The 2017 season is on!

So now we begin the 2017 tennis season.  The big story, of course, is the return of Roger Federer after several months.  Federer is playing the Hopman Cup exhibition in Perth.  He won his first match easily over Daniel Evans, then lost in three tiebreak sets to Alexander Zverev.  Federer’s stamina looked good in that second long match, and his ball striking has been excellent.  His movement seems a bit sluggish, though, and he has been a bit more inconsistent than usual.  For example, he double faulted twice in a row in the first set tiebreaker with Zverev.  Roger can be forgiven for being a bit rusty, but assuming he trained hard for the season, there is some cause for concern for how this 35-year-old will perform in big tournaments with many tough players to face in consecutive matches.  He still is so much fun to watch, though!!

A big story in that second match was the play of Zverev.  The 6’6” teenager move exceptionally well, hit groundies very hard from both sides, and produced some monster serves.  His serve seems bigger than last year, and he made a high percentage of first serves in this match.  He looks poised to have a great season in 2017.

In Brisbane, Grigor Dimitrov has looked exceptional, with decisive wins over Stevie Johnson and Nicolas Mahut.  Dimitrov has bulked up just a bit and is playing with a purpose.  Perhaps he will finally fulfill the longstanding high expectations of the tennis pundits.

Murray and Djokovic are both in the Qatar warmup, and both are winning.  Murray looks slightly more solid right now, though conditions are difficult, with high and variable crosswinds.  If these two meet in the final there, the match should be quite interesting. 

Nick Kyrgios, who is playing in Perth, and Bernie Tomic, who is in Brisbane, have both displayed a bit of psychological instability even at this early stage of the season.  In my 2016 year-end post, I opined that their ability to handle their emotions and fulfill their promise would be a story to follow this year.  Let’s see.

On the women’s side, Madison Brengle posted a surprise early round win over Serena Williams.  Serena fans needn’t be too concerned, as she has been out of competitive tennis for quite awhile, and tends to pay closer attention in majors.  Like Federer, though, she’s not getting any younger.  Caroline Wozniaki has looked strong in this tournament, and it will be interesting to follow the play of this former #1 this season.

            Ana Ivanovic has retired, so the WTA will lose one very good player and very beautiful woman.  People may say she should have achieved more, but she did, after all, win a major (French Open 2008) and become the world’s number one player.   Her play was quite inconsistent last year.  We’ll always remember her fabulous forehand!

            So, fasten your seatbelts and get ready for a