Nadal lost in the fourth round, not quarter final!

In all due respect I think Wimbledon will be a good test for Rafa to test out his knee. Then he can always view it and skip more tournaments if he needs. The sad thing that I am, forgot to wish him a happy birthday..Hope it went ok. Just for interest, anyone can locate me where I'm living today at 57 Cyprus St, TIVOLI, Queensland. No secret anyhow..Just a matter of typing in I believe. The fence there is a year and a half old. I cut down a massive tree which weighed gross tons with a garden pick and it landed and broke the original great wired fence. All up, I had to cut about three largies and so on. The place was loaded with the rub and surrounded by the biggest rocks I had ever seen in my life, that I carried from their nests so we could rid of....Legendary Maui moments, y'know..It was also the place I first saw the great Rafa Nadal. And it pays $75.00 a week. Been here for five and a half years and my youngest son turns seven in a couple of weeks..HOORAY - HOORAH

This uncle of his seems to be taking out insurance policies with the press every chance he gets . He is sooo downplaying Nadal . I think we need to wait a day or two and then Rafa will do an interview and say the complete opposite .

Looks like the cry from millions asking him to shut up did not make it all the way .


C'MON !!

Nadal, this can't be... you MUST get cured, damn it! If not tennis just lost an incredible player and Roger lost his most powerful Nemesis. Nadal! you better be 100% cured! ...

ws just watching wimb 07 hilites package...and wondering how unfair wimb 07 ws to rafa...i thin khe ws the best player that year in that tournament...had to play 5 days against soder... and then 4 consecutive best of 5 mcthes widout rest!!! damn it..lol..in contrast roger didnt have to play for 6 days!!! seemd as if rain and fate wanted roger to win..he did wo well to beat rafa in the finals but the obstacles for rafa were nt only roger..rain,roger,added pressure and fatigue from continuous play....anyway doesnt matter any longer bt felt for rafa and wantd to share..lol

I hope this expo shows that whatever treatments Rafa has been getting for his knees has helped. All Rafa fans know that Rafa prefers match practice to prepare so it's not surprising that he would try a simple tour to "match-test" his knee. It's sickening all the other people on here who seem to think that he is faking an injury to have time off or that it's all hype. These are the same people who constantly remind us Rafa fans that Rafa won't last long because of his knees, and now are funnily acting like Rafa's knees have always been perfect! I don't know why they think he would have to 'fake' a knee problem (which has been well known to the entire tennis world and thousands of articles written about his knee problem) to get some time off when he could have easily just withdrawn from Queens citing exhaustion like fed did with Halle. No one would doubt that since he actually played five tourneys in a row and won 3 of them.

fan4tennis...who has said that rafa is 'faking' it? No one...I think you are suffering from the same blindness that you accuse the federer fans of.....rafa has had tendinitus for years....years....he has even said that himself......

and if his uncle wants to say a lot more in the media about his nephew than he ever has..why do you think this is? Try to be objective here...have you EVER in your experience as a tennis fan...EVER heard a coach come out and say that their player is having a 'confidence crisis?'

I just think that that is the weirdest thing I have ever heard from the nadal camp ever since rafa has been playing professionally.....don't you think? I am always interested to read what you have to say...because you are interesting (tho irritating at the same time)...but I think you are way off track here...I really do.....It's all mind games and media hype right now....

if you read some of the articles out there f4t...one of the 'other' reasons that has been quoted is that the reason rafa pulled out of queens (apart from the stress of his knees)....is that should he have lost that tourny...that would be a double knock to his confidence, losing two tournys one after the other and his confidence would be at an all time low...I don't buy it....

I just think it is a tactical move...but plzzzzz .....can we stop with the excuses now about his knees? the whole tennis world knows about rafa's knees due to his style of play....he has had his time out...rested...got the best care...and now its the big boy stuff...so just get on with playing GREAT TENNIS....don't you think?
Love to you F4T...and chill baby.....

Sounds as though Rafa has travelled to London on a private plane so that he could transport an array of physio equipment for his knees.

agree with malt on this one, seems to me Uncle Tony is doing a bit of spinning, though why I can't think. And why say he's lacking confidence!! Daft. Either Rafa is fit to compete or he ain't. We'll know by end of week it seems, so end of.

Uncle Toni's desperate cry for help. He's telling the truth

zoey...mind games....s'all it is....so every other player out there is thinking...ooh..got a chance of beating the raf man......no chance.....have you ever heard a coach come out and be that blunt? C'mon zoey...surely? It's all spin...spin...spin....

Oh by all means, malt, I know your "drift." But No, it is strange for Uncle T to say that. Wondering.....

IMO Rafa was telling the absolute gospel about his knees when he said basically he could not take it anymore and it was affecting his mental game. His knees may not be all that bad...sore ...but the report was not that bad...his quads are sore at point of attachment to knees, the osseoue edema slight, just something to bear in mind. My crystal ball says...it's that stuff we don't know, mystic.

what if Uncle Toni was just having a 'moment', forgetting the savvy and blurting truth? tha's all

Rafa who is known as being mentally as tuff as "tooth and nails" is having confidence problems?! H E L L O !!! With all do respect to whatever you want to believe I don't buy it for a sec!!! It's a spin. So we are supposed to believe that Rafa is not only dealing with knee problems now, but also MENTAL ones?! C'MON! Where is your belief in "Rafa"! This guy's spirit and soul is made of IRON! Don't be so easily swade! Nothing will stop Rafa from entering the Wimbledon competition and giving the usual Rafa 300%. N O T H I N G!!! It's a SPIN!! That's my take on it. :)

Sky, while you may have a point.......but it is totally reasonable to believe that Rafa may be feeling a but less confident now after losing in the early round at his fav tourney!......Come on.....put yourself in Rafa's place......you would feel exactly the same way!......its called human nature!!

Rafa may be tough mentally.....but like ALL of us.....he does have his melting point!!!.....Im not saying that he is a total wreck but he IS allowed to feel anxious about his form right now.......come on!!!

VAMOS RAFA!!!

Oh sky, I make a living worrying about people. It's my nature to play 'devil's' advocate too, check out everything, even if absurd.

Rafa's initial statement was soo without taint...watching, listening, what he said was from his heart, concerned, unrehearsed.

The knee checked out to be less imho than something else he is going through...'course its, the losses ...a few more losses than the tennis matches tho.

And it does not make sense for Uncle T to spin it the way he did.

sky...i absolutely 100% agree with you buddy...spin...spin...spin......we all know about the knees...tiresome...tiresome...now.....rafa doesn't make excuses....his uncle should not be making any for him...neither should his fans....rafa fans...you would be the first to comment if fedfans were making excuses for roger....so stop!

spin...spin...spin...

C'MON!
Allez Federer!

This is why I love Rafa, he would never say what his uncle is saying and if he did it would only be after a truck ran over his legs. I feel that it he is pain as terrible as he claims though, it comes from simply playing too hard and too much. This takes away from his greatness, some people like destroying themselves whereas other like to find a way to win with out the cost of being able to play with you children at 30. If his knee hurt he should freaking play less.
I'm still a Fed Fan but when Fed really goes totally out of it, I've always thought Rafa was sweeter and far more caring then Murrrrrray. Gah. Come on Rafa I need someone to like when Fed sucks!

i actually agree with malteser and sky that its just a spin....
if his knees werent ok i dont think he would play an exhibition match and end up risking wimby no way ...
its a massive game plan,and uncle toni has devised it well..........

Not buying what you are saying, boss. As Recordbreaks points out, Rafa, would Rafa like what his Uncle Toni is bleating to the press? I think not...

If it is spin, it is the sorriest spin for Rafa.

Spin is what British press have going on, they think FOR Muzz, to
help Murray. Digging up lame bits to build drama between Roger and Andy....talk about boring, unoriginal at best but reads more as pitiful and desperate

In my opinion, I always take everything Uncle Toni says with a huge grain of salt. If Rafa isn't saying anything, I ain't believing anything.

I don't know, I'm a bit skeptical of Uncle Toni's comments that Rafa is suffering from lack of confidence. Rafa is known for his mental toughness on tour and I am sure the loss won't set him back as much as Uncle Toni would like everyone to believe (for some reason).

I have the strongest faith in Rafa and am looking forward to an awesome Wimbledon.

zoey
i agree with u on the british press and murray trying to cause a stir ....
TYPICAL
FED is not bothered....
GO FED.... WIMBY IS URS

Most Rafa fans know that what Uncle Toni says is not necessarily what Rafa believes. Also, Toni is well known to most Rafa fans to underestimate Rafa's chances and like jyannis says, "take everything Uncle Toni says with a huge grain of salt." That's why most of us wait to see what Rafa himself says instead.

As far as the confidence issue, I cannot understand why people would think that his confidence level hasn't been dented by 2 consecutive losses, one of them a slam where he was a 4 time champion. The level of the dent only Rafa himself knows. But many fed fans talked of Roger(after Wimby08 and AO09) regaining his confidence, needing to believe, etc.... so if a man that has accomplished so much had his confidence dented, why can't Rafa have a moment where his confidence is lower? MonaLisa (6-16 @ 11:44PM) says it very well in response to a comment by sky.

boss: Have you ever heard of match practice? Tennis players do that even in exhibition matches to adjust to a surface. Why Rafa planning to play ONE match on grass on Friday to determine how his knee will react in a real match at Wimby is so crazy, only you would know.

rafa fans ...n one here is denying that there your man is having some problems with his knees ...we have been saying it all along and its happening. its nice that you guys are finally realizing what we were talking bout all along ...

however ..with regards to this article ...no coach ...no family member ..no one would come out in public and say that thier pupils is suffering from a confidence problem and might loose !!! when fed was having confidence issues .. the fans said this ...fed said he believed in himself and wanted to try harder ...these kind of negative remarks was never heard from fed or anyone in his camp . but for that uncle of his to come out in public and drop a bomb like that is ridiculous .

Its mind games . taking out insurance policies just in case ...this is what i think . or he may be planing something even bigger ? u should never down your pupil....you should accept what happened and be encouraging ...optimistic towards the future . And you dont go on an interview and declare that you are having confidence problems !!!! I really dont get it ..... how dumb is this guy ?


C'MON !!

fedex: as I stated before, most Rafa fans know not to take what Uncle Toni says too seriously as he ALWAYS downplays Rafa's chances. Why he does that, you'd have to ask him yourself! The point is that RAFA has not said those things.....just his uncle has!

Is "insurance policies" your new words of wisdom cuz you definitely have been using them alot in your posts?

response to MonaLisa - In Rafa with are not dealing "only" with human nature. We are dealing with a HARD CORE professional. Tuff as they come! I'm sure he was "not happy" about the RG and the Madrid occurrence (primarely the RG one), but this guy is not like you and I, and in my opinion he cannot be compared as such. Rafa is (without a doubt) the toughest tennis competitor in the BUSINESS! He can have feelings, but he takes them from the intensity found in his strengh as a competitor, and a CHAMPION! If anything he would be pissed OFF about his loss, and angry! He would use this something constructive emotionally to POWER himself into the next tournament with FIRE in his ASS! The guy is not some weakling! He is a CHAMPION and PROUD of it! Do you honestly believe that a couple of losses is going to shake him to the point of losing confidence?! LOL If anything it will make him STRONGER! HUNGRIER! More determined than ever! I am not a Rafa fan, but I KNOW a CHAMP when I see one. It's in his blood, in the mind, in his SOUL! This guy is made of FIRE! He may be disappointed by the loses, by to have lost confidence! No WAY! It's a SPIN!!! Go Roger Go!!! Viva la Roger!!! Go go go!!! I could not help myself here. LOL After all I AM A FEDERITE!!! FEDfan to the core!!! Rafa is fine. He is able to play and win Wimbledon, although he will not WIN! Roger Will! :)

sky....steady buddy....game by game....right?

