Rafa lost :(! It's one of the few times I've ever seen Rafa snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. I'm writing specifically of the three breaks up he had in the final set. Still, can't take anything away from Juan Martin Del Potro. He played extremely well! He corrected a lot of bad behaviors which had put him in poor spots in previous matches. When I read the scoreline of his David Ferrer match I knew he hadn't come into this tournament to be any man's pigeon.
All credit to Sean Randall over at Xtreme Tennis for predicting before the tournament a quarterfinal bow for Nadal. I thought he'd at least make the semis. Now I'm curious as to how many points he's lost since I believe he made the finals last year. I think his improved record in the tournaments he's played so far (wins at the Australian Open, Indian Wells) even the one he lost (Rotterdam final) will offset the loss but I'm a bit fuzzy on the mathematical particulars. Then there's the whole Dubai 'goose egg' from pulling out; can he still drop that? (lowest score can be dropped)
Well, onto the other matches! You know, it used to be that if my favorite lost I stopped watching the tournament. At least it was that way with the WTA. I, however, plan on watching the rest of the quarterfinal matches (at least) on the men's side. It's the match-ups -- they are mouthwatering! Murray vs. Verdasco!!! Federer vs. Djokovic!!! Talk about another man whose on the path of proving he's nobody's pigeon! Djokovic seems to have regained his form. Then there's the Williamses. The sisters are playing today and their matches are always an exercise in the fascinating. I'm rooting hard for Venus in spite of what will occur should she win and Serena lose. You see, the WTA's ranking system is for shit and right now Dinara Safina, who currently can't find a serve or a shot to save her life, is poised to overtake Serena as #1 should she lose. That? Blows. Should this happen it will only underscore, as Jelena Jankovic did before her, all that is terribly, terribly wrong with the WTA. No one should achieve the number one ranking through anything less than winning. I mean a relatively sustained campaign of wins. So to get number one because everyone around -- to include yourself -- is doing too much losing is a travesty. An absolute travesty. Look, I love me some Dinara but no way should she be #1. Although I will concede that on paper she's in a better position than Jankovic when she became #1 (been to two Slam finals vs. JJ's none). Even knowing what is at stake, the WTA's credibility, I still can't make myself do it. I love them both but love Venus a little harder :). It's been that way from the start.
So, yeah, if all goes as I wish (not much luck so far), Venus for the win. I predict Dinara's head will explode if that should happen. Literally explode. Either that or she'll commit seppuku just to avoid the pressure.
