A blockbuster semifinal lineup on Saturday in Beijing pits Rafael Nadal against Grigor Dimitrov and Alexander Zverev against Nick Kyrgios. Only Grigor Dimitrov needed three sets to get through his quarterfinal contest, as the other three title contenders mostly cruised.
(1) Rafael Nadal vs. (3) Grigor Dimitrov
Nadal and Dimitrov will be squaring off for the 10th time in their careers when they battle for a spot in the China Open final on Sunday. The head-to-head series stands at a dominant 8-1 in favor of Nadal, who is 5-1 against Dimitrov on hard courts. Interestingly, though, Dimitrov’s lone win over the Spaniard came at this same Beijing event just last year via a 6-2, 6-4 quarterfinal decision. Of course, Nadal is not the same player this time around. Back up to No. 1 in the world, the 31-year-old recent captured the U.S. Open title for his second Grand Slam triumph of 2017 and he is an awesome 59-9 this season. So far in Beijing, Nadal has taken out Lucas Pouille, Karen Khachanov, and John Isner–surrendering one set to Pouille in the process.
Likely on his way to joining Nadal at the World Tour Finals, Dimitrov has advanced this week with defeats of Damir Dzumhur, Juan Martin Del Potro, and Roberto Bautista Agut. The eighth-ranked Bulgarian is now 38-15 for his 2017 campaign. Dimitrov, however, needed three sets to scrape past both Dzumhur and Bautista Agut, while Nadal turned in his best performance of the tournament against Isner on Friday. The lopsided trend in this matchup has every reason to continue.
Pick: Nadal in 2
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(8) Nick Kyrgios vs. (2) Alexander Zverev
Zverev destroyed one of his good friends (Andrey Rublev) in the quarterfinals and he will be facing another one in the form of Kyrgios on Saturday. The two current and future stars have collided three times in their ATP careers–all this season. Kyrgios leads the head-to-head series 2-1, having prevailed 6-3, 6-4 in Indian Wells and 6-4, 6-7(9), 6-3 two weeks later in Miami. Zverev exacted a measure of revenge by getting the job done 6-4, 6-3 at the Montreal Masters.
As those results suggest, Kyrgios was on fire earlier in the year but now it is Zverev who is the more in-form of the two. The 20-year-old German has soared to No. 4 in the world thanks in part to a title in Montreal and a preceding Masters 1000 triumph on the clay courts of Rome. Zverev is 51-16 this season following Beijing victories over Rublev, Kyle Edmund, Fabio Fognini. A hip injury derailed Kyrgios’ summer, but the 19th-ranked Australian is getting back in business this fall. He played well at the Laver Cup and booked his spot in the Beijing semis by beating Nikoloz Basilashvili, Mischa Zverev, and Steve Darcis (via retirement). A steep step up in competition against a red-hot adversary will likely bring about an end to Kyrgios’ week.
Pick: Zverev in 3
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who ya got?
Hey Ricky? I wrote a post o the WTA page yesterday and it had too many links in it, I realized after it posted into MODERATION. The links are about upcoming WTA tournaments. Could you please approve it or do what you wish with it.
Thank you!
done. Thanks for the heads up.
wow that was fast!!!!
Rafa in 2
Zverev in 3
I am with rc’s predictions!
Pliskova cost me a lot of money. I’m very worried about this Nadal match. I put over two grand just to win 600 to cover my pliskova loss. You can say I’m a degenerate but if Nadal is not supposed to lose then it’s not gambling.
Thats why you don’t put money on a multi of 4 matches with 1.81 odds. Unlucky man, hope you regain your money. Bet wiser next time.
Thanks for the sympathy
Rafa in two and Kyrgios in three
Nadal in 2 easly, and Zverev to win a match 🙂
Rafa and Sasha in two
Ben, why do you have a different pick than everyone on tenngrand.com and most bettors?
Why did you pick Kyrgios in 3?
Let’s be honest- that Zverev vs. Kyrgios match really could go either way. If you weigh all factors, it’s really 50/50… Zverev may be safer bet simply because he’s been way more consistent this season and won big titles, but I personally believe that when Kyrgios is really on, he can be nearly unplayable on a court like this. Hey have played three times this season, all on hard court, with Kyrgios winning two. Back-to-back tournaments. If Kyrgios is on like he has been, I really think this match could go either way. But he’s just so unpredictable. Zverev definitely feels like the safest bet…
I want A. Zverev to win but whoever wins will win the Beijing title.
A. Zverev or N. Kyrgios will defeat R. Nadal/G. Dimitrov.
G. Dimitrov will be hard for A. Zverev or Kyrgios to defeat but either player will smash R. Nadal IF IF IF IF Rafito makes it to the finals.
This will be the real US OPEN finals not that fake, my goodness that was…
If my one and only Rafa wins Beijing, my oh my RESPECT 4 real BUT Rafito won’t win Beijing because all the Kevin Anderson’s are out, it’s time 4 the BIG BOYS to ball and they will ball to the end believe me.
I wish i was the one playing Rafito in the semis, i will smoke him in 2 easy sets, 6-3, 6-2 no 6-1, 6-2 that’ how it’s done.
Enjoy the matches OK, plz don’t get it twisted.
best player won US Open Stanley
zverev , kyrgios , dimitrov had their chances but they eliminated .
it means your RAFITO was the best player
so stop talking nonsense here and give your match prediction , not comment on a finished tournament. NO one cares that .
I go with Rafa in 3 and Sascha in 3 .
Rafa and Dimitrov practised in RNA before USO a lot . So that wont help grigor to defeat Rafa IMO
about kyrgios and zverev , they have the modern times rivalry just like FEDAL and rafa-nole .. Zverev is just one step ahead than Kyrgios but it will likely be a very very close game
Good one saint jimmy, you get Rafa in 3 correct when most of us thought Rafa would win in straight sets. Well done!
Keep your mind focused, remain confident, be strong and fight bravely, Rafa!
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DLhGMpZW4AAQPAi.jpg
Adrian Mannarino is playing really well, he lost the 1st set but he is the better player in this match.
3rd set just started, if he loses the match it doesn’t matter he has impressed me, he is a good player.
He will play K. Anderson in Shanghai, i hope he wins but he might be fatigued.
Kevin Anderson sucks lol!
#USOPEN
just checked A. Mannarino is up 2-0 in the 3rd set, Rafito is leading 3-1 but he might still lose lol!
Too early 4 Rafans 2 celebrate, cos even if my Rafito wins this match he will definitely lose to A. Zverev or N. Kyrgios.
Saintjimmy.
Hmm…
R. Nadal is something else, i don’t give him enough credit.
This guy is good, Rafito is really really GOOD but not ThE BEST.
Well he is the best at the moment, not even Federer has made 3 GS finals this year ….
Rafa is ON FIIRE!
Grigor said before the match that he loves the conditions here because the courts are ‘pretty fast’. Still, Rafa is doing extremely well here.
And hes so good at saving break points at the moment, he seems really confident, and backs himself in tight moments ….
Nobody comes close to him in saving break points when he is playing his best tennis. He can do that all day long despite not having the luxury of hitting huge serves and aces consistently.
Rafa’s backhand is close to its peak at the moment.
To be very honest, this Rafa , even on a very quick surface, is stronger than the Rafa we saw the AO. This is more like the Rafa of the later stages of USO.
Remember how evenly stacked Dimitrov was against Rafa in that AO SF? Yes, it is not 100% okay to compare matches like this, but one thing I can totally see is how much more aggressive Rafa can get. The AO Rafa was very high but was a bit further from his best level. His groundstrokes, 2nd serves are now at a different level of aggressiveness.
Agree with you VR. Rafa as at now is much better than the Rafa of early 2017 on the HCs. At least Rafa doesn’t look lost out there, anticipating well where the opponent(s) is/are going to place his/their shots.
