Rio Open ATP 500 Clay

[DarthFed]

That was an absolutely insane get on match point. Fog has a lot of game when he decides to play but that's the problem, for the most part he doesn't care much. He could wake up today and just say "F it" and put up zero effort. We've seen it often before. I've seen him live a few times and it is literally game to game with him as far as effort goes.

 

[herios]

Rafa's deluding himself that he'll be able to continue playing this way; so defensively and way back behind the baseline! At least he started attacking and closing out points at the net tonight, but seemed more desperate than actually trying to re-work his game to alleviate the strain of another long match! He continues to get into 3 set wars with players I don't even know! It's so aggravating to see players have the Top 4 on the ropes only to let their advantage go just 2 points from finishing them off! Today Rafa started out hot, then faded! Normally it's the other way around, coming back from the dead saving match points! I thought Fabio would find a way to give this match away, but Nadal's shots were barely clearing the net, dropping inside the service box! Fognini saved himself the embarrassment of losing #7 to Nadal by closing out the match on a great "get" from Rafa's "net-cord! :clap :angel: :dodgy:

Fiero, you got your stat wrong. Fabio lost only 4 matches to Rafa, so the #7 should have been #5

 

[Fiero425]

That was an absolutely insane get on match point. Fog has a lot of game when he decides to play but that's the problem, for the most part he doesn't care much. He could wake up today and just say "F it" and put up zero effort. We've seen it often before. I've seen him live a few times and it is literally game to game with him as far as effort goes.

I said it last night; this upset might not have occurred if Fognini hadn't run for that net-cord "get" and put it away with a cross-dropshot! Rafa depends on a lot of luck at times when he's in trouble; bad calls, net cords, line skippers, etc.! Too many of those things have happened to save his bacon in early rounds; including this tourney of course, but not last night! :nono :angel: :dodgy: :cover

 

[Fiero425]

Rafa's deluding himself that he'll be able to continue playing this way; so defensively and way back behind the baseline! At least he started attacking and closing out points at the net tonight, but seemed more desperate than actually trying to re-work his game to alleviate the strain of another long match! He continues to get into 3 set wars with players I don't even know! It's so aggravating to see players have the Top 4 on the ropes only to let their advantage go just 2 points from finishing them off! Today Rafa started out hot, then faded! Normally it's the other way around, coming back from the dead saving match points! I thought Fabio would find a way to give this match away, but Nadal's shots were barely clearing the net, dropping inside the service box! Fognini saved himself the embarrassment of losing #7 to Nadal by closing out the match on a great "get" from Rafa's "net-cord! :clap :angel: :dodgy:

Fiero, you got your stat wrong. Fabio lost only 4 matches to Rafa, so the #7 should have been #5

Thank you! I'm amazed at so many of these "0'fer" in today's ranks; thought them too good, but it's rampant! We saw Tomas B. finally take one from Nadal at the AO after 16 straight losses! This tourney has a ton of these situations, including Fognini who must be 0-6 or 7 to Ferrer! I think I conflated the highlight shows last night!

 

[Front242]

It's 7-0 h2h to Ferrer, likely to be 8-0 soon. Fognini's too much of a headcase to actually win one I reckon which is a shame 'cos when he's not acting like a complete muppet he can really play.

 

[Carol]

At least we can say that Rafa just coming back to the court has losing agaInst players who usually can't beat him. Other players playing all around the year have lost on their best surface against Chardy, Querrey, etc etc.
I don't think Fog doesn't care to win, on the contrary his losses makes him to act sometimes so unprofessional, he is not able to hold it :s

 

[Billie]

Now, watch it all what you say about F3, I am reading everything.:devil

I am still amazed that people think that these players don't care. They might look that way but I highly doubt that they don't care about winning or losing. Fabio is a show, I agree, but he does put an effort when he can and when he sees that he is being outplayed and outgunned, then he starts acting up. I think that is just his mechanism that helps him deal with losing. These are people with emotions after all. Not everybody is the same.

He must be dead tired now. We'll see what happens later on. Still a good effort by him to beat Rafa and reach the final here. I think he will give his all. Ferrer played less tennis so advantage to him, but who knows. I am sure it will be an entertaining match, as always when F3 is involved.

I watched him practice, he is very serious, more than he is in some of his matches.:snicker

 

[Billie]

As for the talk about panicking (in this case Rafa), I am used to it from my fellow Nole fans, every time Nole loses a couple of matches or a big one, they start with downhill talk. So I am used to dealing with it.

