It’s the latest edition of the Tennis View roundtable!  Tennis View contributors Victoria Chiesa, David Kane, Yeshayahu Ginsburg, and Nick Nemeroff get together to discuss early upsets, umpiring controversy, and finals predictions at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells.

First, what did we think of the shocks to contenders and the quality of play so far?

Victoria Chiesa: Whether or not you agree with calling Indian Wells the “fifth slam,” there have certainly been no shortage of storylines as the action in Palm Springs rolls into the second week.

David Kane: While the matches have been played in a veritable paradise, the quality of play, particularly among the top seeds, has left something to be desired. Of course, we’re all still reeling from the double feature that was Giorgi/Sharapova and Dolgopolov/Nadal, so I might be a little biased.

VC: I’ve been decidedly underwhelmed by most of the top names, even the ones who haven’t crashed out. For those who have, there was always a part of me that thought Giorgi could take out Sharapova, but Nadal losing to someone he’s never lost a set to is truly the most headline-worthy result of the week so far.

DK: In 2009, Indian Wells was plagued by gale force winds. Two years ago, there was a virus that led many to dub the event “Indian Unwells.” Halfway through, I can’t point my cane on a Doctor House diagnosis, but something is in the water in Palm Springs. Sharapova was simply abysmal today. When Camila Giorgi is on the other side of the net judging you for your inconsistency, you know it’s going to be a long day. While we’re used to funky ladies’ events, the men have been equally off-kilter in a way that has been refreshing. In an era of men’s tennis where early rounds tend not to matter, the underdogs have gotten up to play, and it’s an encouraging sign for the rest of the year. Both defending champions went out in one day, yet neither feels like tremendously crushing results.   

Yeshayahu Ginsburg: I have to say that I have been simply amazed by Stanislas Wawrinka’s play. He has blasted through his opponents at a remarkable level in these first two matches. We have to remember not to overreact to just a few matches, but if these are any indication Wawrinka will be a force to be reckoned with for a while. Seeing Wawrinka play Federer in the quarterfinal (assuming they both reach that point) will be very telling as to his level and prospects as a top player for all of 2014.

Nick Nemeroff: To be fair, the only two players who have thoroughly impressed me are the Australian Open champions, Li Na and Stanislas Wawrinka. Like Yesh said, Wawrinka has been playing at an absolutely absurd level thus far. As far as Li is concerned, with Sharapova and Azarenka already out, her chances of winning the title are even higher than they were at the start of the tournament. With that said, both have tremendous opportunities to capitalize on the momentum they gathered in Australia.

DK: When the only big name not struggling is Li, things are weird.

VC: As far as Li goes, her match against Zheng Jie was pretty telling for me. Zheng led 4-0 in the head-to-head in matches that were all played before 2012. In the three matches the two have played since, the sets have gone 6-1, 6-3, 6-3, 6-1, 6-1, 7-5 in favor of Li. On the men’s side, it’s been a nice change to see Wawrinka backing up his solid play from Down Under, since convention usually dictates that a player struggles to follow up a Cinderella tournament like he had in Australia.

DK: I have to wonder if Wawrinka’s success Down Under has led to inspiration among the lower ranks.

YG: I have said this before and I’ll say it again, but I give Lukas Rosol credit for that. It’s not like they’re being upset often, but there is a definite belief among the lower players that just wasn’t there years ago. I really think it started with Rosol’s refusal to be intimidated at Wimbledon two years ago in that fifth set in particular. It could definitely be that a Slam win by a non- “Big 4” player has rejuvenated that belief, though.

DK: Dolgopolov’s win is a result unlike many we’ve seen since Rosol’s win in 2012. Scale and context need also be taken into consideration. It’s one thing to topple a Nadal on what is arguably his weakest surface (fresh grass), and quite another to seal him off in a Grand Slam final.

NN: If Wawrinka didn’t provide the lower ranks with hope, I don’t know what will. In the last two majors, he’s beaten Murray, Djokovic, and Nadal. It’s also hard not to give credit to Magnus Norman. If you watch Stan’s matches over the years, it’s clear that he has had all the weapons but he had never been able to put all together until now and he’ll be the first one to tell you that Norman played a huge role in his ability to put all the pieces together.

VC: Speaking of someone who put all the pieces together, let’s flash back to this very tournament two years ago. Victoria Azarenka was in the midst of what would become a 26-match winning streak, and won this title with the loss of just one set. Azarenka was on top of the world, literally, that year. Out of all the upsets that have taken place this tournament, I was simultaneously shocked and completely unsurprised at her opening-round loss to Lauren Davis. Is it time for Azarenka fans to panic?

DK: Looking at this week in isolation, I don’t know why Azarenka was here. She started her pre-tournament press planting excuses and lowering expectations, but I don’t think anyone was prepared for her to eat a first set-bagel to anyone, let alone Lauren Davis. When you take it more globally, this is eight months of a slow decline. Aside from the US Open final, Azarenka’s had rough moments on many of the biggest stages. Suddenly, she who was once accused of giving up too easily with her frequent withdrawals and walkovers is now subjecting spectators to painful losses. Azarenka has had a lot of success being the underdog, and in that way, her mentality hasn’t changed. But at this point, that mentality won’t get her anywhere unless her body gets back to its peak.

