World No. 1 and 2nd seed Spaniard Rafael Nadal beat the 12th seed Czech Tomas Berdych in almost a one - sided Wimbledon Men's Singles Finals 6-3, 7-5, 6-4. For the neutral fans, it was a disappointment as they had high expectations from the final encounter, especially given the way the finals were fought over the last two years in 2008 and 2009. But for Rafa fans, it was a treat!
Tomas Berdych, known for his flat fierce ground strokes and a big serve was outserved by the Majorcan in this match. Nadal started his first service game with an ace... and ended the match by breaking Berdych with a rasping forehand cross court pass. Though the quality of the tennis match did not match up with the semi-finals that preceded the match, but that can be explained by the fact that Nadal was at his dominating best... breaking his opponent four times on his way to the golden trophy.
At the presentation ceremony, he thanked the crowd for their support. What he said next caught my attention, I don't know why! He said that he was delighted to have the crowd support despite having defeated their favourite and the local man Andy Murray in the semis. He appreciated the centre court crowd further by saying that this does not happen everywhere else in the world. Absolutely true!
Rafa achieved numerous records and feats with his win yesterday:
- First Spaniard to win 2 Wimbledon titles
- Second man after Bjorn Borg to win a double of Wimbledon and French Open in the same year for the 2nd time (Borg achieved it thrice from 1978 to 1980)
- Climbed from 12th place to 7th place in the list of men with most singles Grand Slam titles (equaling Fred Perry, Ken Rosewall, Jimmy Connors, Ivan Lendl and Andre Agassi at 8 titles... going past the likes of Mats Wilander and John McEnroe)
At just 24, he has it in him to create many more records... if he can take care of his knees on the way. Many have put him in the category of one of the all-time greats for a number of reasons... the way he has fought back to the top after a bad 2009 season, the fact that he has a Grand Slam title on every surface, his humility and a lot more.
Roger Federer may be the best Men's Singles Tennis player in all time... but no one can ignore the fact that Rafael Nadal won a grass Grand Slam before Federer could win one on clay. Plus, Nadal completed a Grand Slam win on all three surfaces before Federer managed to achieve this feat. Add to it, the form that he has been in this year (his 2010 win loss record read 47-5 at the moment... the best in the ATP Circuit this year)... he is being regarded as the new champion of this era!
I just hope that he manages to complete a Career Grand Slam at Flushing Meadows (US Open). It will undoubtedly be difficult... hard courts have always been difficult for Nadal. It is tougher for his knees as well as his playing style... but that has never stopped Rafa!
Vamos Rafa! Wish you many more titles and a lot of success!
1 comment:
Federer is my favourite, but congrats to Rafa for winning; he deserved it.
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