The Celtics led for most part of the game. With a very comfortable 24-point lead a little more than 7 minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, everyone, including the Celtics, thought that the game was over. But the Lakers had other ideas in mind. The fired up Kobe Bryant, who had to battle his way throughout the game, challenged his teammates as they slowly climbed their way into the game. The lead was cut down to as close as 2 points at 104-102 behind Kobe Bryant’s two free throws less than a minute remaining. On the next play, Paul Pierce carried the Celtics as he got fouled while driving to the basket. He calmly sank the two free throws to make it a two possession ballgame and kept the Lakers at bay.

The Celtics blew a big lead in the fourth quarter by letting their guard down, but narrowly escaped an embarrassing loss from the Lakers. The Celtics came out with the win and advanced the series lead to 2-0.

The Lakers hope to finally have a taste of a win in the series as they head back to Los Angelese for game 3 on Tuesday night.

Federer showed a little resistance midway through the second set, mainly by creating extra ordinary shots on the side line.  His volleys created some opportunities for him as he leveled the set 3-3. 

Nadal, however, was undeterred.  He made Federer’s volleys futile by delivering brilliant passing shots down the line, forcing Federer to just stand in awe in the middle of the court. 

In the end, Nadal’s clay court play making proved too much for Federer.  He completely anihilated the world number 1 by breaking him on the first game of the third set and never looked back.  He finished the match at 6-0, a show of total supremacy at the Roland Garros clay courts. 

Perhaps it will be another story for Federer next year…but until then this one is Nadal’s. 

Nadal displayed a very strong performance yesterday, beating Djokovic 6-4, 6-2, 7-6 (3) .  The dominant Spaniard holds a very clean 27-0 record at the Roland Garros tournament.  He overcame a late surge by the Serbian to move on to the Finals.  A win by Nadal tomorrow will make him the first man to win four consecutive French Open titles in a row since Bjorn Borg did it in 1978 to 1981.

Federer, in contrast, struggled throughout the semi-final match against the world ranked  number 59 Monfils.  Federer jumped on Monfils’ early jitters and relied on his experience to take the first set 6-2.  Monfils, the lone French man left standing in the Roland Garros tournament, came out firing in the second set.  With the full French crowd behind him, Monfils displayed a very strong defense, running around the court and delivering very accurate shots down the line against the suddenly inconsistent Federer.  Monfils took the second set 7-5 to level up the match at one all to the delight of the crowd.  In the third set, Federer got his swagger back by being more aggressive on the net.  Monfils, could not sustain his intensity from the second set as Federer dominated the third set 6-3.  The fourth set was very tight with Federer saving breakpoints from the French man at 1-1, 2-2, and 3-3.  Federer also displayed incosistency by missing some volleys to let the French man get even at 5-5 during the set.  Federer then held on with his mental tenacity, capturing the match at 7-5 on the fourth set, displaying a sign of a relief at the end. 

Tomorrow’s French Open Final is history in the making.  Will Nadal continue his dominance against the world number 1 Federer in the Roland Garros tournament?  Will he continue to make history in the French Open? Will Nadal’s superb clay-court performance hold off the hungry and magnificent strokes of Federer?  Will Federer finally get the elusive title this time?  Will his improved clay court play finally enable him to beat Nadal? 

Over the past few days, people can’t seem to get enough of the coming NBA Finals.  Some of my friends are betting on the big three of Boston Celtics, Garnett, Allen and Pierce to deliver the first blood tonight.  Others are confident that Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol and the rest of the Lakers team will be able to snatch a win in Boston.  A few are even taking a time off from the office to watch the live telecast at home.

It’s 3 hours before the NBA Finals tip off and the anticipation and excitement is already on the air.  This is the battle of two great teams.  This is history.  This is destiny.  Let’s get it on!

