For the second year in a row, Roger Federer is on course to equalize Pete Sampras’ record of seven Wimbledon titles. Defending champion Rafael Nadal is also through to the second week as he goes for his third French Open-Wimbledon duo. While Novak Djokovic, the hottest player this season, is in great form through three matches.

The world’s top three players are still the ones to beat heading into the round of 16 while world number four and hometown pick Andy Murray is also alive with an outside chance. Here’s a review of the past few days and a look at the rest of the tournament.

Federer has looked superb through the first three rounds of play. The Swiss dominated his third round match against a less than 100% David Nalbandian who’s had his number previously.

In the fourth round, Federer takes on Mikhail Youzhny. Federer has won all ten of their prior meetings and the Russian has never been beyond the round of 16 at this event.

David Ferrer tied his best showing at the All England Club by reaching the round of 16 and will face Jo-Wilfried Tsonga who was a quarterfinalist last year. The winner of that contest will probably battle Federer in the quarterfinals.

After straight sets triumphs his initial two matches, Djokovic had to bear down against Marcos Baghdatis to move on in four in the third round. On Monday, Djokovic meets Michael Llodra in the fourth round. Although Llodra is sensational on grass, he should be no match for Djokovic.

Eighteen year old Australian qualifier Bernard Tomic is the unforeseen name in the second week. In the first round, Tomic took down veteran Nikolay Davydenko. Next, he erased a 2 set to love deficit to topple another veteran Igor Andreev.

In the third round, Tomic stunned an ailing Robin Soderling in straight sets. The teenager clashes with veteran Xavier Malisse in the round of 16. The one left standing will probably see Djokovic in the quarterfinals. Consequently, a Djokovic-Federer semifinal seems a done deal.

Although Nadal was pushed his first three rounds, the Spaniard still dispatched his opponents in three sets. Juan Martin Del Potro was also tested in his second and third round matches by Olivier Rochus and Gilles Simon respectively but came through. As a result, the anticipated duel between Nadal and Del Potro will occur in the round of 16.

Since Del Potro’s return from wrist surgery, the two only tussled once at Indian Wells. Del Potro has improved considerably since that meeting. Yet, with his previous success on this surface, Nadal will squeak by.

With three time Wimbledon finalist Andy Roddick’s shocking exit in the third round to Feliciano Lopez, Mardy Fish is the sole surviving American. In his maiden fourth round showing at the All England Club, Fish collides with 2010 runner up Tomas Berdych.

Berdych and Fish have never played. Considering his 2010 breakthrough, Berdych has underachieved this year. Therefore, Fish has a tremendous opportunity to cinch his primary quarterfinal at Wimbledon where he will stare at either Nadal or Del Potro.

Twice a quarterfinalist at Wimbledon, Lopez encounters Lukasz Kubot in the round of 16. The 29 year old qualifier in his second main draw at this tournament ousted Arnaud Clement, then Ivo Karlovic and subsequently upended Gael Monfils in the third round.

With Murray’s erratic performance so far, his fourth round rival Richard Gasquet should be able to capitalize. However, twice, Roland Garros in 2010 and Wimbledon in 2008, Gasquet blew a 2 set to 0 lead against the Brit. That is a gargantuan psychological hurdle for Gasquet to overcome. As such, Murray should make it to the quarterfinals.

Murray prevailed in all four meetings against Lopez and appears to have a comfortable road to the semifinals. The question is whether Nadal or Del Potro will be his adversary.

Similar to the French Open, the top four players have a good chance of colliding in the semifinals. With Federer ending Djokovic’s perfect season, the latter will be looking for revenge. Djokovic is hungry for this distinctive prize which can work in his favor or his detriment.

On the other hand, Federer has the pressure of wanting to make history. The same applies to Murray with his nation hoping to claim its home trophy for the first time since 1936. Nadal is playing with fewer expectations which sets up the perfect scenario for him walking away with the championship for the second straight year.

For the second straight day at the Sony Ericsson Open, a highly ranked male seed went out in the second round.  World number three and defending champion, Andy Murray, was beaten by Mardy Fish 6-3,6-4 .  Although Roger Federer, the number one seed, was pushed by Nicolas Lapentti.  Federer still won comfortably 6-3, 6-3.

Poor serving and a tentative return game were what Murray brought to the table; thus, Fish took full advantage.  The initial game of the second set, Murray double faulted handing Fish his second break point opportunity, the American converted.  After consolidating and widening his lead to 3-1, Fish cruised on serve.  However, in the eighth game, Fish faced a 15-40 deficit.  Once again, the serve was his ally.  By raining a few bombs, Fish extricated himself out of this jam and maintained a 5-3 lead.  After Murray held, serving out the match, Fish once more was down break point.  Still, Fish snuffed Murray’s advantage with his serve.  Subsequently, with a couple of aces and unreturnables, Fish sealed the win.

Murray spends a lot of time training in South Florida, so MiamiTennisNews wondered:
Q.  You know this court almost more than anyone else.  You practice here all the time.  What made the difference in today’s match?
MURRAY:  Well, Mardy served well when he needed to.  You know, especially the second set when he was down break points he served well.  But I just wasn’t very good today, and I’m going to need to get a lot better.

After Murray’s debacle, a love-30 start to Federer’s opening game and a break point the subsequent one by Lapentti were preoccupying.  Still, with a few good serves, Federer held to stay on serve.  For his part, Lapentti had no difficulty holding with back to back love games for 2 all.  After multiple errant forehands, with Lapentti serving at 4-5, Federer connected on a forehand up the winner for deuce.  Later, Federer provoked a backhand error by Lapentti resulting in break point.  Then, the world number one produced a stellar backhand down the line pass to go ahead 5-3.  Following, with an easy game, Federer slammed the door on the first set.

Lapentti revealed no signs of disappointment, starting the second set strongly in part aided by Federer having trouble finding his mark with the forehand.  Similarly, Federer continued to have routine service games.  The good thing for Federer was that when it mattered, his forehand showed up.  With Lapentti serving at 3 all, Federer obtained break point with a forehand up the line winner.  When Lapentti’s forehand sailed long, Federer had the crucial break.  After getting out of love-30 mess to consolidate, with a backhand crosscourt winner, Federer broke Lapentti to finish the match.

As anticipated, Robin Soderling, Marin Cilic, Fernando Gonzalez and Fernando Verdasco advanced, all in straight sets.  Seeds Mikhail Youzhny, Tomas Berdych, Stanislas Wawrinka, Juan Monaco, Jurgen Melzer, Marcos Baghdatis and Feliciano Lopez also  moved on without difficulty.  On the other hand, Alberto Montanes, the 26th seed, Gilles Simon, seeded 20th, and Janko Tipsarevic, the 31st seed, were ousted.

For the women, it was business as usual.  Svetlana Kuznetsova, the top seed, with a 6-2,6-3 win, sent Agnes Szavay home . Venus Williams said arrivederci to Roberta Vinci with a 6-1,6-4 victory.  Agnieszka Radwanska took care of Ana Ivanovic 7-5,7-5.  Both Yanina Wickmayer and Marion Bartoli only needed two sets to pass to the round of 16.  The night match between Daniela Hantuchova and Nadia Petrova was less stimulating than expected.  Hantuchova prevailed over Petrova 6-2,6-4.  Timea Bacsinszky had an easy time with Polona Hercog 6-2,6-2.  Her next round will be more challenging as she faces Wickmayer.

The shocker for the women came from the doubles field as the top seed Cara Black and Liezel Huber were defeated in the first round by Natalie Grandin and Abigail Spears.

After one week of play, the cream of the ATP has risen to the top at the Australian Open.   Although some had a tougher road than others, eight of the top seeds are still in the hunt.  Here’s a look back at the tournament’s key moments to date.

In the first round, Igor Andreev’s forehand gave world number one Roger Federer all sorts of headache.  After stealing the first set, Andreev was just one forehand winner away from serving for a two set to one lead.  When Andreev’s shot sailed long, so did his opportunity at an upset.  Thereafter, Federer cruised through his matches.

