yarrr, ye scurvy boy-king, halt ye whinin'

Nadal is a champion in many ways. He’s the king of clay, he’s No. 1 in the world, and he could even challenge for the Grand Salami this season. But for the moment, it’s worth appreciating that he is, above all else, the undisputed master at beating Roger Federer, most people’s choice for the greatest tennis player ever. The Swiss star has cruised in unprecedented fashion against everyone else for years, encountering very little resistance from any other player. Because of this, his regular losses to Nadal seemed to demand some kind of explanation; there must have been extenuating circumstances—Nadal was in his head, Federer couldn’t read his spin, it was a clay thing, he wasn’t using the right tactics. Darren Cahill's recommendation Sunday that Federer use the drop volley was just the latest example in a long line of dubious magic-bullet advice for him when he plays Nadal—if he only used his slice more, if he only came in all the time, if he only served wide, if he only ran around his background, if he only hit down the middle, if he only hit more winners, if he only won.

from Oz: The A List