Rafael Nadal

There was a famous moment in golf journalism, after an ageing and written-off Jack Nicklaus won the 1986 Masters tournament. A senior writer totally seized up in the media room, clutching his hair and saying “it’s too big, it’s too big, it’s too big…”. What the guy had just witnessed simply defied any words he could write.

You feel the same way trying to describe an Australian Open final like the one we had last night. What do you write? How do you sum up five hours and 53 minutes of the most epic tennis imaginable between two guys with the stamina of marathon runners, the dynamism of sprinters and the skill of marksmen?

Oh, there are all sorts of angles you can take. More angles than a protractor factory. You can take the broad view and start the “who’s the greatest ever?” debate. After all, if Federer has the most Grand Slams ever, but Nadal keeps beating Federer when they meet in Slams, and now Djokovic keeps beating both of them, that’s the kind of argument that could rage on well past pub closing time.

Continue reading "Match of the century!" »

Rafael Nadal’s shock exit from the Australian Open paves the way for Scot Andy Murray to qualify for another showdown with world No. 1 player Roger Federer.

Murray, who carries the hopes of Great Britain after its lean period of producing class players, lost to Federer in last year’s Melbourne Park final.

Murray is super-hungry for a grand slam. He came close twice – in the 2008 US Open and the 2010 Australian – but suffered defeats to Federer each time.

Continue reading "Will Murray finally get a shot at grand slam glory?" »