It took three sets, but Rafael Nadal secured the victory over Roger Federer at the Hamburg Masters 5-7, 7-6(3), 6-3. Rafa’s just ridiculously good on clay and that’s really all there is to say about it.

I am glad Rafa rose to the occassion though. He’s been battling a few foot injuries, and he’s spent a lot of time on the court, but nothing shuts up naysayers like winning such an important tune-up tournament for the French Open.

For very obvious reasons, Rafa is going to be the favorite to win Roland Garros. Even though he’s not 100% healthy and the clay season seems to have been especially exhausting (granted, for everyone), Nadal is still going to be topping the charts as the one to beat.

Rafa now holds an 8-1 record against Federer on clay and a 10-6 overall record. The numbers don’t lie, my friends, and those numbers speak to just how talented Rafa really is.

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Rafael Nadal holds his trophy after beating Roger Federer in the Hamburg Masters final.

What a see-saw match for Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal in the semis of the Hamburg Masters…with so much at stake too! A No. 2 ranking on the line, the second seed for the French Open, bragging rights…and my boy Rafa pulled through.

Rafa took the first set in a tightly contested 7-5 struggle. Novak came back and blew Rafa off the court with a 6-2 second set, but Rafa turned it back around and handed Novak a dose of his own medicine and won the third set at 6-2 after an agonizing struggle for match point.

Obviously, you have to give Nadal the edge whenever he’s playing on clay. I don’t care who he’s playing or even if he winds up losing the match, you’ve got to give the edge to Nadal when it comes to clay court tournaments. He proved that today in a highly-touted match against Djokovic, and he came through with the goods.

And with Roger Federer in the finals after breezing past Andreas Seppi 6-3, 6-1, it should be a good final. But I’m still going to give Rafa the edge…despite the fact that Federer is in the hunt for his fifth title here, that he had a much easier semifinal match and that he’s number one. Sometimes numbers just don’t mean a whole lot, ya know?

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Rafael Nadal went three sets in his victory over Novak Djokovic at the Hamburg Masters.

Roger Federer is cruising, folks, and that’s a dangerous thing for everyone else on the tour. Luckily for everyone else, these days it seems to be a less daunting task to tap the brakes and get the King off that cruise control.

Federer is into the semifinals of the Hamburg Masters after dispatching Fernando Verdasco 6-3, 6-3. Federer is the defending champion but after he faces an unseeded opponent in the semis (either Nicolas Kiefer or Andreas Seppi)…and providing he can get through that match…he will likely face either Novak Djokovic or Rafael Nadal. Both of those players will give Federer problems.

Roger has also won this tournament four times, and if he wins here, it could give him a good boost into the French Open. But you know what’s weird? There’s uncertainty. I think a year ago or a few months ago if I was writing about this, I wouldn’t have put in the clause “providing he can get through that match”. I - along with the rest of the tennis population - would have taken it as gospel truth that he was going to get through the match.

Tis the beautiful thing about tennis!

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Roger Federer returns a shot to Fernando Verdasco en route to winning at the Hamburg Masters.

In the wake of Justine Henin’s retirement earlier today, everything else pales in comparison. Even the fact that Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal are still going strong in the hunt for the Hamburg Masters title.

Federer blew past Jarkko Nieminen 6-1, 6-3 to reach the third round. Nadal struggled a bit with Potito Starace but finally got the W 6-4, 7-6(8-6).

Actually that’s not that interesting. But this is interesting. In James Martin’s Viewpoint column on Tennis.com, he talks about the hype surrounding the “looming” shake-up at the top of the men’s tour. And then he points out that the statistics actually don’t show that…Roger, Rafa and Novak are all just about where they were last year, give or take a loss or two.

Interesante, no?

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Roger Federer lifts his racket after his victory over Jarkko Nieminen at the Hamburg Masters.