Australian Open begins in

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Barclays ATP World Tour Finals - London 2011 Preview

It seems like just yesterday, I was on pins and needles waiting for the 2011 Australian Open to begin, and now it's time for the year end finals.  The top eight qualifiers are (in order of ranking), Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Andy Murray, Roger Federer, David Ferrer, Tomas Berdych, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, and Mardy Fish.  This year, Novak Djokovic finally announced himself as the new/current king of tennis by dominating Rafael Nadal in every final they've faced this year - two of them majors, and only losing to Roger Federer once.  At this year's Barclays ATP World Tour Finals, the storyline will be Djokovic, Nadal, and Federer.  It's not as if the other players in the tournament don't have a shot at winning, but clearly, the big three (even if Federer is now ranked number four) will be the guys to beat.

If it weren't for a shoulder injury, Nole would be the clear favorite...but, this is the same injury he was dealing with when he won the US Open this year.  Then there is Rafael Nadal, who also nursing a shoulder injury, had to pull out of the Paris Masters.  To date this year, Rafa has been unable to get the best of Nole - the inside out forehand that troubles most players is handled like child's play by Djokovic.  There's also the 'head' factor...that is, Nole is definitely inside Rafa's head.  Against every other player on tour, Federer included, Rafa has a mental advantage over them, but Djokovic is the Spaniard's kryptonite.  The third part of the storyline is Roger Federer.  With only 710 points separating him and Andy Murray in the rankings, Federer could conceivably overtake Andy Murray for the number three position.  He would have to win the title without losing any round robin matches - that would mean he would have to beat Nadal.  Keep in mind that 1) he did beat Nadal in the tour finals last year, and 2) Nadal has never won the world tour finals - in part because this late in the season, Rafa's body has been taken to the brink.


Group A will consist of Novak Djokovic-1, Andy Murray-3, David Ferrer-5, and Tomas Berdych-7.  First matches of this group will be on Monday, November 21 w/Djokovic vs Berdych, and Murray vs Ferrer.  .  Djokovic holds a 7-1 head-to-head vs Berdych - his only defeat coming in the 2010 Wimbledon semifinal.  Murray is 5-3 against Ferrer, all of the loses to Ferrer were on clay.  Let us not forget, that since the US Open, Murray has amassed a 17-1 match winning streak until losing to Berdych last week in the quarter finals of the Paris Masters.  According to Murray, his new diet has given him more energy, time will tell what it has done for his mindset.  Djokovic and Murray are each nursing injuries, so the level of their performances will be questionable until the tournament begins.  Tomas Berdych is very capable of beating any of the players in the draw, but his head seems to always let him down when things matter most.. On paper his best chance in his group would be against Andy Murray, being that he has a losing record against both Djokovic (1-7) & Ferrer (2-5).  David Ferrer, the human backboard, is a respectable player, but doesn't really have a weapon that can hurt the top guys.  He doesn't give players many free points, nor does he get many - he's a top eight player because of his ability to run down balls and keep them in play, but he doesn't have a kill shot.  He only has a winning record against Berdych, so chances that he wins more than one round in his round robin group is slim.

Group B has Rafael Nadal-2, Roger Federer-4, Jo Wilfried Tsonga-6, and Mardy Fish-8.  First matches for Group B is on Sunday, November 20 w/Federer vs Tsonga, and Nadal vs Fish.  Although Federer holds a 7-3 advantage of Tsonga, he will have his work cut out for him - two of Tsonga's three wins against Federer happened this year, one at his beloved Wimbledon in the quarter finals.  On the other side of Group B, Nadal has a 7-1 record against Mardy Fish.  Fish's only win against Nadal was this year at the Masters in Cincinnati. Nadal and Fish are both coming back from injuries, but I'll bet on an injured Nadal over an injured Fish any day.  On paper, group B seems like it will come down to Nadal and Federer reaching the semifinals, but Tsonga could prove to be a spoiler.  He has one win over Rafa this year (at Queen's Club), and as stated earlier, two wins against Federer.  To Roger's credit, he has been playing better now than earlier this year.  His shots seems to have the sting back in them, and his confidence seems to have risen - even with a less than stellar season.

