Miami Vice?

Andy Roddick tasted masters success for the first time in 4 years after victory in the final of the Sony Ericcson Open yesterday.

The American powerhouse defeated a rejuvenated Tomas Berdych 7-5 6-4 sends a message to the top 4 that, on a hard court at least, he will be a real threat this year.

Yet the timing of the American hard court masters in the calender for me has always seemed slightly strange.

After his most significant tournament victory in 4 years there is no ultimate prize for Roddick to push on to. Instead we move straight on the the clay in Europe.

The back to back masters at Indian Wells and Miami are almost positioned where a grand slam should be placed.

If you think about the role of the other masters tournaments in the calender then their location becomes all the more puzzling.

We have Monte Carlo, Rome and Madrid in the build up to the French Open, Toronto and Cincinnati ahead of the US Open and then Shanghai and Paris in the race to the O2 tour finals.

What do Indian Wells and Miami lead to?

The ATP could argue that the 1000 series represent strong independent tournaments in their own right and that they should not be viewed as warm up events.

However it would be foolhardy to suggest that they can compare to the four grand slam tournaments.

Also given the naturally climatic nature of tennis, which itself builds to a crescendo at the end of every set and match it would make sense that the calender should do the same.

With the 4 grand slams then ATP tour has four obvious peaks in interest during the year that should be exploited to the maximum.

Why not move the Australian Open to later in the year and have the American hard court swing through January and February?

Others would argue that the lack of a grass court masters event is also an aberration given the stature of Wimbledon.

However given that the majority of tennis players across the globe play on a clay or hard court it is inevitable that the grass court season be short sharp and exciting.

Still for me at least the timing of Indian Wells and Miami has always been rather puzzling.

A new low?

After a fifth defeat on the bounce Britain's Davis Cup team now face the uninspiring task of a relegation playoff against Turkey in September.


If John Lloyd's team lose that tie then it's relegation to the bottom league of tennis into the catchy named Europe/African Zone group III.


In Britain's long history of competing in the Davis Cup it's team has never sunk so low. There is little doubt that interest in the competition has fallen away since Henman's retirement in 2007.


That match which was notably Team GB's last victory was held in front of a capacity crowd on Court One at Wimbledon.


Attending the match their was a sense that following Henman and Rusedski's retirement that the team may struggle to maintain it's position. So it came as no surprise that despite Andy Murray's valiant efforts that the team dropped out of the elite group the next year.


However it is unlikely that many of the crowd that stood to applaud Henman off court that day believed that they were witnessing the teams final victory of the decade.


So where does the British team go from here? Firstly they must overcome Turkey at all costs - a further drop down the tiers of the the Davis Cup would not only inflict further damage on a team low on confidence it would also make the journey back to the world group a mammoth task. As it stands the earliest we can get back to the world group would is 2013 if they lose to Turkey then that becomes 2014.


Questions must also be asked of cup captain John Lloyd. No captain has ever presided over such an unbroken run of failure. Many will sympathise with Lloyd, arguing that he has had precious talent at his disposal. Yet the presence of Andy Murray should have made life much easier but alas to no avail.


Now it's unlikely that the British no.1 will make himself available for the next few ties-and who can blame him? He can have little appetite taking time out of his tour schedule while on the hunt for a maiden grand slam to play ties against teams that fail to boast any players ranked inside the top 100.

Still the position of John Lloyd and Roger Draper will be under scrutiny over the coming weeks and it is unlikley that both will still be in their jobs come September.

Sharapova wins in Memphis

Maria Sharapova bagged her first title of the year in Memphis last night with victory over Sofia Arvidsson 6-2 6-1.

The former world no.1 has been in top form all week did not drop a set on the way to winning her 21st career title.

Top seed Sharapova who had struggled for form this year going out in the first round of the Australian Open to fellow Russian Maria Kirilenko and was clearly hungry to make amends this week.

"I served and returned well, two things that are very important indoors. I did the right things against Sofia today. I worked hard after the Australian Open and little by little things are coming along." said Sharapova.

There was also a strong British contingent in action with Elena Baltacha, Anne Keothavong and Katie O'brien all in the main draw.

Baltacha came into the event on the back of winning a 100k title in Michigan and extended her winning streak to eight matches before falling to Sharapova in the Quarter finals.

However it was Keothovong continuing her return from injury who went furthest with impressive wins over sixth seed Kristina Barrios and Karolina Sprem to reach the semi finals.

Roddick blasts his way to the Quarters

Big serving American Andy Roddick has clinched his place in the Quarter finals of the Australian Open following an epic 5 set battle against Fernando Gonzalez.

The match at the Rod Laver arena finished 6-3 3-6 4-6 7-5 6-2 and saw some top quality play from both men.

Speaking after the victory Roddick said "I was lucky to get out of that, sometimes if you fight and stick around you give yourself a shot."

