Mardy Fish Fights The Big Boys By Reaching the Miami Semi's

I have always believed that Mardy Fish (USA) (#15) had what it takes to make it to the top of this game, so it's great to see him really playing well nowadays!  This is his third straight semi-final appearance this year - and it's only April!  He has already reached the semi's in Memphis and Delray and now, here in Miami.  This was his path to the semi's -

SF - Novak Djokovic (SRB) (#2) 36 16
QF - David Ferrer (ESP) (#6) 75 62
4R - Juan Martin Del Potro (ARG) (#51) 75 76(5)
3R - Richard Gasquet (FRA) (#18) 64 63
2R - Julien Benneteau (FRA) (#81) 64 63
1R - Bye

Is Federer Now Just Good Enough Up to the Semifinals?

Being so dominant for so long, it does feel strange to just see Roger Federer (SUI) (#3) reach only the semifinals of any tournament.  He only reached the semifinals this year in Indian Wells, the Australian Open and here in Miami - and his only title for now, is the one he won in Doha.  Will his killer instinct still be with him as he fights through the top echelons of the game?  This was his path to the semi's -

SF - lost to Rafael Nadal (ESP) (#1) 36 26
QF - Gilles Simon (FRA) (#27) 3-0 Ret.
4R - Olivier Rochus (BEL) (#89) 63 61
3R - Juan Monaco (ARG) (#35) 76(4) 64
2R - Radek Stepanek (CZE) (#68) 63 63
1R - Bye

Rafael Nadal Just A Runner Up in Miami

It was a spectacular final in Miami and the world #1 didn't lose by much, especially in the thrilling third set.  However, it was not to be the day for world #1 Rafael Nadal, as he lost the Miami championship to Novak. 

The clay court season starts next week so it's very important that Rafa plays at the same level as last year.  Otherwise, he would lose a lot of points and allow Novak near his #1 ranking.

This was Rafa's path to the finals of Miami -

F - lost to Novak Djokovic (SRB) (#2) 46 63 76(4)
SF - Roger Federer (SUI) (#3) 63 62
QF - Tomas Berdych (CZE) (#7) 62 36 63
4R - Alexandr Dolgopolov (UKR) (#23) 61 62
3R - Feliciano Lopez (ESP) (#41) 63 63
2R - Kei Nishikori (JPN) (#62) 64 64
1R - BYE

Novak Djokovic Triumphant in Miami

It seems nothing can stop Novak Djokovic these days.  Even having the world #1 player on the other end of the court didn't deter him from winning another major title this year, to add the Grand Slam he won in the beginning of the year.  Should a #1 ranking be far behind? 

Well, the clay court season starts next week so I think he may have to wait a bit since all that really depends on how Nadal plays in the next few weeks.  He had six major clay court victories last year, and if he loses some of them, that could open the door for Novak, if he too plays well in clay.

For now, Novak should be contented winning over the world #1 for a second consecutive final.

This was his path to the championship -

F - Rafael Nadal (ESP) 46 63 76(4)
SF - Mardy Fish (USA) (#15) 63 61
QF - Kevin Anderson (RSA) (#40) 64 62
4R - Victor Troicki (SRB) (#17) 63 62
3R - James Blake (USA) (#173) 62 60
2R - Denis Istomin (UZB) (#54) 60 61
1R - BYE

Maria Sharapova Returns to the Top 10 After Making it to the Miami Finals

Player	Weeks In Top 10
Venus Williams	553
Serena Williams	511
Kim Clijsters	317
Svetlana Kuznetsova	283
Maria Sharapova	239
Jelena Jankovic	216
Nadia Petrova	155
Kimiko Date-Krumm	149
Vera Zvonareva	124
Dinara Safina	116

Maria Sharapova (#13) had to win two sets of tiebreakers to win her quarterfinal match against Alexandra Dulgheru of Romania.  This allows her to reach the semi's of Miami and paves the way for her to reenter the Top 10 rankings!  In her semifinal match with Andrea Petkovic, she stood her ground and threshed out a three-set win over the up-and-coming German. 

