How did we come to this: Biography of a recession.

Sep 13, 2006 - HONG KONG (XFN-ASIA) - Global productivity is improving and an economic recession is not necessarily due next year, the International Monetary Fund's chief economist Raghuram Rajan told the Financial Times

Feb 27, 2007 - AP. HONG KONG, Feb. 26 -- Former Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan warned Monday that the US economy might slip into recession by year's end

Sep 16, 2007 - Sep. 16--Credit markets are in turmoil, employment numbers are down, stock traders are nervous and the word "recession" is being mentioned in polite company for the first time in years

Dec 18, 2007 - AP. NEW YORK: Alan Greenspan thinks there is a 50 percent chance the US economy will head into a recession. Let's hope this is just another fumbled forecast by the former Federal Reserve chairman

Jan 18, 2008 - Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and President George W. Bush have announced a plan to rescue the US economy from recession

Feb 6, 2008 - An economic survey showing that the US service sector contracted sharply in January leaves little doubt the economy is headed for recession, economists said

Apr 4, 2008 - AP. WASHINGTON: Dismal employment data released Friday is not just the latest sign the US economy is in recession, it is also a warning that this one could hurt more than the previous two.

Aug 14, 2008 - Germany and France toppled into the start of a possible recession today

Sep 24, 2008 - LJUBLJANA, Sept 24 (Reuters) - The European Central Bank does not yet view the euro zone economy as being in recession

Nov 14, 2008 - By AOIFE WHITE , 11.14.08, 06:09 AM EST. The 15 countries that use the euro are officially in a recession, the European Union said Friday

Dec 4, 2008 - Dec 4 (Reuters) - From the United States to Asian export giant Japan to European powerhouse Germany, the world's top economies are now in recession as the global financial crisis deepens.

Jan 5, 2009 - By Nigel Morris, Deputy Political Editor. The recession could last as long as two years without urgent action to boost the world economy, Gordon Brown acknowledged yesterday as Britain braced itself for a surge of new year redundancies

I have spared you many of the gory details but if you are interested blood is writ large in Google news archives. 

Federer and Nadal

Not more than two years ago we were talking of Federer winning close to 20 Grand slam tournaments. And Federer winning the grandslam sooner or later was supposed to be a foregone conclusion. But life can be cruel and sports more so. People had not foreseen Rafa becoming such an unstoppable juggernaut and having such a hold over Federer. I do not think any of the above is going to happen now. Infact I will stick my neck out and say that the only chance Federer now has of winning any of Australian Open, Wimbledon or US Open (French open is out of question) is if he does not meet Nadal in the final. He has to pray and pray real hard that someone upsets Nadal in the earlier rounds.

Nadal has gotten inside his head and created deep scars in his brain. Scars that do not heal and which only get deeper with every contest between these two.  Watching Federer cry yesterday was sad but also an indication of how helpless he feels against this bull from Spain. He just does not look the same sublime silky Federer which rolls over every other foe. He screwed up almost all the crucial points. In the third set, he was up 0-40 on Nadals serve and lost it. In the next Nadals service game he was up 15-40 and screwed it. In the 5th set he screwed up big time. It might be the worst set he has ever played. He made seven straight unforced errors to first lose his service game and then go 0-40 down in Nadal's. He made a double fault in his last service game.  His first service was shambolic. I do not think that in that last service game he got even a single first serve in. He missed easy volleys, made endless errors on his reliable backhand. I saw the whole match and I just kept on waiting and waiting for some stroke of genius from Federer. But it never came.  Nadal outran him, outhit him, outclassed him. And this was a man who had just played an epic 5 hour long 5 setter just one day ago.  I think now Nadal is the man most likely to win a career grand slam. Its only US open that remains and he should get it this year or the next. 

A couple of years ago there was talk of Federer cometing only against history. Well history can take a break because present has thrown up this bundle of muscles and steel who might just create a history of his own. And for Federer I am sure chasing history was much easier than chasing this man.