TENNIS – Nineteen of the top 20 best ranked players feature in the Sony Open in Miami including World Number 1 Rafa Nadal, defending champion Andy Murray, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer, respectively champion and finalista t last week’s Indian Wells. The possible quarter finals are Nadal- Del Potro, Wawrinka- Berdych, Federer- Ferrer (or Dimitrov) and Djokovic- Murray Diego Sampaolo
Nadal, who is looking to his first Miami title, has been drawn in the first quarter and could face either Juan Martin Del Potro or Milos Raonic in the quarter final. Nadal will make his debut against either Lleyton Hewitt, who is looking to reach his 600th milestone career match win, or Dutchman Robin Haase.
Nadal has been drawn in the same quarter as two rising stars born in the 1990s Jerzy Janowicz and Milos Raonic, Gael Monfils and Juan Martin Del Potro. Nadal’s possible third round rival could be Italian top player Fabio Fognini who will face either Jerzy Janowicz or Roberto Bautista Agut. .
Del Potro will start his campaign against either Ryan Harrison or Federico Delbonis.
The second quarter of the draw features this year’s Australian Open champion Stanislas Wawrinka and 2010 Miami finalist Tomas Berdych who may square off in the quarter finals. It could be a re-match of this year’s Australian Open semifinal.
Wawrinka faces a tough path as he may play against Marin Cilic, who won two tournaments and 20 matches in 2014, in the third round and last week’s Indian Wells semifinalist Aleksander Dolgopolov in the fourth round. Dolgopolov beat Rafa Nadal in the third round and lost against Roger Federer in the semifinal in the Californian desert. The Ukrainian player could face Bernard Tomic in the second round and German veteran Tommy Haas.
Berdych is in the same quarter section as US John Isner, who lost against Novak Djokovic in the Indian Wells semifinal last Saturday. Isner could meet either Carlos Berloq or Donald Young in the second round and either Nicolas Almagro or Sam Querrey in the same round.
Nadal and Wawrinka may square off in the semifinal in a potential re-match of this year’s Australian Open final.
Roger Federer, who won two consecutive Miami titles in 2005 and 2006, will start his chase of his third Miami title against Croatian giant Ivo Karlovic and may meet Fernando Verdasco in the third round and Richard Gasquet in the fourth round. The Swiss legend, winner in Dubai and runner-up in Indian Wells last week, could face either last year’s Miami finalist David Ferrer or Bulgarian rising star Grigor Dimitrov (what a match could be between the Basel Maestro and his Bulgarian heir) in the quarter final. Federer has the chance to move up to World Number 4 overtaking Ferrer in the ATP Ranking.
Dimitrov may meet Kei Nishikori in the third round.
Novak Djokovic may face Andy Murray in the quarter final in a clash between two Miami winners of 2011 and 2013. Djokovic, who is bidding to score his second Indian Wells-Miami double after 2011 and his fourth win in Florida, will make his debut against either Jeremy Chardy or Juan Monaco. He could meet Florian Mayer in the third round and in-form Ernests Gulbis in the fourth round. Gulbis is an unpredictable player and could pose a threat to everyone if he is in form as he showed in Indian Wells where he reached the quarter finals after beating Grigor Dimitrov.
Murray, who opens against either Lukas Kubot or Matthew Ebden, will be looking to win his third win in Miami (his traditional training base) after lifting the Trophy in 2009 and 2013. He will defend his title won last year against David Ferrer. In the third round Murray may renew his clash against Czech rising star Jiri Vezely who forced the Dunblane star to the third set last week at Indian Wells. Murray, who has ended his succesful relationship to Ivan Lendl this week, may play against Feliciano Lopez in the third round Jo Wilfred Tsonga in the fourth round.
“I am grateful to Ivan for all his hard work over the past two years, the most successful in my career so far. As a team we have learned a lot and it will be definitely be a benefit in the future”, said Murray-
“Working with Andy over the past two years has been a fantastic experience for me. He is a first class guy. Having helped him achieve his goal of winning major titles, I feel liei t is time to concentrate on some of my own projects moving forward, including playing more events around the world, which I am really enjoying. I will be always in Andy’s corner and wish him nothing but great success as he too goes into a new phase of his career”, said Lendl.
Diego Sampaolo
