Miami Open presented by Itau – The 32^nd edition of the Miami Open presented by Itau, gets underway on Wednesday. The 96-player draw features every member of the Top 10 (first time since 2012) and 18 of the Top 20 players in the Emirates ATP Rankings. The second of nine ATP Masters 1000 tournaments of the season takes place at the Tennis Center at Crandon Park with three former winners in the field: reigning champ/five-time titleholder Novak Djokovic (2007, ’11-12, ’14-15), two-time champion Andy Murray (2009, ‘13) and two-time winner Roger Federer (2005-06).

The Reigning Champ – World No. 1 Djokovic is making his 11^th straight Miami Open appearance. The five-time Miami winner owns a 36-5 career record, winning titles in four of the past five years. During that stretch he has won 24 of 25 matches, losing only to Tommy Haas in 4R in 2013. He also was runner-up in 2009. The 28-year-old Serb has won a record-tying 27 career ATP Masters 1000 titles (w/Nadal). After winning his third title of the year in Indian Wells, Djokovic has reached 10 consecutive ATP Masters 1000 finals (DNP ’15 Madrid) going back to 2014 Paris-Bercy. He’s won eight of the 10, compiling a 50-2 record in that span. In the past 20 tournaments played since the beginning of 2015, he is a sizzling 104-7 with 14 titles in 18 finals. Djokovic is attempting to equal Andre Agassi’s record of six Miami Open titles. Djokovic is also trying to join Agassi as the only three-peat winners in tournament history. Agassi won his last three titles from 2001-03.

Roger Returns – World No. 3 and 2005-06 Miami winner Roger Federer makes his return to the ATP World Tour after undergoing knee surgery on 3 February. Prior to his injury, Federer reached the final in Brisbane (l. to Raonic) and the semi-finals at the Australian Open (l. to Djokovic) on Jan. 28. The 34-year-old Swiss superstar has a 44-13 record in Miami and he’s making his 16^th appearance. In his last visit two years ago, he reached the quarter-finals (l. to Nishikori). He made his tournament debut in 1999 (l. to Carlsen in 1R) and his first win came over Justin Gimelstob in 2000.

Home Tournament – No. 2 seed Andy Murray has the comforts of staying at his Miami home during the tournament. The 28-year-old Scottish native has a 27-8 record in Miami, reaching the final in three of the past four years. He won the title in 2012 and was runner-up in ’12 and last year (l. to Djokovic both times). He also won the title in ’09. This is the first time Murray comes into Miami ranked No. 2. After his 3R loss to Federico Delbonis in Indian Wells, Murray was looking forward to his Miami return. “I actually haven’t been back since the tournament last year, which is the longest I haven’t been there for about nine or 10 years maybe, since I started using that as a training block for myself. So, yeah, it will be nice to get to Miami and see my family. I’m not necessarily concerned about how I’m playing. I do think I will play better tennis in Miami because I played some good stuff in the Davis Cup.”

Rafa Looks For First Title – World No. 5 Rafael Nadal is making his 12^th tournament appearance (35-10 record, W/O in ‘12). He is a four-time runner-up (2005, ’08, ’10, ’14) and this is the only tournament he’s not won with the most attempts. He also reached the SF in 2010 and 2012 and QF in 2007 and 2009.

Indian Wells, Miami Title Sweep – Since 1991, seven players have won the first two ATP Masters 1000 events of the season (10 times) in Indian Wells and Miami. Djokovic is the only player to accomplish the feat three times (2011, ’14-15). Federer won both titles in 2005-06. Seven players have won both titles in the same year:

Big Four Domination – In 49 of the past 53 ATP Masters 1000 tournaments (since ’10 Monte-Carlo), one of the “Big Four”, Djokovic, Murray, Federer and Nadal, has lifted the trophy. During that stretch, Djokovic has won 22 titles, Nadal 12, Federer 8 and Murray 7. The last non-Big Four winner in Miami was Andy Roddick in 2010. The only exceptions came at ’10 Paris-Bercy (Soderling), ‘12 Paris-Bercy (Ferrer) and in 2014 in Monte-Carlo (Wawrinka) and Toronto (Tsonga). The foursome are also among the Top 6 in ATP Masters 1000 titles:

T1) Djokovic 27

T1) Nadal 27

3) Federer 24

4) Agassi 17

T5) Murray 11 

T5) Sampras 11

Note: In past 28 ATP Masters 1000 tournaments, at least one member of Big Four has reached the final. Last time without a Big Four in final: ’12 Paris-Bercy: Ferrer d. Janowicz.

Next Generation – There are seven Next Generation players in the main draw and four are playing in the qualifying draw. Here’s a look at the talented 21 & under group:

Note: There are four players in the qualifying draw: Taylor Fritz (18, No. 81), Jared Donaldson (19, No. 152), Yoshihito Nishioka (20, No. 124), Noah Rubin (20, No. 194).

Wild Cards – The five main draw wild cards are from five different countries: Roberto Carbelles Baena (Spain), Nicolas Jarry (Chile), Michael Mmoh (U.S.), Andrey Rublev (Russia) and Elias Ymer (Sweden). Rublev, who reached the 2R last year in his debut, is the only player of the group to have already appeared in the Miami main draw. Mmoh, who is 18 years, 2 months, is the youngest player and one of six teenagers in the main draw. He is playing in his second career ATP World Tour tournament.

InfoSys ATP World Tour Wins Leaders – Djokovic and No. 14 Dominic Thiem, who reached the quarter-finals in Miami last year, are co-leaders in match wins on the ATP World Tour this season (both with 22). Here are the match wins leaders:

Milestone Watch – Feliciano Lopez is two wins away from reaching 100 career ATP Masters 1000 match wins (98-110) while John Isner is four match wins away from reaching 300 in his career (296-182).

Delpo Comeback Continues – Juan Martin del Potro is playing in his third tournament on the ATP World Tour since coming back from a left wrist injury last year. This is the 27-year-old Argentine’s eighth appearance in Miami (13-7 record). His best result is the semi-finals in 2009 when he lost to eventual champion Andy Murray. Last year he lost to Vasek Pospisil in the 1R in his final match of the season. He underwent left wrist surgery on Jan. 20 and on June 18. He returned to action last month in Delray Beach where he advanced to the semi-finals (l. to eventual champ Querrey). In Indian Wells, he reached the 2R (d. Smyczek, l. to Berdych). He comes in ranked No. 366.

Baker is Back – Brian Baker is making his first tournament appearance since 2004 when he came in as an 18-year-old wild card (l. to Saulnier in 1R). The 30-year-old Nashville, Tenn. native has been plagued by several injuries over the years. He has an injury protected ranking of No. 56. In his only previous tournament this season at the Australian Open, he lost in the 1R to Simone Bolelli in four tie-breaks.

No. 1 Doubles Ranking at Stake – Jamie Murray is closing in on No. 1 in the Emirates ATP Doubles Rankings. Murray came one match win short of overtaking current No. 1 Marcelo Melo in Indian Wells but lost in the quarter-finals. Melo has a 175-point lead over Murray while No. 3 Horia Tecau and No. 4 Jean-Julien Rojer are also within reach. Melo must reach the quarter-finals in order to have a chance to remain No. 1. Melo has 360 points to defend from last year while Murray has 90. Rojer and Tecau have 180 points to defend. They must win the title to have a chance to take over No. 1.

