Cyclical success of the two Tours, Clijsters' prospects and more

Juan Martin del Potro gained the biggest win of his career in beating No. 1 Rafael Nadal. Getty Images Jon Wertheim's Mailbag Jon Wertheim will answer questions from SI.com users in his mailbag every Wednesday. Name: Email: Hometown: Question: SEND Follow Jon Wertheim on Twitter

Has there been a more fun time in men's tennis than now? Rafael Nadal is definitively on top, Roger Federer is still in the mix with a will to regain his form, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray have officially arrived, Juan Martin del Potro is continuing to make strides, and Andy Roddick seems to be right on the verge this season. With variations for surface, there seem to be six players in the mix to some extent for any major tournament right now. Let's hope they all stay healthy.
-- Dan, Atlanta

• You know we've been going a little dark lately -- the lousy domestic TV coverage, what's up with Federer, the whole global meltdown thing -- I figured we'd start on an up note. As Dan suggests, we all ought to take a step back and consider our good fortune these days. Lots of storylines, not least the simultaneous existence of Federer and Nadal, two of the better players in the sport's history. Lots of weekly drama. Lots of top players -- a top four and then a next cluster of Roddick, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, del Potro -- who can be counted on to reach the latter rounds week in and week out. There's also a variety of styles. Murray, for instance, may be challenging Federer and Nadal, but he plays nothing like either. Amen to your hope they all stay healthy.

I grew up and came to love women's tennis in what I call the glory days: the 1990s. Chris Evert was gone and Martina Navratilova was slowing down, but women's tennis was very exciting. There was the Steffi Graf/Moncia Seles rivalry, the emergence of Jennifer Capriati, Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario overachieving, the Jana Novotna drama, the Martina Hingis swagger, Mary Pierce having the occasional huge two weeks, and Linsday Davenport making the most of her potential. Now, it seems, the magic is gone. We have Venus, Serena and then it's an endless parade of Eastern European head cases with no staying power whatsoever. What will save the WTA from irrelevance?
-- Chad Silvey, Akron, Ohio

• Remember those same 1990s and early 2000s? Pete Sampras was slowing down. Andre Agassi was unreliable. Thomas Enqvist playing Yevgeny Kafelnikov in Grand Slams finals? Thomas Johansson, anyone? Albert Costa? Prospects like Mark Philippoussis and Tommy Haas flaming out? It was thrown into particularly sharp relief by all the drama and intrigue and color in the women's game.

My point: It's cyclical. Yes, at least stylistically, the women's game has seen better days. But that will change. A fiercely determined Belgian with a one-handed backhand will come along to thwart the monolithic baseline bashing. A pair of African-American sisters will emerge from Compton. A trash-talking phenom or a thoughtful avowed lesbian will come along. Victoria Azarenka will win Majors. Courtney Paris will take up tennis. Whatever. Are the Lakers irrelevant after the Magic Johnson years? No. They spend a few years regrouping and then acquire Shaq and Kobe. Same thing here. Have some faith.

With Kim Clijsters-Lynch returning to the Tour, is she a future top 10 player or a top 10 player immediately? Has the women's game changed during her absence to the point that she will have to spend more time in maybe the low 30s before she gets another shot at the top?
-- Christian Rola, Luxembourg

• I think Clijsters is a top 10 player tomorrow. I'm not as down on the women's game as so many of you, but I would argue that, qualitatively, the WTA is worse now than when Clijsters left. Take away Justine Henin and Davenport and factor in an injured Maria Sharapova, and her stocks goes up further. Clijsters always had a solid game, she moved well and played a nice blend of offense-defense. Her perceived weakness was a lacking fighting spirit, but I think she's as mentally tough as anyone else in the top 10 not named Williams. I think she has a real chance here.

How would the rankings change if everyone were forced to play with the same Bjorn Borg-era wooden racket? I imagine Federer would be No. 1, followed by Nadal and perhaps Djokovic. Do Gael Monfils and Tsonga move up at the expense of Roddick, del Potro and Nikolay Davydenko?
-- Alberto, Delray Beach, Fla.

• When it comes to matters of equipment, I'm at the point of throwing my hands in the air. Every racket company heralds the new line as "revolutionary" and "innovative." Yet when John McEnroe et al. complain about runaway technology, the response is that rackets haven't changed much in 20 years and the real culprit is the polyester-based string. You call the string companies and try to acquire testing data and you never hear back. Ask one expert about the new strings and you're told, "It's like mini-suction cups that hold the ball on the string, adding pace and power." No, wait, another expert claims that they propel the ball and "snap right back," an analysis completely at odds with the "suction cup" explanation.

To Alberto's question: What about this -- the top 10 would look a lot like it does now. Federer and Nadal are superior players whether armed with the latest, greatest hydroponic, aeronautic, surgically enhanced micro-fiber-carbon-titanium-thunder-aero-nouveau-series-factor or armed with a frying pan. Asserting otherwise trivializes the players and their skills. Discuss.

My wife and I have a disagreement and we would appreciate it if you would break the tie for us. What was more obnoxious and disturbing to the fans during the Miami tournament: (a) Djokovic's "blue suede" shoes (my vote), (b) Federer's protruding gut showing through his ill-fitting shirt (her vote), or a new choice of (c) Fernando Verdasco's quasi-Mohawk?
-- Paul, Sacramento

• We stop at nothing to solve a domestic dispute. (I should send this to my wife, the divorce mediator.) Assuming I can't cast a write-in vote for the FSM coverage, Djokovic's leisurely pace or Azarenka's quote that she could blow her $600,000 winner's check in one day given her fondness for shopping and Mercedes .... I'll go with Djokovic's shoes. Cut Federer some slack. (Hey, at least he isn't wearing the belt he had on at Wimbledon.) And Verdasco's Mohawk is fine by me.

WTHIGOW Sebastien Grosjean?
-- Jimmy, Irvine, Calif.

• Funny, I saw Grosjean in the Key Biscayne lounge with his son, cutting the figure of a retired player enjoying life in repose. We're told, however, that he is rehabbing the right shoulder that underwent surgery in December and plans on returning. Good for him. Especially since he'll be 31 next month.