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Rafael Nadal & Novak Djokovic to Meet in Final at Indian Wells ATP Masters 1000

Indian Wells ATP Masters Series 1000 - Final Preview

1 Rafael Nadal vs 3 Novak Djokovic - H2H: 16-7/RN

Rafa has won their last two - and all 5 times they've met in a final.

They are split 6-6 in Masters 1000 play and 1-1 at Indian Wells.

On the season Rafa is 12-2 while Novak is unbeaten at 17-0.

This is ought to be a very very fun match.

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Something they have in common in Masters 1000 finals: Each has 6 losses.

The glaring difference: Rafa has won a record 18 titles, Novak has 5.

The pair will represent the winners of 4 of the last 5 title runs at IW.

Rafa won in '07 & '09, Novak in '08. Ivan Ljubicic won last year.

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Rafa is looking for his 1st title of the year and 1st since Tokyo in October.

He's looking for his 1st non-clay Masters 1000 title since he won here in '09.

Rafa had lost his last 3 matches to Juan Martin Del Potro...

He turned that around today with a 64 64 win over the returning Argentine.

Make no mistake: Juan Martin is very back.

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Novak continued his winning streak over Roger Federer today.

He made it 3-in-a-row over Fed with his 63 36 62 victory.

He became only the 4th man to beat Roger 3 times in a single year.

The bad news for Roger: It's only March.

#2: Today's win also moved Novak ahead of Roger in the rankings.

Will this be Novak's year? Tomorrow might hold a telling glimpse.

Photos: Reuters

Rafael Nadal Wins Thriller Quarterfinal at Indian Wells

Indian Wells ATP Masters 1000 - Quarterfinal

1 Rafael Nadal d Ivo Karlovic - 57 61 76(7)

Most tennis fans knew this would be a close match - but this thrilling?

They engaged in one of those edge-of-your-seaters. Instant classic for sure.

And I don't toss the phrase 'instant classic' around much either.

Rafa: In the tie-break I was really nervous.

I think I returned fantastic in the tie-break,

but I didn't put one first serve on court, so I was really nervous.

Yea, I'll bet his Rafantics were nervous too.

Rafa, winner in '07 & '09, moves into his 6th straight Sf at Indian Wells: 2-3.

This also marks his 35th trip to a Masters 1000 Sf: 24-10.

He will next play Juan Martin Del Potro - H2H: 4-3/RN.

The last match they played was that USO Sf where JMDP whipped Rafa's ass.

In fact, Juan Martin has won their last 3...

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Jekyll & Hyde: One minute he is a fierce competitor on court...

The next he's just a sweet kid offering you a cookie.

ATP & WTA Weekend Winners for Feb 27, 2011 - Welcome Back to Winners Circle Juan Martin Del Potro!

Dubai: 2 Novak Djokovic d 1 Roger Federer - 63 63

Very impressive win for Novak as he remains undefeated this year.

This marks the first time in his career he's done a 3-peat.

He also becomes the 7th active player to win at least 20 titles.

A lot of tennis headlines have been sounding the Fed & Nadal 'end of era'.

Too soon: Let's hold off and revisit that after Wimbledon, shall we?

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Acapulco: 1 David Ferrer d 3 Nicolas Almagro - 76(4) 67(2) 62

David makes it 2 in-a-row in Acapulco - he likes that giant pear trohpy!

As he denies Nico a 3rd title in this years Golden Swing thru Latin America.

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Delray: Juan Martin Del Potro d Janko Tipsarevic - 64 64

Look out guys: Someone's comeback just got a solid shot in the arm.

This is Juan's 1st title since winning the US Open in '09.

He was sidelined for most of 2010 with a career-threatening wrist injury.

Delray Beach represented his 5th tournament this season.

He's rocking a nice 13-4 W/L - which includes Sf's in San Jose & Memphis.

His ranking just spiked to #89 - FOUR weeks ago he was ranked #485.

It was a matter of time - but who knew it would be this fast?

Doha: 2 Vera Zvonareva d 1 Caroline Wozniacki - 64 64

Vera improves her finals record to 11-16 and H2H with Caro to 4-4.

Acapulco: 4 Gisella Dulko d Arantxa Parra Santonja - 63 76(5)

This is Gisella's 4th WTA title - but perhaps she had a bigger week for this:

She & Flavia became co-#1's on the the women's doubles rankings.

