It was literally a "Clash of the Titans" and everyone hoped that the rain gods too were relaxing in front of their television sets :)
After days of clumsy freak weather at the Wimbledon the final day was much sunnier and the meadows were looking dry and green all set for the grand finale !
Two great masters of the game - one who was getting used to it and the other making use of it well.
The title clash was between Roger the top seed and Nadal the second, turned out to be a treat to watch for both spectators who had come to the center court with folded umbrellas and for those worldwide before the idiot box with their fingers crossed.
While Fedex was eying Bjorg's record of five straight Wimbledon titles, Rafa was hoping for his maiden Wimbledon title.
Many would have seen Roger emulating Nadal 5 years later or Nadal emulating Roger when the latter defeated Pete Sampras from getting his 5th consecutive Wimbledon title back in 2001.
The game was never a one sided affair, and was equally poised at any stage except for the latter stages of the decider.
I would say Roger had his lady-luck very much by his side as he got away with 1st and 3rd side thanks to a tie break. He proved his mettle with a total of 24 aces against 1 for Nadal , reminding everyone of the yesteryear legend Goran Ivanisevic who is still unparalleled with his serves on the grass.
Roger also had the number of unforced errors more than that of his opponent indicating how collected and composed the younger lad was.
Presumably both had their placements fantastic, giving us nothing less than a 'edge of the seat' experience.
Nadal came back strongly winning the 2nd and 4th sets thanks to some wonderful winners from his dynamic forehand, pushing the king of grass too far from being a cake walk.
The fact that both of them were equally flexing the muscles ,exhibited some exuberant talent and went on to grab 2 sets each before the decider.
While there was some mild chaos due to the hawk-eye decision challenging options, It was Nadal who took everyone by surprise by challenging only those decisions which turned to his favor.
Then came the final set which took away the breath of many and turned out to be the most exciting set of all games in the recent tennis history. Some would have even felt boring at times as both were winning equally and alternatively their own serves.
When the score board was reading 2-2 I was thinking only a tie break can decide the champion,
But then the swiss maestro justified he is a little above the crest when he broke Nadal for 2 successive games with some wonderful backhand winners and aces.
He won the set,match and championship 6-2 in the final set thus re-writing the history books.
Swedish legend Bjorn Borg was all smiles after he found a company for his elite club of 5 consecutive Wimbledon ch'ships.
The tears that rolled down Federer's cheeks said all the story and how great it was getting close to being called a legend.
But Nadal had more positives to take from the match, He stood tall,strong and can only be credited for pushing the champion to a fag end.
And Federer told that It was the toughest grand slam final for him and wished Nadal to have a longer run and that Nadal deserved a win in the center court.
And this match will go down in the history as one of the most enchanting tennis game, and also for the discovery of two great sportsmen - a legend of the present and a champion of the future.
Thanks for your time :)
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