U WILL WIN THIS TIME. BOL TO U..

I am one of those wishing Nadal to get the Calendar Slam. Compare his hardcourt performance last year, 2009 is very promising. He is getting a lot better now in hardcourt. I care no more if they call him bull...who will have a brave heart to stop the raging bull :-) FEDERER???? I do not think so. Nadal is very comfortable to play Federer in every surface at the moment.

Good Luck Rafa!

All falls into place for Nadal

March 24, 2009

All falls into place for Nadal Tennis Nadal

By Daniel Garcia Marco

MADRID, March 23 dpa - Fewer tournaments to maximise his performance: world No.1 Rafael Nadal's plan for 2009 is delivering results with amazing precision.

On Sunday, in Indian Wells, Nadal, 22, lifted his second ATP trophy of the season, No.33 in his career, to win his 13th Masters. The two most important tournaments in the first quarter of the year - the Australian Open and the first Masters of the season - have been won by the Spaniard.

"It is difficult to start better," Nadal admitted on his web site.

"Although it is only the start, it is a great start."

Nadal is en route to Miami, where another of the year's major tournaments starts Wednesday.

To his two titles so far this year, the best tennis player in the world has added two singles wins in Spain's Davis Cup tie against Serbia, which allowed Nadal and his team-mates to advance to the quarterfinals of the competition. That is three out of three goals achieved.

His performance in the Davis Cup and at Indian Wells - where he overcame five match-points in favour of Argentine David Nalbandian and also beat top players Juan Martin del Potro, Andy Roddick and Andy Murray in the final - might not have been possible had he not declined to play in Dubai in February to get some extra rest.

In the style of his great rival and predecessor as world number one, the Swiss Roger Federer, Nadal is looking to optimise his efforts to stay physically 100 per cent in a very demanding year.

Indeed, after Miami, Nadal is set to embark on the clay season, where he will have to defend many points. At the same time, he will seek to overtake Bjorn Borg as the best player in history on clay and to keep alive the dream of winning the Grand Slam - the four majors in the same season.

Nadal wants to look after his body, because his head always seems to be in good shape.

"It may be that I was better prepared than him, I went into the match with a more positive attitude and that, on a day like today, is important," he said to explain how he managed to beat Murray 6-1, 6-2 in a clash that was marked by the wind.

"Irresistible," British daily The Times said Monday of the Spaniard's play.

"Murray should not be too hard on himself. Rafael Nadal did what the very best do: he handled everything a little bit better, his touch was astounding and, despite his victory, one imagines that the Spaniard was a touch sad that a potential classic was ruined by wind," the daily said.

World No.4 Murray, 21, had just beaten Federer for the fourth consecutive time, and he had beaten Nadal in the previous two clashes between them, including the recent final in Rotterdam.

However, the Spaniard barely needed 81 minutes to crush the Scot.

Only Federer and Andre Agassi have won more Masters Series tournaments than the native of the island of Mallorca. In Miami, where he is set to take part in a promotional event with Serb Ana Ivanovic, Nadal is set to look for another title to keep his season right on track.

Everything is going great.

dpa gjw 24-03-09 0504

Love this article Livingdoll and Go Go Nadal . All your supporters believe in you. And good luck to the other players. (They will need it as Nadal is a tough player to beat).

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/144752-nadals-dominance-at-the-top- of-the-atp-world-tour-grows

Rafa-Roger rivalry continuous !!!!!!!!!!!!

I think it is unlikely that ANY players will beat Nadal, but I think it's pretty obvious who has the best chance of taking him out: Nalbandian & Federer. I doubt Murray could be added to that list, but maybe under better conditions he could do it. Roddick could surprise some people as well, if he doesn't let Nadal dictate the style of play.

-Arvis

rafa, you're a warrior prince and we love you! may all your dreams come true in miami! vamos!

Arvis: while I agree that Rafa is amazing at the mo. don't quite know why you dismiss Andy M from this equation as he seems to have got a handle on Roger, at least over 3 sets. .....and you imply, less of a chance than Roddick????

