Slowly but surely due to a few rain delays and thunderstorms here and there we finally got to the final. Nadal and Federer totally apart in the two separate halfs of the draw beat every opponent put in front of them.
Nadal brushed aside Scotlands own top ten ranked player Andy Murray on his path to the final. Federer took apart well established tennis name Marit Safin easily also. The two where both on form but Nadal seemed to have a desire like none seen before at Wimbledon.
Passion oozed from his game, his serve was looking better than ever, his shot choices and in rally positioning was over exceptional, he looked the part.
Federer looked his usual calm, collected self. Typically making every win look easy, making every tough shot look like a breath of fresh air. Federer even though with already 12 grand slams under his belt, he wanted his 13th so badly.
The Fed express wanted his 13th grand slam so badly because this would put him 1 grand slam victory behind the record set by the great Pete Sampras with a record of 14 grand slam wins.
Both competitors had fire in their bellies and a high will to win. In addition Federer vs Nadal has slowly become a fued more established than the one like McEnroe and Borg used to have in the 70s/80s. Realistically this final was shaping up to be the most entertaining final ever.
The players walked out onto centre court to a mob-like roar and a rhapsody of cheers. The crowds appreciation seemed partizan. Half for Rafa, half for Fed but the look of determination on each mans face said it all.
Ultimate focus, both looking aggressive and uber-concentrated on the battle ahead. Centre court seemed more like a gladatorial arena, a coliseum of sheer calibrated class.
The hardcore Tennis fans were screaming in delight as the two Tennis titans got up from their seats. The stage was set and the final of all Tennis finals was about to begin. The Grandest of slams, the mens singles final at Wimbledon was about to be decided.
The number 1 seed against the number 2 seed, commenced.
Federer took a 4-1 lead then came the textbook Wimbledon downpour. After a short rain delay they came back out onto court. Then Nadal came out of the starting blocks like a rocket fuelled missile, he quickly overcame Federer’s early 4-1 lead to take the first set 6-4.
Then Nadal took the second set in succession with another 6-4 set win. Then came the third set and it soon was evens honoured with both players levelled at 3 games each. Dark rain clouds seemed to gobble up the panoramic distance of the BBC camera shot near Wimbledon. Federer, like all great champions, seemed to clamber his way out of a hole.
The Fed express then hit five straight points at Rafa, stopping Nadal going 4-3 in the lead and heading towards victory. Rafa then held his serve and so did Fed, As the rain began to fall and the court covers came out. The two Tennis titans where held in the third set with Federer taking a 5-4 lead, with Rafa two sets up.
Two rain delays and only just over 2 hours and a quarter into the final. It was looking as if this time the fans where going to have to wait to get their moneys worth. With no Cliff Richard to entertain the crowd the fans pleased themselves. Jimmy Tarbuck and Bruce Forsyth did show face and managed to get a few laughs out of a short BBC interview. Forsyth was on top form spouting off his typical household kareoke-cathphrases.
The rain stopped, to be honest it was nice to see them to see them nice after an 80 minute delay, when Federer and Nadal came back out onto centre court. The third set, was set up to be a stunner. With both men serving to perfection, it was soon at 6-6 each, which pushed the third set into a tie breaker. Federer showed his tie breaking class with a solid 7-5 win in the tie breaker. It was now 2 sets to 1 with Federer comfortably back in the driving seat
The world number 1 was on fight back mode when the 4th set stormed into another tie breaker. The atmosphere in the centre court crowd was electric, the vocal mixing pot producing a song of rafa-fed, fed-rafa chants as the 4th set hit a tie breaker. Rafa produced some stunning Tennis but it was Roger who stole the tie breaker, stopping two Nadal match points at 7-6 to go on to win 8-10.
An awestruck Nadal could not believe the fight back but as we all know Federer can play some superhuman Tennis and it showed. The Tennis titans were now locked at 2 sets each.The Wimbledon fans, the fans sat at home watching, the fans tuning into the radio, the fans watching on the internet all of which where about to be treated to a 5th and final set. The deciding set got underway.
The start of the 5th set was tense the buzz around the court could be felt even by the voyeurs at home. The Tennis behemoths battled back and fourth each taking their service game, at 2-2 in the 5th set touching 8pm down came the rain and again the court covers came out. Watching this myself I asked is this going to ever finish? Could this be the final of finals that just keeps going on and on due to the constant rain delays? One thing I did know was that it was not going to rain forever.
