The Weeks That Were

With the Miami Open now officially cancelled, the ATP suspending play for six weeks, and the entire spring tennis season completely up in the air, everyone's got a lot of questions.

Currently looking for something to do for the next few months 😳

— CoCo Vandeweghe (@CoCoVandey) March 12, 2020

Of course this outbreak affects so many more people outside the tennis world, and in much more dire ways than a schedule thrown out of whack. And the response we're seeing, from the shutdown of Disneyland to the entire country of Italy going on lockdown, shows just how far-reaching an impact the coronavirus is having. But I'm not going to start expounding on the health, political, or economic ramifications of what's going on -- I get to do enough of that in my day job -- and since I can't write about the on court action at Indian Wells and Miami, I instead am going to take a look back at some of the champs we've seen at these events over the last few years and where they are now.

As you know, I've been a little out of the loop -- and fittingly got back in the mix just in time for the whole thing to shut down (#sarcasm) -- so some of these results were a surprise to me. And in hindsight they took on a deeper meaning than they might have at the time. I mean, check out the list of players who've been crowned recently:

	Indian Wells		Miami
Year	Men's Champ	Women's Champ	Men's Champ	Women's Champ
2016	Novak Djokovic	Victoria Azarenka	Novak Djokovic	Victoria Azarenka
2017	Roger Federer	Elena Vesnina	Roger Federer	Johanna Konta
2018	Juan Martin Del Potro	Naomi Osaka	John Isner	Sloane Stephens
2019	Dominic Thiem	Bianca Andreescu	Roger Federer	Ashleigh Barty

I was frankly shocked to realize it's been four years since Nole won at either of these events. It wasn't long ago that he'd been dominating them -- he'd swept the Sunshine Swing, historically difficult given the huge difference in climes between the California desert and the Florida tropics, first in 2011, and then from 2014-16. And given how much of a force he's been at the Majors and other Masters -- he's won a combined twelve since that last one in Miami -- it seems insane that he hasn't repeated. On the other hand Vika, who'd been similarly strong during this stretch, hasn't won a single singles title since then. Of course, she's had a baby, a grueling custody battle, and injuries that have kept her off court more than any of us would like. But seeing her name on the list certainly brought back memories. And it was great to see Fed not only doubled up in 2017 -- which came as he was reactivating his Grand Slam streak -- but took home his 28^th Masters in Miami just last year.

But it was some of the other names that caught my attention.

Elena Vesnina?! The Russian doubles star had a baby last year, so has been out of contention recently, but that 2017 trophy in Indian Wells was by far her biggest singles win. It came not long after her Major breakthrough -- after never really having any success on her own at the Slams, she somehow made her way to the semis at Wimbledon in 2016. The title in California, which came with wins over Angelique Kerber, Venus Williams, and Svetlana Kuznetsova, did a lot to prove that showing was no fluke.

And then of course, there's John Isner, who, as you know, has long confounded me. That performance in Miami earned him what's so far his only Masters title, and set him up for the unlikeliest of runs to the Wimbledon semis in 2018 -- I remember watching that 6:30 hour match against Kevin Anderson and thinking, "There's no way John Isner is going to make a Grand Slam final, is there?!" Well, he didn't, and he's never made it to another Major final four -- before or since. He has admittedly had some other decent showings, though, at least getting back to the Miami final last year. But as we've seen, it's been a struggle for him since.

It's been rough going for Juan Martin Del Potro too, but for different reasons. The one-time U.S. Open champion has been plagued by one injury after another and is currently recovering from a knee surgery that kept him out of the most recent Australian Open. But I was encouraged to be reminded that it wasn't so long ago that he was at the top of his game, and it gives me hope that he could be once more.

The wins by Sloane Stephens and Johanna Konta also came at interesting points in their careers. Stephens had just won the U.S. Open title a few months earlier but then went winless for months. Then after winning in Miami, she struggled on clay and then somehow reached the French Open final. More recently she's again in a funk, managing only one win this year, over a player barely ranked inside the top 500. Konta similarly hasn't won a title since her Miami run, but she's arguably been a little more consistent, reaching a Major semifinal and two quarters last year. Still for two players who seem to hold a lot of hope for their respective countries, we might have wanted to see a little more hardware to show for their efforts.

And finally are the women whose wins really set the stage for the biggest successes of their careers. Naomi Osaka had never won a title before Indian Wells, Barty had just a couple small trophies under her belt, and Andreescu was ranked #60 in the world ahead of her run. But all three went on to capture Grand Slam gold in a matter of months -- Osaka got two titles. She's struggled a bit this season, though, and Andreescu's been dealing with injury, but all three are young -- oh my God, so young -- and there's no reason to believe they don't have a lot of time left to make more splashes. And when they do they could be big ones.

It's a shame we won't be able to crown another set of winners this year in either Indian Wells or Miami and follow their stories over the years. But one day, hopefully soon, this pandemic will pass, and we'll all be back on the courts again, and there will be plenty of great champions to come. So until then, let's enjoy the memories of what we've had and take comfort in the fact that a whole lot more is still to come.

Cancelled

We are living in highly unusual times.

Last night, organizers of this year's BNP Paribas Open announced that the tournament, one of the biggest events of the season, would not be held due to concerns over the spreading coronavirus.

The 2020 BNP Paribas Open will not be held.https://t.co/BVKQmmcbth pic.twitter.com/CHOd0PgJeV

— BNP Paribas Open (@BNPPARIBASOPEN) March 9, 2020

It's not the most surprising decision given what's going on. For weeks we've been seeing measures taken to rein in the spread -- companies restricting employee travel to impacted areas and encouraging work from home, major corporations like Facebook and Amazon pulling out of huge industry conferences and scrapping their own. Just Friday SXSW cancelled its annual festival in Austin, Texas, a decision that could cost the city hundreds of millions of dollars.

So it makes sense that Indian Wells would be affected too. California Governor Gavin Newsom on Wednesday declared a state of emergency, and last week the tournament released a list of precautions it was taking, barring ball kids from handling player towels or drinks and telling players not to toss shirts or headbands to fans after matches. But as the situation in the U.S., particularly on the west coast, gets more severe, event staff ultimately decided they were better safe than sorry.

Tennis players, after all, are required to travel all over the world on a weekly basis, and some of their stops on tour are in places that have been particularly hard hit. Davis Cup matches were held over the weekend in Japan, where there have been more than a thousand confirmed cases of the virus and whose government has been sharply criticized for its handling of the disease, as well as in Cagliari, Italy, where the stadium was open only to officials and media. And of course the epicenter of everything is Wuhan, China, a city most of my friends and colleagues had never heard of before, but which we all know as the site of a huge WTA event at the end of the season.

