Deadspin: Rafael Nadal

Your "Oh No, It's 3:30 A.M. " Liveblog Of Federer-Nadal At The Australian Open

Dave Shireley and Dylan Stableford — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 03:15:49 EST

Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer are set to meet in the Australian Open semifinals on Thursday, in a match scheduled to begin at 3:30 a.m. ET. It's the 27th time the pair have met on a tennis court, with the Majorcan matador holding a 17-9 edge all-time, 7-2 in Grand Slams. The meeting is notable, considering Nadal's uncharacteristically salty comments about his hirsute Swiss rival before the tournament. The last time Nadal and Federer met Down Under was in the 2009 final, an epic four-hour, five-setter that ended with an inconsolable Federer in tears. More »

Rafael Nadal Was For Playing Tennis This Week Before He Was Against It

Barry Petchesky — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 15:30:59 EDT

Rafa took to the microphones to decry tennis's crowded calendar: just four days ago he was in the US Open final, giving him little time to fly to Spain and prepare for today's Davis Cup match against Richard Gasquet. More »

Tom Brady Is No Novak Djokovic

Tom Scocca — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 14:15:27 EDT

We're doing a season-long NFL roundtable with our friends at Slate. Check back here each week as a rotating cast of football watchers discusses the weekend's key plays, coaching decisions, and traumatic brain injuries. More »

Rafael Nadal's Leg Cramps Made For An Awkward Press Conference Yesterday

Emma Carmichael — Mon, 05 Sep 2011 16:00:00 EDT

This video will make anyone who's ever suffered from a muscle cramp cringe. Rafael Nadal was settling in for a post-match press conference after a straight-set win over David Nalbandian yesterday when he was suddenly hit with the pain of a stiffened calf muscle. More »

An Instructional Video On How To Pretend To Hit A Forehand Like Rafael Nadal

Emma Carmichael — Fri, 02 Sep 2011 13:05:00 EDT

This is cool, if you're a tennis player/fan, or just a fellow lefty who believes in the general supremacy of lefties. Rafael Nadal hits his forehand with an average topspin of 3,200 RPMs, which is more than any human to ever play the game of tennis. The New York Times explains how he does it. [NYT] More »

Watch A Blue Jays Reliever And Manager Get Ejected On The Day Roy Halladay Returned To Toronto's Mound

Brian Hickey — Sun, 03 Jul 2011 10:00:00 EDT

Your morning roundup for July 3, the day after some baby gators proved a mud hole is better than any stop, drop and roll mantra. More »

Mavericks Fan Sitting Behind George Lopez Speaks For All America

Mon, 06 Jun 2011 09:40:30 EDT

Your morning roundup for June 6, the day we learned the value of Bernie Madoff's underwear. H/T @bubbaprog, proprietor of mocksession.com, for accurately predicting what might tickle us this morning (and others for sending in their own grabs). More »

Rafael Nadal's Post-Match Comments Display The Self-Esteem Of A Teenage Girl

Jack Dickey — Mon, 30 May 2011 14:30:00 EDT

Rafael Nadal may not be quite on Novak Djokovic's unbeatable level, but, uh, he's still number one in the world. You'd think that would manifest itself in his words with reporters after a straight-sets victory over Ivan Ljubicic today. More »

Admiring Novak Djokovic's Last 40 Match Points

Emma Carmichael — Tue, 24 May 2011 15:30:00 EDT

Novak Djokovic has won 38 straight tennis matches in the 2011 season, and he hasn't lost in 40 outings, dating back to November's Davis Cup. His dominance has been nearly absolute; in seven months, he's dropped just eight sets, and that includes seven wins against either Rafael Nadal or Roger Federer. But even with about 70 hours of playing time to look back on, Djokovic's ability is best viewed on each match point, which is always the most simply satisfying moment of tennis. More »

Rafael Nadal Hits A Perfectly Placed Lob From Between His Legs, Just Because He Can

Emma Carmichael — Mon, 09 May 2011 12:25:00 EDT

Here's Rafa just havin' some fun on his home court at the Madrid Open yesterday, in his straight-set loss to Novak Djokovic. This is the "statement shot" of tennis; like basketball's behind-the-back pass or soccer's nutmeg, its sole purpose is to say, without saying it, "look at what I can do." On a retreat to the baseline to save a shot that should have, by all means, been a winner. We will borrow from the announcer here and agree that this play was "phenome-Nadal," and then we will pledge to never ever say that again ever. But, really: phenomenal. More »

Phil Jackson Agrees That His Career Has Been The "Bee's Knees"

Emma Carmichael — Mon, 09 May 2011 09:50:00 EDT

Your morning roundup for May 9, the day we learned of the Village tree thief. More »

Rafael Nadal 0, His Underwear 1

Emma Carmichael — Fri, 22 Apr 2011 14:15:00 EDT

Reporting that Rafael Nadal won a match on a clay surface is a lot like reporting that the Mets lost a game, so we needed another angle on his 6-2, 6-2 win over Gael Monfils in the Barcelona Open quarterfinals today. Luckily, the cameras on hand for the match captured that angle for us. In the incredible career that is Rafa on clay, only one real adversary persists. More »

