Sorry Cheryl, I beg to differ. Your sport, tennis, is a grossly unfair sport. What other sport allows and promotes such vicious discrimination in terms of pay for effort? I am sure Victoria Azarenka deserves to be Oz 2012 Women's Champion, but she gets paid the same as Novak? Sorry, this is madness. And why is the prize money so paltry compared to say, golf? The sponsors are the same and tennis is more taxing than golf, so what gives?

Having said that, I must congratulate your sport for embracing technology, Hawk-eye is a marvel. For that alone, you are entitled to be smug.

I consider my sport ATP tennis. It really is a COMPLETELY different sport than WTA...I wasn't really talking about WTA at all, though your point is taken. The argument, of course, is that at Slams, the men and women play at the same venues on the same days, thus should split their share of ticket sales. The fact that the men have to play best of 5 while the women play best of 3 is (apparently) inconsequential.

Great piece, Cheryl. Tennis needss to make a noise that it's not a sissy sport as it used to be perceived in the 50s. A top footballer just this week is complaining of exhaustion because he's played 2 matches in one week, of 90 mins each with a break after 45 mins. That's why I support whole heartedly, that the number of mandatory tournaments needs to be reduced, especially for players who reach the business end of every tournament.

As for equal pay, I agree with RITB. It should be equal pay for equal work which it isn't in this case. Even if the ticket sales are for both events, the men spend far longer on court. The ladies' final lasted as long as the first set of the men's final. As Cheryl says, this is not the fault of the ATP, because the slams are not under their jurisdiction.

rafaisthebest,

What on earth are you talking about? This blog is about the incredible nature and significance of Sunday's match and the men's tennis game in general. It is NOT about prize money, nor is it about the WTA. Keep your irrelevant comments to yourself and try and bask in the afterglow of the greatest 7-8 years tennis may ever have.

Cheryl... good that you don't know me... coz I would be ashamed... my eyes were filled with tears while I was reading...
That the point of this game... of sport!!

I agree that it was a very entertaining match but I don't get all the optimism for Nadal's chances of beating the Djoker. I seem to remember when Fed came extremely close to beating Nadal at Rome in '06. Everybody said he would beat him later in the French final. Never happened and probably never will happen. Nadal missed a golden chance to beat a subpar Djoker on hard court. He choked that sitter at 4/2 30/15 in the fifth. He won't soon forget that shot whatever he may tell the media. Nadal tried everything he could and still lost against a tired opponent. Vamosed over 100 times and endlessly fistpumped all in vain. Moral victories are for 250/500 or 1000 not majors. Just ask Mandy. I only see him winning if Djoker is injured or damn-near dead past-tired exhausted. He won't get an extra day before a final at any other major barring rain at the Open. If Djoker is fresher expect him to win in straight sets next time. On another note, this long grinding play is fine for the Aussie and the French on clay but Wim and US need to speed up courts a bit for contrast plus players are going to die on court if too many long matches like this.

Don't agree with chr18. Too much had been made about Noke being tired. Do remember Rafa spent even longer time on the tennis court at the AO. He spent about four hours afaisnt Berdych, two days later another 3 hrs 45 mins against Fed. Nole spent two plus hours against Ferrer, two days later another four and a half hours against Murray. If a superfit Rafa can beat Fed in 2009 AO after the long marathon SF match, I would expect the same from Nole at this AO. Overall Rafa spent more time on the court than Nole, so Rafa didn't have much advantage over Nole. Contrast that to Fed at AO 2009, Fed had a relatively easy path to the final, only one five sets match against Berdych in the earlier round, and then no more resistance from the rest of the field right up to the final. Remember how he handed a beatdown to Delpo, allowing him only three games? And how he dispatched of Roddick readily in the SF? Still, he lost to a more tired Rafa.

Furthermore, Rafa is still in the process of fine tuning his gameplan, he obviously still can make some adjustments, like playing closer to the baseline and getting used to his new racket. I suspect the reason why he insisted on staying well behind the baseline was that he still needed time to adjust to this new racket. He's capable of playing closer to the baseline, as his matches at last year's IW/Miami and his Wimbledon tournaments would suggest.

For Nole, it appears to me that his level has gone down a bit this year, especially his serve. The rest of the field are getting closer to him, a Hewitt and a Ferrer are capable of pushing him to his physical limit; a fit Murray and Rafa almost got him. I think Nole knows that it's a matter of time that both Rafa and Murray will beat him, after his close encounter with them at this AO.

zare - no need to be embarrassed. The best sporting events should be able to move us to tears. :)

chr18 - your dislike of Nadal is coloring your perspective. Remember that Rafa was never supposed to be able to win off clay. He has a career golden slam. He wasn't going to be able to beat Federer at Wimbledon...except he did.

If you read his presser, you'll see him talk about Djokovic's return of serve. This is Rafa code for "The next time you see me, my serve is going to be the bomb". It's what he does and it's why he's stayed at the top for so long.

Obviously I might be wrong, but I REALLY don't think I am. He is simply too driven to succeed to not tailor his game to beat Nole. Not every time, but he WILL beat him sometimes. I'm almost sure of it.

willmw101 , 1/30/12 11:14 PM

Predictable..............everyone is relaxed and having fun and someone HAS to take the low road. Sigh........................the more things change, the more they stay the same..................

I bet you some pepople are genetically configured to be angry.....................how corrosive is that? Headshake....................

cheryl..lovely optimistic comments, hope they true. I wish Rafa picks up 3-4 slams more, thats all what will be remembered at the end of the day. Whether he beats Nole to win them or Fed or Murray, doesn't matter at the end of the day

I think the top 4 should be able to beat each other always, thats all that will make the sport entertaining. We dont want ownership of any kind.

However I do hope he beats Nole atleast 1-2 times before RG, will do his confidence good for RG & Wimby. I dont know why but I feel very optimistic about what he'll do in the next 1 year begining from March, hope my optimism and his results yield the same outcome.

cheryl,

An exceptionally beautiful blog! You pretty much summed up all my feelings watching this match. I had tears of pride watching Rafa dig deep and fight with pure guts to dig out of a 0-40 hole at 4-3, Nole in the fourth set. I missed that quality last year. Rafa seemed disconnected in a way, that fierce look and the light in his eyes was gone. Where was the warrior who fought until the last point and never gave up?

Well, he showed up in the 2012 AO final. To watch him battle ferociously all the wat to winning that tiebreak, when he was done at one point 5-3 and then come back and win it and the fourth set, was a marvel.

This match had all the drama, all the passion, both guys trying to find their best game. Memorable points were bountiful. I have enjoyed watching many parts of this match over and over. It's one of the rare times when I can watch a Rafa slam loss and find inspiration.

The hardest part was to see him get that break in the fifth set and then lose the match. I had a heavy feeling in my chest watching him. He wanted it so very much. But I was even prouder of Rafa in the awards ceremony looking gracious and calm in defeat. I know he was okay with this loss. That doesn't mean that he didn't want to win. Not at all. However, this time he knew that he left it all on the court. That is the reason I can watch it now and appreciate the great tennis from both Rafa and Nole. Two great champions willing themselves all the way.

I also agree with your comment @5:11 am - yes, it was Nole's return that won this match. You are right about what Rafa was really saying in his presser. He knows it, too. The serve, the serve, the serve. In a match as close as this one, the outcome hinges on everything and anything.

I know in my heart that Rafa will draw confidence and strength from this loss, as he has in the past. As you said, 2007 Wimbledon is a great example. We found out sometime later that Rafa broke down and cried in the locker room. Uncle Toni was there to not allow him to wallow in self-pity and sadness. He just made sure that Rafa knew he would have to get back to work so that he could come back the next year and win it. He did.

This is what Rafa lives for - the challenge. I think he faced down his demons in this match. The next time he faces Nole across the net, he will not be afraid or doubtful. He will remember this match and give it all he's got.

Thank you. :)

I have a gift to every Rafa fan and even fans of other players should read it. It is such a beautiful article that explains what Rafa is and what he means to the game and how he even matters to Roger, Murray, Novak. When I read the article, I realised how true is it, take Rafa out of the mix past 5-6 years and tennis would not be even half as intense and interesting as it has become today, thats a fact that no fan of any other player can dispute or ignore too.

http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/7518166/the-epic-warfare-r afael-nadal-novak-djokovic-australian-open-final

Please read it and let me know what you think.

zare
, 1/30/12 11:24 PM

if it makes you feel any better, you are not the only one :-)...I just wiped off my tears to be able to see clearly and tell Cheryl how I love her blog...beautiful indeed...thank you, Cheryl...I could not agree more...

Thanks for the link sanju. This line sums it all up:

"No one in sports is more imperially second than Nadal right now."


I believe this is a blessing in disguise for Rafa. Instead of people feeling sorry for him, they now admire him and he is winning the hearts of some of the most ardent Fedfans. If he rises up and regains the No 1 ranking, he will be even bigger than he was before the rise of Nole.

sanju , 1/31/12 10:24 AM

Thanks sanju, great read. I'll comment more about it after my lunch.....................

Thanks sanju, I've already read that article. Isn't that why we love Rafa? It's the spirit of the man that matters, not any tennis skills or achievments or whatever. Of course as his fans we hope that he can achieve even more and realizes his full potential. I believe that's what keeps Rafa working hard, seeking improvements all the time in his game.

