Wimbledon 2007 has divided the planet into 2 sets of people - those who saw the gentlemen's finals and those that are going to see it (on a dvd or as a tv replay).
With Roger quickly up 3-0 in the 1st set we were wondering if we were in for a quick slam bang, thank you ma'am match.... but nope... if there is one thing the erratic english weather cant short- change u out of, its quality and class.
Rafa and Federer were at it soon enough when Rafa broke back to reel off 3 games in 8 mins and make 3-3. And following some mind boggling shot making and chasing down it was a tie breaker which Federer won, painstakingly, 9-7. Federer 1 set to love.
And from there started the see-saw battle which was studded nineteen to the dozen with all the shots in the coaching manual and those that are going to be included in it soon, thanks to these two. 1 set apiece became 2 sets apiece after Rafael Nadal answered the fans calls of 'vamos rafa' to capture the 4th set with some unimaginable passing shots and line hugging baseliners.
Experience in tennis can sometimes be ironical. Playing 5 setters in the quarters and semis doesn't give u 'experience' in the 5th set of the finals. It makes u tired!! And so after 3 hours when the spanish matador started wearing down, the reserve energy of Federer, thanks to some classy outplaying of his made-to-look-mediocre opponents in quick time, took the swiss maestro through.
The scoreline of 6-2 in the final set does not do justice to the nerve racking tension. Twice Federer was down 15-40 in the last set and managed to dig deep into his repertoire of aces to get outta jail.
Only a prized idiot with an ultra strong filtrate of stupidity in his head could have felt bad for Rafa just cos he/she was supporting the underdog. to use a cliche' it was tennis at its highest level.I propose that we introduce a new term thanks to these two artists, called 'hawkeye buster'. Boy! That was the sorta placement and depth of shots that they offered. Shots defying geometrical angles, gravity defying jumps and smashes made by men twisted like pretzels!! The phenomenal backhand smash played by Federer in the 10th game of the 3rd set at deuce proved that light may travel in straight lines but a tennis ball off his racquet need not.
At the end of the day both men won 26 games apiece over 205 minutes of pulse pounding tennis and Federer won by, not more than the proverbial nose, but nevetheless he won and Rafa lost. Rafa was gracious and humble in defeat conceding cheerfuly that the better man won and Federer outdid him again, this time in modesty, saying that he was "lucky" to have made it and wasn’t sure how much more silverware would enter his cabinet considering the leaps and bounds the 20 year old Rafa has improved.
For any tennis loving fan in their right senses its a win win situation. we get to watch many more of these 'classic encounters' and we feel like saying yet again, the oft repeated cliche'- great champions produce great rivalries!!
Two exemplary men, giving their best and more, passionate about each and every point, fighting it out… never never giving up without a fight, the never say die spirit – so important in sport and in life!
Truly embodying the spirit of life, the spirit of the game, the spirit of Wimbledon – above the Center Court’s opening doors of which are inscribed words from a Rudyard Kipling poem: "If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster / And treat those two impostors just the same..."
These men were just living by it.
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