He calls Fed that too. :) He usually calls them the “two greatest players ever,” in fact, in most interviews. LOL. I think he means two of the greatest ever. He also loves Sampras. And surely Fed & Rafa are to of the greatest.

Thank you so much for posting this ceremony video Tom! I didn’t get to see it after the match.

Bravo NOLE! Well done to stay in it, fight for set two, and keep composed. AWESOME beginning to 2011. Could not be better.

March 20th, 2011 at 9:05 pm

two not to. Sheesh, need a rest.

March 20th, 2011 at 9:09 pm

Go Nole! What an amazing feat, you’re unbeatable. Big hug to Rafa though.

March 20th, 2011 at 9:19 pm

Rafa has to equal Roger’s weeks at number one and equal the number of GS Roger has won before he can be called the greatest. Last I remember Roger has won 16 GS and Rafa 9. Roger at 285 total weeks at number one and Rafa 88. Also Roger has 5 year end wins and Rafa zero.

March 20th, 2011 at 9:22 pm

Rafa is still the greatest player ever, so humble and a great human being Djokvic has a long way to go to be like Rafa!!

March 20th, 2011 at 9:22 pm

didi, he said “to me, you’re the greatest player”.

It is Novak’s opinion and he is entitled to it, especially when he says “to me…”.

Like, for example, when I say: didi to me you are the most sensitive person when it comes to deciding on the greatest player! Get it?

March 20th, 2011 at 9:31 pm

that trophy must be sooo heavy, every body has trouble with it!

March 20th, 2011 at 9:31 pm

@didi 9:22pm: I agree. Fed also has 4 WTF titles.

March 20th, 2011 at 9:32 pm

let novak have his time, we all know fed’s records, this is a post about him winning a title and complimenting the other finalist.

March 20th, 2011 at 9:34 pm

Well, I will look at the draw for Miami but right now I am NOT picking the finalist andnchampion of a west coast tournament who feel the need to fly to bogota for a cash grab exho. Murray or fed.

Yeah right, I’m sure r.nadal will magically appear in the winner column for my bracket, again. Cant help myself.

March 20th, 2011 at 9:39 pm

Nole calls up Roger.
Nole: Roger, i defeated Rafa. I’m better than you.
Roger : I defeated Rafa in December – so whats the big deal
Nole: when you defeated him, he was tired. I defeated him fresh
Roger hangs up.

March 20th, 2011 at 9:41 pm

Yes, he said “to me,” and also added “and a good friend” so it was likely a meant to be a personal exchange.

He says Fed is the “best player in the history of our sport” after his semifinal win.

So the difference, is historically “best” versus personal “greatest” – and really, who cares!? :)

He gives both of them respect; he’s matured and learned in the school of hard knocks the kind of pressure and consistency they have have faced/achieved, and now he understands.

GO NOLE! Well done, nice speech, keep up the awesome work.

March 20th, 2011 at 9:45 pm

I agree with Jane, he said to “to me” and the good friend part lean towards a personal exchange. Also remember English is not his first language, greatest and best not necessarily the same. Greatest could be nicest etc. These two are good friends.

March 20th, 2011 at 9:48 pm

kimberly i would not count out rafa at miami – he usually does well there, and he was in the final last year. plus you will be there cheering him on! i am not picking against him in the semis in miami – that (and andy m) was my bracket killer at IW. but i don’t think i will take nole past the QFs.

(p.s. stu, i know your “loftiness” goals – so you should pick him to win and then you can say “i told ya! ;))

March 20th, 2011 at 9:56 pm

err, Rafa was not in the finals at Miami last year. It was berdych and roddick.

March 20th, 2011 at 9:58 pm

Even with the bogota trip? That just seems like suicide for both. Te rest of the players are all here already hanging on the beach.

March 20th, 2011 at 9:59 pm

^ oops you’re right! i was thinking roddick beat rafa in the finals but it was in the semifinals…

March 20th, 2011 at 10:00 pm

Kimberly don’t they have a week though until they play in Miami? maybe they’ll be okay? I think Rafa hasn’t played much this year, that’s why I say I’d take him deeper than Nole who must be running outta gas somewhat, given the tear he’s been on since end of November.

