Rafa Dethroned! Novak Djokovic Wins His First Wimbledon Championship

Novak Djokovic walked onto Centre Court at Wimbledon today assured that come Monday, he would be number one on the world. He also knew that had he lost to Rafael Nadal, most observers would consider his ranking to not be an indication of the true state of the men's game. Djokovic stepped onto the court today and dethroned the two time Wimbledon champion, doing it with a relentless attack that took Nadal completely out of his game. If it weren't for that magical day in Paris when Roger Federer broke his streak, we would be looking at a potential grand slam and the best season in the history of tennis. Regardless, Djokovic is clearly number one in the world, and this performance was by far the biggest win of his career, defeating a player who had not lost at Wimbledon since 2007. It wasn't the best tennis these two have produced, but in terms of  drama and importance, this match was captivating. After the jump, we'll look at this match set by set.

Number One vs. Number Two: Previewing the Dream Final

With all due respect to the greatest player of all time, Roger Federer, most tennis pundits were looking forward to a final that pitted current world number one Rafael Nadal and future world number one as of two days from now, Novak Djokovic. This is the match many were anticipating at Roland Garros, but as we all know, Roger Federer ruined those plans. Now they will face off in a major final again, and ironically, Djokovic would probably have had a better shot to dethrone Nadal at Roland Garros. Djokovic's movement on the grass is significantly weaker than his movement on clay and hard courts. That is the main thing to look for. If Djokovic is able to track down Nadal's deep shots, then he can defeat him. If not, then it might be a long and grueling match for Djokovic. After the jump, we'll look at the match-up, stroke by stroke

Dream Gentlemen's Final is Set: Djokovic vs. Nadal, 1 vs 2

The final is set on the Gentlemen's side of the 2011 Championships. It got there in a roundabout sort of way, but it's here. Perhaps the best player not to have been talked about during the fortnight, Novak Djokovic, defeated Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in a captivating 4 set match. Rafael Nadal, for his sake, defeated Brit Andy Murray in a less than thrilling four-setter match to reach his second consecutive Wimbledon final. With Djokovic's win, he will become world number one on Monday when the new rankings come out. This will be the first player not named Nadal or Federer to become number one since Andy Roddick in 2003. We'll have more about that in future posts, but after the jump we'll look at each match individually.

A Spaniard, Frenchman, Serb, and a Scot Walk into a Bar: Previewing the Gentlemen's Semifinals

Tomorrow the All England Club will play host to the two best players in the world, the best Brit in the world who's the world number three, and arguably the hottest player in this tournament. Needless to say, it will be a great day of tennis. First up on Centre Court, the player who knocked out six time champion Roger Federer, Jo-Wilfried Tosnga plays Novak Djokovic, world number two who is 42-1 for the year. After that, in the main event, world number one and defending champion Rafael Nadal plays top ranked Brit Andy Murray, who is having a great tournament. With the roof, there is no chance that any of these matches will be delayed,and thus, we are guaranteed an amazing day of tennis. After the jump, we'll look at each match and give predictions.

Semis Completed: Sharapova vs. Kvitova in Final

I like women's tennis. I really do. But today's semifinals were, to no one's fault in particular, for lack of a better term, flat. We'll have a post up later that will talk about that more in depth, but the final for the Ladies' Singles Championship is set. Petra Kvitova will face 2004 champion and 3 time major winner Maria Sharapova on Saturday. After the jump, we'll look at each match individually.

Tsonga Shocks Federer in Historic Upset; Semifinals Set

178-0. That was Roger Federer's record coming into today when he has won the first two sets in a major. For two sets, it looked as if he would have no troubles with Jo Wilfried Tsonga, the talented Frenchman who has shown amazing talent but has come up short due to injuries and not quite using the immense talent he has. Federer broke in Tsonga's first service game and won the first set comfortably. The second set proceeded without any breaks, and while Federer won the tiebreak handily, 7-3, the pattern for the rest of the match was set. Tsonga elevated his game while Federer's evened out. Tsonga began to hit the ball much harder, while Federer wasn't matching his increase in intensity. The final three sets were oddly similar, and anti-climactic. Tsonga broke early in all of the three final sets, and Federer never could even get a whiff on the Tsonga serve. For context, Federer had only one break point the entire match, and that was in the first set where he broke Tsonga. In the final four sets, Federer had zero break points, and only a couple of times did he reach 30-all. It was by far the biggest win in Tsonga's career. That wasn't the only exciting match today. After the break, we'll look at the other three quarterfinal matches.

Previewing the Gentlemen's Quarterfinals

After a Maniac Monday that saw dramatic tennis all over the grounds of the All England Lawn Tennis Club, eight gentlemen are left, and after tomorrow the final four will be set. The Big 4, Nadal, Djokovic, Federer, Murray are all left, and they are joined by a cast of characters in their respective quarterfinal berths. The big storyline going into the quarterfinals is whether or not there will be a repeat of Paris, where Nadal played Murray and Federer snapped Djokovic's insane win streak. Also, in Melbourne, 3 out of the four made it to the semifinals and back at last year's US Open, where 3 out of the 4 made it. Joining them are the American Mardy Fish, Spaniard Feliciano Lopez, Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, and the most surprising out of all of them, 18 year old Australian Bernard Tomic. After the jump, we'll preview each quarterfinal.