The two things that I don’t like about Rafa is that 1) he has the tendency to hit right back at his opponents and expecting them not being able to handle his shots but many times he hits his shots too short (as he’s playing from way behind the baseline most of the time) that his opponents could just step in to take them and return with interest; 2) he returns serves at his FH corner by standing too far back, allowing his big serving righty opponents to hit their serves out wide so often, many times he struggled to even get his racket on their serves. He was having this problem against Fed at AO and Muller at Wimbledon. IMO, he should stand closer to the baseline on his FH corner while returning serves, this way he’s making his opponents think twice before they serve out wide. He had successes vs Raonic at the AO while doing that.
VR I Love your summary 😉
cheers Alison!
Rafa’s intensity has dropped a little and Grigor is playing better now.
Dimi finally breaks. Rafa was tight in that game and was hesitant to his his backhand DTL .
Rafa making way to many errors from his BH side…closed roof and already fast conditions make it hard for Rafa…
Rafa’s first serve needs improvement! He can’t just rely on his second serves to win the points. His service game was under attack often in the second set, when his level dipped. He’s giving Dimi too many looks into his service games, not good.
Rafa has to be more aggressive than Dimi, who’s hitting hard and going all out attack!
It’s almost as if a jinxed Rafa’s level. lol
Don’t know what is it with Dimitrov, Rafa ALWAYS loses a set at least :s
He even lost a set in Monte carlo once!!!
I do expect Rafa to take this 6-3 or 6-4
Well done Grigor Dimitrov!
Let’s knock Rafa out.
Rafa always loses a set to Dimi in BO3! Looks like Rafa will have a hard time winning this match; Dimi by now should be full of confidence! What’s with Rafa, his level fluctuates so much within a match!
I don’t think the roof is the issue, when he’s able to win the first set comfortably; it’s more to do with his level dipping and Dimi’s going up.
Dimi can serve big first serves easily whilst Rafa can’t; that’s why Rafa has to work so hard to hold serve!
Alison, how are u doing?
It’s true that R. Nadal won 2 GS and reached 3 GS finals but Roger Federer is the best tennis players this year irrespective of how the year ends.
R. Federer won 2 GS’s, defeated Nadal thrice this year( 2 finals) and Roger’s stats, age, trophies and other important stuffs( am a little busy) make him THE BEST tennis player this year, i know the season/year ain’t over but he is still THE BEST.
Stanley im fine thanks, but no, no, no, its the GS that matter the most, but agree that the year aint over yet ….
Luckystar, Yes!
This is similar to Cincy 2013 when Rafa was playing awesome, won the first set 6-2 but then out of nowhere lost the second set 7-5. He regained control to win the decider 6-2. It is a similar story this time around as well.
So it will be Rafa vs Nk/AZ
I do feel Rafa couldn’t keep up his intensity for long, unlike his younger days; I think we have to get used to it nowadays. He’s making life difficult for himself when he couldn’t step on the pedal hard enough to finish the match ASAP when he was having the upper hand. Had he held serve in that long service game in the second set, things could be different and he would be saving much energy.
I think he has to be ruthless like Djoko and Fed, when they’re having the upper hand. Rafa rarely bagels anyone, unlike Djoko or Fed when they’re at their ruthless best.
What a HUGE backhand return from Rafa , followed by an even bigger backhand CC! Really happy with Rafa’s returning this week.
@Alison, i loved the way u disagreed with me, “no, no, no” lol!
Rafa is one of the best this year but there can be only one BIG BOY( R. Federer).
Please don’t make me post again am a little busy OK.
Final Conclusion- R. Federer is the best, we can both agree to best right?
Please say YES lol! Pretty plzzz.
Correction- We can agree that R. Federer is the BEST, right?
R. Nadal is up 4-1 in the 3rd set but if he is not careful he can still lose.
wow that was pure talent from Grigor!! what a backhand pass. Almost did the splits!
OH MY ! what a backhand slice pass from Rafa now!!! WOW
Sorry Stanley, but i never back down from an argument, especially when i believe im right, which i am ….
I GIVE UP!
Said it after the USO final and saying it again now, the quality of Rafa’s backhand slice is now making real progress. It’s been a gradual, steady increase not as pronounced as his 2nd serve improvement but it is SURELY an improved shot in my view this year. I can finally see him consistently getting good length, his slices now sometimes don’t have excessive underpin with huge net clearance. This has made his slices more aggressive and sets up points nicely for his forehand/backhand drives.
Double match point for 6-1 ! VAMOS!
Since we posted almost at the same time what i meant was that- I GIVE Up because Rafito is leading 5-1 in the 3rd set.
This is why Rafa is No 1 this season! His confidence feeds his game! Amazing play in the third set! Rafa never looked back and hit some amazing winners to demolish Grigor in the third! I really enjoyed it! Grigor did all he could yet failed to win more than one game in the deciding set!
Bravo Rafa! So proud of you! ❤️
Rafa is playing well in the 2nd half of the season.
Well done but no Congrats yet cos there won’t be any.
It was a tiring match. I wonder how much Nadal has left in the tank after this but he will be up for it. Given the number of matches he has played, I dont think he will play Basel and Bercy both this year.
He will have plenty left in the tank for the final . I agree he should not play both Basel and bercy/
We’re assuming he will go deep in every tournament that he plays, but, he may lose early in one or two of them! So, let him play and see how he fares, I’m sure he’ll have the WTF in mind so if he’s not feeling physically fit, he may pull out in one of the events, perhaps Paris.
I hope he wins Beijing and if possible also Shanghai. He will play at Basel most probably and if need be, skips Paris.
He can win WTF this year given his form. More so with WTF not an elimination event he can even have an off day and still be in semis where he will be dialled in.
Wonder why Fed and even Rafa give more importance to Basel than Bercy. Fed I can understand, but for Rafa, bercy should be a priority with 1000 points and is also a good warm-up before WTF.
I agree. He should not play Basel if he goes deep in Shanghai. Shanghai draw looks ok though for him to reach until SF.
Rafa’s got a contract with Basel, I think. And he’s never much liked Bercy. It’s indoors, for one thing, plus the court just does not seem to suit him at all. I expect Roger prefers to rest before the WTF rather than play Bercy.
Congrats Nadal on winning a tough match over Dimi. Luckily Dimi became nervous in the 3rd set enabling your win!
A lot of RaFANS are disappointed that they lost the “Nadal win in 2 sets” bet (which was picked by all!). Hope you can play consistently…else Federer and other top contenders can take advantage of your weakness (losing) in either the 1st or the 2nd sets and steal your World No.1 Ranking…which we RaFANS don’t like to see happening!
Besides that, a lot of Children and ladies were offended by his constant ass touching/shorts pulling from the back. Now he has added one more bad habit of pulling his shorts from the front. A lot of Children and ladies from my joint family along with neighbours who were watching the nadal match were offended by his constant “touching/pulling” of his shorts now front also besides the back. If Nadal has any infection issues there he needs to contact an infectious disease doctor and get himself treated and behave normally in-front of the world! He is a millionaire and can easily afford a doctor to cure his problem. If his shorts are tight then he can buy a new shorts which is not tight (or get a new one stitched which fits comfortably). With his money he can but a million shorts which for properly. As a big Rafa fan, I hope you Rafa and my fellow RaFANS understand your persistent, personal problem and FIX it instead of any mud-slinging on anyone!lol We just want our Hero to be one with CLEAN & HEALTHY HABITS…which will not disgust the children, women, and others watching your matches!
Thanks Rafa for winning finally as I put you (ML) in a multi-bet. But many of your fans and my friends) lost money by losing the bet “Nadal win in 2”! I know you personally did not ask them to bet on you!lol But Rafa, you collapsing like that in the 2nd set (and in the 1st set in last Tournament) is very concerning to your fans!
