Gujarat Lions vs Mumbai Indians

I felt that the IPL was boring in this season due to the lack of last over finishes and the boring old formula of win the toss bowl first and chase down the score. This match bucked the trend as Suresh Raina won the toss and decided Gujarat Lions would bat first. At the halfway point it seemed to have been a bad decision, but Mumbai’s slow bowlers conceded 37 runs from a combined 8 overs and pacer Mitchel McClanaghan was carted for 50 runs in his 4 overs.

Pacer Hardik Panndya was completely left out of the attack. Maybe it was a good decision as the pitch would get slower and the ball not come onto the bat as the game progressed. Mumbai started off in imperious fashion scoring 40 of 3 overs before a run out sent the dangerous Jos Butler back to the dressing room. Parthiv Patel seemed to be the only one who could get into some sort of rhythm. (possibly he was motivated to perform in front of his home state) Mumbai’s momentum was halted when spinner Ankit Soni and Suresh Raina began bowling in tandem. Master of changes in pace James Faulkner was the pick of the bowlers with 3 wickets but Gujarat missed a trick as Jadeja only bowled a solitary over. Despite the loss of momentum, Mumbai seemed to be in the driver’s seat at 104-2 before Rohit Sharma played a horrible innings of 5 from 13 and piled the pressure onto his own side’s lower order. Mumbai lost wickets and regular intervals but still seemed to be on course for the win with 4 wickets left before they were undone by wonderful fielding by the Lions.

Irfan Pathan’s direct hit from the boundary to get rid of McClanaghan gave Gujarat hope as they had entered Mumbai’s tail of Bumrah and Malinga. Krunal Pandya was the last recognised batsman. He hit a six of the first ball of the last over to keep Mumbai in the hunt with 5 needed from 5.

Jadeja’s two direct hits in the last over especially the one of the last ball from which 1 run was needed, where he had just 1 stump to aim at and had he missed Mumbai would have won the match. 3 run outs in the last 8 balls!!!!!

And now we had ourselves a super over

As per Super Over laws the team that was chasing (Mumbai) would bat first. In the event of a super over tie, the team which had the most hits to and over the fence would be the winner.

Mumbai chose Kieron Pollard, Jos Butler and Krunal Pandya as their batters for the 6 balls. Jos Butler was a good choice but I felt Parthiv Patel should have gone in as he was absolutely bludgeoning it.

Butler misread the fist ball and just tapped it towards the off side and took a single. Ideally it should have been deposited in the stands in the arc between long on to deep mid wicket. Pollard managed to hit a 4 on the next ball and carted the next one into the stands. He was given a ball which had to be played over extra cover but he ended up glancing the ball to long on and was caught.

Jos Butler crossed over to take strike and he skied the next ball which was caught by youngster Ishan Kishan. Mumbai had only played 5 balls of the super over and has scored of just 3.

It seemed over as Gujarat had to get 12

Bumrah was selected to bowl for Mumbai and despite starting off with a no ball he managed to find the blockhole for the free hit and then barring a wide ball he completely bamboozled Aaron Finch and Brendon McCullum over the next four balls.

Mumbai had victory in sight, let Gujarat in and then snatched vixtory from the jaws of defeat. Hoping for more thrillers of this sort in the remainder of the IPL.

Bayern Munich vs Real Madrid

This is the blockbuster clash of the round with 11 time champions Real taking on 6 time Champions Bayern Munich.

The game is exciting as it features teacher against student.

Real Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane was assistant manager under Carlo Ancelotti during the spell when the Italian ended Real's 12 year wait for La Decima. Zidane has added la Undecima in the 16 months he has been in charge of Los Blancos.

Both the teams had massive weekend games in their domestic leagues with Real having a stalemate in their clash against Atletico and Bayern absolutely trouncing Borussia Dortmund 4-1 in Der Klassiker.

Real Madrid played a strong 1^st 11 against Atletico and we can expect the same team to start vs Bayern.

