No reason to be overly optimistic about Djokovic at Roland Garros.....

[DarthFed]

Novak is a terrible matchup for DelPotro for whatever reason, so I just don't see it. I could see a Raonic/Isner problem, but then these guys never quite get over the hump despite making it close.

I don't think Nishikori has enough firepower, and yea its tough on Ferrer too for the same reason (although, although he has made it a close thing on occasion).

Maybe an inspired Tsonga performance or someone like Verdasco.

Del Potro says he'll be playing at RG this year, but I don't see how he'll be in any kind of match shape for best of 5, esp. on clay, so that's not really an issue, I'm thinking. Nishikori, however, could be a bother or an upset. Just think back to the USO SF last year. Tsonga on a red-hot day. And Verdasco is an interesting mention, because he's ranked 37 at the moment, and so he could get Novak early.

I think Nishikori and/or Raonic figure to be the biggest threats to Nole aside from Rafa and Fed. Isner just doesn't have enough of a baseline game and he isn't winning 3 of 5 on clay with just a serve.

The likes of Verdasco or Tsonga winning would be a ridiculous loss for Nole.

 

[tented]

This is simple: If Nadal doesn't beat Novak, and Novak doesn't get injured, Novak wins RG.

 

[Mile]

or those two will have huge clash in Semi, and there will be lucky "Cilic" again. So i think its so good to have them in seperate halfs.

Raonic is same caliber as Isner, dont see them in 5 sets against Djoker or Rafa. Maybe just at Fed.

 

[nehmeth]

I think Nishikori and/or Raonic figure to be the biggest threats to Nole aside from Rafa and Fed. Isner just doesn't have enough of a baseline game and he isn't winning 3 of 5 on clay with just a serve.

Milos has played him close in Rome and RG. I can see your point. With Kei, I know he almost beat Rafa on clay last year, but I am wondering how you see him playing Novak and giving him trouble.

 

[Denis]

I think Nishikori and/or Raonic figure to be the biggest threats to Nole aside from Rafa and Fed. Isner just doesn't have enough of a baseline game and he isn't winning 3 of 5 on clay with just a serve.

Milos has played him close in Rome and RG. I can see your point. With Kei, I know he almost beat Rafa on clay last year, but I am wondering how you see him playing Novak and giving him trouble.

Let's just all ship them to Feds half, just to be safe.

 

[DarthFed]

I think Nishikori and/or Raonic figure to be the biggest threats to Nole aside from Rafa and Fed. Isner just doesn't have enough of a baseline game and he isn't winning 3 of 5 on clay with just a serve.

Milos has played him close in Rome and RG. I can see your point. With Kei, I know he almost beat Rafa on clay last year, but I am wondering how you see him playing Novak and giving him trouble.

Nishi's chances are probably better on fast courts vs. Nole but on his day he is one of the few who can possibly give Novak serious trouble from the baseline. His chances aren't good by any means.

 

[Denis]

Who might give Rafa issues tho? Same candidates? The list would not appear to be much larger, even considering rafa's form. Maybe shorter since Roger will roll over.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

This is simple: If Nadal doesn't beat Novak, and Novak doesn't get injured, Novak wins RG.

It ain't that simple. If Nadal loses early, every minute of Novak's life will be a nightmare from
that instant until either he loses or lifts the trophy. Even though Novak may have the ability
to beat all other folks out there, he needs to have the focus needed. That is a difficult task
for anybody to retain focus. It would be especially be difficult for Novak to focus as we
have seen too many times that he has issues on focusing. I don't know whether there
is a nearby Buddhist temple at RG for Novak to practice some meditation to deal with this
kind of situation.

 

[Moxie]

Who might give Rafa issues tho? Same candidates? The list would not appear to be much larger, even considering rafa's form. Maybe shorter since Roger will roll over.

Pretty much the same list. Rafa slightly less likely to lose to Roger than Novak, but Novak less likely to lose to a "spoiler" than Rafa, I'd say. I think we've gone over it in at least one other thread, and there aren't too many candidates to actually win the FO besides Djokovic or Nadal. The list of potential spoilers is a little bit longer. At this point, I'd put Nishikori on the short list to win it, and Roger. Depends on the draw. If Djokovic and Nadal are on the same side, Roger and Kei on the other, they both might at least like their chances to make the final. Roanic I see as a spoiler, but not a winner. And I'd still put Tsonga on the potential list of spoilers, as he had 5 MPs v. Djoker in 2012. Maybe Dimitrov could spoil someone's day, though probably not Novak's or Rafa's.

