Looking Back (FEB. 1) | Nadal vs. Federer
On Sunday, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer, the world's two best tennis players, faced off in an epic five-set match in the final of the Australian Open. Nadal, who holds a lifetime edge of 13-6 against Federer, solidified his position as the world's No. 1 player with a 7–5, 3–6, 7–6(3), 3–6, 6–2 victory.
For the two men, the match in Melbourne marked their seventh time meeting in a Grand Slam final and their highest-stakes contest yet. On the heels of their last match, an instant classic in the final of last year's Wimbledon, both players felt the pressure of living up to the standards of that legendary meeting. For Federer, Sunday's final presented an opportunity to win his 14th Grand Slam championship, thereby tying Pete Sampras' record of 13. For Nadal, the final marked a chance to win his first-ever Grand Slam championship held on hard courts.
Federer, who looked sharp throughout the tournament — a marked contrast to last year when he was still battling the effects of mononucleosis — started out the match strong and was up a break leading 4-2 in the first set. But Nadal fought back to take the first set and gain control of the match. Despite Federer's best efforts, the Spaniard proved too tough.
With the French Open — Nadal's best event — as the next major, Nadal's prospects for 2009 continue to look bright.
Looking Ahead (feb. 7) | Women's Basketball at Amherst
The women's basketball team will try to keep a four-game winning streak going as it heads into arguably its most important weekend of the regular season.
First, the Jumbos will take on 15-3 Trinity, which currently stands at fifth in the NESCAC, on the road on Friday. The real test for the Jumbos, however, should come the next day, when they travel to Amherst to take on the nationally ranked No. 9 Lord Jeffs, who sit behind only Tufts in the conference standings.
Last year, Amherst came to Medford and beat Tufts 64-62 in dramatic fashion during the regular season, inbounding with little time to spare on the final play and beating the buzzer on a game-winning layup. A month and a half later, the Jumbos and Lord Jeffs again faced off, this time in the NESCAC Championship game. Unfortunately for Tufts, while the ending was less dramatic, it was no less heartbreaking, as Amherst came away with a 59-53 victory to earn the conference title.
A lot has changed for both teams since their last meeting, however. Tufts graduated its leading scorer and rebounder from last year, Khalilah Ummah (LA '08), while Amherst lost its top two scorers and rebounders, along with its starting point guard. Hopefully for the Jumbos, that will be enough to swing the rivalry in their favor this time around.