Outstanding Doubles Field – Eight of the Top 10 teams in the Emirates ATP Doubles Team Rankings are entered in the draw, led by Australian Open champions Jamie Murray and Bruno Soares. The reigning champions are four-time winners (2007-08, ’14-15) Bob Bryan & Mike Bryan. The top seeds are last year’s No. 1 duo Jean-Julien Rojer and Horia Tecau. Here is a look at the teams in the Top 10 who are entered:

1) Jamie Murray & Bruno Soares

2) Daniel Nestor & Radek Stepanek

3) Pierre-Hugues Herbert & Nicolas Mahut

4) Juan Sebastian Cabal & Robert Farah

5) Feliciano Lopez & Marc Lopez

6) Vasek Pospisil & Jack Sock

7) Treat Huey & Max Mirnyi

9) Philipp Petzschner & Alexander Peya

Former Champions in Draw – The only team playing together who are former champions in Miami are reigning two-time champions (four overall) Bob Bryan & Mike Bryan (2007-08, ’14-15). There are four other players who have won the title playing with different partners:

— Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi & Jean-Julien Rojer (2013)

— Max Mirnyi (2003, ‘05-06, ’09)

— Daniel Nestor (2002)

Other active players to win Miami title (not direct entry into draw):

— Leander Paes (2010-11-12)

— Radek Stepanek (2012)

— Mahesh Bhupathi (2011)

— Lukas Dlouhy (2010)

— Roger Federer (2003)

Bryans Eye Fifth Title – Reigning two-time doubles champions Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan look to become the first team to win three straight Miami titles since Todd Woodbridge and Mark Woodforde from 1995-97. Leander Paes won three straight titles with as many partners from 2010-12. The Bryans are off to a 7-5 start and their past three losses have come after holding match points. Their best result of the season was a runner-up in Delray Beach last month (l. to Marach-F. Martin). The Bryans have won a record 109 titles together, their last coming in Montreal last August. They have won Miami titles in 2007-08, ’14-15.

ICYMI

Novak Djokovic won his record fifth BNP Paribas Open title in Indian Wells. Read

Frenchmen Nicolas Mahut and Pierre-Hugues Herbert knocked off the defending champions to win the Indian Wells men’s doubles title. Read

Rankings Movers

Milos Raonic 12 (+2)

David Goffin 15 (+3)

Leonardo Mayer 41 (+5)

Alexander Zverev 52 (+6) – Career high

Marcel Granollers 73 (+19)

Birthdays

22 March – Andreas Haider-Maurer (29)

23 March – Roberto Carballes Baena (23)

28 March – Stan Wawrinka (31)

29 March – Juan Monaco (32)

30 March – Joao Sousa (27)

31 March – Henri Laaksonen (24)

2 April – David Ferrer (34)

Eighteen-year-old Taylor Fritz felt like he was in school again.

The American hung out with his peers. They sat in classrooms and learned from “teachers” and guest speakers. And they had some fun.

Fritz and 15 other ATP World Tour players from 10 countries recently participated in ATP University, an opportunity for players to learn about important topics facing their careers. The ATP World Tour hosts the three-day educational session twice a year to inform the players about ATP World Tour operations and equip them with knowledge they’ll need for a productive life on tour.

At the recent ATP University, which was held in Miami, the players learned about 14 specific topics, including anti-corruption, anti-doping, giving back and an introduction to saving and investing.

“I think it was a great experience,” said Matwe Middelkoop of the Netherlands. “There was so much that I didn’t know before attending… Now we can use what we learned to spread the knowledge to the other players on tour.”

Middelkoop, No. 52 in the Emirates ATP Doubles Rankings, and any other player in his first year of ATP World Tour Division I membership must attend ATP University. Division I membership is open to any singles player ranked inside the Top 200 of the Emirates ATP Rankings and to any doubles player ranked in the Top 100 of the Emirates ATP Doubles Rankings.

Great Britain’s Kyle Edmund, No. 87 in the Emirates ATP Rankings, said he knew some of the information that was presented but still found the sessions useful to reinforce what he knew. “The anti-corruption presentation was very interesting,” Edmund said.

ATP University also featured some fun for the players. They saw the Charlotte Hornets take on NBA star Dwyane Wade and the Miami Heat.

“It was an informative experience,” said Fritz, No. 81 in the Emirates ATP Rankings. “It is definitely something that every player should do coming up.”

