ATP Masters 1000: Cincinnati

Back in time for some Nole action  

Pretty flat match, the few games I have seen, miles behind Davy Delpo.
Monaco's tennis worse than ever, Nole obviously getting used to the conditions, footwork vital in Cincy!

In the end, not a bad match from Nole, picked up from where he left in Montreal.
Next one against Goffin should be really good!

Tenez wrote:Davydenko reminds me Federer. He makes all the game, looks great but nowadays it's simply useless. It's not the 40 great shots you play that win a match it's the 41 UEs you make that gives the win to your opponent.

Yes, that is a very sad truth. Paire is the same and quite a few others. Still, they are great to watch in their flights.
I am sure they take pride and enjoy the way they play, they could all switch to mind-numbing percentage slug/fit fests, but they choose not to.
I don't know how it looks from their pro-perspective, they probably groan inwardly and must be very frustrated, but choices are there to be made and lived with.

Fed will make it against Haas in 3 sets. I wish the baby Fed takes Nadal out. Else Fed's Cincy Campaign could get over tomorrow . This could be the year when Fed wouldn't win even a Masters

Isner-Raonic will be interesting (A serving fest ).

raiders_of_the_lost_ark wrote:Fed will make it against Haas in 3 sets. I wish the baby Fed takes Nadal out. Else Fed's Cincy Campaign could get over tomorrow . This could be the year when Fed wouldn't win even a Masters

Isner-Raonic will be interesting (A serving fest ).

 I haven't seen Fed play against Kohli but Haas in very much in the category (like many others) who's able to beat this Federer. Against Nadal it surely will be another painful affair. More so because this is Cinci, he used to own this court.
Nadal - Murray is a match i'm looking forward to, mainly because i think Andy has a good chance to beat Nadal.

Agree GP..except about Haas.

In retrospect I am pretty sure Fed gave Haas that finale in Halle 2012. I might be wrong but to me it was a gift to Haas and the crowd. That year he won WImbledon and I think had Halle been Wimby he woudl simply not have lost that match.....my only doubt is again with this back problem meaning he may not have wanted to force it in Halle and played very carefully.

I however agree that Haas like almost any player nowadays can beat Federer...for the reason I have mentioned many times.

His melon sized prostate?

I probably won't see Fed Haas match until it goes very long, but hope Fed goes through and restores his confidence a bit.
In the meantime for the next half an hour, GO NOLEEEE!!!

Nadal says Cinci is slower than Montreal?

 "The speed of the court is not exactly the same. It's a little bit slower here than in Montreal

that can not be correct can it? I've only seen the Fed match in night conditions and it looked fast, while Montreal was glacier slow............if they've turned Cinci into a slowcourt, then I call for a mass protest...

I didn't notice a huge difference in how Montreal and Cincy played either, tbh.
Cincy does not look that fast at all.
Def. faster than AO, IW and Miami, but not really fast.

noleisthebest wrote:I didn't notice a huge difference in how Montreal and Cincy played either, tbh.
Cincy does not look that fast at all.
Def. faster than AO, IW and Miami, but not really fast.

 That's pathetic if they've slowed Cinci down too....   Nadal and his fellow pushers are so lucky they were born into the era of glacier slow tennis..

'Nadal and his fellow pushers' LOL !!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OvGIX0l4ylU

Allez Roger!!

I want a Fedal QF tomorrow, haven't had that matchup for a while.

Julia Santamaria wrote:'Nadal and his fellow pushers' LOL !!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OvGIX0l4ylU

 not sure what a video of a few shots proves... Are you trying to say Nadal is an aggressive fast court shotmaker? 

or would you agree he excels in long rally point construction and keeping the ball in play with his manufactured spin-  all which has been incredibly aided by the conditions that the tour have created during his era?

truffin1 wrote:

Julia Santamaria wrote:'Nadal and his fellow pushers' LOL !!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OvGIX0l4ylU

 not sure what a video of a few shots proves... Are you trying to say Nadal is an aggressive fast court shotmaker? 

or would you agree he excels in long rally point construction and keeping the ball in play with his manufactured spin-  all which has been incredibly aided by the conditions that the tour have created during his era?

