Winners and Losers from the 1st Week of Indian Wells 2015
Indian Wells 2015 has already provided a glimpse at all of the superstars, and it sets up a second week of exciting ATP tennis.
Will the world No. 1 Novak Djokovic continue his domination at the top? Other analysts weigh in as the Serbian continues to pick up more historical respect.
There's always a trial and jury when the legends play, which is why Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal will also continue to receive their lion's share of press. They all figure in to our first-week analysis.
A quick glimpse at youngsters Nick Kyrgios, Thanasi Kokkinakis and aging youngster Grigor Dimitrov provided added intrigue.
And what about the streaky champions Marin Cilic and Stanislas Wawrinka?
It's the first of two "Winners and Losers" columns for Indian Wells, the fabulous tournament in California's famous desert.
Which player will eventually quench his thirst with this coveted title?
Winner: Novak Djokovic
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Memo to all tennis fans: That Novak Djokovic guy is pretty good. Yes, apparently the No. 1 ranking does mean something. OK, so isn't that already obvious? Respected writer Peter Bodo addressed these sentiments, but really it feels overdue. Said Bodo for ESPN.com:
"The most significant story of all hasn't been pulled together and told with any real conviction, despite the fact that it's a simple story. It's the tale of how we are now living in the Novak Djokovic era -- and have been for nearly 4½ years.
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Maybe it's been hard for Bodo to swallow and admit that Djokovic is proving worthy of being in the same company with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. Maybe Djokovic could have won a few more majors in the past year.
But still...
Any tennis fan, regardless of rooting interest knows that Djokovic is the player to beat, the standard at the top of tennis right now and a modern legend in the making. And he stands a great chance at adding more major titles in the near future, if analysts like Brad Gilbert, also via ESPN.com, prove correct:
"Watching Novak is like seeing Andre [Agassi] 2.0, because Novak has better speed and defensive ability than Andre did. I think he's about to enter a two- or three-year period of dominance.
"
Finally, Djokovic could also throw himself into the conversation as one of the five or six players who could be considered the greatest of all time, if he wins big over the next few years. There might not be much to separate him from his two chief rivals, only that they will all have carved out equally impressive and awesome resumes in their own ways with different conditions to consider.
What this means, once again, is that there is no such thing as a greatest player of all time.
Loser: Marin Cilic
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Marin Cilic just has not been able to stay healthy since winning the 2014 U.S. Open. So it was only a minor surprise to see him bow out in his first match of 2015 to clay-court veteran Juan Monaco, 6-4, 6-4.
A few things to consider about Cilic. First, it's unlikely that his U.S. Open title will somehow curse him to a rash of injuries the way it has sabotaged Juan Martin del Potro's career. Tennis fans will need to be patient in reevaluating him, and hopefully his team will build him up cautiously and intelligently.
Next, Cilic has usually been a streaky player anyway. It's just not likely to expect that he will suddenly find the consistency of David Ferrer. We saw him return from a long layoff after his drug suspension in 2013, and then he rebounded with an excellent 2014.
So this is far from the last time we will hear from Cilic. Just when he is forgotten, he might go on a terror, put together a second week like he did at the U.S. Open and win another big title. Even Ferrer has to envy Cilic's upside and major title.
Winner: Thanasi Kokkinakis
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Let's hope that Thanasi Kokkinakis can play better tennis than how he picks out tennis attire. So far, so good, because any win is better than wearing something that looks like Claude Monet went neon.
We've profiled teenagers such as Nick Kyrgios and Borna Coric, so a brief tip of the cap to Kokkinakis is now appropriate. The 18-year-old Aussie potential star is ranked No. 125 and has already scored four fairly impressive victories in 2015:
- He defeated No. 25 Julien Benneteau at Brisbane 6-4, 6-3.
- He outlasted No. 13 Ernests Gulbis in the opening round of the Australian Open, 5-7, 6-0, 1-6, 7-6(2), 8-6.
- He won an important Davis Cup match over veteran Lukas Rosol (No. 31) 4-6, 2-6, 7-5, 7-5, 6-3.
- Now he has an Indian Wells victory, defeating No. 26 Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, 7-5, 5-7, 6-3.
One thing is very clear. He has been resilient in making comebacks and pulling out marathon matches. His Indian Wells match lasted almost three hours.
It might be time to pay more attention to Australia's No. 2 "future star." If his tennis keeps talking, maybe nobody will notice his shirt.
