Birthdate: February 18, 1974 in Sochi city.
Height: 1,90 m. Weight: 84 kg. Plays: right-handed.
Turned Pro: 1992

Yevgeny Aleksandrovich Kafelnikov (yehv-GYEH-nee kah-FYELL-nee-koff; KAH-fyell-nee-koff in Russian) is a former World No. 1 tennis player from Russia. During his career, he won two Grand Slam singles titles (one French Open and one Australian Open), four Grand Slam doubles titles, and the men’s singles Gold Medal at the Olympic Games. Kafelnikov was born on February 18, 1974, in Sochi, in the RSFSR, Soviet Union (now Russia).

Contents

1 Career
2 Grand Slam singles finals
2.1 Wins (2)
2.2 Runner-ups (1)

Career

Kafelnikov turned professional in 1992 and won his first top-level singles title in Adelaide in 1994.

In 1995, Kafelnikov defeated World No. 1 Andre Agassi in the quarter-finals of the French Open before losing to eventual champion Thomas Muster in the semi-finals.

A year later, in 1996, Kafelnikov captured both the men’s singles and the men’s doubles titles at the French Open. In the singles final, he beat former Wimbledon champion Michael Stich in straight sets 7-6, 7-5, 7-6. But he lost in the 1st round of Wimbledon to 21 year old,Tim Henman.

In 1997, Kafelnikov won the men’s doubles titles at both the French Open and the US Open.

In 1999, Kafelnikov won his second Grand Slam singles title at the Australian Open. He defeated Thomas Enqvist in four sets in the final. In May that year, he reached the World No. 1 men’s singles ranking. However he lost seven straight matches thereafter, and relinquished the No. 1 ranking after six weeks.

Kafelnikov was in the Australian Open final again in 2000, but was defeated in four sets by Andre Agassi. That summer, he won the men’s singles Gold Medal for Russia at the Olympic Games in Sydney. In the final, he defeated Tommy Haas of Germany in an exciting five-set match 7-6, 3-6, 6-2, 4-6, 6-3.

In 2002, Kafelnikov was part of the Russian team which won the Davis Cup for the first time. In Russia’s semi-final win over Argentina, Kafelnikov saved two match points in a singles rubber against Gaston Gaudio in winning the five-set, four-hour and ten-minute match 3-6, 7-5, 6-3, 2-6, 8-6. The following day, he partnered Marat Safin in the longest doubles match in Davis Cup history. The pair eventually lost the six-hour and 20-minute match 4-6, 4-6, 7-5, 6-3, 17-19. Russia eventually overcame Argentina 3-2, and went on to defeat France 3-2 in the final.

Kafelnikov also won his third French Open men’s doubles title in 2002. He reached the French Open men’s doubles final for the fourth time in 2003, when he finished runner-up.

Kafelnikov retired from the professional tour in 2004, having won 26 singles and 27 doubles titles.

Since retiring, Kafelnikov has tried his hand at becoming a professional poker player, with a few impressive finishes at the 2005 World Series of Poker.

Grand Slam singles finals

Wins (2)

Year Championship Opponent in Final Score in Final
1996 French Open Michael Stich 7-6, 7-5, 7-6
1999 Australian Open Thomas Enqvist 4-6, 6-0, 6-3, 7-6

Runner-ups (1)

Year Championship Opponent in Final Score in Final
2000 Australian Open Andre Agassi 3-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-4

He achieved the number-one singles ATP ranking on May 3, 1999, but lost seven straight matches thereafter. He reached the final of the Australian Open in 2000, losing to Andre Agassi in four sets.

In 2004 he informally announced his retirement and said he would begin playing professional poker full time.

Tennis ace Kafelnikov rooting for Russia in 2018 World Cup race

Russia's former tennis world No.1 Yevgeny Kafelnikov is backing his country to come out on top in the race to host football's 2018 World Cup.

Kafelnikov told CNN that he was confident they would get the nod when the decision is made by FIFA's executive committee in Zurich on Thursday, but said the competition was tough.

"It's hard to compete against major footballing countries like England or Spain (joint bidders with Portugal) but we still think we are going to do it."

Kafelnikov, a two-time grand slam champion, was born in Sochi, which was chosen to host the Winter Olympics in 2014.

