Nadal or Djokovic?

Who will win the 1st Grand Slam of the year?

After my previous post on the changes Nadal made with his racquet and his game, will it be enough to solve the Djokovic riddle?

Stay tuned.

*File picture from www.australianopen.com

This Article Caught My Eye

Which article is this you ask? Well, following section below caught my eye.

"Some people would perceive the addition to be minimal, probably no more than an ounce and the distribution is spread evenly across the head. However, even a small change comes with a risk."

Rafael Nadal in his quest to serve better (as he noticed his service speed had dropped in 2011 compared to 2010) added some weight to his racquet head. This is as he realized the number of aces per match he served last season was less than half of what Andy Murray & Roger Federer managed.

Elite athletes are extremely sensitive when it comes to equipment change. Because of the repetitive movements/ stroke etc, a small change can wreak havoc and create biomechanical changes and cause injuries. True enough, Rafa started having shoulder pain in while playing in a tournament in Doha last week and lost his semi-final.

Myself included. After a bike accident that damaged my bike back in 2001, I changed bike frames (of a different brand) but set up everything else exactly the same. Just 3 days after the bike changed, I started having pain down my right hamstring. Every time after I finished the bike leg in a triathlon, I had pain in my right hamstrings every single time that whole season.

What's more surprising, 2 days after I managed to get a brand new frame similar to my previous damaged one cleared the problem almost straight away.

So as the new season beckons for all of you, make sure you don't introduce drastic changes to your training and/ or your equipment.

*Article "Nadal, creature of habit, forced to adapt to stay on top" from The Times, London republished in the Straits Times on Monday, 090112 on page B13

Sunday Times Article ST 010112

Here's a good start for the new year, our Sports Solutions staff mentioned in Dr (Prof) Lee Wei Ling's article in today's Sunday Times under the Think section on page 37 on how she received help for her rehabilitation after her operations.