Your article was very fair to both players. So many have written about how Nadal was simply a washed up wreck, but your article gave credit to Federer and Nadal. Roger did play inspired tennis, but as I suspect, its a very difficult thing to play that type of aggressive play and maintain that level for hours on end.

Federer was brilliant against Djokovic in the semis. His aggressive game plan worked beautifully and he was able to take advantage of Novak's nerves. If anyone could understand the pressures that were on Novak, it would be Roger.

Some say that Federer may have been a bit jaded from the amount of energy he expended during the semis, but I wouldn't do him the disservice to say that. He is a champion and he understands what it takes to make it to the final and beyond.

Nadal was definitely lacking the usual game and confidence coming in to Paris. Losing two hard court finals to Novak after garnering the first set was a bitter pill to swallow. But losing on clay would prove to be the more difficult for him to except. Nadal was grieving during the final in Madrid and looked lost to find his game. A few days later he has a fever but plays through and again comes up against a hot and motivated Novak. To loose on clay in the final is a very difficult thing for the ?King of Clay?.

Winning the French Open will be give a huge boost toward helping Rafael gain his confidence. Rafa will have to come up with a different type of game plan to be more competitive against the likes of Djokovic and other big hitters. I suspect as you might too, that Nadal hasn?t used up all his skills yet and we should be in for a treat the rest of 2011.

well done, great champion. again.

Thank you Cheryl for articulating what I said on another blog, and what I have long suspected..........that Roger brings out the best in Rafa. This is why, selfishly, I want Roger's rennaisance to continue and flourish. Rafa has always considered Roger the best there ever was, and is, the benchmark to beat and that is what he aimed at, to be as good as, and better than, Roger. So he worked out a strategy to beat him.......


Then Nole manufactures his own rennaissance........and this leaves Rafa confused because this was not supposed to be! Nole was supposed to be a nuisance, not a contender, hence the bewilderment we have seen emanating from my Rafa's camp in the last 4 months. At first they thought Nole was going to burn himself out, as usual.....or Rafa was not really 100%........but guess what? Nole is here to stay. I am so thankful the Gods conspired to have Nole beaten in the semis because I shudder to think what a defeat by Nole at RG would have done to my Rafa.......

This RG crown is a game changer, I believe. Rafa now realises that he does not have to worry about Fed anymore..........it's his contemporaries he has to shift his attention to now, Nole and Andy.

Stupendously improved as Nole's game is now........I believe a fully-focussed Rafa can take him down. Watch Rafa come up with Nole-specific a game plan......just as he has a Roger-specific game-plan patented.

Incidentally, I have been reading on other sites that Benito (PR guy who worked for both Nole and Rafa) now works exclusively for Rafa. Apparently he was asked to choose between Rafa and Nole and he went with Rafa. Not sure which camp made the ultimatum. Was it me or did anyone else notice that the post-Rome match "embrace" between Nole and Rafa was rather limp? In fact, there was no embrace at all, just a limp handshake..........The plot thickens................

I CANNOT wait for Wimby........

Spot on Cheryl, you said it exactly as it happened. Federer started with his game plan working well and taking Rafa by surprise but once Rafa had worked it out I knew he was on the ball. In any case Federer couldn't play like that for too long because it's not his natural game so he had to go back to what he is comfortable with. Just like Rafa brings out the best in Murray so Federer brings out the best in Rafa. OK Rafa was far from his best since the clay season started but his best is in the stratosphere so even when playing a few notches below, he is still better than the rest.

I can't wait to watch the recording which won't be till tomorrow because I'm not at home at the moment. Many said Rafa would be finished by age 25 - at age 25, he is still No 1.

Bring Wimby on.


Vamos

Cheryl,

Well, here go the tears again! I thought that I was all cried out from relief, happiness, the joy of seeing my favorite player equal what my first favorite player did thirty years ago!

Your comments really got to the heart of what I am feeling after this great win. This one is special in a lot of ways - the historical nature of this accomplishment in winning six titles at RG. Then there is the journey and what a rollercoaster ride it was this time! Never have I worn myself out so completely during a tournament, praying every night and trying to will Rafa to find his game! I watched last year's RG final and saw again the unbelievable quality of the tennis Rafa played. I hoped against hope that at one of these matches before the final, this Rafa would finally show up!

You were spot on when you said it was the prospect of meeting Sod again at RG that woke Rafa out of his stupor, washed away the doubts and despair and questions. All he had to see was this one player standing on the other side of the court and, as you said, a switch went off in his head. The memory of that defeat in 2009 was exactly what Rafa needed to get it all together. That was the first match where I saw Rafa clay court tennis. I knew he had found himself again!

In the end, just like last year Rafa saved the best for last. It is true that Fed brings out the best in Rafa. Last year it was the prospect of facing down the man who dealt him his only loss at RG in the final for sweet revenge. This year it was facing his biggest rival, the one with whom he has waged his most epic, brilliant battles.

The tennis from Rafa just blew my mind! I watched as his groundstrokes penetrated with a depth and accuracy that I had not seen during this entire clay court season. That cc backhand! Yay!!! Oh, how I have dearly missed that shot! Rafa was hitting wicked winners over and over again, as though he had been doing it all along. Then the dtl backhand firing accurately, the net game and the volleying, moving into the court aggressively to blast winners and close out points, that phenomenal movement! Rafa was everywhere, getting back shot after shot, amazing defensive tennis! Vintage Rafa! I had tears in my eyes just watching it, because I was so proud that Rafa had at last found his best form. Anyone who ever thought that it's just about bludgeoning with Rafa, just hasn't been looking with open eyes. Even John MacEnroe pointed out the beautiful hands at net and some of the delicate shots that Rafa was hitting. Gliding across the clay like the winged horse Pegasus, of Greek mythology, that was Rafa today!

I guess I do have to thank Fed for giving Rafa his best birthday present in beating Nole and then giving him the opportunity to face off against him again. This has been the sweetest, the most satisfying, the most joyous of all. I am on cloud nine and don't want to ever get off. The look on Rafa's face when MacEnroe interviewed him after the match, really said it all. Rafa couldn't stop smiling and seemed almost giddy with this win.

Rafa has again confounded his naysayers, doubters and haters. The harder the French crowd cheered for Fed, the better Rafa got! Sometimes you just can't keep a good young man down! So now Rafa is among the elites of this sport, double digit slams and right behind Borg and Laver.

