ESPN Tennis

70. Dokic reunites with dad

Who saw this coming?

Former Wimbledon semifinalist Jelena Dokic, an often tortured soul, confirmed in September that she reconciled with controversial dad Damir Dokic.

Damir Dokic coached his daughter before an acrimonious split. He recently spent about a year in jail for threatening to blow up the Australian embassy in Belgrade.

"I am in a very positive and confident frame of mind in my life, and I really wanted to do this because I believe it is the right thing to do both for me and for all of my family," Jelena Dokic said. "My father was very receptive, and I believe he has changed greatly."

69. Cancer hits Kleybanova

Every so often, the idyllic tennis world gets gate-crashed. It happened in July.

Russian Alisa Kleybanova revealed -- on her 22nd birthday -- that she was undergoing treatment for Hodgkin's lymphoma, a type of cancer.

"This is the toughest time in my life, and I hope it always stays the toughest time in my life," said Kleybanova, a gritty competitor but bubbly character off court. "I'm sure I'll be able to overcome this -- it's just a matter of patience and time."

We wish you well, Alisa.

68. Zvonareva crumbles in Istanbul

It wasn't as bad as her meltdown against Flavia Pennetta at the U.S. Open in 2009, but Vera Zvonareva's 1-6, 6-2, 7-5 loss to Agnieszka Radwanska at the year-end championships was still painful.

Zvonareva's first mistake was letting a tired Radwanska back into the match after cruising in the opening set. Then in the third, she failed to take advantage of three match points on her own serve. Radwanska helped saved the third match point, however, with some unbelievable scrambling.

Instead of tears from Zvonareva, there were painful looking smiles.

67. Ailing Andy

Andy Roddick, after being blessed with good health for most of his career, is now having a hard time staying fit.

As the defending champion in Miami, Roddick encountered breathing issues and moved gingerly in a second-round loss to Pablo Cuevas. A shoulder injury ruled him out of the French Open -- and hampered his Wimbledon prep -- before a problem with his oblique meant he had to skip a portion of the U.S. Open Series.

"It's been, I think, the toughest year I've had," Roddick said in Shanghai. "I feel like I've been starting and stopping a lot."

Despite the lack of fluency, Roddick managed to finish inside the top 15.

66. To Russia with love

Alex Bogomolov Jr. was named the most improved player on the men's tour, climbing more than 130 spots in the rankings. His season got even better when his desired switch from U.S. to Russia in the tennis world became official this month.

Bogomolov, a longtime U.S. resident, is suddenly the Russian No. 1, which means he's a lock to be on the Russian Davis Cup team when it meets Austria in February.

Bogomolov was appreciative of the help the USTA gave him in his formative years but said the opportunity to represent the country of his birth was too great to pass up.

"I'm going to do the best I can for my family," he said. "That's my main priority, my kid, my family."

65. Murray sizzles in Asia

The field might not have been as strong as in years past, as Roger Federer so eagerly pointed out, but Andy Murray winning in Bangkok, Tokyo and Shanghai in consecutive weeks was quite the achievement.

Murray responded in the best possible fashion after yet more disappointment at a Grand Slam (the U.S. Open).

"This is one of the best runs I've had, and I'm playing very well," Murray said.

Minor injuries surfaced thereafter, so he couldn't keep it going.

64. A classic tiebreaker

Novak Djokovic had to deal with not only the elements on a windy day in New York, but an unorthodox, unpredictable opponent in Alexandr Dolgopolov Jr. Their fourth-round clash produced arguably the best tiebreaker of the season.

Dolgopolov began by taking a 4-0 lead, only to see Djokovic win the next five points. The seesawing continued. Djokovic saved four set points and ultimately converted on his sixth attempt to win 16-14. Dolgopolov went down tamely in the next two sets.

"It was an interesting first set," Djokovic said.

The women's tiebreaker of the season also stemmed from a fourth-round match in New York. Maria Kirilenko edged eventual champion Sam Stosur 17-15.

63. Clijsters capitulates

Making her first French Open appearance in five years, this wasn't what Kim Clijsters had in mind.

Clijsters blew a set and 5-2 lead, as well as two match points, in a stunning 3-6, 7-5, 6-1 second-round defeat to tall, shy Dutchwoman Arantxa Rus.

Clijsters had missed the previous two months with an ankle injury, but that was no excuse. The inexperienced Rus was ranked 114th at the time.

"I started doubting a little bit," Clijsters said. "That's definitely the wrong attitude to have, especially for me on clay."

62. Seven in a row for Rafa

When all else fails, Rafael Nadal can count on winning in Monte Carlo.