However, in the finals, she was no match to Victoria Azarenka, who was really in a roll after beating Kim Clijsters earlier.  This was her path to the finals -

F - lost to Victoria Azarenka (#8) (BLR) 16 46
SF - Andrea Petkovic (GER) (#23) 36 60 62
QF - Alexandra Dulgheru (ROM) (#28) 36 76(6) 76(5)
4R - Samantha Stosur (AUS) (#5) 60 76(1)
3R - Sabine Lisicki (GER) (#217) 46 63 31 Ret'd
2R - Petra Martic (CRO) (#106) 75 62
1R -  BYE 

Victorious Victoria Wins Miami

Victoria Azarenka capitalized on a tired and out-of sorts Kim Clijsters to get to the semifinals in Miami.  She won this title in 2009 and looks like she's out to win it again this year.  Interestingly, she lost to Kim last year, while defending her title.   In her semifinal match today, she upset Vera Zvonareva, allowing her only 3 games. 

And today, during the finals, she wins Miami once again, stamping her class over Maria Sharapova.  This was her path to the championship -

F - Maria Sharapova (#13) (RUS) 61 64
SF - Vera Zvonareva (RUS) (#3) 60 63
QF - Kim Clijsters (BEL) (#2) 63 63
4R - Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (RUS) (#21) 36 61 64
3R - Dominika Cibulkova (SVK) (#25) 36 63 64
2R - Lucie Hradecka (CZE) (#71) 75 46 60
1R - BYE

Andrea Petkovic - A Surprise Semifinalist in Miami

In the very high quality field of the Miami Open, Andrea Petkovic (#23) gains a semifinal slot in her side of the draw, showing that the German is one of the bright new talents in women's tennis.  However, she lost in her semi's today to Maria Sharapova, but took the Grand Slam champion to a three-set match before folding.  It would be great if she can duplicate this in a Grand Slam. This was her path to the semifinals -

SF - lost to Maria Sharapova (RUS) (#13) 63 06 26
QF - Jelena Jankovic (SRB) (#7) 26 62 64
4R - Caroline Wozniacki (DEN) (#1) 75 36 63
3R -  Iveta Benesova (CZE) (#46) 60 63
2R - Jamie Hampton (USA) (#127) 62 75
1R - BYE

Vera Zvonareva Into Another Semi's - This Time In Miami

Vera Zvonareva (#3) proves that she's still among the Top 4 players in the world, as she gains one of the semifinal berths in the Miami Open.  However, her run was stopped today as Victoria Azarenka surprised her with a very clean win, allowing Vera only three games.  This was her path to the semifinals -

SF - lost to Victoria Azarenka (BLR) (#8) 06 36
QF - Agnieszka Radwanska (POL) (#14) 75 63
4R - Marion Bartoli (FRA) (#10) 26 63 62
3R - Jarmila Groth (AUS) (#29) 76(4) 62
2R - Dinara Safina (RUS) (#91) 64 64
1R - BYE

Mardy Fish: The Surprise Semifinalist in the Miami Open

Mardy Fish (#15) makes a surprise semifinal appearance in the Miami Open, which could help catapult him into being the #1 American player - an honor which Andy Roddick has been holding for sometime now.  Mardy has really been playing well since last year, and I'm very happy to see him now achieve almost Top 10 status.  He's so near!  This was his path to the semifinals -

SF - David Ferrer (ESP) (#6) 75 62
QF - Juan Martin Del Potro (ARG) (#51) 75 76(5)
3R - Richard Gasquet (FRA) (#18) 64 63
2R - Julien Benneteau (FRA) (#81) 64 63
1R - BYE

My Final Eight Picks for the ATP Miami Open

On the men's side, the second round has just been completed and they are now in the third round.  Anyhow, I have checked the draw and here are my eight picks for the quarterfinals a few days from now -

Rafael Nadal (ESP)
Tomas Berdych (CZE)
Roger Federer (SUI)
Andy Roddick (USA)
David Ferrer (ESP)
Robin Soderling (SWE)
John Isner (USA)
Novak Djokovic (SRB)

I will get back to you on the semifinal day and let's find out how I fared in my crystal ball prediction!

My Final Eight Picks for the WTA Miami Open

Well, I just saw the draw for the WTA Miami Open, and they have already finished the third round hostilities.  Well, just basing it on that, here are my picks for the eight women who are going to slug it out in the quarterfinals of this event.  Let's see how I fare in my predictions!

Caroline Wozniacki (DEN)
Jelena Jankovic (SRB)
Maria Sharapova (RUS)
Peng Shuai (CHN)
Agnieszka Radwanska (POL)
Vera Zvonareva (RUS)
Petra Kvitova (CZE)
Kim Clijsters (BEL)

I will get back to you on the day of the semi's to see how well I have seen through my crystal ball!