Birthday Boy: Rafael Nadal

I love it when people think I hate Rafael Nadal just because he's Roger Federer's biggest rival. While it may have been true the first year he busted out on tour, that is so far from the truth now. I mean have you SEEN him? Oh and his tennis is pretty damn awesome, too.

Plus whether it's only for show or actually real, his relative close/cordial relationship with Federer is just so interesting in sports. Here are two guys on top of their sports, fighting for supremacy, and they're NICE to each other. WTF? Do I still root against Nadal vociferously when he plays Federer? Of course, but for the rest of the time I love it when he goes all the way.

But I told myself this post will NOT be about Federer, so going back to Nadal. Today is his 24th birthday and at this sickeningly young age he has accomplished so much, I can't even write it all here. He's poised to collect his 7th Grand Slam title this week at Roland Garros adding it to his tally of 4 French Open titles, 1 Wimbledon title, 1 Australian Open title, and an Olympic gold medal. If he wins, he also becomes #1 in the world again.

TV Meme: Day 02

"30 Days TV Meme"


Day 02 | A show that you wish more people were watching

I had a few options here. Was going to say the perpetually-in-trouble Chuck or the new, but struggling Community. Instead, I wanted to highlight a show only a handful of people in America have even heard about--Being Human.

It's not the first time I've mentioned Being Human. In fact it ranked #9 on my list of my favorite TV shows of 2009. Whenever I start talking about the show i.e. "it's a show about a werewolf, a vampire, and a a ghost living together as roommates" you can just imagine the looks I get. It dives into the lives of these preternatural beings as they deal with the same crap every 20-something-year-olds go through as well as dealing with the pressure of being an "other." All the drama inherent to this construct is nicely balanced with lots of humor and witty dialogue reminiscent of another fantastic genre show by the name of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

The three lead characters individually are so fully realized and wonderful, but they are also quite magnificent as an ensemble. You buy the times when they are just laughing while eating dinner together just as much as the times when they are screaming at each other at the top of their lungs. My favorite character is the neurotic George who struggles with his supernatural self (werewolf) more so than his two other friends maybe because his goofy personality is so very different from the savage nature of the wolf.

The first two seasons are only 14 episodes in total with the first season available on Netflix and the second season premiering on BBC America July 24th. I've seen the second season and as great as the first season was, the second brings the show and its characters to a whole new level. And while it's a good enough hit across the pond, good enough for them to green light a third season, it would be fantastic if more people took a bite of this under-watched show.

French Open: Quarterfinal Report & Semifinal Previews

Unless you were a certain four-time French Open champion, it was not good to be a Grand Slam champion at the quarterfinals at Roland Garros this year.

The biggest upset of the round was Robin Soderling defeating defending champion Roger Federer ending the Swiss' streak of Grand semifinals at 23 matches. 2008 Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic followed Federer losing to 22nd seed Jurgen Melzer in five sets after being up two sets! 12-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams went out to 7th seed Sam Stosur 6-8 in the third set.

Rafael Nadal was the only Grand Slam champion able to hold off his inspired opponent who pushed Nadal to two tiebreaks. Nadal still ended up winning in straight sets, but he had to work hard against 19th seed Nicolas Almagro. Other quarterfinal winners include 15th seed Tomas Berdych, 4th seed Jelena Jankovic, 17th seed Francesca Schiavone, and 5th seed Elena Dementieva. This mean there will be a first-time Grand Slam winner on the women's side and on the men's side if Nadal doesn't win.

Men's Semifinals

Robin Soderling [5] vs. Tomas Berdych [15]
Rafael Nadal [2] vs. Jurgen Melzer [22]

How very wrong was I in my predictions getting only Nadal correct? In any case, Nadal must be feeling a bit better about reclaiming this title especially consider the players he has left to face. En route to the finals, Nadal will not have faced anyone in the top 20. Melzer, reaching his first Grand Slam semifinals ever, should be no problem for Nadal especially with Melzer going through that blockbuster five-set match with Djokovic. It's a bit of a toss-up between Soderling and Berdych as both have played an inspired couple of rounds. Soderling has the edge though being in this spot before and having huge confidence after beating both Nadal and Federer here.

