bleungberg.com

Rafael Nadal has finally overhauled Roger Federer at the top of men’s  tennis after three years in the number two spot. No surprises there to many of us who’ve followed his progress over the past couple of months from the European clay-courts via the grass of London to the hard-courts of North America.

What is amazing though is the speed of his rise and the dramatic and sudden loss of form by Federer, who seems to be all at sea right now, with a second-round exit in Toronto, followed by a third-round loss in Cinncinatti to lesser opponents. This horrible loss of confidence by the Swiss player has been horrible to watch.

But Bleungberg remains of the opinion that his dethronement can only be good for tennis, and also for Federer himself. The pressure on him is lessened as the world number two - no longer will he be defending ranking points, chasing four-in-a-row in Melbourne or six-in-a-row at Wimbledon or whatever - though he still has the five-timer at the US Open to aim for and the small matter of an Olympic gold medal to play for before the summer’s out.

Next year, he should - hopefully - play better again, regroup, refocus, and concentrate on the only target that will matter to him: surpassing Pete Sampras’s all-time Grand Slam record of 14 wins.