Oh..for all the rafa fans out there....last night....pictures of rafa just having completed a THREE HOUR PRACTICE SESSION....that's a fact! Sore knees? I don't think so...so fan4tennis.....stop with your excuses please....it's getting tiresome...Roger never came out with them.....nor his coach....rafa has kept a dignified silence.......(he knows what he is doing)...Toni is the coach of spin...very clever.....
C'MON!
Allez Federer!

No one is saying he lost ALL his confidence sky. But even without Toni's remarks, his fans can speculate that he might have a dent in his confidence. He is human and his mental strength cannot be "HARD CORE" 24 hours a day. Fedex says "when fed was having confidence issues .. the fans said this" so why can't Rafa fans do the same?

malty: " Sore knees? I don't think so...so fan4tennis.....stop with your excuses please....it's getting tiresome"

What have I been offering excuses for?

Well then fan4tennis, and the other Rafa fans who wish to think in this manner. It is your prerogative to think as you wish. Personally I would not entertain such "WEAK" thoughts toward my Roger! Let Rafa "just" be human then. Yes (although) we all are HUMAN, but it is so much more fun when we can play with GRANDER concepts for our heros. Make them GODs or whatever we want!!! LOL These fantasies may not change the fact that they are human, but it does add to our lives a little or a lot more SPICE (don't you think) !!! LOL Let the game BEGIN!

Hi Malty!!! Yes one game at a time girl!!! One GAME at a TIME!!! The GLADIATOR in Roger will DOMINATE!!! LOL :)

Malty, since you're obviously following the Rafa news, then you also know that Rafa has said that his match Friday (the first one for him in 3 weeks) will determine what decision he makes about Wimby. And that he said his first practice was "Not perfect, but okay." Call me guilty of not speculating for sure that he will play until Rafa says it himself.

fft ... "insurance policies" is not new ....it something i feel is taken out everytime before nadal goes into any tough matches by his fans ...in this case its his uncle in public .

and when i said "fans" in the statement "when fed was having confidence issues .. the fans said this" ....i meant all fans except federites . We knew he would come back ...we knew he would get it together . We knew that roger did not doubt himself ....he just needed to pull together . Never have i said that federer needs to be more confident ....he knows his capability ...he just needs to execute .The only thing i thought needed to change in those dark times was the fact he needed a coach ....but boy was I WRONG !

So if u rafa fans want to say that the raining world no 1 has got a dent in his confidence ..i think i have to laugh. The whole issue with Fed confidence came only after a dissapointing year ( by his standards ONLY) ....i dont think 2 losses would make nadal feel less confident ..he is after all the raining no.1 ..well ...maybe not for long if his COACH , UNCLE and fans keep doubting him
( i cant believe im actually sticking up for rafa here ! )

WIMBY09 ...where we right the wrongs
C'MON !!

Have I or any other Rafa fan said that Rafa is done, that his career is over or that he will never win again? NO! We still stand behind our man just like you stood behind fed when he was down. We still think he is the best player out there. Just because we speculate that he may have had a dent to his confidence (which as I said earlier, only Rafa knows for sure) does NOT mean we doubt his abilities!

Yes, it's all spin! spin! spin! Just like the times when the ARROGANT ONE blamed the following for his bad performance: mono, bad back, fading light, the wind, marriage, etc. etc.

I think 90% ok of Nadal is more than enough to make it to the finals, since Nadal declared his injury Murray went crazy talking about his chances specially his comments about Roger and how he thinks he can beat him in Wimbledon about his ability to make it to number 1, after reading his interview I miss Nadal respective tone despite Toni Nadal stupid comments which I think totally un justified and looks more like a camp's policy rather than an individual statement.
Nadal wont go through an exhibition if he is not 100% sure he can manage against Wawrinka so I think he is ready for the fight.
One thing for sure when he is going to step on court being just fine the media wont take the next time statement so seriously, specially uncle Toni's.

A Nadal Vs Murray semi would be interesting. I think Murray is gonna win if Nadal is not 100% because Murray fitness is almost like Nadal.

i would love to see classico Federer vs. Nadal final
with Federer winning at the end ofcourse makes a terrific ending for a terrific two months!

Excuse me gentlemen....rafa's paris loss was devastating for him mentally..but is there any doubt nadal is the strongest player mentally??!! nooo!! he is a warrior and a supernatural athlete,whp upon taking sum rest summons up the courage and fighting spirirt to fight all odds.....rafa fans here are a few examples that show how strong rafa has comebak after injuries...missed shanghai 05 and Aus open 06 due to ankle issues..came back in dubai 06 after a long pause..roger ws at his peak riding a lonnng hardc ourt winning streak!! rafa overcame the biggest challenge in tennis at that time...on his weakest surface beating roger at his peak.Next,next is a recent one,rafa's injury woes meant an exodus from shanghai.The he came bak to win Aus open 09!!! rome foot problems againsr ferrero.lost,came back to win hamburg and french open!!! stay positive my dear rafa supporters..keep praying for our champ and i am hopeful he will prove himself!

vamosrafa...thank god! A positive rafafan...

and fan4tennis...only YOU brought up the word 'done'...no one else...so try not to project your insecurities here.......

REPEAT...rafa played a THREE HOUR PRACTICE session yesterday..confirmed by Jacquie Balterio...who is monitoring his progress for sky sports right now...she was there...she should know...she reported on his progress this morning.....so fan4tennis...accept please that he did this and he practised well.....unless of course you want to be making further excuses for him....spin...spin...spin. do you honestly think that if rafa was 'on his knees'.....(!) that he would even be able to practice? No! spin....spin....spin....

danny....or is it gordana using the same old terminology again.....b-o-r-i-n-g danny.....just b-o-r-i-n-g....not worthy of further discussion....

C'MON!
Allez Federer!

hello vamosrafa...how r u?? watching the t-20 wc or not???......ur team is doin gr8..

i feel too much has been made out of rafa's injury.....i think it will be clearer wen wimby starts n rafa actually plays.....wishing him the very best

VAMOS!!!

I am a lil bit bored with Roger Vs Rafa Wimby final, it'll be good to have someone else challenging the duopoly of Rog and Rafa. I have a feeling Delpo might do well here. He has proven he can beat Murray, Nadal and also would have beaten Fed if Fed didnt somehow find a way out in RG2009.

torres...steady......del potro...of course...should be termed the 'BIG FIVE' to include him....NOT the BIG FOUR.....but really....if...if...if....irrelevant...Fed did find a way....and came back 'with style' in the semis.......showing the GREAT champion that he is!

C'MON!
Allez Federer!

Has it occurred to you that Rafa has played with enough or often a lot of pain quite often in the last years? Last year 2nd round in Rome showed just how high his pain threshold is.

I've written on this in a little more detail in a post in the thread "Rafa knee shows no signs of weakness", so I won't repeat those thoughts here.

My point is that showing no sign of weakness does not mean there is not plenty of pain, nor that there is no ongoing tendinitis that keeps getting more aggravated.

If I am reading all the signs right, Rafa may be going into Wimbledon with the pain low enough to attempt to defend his title. In my mind if there is any spin, it is that Rafa may publicly say that he is "100% ready" - while clinically his knees may be at a stage where an amateur tennis player would be strongly advised to not play for several months.

I was worried that the reason Rafa was not at the level of effectiveness we expected of him starting at least as far back as Miami was physical.

I hope I am wrong on both counts (last months and current state).

FedexFan I totally agree with you that a coach, and specially one that is a family member would never talk like that about his pupil..., And I also agree a 100% with Sky, that Rafa is made of Fire... So why did this dilemma happend... I think the solution to this problem is both answer, is a Spin but is also true....
I will explain myself... Since the moment that tennis became a televised sport, and taking in account that is not a team sport but an individual one, the players are not only player, they are celebrities, they are actors, performers for the crowd and the camera, and the millions of people that are watching... When a player makes an unforced error, take a look at djokovic, they star making gestures blaming them self ( performing, for the crowd and the camera), like if they were embarrased by what they did, like it wasnt their fault, and are trying to justify to the expectators the mistake they made... In the case of the top players like Nadal, Federer, Murray, etc... the performance transcends the limits of the court, and get beyong the press conferences.., they act in public relationships like politicians, saying things conveniently to get something they need, publicity, or in more importantly, psychological advantage... Nadal has always praised Federer, even when beating him he tells him that he is the best, and even thought I think Rafa does admires federer, he believes he is the best ( not Roger), he believes, and it might be true, that he overcame Federers threat and became superior, But he always says, and always will that Roger is the Best, and is part of the game, because, it gives roger a certain sense of false security, a certain doubt, it gives roger a double message, You are the best, but I always kick your butt... So it makes Roger uncomfortable psychologically. So, after Roger bet him on Madrid and after loosing to a 25 ranked player on his kingdom, off course Nadal will fell unease, he is a human being, is not that his mental structure will colapse, but surely will leave a scar on his playing soul. in the other Hand, it gave Roger and edge, it made him regain lost confidence, "look dear Rafa, you are number one, but I beat you on your homeland, on your surface, and I stole your trhone, so is Roger who got the mental advantage after all this.. So the Rafa team, including Rafa himself and His ANCLE, and the rest of the team, decided to play games with roger and the rest of the players minds. Let them think that your knee problem is very severe, let them think that you might even withdraw from wimbledon... and then, when you wont longer be able to hide your participation in the tournament, let them think that you are Mentally hurt, and phisically not a 100%.... So off course Nadal has a torn stuck in his heart, but they are making it a knife, so no body would see the Fire behind the "tears"

cool dissection mdmch ! as always you are showing the way of the "wise one" :)

Hey Rafa lovers this article is just for you so take your time relax and enjoy. It is rather long but is a beautiful piece on Nadal, his life, his opinions on his game style and many other things, you will absolutely love it.

Here is the link:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/21/magazine/21nadal-t.html?ref=m agazine

mdmch....i tookthe time to read ur post twice sice you obviously took a lot of time to write it ...i AGREE with you on ALL counts . Wait till first round of WiMBY when he comes out all fired up running around court like a mad bull ......playing through the pain is the dumbest thing a player can do and I think we have all once agreed about this . So when he wins that first round.....i hope all these rumors will be thrashed . but then again ...this story is his insurance policy ( yes FFT, i used it again :P ) just in case he looses ...you never know . ....he might be really hurting ....but then again that would make it dumb if he participates....so its kind of a loose loose situation for him unless he says he is 100% and participates and play the tennis we all know he can .
just a thought ....one would think that after the uncle screwed up the first interview regarding the extent of the injury ...he ( nada l) would have told his uncle the shut the hell up ....on the contrary ...he comes out and says this now !! whats goings on ? seriously ?
I dont know ...right now dont care .....im regrouping ...FedTrain is about to take off ....

C'MON !!

fan4tennis
my point exactly as tennislover mentioned:
Nadal wont go through an exhibition if he is not 100% sure he can manage against Wawrinka so I think he is ready for the fight
and i agree with vamosrafa that is no confidence crisis,i
ts all about mind games...
Just another way to try to distract roger..
GO ROGER
GO CHAMP.

Fedexfan

How on earth do you know what Nadal has and has not said to his uncle in private please enlighten me (since you like to presume so much).

It's getting a bit repetitive, these comments about spin, psyching out, etc... those of you who say this about Rafa and Toni, can you in all honestly say this is the most objective view you can come to, and that is not due to a certain history of bouts on court between this Rafa and a certain other beloved player?

Gosh!!!!!....it is so good to see that all this time before Fed won RGarros that you guys were so desparately willing Fed on to gain some confidence.....bcos somehow Rafa was in his head.......but that was all well and good then.......ummmmm?

