With the "Big 4" of Nadal, Federer, Djokovic and Murray firmly secured on top of men's tennis, it remains to be seen if another player on the ATP World Tour can consistently compete at a high level, especially in the Slams, and be a fifth member of the tennis elite.
Nikolay Davydenko has occupied the #5 ranking since November, but he is about to lose that spot sooner or later with his recent withdrawal at Indian Wells due to injury. He is the defending champion at the next ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Event which begins later this month in Miami, so he is bound to lose more ranking points if he continues to struggle because of his lingering left heel injury.
By winning the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells, sixth-ranked Juan Martin Del Potro or No. 7 Andy Roddick can displace Davydenko as World No. 5. If either of them wants to be a contender, they need to improve on their 2008 big tournament results, as both of them didn't reach a Grand Slam final or a Masters Series final last year.
And then, there are the promising French trio of No. 8 Gilles Simon, No. 9 Gael Monfils and 2008 Australian Open finalist Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, who already has two titles this year. However, all of them have been eliminated at Indian Wells.
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