Nadalites – Rafa Nadal Talk

[Moxie]

as much I like davis cup think it should stay in tennis nadal will better off if he just skips it no need to put your body though any extra stuff but in saying that davis cup always bring the best out of nadal.

Not totally clear about that, but I'm pretty sure that Novak has declined to play and Roger has. Hopefully Rafa won't either. Not this year.

 

[the AntiPusher]

Can anyone remember another time Rafa came back from such a desperate place in a deciding set? He’s saved MPs before, of course, and he came back from the precipice in the first set of the MC match against Roger in 2008, and saved multiple MPs against Nalbandian in IW, but I can’t think of a time when he was 0-4 or 1-5 down in the decider, and pulled out the win.

It had to be his greatest comeback if you look at the numbers but he said he has played better in previous comebacks..

My Lord, Tented why did you happen to mention the N name..You know he is going to crucified us with endless non impacting stats about that player. Hopefully he didn't see it.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

Not totally clear about that, but I'm pretty sure that Novak has declined to play and Roger has. Hopefully Rafa won't either. Not this year.

Are you sure you are not mixing up davis cup with atp cup. This year DC format is totally different. 18 countries play in just one week to determine the winner. Switzerland is not even one of the 18. But both Serbia and Spain are in DC.

ATP cup happens in the two weeks before AO and has a similar (but probably not the same) format.

 

[Moxie]

Are you sure you are not mixing up davis cup with atp cup. This year DC format is totally different. 18 countries play in just one week to determine the winner. Switzerland is not even one of the 18. But both Serbia and Spain are in DC.

ATP cup happens in the two weeks before AO and has a similar (but probably not the same) format.

If you say so, then I am conflating them, at least in terms of Roger. I absolutely have not paid any attention to the new DC format and what goes on. I know it's in Madrid, that Novak seems to be pulling out, that Spain is in, and that I hope Rafa won't play.

 

[Andy22]

giving the age of nadal 33 this season got to be in the top 4 of his epic career

 

[Carol]

Superb!

 

[Andy22]

nadal 2020 season will be even better with him becoming the new grand slam record holder, also 6th year end number no.1

 

[Jelenafan]

2020 is going to be very interesting.

Rafa can’t help but think about finally equaling and perhaps surpassing Federer. How could you not standing at 19 Majors? It’s like telling someone not to think about the 2000 pound pink elephant and expect that to work.

The pressure is there and going to grow ,no doubt, so how Rafa responds is going to be one of the biggest questions in men’s tennis that will be answered.

 

[the AntiPusher]

2020 is going to be very interesting.

Rafa can’t help but think about finally equaling and perhaps surpassing Federer. How could you not standing at 19 Majors? It’s like telling someone not to think about the 2000 pound pink elephant and expect that to work.

The pressure is there and going to grow ,no doubt, so how Rafa responds is going to be one of the biggest questions in men’s tennis that will be answered.

I understand your point but I disagree..Rafa has been chasing Roger since he has been on the tour since 2005. One more slam victory to tie Roger is very achievable and now he is directly in Roger's rearview mirror instead of being just headlights. All Rafa has to do is play his own version of good tennis just like he did in AO 2019. Again, as he has stated although he reached the final , was not mentally ready to face a Grandslam champion at the level of Novak's brilliance after being off the tour for almost 4 months . At first, even I questioned Rafa's presser but as the year progressed, Rafa was telling the truth. 2020 AO will be different because although he didn't win the WTF, besides his initial hiccup vs Sasha. Nadal has been extraordinary clutch since Wimbledon 2019. The draw is going to be very important at AO especially for Novak. The next generation of Tsitipus, Medvedev and post Next Gen Thiem feel they have the game to match Novak's. Also, Roger will always be a tough hombre if he falls in Novak's half of the draw..

RG, Rafa won it 12 times.no pressure on him although he is the defending champ. Yes, it's his best shot as capturing another slam but now he can open up his shoulders and let it rip.
SW19, Roger and Novak are the big favorites but Rafa goal is to make it to the 2nd week which he had done very well the past 2 years. I am quite sure that he knows he hasn't played and produce the type of tennis that is good enough to be the champion especially trying to hold his own service. Rafa knows he cannot defeat Roger from the backcourt and he will have to execute a more offensive brand of tennis to get pass Roger and to dethone Novak.
The real pressure is maintenance of his body and not to try to overplay the schedule trying to maintain the number one ranking.

 

[brokenshoelace]

The idea that Nadal has "no pressure on him" at Roland Garros is insane, irrespective of trying to tie the record. It's the major in which there is the most pressure on him.

 

[isabelle]

he'll launch his Koweit academy in Feb 2020

 

[Andy22]

nadal season is so epic that everything he touches turns to gold with his masterpiece game, he's been the player of the year, had the match of the season [us open final] also had the shot of the year us open Rd4 cillic, anyone who copys his game could easy become a grand slam champion his game that damn good like god level.

