Revisiting Tennis Fun's 2010 Men's Storylines

And so the end of the 2010 tennis season is upon us. Here is a look back at the storylines posted during the beginning of the season.


1. Roger Federer poised to break Sampras' Weeks at No. 1 Record
It didn't happen in 2010, but Federer got ever so close to doing it, falling short by a mere two weeks of breaking Sampras' record.


2. Roger-Rafa Rivalry Revisited
Just like in 2009, Nadal and Federer split their only two matches in 2010 (Nadal winning in Madrid and Federer winning in London). Unlike 2009 however, the top two players in men's tennis never met in a Grand Slam match. Surprising really, since Nadal won 3 majors this year and Federer won 1.


3. Djokovic Threat Looms
Novak did break up the Rafa-Roger duopoly by spending a few weeks at No.2, but a strong finish to the 2010 season saw Federer charge back up to No.2 and create a comfortable lead in terms of ranking points.


4. More Grandslam Breakthroughs?
There was no Del Potro act in 2010, because Del Potro himself got injured and didn't play most of the year. We did see a first-time Grand Slam finalist in Tomas Berdych (Wimbledon).

ATP World Tour: The Asian Swing That Was

The ATP World Tour's three-week, five-tournament Asian swing has concluded with the Shanghai Masters in China. Here are all the winners:

Shanghai (ATP Masters 1000) - Andy Murray (d. Roger Federer)
Tokyo (ATP 500) - Rafael Nadal (d. Gael Monfils)
Beijing (ATP 500) - Novak Djokovic (d. David Ferrer)
Bangkok (ATP 250) - Guillermo Garcia-Lopez (d. Jarkko Nieminen)
Kuala Lumpur (ATP 250) - Mikhail Youzhny (d. Andrey Golubev)

Now the tour is back in Europe for the rest of the season, leading up to the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals. Since top-ranked Rafael Nadal has already clinched the year-end No. 1 following his US Open triumph, the battle for year-end No. 2 will be interesting to watch, as Roger Federer tries to hold off Novak Djokovic, who finished the last three years at No. 3.

Welcome to the Club, Rafa!

At age 24, World No. 1 Rafael Nadal becomes the seventh member of the Career Grand Slam Club by winning the US Open the other night. He is also only the second man after Andre Agassi to achieve the Career "Golden" Slam by virtue of his 2008 Olympics gold medal in singles. He has nine majors to his name, seven fewer than Roger Federer's record of 16.

At next year's Australian Open, Nadal will attempt to win his fourth consecutive Grand Slam title (a.k.a. the "Rafa Slam")

Career Grand Slam Club
1. Fred Perry (1933 - 1935)
2. Don Budge (1937 - 1938)
3. Rod Laver (1960 - 1962)
4. Roy Emerson (1961 - 1964)
5. Andre Agassi (1992 - 1999)
6. Roger Federer (2003 - 2009)
7. Rafael Nadal (2005 - 2010)

Career "Golden" Slam Club
1. Andre Agassi (1992 - 1999)
2. Rafael Nadal (2005 - 2010)

Calendar Grand Slam Club
1. Don Budge (1938)
2. Rod Laver (1962, 1969)

Federer, Murray Head US Open Favorites

Roger Federer defended his Cincy Masters title on Sunday, while Andy Murray defended his Canada Masters title the week before. Both men currently share the leaderboard at the US Open Series Bonus Challenge (Murray owns the tiebreaker), and should be considered co-favorites going into next week's US Open.

Here are the projected quarterfinal match-ups:

Top half:
[1] R Nadal (ESP) vs [8] F Verdasco (ESP)
[4] A Murray (GBR) vs [7] T Berdych (CZE)

Bottom half:
[2] R Federer (SUI) vs [5] R Soderling (SWE)
[3] N Djokovic (SRB) vs [6] N Davydenko (RUS)

Are we going to see a repeat of the 2008 US Open Men's Final? Or is this the year when either Nadal or Djokovic can finally break through in New York?

