ATP Season Review

It's time to stack up the year that was for further inspection. (Not that a magnifying glass is needed to determine who 2006's Player of the Year was.)

==PLAYERS OF THE YEAR==
1.ROGER FEDERER

...the picture of style on and off the court, Federer somehow managed to actually increase his profile and proficiency during the 2006 season. Things looked shaky early on, with that 0-4 season record against Nadal practically acting as a clarion call for doubt in the Omnipotent One's ability to escape the onrushing Spaniard. But, in the end, Federer outdueled Nadal at Wimbledon and then outlasted him from then on out. After losing their meeting in the Roland Garros final, Federer went 48-1 the rest of the season while Nadal missed time due to injury and was a shadow of his '06 1st half self. Federer's 12 singles titles, 92-5 (90-1 vs. everyone not named Nadal!) record were both career highs. He was the first player to earn $8 million in a season, and his hold on the #1 ranking is so solid that he's assured of breaking Jimmy Connors' 1974-77 mark of 160 consecutive weeks in the top spot in late February. Other than a RogerSlam, what could he possibly do in '07 for an encore?
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2.Rafael Nadal
...Rafa's first half of the season was, quite simply, one of the best ever. He defended his Roland Garros title, extending his clay court winning streak to an all-time best 60 matches and, oh-by-the-way, was 4-0 against Federer before losing to him in the the SW19 final (where, just getting that far was tantamount to winning for the "clay courter"). Injuries finally caught up to him in the second half, as he couldn't raise his '06 title count above five and lost to players he would have buried early on. Actually, his best post-SW19 match was probably his second of two '06 losses to Federer, in the SF of the Masters Cup. He lost 6-4/6-4, but it was his most inspired tennis in months. Just as Federer has needed Nadal to be forced to raise his game even higher (though he may have challenged himself to do so without Nadal in his quest to be called "the best ever," unlike the post-Seles stabbing Graf in the 1990's), maybe Nadal needs Federer, too?
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3.Nikolay Davydenko
...Davydenko has surged past the likes of Roddick to claim the spot just below the Big Two. His five titles tied Nadal's total, and his two slam SF (Australian & US) and one QF (Roland Garros) gave him the best collective results in the big four events of everyone but Federer and Nadal. Over the weekend, he added a final feather to his '06 cap while helping Russia win the Davis Cup.
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4.Bob & Mike Bryan
...the twins won seven titles, two of them grand slams (running their consecutive slam Doubles Final streak to seven before it finally ended), as they completed a career Doubles Slam with their first Wimbledon title.
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5.Ivan Ljubicic
...the Croat won three titles and finally put on a run at a slam, reaching the Roland Garros SF.
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6.James Blake
...the American continues to rise. In 2006, he surpassed Roddick in the rankings, won five titles, backed up his '05 U.S. Open breakthrough with a QF this time around, and made a surprising run to the Masters Cup final. Now, if he could just get past that tendency to let Federer walk all over him (he's 0-6) without putting up much of a fight...
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7.Marcos Baghdatis
...the Cypriot arrived in 2006. He didn't win his first title until Beijing in September, but he proved to be a big-time big stage performer. He reached the Australian Open final and Wimbledon SF, and took part in that thrillingly theatrical night match at the U.S. Open against Andre Agassi.
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8.Russian Davis Cup team

...who needs the Russian women to have some fun? Well... then again.
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9.Tommy Robredo
...quietly, Robredo put together quite a year as he won his first career Masters title in Hamburg and finished in the Top 10 for the first time.
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10.Novak Djokovic
...the Roland Garros quarterfinalist won his first two career titles and wrote his name (in ink, mind you) at the top of every list counting down the players set to have a huge breakout year in '07.
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HONORABLE MENTION: Andy Murray, Richard Gasquet, Jonas Bjorkman, David Nalbandian

==RISERS==
1. James Blake
2. Ivan Ljubicic
3. Marcos Baghdatis
4. Dmitry Tursunov
5. Mario Ancic
6. Richard Gasquet
7. Tomas Berdych
8. Tommy Robredo
9. Radek Stepanek
10. Jurgen Melzer
HM- Fernando Gonzalez

