Each week, Sport360°'s tennis expert, Reem Abulleil, offers her thoughts on the major talking points from the Tour before looking to the week ahead…
A day after Maria Sharapova lost her fifth Miami title match, David Ferrer took his losing streak in finals against top-five players to 13.
The Spaniard, who has never beaten a top-five player in a final in his career, broke Andy Murray to stay in the match at 4-5 in the final set and held a match point against the Scot.
But Ferrer eventually played a very poor tiebreak to concede the Miami title in a match that saw a combined total of 95 unforced errors and only 37 winners.
Calling Murray’s win ugly would hardly suffice and applauding Ferrer for his fighting spirit should no longer be enough. It’s high time the Valencian started punching above his weight to win those finals.
Meanwhile, Murray and Ferrer both received many plaudits for battling so hard in the tough humid conditions at Key Biscayne, but I have to say that once rallies become more about who is going to miss first, rather than who will win the point, I tend to reach for my remote control to switch the channel.
The now-retired Andy Roddick tweeted after the match that the surface has become so slow in Miami that it’s very difficult for players to hit a winner, which is why the match became more about missing.
I don’t believe that is the only factor behind that slugfest of a final since both Ferrer and Murray can often resort to boring tactics, but it does force the question: how much slower will the ATP allow these surfaces to get?
THUMBS UP – Tommy Haas
The German, who turns 35 on Wednesday, notched his first win over a world No1 since 1999 by ousting Novak Djokovic in the Miami fourth round.
Haas is a two-time ATP Comeback Player of the year having fought back from a string of injuries throughout his career but his stunning performances in Miami have earned him a spot in the top-15 for the first time since January 2008.
Celebrating his wins with his adorable daughter Valentine on court was possibly one of the most heart-melting sights of the fortnight as well.
THUMBS DOWN – CBS
It was ironic when the tournament director Adam Barrett began his speech before the trophy ceremony by thanking CBS for being their main partner for the Sony Open especially when it was only a short while after the network had cut off their live broadcast of the final at 6-6 in the final set to switch to college basketball.
I say the network gave a new meaning to the term “March Madness”.
MOVERS AND SHAKERS
Andy Murray replaces Roger Federer as the world No2, Jelena Jankovic is up six spots to No18 after her run to the semis, while Kirsten Flipkens reaches a career high at No22.
STAT OF THE WEEK
For the first time since November 2003, both Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal are outside the top-two.
TWEET OF THE WEEK
Jurgen Melzer’s tweet after he lost to Ferrer in three sets was priceless. The Austrian was unable to hold serve in the final set (lost it 6-0) and immediately went on Twitter to vent after his defeat.
Referring to his wife, tennis player Iveta Benesova, Melzer said: "J Melzer @jojomelzer My wife would say "f" word serve!"
WEEK AHEAD
Serena Williams is the top seed in Charleston while Angelique Kerber leads the pack in Monterrey. The ATP takes a break as the men head to Davis Cup quarter-final duty where Novak Djokovic leads team Serbia against the Americans in Boise.
READ MORE:
– Down the line: Miami missing Federer & Nadal (Mar. 26)
– Down the line: Indian Wells remains a Californian Dream (Mar. 19)
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