Vamos Rafa!
LOL. Roger i thought thats an additional act of rafa to excite the ladies haha just joking. But he is not the only one doing that front short tagging…andy murray started it and till now he constantly do that hahaha
This is the sort of post that put me off coming on Tenngrand. I thought the bad apples had all left.
I agree. There should be no place for that kind of ugliness and pettiness about any player.
That post at 11:58 am Is extremely distasteful.
Me too, nadline…this idiot who claims he is a Rafa fan is nothing but a sore oser who doesn’t deserve to be on this tennis forum! I watched Rafa from the stands at USO and I was pretty close to him…I can tell you, nobody notices this and nobody is bothered with it! Rafa is a wonderful human being and he is adored wherever he goes…Roger’s comments are pathetic…
^^“Sore LOSER”
Natashao /nny /nadline…it is very clear that the 2 names/ids being used are of the same person. Just notice the way both write . He is borderline spamming here day in and day out and not sure why Ricky is not banning such junk on this site. The level of fandom of federer by a fan has turned to lunatic levels.
Natashao AT 2:58 PM,
Roger (who wrote at 11:58 AM) is a typical Fedfan. The more Rafa wins the nastier Fedfans behave towards Rafa.
one of the stupidest posts I’ve seen in a long time. lol
It is irritating to come to this site and see this irritating person spamming this site day in and day out multiple times a day. This need a to stop . Ricky – Please put both ids on block list.
I want A. Zverev or N. Kyrgios to win Beijing but honestly Rafito is no joke, he is playing amazingly well, that boy is smoking.
If u are a Rafan, u should be proud even though R. Federer is the best tennis player this year.
It looks like Kyrgios is stuggling to breathe out there, like his asthma is acting up or something. He’s using his inhaler while arguing with the referee about why the roof isn’t closed, I think. He keeps saying, “I can’t breathe out here bro!”
Beijing is notorious for air pollution. Must be tough to play tennis when you can’t get enough air!
I have asthma and smoggy conditions would present a problem. Beijing is notorious for terrible smog.
Jeez, how the hell does NK serve as hard as he does while still maintaining a good first serve percentage? When a guy is serving that well, all you can really do is just hope that you can protect your own serve and make it to a tiebreak… But it’s Kyrgios also crushes returns quite well. He’s just difficult to play when he’s really on on a faster court. It will be impressive if Zverev can come back to win this one. If Kyrgios wins this match, and he serves and plays tomorrow like he has thus far, Rafa could really have his hands full. Personally, I am still expecting NK’s level to drop in the final vs. Rafa. He just hasn’t earned my trust that he can be consistent through a whole tournament when a Big 4 player is there.
If Nick Kyrgios wins, he will defeat Rafa.
Is Bercy, Paris?
Which tournament is called or nicknamed Bercy?
The Paris masters tourny is often referred to as Paris-Bercy. It’s in order to differentiate between RG and the masters tourny. I believe Bercy is the name of the complex where the tournament is held, if I’m not mistaken.
Kyrgios just does not let you stop into any rhythm at all when he plays at this level…
Thanks Kevin!
What’s up?
I want A. Zverev to win this title but it seems that N. Kyrgios will be they better opponent to Rafa, so Vamos Kyrgios.
Thanks again,
Bad Boy won, he will win the title in 2 or 3 sets.
N. Kyrgios loves playing top player’s, this is the REAL US OPEN finals not that fake.
Whoever wins this final has won a slam, if Nick wins he has won GS, if Rafael wins he retains his US OPEN title but if he loses we should all minus 4rm his GS’s.
So it’s going to be Kyrgios for Rafa in the final. He made pretty easy work of Zverev. I thought the match would go three sets.
Rafa will have to be at his best to beat Kyrgios.
As expected, Kygrios beats Zverev. Zverev wasnt playing well the whole week, struggling in his matches even though he still beat his opponents in straight sets.
Zverev looked one dimensional in this match, just stayed at the baseline and hit as hard as possible, not doing anything else. Kygrios was the better player and deserved the win.
Agreed. Nick deserves this win! Zverev was not up to the task at all! Although i had Nick winning even if Zverev was to play way better than this! Nick just has the advantage with his serve and his ROS can be dangerous to any opponent. Tough one for Rafa tmrw…
My my kyrgios was on fire. His serve was rocket bombs. He will be completely charged tomorrow against Rafa and will play fearless. Rafa will have his hands really full.
Nadline10 & Natashao you guys are going too far.
Roger is not an idiot, bad apple or a sore loser, if you disagree or you are offended by his comments point it out the right way not this way.
You are not a better person, fan or poster than he is, you might disagree with his comments that’s OK, offended that’s OK but don’t do it this way.
So it will be NK. This will be very tough.
If Rafa can win this, I will consider it one of his best hard court titles ever outside of slams.
It is the first serve of NK that concerns me.The one down-the-T on deuce court in particular has always bothered Rafa.
In Cincy, Rafa was playing shit but he also made some tactical mistakes. I thought he went for too many inside-in forehands to stay away from NK’s backhand but those inside-in forehands did not have a lot on them. He was leaving the court open for Nk’s flat backhand CC drive and this pattern for devastating. Rafa must be careful here because Nk has the flattest backhand out there and he is really quick to his backhand side. Rafa is hitting his own backhand so well so there is no need to hit that many run-around forehands.
I have total faith in Rafa’s second serve. I really hope he can hit some aggressive second serves because he can’t afford to lose his serve. He must keep holding and wait for his chances , just like Federer does in his matches against NK. The Australian is no John Isner so the challenge is big. The guy will be fully motivated and he plays for chances like these.
I would have favoured NK on this surface but Rafa’s playing so well. I just hope NK’s serving drops a bit and Rafa can capitalize.
Vamos rafa!
Had to go out for an hour after Nadal’s match and by the time I got back Curious had already dispatched Misha. Pity I was rather hoping it would be a Zev-Rafa final. Sounds like Curious was in the groove which make me nervous – hope Rafa can tame him.
If Kyrgios can continue to serve 70+ first serve percentage, he will be very difficult to beat. When he is serving bombs at such a high percentage AND returning well, he would always be favored against Rafa on a faster court. His deep, flat, hard shots on a court where the ball skids is pretty much as difficult as it gets for Rafa… HOWEVER, until I see Kyrgios maintain his high level through a whole tournament where he has to face a Big 4 guy, I just have to stick with the more experienced guy to win out. I’m just not confident that Nick won’t come out tomorrow in his “I just don’t give a shit” mode. I’m not saying that Kyrgios can’t win this title. In fact, if I were to trust that he will show up, then I would say Kyrgios is the favorite here. But the truth is that I just don’t trust him! This title is absolutely Kyrgios’ IF he plays like he has all week. But I don’t trust that he will sustain the level required against Rafa. I will guess Rafa in 3.
N. Kyrgios will sustain that level and defeat R. Nadal.
Sanju this will be the last time that i will warn you, please be careful with your words.
On a different topic, are you implying that I( Stanley) is Roger that we are they same person?
If it’s what you are suggesting, i will be polite not because u deserve cordiality because you don’t, u are wrong i am not Roger and i don’t use 2 identities, if i did you won’t notice cos u are not smart enough.
luckystar OCTOBER 7, 2017 AT 3:04 PM
Zverev looked one dimensional in this match, just stayed at the baseline and hit as hard as possible, not doing anything else. Kygrios was the better player and deserved the win.
___________________________________________________________________________
My thoughts exactly. The match was just hard hitting ping pong. IMO.
Kyrgios is on a win, win situation. If he wins, he’d be lauded as unbeatable when he put his heart in it; if he loses they’d say his heart wasn’t in it. Heads he wins, tails he wins.