March 20th, 2011 at 10:02 pm

There is so much analysis going on here I wish someone would post the Zapruder film of the JFK assassination so the bloggers in here could tell us if there was a second shooter or not. :)

Seriously, if one of you broke your back over a weekend and defeated Federer and Nadal back to back in 24 hours, and English was not your first language, I would not question anything you said in the trophy ceremony, even if you moved your fingers over your lips and just went bebebebebebebebebebebeb.

All that needs to be said in here is -

Congratulation, Nole – you are the best tennis player in 2011 so far. Let’s see how far you can carry this streak!

March 20th, 2011 at 10:02 pm

ive never been really good friends with anyone who doesn’t speak good english, so i wonder about being friends with nadal and not speaking spanish? dont doubt they are friends just wonder logistically how they do it. haha
surely nadal understands one on one and in a conversational context better than what we see in interviews, etc, too.
i just imagine a lot of extra giggling and weird eye contact

March 20th, 2011 at 10:03 pm

Kimberly,

Agree,
Don’t think the players can cry about the length of the season when they cram in extro exhibitions in all corners of the world.

IMHO

March 20th, 2011 at 10:07 pm

The first round starts wed, I think they have byes so they will play Friday or saturday. I heard nadal was playing sat night. We will go definitely Saturday.

On a positive note fsu is actually beating the number two seed in march madness. I’m not holding my breath though. I can’t imagine it will last.

March 20th, 2011 at 10:07 pm

Gordo, well said!

And knowing Novak and his personality don’t be surprised if he does that speech one time in future:
fingers over lips and “bebebebebe brrrrrr blblblbln”

It better happen while Nadal is still No. 1, otherwise Carol will miss it!

March 20th, 2011 at 10:08 pm

why is it that players who will never be considered the ‘best’ or ‘greatest’ ever are always so quick these days to call other players that? very strange.

sorry nadal. i was rooting for you!

March 20th, 2011 at 10:34 pm

Thanks to Al Jazeera we were able to see the complete ceremony. Someone could not stand to see Novak with his hat on a podium. Well, better get use to it the more will come :)

March 20th, 2011 at 10:43 pm

andrea et al – why take a dig at Novak? he’s on top of the world today, probably deliriously happy, he wanted to express his excitement at having beaten his biggest nemesis while acknowledging how hard he had to work for it…at the end of the day, whether or not what he said is true, he said something NICE so leave him alone! and let him enjoy his victory!

March 20th, 2011 at 10:46 pm

An interesting, Djokovic-centric complimentary outlook to neutralize some of the comments here:

http://goo.gl/UdlpH

March 20th, 2011 at 10:58 pm

Gordo, ha ha – hilarious & great post at 10:02.

stu, forgedaboutit. Nole gave a nice speech; he’s playing AWESOME tennis. That’s all that matters. :) The rest doesn’t.

March 20th, 2011 at 10:58 pm

^ Thanks stu – very interesting article about the serve to Nadal’s backhand. One guy’s opinion but an intriguing one none the less. Cheers.

March 20th, 2011 at 11:07 pm

Oh come on, you loses the match when your first serve percentage is below 30 percent! No conpsiracy theory here.

March 20th, 2011 at 11:26 pm

Lol Kimberly, for sure. But maybe that serve out wide did help Nole. Just that writer blows it up too much.

March 20th, 2011 at 11:59 pm

Sometimes we look at the wrong stats. If you can put pressure on the server by returning well OR if you don’t put a good enough serve in to be offensive the other player is gonna make you pay, serving pressure mounts. Although its hard you have to give the other player credit for that. Novak did the same with Fed. Some will argue that Fed DF on BP, mindless error. Others can say Novak is the best returner in the game and that first and second serve better be a damn good one…just sayin….don’t know which for sure…but either one has to be considered

March 21st, 2011 at 12:12 am

Slight redemption, fsu pulled off the upset v. Notre dame.

