Roger Federer vs. Rafa Nadal

Roger vs. Rafa

Yankee’s vs. Red Sox, Dodgers vs. Giants, Patriots vs. Colts; Roger vs. Rafa; these two men have single handedly transformed the tennis world, taken a world by storm with their amazing level of play. Roger Federer and Rafa Nadal are the two best tennis players in the world today; both respectively holding the #1 ranked position at different times throughout the 2000’s. Rafa Nadal who at the time was ranked #5 in the world shocked the tennis world by beating Roger Federer on route to his first ever major title Defeating Mariano Puertat in the French Open in 2005.

This rivalry is a huge aspect of both men’s careers. Roger Federer had the most dominate run of any men’s tennis player of all time from 2004-2007, with an overall match record of 315-24. Rafa Nadal is the only active tennis player today who has a winning record against the 16-time world champion. In Roger’s quest to attain a Career Grand Slam, Rafa has been there to deny him of that privilege on two different occasions. All the while Rafa had started winning major titles himself. First capturing a French Open title in 2005 and then followed that up with another victory over Roger Federer at the French Open in 2006.
The rivalry has captured people from all over the world and when these two men step on the court against one another, people watch. When shots are hit people hold their breath and when titles are won people cry. Roger and Rafa, bitter rivals on the court but display the upmost respect towards each other.

Tennis is a gentleman’s game, and both of these men display a good-natured and gracious attitude towards each other on and off the court, showing no animosity towards each other only a high level of respect. Their rivalry is based on respect towards each other and what each other has accomplished throughout their respective careers. Federer is the winnings champion of all time, with 16 major titles. Rafa Nadal has 9 titles under his belt, along with an Olympic Gold Medal.

Their impact on today’s society can been seen not only through television ratings but the coverage of the sport as well. This rivalry between two tennis greats has generated more interest in the sport than any tennis rivalry in previous years. In 2008 their highly anticipated match up at Wimbledon drew record-breaking ratings for a tennis play across the continental United States and domestically in Europe. The match in 2008 was the moment when the world took notice of how great this rivalry really is. Rafa knocked off 6-time champion Roger Federer in dramatic fashion, in a five set tiebreaker, to capture his first ever Wimbledon Title.

Why is this rivalry so great? Every time these men step on the court against each other, you never know who is going to win, suspense is in the air, people hang off of each shot that is hit. People live and die by the points that are played, there is no rest for the weary when you watch these two tennis greats play. Why are we so intrigued by them? We as people always feel the need to separate ourselves from reality, we get draw in by these two players, putting ourselves in their shoes. It helps us break away from reality.

This rivalry has elevated the level of play in the tennis world to another level; it has created new stars and an excitement that has not been felt in a long time. If you look back at the all-time greats, no one has come close to the level of play that Roger and Rafa have displayed over the past couple of years. They have set the standard for excellence in tennis, winning major titles after major titles. They have changed the landscape of tennis, and they have brought the game to a whole new level, clothing lines, mass media commercials, they are not just stars in their respective countries but they have become international and global stars. Both Roger and Rafa respectively have gone past the persona of just being tennis players but they have become international celebrities.

I can guarantee you that not only we will never see a higher level of play amongst two outstanding athletes but we will never see such a profound cross-over into popular culture by two tennis players again. What we are experiencing now in the tennis world is something special, we are getting the best of both worlds, amazing level of play, exciting matches and the ability to follow our heroes off the court as well.

With all of this being said, too put it bluntly, Roger Federer is the best there is, the best there was and the best there ever will be, there is no debate about that.

The Seven Year Itch by Mary Talbot

I must acknowledge a sad fact of our generation- most people reading this have more than likely never seen the 1955 movie The Seven Year Itch, with Marilyn Monroe and Tom Ewell. You’ve probably never even heard of it. That being said, out of this movie came an image so iconic that although you may have never heard of the film itself, I would find it impossible to believe that you haven’t seen this picture. The real reason I’m writing about it is that it’s one of my favorite movies. I’ve watched it since I was a little girl, and I can quote lines from memory. I also find it interesting that an image so famous could have come from a now nearly obscure and outdated film.

The film opens on a steamy Manhattan summer day, as a man named Richard sees his wife and young son off on a trip to the seaside. It is, the narrator explains, a common practice for the working husbands of the city to send their families away for the hottest months while they remain behind to make the money. This results in, to put it delicately, much foul play by the smoking, drinking, cheating, and newly tattooed summer bachelors of New York. Richard, a naïve and goofy middle aged man with an imagination constantly in hyper drive, grits his teeth and avoids the many temptations that present themselves to him in his first day of freedom, insisting to himself that he will remain loyal, sober, and generally stay out of trouble. As he sits in his apartment, half heartedly attempting to get some work done this first night alone, he encounters a beautiful blonde girl he had seen in passing early in the day. Quickly, all of his resolutions go out the window, and he enters into a half imagined, always silly relationship with the nameless girl on the top floor.

In terms of turning windows into mirrors, one of the questions I had about this movie that intrigued me the most was what it was about the relationship between Marilyn Monroe and this married man that seemed so entirely innocent and fun. What I realized about myself through asking this, is that in any other real or fictional situation in a which a husband cheats on his wife, I would be utterly and entirely against it. I would judge the woman, I would judge the man, I would snap judge (and harshly judge) the whole situation. This question stuck out to me the most, I decided, because I felt differently in this movie than I would at almost any other time, and I wondered what it was about the characters that had this effect. What was it about Marilyn Monroe that made her seem like seem sexy, adorable, and sweet, rather than trampy or slutty? What was it about Tom Ewell that made him goofy and naïve rather than horrible or unfaithful? I think the answer lies in the innocence and humor that sugarcoats every scene of this movie. Richard’s character is made to seem as though he honestly just doesn’t know any better, the girl’s as though she’s just a little lonely and too cute to help herself, and the wife’s as though she knows her husband is a little ridiculous, but it’s just the way he is. All in all, the movie comes across as a playful romp rather than a shocking and heart wrenching portrait of adultery. It does help as well that they never share more than a kiss, but I think that it really has nothing to do with the seriousness of the action, and more with the way the movie was filmed and written.

Finally, I come to the portion of this blog in which I describe others points of view. The movie has seen mixed reviews. However, one thing that I found interesting is that is still being reviewed today, on sites like Rotten Tomatoes, just as it was over 50 years ago in the New York Times. When I asked around at CITYterm about the image of Marilyn standing over the subway vent with her white dress around her shoulders, Abby Cali said: “Marilyn Monroe is an icon of our society back in the 50’s and ’40s and that picture shows the era because it was the time of all the pinups and she’s innocence and seduction at the same time. She’s a sex symbol.” Wyatt Scruggs said that the picture “represents that she’s a sex symbol but she’s trying to stay classy because it’s a candid picture so it shows that she’s a sexual icon to many men and some women and she knows that, but she stills stays classy with the clothes she wears and all that.” Some people find this movie to be a bust, while others hail it as a classic, but either way, to me it will always be hilarious, iconic, and thoroughly excellent.