10 Questions for Rafael Nadal

He is the second best tennis player in the world. Now the Spanish master of the clay courts will try to beat out No. 1, Roger Federer, in the upcoming U.S. Open. Rafael Nadal will now take your questions.

They say you really admire Roger Federer. How can you have a rivalry with someone you admire? —Rafael Flores, San Salvador, El Salvador
Yes, I admire him, but there's really no rivalry. Roger is No. 1 in the world; I'm No. 2. I'm just trying to do everything I can to get as close to him as possible. But in general, I think you can maintain a rivalry while admiring your rival. When I play him, it's a special motivation to play better. On the other hand, it's just another match, no? There's a little more attention, maybe, but it's another tennis match.

Do you think your playing style relies a lot on physicality? If so, are you worried that your career might be shorter than other greats like [Andre] Agassi or [Ivan] Lendl? —Valentín Feito, Madrid
I started playing very young, and if my career ends short, then it would be because I started playing younger than almost anyone else. My tennis is aggressive, though I wouldn't say that it's more physical than technical. I rely more on technique than physique, but being physical is always a help to me.

Can you explain the decline in American men's tennis? —Randy Arnold, Chattanooga, Tenn.
[Andy] Roddick is No. 4, and [James] Blake is in the Top 10. So it's not bad, no? It's not the same as when [Pete] Sampras and Agassi were No. 1 and 2. But American tennis is working.

How do you feel about women tennis players earning the same salary as men? —Candyce Pecot, Los Angeles
I don't have much opinion about that. I totally agree that women and men are the same in all areas of life, but my opinion is that, well, if we are the same, then women should have to play best-of-five sets [instead of best-of-three] if they want to earn the same amount of money.

What do you think about the recent doping scandals in cycling? Do they affect the tennis world in any way? —Andres Valentin, Madrid
For one, tennis is a much cleaner sport than cycling. Cycling has seen a lot of people involved in doping recently. I think in general this is negative for the image of all sports, and anytime something like this happens, all athletes are damaged.

What's up with biting the trophy when you win a tournament?—Kylynn Fontaine, Bethlehem, Conn.
I started doing it one day when I won my first tournament. I continued. I don't know, I just prefer that to kissing the trophies. It's one of my trademarks.

Why wear the Capri pants that you have to constantly pull out of your rear? Why not shorts? —Sara Norm, Chicago
[Laughs.] It's not the fault of the clothes. It's a habit that I picked up when I was competing when I was young. I am trying to break the habit, but it's not easy.

If you could play against any player in history, who would it be?—Simon Coakley, Stanford-le-Hope, England
I'd choose [Bjorn] Borg. He had such an incredible mental approach to the game. He had ice in his veins, and I'd love to see what I could do against him. If I had to say, I suppose he'd win.

Are you still able to lead a normal life now that you're famous?—Cherie Snyder, Seattle
In Mallorca, I can live a normal life. I go to the supermarket without signing autographs. That's because in my small village, everybody knows everybody. The people know me not because I am a tennis player but because I am a guy from [my hometown] Manacor.

How long does it take you to recover from a tough loss like this year's Wimbledon final? —Ellen Polo, Warwick, R.I.
I give 100% on the court, so I do get upset when I lose. But it doesn't take me much time to recover. The first hours after the match are tough. After a while I forget, and I look forward to the next days back home in Mallorca. I love fishing and golfing there, for example—just being with my old friends. I'm a good loser.

10 Questions for Pete Sampras

Whom did you enjoy playing against the most? Francis Eleazar HOFFMAN ESTATES, ILL

Andre Agassi was my rival in the '90s, and I think as we got older we sort of transcended the game. He was probably the best player I ever played over my career. There's a list of players that were tough, but Andre, certainly, he was the most unique.

Did a time come when you felt you had had enough of competitive tennis? Nico Neethling RUSTENBURG, SOUTH AFRICA

After I went through two years of not winning an event, what kept me going was winning one more major. Once I won that last U.S. Open, I spent the next six months trying to figure out what was next. Slowly my passion for the sport just vanished. I had nothing left to prove.

How do you feel about retiring from your career at the same age that others fully engage in theirs? Vince Jordan, LOS ANGELES It's not easy to retire at 31. In one respect I was glad I was done. But after a few years of having fun, I got a little restless. When you're 33, 34, and you don't have a focus, you can get kind of lost. As a man, you feel a little bit unfulfilled.

Do you think it unfair that others got more attention based on their off-the-court antics? Matthew Dale, AUSTIN, TEXAS There are some players who add a bit more just to get more p.r. I wasn't about that. My major goal was to hold up that trophy at the end, and I didn't want anything to get in the way of that. I kept it pretty quiet. I kept it simple.

Over your career, what was the most difficult situation you experienced? Haydee Serona, MANILA

Probably my last couple years on tour. I wasn't playing well, and I had just gotten married, and the press was on my wife about it--that [I was losing] because I married her. You can attack me all you want, but don't bring my wife into it.

Have you given any thought to becoming a commentator? Jonathan Racasa WEST COVINA, CALIF.

I've been asked to do a little commentating. It's not something that's in my blood. John McEnroe does a great job, and I think he's got that pretty much honed. I've thought about it but not realistically.

Whom do you consider to be the next superstar of men's tennis? Jeff Mollerup, MEMPHIS, TENN.

Obviously right now we have Roger Federer. After him, you look at Rafael Nadal, who's only 22, Novak Djokovic, who's 21. Those two guys are going to carry the torch when Roger's done.

