
Austalian Open - Men's Third Round
1 Rafael Nadal d Bernard Tomic - 62 75 63
Don't let that scoreline fool you - this was tougher than it looks.
In fact, Tomic raced to a 4-0 lead in that 2nd set and should have taken it.
Rafa didn't play at his best. He looks like he may still have a flu hangover.
Rafa, aptly: I have to play a bit better if I want to get to the quarterfinals.
And he will need to get by Marin Cilic, who after a 5-setter may be tired.
Marin won their only match - in at Beijing in 2009: 61 63.
That was a different and rising Marin. And that was autumn Rafa...
Also, ESPN ran a lovely video last night: Behind the Scenes with Rafa.

Photos: From yesterday. The top was at the Nike Polo Van.
The bottom he posted to his Facebook captioned:
The shoe that Tuts gave me with my name.
All my team have one with their names. Thanks Tuts!
Rafael Nadal Goes Grocery Shopping in London as He Prepairs for Wimbledon
I wonder if he's a bargain shopper?
Earlier today Rafa updated his Facebook with this photo captioned:
I just arrived in Britain! And I’m doing the grocery shopping. Getting ready.
The defending Wimbledon champ was named the top seed this afternoon.
He's been to 4 straight finals - winning 2: '08 & '10. He did not play in '09.
This will be Rafa's 7th time at SW19 and he has a W/L record of 29-4.
He is looking for his 3rd Roland Garros-Wimbledon sweep: '08 & '10.
All this and he has only just turned 25.
Posted at 12:38 PM in Commentary, Facebook, Grand Slam Tennis, Mens Tennis, Preview, Rafael Nadal, Wimbledon | Permalink | Comments (0)
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