Arvis,

As a fan of Nadal, Murray is the most I feared for Nadal to play against because Murray's game is suit to Nadal's and he is almost as agile as Rafa in covering the court, the same primary reason why he is consistent in beating Roger. In returning serve, I admire Murray because I can see that he is better than Nadal in doing that.

In IW, look at how Murray responds at the net and how he chases dropshots and gets to the ball that to my eyes is unreachable.

Need not to mention how many times he beat Roger but it is still fresh in my memory that Murray beats Nadal too 3 in a row prior to Indian Wells, glad Nadal pulled the win at IW. Let's wait and see the result in Miami if they both managed to reach the Semi the outcome is uncertain though so I put it 50/50.

So for me, Murray will be the fierce competitor of Nadal in the near future.

What people tend to forget is that the best players are prone to more fatigue and injury than those who only play two or three rounds a tournament. Both Federer and Nadal almost always play the full seven, six or five rounds, depending on whether they get a bye in the first round or not.

I can totally see why Nadal and Federer are cutting down on the number of tournaments they play, it's their bodies that will suffer. If the ATP won't heed their pleas to reduce the load especially on hard courts, they will end up not having their star players turn up for some of them,

In 3 years time, I am sure it will be different. I am sure Fed will still play at a high level. Maybe not no.1 but top 5. And I am sure there will be promising youngsters.

OMG..just read abt a recent analysis on nadal's forehand..the latest analysis states that he can impart more than 5000rpm of spin on his forehand!!!! RIDICULOUS!!!5000 is incredible..matchless!!! if roger's the most elegant..rafa is unique!!!

that was really awesome vamosrafa ... 5000 rpm? I am in unison with you Rafa is unique...I want him to try boxing if that 5000 rpm will work knocking out all his opponents fast and instant lolz.

Be afraid be very afraid !!!

lol...yeah dude that is simply incredible...how does he do that??!!! he can knock down many boxers i agree wid u..lol...i have posted the video link aswell in the other article..roger underpressure...... last year they deduced an average of 3200 rpm and stated he can go upto 4500..now they say he can cross 5000..the video is in another language..but sumone has translated the whole video in the comments section

sorry..that ws another video..here is a link to this one...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bpCCeeF6_zc be sure to read the translation below

vamosrafa

THANK YOU SO MUCH for providing that link, I AM DROWN with overflowing happiness with the comments/translation. Would you imagine the USA Scientests & NASA studied Nadal's physicality and mentality and come up with their scientific findings that HE, indeed a perfect tennis player. Glad they didn't mention...NADAL IS A ROBOT. However, I would still take it as a complement though. :-)

Cheers RAFAELITES.

Hey guys you will love this article on Nadal

http://www.palmbeachpost.com/sports/content/sports/epaper/200 9/03/24/a1c_nadal_0325.html

Deauce & Raindrops,

Yeah, sorry guys, IW was too fresh on my mind when I posted that. I would love for Murray to be someone who can regularly challenge Nadal, but the IW Final was just embarassing. Murray made some excellent shots, but overall was just spitting into the wind out there. Nadal made him look completely impotent.

However, you guys have reminded me that Murray beat him 3 times in a row prior, so perhaps I should not underestimate his deadliness under better conditions.

-Arvis

Great posts and articles all. I consider myself a fan of Roger Federer, but now that Nadal is the only man who can get the year Slam in 09, I'm hoping he does it. It would be a once in a lifetime opportunity, and the first year Slam ever on 3 different surfaces. How cool is that? He has the AO and RR is practically in the bag. Wimbledon is looking good, considering his performance there the last three years. The US Open is of course the greatest challenge, but he has improved his performance there year after year, just like he has done with the AO. And let's be real, if Rafa goes into the USO with 3 GS in his pocket, he will be SUPER motivated to make it 4. Vamos Rafa!

guys, maybe we should all just get together and have a prayer meeting that the conditions in miami will be perfect for andy, because i'm so sick of hearing that same boring excuse. my goodness! isn't andy suppose to be one of the best right now! if so, then let him prove it! please, try using something else!