He has already overcome one big puzzle that is Fed, here's another puzzle for him to solve, ie Nole. Who knows, after Nole there may be the Murray puzzle, another two to three years down the road, there'll be more challenges from players who are four to six years younger. All these will keep Rafa busy and motivated, for Rafa strives on all these challenges and enjoys the 'suffering' while finding solutions to his problems.

I stopped watching tennis avidly during the Sampras/Aggasi/early Federer eras because I found it so predictable and unexciting especially as the style of play of these players didn't appeal to me. Agassi wasn't too bad but I thought his game was so much about retrieving.

One day in 2005, I can't even remember which tournament it was, some guy walked on court with clam diggers, long hair and an agelic face, and he swash bucklled his way to a win; I was mesmerised. Ever since then, tennis has taken over my spare time completely. Rafa switched on the light again for me, and I'm sure he would have done it for millions all over the world on Sunday.

First of all thank you Cheryl for the very thought provoking blog - beautiful, as I feel the words are from the heart.

Sanju - the article was great and I enjoyed it even more because a staunch Federer supporter wrote it and has come out and said some lovely things about our Rafa.

Nadline - you and I both. This is exactly what happened to me and the rest is history. I think I first saw him at Wimbledon but can't be sure. He will keep on winning hearts, no?

Enjoyed reading this. This one was epic and yesterday I heard even casual tennis fans talking about how they watched most of the match (which is quite a feat given it started at 5am here). The guts and effort displayed have never been seen before.
However, before giving this the title 'greatest match ever' I would say the standard was not the same, say as Wimbledon 08 for a few reasons - i) the game had more errors than winners (although of course this has to do with the defensive ability of these guys) and ii) in terms of significance, Wimbledon 08 marked the end of a 5 year run by Federer - it was truly the end of an era of utter dominance, and it proved Nadal was not just a clay courter. Federer never really recovered fully from it.
One thing that impressed me the most of Djokovic was how he was smiling in the 5th set at the insanity of it all. He is self-aware in a way I think the other top players are not and I hope that's what is giving him the mental edge.

Rafaisthebest

I wouldn't consider myself an angry person at all. In fact your comments seem pretty hypocritical considering the fact that Cheryl had written a blog about how brilliant the match was and how the state of mens tennis is superlative, and all you could think to do was construct a rant about the pay structure of women's tennis. That seemed pretty aggressive, trivial and off point to me so I stated just as much.

Please get a grip on reality.

Thanks ever so much.

Nadline, I very CLEARLY remember the first time I saw Nadal. Miami 2004. Kid came out of nowhere and beat Fed in straight sets in Miami. I remember thinking, "whoa. Assassin tennis. Scary." It's the first time any tennis player has every made that kind of impression on me, so quickly and so firmly...and not altogether favorably either. But I took notice and from that time on, I watched him.

willmw101 , 1/31/12 4:01 PM

1. My comment was addressed to Cheryl and she responded to my post, addressing the issues I raised. May I refer you to her response at cherylmurray , 1/30/12 4:40 PM? Did I address myself to you?

2. Other posters responded addressing the issue I raised, responded politely without being as dismissive as you were.

I repeat, my post was directed at Cheryl.

You get a grip and stop responding to posts which are not directed to you.

Leave me alone.

Thank YOU.

While the link posted by sanju was for an article written by a Fedfan, this one was written by a Rafan I suspect:

http://sports.ndtv.com/tennis/blogs/swati-kothari/item/184 786-coming-soon-rafael-nadal-the-novak-djokovic-slayer

@Bharata , 1/31/12 3:14 PM

I agree that this AO final was long but not the greatest match ever, I would go for the AO SF between Rafa and Nando in 2009 and the Wimbledon final 2008 as running neck and neck.

Cheryl,

Okay, this is a blog about the match, thank you. After reading so many insightful blogs about Rafa in the blogosphere (being a Rafan, I am on the lookout for anything about Rafa) and the import of his performance in the final, may I suggest the following: that you do blogs about Novak and Rafa separately and distil the import of their individual performances. I say this because I am sure there are lots of articles out there about Novak's performance but I am just not seeing them (maybe because I am not looking for them)!

When I read the blog in the following ling I was like: eureka! This guy articulated my feelings about Rafa EXACTLY.

"And that?s the thing about Nadal. I think that he appeals to every one of us who has visibly had to scrap to get anywhere in life. There are some people in this world ? like, say, Federer and Djokovic ? whose success, owing to their prodigious natural talents, seem assured. Though they both have an extraordinary work ethic, they nonetheless look like they belong at the top. Tall, elegant, angular, their ascension into the pantheon was inevitable. They?ve always had something of the Goliath about them. It was widely and correctly remarked that, once Djokovic knuckled down and focused upon his career, the rewards would surely follow. Nadal, by contrast, a stocky bundle of muscle, is the kind of person you can imagine scrambling up that same mountainside, all sweaty brow and calloused hands. He is a serial Grand-Slammer, it seems, by sheer force of will.

That?s why, when the Majorcan multi-millionaire?s shoulders slumped after his five-set defeat, my heart didn?t really sink for him; it sank for me. It sank for all those people who put together the most magnificent effort their flesh can muster and still come up short, who find a Djokovic standing resolutely just in front of their impossible goals. The wonderful guarantee with Nadal, though, is that he?ll always return for more. We can only hope that this most indomitable and unlikeliest of underdogs does not put us through this same torment any time soon."


http://blogs.independent.co.uk/2012/01/31/goliath-triumphs -but-rafael-nadal-wins-hearts/

This is why I am a Rafan for life, whether or not he improves his backhand, forehand, widehand, whatever...........................

Vamos!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hi Nadline, that Verdasco-Nadal 09 match really is out of this world. Someone nice has posted highlights on youtube, and I can't ever be bored of it. Verdasco was magnificent and he really seemed to have a personality. Now he can't even make it past the 1st round.

Yes, I don't understand Verdasco. He played a mind blowing match against the then world No 1, and really the result was anybody's like Sunday's, and he has not played like that since. How weird. Verdasco even beat Murray on his way to the SF to meet Rafa.

This is why the top 4 should be applauded, if for nothing else, but for their consistency over a number of years.

Nadal arrived at Mallorca, will rest for 3 days and back to training on Saturday

Rafael Nadal: "I'm back to being at a high level, but I should make it even higher."
"I want to work on court, get tired, and then try to get to balls and return them with force." -

Rafael Nadal searches for a "sparring" server! "I need a sparring partner to serve, and let me practice the return."

What on earth does sparring server mean?

BTW funny thing is they kept focussing on a girl dressed in Yellow all throughout match in Rafas box. Half of the viewers assumed its his new girl :-)

Mysterious Girl in yellow from Rafa's box could be Nathalia Merino (head editor - webmaster of Rafa's official web site: RafaelNadal.com)

Fed and Nole the Goliath? Oh please, I don't buy into what these media have to say; they simply want to sensationalize this Rafa/Nole so called rivalry. For one, I don't think Fed or Nole are more superior than Rafa as a tennis player. Rafa is one unorthodox player, we can't compare his techniques with orthodox players like Fed or Nole. Two, we can't compare the Rafa of 2011 to the Rafa from 2008-2010 and pretend that there's no differences there. Just watch how he swept through everyone, yes everyone including Nole, at the FO 2008 to see how a peak form Rafa played on clay! Does anyone think this present Nole could beat that Rafa on clay? Go watch Wimbledon 2008 and compare him to the Nole of Wimbledon 2011, would this Nole beat the Rafa of Wimbledon 2008, or even Wimbledon 2010? Watch 2009 AO final, how does this 2012 Rafa compare with that 2009 Rafa? If the Rafa of AO 2009 could survived through the assault from Verdasco for 5.25 hours, then any doubt that he can survive against the Nole of 2011-2012 AO? Nole had problems returning those big booming serves from Rafa at the USO 2010 final, would anyone be sure that the 2011 Nole would sure to beat that 2010 Rafa?

Nole has certainly raised his level of play since the beginning of 2011 and is now the dominant force in men's tennis. However, please do not forget how good and great Rafa was when he was at his peak, from 2008-2010 ( barring that period when he was injured and getting back on track after the injury). He was beating both Fed and Nole on clay and grass in 2008 where Nole was in top form too, and Nole was fighting with Rafa for the no.2 position and had sight on the no.1 position.

Rafa has clearly come down from his peak, hasten by illness and injuries, and now people start questioning his talent and bringing up this match up issue vs Nole. Come on, if both are at their peak right now, I don't see Nole beating Rafa seven times in a row, judging by how well Rafa could play from 2008-2010. It would be more like a 50-50 kind of win/loss between the two.

A peak form Fed vs Nole, that'll be interesting, on hard and clay. On grass Fed should have the edge over Nole.

PS. The Rafa/Verdasco AO 2009 SF won hands down, in terms of quality, intensity, tension and suspense. Just look at the score and see how close that match was, Verdasco had 95 winners! vs 50+ UEs, whilst Rafa had 50+ winners and 20 + UEs, positive winners/UEs ratio. Contrast that to this AO final match, both players made so many UEs and the third set wasn't competitive.

If Nole was goliath it wouldn't have taken him 6 hrs to win the match.

However, please do not forget how good and great Rafa was when he was at his peak, from 2008-2010 ( barring that period when he was injured and getting back on track after the injury). ...........................
luckystar , 1/31/12 7:58 PM

lucky.....................I have taken the liberty of lifting that quote from your post above. To me, this sentence captures where you and I differ.........You view Rafa's best as belonging in the past. I view Rafa's best as current and still to come..........

