In Madrid Nadal fell. But was it a mistake by Nadal or just a perfectly aligned set of circumstances?
Nadal has been quietly battling a sore knee, and in Madrid everything was against him. In the semi-finals Novak Djokovic spent four hours on the clay with Nadal, before he lost. Clay is a slick surface; there are no quick stops and easy turns. This may sound easy on the knee, but with each stretch and slide the muscles around the knees must tighten and stabilize. The knee must balance the weight of the entire player and then transition that force to an explosion in the opposite direction. Clay is the hardest place for your knees to perform.
After competing in the semis Rafael Nadal only had 30 hours to prepare for his finals match. Roger Federer, Nadal’s arch nemesis, cleaned up and capitalized on the tired and sore knee. Albeit the circumstances were stacked against him, Nadal did in fact fall for the first time on clay.
Heading into the second slam of the year Nadal has rested, rehabbed, and practiced like he always does. As the top player in the league he strives to distance himself from everyone else. Unlikely many others who make it to the top, Nadal is here for the long haul and is never satisfied.
The courts at Roland Garros will be much easier for the reigning champion. The pool provides no harsh back to back matches and the two guys that can give Rafa a tough time are stacked on the other side of the pool and will have to fight to see who gets the next stab at Nadal. He will win. He is too good in the French Open. Andy Murray, Federer, and Djokovic are the only players with any chance at Nadal, too bad they’re not ready!
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Canes Down 0-3
Last night the Carolina Hurricanes lost to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Cam Ward did everything he possibly could to keep the Carolina Hurricanes in Game 3 and give them an opportunity to win. Then, without warning the gates opened and Pittsburgh took a 6-2 win. Penguins now lead the Hurricanes 3-0.
The Canes have been able to handle Crosby, but with so much attention on him they have left the rest of the Penguins free to do as they please. Malkin has been unbelievable in the series and has 6 goals against Cam Ward.
The Hurricanes have given up one home loss in each of their playoff series and have yet to loose a game when facing elimination. Carolina may be down, but they are not out yet. Carolina needs to release the hard hitting plays that they carried through the first two rounds and bully their way into the win column. The Canes haven’t shown much power or life in this series, which makes sense after two back to back 7 game series; however in order to have a chance the hard hitters need to show up and punish the Penguins.
The series resumes in Carolina on Tuesday. Cam Ward is good, but he can only do so much. Penguins will win this series 4-2.
The Canes have been able to handle Crosby, but with so much attention on him they have left the rest of the Penguins free to do as they please. Malkin has been unbelievable in the series and has 6 goals against Cam Ward.
The Hurricanes have given up one home loss in each of their playoff series and have yet to loose a game when facing elimination. Carolina may be down, but they are not out yet. Carolina needs to release the hard hitting plays that they carried through the first two rounds and bully their way into the win column. The Canes haven’t shown much power or life in this series, which makes sense after two back to back 7 game series; however in order to have a chance the hard hitters need to show up and punish the Penguins.
The series resumes in Carolina on Tuesday. Cam Ward is good, but he can only do so much. Penguins will win this series 4-2.
Thursday, May 07, 2009
Manny Being Manny
It was only a matter of time before something like this came out.
Today Major League Baseball suspended Manny Ramirez, of the LA Dodgers, for just under one third of a season. Ramirez received his 50 games suspension for testing positive for performance enhancing drugs. Manny being Manny takes a whole new meaning. He cannot join the team until July 3rd. There will be no appeal.
Right now there is not enough information to condemn or to exonerate Ramirez.
This was not hard to believe, or even see coming. For a while now Manny Ramirez has acted as though he was untouchable, invincible and above baseball. With all of Manny’s outbursts and school kid jokes, it was only a matter of time before he got complacent and something happened.