If he loses and they say his heart wasn’t in it, how is that a “win” in any way haha? It would just strengthen the narrative that he is too mentally weak to run with the big boys when it really matters.
Kevin,
I agree with you. It’s not a good thing to say that a player’s heart wasn’t in it if he loses. That would mean he didn’t try his best.
The problem is that Kyrgios doesn’t always put his heart in it. I do expect him to be ready for Rafa. Kyrgios seems to bring his best against the top players.
Rafa will have to play extremely well to win. He’s had some good preparation in his previous matches. I think it will be a tough match, but I believe that Rafa can win.
The main thing for Rafa is to control his nerve, keeps his calm and problem solve his way through the match. He has to sustain a high level of play for as long as possible to outlast Kygrios’ purple patches. Kygrios is an erratic player, his level can fluctuate within a match too, so Rafa has to be ready to capitalize and at the same time maintain his own high level.
Rafa is playing very well here and his matches vs Pouille, Isner and Dimi would give him confidence and belief in his own game to deal with Kyrgios’; Rafa to win in three tight sets but hopefully in straight sets.
Nadal has had a lot of practice playing big hitters from Rnd 1. He knows what to expect from Kyrgios: big serves, trick shots and big forehands so I hope Roig and Rafa do their homework.
Win or lose Rafa has already won 2 Slams and played excellent all thru the year. In fact he beat all the dangerous players this week, its no less than a Slam draw or Masters 1000 field here.
I think he would be fearless tomorrow. Kyrgios can beat anyone on his day, but at the end of the day its a 500 Tourney, which nobody will remember , so Rafa should go all out aggressive . Rafa’s BH is playing better, plus he is finishing a lot of points at net, mixing drop shops. I thought today was an excellent match from him except for 20 minutes in second set.
R. Nadal has only defeated N. Kyrgios on clay, Nick will definitely win this title cos he is the better player.
In Cincinnati N. Kyrgios schooled Rafa and he will win this match no joke.
This tournament is important and many passionate tennis fans will remember this tourney/match.
If this tournament was insignificant then they won’t be playing and we won’t be watching.
Vamos Nick Kyrgios!
Cuz he is the better player? I agree w the Kyrgios pick but don’t say Kyrgios is a better player than Nadal. That’s stupid
On this surface and in the form he has displayed I think NK will win but you can’t just blatantly say that he is a better player than one of the greatest players of all time.
N. Kyrgios has defeated Rafito in a Grand Slam, rafa hasn’t.
http://www.tennisexplorer.com/match-detail/?id=1617630
NK defeated Rafa in a GS sure, and he might beat him in the final, but overall Rafa is still the better player, 16 GS to zero, so i doubt Rafa will be losing much sleep over that loss ….
Where’s gilles when you need her?
#HowManyTimes?
#DejaVuAllOverAgain
#RafaGOAT
#ManySides
#FDT
Alison hodge, you are right Rafito is the better player overall.
16-0.
@Stanley why do you use vamos with nick kyrgios? And why do you always wish that nadal loses?agree that fed is your favourite but why do you pray that nadal loses even if fed is not playing?I would have understood if this were a gs and you were wary of nadal getting to 19 slams. At least I never pray fed loses when he is not up against rafa.
I don’t always wish Rafa will lose, sometimes I win with him, sometimes I know his opponents will push the match over games or win a set so I win them, sometimes i lose betting against him or 4 him that’s tennis don’t get twisted.
It my pick if u don’t like the prediction or sometimes the wish that’s cool, sometimes I am joking especially when Rafa is already winning or about 2 win the match, smile or laugh a little when it’s obvious.
This is not a wish, this is my prediction- Nick Kyrgios will win or win a set or over games, Rafito won’t win this match & if he wins a set that’s a major achievement cos Kyrgios is balling and on hard court he can smoke Rafa in 2 but if Nick wins in 3 sets a win is still a win right.
But we must acknowledge both, as rafa and fed are two greats of the game and both are legends in their own rights. I mean there is no point of commenting before every match of rafa that he will lose. If you dont like him then dont read his articles which will give you peace but please dont spoil the party of rafans. I agree NK has 51% chance of winning but nadal is known for turning the tables.
Agreed
Are you kidding? Stanley LIVES to be annoying – or try to be. Sad life but there it is. Something in him – maybe some doubt in his Federer bromance? – compels him to this minor “job”. Btw I found it interesting that Fed, at Laver Cup, had no difficulty in lauding Rod Laver as the GOAT. Toni Nadal used to agree with that. Rafa settles for saying that Roger is “the best I’ve ever seen” since Laver was well before his time.
Ramara,
Yes it’s true that Stanley tries to be annoying and also to goad Rafa fans by saying things that he knows will incite or upset them.
It is a waste of life.
Ramara,
Are u a fool?
Or are u trying 2 be one?
Please stop making baseless comments, where are the annoying comments or are you mistaking truth/my opinion or prediction as annoying.
I am not a Rafan and you shouldn’t expect me to fly your colours all time, I don’t expect those who support different teams/players to agree with me all the time, disagreements in sports makes it interesting especially when those disagreements are done correctly.
If you don’t like my predictions make yours and stop being childish.
Too many things to correct but I don’t have the time.
This is not my original comment, I had to delete the original not because it was wrong/incorrect.
My comment at 6:15 PM is self explanatory, When i said N. Kyrgios will definitely win this title because he is the better player, I was referring to the surface they have played on not achievements, rafito is one of the best.
http://www.tennisexplorer.com/match-detail/?id=1617630
R. Nadal has only defeated Kyrgios on clay but Kyrgios has defeated him on grass & on hard court, it’s only a novice or someone who is joking that will compare Rafa’s achievements with Nick’s.
Rafito has what it takes to win this match and his game has improved a lot on all surfaces but I know that if N. Kyrgios shows up and he will, he will win this match.
It’s better to ask a question if you misunderstand a comment than to label it as stupid, that mentality/reasoning is not right.
Like I said, it’s better to ask a question.
Two great match ups…I like Rafa in 2; and Sasha in 3.
I think Rafa will win the final. Kyrgios looked good vs Zverev but Zverev wasn’t playing well the whole week! Zverev is not Rafa – his ROS sucked vs Kyrgios; Rafa will get his hands on Kyrgios’ serves unlike Zverev.
As for Kyrgios beating Rafa at a slam, well Kyrgios wasn’t good enough to meet Rafa at the FO and USO, if not Rafa would have a chance to beat him! Also, I seem to remember some low ranked players (Gulbis, Stakhovsky)beating Fed at the slams but Fed didn’t beat them (at the slams), so what’s the big deal about Kyrgios beating Rafa at the slam??
Lucky,
Well said! Great points!
😀
When stats don’t favour your guy what’s the big deal right, but when it does you shout it from the rooftops.
I don’t blame u, we are all fans and are biased sometimes, some fans are too biased but that’s ok.
All the player’s rafa played to reach the finals in beijing were playing rubbish and weren’t in form, K. Anderson is not N. Kyrgios, Nick knows how to deal with Rafa and if he stays focused Nadal won’t win a set cos this is not clay.
Kyrgios schooled him in their last match in cincinnati like a baby lol! I hope he does it again.
http://www.tennisexplorer.com/match-detail/?id=1599760
Great use of “statistics” simple stanley.
Hope you put what little money you have where your mouth was LOL.
I think all of your obssssion on Rafa is more suggestive of a “closet” crush. Stop lying to yourself stanley. You’ll be a better person for it.
#ItGetsBetter
Pop goes the Moron!
Hawktard it is nice to know that you are still a useful IMBECILE, the world needs people like you cos u are a reminder of what MORON looks like.
If i was your father, i will look 4 the tallest building to jump.
If i was your mother, i will curse the day i gave birth 2 U, what a hopeless sadist.
If i was your sibling, i will hate my life knowing i have brother who is a Moronic Hawktard.
You know i am a hopeful person and i thought and was wishing that no matter were u where, one day you will see how foolish you are and hopefully change 4 the better, but now i know that Hawktard’s never change or stay the same the become useless and immoral in thought and action.
Too bad, too bad, it’s a sad day 4 me because u have been hiding 4rm me and your 1st comment to me in weeks/months is just as pitiful as b4, i feel sorry for your parents, all hope is lost, U R a total waste.
#ifeelsorry4them
Rafa would most probably sweep China this year, both Beijing and Shanghai
How about when stats doesn’t favor Kygrios, huh?
Kygrios could play rubbish at times but Rafa couldn’t (at Cincy)? Huh? When Rafa is playing well, not even Fed or Djoko could bear him, don’t talk about Kyrgios. While the match may be on Kyrgios’ racket when he’s playing well, a confident Rafa who’s playing well can and most likely will take the racket out of Kygrios hands by forcing Kygrios to go for broke and hence making more errors. As I’ve said earlier, Kygrios is erratic, if you make it tough for him to win points, he may soon give up fighting, that’s his character. If you make it easy for him, he will gain confidence and get interested in the match.
Fed when not playing well still managed to scrap past a Kygrios who was playing well (esp when playing for his World team), at the Laver Cup. I believe Rafa is playing better tennis now than Fed was (at Laver Cup) whilst I don’t see Kygrios playing all that well tbh. Unless Kygrios suddenly raises his level and Rafa getting nervy and making more errors, I feel Rafa will win this final.
Agree Lucky!!…So,Rafa in 2 or 3!!
@stanley I would disagree with one thing. Rafa beat Isner who was playing best tennis of his life and also a hard hitter, a type of player nadal has had problems in the past 1-2 years but he passed the test with flying colours and also dimitrov who is number 5 in the race and in no means was playing rubbish. Agreed rafa is a bad matchup for dimi but still he was playing extremely well. Saying that i would still never bet against an in form kyrgios as on his day he can beat anybody.
^^ Except Murray! If I’m not wrong Kygrios is 0-4 vs Murray!
Oh it’s 0-5 vs Murray, my mistake!
I find it really interesting that Kyrgios has never beaten Murray. For a guy who seems to relish facing and beating the top players, he has not been able to get a win against Murray.
Kyrgios is one of the best friend of murray and thats why he does not focus much on the match against murray. Not my analysis but i heard it elsewhere.
Has anybody noticed that rafa is struggling to win point on first serve which is a peculiar problem. When he is playing well he is winning around 60% and on 2nd serve he is winning around 80%. More so most players are using the pace of his first serve to return very deep which is a grave problem. He must actually concentrate on this more.
I personally dont like this concept of on off mind of kyrgios. When you are a professional ,you must be on every match and every point but this guy inspite of talent is wasting it by tanking matches aginst lower ranked oppossition. But somehow people use this argument to defend kyrgios tanking sometimes.
@Rafa rules,
I like some of your comments not because i agree with all of them but because some are really reasonable.
Yesterday might have been the first time I read ur comments, so what’s up?
My comment u responded to was directed 2 luckystar, he was belittling N. Kyrgios’s success in this tournament by attacking the opponent he defeated.
I was simply exposing that silliness cos A. Zverev and other opponents Nick defeated were awesome they just got NICKED and so will rafa.
If N. Kyrgios doesn’t lose focus and he won’t, R. Nadal won’t stand a chance, Kyrgios has proved multiple times that he has rafa’s number outside of clay.
My condolences to all Rafans in advance, no joke here just being real.
A. Murray’s record won’t help Rafito from being spanked today, whether Andy is 20-0 or more it doesn’t matter, rafa will be schooled like a baby and I will enjoy it 2 the end.
This match will be too easy 4 Kyrgios, Vamos Nick Kyrgios!
Come on Stanley, how often you kept talking about Rafa getting spanked and each time Rafa disappointing you?? Give it a rest, you’re making a fool of yourself so often!
Even if you are lucky enough to get it right once, you’re simply getting tedious with your posts regurgitating the same thing always!
Stanley, I was simply responding to rafa rules, that there’s someone (Murray)who simply has Kyrgios’ numbers, there’s no need for you to relate everything back to Rafa! We’re talking about Kygrios here you know? Not Rafa!
Excuse me, Steve Darcis was awesome?? He retired half way through the match! A Zverev was awesome?? Are you sure? Kygrios needed three sets to beat Mischa Zverev, I don’t call that awesome! You want to compare all those opponents against Rafa’s? For one Pouille was pretty awesome, Dimi too, and imo they’re more awesome than A Zverev! I’m speaking the truth, not belittling!
And I mean Kygrios having to beat Mischa in three sets, Kygrios wasn’t awesome in that match; as I said, Kygrios was erratic, we don’t need to big him up.
@Luckystar,
I am not trying to be unkind or disrespectful, I kind of like ur passion for tennis and support 4 Rafito but i don’t have the time to respond to that nonsense again.
How u can see someone else’s fault and not see yours( I am referring to Kyrgios & Nadal) it’s hypocritical & dishonest if you are not joking or repping your guy.
Stanley, I don’t know what you mean! You’re the one who keep belittling Rafa, yet you’re here telling others they’re belittling Kyrgios or his opponents? Who’s the hypocrite here?
And, how’s Steve Darcis awesome when he had to retire against Kygrios? Aren’t you being hypocritical or simply not being realistic here?
Don’t have the time.
Andy Murray vs Nick Kyrgios H2H 6-1 when you add all their matches.
http://www.tennisexplorer.com/mutual/murray/kyrgios/
Hope Rafa plays the way he played against Isner! Hope Rafa comes out thinking that he won 2GS this year and that, while it sure would be nice to add one more title to his record, this tourney is only relevant for adding points to stay year end No1 and for preparing for the WTF! Fed did not even bother playing 500 tourney so even if Rafa loses somehow today from an on-fire unpredictable Kyrgios it should not hurt his confidence!
Rafa is playing well but with big hitters it can easily go either way! I just hope Rafa serves better than in his other matches here and moves Nick away from the baseline… Nick does not allow his opponents gain any rhythm so I hope Rafa goes to the net more often…And, of course, I hope the weather is nice in Beijing and the roof stays open!
Vamos Rafa!
Natashao says AT 7:53 AM:” Fed did not even bother playing 500 tourney…”
===
He didn’t ‘bother’ to play in Beijing or Tokio because these tournaments weren’t in his schedule. He hasn’t played there after 2006.
He will ‘bother’ to play in Basel.
Yeah, so will Rafa….
If N. Kyrgios loses this match it’s not a big deal this an ATP500 tournament. N. Kyrgios has smoked rafa in a Grand slam( Wimbledon) but rafa hasn’t so he is the Bigger man even if he loses.
http://www.tennisexplorer.com/match-detail/?id=1212265
In that match Nick Kyrgios to win was at 9.00 odd, R. Nadal to win at 1.10 odd lol!!! Haha!!!
In that link I posted you can watch the highlight, it is interesting and nice.
I will talk to you guys later, I have to go now.
Take care!
Congrats David Goffin on winning the Japan Open, commies to Mannarino, good week for him taking out Cilic ….
With this win, Goffin has gone up to no.8 in the race so he has very good chance to reach and stays in top ten this season and maybe makes the WTF. Well done, Goffin!
(The final.)
Keep your mind sharp and focused, stay confident, be strong and show your warrior spirit, Rafa!
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DLm5oM4X0AA8D5e.jpg
already 5 deuces in game 2? hehe frazzling.
Started watching 2-1 onward. BP rafa now! Vamos!
Rafa has the upper hand here. This will be really hard for NK unless he can serve like a man possessed throughout the match.