After a 30 minute drizzling downpour the sun partially came out again. The players came back out onto court. The Tennis leviathans then played out a massive 16 games against each other. In the 5th and final set no tiebreakers are allowed so this time a tie breaker could not save Federer.
As the sun began to set, and the evening haze began to linger, and the children watching in the crowd began to yawn as it was past their bedtimes, Rafa and Roger seemed all square at 7 games each. You could feel the hunger from Nadal, you could see it in his eyes.
The cliched saying "Eye of the tiger" came to mind. Nadal looked fierce and focussed. He knew he could take this from Federer and for the first time I could see the fear in Fed's face, I could see his disbelief that Nadal had matched him, shot for shot for the first time on another surface other than clay. Nadal had more in the tank and his aggression fuelled that even higher.
Grass had always been Federer’s "hood" as such; he ruled the roost on Grass but was this about to be changed? Was Federer’s beautiful record at Wimbledon about to be broke and shattered into pieces? It seemed in Nadal’s hands.
The match was tied in the final set on 7 matches each. Federer went on to stop 3 Nadal break points but Federer now looked drained, he looked like he had not much left to give. Nadal landed a massive blow when an unforced Federer error gave Nadal a match lead of 8-7. Nadal now had to serve out for the championship.
Rafas service started. He rifled one in which pummelled Federer, and another and another. Rafa had now got championship point on his hands, a chance to gain the holy grail of Tennis, the Wimbledon title which has settled in Roger Federer’s hands for too long. Nadal served then followed his serve in to volley back but Roger moved in and hit a simple forehand into the net. Nadal broke down and fell to the ground in ecstacy, he had stopped the rot, he had stopped the Fed Express in his Wimbledon "backyard" and he was the new Wimbledon men’s singles Champion.
The 22-year-old powerhouse won 6-4 6-4 6-7 (5-7) 6-7 (8-10) 9-7 to become the first Spanish man since Manuel Santana in 1966 to win a Wimbledon singles title. Nadal is also the first player since 1980 to hold both the French Open and Wimbledon men’s singles titles back to back. The last player to do this was legendary Tennis leviathan Bjorn Borg. To put this into perspective Rafa's achievements this year have put him in the record books at the side of Tennis Gods. Is this the start of the reign of Rafa? Could he now be the dominant force in Tennis? Is Roger Federer’s era over?
I think we will see a Federer fight back, he will come back better than ever. I don’t expect that this will be the last time we will see Federer against Nadal, this feud is only just warming up.
With Wimbledon all done and dusted its now back to normality and present day here is a review of some important sports news in "Sports Bullets of the week" -
1 - Football, Cristiano Ronaldos move to Real Madrid may have been put on hold and Real Madrid attention may now have turned to Arsenals midfield maestro Cesc Fabregas.
2 - Football, Aston Villa defender Wilfred Bouma suffered a horrendous ankle break in the Intertoto cup win against Odense, he is set to miss at least the first quarter of the season.
3 - Cycling, Spaniard, Carlos Sastre seals his first Tour de France title.
4 - Tennis, Its two in a row for Nadal, Rafael Nadal continued his march towards the world number one spot by winning the Toronto Masters.
5 - Boxing, Mexican Antonio Margarito beats Miguel Cotto and becomes the WBA welterweight champion by chopping down the Puerto Rican in the 11th round.
6 - After injuring his hand, Joe Calzaghe believes his fight with Roy Jones Jr will now happen on the 8th of November.
7 - Snooker, Ronnie O'Sullivan has been fined and docked some ranking points as punishment for his rash comments at the China Open in March.
8 - Athletics, Jamaican Usain Bolt warms up for the Olympics by winning the 200m at the London Grand Prix in 19.76 seconds.
9 - Darts, Phil Taylor claims the Stan James World Matchplay title in Blackpool beating defending champion James Wade in a 18-9 victory.
10 - American sports, NFL legend Brett Favre confirms he has changed his mind over retiring and wants to continue a career in American Football.
That’s all for now folks and here is my final thought Fifa President, Sepp Blatter says the funniest of things and undermines Michel Platini all the time, but from my view he seems more like a comedian than a president.
