It was a quiet Wednesday in the tennis world, at least on the courts. None of the top seeds at the three men’s events, in Atlanta (John Isner), Gstaad (Mikhail Youzhny), and Umag (Fabio Fognini), will play their opening matches until Thusday, and neither of the top two seeds at the women’s event in Baku (Sorana Cirstea and Elina Svitolina) were in action today. I guess that’s one way to maintain ticket buyers' interest in your tournament: Keep the big names from losing by keeping them off the court for as long as possible.
To me, the one developing story of interest is Jack Sock’s in Atlanta. He won his second straight-setter, over New Zealander Michael Venus, today, and might face Denis Istomin in the next round. I’m curious to see whether Sock’s Wimbledon doubles victory with Vasek Pospisil, which he said was the best two weeks of his life, has any residual effect on singles game, and his attitude in general. Sock showed more enthusiasm for the sport than I’ve ever seen from him at Wimbledon. Now: How long can those good vibes last, how much can they help, how much does confidence translate from doubles to singles? We’ll find out more from the American this week.
Without much new to ponder today, it may be a good moment to take a step back and see what has happened to the rankings after Wimbledon. This is something of an odd, and possibly transitional, moment on both tours. Here are a few things that come to mind looking down both Top 10 lists.
—Novak Djokovic is back at No. 1; Rafael Nadal at No. 2. This isn’t a surprise, considering how hot Djokovic was at the end of 2013, and how many points Nadal had to defend this spring. That goes double when you think about Rafa’s history at No. 1—he’s never held the spot for back-to-back seasons—and the history of the Nadal/Djokovic rivalry. You can usually bet that the one in second place will eventually be back in first. Still, with the number of points Nadal has to defend through the U.S. Open, it looks like Djokovic will have a decent run at No. 1 before it’s Rafa’s turn again.
—Roger Federer is No. 3; Stan Wawrinka is No. 4. “I’ll always feel like I’m behind Roger,” said Wawrinka soon after he had won the Aussie Open and passed Federer in the rankings. Talk about a self-fulfilling prophecy. With Federer just behind Djokovic and Nadal, the Big 3 is back together again.
—But what about the Big 4? The fourth, Andy Murray, is currently ranked No. 10. That’s partly due to the back surgery that kept him out at the end of 2013, and partly due to a title-less 2014 so far. Murray announced today that he’ll keep working with Amelie Mauresmo. His post-Lendl career will begin in earnest in a couple of weeks.
—Milos Raonic is No. 7; Grigor Dimitrov is No. 9. Two 23-year-olds have joined the adults. This is what revolution looks like on the ATP tour today.
