Among the trends in the ATP World Tour this year is the success of top seeds in nearly every draw.  The man standing atop the draw often has been the last man standing and has reached the final in 10 of 12 tournaments in 2014, including this week.  No exception to that trend, Kei Nishikori will seek to defend his Memphis title and continue a solid start to the season.

Reaching the second week at the Australian Open, the world No. 16 and top Japanese man gave Rafael Nadal all that he could handle in Melbourne.  Davis Cup then preveneted Nishikori from brooding on a loss much closer than the scoreline showed.  He played the hero in his home nation by contributing to all three of the matches that Japan won from Canada to reach the quarterfinals.  Bringing that momentum to Memphis, Nishikori hsa worn the mantle of the defending champion with quiet poise.  Collecting two routine wins in his three matches, he rallied from losing the first set of his quarterfinal to win the second and third sets comfortably.  Another title in Memphis for Nishikori would provide the tournament with a welcome symbol of continuity as it transitions from the 500 to the 250 level.

Not much is comfortable about facing Ivo Karlovic on any surface, especially an indoor hard court.  A former WImbledon quarterfinalist, Karlovic reached an indoor final in North America before at San Jose in 2007.  The surface in Memphis may not be quite as fast, but it is more than fast enough to render most of the Croatian giant's service games impenetrable.  Owning a full 12-inch advantage in height over Nishikori, the 6-foot, 10-inch Karlovic has not dropped serve all week.  In fact, he has not even faced a break point in three of his four victories.  Karlovic also won both of his previous meetings with Nishikori, one by retirement but the other on an indoor hard court two years ago.  

While No. 1 seeds have reached finals regularly this year, they have compiled an even 4-4 record at that stage.  Most notably, Roger Federer lost the Brisbane finel to the unseeded Lleyton Hewitt, while Rafael Nadal lost the Australian Open final to No. 8 seed Stanislas Wawrinka.  Karlovic thus can hope to become the second Croat in two weeks to knock off the top seed in an ATP final, following Marin Cilic's victory over Tommy Haas in Zagreb.  And he could collaborate with Cilic on a stirring weeked for Croatian tennis.  Karlovic's compatriot faces Tomas Berdych in the Rotterdam final, putting a sweep within range for the Balkans nation.