// As I expected it turned out to be a close match but, of course, I gave Nadal the edge and Federer ended up winning 6-3, 5-7, 6-3 in what was a good contest. So all credit to Federer for proving me wrong and getting another win over Nadal at long last and in doing so winning his seventh Basel title and sixth title of the year. It hasn’t at all been a bad year for him. He just came up short again when it mattered most.With this confidence boosting victory, he will also be a big factor in the remainder of the indoor season in Paris and London. His draw is Paris is good so he should try to make the final there at least.As far as the match goes the opening three games made you think that we will see the usual result from a Fedal encounter because Federer went to deuce on his serve while Nadal held serve easily. But Federer soon hit his stride and played some very nice tennis.As you would expect, he was the one who looked comfortable on the fast indoor courts while Nadal was on the defense most of the time. Federer broke serve in the fifth game to take a 3-2 lead and he broke Nadal again in the ninth game to win the opening set 6-3.In the second set, he looked in control the whole time while Nadal was the one under pressure on serve. So it was against the run of play when Nadal broke serve in the eleventh game to take a 6-5 lead. He proceeded to hold serve and all of a sudden Fedfans were fearing the worst again.At least Federer was serving first in the deciding set which was a slight advantage. He broke Nadal in the eighth game after a loose game from Nadal where he made two uncharacteristic unforced errors late in the game to take a 5-3 lead.

Federer still had to hold serve to clinch the victory which was never going to be easy given he was up against his nemesis. On one match point, he served an ace which got called out but Layani overruled it to add some more to the drama. Then on the next point Nadal had a very good look at a passing shot but Federer guessed the correct side which was huge.On the second match point, Nadal sent a return long to the great relief of Federer and his fans.Not much, really. It basically means that Nadal does not utterly own Federer which would have been the case if he defeated him in Basel as well. Federer has over the years gotten some key wins over Nadal so although I thought Nadal would win today, I shouldn’t be all that surprised.A sixth consecutive loss to Nadal in his own country after having his best year since 2012 with the way Nadal has been playing this year would have meant the rivalry was truly dead and buried. Now at least the rivalry is on life support, as opposed to flatlining.There never was much for Federer to gain in this match as far as the rivalry goes. It was in Basel on a court that suits his game to the T so if there is one match where he is still the favorite to beat Nadal it was there. The only thing Federer had to gain from this match was to prove that the ownage is not complete.I’m kind of happy about it because that would have pretty much ended all Federer’s hopes of being the GOAT. Nadal would have owned him so utterly that no unbiased person would have called him the GOAT. At least now he is still in the conversation, but of course if Djokovic catches up with him he will be surpassed due to his head-to-head with Nadal.I am also glad about this result because it makes tennis more interesting. If Nadal won the rivalry would have been well and truly dead. Now at least there would still be a reason to watch any future meetings.For Federer to make any kind of serious statement in the rivalry he would need to win a slam meeting. But even then the slam head-to-head would still be 9-3 in Nadal’s favor. I don’t see it happening anyway if he can hardly beat Nadal in Basel. It will now also be very interesting to see what happens if they meet in London.It’s highly unlikely that they will meet in Paris as they are in opposing halves. In London, the courts are much slower than in Basel so probably Nadal becomes the favorite again there, but then again I said the same thing about Basel which is why it will be interesting.In the end I am happy for Federer because seriously, losing even in Basel to Nadal? That would have been a bit rough for a player with his record. It would have been another terrible stain on his legacy after all the losses he already suffered to Nadal. It’s good to see him regain some pride at least if nothing else.So we are into the final stretch of the tennis season with only Paris and the grand finale left in London(Davis Cup too but I couldn’t care less about it). The eight players who will be present in London have also been decided with Ferrer and Nishikori taking the remaining spots.In the end, Nadal qualifies in the fifth spot which is almost surprising after the year he had. And he isn’t done. He could still be a factor in Paris and London. The Basel final loss was another very good result for him, especially after coming back in the second set and making it a very close match.Let’s get real. He has never passed the quarterfinals in Basel and he came very close to winning it on the worst possible surface for his game. Even at his very best it is doubtful whether he could have done that so he is right there with his game.Finally, Djokovic will be back this week and so will Murray. Djokovic will be fresh again after his exploits in Asia and history is now beckoning. It should be a very interesting last couple of tournaments. Djokovic has the opportunity to become the first man to win six Masters titles in a calendar year.

Given the court speed, you wouldn’t bet against him doing it. The court speed does not particularly favor Federer and the run in Basel will likely take a physical toll on him. Three out of his five matches went the distance and the final could have been particularly taxing.Even if Federer doesn’t win another title this year this title and the fact that he defeated his nemesis is a good end for him. Of course, losing early in Paris or suffering more losses to Djokovic and Nadal in London is not going to help his cause but if I was him or his fans I’d already be happy with his year.Sure he lost the two big ones but he is 34 after all. The limelight now belongs to Djokovic and if he wins Paris and London he will clock the best tennis season in history. The rest of the big four will do their best to stop him which will make the next three weeks a fun time in tennis.The is in your court.//

Posted in ATP 500, Basel.

