Writing by shivdev on Sunday, 12 of June , 2011 at 12:17 am
The Greatest-Of-All-Time debate will never end.
The only argument that disbelievers can come up with:
“How come the Greatest of All Time can’t beat the Greatest of His Own Time?”
This is but a fact! A Math professor once told me, all it takes to disprove a theorem is one example and Rafael Nadal has given several. In tennis however, I think it’s different! Look – I’ve been following tennis from the Ivan Lendl era and I have to say that modern tennis is at a level it has never been. The best of this era with all the racket/string technology and athletic fitness will simply breeze through the best of past. So that’s not even a discussion. It is between Sampras, Nadal and Federer.
Nadal’s mental determination to go after every ball has just changed what it takes to be #1. The domination of the top spot by Pete Sampras and Roger Federer definitely called for players like Rafa and Djoker who were mentally prepared to attack anything sent at them anywhere on the court, any time of the day and on any surface thereby raising the bar extremely high. This takes a lot of preparation off the court. Long painful hours in the gym and a strict regimen coupled with countless hours of practice. It is no surprise that these two have gone past the mighty Fed who continues to play beautiful tennis, consistently gets to the business end of all tournaments and is still the most loved player in the world.
The GOAT prerogative, however calls for a tenure of records, extreme consistency on all surfaces, total commitment and sportsmanship and for that I think at this point Roger Federer is the GOAT.
I have no doubt in my mind that Rafa can be the next GOAT if he continues his form not just on Clay and Grass, but also on Hard Courts. Rafa is definitely the Clay GOAT and clay is a really long season which is why he has accumulated and maintained top spot for so long.
Roger Federer has 7 Wimbledon titles, 5 US Opens, 4 Australian Opens, and 1 French Open (7 Runner Ups, 10 Semi-Finals, 5 Quarter-Final)
Rafael Nadal has 2 Wimbledon titles, 9 French Opens, 1 Australian Open, 2 US Open (6 Runner Ups, 3 Semi-Finals, 4 Quarter-Final)
Consistent stats in ATP tournaments as well.
Head to Head Rafa is up 23-10 (that’s more than double and is the main reason for the GOAT debate)
If you only look at these numbers, it is evident that Roger Federer is undoubtedly the best of the best, but given their head to head record – you can’t discount Rafa.
Rafa is way younger than Roger and has a long career ahead of him if he continues his form and stays out of injury. He could possibly win more Grand Slams than Roger Federer and earn GOAT respect, but as of now Roger Federer owns GOAT status.
Some players are great on Clay
Some players are great on Grass
Some players are great on Hard
And then there’s Roger Federer!
Writing by shivdev on Saturday, 11 of June , 2011 at 6:10 am
And, finally we have reasonably good Car Tech! For an additional US $2000 you can get the Tech Package (Nav, Bluetooth, iPod and some extras). Subaru was so far behind in the game, but I’m glad that they have it all covered now!
Of course you can research detailed specs on the Subaru website, but here’s why someone would get the 2012 Subaru Impreza Wagon.
Writing by shivdev on Monday, 13 of September , 2010 at 12:56 pm
Here’s a summary of the Greatest Tennis Players at the Grand Slams. Roger Federer now has 18, and passed Pete Sampras’ 14. Rafael Nadal also has 14, though he has a much better record against Federer. Will he beat it?
