http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FDeboVmambo

That’s clay court shit right there. Two crazy Spaniards running and spinning around, blasting the ball at every corner of the court, ending with Rafael Nadal winning. Fernando Verdasco, as relentless as he was the entire match, as brutal as his forehand blasts were, Nadal was his usual unbreakable (not in a service game kind of way) self.

I woke up this morning around 6:00 AM, and the semifinal match in which this absurd point took place had been going on for over two hours already. When I arrived at work at 9:00 AM, the match was still going. Luckily for my productivity, only a few minutes later, Verdasco double-faulted in the 10th game of the 5th set to end the match. That was after 5 hours of some of the most high-octane tennis ever played. It was more anti-climactic than the ending to No Country for Old Men.

Roger Federer ate dinner and no doubt slept while the match was going on, comfortable knowing that whoever he faced would have one less day of rest. If there’s anyone that can come back from such an epic match in less than two days, it’s Nadal. But I doubt it.