If Monte Carlo is Nadal's most successful tournament, then Barcelona has to be number 2. Nadal recently won his 8th consecutive title at Monte Carlo. He might be going for the same feat now had he not, in 2010, skipped the event, presumably to save his fragile knees. But, for whatever reason, Nadal changed his
It was an improbable journey for both finalists at Delray Beach, as it often is. Two years ago, Ernests Gulbis won the event over Ivo Karlovic, and spearheaded one of his best starts in his troubled career. He would go on to beat Roger Federer and take a set off Nadal on clay which is
While the big event is in Dubai, with three of the top four players in the field, there are, as always, other tournaments being played. There have been a series of American tournaments played: at San Jose, then Memphis, and now in Delray Beach. There's also been tournaments in the rest of the Americas on
2010 was a good year for Jurgen Melzer. A contemporary of Roger Federer, Melzer had stuck in the top 40 for many years, but when it came to Slams, Melzer just didn't do well. Melzer played his first Slam in 2000, but until 2010, Melzer had never even made it to the fourth round of
How does it feel to be David Ferrer? He is a most worthy top 5. He pretty much beats everyone ranked below him. He might struggle against a Berdych or Tsonga, but pretty much everyone below that, he does well. Ferrer made Nadal's life a lot easier by being his Davis Cup teammate. Nadal is
Lleyton Hewitt is a bit old school. He said he modeled his game not after the great Aussies which were in a dry spell in the late 1970s and early 1980s, but after Mats Wilander. One of his famous moves, where he bends his wrists and stares at the tips of his fingers is a
We're getting to the business end of the Australian Open fortnight with the top half playing their fourth round matches today. Let's take a look at these matches. Tsonga vs. Nishikori On paper, this match should be Tsonga's. He's had pretty straight-forward matches while Nishikori has struggled with slow starts. Alas, this is nothing new
And that's why no one plays serve and volley anymore. Michael Llodra is perhaps the last of a dying breed. The serve-and-volleyer. It isn't a coincidence that Llodra is just north of 30 years old. I know, I know, veterans will tell you that everyone's forgotten how to volley. You have to be around 30
Of the top four seeds, Andy Murray clearly had the toughest first round. Djokovic played a guy ranked just outside the top 100. Federer and Nadal played qualifiers. Murray played one of the "new four", that is, one of Harrison, Raonic, Dimitrov, and Tomic. In particular, Andy Murray was to play Ryan Harrison. Harrison joined
Most fans who follow tennis only ever care about the pros at the very top, those who threaten to win Slams, those who win dozens of titles, those who will be remembered long after their careers have concluded. Then, there are pros that are on the other end, who aren't good enough to last more
