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[Incandenza]

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Jesus England, it's July...what's up with the rain?

(though if a delay benefits Federer, then I'm all for it.)

[San Bernardhinault]

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Mighty Mudhsuden wrote:

Why do people want Federer to win?

I have a feeling that Nadal has a hint of the Puerto about him. And Federer is slightly more inclined to use all of the court rather than just sit at the back.

[Logan Mountstuart]

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Why do people want Federer to win?

Why the hell not? Crap jumpers? It's very rare that someone could have been this succesful in a sport for so long and yet never really do anything to piss anyone off. Or has he done something I don't know about?

I totally admire Nadal, but as far as I'm concerned, Federer has earned my undying respect.

[San Bernardhinault]

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Oh yeah, on the crap jumper front, Nadal's stupid vest and pantaloon outfit annoys me, too.

[diggedy derek]

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Someone at work described the prospect of Federer vs Nadal as being like a fight between the Terminator Model 101 versus the T-1000, and so far, he's been right. How many more times can Federer come back, or Nadal refuse to give up hope?

[Gerontophile]

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This is just fantastic stuff. I dont give a toss who wins, either will deserve it.

[diggedy derek]

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C'mon Rafa. This is your moment.

[Gerontophile]

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Why is Gwen Stefani in the family box?

[Gerontophile]

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Excellent. Just... excellent.

[diggedy derek]

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Wicked. That probably was the greatest Wimbledon final ever.

Nadal's resilience was absolutely amazing, to lose the fourth set, and have to serve again and again to stay in the match in the fifth. Wow.

[diggedy derek]

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I hate the way all those posh blokes from the LTA get on the mic just after the final finishes. I'd much rather have 10-15 minutes of dancing about, running around like a loon and applauding the fans like in football.

[The Purple Cow]

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Stefani looked as bored as anyone I've ever seen, despite the fact her husband was almost apoplectic with stress.

You can buy a towel like Rafa's for just 28 quid.

[G-Man]

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Wow, what a final!

Nadal was very gracious in victory. I had hoped for a Federer win, but really don't begrudge Nadal his victory.

[Purves Grundy]

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Derek was spot on with his Terminator comparison. After those 4th set match points and especially the times in the fifth where Nadal was two points up against serve only to see Federer ace himself back into the match, Nadal must have just been thinking "what do I have to do to finish this guy off?" Federer was jut relentless. But on the other hand, Nadal didn't just have to get over the missed match points, all the way through the final set he'd have to serve to stay in the tournament. The mental toughness he showed again and again and again was phenomenal. And apart from the mental toughness they were physically playing the best tennis I've ever seen out there. Some of the shots they played were real moments.

Which reminds me, how did the baseline players manage to finally kill off the serve & volley dinosaurs? It was odd to look at the court and see there was still grass at the junction of the two service boxes. You wouldn't have seen any grass after about day 5 a few years ago.

[Guest]

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They've changed the grass, I think. And possibly the balls.

[wingco]

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I had exactly the same thought as gerontophile re Gwen Stefani.

That was among the greatest and most involving sporting events I have ever witnessed. Like G-Man, I was rooting for Federer but had no problems with Nadal winning - it was still thoroughly satisfying.

Thoughts; despite this result, I think Federer is even better at winning than he is at tennis.

As for Nadal, he proves that a person's default expression is not necessarily the window to their soul. He has the pinched, surly look of a sulky, spoiled adolescent but by every account and, judging by his gracious acceptance speech, is anything but that. (Andy Murray, by contrast, is what he looks like).

Agree with Derek - Best Final Ever.

[E10 Rifle]

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There appeared to be a slight veneer of ungraciousness in Federer's later press conference. Did he have the hump again about Nadal's tendency to take as much time as possible between serves, and his perpetual racket-drying/sweat-wiping.

Whatever, that really was one of the most brilliant sporting events I've seen in a long time. You had that palpable sense of the entire sport being taken onto a different level. Some of the shots played by both in the fourth set tie-break in particular were just astonishing.

[Incandenza]

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Even Mrs. Inca was glued to the TV during the fourth set tiebreak. Then when it went to the fifth, she asked why it wasn't over yet.

Gwen Stefani was there? I'm shocked that NBC cameras didn't show her--when it showed Federer's people in the box, you saw Gavin Rossdale off to the right of the frame, but that was it. Admittedly, I only started watching in the fourth set. I don't know if they direct their own coverage; if so, that was remarkably restrained to not go for the celebrity angle for US viewers.

[Outside Agent]

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What a game! Just brilliant tennis from start to finish. A really great sporting epic which will be held in the highest regard in years to come. It was that good.

When the first rain stoppage hit, I was thinking that despite being two sets down, Federer was playing better than he did in victory last year. He forced numerous break points, then blew them with over-hit returns. That said, Nadal had played well, but hadn't erred like Federer.

Some of the tennis that Federer played when in the proverbial last chance saloon was audacious, and breathtaking: 0-40 down at 4-4 in the third set; Both tie-breakers; 2-5 down in the fourth set tie-break and Nadal ready to serve twice; Again at match point down. It was the epitomy of producing the best when it was needed most.

I was hoping Federer would win, as he's the kind of sportsman that I love to see win again and again. His game is a joy to watch. That said, it was clear since last year, and reinforced throughout today's game, that Nadal has reached Federer's level, and if he were to beat Federer he would be a worthy champion. It took a show of real brilliance to beat Federer, and Nadal produced it.

[Rogin the Armchair fan]

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After winning at Roland Garros and imbledon, is Nadal going to be world number one by the end of the year, or has Federer (in reaching both finals) got enough points from other events still to be ranked number one?

[Etienne]

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Rogin, Federer is still ahead now, but will have to out-perfrom Nadal over the rest of the season, particularly the US Open in order to stay there. He's got a good chance of that actually as Wimbledon has slowed down so much that the indoor courts are actually faster.

Inca, the BBC missed no opportunities to show Gwen, even if she was looking stultifyingly bored. The director hasn't been so obsessed since Mrs Krajicek (who at least was taking a keen interest in the game).

I only saw 2 matches at Wimbledon this year (been rather busy), the men's final and Murray vs Gasquet. I'm just going to assume the whole tournament was that good!

[Guest]

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Nadal has a very strong chance of becoming number 1 because he had a poor second half of 2007 which means he potentially has lots of ranking points to gain.

He only got to the 4th round of the US Open last year and didn't win a single event in the North American hardcourt season. If Nadal performs well, Federer will have to win everything in sight to stay number 1.

[anton pulisov]

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I wanted Federer to win because Nadal had to dry his arms after every single point. What the hell was that all about? The referee should tell him to cop on.

Prior to this match I was wondering who I preferred, Sampras or Federer. The "RF" line of clothing put me squarely in the Sampras camp.

[Jimski]

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Nadal is way ahead so far this year, but it should be borne in mind that hard courts are by far his least successful surface. He's gonna have to improve, or hope that someone else like Djokovic can stop Federer from winning the US Open and other big events. If Federer and Nadal match their respective results from last season, then (obviously) Federer will stay number one.

And then there's the wild card factor of an extra big tournament, namely the Olympics. This is being played on the same surface as the US Open, so will favour Federer over Nadal most likely.

The Olympics has already had one effect on Nadal. The Stuttgart clay court tournament he won last year was moved one week earlier this year because of the Olympics. Meaning it is being played this week. Understandably Nadal has pulled out after his Wimbledon exertions, but he'll lose over 200 points when last year's result is removed from his ranking in a couple of weeks time.

[Gerontophile]

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I think the Olympics are considered as a one-off, and dont count toward the yearly rankings.