memi: I'm a huge Andy M fan, but I've never used that excuse. I totally agree, if you want to be No 1 you've got to win in any weather. I personally hope that was a big learning curve for Andy, he did not aquit himself well, he should have got far more games off Rafa. to be fair I thought he was doing OK till that blooming piece of paper came along.....

am too I disliked to hear excuses and I don't cite any excuse unless a player is truly injured. The recent AO was the good example, everybody's saying, (my fellow)Rafafans in particular, that Nadal is quite tired because of his 5 marathon semi against Verdasco. It was true but it's also part of the game so Nadal has to play the final whether he's tired or not. Luckily he played and we all know how it was ended.

Same thing goes with the weather at IW during the final, both players were playing under the same condition so there's no valid excuse why the other one lost the match. As stated by some posters, the majority of tennis is done outdoor therefore players should be adaptable to adverse weather condition, same thing they do in adjusting their games with different kind of surfaces.

5000 rpm? holy sh!t. I think this shows that Nadal is hitting the ball harder than ever before. Congrats to him for achieving this but I think this is the same as Andy hitting a serve of 248 km/h.

ANyways, Rog and Rafa were winners at the ATP awards. But the suprising thing is Fed won the sportsmanship award although all you anti-Fed people say he is arrogant and bla,bla,bla and he also won Favourite player. No.2 and still people love him more than Nadal. Like I said, more people like the beautiful game.

Not surprising at all for a fact that Federer was just being dethroned at the top spot so it is usual to see lot of his followers/fans/fanatics voted for him with the fervent wish that Federer may bounced back to his winning form and reclaim the No.1 position. I am contemplating to say symphaty vote but I think too early ... need to save it until US Open to be safe.

I won't further negate with that beautiful thing, as long as the so-called ugly game is winning, it doesn't matter...at the end of day...we all know who's smiling with pure joy and who is cry in vain hekhekhek!

that should be CRYING IN VAIN.

Raindrops, there's no proof that the votes are 'sympathy' votes. You are not God to know people's intention. Fed wins the Sportmanship award for 5 years in a row even when all the anti-Fed people here say his arrogant. And he is still the favourite player. Only shallow people care about winning ONLY. Crying is what humans do and Rafa cried in vain in Wimby 2 years ago. Consider it even.

torres9,

I said, I save that sympathy vote later when US Open, let's talk about this later okay.

What "consider it even" you are talking about?...have you seen Nadal crying in public specially in one's supposed great moment?

Count me then as one of those whom you called shallow as long as Nadal is winning against anyone. Bear in mind the players' target is to win not to lose so i am just having the same thinking with them.

re: crying time

It was like, it's your wedding day but your grieving neighbor put the coffin of their dead at your house. WEDDING & FUNERAL ... damn ... HOW CAN YOU ENJOY IT eh?

Torres9 you shold be careful not to incite the Nadal fans. Its not only the Nadal fans who try to incite problems on tis site but also the Fedex fans. The focus of these thread was mainly about Murray and Nadal. Nothing Negative was siad about Federer. I would also like to know why you think Fed is loved more than Nadal. If the Sportmanship award given to Fed is based on the votes of tennis fans then please they should take the vote again because i know that i didn't vote and i would LOVE the chance too. Also i beleive that it should also be taken into account that it could be just a respect kind of thing. Federer was at the top if his game fo the longest period of time and he was basically loved by all. But lets wait a 1/2yrs i am sure the other players would start to pick up the sportsmanship award as well as he will not get it forever, and for what his contributed to the game for so long people might say he deserves it at this point in time. But things always change.

I would also like to say tat the majority of people might like Fed and have voted Fed for his beautiful game. But Nadal fans love Nadal for his personality first and foremost. Me personally i love his game to some people it might not be beautiful but Nadal personality makes up for every fault that others might perceive in him even though for me his style of play is not a fault. Nadal is unique in the way he plays and has brought something new and fresh to the sport. But Nadal will always be remembered for is personality and what he brought to tennis and i personally place more weight and importance on that.