NN: I don’t know if Azarenka knew what she was doing when she stepped on court to play Lauren Davis. What puzzles me is that Azarenka was struggling from the very beginning, so it’s not like she didn’t realize what she was getting herself into. Much like Juan Martin del Potro, who felt that he needed to play an entire doubles match against one of the strongest doubles teams of all time to determine if he was ready for his singles match, Azarenka was injured coming in. I don’t think it’s time for Azarenka fans to panic, but they better hope she makes better decisions regarding her health. I give her full credit for the effort she put out against Davis, but at some point you have to get your priorities sorted out.

What should we make of the umpiring controversy surrounding Mohamed El Jennati this week?

DK: I can’t really sympathize with him. To modify a quote from Serena Williams, a lot of umpires have been maligned “way worse.” Mariana Alves is still trying to live down a mistake she made a decade ago. Julie Kjendlie took months to recover from Piotr Wozniacki. From the tape, El Jennati made two big mistakes in two days, and he should be held accountable for them.

VC: The difference between what Kjendlie had to deal with and what Alves has had and El Jennati will have to deal with is that Kjendlie was never portrayed as the villain in that Piotr Wozniacki exchange. You have players like Jamie Hampton tweeting, “This is why I have trust issues,” with a video of the Istomin incident, and Arina Rodionova saying it’s just a “typical umpire.” You can bet the entire locker room has seen that video, just as they have Alves’. Azarenka asked her why she’s still in the game, and Petkovic asked why they keep “picking her” during meltdowns over calls she’s gotten right. Not to have control of a match before you even step on court is a horrible thing.

YG: I have to start by saying that El Jennati clearly wasn’t watching the match in the Istomin point. He was wrong, dead wrong, and it only hurts his credibility by never admitting so. There needs to be some sort of accountability for umpires. He made a potentially match-changing mistake ,and nothing happens to him. (It is also flying completely under the radar that El Jennati missed a very obvious double-bounce in Murray’s first match that Murray had to call against himself.)

Knowing Fognini, I wouldn’t be surprised if he planned on making a huge stink the minute any chance came up. He didn’t debate the issue with El Jennati. He just started his rant by saying that El Jennati was the guy who messed up with Istomin the day earlier and that he wanted a supervisor. Fognini had a right to discuss it–it was certainly close–but you have to feel that it wouldn’t have been blown into such a huge issue had it been any other umpire and any other player. Honestly, I think the biggest mistake El Jennati made was in not defaulting Fognini for audible obscenities and chair abuse during that profanity-laden rant.

NN: My initial reaction to both incidents concerning El Jennati was that he was wrong both times. Istomin clearly challenged and it was as if El Jennati was watching the match on a tape delay. For him not to see a player stop and then challenge really is baffling. Luckily, Istomin went on to win that game and the set, so the call didn’t have any far reaching effects on the match.

Even though I believe he got the call wrong with Fognini, the Italian’s profanity ridden outburst was totally out of line and downright humiliating for El Jennati. El Jennati was simply doing his job and making what he felt was the appropriate call. Umpires have the best view of the action, but they are also forced to make the toughest decisions. So, while I think El Jennati deserves criticism, he doesn’t need to be crucified.

So, what lies ahead the rest of the way?

DK: With how nutty the first week has been, I don’t know how we’re going to make it to the end, you guys. Stability or full on chaos, we’ve been teetering on the fence for a couple days now:

NN: I’m really expecting a Li Na-Agnieszka Radwanska final. Radwanska is overdue and with her recent partnership with the Cheesecake Factory, it’s tough to root against her. On the men’s side, I would be shocked if Novak Djokovic isn’t in the final, and I also wouldn’t be shocked if Wawrinka is there either. With Nadal now out, the potential Roger Federer-Wawrinka quarterfinal just escalated significantly in importance.

VC: For some reason, I don’t think Radwanska is going to make the final. She wasn’t overly impressive against Watson, and she has a tendency to overcomplicate matches she shouldn’t lately. She might’ve double- bageled Beck, but one thing Radwanska lives for is schooling the WTA’s younger set.

Also, she might not win the tournament, but let’s give some serious props to Alisa Kleybanova. In what’s been her best tournament since her return, she battled through a nearly three-hour match against Victoria Duval in the first round, only to school 2014’s breakout star, Garbine Muguruza, in the second and routine Maria-Teresa Torro-Flor, the conqueror of Angelique Kerber, to make the fourth. She’s approaching a return to the top 100 sooner rather than later.

YG: Honestly, this whole men’s draw is wide-open. The only expectation I have from anywhere is that the Wawrinka/Federer winner will make the final from the top half. Federer hasn’t looked perfect, but he’s still been solid and less shaky than the other top players. In the bottom half, I really want to see how far Dominic Thiem and Roberto Bautista-Agut can go. Just about any player from that half of the draw could reach the final, and it wouldn’t surprise me.

On the women’s side, I’ve learned that to expect anything in the WTA in recent years is just asking to be proven wrong. There is no dominant force or forces and upsets happen far more often than on the men’s side. That being said, Li looks pretty strong right now.

VC: While some people dislike the two-week format of Indian Wells and Miami, I’m in the camp of people that love it. I’d like to think that it’s what we’d get if slams were played best-of-three for both men and women, and I’d *totally* sign up for that.

DK: There’s a lot to like about the two-week format; the average tournament can leave a viewer feeling like they’re recovering from whiplash. Here, there’s more to digest, but more time to process. Over the next few days, I’m looking forward to an Indian summer in Palm Springs. Let’s have a crazy finish to a wonky fortnight.