And it just doesn't get any better than that. Seriously.
The 2008 Wimbledon Men's Final will go down in history as arguably the best (and already certified longest) final and tennis match played in history. It was nerve-wrecking, mind-boggling, and sometimes even felt surreal as there was some unbelievable tennis played on the court. It kept me up from 11 p.m. until 4.30 in the morning, but if you watched it, you wouldn't go to sleep for the world. The match-up could hardly be more of a contrast -- In one corner was the Swiss maestro, Roger Federer with all his silky skills, grace and class; On the other side of the net was the Spanish matador, Rafael Nadal and his brute force, run-down-all-the-balls, uncompromising approach. Coming into the match Federer was five times CONSECUTIVE defending Wimbledon Champion, but Nadal had just thrashed him 6-1, 6-3, 6-0 last month at Roland Garros. Last year at Wimbledon Nadal stretched Federer to five sets before losing, and this year promised to be a much more explosive affair.
Interestingly, the match turned out to be pretty much what I expected. Nadal was dominating at the baseline with his heavy groundstrokes, working Federer around the court and forcing him further back. Federer served magnificently with 25 aces and attacked the net with good approach shots and daft volleys. It was always going to be a question of whether Federer could get to the net first before Nadal pinned him down behind the baseline. Yet despite that, there was still plenty going for the match. Both were looking to give their best and you could see the determination in their eyes, though the match was pretty devoid of Nadal's trademark fist-pumping and 'Vamos!' battle cry (Federer was cool and composed through out the match as usual). At the end, brute force triumphed over smooth skills, but it was a match full of twist and turns for the crowd to savour. 6-4, 6-4, 6-7, 6-7, 9-7 was the final score, and Nadal was champion, but the real winners were tennis and the audience.
People have told me that Federer played terribly in the match and wasn't at his best, but after reviewing the match in my head I still think that he actually played a great match. Maybe his forehand approach shot and single-handed backhand wasn't as consistent or as sharp as it could have been, but that is probably more down to the blustering wind and Nadal's heavy top-spin than Federer's own fault. Under Nadal's barrage he couldn't really impose his game upon the exchange of points, and Nadal's amazing placement of shot on that day was really working him around the court. Yet Federer was equal to the task, also pushing Nadal around and taking whatever chances (and half chances) he had to finish off the point quickly at the net. One gripe about Federer I think was that he seemed to have lost that incomparable shot making of his which last time used to evoke gasps and acclaim from the audience. Yea there were a few nicely worked shots through out the match, but you get the feeling that he sacrificed the spectacular for a more efficient approach. It was still brilliant tennis mind you, but lacked the wizardry that has been a staple of his arsenal through out his career.
And then there is the model of efficiency, Nadal. Frankly I have never liked Nadal that much. To me, he always lacked the finesse and touche to entice me. He is the beast, the clockwork machine who overcomes his opponents with pure strength, speed and fitness. His game plan is unvaried, monotonous and boring, yet his sheer physical presence on the court is enough to frighten opponents away. And on that day he went toe-to-toe, even over-powering Federer. It was obvious that Nadal was at his physical pinnacle, chasing down everything that Federer was throwing at him, making him hit just that extra shot to win a point, while at the same time hitting all the lines and making some spectacular passing shots and cross-court ground strokes to throw Federer off his rhythm. It was just simply his day. The serve into Federer's body was working extremely well and Nadal just needed to pick off the returns with ease. At the end his immense physical advantage showed, as Federer slowly lost momentum and steam in the closing moments of the match.
At the end of the day, it really could have gone any other way. Federer's come back from two sets down contributed much to the epic scale, but he really could just easily have been two sets up if he had converted more break points. Nadal won, but only by a whisker, and yet both served up a tennis fest to remember for ages to come. I still haven't lost hope on Federer though. If he can keep his game at this level, he can crush anybody easily 99% of the time unless somebody starts to play incredible tennis like Nadal did. There's still the Olympics and US Open to come, and I'm not willing to back the Spanish matador over the Swiss maestro yet...~Zhongy~
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