Roger Federer is hoping to beat Rafael Nadal at the French Open for the first time in Sunday's final. (AFP/Getty Images)

It’s been a pretty awful week in sports, with corruption, match-fixing and bribery claims and counter-claims flying every which way, but the latter stages of the French Open have restored my faith in the world we know and love.

The top four male tennis players have shown a gulf in class once again. After a very average first week, in relative terms, world No. 1 Rafa Nadal has got better and better as he bids to equal Bjorn Borg's record of six Roland Garros titles,.

His straight-sets semifinal win over Andy Murray showed that the Spaniard is just as good as ever, despite certainly being overshadowed this year by Novak Djokovic.

I would bet the Serb would give back every single win and tournament title in 2011 (even the Australian Open, because he’s won it before) to have the French Open trophy in his hands. The majors are what matter to the top players, and winning all four is the holy grail.

Both Rafa and Roger Federer have managed it, and both men want more. The Swiss, who ended Djokovic’s invincibility this year in a four-set semifinal thriller, was completely written off heading into Paris and obviously enjoyed the lack of attention as he made it to the last four without losing a set.

It’s no secret that he is my favorite player. I simply love the way he plays the game and the way he conducts himself both on and off the court. He is a fantastic ambassador for tennis and a trailblazer because his younger rivals are just as classy.

Some experts have announced that Roger is a spent force at the age of 29 – a claim which I find shortsighted and disrespectful. Certainly, he hasn’t been as dominant as he once was, but perhaps it’s because the others have upped their levels, rather than his has dropped.

His coach Paul Annacone says that Roger’s desire and work-ethic are first class, and I truly believe there is much life in the old dog yet! Let’s just say that judging from Friday’s performance, the Fat Lady hasn’t started even warming up yet!

As for the women’s tournament, well it’s been strange but enjoyable. Both Caroline Wozniacki and Kim Clijsters went out early and Vera Zvonareva soon followed, which left Victoria Azarenka as the highest seed remaining.

She was out-done by Li Na, who you’ll recall also reached this year’s Australian Open title. The Chinese player has bags of talent and personality and will thrill a billion people if she claims her first major. Her much-maligned husband (in a funny way) has been replaced as her coach by Michael Mortensen, whom she has credited with her recent success.

As for her opponent, Francesca Schiavone, well she continues to be an advertisement for the underdog. No-one in their right minds picked her to win last year’s French Open, and the Italian veteran has given herself the chance of defending the title after coming back from the verge of defeat to Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in the quarterfinals.

She is fantastic to watch as she plays with all guns blazing and has every single shot in the book – similar to four-time French Open winner Justine Henin, sadly now retired for a second time.

Maria Sharapova also had a great tournament, and though she fell to Li in the semis the Russian gave evidence that she’ll be a major threat at Wimbledon, which is only a few short weeks away. I love this time of year!

Posted by: Candy Reid, CNN World Sport Anchor
Filed under: Tennis

Bahrain first hosted a Formula One race in 2004 but civil unrest forced this year's event to be rescheduled. (Getty Images)

The decision to take Formula One back to Bahrain this season has prompted a heated online debate, as more than 300,000 people signed an online petition calling for the race to be scrapped.

But you’d never have known that the F1 community itself had a view on it. Twitter, normally abuzz with comments from drivers and teams, was silent on this issue all day. Red Bull’s Australian driver Mark Webber was the only one to speak out, saying before the announcement: “When people in a country are being hurt, the issues are bigger than sport. Let's hope the right decision is made.”

My sources within F1 tell me that many of the drivers are ambivalent, but those with a strong opinion on such a controversial issue will only speak off the record. Webber has been the exception, and he could be risking his future in F1 by saying much more. Read the rest of this entry »

Posted by: CNN World Sport Anchor, Don Riddell
Filed under: Motorsport

Sepp Blatter listens to FIFA general secretary Jerome Valcke during a press conference on May 9, 2011.

For those of you slightly confused or even overwhelmed by the stories emerging from FIFA headquarters in Zurich this week, we understand your pain. Fasten your seatbelts and let us try to tell you what is at stake.