Dennis Rodman Recognizes The Importance Of Family

Brian Hickey — Sat, 02 Apr 2011 09:15:00 EDT

Your morning roundup for April 2, the day that the color starts returning to the knuckles of passengers and crew on Southwest Flight 812, the plane with a three-foot hole in its side. More »

Here's Your Map To The Stars' Lakers Seats

Brian Hickey — Thu, 27 Jan 2011 09:45:00 EST

Because no one reads the newspaper, and SportsCenter's anchors are too perky for this early in the morning, Deadspin combs the best of the broadsheets and internets to bring you everything you need to know to start your day. More »

The Eli Porter Of Tennis Rap Makes For Best "Black & Yellow" Remix Yet

Emma Carmichael — Tue, 25 Jan 2011 13:30:00 EST

We've been getting a lot of "Black & Yellow" remixes lately. White and green. Green and yellow. Red and blue. Red and navy. And so on. But we were sorely missing out on a tennis-specific remix. Until now. More »

Look, Maria Sharapova Has A New Dress!

Brian Hickey — Sun, 16 Jan 2011 20:00:00 EST

The Australian Open starts tomorrow, with Rafael Nadal going for a not-quite Grand Slam. It's "not-quite" because while he'd win a fourth consecutive grand slam, it's not in the same season and Rod Laver won't let that historical-aggression stand. More »

Wayne Rooney Is Not An Animal. Wayne Rooney Is A Human Being.

Brian Hickey — Sun, 03 Oct 2010 09:00:00 EDT

Tennis Has Its Heidi Moment, And Everyone Is Pissed

Katie Baker — Tue, 14 Sep 2010 18:00:00 EDT

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"This partnership will provide more tennis, to more people, in more ways than ever before," said the USTA's CEO in 2008 after signing a six-year ESPN deal. He was partially correct: I've never seen a tennis broadcast quite like yesterday's. More »

Nadal Finally Wins His U.S. Open. Sucks For Us.

Dylan Stableford — Tue, 14 Sep 2010 13:45:45 EDT

A prediction: Rafael Nadal will never win another U.S. Open. More »

That's Nadal She Wrote

Stev D — Sun, 06 Jun 2010 13:15:00 EDT

The awesome-shirted Rafael Nadal wins his fifth French Open title. [ESPN] More »

"SI" Writer Jon Wertheim Would Like You To Watch Roger Federer's Giggle Fit

Young Manhattanite — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 19:15:00 EST

Sports Illustrated senior writer Jon Wertheim, author of Strokes of Genius: Federer, Nadal, and the Greatest Match Ever Played, was kind enough to let me bother him. Here, he considers Tiger Woods and challenges Will Leitch to a bet: More »

It Must Be Lust: Deadspin's 2009 U.S. Open Preview

Dylan Stableford — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 15:00:00 EDT

Greetings, Deadspin tennis fans! It's that time of year again! More »

What We Learned About The 2009 Wimbledon Champion

Ben Cohen — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 13:45:00 EDT

"Every tennis lover would like, someday, to play like Federer," Philippe Bouin tells Cynthia Gorney of The New York Times Magazine for this week's cover story. "But every man wants to be Rafael Nadal. Which is different." More »

Wimbledon 2009 Is Very, Very Tape-Delayed

Ben Cohen — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 11:15:00 EDT

Get those bets in, because even though Wimbledon hasn't started yet, ESPN already knows who won. Doesn't matter if one of their projected winners isn't actually playing. Just trust them. TWWL is good like that. [ESPN] More »

Book Excerpts That Don't Suck: Strokes of Genius

A.J. Daulerio — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 13:30:47 EDT

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Sports Illustrated's Jon Wertheim uses the 2008 Wimbledon final to reflect on Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and their rivalry, begetting "the greatest tennis match every played," the 2008 Wimbledon Final. Buy it here, if you're feeling frisky. More »

Crazy Parents Work, But...

Ben Cohen — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 16:20:00 EDT

What do Serena Williams, Andre Agassi and Mary Pierce have in common? They all were the products of obsessive — even sociopathic — fathers and, more to the point, they enjoyed the kind of success no up-and-coming American tennis prodigy can currently boast. And maybe that's not a coincidence. More »

It's Rafael Nadal... And Everyone Else

Dashiell Bennett — Sun, 01 Feb 2009 09:20:00 EST

Roger Federer is still the best tennis player in the world—provided he isn't playing Rafael Nadal. The Spaniard outlasted him once again to win the Australian Open while you were sleeping in. More »

Today's Australian Open Action Nudity and Violence-Free

Gourmet Spud — Sat, 24 Jan 2009 14:55:14 EST

In a nice change of pace, today's Aussie Open produced no disturbing video images. Unless you happen to be Rafael Nadal or Andy Murray's opponent. More »

Rafael Nadal's Girlfriend Is Rather Pleasant Looking

Rick Chandler — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 09:45:40 EDT