He admitted to be "laughing" when that decision was made, but has been pleasantly surprised by the pace and scale of the preparations in his home town.


"I stopped laughing and now when I go home I am amazed by the construction and right now I believe Sochi will be a very successful host of the Olympics."

He went on: "I'm sure Sochi will succeed and I'm sure if Russia gets the World Cup we would succeed as well."

"All the people are behind it and the government has invested so much money," he added.

Kafelnikov, 36, also helped his country to win the Davis Cup and took gold in the men's singles at the Sydney Olympics.

In the countdown to Thursday's vote, a number of sports stars from Russia have thrown their weight behind a bid which is gathering momentum.

Arsenal's Andrey Arshavin is a bid ambassador as well as captain of their Russian team.

He is convinced the footballing legacy will help swing the vote Russia's way.

"We have never had a World Cup. Hosting it here would open up new minds and new hearts for the game. It would be a completely new chapter for the FIFA World Cup itself," he told their official bid website.

Russia is up against England, plus joint bids from Spain and Portugal and the Netherlands and Belgium to win the right to stage the 2018 World Cup.

source : http://edition.cnn.com/2010/SPORT/tennis/11/30/kafelnikov.federer.world.cup/index.html?hpt=Sbin

Champion Federer predicts 'classic' 2011

Roger Federer is looking forward to another season of intense rivalry with Rafael Nadal following his victory over the world No. 1 in Sunday's ATP World Tour Finals title decider.

Second-ranked Federer won the men's tennis season finale for the fifth time in his illustrious career with his 6-3 3-6 6-1 triumph over the Spaniard.

However, he still trails the 24-year-old by more than 3,000 ranking points ahead of 2011's first grand slam event, the Australian Open in January.

Nadal has won the past three majors, but Federer will be defending his title in Melbourne as he seeks to extend his record grand slam tally to 17.

Federer overcomes Nadal in London final


"I start with a lot of pressure, having to defend the Australian Open. Rafa doesn't have that, he's going in with pressure trying to win his fourth [grand slam] in a row, so I think there's a lot at stake."

Federer beat Nadal for just the eighth time in 22 career meetings in London, but has won all three of their indoor encounters.

"Obviously it makes it extra special, playing Rafa and beating him in the final. For me it is a great finish to the season," the 29-year-old said.

The annual event, which moved to the British capital in 2009, is contested between the world's top-eight male players.

Tennis aces 'feel like rock stars' in London

The top four reached the semifinals, with Nadal beating Andy Murray in an epic three-set struggle, while Federer crushed Serbia's third-ranked Novak Djokovic.

"To beat all my closest rivals Murray, Djokovic and Rafa in this tournament has been fantastic. We've had a couple of breakthroughs, with [Tomas] Berdych and [Robin] Soderling again proving his point. Djokovic and Murray both had another great season."

Federer hailed the atmosphere at the 17,500-capacity court in the former Millennium Dome and described it as the perfect end to a satisfying season.

"I thought the atmosphere was absolutely fantastic. This is another season I'm going to look back on and say 'I think I played another great season' and this gives me great motivation to do well again next year."

Nadal and Federer, who have won 25 of the last 30 grand slams between them, will next play two exhibition matches to promote their charity foundations.

The first will take place on December 21 in Zurich, Switzerland before the duo meet again the following day in the Spanish capital Madrid.

Federer overcomes Nadal in London final

Roger Federer maintained his indoor supremacy over top-ranked Rafael Nadal as he won the season-ending ATP World Tour Finals event for the fifth time in his career on Sunday.

Nadal held a 14-7 career record over his longtime rival before the final, but the Spaniard slumped to his third successive indoor defeat to the Swiss player despite battling back strongly in the second set in London.

Federer claimed his 66th career title and the $1.63 million first prize with a 6-3 3-6 6-1 success in the tournament's first final played between the world's top-two players in 24 years.

Both players went into the match on the back of four successive victories, with Federer not having lost a set.

Tennis aces 'feel like rock stars'

The 29-year-old, who lost his No. 1 ranking again to Nadal this year, won the first set in just 32 minutes after breaking his opponent in the eighth game and then serving out to love.

