After losing to Fernando Verdasco at the Madrid Open, Rafael Nadal is threatening to skip the event next year if the surface isn’t changed. (EPA)

The talk of the town is the Madrid Open’s controversial blue clay. In clearing out my notebook, I’ll look at what Rafael Nadal’s shocking loss to Fernando Verdasco means for a potential ranking shakeup heading into the French Open; the blue clay; and Milos Raonic’s “statement loss.”

1. Rafa’s revolt: You have to feel for Verdasco. Here he is pulling off a nearly impossible feat — Verdasco came back from a double-break down, 2-5, in the third set to win five straight games and drop Nadal 6-3, 3-6, 7-5 — and getting the biggest win of his career in his hometown after a long slump, and the guy isn’t even the C-story. Not that Verdasco should care. Let Rafa have the headlines, he’ll take the scoreboard.

First, let’s look at the unexpected result. Verdasco had never beaten Nadal in 14 previous meetings. In fact, it was only the ninth time Nadal has lost on clay since 2005. His losses on the dirt since then have come against Gaston Gaudio, Igor Andreev, Roger Federer (twice), Juan Carlos Ferrero, Robin Soderling, Novak Djokovic (twice) and now Verdasco. Rafa had won 22 straight on the surface, dating to his loss to Djokovic in the Rome final last year.

Now, Nadal is threatening to skip Madrid next year if the color and the court surface aren’t fixed. This isn’t an empty threat. Madrid may be a mandatory Masters tournament, but a player can skip one without penalty if he meets certain criteria. Nadal has played more than 600 matches in his career, so he doesn’t lose bonus-pool money if he skips one Masters event.

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It’s time to stop wondering how Madrid’s blue clay will play and start watching. The draws for the Madrid Open are out and as I wipe the blue dust from my notebook, here are a few observations for what’s shaping up to be a very exciting tournament. Main draw play begins on Saturday. Here are the full women’s and men’s draws.

Fresh off a win in Stuttgart, Maria Sharapova has a shot at taking over the No. 1 ranking in Madrid. (Getty Images)

1. No. 1 up for grabs (kinda): Maria Sharapova has a slim chance of taking over the No. 1 spot from Victoria Azarenka. She needs to win the title and Azarenka has to lose in the first round. Like I said, it’s a slim chance but not completely out of reach considering Azarenka has drawn Svetlana Kuznetsova in the first round. The two played in Indian Wells and Kuznetsova got only three games off the eventual champion. But Vika’s 0-2 against the 2009 French Open champion on clay. An opening-round loss isn’t out of the question.

Of course, Sharapova would have to do her part and win the title. The draw gods haven’t made things easy for her, as she has by far the toughest road. Much like Miami, she’s drawn all the big hitters in her half: Serena Williams, Petra Kvitova and Sam Stosur. Sharapova could face Serena in the quarterfinals in a match that would surely turn heads.

2. Isner’s tough road: Speaking of unkind, John Isner won’t have an opportunity to play himself into form, as his draw is absolutely brutal. His projected road to the final starts with a second-round match against Marin Cilic, then Juan Martin del Potro, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and some guy named Rafael Nadal in the semifinals. All this while trying to navigate the slippery blue clay that is reportedly playing heavy and yielding lower bounces than usual, which could take some of the bite off Isner’s serve.

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Tomas Berdych upset Andy Murray on Friday to reach the Monte Carlo semifinals. (Getty Images)

1. Is Tomas Berdych the ATP No. 5?: Berdych is through to the Monte Carlo semifinals after upsetting Andy Murray today, 6-7 (4), 6-2, 6-3. It wasn’t a great performance from Murray, who struggled with his forehand all day, though Berdych was solid, proving once again that the idea that big men can’t play on clay should go out with the trash.

I’ve been impressed that Berdych has been able to gradually improve over the last two years and become a mainstay in the top 10. The Czech always had top 10 tools, hitting big from the baseline, but his propensity to choke away matches was pretty legendary. Ever since his Wimbledon final run in 2010, Berdych found his belief and his swagger and he got … mean. Where he used to have a reputation for being soft and relatively shy or soft-spoken with the press, there’s a newfound edge about the guy now. Ask a question that’s slightly critical and he’ll give you a dismissive and smug answer while looking at you dead in the eye. To be clear, he’s not rude, snippy, or defensive about it. It just seems like he’s embraced his role as the spoiler and the bad guy and he’s OK with it now. Whatever it is, it’s working for him on court.