It’s not how many winners you hit. It’s how many errors you don’t make.

Novak Djokovic defeated Milos Raonic 6-2, 6-0 to win a record fifth BNP Paribas Open title by getting on the right side of the most important equation in our sport. Raonic won only two of the 14 games played, but amazingly hit more winners, 16-15.

That may seem like an anomaly, but it’s actually quite common for the match loser to accumulate more winners. In general, around 70 per cent of all points on the ATP World Tour end in errors and around 30 per cent end in winners.

Experience has taught the elite players to focus on dominating the larger pool of points and generally care very little about hitting more winners than their opponents. In this final, there were 31 winners hit out of 101 points, producing a very typical ratio of 69 per cent errors and 31 per cent winners.

The final score may have looked abnormal, but the mix of winners and errors was extremely typical of a pro tour encounter. Djokovic has built a spectacular career dominating the much larger 70 per cent pool of points, which makes him for a very tough match-up for the free-hitting Canadian.

Raonic was clearly miss-firing with his ultra-aggressive game style and could not yield a big enough advantage out of the smaller 30 per cent pool of winners to trouble the World No. 1. Raonic left the court after the first set to have an injury attended to, and he was never able to sustain any kind of momentum to pressure the Super Serb.

2nd Serve Domination

In the opening set, Raonic only won 3/16 second serve points, and 0/14 in the second set. That’s a horror story for one of the biggest servers in the game.

In set 1, Djokovic targeted 71 per cent (10/14) of his second-serve returns right down the middle third of the court, with the remaining four all wide in the ad court aimed at Raonic’s less potent backhand wing.

Deep returns to the middle of the court was the classic Andre Agassi strategy, giving the returner a big target to land a powerful return and providing no angle for the server.

Coming into the Indian Wells final, Raonic was winning 54 per cent of his second-serve points in his five preceding matches. He won 58 per cent in all of 2015 and had won 55 per cent so far this year. But against Djokovic, he managed to win 10 per cent (3/30).

With Raonic serving at 0-4 deuce in the second set, he had only 29 per cent of his serves unreturned, which was lower than Djokovic at 31 percent. Those numbers would have seemed impossible to consider before the match.

Djokovic, as you would expect, performed admirably in this key strategic area, winning 67 per cent (8/12) of his second serve points, including hitting only four second serves in the entire second set and winning half of those points.

Baseline Superiority

Once the point extended past a serve and return, Djokovic won a staggering 80 per cent (41/51) of the baseline rallies. Djokovic blended amazing defense with suffocating court position, extending the 6’5” Canadian out to the edges of the court.

Raonic was pressing hard against the World No. 1, especially off the forehand wing, where he committed 18 unforced errors to the Serb’s one. Raonic was credited with 27 unforced errors for the match to Djokovic’s four. Those are the numbers that form the bull’s-eye of who won and why.

Ultimately it does not matter if Djokovic loses the battle of hitting winners by one (15-16) if he can get his opponent to miss the court as much as Raonic did.

Overall, 62 per cent of points ended in the first four shots, 31 per cent in the 5-9 shot range, and only seven per cent were extended past nine shots, with Djokovic having a healthy winning percentage in all three.

Victories like this one send a chill through the rest of the tour as opponents desperately search for answers to get the upper hand against the rampaging Serb.

A LOOK BACK

BMW Of Dallas Irving Tennis Classic (Irving, Texas): The ATP Challenger Tour returned to Irving for the fifth consecutive year. In the second Challenger final of the year pitting two Top 100 players against each other, unseeded Marcel Granollers produced his best tennis of the week to rout No. 4 seed and defending champion Aljaz Bedene, 6-1, 6-1.  The match took just 59 minutes from Granollers, marking the second Challenger final this year to finish in under an hour. With the win, Granollers also stopped Bedene’s streak of seven consecutive victories in Challenger finals.

The veteran Spaniard was in red-hot form throughout the prestigious $125,000+H event, dropping just three games in his final two matches. His victory on Sunday gave him the fourth Challenger title of his career and his first in six years, having last prevailed on home soil at Tarragona in 2010.