The Spanish side are without defenders Pépé and Raphael Varane. Bayern have injury problems of their own with striker Robert Lewandowski who has scored 38 goals this season a doubt following an injury to his shoulder in Saturdays 4-1 win against Borussia Dortmund. He did return to training ahead of the game. Mats Hummels who came on as a substitute at the weekend is ruled out after injury sustained in that game.

Bayern rested Thomas Muller and Manuel Neuer but didn’t seem as though they were playing a slightly weakened team. Such is the power of their squad that they won’t really miss Robert Lewandowski should he fail to start.

In Lewandowski’s absence. Thomas Müller can lead the line and the duo of Arjen Robben and Franck Ribery can be a handful for any defence in the world.  In their last 6 home games the Bavarians have scored an astonishing 29 goals and seen only 2 goals fly past keeper Manuel Neuer. Their loss at Hoffenheim was their first in 2017.

Real Madrid are on a 9 match unbeaten streak in all competitions and are looking to become the first team to defend the European Cup since its rechristening as the Champions League.

 The game will be the 23rd clash between the two making it the most played European fixture and just by looking at the names on both sides. One wishes that this match was the final of the tournament.

Expect Bayern to see this through as they are in the form of their lives at the moment and have a vast number of resources to call upon. Real need Ronaldo who has had a quiet season by his standards or Bale to step up and fire.

 Probable starting 11

Neuer, Lahm, Boateng, Martinez, Alaba, Kimmich, Vidal, Muller, Robben, Ribery, Lewandowski/Alcantara

Bench: Ulreich, Coman Costa, Alonso, Bernat, Rafinha, Sanches

Navas, Carvajal, Ramos, Nacho Fernandez, Marcelo, Casemiro, Kroos, Modric, Bale, Benzema, Ronaldo

Bench: Casilla, Morata, Kovacic, Isco, Vazquez, James, Danilo

They both are top of their respective leagues and they both get the results…. expect a cracker.

The Masters

All the world's a stage and this was golf's biggest stage. Owing to the match play set up, Justin Rose and Sergio Garcia were what could be called as the final act, as the others would tee off and finish before the two did. And on the biggest stage in golf the two protagonists put on a show so magnificent that it made audiences the world over sit on the edge of their seats for the majority of the day.

Garcia was golf's nearly man and finally on the 9th of April, 2017, he won his first major in his 74th attempt and 72nd consecutive major appearance. It was only fitting that the agonising 18 year wait ended at the most prestigious event in the sport. Going into the final day Sergio Garcia and Olympic Gold medallist Justin Rose were tied -6 under par. Based on the match pairings, the two teed off last on the final day.

Garcia and Rose were engaged in a thrilling duel. They started off at -6 each and ended the front nine level at (34) 2 under par. Garcia had taken a 2 shot lead with birdies on Tea Olive and Flowering Peach (holes 1 and 3) He had a 3 shot lead when Rose bogeyed on Magnolia (hole 5) but then sunk in a hat trick of birdies on Juniper, Pampine and Yellow Jasmine (holes 6,7 and 8) to draw level.

Garcia bogeyed at Camelia and White Dogwood (holes 10 and 11 respectively) whereas Rose was on par. Advantage Rose. All Rose had to do was hold his nerve and make pars till the end. He did that until Chinese Fir (hole 14) and then managed to birdie on Firethorn and Redbud (holes 15 and 16)

 Garcia birdied on Chinese Fir (hole 14) to reduce the deficit to 1 and then carded an eagle on Firethorn (hole 15) to go a shot ahead. Only for Rose to reply with a birdie on Firethorn (hole 15) to draw level and then take the lead with another birdie on Redbud (hole 16). Rose bogeyed on Nandina (hole 17) and squandered his 1 shot lead when Garcia was on par for the hole. They headed to Holly (hole 18) and the 72nd hole for the event tied level at -9 each. It was nerve jangling.

