TENNIS IN THE MAGIC BOX

They call it La Caja Magica, or The Magic Box.  It is the surreal new home of the Madrid Masters, complete with three courts equipped with retractable roofs, an awesome futuristic-looking structure for tennis.  But it was the renewal of an old rivalry that brought the place to life last Sunday.  For the first time since last year's final, the first in The Magic Box, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal faced off.

When these two players meet, tennis is elevated.  Much has been written about their contrasting styles, and their mutual respect for each other, and their genuine love of the game.  Unquestionably, they're both likable characters and outstanding ambassadors of the sport.  But it's the tension in the air when they stand on opposite sides of the court that transcends tennis.  Not since Borg and McEnroe went toe-to-toe have we witnessed a monumental rivalry like Federer-Nadal.  We watch with baited breath to see if something legendary will happen when they play, because every time they do the possibility exists.  Sunday's showdown was an excellent match, but not one for the ages.  Nadal won 6-4, 7-6, but the real story was of the rivalry renewed.

Last year, leading up to this very same tournament, the tennis world questioned whether or not The Mighty Fed would ever sit atop the game again.  After losing to Rafa in Australia, he  appeared to lose a step and some of that supreme confidence, even melting down and slamming a racket in frustration in the sweltering heat of Miami.  But then the tide turned.  A tired Nadal lost a little mojo in The Magic Box and then lost his cloak of invincibility at the French.  With the door wide open at Roland Garros, Federer finally completed his career slam by vanquishing Rafa's conquerer, Robin Soderling. Nadal's relentless style of play finally took its toll on his body and his knees, and the divorce of his parents clouded his focus. Unable to defend his title at Wimbledon, Nadal stepped aside and watched as Federer outlasted Andy Roddick in a marathon final to break Pete Sampras' record for the most Grand Slam titles in the open era. Rafa returned for the North American hard court season, but wasn't the same.  After the layoff, he was rusty and couldn't trust his knees.  Juan Martin Del Potro emerged and raised the level of his game to defeat Roger at the U.S. Open and snap The Mighty Fed's streak at five.  Back in the land down under earlier this year, Nadal again looked vulnerable and uncharacteristically retired in a quarterfinal match against Andy Murray, already down two sets to love.  In the final, Federer took Murray down in straight sets to collect yet another Grand Slam trophy.  I wasn't the only one who wondered whether we had seen the last of the great battles between Rafa and Roger.  This spring, Rafa worked his way back into form, reaching the semifinals of both Indian Wells and Miami, losing to the eventual winner each time. Meanwhile, Roger struggled, upset by Baghdatis in Palm Springs and Berdych on Key Biscayne.  Once again, it appeared the two giants of the men's game were moving in opposite directions.  Returning to the European red clay, Nadal seemed to step back into his own skin.  He dominated in Monte Carlo, winning the tournament for the sixth time in a row.  Federer skipped Monte Carlo, then was shocked in the second round by Ernests Gulbis.  Rafa ruled Rome, took the title, and reclaimed the nickname King of Clay.

Winning in Madrid completed a trifecta never before accomplished, three Masters 1000 events in a row, and all three Masters on the dirt.  An amazing accomplishment.  Nadal ran his overall record against Federer to 14-7, including 10-2 on clay.  He also overtook Andre Agassi for the most Masters Series titles at 18.  But it was taking back his ranking of Number 2 in the world that restored order to men's tennis.  It means that Nadal is really back.  Roger will be seeded #1 at the French Open next week, and Rafa will be seeded #2.  They can only meet in the final.  Just the way it should be.

It'll be very interesting to see if Rafael Nadal can flip the tables again and overtake Roger for the #1 ranking.  First, he has to recapture Roland Garros.  If he can do that, it'll come down to Wimbledon.  With the rivalry fully renewed, we can only hold our breath in hopes that Rafa and Roger will produce something special that demands to be recorded in the annals of tennis history.  Now that they're both back in form, the possibilty exits yet again.

