No room for dispute, 2010 was a banner year for Rafael Nadal.  The Spaniard captured three majors, regained the world number one ranking and completed the career grand slam.  As such, Nadal’s domination left no ambiguity as to who was the most outstanding player in 2010.  With the year at a close, here’s a snapshot of the stories which caught the headlines this foregone season.

After a slow start, Nadal found his footing on clay with his first calendar title at the Monte-Carlo Masters.  Subsequent to banking titles at the Masters in Rome and Madrid, Nadal culminated his clay campaign with his fifth big prize at Roland Garros.  At Wimbledon, the Spaniard defended his 2008 title to seize his second major at the All England Club.  Finally, at U.S. Open, with troublesome obstacles removed from his half of the draw,  Nadal reached his first final in New York.  Nadal stared down a strong challenge from Novak Djokovic to hoist his first U.S. Open trophy.  With a total of seven titles, Nadal topped his peers in 2010.

For Roger Federer, this year was a mixed bag.  After grabbing his sixteenth major in Australia, Federer had a fourth round loss at the Sony Ericsson Open to Tomas Berdych which sent him into a tailspin.  As defending champion at the French Open, Federer was beaten in the quarterfinals by Robin Soderling which ended an unprecedented streak of twenty-three consecutive semifinals at the majors.  Furthermore, defending champ Federer was ousted in the quarterfinals by Berdych at Wimbledon.  In fact, Federer’s ranking dropped to number three, his lowest since November 2003.  Yet, with his second title of the season at the Cincinnati Masters, Federer seemed again on the right road.  However, Federer failed to take advantage of match points in the U.S. Open semifinals against Djokovic and went down in flames.  After the New York fiasco, Federer resurfaced with a fresh coach, Paul Annacone, and won three of four finals including the ATP World Tour finals where he toppled Nadal.

The Australian Open appeared a turning point for Andy Murray.  Easily handled in the final by Federer, Murray could do nothing right with the racket for a while. Eventually at Wimbledon, Murray advanced to the semifinals only to be disappointed by Nadal.  With the defense of his title at the Rogers Cup, Murray seemed to be back.  But, another setback occurred at the U.S. Open where Murray was stunned in the third round by Stanislas Wawrinka.  In besting Federer in the Shanghai Masters final, Murray looked to be heading for a strong finish.  Yet, at the ATP World Tour Finals, Murray took another  downturn.  This was emblematic of the Scot’s tumultuous year which included a rupture with coach Miles Maclagan, a brief ceding of the world number four spot to Soderling and only two titles.

With solely two titles and a U.S. Open final appearance, Djokovic had a so-so year.  The Serb even ascended to number two for a bit, but finished at number three.  While individual success was sparse, Djokovic led his country to its first Davis Cup title.  Along with countryman Viktor Troicki, Djokovic mounted a brilliant comeback to stop France from a tenth trophy.

For the second consecutive year, Soderling earned a place in the final at Roland Garros.  Last year, by shocking Nadal in the round of 16, Soderling stamped his name into tennis trivia.  This time around though there was no surprise as Nadal exacted sweet revenge.  In the Paris Masters final, Soderling vanquished Gael Monfils for his biggest career title.  A few weeks later, Soderling announced that coach Magnus Norman and he were splitting up because the former wanted to dedicate more time to his family.  Thus, it will be interesting to see how Soderling will fare without the man who spearheaded his rise.

Despite no titles, 2010 was a breakthrough season for Berdych.  After a finalist showing at the Sony Ericsson Open, Berdych made it to the semifinals at Roland Garros.  Moreover, Berdych booked his first slot in the final of a major at Wimbledon.  Consequently feeling the weight of expectation, Berdych crashed in the first round at the U.S. Open and had a mediocre finish to his season.  With his highest career ranking at number six, Berdych will have to prove in 2011 that he was not a flash in the pants but the real deal.

At 28, David Ferrer, a former world number four, shot up from a ranking of 17 at season’s start to number 7 at year’s end.  The hardworking Spaniard claimed two titles and participated in the year ending championships in London.  Although compatriot Fernando Verdasco also terminated the season with two titles and as the world number nine, he missed out on the final dance.  Furthermore, unlike 2009, Verdasco performed poorly at the majors with a single quarterfinal showing at the U.S. Open.

With his triumph at the Sony Ericsson Open, Andy Roddick seemed to put all the elements together for a push to another final at a major.  But Roddick hit a low following a gut wrenching loss to Yen-Hsun Lu ranked 82nd in the Wimbledon round of 16.  Later, Roddick had an early departure in Washington.  As a result, for the first time since 1973, no American male was ranked in the top ten in singles.  Shortly thereafter, tests revealed Roddick was on the tail end of a bout of mononucleosis.  At the ATP World Tour Finals, Roddick was a shell of what he had been when the season began.

