<p>That’s the name of a Facebook group my D belongs to, but today it is more appropriate than ever! Hooray!</p>
<p>I am happy for him. I hope Nadals knee is better in time for Wimbledon though. I am looking forward to joining my Mum and brother in their annual tradition of watching the final while eating our strawberries and cream and drinking champagne. Last years Federer/Nadal was superb so I would like another one like that. I am actually going to go to Wimbledon the 1st week. It will be my first time. My brother goes every year but this is the first time I have made up my mind to get up at 5a.m. and go wait in line with him. Won’t be center court seats of course, but I am excited to just be there.</p>
<p>wow…have always wanted to go to Wimbledon. Not crazy about waiting in lines but I think I can make an exception.
We go to the US Open every year…early so we can wander the outside courts and get to see players close up. We can only afford nose bleed seats otherwise and that’s no fun.
Federer was impressive today. Happy to see him win. Impressed with his French!</p>
<p>swimcatsmom,
I’m so jealous of you going to Wimbledon. I would absolutely rather go during the first week of during Monday of the second week when all of the round of 16s play (weather permitting) than later in the tournament. Have a wonderful time!</p>
<p>Thank you. I am looking forward to it. I was in the UK during Wimbledon last year but it was because my Mum had been very ill and nearly died, so I couldn’t really go off to Wimbledon. She was sufficiently better in time to enjoy the strawberries and cream watching the finals on TV (I drnk her champagne for her). She and my brother have had that tradition for years and it was fun to do it with them. This year she is doing well so I get to go just to visit for the first time in 2 year instead of caretake and deal with hospitals and stuff. So I decided to plan my trip around Wimbledon and am going to stay with my brother for a couple of days as he lives on the same tramline that serves Wimbledon. I am excited. And I have to say English strawberries - yum. Smaller and sweeter than any I have ever found in the US (where I live anyway).</p>
<p>If you sign up for alerts at the Wimbledon website ([Wimbledon</a> - The All England Lawn Tennis Club](<a href=“http://www.wimbledon.org%5DWimbledon”>http://www.wimbledon.org)) they sometimes sell returned centre court tickets on Ticket Master the evening before. You get an e-mail about 9pm and have about 10 mins to get them before they are gone.</p>
<p>The second way to get into centre court is to buy a “return”. Lots of people leave about 6pm and their tickets are re-sold for charity at low prices (£5 I think). There is a ticket re-sale booth inside the ground and they start selling from about 4pm if they have any tickets. You may only get to see one match on centre, but you will be there. </p>
<p>I have been going to Wimbledon since I was a little kid (and also Roland Garros). I think I’ve been about 15 times. I always get tickets in advance though, rather than queueing. I have court 2 tickets for the second Tuesday this time.</p>
<p>You defintiely won’t get any nosebleeds as centre court is about 1/3 the size you think it is, and on courts 4 downwards there is only 3-6 rows of seats anyway. There is a new court 2 for this year, but old court 2 is still there and has been demoted to court 3. There is standing room at the back of this old court which you can get into even with just a ground pass.</p>
<p>Nadal v. Federer lately has become no contest. Federer can’t even take him to 5 sets.</p>
<p>I play with several people that have been wondering when Nadal’s knees would go. He plays a very unorthodox style that places tremendous stress on his joints and he was even wearing patella stabilizers when he was a teenager. All of that upper body muscle adds weight which adds pressure to the knees.</p>
<p>I think that he’s going to have to change his style to improve his longevity. If you look at the players that lasted, you’ll find that they had playing styles that weren’t stressful on their joints. Federer is 27. Can you imagine Nadal when he’s 27?</p>
<p>One other issue with Nadal: he is a one-dimensional player. That one-dimension is really great though. What was surprising about this year’s French Open was how well Soderling and Del Potro did. Del Potro is 6’6". Soderling is 6’4". Del Potro played quite a bit better than Soderling did against Federer and he shows better athleticism, power and footwork.</p>
<p>Nadal hits heavy topspin which kicks the ball up high and is generally very effective because players have to hit shots at shoulder-height which isn’t always comfortable. Particularly if you have a one-handed backhand like Federer. The big and tall guys don’t have the problem with high kicking topspin shots though. Nadal played into Soderling’s power zone. In general, the tall guys don’t do well in tennis as their movement isn’t as good as shorter players.</p>
<p>Nadal, Soderling, Gonzo and Del Potro are all hard hitters. Federer, while he can hit the ball hard, is an expert at defense, can counterpunch well and mixes the game up. Against the tall players he used his natural slice backhand which keeps the ball low and soft and changes the tempo of the point. He also used the forehand dropshot which caught Soderling off-guard and flat-footed several times.</p>
<p>Federer will still have trouble executing against Nadal’s style but his style isn’t sustainable (in my opinion and in the opinions of others that I know that play tennis) over the long haul. If you look at the list of players that played well into their 30s, you’ll see styles that aren’t tough on joints.</p>