I watched the match, but have to watch it again tomorrow. I want to relive it all over again.

Thanks for a great blog and saying so much of what I have been feeling!:)

It'll be interesting to see what happens during the grass court season. I'm guessing the FO is going to give him confidence going into Wimbledon.

Steve Tignor talked about the French crowd too. Good stuff.

Steve Tignor's take (he truly "gets" Rafa):

This was the tournament where we finally found out what Rafael Nadal needs: He needs to suffer. It makes sense. His career has been a long series of rises and falls, of domination followed by frustration, of frustration followed by domination, of suffering that leads to triumph. In my opinion, he?s not a guy who can?t handle being No. 1, who always needs to be chasing rather than owning the top spot. But it?s clear that he does get some satisfaction out of making life difficult for himself, and then overcoming that difficulty. Nadal thinks in terms of problems and solutions. He likes to see the specter of failure in the rearview mirror, to feel it in his own game, before he can drive himself to succeed.

In his press conference after the final, Nadal said that his win in 2008 here, in which he leveled the field and Federer with nary a forehand of resistance, didn?t really feel like a win at Roland Garros. It was all too easy, there were no struggles, there was nothing to overcome?he won the final in three sets, for chrissakes. Nadal had echoed those sentiments at the start of this tournament, after his near-defeat at the hands of John Isner. He said then that you have to learn to ?enjoy the suffering? in tennis.

It may be these three words that define what makes Nadal the player and winner he is. ?Enjoy the suffering." Or at least learn to accept that it's part of the sport, just like winning. To understand and get the most out of tennis, you need to understand and even try to enjoy both. It's the suffering and uncertainty that make the eventual triumph as satisfying as it is. Nadal said during the tournament that he wasn?t playing well. It should have been a bad sign for the rest of the field, because what it really meant was that he was enjoying the process of finding a way to play better. But Nadal isn?t just a romantic or a masochist; he can face reality coldly if need be. Asked how he came through a tournament where he lacked confidence for so long, he said, ?You know, you arrive to quarterfinals and you play against Soderling. You know you have a tough match. You know if don?t play well, you go home. You have to do it, and I did.?

This was Nadal?s sixth French Open title. It was also the sixth in which he won in front of an indifferent-to-hostile audience?Parisians have never warmed to his muscular game or grunt-heavy, shorts-picking style. But Nadal, as he always does, swallowed their indifference and told them how much he loved playing in front of them, how this was the greatest tournament in the world. It?s amazing, really, that he never lets on that he hears the crowds in Paris, hears the chants and roars for the man that he always beats here, Roger Federer. How has Rafa gone 45-1 in front of fans who act like they wish he would disappear? By enjoying the suffering, of course. A+

Rafa always strives on competition, the more difficult the task, the better he'll perform. Yes, Rafa always enjoys the suffering together with the victories, in fact he had mentioned about it all along, not just now. Sometimes I marvelled at how Uncle Toni had trained his nephew to be so down to earth, realistic and to be able to stay in the moment. Most importantly, how to find solutions when facing problems, instead of running away from problems or resigned to fate.

Rafa loves competition and overcoming problems, and that's why he strives to be better because first there is Fed standing in his way. After the AO2009 victory over Fed, Rafa did mention that he felt a sense of emptiness, as there's nothing more to look forward to after
beating Fed on all surfaces in slams, as if he had acomplished his mission. Well we knew what happened after that - he was injured and had to go through the darkest period of his career - and after eleven months of struggling, he had finally found his game and started winning again. New mission - to beat the big hitters, aka Sod and Delpo, who had dealt him the most serious blows in his career, at the FO and then the USO in 2009. So we saw him working on his game, changing the strings on his racket too to cope with the deep flat shots from these big hitters. He had his revenge, at least against Sod at the FO in 2010. Next problem for him - the emergence of Murray, the one who beat him in straight sets at the AO2010. So Rafa again work on his game and at least held Murray at bay by winning against him at Wimbledon and at the WTF 2010, that year their h2h was 2-2, each winning two times.

Now in 2011, Rafa finally met Delpo and got his revenge and at least held off Murray on clay twice. However, another bigger problem arised, the rise of Nole, a formidable force that no one could deal with, including Rafa, and only the old Master who played at an unbelieveable level for four sets was able to beat this Nole. So right now, Rafa will carry on striving in the competition, as he now has a new target, ie beating and overcoming Nole.

Actually I'm thankful that the new Nole appears, though as a Rafa fan, I'm a bit worried for Rafa. With a new target, Rafa will again try to improve his game and solve the new puzzle that is Nole. If there're no more problems for Rafa to solve, I'm afraid Rafa will lose interest in the game, and call it quit, as there may not be any more reason for Rafa to improve anymore.

Interesting from luckystar.. Sometimes I marvel at how Rafa found the answer to Roger on grass after just two attempts at him on grass while roger had opportunities to work out Rafa's game on clay in innumerable masters tournaments and the finals. Truly remarkable how Rafa focuses on problem solving. Lets hope he can keep his health so that he can solve these puzzles without that hassle.

I hope Rafa wins 4 more slams by the end of 2012. This will keep him within striking distance of fed's 16.
He also needs to win AO and USO once more so that he can boast a record on multiple victories in each slam.

atul, Rafa doesn't need to prove anything to anyone. It's really strange how anyone can say 'he needs multiple majors' - that is exactly what 'people' [you in this case] were saying when he hadn't yet won Wimbledon [then he did], AO [then he did but hey, it was a soft hard court] - no he needs to win USO, well he has. Now it's multiple slams. Give it a rest please - it's stale.

Blessed, I hear what you say but there is nothing wrong with aims and targets, we need to aim at more successes because it keeps it fresh plus the fact that many enjoy moving the goal posts everytime Rafa achieves something so it's great to see him confound the doubters time and time again.

My personal wish is for Rafa to beat Federer in a USO final, for me that will be very satisfying and the only piece missing in that particular jigsaw.

Luckystar , I love your take on this, and hope you're right. I couldn't help but notice that Johnny Mac made a point of telling Rafa that he hopes that Rafa keeps playing for another 4 or 5 years...JM has been vocal about how he tried to talk Borg into continuing to play. Re-watching the USO 2010 and Madrid 2009 finals, it was Rafa's intensity and focus that overpowered Novak. It's been missing since the USO win.

totally agree with your take on things lucky,
I just hope that Rafa has the ability to face his new challenges which will be more than Novak - he should still be a contender for the next 2 years or so but after this, once he starts losing to the upcoming stars I doubt he will have Fed's power of ressurgence given the nature of his physical game which will undoubtedly diminish....

