Wimbledon Update: Federer & Nadal Move Ever Closer

Hey Y'all. Galileo here.

It was rainy Saturday so I will just focus on the five matches we were able to complete. That means Monday is going to be, well, manic. There were some good matches and some bad ones too. But really at Wimbledon there are no truly awful matches. Aren't we lucky?

Federer and Nadal are special. The kind of players who come round once every generation. Laver was unique, so was Agassi. Sampras was special but not unique. He was the archetypal big server but he also had a bit more game than that. But was Sampras unique? Not quite. With Federer and Nadal you know there will never be another player like them. Isn't it a pity that they had to share a decade or so. Those forehands and those backhands. The elegant style of Federer against the physical, back-breaking style of Nadal is a classic clash. Yes, Nadal completely out-matches Federer now. But we will never see anyone like them again. And every match I still expect Federer to have some new solution. But as the years have gone by new threats have come like Del Potro, Murray, Djokovic and old threats have come back like Nalbandian. Yet, still, who remains the most popular, the crowd favourite, the spectator favourite? The unique ones, the ones that give meaning to a generation, to a decade. Federer won his first more than a decade ago. Nadal won his first 9 years ago.

2007 and 2008 at Wimbledon. 2009 at the Australian. Rome. Hamburg. 2011 French Open. 2011 World Tour Finals. In Miami. The list goes on. These are the matches that defined a generation. They are slowly coming to the end of their careers. In fact, they are one major injury away from it. If either gets a particularly bad injury now, that really will be it. I don't think either has the physical ability to miss 6 months and then come back. I also do not think Roger will be overtaken in the slam count by Rafa.

Injuries, lack of motivation, lack of form, fitness issues, personal issues and age have slowly worn them down. They are no longer the great champions they were. Yet every now and then they just produce a solid stretch of form. They look like world beaters again. They look invincible. They look like Roger and Rafa. Here at Wimbledon , Rafa has looked like his old self. The guy who would rip opponents apart by standing in the right doubles alley. He looked like Rafa at the French. The guy who gets everything back. The guy who will pass you, should you dare to come to the net. Federer, too, has looked back to his best, for large stretches, this year. So far at Wimbledon he has served well and hit that forehand like the god he really is. His slice backhand [his and Steffi's are the greatest there will ever be in our sport. Period.] is working well and his game is working perfectly.

This is likely to be the last match at Wimbledon for these two if it happens and as such it should be savoured no matter the outcome. Two of the four greatest ever are playing each other. I think Laver has to come third. Fourth is a toss-up between several. Will seventeen majors ever be equaled? No. Will nine French Opens ever be surpassed? No. Will there ever be a greater rivalry? No.

I don't care who wins Wimbledon. I don't care who wins the Federer/Nadal match. I just want it to happen.

But let's go back to the matches...


