March is a special time for North American tennis fans. The days start to get longer, the snow starts to melt, the sun starts to come out, and two back-to-back premier tennis tournaments take place in a timezone that saves us from becoming zombies the next day. However, these tournaments aren’t slams, and with their strange placement in the tennis calendar, they often leave me asking “what does it all mean?”

Let’s take a look. To start, Indian Wells and Miami are the standard bearer of both how to run a tournament outside of the majors, as well as the benefits of running a combined tournament, which is becoming more and more common. They are 7 round tournaments (like the slams), however, 32 seeds get a bye, so it’s only a 96 player draw on both sides. For the men, the last to win both back to back was Fed, who did it in both 2005 and 2006 (that’s 24 straight wins combined). Agassi did it in 2001, Rios did it in 1998, Sampras did it in 1994, Chang in 1992, Courier in 1991. Miami was founded in 1985, so in 25 years, that’s 7 times the Indian Wells champion has gone on to win Miami, a remarkably high percentage by my estimation.

For the ladies, Kim did it in 2005, Serena in 2001, and Steffi did it in 1996. The ladies side of Indian Wells wasn’t held before 1989, which means that back to back wins has happened 3 times in 21 years.

For tennis writers and talking heads, finding meaning in a seemingly endless season centred around four main tournaments can be difficult. Indian Wells/Miami is an interesting combo. To win both, you get the equivalent of a slams worth in points, 2000, and need to win a daunting 12 straight matches if you’re a seed (or an insane 14 if you’re not). They’re played on hard courts, of course… however, the second Miami is done, most top players set their sights on clay, and don’t play another match until then. Still, to win a tournament of this caliber, let alone both, is a serious statement.

For me, these tournaments don’t exist in a vacuum, but they might be the closet thing that any big tournament could be. Ljubicic’s astonishing and heart warming run didn’t mean a meteoric rise to the top 10, and JJ’s victory didn’t signal a return to serious slam contention. That being said, Andy’s victory in Miami let everyone know that he can still compete at the big time, and Kim’s championship… well, she won the US Open, so take from that what you will.

Perhaps the most astonishing thing about Indian Wells and Miami, especially in this day in age, is the contrast of venues. If the switch from clay to grass requires serious adjustment, so must the switch from IW to Miami. Indian Wells, placed seemingly in the Middle of Nowhere California features tons of empty practice courts, gorgeous scenery, blue skies, and a relaxed atmosphere. Miami, on the other hand, is just off Miami, one of the main (party) centres of Florida, and is busy and in your face.

This year, it’s tough to know who the favourites are going in. Nole? Kim? Possibly. Could either of them take both of them? What major upsets await?

Indian Wells and Miami might not tell you who will win Wimbledon, or even the US Open… but two things are for sure. These are two fantastic events, and there is is some seriously entertaining tennis headed our way. Enjoy the tournaments everyone.

Davis Cup

Official Site: Here
Draw: Here

I’m not going to run down every single Davis Cup tie in the World Group, as there are eight in total and a lot of uneven match-ups. Instead I’ll run down the ones I think are most promising, including the Canada/Mexico tie.

Sweden vs. Russia
While Russia is often assumed to be a powerhouse in international competitions, both on the men’s and women’s side, without Kolya and Youzhny, the Russian side is seriously lacking star power. The curious thing is that outside of Soderling, Sweden’s singles hopes fall upon a player ranked 750th in singles. One would have to assume that this contest will likely come down to the doubles to decide things. Personally, I like the Swedish team of Aspelin/Lindstedt. I’ll take Sweden in this one, 3-2.

Croatia vs. Germany

In what promises to be a massive, indoor serve fest, Germany travel to Croatia to take on the hometown favourites. At this time, it’s difficult to know how Germany will play things with Pesky Petz, a solid singles player but also a fantastic doubles player. I wouldn’t be surprised if they split the singles between him and veteran Mayer, and give the remaining two to their highest ranked singles player Kohlschreiber. Croatia will almost surely counter with Marin and Ivo, who make up quite a wall of serving power. I like Germany for the doubles, but Croatia to pull it out 3-2 overall.