Still, the timing of the cancellation is interesting, coming just hours after Steve Johnson and Irina-Camelia were crowned champions of the Challenger events being held at the very same venue that would house this week's matches. And wildcards had just been awarded to teens Caty McNally and Leylah Fernandez, as well as Aussie standout Tennys Sandgren and an on-the-mend Jack Sock. Qualifying events were scheduled to start today and many players had already made their way to the grounds. It's certainly a disappointment for those looking to make their debuts at such a premier event.

But some players were already thinking of skipping not only Indian Wells, considered by many to be the fifth Grand Slam, but also Miami, with similar prestige, which is currently still slated to start in two weeks' time. Fabio Fognini, who helped Italy get past South Korea over the weekend and qualify for the Davis Cup finals, said he was thinking about skipping both events despite what it would mean for his ranking -- he was eager to get match play after some recent early exits. Now, I assume, the cancellation means everyone essentially forfeits any points they may have accumulated or defended during the fortnight, so no one is necessarily hurt more than anyone else.

If the virus, though, persists deeper into the spring it could hit the European clay court season hard -- Italy just advised cancelling all sporting events until at least April, and that's just a few weeks before the Rome Masters tournament, nevermind the French Open, Wimbledon, and, lest we forget, the Tokyo Olympics.

The cancellation of Indian Wells has an impact not only on the players. The California desert city was expecting some half a million visitors for the event, and their absence could take a big bite out of the economy. And while tournament director Tommy Haas is leaving open the possibility of rescheduling the event for some time later this season, it's unclear when, during an already-packed calendar, that could be.

To be clear, all these measures are unquestionably necessary -- the priority of course is first and foremost the health and safety of everyone involved -- but it's going to require a lot of adjustments. Hopefully in a few weeks time, this will all be past us and things will start returning to normal, as much as they can, anyway.

But until then everyone take care of yourselves and each other.

Challenges at the Challengers

I don't often cover the Challenger Series events, but for a couple reasons, this year's action in Indian Wells before the main tournament kicks off next week is worth an extra look.

First let's start with the action on court, because we've already seen some stellar results.

On the men's side there's a lot at stake for fourteenth seed Marcos Giron, who currently sits atop the series' leaderboard -- the Americans who earn the most points during the four tournament stretch, which included events in New Haven, Houston and Newport Beach over the last few months, get an entry to the main draw next week. The twenty-six year old is currently ranked just outside the top hundred, so may need the extra boost to make the cut. He's currently on court with Britain's Ryan Peniston, in danger of being pushed to a third set, but could seal the deal soon. And then, of course, is Frances Tiafoe, who's my long (and getting longer) shot to make a big breakthrough this year. He, thankfully, won his first match against Michael Mmoh in a convincing two sets.

But perhaps the big story this week is Jack Sock, the one-time top ten player who now sits all the way down at #768 in the world. Before this week, he'd only won a single singles match in some eighteen months, crying in relief when he beat Radu Albot in Delray. But he may have found that spark again in Indian Wells. Against top seeded Ugo Humbert, who kicked off this year with his first career title in Auckland and then made the semis in Delray, Sock was able to score a straight set win in the second round and will now face Evgeny Donskoy for a spot in the quarter. A win there could set him on pace for even more success down the road.

The ladies' draw also has some interesting bright spots. While the series' leaders didn't fare quite so well -- both Madison Brengle and CoCo Vandeweghe both lost their opening rounds -- some others are nonetheless making nice comeback runs. First there's Yanina Wickmayer, who was once ranked #12 in the world but whose career was interrupted by everything from back injury to Lyme's disease. Now outside the top 150, she surged past wildcard Claire Liu and then battled Brengle in a two and a half hour match, where she avenged a loss from last month at an ITF event in Kentucky. A couple more wins like that could mean a lot for her as she looks to mount a comeback.

But my favorite story on the women's side is none other than Vera Zvonareva, a two-time Grand Slam finalist and former world #2, she too has been plagued by injury and actually used her time off tour to get a college degree. Now ranked at #319, she's had a couple wins in 2020, but it'd been a while since any real big heads. She may have turned the tide this week though, opening with a victory over Acapulco standout Xiyu Wang in her opener and then ending a streak of eight straight losses, which extended back to 2004, to Sam Stosur in her second round. Up next for the veteran Russian is top seed Katarina Siniakova, so the task only gets harder from here. But, if you know me at all, you know how much I love rooting for this feisty underdog.

Match results aside, though, there's another issue that seems to have come back into the forefront this week, and that's the one of player pay. It's long been a hot button topic in the sport, where the handful of lucky athletes who can win Grand Slams and other big events can earn millions of dollars, while the vast (vast) majority of players are making comparatively nothing -- paying to fly not only themselves around the world and board up at hotels, but for a team of coaches and physios too, all to make just a couple thousand dollars if they lose in an early round. And they're not making the same kind of dough the Serenas and Rafas of the world are in endorsements.

Darren Cahill most recently pointed out the huge discrepancy in prize money between someone who won just two matches in Dubai and someone who won just one match more. And as pointed out by Nicole Gibbs -- who earned a paltry $1,130 in her first round loss this week -- that hits players ranked as high as #31 in the world.

Let’s also take a moment to acknowledge that in this case “lower ranked” applies to the 31st ranked player in the world (the cut for that event).

Rest of us making pennies.

— Nicole Gibbs (@Gibbsyyyy) February 24, 2020

Borrowing a point made by the late David Foster Wallace in one of his many glorious essays on tennis, can you imaging being better than all but thirty people in the world at your chosen profession and not being able to make a living?

Yes, I realize that, in a world where income inequality is such a far-reaching problem, pointing out its impact on people who play a "game" may miss the forest for the trees, but you have to remember that this is people's livelihoods and one they won't be able to sustain as long as us normal people can stick with our own careers.

That's one of the big benefits of these Challenger Series events: giving players at lower ranks -- and again, by lower, we're often talking about low double-digit rankings -- an opportunity to play more matches, grab more ranking points, and eventually gain entry to the bigger tournaments, as Giron hopes to do. Still it would be great if some of those sky-high prices we pay for tickets to the U.S. Open and other events -- I don't even want to mention what grounds passes for middle Saturday cost me last year! -- went to increase payouts at these events.

