Battle Royale

Clay court king Rafael Nadal got the better of world number one and grass court master Roger Federer to win "The Battle Of The Surfaces" in front of his home crowd in Palma today.

The organizers had experienced problems with the grass side of the court after the original turf had failed to cope with the indoor location and then fell victim to a plague of worms. These are believed to be the same worms that took the life of Anna Nicole Smith earlier this year and the very same worms that were lurking in the grassy knoll in the Fall of 1963.

As a result they decided to lay a brand new surface the night before the clash, transporting in 400 square metres of putting green grass from local golf club supplier, Paul Karetnikov.

"The Battle Of The Surfaces" will be played out at the same venue for the next two years.