Announcement!

You're probably wondering why there has been a lack of blog posts recently.

Firstly, I apologise for that.

However…

I am working on an exciting new project. "Rafa Nadal- 14" is a tribute video I am making, to celebrate his grand slam wins. So far the project is going very well, and I hope it will continue to head in the right direction. It's a big task and a work in progress, but it's coming. Gathering a lot of clips from as far back as 2005 is a challenge!!

My aim is to have it finished by the end of the year.

I am very excited about the project. I'm busy for a number of reasons now, not just the project, so it will take time, but hopefully it'll be worth it.

I am looking forward to the finished project, and I hope you are too.

Again, I apologise for the semi- hiatus of this blog, I will try my absolute best to keep writing material whenever I can.

Lastly, I just want to say thank you to everyone that has read my blog since July. I am thoroughly looking forward to 2015, and lots more posts to come!

Thank you! Grace x

A Timeline: Rafa's Injuries

As we await Rafa's return to the tour, I thought it would be interesting to recap. Let's go through all of his injuries from the start of his career. What I think one of the most admirable things about Rafa is his passion to compete after and during injuries. It makes his accomplishments even more fantastic, as he plays (and wins) through pain.


2003- Elbow injury forces him to skip the French Open.

2004- Rafa suffered a stress fracture in his left ankle, which caused him to miss the spring clay court season, including Roland Garros.

2005- Foot injury meant he couldn't play the Tennis Masters Cup (Now the ATP Finals). He also missed the Australian Open in 2006.

2006- Shoulder injury occurred during a match at Queens Club again Lleyton Hewitt. Rafa had to retire.

2007- A right knee injury occurred during a Wimbledon match. This caused difficulty in the second half of the year. Rumours emerged that the foot injury he suffered in 2005 was more serious than expected, but luckily, they were false.

2008- Tendinitis of the right knee forced Rafa to withdraw from the Masters Cup again. The injury flared up during a match at Paris Masters, where he had to retire. Rafa also had to withdraw from the Davis Cup.

2009- During the final of Rotterdam against Murray, Rafa called a trainer on court to assist with a right knee tendon injury. This affected his play in the final set. It was not related to the previous knee injury, but he still had to withdraw from Dubai. Right after his only French Open defeat he withdrew from Queens, Wimbledon and the Davis Cup. Rafa was now suffering from tendinitis in both knees.

2010- Rafa retired during his QF match at the Australian Open, as his knees were causing pain. He then took 2 weeks of rest.

2011- He suffered a foot injury during Wimbledon and rested for a month before returning to the tour for the Rogers Cup. During the US Open, Rafa had his infamous muscle cramp drama in a press conference.

2012 to 2013- He withdrew from the Miami Masters once he reached the semi finals, with knee problems. After the 2nd round exit at Wimbledon, Rafa withdrew from the 2012 Olympics. He then continued to withdraw from competitions for 7 months, his longest ever injury break. He dropped out of the top 4 in the rankings for the first time since 2005.

2013- Rafa made his return to the tour at the VTR Open in Chile, where he lost in the final. He then won a title in Acapulco, the start of his incredible comeback. He went on to win 10 tournaments in 2013, including the French and US Open.

2014- Rafa injured his back during the warm up to the Australian Open Final, against Stan Wawrinka. The match was agonising to watch, but Rafa carried on to the end, refusing to retire. What a guy. The back injury forced all sorts of losses. He was not completely tape free or pain free until later on in the year. He still had tape on in the early rounds of Roland Garros, which he went on to win. In July, Rafa injured his right wrist in practice. He withdrew from Toronto and Cincinnati immediately, and then went on to withdraw from the US Open. He was defending champion is all three North American tournaments. Rafa was diagnosed with appendicitis in Shanghai, we are waiting to see exactly what the illness entails, a appendix removal is a possibility.

Well, that definitely brought back memories. Rafa has suffered with injuries throughout his entire career, thats what makes his achievements so mind-blowing. I hope you found this interesting. Thank you for reading.


@rafanadaladdict

US Open Preview

Hi everyone, hope you're all having a great week.

Obviously I was reluctant to writing this blog post. Writing a pre tournament preview is always interesting, but with Rafa gone, it suddenly becomes more of a chore. However, I'm still going to give my verdict to all of the non Rafa fans out there (probably not many that follow me!).

The US Open is less than a week to go. I've already spilled out all my thoughts about Rafa's absence (see my previous post) but I'm going to try and enjoy it the best I can. It's still the last grand slam of the year, and a huge tournament.

