Lucky No. 7

by Craig Hickman


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Am I suggesting that Rafael Nadal is lucky for winning his historic seventh consecutive title in the French Riviera today? Given the way David Ferrer tossed away an opportunity to at least push the match to a third set, then sure, why not.

Mostly, though, Nadal is lucky to be winning anything at all without being able to rely on his serve. All year, it's been a problem. Only once, when facing triple break point early in the third against Tomas Berdych in Miami, did his serve save ultimately save the day. But in the finals of the three consecutive Masters 1000 events he's contested in 2011, his serve has been woeful. Novak Djokovic got the best of him in the first two, though it took three sets both times, on a surface where having a woeful serve can keep you from winning.

But on this day, on this surface, against this player, Nadal showed once again why clay is his very best friend. Even with a faltering serve and his tentative approach to the match -- there was a Shot Spot graphic that showed him striking his shots from behind the baseline 90% of the time -- he knows the nuances of the clay better than any other, can exploit all the angles with nary a thought. At once impressive and boring. This is nothing new. I wrote about it years ago already.

While it's good to see the world No. 1 finally get a victory under his belt -- he hasn't won a title since Tokyo last October -- I was hoping for a new champion here this year. I remain hopeful that the Red Brick Wall won't run the table on clay this season.

Who's going to stop him?