Read: Knowles Returns To The Court In Irving | Irving Keeps Players Coming Back

Jalisco Open presentado por Aeromexico (Guadalajara, Mexico): With a combined age of 67, the final between Stephane Robert (35) and No. 5 seed Malek Jaziri (32) was the second-oldest so far this year on the ATP Challenger Tour. Both players showed no signs of age in the grueling baseline rallies throughout the match, but it was Jaziri who narrowly prevailed in front of a raucous stadium crowd, 5-7 6-3, 7-6 (5).

This week also marked a brilliant turn in form from Jaziri, who hadn’t won two consecutive matches at a tournament this year prior to arriving in Guadalajara. The victory this week marks the fourth ATP Challenger Tour title of Jaziri’s career.

Despite the loss, Robert appears poised to soon rejoin the Top 100 at age 35. He’s climbed more than 70 spots in the Emirates ATP Rankings since the start of the year after recording several impressive results, including a third-round finish at the Australian Open and winning the ATP Challenger Tour event in New Delhi.

Kazan Kremlin Cup (Kazan, Russia): The seventh annual edition of the Kazan Kremlin Cup saw unseeded Tobias Kamke breeze through the draw without the loss of a set, comfortably dispatching local favourite Aslan Karastev in the final, 6-4, 6-2. The win gave Kamke his eighth career singles title on the ATP Challenger Tour and his fifth straight win in Challenger finals.  Currently ranked No. 244 in the Emirates ATP Rankings, the 29-year-old is projected to jump back into the Top 200 with his victory in Kazan.

Challenger Banque Nationale de Drummondville (Drummondville, Canada): In an all-British final, No. 4 seed Daniel Evans continued his climb back up the rankings by prevailing against lucky loser Edward Corrie, 6-3, 6-4. It was the second all-British final of the year for Evans, having lost last month in Dallas to Kyle Edmund, and his first title of 2016. Earlier this year, the 25-year-old also qualified for the main draw of the Australian Open for the first time in his career.

But despite the loss on Sunday, the week was a success for Corrie. The world No. 531 reached his first Challenger final at age 28 and became the first lucky loser to reach a Challenger final since Yasutaka Uchiyama in Lexington last July.

The week also yielded strong results for Canadian tennis. Four Canadians reached the quarter-finals at a Challenger for just the second time (Calgary ’93), with wild card Denis Shapovalov becoming the first 16 year old to reach a Challenger semi-final since Stefan Kozlov achieved that feat in Sacramento in October 2014. Shapovalov also became the first player born in the year 1999 to win a main draw match on the ATP Challenger Tour.

Read: Teen Shapovalov Claims Titanic Point At Drummondville Challenger 2016 | Sixteen-Year-Old Shapovalov Enjoys Dream Week In Drummondville

Guangzhou GDD Cup (Guangzhou, China): Persistent rain forced three quarter-final matches and both semi-final matches to be played on Sunday, resulting in a pending Monday final between No. 5 seed Lukas Lacko and No. 7 seed Nikoloz Basilashvili. This is the fourth ATP Challenger Tour final in the last six months for Lacko, having won in Izmir and finished runner-up in both Bratislava and Tashkent.

Read: Zhang Continues Hot Streak In Guangzhou

A LOOK AHEAD

There are two tournaments on the calendar this week, with a $75,000 event Guangzhou (China) and a $50,000 event in San Luis Potosi (Mexico) set to commence on Tuesday. The top four seeds in Shenzhen are all ranked inside the Top 100 of the Emirates ATP Rankings, with World No. 86 Taro Daniel earning billing as the top seed. Last week’s finalists in Guangzhou, Lukas Lacko and Nikoloz Basilashvili, will look to continue their strong form as the No. 5 and No. 6 seeds this week.