Photos: AP/Reuters/Getty Images

Tour Returning Juan Martin Del Potro Wins Sydney Thriller

Sydney ATP 250 - 1st Round

W/C Juan Martin Del Potro d 6 Feliciano Lopez - 67(5) 76(9) 76(3)

What a way to tell 'em you're back. Saving a match point to boot.

And in shirt sleeves.

This marks his 1st win since his 4th round finish at AO10 last January.

He did try to comeback in Sept/Oct and lost 2 matches, finishing '10: 3-3.

He has fallen in the rankings to #259. Tho I suspect that will rise.

Quickly.

Photo: Reuters

Juan Martin Del Potro Loses Again in Comeback

Tokyo ATP 500 - Men's First Round

6 Feliciano Lopez d Juan Martin Del Potro - 63 60

Following his 1st round defeat in Bangkok JMDP has now lost two straight.

Now I fall into the 'let's cut him some slack' group but three games?

I never expected this type of a beat-down.

He needs match play. I say he returns to solid form in Australia.

I, for one, was hoping he'd discover sleeves while he was away.

Photo: Getty Images

Juan Martin Del Potro Loses 1st Match in Return to Tour

Bangkok - Men's Singles First Round

Olivier Rochus d 5 Juan Martin Del Potro - 76(7) 64

Two tight sets folks against a crafty veteran. Hey, I'd call that a good loss.

Who would expect DelPo to return and storm the field? Not I.

Give him time.

Post-match: The most important thing today was my wrist – and it’s perfect.

Welcome back.

Juan Martin Del Potro is all Smiles in Return to Tour

Look who's back. Finally.

DelPo arrives in Bangkok to play only his 2nd tournament of the year.

After his 3rd round loss at the Aussie Open he had wrist surgery.

It kept his off the tour for 8 months.

He was unable to defend his US Open title & has slipped to #35.

This time a year ago he was ranked #5.

Good news: Most of 2011 will be nothing but adding points.

His first match in Bangkok will be against Olivier Rochus.

He's seeded 5th & could face Rafa in a blockbuster Qf showdown.

Welcome back.

Photo: AP

Juan Martin Del Potro Poised for US Open Return

Nice to hear. It would be sad to have the defending champion missing in the draw. Having said that, I hope he is ready because it'll be even sadder to see the defending champion go out early.

But he must be itching to get back out there.

The last match JM played on tour was a 4th round losing effort against Marin Cilic at the Australian Open in January before wrist surgery cruelly took him out of the game.

JM is currently ranked #7 with 4,270 ranking points - 2,000 of which represent his US Open win last year. If the US Open is his target then he will loss 1,100 points from his win in DC and his runner-up in Montreal last summer. This will drop his ranking into the teens. A poor result at the Open will see his ranking sink.

Temporarily.

He may need a little match play before he gets back to where he was but it'll come - if he's stays healthy I'd look for 2011 to be a good year for the Argentine.

Nalbandian, Simon & Karlovic Added to DL for French Open

It sure feels like more top players have pulled out than ever before.

They include 6 top 50 players - 4 of whom would have been seeded.

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David Nalbandian (above) withdrew yesterday with a hamstring injury.

Gilles Simon says he isn't fit enough after a long knee injury layoff.

Ivo Karlovic withdrew today bothered by a nagging Achilles tendon.

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They join previously announced withdrawals from: Juan Martin Del Potro,

Nikolay Davydenko, Tommy Haas, James Blake & Igor Andreev.

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Photo: David Nalbandian in Monte Carlo - Reuters

Kim Clijsters, Juan Martin Del Potro & Nikolay Davydenko Withdraw from the French Open

What a shame. Roland Garros has lost three true contenders. Clijsters and Del Potro are the reigning US Open champions and all three have been semifinalists at the French Open (Kim has been runner-up twice).

Kim commented on her website: "It's really a shame to give up on Roland Garros. Paris is so close I always feel a little at home. And that's where I played my first grand slam final. But the foot pain forces me to throw in the towel."

Kim will return for the grass season in Eastbourne which begins June 14 before she heads to Wimbledon.