Dubai 2006- court looks pretty fast to me. Watch highlights of the whole final.

You're going on now about 'long rally point construction', 'manufactured spin' (manufactured by Nadal I assume?), different to being a pusher. Nadal is not a pusher, Giles Simon and Juan Monaco are 'pushers', not Rafael Nadal.

In terms of his playing style- he played well to suit the conditions at the time best. Toni would find a way to adapt Nadal's game if needed- he and Rafa are both tactically very astute.
Nice try though in saying 'pusher' and then quickly backtracking into talking about 'point construction' and 'spin' trying to pretend you were saying that all along  

Talking of incredible spin:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0UW1_oRrjA

Feds getting battered  down to 7 potentially  

Fully behind Roger here, he needs to pick up his play and fast though.

Julia Santamaria wrote:Allez Roger!!

I want a Fedal QF tomorrow, haven't had that matchup for a while.

 Nadal fans really are sadists aren't they?

Get in!!!

gallery play wrote:

Julia Santamaria wrote:Allez Roger!!

I want a Fedal QF tomorrow, haven't had that matchup for a while.

 Nadal fans really are sadists aren't they?

oh cmon don't tell me a Fedal Quarterfinal at Cincinnati tomorrow won't be fun!
Fed needs to win this set though, and Rafa needs to beat Fed-lite in the evening.

Federer wins the set, without a forehand..
I think Tommy blew this set, he got -as usual- distracted. This time was it the crowd who started to cheer his errors  when he was a break up.

Julia Santamaria wrote:

truffin1 wrote:

Julia Santamaria wrote:'Nadal and his fellow pushers' LOL !!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OvGIX0l4ylU

 not sure what a video of a few shots proves... Are you trying to say Nadal is an aggressive fast court shotmaker? 

or would you agree he excels in long rally point construction and keeping the ball in play with his manufactured spin-  all which has been incredibly aided by the conditions that the tour have created during his era?

Dubai 2006- court looks pretty fast to me. Watch highlights of the whole final.

You're going on now about 'long rally point construction', 'manufactured spin' (manufactured by Nadal I assume?), different to being a pusher. Nadal is not a pusher, Giles Simon and Juan Monaco are 'pushers', not Rafael Nadal.

In terms of his playing style- he played well to suit the conditions at the time best. Toni would find a way to adapt Nadal's game if needed- he and Rafa are both tactically very astute.
Nice try though in saying 'pusher' and then quickly backtracking into talking about 'point construction' and 'spin' trying to pretend you were saying that all along  

yeah, nice try pretending you know what your talking about by pretending I don't know what I'm talking about.. lol.

Nadals one of the all time great players of all times so, of course, he can win here and there in conditions that don't suit him- like Dubai 7 years ago.smh....  US Open ONCE!..  but don't use a couple tournaments out of more than 150 to pretend he's something he's not.  please.44

no the manufactured spin is created by the new string technology, and no you are completely wrong that Nadal and Toni could have adapted to any conditions..  Nadal wouldn't sniff a Wimbledon title under the old conditions...  he wouldn't sniff anything off of clay with the old wood racquets of the past....       Nadal deserves full credit for being a great player that suits the times and just like we would argue when you guys babble on about weak era- you play who you play-- so Nadal deserves full credit for his time in the game.. but don't pretend he's something that he's not...

Julia Santamaria wrote:

gallery play wrote:

Julia Santamaria wrote:Allez Roger!!

I want a Fedal QF tomorrow, haven't had that matchup for a while.

 Nadal fans really are sadists aren't they?

oh cmon don't tell me a Fedal Quarterfinal at Cincinnati tomorrow won't be fun!
Fed needs to win this set though, and Rafa needs to beat Fed-lite in the evening.

 For a sadist it will be fun.