Well, I will put the spin on it that suits me as a grumpy nadal fan, no first serve no win! He was holding easy and playing confident until his serve went AWOL. This interpretation is bearable for me and I am sticking with it!

March 21st, 2011 at 12:17 am

Kimberly

your take is as good as any for me :)

hope you write a plenty in miami….looking forward to hearing the “adventure”

March 21st, 2011 at 12:27 am

Yes, Kimberly – we want you on sight reports. contador, skeeze, andrea, altlashugged, and steve-o all gave us some takes on IW which were great! Hope you can fill us in on the Miami virtues and vices. ;)

March 21st, 2011 at 12:30 am

Stu, the LA Times writer is either ignorant or making up stuff. Djokovic did not find any secret to denting Nadal’s armor that other players have not exploited before. At the World Tour Finals, Federer served a lot of slices to Nadal’s backhand in the deuce court that got similar results.

Let’s not forget that this was Nadal’s first tournament in six weeks after a short injury break. Furthermore he had a relatively easy path to the final and was not really tested (except briefly and in spurts by Del Potro). Rafa’s backhand would have probably been more reliable if he was better primed. Let’s see what happens in Miami.

March 21st, 2011 at 12:34 am

Nadal’s achievements at his age are anything but stupendous. Yet he has a mountain to climb before he can be described as the “Greatest”. Nadal’s dedication, cent percent commitment, passion and devotion to the sport cannot be disputed. Moreover, his never-give-up approach at any point in the match is his speciality. Nadal can handle pressure situations well than any other player, even Federer. But yet despite all these, it would be apt to call Nadal as “The greatest Clay Court player ever” because his achievements speak for that. However with regard to the overall picture, Nadal must overhaul Federer records before he can be debated for the greatest tag. Given his ability, Nadal is capable of surpassing Federer’s record. But that is for the future. Moreover, Nadal is yet to win the year end Masters World series even once while Federer has done it a record five times. So, Nadal has many things to achieve in his career and I hope be excels and live up to his reputation.

March 21st, 2011 at 12:42 am

“This is the longest such streak to open a calendar year since Ivan Lendl began 1986 by winning his first 25 matches. It also completes an extraordinary tournament for Djokovic, who took out Nadal and Roger Federer on consecutive days.”

This is a very balanced article that acknowledges both Nole’s great play and Rafa’s serving woes:

http://www.realclearsports.com/articles/2011/03/21/nadal_a_victim_of_djokovics_desert_storm_97255.html

March 21st, 2011 at 1:08 am

Rafa’s H2H with the greatest is 14:8. How do you call one who is greater than the greatest?

March 21st, 2011 at 2:16 am

Congratulations Novak on the great victory!!!

March 21st, 2011 at 2:46 am

Tennis doesn’t lie; Djokovic is best!

http://www.pe.com/columns/patton/stories/PE_Sports_Local_D_patton_21.27f0eec.html

March 21st, 2011 at 2:52 am

Mila n Mrs.Jane has said it correctly about Nole referrin to Rafa as d greatest n it’s absolutly ok coz its his personal opinion. To him, Rafa’s greatest. No problem wid it. Rafa of cours is one of d greatest.

March 21st, 2011 at 3:14 am

I’m not sure who asked – I think it was dari – but Rafa and Nole can communicate in more than one language; Nole is also fluent in Spanish.

Congratulations to Nole and his fans.

Good luck in Miami, Rafa. Personally – not to wish time away, certainly, but I’m looking forward to April.

March 21st, 2011 at 3:41 am

picks open this afternoon for Miami Draw Challenge-go to challenge.atpworldtour.com join group tennisxfans. It was a lot of fun even if Rafa lost!

March 21st, 2011 at 6:57 am

referring to jane’s diplomatic post at 9.45 p.m, march 21st – I think you could say that Djokovic is 1) paying tribute to Federer’s record, which is obviously (as yet) unmatched but 2)has personally found that Nadal is better than Federer – that’s his personal experience. Nothing is more convincing than the testimony of a player, I hope people don’t want him to prevaricate. Of course, there may be other great players who disagree – what does Murray think, for instance (I suspect he leans towards Nadal, actually), Soderling probably goes for Fed.