 

[nehmeth]

This is simple: If Nadal doesn't beat Novak, and Novak doesn't get injured, Novak wins RG.

It ain't that simple. If Nadal loses early, every minute of Novak's life will be a nightmare from
that instant until either he loses or lifts the trophy. Even though Novak may have the ability
to beat all other folks out there, he needs to have the focus needed.

:lolz:

C'mon man! His life a nightmare til he loses or wins? He's been proving he can win even when he's not near his top level. If Ralf loses, early? He takes a deep breath, exhales and smiles. It doesn't guarantee he'll win, but it certainly improves his chances - significantly. Maybe a hiccup or two along the way, but no continuous nightmares.

 

[Moxie]

This is simple: If Nadal doesn't beat Novak, and Novak doesn't get injured, Novak wins RG.

It ain't that simple. If Nadal loses early, every minute of Novak's life will be a nightmare from
that instant until either he loses or lifts the trophy. Even though Novak may have the ability
to beat all other folks out there, he needs to have the focus needed.

:lolz:

C'mon man! His life a nightmare til he loses or wins? He's been proving he can win even when he's not near his top level. If Ralf loses, early? He takes a deep breath, exhales and smiles. It doesn't guarantee he'll win, but it certainly improves his chances - significantly. Maybe a hiccup or two along the way, but no continuous nightmares.

If Rafa wins early, I agree that we'll hear the large exhale from here. However, Fed's example is useful. Knowing that you've got your best shot adds its own pressure, if you still have a few rounds to get through. He might be vulnerable in the next round. However, I hope this conversation is just academic, and we get to see Rafa and Nole meet this year.

 

[Fiero425]

It ain't that simple. If Nadal loses early, every minute of Novak's life will be a nightmare from
that instant until either he loses or lifts the trophy. Even though Novak may have the ability
to beat all other folks out there, he needs to have the focus needed.

:lolz:

C'mon man! His life a nightmare til he loses or wins? He's been proving he can win even when he's not near his top level. If Ralf loses, early? He takes a deep breath, exhales and smiles. It doesn't guarantee he'll win, but it certainly improves his chances - significantly. Maybe a hiccup or two along the way, but no continuous nightmares.

If Rafa wins early, I agree that we'll hear the large exhale from here. However, Fed's example is useful. Knowing that you've got your best shot adds its own pressure, if you still have a few rounds to get through. He might be vulnerable in the next round. However, I hope this conversation is just academic, and we get to see Rafa and Nole meet this year.

Hopefully in the QF if Rafa drops back to #5! :eyepop :angel: :dodgy:

 

[Moxie]

:lolz:

C'mon man! His life a nightmare til he loses or wins? He's been proving he can win even when he's not near his top level. If Ralf loses, early? He takes a deep breath, exhales and smiles. It doesn't guarantee he'll win, but it certainly improves his chances - significantly. Maybe a hiccup or two along the way, but no continuous nightmares.

If Rafa wins early, I agree that we'll hear the large exhale from here. However, Fed's example is useful. Knowing that you've got your best shot adds its own pressure, if you still have a few rounds to get through. He might be vulnerable in the next round. However, I hope this conversation is just academic, and we get to see Rafa and Nole meet this year.

Hopefully in the QF if Rafa drops back to #5! :eyepop :angel: :dodgy:

I see a made a Freudian slip...I meant to say, "if Rafa loses early." :snicker

Anyway, Fiero, another pointless, emoticon-filled post from you.

 

[herios]

If Rafa wins early, I agree that we'll hear the large exhale from here. However, Fed's example is useful. Knowing that you've got your best shot adds its own pressure, if you still have a few rounds to get through. He might be vulnerable in the next round. However, I hope this conversation is just academic, and we get to see Rafa and Nole meet this year.

Hopefully in the QF if Rafa drops back to #5! :eyepop :angel: :dodgy:

I see a made a Freudian slip...I meant to say, "if Rafa loses early." :snicker

Anyway, Fiero, another pointless, emoticon-filled post from you.

While he was joking, actually it is not inconceivable to see Rafa dropping in the standings before the French out of the top 4.

 

[Moxie]

Hopefully in the QF if Rafa drops back to #5! :eyepop :angel: :dodgy:

I see a made a Freudian slip...I meant to say, "if Rafa loses early." :snicker

Anyway, Fiero, another pointless, emoticon-filled post from you.