Prediction: It will be a re-match between Robin Soderling and Rafael Nadal for the finals. Please tennis gods, make this happen. I'll be rooting for Soderling so that Federer keeps his #1 ranking.

Women's Semifinals

Jelena Jankovic [4] vs. Samantha Stosur [7]
Elena Dementieva [5] vs. Francesca Schiavone [17]

I did slightly better here than in the men as I predicted that (a) neither Williams sister would make it this far, (b) Jankovic and Dementieva would get here, and (c) Dementieva would go up against an Italian. The most significant aspect of this foursome is that none of them are Grand Slam champions with only Jankovic and Dementieva to have managed to reach a Slam final before. On paper, both matches look to be very competitive. Jankovic leads Stosur 3-1 in H2H, but Stosur won their last meeting a couple months ago. Dementieva leads 6-4 with the Italian's last win over the Russian over three years ago.

Prediction: Experience will prevail to bring us a Jelena Jankovic and Elena Dementieva final. I'll be happy for both, but really rooting for Dementieva.

Looking Forward To...

Inception
Release: July 16, 2010
Distributor: Warner Brothers
Director: Christopher Nolan
Starring: Ken Watanabe, Ellen Page, Cillian Murphy, Leonard DiCaprio, Marion Cotillard, Tom Bernger, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Michael Caine, Tom Hardy, and Lukas Haas

TV Meme: Day 01

"30 Days TV Meme"


Day 01 | A show that should have never been canceled

Firefly is the easy and most obvious answer here. While Joss Whedon is freakin' brilliant, usually his shows tend to take a season or so to catch up to his brilliance. It took about one episode for Firefly to achieve that. Granted, I'm not talking about the first episode that FOX decided to air in placed of the ACTUAL and very well-done two-part pilot episode "Serenity." What FOX thought they were doing is beyond me. I'll give it to them and admit that the show upfront WAS a tough sell. I mean was it a western or was it a space drama? Why did that ship look all clunky and weird? Who was that handsome man with those tight pants? Unfortunately, not a lot of people checked it out and it was canceled way too prematurely.

Thankfully there was a movie follow-up, Serenity, which again didn't fire up the public, but by then it had turned into somewhat of a cult favorite. In subsequent interviews Joss Whedon said that the bulk of the plot of the movie was pretty much what he envisioned for Season 2 and 3, albeit in a much more condensed form. Apparently S2 would be all about discovering River's abilities while S3 would be about the quest to find more about Miranda/Reavers/The Alliance. Now let me ask you, wouldn't have that been AWESOME?

For my part, I've watched the complete series comprising of 14 episodes more than I can count and that feeling of awe doesn't ever go away. I'm glad that most of the people involved have moved on to other projects so I can enjoy their ridiculous talents somewhere else, but for this Browncoat, I just want to go back to Firefly.

Federer's Streak Snapped by Soderling

Hell to the no way! 5th seed Robin Soderling delivered yet another huge upset at the French Open defeating defending champion Roger Federer in four sets. Soderling is the first man to outlast Federer in the last 24 straight Grand Slam quarterfinals that Federer has played, snapping the Swiss' impressive streak of 23 consecutive Grand Slam semifinal appearances! Last year, Soderling made headline news when he became the first man to beat Rafael Nadal at the same tournament. With the win this year against Federer, Soderling has now beaten the #1 ranked French Open defending champion two years in a row. More than impressive!

Federer's loss here puts his #1 ranking in jeopardy, just a week or two shy from surpassing Pete Sampras' overall weeks at #1. Federer now hopes that heavy-favorite Rafael Nadal doesn't win the whole tournament since that is the only result that would make Federer lose his top rank. Federer's reply on his streak ending is a positive one: "Now I have my quarterfinal streak." Gotta love his attitude! With that said, however, this loss might still be a crushing blow to most Federer's fans who saw Federer markedly struggle after winning the Australian Open earlier in the year. Will this continue to Wimbledon and beyond?

As a huge Federer fan, I share in their worries, but I've also made peace with the fact that all streaks end sometime and domination never lasts. Plus need I remind his fans that Federer won both the French Open and Wimbledon last year accomplishing two of his greatest goals, getting a career Grand Slam and surpassing Sampras' major championship tally? After he retook his #1 ranking at Wimbledon last year, I told myself that any wins after this point would be bonus and I've kept that stance. He went on to win Cincinnati and the Australian Open while reaching the finals at the US Open and is only 1-2 week shy of breaking another revered tennis record. Not too shabby for an over-the-hill tennis pro.