Both players had birdie attempts with Rose’s shot going wide and eventually carded a par. Garcia had to hit a birdie to claim the Green Jacket, but no, he too missed his shot and finished the hole on par. We were in for a playoff.
Under playoff rules the players tied for first will tee off from Holly (hole 18) and play until there is a winner. Roses tee landed in the rough and he carded a bogey. Garcia carded a birdie and won the playoff and clinched his 1st ever green jacket and an invitation to every single Masters tournament for life.
Looking back at the four days one can say that Sergio Garcia deserved it as whether it was the gusty winds of the first two days or the late surge of Justin Rose as he collected a hat-trick of front-nine birdies, Garcia remained calm and was the only man to be sub-par in all four rounds.(below 72 in each round)
Rory Mcllroy started off the final day on par and 6 shots off the leaders. He needed a final day collapse which alas didn't come and he carded a (69) -3 under par to finish at 3 under and claim 7th spot in a tie with Kevin Chappell.
Rory will have to wait another 12 months to return to Augusta and attempt to finally complete his collection of majors.

Augusta golden boy Jordan Spieth recorded his worst ever finish at the Masters by carding a disastrous final round score of (75) 3 over par. His round included 5 bogeys and a double bogey at Golden Bell (hole 12) it was an improvement from last year as he quadruple bogeyed at Golden Bell. His round did include 4 birdies. Heading into the final 4 holes he was at 2 over par and carded 3 birdies across the 4 holes and ended at -1 under par and tied for 11th with World. No 4 Hideki Matsuyama.

Matt Kuchar and Hideki Matsuyama carded the best rounds for the day at (67) -5 under par. Kuchar’s effort included 6 birdies and an eagle hole in one at Redbud. Matsuyama’s effort included 7 birdies and 2 bogeys.

At twilight Danny Willet as per tradition, passed on the green jacket to the new winner. The world no.70 had banished his so near yet so far tag. It was done at Augusta. The grounds of Augusta will have the tales of Sergio’s first Major, the one time he was The Man and not the nearly man. It will join all of Augusta’s legendary tales and will be a part of those hallowed grounds forever.

The Masters Day 1 and 2

The Augusta Masters or just The Masters kicked off on the 6^th of April at the Augusta National Golf Club. The field of 94 was trimmed to 93 following the withdrawal of tournament favourite and World no.1 Dustin Johnson who had won his last 3 tournaments, but pulled out after the first tee owing to the back injury he sustained in a fall down the stairs at his rented home.

DAY 1

Day 1 was a tough day with blustery conditions which prompted many experts to say that this could be a rare masters where no one would go 70 or under. Out of the 93 in the field only 2 men finished under 70.

Charley Hoffman fired a (65) 7 under par with 9 birdies(1 stroke less than what is par for the hole), 5 of those 9 birdies came on the last 7. His 4 stroke lead was the biggest day 1 lead at the Masters since 1941.

William McGirt who shot (69) 3 under par with 4 birdies was the other player who finished under 70.

World No.2 and in the absence of Dustin Johnson the top seed at Augusta, Rory Mcllroy who was beginning his quest for the only Major Championship missing from his collection carded a +3 in the first nine with 3 bogeys(1 stroke more than par for the hole). But carded 3 eagles(2 shots lesser than what is par for the hole) over the back 9 to finish round 1 on par (At Augusta par is 72 shots)

Jordan Speith had a forgettable day and fired a (75) 3 over par. He was on par in the front nine and upon return to the scene of his final day collapse(the back nine) last year he was unable to banish the demons and hit a bogey and 1 quadruple bogey on Firethorn(hole 15) which ruined his day.

Three time Masters Champion Phil Mickleson stayed close to the lead and fired in 4 bogeys, 3 birdies and an eagle to finish at (71)1 under par.

Lee Westwood started off badly as well with 4 bogeys in the 1^st 9 but launched a strong comeback over the back nine and recorded 5 birdies in a row from Azalea(hole 13) to Nandina (hole 17) to finish the day at (70) 2 under par.

DAY 2

The day had more sunlight than Day 1 but wind was expected to stiffen on an already breezy day.