Has the new racquet and string technology helped or hurt the modern game? Faith Ginsberg, LOS ANGELES

It's obviously helped guys hit the ball harder, with a lot more spin and a lot more control, than the racquets I played with. We've maybe lost a bit of finesse in the game. No one's looking to come in and volley.

You've played on the world's best tennis courts. Which was your favorite? Jen Reinhard, SAN FRANCISCO

Centre Court of Wimbledon. Just love the atmosphere, love the intimacy of it. It had a huge effect on me as a kid seeing that court on TV. Not to disrespect the U.S. Open and the French, but that one is the most unique. It hasn't changed in a hundred years.

As the Olympic torch generates much political heat, do you think athletes should take positions on major world issues? E.D. Mathew MONROVIA, LIBERIA

I don't personally. It's not my place to tell you whom to vote for, to take any political stand, to tell you what religion to believe in. I'm an athlete. I can influence certain things, but when I see other athletes and celebrities telling you whom to vote for, I actually get a bit offended.

10 Questions for Danny Boyle

Are you surprised by the movie's reception? Armaan Uplekar WEST PALM BEACH, FLA.

Astonished--not just surprised--by the way it has been received, in America especially. I think it's the core values of the film, the underdog who can come out of nowhere and with nothing, and against all the odds he can succeed. And it's a love story in the end, of course. I think all of us want to believe in that story.

Some call Slumdog a British film. Some call it an Indian production. What do you say? Prashant Yelsangi, MUMBAI

It is a Bollywood film in the sense that virtually all the cast and crew are from Bollywood. It's directed by a Brit and adapted by a Brit, from an Indian novel. So it feels like a hybrid of good things working together.

Did you imagine it would spark so much controversy in India? Tomi Obaro, CHICAGO

I was expecting a full-on response because it's a very passionate place. I know some people don't like the film for very complicated reasons, and some people adore it for very simple reasons. I'm very, very proud to have achieved that.

You seem to gravitate toward projects that redefine what a genre movie can be. What's the key to shaking things up as a filmmaker? Ryan McClellan, DETROIT

I have this theory that your first film is always your best film in some way. I always try to get back to that moment when you're not relying on things you've done before.

Are there any movies that your fans might be surprised to find out that you enjoy? Any guilty pleasures? Tom Sexton, WHITESBURG, KY.

My guilty pleasure this year was Tropic Thunder, which I thought was hilarious and brilliant. I love big action movies. I was just watching Die Hard 3 with my kids, which I've seen a ridiculous number of times. Thoroughly, thoroughly enjoyed it.

How was working with a mainly Indian cast? Any culture clash? Arvinder Singh Walia, KOLKATA

The love of movies is endemic in that country, and it means that everyone's doing loads of films at the same time, so working out their diaries is a nightmare. But the confidence they have because they are so busy taught me how important confidence is to actors, to the risks they'll take with you.

Why did you pick Dev Patel, who was raised in the U.K., to play the lead? Why didn't you reach out to a Mumbai lad? Sree Reddy, PITTSBURGH, PA.

We did. I saw a lot of very talented guys, and the problem I had is that they all looked like heroes-in-waiting. I wanted somebody who looked like a loser. My daughter said, "You want a loser? You should see this guy in this TV show Skins in the U.K." We auditioned him a few times, and he earned the right to play the part.

What is your response to the claims that you are romanticizing poverty in India? Emily Gillespie, EUGENE, ORE.

People we worked with in the slums said, "You're not going to show us as being poor, are you? Because that's what Westerners always do." I tried to make the film with a kind of energy that reflects what the place is like, that it has a vitality despite its poverty.

What do you think can be done to improve the conditions of slum children? Balram Adiga, SINGAPORE

I'm not a politician. There are many people working to improve their lives. The answer will come from India. It's an absolutely extraordinary nation that is charging through the 21st century, and I think they will address their own issues.

West ready for well-made Indian films: Mira Nair

US-based Indian filmmaker Mira Nair, who has just been honoured as the Person of the Year 2007 by a leading ethnic Indian paper in the US, says the West is now ready to embrace a well-structured Indian film.

Excerpts from an interview:

Do you feel the West is ready to accept an Indian reality beyond the Bollywood song-and-dance formula? I refer specifically to films like The Namesake andWater.
Yes, the West, like any market, is ready to accept a well-made film that sweeps you away. However, I think the song-and-dance drama will always be our beloved cinema, not so much the Western mainstream's cup of tea.

The Namesake seems to have acquired a life of its own. Do you agree?
Yes, I do. Recently, the DVD came out in the US over the thanksgiving weekend, a big family holiday weekend here, and "The Namesake was all over TV and Radio being touted as the great family classic. I've hardly ever met a person who has seen the film only once. At least two-three times is the average.

The film, as you know, has played for more than four-five months in any country, has out-performed major American films at the box-office, has bolstered the sales of the book internationally, and despite it having opened here in March many months ahead of the Oscars and other awards season, it is being remembered by the voters.

The film seems to have touched a chord among audiences beyond the Diaspora-driven NRI audiences who immediately associated with the theme of cultural displacement. How do you explain the film's impact beyond cultural boundaries?
The film is universal because each one of us has left one home for another, if not a country for another. The Ganguli family's journey in the film is our collective journey, as also the story between parents and children.

In whichever film I make, I strongly believe that if one captures the truth of the character, the truth of the world in the film, it speaks volumes to human beings all over. After all, we are essentially the same.

Cinema, I also believe, should transport you across different realities. And while you soar, recognise yourself and your own aspirations in the journey on screen. Since I'm such an unabashed desi, I love to move people with characters that look, dress, sound and joke like us.