From the diligent folks at Guanabee comes this report: Rafael Nadal not only has the Wimbledon trophy, but also a now-not-so-secret super hot girlfriend, Maria Francisca "Xisca" Perello. Although previously a no-show at his matches, the college student was in attendance at Wimbledon, and I'm sure we'll be hearing more from her. I was getting tired of Erin Andrews anyway. More »

The Day After Wimbledon, Hyperbole Is At An All-Time High

A.J. Daulerio — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 11:15:44 EDT

After yesterday's exhilarating battle on the slippery grass at Wimbledon, most sports writers are flexing their purple muscles in the most amusing ways. Especially in Spain, a country that is probably on the verge of overdosing on sports euphoria after Nadal's victory came just a week after the Spaniards captured Euro 08. Most of the Spanish newspapers declared that this match had turned Rafael Nadal "into a giant." Gigante Nadal! More »

John McEnroe: "The Greatest Match Ever I've Ever Seen..."

A.J. Daulerio — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 15:51:05 EDT

Rafael Nadal seemingly had won the 2008 Wiimbledon championship at three different moments during the epic nearly 5 hour match against Roger Federer. After two rain delays, two tiebreaker sets, and a final set sudden death where both he and Roger just sucked the life out of each other, it appeared at one point this match would never end - and that wouldn't have been a bad thing. It was the longest Wimbledon match in history and it's tough to imagine a better one will ever be played between two rivals at the top of their game. More »

Federer Tries to Put Away Pesky Nadal

Leitch — Sun, 10 Jun 2007 09:45:26 EDT

So this is what we've been reduced to in men's tennis: Roger Federer is so dominant that the only match worth watching is the one where there's a good chance he'll lose. More »

Keeps The Hot Side Hot, The Cool Side Cool!

rickchand — Thu, 03 May 2007 12:00:19 EDT

As if tennis weren't odd enough, we give you the half grass, half clay playing surface. On the right is Wimbledon champ Roger Federer, who is unbeaten in 48 matches on grass, and on the left is French Open champ Rafael Nadal, unbeaten in 72 matches on clay. In the middle is a confused referee, and over at the snack bar, ironically, there is only one flavor of Icee. More »

Roger Federer Has Some Work To Do Before The French Open

mjdeadspin — Sun, 22 Apr 2007 16:45:00 EDT

Good news for Thabo Sefolosha. The Chicago Bulls guard has probably sewn up the title of most successful Swiss athlete in the world this weekend, because Rafael Nadal continues to own Roger Federer on clay. A stright-sets whoopin' was handed to Federer in the finals of the Monte Carlo Masters Series earlier today. More »

Federer Dominates Again

Leitch — Sun, 09 Jul 2006 12:59:11 EDT

Just as expected, Roger Federer won his fourth straight Wimbledon championship defeating Rafael Nadal 6-0, 7-6, 6-7, 6-3. Nadal showed some sparks throughout the match, but it was pretty much Federer all the way who never let Nadal take over at any point. Federer's work on grass is pretty sensational — and Nadal seemed to be get his footing and his game a little bit together, but just too late to stave off Federer's surgical ground stroke positioning. More »

Nadal Gonna Try Best For Try The Victory, Gonna Try That

Leitch — Sun, 09 Jul 2006 09:09:57 EDT

Now, this morning's Wimbledon final is gearing up to be something really special. Federer and Nadal are fun to watch anytime they play and on such a grand stage it's a great way to get a Sunday morning started. So, this pull quote isn't meant to slam Nadal, per se, but more the reporter on this story— who, granted, seems to have quoted everything verbatim from him —for under utilizing the whole paraphrase/bracket technique used to not make people look stupid. More »

Wimbledon: Crap, There Was Tennis On

Leitch — Sat, 08 Jul 2006 15:41:22 EDT

So, apparently the first portion of the Wimbledon finals were held this morning as the ladies finals are all over. Yep, completely missed that. More »

Federer Remains Nadal's Bitch

mjdeadspin — Sun, 11 Jun 2006 15:41:56 EDT

Rafael Nadal further cemented his place as the world's greatest athlete in capri pants by beating Roger Federer in the finals of the French Open this morning, 1-6, 6-1, 6-4, 7-6 (4). And in celebration, not settling for a simple kiss of the French Open trophy, he attempted to perform fellatio on it. He's an affectiontae man, Rafael Nadal. More »

Let's Get French For A Second

mjdeadspin — Sat, 10 Jun 2006 16:24:20 EDT

Justine Henin-Hardenne beat Svetlana Kuznetsova 6-4, 6-4 this morning to win her third ~~Freedom~~ French Open, and her second in a row. It is the fifth Grand Slam win of her career. More »

Exploring The Eating Habits Of Rafael Nadal

mjdeadspin — Sun, 04 Jun 2006 19:27:30 EDT

Rafael Nadal would like to respectfully disagree with Kirk Cameron. Bananas aren't so damn perfect after all. They might not squirt all over your face, but they can get stuck in your throat during the French Open and embarrass you more than the capri pants you insist on wearing. More »