Canada Masters Update: "Big 4" in Semis

Just like last year in Cincy Masters, the "Big 4" are headed to the Rogers Cup semis, albeit with a different pairing.

Top seed Nadal will face defending champ Murray (with Murray's #4 ranking on the line), while second seed Djokovic battles Roger Federer (with Djokovic's #2 ranking on the line).

In Cincinnati, it was Federer who came out on top, beating Murray in the semis and Djokovic in the final. Who will come out on top in Toronto? With no clear favorite, it's anybody's ballgame.

Canada Masters Quarterfinals All Set

The Rogers Cup quarterfinal matchups are set, with the "Big 4" leading the way:

[1] R. Nadal vs. P. Kohlschreiber
[2] N. Djokovic vs. J. Chardy
[3] R. Federer vs. [7] T. Berdych
[4] A. Murray vs. D. Nalbandian

Should Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer meet in the semis, the winner will be ranked #2 on Monday. Holder Andy Murray needs to at least make the final to keep the #4 ranking, otherwise he will be replaced by Robin Soderling at #4.

2008 All Over Again

For Rafael Nadal, this year certainly feels like 2008 all over again. Much like two years ago when Nadal became the No. 1 player in the world and achieved the French Open-Wimbledon double, La Roja ended their 44-year trophy drought by becoming European Champions and earning the FIFA No. 1 world ranking for the first time. That year, big-time soccer fan Nadal partied away to celebrate with the Spanish national team.

2009 wasn't so good to either Nadal or La Roja, with the former failing to defend both French Open and Wimbledon, losing the top ranking in the process. The latter fell to Team USA in the final of the FIFA Confederations Cup, having a streak of 35 unbeaten games snapped.

It's deja vu in 2010, as Nadal reclaims both the French Open and Wimbledon titles, and gets the No. 1 ranking back. As for La Roja? A World Cup trophy nonetheless, winning their first ever World Cup final. Rafa was in Johannesburg, South Africa to cheer on the Spanish side and witness the team's glory in victory, exactly one week after he won his second Wimbledon title. He celebrated with the players in the locker room and even took a bite out of the golden trophy.

Will the coming years bring continued success to Rafa Nadal and La Roja?

Wimbledon "Big 4" Ranking Projections

As Wimbledon gets underway, here is a look at the "Big 4" Ranking projections:

https://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=0ArXMd59RqOuFdGUzNVRONjllSHN6RlY1Y1hnNmFudlE&hl=en&output=html

Highlights:
* Nadal will keep his #1 ranking no matter what happens in this tournament
* Although highly unlikely, Federer could drop to #3 if Djokovic outperforms him past the quarterfinal stage

Here are the projected quarterfinal match-ups:
Top half:
[1] Roger Federer (SUI) vs [7] Nikolay Davydenko (RUS)
[3] Novak Djokovic (SRB) vs [5] Andy Roddick (USA)

Bottom half:
[2] Rafael Nadal (ESP) vs [6] Robin Soderling (SWE)
[4] Andy Murray (GBR) vs [8] Fernando Verdasco (ESP)

Nadal's Perfect Clay Season: Back as French Open Champ, Back at No. 1

The biggest question heading into this year's clay season was whether or not Rafa Nadal can end his 11-month title drought and return to form following last year's debacle. It all started with his French Open fourth round shock exit, which in turn, uncovered his knee problems and personal issues among other things.

Nadal answered with a 22-0 record on clay, winning Monte Carlo Masters (def. Verdasco), Rome Masters (def. Ferrer), Madrid Masters (def. Federer), and now French Open #5 (def. Soderling). He also regained the No. 1 ranking he lost to Roger Federer almost one year ago.

Next up: Can Rafa match his 2008 perfect grass season results and extend his winning streak?