In my mind, he’s the ATP No. 5 right now.

2. Fed Cup roundup: What does Russian Fed Cup captain Shamil Tarpischev know that we don’t? Despite the fact that Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova is 3-8 in 2012 and hasn’t beaten anyone in the top 40 in a completed match this year, Tarpischev chosen to nominate her for singles on Saturday against Serbia. In fact, Pavlyuchenkova hasn’t beaten anyone in the top 20 in a completed match since the U.S. Open, though one of the players she did beat back then was Jelena Jankovic, who she’ll  play on Saturday. No love for Maria Kirilenko, Tarpi? Saving her for singles and doubles on Sunday? We’ll see.

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Jennifer Capriati won three Grand Slam titles and an Olympic gold medal. (Ben Van Hook/SI)

Five For Friday is an end-of-the-week roundup of interesting tidbits from my notebook.

1. Jennifer Capriati, Hall of Famer: People may remember Capriati’s career as an unfortunate cautionary tale of teenage burnout and wonder what would have happened had she not fallen on hard times, which robbed her of much of her tennis prime. But that’s not what I took away from the newly elected Hall of Famer’s run, which began when she was a bubbly phenom making history as a 13-year-old in 1990, ended nearly 15 years later and included so many ups and downs in between.

I’ll remember her as someone who overcame the quintessential earmarks of Generation X, where talent, pressure and expectation led to apathy, rebellion and tragedy. She was a rare talent who was able to overcome her demons to re-emerge and rebuild a career in ashes. Three Grand Slam titles, 17 weeks at No. 1 and an Olympic gold medal — all during one of the strongest eras in the women’s game. If there was ever a player who had to fight her way into the International Tennis Hall of Fame, it was J-Cap. Well deserved and congratulations.

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We’re a week away from the latest round of Fed Cup, and the announcement of team nominations generated some drama. In the next three items, we’ll look at some teams that caused a stir:

2. Team Russia: Captain Shamil Tarpischev, who is without Russian No. 1 Maria Sharapova, did not nominate Russia’s No. 2, Vera Zvonareva, for the semifinal against Serbia in Moscow. Zvonareva has had subpar form this season and is struggling with a shoulder injury. But the bigger news is that Tarpischev said that unless Zvonareva’s results improve, she could be left off the Olympic team, too.

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Billie Jean King was a key member of the 'Original 9' that helped start the WTA in 1970. (SI)

Five For Friday is an end-of-the-week roundup of interesting tidbits from my notebook. This week focuses on my thoughts from Charleston.

1. True Originals: The WTA’s “Original 9″ — the founders of the women’s pro circuit, Billie Jean King, Rosie Casals, Nancy Richey, Peaches Bartkowicz, Kristy Pigeon, Valerie Ziegenfuss, Julie Heldman, Kerry Melville Reid and Judy Dalton — will reunite Saturday for the first time since 1989 at the Family Circle Cup in Charleston, S.C. That the reunion will help commemorate the 40th anniversary of the tournament is appropriate. The first Family Circle Cup was held in Hilton Head in 1973 and offered $100,000 in prize money, the most of any tournament outside of the Virginia Slims Championships.

To give context to how quickly women’s tennis grew in those early days: In a three-year span after the tour’s formation in 1970, women went from not having any tournaments of their own, being banished to outside courts during joint events and getting paid three to eight times less than their male counterparts, to having their own circuit with tournaments that paid out as much as the men. No other men’s tournament offered a bigger prize purse than the Family Circle Cup, which was still twice as much as the women were getting at Wimbledon.

The Original 9 will be joined by Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, Martina Hingis, Tracy Austin, Virginia Wade, John McEnroe, Aaron Krickstein and Rennae Stubbs for a celebratory exhibition event on Saturday night. If you live within a day’s driving distance to Charleston, I’d highly recommend the road trip.