 

[Fiero425]

As for the talk about panicking (in this case Rafa), I am used to it from my fellow Nole fans, every time Nole loses a couple of matches or a big one, they start with downhill talk. So I am used to dealing with it.

Of the BIG 4, Nole's the last one I put on a list of players in decline! His problem is more about confidence or lack thereof when things get tight! Too often he can be "working" an opponent, ready to serve it out, but inexplicably makes the match tighter in the end, whether he wins eventually or not! The '12 AO marathon with Nadal was all but over in 4, but after dropping the TB, we end up with a match lasting almost 6 hours! That Wimbledon final SHB over in 4 with Federer and IIRC 2 service breaks up! He didn't collapse or necessarily do anything wrong to make it closer going into a 5th set, but Nole's the unluckiest player I know who finds himself in situations 5 minutes before were unthinkable! :nono uzzled :cover

 

[Carol]

What I usually read about Rafa, Novak and Roger when they loss.....
Rafa) he is not going to last to long, he is not going to win anymore GS, his injuries...he is going down hill...
Novak) he has lost his focus, he just got married, he is a new father
Roger) he has to take care of the double twins, he has won enough, he is old

Folks, for one or another reason their opponents has the right to win if that day they play better

 

[herios]

People who think Fabio does not care, probably did not meet too many italians
I know, many are more cool headed, but the temperament is more heated.
In Fabio's case, beside the typical temperament, he cannot think straight for minutes after he loses it. Then of course looks like he wants to be somewhere else, because he is unfolding like a cheap tent, when he is not calm. With him is a chain reaction. I have met people like him.
he should take a toilet nreak sometimes and keep his head under cool water for 1 minute or so:laydownlaughing

 

[Fiero425]

What I usually read about Rafa, Novak and Roger when they loss.....
Rafa) he is not going to last to long, he is not going to win anymore GS, his injuries...he is going down hill...
Novak) he has lost his focus, he just got married, he is a new father
Roger) he has to take care of the double twins, he has won enough, he is old

Folks, for one or another reason their opponents has the right to win if that day they play better

We've become spoiled and not expecting any of these top players to lose to anyone outside of their little clique! I give them "an out" at times, but I like to think myself more rational! Rafa is in decline and it has everything to do with his body and how he abuses it in practice and getting into 3 set battles with people not in his class; qualifiers, WC's, and players who he's owned for years! I've already explained how I feel about Nole; not necessarily in decline, but his mind wanders, loses focus at times, and makes his job harder by dropping a set when he's serving for a match just 5 min. before! As for Federer, of course he's in decline; nothing embarrassing about getting old and we see him struggling to get past players a lot lower in rank year after year! He will stay on tour as long as he thinks able to win a major and won't stay a moment longer IMO! He made a Wimbledon final last season and had his chances, but they will become more and more fleeting as time goes on regardless of his advanced scheduling to help him out! :angel: :dodgy:

 

[Billie]

As for the talk about panicking (in this case Rafa), I am used to it from my fellow Nole fans, every time Nole loses a couple of matches or a big one, they start with downhill talk. So I am used to dealing with it.

Of the BIG 4, Nole's the last one I put on a list of players in decline! His problem is more about confidence or lack thereof when things get tight! Too often he can be "working" an opponent, ready to serve it out, but inexplicably makes the match tighter in the end, whether he wins eventually or not! The '12 AO marathon with Nadal was all but over in 4, but after dropping the TB, we end up with a match lasting almost 6 hours! That Wimbledon final SHB over in 4 with Federer and IIRC 2 service breaks up! He didn't collapse or necessarily do anything wrong to make it closer going into a 5th set, but Nole's the unluckiest player I know who finds himself in situations 5 minutes before were unthinkable! :nono uzzled :cover

That's all true, but for other players too. At the same time he is known as somebody who comes back from the brink of a defeat and wins a lot of matches. Like I said it before, emotions and nerves can play tricks on our minds. But Nole usually re-groups and gives his all, short of injuring himself. I think that part of the reason he has been relatively injury free is that he knows his limits and plays accordingly. He will try and push himself to the limits, but very rarely over the limits. They can't be all 100% all the time, but they have to be smart when they play as well. You could tell in that USO semi final from last year or 2013 Wimbledon final, he tried, but really didn't have it in him on these occasions. So you move on from that. He is very good at getting over heartbreaks in relatively short time and looking ahead for new challenges. That is the reason I've never panicked when it comes to Nole. He will start declining, they all do, but that is the nature, you can't do much about it, you can just try to be smart about postponing it, but that's about it. :nono

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

Now, watch it all what you say about F3, I am reading everything.:devil

I am still amazed that people think that these players don't care. They might look that way but I highly doubt that they don't care about winning or losing. Fabio is a show, I agree, but he does put an effort when he can and when he sees that he is being outplayed and outgunned, then he starts acting up. I think that is just his mechanism that helps him deal with losing. These are people with emotions after all. Not everybody is the same.

