'I am the best, no?' - At the moment, yes.

Ouch!

Excerpt from Ford's article at tennis.com

The yes man
New world No. 1 Rafael Nadal has worked nearly as diligently on his English as his grass- and hard-court games, but he retains the charming habit of ending his sentences with a conversational "No?'' It's certainly not indicative of any negativity. The 22-year-old Spaniard has answered in the affirmative to every single competitive question people had about him this season, and he's done it with grace and verve. We might have predicted Nadal would win an Olympic gold medal simply by the undiluted enthusiasm he radiated when he marched in the Opening Ceremony. It was a muscular embrace of the moment that has been characteristic of the way he's approached the challenge of making up the once enormous-looking gap between second and first in the rankings. If it hadn't been for one incandescent, flawless match by Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the Australian Open semifinals, Nadal would be contemplating the possibility of a Golden Grand Slam. His accomplishments this season aren't without irony. Nadal was the most vehement of the top players in voicing (albeit politely) his displeasure with this year's compressed schedule. In turn, many observers -- including yours truly -- openly doubted whether his body could withstand the pounding. Yet the steady work seems to have agreed with Nadal. Felicitations are in order. Si?

Nadal's "no?" is quite addictive, growing up on me at least. Well if you look at it, seeing him interviewing as a champion after every major victory this year, one is bound to pick it up. Looking at the new order of the ATP ranking and not seeing the favorite name at the top makes me wince but if there is anyone whom I or the TMF fans could bear to see replacing him is undoubtedly Rafa. Interestingly, Rafa has done everything right and earned the crown with every possible conviction unlike Jankovic, who was possibly the shortest-lived leader at the WTA board. A new era dawns upon tennis, lets see how long does this one last.

That said, the real challenge has just started for TMF, can he overcome the adversity in terms of results and show his mettle to claim the highest acknowledgement in tennis from Sampras? Now is the time because he is against the best competitor he ever saw and his usual preys are coming with a mentality that they can defeat him, which is very unlike the times till last year when most of them conceded the match even before it started. And, seeing him so happy after winning doubles Gold was such a refreshing sight.