Nadal approaches each match as if winning it is a new goal line to cross, rather than something to be afraid of losing. In this sense, he’s like Michael Jordan, who set out to prove himself again every day. But Nadal's ambition isn’t as hard-edged as Jordan’s. Rafa doesn’t want to embarrass his opponent (unless, perhaps, his name is Soderling); he wants more than anything to feel that addictive sense of joy and relief that we all feel every time we win a tennis match. Allowing himself to soak that feeling in for a second gives him one more reason to try his absolute best to make it happen. I said earlier that the old-school way to win has always been to act like you’ve been there before. Nadal has successfully turned that on its head. He wins by acting like he’s never been there before.
I have never seen such tenacity, such ambition, such fight and such honor go into every shot as when I watch Rafael Nadal.
I want to be like him. The attitude he exudes the moment he walks out on the court is the attitude of a true champion. A champion whose desire to win is the same as the desire of a lion to eat. Stalking his prey with force and speed, Nadal, 22, has already become one of the game's all-time best.
What is so unusual about Rafa (which is what he likes to be called) is that unlike many of his fellow Spaniards, he can dominate on all surfaces. He has never lost a match on the French Open's clay, but he also has a Wimbledon title to his name, as well as one from the Australian Open. This year he's the only man able to go for a true Grand Slam.
What makes him so good? I think it's that he's the hardest worker. The last one to leave the court, the first to arrive. The one who falls asleep studying, the first to rise. It's not easy being a champion; you don't just wake up and — bam! — you're No. 1. It takes work, effort, desire, dedication — all qualities that Rafa has. I could be wrong, but I don't think I am far off.
About all the retirements during Internazionali BNL d'Italia, tristann said:
Silly doesn't begin to convey what has happened in this tournament. I am hoping that tomorrow Stan wins, but frankly I don't care that much. All I ask is that it be either a blowout either way, or involve a retirement. I feel sorry for the fans in Rome, but if nothing salvages the disaster that this tournament has turned out to be, it will be harder to ignore the truth. That Evans article is a good start. Better late than never.
Nadal has been speaking up a lot, for quite some time now, but it has fallen mostly on deaf ears. He has made some judgment errors, and I ranted on those in an earlier post, but there is no denying that he was facing some very unfair choices. The scheduling has affected many players, but he was the one who stood to lose the most during this clay season. I think that is the reason certain other high visibility players chose to keep silent. The thought of Nadal limping into RG after four weeks of desperately trying to defend points might have been too tempting for some players (and their fans).
Well, karma is a bitch, ain't it? I'll leave it at that, rather than go into another long rant.
One good thing that came out of this, Craig, is that both Roddick and Blake have gained a lot of respect after their performances in Rome.
What a difference a day makes.
I was actually looking forward to today's semifinals. I wanted to see Radek Stepanek subdue he who will not be named. I wanted to see Andy Roddick upset the mentally frail Stanislas Wawrinka.
But Radek was sick and Roddick was tired. Two seminfinals; 10 lopsided games played.
Oh. Well.
I hope the booing fans got a full refund.
That's usually the headline in January, if Serena Williams isn't playing the Australian Open, in early July, if Venus Willilams isn't playing Wimbledon, or in September during the US Open. But the silly season continues.
Andy Roddick advanced to his second career semifinal at the Foro Italico with a hard-fought 6-3, 4-6, 7-6(5) victory over a determined Tommy Robredo, who's trying to get his career back on track.
Andy took a page from Radek Stepanek's book by serving big and smothering the net at every opportunity. He exhibited his trademark red clay fluster late in the second set when he dropped serve to drop the set and also in the third set when he surrendered his early break lead with a double fault. The crowd urged him on as he fought his way into a tiebreak.
I forgot how popular Andy is in Rome.
Robredo, showing know signs of his long match last night against Nikolay Davydenko, ran coast to coast to loop and lob back all that Andy threw at him and almost walked away with an upset.
I say upset because before today Robredo had never won a set against Andy which included a loss right here in Rome six years ago. The same year Andy advanced this far.
Tomorrow, the American will face Stanislas Wawrinka, a clay court specialist who needed three sets to defeat James Blake who was a mere two or three points away from his own milestone at a claycourt Masters event.
Will the silly season continue?
Stay tuned.
This has just not been a good year for Roger Federer. Listless, sluggish, ornery. Reminds me of his demeanor in last year's Monte-Carlo final.
Radek Stepanek upset the Swiss 7-6(4), 7-6(7) with great serving and excellent net play. He was virtually unpassable. Even after he choked serving for the match, he recovered, even after falling behind in the second tiebreak, and notched his second victory over Raja in six tries.
This is the silly season of tennis.
