Madrikd -- Rafa vs. Ljubicic (Set 5) Sunday, October 23, 2005 Believe me, I never thought I'd be starting a thread for a fifth set. What a great comeback by Rafa. Although Ivan looks a bit tired, he's still holding serve very comfortably. It's anyone's ball game now, but certainly, the crowd is helping Nadal a lot. Vamos, Rafa! IL to serve Fault. Rafa into net. 15-0. Ace. 30-0. 25 aces for IL. Let. 26th ace. 40-0. BH goes wide. 40-15. Rafa's still looking pretty lively. Ace. Game IL. 0-1, Ljubicic. Rafa to serve. IL passing shot. 0-15. Fault. Rafa into net. 0-30. Danger time for Rafa. Vamos, Rafa! Return long, just barely. 15-30. Fault. Rafa's looking a bit weary to me. Great volley by IL. 15-40. Two breakpoints, and he does a huge fist pump. Vamos, Rafa! Rafa saves one. 30-40. Come on, Rafa. Let. Let. I'm tired of typing; I can just imagine how these guys are feeling. Bad miss by Rafa. Game to IL. Game to IL. 0-2, Ljubicic. Rafa just made things very complicated for himself. Double fault by IL. 0-15. Fault. Ivan, into net. 0-30. Vamos, Rafa! Almost 3 hours of play. Another UE by Ivan. 0-40. Three breakpoints for Rafa. Hopefully he gets one of these. Vamos! Saves one, after great serve. 15-40. This is key for Rafa. Fault. Late call. It was the right call, although Ivan is complaining. Second serve. Double fault. Rafa sprints to chair. 1-2, Ljubicic. Rafa to serve. 15-0, after volley winner by Rafa. I'm a nervous wreck. If I wasn't doing this blog, I'd be tempted to turn off the TV and check the final score later. 30-0, after Ivan hits wide. IL hits long. 40-0. 3 gamepoints. FH winner by IL. 40-15. Vamos, Rafa! Fault. Return goes long. Game Nadal. 2-2, on serve. IL to serve. Crowd is for Nadal, for sure. 15-0. Fault. Bad miss by IL. 15-15. IL is trying to keep the points short. Ace. 30-15. 40-15. Fault. Great return by Rafa. 40-30. Rafa wants this badly, you can tell. Fault. Winner by IL. Game IL. 2-3, Ljubicic. Rafa to serve. IL hits long. 15-0. Crowd claps for Rafa. Return is wide. 30-0. Great point by Rafa. IL had it won several times, but Rafa's defense prevailed. 40-0. Rafa fell down at one point, but got back up. Ace. Game Nadal. 3-3, on serve. This is a thrilling match, especially if you aren't a fan of either of the players. IL to serve. Vamos, Rafa! Let. Volley goes long. 0-15. Toni looks nervous. UE by IL. 0-30. Crowd goes wild. Toni gives a fist pump to Rafa. Volley winner by IL. 15-30. Ivan's serve is driving me crazy. S&V by IL. 30-30. Ace. 40-30. Nothing Rafa could do. Rafa hits long. Game IL. 3-4, Ljubicic. Rafa to serve. Vamos, Rafa! New balls. Fault. Volley winner by IL. 0-15. Important moment for Rafa. Return goes long. 15-15. Great serve, UE by IL. 30-15. UL is mad at himself, as he had a chance there. Toni says, "Vamos." Another long return. 40-15. Fault -- way off. Return winner. 40-30. Vamos, Rafa! Nadal has mised 3 first serves in this set. Deuce. OH by Ivan. Come on, Rafa! Mishit by IL after great forehands by Rafa. Ad Nadal. Rafa hits long. Deuce. Vamos, Rafa! Rafa went for it, but it was just too much pace. IL hits long, late call. Ad Nadal. It was the right call. IL not happy. UE by IL. Game Nadal. Tremendous rally, with Rafa winning. 4-4, on serve. Here we go. IL to serve. Drop volley after great serve. 15-0. Ace. 30-0. Again, his serving is driving me crazy. He has 30 aces to Rafa's 5 aces. 31st ace. 40-0. Let. Fault. IL hits long. 40-15. Volley goes wide. 40-30. Vamos, Rafa! Fault. Second serve ace. Game IL. 4-5, Ljubicic. Rafa to serve to stay in the match. What drama! Rafa's leaving it all on the court, that's for sure. He sprints to the baseline. Vamos, Rafa! The pressure is all on Rafa. Adjusts the socks. Fault. IL hits long. 15-0. Crowd is clapping for Rafa. Let. Great point, at the net. Rafa takes it. 30-0. Adjusts socks. Great serve, and forehand, draws error. 40-0. Great play by Rafa. Game Nadal. 5-5, on serve. Rafa's jumping like a boxer again, as IL prepares to serve. Let. S&V. 15-0. IL takes the game, after one double fault. 5-6, Ljubicic. Rafa to serve to take it to a tiebreak. Hope Rafa keeps fighting. Vamos, Rafa! Adjusts socks. Great serve, IL returns long. 15-0. Another long return. 30-0. Toni is holding his daughter on his lap. Great BH by Rafa. 40-0. Hits long again. 6-6, TIEBREAK. Oh, man, This is so nerve-wracking. Vamos, Rafa! He certainly is excited. The crowd is going nuts for him. Ljubicic will serve first. 1-0, Nadal. IL into net 2-0, Nadal. IL hits long 3-0, Nadal. FH angle winner by Rafa. IL not happy with call. He may be right; it waws very close. 3-1, Nadal. Rafa hits wide. 3-2, Nadal. Return goes wide. Rafa to serve. 4-2, Nadal. Ace. Change ends. Rafa to serve again. Crowd is going wild. 5-2, Nadal. After great serve. IL to serve. 5-3, Nadal. Great point by IL, after fault. One more serve for him. 6-3, Nadal. IL into net. Championship points for Rafa. HE WINS, can you believe it!!!! WOW!!! Vamos, Rafa! posted by Susan @ 9:38 AM