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Five For Friday is an end-of-the-week roundup of interesting tidbits from my notebook. This week looks at ongoings in Miami, including Rafael Nadal’s withdrawal.

Rafael Nadal withdrew from the Sony Ericsson Open on Friday, citing tendinitis in his left knee. (Getty Images)

Nadal withdraws from Miami: Those darn knees have foiled him again. Just hours before he was set to take the court to take on Andy Murray in the semifinals of the Sony Ericsson Open, Rafael Nadal announced his withdrawal from the event due to tendinitis in his left knee, which had grown worse with each day.

I’ve seen quite a few commentators and pundits roll their eyes to Nadal’s knee complaints this week and I’ve never really understood the cynicism that seems to be growing around Rafa’s injuries. Yes, he told a nutty tale in Melbourne about feeling horrible knee pain before the tournament, but when he was asked about his knees afterwards, Nadal insisted he felt perfect and that the pain was gone. In Miami however, Nadal was consistently concerned with his knee, calling the trainer for tape and seeming noticeably distracted by the injury. So the withdrawal shouldn’t be a complete surprise.

It’s a wise move from Nadal, who has no business risking further injury given the Olympic-tightened 2012 schedule and the upcoming clay swing. With Nadal unable to defend his finalist points in Miami, he’ll head into the clay season with a 900-point lead on Roger Federer. That’s a comfortable lead, but not an unsurmountable one given Federer’s relatively early exits in Monte Carlo (quarterfinals) and Rome (Round of 16) last year.

And how’s this for some perspective. According to Andrew Burton — the best Federer expert for my money — Nadal earned 590 points for the final stretch in 2011 (after the U.S. Open), compared to Federer’s 3000, and in 2012, Rafa’s earned 2010 points to Roger’s 2855. Sometimes objects in the rear-view mirror are closer than they appear. Rafa, this is not one of those times. Roger’s on your tail.

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Fernando Gonzalez played the last match of his career on Wednesday, but there was no TV coverage for fans. (EPA)

This has been a very rare week. I haven’t seen a lick of tennis and it’s not by choice. So how does one write a tennis column with thoughts on the week when one hasn’t seen anything? You’re about to find out.

Coverage issues: My favorite comment from a fan this week came in the form of a tweet from an ardent Rafael Nadal fan, James Henry.

I'm not going to call any #tennis tournament a "5th Slam" if I can't watch its early-round matches!—
James Henry (@olerafa) March 21, 2012

James has a point. The BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells and the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami can try to lay claim on the elusive (and ultimately irrelevant) title of “The Fifth Slam”, revamping the grounds, adding seating, and putting Hawkeye on all courts. But if the two biggest Tour-level tournaments can’t even get their early rounds televised then they’ll always feel small.

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John Isner made his second straight Masters 1000 semifinal at Indian Wells. (Getty Images)

INDIAN WELLS, Calif. — Carefully emptying out my virus-free notebook from the week at the BNP Paribas Open, where John Isner is still standing, the Germans show no sign of retreat, and Michael Llodra’s outburst is still the talk of the press room.

The Big Three… and John: It’s difficult to look at the men’s semifinal lineup at Indian Wells and not do a quick double-take. We’ve set aside use of the always controversial “Big Four” label this week after Andy Murray crashed out to Guillermo Garcia-Lopez in the second round, and Isner stepped into the void to work through his wide-open quarter to make his second straight Masters 1000 semifinal. Isner hasn’t had to beat anyone ranked higher than him to get here, but that’s not a criticism because the opposite holds true as well: He hasn’t lost to anyone ranked below him. That’s the key to being a top 10 player, winning the matches you’re supposed to win to earn the chance to challenge the men at the top. His efforts this week have earned him a shot at Novak Djokovic, who has had a good tournament, though not a great one. The key matchup will be Isner’s serve vs. Djokovic’s return, which is the best in the game right now.

“His anticipation, his hands, everything, it’s just world-class,” Isner said. “I’m gonna have to serve well, hit my spots, and have to serve smart. After that, I’m going to have to back it up with some very good shots, especially on my forehand.”

It’s a simple game plan. We’ll see if he can execute it on Saturday.