==FRESH FACES==
1. Novak Djokovic
2. Andy Murray
3. Stanislas Wawrinka
4. Kristof Vliegen
5. Juan Martin Del Potro
6. Philip Kohlschreiber
7. Marin Cilic
8. Thiemo de Bakker
9. Benjamin Becker
10. Gael Monfils
HM- Martin Klizan

==SURPRISES==
1. Benjamin Becker
2. Jonas Bjorkman (Wimbledon singles)
3. Marc Gicquel
4. Mikhail Youzhny (at U.S. Open)
5. Rafael Nadal (at Wimbledon)
HM- Justin Gimelstob (at Newport)

==VETERANS==
1. Jonas Bjorkman & Max Mirnyi
2. Fabrice Santoro
3. Mark Knowles & Daniel Nestor
4. Arnaud Clement
5. Paul Hanley & Kevin Ullyett
HM- Tim Henman

==DOWN==
1. Guillermo Coria
2. Lleyton Hewitt
3. Andy Roddick (pre-Connors)
4. Rafael Nadal (post-Wimbledon)
5. Gaston Gaudio
HM- Taylor Dent

==COMEBACKS==
1. Andy Roddick (with Connors)
2. Marat Safin
3. Tommy Haas
4. Mark Philippoussis (at Newport)
5. Juan Carlos Ferrero (at Cincinnati)
HM- John McEnroe (at San Jose)

==BREAKOUTS==
1. Baghdatis reaches Australian Open final
2. Tursunov in Davis Cup SF vs. Roddick
3. Djokovic reaches Top 10
4. Murray wins San Jose
5. Becker ends Agassi's career
HM- Nadal reaches Wimbledon final


