Slammin'
Posted July 8, 2007, 9:15 PM ET

Roger Federer is one bad dude.

Despite the lousy month of sports in July, Wimbledon and the Men's Singles finale was spectacular. I know it's hard for people in the States to get motivated or interested in the growing rivalry between Federer and Spain's Rafael Nadal, but the two stars of men's tennis were simply terrific at Wimbledon's Centre Court.

If Federer or Nadal were born and bred in the US of A, it would probably be a different story, but watching Roger Federer in his prime is a treat. His 5th straight victory Sunday at the All-England Tennis Club gives him 11 Grand Slam titles and puts him in the same elite class with the likes of Bjorn Borg and Rod Laver. Not bad.

Maybe the folks in the United States will perk up and take notice of his greatness when he gets a bit closer to Pete Sampras' all-time record of 14 Grand Slam titles. At the pace Federer is going, that could come sometime next year. He should be favored to win on the hard courts at the US Open in September and next year at the Australian Open.

He would desperately love to win the French Open, but Nadal has owned Federer and the rest of the world on clay. As a matter of fact, Nadal has never lost on the clay courts at Roland Garros. The 21-year old Spaniard has won the last three French Open titles.

The Federer-Nadal series is starting to take shape as the best rivalry in sports....both players are incredibly talented, and yet very different in their on-court styles, personalities, and backgrounds. That's what makes them an interesting pair and matchup. It's a shame that Andy Roddick can't muster up some guts and join in the game...but the stable of USA men's tennis talent seems nonexistent.

Roger Federer has now played in nine consecutive Grand Slam finals...that's insane. What's even crazier is that he's won seven of them. The win at Wimbledon was his 34th consecutive in the tournament, and he has the audacity to add 54 straight wins on grass.

During the Wimbledon final, there was a great new commercial from Nike in which you see a montage of Federer highlights, showcasing his great wins in Grand Slam events....at the end of the spot, you see Tiger Woods hitting golf balls on the range. He looks into the camera and claims to Federer that he (Tiger) has 12 major titles compared to Federer's 10 (now 11). Tiger grins and goes back to practicing.

That Nike spot is tremendous foreshadowing. It won't be long until we see Tiger's great shots and wins in the majors, and it will be Federer who is smiling and reminding Tiger that he has some catching up to do.

I suggest to all sports fans that we appreciate the greatness that we're currently witnessing with Federer, and even Nadal. These guys are putting on a show, and the next performance is Off-Broadway at the U.S. Open.