VR, Rafa seems able to neutralize Kyrgios’ serve and that frustrates Kygrios. I mean Kygrios is serving > 200 Kph but Rafa returns them with interest!
The only thing about Rafa now is his poor BP conversion!
LS,
Yes! And how good is Rafa’s counterpunching. He is defending with such great depth and then any short/neutral ball, he POUNCES on it! Of course his improved second serve gives him more security in his service games as well. 1st serve is also awesome at the moment.
This is painful to watch. Kryois is such a talent but a head case.
What separates a great player from a another gifted player with unlimited potential is mental frame. This aspect is as important as serve, volley, bh, FH, returns all combined together. Nadal, Fed and Djoko have both of them.
Rafa won 80% of second serves!!!! These are insane numbers! Have never seen even Fed racking up these numbers behind second serve consistently! And, the scary thing is that it keeps improving!
Kyrgios getting a tennis lesson.
NK does well to reach 15-40 but then Rafa SLAMMED the door with perfect serving!
This is the best I have ever seen Rafa play on such a quick surface. He is ticking ALL the boxes and trust me, my list is very long!
Rafa just broke kyrgios serve. He must continue being miserly and errors will pop up from nicks racquet.
Defence from nadal is too good
Rafa is CRUSHING NK. Wow, this is a masterclass! Do you see the length on Rafa’s CC forehand? There is NOTHING Kyrgios can do to attack them. In cincy, he was getting such easy balls!
Oh I wish that I could see it! The ac is out and I had to go to a hotel because they can’t fix it until Monday. I don’t have the tennis channel!
I am just following the score! Wow! It looks like Rafa is playing well.
Rafa has played a stunning match though. Better than any match in the US Open.
Rafa would have defeated ANYONE today. He has found that perfect balance today and his aggressive best trups anyone’s in my opinion. At least on an outdoor hard court.
Yes VR, couldn’t agree more! Rafa at his aggressive best can beat anyone, at least on outdoor courts.
I am so frustrated to not be able to see this! Rafa must have brought his best! To have such a lopsided score in the final against Krygios is unreal!
Rafa is going to finish this year in grand style! So happy for him! No one can say this draw was easy! He faced Isner, Dimi and Krygios!
He has a real shot at WTF i think. This is his best ever on an indoor court.
Beijing is not indoor…
I want a bagel!! This smug face DESERVES such a beating. I found is ridiculous when a couple of weeks ago he said that he felt invincible when he beat DJoko and Rafa this year!! He was in a big big delusion! The Rafa he faced in Cincy was not even 70% !! THIS is the matador who has won 16 slams ad you yet to make a deep run at a slam!
I am really glad that Rafa made it so one-sided! Taking Kyrgios down a peg is sweet! He’s too full of himself and a beatdown is so appropriate!
Rafa is sending a message! Very proud of him!
Lovely to see you nny!! Have been thinking of you a lot! Wonder where Stanley is ha ha!!no trolling from him today!! Does it drive anyone else insane the way he refers to Rafa as rafito??!!
Amy,
Great to see you, too! It’s been hard to see the matches with the time difference.
You says what I was thinking about Stanley! He tries to rile up Rafa fans before a big match and then disappears! I don’t like the way he refers to Rafa as Rafito! That is not his name!
He goes on and on making nonsensical claims about how Rafa will inevitably lose and then hides when he is wrong!
I haven’t been able to watch either nny! But Rafa is obviously in great form! I have to confess that I am a bit worried about him playing so much this autumn! I want him to be fit and well for the ao!! I honestly don’t care about the wtf!!
amy,
I haven’t really cared much about the WTF to be honest. But I know that it was one of Rafa’s goals at one time because he said so.
It would be nice, but I agree with you about the bigger picture. It’s important that Rafa finish the year healthy. I was thinking that this is the first year he’s been able to play for the whole year. It’s just so nice to see him in this kind of form! This title has to feel good for him.
I agree about the 2018 AO. I stil want that double career slam for Rafa!
😀
I find it unbelievable that people buy into this Krygios nonsense that he tanks matches at will and can beat anyone he wants to beat. I think both Krygios and Tomic have failed to live up to expectations so they use lack of interest as a cover.
Yes! Vamos Rafa! Rafa wins the Beijing title again, after twelve years! He’s simply amazing! A well deserved victory for a well deserved world no.1!!
Yipee!! Rafa schools Nick
Genius at work! Fascinating match from our Rafa! Perfect on all counts
Way to go, Champ! You are the best!! 💪💪
Vamooooossss Rafa!
How do you see rafas chances at shanghai considering a tedious week for him in beijing?
I see his chances as very good. Shanghai is supposed to be the fastest court on tour, so it will feed into the strengths of guys like Federer and other good servers and for hitters. Rafa has shown that he can play really good aggressive tennis when he wants to, so his chances are as good as anyone’s. I really hope we get a Fedal final. If Rafa can play this well on a fast court, it could be a great match! As for how tired he might be, I’m not sure about that. He’ll probably be fine with a few days rest.
I don’t see this week as tedious. That is not the word I would use. I think Rafa got some great match play this week. We saw the result when he just blew Kyrgios off the court.
Beating a big server like Isner and then beating Dimi and finally Kyrgios, can only increase Rafa’s confidence. This was a well earned win!
It was kind of annoying to hear that Rafa hadn’t played a top ten player to win the USO. I do consider Delp to be a top ten player even though he is not currently ranked in the top ten. We all know why. But he won a slam and was in the top five. People love to nitpick as though a player can choose who he wants to play.
But this win was even sweeter because of the quality of Rafa’s opponents.
Nny, Rafa won usopen deservedly. People can think whatever they choose to. Consequently some people’s choices harm them, and some other’s reward in turn as they deserve. This Rafa is better than USO Rafa, in the way Indian Wells Fed was better than AO Fed.
This is best Rafa on hard I ever saw.
What??What??What??…I heard someone said Rafa’s backside gonna be kick hard today!!….Urgh!!..I never!!…hohohohohohoho!!….
Btw…Nny!!…R U HAPPY???HAH??I CAN’T HEAR U???…LET’S SCREAM!!!……WOOOOOOOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOOO!!….Okay!…That’s it!!…
MA,
I am jumping with joy!!!!
WOOHOO!!!!!
Stanley opened up his big mouth and put his foot in it!
Rafa is the man!!!!
😀🏆
NNy!!…..YEEEEEAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!…..JUMP AWAY MILADY!!!!WOOOOOOOHOOOOO!!
Oh Thank God!!Rafa won!!…
NNY..How about saying it was Rafas foot in his mouth :-). That would be better justice for disrespect shown to a 16 slam champion
Sanju,
Very well said!
Thank you!
😀
Beijing is indoor or outdoor?
Outdoor.
He is playing better than he was @ USO . Very good tourney, draw as tough as any GS or Masters 1000. Must be Very satisfying for him
It’s nice to see Rafa playing such quality tennis. Healthy and confident! What a joy! Rafa getting a title in this part of the tennis year is just so sweet!
I briefly checked out the Shanghai draw and Rafa should have a good shot to continue his winning ways.
Then I hope Rafa will have a break. I am starting to get excited for WTF!
oh yeah! This is a step forward as compared to his USO performance.
This was SCARY good. Rafa’s ROS, his serve (both first and second), the depth on his running shots, the penetration on his strokes, it was all just perfect! I have NEVER seen such a comprehensive performance from Rafa on such a quick surface.
For the first time, I feel he has a very good chance of winning the WTF’s!
The final must have been easy on his body but not sure whether he should play shanghai. Of course he will play there and I hope he does really well.
And, I hope NK’s delusion bubble got burst today!
Ho Ho Ho
How satisfying was that then?
I thought at 5.0 in the second set Rafa was about to ram a baguette down Mr. Curious’ throat but it wasn’t to be. Good thing it was Lahyani umpiring – he knows how to handle Kyrgios’ antics.