As with every other tournament that has had the top four guys in the field, all eyes will be on them - with the possibility of some spoilers.  In this case, the best chance for a spoiler will be Jo-Willy (baby Ali)...he covers a lot of court for a big dude, and he is not intimidated by any of the top guys.

The finals will be shown on the Tennis Channel, coverage beginning at 7a.  For those of you who don't have the Tennis Channel, live stream will be shown on livescorehunter.com beginning at 8a with Federer/Tsonga, then Nadal/Fish at 2p.  Happy watching!


Friday, November 11, 2011

UPDATE - ATP Tennis - Six players to look out for in 2011


Earlier this year, I listed six players that I thought would have a good 2011 season.  They were (in order of current ranking), Novak Djokovic 1, Andy Murray 3, Tomas Berdych 6,  Juan Martin Del Potro 10, Alexandr Dolgopolov 16, and Milos Raonic 30.  Now, I will update their progress.


Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic, now world number one, started off the year ranked number three, once again in the shadow of Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer.  Going into the Australian Open, all the talk was focused on Nadal, and whether or not he could complete the 'Rafa Slam'.  Hopes of that happening were ended when Rafa was beaten in the quarterfinals by fellow Spaniard, David Ferrer.  At tournament end, Nole was the last man standing, defeating Federer in the semifinals, and earning his second career major by defeating Andy Murray decisively in the final.  Little did anyone know what would happen over the course of the season.  Having gotten his health and his head in check, Nole went on a winning spree.  Up to this point in the season, he has suffered only three loses - Federer in semifinals of Roland Garros, Andy Murray in finals of Cincinnati (retiring in the 2nd set w/a shoulder injury), and to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the quarterfinals of of the Paris Masters (walk over).  His record vs top ten players is 20-3.  He has beaten Nadal is six finals - two majors & four masters (2 of the 4 masters on clay); Federer in two semifinals - Australian Open & US Open, and one final - Dubai.  He beat Rafa and Roger in the same tournament on three occasions this year.  He has become the first player since 2004 not named Federer or Nadal to hold the number one position in the rankings or to have won at Wimbledon.  He has won ten titles this year, including three majors & four masters series tournaments.
-Rankings jump - 2 positions.


Andy Murray
Andy Murray began the 2011 season ranked as number five, and his year looked very promising when he made the finals of the Australian Open.  He played a blistering six matches, looking like he would take the title, but then in the final, Novak Djokovic gave him a lesson in big boy tennis.  He went on a miserable slump after that losing matches to players well below his ranking & ability, two of them (Donald Young 143 & Alex Bogomolov Jr 118) were outside of the top 100.  Luckily, during this time frame in 2010 he had the same slump after losing to Federer in Australian Open, so he didn't have a lot of points to lose.  By April, he got his bearings back, and put together three semifinal runs on clay, beginning at the Monte Carlo through Roland Garros.  Going into the grass season, he won a warm up tournament at the Queen's Club, and posted a respectable semifinal run at Wimbledon, losing to Nadal.  Midsummer, he added a masters series title at Cincinnati to his trophy case, and made it to the semifinals of the US Open losing to eventual runner up, Rafael Nadal.  Since the US Open, he was on a 17 match win streak until losing to Tomas Berdych in the quarterfinals of the Paris Masters.  With a strong second half of 2011, Murray was able to overtake Roger Federer for the number three ranking position.
-Rankings jump - 2 positions.


Tomas Berdych
Not much to say about Tomas Berdych.  He started off the year ranked number six, and that's where he sits now.  He slipped as far down as number ten in the rankings, but has been able to climb back up.  He has won one title this year in Beijing this past October, defeating Marin Cilic in the final.  Berdych took out world number one, Novak Djokovic, in the quarter finals of the Paris Masters, and he has booked a spot in the ATP World tour finals. Even if he wins the tour finals, he won't have enough points to move up any positions, but he does run the risk of falling if does not do better that Jo Wilfried Tsonga, who is only five rankings points behind him.
-Rankings jump - 0 positions.


Juan Martin Del Potro
One of my favorite players is Juan Martin Del Potro .  In 2009 he found his game, and won his first major at the US Open, beating Roger Federer in the final.  After missing most of 2010 because of a wrist injury and surgery, he is starting to find his way again.   He was able to win two titles this year (Delray Beach and Estoril).  He started off 2011 ranked 485, but has since clawed his way back into the top 10, currently ranked ten in the world.  Because of his unusually low ranking, he met a lot of the top players in the early rounds of the majors & bigger tournaments that he played.  It's only a matter of time before he once again finds himself in the winner's circle at a major.
-Rankings jump - 475 positions.


