In sports, a measure of greatness is seeing just how a champion responds after getting hit. Well, Roger Federer got hit by Rafael Nadal in the French Open final, then five weeks later Nadal knocked him down in the Wimbledon final.

I tried to determine the toughest draws conquered at the respective events since the start of the 1988 season. The Australian Open did not have 1 draw that jumped out at me. The U.S. Open had several draws that stood out as quite difficult for the champion to navigate (1992, 1994, 1998, 2002). At any rate, these are the 4 draws I selected. Tell me and the rest of the Tennis-x readers what other draws were exceptionally deep and rough.

Nadal is not facing a radically depleted or wounded Roger Federer in the final. Federer won all 10 sets he played in picking up his 5th Halle title. Marcos Baghdatis and Nichols Kiefer stand out as solid wins in the quick transition from clay to grass. The Fed has also posted straight set wins over Robin Soderling, 2002 Wimbledon Champion Lleyton Hewitt, 2004 Wimbledon semifinalist Mario Ancic, and the enigmatic talent of Marat Safin. Nadal made a similarly quick and impressive transition from clay to grass, but he did so with the wind of victory at his back not the sting of humiliation. Federer has looked sharp at Halle and at Wimbledon.

I allow myself to briefly occupy the mythical Commissioner of Tennis Chair that John McEnroe publicly campaigns for now and again. Johnny Mac campaigned long and hard to be the U.S. Davis Cup captain only to quit after one year, but when should reality ever hurt speculation and offering advice? Here are my […]

In the early part of the movie “Troy”, Brad Pitt as Achilles strikes down a giant with his sword, and then yells out at the stunned opposing army, “Is there no one else?” That scene reminds me of just how good Rafael Nadal is on clay.

“I had obviously a strategy in mind, but I couldn’t do it because of Rafa’s play,” Federer said. “He’s so hard to stop once he’s on top of you. The moment I step off this court I will think of grass — I’m looking forward to the grass, that’s for sure.”

“The last two Grand Slam finals were a great learning experience for me,” Ivanovic said. “I’m only 20 and it was my third final already, so that kept some pressure off me. I was just trying to enjoy it. Obviously there were a lot of emotions inside, but until the last point I tried not to think about the occasion and just focus on my tennis. I was really happy I managed to do that today.”

For the third straight year we get the dream blockbuster final, the Roger Federer vs. Rafael Nadal match for clay supremacy, for history and much more.

Hey NBC, thanks for keeping tennis on the always-tape-delayed down-low in the U.S., and you in on some conspiracy to kill tennis?

Sucks to be a tennis fan in the U.S. today. On arguably one of the most appealing semifinal lineups of the year live coverage from the French Open today is non-existent here in the U.S.