Is Parity on the Horizon?

Men’s tennis has been searching hard for someone to challenge the stunning excellence that Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal have exhibited over the sport during the last two years. Never in the history of the sport have two players distanced themselves as far from the pack for as long as these two have ever since the May 2005 French Open.

Think Tiger and Phil dominate golf? During this stretch, tennis' big two have combined to sweep the last 10 majors. Tiger and Phil have never come close to doing that. No one else mattered in the men's game, the rest of the field featured a bunch of average players that were left with the consolation prize of attaining an ATP [1] Entry Ranking of number three in the computer. You wanna know some of the past #3’s? Andy Roddick, Nikolay Davydenko, and David Nalbandian, just to name a few. What’s wrong with Roddick? Well I could devote an entire blog to the things that are stopping him from being a Grand Slam winner in the near future and that still wouldn’t tell the whole story. Davydenko (right) needs to be more concerned about his betting scandal in Poland than tennis right now, and Nalbandian’s skills have deteriorated faster than Marat Safin’s has. But now, like running back tandems in the NFL, the third ranked player in the world is suddenly a growing sensation. The best part is that this could only be the beginning.

Who is this “mystery man,” the guy who suddenly matters? That would be Novak Djokovic, the latest man to reach #3 on that computer, and owner of the 2007 Rogers Masters, which came to an exhilarating end yesterday afternoon. The way in which Djokovic was able to capture that title is of much more significance than the title itself. That’s because Djokovic finally managed to upset 11-time Grand Slam winner and defending champion Roger Federer. I repeat someone other than Rafael Nadal has beaten Roger Federer in the finals of a tournament that is not on clay. Try and find the last person before Novak Djokovic to pull that off. Now, there’s a brainteaser for you.

In a truly riveting match full of momentum swings and unexplainable shot making, Djokovic captured the title in Toronto with a dramatic 7-6, 2-6, 7-6 over Federer, putting the finishing touch on a historic week. The Serbian became the first man to ever beat Nadal and Federer in the same tournament, a truly impressive feat if you think about it. The 20-year old surgically and methodically broke down Nadal in the semifinals with a solid 7-5, 6-3 victory on Saturday under the lights to complete only his second career victory over the Spaniard. Oh ya, in case you didn’t know, he also took out Andy Roddick on his best surface in the round before. That would be a clean sweep of the top three in the game on [2] consecutive days. The worst part for Roddick fans is how well he played. His opponent was simply better at the crucial moments, didn’t matter how hard Roddick served it.

The Championship Match showed just how serious Djokovic (left) is about being a contender in the men’s game. Those earlier wins against Roddick and Nadal are nice, but taking down Federer, whose credentials on this surface are unrivaled, does not happen by a clown. After blowing a dream lead of 3-0, Djokovic found himself in a dogfight. Down 6-5, 40-0, with Federer serving in the opening set, the Serb managed to somehow fight off five set points off en route to capturing a break to force the tiebreaker. Once in the tiebreak, Djokovic’s forehand took over, darting shots across the court that even the quick Federer couldn’t reach.

But, before you knew it the 7-2 tiebreak victory in the first set became a distant memory. Federer captured the second set with the type of precision that has led him to an astonishing 49 career titles only a week after his 26th birthday. Djokovic’s control of the match seemed to be wavering entering the final set. He lost his serve twice and dropped the set so easily at 6-2. However, unlike so many before him, Djokovic managed to fight back from adversity and provide significant resistance to what is dubbed “The Federer Express.” The third set was a dead heat, and would be decided in the most exciting way possible, a winner take all tiebreak.

Looking at the resumes, Djokovic obviously has little to match up against his counterpart. But, what he lacked in achievements, he made up with fearlessness and his spectacular shots. Djokovic stunned the fans in Montreal by turning the tables on Federer and acting as the aggressor. No one can do that to the Swiss, save for Nadal on clay. He hit winner after winner in the closing minutes and there was little surprise that he walked away the victor with another 7-2 count in the tiebreaker. [3] Djokovic is one of several youngsters that are part of a tennis time period immensely in need of a tagline like the “New Balls, Please” campaign that was associated with tennis' brilliant marketing strategy at the start of the decade. Guys like Federer, Safin, and Tommy Haas were full of potential and the ATP Tour made sure the world knew about them. Those guys are great now; they had cool posters promoting them to the world during their youth. These guys can be great too. Where’s their poster?

Richard Gasquet, Andrew Murray, and a host of others have made a small splash, but those are nothing like the cannon ball Djokovic has just performed. These up and comers have the temporary excuse of being young, but if they can find themselves in the manner that Djokovic has, then men’s tennis might finally be getting unpredictable again.

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