Blow it Up: The Ladies Draw is Wide Open after Deluge of Upsets

For the second straight major tournament, there are none of the top three seeds on the ladies side in the quarterfinals. Not only that, but today, both of the Williams sisters were knocked out today as well. Serena Williams was defeated in two very tight sets 6-3, 7-6 (7) by 2007 finalist Marion Bartoli. Immediately afterwards, her sister Venus was trounced by Tsvetana Pironkova, who defeated her last year as well. To blow the draw up further, Caroline Wozniacki lost to Dominka Cibulkova 7-5 in the third after winning the first 6-1 but losing the second set tiebreaker 7-5. It was a heartbreaking loss for the number one ranked woman. After the jump, we'll look at what else happened today on the ladies side and preview the quarterfinals, which will take place tomorrow.

Big Monday is Upon Us: The Second Best Day in Tennis

The two best days in tennis are by far are Super Saturday at the United States Open with the two men's semifinals and the women's final and Big Monday at the All England Lawn Tennis Club. On this day, all of the gentlemen's and ladies' 4th Round matches. 8 matches are played on the gentlemen's side, 8 on the ladies. It is a tennis fan's dream, with great matches taking place everywhere in the complex. After the jump, we'll look at four matches on each side to watch. We'll also have predictions at the end of the article.

Comparing the Championships and Roland Garros

Every year on the tennis calender, after Roland Garros, the players make a radical shift away from the dirt of Spain, Italy, and France and onto the regal lawns of England. A comparison between the two seasons and the two major events that cap off the respective seasons naturally arises. The differences are striking. The red clay and the green grass. The striking colors of the players' attire matched against the deep red of the court and the simple, all-white dress code that blend in with the green grass. All of these are magnified in each of their respective majors. Roland Garros and the Championships at Wimbledon. After the jump, we'll compare the two majors.

Previewing the 3rd Round: Matches to Watch

The second round of the 2011 Wimbledon Championships was much more exciting than expected, and a few matches are left to be decided. However, with the third round beginning tomorrow, here are three matches on both the ladies and gentlemen's sides that are very much worth watching.

Previewing the Gentlemen's Second Round

The first round is just a few matches short of being complete, and now the second round will begin. For the top seeds, there aren't too many possible upsets that look plausible, but looking past them there are a few intriguing match-ups. After the jump, we'll look at four matches to watch on the gentlemen's side.

Looking at Round One

128 men and women started play on Monday at the 125th edition of the Championships, and now only 64 of each remain. Well, a bit more than that are left, because of rain on Monday, but the second round will begin tomorrow, and all of the key first round matches are finished. It was a rather uneventful first round on the gentlemen's side, with all of the top seeds advancing rather easily. The only slight hiccup was Robin Soderling, the 5th seed, needing four sets to defeat Halle runner-up Phillip Petzschner and Andy Murray losing the first set before taking the next three 6-4, 6-0, 6-0. On the ladies's side, there was much more drama. Serena Williams, defending champion here, and Vera Zvonareva, the second seed, both needed three sets to advance into the second round. Francesca Schiavone also needed three sets to advance. There were no memorable matches like last year's 70-68 match, and the weather made it difficult for the best tennis to come through, but things are set up nicely for the second round, which we'll preview in a later post.

The Big 3 and the Brit: The Preview of the 2011 Gentleman Singles Championships at Wimbledon

All eyes at Wimbledon will be on the top 4 seeds, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, and Roger Federer and Andy Murray. Rafael Nadal is the defending champion at SW19, and him and Roger Federer have combined to win all of the titles since Federer won in 2003. Those two have to be the clear favorites, especially because they both reached the final at Roland Garros. The two other contenders are very fascinating, with Novak Djokovic being the hottest player on tour, beating Nadal four times this spring and beating Federer twice. He was felled by Federer in French Open semifinals, but he's still incredibly dangerous. Finally, the fourth seed, Andy Murray, is the highest ranked player from Great Britain and by far the best chance to win a major on either side. He is carrying the flag, so to speak and for further analysis of Murray, check out this post. Nevertheless, it should be a fantastic Championships, with many other dangerous top players lurking right below the top 4 seeds. Tomas Berdych, who is the defending champion, Robin Soderling, former quarterfinalist here, and Andy Roddick, three time finalist are all players who have the pedigree to make a run and potentially give a huge scare to the top guys. After the jump, we'll look at the draw, quarter by quarter, and we'll have predictions.

They're Back! The Williams Sisters Return to Wimbledon: Looking at the Wimbledon Ladies' Singles Draw

The 2011 Championships start on Monday, and all eyes on the Ladies' side will be focused on Serena and Venus Williams. Combined winners of 9 of the last 11 Championships played, they by far have the most pedigree of any women's player on tour by a large margin. However, big questions are lingering over them entering this tournament. Serena is playing her second tournament since winning last year, and the first one was last week in Eastbourne, where she lost to last year's finalist Vera Zvonareva in a tight 3 set match in which she was serving for the match in the second set. Venus is only playing her second tournament since she had to withdraw from the third round of the 2011 Australian Open. Their history tells us a run is possible, but their lack of match play due to injury suggests they will have to struggle to make it through this tournament. Either way, they will command all of the attention on the ladies' side, and this overshadows the fact that this is a wide open draw. As many as 8 ladies have a legitimate shot at winning, and, in direct comparison to 2011 Roland Garros, no one is talking about the world's number one, Caroline Wozniacki. After the jump, we'll have the full preview of the draw, quarter by quarter.