Another difficult challenge lays ahead for Federer in the fourth round in Aussie Lleyton Hewitt who will have the support of the crowd.  Still, Federer is favored in that match.  Should Federer advance, his tasks gets more complicated since he could face Nikolay Davydenko in the quarters, a man who has beaten him their last two meetings.

While Fernando Verdasco, a semifinalist last year, struggled through his first round match then benefited from a retirement his last round;  Davydenko, his fourth round opponent, has been in peak form through three rounds.  If Davydenko moves on to the quarterfinals, Federer’s streak of 22 consecutive majors semifinal will be in serious jeopardy.

An astounding fatality in the first round was French Open finalist, Robin Soderling. Playing Marcel Granollers ranked 113, Soderling let a two set to none advantage evaporate.  Current U.S. Open champ Juan Martin Del Potro who has been dealing with a wrist injury also made an early exit. After defeating James Blake in a thrilling second round match, in the fourth round, Del Potro fought hard but came up short against Marin Cilic in another five setter.  Cilic who has now gotten to the quarterfinals in the last two majors will battle Andy Roddick.

Although Roddick has been pushed with each passing round, he’s had the answers.  After straight sets wins in rounds one and two, Roddick required four sets against Feliciano Lopez, then five versus Fernando Gonzalez, the Australian Open 2007 finalist and his coach’s former pupil. If Roddick aces the Cilic exam, it will be either Rafael Nadal or Andy Murray his next nemesis.

Despite minor blips, Nadal, the defending champion, has been in his best shape since the French Open loss.  After routine victories the first two rounds, Nadal needed four sets against Phillip Kohlschreiber and Ivo Karlovic who are higher caliber players.  Nadal will clash in the quarterfinals with Andy Murray. Thus far, Murray has come through without dropping a set. If their 2008 U.S. Open meeting is any indication, this quarterfinal duel will be a great one.

When Mikhail Youzhny retired in the third round, for Lukasz Kubot it became a good news and bad news scenario. For the first time, 27 year old Kubot made it to the fourth round at a major. To his chagrin, Novak Djokovic will be his subsequent adversary. It is unlikely that Kubot has any weapon which will trouble Djokovic.  However, the same does not apply to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga who could be Djokovic’s counterpart in the quarterfinals.  Tsonga leads their head to head 4-2.

For Tsonga, the 2008 Australian Open runner-up, the primary order of business will be taking care of Nicolas Almagro in the fourth round.  In the third round, Tsonga put down Tommy Haas.  With Almagro’s five titles all on clay, Tsonga is an overwhelming favorite in that match.  So a repeat of the 2008 Australian Open final may be one match away.

So who will be the eventual champion?  With their take no prisoners performance so far, Davydenko and Murray have the edge. However, of the guys remaining with a legitimate shot at the title, Davydenko is the only one who has yet to make it to the final of a major. Therefore, the riddle is whether Davydenko can defeat both Djokovic and Federer in a best of five match to reach the final.

For his part, Murray will have to knock out Nadal and possibly Roddick to get to the final.  The Scot has the talent, so Murray is hoping with the off season he exorcised last year’s majors demons.

Ultimately, it may be another case of those who’ve been there before hoisting the trophy again.  Thus, Federer obtaining his 16th major or Nadal his second straight Australian would not be unexpected.

At the Australian Open final, despite a marathon semifinal match, Nadal had adequate reserves to stare down Federer in another five setter.  With that victory, Nadal seemed well positioned to achieve the calendar grand slam.  After sweeping every clay court tournament, Nadal was halted at the Madrid Masters by Federer days prior to the French Open. For many analysts, fatigue may have been deserving of an assist as Federer defeated Nadal in straight sets to capture his initial title of 2009. As such, Nadal was still considered the outright favorite for a fifth consecutive French trophy.