Nadal, not looking as sharp as earlier in the week following his epic semifinal win over Andy Murray, bounced back to break Federer in the fourth game of the second set to go 3-1 up and then held serve to level the match after another 34 minutes.

Federer regained his momentum in the fourth game of the decider, which went to deuce -- as did the next game as he stopped Nadal from an immediate break back and clinched it with his sixth ace.

Federer again broke Nadal in the sixth game and was untroubled in serving out to follow up his victories from 2003-04 and 2006-07.

It was his fifth title of 2010, including the Australian Open in January, as he won 65 matches and lost just 13 -- four of them finals.

"I've really enjoyed playing here this week, it's been a wonderful atmosphere once again. Rafa's had an amazing year, one any player dreams of," he told the crowd.

It left the 24-year-old Nadal -- who completed his collection of all four Grand Slams at the U.S. Open in September -- still seeking to win the event for the first time, and still without a title in an indoor hardcourt tournament.

Nadal, who will end 2010 at the top of the rankings despite the defeat, had won their most previous encounter in the final of the Madrid Masters in May.

"I want to congratulate Roger. He played unbelievable throughout the whole week. It was a fantastic year for me, probably the most emotional of my career," he said.

With the men's singles competitions now at a close, the focus turns to the Davis Cup final between Serbia and France starting on Friday.


source : http://edition.cnn.com/2010/SPORT/tennis/11/28/tennis.federer.nadal.atp.london/index.html?hpt=Sbin

Fired-up Nadal faces Murray in semis; Djokovic sets up Federer clash

World No. 1 Rafael Nadal set up a semifinal showdown with Andy Murray after winning his third successive match at the season-ending ATP World Tour Finals in London on Friday.

The Spaniard overcame sixth seed Tomas Berdych 7-6 (7-3) 6-1 to repeat his victory over the Czech in the Wimbledon final in July.

Third seed Novak Djokovic will play No. 2 Roger Federer in Saturday evening's second semifinal after handing American Andy Roddick his third successive defeat in Friday's closing match of the round-robin stage.

The 24-year-old, who needed to win just one set to progress, completed his seventh straight win over Berdych despite losing his cool with an umpiring call.

Nadal was infuriated when Berdych was allowed to challenge a decision in the 12th game and was given the point as his backhand was shown to touch the line and not be long.

Nadal calmed himself down after a long, heated exchange with the umpire and held serve before winning the tie-break comfortably and then racing away with the second set to reach the last four of the event for the first time.

Behind the scenes at the ATP Finals

"It was a very important victory because every day I'm playing a little better and today I played a great match. It's going to be a really, really difficult match against Andy," he told the crowd after ending Berdych's hopes of progressing.

Nadal has never won an indoor hardcourt tournament, and failed to win a set at the O2 Arena last year.

He has beaten Murray eight times in their 12 meetings, but lost to the British player on hardcourt in Toronto in August and retired hurt on the same surface during their Australian Open last-16 clash in January.

Nadal won their first two hardcourt meetings in 2007 but they went 2-2 last year.

In Friday's final Group A match, Djokovic needed to win only one set to earn a clash with Group B winner Federer.

Roddick, who lost his first two games, needed to win in straight sets to go through as runner-up. He had won his past four encounters with Djokovic, three of them being two-setters.

But it was the Serbian who prevailed with the minimum of fuss, winning 6-2 6-3 as he suffered none of the contact lens problems that hampered him in his earlier defeat by Nadal.

"It's definitely a great achievement to get to the semifinals. It's great for the tournament to have the top four guys in the semifinals," the 23-year-old, who walked out to the court wearing a joke eye patch, told the crowd afterwards.


source : http://edition.cnn.com/2010/SPORT/tennis/11/26/tennis.nadal.djokovic.berdych.roddick/index.html?hpt=Sbin

Roger Federer Wallpaper

Roger Federer Biography

Birthdate August 8, 1981 (29 years old)
Birthplace Basel, Switzerland
Residence Bottmingen, Switzerland
Height 6'1'' (185 cm)
Weight 187 lbs (85 kg)
Plays Right-handed
Turned Pro 1998 (13 yrs on tour)
Official Site www.rogerfederer.com