While he was joking, actually it is not inconceivable to see Rafa dropping in the standings before the French out of the top 4.

That's understood. We tried to talk about it on the Rankings thread.

 

[Puppet Master]

What I find interesting, what would happen if Djokovic were to meet Nadal in the QF of RG this year. Say Nishikori plays out of his mind and surpasses Nadal in the rankings. In the event that he loses, it would cost Novak 840 points, but if Nadal were to lose...
So who would take it if they met in the QF?

 

[GameSetAndMath]

:lolz:

C'mon man! His life a nightmare til he loses or wins? He's been proving he can win even when he's not near his top level. If Ralf loses, early? He takes a deep breath, exhales and smiles. It doesn't guarantee he'll win, but it certainly improves his chances - significantly. Maybe a hiccup or two along the way, but no continuous nightmares.

If Rafa wins early, I agree that we'll hear the large exhale from here. However, Fed's example is useful. Knowing that you've got your best shot adds its own pressure, if you still have a few rounds to get through. He might be vulnerable in the next round. However, I hope this conversation is just academic, and we get to see Rafa and Nole meet this year.

Hopefully in the QF if Rafa drops back to #5! :eyepop :angel: :dodgy:

Actually, I think the best scenario for Novak would be to meet Rafa in Quarterfinals.
Then, it would be easy for Novak to focus on prior matches without distractions. Assuming
he can win out the QF against Rafa, Novak may lose focus little bit in his SF match; but,
his SF opponent is likely to be weaker than his F opponent and so the minor loss of
focus may only cost him a set or two and not the match.

Then, when he comes to the final he will be fully focused and lift the trophy as
his win over Rafa is far back in the rearview mirror.

 

[tented]

C'mon man! His life a nightmare til he loses or wins? He's been proving he can win even when he's not near his top level. If Ralf loses, early? He takes a deep breath, exhales and smiles. It doesn't guarantee he'll win, but it certainly improves his chances - significantly. Maybe a hiccup or two along the way, but no continuous nightmares.

Yes, that seems accurate.

Elsewhere, I think what we're seeing are some users projecting upon the players their own concerns and ways of handling pressure, which are not always the ways in which the players themselves handle such things. Armchair spectators, with bubble-gum machine diplomas in psychology, may experience continuous nightmares; the Big Three find ways to win.

EDIT: To be clear, I include myself in the group of nervous spectators. We wouldn't have such terms as Nolecoaster or calling Rafa the King of Drama if not for the fact that many of us experience tension when our favorite players are on court. However, fortunately for us, they handle pressure differently.

 

[Moxie]

What I find interesting, what would happen if Djokovic were to meet Nadal in the QF of RG this year. Say Nishikori plays out of his mind and surpasses Nadal in the rankings. In the event that he loses, it would cost Novak 840 points, but if Nadal were to lose...
So who would take it if they met in the QF?

I'll reply to you and GSM below.

If Rafa wins early, I agree that we'll hear the large exhale from here. However, Fed's example is useful. Knowing that you've got your best shot adds its own pressure, if you still have a few rounds to get through. He might be vulnerable in the next round. However, I hope this conversation is just academic, and we get to see Rafa and Nole meet this year.

Hopefully in the QF if Rafa drops back to #5! :eyepop :angel: :dodgy:

Actually, I think the best scenario for Novak would be to meet Rafa in Quarterfinals.
Then, it would be easy for Novak to focus on prior matches without distractions. Assuming
he can win out the QF against Rafa, Novak may lose focus little bit in his SF match; but,
his SF opponent is likely to be weaker than his F opponent and so the minor loss of
focus may only cost him a set or two and not the match.

Then, when he comes to the final he will be fully focused and lift the trophy as
his win over Rafa is far back in the rearview mirror.

I don't know who a QF showdown between Djokovic and Nadal would benefit more. Nadal has shown that, starting with 2011 when his confidence was low, the QFs has been when he's picked up his level. Djoker is harder to gauge, as he was taken to 5 in 2012 by Tsonga, but got a walkover by F3 in 2011. Both would know, once the draw comes out that they have to gear up for it. I'd give the edge to Nole, on current form, but it's no easier to judge, IMO, than if they meet SF or Fs.

 

[Murat Baslamisli]

Novak and Rafa can meet in the first round and it would still be the final.