The Forgotten Sport

Here we are, just two weeks removed from the Los Angeles Lakers being completely dismantled by a clearly more talented Boston Celtics team. Just two weeks removed from Tiger Wood's fairy tale victory at the US Open, leading us to doubt his humanity yet again. And finally, here we are, three months removed from the birth of this website, and still not a single post about what appears to be our nation's forgotten sport.

Less than a month ago, Roger Federer made an embarrassing attempt to dethrone Rafael Nadal in the French Open final. In straight sets, Rafa captured a record-tying (Bjorn Borg) fourth straight French Open title, and showed the world that nobody, not even the great Roger, belongs in the same sentence as him when it comes to the red clay.

As we make the annual migration from clay to grass, the All-England Club offers us a handful of stories this year. Has Great Britain finally found new hometown hero in Andy Murray (who is actually Scottish, which is close enough for the desperate Brits) since the decline of Tim Henman? Are we in for another Federer Nadal Grand Slam final? Should we prepare for another All-Williams women's final? These are the questions that have dominated the Wimbledon headlines for the last week and a half. All the while, a forgotten giant of the tennis world has quietly disposed of seed after seed, including a dominant straight set victory over third seed Novak Djokovic.


Of the eight remaining quarterfinalists, Marat Safin is one of four who are unseeded. And while the experts still refuse to acknowledge the two-time Grand Slam champion as a real threat at this year's Wimbledon crown, a win in today's quarterfinal matchup against Spain's Feliciano Lopez will likely set up an intriguing semifinal matchup with Federer. I use the word intriguing with the 2005 Australian Open semifinals in mind, a match in which Safin and Federer produced what I believe to be one of the greatest battles this sport has ever seen.
Going into the match, Federer boasted a 26 match winning streak, and was seemingly invincible on the court. When the two emerged onto the asphalt on January 27, 2005, nobody gave a second thought as to who was expected to advance to the finals. Four and a half hours later, the tennis world was stunned to see Safin still standing after a 5-7, 6-4, 5-7, 7-6 (8-6), 9-7 ordeal. Safin went on to capture his second Grand Slam title by defeating local Aussie Lleyton Hewitt in four sets.

Andy Murray is playing the best tennis of his life. He managed to pull out an impressive five-set victory over Richard Gasquet, after being down two sets to none. Big deal. He has no chance against Rafa. Safin, however, does. And as the experts continue to debate whether Nadal has what it takes to defeat Federer in the finals, I will say this: Federer will not make it there. He will fall to Safin, who will go on to defeat Rafa en route to his third Grand Slam title. Mark my words. You heard it here first.