House said:
I would say 5% of these losses should be contributed to "confidence." People are incredulous that Roger is playing so well in his old age, but look at his game. It's as easy on the body as possible, and he keeps taking steps to make it even easier. Rafa on the other hand is so physical, that it's no surprise the drop off is going to much more dramatic. Doesn't mean he can't recover it, but it's not confidence. He's just playing like crap.
Another problem is - guys know they can beat him now and that's gotten in his head as well. For God's sake - Feliciano Lopez, #19 in the world and never won a Slam, actually said something like, "When I'm playing my best he can't beat me." :laydownlaughing That's just WRONG! LOL! There's no mystique to Nadal amongst the lower ranked players anymore. McEnroe was talking about it during Fed's match - how Roger had lost that intimidation factor with the lesser players in 2013 when he had back problems, but has gotten it back and doing so at 34 is remarkable. Nadal needs to do what Roger did - drop weight, get leaner and work on his speed, his net game and start coming forward to shorten points. He looks bulky\muscle-bound, heavy-footed and sort of lumbering on the court. Stop worrying about his underwear modeling contract and start getting his body ready for TENNIS instead.
:ras:
