TINAMAAN AKO NANG TUNAY SA TENNIS (I think I’m In Love)
I am not really into sports. I can’t even say I follow any sports though I enjoy watching some events in the Olympics. I like water sports, gymnastics, pole vaulting, figure skating, volleyball, badminton, and of course, the sports that all Filipinos are expected to love: basketball.
‘Though when I was younger, I used to follow NBA but that was ages ago, back during the days when the Chicago Bulls still reigned and Utah Jazz could only dream of winning the finals. It was so long ago that from memory, the players who still dominated my favourite team were Michael Jordan, Dennis Rodman, Scottie Pippen and Toni Kukoc. Of course, the Jazz had Karl Malone and John Stockton, who did not make things any easier for their arch-nemeses. Back then, I even owned a bootleg Jordan jersey, and my favourite number was, as you would have guessed, 23. Not long after, the players started switching teams so I lost interest. I guess, I just enjoyed the rivalry between those two teams.
A few years ago, I also briefly followed the English Premier League. My ex was an Arsenal fan so I was defaulted to supporting the Gunners for more than two years. Because of that, I also had to support England and Australia when The World Cup came around. We didn’t win though but the word “football” somehow found a niche in my normal vocabulary. Just last year, I was fortunate enough to get an opportunity to watch the Socceroos play an exhibition game with Ghana. Note that we had a company BOX so it was so exciting! We had canapes, drinks (I had my red wine) and a kick-ass view! Top that with a Socceroos win over the visitors! Booo-yaaa!! We hoped for it but we didn’t expect it since Ghana’s team’s actually pretty decent. That was the night I opened a football magazine and fell in love with Cristiano Ronaldo’s charming smile and well-sculpted body. He plays for Manchester United and as a default Arsenal fan, that was taboo. Now that I’m single, I am switching allegiance.
I have been living here in Australia for almost five years now yet I have never gotten myself into the footy and cricket fever. A work colleague tried to explain cricket to me just last week and that was refreshing. Back then, I only saw cricket as the lousier version of baseball. At least, now I can somehow understand and appreciate it. But you still won’t catch me watching it. Hahaha.
How about the Australian Open? My company sponsors it so I guess, I’m bound to like it, although a lot of my workmates don’t. Two years ago, my sister watched a lot of tennis during the AO season. She’s a Roger Federer fan. That was the first time I laid eyes on my beloved. It was love at first sight. Okay, not at first sight. It was after a few games. I watched the Swiss tennis god bathe in his glorious victories, with his graceful one-handed backhands and almost effortless aces. Yes, you read that correctly. I used the word graceful. . He won the Open that year, along with the then unseeded Serena Williams (ranked 81 in the world at that time) who toppled women’s number one, Maria Sharapova.
The year after, Fed lost to Novak Djokovic in the semis. It was a pathetic display for Federer, to be quiet honest. But we later found out that Fed was then sick with mononucleosis, which he had mistaken for food poisoning. To have reached the semis in that state of health was still impressive. In the same year, then no. 2, Rafael Nadal, lost to a rather uknown tennis player, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the semis. What an upset! Djokovic then crushed Tsonga to win the Australian Open.
Federer lost his number 1 ranking to Nadal in 2008. The much younger Nadal won his own Grand Slam Titles and ousted Fed from his throne. This year though, in the current Australian Open, Federer appears to be a lot stronger and fitter, compared to the previous one. He’s definitely quick on his feet again after his off-season. He talks about the training he had in Dubai, in preparation for challenging environments that he might encounter in his quest to regain his number one ranking, as well as achieve his 14th Grand Slam title and tie up with Pete Sampras’ record. Boo-yaa!!! Go Fed! Go Hun! I love you! Hahaha. I’m sure his training in a sweltering condition (45 degrees) helped him a lot since it’s summer now and many players have been complaining about the boiling temperatures in the Rod Laver Arena.
