Legends bring out the best in each other!
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ROGER FEDERER - WINS THE 2016 AUSTRALIAN OPEN - HIS 18TH GRANDSLAM
And what a privilege it was to watch 2 of the greats stepping it up tonight.
So much has and will be written about them, as it should be, but above all, I believe these 2 set the most brilliant example of 'class, commitment & courage'.
As Roger gives a little blow to his finger tips - cooling the sweat before he receives serve... Rafa very indiscreetly pulls out a wedgy... But hey, whatever works...
These 2 redefine 'champions'.
They know what it takes & they take what they know. And tonight they put all that on the line for the world to watch.
I talk of impact. That impact we can & do all have on each other.
Tonight there was far more impact than racquet to ball. Far more than one player impacting another. These 2 players had an impact on every set of eyes that watched the match tonight - whether it be live, small screen or big screen - locally, in our fine city of Melbourne, or globally. The extent of which can't possibly be measured, and doesn't need to be. But it's known, it's felt, and it ripples... both now and will be in generations to come.
Not just to the game of tennis - but to the human spirit and in defining what legends are made of.
And perhaps this match is elevated even more so given it's contrast to this past week, where we've seen how the 'impact' of 2 other individuals, can play out in the most destructive of ways. In America - the Trump card, and locally - the Bourke Street tragedy.
Tonight, I for one am humbly re-assured by the extent to which 2 individuals can and do have an impact in the most uplifting of ways.
Tonight, for millions of Australians, and hundreds of millions the world over - to be literally glued on something as pure as a tennis match, one that could not have been closer... we certainly have a lot to thank these legends and their teams for. Together - it's their kind of impact that we want, we need, and the world deserves more of.
It was tight - ups and downs. They both took a turn at being 'ON'. At one point Courier described Roger's shots as 'effortless power'. And those words I find very fitting when it comes to 'impact', the good kind of impact. It can be effortless too...
Simply by doing what we do, by being who we are. Maybe we can't all be world champ tennis players - but with 'class, commitment & courage' we can all bring out the best in each other.
I personally was going for Roger, but when you witness what we did tonight - and the incredible-ness of both these players. The only real losers were those who didn't, or weren't able to watch it.
Legends do bring out the best in each other, and tonight, we saw just that.
Thanks gentlemen - your impact will far far out live your careers.
It already has.
(Originally published - 30th January, 2016)