"When Fernando gets hot you know a lot of the match is out of your control... if i didn't have my first serve and winning points on that i'd be booking plane tickets home."

After dropping the opening set Gonzalez started playing some fantastic cavalier tennis to take a two sets to one lead, but it was the fourth set that decided the match.

With opportunities to break early on not taken momentum began to swing away from the Chilean.

Utilising his powerful serve and aggressive forehand return Roddick generated six break points during the set before finally clinching it 7-5 after a successful Hawk eye challenge.

Gonzalez chance had passed and his frustration started to show after getting a warning from the umpire for raquet abuse.

Roddick was now fully in control and quickly went 3-0 up and although Gonzalez continue to hit some excellent shots it was the American who sealed it 6-2.

So far it has been a cracking start to the year for the American who has won all nine of his matches on tour winning the title at Brisbane.

Roddick faces Marin Cilic who also took five sets to upset world no.4 Juan Martin Del Potro in the next round.

Federer Announces Haiti Fundraiser

Top players from the men's and women's tour will be hosting a special fundraising exhibition tomorrow to raise money for victims of the Haiti earthquake.

Announcing the plans on his facebook page Federer said: "Tomorrow at 2pm, with other top players, we are going to have a fun exo at Melbourne Park to help raise monies for relief efforts in Haiti from the devastating Earthquake."

"Entry fee is a minimum donation of $10. Should be fun and its for a great cause. Hope to see some of you there!" Federer added.

Federer will be joined by Rafael Nadal, Serena Williams and Kim Clijsters in the 'Hit for Haiti' exhibition with other top names expected to be added to the line up.

The earthquake, which measured at 7.2 on the Richter scale, devastated large parts of Haiti last Tuesday and is believed to have caused up 200,000 casualties.

The town of Port-au-Prince situated 25km from the epicentre of the quake sustained heavy damage with the Cathedral, Presidential palace and National Assembly building all being severely damaged or destroyed.

To donate to the Red Cross Haiti appeal please click here.

Murray gets Tough draw

Andy Murray will have to overcome stiff opposition if he is to claim his maiden grand slam title in Melbourne next week.

The world no.5 has been placed in the same side of the draw as defending champion Rafeal Nadal and US Open winner Juan Martin Del Potro.

Murray who will begin his campaign against qualifier Kevin Anderson could also face American Andy Roddick or Frenchman Gail Monfils before the final.

On the women's side British no.1 Elena Baltacha has a very winnable opener against world no.104 Pauline Parmentier with a possible match up against world no.2 Dinara Safina waiting in round 3.

Meanwhile fellow Brit Katie O'brien will also has cause to optimistic as she faces Austrian Patricia Mayr with Jelena Jankovic a possible 2nd round opponent.

To view the draws in full you can visit the Australian Open website with first round matches scheduled to start this coming Monday.

Murray's prospective draw by ranking:

Rnd 1: Kevin Anderson

Rnd 2: Marc Gicquel

Rnd 3: Jurgen Melzer (28)

Rnd 4: Gael Monfils (12)

QF: Rafeal Nadal (2)

SF: Juan Martin Del Potro (4)

F: Roger Federer (1)

Brits on Tour Week 2

Women's No.1 Elena Baltacha has qualified for her second tour event in a row this week at the Hobart international in Australia.

The world no.85 will face Jelena Dokic in the first round having lost against her opponent in there only previous meeting at Wimbledon back in 2003.

Baltacha will be delighted with her victory over Anna Chakvetadze a player who won the Hobart cup only 2 years ago.

On the men's side Dan Evans is one match away from Qualifying for the Heineken Open in Auckland and faces Tsung-Hua Yang for a place in the main draw.

The 18 year old player from Chinese Tapai is currently ranked at 341 although could prove a tough test for Evans after an impresssive victory over world no.244 Jan Minar.

Meanwhile following a successful run at the Hopman Cup world no.4 Andy Murray is resting ahead of an assault on the Australian Open title, while many other Brits are gearing up for the Qualifiers which start mid week.

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Update 11/10/2010:

Evans beats Yang in 3 sets to reach the main draw at Auckland. The 19 year old will face fellow qualifier and world no.209 Michael Lammer in the first round.

Brits miss out on Hopman Trophy

Although Team GB failed to lift the Hopman Cup earlier today both Andy Murray and Laura Robson can take some big positives from the event.

Over the past week it has been a pleasure to see the pair team up together on court. Robson has had the benefit of playing alongside the world no.4 in doubles and against some top players on the WTA circuit.

Her victory in the final against the world no.24 Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez 6-1 7-6 will provide a massive confidence boost and came ahead of the news she had been given a wildcard into the Aussie Open qualifiers.

After coming so close at the US open British fans have been given more cause to be hopeful ahead of this years Australian Open.