Roger Federer (born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss professional tennis player who held the number one position for a record 237 consecutive weeks^[2] and 285 total weeks, one week behind record holder Pete Sampras. As of 18 October 2010, he is ranked World No. 2 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP). Many sports analysts, tennis critics, and former and current players consider Federer to be the greatest tennis player of all time.^{[3][4][5][6][7][8]}

Federer has won a male record 16 Grand Slam singles titles. He is one of seven male players (and the only Swiss, male or female) to capture the career Grand Slam and one of three (with Andre Agassi and Rafael Nadal) to do so on three different surfaces (clay, grass and hard courts). Federer has appeared in an unprecedented 22 career Grand Slam finals. He holds the record of reaching the semi-finals or better of 23 consecutive Grand Slam tournaments over five and a half years from the 2004 Wimbledon Championships through the 2010 Australian Open.^[9] Federer also holds the record of reaching 10 consecutive Grand Slam finals and appeared in 18 of 19 over four and a half years from the 2005 Wimbledon Championships through the 2010 Australian Open, excluding the 2008 Australian Open. Federer has won 4 ATP World Tour Finals and 17 ATP Masters Series tournaments. He also won the Olympic Gold Medal in doubles with his compatriot Stanislas Wawrinka at the 2008 Summer Olympic Games.

As a result of Federer's successes in tennis, he was named the Laureus World Sportsman of the Year for four consecutive years (2005–2008).^[10] He is often referred to as The Federer Express^[11] or abbreviated to Fed Express,^[11] the Swiss Maestro^[11] or simply Maestro.^{[11][12][13][14]}

Childhood and personal life

Federer was born in Binningen, near Basel, to Swiss national Robert Federer and South African-born Lynette Du Rand.[15] He holds both Swiss and South African citizenship.[16] He grew up in suburban Münchenstein, near Basel, close to the French-German borders and Federer speaks Swiss German, German, French and English fluently.[15][17][18] He was raised as a Roman Catholic and met Pope Benedict XVI while playing the 2006 Internazionali BNL d'Italia tournament in Rome.[19] Like all male Swiss citizens, Federer was subject to compulsory military service in the Swiss Armed Forces. However, in 2003 he was deemed unfit due to a long-standing back problem and was subsequently not required to fulfill his obligations.[20]

Marriage and family Federer is married to former Women's Tennis Association player Mirka Vavrinec. They met while competing for Switzerland in the 2000 Sydney Olympics. Vavrinec retired from the tour in 2002 because of a foot injury and has since been working as Federer's public relations manager.[21] They were married in Basel on 11 April 2009, surrounded by a small group of close friends and family at Wenkenhof Villa (municipality of Riehen).[22] On 23 July 2009, Mirka gave birth to twin girls, Myla Rose and Charlene Riva.[23]

Outreach and charitable efforts Federer supports various charities. He established the Roger Federer Foundation in 2003 to help disadvantaged people and to promote sports.[24][25] In 2005, he auctioned his racquet from his US Open championship to aid victims of Hurricane Katrina.[26] He was appointed a Goodwill Ambassador by UNICEF in 2006.[27] Since then, he has visited South Africa and Tamil Nadu, one of the areas in India most affected by the tsunami caused by the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake.[28] He has also appeared in UNICEF public messages to raise public awareness of AIDS. In response to the 2010 Haiti earthquake, Federer responded by arranging a collaboration with fellow top tennis players Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Andy Roddick, Kim Clijsters, Serena Williams, Lleyton Hewitt and Sam Stosur to forgo their final day of preparation for the 2010 Australian Open to form a special charity event called Hit For Haiti, in which all proceeds will go to the Haiti earthquake victims.[29] He was named as a 2010 Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum in recognition of his leadership, accomplishments and contributions to society.[30]



Tennis Career

1998–2002: Early career in the ATP

Main article: Roger Federer's early career

2003–2006: Breakthrough and dominance

Main articles: Roger Federer in 2003, Roger Federer in 2004, Roger Federer in 2005, and Roger Federer in 2006

2007 to present: Gaining greatness and achieving records

Main articles: Roger Federer in 2007, Roger Federer in 2008, Roger Federer in 2009, and Roger Federer in 2010

source : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roger_Federer

Boris Yeltsin: Russia's No.1 tennis fan

One could argue long into the night about his political legacy, but when it comes to tennis most people agree about Boris Yeltsin.