After hearing Manny’s statement to the press about how he is taking medicine for a personal health issue and he is responsible for this accident, we can conclude nothing more than Manny was complacent. Ramirez was complacent and did not do his research before putting something into his body. It is all professional athletes’ responsibility to know what is in every supplement, or food, or medicine before he takes it. I truly believe Manny is innocent when it comes to trying to cheat, but is guilty of not honoring his team, fans and baseball, by neglecting to know what he was taking and making sure he remained clean.
As more information continues to come to light we will continue to update our site. The Dodgers play the Nationals tonight; the first game since Manny’ suspension.
Today Major League Baseball suspended Manny Ramirez, of the LA Dodgers, for just under one third of a season. Ramirez received his 50 games suspension for testing positive for performance enhancing drugs. Manny being Manny takes a whole new meaning. He cannot join the team until July 3rd. There will be no appeal.
Right now there is not enough information to condemn or to exonerate Ramirez.
This was not hard to believe, or even see coming. For a while now Manny Ramirez has acted as though he was untouchable, invincible and above baseball. With all of Manny’s outbursts and school kid jokes, it was only a matter of time before he got complacent and something happened.
After hearing Manny’s statement to the press about how he is taking medicine for a personal health issue and he is responsible for this accident, we can conclude nothing more than Manny was complacent. Ramirez was complacent and did not do his research before putting something into his body. It is all professional athletes’ responsibility to know what is in every supplement, or food, or medicine before he takes it. I truly believe Manny is innocent when it comes to trying to cheat, but is guilty of not honoring his team, fans and baseball, by neglecting to know what he was taking and making sure he remained clean.
As more information continues to come to light we will continue to update our site. The Dodgers play the Nationals tonight; the first game since Manny’ suspension.
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Hurricanes in Seven
The Carolina Hurricanes stole the first-round series from the New Jersey Devils in the last 1:20.Jussi Jokinen and Eric Staal scored in a 48-second span late in the final period and won game seven 4-3. Jokinen tied the game after a cross-ice setup by Joni Pitkanen. Staal followed with a shot from the middle of the right circle with 31.7 seconds left. Tuomo Ruutu and Ray Whitney also scored for Carolina and Cam Ward was magnificent, making 32 saves.
Carolina has beaten New Jersey in the last three playoff series. When it was over, the Hurricanes jumped into one another's arms and the Devils stood in disbelief.
Carolina plays top-seeded Boston next. One can only hope that the Hurricanes blow the Bruins back to Boston. Boston swept the season series this year 4-0-0, outscoring the Hurricanes 18-6. Three games were before the All-Star break, however, and before Carolina took off. This time of year the days off hurt Boston and the seven game series gives Carolina momentum. Can Carolina win in seven games; again? Oh yeah!
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Make It Five Straight
On Sunday, Rafael Nadal beat the third-ranked Serbian Djokovic 6-3, 2-6, 6-1 for his fifth straight Monte Carlo Masters title. The second set of the match was his only losing set here since the 2006 final against Roger Federer.
"Everyone can improve in every surface, no? No one is perfect. Sure, I can improve," Nadal said. "I always work to improve because when you feel you can't improve, is difficult to wake up and go on court and practice."
Even the number 1 player in the world won’t settle for the best performance seen at Monte Carlo since the tournament became professional.
"This tournament I didn't serve very well…. So that's a disaster," Nadal said. "Yeah, I have to play more. Have to serve better."
Nadal is the favorite to win the French Open, which is another chance for him to make it five straight at an individual tournament. Nadal, unhappy with how he served, plans to improve on it before heading to Roland Garros next month.
"Everyone can improve in every surface, no? No one is perfect. Sure, I can improve," Nadal said. "I always work to improve because when you feel you can't improve, is difficult to wake up and go on court and practice."
Even the number 1 player in the world won’t settle for the best performance seen at Monte Carlo since the tournament became professional.
"This tournament I didn't serve very well…. So that's a disaster," Nadal said. "Yeah, I have to play more. Have to serve better."
Nadal is the favorite to win the French Open, which is another chance for him to make it five straight at an individual tournament. Nadal, unhappy with how he served, plans to improve on it before heading to Roland Garros next month.
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