Sorry, that's the way I see it.........................

Er current as in 2011?

Current as in Australian Open final 2012 against Novak Djokovic...................

This quote from sanju's post, sanju , 1/31/12 7:24 PM, is pertinent:

Rafael Nadal: "I'm back to being at a high level, but I should make it even higher."

You guys do realize that Goliath lost that particular encounter, right? :D

^^^^^^lol! The tennis Goliath is still standing, but I think the metaphor is still uplifting, if you are a Rafan that is. I live in hope of David (Rafa), finding a solution to upend Goliath (Nole)!

"..Though they both have an extraordinary work ethic, they nonetheless look like they belong at the top. Tall, elegant, angular, their ascension into the pantheon was inevitable..."
INEVITABLE???
Little kid... not even from Capital of his little country... Nation cursed with negative propaganda... destroyed by wars and crises...
Do you really believe that Novak's ascend was easy and inevitable???

I watched that 2011 IW final again and noticed how aggressive Rafa played in that first set. He was standing closer to the baseline and was attacking Nole's second serves so successfully, that Nole only won 40% of his second serves whilst Rafa win 80% of his own. I noticed Rafa was hitting much flatter shots too, and in that first set, his net clearance was 82cm vs Nole's 93. Rafa was also coming to the net more often, winning 9/11 of the points there. He won the first set 6-4. Come the second set, Rafa's first serves suddenly failed him, and he was making only 25% of his first serve. It was really strange that Rafa's serve just went away like that. I strrongly believed that if he didn't have his serve problems, he might even win the match in straight sets. Both IW and Miami finals last year were winnable matches for Rafa, if not for some bizarre issues. Had he won those two encounters, we won't be talking about 'Nole is in Rafa's head', or 'Rafa has a match up problem with Nole', or 'Rafa is not as talented as Nole' now. Rafa would have saved himself from all these self doubts and embarrassments.

By letting those bizarre issues to affect his game, he now has to pay the price and facing an uphill task of fighting off his 'nemesis' to prove that he still has it in him to beat his 'nemesis'.

Little kid... not even from Capital of his little country... Nation cursed with negative propaganda... destroyed by wars and crises...
Do you really believe that Novak's ascend was easy and inevitable???

zare , 1/31/12 10:05 PM

Who are you referring to, zare, the author of the article? Do you know him personally, you know where he comes from?? The way you describe him, "his country" sounds like you do.....................

If indeed you are referring to him, why are you belittling him so? How does this help the conversation? This man has written a blog expressing his opinions and you may disagree with them, fine, you are entitled to do that. Why not just pick on the ISSUES you disagree with? Why does it have to be personal?

Getting personal stops the debate, is that your intention?

Rafa would have saved himself from all these self doubts and embarrassments.

By letting those bizarre issues to affect his game, he now has to pay the price and facing an uphill task of fighting off his 'nemesis' to prove that he still has it in him to beat his 'nemesis'.
luckystar
, 2/1/12 2:28 AM

Rafa is embarrassed, has been embarrassed? By what, his 7 losses in a row to Djokovik? Is that what these losses are to you, embarrassments?

And what are the "bizarre issues" you refer to as having affected his game? Honestly, I would like to know.............

Thanks.

I am not fond of hypotheticals. I don't think it serves any purpose to contemplate whether this year of Rafa or that year of Rafa would have beaten that year of Nole or this year of Nole. Same goes for hypotheticals about Fed. We can never really know because it will never happen.

I don't believe that Rafa's best days are behind him. Even if you compare the Rafa of 2008 to the Rafa of 2010, there are differences and yet he still accomplished great things. If Rafa has lost a bit of speed over the years, he has more than made up with it by playing more aggressive tennis, serving better, volleying at net superbly, his ability to think and strategize on court and make adjustments.

There is a trade-off as you spend more years in this sport. Maybe Rafa played his best clay court tennis in 2008 at RG. Maybe Rafa played his best hard court tennis in 2010 at the USO. In 2008 Rafa completed the channel slam by winning RG and Wimbledon back-to-back, the first man to do it since Borg in 1980. Then he won the Olympic gold medal, but lost in the semis to Murray.

We all know about 2009. A year that started with Rafa winning his first hard court slam in amazing fashion, became an absolute nightmare. It didn't look that good in 2010 when Rafa had to withdraw with yet another knee injury in the quarterfinals. Yet he went on to his greatest success, winning all the clay Masters tournaments, RG and then Wimbledon to complete another channel slam and the icing on the cake, the USO and the career slam.

If Rafa wasn't as good as he was in 2008, you'd never know it from what he did in 2010. Then in 2011 after that terrible virus and losing the chance to try to win the Rafa slam, he just wasn't the same.

I think we may yet see the best of Rafa. As long as he is healthy, he has a chance to do so much. What he may have lost in speed, he has gained in playing smarter, a better return, aggressive play, a ferocious forehand that is more powerful than ever, but most of all that mental toughness, fire and passion for the game.

I think we are going to see some wonderful things from Rafa this year. I am sure that Nole won't let down, Murray has come on strong and Fed is still in there competing. But Rafa found himself again.

Rafa has reached almost all the major and Masters finals in 2011. That, in my opinion, was an excellent 2011, and has started 2012 just as well. The records show that he was, and still is, second to only one man, Novak Djokovic, who has raised the bar so.

That to me, does not sound like someone who is "past it".

Thank you for the blog Cheryl, very eloquently written, as always.

Has anyone read Bruce Jenkin's latest piece on SI.com? I'm glad to read an article by a respected tennis writer that almost exactly mirrors my thoughts. What are others thoughts on this?
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2012/writers/bruce_jenkins/01/31/au stralian-open-thoughts/index.html?sct=tn_t11_a0


As for the match itself, it was a fantastic display of stamina, willpower and skill. But for me, the Rafa/Roger Wimby final and the Rafa/Verdasco SF still ranks above it. The Wimby final for reasons countless others have already expantiated on but the Rafa/Verdasco SF was simply breath-taking. Verdasco played the match of his life that day and hasn't come close to that level since. It evokes images of Icarus, who flew too close to the sun, only to be felled by it's glorious heat and energy, never to recover. In a lot of ways, since that final, Verdasco has been the architect of his own misery. Not putting in the hours, perhaps not having the committment and dedication to reach and stay at the top of the game. But another part of me wonders if he did not just give up after that. He played out his skin, only to be defeated. Why bother?

Therein lies the difference between Nadal and everyone else. He too, has suffered defeats after playing superbly, he too has given it his all on the day and still lost. But he keeps coming back for more. And keeps coming back, until that obstacle too, is conquered. Rafa is pretty darn special that way.

sanju@7.24 Apparently b4 the final Nole was hitting with Liam Brody a young LEFT hander from UK. He was still in Oz because he'd just won boys' doubles. I know Andy tries to nab him too, b4 any matches against left handers. I suspect Rafa wants an excellent right handed server to practise with, but of course most are on tour.
Anyone out there thinking of retiring, Fed perhaps..........ouch, ouch stop it...just kidding guys...;)

People, please read carefully what I've posted. The purposes of me bringing up Rafa's 2008-2010 are:

1) to counter this stupid concept that Fed or Rafa are better tennis players than Rafa;
2) Nole is no Goliath to Rafa. They're at least equals as tennis players; if one won't want to admit that Rafa is a greater tennis player in terms of his achievements;
3) so by comparing Rafa's performances from 2008-2010 to that of the current Nole, we can see for ourselves, is Nole a better player than Rafa?
4) IMO there's not so much of a match up issue between Rafa/Nole, since Nole couldn't get the better of Rafa on clay and grass when they met earlier on in their career; unlike Fed/Rafa when from day one Rafa was a problem for Fed, even on Fed's favorite hard court surfaces.

Why such defensive reactions to my post I don't understand. Everyone can see there's a difference in level between the Rafa of 2010 and 2011. Just compare Rafa against the rest of the field excluding Nole, and you can see the difference in his level, on all surfaces. No doubt Rafa made ten finals in 2011, but just see the efforts he put in to reach there compare to his 2010 nine finals. Rafa is just that good that he still make all those finals despite not playing at his best level. I think that's not difficult for anyone to see.

No, I'm not the one feeling embarrassed, Rafa should be the one. If you think a champion like him doesn't feel embarrassed when being asked about his five or six straight losses to the same guy, then I think hes not human. However that does not mean that Rafa is not the warrior that he is, if not he won't have the courage to go try it again and again against Nole in the finals. I'm sure there's no contradiction there!

When I said bizarre issues, I was obviously referring to his serving issues. His serve suddenly fell apart in that set two of IW final. Until now, no one knows why. If it was a confidence issue, then why would it be when he had already won the first set. Nole himself wasn't serving any better.

corr:
1) to counter this stupid concept that Fed or NOLE are better players than Rafa;

Who is being defensive here? I thought we were all having a discussion. I have said a few times before that I am not fond of hypotheticals. It's not news that I have said it again. I don't see the point. If so and so would have played so and so in this year or that, so and so would have won, etc. What's the point? No one can truly know what would happen in these hypothetical matchups. I live in the now. Let the past be the past.

I don't think Fed or Nole are better players than Rafa. So no one has to convince me. I think Rafa has proved himself on all surfaces, at all the slams. He has the wins to prove it. I also don't go along with the Nole and Rafa rivalry being a David and Goliath thing. For most of their history, they have had some intensely contested matches. For a while, it looked like Rafa was going to dominate Nole with a series of wins.

