World number two Novak Djokovic sat down with the press this afternoon at the Sony Ericsson Open.  Djokovic answered questions about soccer, Juan Martin Del Potro, and Andy Roddick.  He also commented on his recent entry into the social media outlets of Twitter and Facebook. Here is his complete interview with the media.

Q. You’re awake. You must be really tired with all that’s been going on.

NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Yes, well, it’s been exhausting couple of days, you know, from Indian Wells, traveling to Colombia, playing an exhibition match ‑‑ which, by the way, was amazing and great atmosphere and great reception we got there ‑‑ and then came back and we had, of course, the charity event, football match, and then the dinner that was going on. So it was a lot of obligations, but still, it was enjoyable, because it was all for the good cause; we had a lot of fun yesterday.

Q. How are you taking your first loss of the season against the Strikers?

NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Yes, not great. (Laughter. We scored two goals. I mean, it’s good enough for the first time, you know. We were just discussing right now in the locker room how we need to work on our game. We are planning actually to play couple of more similar charity football games throughout, you know, the next six, seven, eight months. You know, I’m not gonna say still where and when, but we have something in our minds. Hopefully we can make that happen, because most of the players really, we love playing football, and you could see that. You know, you could see that they are enjoying playing that sport and of course being very competitive, even though it was first time that we managed to become a team. But we wanted to win badly. Yeah, but it was fun.

Q. Who’s the best player?

NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Ah, the best player? Baghdatis. Second best, Murray. They scored both one goal and they were good.

Q. Do you worry about injuries? I mean, soccer, even if you’re playing a charity event, you could still twist your ankle or something.

NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Well, you know, we didn’t think about that too much, to be honest, you know. (Smiling.) It was more of adrenaline rush that we had of just being there. To be honest, in the first place, everybody didn’t expect that event to be that successful. And it was incredible, you know. Big thanks to everybody who came there, and of course media and all the players, the Strikers and everybody. You know, it was a great cause obviously, and obviously and everybody felt the need to show their support. But on the other hand, it was ‑‑ you know, it was sport that we love to play, but we don’t have an opportunity to be able to play an official match with the referees. But it was great. You know, I don’t think they thought about injuries that much, but we had to sign the paper that they are not responsible for our injuries, like in States. It always works like that. (Laughter.)

Q. With everything that’s been going on, have you had a chance to reflect on what has just been an amazing start to the season?

NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Um, the best couple of months of my career, definitely. Um, playing really, really well on the court, feeling emotionally very stable, and I just have more self‑belief that I can play good tennis, you know, and that I can win against any player on the tour. It’s really important, you know. I always had, I think, that quality, but mentally I was having a lot of ups and downs, and I didn’t have enough confidence on the court when I played the big players in the big events. But now it’s different, you know. It took time. It took definitely time for me to come to this point where, you know, where I play, I think, the best tennis of my life. It took a lot of patience, a lot of hard work, but it all comes from that. It all comes from dedication.

Q. How did you address those mental up and downs? Was there one thing that made a difference?

NOVAK DJOKOVIC: It’s very hard to make a difference between a private life and your professional life. There were some things that affected my game, you know, from private life. It was hard, for me, to kind of, you know, show my best on the court. You know, bottom line is this is mental game. Everybody’s physically fit, and, you know, everybody’s working really hard each day. But if you’re not stable emotionally, then you’re not able to perform your best on the court. Now things are coming together, so just happy for that.

Q. Can you tell me about all your experiences in Bogota?

NOVAK DJOKOVIC: I cannot tell you about all the experience, but I can tell you the experience that we had on the court. (Laughing.) It has been a fantastic trip for us. Even though it was very short, it was maybe one day, but we didn’t have much sleep, that’s for sure. You know, from Indian Wells we had a long travels, and we slept for a couple of hours only that day before the exhibition event. We had a lot of activities. We had a tennis clinic with sponsors, with kids, and we had a lot of media activities, as well. And then, you know, we went back to the stadium where we played the match. It was packed. I think it was 14,000 people. It was, for me, the best atmosphere in the exhibition match that I have experienced ever. I was not aware of the popularity of tennis in Colombia, to be honest. It was amazing. The president of the country came, and we really felt ‑‑ we really felt great.

