Rafael Nadal will hope to avenge a loss from earlier this season when he goes up against Fabio Fognini during third-round action on Thursday in Barcelona. Philipp Kohlschreiber and Benoit Paire are also looking for a spot in the quarterfinals.
(13) Fabio Fognini vs. (2) Rafael Nadal
Nadal and Fognini will be facing each other for the sixth time in their careers and for the second time this season when they clash in round three of the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell on Thursday. The head-to-head series stands at 4-1 in Nadal’s favor, but Fognini got on the scoreboard a few months ago on the clay courts of Rio de Janeiro in the form of a 1-6, 6-2, 7-5 upset. Nadal has still won two of their three encounters on the slow stuff, having previously prevailed 6-1, 6-3 two years ago in Rome and 7-6(5), 6-4, 6-4 shortly thereafter at the French Open.
Unfortunately for Fognini, this may not be the same Nadal that was on display in Rio. The fourth-ranked Spaniard lost early in Indian Wells and Miami, but he played better in Monte-Carlo (despite succumbing to Novak Djokovic 6-3, 6-3 in the semifinals) and crushed Nicolas Almagro 6-3, 6-1 in his Barcelona opener on Wednesday. Fognini also benefited from a first-round bye before battling past Andrey Rublev 3-6, 6-4, 6-1. The 13th-seeded Italian is just 7-9 for his 2015 campaign and this is first trip past a second round since Rio. With Nadal picking up confidence and Fognini lacking in the same department, this should be routine.
Pick: Nadal in 2 losing 5-7 games
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Benoit Paire vs. (12) Philipp Kohlschreiber
Kohlschreiber and Paire will be squaring off for the fifth time in their careers on Thursday. Their first showdown was their most memorable; in round two of the 2012 U.S. Open, Kohlschreiber broke back at 5-6 in the deciding set and ultimately survived 6-7(4), 6-3, 3-6, 6-2, 7-6(4). The German once lead their head-to-head series 2-0, but Paire has since won two in a row with victories at the 2013 Indian Wells Masters (6-4, 6-2) and a few months later at the Masters event in Montreal (7-6(1), 7-5).
The Frenchman could not have asked for a better draw so far in Barcelona. He disposed of qualifier Jaume Munar 6-2, 6-2 in his opener before recovering from a slow start against an ice-cold Ernests Gulbis to roll 1-6, 6-2, 6-3. Kohlschreiber is slumping with a 6-8 record for the year and he has not yet won back-to-back matches at any event. The world No. 25 got the best of Andrey Kuznetsov 7-6(1), 6-3 during second-round action. This could go either way, but Kohlschreiber plays with a high margin of error and will be able to extend points long enough on clay in order to expose the Paire forehand.
Pick: Kohlschreiber in 3
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Never thought the day would come when Rafa lost the plot on court like that.
Tragic to watch such a dismal performance.
If he is THIS mentally fried, why does he not see a psychologist?
He has dropped points hasn’t he? Unbelievable.
Actually, this is the one thing I am holding onto. He has not dropped points at either MC nor Barcelona compared to last year. He has actually gained.
For whatever reason, Chatrier has always proven to be a different kettle.
Not much to hold onto after that performance but it’s something.
I’m guessing that beyond points, however, that today was a new low for him.
I thought he lost to Almagro in the quarters last year, which means he has dropped points surely?
Rafa gained in Monte Carlo 180 points and lost in Barcelona 70 points.
Live ATP Rankings after Rafa’s loss today:
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CDSd-VmUMAE9TQZ.png
Rafa lost 45 points today, not 70.
I’m sad but not that surprised. Rafa has played (very) badly before, but only on hard courts and indoors. Now he also does this on clay.
Yep, a new low indeed.
https://twitter.com/SharkoTennis/status/591268911502467073
But guys, cheers up. It’s totally understandable that Rafa is not Rafa anymore. Maybe he burnt out after all these years of battling injuries and other top players. Maybe he is struggling with his life, with problems we never know. He’s a human too. Think about other extremely talented guys like Safin, Nalbandian, etc. and we know Rafa has delivered more than enough joy for us.
I think I must go to tournaments this year to watch Nadal and Federer. They may retire as soon as next year.
Thanks for cheering us up. I feel so much better now after reading that.
LOL! Yes, reading that just made it all better. NOT!