Several other veterans stood up in 2010.  Mikhail Youzhny demonstrated he still had game at the age of 28 with two titles.  The Russian was a quarterfinalist at Roland Garros, a semifinalist at the U.S. Open and ended the year as the world number ten.  At 29, Jurgen Melzer reached his first career major semifinal at Roland Garros and had his best ranking at eleven.  Besides, Melzer and Philipp Petzschener won their first doubles major at Wimbledon.  Following hip surgery, with a title at the Legg Mason Classic, David Nalbandian proved once again he was a force.  Michael Llodra equaled his career high ranking of 23 and was essential to France’s run to the final of the Davis Cup.  In the final at Indian Wells, 31 year old Ivan Ljubicic upended Roddick for his tenth and loftiest career prize.

As a result of a wrist injury in the early months, Juan Martin Del Potro went from a potent threat to Nadal and Federer to being unable to defend his U.S. Open title.  After the Australian Open, Del Potro had surgery and needed months to recuperate.  Del Potro returned in October and played just two tournaments with prompt exits.  Thus, Del Potro the world number four last year finds his ranking in the cellar at 258 this month.

At Wimbledon, John Isner and Nicolas Mahut made history with the longest match ever.  In a first round match lasting 11 hours and 5 minutes over two days, Isner emerged as the winner edging Mahut 70-68 in the fifth set.  However, the next round, Isner was drained and went away in straight sets.

Carlos Moya, the 1998 French Open champion and former world number one, succumbed to age and a body which would not cooperate despite his desire to continue.  This November, Moya retired at 34 after winning twenty titles.

In doubles, Mike and Bob Bryan dominated with an unblemished record in finals at 11 including the Australian and U. S. Open titles.  Also, the two became the winningest team in doubles surpassing the previous mark set by Todd Woodbridge and Mark Woodforde at 61. In addition, the Bryan brothers finished at number one ahead of Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjic.  Despite seven titles, amongst them the French Open and the ATP World Tour Finals, Zimonjic and Nestor decided to part ways at season’s end.

In conclusion, with the 2011 season just around the corner, there are a horde of interesting questions on fanatics’ mind.  Can Nadal accomplish the calendar grand slam?  Will Federer win another major or will 16 be all he wrote?  Moreover, can Federer wrestle the number one ranking from his nemesis?  Will Murray terminate the British drought at the majors?  Who will be the breakout star of this new season ?  Will Del Potro be healthy again and climb back to where he was in 2009?  With the Australian Open less than three weeks away, some of these answers will be come soon enough.

In the doubles semifinals in Washington, Tomas Berdych and Radek Stepanek regrouped after dropping a contested first set to edge out the fourth seed Julian Knowle and Andy Ram 5-7,6-2,10-4.

After ousting the top seed Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjic,  Berdych and Stepanek got a walkover into the semifinals. Subsequent to Ram and Knowle carrying the first set, the team’s failure in serving effectively, allowed the Czechs to dominate the rest of the match. In the super tiebreaker, Berdych and Stepanek took control to acquire their first berth in a doubles final on the ATP tour as a team.

Following their triumph, MiamiTennisNews was one of only three sources to sit down with the duos and discuss a variety of topics.  After his singles defeat, Berdych expressed his dissatisfaction with the manner in which he was treated as the top seed.

Post sleep and perhaps having reflected, MiamiTennisNews wanted to know his views since yesterday.  Berdych was ambivalent about participating next year.
Q.  The two of you had such tremendous crowd support for your match today.  How do you feel after what transpired yesterday?  Will today weigh more in terms of making a decision for 2011?
Berdych: I was quite sad yesterday.  [Today], I just wanted to go back on the court, try to win, play better tennis and enjoy it.  It’s not a question of the next day.  There’s still a year to go. . . I will think about it and see what to do next year . . .so it’s difficult to say right now.

Moreover, Berdych states that thus far his issues had not been taken under advisement nor had the appropriate authorities spoken to him on the subject.

Because of injuries and personal reasons, Stepanek has been absent from the court. In singles, he lost his first match out to Marco Chiudinelli.  MiamiTennisNews asked:
Q.  What are your thoughts on being in the final?
Stepanek:  It’s a great result for us as a team . . . We’ve always played together in Davis Cup, played great matches.  But, we’ve never been able to do so well at [the ATP level], so we are very please.  Especially for me, after being out for five months with [mononucleosis and knee injury] my first tournament, I’m in the final; it’s a great feeling even though it’s doubles.  I’m getting on the court, getting some matches, gaining confidence . . .so I’m looking forward to tomorrow’s final.

Q. Are the two of you planning to play more doubles on the ATP tour as oppose to Davis Cup?
Stepanek:  No.  We always try to play a little before Davis Cup just to keep in touch.  The priority for both of us is still singles.  Tomas is now in the top ten and has a great chance to move up even more.  When we have a chance we will play, but not on a weekly basis.

Q.  Any thoughts on facing Serbia in the Davis Cup semifinals?
Stepanek:  Still a long way off.  It’s just nice to know that we are on the doubles court.  Everything is falling into place, going the right way.  We have the spirit and that’s the most important thing heading into Davis Cup after the U.S. Open.

