Julio Cesar was greeted by fans in Brazil despite being faulted for giving up the deciding goal against the Netherlands. The goal ended Brazil’s run at the World Cup, sending them home in the quarterfinals. The Brazilian crowds’ warmth was surprising, but Cesar couldn’t help but unleash the waterworks.
This just further exemplifies the differences between the United States and international soccer. When our players returned home after losing in the Round of 16, supporters probably swarmed them in dubious jubilation. For the Brazilian players, they can’t help but feel ashamed.
While Nadal’s recent French Open title again solidified himself as the top clay court player of his era, doubts remained whether or not another Wimbledon was in the cards. It was. Facing 12th-seeded Thomas Berdych, Nadal defeated the Czech today 6-3, 7-5, 6-4 to claim his second Wimbledon championship.
From ESPN.com:
Nadal broke Berdych four times and never lost serve in 15 service games.
It’s the second time Nadal has won the French Open and Wimbledon back-to-back. He is now 5-0 in his last Grand Slam finals.
With eight Grand Slam titles, Nadal joins a list of greats that includes Andre Agassi, Jimmy Connors, Ivan Lendl, Fred Perry and Ken Rosewall. He also has five French Open championships and one Australian Open title.
After ripping a crosscourt forehand passing shot on match point, Nadal collapsed on his back on the turf at the baseline and covered his face with his hands. After congratulating Berdych, Nadal leaped out of his chair and did a front somersault on the grass, rising to his feet with both fists clenched.
I’m skeptical to call Nadal the dominant player in men’s tennis, not because all of you will rip on me (I’m fine with that), but because we still need him to beat Roger Federer one more time in a Grand Slam. When Nadal and Federer squared off at Wimbledon in 2008, Nadal’s breakthrough victory alerted the world of his talent and justifiably shook Federer. Flash forward to January of 2009 and Nadal is defeating Federer in the Australian Open final, driving the point home further.
But directly after that, everything seemed to collapse. Nadal’s knees started to crumble and, even more surprising, Federer got better. After falling in the fourth round to Robin Soderling at the 2009 French Open, Nadal took heed of health concerns and withdrew from the upcoming Wimbledon. Federer, on the other hand, won both of those tournaments, surpassing Pete Sampras on the all-time Grand Slam list in the process.
Now Nadal is mowin’ em down once again, and his Wimbledon win today proves that he’s deserving of the world No. 1 recognition. What’s interesting to me is that Berdych beat Federer in the quarterfinals, but was thwarted in straight sets by Nadal in the final. Is there something we can glean from this about the stages of Federer and Nadal’s careers? You might not think so. I do. But like anyone else I think Nadal needs to win one more epic Grand Slam final between the two if he wants to deserve that extra praise.
The Marlins’ decision to keep Edwin Rodriguez as manager through the end of the year came about because ownership wants to see which managers are available after the season. Ozzie Guillen would be at the top of the Marlins’ list if he were available. …
It’s a little odd that the Tribune would have that sort of information hidden in an article and not provide more details as to why the Marlins want Ozzie. But maybe they don’t have any more information outside of that.
Guillen was a coach with the Marlins in 2003 when they won the World Series, so he has ties to Florida. There’s no doubt he could provide a spark for the Marlins young roster and he’s already proved that he can win. It wouldn’t be a bad fit.
One thing’s for sure, I would want front row seats to the first Ozzie-Hanley argument if Guillen does wind up in South Florida. What a fireworks display that would be.
The source said although James wanted the interview process to be finished by the Monday deadline, he may not decide on a franchise until later in the week. Previous reports had James making a decision by Monday, but the source said no specific reason was given for the delay.
With no guarantee the capped-out Mavericks can land the elite sidekick he seeks to keep Dallas relevant in the Western Conference, Nowitzki agreed Saturday night to give a hometown discount to the only team he’s ever known, reaching terms with owner Mark Cuban on what sources close to the talks say is a four-year deal worth $80 million.
That’s $16 million less than the $96 million maximum Nowitzki was eligible to receive and likely would have commanded had he been serious about shopping himself on the open market as an unrestricted free agent for the first time, given Nowitzki’s stature in the league as a former MVP and the fact that his game is aging well at 32.
Only in the NBA does a player sign a deal for $20 million per season and people say that he gave his team a ‘hometown discount.’ The extra $16 million would allow Mark Cuban to take on some additional contracts since the Mavs are perennially over the luxury tax.
From the start, it was clear that Nowitzki wasn’t going anywhere. Pundits talked about how he’d be a great fit here or there, or with this player or that player, but Nowitzki is a very loyal guy and Cuban has been good to him.