Mexico vs. Canada

The Canadians once again head south to the heat near the equator for another Davis Cup clay battle, this time with Mexico. This time they have a new hope in Milos Raonic. The obvious problem arises, however, in that clay will seriously dampen the effects of his big serve, and the general tennis universe has yet to see how well he can do on clay, or how he will play. That being said, Canada also has grinders Peter Polansky and a rejuvenated Frank Dancevic, and veteran doubles beast Daniel Nestor. Mexico’s lineup comes off as rather thin, with no player ranked above 400 in singles. I won’t predict the outcome, as it’s tough to call without knowing who will get the nod in singles for Canada, but I really do like our chance to advance to play Ecuador.

WTA – Kuala Lumpur (International)

Official Site: Here
Draw: Here
Top Seeds: Franny, Bartoli, Kleybs, Jarka Groth

This is a pretty solid line-up in Malaysia, considering it is in Asia and the week before Indian Wells. Other notable names include Lucie, Dinara, and Bojana “Bojangles” Jovanovski, who has been playing incredibly well lately. Well enough, in fact, that she’s the 8th seed in Kuala Lumpur. The tournament kicks off with a bang, featuring a Schiavone/Dokic clash in the first round.

WTA – Monterrey (International)

Official Site: Here
Draw: Here
Top Seeds: JJ, Pavs, Rezai, Goerges

JJ jumps across the ocean after a strong showing in Doha to the courts of Mexico, a week ahead of her title defense in Indian Wells. Again, a solid line-up with Anastasia and Aravane, and it also features young talent Polona Hercog.

Just a quick note. Unlike the other Mexican tournament in Acapulco, and similar tournaments that have been happening in the western hemisphere, Monterrey is in fact on hard courts.

It’s late. Whatever.

Top Half – Caro’s Quarter

This is a seriously difficult and tricky quarter for Caro. Trouble spots loom everywhere including Domi in the third round, Wicky/Mono in the fourth, and any one of Justine, Kuz, or Franny in the quarters.

Unlike some, I don’t think Domi beating Caro again to be that realistic. Piotr will have Caro pumped and ready to go, and slams are a different beast entirely. I think her consistency should be enough to take out Wicky or Mono on the other side.

The bottom half of this quarter is a total mess, and we’re already a round away from a third round Kuz/JuJu blockbuster. I still think Justine is battling her way through this.

Quarterfinal: Caro vs. Justine

Top Half: Venus’ Quarter

Much like the other quarter of the top half, this is a quarter filled with land mines in what I believe is an overall much, much stronger half.

Venus could be up against Petko in the third round… a match I’m not entirely convinced she can win. Kanepi, Masha, Nails and Vika are all bouncing around in this quarter as well.

Petko has been seriously impressive finishing off last year and starting off 2011. I think there might be a whole lot of Petko dances getting thrown down sooner than later…

Quarterfinal: Petko vs. Vika

Bottom Half – Kim’s Quarter

Things are generally straight forward for Kim here. Yes, a possible rematch with Nads awaits, but she’s coachless and hasn’t been feeling fantastic. Kleybs and JJ are bouncing around too but shouldn’t be much of a match.

Quarterfinal: Kim vs. JJ

Bottom Half – Vera’s Quarter

Bepa better hope she’s got her A game with her, because she’s going to be challenged in her next match against Bojangles, which should be a seriously cracking, hard hitting match. Lucie, K-Zak, Pavs… and of course Sam and Kvitova on the other side. Scary. I think forcing Bepa to find her game early is going to be a positive thing however…

Quarterfinal: Kvitova vs. Bepa

Semifinals: Justine vs. Vika, Kim vs. Bepa
Final: Justine vs. Bepa
Champion: Vera Zvonareva

Stranger things have happened, my friends. In fact, stranger things will likely happen. What do you think? Feel free to leave a comment, and hit me with your predictions!

The time is nigh. A blank slate, a fresh list of serious contenders, and a whole lot of great tennis in front of us. Bring the noise.

Top Half – Rafa’s Quarter

The first seed is a coveted position for a reason, and Rafa has really reaped the benefits this time around. Possible fourth round match-ups for him could include Tree or Marin and a possible quarterfinal clash with someone like Nalby, Youz, or Ferru.

