A comeback and other same old, same old

Welcome back Rafa!. 

Nadal has just won his first match after being laid low for seven months with a knee injury.  After the low of being defeated by Lukas Rosol at Winbledon, Rafa has won his first match at the VTR Open in Vina del Mar in Chile against Delbonis 6-3, 6-2. Not bad. Now we would like to see how long his knee holds. For the moment lets do some globe trotting at the far end of world. Where exactly is Vina del mar?

In the land that gave of Machu Picchu and colorful ponchos! Vina del Mar in Valparaiso is the fourth largest city in Chile and a popular summer beach resort. Vina del Mar means Vineyard by the sea in Spanish. Overlooking the Pacific, Vina is also a surfer's paradise with the Pacific throwing up record-breaking waves for the surfers to conquer.  Meanwhile our Spanish conquistadator, Nadal has fallen behind his main rivals - Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Andy Murray - and now will be scrutinized as he attempts to win his eighth French Open, which starts in late May.  With Nadal turning 27 during the tournament and being the game's most dominant player on clay, the question is wil the knee trouble him or will be trouble the top 4?

Will it affect the rankings, now that he is back? Because David Ferrer grabbed the No. 4 spot, Murray is on 3 with Federer and Djokovic steady on 2 and 1 respectively.  Will Ferrer be able to hold on to his career best ATP ranking of 4 and most importantly who will Rafa dethrone- Murray and Federer or Muray but not Federer?

Elsewhere, Djokovic was busy with his eponymous foundation, where he spent time with differently able children.  Nole will help in equipping the school with special tools and fitness machines so that the children will be able to play.

Sloane Stephens, since her epoch match with her model Serena Williams has been busier than ever on Twitter. She has since appeared on The Ellen Degeneres Show

Andy Roddick is doodling on the other kind of green- the golfing kind, with Dustin Johnson at Pebble Beach.

And Andy Murray has reportedly bought the Cromlix House hotel near Dunblane, the 14-bedroom property that has been a popular wedding venue for more than 30 years and is believed to have bought the property, which was on the market at offers over £1.8m.

And world no 1. Victoria Azarenka is surfing in Malibu.  Well here's a well deserved R & R for the lady. Herels hoping her ribs don't cave in the next time and she handles the pressure better.