The late Russian president transformed the fortunes of game in his country.

"He laid the foundations for tennis development in Russia and it witnessed a rebirth in our country after everyone saw Yeltsin, in his capacity as president, in shorts, running around on a tennis court," his former tennis coach Shamil Tarpischev told CNN.

Those famous images might induce a McEnroe-style tantrum in today's political spin doctors, but the results speak for themselves.

Before Yeltsin came to power, players from the former Soviet Union had appeared in a total of three grand slam finals -- two Wimbledon and one French Open.

Today, Russia has won 10 grand slam titles -- six for the women, four for the men.

"Basically, tennis became on a par with other sports like ice hockey and soccer. From what I call a girly, bourgeois sport it became truly popular," Tarpischev said.

Now president of the Russian Tennis Federation, Tarpischev first ran into Yeltsin in 1988, on a Baltic beach, bizarrely, where he challenged Yeltsin -- who at that time was in political disgrace having criticized Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev the previous year -- to a game which he eventually accepted.

They met periodically the following year, Tarpischev says, this time on the court in Moscow.

When Yeltsin made his controversial but triumphant return to Russian politics in 1991, the new president invited Tarpischev to become his tennis coach. By 1994 Yeltsin had made him his minister for sport.

"He was an early riser, getting up at 5am. After two hours work we would go on court for 40 minutes and it was just the right amount of time for him to relax and then resume work," Tarpischev said.

So, was he any good? He was very agile and possessed a rich sense of humor, he recalls.

"He was a professional volleyball player, so he had a good serve -- the actions are similar -- but his footwork left something to be desired."

But it was Yeltsin's recurring heart problems throughout his time in office which did most to slow him down. He was hospitalized on several occasions and famously underwent quadruple heart bypass surgery in 1996.

But if ill health limited his own trips out on court, it didn't stop him from supporting others.

And with players like Yevgeny Kafelnikov now coming through the ranks he had plenty to cheer.

"His influence was huge and he was a great president of our country for a long time," Kafelnikov told CNN.

The two-time grand slam tournament winner remembers Yeltsin phoning him when he won his first and Russia's grand slam title (at the 1996 French Open) and in 1999 when he became the first Russian player to become world number one.

Notes and calls from Yeltsin were frequent, as they were for all Russia's growing crop of tennis stars. Some of them were even invited around to his dacha in Moscow.

Kafelnikov says the Russian leader also had an encyclopedic knowledge of junior tennis.

"He would know every player in the top 100 and every Russian girl or boy participating," he said.

The demise of Yeltsin's political career in 1999 simply gave him more time to devote to following tennis.

"When we played in Moscow he was always at all the matches," Anastasia Myskina, Russia's first female grand slam winner, told CNN.

Yeltsin was famously in attendance when Russia triumphed in the 2002 Davis Cup final against France in Paris.

Tennis journalist Mikhail Ivanov told CNN: "He was the one who jumped onto the court after Mikhail Youzhny won match point. All tennis fans in Russia will remember this all their lifetime."

Russia triumphed again two years later and in between Russia's women sealed their first Fed Cup victory in 2004 -- a feat they repeated in 2005, 2007 and 2008.

When he couldn't be there in person, Yeltsin sometimes went to extraordinary lengths to keep in touch -- getting up in the middle of the night to watch the Australian Open, on occasions.

Yeltsin's death from congestive heart failure in 2007 meant Russian tennis had lost its "biggest fan" according to Myskina.

Tarpischev says Yeltsin "gave us opportunities that we were not even dreaming of." His obvious legacy is the haul of 10 grand slam titles -- six for the women, four for the men -- and counting. But it runs much deeper than that.

"Tennis has become truly a people's sport and it is amateur tennis that lays the foundations for professional development," Ivanov said.

It's thanks to Yeltsin, Tarpischev says, that the training and participation in tennis has caught up with other sports.

"Right now there are 2,384 tournaments within Russia at all levels with more than 6,000 kids under-16 participating in tournaments," Tarpischev said.