French Open Update: Men's Semifinals Preview

[5] R Soderling (SWE) vs [15] T Berdych (CZE)
Head-to-head: 4-3 (0-1 on clay)

Robin Soderling's quarterfinal victory over defending champion Roger Federer is the biggest story of the tournament so far. Not only did Soderling snap Federer's Grand Slam semifinal streak at 23, but he also prevented Federer from keeping the No. 1 ranking outright for at least the next couple of weeks, which would have been enough to eclipse Pete Sampras' all-time record weeks at No. 1.

Soderling's opponent is Tomas Berdych, whose best result this year is advancing to the final at the Miami Masters event by beating Soderling himself in the semis. This is Berdych's first semifinal appearance in a major.

[2] R Nadal (ESP) vs [22] J Melzer (AUT)
Head-to-head: 2-0 (1-0 on clay)

Rafael Nadal is two wins away from (1) a perfect clay-court season, (2) French Open title #5 and (3) regaining the #1 ranking. Sampras fans are rooting for Nadal to go all the way to preserve Pistol Pete's record weeks at No. 1, at least for the time being.

Nadal's opponent is fellow leftie Jurgen Melzer, who came back from two sets down to beat third seed Novak Djokovic in the quarters. Just like Berdych, this is Melzer's first semifinal appearance in a major.

Roland Garros Men's Quarterfinals All Set

There are no major upsets this time around going into the second week at the French Open. The last eight are all seeded players, with defending champion and top seed Roger Federer and last year's Nadal-conqueror and finalist Robin Soderling setting up a blockbuster rematch. A win by Federer assures him of breaking Pete Sampras' record weeks at No. 1 and preserving his Grand Slam semifinal streak (currently at 23).

Here are the quarterfinal match-ups:

Top half:
[1] R Federer (SUI) vs [5] R Soderling (SWE)
[11] M Youzhny (RUS) vs [15] T Berdych (CZE)

Bottom half:
[2] R Nadal (ESP) vs [19] N Almagro (ESP)
[3] N Djokovic (SRB) vs [22] J Melzer (AUT)

French Open Preview: Federer Defense or Nadal Sweep?

It's Madrid Masters all over again as the theme for this year's edition of the French Open, with Roger Federer the defending champ and No. 1 seed in the top half of the draw and Rafael Nadal, seeking a perfect season (22-0) on clay, the second seed in the bottom half.

There has not been a repeat champion in a major since the 2008 US Open. Can Federer defend the French, or will Nadal achieve the first-ever "clay slam"? (Monte Carlo-Rome-Madrid-Roland Garros sweep)

Australian Open - Djokovic (2008), Nadal (2009), Federer (2010)
French Open - Nadal (2008), Federer (2009), ????
Wimbledon - Nadal (2008), Federer (2009), ????
US Open - Federer (2008), Del Potro (2009), ????

Here are the potential French Open Quarterfinal Match-ups:

Top half:

[1] R Federer (SUI) vs [5] R Soderling (SWE)
[4] A Murray (GBR) vs [8] J Tsonga (FRA)

Bottom half:

[2] R Nadal (ESP) vs [7] F Verdasco (ESP)
[3] N Djokovic (SRB) vs [6] A Roddick (USA)

2010 French Open "Big 4" Ranking Projections

The second Grand Slam tournament of the season is only days away and the draw is due out on Friday! Before then, here's a look at the "Big 4" Ranking projections:

http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=tjmgRPzEY3gxmQAWQGLIW9w&output=html

Highlights:
* World No. 1 Roger Federer will retain his ranking if he reaches the semifinals, regardless of the results of other players
* World No. 2 Rafael Nadal will be the new No. 1 if he wins the French Open and Federer fails to reach the semis
* World No. 3 Novak Djokovic will be the new No. 1 if he wins the French Open and Federer fails to reach the quarterfinals

Vamos, Rafa!

At 23 years and 11 months, World No. 2 Rafael Nadal stands alone with the record for most number of ATP World Tour 1000 (Masters) titles at 18 after winning in Madrid. Andre Agassi previously held the record with 17 shields, winning his last title in 2004. World No. 1 Roger Federer is third on the list with 16 shields.

