Certain scenarios are meant for certain people, and the one that has developed in Londons 02 Arena at the ATP World Tour Finals seems tailor made for Stan Wawrinka.Should Wawrinka beat No. 1 Andy Murray in straight sets Friday, and Kei Nishikori defeat 0-2 Marin Cilic, the year-end championships will be denied that much-anticipated showdown between Murray and Novak Djokovic. It would also open the door for Djokovic to reclaim the top ranking.In fact if this scenario transpires, Murray will be out of the tournament before the semifinals. Among the possibilities if that happens is a rematch of the Djokovic-Wawrinka US Open final.Early in the week, after Wawrinka plodded his way through a desultory first-round loss to Nishikori, the chances of something like this being in play were remote. Not any longer, especially in light of Wawrinkas display of firepower Wednesday evening in a 7-6 (3), 7-6 (3) win against Cilic.I think the level was really high, Wawrinka told reporters after that match. Im happy with many things tonight -- the way I was mentally on the court, the way I was moving. I think I was moving great. I had some good defense, some long rallies. I mixed a lot with my game in general.When Stan the Man, aka Stanimal, is living in HappiStan, its time for everyone else, including Djokovic, to be afraid. Thick as a linebacker, Wawrinka is bearish in more ways than one. He tends to hibernate for significant periods, but when he comes out of his den, and the scent of a nearby meal sets his nose quivering, its time to climb the nearest tree.Wawrinka has never been No. 1, but he can play like the No. 1. It tends to happen in critical matches on the biggest stages.Im very far from being No. 1, Wawrinka said for perhaps the 2,700th time at the pretournament news conference. Referring to tennis Big Four, he added, If you look at their records, theyre playing in the final of every tournament they play, so its not something Im thinking about now.But rest assured, Wawrinka is something theyre thinking about. He not only belted Djokovic off the court in the last US Open final, he ruined the same guys day in the French Open final of 2015.Wawrinka also hammered Murray in straight sets at the Tour Finals last year. Murray leads the head-to-head by a very slender 9-7 edge, but there is so much pressure on him in London that he might have to take hits off an oxygen tank instead of a sports drink on changeovers when he plays Wawrinka.Pundits have tried to shoehorn Wawrinka into the Big Four ever since he belted his way to the 2014 Australian Open title (he beat Djokovic in the quarters and Rafael Nadal in the final), then backed it up during the ensuing months. Some have tried to expand the quartet into a Big Five including Wawrinka, but hell be the first to shun the honor. Hes humble and realistic. Hes also a creature who needs to hibernate.Besides, life is much more fun in HappiStan if Wawrinka can avoid the pressures and hassles that accompany everyday life. Wawrinka has a deft way of staying under the radar despite having, in every respect, the profile of a cargo plane.Nobody has taken Wawrinka very seriously at this tournament, and thats somewhat understandable. He won just one match in two fall Masters 1000 events. The only bright spot after that stunning upset of Djokovic in Arthur Ashe Stadium was a final in Moscow, where Wawrinka lost that to ATP #nextgen upstart Alexander Zverev.The sluggish opener against Nishikori in the O2 suggested that sometime in early October, Wawrinka decided to just mail it in. But its a mistaken assumption. This is just Wawrinkas way. He showed Wednesday that he hasnt licked and stamped the envelope just yet.Im here to try to enjoy, Wawrinka said, tacitly acknowledging that he doesnt want to fire expectations -- or put pressure on himself. Its still always a dream for me to be here. Im trying to enjoy; Im trying to do the right thing; Im trying to fight as much as I can to stay alive on the tournament.Because of his build, Wawrinka is only as good as his movement on that day. Thats a difficult factor to control. Wawrinka was moving poorly and mentally out of it Monday against perhaps the worst guy to face under those conditions, Nishikori.On Wednesday, the gum on his shoes turned into wheels. I know I can beat every player, Wawrinka said, when asked if he intends to compete for the top ranking now that applications are again being accepted. But I need to do it more often in the year if I want to think about that. But three Grand Slams in three years is something that I didnt expect. Im very happy with where I am now.Welcome to HappiStan. Beware if your name is Murray or Djokovic. Greedy Williams Browns Jersey . "I was fortunate to play many years at this level with a great organization and unbelievable teammates," said Hejduk in a statement. Bernie Kosar Browns Jersey . PETERSBURG, Fla. http://www.brownsrookiestore.com/Browns-Bernie-Kosar-Jersey/ . -- Ryan Blaney provided more evidence that Penske Racings No. Austin Seibert Jersey . Instead of dwelling on the negative, Oates focused on what was good about the clubs recent play. It worked. Ozzie Newsome Jersey . The Swede became the first golfer to win the PGA Tours FedEx Cup and European Tours Race to Dubai in the same season. "It is still taking a little time to sink in what Ive achieved this week as was the case when I won the FedEx Cup but then it just kept getting better and better as the days went on and I am sure this will be the same," he said. ALLEN PARK, Mich. -- The Detroit Lions were in a familiar spot, down a few points with time running out -- only this time, they couldnt get the ball back.Thats the problem with putting yourself in that position too many times.There would be no Matthew Stafford-led comeback at the end of Sundays 20-13 loss to the Houston Texans. Instead, the Lions fell back to .500, which seemed appropriate given how many of their games could have gone either way. Detroit hasnt had a game decided by more than seven points this season.Despite last weekends loss, the Lions (4-4) are certainly in a better spot than at this time last season, when they had dropped seven of their first eight games. This season, Detroit has recovered from a 1/3 start, so the second quarter of the schedule went considerably better than the first.We had a 3-1 quarter. We had a little hiccup at the end, coach Jim Caldwell said Monday. Were getting ready to start all over again just in terms of our next quarter coming up against obviously a very tough opponent. So what I tell you is that weve made some improvement.The Lions play at Minnesota on Sunday, the last game before Detroits open date. At the midway point, the Lions are certainly in the playoff race, but in all four of their victories, the winning points came in the final two minutes. They were certainly cutting it close.Against the Texans on Sunday, Detroit kicked a field goal with 2:53 left to pull within a touchdown. After an unsuccessful onside kick, the Lions couldnt stop Houston, allowing two first downs that let the Texans run out the clock.Obviously, we wanted to get on the field, it just didnt work out, wide receiver Golden Tate said. Weve got to do a better job of not putting our team in that situation, where we need to be playing from behind like that.ddddddddddddhe Lions held Houston to only 23 yards rushing in the first half before allowing 82 in the second, and although the Texans didnt score much after taking a 14-0 lead in the second quarter, they moved the ball enough to hold on for the win.I just think there were some situations there where they just did a little bit better job at the end than we did, Caldwell said. They blocked us up in a couple situations and maybe a couple situations where we missed a tackle here or there. There were a few things, there wasnt just one thing. They did a better job down the stretch.Detroit beat Indianapolis in its season opener on a field goal with 4 seconds left, and its victory over Washington two weekends ago came on a touchdown with 16 seconds remaining. The Lions have had some close losses as well, but their defeat against Tennessee was the only one in which the lead changed late. Theyve been on the right side of most of their exciting finishes so far, and it was always fair to wonder if that would be sustainable.Stafford has been very good, and the addition of receiver Marvin Jones has helped Detroit withstand Calvin Johnsons retirement, but its going to be hard for the Lions to reach the postseason if they need last-minute comebacks in so many of their games. That was one of the main lessons from the loss to Houston.Youll have games like that against good defenses that play well against you, Caldwell said. You know, you may not light it up every single time, but we certainly expect to be a little bit more potent than we were.---AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP-NFL ' ' '
