Men's Tennis Stars Facing the Most Questions in 2015
The 2014 ATP season saw more twists and turns than a Hollywood movie.
Power at the top shifted throughout the year among the usual suspects—Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, Andy Murray and Rafael Nadal.
Djokovic and Nadal both added another Grand Slam title to their career tallies, and Federer enjoyed a resurgent season.
While Djokovic ended the year with an exclamation point after securing another victory in the World Tour Finals, injuries raised future concerns for Federer and Nadal.
Murray's struggle in his return from a 2013 back surgery led to a topsy-turvy season, and doubts about his form have magnified as the Big Four's seemingly impenetrable hold on Grand Slams finally cracked in 2014.
Stan Wawrinka became only the second man outside of Federer, Nadal, Djokovic and Murray to win a major since the 2005 Australian Open after he bounced Nadal in the Melbourne final.
That theme continued at the U.S. Open when Marin Cilic took out Federer on the way to his maiden Grand Slam crown.
Other young guns like Kei Nishikori, Milos Raonic and Grigor Dimitrov made their presence known with electrifying performances during the season.
Raonic and Dimitrov also faced their share of problems, ranging from health concerns to bouts of inconsistency.
Those challengers and the men they chase at the top all face many questions heading into next year. The following slideshow will highlight the players with the most on the line. How they respond in 2015 could permanently shift the landscape of tennis.
Grigor Dimitrov
1 of 5
There was a pounding at the door of the Top 10 this season.
The one who knocked wasn't Breaking Bad's Walter White; it was Grigor Dimitrov.
Dimitrov took a quantum leap forward in 2014. He opened the season ranked 19th in the world, but surged to the No. 8 ranking in July after a sizzling summer.
His journey started at the Australian Open, where he reached his first Grand Slam quarterfinal. Dimitrov usurped that achievement when he made the semifinals at Wimbledon after cruising past Andy Murray in the previous round. Novak Djokovic ended his run, but Dimitrov acquitted himself well in a tense four-set match.
Impressively, Dimitrov also made his first semifinals at the Masters Series level (Rome and Canada) and won three titles this year—all on different surfaces. He conquered the hard courts of Acapulco, the clay of Bucharest and the lawns of Queen's Club.
For Dimitrov, the biggest question is whether he'll be able to take that next step in 2015 and produce consistent results at every tournament he enters.
Mixed in with all those wins was a first-round loss at the French Open, as well as early exits at seven of the nine Masters Series events. Because of those results, Dimitrov's ranking dipped to 11th in the world at the end of the year, and he failed to qualify for the World Tour Finals.
Dimitrov possesses beautiful ground strokes and great athleticism. With the help of coach Roger Rasheed, he's become a more physical and fit player. Now, he just needs to build confidence.
Though his serve continues to improve as a weapon, there were moments—like the semifinals of Wimbledon—where it let him down. According to ATP World Tour statistics, Dimitrov double-faulted 216 times this season. That number has to come down for him to close out important matches.
Still, there were many flashes of brilliance for Dimitrov this year. If he continues improving his game, he has the talent to climb even higher in the rankings and win multiple Grand Slams.
Milos Raonic
2 of 5
There's a moment for many successful athletes when things suddenly click.
Milos Raonic is near that point.
The 2014 season was far and away his best to date. Milestone after milestone went by the wayside as Raonic went deeper in big tournaments.
He advanced to his first career major quarterfinal at the French Open, which he immediately followed up with a semifinal berth at Wimbledon. Though Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer, respectively, ended his run at those events, Raonic proved himself a worthy challenger.
His most consistent work came at the Masters Series level. Raonic made the quarterfinals or better at seven of the nine events, including a finals berth in Paris-Bercy.
Washington provided Raonic with his only tournament title in 2014, but the highlight of his year was a win over Federer in the quarterfinals of the Paris Masters, his first ever victory over the Swiss.
Momentum slipped away at the World Tour Finals after he suffered a glute tear and withdrew from his final round-robin match.
