Sports
Remarkable match at Wimbledon
Last year, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal (a.k.a Rafa) met in the final round of the world's most prestigious tennis tournament, Wimbledon. It was Roger that won that match, making him only second player in tournament history to win five Wimbledon finals in a row. What an amazing run for Roger.
Fast forward to this year's French Open where the two met yet again. That match was decidedly won by Rafa where he not only proved that he has what it takes to beat the world's top ranked player but do so in such an overwhelming fashion.
With so much leading to Wimbledon, it was amazing to see the two meet in the Wimbledon final. Not only because they're the top two players in the world and have established a beautiful rivalry, but also due to the historical significance of either's win this year.
With a win, Rafa would become the first player in 28 years to win both the French Open and Wimbledon in the same year. If Federer were to win, he'd be the first player in the history of professional tennis to win six Wimbledon titles in a row. Interestingly enough, both would be touching on Bjorn Bork's record.
In the early part of the final, Rafa seemed to be on the road to victory with the first two sets in hand, but Roger held on to win the third set on a tie-breaker. The fourth set also saw a tie-breaker with Federer on the winning end again after Rafa had two chances to put the game away. That tie-breaker brought out some of the best tennis I've ever seen. Then came the fifth set, which like the others, trumped the set before it. Already the longest match in Wimbledon history, Federer was trying to become the first player in 81 years to be down two sets and come back to win the final with the score 7-6 in his favour but Rafa mustered up whatever he had to push the match to 7-7 and later 7-8. It was in that game that Rafael Nadal won the match, making him the first player in 28 years to win both the French Open and Wimbledon in the same year and the first Spanish tennis player in 42 years to win a Wimbledon Championship.
It was a history-making match and was by far the best tennis I've ever seen. What a remarkable show.
Well done men, well done.
Novak Djokovic wins Rogers Cup
In a tie-breaking third set, world No. 4 Novak Djokovic beat world No. 1 Roger Federer at the 2007 Rogers Cup Men’s Final in Montreal. With the win, Djokovic became the first player in over ten years to beat the world No. 3, No. 2 and No. 1 players en route to a championship. Quite an amazing feat for a twenty-year-old!
The match was a treat for any tennis fan, with spectacular aces and blistering forehands. Federer looked a little shaky in the first set, with numerous unforced errors and lost the tie-breaker 7-2. In the second set however, he reminded the world why he’s ranked No. 1 by completely dominating Djokovic, winning 6-2. This set the stage for a third and final set, which went down to the wire with another tie-breaker which Djokovic decisively won, 7-2.
Regardless of the loss, Roger Federer put on a great show and it’s a treat to watch the man play. All the best to both Federer and Djokovic. Overall, an excellent tournament.
Wimbeldon Men's Final
What a weekend for sports!
I was channel-surfing last morning and to my surprise landed on the Wimbeldon Men’s Tennis final! This year’s contenders were the brilliant Roger Federer and the amazing Rafael Nadal. What an awesome matchup. By the time I started watching the match, the two were two sets into it, with the first set looking like a clean (6-0) sweep of Federer over Nadal but things started to get heated up in the tie-breaker of the third set.
I love watching Roger Federer play his game. He’s got so much composure and he seems very humbled. Oh and he’s got amazing skill to boot, heh. This was actually the first time I actually saw Rafael Nadal playing a game as opposed to watching him in the hightlight reel of most newscasts. He’s got a lot of skill and it’s always nice to see talented young people rising up the ranks.
Tennis is such an amazing game. It’s simple enough that anyone can just pick up a racquet and play but also complicated enough for players like Roger Federer, Pete Sampras and the like to show us amazing control and spin. It really is a refined sport, there’s a lot of prestige involved (especially at Wimbeldon), there’s a rich history, there’s tennis etiquette and so much more that I feel makes the game special. Moreover, the tournament is international, attracting players coming from all over the globe which undoubtedly calls for fierce competition and a great experience for the tennis viewer.
By the way, Roger Federer won the match 6 sets to 3 leading him to a fourth consecutive Wimbeldon title…wow.