Rafael Nadal and Marin Cilic are on a collision course for the Australian Open quarterfinals, although they still have a long way to go before that potential showdown. They are currently set for respective third-round contests against Damir Dzumhur and Ryan Harrison on Friday.
(1) Rafael Nadal vs. (28) Damir Dzumhur
Nadal could not have asked for a better start to his 2018 Australian Open campaign–a start that was always going to be especially important given that he went into Melbourne with a possible knee injury. After all, the world No. 1 had been forced out of the 2017 Nitto ATP Finals following just one match and he also withdrew from recent events in Abu Dhabi and Brisbane. It is safe to say those knee concerns are things of the past, because Nadal did not drop a single set in victories over Victor Estrella Burgos and Leonardo Mayer; the former via a 6-1, 6-1, 6-1 triple-breadstick and the latter by a more competitive 6-3, 6-4, 7-6(4) scoreline.
Up next for the 2009 Aussie Open champion on Friday is a second career meeting with Dzumhur. Their only previous encounter came two years ago at the Miami Masters, where Dzumhur got through a second-round showdown when the Spaniard retired while trailing 3-0 in the third set. The Bosnian celebrated in unusually exuberant manner following a retirement and suggested afterward that his play–not heat-related dizziness–was the reason Nadal called it quits. Whatever the case, Dzumhur will have much more difficulty advancing this time around if a healthy Nadal successfully deals with temperatures that are expected to be much hotter on Friday than they were from Monday through Wednesday. The world No. 30, meanwhile, has advanced with wins over Paolo Lorenzi (3-6, 2-6, 7-6(5), 6-2, 6-4) and John Millman (7-5, 3-6, 6-4, 6-1). More than six hours on the singles court does not bode well for Dzumhur, who delivered a recent retirement of his own against Alex de Minaur in Sydney because of a leg problem.
Pick: Nadal in 3 losing 8-10 games
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Ryan Harrison vs. (6) Marin Cilic
Cilic and Harrison have a surprisingly extensive history against each other–surprising because their schedules outside of Grand Slams and Masters 1000s do not often coincide, and because Harrison does not progress far in ATP draws on a consistent basis. They have squared off on six previous occasions heading into Friday’s title, and the first five all came in either the first or second rounds of ATP events. This will be their second consecutive contest in the third round of a tournament (or in the case of Tokyo last fall, the third round was really a quarterfinal). Cilic is dominating the head-to-head series 5-1 and his only loss can be easily explained by fatigue; just a couple of days after finishing runner-up in Marseille, the Croat went up against Harrison halfway across the world in Mexico and lost 6-3, 3-6, 6-2. He has since won three in a row at the American’s expense, all in straight sets. In fact, all five of Cilic’s victories have come in straights–including 6-3, 6-2 at last season’s Rome Masters and 6-2, 6-0 in Tokyo.
Speaking of blowouts, the world No. 6 clobbered Joao Sousa 6-1, 7-5, 6-2 during second-round action at the Australian Open on the heels of a more competitive four-set success against Vasek Pospisil. With that Cilic is off to a solid start this season, also sporting a semifinal result in Chennai (lost in three sets to nemesis and eventual champion Gilles Simon). Harrison is in similarly stellar form. The 45th-ranked American finished runner-up to Nick Kyrgios in Brisbane and has advanced so far at Melbourne Park with defeats of Dudi Sela (in five sets) and Pablo Cuevas (in straights). Although Harrison is confident right now, with only one exception he has always been hopeless against Cilic.
Pick: Cilic in 3
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who ya got?
#AusOpen @AustralianOpen 17 minutes ago
Schedule Fri Jan 19
…
MCA Night Session
Nadal vs Dzumhur
Ostapenko vs Kontaveit
Weather forecast:
https://www.accuweather.com/en/au/melbourne/26216/weather-forecast/26216
Just glad Rafa’s got the night match. He does not tolerate heat the way he did in his younger days.