Now you guys are shitting your pants because some where in the back of your minds you know very well that if Rafa is really in true form that he can woop Federer's butt any day of the week.........perhaps you guys should stop commenting about Rafa's confidence..........instead.....just hope that Roger has ENOUGH confidence when he faces Rafa at the other end of the court the next time they meet.....bcose we ALL know this......Rafa is in Roger's head!!!!!.......regardless!!!!!

TopDog,
Thank you for the link to the nytimes article. Very well written.

That article reminds me of the question why we need to admire only one of the two legendary contemporary tennis R's. There is so much to admire in both. When it comes to the two of them I am both a cat lover and a dog lover. (Just more one than the other, by gut reaction.)

Chlorostoma
why bother that is the thing about conspiracy theories. They are just theories no legitimacy no proof no fact no nothing. That is the thing about opinions and interpretations they are personal to the individual but most importantly they prove nothing. People should not get heated up about the majority of the stuff that is put up here. Look at the bigger picture Chlorostoma. The opinions on here definately do not represent the general public/tennis fans/tennis spectators view on Nadal and his uncle.

Rafa's knees..................this is a SIMPLE case of CHOICE....everyone....STOP the excuses....if rafa is injured or cannot play because of his knees but decides to carry on....it's HIS CHOICE....if he doesn't want to play because he is feeling tired/emotional/drained/whatever...it's HIS CHOICE...if you look at his play schedule for this year....he has played MORE tournaments than ANY OTHER PLAYER...Rafa's choice.....HIS SIGNATURE goes on the contract to play for the tournaments...no one forces him to....rafa's CHOICE.....

the guy is gonna be fine for wimby....NO MORE EXCUSES please.....let's just get ready to watch GREAT TENNIS......
C'MON!
Allez Federer!
Go:Roger:Go!!!

Mona Lisa
Roger is ready and will take his wimby title back...
Only ones making up the stories is the Nadal camp..
So i wonder who is scared and who is not
Go roger ......
GO CHAMP

True i totally agree Malteser1

I suggest then that some of the fans who chose to use mono as an excuse that Federer lost major matches in 2008 should not do so as it was his choice to play those matches. No excuses.

Don't forget the back problem too TopDog! Remember he had to take off time after his loss at AO to "properly rehab his back." He said it had been hurting for some time and never took time off (guess he played thru the pain and was stupid to do that fedex) so he decided AFTER his loss to Rafa that he would then take the time off.
Am loving MonaLisa's post:

"Gosh!!!!!....it is so good to see that all this time before Fed won RGarros that you guys were so desparately willing Fed on to gain some confidence.....bcos somehow Rafa was in his head.......but that was all well and good then.......ummmmm?

Now you guys are shitting your pants because some where in the back of your minds you know very well that if Rafa is really in true form that he can woop Federer's butt any day of the week.........perhaps you guys should stop commenting about Rafa's confidence..........instead.....just hope that Roger has ENOUGH confidence when he faces Rafa at the other end of the court the next time they meet.....bcose we ALL know this......Rafa is in Roger's head!!!!!.......regardless!!!!!"

Yeah, every time Fed beat Rafa, Rafans will say he's tired bla bla bla, not 100%, bla bla bla... Everytime Rafa beat Fed, Fed is 100% bla bla bla...

If Rafa is really in Fed's head, how was Fed able to beat Rafa in Madrid in front of his home crowd? If Fed is really scared, he would have crumbled when Rafa had 4 break points with the crowd cheering.

The unbeatable clay-warrior Nadal got slain by Fed and then everybody said, owhh he's so strong mentally bla bla bla and then got beaten by Soderling of all people.

I think Rafa is used being no.2 and chasing but when he's no.1, it is new territory for him.

Chlorostoma
Im glad you liked the piece, I for one love reading about Nadal, the debates that surround him and what his personal opinion is. Well i have been to some extent critical about the rate at which Nadals game is developing when speaking to family. I lost track that this is Nadals style of play. As a tennis lover i want to see nadals game improve but the truth is i love rafa just the way he is i would not want his game to change radically. I would obviously want him to add more ammunition to his game as having more weapons would only be an advantage but overall rafa is rafa and he is pretty much perfect the way he is.(excluding the few flaws he has in his game which he always aims to improve)

TopDog,
You are right, of course, about conspiracy theories. 99.9 % of them are not reality.

Reading about Nadal's family and the values they live is always a breath of fresh air as compared to what is considered normal today.

Rafa improved many aspects tremendously last couple of years. Surely there will always be areas more difficult to improve than others but he keeps working at it. Each player has their unique package of strengths and weaknesses.

Well, Toni who is obviously Nadal's family didnt quite live up to the image of the holy values of the Nadals by saying, 'Parisians are stupid'.

Nice job, Toni.

Torres9, I give up!!!!!.......you are never going to be a Rafa fan!.........dont know why though!!!........its not fair......although I am a Rafa fan I dont always like it when Federer loses, but you just cant wait for Rafa to fall to his knees........ce lave!!!

So you like Roger.........I like Rafa!!!

Peace and love......

Why a conversation about sport has to become a Moral arguing between "good" and "evil", this is a sport, this guys are just like you and me, the only difference is that they are the best at what they do, and they do something with a very High Profile. So, I suggest we keep things in their fare proportion. I wrote before that I thought this was a move by Nadals team to enter wimbledon tournament as "debilitated" and then storm into the final by surprise. Is obviously a "conspiracy theory" or plain speculation, is true, like most of the thing we argue about here, they are just opinions, but thats the goal of this forum, to share our opinions with other who like the same things we do.., If i am right about Nadals plan, then there is nothing wrong with what they are doing, in fact, is very smart, they have been very smart, Rafa himself and specially Toni, who got his nephew to the top of a sport, so i dont believe that toni may or could do harm to Rafa, I thing that every word he spoke, rafa knew it before...

I seriously doubt that Toni asks Rafa for permission on what to say and what not to say. Jyannis's post on the other thread states what we Rafa fans have been saying all along. RAFA HIMSELF has never gave excuses or overhype on his knee. Uncle Toni did (and Rafa fans are used to the way Toni talks). RAFA HIMSELF has made many statements to the press regarding what is going on with his knee and his decisions to be made. That is why most of us refuse to speculate what will happen until we hear it from Rafa himself on Friday! I never thought refusing to speculate until an official statement was made would be a crime or show doubts of Rafa's abilities.

Rafa will play Hewitt tomorrow in the Exo and Wawrinka on Friday.

His knees were not strapped because strapping is NOT recommended for fluid buildup or edema in the joints.

It will be great to see him back on the court again! Hewitt and Wawrinka ought to provide him a good level of match play before Wimby that he didn't get by not playing Queens. While I am happy to be able to see Rafa play again, it is tempered by sadness of hearing about Bagdatis (not sure how to spell it--lol). That is absolutely horrifying to think of any athlete of any sport having to be carried out on a stretcher. I pray for his recovery!

mona lisa.....your words...quote: fedfans must be 'shitting their pants'....why would we need to do that? Roger beat rafa in madrid..fair and square...rafa made the fourth round at RG....and was beaten fair and square by soderling...Roger won the tourny....more than deservedly so......Federer has the the mental edge over rafa right now...

as a result of rafa's showing at the FO there are a number of players who now thinnk they can beat him....Haas....(i know he hasnt beaten rafa but.....(cos he is riding a high right now).......soderling...del potro (who beat him this year)...being no. 1 brings its own pressures as you know...and it just makes me love federer even more when he held that position for so long and handled the pressure brilliantly....

i don't think fedfans are 'shitting their pants'..... honey.....i have ALWAYS believed in Federer...ALWAYS.....and its strange really reading some of your posts, chlo's, and fan4tennis (not so strange)....at one point...not too long along the fedfans were accused of making excuses for roger........

yet everyone in the tennis world knew for a FACT that roger had mono...his doctor came out and gave a statement...saying that the mono WAS diagnosed and the very fact that roger 'chose' to play through those tournys and reach semi finals and finals of matches...to me....just shows...what an

A-M-A-Z-I-N-G player Roger was and is.....to NOT make excuses and to just get on with the job....in a later interview he said 'he didn't want to make excuses...he just wanted to play and see how well he could do with this 'condition' at that time.. and that was supposed to be a really bad year for him...but would have been an 'exceptional' year for any other player.....

YET......

when the rafafans bang on about your own (rafa)....MAKING EXCUSES time and time again.....you are doing EXACTLY what you accused us of months ago.....it's just sooooo hypocritical......All of you as rafafans....and even other fans of other players have known about rafa's knees FOR YEARS....YEARS.....you forget...this is not a 'life threatening' disease....this is all about MANAGEMENT.....rafa needs to MANAGE his tournaments more wisely...if he wants to play more tournaments than anyone else...sorry guys but that is up to HIM....and he will pay the price...HE is aware of the risks...he will make a 'calculated risk' as to whether to play or not...simple....

Topdog...i agree with what you have said about 'excuses'.....if we had made 'excuses' for roger (i never have...and i cannot pinpoint anyone of the fedfans who have but may be someone can point this out to me?).....then i think that is a really poor show actually and the rafa fans should just start supporting their guy.....'cos its getting really boring right now......

C'MON!

Allez Federer!

Topdog -> "How on earth do you know what Nadal has and has not said to his uncle in private please enlighten me (since you like to presume so much)."

Topdog , I do not know . but i made my comments taking the assumption he DID say something. you would expect him to say something wouldn't you ? if he keeps quite that means its consent and thats just a whole different story . But I am sure he would / should have said something . ..and yet here is the uncle again with some controversial comments ...hence my question ...what the hell is going on ? weird , no ?


C'MON !!!

Oh this is "so" boring!! :) Where's ROGER!!! LOL C'MON! Right the Wrongs!

sky...i second that ...sooo boring ....in roger i trust ...Right the wrongs .

C'MON !!!

sky! fedexfan! zoey...(where are you....come out to play!)......

Sooooo glad that roger is keeping a low key right now and all the hype is surrounding murray......and i guess rafa...will he/won't he.......????? ha!

The fed is coming out to play very soon.....very soon.....sky...he gonna come out with confidence, a game plan....fabulous footwork, fantastic forehand, blistering backhand, dynamic dropshot....valiant volleys....and a m-a-g-n-i-f-i-c-e-n-t mindset to go on game by game...match by match...(only 7 to go) and go for the W-I-N at W-I-M-B-L-E-D-O-N.........this is sooo much more fun than talking about rafa's knackered knees.....(he just needs to 'manage' them!).......

C'MON!
Allez Federer!

F4T wha happened with Baghdatis i watched him at queens and he was playing pretty well. What the story.

some uneducated people here think this is a fed blog. this is a rafa blog so stay on the subject, we don't want to read posts about mr arrogant big nose.

Get used to these mob of groupies homos. They have invaded practically all topics in this site and converted them to a "praise the arrogant one" site. They believe that arrogant one is entitled to win all tourneys that when he loses, a wrong has been done. What a pathetic bunch of losers!

get lost homos and dont be so disrespectful....obviously YOU should how uneducated you are! Read the goddamn posts and see how this thread has twisted and turned with all the rafa fans and fed fans....so don't knock it 'til you've read it ...................p-r-o-p-e-r-l-y homos...you always come on here criticising everyone else except yourself.....don't see the other rafa fans complaining...are you bored or something?

for all the fedfans who have contributed to this thread...this is a post from sid siddiqui....and to plllleezzzzz homos...i'll post this on a fed thread too.......

oh and homos...you DON'T have to read this cos obviously it will bore you.......you are 'mr. arrogant'.....look in the mirror and what do you see? homos is a kill joy for federer.....eeeeee...
spoil sport!

Federer is a player who cannot find his equal in the game. He has achieved such a place in the game and its history that it seems it will take quite some time before his records will be broken, and yet he is only 27 years old and still has quite some time to play the game.