The physical speed and such will decline gradually, sure... but in the meantime Rafa has been changing his came since '08 towards a more aggressive game for hardcourt (whenever he is not lacking in confidence at least). So the question is how will Rafa's mental intensity, problem solving and increase in skill compensate for the physical aging of his body? When Roger is in a good headspace and has been working on his tactics and skills (e.g. late '10 and lately again) he compensate pretty well for his aging... minus mental lapses. Agassi continued to increase his superb skills deep into his 30s which is why he had such a strong second season of his pro career. I am not saying that Rafa will play that long, but it is quite possible that he will find ways to keep increasing his skills for a number of years and thus hopefully play shorter matches and solve many upcoming problems. So long as he keeps regaining his confioence whenever he loses it I expect him to retain his incredible level of mental intensity. There have been (and will be) many chapters in Roger's career; we see the same thing in Rafa's.

waiting for 2nd part of blog... and things which were not so obvious...

Agree with chloro. Rafa is fast changing his game, playing more aggressively on grass and on the hard courts. He has improved his overall game, especially his net game. I'm impressed with his hard court game so far thus season, despite coming back from his long injury break with his fitness not at 100%, and with parts of his game not back to his good to best level, he was still able to reach to hard court masters final, taking a set from the hit streak player each time before losing. Imagine if his serve and his backhand are back to their best level, how much better Rafa can become.

We know this clay season Rafa didn't play his best clay court game, still when there's a need be for him to raise his level, he always had the ability to do so, at least in a slam, and that's good enough for him to win his sixth FO. I think going forward, Rafa will rely more on his skills and tactical plays and less on physical strength to win his matches. As he grows older, he can always tweak his schedule to give himself more rest time and maybe just concentrate on winning the slams, like what Fed does these days. Good thing is Rafa now can skip one Masters and by 2013 when he's about twelve years in the tours, he can skip another, so he basically can play two to three or even four tournaments less, if he doesn't mind getting zero pointers for the smaller tournaments that he may skip. He can also turn to the SA clay court swing or even Hamburg if he prefers to play more on clay than on hard courts. All in all, I think Rafa can survive the tours for another four five years, say till he's 28-29, as long as he chooses his tournaments wisely. I don't foresee him playing past 30 yo. He once said it's unlikely, during one of his CNN interviews.

The zero pointers are a menace, Rafa should be 545 points ahead of Nole now but he has to wait till after Wimbledon for his Barcca points to be added on. Rafa is not chasing records, he is doing his own thing and he doesn't care what other player have done, he sets his own targets for his own satisfaction. If he happens to beat Roger's tally of GS titles it will not be because he is chasing it.

He might retire in 4/5 years time, get married and start a family. He loves training though so that might keep him going for much longer, because he doesn't need to train to go fishing.

If it weren't for the successful platement treatments of both knees, the last 1.5 years would look very different. These treatments do not mean there will be no wear and tear in the future, only that a lot of the past injury / inflammation has been healed. Rafa understands this in more detail than someone like me and is surely worried about the health of his knees even more than any of us. Until those treatments I was not sure at all he'd make it to 27, 28, 29 on the pro tour. Now it looks like he might. If his knees get re-injured in a more major way... the platelet therapy could be repeated and if it was successful the first time it probably will again... but it is not an option you want to use if you can avoid it. This health of his knees has got to be one of the main reasons for a lot of the changes Rafa has been making to his game, and the start he's made at lightening his calendar. (Even though he's still pulled to play more tournaments than I'd like to see him play, e.g. the number of tournaments he played in Far-East Asia last winter: all for good reasons but not good for his knees and his general rest.) So I hope that Rafa will pare down his schedule more or less like luckystar suggests. With a bit of luck on the injury front, and with some wise choices each year to make his game counter his new opponents, improve his efficiency and to lighten his schedule Rafa very well might remain very competitive and in the mix through 28, 29 as you say, luckystar... looks like that's what he is aiming at. He mentioned that so long as he keeps improving and winning many matches he will be motivated to stay on the tour (i.e. he won't need to win most of the tournies). On Sunday I felt that the last few matches and the victory on Sunday might have washed away some of the weariness he felt this spring. He might feel maybe not entirely refreshed right now, but enough refreshed and re-motivated to take on the current challenges: Wimbledon... preparing to play his best whenever it will be that he will meet Nole next (obviously this will be in a final as Roger will not get back to rank 2 any time soon I think) ... and preparing to do his best at the US Open.

I feel those four losses to Nole are easier to take now that Rafa has shown everyone that he is still King of Clay. I bet Nole would trade them for a win at RG. I think the key for Rafa when he next meets Nole, is to be in his best form. We know that wasn't the case in those four losses. Rafa was lacking confidence and that's everything to him. If Rafa had played his absolute best and still lost to Nole, then it would be a real cause for concern. Nole raised his level of play and Rafa needed to be at his best to beat him. I am confident that should they meet on the grass at Wimbledon, things will be very different.

I have been hoping that Rafa will play at least three more years, maybe four. We have to see how his body holds up. I don't have an actual wish list for what I would like to see Rafa win. Every slam that he wins now will add to his legacy. I did want him to get to double digit slams for sure. Now he has done that. One more slam win and he matches Borg and Laver. I really wanted this RG win for him. I wanted him to tie Borg's record. Now I feel that the confidence from this win will give him great momentum and confidence going into Wimbledon. I would love to see him get the channel slam again. We will see. I am sure that Fed wants to win this Wimbledon very much. All four top players are doing well now, so it should be very competitive.

It's amazing how a slam win can erase a lot of disappointment. I think this will be a turning point for Rafa this year. The biggest hurdle is over - defending 5000 points in the clay season. If that stupid penalty wasn't in effect, then Rafa would have more breathing room. He only lost 800 points, but really 300 when you factor in Barcelona. Now Rafa is defending 2000 points at Wimbledon and that looks like an easier hill to climb than 7000 points. Now he is playing well and has the personal satisfaction of a well earned record win at RG. Things are looking a lot better than they were a few weeks ago. And Rafa is still #1!

Cheryl, I noticed that Rafa's forehand on the run is back......this shot disappeared after his knee problems and I felt this reflected his more cautious approach. When I saw that shot re-appear this clay season, I just felt Rafa was fine inspite of the results (the losses to Nole etc).