Nadal breaks Agassi's Masters record less than a year after Federer broke Pete Sampras' Grand Slam singles record. Talk about symmetry!

Rafa achieves the first-ever Monte Carlo-Rome-Madrid clay court "treble" and becomes the first player to win three consecutive ATP World Tour 1000 tournaments irrespective of surface.

Madrid Masters Preview: Federer Defense or Nadal Sweep?

So here we are at the third and last clay-court Masters 1000 event of the year in Madrid and the top players' final warm-up tournament before the French Open.

On the top half of the draw is defending champion and No. 1 seed Roger Federer who has been struggling to find his form on clay recently. On the bottom half is No. 2 seed and Monte Carlo-Rome winner Rafael Nadal, who will once again be attempting to win an unprecedented three clay-court Masters 1000 events in the same season - something Nadal has been trying to achieve since 2005 (He's gone 2 out of 3 each time).

A rematch of last year's final at La Caja Magica beckons. Hopefully, Roger and Rafa will live up to the expectations.

Fun facts:
If Federer wins in Madrid:
* He will tie Agassi and Nadal for the record of most Masters 1000 titles at 17
* He is assured of breaking Sampras' record for most weeks at #1, even if he skips the French Open

If Nadal wins in Madrid:
* He will be the all-time leader in Masters shields won at 18, sweeping all three clay-court Masters 1000 events in the process
* He will regain the #2 ranking, and will be in position to regain #1 if he wins the French and Federer doesn't reach the finals in BOTH Madrid and Roland Garros (the equivalent of earning about 1,000 ranking points)

Nadal "Six-Peats" at Monte Carlo Masters

World Number Three Rafael Nadal set a new Open Era record in Monte Carlo on Sunday by winning his sixth straight title in the same tournament. Nadal defeated three fellow Spaniards in two-time champ JC Ferrero, David Ferrer, and Fernando Verdasco en route to the title, upping his tally to 16 shields (tied with Roger Federer for 2nd all time).

Monte Carlo has traditionally signaled Rafa's dominance in the European clay-court swing of the ATP World Tour leading up to the French Open. Between 2005 and 2009, the "King of Clay" has amassed 19 titles in this part of the tour calendar, including 4 French Open titles and 10 shields. Will the trend continue this year?

Here is a look back at Nadal's achievements on clay between Monte Carlo and Roland Garros:

2005: Monte Carlo, Barcelona, Rome, Roland Garros
2006: Monte Carlo, Barcelona, Rome, Roland Garros
2007: Monte Carlo, Barcelona, Rome, Roland Garros
2008: Monte Carlo, Barcelona, Hamburg, Roland Garros
2009: Monte Carlo, Barcelona, Rome
2010: Monte Carlo

Monte Carlo Semis: Three Spaniards And A Serb

The semifinal matchups are all set in Monte Carlo, and it features three Spaniards, including five-time defending champ Rafael Nadal, and last year's finalist Novak Djokovic.

Monte Carlo is the first of three clay-court ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Events leading up to the French Open. Nadal is attempting to achieve an Open Era record of winning six straight titles in the same tournament, a feat even World No. 1 and 16-time Grand Slam winner Roger Federer does not have on his resume. Standing on Nadal's path in the semis is fellow Spaniard David Ferrer.

Top seed Novak Djokovic will be looking to avenge last year's final defeat to Nadal, but will have to get past Spaniard Fernando Verdasco first in the other semifinal match. Hard to believe, but Verdasco is appearing in his first-ever Masters 1000 semifinal.

Miami Update: Men's Final Four All Set

The men's semifinals at the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami is all set. Here are the match-ups:

[4] R Nadal (ESP) vs [6] A Roddick (USA)
[5] R Soderling (SWE) vs [16] T Berdych (CZE)

Fun facts:
* Nadal, Roddick and Soderling are making their second straight semis appearance, as they all made it to the last four at Indian Wells. Can Berdych duplicate Ivan Ljubicic's achievement and deny this trio a shield for the second Masters event in a row?
* Nadal is the only member of the "Big 4" to make this year's semifinals in Miami. Last year, he was the only one among the Bigs who failed to make it this far when he was upset by Del Potro in the quarters.