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//

How’s everyone? Thanks for the comments and discussion on my last post. I think we have exhausted the pre-draw discussion of Wimbledon now and we are ready for the much-anticipated draw which is made tomorrow of course. But before the big event I have something I want to share with you quickly which I think you will enjoy. I have already started the Funny Photos page which is under the galleries tab and which I keep updating, so I hope you are keeping a lookout.Now I have decided to add a Funny Videos page. Watching a video will require more time from you than viewing a photo, but you may find it well worth your while. I have found a good source of funny videos and will keep updating this category as well. But unlike the funny photos I will make an actual post every time I add a funny video and hopefully have a short discussion about it afterward with you. Also, it won’t always be funny. Sometimes it will just be interesting.There is a lot of serious discussion on my blog and I think humor is always important to help us relax and realize that it is all just a game and for fun.Today I have three videos, of which only two fall under the funny category. One of them most of you would have already seen probably, but it was so good and fitting after Nadal lost at the French Open that I decided it had to be here. But before that video here is the highlights of the Djokodal match which, by the way, is one of my favorite matches of all-time if not my favorite. Sure Nadal was not at his best, but I think people underestimate what a terrific win that was for the Djoker.Federer for one said he expected Nadal to win the title, so for him Nadal was the favorite in this match. And yet Djokovic destroyed the beast in straight sets. Despite losing a 4-0 lead in the first set, it turned out to be a clinical victory. So clinical that at 7-5, 6-3, 5-1 and 40-0 the beast’s spirit was utterly broken as he conceded the match with a double fault. It was only the second time in 11 years Nadal lost at the French Open, and the beatdown was so convincing that he may never win another grand slam title.This was probably the most satisfying match I ever watched, and then someone at Men’s Tennis Forums made the following video which just topped it off nicely.I’m sure it won’t be in everyone’s taste, but I found it hilarious. And apart from that you have to have a pretty rich imagination to make something like this. It is a bit of an insider joke because a lot of it is related to what goes on at Men’s Tennis Forums, but I think it is funny even if you’re not quite in on all the jokes.And just in case you didn’t find any of that funny(in which case you have my deepest sympathies) or if you think Andy Murray has no sense of humor, then check out the below video.I have always known that Murray has a wicked sense of humor, but a lot of people think he is just dull. Sure, he is not the most interesting player to watch when he goes into pushing mode and when he constantly berates himself, but he can be quite funny in interviews. And most importantly he can make fun of himself The is in your court.//

Posted in Funny Videos.

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// This is a topic which has come up quite a lot of late and in this post I will attempt to settle it once and for all. We will probably never reach a point where everyone agrees because opinions differ and it’s not that easy to answer, but I think there is data available and it is worth an attempt. I believe Federer is currently playing some of the best tennis of his career and if not better than in his peak years then at least as well.

“I think I’m a better player now than when I was at 24 because I’ve practised for another 10 years and I’ve got 10 years more experience,” Federer said. “Maybe I don’t have the confidence level that I had at 24 when I was winning 40 matches in a row, but I feel like I hit a bigger serve, my backhand is better, my forehand is still as good as it’s ever been, I volley better than I have in the past. I think I’ve had to adapt to a new generation of players again.”SourceI think Federer’s own opinion is a good starting point. Who would know better than the man himself, right? Yes, Federer likes to sound positive and confident and he’s not going to say he is playing worse now. That doesn’t make his statement automatically false, however. He may truly believe that he is now a better player. This statement was made right before Cincinnati this year by the way.