I should probably add, for a few days I will be in New York. Unfortunately I'm not visiting the open, but I'll not be posting any blog posts for those 5 days. Apologies in advance.

Let's get on with the post! Time to analyse some players…!

Djokovic

Toronto and Cincinnati were incredibly disappointing tournaments for Novak. Out in the 3rd Round in BOTH. That's early exits in hard court masters… not something we see very often from Djokovic. I think the main issue was with his mental state. What he wanted to do with his body, his mind didn't let him. It was a very strange thing to watch. Obviously we're not sure what the issue is, but Novak's confidence will surely have plummeted. Having said that, we're used to top players making comebacks, so who knows what will happen. But Novak is no Rafa, can he snap out of it quick enough? With many rounds to play and 5 set matches, I would be surprised if he had another early exit in this slam. He'll either drop out early or go far.

Federer

Finalist of Toronto and winner of Cincinnati, Fed's having a good hard court season. With no Rafa or Novak to stop him, Rog got lucky. Having said that, he's still playing well. He isn't playing consistently in some matches, such as the Cincy final and that wash over 2nd set, but when he's playing well, he is really good. I'm interested to see how he performs at the US Open. I defiantly think that top contenders would be Novak, Rafa and Roger (before the injury), so with Rafa out and Novak questionable, Roger has a big chance, defiantly.

To be honest with you, I'm pretty confident either one of them will win, but there are still some underdogs.

Tsonga

We can't rule out Jo! He's showed us he has what it takes to succeed on hard courts, after winning Toronto, but can he rise up to the challenge on the big stage? He can succeed and knock out top players at slams. If his body and mind are perfect, I wouldn't put it past him. He could really give the top guys a challenge.

Dimitrov

Grigor has a lot of potential, there's no doubt about that. He's determined to succeed, and that could give him a boost in this slam. Personally, I'm not sure if he will be up there with winning a slam yet, but he's on the right track. With Rafa out, his path does open up. A quick gush of wind can pick Dimi up and whisk him right on track… can he handle it?

Ferrer

I love David, I really do. He was a finalist in Cincinnati and gave Roger a tough time out there. He has incredible mental stability and never gives up, not on the same par as Rafa, but similar. You wouldn't think of David to win a hard court slam, but again with Nadal gone, another opportunity opens. Let's see what happens!


You can see the trend here, right? Our Rafa is injured, so thats a big top guy out. If Rafa wasn't injured, I could see him grabbing the title, defiantly. I'm actually quite intrigued to see what happens. There isn't a standout top guy for me at the moment… I think Roger and Novak are on par. It all depends on whether Novak can sort himself out before next week. We'll see…

Enjoy the tournament, Rafans. (Well try to anyway.) I'm sending out support to you all during this injury break, we've got through it once, we can do it again.

Grace x

Rafael Nadal Wrist Injury- Updates 31st July- 4th August

31st July- Rafa was doing a light practice this morning in Manacor. He only practiced forehands slowly, hitting with Toni. Although this shows he cannot yet play, it tells us that he is working hard to be ready as soon as possible. He is now wearing a black splint over his right wrist. His fingers are still able to move around. Rafa posted on his Facebook today telling fans about his splint. He said 'For two weeks I'm changing my watch for this splint.'

3rd August- Toni announced, 'I am optimistic and I believe Rafa will be able to play the US Open.' This is good news, it gives us a little more hope. He also said that they will make the decision whether to play the US Open or not in 10 days time. That's the Wednesday of Cincinnati, 5 days before the US Open. It's going to be a long 10 days, but we will have to wait until then. Rafa is practicing now and then, although not all the time. I am confident he is getting the recovery he needs.

4th August- Today Rafa practiced again. It was mostly footwork and forehands, but he did practice some very slow serves. Big thank you to @bluemathilde for attending the practices and letting us know what's going on! 

Rafa posted on Facebook: 'Taking advantage of these days to continue training, always with enthusiasm and optimism.' 

Rafael Nadal vs Roger Federer: A Statistical Comparison

(This article was written on the 1st August 2014. All statistics are as of this time.)

My last comparison proved to be successful, so I'm continuing this series with Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer. It seems that these two are the ones to choose between in the GOAT debate, so I thought it would be interesting to compare. As you know, I'm a Rafa fan, but I am blown away by Roger, and what he has achieved. Many critics say his tennis is an art, and I agree. And Rafa, well, what else is there to say?