Next time – Blatterisms, the crap Sepp Blatter splatters from his chops and more sports news.
Nadal brushed aside Scotlands own top ten ranked player Andy Murray on his path to the final. Federer took apart well established tennis name Marit Safin easily also. The two where both on form but Nadal seemed to have a desire like none seen before at Wimbledon.
Passion oozed from his game, his serve was looking better than ever, his shot choices and in rally positioning was over exceptional, he looked the part.
Federer looked his usual calm, collected self. Typically making every win look easy, making every tough shot look like a breath of fresh air. Federer even though with already 12 grand slams under his belt, he wanted his 13th so badly.
The Fed express wanted his 13th grand slam so badly because this would put him 1 grand slam victory behind the record set by the great Pete Sampras with a record of 14 grand slam wins.
Both competitors had fire in their bellies and a high will to win. In addition Federer vs Nadal has slowly become a fued more established than the one like McEnroe and Borg used to have in the 70s/80s. Realistically this final was shaping up to be the most entertaining final ever.
The players walked out onto centre court to a mob-like roar and a rhapsody of cheers. The crowds appreciation seemed partizan. Half for Rafa, half for Fed but the look of determination on each mans face said it all.
Ultimate focus, both looking aggressive and uber-concentrated on the battle ahead. Centre court seemed more like a gladatorial arena, a coliseum of sheer calibrated class.
The hardcore Tennis fans were screaming in delight as the two Tennis titans got up from their seats. The stage was set and the final of all Tennis finals was about to begin. The Grandest of slams, the mens singles final at Wimbledon was about to be decided.
The number 1 seed against the number 2 seed, commenced.
Federer took a 4-1 lead then came the textbook Wimbledon downpour. After a short rain delay they came back out onto court. Then Nadal came out of the starting blocks like a rocket fuelled missile, he quickly overcame Federer’s early 4-1 lead to take the first set 6-4.
Then Nadal took the second set in succession with another 6-4 set win. Then came the third set and it soon was evens honoured with both players levelled at 3 games each. Dark rain clouds seemed to gobble up the panoramic distance of the BBC camera shot near Wimbledon. Federer, like all great champions, seemed to clamber his way out of a hole.
The Fed express then hit five straight points at Rafa, stopping Nadal going 4-3 in the lead and heading towards victory. Rafa then held his serve and so did Fed, As the rain began to fall and the court covers came out. The two Tennis titans where held in the third set with Federer taking a 5-4 lead, with Rafa two sets up.
Two rain delays and only just over 2 hours and a quarter into the final. It was looking as if this time the fans where going to have to wait to get their moneys worth. With no Cliff Richard to entertain the crowd the fans pleased themselves. Jimmy Tarbuck and Bruce Forsyth did show face and managed to get a few laughs out of a short BBC interview. Forsyth was on top form spouting off his typical household kareoke-cathphrases.
The rain stopped, to be honest it was nice to see them to see them nice after an 80 minute delay, when Federer and Nadal came back out onto centre court. The third set, was set up to be a stunner. With both men serving to perfection, it was soon at 6-6 each, which pushed the third set into a tie breaker. Federer showed his tie breaking class with a solid 7-5 win in the tie breaker. It was now 2 sets to 1 with Federer comfortably back in the driving seat
The world number 1 was on fight back mode when the 4th set stormed into another tie breaker. The atmosphere in the centre court crowd was electric, the vocal mixing pot producing a song of rafa-fed, fed-rafa chants as the 4th set hit a tie breaker. Rafa produced some stunning Tennis but it was Roger who stole the tie breaker, stopping two Nadal match points at 7-6 to go on to win 8-10.
An awestruck Nadal could not believe the fight back but as we all know Federer can play some superhuman Tennis and it showed. The Tennis titans were now locked at 2 sets each.The Wimbledon fans, the fans sat at home watching, the fans tuning into the radio, the fans watching on the internet all of which where about to be treated to a 5th and final set. The deciding set got underway.
The start of the 5th set was tense the buzz around the court could be felt even by the voyeurs at home. The Tennis behemoths battled back and fourth each taking their service game, at 2-2 in the 5th set touching 8pm down came the rain and again the court covers came out. Watching this myself I asked is this going to ever finish? Could this be the final of finals that just keeps going on and on due to the constant rain delays? One thing I did know was that it was not going to rain forever.