Peter Sampras was born on 08/12/1971 in Washington, D.C., USA
Roger Federer was born on 08/08/1981 in Basel, Switzerland
Rafael Nadal was born on 06/03/1986 in Manacor, Majorca, Spain
Pete Sampras Grand Slam Summary
Aus Open
French Open
Wimbledon
US Open
1988
1R
1989
1R
2R
1R
4R
1990
4R
1R
Winner [1] (Agassi)
1991
2R
2R
Quarter Final
1992
Quarter Final
Semi Final (Ivanisevic)
Final (Edberg)
1993
Semi Final (Edberg)
Quarter Final
Winner [2] (Courier)
Winner [3] (Pioline)
1994
Winner [4] (Todd Martin)
Quarter Final
Winner [5] (Ivanisevic)
4R
1995
Final (Agassi)
Round 128
Winner [6] (Becker)
Winner [7] (Agassi)
1996
3R
Semi Final (Kafelnikov)
Quarter Final
Winner [8] (Chang)
1997
Winner [9] (Moya)
3R
Winner [10] (Pioline)
4R
1998
Quarter Final
2R
Winner [11] (Ivanisevic)
Semi Final (Rafter)
1999
2R
Winner [12] (Agassi)
2000
Semi Final (Agassi)
1R
Winner [13] (Rafter)
Final (Safin)
2001
4R
2R
Quarter Final
Final (Hewitt)
2002
4R
1R
2R
Winner [14] (Agassi)
Roger Federer Grand Slam Summary
Aus Open
French Open
Wimbledon
US Open
1999
1R
1R
2000
3R
4R
1R
3R
2001
3R
QF
QF
4R
2002
4R
1R
1R
4R
2003
4R (Nalbandian)
1R (Homa)
Winner [1] (Philippoussis)
4R (Nalbandian)
2004
Winner [2] (Safin)
3R (Kuerten)
Winner [3] (Roddick)
Winner [4] (Hewitt)
2005
Semi Final (Safin)
Semi-Final (Nadal)
Winner [5] (Roddick)
Winner [6] (Agassi)
2006
Winner [7] (Baghdatis)
Final (Nadal)
Winner [8] (Nadal)
Winner [9] (Roddick)
2007
Winner [10] (Gonzalez)
Final (Nadal)
Winner [11] (Nadal)
Winner [12] (Djokovic)
2008
Semi-Final (Djokovic)
Final (Nadal)
Final (Nadal)
Winner [13] (Murray)
2009
Final (Nadal)
Winner [14] (Soderling)
Winner [15] (Roddick)
Final (Del Potro)
2010
Winner [16] (Murray)
Quarter Final (Soderling)
Quarter Final (Berdych)
Semi-Final (Djokovic)
2011
Semi-Final (Djokovic)
Final (Nadal)
Quarter Final (Tsonga)
Semi-Final (Djokovic)
2012
Semi-Final (Nadal)
Semi-Final (Djokovic)
Winner [17] (Murray)
Quarter Final (Berdych)
2013
Semi-Final (Murray)
Quarter Final (Tsonga)
2R (Stakhovsky)
4R (Robredo)
2014
Semi-Final (Nadal)
4R (Gulbis)
Final (Djokovic)
Semi-Final (Cilic)
2015
3R (Seppi)
Quarter Final (Warinka)
Final (Djokovic)
Final (Djokovic)
2016
Semi-Final (Djokovic)
Semi-Final (Raonic)
2017
Winner [18] (Nadal)
Winner [19] (Cilic)
Quarter Final (Del Potro)
2018
Winner [20] (Cilic)
Rafael Nadal Grand Slam Summary
Aus Open
French Open
Wimbledon
US Open
2003
3R (Srichaphan)
2R (Aynaoui)
2004
3R (Hewitt)
2R (Roddick)
2005
4R (Hewitt)
Winner [1] (Puerta)
2R (Müller)
3R (Blake)
2006
Winner [2] (Federer)
Final (Federer)
Quarter Final (Youzhny)
2007
Quarter Final (González)
Winner [3] (Federer)
Final (Federer)
4R (Ferrer)
2008
Semi-Final (Tsonga)
Winner [4] (Federer)
Winner [5] (Federer)
Semi-Final (Murray)
2009
Winner [6] (Federer)
4R (Söderling)
Semi-Final (Del Potro)
2010
Quarter Final (Murray)
Winner [7] (Söderling)
Winner [8] (Berdych)
Winner [9] (Djokovic)
2011
Quarter Final (Ferrer)
Winner [10] (Federer)
Final (Djokovic)
Final (Djokovic)
2012
Final (Djokovic)
Winner [11] (Djokovic)
2R (Rosol)
2013
Winner [12] (Ferrer)
1R (Darcis)
Winner [13] (Djokovic)
2014
Final (Wawrinka)
Winner [14] (Djokovic)
4R (Kyrgios)
2015
Quarter Final (Berdych)
Quarter Final (Djokovic)
2R (Brown)
3R (Fognini)
2016
1R (Verdasco)
3R (Granollers)
4R (Pouille)
2017
Final (Federer)
Winner [15] (Wawrinka)
4R (Muller)
Winner [16] (Anderson)
2018
Quarter Final (Cilic)
Note:
1R = Round of 128;
2R = Round of 64;
3R = Round of 32;
4R = Round of 16;
Quarter Final = Round of 8;
Semi Final = Round of 4;
Writing by shivdev on Friday, 3 of September , 2010 at 11:55 am
The Djokovic/Petzschner game or this fight that broke out in the stands? Djokovic actually stopped playing and wanted to get in on the commotion. I was here at the US Open last year and can relate to what’s going on.
