The Sony Ericsson Open in Key Biscayne, Fla., is the biggest, most prestigious tennis tournament in the United States next to the US Open. Its history dates back to 1985 and is documented in pages in my book ON THIS DAY IN TENNIS HISTORY ($19.95, New Chapter Press, www.TennisHistoryBook.com). The following are events that happened in the history of the tournament – also previously called the Lipton Championships, the NASDAQ-100 Open and the Ericsson Open – as excerpted from the book from April 3.
2005 – Two-points from defeat in the third-set tie-break, world No. 1 Roger Federer rallies from two-sets-to-love down to defeat Spain’s Rafael Nadal 2-6, 6-7 (4), 7-6 (5), 6-3, 6-1 in 3 hours, 43 minutes to win the NASDAQ-100 Open in Key Biscayne, Fla. Federer trails 4-2 in the third set and 5-3 in the third-set tie-break before rallying to win his 22nd consecutive match and his 18th consecutive final. Says Federer after the match, “I’ve hardly ever come back in a situation like that. It was a big moment for me. It was uphill. I was trying to force him too much, but I got myself to relax. I thought I’d be all right if I could get him into a fifth set.”
2008 – With new fiancé and Sports Illustrated swimsuit model Brooklyn Decker in attendance, Andy Roddick ends his personal 11-match losing streak to Roger Federer, defeating the world No. 1 7-6 (4), 4-6, 6-3 in a highly-entertaining quarterfinal match at the Sony Ericsson Open in Key Biscayne, Fla. Says Roddick to the crowd following the match, “I came in knowing that nobody has beaten me 12 times in a row. So I had that on my side.” Roddick, who last beat Federer in the semifinals of the 2003 Canadian Championships, improves his record to 2-15 against the five-time Wimbledon champion. “I figure I was due,” Roddick says. “He hadn’t missed a ball in a crucial moment for about six years against me. I figured the law of statistics had to come my way eventually.” Earlier in the day, Serena Williams defeats Svetlana Kuznetsova 3-6, 7-5, 6-3 and Jelena Jankovic defeats Vera Zvonareva 6-1, 6-4 in the women’s semifinals.