I did say that Kyrgios would have to continue to serve over 70% first serve percentage to beat Rafa- that is the cornerstone of his game, that suffocating serve. In the final today, he served 48% first serve percentage… That is laughable- if you serve 48% first serve percentage against Rafa, he will EAT you alive! Must admit that it feels good to see Kyrgios lose… I don’t want to dislike him, he just makes it reeeaaally hard not to. 😛 My assertion that he does not yet have what it takes to win a tournament where he has to face a big 4 player continues to be correct. He has gotten big wins over the Big 3, but it has never lead to anything meaningful. If a tournament has one or more Big 4 players at it, you can pretty much guarantee that Kyrgios level will suddenly drop severely, usually after playing at a very high level in the earlier rounds. Until he figures this problem out, I think he will end up one of the biggest wastes of talent ever. And as much as I can’t stand him, I really do feel like the sport will need really talented, box-office players like him when the Big 4 are gone…
If ever there was a player who deserved to be knocked down in a one-sided final, it’s Kyrgios. I dislike arrogance when one has not done much yet in a sport. Kyrgios has had his wins against the top four at times, but not when it mattered most.
I didn’t see the match, but hearing about gamesmanship by Kyrgios makes me even happier that he got trounced.
I do think the Kyrgios could wind up as the biggest waste of talent ever. He just does not have the attitude and commitment to the sport.
It’s special when Rafa can beat Kyrgios on a court like this. We always hear so much about how Rafa hasn’t won a hard court title in so long. Now he’s got the USO and Beijing.
Big grats to Rafa!! I love it when he just shows up!
I’ll say one thing for NK. He’s genuine. He is what he is, the good, the bad and the ugly.
So, apart from the only service game that Kyrgios won, Rafa had breakpoint chances in all his service games. So, much so for the man broken only once in tournament so far. Today was a rout against a very dangerous guy. I dont think Last 2 US Open matches and Beijing, is the best I have seen him on hard courts all his career. Serve doing well, especially second serve numbers are just out of the world. BH CC is the killer shot which just pushes the opponents in the corner and he can just take control. FH DTL is working very well, has been reliable all thru the tourney. If I am not wrong he was broken just thrice in whole tournament against all very tough opponets . Draw was brutal.
After Shanghai, he should skip Bercy or Basel. WTF should be his only aim now. One very good thing for Rafa is , he is very very clutch on his service games especially when break points down. Confidence is sky high.
@fedexal, you seem to know a good deal about Rafa’s game, Fedexal. There are a few posters out here (NNY, Luckystar and some others) whom I rely on to gauge rafa’s level if I miss any of his sets/matches. You also make good observations so bravo!
Rafa’s second serve win ratio is crazy. I no longer sound like a fool boasting about it because he is winning matches and tournaments now and people believe it now lol
Guys, I pulled out some numbers from the past to this statistical comparison to see how damn well Rafa is doing on his second serves:
Federer’s 2nd serve win % in 2006, 2007, 2017 : 58.9%, 59.0%, 59.3%
Djokovic’s 2nd serve win % in 2011, 2015: 60.2%, 55.6%
Nadal’s 2nd serve win % in 2008, 2010, 2013, 2017:,60.8%, 59.5%, 56.8%, 61.3%
So far in 2017, Rafa’s won 61.3% of 2nd serves, which is the best ever winning % in the last couple of decades for a top player!
Fed has never crossed the 60% mark while Djoko did it once in 2015.
For further perspective, Sampras was averaging about 52-53% in his prime years!
vamosrafa,
Bless you for those stats! Wow! That really tells the story! I do think that Rafa’s improved second serve has been a game changer for him. It’s been on my personal wish list for some time. We see that there is so much less pressure on him because he has a strong and effective second serve to back him up.
His game is clicking and has come together beautifully. But the improved second serve has been a big part of it.
Thanks for posting those stats!
😀
I think Moya is the one who helps Rafa concentrates on improving his second serve, in addition to improving his first serve of course. I mean, if we could see the need for Rafa to improve his serves (esp his second serves), I’m sure Moya could easily see that as an area for improvement.
I also wonder how Rafa could think of returning serves from so far back yet it’s so effective that we can’t really fault him or criticize him for doing that. The way he returned both Isner and Kyrgios’ big serves, and on such a fast HC, it’s unbelievable.
Stanley, it looks like Kyrgios is a non-smoker. He leads a healthy lifestyle 🙂
Yeah, one can hardly not notice the sky high confidence in Rafa’s game post USO!! I for one did not find myself terrified when Rafa was saving break points in this match! It was pretty obvious that Rafa would find his best serve or best game when it mattered the most! Amazing to watch this Rafa! Such a treat for our eyes! I love it!
I think whether we like Kygrios or not, he’s good for tennis when he can bring in the crowd and keeps tennis interesting, esp after the big four retire.
Kygrios is the one who has to decide what he wants out of his tennis career, whether he wants to work hard to realize his full potential, or just simply depends on his raw talent and hangs around in the tour until he gets disinterested and decides to leave.
During this whole week, I’m liking both Dimi and Goffin after seeing how they played and their attitude. I think both of them are on the upward trajectory of their career. I think both will get to the WTF this year, and, they may win a slam or two later in their career once the big four retire or decline.
As for the younger gen guys, I see Shapovalov as a good potential to become a good to great player; he at least has some varieties in his game, unlike the other youngsters who simply serve big and hit hard from the baseline and not much else. Shapo’s problem is his go for broke mentality, sometimes it’s too hit or miss. He has to improve the precision of his shots, and plays with some controlled aggression.
Sasha too as he matures will become a great player and having played doubles with his older brother, may improve his skills at the net. I do think Sasha looked fatigued during this Beijing Open; I guess he’s still young and is just starting to get used to the weekly grind of the main tour. He having won so much already this season may feel the physical strain by this time of the season.
It’s not easy as a 20 year old to play week in week out in the main tour and sometimes playing b2b events. I remember Rafa as a 19 yo in 2005 winning Montreal but lost early in the next week at Cincy. Djoko too in 2007 as a 20 yo lost early at Cincy after winning at Montreal.
Congrats to R. Nadal.
I didn’t watch the match and i will never watch the highlight, ok i will, i will watch it later or download it if it’s available.
I haven’t read all the comments here and i probably won’t read it, no time but if you left me an important message repost it or direct me to the time & page i only have few minutes to spare.
Rafito smoked Nick, he humbled him but prior to the match some of U where belittling the importance of this match & tournament but some of your celebrations speaks volumes, it is different hmm… Ok.
Judging by the comments of those who watched the match & result, N. Kyrgios wasn’t focused in this match and we all know how Kyrgios is, once he loses interest game over.
Once again Congrats to my Rafito.
On a different topic, Nativenewyorker i think you are a woman so please i am begging u, act like a lady, if you want me to treat according to your comments i will and i won’t hesitate but i want 2 treat you like a lady even though you haven’t given me a reason to, plzzz act like a lady.
U can laugh at me 4 picking Nick i deserve it, make jokes, you can even make fun of me that’s OK i will take it alright, but but but be mindful of your words it’s important.
Leave nny alone Stanley!! We all know how you view ‘ladies’ any way ie as sexual objects, until they offend you when you unleash a barage of insults.
Kindly stop calling Rafa rafito!! It’s unutterably annoying. Also stop trying to chat up women on site or referring to female tennis stars as your babies and coming up with ludicrous and extremely offensive fantasies about them.
amy,
Thank you for that! I was going to answer Stanley, but you have said I all much better than I ever could!
I really do find Stanley’s comments towards the female posters on this site quite condescending and inappropriate at times. As far as lecturing me about behaving like a lady, I think it might be nice if Stanley behaved like a decent man with proper respect for all on this site, but especially women.
