Tennis fans will look back on Roger Federer’s 2006 season as arguably the greatest in the Swiss’ legendary career. A staggering 92-win campaign was kicked off with an impressive 16-0 run.

For more than a decade, that win streak has stood as Federer’s best start to a season. Until now.

On Saturday, the World No. 1 completed a 17-0 run to kick off his 2018 campaign, storming back from the brink of defeat to overcome Borna Coric 5-7, 6-4, 6-4 at the BNP Paribas Open. With Pete Sampras and Rod Laver in attendance, Federer advanced to his eighth final in Indian Wells, exhibiting his trademark poise and guile to outlast his Croatian opponent in two hours and 21 minutes. 

Very little was going Federer’s way in the early stages, but the 36-year-old refused to go down without a fight. Peppering his backhand with bludgeoning blows, Coric employed great depth on his groundstrokes to rattle the Swiss and snatch the opener. And he demonstrated the maturity of a veteran to stick with his gameplan after conceding a break lead in the second set. But Federer would prove to be too strong in the end, advancing to his 146th tour-level final with a gritty three-set victory in front of a packed house on Stadium 1. 

Federer’s Undefeated Starts

Federer, who is assured of remaining at No. 1 in the ATP Rankings through the end of the tournament, will vie for a sixth title against either Milos Raonic or Juan Martin del Potro. The defending champion in the desert, he extended his win streak in Indian Wells to 10 straight. 

 Watch Full Match Replays

Federer relinquished his first set of the fortnight at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden and just his fourth thus far in 2018 (40-4 this year). Conditions vary greatly between the day and night sessions in Indian Wells, with the ball leaping off the court in the afternoon. Having almost exclusively featured under the lights entering today’s encounter, with the exception of one rain-delayed set, he struggled to adjust his quick-strike game in the windier early stages. 

As unforced errors leaked from the Swiss’ groundstrokes, an aggressive Coric pounced. Striking the ball with great depth, the composed Croatian would secure a late break for 6-5 and captured the first set as Federer netted a backhand. In total, Coric fired eight winners including five off his forehand wing to claim the opener after 41 minutes. Seemingly feeding off Federer’s pace, he hammered the ball with aplomb, often catching the five-time champ out of the position.

A forehand winner notched an immediate break to open the second set, but, as Coric neared the finish line, nerves settled into the 21-year-old’s game. Federer struck just four unforced errors in the last four games of the set and Coric’s serve would begin to fall short in the box, opening the door. The Swiss would take full advantage, breaking for 5-4 and forcing a decider as a Coric forehand sailed long. And Federer would claw back from a break down once again in the third set, eventually breaking to love to claim victory and secure his place in the championship clash.

With the victory, Federer extended his FedEx ATP Head2Head lead over Coric to 2-0, having previously earned a comprehensive 6-2, 6-1 win in the 2015 Dubai semi-finals. He has now rallied from a set down on two occasions in 2018, both of which scored the Swiss a significant victory. In Rotterdam, he fought back to defeat Robin Haase, securing his return to World No. 1 after four years. 

For Coric, the Croatian will hold his head high after completing a dream week in Indian Wells. He dropped just nine games in reaching the fourth round, before registering back-to-back three-set victories over Taylor Fritz and Kevin Anderson to advance to his first ATP World Tour Masters 1000 semi-final. The 21-year-old is projected to rise to No. 36 in the ATP Rankings on Monday, just three spots off his career-high.

(1) Hubert Hurkacz is Poland’s surging #NextGenATP hope
Projected to rise to a career-high in the Top 200 of the ATP Rankings on Monday, Hurkacz, who turned 21 last month, will be the youngest Polish player to do so since Jerzy Janowicz in 2011. The Pole is into the semi-finals at the ATP Challenger Tour event in Shenzhen, China, after appearing in his second final last week in Zhuhai.

“In October, I was around the Top 400, so I was trying to move up the ATP Rankings. I played five tournaments in a row and did really well, reaching two quarter-finals and my first final. I’m happy that that put me in the qualies of the Australian Open. This helped me a lot mentally to start believing that I could win those tournaments. 