Would you agree that this is a "confidence" shot for Rafa?

NNY, you're right, suddenly the burden seems so much lighter now that Rafa's only immediate task is to win Wimbledon as opposed to defending the clay slam. Rafa has really done well to defend all but 800 points and as you say he also added Barcca so he lost a net of 300 points. What would it be like for Nole next year when he has to defend points for 5 months on the trot.

Rafa has won his first match on grass this year by winning the 1st round doubles with Marc. Murray/Murray lost.

nadline,

Yes, our Rafa is now in a much better position!

Thanks for the update about Rafa's doubles match. The tennis channel won't be televising any of the matches until the quarterfinals.

I am still so happy about Rafa's win! :)

T

rafaisthebest - actually, I think that the running backhand down-the-line is his big-time confidence shot.

Not that the running forehand isn't important, but it seems he only tries the bh dtl when he's really feeling the court. That shot only appeared since the ljubicic match.

federer had his chances, he was unlucky. especially in first set @5-2 30-40 he was denied the set.
But at the same time he played very well, he played as much as human beings can play.Others are exceptions and yet to figure out the reasons for their victories, and ability to win even with less number of 'winners'.

Rafa also was unlucky at game 3.... 0-1 ad-40.... Rafa is the strongest mentally... less winners but less UE also.. as long as he can cut the UE he will win... He proved it many times...

""I feel those four losses to Nole are easier to take now that Rafa has shown everyone that he is still King of Clay. I bet Nole would trade them for a win at RG. I think the key for Rafa when he next meets Nole, is to be in his best form. We know that wasn't the case in those four losses."

a bunch of BS. I love all of the top 4, and this is very unfair and biased. give credit where it's due, Nole beat him fair and square. so, at not one of those matches was Rafa at his very best?

scretracker, what is important is not what you love but what Nole would love. Would he prefer those 4 Masters to RG?
As to whether Rafa was at his best or not, that is a matter of opinion.

The losses to the two rafafans hurt them, which is why they think that Nole would prefer to win RG instead of 4 MS? I think the 4 MS losses would have devastated Nole more than his one loss at RG, to come so close 4 times and still lose, don't you think? The RG loss did happen and is Nole devastated? Not likely. I think they are trying to playdown Nole's'wins to decrease their own hurt. Don't forget the remarks "I feel those four losses to Nole are easier to take now that Rafa has shown everyone that he is still King of Clay."

Maybe Rafa would rather trade his RG 2011 for AO 2011 to complete the grand slam!

That's a good trade. Then Nole would have one AO and one FO, and both guys would be smiling.

scoretracker,
You're right in saying that Nole beat Raf fair and square.. period.
These talks about whether one player was at his best or not are pointless in my opinion as those who favour the losing player are prone to use such arguments as opossed to the winning side claiming that his player was amazing - it's always the same, in every sport and it does get boring. Thankfully we all have brains and, those who've actually seen the match, can judge for themselves.
In my opinion, Nole was lucky to win the hard-court tourneys and he completely deserved the clay ones, especially Rome, he trully outplayed Nadal.

There is nothing wrong with stating the fact that Rafa wasn't playing his best clay court tennis. That is a fact, as evidenced by his performances in the quarterfinals on to the final.

I am not saying that Rafa would have won for sure if he was playing his best. I also really wish that people would stop reading more into comments and overreact all the time. No one is taking away Nole's wins over Rafa. My main point was to emphasize the greater importance and significance of winning RG. Or are we to think that Rafa would have taken the four wins over his sixth win at RG?

I also dislike references or comments about being thankful for having brains. Does that mean that someone with a different opinion is lacking in brains? That's insulting.

great blog, as always...funny, I thought it was only me who felt the turning point for Rafa at RG was match w/Sod...and I remember being nervous before that match although I knew Rafa was so much better player than Sod...and semifinals was nowhere near that difficult for me :) and I kind of was sure he would win...I guess I was building confidence as a spectator and Rafa fan at the same pace as Rafa was...:) and then the finals with Fed...hmm...honestly, I loved seeing both of them playing finals again...I knew it would be beautiful to watch and I just knew Fed would bring out the best in Rafa...simply amazing how these two can influence each other...it was a great match...but, then again, which one of their matches wasn?t...the FO 2008 was a master piece and it will mark history...But FO 2011 has its own beauty and magnificence...I don?t think any other player will ever influence Rafa the way Fed does...he is the one who makes Rafa unbeatable...

scoretracker,

You are going to have to come up with more than calling my comments "a bunch of BC". That doesn't cut it when it comes to making an argument. Stop being so hypersensitive and touchy. It's reasonable and fair to point out that Rafa did not play his best clay court tennis, especially in light of his performances in the quarterfinals, semifinals and final at RG. The difference between how he played against Nole in Madrid and Rome and how he played in the latter stages of RG, is proof positive that Rafa was nowhere near his best. It doesn't take anything away from Nole. It is something that Rafa can keep in his mind the next time he meets Nole.

I have become sick and tired of reading comments to the effect that Nole is in Rafa's head or that he has caused him to lose confidence. My original point was that, if Rafa had indeed played his best clay tennis against Nole and lost, then that would be cause for real concern. He didn't, so he will now have a chance to hopefully bring his best form on grass. I look forward to the next time Rafa faces Nole. Winning RG will make those four losses against Nole a distant memory. When he brings his best, I like Rafa's chances against all comers.

Sorry, I meant to say "BS"!

It has become all too commonplace to use this abbreviation of a profane word in lieu of a coherent argument. That doesn't cut it with me. It's the last resort of someone who just wants to take a cheap shot, because they have no rational response.

@shireling," These talks about whether one player was at his best or not are pointless in my opinion as those who favour the losing player are prone to use such arguments as opossed to the winning side claiming that his player was amazing - it's always the same, in every sport and it does get boring."

Not only is it old and very, very boring, the arguments for and against change to suit the outcome of the match.

Rafa was never off his throne in my opinion. :)

NNY.............stop arguing with the intentionally deluded...........you waste your breath my dear.......

As I pointed out in a separate blog, compared to Roger and Rafa, Nole has not been a factor in Slams as the following stats attest:

Federer has been to 23 Major finals (70% win ratio);
Rafa has been to 12 Major finals (83% win ratio);
and Nole? He has been to 4 Major finals (50% win ratio)

So, Nole wins 4 Masters shields in 2011......great. They are still minors compared to Majors...........the guy doesn't turn up at Majors!