Russia's tennis stars were also freed from old communist rules which forbade them to keep their prize money and only allowed them to travel outside the country for 40 days every year.

Small grumbles persist though. There aren't enough indoor courts -- in a country where the winters are long and brutal -- and Tarpischev says that the sport could do with a little more money.

Tarpischev also wishes that at least one of Yeltsin's biographers attempted to portray his human side.

"None of [them] ever succeeded in showing him in all his largesse and soul. But our big luck was to have Boris Yeltsin as a tennis aficionado."



source : http://edition.cnn.com/2010/SPORT/tennis/11/24/boris.yeltsin.tennis.passion/index.html

Federer, Murray reach London semifinals

World No. 2 Roger Federer cruised into the semifinals of the ATP World Tour Finals on Thursday with his third successive win in London this week.

The Swiss star defeated Robin Soderling of Sweden 7-6 (7-5) 6-3 to reach the last four of the men's season-ending event for the eight time in nine appearances.

He became the first player of the eight-man field to make it through, with his victory meaning that Andy Murray needed to win only one set against Spain's David Ferrer in the late match to go through.

The British player subsequently triumphed 6-2 6-2 to qualify for the first time.

Federer's win also ended the hopes of fourth seed Soderling, a semifinalist last year who suffered his second straight-sets defeat in Group B after beating Ferrer on Tuesday.

"I'm happy I was able to come out today and play a good, tough, solid match against a player who I thought was in good shape," Federer told the ATP Tour website.


"I purposely didn't want to know the calculations before today's match, whereas I was in the loop very clearly what I kind of needed to do last year, which I think played on my mind a little bit.

"I just wanted to come out and try to play as good a match as I can. Losing is never a solution to trying to win a tournament. That's why I'm happy that all three matches were straight sets, and I did not waste any energy."

Becker: Federer will be year-end champion

Federer, who has won the tournament four times, fired three aces in the tie-break.

He then had a lucky escape on his serve at the start of the second set when a line call on Soderling's forehand was overruled following a replay.

Soderling, who this year lost in the French Open final for the second time, ended his season with a 57-22 winning record.

"I'm working a lot on my movement around the court. I think I need to improve everything. That's what you need to do if you want to be on top of the game," he said.

Murray bounced back from his defeat by Federer on Tuesday to enter the draw for Saturday's semis, where he said he would like to play world No. 1 Rafael Nadal.

Nadal's win over Djokovic ends Roddick's London hopes

"I knew David needed to win comfortably, so it was quite a strange position to be in," he told the crowd. "David started well but I returned well to get myself back into it.

"They've put on an unbelievable tournament here and it's been almost packed every match."

On Friday, Nadal will seek to clinch a semifinal spot by beating Tomas Berdych in a rematch of July's Wimbledon final, which the Spaniard won.

Third seed Novak Djokovic will aim to qualify by beating the already-eliminated Andy Roddick in the final Group A match.



source : http://edition.cnn.com/2010/SPORT/football/11/25/tennis.federer.soderling.murray.ferrer/index.html?hpt=Sbin

Serena Williams to miss Australian Open through injury

Defending champion Serena Williams will miss the Australian Open in January to give herself more time to recover from foot surgery.

The former world number one has not played competitively since winning her fourth Wimbledon crown in July.

She sustained the original injury after standing on broken glass at a restaurant shortly after winning her second grand slam of the year and 13th of her glittering career.

Williams attempted to come back ahead of the season-ending WTA Championships in Qatar, but had to abandon her attempts after aggravating the injury in training.

The American was also due to compete in the Hopman Cup in Australia next month, but in a statement released Thursday said she had been left with no choice but to pull out.


She said: "As I continue to rehabilitate my foot after the second surgery last month, it is with the utmost regret that I am withdrawing from the Hopman Cup and the 2011 Australian Open Championships.

"As I recently learned, pushing myself back into my intense training too early only caused me further injury and damage.

"While I desperately want to be back on the court and competing in the first grand slam tournament of the year, it is imperative for my health that I continue to work with my doctors to ensure my foot heals properly."

Williams dominated the early part of the 2010 season, with victories at the Australian Open and the grass of Wimbledon, but in her absence Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark claimed top spot in the global rankings.

