Djokovic: Rafa's On the Right Way

Novak Djokovic addresses the media before he opens play at the 2013 BNP Paribas Open. 

World No. 1 Novak Djokovic says he's feeling good ahead of a busy tennis month starting with the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells this weekend.

"Couldn't ask for a better start of the season, winning Australia and Dubai, playing on hard courts, which is my most successful and most preferable surface that suits my game the best," Djokovic told the media on Friday.

The Serb said the start of this season feels the same as 2011, when he compiled a 43-match winning streak and remained undefeated until the French Open semifinals in June. That year Djokovic captured the BNP Paribas Open title.

"I don't want to predict anything. My mindset will stay the same, and that is to enjoy the moment, to be in the moment, to try to do my best in the present, and take it step by step and then see how far I can go," Djokovic said.

During that 2011 season, Djokovic beat Rafael Nadal six times in route to claiming the No. 1 ranking in men's tennis. Nadal is marking his return to major competition in Indian Wells after seven months off battling a knee injury.

"It's now been three tournaments in last four weeks for Rafa, and, you know, he doesn't show any signs of pain in the knees and something that can distract him now. He's on the right way, you know," Djokovic said.

"As his colleague and friend, I can say that it's really great to see him back for our sport in general, for fans, for everyone who loves tennis,because he's such a popular and charismatic player and is recognized all over the world," the Serb added.

Djokovic also told reporters he's ready for a busy March with Indians Wells, Miami and a Davis Cup event in Boise, Idaho on his plate over the next five weeks.

"It's not going to be easy, but, again, it's three events in five weeks. It's still all right," Djokovic said. "I know how I need to treat my body, how I need to, you know, prepare for this kind of physical involvement. So I'm looking forward to it."

Djokovic admitted he really enjoys the Davis Cup, because it's a rare occasion where he gets to feel the team spirit. As for playing in Boise, Idaho he did not know much.

"I informed myself through Google and Internet," Djokovic said with a chuckle. "I have seen that there is an altitude obviously of 800 meters, and that goes to favor obviously of American team. On the other hand, I don't know. I wish I could go skiing in Sun Valley, which is very close. But unfortunately, I'm going to have to stay with the racquet and play my best and try to get a win."

Vika Serves Notice Down Under

Victoria Azarenka defended her Australian Open title with a gritty performance over the weekend after enduring a wacky end to her tournament run.

Her 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, victory over Li Na saw nearly 30 minutes of the match disappear thanks to three interruptions, including a lengthy fireworks display for Australia Day and a 10-minute injury timeout after Li took a spill slamming her head on the court.

Ironically, it was a 10-minute injury timeout Azarenka called during her seminfinal match that set off heavy criticism from the media, players and turned some of the Melbourne fans against her.

After failing to convert five match points in her second set semifinal against American teen Sloane Stephens, Azarenka took a medical timeout. She was taken off the sweltering court for treatment, then coolly closed out the match in the next game.

"Well, I almost did the choke of the year right now at 5-3, having so many chances, I couldn't close it out," Azarenka said in her on court interview immediately after beating Stephens. "I just felt a little bit overwhelmed."

ESPN's tennis analysts quickly jumped on Azarenka accusing her of gamemanship and calling the timeout to settle down, with Patrick McEnroe upping the ante calling the move "bush league."

However, the match stats do not point to Stephens being cheated from making the finals Down Under. In every match category, from first serves in to unforced errors, Azarenka was just better. Looking at just the second set, Vika was better in most categories and tied in unforced errors.

During the critical game before Azarenka's timeout, Sloane committed three unforced errors while smacking three winners. That's on par with her performance in the rest of the second set.

Uncannily, Azarenka lost five match points during the third set at last year's U.S. Open to Serena Williams, letting her second major title slip out of her grasp. While Sloane beat Serena in the Aussie Open quarters, fans in Melbourne were likely only cheated out of a second set tiebreak. It is too much to conjecture beyond that.

Azarenka admitted mistake in not calling the trainer soon enough in her semifinal match and handled a grilling by the media with poise (watch clips below).



When it comes to dealing with injuries during a match, Azarenka has lost the benefit of the doubt with most players due to a reputation she developed for calling a trainer too often early in her career.

Just last season during her coming out party, Vika was criticized by World No. 5 Agnieszka Radwanska for "faking" injuries in the semifinals at Doha. Azarenka went on to win that tournament, one of six singles titles she claimed all on hard court surface.

In prevailing again Down Under, Victoria Azarenka has served noticed to the rest of the WTA, she is the one beat on hard court.