It’s Murphy’s Law. These really tall dudes sitting on the seats in front of you will make it just impossible for you to see the game. Plus, these tall dudes are going to wear their biggest hats and since you’re behind you will get a great view of the hat. Not to mention, that little itch in their rear which makes them keep moving so you have to move with them. Come on, I’m not the only one to go through this.
So when tennis fans see empty seats, they take it. You paid a big sum of money to some random scalper on eBay or StubHub to watch your tennis star. Now please, if it’s not your seat don’t fight for it. There are plenty of other free seats at least in the second round in the upper level.
I’m not sure what the story is here but take a look at the video below. I don’t think this dude here did anything wrong. All I can say is don’t mess with the women! Our man Murphy really likes you!
Writing by shivdev on Saturday, 6 of February , 2010 at 1:04 am
I’ve been skiing at Lake Tahoe Resorts since 2002 and have developed some favorites. I’m an intermediate to advanced skier and stay pretty much on groomed runs and far away from powder. Based on my experience, I’m writing reviews on the resorts I’ve been to.
My new favorite – I’ve been here 3 times now and enjoyed every time I was here. Excellent conditions and relatively easy runs for intermediate skiers throughout the mountain. If you’re an expert, you will probably find this way too easy. But for me, Northstar is perfect! Only thing is that after park, you have to take the shuttle to the village and if you’re with beginners might have to take the Gondola instead of the Chair Lift to the School area. Nice village for non-skiing buddies to hang out.
Another fantastic resort for intermediate and advanced skiers. I’ve been here 12 times and enjoyed every time I was here. This has a wider variety of nice groomed blue and black runs that’ll never disappoint. Driving from the SF Bay Area, it’s one of the closest “real” ski resorts in the North Lake Tahoe area.
What can I say? I had season passes for 3 years. Another great resort for beginners to expert skiers. Also, Costco sells Kirkwood 2 pack tickets which is good. It’s in the South Tahoe area and probably the closes to SF Bay Area. Season passes used to be sold for $299 – unbeatable! I have the map of Kirkwood memorized so always love coming here.
HUGE Resort, Excellent runs for all types of skiers. Awesome Night Life since it’s close to the casinos in the South Lake Tahoe area. A little pricey but then if you’re staying at the Casinos its very close. I’ve been here couple of times.
Another HUGE Resort and has proudly hosted the Winter Olympics. I’ve been here 5 times but that’s because I was with Bay Area Ski Bus and got a good deal. Pricey but lot of good ski terrain.
I don’t know but I had a bad experience the one time I was here – Crowded, long lines. Snow was powdery and had bumps all over. I had a bad day, but given that it’s a “real” ski resort its probably worth the price.
Shivdev Kalambi is a Software Development Manager, previously a Principal Software Engineer at ArcSight/HP. With over 16 years' experience in software development, he's worked on several technologies and played different roles and contributed to all phases of projects. Non-tech activies include Ping-pong, Rock Climbing and Yoga at PG, Golf, Skiing, Swimming & a beer enthusiast.