backhand into the net to get broken by Novak

NEW YORK -- With the 55th and last swing on the longest of many long points in the U.S. Open final, Rafael Nadal pushed a backhand into the net to get broken by Novak Djokovic. It could have been the beginning of the end for many players. Not for Nadal, who is as resilient as they come. A year after watching the Flushing Meadows title match on TV at home with a bad left knee, he is fit as can be -- and, just maybe, better than ever. The No. 2-ranked Nadal emerged with his 13th Grand Slam title, and second at the U.S. Open, by withstanding No. 1 Djokovics similar brand of hustle-to-every-ball style and pulling away Monday to a tense, taut 6-2, 3-6, 6-4, 6-1 victory. "This season is probably the most emotional one in my career. I felt that I did everything right to have my chance here," said Nadal, who dropped to the court and rolled over on his stomach, crying, after the last point. "I have to be almost perfect to win." Hard to believe this is the same Nadal who missed seven months with a knee injury, but was able to cover every inch of the court, tracking down shot after shot from Djokovic. Hard to believe this is the guy who used to be considered a clay-court specialist, but is 22-0 on hard courts in 2013. "I never thought something like this could happen," Nadal said. "I feel very lucky about what happened since I came (back). Its true that I worked, but even like this you need luck to be where I am today." He and Djokovic started in sunlight and finished at night, a 3-hour, 21-minute miniseries of cliffhangers and plot twists with a pair of protagonists who inspired standing ovations in the middle of games. There was no quit in either of them, during points that lasted 15, 25, even more than 50 strokes. Those rallies went so long, rarely over when they appeared to be, and spectators often shouted out during the course of play, prompting Nadal to complain to the chair umpire. "Its what we do when we play against each other, always pushing each other to the limit," Djokovic said. "Thats the beauty of our matches and our rivalry, I guess, in the end." This was their 37th match against each other, the most between any two men in the Open era, and Nadal has won 22. It also was their third head-to-head U.S. Open final in the last four years. Nadal beat Djokovic for the 2010 title, and Djokovic won their rematch in 2011. They know each others games so well, but in the end, it was Nadal who was superior. "He was too good. He definitely deserved to win this match today and this trophy," Djokovic said. "Obviously disappointing to lose a match like this." Djokovic, who won the Australian Open in January, will hold onto his No. 1 ranking for the time being. But its clear to everyone who the top player in tennis is at the moment. Nadal is 60-3 in 2013 with 10 titles, including at the French Open, which made him the first man with at least one Grand Slam trophy in nine consecutive seasons. The 27-year-old Spaniards total of 13 major championships ranks third in the history of mens tennis, behind only Roger Federers 17 and Pete Sampras 14. Nadal has won a record eight titles at the French Open, two each at the U.S. Open and Wimbledon, and one at the Australian Open. "Thirteen Grand Slams for a guy who is 27 years old is incredible," said Djokovic, who owns six himself. "Whatever he achieved so far in his career, everybody should respect, no question about it." Nadal no longer wears the strips of white tape he once used to bolster his left knee, and the way he covered the court against Djokovic -- switching from defence to offence in a blink -- proved that while he says he still feels pain in that leg, he definitely does not have problems moving around. "The hardest part is the pain, always," Toni Nadal, Rafaels uncle and coach, told The Associated Press. "You have pain, and you play. But the problem is you never know if you can run so fast, like before, or if you can play against the best players. From one day to (the next), its difficult, always." Nadal sure has managed to hide it well. He improved to 8-3 against Djokovic in Grand Slam matches, including a thriller of a semifinal at the French Open, which Nadal won 9-7 in the fifth set after trailing. These two also played the longest Grand Slam final in history, a nearly six-hour struggle that left both needing to sit in chairs during the ceremony after Djokovics victory at the 2012 Australian Open. This time, Nadal was relentless from shot to shot, yes, and from point to point, too, but what might have been most impressive was the way he stayed steady when Djokovic recovered from a rough start and began asserting himself. At the outset, Djokovic was his own worst enemy on many points, a touch or two off the mark. Nadal claimed 12 of the last 14 points in the first set, with Djokovic looking almost bored. The world saw this sort of listless, lacklustre Djokovic two months ago in the final at Wimbledon, where Nadal had exited a Grand Slam tournament in the opening round for the only time in his career. That time, Djokovic went through a difficult semifinal -- at 4:43, the longest in Wimbledon history -- and barely put up much resistance in a straight-set loss to Andy Murray two days later. In New York, Djokovic was coming off another four-hour semifinal victory, and the key stat in the first set Monday was that he made 14 unforced errors, 10 more than Nadal. There were no surprising or innovative tactics from Nadal. In the simplest of terms, he reached nearly every ball Djokovic delivered, and Nadals replies nearly never missed the intended spot, accented by his huge uppercut of a swing and loud grunts of "Aaaah!" By matchs end, Djokovic had made 53 unforced errors, Nadal only 20. "Credit to my opponent. He was making me run," Djokovic said. "I had my ups and downs." The Serbs biggest ups came in the second set. Nadal