Wimbledon Men’s Final: Nadal’s New Era vs Berdych’s Paradigm.

At the beginning of this year’s Wimbledon, there was some talk that perhaps Rafael Nadal should be allowed to open up play on the first Tuesday on Centre Court, a spot normally reserved for the defending Ladies’ Champion in lieu of Nadal not being able to defend his title run from 2008. And although that didn’t happen (and you know Serena Williams would have said something if it had and deservedly so) perhaps everything has worked it out as it should with Nadal returning to the finals again. And although he doesn’t need to win the title to prove he is the definitive No. 1 player in the world, another championship would perhaps signal the beginning of a new era. In his way is the return of a Czech player to the finals for the first time since Ivan Lendl back in 1987. But this time the Czech involved isn’t an “up and coming” player as touted by the media but, dare I say it, a veteran who’s finally become the moment and not the other way around.

Rather than get into the obvious facts that Tomas Berdych needs to serve lights out and find a way into the Nadal return games, I’d rather spend a little time on what this final means for the sport. After all, many, many people expected a repeat this year of Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal’s now classic 2008 final. But with Federer’s form finally coming back down to earth, there’s a mild possibility that neither player will ever meet up again in the Wimbledon finals. Maybe a semifinal or even a quarterfinal if Federer doesn’t stop his current slide in the rankings. Instead, we may now have to accept a new paradigm where five or six players could be favorites each time they enter a Grand Slam final and the names on the final day change depending on surface and who’s hot at the time.

Can Berdych, win or lose on Sunday, be part of that paradigm for the next few years? The signs point to yes and that’s saying something for a player that was long cited as “one to watch” but instead became one of those players, especially in Grand Slams, that always was considered “dangerous” in the fourth round or so when Berdych languished in the top 20′s or 30′s of the rankings, but always seemed to let the moment or injuries get to him on the biggest stages. If Berdych somehow wins, it would be a huge upset but also a severe chink in Nadal’s sealing the deal that he is the undisputed world No. 1. I have a feeling Nadal wants no part of this paradigm I speak of. That’s why Berdych will enter the Wimbledon final with less pressure than Nadal and that should allow Berdych the chance to swing away. But we’ll see how he’s nerve holds if he forces Nadal into a tiebreak or two.

After the craziest and longest fortnight many have experienced which included more five set matches than ever before (and yes that one that will be remembered forever), we’ve reached the end and perhaps the beginning as well. But the beginning of what? A new era where someone other than Roger Federer becomes the “face” of the sport to the outside world? Or an era where no one dominates and instead Grand Slam titles are won by different men at different times? Even if Nadal wins on Sunday, his era will depend on him and his health. If he does prove the old adage “mind over body” to be true, then this new era will be less graceful but a lot more physical and in your face. But we wouldn’t expect anything less from the Mallorcan matador.

Nadal in four sets.

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Tagged as: Rafael Nadal, Tomas Berdych