Two

Two things are for sure, Wimbledon is in two days and Rafael Nadal, the defending Champion, and top seed has pulled out of the tournament.

However, I am a little skeptical of the whole thing. I mean, don't you find it weird that all of a sudden after losing to Soderling in the French Open Nadal starts complaining about his knees. I cannot picture Nadal as someone who would start blaming his slump on an injury but is it just me or has Uncle Toni become quite outspoken all of a sudden. After losing to Hewitt, Uncle Toni was the one who spoke to the press and said that if he were Nadal he would fly back home. So I have come up with a theory; Tennis and Family just don't mix. To all you aspiring tennis players don't allow your family to coach you because it only ends in disaster.

I think Uncle Toni is living vicariously through Rafa and notices that yes his knees are bothering him and yes he isn't playing well so he should pull out of one of the best tournaments in the world because he might not win it. Rafa is only human, everyone has slumps, what makes you great is how you deal with not playing your best and how you are able to fight through it to win. Sometimes when something isn't working you have to be smart enough to come up with another game plan.

I think Sharapova has done that. She hadn't played in a year because of her shoulder but she has figured out a way to take some pressure of her shoulder by changing her serve. And it has paid off for her, she has been surprisingly good, good enough to raise her ranking about 50 spots and get the 24 seed at Wimbledon, which many people view as a gift. But I think she has earned it, she has proven to be successful on grass in the past and has been doing well in all the pre-grass tournaments that lead up to Wimbledon. I think her injury has humbled her a little bit and she realizes she needs to prove herself.

With Nadal out, and Sharapova receiving a higher seed then expected Wimbledon will definitely be an interesting tournament to watch. I don't think many of us can remember a grand slam without Nadal, but don't be too disappointed. Instead, try and think positively, with Nadal out history could be made; Federer could surpass Samprass and win his 15th grand slam title or Murray could become the first Britt to win Wimbledon since Fred Perry in 1936. According to how the draw should play out these two should meet in the finals so sit down relax and tune in.

The End of the Beginning

No reason crying over spilled milk, or in this case the end of the French Open. Instead, as tennis fans we have much to cheer about; there are two new French Open Champions: Svetlana Kuznetsova and Roger Federer and we have Wimbledon to look forward to. Think of it this way, it isn't the beginning of the end, it is the end of the beginning.

So Roger Federer finally won the French Open, we all knew he was great but now he has the statistics to prove it. He has become one of few players to win all four grand slams and is tied with Pete Sampras for 14 career grand slam titles.

However, Federer doesn't have too much time to celebrate, with Wimbledon right around the corner, fourteen days to be exact. Although Wimbledon is usually Federer's strongest tournament and in the past he has almost been guaranteed the title, he is not the defending Champion. Instead Federer's long time rival, Rafael Nadal, who is battling tendinitis in his knee is.

With Nadal complaining about knee problems and Federer finally winning the one tournament he has never won, Wimbledon could become a very exciting stage for Men's Tennis. Many questions arise; will Nadal be healthy enough to even play? Will Federer be too mentally exhausted from his win in France (he recently pulled out of the Gerry Weber Open, which he uses as a warm-up for Wimbledon) to make a run for the title? And don't forget about Murray who will have the home court advantage and made a nice run at Wimbledon last year with the help of his fans.

I am excited for what is going to play out on Center Court, it should be an exciting stage to see how everything unfolds.

Nadal turns 23

To pay a little tribute to Nadal's 23rd birthday, I found a couple cute videos online mocking the man himself.

The first and more recent of the two is a tutorial between Brad Gilbert and Darren Cahill, where Gilbert is seen sporting the hot pink Nadal shirt and bright yellow Nadal bandanna. Although, it doesn't look half bad on Gilbert I don't think we will see him wearing it anytime soon.

The second video takes place at the end of this years Rome Masters Ceremony where Djokovic performs his famous Nadal imitation in front of Nadal himself.

Cinderella Story

Well the Cinderella story has officially ended, if you are Maria Sharapova, Andy Roddick and Andy Murray that is.

However, credit must be given where credit is due. Sharapova, who has not played for about a year and has battled through a shoulder injury was able to make it to the quarterfinals in a tournament that usually troubles her when she is healthy. Not only did she make it to the quarterfinals but she played four three set matches to get there. Do not count her out, she is a fighter and with Wimbledon coming up; the tournament where she won her first grand slam, we have much to look forward to.

With Sharapova out of the tournament the women's side looks like it could become a rematch of the Australian Open. Dinara Safina who was seeded number one in the tournament has clinched a spot in the semi-finals beating the young Victoria Azarenka 1-6, 6-4, 6-2. Her match against Azarenka was the only set she dropped throughout the entire tournament. Serena on the other side of the draw is set to play Kuznetsova who is the seventh seed. I am liking Serena's odds not only statistically but mentally as well. Serena has a lot of experience and continues to impress us whether we like it or not.

We have come to expect upsets in the women's brackets due to the inconsistency of rankings and in the WTA tour but a week ago if you were to mention that the men's quarterfinals wouldn't include Nadal we would have laughed in your face. Not only is the number one seed missing from the quarterfinals but there are only three men seeded in the top ten in the quarterfinals. Now with Murray gone, who just lost to Gonzalez we could have an interesting final developing.

The question is, which two men are going to make it to the finals. We know it is either going to be Soderling or Gonzalez but will he be joined by Federer, who everyone expected to make it and then lose to Nadal.

Although we all want Federer to win so it will no longer be such a big deal that he hasn't won all the grand slams; I know someone cry me a river it wouldn't make for an interesting final. I think that if Federer makes it to the finals this will be the time he wins. I personally, would much rather see a five set final with possibly a Frenchman; Monfils is still left, but he needs to go through Federer first. Que suspenseful music now.