Happy Ending for Rafael

He's Back!

In the figurative dark and at the end of a long and winding road that led to Estadio Olimpico in Seville, Rafael Nadal at long last found the light, winning the Davis Cup for both Spain and himself.

This tennis year has finally ended, just twenty three days before it's set to begin again and six months since Nadal's last win, a time that was filled with frustration, anxiety and most importantly doubt. What was most striking in both of Nadal's victories against Argentina, and particularly the title clinching match against Del Potro was his fight, his passion, and something noticeably absent since his French Open triumph in June; true joy.

2011 was a great year by anybody's standards, except maybe Nadal. He played in three of the year's four Grand Slam finals, won three titles including the French Open and the Monte Carlo Masters for a record breaking seventh time. Yet it was his failures, not his success that were foremost on his mind over the last six months. Losses on his beloved clay followed by multiple defeats on grass that shook Nadal to his core. It is now up to him to figure out a way back, back to the player he was before he let the doubt in, back before he new how to lose, back before the rest of the field believed they could win.

For today though, the joy and the belief returned and we got to glimpse Nadal's way back. Maybe this Davis Cup win will be the springboard to even more success. The same springboard Novak Djokovic used last year, and perhaps this victory is the start of wins that define him instead of losses that defeat him. Tennis needs this Nadal, Djokovic needs this Nadal and most importantly Nadal needs him as well.

We at TNC believe the trivalry with Djokovic and Federer will reach it's apex in 2012 and their battles will define the tennis year. Nadal is too good and too young not to rise again, and if this win for his country has proved anything to him, it's that even in his nadir, he can summon the courage and the will to win. And knowing that is his way back.

Sportsman of the Year - Djokovic Please

2011 was about one player and one player only, and one day before Sports Illustrated announces its Sportsman of the Year, we at TNC are hoping that, finally tennis gets it due. It wasn't just Novak's win-loss percentage, which Federer fans will argue doesn't match Fed's best season; it's the entire prose that makes up Djokovic's unlikely story and incredible rise.

There are three facts about this tennis season, that should make the player know to fans as Nole, the 2011 Sportsman of the Year.

The first is the fact that Novak rose from the ashes of 2010 (if number 3 can be called ashes) and dominated the two guys who have invariably been called the greatest players of all time, compiling a 10-1 head-to-head record with Federer and Nadal and a confounding 21-4 record against the ATP top 10. It's the fact that Djokovic won 3 Grandslams (2 more than his career total to that point), 5 Masters titles (equaling his career total in a single year). It's the fact that he came into 2011 with an 0-5 record in finals against Rafa Nadal and left 2011 owning a 6-5 career head-to-head, including two wins in Grand Slam finals. And it's the fact that he won 10 of is 28 career titles in a single season. It was such a prolific season from every perspective and despite the statistics, the quality of his 2011 campaign just cannot be surpassed.

The second fact is that Novak brought tennis back into the sports conversation. As much as tennis fanatics loved the Fedal era, and as much as sportswriters waxed poetically about their rivalry, the Fed/Nadal story line had grown stale in the larger arena of big-time pro sports. Djokovic's rise was so startling, that winning streak so extreme, the domination so complete (all surfaces, all continents, all opponents) even the most main stream media focused their attention and headlines on tennis. The attention of main stream media, particularly in the U.S. is vital for the growth of a sport that has increasingly been disappearing from the North American air waves. The Djoker-effect will continue to peak interest in 2012. How will Nadal respond? Will a late season charge by Murray and Federer change the story line for 2012? Can the rest of the ATP solve the djoker-naught?

Finally, the third reason is that forehand...

...double match point down against Federer, fifth set of the US Open semifinal and Nole hits a shot for the ages, eventually breaking back in a critical 10th game and breaking the heart of the Swiss Maestro. The shot was so unfathomable and the comeback so unlikely, in a microcosm the match was the 2011 tennis season and it defined everything about Djokovic's heart, guts and mind in 2011 and it is the reason he should be 2011's Sportsman of the Year.

It's only a matter of hours until we find out whether tennis will gets its due for the first time in 35 years. It would be a great honour for Djokovic and confirm his real impact on our sport. The historical place of Novak Djokovic remains to be written, but for 2011, the unlikely champion from a war-torn but resilient and patriotic nation is absolutely the King of Sport.