While everyone may have discounted Robin Soderling in the fourth round at the French Open, the Swede who played a contentious match with Nadal at Wimbledon in 2007 had visions of victory dancing in his head.  Soderling upstaged the best clay player in circulation, handing Nadal his first defeat at Roland Garros.  Soderling rode this euphoric wave all the way to his first final at a major where he was ultimately stopped by Federer. In addition, Soderling was a quarterfinalist at the U.S. Open.  At his initial ATP World Tour Finals, Soderling was a semifinalist and with that result jumped to a career best ranking of 8th after commencing 2008 at 17.

Melbourne was the site where Fernando Verdasco at last  lived up to his talent.  After surprising Andy Murray the hottest player on tour in the fourth round, Verdasco was involved in a dogfight in the semifinals with countryman Nadal.  Hands down, the best match of the tournament and one of the most scintillating of the year, the two Spaniards went toe to toe for over five hours.  Although Nadal was triumphant, Verdasco’s run in Australia galvanized him the rest of the year.  Verdasco reached the quarters at the U.S. Open and was instrumental in Davis Cup play. Verdasco participated in his first ATP World Tour Finals and ended 2009 at number 9.

After an horrendous start to the season, Federer’s year turned around after beating Nadal in Madrid in May. After avoiding a sleuth of pitfalls to get to the French Open final, Federer grabbed the elusive brass ring and tied Pete Sampras’ record of 14 majors.  With a knee injury placing Wimbledon defending champ Nadal out of action, the impossibility of a Federer-Nadal duel could have been deflating for the championships.  To the contrary, Andy Roddick stepped up to the plate and in facing Federer, the two had a final to rival last year’s epic.  Federer had to out ace Roddick, required 95 minutes and 30 games in the fifth set before coming away with the victory and a record setting 15 majors.  In July, Federer supplanted Nadal at the top of the ATP’s ranking list.  Brimming with confidence, Federer appeared unstoppable and was a shoe-in for a sixth consecutive  title in New York.

At the U.S. Open, Federer battled Del Potro in the final.  With this being the latter’s maiden major final, jitters were more likely than not to play a pivotal role.  In spite of his youth, Del Potro demonstrated that he is a quick study.  After a devastating lost to Federer in the French semifinals, down two sets to one, Del Potro carried a tiebreaker and showed up Federer in the fifth set to capture his initial major. Del Potro closed 2009 as the world’s fifth best player and is a definite threat to take over the top spot in 2010.

While Murray shone at the Masters and lower tournaments, he hit a wall at the majors. After a 2008 U.S. Open final appearance, for Murray reaching the round of 16 in Australia and New York, the semis at Wimbledon and quarters at Roland Garros was a let down. Moreover, Murray displaced Nadal at number 2 in August prior to U.S. Open.  However, by year’s end, Murray fell back to his designated post of number 4.

Like Murray, Djokovic‘s season can be categorized as ok. The 2008 Australian Open champion had a quarterfinal run in Australia and Wimbledon while getting to the semifinals in New York.  Djokovic picked up steam toward the end with titles in Beijing, Basel versus Federer and at the Paris Masters. With the addition of Todd Martin to his coaching team, Djokovic will certainly be a force in the upcoming year.

Besides Del Potro, Marin Cilic is another youngster who generated a lot of talk.  Cilic got to his first quarterfinal at a major at the U.S. Open in ousting Murray and seized two titles.  In addition,  Cilic was key in Croatia’s run to the semifinals in Davis Cup.  Thus, this gigantic Croat will be someone to keep a close eye on in 2010.

Every season, there’s a veteran competitor who rediscovers and dips into the fountain of youth. This year, that person was Tommy Haas.  After struggling with injury throughout his career, Haas was one Federer forehand shy of making it to the quarterfinals at the French Open.  The German star then excelled on grass, beating Djokovic for his first title on that surface. That momentum carried Haas to his first semifinal at a major since 2007. At Wimbledon, Haas was once more blocked by Federer.  At age 31, Haas catapulted from a spot of 82nd  to 18 at the closure of 2009.