Men's Quarterfinal Match-ups All Set At Indian Wells

All eight quarterfinalists are seeded, but the top two seeds have already been eliminated from the tournament. It's quite a coincidence that seeds 18-21 are through to the last eight.

[3] R Nadal (ESP) vs [19] T Berdych (CZE)
[4] A Murray (GBR) vs [6] R Soderling (SWE)
[7] A Roddick (USA) vs [18] T Robredo (ESP)
[20] I Ljubicic (CRO) vs [21] J Monaco (ARG)

In contrast, these were last year's quarterfinal match-ups:

[1] R Nadal (ESP) vs [6] J Del Potro (ARG)
[2] R Federer (SUI) vs [10] F Verdasco (ESP)
[3] N Djokovic (SRB) vs [7] A Roddick (USA)
[4] A Murray (GBR) vs I Ljubicic (CRO)

Indian Wells-Miami "Double": A Retrospective

Sandwiched between the Australian Open hard court Grand Slam and the European clay court season leading up to the French, consecutive ATP World Tour Masters 1000 events at Indian Wells and Miami provide tennis fans with a 5th Grand Slam of sorts. After all, winning both events (a.k.a. the "double") is equivalent to winning a major (2000 ranking points). The size of the draw for both events is the biggest outside of the slams - 96 players in a 128-player grid, with first round byes for the top 32 seeds.

Over the last ten years, only two players have won the Indian Wells-Miami double: Andre Agassi in 2001, and world No. 1 Roger Federer in 2005 and 2006. It's interesting to note that Federer has been shut out of the Indian Wells and Miami winners' circle since then. World No. 2 Novak Djokovic has won both events, but not in the same year.

Here is the complete list of winners from 2000-2009:

Year - Indian Wells - Miami
2009 - Rafael Nadal - Andy Murray
2008 - Novak Djokovic - Nikolay Davydenko
2007 - Rafael Nadal - Novak Djokovic
2006 - Roger Federer - Roger Federer
2005 - Roger Federer - Roger Federer
2004 - Andy Roddick - Roger Federer
2003 - Andre Agassi - Lleyton Hewitt
2002 - Andre Agassi - Lleyton Hewitt
2001 - Andre Agassi - Andre Agassi
2000 - Pete Sampras - Alex Corretja

Can Roger do the "double" again this year, let alone win either one after a 3-year drought? Or will Djokovic, Nadal or Murray do the trick? Game on!

16 and Counting: What's Next For Federer?

In 2009, it was the career grand slam and title #15 to claim solo ownership of all-time Grand Slam singles record. This year at the Australian Open, after adding yet another trophy to his record haul, one can't help but ask - what's next for Roger Federer?

The Calendar Slam
The most obvious next target would be a Calendar slam, which Rod Laver achieved twice. Rafa Nadal was in a similar situation last year after having won the Australian Open - he just needed to defend his French and Wimbledon titles and then win the US Open. Yet Rafa did not win another slam after the '09 Australian Open. Would Roger fare better? Defending the French might prove to be the most difficult part of this quest. After all, Federer should already have two calendar slams under his belt had he not lost those two French Open finals in 2006 and 2007.

Individual Grand Slam event records
Federer already co-owns records for most Australian Open and US Open titles. The Wimbledon record is within his reach as well:
Australian Open - 4 (record, tied with Agassi)
French Open - 1 (record is 6, held by Borg)
Wimbledon - 6 (record is 7, held by Sampras)
US Open - 5 (record, tied with Sampras and Connors)

All-time Grand Slam singles record, male or female
Federer is only 6th among the all-time grand slam singles title holders, male or female. Roger needs to win 9 more slams before calling it quits to be alone at the top. Here are the top ten:
1. 24 - Margaret Court
2. 22 - Steffi Graf
3. 19 - Helen Wills Moody
4. 18 - Chris Evert
4. 18 - Martina Navratilova
6. 16 - Roger Federer
7. 14 - Pete Sampras
8. 12 - Billie Jean King
8. 12 - Rod Laver
8. 12 - Serena Williams

Federer-Murray II

The men's final at the 2010 Australian Open is upon us - it's Roger Federer's eight straight Grand Slam Final and 22nd overall, versus Andy Murray's second. Federer is seeking Grand Slam Trophy #16 while Murray is hoping to win his first. It's even money at this point - a chess match if you will.