He must be dead tired now. We'll see what happens later on. Still a good effort by him to beat Rafa and reach the final here. I think he will give his all. Ferrer played less tennis so advantage to him, but who knows. I am sure it will be an entertaining match, as always when F3 is involved.

I watched him practice, he is very serious, more than he is in some of his matches.:snicker

It isn't a question about caring or losing,it is his overall unprofessional attitude he shows on court,I too have watched him many times over the years,usually at clay tournaments in Europe,remember I am Italian... the Italian women show more professional attitude than Fabio in my opinion.

 

[Billie]

^^ Everybody is entitled to his or her opinion.

The appearances are not always the same as how the person really is. That's all I am saying. We are all different and we react to the same things differently. Fabio is hot blooded, I agree with that and there are things which he could improve upon, of course. But he in entertaining, he makes me laugh, he is not a bad guy, so he is OK by me.

There are other such professional players on ATP, let's have a small number of players that have less of that quality.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

While there are reasons to be a bit concerned if you are a Nadal fan, I don't think panic mode should be applied

Now, this makes BA a must win tourney for Rafa. If he does not win that one, his confidence
would surely take a nosedive.

I would not say the same thing about IW or M, as I don't really expect him to win either
and would not infer anything by his possible early loss there.

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

I have personally spoken to Fabio off court,he is a Charmer,a typical Italian male...
Personally I would take Bols any day....
I am still over the moon that both of them are the Australian Open Doubles Champions in 2015..

 

[Billie]

While there are reasons to be a bit concerned if you are a Nadal fan, I don't think panic mode should be applied

Now, this makes BA a must win tourney for Rafa. If he does not win that one, his confidence
would surely take a nosedive.

I would not say the same thing about IW or M, as I don't really expect him to win either
and would not infer anything by his possible early loss there.

It all depends GSM. If Nadal is carrying an injury and is trying to hide it, then I don't think it will be a blow to his confidence as it would be if he were healthy and without any problems. I don't think he lacks confidence on clay, ever. But he might be concerned if he is not physically where he wanted to be. We'll know soon enough.

 

[Billie]

I have personally spoken to Fabio off court,he is a Charmer,a typical Italian male...
Personally I would take Bols any day....
I am still over the moon that both of them are the Australian Open Doubles Champions in 2015..

Frankly IH was the one that intrigued me about F3 and then I started to follow him a bit more. Yeah, he is a charmer and good looking.

 

[Carol]

What I usually read about Rafa, Novak and Roger when they loss.....
Rafa) he is not going to last to long, he is not going to win anymore GS, his injuries...he is going down hill...
Novak) he has lost his focus, he just got married, he is a new father
Roger) he has to take care of the double twins, he has won enough, he is old

Folks, for one or another reason their opponents has the right to win if that day they play better

We've become spoiled and not expecting any of these top players to lose to anyone outside of their little clique! I give them "an out" at times, but I like to think myself more rational! Rafa is in decline and it has everything to do with his body and how he abuses it in practice and getting into 3 set battles with people not in his class; qualifiers, WC's, and players who he's owned for years! I've already explained how I feel about Nole; not necessarily in decline, but his mind wanders, loses focus at times, and makes his job harder by dropping a set when he's serving for a match just 5 min. before! As for Federer, of

course he's in decline; nothing embarrassing about getting old and we see him struggling to get past players a lot lower in rank year after year! He will stay on tour as long as he thinks able to win a major and won't stay a moment longer IMO! He made a Wimbledon final last season and had his chances, but they will become more and more fleeting as time goes on regardless of his advanced scheduling to help him out! :angel: :dodgy:

Every single player has to make a lot of effort and a lot of practices otherwise they couldn't be one of the best but their mentality and the confidence has to be at 100% too and that's the most difficult part after an injury.
Some players are lucky not having injuries but most of them sooner or later go through it. The problem is that Nadal gets more attention than others, if not ask Tsonga, Monfils, Simon, Almagro, Delpo, etc etc etc. Novak is one of the luckiest ones and not because he doesn't do any effort, his way to play is crazy, his body sometimes seems is going to divided in two parts same like his legs but at least he is "the rubber guy"
I don't think Rafa is in decline but I will tell at the end of this year, the season is still long and many things can happen