As we go from Indian Wells to Miami, an A-Z of players, events and observations...
ATP, on a practice court in Indian Wells, undertakes a daft experiment of putting advertising across the net and then asks Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal what they think as they hit some balls (thumbs down, by the way). Hey, Etienne, there’s some billboard space still available across Rafa’s capris. Seriously, though, this money grab would impair a tournament’s ability to sell title sponsors (why buy that when the ATP’s already sold the more visible net) and look about as aesthetically pleasing as all those walking billboards in European soccer.
Bryan brothers, you know longer have a monopoly on sibling doubles duos. While you guys have failed to win a title this season, the Bondarenko sisters have already captured the Australian Open and Paris. Look for them to add to their trophy collection in Miami.
Chakvetadze skipped Indian Wells but is playing Miami. Don’t know about you, but for a Top 10 player—she’s currently No. 6—Anna strikes me as a bit of a lightweight. And I don’t buy into this latter-day Hingis stuff, but perhaps she’ll prove me wrong.
Donald Young may never fulfill the promise—and hype—that surrounded his pro debut, but he proved in Indian Wells that he belongs with the big boys. In a wind-swept second round against an agitated Feliciano Lopez, Young was the more mature and smarter player. And against Nadal, Young showed that he could hit with ever bit as much spin and canny lefty angles.
Erlich and Ram are coming into their own as a top doubles team this season by winning the Australian Open title without dropping a set and, most recently, capturing Indian Wells last week. The Israelis were both born in South America—Erlich in Argentina and Ram in Uruguay—though they prefer to speak Hebrew over Spanish or English.
FSN did something during the Pac Life that didn’t seem possible—the network lowered the bar for tennis broadcasts to the point where only a caterpillar could get under it. We’ll get to the commentators later (see J, for Justin) but the quality of the picture was atrocious. Like many of my mates, I struggled to see the ball and had to gauge the players’ strokes and reactions to discern what was going on. FSN cut out of third set action and offered a lame warning to turn the channel to see the rest of the men’s final. It all had me pining for a low-budget Tennis Channel production.
Grit: Rafael Nadal has more of it than anyone else on tour. But on the hard courts in Indian Wells, it became apparent that it won’t be enough to beat the game’s top-flight players.
Hey, Andy Murray, you still think dumping Brad Gilbert was a good move?
It’s hard not to root for Ana Ivanovic. She’s competitive without being cantankerous, friendly without being a fake. She’s also starting to show the markings of a champion—the ability to go for her shots at the big moments and serve herself out of trouble.
Justin Gimelstob is a likeable and smart guy, but he seemed a little over his head with his over-the-top commentating in Indian Wells. Though you had to laugh when Fish hit a winner and Gimelstob remarked, "That’s vintage Fish." No, vintage Fish is Mardy missing an easy shot. Gimelstob takes to the air again in Miami, but let’s hope viewers are spared another dissertation on "Liquid Power." And please, Mr. Barry Tompkins, it’s Justin, not Jason. Ok?
Kuznetsova has now lost 8 of her last 9 finals. Time to schedule a few sessions with Dr. Phil, Kuzy.
Like it or not, writers in the blog-o-sphere can’t stop obsessing about the health of tennis in the U.S. Tennis is a niche sport, folks—get over it. Don’t we have better things to talk about?
Mardy Fish, nice to see the Feds let you out of the witness protection program.
Nalbandian, you often lack heart but your gusty performance against an in-form Fish in Indian Wells was inspiring. Let’s see if you can keep your mind on tennis in Miami and not get caught up in the futbol race between Boca Juniors and River Plate.
Only the WTA would make a big to-do about showing the Pac Life Open final live on-line with this teensy weensy caveat: that you can watch the match everywhere "except the United States, Japan, Hong Kong, Australia and Europe." If you were living in Micronesia, however, you were living large. No word yet if the Sony Ericsson final, also to be shown free on-line, will carry similar restrictions.
Press conferences are usual monotonous affairs with the same questions being asked (kudos, by the way, to Rafa for calling out one well-intentioned reporter for déjà vu) but you’ll be hard pressed to find a more unusual, or entertaining presser than the one Roddick had in the desert. Here’s an encore presentation. We can only hope that this "reporter" will be in Miami.
Questions that will be answered in Miami: Are the Williams sisters taking the season seriously? Will Andy Roddick continue to strike the ball as well as he did in California but this time get the justified result? Is Roger Federer officially in a slump? And can Fish maintain his form?
Regarding Rafa, Nadal will be blogging exclusively for TENNIS.com while he’s playing the Ericsson Open in Miami. Check our homepage daily for updates starting on Thursday.
Six ATP players, since 1990, have accomplished the sweep of Indian Wells and Miami—Roger Federer, who’s the only player to do it twice, in 2005-06; Andre Agassi in 2001, Marcelo Rios in 1998, Pete Sampras in 1997, Michael Chang in 1992, and Jim Courier in 1991. Now the Pac Life champion Novak Djokovic tries to add his name to this list in Miami this week.
Tsonga, I finally got to see you up close in Indian Wells. You are every bit the uber-athlete who reached the Australian Open final. Charismatic, emotional, focused—you, sir, are the new star in men’s tennis.
Understanding how David Ferrer is ranked No. 5 in the world going into Miami is like a Buddhist koan—it defies explanation.
Venture to the side courts in Miami to see some wacky tennis, including what promises to be the most spasmodic match this year, John Isner vs. Gael Monfils (winner gets Federer). Other freak shows will include Marat Safin finding a way to lose against a qualifier, the grunting of Michelle Larcher de Brito, and the impenetrable hair of Nicolas Mahut.
Why, for the love of God, is Serena Williams and Justine Henin slated to meet in yet another quarterfinal showdown, next week in Miami. I’m not in favor of draw-rigging, but . . . .
Xs and Os. It’s something that’s lacking in James Blake’s game. In Miami, he might do well to add a little more strategy, and a little less bashing, to his approach.
You can’t miss this first round in Miami: Tommy Haas vs. Nicolas Kiefer. Let’s hope Tommy brings out all the shots in his repertoire and that Kiefer brings out all his Mr. T-inspired gold chains. I pity the fool who misses that.
Zero tolerance should be the new policy when it comes to slow play between points. It’s making tennis matches tedious affairs, and given how networks have little patience for matches that run long, it’s in the best interest of the sport to keep things moving.