Roger Federer shocked in Miami second round, Rafael Nadal to return to No. 1 ranking

What’s the story?

The Miami Open witnessed a huge shock on Saturday as the top seed and World No. 1 Roger Federer crashed out in the second round. The defending champion squandered a one-set lead to succumb to a 6-3, 3-6, 6-7(4) defeat to the 175th ranked Thanasi Kokkinakis of Australia.

The result will see the Swiss surrendering the top ranking to his biggest nemesis, Rafael Nadal when the new world rankings are announced on April 2.

This is the first time since 2014 that the Swiss maestro has lost two matches in a row. He was handed defeats by Stan Wawrinka and Jeremy Chardy at the Monte Carlo Masters and the Rome Masters respectively.

In case you didn’t know

Having lost in the final of the Indian Wells Masters to Juan Martin del Potro last week, the 20-time Grand Slam champion dropped 400 points and remained just 290 points ahead of the Spaniard.

Since Nadal did not participate in Miami, he conceded 600 points for being the runner-up in 2017. Federer thus just needed to make it to the quarter-finals and get hold of 180 points to secure his No. 1 ranking.

The heart of the matter

Federer got off to a smooth start in the first match of his title defence at the Crandon Park as he had a decent first serve percentage of 77. His first serves, however, deserted him in the second set as he registered only 54%.

In contrast, Kokkinakis’ went up from 42% to 61%, which galvanized the 21-year-old Australian’s comeback. None could break the other in a tight deciding set, which headed to the tie-break.

Federer struggled on his backhands as his lower-ranked wildcard opponent blasted his forehands with consummate ease, earning a win over the Swiss in their very first meeting.

The victory also makes Kokkinakis the lowest-ranked player to defeat a No. 1 since the 178th ranked Francisco Clavet prevailed over Lleyton Hewitt at the same tournament 15 years ago. The young Australian had reached a career-high ranking of 69th in 2015 until a shoulder surgery and a series of injuries derailed his career.

What’s next?

Federer is officially confirmed to play at the Gerry Weber Open in Halle, Germany from 18-24 June. The Swiss will be aiming for a historic 10th title at the grasscourt warm-up event. It is being speculated that he might play at the Stuttgart Open the preceding week as well.

Author’s take

While the win certainly underlines the tremendous potential of Kokkinakis, the loss does not take any sheen away from Federer’s blistering start to the 2018 season, that saw him win at the Australian Open and at Rotterdam.

Considering that Nadal has a truckload of points to defend on clay, the Swiss can have another go at the top ranking if the 16-time Major winner slips on his favourite surface.