And I think anyone who watched him destroy Murray in the Wimbledon semis would agree that it was as good as Federer has ever played. Just a complete masterclass which gave Murray no chance whatsoever. It’s not that Murray played poorly. He just got destroyed by the far superior grass courter. The same can be said for the final where Federer was routined in the third and fourth sets by the superior grass courter Djokovic.The opinion was that Federer had peaked early and that he didn’t play as well in the final, but at the US Open the same thing happened against Djokovic in the final and I don’t think there should be much doubt left that Djokovic is just a better player. The fact is Federer played incredibly well from the Wimbledon semi-final onward all the way through to the conclusion of the US Open. He didn’t lose a single set throughout Cincinnati or in the run-up to the US Open final.He also lost his serve only twice during that entire period.Now let’s compare that with how Federer fared over the same stretch in 2007. He was 26 back then not 24 but still in what was considered to be his peak years from 2004-07. In Cincinnati in 2007 he dropped sets against Almagro and Hewitt before defeating Blake in the final. At the US Open in 2007 he dropped sets against Lopez and Isner before defeating Djokovic 7-6(4), 7-6(2), 6-4 in the final.And although I don’t have the stats for how many times his serve got broken it is at least twice but probably many times more. You can also see he played Isner and Djokovic the same as this year which provides us with a good comparison. Against Isner, he dropped the first set in a tie-break whereas this year he straight-setted him. Against Djokovic, on the other hand, he won in straight sets.But there is a whole host of things that need to be taken into account about this result. First, it was Djokovic’s first slam final at age 20. Second, he was serving for the first set at 6-5 and 40-0 and had four set points. He was also up 4-1 in the second set and had another two set points at 6-5 and 40-15 on Federer’s serve this time. Federer served an ace on the first set point and on the second Djokovic missed a nervous forehand long.It is no wonder then that he defeated Federer in the final this year after 8 more years of experience and 17 more slam finals under his belt. He had also defeated Federer in the Canada Masters final that year so we can hardly conclude that Federer is not as good as he used to be because he lost to Djokovic in the US Open final. It would be more accurate to conclude that Djokovic is a much better player now which is why he won.I think in the stretch from the Wimbledon semi-finals to the US Open final this year Federer played as well as ever. I don’t mean to propose that he is playing as consistently well as he did in 2006 which was arguably his peak year. In 2007, he was already on the downslope of his peak but he still won the World Tour Finals that year where he destroyed his nemesis Nadal 6-4, 6-1. He was still playing very close to his peak level.Many people made the argument that Federer’s forehand is not what it used to be and that he lost a step and, therefore, is playing well below his peak, failing to mention that he changed racquets and coaches to improve other areas of his game. His forehand may have lost some pop(although he is still spanking it hard of late if you ask me) but his backhand and serve improved in the process. And so has his net game.As far as the movement or stamina is concerned he is still moving awfully well for his age and I don’t see how stamina is going to play a role when you win everything in straight sets. You don’t decline that much physically in your thirties. I think people are making a much bigger deal of physical decline than it is and that most of it are flat out excuses. Last year Federer got tired because he didn’t schedule properly.This year there were no such issues. I myself am astounded by how well Federer is still playing. To make two consecutive slam finals at 34 and playing as well as he is is something I did not necessarily expect. He destroyed everyone in the field but Djokovic, and that includes two of the best players right now Murray and Wawrinka. I thought he would win both Wimbledon and the US Open, but Djokovic is a monster.

You have Federer and then the rest of the field exactly the way it was in his prime, with him utterly dominating the field. The only difference is that now Djokovic is even above him. That is, of course, difficult for many Fedfans to accept because it was always believed that Federer is the GOAT and that his peak is higher than anyone else’s. The problem with that is that if Federer won Wimbledon and the US Open they would probably have agreed that Federer is playing as well as ever.If not better. The difference is that the competition has caught up. Djokovic is not the inexperienced 20-year old who is playing his first slam final anymore. He is already a legend of the game who is playing at an unbelievably high level. He’s got all the angles covered. The mental strength, the physical strength, and the technical aspect. He can do it all. A kind of tennis superman. Even the great Federer does not have the answers.That is just where we are right now in tennis folks. Djokovic came up in the toughest of conditions with the two most dominant tennis players in history and because of it, he evolved into something unheard of. He learned from both, combined their strengths, and evolved into something better than either. Yes, I do believe Federer is right now playing as well as ever. He is simply losing to the upgraded version of tennis greatness.Federer turns 35 next year so time is not on his side, but his tennis to me looks as good as ever. Therefore, you can’t count him out for another slam title but it is not on his racquet anymore. Djokovic is now better and he’d have to avoid him to win another slam. Nadal will no doubt make a comeback at some point next year as well. Possibly around the clay court season. That is not a great time for Federer.Clearly the faster slam surfaces favor Federer these days and it’s very unlikely that he will win the Australian Open or French Open. So if Nadal is back for Wimbledon and the US Open that is bad news for him. Even a mediocre version of Nadal can give Federer serious trouble. He is that deep in his head. And Djokovic is not far behind these days. With Nadal’s ranking outside the top four these days, he can also meet Federer at quarterfinal stages of slams.If there is one thing that makes Nadal confident it is stepping on the court with Federer and a win over the world #2 could go a long way toward restoring some of his confidence. Then you have Stan and Murray who is dangerous for Federer at the slower slams as well. With Nadal almost completely out of the picture I thought Federer should have made one of the slam finals he made count. Especially at the US Open where he had a distinct advantage with the crowd.From here on it will only get more difficult. Nadal is so much in Federer’s head that even him making deep runs in big events is enough to unnerve Federer. 2016 should be another very interesting tennis season anyway and probably the last year where Federer still has an outside chance of winning a slam. It will be interesting to see how long he can keep up his current level as well. It will be hard and the clock is ticking all the time.He needs to have a good indoor season to get some confidence going for 2016. If he keeps losing to Djokovic at the Masters and World Tour Finals that won’t be good news for him. He needs to salvage at least another Masters but preferably the World Tour Finals after the missed opportunities in slams this year. Otherwise, he will lose even more confidence. Can’t wait to find out how it plays out!Ps. If the Djokovic of today played Federer in that 2007 US Open final I think he would have defeated him probably even easier than he did this year. Think about it. All those wasted chances from Djokovic and he is a much better player now. In fact, he may well have destroyed the 2007 version of Federer.Thoughts? Opinions? Facts?The is in your court.//

Posted in Uncategorized.

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