The world number 1 Roger Federer, considered to be one of the greatest tennis players of all time, is playing in the only grand slam tournament that he has not yet captured the title.  With 12 grand slam titles on his name, he is only 2 titles behind Pete Sampras’ all time high record of 14 grand slams.  But with all those grand slams, only 1 title has eluded him thus far.  The French Open.  The only tournament where he has not been the dominant player.  The only blemish to his very clean record.

Is this the year for Roger Federer?  Will he survive the onslaught of Nadal or Jokovic in the Finals?  Will he finally get the crown that has eluded him all these years?  Is it finally time? 

The Los Angeles Lakers, on the other hand, can end the Western Conference Finals this Thursday at home when they battle it out against the defending NBA Champions San Antonio Spurs.  So far, Kobe and the rest of the Lakers, have matched up well against the Spurs as they lead the series 3-1.  A win will bring them to the NBA Finals for the first time since the Kobe-Shaq era. 

If the Celtics and Lakers reach the NBA Finals, a great rivalry of NBA may be revived.  These 2 teams have been battling it out in the NBA for decades.  Celtics holds the best record in NBA Championship history.  But only one team has stood on its way.  The Lakers.  Will it bring back NBA’s glorious days of Bill Russell vs Wilt Chamberlain?  How about the showtime moves of Ervin Magic Johnson vs the great shooting touch of Larry Bird? Will Kobe vs the big three Garnett, Pierce and Allen live up to the legacy of those great players?  It is indeed a great rivalry…but first, the Lakers and Celtics have to take care of business and wrap up the Conference Finals.  Until then, it’s anybody’s ballgame… 

2008 Thomas Cup: China captures 3rd straight badminton title beating Korea 3-1

China captures its third straight badminton title beating Korea 3-1.  The championship point came from China’s men’s doubles pair Xie Zhongbo and Guo Zhendong.  The Chinese duo came out firing at the start of the first game, taking a commanding win against Korean’s Hwan Ji-man and Lee Jae-Jin, 21-12.  The Koreans came back in the second game, putting up a tough fight, crawling their way to a 21-19 victory over the aggressive Chinese team.  The momentum, however, stayed on China’s side as Xie Zhongbo and Guo Zhendong, maintained their attacking play and pulled off an early lead and never looked back.  The championship point came out of Xie Zhongbo’s powerful smash, ending the 2008 Thomas Cup, capturing the crown for China with a superb win against the Koreans, 21-12. 

Update: China - 2 vs Korea - 1

China takes another win courtesy of Bao Chunlai’s victory over Korea’s Lee Hyun Il.  The world number 3 Bao Chunlai started slowly with Lee Hyun Il controlling most of the game.  The Chinese battled his way through and got to a commanding lead of 3 matchpoints at 20-17.  However, the energized Lee Hyun Il saved all 3 match points and put on a rubber game.  Both players had very sensational rallies, each one saving off match point from the other.  They both displayed superb performance.  In the end, the experience and mental focus of Bao Chunlai prevailed as he brushed off 4 match points from the Korean, and take the first game 28-26.  In the second game, the exhausting first game had taken its toll on Lee Hyun Il physically and mentally.  Bao Chunlai took advantage of the demoralized Korean, playing extraordinary net play and attacking smashes, putting on a commanding lead early and finishing it off 21-11 to put China ahead of Korea, 2 to 1.

Update: China - 1 vs Korea - 1

Korea leveled up the match (China - 1 vs Korea - 1) with a convincing win in their first men’s doubles match.  The partnership of Lee Yong Dae and Jung Jae Sung had to save up 4 match points from the very strong China men’s doubles team of Cai Yun and Fu Hai Feng to win the first game.  The Korean’s tenacity, fighting spirit, and never give up attitude gaved them the extra push to defend the attacks of team China and capture the first game 25-23.  The Koreans kicked-off the second game attacking, barely giving the Chinese team breathing space after the grueling first game.  They displayed great net plays and powerful smashes, continuously burying the shuttle to the ground to the delight of the crowd.  The Chinese team put on a late surge, but it was a little too late as the Koreans finished it off and captured their first point for the Thomas Cup Finals.