While there is definitely a solid chance that one of these guys might match Nadal’s game at some point, there’s slight chance that they will out last him (as long as Rafa is healthy). This should be pretty straight forward as far as slam quarters go.

Quarterfinal: Rafa vs. Nalby

Top Half – Sod’s Quarter

A significantly more juicy quarter than Rafa’s, this doesn’t only feature a possible Sod/Muzz throwdown, it features dark horses such as Baggy, Jo, and yes, Delpo. Jo is on Sod’s part and Baggy on Muzz’s, and I think both of those guys could be a very serious upset threat for either.

This is definitely going to be a quarter to keep an eye on for exciting matches early on for the men’s side, and what will likely be an eventual challenger for Rafa.

Quarterfinal: Sod vs. Muzz

Bottom Half: Nole’s Quarter

While this might appear to be a jam packed quarter, it’s really not entirely threatening to Nole. Berd, Kolya and Fer are all stuck in the top part of the quarter and Nole really only has Ivo, Viktor and Nico to give him trouble. That’s pretty money in terms of getting to the quarters.

As for the top half of this quarter? Well, Kolya/Fer could relive their amazing AO match of last year in the third round. Sweeeet… That, and no one really knows what bug has gotten into Berd’s head, or how to get rid of it. Huh.

Quarterfinal: Nole vs. Fuzzy Koala

Bottom Half – Fed’s Quarter

Fed has been in wicked form lately and trying to challenge him right now? Yeah, no. I’m not going to. It doesn’t hurt that his quarter is wicked easy.

Quarterfinal: Fed vs. Stan

I can’t believe I’m about to do this. It seems like a cop out. Like cheating. The easy path. But honestly? I’ve lined up draws before and come up with some seriously odd and nonsensical results, both on the ATP and WTA sides of things. But if things go as they should (which one would always moronically assume when drafting up such an arbitrary thing as this) then I really do think this is what will happen. So here we go.

Semis: Rafa vs. Sod, Fed vs. Nole
Final: Rafa vs. Fed
Champion Rafa (in 4 sets)

ATP & WTA – Brisbane (250 & International)

Official Site: Here
Draws: Men & Women
Top Men Seeds: Sod, Dick, Fer, Fish
Top Women Seeds: Superhero Sam, Shahar, Nads, Mono

The ATP side of things kicks off with some seriously big hitting. Thrown in the mix you also have Bags and Feli, as well as wildcards like Steps and Arnaud. It’s a pretty solid draw all around that should create some good match-ups fairly on in the tournament. If you’re itching to get back at things and are looking for some good early matches, Brisbane is definitely the way to go on the ATP side of things.

Things are similar on the WTA side of the coin as well. Sam, Nads, Pavs and Kleybs are all featured for some big babe hitting, not to mention Kvitova, Petko and JD. Also featured are Dani, Flavs, Domi and Polona. Maybe it’s just because I’m in tennis withdrawl (actually it’s likely entirely the reason) but this is a really exciting draw and should be fantastic once solid action gets under way on Monday.

WTA – Auckland (International)

Official Site: Here
Draw: Here
Top Seeds: Masha, Wicky, Kuz, Goerges

What to say, really. Nothing too exciting, but it will be interesting to see how Masha does. For those curious, Masha was offered a Sydney wildcard, but will apparently only bother to take it if she loses in the first round to CSN. So there you go.

ATP – Doha (250)

Official Site: Here
Draw: Here
Top Seeds: Rafa, Fed, Jo, Fuzzy Koala

Doha is much like it was last year, featuring Fedal and eventual champ Fuzzy Koala. Also, HOLY HELL IS IT GOOD TO SEE JO BACK OR WHAT?! We missed you. He’s got mad points to defend in Melbourne too, so good luck.

Otherwise the draw is pretty bare. A possible Rafa/Ernie quarterfinal, and guys like Jarkko, Ivo, and Kohls bumming around. Much like most ATP 250s, this probably won’t get good until the quarterfinals, but it should be damn juicy at that point. Keep an eye out during the week on how the top guns are doing.

ATP – Chennai (250)

Official Site: Here
Draw: Here
Top Seeds: Berd, Marin, Stan, Richie

Chennai is likely the weakest draw out of all 3 ATP events this week. Never heard of it? Its home to a tiny 4.6 million people.

