Losses Here, There, Everywhere for Federer

Is the "King" abdicating?

An image of frustration...

Last year, Roger Federer lost just 9 matches against 68 wins, taking 8 titles including 3 Grand Slam trophies, the Tennis Masters Cup and 2 ATP Masters Series shields. This year, four and a half months of the 2008 ATP Season has already passed, he has just managed to win a relatively minor clay tournament in Estoril - losing 7 battles already along the way.

1. Australian Open SF (vs Novak Djokovic) - 5-7, 3-6, 6-7 (5)
2. Dubai Tennis Championships 1R (vs Andy Murray) - 7-6 (6), 3-6, 4-6
3. Indian Wells Masters SF (vs Mardy Fish) - 3-6, 2-6
4. Key Biscayne Masters QF (vs Andy Roddick) - 6-7 (4), 6-4, 3-6
5. Monte Carlo Masters F (vs Rafael Nadal) - 5-7 5-7
6. Rome Masters QF (vs Radek Stepanek) - 6-7 (4), 6-7 (7)
7. Hamburg Masters F (vs Rafael Nadal) - 5-7, 6-7 (3), 3-6

Who will take over?

So, are we crowning a new "King"?

A picture-perfect moment...

Rafael Nadal has been ranked #2 for a record 148 consecutive weeks, and has now won 108 of his last 110 matches on clay, including 81 straight from 2005-2007. He made a hat-trick in four different clay tournaments - Monte Carlo (2005-2008), Barcelona (2005-2008), Rome (2005-2007), and Roland Garros (2005-2007). He will try to tie Bjorn Borg's record of four-successive French Open victories next week. He was won 11 AMS shields, at least two each year, since 2005. He has been in the finals of all ATP Masters event except one - in Cincinnati. He has denied Federer a career Grand Slam three times already and sports a 10-6 (8-4 on ATP Finals and 8-1 on clay) lifetime win-loss record against the current #1.

Is Rafa the sole heir to the throne?


Or will the "Djoker" steal the limelight?

A shot filled with ecstasy...

He might not be the King nor the Ace, but this Joker from Serbia is a Jack of all trades. Novak Djokovic currently leads the ATP Champions' Race by grabbing his first career Grand Slam at Melbourne and 2 more AMS shields in Indian Wells and Rome. Last year, he made a great improvement climbing up from #16 to #3 in the world with AMS triumphs in Miami and Montreal plus a finals appearance in the US Open. Last week, for the first time in 147 weeks, Nadal's grip of the second-spot was in clear threat. He surely adds a little more spice to the epic rivalry Federer and Nadal have already established - making it a three-way fight.

But does he have what it takes to be the next-big-thing in men's tennis?


These questions will be answered as the next wave of ATP events unfolds with Roland Garros, Wimbledon, Toronto and Cincinnati Masters, the Olympics and the US Open taking centerstage from May to September 2008.

Nike Everywhere

First, it was the Air Zoom Vapor IV "Federer Wimby07" edition...


Now, the City Court III Metallic...


Next, the Air Max Breathe Cage II "Vamos Rafa" edition.


I love Nike.

Just do it!

Metrowalk Everyday

Well, not really everyday, but I must admit, Metrowalk has been my crib for the past couple of weekends because of my current addiction to F1 race - an addiction rekindled by my good friend Cholle.

My first time at Phi Bar was during the free viewing of Spanish Grand Prix 2008 last April 27. According to Cho, the attendance that night was considerably low - at 26. Anyway, Cho and I won a lot of prizes from the organizers (headed by Pinoy F3 and rally driver Mike Potenciano) including UNO and C! magazines (Cho actually received a free one-year subscription of C! for winning a totally honest trivia game hahaha), car cleaners (which are so useless), Toyota caps (woohoo!), BMW pouches (which my father loves), Phi Bar VIP Card (10% discount card), and 50 pesos. It was Andy (the US expat on the right) who won the money for us - he predicted the correct combination of the top 3 finishers in the right order (Kimi, Massa, Lewis). Zaldy (the guy to the right of Cholle) made a deal with us that whoever came up with the right guess should willingly split the prize money among the four of us. Too bad, Andy's bet was identical with those of 12 other people. So instead of getting the whole PhP2600 pot, we settled with just PhP200 - thus, 50 bucks for each of us. It was a great night not just for the F1 fans, but also for Scuderia Ferrari and its drivers who we were rooting for - Kimi Raikkonen and Felipe Massa. They gave Ferrari a 1-2 result that brought the team in front of the constructors' championship race.

Two weeks passed, it was May 11, the race day for the Turkish GP. Okay okay, it was Mothers' Day... so before I went to Phi to attend another free viewing, I made it sure that my whole day was spent with my mother and my family. I also managed to greet as many people, especially the moms in my phonebook, as possible through SMS - and of course birthday boy CL. Alright, back to F1... Ralph was able to join us this time (congrats, for graduating from the UP College of Business Administration). We were not so lucky this time in the raffle draws, but hey, I won in the fantasy game. I bet that Massa would win the race, Lewis would be the runner-up and Kimi coming in third - and that was the exact order of the podium finishers after they completed 58 laps of the circuit. I won PhP300... again, I did not get the whole pot of PhP2700 because 8 other contestants guessed the same combo. The prize somehow subsidized our bill for the evening - we had a bucket of beer (I think, we ordered a couple of bottles more) and a platter of thank-heaven-for-this-oh-so-yummy-nachos. Also, we all got free F2020 fuel saver (which again, is not so useful 'cause I don't have an effin' car!) and the same issue of C! mag which Cho and I got during the Spanish GP. Baduy!

Another twin-podium appearance for Ferrari - if I haven't mentioned it above, I must tell you that I am a Ferrari fan - notice the red shirts? And a Kimi fan, as well. So we headed out of Phi smiling. Scuderia Ferrari is now 19 points clear of its closest competitor BMW Sauber and 21 points ahead of long-time rival McLaren-Mercedes; Raikkonen has already amassed 35 drivers' points while Massa and Hamilton are tied in second with 28 apiece. Then we spent an hour in El Pueblo eating ice cream and fries while reminiscing the good old times and planning future gimiks/outings where hopefully, more Barkadahan peeps will be able to attend. After some deliberations, it's final - we'll be in Galera on the 30th of May until the 1st of June. Details to follow my friends. Hehe.

I was also in Metrowalk last Saturday, at Elbow Room specifically, for OJ and Nel's pre-wedding party. Vernon & Mshel, Daniel & Felise, Philip & Dae, Cheson, Elaine (OJ's sister) and other friends of the bride were there to celebrate the couple's last few days of singlehood. The food was insane - it was terrific! Got some booze, played some billiards and joined in fun games that fit the theme of the party - shower/stag party in one hahaha.

I can't wait for OJ and Nel's wedding which will be held on Sunday, May 18th at the Fort Bonifacio Officers' Clubhouse. I, too, can't wait for the Monaco GP race day on May 25th. I invite both F1 and non-F1 fans out there for another free viewing at Phi. The race commences at 8pm.

Hopefully, this week, I'll be able to watch Speed Racer, Indiana Jones and Harold and Kumar.

That's all from me tonight... until then!

====

PS: Thanks Cholle and Mark, for all the pictures. I am still waiting for Mike's pictures. For more F1 viewing images, visit this link. :)

PPS: To all grammar police out there, please proofread my article 'cause I composed it during the wee hours of the night (which is getting more usual these days) while my brain was already ready to shutdown. :P