The idea of upping purses for all players is one shared by those ranked high and low, and if we really want to keep the best talent coming to the sport, we're going to have to get something done about this soon.

At the Top of Their Games

The last couple months have given plenty of under-the-radar players a chance to shine on Tour, but over the last week or so in Indian Wells, we got to see the very top players really show us what they've got. And for one of this weekend's champion, we got a glimpse of just how much more she's capable of.

We haven't seen too much of Novak Djokovic since he won his fifth Australian Open in January -- the world #1 has only played one event since, falling in the Dubai final to Roger Federer. Not surprisingly the top two players in the sport fought their way through the draw in the California desert too, setting up their thirty-eighth career meeting. Djokovic was barely challenged in his first five matches, getting a walkover from a back-in-form Bernard Tomic in the quarterfinals and drubbing Andy Murray for his sixth straight win over the Brit. Roger had a similarly easy road to Sunday's match -- after avenging his Melbourne loss to Andreas Seppi he quickly dismissed Tomas Berdych and Milos Raonic, who'd just a day before eked out a win over former champ Rafael Nadal. But their final was not nearly so straightforward -- Nole got the first break of the match early, converting for once after squandering all seven opportunities he held in the Dubai final, but Federer fought back and took the second set in a tiebreak. After trading breaks again in the decider, Djokovic finally took hold of the match, winning the last four games in a row to claim his fiftieth title and his twenty-first Masters 1000. And with momentum now squarely back in his corner -- he and Roger have alternatively won all of their last nine meetings -- he might just be able to swing things back in his favor for many more matches to come.

Young Simona Halep may only be just starting to build her momentum, but by following through on her breakout 2014 season, she's certainly given us reason to believe she's here to stay. The third seed at Indian Wells, she actually faced more than a few challenges during her run -- she dropped her opening set to qualifier Daria Gavrilova, went the distance against a tough Varvara Lepchenko and needed another comeback versus Carla Suarez Navarro in the quarters. She got a big break on Friday, though, when Serena Williams pulled out of the semis with a knee injury, but with a win over the world #1 not that long ago, she might have been able to pull off another if given the chance. It was the other half of the draw where things got really interesting though -- with players like Maria Sharapova, Caroline Wozniacki and Genie Bouchard all getting shocked early, 2009 champ Jelena Jankovic, just 2-4 on the year before this tournament, was the surprising final contender. She looked like she would pull off the upset here too -- up a set and a break on the heavy favorite -- but Halep regrouped late in the second and was able to even the score. The ladies kept it close in the third too, but the Romanian was finally able to get the only break of the set -- surprising since they'd lost serve a combined seventeen times in the first two -- and clinched her biggest trophy to date after more than two and a half hours on court. And with the next round of Majors quickly approaching, there may never have been a better time to make such a big statement.

Sure both of these champions were tested during their runs in Indian Wells. But by coming out on top they showed they can truly triumph in the face of adversity. And as the stakes get higher in the weeks to come, they've each made a case for themselves as the ones to beat.

Making a Stand

There are plenty of favorites still alive and more than kicking in Indian Wells, but with many quarterfinal matches left to play you may notice a couple unexpected names in the mix. And these players haven't just sneaked through the draws this time -- they're pulling off the big upsets themselves.

Maybe we shouldn't be too surprised to see Feliciano Lopez standing -- the veteran Spaniard is coming off the best year of his career, having climbed to his highest ever ranking at the start of the month. He did struggle a bit during his early rounds in Melbourne, though, and was stunned by Victor Estrella Burgos in the Quito final. So maybe we didn't expect a big fight when he met an on-point Kei Nishikori -- who'd reached the final in Acapulco and won his third straight title in Memphis. But Feli scored his first win over the fifth seed in nearly two years on Wednesday to set up a quarterfinal clash against Andy Murray, a man who's beaten him in all nine of their previous meetings. Still he's scored more than a few wins over top ten players in the past year, so it's certainly not out of the question for him to keep his run going.

A little more impressive has been the performance of Bernard Tomic in the California desert. The one-time Wimbledon wunderkind had fallen way down the rankings in the years after, grabbing more headlines for his behavior off the court than on it and dropping briefly back into triple digits last year. He seems to have turned things back in his favor this season though -- he beat world #24 Philipp Kohlschreiber twice in a row in Australia and reached the semis in Delray. Just inside seeding territory at the BNP Paribas Open, he scored his first top-ten win since 2013, ending David Ferrer's eleven-match win streak in the third round. He's got a tough task ahead of him, of course, meeting top seed and defending champion Novak Djokovic next. But he might be able to put up a bigger fight than you'd think this time around.

The women's draw, not shockingly, has seen a few more upsets throughout, but the bottom half of the bracket boasts a foursome of ladies who many had started too -- or completely -- written off. Former Wimbledon finalist Sabine Lisicki had only managed one win all year long and saw her ranking fall from a high of #12 in the world a few years back to a less-than-stellar #30 now. But so far in Indian Wells, she's already taken out doubles specialist Roberta Vinci, Rio champ Sara Errani, and most recently a red-hot Caroline Garcia. For a spot in the semis, she'll meet defending champion Flavia Pennetta, who pulled of an impressive upset of Maria Sharapova on Tuesday night. She too needed the confidence boost -- her only notable win this year came over an also-struggling Angelique Kerber in Dubai, and with so much on the line at this event, she's under more pressure than most. Lisicki and Pennetta have never faced off before, but with both so hungry for the win, this could be a good one.

But we may see even more fireworks in the other quarter being contested today. Jelena Jankovic, who won the title here in 2010, was a disappointing 2-4 so fart this year and had dropped pretty soundly out of the top ten. She's been tested throughout her early matches, going three sets in each round so far, but pulled off a solid win over a now-higher ranked Madison Keys on Monday and followed up by avenging her first round U.S. Open loss to Belinda Bencic a day later. Even more impressive, though, has been the run of her next opponent, qualifier Lesia Tsurenko, ranked just #85 in the world. The Ukranian has taken sets off Angelique Kerber and Timea Bacsinszky this year, but hasn't done much of note during her career -- her biggest win to date may have come over then-#23 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova at the 2013 Australian Open. But she began her BNP Open campaign with a huge win over Antwerp champ Andrea Petkovic, held strong against an always tricky Alizé Cornet, and on Tuesday stunned sixth seed Eugenie Bouchard. This is by far her best result at a Tour-level event, and while she'll surely be the underdog in today's match, she's pulled off bigger and more impressive upsets before.

