2017 US Open Final: Nadal vs. Anderson

Who wins?

  • Nadal in three sets

  • Nadal in four sets

  • Nadal in five sets

  • Anderson in three sets

  • Anderson in four sets

  • Anderson in five sets


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the AntiPusher

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Sleep beckons, so I have to stop arguing the parallel universe with you guys. Rafa and Roger split the two Majors this year. That's a hell of a thing. And keeps them at the same distance they started from at the beginning of the year, in terms of Majors. Very interesting year, so far. :)
By splitting the majors, the way I see things this way.

Basically, Roger 2 sets to 1 and a service break on Rafa and now it's the beginning of the 4 set.
 
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the AntiPusher

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That's a good point. Nadal definitely has great touch at the net.

Another important thing would be to take more risks and make his shotmaking a little unpredictable. Right now, Rafa only does this when forced. As in the Del Potro match, he started to change patterns when he saw that he wouldn't win playing his usual way.

I believe that Rafa's predictability led to the losses against Federer in 2017. At the AO final, and then at IW/Miami where Federer grew even more confident and won in straights. Fed used to be camped out on his backhand side waiting for Nadal's cc forehand and on the forehand side waiting for Nadal's cc backhand.

Nadal has to use his off-forehand (i/o and DTL) and the DTL backhand more so that he can transition to offense earlier in the point and do less defending. He did that very well against Del Potro in the SF, but the question is whether he can instill the courage to do this more frequently.
The more he does this, the more natural it would get and then he could use this during big matches against Fed/Novak etc. That would be the key to 2018 for Rafa..
Rafa really stepped up his aggression the 4 rounds. Carlos and team finally got Rafa to buy into coming forward and setting up his combo patterns. Finally..I really was impressed with Rafa 's movement..I am not saying it's at the 2005-2010 level but it's at a level for him to play defensive when he is waiting to get a great feel of the ball and his court presence.
 
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DarthFed

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I feel sad I can barely call him the balding bull anymore. Those hair implants seemed to have worked a bit for him...and his game
 
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Jelenafan

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I believe that Rafa's predictability led to the losses against Federer in 2017. At the AO final, and then at IW/Miami where Federer grew even more confident and won in straights. Fed used to be camped out on his backhand side waiting for Nadal's cc forehand and on the forehand side waiting for Nadal's cc backhand.

Nadal has to use his off-forehand (i/o and DTL) and the DTL backhand more so that he can transition to offense earlier in the point and do less defending. He did that very well against Del Potro in the SF, but the question is whether he can instill the courage to do this more frequently.
The more he does this, the more natural it would get and then he could use this during big matches against Fed/Novak etc. That would be the key to 2018 for Rafa..

Yes, those days to just hitting to a rightie's BH corner...I just feel that Uncle Toni was a bit flummoxed on motivating and implementing tweaks to the groundies' patterns in rallies.

Would love more of the DTL forehand for 2018.

As to Kevin, can't fathom why he hasn't worked more on his net game.
 
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Front242

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Thing is, serve and volley was going to be less effective than usual on this slow USO this year anyway. So not the best strategy unless they (hopefully) make it faster again. Much faster.
 

Federberg

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That's a good point. Nadal definitely has great touch at the net.

Another important thing would be to take more risks and make his shotmaking a little unpredictable. Right now, Rafa only does this when forced. As in the Del Potro match, he started to change patterns when he saw that he wouldn't win playing his usual way.

I believe that Rafa's predictability led to the losses against Federer in 2017. At the AO final, and then at IW/Miami where Federer grew even more confident and won in straights. Fed used to be camped out on his backhand side waiting for Nadal's cc forehand and on the forehand side waiting for Nadal's cc backhand.

Nadal has to use his off-forehand (i/o and DTL) and the DTL backhand more so that he can transition to offense earlier in the point. He did that very well against Del Potro in the SF, but the question is whether he can instill the courage to do this more frequently.

The more he does this, the more natural it would get and then he could use this during big matches against Fed/Novak etc. That would be the key to 2018 for Rafa..

It's tough to change a formula that's been so devastatingly effective. I do agree it's something he needs to look at. Roger was dining out on his 2nd serve and also he discovered a truth that previously only Novak knew, attacking Rafa's forehand is the surest way to induce errors. It's going to be fascinating to see how Rafa evolves his game to counter this when next they meet
 
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the AntiPusher

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It's tough to change a formula that's been so devastatingly effective. I do agree it's something he needs to look at. Roger was dining out on his 2nd serve and also he discovered a truth that previously only Novak knew, attacking Rafa's forehand is the surest way to induce errors. It's going to be fascinating to see how Rafa evolves his game to counter this when next they meet
All Rafa needs to do continue with the mentality to be the one who drives the bus not the scared bitch who got the bus driven over him on the hardcourts by Roger in their previous encounters.
 

DarthFed

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^ All Roger has to do is hit his backhand well and not play like a mental midget vs. Nadal. That's the only way he has found a way to lose to Rafa off clay.
 

Moxie

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Probably about time for the sporting bull to pull a MTO I guess :lol6:
I thought the talk was that Fed is heading for the MTO. Rafa is healthy, thank goodness. That's the #1 thing he needs to keep up.
 

DarthFed

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Rafa has been healthy for most of the past few seasons. Biggest thing this year was Djokovic sucked. That eliminated his owner and allowed him to relax. Then he also improved the serve and backhand.
 

DarthFed

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2015 he had appendicitis and a small ankle issue in Fall season where he traditionally sucks anyways. Last year he was healthy until RG and then had the wrist injury. He'd have been clear underdog to Nole too. Then he missed Fall again...wisely may I add. Then he was healthy all this year. Does that not qualify as mostly healthy for past three seasons?
 

Moxie

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Rafa has been healthy for most of the past few seasons. Biggest thing this year was Djokovic sucked. That eliminated his owner and allowed him to relax. Then he also improved the serve and backhand.
Rafa was healthy in 2014-16, with the exception of back starting 2014 AO, which hampered him for some time, and he was treated for; wrist, which kept him from defending any of the US Open swing in 2014, then appendicitis, (had surgery.) Can't remember in 2015, if it was just the crisis of confidence, but 2016 after Wimbledon he shut down for wrist again, I think, came back early for Olympics, then shut the year down again. Um, and chronic tendonitis. But other than that, he's been fit as a fiddle.
 

brokenshoelace

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2015 he had appendicitis and a small ankle issue in Fall season where he traditionally sucks anyways. Last year he was healthy until RG and then had the wrist injury. He'd have been clear underdog to Nole too. Then he missed Fall again...wisely may I add. Then he was healthy all this year. Does that not qualify as mostly healthy for past three seasons?

The argument isn't about his chances vs. one guy or his history on a particular surface. Last year he was forced to pull out of the major he owns (and yes, he was "only" second favorite... the shame) and then shut down the season early. Even when he played at the Olympics he acknowledged that he wouldn't be playing if it had been any other event. How is that being mostly healthy? Being "mostly healthy" for tennis professionals in the top 10, means only missing minor tournaments here and there. That's what a "mostly healthy" Novak would look like, or a mostly healthy Roger. If you withdraw from a major and shut down your season early, that's not being mostly healthy. And that's not even touching on 2015. ,
 
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DarthFed

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Rafa was healthy in 2014-16, with the exception of back starting 2014 AO, which hampered him for some time, and he was treated for; wrist, which kept him from defending any of the US Open swing in 2014, then appendicitis, (had surgery.) Can't remember in 2015, if it was just the crisis of confidence, but 2016 after Wimbledon he shut down for wrist again, I think, came back early for Olympics, then shut the year down again. Um, and chronic tendonitis. But other than that, he's been fit as a fiddle.

Chronic tendonitis? Lol. He hasn't had a knee issue since at least 2012, note the at least part there :)
 

DarthFed

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The argument isn't about his chances vs. one guy or his history on a particular surface. Last year he was forced to pull out of the major he owns (and yes, he was "only" second favorite... the shame) and then shut down the season early. Even when he played at the Olympics he acknowledged that he wouldn't be playing if it had been any other event. How is that being mostly healthy? Being "mostly healthy" for tennis professionals in the top 10, means only missing minor tournaments here and there. That's what a "mostly healthy" Novak would look like, or a mostly healthy Roger. If you withdraw from a major and shut down your season early, that's not being mostly healthy. And that's not even touching on 2015. ,

Please do touch on 2015, he missed some of Fall. You, me, and even his mom knows he would've gotten his ass beaten down there with the way he was playing that year and his lack of game indoors as is.

Yes, he missed RG and that's obviously huge and then Wimbledon sparing him another humiliation, and then he cut the season short after Beijing. Who knows how much the wrist was an issue, he may have just been wise to shut it down. Similar to what I hope Roger does this year.

So you basically got one season semi-deralied by injury and then 2 seasons where he didn't have any real issues.