Louis XIV once said, “The Pyrenees are no more.” This sparked military conflict as the prospect of Spain and France being ruled by the same person was intolerable for the rest of Europe. Starting in 1993, Spain reversed King Louis’ notions and erased the Pyrenees in favor of Spanish rule. Wertheim’s Mailbag Jon Wertheim’s mailbag…
Tag: Rafael Nadal
Men Who Stare at Tennis GOATS Part 5 – The Usual Suspects: Rafael Nadal
Part 1 Laid out Key Questions Part 2 Looked at Bjorn Borg’s Credentials and the Difficulties of the GOAT Debate Part 3 Looked at Pete Sampras’ Credentials Part 4 Looked at Roger Federer’s Credentials Rafael Nadal Why Rafael Nadal Might be the GOAT – Rafa’s claim to the GOAT title revolves around three areas of…
Power Ranking for the Week of May 21 – May 27
Dan Martin’s 2012 Power Rankings for the Week of May 21 through May 27 1. Novak Djokovic – Novak is number one, but his grasp has weakened. Does he still have Rafa’s number? Good Times for Nole 2. Rafael Nadal – Rafa is back to number two after winning his third title in four outings. …
Blue Clay Angst is a Sad Moment for Tennis
Counter Factual Time Imagine the organizers at the Key Biscayne event announcing, “Because we are the last event before the European clay court season starts, we will be changing our tournament from a hard court event to a green clay event as a transition to softer courts.” Would the same players be up in arms…
Power Ranking for the Week of May 14 – May 20
Dan Martin’s 2012 Power Rankings for the Week of May 14 through May 20 (a lot of changes from the last few weeks) 1. Novak Djokovic – Novak is the number one player in the world, but the next few months will be interesting. 2. Roger Federer – Titles in Dubai, Rotterdam, Indian Wells and Madrid…
Power Ranking for the Week of April 29 – May 5, 2012
Dan Martin’s 2012 Power Rankings for the Week of April 29 through May 5 1. Novak Djokovic – Novak is the number one player in the world, but he will face challenges to remain number one in 2012. 2. Rafael Nadal – A seventh consecutive Barcelona title have Nadal surging. He is the greatest ever on clay. …
Tennis Predictions for 4-29-2012
Projected Winners in BOLD This will be short as Simon has already won. I simply will pick the first seeds in both other finals today. I think Rafael Nadal beats David Ferrer in Barcelona. I think Victoria Azarenka prevails against Maria Sharapova in Stuttgart. I was 5-1 in my picks yesterday. We shall see if…
Barcelona, Stuttgart and Bucharest Semifinal Picks
Projected Winners in BOLD There is a slate of interesting matches for all three events. Here are my picks: Barcelona 1 Rafael Nadal vs. 9 Fernando Verdasco – Rafa should win this match in a fairly straightforward manner. Verdasco did stage a classic with Nadal at the 2009 Australian Open, but I would be shocked…
Tennis Abides: Dan Martin on Tennis and Life 