Sean Calvert: My betting guide to the 2015 Miami Open

Kohlschreiber's record in Miami is one worth noting

In the second part of tennis expert Sean Calvert's look ahead to the big March tournaments, he picks out the players to watch at the 2015 Miami Open...

The Indian Wells/Miami double used to be a tough achievement in men's tennis, but Novak Djokovic has made it look rather easier in recent years by doing it in 2011 and 2014.

Prior to that, it hadn't been done since 2006 and that's largely due to the conditions being quite different from one to the other and of course that they're played back-to-back, so fatigue is an issue on what are slow and hard courts.

While, in Indian Wells, the balls fly in the thin desert air here in Key Biscayne it's much more humid and the bounce is considerably lower - it's tough to hit winners in these conditions.

Many players here have referred to Miami as a 'hard court event played on clay', while wind, heat and humidity make it tough going if the weather is against us.

As a consequence the best defenders, such as Djokovic and Andy Murray, have dominated in Miami in recent years, with either one or the other taking the title in six of the last eight years.

Roger Federer hasn't tasted success here since 2006 and he's not due to play Miami in 2015 either, preferring the conditions at Indian Wells and skipping this year's event.

Rafa Nadal probably won't be looking forward to it so much either, with the Spaniard never having won the Miami title, but he has made the final four times.

Nadal also finds Indian Wells by far the more suitable of the two March tournaments, as does John Isner, who excels in the desert but fades in the Miami humidity.

Isner is aided greatly in California, but in Florida he has never made it past the round of 16 and the lower bouncing, slow courts make it far tougher for the big man, as does the humidity as a greater stamina test.

Not surprisingly, it's the same story for Ivo Karlovic, who has a 3-10 record in the main draw at Crandon Park and he's yet to beat an opponent ranked inside the top-50 at this venue.

Jerzy Janowicz has never won a match here, while Gilles Muller has won one of seven, and Sam Querrey has only once made the last-16 and that was due to a walkover in the round of 32, while Feli Lopez has been coming here since 2002 and is yet to make the last eight.

By and large, then, it's not a venue for the big servers, but Milos Raonic's delivery works in pretty much all conditions and he has begun his Miami career well, with a 5-2 record so far.

The record of clay courters here is interesting too, with David Ferrer - who struggles at Indian Wells - making the final in Miami in 2013 and holding a 69 percent win ratio here (his Indian Wells mark is only 45 percent).

Nico Almagro has a winning record here, while Juan Monaco made the semi finals in Key Biscayne in 2012, giving Djokovic a run for his money in the second set of that last four encounter.

Tommy Robredo has a winning record in Miami, while even Carlos Berlocq has beaten Ernests Gulbis and Jack Sock here.

Fabio Fognini doesn't fall into that bracket, with a 3-4 record here, but much of that is down to a lack of application, while Leo Mayer is 0-3 so far at the tournament.

Strugglers at this venue other than the big servers already mentioned include Stan Wawrinka and Grigor Dimitrov, who have never once been past the last-16 at Crandon Park.

Ernests Gulbis is having a nightmare year so far and a trip to Key Biscayne is unlikely to help matters - at least on the tennis court anyway - with the Latvian having won one match here and that was back in 2008.

Gulbis even managed to lose to Sergei Bubka here and has a 1-5 record in Miami, while Jeremy Chardy (3-6 win/loss record), Robin Haase (1-6), Andreas Seppi (6-10) and Phillip Kohlschreiber (2-8) aren't to be trusted if backing them at short prices.

Kei Nishikori had to withdraw from the semi finals of Miami last year after epic battles against Ferrer (in terrible windy conditions) and Federer and since his debut here in 2008 he's only lost to Ferrer and Nadal, so he comes into the reckoning.

With a similarly 'defence rules' approach to Murray and Djokovic it's no shock to find that Gilles Simon has made two quarter finals here in the last four visits and the conclusion seems to be that the defenders trump the big servers in Miami.