Q. With all the matches you won now, is there a danger of becoming too confident?

NOVAK DJOKOVIC: I guess it’s never enough to have, you know ‑‑ more confidence you have, I guess, there is no limits in confidence, you know. It’s really important to be able to have a feeling that you can win against anybody in the court. I think the bottom line is that it’s all about confidence, and only couple of points basically decide the winner when you are playing against the top players, against Roger, Rafa, you know, Murray, all these guys. It’s very high level of tennis, and, you know, if you’re able to be calm in the certain moments, to be confident, to go for the shots, you know, then you will have a success. I guess in last two, three months, that’s the state of, you know ‑‑ that’s the feeling that I have right now, and it keeps on going well for me. But it’s only a start of the year. I want to move on. I’m using the experience that I had two years ago, three years ago when I won a Grand Slam, when I won Indian Wells, and then I lost here first round. I had a lot of opening‑round losses throughout the year, and I wasn’t managing to be consistent with the success. This time I will do differently.
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Argentine Juan Martin Del Potro’s impressive return to the ATP tour continued today at the Sony Ericsson Open. In first round action, Del Potro defeated Ricardo Mello of Brazil in straight sets 6-4, 6-4.

In his post match interview Del Potro was asked if he thought his comeback was on track and if he was back to where [he] needed to be. Del Potro responded that he “didn’t think so” however he added that “I’m improving faster than what I expected.” Del Potro acknowledged that there is a difference in the level of his game versus Nadal and other top 10 players, but he stated that he “is getting closer”.

Del Potro is now on a collision course with Robin Soderling in the third round. Del Potro faces Philipp Kohlschreiber in the second round, while Soderling begins his Miami campaign against Ivan Dodig.

In other first round action 2008 Sony Ericsson Open Champion Nikolay Davydenko was upset by Kevin Anderson. This is the second time that Anderson has eliminated a past champion in the opening rounds in Miami. In 2008, Anderson bounced defending champion Novak Djokovic in the second round.

James Blake also advanced in Miami after staging a come from behind win over fellow American Michael Russell. Blake closed out Russell in a third set tie break and will face Thomaz Bellucci in the next round.

 
The Sony Ericsson Open singles draws for the women and men have been released.  There are a bevy of potential semifinal match-ups to salivate over.

On the ATP side, Rafael Nadal, the world number one may battle 2009 finalist Tomas Berdych in the quarterfinals.

With Roger Federer dropping to the number three in the rankings, the Swiss could clash with Nadal in the semifinals.  Moreover, Federer may contend with defending champion Andy Roddick in the quarterfinals.

If the draw plays out according to the seeding, in the bottom half, David Ferrer and Robin Soderling will be slated to meet in the quarterfinals.  However, Juan Martin Del Potro could spoil that face-off.

Also located in the bottom section is the hottest player on tour, world number two Novak Djokovic. The Serb could have a rematch of this year’s Australian Open final in the quarterfinals with Andy Murray.

Whether it’s Del Potro, Ferrer or Soderling in the semifinals, at this stage, Djokovic seems ready to mow over all comers.

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Juan Martin Del Potro returned to the winner circle today.  Del Potro fought off Janko Tipsarevic in the final of the Delray Beach International Tennis Championships with a 6-4,6-4 victory to earn his first tour title since the 2009 U.S. Open.

At the conclusion of his semifinal match last evening, Del Potro emphasized that despite being exhausted he would give it his all in the final.  Early on, Del Potro looked conspicuously fatigued.  Although the Argentine held easily his first service game, it was more a consequence of Tipsarevic making too many errors.  After getting ahead 2-1, Tipsarevic lined up a backhand down the line winner beautifully to secure double break point.  As a result of a Tipsarevic errant forehand and a questionable second serve ace, Del Potro got to deuce.  After giving the umpire a piece of his mind, Tipsarevic connected on a forehand crosscourt winner for a third break point.  That time when Del Potro misfired with the backhand down the line, Tipsarevic had the break for a 3-1 edge and later consolidated.  Despite difficulties, Del Potro guarded serve the subsequent game.  Next, showing a burst of energy for the first time, Del Potro sprinted to track down a Tipsarevic dropshot and put it away for a winner.  With that Del Potro had break point.  He converted when Tipsarevic’s forehand up the line landed long.  After quickly getting to 4 all, Del Potro provoked a forehand miscue from Tipsarevic on game point for deuce.  With two additional mistakes by Tipsarevic, Del Potro obtained the break and a 5-4 advantage.  Serving for the set, Del Potro had two shots go off course and double faulted to hand Tipsarevic triple break point.  By hanging tough and serving well, Del Potro arrived at deuce.  The Argentine wiped out two more break points and ultimately on his third chance secured the opening set.