At the moment you'll see that Federer has achieved more in terms of weeks at number 1, grand slam titles and ATP titles, but you have to remember that the men are 5 years apart. Also, when Roger was at his prime, Rafa wasn't there. It is harder for Roger to be successful when Rafa is there, than it is for Rafa when Roger is there. (Hope that makes sense??)

Grand Slam Titles

Rafa: 14
Roger: 17

Interestingly, if Rafa wins at least 1 grand slam title per year, in 3 years time he will equal Roger's record (he would be 31, two years less than Roger.)

Rafa won his first slam at the French Open in 2005.
Roger won his first slam at Wimbledon in 2003.
Two years apart in first slams, Rafa was younger.

Roger won the next 6 slam finals after his first Wimbledon victory, beating the likes of Hewitt and Roddick. Let's be honest, they're no Rafa or Novak. The person who stopped this grand slam final winning streak was (yes, you guessed it), Rafa.

Rafa's next slam final was again, the French Open which he won against Federer.
In Wimbledon 2006 and 2007 though, Roger beat him. After the crushing Wimbledon defeats in 06 and 07, Rafa beat Roger in the next 3 slam finals, Wimbledon, Roland Garros and the Australian Open.

Basically, to summarise, Roger and Rafa were virtually the only people who could beat each other. This started to change around 2010. (That's where Novak came along.)

ATP Titles

Rafa: 64
Roger: 79

On Clay
Rafa: 45
Roger:  10

On Grass
Rafa: 3
Roger: 14

On Hard
Rafa: 16
Roger: 53

First ATP Title

Rafa: Orange Prokom Open, August, 2004
Roger: Milan Indoor, February, 2001

The Rankings

Rafa first turned number 1 in 2008, beating Roger Federer in the Wimbledon Final before a Rogers Cup Title. He was only 21 years old.

Roger first turned number 1 in 2004, after his 1st Australian Open title. He remained there for 4 years, before Rafa took his place for the first time.

Weeks at No.1

Rafa: 141
Roger: 302 (the most ever)

Masters 1000

Rafa has won 27 masters, runner up to 13 of them.
Roger has won 21 masters, runner up to 15 of them.

Rafa has the highest amount of masters finals appearances (40). Federer is next.
Rafa has the highest amount of masters semi final appearances too. (55) Federer is also next.

As far as masters are concerned, Rafa takes it, hands down.

Olympics

Rafa: Gold in 2008.
Roger: Bronze in 2000, Silver in 2012.

ATP Finals

Rafa: Final (2010, 2013)
Roger: Winner (2010, 2011.) (Previously, the finals were the year end championships, he has won them 4 times.)

Davis Cup

Rafa: Win (2004, 2008, 2009, 2011)
Roger: No Swiss wins.

Win/Loss Record

Rafa: 702-137
Roger: 963- 223

Winning Streak

Rafa: 81 on Clay. From April 2005 to May 2007. Ended by Roger Federer.
Roger: 65 on Grass. From 2003 to 2008. Ended by Rafael Nadal.

Winning Percentage

Rafa has a winning percentage against every active player in the top 30.

Rafa leads Roger 23-10. 

Rafa has a winning percentage over Roger: 69.7%

I find these statistics fascinating, I hope you enjoyed them too. It's easy to see that Roger and Rafa are the two best players in the last decade. (Obviously in my opinion.) 

The greatest of all time debate is one that is hard to conclude, and I would honestly say they're quite equal in my eyes at the moment. What's so interesting is that because the two are 5 years apart, the records are almost similar, but Rafa is much younger. What will he have achieved by the time he's Roger's age? If injury doesn't prevent him, he could be onto something here…

Also, as Roger was at his 'prime' earlier, he played very different players. The game is a lot more physical now, and maybe it's harder to succeed. The rivalry is very interesting, especially in the early days. I can't wait to see it unfold further.

Thank you for reading, I really appreciate it! 

@rafanadaladdict

Rafael Nadal Wrist Injury

Today, Rafa and his team announced that they would be withdrawing from the masters tournaments ahead of the US Open. Last year Rafa won the Rogers Cup and Western and Southern Open, but this year he will not be able to defend those points. The news is both shocking and intensely disappointing for Rafa and his fans.

Rafa hurt his right wrist while practicing in Manacor, apparently on Tuesday. However, fans watching Rafa's practice sessions observe that he has only been practicing forehands this week, indicating the issue may have been caused a few days before. His right wrist is used for his two handed backhand and his ball toss, even though he plays left handed. 