Belgian rival Kim Clijsters also claimed the final grand slam of the season at the U.S. Open and the WTA Championships, making her a warm favorite for the Australian Open which kicks off the 2011 season, particularly with Williams sidelined.

Williams promised her fans to "be back better than ever as soon as I can be."




source : http://edition.cnn.com/2010/SPORT/tennis/11/25/serena.australian.open.out/index.html?hpt=Sbin

Rafael Nadal Parera wallpaper

click picture to enlarge

Rafael Nadal Parera

Full Name: Rafael Nadal Parera
Nickname: Rafa
Nationality: Spanish (Mallorca)
Date of Birth: June 03, 1986 (20 years old)
Recides: Manacor, Mallorca, Spain
Height: 1'85m/ 6'1"
Weight: 85kg/188lbs
Plays: Left-handed (two-handed backhand)
Clothing line: Nike
Racquet: Babolat AeroproDrive
Coach: Toni Nadal
Family: Sebastian, Ana Maria and younger sister Maria Isabel.
Became professional: 2001
Favorite Movie: Titanic, The Gladiator
Favorite Food: Sea food and pasta
Favortie past time: Playing PSP, soccer and golf, fishing, and going out with his friends in Mallorca.

Nadal's win over Djokovic ends Roddick's London hopes

World No. 1 Rafael Nadal prevented Novak Djokovic from reaching the semifinals of the ATP World Tour Finals and kept his own hopes alive by beating the Serbian in London on Friday night.

The Spaniard notched his second Group A win this week, triumphing 7-5 6-2 in the season-ending men's tournament.

He will face Tomas Berdych on Friday in a rematch of this year's Wimbledon final, with the Czech having earlier earned his first victory with a result that eliminated American eighth seed Andy Roddick.

source : http://edition.cnn.com/2010/SPORT/tennis/11/24/tennis.nadal.djokovic.roddick.berdych/index.html?hpt=Sbin

Nadal is seeking to reach the final for the first time, having failed to win a match at the same venue last year.

He defeated Djokovic in the U.S. Open final in September to complete his collection of Grand Slam titles, and needed to overcome a strong first-set challenge this time from the world No. 3.

Djokovic, who beat Berdych in his opening match, appeared to be the stronger player in the early games but then had his serve broken by Nadal before immediately replying in kind.

Nadal broke again in the 11th game and held serve to claim the first set as Djokovic appeared troubled by problems with his contact lenses, then raced to a 4-0 lead in the second set before winning in one hour and 52 minutes.

"It was a very good match for me. I was very sorry for Novak for what happened with his eye, I hope he is okay. It was my best match in this tournament," Nadal told reporters.

The 23-year-old Djokovic said he was disappointed he was not given more time to solve his eye problem.

"I'm just really annoyed by the fact that something like this can affect the match. It did because my right eye got irritated and from the five-all I could not see a ball, especially the return. It was just terrible," he told AFP.

"I don't want to find any excuses for my loss, but the fact of the matter is that I just could not play. I needed some time to make it right, but I didn't have time. Everybody was hurrying me up, saying come to the court, play your match."

Berdych, who lost to Nadal in the final of this year's third Grand Slam in July, won 7-5 6-3 against Roddick as he saved two set-points at 4-5 on his serve in the opener.

The 25-year-old then stunned his opponent with a winning forehand return off a 110-mile-per-hour second serve and was untroubled as he closed out the set.

The sixth seed hit 28 winners and made 27 unforced errors, while winning 12 of 16 net approaches and serving six aces.

"The last couple of weeks, I was in this position many times but not often was I able to get back, to do a couple of good serves, get to deuce, then win the game," Berdych said.

"That's the thing that's going to give you a lot of confidence. Then the next game I managed a quick break and that was the key to the match."

Roddick, who lost his opening match to Nadal after qualifyin for the event for the eighth consecutive year, will play Djokovic in the closing Group A match on Friday evening.

He was the first of the eight-man field to be knocked out of the tournament.

On Thursday, second seed Roger Federer takes on No. 4 Robin Soderling in their third Group B match, then Britain's Andy Murray plays Spain's David Ferrer.

Federer has won both matches so far, while seventh seed Ferrer has lost his two.