Of course, there is context – when you have just been engaged in a ferocious tussle with a great rival and you have defeated him, there is a tendency to feel warm to him…

I’d be very surprised if Djokovic won Miami – quite simply, he must be mentally and emotionally full, and he’ll have to let loose the reins. A loss at Miami will mean little. How he plays in the clay season, that’s what will be intriguing.

March 21st, 2011 at 7:17 am

Nadal says:” “It’s true I played with less intensity after the first set, but I think everything is because of the serve”

Well, there you have it. Fortunately for Nadal, one has to assume the collapse of his serve was one of those bizarre blips that will happen to a chap from time to time. For Federer, though, the evidence is mounting that the serve – the great wonderful serve – has gone for ever. Still very good indeed, of course, by most peoples’ standards – but not by the standards of those at the very top, and that is the point.

March 21st, 2011 at 7:21 am

That people find a way to criticize Novak for his words is beyond me. What else do you want from the guy? He, like Murray, considers Rafa his friend and admires him more than anyone because of what he has achieved being the same age than he is. While Federer is the greatest ever in achievements but not of the same generation than Nole/Muzza.
I guess some people will always find fault with Nole. And when he starts winning more, it will get worse. To each their own.

March 21st, 2011 at 7:47 am

Nina, there’s one thing also; Novak lost the first 4 encounters against Rog, (the last one of those 4 – March 2007). Novak was pretty young then, 19 that is. After that he is 9:9 against Federer. Why would he think Fed is the greatest in his opinion, when he apparently has more difficulties beating Rafa then Fed, apart from Fed’s unmatchable achievements which he recognizes and acknowledges! He said more then once that Fad is the greatest in history in their sport. The results show it all, but from his personal experience, Rafa is the hardest to beat, plus still young, plus a closer friend etc, etc…

Don’t forget that Nole has Sampras as his idol and Fed only as a rival. Their relationship is pretty distant, fair but cold a bit. Novak clearly finds Rafa as a greatest ever, definitely judged by his personal experience and his subjective on Rafa’s quality based attitude. He is not blind not to acknowledge Fed’s greatest achievements ever and he keeps repeating that on almost every opportunity, but one shouldn’t mind if he finds Rafa the greatest as well, especially giving the fact that he beats Fed as regularly as Fed beats him, but not in the case with Rafa. They share their tennis bread together, all three of them, and each of them has the right to consider the other one the way he finds it the most appropriate.

All in all, one is certain, Novak thinks Rafa is the greatest rival ever and Fed is the greatest tennis player ever. One is based upon personal experience, the other one upon results.

I think I wouldn’t mind at all for my fave to be consider any of that. Everything else would be immature, jealous and full with envy from any of Fed’s or Rafa’s fans and establish them not necessarily the real tennis fans, apart from their uncontested love towards these two greats of all time.

March 21st, 2011 at 8:28 am

If Djokovic considers Nadal the greatest ever and wants to call him that, let him do it. That is his opinion and he has the right to it.

March 21st, 2011 at 8:29 am

Our friend Bodo has some very nice things to say about Djokovic today!

March 21st, 2011 at 9:08 am

Instead of discussing who is the greatest, all over again, how about we focus on that beating Dojokovic gave to both of them. Do you guys think he will be a force in the clay season as well?

This will be an interesting season, he’s on a high now and may come down and fade away for a while, but I don’t think that’ll be the case. His head seems to be in this for real now, so he may have a killer year.

Also, seeing this turnaround from Novak makes you think that perhaps Murray will do the same in time. Once he matures a little more.

March 21st, 2011 at 9:20 am

JCZ: re Andy, pleeeaaasssse be right :)
may have said this b4 but.. Nole had a fine victory and he can say what he likes, it is HIS opinion after all.

March 21st, 2011 at 9:28 am

Roger and Rafa… Great guy’s and great for the sport. Djokovic……. I can’t stand to even look at the guy. No class….

March 21st, 2011 at 9:31 am

^ margot Andy M has usually followed Nole, in breakthroughs, etc, by 6 mos to a year. Just look at their careers in the pros. Very similar, just with Nole usually taking the plunge first. :) Murray’s day is coming!