After a 30 minute drizzling downpour the sun partially came out again. The players came back out onto court. The Tennis leviathans then played out a massive 16 games against each other. In the 5th and final set no tiebreakers are allowed so this time a tie breaker could not save Federer.
As the sun began to set, and the evening haze began to linger, and the children watching in the crowd began to yawn as it was past their bedtimes, Rafa and Roger seemed all square at 7 games each. You could feel the hunger from Nadal, you could see it in his eyes.
The cliched saying "Eye of the tiger" came to mind. Nadal looked fierce and focussed. He knew he could take this from Federer and for the first time I could see the fear in Fed's face, I could see his disbelief that Nadal had matched him, shot for shot for the first time on another surface other than clay. Nadal had more in the tank and his aggression fuelled that even higher.
Grass had always been Federer’s "hood" as such; he ruled the roost on Grass but was this about to be changed? Was Federer’s beautiful record at Wimbledon about to be broke and shattered into pieces? It seemed in Nadal’s hands.
The match was tied in the final set on 7 matches each. Federer went on to stop 3 Nadal break points but Federer now looked drained, he looked like he had not much left to give. Nadal landed a massive blow when an unforced Federer error gave Nadal a match lead of 8-7. Nadal now had to serve out for the championship.
Rafas service started. He rifled one in which pummelled Federer, and another and another. Rafa had now got championship point on his hands, a chance to gain the holy grail of Tennis, the Wimbledon title which has settled in Roger Federer’s hands for too long. Nadal served then followed his serve in to volley back but Roger moved in and hit a simple forehand into the net. Nadal broke down and fell to the ground in ecstacy, he had stopped the rot, he had stopped the Fed Express in his Wimbledon "backyard" and he was the new Wimbledon men’s singles Champion.
The 22-year-old powerhouse won 6-4 6-4 6-7 (5-7) 6-7 (8-10) 9-7 to become the first Spanish man since Manuel Santana in 1966 to win a Wimbledon singles title. Nadal is also the first player since 1980 to hold both the French Open and Wimbledon men’s singles titles back to back. The last player to do this was legendary Tennis leviathan Bjorn Borg. To put this into perspective Rafa's achievements this year have put him in the record books at the side of Tennis Gods. Is this the start of the reign of Rafa? Could he now be the dominant force in Tennis? Is Roger Federer’s era over?
I think we will see a Federer fight back, he will come back better than ever. I don’t expect that this will be the last time we will see Federer against Nadal, this feud is only just warming up.
With Wimbledon all done and dusted its now back to normality and present day here is a review of some important sports news in "Sports Bullets of the week" -
1 - Football, Cristiano Ronaldos move to Real Madrid may have been put on hold and Real Madrid attention may now have turned to Arsenals midfield maestro Cesc Fabregas.
2 - Football, Aston Villa defender Wilfred Bouma suffered a horrendous ankle break in the Intertoto cup win against Odense, he is set to miss at least the first quarter of the season.
3 - Cycling, Spaniard, Carlos Sastre seals his first Tour de France title.
4 - Tennis, Its two in a row for Nadal, Rafael Nadal continued his march towards the world number one spot by winning the Toronto Masters.
5 - Boxing, Mexican Antonio Margarito beats Miguel Cotto and becomes the WBA welterweight champion by chopping down the Puerto Rican in the 11th round.
6 - After injuring his hand, Joe Calzaghe believes his fight with Roy Jones Jr will now happen on the 8th of November.
7 - Snooker, Ronnie O'Sullivan has been fined and docked some ranking points as punishment for his rash comments at the China Open in March.
8 - Athletics, Jamaican Usain Bolt warms up for the Olympics by winning the 200m at the London Grand Prix in 19.76 seconds.
9 - Darts, Phil Taylor claims the Stan James World Matchplay title in Blackpool beating defending champion James Wade in a 18-9 victory.
10 - American sports, NFL legend Brett Favre confirms he has changed his mind over retiring and wants to continue a career in American Football.
That’s all for now folks and here is my final thought Fifa President, Sepp Blatter says the funniest of things and undermines Michel Platini all the time, but from my view he seems more like a comedian than a president.
Next time – Blatterisms, the crap Sepp Blatter splatters from his chops and more sports news.
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