was broken a grand total of once through his first six matches in the tournament -- a string that reached 88 games by early in the finals second set. But with Djokovic raising his level, and gaining control of more of the many extended exchanges, he broke Nadal three times in a row. "Novak was playing just amazing," Nadal said. "When Novak plays (at) that level, I am not sure if (anybody) can stop him." The initial break came for a 4-2 lead in the second set, thanks to the crescendo of that 55-swing exchange. Djokovic used superb defence to elongate the point, tossing his body around to bail himself out repeatedly by blunting Nadals violent strokes. When the memorable point ended, Djokovic bellowed and raised both arms, and thousands of fans rose to their feet, chanting his nickname, "No-le! No-le!" Now Djokovic was energized, and Nadal was suddenly in a tad of trouble. "I felt really tired after that point," Nadal said. "But my thinking was positive." As Toni Nadal put it: "Rafael was always there, there, there. ... He was so strong in his mind. That was the difference." The final momentum shift came with Nadal serving at 4-all in the third set. Djokovic earned three break points, thanks in part to a tremendous lob-volley and another point when Nadal slipped and tumbled to his backside. But a quick forehand winner by Nadal, a forehand into the net by Djokovic on a 22-stroke point, and a 125 mph ace -- Nadals only one of the evening, it drew shouts of "Vamos!" from Uncle Toni -- helped avoid another break. "I didnt do anything I felt (was) wrong in these few points," Djokovic said. "He didnt make a mistake." In the very next game, Nadal broke Djokovics serve and, apparently, his will. When that set ended with Djokovic pushing a forehand long on a 19-shot point, Nadal screamed as he knelt down at the baseline, his racket on the court and his left fist pumping over and over and over. "A really important set," Nadal called it later, "and a really special one." Djokovic made one last serious stand, holding break points in the fourth sets first game, but Nadal saved those, then immediately broke to go ahead 2-0. Once again, Nadal withstood Djokovics best and was on his way to another Grand Slam celebration. Afterward, his newest silver trophy at arms reach, Nadal was asked about catching the only two men whove won more. Nadal smiled and replied: "Let me enjoy today." Peyton Manning Youth Jersey .Y. - Rob Manfred was promoted Monday to Major League Baseballs chief operating officer, which may make him a candidate to succeed Bud Selig as commissioner. Parris Campbell Womens Jersey .Tzavelas opened the scoring in the 11th and Pereyra added another in the 51st. Emmanuel Kone pulled one back in the 80th and Levadiakos missed several chances to level in the last 10 minutes. http://www.officialindianapoliscoltspro.com/Darius-leonard-colts-jersey/ . The 155th edition of the Plate for Canadian-foaled three-year-olds, the oldest continuously run stakes race in North America, will be televised live on TSN in HD (High Definition) in a special presentation from 4:30 – 6:00 pm ET. Post time is 5:38 pm. Darius Leonard Colts Jersey .com) - Nicklas Backstrom scored a pair of goals and Alex Ovechkin notched a highlight-reel tally, leading the Washington Capitals to a 4-0 victory over the New Jersey Devils on Saturday at the Prudential Center. Bobby Okereke Colts Jersey . The CFL unveiled its 2014 schedule Wednesday and the Redblacks will play their first-ever regular-season game in Winnipeg against the Blue Bombers on July 3.ANAHEIM – It would have been a heck of a story. On Saturday night, Teemu Selanne was poised to become the hero in Game 1 of the first-ever Freeway Series between southern Californias two NHL teams. The long-time Anaheim Duck, who wears No. 8, had scored at 8:08 of the third period to put the home team up. It was a script worthy of Hollywood. But the Los Angeles Kings provided a twist ending, scoring with seven seconds left and winning in overtime. Only hours before his goal the 43-year-old Selanne, who is nearing the end of a Hall of Fame career, sat in his dressing room stall and expressed genuine excitement at the prospect of experiencing another first this late in his decorated career. This is the first time in any sport that two teams from this area have battled in the playoffs. "This is something that even I havent faced before so Im very happy that this happened, because even last year was very close, but now its real and its going to be another great experience in my career," Selanne said with a big smile. The Ducks missed out on a date with the Kings last season, because they were upset in the first round of the playoffs by the Detroit Red Wings. "I was just thinking about that the other day and its funny that its never happened," said Selanne. "Theres something special about this." Only days ago it appeared as if Selannes career was headed toward an inauspicious end. He was made a healthy scratch in Game 4 of Anaheims first-round series against the Dallas Stars. It was a bitter pill for the proud Selanne to swallow, but he has responded the right way. "He sat out that one game in the Dallas series and I dont think he was very happy about it, which was natural," said Ducks captain Ryan Getzlaf. "Thats what you want to see out of guys. You dont want him to be satisfied by that. He upped his game and hes been great ever since." Selanne had two assists in the thrilling Game 6 come-from-behind win in Dallas. His goal in Game 1 against the Kings snapped a 13-game drought dating back to the regular season. He has put eight shots on net the last two games as his playing time has increased (more than 14 minutes in each of the last two games after posting a high of 11:31 in the Dallas series). Even more impressive than the points has been his physical play. The 6-foot, 198-pound Selanne was last on the