The way he commands respect on the court and off it, the love and admiration that the media and his fellow colleagues have for him, the respect he receives from someone like Rafa Nadal, who has his own records to show off?all these make him unique.

This has been a great year for me as far as tennis is concerned. I got to see Andre playing again, and that too with his wife at Wimbledon at an exhibition match, and believe me, seeing those cracking baseline shots along with his cheerful self, I was reminded once again as to why I love this guy.

A couple of weeks after that, Federer became a part of tennis history yet again when he did something only the great Andre Agassi has been able to do in the Open Era?that is to win all four Grand Slams.

What a match it was! For me that match had everything: emotions, scares (fan running up to Roger), a good solid runner-up, supreme baseline tennis, big serves, and whatnot.

However, the most special moment was seeing Andre handing over the trophy to Roger. There I saw the man who has been the sole reason why I started to watch the game handing over the trophy to the man because of whom I currently watch the game.

There has not been a dull moment in tennis for a while, though Roger is here and he is the best. I will always miss Andre, but at the same time I will always cheer for Roger.

Malteser1 - you let yourself down horrendously just there. I am not even going to point out the error you made in your 1:21pm post. Take a hundred lines: I must swot up more on my open tennis history...

haha..nadal fans really like name calling dont they ?
i mean seriously ...do u think there is no names to call nadal ? whether its his habits or looks ? seriously ....wassup with the name calling ?

im not going to go down to ur level ( been there ..didnt like myself so much after that) ...but next time try writing a few lines to show that u actually have some genuine thoughts or ideas . any punk can name call ....it takes someone with some passion and knowledge for the game to write something people would actually be interested to read .

malt ....andre handing the trophy was nice ...for me the special one was mcenroe telling fed in center court that he is the GOAT ...that juz blew me away ! ..

C'MON !!

gorafago...you can say what you like honey...it makes NO difference to me......you are entitled to your opinion as everyone else is here......the problem is that people like homos (who have posted once on this thread....come on to criticise and do little else...)....everyone can post or say what they like...it makes no difference to my life nor what I feel about federer...i have never been disrespectful to rafa...ever...and whilst he is not my favourite player...i have never wished ill on him, called him names....yet you see posters here disrespecting federer..name calling..i won't go there....lack of class.....

you are not my keeper gorafago (no offence)...as I am not yours.....so if you want to clarify that's up to you...if you don't...again your choice...i happen to like what sid said....he loves agassi...and has grown to love roger....good for him.....

fedex....yeah.....i know.....it was a lovely moment...am with you there......
C'MON!
Allez Federer!

Rafa's nose is not small and his nostrils are bull-like.

mould-tosser and tosser9, who are name calling? Only nadal fans? hypocrtites! you guys are deeply pathetic. no surprise you idolize a pathtic arrogant sore losing spoilt brat cry baby like mr arrogant huge nozzle swiss pastry!! His nose is so huge it's sunken into his ugly face! he looks like my dog while its poo-ing and I'm being kind here but you don't need to thank me, it's ok children. now go play nicely with the other spoilt kids.

thanks danny, i already knew that bt appreciate the reminder. sad, don't you think?

Nadal looks like Hanuman. Reminds of the creatures hopping from tree to tree screaming, 'vamos'

homos....you have really sunk to a level lower than hell.....you cannot accept any reply which is decent to your indecent ones...now that tells a story about you as a person.......

torres....your posts have been so amazingly insightful, funny and interesting to read....but really buddy...don't bring yourself down to homos/danny's level....you don't need to torres....cheryl will pick up on what both homos and dan have said and take it from there.....so remember.....fedfans classy....SOME rafa fans....NOT SO.......
C'MON!
Allez Federer!

Come back, come back to me, M1! My post was no mere matter of opinion.

"Only Andre Agassi"?

Clue: as 1066 is to England, so 1969 is to men's open tennis.

I suspect you have no immediate plans to visit Australia this year for a certain series of 40th-anniversary celebrations?

The penny drops, I trust.

If it had been my oversight, I might crave indulgence and ask it to be written off as a "senior moment". But for someone of your altogether more tender years, we need an alternative euphemism. A Norwegian friend in her 40s refers to it as Alzheimer Lite. I think it's fun, and I hope you take it in that spirit! What's left to me is way too short to be getting into character assassination, and you can hold me to that.

What-ever, gorafago. Your age does not matter, babe. C'mon share your wisdom and take my hand let's get on the FEDERER EXPRESS, nevermind the 'senior bit' you have a good sense of humor and personally I want to learn more about Greats who managed not to Grunt and
win anyways. lol! : )

And pls don't make me take a quiz, write anything 100x, or promise not to mix it up at times with a kooky Fed hater! mwah! xx

Reads like I missed some fun, Malt and Torres. Torres, you are making me laugh till I cough, man.

What is this thread s'posed to have as subject?

Oh yes. MDMCH....hello to you. As Always, love when you can take time to leave a post. You have an excellent mind, thank-you. I was not on board that Uncle Toni is spinning train of thought but you broke it down, muchas gracias. I see what you mean.

Rafa's knees may not be 100% or they may. It is his choice to play. Not wearing the IT bands was just what I originally thought when I saw Rafa playing at RG. Swelling. Taping would be not only contraindicated but painful. Personal opinion: wish he would save himself for US open and clinch the career grand slam. But....not my call! LOL...

Allez Feddy!

SW19...where we right the wrong, fedexfan

Thank you zoey for your comments. Torres9, i really love your posts when you talk about tennis, it seem like you know a lot about the subject, and the best is that you clarify the technical stuff that us, not tennis players, dont know. I loved your post about what Roger had to change in order to beat Nadal on clay... but Dude! please don't degrade yourself to that level, you are much more mature than that..
To all Rafa fans How did this forum get to this point??? I really dont understand, Rafa has knees problem that's known, that's obvious, and that's really notorious because of the straps he wears on his knees. Is not an insult, every human being has his aquille`s heel, Nadals is his knees, Rafa is a supreme human being with excepcional fitness and sport intelligence, he is also a genius of the sport, but he has a weakness, his knees, His game style demands to much from them, and eventually, if he doesnt change his system, he will pay for that. I dont wish for him, i love to watch him play, I would like to see a 2015 wimbledon final between a 33 year old Federer and a 29 years old Nadal, I am sure it will be great. But if Nadal wants to get that far, he has to listen to his body... In the other hand, he had a very hard Shock on Roland Garros, and he may be suffering from a very mild Post traumatic stress disorder, very very soft one... But instead of denying it, his team is spinning the story as to maximize it, and get advantage from it. Is a very Smart move. Yes, it is my opinion, Yes it is plain speculation, but thats why we are here no? to especulate, and dream of greatness

gorafago...buddy...honestly...no offence taken....chill...have posted here what i posted to you on the other thread re: agassi...and i wanna second zoey.....would...... l-u-r-v-e to hear more about the g-r-e-a-t-s .......from your perspective...you know so much...

Hi gorafago...now i get you! Hey...if sid wants to believe that agassi is 'his best player'...he is entitled to his opinion? right? I wouldn't have termed that a 'massive clanger tho'...it's pure opinion on his part......1969? buddy...i wasn't even born then....sorry......but obviously have read about Rod Laver....did you actually see him play? oh my god! You must be a legend yourself!

gorafago...if you look at the following stats for agassi...you can probably understand why sid feels the way he does tho' and that's fair enough! right?

Agassi.....is a former World No. 1 professional American tennis player who won eight Grand Slam singles tournaments and an Olympic gold medal in singles. He is, with Rod Laver, Don Budge, Fred Perry, Roy Emerson, and Roger Federer, one of only six men to have won each of the Grand Slam singles title in history, and one of only three (with Laver and Federer) since the beginning of the Open Era. In addition to his Grand Slam and Olympic singles titles, he won the Tennis Masters Cup and was part of a winning Davis Cup team. He won 17 ATP Masters Series tournaments, more than any other player. TENNIS Magazine named him the 12th greatest player, male or female, for the period 1965 through 2005. Agassi's Grand Slam composition is (4 Australian Open, 1 French Open, 1 Wimbledon, 2 US Open) for his career.

i'd say this are the hallmarks of a g-r-e-a-t champion...surely?

you seem to be a 'wise owl'....so perhaps a fatherly comment to posters who want to be disrespectful to federer by name calling....might not go amiss.....your choice...of course......


C'MON!
Allez Roger!

mdmch, I love tennis because it is like a strategy game. That is why I analyze it so much. Nothing excites me more than the fact that no strategy is absolute. I love the fact that there is a counter for everything. I love hearing the commentators talk about strategies during the match.

This is why I love watching Fed play. He counters power with variety. Sometimes he gets overpowered but that is the nature of the game. I oso love Andy who use different strategies for different players but he overdoes it sometimes.

For me, I appreciate that Nadal is here to counter Fed's variety which is exploiting the backhand with his looping forehand. I watch their matches all the time when I am have time and listen to commentators talk especially JMac. So I am happy when Fed and Murray finds a way to counter-back Nadal's defense because they never do it by overpowering Nadal but by changing his tactics unlike people who beat Nadal by overpowering him like Blake, Berdych, Youzhny, Djoker.

Malty and zoey, I just like to fight fire with fire sometimes. Give them a taste of their medicine and marvel at their inability to handle it and respond by giving more childish name is a laughing stock for me.

Okay.. all this arguing.. does anyone know how Rafa played today or how he looked?

rafa did play today.......it was bad,he lost to hewitt in straight sets,he cant bend properly....his coach said it will be difficult for rafa to play wimby.....i hope he doesnt play if he isnt 100%........it will be better for him if he rested

best of luck champ

VAMOS!!!!!!

Fiberlight1
Here is a short article

Nadal struggles on grass, Wimbledon in doubt
LONDON (AP) - Rafael Nadal looked hampered by his injured knees during a 6-4, 6-3 loss to Lleyton Hewitt in an exhibition Thursday. He will decide Friday if he can defend his Wimbledon title.
Nadal played without tape on his knees but frequently appeared a step slow in the grass-court match at Hurlingham Club. This was Nadal's first match since his loss to Robin Soderling in the fourth round of the French Open.
Nadal did not speak to reporters, but uncle and coach Toni Nadal said it was still uncertain whether he can play at Wimbledon, which starts Monday.
Nadal plays another match Friday against Stanislas Wawrinka. Toni Nadal said the top-ranked player will decide after that.

Its crazy, he shouldnt play Wimbledon, but they should protect his ranking points... I have heard that is something that is posibble, can anyone clarify that for me?

Here is a better article on the situation Fiberlight1 and vrael

Tennis-Nadal's Wimbledon title defence still in the balance

By Pritha Sarkar

LONDON, June 18 (Reuters) - Champion Rafael Nadal's Wimbledon participation still hung in the balance on Thursday after his first outing on grass this season did not go according to plan.

The world number one, troubled by a knee problem since being knocked out of the French Open in the fourth round last month, struggled with his movement during an exhibition match against Australian Lleyton Hewitt, which he lost 6-4 6-3.

"Rafa is having difficulties bending his knees and it (seems) that his various treatments are not enough," his coach and uncle Toni Nadal told reporters.

Asked if the Spaniard would turn up to defend his title on Monday at the All England Club, he added: "I don't know, we have to wait for tomorrow".

The 23-year-old will decide whether to play at Wimbledon after taking part in a second exhibition match against Stanislas Wawrinka at the Hurlingham Club on Friday.

Although Nadal opted to test his fitness at Hurlingham his body language did not look too encouraging as he went through the motions during the one hour 20 minute encounter.

As Toni Nadal urged him to "bend down" to the ball during the second set, the Spaniard appeared to mutter, "I can't".

The match had started promisingly for Nadal as he stepped on court without wearing any support around his troublesome knees.