Rafa's team issued a statement today.

"Unfortunately I injured my right wrist yesterday during practice and after the tests I have undergone today in Spain, including an MRI, and checking with my doctors, I will have to stay out of competition for at least 2-3 weeks. I am sorry and wish the best to the tournament and thank all of the fans for their support," said Nadal. "I'm extremely disappointed that I am unable to defend my titles and compete in Toronto and Cincinnati this year. I was looking forward to coming and playing again after my great results last year." 

Rafa travelled to Barcelona today to see his doctor, to take some scans and find out exactly what was wrong. He will wear a cast for 2-3 weeks.

He issued this statement regarding what was wrong with his right wrist: “a small disinsertion of the posterior ulnar pod” I'm no doctor, so I'm not sure what that means, but It's not good. 

However, 2-3 weeks sounds positive. Rafa told his fans on Facebook later today that he expects to compete at the US Open, so whatever the issue is, it doesn't sound serious. However, we have to stay wary as issues can develop over time, sometimes in a negative way. 

Rafa's team issued this prognosis:  “Depending on the evolution of the injury that will be carefully followed by the doctors, including M.R.I. tests, it will be decided then the return to competition, initially scheduled for the U.S. Open.”

So it seems that the team is expecting a relatively quick recovery, but are of course being cautious. You only have to look back at the knee injury, where the first cure was thought to be a few weeks of rest… that turned into 7 months. 

This injury does not bode well for the US Open. With 3 and a half weeks to go, can Rafa play without pain and to the standard he needs for a title defence? What he can do never fails to amaze me, so it's not completely out of the question just yet. Look at 2013, setbacks make him stronger, and I have no doubt that this will be the same. It's just a question of how long the recovery process will take.

Rafa fans need to stay positive about the injury, Rafa and his team will only return to tournaments once he is ready. I trust them to make the correct decision. 

When more information is released on how the injury has developed, a further decision regarding the US Open will most likely be made.


For instant updates, follow me on twitter: @rafanadaladdict

Rafael Nadal vs Novak Djokovic: A Statistical Comparison

(This article was written on the 28th July 2014. All statistics are as of this time.)

Both Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic are hugely successful stars of the ATP tour. Both have achieved incredible feats during their career and I hope, will continue to do so. Djokovic is current number 1 (July'14) but that top spot has been flicking between the two players since 2010. I find their rivalry fascinating as they're both the two top players at the moment, but if you dig a little deeper you'll see there are a lot of major differences in their achievements. Luckily you don't have to do the rifling through record books and ranking histories, because I've done it for you! Enjoy!

Let's start where it all began. Rafa turned pro in 2001, Djokovic in 2003. The players are exactly 10 months and 12 days apart, but even if they were the same age, Rafa would still have turned pro at least 1 year earlier.

First ATP title.

Rafa: Orange Prokom Open, August, 2004
Novak: Dutch Open, after Wimbledon in 2006.

First Slam

Rafa: Roland Garros 2005
Novak: Australian Open 2008

Rafa has won 14 slams to date, including 9 French Open titles. Rafa Nadal is the only player in history to win at least one grand slam title every year for 10 years.

Novak has won 7 slams to date. He is the only Serbian player to win a Grand Slam title.

The Rankings

Rafa first turned number 1 in 2008, beating Roger Federer in the Wimbledon Final before a Rogers Cup Title. He was only 21 years old.

Novak first turned number 1 in 2011, at Wimbledon (which he later won). 2011 was Novak's dream season, 3 grand slam titles, 5 masters and his first claim of number 1.

Rafa: 142 weeks at no.1  (so far)
Novak: 102 weeks at no.1  (so far)

Masters 1000

One of the most important tournaments of the year are the Masters 1000. There are 9 masters per year (2014).

Rafa has won 27 masters, runner up to 13 of them.
Novak has won 19 masters, runner up to 10.

When both Rafa and Novak participate in Masters events, either one of them had won every tournament during 2012, 2013 and most of 2014. Exception- Wawrinka Monte Carlo 2014.
This shows just how dominant the two players are.

Olympics

2008 Beijing Olympics
Rafa- Gold
Novak- Bronze

Davis Cup

Rafa: Win (2004, 2008, 2009, 2011)
Novak: Win (2010)

World Tour Finals

Rafa: Final (2010, 2013)
Novak: Win (2008, 2012, 2013)

Win/Loss Career Record

Rafa: 702-137
Novak- 580-136

ATP Titles

Rafa: 64
Novak- 45

Winning Streak

Rafa: 81 on clay. From April 2005 to May 2007. Ended by Roger Federer.
Novak: 43. December 2010 to May 2011.