It's always great to see players persevering through some tough challenges -- and over the last few days in Indian Wells we've really gotten to see some surprising stars shine. Hopefully they'll be able to keep it up -- after all, the statements they make at an event this big could serve them well for many more months to come.

The Boys Are Back

While the 2015 tennis season has certainly seen its fair share of breakthroughs already, not everyone's gotten the results they'd hoped for.

But in the first couple days of the BNP Paribas Open, a couple guys who've been struggling of late have been able to recapture the strength that's given them so much success at Indian Wells in the past.

Rafael Nadal has won this title twice in the past, but last year he made a rather ignominious exit in the third round -- his first upset in a string of early losses in 2014. He hasn't done too much better this year either -- after getting drubbed by Andy Murray at pre-season exhibition he was stunned by world #127 Michael Berrer when defending his Doha title, barely squeaked past Tim Smyczek in Melbourne and lost to a struggling Fabio Fognini in Rio. He seems back on track now, though, thumping Igor Sijsling in his Sunday night opener. The road gets harder from here, of course -- he'll take on a reinvigorated Donald Young next. The once-flailing American seems back on course, reaching the semis in Memphis and the final in Delray. Rafa's won the only match these two have ever played -- on these courts seven years ago -- but this time could me much different. A win, though, could give him a lot more confidence as the tournament goes on.

Alexandr Dolgopolov may not have earned as much hardware in Indian Wells as Nadal has, but he was the one who managed the upset of the then-#1 here last year. The young Ukranian rode the win all the way to the semis and followed up with a win over Aussie champ Stan Wawrinka a few weeks later in Miami. A knee injury during the summer, though, really hampered the back half of his season and he only won one match after July. He's struggled in 2015 too, losing to Bernard Tomic in Memphis and Paolo Lorenzi in his Melbourne opener. Now #41 in the world, he's back out of seeding territory in California, but he has managed two straight set wins so far, taking out low seed Santiago Giraldo yesterday. He'll get a rematch of last year's quarterfinal against Milos Raonic next, and that will certainly be a challenge -- the Canadian is at a career-high #6 in the world and made at least the quarters of the first three events he's played this year. But Dolgo did get the underdog win last year and if he can put up a fight again this time, it could do loads for his confidence again.

John Isner could certainly use a little boost to his morale too -- the big-serving American may be best known for one match in his career, but he's actually had a couple huge wins on these courts too. In 2012 he took out world #1 Novak Djokovic in the desert on the way to his first Masters 1000 final and last year he came oh-so-close to doing it again in the semis. It's been a rough couple months since then though -- after taking the title in Atlanta last year he hasn't done too much, losing to sub-#60 players in Washington and Toronto and never winning more than two matches at an event since. He hasn't played a lot this year, but lost pretty handily to a rising Gilles Muller in Melbourne and last weekend in Davis Cup action, couldn't hold on to a two-set lead over world #111 James Ward, losing 13-15 in the fifth. Things might be looking up, though -- Isner opened with a win over an on-the-rebound Jurgen Melzer and, after a tight first set against Kevin Anderson earlier today, rolled through the second set and finished off the South African in an uncharacteristically quick 80 minutes. He's now likely set up a rematch with Novak Djokovic in the fourth round, but he should know by now he's more than capable of the upset. And this could be his best chance to make something of the opportunity.

It's not that these guys have been out of the picture for so long -- in fact, it was only recently that they were each making some big statements on the courts of Indian Wells. But they've all fallen on rough times over the last few months, and what better way to erase those memories than by cementing their comebacks this week.

Look Who's Back!

The ladies have about half a round of play in the books at Indian Wells, but all eyes will be on one player this week.

Serena Williams makes her first appearance at the BNP Paribas Open since 2001 tomorrow, ending a fourteen year ban on a tournament she once vowed she would never play again.

You remember what happened -- after losing to Venus in the quarterfinals, Elena Dementieva made a comment about how Richard Williams is really the one who decides who wins the siblings' matches, and when the elder sister pulled out of the semi minutes before the start of the match, fans suspected something fishy. They booed Serena mercilessly during the final, allegedly slung racial slurs at her father and ultimately caused her to break down in the locker room. Serena was so traumatized by the experience she refused for years to return to the California desert.

But that changes in 2015. In a letter to Time Magazine this past February, she acknowledged how much things -- she, the fans, tennis itself -- have changed in the last decade and a half and that she was finally ready to come back.

She opens against Monica Niculescu in Friday's night match, and as the top seed and undisputed world #1, Serena will be the heavy favorite. She may have to shake off a few cobwebs of course -- we've seen how she can be a little off her game during early rounds before finally finding her groove, and this time more than ever nerves could play a factor. But she's won the title in Indian Wells twice -- including in 2001 when she withstood the jeers of the crowd to beat Kim Clijsters in the final -- and she's riding an eleven match win streak into the tournament. As with most events she enters -- this trophy is hers to lose.

Of course there are a few who may be a little less excited to see Serena return -- in Williams' absence, players like Daniela Hantuchova, Vera Zvonareva, Jelena Jankovic and, most recently, Flavia Pennetta have been able to thrive, notching some of the biggest wins of their respective careers. And 2013 champ Maria Sharapova, still unable to get the upper hand versus her long-time rival, may have to face her again in a final if she wants to reclaim this crown.

But while the road may be tougher for pretty much everyone entered in the draw, with Serena back, whoever does walk away with the title will know just how much she earned it.

The Resurrection

It's been a while since either of this weekend's champions held a trophy over their heads. To be sure, a "while" is certainly relative, and one of the victors had surely been suffering a much longer drought before ironically quenching her thirst in the desert of Indian Wells. But both performances seem to herald a bit of a change from what we'd seen early in the year, and might just set a new course for the rest of the season.

Novak Djokovic knows what it's like to win here, of course -- back in 2011, this was title number three in his seven-trophy streak that started the year -- but he was knocked out in the semis two years after that. And despite winning every match he played after last year's U.S. Open final, he hadn't reached a final weekend at all this season, his slowest start to a year since 2006. After defending champion Rafael Nadal was knocked out early, though, he was the on-paper favorite and, despite challenges from red-hot Marin Cilic and recent nemesis John Isner, made his way to Sunday's final as expected.