THE RIVALRY

Extra!  Extra!  Federer-Nadal Final!

For the first time in a calendar year, "The Rivalry" will be renewed. 

Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal will add another chapter to their storied history tomorrow, as they clash in the finals of the Madrid Masters.  Federer took down Nadal in the finals of this same tournament last year.  The two have not played since.  Let's hope it's one for the ages.

TENNIS IN THE ETERNAL CITY

TiVo and Rain Delays are not friends.  Not one but two rain delays caused my TiVo (technically, it's a DVR, but I prefer to call all DVRs TiVos) to miss most of the second set of yesterday's final in Rome between Rafael Nadal and David Ferrer.  Residing on the West Coast of the United States, for me the matches were aired live on Tennis Channel in the middle of the night.  No worries.  TiVo recorded the tournament on a daily basis, and I was able to watch all or part of almost every singles match played.  Sure, there were a couple of rain delays here and there, but they never caused me to miss any tennis.  That is, of course, until the last half of the last set of the final.  I was lucky enough to see the two Spaniards slug it out in a grueling first set, won by Nadal, 7-5.  I was rather unlucky that the recording ended with my favorite Mallorcan up 3-1 in the second set.  Though he cruised the rest of the way, taking the set 6-2, I wanted the satisfaction of seeing him close it out, celebrate, and hoist the trophy in the air.

Sure, it's nice to see a still image of Nadal with a victorious smile and another title in his hands, but it's not the same.  And apparently, I missed the man cutting up a bit, uncorking a bottle of Champagne -- excuse me, Italian sparkling wine -- during his on-court celebration.

Despite the technological gaffe, I'm ecstatic that Rafa is playing electrifying tennis again.  After a rough year of injuries and recoveries following the shocking loss to Soderling at the French, Nadal finally looks like he's back to his true self on the court.  I could continue to gush, but Steve Tignor does a perfect job of it over at Tennis.com.  Oh, and I stole the following picture of Rafa from his site, too.  Love it.

I'm not claiming any kind of clairvoyance, but I did pick Nadal to win the Masters 1000 event in Rome before it started.  Obviously, I wasn't going out on a limb with that pick.  But I made it official for the first time, entering the ATP World Tour Draw Challenge, essentially a fantasy tennis league.  Keeping in mind that it was my first time playing, I think I did fairly well.  I mean, it may not seem that way when you consider I finished in 6431st place.  But that was out of 15029 entrants, and I was pleased to at least crack the upper half of the competition.  I had both Nadal and Ferrer in the semis, but I had Ferrer losing to Djokovic (Ferrer beat Verdasco) and Nadal beating Federer (Nadal beat Gulbis instead).  The person who filled out the winning bracket correctly picked Nadal to win it all, and Ferrer over Verdasco, but had Nadal beating Almagro to reach the final.  In fact, Almagro was the only player to let the eventual winner down, as the bracket nailed 7 out of the 8 quarterfinalists. Those quarterfinal picks included Ernests Gulbis from Latvia, who upset Federer in the second round and continued to play fantastic tennis before finally faltering late in the third set against Nadal in the semifinals.  Besides the extra "s" at the end of his first name, Ernests Gulbis was thoroughly impressive in this tournament.  He has always been regarded as a young player with tremendous talent and upside, but until now he never quite fulfilled his potential.  As a Jew with some Latvian ancestry, I sincerely hope the win over Federer and stellar play gives Gulbis the confidence to believe he can be one of the best in the world.  Because if Ernests consistently plays like he did in Rome, there's no doubt he will be.

One last side note on the fantasy tennis game... The person who finished with the third place bracket correctly predicted all four semifinalists, including Gulbis, but still lost to two other fantasy players.  That tells you how hard it is to win on the circuit.  The only thing I can do is continue to improve my game from week to week, and hope with a few breaks and a little luck, I too can climb the tennis ladder and reach #1. Hey, a guy can dream, can't he?