Dependable Davydenko!  For Nikolay Davydenko, that is an applicable label. For the past few years, not only has Davydenko been a workhorse, he’s been consistent. After missing a few weeks early on in the season with a foot injury, Davydenko dropped out of the top ten to 12 for the first time since 2005. Also, in skipping the Australian Open, Davydenko severed his streak of 29 consecutive majors.  Still, Davydenko terminated the season with a flurry.  After shocking Nadal in the final of the Masters in Shanghai, Davydenko rammed through Federer at the ATP World Tour Finals and brushed aside Del Potro for his most prestigious career trophy.  For his hard work, Davydenko was rewarded with number 6 ranking at tournament’s end.

The Frenchmen were in the headlines both on and off the court. Richard Gasquet had to deal with doping charges despite withdrawing from competition at the Sony Ericsson Open.  Gasquet was eventually cleared of any wrongdoing but his ranking took a severe blow.  Formerly at number 7 in 2008, Gasquet is now 52nd in the world.  Jo Wilfried Tsonga failed to capitalize on his 2008 success in Australia, with only a quarterfinal finish in Melbourne and dismal postings at the other majors.  On the other hand, Gael Monfils revealed a glimmer of the promise that made him a standout in the juniors.  Monfils cracked the top ten for the first time in March and completed the season at 13th.  Fabrice Santoro, the magician, who provided so many great moments and gave a new meaning to longevity finally took leave of the game.  It will be hard to encounter anyone who can match Santoro’s flair and style.

On the subject of uniqueness, 2000 U.S. Open and 2005 Australian Open champion Marat Safin bid farewell to the sport.  A colorful and volatile player, Safin never won another title after Australia and in many people’s eyes failed to fully realize his potential. The game will be a tad less animated with his absence.

The Davis Cup belonged to Spain for the fourth time this decade.  Overflowing with aptitude, Spain wrapped up the trophy in two days, as David Ferrer, Feliciano Lopez, Verdasco and Nadal crushed the Czech Republic.

The doubles pair of Mike and Bob Bryan struggled most of the year after taking the Australian Open.  At Wimbledon, the Bryan brothers were bested by defending champs Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjic.  The latter spent most of the last half of the season ranked number one and managed a total of nine titles including five Masters series trophy.  However, after winning the ATP World Tour Finals title, the Bryan brothers regained the number one ranking after having slipped to number 3.  For veteran Leander Paes and partner Lukas Dhouly, 2009 was low volume in terms of titles; yet, the two that this team won were significant since they were the French and U.S. Open.  Paes and Dhouly finished the year as the fourth best team in doubles.

Former tennis star Andre Agassi shifted focus from the court to shenanigans occurring off field.  In his book ‘Open’, Agassi disclosed his struggles with methamphetamine in 1997 and his deception of the rules committee in testing positive.  Agassi also divulged candid details about his first marriage, his love-hate relationship with the sport and his preoccupation with his hair piece which may have been partly responsible for his lost to Andres Gomez at the French Open in 1990.

The last couple of  years, Federer and Nadal have had a firm grip on the top two rankings. In 2009, Nadal’s palm was loosen temporarily by Murray.  With injury always plaguing the Spaniard and with Federer’s forehand becoming erratic again toward the last part of the season, foretelling of a probable shakedown by Djokovic, Murray or Del Potro at the top in 2010 may not be a hyperbole.

On clay, at home, one would have to be insane to bet against the Spaniards repeating as Davis Cup champion.  Although the Czech Republic proved to be a worthy opponent, logic prevailed. Spain secured the initial three rubbers to become the first country since Sweden in 1998 to successfully defend the trophy.

Yesterday, in the first rubber, Rafael Nadal faced Tomas Berdych.   At five all in a tight  opening set, Nadal finally broke to gain the upper hand.  With nothing left to give, Berdych capitulated, Nadal won 7-5,6-0,6-2.

The second match of the day was a barn burner as Radek Stepanek tangoed with David Ferrer.  At first glance, captain Albert Costa’s choice of Ferrer over Fernando Verdasco, Spain’s second best player and world number 9, seemed odd and a colossal mistake.  Ultimately, it turned out to be a masterful gamble.

