Ricky Dimon

• Fantastic 4: Nadal, Federer, Roddick, Verdasco

  2009-01-28 19:31:12
  Well, we didn’t get the “Big 4” semifinals that tennis fans were clamoring for at the beginning of the fortnight. But tell me what we’re left with isn’t ideal and I’ll tell you that you aren’t thinking clearly.
  
  Seriously, could we have asked for a better final four at the Australian Open? Maybe not in terms of biggest names or highest TV ratings, but what we’re talking about here and what we care about here is quality of tennis. Two of the semifinalists (Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer) either are (Federer) or eventually will be (Nadal) in the discussion of best players in tennis history. The other two (Andy Roddick and Fernando Verdasco) put in—arguably—more off-season work than anyone else on the men’s tour.
  
  We already know everything there is to know about Nadal and Federer (if you don’t, check out Cheryl’s recent blog here), so let’s start with Roddick and Verdasco.
  
  Verdasco has reinvented himself faster than anyone I have ever seen before. In less than approximately four months, he’s gone from life-long mental midget to a pillar of mental strength. It’s been well-known that only Verdasco’s mind has been standing in between him and the Top 10. Last season might have been the worst of them all—in terms of psyche—for the 25-year-old Spaniard. I saw him play in person twice in 2008, and he was a convincing 0-2 in those matches. Janko Tipsarevic straight-setted him in Miami, then Verdasco put on one of the most lifeless displays of tennis I have ever seen at the U.S. Open in a 6-2, 6-4, 6-4 thrashing at the hands of Igor Andreev.
  
  But nothing was worse than the New Haven semifinal between Verdasco and Mardy Fish. It has to be the worst ATP semifinal ever contested. So terrified Verdasco was of the prospect of having to hit a second serve that he hit his first serves—basically every single time without fail—less than 90 miles per hour. An abysmal Fish still somehow found a way to surrender a set before winning 6-0, 1-6, 6-3.
  
  Following New Haven and the U.S. Open, Verdasco got routined by Juan Carlos Ferrero in Beijing, Philipp Kohlschreiber in Vienna, and Marin Cilic in Madrid. Murray knocked him out of the next two tournaments, in St. Petersburg and Paris. One was a complete blowout (6-0, 6-3), and the other wasn’t particularly interesting (6-3, 7-6).
  
  With the Paris loss to Murray, Verdasco’s season ended. Or so we thought. Then something happened in November, and that something was Davis Cup heroism. The Spaniards, without Rafael Nadal, took an underdog team consisting of Verdasco, David Ferrer, Feliciano Lopez, and Marcel Granollers to Argentina to face the heavily-favored Argentines.
  
  Tied at 1-1 after Day 1 singles thanks to a Lopez upset of Juan Martin Del Potro, Lopez and Verdasco teamed up to give Spain a 2-1 lead after a thrilling doubles rubber. That, along with captain Emilio Sanchez’s decision to bench a slumping Ferrer for reverse singles, set the stage for Verdasco’s Day 3 heroics. Verdasco sealed the deal for his country in the first match of the final Sunday, coming back from two sets to one down to outlast Jose Acasuso in five. Just like that, the Nadal-less Spaniards were somehow 2008 Davis Cup champions.
  
  From there, Verdasco hasn’t looked back. He spent the off-season in Las Vegas training with Gil Reyes, the man who helped lead Andre Agassi to greatness—and to four Australian Open titles. I shudder to think of what those training sessions consist. Verdasco even celebrated Christmas Day in the form of a reportedly insane four-hour workout.
  
  And now all of it is bearing gifts. Verdasco finished runner-up in his first ATP event of the season in Brisbane, then he continued his Australian Open preparation by playing the Kooyong Classic exhibition. Verdasco went 2-1 there, with easy victories over Cilic and Fernando Gonzalez, and his only setback to Federer in a third-set tiebreaker.
  
  Through his first three matches at the Australian Open, a devastating Verdasco dropped just 12 games. That’s right, 12 games in nine sets; and that included a win over Radek Stepanek, who defeated Verdasco in the Brisbane final. Verdasco next shocked Murray in five sets, coming from two sets to one down to take a match in which fitness was a crystal clear factor in the fourth and fifth. In the quarterfinals, tournament organizers closed the roof of Rod Laver Arena, giving Verdasco’s opponent, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, a distinct advantage. No matter. Verdasco beat Tsonga at his own game and despite relatively mild conditions, pummeled Tsonga into physical submission throughout sets three and four.
  