In San Luis Potosi, world No. 113 Michael Berrer is the top seed. Last year’s runner-up, James McGee, is the No. 8 seed this year, while 2012 champion Ruben Ramirez Hidalgo is another notable name in the draw.

View Draws & Watch Free Live Streams

ATP CHALLENGER TOUR ON TWITTER: New in 2016, the ATP Challenger Tour has launched a dedicated Twitter account for the latest news and information about players and events. Follow @ATPChallengerTour at twitter.com/ATPChallengerTour.

Novak Djokovic confirmed what millions must have thought while watching him defeat Milos Raonic in the BNP Paribas Open final on Sunday. The World No. 1 was “in the zone.”

“I was,” Djokovic said when asked directly.

It has become a familiar place for the Serb, who won his record fifth Indian Wells title by beating Raonic 6-2, 6-0. Djokovic broke the Canadian six times and never faced a break point during the one-hour and 17-minute match.

Week in and week out on the ATP World Tour, Djokovic continues to impress even long-time watchers of the sport. He somehow consistently lifts his game during tournament’s biggest moments and routinely knocks off other top players in the world.

Djokovic has won his last 17 matches in Indian Wells and 16 in ATP Masters 1000 tournaments since his last loss in the 2015 Cincinnati final to Roger Federer. The 28-year-old Serb also has made the finals of the last 10 ATP Masters 1000 tournaments that he’s competed in, going to back to 2014 Paris-Bercy. Djokovic is 8-2 during that stretch.

He also has won three consecutive Masters 1000 titles and the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals. For 2016, Djokovic is 22-1.

The past two weeks in Indian Wells were no exception, either. Djokovic won in straight sets against World No. 5 Rafael Nadal and against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, No. 9 in the Emirates ATP Rankings, before cruising against Raonic.

“I’m just glad to be able to raise the level of my game as the tournament progresses, and that’s something that I have been doing in the last two years particularly on the big events,” Djokovic said.

Sunday’s win gave Djokovic his 27^th ATP World Tour Masters 1000 title, leveling him with Rafael Nadal. The win also marked his third consecutive Indian Wells championship.

“I have been managing to win most of the big matches against Top 10 players,” Djokovic said. ”Obviously I have a certain routine and certain preparation for these big matches that works for me.”

He’s hoping to maintain that routine and his success as the ATP World Tour season continues.

“It has obviously been a great couple of weeks,” Djokovic said. “To win this tournament five times is a fantastic achievement for my team and I.”

Returning from injury to make the final of an ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event would be a considerable feat for any player, but Milos Raonic believes he still has room for improvement after dropping a 6-2, 6-0 decision to Novak Djokovic at the BNP Paribas Open on Sunday.

“I need to work harder,” the Canadian said. “I need to execute better. I think I’m on the right track. It’s about putting things together and being effective.

“I think I have it within me, but obviously I need to reach a lot deeper to find that execution.”

Despite being broken five times, Raonic did not do badly on first-serve points, winning 23 of 30 against the No. 1 player in the Emirates ATP Rankings. However, he only landed 50 per cent of first serves and managed to win just 10 per cent of second-serve points (3/30).

“You know what Novak can bring, and you know that he’s the best returner probably of all time,” Raonic noted. “Not only is he good when the ball is close to him, he’s even very good when it’s far away from him, making you play and neutralizing the point very well in that situation.”

The big server look to be hampered by a lower-body injury and took a medical time-out after the first set to receive treatment.

“[It felt] similar, but not as bad,” said Raonic, who sustained an adductor injury at the Australian Open. “I don’t think I let it get as bad. I have to do the right investigation. Just sort of see what it is and then I can judge it from there.”

Sunday’s final outcome notwithstanding, Raonic is happy with his progress.

“There are a lot of positives to take away. Right now it’s very disappointing, but at the end of the day, until two weeks ago I didn’t do any side-to-side movement and I didn’t play any points,” he said. “To be here playing in the final of one of the most important tournaments in our year is great progress. I look to sort of keep that going forward, try to be healthy and try to get better every day.”