I'd like to dedicate this post to my friend Erin who, when I was discussing this issue with her the other day, reminded me of the old adage: you give your heart to Fred Astaire but you keep your body for Gene Kelly.
*
I never thought I'd liken Marat Safin to Gene Kelly, but there you go. Roger Federer and Fred Astaire is more understandable... the way Roger dances around the baseline is almost Astaire-like at times.
*
It's always difficult for me to see these two play against each other, because I love them both so much. Federer will always, always be my favourite... but Safin has got his Safin-ness, and I love him too. I'm married to Roger, but sometimes I have an affair with Marat.
*
So like I said, watching them is difficult. Their matches are the only matches in which I don't quite wholeheartedly go for Federer... I mean, I'm going for him, but there's that tiny 1% of my heart which would love to see Marat get through... It was the 99% that got satisfied, and I was glad about it. And Marat has a lot to be proud of in this tournament. I've said it before, but I'll say it again: it is so, SO great to see him achieving new milestones in his career when people have started to count him out.
*
Watching Roger and Marat is also easier than other matches, because at least I know one of my boys is sure to get through. I wish, I WISH that it could be both of them. I would kill for a Federer/Safin final. But we don't get everything we want in life, alas.
*
Although Federer won and won convincingly - as you would expect of the man who hasn't lost on grass since 2002 and hasn't lost a set on the stuff this year - Safin actually played quite well in parts. The first set was maybe not so good, but the second set was really great. He played deep, and he was devastating at net - Federer couldn't pass him at all. His wingspan is so big and his size is so intimidating that he totally dominated there. He took the net away from Roger completely - Roger lost more points than he won at net, which is very unusual for him. Marat also served pretty decently as well. Although unforced errors crept into his game in spurts - he would hit five gorgeous winners, and then five stupid errors - there were shades of 2005. For a man that has always professed to hate grass, I think he played just swell.
*
Now - can he back it up? I'm certain he can, if he thinks he can. Marat is all about his headspace, and hopefully this will give him confidence. It certainly should - he's never been to the semis of Wimbledon before! I think this means that he joins that exclusive club of people who have been to the semis at all four majors... I know Roger's done it (obviously), Djokovic has done it (grrr) and Nalbandian has for sure... there are probably more, but they're the ones that occur to me off the top of my head. Even Rafa hasn't done it - he's never made it past the quarters of the US Open, to my knowledge. But Marat's done it.
*
He said he wants to be seeded for the US Open, and I think that's a good goal for him. He is clearly capable of playing and beating seeded players - he took out Seppi, Wawrinka and Lopez as well as the big scalp of Djokovic. He's back in with the big boys: even Roger, God of Grass, didn't look entirely comfortable against him. Marat's ridden back into town... let's hope he doesn't ride straight back out again. He's scheduled to play Bastad next week - good God, that's clay, isn't it? I don't know if that is QUITE the best idea... but considering I don't think he really expected to make it beyond the second round here, he might pull out to rest up for Toronto and Cincinatti, which are, of course, on his favourite surface.
*
For someone who professes to love Roger best of all, I sure do talk a lot about Marat, hey.
*
But I do love Roger best of all, let's face it. I was cheering for him last night, much as I love Marat, and I would do it again. Him winning his sixth Wimbledon title would make my year, and he can totally do it. He didn't play quite as well as he did against Ancic, but I think Safin is a more unsettling player. You never know what's going to happen with Marat... he could do something stupid or he could hit a brilliant winner. At least with Rafa, Roger's going to know what's coming. Rafa's brilliant, but that brilliance is almost predictable... you can predict that he's going to be brilliant. Marat is either a total genius or a severe disappointment - often both, several times, in the same match.
*
So Roger didn't play quite as well, but he was serving very well indeed - winning 92% on second serve, which is just totally crazy - and cleaning the lines with constant regularity. And much as the Channel 9 commentators were all like, 'oh, he's vulnerable, oh, he sucks, etc etc etc,' I would like to point out that at no point did Safin serve for the set in that match. Because Rafa was hardly playing at his Rafa-like best.
*
I like Rafa. A lot. I really do. But let's face facts... now he's the villain. This match, this court, this whole damn institution is Federer's, and I for one am not ready for a changing of the guard.
*
All credit to Rainer Schuettler. He played a great match, and he really hung in there, despite the fact that he must have been buggered after that marathon with Clement. If he'd won that second set... well, I still think he'd have lost the match, but it would have made it a hell of a lot more interesting. I really liked the way he played Rafa. Tactically, it was smart. He was playing inside the baseline a lot of the top, cutting off the impact of the Crazy Rafa Topspin (tm.) And he wasn't afraid to come in or to draw Rafa in, despite the mad excellence of the Rafa pass and the certainly not half badness of the Rafa volley. I've never seen someone try to play Rafa like this, and it certainly must have been a task and a half, what with the speed and power at which Rafa belts the ball, but Schuettler did it very well. And his angled returns into the backhand court were very nice also. Some interesting things to think about.
*
But we're now at that part of the tournament where I start tossing around the word 'destiny' and the other one hundred and twenty six guys fade into the background (even Marat.) It's the rematch. The gladiatorial showdown. Federer. Nadal. #1 and #2. The match that was always going to happen.
*
And I'm going to tip Federer. IN THREE DAMN SETS.
*
*
Wimbledon Results - Day #11
*
Men's Draw
*
Roger Federer def. Marat Safin, 6-3 7-6 (7-3) 6-4
Rafael Nadal def. Rainer Schuettler, 6-1 7-6 (7-3) 6-4
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment