Best for Rafa to lose early in Miami as well

[Tennis Miller]

I'm perfectly serious. He doesn't need the pounding on the hard courts. Get out of Miami early, rest, and then follow the formula of getting his mojo back on clay. This loss to the Dog was the best thing for him.

Cheers

TM

 

[huntingyou]

Best for Rafa to skip Miami and chill out a bit.......maybe just hang out in SoBe and sip some mojito.

Playing on HC before the clay season makes no sense. The funny thing is I was very happy Rafa lost.

On another note, I'm going to the Sony Ericson this year........

 

[Rose]

Sadly it is becoming more clear that Rafa's body just can't take the pounding on the hard court, but I still wasn't happy he lost. He just shouldn't have been there in the 1st place!

 

[Riotbeard]

This is silly. No evidence that this has anything to do with hard court specific injuries. The guy won 3 masters and a slam on hards last year. Rafa's knees are definitely affected by hards, but no evidence that recent mediocrity is related to the surface. Frankly it would not have been surprising if he had lost at rio. His level has not been consistently high on either surface.

Also you are playing into a stereotype of rafa fans and injuries. Maybe he is in a slump (the guy is human), and lost last night.

 

[Kieran]

Exactly. If anything, I'd have wanted him to skip Rio, I don't see what he was doing down there. He looks tired and he hasn't got the enthusiasm he had this time last year. That's understandable, but it's a worrying sign so early in the year...

 

[kskate2]

Rafa and Novak need to see a motivation guru. At times this year, they both look uninterested like they're filming the Walking Dead.

 

[brokenshoelace]

It has nothing to do with the surface, it has more to do with the back. I don't care if Miami were played on water, if Nadal's back is troubling him (again...IF, and only if it's troubling him), then there's no point in playing. If it isn't, he should play. Period.

 

[shawnbm]

Best for Rafa to skip Miami and chill out a bit.......maybe just hang out in SoBe and sip some mojito.

Playing on HC before the clay season makes no sense. The funny thing is I was very happy Rafa lost.

On another note, I'm going to the Sony Ericson this year........

I hope to also HY. Wife and I were discussing just that last night whilst watching Dolgo and Nadal.

 

[shawnbm]

Rafa should play in Miami--it's the 5th major and it is a place where he is an overwhelming fan favorite. He loves golf, hanging at South Beach and I just can't see him skipping it without very good cause.

 

[Kieran]

That's it, Shawn! No point going to a place like Miami half-hearted. In three weeks time we could be all sitting here discussing how Rafa just won a tourney he'd never won before. He's going to have to improve, but that's often been true, just before he does something incredible...

 

[huntingyou]

Rafa it's not 100% back wise, not sure to what extend cause he tends to exagerate injuries but his serve it's WTA right now and he can't win Miami with that serve.

So hopefully a couple weeks off doing some physical training and relaxing it's all he needs before Miami, otherwise he needs to skip it and get himself ready for HIS season which starts at MC.

 

[House]

Yeah I'm quite certain Nadal is giddy right now after this loss.

Losing being a good thing is fan talk. Players, especially those of Nadal's mentality and pedigree, are never happy about losing.

 

[Kieran]

Yeah I'm quite certain Nadal is giddy right now after this loss.

Losing being a good thing is fan talk. Players, especially those of Nadal's mentality and pedigree, are never happy about losing.

That's right, buddy, and nice to see you!

Next thing we'll have somebody revive that old Tank Strategy. Remember that craze? "Great tank by Rafa last night, preserving his H2H record against Roger/Nole by avoiding him, and leaving the rest of the idiots to carry the tourney while he skives off to the beach with Xisca!"

 

[House]

Yeah I'm quite certain Nadal is giddy right now after this loss.

Losing being a good thing is fan talk. Players, especially those of Nadal's mentality and pedigree, are never happy about losing.

That's right, buddy, and nice to see you!

Next thing we'll have somebody revive that old Tank Strategy. Remember that craze? "Great tank by Rafa last night, preserving his H2H record against Roger/Nole by avoiding him, and leaving the rest of the idiots to carry the tourney while he skives off to the beach with Xisca!"

Haha I'm almost always lurking around the boards, I just like reading more then posting these days.

 

[Riotbeard]

Yeah I'm quite certain Nadal is giddy right now after this loss.

Losing being a good thing is fan talk. Players, especially those of Nadal's mentality and pedigree, are never happy about losing.

That's right, buddy, and nice to see you!

Next thing we'll have somebody revive that old Tank Strategy. Remember that craze? "Great tank by Rafa last night, preserving his H2H record against Roger/Nole by avoiding him, and leaving the rest of the idiots to carry the tourney while he skives off to the beach with Xisca!"