People with a heart don't like to watch the pure torture that matchup has turned  into, Nadal fans do like it though. Can't blame 'm, tennisfans have the same pleasure when Nadal loses.

Federer is so underrated as a "figher"   Certainly he's full aware that in his games current condition he's gong to take another loss to Nadal if he gets through this-- but he's fighting like hell.. All the great champions I know-- they always want the chance to climb the mountain no matter if they can or not.

Yeah, like a knocked down boxer, without having a clue where he is, he still wants to get up and fight back.

The timing on the FH is a bit better now, but still far from solid.

Meanwhile Haas is not doing many things wrong.

2-2

truffin1 wrote:
yeah, nice try pretending you know what your talking about by pretending I don't know what I'm talking about.. lol.

Where's your 'Nadal is a pusher' line gone then? LOL
Any links to show where he simply pushes the ball... no didn't think so.
He may be many things, but a pusher of the ball he is not. It's nearly delusional to claim that's the case, and don't even bother with this ridiculous professional pretence you put on.

no the manufactured spin is created by the new string technology,

Oh really? Well, as everyone I assume as access to current rackets, then who else can even nearly create as much spin or RPMs as Rafael Nadal?? If it was so easy, or just needed some biceps, then why can't everyone put the spin he does.

no the manufactured spin is created by the new string technology, and no you are completely wrong that Nadal and Toni could have adapted to any conditions..  Nadal wouldn't sniff a Wimbledon title under the old conditions...  he wouldn't sniff anything off of clay with the old wood racquets of the past.... 

How exactly do you know this?
Of course I am willing to accept that if Nadal kept his current style of play, he would not be able to succeed in different conditions.
But how on earth could you be so sure that if conditions did dramatically change, Toni did not sit Nadal down and ask him to totally change his game- and one which he may be as successful at. How can you know this not to be true?

Nadal deserves full credit for being a great player that suits the times and just like we would argue when you guys babble on about weak era- you play who you play-- so Nadal deserves full credit for his time in the game..

He deserves full credit for being a great player and having 'his time in the game' does he??
Is that why you said this:
Nadal and his fellow pushers are so lucky they were born into the era of glacier slow tennis..

but don't pretend he's something that he's not...

I am not saying he's a great fast court player, what I'm saying is that Toni would have the possibility of changing Nadal's game if the conditions totally changed; and given Nadal as so much talent I wouldn't be surprised if he played well with his new different game-style.

gallery play wrote:Yeah, like a knocked down boxer, without having a clue where he is, he still wants to get up and fight back.

Agree with both you and Truffin here, I also remember matches against Benneteau and Falla where he showed great spirit when he was nearly down and out.

gallery play wrote:

Julia Santamaria wrote:

gallery play wrote:

Julia Santamaria wrote:Allez Roger!!

I want a Fedal QF tomorrow, haven't had that matchup for a while.

 Nadal fans really are sadists aren't they?

oh cmon don't tell me a Fedal Quarterfinal at Cincinnati tomorrow won't be fun!
Fed needs to win this set though, and Rafa needs to beat Fed-lite in the evening.

 For a sadist it will be fun.

People with a heart don't like to watch the pure torture that matchup has turned  into, Nadal fans do like it though. Can't blame 'm, tennisfans have the same pleasure when Nadal loses.

How do you know Federer not win if the match arises?
He may surprise you.

GET IIIIIN

Julia Santamaria wrote:

truffin1 wrote:
yeah, nice try pretending you know what your talking about by pretending I don't know what I'm talking about.. lol.

Where's your 'Nadal is a pusher' line gone then? LOL
Any links to show where he simply pushes the ball... no didn't think so.
He may be many things, but a pusher of the ball he is not. It's nearly delusional to claim that's the case, and don't even bother with this ridiculous professional pretence you put on.

no the manufactured spin is created by the new string technology,

Oh really? Well, as everyone I assume as access to current rackets, then who else can even nearly create as much spin or RPMs as Rafael Nadal?? If it was so easy, or just needed some biceps, then why can't everyone put the spin he does.

no the manufactured spin is created by the new string technology, and no you are completely wrong that Nadal and Toni could have adapted to any conditions..  Nadal wouldn't sniff a Wimbledon title under the old conditions...  he wouldn't sniff anything off of clay with the old wood racquets of the past.... 

