Sitting This One Out

Tags

federer, hamburg, nadal, roland garros

After claiming that he’d be better off NOT encountering Rafa before Roland Garros, Sir Shank-a-Lot is now afloat with confidence after his victory over the OCD One. So, I suppose the forehand is back on track. The serve is finally clicking. EVERYTHING is as it should be and even better… Shankstar finally figured out a way to conquer Rafa on the terre battue.

Don’t make me laugh.

We’ve done this dance with Shanx before: 2007 Hamburg. He beat Rafa 26 62 60; a bagel, people! Oh, the hype surrounding the final that year. In the first set alone, Shanx had 10 bps; 6 came in the 6th game. Rafa had 1 and converted immediately. In total, Shanx had 17 bps and converted only once; in the 2nd set.

Why should this year be any different? We’ve done this dance with Shankstar before. The only year I was positive he would lose was 2008. He did a fantastic job of proving me right. Shanx can beat Rafa on clay, I will concede. But, he can’t do it at Roland Garros short of Rafa breaking a toe.

I’m just sitting this one out.

Thank You, Nole…

Tags

federer, hamburg, madrid, nadal, roland garros

That’s what Shanx should be saying to Novak Djokovic right now. That’s who he should be including in his “thank you” speech. Shankstar’s first title of the year comes at the expense of a spent Rafa Nadal. It was Hamburg all over again…

What do I mean by that? In Hamburg 2007, Rafa had clearly over-played up until that point. By the time he reached the final, he was spent; courtesy of a 3hr+ semi with Lleyton Hewitt. Roger had smooth-sailing with… can’t even remember the match was that forgettable. So what was the final like?

Rafa managed to win the first set because he’s just better than Shanx on the red stuff anyway, but then fatigue finally showed up and by the third set, it was pretty obvious to all.

And that’s what happened here in Madrid. After 4hrs of nerve-wracking, edge-of-your-seat tennis, we get stuck with a fatigued, error-prone Rafa that is a shadow of himself. It was a huge anticlimax, whether he won or lost.

Ugh! The hype for Roland Garros will be unbearable…