Nole was put to the test in that match as well. Four-time titleist Roger Federer didn't drop a set on his way to the final and was able to do what many others in the field could not -- end the runs of players like Kevin Anderson and the Cinderella of this tournament, Alexandr Dolgopolov. He kept his streak going on Sunday, grabbing an early break in the final and capping off the first set with little drama. Djokovic stayed strong, though -- he capitalized on some weak serving from the Swiss star and ultimately forced a deciding set. He got a lead in that one, too, but got a little shaky trying to serve it out -- Roger broke the world #2 at love and pushed the pair's thirty-third match to a tiebreak. But there the tide turned squarely in the Serb's favor. Nole got an early minibreak and never looked back, locking in the win and bringing himself within a stone's throw of an even record against the all-time great. It was Novak's first title of the year, but likely not his last, and puts him squarely in the spotlight as we move on to Miami.

The focus will be even sharper on Flavia Pennetta who, at this time last year, was ranked #92 in the world and quickly sliding. Having missed much of the 2012 season, she spent the early part of '13 rebuilding her game. Pennetta managed a run to the Strasbourg semis, albeit without facing an opponent in the top seventy, but only started to pull herself together at Wimbledon where the unseeded Italian reached the fourth round well below the radar. After that she stunned a handful of top players to make the Final Four in New York, her first Slam semi at thirty-one years of age, and kept it up in Melbourne with a run to the quarters. This week in Indian Wells, a tournament at which she'd only once won more than two matches, she pulled off an upset of sixteenth seed Sam Stosur, then recouped quickly after a marathon against American upstart Sloane Stephens to shock Aussie champ Na Li in straight sets. With the win, Pennetta had entrée to her first final in over two years and the possibility of her first title in almost four.

She'd be the underdog in this match, though. World #3 Agnieszka Radwanska had been on similar stages before, reaching the Wimbledon final in 2012 and having already added a couple Premier-level titles to her mantle, and having survived threats from one-time champion Jelena Jankovic and Romanian upstart Simona Halep, she was the clear favorite. But Pennetta had won their last meeting in Dubai just a few weeks ago and Aga was visibly struggling with injury throughout Sunday's match. Flavia secured an early break on the Pole and never ceded the lead. In just over an hour she'd secured the win, easily the biggest crown during her veteran career, and put her star back definitively on the map -- as of today's WTA rankings, she's #12 in the world, a far cry from the doldrums she trolled over the summer.

There's not a lot of time for either of these newly-minted champions to revel in their wins, though -- while both get byes in the first round of the Sony Ericsson Open, the ladies' action begins in less than twenty-four hours! Still, if they recover in time, as they've both shown they can do, it could be another big fortnight for both these guys. And there's no reason they won't be able to carry that momentum with them to even bigger things throughout this year.

Full of Possibilities

The BNP Paribas Open is not a Grand Slam event, but with the vast majority of the sport's top stars making the trip to the California desert, it sure can feel like one. And that's what makes the action over the last few days so interesting -- sure some of the favorites have survived through the last few days, but there are plenty of players reaching new heights in Indian Wells and doing so against the best out there. And any one of them could still walk away with the title.

The top half of the men's draw was gutted early and often, with defending champion Rafael Nadal's third round loss followed quickly by Kevin Anderson capitalizing on struggling Aussie Open champ Stanislas Wawrinka and Milos Raonic extending his winning record over Andy Murray. That leaves Rafa's vanquisher, red-hot Alexandr Dolgopolov battling four-time titleist Roger Federer for a spot in the final. Sure, experience is on the Swiss star's side, and after his win in Dubai, he's clearly not to be counted out here. Still, Dolgo followed up the biggest win of his career with two more upsets -- the first over thirteenth seed Fabio Fognini, the next over big-serving Raonic, both in straights. Another victory, especially over such an intimidating opponent, would be a tall ask, but the way the young Ukrainian is playing, I wouldn't put it past him.

The other two semifinalists will be decided later today, and we could get some surprises here too. Yes 2011 champ Novak Djokovic is still in the mix, but the rest of the field is slightly less decorated. He next faces veteran Julien Benneteau who, in his fourteen-plus years on Tour, has yet to win a single singles title. He took out world #10 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in his second round, but hasn't faced much of a challenge since, and while the thirty-two year old Frenchman did beat Nole once -- on these courts, but way back in 2006 -- odds are clearly with the Serb. Benny might just have the hunger to make a statement now, but it's the other semi which holds more potential for a breakthrough. Oft-injured John Isner stormed back on court with gutsy wins over Nikolay Davydenko and Fernando Verdasco. The one-time runner-up at Indian Wells has beaten Djokovic here before and could have recovered enough to do it again. And twentieth seed Ernests Gulbis, who actually leads the pair's head-to-head, has already notched victories over three top-ten players this season. He's improved on his fourth round appearance here from last year, and with momentum from his trophy in Marseille, could make a real play for this title too.

The battle for the ladies' title is a little closer to over, with both of today's matches deciding who will play in the final. Unlike with the men, both of the top two seeds have advanced according to plan, but neither Melbourne champion Na Li nor often-overlook Agnieszka Radwanska have ever won a title here. Both have been tested in their campaigns, too -- Li held tough during a rematch of the Aussie final against Dominika Cibulkova, rallying from a break down to win five straight games and the deciding set, while Aga lost a 4-0 lead in the third versus Jelena Jankovic before claiming her spot in the semis. But both were able capitalize on their experience, and should be the big favorites in their respective matches.

But two other ladies will look to be the spoilers. Flavia Pennetta has been on the comeback trail for much of the last year, and she followed up a Cinderella run to the U.S. Open semis by making the quarters Down Under. She kept her now 5-0 record against Sam Stosur perfect in the third round and yesterday rallied from a break down in the third to Sloane Stephens to finish off a match she should have one a set earlier. She'll be tired, for sure, when she goes up against Li later today, but with a 2-3 record against the top seed -- albeit well before Li came into her own -- she knows how to win and could pull off a surprise now. And Simona Halep, putting together what's easily been the best year of her short career so far, far surpassed her previous best showing at the BNP Paribas Open by making the semis. While she did drop sets to both Lucie Safarova and fellow Aussie standout Genie Bouchard this week, she has won her last two meetings with Radwanska -- the most recent in Melbourne a few weeks ago. She might be the on-paper underdog, but something tells me she's about to come into her own.

Of course it's going to be difficult for anyone to get past the big dogs still fighting it out in Indian Wells, but with the performances we've seen already the last week or so, many of those in the field could keep their streaks going. And if they can do it here, on one of the biggest stages in the sport, they likely can do it anywhere at all...

Turning Up the Heat

Things sure got interesting fast in Indian Wells, didn't they?

With a couple rounds still left to go, both of last year's champions bowed out in spectacular form on Monday, creating holes in the draws wide enough to fit a truck.