Will look for the Killing. Term almost over and then four blissful non-teaching months, with PD work, sure, but no classroom. Woot!

March 21st, 2011 at 9:32 am

Great tennis match from two greats! I was pleasantly surprised by Novak´s unusually graceful winning gestures after the match point. His gorilla-like chest pounding and warlike screaming after the last point can be quite a disgrace sometimes.

March 21st, 2011 at 9:36 am

Hahaha DK and nitro – spot on. totally hate djokovic. I like it how he kisses rafa’s @$$. He better, because if he engages in a verbal war with rafa like he did with federer, rafa would chew him alive and spit him out.

16-8 and counting baby. I cannot wait for the next time nadal meets djokovic. rafa is going to kill this idiot.

Djokovic kisses rafa’s @$$ because there is no way he is ever turning around that H2H. with federer he has a chance to do so. if he can’t even have a winning H2H against a guy 6years older than him, djokovic’s arrogant head would just explode from the ignominy of it all.

March 21st, 2011 at 9:59 am

JCZ – I think Djokovic will have a very successful clay court season, and is in with a chance against Nadal at RG.

If Nadal plays as he can, then it’s everyone else playing for second. But we’ve just seen that he can be vulnerable. A player’s form is not entirely in his own hands – the unexpected can happen. Not very often – wouldn’t be unexpected then, would it – but it just does sometimes. And if it does, Djokovic is ideally placed to capitalise.

My dream is that Federer throws back the years and beats Nadal in the final. Now whilst the unexpected does happen, the impossible tends not to – but, there’s always a first time….

March 21st, 2011 at 10:13 am

Ha ha ha ha ha, brilliant, brilliant…

Is there a bigger testimony to his success than this, ha ha ha.

Bravo Nole, so help you God!

You defeated them all!

If they only new how hatred is the closest emotion to love…

Fantastic.

In Novak we trust!!!

Way to go my champion. Keep on being such and yourself. You are unique in every possible way there is…

Love from a Noleland.

March 21st, 2011 at 10:13 am

margot, Muzz has to get inspired by Nole, how could he not! If he is moping in Miami, this has to have lit a fire under him. Just for the rest of 2011 though, I hope he is still vulnerable to Novak :p. Nole has knocked on too many doors and almost made it inside for too long, and I want him to have his year. He’s got his hands full with the players at their current levels, and may not be able to handle Muzz if he finds another gear!

March 21st, 2011 at 10:13 am

Djokovic has been very determined this year. He seems to have trimmed away some on the unnecessary aspects of his game, like those “gorilla” chest thumps (to quote somebody her who coined that term), reacting negatively to the crowd and other antics. Together with the confidence he has been steadliy gaining recently, the room of the top has just gotten really tight.

March 21st, 2011 at 11:19 am

Ha just saw the vid, Novak comes up and no trophy just the mike, and Novak says “I thought I was getting a trophy, I guess this mike is it”. LOL

BTW, this “greatest” stuff was over hyped by the writer of the article, listen again carefully and you’ll see in context between the two…..

March 21st, 2011 at 11:31 am

DK and Cindy Brady, try chewing on a piece of parsley to take that bitter taste of bile out of your mouths. You two are ridiculous, proclaiming to hate someone that you don’t know personally and probably never will.I don’t care who you root for, it will not have any impact on your life, but having such hateful emotions will. These type of comments about any player is so silly. Good luck to all the guys who have given so much to us fans and the sport and thumbs down to mean spirited people from any camp.

March 21st, 2011 at 11:38 am

When someone suggested the match might have been different if Nadal had won a key, second-set point, the Spaniard scoffed.

“‘If’ does not exist,” he said. “You make or you don’t make.

“That’s always the way — the better player wins and he was better today.”

id does not exist. that is profound.

March 21st, 2011 at 12:18 pm

I never used the word hate. I said I can’t stand to look at him and he has no class.

I’m not mean spirited… that’s just my opinion. In fact, there’s not another player on the ATP tour that I dislike. He is the only one. Again, because he has no class.