How exactly do you know this?
Of course I am willing to accept that if Nadal kept his current style of play, he would not be able to succeed in different conditions.
But how on earth could you be so sure that if conditions did dramatically change, Toni did not sit Nadal down and ask him to totally change his game- and one which he may be as successful at. How can you know this not to be true?

Nadal deserves full credit for being a great player that suits the times and just like we would argue when you guys babble on about weak era- you play who you play-- so Nadal deserves full credit for his time in the game..

He deserves full credit for being a great player and having 'his time in the game' does he??
Is that why you said this:
Nadal and his fellow pushers are so lucky they were born into the era of glacier slow tennis..

but don't pretend he's something that he's not...

I am not saying he's a great fast court player, what I'm saying is that Toni would have the possibility of changing Nadal's game if the conditions totally changed; and given Nadal as so much talent I wouldn't be surprised if he played well with his new different game-style.

 I've seen people try to discuss things with you when your in your Nadal worship mode and I'm not interested.  You can cry all you want about the label pusher and you might have a different definition of one than me- but he's a pusher-- just the best at it.

Nadal can get better spin than others using the new technology because he's more talented and his skill suit it better than the others.. Just like some people could shoot much better jump shots than Michael Jordan but he could dunk and fly better.  Different people have different skill sets.  Nadal's are perfect for the current era- hence the "luck" of being born into that era.

You ask me how I could possible know Nadal couldn't change and excel under differnet conditons (read my differnet people have different skill sets for explanation) so I'll ask you: How do you possibly know he could?  He's talented but he's not one of the greatest talents ever in terms of shotmaking skils..  anyway- you've sucked me into your vortex for too long.. Have fun.

Julia Santamaria wrote:

gallery play wrote:

Julia Santamaria wrote:

gallery play wrote:

Julia Santamaria wrote:Allez Roger!!

I want a Fedal QF tomorrow, haven't had that matchup for a while.

 Nadal fans really are sadists aren't they?

oh cmon don't tell me a Fedal Quarterfinal at Cincinnati tomorrow won't be fun!
Fed needs to win this set though, and Rafa needs to beat Fed-lite in the evening.

 For a sadist it will be fun.

People with a heart don't like to watch the pure torture that matchup has turned  into, Nadal fans do like it though. Can't blame 'm, tennisfans have the same pleasure when Nadal loses.

How do you know Federer not win if the match arises?
He may surprise you.

 Federer has generally been playing poor for almost a year now. At the moment he looks stiff, slow, has no forehand, no confidence, no authority, no timing. How can he possibly have a chance against a pumped up Nadal?
I assume you're not serious or pretend this is still the great Federer in order to make Nadal's wins over him more glorious

So, like he's been doing thoughout this year: Fed played a couple of good games. This time he played those at the right time.
Tommy should have won it in 2 though.

truffin1 wrote:
 I've seen people try to discuss things with you when your in your Nadal worship mode and I'm not interested. 

You're out of your depth in this debate, time for you to admit it rather than running away.

truffin1 wrote:
You can cry all you want about the label pusher and you might have a different definition of one than me- but he's a pusher-- just the best at it.

Well a pusher is someone who pushes the ball- ie rather than hitting it with any great power.

Nadal can get better spin than others using the new technology because he's more talented and his skill suit it better than the others..

Indeed that is true. Atleast you admitted it, rather than clutching at straws and claiming all the credit should go to string technology.

Nadal's are perfect for the current era- hence the "luck" of being born into that era.