I don't know if we will ever know what was going on with Rafa last year. Some of it was definitely mental. He wasn't there, the fight wasn't there, that look in his eyes was gone. I also think that some of it was physical. That severe viral infection seemed to take a lot out of him. He wasn't himself for quite some time.

But when the heart and mind loses its desire, maybe the physical strength goes with it. I have always said that Rafa's confidence problem preceded his losses to Nole. When he came back at I/W, he didn't have a serve. He struggled througout the tournament and made it to the final. Yes, he outplayed Nole for a set and a half, but his serve just fell apart. It was troubling him all along and maybe the pressure of the final caused it to just disappear. When have we ever seen Rafa's serve fail him like that? Something was going on with him.

The bottom line is that Rafa seems to have found his passion for the game. He is healthy, no bad virus this year. He was able to go toe-to-toe with Nole for almost six hours. He wasn't gasping for breath and ready to collapse as after the Miami final.

I am sure Rafa was humiliated and embarrassed last year. However, this is a new year and whatever was ailing Rafa or causing him to seem out of sorts, seems to be gone. So that is cause for celebration.

Rafa fans should check out Pete Bodo's latest blog on tennis.com. Here he goes again! His contention is that Nole isn't in Rafa's head, he's in his game. As in, Nole is just flat out a better player. He gave five points to illustrate his point. And this is the guy who picked Rafa to win in the final!

Suffice to say, I simply do not agree with him, except on the point about the second serve. That stat has been the same in every single one of those seven losses. Nole wins a much higher percentage of his second serve points than Rafa does. That's the key.

Read it for yourself and decide what you think.

Rafa's own fans on TT have written endlessly that his game is only suitable for clay, that of the top 4 he is the worst on h/c. I stopped reading some posts because I got tired of his fans pulling apart his technical ability on h/c to the glee of his detractors. I have, on occasions, been lampooned for defending Rafa's achievements on h/c.

I don't ever see fans of other players being so critical about their player so we shouldn't be surprised when they immediately jump on the bandwagon and run Rafa down everytime he loses a match.

I hope we haven't seen the best of Rafa yet, at least in terms of his game, not so much about his speed and power. I've watched his 2010 USO final again and the commentator Tim Ryan was saying that we were watching Rafa version 3 then, (ver 1 was that teenager, and ver 2 that Rafa at the top of his speed and power prior to 2009). I hope we'll see a Rafa v 4 soon, one who comes with a better all round game, with his serve and backhand problems fixed.

I am referring to "The great hard court debate - Nadal, Murray or Djokovic
CherylMurray
2010-12-15 01:25:43

No, Fed fans are also critical of him, especially when he played against Rafa and lost. Just visit tennis.com to check all those comments there when Fed lost.

I think we are allowed to be critical about the performances of various players, even our favorite player. This is not a fanclub blog, I don't see why we can't voice what we think about any tennis player, whether there be praises or criticisms, as long as we don't do it to spite others.

I don't ever see fans of other players being so critical about their player so we shouldn't be surprised when they immediately jump on the bandwagon and run Rafa down everytime he loses a match.
nadline
, 2/1/12 8:54 AM


My sentiments exactly. In fact, posters on tennis-x blog sound positively Rafacentric compared to some Rafans on TT!

I used to get a "warm glow" reading about Rafa from Rafans on TT, not any more, sorry. My cue to leave. I want to be part of a Rafan community which appreciates Rafa whether he wins or loses, is #2 or #30.

Bye.

nadline,

Oh, I remember that well! On second thought, maybe Rafa fans shouldn't read Pete Bodo's blog about Nole being in Rafa's game. He basically said that because Rafa is predominantly a clay court specialist, aggressive tennis doesn't come easily to him, nor is it second nature. This is not verbatim, but it's basically what he said. I cannot believe that someone is still throwing around this nonsense about Rafa being a clay court specialist, like it's a bad thing.

I am telling you, if anyone said this nonsense when Borg was around, the men in the white coats would have come and taken them away! Honestly, I never heard this running down of wins on clay until Fed was dominated by Rafa.

I know you have fought the good fight for Rafa and taken the slings and arrows for your efforts.

storyteller,

Thanks for another great post. I couldn't pull up that link, but I went to the SI site and read the Brian Jenkins piece. Great stuff! What a nice counterpoint to Bodo's blog. Jenkins made the case so well that Rafa was really in this thing to the end and that it was his fight and great tennis that got him back from the brink in the fourth set.

Many people are underestimating Rafa's resolve to get even better. They really don't fundamentally understand what he is about.

lucky,

I liked your last post. I also like that idea of Rafa version 3 in 2010, and versions 1 and 2. I appreciate it because it's a recognition of the way in which Rafa has evolved as a player.

I am with you in hoping that we get to see Rafa version 4!

Oh and one last point. I read on a Rafa fan forum that he is now back hom in Mallorca. He is taking three days rest and then will begin his practice. What I am hearing is that his intention was always to take the month of February off so that he could get in the time and practice that he didn't have before the new year, to work on aspects of his game.

Okay, Rafa! The serve, the serve! The ROS!

Seriously, I hope Rafa has some time to just enjoy himself before he gets back to work. But he seems to be pumped up by this final.

ritb,

Don't leave! What is going on here? If you leave, then your voice won't be heard. Sanju said the same thing. I don't understand.

As someone who posted on tennis-x for a time, I wouldn't be so quick to sing its praises. Stay there for a while and you will bump up against the rabid Fed fans who just love to tear Rafa and his fans apart. I would never go back to that site.

I say we all give each other a break right now. It's always tough when Rafa loses. He fought like a champion, but it was hard to see him lose. People sometimes say things in the heat of disappointment. That is one reason why I usually don't post immediately.

I can't tell you what to do, but I really wish you would stay.

I read those Fedfan posts on tennis.com. What they were saying was that Federer lost because he didn't do this, that and the other not that he COULDN'T do this that and the other. They were saying that Rafa didn't win in effect but that Federer didn't do what he had to do.

That's different to saying that techinically, Federer, Djokovic and Murray have better h/c games than Rafa, full stop. Especially after Rafa had just won the USO which was supposed to be beyond his reach, beating Djokovic. Rafans were going out of their way to make this point, even dismissing Rafa's 11 h/c titles which were more than Nole's and Andy's at the time.

I suggest people go back and read that thread to see where I am coming from.

If Rafa was that bad and Nole was that much better on h/c, it wouldn't take Nole 6 hrs to beat him.

Everytime Rafa loses on h/c, we get the 'Rafa should stick to clay' talk. If he can beat the h/c experts with his claycourt game on h/c, that makes them look even worse on their specialist court.

You can't deny Rafa's game is more effective on clay than on hard courts. Just see how far behind the baseline he stands and was effectively playing a clay court game on the hard courts. I thought he had made some progress since his USO2010, just watch how he played on hard courts since, right up to Miami 2011. He was obviously trying to play more aggressively by moving closer to the baseline and moving up to the net more often. However, after Miami, he was reverting back to his clay court way of playing again, on the hard courts.

Rafa was the one who complains about too many hard court events and playing on them was doing more harm to his body. As he grows older, I really wish that he'll concentrate more on clay and grass, so that he won't suffer any more damage to his body. Also if he really wants to win some more hard court slams, he has to play his hard court game, something we see him doing at the USO2010, and not keeps running so far behind the baseline all the time, a few years later he can't run that quickly anymore!

Also, who said Rafa can't do this and that to improve his game? Take it positively, if a Rafa who still has so much he can improve on, can still beat most in the field and remain in top two for so long, what about a Rafa who has reached his full potential?? Fed fans think that Fed can and should do this and that, to play the right way against Rafa, but they do know what Fed is capable of doing as he's already reached his full potential.

The problem now for Rafa is that his clay court game on the hard court can't beat Nole. As his fan, I certainly wish to see him realize his full potential and not get stuck as the second best, for deep down I still believe Rafa can still improve his game and achieve more, unless he lose his passion and can't overcome his own shortcomings on the hard courts.

Nativenewyorker
, 2/1/12 9:38 AM

You addressed me directly and I feel I owe you a response, not just for that, but because you are a genuinely nice person. As deuce said on another blog, it is easy to distil a person's character through their posts, and I got you figured out!

Here's why I need to leave TT for now:
1. Of late, I have found it depressing, especially the commentary on Rafa. Maybe I am a different kind of Rafan..............I just like him whether he is losing for the gazzilionth time against Nole or whoever! Maybe I'm just a blind fan and I do not see his faults.
2. I see an intolerance for dissenting views creeping in, masked in personal insults, bullying. That is not acceptable to me, whether it is perpetrated against me, another poster or blogger.
3. I am not a masochist. I do not like hanging around places which bring my spirits down ands sorry, TT is just such a place for me right now. I want the opposite.
4. I so much enjoy debates, reading properly constructed arguments, rebuttals, preferably backed by facts, regardless of which player you like most. Now posters here do not bother with such niceties! The attitude seems more like: why let a good argument get in the way of a put-down, or an insult?
5. So Rafa lost, so what? I am a fan, not a fanatic. Like I said on another blog (i think): perspective please.

Oh, don't worry about me joining tennix-x blog, not quite that desperate yet!

You take care, and i will be with you in spirit, vamossing all the way!

