Over to the grass courts

Over Federer? 8220;Yes,8221; Borg said. After losing the most lopsided Grand Slam men8217;s final since John McEnroe allowed Jimmy Connors to take only four games at Wimbledon in 1984, Federer spoke Sunday about wishing he could face Nadal on grass more often.

There are far more tournaments played on clay than on grass, and there8217;s a strong possibility the rivals will meet on the slicker surface once in 2008, just as they met once at the All England Club in 2006 and 2007 8212; in the Wimbledon final.

The surprising thing is Nadal8217;s come much closer to beating Federer at Wimbledon than Federer has come to beating Nadal at the French Open. In 2005 at Roland Garros, they met in the semi-finals. In 2006, 2007 and 2008, they met in the final. Each of the first three match-ups, Federer pushed Nadal to four sets. But the 26-year-old Swiss star didn8217;t even come close to making a single set competitive Sunday.

At Wimbledon, in contrast, they played four sets in the 2006 championship match, followed by a 7-6 7, 4-6, 7-6 3, 2-6, 6-2 8220;thriller,8221; as Federer deemed it, in the 2007 final.

Federer is supposed to be the one of the pair with the adaptable skills and all-court game, yet it8217;s Nadal who has changed the way he plays even more. He8217;ll serve-and-volley at the All England Club, and on Sunday at Roland Garros, the left-hander was standing right along the baseline, playing an attacking brand of tennis not generally associated with clay-court greats. 8220;I am young. I have to continue to improve,8221; Nadal said. 8220;I think I8217;m improving, and that8217;s important.8221;

He also might be fresher than Federer heading into the quick turnaround between the French Open and Wimbledon. Nadal hardly appeared to be sapped of any energy at the end of the tournament, perhaps because he spent so little time on court.

Federer8217;s not worried

It will be instructive to see how Federer does after his worst loss in 173 career Grand Slam matches, and his first 6-0 set anywhere since 1999, back before he had cracked the top 50 in the rankings.

Could his confidence be shaken by Sunday8217;s rout? He insists not. 8220;I8217;m going to look forward to grass,8221; he said. 8220;I think the second half of the season, hopefully, is going to be better than the first.8221;

As for Nadal, he needs to win a Grand Slam title somewhere other than Paris. Borg, for one, thinks it could happen sooner rather than later. 8220;The way he played last year at Wimbledon, it was an unbelievable final. He was very unfortunate not to win that particular match. He had chances,8221; Borg said. 8220;And I8217;m sure after losing a match like that he wants to come back and try to win that championship.8221;