But then again, maybe Nole is happy excelling in the minor leagues (different strokes for different folks)............or so his fans tell us! Who are we to argue?

It just struck me that even with a 42 match winning streak Nole could not unsit Rafa as World No 1.

Cheryl, can you do something to this re3ka, he/she's being posting the same long article on three different threads now. I really don't know what's his/her intention here and everyone has to bear with this long article on three different threads!

luckystar, how about if we just help her/him and copy paste this article in ALL the threads here in TT? Maybe Cheryl will notice then?

I read this L barber crap, who does she think she is anyway?, and what does she know about the atp tour much less what it takes to be the no,1 tennis player! a very unprofessional and classless article, I suspect that Nadal himself could careless! whats more she goes on to insult Bjorg too.. disgraceful..
So happy after all this that Rafa went ob to win his 6th RG, talk about letting your tennis do the talking, he was quite brilliant, incredible! I too thought that the Soderling match was his turning point in the tournament, it was just what he needed to find his tennis' again.. loved it!

what a sick idiot this re3ka is...another ill obsessed soul...just get rid of this lunatic...

luckystar - taken care of.

phoenix, that would make a lot of extra work for me. Please don't ever do that. Thanks.

Congratz to Rafa....

I think Fed played his best but whenever Rafa was in trouble, most of the time he went for Fed's BH for free points. That's just the way it goes.

People forget that only Rafa hits the helicopter forehand and unluckily Fed has a 1-handed BH. And Fed doesn't get free points from his serves because Rafa is probably the best returner in the world.

So, when you have two equally as good tennis players, these minor things matters. Owhh well, that's why Fedal matches are the best because only against Rafa is where Fed has to push himself beyond his limits.

Agree with torres. Both have to play their best to have a chance to beat each other. However, lately, Fedal also have to up their level when playing against Nole and Murray, that showed how much both Nole and Murray have improved. The Nole vs Murray match at Rome was an eye opener, showing us how much Murray had improved on clay, that he was one of those three (the other two being Ferrer and Bellucci) to push Nole to the limit on clay this season, before Fed played his best match of the year to beat Nole in Paris.

Delpo is also on his come back trail and I think by the NA hard court swing, he should be back to his best level. This Wimbledon, I think the conversation would still be about Fedal. Come the hard court season, there should be around five/six guys we'll be talking about.

torrers, you are right...when I come to think of it, Nole also attacked fed's backhand and it did not do him much...Fed was brilliant...Nole was moved around the court and made running and chasing balls and Fed just had it all under control...he can not do so with Rafa as rafa's top spin forehand does not suit Fed...I always thought if someone is to stop Nole it could be either Fed or Murray as Nole seems to have trouble dealing with them...it takes for Fed to have a really bad day in the office for Nole to be able to beat him...the things will slightly change from now on...Nole will not want to see Fed in his draw whereas Rafa may still prefer Nole to be on the other half...Toni said in one of his interviews that they have identified what the problem was with Rafa when he was beaten by Nole and that they are working on it to fix it...I am sure next time Rafa meets Nole this ,new approach' will be examined. Sure this will be a very interesting Wimby...VAMOS RAFA!!!

"it takes for Fed to have a really bad day in the office for Nole to be able to beat him."

Completely opposite. From this/last year encounters, Federer was winning when Novak was off and on top of that Fed had to play on high level trough whole match.

One good thing I see from their matches, is that Novak tends to make Federer to bring his best in their matches. I do think that on whole tour, Federer feels the best when he beats Novak. Not that he feels him as biggest threat, as there is much more between two of them.

I can't wait for hard court season to start, and for others to jump in to get scalp of Fedal. Makes mi sick reading every topic about them, same stuff again, and again...

Federer always looks like he is in a panic when playing Nadal. If he breaks Rafa or takes a set you can see sheer delight and satisfaction in his eyes like a child who has just been given some sweets, and sheer despondence when he is losing like - here we go again, what do I need to do against this guy.

Someone pointed out that the World No 1 had never won RG so Rafa is the first current No 1 to win it. Another record.

I would rather say Novak was wining because Fed was off...in USO 2010 Fed did not convert 2-3 match points...so much not like true Fed...and AO might be a different story, but I did not get to see the match...however, I was told that Nole was magnificent and he proved it throughout this season there is no doubt about it...also beating Rafa in those finals...that is truly a great accomplishment and he deserves all the credits...but I still think Fed was the only one able to stop this Nole...and he eventually did...and I don't think Fed will fear from Nole from now on...not at least the way he fears from Rafa...

I can't wait for hard court season to start, and for others to jump in to get scalp of Fedal. Makes mi sick reading every topic about them, same stuff again, and again...

atg
, 6/10/11 10:13 AM


I hear you, mate..........question is, is Fedal listening? I hope not!

Put it this way, Fed's best hard court game is better than anyone else's hard court game. Rafa's best clay court game is better than anyone else's clay court game. Only Rafa is comparable to Fed now on the grass court. We can't argue against their 26 slams, and some of them are won as recently as within these two years! However once they are not at their best level, they may be beaten by other challengers. Nole may have reached his peak or is reaching his peak now but still his tennis is still not comparable to Fed's at his TMF level, in my opinion. On clay too, Rafa's 2008 level is still higher than Nole's now. Of course the question now is that Fed and Rafa may not reach their previous best level again, and so they may be beaten more easily these days(relatively speaking).

@natashao: "Fed was off... in USO 2010 Fed did not convert 2-3 match points"

It were craziest, than bravest winners from Novak on those match points, both was pulled out on 2nd serve. It didn't had much to do with Federer off in match or those moments. AO wasn't much different, even if it is booked like straight win for Novak, it was tense and both were playing good.

Whoever is not at the best level can be beaten by any top 100 player. Difference between top 100 is consistency of play during and between matches. That is what Fedal makes great, and that is why Novak streak was impressive in one of toughest era.

Trends are showing that there are cracks in Federer consistency, and last two year he had problems keeping high level. Same can't be told for Nadal as is having greatest two years, which somehow was in the shadow first six months because of Novak success (which most of you agree, was because Fedal wasn't at his best)

When someone other than Fedal is making success, it is always tagged as "incredible peak", "opponent bad day", "injuries", "suspicious circumstances", "tough draw"... And then follows lessons of Fedal previous successes, how great they can play, and how their best play can't be matched.