RAFA TANKED TO AVOID RUINING HIS H2H WITH STAN! TANK TANK TANK!

 

[Tennis Miller]

Yeah I'm quite certain Nadal is giddy right now after this loss.

Losing being a good thing is fan talk. Players, especially those of Nadal's mentality and pedigree, are never happy about losing.

That's right, buddy, and nice to see you!

Next thing we'll have somebody revive that old Tank Strategy. Remember that craze? "Great tank by Rafa last night, preserving his H2H record against Roger/Nole by avoiding him, and leaving the rest of the idiots to carry the tourney while he skives off to the beach with Xisca!"

RAFA TANKED TO AVOID RUINING HIS H2H WITH STAN! TANK TANK TANK!

Yes, it would be DUMB for anyone to revive the tank strategy to say Rafa was avoiding someone. Fortunately, no one has said anything that stupid.

I do think Rafa should consider skipping Miami if his back is bothering him. But since I don't think he'll skip it, I think the best thing for his 2014 and his career would be to lose early, rest, and get his mojo back on clay.

Of course, I don't think he'd be giddy about losing, since he's such a ferocious competitor. That still doesn't mean losing wouldn't be the best thing for him at this point, even if he can't recognize it.

Whether a player is happy about losing, and whether a loss can turn out to be a good thing in the larger picture, are two different things. I'm saying the latter

Further on Kieran's point, cutting back a bit on clay might also help.

Cheers
TM

 

[GameSetAndMath]

I'm perfectly serious. He doesn't need the pounding on the hard courts. Get out of Miami early, rest, and then follow the formula of getting his mojo back on clay. This loss to the Dog was the best thing for him.

Cheers

TM

nono:nono

This is absolutely ridiculous. Why would you want a player to play in a tournament
and hope that they lose early in it. He can always skip the tournament instead for that.

You either take a tournament seriously and play in it or just skip it. No player
in the right mind (no matter how bad is their ranking or physical situation), let alone
Rafa, would want to enter a tournament hoping that they lose early.

 

[Tennis Miller]

I'm perfectly serious. He doesn't need the pounding on the hard courts. Get out of Miami early, rest, and then follow the formula of getting his mojo back on clay. This loss to the Dog was the best thing for him.

Cheers

TM

nono:nono

This is absolutely ridiculous. Why would you want a player to play in a tournament
and hope that they lose early in it. He can always skip the tournament instead for that.

You either take a tournament seriously and play in it or just skip it. No player
in the right mind (no matter how bad is their ranking or physical situation), let alone
Rafa, would want to enter a tournament hoping that they lose early.

You should read what I said again.

1. I don't think he'll skip the tournament, even though the rest would be best for him, in my opinion .

2. So the next best thing for him right now would be, in my opinion, for him to lose early.

3. My thinking it would be best for him to lose, is not remotely suggesting that he should enter HOPING to lose. No one said he should hope to lose. I never said that, certainly.

My whole point is I don't think he knows what's best for him schedule-wise, a point that has been made repeatedly by many posters, many fans of his.

Cheers
TM

 

[Front242]

Two things, firstly as far as I recall he's never yet won Miami, so surely he'd like to and secondly, he has yet to defend a non clay title in his whole career to date. Two reasons to surely want to win here. And the third reason is no world number 1 and possible GOAT should even contemplate losing early in a masters 1000. He'd surely like to build on weeks at number 1 and losing early isn't the way to improve that. Failing to ever defend a non clay title is still something he needs to eradicate as it's a black mark that's plagued him his whole career.

Play and play to win is a champion's attitude and this is how he should think when he enters any event and likely it is how he thinks.

 

[Tennis Miller]

Two things, firstly as far as I recall he's never yet won Miami, so surely he'd like to and secondly, he has yet to defend a non clay title in his whole career to date. Two reasons to surely want to win here. And the third reason is no world number 1 and possible GOAT should even contemplate losing early in a masters 1000. He'd surely like to build on weeks at number 1 and losing early isn't the way to improve that. Failing to ever defend a non clay title is still something he needs to eradicate as it's a black mark that's plagued him his whole career.

Play and play to win is a champion's attitude and this is how he should think when he enters any event and likely it is how he thinks.

I agree 100% with your last sentence. And I still think it would be better for his health and year ahead if he were to not play, or play and lose early.

Of course when he plays, he will "play to win", as he always does, and would never "contemplate losing early in a masters 1000", even if it would be better for his long term health to lose early.

Most pro athletes want to play, even when injured, and even when playing might be detrimental to their health.

Last year's fiasco with RG3, the Washington quarterback, was proof of that.

Cheers
TM