Ricky Dimon

• Live blog of The Rematch - Rafael Nadal vs. Robin Soderling

  2009-11-23 07:05:39
  

  World Tour Finals? No. 2 vs. No. 9 in the world? A rematch of the biggest upset of 2009 and one of the biggest upsets in tennis history? During work hours for people in both the U.S. and Europe? Yep, sounds like this one calls for a live blog!

   

  Follow along and join the discussion before, during, and after the showdown between Rafael Nadal and Robin Soderling. The rematch of their French Open clash will kick off approximately 2:00 PM London time, 9:00 AM Eastern.

   

  Robin Soderling defeats Rafael Nadal 6-4, 6-4: Soderling, constantly running Nadal all over the court, converts his second match point to beat Nadal in straight sets. Just 18 winners and 24 unforced errors for Nadal, who was generally outplayed throughout the match.
  
  Soderling 6-4, 5-4: Two routine holds and Soderling is one game away from victory. Nadal will once again serve at 4-5 in order to stay in the set. It did not work out well for him last time.
  
  Soderling 6-4, 4-3: Nadal holds at love, Soderling holds to 30; struggled more on his serve than Nadal did, but nowhere near the Swede's previous service effort. Both are playing relatively well now, but Nadal making too many errors. He has to keep his errors to a minimum sice he is not winning a lot of points with winners.
  
  Soderling 6-4, 3-2: Soderling breaks when Nadal, after saving two break points to reach 30-40, hits what is called a winner. Again, however, the challenge system is cruel to Nadal and it is showed long. Soderling then survives a 12-minute service game to hold for a 3-2 advantage. Nadal in serious trouble as Soderling is winning all of the big points.
  
  Soderling 6-4, 1-2: Nadal holds easily and then breaks to regain control of the match. Soderling double-faulted twice and also failed to put in a first serve on break point. Nadal is playing well, but Soderling is letting him back in the match. If the Swede makes first serves, he should win this match. It's that simple, but it's also a lot easier said than done.
  
  Soderling 6-4, 1-0: Soderling holds easily. Major trouble now for Nadal. He has to keep holding; since he is serving second again in this set, he will have the pressure of playing from behind.
  
  Robin Soderling wins the first set 6-4: A bizarre end to the first set. Nadal goes up 30-0, eventually goes up 40-30, then hits what turned out to be an ace for 5-5. The ball is called out, however, and Nadal declines to challenge (replay showed it was in). Soderling won the point with a winner and two Nadal errors later, the set was over.
  
  Soderling 5-4: Nadal comes back from 0-30 down at 3-4 for a clutch service hold. Making first serves has been and will continue to be critical for the world No. 2. He can't let Soderling dictate rallies by getting looks at second ones. Soderling holds at love; he, too, has picked up his level since getting broken at 3-1.... Tiebreaker?
  
  Soderling 4-3: Routine holds for both players. After Soderling won 12 of the first 14 points, Nadal won 12 of the next 15. Soderling, however, gets back on track with an easy service game at 3-3. Key for both men, even Nadal, is to play aggressive, and both are doing it right now.
  
  Soderling 3-2: Nadal is back in the match. He is working his backhand slice to Soderling's backhand over and over again. Soderling cannot afford to keep playing long rallies; Nadal is winning all of them, whereas Soderling is winning points whenever he goes for his shots right away. Could be great match.
  
  Soderling 3-0: Ideal start for Soderling, who is in dominant form. He has lost only two points in the first three games. That's 12-2 in points for those counting. For now, Nadal looks like he has no answer for Soderling on a hard court (this is their first hard-court meeting).
  
  Soderling 1-0: Routine service hold, to 15, for Soderling. He is, of course, trying to keep points as short as possible and going for big shots. Nadal's second-serve return was poor that game.
  
  Carlos Bernardes is in the chair for this one. Good choice. You can bet het won't be tolerating any imitation nonsense from Soderling. Nadal wins the coin toss and elects to receive.
  
                                                        ---------------

   

  Pre-match analysis: Although a significant underdog on paper, Soderling should have a few advantages heading into this one. He has nothing to lose as the last "seed" in London, he beat Nadal the last time they played each other, and he is at his best on indoor hard courts whereas Nadal obviously prefers clay.
  
  With nothing--figuratively--to lose, Soderling needs to go for his shots like Verdasco did in the first two sets against Federer on Sunday. The 25-year-old Swede has the power to blast Nadal right off a hard court, and if he is connecting with his forehand, he could do just that on Monday.
  
  Judging from the two completed matches, however, the surface is playing slow and it is difficult to hit through it. Furthermore, the balls are bouncing low; while Nadal hits a heavy topspin forehand, his low backhand slice could give Soderling trouble. Soderling does not move well and generally despises hitting balls below waist level.
  
  Prediction: Nadal in 3 sets.
  
  Head-to-head history: Nadal 3-1

   

  2006 French Open first round: Nadal 6-2, 7-5, 6-1 - Probably the least interesting of their four meeting. Of course, it became more interesting in retrospect, as three years later Nadal STILL had never lost a match at Roland Garros.... Until he ran into Soderling again.

   

  2007 Wimbledon third round: Nadal 6-4, 6-4, 6-7(7), 4-6, 7-5 - Nothing suggests that Nadal and Soderling were friendly to begin with, but this is where the heated rivalry (if you can call it that after four matches) was born. Soderling tried to get into his opponent's head by mocking Nadal's butt-picking, but it was to no avail.

   

  2009 Rome third round: Nadal 6-1, 6-0 - It was a beatdown of the highest order, but it was not a sign of things to come.

   

  2009 French Open fourth round: Soderling 6-2, 6-7(2), 6-4, 7-6(2) - Previously thought of as an indoor-court specialist, Soderling scored one of the biggest surprised of all-time by handing Nadal a clay-court loss; Nadal's first ever at the French Open. Soderling, of course, ended up going all the way to the final.

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