Will Wonders Never Cease!

Rafael Nadal is out of the French Open, 2009! I really didn't think I could possibly be writing these words in the Fourth Round of the French Open. If there was one thing that was a given it was Nadal in that Roland Garros final. Who could have predicted such a thing as this? Oh, that is the beauty of sport. It really ain't over till the fat lady sings.

I think I am really deadly for players whose fan I become. In the past few weeks I had begun to see Rafa in a different light, actually beginning to admire his simple humility and pluck. The moment I started feeling those benign thoughts he crashed out. Hmmm.....should have thought of it last year when he was pulevrizing Federer in the French Open final. But truth be told this is a bit of a let down. A Grand Slam final just isn't a Grand Slam final without the presence of those amazing two rivals.

Having said that, this is quite a slap in the face of all those commentators who were already beginning to claim that it is Rafa who should be seen as a contender for the all time great of tennis rather than Federer. A matter of jumping the gun a bit, don't you think? Federer has reached his position today through a sustained effort that has lasted years. He has not gone below a Grand Slam semi-final since 2006 and remained at the top for four years. But this French Open commentary was no fun, it took away the special 'historicity' of the event and they immediately switched over to the Ivanovic-Azarenka match, where the defending ladies champion also lost. Talk about bad broadcasting. We needed some disection, some good commentary on the match. I want Star Sports to begin giving the French as much importance as Wimbledon that has so many critical analyses before and after and so much build up and follow up to each match.

Truth be told I just wanted to see Vijay Amritraj's ashen face and a softening of his Nadal superlatives!! I am torn between disbelief, happiness and sympathy for Nadal, as well as sadness over losing out on another Nadal-Federer pressure cooker final. I love the two together! Viva Rafa. For the moment.


A bit of Soderling-Nadal history:
Two years ago Soderling took Nadal to five sets in Wimbledon in a match where Soderling mimicked Nadal's habit of fiddling with his shorts. Watch video here (Nadal's expressions are priceless).




Nadal said after the match that Soderling is the most unpopular player in the locker room.

"He's very strange," he said of Soderling. "I have said hello to him seven times to his face, and he has never said hello to me. He never answers. I thought it was me. But I asked around the locker room; almost nobody had anything nice to say about him."

But the more ironic comment is the following (taken from a Washington Post article):

"Is not nice," said Nadal, whose English is still evolving. "In the end, we will see what's happening in the end of the life, no?"

Aaahh....not quite the end of Rafa's life yet certainly but he sure stopped him in his tracks today.