Post-Miami Momentum for Isner

1. 1. Roger Federer – Federer won the Australian Open and Rotterdam.  He also finished as a runner-up at Indian Wells.  Still, his 2018 start is not matching his 2017 start.  Federer not playing the clay season means he will drop this top ranking after Monte Carlo or Madrid.
   2. Juan Martin del Potro – JMDP’s Acapulco and Indian Wells titles plus a Miami semifinal place him in the top spot for hard court events in North America to this point in 2018.  Still, he looked mentally fried at the end of Miami.  Taking some clay court events off would be advisable.
   3. John Isner – Isner came out of nowhere to win the Miami title and beat Marin Cilic, Chung, JMDP, and Sasha Zverev consecutively to claim a Masters 1000 crown.  The title and those he beat to win it skyrocket Isner up the charts.  Change – Entered the Poll
   4. Hyeon Chung – He followed up a semifinal in Melbourne with strong showings at Indian Wells and Miami.  His 2018 form bodes well for his and tennis’ future.  Change – 2 Spots Higher
   5. Marin Cilic – Cilic still has reached 2 major finals in the past 52 weeks, but his goal of finishing 2018 ranked #1 is further away than it was at the conclusion of the Australian Open.  Change – 2 Spots Lower
   6. Dominic Thiem – Thiem enters the European clay season with a 2018 clay title in Brazil.  Is he ready to be the next dominant player on clay?  Change – 2 Spots Lower
   7. Sascha Zverev – Zverev looked poised to claim a 3rd Masters 1000 shield, but could not solve Isner’s serve and slipped up on his own twice.  That is the sort of match he is supposed to win.  Change – Entered the Poll
   8. Rafael Nadal – Rafa has not played since Melbourne, but he is the defending champion at 2 majors.  He has also returned from injury-induced absences more often than anyone.  With clay looming, he could be at the top of this list sooner rather than later.  Change – 3 Spots Lower
   9. Grigor Dimitrov – An Australian Open quarterfinal and Rotterdam runner-up finish keep Grigor in the poll, but his claim that he finally was ready to battle for the top spot and prizes in tennis seems to have had a similar set of results to Cilic’s.  Change – 2 Spots Lower
   10. Kevin Anderson – He won a 250 level event in NYC.  He was runner-up at last year’s US Open.  Anderson loves the Big Apple.  Change – 1 Spot Lower

Clay will likely shake this list up quite a bit.  The next poll will be out after Monte Carlo.

Biggest Mover – Rafael Nadal 3 Spots Lower

Entered the Poll – John Isner, Sascha Zverev