Winners and Losers of the 2015 BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells
Novak Djokovic is the king of the 2015 BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells. Roger Federer was the worthy runner-up, proving the gap between them and the rest of the ATP field. There's more on their clash with the slides to follow.
We also look at the ATP stars who either moved up or lost ground in their efforts to roar into spring tennis. How did Andy Murray, Rafael Nadal and the young Aussie stars fit into our Winners and Losers column? And what makes this tournament one of the very best on the tour?
The following is a wrap on Indian Wells, takeaways on the ever-changing fortunes and results for the best men's players in the year's second great tournament.
Winner: Indian Wells
1 of 10
The aerial cameras pan through clear, sunny skies and into the eye of an architectural octagon, a 16,100-seat stadium that is a sublime blend of blues and greens, populated by bustling tennis fanatics far apart from the rest of civilization.
Indian Wells is a rarified tennis experience, the gold-star standard of the Masters 1000 tournaments and the envy of every venue outside of Wimbledon and Roland Garros. Even Flushing Meadows and Melbourne—Grand Slam prestige aside—must feel somewhat envious at the atmosphere, amenities and tennis matchups. Filler matches are fewer, the stars play more frequently and tennis winter officially turns to spring.
Tournament owner Larry Ellison is there, sporting a tan and often wearing a hat. He garners enough respect to get John McEnroe to listen for a change. Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic both complimented the venue with genuine respect in their post-ceremony comments.
It's the greatest show in the desert, super cool and refined, even for TV viewers.
Loser: Grigor Dimitrov
2 of 10
It's one thing for Grigor Dimitrov to lose to top-10 players, but the discouraging thing about his gradual fade (during the past several months) is that he is losing to players who are ranked below him.
He could have lost to Nick Kyrgios in the second round at Indian Wells had the young Aussie not twisted his ankle.
He did lose to 17th-seeded Tommy Robredo, a gritty veteran to be sure, but someone who does not possess the legs, energy, firepower and skills of Dimitrov. Robredo's experience and savvy were enough, attributes that Dimitrov has been slow to acquire.
On the other hand, Dimitrov is not likely to lose to the best players in the late rounds if he can't get past many of the players ranked below him. It could add up to tougher draws and more opening-round exits.
Has he already hit his ceiling? Are the expectations and media coverage too damning? He has yet to truly contend for a Masters 1000 tournament, and his 2014 Wimbledon semifinal is the same level of success of contemporary Jerzy Janowicz.
Winner: Young Aussie Talents
3 of 10
We featured 19-year-old Nick Kyrgios' tough-luck (ankle roll) loss to Grigor Dimitrov last week, but many tennis fans no doubt were impressed with his firepower and potential.
Meanwhile, 18-year-old Thanasi Kokkinakis, as a wild card, defeated veterans Guillermo Garcia-Lopez and Juan Monaco on his way to the fourth round. There he finally fell, but not without a knock-down, drag-out fight against the old man of the Aussie trio, 22-year-old Bernard Tomic.
Tomic has battled injuries the past year, which have slowed his progress until recent months. But he is gaining consistency and winning multiple matches in several recent tournaments, quietly moving his ranking up to No. 35 before Indian Wells.
His fourth-round win against Kokkinakis landed him in the quarterfinals and clinched the No. 29 world ranking. A round earlier, he had impressively outlasted the ever-pugnacious and world No. 8 David Ferrer with an 8-6 third-set tiebreaker. Is he coming of age?
Now if Tomic can only stay healthy and humble. He withdrew from his quarterfinal match against Novak Djokovic, citing back and toothaches. His participation for the Miami Masters is still questionable.
All in all, it was a very successful week for the young Aussies, garnering an impressive dose of experience in their ambitions to climb the ATP ladder.
.jpg?w=256 "Colts Jaguars Football")
Loser: Tomas Berdych
4 of 10
The honeymoon with new coach Dani Vallverdu might be over, two months removed from the Australian Open and his coach's comments that Berdych is ready to win a Grand Slam. Will Tomas Berdych settle back into his familiar groove of losing big matches in the late rounds?
It's not that Berdych was favored to defeat second-seeded Roger Federer in the quarterfinals, but he had taken five of the previous nine matches (since 2010) against the Swiss Maestro.
Then the Swiss rejected the Czech with everything that separates their two careers.
Berdych's serve coughed and hiccuped. Federer's serve sailed and assaulted.
Berdych's footwork, so eager at the Australian Open, was shackled as if sponsored by cement blocks. Federer was cat-quick, time-traveling to 2004.
The disappointing thing for Berdych was he had no way to rally from poor serving and tardy defensive retrievals. He could not seize any control; he was through, and he knew it. Suddenly he was eating a second-set bagel, and Federer's 6-4, 6-0 mercy killing reminded the tennis world that Mr. Berdych is still Mr. Berdych.
Winner: Feliciano Lopez
5 of 10
OK, it's not like Feliciano Lopez has a Spanish claim to be recognized ahead of David Ferrer and Rafael Nadal in recent weeks, but the 33-year-old pro is quietly playing some of the best tennis of his life.
He crashed the quarterfinals after composing big wins over Pablo Cuevas and world No. 5 Kei Nishikori. He finally fell to Andy Murray, 6-3, 6-4.
Lopez is a tough lefty server, but he's also aggressive, and he controlled his win over Nishikori with more power, more winners and a hungrier approach to winning.
Now sneaking in at world No. 12, can he crack the top 10? With the inconsistencies of Grigor Dimitrov and the questions circling Marin Cilic, there is room ahead if he can have a big clay-court season.