If you are going to debate all time about Fedal, and make other tennis fans miserable, can you at least keep it in present and put a side history and fantasy matches of Fedal level on grass and Nadal on clay. It is kinda time for one more half grass/clay match so you can comment yourself to death...

Once there were great comments here, but somehow all threads are becoming infested with this debate.

The thing that puts Fedal in a class of their own is that they have defended multiple titles 5, 6 times in a row and been the top 2 in the game for nigh on 7 years. That's mighty impressive.

atg, are you saying that people should stop have stopped talking about Nole's winning streak this time next year?

Fed and Rafa, or Fedal are active and top four players, why can't we talk about them? It's not like they're already retired and we are still talking about them that iritates some people. We are free to discuss about them and their tennis, isn't this a tennis forum? Feel free to talk about the other two top four guys, nobody stops anybody from doing so.

You're right nadline, same time next year, we may still be hearing about this Nole's winning streak over and over again, and are we to start telling others not to talk about it anymore? I thought this thread is about Rafa and his win at the FO? So we can't even compare both Fed and Rafa's past and present performances, just so not to make some people unhappy! Goodness!

@nadline, I am Novak fan... but to be honest, I am sick of Novak hype... You can imagine what is proportion of his success, here in Serbia. Especially here, there is no single one other success story and anything nice to talk about.

I am not saying that Fedal wasn't great, or still is.... it is just boring to hear that all the time. Who is the greater, who has more impressive records, and worse than anything else "what if"s. It is ridiculous how bad play/day of Fedal becomes ode to their achievements and how marginal it was comparing to their history, and how opponent was lucky etc... And there is glitches of the biggest magnitude, when they face each other, which leads another dimension of debate...

This site with articles and comments was source for information about tennis stuff, and helped me to stay in tune. It was source of great information, back scene stories and the most important comments, which helped me to understand livescore/stats if I am unable to watch match.

But it gets "spamed" with same debate, and somehow everything else than Fedal becomes rare, blurry... It kinda put off other fans to be involved...

atg, no one will stop you talking about Nole's achievements if you want to and to prove that the Fedal subject is not only on TT, during the rain delay at Queens the BBC decided to show the Wimbledon final of 2008 because they say it was an historic match between two of the greatest players in the game.

People are still talking about Borg & McEnroe let alone Federer and Nadal.

@luckystar,

there is great stuff here about their match, I wouldn't read all this if that wasn't true. But match analysis, facts, game play, atmosphere comments are hard to find among other which spreads on all other threads.

since this is even bigger offtopic, i'll stop flaming about this...

I see where you're coming from, atg. Fedal is pervasive...but the reason is because they've both had unprecedented success at the top of the men's game for a staggering amount of time.

I'd been hoping that Raonic and Dolgopolov could come onto the scene and give us other interesting stories to write about, but they're not quite there just yet. Perhaps one day.

Last exciting breakthrough was DelPo, and his 2008 winning streak... but it was long time ago... To bad I hadn't appreciated that more and enjoyed while it lasted. And it was relief to experience something new, to think about something else... I like that feeling thinking about someone new, hot on the run, meeting with old guys...

Novak and Andy are there for a while, pretty constant (overall, constant was antonym for their names)... but I still feel little bit nostalgic about 4-5 years ago. Andy run at the end of 2008 looked promising, 3 consecutive Masters. But kinda he was already there, and that was almost expecting... Novak little bit earlier in 2007 looked hot, and it was enjoying watching him play, but after AO 2008 he completely lost himself till recently. Now they are top 4, beating each other on any surface is not "impossible", "revolutionary"... The only exciting thing would be for someone new (DelPo) to rush in and shuffle them a little bit.

Raonic and Dolgopolov are promising, but I had misfortune to watch some of their sloppiest plays, and saw their moments of brilliance mostly on match highlights and youtube... That is problem when you try to cover guy who is not your native (national tv) or US/UK citizen (satellite). I have pretty good coverage on satellite, but it is hard to watch them unless they are facing someone who have 'reserved' TV coverage.

I am not yet turned on enough to try to search and catch broadcasters feeds on satellite. But it is the next best thing watching satellite feeds, no commercials, no breaks, watching cameraman catching intriguing moments in pauses... :) So that is what I am hunger for... something new, worth of trying to watch...

atg, I'm with you, but of course I really long for Nolandy to step it up. Nole has started as for Andy, who know?
I think the lack of newcomers on the scene just illustrates how HARD it is to break through and how amazing Nolandyraf actually were. The game is so physical that it takes years of hard work to get there. Then maintaining achievement is so difficult too. Look what happened to Delpot and Sasha has a chronic health problem I believe.
Top 10 are all 24+ and top 20 similar. Says it all.

atg, without domination eras are soon forgotten. When you think that the players who replaced the Borg/McEnroe era were born between one and five years after Borg retired you can see why these sort of phenomenons do not come around every day. You may wish for new players to take over but it takes more than winning a few Masters or beating the top players here and there to be memorable. There were other players beside Borg and McEnroe even in their era who did great things in their own way and many followed them like Becker, Edberg etc. but it was the rivalry between those two players that makes them stand out. Connors won more matches than anyone else but there was no intense rivalry between him and anyone else to engage the world.

Here is a snippet from the Bleacher Report which I expect most people have seen:

Borg-McEnroe vs. Federer-Nadal


Howard By Johnette Howard
ESPN.com
Archive

There's an unforgettable New York moment in "Fire & Ice," the outstanding new HBO documentary about Bjorn Borg and John McEnroe, that reminds us, without ever explicitly saying so, of the strong parallels between Borg-McEnroe and the Roger Federer-Rafael Nadal rivalry that added another bookmark Sunday in the French Open final. The film details how by the 1981 U.S. Open, McEnroe was inexorably hunting down Borg's place as the top player in tennis, much like Nadal has overtaken Federer in the last three years................


http://bleacherreport.com/tb/b9Pz9

There is no doubt that tennis thrives on rivalries and if wasn't Federer/Nadal in this era and it was two other players the world would still sit up and take notice as long as those players were able to dominate as Fedal have. It's not because of who they are it's because of what they've done, and wishing players who are clearly not in the same calibre to take over tennis for the sake of it is not going to do the sport any good. People will just switch off if any and everyone was at the top any and every week.