Cant seem to get the rest of it but i will try later on and paste it up here as soon as i can.

johan...ricky...cheryl....can you verify topdog's post...? I think topdog that if you are 'seriously injured'...then yes your ranking points can be protected...i will go do some research for you....

Malteser1 i believe it was mdmch asking the question.

topdog....

What if a player is injured and can't play?

A. If eligible to play in one of the Grand Slam or ATP Masters Series Events, a player must count the points from these tournaments, even if it is 'a zero pointer' because he missed the event. Just as in Formula One and numerous other sports, if a competitor misses a race or an event, he loses his chances to earn points.

there is a dispensation if a player has been injured for 6 months...but needs to be verified by a doctor plus.....i think they cant have played any tournys during that 6 months...but am sure cheryl/ricky/any one else will confirm.....

just wait tho' topdog......tomorrow is a new day.......

I still can't believe he lost to Hewitt. Granted Hewitt was once a great player, is a great player in history but in top form....eh. I hope he feel well in his match against Wawa.
I'm still for Fed but I like Nadal, far more than I like Murray. I don't want to see Fed versus Murray, I want to see Fed versus Nadal.

Here is the rest of the article from above

In his first service game, which lasted four deuces and eight minutes, he bent low to flick a volley winner and also ran around court during a 17-shot rally.

But as the contest progressed, Nadal and his camp began to get more and more worried.

By the time the match finished, Nadal looked world weary and barely resembled the man who ended Roger Federer's five-year reign at Wimbledon last July.

yeah...topdog...sorry...that should have been for mdmuch......

i absolutely want rafa to play wimby....he is a fighter and a g-r-e-a-t player.....am sure he was just testing the water today...so not putting too much store on what happened...he aint gonna go 'all out' in his first exhib...he gonna be tentative...but just feel that he will play....i dunno why....so tomorrow brings a new day and wait and see i guess......

wimby and tennis needs and wants rafa...s-i-m-p-l-e...am not forgetting federer...just respecting the rafa.....

C'MON!
Allez federer!

TopDog that sounds terrible! I believe a second and perhaps even a third opinion is required here. After all this is only one person's point of view.

Sky

There are some other articles but i didnt bother to post it up because they pretty much siad the same thing. Leaden looked laboured blah blah blah was suffering strain in both knees blah blah blah. Just hope that he plays much better tomorrow. Was more upset about the fact i couldnt watch the match here i the UK.

From RN.com

HURLINGHAM TEST

"Rafa played an exhibition match today against Lleyton Hewitt at the Hurlingham Club where he lost 64 63.

"I love to play at the Hurlingham Club. Today was as close to reality as I could get. It was a real test. I will come back and play again and then make my decision about playing at Wimbledon or not"

Rafa will hold a press conference tomorrow after his match.

There will be no further news today.

Many thanks"

Thanks TopDog for that article! I guess all the "hype" is causing Rafa not to be able to bend his knee like he needs to. He carted a planeload of physio equipment to help with his knee and it doesn't look like it's helped as much as he wanted it to. For all us Rafa fans, we can only hope that tomorrow goes well and his decision is the right one for him. Waiting for the official news instead of speculating (like evryone else seems to be)is a sign that we live in the reality of TODAY. We know that Rafa is one of the greatest players ever and admire him regardless of rank or title count!!!! We care about his health BEFORE all that stuff! All you who have been so petty, calling all the news about Rafa's knees "nothing but spin", "hype" or "playing mind games" can keep on all you want. It just reflects badly on you.

What do you think F4T 50/50 he will play or 100.
By the way what happend with Baghdatis do you know the story behined that.
Also guys monfils is already out with an injury to the wrist,hope he is the last person to pull out.

fan4tennis can you just take a chill pill please...........

you will remember .........am sure................ that rafa played an exhibition match in january this year......and lost to murray.....(had sore knees then)....he then went on to win the Australian Open.....so i think before you start harking on about spin, hype, or playing mind games (and don't tell me that that didn't cross your mind)...you have been the one banging on and on giving excuses left, right and centre.....and even some of the rafa fans have wished that uncle toni would shut the f.up....so actually believe it or not..its not all about YOU and how YOU feel....fyi...there are alot of fed fans out there (me, sky and zoey, i think also torres and raftafan that WANT rafa to play)...

we respect him as a player and we certainly don't wish anything bad on him at all...which I have to say is more than YOU have ever offered on this forum with your sly innuendos and pretence about federer...always offering laced sarcasm and you flippin' well know it...so don't deny it fft...we 'true' tennis fans want rafa to come out and play the game of tennis....despite what you may want to think...so just give it a rest please....

Hope Raf. is OK. About Bagdatis, think he's out of Wimbles as has had an op.

malty: Why don't you do what you wish Uncle Toni would do? When Rafa played the exho in January, he was at the END of the 2 MONTH rehab, so this is not the same thing no matter how you try to twist it (will remind you that it has only been 18 days this time). And I can honestly say, that thinking all this news about Rafa's knees.......NOT ONCE DID I THINK IT WAS HYPE, SPIN OR MIND GAMES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

TopDog: Baggy was seen by 3 docs in Holland and MRI'd and it is a pulled tendon. He says he is in pain, and he can stand, but can put no pressure on his knee but he is trying to keep his spirits up but Wimby is totally out of the question. I went on his own website to find that news. As far as Rafa, I would say I am at a 50-50 with him playing Wimby. If he can't bend his knee to get lower on the grass, then I can't see him going thru 7 matches at Wimby. His practices (one was with Murray) have been light with lots of breaks, so it is not like he played full throttle for 3 hours like some imply.

I think it is disgusting that 'people' here are making fun of Rafa by acting like he is lying......and by saying its all spin, hype or mind games is saying the same thing as that it's a lie about his knee being injured. Tho I truly don't think Baggy will be subjected to that because he isn't fed's nemesis.

I will add that zoey is the only fed fan that not been petty about Rafa's knees!

Thanks F4T. :)

Where did you hear of an operation deuce? I hope he is okay. He did say on his website that he planned on coming back, that he would return to tennis. Hope he can!

no one is saying that rafa is lying....no one......the whole friggin' world knows that rafa has had sore knees forever.....if his uncle is coming out and saying a whole load of stuff about rafa without rafa knowing (cannot see that)....then uncle toni should be keeping schtum until rafa himself gives the presser......

i do think that what uncle toni has said has been designed to put the heebee gee bees up every other tennis player out there...to 'take them off their guard so to speak'...because i have NEVER EVER heard a coach come out and be so blunt about their own player's condition and to come out and say to the whole tennis world that your own player's confidence is l-o-w...is unheard of? I mean have you fft? seriously? have you? cos that is just plain Kooky to me...... It is the strangest thing to say about the world No. 1...don't you think? or is it just me that thinks it is just weird, weird, weird? to undermine your own player and tell the whole world about it? unreal.....

I dont think that rafa would be playing his 'all guns blazing tennis' against hewitt......i think he will be 'feeling' out his game....getting used to the court, his shots, how he feels with his mobility.....i really do...i would not expect any player to go out 'all guns blazing'....too risky...especially with rafa in the knowledge that he has sore knees...but you seem fft to be totally surprised at this? I mean the guy has been playing with sore knees forever.....it is a condition he has that will stay...will be better some days...not so....other days...as i have said before...it is all about management and rafa is paying the price.....he chooses the tournys and may be this is his 'wake up' call..who knows?

i guess everyone will just have to wait until tomorrow to find out...all of this is just speculation.....but all true tennis fans will want him at wimby...all of us....but i think fft you are way over the top here....like some clucking hen.....calm down woman...you don't seem to have faith in your player...you seem to doubt him so soon....it's just weird to me that you are feeling this way.....he has the best advice, best of everything and yet you just think the worst....i don't get it...i really dont....

and by the way....there you go again..a littel dig at the end fan4tennis.....'he isn't fed's nemesis...' (may be you just don't realise you do it f4t?...)

i'll just remind you that the 'nemesis' was beaten at madrid by federer......you should go read that article which explains it much better than i can....so fed overcame that 6 weeks ago......

C'MON!
Allez Federer!

But that nemesis has beaten fed 13 times!

All your talk about this being "spin" or "hype" is the SAME thing as saying he is lying! The smart people on this site are going by what Rafa has said and what the match report was, and what his doctor has said. You seem very hung up on Toni (you post alot about him--lol), when everyone else is concentrating on the player. I repeat some of what I said in a previous post:
" That is why most of us refuse to speculate what will happen until we hear it from Rafa himself on Friday! I never thought refusing to speculate until an official statement was made would be a crime or show doubts of Rafa's abilities."

malty: "last night....pictures of rafa just having completed a THREE HOUR PRACTICE SESSION....that's a fact! Sore knees? I don't think so...so fan4tennis.....stop with your excuses please."

homos
ur comments about fed were very childish,and it just shows ur level..
and i agree with malty,zoey sky and the rest of the federites that we wouldlike to see nadal play at wimby but he knows better...
GO Roger Go...........
GO CHAMP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

yeah fan4tennis and jacqui balterio having had an interview with rafa straight after his THREE HOUR PRACTICE session said in a FACE TO FACE interview with a SMILE on his face...'my knees are ok...not perfect...but ok'.....so why should I not think that rafa is 'ok' when he says it straight to an interviewer fan4tennis? i

f he was r-e-a-l-l-y b-a-d and i mean reeallllly....bad...then how the hell could he play on them for 3 HOURS? you tell me?

so yeah..i'll repeat to you f4t..stop your friggin' excuses.....

I have not said that rafa was lying......i was referring to uncle toni giving the 'spin'....also please answer my question if you can.....dont you think it is weird that a coach comes out and tells the whole world that your player has lost confidence....have you ever heard that before?

zoey and I are different...so do try to stop comparing us...it's pointless....you and i don't get on..fact...that doesn't bother me in the slightest...what does is when you compare because it adds nothing......i could refer to other posters and compare you...but what's the point.....? childish really.....

yeah...and that nemesis that you keep referring to has been beaten MORE RECENTLY by federer and also by del potro, murray, and soderling this year...he is being beaten more often f4t and that is a fact....also...more times being no.1 than fed ever was......so your argument is lame to say the least...it's the last match that counts...that's what is in his head....

Uncle Toni doesn't sound too optimistic :
Nadal looked increasingly frustrated against the hard-serving Hewitt, repeatedly failing to get to balls he normally reaches and struggling with unforced backhand errors. He frequently muttered to himself in Spanish after missed shots and often had to rely on his top-spin forehand to escape trouble.

He did not speak to reporters, but uncle and coach Toni Nadal said it was still uncertain whether he can play at Wimbledon, which starts Monday.

Nadal plays another match Friday against Stanislas Wawrinka. Toni Nadal said the top-ranked player will decide after that. When pressed about Wimbledon, the coach did not sound optimistic.

?If it?s me, I?m [flying] to Mallorca,? he said, referring to the island where Nadal grew up.

First off molty:
Do you understand the difference between a "practice session" and a "match report?" I can provide you other articles where it states that his practice was light with lots of breaks. Several of them have been posted but obviously, you refuse to believe any of them--lol. TopDog and I also provided a few MATCH REPORTS against Hewitt. So what do you have to say about the actual MATCH REPORT? I notice you ignored that part in your response--lol.

Again, you focus alot on Toni. Do you have a thing for him or something? You always want to talk about him--lol.

I find it funny that in my one line comment ("I will add that zoey is the only fed fan that not been petty about Rafa's knees!") that you think I am comparing zoey to YOU out of ALL the fed fans out there. You weren't even mentioned!!!!!!

Fact is, Rafa is the best tennis player in the world, Roger isn't. Rafa has a 13-7 H2H against fed. Rafa won more titles on HC this year than fed. Rafa won more titles on clay this year than fed. If you want to hang all your arguments on ONE match ("it's the last match that counts"), that is truly pathetic!

