Miami Mid-way Report

Hey Y'all.

[ I apologize for just how badly I picked the tournament. I picked very badly and I can only offer my apologies. The French Open is going to be even worse. ]

It is eleven years since Federer and Nadal first played in Miami. It is ten years since Federer won in five. Fast forward and Federer is skipping the tournament whilst Nadal is getting hit off the court.

In eleven years, will any players playing Miami now still be playing?

SECTION 1: Djokovic
...Djokovic bested Klizan in three sets, although he only dropped seven games. The Serb defeated Darcis and next plays Dolgopolov. It's not a given. The chances of an upset are very slim, however. Dolgopolov beat Berankis and then Robredo in an epic three set war. Strangely he cruised against Bellucci. He won in two and was untroubled. Hopefully he can produce this kind of tennis.

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SECTION 2: Ferrer
...Sometimes a player in a slump or in the October of their career can produce a vintage performance. Mauresmo did it against Safina in 2009 at Wimbledon. Ferrero pulled a few of those. Hewitt beat Raonic by tapping into the magic. Ferrer is having a good year and he beat Delbonis 6-1, 6-1. Rosol strung together a series of good results and he beat talented young star Zverev in two sets here, setting up a match with Ferrer. The Spaniard won in straight sets. Qualifier Falla, who has an interesting rivalry with Federer, set up a clash with Simon next. Simon beat Kukushkin, 6-0 in the third, to give himself a great shot at making the fourth round. Both Simon and Ferrer came through in two sets, though neither was completely straightforward. Please don't put that on a show court. No offence is intended to these wonderful athletes but show courts should be about shot-making. If Djokovic slips, Ferrer has a good shot to make the final. If Ferrer wins he would move even closer to the top five.
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SECTION 3: Nishikori
...Nishikori 6-2, 6-1 Youzhny. Nishikori 6-2, 6-2 Troicki. Goffin 6-0, 6-4 Coric. Goffin 6-4, 6-3 Janowicz. Something's gotta give.



Goffin has been on a tear lately and has put together a fantastic past ten months or so. And if Nishikori had done nothing but still made the U.S. Open final it would also have been pretty impressive. As it is, both of them have been playing consistent top ten tennis. Seppi beat Baghdatis 6-2, 6-2. Remember how Sampras retired when he was still pretty good? Remember how Graf retired as the world number three? Henin, Roddick, Borg and even Navratilova retired whilst still pretty good. Baghdatis chose to go down the Nalbandian route instead. Bad call.
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SECTION 4: Raonic

...Del Potro may never return to full strength but his star burned ever so brightly. Pospisil beat him in straight sets but then got beaten even more convincingly by Dimi 6-2, 6-2. Isner also moved through with no drama. Gabashvili beat Andujar 0-6, 7-6, 6-3. He couldn't reconjure the magic as he lost to Raonic in two. Chardy produced some proper tennis for the first time in ages and pushed Raonic all the way to a third set breaker. It will be the North American who plays Isner, who defeated Dimitrov on Monday. Del Potro's forehand is the second best forehand since the turn of the century. It's hard to say stuff like that but had Del Potro not been injured, the tennis landscape today would be different.
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SECTION 5: Wawrinka
...This is the section which is in a handbasket. And the destination this basket is headed to is hot. Wawrinka edged Berlocq 6-7[9], 7-5, 6-1 but then lost to Mannarino in two breaker 7-4, 7-5. Berlocq on his return to the tour had beaten Kokki. Fognini tanked his match, losing to Sock 7-6[4], 6-1. Lopez kept his head but still lost to Thiem 7-6[4], 4-6, 6-3. With Thiem beating Sock, there will be a surprise in the quarterfinals. Americans in general do suffer from a lack of variety. Though Blake had variety and that variety really helped him. We've moved on from the days in which a Todd Martin can make several slam finals. The crazy thing is, if Murray just has a bad day [he has about two a month] and Anderson can take advantage, Thiem could have a great shot at a semi spot. Rafa is out and if Murray throws in a bad performance, then suddenly the bottom half is as wide open as the Republican candidate election.
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SECTION 6: Murray
...Anderson beat Querrey in an epic, winning 6-7[5], 7-6[3], 6-4 but had less trouble in dismissing the Argentine Mayer. Nieminen disappointed here, failing to capitalize on a workable draw here. Anderson is one of the most consistent players in the top twenty. If he is seeded to get to a round, he will be there. Even on clay, Anderson will be there. You may not like the way he plays but you gotta respect the guy. Murray dismissed Young 6-4, 6-2 to open his campaign and then swept past Colombian number one Giraldo 6-3, 6-4. Kyle Edmund was also here but the young Brit lost 6-2, 6-2. Still, he is the great British hope. Murray has a great chance of making the final now but there are still some dangers lurking.
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SECTION 7: Berdych
...Chung has had his first taste of the big leagues. In losing 6-3, 6-4 to Berdych, he received a Backspin grade of A-. Of course, Todd can still overrule me if he sees fit but Chung didn't go away. On a similar note I was impressed with Bellis, a 15 year old, avoiding the bagel against the frankly terrifying Serena Williams.






And people wonder why Sharapova hasn't beaten her since George Bush took office the second time. Tomic finally pushed Berdych but still lost 6-7[4], 7-6 [3], 6-1. Smyczek also impressed but it would be the Frenchies battling it out for a shot at Berdych. Monfils beat Tsonga 6-4, 7-6[4] to advance to the fourth round. France is a dying empire now, crippled by injuries and age. They will of course be back. With players like Garcia and Paire, France will still have talented tennis players. It seems to be that Garcia has the touch of Pierce about her and not just in looks. In style of play and verve. Mauresmo and Pierce star in one of my favourite points and pictures:




2000 Pierce Seles - Coup entre les jambes by rolandgarros

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SECTION 8: Nadal
...Monaco dismissed Gulbis and GGL. It really was all too easy for him. Monaco has shown signs of rekindling his career. Argentina sure could use a hero. Argentina have so many slams in their history and it's surprising they don't have a bigger event there. Monaco was once in the top ten. Is a return out of the question? Verdasco got past Duckworth 4-6, 6-2, 6-1 to set up an interesting clash between two Spanish lefties. Rafa owns Verdasco but Verdasco has such raw firepower. Nadal had beaten another talented Spaniard, Almagro, handily in the previous round. Verdasco looked good early on, and carried that form on to a 6-4, 2-6, 6-3 victory. Verdasco can surely handle Monaco. With the clay swing coming up, Ferver is getting hot at the perfect moment to ruffle some feathers.
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Casey Dellacqua lost both her first round matches. Bencic and the Rodionova sisters put paid to her chances. She has not yet committed to a tournament after this, but may yet take a wildcard.

*4th Round*
#1 Djokovic vs. Dolgopolov
#12 Simon vs. #7 Ferrer
#4 Nishikori vs. #19 Goffin
#18 Isner vs. #5 Raonic
#31 Mannarino vs. Thiem
#15 Anderson vs. #3 Murray
#8 Berdych vs. #16 Berdych
Monaco vs. #26 Verdasco

Thanks all and visit WTA BACKSPIN please.

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