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Tennis Bytes:From Melbourne Park Results To Predicting Winners … and Losers
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Spoilsport Novak
Novak Djokovic played spoilsport at the 2011 Australian Open annexing his second major after a dry spell of three years.
Sportswriters were forced to scramble to change the headlines they had imagined citing either a Rafael Nadal or Roger Federer triumph. They had to reinvent their catch-phrases.(Damn you, Djokovic!)
The Serb’s victory was welcomed as the emergence of the Third Force.
The fallout was swift. In a rush to hail the rise of the young brigade, ‘tennis pundits’ were quick to pronounce death sentence on the Federer- Nadal rivalry.
It may soon be a case of the doomsayers having to eat their words all over again.
However, they are not totally wrong.
Five Sizzling Questions Facing Indian Tennis
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The Wall Street Journal—at the start of the 2011 Australian Open—published an article titled Five Sizzling Tennis Questions.
The questions were:
Are Rafael Nadal‘s injuries behind him?
What about Roger?
Who are the other challengers on the men’s side?
Is this the year of the Woz?
Is the women’s ranking system legitimate?
The answers to four of the questions are still up in the air.
Novak Djokovic’s Australian Open victory has given doubters more than a hint as to who’s not hanging to the coat-tails of the big guns—Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.
Using the article as inspiration, I arrived at five burning questions for Indian tennis:
Rafael Nadal’s shattered dream, Justine Henin’s farewell and mused tweets
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Gloom descended on the rafters at Melbourne Park.
The courts will be bathed in bright sunlight Thursday morning, but there will be a weary leadenness in the hearts of tennis players, officials and fans.
The World No.1, Rafael Nadal, bade a somber farewell to his quest for a Rafa Slam. It was not to be.
Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer progress in contrasting styles: Djokovic, Murray and Soderling lurk in the wings
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Sunday evening and it’s seven days into the 2011 Australian Open.
The spotlight remains focused on the rivalry for the ages. Federer and Nadal are on course for a shoot-out on Sunday, the 30th of January.
That is, if the drama on court plays out as the script their fans envision.
The No.1 and No.2 seeds have taken different routes to the much expected showdown.
Australian Open 2011: Headlining The Rafael Nadal/ Roger Federer Rivalry
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Today—the 16th of January—is the eve of the 2011 Australian Open.
History will be made at the Asia-Pacific Grand Slam if Roger Federer or Rafael Nadal clinch the men’s title.
It will be Roger Federer’s 17th major. It will be a Star Trek landmark—going where no man has been before. If Nadal wins, it will be the culmination of the Rafa Slam—an event much anticipated by players and fans.
Tennis Bytes:Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi triumph in Chennai and other stories
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Mahesh Bhupathi and Leander Paes have done it again.
The Indian Express triumphed at the 2011 Aircel Chennai Open subduing the Dutch-American pair of Robin Hasse and David Martin 6-2, 6-7 (3), 10-7.
The Chennai tourney has Indian champions once more. This is the first time since 2002 that an Indian pair have inscribed their names on the trophy. It was the duo of Bhupathi and Paes who claimed it then as well.
Somdev Devvarman came close in 2009, losing to Marin Cilic in the final.
It was fitting that the duo came together in the sweltering environs of the South Indian city that boasts the best-known tennis families in India—the Krishnans and the Amritrajs, to clinch their first title this year.
Sceptics felt that the two would find it difficult to reprise their form of the late 90s and early oo’s, given their aging bodies and slower reflexes.
Tennis Bytes: Of Grand Slam rivalry,aces for charity and Indian hopes
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Will 2011 see more head-to-head matches between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal?
The man from Mallorca certainly hopes so.
“I would love to play against Roger Federer this year a few more times because when we play each other it’s in the final, so that’s already a very good result for both of us to be in the final of important tournaments,” said Nadal.
Federer seconded the motion: “We only played twice last year in Madrid and the [Barclays] ATP World Tour Finals in London, which was a great end for both of us.There’ll be huge hype going into the new season with him going for his fourth Grand Slam in a row and me trying to defend the Australian Open title. So right off the bat we’ll have some excitement.”
The recent invitational Abu Dhabi tourney finished with Nadal edging out Federer in two sets 7-6, 7-6.
Here’s a toast to the New Year and more exciting tennis and finals between the supremoes of the sport.
Nadal Effect: Bolshoi The Boxer yearns for Armani (Satire)
My dog, Bolshoi the Boxer, was saying,” I hear that Rafael Nadal is going to strip for Armani underwear.”
I replied, “Hmm. Is that so?”
“Yes”, he replied. “I want you to write a letter to the various underclothes manufacturers in India that I am available to model their brands.”
“I think I would cut a fine figure for VIP. VIP stands for Very Important Person and that I am.” he continues.
“Or I could shoot for Roopa. I am in excellent shape.It would make for a snug fit.”
Rafael Nadal endorsed by John McEnroe and Andy Murray: An Anticipated Retort
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Rafael Nadal has been endorsed twice in the past few days.
John McEnroe has gone on record terming him the best athlete among the current lot of players; probably as good as his contemporary, Bjorn Borg.
He has rated him above Federer in that respect.
Of Sania, Somdev , Federer’s run and Nadal’s tendinitis
Sania Mirza’s comeback to the WTA tour may not have quite taken off on the singles circuit but she’s certainly holding her end up in doubles.
Sania failed to secure a second doubles title this season . She and her partner Hsieh Su-wei lost 2-6 4-6 to third seeds Chang Kai-Chen and Chuang Chia-Jung in the summit clash of the ITF $ 1,00,000 tournament in Taipei.
Sania also missed out on the gold medal at the CommonWealth Games in New Delhi in the singles draw — battling all the way.
Somdev Devvarman will be representing India at the Guangzhou Asian Games from November 12 to 27,2010. Somdev was top seeded at the recently concluded CommonWealth Games and was one of the few elite Indian athletes who fulfilled expectations by clinching gold.
Roger Federer is enjoying a good run following his failed bid at a 17th Slam at the US Open. Two tournament victories in quick succession and a red-hot Federer jets into Paris seeking his 18th Masters hoping to equal Rafael Nadal’s record.
"I’m a bit worn-out, I’ve had a lot of matches, I’m hoping my mind and body hold up. But I don’t play until Wednesday and there will be time to recover. I’m confident that my form will carry me through." said the champion.
Nadal, his nemesis, has pulled out citing shoulder tendinitis. But he hopes to be ready for the season-ending World Tour Final in London.
Nadal had a fantastic 2010 reeling off three Grand Slams in quick succession to bring his haul to nine. This includes a Career Slam.
The World Tour Finals will be eagerly awaited; the only possibility of the two great champions facing off once more this year comes at this premier event.
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Living is like tearing through a museum. Not until later do you really start absorbing what you saw, thinking about it, looking it up in a book, and remembering – because you can’t take it in all at once. |
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