Messrs Sunday

Those crazy boys are at it again. Roger and Rafa, those crazy final kings, are at it again.

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Remember 2005, when there basically wasn't a title that wasn't won by one of those two? Good times, good times. That year was the year of Rafa's ascendancy, his first French Open, when he cemented himself as #2 in the world. And he hasn't looked back.

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Let's start with Rafa, who, even though he is #2 and has won lots of stuff (including the Match We Do Not Speak Of), is still the apprentice Mr Sunday. His match was the harder of the two, obviously, being as he was playing against Novak Djokovic. (A friend and I have started referring to him as Novak, Prince of Lies... just an aside.) This one had the potential to go the distance. Obviously, it didn't, but it wasn't for lack of trying.

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Of course, I haven't actually SEEN this match, so I am going off scores and stats here. This one could have gone either way - actually, no. That's a lie. Rafa was the one who came through when it counted, therefore he deserves it. Tennis really isn't about how many points you win, it's about when you win them. It is totally possible for a player to win more points but then lose the match - think of the Dubai final in 2006! There was only one point separating Rafa and the Djoker at the end of the first set - 50 points to 49 - but it was Rafa who won that point when it counted.

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I am aware that my inner Fedfan should be horrified at the notion of Rafa winning a grass court tournament when he has, for the last two years, been Roger's biggest competition on grass. But I have the faith. There has been a lot of commentary around about how Roger's hold on Wimbledon is slipping and how he won't win it this year. Forgive me if I put my faith in the man who has won 59 straight matches on grass courts, including five Wimbledon titles, and is the greatest tennis player of all time. That doesn't sound unreasonable to me.

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And I like to see Rafa doing well. Quite apart from anything else, I want to see him pulling away from Djokovic in the points race... although not enough to will him to a Wimbledon victory (not over Federer, anyway.) And it's not like Djokovic doesn't have points to defend at Wimbledon. He made the semis last year. And grass court tennis is the most cutthroat of all the surfaces. Lose a few points at the wrong time, and the set is gone. And it only takes three sets to win a match. This is part of what makes Federer's grass court achievement so marvellous.

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Roger was never going to not win that match against Kohlschreiber last night. He was in total control the whole time. He has gone the whole week without dropping a set, and, more impressively, without dropping his serve. This is the best possible week he could have hoped for after the Match We Do Not Speak Of. If a week this brilliant will not shut critics up, then I don't know what will.

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Of course, speaking as a baby amateur critic myself, there is very little that can change you once you form an opinion... it is possible (like my changing attitude to Rafa) but not likely... I can't ever see myself changing my viewpoint on Djokovic. Not unless he like, attains world peace or something. And even then, I'll probably think he stole the idea off Federer.

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So Mr Sunday and his matador apprentice both proved why they are the best players in the world this week. Both backed it up from the Match We Do Not Speak Of, and both thoroughly deserved their wins. I have a feeling that the tennis this coming week will not be half so interesting... neither Rafa nor Roger is playing, but as we know, that has never stopped me talking about them. Bring on Wimbledon! Where, I believe, we will once more see a match between the Messrs Sunday... with the Master coming out on top this time!

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Today's Results

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Artois Championships (Queen's Club, London)

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Rafael Nadal def. Novak Djokovic, 7-6 (8-6) 7-5

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Gerry Weber Open (Halle)

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Roger Federer def. Philipp Kohlschreiber, 6-3 6-4

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Orange Warsaw Open (Warsaw)

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Nikolay Davydenko def. Tommy Robredo, 6-3 6-3

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DFS Classic (Birmingham)

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Kateryna Bondarenko def. Yanina Wickmayer, 7-6 (9-7) 3-6 7-6 (7-4)

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Campeonatos Internacionales de Tenis Femenino de Espana (Barcelona)

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Maria Kirilenko def. Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez, 6-0 6-2

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Ordina Open (s'Hertogenbosch)

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David Ferrer def. Jesse Huta Galung, 6-2 6-3

Steve Darcis def. Florent Serra, 7-5 6-3

Mario Ancic def. Ivo Minar, 6-1 7-6 (7-0)

Rainer Schuettler def. Michael Berrer, 6-7 (4-7) 6-4 6-4

Igor Andreev def. Grigor Dimitrov, 6-1 6-3

Jurgen Melzer def. Victor Hanescu, 6-7 (11-13) 6-2 6-4

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Camille Pin def. Elena Vesnina, 6-2 6-3