Bright spots, questions marks for US tennis in 2013

Isner was great in Davis Cup but struggled in the majors.

TR Year-End Top 50: The Men, Nos. 21-30

The 34 year old Haas was effective on all surfaces.

Thus continues our review of the top 50 singles players on the ATP and WTA Tours. We resume with the men ranked Nos. 21 -30.

21. Tommy Haas

Imagine if the German played as intelligently as he does now back when he was ranked No. 2 a decade ago? A Slam surely would have been his. Haas must be given huge props for being in the oldest man in the top 25. He actually quailed for Roland Garros on his least favorite surface, stunned Federer in the Halle final on grass, and reached the quarters of Canada and Shanghai on hard courts. It

12 New Year’s Wishes for 2012

 

 

Caroline Wozniacki and Rory McIIroy wish you a New year from Thailand.

No. 1 : That Kim Clijsters and Serena play each other in at least four big matches before the Belgian retires.

No. 2: That Andy Murray plays as well as he’s capable of against a Big 3 member in a Grand Slam final so we can see if that level is good enough to win a major.

No 3: That Maria Sharapova and Ana Ivanovic return to their 2008 levels and consistently push Generation Caro to show how good they really are,

No. 4: That Juan Martin Del Potro returns to his 2009 level so the ATP has potential Big 5 & that the promising youngsters (i.e. Tomic, Raonic, Harrison and Dmitrov) show the elite they can really play with them

No. 5: That Kvitova, Wozniacki, Azarenka, Radwanska et al develop intense rivalries that we’ll still be taking about 5 years from now.

No. 6: That the Big 3 of Djokovic, Nadal & Federer stay healthy all year and play each other on every surface & at least 5 times each.

No. 7: That both tours focus less on branding and more on how the sport is played. After all, tennis is a sport played on a court

No. 8: That Aussie, French & British players have huge impacts at their home Slams — its been a long time coming.

No. 9: That deserving WTA players like Radwanska, Pennetta, Petkovic, Pennetta & Peng reach at least onne Slam quarter so they can make strong go at their first final fours.

No. 10: That American veterans Roddick, Fish, Blake & Ginepri stay healthy enough so they can have major impact at least one more Slam again.

No.11: That all players would actually use social media as a way to interact with fans and not as a substitute texting service

Wish 12 for 2012: 24 highly dramatic, very well played Grand Slam semifinals and finals making 2012 the best year in tennis history!

US Open: No surprise, Djokovic leads men’s contenders

Can Rafa, Roger or anyone else stop Novak?

RG Notebook: Murray matters

The injured Andy played on.

While it is appropriate to question Andy Murray