Australian Open preview: Why David Ferrer could shock the tennis
world in Melbourne  Douglas Perry, The Oregonian By Douglas
Perry, The Oregonian on January 13, 2013 at 9:00 AM, updated
January 13, 2013 at 9:05 AM ferrer.JPG View full size David
Ferrer    David Ferrer was probably told time and again during
his adolescence that he shouldn't shirk his math homework.
Because it was only too obvious that a career as a professional
athlete wasn't in the cards.  Ferrer, as you probably know, is a
little dude -- 5'9" on tippy-toes. And by the time he hit
puberty, tennis -- like most sports -- had become supersized,
with guys like Boris Becker and Goran Ivanisevic representing
the norm.  The diminutive Harold Solomon, the 1976 French Open
finalist, was lucky when he arrived on the scene. Everyone was
still using wooden racquets and gulping Pepsi during
changeovers. The equipment and training limitations of the time
made it difficult for big men to impose their will, especially
on slower surfaces. But Ferrer, three i