Well in that case we could say the same of Sampras and his 'luck' in playing at a time where fast court tennis won you the matches.
And to answer your second question below, yes Nadal does indeed have virtually the optimum game for this current conditions... but how could you know his skill set ends there?
You said with certainty that Nadal would definitely not succeed in different conditions, I meanwhile admit that it is not 100% either way- it is guesswork after all.

Julia Santamaria wrote:

gallery play wrote:Yeah, like a knocked down boxer, without having a clue where he is, he still wants to get up and fight back.

Agree with both you and Truffin here, I also remember matches against Benneteau and Falla where he showed great spirit when he was nearly down and out.

 and there he did it-  lol...  stumbling blindly but he pulls out the knockout.     It's impressive stuff really-He fought to live another day even if he knows he's likely to get killed the next.   It won't matter historically to those who understand tennis, matchups,etc- Federers place at GOAT mountain is secure, but it's still got to hurt to take another loss to Nadal.. Normally in Cinci or US Open- I'd love to see him finally face Nadal even at 32 against Nadals prime-- but this isn't normal Federer.

btw-- at 5-5 in second set, right after Cahill talks about Feds serve speed is dropping way down as the match goes on- as Federer is walking around the baseline getting ready to serve-- watch how he drags his left leg ever so slightly over and over..........classic sign of sciatic flareup.. I've been in the middle of a match and felt it many a time.

Julia Santamaria wrote:

truffin1 wrote:
 I've seen people try to discuss things with you when your in your Nadal worship mode and I'm not interested. 

You're out of your depth in this debate, time for you to admit it rather than running away.

truffin1 wrote:
You can cry all you want about the label pusher and you might have a different definition of one than me- but he's a pusher-- just the best at it.

Well a pusher is someone who pushes the ball- ie rather than hitting it with any great power.

Nadal can get better spin than others using the new technology because he's more talented and his skill suit it better than the others..

Indeed that is true. Atleast you admitted it, rather than clutching at straws and claiming all the credit should go to string technology.

Nadal's are perfect for the current era- hence the "luck" of being born into that era.

Well in that case we could say the same of Sampras and his 'luck' in playing at a time where fast court tennis won you the matches.
And to answer your second question below, yes Nadal does indeed have virtually the optimum game for this current conditions... but how could you know his skill set ends there?
You said with certainty that Nadal would definitely not succeed in different conditions, I meanwhile admit that it is not 100% either way- it is guesswork after all.

No, not running away and not out of my depth.. I've just seen too many get sucked into arguing with you when you know nothing about tennis except Nadal worship.  See you sucked me in again

credit is to string technology. his skills suit it better than others, but without it- his skills would not translate as well.. Laver said so himself (maybe he's not knowlegable about tennis either)   "Nadal would struggle the most of the current top players if handed the racquet I used"

Here you go: free lessons
http://sports.espn.go.com/sports/tennis/news/story?id=3064206


I didn't know we were listing every player who was born lucky............   sure add Sampras in thee, Federer, Laver tooo... See for those who actually understand athtletics- they don't see that statement as a put down...  Every great is made from a combination of skill, desire, technology and LUCK!   If short LAver was playing today, prob not as successful. If Sampras playing in slow clay like hard courst, prob not as successful... if Nadal played during Sampras, not as successful... Federer the same.............  it's not a put down.. it's fact..  Nadal's skill set is suited for this era best, and really the other past eras that tennis have seen would not have meshed well for him at all..

truffin1 wrote:

btw-- at 5-5 in second set, right after Cahill talks about Feds serve speed is dropping way down as the match goes on- as Federer is walking around the baseline getting ready to serve-- watch how he drags his left leg ever so slightly over and over..........classic sign of sciatic flareup.. I've been in the middle of a match and felt it many a time.

 o yes, the way he walks is very telling.
Fed has an anterior pelvic tilt bij nature, this is probably the mother of all of his back problems.He tries to tilt his pelvis to a posterior position (which is why it seems his rear is gone) to ease the pain, very typical for back patients (i know all too well, unfortunatly).

truffin1 wrote:
No, not running away and not out of my depth..