Anyway, the two guys to watch here are the top 2 seeds, Berd and Marin. They both really fell off in the second half of the season, and it’s especially important for Marin to kick things off right this season, as he has semi points to defend in Melbourne.

Oh hi there, I didn’t see you come in.

I just want to take the time to thank you all for reading this year. School has kind of given me the huge smack in the face post-USO, but for most of the year, I was keeping on top of things and it was a fantastic year. I feel bad spoiling some of the momentum I felt I was gaining from the summer, but so it goes. This year we got more new readers than ever, a ton of new Twitter followers, and most importantly a ton of positive feedback. So thanks. I plan on hitting the ground running in January and teaming up with Ana during the Australian Open for some badass, wall to wall coverage. MTR will be back as strong as ever, don’t worry.

In the meantime, I’m going to be getting a whole bunch of 2010 wrap-up posts up, including 5 in summary of the year with a fun twist. On top of that, I’ll have “The Top 10 Matches I Saw This Year”, a “Buy, Sell” segment for the ATP and WTA each, and then hopefully some fun 2011 preview stuff.

In the meantime, it’s the moment you’ve all been waiting for… the final Tennis Pool standings!

1 AnaTennisGirl (managed by Ana) 87208
2 FedSucks (managed by Meghan) 84477
3 RagingBitch (managed by Jills) 81483
4 meretricula (managed by V) 79676
5 Atiras (managed by Sarah) 76302
6 eastcoast (managed by Renee) 74708
7 Parkupdates (managed by Parker) 71829
8 downtwo22 (managed by Joe) 71817
9 van£ss (managed by vanessa) 69603
10 rileysteam (managed by Neil) 68896

I’ve got to admit that I stopped updating after the USO, but that’s no excuse. Huge shoutouts to MTR’s very own contributor Ana, and Meghan. Meghan was on top almost the entire year, and just trailed off during the Asian swing. The two of them grabbed us #5 and #15 in the overall standings (out of 1740 competitors). No big deal.

We ended up with an awesome 51 member group in tennis pool and I plan on starting up one for 2011 once they’ve got everything set up for the next season. If you’re a big tennis fan looking to ascend to nerd status, a nerd looking for something to get you excited about smaller tournaments, or are just looking for some good fun, tennis pool is for you. While at times it was stressful (the amount of direct messages Ana and I sent each other over this damn game was a bit insane…) it’s super fun and gets you that much more in the game, specifically with matches you sometimes might not care about, or smaller tournaments you might not care about. You only get 3 switches a year, and you can get pretty attached to your team.

If you’re interested in signing up for Tennis Pool next year and have no idea what it’s about, drop me a comment. Again, once the actual site is updated to start picking 2011 teams, I’ll create a post here and spread the word on Twitter to join the 2011 MTR group. Good job people! Let’s get down to this.

WTA – Tokyo (Premier 5)

Official Site: Here
Draw: Here
Top Seeds: Caro, Bepa, JJ, Sam

I’d probably have a lot to say, but the epicness of the above picture is distracting me. Um… so begins Caro’s quest for year end number 1? Yeah, start getting used to that idea. Should be some great matches, and looking forward to watching some on TTV.

ATP – Bangkok (250)

Official Site: Here
Draw: Here
Top Seeds: WHO CARES, DELPO IS BACK… Though I think some Rafa guy is there too.

In all honesty, it’ll be interesting to see how hard Rafa pushes himself. No doubt he’ll play hard, rip the ball, and do all the regular Rafa shots. He just might not be chasing down every ball and going for every crazy angle and what have you. That being said, he’s pretty well got a cakewalk to the semis. Would love to see an Ernie/Rafa semi or a Rafa/Fer final, but let’s not get too ahead of ourselves…

ATP – Kuala Lumpur (250)

Official Site: Here
Draw: Here
Top Seeds: Sod, Koala, Berd, Youz

Really a damn solid draw and grounp of players with a nice mix of big hitters (Sod, Berd) and more defensive players (Koala, Ferru, Marcos). Definitely worth keeping an eye on the draw later into the week; this tournament could have a pretty awesome finish.