Winning Percentage

Rafa has a winning percentage against every active player in the top 30.

Rafa leads Novak 23-19
Rafa has a winning percentage over Novak- 54.76%


What I find fascinating about these facts, is that Nadal achieved so much at a young age. In 2006 Novak won his first ATP title, Rafa won his second slam title. In the overall question of 'greatest of all time', you can see that Rafa is safely ahead of Novak in that debate in terms of statistics.

I've really enjoyed researching these statistics, and I hope you've found this post interesting. It's great to dig a little deeper, and explore the depths of ATP tennis. If you have any requests of who you would like me to compare, let me know!


@rafanadaladdict


Thank you SO much for the support so far, I'm loving writing blog posts for you guys!

2014: From Heartbreak to History

Whenever I look back at the year so far, I think about how hard it's been for Rafa fans. 

The Australian Open final was so incredibly tough. It was heartbreaking to watch someone you love so much be in pain. He broke down, and I did with him. We had a few weeks in the dark, not knowing what was exactly wrong with his back and not knowing when Rafa would be able to play to a normal standard again. Injuries are always tough for Rafa, and his fans too. The last injury was his knee, when he was off for 7 months. Those months were the toughest ever for us, and I'm always terrified of having experience something like that again. 

Then came Rio, a relief because it showed us he was capable of playing (and winning) although it wasn't pain free. Indian Wells was tough, one of Rafa's earliest exits this year. Miami was a good tournament, although we lost in the final. 

Then came the clay season, and it was a disaster. Quarterfinal exits in Monte Carlo and Barcelona. Madrid was positive as he came away with a title, but it wasn't a true win, as Nishikori had retired 3-0 in the third set. Rome was another positive tournament, improvements were there even though Novak won the title. After all of this doubt, it turned out to lead to something incredible... a 9th French open title. The moment when he won was like no other, and I doubt I'll ever be that proud of him again. Seeing Rafa so emotional was a moment I'll never forget. 

Wimbledon was hugely successful for us, he reached the 4th round, big improvements from the last couple of years. Wimbledon showed us that he is in a better physical condition this year than others. The success is only increasing, what will the hard courts bring…? 

@rafanadaladdict

Wimbledon Men's Final 2014- OVERVIEW

Wow, that was incredible. The best mens Wimbledon final since 2008. A match full of incredible moments, and that 4th set comeback from the legend that is Roger Federer. PeRFection.

Both players were incredible, Novak fighting and Roger hanging on.

After just under 4 hours, Novak won the championship 6-7 6-4 7-6 5-7 6-4. A scoreline to remember.

Roger won the first set tiebreak, fighting to the end, serving beautifully. The next two sets were won by Novak, he was really firing up, which gave him a lot of ability to produce some breathtaking passing shots. Then, in my opinion, one of the best sets of tennis I've ever seen, the 4th set happened. Novak seemed invincible, gaining championship point. I thought it was all over, but no. On the other side of the next was Roger Federer. Roger won 4 straight games and took the set 7-5.

The whole of centre court was backing the 7 time champion, and when the first 5 set Wimbledon final since 2009 became a reality, the atmosphere was incredible. The 5th set was very close. Roger held at 4-4, saving 3 break points. Novak then won his service game and broke to gain his 7th grand slam title. He then proceeded to eat the grass, which was a little worrying.

An incredible match, which I'm not likely to forget. Novak Djokovic will now overtake Rafa as number 1 so will enter the US hard court swing as the top seed. The rankings are very close however, with only 460 points between them. This is good news for Rafa fans however, as there is still only 3 slams to 'catch up' on to equal Federer's slam record. Rafa performs equally as good, if not better, as the number 2 seed, so all in all, I'm fine with the situation.

No more grass for another year, now its time for the hard courts. Bring it on. 

Wimbledon Women's Final 2014- Overview

Today was the day of the first of the Wimbledon finals, the women's.

We saw newcomer Eugenie Bouchard and former champion Petra Kvitova play for the Wimbledon Title.

I had high expectations for both players, but I don't think many people expected it to be the one way final that it was.

Petra Kvitova wins her second title 6-3 6-0.

Seeing that scoreline doesn't tell you what happened out there on centre court. Bouchard played as well as she possibly could, there was nothing wrong with the way she played. Kvitova was just too good, she didn't give Genie opportunities to get into the match. Her serves and returns were both so strong, to result in Genie winning just 3 games out of 15.