I didn’t get to watch this match. But he can’t have lost his game from one day to the next. It’s mental, clearly. Tennis is always in good part mental. Several of you have written similar comments at the end of a very bad Rafa day – where you’ve written it’s the worst you have seen.
What is the root cause of this? I mean the mental root cause? Part of him really doesn’t want to push himself so hard anymore (with Rafa being aware of this or not entirely)? Another form of (partial) burnout after all these years?
Somehow his usual way of working hard at getting the right motivation, etc…. is proving sometimes enough and sometimes not getting it done (enough). Would a (somewhat) different approach work better? Would anyone in his surrounding have an idea about that? I don’t know what a sports psychologist (or a non-sport psychologist) would do if he were to see one (ain’t gonna happen). Perhaps they’d find a way to help him turn a corner. Perhaps together they’d find that all this pushing himself…. well, sorry to repeat myself.
Still, I expect Rafa to keep trying hard through the end of RG. We’ll just have to see how he fares mentally in the next tournaments.
I meant: several of you have written similar comments _on a number of occasions in the past_
Nole had been the only player to beat Rafa consecutively on clay.
Now Fogna.
If foggy bottom wins RG I will know for a fact the end of the world is near.
Nole hasn’t converted so I don’t see the world ending any time soon.
who could think that losing a match at the rather insignificant 250 tourney would hurt this much…
Rafa is not himself any more…I admit I was encouraged by his performance in MC…now I just feel stupid that I read so much into Rafa’s MC performance…well, the fact that Rafa lost to Nole in straights and Berdy managed to take a set from Nole speaks volume…Rafa’s game has deteriorated which combined with his lack of confidence and insufficient fitness level tell the whole story…
now, it is time to see the things right…Today I spoke to a friend of mine who is, of course, huge Nole fan…I mentioned something about tennis and he said: “please, let’s not even go there…there is only one player on the tour right now and that is Djokovic…I refuse to discuss tennis because there is nothing really to discuss…his dominance is obvious”…
my heart is broken again and my hopes and dreams are no longer alive…
This is a 500 tourney and I think it’s pretty significant for guys like Nishikori, Ferrer, and even Fognini :).
yup, you are right…I meant to say 500 but I wished it was 250…my brain isn’t working 🙂
fog will lose his next match of course…and Nishikori will defend his points as expected…Rafa going deeper down…
Gussie, please find Rafa’s post match interview will you? Thanks.
rafaisthebest (at 4:12 pm),
The transcript of the post-match press conference is not yet available.
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CDSoG6aVAAActTu.png
^^Thank you Gussie!
And thank you Rafa for hitting the truth: THIS IS ABOUT HIS GAME, not that mumbo-jumbo about anxiety. Since when had Rafa become a mental patient? Please.
If it’s a technical issue then the coaching staff must also take responsibility. Phew, is Rafa thinking of wholesale changes to his game? This late in the lead up to RG?
This is inconsistent with his previous statements when he said it is easier to hit the ball well and play inside only when he is having the positive feelings.
No, it is lack of confidence and anxiety, same as last year leading up to the French.
Rafa is obviously upset and is reacting in this interview.
Players don’t suddenly physically lose their technique when healthy.
This is between the ears. Pure and simple.
Sorry @hawkeye63, I am going to have to disagree with you on this and agree with Rafa’s assessment. Please allow me to re-print what he said,
““It’s not a matter of anxiety, it’s a matter of technique. I’m obviously going to get
nervous if I don’t hit the ball the way I should”.”
For me the loss of technique is due to the long lay-off. It’s a matter of margins, not wholesale, but tennis is a game of margins, no? Remember Juan Jose’s tweet about Rafa’s shots? That was about technique nothing else. Rafa will regain his feel for the ball with match play, and then his confidence will improve.
You and I are disagreeing on causality but that’s okay.
I feel Rafa and team now have the cause and effect right, and henceforth will approach problem solving logically, yielding good results.
I feel better reading his post match transcript.
ritb,
I am sure you are right about this… that getting back higher levels on the technical side and more good results are part of the picture. Rafa is not wrong to point to these.
I just don’t think that is the whole story. The mental side, summarize it as confidence if you like, is about more than this I believe, and is along the lines I think of what I’ve been trying to describe.
@chloro, something might be happening in his life off court, who knows? I don’t know, and I prefer not to speculate about what I don’t know. What I know is what I can see: Rafa’s game technique has been off for a while.
