Rafa in 3.

VAMOS RAFA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

With you all the way......................!!!!!

Vamos Rafa!

RAFA FIGHT! RAFA FOCUS! You can beat Tsonga if you fight and work hard the way you always did! No sleeping time in this match, PLEASE! WE your fans believe in you! ALL THE WAY FOR THE VICTORY!

VAMOS RAFA!!!

If Rafa wins this, it will do his confidence a world of good

I think Djokos loss yesterday may spur him to give his best today as he knows he will not play Djoko in semis as Djoko can max finish 2 in his group

Good luck to Rafa! Go out there and fight and play your best and get the win!

Sanju: I follow your train of thought but Rafa WAS trying his best against Federer and look where that got him :-(

Expect a lot of long baseline rallies and it will be 50/50 who wins them but Tsonga is very impressive when he comes to the net which is something Rafa seems reluctant to do at the moment. Another concern is Rafa's serve which is way below par and although Tsonga's has not been as good as usual he is still acing his way out of trouble.

I hope I'm wrong but my head goes with Cheryl's prediction.

yes ed..I too think Tsonga is just way too hungry to win this and taht will mean trouble for Rafa..Also after the thrashing Rafa got on Tuesday..he will be very less confdent too..so yes on ppaer 80% probability is with Tsonga..but on court anything can happen :-)

I always want to wish Rafa good luck, but I just don't know what to expect in this match. My heart says one thing and my mind says another. Rafa will have to serve much better and be more aggressive. The bad thing about a loss like the one against Fed, is that it lets the other players know just how bad it is for Rafa now. Tsonga wants this in a big way and he may feel that this is the time to capitalize on a Rafa who is not in good form, not on a surface that plays to his strengths and not feeling confident.

Rafa always had an advantage in being so mentally tough and having the superior tennis mind on court, but right now I don't think that is the case. Tsonga has been playing some great tennis and has a history of being inconsistent, but I have this feeling that he knows this is his chance to get Rafa when he is down. I wish I felt differently, but I have to be honest.




Who thought that Ferrer would be the Spanish player to step up big time in this tournament? Watching him take down Djoker was something to see.

The other factor of course is Tsonga loves the indoor hard courts whereas Rafa is never at his best in these conditions.

Nadal committed very few errors against Federer. Tsonga is not a great baseliner. He is prone to commit the first error in a long rally. His attacking game revolves around serve, power packed winners especially inside out from the ad court. But his preferred serve from the deuce court is on T, which should not trouble Nadal as much as a wide serve. From the ad court, Tsonga prefers more wide serves to serves on the T. That too should not trouble a left hander as it may a right hander. On his part, if Nadal commits as few errors as he did against Federer and serves his usual 70 plus percentage, he can pip Tsonga. Tsonga's natural movement to the net is a beauty to watch, but then Nadal has the best passing shots. If Nadal turns up in the defensive mode, he is more likely to win against an attacker like Tsonga than if he comes out in attacking mode to commit abnormally high UEs.

Vamos Rafa and good luck. I hope you will have a good match and beat Tsonga. Your many fans will be with you win or lose.

If Rafa plays defensive tennis, he'll be blown off the court by Tsonga. Does anyone remember their match of 2009 Paris Masters? Rafa played poorly the whole tournament but once he faced Tsonga, he put up his best show and beat Tsonga 7-5,7-5. He approached the net often during that match and beat Tsonga there.

Rafa has to play his all court tennis to beat Tsonga, staying at the back of the court and defend is not the way to go; try making Tsonga go for too much as he's impatient and also inconsistent and he's bound to make a lot of errors.

My one concern is not knowing how Rafa's shoulder is, which will affect his serve. He said after his match with Federer that because he was being treated for his shoulder after his first match he did not have time to practice before the match with Roger.

T Songa in stright sets,
At present Rafa form is not good enough to beat Tsonga.
Rafa is also lacking confidence now

Rafa please stay off french fries and all french cuisine...........please!!!!!!!!!



Vamos Rafa!

nadline, LOL...

I feel Rafa should not continue to play if he has the slightest injury. With AO around the corner it is really abissmal that these guys are playing this torunament with injuries. Novak never played his game, neither did Rafa!!! It was plane to see!!! Could you imagine if Rafa and Novak were to both pull out after Andy did...............they just cant now.............so they have to go on playing and i just think its just NOT right!!!.......even Fish has injuries...........this WTF has been appauling this year with what these guys are going through..............terrrible!!!!!

Okay Rafa, here's the game plan: target Tsonga's rubbish backhand and you'll be fine........................yes, it's more rubbish than yours, trust me!

Monalysa: I rather agree with you. There are those who hold the view the WTF is the equivalent of a 5th Slam but I am not one of them. I have never been a fan of the RR format and I hate to see players knocking themselves to pieces when they are either exhausted or injured.

Beck and Sienna. Spare yourself the trouble of repeating all your arguments yet again: just accept that not everybody shares your opinion.

I quite like the RR formula, what I think is farcical is that players can come in in the middle of the tournament if someone pulls out, when it's clear that they have little chance of making it to the semis. With the knockout formula, if you play a bad match you have no means of having another chance so the RR is good.

It should have the status of an exhibition carrying no points.

ed, What are you talking about. I haven't posted in this thread.

"It should have the status of an exhibition carrying no points." lol

You should ask the question to Ferrer, Berdych or Tsonga. They all will play their hearts out of there sleave to get to the final. And ask Nadal, Djokovic Murray if they want to be in the Final? Well Nadal probably not because he doesnot want to be bageloniated by TMF

Eduard numbers now you have woken me up. I wil probaly stay on this thread and comentate on the match to come. I think it is gonna be a bobmshell

Sienna..you are tiring to be frank..Your non stop posts saying the same thing are getting on peoples nerves..You are entitled to enjoy Feds success but spare us your exalted opinions and thoughts reiterating the same again and again..We can read it once..not over and over again..You occupy too much space on the posts and in the quest to ignore readng your posts we may skip few genuine posts

Nadline thinksit should be exhibition with no points and Rafa comes underprepaired and mock with tennis history only for the money.
Besides just 3days ago she paid good money to see Rafa throw up and see his brown skit in his pants.
and two days ago she ordered that after the O2 contract it shouold be held in SA on clay.
She made that comment before the Rafa de(con)struction otherwise she would have known that Fed will have the upperhand even on clay. AFter witessing the complete humiliation she now resets her goals to completely ban the WTF from any ranking points.

Sanju thank you for the nice words. I have never read an interesting comment from you, so atleast have seen some of mine. Just stfu will you.

^^^^^^^cheryl, why is sienna allowed to swear at other posters like this?

what is wrong with stifle yourself?

O this is the Rafa thread. So I will repeat my comment from another thread here in order to reach as many Rafafans as possible.

I thought it might be nice to discus his relationship with T in all its facets.
I have seen that some Nadalfans are seriously touching the subject. So a few weeks ago I already embraced the issue. And well the Nadalclan did not take it light heartedly, but now there are some Rafa fans who share the same view. Maybe we could try and share our views about the T situation?

First a like to make a statement and lets see how we fair from that?

In order for Rafa to get forward or to get out of his slump he needs to break with T definitely.

Yes sienna u may never have read an interesting comment from me because you dont have the capacity to understand anything except your own rumble

you are a lost case..with zero substance..whose only aim in life is to make a fool of herself under the pretense that you are giving your exalted opinions..

and regardng your stfu comment..i wont even react to t as you deserve no importance anyway..get well soon is all i can say

Sienna, I remember you talking about this and I agreed (still do) that he has issues in his personal life which are affecting his game.

mojo..could be a possibility but its just a speculation as of now till we know the real facts..If its abt speculation it can only be about relationship between Uncle T and his parents as I have not seen them sitting together in matches recently ..i think regarding his parents, gf its all fine else they wouldnt be in his matches with him..

I think the book and disclosure of mixed feelings about UNcle T may have sumthing to do with it

Tsonga making intentions clear..he will go for broke in the match..

Rafa got out of jail on both his first 2 service games..

it's tough to watch Rafa palying the way he is playing now.

Tsonga is slaughtering Rafa's 2nd serve.

Rafa making way too many UE..his forehand is spraying many errors today

and surprise surprise Tsonga hardly making UE..hes holding most of his serves at 15

no wonder why Fed was able to beat Rafa so convincingly while losing sets to Tsonga and Fish...Rafa is playing such an awful tennis...c'mon Rafa!!! wake up!!!

Mojo.
between you and me of course I over did it a little bit "The Tony Nadal v Rafa tory", but there is some issue to clear up there.
Butitis a normalthing that happens in a life of a young men when he grows up. There comes a time where the young warrior has ebecome a man and needs tocut his bonds with his teachers. I feek thattime is already upon Rafa. But heis to nice to make drastic changes or decissions, because of family.

He needs to do it and go for it on his own. Even ifthat means he doesnotwin any slams it would be the right thing to do.He is not happy like this and burns down to fast.

Rafa's timing has gone to pot and he is way too defensive.

Sienna: He is caught between the devil and the deep blue sea and you're right it is not doing him any good.

Tsonga blows hot and cold...but still feels he is the favorit.
I like the Tsonga's dad.

If Nadal cannot solve the puzle then someone else has got to take a decission. Probably Tony himself.

Tsonga's dad of course

First set Tsonga..he deserved it as he was motre aggressive..I doubt Rafa will have the will to fight a 3 setter now

So well played by Tsonga in the tie breaker!

Can we expect a Bagel in the final set? :)

Might have guessed she would come out of the woodwork.

For sure you were putting it over in a jokey manner, but the essence of what you were saying is right.

1st set to Tsonga, Rafael dropping the ball short.

@natashao Ohh really? Federer has won against Nadal because Nadal is playing awful tennis?
By the way, what is Nadal's past record in the World Tour Final and what is that of Federer? People should think before writing craps here.

Simply shows how ignorant the poster is to make such a baseless comment!

The time was when Rafa chased down every ball. Now he seems to concede the point without even trying.

solitudine, you idiot, the key word is "convincingly"...shut up, will you!

Stop shaming about Rafa's level. He is playing a good match. Tsonga is in playing too good, that's all.

Tsonga is shit hot at to the net. I'm surprised he doesn't play more doubles.

Wow I really have neverever seen Nadal miss a passing shot like that.

Ed what is Tsonga at the net?

You heard!

Tsonga is super at the net. Rafa is missing passing shots (I think atleast 3-4 in the match) because Tsonga is so good at the net, he is intimidating Rafa

And I dont think Rafa is playing bad..yes hes not his usual great self as he can be..but hes not woeful in this match..hes okay..Its just that Tsongas serve is clicking very good and hes pouncing on short balls and has exquisite touch at the net..Yes Tsonga is 20% better than Rafa and thats making the difference

meanwhile the second set has shifted slightly towards Rafa.

Rafa is missing so many shots...this is not called good! not for Rafa's standards...not for WTF...

Rafa is playing much better right now. He will turn this match around, pretty sure about it.

nadal hanging in there. good for him. Thought it would be a massacre out there.

Rafa has picked up his game and Tsonga's level has dipped a little - particularly his serve.

natashao..Fed is playing at his best form of the year and he had trouble beating Tsonga..went to 3 and 6-4 in 3rd..Rafa is playing the worst he has this year..so ofcourse Tsonga has to be in drivers seat and call the shots

Vamos Rafa, no mater what!

Rafa is gonna take this match. (I hope) and he will reach the final.
Hopefully Fed will be waiting in finale.

Sienna what happ to you? you rooting for Rafa? thats a welcum surprise :-)

And why hopefully for Fed? Fed is clear fav ..the word hopefully cant be used for him in this tourney..hes playing the best of all 8 now..

Seeing a silver lining arent we? The point is Fed had ample trouble to beat Nadal.
The most lopsided victory in there matches to date it has been called by tennis watcher, pundits followers etc.

I just wish and hope Nadal reach the final and Fed will find the strength to be there.

guys..whoz that guy sitting next to Tony in every Rafa match?

Yes I do not want to become greedy. So Fed beating Djoker, and Rafa twice would be the icing on the cake for this year...

But he must reach for the final and then I feel he will be alright in that final. But with the focus he can have I have high confidence Just dont want to temper the tennis lords above. Although I might have done that already the last couple of days.

see whatever is outcome in this match..I will not be disappointed..as Rafa has atleast shown sum spark aganst a red hot Tonga compared to what happ on Tuesday against Fed..so atleast he can draw sum positive out of it

Yes Rafa and Tsonga play this game like an exhibition? They know nothing....

yes, that's the fighting spirit I was waiting to see...Vamos Rafa!!!

2nd set Nadal.

Vamos!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Told ya. Nadal was playing a good match. He will win it now

Rafa has picked up his game and Tsonga's level has dipped a little - particularly his serve.

Phew 1 set all..

Took Rafa his 4th set point to steal the set..well this just shows how a strong powerful serve can give u loads of free points..Tsonga got 3 huge first serves in and Rafa could barely return high and Tsonga crushed the volley

A powerful serve on hard court is what Rafa lacks sorely..He gets no free points at all

Emiliano..I am not so sure..Tsonga is serving ahead in 3rd..that will give him huge advantage

Oh Rafa serving first sorry

Rafa fights back, but mach is still on Tsongas racquet.
Tsonga is too hot, and he just feel that its his time. Rafa must outthink him!

sanju, the serve stays on alternate games through the sets except after a tie-break when the player who started serving second in that set will serve first in the following set irrespective of who served last in the tie-break.

Sorry about repeat post. Dont know how that happened.

Nail biting moments ahead.

Oh noo.Rafa broken..played a pathetic loose game

oh, the sparkle did not last long...back to his old self...

You cant be serious Rafa. How in the name of ........................ did you manage that.

Tsonga may run away now with the set..Hes back to be on fire..

That could happen. He needed to work so hard to reach the level of Tsonga.

The crucial 7th game. Got my eyes shut.

Tsonga had been the better player today. He really deserves to win this today!
What a point he took, even Nadal's dad was applauding!!

Don't make any mistake Tsonga, finish it comfortably!

Rafa is very passive..Tsonga very aggressive and serving too well..I dont think Rfa can take thisplaying like that.

Now is Tsonga's chance for going double break up and finish this next game!

How many shots has Rafa netted today..His forehand is his liability today

Congrats Tsonga

Wow.... I really thought Nadal was going to come out stronger than ever in this set. This is a total surprise for me and I can imagine the upset of Nadal's fans...

It's relieving to see Tsonga could get that second break of serve! He is really a improved player this year!

An exciting semi-final awaits us involving Tsonga! It would be cracker if he gets Djokovic!

pffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffff empty puf double break, It is better for him. This is not his level of playand tehn hewins alot with his competativeness ,but the tennis is completely gone, This is hardly ATP top10

Emiliano..Nadal fighting and coming from behind and fighting is something we have not witnessed from July..each of USO and Wimby finals and everything in fall season

Didnt have a good feeling about this match this morning..............but at least it wasn't a complete meltdown from Rafa.

Ohh no!! 2 Double faults while serving for the match!! It could have hurt him badly had he not been so comfortably placed with two break of serves!

Concentrate Tsonga concentrate!

2 DF tsonga choking obviously, lol

Why has Tsonga saved all his DF till last, Rafa could have done with them in the first set.

3 DF OMG lol

Luckystar this was choking not what he did on 4-5 againgst the mighty

Oh well... 3 double faults in the final game. Can't believe what I'm seeing.

Nadal back on track now. Anything can happen considering Tsonga is a lottery.

Go for a break Tsonga, to finish off this contest! It's being prolonged unnecessarily!!

He may have choked once but I doubt he will choke twice.

sienna, why didn't tsonga do DF in wimbledon against Roger?!

3 MP tsonga

Well I didn't think Rafa would drop his serve for the 3rd time.

WoW!! Broke at love to finish the game! Just as I wanted.

Congrats TSONGA!~!~

Rafa should skip DC finale. He looks tired wornout and not the player he once was.

Tsonga deserved this victory. incredible,

Congrats Tsonga

Rafa - lot of work to be done on your self belief and confidence..both are at 2009 post injury levels..You rose from that low..hope you rise back from this low too

Very sad for Rafa, but he is not on form so I hope he starts 2012 refreshed. The spark seems to have gone out of his game so I hope whatever his off court problems are he gets them sorted soon.

"Just dont want to temper the tennis lords above. Although I might have done that already the last couple of days."

Sienna the tennis lord will be satisfied for Roger to win his 6th WTF, no need to beat djokovic and nadal (again).

P.S.: nadal's record at the WTF 9-10 ouch!!

bleck lol
And why didnt Novak dumped a fh in the net. He would have had 18 slams by now;-)

18 slams..haha..wishful thinking..no slam is won by 1 forehand point :-)

God..people I tell you..

Sienna the tennis lord will be satisfied for Roger to win his 6th WTF, no need to beat djokovic and nadal (again).


bleck, 11/25/11 12:00 AM

Roger will likely play Djokovic in the semis.

Congrats to Tsonga. Thank you too for putting Rafa out of his misery.

Commies to Rafa and his team, now go and rest and prepare for the DC final. Rafa's game is really falling apart, bit by bit, first the serve, then backhand, followed by his ROS and now his forehand. Not helped by his poor court positioning and slower speed these days. Well, there's always hope as he's still fighting out there. One tournament done and dusted, one more to go before the R&R starts. Now concentrates on the DC and forgets about this WTF.

emiliano, yeah that's probably true. berdych would have to win and djokovic lose to get through. It would be an antecipated final federer-djokovic.

If djokovic makes dozens of UE though it won't be much of a contest.

what a miserable way to end the match...rafa is nowhere near where he used to be...somehow this scenario seems so familiar for the whole 2011 season...

Well no more Fedal this season. Adios vamos.

We all know that this is Rafa's worst surface so it's not that surprising. Someone gave him rotten salmon to eat and made matters worse from the start. Even if Rafa had beaten Tsonga today I don't think he is playing well enough to win the title so it's better that he calls it a tournament now.

Vamos Rafa!

sanju it was on MP? And would have been heavy favorit to win...... also in semi wimbly against Novak and final against nadal.. doent matter plenty of chances left.

Sienna, 2012 will be better than 2011 of that I am almost certain (baring injury or illness).

Roger will have a good pre-season workout in December for the first time in years and he will start 2012 with huge confidence and a 17 match winning streak (I hope).

I read an article (in spanish) about tomorrow chances on who will be 1st and who will be second in the A group.

Basically, there's a 40% of chance Berdych will be 2nd, another 40% of chance Djokovic will be second, and finally, a 20% of chance Ferrer will be second (Berdych being 1st).

Though Nadal is not as strong an opponent by any means in these surfaces, but still it was a stellar performance by Tsonga, the way he held his nerves till the end. He now promises us of a good match, every time he faces a top 10 opponent anywhere in the world.

On the other hand, Nadal must be happy knowing his DC mate Ferrer is still in the tournament, and could most possibly make it to the semi finals without much difficultly;

Fact is Fed didn't win those matches, what's the point of talking about it now. Even if you mentioned it a hundred times, it won't change the facts, so just live with it.

I think Fed wished to meet this Rafa in the finals...whoever else he is to get in the finals (if he beats Nole first) he'll have tougher job than if he was playing this Rafa...well, at least Rafa gets to finish the season playing on his beloved clay...I hope he regroups by then...something is definitely wrong with him...it is a combination of poor game and lack of confidence...I certainly hope he gets back on track for the DC finals...

nadal fans worry not come April nadal will start winning titles (individual) again. Monte Carlo is his safe haven.

bleck, Rafa is gone from the WTF so you need not to worry about him and his fans...I would rather focus on Nole if I were you...

It's not only confidence but his fitness. He seems to run out of steam easily these days, starting with Miami. His foot issue getting more serious and thus preventing him from training properly? Also saving his shoulder as there's still DC to play for? Only he and his team can explain why.

People talking about his personal problems, I don't know that he has any problem. I don't see any problem between Rafa and Tony, the only news I heard was about his girlfriend going to London for her studies, and so they'll see each other less often. Does that constitute as a problem for Rafa? Only he knows, I'm not willing to make any guess here. Rafa just has to find his game and stay focus on improving his game.

muzz out injured, rafa out of sorts and gone, and nole teetering on the brink. Looks like yet another show-up-and-win-it for old rogie.
sorry fed fans, but couldn't resist that one after his cheep jibe at muzz having it easy in asia (though not as easy as fed had it in basel and paris, I might add).

After all the 02 hype, the whole thing's turning out a bit of an anti-climactic damp squib.

Well alex, do you really think Roger was too wrong about Murray? How many top 5 players did he beat during those tournaments that he won there? Had he been on real top form in the Asian circuit, he would have wake up to the expectation and fared much better in his home turf at London, and not tamely conceded the match against Ferrer. His Masters campaign in the Asian circuit was indeed too easy, as was rightly pointed out by Federer. And as far as Federer's win in Basel and Paris is concerned, at least he beat there Tsonga at home, and right at this point of time, Tsonga is playing much better than Murray or Novak, at least now you know after these latest rounds in London. And see the result what Federer is getting, certainly his win in Paris was not easier than Murrays'. :)

Sienna..Yes it was MP but it was semi in US Open 2010 and 2011 ..Theres no guarantee that Fed would have won had he reached final. It was Rafa he was playing against and right till September this year Rafa was n far greater form than Fed and would have had far higher chances of beating Fed than Fed would have had to beat Rafa

If you talking of Rafa we saw Oct onwards, maybe Fed would have beaten

Anyways I hope we get Fed-Djoko semi but something tells me Berdych maybe a tougher opponent than Djoko for Fed as Djoko seems out of sorts

This is Feds tourney to lose now..If he messes it up, too bad..

I think the semi is more critical than final for him..Berdych or Djoko may be more formidable than Ferrer

Djoko wont choke against Fed, Berdy can :-)

Yes 2011 has been a bad season for Rafa.. he gave us glimpses of himself we are never ever used to see ..His fighting spirit on the wane , lack of confidence, vulnerability, losing matches being ahead, losing slam finals consecutively, losing 7 finals, losing 6 in a row to the same player..nothing of this could have been even dreamt of till last year..he gave us all of it this year..

2009 second half was a bad year and a low point for Rafa fans, but he was injured and had a personal crisis..2011 seems to have damaged his gut itself

I hope he just rises up from this low..

I mean till September, he was fne, yes he lost to Nole but everyone lost to Nole..and Rafa beat everyone else except NOle..till then it was about Nole..now its about himself..his game and mental strength have fallen apart..he has to work on it

Just like there was a 2010 after 2009 to cheer about, I hope 2012 gives Rafans lot to cheer about..Fingers crossed

Actually Fed and Rafa have spoilt their fans..Rafas 2008 & 2010 seasons were so good, that we begun to expect too much out of him. Hence the utter disappointment of 2009 and 2011

Similarly I can understand what a horrble time Fed fans went through in 2008, 2009(first 5 months), 2010 (from Feb to Oct), 2011 (from Jan till Oct) when he was performing below par..we are used to lofty standards from these both..

BTW Rafas 2011 is exactly like Feds 2008..exact similar..Fed reached 3 slam finals, lost 2 to same player, didn't qualify beyond RR at WTF, lost multple times that year to same player (Rafa)..But Fed bounced back in 2009 and reached all 4 slam finals and won 2..hope Rafa does the same

World No. 2 Rafael Nadal bowed out of the season finale in the group stages for only the second time in five appearances on Thursday and admitted afterwards that, by his own lofty standards, it had been a disappointing end to the season.

"This end of the year wasn't easy for me," said Nadal after falling to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in a Group B decider at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals. "That's hard to accept. But at the same time that's given me a little bit more illusion and little bit more of a goal for the beginning of 2012. This year was a tough year for me. I think it was a positive one for moments, but at the same time it was hard for moments. [I have to] accept what happened during all the season and I need time to think."

The 25-year-old Nadal will now return to Spain to contest the Davis Cup final against Argentina in Seville, before the hard work begins in earnest as he looks to right some wrongs in 2012. As he bids to wrest the No. 1 South African Airways ATP Ranking from Djokovic?s grip and make his mark in the early part of the season, the Mallorcan sees only one way forward: work, work, and more hard work.
"I know only one way to change the situation, [and that] is to work more, think more about tennis, do everything in the right shape, do everything good inside the court, and everything good outside the court," said Nadal. "And that's what I am going to try to do for the next month and for the next 12 months of 2012. That's what I can say. That's what I can do.
"[Work towards] the Australian Open and have the right practice, continue with the right practice like I had the past three weeks. That's the only way to try to arrive to the 2012 season with the right conditions. That's my dream, try to arrive in 2012 with very good conditions, and I am going to practise and I am going to do everything in my hands to be perfect for the beginning of 2012.
"I am going to have my chance next year to be competitive to win the big tournaments," continued the left-hander, whose tally of three tour-level titles this year was his lowest count since 2004. "My illusion is there. My motivation is I hope the same. I will do it. If [it is] not enough, it is not going to be enough. But I will be satisfied with myself."

Fed's issue is hes not able to keep up lvl of play for long in a match..it goes up n down and in a GS, where its best of 5 it will becum an issue..but I still expect him to win 1 GS more..and the moment he wins that 1 more, he should call it a day and leave at a high.. I dont see either Rafa or Djoko winning 16, 17 slams at any cost..their bodies wont let them..

sanju, a piece of advice for you: just stop responding to sienna's non stop posting about Rafa. The more you respond, the more she'll continue. Leave it to her and bleck to do all the gloatting. We can rest and wait for the next match(es) to start. I'm eager to find out whether it's Berdych or Nole who qualify for the remaining semifinal slot.

sanju, I've to add that had Rafa managed his schedule well in 2009; ie skipped Rotterdam, he'll prevent his knee conditions from deteriorating any further, and I feel strongly his 2009 might be his best year, winning FO and Wimbledon together with AO. He'll then have three solid years of dominance, from 2008-2010. Without the knee injuries, his 2010 would also start well, IMO. I'm afraid Rafa has missed the boat, especially with him not taking care of his body end of last year, doing so many things in Dec with miminmum time to rest. I feel that he's to be blamed for his own plight this year, for it's his health problem (most likely due to the body not having sufficient time to rest and recover) that steamrolled into more problems for him during the year. He's right when he said he needs time to think now, he should start thinking of not overtaxing his body going forward, for he's no longer that 19/20 yo kid now. He better be wise and pick and choose the right tournaments to play or to skip. Concentrate on the important ones and work around them and get enough breaks to rest his body and work on his fitness, something Fed has done so successfully since he became no.1 and through all these years.

lucky..I think 2012 is make or break year for Rafa..if he does well and wins atleast 2 majors.. hell be around for 1-2 years more later winning a slam/year..if 2012 comes a cropper..its curtains then and his tally will end at 10..

Well he is saying since 5 months that he will keep improving..keep thinking..I havent seen any proof of that happening..I really expected atleast a final showing this WTF..its a shocker the way he played.makes me wonder what intense practise he did in his month off..Yesterday the way he played the 3rd set was a shocker..he could have won yesterday for sure..I think atleast 10-12 forehands were dropped into the net

sanju, I feel that has something to do with his footwork. He's slow to reach and pick up the ball hence he's mishitting his forehand. I have a feeling he's protecting his left foot and also his shoulder too. The boy is full of physical problems this year-illness, injuries to thigh, foot, shoulder- so I don't expect him to be playing at tip top conditions. I mentioned before I don't have much expectations of him during this hard court season. I noticed during this match that he hardly made any changes to his game during the match and not willing to move inside the court or to the net. He's just hanging on and hope for Tsonga to implode. I feel that he's not willing to take any risk of injuring himself, as he has DC final to worry about. He must perform well against the Argentines, winning his two rubbers at least. The burden is on his shoulders; I can see from his face that he's disappointed with the loss, sad too, judging from his expression. It's not easy being Rafa and Nole these days where DC is concerned.

I feel that as long as Rafa is fit and healthy, trains hard to get the various parts of his game back to it's best level, he should be alright and can stay in the top two. We've seen before how good he can be, with his forehand, backhand, ROS, serve and net game all firing well, like during the FO08, Wimbledon 08, AO 09 and USO10. If he can get those back, even if not all at 100% but maybe majority of them near to 100%, he still can win slams and important tournaments. He's still in the top 2 now, won one slam this year, only 25yo and still has the desire to compete and win, he should be fine come the 2012 season.

sanju and lucky,

I took a day off for Thanksgiving here in the states but still watched the match. I agree with the advice to ignore the Fed fans who just rant about Rafa.

I did want to pass on some information I got from vamosbrigade from a few fans who saw Rafa play Tsonga. They were talking to a security guard and he told them that Rafa was so ill from this stomach problem that he wanted to pull out on Tuesday. However, when he heard that Murray had pulled out due to injury, he felt that he had to stay in the tournament for the fans. He was much sicker than has been reported. Rafa tries so hard to downplay any illness or injury so that he is not seen as taking anything away from his opponents. But from what these people heard, he was violently ill and is still not completely over it.

It shows what heart Rafa has and how much he cares about the fans. Now this is not to ignore the very real problems with Rafa's game now. That has been evident for a while, but this latest illness could not have come at a worse time. Also, Rafa said something in his press conference about losing the passion for tennis and feeling tired. This year seems to have taken a toll on him both mentally and physically.

When Rafa finally ventured into the court he hit some great winners. The commentators were asking why he doesn't do it more often. His aggressive game is virtually gone right now. He has such great touch at net and it would help if he could get his mind back to playing offensive tennis.

Lucky, as you said Rafa did not make any changes to his game in his match with Tsonga. I never thought of him protecting his shoulder or maybe his foot. He was missing some forehand shots that you just do not see him miss. It happened too often to be a coincidence. Rafa was frustrated and talking to himself throughout the match. When he is concerned about possible injury or making any existing one worse, then he does revert to his defensive style of play.

Usually Rafa is the thinker on court, but today he didn't seem to be able or willing to try different tactics. No, it is not easy being Rafa these days. We Rafa fans have to stay strong and support each other because the bad things that are being said and the blatant taunting of Rafa fans, will not stop unfortunately.

Also, Rafa said something in his press conference about losing the passion for tennis and feeling tired. This year seems to have taken a toll on him both mentally and physically.

NNY - Where did you read this? It wasn't reported in atpworldtour..If hes losing passion for tennis and love for the game..its over..without passion or desire..there will be no motivation to win any more I am afraid

I think we should collectively decide to discuss players only - whether its Rafa, Fed, Nole, Murray , not respond to gloating & taunts & sarcasm and also ensure that if Rafa is doing well and say if Fed, Nole are not, not indulge in it either..Its not worth it .

Lets hope Rafa does good things in 2012..I am not so sure but hopeful though..The thing that makes me hopeful is the 2010 season post March after the dismal second half of 2009

I was frankly shocked at the forehand nets and misses..I couldn't believe because those are shots he would make in his sleep..plus the reach and movement on court was bad..even the volleys were bad..I mean the ones he was responding to the ones Tsonga was hitting..he would reach them only to net them or hit them out..

What surprises me more is that in Wmby 2011, he had a foot issue in Delpo match..yet in match against Delpo, Fish, Murray he played & moved well..what is it thats so wrong about the foot now..Shoulder well we heard it was during practice like Murray picked up a groin injury during practice too..

"Well alex, do you really think Roger was too wrong about Murray? How many top 5 players did he beat during those tournaments that he won there?"

Well Solinitude,
I'm sorry but that is simply bulls**t.
The audacity of federer to say Murray had it easy after what now 2 cake walk draws.
Bageling a fit & healthy rafa in Tokyo (albeit somewhat morose) is not comparable to Bageling a `runny`one at the WTF. Or an unseeded debutante in Basel!
As for Paris, last time I checked Ferrer was a higher seed than Tsonga & doing better
right now also. Again Tsonga was gassed in the final there, as was Berdie the night before. These are facts.
Roger has been very smart in resting himself for the very last tournaments for the year so I give him a lot of credit for that ; )

I meant beating an unseeded debutante in Nishikori,
Not `bageling` him.

sanju, Rafa had to numb his foot during Wimbledon, in his matches against Fish, Murray and Nole. It's Wimbledon, so Rafa would not want to withdraw from matches if he could help it. He did mentioned that his foot took longer than expected to heal and that had affectEd his preparation for the NA hard court swing.

Before this WTF, Rafa was practising hard and injured his shoulder so he stopped practising his forehand and concentrated on his backhand. From the blog of his training partner, it was mentioned that the training partner noticed that Rafa's foot problem was still there. So, it's only my guess that Rafa couldn't move quick enough around the court at WTF because of him not wanting to aggravate his foot problem. His serve might be affected by his shoulder problem too; he hardly served above 120mph and missed many first serves, his second serves were constantly under attack by Tsonga.

Rafa really needs to work on his serves. His serves these days lack the varieties that he had in the past, become more predictable that he runs into problem facing the good returner- his USO final this year against Nole, especially the first two sets; his Tokyo final against Murray; and his WTF RR match against Fed.

Certainly roger was asked about murray's form or the 3 conscutive titles and Roger sadi what he thought about it as he always does. Roger speaks his mind.

If anyone were to ask Roger what he thought of the players he faced he would answer what he thought.
It's not his fault that no one's asked him this.

Good luck Roger!!! Onwards to the 6th WTF title (record)!!!

P.S.: And on the way please give us, tennis fans, another breath taking performance please.

luckystar
, 11/25/11 1:39 PM

Truth be told, Rafa's looked tentative on court for the better part of the season, how he reached USOpen finals beggars belief.......

What shocked me about his WTF 2011 performance was how he made no attempt to change his game to suit the surface, he was playing a clat-court game! That's not the game he used to win Wimbledon, Oz Open and USOpen................he had learned to flatten his shots on those surfaces against Tsonga, and even Roger, you got the sense he was relying too much on his top-spin to get him out of trouble.......

Total mystery......................it's like he forgot how to play the hard-court game!

As he said, he has a lot of thinking to do......................this has been in the making a long time. I remember when RG 2011 started, JMac literally begged Rafa not to walk away from the game in one his post-match interviews, the speculation was that rife that Rafa would do a "Borg"...........................

He is a wonderful young man, I am sure we have not seen the last nor the best of him....................

Amazing..........................now we are discussing Rafa's mental frailties, a subject we used to devote entirely to Muzza!! How the worm has turned......................

Roger speaks his mind.

, 11/25/11 1:50 PM

...................and we are all speaking our minds when we say Roger's dismissiveness of Muzza's accomplishments in the Asian swing is disgraceful ad unbecoming of anyone with pretensions to greatness.......

"used to devote entirely to Muzza!! How the worm has turned..............."

I'd like (love) to think the worm has turned on this for Murray, I'm not sure whether it has yet. At least Rafa has somewhere to `get back to` mentality wise.
Murray is yet to arrive there!
Still, we all have to grow up eventually ; )

RITB, from Rafa's presser, he said that he couldn't think clearly on court. I guess it's physical, mental and emotional fatigue for him. He's under pressure this whole year and frankly speaking, I believe that had he not had that illness at the beginning of the year that affected his fitness and disrupted his training schedule, he would have done better than what he had now. We had already discussed all these many times, for him one problem led to another. It's no wonder he felt so unhappy about people expecting him to win his sixth FO. It's not easy to live up to expectations when you're not at your best to compete. It's a combination of so many factors that caused all his fatigue. How often we see him not thinking on court? And that's what happening to him now, and that's why he's playing his clay court game on the hard courts and refused to change.

With proper rest and relax, calmed mind and soul, he should be able to start thinking about his game and his strategies, and his direction going forward. We have seen how good he can be when all his weapons are firing, if he can get back to that level or close to that level, he should be fine; that's my take.

I agree lucky, fatigue got the better of him, it was clear he was not thinking out there, in fact I remember thinking during his match against Fed that he looks like someone who would rather be somewhere else!

....................my worry is he does not have much time to rest after DC before he starts practicing for Oz............................

I hope Uncle T and he plan his 2012 schedule well so he does not exhaust himself: he should not worry so much about defending ranking points, he should go for Slams and Masters 1000s only....................................

I have faith in his family, his team and he himself...........................Rafa will come back strong in 2012.

Vamos!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

all those ecuses, he is sick, he has a sore shoulder, he is tired. Fed is 30 is he complaining al the time?? He is just not good enough indoors!! Rolland Garros was his last slam, mark my wors. Hell i even think Fed will turn their head to head around in 2012.

Fedfans would love nothing more than to see the back of Rafa.

taxon
LOL if that happens then the suicide rate among Nadal fans on TT would explode.

It is the only pleasure they have inthis life.

Don't confuse Rafa fans with Fed fans. I was in fear for the mental health of Fed fans last year after Rafa won three slams and with only one title this year, no slams and things looking bleak until these last two title wins, I thought we would be reading about Fed fans jumping out of windows.

Please don't project your own obsession onto Rafa fans. Our mental well being does not depend on Rafa winning.

Gloating can really backfire. I would really hate to see it backfire on some of the big mouth Fed fans who have gone absolutey delirious over two titles and seem to have some grandiose visions of the future.

I know you'll be fine NNY. You know as much about tennis as a priest of birthcontrole/
But there are two liabilities on this site. I feel the tennisworld they know has come to an end.

"You know as much about tennis as a priest of birthcontrole"

Sienna, 11/26/11 12:47 AM

Charming language from someone who knows nothing about class. The biggest liability on this site is yourself. You have really lowered the level of discussion and know next to nothing about actual tennis.

All you do is waste time and energy finding increasingly vulgar ways to insult Rafa and his fans. It is an indication of just how empty your own life must be, that you have nothing better to do with your time.

It's laughable that you would accuse anyone on this site of not knowing tennis, when you spend practically zero time talking about it. You need to make others feel as unworthy as you do. It's sad and I can only feel sorry for you, but I do dislike the space you take up with worthless, meaningless comments, be it about Rafa's personal life, my knowledge of tennis, Fed's supposed reincarnation, the supposed demise of Rafa.

Such an utter and complete waste of a life.

At the rate sienna is going, she'll soon be the next to get banned. Funny how Fed could make all his fanatical supporters turn vulgar and become so spiteful. Perhaps happy days are few and far between for these fanatics, so none stop gloating we see here at this precious little part of the season for them. Come the beginning of next year, some of them will disappear again. Wonder by then what's the fate of sienna!

lucky,

I can understand fans getting excited when their player is doing well. It was that way for the Murray fans when he swept the Asian swing. His long suffering fans were thrilled to see him do so well and take the #3 ranking. They are hopeful that this is a turning point for him.

So it was with the Nole fans, who were beyond happy to see him come out this year playing his best tennis, the winning streak, the three slam wins. It has been an amazing ride for them. Sometimes they got carried away, but most of the time they were just brimming with joy about their man becoming #1 and having the best year of his career.

It's not all Fed fans. There are some who can appreciate other players and not gloat or get carried away. One thing about posting comments on a forum - they are there in perpetuity. So one should be careful about going too far, because fans of other players have long memories. I can understand Fed fans being happy to see him win two titles in a row after a year with no slam wins and only one title. Another high point was when Fed ended Nole's winning streak at RG in the semifinals.

However, deciding that the world has come off its axis and life as we know it will never be the same again, is getting carried away! It's great to see Fed playing well at the age of thirty and to see his love of the sport. It should be enough to just enjoy the moment without having to trash Rafa and his fans. Things you post can have a way of coming back to bite you in the end.

It has made me even more determined than ever to not be like them. I congratulated Nole and his fans even though it hurt to see Rafa losing so many times to him in the finals. I congratulated Murray on his nice winning streak in Asia. I can also congratulate Fed on having a nice end of the year run. I do not think it means that there will be a seismic change in 2012. The worst is the mean-spirited comments about Rafa. It's painfully obvious that some Fed fans want him out of tennis for good.

I think Rafa is going to get it all straightened out and come out strong in the new year. I do look forward to the DC and hope that he can lead Spain to another victory.

Yes NNY, note that I used the word 'fanatical supporters' here to distinguish the likes of sienna from the rest of the reasonable Fed fans. I don't have problem with torres, sky, even nirv and número these days, as they're more reasonable and they're definitely unlike sienna. They don't post incessant insulting and provocative posts about Rafa and his fans.

It's plain for all to see, sienna is eager to pick up fights with the Rafa fans. For example, a simple post from me on the Ferrer/Berdych thread mentioning that Tsonga and Berdych may be the two to stop Fed from winning his next slam, should the three top guys are not there, and sienna came back with a post that I was hoping that Tsonga/Berdych to do the job now that Rafa can't beat Fed. What nonsense, each of her post is to irritate and provoke the Rafa fans.

If she chooses to gloat that's her problem, but she need not stoop so low to keep trashing Rafa just to make her idol looks better than he is. And the worse is that she takes every chance to twist the meaning of my post, to suit her own agenda and stir the pot here. I really wish that the moderator here could warn her about provoking other posters here.

I think if Spain wins davis cup against Argentina it will go a long way towards giving Nadal his confidence back. Look what it did for Djokovic. But I can't even guess what the effect would be if Argentina wins.

Rafa's facebook message:

"Hi everybody, thank you very much for your messages of encouragement, last year I played better, I'll keep working to improve my results in this competition the next year. Today I have rest at London, tomorrow I'll travel to Sevilla for the Davis Cup's final with my teammates. We'll win at Sevilla!!"

I hope David does not bust his chops against Fed today, let the ol' man win................there's bigger fish to fry, DC! With Rafa's form a big if, Spain needs Daveed to turn up strong.......................

After what I heard on vamosbrigade from the people who were there and found out how sick Rafa was, I am wondering if he will be a full strength for DC. He said something that they quoted, to the effect of having strong teammates if he isn't at his best.

I am wondering about Ferrer after seeing how he lost to Berdy when he was up a set and a break. Now he has to play Fed. Spain will need him to be at his best.

I just hope whatever this stomach thing is, Rafa will be over it and ready to play his best. I remember how well he played in the semifinals against France not a week after his tough loss to Nole in the USO final. That told me that his game is still there. He played brilliant tennis and all he needed was to be on clay again in front of his home fans who love him.

For whatever reason, having great form on clay did not translate into good results in the fall hardcourt season. It seems to invigorate Rafa when he is playing DC for his country. I hope this will help his spirit.

rafaisthebest, I don't mean anything by this, I'm just asking your opinion. Do you think winning davis cup is a bigger priority than winning the world tour finals?

@ts38 , 11/26/11 10:02 AM

What do you think? WTF is best of 3 and DC is best of 5. You don't need to be a rocket scientist to work that one out.


Vamos Rafa

Oh, Roger has never won the DC and never will.

At the rate sienna is going, she'll soon be the next to get banned.
luckystar , 11/26/11 4:56 AM

Don't hold your breath. She seems to be able to say whatever she chooses at will.

No need for the jabs nadline. DC is best of 5, so what? Are you saying winning DC is more important than winning the world tour finals?

ts38, Spanish team (which sometimes includes nadal) has won multiple DC and nadal has won 0 WTF so the answer you'll get from the blind nadal fans is obvious.

Of course winning the DC is far more prestigious than the WTF. Y ou have to be blind not to see that.

Talk about blind loyalty.

See ts38.

DC vs WTF, which is more important? I guess it depends on who you are and where you're from. For Nole and Rafa, DC is very important, as they're both expected to carry the team to victory, especially when the ties are played in their home country, more so if it's the DC final. Nole and Rafa have being put in the dilemma of having to play both WTF and DC final and we see both not doing well at the WTF but won their DC finals and so the DC trophy. I guess it's difficult to win both. I remember Nalby was critical of Delpo in their DC final against Spain in 2008, when Delpo went for the WTF (then the TMC in Shanghai) and was injured during his DC match in the final. It seems that Nalby expected Delpo to place priority of DC over WTF.

I actually don't see much chances of Ferrer winning the WTF so I don't think he'll be criticised by the Spanish people for over exerting himself at the expense of the DC final.

ts38
, 11/26/11 10:02 AM

You asked my opinion and here it is: My sense is that the players are now attaching a lot of importance to Davis Cup so, yes, I think DC is more important than WTF. My reasons for saying so are:

1. Nole's comment about how it was instrumental in turning his season around. Verdasco commented that fater he saw Serbia win DC and Nole's attitude in it, he thought this was going to provide an impetus to his game. Verdasco also credited his own rise in the rankings after he helped Spain win DC in South America. I have never heard any player say the same about WTF.
2. Listen to Nole's presser post match with Tipsy, he practically said he was happy to have lost so he could go on holiday! Never heard a player say that after a loss in Slams or DC.
3. If WTF was so important, don't you think players would schedule their play time around it the way they do slams. Only Fed seems to do that, but then he has no chance of ever making DC finals has he?
4. Even when they are battered, players will turn up for DC, not so for WTF.

Of course I will be accused of being biased because I am a Rafan and TSO has never won WTF..................what can I say? It is what it is.......................

Just before WTF 2011, Jason Goodall asked Robbie Koenig which he thought was the more important tourny for Rafa, WTF or DC? Koenig, said, without hesitation: DC...................

NNY @ 5.23 For sure I had hoped the Asian Swing was a turning point for AndyM but I dont count my chickens. Personally I wouldnt be inclined to write RafaelN off just yet 2012 is another year just have to wait and see. At the end of the day we can speculate but we only know what the PR people want us to know. I heard Nole was getting married last month.

Nole didn't get married, not just yet...he has plans to do so, most likely soon according to the Serbian press...

As for the WTF vs. DC I also say it should be DC...WTF is great in terms of money and points but DC builds confidence and make them heroes...I would go for DC without a question...I also see December DC finals to be more interesting than this years WTF...I expect some real fight over there...Rafa better be ready for it!


VAMOS SPAIN!!!

Natasho DC definately going to be interesting especially with DavidF on form. DC a good confidence booster too as its a team effort.

Must have jinxed DavidF earkier,lol!

bleck
They are totally unable to compute everything that has happenend the last week.

Luckystar is already on other threads proclaiming Berdych, DelPotro an Tsonga will stop Fed to win anymore slams, if Murray and Djokovic cannotstop him. Now with Nadal completely fallen of the wagon it is more wishfull thinking.
They even say Fed is a fat guy? Funny he is as lean as he ever was. Just because he was not fabricated in a lab or PODlike environments doesnot mean he is notin tiptop condition. ATM he is in the best shape any of top 8.

What is this with DC? DC is carnaval, it is pleasing for the people it sort of a joke where you try to make individual players perform as a team. Yea right like Nada is taking second fidle in that team? He just was happy to be humiliated this week to have a crack at Nalbandian. Atleast he can outmanouvre that old fat guy. Or can he?
I tell you, Nadal losing DC for Spain would be the end of a lot of people here.

or DC.
3. If WTF was so important, don't you think players would schedule their play time around it the way they do slams. Only Fed seems to do that, but then he has no chance of ever making DC finals has he?
4. Even when they are battered, players will turn up for DC, not so for WTF.

rafaisthebest, 11/26/11 11:58 AM


This is a real funny bit it shows insight and real comprehention of what has happenend in tennis leading up to WTF. All the top guys took tome off or even withdrew at a masters event in order not to jepordice their chances at WTF.

The lies are getting more and more like those of a child.

4. Even when they are battered, players will turn up for DC, not so for WTF.

rafaisthebest, 11/26/11 11:58 AM


Well I didn't see Rafa in Austin. I saw Ferrer doing the hard work as usual.

numero
Nadal rarely plays away ties. Belgium if it fits the schedule.

He would never travel halfway around the world after a slam to Ozzy land to bring his country back in worldgroupe.

"What is this with DC? DC is carnaval, it is pleasing for the people it sort of a joke where you try to make individual players perform as a team. Yea right like Nada is taking second fidle in that team? He just was happy to be humiliated this week to have a crack at Nalbandian. Atleast he can outmanouvre that old fat guy. Or can he?
I tell you, Nadal losing DC for Spain would be the end of a lot of people here."

Sienna, 11/26/11 11:37 PM

This from someone who has the gall to say others here don't know anything about tennis! So now all the players who have participated in DC over decades can now realize that it was a carnival or a joke! No matter that it is also about playing for one's country. It's an honor to play as part of a team and win for your country.

Maybe this is bitterness because Rafa has also won an Olympic singles gold medal and Fed has not! If playing for one's country is not worth anything, then why pray tell does Fed want that singles Olympic gold medal?

It just shows the complete lack of reasoning in these comments!

No NNY you show lack of reasoning.

DC is not for the players but for their countrymen. It is a party. It is where tennisfans can be like soccerfans.
Besides Fed plays DC he wants to win it for his country.

And it is certainly a joke. Hometeam can pick the surface after they know who is the opponent. Ridiculous. This is so outdated and only given in by the fact that in the old days it was played among a few countrys. It now is used as a mean to get the upperhand on the opponent.
Surface in DC should be season oriented, drawn or atleast be made a lot fairer then it is now.
Of course I like a good DC weekend, but only if the dutch play. But if Fed has a dream to lift DC then I will cheer for him.
Just with you lack of comprehension in the first RR matches you defintely show litle knowledge or variation in your approach to get a point acros.
You are defintely a litle ignorant and you shoul stop posting comments necause it is getting a litle ridiculous.

"Just with you lack of comprehension in the first RR matches you defintely show litle knowledge or variation in your approach to get a point acros.
You are defintely a litle ignorant and you shoul stop posting comments necause it is getting a litle ridiculous."

Sienna, 11/27/11 1:32 AM

Just more of the same old insults. How nice of you to suggest for the umpteenth time that I stop posting! When did you decide that you were important enough to tell anyone here what they should or should not do?

Your grandiosity is showing. You are no more or less important here than anyone else. We are all equal. I have been here for some time and have absolutely no intention of leaving, certainly not because you may wish it. That appears to be your mission - to get rid of as many Rafa fans as possible. I am not going anywhere, so you will need to get used to it. Of course, you don't have to read my posts at all if you find them so lacking.

I am not sure why you think that your posts are enlightening in any way. You spend most of your time attacking Rafa and his fans in increasingly strident terms. You are a "one-note" who relies on the same tired, cliched comments over and over again.

The only time I ever remember being able discuss any tennis with you was when I talked about Lendl and Mecir. That was it. Otherwise, you just throw out personal insults or gossip about Rafa's relationship with his family members. Not exactly brilliant tennis analysis!

Don't worry NNY, I won't go away. Just ignore sienna. Her life and her tennis focus revolves round Fed. Whatever Fed can't achieve, she'll console herself by saying those are not important. You can argue till the cow come home and still she'll not agree with you. Let her lives in her own dream.

I am certain sienna will NOT watch the "carnival" that is the DC final this weekend, hehehehe!!!

Vamos Espana!!!!!

Don't expect bleck and sienna to be persuaded by the following article, but what the heck:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2011/nov/25/janko-tipsarevic- novak-djokovic-finals

lucky,

You better not go anywhere! The funny thing is, if it was Fed who had all those DC wins for his home country, she would be talking about it as though it was the accomplishment of the ages. If Fed hasn't done it, then it doesn't count! That's basically the reasoning. Let's say Rafa had won all those WTF titles and it was Fed winning DC. Do you doubt that we would be reading how little the WTF mattered in the grand scheme of things?

That is what baffles me with that kind of reasoning. That's why suddenly winning RG six times isn't a big deal and makes Rafa only a clay court specialist! If anyone had even suggested that about Borg, people would have thought they were out of their minds. Many great tennis champions have never been able to win at RG. That tells you what it means to be able to win on clay. It's not easy. Sampras and McEnroe couldn't do it.

Most of the history of tennis was played on clay and grass. I guarantee that if it was Fed who had six RG titles, it would be the greatest accomplishment of all time. It's only because Rafa has had superiority on this surface that it is now deemed to be inferior. All revisionist history.

It took twenty eight years for someone to win RG and Wimbledon back-to-back after Borg did it last in 1980. It was Rafa who matched that feat in 2008. It took thirty years for someone to equal Borg's feat of winning six titles at RG. If it was easy to do, then it wouldn't have taken so long for it to happen.

rafaisthebest,

Let's all watch the "carnival' and the "joke" that is DC in Spain!

Vamos Rafa!

That is true. If Fed would have won three DC's with Switzerland that would indeed be the accomplishment of the ages. It baffles me how stupid you are.
That is why DC is a litle biased to be used to determine greatness among players. So pulling DC before WTF is absurd. Rafa had a better team!!!
Borg is pulled in this why he has won WTF many a time and ha great indoor winning%

Let me get this straight - everyone is stupid except you! I don't think you read what I wrote, because your answer indicates a total inability to comprehend my points. This ploy of pretending not to understand what I said, is just not going to cut it.

If you are unable to answer my argument, then just don't bother responding. Borg should be pulled into this because of his prowess on clay. Also, he never won the USO. So the fact that he won WTF means there can be no comparison to Rafa? I see why no one can get through to you. It's like talking to a brick wall. You just come back with name calling and insults in lieu of actually saying something.

I think you do understand what I was saying perfectly well, but are simply incapable of making a coherent argument in response. The whole point is that Fed fans like you pick and choose what is important based on whether Fed has won it! You never responded to my point that if Fed had won six RG titles, it would be the achievement of the ages, but because it is Rafa who did it, then it must be diminished because it's only on clay! (Cough, cough)

However, I am weary of trying to talk sense with you. It's useless and a complete waste of my time. I made my arguments and you have no real response. Yet you can throw around the word "stupid"? I guess it beats having nothing to say! :)

Agree NNY. Also it's always some of those Fed fans who are so obsessed with the 'goat' title that they're so worried that others may catch up with Fed. Strange isn't it? And they thought fans of other players are like them! After all, who cares how many more slams Fed may or may not win; fans of other players just want to concentrate on their players, happy that theyre still winning slams. It's just the smugness of some of Fed's fans that make others fed up and don't wish to see him winning any more slams. Anyway if he's as good as what his fans claimed, then it's up to his opponents to stop him, if they also want to win some slams. Nothing we can do except to cheer our players on.

RITSO, thanks for the link.

Here is an excerpt from the article:

...........So, what was missing? "Freshness," Djokovic said. Anything else?

"Well, I think you have those days where you don't feel like playing, you don't feel like practising. There are tournaments, especially the ones towards the end of the year, where you don't feel as 100% fresh mentally, physically, emotionally. Obviously, that's why [Nadal] felt that way. I understand him, because I can say we are more or less in a similar situation."

This is deja vu.

We were exactly at this place this time last year, except that Rafa was where Nole is but Federer was proclaimed as the man to carve it all up in 2011 due to his form then. It all went pear shaped when he didn't even make the final of 3 slams and 7 Masters.

It was obvious that Rafa wasn't fired up and Nole should know. The players see each other back stage, they can sense what how other players feel mentally.

Fedfans revere Rafa so much that they celebrate for months every time Roger beats Rafa. If they had their way, they would declare it a national holiday wherever they live, because Rafa is such a special player.

After beating Roger 3 times this year, Rafa wasn't too bothered about beating him again.

LOL nadline!

Actually it takes a montrous effort from Nole to beat Rafa so many times this year, so much so that he has injured himself doing so. They've 'destroyed' each other and some bystanders stand to benefit, during this period after the USO. Nole has to deal with Fedal 11 times this year winning 10, no mean feat.

The scenario is something like 2008 when Rafa overthrown Fed, and he had to fend off the challenge from Nole during the first half of 2008 at the same time, a monstrous effort in fact
from Rafa. Rafa at that time met Fed/Nole 10 times, won 8, lost 2 to Nole. Thank goodness Rafa has his great 2010, after coming back from his injury of 2009. Let's see how 2012 turns out for Nole, and of course for Rafa.

Sienna - On another thread you said Djokovic and Rafa are out of contention now for next year? on basis of what? not doing well last 2 tournaments?

Cmon you can do better than that..Dont make mistake of writing both off so soon..they will in all probability surprise you

Careful NNY....remember our, (ahem), discussion earlier? Don't get sucked into
Sienna's hamster wheel. Ignoring's easier...and better for your health!

lol.

Arrogant annoying blind Nadal's fan always.


I love Nadal lost. This guy really overrated

And cheater. Fake time-out. ( angry Fish in this, too) gamesmanship. too noisy annoying always. excuse injury. etc


looks down on Sampras and past great players. arrogant smug. shame.


clay excluded. successive win 0. ? If grass and a? hard are fast. Like Sampras era. Nadal is able to win only with clay. power of defense and muscles. boring ugly. All? the surface is slow now.


arrogant blind fan always.


I hope Nadal retire soon

sucks

In 2009 we were being told that Rafa had lost his awe in the locker room, we were being told that Rafa had the SF jinx, that he would never make another final. Then came 2010 and we all know what happened then.

OK, for those who prefer to forget - Rafa won 3 consecutive GS, including the (so called impossible) USO, defended his Wimbledon title which he couldn't do in 2009 and ended the year as No 1.

The hampster must be exhausted. The wheel was still turning at 1.30am then after a six-hour nap it startaed up again.

Sanju.
I have told and explained it now maybe 4 or 5 different times.

Djokovic does not only need a holiday he needs to recuperate. Is that a good word?

He needs his mind and body to heal. Thinking he can do that in 2 3 weeks time is a little to much to ask. In trying so hard to get ready and win the 5th major tournement of the year he has put his body in the redzone to many and to long.
Novak will be on tune for Garros. If he takes the right strategie in planning his recovery. Januari will be a month of him comming back to play his game again but far to swift in making a real run for AU open.
Well Nadal. What is there to say what hasnt been touched yet. He is in a total shock and completely lost the plot in his tennislife. His fans here do not touch the subject butfor him to come to terms with his loss of passion is terrible. That shocked the world of tennis. Even Tony is a litle bewildered and tries to do damage controle in the hope that he can set him back on track in december. Nadal should skip DC and go for a backpack holiday in australia. Get his head fixed or something.
For godsake he is 25 and talks as if he is 50.
For me Nadal is no more a factor in non clay tennis.

Fed on the other hand is looking better then ever. His body and mind are ready to turn 2012 into a TMF year. I am not saying that it will but he is defintely in the best possible position of all the guys in top 4.

You say that he was there last year? No I say because he is not fatigue like last year he is comming from a 6 weeks break and used that period to recover. Unlike Nadal he took 5 weeks off and look where that got him? In shambles.

December will be moving mont for Fed he will implement his major fitnessblock and thus come on to tourin januari as the fittest eliteplayer there is.

Nativenewyorker
, 11/27/11 7:40 AM

Bookmark this....................come the weekend sienna will be chirping away about the "carnival", giving us a blow-by-blow account of how TSO is fairing, hehehehe!!!!

tennisnba's comment is on another thread too - anyone else having feelings of de ja vous? Sounds all too familiar.

Rafans..I think Rafa should focus on below

Getting 1 more RG to be all time record holder : 7 RG titles

1 more RG & Wimby double: Borg is holding 3 whereas Rafa has 2

Finish atleast 3rd in overall GS tally to close at 13 (win 3 more slams), if he can sumhow manage to touch Petes record of 14..great but I think it may be difficult

Sanju yes it is near impossible. Last year everyone was thinking Fed will be out of the books and now we have lost the will to play and win tournemenst. Tennis is a drag lost the passion.

30 years and stil going with the hunger of a wolf.

sanju, not a bad list, but Rafa needs to get his head in the right place. When Rafa's mind and body are functioning he is sublime. I'm longing to see that spark in his eyes again.

Hope he gives them all what for in the clay season.

Fed is a decent guy, he really could do without some of his fans.

nadline..why clay season? I think he should focus on getting it back right in January at AO..

any idea where we can see which tourneys the Top 4 are playing the next year? and schedule of tourneys?

sanju, I hope Rafa wins everything next year, but I also want him to go on piling up on his credentials as the King of Clay.

Here is a link for the 2012 ATP Calendar:

http://www.talkabouttennis.com/forum/showthread.php?t=200 29

Rafa hasn't published his On The Road schedule yet for 2012.

Sienna..why you so keen to write Rafa off? Hasn't he bounced back twice - once after his lowest career phase in 2009 and earlier when his career was threatened in 2005/06 due to foot injury..

I think you should not write him off so soon..I dont think anyone wrote Fed off when he went title less for 8-9 months from Jan till Oct end right? He bounced back and is on cusp of winning 3 titles at fag end of year

Thanks nadline

Sienna- You have Rogers? I thought his is out as I read sumwer he wont play in Dubai, will play in Rotterdam and wont paly in MC etc

I don't care that Rafa doesn't win every single match he plays, all I know is, he is the best thing to ever happen to tennis. He rescued tennis by challenging Roger when the whole thing had become a yawn with Roger beating any and every one.

Rafa deserves a trophy for saving men's tennis at the beginning of the 21st century.

2012 calendar-Olympics, Toronoto Masters, Cincinnati Masters all back to back..a week break and then USO..thats punishing..

nadline..totally agree with your point..I know people in Inda who dont watch tennis much who know completely about the Roger - Rafa rivalry..

If theres anything that was discussed a lot from 2007-2010..it was Roger-Rafa rivalry and yes all credit to Rafa for taking it to Roger and giving us a rivalry to cherish and beautiful matches to witness

Also earlier I know lot of anti Rafa gys as he used to beat Roger continuously in RG, but after those historic 2 matches at Wimby 0 & AO 09, there are many many guys who developed healthy respect for Rafa inspite of beng hard core Roger fans..primarily because of the quality of those2 matches and especially the way Rafa conducted himself in the trophy ceremonies..Sachin Tendulkar the worlds greatest cricket batsmen being one..He is on record to say that watching Rafa consoling Roger when he cried made him develop utmost respect for Rafa and he began liking him from that time..

sanju despite youre hatred towards me sometimes you show very nice and meaningfull comets. This is one.

However acknowledging Nadaline, Luckystar and NNY is a serious offence. You sometimes have beautifull insights but those three poster are only here to condemn and attack every Fedfan that comes to this site. For some reason they hold plausure out of the fact that they often aided by others start to accuse the Fedfan and try to engage a fight. Of course when things get really ugly they tend to move the moderators in and let them solve the fedfan problem. So Fleaur and scoretracker where banned for a week. I believe that the ban was brought up by them or atleast their instigation.

But whatever happens they will get their comeuppons. Certainly that is not spelled right but you understand probably what I mean by that.

Gave faith and maybe Rafa will wake up one day and the passion for tennis and training will be back,but I dont think it will be that easy.

Sienna- for the record dont hate anyone on this site..I dont know anyone personally to like or hate anyone..

I am only against any disrespectful and spiteful comments against any player - be it Rafa, Fed, Novak, Andy or whoever.

My point is all 4 are huge achievers esp Roger and Rafa over pastfew years and Novak this year and they should be shown all respect irrespective of whether their form is temporarily down

On this surface, where there are no wind, no bad bounces, the aggressor is always the winner. Rafa's game becomes mediocre on this surface. Topspin becomes flat. He cant chase any balls so his footspeed doesn't matter.

If the WTF doesn't change surface in the future, I can't see Rafa winning this event unless he gets lucky.

agree torres9..difficult for Rafa to win WTF if its indoor hard court

He plays best on clay, grass and outdoor courts..On indoor all his strengths gets neutralized

Only 1 of his 46 titles are indoor

^^^That's why they should rotate the surfaces in future. As the WTF, it should be played on different surfaces not just the one favouring one type of player.

sanju, save your breath, don't try to talk reasons with sienna. There're reasons why fleur and scoretracker get banned; everyone of us here can see for ourselves, it's due to their bad behavior. Sienna siding with them just tell you what kind of poster she is. Just read all her posts here and see for yourself who's the one doing the provocation here, yet she has the cheek to complain that we're against the Fed fans. Who's the one who writes incessantly about Rafa's demise here? None other than sienna herself. She has posted more about Rafa than Fed, surprising isn't it, when you think Fed is her idol.

actually a clay event as the year-ending surface is kinda punishing for the tired players. They are already tired and they have to play on clay.

Best surface where every player is equal I guess is hardcourt. That should be the surface but i can see why indoor is chosen. We have 2 HC Slams, 1 clay, 1 grass, so the next biggest tournament should be indoors for variation not that its fair.

lucky, ritb and ts38,

Don't worry! I am not going there again. It is a difficult thing sometimes and one can get sucked into these endless arguments back and forth without end. That's why it's good to have people here to remind me when I try to talk sense to someone who has another agenda.

I see that tennisnba, another troll, has come back. Yes, there is a rule about copying and pasting the same posts on multiple topic threads. It's always the same thing over and over again. I am hoping the moderators see it and delete the comments.

Then there is this "divide and conquer" strategy which some Fed fans have tried to employ. It goes like this - try to manipulate one Rafa fan against others by being nice and saying that he/she is reasonable, a good person, not mean like others and then call out specific Rafa fans as the ones who are responsible for supposedly getting other Fed fans banned.

Anyone who gets banned on this site does it themselves, all on their own!

sanju,

I agree with nadline. Good advice. However, even I got sucked into it again. It is a waste of breath, a waste of energy and a waste of life. There is nothing to be gained because you will not get through to this person.

I have no issue with Fed. Good for him for being able to play well at this point in his career. However, knowing that he is a class act and how much he respects and likes Rafa, I have to believe that he would be embarrassed beyond words to see someone like Sienna posting comments like that. I don't see him even wanting that kind of fan.

NNY, it's funny that you still feed the Fedtrolls...

No need to rotate surface, Rafa can win it one day. When there's no DC final, he'll perform better. Just check, 2009 & 2011, DC final looming, lost during RR; 2010, no DCFinal, reached the final. Not forgetting Rafa reached the Rotterdam final and injured himself against Murray, after his exhausting exploits at the AO that year.

What he needs to do next year onwards, make use of the Paris Masters for preparation for the WTF. Just skip the Asian swing once in a while, rest up properly after the USO and be fresh and ready for the WTF.

Most of the time Rafa arrived at the TMC or WTF 'half dead', as he played too many tournaments after the USO. He's different from players like Nole or Murray or Tsonga, as he has spent most of his energy during the clay and grass season that he's no longer fresh for the hard court season that comes after that. Hard courts, especially the indoor ones, are not his forte, so he has to be as fresh and ready as possible in order to win title(s) there. This year his game has regressed so it's not unexpected that he doesn't do well on his least favorite surface. Next year may be a better year for Rafa, as he should be prepared and ready for the challenges, now that he knows what to expect.

thank you sanju. Finally some scincere words on this thread by a rafafan.If there where only more Rafa fans like you we could all be more enjoying the tennis Fed and Nadal olay but with the startegie and agenda some of the Rafafanatics have it is almost impossible. (read NNY Nadaline Luckystar in random order)
Biut you are a breath of fresh air. I just might have to rethink my words in the future to not try to upset you as a tennisfan.

I think if Rafa skips the all the 500 points next year he'll be dominating the Slams and Masters unless of course, Djokovic repeats this years' form which seems unlikely but not impossible.

Uncle Toni's a smart guy. he'll have Rafa training his serves, flattening his forehands this holiday. I remember 2009, Rafa got injured and got owned by a lot of players but hten 2010, he came back roaring.

Djokovic musn't get too comfortable. Rafa is not stubborn like Fed, he'll train hard for a new style of play and i won't be surprise if Djokovic gets beaten next year by Rafa.

torres,

They feed themselves! They certainly don't need anyone to feed them. As I predicted, "divide and conquer" strategy in place.

Oh and for the record, I was specifically blamed for you leaving this forum. See how it goes? Like I have that kind of power. Everyone is responsible for themselves here. Those who get banned deserved it. However, it is easier to blame Rafa fans, especially when someone's agenda is to get rid of them.

Finally, I hope you are right with your comments about Rafa working on his serving, flattening out his forehands and coming back strong in 2012. I also agree that Djoker can't rest on his laurels and think he has Rafa's number forever. I appreciate your objective comments. Please stay!

lucky,

I really like your thoughts in your last post. I think it would make good sense for him to skip the Asian swing entirely and then come back for Paris and London. Then he would be rested and have the match play needed in Paris to compete well at London.

Somebody please give torres9 the update about the mentalstate of Rafa?
If I am correct T will not be doing springbreak training not with Rafa anyway.

I think Rafa will skip the Asian swing, he's got no points to defend there so he might as well have a rest.

Rafa has had a successful year, only marred by his losses to Nole and losing the no 1 ranking, but life is not perfect. He'll be OK next year.


Vamos Rafa

Rafa now has over 1m follwers on twitter.

I for one cant wait for 2012 to start..There is a lot riding on it

Will Rafa erase the relatively not so good performance of 2011 and do well as he does in even years (2008, 2010) and win atleast 2 slams next year with bunch of other titles? How will he bounce back next year and get his mojo back?

Will Djoko sustain the 2011 level in 2012 or will he not be able to keep up like Rafa couldn't keep up his 2010 level in 2011?

Will Fed win a slam in 2012? Will he call it a day after winning 1 more slam? and leave on a high (just like steffi did?)..She went slamless I guess for 9 slams from 1997 till 1999 AO..then won French 1999, reached final of Wimby 1999 and then called it quits saying she didnt feel like playing any longer..For some reason I find lot of similarity between Steffi and Roger

Will Murray finally breakthrough and win a slam?

Will Delpo, Berdych, Tsonga etc play spoliers to the Top 4?

Really exciting times in 2012..Lets see who is the best player next season

sanju, Fed won't retire next year. He's still capable of playing some good tennis, he'll hang around until he wins his next slam. I've mentioned before, that the way Berdych and Tsonga are playing at the moment, they're the two to look out for next year, may not win slam(s) but may be a hindrance to the top four. Both of them have matured as players and are playing their best tennis these days. Delpo is always a dangerous player for anyone to face as an opponent, however I still think it's still the top four guys who would have successes at the slams. How the slams will be distributed, we shall see, starting with the AO.

lucky..I didnt say hell retire next year AS IS..I said will he win 1 more slam and retire on a high just like Steffi did?

BTW I like Feds interviews these days..They are very reasonable ..Earlier they could have been misinterpreted as a bit cocky..but hear him now..He says it would be nice to win a slam but it depends on others too how they fare


"Sure, to win Grand Slams would be nice," said the Basel native, who holds the record of having won 16 major singles titles. "I've missed out on a few occasions now this year, and maybe also some last year. So I feel like it might be around the corner. Maybe not. The other players obviously have a role to play in this."

And surprise he rates his loss to Rafa in RG in 2011 bigger than loss to Novak in USO 2011 semi..Im surprised he felt that way as he lost it after being 2 match points on his serve...but maybe as it was semi..

The 30 year old finished runner-up to Rafael Nadal in the Roland Garros final, pushing the Spaniard close in four sets, and held a match point against Novak Djokovic in the US Open semi-finals before succumbing in five thrilling sets. Looking back on the two matches, Federer said:
"I don't think the match against Novak was my biggest disappointment of the season. It wasn't the final. I felt like my chances were there as much at the French Open against Rafa. That would have been an amazing accomplishment, to beat Rafa in the finals of the French Open. So I look back on that one with maybe a few more regrets. I know I was one point away from getting to the US Open final, but it all happened in a moment.
"I think for me, the most important thing is the reaction I show after losses like this. Because [the US Open] was a tough loss. It was one that hurt. It was one that makes you wonder, ?How in the world can I end up losing this match?? But to bounce back and not lose a match from that moment on I think shows, again, how tough I am, the right decisions I can take. These are the kinds of reactions I expect from myself. So to come through and prove it to myself was a great feeling."

Also Feds pressers these days are good even though he didnt do well in slams in 2011..Yes he always tries to stay confident..sum ppl misinterpret it as a bit cocky..but atleast he doesn?t berate himself..it gives hope for his fans to expect smething from him

Rafa on other hand God I don?t know if its his language issue but hes like not good to hear in pressers ..it gives jitters to his fans..I still rem his pressers during RG 2011..they were so negative and morose..and he ended up winning it..not sure if it was his strategy to take of all expectations from him..

sanju, Rafa and Fed are of different personalities, how can you expect them to behave the same way? What's the point of being confident but can't win? I'd rather be able to recognize my own shortcomings, work around them and wins in the end. If you've being a Rafa fan for long, you'll realise that's how Rafa behaves. He'll let his racket does the talking. I won't want him to become another Fed, he just needs to be himself, works on his game and improves it. He's human like you and me so he's entitled to some rantings when he's unhappy. I love Rafa because he's human but does his best out there to produce his best. It's his heart and warrior spirit that attracts me to him, helped also by his unique play style and good tennis brain. He beats Fed and continues to beat him when the likes of Davy, Gonzo, Blake or even Safin, Nalby, Hewitt etc failed to beat him when he became TMF.

Rafa has his ups and downs in his career, he can feed on his past experience during his down period in his career, how he came back each time and became a better player. He still has a few good years in him to play top class tennis. We've seen how he played when his game was on, ie when his forehand CC and DTL were firing well; his CC backhand was devestating during AO 09; his big and efficent serve during USO 10; his good enough ROS in the past; his good court positioning during the grass season; his good net game during IW/Miami this year; his good footwork on all surfaces all along; his clutch serving and gutsy play during critical moments; his steel like mental strength and unwavering contentration snd focus; his consistency of good level of play throughout a whole match, etc and etc. Can you imagine all those firing at full force at the same time? If not, at least most of them at slightly less than 100%? Rafael just has to go and find them back! If the heart is there, he'll succeed, and his heart is still there in his tennis career! Just look at how happy he is at Seville with his team mates and even with Pico, DC here we come!

lucky,

Well said! We wouldn't want Rafa to be anyone other than himself. He is human, real and honest. He doesn't lie to himself or to his fans. I love his post-match press conferences because of his self-awareness about his game, what is working and what is not working, how he is feeling, how he played, where he's at. He has such a depth and breadth of knowledge of the sport, other players and himself.

Rafa has his own personality and need not try to be like Fed or anyone else. That is why we love him as fans. He never talks himself up, just goes out on the court and does it with his racket. I think part of his appeal is that he allows his fans to see his humanity. We can go through his trials and struggles along with him.

I checked out some picture on vamosbrigade, of a happy Rafa with his Spanish teammates preparing for the DC final. He looked so relaxed and glad to be there. We have debated the importance of DC and WTF here, but there is no question in Rafa's mind as to the importance of his participation in DC for his country. He has always been passionate and dedicated about DC. It's similar to the tennis players who go to the Olympics and try to win gold medals for their country. Sometimes it is a good thing to play for something bigger than oneself. To play for one's country, to play with a great team is a special privilege. I am sure Rafa will continue trying to win WTF and if he does fine, if not it's still all good.

I remember watching the documentary - McEnroe/Borg: Fire and Ice. Borg said that he has two goals when he was just starting out - to be the #1 player in the world and to win DC for his country. He achieved both those goals and a lot more. So even the great Borg felt that DC was important. So does Rafa.

I can't wait to see him playing in the final with Argentina!

lucky..NNY..I am sure you know I am not comparing Rafa with Fed..It would make me happiest if Rafa succeeds and I am eagerly waiting for 2012 for him to fire..All I want is him to really rock it next 2 years..

I dont know..maybe the way a guy and lady interprets the pressers is different..not sure..

NNY..any link for the snaps? I checked vamosbrigade..looks like you need to be a member to access

sanju, you can see the pictures in Rafaholics.com, you don't have to be a member as with vamosbrigade. You can register with Rafaholics.com and they will email you with updates on Rafa daily.

ttp://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/tennis/atptour/8914764/Rafael-Nadal-ci tes-lack-of-passion-behind-early-ATP-World-Tour-Finals-exit-as-long-se ason-takes-toll.html

Rafael Nadal has said "a little bit less passion for the game" was
one of the contributing factors behind his earlier than expected exit at the ATP World Tour Finals.

"Probably I had a little bit less passion for the game probably because I was a little bit more tired than usual,"
said Nadal.

excuse again. sore loser

Nadal looks down on Sampras(and past players) I hope. Nadal never pass Sampras record.

little bit less passion for game by any sane person comprehending it is not an excuse but a fact..passion is driven from within..not external..

He needs to fix his passon and work on it..period..and hopefully he will

Federer. Roger. Fed....
Nadal fan always speaking about Federer's thing.
I dislike Nadal. his cheat. Fake time-out. gamesmanship. too noisy always. overrated by his arrogant blind fan. etc.

But Roger Federer is already an old player. I not expect that he increases GS title.

It is disappointed at a lack in a young generation's ability. A 30-year-old player still continues a championship why?

shit..

Rafans, check out the man-hug between Pico and Rafa in the photo in the following article! Honestly, Rafa is such an imp, he pinched Pico's bum!! And the naughty grin.................and Pico's arms circling Rafa's neck......................these two are the end, honestly....................

http://blogs.montrealgazette.com/2011/ 11/26/nadal-hits-the-dirt-in-a-hurry/

^^^^To think that Pico is actually the opposition!!!!

They clearly are such good friends.....................

Check out the following link, Uncle T has spoken:

http://www.tennis.com/articles/templates/news.aspx?articlei d=15230&zoneid=25

sanju, just ignore tennisnba. Don't pay any attention to his posts. The more you respond the more he posts all his nonsense.

nadline,

Thanks for providing the info about Rafaholics.com. I didn't know about that site.

ritb,

Thanks for the links! The picture of Rafa and Pico was priceless!

I really wish the moderators would delete those disgusting posts from tennisnba. This troll comes out periodically to post trash comments about Rafa and his fans in fake broken english.

^^^^^^can't wait for Friday, Sevilla will be rocking!!

ritb,

Yes! This will be great! I think of Rafa in Spain in front of his home fans who adore him. I think it invigorates him. He feeds on the love of the crowd and the pride of playing for his country. I am so proud of him for being committed to playing DC! :)

From: http://bleacherreport.com/tb/bc9Yf

SEVILLE, Spain (AP)?Rafael Nadal is tired but still motivated to lead Spain in its attempt to win a fifth Davis Cup title against Argentina.

Nadal provoked alarm in his home country last week when he said he felt ?less passionate for the game? after being eliminated from the ATP World Tour Finals.

Following a practice session for the Davis Cup final which begins Friday, Nadal said Monday that his words had been exaggerated.

?Things get blown out of proportion very often because conclusions are drawn far beyond the meaning of what?s said,? Nadal said. ?It?s true that this season has been tough. More than a lack of passion, it is a weariness from many years of playing at this level, week after week.

?The important thing now is to work each day at 100 percent with the excitement needed to win the Davis Cup.?

*************************************

Fedfans were already rubbing their hands that Rafa had lost the passion for tennis for ever, because only then will life get easier for Roger.

Vamos!!! May you continue to be a thorn in the side of the rabid Fedfandom!!!

Thanks for giving us that clarification from Rafa, nadline..................

From the Davis Cup website:

"Such is the intrigue around this tie between two of the powerhouse tennis nations, Barclays ATP World Tour Finals champion Roger Federer gave his verdict after victory in London on Sunday. "I'm sure it's an open match in some ways. But I think that Spain is the favourite," said the Swiss. "They're playing at home. They have an incredibly solid team.

"But then again, the Argentineans, they have their players and their team, as well. If a surprise happens, anything's possible. Obviously it's normal to favour the Spaniards with Rafa on the team back on clay. It's logical."

head-scratch................why is Fed commenting on a sporting "carnival" as sienna called the Davis Cup, especially so soon after his win at WTF?

Answer: because he knows its a "biggie"!....................and he'll be watching............be sure to send sienna texed updates will you, Rog coz she won't be watching....................

rafaisthebest, Roger sometimes doesn't even watch slam finals where he isn't playing. He was asked a question and he gave his honest opinion as he always does.

He said spain are the favourites which is obvious, "nadal on clay".

bleck, can we now say the same thing about Roger i.e. "Fed on indoor hardcourt", obviously favourite?

rafaisthebest, I think nadal was until 2010 more dominant on clay than Roger on indoor hardcourts to be honest. But it's close.

Anyone who wants to have a laugh check the H2H of nadal vs Tsonga in the atp website.

It's a shame that the off-season isn't 3 or 4 weeks longer. I don't blame Nadal, Ferrer or Djokovic for saying that they're exhausted. The tennis season is ridiculously long...and it's a week longer for Spaniards and Argies. It's really too much.

bleck
, 11/29/11 2:06 PM

It's 6-4 in favour of Rafa..........................where's the joke?

cherylmurray
, 11/29/11 2:16 PM

The powers that be will only change the calendar when his GOATness starts complaining..................and he ain't gonna start now..................that'd ruin his one chance of snagging the "other" major, WTF, 'coz the other players would be just as fresh.............................

It's 6-4 in favour of Rafa..........................where's the joke?, rafaisthebest

Check the matches!!!!

^^^^^^^have checked, still don't get the joke

2011 Barclays ATP World Tour Finals Great Britain Hard RR Tsonga, Jo-Wilfried
7-6(2), 4-6, 6-3 Stats

2011 Barclays ATP World Tour Finals Great Britain Hard RR Tsonga, Jo-Wilfried
7-6(2), 4-6, 6-3 Stats

2011 ESP vs. FRA WG SF Spain Clay RR Nadal, Rafael
6-0, 6-2, 6-4

2011 London / Queen's Club Great Britain Grass Q Tsonga, Jo-Wilfried
6-7(3), 6-4, 6-1 Stats

2010 ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Miami FL, U.S.A. Hard Q Nadal, Rafael
6-3, 6-2 Stats

2009 ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Paris France Hard Q Nadal, Rafael
7-5, 7-5 Stats

2009 Rotterdam The Netherlands Hard Q Nadal, Rafael
6-4, 6-7(5), 6-4 Stats

2008 ATP Masters Series Indian Wells CA, U.S.A. Hard R16 Nadal, Rafael
6-7(4), 7-6(3), 7-5 Stats

2008 Australian Open Australia Hard S Tsonga, Jo-Wilfried
6-2, 6-3, 6-2 Stats

2007 US Open NY, U.S.A. Hard R32 Nadal, Rafael
7-6(3), 6-2, 6-1 Stats

copy/paste from the atpwebsite

Check the last 2 matches!!!!

^^^And your point is?

the last match (2011 WTF RR) is counted twice in the H2H. In reality it is 6-3 not 6-4.

geez...

Well spotted, bleck. I wonder when they'll notice the mistake.

I thought you were trying to make a point about who is better against the other on h/c or clay. You must be a closet Rafan to be checking his h2hs with such a beady eye.

No not at all nadline. Just thought it was funny and said people to check it out but didn't say what it was about. Rafaisthebest was having trouble spotting the error. lol