March 21st, 2011 at 12:22 pm

The men’s draw for Miami is out.

March 21st, 2011 at 12:27 pm

The tennis on the wings of an airplane video is out! “Exclusive” on Nole’s website!

March 21st, 2011 at 12:28 pm

“Roger and Rafa… Great guy’s and great for the sport. Djokovic……. I can’t stand to even look at the guy. No class…”

Then look into your ugly face buffoon.

March 21st, 2011 at 12:28 pm

Novak and Rafa are friendly and they share the same agent Barbadillo who arranged this exho. He’s probably getting a hefty ten percent.

When Rafa started beating Fed years ago people were giving Rafa a lot of crap too about how he looks, his clothes, his body type, etc. It’s not nice.

I think Murray will come of age 2012 and I believe Fed will win one more GS this year.

March 21st, 2011 at 12:29 pm

haha Nole, I love you but please stick to tennis and don’t try to act :)

March 21st, 2011 at 12:30 pm

AGAIN Nole-Roddick-Federer?!!!!!

March 21st, 2011 at 12:32 pm

What time is the exho? any streams?

March 21st, 2011 at 12:33 pm

but this time, add Murray to the same half for some added excitement! margot, this is it!! your man has to step it up in Miami!

March 21st, 2011 at 12:33 pm

There’s hate on all sides, some of it very open, some disguised, but it’s there. What about those who want the duopoly or empire as they put it, to end? Isn’t that hate that’s diplomatically disguised? I think so.

March 21st, 2011 at 12:36 pm

Carol, wanting the duopoly to “end” does not mean we want the duo to never win again. We just want more variety than 4 Slam winners in 24 Slams.

March 21st, 2011 at 12:40 pm

Guys, please ignore everything I said about the draw. I’m seeing things in my excitement :)

March 21st, 2011 at 12:43 pm

Wow, things got rather interesting with roger at number three. I’m not afraid of Rafa in the semi, this is almost refreshing compared to the steady feed of nole semi’s!
and novak and Andy in the same quarter! If they both get there…
Mmmmm, I love this draw.

March 21st, 2011 at 12:55 pm

Variety, yes, we all want that. Look at it this way. Djokovic has won 3 titles for the year already, yet, his fans, still want him to win more. Is that wanting variety? Fed fans have been accused of wanting him to win everything. It’s the same with the Djokovic fans, except they are hiding it under variety.

March 21st, 2011 at 12:57 pm

And if dolgo beats tsonga again, then he Vera a shot at Rafa. No doubt Rafa come outta that, but it would be cool to see!
Hope fed’s serve picks up, go roger!

March 21st, 2011 at 12:58 pm

Vera should be “gets”

March 21st, 2011 at 1:00 pm

Very exciting draw, I agree. Poor Muzz tho :( Verdasco in r4, Djokovic in the QF, Soda in the SF and then Fed/Rafa……if he wins this one, i think we’ll be talking about Muzz coming of age too!

March 21st, 2011 at 1:02 pm

Fed is so good that regardles of where he lands in the draw, he’ll beat those players he’s supposed to beat. I’m not one bit concerned about Fed, he’ll be fine. I think he’ll play with more determination to avenge his recent losses to Djokovic, and Nadal will be in the same mode.

March 21st, 2011 at 1:18 pm

stu, agreed. Tough draw for Muzza. But the draw is interesting, with Fed/Rafa on one side and Murray/Nole on the other – totally defamiliarizing!

March 21st, 2011 at 1:48 pm

…and no thanks to Bogota, i’m going with a Fed-Muzz final!

March 21st, 2011 at 1:53 pm

Astonishing Breaking News!! pictures of Andy Murray smiling at Murray’s World Pics page 551. Yes folks this is a tennisx exclusive and extraordinary news….
stu: thanx but 1) who knows which Andy will turn up! He has tweeted that he’s back in Miami and loves it there, so that’s good :) but……and
2) I never worry about draws, usually unexpected things happen
jane: absolutely “defamiliarizing” and had a wee smile to myself ;)
Carol: not hatred, merely boredom.