Juan Martin Del Potro had wrist surgery last week and the world was told he'd be out at least three months. Blog chatter has him out for the rest of the year.

Nikolay Davydenko is also suffering from a wrist injury.

Also confirmed not playing are James Blake, Tommy Haas, Igor Andreev, Sania Mirza and Sabine Lisicki.

Photo: Reuters

Juan Martin Del Potro had wrist surgery today - will miss at least 4 more months

At least four mouths.

This poor boy was on top of the world only last September when he stunned Roger Federer in the final of the US Open.

Here's hoping for a speedy recovery.

James LaRosa writes a wonderful article on this for Tennis Channel.

Serena Williams Joins List of Players to Withdraw from Miami

 

Serena Williams - Left knee has kept her out of action since winning the AO.

Juan Martin Del Potro - US Open champ out with a nagging right wrist injury.

Maria Sharapova - Bruised her right elbow bow last week in Indian Wells.

Dinara Safina - The back injury that doesn't seem to be getting any better.

Nikolay Davydenko - Left wrist injury - I think I heard it was broken.

Photo: Reuters - Serena at an Oscar party.

Monday Rankings: Rafael Nadal Slips to #4 in the World

This is pretty seismic folks.

Not being able to defend his title in Australia and getting dumped in the quarterfinals has cost Rafael Nadal dearly as he drops from #2 to #4 in the rankings. Except for 3 weeks last August '09 Rafa has been in the top 2 since July 25, 2005 and during that time he spent 40 weeks at #1.

If Rafa doesn't return to the tour soon and in title winning form straight away it'll get worse before it gets better. He has a tons of points to defend between now and the French Open; if he can't deliver Del Potro and Davydenko will also leap over him. Won't that make for a potentially interesting draw at Roland Garros, no?

Rafa's fall to #4 means that Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray move past him marking career highs for them at #'s 2 and 3 respectfully. Also making his debut in the top 10 for the first time is Marin Cilic, he slips in at #10 and many tennis insiders feel he will reside within the top 10 for many years to come.

Oh yea, like I need to mention it but Roger Federer is #1 and closing in on Pete Sampras' record of total weeks on top.

Over on the women's tour Serena Williams widens her lead at #1 over Dinara Safina while Caroline Wozniacki moves to a career high of #3.

Two other women enjoy career high marks as Victoria Azarenka moves up one to #6 and Li Na jumps seven to #10.

And what of Justine Henin? She isn't yet eligible for a ranking but crudely calculating the two runner-up finishes she has produced in her two tournaments back from retirement she would squeeze in somewhere around #40.

Photo: Reuters

The Funny Faces of Tennis for January 24

Justine Henin - No. Nonsense.

Juan Martin Del Potro - The ol' nip slip.

Svetlana Kuznetsova - Still pissed about that night match.

Rafael Nadal - Melting?

(Some) Winners from Day 5 of the Australian Open

Welcome to the 4th round kids.

Dinara Safina d. Elena Baltacha - 61 62

No chciken served here.

Rafael Nadal d. Philipp Kohlschreiber - 64 62 26 75

Yea, VAMOS!

Andy Murray d. Florent Serra - 75 61 64

On course for a Rafa showdown in the quarters.

Fernando Gonzalez d. Evgeny Korolev - 67(5) 63 16 63 64

Fernando akimbo.

Yanina Wickmayer d. Sara Errani - 61 67(4) 63

Next up is Justine Henin - battle of the Belgians.

Juan Martin Del Potro d. Florian Mayer - 63 06 64 75

Daddy long-legs - freakish.

Andy Roddick d. Feliciano Lopez - 67(4) 64 64 76(3)

Zounds what mounds!

Svetlana Kuznetsova d. Angelique Kerber - 36 75 64

Uh, scarey close Sveta.

Photos: AP/Reuters/Getty Images

(Some) Winners from Day 3 of the Australian Open

Justine/Elena may have been the marquee match but...

Del Potro's defeat of Blake could be the match of the tournament.

