Week 8 Preview

First of all, kudos to Sam Querrey for successfully turning his season around, beating the two hottest Americans on tour (and the only two ranked above him) in winning his first title of the season and third overall. This was also his first title in which he beat a player ranked higher than him in the final. No shame for Isner, though, who has continued his strong season. Both of them then teamed up to win the doubles title. Not a bad run for both!

The same thing happened in Marseille, where Llodra beat the higher-ranked Benneteau and then went on to win the doubles title with his opponent, who became his partner. Shame for Benneteau, who remains titleless, but Llodra did one better than his run last year.

Also, props to Juan Carlos Ferrero, who looked like he was going to fall to David Ferrer once again, only to come back and win in three to get his second title in as many weeks. Is the former number one getting back to his top ten form? He hasn't finished a year in the top ten since 2003.

Looking ahead to the next week, the Dubai field has suffered a bit, as Nadal and Del Potro are out with injury, while Roddick and Federer also withdrew in the past few days. It's still the strongest tourney since the Australian Open, with world #2 Djokovic as the new favorite. Unfortunately for the Djoker, he has his nemesis Tsonga in his quarter, who faces last week's Marseille winner in the first round. That was Llodra, by the way.

Other first round matches of interest are Gilles Simon and Marcos Baghdatis. Simon has yet to win a match on tour this year, and this will only be his second. That's a tough one to get back on track with. In addition to four of the top ten players, there are a bevy that seem like they really ought to be in the top twenty, and could make a breakthrough here, with some of the biggest names out of the tourney.

There are some big names out of the tournament on U.S. soil this week as well. In Del Ray beach, the Americans are going to have trouble repeating the feat they had at Memphis this week. The only seeded American is slumping James Blake, ranked 55 in the world. And he faces another American, Taylor Dent, in the first round. Tommy Haas half-counts, and he's the top seed. Also worthy of note, Kei Nishikori returns to action here after more than a year off for injury. He opens against Benjamin Becker. Really, this is the weakest field of the week, so anyone could conceivably run away with the title.

The reason the field is so weak is that the two Americans who made the final in Memphis decided to run down to Mexico to play on the clay, dedicating themselves to playing their best - and maybe getting ready for the Davis Cup match against Serbia. An impressive move by both Isner and Querrey. It's particularly interesting for Querrey, who must have gotten late entry and is unseeded. He'll open against Fernando Gonzalez, in what probably amounts to the best first-round match of the week.

Another first round match of interest is Richard Gasquet against Carlos Moya, which should be a fun one to watch. Ferrer and Ferrero are both in the draw, as are Verdasco, Almagro, and Montanes. These are some of the best clay-courters on tour, so keep an eye on them for the next couple of months. After the Indian Wells-Miami double, that is.