Take care rafaisthebest, I've enjoyed chatting with you. Hope to see you back one of these fine days xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

luckystar
, 2/1/12 2:28 AM

this was exactly the topic you and I had an argument about maybe a week ago when you were saying how Rafa is in decline and how we cannot possibly compare Rafa of 2011 with Rafa of 2010...and I said that it was these two matches that Rafa lost and he could have won it and that it was his later loss of confidence which ,"infected" him and made it difficult to beat Nole in their subsequent encounters...you were saying how Rafa was no longer fit, how he is slower and does not hit as hard as before, his serve is out, his forehands are not deep enough and his backhands are terrible, he can not improve any more...yet he made all those finals...the form varies, Rafa of today is different than Rafa of 2008, but that does not mean that he is in decline...we all know, as we followed Rafa's career closely that after the injury in 2009 Rafa and his team decided to make changes to his game: less running, less pressure on his knees, more net play...he did change from what he was in 2008 and it was inevitable...but it was for good...

I agree with RITB, I can not comprehend these ridiculous statements how Rafa came down from his peak and never to reach again his level of 2008-2010...that is just hypothetical and you know it! But you keep saying it over and over again that it just gets annoying...Embarrassments?! WHAT are you talking about?!! That's just another low hit at our champion...Does Fed feel embarrassed for losing to Rafa? Does it make him less great?...These loses to Nole are just an encouragement for Rafa to be better similar to what his rivalry with Fed was...You know, I am still very offended by your statement that all Rafa could do is "steal FO or Wimby title" which is for me the most disrespectful and the most derogating statement on Rafa from a Rafan...for you even Uncle Toni is "guilty as charged" and was your target at some point, while we all know how important Toni is for Rafa...please, just stop talking about Rafa being in decline...read his interviews, read between the lines and you will be able to find out how hard he is working to reach the level that will beat this Nole...IMO, Rafa was already there in this AO...if he was more confident he wouldn?t have let this win slip away...but he came so close and that can only be an indication how far he will be able to go next time...give him some credit for it, will you...

Vamos Rafa!!!

I too am sorry to hear that you are thinking of leaving us ritb. You must surely know that there are a lot of rafa fans on here who think exactly the same way that you do - ie we love Rafa the person first and foremost and only want the best for him - his health and enjoyment in being on the tennis court are the things that are most important for me really. We enjoy it when he wins and are sad when he loses but to be honest I could not give a damn how many GS titles he has or whether he is the GOAT or any stuff like that.

So, dear ritb don't be away too long.

please, RITB, there is no strong reason to leave TT...we need you here...

I would also want to say please, don't be so emotional about Rafa. When I said Rafa is in decline, obviously I mean a physical decline, ie he has lost some speed and power!! We all can see it even if some here choose to deny it.!

I did mention in one of my posts that he did compensate for the loss of speed and power by improving his all round game. Next time if you want to question my comments, please read my posts carefully! I'm simply fed up about people here telling me what to post what not to post, when they cant even understand what I'm posting in the first place.

To some people here, Rafa is a saint, perfect, can't even feel embarrassed! If he can't even have the ability to feel embarrassed, then how would he want to improve and overcome his problems! He's not a robot, he's a human, he obviously does feel good losing so many times to the same player so much so that he's mentally affected.

Please read my posts above carefully, I was trying to counter all those arguments that put Rafa as not so great a tennis player as Fed and Nole; I was saying that had Rafa won those two IW/Miami finals, things won't be what they are now and no one would be questioning Rafa's talents now! Anything wrong with that? When did I put Rafa down? Why can't people here accept that Rafa has past his peak, at least his physical peak? Can he improve some more? Of course he can, if not why work so hard everyday?

Look at Fed, he has obviously past his peak after 2007, but he's still capable of winning slams. What he lost in terms of his speed and power, he compensated by playing more aggressively, moving up to the net, shortening the points etc and etc. IMO Rafa has not realized his full potential yet, so there's still room for improvement even if he has lost some of his speed and power after his 2009 injury.

That's all I want to say and I'll stop here. It's certainly rather unpleasant posting here, when people can't accept differences of opinions.

no, lucky, you keep talking about any kind of decline, not only physical...go back and read your posts...my head is full of your analysis of where Rafa's game is right now and what he needs to change...you seem more certain about it than Uncle Toni...you keep saying how he lost his 2008-2010 game and how he has to stand closer to the baseline for instance...and when sanju pointed out that he watched the USO 2010 final again and that Rafa was not standing any closer to the baseline in that match than he is standing now, and yet was able to beat Nole convincingly, you agreed with him?! That proves you are contradicting yourself...

and I don't think losing to a No1 player is embarrassment...if players felt embarrassed every time they lost a match to a better player than they should just decide to stop playing tennis and find something less stressful to do...so Fed should have given up right away when he lost that Miami mach to a youngster like Rafa...or maybe he should have given up wining FO and retired after the convincing loss to Rafa in the final 2008?! Do you at all know what the word sport means? It is a competition, mental war and constant look for improvement... by losing those matches Rafa learned one thing: Nole was better than him and Nole was able to read Rafa's game which became so predictable...and most importantly Nole was more confident in wining those matches than Rafa was, Nole was more respective of his own game than Rafa was...this only means that Rafa learned he would have to change his all around game if he wanted to beat this Nole...Rafa did not have enough time to make those changes but it will surely come... and you or any of us are not competent to say if Rafa is beyond his peak, that is pure speculation...I hope Rafa proves you wrong soon...

anyway, I am not going to argue with you...you are free to think what you want just don't say that I or anyone else do not understand what you are posting...well, there is nothing difficult to understand there...

RITB, I hope you reconsider your decision and come back to TT. You and I always see eye to eye. I shall certainly miss you. I considered leaving once over the Great Hard Court Debate, because everyone dumped on me when I tried to make Rafa's case because whilst it was open season to produce evidence to support the case for other players, I wasn't allowed to produce evidence against them because it was wrong to put players down to support your player, but it was right for people making the case against Rafa to put him down and use whatever evidence they liked.

______________________

You can't deny Rafa's game is more effective on clay than on hard courts.
luckystar , 2/1/12 10:17 AM

That may be so, but there is nothing to be gained by continously rubbing it in as if he has nver won anything on any other surface, or that he is always swept away on h/c because he doesn't have the game for it. To be objective, maybe people should make it even and continously point out that other players' styles are not suited to clay. After all, no surface has more status than the other. Clay and grass are the natural surfaces for tennis, hardcourts have become the norm because they are easier to maintain.

Simply because Rafa says h/c is bad for his body doesn't mean he is no good on it.

I suggest you go watch his IW final match, and see his court position. In that USO 2010 final, he was not standing as far away as he was doing now at the AO. I'm not sure about his USO2011. I remember discussing with vamosrafa about Rafa's forehand and backhand problems after Rafa's 2009 injury. His CC backhand was apparently affected by his knee injury, as a result it was no longer that lethal; his game had gone backwards in 2011, probably affected by his illness, then his injury at AO last year, and then mentally after his losses to Nole. I say it again, IMO Rafa has come down from his peak, physically. As for his game, it did come down from his peak when he lost his lethal CC backhand and his USO 2010 big serve. What he compensated for that was his improvement in his net game and his more aggressive play from the baseline. Why not see for yourself how well he played at IW final, despite his serve falling apart starting from the second set.

I don't understand what's wrong about feeling embarrassed. If one feels embarrassed and do something to prevent any further embarrassment, then that's a good thing. It's the not feeling anything that's more worrying! So both Fed and Rafa are those who motivate themselves to do better after they fail time after time.

I criticize Uncle Toni for talking too much, especially to the press. Also he was being too harsh on Rafa, always putting other top players as more talented than Rafa, dampening his spirit. I believe some Rafa fans here agree with me. However I did mention that Uncle Toni should stay as coach to Rafa.

I've already mentioned that I don't feel any disrespect when I say Rafa 'steal' the FO and Wimbledon. I may not use it rightly for FO, as Rafa is the defending champion so he's not stealing it, maybe I should say he's guarding it(against anyone especially Nole); he's not the defending champion of Wimbledon, Nole is, so I said stealing it, again maybe snatching it (from Nole) sounded better than 'stealing'.

ok, lucky, we shall agree to disagree...I honestly think Rafa's game has not gone backwards it is just that his game has become so predictable and easy to read...he is being beaten by his own game...he needs to change to make it less predictable otherwise he will not be able to beat Nole who has obviously mastered Rafa's game and more importantly he implements the same type of tennis which finds Rafa puzzled....Nole's ROS is better though and something Rafa will have to find the way to overcome...Nole's fitness is amazing and Rafa shall no longer count on wearing Nole down...Rafa will have to come up with some different stuff and I believe that is what he and Uncle Toni are working on...

I know both of us wish the best for Rafa...and I see nothing wrong in disagreeing on this...that is what makes us Rafans different from others...we have our own views and opinions and are not afraid of saying it out loud...we shall just wait for Rafa to say his part and he will do it by playing his best tennis...

Vamos Dear Rafa!!!

nadline, I don't believe I keep rubbing at it about Rafa not being good on the hard courts. That blog article was quite sometimes back. In fact I was the one who mentioned that Rafa had caught up with Nole and pushed Nole to go the distance on the hard courts at IW/Miami. However after those two tournaments, he seemed to move back to his default clay court game on the hard courts, even the commentators were talking about him standing so far behind the baseline on the hard courts. I also felt the same way hence my comments after the AO final. I seriously feel that if Rafa wants to win some more hard court slams, and most likely beating Nole along the way, he needs to improve his court position at the baseline. He's hitting some short balls to Nole when he was standing so far behind the baseline and Nole fully capitalized on that by coming forward and took the ball early and hit a winner.

