Where Do You Go From Here, Roger?

Federer came tantalizingly close to his 14^th Slam, and, once again, Nadal snatched another landmark away from him.

It was a match that went into its fifth hour. Less than 48 hours after Nadal went to bed after the marathon with Verdasco, he lifted his first hard-court slam.

Federer broke down during the presentation ceremony, and though it is his wont to shed a few tears after a tough victory or defeat, one understood the tears of helplessness here; how does he tackle Nadal? I had asked in this post of mine, after Nadal handed him a bagel in the final set of last year’s French Open, if Federer would ever be able to recover. The pasting at Roland Garros might not have been so bad – it was, after all, Rafa’s home turf – but then Nadal went on to win, in perhaps the best tennis match I have seen, at Wimbledon. And suddenly, after years of effortless cruising at Number 1, Federer’s dominion was under siege.

At Melbourne, last week, Federer demolished Del Potro, and a lot of us thought that the ghosts of the French Open and Wimbledon had been exorcised, and the King was back.

We were mistaken.

As anyone who watched the Australian Open final could tell, the ghosts were still messing with Federer. His ever-so-dependable serve was, well, just not there – only 52% of first serves in. Ditto his backhand. His scintillating form, on display in the run-up to the finals, seemed tentative and hesitant. And, despite having 19 break points, he converted only 6. Federer choked. And Nadal won his 6^th Slam.

Here’s a little hypothesis I have come up with: both Nadal and Federer have demons in their heads. Recall how tentatively Nadal played against Verdasco. Verdasco is a good player, and was in great form, but Nadal had no business allowing that match to go to five sets. Nadal would have hated to lose to the 14^th ranked player and that pressure played on his mind. He gave Verdasco too much respect, played too safe – and Verdasco piled on the pressure. Now, examine Nadal’s game against Federer. Nadal, though he hates losing, sees no shame in losing to Federer. So he played a much more assured game against Federer, taking his chances. Federer, on the other hand, was screwed by his ghosts, and faltered. Perhaps, like Nadal did with Verdasco, he gave too much respect to Nadal, and his own game suffered.

And where is all this leading? As I never tire of saying, I root for Nadal, but I hope Federer gets his 14^th Slam. Unfortunately, he will have to rely on other players to beat Nadal. Like Djokovic, Tsonga or Murray. This is what happened in the US Open. And once he is in the finals of a slam, playing against someone other than Nadal, he’ll win his 14^th and come level with Pete Sampras. Not quite the way of a champion, but I think he’s got no answer to Nadal’s game.

I hope he comes back stronger, though. He’s too great a player to suffer an ignominious exit. He should go out a champion.

As Dylan Thomas said, do not go gentle into that good night.

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Federer: The Return of the King?

I have just finished watching the Federer-Del Potro quarter-final at the Australian Open. I cannot call it a match. It was a massacre. Federer took apart Del Potro, imperiously, elegantly, yet breathtakingly savagely. The scoreline was 6-3, 6-0, 6-0. And this against one of the rising stars of the tennis world, a fairly proficient player, Juan Martin Del Potro, ATP Rank 6. One can’t help feeling sorry for Del Potro, being made to look like a rank novice being given his first tennis lesson. And a little football lesson as well.

Throughout the brief encounter, Federer was so casual, so offhand and yet so effective. I’m running out of adjectives here, but one realises the sheer sublimity of the man’s game. It is not without justification that people say he is probably the greatest tennis player in history. I can see why they feel that way, and it was a privilege to watch this match. And I must also confess that after the French Open and Wimbledon last year, I too wondered if this was the beginning of Federer’s march into the sunset of history. Well, today he’s shown all of us that greatness has a mind of its own, and while setbacks are temporary, class is permanent.

And no, I’m not going overboard. I’m a Rafa fan, no two ways about that, and I hope he continues his brilliant form. But he’ll need to pull a really special rabbit out of his hat to beat the Federer we saw today.

UPDATE: Based on what little I have seen of the Nadal-Verdasco semi-final – still in progress – I have to admit that it’s not certain which of these two Federer will play in the finals.

 

The Clairvoyant and The Mother of All Horoscopes

For a while there, my considerable skills as a soothsayer seemed to be slipping. Forsooth did my predictions suck! Verily.

How so, asketh thou?

Well, I thought Dinara Safina would win the US Open Women’s Singles title. And then Serena swatted her. So, at that point, knowing that Jankovic didn’t have the game to take on Serena, I sneakily modified my prediction to Serena. But I can’t lie to myself. My crystal-ball had said Safina.