Alexandr Dolgopolov
Alexandr Dolgopolov made some noise at this year's Australian Open by beating Jo Wilfried Tsonga and Robin Soderling before losing to Andy Murray in the quarterfinals.  He has a hard hitting, no fear style of play that should serve him well in the years to come.  Dolgo picked up his first career ATP singles title mid summer at the Croatian Open (clay).  Since beginning year ranked 48th in the world, he has moved into the top 20 with a current rank of 16.
-Rankings jump - 32 positions.


Milos Raonic
Lastly, there is Milos Raonic.  Milos turned some heads as well at the Australian Open by making it to the round of 16, losing to David Ferrer.  Like Dolgo, Milos won his first career ATP singles title mid summer in San Jose (hardcourt).  He also made another final this summer in Memphis, losing to Andy Roddick in three tight sets.  Starting off the year ranked number 53, he is now 30th in the world, but in early May was ranked as high as 25.  He will definitely be a contender for a major at some point doing his career.  
-Rankings jump - 23 positions.

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

US Open Review - Part One - The Final

The final major of the year has come and gone.  At the end of the fortnight, it was the top two players in the world doing battle, the first time since 1995 that this happened.  Playing in his first major as the number one seed, Novak Djovokic had momentum on his side having only lost two matches the entire year (the second loss was due to his retirement w/a shoulder injury in the finals of the Western & Southern Open).  Nadal entered the tournament with Djokovic in his head, and less than stellar play on the hard courts, while Djokovic came in playing well and full of confidence.  The scoreline of 6-2, 6-4, 6-7(3), 6-1 was deceiving - the match was very hard fought from the first point, but for the sixth time this year, Nole got the better of Rafa in a final.  
Djokovic (left), Nadal (right)
"Concrete jungle where dreams are made" rang true for Nole, becoming only the sixth man in the open era to win three majors in one season.  Up to this point in the season, Djokovic has a 64-2 record.  Knowing that the New York crowd isn't always on his side,  Nole enters Arthur Ashe wearing an FDNY cap.  Rafa won the toss to start the match, and decided to serve, which he held, and then he broke Nole in his first serve game at 30.  Like a true champion, Djokovic was unnerved, and immediately broke back, holds his own serve, then breaks again to go up 3-2 in the first set.  With a flurry or errors, and balls hit way too short in the court, Nadal wouldn't win another game in the set, Nole takes the first set 6-2.
Starting out the second set, Rafa holds his serve at love, and once again, breaks Nole in his first service game.  But like, the first set, Djokovic holds his nerve, and immediately breaks back after a 17 minute Nadal service game.  Djokovic holds his next service game at love.   Serving at 2 all, Rafa gets down 15-40, then double faults to give Nole the game.  Rafa seemed down, but definitely not out - he once again gets a break with Nole serving at 3-4 to even the set up.  Djokovic shakes it off quickly, and goes on to break Nadal to go up 5-4 and serve for the second set.  With a laser-like forehand down the line, Djokovic takes the second and is 2/3 of the way to his first US Open title.
The third set began with four consecutive breaks of serve, with Djokovic drawing first blood.  Finally, the third goes to a tiebreak, which Nadal wins 7-3.  There was still hope, UNTIL the fourth began.  It was all Djokovic.  Novak took the set 6-1, with a cross court forehand to claim the title.
These two have definitely shown that there are the top two players in the world, then there are all the other guys.  Federer is still playing good tennis, but his best tennis is clearly behind him.  Nadal will definitely win more majors, but his days off domination are gone.  At some point, Andy Murray will get his head right and win his first in a string of multiple majors.  But until someone begins to truly challenge him, look for Djokovic to pile on the slams in the years to come.  He has a game that I could see him winning up to ten majors, possibly more.  The Djokovic/Nadal rivalry is much like Nadal/Federer, except in this case, Novak is inside Rafa's head.  Will Djokovic be able to keep this pace up in 2012?  Will Nadal solve the Djokovic puzzle?  Will Federer win another slam?  Will Andy Murray finally break through?  Will Juan Martin Del Potro get back into the mix?  We are laying witness to the Golden Age of tennis, and the prospects of what will happen in 2012 should have die hard tennis fans salivating...at least I am.