Well you would say that wouldn't you..

credit is to string technology. his skills suit it better than others, but without it- his skills would not translate as well..

What? This is so incoherent it barely makes a sentence.
The string technology is the same for everyone- it is Nadal's skill set which has made use of it in such a way that he can create the spin he does.
Giving 'credit to the racket' can be done for any champion throughout any tennis history- singling out Nadal is next to ridiculous. Would McEnroe's shots have been this effective with the current rackets compared to the one he used?

Laver said so himself (maybe he's not knowlegable about tennis either)   "Nadal would struggle the most of the current top players if handed the racquet I used"

During TV commentary I've heard McEnroe saying almost the opposite about Nadal- that he would adapt his game superbly to different conditions if Toni wanted (I think it was during USO 2010 IIRC).

truffin1 wrote:
Every great is made from a combination of skill, desire, technology and LUCK!   If short LAver was playing today, prob not as successful. If Sampras playing in slow clay like hard courst, prob not as successful... if Nadal played during Sampras, not as successful... Federer the same.............  it's not a put down.. it's fact..  Nadal's skill set is suited for this era best, and really the other past eras that tennis have seen would not have meshed well for him at all..

I totally agree with this paragraph- infact I'd say it's pretty much spot on, apart from the last line- where I would say we are not 100% certain either way.
What I do object to is the singling out of Nadal, and in particular your tone and use of the word 'so' in this sentence:
Nadal and his fellow pushers are so lucky they were born into the era of glacier slow tennis..
This line doesn't really reflect the 'every great' paragraph which I agree with just above.

gallery play wrote:
I assume you're not serious or pretend this is still the great Federer in order to make Nadal's wins over him more glorious

No, that would be unfair and slightly mischievous of me.
What I can say though is that this is a great player on a court he has enjoyed playing on, so we can't rule him out totally.

I did not see the match and all your comments made good reading.

Every great is made from a combination of skill, desire, technology and LUCK! If short LAver was playing today, prob not as successful. If Sampras playing in slow clay like hard courst, prob not as successful... if Nadal played during Sampras, not as successful... Federer the same............. it's not a put down.. it's fact.. Nadal's skill set is suited for this era best, and really the other past eras that tennis have seen would not have meshed well for him at all..

I woudl just disagree with that bold bit. To me Federer was the unluckiest player and still managed to get an amazing record...but in any other era or circumstances he could have done much better.

Tenez wrote:I did not see the match and all your comments made good reading.

Every great is made from a combination of skill, desire, technology and LUCK! If short LAver was playing today, prob not as successful. If Sampras playing in slow clay like hard courst, prob not as successful... if Nadal played during Sampras, not as successful... Federer the same............. it's not a put down.. it's fact.. Nadal's skill set is suited for this era best, and really the other past eras that tennis have seen would not have meshed well for him at all..

I woudl just disagree with that bold bit. To me Federer was the unluckiest player and still managed to get an amazing record...but in any other era or circumstances he could have done much better.

 lol.. well I didn't want to seem biased.. Had to throw Amrit a bone and put him/her out misery..  I can see your point though- unlike the others I mentioned the tour has actually moved away from the conditions that would best suit Fed..  yet he still created a historic carreer.. that's why he is the Goat.


btw-- Dimitrov cracks me up.. He wants to move away from the Federer comparisons yet tonight he wears Federers signature French Open shoes and the same color clothes as Federer is wearing... lol

Federer had a great interview after his match with ESPN. For once was asked some decent questions.. clearly he's lacking in confidence, insists he feels better, went over how his training has been changed because of the back and he is having to focus on "boring" core excercises..says Rafa is playing best in the world right now, Djoko and Murray right with him. If he plays Rafa has to take it to him and hope Rafa is playing passive, and he's practiced with Dimitrov and it's very "weird" because so much of the game coming back at him is similar to his....

I haven't seen either of Federer's matches in Cincy.
Can he beat Nadal tonight?

Murray Berdych should be interesting.

Good to see Dimitrov took a set off Nadal, I wish he changed his game a bit, though, too much time and energy spent on the baseline achieving nothing. Some don't have a choice, but he should be able to be more aggressive and not only when he feels like it, but when he doesn't, as well.

Yesterday Nadal was quite aggressive. I only saw the first 6 games and he has clearly added more power to his shots and that is essentially due to the high confidence but also simply the fact shot making improves with age. So now he can make the most of his big arms while up to recently he was not very confident in going for more winners and was just trying to outlast his opponents. He feels he can take them on with a more standard game.

But the problem for his opponents remain the same, they are not used to handling such a powerful ball/spin. So it is almost irrelevant how good they play the previous rounds, it's how they can handle this tennis they are not used to.

Let's see how it goes....Delpo, Murray and Djoko still could do it. Nadal can quickly retreat in his shell if faced with a fast ball.

Tenez wrote:Yesterday Nadal was quite aggressive. I only saw the first 6 games and he has clearly added more power to his shots and that is essentially due to the high confidence but also simply the fact shot making improves with age. So now he can make the most of his big arms while up to recently he was not very confident in going for more winners and was just trying to outlast his opponents. He feels he can take them on with a more standard game.

But the problem for his opponents remain the same, they are not used to handling such a powerful ball/spin. So it is almost irrelevant how good they play the previous rounds, it's how they can handle this tennis they are not used to.

Let's see how it goes....Delpo, Murray and Djoko still could do it. Nadal can quickly retreat in his shell if faced with a fast ball.

That's very interesting.
I noticed that extra power on his FH, and even 1st serve against Nole in Montreal, but thought that was because of his "preparation".
It is a bit surprising that he chose to play with more confidence against Nole ON hard courts....but it clearly worked.

I just don't know why Nole had such a terrible start and served so badly. For now, I'll choose to believe it's because he was surprised by Nadal's confident and unusual approach to that match.
The rot has got to stop asap!

Despite everything though, I'll definitely watch Fed's match tonight with full hope in his win

Tenez wrote:Yesterday Nadal was quite aggressive. I only saw the first 6 games and he has clearly added more power to his shots and that is essentially due to the high confidence but also simply the fact shot making improves with age. So now he can make the most of his big arms while up to recently he was not very confident in going for more winners and was just trying to outlast his opponents. He feels he can take them on with a more standard game.

I've been saying Nadal is playing more aggressive recently, even specifically I said so after the Djokovic SF which you missed as it was 3AM in England; but you didn't believe me.
He is playing more aggressively than ever before, but sustaining this high level will be very difficult.

As for the earlier discussion, I'm not sure we can say with any certainty how any great including Federer would have faired born in a time with different racket technology and court conditions.

It may be possible that if he was born in the same time period as John McEnroe, he may not have fared as well as him with those exact rackets at that time. The margins in the game are very small- and a little difference can have big implications- ie being a fantastic player who is in the top 10, or being a multiple Grand Slam winning great.

Julia Santamaria wrote:As for the earlier discussion, I'm not sure we can say with any certainty how any great including Federer would have faired born in a time with different racket technology and court conditions.

It may be possible that if he was born in the same time period as John McEnroe, he may not have fared as well as him with those exact rackets at that time. The margins in the game are very small- and a little difference can have big implications- ie being a fantastic player who is in the top 10, or being a multiple Grand Slam winning great.

Of course no one could say for certain. But I'll like to go with Rod Laver's words here that Fed would have been the same dominant player in any era. 

Don't bring McEnroe here, his job right now is selling news and his opinion aren't unbiased. He is nothing more than a tabloid writer in a tennis magazine.

raiders_of_the_lost_ark wrote:

Don't bring McEnroe here, his job right now is selling news and his opinion aren't unbiased. He is nothing more than a tabloid writer in a tennis magazine.

Well put. I used to think he was a good commentator.....but he is just a good salesrep.