Strange and Ironic Again

As I mentioned in my previous post “The Strange and Irony of 2012 Season” in tennis, here’s another strange yet very interesting happening as each of the top four players become grand slam winners. It means that each player only have one grand slam title under them in this season. No one was able to dominate each other to take home more than one silverware. What is more strange and interesting to know is the fact that each of them (the top four players) never played quite well after winning their particular Grand Slam.

image from wikimedia commons

Take a look at this, Djokovic was superb at the Australian Open and seems so flawless whoever was at the opposite side of the net but wasn’t able to duplicate such performance in the French Open. Being the king of clay, Nadal proved it once again that clay is his turf and he eventually made records in the history books when he captured his seventh French Open title. And the same thing with Nole, Nadal showed a very lackluster showing at the grass court of Wimbledon as he was heading for an early exit and only reached round two. Then it eventually made him miss out the games for the rest of the season.

It leaves to the hands of Federer and Murray to slug it out but the former showed a youthful performance in his favorite court and snatched the Wimbledon from Murray after losing the first set. More to it that the maestro is almost 31 years old but he only managed to reach the quarterfinals at the US Open. That was eventually won by Murray en route to his first ever Grand Slam title and many believe, at that time, that he has played great tennis going to the indoor hardcourt season. But eventually lost to the maestro in the semi-finals of the ATP World Tour Finals then predicted that Federer will lose in the finals as well. Since 2003, there haven’t had four different Grand Slam champions.

The Strange and Irony of 2012 Season

The tennis world is very quite at this moment and there seems nothing big to write as well since the last Grand Slam of the year is finished except for the ongoing ATP World Tour Finals. And Andy Murray has finally put to an end for Britain’s long wait of 76 years before having another grand slam winner. I am not making this post to reminisce that event since I am not a big fan of him because I still want the maestro to extend his 17 grand slam titles. Although right now it is quite slim because of his age and also there are plenty of very competitive and much younger players. 

I was making this post because I bumped in one of the tennis column several months ago and it was only this time that I have the chance to write on it. This year, unlike the previous year, the top four players has own each of the four grand slams and no one dominates each other. They have their own fair share of superiority and mediocrity. And I never expected Federer to come back on top of the rankings considering how Djokovic and Nadal played last year. 

What is very strange and ironic in this year’s grand slam winners is the manner of how the four of them won it. We all know that when the 2012 season has started, it was Djokovic who occupies the top spot coming from a very impressive 2011 season. He is followed by Rafa then the Maestro and finally Andy Murray. And so here’s the catch, if you look at the winners of each grand slam, you will notice that they won it according to their rankings when the season started. Take a look at it below. 

1. Australian Open – Djokovic 

2. French Open – Nadal 

3. Wimbledon – Federer 

4. US Open – Murray 

Did you notice it before I pointed it out here? And you think the strange things just stop right there? There’s more to come in my next post and it is also related to this one.

Andy Murray Ends Britain’s Long Wait

I was supporting Federer to extend his record of Grand Slam title haul in the US Open even his convincing win over Djokovic in the Cincinnati Open finals. He had great start in the tournament until his stunning defeat from the hands of Berdych in the quarterfinals. While on the other hand, I want Murray also to bring home his first ever Grand Slam silverware and end Britain’s long wait. He almost makes it a reality when he reached the Wimbledon Finals against Federer but failed to capitalize his first set win. 

And on a day before the anniversary of September 11 at New York, Andy Murray finally made it through and has removed the monkey on his back by defeating Djokovic in a record 5 sets match. It was even almost halted after Djokovic fought back to take the third and fourth sets in a convincing manner but then it seems that it is Andy’s time to shine once again. I said once again because he was able to duplicate and followed his remarkable win at the same court and the same opponent during the London 2012 Olympics but this time it is more remarkable since it is a Grand Slam title that has eluded him in four occasions. 

I am sure Andy Murray will now become a big name not only in Britain but in international tennis. And I think the idea that big sponsors will be flocking on his way will now become another reality after his wonderful win at the Flushing Meadows. And I think his new coach (Ivan Lendl) had great influence in the way he played in big events like the Grand Slams. Finally, Great Britain has another grand slam winner after a very long wait of 76 years. 

Many believe that Murray will have good outlook in 2013 as the Swiss maestro continue to show signs of aging while Nadal is still bothered by a lingering knee problem which made him back out at the US Open. Then Murray-Djokovic rivalry is looming in the making if this kind of situation will continue.

Image from The Guardian.

The Golden Moment, Finally

I watched Federer bowed down to the resilient Andy Murray in their tennis finals at the London Olympic Games yesterday afternoon. And if you are following my blog, you know that I am a big fan of the maestro because of the sportsmanship he displays on and off the court or even during the hard times of his playing career. And you seldom see him smashed tennis racket on the court or show disappointments while on play. He always keeps his composure despite the difficulty of the situation on hand.

image from TopNewsToday

And just like what happened during yesterday’s Tennis Olympic finals, he never showed any frustrations when he can’t seem to find answers on Murray’s aggressive approach. He eventually lost in three sets with a stunning margin in the first two sets (6-2, 6-1), especially on the second set when Federer was unable to score for more than an hour.