On Wednesday the body which runs world football, FIFA, will vote for its new president. The incumbent Sepp Blatter is favorite to land the job, largely because he’s the only candidate in the race.

But this is the most senior job in world football, so why has an election to a post of such importance attracted fewer candidates than the campaign to become student union treasurer at my local college?

Read the rest of this entry »

Posted by: Executive Producer, Geoff Hill, Newsgathering
Filed under: Football

FIFA president Sepp Blatter may be re-relected for another four-year term on Wednesday.

Given the context and timing to FIFA's press conference on Monday, you would have been forgiven for thinking an important annoucement was due to be made.

President Sepp Blatter - who will be subject to a presidential election vote on Wedneday - has seen his Zurich-based organization beset by a multitude of serious allegations regarding corruption in recent times. Read the rest of this entry »

Posted by: Ben Wyatt, CNN Digital Sport Producer
Filed under: Football

The streets of Monte Carlo are home to the most prestigious race on the F1 calendar.

Ever since they started racing cars around the city streets in 1929, the Monaco Grand Prix has been one of the most glamorous sporting events of the year.

Within just a few days in May, roughly 70 million euros are poured into the economy of the tiny principality as movie stars and models, the rich and the famous, flock to the trackside.

For the drivers it’s the race to win. For everyone else, it’s the race to be seen at. Read the rest of this entry »

Posted by: CNN World Sport Anchor, Don Riddell
Filed under: Motorsport

Barcelona's stars lived up to their pre-season billing by claiming a third straight Spanish title.

Every time you make a prediction, you run the risk of looking like a genius or an idiot.

Back in August of last year, I looked into my crystal ball and tried to forecast what would happen in Europe’s major leagues this season. So now it's time to recap the action, see what were the big stories and what I got right and wrong. Read the rest of this entry »

Posted by: CNN World Sport Anchor, Pedro Pinto
Filed under: Football

Laurent Blanc was recently at the center of a race quota row that rocked French football.

French football was recently rocked by a racial quota row which saw a football federation official suspended and national team coach Laurent Blanc interrogated by the country’s sports ministry.

Both men were at a meeting where introducing a limit on the number of black and Arab players at the nation’s training academies was discussed. A recording of the meeting was leaked to a website and the rest, as they say, is history. Read the rest of this entry »

Posted by: CNN World Sport Anchor, Pedro Pinto
Filed under: Football

Novak Djokovic is on an incredible run in 2011 with 32 straight wins to his name.

When Pete Sampras won major title number 14, I thought nobody would ever break the record. Then along came Roger Federer.

When I thought the Swiss maestro was the undisputed greatest of all time, along came Rafael Nadal. Read the rest of this entry »

Posted by: Candy Reid, CNN World Sport Anchor
Filed under: Tennis

Neil Lennon, the manager of Celtic Football Club, was hit by a fan from the opposition in a recent SPL game.

The alleged assault on Celtic manager Neil Lennon, during a 3-0 victory over Scottish Premier League rivals Heart of Midlothian on Wednesday, has led to calls for change in a nation so proud of its football heritage.

European champions in 1967 and one of the two giant clubs of the Glasgow "Old Firm" alongside Rangers, Celtic are just one point from the top of the league with one game left to play. But the climax of what will surely be a dramatic end to the season, as Celtic chase their arch-rivals, has been overshadowed by unsavoury scenes. Read the rest of this entry »

Posted by: Ben Wyatt, CNN Digital Sport Producer
Filed under: Football

Alex Ferguson: On the brink of securing the English Premier League title for Manchester United.

This weekend, Manchester United and Barcelona moved within a point of clinching the English Premier League and Spanish Primera Division titles, respectively.

These two teams are clearly the best on the planet right now and should guarantee a fantastic Champions League final later this month. As far as who will come out on top, there is no doubt in my mind that it will be the Spanish giants lifting the trophy at Wembley. Read the rest of this entry »

Posted by: CNN World Sport Anchor, Pedro Pinto
Filed under: Football