Skysports.com looks through all the highs and lows from another week in the world of sport.
Skysports.com looks through all the highs and lows from another week in the world of sport
Another action-packed week of sport has brought us yet more thrills and spills to enjoy in equal measure, so let skysports.com take you through the pick of the action.
As always, leave your feedback below and let us know if you agree with our choices...
Good Week for...
Rafael Nadal
'
Genio' - Spanish for genius.
The world number one powered to his eighth grand slam title on Sunday with a scintillating
straight-sets victory over Tomas Berdych in the Wimbledon final.
The 24-year-old, from Manacor, Spain, followed up his semi-final success over Andy Murray with an equally-ruthless triumph over Berdych to become the first Spaniard to win Wimbledon twice.
The speedy 6-3 7-5 6-4 victory sees Nadal move level with Andre Agassi, Ivan Lendl, Jimmy Connors, Fred Perry and Ken Rosewall on the all-time grand slam titles list.
He also strengthened his grip on the No.1 ranking after six-time champion Roger Federer fell at the quarter-final stage.
Justin Rose
After a heartbreaking last-round choke at the Travelers Championship the week before, Justin Rose quickly banished those bad Connecticut memories with victory at the AT&T National in Pennsylvania.
The Englishman held his nerve admirably with a final round 70 to claim a
one-shot victory over American Ryan Moore.
The win was Rose's second in three weeks having triumphed at The Memorial Tournament in Ohio last month, and he heads into the fast-approaching Open at St Andrews in great touch.
Rose picked up a cheque for $1million having expertly negotiated the testing Aronimink Golf Club in 10-under-par.
Australia
What a difference a week makes for Ricky Ponting's side.
Having crashed to an unassailable 3-0 series deficit against rivals England at Old Trafford last week, Australia produced the perfect response with back-to-back victories to end the NatWest Series on a high.
Talk of a rare England whitewash served as the perfect motivation for Ponting and his troops, who put in typically ruthless showings at the Brit Oval and Lord's to
end the series as 3-2 losers.
Pace bowler Shaun Tait laid down a marker of his own in the process, clocking a 100mph delivery at Lord's, one of the fastest deliveries ever witnessed at cricket HQ!
Leeds Rhinos
Defending Super League champions Leeds continued their quest to finish in the top four with a gutsy
28-24 victory over title rivals St Helens at Headingley.
After losing seven of their opening 19 league fixtures, the Rhinos reversed the form book with an exciting comeback triumph in front of their own fans.
Danny Maguire was once again the Rhinos' saviour, crossing twice as Leeds claimed a victory which quickly erased the memories of their recent home defeat to Crusaders.
Bad Week for...
Brazil & Argentina
The two South American heavyweight nations have endured a nightmare past few days after they were eliminated from the World Cup in South Africa.
Both crashed out at the quarter-final stage, five-time winners Brazil succumbing to Holland 2-1 while Argentina suffered a 4-0 hammering at the hands of Germany.
The Samba Boys have already
reacted by sacking manager Dunga, while it appears Diego Maradona's days are numbered as Argentina boss.
The good news however, is that we will not see big Diego running naked through Buenos Aires - the promise he made should he lead his side to World Cup glory.
Penalty takers
Sticking with the World Cup theme, the pressure of scoring from the spot proved too much for three individuals over the last seven days.
Asamoah Gyan, Oscar Cardozo and Xabi Alonso all fluffed their lines from 12 yards, although the Spaniard's miss, which was a re-take after he'd scored the first but saw it ruled for encroachment, proved the least costly.
Striker Gyan had the chance to send Ghana into their first World Cup semi-finals with a last minute spot-kick against Uruguay, however his effort struck the bar and the South Americans prevailed in the shoot-out.
Cardozo's miss was just as expensive, the Paraguyan having his effort saved in normal time before Spain's
David Villa struck a late winner to send the European champions through.
Steve Borthwick
Has the Saracens lock played his last game for England? It seems a distinct possibility after manager
Martin Johnson left him out of his new elite squad for the coming season.
The former England skipper has seemingly paid the price for a spell on the sidelines after injury ruled him out of the final RBS Six Nations game against France and then the recent tour of Australia.
Lewis Moody has since stepped up to the captaincy with aplomb, while emerging talents Courtney Lawes, Dave Attwood and Tom Palmer have all made the EPS squad in Borthwick's position.
Kevin Pietersen
Poor form and now an injury, it has certainly been a week to forget for England's star batsman.
Pietersen, who has now gone 16 one-day internationals without reaching fifty, suffered a quad strain just above his left knee in Saturday's 42-run defeat to Australia at Lord's.
He averaged just 19 with the bat over the five-match NatWest series, and there are now minor worries over his form and fitness in an Ashes year.
The injury rules him out of the forthcoming one-day series against Bangladesh, a campaign
England selector Geoff Miller insists the 30-year-old would have been rested for anyway.