Isner Ready to Fill American Void

John Isner celebrates a victory over No. 1 Novak Djokovic.

John Isner was no match for Roger Federer in the finals at the BNP Paribas Open.

But Isner's two weeks in Indian Wells were something special, and for the first time in a long time an America seems poised to challenge tennis' upper echelon.

Isner will become the second U.S. player in the ATP Tour's top 10 rankings, because of his finals appearance, and he became the first American to beat the world No. 1 player since 2008 in an electric three-set victory over Novak Djokovic.

"It was very special when that last ball went by (Djokovic) and I knew I had won the match. I knew it was a very weird feeling, a very nice feeling. It's something that, you know, you don't experience every day," Isner said after the semi-final match.

Roger Defined by Rivalry with Rafa

Roger Federer cracks a smile after downing rival
Rafael Nadal in Indian Wells.

One of the all-time great sports rivalries finally played out in front of the rabid tennis fans in Indian Wells, Calif.

After a rare desert rain delay at the BNP Paribas Open, No. 3 Roger Federer and No. 2 Rafael Nadal took the court for their 28th meeting.

Watching the two display their skill in person is amazing, and it just adds a new level of appreciation for some of the great matches I've watched on television. Federer makes playing the sport look effortless, while Nadal never gives up on a point and can seemingly run any ball down.

"Obviously conditions were tough today, and against one of my greatest rivals, it's always nice if you come out on top. So I'm very, very happy," Federer said after his straight set 6-3, 6-4 victory.

The win in the California desert was just Federer's 10th against Nadal, which is arguably the biggest flaw when talking about where the Swiss stacks up against all-time tennis greats.

However, if clay courts are taken out of the equation, a surface Nadal just owns, Federer now holds a 8-6 advantage in head-to-head meetings and is a winner of two of the last three.

The 10-18 record can obscure the way Federer dominates sets when they play, as previously detailed by WSJ writer Carl Bialik.

Federer has taken seven 6-0 or 6-1 sets against Nadal, with five of those dominant sets by the Swiss coming in the final set of the match. By comparison, just two of Nadal's wins have ended in such lopsided fashion.

Despite Nadal's sizable advantage in head-to-head matches, it is hard to judge which player is greater. Especially given the way Federer worked over Nadal's backhand in the semis.

Add current No. 1 Novak Djokovic into the mix, who has defeated Nadal in seven consecutive finals, and figuring out the big three gets more complicated.

Tennis is experiencing a reniassance with likely three of the games greats all playing at once. I am just glad I got to see Federer-Nadal rivalry in person.

BNP Paribas Open: Djokovic Takes a Look Back Before Semis

World No. 1 Novak Djokovic opened up about his past before taking the court for the semi-finals at the BNP Paribas Open.

"It's hard to say what I felt as a kid," the Serb said. "I just remember I fell in love (with tennis) at the first sight."

Djokovic said it was like destiny he picked up a racquet, because in his family nobody played.

"They were all professional skiers or soccer players or something else, you know," Djokovic said.

Djokovic is trying to win his 11th ATP Masters 1000 tournament and third title in Indian Wells, and said he's still in contact with his old coach Serbian tennis legend Jelena Gencic.

"She has had an incredible effect on my career, and she has learned me all the basics of the tennis," Djokovic said. "I always go back to her and share the success that I had and remembering those moments in the childhood when we were starting to play tennis."

"She was one of the very few people, including my family, that actually believed in me, that believed that I could be the best and I could be, you know, a Grand Slam winner," Djokovic recalled.

Gencic, now in her 70s, is still coaching tennis in Serbia.

Djokovic will face American John Isner in the first of two semi-finals Saturday at 11 a.m. The Serbian holds a 2-0 lifetime advantage over Isner.

Virus Becomes the Talk of the Tournament

The talk of this years BNP Paribas Open has become a two-day stomach bug that's impacting everyone.

It's a nasty virus you would not wish on your own nemesis, but the worst part is it's keeping players off the courts.

A total of 10 players have withdrawn with the bug, while former champion Vera Zvonareva withdrew for another virus.

The latest big name to fall ill, Mike Bryan, of the Bryan brothers, means they still have not captured a doubles title in Indian Wells.

It is near impossible to to track where the virus came from, but World No. 1 Victoria Azarenka said she battled a similar illness between her last tournament in Dubai and the start of Indian Wells.

"I heard like a few players right before the tournament had it, and me, the same thing," Azarenka said. "It's very unfortunate, you know. You don't wish anybody that. I wasn't able to practice for two days."

The Indian Wells bug is just the latest in a rash of ailments that have plagued the start to the 2012 WTA season.

