ROGER WILL WIN INDIAN WELLS : A date in the desert Greg Garber [ARCHIVE] ESPN | March 6, 2014 Back in the day, when ships sailed to the far side of the world, they sometimes encountered The Doldrums. It was a strange seam between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, a windless, low-pressure area near the equator that left sails hanging, sometimes for days. The nautical term entered our language and has come to mean listless and stagnant -- an apt description for the mild tennis hangover that follows the Australian Open every year. But on the last day of February, we were jolted out of those doldrums when Roger Federer, down a set and facing break points in the second, managed to rally and beat Novak Djokovic in Dubai. A loss in that match -- a certainty in many minds -- would have given Federer a 16-16 head-to-head record against Djokovic, leaving perhaps the Greatest Player of All Time with a non-winning record against Rafael Nadal, Andy Murray and Djokovic. Instead of that pivot point to oblivion, though, we have ... well, what do we have here, really? Fed is not Ded just yet. March is upon us and, for American fans of tennis, this back-to-back blockbuster is as good as it gets: The BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells followed by the Sony Open Tennis in Miami. Tennis Channel analyst Justin Gimelstob is already fired up. Its a monthlong tennis extravaganza in America, two very special tournaments that well be covering, he said. Theres a lot of storylines to savor. Looking forward to it. Brad Gilbert, ESPN analyst and former coach to Murray and Andre Agassi, likes the unsettled nature of the mens game, where Stanislas Wawrinka is the freshly feted Australian Open champion. You know what? Gilbert asked. For the first time in umpteen years, just like in hockey, we have a line change. Stan the Man shook it up. Its nice to see a little variety. It reminds you of how it used to be. Now youre going to get completely different matchups in quarterfinals. Anyone can play anyone -- and beat them. It puts a lot more intrigue into the draw. If Stan can win, maybe somebody else can win, too. On that optimistic note, lets move to the top-ranked players as they contemplate lacing them up for Indian Wells. Here, in the racket-spinning tradition of Up or Down?, we assess their current status:
Posted on: Fri, 07 Mar 2014 13:39:09 +0000
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