A Christmas Wish List for the New Year in Tennis -- ATP

Merry Christmas, everybody.

2009 in tennis was, all in all, a pretty decent year.  Federer broke the slam record, Rafael Nadal finally won a hard court slam and also was finally slain at Roland Garros.  On the women's side, Serena Williams won two slams (including another over her sister), and Kim Clijsters came out of nowhere to beat both Williamses on the way to a second slam title.

2009 was pretty good, but 2010 could be a whole lot better.

Here are some things I'm hoping happens in tennis in this first year of the millennium's second decade:

10 Wishes for '10 in the ATP:

1. Roger Federer goes slamless, for once.  I'm real happy Federer won the French and got that off his back, and then broke Sampras' record incredibly quickly after that.  It might have been nice if #15 had taken a little longer to increase the drama of the achievement, even if it was just until the US Open.  But now that the record is his, I feel like the storyline is largely over.  Any more slams he wins in the immediate future will seem like overkill, less and less remarkable.  2010 seems like a good year for him to share the spotlight for once.  Roddick, Davydenko, and Murray would all agree, I'm sure.
   
2. Rafael Nadal stays healthy.  Rafael Nadal looked absolutely atrocious by the end of 2009.  Injuries played a huge part to be sure, which are almost certainly traceable back to that epic Madrid semifinal vs. Djokovic.  But even if he does stay healthy, I'm thinking he's going to be a shell of the player he was.  Nadal didn't win a single set in London, and his shots floated meekly into the middle of the court throughout much of late 2009.  I wouldn't be surprised at all if the downward spiral continued for the player who earned 3955 fewer points in 2009 than he did in 2008.
   
3. Novak Djokovic continues to mature.  Novak Djokovic seemed to find happiness in tennis again sometime around Cincinnati last year, and was a totally different player for the later parts of 2009.  Big runs at the US Open, Beijing, and Paris saw the #3 play better than he had, and he seemed to win over crowds that had turned on him during his oft-petulant 2008 campaign.
   
4. Lleyton Hewitt has a big run in Australia.  This could w well be Rusty's last time at Melbourne Park, and it would be nice for the draw to break his way (i.e. no Federer early).
5. Ernests Gulbis figures out what the hell he's doing with himself.  In 2008, he was making big noise at slams and looking on the verge of being a top twenty or better presence for the foreseeable future.  In 2009, he was never making it past the second round, being cited on solicitation charges, and forgetting to show up to tournaments he had entered.  2010 is put-up-or-shut-up time, for sure.
   
6. Juan Martin del Potro figures out how to compete on grass. A guy with his power and serve should be more of a presence on grass, but early in his career he's been anything but comfortable on the live stuff.  Height is cited as an issue, but it's not much of one for the much taller Ivo Karlovic.  del Potro has the game to win on grass--here's hoping he finds the belief.
   
7. We have an old-school upset-filled Roland Garros.  Either Nadal, Federer or both has made the French Open final for each of the last five years, with only two other players getting a spot on the stage.  And with every final being fairly lopsided, its been pretty monotonous.  The French Open, not long ago, featured completely out of left field finalists like Martin Verkerk and Gaston Gaudio, making for the most unpredictable tennis on the calendar.  Here's hoping for some lesser-knowns meeting late in Paris.  I'd even settle for something like a Monfils-Davydenko final.
   
8. Serbia-USA Davis Cup tie lives up to potential.  Serbia's hellacious Davis Cup draws continue in 2010, facing the USA in the first round.  This time they have the advantage of playing a home tie, which will be on that horrible indoor clay stuff.  Andy Roddick should be able to beat Tipsarevic/Troicki, but Djokovic will win both his singles matches easily.  Assuming the Bryans can handle Zimonjic-Djokovic, the tie will come down to Tipsarevic/Troicki vs. the USA #2.  Here's hoping Patrick McEnroe shows some creativity for once and gives the nod to the best clay courter the Americans have--Wayne Odesnik.
   
9. Fernando Verdasco and Robin Soderling keep it up.  Verdasco and Soderling both had big 2009s, each having the best year of his career, knocking off a favorite in the fourth round of a slam, and making the WTF for the first time.  They both play power games that can be extremely hit-or-miss, though, which puts their longevity at the top in some doubt.  Here's hoping they do more hitting than missing in 2010.
   
10. Isner and Querrey continue to make tall strides.  Querrey and Isner both had excellent American campaigns, and both reached career high rankings and are making all the Masters events as direct entries for the first time.  Neither has ever made much noise outside the US, though, so let's hope they can turn it up overseas in 2010.  Wimbledon is be made for their power games.
    

Stay tuned in the next couple days for the WTA Wish List.