March 21st, 2011 at 1:58 pm

^ awww, sweet pics margot; that one sleeping on the couch? :) makes your remember how young these guys are!

March 21st, 2011 at 2:12 pm

margot, you need to figure out how to get your hands on the “all andy” tee!

March 21st, 2011 at 2:18 pm

I am picking Nole to at least to the 2nd rd, from there I can’t decide….

March 21st, 2011 at 2:23 pm

margot, I take it you’ve seen Mr Murray’s skit with the outnumbered guys, then? It’s very funny

March 21st, 2011 at 2:29 pm

skeeze, i’m picking whoever you pick.

March 21st, 2011 at 2:35 pm

stu: well I would kill, naturally…..
dari: yep ta, have posted link twice. In pics he’s giving small girl a piggy back
jane: yes, they’re so nice aren’t they? There’s another one somewhere of Maggie Mae up on the physio bench with Andy! R u familiar with the “William” books by Richmal Crompton? If u r the younger boy in the skit played William on TV at Christmas. He was WONDERFUL!

March 21st, 2011 at 2:37 pm

skeeze: me too I’m with stu! Come on buddy, how’s about sharing them all? Think what it’d do for tennisx in the group rank….;)

March 21st, 2011 at 2:39 pm

@stu

I think its a solid bet he makes it cause he has a bye:)

My draw is workin out where Nole plays Troicki..again! Gotta go back and re work the thing..ugh

At least Fed and Novak aren’t in the same half for once….I think they are both happy with that.

March 21st, 2011 at 2:40 pm

unless i change it i might have done a suicide draw

nadal (who is now playing a useless exho in bogota) v. andy murray (kamakazzee pick)

March 21st, 2011 at 3:36 pm

interesting prospective encounters – Nadal/Nishikori; Harrison/Simon,Raonic/Ferrer, Gasquet(refurbished)/Soderling.

margot, when as I was a young and ickle boy, one of the great pleasures of life would be to go and buy the latest Richmal Crompton – like P.G.Wodehouse, another great writer who will be read long after more solemn literary types are forgotten, her career spanned well over half a century.

In the last ten or twenty years, Martin Jarvis has taken to reading both the William books and PG Wodehouse, and he is simply streets ahead of anybody else (Kenneth Williams, though, did an eccentric reading of William which is well worth listening to). Unfortunately, William does not translate well onto the screen. I agree with you, the lad who played William was good (though not right – who could be right?), the Mrs.Brown character was acceptable, just about, but the rest were aweful. Mr.Brown, for instance – a deeply sardonic character in the books and endlessly middle aged – was portrayed by some young, grinning twirp and as for Robert – I had eventually to turn off the television I was so outraged.

the William stories are quite wonderful, but I always imagine they do not travel – is it possible for a non-English person to enjoy them?

March 21st, 2011 at 3:54 pm

Rafa is for me the most scary and flawless player, wasn´t it for the physical part he would be mostly unbeatable! The guy is a machine and all respect to Djoker to be able to beat him, no doubt who the three greatest players right now is, for me Djoker and Rafa stands strongest to end the year at nr. 1! Fed is closely behind, Murray could surprice aswell and has the best results besides Rafa against Roger which shows that you´re capable of beating anyone!

Novak will win around 5-6 tournies i think, Rafa about the same prop only about one less, and Roger about one less than Rafa aswell or the same, Rafa is imo more unbeatable on Clay than Roger is on Grass!

March 21st, 2011 at 4:54 pm

oh grendel, I still read them occasionally, William is such a wonderful, lawless but deeply moralistic, iconic character. I loved the TV adaptation, loved Mr and especially Mrs Brown, loved the outlaws, loved the Botts etc. Thought the kid was perfect. The story with the parrot gift for Ethel was magic. I do like them on the radio too and agree re Martin Jarvis. I think jane would “get” William if any “foreigner” could ;)

March 21st, 2011 at 5:10 pm

Bogota live stream

http://www.rojadirecta.es/goto/www.jabulanitv.net/2010/10/channel-2.html

March 21st, 2011 at 5:34 pm

I’m with you Nole! To me, Rafa is the greatest player ever too!
Its not just about the count of grand slams. There are the Masters totals, the other atp tournaments Olympics, the talent and expertise.

