Rafael Nadal beats Roger Federer to become the Wimbledon Champion 2008

I've been meaning to blog all afternoon but the tennis has been so compelling and I couldn't take my eyes off the television. Heck, I couldn't even go for a bathroom break apart from when the match was suspended for two rain breaks.

Rafael Nadal beat Roger Federer in five epic sets 6-4 6-4 6-7 (3-7) 6-7 (8-10) 9-7 to become the Wimbledon Champion 2008. I don't think I've been this excited watching a tennis match since Borg vs McEnroe back in 1980. I remember watching that with my brother and living through every point and shouting at the television. We so wanted Borg to win back then and it was thrilling when he finally did win his fifth Wimbledon.

This time, Rafa was the player I was urging to win. Listening to the pundits, they were all picking Federer to win - Boris Becker, John McEnroe, Tracey Austin, all the BBC commentators had picked Federer with the exception of wily Pat Cash who picked Nadal last night when forced to choose. Rafa started well and won the first two sets, then Federer won the third in the tie break. Rafa then had two match points during the fourth set tie break and at that stage we had the same situation as Borg and McEnroe in 1980 where each point won would either be a set point or a match point for either player.

Federer managed to win the tie break again, so we were in a fifth set. I have no idea how Rafa managed to keep his head together, most other players would have collapsed by this stage, having lost match points and into a fifth set. I think I spent the final set with my hands covering my eyes as it was so bloody tense. As there's no tie break in the final set at Wimbledon, they played on and each held serve until Rafa finally broke Federer at 7-7 to make it 8-7 and served for the match.

After all that excitement, I think I need to have a stiff drink now!

Rafael Nadal arrives at Wimbledon - "Vamos!"

Our Rafa beat his first round opponent, German qualifier Andreas Beck, in straight sets today at Wimbledon 6-4 6-4 7-6 (7-0) in two hours nineteen minutes. His opponent didn't seem to mind losing too much though, Beck even reached over the net at the end of the match and gave Rafa a nice big manly hug. Then again, I'd probably do the same thing.

Rafa's had a bit of a haircut, just an inch or so, but he's still got all his familiar quirks: that "thing" with lining up his water bottles and, of course, his charming habit of picking his underwear out of his sweaty ass crack just before he serves.

Rafa was talking last year about how he was embarrassed by the attention that fans and the media were paying to his quirks and said that he was going to make an effort to get rid of them. Fortunately, all of Rafa's OCD tics are still present and correct, just the way we like them. It just wouldn't be the same otherwise.

Wimbledon seeding for 2008 leads Andy Murray to moan again

Ah, I was woken up early this morning. Normally, I don't get up until 9am but my flatmate has a "gentleman caller" staying over and he keeps getting up, banging doors and generally making noise. So annoying. Aren't they supposed to skulk out and 3am or something? It's called manners.

Anyway, I'm wide awake now and having a browse on teh internetz. I just noticed that the Wimbledon seeding has been announced and, of course, our own Andy Murray is not happy and is having and good old bitch and moan about it. You see, Andy's been seeded a whole ONE place below his current world ranking. That's right, one place. He's world number eleven and he's been seeded number twelve:

"I feel like I am one of the top grass-court players in the world, but because I missed Wimbledon (last year) I am going to lose out because of it, which I think is a little bit tough. I personally think it should just be done on the rankings, which is much easier."

Oh, Andy does enjoy a good moan doesn't he. I don't think he's happy unless he's got something to bitch about and he could really do with lightening up a bit. Look at his brother Jamie, who won the mixed doubles with Jelena Janvovic last year, he seems so much happier. Wasn't li'l Andy on a PR charm offensive recently? I guess that's over.

So, who's your favourite this year? I like the look of Rafa Nadal, but then I always do, but I'd be happy with a Djokovic win too. With the women it's pretty much a wide open field, with Ivanovic, and Sharapova looking good for it and, of course, either one of the Williams sisters is always going to be a contender. Here's the full list:

Men's seeds:
1. Roger Federer (Switzerland)
2. Rafael Nadal (Spain)
3. Novak Djokovic (Serbia)
4. Nikolay Davydenko (Russian)
5. David Ferrer (Spain)
6. Andy Roddick (United States)
7. David Nalbandian (Argentina)
8. Richard Gasquet (France)
9. James Blake (United States)
10. Marcos Baghdatis (Cyprus)
11. Tomas Berdych (Czech Republic)
12. Andy Murray (Britain)
13. Stanislas Wawrinka (Switzerland)
14. Paul-Henri Mathieu (France)
15. Fernando Gonzalez (Chile)
16. Radek Stepanek (Czech Republic)
17. Mikhail Youzhny (Russia)
18. Ivo Karlovic (Croatia)
19. Nicolas Almagro (Spain)
20. Lleyton Hewitt (Australia)
21. Juan Carlos Ferrero (Spain)
22. Fernando Verdasco (Spain)
23. Tommy Robredo (Spain)
24. Jarkko Nieminen (Finland)
25. Dmitry Tursunov (Russia)
26. Ivan Ljubicic (Croatia)
27. Nicolas Kiefer (Germany)
28. Gilles Simon (France)
29. Andreas Seppi (Italy)
30. Gael Monfils (France)
31. Feliciano Lopez (Spain)
32. Michael Llodra (France)
Women's seeds:
1. Ana Ivanovic (Serbia)
2. Jelena Jankovic (Serbia)
3. Maria Sharapova (Russian)
4. Svetlana Kuznetsova (Russia)
5. Elena Dementieva (Russia)
6. Serena Williams (United States)
7. Venus Williams (United States)
8. Anna Chakvetadze (Russia)
9. Dinara Safina (Russia)
10. Daniela Hantuchova (Slovakia)
11. Marion Bartoli (France)
12. Patty Schnyder (Switzerland)
13. Vera Zvonareva (Russia)
14. Agnieszka Radwanska (Poland)
15. Agnes Szavay (Hungary)
16. Victoria Azarenka (Belarus)
17. Alize Cornet (France)
18. Nicole Vaidisova (Czech Republic)
19. Maria Kirilenko (Russia)
20. Francesca Schiavone (Italy)
21. Nadia Petrova (Russia)
22. Flavia Pennetta (Italy)
23. Katarina Srebotnik (Slovenia)
24. Shahar Peer (Israel)
25. Lindsay Davenport (United States)
26. Sybille Bammer (Austria)
27. Virginie Razzano (France)
28. Alona Bondarenko (Ukraine)
29. Amelie Mauresmo (France)
30. Dominika Cibulkova (Slovakia)
31. Caroline Wozniacki (Denmark)
32. Sania Mirza (India)

Rafael Nadal beats Novak Djokovic at the Queens Club Stella Artois Championship

My man won his first grasscourt tennis tournament, vamos Rafa! World number two and French Open champion Rafael Nadal beat Novak Djokovic 7-6 (8-6) 7-5 in an absolutely fabulous final, full of drama and power. Sometimes in tennis, it's the quarter or semi finals which offer the best tennis and the final is often a bit of a let down, such as the French Open final last week. It can be a bit of an anti-climax due to nerves and it's not unusual for one player to be below their usual standard, but this match today was superb.

I like both players so I would've been happy for either of them to win, but I have to admit that Rafa (and his biceps!) has captured my heart. I haven't been as smitten with a player since the dreamy Goran Ivanisevic. Anyway, what was so great about this match was the competitiveness of both players. Neither of them have ever won a grasscourt tournament, each has won one of the Grand Slams so far this year and they're the world number two and three so it all added up to a match where both players were hungry to win and playing at their best.

It's been a wonderful season for tennis so far, let's hope these two keep up their current top level and give Roger Federer a serious challenge for the title at Wimbledon!

Did you miss me?

Well, did you?

I had a few days off work and, since we’ve been having rotten weather lately and the forecast was sunny, I went to visit my mom and brother. They have no internet access so I’ve been busy doing other things: watching Wimbledon and Big Brother; finishing off a biography about Dirk Bogarde; playing Final Fantasy III on the Nintendo DS; plus a spot of gardening. I had to cut the hedge and I’ve ended up with scratches all over my body, as if I’d had rough sex or been attacked by the cat. Oh, and my arms ache too.

Well, didn’t Wimbledon end up being terrific in the end? After all the drama about the rain delays, we ended up with some great matches over the last four days. My favourite was the match with Venus Williams and Maria Sharapova. I haven’t seen such ferocious hitting since the days of Monica Seles. At that point, you kinda got an inkling that Venus was a serious contender and I was very pleased that she won her final. I’ve always liked Venus, though I’m not too sure about her hair. That nasty ol’ weave has seen better days. She should set a match to it and get some nice corn braids again, or maybe a huge ‘fro. Oh, I’d love that, kinda like Arthur Ashe back in the seventies.

My man didn’t win, though Rafael Nadal gave it his best and OCD’d his way through his match, tugging on his knickers like crazy but Rafa still didn’t manage to win. Close match though, and at least we got to see Bjorn Borg again. I remember watching Borg and McEnroe when I was a kid with my brother. We always wanted Borg to win and were thrilled when he won his fifth Wimbledon. I wasn’t so chuffed this year when Roger Federer won. Sometimes, I just don’t like certain players no matter how well they play. I never liked Steffi Graf or Ivan Lendl for instance, just couldn’t be bothered. Federer’s girlfriend, Mirka Vavrinec, looked happy enough. Now, is it just me, or does Mirka get bigger and bigger each year? Just as well Federer won £700,000 in prize money, he’ll need that just to keep Mirka in groceries!

Wimbledon seeding for 2007

Seedings for Wimbledon 2007 - the excitement starts on Monday!