In tomorrow’s final, Berdych and Stepanek will battle Mardy Fish and Mark Knowles.  The pair prevailed over Rohan Bopanna and Aisam-UI-Haq Qureshi 7-5,7-5.  In the quarterfinals, Bopanna and Qureshi surprised Bob and Mike Bryan, the world number two.

The Olympus U.S. Open series is on its D.C. stop this week.  Although Juan Martin Del Potro, the reigning U.S. Open and two time defending Legg Mason Classic champion, is sidelined by injury this year, numerous big names have made the trip to the nation’s capital to contest this coveted trophy.

On the opposite side of the draw is perennial favorite Andy Roddick, the second seed.  Roddick, a three time champion and finalist in 2009, is hoping to rebound from a curtailed Wimbledon campaign.  Being on grounds which brought him tremendous success previously could be the remedy for the American’s blues.

Fernando Verdasco, the world number 10 and 2009 Australian Open semifinalist, is the third seed.  It’s Verdasco’s  maiden showing at the tournament.  With three titles already this year, Verdasco will be a certain threat.  Returning for the second straight year is Marin Cilic who is positioned as the fourth seed and a potential semifinal rival for Roddick.

Another favorite for the trophy is Sam Querrey who is the 6th seed.  With three titles this season, Querrey could face Roddick in the semifinals.  Two other Americans,  Mardy Fish, the champion in Atlanta and John Isner, the runner-up in Georgia as well as the Legg Mason in 2007, are also strong contenders.  Lleyton Hewitt, the 2004 victor, the always entertaining Marcos Baghdatis, Stanislas Wawrinka, Delray titlist Ernests Gulbis, veteran Radek Stepanek and upstart Thiemo De Bakker likewise are part of the main draw.

Other notables include James Blake, the 2002 winner, Richard Gasquet and David Nalbandian who were given wildcard entries.  Moreover, the number one ranked pair of Nenad Zimonjic and Daniel Nestor as well as the  world number two, Mike and Bob Bryan, who have prevailed three times at this tournament highlight the doubles field.

Don’t miss all the action from this ATP 500 event from July 31 thru August 8.  For the complete draws and information on the tournament click on www.leggmasontennisclassic.com.  Follow us daily on twitter under the username MiamiTennisNews.

The year was 1923 the last time France carried a Davis Cup tie against Spain.  Today, the Frenchmen rectified that situation as Julien Benneteau and Michael Llodra defeated Fernando Verdasco and Feliciano Lopez 6-1,6-2, 6-7,7-6 to secure the crucial third point.  In so doing, France advances to the semifinals for the first time since 2004.

Yesterday in the city of Clermont-Ferrand, on a hardcourt stadium with over 6,000 rowdy fans, Gael Monfils set the tone of the quarterfinals with a 7-6,6-2,4-6,5-7,6-4 win over David Ferrer.  Ahead two sets to none, Monfils took a detour which permitted Ferrer to force the match into a fifth set.  After getting the early break, Monfils wiped out a break point to maintain a 5-2 advantage.  But, with Monfils serving at 5-3, Ferrer climbed back into the set.  However, after dropping serve, Monfils broke to give France the first rubber.

The second rubber was a battle of lefthanders, Llodra versus Verdasco.  For Llodra, the world number 10 presented a daunting challenge.  Nevertheless, by utilizing his serve supremely, Llodra defeated Verdasco 6-7,6-4,6-3,7-6.  After Llodra failed to capitalize on two set points, Verdasco prevailed in a first set tiebreaker.  Still, Llodra blocked out his previous misfortunes to break Verdasco in the initial game of the second set.  That was all the Frenchman needed to square the match.  The second set, Llodra again captured a sole break to carry that set.  After Llodra obtained the break early on in the fourth, Verdasco was able to manufacture his first break point of the match.  Nonetheless, Llodra managed to turn the Spaniard away.  Yet, in the sixth game, Verdasco procured a second break point opportunity and converted.  Ultimately, the set was settled in a tiebreaker in France’s favor.  With Llodra’s first triumph in singles in Davis Cup play, France was one victory away from a semifinal berth.

Today, following an easy hold by Llodra, Lopez started his game with a double fault.  Later, with a backhand mid-court winner, Llodra gave France double break point.  When Verdasco’s backhand volley found the bottom of the net, France secured the break.  The next game, courtesy of a forehand error by Benneteau, Spain had break point.  However, Benneteau served well enough to force the Spaniards into mistakes and extend France’s lead to 3-0 in the first set.  With Lopez serving, after a good backhand return by Llodra, Verdasco dumped a forehand volley into the net to hand France double break point.  When Benneteau connected on a forehand return winner, France stretched its advantage to 5-1. Shortly thereafter, Benneteau closed out the set.

With a forehand up the line return winner, Benneteau brought France to break point.  When Verdasco netted another forehand, France broke to open the second set.  With a love game, Llodra consolidated for 2-0.  Comfortable games by both teams kept the Spaniards just one game behind.  However, serving at 2-4, Lopez committed two consecutive double faults to stare at double break point.  After saving the initial, Lopez sent a forehand volley into the net.  As a result, France took the game and later with a forehand volley winner by Llodra sealed the second set.