It would be fantastic if Robson could join Baltacha and O'Brien in the main draw down under and would highlight the real progress that is being made in the women's game at present.

As for Mr Murray the tournament gave him a chance to prepare ahead of the Australian Open in singles and the rare opportunity to relax somewhat on court in his mixed doubles.


There can be no doubt that he represented the senior party in the pairing but this is a role that Murray has thrived in before. His performances in the Davis Cup last year were excellent and lifted a team that is suffering from an alarming lack of depth.


No one doubts that Murray represents the immediate future of British tennis but perhaps he already recognises that Robson is in the same position that he found himself in 3 or 4 years ago.

It is perhaps a little surprising that it was Murray who suffered a singles defeat against Robredo in the final but he is unlikely to be overly concerned.

The Hopman cup a tournament that has been off the British radar since the days of Jo Durie and Jeremy Bates, provided everything the pair were looking for (except the trophy)!

Here's hoping that we can see the two pairing up together in the near future, perhaps not to win major titles but to foster the sort of camaraderie that has been somewhat lacking in the past.

Comeback Queen?

Earlier this week former world no.1 Justine Henin won her first match of her much anticipated comeback. As the Belgian looks to add to her grand slam tally in 2010 Tennislane takes a look at other comebacks on the women's tour.

Kim Clijsters:

Another Belgian following a series of frustrating injuries the widely popular Clijsters retired from tennis to start a family back in May 2007. Upon her retirement the 2005 US Open champion and former world no.1 had enjoyed a hugely successful career. Yet some were left feeling that Clijsters retired with some unfinished business, 1 victory from 5 grand slam finals perhaps one of her most frustrating statistics.

So when Clijsters announced her return to the tour ahead of the 2009 US open it was expected she was gearing up for an assault on the game's elite in 2010. Few could have predicted the fairytale tournament which saw her become the first unranked women in history to win a grand slam title. Clijsters has undoubtedly returned with a bang now we wait to see how her comeback continues in 2010.

Jennifer Capriati:

A teenage sensation becoming the youngest ever semi finalist at Rolland Garros, Capriati seemed destined for the top. But by the end of 1993 it seemed that her time in the game was coming to an end. Despite winning gold at 1992 Olympics in Barcelona Capriati was struggling with the pressure of life on tour. Arrested for shoplifting and later cannabis possession Capriati decided to take a break.

Capriati's return in 1996 was more low key than others and it took time for her to climb her way back up the tennis ladder. Her ranking slowly improved and in May 1999 she won her first WTA tournament since her return in Strasbourg. Perhaps it was this victory that gave her the belief and impetuous that had been lacking as 2001 was to prove to be the most successful year on tour. Winning her first grand slam at the Australian Open, Capriati added the 2001 French Open title, rose to no.1 in the rankings before successfully defending her maiden grandslam in 2002. Although injury may have cut short her time on tour Capriati's comeback must be regarded as one of the most successful in modern times.

Monica Seles:

Perhaps one of the greatest tragedies in tennis history is the stabbing of Monica Seles in 1993 by an obsessed fan of her rival Steffi Graf. At the time Seles was undoubtedly the best player on the planet. World no.1 and already a 8 time grand slam champion the world may have been robbed of her peak years.

However the comeback that Seles made from 1995 onwards was not only brave but very successful. After winning her first tournament back, Seles reached the final of the 1995 US Open losing out narrowly to Graf in three sets. However 1996 was the year which saw her return to the top. Triumph at the Australian Open was her ninth and final grand slam title and although she did not return to the dominance she had enjoyed in the early 90s Seles became a hugely popular player and a ever present top 10 player through to 2003.

Brits gear up for 2010

As the 2010 tennis season kicks off there are positive signs for British tennis in 2010.

Elena Baltacha, the British number one and James Ward have both qualified for the main event at Auckland and Channai respectively.

Baltacha, who is currently sitting at a career high ranking of 84 cruised past Canada's Stephanie Dubois 6-3 6-1 and will feel confident going into her first round match against Ioana Raluca.

If she can overcome that hurdle then a possible match up against no.3 seed Yania Wickmayer will certainly show Baltacha how far she has come ahead of the Aussie Open.

Meanwhile the 22 year old Ward defeated two higher ranked players including a convincing win over Israel's Naom Okun at Channai.

However Ward who is beginning to like the best choice for Britain's second Davis cup slot will now face a sterner test against world no.91 Marcel Grannolers.

Grannolers although primarily a doubles specialist is ranked over 170 places above Ward and certainly knows his way around a tennis court.

New Season - New look

Welcome to a revitalised Tennislane!

To co-incide with the launch of the new tennis season tennislane has re-launched with a brand new look.

Over the course of the season we will be following all the major tennis stories across the globe as well as keeping you up to date with Britain's homegrown stars so come back soon!