The  first week of Wimbledon came to a close with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal continuing on their run. Neither looked smooth to me, though I have to admit that Fedex looks little better than I thought he would - but he still continues to play some loose games in almost every match.

Until such time he starts playing more sharply and starts closing out games that he should, he will not re-gain his status as the most dominant player on the circuit. In fact, I think he's in real danger of losing his Wimbledon crown this year to Nadal - if Rafa makes it to the final, which I believe he will.

On the other hand Nadal, except for his match with Nicolas Kiefer, hasn't had the kind of matches he had in French Open - and almost every match has started tighter for him compared to his clay-court matches. But there is no denying that for a clay-court player he is far ahead of the pack. With every win, I think he's getting better here. We'll see how it pans out.

Despite his straight-sets win over Lleyton Hewitt, in my mind it’s very clear that IF Roger Federer doesn't win the 2008 Wimbledon men's championship, then hereafter he will only be playing as one of the good players and not the greatest. In other words, no 2008 Wimbledon title - no other tennis final win. He may end up winning two or more Grand Slam titles to get ahead of Pete Sampras' record but he will be winning that over a long period of time. UNLESS he wins this time in the AELTC, that is.

Now coming to this moron called Justin Gimelstob – yeah, the same guy who endeared himself to many a tennis fans with his on-court persona during 2007 US Open after losing to Andy Roddick. Remember the few minutes that he grabbed the microphone and started asking Andy funny questions and jibing in general?

Alas, how were we to know that a man who appeared to be witty on the court was sh***y in his head. If you don't know why am I saying all this or why tennis fans are upset, then this is the background.

Earlier in the week, he went on the morning show of a radio station and besides addressing Anna Kournikova and other women tennis players in the worst possible way, he berated Anna's game. So here's a quick look at Anna's and Gimelschlob's records:

Justin’s lifetime record: Singles: 106W-168L, highest world ranking 68.
Doubles: 171W-154L, highest world ranking 18.

Anna’s lifetime record: Singles: 209W-129L, highest world ranking 8.
Doubles: 200W-71L, highest world ranking 1.

There were vague references to other conquests, but his most interesting remarks were reserved for Kournikova, whose St. Louis Aces will face the Washington Kastles in a late July grudge match that will surely be uglier than any World Team Tennis grudge match this town has known. Seriously, if you thought DeShawn-LeBron was ugly, just wait for Gimelstob-Kournikova.

"She's a [bleep]," Gimelstob said of Anna on the Washington radio program ‘The Junkies’, using a word that rhymes with kitsch. "We're gonna kick her [bleep]," he added, using a word that almost rhymes with ‘kastle’.

Well, then. Will he talk junk to her on the court? "One hundred percent," he said. "If she's not crying by the time she walks off that court, then I did not do my job."

So it's pure hate then? "Hate's a very strong word," he said. "I just despise her to the maximum level, right below hate. I think she falls into the Marcelo Rios 'Scumbag' category....And this whole bluff about her retiring because of her back? She had the yips on her serve, she can't get her serve on the court.

‘‘Wait until you see on July 23, she's gonna be serving 40 miles an hour and I'm gonna be just plugging it down her throat...We do exhibitions together and I'll mock her, and make fun of her. I'll just make her know that she's stupid....I'm sure she'll rue the day that she has to come here and actually share space with me."

Asked  whether Kournikova knows they'll be facing each other, Gimelstob replied: "Probably. She might not even be smart enough to read the schedule."

Asked if he would serve at her head, he said: "No, I'm gonna just serve it right into the body, about 128, right into the midriff.’’

And  asked what would happen if Kournikova made a move on Gimelstob - you know, a Biblical move, he said: "Definitely not. I have no attraction to her, because she's such a douche....I really have no interest in her. I wouldn't mind having my younger brother, who's kind of a stud, nail her and then reap the benefits of that."

Later, asked to assess the top 20 players in the WTA rankings, he called Tatiana Golovin "a sexpot", Nicole Vaidisova "a well-developed young lady" and Alize Cornet "a little sexpot.’’

If you are a tennis fan appalled by this Schlob's comments, I encourage you to write to following:

Tennis Channel ( where this a$$hole is some kind of journo). Also note that the Tennis Channel is sponsored by Wilson Sporting Goods (racquet@wilson.com),
Tennis Warehouse (info@tennis-warehouse.com),
Tennis Court Online (http://www.tenniscourtonline.com/ContactUs )
IMG Academies (laura.young@imgworld.com) and
Lacosta (http://www.lacoste.com/usa/main.html - contact form) to name a few.
You should cc e-mails to them as well as the tennis channel - general@thetennischannel.com