Twelve of the top 20 have retired early from a match or withdrawn from a tournament with some kind of injury or illness.

It's unfortunate the bug is taking away from the tennis and what's been a great tournament so far.

BNP Paribas Open: Wozniacki Poses as a Reporter

The defending BNP Paribas Open women's champion Caroline Wozniacki shared a laugh with American Mardy Fish Saturday, March 10.

No. 4 ranked Wozniacki made quick work of Russian Ekaterina Makarova 6-2, 6-0 before she crashed the press conference being held by Fish.

Fish was about to answer a question about the London Olympics, but instead took a surprise question from the Dane.

Looks like Wozniacki could have another career path to fall back on, but her game on the tennis court is doing most of the talking right now.

BNP Paribas Open: Having Fun Off the Courts

Part of the fun of the BNP Paribas Open is that all the top players in the world come to Indian Wells, and they are way more relaxed here than at any of the other big tennis tournaments.

Case in point what has become an annual ritual on the grassy warm-up area just outside the main stadium, pickup soccer games.

Before the action on the courts heats up, No. 1 Novak Djokovic and No. 2 Rafael Nadal showed off some of their soccer skills.

Playing with Serbian Janko Tipsarevic (ranked No. 10) and another Spaniard Feliciano Lopez (No. 15), Nadal fired a shot into the back of the onion bag.

Now, the real games can begin.

Sharapova's Making Noise Again

Maria Sharapova has always made noise on and off the court.

At this year's French Open, the Russian star made a splash debuting an Eiffel-Tour inspired dress. Designed by Nike, the outfit features side stitching that mirrors the iron lattice design of the pinnacle Parisian landmark.

Then as the tennis has played out at Roland Garros, the door has seemingly opened for Sharapova to complete her career Slam. For the first time in the Open era, all three top seeds lost before the quarters.

Sharapova hasn't made it easy.

She was on the brink in the second round, down a set and two breaks to 17-year-old wild card Caroline Garcia, before rattling off 11 straight games. The seventh seed also scratched out a fourth-round victory, battling through five set points.

It certainly appears Sharapova is finding her groove after dealing with nagging injuries to her right shoulder and elbow. But one thing that needs no recovery is the Sharapova scream.

It's real, it's loud and it grabbed my attention when I attended the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells in March.

Tennis Just Isn't the Same

The French Open is starting to enter the thick of the tournament.

Great tennis has already been played at Roland Garros, with five-time champion Rafael Nadal surviving his first match that lasted 4 hours, 1 minute against American John Isner.

And Kim Clijsters, who seemed to have everything under control, unraveled in a three-set 2nd round loss.

But it's tough to watch this tournament the way I used to. That's because I learned how great it is to watch a tennis tournament in person at Indian Wells.

The desert oasis is home to one of the most well attended tournaments outside the majors the BNP Paribas Open. And fans get up close and personal with the players.

It really is an amazing experience, with the best players in the world sweating it out feet in front of you. Now, I'm spoiled.

This year at Indian Wells, Novak Djokovic served notice he's doing something special. His three set win over Nadal, improved his record to 18-0 at the time.

I'll be watching to see if his streak continues, but it just won't be the same.

Golden moment for Federer

Roger Federer is leaving Beijing with gold.

It wasn’t the gold medal that was expected of the most dominant tennis player in the world, but in the midst of a frustrating year it’s an important milestone.

“Sort of a dream-come-true moment,” Federer said. “Maybe it comes around once in a lifetime. It’s almost disbelief, to some degree.”

Disbelief has set in now that Federer’s Grand Slam total is stalled at 12 and his 4½-year reign atop the ATP Tour rankings just ended. French champion, Wimbledon champion and now Olympic champion Rafael Nadal completed his ascension to the world No. 1 ranking.

After all, Nadal showed an unrelenting determination in July stopping Federer from winning a sixth straight Wimbledon title, ending his 40-match winning streak at the All England Club. Soon after, many columnists started to question what’s wrong with Roger, questions that reemerged with fervor after his Olympic quarterfinal loss.

Federer has been venerable this year, no doubt about it. But, SI’s Jon Wertheim brought up a good point; a lot of players ranked No. 2 still win majors. There's still one major left and Roger is showing championship mettle.

Finally in 2008, Federer was able to celebrate a big victory. He had some help from countryman Stanislas Wawrinka in toppling Simon Aspelin and Tomas Johansson of Sweden 6-3, 6-4, 6-7 (4), 6-3.

But for the first time in three Olympics, Federer is a medalist, standing atop the podium.

That’s something for the Swiss to smile about.