Tag Archives: London Olympics

Bellucci Earns Third Career Title at the Swiss Open…

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Thomaz Bellucci is proving that he’s no underdog…

The 24-year-old Brazilian tennis player upset top-seeded Janko Tipsarevic in the Swiss Open final on Sunday.

Thomaz Bellucci

Unseeded in the tournament, Bellucci came back after dropping the first set in a heartbreaking tiebreak to win 6-7 (6), 6-4, 6-2.

Bellucci was leading 6-1 in the first-set tiebreaker, before Tipsarevic reeled off seven points for the set. At 5-4 in the second, Bellucci broke the eighth-ranked Serbian’s serve to love to even the match.

In the final set, Tipsarevic saved two match points but double-faulted to present a third, which Bellucci won.

The victory earned Bellucci, currently ranked No. 60 in the world, his third career title and second at Gstaad. He won the clay-court event as a qualifier in 2009.

Meanwhile, Tipsarevic was denied a second straight title after winning on clay last week at Stuttgart, Germany, where he beat Bellucci in the semifinals.

Bellucci and Tipsarevic will compete in the London Olympics at Wimbledon.

Nadal & Djokovic Aiming to Break Another World Record…

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Move over Cristiano Ronaldo! Rafael Nadal is headed to Real Madrid’s soccer stadium… But don’t worry; he’s not planning to bend it like Beckham!

The 25-year-old Spanish tennis star, currently ranked No. 2 in the world, will go head-to-head against World No. 1 player Novak Djokovic in an exhibition match at Real Madrid’s Bernabeu Stadium on July 14. The Spanish football club’s pitch will be transformed into a tennis court, with the event taking place in the gap between Wimbledon and the London Olympics.

Rafael Nadal & Novak Djokovic

The reason: Well, Nadal and Djokovic—who currently have the record for the longest final in grand slam history—are hoping to attract 80,000 attendees in their ambitious quest to rewrite another record.

The showdown is the result of a partnership between two charities, the Real Madrid Foundation and the Rafa Nadal Foundation, and aims to raise money for disadvantaged children.

Djokovic and Spaniard Nadal made history at the Australian Open in January, when the Serb won his fifth grand slam title in a five-set epic match lasting almost six hours.

Now they hope to shatter the record for the largest turnout at an exhibition match — set in July 2010 when 35,681 people watched Kim Clijsters beat fellow former world No. 1 Serena Williams in Brussels.

Nadal, a Real Madrid supporter who tries to attend as many matches as possible, said he was thrilled to be taking part in the historic event.

“Back to practicing, very happy because the Rafa Nadal Foundation’s event has been confirmed at Bernabeu!” he announced on his Facebook page.

Nadal and Djokovic have won a combined 15 majors and have had one of the sport’s top rivalries of late. Djokovic has defeated Nadal in the last seven finals they’ve played, including in the last three Grand Slam tournaments—Wimbledon, U.S. Open and Australian Open.

Nadal’s Comeback Propels Spain to Davis Cup Title…

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In an all-Latino Davis Cup final, Spain’s Rafael Nadal outlasted Argentina’s Juan Martin del Potro to give his country its fifth title…

The 25-year-old former World No. 1 recovered from a dreadful start to beat del Potro 1-6, 6-4, 6-1, 7-6 (0) on Sunday on a day Nadal called “one of the most emotional” of his career.

Rafael Nadal Davis Cup Final

With del Potro firing a rash of forehand winners, Nadal suffered his most lopsided set defeat in the competition, with the Spaniard failing to hold his first four serves.

But Nadal starting finding his rhythm in the second set, just as Del Potro started misfiring.

Nadal managed to record one of his 35 winners to win the second set. He then cruised through the third set on course for the win.

Del Potro did stage a late comeback attempt by breaking Nadal four times in the fourth set to send it to a tiebreaker, where Nadal raced ahead without losing a single point before securing the victory with a beautiful forehand winner.

Spain's Rafael Nadal and team claim Davis Cup Championship

Spain’s players swarmed their teammate after he had dropped to the ground in celebration, while Del Potro exited the clay surface in tears for the second time in three days after losing Friday’s singles match to David Ferrer.

“After such a difficult year, this was a spectacular finale to the season,” said an emotional Nadal, a 10-time Grand Slam tournament champion who won the Davis Cup title for the third time in his career. “To win a final this way is very special.”

It’s Spain’s third title in four years. This year’s team consisted of Nadal, Ferrer, Feliciano Lopez and Fernando Verdasco.

Meanwhile, Nadal, who took gold in Beijing in 2008, says he won’t play in next year’s Davis Cup and will instead focus on defending his gold medal at the London Olympics.