Example: Australian Open final where Rafa lost to Wawa. That was because of a back problem. That problem must have affected his technique, right or wrong? I say it did. It affected his serve, it affected his movement and it affected his shot velocity. Hoe sporadic 2014 performance wise bears this out. But what have we been hearing from Team Rafa all along: it’s a confidence issue, ad infinitum.
My point is this: yes it was (and still is) a confidence issue CAUSED by technical degradation. So, Rafa and team should have been focusing on the cause (technique), not the effect (confidence).
Today is the first time I am hearing Rafa focus on the cause, this is what gives me hope. Match point Fog today, routine inside out FH, open court, Fog in no man’s land, given up the ghost thinking no way Rafa misses that. Rafa misses. Confidence? Please. That was poor technique hands down, no question. How many times was Rafa caught out of position today, making Fog hit easy winners? Confidence? He was out of position! That is a technical issue.
No worries on differing opinions ritb. 🙂
I would tend, like you, to put more faith in Rafa’s words about his own game, than an anonymous board fan. Besides I’m not here to convince anyone of my opinions, just to express them.
However, I am sticking with my opinion nonetheless. He had the same style of lack of execution in the same tournaments last year (without the long layoff) so I’m not onside with the lack of play being the reason for his lack of form directly.
It is a chicken and egg argument. 🙂
I still think that Rafa can turn his clay season around for when it counts.
Rafa excels at challenges to the point that he almost requires them.
I am hoping today was really, really rock bottom for Rafa and there is no way else but up henceforth. Agree, Rafa has not been consistent for a while now. My opinion is just that, an opinion, open to contestation, but Rafa’s inconsistency for a while is fact.
The question is: will he rise to this challenge? I say he will.
nny,
To repeat my view: I have no trouble taking the words about technique at face value.
I have no trouble also taking at face value the effect of long layoff and Rafa’s ability to surmount challenges and sometimes simply needing them.
It’s clear these things are important parts of what is going on.
I simply feel for a long time now that there is this third factor over and above the others and is important too. Rafa does this Jeckyll and Hyde thing, you know, how he gets himself into his match mode, and gets himself to practice and play matches at near total intensity (except when the opponent is easy to defeat) … this is the part that he just can’t do it as consistently, and perhaps because of the reason I speculate on: some part of him just doesn’t want anymore. Not the sort of thing you will hear him say in an interview (if I am right about it in the first place), and perhaps not to himself (now I am truly talking about something I don’t know anything about: his own thoughts outside of what he says in public).
ritb,
when I wrote nny above I meant to type nny, sorry.
Yes there could be something in his private life. It’s happened before. But perhaps not.
and finally,
hawkeye,
I would not be surprised, entirely, if this claycourt season doesn’t go as well as we hope, I mean at RG
but (like you) I would be even _less_ surprised if despite today’s match Rafa gets himself to good enough a level by week two of RG to win it for the tenth time.
It think that sooner or later he will retire because he’s had it…(perhaps after the 2016 season?), but we are definitely not there yet. In the meantime he will battle (himself) again and again and prove doubters wrong, give us some awful tennis days, and (most likely) stretches of weeks (or longer, please) of solid Rafaplay.
I am devastated.
Would be easier to take if Rafa had been beaten by a red hot Fognini. This was a normal Fognini, hitting occasional superb winners and spraying errors all over, waiting to implode. No, Rafa was too busy beating himself. When was the last time Rafa hit 30 UEs on a clay court? And Fabio hit more, believe it or not, and still won……………
If Rafa now cannot handle his mental demons, he should check himself into rehab and get sorted honestly………….
Rafa was once the strongest player mentally out there. Are we to believe that he is now a mental midget? Why? Because he was out injured? Please.
I am speechless…I still find it hard to believe…if he lost in MC I would say “Rafa is not back yet and that’s all”…but after we have seen some improvements in MC to play like this?! it is just beyond comprehension…
I agree, Rafa just beat himself in a unique and worst for him manner…now everyone will go after him…his confidence will just disappear and his game is not good enough to gain any confidence back…and you see I don’t buy stories about Rafa getting older etc…look at Robredo, Ferrer, Fed even Fog…they don’t seem to grow older…there is always a way…
I don’t want to hear any more excuses re Rafa’s poor play i.e. confidence blah, blah, blah. We never hear about confidence issues for Murray, Fed, Ferru hell even the Fog. Why does this confidence malady strike only Rafa?