Nadal, not having to confront Djokovic, made it lucky No. 7 -- in a row -- at the posh Monte Carlo Country Club after toppling good pal David Ferrer 6-4, 7-5 in a punishing final.

"It would have been impossible to imagine a few years ago winning seven titles here," Nadal said. "I'm a lucky guy to have done this by age 24."

When will Nadal lose in Monte Carlo?

61. Tennis players going splittsville

Two longstanding tennis romances involving Eastern Europeans came to an end.

Tomas Berdych and the oh-so-nice Lucie Safarova went their separate ways, with the former now dating a much younger model and the latter linked to a cage fighter.

Kirilenko, a former SI swimsuit model, and Igor Andreev also cut ties. Kirilenko moved on quickly, to Washington Capitals superstar Alexander Ovechkin.

Ovechkin posted a picture of himself and Kirilenko on Twitter; "Me and my girlfriend Maria....she is my queen!!!!" was the accompanying caption.

Remember the days when Boris Becker battled Stefan Edberg at Wimbledon? Most rallies wouldn't exceed three shots.

How the times have changed.

The grass at the All England Club isn't as short, leading to slower conditions and giving baseliners hope. Net-rushers have their hands full thanks to the pace and spin confronting them, as Andy Murray and Queen's winner Sam Querrey pointed out in recent months.

Still, for those possessing a whopping serve and decent volley, Wimbledon is the place to prosper.

Who are some of dark horses (ranked outside the top 20) that can pull off a huge upset or reach the second week?

Men

Sam Querrey (No. 21): The seeds fell early at Queen's, and Querrey took full advantage. The chilled Californian needs a good Wimbledon since he lost in the first round in Melbourne and Paris this year.

Lleyton Hewitt (No. 26): First off, Hewitt doesn't have a huge serve. But he knows grass and picks his spots moving forward. Imagine the Aussie's confidence at the moment, too, having beaten Roger Federer in Halle, Germany, to end a 15-match losing streak against the Swiss. Also, despite a wonky hip last year, the 2002 champ managed to take Andy Roddick to five sets in the quarterfinals.

Marcos Baghdatis (No. 27): Baghdatis likes grass and the big occasion -- he's reached the quarters and semis at Wimbledon. Disregard a first-round loss to the unpredictable Philipp Petzschner in Halle. Baghdatis was thrown off his game when he slightly injured his leg in the opening set.

Ernests Gulbis (No. 29): Gulbis played Rafael Nadal tough at Wimbledon in 2008. But how healthy is he? The Latvian injured his hamstring at the French Open and withdrew from Queen's.

Feliciano Lopez (No. 30): Lopez had a decent clay-court season but came unstuck at the French, struggling after getting trashed in the press by his former girlfriend. The dapper Spaniard, a two-time Wimbledon quarterfinalist, subsequently put in good prep time at Queen's in west London and reached the semis.

Mardy Fish (No. 70): Fish looks like another player. No, really. He's lost 30 pounds and is now fit as a fiddle. At Queen's, the Tampa resident even bounced back from playing three matches in one day. Fish downed Murray, the defending champion, in the second round -- that's two in a row against the Scot -- and went on to reach the final.

Others: Richard Gasquet doesn't have the mental stamina to reach another semifinal at Wimbledon, although none of the top seeds want to face the fragile Frenchman early. … German Benjamin Becker can be downright ugly in a bad patch. When he's on his game, the former Baylor standout is hard to stop. Becker won his only title last year on grass in the Netherlands. … Wondering about Ivo Karlovic? He is nursing a foot injury and won't likely be a factor if he plays.

Women

Going from clay to grass, the women's contenders, as a whole, don't change much. Venus Williams, the five-time Wimbledon winner, is the notable exception.

Wouldn't it be nice to have a serve-and-volleyer on the women's tour?

Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez (No. 21): There's no reason Martinez Sanchez shouldn't do well on grass. She owns a crafty left serve, is good at the net and can slice. Her first-round defeat at the French, to journeywoman Akgul Amanmuradova, might have been due to the mental fatigue of triumphing in Rome.

Alisa Kleybanova (No. 27): Kleybanova is bound to break through and reach a Grand Slam quarterfinal one of these times. Overcoming a foot injury, and now in better shape, the tall Russian almost did it at Roland Garros. She has the game for grass, hitting flat -- and with pop.

Tamarine Tanasugarn (No. 72): If ever there was a grass-court specialist, how about the veteran Thai? Tanasugarn has almost more wins at Wimbledon than the three other majors combined. The 33-year-old headed into this week's UNICEF Open in the Netherlands as the two-time defending champion.

Others: Dinara Safina, who is on the mend from a back injury and working with a new coach, has to snap out of her slump -- five straight losses -- sometime.