Both Rafa and Fed will probably continue to benefit from playing at night the next couple of rounds. After that, the heat may be a big factor for both of them, as it is for all the players.
Rafa played a day match. Not the anointed one who admitted to requesting preferential treatment.
You’re mistaken if you think Fed is the only one who asks for favors at these tourneys.
Harrison playing at an all time best lately….but Cilic in 3.
Cilic in four Rafa in three losing 8-10
Who’s do you guys think has played the best?
I think:
1. Rafa
2. Roger
3. Novak
4. Grigor
Correction:
1. Rafa
2. Novak
3. Roger
4. Dimitrov
I would actually put Delpo number 2
Cilic in four
Nadal in 3
Be calm, be focused, be confident, be courageous, be strong, Rafa!
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DT3YVkFX4AEne10.jpg
Rafas guns ain’t wot they used to be. Significantly smaller.
https://goo.gl/images/7RgNir
Rafa is the same:
Rafa at AO 2008:
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DTg5Bw4V4AA-1fd.jpg
Rafa at AO 2018 (practice session):
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DTg5Bw5VAAAJ8wQ.jpg
Rafa is the same:
Rafa at the 2018 AO (match & practice session):
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DT4VF3iXcAIeKwx.jpg
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DTkUEGQW4AA1siE.jpg
Rafa is the same.
A practice session in Melbourne on January 18 (indoors due to hot weather):
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DT4WeJ0X0AAEaRN.jpg
Rafa is the same.
This picture was taken on January 19:
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DT9f5z6W4AAKZHW.jpg
I think Team Rafa admitted that Rafa shed some muscle mass in order to reduce weight,relieve the knees and gain court agility.
But that isn’t an entirely new development.
littlefoot AT 8:16 AM,
Moya was asked at the end of the last year (by ATPWorldTour.com): “Why did Nadal decide to drop in weight?”
Moya answered: “It’s not something he gave much thought to in the past, but recently it’s something he’s decided to do.”
“…it wasn’t for just one reason but for several reasons. He decided to lose weight because he wants to try something a little different, something that he thinks will improve his game. That alone helps him mentally. On top of that, we believe that losing weight will lower the possibility of more injuries and improve his longevity.”
https://www.atpworldtour.com/en/news/season-preview-2018-moya-nadal
Augusta, yes,that was what I had in mind. Thanks for quoting it. What Moya says does make sense and it seems to work well for Rafa.
But I distinctly remember that Rafa decided to trim down muscle mass much earlier in his career as well. If I remember correctly it happened after his knee problems in 2009.
It would be interesting to know exactly how Rafa’s weight fluctuated during his career, since it’s hard to get an answer just by looking at pictures, especially since his muscles have always been well defined. But of course that information is private. I wonder why the ATP even lists the weight of players. Obviously they don’t put them on a scale. They just go by the supplied information.
Novak lost a lot of weight during his reincarnation as Mr. Indestructable around 2011. Some claim that he eventually overdid it and that it wasn’t healthy anymore.
littlefoot AT 3:31 PM
Rafa has been asked questions related to his weight (Not recently). He has always answered that his weight hasn’t changed.
One more break for Rafa will definitely seal it in the 3rd set.
How’s he playing today?
Rafa was a dream in the first set winning it 61; but he dropped one serve in the 2nd set but still took it 63. He leads 3:0 in the 3rd set with one break. He is playing sublime tennis overall, just a few glitches because Dzumhur is really going for it at all cost.
Thx , any suggestions of awkward or tentative movement/serving?
No, not at all.
Rafa leads 4:1 with one break, 2nd set.
yeeei !
Rafa breaks, serving for the match at 5:1, 3rd set.
Game, set & match – Nadal
61 63 61
Awesome Rafa!!
He’ll be pleased with that
Awesome from Rafa, people are p*ssing me off saying he has an easy draw, when actually his opponent is ranked 30 in the world WTF ?
Rafa’s draw is certainly not easier than Fed”s draw. Both have a fairly bebign path into the quarterfinal. Then the level of competition will go up.