I have to admit that I am utterly confused by Roger’s play in the Pacific Life Open. He played amazingly in his first three matches, but crumbled in the semis losing 6-3, 6-2 to Marty Fish. I understand that Roger was plagued with mono during the Australian Open and in Dubai, and that was a factor in his performances. However, this is a surprising loss because of how lopsided the score was. I can’t remember the last time Roger was blown off the court.

Roger said, “so semifinals to start off with at the first Masters Series is a good thing, and I hope I can go from here and win in Miami, and on to clay.” It’s a good thing that Roger has a positive outlook on this and the rest of the season. I think fans are confused because we’re so used to watching Roger win whenever he steps out onto the court. But now, Roger is several months into the season without a title, and I think fans are getting a little impatient and worried about Roger.

Though Roger has yet to win a title in 2008, he picked up very valuable ranking points because of his improvement from his 2007 showing in Indian Wells. This is especially important because it widens a recently narrowing gap between Rafael Nadal and him.