Something weird happened last night. Tommy Haas, a week shy of his 35th birthday and a guy who hasn't made it past the third round of a Grand Slam in four years, defeated Novak Djokovic in Miami's Sony Open in straight sets. At 34, he was the oldest guy to beat a no. 1 ranked player since 1973. Haas last beat a no. 1 when he defeated Andre Agassi. In 1999.
And his win last night was a blowout. Haas won the first set in 28 minutes, 6-2, and won the second 6-4. Djokovic, who wasn't injured, called it the worst match he has played in a long time. The Changeover points out that Haas first played Miami back in 1997, when Djokovic was nine years old. Ouch.
One thing that really helped Haas: It was very cold last night, by Miami standards. Temperatures were in the low 50s (everyone in the area is freaking out about it) and there was a Flushing-esque swirling wind, elements that threw Djokovic off and that played perfectly into Haas's game plan. And Djokovic just stunk. He had 7 winners to 30 unforced errors.
Haas is best known for being tennis's heartthrob—but, you know, that was a decade ago. He has absolutely the best tennis spouse that's out there and he said last month that he wants to keep going a few more months to increase the likelihood that his two-year-old daughter will remember seeing him play. After last night's awesome win, please don't rush away, Tommy! Sometimes temperatures drop down into the 50s at the U.S. Open, too.