Now, he enters 2015 with a health concern.
Raonic will never be mistaken for the agile Djokovic or the athletic Gael Monfils, and this injury could further slow his movement. If he recovers, there are still flaws in his game which could hold Raonic back from winning more titles.
His backhand remains a weakness. It too often falls apart in rallies and is not yet a reliable offensive weapon. Raonic must continue working on his backhand. If it doesn't improve, opponents will keep exploiting him.
Another area he can focus on is volleying. Raonic doesn't have the softest hands at net, but further development of that skill could provide huge dividends and help him keep points short.
What sets Raonic apart from the competition is a lethal serve that soars off his racket. That serve has already carried him to a Top 10 ranking. To climb higher, he'll have to solve the other parts of his game.
Andy Murray
3 of 5
Andy Murray entered 2014 with many questions, and he left it with many more.
Back surgery during the fall of 2013 forced Murray to miss the end of that season. He recovered in time for this year's Australian Open, but his level of play stagnated.
In Melbourne, Roger Federer outclassed Murray in the quarterfinals with ease. The Scot later reached the quarterfinals at each of the other three majors, including a semifinal appearance at the French Open, but he didn't bring his best tennis in the crucial stages of those tournaments.
He took just six games off Nadal in the semifinals of the French Open and then he lost in straight sets in the Wimbledon quarterfinals to Grigor Dimitrov.
Novak Djokovic later ended Murray's U.S. Open hopes in the quarterfinals and served as a frequent tormentor throughout the year. Djokovic won all four of their 2014 encounters, dropping just one set along the way.
Murray's struggles continued against the best players, and he finished with a 4-13 record against the current Top 10.
His ranking dipped as low as 12th in the world during September, and his qualification for the World Tour Finals was far from a sure thing.
He put together some strong results in the fall, but his final match of the 2014 season ended in a 0-6, 1-6 loss to Federer in the round-robin stage of the World Tour Finals.
That scoreline will leave a sour taste in his mouth as he prepares for 2015.
For Murray to grow from that loss, he'll have to rediscover the form which led him to the Wimbledon crown in 2013.
In 2014, he played with less aggression and seemed unsure of himself.
His departure from coach Ivan Lendl early in 2014 also contributed to that lack of direction on the court.
Former WTA player Amelie Mauresmo came on board before Wimbledon as his new coach, but the partnership has yet to yield much success.
As Eleanor Crooks chronicled for the Press Association (h/t Mail Online), former British tennis player Tim Henman questioned Murray's game and the partnership with Mauresmo:
"Because Andy's such a good player, he's capable of winning the wrong way. It's a great asset, but, when you come up against the very best guys, you can't just turn it on. He's got to play the right way all the time.
"
The right way for Murray is hitting with more authority, taking chances and using his diverse skill set. In 2015, we'll find out if he can rebound or if his best play is already behind him.
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Roger Federer
4 of 5
When the 2014 season began, Roger Federer faced many questions about his future—and if he still had one at the top of men's tennis.
He had to deal with back problems, a switch to a new racket and the appointment of a new coach. All those factors would be enough to throw most players into disarray.
Federer responded in 2014 with one of the best years of his career.
Recovered from his back injuries, Federer glided around the court with the agility and speed he used to exert during his record-setting prime.
The switch to a new, larger racket helped Federer gain more power on his serve and backhand, freeing him to take more chances.
With the help of new coach and six-time Grand Slam champion Stefan Edberg, Federer used his new blade and improved movement to start attacking the net more.
All those changes paid dividends and led Federer to a 73-12 record for the season (the most wins on tour), his first Davis Cup triumph, five tournament titles, six other finals appearances and the No. 2 world ranking.
Not a bad year for a 33-year-old who also welcomed his second set of twins during the summer.
Federer, as Paul Newman noted for The Independent, attributed much of his success in 2014 to a healthy back:
"That’s something I’m so pleased about, to see the hard work I put in last year is paying off. I’m waking up normal. I’m not half-broken like I was last year. I’m playing the way I was hoping I could play again.