Way to go RAINDROPS, you're surely picking up some pace and turning into a STORM!
NOW tell me WHO's freaking with jealousy and started the "assault"?
Don't you think that DESERVED an equally STINGING response!

torres 9....I never said roger is arrogant...atlho i beleive rafa is a slightly better sportsman.Roger has earned alot of respect and fame among fellow players and ppl all over the globe and he deserves all this respect,after all the swiss maestro topped the game for 4 yrs..so u cannot xpect nadal or any1 else to change this trend so quickly!but believe me nadal's prestige,fame and everything is growing at an alarming rate and in the past years he has becum increasingly popular among fans and fellow players, these great champions just becum more and more popular as time goes by...its obvious that when rafa stepped in the world of sublime tennis roger already ws on top with millions of fans and majority of them will be xpected to stay loyal..U are an xample of such a fan.Secondly..i dont see much similarities b/w nadal's 5000rpm record forehand and rodik's 248 serve...simply becoz there are many players who have cum close to roddick in this category and roddick has been unable to come even close to his own record recently...whereas there is no one absolutely no one who can even cum closer to nadal's 5000 rpm forehand...in 04 sum 1 from the US tennis academy measured roger's topspin forehand to be 3400 rpm for a particular shor..2nd round at indina wells.thats incredible and he ws dumbfounded and said that it ws a world record to date ..now nadal continually hits over 5000!!!! so u can imagine the gap b/w him and the rest of the field..TRULY UNIQUE!!!!

Whatever they say, Nadal is greatest right now, however, he's the greatest ever cause his personality saying so, as I said so many times, after Nole, I admire to Rafael Nadal, such an incredible person, nice, humble, polite, self-controlled, pure athlete devoted to his tennis and fans all over the world, many of tennis players should learn from him how to act on the tennis scene, wish him all the best...

gordana.......ur post made my mood so pleasent...lolzzzz!!!!

Just what is the sportsmanship award based on?

Besides, when you play tennis, IMO, the more you care about winning and your game, the better. Of course, players care about other things including family, charities etc etc... Just because they don't show it doesn't mean they are shallow. Somehow, i don't understand the ways in which you justify Fed's crying.

roger got 26.6% votes..rafa got 22.8 % novak 7.8% and gonzo 6.8% of votes!!!

^^ I thought you were one of the guys who supported the belief that Federer did not cry to ruin Rafa's moment..anyway..I'm not surprised.People in here find it hard to be happy for Roger, or believe he's a nice guy.Great...everyone wants to thump a player when he's down..The sportsmanship award is based on players' vote.So I'm glad Roger won it again and wont it for a record fifth straight time.

This is what the topic of this particular discussion is about:

'Nadal optimistic as he attempts US spring sweep of Masters events'

IT IS NOT ABOUT ROGER WINNING PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR OR WHATEVER!

sorry..my bad.

It works both ways Janhavi. Torres9 was trying to thump Nadal for not getting it. If Federer has achieved something there is no need to combakc and prove that he is better than Rafa . Its not that we are not happy for Fed. It just that we do like it when federers achievements are used to try to illustrate that he is a better person or he is more loved than Nadal. There is no need.

Janhavi, I am not saying Federer tried in any way to ruin Rafa's moment. But I'm not a fan of what he did, even though in no way was it intentional.

Why, Janhavi, aren't you looking at the other side? Is it me attacking Fed, or is someone else using other means to attack Rafa and the rest? Think.

samprallica,

Obviously he can't/won't do that because he shares the same sentiments with his fellow fedfans.

I am not jealous at all if Federer won that award, afterall he is not winning titles as of date, sort of consolation lolz. Sportmanship award is just like Miss Congenial in a beauty pageant while Player of the Year that Nadal has won is as prestigeous as MVP in Basketball...lolz lolz lolz.

Laugh along with me AGF lolz because the trickling raindrops is now awful lots ... a storm as you said.

With that comment... you'll surely get a lot of lightning strikes!

Have you forgotten Nadal just collected his 13th Master Shields? I can borrow one from him and enough to shield myself against thunderbolt lightning strikes. :-)

Raindrops- you crack me up. Lol....