CENTER COURT: NADAL d. KUKUSHKIN
...Our scoreline works differently to other sports. It works in a beautiful, unique way, It works, too, because it means it is never over. And here is an article demonstrating my point clearly. Not only that, but out sport generates some truly bizarre scorelines. Nadal somehow got the momentum after the first set. He lost the first set which was very close 7-6. He then decided to simply up his game and take the momentum. He cruised through the final three sets for a 6-7, 6-1, 6-1, 6-1 victory. That scoreline may never have happened at Wimbledon before. It could be the first time that scoreline has appeared at Wimbledon. Kukushkin played well. He did all the right things and still only got nine games. It took Nadal just over two and a half hours to finally close it out. But close it out he did despite some resistance in the third. No, really there was resistance in the third. Kukushkin went 32-33 with the winners, hitting nine aces in the process the same amount as Rafa. Rafa went 41-12 with winners, too. It was such an impressive match from the Spaniard. That forehand was like a wrecking ball. The first set was like a warm-up. Rafa went to a level Kukushkin can't even imagine let alone match. And that level, that different gear proved to be too much. Rafa has to be wary of his next match. His defence will have to be up to his very high standards. Kyrgios is going to hit every single ball as hard as he can.
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CENTER COURT: FEDERER D. GIRALDO
...Giraldo is having a banner year. Successes in Barcelona and other clay court venues have made his ranking shoot up to 34, a career high. He has been to the third round of a slam just once, at the French in 2012. This performance at Wimbledon is a career best equaling effort at a slam and it came on the grass. He has also reached the quarterfinals of a Masters for the first time, in Rome. But Federer is having his best year since 2012. Federer is playing like he is 26 again. What Haas and Date-Krumm do is impressive. But what Federer does is even more impressive. I don't know if he can do an Agassi but he is staying up there when being 'up there' is so much tougher than it was even five years ago. Giraldo was nervous. You could see it, in fact you could almost feel it. He didn't play badly. In the third he even put up a fight. But the inevitable was always going to happen. You knew all he could do was hold off Fed, delay Fed. All Giraldo could do was try to play for time, try to hope that if he could hang in there Federer might go away. The Fedex played at a consistent high level all match. He did not falter or drop. He was perfect through out. Federer won 6-3, 6-1, 6-3 in 81 minutes. The second set was the best set I have seen Federer play all year just about and it was against someone just outside the top thirty. Giraldo managed to find just two break point opportunities. He took none. Federer hit 27 winners and just 14 unforced errors, highlighted by eight aces. Make no mistake -- if Federer can keep this up he may even have a chance against Nadal. If Nadal makes it.
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COURT TWO: RAONIC D. KUBOT
...Raonic is seeded eighth. Only Federer, Murray and Raonic have reached the fourth round without losing a set. He has handily beaten Ebden, Sock and Kubot. He has not been troubled by anyone. Nishikori is currently struggling with Bolelli. He will be the favourite in that match. He has been serving well, of course, but he has also been hitting that forehand with authority. Part of the reason he has been doing so well is that he has been on the smaller courts. He does not yet belong on the big courts but it is easier to sneak through the draw unnoticed on the smaller ones. He needed an hour and forty-five minutes to beat last year's quarterfinalist Kubot 7-6, 7-6, 6-2. Two big servers did battle here. The problem for Kubot was that Raonic had an extra dimension. His backhand is surprisingly good. He is mentally pretty tough and that forehand is like a cannon. Raonic hit 50 winners and just 6 errors with 30 aces. Yep, thirty aces. Kubot only had fifteen. Raonic is so difficult to break especially on this surface. Out of 83 receiving points, Kubot won 9. He also managed to get exactly no break point opportunities. Raonic is going to breeze past his next opponent. Neither Bolelli nor Nishikori will put up much resistance. Not on this surface. Not in this form.
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COURT 6: ROBREDO D. JANOWICZ
...Career best for the surprising veteran Robredo. He has made the quarterfinals at every other tournament [multiple times at the Australian and French] and is now looking to complete the set. He is also no stranger to going five sets. He and Hewitt seem to forget they're old. They seem to forget that, maybe, going five sets is not the best thing they can do. Robredo has a lovley game. He is like a human metronome. He will put the ball in the same place 6 times in a row and then just flick it in the opposite direction. He is like Pong. But Janowicz is more like Space Invaders. Plenty of firepower. Robredo took the first two sets 6-2, 6-4 but then realized it wouldn't go five if he won it in straight sets. So he decided to just drop a couple of sets. He lost the next two 4-6, 6-7 but rallied to win it 6-3 in the fifth. It was a short five setter, however, lasting just barely three hours. Janowicz hit 69 winners but the Spaniard only managed 49 himself. Amazingly, Robredo hit more aces than his opponent [15-10], but the worst stat was the 16 dubles from the Pole. That is four games worth. Robredo had 17 break points. That is not the Janowicz we know. It just isn't. Federer up next for Robredo. I guess it's time to book that flight. Robredo beat him in the US Open but that's only because nobody beats Tommy Robredo 17 times in a row.
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COURT 17: KYRGIOS D. VESELY
...Kyrgios had a chance. He had a chance to achieve glory. To achieve success, to meet his destiny. And he took it. He faced another wild card for the right to face Nadal. At Wimbledon. That kind of opportunity comes around maybe once in your career. Unless you're Federer. In which case you will always be drawn to meet Nadal as early as possible. Kyrgios needed just one minute more than two hours to get past Vesely 3-6, 6-3, 7-5, 6-2. It was a coming of age performance from the powerful Aussie. He hit 63 winners, 26 aces, in just four sets. That serve and that forehand are more than weapons. If they are on song, they are like wrecking balls. They shatter most everything that gets in their way. The 28 errors are a little worrying but if you are going to be aggressive you will not make every ball. He only let his opponent have one break point whilst he took 4 of 9. It was an impressive display from the young star. If he can only let Rafa have one break point chance he will have more than a shot.
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Any other notes?

* - Wimbledon is the best slam at dealing with the rain. It managed to get more matches done in two and a half hours than I thought was humanly possible.

* - Nobody seems to be paying attention to Raonic. I would if I were everyone else. He is seriously dangerous. I could see him making the finals.
Kyrgios will face Nadal. The last Aussie to make the fourth round was Tomic three years ago. I think the wild card might actually trouble Nadal particularly if he can play freely.

* - I do not understand how British people can be so happy about the rain. It makes them smile. I live in London and I hate rain. Anywhere and everywhere. Rain is unacceptable.

If it hadn't rained I would have more to say I think.

Thanx all and visit WTABACKSPIN please.

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