Well lucky, maybe you should be more objective and analyse other players' games like you do Rafa's. It's evident that you know about the technical aspects of the game but you use your knowledge only to criticise Rafa.

People talk about clay as if it is worthless. I hope if nothing else, Rafa wins all the clay titles this year. Whateve Rafa achieves or not, I will always his fan. It's because of him that I rediscovered the joys of tennis.


Vamos Rafa

You see nadline, I'm interested and concerned about Rafa first and foremost. I may seem critical of him, but deep down, I want to see him realize his full potential. I'm sure Rafa feels that way about himself and that's why he keeps talking about working hard to improve his game and he always wants to push himself to reach his limit.

We love Rafa, as a person and as a tennis player. We know he's a humble, kind and a positive
person, so we wish the best for him. He's obviously one person with a competitive spirit, so he enjoys going out there to 'fight', overcome or solve the problems on the tennis courts and in the process pushing himself and testing his own limits. Of course he loves to win and so we're here wishing and hoping he wins more and hoping to see improvements in his game, so that he's happy and we're happy. He's truly a special person, for he's one who's not afraid of hard work, not afraid to confront his own shortcomings and learning to overcome them, not afraid to push himself to the limit. In fact he enjoys all these 'sufferings'. I find him intriguing, fascinating and simply amazing!

PS. A few years ago, I believe it was in 2008, after Rafa beat Fed at the Wimbledon, Pete Bodo wrote an article about Rafa. It captures the essence of Rafa so well that i agree with his article totally. Steve Tignor is another one who is able to observe, read and understand Rafa and his game so profoundly that reading his articles about Rafa is so enlightening.

It's too easy to focus on the negative stuff. I believe none of us can feel as down/awful as Rafa himself when he loses! That's not to say criticisms and dissenting opinions are not useful or even necessary, but sometimes with the wounds of a loss so fresh, it's not necessarily the nicest thing to read, especially coming from a Rafa fan(s). Someone mentioned upthread that some Rafa fans are especially critical of their guy, unlike fans of other players, and I'm forced to admit that sometimes I think that too. Maybe we've come to expect too much of him? Nevertheless, we should all free to say what we think, tempered with sense and sensitivity of course.

NNY, thanks for sharing your thoughts on the Bruce Jenkins article. I find focusing on such press, especially at this time, is very encouraging. There are very few of us who believe this "seventh loss" to Novak is a real positive. There was something distinctly different about Rafa this time, and I'm glad and relieved to see a noted tennis writer observe the same thing. It gives me comfort that I am not simply imagining things through the sheer force of wishful thinking! :)

ritb,

Thanks for your kind words and thanks for replying to me. I completely respect your decision, even though I will miss you very much. I do care about the people here. It's like an online family. We have all been through so much with Rafa.

I like you enough to be willing to let you go and understand your reasons why you need to leave. We all have to do what's best for ourselves.

Take care and hopefully you will be able to come back and join us again! :)

storyteller,

I agree with your comment that maybe the criticism and analysis should be tempered right after a Rafa loss. Of course, we can't tell people not to say what they think, but I do find it hard to read the analysis and focus on the technical aspects of the match. I can't think that way right after a slam final. If Rafa loses, then I need a bit of time to get my emotions under control before I can post on this forum.

I do not believe that Rafa is past his peak for good. Watching him in that final, I saw a lot of good things, shots that I had not seen for a long time. When was the last time we saw Rafa standing at the baseline hitting cc backhands for winners? He did it against Fed, too. I think with Nole it's harder to get these opportunities, but Rafa was hitting his cc backhand returns on the baseline at points in the match and was also hitting his dtl backhand. This is the best I have seen him hit these shots since 2010.

In the 2009 AO, Rafa was cracking his cc backhand with wicked angles and incredible speed. That shot was very important to him in that match, but it wasn't the reason he won it. We can't make too much of each shot. If Rafa doesn't have quite the same speed on that shot, it doesn't mean that it cannot be effective. It was against Berdy and Fed and to a lesser degree, against Nole.

Rafa is a much more complete player than he was in that 2009 AO. He is now a superb volleyer at net, his forehand is even more powerful and ferocious than ever, his first serves were good, even his ROS was the best I have seen since 2010. Rafa has intelligence, savvy, cunning, and most important of all, that mental toughness that was missing last year.

I do believe that Rafa exorcised many of his demons in this match. The way he fought back at 0-40, 4-3 in that fourth set was simply magnificent. That quality has been missing when he played Nole. Of course, there are always things that Rafa can do better. That's why he will take this time to practice and work on his game and get ready for the crowded part of the tennis calendar.

However, there was so much to feel good about in Rafa's game, even in this loss. I don't think last year was evidence of a decline in Rafa, but more of something going on with him both mentally and physically. Something was going on, we may never know exactly what. He did admit that he lost his passion for tennis. He was not physically as strong. Now he seems healthy and happy.

I think there is a risk of getting caught up in the technicality of a match and missing the overall big picture. Yes, it was his seventh loss to Nole but this was a very different match. Rafa had a chance to win it. A player has to find a way to take good out of losses, or there is no way to stay in the sport. In fact, sometimes you learn more from your losses than your victories.

I think we are in for some great tennis from Rafa. I look forward to seeing it.

Guys..lets be happy that even though he lost to Nole in final, we saw him in full force against Berdy and Fed. He came back from behind to win those matches. Everyone was waxing eloquent about those crushing returns in 4th set against Berdy and those incredible passing shots against Fed.

Hell do it step by step, he atleast thinks so, let us allow him to do it step by step

And frankly we can discuss till the cows come home, but what matters is what Rafa will do on court..so its like futile to discuss something for days on end..Even Rafa may have put the final behind him and is taking a 4 day break before he starts practising back on Saturday/Sunday, let us also give our minds some rest and not be too worried about Rafa..

I just read something that Rafa might be in trouble with Spanish government for some kind of tax evasion?! Personally, I don't believe it, but this isn't something he needs.

P.S. I read that on a few Serbian sites who claim their sources are http://primeran.com/ and a spanish newspaper called "El Confidencial".
Since I don't speak Spanish, perhaps some of our dear Spanish friends can look it up?

Nadal moves to quash tax reports

Thu, 02 Feb 17:33:00 2012

Rafael Nadal issued a statement on Thursday saying he had met all his fiscal obligations after a Spanish website published details about several companies linked to the world number two it said had been set up to drastically trim his tax bill.

The website Primeran said the companies had been created with their domicile in the Basque region to take advantage of special tax rules designed to help local firms and had been used to radically cut the amount of tax paid on income from Nadal's image rights.

El Confidencial, another Spanish media outlet, said Basque tax authorities were probing the case. The regional government could not immediately be reached for comment.

Nadal's spokesman published a statement which acknowledged the existence of the Basque companies but said they had now had their domicile transferred to Nadal's native Balearic Islands, where he lives.

"The companies mentioned and the tennis player himself are up to date with the payment of all their tax obligations," the statement said.

"Since the start of his career Rafa has always wanted to maintain his residence in Spain and that's the way it has been, reaffirming his commitment as a Spaniard on, as well as off, the court," the player's agent, Carlos Costa, added.

Thanks nadline. Today's journalisam is a joke. It used to be about the truth, now's it;s how to make the most money.

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/sport/glory-in-golden-era-of-mens -tennis/story-fnbe6xeb-1226262260411

Brilliant article.

Hello rafans and other fans,

After last Sunday?s final ?AO 2012 final- I had to rush off to a family celebration and then time flew so I?ve hardly written on TT.

I agree with most of the thoughts you have written, and that were in those three articles linked to here. Especially on how very positive this match was for Rafa even though he did not ?quite- win.

It certainly looks like Rafa with Toni is working on version 4 of his tennis package. I also agree that while working Rafa hard when a boy and teaching him to be humble and not over-estimate himself was a good thing he may be overdoing that a bit now that Rafa is 25 and has given his all almost all the time in 10 years on the professional circuit.

The three articles I was referring to are in 3 posts much higher up. This last one, from willmw101 7:41 pm is also a MUST READ.

And: ritb,
Please do not leave TT. No reason to.

willmw101, thanks for the link. Great analysis of how tennis has evolved through the generations. As a Rafan, it has not escaped me that Nadal is always at the centre of these epic matches which makes me feel proud to be his fan, if for nothing else but for the way he has pushed others to advance the game.

One thing the article does imply is that there can never be a GOAT, because the game changes from generation to generation and the Laver generation would be slaughtered by today's players because the game of yester year would look like no more than a knock up in the park by today's standards.

Indeed Nadline,

Had the greats of the past lived today they would have to train just as hard given today s racquets and everything else that has implied. There is no way of knowing which ones among them would have been among the best today for not just one match but over several years, and which ones not.

And the same in reverse. Had today s greats lived back then?

^ played today, rather than: lived today

I thought that article posted by willmw101, was brilliant. It really does capture the essence of greatness in this era of tennis. I will never understand those who feel this is boring or grinding or too long. I was fascinated by this match and the ongoing rallies where the point should have been over, except that each player found an amazing shot to keep it going.

