Miami: Semi Final Forecasts

The semifinals at Miami has all the top players in the world except Rafael Nadal. He will need the rest though, and having won the two major hard court titles this year, he is already in an enviable position. Let the other guys have a chance!

Predictions are just gut feelings of the guys who predict, nothing more. Following are my predictions, and why I feel so.

Matchup One: (2) Roger Federer vs (3) Novak Djokovic

Well, the ideal clash for a semi-final as far as the seedings go and almost as good as the best (there we surely don't leave out the spaniard) match-up in a Grand Slam Final.

Their quarter final encounters have been contrasting though. Roger won in three difficult sets against Andy Roddick in which he even needed a huge slice of luck, while Djokovic downed Tsonga in a two set encounter during which he showed signs of physical discomfiture because of the temperatures.

Though one cannot separate Tsonga and Roddick by much, it seems more so that it was a bad day at the office for Tsonga rather than any uncharacteristic brilliance from Djokovic that did the trick. Also Roddick could have more motivated than usual with the crowd at his back.

Coming to a comparison now—though Roger leads 6-2 in head to head, mostly they have had tight contests. Novak is not far behind Roger in his game. Both have all court games. The Serb's strengths lies in his back-hand—the singular ability to go down the line or cross court at will.

His serve and net game are solid, and his fore-hand is very dependable. Federer's strengths lie in his forehand and serve when it really does work. His net game is better, but his back-hand weaker. Also, experience, mental strength and of course history, are on the side of the Swiss.

The match is scheduled to take place at 1:00pm local time, at which time temperatures can soar around a 100 degrees. The Serb's poor conditioning stood exposed at the Australian Open.

Prediction: Federer in two

Matchup Two: (4) Andy Murray vs (6) Juan Martin Del Potro

Murray has been the guy to beat along with Nadal this season. His game and fitness have been on a steady rise since last Wimbledon. Since then he has had a great record against Federer and Nadal.

Though he has had a dismal showing against the Big Four till now, Del Potro seems to want to reverse the trend now. Being a great striker of the ball, he can prove quite a handful for the Scot.

The score-lines of their respective quarter-finals are very contrasting. Murray dispatched Verdasco pretty easily, while JMD had to play the match of his life against Nadal. While it was a usual day at the office for the Scot, the Argentine was up against the best player in the world.

Dismissing the scoreline based on this, but looking at the matches in more detail, one may see that, the Argentine has improved quite a lot, especially in his attitude. He could go for line tracers and make them.

Coming to a comparison. Head to head suggests that Murray is an out and out favourite. But so was Nadal. Murray has the reputation of being one of the craftiest practitioners of the game. Coupled with his shot-making ability and excellent fitness and athleticism, this becomes any player's nightmare on any given day.

Del Potro has more power if nothing else, and perhaps hits the ball as well as Murray. He seems to have a good net game now, and a solid service. He comes into this match with huge confidence and great support from the stands.

His weakness will be his movement given his six-and-a-half-foot tall frame, while Murray has no real holes in his game. When it comes to intelligently utilizing your opponent's weaknesses you cannot find a better player than Murray.

Prediction: Murray in three