Recently in Tennis Category

This is downright painful!

Roger Federer, one of the greatest players in the history of his sport, is in absolute free-fall and his latest loss will probably cost him his record-run at No. 1.

Defending champion Federer suffered a 7-6 (8-6), 4-6, 7-6 (7-5) loss to Croatia's Ivo Karlovic in the third round of the Western & Southern Financial Group Masters on Thursday. By failing to reach the semifinals, the Swiss star will see his streak of 235 weeks atop the rankings end if Rafael Nadal wins the title.

It's the week before the Olympics and the top tennis players are in Cincinatti polishing their games. My favorite baseline hottie Robby Ginepri took a set off top-ranked (for now) Roger Federer before losing 6-7, 7-6, 6-0. If Rafael Nadal wins the tournament and Federer loses before the semifinals, Rafael will be number one. Meanwhile, that other American heartthrob, Andy Roddick, comtinued to have a crummy summer. He had to pull out of the tournament shortly before he was to play his first match. Andy had already snubbed the Olympics which I fund stunning since he is the top U.S. player and has represented the country in Davis Cup so faithfully.

Rafael Nadal put an explanation point on the fact that he is indeed the best tennis player in the world right now by winning his fifth strraight tournament and 29th consecutive match on Siunday at the Rogers Cup in Toronto.

Rafael is still ranked number 2 behind Roger Federer but after winning two straight tournaments on clay then two on grass and now one of hard court - and winning seven titles overall in 2008, he is no doubt the best.

It's thrilling to watch a player reach their full potential right before our eyes and even more thrilling when he does it by knocking out the champ. Federer will have to improve from what had seemed to be an unreachable level if he is to catch Rafa again.

No, that's not Popeye! It's Rafael Nadal who is blistering through the draw at the men's pro tournament in Toronto. With Roger Federer in some kind of free-fall right now (he lost his first match in Canada), Nadal is poised to take over the number one ranking sometime later tis summer. He's been number two in the world for more than 150 consecutive weeks - a record - while Federer had been number one for a longer stretch than any one else in history: since February 2004.

Oh no! That Wimbledon loss a few weeks ago musta really taken a lot out of Roger Federer. How else can you explain his loss on Wednesday to Gilles Simon, of France, in the Rogers Cup tennis tournament in Toronto. Simon won 2-6, 7-5, 6-4.

The only way for him to salvage what has, for him, been a subpar year, is to win the Olympic Games next month and/or the US Open in September.

It's always a good day when I have new Robby Ginepri pics to share! The hunky American tennis star won a tough three=set match Tuesday at the Rogers Cup tournament in Toronto.

After that Wimbledon final for the ages, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer are both entered in the men's tournament in Canada - a major warm-up for next month's Olympic Games and the U.S. Open. I'm rooting for Roger to bag some big titles in the second half of the year after losing that heartbreaking Wimbledon final.

All this Emmy stuff, Outfest stuff, TV Critics Press Tour stuff. Where's the beef(cake)?!!"

I'm here at a TCA session and during a lull, found these pics of the movie star handsome tennis star Tommy Haas. He has been out with injury (a frequent occurance) but returned with a win on Thursday over John Isner at the Indianapolis Tennis Championships.

After winning both Wimbledon and the French Open in a span of four weeks, Rafael Nadal is spending his time in his hometown of Mallorca. Here he is (above) trying to even out his tan with his girlfriend Xisca Perello and (below) taking a dip.

Everyone wants a piece of Rafael Nadal these days. Geez, you'd think he just dethroned Roger Federer as Wimbledon champ in the best match ever played at the tournament! Here is Rafa being mobbed everywhere he goes from the airport to his hometown of Manacor's town hall.

Here is a dapper Rafael Nadal arriving at last night's Wimbledon's Champion's Ball. He must be running on fume after that epic victory over Roger Federer. I think that match will help popularize tennis again - at least I hope so. I'll always be a tennis fan but it was so nice to have company over the weekend with the final matches (Venus Williams beat sister Serena on Saturday) attracting so many casuial fans and drawing huge ratings.

Meanwhile, I love this shot that OhLaLa posted today showing why Nadal is the Top Gun!

OMG! For tennis fans, today's men's final at Wimbledon between Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer will go down as the best in history. There is no debate. It was the best -ever. Rafael edged Roger in the end by a score of 6-4, 6-4, 6-7, 6-7, 9-7. It was amazing. Just amazing. So much drama, such high quality of play, total passion and commitment to winning by both players. There was a point, at 7-7 in the fifth set, where I thought no one would ever emerge as the winner - nor should they. Both deserved the title.
For Roger, it is the end of a historic 65-match winning streak on grass and his first loss at Wimbledon since 2002. He had win five titles in a row - the last two over Nadal. Rafael now has to be considered the best player in the world this year although I'm not sure if the tennis rankings will officially reflect that just yet.

I hope this match - the longest men's final in the history of this tournament - brought new fans to this sport that I have loved for so long.

Between today's final and Venus Williams' win yesterday, it was a Wimbledon for the ages. I was staying at my dad's house in Huntington Beach and we got up at 6 a.m. to watch. Counting two rain delays, the match was not over until 1:30 pacific time. My phone was ringing off the hook with calls from friends everywhere from India to Indiana. It was so exciting ... and draining!

Nadal now has a Wimbledon title to go along with his four French Open crowns. He is the first player since Bjorn Borg in 1980 to pull of the difficult feat of winning in Paris on red clay then triumphing on the green grass of Wimbledon. More impressive than his play was the class he showed toward Federer after their epic match. These two guys are the definition of good sportsmanship.

