Somdev Devvarman

The Indian tennis sensation is on a roll in the BNP Paribas ATP Masters in Indian Wells after he sailed past the Belgian Xavier Malisse in the 3^rd round by keeping his nerves as he clinched a final set thriller. The 84^th seed prevailed with a6-1, 3-6, 7-6 (5) win.

Well it’s not the stupendous tournament prize money, it’s all about out Indian no. 1 tennis star’s first on-stage dual with Rafael Nadal. Somdev is cruising with a lot of confidence which directly resembled his gameplay. His three aces and an astounding 95% first serve was too hot for the Belgian as Somdev only lost a single set. Xavier immediately bounced back in the second set stating his 52^nd seed status by firing four aces and emerged victorious as he lost only 3 sets. This took down the game to a final set where some stiff competition was witnessed. Both the players played above their potential to save their sets and that took the game to the tie-breaker. Somdev got the honors as he swept past 7-5 to clinch the set and match. This leaves Somdev to have a dream match against the top seed in the quarters.

Meanwhile on the other hand, Rafael Nadal marched comfortably with a 6-3, 6-1 win over Ryan Sweeting. But world no. 4 Robin Soderling had a stunning outing against German Philipp Kohlschrelber who emerged triumphant 7-6, 6-4. Soderling has become Philipp’s bunny as the latter has outclassed the former four times in their last five meetings. The sizzling Argentine del Porto eased past 20^th seed Alexandr Dolgopolov 7-6, 6-3 which sets him against Philipp Kohlschrelber in the 4^th round. To add up to the tournament surprise Sam Querrey defeated Fernando Verdasco 7-5, 6-4.

It has been just an ATP event but has raised the occasion of a grand slam. Indian Wells is proving to be one such tournament not only creating sudden upsets but has brought out the best from emerging tennis players. With young tapping talent like Somdev comfortable in hard courts, the Indian Wells Masters is the perfect stage for him to gain experience and move up the ladder in the rankings. With an attendance closing 300,000 in the stadium, this ATP tour promises its fans a lot to deliver. Even though the absence of all top seeds might be felt the younger tennis super stars are rocking the tournament in a sensational manner. With so many games ending with a thriller on cards or a game changing tie-breaker the stiff competition lifts up the gentleman’s game.

Tags: BNP Paribas Open, Indian Tennis, Indian Wells, Somdev Devvarman, Tennis, Tennis India, Xavier Malisse