Moving on, we know that my man made it to this year’s Finals, after kicking Andy Roddick’s rear end in a three-set win. The noticeably fitter (he lost 7 kilos) and faster A Rod tried his best and showed everyone that he hasn’t lost his touch yet, in spite of him feeling that he’s the least favoured to win the AO. After all, he made it to the semis, after embarrassing Djokovic so much that he got him to default in the quarter finals. According to the latter, he was heavily fatigued and suffered from cramps. It’s possibly true but it would have been more believable if he had not quit his other “lost cause” games in the past. Because of that, he’s been dubbed a sore loser and serial quitter. He’s still a great player though, I must admit.
I firmly believe that Fed’s got the package (Package? Which package? He’s Swiss. He must have a healthy package. Hahaha.) to win the AO and match Sampras’ record this year. Firmly believe? Should I also say, solemnly swear? It sounds like an oath.
I firmly believe and solemnly swear that Roger Federer will win this year.
After the match, I will spike his energy drink and take him to my apartment. He will then lay eyes on me, dump Mirka and realise that I am The One. Hahaha. Gosh! I am getting delusional! This is even worse than my spiritual-marriage to Antonio Banderas at one point. When was that, around 7-8 years ago? Lol J
I am a bit scared of Nadal though because he’s got too much testosterone in his body. He’s got too much energy! I have never seen a Fed-Rafa match before so I don’t know what to expect. And no, I have no plans of watching it on Youtube. That will just spoil it. Rafa’s such a talented tennis player that I am aware of his capability to beat Fed. After all, he has done it before and that’s why he’s now the number one. Fed had a good run though. He was the number 1 for 4 consecutive years, I think. That’s still remarkable. Who knows? Perhaps, he can reclaim his number one ranking. I admire Nadal for his playing abilities but I just can’t get myself to like him. Perhaps, it’s because I know he can beat Fed but also because he sweats too much and he’s kind of daggy. His fashion sense is a big question mark. I know that he’s so passionate and you can literally see all the energy being exerted during a game but mate, it just looks so gross. That’s why he needed to pinch 4 towels after winning in the quarter finals. Hahaha. Nah, he said he was pinching it for his mates. What a great bloke! But still… At least, Roger looks like he smells good even after playing. I wouldn’t mind hugging him. But Nadal, mate, with all due respect to the guy, I’m not sure if I want to be near him after or even during a game. But hey, in fairness, Nadal looks cute when he’s smiling and not wearing his daggy headband. His biceps look all right. Fed wears headbands, too but at least, they’re not neon. Sorry to all those Nadal fans. I don’t want to be mean and shallow but I can’t help but get turned off by his excessive sweating and terrible fashion sense.
I pinched an Australian Open from the office and so now, it hangs on my bedroom wall. Actually, I didn’t pinch it. The security told me that I can take one of them so I obtained it legitimately, okay? I look at it before I go to sleep. Fed’s the centre photo so that’s just lovely.
I was hoping that Fernando Verdasco, currently ranked number 14, could beat Nadal in the semis. I heard stories about the guy but of course, he’s playing against Nadal, mate, so you know. But Verdasco played remarkably well that he managed to take Rafa to the fifth set. Mind you that it was indeed a very close match with 6-7 6-4 7-6 6-7 6-4 for Nadal. The match lasted for 5 hours and 15 minutes but it was so adrenalin-fuelled that my dad and I almost didn’t feel it. It started around 8:00 in the evening and finished around quarter past one this morning. It was a very thrilling match! If I was squealing and screaming during the Fed - A Rod semis, I was surprisingly louder and even more excited in this one. The battle between the two Spanish comrades to get to the finals was so intense that we stayed up til late to watch it. Considering that I am not a Nadal fan, that was really something big for me to do. It was like watching boxing, like a Pacquiao-Morales fight. The crowds were cheering for both sides. People were amazed at Verdasco’s resilience and big serves. Nadal pushed himself even harder and increased his game a notch higher since Fernando seemed to have powered up for this game. He had 95 winners and friggin’ 20 aces, against Rafa’s 52 winners and 12 aces. The game ended in Fernando’s double fault in his service but it was such a brilliant play that I don’t think anyone would really dare to harshly criticise Fernando’s performance. He has proven to the world that he’s such a great and strong player (to think that he doesn’t have a coach right now). It’s just that Nadal’s a better one.
The question now is: “Who’s the better player between Roger and Rafa?"