The third set began with double break point for France on Lopez’ serve.  Llodra capitalized with a volley winner.  Then, Llodra comfortably consolidated for 2-0.  For the Spaniards, Benneteau’s serve was the weaker link.  When Verdasco connected with a forehand mid-court winner, Spain had break point.  Still, Benneteau provoked the miscues from his opponents to keep a 3-1 margin.  Later though, after Verdasco erased a break point to guard serve, a return winner by Lopez on Benneteau’s serve gave Spain double break point.  When Benneteau misfired on the volley, the set was leveled at 4 all.  Eventually, a tiebreaker was played in which Spain overcame a 2-4 deficit and shook off a match point.  On Spain’s first set point, Benneteau’s volley landed wide giving the defending champion life.

With a new spring in their steps, the Spaniards had the French crowd on the edge of its seat.  With an ace, Verdasco capped a love game to square the set at 4 all.  On the other hand, Llodra was unflappable on serve putting the home team ahead 5-4.  With each side losing just one point on serve the next three games, the fourth set went to a tiebreaker.  The server’s domination continued until the sixth point whereby Verdasco double faulted to donate a mini-break to France for 4-2.  Then, with Llodra serving, the Spaniards pushed two returns long.  Thus, the Frenchmen arrived at triple match point.  Although Verdasco and Lopez salvaged two match points with winners; after Benneteau’s wide serve, Llodra put away the volley to wrap up the tiebreaker and the victory for his country.

Spain has been masterful this past decade in Davis Cup competition, winning the last two years. Moreover, the Spaniards pounded France in the semifinals in 2004 as they made their way to their second title.  France’s quarterfinal victory is its second over Spain in six attempts.

France will clash with either Argentina or Russia for a spot in the final.  In Moscow, the Argentines prevailed in doubles today and consequently have a 2-1 edge over the Russians after these two nations split their rubbers yesterday.

On the other side of the draw, Croatia and Serbia were even after their matches on Friday.  Today, Janko Tipsarevic and Nenad Zimonjic crushed Marin Cilic and Ivan Dodig to place the Serbs in front 2-1.  The winner of that group will collide with the Czech Republic who reached the semifinals for the second straight year.  Yesterday, Ivo Minar and Jan Hajek thumped Chile’s Nicolas Massu and Paul Capdeville to give the Czechs a 2-0 lead.  This afternoon, Hajek and partner Lukas Dlouhy disappointed the partisan crowd by prevailing in four sets over the Chileans.

Incredibly, an entire year had gone by since Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal clashed in a final.  At the Mutua Madrilena Madrid Open, these two rectified that by battling for yet another Masters 1000 shield.  Nadal, the 2009 finalist, vanquished Federer, the defending champion, 6-4, 7-6 to claim an unprecedented 18th Masters shield surpassing Andre Agassi and a historic third straight Masters trophy.

Since prevailing at the Australian Open, Federer has been in a slump with early exits in Indian Wells, Miami and Rome.  The top seed in Estoril last week, Federer was stopped in the semifinals by the defending champion Albert Montanes.  Conversely, this season, Nadal has been again the “it guy” on clay with titles in Rome and Monte-Carlo.  By avenging his loss to Ernests Gulbis in Rome and beating David Ferrer, the hottest player on clay besides Nadal, in the semifinals, Federer seemed to be finding his form.  Still, Nadal would be the most intricate puzzle to solve.

Following a love opening game, with a forehand up the line error by Nadal, Federer had break point.  But, by provoking mistakes from Roger, Rafael held for 1 all.  Quickly, Nadal turned the tables and as a result of errors captured a break for 2-1.  However, as a backhand crosscourt by Nadal sailed long, Federer had triple break point.  Roger converted when Rafael’s forehand missed its mark.  With the players at 3 all, three successive miscues by Federer gave Nadal triple break point.  An unreturnable serve and two forehand winners allowed Federer to get to deuce.  Yet, after Federer failed to capitalize on a game point, Nadal connected on a backhand crosscourt pass for a winner and his fifth break chance.  When Federer netted the backhand, Nadal took a 4-3 lead.  Then, despite resistance from Federer, Nadal consolidated for 5-3.  Subsequent to a love hold, Federer hit a couple of great forehands and with a Nadal double fault obtained double break point.  Promptly, with back to back errors by his rival, Nadal got to deuce. Still, Federer manufactured two more break points,  But, with the return finding the bottom of the net on the next point, Federer could not get over the hump.  Finally, with a forehand crosscourt pass for a winner, Nadal punctuated the first set.

After Federer flubbed a volley on game point, Nadal went on to break to start the second set.  However, by baiting Nadal into a few mistakes, Federer arrived at double break point.  With a backhand crosscourt winner, Federer leveled the set.  Then, at 2 all, leading 40-15, Federer found himself at deuce.  By passing Federer two consecutive times, Nadal broke for 3-2.  After Nadal consolidated with an easy hold, Federer had a love service game to maintain a one game difference.  Taking the dropshot out of his arsenal for the first time, Federer fabricated triple break point.  When Nadal misfired with the forehand, the set was equalized at 4.  Then, with back to back aces, Federer crept ahead 5-4.  As neither guy was able to gain a break point, the decider was the tiebreaker.