After Stepanek crushed Ferrer to carry the first two sets 6-1, 6-2, the Czech Republic appeared on its way to a tie, which would have made it a seriously competitive final.  The only difficulty was that Ferrer had no intention of soiling his unblemished Davis cup clay court record.  The Spaniard fought back taking the next two sets to push the match to a decisive fifth.  Early on, Stepanek had opportunities to get the break.  But, each time Stepanek got close, Ferrer shut the door. More than four hours into play, a string of errors by Stepanek allowed Ferrer to seize the break for 7-6.  Ferrer went on to serve out the match and with a 1-6,2-6,6-4,6-4,8-6 victory, he remains undefeated on clay at 7-0.

Needless to say, the doubles was a must win for the Czech Republic. With Stepanek probably a little spent from the previous’ day marathon match, Spain was already favored from the get-go.  The tandem of Feliciano Lopez and Verdasco turned away Berdych and Stepanek 7-6,7-5,6-2.

In the first set, after Verdasco riffled a forehand return up the line, Spain obtained a break for 3-1.  However, with a couple of forehand mistakes by Verdasco, the Czech Republic erased the advantage.  At 4 all, a great forehand winner by Berdych resulted in break point.  But, with errors from their rivals, Spain guarded serve.  So, the set was settled by a tiebreaker. With a spectacular return by Verdasco, Spain got a mini-break and stretched its edge to 6-3.  After saving three set points, the Czechs earned a set point themselves.  Still, the Czechs surrendered two consecutive service points, giving the Spaniards another set point.  When Stepanek misfired on a volley, Spain bagged the first set.

The second set similarly was hard fought with neither team having a bite at break point until 5 all.  Serving at 40-15, the Czechs made two forehand miscues resulting in deuce. Subsequently, Berdych had a forehand volley sail long handing Spain break point.  The Spaniards capitalized when the Czechs misfired on another volley.  With a strong game, Lopez punctuated the set.

With Stepanek’s serve wilting, the Spaniards opened the third set with triple break point.  When Lopez thumped a forehand winner down the line, Spain obtained the break. Shortly after, Verdasco consolidated with an easy service game for 2-0.  Again with Stepanek serving at 1-3, on Spain’s seventh break point chance, Verdasco gunned a forehand crosscourt winner extending the lead to 4-1.  Up a double break, Spain cruised on serve as it went on to capture its fourth Davis Cup title this decade.

Argentina’s chances of winning its first Davis Cup trophy in its third appearance were lofty. Firstly, it had home field advantage. Secondly, the surface selected was hardcourt. Moreover, with world number one Rafael Nadal unable to make the trip due to tendonitis, Argentina seemed blessed. But Spain showed that it is far from being a one trick pony. Spaniard Fernando Verdasco defeated Argentine Jose Acasuso 6-3, 6-7, 4-6, 6-3, 6-1 in the fourth rubber to take the title leaving thousands of boisterous Argentine fans stupefied.

In Friday’s first rubber, Argentina got off to a flying start. David Nalbandian faced Spaniard David Ferrer with the former proving to be Goliath. As usual, Nalbandian’s backhand was sublime. More impressively, his forehand was solid. He even came up with highlight reel volleys. Nalbandian prevailed 6-3, 6-2, 6-3 to give Argentina a leg up. Argentina maintained the momentum through the first set in the second rubber as world number 9 Juan Martin Del Potro squared off against Feliciano Lopez. Courtesy of one service break, Del Potro carried the first set. However, Lopez no longer feeling generous cleaned up his game and pushed the second set to a tiebreak which the Spaniard easily won. With neither player making inroads on the other’s serve, the third set also went to a tiebreak. Lopez recovered from a minibreak disadvantage to take the third. In the fourth set, after Lopez jumped out to an early lead with a break, Del Potro quickly effaced that advantage. Unfortunately, Del Potro sustained a right groin injury and despite medical treatment was unable to recover. His next service game, Del Potro went down love-40, and then double faulted to get back in a hole. Ultimately, Lopez beat the young Argentine 4-6, 7-6, 7-6, 6-3.