Hoffman carded 5 bogeys to finish round 2 at (75) 3 over par and saw his 4 stroke lead completely wiped away by Sergio Garcia who carded 6 birdies and 3 bogeys to finish at (69) 3 under par, Thomas Pieters who hit 1 bogey, 3 birdies and an eagle on azalea (hole 13) finished round 2 on (68) four under par and Rickie Fowler who struck 1 bogey, 4 birdies and an eagle to recover from a 1 over par after round 1 to finish round 2 at 6 under par(67)

These four players have a score of 4 under par(140)

23 year old Jordan Speith, who in his 3 visits to the masters has a lowest finish of 2^nd, was 3 over par on day 1, hit 5 birdies and 2 bogeys on day 2 to finish at 3 under par and after 2 rounds he is on par and 4 strokes behind the leaders currently tied at 10th with Adam Scott also who was (75) 3 over par after round 1 launched a comeback hitting 7 birdies 2 bogeys and a double bogey to finish round 2 at (69) 3 under par and 3 time Masters Champion, Phil Mickleson who had a (71) one under par score on day 1  crumbled on day 2 as in going to close the gap to the leaders he hit 6 bogeys and 5 birdies to finish at (73) 1 over par. He dropped 6 spots on day 2.

World no.4 Hideki Matsuyama who had a nightmare 4 over par on day 1 finished with a day 2 score of (70) 2 under par and is now tied at 16th , 6 strokes behind the leaders. As conditions continue to improve expect a sharp rise in the leaderboard from the young sensation.

Rory Mcllroy who finished day 1 on par collapsed on day 2 with 5 bogeys and 4 birdies and finished the round at (73)1 over par. He dropped 1 spot to be tied on 13th.

William McGirt who finished day 1 in 2^nd with a score of 69 (3 under par) saw his lead dwindle as he hit a 73 on day 2(1 over par). He now is 2 under par and in 5^th.

THE CUT

As the leaders had a score of 4 under par. The cut was 6 over par. 40 players failed to make the cut.

Notable Past Champions who didn’t make the cut were defending champion Danny Willet(151) 7 over par. He hit a bogey on Holly(hole 18) which caused him to fall behind by a shot and ultimately not make the cut as 7 over par was 11 shots behind the joint leaders. His round 2 quadruple bogey on Tea Olive(hole 1) also didn't help matters. Vijay Singh(153) 9 over par and Bubba Watson(152) 8 over par also missed out.

Now as the field thins down to the top what can we expect as we enter the business end of the tournament. Day 3 is crucial to the chasing pack so as to not hand over a psychological advantage on the final day to the leaders. It is crucial for the leader to focus on pars and not bogey, basically the leader should just aim to maintain his lead and not go for broke on day 3 itself as the trailing pack have the scoreboard pressure on them and he doesn’t have it to that extent as the chasers.

Suppose player A is 5 shots behind player B at the start of day 3. Player A must aim to cut the deficit of 5 down to 4 or 3 and possibly even 2 or lesser (he is playing with the knowledge that he has to hit a minimum of 1 eagle or 2 birdies in addition to having a par on all of the remaining shots) A lead of 5 is generally considered safe on the final day (collapses on the final day do not happen every year)

 Player B with his lead of 5 shots should solely focus on pars as he doesn’t have to do anything extravagant right at that moment and should maintain his lead rather than blowing it up in the hope of extending it. Conservative play may result in bogies? Well that’s what the lead is there for. However by maintaining par he is pressurising his opponent to go for birdies regularly and that so often results in pressure.

Rory Mcllroy and Phil Mickleson went to cut the lead and in going for birdies they ended up hitting bogeys. Hence the leaders should stay smart at just aim to maintain their leads. that will be impossible in this masters event on day 3 as we have a 4 way tie and even the leaders know that they got 3 players level with them and any error means they will fall of the lead.

36 holes remain and every hole is important, 1 bad hole can cost you (Danny Willet had a bad hole 1 and eventually missed the cut as he was under pressure to at least maintain par if not card a birdie) On round 1 Jordan Speith hit a quadruple bogey on Firethorn (hole 15), had that been a par he would have been tied for first.

 The Cut has been made, the best 53 remain. Who will get the Green Jacket from Danny Willet at Butler’s Cabin?

