In 2008, Andy Roddick made an unusual decision. He chose not to play the Olympics. Roddick has always been a big supporter of the US Open Series, the group of tournaments played from just after Wimbledon to just before the US Open. As an American, he has a huge fanbase despite having had his peak
Stan Wawrinka reached the top ten a few years ago, but has since dropped in the rankings to about 20 in the world. A little over a year ago, he married a Swiss TV presenter and former fashion model. She gave birth to their daughter. And shortly afterwards, Wawrinka chose to leave his wife (and
As we head into the second week of play, the top seeds continue to win. There's a decent chance that the top 8 seeds may reach the quarterfinals. The first player to finish his match at the bottom half of the draw was Novak Djokovic. He continues to have one of his easier runs to
For a guy ranked nearly 200, Bernard Tomic is fairly well-known. Still only 18, Tomic has both excited and exasperated his Aussie fanbase. For a guy as tall as Tomic (6'4", possibly taller), he has a versatile game that some compare to Andy Murray. Tomic can slice off both sides, and often does. His slices
The quickest way to rise through the rankings? Big serve. Just ask Ivo Karlovic, John Isner, Sam Querrey, and Andy Roddick. If you can hold the vast majority of the time, that's just one thing less to worry about. Few people are like David Ferrer or Rafa, who rely on speed and the power of
After being pushed to 5 sets, Roger Federer got to play Xavier Malisse, someone Roger has known since he was a teenager. Roger has generally fared very well against his generation of players, whether it be Andy Roddick or Jurgen Melzer or Lleyton Hewitt or, indeed, Xavier Malisse.  Although Malisse was able to break Federer
In a surprise move, Viktor Troicki retired after losing 6-2 in the first set after an abdominal strain. I'm sure someone is likely to suggest that this might have been "arranged" so Djokovic would not tire himself early on, at least in hushed whispers. In any case, Djokovic is the first player to reach the
It was good while it lasted. As many expected, del Potro wasn't ready to win a Slam. At least, not this soon. He cleared the first hurdle, which was winning a match. In the two tournaments he played last in 2010, del Potro lost in the first round. Once to Olivier Rochus and once to
2010 seemed like just another Rafa-Roger year, and in a way, it was. The top two players in the world have dominated proceedings for so long, one forgets that the competition was hardly at its best. Let's take a look back. Karlovic was injured for half the year. Tsonga was pretty much gone after Wimbledon.Â
In 2008, two players rose to prominence in the summer: Juan Martin del Potro and Gilles Simon. del Potro went on to win the 2009 US Open and even beat Simon in the 2008 US Open. In 2008, Simon would meet Roger Federer twice, once in Toronto at the Rogers Cup and once again at