The truth is: his game is just not good enough at the moment, he needs to sort it out. Consult a sports psychologist to sort out his mental demons. Find a serving coach to sort out his woeful serve. Find a fitness coach to sort out his stamina issues. Anything but this sorry sight he is subjecting us to.
https://twitter.com/NNemeroff/status/591270832720195584
Rafa won’t give up on himself.
Nor should we.
#VamosRafaNoMatterWhat
Just saw the score, The lesson to learn here is that Rafa is not himself anymore and that any prediction is pointless. the French are going to be ruthless at RG this year
yup…he will play his first match on a side court or something. Last slot of the day.
Wow, Fogna had never won a main draw match in five appearances at the Barcelona Open before this week.
Again, had little to do with Fogna, he just happened to be along for that train wreck.
so true…and why does Rafa always insist on making his matches physical affairs…he should have changed his game plan…go more to the net, shorten the points…his serve was not working today…and again, not being able to win points on Fog’s poor first serve…was not Rafa’s day at all…
now that I am back to senses after the initial shock I must say I feel sorry for my boy…I wish him to get over this and move on…there is only one life…and there is always sunshine after rain…
Vamos Rafa!
I thought Nadal would win 6-2 6-2, he beat Ferrer last week and Almagro yesterday both Ferrer and Almagro are much better clay court players than Fognini. This defeat is worrying for Nadal for Nadal. The way he played today, this level isnt good enough against any good player let alone Djokovic. lets wait for Madrid and Rome and see if he improves his level of play because Nadal is the only player who can beat Djokovic in a best of 5 set match on clay if Nadal dossnt improve than Djokovic can complete his career slam this year.
”I played poorly, I didn’t play like I should have,” Nadal said. ”I didn’t play aggressively, I missed more shots that I normally do. I didn’t manage to keep the advantage I had. Having three breaks in the second set and end up at 5-5 is a disaster.
”This is a blow for me, but I accept the challenge and the negative day I had today. There is no other way forward other than to accept it or die.”
”This is a hard day for me. I felt I was playing better,” Nadal said while shaking his head repeatedly. ”I will keep working. I am convinced that this situation of ups and downs I have had since returning from injuries, sooner or later, will come to an end.”
”My forehand didn’t have enough power, enough speed, and I didn’t have enough control,” he said. ”My forehand has been my biggest virtue. But today my forehand was vulgar, it wasn’t a forehand worthy of my ranking and career. I need my forehand to push my opponents back.”
Also…
“Fabio played better and he deserved to win. I did not deserve to win. I have to accept it or die,”
What is this business of accept it or die? That sounds kind of scary.
OMG…Ï have to accept it or die”…these words bring tears in my eyes…poor Rafa…I hope he understands how great he is and no matter what happens now he will remain to be one of the best of all times…
Vamos Rafa!
Don’t worry about the “accept or die” terminology Rafans. Remember, this is a direct translation from Spanish or Catalan. Both tend to be a little more…..flowery. Rafa is not about to smite himself with a dagger!
“But today my forehand was vulgar, it wasn’t a forehand worthy of my ranking and career. I need my forehand to push my opponents back.””
Apt description: vulgar.
exact phrase in Spanish is: “Ha sido un día negativo y miro hacia delante hacia Madrid. Toca aceptar o morir y elijo aceptar porque quiero dar opciones para el futuro…”
Today was a negative day and I look forward to Madrid. I have to accept or die and I choose to accept because I want to have options in the future.
It’s true that in Spanish we tend to be more dramatic and say things like “accept or die” so I don’t see Rafa being morbid here. I prefer him to be brutally honest vs. saying there is nothing wrong with him.
I think this is mental. If a player doesn’t have it in his head, then his whole game goes down the drain. We thought that Rafa’s mental issues were resolved. But now we see that is not the case. Rafa is all over the place in his comments. Now it’s the game, before it was anxiety. It’s always something, but Rafa is not Rafa anymore.
I have been hesitant to mention Borg and what happened to him. In 2011, I thought that Rafa might be burnout out like Borg, but he was only losing to one player, Novak. He was still getting to the finals. This is much worse. All I can say is that Borg stopped competing. In that USO slam final in 1981, he was just gone. He didn’t have the desire to win. That was it.