An error by Nadal gifted Federer a 2-0 mini-break edge.  But, with Federer mishandling a volley, the tiebreaker was at 2 all.  Later, with a dropshot winner, Federer again had a 4-2 advantage.  Next, Federer netted another makeable dropshot; afterwards, his play veered south.  By misfiring on the following two strokes, Federer gave Nadal a mini-break for 5-4.  Then, with Roger dumping a backhand into the net, Nadal had his first championship point.  With a bold forehand up the line winner, Federer salvaged the initial match point.  However, off a great serve by Federer, Nadal’s return took an unforeseen turn causing the ball to travel over Federer’s racket.  With that bizarre hometown bounce, Nadal sealed the victory.

Nadal now stands in the fifth position, tied with Ilie Nastase and Ivan Lendl, with 28 clay court titles.  Nadal’s win in the semifinals over Nicolas Almagro permitted him to reclaim the number two ranking. Considering how dominant Rafael has been on the red stuff, it’s difficult to envisage a Robin Soderling emerging in Paris to upset the ‘pomme’ cart.

Earlier today, Mike and Bob Bryan produced fireworks of their own in the Spanish capital.  The two defeated the number one team and defending champions, Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjic, 6-3,6-4 to collect their 61st career title.  With that conquest, the Bryan brothers equalized the record set by Todd Woodbridge and Mark Woodforde.  In addition, with this triumph, their 15th Masters shield, Mike and Bob displace Nestor and Zimonjic at number one.

One week after being routed by Rafael Nadal in the finals in Monte-Carlo, Fernando Verdasco was all smiles today.  Verdasco prevailed over Robyn Soderling 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 in the finals of the Barcelona Open BancSabadell, an ATP 500 tournament, for his 5th and mightiest career title.

Following a love opening game, Soderling faced break point his second time out when Verdasco’s return clipped the net and dropped for a winner.  Although Soderling held for 2-1, he was having difficulty getting free points on serve.  A few games later, with a forehand crosscourt winner, Verdasco arrived at triple break point and cashed in when Soderling netted a forehand.  Then, with a second serve ace, the Spaniard consolidated for 5-3.  Next, with Soderling’s backhand down the line miscue, Verdasco had his fourth set point.  The Spaniard sealed the first set with a forehand up the line winner.

By forcing mistakes from Verdasco, Soderling opened the second set with a break.  However, with a couple of nonchalant forehand strokes, Soderling stared at break point.  With a forehand up the line winner, Verdasco got back to 1 all.  After Soderling netted an easy forehand to give Verdasco 30-40, a forehand initially deemed long was reversed.  Soderling won the next three points to equalize the set at 3 all.  Later, with an overhead winner, Soderling arrived at break point.  With Verdasco dumping his backhand into the net, Soderling secured the break for 4-3.  A couple of games down the road, at double set point, Soderling connected on a forehand volley winner to send the match into a third set.

After a comfortable hold by Verdasco, Soderling looked at 0-30.  In part, thanks to Verdasco’s pass clipping the net and sailing long, Soderling eventually held for 1 all.  Still, with two straight backhand errors his second time out, Soderling was again at 0-30.  Subsequently, with another backhand error, Soderling stared at a double break point.  Once again, with a net court going in his favor, Soderling put away a forehand volley to save the first break point.  Yet, with a forehand crosscourt mistake, Soderling handed Verdasco the break for 3-1.  By readily consolidating, Verdasco extended his advantage to 4-2.  Despite Soderling holding easily, Verdasco never allowed him a bite on his service games.  Thus, with Soderling netting a backhand return, Verdasco arrived at double championship point.  As Soderling’s next shot, a backhand, traveled long, Verdasco captured the trophy.  With this victory, Verdasco continues the Spaniards domination of this event with 10 successive wins since 2001.

The doubles team of Nenad Zimonjic and Daniel Nestor follow up their triumph in Monte-Carlo by defeating Lleyton Hewitt and Mark Knowles 4-6, 6-3, 10-6 in the finals for their fourth title this season.

With five time defending champion Nadal citing fatigue and opting not to aim for an historic sixth consecutive trophy for the second week in a row, the door was left wide open for the other contestants.  Verdasco, the fifth seed and a wildcard entrant, made the most of his opportunity. Tested in the third round by Jurgen Melzer, after losing the first set, Verdasco took a tiebreaker to push the match to a third set.  After coming through a tough quarterfinal versus Ernests Gulbis, countryman David Ferrer forced Verdasco to carry the last two sets after stealing the first in a tiebreaker.  This represents Verdasco’s third career trophy on clay and his second title this year.  The Spaniard defeated Andy Roddick in San Jose back in February.

Following a complicated initial match at the Sony Ericsson Open, Roger Federer was again rattled in his third round match.  The world number one was seriously pressed by Florent Serra.  Still, Federer came away unscathed with a 7-6,7-6 win.

