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  • Rafael Nadal begins bid for gold in Beijing

    8/10/08 8:13 PM | Cheryl Murray
    - In just over a week’s time, Rafael Nadal will take over the world number one ranking from long-time top dog Roger Federer. But for now, the Spaniard will focus on the goal of winning a medal for his country.

    Nadal comes into the Olympic games off his best summer hard court season to date. He won the Masters event in Toronto, dropping just a set along the way. A week later, he got his best result at the Cincinnati Masters tournament. Visibally tired, Nadal fought his way through to the semifinals, where he lost in straight sets to rival Novak Djokovic.

    His first round opponent is the Italian clay-courter Potito Starace. Starace is ranked 71 in the world; though he plays on the main ATP tour, he has also spent quite a bit of time on the Challenger circuit trying to rebuild his ranking. His best results in 2008 have come on the dirt in Challengers. Most recently, he made the final of the event in San Marino, Italy. He lost to countryman Filippo Volandri.

    Unfortunately for Starace, his record against Nadal is not encouraging. The two men have played on four occasions; all four meetings were straight set encounters won by Nadal. The closest Starace has gotten to taking a set was in Hamburg earlier this year, where he took Nadal to a tiebreaker. The surface will not be to Starace’s advantage. His defensive style of play will be vulnerable to Nadal’s forehand - especially since the Spaniard has recently been employing a more aggressive hard court game. Nadal in two.

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