Ducks during the regular season with just 15 hits, but you wouldnt have known it based on the last couple of games. "I thought the last two games hes been really good," said Anaheim head coach Bruce Boudreau. "Hes found a little bit of a fountain of youth, hitting guys, which really isnt his game, but hes committed to the cause and hopefully he gets enough rest where he can do the same thing in Game 2." It was Selannes hit on Robyn Regehr that forced the 6-foot-3, 222-pound Los Angeles defenceman from the game in the Ducks-Kings curtain raiser. "He hit Regehr, knocked him over and Regehrs one of the biggest guys in the league," said Ducks forward Nick Bonino. "Thats what the playoffs are all about: getting out of your comfort zone, hitting guys, making physical plays and thats why teams win." "Im strong too, you know," Selanne quipped while flexing when asked if he was surprised he was able to knock Regehr down. So, is Selanne getting his second wind now that hes in the second round for the first time since 2009? "I think so," he said. "Playoffs, you know, is more physical hockey. Thats not really my style, but I can play physical too." But even with Selannes contribution the Ducks still ended up on the wrong end of a 3-2 overtime result in Game 1. Boudreau said the Ducks internal statistics showed they held the Kings to just three scoring chances during five-on-five play. "I dont know when weve ever held a team to that," he said. "Were not depressed. Id be more depressed if we didnt play any good and we lost. I liked the way we did a lot of the things." Corey Perry had a glorious chance to end it in overtime. With Kings goalie Jonathan Quick out of position, the 43-goal scorer in the regular season had an open net to shoot at, but was foiled by a sliding Alec&nbssp;Martinez, who was able to block the shot.dddddddddddd Needless to say, Perry had trouble sleeping Saturday night. "Yeah, I was up for awhile. You think about what it couldve been," he said. "Ive seen it a few times. I thought about it ... He made a great play." Selanne, a veteran of 22 NHL seasons, has been around long enough to know how a team can collect itself after a disheartening defeat. "You just cant get too high even if you win," said Selanne, who won a bronze medal with Finland during Februarys Sochi Olympics just one day after a crushing loss to rival Sweden in the semi-finals. "Enjoy a little bit or be down a little bit, but then just forget it and keep going. You can always learn something win or lose and just go from there." There was a clear lesson for the Ducks in Game 1: their power play, which generated six shots while failing to score on four chances, can be much better. "Thats one area we want to fix, because all great teams they have a great power play and that can make winning so much easier. Our power play, the whole year, has been a little bit up and down," said Selanne. Anaheim finished 22nd in power-play efficiency during the regular season converting on 16 per cent of its chances. The Ducks do have seven power-play goals in the playoffs, which is tied for the league lead, but four of the goals came during one game (Game 5 against the Stars). "We got to generate some opportunities," said Getzlaf. "We moved the puck around pretty well, but we didnt really generate a whole lot. I think that starts with getting some shots through against a team where its not easy to get pucks to the net. Their D do a good job blocking shots and we just got to get that mindset that were going to take it to the net a little bit more." And while the Ducks believe they can do a better job with the man advantage they werent about to get down on themselves even though they have squandered home-ice advantage. "I dont think we had a weak link [Saturday] night," said Selanne. "We deserved better than that, but its hockey and the goals matter and we couldnt put the game away. Game 2 is a new opportunity." Theres a reason Anaheim has a healthy confidence when it comes to battling Los Angeles. The Ducks won four of the five games against the Kings in the regular season and the one loss came in a shootout. "Theres no secrets between these two teams," Selanne explained. "Theyre very, very close matches, tight-checking, low-scoring and whoevers going to do the little things better [will win]. It could go either way." This is a burgeoning rivalry. Bad blood is building, but there is also a healthy respect between the clubs. The Ducks were impressed, for example, watching the Kings dig out from an 0-3 hole against the San Jose Sharks in the first round. "It was actually fun to watch. Its remarkable, unbelievable so, you know, you got to give a lot of credit to those guys," said Selanne. "They have a team that just keeps coming and, it was funny, even though they lost Game 3 you could see the confidence level building higher and higher and then they really started believing and they almost had another gear and the Sharks they didnt have that." Bottom line: the Kings are more than a worthy adversary even though Anaheim finished 16 points ahead of them in the regular season standings. "You need everyone to play 60 minutes at least at your own level and sometimes you need to over-achieve to win the game. Every team is as good as their weakest link. Thats the beauty of team sports," said Selanne, outlining the recipe for success. So the stage is set for an epic battle as a savvy veteran aims to keep his NHL career alive and help Anaheim win the first-ever Freeway Faceoff. And if Game 1 was any indication its going to be a special series. On Saturday, fans from both sides chanted proudly at the Honda Center. They were rewarded for their passion with a thrilling finish. "It was unbelievable. Cant ask more than that," Selanne said when asked about the atmosphere. "Both teams and the fans have been waiting for this matchup for a long time so lets enjoy it." ' ' '