"
But during the World Tour Finals, Federer's back troubles returned.
He tweaked his back during a semifinals win over Stan Wawrinka. That injury led to his walkover before the championship match against Novak Djokovic.
During preparations for the Davis Cup final against France, Federer's injury forced him to miss several days of practice. When he made it back on the court against Gael Monfils, the Frenchman earned a relatively easy straight sets win.
Federer rebounded to guide Switzerland to its first Davis Cup crown, but those back questions have resurfaced ahead of the 2015 season.
If Federer's winter training block in Dubai is compromised because of his injury, it could stall the start of his season. Without a healthy back, Federer's movement and serve are severely compromised.
He'll also have to deal with the wear and tear of his long 2014 season, which could further strain his body.
Now in his early-30s, Federer's chances to win majors are running out. It has been over two years since his Grand Slam triumph at Wimbledon in 2012. The longer his slump his continues, the more questions he'll face about his ability to win another major.
Rafael Nadal
5 of 5
Rafael Nadal and his fragile body suffered countless maladies in 2014.
It all started at the Australian Open, where he played through a nasty blister on his racket hand. He endured that pain, but a new one washed over him in the final: a hobbled back.
The sudden nature of that injury rendered Nadal far less than 100 percent, which Stan Wawrinka capitalized on to earn the monumental upset and his first Grand Slam title.
After a few weeks of recuperation, Nadal rebounded to win the Rio Open. But on the bigger stages this past spring, his form slipped.
At Indian Wells, he fell in the third round to Alexandr Dolgopolov. A week later in Miami, Novak Djokovic worked him over in the final.
When Nadal transitioned to his beloved clay, the funk continued.
Quarterfinals losses in Monte Carlo and Barcelona to David Ferrer and Nicolas Almagro, respectively, raised more alarms. He dominated those tournaments in the past, winning eight at each one. Now, he couldn't make the final weekend.
In Madrid, Nadal's level of play started to improve, but during the first part of the final against Kei Nishikori, he looked out of sorts. Nishikori raced to a set and a break lead before, ironically, his back seized up. Nadal pounced on his injured opponent for the title, but doubts remained.
They magnified after another finals loss to Djokovic in Rome.
Nadal, "The King of Clay," suddenly looked vulnerable on the surface.
To his credit, he took advantage of a favorable draw at the French Open and made quick work of Andy Murray in the semifinals. After losing the first set to Djokovic in the final, Nadal picked himself up and swept the final three sets for his ninth championship at Roland Garros.
After an unimpressive (by his standards) spring, Nadal had endured and put the worst behind him. Or so he thought.
On the grass of Halle, Dustin Brown upset Nadal in the second round. At Wimbledon, he lost the opening set in each of his first three matches. He won them all, but his luck ran out in a stunning fourth round loss to Australian teenager Nick Kyrgios.
Then the injuries piled up.
He hurt his wrist during practice after Wimbledon, and it was severe enough to force him to miss the Masters Series events in Toronto and Cincinnati, as well as the U.S. Open. All 4,000 of the ranking points he earned from winning those tournaments in 2013 went down the drain.
Nadal returned to the court at the end of September in Beijing, but lost in the quarterfinals to Martin Klizan.
During his preparation for the Shanghai Masters, he contracted appendicitis. Nadal opted to put off surgery and play through the pain.
An opening-round loss to Feliciano Lopez in Shanghai and a quarterfinal loss to teenager Borna Coric in Basel forced Nadal to pull the plug on his 2014 season and have his appendix removed.
On top of that surgery, Nadal also underwent a stem cell treatment on his ailing back, which he said never fully healed during the season.
According to ESPN, Nadal plans to return in January at Abu Dhabi. But what will his form be like, and can he avoid further injuries?
As Nadal chases Federer in the record books, his own body could be what holds him down. Unless he can overcome his afflictions and regain his old form, Nadal's run at the top of the game could be in peril.
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