I have stated my position about this whole GOAT argument. It is false on its premise. You can only be the greatest in your era. I grew up watching Rod Laver, so I can speak as one who watched his greatness. There had never been anyone like him before in the sport. He was the one who first started using topspin and had such incredible strength and quickness on court. They called him "the rocket" for a reason. He had such power in his huge left forearm. He was a serve and volleyer with powerful groundstrokes.

If you watch his matches today, it would look like they were playing a different sport. But for his era, there was no one like him. He had a long career and I grew up from a young girl to an adult as I watched him over the years. I idolized him.

Then for me a young blonde Swede came along who would change the game forever. Borg was the first tennis love of my life. I looked up at Rod Laver, but I totally adored Borg. I could have watched him play forever. Sadly, it didn't happen. Watching him walk off the court after he lost again to MacEnroe in the USO in 1981 and leave the sport of tennis at the age of 25, was something that devastated me.

That's why I am so proud of Rafa for hanging in there, despite the seven consecutive losses to Nole. He hasn't walked away. He has stayed in the fight. Remembering what I went through after Borg walked away is probably the reason why I can survive Rafa's losses. At least he is there playing on the court. When you have seen a young man in the prime of his career just toss it away, that is something unbearable.

Great champions like Laver, Rosewall, Emerson, Borg, MacEnroe, Connors, Lendl, Agassi and Sampras all left their mark on this sport. They each made unique contributions to the game.

I choose to celebrate all of the great champions, both past and present. To try to single out one, would be to demean the achievements and accomplishments of the rest.

Read these 2 articles..it explains well the match up issues

http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/blogs/patrick-mouratoglou/lear nt-final-165905505.html

Read above link

http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/blogs/patrick-mouratoglou/nadal- changes-game-djokovic-enough-110131640.html;_ylt=AvNV_X5wXd1XaEETrC6U8 IuOtOJ_;_ylu=X3oDMTFlM2VoOTk2BG1pdANMSVNUUyBQYWdpbmF0aW9uBHBvcwMyBHNlY wNNZWRpYVBhZ2luYXRpb24-;_ylg=X3oDMTNtc2RnNjVzBGludGwDZ2IEbGFuZwNlbi1nY gRwc3RhaWQDOTQ4ZGI2YTEtZDQzNi0zN2FhLWFkMDAtODMxMTczNDQ3ZjgzBHBzdGNhdAN 0ZW5uaXN8bW9yZXxwYXRyaWNrbW91cmF0b2dsdQRwdANzdG9yeXBhZ2UEdGVzdAM-;_ylv =3

Well, I'd like to see the top players of today playing Laver, Borg and Mac using wooden racquets and, was it cow gut strings? Not sure who'd win to be honest. Mac was a magician, nobody like him.

Thanks for the link sanju, but I'm going to pass on reading any match-up articles because I think they always beg the question and relate only to what's happened as opposed to any real scientific analysis.

There was a time when Nalbandian was the ultimate bad match-up for Rafa just because he beat Rafa twice indoors at of the time of the year when Rafa is known to go to 'sleep'. Even Rafa himself was buying into the idea and was nervous when they met up in Miami, but once he got the shackles off, he beat Nalby comprehensively, and now has a 3-2 h2h against him, having beaten him 3 times in a row. Then it was Delpo who beat Rafa 3 times in a row when Rafa was on a low in 2009, even though Rafa already held a 4-0 lead into their h2h before 2009 Delpo was still held up to be a bad match-up. Now Rafa has a 7-3 lead h2h with Delpo.

Actually, I thought I'd just check the links and I agree wholeheartedly with what Patrick Mouratoglou says, I can't download the other link.

Lovely post NNY @9.18am. You are indeed lucky to have enjoyed all those past champions, all very special in their different ways.

I am also pleased that you are a Rafa fan now - he is a one-off and a very special person to boot. I have never felt this strongly about any other player even though I watched the odd tennis match when Connors, Sampras and Agassi were playing.

Each champion past and present deserves respect for what they have achieved and I agree the GOAT business is really rather irrelevant as it is very hard to have a level playing field by which they can all be compared.

People always say these days that how come Fed is GOAT or what ever if he has a losing record against his main rival, Nadal, but Nadal fans should remember that after 50 years nobody remembers who beat who, they only remember no of slams. If some fanatic Nadal fan says to their grand kid how good Nadal was against the great Federer then the kid would say then how come Nadal could not win more slams than Fed. I know Nadal career or even Fed career is not over at this point but head-to-head is just a waste, only people in current generation remember. Just ask yourself if you care the head-to-head of Laver with his peers so much.

schatz,

Thanks for your kind words. I also have such special feelings for Rafa. I haven't had many favorites and had just about given up finding another one. In fact, I stopped watching tennis for about two years and the only reason I started watching, was the talk about a great Spanish player named Nadal. Out of curiosity, I tuned in to the 2007 Wimbledon and the moment I saw Rafa play, the magic was back. I felt the same way I did when Borg played. I found the second tennis love of my life and it has turned out to be my greatest. I love Rafa even more for never quitting, not walking away, staying in the fight. Even at with seven straight losses to Nole, he still has the competitive fervor to work hard and go out there and beat him. I love his spirit and heart.

As far as matchup articles, I am with nadline in not being particularly fond of them. All you need to do is read Pete Bodo's blog about how Nole isn't in Rafa's head, he's in his game. He listed five reasons why Nole has the better game and is a bad matchup for Rafa. I maintain that is not the reason why Rafa has lost to him seven times. I think Nole's improvement came as a surprise to Rafa. Also, Rafa was not himself. He lost his fitness and his mental toughness. He lost the passion for the game. Nole always had the game to trouble Rafa. They have had many tough matches.

Rafa won close matches with Nole in the past on his sheer mental will. Now Nole also has mental strength. Rafa knows what he has to work on if he is to beat Nole. He needs a strong serve overall and a better second serve, to counter Nole's great returning. He knows that he clawed his way back in this match and had his chances.

I am just so happy to see Rafa healthy and happy again.

@vmm , 2/5/12 3:48 AM

I think you will find that this sort of anomaly has never happened before where a player who has the most slam titles also has such a massive losing h2h with one of his peers. The reason for Federer's haul of slams, as has been well documented, is the weak era in which he played before Rafa, Nole and Muzz came along. Also, in Laver's time, the tour was fragmented because only amateurs were allowed to compete in the mainstream national and international tennis tournaments, including the grand slams, so once the likes of Laver turned pro, they couldn't play against their amateur colleagues.

No one was ever called GOAT until some flippant Fedtard commentator started going on about it. It is not possible to have a GOAT, simply because the tour has changed over the years. Before travel became so convenient and quick by air, many players did not compete as much all over the world because travel by sea took so long and it was physically impossible to go from place to place in the space of days to compete.

Laver has held his record for donkeys years and no one ever called him the GOAT until Federer's weak era came along and his fans in the media started the propaganda. You see, in the country of the blind the one eyed man is king. Yes, Federer was king up to 2005 after which he had Rafa to contend with. The other thing is, you cannot be the GOAT if someone else is king of one surface. To be the Greatest in your era, you have to be king on all surfaces in that era and you head to head should be in the positive against all your peers.

The term GOAT is not official, but should Federer's friends in the tennis media decide to crown him the GOAT, they will have to put an asterick explaining that he had a losing record against Nadal and that he did not excel on clay, which will immediately negate the term GOAT.

I am happy to judge players in their era but not of all time.

They can call Federer the King of slams, Rafa, the King of clay and Nole, the King winning streaks etc. but no one can be called GOAT. In fact, the more I think about it, Federer doesn't even deserve to be called King of slams as he hasn't made the final of the last 8 slams.

vmm, as a matter of interest, Laver's h2h with his peers who were at the top of the game in his era are:

Laver: Rosewall 13:7
Laver: Emerson 14:1

Nadline @11.00am - 2nd that.

I agree with nadline. You can have Best Of Era, but not GOAT, far too many ifs and buts. Even BOE is contentious because players overlap and when does one era stop and another start? Every line drawn would seem arbitrary and open to dispute.
I suppose Pro and Amateur? Or perhaps "B4 and after Johnny Mac," the last player to win Slams with a wooden racquet ....;)

nadline,

Thanks for joining in on the absurd notion of a GOAT in this sport. I also appreciate you pointing out the unique issues in the game when Laver was competing. It is true that if you were a professional, then you couldn't play in some events and those wins were not part of the record. Laver's record does not include all of his wins for that reason.

Things didn't get sorted out until the Open era officially began in 1968. Then there was no issue of amateur versus professional. I always felt if anyone deserved to be called the greatest or one of the greatest of all time, that Rod Laver would be front and center. As nadline pointed out, he has records that are still standing to this day. It doesn't matter if he was playing on clay, grass or wood, the fact is that he did things that even his peers were unable to do and those who followed him could not replicate. He was simply phenomenal in his day.

It was the Fed-biased media who started this business of him being the GOAT and his fans jumped all over it. I am not going to get into the debate about a weak era here, but the fact is that I have always found this GOAT argument to be incredibly insulting to those champions who came before.

You cannot trivialize the achievements of the great champions who have played this sport. Also, as deuce said there can be overlapping greatest players in their era. It's not something that is written in stone. We know which players are most often mentioned in a list of the greatest champions. How can you differentiate?