Subsequent to neither competitor having issues on serve, Serra had a double fault on game point.  Federer took the next two points to break.  Then, with a love service game, Federer consolidated for a 5-2 lead.  However, as Federer served for the first set at 5-3, he made two costly errors allowing Serra two chances to break.  With a forehand down the line return winner, Serra put the first set back on serve. Still, Federer arrived at double set point on Serra’s service.  But, the Frenchman did not cave in.  With the two men holding at love the next two games, a tiebreaker was initiated.  With Federer’s backhand down the line pass landing out of bounds, Serra opened with a mini-break.  Then, with a forehand down the line winner of his own and with Serra flubbing an overhead, Federer got a mini-break for 2-1.  Federer went on to comfortably carry the breaker.

In the second set,  by enticing errors from Serra, Federer obtained a double break lead for 4-1.  Yet, Serra climbed back.  With a backhand overhead winner and a forehand down the line winner, Serra decreased the deficit to 4-2.  Then, Serra survived double break point to stay in touch at 3-4.  With Federer serving for the match at 5-4, a double fault gave Serra double break point.  The Frenchman converted with a forehand up the line winner.  Eventually, a second tiebreaker was called upon.  Again, after Serra got the early mini-break, Federer rebounded to easily capture the second set.

In the post match interview, Federer responded as such to the questions from MiamiTennisNews.com:
Q.  Do you have a preference. . . A match like this [where] you are tested . . . as opposed to having a quick match in the earlier rounds?
FEDERER:  Well, I mean, most important is to come through the rounds, you know.  So I don’t have a preference how it’s done.  I always like to come out with confidence, that’s for sure.  So it’s nice . . . having won two breakers, because that doesn’t happen every match you play.  Sure, I still have to tidy up my game a bit, you know, having had one break up in the first and two breaks up in the second, it’s normally something that doesn’t get away from me. But I thought he came up with some good stuff, and that made it difficult for me, you know, to close it out. That’s why I’m happy to still be through.

Q.  Were you surprised being down a double break that he was still mentally pretty strong and still fighting?
FEDERER:  Well. . . I didn’t have the feeling he was playing the score too much.  He was just playing his style, which is aggressive, you know, taking chances.  Sometimes missing by many feet.  Sometimes, you know, hitting it right in the corners.  So I knew that was going to happen kind of thing, but it’s still impressive to see when it does happen against you.  You know, that he hits the spots three, four, five, six points in a row, and there’s not much you can do sometimes.  I wish I would have maybe served better, you know, at the crucial stages of the match, which I wasn’t able to do.  But then he took advantage of that and was able to come up with some amazing stuff. Then you can only hope that, you know, he’s going to cool off again and that . . . you’re going to get your act together so you don’t allow him maybe to play that way.

In the round of 16, Federer faces Tomas Berdych who defeated Hector Zeballos in straight sets 6-4, 7-5.

Marin Cilic probably thought that Marcos Baghdatis was going to be a difficult out.  Yet, the 7th seed had a smooth entrance into the next stage with a 6-3,6-4 victory. In contrast, Fernando Verdasco, Cilic’s subsequent opponent, required a second set tiebreaker to prolong the match.  In the end, Verdasco vanquished Jurgen Melzer 3-6,7-6,6-1.

Mardy Fish is for the first time in the last 16 in Miami.  On the heels of his spectacular triumph over Andy Murray, Fish eliminated Feliciano Lopez 7-5,6-3. Fish will clash with Mikhail Youzhny next.   After seeing the first set blow, Youzhny regrouped to prevail 1-6,7-6,7-5 over Stanislas Wawrinka.

The 5th seed Robin Soderling sprinted through his third round match with Phillip Petzschner.  Soderling beat Petzschner 6-1,6-2.  Fernando Gonzalez was the ultimate one to join the round of 16.  After losing the first set in a tiebreaker, Gonzalez ended up grabbing the last two over Juan Monaco 6-7,6-4,6-2.  Gonzalez and Soderling will duke it out for a quarterfinal spot.

Of note, doubles top seed Nenad Zimonjic and Daniel Nestor were ousted in the second round by Tommy Robredo and Nicolas Almagro in three sets.

The men wrap up their third round at the 2010 Sony Ericsson Open today while fourth round action commences for the women.

Mardy Fish tries to avoid the lull that postdates a triumph over a player of Andy Murray’s caliber. In the first match of the day, Fish confronts Feliciano Lopez.  Their three prior meetings, Lopez won twice on hardcourt while Fish on grass. Afterwards, Roger Federer takes on veteran Florent Serra for the first time.  Following is Venus Williams and Daniela Hantuchova.  Williams will be shooting for 10-0 record versus her opponent.  The day session caps off with a jewel of a match, Kim Clijsters against Victoria Azarenka. In Toronto last year, Clijsters was victorious at their maiden encounter.

On stadium court, the evening program has Fernando Gonzalez clashing with Juan Monaco.  Gonzalez has prevailed at their five preceding rendezvous. The finale is Justine Henin versus Vera Zvonareva.  Henin has won all five prior matches, the last one was in Zurich in 2007.  Zvonareva is without question a different player.

