(Davis Cup 2008 final) Nalbandian def. Ferrer 6-3, 6-2, 6-3
written: 1:12 a.m. on Saturday, Nov. 22, 2008

He is absolutely, absolutely amazing. I can't think of another player not named Federer that plays as well as he does at the net, and it's absolutely stunning. It's like it's impossible for him to miss a volley, or to leave his court open even a bit when he's at the net. He is AMAZING. He finds all these ridiculous angles when he's whacking his groundstrokes and they leave his poor opponent absolutely no room to manouvre, which is absolutely stunning. I can't even count the number of times he forced errors from Ferrer with his disgustingly acute and accurate angles. And his net play, oh my god his net play. I like my tennis varied, and I find players that run up and down the baseline really boring to watch, hence my dislike for Nadal and my lack of interest in Del Potro, and if Simon weren't so pretty I wouldn't care much for him too. Nalby, on the other hand, and much like Roger, is really quite a complete player too. He plays all-court - from the baseline, at the net; he plays all shots - double-handed backhand, the volley, drop shots, slice backhands.

He's soooo amazing. I swear I'm absolutely foaming at the mouth after watching that incredible match. It's been a while since I last got excited over a match that isn't played by Roger Federer, and seeing as how Roger was plagued with injuries and illness towards the end of the 2008 season which affected his game, it's been a while since I last got excited over a match, period. This one comes quite close to the amazing Masters Cup 3rd round against Murray, but unlike that one, this one wasn't heartbreaking or nerve-wrecking at all. It was straight-forward good, solid tennis, and it's so refreshing to watch a match with a player I enjoy without getting close to an emotional meltdown in the process.

The second service ace that clinched the match completely blew my mind too. The only person so far that I've seen serve an ace on the second serve is Roger Federer, when he had 2 match points. Nalby had three. No wonder.

DAVID NALBANDIAN IS SO SO SO SO SO SO SO AMAZING. His playing style reminds me of Roger's a lot, more so than Djokovic's. Of course, Roger still has a monopoly over the grace and elegance departments, but when it comes to having a wide repertoire of shots, Nalby's got it covered. The only thing that doesn't quite work for him is perhaps his first serve (he served at 54%!), but even then, his amazing shot selections and accuracy were enough to get him out of trouble and save break points.

Absolutely amazing, he is. I totally want that Argentina track jacket that the team is wearing! It's so pretty. And 54 winners, Nalby? That is just RIDICULOUS!

Interestingly, the Spanish team is wearing red and white, which is like, Switzerland's colours? I was bitching about this to my mom and brother and they both said that red and yellow is an ugly combination. But um, red and white is distinctively Suisse, please. And I'm pretty sure the Spanish players wore their true national colours against the Americans in the semi-final.

I love the Davis Cup! It's the only team tennis tournament of the entire season, and it's great to see the fans all revved up and psyched over supporting their home players. It's also great to see the players play tennis not for themselves, but for the team. It changes the mindset of the player, which then ups the stakes, which then makes the players produce quality tennis, which then makes ME as a viewer very happy. And the exhilaration that Nalby derived and displayed from winning the match was just...if it had been an individual tournament, it would have been obnoxious. But because it's the Davis Cup, it's perfectly right.

And I thought it was soooo awesome when Nalby was up 30-0 while serving for the match and the Argentine fans suddenly turned into football spectators and sang, "Ole, ole ole ole ole! Nalby, Nalby!" Awwww! I bet it was a great moment for him.

Oh my god I want to go to the US next March to support Switzerland in their tie against the US! The problem with Switzerland is that the only security they have is Federer. They do have Stanislas Wawrinka, but he's rather inconsistent and I'm not sure how he'd match up against the top American players, especially Andy Roddick. It's going to be sooo exciting.

Anyway, Argentina for the win please! Del Potro better do his job now and beat Feliciano Lopez.

Okay now I have to go back to studying bleah.

before sunrise // before sunset

Previously:
- - Tuesday, Aug. 29, 2017
I'm moving. - Sunday, Jul. 11, 2010
In all honesty - Tuesday, Jul. 06, 2010
What I want for my birthday... - Sunday, Jul. 04, 2010
On Roger's behalf. - Friday, Jul. 02, 2010