Despite outplaying Del Potro in the previous set, Tipsarevic found himself behind in the scoreboard.  Nevertheless, the Serb attempted to soldier on.  The initial game of the second set, thanks to his long wing span, Del Potro caught up with a backhand volley from Tipsarevic and struck a backhand pass for a winner for break point.  With great defense, Tipsarevic denied Del Potro the game.  Five game points later, Tipsarevic captured the first game.  Following a couple of comfortable service games, at 2 all, Tipsarevic fumbled a backhand down the line to give Del Potro double break point.  The Serb then double faulted to gift Del Potro a 3-2 lead.  Later, with a forehand volley winner, Tipsarevic manufactured double break point of his own.  Yet, on both occasions, he was turned away.  Tipsarevic had two more opportunities to break in that game, but Del Potro shut him out.  After salvaging his eleventh out of twelve break points, Del Potro consolidated for 4-2. Although Tipsarevic continued to press, Del Potro aided by a vocal Argentine public held on for a 5-3 lead.  Serving for the match, Del Potro revved up the mph on the serve to get to triple championship point.  When Tipsarevic’s forehand crosscourt sailed long, Del Potro captured the title.

In analyzing the match, Tipsarevic iterated that it boiled down to “not executing well. . . .and not taking my chances”.  For Tipsarevic, the first set was pivotal because “I was disappointed that I lost it even though Del Potro was not playing his game”.

Del Potro was frank in saying “I think [Janko] deserved to win the first set. . . I was trying to focus on my serve [the first set] because I knew it was only one break. . . I knew I would have the opportunity to comeback. . . When I had it, I took it.  I had a little bit of luck granted. . . My forehand began to work which helped me in closing out the first set”.

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Derailed by a wrist injury in 2010, Juan Martin Del Potro’s last final was the 2009 U.S. Open.  Tonight, the Argentine took care of American Mardy Fish 6-1,7-5 in the semifinals of the Delray Beach International Tennis Championships to advance to his eleventh career final.

Following a comfortable opening game, Del Potro obtained a break point when Fish pushed a forehand up the line wide.  With a forehand crosscourt winner, Del Potro broke.  This was the first time Fish had surrendered his serve the entire tournament.  When Del Potro’s forehand crosscourt landed wide, Fish had a break point of his own.  However, after scrambling beautifully to defend, Fish misfired on a neutral backhand down the line to let Del Potro off the hook.  With two good serves, Del Potro consolidated for a 3-0 edge.  Subsequent to both players holding without difficulty, Fish committed three straight errors to hand Del Potro triple break point.  By bludgeoning a forehand crosscourt for a winner, Del Potro broke again for 5-1.  Promptly with another unadventurous game, Del Potro pocketed the set.

Throughout the initial set, Del Potro was crushing the ball and Fish played right into the Argentine’s hand by camping out on the baseline.  The second set, Fish altered his strategy and decided to take his chances at net.  Subsequent to a difficult hold, Fish provoked three forehand flubs from Del Potro for double break point.  When Del Potro’s backhand failed to go over the net, Fish had a 2-0 lead.  But, by connecting on a backhand down the line for a winner, Del Potro got to break point.  When Fish’s forehand bounced wide, the players were back on serve.  Nevertheless, Fish continued to press and again with three miscues in a row from Del Potro, he arrived at triple break point.  On that occasion, Del Potro double faulted to gift the American the break.  Despite facing a break point, Fish ultimately consolidated for a 4-1 advantage.  Although his service games got harder, Del Potro kept up with Fish to limit the deficit to one break.  Serving at 4-2, Fish made three mistakes to donate double break point to his adversary.  Del Potro gladly accepted by ripping a forehand down the line which lead to Fish’s response going wide.  Then at love, Del Potro leveled the set at 4 all.  With a quick hold, Fish inched ahead 5-4.  Yet, Del Potro had no problem squaring the set.  Later, off a booming backhand down the line by Del Potro, Fish watched his backhand land into the net to give the Argentine break point.  Del Potro converted by overpowering a forehand which resulted in a mistake by Fish.  After falling behind 0-30 while serving for the match, Del Potro produced two sensational winners to get to 30 all.  When Fish’s forehand did not clear the net, Del Potro had match point.  Del Potro sealed the victory when Fish misfired with the backhand.

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Earlier this year, Janko Tipsarevic and Kei Nishikori met in the quarterfinals of the Chennai Open with the former besting the latter 6-4,6-4.  This afternoon, the two had a rematch in the semifinals of the Delray Beach International Tennis Championships.  Once again, Tipsarevic got the better of Nishikori by the same score to move on to his third career final.

As the 2008 champion, Nishikori has great memories from this venue and began strongly with a love hold.  When Tipsarevic flubbed an overhead off a defensive lob, Nishikori was one point away from taking a 2-0 lead.  However, with his opponent making three consecutive errors, Tipsarevic managed to guard serve.  From that point on in the first set, Nishikori was the one pushing the envelope while Tipsarevic was satisfied with putting the ball in play.  As a result of that tactic, Tipsarevic forced multiple miscues from his rival.  Nishikori had to bounce back from love-30 to stay ahead 3-2.  But serving at 4 all, Nishikori netted a backhand crosscourt to hand Tipsarevic double break point.  When Nishikori sent another backhand long, Tipsarevic captured the break for a 5-4 edge.  Then at 40-0, Tipsarevic thumped an ace to put the set to bed.

During the interlude, Nishikori had an injury time out to address his foot.  Showing no ill effect, Nishikori went back to work.  Subsequent to an opening double fault, Nishikori fought hard and salvaged the game for 1-0.  Now in a groove, at love, Tipsarevic found the equalizer.  Next, by floating a forehand wide and committing a double fault, Nishikori was in a love-30 hole.  After recovering and getting to game point, Nishikori produced another mistake leading to deuce.  When Nishikori sliced a backhand wide, Tipsarevic had break point.  Tipsarevic converted as a result of Nishikori loosing control of a forehand stroke.  With another error plagued game from Nishikori, Tipsarevic easily consolidated for 3-1.  Despite staying one break down, with a myriad of errors, Nishikori failed to rattle Tipsarevic’s serve.  Consequently, as in the first set, an untroubled Tipsarevic arrived at triple match point and with an ace booked his spot into the final.

In his post match interview, Tipsarevic stated:  “I’m really happy with the week and my match today.”  When asked what he thought was the key to his win, Tipsarevic commented:   “the main difference was the serve. I managed to win one or two points per service game on my serve just by making an ace or a good serve while Kei had to grind for every possible point on his service game.”  Moreover, Tipsarevic cited:  “Novak [Djokovic] beating [Roger] Federer today made me want to win just a little bit more”.  In fact, Tipsarevic received a congratulatory text message from his countryman, Djokovic, after his victory.

To claim his first ATP title, Tipsarevic will have defeat either 2009 Delray Beach champion Mardy Fish or 2009 U.S. Open champ Juan Martin Del Potro.  Fish and Del Potro will clash in the night session.

Juan Martin Del Potro advanced to the quarterfinals of the Delray Beach Tennis International Championships Thursday night with a 6-1, 6-1 victory over Teymuraz Gabashvili.

After the match Del Potro commented that he “had a good night” adding that he is “getting better match by match” and that he “played better than [his opening match on] Tuesday”.

Looking ahead to BNP Paribas and Sony Ericsson Open, MiamiTennisNews asked Del Potro the following :

Q : Do the matches that you have won last week in Memphis and here in Delray give you confidence heading into Indian Wells and Miami?

Del Potro : Yes, I need to get more confidence and rhythm in matches. [I need] to get on the courts and feel the sensations of playing a match – nerves, being in a stadium with crowds – it is something that I lost while being out for a year. I need to recover [these experiences] as they are what lets one win matches.

Del Potro will face fifth-seeded Kevin Anderson in the quarterfinals on Friday. Anderson advanced in straight sets by defeating Florent Serra 6-1, 6-4 in the final match of the night session.

In the afternoon session second-seeded Mardy Fish advanced in straight sets over Ricardo Mello 6-2, 6-1. Fish is attempting to return to the Delray final after winning the title in 2009.

In another second round match, qualifier Alejandro Falla advanced in straight sets over Adrian Mannarino 6-3, 6-2. Falla faces Fish in the first match of Friday’s night session.

The first quarterfinal match of Friday features qualifier Ryan Sweeting taking on 2008 Delray champion Kei Nishikori. Ivan Dodig faces sixth-seeded Janko Tipsarevic in the second quarterfinal match.

Here is the order of play for Friday, February 25 :

STADIUM start 11:00 am
[1] E Butorac (USA) / J Rojer (AHO) vs A Fisher (AUS) / S Huss (AUS)

Not Before 12:30 PM
[Q] R Sweeting (USA) vs K Nishikori (JPN)

Not Before 2:30 PM
I Dodig (CRO) vs [6] J Tipsarevic (SRB)

5:30 PM
F Ferreiro (BRA) / A Sa (BRA) vs M Ebden (AUS) / S Groth (AUS)

Not Before 7:15 PM
[Q] A Falla (COL) vs [2] M Fish (USA)
[5] K Anderson (RSA) vs J Del Potro (ARG) 

Six-seeded Janko Tipsarevic advanced to the third round of the Delray Beach Tennis International Championships Wednesday night with a 6-2, 6-7, 6-3 win over Blaz Kavcic.