 

[Jelenafan]

I understand your point but I disagree..Rafa has been chasing Roger since he has been on the tour since 2005. One more slam victory to tie Roger is very achievable and now he is directly in Roger's rearview mirror instead of being just headlights.

Which is precisely why I think the pressure is now greater. It’s not something far in the future, it’s within his grasp when he steps onto the court.

Serena has certainly felt the pressure trying to tie Margaret Court.

No worries, we agree to disagree.

 

[Moxie]

Which is precisely why I think the pressure is now greater. It’s not something far in the future, it’s within his grasp when he steps onto the court.

Serena has certainly felt the pressure trying to tie Margaret Court.

No worries, we agree to disagree.

I agree with you on this. Rafa has always had the pressure of the front-runner at RG, basically since the first time he won it. Also, we see the pressure weighing on them as their careers wind down, and each opportunity is fraught with the frisson of "last chance." This is, IMO, what tripped up Roger at Wimbledon last summer, and basically why the USO went 5 sets. Rafa felt the pressure to win there, and it was palpable.

As to Serena, I think it's worth mentioning that she also couldn't get the CYGS done in '15, I think? She was 2 matches away. She's a tough competitor, but the nerves can get them all, when the heavy rubber hits the road.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

I agree with you on this. Rafa has always had the pressure of the front-runner at RG, basically since the first time he won it. Also, we see the pressure weighing on them as their careers wind down, and each opportunity is fraught with the frisson of "last chance." This is, IMO, what tripped up Roger at Wimbledon last summer, and basically why the USO went 5 sets. Rafa felt the pressure to win there, and it was palpable.

As to Serena, I think it's worth mentioning that she also couldn't get the CYGS done in '15, I think? She was 2 matches away. She's a tough competitor, but the nerves can get them all, when the heavy rubber hits the road.

It is quite conceivable that the first time he gets a chance to tie, the nerves kick in and he misses it. Then if they get another chance, they might actually do better in controlling the nerves. However, if they miss the chance multiple times, then it will add even more psychological pressure and it may be difficult to overcome (especially considering that the chances at this stage of their careers are going to be spaced out in time).

It is kind of reasonable to assume that Ralph won't win AO in 2020 considering his record there over the years and the large number of young guns who are good at hard courts. In that case, it is likely that Ralph will get a chance to tie Roger in RG 2020. If it comes to that which will win - the experience of winning it a dozen times before and the confidence of being the alpha dirt baller or the nerves of tying the record? My guess is the former (unless, a player of the caliber of Novak or Thiem is across the net). In all other slams, even a relatively weak opponent in the final will probably have a better chance against Ralph, considering the nerves of tying.

 

[Moxie]

It is quite conceivable that the first time he gets a chance to tie, the nerves kick in and he misses it. Then if they get another chance, they might actually do better in controlling the nerves. However, if they miss the chance multiple times, then it will add even more psychological pressure and it may be difficult to overcome (especially considering that the chances at this stage of their careers are going to be spaced out in time).

It is kind of reasonable to assume that Ralph won't win AO in 2020 considering his record there over the years and the large number of young guns who are good at hard courts. In that case, it is likely that Ralph will get a chance to tie Roger in RG 2020. If it comes to that which will win - the experience of winning it a dozen times before and the confidence of being the alpha dirt baller or the nerves of tying the record? My guess is the former (unless, a player of the caliber of Novak or Thiem is across the net). In all other slams, even a relatively weak opponent in the final will probably have a better chance against Ralph, considering the nerves of tying.

It's a bit like the way that there's an unlucky #13, when they didn't pass Pete, and even on the women's side. You miss your first pass at it. I'm hoping for Ralph to get the AO monkey off his back and finally get the double career Slam. If not, or even if so, all pressure on at RG. If there's anywhere he can withstand it, it's at the French. And if there's anywhere that the competition is pretty slight, it's there.

 

[the AntiPusher]

Which is precisely why I think the pressure is now greater. It’s not something far in the future, it’s within his grasp when he steps onto the court.

Serena has certainly felt the pressure trying to tie Margaret Court.

No worries, we agree to disagree.

Again, I disagree that Rafa is facing the same pressure as Serena.
Serena has created her own issues unfortunately due to a lack of commitment to play more matches which would heightened her extremely extraordinary skills of being able to problem solve.

 

[Andy22]

nadal level of tennis+ masterpiece game will never be seen again in tennis history feel sad for future fans who will only get to see nadal work of art in replays of course seeing nadal live on court is the highlight of peoples lifes.

 

[Moxie]

he'll launch his Koweit academy in Feb 2020

I was a little surprised about this. (It's "Kuwait" in English.) But maybe he's using it to fund the academies that are meant to help mainly children in more disadvantage circumstances, i.e., the one in India, and the new one near Valencia.

 

[Nadalfan2013]

I was a little surprised about this. (It's "Kuwait" in English.) But maybe he's using it to fund the academies that are meant to help mainly children in more disadvantage circumstances, i.e., the one in India, and the new one near Valencia.

The world would be a much better place if everyone was like Nadal.