A win by Murray will give him the #2 ranking which he held for three weeks last year. Federer will remain #1 and is almost assured of the top ranking through mid-June, which means he is well on his way to breaking Pete Sampras' all-time record for weeks at No. 1. As for the rest of the "Big 5", dethroned Australian Open champ Rafa Nadal will slip to #4 while reigning US Open champ Juan Martin Del Potro will remain at #5. Novak Djokovic's ranking depends on Murray's results: Djokovic will reach a career-high #2 if Murray loses; #3 if Murray wins.

Australian Open 2010 Men's "Elite 8" Preview

Six of the top 8 seeds advanced to the quarterfinals.
Here are the matchups:

[1] Roger Federer (SUI) vs [6] Nikolay Davydenko (RUS)
Grand Slam Head-to-Head: 4-0

Davydenko, currently the hottest player on the ATP World Tour, has beaten Federer the last two times they met, but never on the Grand Slam stage. This match is going to prove if Davydenko has finally grown up to have the staying power against the big guns in a slam. Federer is the biggest of them all, having won a record 15 Grand Slam titles and will be attempting to extend his record Grand Slam semifinal streak to 23.

[2] Rafael Nadal (ESP) vs [5] Andy Murray (GBR)
Grand Slam Head-to-Head: 2-1

The defending champion against arguably the best player with no Grand Slam title to show for. Both Nadal and Murray came out victorious in their fourth round matches against service ace leaders Ivo Karlovic and John Isner respectively, taking chances when it mattered. Who will prevail this time?

[3] Novak Djokovic (SRB) vs [10] Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA)
Grand Slam Head-to-Head: 1-0

A rematch of the 2008 Australian Open final, which earned Djokovic his first and only slam to date. This will be Djokovic's first real test in the tournament so far, as he has had a relatively easy draw up to this point.

[7] Andy Roddick (USA) vs [14] Marin Cilic (CRO)
Grand Slam Head-to-Head: 0-0

Both Roddick and Cilic won their warm-up tournaments heading to the Australian Open, and both players are coming off hard-fought five set wins in their fourth round matches. The winning streak for one of them will have to end tonight.

Blockbuster Fourth Round Matches All Set in Melboure

The Round-of-16 Men's Matches are all set at the Australian Open.
Most of the top seeds will be up for a challenge to secure their spot in the quarterfinals, as only two unseeded players made it this far.

Bottom Half: (scheduled for 1/24)
[2] R Nadal (ESP) vs I Karlovic (CRO)
[4] J Del Potro (ARG) vs [14] M Cilic (CRO)
[5] A Murray (GBR) vs [33] J Isner (USA)
[7] A Roddick (USA) vs [11] F Gonzalez (CHI)

Top Half: (scheduled for 1/25)
[1] R Federer (SUI) vs [22] L Hewitt (AUS)
[3] N Djokovic (SRB) vs L Kubot (POL)
[6] N Davydenko (RUS) vs [9] F Verdasco (ESP)
[10] J Tsonga (FRA) vs [26] N Almagro (ESP)

Australian Open "Big 5" Ranking Projections

The first round of action at the Australian Open is history, and the "Big 5" are through to the second round. Among the bigs, fifth seed Andy Murray had the easiest first round match, losing only a total of four games. Both top seed Roger Federer and fourth seed Juan Martin del Potro needed four sets to win their respective matches.