Sure it began early, with 2012 titleist Victoria Azarenka succumbing to injury and falling to Lauren Davis in her opener. But Maria Sharapova quickly followed suit, losing an early break to qualifier Camila Giorgi. She was able to force a third, but Giorgi stayed tougher in the two and a half hour match, closing out the biggest win of her career. The young Italian, just off her highest ranking at #79 in the world, knows how to play against the big names -- she beat Caroline Wozniacki last year at the U.S. Open and reached the fourth round at Wimbledon in 2012 with wins over Flavia Pennetta and Nadia Petrova. Her problem so far has been the follow-through, but with a largely cleared out section of the bracket, this might be her turn.

The bigger shock -- if not on paper, then certainly in excitement -- may have come from the next match in Stadium 1. Three-time champion Rafael Nadal, who'd reached at least the final of every event he's played this year, had already survived a scare from Radek Stepanek in his opener, but with a 10-0 set record against Alexandr Dolgopolov in his third round, he was still the favorite. Rafa stumbled early, though, dropping serve three times in the first set, but despite getting just 32% of his first serves in, the world #31, who'd lost to the top seed just a few weeks ago in Rio, held on for the set. He got a break in the third, too, and though he flinched when trying to serve out the match, some solid serving in the tiebreak notched him his first career win over a top-ranked player. He's still the lowest seed in his half, but with some of the blistering shots he was hitting Monday, he might not be that big an underdog.

But while these guys have been grabbing the headlines recently, still others could be the beneficiaries. Sloane Stephens, who'd only beaten one top fifty player so far this year, scored an upset of Ana Ivanovic in her third round and the seventeenth seed is now the highest ranked player left in her quarter. And Melbourne Cinderella Casey Dellacqua has continued her momentum in the desert with wins over Kirsten Flipkens and Roberta Vinci this past week. But the biggest opportunity in the bottom half of the ladies' draw might be with Caroline Wozniacki, winner in 2011 and runner-up last year. The former world #1 did manage one title late last year -- a far cry from the seasons when she was pulling in five or six -- but she's only gone as far as a semi in Dubai in 2014. She's still a low seed in her section in Indian Wells, but she managed wins over often spunky Bojana Jovanovski and Yaroslava Shvedova in her last two rounds, and she's beaten her next opponent Jelena Jankovic in their last five meetings, just taking the lead in their head-to-head. If she can keep her cool, it might be a great chance to re-assert herself as part of the elite.

On the men's side, the top half is still full of seeds -- albeit, not always the ones we'd predicted -- still a couple flying under the radar might be able to capitalize. Kevin Anderson has quietly reached the final of the last two tournaments he's played, and though he's up next against this year's breakout star Stanislas Wawrinka -- admittedly, a man he's never beaten -- the big-serving South African might be more warmed up an primed for an upset. And Milos Raonic, absent from Tour since the Australian Open, made his return with a couple big wins this week. He also has a 2-1 record against on-paper favorite his next opponent Andy Murray, who himself has had to come back from losing sets in his first two rounds. Still the bottom half, where a full half the field is unseeded, could be where we see the most excitement. Fernando Verdasco, 2-3 on the year before coming to California, frankly surprised me with his win over Horacio Zeballos in his opener. He's dead even with Richard Gasquet, who he'll meet later today, and is the underdog to be sure, but the Spaniard has pulled off upsets before and could certainly do it again.

There's a lot of ball left, of course, and none of these players' paths forward are certain at all, still they've each been able to deliver so far at the BNP Paribas Open. And as the stakes get even higher in the days ahead, they'll have to turn up their A-games even farther. There's no telling when their opportunities will come, but if they keep bringing the heat, any one of them could stun us all.

Their Big Break

With a couple days of play in the books in Indian Wells, it hasn't been all tea and roses for the sport's biggest stars. And while several seeds have run through their matches, many have struggled to eke out early wins and still others have fallen much sooner than they would have hoped. And that may have created a big opportunity for a couple underdogs.

The biggest upset on the women's side, of course, has been the loss of 2012 champion Victoria Azarenka who, contending with injury since the Australian Open, lost her opener to twenty-year-old American Lauren Davis who'd never before beaten a top ten player. The world #66 does have a nice section of the draw too -- the next seed she's slated to meet would be Roberta Vinci, but the Italian is so far only 1-5 on the year -- so she might not have to put up a big effort to get much farther. But perhaps the lady with the least to lose in this half is German teenager Annika Beck, who beat a recently unimpressive Elena Vesnina in her second round. She'll face off against Aga Radwanska, a semifinalist here a couple years back, so her path forward is a little less certain. Still, Beck's already beaten players like Genie Bouchard and Sam Stosur this year, so there's no reason she can't pull off another shocking win.

The upsets on the top half of the bracket haven't been quite as headline-worthy, but that doesn't make them inconsequential either. Aleksandra Wozniak, whose injury-riddled 2013 season pushed her ranking to nearly three hundred today, rallied against Sabine Lisicki to score her first win over a top twenty player in almost two years. And while she has an immediate challenge against Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova next, there's no reason the veteran Canadian can't find the strength for another win. But we might just see the most fireworks in the very bottom of this section. Young Spaniard Maria-Teresa Torro-Flor just ended a three-set break-fest -- fifteen in total -- with fifth seeded Angelique Kerber, setting up a meeting with a true comeback story, Alisa Kleybanova. The young Russian was diagnosed with cancer back in 2011 and hasn't played much since returning to court a year later. But this week she's already handled a spunky Victoria Duval and earlier today took out red-hot Garbine Muguruza in straight sets. If she is healthy again -- and so far in the desert, it seems that she is -- she might just surprise us all.

Only half the seeded men have played their openers so far in Indian Wells, but those that have have already been tested. Jerzy Janowicz went three sets and lost to clay court specialist Alejandro Falla, while favorites Milos Raonic and even Andy Murray were pushed to deciders before closing out their wins. And that could give players like Jiri Vesely a chance to shine. The 2013 ATP Star of Tomorrow didn't get to play the Davis Cup matches I was so anticipating, but he did reach the semis in a Heilbronn Challenger event and today survived a challenge from world #35 Pablo Andujar. He has been through two tough three-setters, though, so he might be a little spent when he takes on Murray in a few days -- but if he can capitalize against a player who knows little about who he's facing, the young Czech could cause quite the upset.