“Now, it’s the beginning of the new season and while a couple of tournaments didn’t go the way I wanted, I think I’ve improved my game a lot since last autumn. If I continue to play like this, I know I can win these Challenger tournaments.”

(2) The 21-year-old has lofty ambitions
Hurkacz is projected to rise to 10th in the ATP Race To Milan and a career-high of No. 177 in the ATP Rankings following his semi-final run in Shenzhen. But the Pole isn’t satisfied with making his Top 200 debut. He is aiming much higher.

“No, Top 200 was not a goal of mine. I want to be Top 50 this year. It’s still far away, but you never know. I just want to play good and improve my game. Hopefully I will win some tournaments and move up. I want to join those other [#NextGenATP] guys in the Top 100 and play there for the rest of my career. For now, it would be nice to play in Milan this year.

“It would be very nice to help tennis grow in Poland, so that many younger players will compete at the ATP level in the future. Of course, there are many younger guys who play well and I hope that when they are finished playing junior tournaments they will come here to the Challenger level and even higher.”

(3) He likes to go big with his forehand, but takes pride in his mental strength
Hurkacz admits that his biggest weapon is his forehand, saying that he loves to use it to open the court and make his opponents run. However, after recently teaming up with coach Pawel Stadniczenko, he points to his newfound confidence and mental toughness as arguably his most potent asset.

“I’ve been with Pawel for just a half a year, but he has helped me a lot and I’m very thankful to him. He has especially helped me mentally, to stay positive. That was the biggest change. To be more solid during the matches and not having as many ups and downs. I’m competing at a higher level and am now able to win against better opponents. It’s good.”

(4) Fast cars and a good book – Hubert’s passions extend beyond the court
From the exhilaration of watching a car race to the tranquility of curling up with a good book, Hurkacz’s passions hit both ends of the spectrum. 

“I’m really passionate about cars. It’s my hobby and I really like them. I love to drive. And I like to go to the racing circuit and watch them, when I have time. I also like reading books. It’s relaxing for me. Sometimes I read books that help me on the court with the mental side.”

(5) Hubert trained with Lucas Pouille in Dubai
It’s something that any player in the beginning stages of his pro journey would covet. In the offseason, Hurkacz traveled to Dubai to train with the World No. 12, gaining valuable experience in preparation for his 2018 campaign. With few chances to spar with a superstar like Pouille in his native Poland, it was a significant opportunity. 

“I have been training mostly in Poland but last year Lucas Pouille invited me to come to Dubai and that was a great experience. We’ve been hitting ever since we met in Florida. We was there practising and then later on he asked me to come to Dubai. I was very happy with that and it helped me a lot.”

Saturday’s BNP Paribas Open doubles final will be an all-American showdown. Two-time former champions and seventh seeds Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan will meet countrymen John Isner and Jack Sock in the season’s first ATP World Tour Masters 1000 doubles title match.

The Bryans prevailed past Pablo Cuevas of Uruguay and Argentine Horacio Zeballos 7-6(5), 6-4 to reach the final during their 20^th consecutive appearance in Indian Wells.

 Watch Full Match Replays

The American twins will be going for their 25^th Masters 1000 title as a team and their third Indian Wells title (2013, 2014). The Bryan brothers have won 114 tour-level titles as a team but haven’t hoisted a trophy since 2017 Atlanta.

Isner and Sock upset third seeds Oliver Marach and Mate Pavic 6-3, 6-2. The Americans won 88 per cent of their first-serve points (28/32) and saved the lone break point they faced.

Isner/Sock won the 2016 Rolex Shanghai Masters, and Sock won the 2015 BNP Paribas Open crown with Canadian Vasek Pospisil. Isner also won the 2011 Internazionali BNL d’Italia in Rome with countryman Sam Querrey.

Marach/Pavic had been the hottest doubles team on the ATP World Tour. They had started the year 21-2, including a 17-match winning streak that included three titles from four finals: Qatar ExxonMobil Open (d. Murray/Soares), the ASB Classic (d. Mirnyi/Oswald) and the Australian Open (d. Cabal/Farah). Their win streak was snapped in the ABN Amro World Tennis Tournament final (l. to Herbert/Mahut).