Whether it’s two-toned balls, four-game sets, or shirtless players, there’s never been a shortage of ideas for how to “improve” tennis. Fortunately, most of them don’t see the light of day. But last week the Tennis Channel succeeded in doing things a little differently at its inaugural self-titled tournament in Las Vegas. Rather than relying on the top singles prima donnas to carry the event, the TC threw a sort of racquet-sports party. It gave prime-time promotion to doubles specialists, put on a lower-level women’s tournament on the side courts, and even used some airtime to show paddle-tennis, a California-based spin-off game played on a mini court. The paddle event turned out to be one of the highlights of the week, as French ATP pro Gael Monfils, who had never played before, took a wildcard into the draw and won the whole thing, beating the No. 1 player in the “world”—in other words, the Santa Monica shore—along the way. It looked like the most fun Monfils had ever had on any type of court. He celebrated his wins over his 40-something opponents by break dancing and doing the robot. Now that’s what the game could use more of.
Monfils aside, the Tennis Channel Open did not come off without a hitch. Cold weather kept the sparse crowds well-bundled, and as nice as it is to feature doubles, when you settle in front of your TV in the evening it’s a bit of a letdown to find out you’ll be watching Robert Lindstedt and Jaroslav Levinsky face off against Simon Aspelin and Todd Perry. By Saturday it was a relief to see that two familiar, and very big, names—Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, no less—were doing battle in the world’s other exploding desert tourist trap, Dubai. The Tennis Channel was classy enough to upstage its own event by broadcasting the first showdown of 2006 between the No. 1 and No. 2 players in the world. The match proved to be worthy of that billing, and worth talking about before we return to Vegas.
Federer spent the first set teaching No. 2 just what it means to be No. 1. He was “in full flight,” as they say, rifling forehands all over the court and finishing points at net, as he should against Nadal. No. 2 looked overmatched and one-dimensional, and was broken twice. But Nadal had a lesson of his own to give, the same one we’ve been taught for two years: Never underestimate him. He focused on holding serve and began to turn the tide midway through the second set by revving up his own forehand, which was once again the difference between them. How many times do you see Federer lunge, off-balance, to retrieve a ball? Nadal had him doing it consistently with his lefty forehand, which hooks away from Fed’s one-handed backhand. Federer looked almost fooled by the shot at times, as if he underestimated just how far the ball would end up from him.
Nadal broke early in the third but Federer broke back with a spectacular down-the-line counter-punch forehand. Federer then went up 4-3 with a four-winner game. As he walked to the sideline he held his racquet up and shot Nadal a look, as if to say, “I’ll take it from here.” The announcers certainly believed him, predicting that Federer would elevate his game and run out the match. Federer duly won the first point on Nadal’s serve. But then a funny thing happened—the world No. 1 started to press. He shanked a midcourt forehand, a shot you never see him miss, and quickly lost that game. At 4-4, 15-15, he overcooked an easy forehand approach, hitting it just beyond the baseline. Both times it appeared that Federer, knowing who was on the other side of the net, tried to make his shots just a bit too good.
But at 4-4, 30-30, it was all Nadal. For what I believe was the first time in the match, he moved inside the baseline to return a serve. Federer obliged with a short second delivery and Nadal made no mistake, guiding an inside-out forehand for a winner to set up break point. The rest was pretty routine, with Nadal serving out the match at love. His return at 30-all reminded me of no one so much as Jimmy Connors. The American had an instinct for surprise. He was famous for hitting his only ace of a match at the most crucial juncture, or pulling a ball around a net post to stave off certain doom. Nadal has the same uncanny ability to do just what you think he can’t.
Such as beat Federer. Nadal’s now 3-1 against him, and after the match Federer said that his one win, a five-setter in Key Biscayne last year, was “lucky.” Nadal went even further in the poor-mouth department, denying any talk of a rivalry between him and the “best player in the world, one of the best players in history.” But it is indeed a rivalry, because Nadal poses special problems for Federer. (1) The Spanish clay-courter stands far back to return serve, denying Federer many of the free points he typically gets with his excellent placement. Nadal’s returns can be short, but to take advantage of that Federer would have to serve and volley, not his normal game. (2) When Federer hits his patented short crosscourt backhand slice, which typically forces his opponents to hit up on a backhand of their own (and leaves them out of position), Nadal can get there to rip a forehand. (3) To fully break Nadal down in a rally, Federer needs to finish a lot of them at net. Again, it’s not his normal style. He’s more comfortable flowing around the baseline and putting together ground stroke combinations. Even on a hard court, Nadal successfully countered them with his strength and speed.
It was back to Vegas on Sunday. By now, the Tennis Channel looked like a real tournament: The weather was good, the stands were full, and there was a marquee singles matchup in the final: James Blake vs. Lleyton Hewitt. Blake broke through with his first win over the Aussie, an important milestone. The win also put him at a career-high No. 14. Blake did it the way he always does, by ripping ridiculous forehands. His backhand warmed-up as the match went on, but it still breaks down under pressure. And while I wish he could develop a rally ball on his forehand side, Blake’s one attempt at a safe, looping shot landed 20 feet long. He did much better when he ripped his forehand as hard as he could and it landed right on the baseline. Keep doing that, James, and everything will be all right.