Temporary Result: China - 1 vs Korea - 0

The men’s singles match between China’s Lin Dan and Korea’s Park Sung Hwan kicked off the thrill and excitement in the 2008 Thomas Cup Finals.  Lin Dan started off cold with the first game dominated by Park Sung Hwan 21-10.  Slowly but surely, Lin Dan got his swagger back in the second game, with a display of patience and timely smashes,  holding off Park Sung Hwan for a close win,  21-18.   On the deciding game, Lin Dan continued his surge and displayed his magnificent net play and powerful smashes.  He completely dominated the third game, winning 21-8, capturing the first point for China.

Yesterday’s semi-finals match up between China and Malaysia lived up to its hype as surprising victories were secured by both teams. The two teams battled each other neck to neck to the end. Malaysia started very hot behind Lee Chong Wei’s stunning victory over the world number 1 Lin Dan. Malaysia’s dynamic duo, Koo Kien Keat and Tan Boon Heong could not get their groove together against the very fired up China men’s doubles team of Cai Yun and Fu Haifeng. Mohd Fairuzizuan Tazari and Mohd Zakry Abdul Latiff saved Malaysia’s men’s doubles by snatching a surprising victory over Guo Zhengdong and Xie Zhongbo of China. In the end, China’s men’s singles players Bao Chunlai and Chen Jin proved too strong for the Malaysian singles shuttlers Wong Choong Hann and Muhammad Hafiz Hashim.

The semi-finals match between host Indonesia and the persistent Korean team had a very surprising result. The Indonesians came into the match as the strong favorites but the hungry Koreans changed the game. Park Sung-Hwan started Korea’s strong rally by defeating world number 6 Sony Dwi Kuncoro of Indonesia. Korea’s upcoming men’s doubles stars Jung Jae-Sung and Lee Yong-Dae continued their winning ways by shocking the Indonesian powerhouse Markis Kido and Hendra Setiawan. Lee Hyun-Il of Korea completed the surprising upset by defeating the Olympic champion Taufik Hidayat of Indonesia.

Tomorrow’s Thomas Cup Finals is a battle between the very strong team of China and the young, talented and hungry shuttlers of Korea. China went to the tournament with just one mission - to defend their crown and capture their third straight Thomas cup title. The Koreans, on the other end, went to the extreme length of intentionally avoiding a clash with China going into the quarterfinals. In the end, Korea’s strategy worked. They are in the Finals. Will China remain the most dominant force in World badminton? Or will the upcoming shuttlers of Korea finally put a mark in the World badminton scene by upsetting the defending champs and capturing their first ever Thomas Cup crown?

China crushed Thailand on their quarterfinal match, courtesy of their singles players’ Lin Dan and Bao Chunlai’s decisive victories.  The other win for China came from former world number 1 men’s doubles shuttlers Cai Yun and Fu Haifeng.  All three games were won by China in a commanding fashion.

Malaysia, on the other end, totally dominated their quarterfinals matches against their Japanese opponents.  Lee Chong Wei, Malaysia’s number 1 singles player, and the other singles shuttler Wong Choong Han both secured convincing victories for Malaysia.  The surprise of the day came from Malaysia’s new men’s doubles pairings of Koo Kien Keat and Choong Tan Fook.  Koo’s usual partner, Tan Boon Heong teamed up with Zakry Latif this time.  According to National’s doubles coach Rexy Mainaky, the new pairings is intended to keep China guessing and make their strategy unpredictable for their upcoming semi-finals match. 

Both China and Malaysia are home of great badminton players.  Both have made it to the top as Thomas Cup champions.  Both have something to prove.  For China, to defend its crown and maintain its supremacy in World badminton.  For Malaysia, to prove that they can bring down powerhouse China and bring the glorious Thomas Cup back to Malaysia.  It will be a showdown of blazing shuttles and powerful smashes.  It will be a display of surprising tactics and amazing rallies.  It will be a match to remember.