So in summary, Robin Soderling d. Roger Federer 3-6, 6-3, 7-5, 6-4 and guess what, it's not the end of the world!

30 Day TV Meme

With most of my regular shows in summer hiatus and the bulk of my summer shows not debuting until later this month or July, might as well fill the time with this TV meme going around the internet recent.

Day 01 - A show that should have never been canceled
Day 02 - A show that you wish more people were watching
Day 03 - Your favorite new show (aired this TV season)
Day 04 - Your favorite show ever
Day 05 - A show you hate
Day 06 - Favorite episode of your favorite TV show
Day 07 - Least favorite episode of your favorite TV show
Day 08 - A show everyone should watch
Day 09 - Best scene ever
Day 10 - A show you thought you wouldn’t like but ended up loving
Day 11 - A show that disappointed you
Day 12 - An episode you’ve watched more than 5 times
Day 13 - Favorite childhood show
Day 14 - Favorite male character
Day 15 - Favorite female character
Day 16 - Your guilty pleasure show
Day 17 - Favorite mini series
Day 18 - Favorite title sequence
Day 19 - Best TV show cast
Day 20 - Favorite kiss
Day 21 - Favorite ship
Day 22 - Favorite series finale
Day 23 - Most annoying character
Day 24 - Best quote
Day 25 - A show you plan on watching
Day 26 - OMG WTF? Season finale
Day 27 - Best pilot episode
Day 28 - First TV show obsession
Day 29 - Current TV show obsession
Day 30 - Saddest character death

Begins later today.

French Open: Fourth Round Report

Top seeds Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal moved swiftly to the quarterfinals in straight sets losing only 11 games each, beating Stanislas Wawrinka and Thomaz Bellucci respectively. Their wins this year are far removed from what their experienced last year in the same round. Last year, Federer had to come back two sets to love down against Tommy Haas while Nadal was defeated for the first time in Roland Garros by last year's finalist Robin Soderling. Speaking of, 5th seed Soderling is moving through the draw with fierce efficiency as well, defeating 10th seed Marin Cilic in straights.

3rd seed and former semifinalist Novak Djokovic defeated Robby Ginepri, the last American man standing, in four sets while 22nd seed Jurgen Melzer made his first Grand Slam quarterfinal by beating Teimuraz Gabashvili. 4th seed Andy Murray lost to 15th seed Tomas Berdych, 7th seed Fernando Verdasco was beaten by 19th seed Nicolas Almagro, and 8th seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga retired with a bad back in his match against 11th seed Mikhail Youzhny. This is only the second time that Berdych, Almagro, and Youzhny have reached the quarterfinals at a Grand Slam event.

Factoid: Roger Federer is one win away from reaching 24 consecutive Grand Slam semifinals. If he does this, he also guarantees his #1 ranking after the tournament and will tie Pete Sampras' record of overall weeks at #1. With his win against Belluci, Rafael Nadal has notched an impressive 200 wins in clay.


Three of the top four seeds moved through the fourth round as Serena Williams, Caroline Wozniacki, and Jelena Jankovic survive with Wozniacki being pushed to three grueling sets by 14th seed Flavia Pennetta. 2nd seed Venus Williams was defeated by 19th seed Nadia Petrova in straight sets. Venus is still alive in doubles with her sister Serena and they are the favorites to win.

Serena's next opponent was set to be four-time champion Justine Henin, but 7th seed Samantha Stosur showed it's just not THAT easy to return after being away from the tour. Stosur defeated Henin 2-6, 6-1, 6-4. 5th seed Elena Dementieva, 17th seed Francesca Schiavone, and surprise quarterfinalist Yaroslava Shvedova for Kazakhstan round out the fourth round winners.

Factoid: Serena Williams is the last American woman standing and she is also the last Grand Slam champion left in the draw. Jelena Jankovic, Caroline Wozniacki, and Elena Dementieva have all been Grand Slam finalists, but have yet to get their maiden slam title.

