Outsports » Rafael Nadal

Sports Illustrated Swimsuit issue features female models and three male athletes

Cyd Zeigler jr. — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 16:54:59 +0000

The Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue is out, and it again features lots of scantily clad female models. When we at Outsports get complaints that we feature shirtless athletes (like Gareth Thomas in his underwear), we always point to the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue as proof that “it’s not a gay thing, it’s a guy thing.” At least we keep it sports-focused; While Sports Illustrated just uses hot models, we focus on athletes.

This year, as they have in the past, Sports Illustrated has paired up a model with various male pro athletes. In their latest issue, Bar Rafaeli teams up with Chris Paul (after the jump), Rafael Nadal and Michael Phelps. Of course, while the women wear the smallest bikinis they can get their hands on, the men wear full shorts. At least Phelps sports his skin-tight Speedos (even if they are short-length and black, to hide “the bulge”).

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Who’s hotter in Armani underwear: David Beckham, Rafael Nadal or Cristiano Ronaldo?

Cyd Zeigler jr. — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 18:12:33 +0000

David Beckham has been the poster child for athletes willing to strip down and show off their gorgeous bodies. Most notably he’s done it for Armani underwear. Now come new photos and videos of tennis great Rafael Nadal following Beckham’s lead…in nothing but his Armanis. We saw a batch of them before, but the latest has left me wondering if we’re looking at an elite athlete who will be stripping to his underwear for us for years to come. Add him to Cristiano Ronaldo and we have three European countries – England, Spain and Portugal – represented. Here’s hoping we get an American to drop his drawers soon…

Who looks better in their Armanis: Beckham, Nadal or Ronaldo? Vote with your comment after the jump…

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Serena Williams loses badly, Novak Djokovic throws Rafael Nadal a curve ball

Cyd Zeigler jr. — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 23:44:15 +0000

After a wet U.S. Open that left a bad taste in the mouths of some players, it was what came out of the mouth of a runner-up that has left many scratching their heads. As (28) Serena Williams was in the middle of losing the women’s final to (9) Samantha Stosur, 6-2, 6-3, in embarrassing fashion, she embarrassed herself more with a tirade against the chair umpire. Williams was fined a paltry $2,000 fine, but her reputation suffered a lot more. Interestingly, despite Stosur being the higher seed, this is being called one of the greatest upsets in women’s tennis history.

On the men’s side, Novak Djokovic (above) has asserted himself as the most dominant player in men’s tennis. In crushing Rafael Nadal, 6-2, 6-2, 6-7, 6-1, in the final, Djokovic has planted himself squarely between Nadal and the chase for Federer’s record of 16 Grand Slam titles. He was 25-1 in Grand Slam matches this year (losing only to Federer) and lost only two matches all year. At 24 with four titles, he’s no threat to make a run like Federer had. But with Nadal at age 25 and needing six more Grand Slam titles to catch Federer, Djokovic’s explosion onto the scene throws a wrench into Nadal’s plans.

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Rafael Nadal wins. How ‘great’ is he?

Cyd Zeigler jr. — Tue, 14 Sep 2010 17:53:41 +0000

Rafael Nadal has done what four years ago no one thought he had the ability to accomplish: He has won a career Grand Slam, winning the rain-delayed U.S. Open Monday night. Previously relegated a “clay court player,” Nadal is now taking aim at the big daddy of them all: Roger Federer’s record 16 Grand Slam titles. Some say Nadal’s performance discredits Federer as the greatest tennis player ever, particularly because Nadal has beaten Federer more times than he has lost to him. Nadal is 5-2 against Federer in Grand Slams, but three of those wins came on clay: Nadal’s best surface and Federer’s worst.

I don’t think you can call Nadal the greatest ever yet. Federer has the record, and unless Nadal eclipses him, it’s tough to not give Federer the crown: Federer’s string of 23 straight Grand Slam semifinals from 2004 to 2010 is a record to behold.

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Who will take the U.S. Open crowns?

Cyd Zeigler jr. — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 17:38:20 +0000

For many Americans, the start of college football and the NFL signals the the beginning of autumn. But for many others, it’s the U.S. Open that ushers in the changing of the seasons. On the men’s side, Rafael Nadal will try for the second year to complete a career Grand Slam; But Roger Federer won last week’s big tune-up for the Open. On the women’s side, with three-time champion and world No. 1 Serena Williams out, Serena’s sister Venus (a two-time champ in Flushing Meadows) will try to outlast a bunch of talented Europeans.

My biggest complaint about the U.S. Open: The men’s final is always on the opening NFL Sunday. I’ll bop back and forth between the tennis and football, but it does interrupt my enjoyment of both.

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Rafael Nadal takes fifth French Open title

Cyd Zeigler jr. — Mon, 07 Jun 2010 17:05:23 +0000

Rafael Nadal is officially back in top form after missing much of last year with an injury. After winning his fifth French Open championship without losing a set, he now trails Bjorn Borg’s record of six French Open titles by one.