Sadly for you neirther of the two current phenomenons is your favourite player so I understand your frustration but I am having the time of my life having switched off tennis for a while because of what you are suffering from today - domination by players you don't particularly care for.

Even if Federer and Nadal retire today they've done enough to cement their place in tennis.

Been scanning all the messages but I failed to read anyone mention regarding ANACONDA, the coach of course not the snake lolz.

So no matter what Federer adds up to his team will never change the outcome, it's just the same, as the old saying is proven that, YOU CAN NOT TEACH OLD DOG NEW TRICK nyehahahaha!

Vamos King Rafa!

Raindrops, Anacone can claim that this time Roger took more tan 4 games and wasn't bagled.

http://www.10sballs.com/2011/06/14/nadal-resumes-wimbledon-training-on -clay/

Bloody hell, Rafa..........you CAN afford to build and maintain a grass court at your Manacor training ground..........jeez........

Now expect numero to come out creaming himself with delight, "I told you, Wimby grass has been slowed down to play like clay......just to suit Rafa"!

I don't think we need to worry about remarks of delusional Fed fans.
Poor guys, they have to find explanations for the failures of their idol against Rafa.
As logic or facts are not useful in this regard, they have become delusional so that they can happily proclaim that their GOD is GOAT.

rafaisthebest
, 6/14/11 7:06 PM

The facts are these :

1. Rafa is clayking

2. 56% of the h2h with Roger is on clay

3. Off of clay Roger leads h2h 6-5 including 2-1 on grass

To me their overall h2h just further proves Rafa's dominance on clay as he beats just about everybody over 90% of the time on clay. It takes nothing away from Roger that he is 2-12 against Rafa on clay.

Conclusion :

Rafa is clayking

Roger is tennisking

It proves Rafa is clayking.
The fact that Rafa beat Fed in the finals of the last 4 GS tournaments, on clay, grass and hardcourt and beat him on all and further he is world no. 1 and was world no. 1 even in 2008 when Fed was by any accounts in his prime, proves that Rafa is tennisking , not Federer. Federer is the 2nd best player in the Nadal era.

Fed may be the old tennis king, but Rafa will soon take over as the new king. After Rafa, the fight will be among the three guys, namely Nole, Murray and Delpo. Fedal are not done yet, they need each other to fight off the challenges from those three. I think Fedal are still capable of winning two or even three of the slams this year, come next year things may be different. If Fedal can win two slams, their fans should be happy, anything more will be bonus.

"...Roger is tennisking..." - numero , 6/15/11 12:04 AM

Lebron is also a 'king'! :-)

If Roger is tennis king, that makes Rafa the king of kings.

Roger will be thinking - why did Rafa not just take up football, why did he have to opt for tennis?

Roger hired Paul Annacone for one reason and one reason only - How to get passed Rafa.

Rafa is only working on his serve in Manacor then return to England on Wednesday to start practicing on grass; he said he would do that in his post match interview at Queens.

I do agree the he should splash out on 4 courts with the 4 different surfaces in his back yard, on the other hand, it might be counter productive because each surface will only be useful for various parts of the year, because there won't be any point in practicing on grass except at this time of the year.

Numero,

Even you take out clay, Roger and Rafa are almost at the same h2h level at 6-5 (Roger). If you assert that Rafa is just a clayking because of that 10-2 skewed h2h (Rafa), then WHY O! WHY the non-clay h2h is not skewed in favor of Roger? WHY?

And if you disect those matches, they are pretty much even at grandslams stage with 2 wins each against each other, but the wins of Rafa is a better impressive/notable because he defeated Roger in his favored 2 surfaces while you CANNOT say the same thing for Roger. Even then primed Roger was unsuccessful against Rafa at FO. He is Zerrrrroo and will never succeed beating the clayking (as you put it) in his entire tennis career while our clayking has proven his superiority over your tennisking on all surfaces. Nuff said.

Just like your fellow fedfans, you may cover again yourself with your excuse of bad match-up. In that case, and with no single hasitation, we say Roger is just a mediocre tennis player in the hand of Rafa. Roger is the WHIPPING and WEEPING boy of Rafa, sounds too good to me haha!

http://www.wimbledon.com/en_GB/news/articles/2011-06-15/20110615130812 8657255.html

Well, that settles that.........Fed is seeded #3, Nole #2, which I think makes sense........now let's see what the draw reveals!!!!

Raindrops,

They've played 14 times on clay ; 11 on other surfaces. The h2h on other surfaces is 6-5 so it's not a big edge but 11 matches is hardly a large number of times. When Roger was in his prime (2004-2007) Rafa never made it to a HC GS final; hardly any HC finals in which Roger played. It proves that Roger has been 2nd best on clay the past 7 years that he got to so many finals.


Can we say that Rafa is 2nd best on HC yet? Him and Nole both have 2 HC GS. Plus Nole made 2 more finals in '07 and '10. Rafa has made 2 GS HC finals in his career and 2 are played each year.

Rafa may pass Roger at some point but as of right now, overall Roger is still the best. Way better HC results and better grass resume as well. Plus 2nd best on clay of this era.

As far as #3 seed at Wimbledon, it's fair and I hope he draws Rafa in the semifinal so either Nole or Murray can make their first final.

doesn't 1 play 4, 2 play 3, as happened at RG?

Even now Roger is not the best. Not with that h2h against the no. 1 player.
Also duly discounting his 12 gs won during the weak era, Roger's 16 gs are equivalent to not more than 9.
He won 12 in the weak era which when discounted would become 6. Plus 3 after that.
So Rafa is ahead.

Sorry, Roger's tally is 10. 6 plus 4 after the weak era. Maybe one should discount those 4 also as Rafa was away. So it is 8.

As far as #3 seed at Wimbledon, it's fair and I hope he draws Rafa in the semifinal so either Nole or Murray can make their first final.

numero , 6/15/11 2:15 PM


I don't think Roger will share your sentiments. Of the others in the top 4, Roger would be my pick for Rafa to play in the SF.

Kim Clijsters has pulled out of Wimbledon due to an ankle injury she sustained in her match yesterday at the UNICEF Open. This is why I was pleased that Rafa didn't push himself too much at Queens.

Personally, I do not care who Rafa meets in the semis, as long as it's not Roger, because if Rafa is in the semis, he WILL be in the finals! The reason I do not want him to meet Roger in the semis is because I want him to meet Roger in the finals, that way he is GUARANTEED slam #11! Besides, if you're gonna roast a goat, you wanna do it on the biggest stage, no? Just saying............