Men's Singles

1. Roger FEDERER (SUI)
2. Rafael NADAL (ESP)
3. Andy RODDICK (USA)
4. Novak DJOKOVIC (SRB)
5. Fernando GONZALEZ (CHI)
6. Nikolay DAVYDENKO (RUS)
7. Tomas BERDYCH (CZE)
8. Andy MURRAY (GBR)
9. James BLAKE (USA)
10. Marcos BAGHDATIS (CYP)
11. Tommy ROBREDO (ESP)
12. Richard GASQUET (FRA)
13. Tommy HAAS (GER)
14. Mikhail YOUZHNY (RUS)
15. Ivan LJUBICIC (CRO)
16. Lleyton HEWITT (AUS)
17. David FERRER (ESP)
18. Jarkko NIEMINEN (FIN)
19. Jonas BJORKMAN (SWE)
20. Juan Carlos FERRERO (ESP)
21. Dmitry TURSUNOV (RUS)
22. Guillermo CANAS (ARG)
23. David NALBANDIAN (ARG)
24. Juan Ignacio CHELA (ARG)
25. Carlos MOYA (ESP)
26. Marat SAFIN (RUS)
27. Philipp KOHLSCHREIBER (GER)
28. Robin SODERLING (SWE)
29. Agustin CALLERI (ARG)
30. Filippo VOLANDRI (ITA)
31. Dominik HRBATY (SVK)
32. Juan MONACO (ARG)

Ladies' Singles

1. Justine HENIN (BEL)
2. Maria SHARAPOVA (RUS)
3. Jelena JANKOVIC (SRB)
4. Amelie MAURESMO (FRA)
5. Svetlana KUZNETSOVA (RUS)
6. Ana IVANOVIC (SRB)
7. Serena WILLIAMS (USA)
8. Anna CHAKVETADZE (RUS)
9. Martina HINGIS (SUI)
10. Daniela HANTUCHOVA (SVK)
11. Nadia PETROVA (RUS)
12. Elena DEMENTIEVA (RUS)
13. Dinara SAFINA (RUS)
14. Nicole VAIDISOVA (CZE)
15. Patty SCHNYDER (SUI)
16. Shahar PEER (ISR)
17. Tatiana GOLOVIN (FRA)
18. Marion BARTOLI (FRA)
19. Katarina SREBOTNIK (SLO)
20. Sybille BAMMER (AUT)
21. Tathiana GARBIN (ITA)
22. Anabel MEDINA GARRIGUES (ESP)
23. Venus WILLIAMS (USA)
24. Alona BONDARENKO (UKR)
25. Lucie SAFAROVA (CZE)
26. Ai SUGIYAMA (JPN)
27. Samantha STOSUR (AUS)
28. Mara SANTANGELO (ITA)
29. Francesca SCHIAVONE (ITA)
30. Olga POUTCHKOVA (RUS)
31. Michaella KRAJICEK (NED)
32. Martina MULLER (GER)

My picks? Hmm, coming off the clay court season, it's hard to pick who's truly on form as the grass court season is so short and often sees high ranking players crash out early. Sticking to my favourites, I'd have to pick Amelie Mauresmo or Serena Williams for the ladies' title and Rafael Nadal (so cute in all white!) or Andy Roddick for the mens'. I'm not a Henin or Federer fan. I like my players to have a bit of personality.

Hot American Tennis player Robby Ginepri gets fresh in Peach magazine

A kind reader alerted me to the hotness that is US tennis player Robby Ginepri. How the heck did this one pass under my radar? These sexy photos come courtesy of Atlanta Peach magazine.

Robby's stats, courtesy of the ATP:

Pronounced:
gi-NEP-ree

Birthdate:
7-Oct-82

Birthplace:
Fort Lauderdale, FL, USA

Residence:
Kennesaw, GA, USA

Height:
6'0'' (182 cm)

Weight:
175 lbs (79 kg)

Plays:
Right-handed

You know, suddenly I'm really looking forward to Wimbledon this year.

Equal pay for women at Wimbledon

The Wimbledon Championships will offer women and men equal prize money for the first time at this year's tournament. Well, it's about bloody time! There may have only been a small difference of 5% between the men and women at Wimbledon, but heck, it's the principle.

Some people have the nerve to criticise the decision though. Not least, the hot German tennis player, Tommy Haas. He says "I don't think it's really fair. I think the depth of men's tennis is much tougher than the women's, plus we play best of five sets. Not to say the women don't deserve it. The top players train very hard and are very good players but in general I don't agree with it."

What Tommy forgets to mention is that the men play best of 3 sets most of the year, just like the women. They only play best of 5 at the Grand Slams and a couple of other big events. Plus, the women have repeatedly offered to play best of 5 set matches too.

I mean, who would you rather watch play a match, Tommy Haas vs David Nalbandian or Serena Williams vs Maria Sharapova? I know which pair i think would provide more drama (and hissy fits!)

Here's a photo of Tommy practising during the 2007 Australian Open. He's cute but look at those veins..