What a week. You need only first names - Justine, Serena, Roger and Rafael - to know the mighty who fell at the German Open (women) and the ATP Masters Series tournament in Rome (men) in the past seven days.
With the French Open two weeks away, the pecking orders in tennis were given a good rattle.
Of the four players, only four-time French Open champion Justine Henin has serious concerns. After a 6-4, 6-0 loss to Maria Sharapova at the Australian Open in January, the Belgian returned home to contemplate surgery on her right knee. She settled for a cortisone shot, partly to enable her to play (and win) the WTA Tour event in Antwerp two weeks later.
But Henin has struggled since, losing 6-2, 6-0 to Serena Williams in Miami in March and 5-7, 6-3, 6-1 to Dinara Safina on clay in Berlin last Thursday. Citing fatigue, Henin has begged off this week's Italian Open.
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As for Williams, she was on a 17-match winning streak and was 21-1 in 2008 before being upset 2-6, 6-1, 7-6 (5) a day after Henin's ouster by Safina. Marat Safin's little sister, 22, completed a dream run by defeating Elena Dementieva 3-6, 6-2, 6-2 in the final yesterday.
After doing her usual complaining about playing poorly against Safina, Williams conceded: "I'm excited I lost here and not at Roland Garros. The pressure is off me."
It could be on this week because she has a tough draw in Rome.
On the men's side, either together (five times) or separately (five times), Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal had been in the final of their previous 10 clay-court Masters Series events.
Nadal lost 7-5, 6-1 in his opening match to Juan Carlos Ferrero while playing with a nasty blister on the ball of his right foot. He subsequently had blood drained from the area and was on the golf course within two days. He should be all right for the men's Masters Series Hamburg event in Germany this week.
Federer likewise, after a 7-6 (4), 7-6 (7) quarter-final loss to an inspired Radek Stepanek, who served great and put on a spectacular display of forward-moving tennis.
Now 11-2 on clay this season, Federer was disappointed, but said, "I would be a bit more worried if I were to lose against a guy who would just be playing real [conventional] clay-court tennis."
The patchy form of the world men's No. 1's in 2008 prompted this indignity at his media conference.
Question: Many people say that this year is the beginning of the end. What do you think about that?
Federer: Next question, please.
That is exactly what Rome tournament director Sergio Palmieri would like to have said after Friday's last quarter-final, Nicolas Almagro (wrist) against Novak Djokovic, and both of Saturday's semi-finals - Andy Roddick (back) against Stanislas Wawrinka and Stepanek (heat exhaustion) against Djokovic - all ended in retirements.
"I think this week, it's probably coincidental," was Roddick's best try at an explanation.
One concern for tennis officials should be injury timeouts.
James Blake, who had played until almost midnight in doubles action after a tough three-set singles win earlier, had to come back and play Wawrinka at 1:15 p.m. the next afternoon on Friday. Blake won the first set and was on serve in the second at 5-6 when Wawrinka received a medical assessment and then a three-minute treatment for his back.
Blake sat courtside throughout and seemed to lose his momentum when play resumed.
If a player can interrupt play for treatment, surely his opponent, Blake in this case, should have the option of a visit from his coach or maybe someone to keep him in rhythm by hitting balls on the court.
Wawrinka seems an honourable guy, but a loophole that has been exploited by others should be closed by strengthening the rights of the opponent of the injured player.
In the Rome final yesterday, Wawrinka lost 4-6, 6-3, 6-3 to third-ranked Djokovic, who inches closer to No. 2 Nadal in the world rankings.
Talking last week about the rivalry between himself, Nadal and Federer, Djokovic said, "It's going to be interesting, I think, for tennis fans to see who is going to finish at the top."
There is little doubt who the self-assured Serb believes that will be.
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