The Masters 2017

As Spring arrives life blooms all around us, but, for golfers it means just one thing… The first of the four majors on the PGA Tour. The Augusta Masters or the Masters as it is known is contested annually at the Augusta National Golf Club. The Masters or the Augusta National Invitational tournament as it was first called  began in 1934. This year marks the 81st edition of The Masters (wasn’t played during WW2)
The Augusta Masters is every golfers dream. It presents them the chance to compete on the hallowed turf at Augusta and the chance to win the coveted Green Jacket (the most prestigious prize in golf)

What makes this place so special? It is the only tournament that will still have prestige and interest even if all the big names boycott it. Other tournaments are made big because the whose who of golf decide to show up and participate.
It has an ordinary entrance, its lawns are separated from the road by a random hedge. Its Traditions are what separates it from the other Majors on the PGA Tour.

This tournament still maintains its traditions such as the dress code for caddies (white jumpsuit, green masters cap and white tennis shoes), the concept of placing chairs around the greens, the Champions dinner, etc. The Club is devoid of any sort of advertising boards along its magnificent greens.
The top 50 ranked players of the PGA Tour get an invitation, but a past winner who is ranked 200 or below will be invited as it is a tradition to invite every single past winner.
The tournament is purely invitational and in a way it celebrates golf… all past winners can be assured of an invitation for Masters Tournament for as long as they desire to play the game. It pays tribute to amateurs and allows them to compete alongside professionals in a bid to make the cut for the weekend by being within 50 places of the leader(ties are counted) or within 10 strokes off the leader. (Friday would mean 2 rounds and par for 2 rounds at Augusta is 144. Say the leader has a 4 under par, so anyone with 150 or 6 over par has made the cut and will feature on the weekend)

The only thing that breaks tradition at The Masters is the playoff format if there is a T1(a tie for first spot) after 72 holes.

Another thing that makes the Masters so special is that it is the only major at the same venue each year(U.S. Open, PGA Championship and The Open Championship are held at different venues each year) new layers of history that will be made -- shots, deeds, heroes, victims, villains -- will be on the same place that legends were created. A stunning shot on Azalea will add a layer of history to this hole which has Phil Mickleson's stunning second shot here in 2010 which helped him record a birdie (1 under par) after his ball fell amongst the pines following tee off.

Jordan Speith’s win in just his second Masters Tournament in 2015 was a -18 under par which matched the course record set by a certain Tiger Woods 18 years earlier. Such a record equalling win at another major wouldn’t be looked at with such prestige as the course is different, the difficulty is different. But here both the -18 under pars are looked at in the same light.

Every winner at the Masters joins legendary names in golf such as Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods, Gary Player, etc. as men who have worn the iconic green jacket. The history they make is right above the place where legends of the game made history, they join the company of legends by standing atop the same spot  where those men stood and became legends as they put on the Green Jacket. i.e. Butler's Cabin.

 The iconic Holes on this course are located on Amen Corner.

12^th Hole- Golden Bell

The tee off point on Golden Bell

The 12th Hole of the Augusta National Golf Club is one of the most famous holes in golf. It is a 3 par hole measuring 155 yards. The hole has determined the outcome of many Masters Tournaments. The swirling winds, Rae's Creek and the green angle makes club selection important. The green, guarded with a deep bunker in the front and two bunkers in the rear, is only nine yards deep in the center. En route to the green the player crosses Ben Hogan bridge. In March, the yellow flowered Golden Bell,  blooms behind the green. Its like you have to tee the ball onto the green and failure to do so results in one having to scoop the ball out of the sand or worse the ball  lands on he slope and rolls into Rae’s Creek.

The Green of the Golden Bell

Jordan Speith in 2016 on the final day, blew up a front nine 4 under 32, 5 shots lead when he hit two balls into Rae’s creek and a third shot into a bunker and ended up quadruple bogeying and he fell right back among the rest of the pack. 1 hole blew up his lead as he crumbled over the back 9.