  Roddick did the same to Novak Djokovic in their quarterfinal clash. Amidst extreme heat and with the roof open, Djokovic was all but done after just a few games of the second set. By the time Djokovic put himself out of his misery down two sets to one and 2-1 in the fourth, Roddick still looked like he could go on forever without any problems.
  
  How? Look no further than new coach Larry Stefanki for that answer. Stefanki has consistently made the most of his pupils’ talents—or lack thereof—especially with Yevgeny Kafelnikov, Marcelo Rios, and Tim Henman. Stefanki and Roddick are just a few months into their relationship and it’s already working wonders. Roddick, at Stefanki’s demand, lost 15 pounds over the off-season and you could tell it against Djokovic. The American is notably quicker than he ever has been, yet not at the expense of losing a single mile per hour on his booming serve.
  
  Roddick has made no secret about the mileage he put in over the off-season and the dietary sacrifices he has started to make. It’s already been worth it Down Under. Prior to losing the first set to Djokovic, Roddick dropped just one set (to Xavier Malisse) through four matches. In addition to his four-setters over Malisse and Djokovic, Roddick’s journey to the semifinals included beatdowns of Bjorn Rehnquist, Fabrice Santoro, and No. 21 seed Tommy Robredo.
  
  So unless you’re a die-hard Djokovic or Murray fan, there’s no reason to lose any sleep over those two not being in the semifinals. Murray either isn’t physically fit enough, or just has some mental block when it comes to Grand Slams that he doesn’t have at any other tournaments. Or both. Djokovic either isn’t fit enough or isn’t mentally tough enough. Or — almost certainly — both.
  
  A note to Djokovic fans here: you can explain his loss to Roddick in one of two ways. Option 1 is that he isn’t even close to fit enough and therefore wilted under the heat. Option 2 is given his controversial past with Roddick, he didn’t want to lose to Roddick fair and square and therefore, knowing he was going to lose anyway, faked his physical struggles in order to have an excuse for the loss. If there is another explanation for loss, I’d love to hear it, because I’m sure it’s an extremely humorous one. For now, I will give Djokovic the benefit of the doubt and go with Option 1.
  
  As for Nadal and Federer, well, they are just being Nadal and Federer and not much more has to be said. Nadal hasn’t lost a set through five matches, and has only come close to losing two (7-5, 7-5 over Simon in sets two and three of their quarterfinal match). Federer won his first nine sets before running into Tomas Berdych in round four. He lost the first and second sets to an on-fire Berdych, but that only seemed to wake him up and he has been on fire ever since. Consider Federer’s last six sets: 6-4, 6-4, 6-2 (over Berdych), 6-3, 6-0, 6-0 (over Del Potro). In the words of Patrick McEnroe: “HELLO!”
  
  And now, after a grueling ten days in Melbourne, it’s time to say hello to our final four, a final four that features—without any semblance of a question—the four most deserving players.
  
  They should be a lesson to us all: in order to reach the top, you either have to work the hardest, or you simply have to be Rafael Nadal or Roger Federer.
  
  Or in Nadal and Federer’s case—both!

Tell a friend »

Comments

Write comment

You have to be logged in to comment. If you do not have an account, click here to register. It only takes a minute and you'll be redirected back to this page.

Username:

Password:

Archive

Unibet Mobile prematch,live betting

Recommend Tennistalk

Follow us

Poll

Articles - Latest commented

• 
  1

  Murray gets birthday warning swearing in victory
  

  ts38, May 17, 2012 3:15 AM

• 
  6

  Berdych, Almagro battle for Rome quarterfinals
  

  RickyDimon, May 17, 2012 2:50 AM

• 
  2

  Nadal safely through to third round
  

  Maya, May 17, 2012 2:46 AM

• 
  3

  Federer, Ferrero clash in Rome third round
  

  Maya, May 17, 2012 2:41 AM

• 
  1

  Nadal headlines third-round action on Thursday
  

  isfand, May 17, 2012 1:46 AM

Blog - Latest commented

• 
  58
  Approach Shots: Djokovic, Nadal look to rebound on red clay
  

  pankaj, May 17, 2012 4:54 AM

• 
  73
  Novak Djokovic takes up skating at the Madrid ice rink
  

  hawkeye, May 17, 2012 12:53 AM

• 
  207
  Approach shots: On-fire Federer can pass Nadal in Miami
  

  hrsikesa, May 16, 2012 4:23 PM

Tell a friend

Other tennis links

• Tennisplaza
• www.tennis.com
• www.itftennis.com
• www.atptennis.com
• More links...