Check out match highlights here.

Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Roger's Cup-Andy Murray is the first casualty

Andy Murray
Having won in 2009 & 2010, Andy Murray's second consecutive title defense at the Rogers Cup in Montreal didn't go as he planned.  He received a bye in the first round, and was sent bye-bye in the second by 35th ranked Kevin Anderson 3-6, 1-6.  Anderson came out on fire, starting off the match with an ace, and then went on to close out his first service game 40-0.  Murray, looking mopey, had two double faults in his first service game, the second coming on break point.  He, as well as Mr. Anderson, held serve for the remainder of the first set.  Anderson took the first, the same he began it, by serving an ace.


Kevin Anderson
In the second set the wheels all but fell off for the Scot.  He started off serving with a double fault and was broken, then things went downhill quickly for him.  He went down a double break, and serving at 1-5, he was broken again & handed the match to the South African with a pretty bow on it.  


He may still have a good run at the US Open, but it seems like for every step he takes forward, he takes two more back.  Miserable performance today from dearest Andy Murray

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

US Open Preview

The US Open, which runs from August 29th through September 11th, is the final major of the year and it's one of my favorites to watch.  Mostly because is on my mainland so the TV coverage on ESPN2 is INSANE, from about 11am EST to 11pm - and if a match goes past 11pm, which it normally does, there's more!  Going into the US Open this year, we get another chance to watch what happens with the Djokovic-Nadal-Federer thrivalry.  I find the thrivalry extremely fascinating in the fact that Nadal has figured out how to crack the Federer code, Federer seems to have cracked the Djokovic code, and Djokovic has definitely figured out how to crack the Nadal code.  Djokovic should be the top seed in the tournament, so we'll have to watch to see which side of the draw Roger Federer ends up on.  All eyes will definitely be on the thrivalry once the tournament begans - will Djokovic continue his domination over Nadal this year, will Nadal finally get one under his cap against Nole in 2011, or will Federer spoil the party for both of them?  But let us not forget about the other guys, mainly Juan Martin Del Potro. 


Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic is on an incredible run this year, only having been defeated once and that was by Federer in the French Open semi finals.  He needs a great result at the US Open to give himself a safety net in his rankings lead over Nadal, who is defending champion.  Great result meaning he HAS to make the finals to defend the 1200 points he earned last year by making the final - losing in the final to Nadal.  Currently Djokovic has about 2000 points over Nadal in the rankings - a good showing for him at the Open would be a definite plus for him going into next year.  Come 2012, Djokovic will have a LOT of points to defend.  He has three things on his side VS Nadal going into the tournament.  One, he has a perfect 5-0 record against Rafa this year, all five of those wins have been in finals - four masters series events & one major.  Two, traditionally, hard courts have been Djokovic's strongest surface and Nadal's weakest, or at least the one that took Nadal longest to master.  Three, he is inside Nadal's head.  I think all pressure should be off of Nole at the US Open.  He has already captured the number one  position in the rankings, and consolidated that by beating Nadal in the finals of Wimbledon.


Rafael Nadal
Rafael Nadal comes into the US Open as defending champion, with 2000 points that he could lose in the rankings if he doesn't win this year's title.  Already being about 2000 behind Djokovic in the rankings could make reclaiming the number one position more than a chore than it will be already. With the stress of defending championship points, and Nole in his head, this will be a hard one for Nadal.  The injury Rafa sustained at Wimbledon should be well healed and he should have no need for the cortisone shots he was taking.  That being said, hard courts are hard on most bodies, they are especially hard on Nadal's given the violent, harsh style of play he possesses.  Also, by the time the US Open comes around, Nadal's body has already taken a beating.  Rafa is only 25, but his body has a lot of miles on it, and his ultimate domination days are behind him.  His best chance for wins at majors will be at Roland Garros and Wimbledon.