On the grandstand, Svetlana Kuznetsova and Marion Bartoli do battle. Later, Marcos Baghdatis plays Marin Cilic, the inaugural showdown for these players.  Two other top seeds in action at that location are Fernando Verdasco and Robin Soderling.

The outer courts have plenty of stimulating singles and doubles matches.  After fighting her way into the fourth round yesterday, Caroline Wozniacki is back to face talented youngster Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova.  Although Wozniacki carried their sole meeting in New Haven last year, with her dealing with a viral illness and Anastasia much improved, it will be a tough task.  In addition, Jelena Jankovic tussles with Sam Stosur for the second tournament in a row.  Jankovic has a 3-0 record versus Stosur.  Top doubles seed Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjic collide with Nicolas Almagro and Tommy Robredo.  John Isner and Sam Querrey try to cut down fourth seed Mahesh Bhupathi and Max Mirnyi.

Below is Monday’s full order of play :

MONDAY, MARCH 29

STADIUM start 11:00 am
M Fish (USA) vs [29] F Lopez (ESP) – ATP

Not Before 1:00 PM
[1] R Federer (SUI) vs F Serra (FRA) – ATP
[3] V Williams (USA) vs [19] D Hantuchova (SVK) – WTA

Not Before 4:30 PM
[14] K Clijsters (BEL) vs [4] V Azarenka (BLR) – WTA

Not Before 7:00 PM
[9] F Gonzalez (CHI) vs [22] J Monaco (ARG) – ATP

Not Before 8:30 PM
[WC] J Henin (BEL) vs [11] V Zvonareva (RUS) – WTA

GRANDSTAND start 11:00 am
[1] S Kuznetsova (RUS) vs [13] M Bartoli (FRA) – WTA

Not Before 12:30 PM
Y Shvedova (KAZ) vs [6] A Radwanska (POL) – WTA
[10] F Verdasco (ESP) vs [23] J Melzer (AUT) – ATP
[25] M Baghdatis (CYP) vs [7] M Cilic (CRO) – ATP

Not Before 5:00 PM
P Petzschner (GER) vs [5] R Soderling (SWE) – ATP

COURT 1 start 11:00 am
K Peschke (CZE) / K Srebotnik (SLO) vs [8] E Makarova (RUS) / S Peng (CHN) – WTA
L Dekmeijere (LAT) / P Schnyder (SUI) vs [4] L Raymond (USA) / R Stubbs (AUS) – WTA

Not Before 1:00 PM
[1] D Nestor (CAN) / N Zimonjic (SRB) vs N Almagro (ESP) / T Robredo (ESP) – ATP
J Isner (USA) / S Querrey (USA) vs [4] M Bhupathi (IND) / M Mirnyi (BLR) – ATP
F Lopez (ESP) / F Verdasco (ESP) vs [6] S Aspelin (SWE) / P Hanley (AUS) – ATP

COURT 2 start 11:00 am
[19] S Wawrinka (SUI) vs [13] M Youzhny (RUS) – ATP
H Zeballos (ARG) vs [16] T Berdych (CZE) – ATP
[12] Y Wickmayer (BEL) vs T Bacsinszky (SUI) – WTA
[22] A Pavlyuchenkova (RUS) vs [2] C Wozniacki (DEN) – WTA

Not Before 5:00 PM
[7] J Jankovic (SRB) or [28] E Vesnina (RUS) vs [9] S Stosur (AUS) – WTA
M Kirilenko (RUS) / A Radwanska (POL) or [WC] K Clijsters (BEL) / K Flipkens (BEL) vs G Dulko (ARG) / F Pennetta (ITA) – To Be Arranged

COURT 3 start 1:00 pm
[3] L Dlouhy (CZE) / L Paes (IND) vs T Bellucci (BRA) / M Lopez (ESP) – ATP
[7] F Cermak (CZE) / M Mertinak (SVK) vs A Clement (FRA) / J Tsonga (FRA) – ATP

The next couple of weeks, tennis’ spotlight shifts to Miami as the ATP and WTA’s best players descend on Crandon Park to battle for the Sony Ericsson Open trophy.

Leading the troops for the ATP will be this year’s Australian Open champion and world number one, Roger Federer.  After an early exit at Indian Wells, Federer is looking to regain his form by ending a four year drought in South Florida.  However, Federer’s task won’t be easy.  Defending champion and 2010 Australian Open finalist, Andy Murray, will attempt to make it two in a row while Rafael Nadal after being sidelined by injuries for weeks will try to prevail for the first time in Miami.

Also, not to be forgotten, Novak Djokovic, Sony’s 2008 victor and new world number two, who like Federer stumbled at Indian Wells will be ready to sizzle in the Miami heat.  After advancing to the finals at Indian Wells, Andy Roddick, the champion in 2004, will see if he can continue his excellent play in the Magic City.  All this bodes well for a very competitive tournament on the men side.