Juan Martin Del Potro d. James Blake - 64 67(3) 57 63 10-8

Svetlana Kuznetsova d. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova - 62 62

Fernando Gonzalez d. Marcel Ilhan - 63 64 75

Kim Clijsters d. Tamarine Tanasugarn - 62 63

Rafael Nadal d. Lukas Lacko - 62 62 62

Caroline Wozniacki d. Aleksandra Wozniak - 64 62

Andy Murray d. Marc Gicquel - 61 64 63

Dinara Safina d. Barbora Zahlovova Strycova - 63 64

Jelena Jankovic d. Katie O'Brien - 62 62

Photos: AP/Reuters/Getty Images

Hey, My Friend Brad Sent Me Photos from Aussie Open

He is attending the first four days, these are from Day 2.

DelPo

Davydenko on the practice court.

The ridiculously dressed ball-kids of the AO10.

An odd looking statue of 'The Rocket' Rod Laver.

T.O. or something.

Photos: Brad Francini

A Few Thoughts About the Schedule of Play for Day 1 at the Australian Open

Ahhh, a little more than 5 hours away until start of play. And even though the first couple of rounds tend to be on the dull side on the show courts I still find myself excited for another Slam getting underway.

There are plenty of ATP and WTA stars on display today including, Rafael Nadal, Maria Sharapova, Kim Clijsters, Andy Murray, Dinara Safina, Andy Roddick, Juan Martin Del Potro, Justine Henin, Jelena Jankovic and Fernando Gonzalez. I don't see any of them losing. In fact, if you are a ticket holder on Rod Laver Arena you are probably in for a pretty quick day.

The last match on Laver finds Aussie darling Jelena Dokic taking on #27 Alisa Kleybanova. The crowd will certainly be a factor in this one - they cheered Jelena on to the quarterfinals last year. Lightning strikes twice? Look for the upset.

There are a couple of interesting matches to keep an eye on today.

On Court 3 Fabrice Santoro is playing in his 70th Slam. He'll take on #14 Marin Cilic. YAWN. The tennis world gets to say goodbye to him all over again. He'll be back in France tomorrow.

First-on on Court 6 is #13 Radek Stepanek taking on Ivo Karlovic. Never in a million years would I actually watch this match but it's an interesting encounter all the same. Stepanek has won all three meetings but looking at the scores they have played close with 6 tiebreaks among the sets. Could go either way.

Also on Court 6 is Arnuad Clement against James Blake. With James fading of late and Arnaud getting to the Auckland final two days ago Arnaud might just get his first win in their 8th meeting. I'll take Arnaud. (Literally - ha!)

Two young American's play cagey tour veterans today. #25 Sam Querrey takes on the 2000 Aussie finalist Rainer Schuettler. They have never played and I doubt Sam is too worried about Rainer - he's about 50 now. #33 John Isner has a more dangerous match against Andreas Seppi. This is their first meeting but Isner might be very tired having won the title in Auckland just 2 days ago. I'm smelling an upset here.

Novak Djokovic & Juan Martin Del Potro Win Kooyong Classic Openers

What's with all these exhibition tournaments...

Yea, if were a tournament organizer I'd be pissed too.

Today Novak Djokovic mowed down Tommy Haas, 62 63.

And Juan Martin Del Potro breezed past Ivan Ljubicic, 63 63.

Both matches - young gun v old fart. Old farts can do damage, see next post.

Looking at this pic of the two of them at a Kooyong presser a couple days ago I was struck by how similar these two looked - almost as though they could be brothers. Except one of them got all the cute genes.

This one. Total cuteness.

Photos: Reuters

Rankings Monday: Juan Martin Del Potro and Andy Murray Trade Places in Top 10

The most interesting thing in the rankings today is the trading places of Andy Murray and Juan Martin Del Potro at #'s 4 and 5. It's pretty significant.

Photo: Getty Images

So Andy Murray's decision to not defend his title in Doha and instead play Hopman Cup where zero points were on offer has cost him the #4 ranking. In the rankings released today he fell 5 points behind Del Potro to #5.

Boy oh boy does that (potentially) make Thursday's draw ceremony for the Australian Open all the more interesting. Those top 3 guys can't like the idea of a possible quarterfinal with Murray.

Meanwhile Argentina's Juan Martin Del Potro enjoys his highest ranking to date at #4. The US Open winner may not enjoy it for very long tho - he'll need to finish one round better than Murray at AO10 or they will trade places again. Hmm, in that case I hope they draw each other in the quarters, get there and have to play for it.

The drama has begun and we are still 7 days out.