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Loser: Nick Kyrgios
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Nick Kyrgios's winning break point to take a 5-4 third-set lead took a bizarre twist—his ankle that it. Kyrgios's foot, perhaps catching on the grittier plexipave surface forced him to hobble off on the changeover. He came back without seeing a trainer, then promptly lost eight of nine points and ultimately the match in the third set tiebreaker, 7-6(2), 3-6, 7-6(4) to Grigor Dimitrov.
Was it just unlucky for Kyrgios? Certainly it was disappointing to lose a match that was in his grasp, a match that did not see him serve as well as normal (he was outserved by Dimitrov) and one that he nearly ground out for a win.
Dimitrov must be sighing relief. He could not effectively break Kyrgios' serve, and despite coming in closer to the baseline and exposing Kyrgios' mediocre footwork and inability to pick up low slices, Dimitrov still needed an opening to rally and close out the match.
It was also a missed opportunity for Kyrgios to finish off a prominent member of "The Lost Generation," which he and fellow teenagers Thanasi Kokkinakis and Borna Coric hope to soon leapfrog into the next kings of tennis.
Call it a setback, but a painful loss nevertheless.
Winners: Roger Federer and Andy Murray
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No sweat for Andy Murray in defeating Vasek Pospisil 6-1, 6-3.
Easy pickings for Roger Federer's 6-4, 6-2 yawner over Diego Schwartzman.
Of course it's always in the nature of all players to note how they are doing in the conditions they play. Federer, who prefers speedy courts, cautiously assessed his performance on slower, grittier Indian Wells, according to The Associated Press (via Yahoo.com):
"I'm moving well, which is key on this surface because the easy shots and easy points are not going to happen so easily here like they maybe do in Dubai or Australia or the indoor season. I was successful playing on my terms. There are certain things I can do better, but for a first round it's a good start.
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Murray, who is seeking his first title at Indian Wells, also made reference to what are not considered his ideal conditions, this through BBC Sport:
"I've struggled a bit in the last few years here so I decided to try and play a very solid match and adjust to the conditions. It was very hot and that made the ball pretty lively. Controlling the ball isn't that easy. I thought I played quite a smart match.
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Time for the third round.
Loser: Stanislas Wawrinka
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In the Marin Cilic slide, we noted his streaky play and potential for the biggest prizes, a risk-reward kind of threat but certainly not a candidate to rule tennis. Stanislas Wawrinka is somewhat similar, albeit a few years older, a bit more consistent and able to play to his strengths.
But it also means results like his first-round loss to Robin Haase.
Haase is more talented than his No. 104 ranking, but he has struggled in 2015 and is not the player who peaked inside the top 40 a few years ago. Still, the Dutchman is a player Wawrinka should have handled.
In the end, Wawrinka maintains his status as a dangerous wild-card threat to a major title, a tough matchup for Djokovic and a player who can conjure up the mental strength needed to play against the very best stars in a tournament's final weekend.
But those early-round losses will continue to deny more opportunities to compete for the titles. While Tomas Berdych and David Ferrer consistently crash quarterfinals as they should, Wawrinka is less likely to do so but more likely to advance past that point once he is there.
It's on to Miami for Wawrinka now. Expect a much better effort and result. He has plenty of time to prepare.
Winner: Rafael Nadal
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This was no more than a glorified workout for Rafael Nadal. It was the ideal exercise to hit against another human professional tennis player, iron out a few kinks and save plenty of energy for the next match. Nadal cruised 6-4, 6-2 and won 31 of his first 34 service points before settling for 37 of 44 service points won and one quickly erased break point in the final game.
What does this mean?
It's win No. 718 in his career, it advances him at Indian Wells 2015 and it gave the live fans a chance to watch a modern legend.
Next week will be the real analysis.
Loser: Champions Who Never Won Indian Wells
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We profiled the importance of Indian Wells as an indicator of who is the best player in tennis. While great players often win this tournament, historically some legends have never held this title since its advent in 1974. (It also took time for the tournament to evolve—including shifts of location—and not all of the best players prioritized it.)
But currently Indian Wells is perhaps the most important non-major. Murray hopes that he will escape the following list of players who never won this title:
Bjorn Borg, John McEnroe, Ivan Lendl, Mats Wilander, Thomas Muster, Gustavo Kuerten, Andy Roddick and Juan Martin del Potro.
Next week, Indian Wells will either crown one of the Big Three (Federer, Nadal, Djokovic) for yet another title, or somebody new will finally grab a piece of history. It's probably a better bet to take one of the Big Three than the rest of the field, but Murray would love to change that.
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