The Germans keep coming: Angelique Kerber’s game is a tough one to understand. It’s not pretty in the least. She doesn’t get full extension on either her forehand or backhand and it always looks like she’s off-balance and snatching at the ball. At 5’8” she doesn’t have the overwhelming power of some of her countrywomen, nor does she look like she has the foot speed to defend. But the 24-year-old from Bremen, Germany, has found a way to make it all work for her and I find it fascinating to watch. She’ll crack the top 15 on Monday and she’s now made the semifinals of seven of her last 12 events, including the U.S. Open semifinals and most recently a title in Paris, where she beat Maria Sharapova and Marion Bartoli along the way.

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Rafael Nadal is set to play his first event since the Australian Open. (EPA)

Five For Friday is an end-of-the-week roundup of interesting tidbits from my notebook. This week I’m in Indian Wells for the BNP Paribas Open. 

1. Positive Rafa: Rafael Nadal burst into a wide smile after saying Thursday that he “improved a lot” during his five-week layoff following his loss to Novak Djokovic in the Australian Open final. I’m not so sure he’s kidding, though. The Spaniard seems to have escaped from the dark cloud that has been hovering over him the last six months, and his performance in Melbourne (as well as the much-needed rest) has buoyed his spirits.

“In general, it was a very positive tournament for me,” Nadal said. “I did a lot of things much better than in 2011. I felt [I played] with more energy, with more rhythm in my legs, more power on the shots. I feel like I can hit more winners than before. That’s always positive on your mind. You hit winners, you can win more free points. That makes a big difference in my game.”

Despite evidence to the contrary, Nadal insists that it’s not all about Djokovic, who has won seven consecutive meetings. After losing to Djokovic in last year’s U.S. Open final, Nadal said he was going to spend the offseason finding solutions to beat the Serb. But six months later, Nadal is back to the party line: He wants to improve for improvement’s sake.

“I want to improve for me,” Nadal said. “I don’t want to improve to beat Novak, to beat Roger [Federer], to beat anybody. I try my best every day to improve, to be a better player year by year. If that’s enough to beat Novak, fantastic. If not, I’m going to keep working. When I wake up every morning and go on the court, I don’t think about Novak. I think about things I need to keep improving. That’s worked well throughout my career, all this time, and maybe now it’s not working anymore but hopefully yes. That’s the way that my mind works. I don’t have a spirit of revenge.”

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Andy Murray (left) dealt Novak Djokovic his first loss of 2012, while Juan Martin del Potro challenged Roger Federer in Dubai. (Getty Images)

Five for Friday is an end-of-the-week roundup of interesting tidbits from my notebook. Have something that you think needs to be addressed? Feel free to tweet or email me.

1. Baby steps: That the play in Dubai this week has looked a lot more like Ping-Pong than tennis speaks volumes about how slow the rest of the courts on Tour have become. So it’s not surprising, then, that two of the best fast-court players have made the final: Roger Federer and Andy Murray.

Regardless of Saturday’s result, this has been a good week for Murray, who defeated Novak Djokovic 6-2, 7-5 in Friday’s semifinals on the heels of a straight-set victory against Tomas Berdych in the quarters. At a minimum, Murray has shown no ill effects from his heartbreaking five-set loss to Djokovic in the Australian Open final, signaling that he doesn’t intend to repeat his 2011 post-Melbourne slump. Murray will head to Indian Wells next week knowing that he’s progressing. Djokovic already has a fully motivated Rafael Nadal and Federer nipping at his heels. Add a confident Murray to that pack.

Not to take anything away from Murray’s victory, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves when it comes to the world No. 4. The issue for him is not overcoming the Big Three at a Tour stop, but doing so at Grand Slam tournaments. On those big stages, Murray is 0-2 against Djokovic, 2-6 against Nadal and 0-2 with no sets won against Federer, who actually trails the overall head-to-head 8-6. Murray, though, will look to build on victories like Friday’s as he prepares for the majors down the road.

“Hopefully, that will set me up well for the year,” Murray told reporters after handing Djokovic his first loss of the season. “Confidence in tennis and almost any individual sport is so important.”

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