Roger Federer
Coming in at a distant number three is the great Roger Federer.  Roger hasn't won major since the 2010 Australian Open, and his best chance to win another major would be on the hard courts, either the US Open or the Australian Open.  No longer is he able to just coast through a major to reach the finals, not even at his beloved Wimbledon.  Too many of the guys are a step ahead of him, fitter than him, and too many know how to beat him.  Some will argue that he is the greatest of all time (GOAT), but I don't subscribe to that thought.  How can he be the greatest of all time, when he has been unable to tame the likes of the Spanish Bull, Rafael Nadal.  The man is a masterful tennis player, but the greatest he is not, one of the greatest, without a doubt.  Although I believe that he can win another major before he retires, it's safe to say that his best tennis is well behind him.  The 30 year old has too many things against him, like Djokovic, Nadal, Murray, Tsonga, Del Potro (you get the idea).  He will definitely have something to prove to himself going into the US Open, but the chips will be stacked against him.


Andy Murray
Andy Murray.  The plight of this guy is (fill in the blank).  We all know that he has the game to win a major, but his head won't let him break through.  He's beaten Nole, Rafa, and Roger on more than one occasion, but not when it really counts.  Maybe he'll look at what Djokovic has been able to do this year and get some encouragement, or maybe at least pull his head out his arse & stop being such a 'brat' on court - a little positive display would take him a long way.  Murray's best performance at the US Open came in 2008 where he lost miserably to Federer 2-6, 5-7, 2-6.  Since then, he hasn't made it past the round of 16.  It has been said many times that sooner or later he will win a major, but the more I see him play big matches, the less I believe it.  I think the problem is that he doesn't believe it either.  


Juan Martin Del Potro
Juan Martin Del Potro won this tournament in 2009 before his injury, beating down Nadal in the semis 6-2, 6-2, 6-2, and taking out Federer in the final in five sets.  He will be seeded at this year's Open, so there shouldn't be any early match ups with the top guys.  He has steadily improved this year, losing early in both the French (Djokovic in four sets, round of 32) & Wimbledon (Nadal in four sets round of 16).  He started out 2011 ranked number 484, and as of now (7/20/11), he stands at number 19.  The courts at Flushing Meadows suit his style of hard flat hitting, and he moves pretty well for a big guy.  I don't expect that he will win the tournament, but he will definitely give any one of the 'Big Four' a run for their money.  (**sidenote: I'm beginning to have trouble including Andy Murray in the Big Four - it just doesn't sound right anymore)


There are some other players that can possibly have a good run at the US Open, but I expect that the semi finals will be contested by four of the five listed in this post.  The US Open is truly the tournament of champions, meaning there are rarely break through performances here.  Before coming to New York, the top players have had six weeks to sharpen their hard court games, unlike the Australian Open at the beginning of the year, or the French & especially Wimbledon where there are very few warm up tournaments.  

Obviously, there is some time before the Open begins, and we have the next month or so to watch players performances during the Olympus US Open Series, but this year's Open is going to be electric...I promise!  It must be love.


Also, you can check livescorehunter.com to see US Open Series matches through the week which are not broadcast on TV.



Sunday, July 3, 2011

Wimbledon Men's Final Review

The fortnight has come and gone, and what better way to end than with the top two ranked players in the world (1a & 1b) playing for the most prestigious tennis title in the sport.  This was one of the most highly anticipated finals since Federer/Nadal back in 2008.  Much of the conversation revolved around the rankings.  By making the final, Nole insured that come Monday when new rankings were released, he would be the new number one player.  Many wondered if Djokovic could truly be considered the best player in world if he was beaten by Nadal in the Wimbledon final.  Today, Nole put an end to those questions by beating Rafa in four sets 6-4, 6-1, 1-6, 6-3 to win in his first ever Wimbledon final.  In doing so, Nole broke the twenty match winning streak that Rafa had on the grounds of the All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club, and his record for the year improves to 48-1.  This marks the first time since 2003 that someone other than Roger Federer or Rafael Nadal won the title.
The match started off as a slug fest, with Nole serving, and quickly getting in a 15-30 hole.  It looked as if Nadal was going to put the hammer down right away, but Nole tightened up his game, hit an ace for 30 all, then pulled out the game.  Things stayed tight until Rafa was serving at 4-5.  He got up 30 love in the game, then Nole comes up with some hot shots to take the game and the set 6-4.  
The second was rather odd, Rafa looked like a man defeated, and Nole ran away with the set in 33 minutes, winning 6-1.  Then the third set was a reversal of the second, with Rafa taking it 6-1 in thirty minutes.  For some watching it seemed as if the gravity of the moment had hit the Djoker, and his wheels were going to fall off.  


