic final four, which is a mouthwatering proposition.