consolations of the successes of Nadal at the French Open and Wimbledon and the victory of the Spanish national team at the football World Cup remain. Both Nadal and the Spanish football team dominate their respective arenas. Nadal is a physical phenom who also has mental strength that is almost beyond belief, allied to an excellent serve and backhand not to mention a forehand that must be seen to be believed. The Spanish NT have a style that is adored by the purists and singular players that are considered the best in their respective positions - Xavi, Iniesta, Villa, Puyol and even their captain, Casillas.
Nadal scored the first major successes for Spain in 2010, reclaiming his French Open crown with a dominance that made it seem as if he had mistakenly been entered into the boy's French Open. The spin and bounce that his high forehand produces pushes everyone far behind the baseline, forcing them into defence and allowing him to win easy points. His Wimbledon title
, which in his mind he was defending after being forced to miss the 2009 championships with injury, was more difficult. He was taken to five sets twice and had to produce his absolute best tennis to beat Andy Murray in the semi-final. His demolition of Tomas Berdych in the final was not perhaps the greatest exhibition of tennis but it was a masterclass in mental strength and control. After the first six games would go to serve with little drama bar the odd break point, Nadal would raise his game to a level that Berdych could not sustain. The final was won in three sets, Nadal confirming his status as the number one tennis player in the world and possibly one of the greatest ever. Pundits predicted that he would go on to dominate in a similar vein to Federer, even while Federer still remains on a tennis court.
, which in his mind he was defending after being forced to miss the 2009 championships with injury, was more difficult. He was taken to five sets twice and had to produce his absolute best tennis to beat Andy Murray in the semi-final. His demolition of Tomas Berdych in the final was not perhaps the greatest exhibition of tennis but it was a masterclass in mental strength and control. After the first six games would go to serve with little drama bar the odd break point, Nadal would raise his game to a level that Berdych could not sustain. The final was won in three sets, Nadal confirming his status as the number one tennis player in the world and possibly one of the greatest ever. Pundits predicted that he would go on to dominate in a similar vein to Federer, even while Federer still remains on a tennis court.The Spanish NT play with a style that they call 'tiki-taki', which basically means that they keep the ball with quick, short passes, probing and waiting for the right moment to strike, although they are not averse to a counter attack should the opportune moment present itself. This style has been praised by many, especially English journalists who are used to seeing their players aimlessly smash the ball forward as well a
s playing 'Hollywood' balls from one side of the pitch to the other. As one journalist whose name I do not actually know said, possibly, when asked why the English players failed when they did so well for their clubs "At their clubs they have Fernando Torres and Didier Drogba to pass to". Quite.
s playing 'Hollywood' balls from one side of the pitch to the other. As one journalist whose name I do not actually know said, possibly, when asked why the English players failed when they did so well for their clubs "At their clubs they have Fernando Torres and Didier Drogba to pass to". Quite. Despite losing their first game to Switzerland where Spain were as poor as I have seen them in quite some time, Spain went on to claim the World Cup, conceding just two goals in the process. Despite Fernando Torres being generally awful, from missing open goals to getting injured in the final minute of the World Cup, Spain managed to win the Cup without being at their best. After switching to a 4-3-3 that better fitted the sensibilities of the players, a Spanish victory looked ominous. They might not have been beating teams like Argentina 4-0 but there was a something inevitable in how they were able to control games and always looked more likely to score. Like Nadal, they had the ability to wow the crowd and at many moments they did just that, but when crunch time came they were able to up their game. Their performance raised as their opponent's level did. Although it can be argued that the Netherlands had the better chances in the first ninety minutes of the final, Spain saved those chances, the Dutch did not miss.
In essence, an incredible Spanish sporting summer, crowned by the first ever Spanish World Cup win, can be summed up as follows - sometimes exhilarating, always excellent and never lacking in belief, confidence or motivation. It has been a staggering show of what is required at the top level, doing what nobody else can do some of the time, doing what everyone can do better than them most of the time and believing in your ability to do so all of the time.
enhorabuena, Espana!