It was the same distressing story when it came to the Men’s Singles title. I predicted Nadal. Of course, a part of it has to do with the fact that I’m a die-hard Rafa fan. And the other part was the simply outstanding form that Rafa has displayed this year – post the Australian Open. And then Nadal was taken out in the semi-finals by tha’ Scottish laddie, Murray. You know, the one wi’ the wee bit o’ fuzz on his face.

That did not portend well for my future as a fortune-teller.

So just to prove to myself that I still have the gift, I decided to write the Mother Of All Horoscopes for you lucky people. This horoscope is guaranteed to apply to all of you, whoever you are, wherever you may be and whenever you may read this. In other words, ladies and gentlemen, this little piece of prophecy has broken all spatio-temporal restrictions.

“The Universe bestows its blessings upon you this week, though you might not see it immediately. A loved one may be a cause for worry. Income might not increase to your satisfaction, and some of you might feel the pinch of extra expenses. A good time to make purchases. Something or someone may bother you at the workplace. Some phone calls may be annoying. Rushing headlong in the face of oncoming traffic may result in injuries, so be careful. Not following traffic-rules may result in a confrontation with an authority-figure. Your patience will be severely tested by some people, but take it in your stride as this is karma from previous lives. Remember, the Universe has a way of balancing things out. If wanting to go on a short holiday, do begin making plans. For those who are single, you might meet your potential partner soon. For those already in a relationship, be careful of seeming too demanding and possessive in love. For students, hard work will be rewarded. A stalker with a sharp-edged weapon may spell danger. Health-wise a good week, but too much salt in the food can lead to problems. Remember to drink enough water. Lucky colours are white, blue and black. Lucky stone: diamond, particularly if paid for by someone else.”

People interested in more personalised readings may contact me directly!

PS: Some of these lines are used with alarming regularity in all the horoscope columns of our newspapers.

 

Unstoppable Rafa – II

It’s been a busy few days. Sunday was a good day, with one little glitch.

First the good part. Rafael Nadal won Wimbledon, ending Roger Federer’s dream run. What seemed to be heading for a three-straight-sets Nadal victory was taken to a five-setter, with Roger’s tenacity and elegant play helping him win set numbers 3 and 4 to make it two-all. But there was really nothing further he could do, as there is no tie-breaker in the last set, and that’s when Rafa comes into his own.

Federer is a great player, a delight to watch, and effortless in his victories. But against the sheer athleticism of Nadal, nothing works. There were so many shots that would have been winners against anyone else. And I mean anyone. But Nadal retrieved, and when he didn’t retrieve and belt down a winner of his own, he retrieved something that forced Federer to come up with another winner. And then yet another. Even a player as brilliant and great as Federer could not come up with winner after winner on every point. And with no tie-breaker in the final set, Roger’s stupendous service was partially taken out of the equation.

To be honest, I feel for Federer. Watching him play is special, and you know you are watching an all-time great, perhaps the all-time great. He should have won this sixth title. But this is sport. And Rafa was just too good. As a Nadal fan, I am impressed with the improvement in Nadal’s game, and am glad he won. To be truly unbeatable though, his service needs to get still better.

Now for the not-so-good-part. What was the little glitch I spoke of? The Silverstone race was on the same weekend, and that little phallic appendage won. Well, the tifosi are going to bounce back! Go Ferrari!

 

Unstoppable Rafa!

I am more than a little stunned after watching the men’s finals of the French Open. The unstoppable Nadal juggernaut has just steamrolled Federer in three straight sets – the third set read 6-0. Federer, arguably the greatest player ever, won just 4 games in this match. He threw everything he had at Nadal, and Nadal just – cavalierly, casually – brushed off the challenge. I know Nadal is the King of Clay, but I don’t think anyone expected Federer to get such a bruising. And it was brutal. Not sure what effect it will have on Federer psychologically, but it does seem as if Nadal’s vastly improved game might pose a serious challenge to Federer’s dominance on other surfaces, especially Wimbledon. Well, we’ll have to wait and see.

The other interesting aspect to consider is this – has Federer peaked, and is he on the decline? Presumptuous, I know, but 26 is old for international tennis, and in the fitness battle, Nadal is way, way ahead. In fact, even though Djokovic also suffered an equally brutal defeat at the hands of Nadal in the semi-finals, he is probably the only one right now who can take the fight to Nadal. I’m a huge Rafa fan, but I guess a bi-polar world is always better than a uni-polar one!