Just as I was wondering how to keep my motivation intact with this blog comes the news Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer will be playing an exhibition match.
What’s unusual about it? They win some and lose some. No, this time it is not on clay, hard or grass but a single tennis court which will comprise two surfaces! Dude, when I heard this, I thought somebody was kidding. It was only when I saw pictures of the surface on the wires did it strike me it was not a joke.
What is even more surprising is the surface has been made in Mallorca, the place from where Carlos Moya hails. This unique match will catch the tennis fans’ attention for sure. Decades back, when the (in)famous “Battle of Sexes” match was played between Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs, it drew rapturous applause.
But why a Rafa-FedEx match on a kind of hybrid surface? Do we not get to see them enough in the ATP Tour? Whoever came up with this idea, it deserves praise. When players prepare for a tennis match, a whole lot of factors are taken into account.
Is Nadal going to wear clay-court shoes – he’s most comfortable on it – and Fedex the one which will make sure he has the right grip on grass? As these questions crop up, it’s even more exciting to fantasise about a match like this.
As far as their invincible aspects are concerned, one doesn’t need to go too much into detail. Nadal’s 72-win unbeaten streak on clay will be talked of for a long time. And Federer’s 48-match streak on grass is equally impressive.
So for all those who get to see these two superstars on Wednesday in action – just an exhibition – it will be satisfaction guaranteed. All I can say is, the way the All England Club has slowed down grass at Wimbledon, the day is not far off when serve-and-volley will become EXTINCT.
Who knows, there might come a day when we have mixed surfaces as well for tournament play. Sounds ridiculous isn’t it? Don’t worry, that’s what many thought when hockey was shifted from natural grass to the synthetic surface. And the choices there are plenty from astro-turf to polygrass and what not…
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That’s weird, I wonder if they’d be changing shoes after every cross-over or maybe they won’t be changing the sides at all…whatever …but it’s really weird…. but then its only an exhibition match and fans for sure are going to love it.
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