It was a sweet revenge for Andy Murray after his defeat from the hands of Federer himself a month ago at the same tennis ground. The only difference is that, it was during the Wimbledon Grand Slam finals. Murray’s victory yesterday marked a career breakthrough for him and he could be a favorite going to the next Grand Slam, the US Open, which is still eluding him.

Federer on the other hand, was chasing for a career Golden Slam as it is the only major award that is missing in his illustrious career with a total of 17 Grand Slam titles in all competitions.

Federer’s Another Magnificent Milestone

I watched the Swiss maestro humbled Andy Murray in the finals at Wimbledon that many thought he could no longer compete with the younger legs. Yet, he once again defy that age is certainly not the case when it comes to his favorite court. It ended a Grand Slam title drought for Roger Federer and eventually became one of the oldest players to win a grand slam title and the second oldest to hold the number one ranking. It also puts on hold Britain’s 76-year wait for a homegrown champion once again though Andy is almost right there already.

Though Andy did try his best by taking the first set yet Roger was just in his own class and became the top-rank player that once he was. With the win, Federer equaled a record seventh Wimbledon title and adding one more to a record grand slam collection that now stands at 17. In doing so, he also returned as number 1 in the world rankings, equaling Sampra’s record of 286 weeks at the top and he will eventually set a new record and reach another unprecedented landmark of 287 weeks as world number one in the coming week.

And with the London Olympic just around the corner, there is no doubt that he will be one of the favorites to win the gold in men’s tennis considering that it will be held on the same grass court. Although Djokovic, Nadal and Murray were also there but there’s nothing simple about beating the guy on the other side of the net if Federer is standing there. An Olympic gold in men’s tennis singles will add to his already illustrious achievements that until now keep eluding him. And if he continues to play the way he has, he’ll have an excellent chance of finishing as number one through the end of the year.


NB: Image from wikimedia commons.

Federer - Nadal Renewed Epic Rivalry

Federer and Nadal renewed their epic rivalry again for the first time in more than two years now. Seeing both of them in Grand Slam finals or nay other finals match is of natural occurrence before then it suddenly stopped.  And tomorrow's Roland Garros is one that every tennis lover doesn't want to miss watching for it holds so much at stake for both of them.

Foremost is, Rafa wants to equal a record six Roland Garros title and his 10th Grand Slam title but more to that is trying to prevent Djokovic from snatching the number one spot ranking and so a win is a must for Rafa. He also builds up a very impressive record of 44-1 in the French Open and has never been beaten by Federer in four matches already and it was only during the time when Rafa was defeated by Soderling in 2009 that Roger got what he wanted to complete the grand slam titles by winning at Roland Garros.

It is not only Nadal who is chasing something, Federer on the other hand, is vying to extend his record breaking sixteen Grand Slam titles and to finally beat Nadal at Roland Garros. Although Nadal has dominated the clay court for several years now but the recent defeats from Djokovic at Madrid and Rome could serve as a lesson for Federer to uproot Rafa's dominance. Knowing that Federer ended Djokovic's impressive 41-match winning streak this year in a stunning four-set victory in the semis and that he must be playing his best tennis form.

A defeat by Nadal will hand over the number one crown to Djokovic. In contrast, Federer has little more to accomplish except that winning at Roland Garros with the fact that Nadal is across the net somehow a great achievement for him.

Novak "No Djok" kovic is Closing In

The world’s number two, Novak Djokovic who spent years under the shadow of Federer and Rafa is closing in to take the number one spot from Nadal and it may probably come real soon. It’s no “Djok” for Novak with the way he is playing at the moment. He seems to manhandle Rafa in his favorite clay court and more so that he ended Nadal’s two year dominance in clay by beating him at the Italian Open. In fact, it’s twice in a row for Djokovic since he also beat Nadal last week at Madrid Open.

And you think that would be it?

image source

It seems that there’s no way of stopping Djokovic (at least at this moment) in his mastery over Nadal and Roger. He won twice in a row already on clay court but it is actually four overall that he have beaten Nadal every time they meet in the finals. It all started at the Indian Wells Masters and next was in Miami Masters. It did not stop right there as it rolled to Nadal’s favorite clay surface. He defeated Nadal for the first time on clay in Madrid Open and became the first player to beat Rafa on clay twice in a row on the same year. He has now won seven consecutive tournaments since the Davis Cup.

And a week going to the Roland Garros, Djokovic have been collecting a bunch of records and possibly re-write the old history record of 46 ATP winning streak in the Open era. He is now standing at 37 wins that started at his second grand slam title at the Australian Open but it could stretch longer to 39 wins if the Davis Cup is included. Then possibly grab the number 1 ranking from Nadal after the French Open. So don’t miss Novak “No Djok” kovic in his quest to claim the world number 1 spot in men’s tennis starting on 22 May.