I always agreed with John McEnroe that Bjorn Borg is one of the greatest too although would not come close in trophy count.
And regardless of this unending argument playing out before careers are even close to being completed, – to me Nadal is my Favourite of all time for certain!

March 21st, 2011 at 7:38 pm

and btw – just a reminder that Rafa Nadal is 24 years old so appears to have many years of great record breaking success to come!

March 21st, 2011 at 7:42 pm

Djokovic, you either love him or hate him.

I think he is the greatest, and the most versatile personality out there in tennis, comparing to those Rafa/Fed-type robots.

Also, Nole has shown more fair-play than any of them. True followers of tennis would know that.

Fed is an arrogant miserable man, and the older he gets his ugly personality is showing more and more, especially that he is losing now. That is why, not many players like him nor can consider themselves as his friends.

On the other hand, Djokovic is a very good friend with Rafa & Murray. Their friendship spans outside of the tennis world.

If Djokovic, put so much effort as Rafa in the game, he would be truly the best, but he is not a robot, but a very sociable human being.

For all the Djoko-haters… you are pathetic narrow-minded creatures, brainwashed by marketed brands, and that is all you’ll ever know and support.

March 21st, 2011 at 8:37 pm

Well obviously he said that to make him feel better after the loss. He’s said that about Federer as well. MURRAY’s said that about Federer as well “He’s the greatest ever, you know” said Murray when he defeated King Rog in one of the Masters last year. So stop making a big deal out of it.

March 21st, 2011 at 9:52 pm

You can add me as someone who doesnt like Djokovic, i cant stand him infact, he shoots his mouth off whenever he wins titles and lacks class. anyone knows Nole’s comments were to spite Federer

oh, and as for the post earlier about Nadal being greater than Federer because he’s 14-8? well i guess that means Davydenko is greater than Nadal as he leads him 6-4.

March 22nd, 2011 at 12:04 am

Nole’s run seems similar to Lendl in a weird way… (yrs of losing at the top- than finally figuring out winning.) I’m picking him as an early fav to win the USO at the end of the year. Maybe Wimbledon but I still think Nadal is gonna take the Clay again.
Noticed the Federer goat argument comes up again. I still say don’t compare eras.. Federer’s great! One could argue he came at the end of the 90′s crowd tho (when the changing of the guard was happening) & had a couple years to dominate and win the 16gs. Pete Sampras even admits he worked harder on getting a year-end number one streak rather than slam number. Faced stiffer competition too at the top, similar to what Federer faces now (4-5 guys who could beat him)… Laver’s 2 calendar year gs’s – 8 years apart still impressive (always a goat argument – especially with longevity — Jimmy Connors stats too. Margret Court’s 24 singles gs/ with 19 doubles gs & 19 mixed doubles titles puts all the other stats to shame. Federer lack of davis cup play compared to the other compatriots of this era is ugly– his h2h with nemesis looks bad. I’d still pick Sampras circa 97′ as the best on hardcourts and wimbledon. Been a toss up between borg & nadal on clay. If I had to pick a great singles/doubles/davis cup great – It would be McEnroe 81′!

Looking forward to Miami tourney! Novak might be getting tired tho, might lose.. I think a dark horse might win it if nole goes out or even DELPO!

March 22nd, 2011 at 12:31 am

Roger 30 years old. Roger is an old player. Roger 5 time ATP finals champion. Record.

March 25th, 2011 at 10:39 am

Federer is so full of himself. I hope more people are beginning to see that.

March 25th, 2011 at 3:33 pm

Please the country is COLOMBIA instead of COLUMBIA. Is name after admiral Cristobal Colon who in the USA and the UK is known as COlumbus but who in real life NOBODY ever called him that way. In Spain and in the world in the 1490s he was known as Cristobal Colon and died with that name too. His childrens children are also Colon. NO need to anglicised his name.

Bravo Nadal.

June 5th, 2011 at 4:35 pm