Monte Carlo Smackdown: Rafael Nadal Negates Fernando Verdasco

By
at Internationaled.org

Published: April 18, 2010

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For most people, the final on Sunday in Monte Carlo would have been as dry and unappetizing as Zwieback toast because, let’s face it, Fernando Verdasco was not up to the task of stopping Rafael Nadal’s climb back onto the throne in his very own clay-court kingdom.

It was a smackdown of gigantic importance for someone in the top 10 of men’s professional tennis, which Verdasco will be again on Monday.

In fact, the Spaniard wore that same flummoxed expression that Roger Federer wore during his French Open final with Nadal back in 2008, when the mighty Swiss won only four games in three sets, 6-1, 6-3, 6-0.

The pain suffered in such a defeat is soul-wrenching. It renders you powerless, feeling less than human as some supernatural force deadens your ability to think and react.

Some have argued that it is easier to lose a lopsided contest than a close-fought, nip-and-tuck battle. But the sheer enormity of the defeat must rattle the confidence meter, sending it plummeting to ground zero.

How do you come back from such a loss after battling your way into a prestigious final?

The flamboyant Verdasco lost the first set at love—a bagel of epic proportions. The crowd sat in stilled wonder as the match unfolded and Nadal’s dominance became hypnotic—like watching a train wreck in slow motion.

Nadal’s serve licked the lines and he sliced the ball with so much spin you expected the crowd to burst into song—singing along as they followed the bouncing ball doing flip-flops in the air before landing in another far corner.

The fact is that it probably did not matter who was standing across the net during this final. No one was going to take this championship away from Nadal. He was on a mission to reestablish his clay credentials.

In all Verdasco was able to win one game—one game out of 13. Even winning a point became an all...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Tennis

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