Rog vs. A-Rod – The Grand Slam

[These two don't look like they can battle! A truly heart-warming relationship, both on and off court]

As Roger Federer continues to hold the crown at most tournaments and gets as far as the championship match for the ones that elude him, his challengers alter playing styles, seek different counsel, chew over the maestro’s game, scrutinize his strategy, up their strengths, probe for non-existent weaknesses and get ready to give it their best shot, year after year, major after major, game after game.

‘Who is it going to be this time?’ is usually the 64 thousand dollar question. This US Open, the hopefuls and the hopes were many and varied. Most tennis fans had penned down another Roger-Rafa final, and for good reason – the left arm wielding relentless youngster seems to be the only one with even a remote chance of putting Roger on the wrong foot. A host of other names hovered on people’s lips -- would Richard (baby Fed) Gasquet make this his breakthrough tournament and challenge the indomitable player many claim he emulates? If the Frenchman had garnered half the arsenal he boasted in the series preceding the slam, we could have hoped for some notes to complement Roger’s symphony. Would the delightfully charming Marcos, magical shot-maker and relentless go-getter, give us another stunning run at a major and test the world number one? If an unrelenting contraction and a rogue nation hadn’t gotten in his way, he might have had a shot. American fans were rooting for their number one player, whose incredible return game did seem to baffle a slightly faltering Federer in the quarters, but Blake clearly didn’t have enough to come out on top. Some wishful thinkers even had the temerity to hope that their ailing icon might repeat last year’s incredible run before retiring, but they had to see him go early.

Until a couple weeks ago, few would have bet on a stumbling Andy Roddick, albeit a resurgent one, to make it to championship Sunday and meet his nemesis for the third time in a grand slam final. Typically, such a meeting would not warrant a pre-match analysis, but Roddick has never looked better on a tennis court – rushing to the net whenever and wherever possible, throwing in more attitude on that already beautiful first serve, perfecting his ground strokes, baffling opponents with a Connors-esque down-the-line backhand, a forehand that seems more potent than ever and a slice backhand that as far as I can remember never belonged to him. Not to mention the fact that the usually irrational, ace-blasting Andy is actually thinking (we should have known that incredible wit could be put to good use on a tennis court!) Factor in all of that with the premise that the crowds will be on his side (despite New York’s adoration of the unflappable Swissman that makes it his business to walk away with the trophy every year) and like Johnny Mac says, Roddick has his swagger back. And boy, will he need it when he faces off against a man to whom he has lost 10 out of 11 times in his career!

My prediction: Federer wins in 4 tight sets. Okay, I am going to go on a limb here and suggest a score:

Roger Federer 6 7 6 6
Andy Roddick 4 6 7 3

In other US Open notes, a disappointing loss for Justine Henin-Hardenne today. But I guess if you are five foot five and playing a power player that’s six foot three, you have to be on top of your game, and at worst, get most of your first serves in. With due credit to the 19-year old, Sharapova appears to be using that thing called judgment on court (at least she didn’t keep tossing the ball right back to Justine as she did in her four previous losses!) Hope she continues on this line of thought, because as often happens in women’s tennis, those that are blessed with the brawn often seem to forget they have a brain.

Congratulations to the Belgian for the pretty impressive feat of reaching all major finals this year; she is clearly the Roger Federer of the women’s draw. And what could better say that than the fact that for only the first time in tennis history have a man and woman made it to all four major finals in a single calendar year?