A player and a caddie dressed in white march towards Rae Creek. We can see the slope which carries a ball into Rae's Creek if it was slightly mishit. Also seen are the 3 bunkers on the periphery of the green

13^th Hole- Azalea

The Green of Azalea

13th hole at Augusta National goes beyond the estimated 1,600 azalea bushes that are bursting with blooms down the left side and behind the green of the best little par 5 in golf. You have to hit the ball over a large number of trees and the crowd reaction tells you about the nature of your shot. Balls can land in the rough.

"It was a shot that could have gone the wrong way fast," Watson said. "When you lose the ball over the trees, that's when you get nervous because you can't see it. When you hear the roar of a crowd, you can breathe again. When you hear a roar on a tee shot, you know you've done good."

Phil Mickelson in 2010 rescued himself to score a birdie after hitting a shot into the rough. He then threaded the needle between a couple of pine trees and on to the green.
It is this shot that made me look at golf as a sport that I should follow. Prior to this I just used to think they hit balls around huge green spaces.

Past Winners

2016: Bubba Watson

2015: Jordan Speith

2014: Danny Willet

2013: Adam Scott

2012:Charl Schwartzel

2011: Phil Mickleson

The most wins by a single player at the Masters is set by Jack Nicklaus who won the tournament 6 times (he is currently 77 years old but keeping in accordance with the Masters Club discouraging past winners with an advanced age from competing, he will not be participating despite officially receiving an invitation as a past winner)However, he will tee off as a honorary starter.

THE CONTENDERS
The Masters consists of 94 participants this year. Some of the favourites based on ranking and form are

JORDAN SPEITH

This will be his fourth visit to the masters and he has always featured among the top in each of his previous visits. He is a past winner and will be looking to erase the demons of his final round capitulation 12 months back. A leader until the final 9 on day 4 he had to present the Green Jacket(which he thought was his) to in accordance with the club tradition of having the winner ceremoniously pass on the jacket. Could it be fitting that he get the jacket back from the man he presented it to?

DUSTIN JOHNSON

The World No.1 and the dominant force in golf today. He is said to thrive in wet conditions and weather forecast post the tornado warning which disrupted practice is suggesting that the course will be wet. However he has sustained a back injury after falling down the stairs of his rented home in Augusta and is a doubt, if he starts it will be under pain killers.

HIDEKI MATSUYAMA

He’s been in contention each of the last two years, and now he’s playing the best golf of his life after a strong start to the season. Matsuyama’s brilliant ball-striking makes a perfect fit for Augusta’s demands, but the question for the young Japanese star remains the same: the putter. If he can be a replacement-level putter on the greens this week, it’ll be hard to keep the Green Jacket off his shoulders.

RORY MCLLROY
The Irishman will be looking to add the one major which is missing from his collection. He has had collapses in past visits to Augusta, but is well rested post his injury break.

Hogan's Bridge on Amen Corner

It truly is, a feeling of accomplishment, to finally walk across the greens, to finally wear that Green Jacket, just to be part of it.

The Masters at Augusta is as spring rite, a "tradition like no other," to use the club's own phrase. It is more than a golf tournament, more than just a beautiful golf course. The Masters is a feeling.

Will we have our winner, or will there be a first timer which will result in the 50^th different winner on these hallowed grounds? Who will spend the evening at Butler’s Cabin?

One thing we can be assured of is that over the next 4 days, history will be created and will forever be a part of the grounds of the Augusta National Golf Club.

FEDAL XXXVII

The Miami Masters 1000 which is the final spring hardcourt event has now reached its final stage which will be a repeat of the epic 2005 Miami Final between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.

In the semi-finals Rafael Nadal beat Fabio Fognini in straight sets. The second set was much closer with Nadal winning the match 6-1 7-5. The second semi-final saw Roger Federer take on Nick Kyrgios and the match was a classic which needed 3 tie break sets to determine a winner.