In the bottom half of the men's draw the favorites have yet to show their stuff, but a couple players' performances in their first rounds might suggest they have an edge. Veteran Nikolay Davydenko was pushed to three sets by sputtering David Goffin, but with his next opponent John Isner dealing with injuries himself the last few weeks, the Russian might just be able to pounce. And Roberto Bautista Agut, the Cinderella fourth-rounder in Melbourne, delivered a one-sided loss to American Steve Johnson and could give Tomas Berdych a run for his money in his next round. But perhaps we should focus on Paolo Lorenzi, the veteran Italian coming off his first career championship match in Sao Paulo last week. Unfortunately for him, he's up against a sizzling Marin Cilic, who's made at least the final of the last three events he's played. Still, if Lorenzi is the more rested of the two, he could keep his own streak going.

Of course it's one thing for these players to pull off another win or two in Indian Wells -- it's quite another for any of them to make a real play for the title. But if they're able to take advantage of the opportunities they've created for themselves so far, there's no reason to believe they've each got a great chance to bring even more heat to the desert.

A Change of Scenery: Indian Wells 2014 Preview

We've officially entered the mini-Slam period of the year, when the world's best tennis players take a break from the Latin clay court season and switch to the American hardcourts for some of the highest-profile events outside the Majors. And with the BNP Paribas Open kicking off in just a few hours, we should be in for a lot of excitement in both draws.

The Ladies

With Serena Williams electing again not to play in the desert -- she had her name on the preliminary entry list until early February -- Australian Open champion Na Li takes the top seed in Indian Wells. She was a semifinalist back in 2007, and made the quarters last year, so she could just capitalize on Serena's absence. But players like 2012 titleist Victoria Azarenka, who hasn't played at all since Melbourne, and defending trophy-holder Maria Sharapova, who successfully avenged her loss in the final the previous year, will look to take advantage of a draw missing one of their biggest rivals.

But the top seeds won't be the only ones in contention this fortnight, and some less experienced players might be ready to break through. Simona Halep has catapulted to #7 in the world and just claimed her biggest title to date in Doha. And Dominika Cibulkova, who had struggled after her final run Down Under, turned things around last week and took a title in Acapulco. And players like Pattaya City champion Ekaterina Makarova and Dubai finalist Alize Cornet, who stunned Serena in those semis have been marking good results all year. But also keep an eye out for Klara Zakopalova, who's played in three finals already this year and finally ended a nearly nine-year title drought with a crown in Brazil. She's set to meet Li in the third round, which isn't ideal, but the way she's upped her game recently, she could just surprise us all.

Still the real story at tournaments like these are the Cinderellas, and some of the seeds face challenges from the start. One-time world #15 Julia Goerges hasn't worked her way back to seeding territory yet, but she has managed wins over the likes of Elena Vesnina and Sara Errani this year. And Alison Riske, who's climbed into the top fifty after making the third round in Australia and the quarters in Hobart, is in a section of the draw where the biggest immediate threats are oft-injured Kaia Kanepi and consistently inconsistent Caroline Wozniacki. But Belgian teenager Alison Van Uytvanck has also been proving herself the last few months -- she lost in her first Major main draw in Melbourne, but reached the quarters in Florianopolis and cracked the top hundred for the first time in her career, and though she'd likely face off against Azarenka if she makes the third round, she might be ready for her breakthrough.

And while these ladies are looking to poke some holes in the draw, a couple others will try to reestablish themselves. Sloane Stephens was long heralded as the next big thing in American women's tennis, but since making the Aussie semis last year, she's struggled to follow through and only has a 3-3 record on the year. Sabine Lisicki too, a finalist at Wimbledon after years of battling injury and disappointment, hasn't gotten past the second round of any event this year. Her first match will be against either Urszula Radwanska or Aleksandra Wozniak, either of whom could be a huge challenge if she's playing at her best. But most interesting might be the fate of Roberta Vinci, whose quarterfinal run at the U.S. Open last year seemed to portend big things. But the Italian hasn't won a single singles match in 2014, and though she's grasping onto a thirteenth seed in Indian Wells, she'll want to prove quickly that she deserves to go even higher.

The Gentlemen

The men's draw is just as intimidating, and though world #4 David Ferrer pulled out with a leg injury, three players in the field have combined to win nine of the last ten titles. Defending champion Rafael Nadal seems to have recovered from his injury-plagued Australian Open final by winning a title in Rio, and Roger Federer proved he's still a contender with his trophy in Dubai. And, sure, Novak Djokovic hasn't won a title yet this year -- his worst start to a season since 2006 -- but as the second seed at the BNP Paribas Open, he can't be counted out. Still all eyes will be on Stan Wawrinka, whose first Major trophy in January not only grants him the third seed here, but also raises his profile to a level he hasn't seen before. He's only played one (Davis Cup) match since Melbourne and, facing a potential quarterfinal meeting with compatriot Federer -- who he hasn't beaten since 2009 -- he will need to make sure he's on his game from the start.

But lower seeds could cause a stir too. Kevin Anderson has made finals in Acapulco and Delray, and while he might face two-time champ Lleyton Hewitt in his opener, none of the seeds in his immediate section of the draw should be too intimidating. And Alexandr Dolgopolov's final in Rio and semi in Acapulco pushed him back into seeding territory. He's only got one hardcourt title to his name though, so this would be a big ask. But the biggest possibility for an upset might come from Marin Cilic, ranked a middling #26 in the world, but coming off a final in Rotterdam and titles in Delray and Zagreb. With a third round date with Nole and a possible hot-court rematch against Gilles Simon in the quarters, he's got a tough road, but clearly he's proven he's up for the challenge.

There are a couple men out there that could very well upset the balance of the draws in Indian Wells too. Alex Bogomolov hasn't quite capitalized on his stunning 2011 season, but he did make the quarters in Memphis, and took a set from eventual champion Kei Nishikori in that round. But perhaps most interesting could be the first round match-up between Aussie spoiler Roberto Bautista-Agut and young American Steve Johnson, who made the quarters in Auckland and beat Tommy Haas in Delray. The Spaniard is the higher ranked player, but both have the potential to be real talents in this sport. Whoever survives could carry that momentum with him a couple rounds more.

But like with the ladies, there will be a couple guys looking to get their game back on track. John Isner, who did win a title in Auckland to start the season, has battled injury since and has a potentially tough opener against Nikolay Davydenko. And Mikhail Youzhny, who withdrew from his third round in Dubai and only won one match this year before that, will meet one of two spunky Americans in his opener and could face off against a pink-hot Anderson next. But also watch out for always volatile Fernando Verdasco, accomplished on all surfaces, but unimpressive since reaching the quarters at Wimbledon. And even Andy Murray, who arguably is coming off the best year of his career, is still recovering from back surgery -- his straight-set loss to Djokovic at a pre-event exhibition in New York suggests he's still not quite there yet.