These next few months are huge for Nadal. With seven Grand Slam titles, he has to be aiming high for that end-of-career number. Chances are slim to none he can catch Roger Federer’s 16, but Borg and Rod Laver have 11; Roy Emerson has 12; Pete Sampras has 14. How high can he go on that list? Plus, only six men have completed the career Grand Slam, and Nadal is without a U.S. Open title. It’s going to be a very interesting summer….

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Roger Federer is the Energizer Bunny

Cyd Zeigler jr. — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 16:54:29 +0000

When Roger Federer lost to Rafael Nadal in excruciating fashion in the 2008 Wimbledon Finals, the words being used to describe Federer were “Done” and “Finished.” The experts weighed in that “Roger wouldn’t win another Grand Slam title.” Since that match there have been six Grand Slam tournaments: Federer has won four of them and finished second in the other two; Nadal has won just one. Not bad for a grand champion who was “finished” just 18 months ago. (Serena Williams has also won four of the last six after losing to her sister, Venus, in the 2008 Wimbledon final.)

His three-set, 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 stomping of Andy Murray was vintage, height-of-his-career Federer. And what made it even sweeter was that Nadal declared Murray the Australian Open champion after he lost to the Scotsman in the quarterfinals.

Nadal was supposed to be the man who passed Federer’s now-record 16 Grand Slam wins. But Federer and Nadal are now showing what makes the greatest champion of all so great: Longevity. Nadal could be dominating tennis right now, but he has not escaped injury. Federer’s march to all-time greatness isn’t just because he can put together a great match, or a great tournament, or a great year, or even a great few years. He’s the greatest ever because he is now working on his seventh consecutive incredible year. Not since 2002 has he lost more than three matches in a season.

And despite being “finished” in 2008, he’s still going and going and going…

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Injuries bounce Nadal, Safina. Roddick upset.

Cyd Zeigler jr. — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 18:46:42 +0000

Has injury ever knocked two top-2 seeds from a Grand Slam tournament? I certainly can’t remember another instance. But that’s the case this year, with the 2-seeds from both the men’s and women’s sides bowing out mid-match. Rafael Nadal was headed for an early exit before he retired, down to Andy Murray in the third, 6-3, 7-6, 3-0. The big blow came when Safina, down 5-4 in the first set, retired due to back pain. She had looked good the first few games, but the pain caught up to her quickly.

Andy Roddick, who was yet again a popular pick for an upset win, again fell short of expectations being upset by 14-seed Marin Cilic, 7-6, 6-3, 3-6, 2-6, 6-3.

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Man chases down shirtless Nadal

Cyd Zeigler jr. — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 17:30:09 +0000

Rafael Nadal took a big step toward a career Grand Slam, beating Gael Monfils in four sets to reach the U.S. Open quarterfinals. But it was a male fan who took a big step toward Nadal. Shirtless after his victory, Nadal was exiting the court when a fan chased after him, trying to kiss the six-time Grand Slam champ. The man was promptly taken away and handcuffed to the bleachers. Hmmm, I didn’t know Nadal was into that kind of thing.

Hat tip to Towleroad.

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Bad timing: Nadal on cover of NYT Magazine

Jim Buzinski — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 06:38:24 +0000

The cover story in Sunday’s New York Times Magazine was on Rafael Nadal, timed to coincide with the start of Wimbledon. The same Wimbledon that Nadal has to skip because of knee problems. The article makes a reference to Nadal possibly dropping out, but since these stories are assigned months in advance, it’s clearly a case of bad timing.

It is still an interesting read for tennis fans and Nadal comes across as a likable sort; his coach, Uncle Toni, comes across as the grounded guiding force that keeps Rafa from getting a big head. Speaking of big, the story does focus on Nadal’s large biceps as part of his appeal:

Nadal’s arms, both of them, have inspired over the years a fervent subgroup of admirers, especially once he began appearing at international matches in what became his trademark outfit: sleeveless shirt, wide headband knotted around the unruly hair and his celebrated piratas, rakish knee-length shorts that made him look like a surfer who lifted weights in his spare time. When Nike altered the ensemble early this year, in what everybody involved insists was a mutual decision by the company and Nadal’s entourage (the idea was to move him into something more grown-up), there was a brief but spirited insurrection among the fans.

The Vamos Brigade, an international Nadal-watching Web site frequented mostly by enamored and effusive women, set up a special discussion devoted to Nadal’s new short-sleeved shirts and more conventional shorts; the title was Official Mourning Thread.

The story, though, fails to go into any detail of how Nadal built his arms — gobs of weightlifting or genetics combined with normal tennis training? There is a reference that his shoulder development is genetic, but with such fascination about his biceps, why not ask Rafa about them?

The story notes the women who shriek like preteens when they see Nadal, but ignores his gay fan base, which loved the photos last fall of him showing his bare butt while on a boat.

There are two more examples of bad Nadal timing: He was named the fittest man in the world by Men’s Fitness and also made the cover of Vogue, with photos shot by Bruce Weber. Nadal seems to have been selected as this summer’s It Boy, now blown up by his loss at the French Open and his withdrawal from Wimbledon.

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