The first set saw both men have set points, before Federer finally capitalised on one of them and took the tie-break 11-9 and close out the set. The second set saw Federer squander 2 match points and 5-6 and 7-8, both on his own serve and Kyrgios in his go for broke style fired an ace to win the  set by clinching tie break 9-11. The third set tie break saw Nick Kyrgios leading 3-1 and he ended up losing the breaker 5-7. The match which could be called match of the tournament and a contender for match of the year lasted 3 hours and 11 minutes and was a spectacle for everyone gathered to watch the match under the lights of Key Biscane’s Crandon Tennis Park, Stadium Court. What ruined the game was Nick Kyrgios smashing his racquet when walking to the net to shake Federer’s hand.

Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal had not played each other in the entire 2016 season. Now, fans will get to see them compete against each other for the third time this year and we are only in April.

This will be the 37th meeting between the two with Nadal leading 23-13.

Rafael Nadal has never won the title at Miami and this is his 5^th appearance in the final at Crandon Tennis Park. Roger Federer is a two time winner at Miami but the last of his titles and appearance in a final at Miami came as 24 year old in 2006.

Rafael Nadal, through luck of the draw and other results, hasn’t played a top 15 player in the entire tournament and has breezed through to the final with just 1 hiccup (against Philipp Kolschreiber in the 2^nd round where he lost the 1^st set 6-0) In the second round he beat Dudi Sela in the 3^rd round he triumphed against Nicolas Mahut, in the fourth round he overcame the challenge of Top Ranked American Jack Sock.

Federer has had to face #ATPNextGen player Francis Tiafoe in the 2^nd round, Juan Martin Del Potro in the 3^rd round Roberto Bautista-Agut in the round of 16 Tomas Berdych in the quarters.

 He has clearly had the trickier path to the final but as he said prior to the Indian Wells tournament where he was drawn in the quarter of death, that he came to the ATP Wold Tour Masters 1000 tournament to face the best. He certainly has gotten his wish.

What can we expect from the final?

The duo have played twice this season and Federer has come up victorious on both occasions (Australian Open Final and Indian Wells 4^th round). Nadal and his camp won’t be just sitting and watching it. They are sure to have come up with a game plan to counter Roger’s first strike tennis. His serve and volley approach has been countered by Del Potro and Tomas Berdych who both played amazing passing shots. The courts at Miami combined with the conditions make the balls drift slightly through the air and bounce after contact with the surface rather than just skid through like they do at Indian Wells. A small mis volley from Federer and he will have to be at his defensive best at the net for Nadal is sure to chase down anything he possibly can. Toni Nadal and Carlos Moya will have observed that Federer is not moving as well as he did at Indian Wells and Melbourne and will realise that he is feeling the effects of deep runs into tournaments. Another thing they will focus on is Federer’s poor break point conversion rate (below 40% in each of his matches) this tournament.

The slowness of the Miami courts is a reason why Federer usually skips the tournament or hasn’t been past the semis whenever he has appeared here since 2006. However he has now identified the clay court season as the most taxing and wants to play as many grass and hard court tournaments as possible and hence Miami is a must visit for him.

The time on court and amount of tie breaks played and Federer’s age combined deep runs in tournaments (he won at Indian Wells) compared with Nadal’s easy route to the summit clash (it was not his fault if Kei Nishikori and Marin Cilic who were in his half of the draw, fell early) and his early exit in Indian Wells make Nadal the fresher of the two heading into the final.

The slower conditions also tip the scales ever so slightly in Nadal’s favour. Also Nadal at age 30 is 5 years younger than Federer and based on the above, should be in prime position to capture his first title at Miami and avenge that painful defeat he suffered 12 years ago, in 5 sets (that time the finals at Masters 1000 events were also best of 5 sets) after leading 2 sets to love and having match points in the third, as an 18 year old to a 23 year old Federer.

A win for Federer here will allow him to amass 400 more points and give him the freedom to sit out of the majority of the clay court season without the fear of dropping out of the top 8. A win for Nadal, will give him momentum as he will snap a three match losing streak to Federer (in 36 previous meetings he hasn’t ever lost three times in a row to Federer) and head off on a high to his personal sandbox (the European clay courts)

It’s like the stars have aligned to help Nadal get his 2017 head to head against Federer back on track and add one of the few titles he doesn’t have, to his shelf back in Manacor, Mallorca, Spain.

Prediction: Nadal in three.