==BEST OF ATP TOUR '06==

**PERFORMANCES**
1. Federer at Wimbledon and Beyond
...Roger went into the SW19 final facing the possibility of being trumped by the surprising Nadal if he'd beaten the world #1 again, only this time on his favored Centre Court grass. No worry. Federer politely showed Nadal the door, then only lost one match in the season's second half.
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2. Nadal vs. Federer
...Nadal is still the decided #2 player in the world, but don't fall into the trap of thinking he can only beat Federer on clay -- his 4-0 run against Federer in the season's first half included a hard court victory in Dubai.
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3. Murray in Cincinnati
...no, Murray didn't win the Cincy title (Roddick did), but his 2nd Round win over Federer was the only match the Indomitable One lost over the last six months of the season.
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**MATCHES TO SAVOR**
Davis Cup SF - Tursunov d. Roddick
...6-3/6-4/5-7/3-6/17-15. It took 4:48 for Tursunov to avoid blowing a two-set lead and win the deciding match to advance Team Russia into the Davis Cup final. The 72 games were the most in Davis Cup play since the use of tie-breaks began in World Play in '89.
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Rome F - Nadal d. Federer
...6-7/7-6/6-4/2-6/7-6. The best of the six Roger/Rafa matchups in 2006. With the win, Nadal ran his career mark at the time vs. Federer to 5-1 and extended his clay streak to 53 matches. In the 5:05 match, Nadal saved two match points and overcame a 5-3 deficit in the 5th set TB.
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U.S. Open 2nd - Agassi d. Baghdatis
...6-4/6-4/3-6/5-7/7-5. The final shining moment of Agassi's career, the vet outlasted the cramping youngster in 3:48 in one of those matches you'll see on replayed for years during rain delays at the Open.
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Cincinnati 2nd - Murray d. Federer
...7-5/6-4. Murray's win ended Federer's streak of 55 consecutive North American victories and run of 17 straight appearances in finals.
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Wimbledon F - Federer d. Nadal
...6-0/7-6/6-7/6-3. Federer never expected to see Nadal over the net at SW19 (it was the first ever immediate rematch of a RG final), but he took advantage of the opportunity to put his only true rival in his place and set himself up for one of the greatest extended closings to a season in tennis history.
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Roland Garros F - Nadal d. Federer
...1-6/6-1/6-4/7-6. The "Dream Final" that became a reality. Nadal won his fourth straight over Federer in '06, and his record 60th straight clay court match. At this point in the season, Federer was 44-0 vs. the rest of the tour, but 0-4 vs. Nadal. (He would be 46-1 vs. the field, and 2-0 vs. Nadal from here on out.)
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Dubai F - Nadal d. Federer
...2-6/6-4/6-4. Nadal surged late in both the 2nd and 3rd sets to end Federer's hard court streak at 56 matches and halt his Dubai title run at three.
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Halle QF - Federer d. O.Rochus
...6-7/7-6/7-6. In the closest "almost" for a Federer opponent all season, the Unassailable one had to save four match points before overcoming the little Belgian.
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**NIGHTMARES IN ASIA**
Tokyo - a screaming Federer awakens from a nightmare in the middle of the night in his hotel room, jumping out of bed in a state of shock and bruising his tibia. Not knowing where he was, Federer had to be restrained by girlfriend Mirka Vavrinec. A few days later, he won the tournament title.
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Shanghai - after turning around his fortunes with Jimmy Connors as his coach, Andy Roddick once again faced perpetual pre-Rafa nemesis Federer. He had King Roger dead to rights, too. Up a set and 4-1 in the 2nd set TB with two mini-breaks, Roddick blew three match points and lost 6-4/6-7(8)/4-6. He still hasn't beaten Federer in three years.
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**WHAT BOTHERS ROGER**
...Mary Carillo, offhandedly stating that Federer didn't "want/care" about winning against Murray in Cincinnati. Of course, Carillo was simply noting the obvious -- that Federer was more concerned about winning the U.S. Open at the time. But it didn't matter to Federer, who was offended at the notion. Like Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods before him, Federer only needs a whiff of offense to jump forward and use it to inspire himself to something greater. He still hasn't lost since that Cincy match.
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...Toni Nadal, Rafa's uncle. Rarely is Federer more upset than when he accuses a relative of coaching from the stands. I guess he figures he doesn't need the extra help to win, so why should anyone else get any. (One of the reasons why he's rightfully against on-court coaching.)
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**WHAT DOESN'T BOTHER ROGER**
...Andy Roddick (still), as of a few weeks ago
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...Andy Murray, even though he lost to him in Cincinnati. Knowing Federer, he'll probably make Murray pay for that victory for the next few seasons.
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...not being named Sports Illustrated "Sportsman of the Year." Yeah, it was a longshot for a tennis player to win in 2006... but Dwyane Wade, who won a team NBA title (and did it with the not small helping hand of Shaquille O'Neal)? In a year without an obvious choice (and with Tiger Woods already a past winner), Federer's on-court brilliance and off-court decorum (sparking almost too much respect from his awed opponents) would have been an appropriately inspired choice. Oh, well... if he cared at all anyway, Federer would just use the slight to spur himself to even bigger things in '07. Uh-oh.
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**HE WAS WARNED**
...the Hingis Curse lives! After years of seeing the careers of boyfriends take immediate dives after hooking up with her, Martina Hingis seemed to have found the perfect exception in Radek Stepanek. 2006 started off as a career year for the Czech. Come July, he'd won his first career title (at Rotterdam), reached the Top 10 and the Wimbledon QF. Then he hurt his shoulder and the remainder of his season was scuttled (he finished at #19). He should have known.

**ATP RAW!**
...Mario Ancic and Paul Capdeville nearly came to blows (it got as far as shoves before they were separated) at the conclusion of their 2nd Round match at Roland Garros

**McENROE DOESN'T SPEAK...and plays instead**
...the week of his 47th birthday, John McEnroe teamed with Jonas Bjorkman in San Jose to win his first tour doubles title in twelve years, tying Tom Okker (at 78) for 2nd place on the all-time doubles title list.

**MARIA AND RAFA... going bananas?**
...Maria Sharapova was involved in a banana controversy after her coach and dad were caught signalling her from the stands to eat a banana between sets, while Nadal was in the middle of one of his own when he called for an injury timeout because he said he had a piece of banana stuck in his throat.


**HOW WAS YOUR DAY?**
...in Cincinnati, Marat Safin was involved in a minor car accident that left him with a concussion and a stiff neck.
...at the U.S. Open, Mikhail Youzhny was involved in defeats of singles #2 Rafael Nadal and doubles #1 Bryan twins on the same day.

And, of course, with apologies to the soothing Mirka Vavrinec, the award for...

**BEST ATP GIRLFRIEND**
...goes to Baghdatis friend Cammie Neviere


What better way is there to end the season than with a picture of Cammie?


All for now.

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