Cash feels Nadal’s new outfits reflect his confidence (French Open diary)

PARIS - Former Australian tennis star Pat Cash feels Rafael Nadal’s new pink outfit in the French Open tennis shows the Spaniard’s supreme confidence as he bids for a record fifth straight title at Roland Garros

“Marching out to play in pink transmits a signal of total assurance from a man in his prime,” Cash, a former Wimbledon champion who still sticks to his trademark checkerboard headband on the senior tour, told London’s Sunday Times. “Rafa’s not taking victory for granted because any champion who does that is destined to fail.

“Yet he knows if he does everything right, puts in maximum effort and brings his true game to the court then it will take a truly exceptional performance to deny him another title.

“Three rounds gone and there’s no reason not to believe that he’s going to become the first man to win five in a row.”

Cash said the shy Spaniard who sparked a fashion trend with his former muscle shirts and pirate pants, is breaking new ground with his clothing company.

“If he is bold enough to wear that shirt on court, and is prepared to be the brunt of all the wisecracks from the hordes of Spanish players, he must be even more supremely confident at Roland Garros than I could ever have imagined.

But Cash has some fashion advice for Andy Murray as well: “I’m not so sure he is too smart picking an all-black outfit when Parisian afternoons in early June can get really hot and humid.

“I accept fabric technology has advanced, but there’s a good reason why Arabs in the desert have worn white for thousands of years.”

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Cash-crisis for Scud as sky-high home loan bites

One-time seven-million-dollar man Mark Philippoussis is being swarmed by private creditors after failing to pay the mortgage on his family home in Melbourne’s waterside Williamstown. The Australian admits not having enough money.

The two-time Grand Slam finalist told the Herald-Sun that he has burned his tennis winnings and sponsorship income with only a handful of small senior paydays currently bringing in some money.

The 32-year-old could soon find himself in court as a private finance company attempts to foreclose on his mother’s home where he is currently living after a sixth knee surgery and still on crutches.

“Money came in left, right and centre; you just thought that’s how it was for everyone and that’s how it will always be,” he said as he faced a lawsuit for one million dollars and possession of the family home.

“I’ve lived an easy life, the life you dream about. And at that time I thought it was normal, but it’s so far from normal,” he said. “A lot of people are going through tough times right now and I’m struggling just like anyone else.

“I’ve just got to take it on the chin and deal with it,” he said of the demands which include around 10,000 dollars per week in interest on a loan at 12 per cent.

Philippoussis played his last ATP match with a first-round loss to Rafael Nadal at the 2006 US Open. The 2007 Hopman Cup, in which he injured his knee and was stretchered off in Perth, brought curtains to his career.

At the height of his career, the playboy was best known for his high-performance cars and high-maintenance girlfriends, including a teenage Miami heiress with whom he was once engaged.