Three Main Events in less the 24 Hours, Part I

7:22 a.m.: I couldn't take it anymore. I fell asleep after Nadal scored that third set victory to go up 2-1 on Federer, and apparently Nadal won the whole thing.

And the match totally hinged on the last two games of the third set. Federer had multiple chances to take the set and crush Nadal's spirit. Nadal looked tired, drained and like he couldn't go on if he had lost that set.

But he won.

This is what my friend sent me on Facebook: "Nadal was unhuman. His heart, the way he plays the big points, his unfamiliarity with hard courts, even though he was physically drained... GOSH!!! Definitely one of the best matches I've seen, and it's up there with last year's Wimbledon final!"

It's too bad I missed a great ending.

3:27 a.m.: His body might be letting him down, by Nadal sure has some mental fortitude. Down love-40, Nadal fights back for the set. No one has been broken in the third set yet and now Federer serves to tie things up.

3:20 a.m.: Nadal might be tiring. He's missed some shots that he hasn't missed all game. Another two-handed backhand goes wide for him. If Federer continues to wear down Nadal, it might be over sooner than we all think.

3:17 a.m.: Nadal's called for the trainer. Apparently something's wrong with his right leg. But it doesn't look serious. Just a rub down. I don't know what that'll do either than relax the muscles. Hopefully it doesn't hamper him for the rest of the match. This might be a result of that long match Nadal had with Verdasco a couple of days ago.

3:02 a.m.: Apparently there were a couple of bugs on the court. Delayed the match by 30 seconds. Why couldn't we see the ball boys kill and clean up the bugs? It's not like the bugs were streaking.

2:51 a.m.: There have been some really close challenges today. That last challenge was just crazy. There was a hairline's breath between the ball and the line. Amazing.

2:38 a.m.: I love it how Federer gets "pumped" for matches against Nadal. Only a great rivalry and a great opponent can bring that out of the normally quiet Swiss. And the great rivalries will do that--bring out something extra--a little oomph added. All tied a 1-1.

2:10 a.m.: I wonder what it is about Nadal that Federer can't break him. It's like impossible. Is it Nadal's power? Or is it that Federer's slicing shots are neutralized because Nadal stays so deep and so fast along that baseline?

1:55 a.m.: Federer is not only a master with the racket, but he's a master of the challenge. If he could only be employed by the NFL and college football teams.

1:50 a.m.: What a stat: Nadal is 76-1 in majors after winning the first set. SEVENTY-SIX AND ONE! But the only loss has come on the hard court, in Flushing last year at the U.S. Open. So, if a trend is to be broken, Federer still has a shot.

1:21 a.m.: These long rallies cannot be fun for Nadal. He played Verdasco to five sets and five hours for the longest match in Aussie Open history. Nadal has to be gassed or will be gassed by the third set.

1:05 a.m.: BREAK POINT AGAIN! How does Federer only have a 14 percent success rate on break points against Nadal. That's crazy.

1:02 a.m.: The voice of tennis, Dick Enberg, just said "full-blooded stroking." Yeah, he did.

1:00 a.m.: My friend, who is watching the match with me, says that Nadal reminds him of Chris Pontius. Here's a picture of Nadal. And one of Pontius. You be the judge. Personally, I don't see it, but I'm not the one with alcohol in my body.

12:54 a.m.: Federer double-faults?!!! Nadal secures the break point?! Already?! Federer has too many unforced errors...already.

12:47 a.m.: I'm sure this will come up sometime in the match, but Roger Federer is not done yet. He's running out of gas, but he's not done yet. And my friends are so one-sided. Either they're for Federer or they're for Nadal. Why can't we just enjoy these two duke it out (hopefully at ever grand slam final) the next few years.

12:34 a.m.: Nice montage by ESPN showing the championship point from last year's Wimbledon final.

Let's just hope that John McEnroe isn't around to give Federer a hug if Federer loses this one today.

12:23 a.m.: I'm at the beginning of my adventure--the attempt to live-blog the three biggest sporting events this weekend.

It's currently 12:23 a.m. here in California and I'm minutes away from the Australian Open final between Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer. In about 7 and a half hours, Liverpool and Chelsea kickoff the biggest match of the Premiership weekend. And of course, in about 15 hours, Pittsburgh and Arizona kickoff Super Bowl XLIII in Tampa.

My goal is to capture my day as I try to follow all of these events. It'll be crazy, but wildly fun.

And oh, I've got my money on Federer. We've never seen Federer and Nadal go at it on a hard court major final. This is our chance and the conditions suit Federer well.

I say the old man still got's some left and ties Pete Sampras tonight/this morning for the most major titles ever.

The match is about to start, I'll see you in a bit.

P.S.: I've been awake since 8 a.m. this morning, making this a little bit interesting.