For example, Pete Sampras set the record for most grand slams when he won fourteen. Yet Agassi won the career slam with only eight total slam titles. Borg won eleven slams by the very young age of 25, but he never won the career slam and didn't win a slam on hard court. Can anyone deny his greatness?

It's a silly argument that wastes way too much time on tennis forums. I am just grateful for all the champions who have made indelible contributions to tennis history.

interesting information

At ESPN.com, Kamakshi Tandon takes a shot at estimating how long the Djokovic-Nadal Oz final would have taken if both of them had adhered to the 20-second time limit between points, instead of taking an average of 30 and 33 seconds, as Nadal and Djokovic did respectively. Instead of 5 hours, 53 minutes, it would have clocked in at a more pedestrian, and probably more enjoyable, 4 hours, 43 minutes.

A good article.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/karthika-muthukumaraswamy/te nnis-season_b_1259006.html

I enjoyed it because I wasn't watching the clock. People should just relax and enjoy the game istead of counting seconds, after all the time restriction hasn't always been there, it was introduced when Laver said he wouldn't play Nastase becaue of his antics between points, interacting with the crowd and the umpire etc.

People enjoyed tennis before the rule so those who spend their time clock watching during a match only have themselves to blame if they don't enjoy it.

It just goes to show that Djokovic takes longer than Rafa between points but it's Rafa who gets blamed all the time by commentators and some fans.

I think the tennis media has a vested interest in leaving the season as it is so they are actively campaigning for the status quo by blaming anything other than the actual lengt of the season.

Those comments about taking too much time between points, just make me laugh when I think about what used to go on in this sport in the 70's and 80's. As nadline said, the reason we have a time limit is because of Ilie "Nasty" Nastase and his antics.

Talk about slowing down the game! How about coming full stop! The things that went on when he was on the court, are the stuff of nightmares. I remember one match at the USO, where Nastase refused to continue playing after disputing a call with the chair umpire. He basically defaulted and both he and McEnroe walked off the court. But this was New York and the fans were furious. They started throwing things on the court and booing like crazy. Some time later, they were actually able to get both players back out on the court. I think they finished the match. I really should try to find it on youtube.

I didn't care about the time taken between points and really enjoyed the match and quality of tennis. It's up to the discretion of the chair umpire and he let them take their time.

I always find it funny because I remember how crazy it was back in the day when there were no rules. Back then a player could argue and act up and delay the game for as long as he wanted. You don't see any of the nonsense that went on at that time.

"It's no coincidence that the latter seems to glide on a tennis court with the greatest of ease while the former's grinding, grunting style, accompanied by a relentlessness to chase every ball, sends palpable shockwaves through his knees, even as he goes about trading injuries for trophies."


Federer doesn't 'glide' when he is playing the top 4, he only glides when he is no challenged. The game has moved on. The way tennis was played, they could have played a tournament every week and wouldn't even need an ice bath or a massage. Even the kit they wore would be totally unsuitable in today's game:


"Women played in dresses with high-necked bodices, layers of petticoats, and floor-length skirts that made it virtually impossible to bend over to retrieve tennis balls. As a result, by the 1880s special tennis aprons, often beautifully embroidered and furnished with large pockets to accommodate the balls, had become fashionable tennis attire for women. Maud Watson, the winner of the first ladies singles championship held at Wimbledon in England in 1884, is said to have provoked much gossip by running around the court in an ankle-length white dress, driving and volleying with great skill.

Men's clothes were more adaptable to sports. Typical tennis attire for a man included knickerbockers, loose-fitting short pants gathered at the knee, or cream or white flannel trousers with long-sleeved flannel shirts, short silk ties, knitted hose, and kerchiefs or sashes around the waist. A low-laced early version of the tennis shoe was also coming into fashion. Paintings from the late nineteenth century depict British men playing in shirtsleeves, a shirt without a coat, or with trouser hems turned up above the ankles, a sign that standards of etiquette were relaxing to allow for ease of movement."

Read more: Tennis Costume - Fashion, Costume, and Culture: Clothing, Headwear, Body Decorations, and Footwear through the Ages http://www.fashionencyclopedia.com/fashion_costume_culture/European-Cu lture-19th-Century/Tennis-Costume.html#ixzz1lmXDEiyh

IMO an article devoid of neutrality and objectivity - obviously not written by someone who has watched a lot of the tennis matches between the top players. It always amazes me how narrow minded and insulting some people think they can be.

Well Rafa does glide on the tennis court. The author had forgotten about the clay court, and it's on the clay court that Rafa glides so beautifully in all directions. Mr Fed mentioned that if he could get one thing from Rafa, it would be Rafa's ability to glide so well on clay. Fed himself can't glide as well, so the author of that article is not correct.

On grass? Rafa moves like a snake on grass, he can zic zac across the grass court so smoothly and quickly, moving sideways and moving forward. Fed skips around on the tennis courts, not gliding. He only glides on clay but can't do it as well as Rafa. Now Nole is the one who glides on the tennis courts, and on all surfaces. However I still find him lacking when moving back and forth on grass, especially when not doing in on his own terms.

On grass and clay, Fedal are still the top two guys, even though Nole has improved so much on clay and grass. Still I'm yet to see Nole vs Fed on grass, knowing that Fed still beats Nole on clay when it counts big time. Fed has shown that to beat Nole, one has to play aggressive attacking tennis. Both Murray and Rafa were trying to do that at the AO and came close, maybe next time they'll have better luck, when Nole's confidence level isn't that high anymore. Sometimes it's the confidence that makes the difference. Rafa needs a win over Nole at IW or Miami, to get back his confidence before the clay season starts.

And yes, Rafa needs to look at how he played at IW last year: coming forward to the net often, staying close to the baseline. Add in his improved serve of the AO but with more varieties, and please, be less predictable, don't just keep hitting CC forehand to Nole's backhand. In this AO, his I/O forehand and DTL forehand and backhand worked well. With all these incorporated into his game, I see him having good chance to win at IW and/or Miami.

I like the way he hits his DTL forehand and backhand at the AO, time to make Nole guessing, and have a taste of his own medicine.

Well said luckystar. You are good at making your point in a "colm" way - I, unfortunately, get mad when I see Rafa belittled in the press or anywhere else. I should take a leaf out of your book.

Happy that Rafa is taking a break - look forward to seeing him again at IW & Miami. Vamos ...................

I agree that Rafa played some great aggressive tennis in the first set at I/W last year. However, we all know what happened in the second set. Rafa's serve deserted him completely and all Nole had to do was watch Rafa self-destruct to win the match.

This is why I have always said that Rafa's confidence issues preceded his losses to Nole. Although Rafa came out and changed it up and had Nole frustrated with his aggressive play, he couldn't serve when it counted in the second set. To see him fall apart like that was shocking. I cannot remember a time when Rafa has just lost his serve so completely. That was a symptom of his lack of confidence. Nole's strong return game put more pressure on Rafa's serve and he crumbled mentally.

I am much more impressed by how Rafa played at this year's AO. He served much better, but his second serve just doesn't hold up well against Nole's returns. Rafa's forehand was a formidable weapon and his dtl and cc backhand finally reappeared. Also, Rafa's strategy of attacking Nole's forehand worked out much better for him.

Rafa was able to play aggressive tennis in parts of that match, when it counted the most as he fought back to win the fourth set. That was the best thing to come out of that match for me. To see the passion, the fight, the fierce competitor again, was a joy.

Rafa showed some of the best pure tennis I have seen from him in over a year. To see him hitting cc backhand returns standing on the baseline and hitting forehand and backhand shots from inside the court and going to net, was thrilling.

One last thing - no one is as graceful as Rafa on clay! It's a thing of beauty! I think Rafa is also incredible on grass. He doesn't get nearly enough credit for the beauty of his movement.

Exactly. Rafa's movement on the tennis court is a thing of beauty. His gliding on clay, his quick steps on grass, and his athletic sprinting on the hard courts, all are things of beauty. Watch the slow motion replay of his movements, especially on clay, see how he balances and changes direction so beautifully, no wonder it's a thing of envy, that Fed also wants to be like that.

One of the best things about Rafa, other than his speed and power, athleticism, is his footwork. Notice his feet are always on the move, no wonder he can play so well in the wind(remember IW2009 final?). Watched his Wimbledon 2007 final against Fed the other day, I noticed he was standing so close to the baseline, and sometimes even on the baseline while returning serves and he was playing so aggressively. His forehand looked a lot flatter too. His weakness then was his net game, not too competent at the net. He was obviously better in that 2008 Wimbledon final.

I hope Rafa and Toni do watch some of Rafa's old matches, and see how they can recapture some of Rafa's aggressive play and put it back into his current game. He may not be as quick or as powerful as when he was 22/23 yo, he can compensate for that by overall improvement in his skills and tactics.

As an art form in sport as opposed to dancing, Rafa is the most aesthetically beautiful player to watch. His DTL forehand whilst leaping into the air is just breathtaking.

One of the best written articles..loved every word of it

http://espn.go.com/espn/commentary/story/_/page/bryant-120201/ra fael-nadal-loss-novak-djokovic-australian-open-positive-side

sanju,

Thanks for posting the link to this article. That is exactly how I feel about this AO final. Rafa did find the answer. Now he has to work on his serve, ROS and backhand and be ready the next time he meets Nole.

Wonderful read!

Nadline, very well said. Rafa in motion is breath-taking to watch.

Sanju, thanks for posting that link. Needless to say, I totally agree.