Wimbledon

Whether he wins or loses in London next week, this will still be Roger Federer's tennis year. No matter how big the buzz at the tour championships that start Sunday in their new, trendy digs by the River Thames, the truth is that the most significant trophies have been handed over. By reaching the finals of all four Grand Slam tournaments and by winning his first French Open and securing his record 15th major singles title, at Wimbledon, Federer has already become the indispensable man of 2009.

Maybe it's even Roger's finest year when you think about it   -Novak Djokovic

 

All the involuntary rest this season has given Rafael Nadal an unusually good feeling going into the season-ending ATP World Tour Finals. At a time of year when most players are nursing weary and often injured bodies after a long and bruising season, Nadal says things couldn't be better. "I'm in perfect shape, both mentally and physically," Nadal said Friday.

At the very last tournament of the season we could be sent home packing with three defeats   -Roger Federer

 

Andy Murray was left in the shade by Juan Martin del Potro this year as the gangly Argentine made his grand slam breakthrough although the Briton is confident his time will arrive soon. Del Potro, at 21 a year younger than Murray, stunned Rafael Nadal and then Roger Federer to win the U.S. Open in September meaning Murray is now the odd one out -- the only member of the world's top five without a major title on his CV. He gets a chance to prove his credentials in London over the next week when ...

My consistency this year has been superb. Physically, I've felt like I've been a lot better this year. I've got a better record against all the top players this year, so it has been my best year on tour without question.   -Del Potro

 

Wimbledon champion Roger Federer insists his friend Thierry Henry shouldn't be blamed for the controversial goal that sent France to the World Cup at the Republic of Ireland's expense. Henry has come in for heavy criticism after he clearly controlled a cross with his arm before setting up William Gallas to score the goal that gave France the 1-1 draw they needed to see off Ireland in Wednesday's World Cup play-off second leg in Paris. The incident has been compared to the infamous 'hand of ...  

T here has been a history of infamous tennis fathers, men who were either overly-meddlesome and/or abusive in their relationships with their daughters. The same has not been the case with tennis mothers but, if there is one, it would likely be Samantha Stevenson, mother of Alexandra Stevenson. Samantha gained notoriety in 1999 when Alexandra, just 18, reached the Wimbledon semi-finals and the story broke that her daughter's biological father was retired basketball great Julius Erving (a.k.a. Dr. J).  

The former BBC broadcaster Max Robertson, 94, has died in his home island of Guernsey. He presented the television antiques programme Going for a Song for 13 years, but he will be best remembered for his Wimbledon tennis commentaries. He was born in Dacca, Bengal but moved to England when he was seven years old, joining the BBC in 1946 after serving in the army during WWII.  

A GROUP of Queensland judges has spent almost $400,000 attending a controversial Australian-run legal conference held 20,000km away in Europe. Twenty of the 62 Supreme and District Court judges fled the state during the mid-winter break to attend the Australian Bar Association conference in France and the UK in the northern summer. Held between the first Ashes cricket Test and Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Championships, conference delegates were invited to join a walking sightseeing tour of Strasbourg to open the legal talkfest before it moved on to London.  

Nearly a year ago, Adam Helfant made a whirlwind December pilgrimage to meet some of his potential employers. First stop: Dubai for a rendezvous with Roger Federer at his training base. Next stop: Majorca for a get-acquainted chat with Rafael Nadal on his home island.

Where is it in the job description that you have to keep a high profile?   -Tony Godsick

 

Looking back, the 2000s have been one of the best decades in sports. There have been many upsets, comebacks, blowouts as well as countless Cinderella stories. However, individual athletes steal the show with their performances.