Not only did Venus Williams win her fifth Wimbledon singles title on Saturday, but she designed her own tennis dress! I woke up at 6 a.m. to watch the match live and it was worth it, Venus beat her sister, Serena Williams, in a hard-fought, high-quality battle: 7-5, 6-4. Watching the match from the royal box of the All England Club were Billie Jean King and Martina Navratilova. For the second year in a row, Venus acknowledged King in her speech saying "I love Billie." About four hours later, the sisters went out and won the doubles title - their third at Wimbledon as partners.

Here is an interview with the Williams sisters a few days before the final

It is tennis nirvana! Tomorrow morning, Venus Williams and Serena Williams face off in the women's final. It's the match everone wanted to see. I prefer Venus who is graceful and gracious and looks like a gazelle on the grass. She has won two out of the last three Wimbledons and four titles overall. Serena, much more of the diva, is seeking her third Wimbledon crown. The amazing sisters are also in the doubles final!

...then Sunday morning, it's Roger Federer vs. Rafael Nadal once again = third year in a row! Roger has won the last two years for his fourth and fifth Wimbledons. Both won their semifinals on Friday - convincingly. Federer has now won 65 matches in a row on grass. He has looked terrific this tournament so I give him a slight edge over Nadal but it could absolutely go either way.
I will be watching every point!

I don't know why this dude hasn't been on my tennis radar but he certainly is now! Feliciano Lopez is one mighty good lookin' fellow who got beat in the Wimbledon quarterfinals today by the sexy Russian star Marat Safin. Also winning their matches today were Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal (so much for my prediction of an upset!) who seems destined for another final.

I've been writing that Rafael Nadal is a shoo-in to make the Wimbledon final for the third straight year with the momentum to finally beat Roger Federer for the crown. But he has to play Britain's Andy Murray in the quarterfinals today. Andy is riding the wave of an emotional fourth-round win and has an entire nation inhaling and exhaling with his every shot. No British man has won the crown in about 70 years despite the home court advantage.

Since Rafael hurt his knee in the last round, there could be an upset. Ya never know.

The midde Sunday at Wimbledon is a day of rest for the players. The remaining 16 make and femalem players will resume play Monday. Unfortunately, German star Tommy Haas will not be among them as he lost to Britain's Andy Murray Saturday. Tommy gets injured or ill more than any other player so him even competing is a victory! Personally, I think Tommy could just segue into a career as a model or an actor. What. A. Dreamboat.

What a heartbreaker!

Andy Roddick, America's best hope at Wimbledon, was stuinned in the second round of the tournament today losing to a dude ranked 40th in the world. Andy lost in the 2004 and 2005 Wimbledon finals to Roger Federer and is always coinsidered a major threat at this most prestigious of tournaments.

But the U.S. heartthrob went out 6-7 (5), 7-5, 6-4, 7-6 (4) Janko Tipsarevic of Serbia in a closely-fought contest that Andy really should have won. Andy's probably got a few more really good chances to win the tournament to go along with his 2003 US Open crown, but time is passing him by.

At least Andy flashed his tummy to the crowd...

Yeah, I know. I need to grow up! But it looks like Russian tennis stud Marat Safin wants to give Novak Djokovic a tender kiss to make him feel better after beating him in the second round of Wimbledon today.

The loss, on paper, is a shocker. Novak is ranked third in the world and considered one of four men who could win the whole thing. But Safin is no slouch even if he's faded in the last two years. He was once the number one player in the world, beat Pete Sampras to win the US Open in 2000 and Roger Federer on his way to the Australian Open title in 2005.

I would totally want Marat to kiss me!

Because he won his first round match at Wimbledon on Tuesday with ease. If he wins six more of them, Rafael Nadal will become the first men's tennis player since Bjorn Borg way back in 1980 to win Wimbledon and the French Open in the same year. But Nadal's top rival, Roger Federer, is after some history of his own. If he wins the tournament for the sixth straight year, he breaks a tie with Borg for the most consecutive titles.

I know, I know. So many of you have stopped whatever you were doing today and wondered: "Gee, why hasn't Greg posted his Wimbledon predictions yet?" Right? It has consumed you!

OK, I really should stop sniffing glue when I blog. But the fact is, that wonderous sporting event called Wimbledon got underway in London today. As a teenager and well into my 20s, I would build my schedule around watching as many of the matches on television as possible. In 1991, I made my first trip to the tournament and was so escited that the night before, I did not sleep a single wink. So after a full day at the tournament, I kept falling asleep in the tube (subway) station on the way back to my friend Lorna's flat in East Finchley! I went every other day for about 10 days and it is one of the best memories of my life - especially when Lorna and I scored 10th row seats on Centre Court one memorable day.

I still follow the toiurnament but have not been back to the Wimbledon grounds in more than 10 years. One of my BFF's, Henry, is there this week and he is the biggest Roger Federer fan there is. So I am rooting for Roger because it will make Henry so happy and also because Roger is a class act who deserves to win.

But that does not mean I think Roger will win. He has won 60 consecutive matches on grass and not lost at Wimbledon since 2002 but I think his streak consecutive titles will end at five. The reason? Rafael Nadal.
Roger has beaten Rafael in the last two Wimbledon finals but Nadal has gotten closer each time. At 22, he has constantly improved his game and won his first grass court tournament a few weeks ago in london just seven days after giving Federer one of the worst defeats of his career in the fionals of the French Open.

Rafael is ready to step up and win this time. But if he falters before getting to the final, Federer will likely win. Still, he must also contend with the only other two players very capable of winning: Novak Djokovic and Andy Roddick.

As for the women, it's pretty amazing that either Venus or Serena Williams has been champion in six of the last eight years. Venus, a four-time winner, is defending champion but I think this is Serena's year to win again. It would be her third Wimbledon singles title. That being said, I'd love to see 31-year-old Lyndsay Davenport, back on tour after having a baby last year, win her second Wimbledon.