Maybe it's better this way. The SAP Open tennis tournament has experienced a run of bad luck on the injury front, greatly diminishing its global scope, but by the time the event concludes next Sunday at San Jose's HP Pavilion, one of the hottest topics in the sport - the state of American tennis - will have been thoroughly examined.
Luckily, nothing has diminished the main attractions: the presence of defending tournament champion Milos Raonic and the chance to watch John McEnroe play doubles in Monday night's featured match. McEnroe may turn 53 on Thursday, but try to find anyone in today's game with a more comprehensive command of net play.
The SAP's first major setback was the withdrawal of Bernard Tomic, the ingenious 19-year-old who made a stirring run at the Australian Open before losing to Roger Federer in the fourth round. Then came Lleyton Hewitt's exit, and it's particularly odd to see the two of them playing Davis Cup in Australia this weekend against China. Tomic doesn't face his driving-related court date until Tuesday, and Hewitt, who bailed out of San Jose with a toe injury, decided to play hurt in the competition that means the most to him (Hewitt has 47 lifetime Davis Cup wins and is enjoying a career renaissance in popularity back home).
French star Gael Monfils is scheduled to be part of Monday night's program, playing doubles with Jack Sock against McEnroe and Raonic, but his status is questionable. Monfils has been battling a knee injury and may be forced into today's Davis Cup action against Canada if the tie remains in doubt (the matches are being held in Vancouver, so the stress of travel figures to be minimal).
Former world No. 4 James Blake, who had hoped to return from a long-standing knee injury, pulled out several days ago, and even the tournament's longtime mainstay, Andy Roddick, has some issues. He's not scheduled to play until Wednesday night, but Roddick had to miss the Davis Cup tie in Switzerland due to a hamstring injury, and according to reliable insider Matt Cronin of TennisReporters.net, Roddick is "a huge question mark for San Jose."
What that leaves, basically, is a referendum on the future of American men's tennis, which is why local fans are planning to get a long look at Ryan Harrison, Donald Young, Sam Querrey, Sock and Steve Johnson, among other U.S. players, as the event goes on. The Australian Open proved to be a disaster - for the first time since 1973, no American man got past the third round - and there seem to be more questions than answers.
When it comes to Davis Cup play and worldwide recognition, Harrison and Young are battling for next-in-line honors behind the elite level of Roddick, Mardy Fish and John Isner. Young has been in a bit of a slump after his breakthrough performance at last year's U.S. Open, and Harrison's forthright performance at the Australian Open - taking a set off Andy Murray before going down - gave him enough momentum to make the Davis Cup team. He has yet to play against Switzerland, but with the tie already clinched (3-0), he may play a singles match today.
Sock, who carved out a storied high school career in the wilds of Nebraska, would like to feel he's part of the U.S. conversation after some impressive play on the Challenger level. Johnson, the latest in a long line of top players from USC, won the NCAA singles title in the matches played at Stanford in May.
The Bay Area's pro tournament is 123 years old, ranging in locale from the Berkeley Tennis Club to the Cow Palace, and it has been known to spring a few surprises - including Andy Murray's first tour title in 2006, a three-setter over Hewitt. There was a bit of shock in the air last year, as well, when the big-serving Raonic overwhelmed Fernando Verdasco in the final.
If you'd seen Raonic before that match, however, it wasn't at all surprising. The 6-foot-5 Raonic grew up idolizing Pete Sampras, and while comparisons remain a bit of a stretch, Raonic does have a world-class serve and a thirst for finishing points, rather than waiting out players on the baseline.
"I can see him in the top 10 at some point," Roddick said last year. "It would be hard not to. He returns pretty good, and he serves great - I speak from experience. When you have a weapon like that, even on your bad days, you can still compete."