Unfortunately nowadays it is very easy to see walkovers in tennis.

The rhythm is as fast as ever and the game has become rather physical. This week Djokovic had to play only 3 matches to reach the final in Miami as both Florian Mayer and Kei Nishikori could face the Serbian for a groin injury.

Rafa had a free pass for the final as Tomas Berdych a the Czech suffered from gastroenteritis. (see article

).

The result? A huge disappointment from everybody.

The Crazy Idea: “in-draw” lucky loser

Thinking about how to fix (or better… mitigate) this problem, a partial solution would be that in case a player is unable to compete in the next round, he will be replaced by the guy he has beaten in the previous match.

So let’s be more specific and use a real case scenario. Nishikori beats Federer in Miami quarters. Kei can’t play against Novak. The Japanese retains the points and the price money for reaching the semifinal. Roger plays against Novak. If the Maestro wins he will get the points and prize money for reaching the final (or better), otherwise he retains what he has earned by reaching the quarters.

The outcome in Miami? Instead of staring at a blank screen we would have enjoyed a tasty Nadal – Dolgopolov match and an even tastier Federer-Djokovic semifinal.

It’s crazy… but interesting… isn’t it?