The fourth started with Nole serving, and what a tough service game it was, but he was able to hold.  He breaks Nadal in his first service game, but is immediately broken back.  Then the level for both guys goes back up, until serving at 3-4, Rafa throws in a double fault and a rash of unforced errors and is broken at 15-40.  Serving for the match, Djokovic got down 0-15, but quickly regrouped and and was able to serve out the match, only needing one championship point to get it done.  Novak said later after the match "This is what I'm born for.  I want to win more Grand Slams. I will definitely not stop here."
Novak was able to neutralize the Nadal cross court forehand with his backhand.  With most players, including Federer, the Nadal forehand was/is a lethal weapon.  Longer rallies beat Rafa down, this is normally the opposite with most players, players not named Novak Djokovic.  Nole won this championship with a combination of tactics, one of them being his net play.  He came to net 26 times and won 19 of those net points.  He won 72% of his first serves and 54% of his second - compare that to Rafa's 67% and 44% respectively -  this was another aspect that helped him win.  Along with break point conversions, each guy had six chances to break.  Nole broke the Nadal serve five times, whereas Nadal was only able to break three - twice in the third set, and once in the fourth.  The biggest factor was mentally.  Rafa went into the final with the knowledge that Djokovic had beaten him in the last four finals they had played in 2011.  This weighed on Nadal - what other reason would so many of his shots, especially forehands, went wide or into the net.  
Djokovic is now under Nadal's skin.  Djokovic's performance this year against Nadal has shades of the Nadal/Federer rivalry.  In the beginning The Federer dominated Nadal on all surfaces except the clay, then a determined Nadal fine tuned his game and was able to crack the Federer code.  No one is ready yet to totally discount Roger Federer, but his dominance began when Rafa was much younger, and with Roger turning 30 later next month, his best tennis is well behind him.  Rafa began beating Federer regularly, eventually taking over the number one position.  The same has happened with Djokovic, but this time with Nadal is now in Roger's shoes.  With Nadal and Djokovic, this rivalry proves to be one that will last, at least as long as Nadal's body holds up.  Click here for link to Djokovic's post match interview, and here for Nadal's.

We tennis fans are witnesses to the Golden Age of tennis, and with the new crop of hard hitting, aggressive, attacking players, things will only get better!

Saturday, July 2, 2011

Wimbledon Final Preview

Petra Kvitova
I would first like to congratulate Petra Kvitova on her first Grand Slam win, defeating '04 Maria Sharapova convincingly in straight sets.  I do not believe that she will be a one Slam wonder.  This one has the game & the guts to be a threat for years to come.

The fortnight is almost over, and we find ourselves on the eve of the Men's Wimbledon final, and the top two seeds stand ready to battle for the trophy.   The match will be a very close one, but one thing is clear - Monday morning when the rankings come out, for the first time in seven years, Federer or Nadal will not appear at the top - Novak Djokovic has claimed the number one position by making it to the finals.  With Rafa nursing a foot injury, and Nole now free of the pressure of trying to become number one, I give him the slightest edge.  But then again, across the court will be Rafael Nadal & he is a different animal when it comes to finals in a major.  Neither of the finalists have played their best tennis to make it this far, but like true champions, they fought through the field.   Their service games for the tournament have been close w/Nadal edging by a percentage point in each category, except second serves won (1st serves in Nadal 69.5%, Djokovic 68.7%; 1st serves won Nadal 79.2%, Djokovic 78.8%; 2nd serves won Nadal 60%, Djokovic 61%).  Nole does hold a slight edge with winners & this match will come down to just that - unreturnable balls, off the serve or off the ground.  The key battles will be the Djokovic forehand to the Nadal backhand - this is where Nole is the clear favorite.  Movement and defending used to be an area Nadal reigned supreme in, but now, especially with the foot injury, this battle should also show Djokovic as the favorite.  Having already beaten Rafa four times this year (all in finals & two on clay) the mental edge would have to be given to Nole, but with Rafa, he's never defeated until the umpire says 'game, set, match'.  All things considered, I see Djokovic coming out on top in a tight one.  


Sit back, buckle your seat belts and enjoy the ride that will be the 2011 Wimbledon Men's final.