This is not a dating site! It’s a tennis site and we are here to discuss the matches and players and competition. There is a non-tennis topic thread for anything not related to tennis.
Stanley’s comments before the final were meant to rile up and antagonize Rafa fans. It was not about making a prediction because it went far beyond that. It was a blatant attempt to aggravate Rafa fans by saying repeatedly how afly he would lose, no question or doubt about it, never in doubt and on and on.
Rafa let his racket do the talking for him. Enough said!
Sorry, in my previous post I meant to say how Stanley talked about how badly Rafa would lose in the final!
Misogynist simple stanley. At least you’re government suits you.
I think its a myth that Rafa does not like fast outdoor/indoor conditions. In fact his game benefits more on faster surfaces than slow surfaces. Rafa’s improvements are noticeable.
1.Has got outwide serve on deuce now and he gets lots of free points there. Earlier he was predictable with down the T serve and opponents can sit on their BH and can actually put his own BH under pressure especialy DH Backhands.
2. He is coming to net more and finishing points quickly and and volleying really well.
3. FH has been good really throughout and he has added more depth with his CC Forehand. Also he picks up really brutal shots from his FH side so easily.
4. BH CC is just so reliable from so tight positions, picks up very deep shots from that wing and just pushes opponents wide now and his DL FH can take the control then. Very tiring for opponents.
5.He is using the drop shot from his forehand side well.
6. His BH slice is keeping lower now and just adds more variety to his game. Its such an improved shot over his career and thats one shot that will serve him well on grass courts.
all in all he is a very well rounded player now. His BH DTL can improve a little but thats improved as well this year. His game looks so easy now . I think he did not play so well in 2013 after USO and was playing short in Beijing and WTF specialy from his BH side against Djokovic. He is a far better player now.
Rafa played with confidence. A joy to watch.
No one would beat him in that form. Too good.
Now with a 2360 pt lead in the race over fading federer.
Yeah, Rafa is year-end #1. They really should have given him the trophy for that in addition to the Beijing one. I guess technically it’s possible for Fed to get it, but it would require him to win every tournament he plays here on out AND for Rafa to have the most epic collapse. I don’t see either of those things happening, especially the latter.
Well Shanghai will finally determine that Kevin. If fed wins Shanghai it again will get a bit tricky.
I agree that Rafa is a better player now than his 2013 self. I have finally seen every part of Rafa’s game, every tool in his toolbox, all functioning very well at the same time in this match!
What a joy to behold! His ROS in this match was especially impressive, returning Kyrgios’ >200 kph serves with interest and had BPs in almost all of Kyrgios’ service games! A Zverev couldn’t even get his racket on many of those > 200 kph missiles from Kygrios! As expected, Rafa is a much much better returner of serves than A Zverev.
Rafa was putting so much pressure on Kyrgios’ serves, it’s no wonder Kygrios could only managed a low first serve %. He was serving so well vs A Zverev in the SF.
I love Nick but when he’s in this shitty brat form I like to see a ruthless badass like Nadal put him to the sword. Well done Rafa 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼
Well said. Never saw a better demonstration of mental strength and focus versus spoiled brat. Nor will I ever cease to marvel at Rafa’s focus and deteremination combined with all that passion. He feels the emotion, the frustrations, but he processes it at light speed instead of getting “stuck” in it. And if he does get really angry, he simply plays better. Takes it out on the ball. Amazing.
Nativenewyorker,
Stop accusing me of trying to date women here.
I haven’t asked anyone out or seeked an improper friendship, you know that but you are lying.
No offense but I won’t ask you out if my life depended on it, i don’t like u that way and your comments, the actions & lifestyles you defend speaks volumes.
Plzzz if you are going to accuse me of something let it be true.
Leave nny alone Stanley!! It is you who posts grotesque and offensive rubbish not her!
In one revolting post to her during the uso which fortunately she didn’t see you accused her of having evil thoughts and other nonsense.
Stop conceiving of yourself as some kind of wondrous patriarchal authority! You really aren’t Moses or elijah!
Amy,
You are right. I did not see that post during the USO. It’s a good thing, too!
I try to ignore his conments as much as possible. But it’s getting out of hand. There is a lack of self-awareness.
Perhaps we should go back to ignoring him nny!! But some of the stuff he writes is very offensive and I want to make clear to him that if he attacks you I and others will hold him to account..!
simple stanley the racist, misogynist, fascist dumbass.
#FDT
So happy for Rafa, and it feels great sticking two fingers up to the naysayers that think hes only good on clay, 75th career title wow, great analysis from many of the posters here too ….
That was a clinic by any other name. So glad Rafa put him in his place.
LOL To Benny Gs post 🙂
75 titles..that’s a diamond or platinum jubilee (in India , 25 is celebrated as silver, 50 as gold and 75 as diamond jubliee whenever the milestone is met ) . Needs a good celebration 🙂
Nativenewyorker i don’t hate u or others, you are simply angry that i pointed out that the murdering of innocent children( God’s Creation) in the name of health care is Demonic and Evil.
You can keep supporting/defending this satanic practice but remember this, you and others alike who do not repent and seek God’s forgiveness, Mercy and Grace will face God’s righteous judgement for all eternity.
I started commenting here this year and you have be angry with me not because of sports but because i tell you the truth.
For a while i didn’t visit this site because i was busy with work and other important stuff and when i came here i didn’t look 4 you, you came to me.
Please if i am troubling U, then stop talking to me, all that i have done is tell you the truth, argue as fan and try to be a friend.
Please you can end this and i will comply, i have done my best.
There is a non-tennis forum to discuss evil or whatever other nonsense that is not tennis related.
Just ignore the barking dog…Sun doesn’t stop shining when dog barks at it…if you pay attention or respond to his posts, he will bark more..
Saying that it is wrong to murder innocent children in the name of health care is considered barking, my goodness, when you rotten in hell with the devil, u will remember this day and blood of innocent children are in your hands.
If you don’t repent, they words you have spoken today will be a witness on that day.
Stanley, find yourself a pulpit to preach from! It’s not okay here and just when I had started to forget that your impulses rule you and you cannot act with respect to Ricky’s rules here. Very disappointing from you. You know where your dogma belongs: Non-tennis forum is the only place here for discussing religion or politics but threatening and condemning people certainly sounds idiotic on any thread anywhere. Sheesh. Stop it!
Ratcliff, truth has no pulpit, it should be spoken everywhere, anywhere and all the time.
Silence in the face of evil is itself evil, God will not hold us guiltless.
Not to speak is to speak, not to act is to act.
I will rather stand up for the Truth and have a thousand FOOLS attack me than to sit down and be silent and have a thousand FOOLS as friends.
It’s amazing that among all the comments here it is mine u noticed that is non tennis related, BRAVO, well done.
Irrespective i don’t care what u think or say especially when it comes to moral issues & Godly Truth, cos i know where you stand.
I am not threatening or condemning anyone, their words, action and their brazen and vociferous support 4 evil in the past and in the present condemns them and you(Ratcliff) and if u and they don’t change course you and others like u will regret it for all eternity, that’s not condemnation that’s the truth.
Just like grass withers, and its flower falls away, this life on earth is like a vapor, it appears for a little while and then vanish away.
Eternity lasts forever and whatsoever a man/woman sows, at the end they will reap it in full.
Don’t misunderstand, God is merciful & gracious and He will forgive anyone who comes to him in sincere repentance because Jesus has made a way and He is The Way.
You and others like you are part of the reason why they innocent & defenseless are murdered by the thousands daily & millions yearly, know this, God has heard their precious cry by the millions( Glory be to God) and he will be faithful to answer them.
The word of God(The Bible) would say in 2 Peter 3:8-9- ” But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with The Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.
The lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.”( 2 Peter 3:8-9)