Nadal, the man to beat in French Open
Sunday, May 9th, 2010
Yep, the French Open in all its clay court glory is here again.
Dubbed as the most challenging of all the grand slams, the 2010 French Open tennis tournament is sure to stay true to the rigors and tough competitiveness so typical of the second of the annual tennis majors.
This year’s French Open will be held from May 24th to June 7th and this year’s tournament is sure to unleash some of the most riveting grand slam tennis action you’d ever see. Thousands are expected to arrive at Roland Garros during the two weeks of the competition in hopes of catching a glimpse of the best tennis players in the world.
Leading the pack for the men’s favorites is the ‘king of clay,’ Rafael Nadal who seem to come up with his best tennis every time he plays on that clay surface.
He etched his name into French Open history after matching the record of the well-known Bjorn Borg and the 1920’s heroine of the Open, Suzanne Lenglen, with four consecutive French Open titles.
Nadal’s success on clay is so ridiculous, you’d be a fool to bet against this guy in this tournament.
That brings us to Roger Federer. Can he win a title in France and get title number 17? Federer has found the clay courts in Paris to be his nemesis.
He is one of those great players who can’t seem to do shit on clay. He is in good company though as he is accompanied by the likes of Pete Sampras, Jimmy Connors, Maria Sharapova and Martina Hingis as a few great tennis players who are denied of a title on clay.
Novak Djokovic, on the other hand, is probably the only real threat to Nadal as he is considered by many as a great clay court player. Other guys to watch out for include Nikolay Davydenko, who is one of the hottest players in tennis right now.
Andy Roddick and Juan Martin Del Potro should also be…
Argentina still team to beat in World Cup
Sunday, May 9th, 2010
Can Lionel Messi power Argentina towards World Cup glory?
You read it, one of the most talented footballers in the world, that being Lionel Messi, will be leading Argentina in the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
That’s probably why many sports bettors are picking Argentina to win Group B, especially with the talent that they have.
Argentina is only the fourth of five qualifiers from 
South America, ahead of Uruguay, but behind Brazil, Chile and Paraguay.
Their main man, Lionel Messi, won the 2009 Ballon d’Or and was awarded the European Footballer of the Year.
Messi is the diamond that the whole world recognizes, while Sergio Aguero, another star Argentina can rely on the pitch, is another youngster on the rise. They also have Carlos Tevez, a skillful, hard-working striker.
In midfield, Javier Mascherano gives Argentina steel, while Juan Sebastián Veron is a good distributor of the ball.
Last year, Argentina played 13 matches, won eight of them and lost five. This is not the kind of record a country with Argentina’s proud history finds acceptable, especially when included among those results is a 6-1 thrashing at the hands of 56th ranked Bolivia.
Let’s see how they do come June in…
Women to bet on in the French Open
Saturday, May 8th, 2010
Yep, the French Open is here and if you’re a betting man, you should take note about these women you shouldn’t be betting against on May.
In case you didn’t get that, it’s that time of the Grand Slam tennis season when the best tennis players in the world head to Roland Garros for the 2010 French Open tennis tournament.
And as far as the women’s side of things go, Justine Henin is the clear cut favorite to win this tournament. Henin’s presence in the draw is clearly pushing the odds long for even the second favorite and there is good reason for that.
Henin made the finals of the recent Australian Open and, despite her long layoff, she is a force on tour even at the Grand Slam level. Her best Grand Slam has always been the French Open as she won four titles at Roland Garros (2003, 2005, 2006, and 2007) before she ‘retired’ from tennis just prior to the 2008 French Open.
Her past success at the French Open, combined with her stellar play on tour since returning from retirement has clearly won her a lot of backers to win again at Roland Garros this spring.
Trying to outwit Henin is Kim Clijsters. Even though Clijsters’ best results at the French Open were back in 2001 and 2003 when she was the runner up in both tournaments in Paris, Clijsters has remained to be a force to be reckoned with at Roland Garros.
Clijsters has played in two French Open tournaments, the 2005 event and the 2006 event, reaching the semifinals back in ‘06.
Of course, Serena Williams has to be included as one of the favorites to win the French Open. Sure, Williams has not won the French Open since 2002, about the time when she started winning everything, but at least she has won it before. Her most recent result from 2009 was a quarterfinal loss but even that was to the eventual champion, Svetlana Kuznetsova.
Speaking of, French Open defending champion Svetlana Kuznetsova has…
Can the Greeks win the 2010 World Cup?
Saturday, May 8th, 2010
Can they finally add some hardware other than that cup they won six years ago in Euro 2004?
Team Greece, who topped Euro 2004, finished second in European Group Two behind Switzerland, but beat Ukraine 1-0 in a two-leg playoff to secure their place in the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
The only score Greece had came in the away game in Donetsk.
That is the thing about this Greek team, they’re 
not flashy, but they have the mental fortitude to grind out 1-0 wins, no matter where they play.
The team’s appearance in the 2010 FIFA World Cup would only be the second time in their country’s history that they have reached the World Cup finals.
Previously, in the USA in 1994, they exited in the first round after losing all three of their group games.
Their ambition will be much higher this time around.
During 2009, Greece played 10 internationals, winning four of them, losing twice, and drawing four.
Striker Theofanis Gekas is a key for the Greek national team.
His 10-goal return was the highest tally by a player in European qualifying.
Another key is fellow striker Angelos Charisteas, who scored the winning goal at Euro 2004.
He presents a physical challenge to opposing defenders because of his…
Can South Africa win the World Cup?
Sunday, May 2nd, 2010
South Africa is the first ever African nation to host the FIFA World Cup.
That’s probably why they are one of the sentimental favorites to win the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
As hosts, they qualified automatically marking their 3rd appearance overall after making it to France in 1998 and then again in 2002 after being banned from entering qualification from 1966 until 1994.
Despite the automatic qualification, South Africa played World Cup qualifiers mainly because World Cup qualifiers also serve as qualifying for the African Nations Cup.
Unfortunately, South Africa was eliminated from the qualifying. They are, in some way, playing in a World Cup even though they lost in the qualifying stage.
South Africa also played in the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup. They played well, advancing from the group stage before being eliminated by the No.1 ranked team, Spain, in overtime, 3-2.
South Africa plays Mexico, Uruguay, and France. All three will be tough matches. France is ranked in the top 10, while Mexico and Uruguay are in the top 20. South Africa is ranked 88th.
It has been a turbulent few years for South Africa, but a creditable performance at the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup, the prelude to this summer, has set expectations high going into their Group A matches.
Their semi-final loss to Brazil followed by a succeeding single-goal, extra-time defeat by Spain in the third-place match, show that the hosts can compete at the highest level.
And though they have fallen at the group stage in…
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