I can’t say if Rafa is going through the same thing for sure. But it’s been in the back of my mind for a while now. I have also felt that this was potentially quite serious, but wanted to keep those thoughts to myself. Now I have to say it here out loud. Rafa is in crisis.
I don’t know what to expect from this point on. He should have won this tournament and gained points and momentum going into Madrid. He is defending 1000 points there. Does anyone want to contemplate the possible scenarios that could happen in Madrid? That was always going to be the hardest tournament to win for him. So the idea was for him to gain some points leading up to Madrid to cushion the blow if he didn’t win it this time.
I have put so much into this journey. But I am not getting any younger and it’s harder and harder. I do not have the answers for Rafa. I truly hope that it’s not what happened to Borg. Because there was no answer for that. But I just do not see how he’s going to regroup. Losing to a guy like Fog in his home tournament? Losing for the second straight time to this guy? A new low for Rafa. I am sorry to say these things, but it helps to come here and just get it out.
The transcript of Rafa’s post-match press conference on April 23 in Spanish, English (page 2) and Catalan:
http://www.barcelonaopenbancsabadell.com/sites/default/files/audios/pdf/rafa_nadal_4.pdf
^^Thank you Gussie. Reading Rafa’s own words makes me feel better. Rafa takes full responsibility, no mincing of words, no excuses, no sugar-coating. Just saying it as it is: he played badly, shamefully..
Thank you Rafa for not insulting us your fans’ intelligence. You are candidly taking responsibility. You have identified the problems, that is half the job done. Now you must identify the solutions and implement.
Good luck! Vamos! With you all the way!
#NoMatterWaht
““It’s not a matter of anxiety, it’s a matter of technique. I’m obviously going to get
nervous if I don’t hit the ball the way I should”.”
This.
losing to fognini on clay is going to have a detrimental effect on Nadal’s confidence. perhaps the rigors of his physical style of game that he has played for over a decade now have finally taken its toll.
Not physical. Played much better last week against the No. 1 player in the world. That’s mental.
hawkeye,
That’s what I still think. A player’s game doesn’t go away all of a sudden. Rafa didn’t wake up and just forget how to hit his forehand. He was playing better at MC. That was not a mirage. His game seemed to be coming together. Not at his best, but on the way. That does not disappear overnight.
I am not here to argue or insist that my point of view is the only one. I am merely stating what I have felt watching Rafa since he came back from that long layoff. He seemed to have no trouble hitting his forehand against Almagro. So what happened overnight?
I am not sure that Rafa even knows what is really going on. What I do know is that he is trying to find the solution. He has been trying and it seemed like he got over the hump at MC. But I guess these ups and downs are going to be the way of it.
I haven’t even thought about RG today. I just didn’t want to go there. We have two more tournaments. I don’t know what to expect at Madrid. I am not sure how Rafa will regroup. Maybe he will get mad enough and that will help him.
As Rafa says, this loss was a setback, no doubt about it.
Next stop: Madrid. Let us see how Rafa starts re-building after today’s disaster.
Vamos Rafa!
Thank you Augusta for the link to transcript.
There is no doubting Rafa’s sincerity, and never was.
Having said that, the story painted by his words, whether he knows this or not, and whether he intended to point to this, is still mental, I mean psychological. And by that I mean much more what happens below the level of awareness and that is what makes up most of a person’s mind. Up to a point you can will yourself to do certain things and be in certain states of mind, and then up to a point things are note directly achieved just with conscious decision and will power.
On an almost other note, one of the interesting things about Rafa’s pressers is how transparent, and thus sometimes vulnerable he let’s himself be about his tennis. It takes some real courage and strength to do that. But then when he says he is deeply ashamed about today’s performance… there I take exception. I don’t thing he needs to feel shame about not being able to play at his usual level despite all his efforts.
We should have seen today coming, yesterday. Took Rafa how long to close out Almagro, 12 minutes? When he was leading 5-1 and serving for the match? Why would he not be confident serving out a match at 5-1?
Today, he was grunting heavily hitting a FH but the shot would be weak! Not pushing Fog back at all as Rafa himself said.
*headshake*
exactly…I was thinking it myself…how could I be so blind not to notice that Rafa’s inability to serve for the match…I decided to find positives in it, thinking that it was mainly due to Almagro being relaxed but no…it was a sign that Rafa’s mental status is worrisome…
I wonder why he was grunting so heavily…I noticed that as well….