WIMBLEDON FINAL

WIMBLEDON FINAL.

It was for sure the most exciting match I've ever watched and probably the same can be said of most people in my generation. Whether it signals a changing of the guard in tennis remains to be seen, but the match has to be the focus now.

For one, it started at 9.30pm here (2pm in London), and ended at around 9pm in London (4am here). I did sleep awhile after the first rain delay, but thank goodness I suddenly woke up in time with the gut feeling that I was going to witness something special. I was rooting for Federer all the way, but towards the end, I was feeling sympathy for Nadal too, if he had lost he would have needed a long time to recover. As it was, Nadal won, but Federer showed his true colours and why I will continue to admire him.

He showed amazing grit and determination. At the first rain delay, he was 6-4, 6-4, 4-5 down with Nadal to serve. Nadal was playing fine stuff, but he had been completely out-of-sorts, the windy conditions wrecking havoc on his game. When he went in to the locker room, he could have just said to himself, 'I've blown my chance this year. No one comes back against Nadal from 2 sets down, I could just go out there and lose the 3rd set and the match in a few minutes time and reflect on what went wrong' But no, that was not Federer. He came back a changed man mentally, and he never once buckled under the immense pressure of losing one would be if he/she was on the brink of defeat in a final, as he was. Nadal was playing so well, he was overwhelming Federer. But Federer hung on. He struggled, but he struggled powerfully. He took the 3rd set by a whisker, and in the 4th set, produced some stunning shots in the tie-breaker to level the match at 2 sets apiece, including a graceful backhand pass on match point. He brought the match into a decider despite being totally outplayed on many rallies by Nadal. He was far from his best, but he never once doubted himself and used whatever form he had that day to the best of it. Pity there was no 5th set tie-breaker.

Federer was also very humble in defeat. Anyone could see after he lost that 5th set, that he was totally broken inside. Yet, he maintained dignity in defeat. There was so many things he could have blamed. The weather, the winds, they were against him. Towards the end the light was so bad, that surely would have affected him. Time after time Nadal took so much time in between points, more than the alloted 20 seconds, and it surely interrupted his momentum, but the umpire did nothing. If each of these factors had not taken place, he would surely have won. As it was, he never used any of them as an excuse. He praised Nadal and called him a deserving champion, something which, while many of us would agree, must have been hard for him to admit.

While Nadal would very likely take up the no.1 mantle soon, I think it's time people recognise Federer not just for the great tennis player he is, but the great person he is as well. History may remember him for winning 12 (and counting) grand slams, but I, and others who have witnessed his matches and post-match comments, would remember him for his gracefulness and humility.

I may not be able to emulate his tennis, but I would surely give my all to emulate his off-the-court qualities.

Well, that's it for tennis for now, until Australian Open and Wimbledon next year, as those are the only two tournaments where it is convenient to watch tennis. But wait, I won't be able to watch next year because of NS. Hopefully this year's spectacle will never be matched again. As for now, it's all geared on studying, serving, and sleeping 24/7. Until the BPL starts again. Thinking about it, the BPL would start approx. when the restructuring project reaches it deadline. Let it be a perfect way to reward myself.