Rafael Nadal made an observation in Paris about his philosophy on life that sounded innocuous enough to dip below the radar of those who were correctly more
Bartolo Colon Womens Jersey concerned with the history he had just created but it describes perfectly why he is playing some of the best tennis of his career. His words reveal, too, that the 31-year-old Spaniard, who has suffered more injuries than is good for his long-term health, is not done just yet. “Very organised people, very proactive people, know exactly what they’re going to do next,” Nadal said after looking about as organised as is possible on a tennis court in demolishing Stan Wawrinka in three sets to win his 10th French Open. “I do things as they come. Right now, I don’t really know. I’m just going to keep on playing as long as it makes me happy. If one day I get up in the morning and I’m no longer motivated to go train, well, I guess that day I will put an end to my career. You know what? I’m not worried. I’m a happy person.” Like his oldest rival, Roger Federer, he is playing with the sort of freedom known only to the very young and those who have seen it all. It is a joy that might carry Nadal to his first Wimbledon final in seven years. He might even win for the third time there. Or, as he admits, he could just as easily fall early if his unreliable knees do not adapt quickly to the peculiar demands of grass, as they did when he lost to the world No100, Lukas Rosol, in the second round in 2012. Nadal, more than most players, has endured extended periods of struggle, when
http://www.officialoriolestore.com/Dylan_Bundy_Jersey his love for the game has been tested. He almost expects them to return. In 2005 his emotions were dragged in all directions. He met his long-time girlfriend, Maria Francisca Perello, and won the first of the 10 French championships that set him on his journey to La Decima on Sunday, as well as an unprecedented decade of winning at least one slam every year. Advertisement However, 2005 was also the year that structural weaknesses surfaced in his feet and knees and they have plagued him, to a great or lesser degree, ever since. He has been struck down in 2006, 2009, 2012 and 2014. In 2013 he came back from nearly eight months out to heal ruptured patellar tendons and won two majors among 10 titles and posted 75 match victories. It was an astonishing achievement. Bjorn Borg, no slouch on the dirt, was moved to call him “the greatest clay-court player to ever play”. Carlos Moyá, who has since joined him as eventual coaching successor to uncle Toni, described him as “a warrior”. Jimmy Connors remarked at the time: “His passion and the way he grinds is really something special.” Because he can play no other way it is easy to take this commitment for granted, without wondering about the price he pays. Last year he had to quit the French
http://www.authenticflyerstore.com/authentic-26-brian-propp-jersey.html Open after two quick wins because of a wrist injury. Only this season has he begun to resemble the old Nadal. If he looks commanding and fierce on court – so deep in “the zone” Nadal rarely reacts to extraneous activity – he sometimes appears uncertain of himself. Eight times in one answer on Sunday evening, he used the word “doubts”. For a long time he had pronounced it “doobts”. He knows how to say it now and he has a proper grasp of its essence. The Recap: sign up for the best of the Guardian's sport coverage Read more “I have been very honest with you all the time,” he said. “I have doubts every day. If you have no doubts, probably [it] is because you are too arrogant. I don’t consider myself arrogant.” What might surprise Nadal, however, is that there is a groundswell of worthwhile opinion saying he can win Wimbledon again. It would be on a par with Federer’s win in Melbourne this year, when he beat Nadal in the final. Even so, nobody – not even uncle Toni or his understudy Moyá – would previously have suggested Nadal could conquer the All England Club’s grass again. He told the English-speaking press on Sunday: “I love grass, everybody knows, and it’s a surface that I really enjoyed a lot playing there.” However, he said to Spanish reporters later: “Grass is not my speciality, but I’m very motivated.” Advertisement He nonetheless reminded everyone when beating Wawrinka 6-2, 6-3, 6-1 that clay fits the script for a natural clay-courter who has rediscovered his killing top-spun forehand and now owns a backhand that is nearly as lethal. If he stays fit and healthy, he could win another two or three titles in Paris, putting him beyond reach in the record books. That might also haul him alongside Federer on 18 majors – although there is no sign the Swiss has finished collecting big silverware. If Nadal rules clay again, Federer likewise is ready to retake his Wimbledon crown. What a story it would be if the draw kept them apart
Cory Harkey Womens Jersey until the last Sunday. It is nine years since Nadal won possibly the best final in the history of grand slam tennis, when, over five sets of almost unbearable intensity, he deconstructed Federer’s elegance with the sheer power of his will, it seemed. Before they arrived at that 2008 Wimbledon they played in the final at Roland Garros. Nadal won 6–1, 6–3, 6–0. It was one of the most humiliating experiences of Federer’s career. Now Wawrinka has felt the French heat of Nadal before Wimbledon. It would be foolish to predict the Spanish master could not do that double again