Of course Andy M and Nole will not be pushovers this year.........I believe Wimby 2011 is about as open as it's ever been. Rafa wins Wimby 2011 he will win USOPEN without a shadow of a doubt.

Vamos!!!!!!!!!

Rafa lands at Wimbledon and what's the first thing he does.............goes grocery shopping!!

http://www.facebook.com/Nadal#!/photo.php?fbid=101502131 45311026&set=pu.64822581025&type=1&theater


What's not to like about this guy..................Xisca, you got yourself a good man, keep him.

As Roger is almost 30, he shouldn't really be a contender. But he is defying Time.
How is he able to do it?

Fancy seeing Rafa at Asda. Sadly I live too far away to go there on the off chance that I might run into him. Rafa is such a regular guy.

I must admit I did not expect Fed to be seeded #3 at Wimby...and I don't think it is fair either...the guy almost owns Wimby...I thought they were going to take into account past achievements and make seeding decisions accordingly, as they have done before...I always thought Wimby was distinctive and unique just for that and I kind of liked it...anyway, it is going to be so interesting to see in whose part of the draw Fed will land...

and Nad, Rafa is in your part of the universe now and you better take care of our guy..keep an eye on him, hang around and report back to us...we accept no excuses like "I live far away"...:)

Yes, it kinda gives me a boost when the Rafalocator says - Currently in London, UK. nats, I'm keeping my eye on him don't you worry. So far the weather is just not playing it's part I don't know how much practice the players will be able to get in by Monday.

Can't wait for Monday.

Rafa fans, we have a convert...........check out the link below:

http://blog.oregonlive.com/tennis/2011/06/wimbledon_preview_ rafael_nadal_roger_federer_novak_djokovic_and_a_player_to_be_named_lat er.html

1. This guy (Douglas Perry) predicted Rafa would win RG right AFTER his less impressive performance in the 1st round against Isner.
2. He is an avowed Roger Federer fan.
3. I love the following sentence in the blog: "Soderling, Murray, Federer and Djokovic all have what it takes to win Wimbledon this year. But they're not going to catch Rafa: He's on a mission from God."

Who am I to argue?

VAMOOOOOOOOOOOSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!

Let's hope Perry is right!
I want either Rafa or Murray to win.
I do not want Federer to win because his delusional fans would become shrill and harass the rest of us. Although Djoko's fans also are shrill, they are still better than the delusional Fed fans who will behave like Death eaters celebrating the return of Lord Voldemort.
So third preference is Djokovic.
Fourth anyone but Federer.
But alas I know Wimby is going to be won by one amongst the top 4. It is not the WTA, you know.
So by default, I guess the fourth preference is Federer.

RE : rafaisthebest, 6/16/11 4:42 PM

Rafa is an agnostic according to his wikipedia profile so he's not on a mission from God. Surely God would not favor an agnostic. More likely he's on a mission from Satan. ;-)

numero,

Since you persist in bringing up the God issue, I thought it might be helpful to provide the definition of the words "agnostic" and "atheist".

agnostic -

a person who holds that the existence of the ultimate cause, as god, and the essential nature of things are unknown and unknowable, or that human knowledge is limited to experience.
a person who denies or doubts the possibility of ultimate knowledge in some area of study.

atheist -

a person who denies or disbelieves the existence of a supreme being or beings.

There is a difference. To question the existence of God is not the same as denying his existence. God loves everyone, even those who don't believe. God is not hateful or vengeful. You have a fundamental lack of understanding that one can be spiritual without believing in a supreme being.

You are beyond judgemental and hypocritical. So now Rafa is doing the devil's work? That is presumptuous and arrogant. You are supremely intolerant of a person's right to worship in their own way.

I realize that this is just another attempt to inflame Rafa fans, but it is abominable to even mention him in the same sentence as Satan.

numero's logic is obviously poor.
If somebody doesn't believe in God how does it mean that he believes in Satan or that he would be on a mission from Satan?
Incidentally, belief in Satan would imply belief in God. If numero has read origin of of Satan, he should know this.
Logically, non-belief in GOD implies non-belief in Satan.

numero is confusing atheist or agnostic with following the dictates of Satan. But as atheist or agnostics question or disbelieve the existence of God, they therefore question or disbelieve the existence of Satan.

Native,

Calm down. Clearly I was kidding about the Satan crack. Nonetheless give me Kurt Warner and Tim Tebow over that confused guy.

numero,

You don't need to tell me to calm down, because I am not upset so much as being tired of this ongoing need to poke Rafa fans in the eye by making unfortunate remarks about him.

You know perfectly well that if anyone mentioned Fed even remotely in association with Satan, you would have a hissy fit. You also know that it is an extremely offensive comment. How on earth did Satan even get into this discussion? So someone made a comment about Rafa being on mission from God and you have to take it literally? Come on!

holdserve,

Excellent point about non belief in God implying non belief in Satan!

On that note, I am done with this now. I have no idea how Kurt Warner and Tim Tebow got into it.

Hmmm.... I can honestly say I never expected Tim Tebow's name to be invoked on a blog about the French Open. :D

Ha ha, maybe Federer is Satan.

The above is a good example of why it's so difficult to have a discussion with a Rafafa. Another Rafafan always joins it to reinforce a point.

Cheryl: a little deviation is not bad, but You should read other blogsites, where basketball and ice hockey, husbands clothes and children crying are the main topic of discussion instead of the article's topic. It's good to see that the TT bloggers keep to the topic. I give up in frustration trying to follow the tennis-related discussions elsewhere. It's why I love Tennis.com also, as they stay on topic and discourages long drawn-out discussions.

... besides, if he (Rafa) is agnostic he wouldn't believe in Satan either.
+ if a given God loves us all ... he/she/it doesn't really care whether we believe in him/her/it or not as long as we play by his/her/its rules :)
sorry scoretracker.. I'm deviating.
With Wimby about to start it feels SO good for a Rafan to see his man as seed Nr. 1 and with another RG in the bag, doesn't it :)

@shireling, I don't see your comment as a deviation, as you're talking tennis. My point concerns the non-tennis stuff some posters engage in on a daily basis . I'm trying to rationalize how, or why, basketball, ice hockey, literature and a child crying , would belong on a tennis blogsite, but I can't see the common ground. Sorry.I hate having to scroll down just to avoid immaterial stuff, only to find that I've missed some tennis stuff. It's frustrating.