0-8. That’s really the only stat you need to know about today’s men’s final in Paris. Robin Soderling went o for 8 on break points against Rafa. How you gonna act like that and think you got a chance at winning against the best clay court player of this generation?
Well, that’s pretty much the only interesting thing to say about the match. Chalk one up for the women in the competition for more interesting final.
This past year has been tough on Rafa fans. He couldn’t defend his French Open and Wimby crowns in 2009, and actually went title-less for 11 months. It was heartening to see him re-evaluate his approach to tennis in 2010 by playing less tournaments, taking time to heal, and just being more like himself on the court.
That being said, it seems hard to believe that Rafa will be able to sustain this level over the long haul. His bludgeoning style of play is so physical and stressful on the body. I imagine that he has 3-4 more good years ahead of him. He is only 24, but as he inches closer to 30, I think we will see the cumulative toll that his game will have on him.
As far as the rest of the year, I predict 2 more titles through the summer. The hopeful side of me says maybe even Wimbledon #2. Either way, wouldn’t a re-match of Roger v. Rafa a la 2008 just be smashing? I would love to see Rafa extend his domination to later in the calendar year, and he may go a bit deeper this year because of the many months out due to injuries. But, the last time Rafa won a title later than August was in 2005.
For now, Rafa is just going to keep supporting his buddy, Pau Gasol, and the Lakers (boo) in the NBA Finals and hope for Spain to better their round of 16 showing at the 2006 World Cup. In 2008, Spain was the first team ever to become number #1 on the FIFA world rankings and never to have won a World Cup, ie. the futbol version of Jelena Jankovic.
Go Celts!
Nice title. And when did you start learning anything about the World Cup?