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Roger Federer - Source: Reuters -
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It was a year that promised change, a pledge that it has more
than delivered on.
Not only in the high world of politics, but also in the upper
echelons of tennis' ruling class, where one of sports' greatest
dynasties took a battering as Roger Federer, the long serving king
of centre court, was over thrown.
Federer finally finds his Yin
Although Roger Federer may not look back on 2008 with the fondest
of memories, it could in fact be the year that assures him the
mantle of the greatest ever tennis player. It was the year he found
his soul mate, Rafael Nadal.
Every 'great' has had a rival to define them, it's the way
achievements are contextualised. Borg had McEnroe, Ali had Foreman,
Batman had The Joker and now Federer has Nadal.
Not to say that Nadal is a villain, rather he is the counterpart by
which all of Federer's accomplishments will be measured. Nadal is
the force that must be overcome in order for Federer to stake his
claim to the throne.
Essentially, if there is no great resistance to Federer eclipsing
Sampras' record 14 Grand Slam titles then his critics will always
belittle the triumph. In the end, the awakening of Nadal may end up
being the moment in Federer's career that will solidify his place
atop the all-time greats.
Showdown at sunset
The epic struggle for dominance between Roger Ferderer and Rafael
Nadal culminated on the hallowed grass courts at Wimbledon on the
7th of July 2008. It was clash that pitted the determination
of the pint sized dynamo Nadal against Federer's sublime
all-encompassing talent.
The four hour and 48 minute battle of wills was everything that you
could ever want from a sporting encounter, it was a match beyond
superlatives. But ultimately it was the moment where the Federer
Wimbledon era came to a shuddering halt at the hands of a fiery
Spaniard.
Nadal's triumph not only brought an end to Federer's five year
reign at the All England Club, but it also stole from the Swiss
impresario the chance to set a new benchmark with what would have
been an unprecedented sixth straight crown.
And although the match may be over, it did not end on that sunlit
evening in London. No, it is destined be played out again and again
in the realms of sporting folklore.
The hopes of a nation
Far from our shores, but never far from the thoughts of tennis
loving Kiwis has been the plight of our very own Marina Erakovic.
She has grown throughout every tournament that she contested in the
course of the past year.
From the hometown cheers of the ASB Bank Open to the greens at
Wimbledon, it has been a tumultuous journey for the young girl from
Aotearoa. Not only has Erakovic won a title or two, but she has
also conquered a few big names on her way into the WTA's top one
hundred. Erakovic's breakout season has seen her peak at no.49 and
round out the year at no. 66 in the world.
The future is brighter than ever for the shining light of New Zealand tennis.
Henin's default
Justine Henin took retiring while on top to a whole new level. The
supreme world no.1 quit half way through the season, her only
reason being that she didn't 'have the feeling' that she once
had.
Following in the footsteps of people such as George Best, the
Belgian ace quit with her best years still to come. Through her
career the 25 year-old won 41 WTA singles titles, seven of them
Grand Slams and added an Olympic gold in 2004 just for good
measure. One can't stop and wonder what tennis has been deprived of
as a result of her decision.
Russian roulette
Former world no. 1 Maria Sharapova does not have much to celebrate
at the end of what had promised to be a stellar 2008. After
clinching the first Grand Slam of the year at the Australian Open
the Russian vixen's high pitched squeals and yelps turned to cries
of anguish as her season deteriorated in front of her.
She entered Wimbledon as the defending champion and was
unceremoniously dumped out in only the second round by largely
unknown Russian Alla Kudryavtseva. Her compatriot even took a
parting shot at Sharapova's much discussed dress sense saying,
"It's very pleasant to beat Maria...Why? Well, I don't like her
outfit".
Adding to her misery she suffered a torn rotator cuff and had to
sit out the final half of the season.
Ana the enigma
And if Sharapova felt like she still had something to cling to in
her sex symbol status she was sadly mistaken as '08 heralded the
rise of new (male) crowd favourite Ana Ivanovic.
She captured the hearts of the male viewing public like no other
player on tour, and less importantly, she won a French Open in the
process.
In terms of her form, this year has been a rollercoaster for the
young Serb. She climbed to the top of the pile peaking at no.1, but
ultimately failed to retain the coveted top spot at the end of the
year.
But alas, all is forgiven as she has single-handedly re-ignited the
passions of fans around the world and solidified tennis as a very
enjoyable spectator sport. Encore, Ana. Encore.
Serb it up
Although there were many supreme individual performances it would
be unfair to overlook the combined efforts of the players from
Serbia. The small nation's exports provided some of the
biggest surprises and upsets on the tour this year.
Ivanovic won the French Open, Novak Djokovic overcame Federer to
clinch the Australian Open and Jelena Jankovic finished the year as
world no.1. What more could you ask of a nation still reeling from
the pains of civil war?
Could we be witnessing the emergence of a future super-power, or
maybe just the wonderful co-incidence of great talent converging in
a golden generation? Only time will tell.
The flying Scotsman
Finally it was the year when a realistic British hopeful finally
rose from the moors to challenge the world's leading
players.
Andy Murray lit up the usually dark British Isles with a mid-season
resurgence that saw him claim his first major title on the ATP tour
on the flamboyantly purple courts at the Madrid masters.
It looks as if he will finally be the one to put the eternal
disappointment of British tennis fans to bed. And who knows, maybe
Nadal and Federer won't have it all their own way in 2009...
* honourable mention - New Zealander Finbar Tearney who won the men's singles gold at the Youth Commonwealth Games in Pune, India. He also won the men's doubles gold along with partner Logan Mackenzie.