French Open: Third Round Report

Unlike the second round, the third round went without a hitch as the weather finally improved. This doesn't mean there weren't shocking results in the meantime.

Who could've predicted that the last American man standing would be 98th ranked Robby Ginepri? Ginepri defeated 16th seed Juan Carlos Ferrero in five sets while his fellow Americans 6th seed Andy Roddick and 17th seed John Isner lost to Teimuraz Gabashvilli and 15th seed Tomas Berdych respectively in straight sets. The Isner-Berdych result was to be expected, but Roddick must be kicking himself at the results. It stings even more because his projected opponent, 9th seed David Ferrer, was also inexplicably beaten by 22nd seed Jurgen Melzer! 14th seed Ivan Ljubicic was taken out as well, defeated by 24th seed Thomaz Bellucci.

Top seed Roger Federer was the first one through to the fourth round with an easy win while 2nd seed Rafael Nadal also had a relatively comfortable time in his match with 28th seed Lleyton Hewitt. And finally, here's a fascinating scoreline from the Andy Murray-Marcos Baghdatis match: 6-2, 6-3, 0-6, 6-2. Did Murray fall asleep in the third set?

For the women, one third round match was not completed and it's the one everyone has been buzzing about. Multiple Grand Slam winners Justine Henin and Maria Sharapova were tied at one set a piece before play was suspended for the day. Based on their clay histories, one would've expected Henin to walk away with the win, so this is quite interesting. Defending champion Svetlana Kuznetsova lost to fellow countrywomen and 30th seed Maria Kirilenko, which just continues the recent bad results for the two time Grand Slam winner.

Top 16 seeds Na Li, Marion Bartoli, and Yanina Wickmayer were defeated in straight sets by 17th seed Francesca Schiavone, 18th seed Shahar Peer, and 23rd seed Daniela Hantuchova respectively. Meanwhile, 19th seed Nadia Petrova survived her match with 15th seed Aravane Rezai winning 10-8 in the third set. Meanwhile, the top four seeds--Serena Williams, Venus Williams, Caroline Wozniacki, and Jelena Jankovic all move through to the fourth round.

The second week begins tomorrow.

French Open: Second Round Report

Rain caused havoc in the schedule of play forcing the tournament directors to extend some second round matches into a third day. Despite an almost wash-out on Thursday, all of the second round matches were completed by Friday due to good weather.

The seeds in the men's side held strong with dominant showings from top ten players Robin Soderling (5th seed), Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (8th seed), and David Ferrer (9th seed). Combining their second round results, they only lost 11 games! 6th seed Andy Roddick, 17th seed John Isner, and unseeded Robby Ginepri show Americans can play on clay by moving on to the third round. Another American, Mardy Fish, was this close to joining his compatriots. Instead he lost 8-10 in the fifth and final set to veteran and 14th seed Ivan Ljubicic.

Speaking of fifth sets, 28th seed Lleyton Hewitt was able to grind out a win in a match that had a rollercoaster quality of up and down. The scoreline was 1-6, 6-3, 6-4, 2-6, 6-2. Fifth setters were less kind to 13th seed Gael Monfils who ended up losing to Fabio Fognini 7-9 in the fifth set. Their match lasted two days, rescheduled due to "insufficient light," which according to reports, was an understatement. They resumed their match 5-5 in the fifth set on Friday. Other seeds that fell in the second round were Fernando Gonzalez (12) and Guillermo Garcia-Lopez (32).

For the women, it was business as usual as favorites such as Serena Williams, Venus Williams, and Justine Henin cruised to the next round. After upsetting Dinara Safina in the first round, 39-year-old Kimiko Date Krumm was unable to extend her Cinderella run losing to Jarmila Groth of Australia 0-6, 3-6. This score is a bit of a mirror image of the beating that 28th seed Alisa Kleybanova delivered to former French Open champion Ana Ivanovic.

Another former French Open champion, last year's champion, 6th seed Svetlana Kuznetsova was this close to getting ousted. Her opponent, Andrea Petkovic, had four match points, but got tight and was unable to capitalize on what certainly would've been one of the biggest wins of her career. These seeded players weren't as lucky as Kuznetsova: Agnieszka Radwanska (8), Vera Zvonareva (21), Lucie Safarova (24), and Jie Zheng (25).