Shmafa

There is one tennis result I hate to see more than any other, and that is N Djokovic def R Federer. Hate it. Hate it with a fiery passion. And guess what I woke up to this morning.

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I have no idea what went on in the match and if Djokovic won or Federer lost. But I still hate it. Ugh. A lot.

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But I do believe I owe someone an apology - one Juan Martin del Potro. I said yesterday that the prospect of him beating Rafa was infinitesimally minute. However... look what happened. Third set breaker, to be sure, but Juan M pulled it out.

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That said, from what I can tell I don't think it was Rafa out there - not really. If Rafa brings him A-game - which he does to 90%ish of matches - then your name pretty much has to be Roger Federer to take a set off him. (Notable exceptions have included Fernando Verdasco - but not the Nando we saw yesterday.) But sometimes someone else turns up - Rafa's evil twin, Shmafa.

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Now, Shmafa doesn't suck. Shmafa isn't like the LameDave incarnation of David Nalbandian, who looks like he's never even heard of a tennis court. In fact, Shmafa is probably in the top ten players in the world. However, if you're good and you cotton on and you're lucky - like Juan Martin del Potro was yesterday - Shmafa will leave some doors open to you which Rafa never will. Shmafa comes out when Rafa is tired and/or injured, I think - rarely when he is 100% - and a lot of the time he gets the job done, but then there are days like yesterday, when Shmafa just isn't good enough.

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Ugh. I cannot believe Federer lost to Djokovic. Ugh, ugh, ugh! Reading reveals that there was some nasty forehand shanking in horrible windy conditions. Not happy - not happy!

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Today's Results

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Sony Ericsson Open (Miami)

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Men's Draw

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Novak Djokovic def. Roger Federer, 3-6 6-2 6-3

Juan Martin del Potro def. Rafael Nadal, 6-4 3-6 7-6 (7-3)

Andy Murray def. Fernando Verdasco, 6-1 6-2

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Women's Draw

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Serena Williams def. Venus Williams, 6-4 3-6 6-3