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Nadal hails 'dream' Wimbledon win
news.bbc.co.uk — Rafael Nadal described his first Wimbledon title as a "dream" after beating Roger Federer in an epic final.
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- chaos7, on 07/07/2008, -2/+10Nadal and Federer are both great!
- neel360, on 07/08/2008, -0/+24So humble... check the video for the constant praise he gives to Federer.
That's real sportsmanship - something we don't see too often in sports in general. - ZlanMan, on 07/08/2008, -4/+3I wish Federer had won - to break the record , but never mind! Well done Nadal...
The best game ever... - Persian5Life, on 07/09/2008, -0/+3"if you are not first you are last"-Ricky Boby
- Owwmykneecap, on 07/09/2008, -0/+2bobby
- patpl22391, on 07/09/2008, -1/+1if yer not first, yer last!" - Ricky Bobby (Talledega Knights, 2006)
- spoogieking012, on 07/09/2008, -0/+15that was a crazy ***** match
- Seidoger, on 07/09/2008, -0/+1One of the best i'd seen hehe
- Owwmykneecap, on 07/09/2008, -0/+5Love how the volume goes up to 11...
- Vikaas, on 07/09/2008, -0/+6I was going for Federer, just because I wanted to see the record broken, and because no one has won after facing a match point since 1918, and no one has won after losing the first 2 sets since 1872.. but that match was ***** epic.
- morninglorii, on 07/09/2008, -1/+6Awesome to watch, but also a little sad. Near the end, you could see that Federer, despite being the superior player, was being worn down by the younger Nadal. I'm a big Federer fan, and while I congratulate Nadal and recognize him as an incredible tennis player, it's always sad to watch your favorite become hampered by his age.
- topgigmedia, on 07/09/2008, -3/+1He's 29 not 35.
- morninglorii, on 07/09/2008, -2/+0I'm well aware of both of their ages (26 and 22). In sports where you are competing solo (tennis, ice skating, and gymnastics immediately come to mind), the age barrier is extremely pronounced, and even more so when it's a "twitch" sport (tennis).
26 and 22 is a big difference in tennis, especially when the 22 year old is exceptionally fit (even for his age) and the 26-year-old has never been known for his fitness. - topgigmedia, on 07/09/2008, -2/+1sorry transposed the 6 and 9 your highness - geez
- morninglorii, on 07/09/2008, -2/+0I'm well aware of both of their ages (26 and 22). In sports where you are competing solo (tennis, ice skating, and gymnastics immediately come to mind), the age barrier is extremely pronounced, and even more so when it's a "twitch" sport (tennis).
- mushtakrakish, on 07/09/2008, -0/+1he was worn down not by age but by a year in which he has lacked the conditioning he is used to. mono knocked him out the first third of the year. he's still coming back, and he will take the US and Aussie. That said, Nadal was sick. Unreal match. And, for the record, he is only 26.
- topgigmedia, on 07/09/2008, -3/+1He's 29 not 35.
- midriscoll09, on 07/09/2008, -0/+7This has just been a great year for sports already:
Giants vs. Pats
Tiger vs. Rocco at the US Open
Celtics complete turnaround from last year to win the championship
Turkey vs. Czech Republic
Nadal vs. Federer Wimbledon
Just amazing- aside, on 07/09/2008, -0/+1Don't forget the first place Tampa Bay Rays! Finally starting to see shirts and hats around town here in the area..
- Ryman21, on 07/09/2008, -0/+5Nice to see that he's become more than just a clay court specialist! Hopefully he'll learn to adapt to the hardcourt so he can be competitive year-round.
- NecroSexy, on 07/09/2008, -0/+5I see he has a trophy fetish. Oh, Wimbledon, you're such a tease...
- schdr, on 07/09/2008, -1/+1I herd he might also get the record for the most wedgie picks in 4 hours 48 minutes....
- goeric, on 07/09/2008, -0/+3That match was the best I've ever watched. Nadal definitely earned his victory!
- shawn1122, on 07/09/2008, -0/+28Unbelievable match. I'm an avid tennis fan, and I know that tennis isn't really a mainstream sport so there will be a lot of people coming on here and saying "who gives a *****," but people like me give a *****, so ***** off.
Federer gave his absolute all, he was having his worst year since becoming the dominant number 1 that he has been for the past 4 years. It was a treat to see Federer trying his best, he saved 3 championship points, and two of them were amazing shots. One was a beautiful backhand passing shot that absolutely stunned Nadal and set the crowd on fire, the other was a pinpoint precision backhand return winner that Nadal didn't even have a chance to get his racket on. The fact that he came from two sets down and fought so hard is a testament to the fact that he has the heart of a champion. I hope he can find his form again and start winning more grand slams, he's only 2 away from Sampras' record. It would be such a let down if he doesn't manage to beat it.
All credit to Nadal though, he really played the match of his life out there. Even though he is an absolute monster when it comes to mental strength, he had to have been doubting himself a little bit out there, after losing to Federer the past two years in the Final and after failing to convert 3 championship points. But he kept his head up, and even after Federer won two sets to make it even, he fought hard and earned his first Wimbledon title. I myself used to tell people that Nadal would never win Wimbledon, and now I get to eat my own words. I never expected him to improve so much on surfaces other than clay, but he has worked hard and managed to close the gap between Federer and himself. He is having, by far, the best year of his career.
Federer went from having three grand slams last year to, at the moment, having none. The guy really has fallen off the face of the earth, and its hard to say why, there is no obvious reason. At the beginning of the year he was struggling with mononucleosis but, he's slowly come back to form as the year has progressed. Still, he seems a step slower compared to the years when he used to dominate, perhaps he is just feeling the affects of his age.
Tennis is a really tough sport, its one of the few sports where you are out there all on your own. It's also a very physically demanding sport, you need the upper body strength to hit the ball hard, and the lower body strength for the stamina. You need to run back and forth and take swings at the ball sometimes 20 - 30 times to win a point. And after that, you have 10 or so seconds before it starts all over again. Sometimes I wish tennis would get more respect here in North America, but I realize that people here want a local team that they can cheer for. Cheering for your favourite player isn't the same, I guess. Anyways, I'm glad that both tennis and soccer get a good deal of respect everywhere else in the world, they really are two world class sports.- cfrog7, on 07/09/2008, -0/+10Wow thanks for that, it's great to see other tennis fans on Digg. Hopefully that match and this amazing rivalry between Federer and Nadal will continue to draw more people to watching & playing tennis.
- Thinkpol, on 07/09/2008, -1/+1He came down with mono earlier in the year.
- ubuntu710, on 07/09/2008, -0/+9both rafa and roger are true examples of pure sportsmanship and humbleness, congrats to rafa and better luck next year roger, theirs still the US open
- FuriousGopher, on 07/09/2008, -0/+2Yes, but so as to not repeat Björn Borg's history, Federer better win the US Open.
- greenanji, on 07/09/2008, -0/+1One of the most incredible matches I've ever seen. So glad it was rain delayed so I could see the majority of it. Still a bit disappointing to see Federer lose though. His serve was incredible, it was like he could hit an ace at will.
Maybe I'll see them play at the Rogers Cup, would be awesome to see these two at it live. - MustacheFace, on 07/09/2008, -2/+0One day they'll give him a chocolate trophy and he won't bite it.
- Lazer32, on 07/09/2008, -0/+2This was truly an amazing match. I love how respectful these guys are while they are on the court. Even when the match is over, they give each other a great deal of respect. It definitely inspired me to go out to the courts near my house and play, and dam is it fun! =)
Kudos to Nadal - phreak79, on 07/09/2008, -0/+3That was the best final I think I've ever seen. Federer and Nadal have made a habit of producing classics but this one topped them all. They're a credit to the sport of tennis.
- sexydarin, on 07/09/2008, -0/+3You have to beat the best to become the best. Great final.
- aenegeling, on 07/09/2008, -0/+3Both are true sportsmen.. congratulations to them.
- nedy78, on 07/09/2008, -0/+2Mats Wilander, Stephan Edberg, Ivan Lendel, Boris Borg, young Agassi, and Sampras. Even Michael Chang. It seems to me Tennis was more interesting back then. Not to take anything away from the talent and power of today's players, it's not as fun to watch anymore.
- nedy78, on 07/09/2008, -0/+1Sorry I wanted to say Bjorn Borg and Boris Becker. congrats to Nadal for the Wimbelon title and Federer for his effort, they'll meet again.
- komas9, on 07/09/2008, -0/+0Wow what a match,I couldn't get up didn't want to miss anything.
- chemrat, on 07/26/2008, -0/+1I used to watch a lot of tennis. I watched all the Borg-McEnroe matches and all the Slams before and after that era. Then, I stopped watching- a combination of losing interest and no time to spend in front of the TV. But, I never quit watching Wimbledon, and would using sneak a few matches in from each slam, just not everything. So, I've seen a lot, and used to see men's and women's pro tournaments every year live where I lived (no longer a site for tournaments). This latest Wimbledon final was absolutely great! I've never felt Federer to be "my" guy for some reason, though he he a phenomenal player and seems to be a great guy, but I can easily support Nadal. Emotions are a funny thing. Anyway, great DIGG, great players, perhaps the best match ever, though I have to admit being more emotionally involved in Borg/McEnroe, even if the tennis wasn't quite as good as this year's match in some small ways. Maybe I'm just older and have more to worry about than who wins... Anyway, these guys are, I hope, a great inspiration to all. Same with the Williams sisters- I am a big fan of theirs and for a number of years cared more about them then men's tennis, and maybe I still do.
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