- 04 Apr 2011, 15:48
#2192124
As of Sunday morning, only three men had started a tennis season in such extraordinary form that they were able to collect the titles at the Australian Open, Indian Wells, and Key Biscayne. To win this triple means winning seven matches on the trot in Melbourne, six in Palm Springs, and six in Miami, all in a matter of just over two months. Not only that, it requires hard court attrition of the highest calibre, in some of the hottest temperatures, and against some of the most fearsome opposition. Pete Sampras managed it in 1994, Andre Agassi in 2001, and, then, after a little while, Roger Federer in 2006.
In 2011, Novak Djokovic joined that group. Perhaps it was a literal rush of blood to the brain after shaving all his hair off when he helped Serbia win the Davis Cup last November. Perhaps he just grew up a bit. But, ever since he stepped off a plane in Perth on New Year’s Eve, barely a day’s rest afforded to his weary limbs, Djokovic has been a man transformed.
Yes, he still laughs hard, he jokes hard, he even tweets hard. But he also works hard, thinks hard, and most importantly, he plays hard. His figures for the year are as follows – won 24 matches, lost 0, won four finals (Melbourne, Dubai, Indian Wells, Miami), lost 0, beat Federer three times, Nadal twice, and Murray once. And there’s two Davis Cup matches and a Davis Cup title in there as well.
It proves yet again what a feat of hard work the Serb has put his body through, continuing to work on his fitness almost every day. Hitting the ball harder than you would think possible in front of a sell-out crowd at Crandon Park, the moment when Djokovic was supposed to blow up against Nadal, as he has done so often in the past, just never came. Beating Nadal 4-6, 6-3, &-6(4) in their second consecutive Tour final, for his fourth consecutive tournament victory, he may have looked like putting one foot in the front of the other was akin to scaling Mt Blanc, for the Spaniard, it was Everest.
"Was very, very hot outside there today,” Nadal said afterwards. “I sweat crazy, like ten T shirts today. So I was very tired at the end. Seriously, very tired. One of those kind of matches, it's better to finish as soon as possible, because I was very, very tired at the end." But more importantly, Djokovic is absolutely 100% convinced that at this moment in time, the season, his life, he is unbeatable. And that seems to be the secret.
“In the end," Djokovic said, “it's all mental. We're both physically fit. Of course, it was obvious that we were kind of dropping down with energy towards the end of the match. But, you know, in these moments against players like Rafa who is a big champion, you've got to believe you can win. That's all. It's all about self belief and stepping in and trying to take your chances if there is any."
Watch out Nadal, Federer, Murray, Juan Martin Del Potro, Robin Soderling, Milos Raonic, Ryan Harrison. The list goes on.
Producing the best start to the season since Ivan Lendl in 1986 may have the Tour whispering on street corners at every turn, but there are similar tittle-tattles going on in the women’s game. With the Williams sisters absent through injury, and Kim Clijsters not quite at her Grand Slam-storming best, Victoria Azarenka re-wound the clock by two years to claim the Miami title, defeating a rejuvenated Maria Sharapova in the final. On an upwards curve after a year in a quagmire-ish state, Azarenka was clinical, efficient, and, for one who is known to be a little prickly with press and public, refreshingly open and honest about what’s being going in between her ears for the last 12 months.
"I think I changed my mentality a little bit,” Azarenka said to the press. “I'm enjoying myself so much on the court there's no room for me for frustration, even though I know somebody's really pissed off about it. They want to see me very emotional. They like it. But that's how I am right now."
“You always care to win. What I meant by not caring about losing is not to create such a big drama out of it. If you lose the match, I mean, you just lose a tennis match. It's not the end of the world. You can see so many things happening in the world, and I know it sounds a little bit out there, but look what happens in Japan for example, and we're here playing tennis, being able to do something that we love. So, I mean, why make a big deal out of it?"
Sharapova is another one to keep tabs on. The mental inconsistency is fading, and those in the know reckon she’ll be in the WTA top five by the time the 125th Championships kick off on the green green grass of the All England Club. And of course, Andrea Petkovic, implanted on the radar for being intelligent, entertaining, humorous, but a pretty good tennis player too.
How these particular characters, not known for their clay court prowess, all shape up as the Tour rolls onto the red dirt this week, who can tell. But Miami proved that it’s set to be an interesting ride.
Alexandra Willis
Ne mogu da docekam da ga vidim na prvom mestu na ATP listi!!!
