“10s Whenever” Newsletter Vol. 150

Written by: Staff on 15th March 2014

"10s Whenever" Newsletter Vol. 150 |

Top 5 memorable matches I saw at the BNP Paribas Open — By Ricky Dimon

I had the amazing opportunity of spending four days at the 2014 BNP Paribas Open. As it turns out, that was eight too few. Next year, I simply have to be there for the entire tournament. There can be no other way.

That being said, I still managed to witness a glorious smorgasbord of tennis in those four days. Without further ado, here are my top five most memorable men’s singles matches:

1) Alexandr Dolgopolov d. Rafael Nadal 6-3, 3-6, 7-6(5)

It may be true that Nadal was not at his very best in this third-round showdown, but Dolgopolov won it more than Nadal lost it. As day turned to night in Stadium 1, the jam-packed crowd only got more and more fired up. I watched this one with my dad from the front row of the upper deck, which is not necessarily ideal for tennis viewing (although it certainly isn’t a bad spot) but allowed us to really absorb the awesome atmosphere. At 6-5 in the third-set tiebreaker, Dolgopolov appeared to have hit an ace before Nadal challenged and replay revealed the serve to be millimeters wide. Undaunted, the Ukrainian got the job done moments later and culminated arguably a career-best victory with a fearsome forehand winner.

2) Ernests Gulbis d. Grigor Dimitrov 2-6, 6-1, 7-5

Two and a half months into the season, this may be 2014’s best rivalry. Gulbis and Dimitrov had split their two previous encounters and the third installment did not disappoint. Dimitrov, fresh off a title in Acapulco (where he beat Gulbis 7-5 in the third), came out on fire. The Latvian, though, responded in style to dominate the second set and showcase incredibly clutch tennis in the third. As you can see below, the shot-making in this third-round blockbuster was absolutely absurd. It’s not often that massively-hyped matches live up to their billing, but this one did.

Dimitrov’s hot shot: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8MNwrU31XHE

3) Roberto Bautista Agut d. Jarkko Nieminen 6-2, 4-6, 7-6(6)

I watched this one with my dad from courtside in Stadium 3. We sat right in front of Nieminen’s coach, which was an added bonus. He talked to Nieminen after almost every point when the Finn was on the near side of the court. It was always positive, often encouraging Nieminen to be aggressive and go on offense. In the end, though, Bautista Agut was just a little too good. It ended at 7-6 in the decisive tiebreaker, when the Spaniard clinched his win with a stunning on-the-run forehand pass.

4) Fabio Fognini d. Ryan Harrison 5-7, 6-1, 6-4

This entertaining contest featured good–but not great–tennis. What made it memorable were Fognini’s antics (what’s new?). Down set point in the opener, the Italian blasted a service return out of the stadium. Early in the second, chair umpire Mohamed El Jennati refused to award Fognini a point after he made a successful challenge. Fognini demanded to see supervisor Lars Graf and went on a four-minute tirade at both Graf and El Jennati. In the end, it only inspired the No. 13 seed, who erased the set deficit to prevail in three.

Fognini goes crazy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PHcdmzfn_Lg

5) Alejandro Gonzalez d. Ivan Dodig 6-4, 2-6, 7-6(5)

Two of my favorite things in tennis are final-set tiebreakers and relatively unknown players pulling off breakout wins. This match had both. Gonzalez is already 25 years old, but he spends most of his time on the Challenger tour and had never won an ATP-level match prior to Indian Wells. After losing the second set and going down a break in the third, it looked like the Colombian would have to settle for one victory at this event. Instead, he forced a third-set tiebreaker and seized a 6-4 advantage. Dodig saved one match point with a perfect backhand pass, but Gonzalez sealed the deal on his second chance with a backhand pass of his own.

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