Just so you know, this is certainly not the first time that Toni Nadal has spoken of loss of confidence in reference to his nephew. This is a very normal response from the Nadal camp; and honestly I can't think of any time when Toni's comments have been anything less then sincere.
I truly hope that Rafa can defend his wimbledon title; it will be a real shame if he is not there. So many injuried players ... way too much tennis. They spend so much of their lives developing their skill. I for one would rather see a little less tennis with healthy players (performing at their best).

I here you smr

I cant believe it Ljubicic has been injured and as of late he a been playing some fantastic tennis i love it that at his age he is still able to mix it with the young ones and i love the way he plays. Monfils Baggy and now Ljubicic (i think it unlikely that he will play at Wimbledon with the injury so recent). Its a real shame well good luck to the rest of the field.

Rafa's loss to Hewitt is worrying for me. I didn't watch the match but reading the match reports it didn't sound or look too good. :( I do hope it's just rustiness getting back on court after a long time and in a competitive environment even if only just a exhibition. It depends on how he plays Wawa today...if he loses to Wawa, I'm really all x.x

I have to say also that I'm quite burgh about Uncle Toni's comments. I know as smr says that's the usual Toni response, but it really wouldn't kill him to give Rafa some support rather than telling the press that "if it was him he'll fly back to Mallorca" I mean, wtf dude??

If we, simple fans who have never met or spent time with Toni and Rafa, can realize to take what Toni says with a grain of salt, don't you think Rafa, who DOES spend alot of time with him and has grown up with him, knows how his uncle talks? Kinda like the Uncle many have that always tells bad jokes but you just listen and nod your head and politely laugh. The way Toni talks has not stopped Rafa from achieving great heights in his career!

I get what you say, fan4tennis...but at the same time, I guess I am not comfortable with Uncle Toni constantly putting down Rafa in front of the PRESS and at a time when Rafa seems vulnerable and needs support, he implies that Rafa should give up Wimby and fly home. Empty talk or not, I just think it's...well, not nice.

But that is my opinion of course.

Look F4T, i am a Federer fan, but i think that wimbledon without Nadal is an incomplete party, it is not the same taste, is like a world cup without Brazil or Germany. When I say that Nadal is paying the price for his talent i dont say with a smile in my face, i feel sorry for him, and like the others Fed fans that you think are "evil" people wishing for your poor player to get hurt, i want him to play until the day he DECIDES to retire, i love to watch him play, i do it with a litle anger, but I still love it, he plays amazingly... but thinking objectively, you have to admit that his style puts to much pressure on his knees, His big muscle make his body heavier , he needs that arm to generate his top spin, he tryes to compensate his weight with a smaller right arm, but is not enough. His speed makes him able to reach balls most player wont even try to get, including Roger, but that also has a price on his knees. His strategy of destroyin physically and, thus, mentally, his opponent by geting back on court every winner wanna be, is frutrating and finally makes the opppnent collapse, but it puts more movements on his knees. So take a look: He has a very fit body wich brings power, but that brings extra weight, he has a very big left arm, but that puts tension to his shoulder, He is the fastest runner, but that brings extra flexing extension movements to his knees and ankles. His Top Spin push the opponent back, but to generate it he has to bend and that puts even more weight on his knees.. and last, but not least. His defensive tactics plus his top spin make him almost invincible because he doesnt make many unforced errors and has the ability to shoot winner from all over the place... but that also hits his knees, now multiply that for every single match he has ever played... and you will get the picture, No body is making fun of Rafa, no body wants him out, maybe we dont root for him, but we are not evil people who want him destroyed and humilliated. We want great tennis, and Rafa provides that for sure, beating or getting beaten by Federer... and about the toni nadal spin, I agree with Malt 1, players are celebrities and warriors, celebrities need public relationships, warrior need strategy to win, to prevail, so, yo need to fight even in your public relationships, the fact that Rafa has sore knees doesnt exclude the possibility of Toni`s declaration to be a spin..

Well said mdmch. Agree with you 100%. I'm not a Nadal fan either but still would love to see a Nadal-Federer final because they both bring excitement to the game no other pairing can.

i am federer fan,but i totally agree with mdmch,its very nicely summed up,.It would be nice if everyone would be sensible in their posts and express their opinions as mdmch has,rather than be insulting,childish and abusive...
Go Roger....
GO CHAMP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

mdmch, that was very well said. Too bad not all tennis fans are as level-headed as you are. :)

Agree with mdmch, I just wanted to add that I always predicted this would happen because no human can put that much torture on the body and be dominant for a long time. I remember Sampras said something like, 'He(Nadal) plays in a way that eventually something will break'

So very well said, mdmch. :) I'm first and foremost a Federer fan and will always be, but I admit that the Rafa/Roger rivalry makes tennis so much more interesting and exciting...so I am also a Rafa fan, and would never wish him ill. Someone has once said that tennis needs Rafa and Roger and I am in complete agreement.

I sincerely hope Rafa would be okay for Wimby. It just isn't right if he's not there.

WoW mdmch! Right ON! What a pleausre, and a treat to read your posts! You certainly have a gift for being insightful. You are also a GREAT communicator! :) I agree 100%, we all want a Healthy Rafa to play exciting tennis against Roger! Let's see what happens... Roger will be difficult to beat. I don't expect anyone will bring him down. He has left his heart at the doorstep of Wimbledon, and now he has come back to re-claim it!!! Roger is VERY READY! READY INDEED! Go FEd go! Aller Roger! Aller!!!

I have NEVER said that Rafa's style of play would not result in problems with his knees. What I do take umbrage with is when others claim his problem is all hype and spin, when he is clearly physically impaired.

I, along with the other Rafa fans, would LOVE to see Rafa at his best playing Wimby and winning his second trophy! It hurts us to think that he is in pain and trying so hard to be fit to play. We have said over and over that we want him better regardless if it means he loses his ranking. We have been taking it one day at a time and tomorrow is the big decision. Many of us refuse to speculate until then, but are met with comments like "Sore knees? I don't think so" (malty) and "totally didn't buy the knee problem since day 1. I think Nadal ego cant take a defeat on dirt " (tennislover), "I know Roger is on the decline and Rafa may be hurt(I don't really think so) " (recordbreaks).
When people make comments like that, expect someone else to respond!

mdmuch...thank you for agreeing with me.....i too, enjoyed reading your post.....
jyannis...i agree with you about uncle toni...it's nice to read that a rafafan can be objective for once.....

fan4tennis....third request...no reply from you.....i'm not going to push it because you are becoming hysterical now....you have had....what? three posts about rafa....including cheryl's and you still bang on about it....you are becoming borderline mad....i think i am your nemesis.....you must have spent hours cutting and pasting comments from everyone......

THREE HOUR PRACTICE SESSION...fact...INTERVIEW with Jacqui Balterio (sky sports) AFTER practice session...

smr...you said he didn't give an interview after the practice session? he did.....because i watched it on the clip thursday morning....with my own eyes believe it or not!

anyway......we all wait to hear what is going to happen to rafa and i, for one, believe that he will play......and i look forward to that.

C'MON!
Allez Federer!

malty:"fan4tennis....third request...no reply from you.....i'm not going to push it because you are becoming hysterical now....you have had....what? three posts about rafa....including cheryl's and you still bang on about it....you are becoming borderline mad....i think i am your nemesis.....you must have spent hours cutting and pasting comments from everyone......"

Check the name of this thread and you'll see it matches what I have been talking about. Calling me hysterical and borderline mad (which only makes me crack up laughing) does not change the name of the thread.

fan4tennis...i am going to do a 'you' now as you are the queen of cut n' paste.....

I agree with Malt 1, players are celebrities and warriors, celebrities need public relationships, warrior need strategy to win, to prevail, so, yo need to fight even in your public relationships, the fact that Rafa has sore knees doesnt exclude the possibility of Toni`s declaration to be a spin..

fourth request....can you please now answer me? I'm glad i make you laugh f4t...you'd made me laugh when you said 'rafa is the best'..i think we all know it's roger...am not gonna list the stats here...it would take .........t-o-o.....l-o-n-g.....

you see..the thing is...i actually SEE who you are fan4tennis...(forgive me...)...but i think 'we know each other's game pretty well now)....you are someone who constantly attacks..(no need to cut n' paste here..i can read).....yet when asked questions you do not answer them.....seems to me that apart from what i have said...you disagree with mdmuch....and the other recent posters...smr....jyannis...so i know the name of the thread...thank you for reminding me...but you will also be aware that conversations take twists and turns......depending on what someone says.....

i will respond to you...am just on my way to work and will catch you around 9am..tho' you may be in bed?

I see who you are f4t......

C'MON!
Allez Federer!

What question do you want answered?

I never once said I disagreed with mdmuch, smr or jyannis's posts so please do not assume you know what I think.

YOU are the one who claimed I posted about Rafa 3 times (GASP!) and kept banging on about it ("you have had....what? three posts about rafa....including cheryl's and you still bang on about it"). What do you suggest we talk about in this thread since YOU don't like me talking about Rafa and his knees (again...look at the title of this thread)?

Rafa IS the Number One Tennis Player In The World! (FACT)That means he is the best since 8-18-08! Your statement of "you'd made me laugh when you said 'rafa is the best'..i think we all know it's roger" showed your disrespect of Rafa's achievements!

fan4tennis....you answer questions with questions....not good.....you are avoiding them.....

i have NEVER been disrespectful to rafael nadal....EVER...could you say the same? No. Categorically no...many times you have been disrespectful to roger....no need...no need........Just because rafa is world No.1...does not mean that I cannot say that Roger is the best (in my view)....you didn't say in your previous post that rafa was the best AND world No. 1...you just added that and you know it! you are one squeaky lady fft...you said that rafa was the best (of course...in your view...he is....of course...in my view...a fantastic player.....)...the best? not for me....the best is Roger and will always be.....

you say to me what question do you want answered? i have asked you fft....4 times now..(this is the 5th)...go back and read my posts and answer it.....i don't want to keep cutting and pasting.....because you are doing this as a delaying tactic....i see who you are...fft....

from mdmuch....

I agree with Malt 1, players are celebrities and warriors, celebrities need public relationships, warrior need strategy to win, to prevail, so, yo need to fight even in your public relationships, the fact that Rafa has sore knees doesnt exclude the possibility of Toni`s declaration to be a spin..

my question: to help you...but please don't keep asking me to do this....(implicitly)...

this was the question i directed to you a while ago and repeated...about whether you thought it was weird that uncle toni (and no...fft...he is a bit old for me and i don't fancy him as you suggested earlier...but i do like dark 'swarthy' looking men..just a bit younger....tho' i could make an exception for George Clooney!).....

fan4tennis...who has said that rafa is 'faking' it? No one...I think you are suffering from the same blindness that you accuse the federer fans of.....rafa has had tendinitus for years....years....he has even said that himself......

and if his uncle wants to say a lot more in the media about his nephew than he ever has..why do you think this is? Try to be objective here...

question: have you EVER in your experience as a tennis fan...EVER heard a coach come out and say that their player is having a 'confidence crisis?' ......is feeling 'low'.... i mean it's just unreal.....' that was my question to you....

Nobody said he was faking it but U.Toni made a big fuss about it and some people say it started in Miami. That is not so logical since he went on to win 3 titles on clay after Miami.

No.1 rankings is temporary. Marcelo Rios was no.1 once, does this mean at the time he was no.1, he was better than Sampras? No way.

torres...i don't think you meant me? (above?)...but just in case you did...i NEVER said rafa was 'faking' it....i said uncle toni was using 'spin'.....i think that i have made myself clear here so I'll copy what mdmuch said re: my comment (which is shorter).....

mdmuch.....

I agree with Malt 1, players are celebrities and warriors, celebrities need public relationships, warrior need strategy to win, to prevail, so, yo need to fight even in your public relationships, the fact that Rafa has sore knees doesnt exclude the possibility of Toni`s declaration to be a spin..

cheers!
C'MON!
Allez Federer!

f4t? re info re Bagdatis. R u American? Only ask cos I get almost all of my info. either from Guardian newspaper or BBC TV/website.

Malteser1 the quote I used referred to the exhibition match he played with Hewitt.

fft...driving home tonight...sports channel....confirming that rafa was 'put through his paces with stan...and performed well'...he is giving a press conference at 7pm (UK time).

So wait a minute...lemme get this straight.....
Rafa was suffering yesterday and could not bend knees...uncle toni was telling him: bend your knees and Rafa was looking forlorn saying, "I can't." And a day later Rafa performs well?

What a crock...drama queens.....spin, spin, insurance policies and very clever....

I won't fall for their act again. If his knees were as bad as all that he should not play. No further sympathy form me. End of story. There is no glory in that sorry spin.

hi zoey babe...how are you? just having a bite to eat but saw your post....have posted the same on the other thread....(just repeated below).....but i just cannot see that rafa would not be playing......

going back to fed....i am really pleased that things are low key with him right now....am sure things will pick up in the next couple of days....there is so much on murray....he been modelling his 'new green..fred perry kit?' he even looked as if he had his hair curled into tiny tight sausage curls on his head...(very...mrs. curley in of mice and men!)... with a powdered nose and 'full on' interview afterwards...ugh! enough already!...'when' he gets to final..........argh! stop! stop! all the hype.......he very confident right now...said...'I only got to play 7 matches and then am there!' no more!

Fed Rocks! Fed rules! He is just the best...pure visualisation with that man right now zoey...pure..pure...pure....catch you later lovely........

this was the post on the other thread......
guys....trust me....fedfans feel your pain......absolutely 100% adore, support and will forever be l-o-y-a-l to the fed....but absolutely respect the rafa....

I believe he will play...i think you are forgetting one thing....the rafa is a
w-a-r-r-i-o-r...he is someone who is a........ f-i-g-h-t-e-r...these two exhibitions were required to 'help' rafa assess his game.....i don't see if he was really really bad...how on earth could he run around the court? makes... N-O......S-E-N-S-E.....to me!

he ran around really well.....he played excellent tennis...he really did...he was a lot more mobile than he was yesterday (all reported on fivelive sports channel in the uk...on 'the mighty drive'...for any of you out there who will know the sports channel......he said he was 'happier' with his game....now..i am NOT making this up..why would i do that?

So i think that you just have to remember that your guy is a warrior and not someone who is gonna give up so easily...surely...you know he is used to this...the world tennis world is used to this....so....not that it means much to you.....i cannot see that rafa would not play? it's the suspense that is the worse for you...but why don't you believe in him a bit more? Look at the score line...it was hardly 3 bagels was it? close first set....split a hair in the second set...and hell...look at the third...it had to go that far? c'mon guys! he is fighting and he is fighting well!

Plus...i a-l-w-a-y-s enjoy rafa/roger rivalry..of course i will be rooting for roger...every single time...but i love the battles between these two...it's what tennis is all about...(for me anyway)....

have some faith!

C'MON!
Allez Federer!

All the drama, build-up and antics is just gutless and no glory. So what miracle pond did he soak the knees in ?

No more empathy and sympathy for them. Maybe Uncle Toni should have an Oscar for best lead up performance by a coach to a Grand Slam.

hey zoey chick....9 minutes to go before the presser...

will post it here unless someone else does first....

mwah!
C'MON!
Allez Federer! rock..rock...rock......ya body.....!

THANK GOD. I was ready to disown my affection for Rafa and especially his uncle coach.

Maybe Rafa will have the time now to fully recover and prepare for hard courts. No way, if his knees were going to hold up otherwise.

f4t? re info re Bagdatis. R u American? Only ask cos I get almost all of my info. either from Guardian newspaper or BBC TV/website.
deuce
, 6/19/09 1:57 PM

Yes deuce, I am American. I got the little info on Baggy that I shared from Baggy's website. Wish him the best!

From what I've heard about the draw, is that Murray was in Rafa's half. Now that Rafa cannot play, I hope Murray can keep the crown at home like he did at Queens. Rafa's announcement is a disappointment but at the same time, not that unexpected. His health is far more important than any title or ranking!

ESPN article: No. 1 Nadal withdraws from Wimbledon

Rafael Nadal won't play in Wimbledon this year as he continues to battle knee soreness.



Nadal

"I'm better than I was a few weeks ago, and I just don't feel ready," he said in Spanish Friday at a news conference.

Nadal dropped his third straight match Friday, an exhibition loss to Stanislas Wawrinka in London.

"I don't feel 100 percent to play in two weeks," he said.

Nadal also lost an exhibition Thursday to Lleyton Hewitt in straight sets in the world No. 1's first match since falling to Robin Soderling in the fourth round of the French Open.

Nadal has struggled with knee problems for months and missed last year's Davis Cup final after he was diagnosed with tendinitis in November.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

rafafans...take heart....he is young, massively talented...he needs the rest...this is rafa's game....he has hardly missed any tennis tournaments...always playing full pelt, full on tennis....this is his time now to rest...to come back and play 100%...your champ will be back...if he did not take this decision now...that would be the end of his career...so whilst you are sad..remember that in 2 months time he is gonna be the 'freshest player out there'......

all the best..

lol
some people are so quick to judge others not suprising.
Zoey i'm glad you got the proof that you wanted. But as a true rafa fan i would still have support and believed in Nadal and his uncle had he decided to continue to play at Wimbledon.

topdog....of course you would have supported your man....it would have been exactly the same if it had been roger (for me)...you must be gutted...and trust me.....this will not feel like wimbledon should feel...i am going there on tuesday and was hoping to get nadal's auto g...but hear he is going back to spain tonight....i don't know how i would feel if that was roger...just awful.....we all wait as fans...don't we....for 'our player' to hit the next tourny and when this happens it is just soul destroying......

i think tho' there has been so much build up to this....it has been the weirdest presser from uncle toni ever...no matter what anyone says....i guess at the end of the day.....it is ONLY the doctor that can advise.. and if he is saying that should rafa play wimby (which he could have)...then he would be risking the whole of his tennis career...that would just not be the right thing for him (of course)....the rivalry with rafa will continue when he is returned to full fitness....i would also think that this is a b-i-g....w-a-r-n-i-n-g for him topdog...that 'he' and 'he alone' needs to manage his tennis schedule this year more wisely...he was the one player that played more tournys than everyone else..and he is now paying the price...if he is to continue at the top level...something about his training/no. of tournys will simply h-a-v-to change....

I'm sure zoey will speak for herself...but i have been surprised at the suspense/build up leading to rafa's decision.....it is not usually like this....i think that was her point....

TopDog, for some reason you do annoy the hell out of me which probably is your intent tho u always project such a pure, innocent holier than thou personna. I let it all hang out and if you go way up and read, I was giving Uncle toni and esp. Rafa the benefit of doubt, going aginst the advice of my own friends here, which you are not. Now as time lagged on and on and this knee drama,
which to me was straightforward from Rafa's press conf. after losing to Soderling at RG. I am not a Rafa hater, I like him off court and not as much on court. His presence in tennis is vital to the game and I hope genuinely that he takes care of his body so he can continue...beyond that, I am a Federer fan, a federite. Don't go being all high and mighty with me just because I do not meet your standard for a Rafan. Yes I would have thought bull shit about Toni and Rafa, after all the drama the past 2 weeks. The proof of this being legitimate injury is
in Rafa's withdrawal.

NADAL WITHDRAWS FROM WIMBLEDON
Friday, 19 June 2009

Written by Byron Vale

Rafael Nadal has announced he will not defend his Wimbledon title.

The world number one and top seed had said after the French Open that he would not play Wimbledon if he was not 100% and so it has come to pass.

"I?m here and I'm just not 100%. I'm better than what I was a couple of weeks ago but I don?t feel right," Nadal told a packed press conference on Friday evening at the All England Club.

"To not play Wimbledon is one of the toughest decisions of my career."

After suffering a shock defeat in the French Open to Robin Soderling, Nadal received treatment on his knees in Barcelona and skipped the tradition Wimbledon warm-up at Queen?s in an effort to be fit for The Championships. He was diagnosed with tendinitis in both quadriceps tendons as well as a small amount of fluid on the kneecaps.

"I tried everything. I didn't feel terrible but also not close to my best. When I enter a tournament my goal is winning and my feeling right now is I'm not ready to win.

"It's very painful for me but I can't play at the tournament this year. It's tough but it is what it is."

Nadal's absence will cause a reshuffle in the men?s singles draw. Nadal's place will be taken by fifth seed Juan Martin Del Potro. Del Potro's place will be taken by the 17th seed James Blake. Blake's place will be taken by Jose Arguso of Argentina and a lucky loser will fill Arguso's spot.

Nadal revealed that he had been playing with considerable pain and he didn't know how long he would be out of tennis. But he said he expected to fully recover from his knee problems and that he would have a "long career".

"I played with some problems on the on the knee for the last few months. I've been making efforts to play week after week. The truth is that sportsmen always play with pain and don't know where the limit is, where you can get to. I think I reached that limit now.

"I will work very hard to comeback as soon as possible. One of the problems is I?m thinking more about the knees than what is happening on court and it?s very difficult to play like that."

When Nadal was asked about his many fans and how disappointed they would be that he was not appearing at Wimbledon, the 23-year-old replied: "no more than me".

Nadal also said he was not concerned that his absence would open the door for Roger Federer to reclaim the number one world ranking. "If I lose the number one ranking I?m going to accept it like the four years I was number two and work hard to improve and recover."

Topdog.....as you see...zoey has answered for herself!

But i think you also have to acknowledge that some of the rafafans too had their doubts....(below)...it's not just fedfans....it did go on for far too long....will he/won't he....but we all......wish rafa the best.......s-i-m-p-l-e...

agree with malt on this one, seems to me Uncle Tony is doing a bit of spinning, though why I can't think. And why say he's lacking confidence!! Daft. Either Rafa is fit to compete or he ain't. We'll know by end of week it seems, so end of........
(deuce)

In my opinion, I always take everything Uncle Toni says with a huge grain of salt. If Rafa isn't saying anything, I ain't believing anything.

I don't know, I'm a bit skeptical of Uncle Toni's comments that Rafa is suffering from lack of confidence. Rafa is known for his mental toughness on tour and I am sure the loss won't set him back as much as Uncle Toni would like everyone to believe (for some reason). (Jyannis)...

Zoey...chill babe.....we have wimby to look forward to...with all its twists and turns...and its only just started.........keep the faith girl..u is w-o-n-d-e-r-f-u-l...........
we gonna have to stick together b-i-g-t-i-m-e when the trashers come on soon to put their 2 pennies worth in....i-g-n-o-r-e............i-g-n-o-r-e..........i-g-n-o-r-e.........

sky...you okay buddy?
torres, fedex...gorafago...(where 'go' you?....)
fedfans unite!
C'MON!
Allez Federer!
et's get

Zoey trust me i wouldnt want someone like you as a friend and i have never professed to be holier than thou. If that is the persona i give off and you do not like it that is your problem it does not affect me in the slightest your issue so deal with.

TopDog, likewise to you, so you stay out of my posts and do not refer to me and I will not address or refer to you. I was in all sincerity supporting Rafa, if you can read...until he was going to enter the tournament which would have cast a shadow of doubt all over the knee issue. And your quick response to me only confirms what I suspected of your duplicitous character.

topdog..you are completely wrong about zoey...she is an absolute gem of a girl and poster......totally cool......try make up please.....

Thank you for your reply i am glad the situation has been clarified. I will not refer to you or address you in any of my post and like wise on your part also.

And in reply to your last sentence your words hold not weight a far as i am concerned and does not affect me in the slightest......you do not know me therefore i can not give a care in the world what you post up here about me it does not affect any aspect of my life. Not everyone or anyone is going to like me on this site and i accept this is i am not perfect have never professed to be. However this does not bother me as i am not here to make friends with anyone. I accept your judgment of my character as everyone is entitled to there opinion and i do not care to change anyones opinion on this site.

Have fun conversing with your fellow fed fans and who ever you wish to converse with. And i will do the same. I will not reply any of your post or address you as we agreed upon.

Well, well, so be it then. Never intended to muss up one jot of your perfect high and mightiness....TOPDOG

You have fun in your narrowly ordered but carefree way....and you adressed me today, I did not address
you, so shove off.

Well said TopDog! Certain posters keep going on about the long drawn out "drama" when it was in fact only 2 weeks since he announced a problem with his knee when he withdrew from Queens. He would have been better off I guess, to have an exact injury that gives you an exact timetable of healing. Everyone knew he was undergoing therapy (which takes time). Many Rafa fans said to take what Toni said with a grain of salt and to just wait to see what Rafa himself said. They didn't listen. It's a shame when a withdrawal is the only way a "true tennis fan" will believe a player. ("The proof of this being legitimate injury is
in Rafa's withdrawal. "zoey234 , 6/19/09 9:19 PM )

Malteser1 *sigh* everyone is entitled to thier opinion and i do not wish to change it.

There are billions of people in this world i cant make everyone happy. And i cant not allow people to get under my skin and i WILL NOT allow it. The profession i plan on going into is very tough i will most likely meet a lot of people that i dont like but also dont like me and that is fine. I am might be young but there are things i just dont have time for. I guess it is just my perspective on life. To short to waiste it on anyone and anything (accept for family and friends obviously lol). So thank you for trying to me a mediator but as you can see things have already been agreed upon and arranged and i am one to stick to my word.

Much appreciated though.

topdog...silly..silly...silly......

am surprised actually....am gonna put my unwanted oar in here i am afraid...fan4tennis! show ya courage and ya mettle woman! you always p-r-a-i-s-e-d ZOEY in the past...why you not doing so now? PLUS woman! you still haven't answered my question! post haste! please! 6th time now! It was a drama! jyannis et al...rafa fans also said so! stop being so pernickity! be objective! not good fan4tennis..not good...i am as much to blame any person on this thread! spin! spin! spin! that's what i said...sore knees is something rafa a-l-w-a-y-s plays with...this time (not even YOU fan4tennis...no...not even YOU..)...could have guessed what Doctor would say...'if rafa plays wimbledon...he will risk the rest of his tennis career'...

so why play 3 hour practice session....3 hours...r-e-p-e-a-t...3 hours....why say...'i feel ok..not perfect...but ok'....is rafa being too much of a perfectionist? is he more accepting now that he just played too many matches this year...? be reasonable rafafans....
topdog....you and zoey have been sooooo coooolll together in the past...don't wreck it! am not being a mediator! just re-assess your position....topdog...fan4tennis and i do not get on...at all...she dodges all my questions..never straight...always running from them...you wait...she will come on this thread soon and cut n' paste this n' that..she the queen of cut n' paste!

Fan4tennis.....c'mon!

zoey...you is tops! mwah!
C'MON!
Allez Federer!

You are still referring to me....miss priss. As if you are sooo much better, Your life is sooo much more important and worthy, eh? You think you can take a sly jab and then be oh so above it? You will not do well as a lawyer or whatever.

So stick to your word and don't go begging for help from...sigh.....whoever.

DROP it....as you started it!

Zoey showed her true feelings:
"The proof of this being legitimate injury is in Rafa's withdrawal. "zoey234 , 6/19/09 9:19 PM

Last post ever to moldy: You said "and fan4tennis... do NOT come on this post spouting 'I told you so'...this has got NOTHING to do with YOUR comments whatsoever.....it is the DOCTOR's ADVICE....." YOU are the only one saying "I told you so"

TD: I am like you. I know there are great, fair, objective fed fans out there but life is too short to waste my time with idiots like molty and zoey. You and I can still talk about Rafa, since we seem to feel the same way about him and what drew us to him.

WTF is wrong with you FFT. Yesterday, you hold me as an example of goodness and today.....scum of earth because I am of the opinion that Rafa, after all the hullaballoo legitimizes said hullaballoo , scientific term there, by doing what is best for his body and with drawing. I would have been pissed for reasons, maybe altruistic ones FFT, if he continued on and would have jeopordized his career long-term. I am not a wicked person, not a saint, not at all. AND I am a federite, so are you.....secretly!

Malteer1 if u look at the history of the thread you will see that i was not the one who came up with the arrangement and because I am easy I easily enough agreed. Dont worry......it is of no huge loss to anyone Malteser1 if we do not converse with each other (and i dont even think were referred or posted direct to each other that much anyway prior to this incident).
Me I accept and move on.... that is life (same with nadal out of Wimb i accept and move on as dwelling on it will change nothing). She might decide to speak to me in the future but that is her choice. But one of my flaws is that i can bear a grudge childish i know but that is just me. (I am still young so i have many more years to mature in this aspect) I do not like judgments of peoples character and personality especially if you do not know them and for on to be directed at me i do not take lightly again my character. Anyway everyone is entitled to thier opinion and views.

SO lets forget ths whole issue and get on to tennis.

Who do you see winning wimby Fed-Murr-Djoko or an unknown.
I can guess who you will say but still i would like speak about something else lets not bore the other readers on here with silly issues or problems or whatever it is that has occurred.

MISS PRISS must have last word...you started it babe and if you continue on referring to me in your snide way through other posters, well that does not constitute our arrangement. Now if you wish to apologize, I might accept. lol but I highly doubt that so stop it!

gorafago...come back!!!!! mdmuch!!!! give a wise owl's view!

fan4tennis..you are THE most insulting poster here...you NEVER answer questions....you are a coward! so go cut n' paste that queen of cut n' paste....you don't answer as you have no answers...tippy toes side stepping here and there and you know it...i see who you really are fan4tennis...and i can tell you..(and I say to you topdog...beware of f4t...she is a woman of many faces.....)

topdog...well...i think wimby now is wide open...like it was with RG when rafa went out in fourth round to soderling.......

Ricky/Cheryl! your views please...but i guess an analysis of the draw will be forthcoming soon enough!

I think topdog that roger will have some great matches..but he will have to start playing great tennis from the start...no time to 'warm up' and then jump into first gear when he hits the fourth round...when his game starts coming together.....he will be aware of this.......he will come out aggressive, all guns blazing i feel....he will feel empowered because of FO and i feel at the same time...mindset wise...he will feel more at ease with his game (not relaxed...don't get me wrong)...but more at ease in himself...he will have re-established his aura i feel.....the guys out there will still be saying...NOT.....ooohhhhh aaaahhhhh.....c-a-n-t-o-n-a........but...oooooohhhhh.....aaaaaahhhhh.. ..f-e-d-e-r-a-r.........but he is gonna have to be on his guard....

murray fancies his chances...he on a real high...3 masters series...this year...waiting for his first slam......novak...gone quiet right now...he working on his game and feel he needs to work on his attitude a little more.......

but del potro and the others all in with a sniff....it is exciting but i was looking forward to a rafa/roger final....have to say.......love to watch g-r-e-a-t...t-e-n-n-i-s....

i love 'newcomer' monaco.....he a little terrier on the court....i don't know whether he playing this tourny...but i will check...i love him....

i also love marco bagdhatis...my homeboy from cyprus...but looks injured....tho' not sure how serious...my dad will be gutted...he loves marcos as do the whole of
L-i-m-a-s-s-o-l...

MAKE UP TD! and watch your back with FFT!...she will be ready with her acid tongue when you disagree! (good rhyming slang?).

Cheers fedfans!
zoey...mwah! babe...
C'MON!
Allez Federer!

F4T

I miss remi. Such a nice lady I hope she comes back. Well i hope she reads this and comesback. lol
I think i will continue posting on Nadals other thread want to see what the other Nadal fans have said and converse with one or two if they interest me. Would you like to join me F4T????

Malteser1 I will comeback to check if you do wish to reply my question just for fun or you can post it on Nadals other thread if you so wish. Your choice but i will continue to check just in case you do reply here.

And Malteser1 your post seems to be directed at me alone. I suggest you also advice your friend I think she needs it more.
i'm off F4T you know where to find me.

TopDog, in reference to your question about who will Wimby now, I am reposting part of an article where Borg and JMac (the greats) talked of Andy's chances:

"Borg was full of praise for Murray, and even though Federer arrives from a French Open triumph, the Swede has a few reservations.

'Roger is the greatest player ever but I don't think he is playing quite as well as he was two years ago,' he said. 'I think there is still pressure on him because he wants that record of 15 Grand Slams.'

He thinks Murray will be able to withstand the extraordinary pressure of expectation. 'When I was asked last year I didn't think he was ready to win Wimbledon, but that has changed. Andy is mentally and physically very strong and I can't see any weaknesses.'

McEnroe, who will be sitting in the BBC commentary booth again this year, also talks up Murray's prospects. He said: 'He's got into Roger's head pretty good recently but Roger's a different guy on grass and Andy is going to have to throw the kitchen sink at these top guys. Something is giving a little bit with Roger, maybe just enough for Andy to think to himself, "Hey, maybe I can beat this guy at Wimbledon".

I think Fed will go deep but Murray has a great chance now to win his first slam!!! In front of a hometown crowd at that!

Top dog...you do not get it honey. you are still whinning about me through FFT or Malteser....oh poor little you..whaa. Forget about it....I do not exist okay and that's the best way....but next time you take a sly jab at
me....well, be prepared. I like tennis, you like tennis, but we do not talk tennis to each other until you grow up.

Thanks F4T
And Malteser1 I 100% Fed needs to go out all guns blazing.
And i cant agree more with you about Monaco the first time i saw him play i loved his game. I think he will also be a major threat for the future so the topguns should watch out. Have you heard of the young new Bulgarian i will find out his name as i have forgotten at the moment. HE will be a future No1 his game looks promising however due to his age and experience he is prone to silly errors but time will overcome this problem. He is a vey intriguing.

I saw marco bagdhatis at Queens I like his personality it is a shame he got injured again as he has just come back. He is going to have to go through the whole process again it cant be good for his morale. Poor guy.

top dog the bulgarian...i think you refer to grigor dimitriov (spelling may be wrong)...he looks like a younger federer? has the 'old' federer coach...Peter Lundgren....he is only 18/19 years old...plenty of time for him.

C'MON!
Allez federer!

I think the Bulgarian you're thinking of TD is Gregor Dmitrov. I agree that his game does show definite promise! A member of a site I belong to is Bulgarian and she is always talking about him and translating his interviews for us.

Is a shame about Baggy but his statements on his website sounded upbeat. I hope he keeps that up! This year we have had Moya and Nalby requiring hip operations (and they are still young), all sorts of knee, wrist, ankle, viruses, back, elbow and shoulder injuries to alot of the major players. I wish them all a speedy recovery!

Yeah just found it. lol
Grigor Dimitrov

Yes he looks like a young Fed but moves more like nadal he runs this way that way doesnt care the kid will go for the ball. (I'm starting to like him already). And i can't believe it but at queens he was literally sliding on the grass. But the kid literally has to find his feet i think because he is gangly his movements are a bit abrupt if you get what i mean.

I can see this kid as a future No1 one and with his looks well i'm sure he will be loved just as much as Nadal and Fed.

Me too F4T me too....especially to or Nadal wishing him all th best.