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4/19/09 11:42 PM | Ricky Dimon
Rafael Nadal will look to make it two-for-two in his first two clay-court tournaments of 2009 when he headlines a strong field at this week's ATP 500 event in Barcelona, Spain.
There's no rest for the weary. Then again, Rafael Nadal does not appear to be one of the weary, so perhaps he doesn't need any rest.
Nadal was tested last week at the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters, but he outlasted all of his opponents, most notably Andy Murray in the semifinals and Novak Djokovic in the title match. Murray went down in a second-set tiebreaker and an impressive Djokovic faded in the third set.
Will it be as difficult for Nadal in Barcelona? Probably not, since the Open Banco Sabadell is only a 500-point event (that's a lot of points, but it's not a 1000-point Masters Series like Monte-Carlo) and does not boast quite as strong of a field. Djokovic, Murray, and Roger Federer are all taking a break in between Monte-Carlo and next week's Masters Series tournament in Rome, so Nadal is the only one of the "Big 4" in action.
That does not mean the world No. 1 will be without serious competition in Barcelona. Even with Frenchmen Gael Monfils and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga having withdrawn, plenty of contenders will be trying their luck against Nadal, including Fernando Verdasco, Fernando Gonzalez, Nikolay Davydenko, David Ferrer, David Nalbandian, and Tommy Robredo.
Some good news for Nadal is that four of those six players (Verdasco, Gonzalez, Ferrer, and Robredo). So, too, are Marat Safin, Tomas Berdych, and Robin Soderling. Not that any of those talented players pose any kind of threat to Nadal on clay, but the more routine path to the final the better for Nadal and his knees.
With Nadal's nearest seed, Richard Gasquet, recovering from various physical problems, his first real danger could come in the form of a quarterfinal clash with either David Nalbandian or Nicolas Almagro. Both men, however, have been slumping; although Almagro did win a title in Acapulco during the early-season South American clay-court swing.
The pick of the first-round matches should be Marat Safin vs. Juan Monaco. Safin, who participated in the draw ceremony on Saturday, clearly did not rig his own draw, as Monaco already has a runner-up finish on clay this season and won two rounds last week in Monte-Carlo.
If the top four seeds all advance to the Barcelona semifinals--which is not likely--Nadal will meet Davydenko and Verdasco will take on Ferrer.
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fan4 - good catch, thanks
I guess a second-set 'breaker feels like it's a third when it's against Nadal on clay.
RickyDimon , 4/20/09 12:14 AM
Probably, lol, but Nole may want to have the distinction of taking a set off Rafa instead of sharing it with Murray.
fan4tennis , 4/20/09 12:25 AM
yep, although I'm sure all they really care about is the distinction of beating Nadal on clay.
RickyDimon , 4/20/09 12:56 AM
...and whoever gets that HONOR of beating Rafa on clay (uninjured), FIRST, will carry that distinction 'till the end of his career.
agf25agf , 4/20/09 1:17 AM
rafa needs to take a break, like seriously we all know what happened to him with his blisters last yr at Rome I think, it's not worth it playing so many tournaments, he really needs someone to manage his schedule for him, becuase chances are something will give whether his knees, or shoulder or feet whatever.
Why coudn't he take this week off and concentrate on the upcoming Madrid and Rome and play the key tournaments that really mattered??
Its not like he's short of game practices
AZN2NVY , 4/20/09 3:08 AM
i agree AZN2NVY......why isnt this guy resting??? RICKY,wat do u think can be the reasons???i mean.....he is ahead of roger in the rankings comfortably........why does he want to defend his ponts here???he can sure take some days off and rest...
vrael , 4/20/09 7:36 AM
AZN2NVY, vrael -
I agree too. What's he thinking of? It's not like he needs the points or the practice - the other top guys need them more than he does and THEY'RE resting. And there's a few of tough clay court players there too. It's not even like he'd be neglecting his home country, with Madrid coming up very soon.
alex , 4/20/09 10:20 AM
I heard Rafa being a patriotic :-) he can't say no to Barcelona, sorta complement to his fellow countrymen. That means he can sacrifice bigger tournament for Barcelona. So win or lose he wants to go and play there.
Raindrops , 4/20/09 10:22 AM
Nadal has 600 points to defend in Barcelona, the others in the top four have no points to defend. If he wins it, then there'll be less pressure down the line to make up his countable tournaments for 2009.
Vamos Rafa!
carrie , 4/20/09 11:16 AM
Well the schedule isnt as pressed this year with the Olympics gone and Nadal didn't play doubles this year in Monte Carlo (Which he won with Robredo) so thats like 5 matches less played so i think he'll be fine
SGHIceman , 4/20/09 11:28 AM
i feel like he is playing because of the sponsor(that bank) he is very close to them and he just loves that club.I guess he feels like he owes them or something ..i don't know.
but if he gets threw barc and rome uninjured i really hope that he will pull out of madrid.please pull out of madrid.
alik , 4/20/09 2:32 PM
The clay court season is Nadal's unique opportunity to win every tournament with minimal effort (compared to hardcourts). He can sleepwalk through this portion of the year and still have 3 claycourt titles to show for it at the end (including the French). Noone can compete with him on this surface so why shouldn't Nadal take what he can get.
JordanJabbar , 4/20/09 4:55 PM
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Sorry Ricky but Murray went down in a SECOND set tiebreak, not a third.
fan4tennis , 4/19/09 11:58 PM