Here's a look at the "Big 5" Ranking Projections for the Australian Open:
http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=tv4eCOiLPhRpvqWF1mVZ7AA&output=html

An Aussie Open crown for #3 Novak Djokovic and a quarterfinal exit for Federer will give Djokovic the top ranking for the first time in his career. #2 Rafael Nadal can go as low as #4 if he doesn't go deep into the second week.

Australian Open 2010 Draw Is Out!

Here are the projected men's quarterfinal matchups:

[1] Roger Federer (SUI) vs [6] Nikolay Davydenko (RUS)

[2] Rafael Nadal (ESP) vs [5] Andy Murray (GBR)

[3] Novak Djokovic (SRB) vs [8] Robin Soderling (SWE)

[4] Juan Martin del Potro (ARG) vs [7] Andy Roddick (USA)

[Men's Singles Draw]

Del Potro Ranked #4 For A Week, Murray Slips to #5

Juan Martin Del Potro is at a career-high #4 this week, as Andy Murray lost 250 ranking points by opting to play for Great Britain at the Hopman Cup instead of defending his title in Doha. They will switch places once again on Monday, as Del Potro won't be defending his title (250 ranking points) at Auckland.

Although Del Potro will only be #4 this week, the timing can't be any better, since his Australian Open seeding will be affected. As a fourth seed, Del Potro won't have to face #1 Roger Federer or #2 Rafael Nadal until the semis.

Davydenko, Roddick, Cilic Win First Titles of 2010

Third seed Nikolay Davydenko beat the top two seeds Federer (semifinal) and Nadal (final) in Doha en route to his first title of 2010. Davydenko continued where he left off last year, winning the Shanghai Masters and the ATP World Tour Finals in London.

Top seed Andy Roddick defeated second seed and defending champ Radek Stepanek in Brisbane.

Second seed Marin Cilic defended his title in Chennai by beating third seed Stanislas Wawrinka in the final. Cilic is being touted by tennis analysts to have a breakout season in 2010.

Look for the trio of Davydenko, Roddick and Cilic to win more titles this year.

2010 Men's Tennis Storylines

Happy New Year from Tennis Fun!

As the 2010 season officially got underway this week at three ATP 250 events,let's take a look at the top storylines for this year:

1. Roger Federer poised to break Sampras' Weeks at No. 1 Record
After breaking the Grand Slam record held by Sampras, Federer looks to break another one of Sampras' records this year. Sampras is the all-time leader in (non-consecutive) weeks at No. 1, spending a total of 286 weeks at the top of the ATP rankings. Federer currently stands 4th all-time with 264 weeks as of January 4th. All he needs to do now is to stay at the top spot through June 14th and the record is his. Can he do it?

2. Roger-Rafa Rivalry Revisited
In 2009, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal split their two matches, fewest since 2005 when they also met only twice the entire season. Are we going to see a revival of the Roger-Rafa rivalry, or is 2010 the beginning of the end? The Qatar Open final would have been their first match this year, but Nadal gets Davydenko instead as the Russian beat Federer in the semis. Another botched match-up between the rivals is the Spain-Switzerland Davis Cup first round tie, as Federer has already decided not to play for SUI. Anyhow, we sure hope to see an Australian Open final rematch by month's end.

3. Djokovic Threat Looms
World No. 3 Novak Djokovic is primed to play the spoiler role to the Roger-Rafa rivalry/duopoly, let alone Federer's reign atop the rankings. In fact, Djokovic is a bigger threat to Federer (than Nadal is to Federer) in the first two months of the season, since Djokovic won't be defending a lot of ranking points. An Aussie Open title for Djokovic will give him the No. 1 ranking if Federer doesn't reach the semifinals in Melbourne. Will "King Novak" be king of the ATP World Tour as well?

4. More Grandslam Breakthroughs?
In 2008, Djokovic won his first Grand Slam title at the Australian Open. Last year, it was Juan Martin Del Potro who did the trick at the US Open. Are we going to see another breakthrough this year? A good number of players are capable, including Grand Slam finalists Andy Murray and Robin Soderling.