JOHNNY WATTERSON ON TENNISThe new Spanish world number one will bring a muscular glamour to the game

IT SEEMS appropriate the first edition of the new Irish magazine Tennis Life has a Spaniard and not an Irish player adorning the glossy cover. Clutching the Wimbledon trophy he annexed from Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, when the picture was taken, was midway through a run of acquisitions that last week took him to Olympic gold and on Monday, as if anyone were still unaware, the world number one ranking.

So now the pressure has shifted. Federer fizzed and hissed like a deflating balloon since losing to Nadal in the French Open final and before his Waterloo on the lawns.

If Federer is to launch a quick recovery, it's probably better for his normally clear mind that it was the American James Blake who beat him in Beijing and not his nemesis Nadal in another Grand Slam final.

Blake's win emphasised Federer's relative decline. But another big final defeat for Federer would have opened deeper wounds, more brutally reaffirming Nadal's alpha-male status. There is a difference.

Unlike the old Federer, who dominated the game for four years without equal, the Federer of the last few months has been shown to be not only second best but also seemingly blighted by self-doubt, albeit between some of the most graceful and effortless shots ever hit.

His noble acceptance of second place in the world rankings seemed to come as a relief, a pressure removed as much as disillusionment with the health of his game.

But now Nadal is the number one. The US Open seems his to lose, and the question is whether this remarkable player can win as convincingly from the top of the pedestal as he did from the plinth.

It has been a long four-year journey for both players, Federer relinquishing the top position for the first time since January 2004, when America's Andy Roddick, no doubt believing it was a temporary arrangement, handed it over and Nadal having to chase for 160 weeks before the Swiss champion finally cracked.

It took that time for Nadal to mature, work out the Federer game and strike when the weakness appeared.

To Nadal's credit, he has been patient and humble in the execution. But just as players began to divine where the fissures were in the Federer game, they have already begun to change the way they play to counter the 22-year-old Spaniard.

The Olympic final against Filipe Gonzalez was a case in point. Although the Chilean lost the match, his method of trying to counter Nadal's ability to breathlessly retrieve almost everything will surely be seen as the template for others.

Gonzalez played Nadal the way the Williams sisters play everybody.

He hit through each ball almost as hard as he could and placed it as close to the line as he could. He hit it like there was no tomorrow and the ones that stayed in the court stretched and often beat the Spaniard. Those that beat him were inch perfect. Those that were not inch perfect were . . . well, who else can hit backhand winners from block D?

The Majorcan's unbeaten run began in May and has run through the clay and grass seasons and now threatens to explode onto the hard courts at next week's US Open.

He takes two Slams, an Olympic gold medal and eight ATP titles for company. He has lost only eight of 70 matches.

But that level of play also puts the Federer achievement of 237 consecutive weeks as the world number one into perspective.

Jimmy Connors, who previously held the record for consecutive weeks at the top (as distinct from total weeks at the top) stayed at number one for 160 straight weeks. Ivan Lendl, who personified steadiness over style, was top dog for 157 weeks on the trot. And Pete Sampras, who won 13 Grand Slam titles before retirement, was number one for 102 straight weeks.

John McEnroe, who for many fans in middle age may rank as the all-time best, was number one for a total of 170 weeks. Bjorn Borg, also a favourite with those of the sideburn generation, was the number one for a total of 109 weeks. Andre Agassi was up there for 101 weeks and Sweden's Stefan Edberg for 72.

Sampras still holds the record for the most weeks in total as the world number one, 286, and few would bet against Federer taking that title too.

For the Swiss magician, 2008 will be the year of glandular fever (mononucleosis) and losing his Wimbledon title and his number one ranking. It is the year he tried to go it alone without a coach. Not even his close friend Tiger Woods has ever tried to do that.

The good thing for tennis is that Nadal brings a muscular glamour, not just to Tennis Life but also to the game, and that Federer, who turned 27 last week, can still soar. Maybe not next week in New York and maybe not even this year.

The king's crown fits Nadal well but now he is leading, while looking over his shoulder.