The spring portion of the 2009 hardcourt season is over, as the tennis world now shifts to the clay of Europe. Before turning our attention to the red dirt of Monte Carlo, Rome, Madrid, and Paris, it’s worth taking a final look at the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami. The two singles finals in South [...]
Even as she spent the past three months climbing the ladder in the world of women’s tennis, Victoria Azarenka lacked a really big achievement to show for her excellence. Now, another milestone can be crossed off the Belorussian’s checklist. A promising 2009 season just got better for Azarenka, who showed steely nerves to hold off [...]
When Roger Federer took a 5-1 lead in the first set of Friday afternoon’s men’s semifinal at the Sony Ericsson Open, Novak Djokovic had the look of a man bereft of confidence. Less than two hours later, however, the beaten man in Miami stood on the opposite side of the net. In a collapse of [...]
When two celebrated sisters took the court on Thursday night in Miami, a slightly new feel enveloped the biggest rivalry in modern women’s tennis. At the end of their 20th match, Serena and Venus Williams did nothing to change the way these siblings are perceived. In a battle that fell short of a classic but [...]
The last time Andy Murray stared across the net at Fernando Verdasco, dreams of a first Grand Slam title melted away in the Australian Open heat. Just over two months later, a quietly determined Scotsman ensured that a frustrating loss wouldn’t happen again. Murray–victimized by Verdasco in the fourth round at the year’s first major [...]
Juan Martin Del Potro not only defeated the No. 1 player in tennis on a memorable Thursday afternoon in Miami. A young talent on the ATP Tour beat back the odds with a display of uncommon resolve. In order to appreciate the biggest win of Del Potro’s life–a 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (3) triumph over Nadal [...]
Andy Roddick played one of his better matches against Roger Federer Wednesday night in the quarterfinals of the Sony Ericsson Open. All the No. 5 American received for his considerable improvements, however, was yet another loss to his Swiss nemesis. Federer, aided by a fortuitous net-cord winner on the penultimate point of the match, closed [...]
Novak Djokovic hasn’t yet reached the top spot in men’s tennis, but during a meaningful week in Miami, a young man is making an attempt to restore what he so quickly lost. Djokovic battled into the semifinals of the Sony Ericsson Open with a convincing 6-3, 6-4 victory over Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. The match doesn’t quite [...]
Sunny American tennis locales must not agree with Elena Dementieva. The woman widely regarded as the best player never to win a Grand Slam tournament on the WTA Tour fared poorly in the Indian Wells-Miami stretch of the 2009 season. Two weeks after a humiliating second-round loss amidst the palm trees of Southern California, Dementieva [...]
An inspiring tennis player took the court on Sunday in the third round of the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami. Before lacing up his shoes and toting his equipment bag, Taylor Dent had already triumphed in a much larger sense. Yes, Dent advanced to the round of 16 and set up a meeting with the [...]