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It's always tough to make the transition from one surface to another, especially when so much is on the line. But even with the favorites playing so well, the draws certainly seem pretty wide open this year at Indian Wells. And that could only mean we're in for one really great tournament.

And whoever comes out on top will have to put up quite a fight to get there.

Not Done Yet

It wasn't that long ago that all four players contesting the finals at this year's BNP Paribas Open, to one extent or another, had fallen a bit off the radar. Each had worked his or her way back on the scene, but perhaps it was their performances at Indian Wells over the past ten days that truly cemented their return to the game.

Former world #1 Caroline Wozniacki had long been criticized for holding the ranking without a Major title to back it up, and when all the pressure finally led to a disappointing 2012 season and a drop nearly out of the top ten, some predicted an eventual end to the Dane's ride. She seemed to get back on track in the desert, though -- after dominating an early round against suddenly surging Elena Vesnina and surviving a potential challenge from Nadia Petrova, never to be counted out, she really raised her game. Against fourth seeded Angelique Kerber in the semis, Caro was down a set and a break before finding her groove and coming back in exciting style. The win earned Wozniacki her first final of the year, and her biggest since winning the title here in 2011.

Her run, eventually, was stopped by similarly resurgent Maria Sharapova on Sunday afternoon. Another one once atop the rankings, her climb back to the top was slow and steady and culminated with a historic completion of the Grand Slam last spring, but that was the last title she won on any surface since. As the second seed in Indian Wells, the Russian didn't have as tough a road to the final, but the pressure was nonetheless on last year's runner-up to deliver. And having not dropped a set the entire event, that's just what she did in Sunday's championship -- she took an early lead against Wozniacki and never looked back. The win was her first hardcourt title since mid-2011, but maybe more importantly proved just how hungry she still is to add to her trophy chest.

The men are hungry too. Juan Martin Del Potro, like MaSha before him, had been on the comeback trail for years, finally getting his footing with a Bronze medal in London and a couple big wins over long-time nemesis Roger Federer late last year. He'd also won a title in Rotterdam this season, but he truly hit his stride in the California desert -- after a solid win over relentless veteran Tommy Haas in the fourth round, he notched a stunning come-from-behind victory against reigning U.S. Open champ Andy Murray and then powered through to repeat his Olympic triumph over world #1 Novak Djokovic. It was the first time in more than three years he'd defeated two top-five players at one event, and may have sealed his return to the sport's elite.

But DelPo's campaign would eventually Sunday when he'd face the ultimate comeback of the year. Rafael Nadal, champion here in 2009, had characteristically dominated the early clay court season, losing a final in Viña del Mar before reclaiming glory in Brazil and Mexico. But no one really expected him to accomplish much on the tougher hard courts, by far his least successful surface -- and with a loss just two weeks ago at an exhibition in New York, at the hands of Juan Martin Del Potro, no less, he might have actually been the underdog in Sunday's final. But Nadal proved he still had the fighting spirit he's shown so many times before -- after defeating Roger Federer in the quarters and one-time Wimbledon runner-up Tomas Berdych a round later, he was down a set to the big Argentine, but he regrouped to close out the match in two and a half hours. It was the six-hundredth match win of his career and his record twenty-second Masters crown -- if that doesn't prove he's still very much in contention for the big trophies, it seems clear he'll be giving even more evidence over the months to come.

It shouldn't be too surprising that these champions haven't fallen away into the shadows -- their attitudes throughout their careers show just how hard they're willing to fight. But with some big wins all week, their spirit has certainly translated into real results at Indian Wells. And with the season still having really just begun, I expect we haven't seen the last of any of them yet.

Separated at Birth -- American Masters Edition

It's been a while since I posted one of these, but after about a month of watching the sport's biggest -- and not so big -- stars slug it out on the U.S. hard courts, I was once again struck by some uncanny resemblances. Some players who've never spent a lot of time in the spotlight and others who've been largely overshadowed by some harder-hitting colleagues emerged in both Indian Wells and Miami during March. And if you were just a cursory spectator, you might have mistaken them from some much more familiar faces.

Over at the BNP Paribas Open, young Christina McHale continued her coming out party with a solid come-from-behind defeat of reigning Wimbledon champ Petra Kvitova. It wasn't her first top-five victory, but at such a big tournament, seeded at a Premier event for the first time, it was a notable accomplishment. She should get herself for ready all sorts of attention to come her way -- similar to her doppelganger, who may be working her own way onto a tennis court someday.

Christina McHale (USA) vs. Bethenny Frankel

Thomaz Bellucci has had his time in the upper echelons of the sport, nearly cracking the top twenty just two years ago. But some disappointing results during subsequent clay court seasons knocked him down the rankings. He started to turn things around in the California desert, beating Jurgen Melzer, fresh off a title in Memphis, and taking Roger Federer to three sets before ultimately succumbing. Still, his star may be back on the rise, like his would-be twin, Smash star Raza Jaffrey.

Thomaz Bellucci (BRA) vs. Raza Jaffrey

Twenty-year old Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov had a similar run a few weeks later in Miami, notching wins over Juan Ignacio Chela and Tomas Berdych on his way to the fourth round. He's still far from reaching the top of the sport -- he's still several positions off his own career-best ranking. But if he keeps up his level of play, he could get back there. And hopefully this time he won't say "Bye, Bye, Bye" to it so quickly.*

Grigor Dimitrov (BUL) vs. Justin Timberlake

Agnieszka Radwanska has become a staple during the latter rounds of tournaments recently, and with her rise to #4 in the world she promises to become an ever-growing presence on Tour. People may have only begun to take notice of her after that title run in Miami, her biggest trophy to date, but truth is Aggie's been a Grand Slam champion on the Juniors' circuit since 2005 -- not unlike her near-mirror image, who made her breakthrough at age six in the classic E.T.

Aggie Radwanska (POL) vs. Drew Barrymore

Sure, like the celebs, not all these athletes' stars will shine with the same brightness, or for the same length of time. But it certainly seems like we'll have to get more used to them hanging around the biggest events. And hopefully they'll continue to play like they have the past month -- no one wants to see these guys fall from grace.

If you want to share your favorite tennis look-alikes, send me a note, and be sure to check out my other "Separated at Birth" pairs here!

* Yes, I know that was bad. Sorry!