Although reigning Australian Open champion and five time Sony winner, Serena Williams, will be absent due to injury, sister Venus, a three time vanquisher at Sony is hoping to capture glories of old.  Venus last reached the finals in 2001.  But, Victoria Azarenka, last year’s conqueror, will have plenty to say as she sets her eyes on a second straight Sony prize.  In addition, Caroline Wozniacki, the 2009 U.S. Open finalist and  Jelena Jankovic, 2008 Sony finalist, who squared off in the finals at Indian Wells will do their best to carry their momentum down to Sony.

After a disastrous start to the season, former Sony winner and 2009 French Open champ Svetlana Kuznetsova is searching to reestablish her footing by doing well in Miami.  Yet,  the most intriguing players on the women side are Kim Clijsters and wildcard entrant Justine Henin.  With both ladies fresh out of retirement and having quickly found their winning ways, the field can be said to be wide open.

Along with singles, there will be plenty of doubles action to enjoy.  After being derailed at Indian Wells in the first round, Mike and Bob Bryan will be seeking redemption while Daniel Nestor  and Nenad Zimonjic who were disappointed in the finals in the desert by Marc Lopez and Nadal will be trying to make amends.  Liezel Huber and Cara Black, the ladies’ top seed,  hope that this will be the year they will breakthrough with their initial title in Miami.

Qualification rounds start today.  To purchase tickets, take a look at the draws and for more detailed information, click on sonyericssonopen.com.

MiamiTennisNews.com will once again be on the grounds providing live daily coverage.  For up to the minute news,  follow us on Twitter under the username MiamiTennisNews.

At the ultimate showdown of the ATP World Tour Finals, Juan Martin Del Potro, reigning U.S. Open champ and world number 5, and Nikolay Davydenko vied for the season’s last prestigious prize.  Davydenko unraveled Del Potro’s game 6-3, 6-4 to snatch the trophy.

Only 5 feet 10 inches and 154 pounds, Davydenko bullied 6 feet 6 inches and 184 pounds Del Potro all day long.  With his foot speed , the Russian had Del Potro on a string, dismissing the Argentine’s powerful ground strokes.  Following uneventful games, with Del Potro serving at 1-2 and 40-30, Davydenko ripped a forehand crosscourt winner for deuce.  Later on, after Del Potro had a foot fault called on an ace at deuce, he misfired on a forehand to give Davydenko his second break point.  When Del Potro netted a backhand on a neutral point, Davydenko had the break.  Conspicuously rattled by the prior call, Del Potro produced a rash of errors allowing Davydenko to easily consolidate for 4-1.  Subsequent to a comfortable game, Del Potro had his initial break point when Davydenko double faulted.  However, the Russian kept his composure, striking a beautiful forehand up the line winner for deuce.  Davydenko went on to secure the game for 5-2.  At love his next service game, Davydenko closed out the first set.

Incredibly, in the first set, Davydenko struck 12 winners and 6 unforced errors while Del Potro had 10 and 11 respectively.  Nikolay dictated play by pushing Juan Martin behind the baseline and taking the ball early.  Even Del Potro’s serve proved meek; once the ball was in play Davydenko had him scrambling from sideline to sideline. At 2 all, a forehand dumped into the net gave Davydenko his first break chance of the set.  However, with a couple of T serves, Del Potro recovered to take a slender lead at 3-2.  The next game, after setting up the point with a perfect serve, Davydenko mucked up the forehand up the line to give Del Potro an opening.  But, with an ace, Davydenko erased the break point and got to deuce.  Still, Del Potro received another opportunity when Davydenko’s backhand crosscourt landed long.  By handling a high forehand volley, Davydenko wiped out that break point. Despite the hardships, Davydenko guarded serve for 3 all.  Since Davydenko controlled the majority of the rallies, in truth, Del Potro was hanging on by a thread.  With Del Potro serving at 4 a piece, Davydenko converted a backhand crosscourt winner, sent a forehand winner up the line and replicated a forehand crosscourt winner to arrive at triple break point.  When Del Potro’s forehand up the line sailed wide, Davydenko found himself one game from the championship.  After starting with an ace, the Russian forced Del Potro into a backhand miscue and with another ace obtained double match point.  Davydenko wrapped up the trophy when Del Potro tracked down his overhead but dumped the stroke into the net.

Surreal is even understating Davydenko’s accomplishments this week.  After losing an unbelievable first round match to Novak Djokovic, his next time out, Davydenko dismissed Rafael Nadal, world number two in straight sets.  Then, after a victory over Robin Soderling to reach the semifinals, Davydenko outperformed world number one Roger Federer to claim his first career win in 13 attempts over that man.  A finalist last year, Davydenko becomes the first Russian to grab the  ATP World Tour Final trophy in the tournament’s history. Also, Davydenko now finishes the year at number 6 supplanting Andy Roddick.

In addition, the doubles title was on the line today.  Bob and Mike Bryan, world number two, took on Andy Ram and Max Mirnyi.  The latter team had beaten the former in the first round robin match.  Yet, on this occasion, the Bryan brothers prevailed  7-6, 6-3 to collect their third year end trophy.  Thus, with top duo and defending champs Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjic failing to get out of the round robin stage, Mike and Bob will reestablish themselves at number one.