Ljubicic soars; Nadal fights on at Indian Wells

INDIAN WELLS, Calif.

No. 2 seed Novak Djokovic joined the list of disappearing superstars at the BNP Paribas Open here at Indian Wells when he lost to Ivan Ljubicic on Wednesday, but Rafael Nadal ensured that a megawatt voltage of star power was still plugged in by beating John Isner in a bruising encounter, 7-5, 3-6, 6-3.

Isner is American, tall (very tall) and handsome and he had plenty of support from the large crowd that cheered him in the blistering desert sunshine. But Nadal is something else. If Bjorn Borg was the game’s first rock star, Rafa is the modern version — and not just because he has cut a record with Shakira. The kids line up behind the picket fence that surrounds the players’ outdoor restaurant and scream “Rafa, Rafa!” whenever he emerges 50 yards away to have a quick chat to some Spanish colleagues. Supplying players with bodyguards at tournaments gets overdone but Nadal really needs them.

Not that he couldn’t swat a few of them out of the way with a swish of his mighty left arm, but he would never do that. For all his scowling demeanor on court he is the nicest, gentlest young man you could wish to meet away from the competitive arena.

Isner wished he was a bit gentler as they went toe to toe in a battle of mighty serves and gigantic forehands. Credit to the University of Georgia grad — he came through another tough loss with his head held high. Little over a week ago he was enduring a Davis Cup baptism by fire in Belgrade, playing Djokovic on slow clay in front of a raucously partisan crowd and playing a good deal better than many people expected.

Today, one forehand down the line was amongst the hardest I have ever seen. It was only towards the end that Isner's ground game faltered in the face of the relentless Spanish barrage. That was almost inevitable because as soon as the slightest hint of fatigue sets in and your shot loses its timing by a millisecond, and control becomes impossible against a ball that fizzes and swerves. Everyone who faces Nadal talks about the amount of work he gets on the ball, and it spelled doom for Isner’s hopes of victory.

But, from an American point of view, the most encouraging aspect of this match was the clear evidence it offered of Isner’s continued improvement. He earned the second set through his own dominating play and he will look forward to taking another crack at Nadal in the future.

Djokovic went down 7-5, 6-3 to Ivan Ljubicic out on Court Two and, given the amount of emotional and physical effort he had put into that Davis Cup tie against the U.S., Novak was not too surprised that he had come up short.

“I was aware of his qualities, of course,” said Djokovic. “I was aware that, if he serves well, he can play relaxed on the return games. So that was the case. I played a terrible game on 4-3 in the first set. I think that was the turning point of the match.”

Bald and imposing, Ljubicic has always looked older than his years but, after injuries and a dip in form, he is starting to look a very potent performer on the tour again. His serve is massive as Andre Agassi and the rest of the U.S. Davis Cup team discovered when the Croat virtually beat them single-handed in Carson, California five years ago. He rose to No. 3 in the world in 2006, which, coincidentally was the last time he had beaten Djokovic. In between, the Serb had reeled off five straight victories. But a sixth never looked likely as Ljubicic took control of the match, not merely with his serve, but also the smooth accuracy of his backhand service return.

It also helped Ljubicic that the match was played on Court Two. You think all tennis courts are the same? Just listen to the man who, as a former President of the ATP Players Council, analyzes the game better than most.

“Stadium Two is smaller and, having said that, it helps more aggressive players,” he said. “When you have a big stadium it’s easy to defend. You can go six, seven meters (20 feet) back and you’re still able to play. And it’s easier to hit the ball harder. Just visually it helps. That’s why it’s extremely difficult to beat Rafa Nadal on the Philippe Chatrier Court at Roland Garros. It’s the biggest court in tennis and, of course, it’s also on clay so it is extremely difficult to get the ball away from him.”

So Ljubicic, naturally more aggressive than Djokovic, was delighted when the tournament committee put them on the smaller and tigher Court Two.

“I was surprised,” he said. “With Roger (Federer) out of the tournament, I was 100 percent sure we would play on Center. It was maybe a little advantage on my side because of that scheduling.”