Petra was simply breathtaking, she was calm and confident, and got the win up in just 55 minutes. Bouchard will have plenty more opportunities to be in Petra's shoes, she is only 20 years old, and has only played 6 grand slams. She was not overwhelmed by the occasion, she was overwhelmed by her opponent.

It was a quick display of tennis, and I'm sure the men's final tomorrow will prove to be more entertaining. Did you enjoy the match? Was that the result you expected?

Wimbledon Final- Through a Rafa Fan's Eyes

The men's Wimbledon final will be a tough match to watch for Rafa fans. Regardless of who wins, Rafa will be put in a negative position. There's a lot at stake for not just Novak and Roger, but for Rafa too. His current standings will be decided by someone other than himself, that's not something we're used to.

If Djokovic wins, he will become number 1, forcing Rafa to be second best once again. They will still be very close in the rankings, which means Rafa could get back on top if he excels during the US hard court season. However, during the new hard court season Rafa will have to defend a lot of points. Last year he won in Cincinnati, Montreal and New York. To be in with a chance of keeping the number 1 ranking at the end of the year, Rafa will have to hold onto as many points as he can get. If Novak wins, it's going to be just that little bit harder to regain the top spot.

If Federer wins, his grand slam titles will rise to 18, 4 more than Rafa. Roger's Wimbledon titles will rise to 8, just one short of Rafa's 9 Roland Garros titles. This would make it harder for Rafa to equal (or beat) his grand slam record. However, Rafa is only 28, and has many more opportunities to do that. If Rafa wins at least 1 grand slam title a year (which is likely, regarding the French Open) he will equal Federer's record by the age of 32 (Roger's age).

There are a lot of statistics involved, and it's not ideal either way, but one of them has to win. As a Rafa fan, It's hard to decide which option we would prefer, so it's lucky we don't have to. Roger and Novak will do that for us.

If you could choose, who would you like to win Wimbledon 2014?

2014 Wimbledon Men's Final- PREVIEW

Sunday is the day of another Wimbledon final, perhaps the most anticipated match of the year. This year it's Djokovic vs Federer.

I'm very excited, as I'm sure the match will be very tight, and there doesn't seem to be a clear favourite in my eyes.

Novak Djokovic- His Route to the final

Novak's run at Wimbledon so far has featured some pretty dramatic matches. His first match was a straight sets victory over Golubev. Next was Stepanek. I really enjoyed this match, it was a four setter in the end but could have easily gone to 5. Radek's volleys and Novak's returns crafted some exciting points. Gilles Simon was overcome next, and then it was Tsonga. I expected a lot more from the Frenchman but in the end, Djokovic was just too strong. The quarterfinals matchup was against Cilic, another great match. Marin stood his ground well and forced the match to go to 5 sets, impressive. Next was a semi final against Dimitrov, a highly anticipated battle of the young gun vs the experience. As predicted an upset didn't occur, and in 4 sets, the number 1 seed reached another Wimbledon final.

Roger Federer- His Route to the final

Roger has been flawless his Wimbledon, losing only ONE service game. Straight sets wins against Lorenzi, Muller, Giraldo and Robredo got him to quarterfinal. The first 4 rounds for Roger were simply outstanding. They were quick and easy. (Hope not too easy?) Roger's first (and only) challenge was Stan Wawrinka in the quarterfinal, who took a set of Roger, the only person to do so this championship so far, Roger advanced well however. His semifinal was against Raonic, who didn't do enough to even take a break off Roger. The match was one sided and quite boring to be honest. After two weeks of perfection, Roger is through to his 9th Wimbledon final.

Djokovic hasn't been playing his absolute best this tournament, but some challenges have trained him up well for the occasion. Roger has breezed through the rounds, although thats not always a good thing. Maybe Roger needed a few challenges and tricky situations to prepare him for the blockbuster final on Sunday?

What you can't take away from Roger is his Wimbledon record. 7 titles so far, his last one was in 2012. The last couple of years have been far from ideal for Federer but is this another chance to get back to the summit of mens tennis?

We know how consistent Djokovic is, and I'm sure he will bring that to the final this weekend. The combination of Roger's serve and Novak's return will be interesting to see, and they'll be sure to create some great rallies.

The match will be very tight, It's about 51-49 to Roger in my eyes though…!

Prediction- Roger Federer in 5 Sets