Saturday in the doubles, Argentine Agustin Calleri and Nalbandian took on Verdasco and Lopez. Argentina debuted well, needing a single break to take the first set. In the second, as Calleri served to force a tiebreak, he made some key unforced errors to help Spain carry the set. After stepping on the gas to get a 5-1 lead in the third, Spain sputtered. Argentina forced a tiebreak and was just two points from leading two sets to one. Spain battled back to prevent the home team from stealing the third set. In the fourth set, Spain pulled away as a stunned Argentine public looked on 5-7, 7-5, 7-6, 6-3.

The feature match on Sunday was Acasuso versus Verdasco. Argentina was attempting to defy history since the last team to overcome a 2-1 deficit in the finals was Germany in 1990. Argentina’s was hopeful that despite not having played for months, Acasuso would force a decisive fifth rubber. After a sloppy first set by the Argentine which went in Verdasco’s favor, Acasuso capitalized on errors by the Spaniard to get ahead 4-1. But with multiple unforced backhand errors, Acasuso relinquished his lead. After a seesaw of breaks, the second went to a tiebreak which Argentina finally secured. In the third set, Acasuso tracked down an overhead from Verdasco and made a forehand winner for love-30. Then, a Verdasco double fault gifted Argentina the early break. Swiftly though, Acasuso returned the favor by double faulting to level the set. This back and forth pattern persisted until the tenth game when Acasuso finally consolidated a break to end the set. By picking on Acasuso’s weak backhand, Verdasco dominated the fourth and forced a conclusive fifth set. With three unforced errors, Acasuso faced love-40 in the opening game; Verdasco captured the break when the Argentine netted a makeable forehand. To aggravate matters, Acasuso suffered an abdominal strain. As the errors rained from the Argentine side, Verdasco took control of the fifth set and on the third break chance produced a forehand down the line for winner to cinch the title for Spain, the third this decade.

Rafael Nadal booked Spain’s berth in the Davis Cup final by beating American Andy Roddick in the fourth rubber 6-4, 6-0, 6-4.

The odds were stacked against the Americans, the defending champions, for various reasons. Firstly, they were playing on foreign soil. Secondly, two of their top players James Blake and Bob Bryan were unable to participate. But most importantly, they would have to face Spain on clay, a surface where the Americans are the least comfortable and Nadal’s pure genius has been proven over and over. Therefore, it was not surprising that after the first day, the Americans were in the position of playing catch up having lost the first two rubbers.

This uphill battle began promisingly with American Sam Querrey winning the first set in a tiebreak 7-6 over Nadal. But that would be the only bright spot in the first match. A seemingly rusty Nadal even went down a break early in the second set. But the Spaniard came roaring back to take control of the second set and the match 6-7, 6-4, 6-3, 6-4.

In the second rubber, Andy Roddick faced David Ferrer. The tide appeared to have turned for the U.S. as Roddick managed to get a two set to one lead after losing a tough first set tiebreak. Yet again, America’s luck proved fleeting as Spain stole the match in five sets 6-7, 6-1, 6-2, 4-6, 6-8. On Saturday, the U.S. stayed alive as the doubles team of Mike Bryan and Mardy Fish prevailed in spectacular fashion over Spain’s Fernando Verdasco and Feliciano Lopez 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 4-6, 6-4.

However, the pivotal match came on Sunday as Nadal squared off against Roddick. Initially, the American used his big serve effectively to keep toe to toe with the Spaniard. Nonetheless, serving at 4-5, Roddick lost his way allowing Nadal to take the set. Thereafter, Nadal demonstrated why he has won four consecutive French Open titles. The clay master dominated, passing at will as Roddick tried to change things up by coming to net in the second set. Roddick attempted to stage a rally in the third set and had triple break point in the second game. Still, Nadal found the means to hold serve. The Spaniard then turned the tables, breaking the American at love the very next game. In the eight game, Roddick again found a slim opening at love-30, but it was promptly closed by Nadal. With a strong service game, Nadal put to bed the third set and assured Spain’s spot in the finals. The Spaniards also won the last rubber of the day with Lopez defeating Querrey 7-6, 7-6. Spain’s opponent will be either Argentina or Russia. The Russians will need to stage a come from behind charge as they find themselves down 2-1.