By Sportswriter Wang Jimin
BEIJING, July 28 (Xinhua) -- With only a fortnight away from the tennis event of the
Beijing Olympic Games, the top players in the world have stepped up the gear towards the showcase event.
The Spaniards, who have claimed gold medals in every Olympics since the sport came back into the Olympic family in 1988, have hit top form as they notched up two titles at the weekend, with their men's ace Rafael Nadal claiming the Toronto Masters and women's doubles team Anabel Medina Garrigues and Virginia Ruano Pascual taking the Slovenia Open.
Rafael Nadal of Spain celebrates defeating Nicolas Kiefer of Germany during their Men's Singles Final at the Rogers Cup tennis tournament in Toronto July 27, 2008. (Xinhua/Reuters Photo)
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The 22-year-old Nadal, who has ranked No. 2 for a record 157 weeks, will become the new No. 1 next Sunday if he wins the title at the Masters series in Cincinnati and the current world number one Roger Federer loses before the semifinals.
"Every player wants to be No. 1, I would love to be No. 1, but Iam No. 2 right now," said Nadal, having played men's doubles with Carlos Moya at Athens four years ago.
"I'm very happy for being No. 2. Because with my titles, with my points, in a normal situation I would have been No. 1 before. So I think I have to be happy, very happy anyway. Because if I am No. 2 it's because in front of me there is amazing player like Roger (Federer)."
The bull like youngster needed only one hour and 29 minutes to overcome German Nicolas Kiefer 6-3, 6-2 in the Toronto final.
Nadal, despite placing the Olympics in the second to Grand Slams, has aimed to make a major step towards the Golden Slam consisting of all four Grand Slams plus a gold medal of the Olympics. He will head a strong line-up including fourth-ranked David Ferrer, Nicolas Almagro (12th) and Tommy Robredo (16th). Nadal will also play doubles with Robredo.
Rafael Nadal of Spain licks the trophy after defeating Nicolas Kiefer of Germany in Men's Singles Final at the Rogers Cup tennis tournament in Toronto July 27, 2008.(Xinhua/Reuters Photo)
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"Well, it's always a special tournament, and there are special feelings because you are representing your country. It's very different from the regular tournaments on the tour. You are in the Olympic Village, so it's always very nice to be with the rest of the sportsmen of the world," Nadal told the ITF's official website.
After winning 29 straight matches since early May, Nadal has become one of the heavy favorites for the men's title.
The winning streak brought him his first title at Masters Series Hamburg, his fourth successive Roland Garros title and his first grass-court title at Queen's Club, and most importantly, the Wimbledon where Swiss world number one Roger Federer have won five times.
While in the contrast, Federer's crown has lost its lustre and a shiny medal of Olympic gold would be very welcome for the king of men's tennis.
After being thrashed by Nadal in the French Open final, the Swiss maestro lost again at Wimbledon to the Spaniard who won a five-set epic on Federer's Centre Court fortress.
The world number one turns 27 on the day of the
Beijing opening ceremony and he will have to rediscover his A-game after also suffering a surprise defeat in the Toronto Masters to France's Gilles Simon.
"It's important to stay positive. The hard court season just started. It's the start of, what is it, nine months of hard court?It's not the end of the world, but I wish it could have started better, I've got to regroup and look forward," Federer told ATP's official website.
"The bigger picture is the Olympic Games and the US Open. Those are the places where I want to win."
In 2000 he lost a semi-final to Tommy Haas and then let a bronze medal slip through his fingers against Frenchman Arnaud Di Pasquale. Four years later he lost in the second round to Tomas Berdych.
"Last time was quite disappointing, losing in the second round but nevertheless, going there was one of the biggest experiences in life," the Swiss said in Toronto last week.
More used to staying in fancy hotels, Federer appreciates the special feeling of the Olympic Village and says winning gold in
Beijing would be one of the highlights of his career.
The Cincinnati is the last chance for major players to boost their game before the long flight to China for the
Beijing Olympics, to be followed by a trans-Pacific dash to US Open just over a fortnight later.
World number three Novak Djokovic, having bagged three titles this season, seems to lose some of his steam in the Toronto Masters which saw him slump to Scotsman Andy Murray in the quarterfinals. At Wimbledon, the newly crowned Australian Open winner was also wiped out in the second round.
In women's doubles, Chinese Taipei's Chan Yung-Jan/Chuang Chia-Jung were among the winners, clinching the title of the Tier II Los Angeles Open. The Olympic medal hopefuls have registered three titles to their names this season, and they will pose serious challenge to the hosts China's defending road.
Chinese ace Zheng Jie's run to the women's semifinals at Wimbledon has stoked home hopes of Chinese success. Zheng won the Wimbledon and Australian Open doubles titles in 2006 with long-time partner Yan Zi and will be aiming to repeat the feat of Athens gold medallists Sun Tiantian and Li Ting.
After the Wimbledon, the Chinese women's team are now fine-tuning in north China's Tianjin, and will be back to the Chinese capital early August.
Serbia have high Olympic hopes for women's world number one Ana Ivanovic and number two Jelena Jankovic while Russia have a formidable quartet of Maria Sharapova (3rd), Svetlana Kuznetsova (4th), Elena Dementieva (6th) and Dinara Safina (8th).
The top four players all suffered pre-quarterfinal exits at Wimbledon, the first time that has happened at a Grand Slam in the Open Era.
While Ivanovic, Sharapova and Kuznetsova will be playing for thefirst time since those losses in this week's Montreal Open, Jankovic played her first summer hardcourt event at Los Angeles last week when she lost to the eventual winner Safina.
The Williams sisters, who have claimed the Wimbledon singles and doubles, are still suffering the injury woes, hoping to recover in time for the Olympics.
Countries are allowed a maximum of six players in the Olympic tournament with no more than four in the singles. They are allowed two doubles pairs.
Tennis was a part of the first modern Olympic Games in 1896 but was withdrawn after the 1924 Paris Games. It returned as a demonstration event in the 1984 Los Angeles Games and became a full medal sport again in 1988.