No. 5 Murray and Sweden's Soderling both have a 1-1 record.

Becker: Federer will be year-end champion

Three-time ATP World Tour Finals champion Boris Becker predicted on Monday that world number two Roger Federer will win the season-ending contest between the men's top eight players, which takes place at the 02 Arena in London this week.

After winning the Australian Open in January, the 16-time Grand Slam champion has had a disappointing season by his usual standards, failing to reach the final stage of the three other majors.

But former world number one Becker has picked the Swiss to finish the year in style with victory at the event, and be crowned year-end champion.

Federer has already had one win over seventh-ranked David Ferrer in the round-robin competition, and will face Great Britain's Andy Murray on Tuesday and Sweden's Robin Soderling on Thursday, before potentially progressing to the semifinal stage.

"He is a proud man, he really wants to end the year on a high and wants to show [world number one Rafael] Nadal that he is still going to be around for next year -- so I actually pick him to win the tournament," the German, champion in1988, 1992 and 1995 told CNN's World Sport program.

"But it is very different to a Grand Slam here -- any match you play in could be a potential Grand Slam final so there are no easy matches."

The six-time major winner added that he did not expect Federer to dominate tennis in the way he has for the last few years, and could expect to be continually challenged by Spanish rival Nadal as well as the other top players.

"Nobody dominates like that for five or six years; that was unusual. The fact that there is competition is good for tennis and for the audience -- you want to see tough rivalries.

"Nadal has had one of the greatest years of tennis ever, winning three Grand Slams -- this man is amazing."

Becker also said that he was impressed so far by the performance of Murray -- who beat Soderling in straight sets in his opening match -- despite the pressure on the Scot's shoulders to win on home soil.

"I was surprised by the way he beat Soderling -- he played his best match in a while yesterday with the home crowd behind him. Andy played very well.

"Its more pressure for Murray playing here but you have got be able to handle the pressure to win."


source : http://edition.cnn.com/2010/SPORT/tennis/11/23/tennis.becker.atp.finals/index.html?hpt=Sbin

Nadal battles back to topple Roddick; Djokovic eases past Berdych

World number one Rafael Nadal battled back from a set down to finally topple American Andy Roddick in an epic clash at the ATP World Tour finals.

The Spaniard looked out of sorts in the opening set but slowly returned to form as the game progressed to secure a 3-6 7-6 6-4 victory in two hours 30 minutes.

After a near five week break from the game due to injury, Nadal was rusty during the opening set and lost his opening service game as Roddick opened up a 3-0 lead.

Nadal struggled to recover from his slovenly start and Roddick held his serve to close out the first set 6-3 in just 49 minutes.

The second set saw Nadal broken again early on but the Spaniard finally made inroads into Roddick's booming serve to square the set at 2-2.

After that both players held firm on serve before Nadal took the tie break and his first set at the O2 Arena in London.


The deciding set went with serve until the sixth game when a passing winner handed Nadal a precious break. Roddick ensured Nadal would have to serve for the match and he duly obliged to seal a marathon battle.

Afterwards Nadal told Sky Sports: "I started the match nervous, without rhythm. Andy is a very aggressive player and it was very difficult. He can rally from the baseline and from the net, it's very difficult to pass him.

"The atmosphere here is fantastic, I'm very happy to win. For me its a very important victory."

Novak Djokovic made an impressive start to his assault on the ATP World Tour Finals title with a straight sets victory over Tomas Berdych.

The world number three, who won the season-ending tournament in Shanghai in 2008, made light work of his Czech opponent, winning 6-3 6-3 in just one hour 28 minutes.

The tone was set in the very first game, when Berdych served two double faults and Djokovic sealed an important break.

In front of watching soccer legend Diego Maradona -- former player and coach of Argentina -- the Serb pressed home his advantage to wrap up the opening set in 43 minutes.

Djokovic then broke in the third game of the second set to kill off his opponent, who made 19 unforced errors in the match.

"I couldn't ask for a better start of the tournament," Djokovic said. "I was trying to focus on my game and do the things that I planned to do tactically with my coach. I think I did well.

"You have to be really on the top of the game in order to win, because these players who are taking part in this tournament are the best players in the world. There is no easy match [or] easy opponent."