In the first night session match, Kei Nishikori eliminated wild card James Blake 6-3, 6-4. The second round encounter was a rematch of the 2008 final whereby Nishikori was also victorious.

In the afternoon session third-seeded Sam Querrey went down in straight sets to qualifier Ryan Sweeting, while Ivan Dodig advanced over Dudi Sela 2-6, 6-3, 6-2.

In another second round match Adrian Mannarino rallied from a set down to advance over Leonardo Mayer 1-6, 7-6, 6-4.

Thursday afternoon, 2009 ITC champion Mardy Fish will take on the 2004 ITC champion Ricardo Mello. The night session is highlighted by 2009 US Open champion Juan Martin Del Potro who takes on Teymuraz Gabashvili. Gabashvili eliminated John Isner in the first round.

Here is the order of play for Thursday, February 24 :

STADIUM start 11:00 am
B Becker (GER) / M Kohlmann (GER) vs C Kas (GER) / A Peya (AUT)

Not Before 12:30 PM
R Mello (BRA) vs [2] M Fish (USA)

Not Before 2:30 PM
[8] A Mannarino (FRA) vs [Q] A Falla (COL)

5:30 PM
S Lipsky (USA) / R Ram (USA) vs J Murray (GBR) / K Skupski (GBR)

Not Before 7:15 PM
J Del Potro (ARG) vs T Gabashvili (RUS)
[5] K Anderson (RSA) vs F Serra (FRA)

Juan Martin Del Potro advanced to the second round of the Delray Beach Tennis Championships Tuesday night with a 6-4, 6-1 win over Richard Berankis of Lithuania.

Del Potro and Berankis traded breaks early in the first set before going back on serve in the sixth game. Serving at 4-5, Berankis was broken, handing Del Potro the first set. In the second set, Berankis was no match for Del Potro who easily ran away with the second set and the match.

In the post match interview, Del Potro responded to following questions from MiamiTennisNews.com:

Q: Since your return from your wrist surgery have you had to adjust the way you play or are are playing at the same level when you won the US Open?
Del Potro: It depends on the climate and how I feel on a given day. I do not have the same strength however my game remains the same. I try to be aggressive with all my shots as that is what has allowed me to win tournaments.

Q: Are you taking any special measures to protect your wrist or are you back to 100%?
Del Potro: No, I’m still rehabbing and receiving treatments. It is a very long process. It still hasn’t been a year since I had the surgery. The norm would be that I would have some pain. At the moment [the recovery] is going well.

Del Potro, who is making his first appearance in Delray, will face Teymuraz Gabashvili of Russia in the second round. On Monday night Gabashvili upset the fourth-seeded American John Isner in a three sets.

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Citing flu-like symptoms, Andy Roddick has pulled out of the the 2011 Delray Beach International Championships.

Roddick held a press conference this afternoon where he expressed his disappointment at having to pull out of the event given that he has not played the tournament since 2003. On his condition, Roddick stated that ” I woke up yesterday and felt like I got hit by a bus”. Tuesday’s night session will now feature Juan Martin Del Potro taking on Richard Berankis.

Here is the official press release from ITC tournament following Roddick’s press conference :

Delray Beach, FL – Top seed Andy Roddick has pulled out of the Delray Beach International Championships because of illness.

Roddick said during a press conference late Monday afternoon that he began experiencing flu-like symptoms prior to his Memphis final and has been prescribed antibiotics.

“I’m very disappointed. I’ve waited too long to come back and play this tournament,” said Roddick, who is a former resident of nearby Boca Raton where he played in high school. “It’s just unfortunate timing. I was looking forward to coming back. I honestly don’t feel I can go out there and give my best.”

Roddick won his 30th ATP World Tour title Sunday when he defeated Canadian Milos Raonic in three sets at the Regions Morgan Keegan Championships in Memphis, joining Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal as the only active tennis players to win at least 30 ATP titles. Roddick, ranked No. 8 in world, notched the victory with a remarkable diving forehand shot down the line on match point.

Roddick’s spot atop the bracket has been filled by qualifier Marinko Matosevic.

Tournament director Mark Baron announced that Tuesday’s evening session would begin at 5:30 pm with a Ashley Fisher/Stephen Huss vs. Jack Sock/Donald Young doubles match, followed by a 7:15 pm Juan Martin del Potro vs Richard Berankis ATP World Tour first round match, followed by the ATP Champions Tour Final.