Rafael Nadal

A page and forum to discuss all things Rafael Nadal.

Nadal 5

Current ranking: 14

Last result: Australian Open second round (lost to Mackenzie McDonald)

Next tournament: Roland Garros

37 Comments on Rafael Nadal

  1. How would you all rank Rafa’s stand-out years i.e. 2008, 2010, and 2013

    For me it is:-
    1 2008
    2 2013
    3 2010

    I had a hard job choosing between 1 and 2. In the end 2008 pips 2013 because it spanned so many historical moments like reaching No.1, his 1st Wimbledon, and Olympic Gold.

  2. I do not understand why so many people question high earning players choosing to play exhos in their ‘time-off’ and who often go on to attack them on tennis forums for doing so.

    I doubt an extra 2 million bucks or so is sufficient incentive for the exhausted stars of tennis to willingly sacrifice their precious R & R time during the off season and Christmas holiday period.

    These guys are the ambassadors for tennis who are fulfilling their obligations to the sport and to their sponsors by making themselves available to promote tennis globally in return for the huge sums of money they earn from their success at tennis.

  3. My choices would be:

    2013
    2008
    2010

    I put 2013 first because to come back after 7 months out and reclaim the #1 ranking is quite outstanding. Not only that, but to win his first h/c title after not playing on h/c for almost a year, beating the Fed is nothing short of amazing. To cap ii all, Rafa won the North American h/c swing unbeaten on h/c until after the USO. And it pleases me that he got his pride back by beating Djoker to reclaim the USO title.

    2008 is 2nd because it was the first time he claimed the #1 ranking and also won Olympic Gold.

    2010 was not a bad year either after his emotionally disastrous 2009 season with family problems. He was that good in 2010 that no one saw Djoker coming in 2011.

  4. ^^^^I was rabbiting on about expos at some length. It appeared briefly with the message ‘awaiting moderation’ which was when I noticed my moniker had become corrupted and read

    ed251137’free

    hence it went into the moderation queue – never to be seen again.

    • ed, this happens to me all the time. The cursor skips into the profile box whilst you are typing but if you don’t realize it you send your post with a new U/N or email address, that’s why it goes into moderation. If it happens too many times, your posts are then classed as spam nd don’t show at all.

      I wish the profile box was not accessible.

      • ^^^^that is exactly what happens particularly if I’m editing a comment and then cut ‘n paste.

        Are you by any chance using a MacBook Air with the multi-touch touchpad? If my fingers are hovering over the keys while I’m proof reading and the cursor is anywhere near the ‘post comment’ box my computer takes over and sends the comment anyway!! I also have difficulty getting the cursor to enter the text when I’m editing. Think this is when the moniker changes itself 🙁 I can see my details but don’t think to check it is correct.

      • Nadline: Thanks for the warning about comments being designated spam when this happens too often. I will try to train myself to check each time before hitting send.

        Still puzzling why and how it happens without any help from us 🙁

  5. I think we had this discussion some months ago as to how we would rank Rafa’s greatest years.

    I had trouble with 2008 and 2010, but finally decided that 2008 was a watershed year for Rafa, since it was the first time he beat Fed at Wimbledon in what has been called the greatest match ever played and he became #1 for the first time. He also won the RG and Wimbledon, completing the channel slam and being the first player to do it since Borg in 1980. He also won Queens that year, becoming the only player to win RG, Queens and Wimbledon.

    My rankings –

    2008

    2013

    2010

    It’s really hard to even rank these three years, because they were each unique. In 2010 Rafa became the first male tennis player to win RG, Wimbledon and the USO consecutively. He did it over 40 years after Laver.

    II’s a reminder of the brilliance of these three years when Rafa basically rewrote the history books.

  6. Rafa Nadal Foundation was awarded by the Spanish Tennis Federation.
    [Google Translate]
    ¤¤¤Sevilla , Nov 29 ( Reuters). The Rafael Nadal Foundation has been awarded tonight in Sevilla during the Spanish Tennis Gala 2013, ceremony in which the Spanish Tennis Federation has recognized individuals and associations for their work in sport and society .
    The Rafael Nadal Foundation won his award for work with the Vicente Ferrer Foundation in India [Ananpur Educational Centre with three tennis courts] and SOS Children with ‘Special Olympics’ .
    Mother of world number one ranking, Ana María Parera, received the award as president of the foundation that bears the name of his son. In a ceremony was also father of the athlete, Sebastian Nadal.¤¤¤
    http://www.mundodeportivo.com/20131129/tenis/la-fundacion-rafael-nadal-premiada-en-la-gala-celebrada-en-sevilla_54395022109.html

    Vamoooosss, Rafa!

    • ^^^When I reflect on what I managed to get through on an average day in my 30s, 40s and 50s I feel quite faint. The rot sets in after that 🙁

      Today I’m completely wrung out after watching a hard fought tennis match on TV!

      For some reason, one match in particular stands out in my memory: the 2007 Rome SF against Davydenko which went to three sets over a roller coaster 3hr 40mins. The intensity was awesome and left me utterly and exhausted and in need of smelling salts. A week later Federer brought Rafa’s record 81 clay court winning streak to an end at the Hamburg final.

      I missed out on the epic dual with Djokovic in the AO final because I was in hospital for the first five months of 2012. Watching replays does not compare with the excitement of witnessing the drama unfold. Ditto, watching such matches in an armchair at home versus the experience of actually being there.

      As you said a while ago, thanks to the wonders of modern technology we are able to indulge in wall to wall tennis year round even if we cant get to go to many tournaments.

  7. C’mmon Rafa, enough of the golf now. The AO is only a few weeks away. How about working on that killer serve (circa USO ’10).

    • ed251137@November 30, 2013 at 3:48 pm
      Rafa fans site on Nov.27: “Rafa will undergo a medical examination in Barcelona , then he’ll have 2 weeks holiday and return to training in December.”

  8. Nike gets their money’s worth with Rafa: Not only do they get to show off their tennis clothes, but they get to display their cold weather outerwear and golf clothing on him, too….. even the dorky pom-pom hats with “Nike Golf” emblazoned across the top.

  9. By the way, Nadalnews reports that Rafa only played the first hole and that he just “captained” the team for the remainder. He reportedly has already received his knee treatment and thus has to rest the knee.

    • I caught the 5th set from the 3-4 on. It has some expert comments inserted into the match. I like the fact that these experts finally gave Rafa his due. They talked about his game, why he beat Fed so much, and praised his talents (!). One said Rafa had a lot more talents than he got credit for. The comments were a lot more about Rafa than Fed. I love that. Even though I have the DVD, but I’m glad I caught this.

    • JCKNY,

      Somehow I missed this on the tennis channel. I have been trying to check out the program guide for this channel every day, so that I can see some of the great matches of this year.

      I wish that they would show it again. Every time I watch it, I find it thrilling and exhilarating all over again.

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