WTA – Seoul (International)

Draw: Here
Official Site: Here
Top Seeds: Nads, Pavs, Kiri, MJMS

For a lot of people, Asia is a bit of a graveyard in the tennis season. The slams are over, it’s full of workmen (or workwomen!) type players grinding it out, while bottom top 10 somethings try and squeeze their way into the YEC.

For others, it’s full of low pressure tennis and a chance at redemption for those who have been injured. This tournament alone swings up two great examples: Dinara, who missed a ton of this year with her back, and Ana, who has zero post-USO points to defend from last year because of injury.

It also presents a great chance for younger players to strut their stuff, and put in the hard work. I’m looking at you, Pavs, Halep, and Polona.

Unfortunately for us in the Eastern time zone, play starts at 11pm and runs through the wee hours of the night. No fun. I’m hoping to record some streams (fingers cross) and watch a match, or at least bits and pieces to see who’s up to what, and write some posts on it. Gotta stay in the loop!

ATP – Bucharest (250)

Draw: Here
Official Site: Here
Top Seeds: Montanes, Mayer, Starchild, Chela

Ha, no.

ATP – Metz (250)

Draw: Here
Official Site: Here
Top Seeds: Marin, Monf, Ljubs, Richie

Frenchies! Nice to see that Richie’s rank is now high enough that he gets a respectable ranking in smaller tournaments.

France vs. Argentina
Serbia vs. Czech Republic

I’ll have a full D-Cup preview up tomorrow.

WTA – Quebec City (International)

Official Site: Here
Draw: Here
Top Seeds: Mono, Aravane, Lucie, Zahlavovzzzzzzzz

WTA – Guangzhou (International)

Official Site: Here
Draw: Here
Top Seeds: Are all out.

(Women’s draw breakdown here).

Official Site: Here
Draw: Here
Top Seeds: Rafa, Fed, Nole, Muzz, Sod, Kolya, Berd, Nando

Top Quarter:

Rafa should more or less walk to the quarterfinals. Ljubs could be a threat but in 5 sets? Yeah, no.

The bottom quarter is hella juicy. Ferru/Dolg first round with Ernie, and then Fernando/Foghat first round with Nalby. Yikes. Your guess is as good as mine. 5 sets will be tough for Nalby, but I really think that he has been playing well enough to beat Nando and have a serious impact here.

Quarterfinal: Rafa vs. Headbandian

Second Quarter:

Some interesting match-ups here, as early in the first round (Jules/Steps, Youz/Golubev, Berd/Llodra) but at the end of the day, this quarter is all about Muzz and Berd.

A lot of people were jumping to conclusions about this half with Muzz and Rafa, but I say not so fast. First of all, Nalby has a legit shot against Rafa (hell, Ernie might too) and Berd is one hell of a problem for Muzz. Andy does love his beloved hard courts, but Berd has had some success on the surface this year with the Miami final, and of course has been delivering the goods in 5 set matches.

Muzz doesn’t love the big servers and can get far too passive against them at times. Did I mention that Berd has been dynamite in the past two slams?

Quarterfinal: Muzz vs. Berd

Third Quarter:

This is Nole’s quarter to lose, and in my eye, the weakest of the quarters.

The top half features Kolya and Dick, both of whom have been non-existent since… well, I don’t remember. Neither have had fantastic years, really. Gael remains the only real challenge to either of those.

The bottom half features Nole, Bags, and Fish. Nole gets lucky in that he’ll only have to face one of those. In 5 sets I kind of like Baggy, but Fish does have the home field advantage. Still think Nole will find his way past either of them regardless.

Quarterfinal: Dick vs. Nole

Bottom Quarter:

It’s not a cake draw for Fed, but it sure is pretty damn easy. Sod also faces a pretty easy draw, though if Marin decides to wake up, that could be tough.

Fed’s form of late has been pretty damn impressive. Sod’s has… not. He was cutting it close in 3 set matches in Toronto and Cincy, which is bad news for 5 sets. He’s probably ok to make it to the quarters, but unless he can find top form heading into a possible Fed match-up, he’s in trouble.

Quarterfinal:Sod vs. Fed

Semifinals: Rafa vs. Berd, Dick vs. Fed
Final: Rafa vs. Fed
Champion: Rafa