Furthermore, Lopez is closing in on 400 wins for his career (he sits at 371), deserving of a seat at the table with his excellent Spanish contemporaries, including Tommy Robredo and Nicolas Almagro.
Loser: Andy Murray
6 of 10
They are only a week apart in age, but Novak Djokovic has long been esteemed as the big brother to Andy Murray. Then another Djokovic beatdown on his little brother, 6-2, 6-3, in a match that wasn't even close to competitive.
What can Little Brother do?
Just tip his cap and call Djokovic his daddy.
Djokovic has now won nine of 10 matches against Murray for a 17-8 career head-to-head domination. And it feels like the gap keeps growing. Djokovic is the best player in the world, and Murray, as good as he is, knows that he will most likely have to go through his father figure to win another major.
While Djokovic continues to become more comfortable in winning the big hardware, Murray must continue to figure out how to implement a more aggressive game, to create easier points and more opportunities. There is pressure on his post-Ivan Lendl coaching staff, and Murray knows he cannot play like it's 2012.
Reaching the semifinals at Indian Wells should be considered a success, but getting drubbed by Big Daddy is getting out of hand.
Winner: Milos Raonic
7 of 10
He's the biggest serving machine in tennis, and it's good enough to be a top-10 player. Milos Raonic, seemingly cyborg, has shown improved maturity and composure, even through slews of errors and few opportunities to create breaks against the very top players.
In the quarterfinals against Rafael Nadal, Raonic tiptoed on the edge of trouble but always kept his cool—never getting high or low—eventually turning back three match points, surviving a 12-10 second-set tiebreaker and defeating the Spaniard for the first time in six career matches, 4-6, 7-6(10), 7-5. It took him three hours to break Nadal, and then he held on like a champion.
Cyborg coolness indeed.
Raonic will never be a champion with all-around skills, but he has worked hard to maximize his plodding footwork and back up the awesome serve. One day he may have enough to win a major title, and if he does, it's the composure and patience through adversity that may serve him best.
His semifinals loss to Roger Federer was another chance to experience what it will take to win a Masters 1000 title, but the cyborg is headed in the right direction.
Loser: Rafael Nadal
8 of 10
Rafael Nadal could not capitalize on three match points in losing to Milos Raonic in the quarterfinals. Afterward, he claimed the glass was half full, as stated in ATP World Tour:
"I think every week I am better. Every week I am more competitive. Every week I feel stronger, quicker on court again. My movements are good again.
My focus on the match is becoming better every match. Today I was able to compete against a top player without a feeling that he was better than me. So that's a big improvement.
"
On the one hand, it's very difficult for the players to peak and find their best form. Nadal knows it's not getting easier, and the days of dominating the tour like 2010 or 2013 are slim at best.
One of his strengths is that he can lock into the details of where he is at and what needs to be done in the moment. Right now, the French Open is the last thing on his mind.
But losing to top-10 opponents can become a disease, eroding confidence and making a great champion feel that close losses to younger potential stars are moral victories.
Which is it?
Miami is next, and Nadal has never won that title, but it finishes only a week before Monte Carlo. Tennis fans have to question whether his heart is already in red-clay Europe training for the tournaments he stands best to win.
Winner: Novak Djokovic
9 of 10
He's clearly the best player in the world, and even when he gets into a second-set funk, giving away points and showing that all champions can have jittery nerves, Novak Djokovic has become a wiser, stronger champion.
He has learned to play through adversity and beat his top rivals when it matters most. His Indian Wells title at the expense of Roger Federer merely confirms what we all know: This is the Serbian's ATP tour, and everyone else is chasing him.
Nobody is unbeatable, but Djokovic has the highest level of tennis and the fewest flaws. After rolling Federer for nearly two sets, he had to regroup against un-Djokovic-like errors and passivity, a series of double-faults (three in the tiebreaker) and an easy, sitting ball that probably should have been whacked past his Swiss rival for a 6-3 tiebreaker lead.
Furthermore, the Serbian's self-inflicted gaffes coincided with Federer's spectacular zone that saw him surge into the third set with momentum.
Djokovic was fighting himself and playing against a crowd that had turned into a quasi-World Cup atmosphere for the sentimentally favored Swiss Maestro. It was somewhat similar to how he had to persevere at Wimbledon. It was Djokovic vs. the world.
Djokovic will now look to take the spring American double with Miami coming up. Imagine doing this in back-to-back years. The last person to do this? Yes, Federer in 2005-06. Fitting company indeed.
Loser: Roger Federer
10 of 10
No, Roger Federer is not a loser, and this slide doesn't imply that he is, but the Indian Wells final was a lost opportunity. He took only two of 10 break points (Djokovic took five of 13), showing that a few points are the difference to everything.
We regaled Djokovic and acknowledge the Herculean task that it is to topple him in an important final. Federer is the closest thing there is to an antidote, with his abilities to mix in sensational variety and carve out creative points.
Most of all, he has the champion's mentality, always fighting back and willing to play full-out to win a big title.
In reality, Federer did everything he could to win this title and lost no ground to Djokovic in the ATP rankings. He just could not play his best tennis in the third and final set to a dominant champion who is in his prime years.
The only thing Federer lost was the final match and the opportunity to gain 800 points. It's not easy to get into these positions for big titles, and there is always less time ahead. Federer can't hang his head at the efforts, but it's just so tough when beating the one player ahead requires a perfect match, or a fast surface like Dubai.
Look for more big opportunities from the Swiss Maestro. There's a lot of tennis ahead.
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
