The 53rd installment of the Novak Djokovic vs. Rafael Nadal rivalry was supposed to be another instant classic.
Djokovic had other ideas.
Producing a master-class performance in a second consecutive match, the world No. 1 destroyed Nadal 6-3, 6-2, 6-3 in just two hours and four minutes to capture a record seventh Australian Open title on Sunday night. Two days after committing a mere five unforced errors throughout a 6-0, 6-2, 6-2 semifinal destruction of Lucas Pouille, Djokovic made only nine errors in the final.
The top-seeded Serb pounced on Nadal right away, breaking serve in the second game and holding his first four service games at love. He lost a grand total of one service point in the entire first set.
Things never got much better for Nadal, who finished with 28 unforced errors also also struck far fewer winners than his red-hot opponent (21 to 34). The second-ranked Spaniard, who was bidding for his second Aussie title 10 years after his first, earned only one break-point chance and failed to convert it at 3-2 in the third set.
Highlights:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gjuq9GDYNl4
Full trophy ceremony:
“It ranks right at the top,” Djokovic said when asked where this ranks in his Grand Slam final performances–15 of which have resulted in victories. “Under the circumstances, playing against Nadal, such an important match, yeah–it’s amazing. Obviously back-to-back semifinals and finals, I think I made 15 (really 14) unforced errors in total in two matches; it’s quite pleasantly surprising to myself, as well, even though I always believe I can play this way (and) visualize myself playing this way. At this level, as I said, under the circumstances, it was truly a perfect match.”
“I think, of course, he played I think fantastic,” Nadal praised. “At the same time is true that when he’s playing that way, I think I needed something else. I was not able to have that extra thing tonight, being honest, no. Yeah, was unbelievable the way that he played, no doubt about that.
“The real thing is he played so well. He did a lot of things very difficult unbelievable well. He hit so long. His return was fantastic. He was super quick.”
He was, in short, unbeatable. The real thing, too, is that Nadal was not at his best; Djokovic made sure the Spaniard couldn’t be. But not even Nadal’s best–not anyone’s best–could have competed with Djokovic on this night. He was simply too good.
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When Djoko is playing like that, not even Fed or Murray in an AO SF and F could beat him! Eg. AO2016. Both of them weren’t coming back from four months of injury break, yet they still lost miserably.
Rafa only managed three games when he lost 6-1, 6-2 to Djoko in the Doha final of 2016, and though Rafa back then weren’t exactly in top form, he wasn’t coming back from injury break.
Djoko on his day, could annihilate anyone on the HCs.
I just love the fact that you’re calling Novak: “Djoko”. It really reveals more way about you than you think.
God forbid if you dignified yourself to call him like everyone else does. This way it’s more convenient to show some subtle disdain…
If you already like to play around shortening last names, why don’t you try calling Rafa: “Nad”? Maybe?
Djoko, short form for Djokovic; Fed short form for Federer. Nadal and Murray, not too Long so need not shorten them. I call Davydenko, one of my fave player, Davy.
I don’t call them by their first name, unless it’s Nadal whom I call him Rafa. For Tsitsipas, I wanted to type just Tsit but my mobile phone spells out the full surname for me; must be that it captured the name the first time I typed, so it came out once I start typing the first few letters.
Don’t try to be clever! I’ve explained myself. See?
Sure you have.
Yeah, just try repeating that a couple of more times, it will almost sound true.
At least to you, that is.
You’re laughable! Who are you to judge? You don’t even know me, don’t act smart! You’re just so full of yourself! Go do something else, don’t bother me.
I’m preparing for festive celebration, in holiday mood now!
Ok Luc, Happy New Year, go and have a blast celebrating!
See you after RG 😉
Hey amy!…hope u have a good day so far amy!…
Ermmm…if u still can’t get the stupid loss at Wimby out of your mind….then i can’t get this stupid loss at d@$! AO from my mind!…Urgh!!…very stupid!!!..The stupidest of them all!!
Mira, like I said, Rafa has to hit his FH CC flatter and with depth. He has to use his FHDTL more often and add in a BHDTL shot so that he can go CC or DTL from both wings.
He’s so used to serving out wide with his lefty serve that it becomes so predictable. Why not add in more serve down the T, to keep his opponent guessing. When Rafa was younger, he used to serve down the T very often when his back was against the wall and needed his serve to bail him out of troubles. He also needs to beef up his second serve, it has gotten worse now compared to 2017 when his second serve was incredibly good.
We had discussed this before, that when he could rely on his good second serve, he was less pressurized serving his first serves; with his great first serve now, he should worry less when he has a good second serve to back it up.
He kept looking at the shot clock when he’s serving, it’s like he’s so worried that he would go over the time limit, got penalised with his first serve taken away, and had to serve a second serve which wasn’t that reliable these days.
I feel his ROS needs improvement, he’s returning from so far out wide at his deuce court, that left his ad court wide opened. Unless he hits his CC return well from there, his opponent may just rush to the net after serving to intercept Rafa’s CC return and hits it to the open court and Rafa will have a hard time running to cover that position. Why not return the serve DTL around the net post for a change, and have the ball landing at his righty opponent’s BH corner instead? Keep his opponent guessing!
He should also move forward after returning serve ( like what Murray used to do) so that 1) he could take away his opponent’s reaction time, 2) he need not cover too much court when he moves forward cutting off some wide angles.
I think if he can vary his court position when returning serves, that may make Djoko guess a little more when serving, and so could affect Djoko’s precision a little bit imo.
Mira, like I said, Rafa has to hit his FH CC flatter and with depth. He has to use his FHDTL more often and add in a BHDTL shot so that he can go CC or DTL from both wings.
He’s so used to serving out wide with his lefty serve that it becomes so predictable. Why not add in more serve down the T, to keep his opponent guessing. When Rafa was younger, he used to serve down the T very often when his back was against the wall and needed his serve to bail him out of troubles. He also needs to beef up his second serve, it has gotten worse now compared to 2017 when his second serve was incredibly good.
We had discussed this before, that when he could rely on his good second serve, he was less pressurized serving his first serves; with his great first serve now, he should worry less when he has a good second serve to back it up.
He kept looking at the shot clock when he’s serving, it’s like he’s so worried that he would go over the time limit, got penalised with his first serve taken away, and had to serve a second serve which wasn’t that reliable these days.
I feel his ROS needs improvement, he’s returning from so far out wide at his deuce court, that left his ad court wide opened. Unless he hits his CC return well from there, his opponent may just rush to the net after serving to intercept Rafa’s CC return and hits it to the open court and Rafa will have a hard time running to cover that position. Why not return the serve DTL around the net post for a change, and have the ball landing at his righty opponent’s BH corner instead? Keep his opponent guessing!
He should also move forward after returning serve ( like what Murray used to do) so that 1) he could take away his opponent’s reaction time, 2) he need not cover too much court when he moves forward cutting off some wide angles.
I think if he can vary his court position when returning serves, that may make Djoko guess a little more when serving, and so could affect Djoko’s precision a little bit imo.
True that Rafa was coming back from injury and getting to the AO final surprised all, including himself I think but I don’t quite buy this theory of not having enough matches under his belt. He had played 6 brilliant HC matches, how many do you need to be battle-hardened? Besides, he said it himself that at this stage of his career he needs more free points hence shorter matches, if he wants to go on without destroying his body any further…
But I guess he can’t simply say the truth: he wasn’t psychologically ready for Nole.. He needs a few matches against him to test his level. Well, now he knows just how much he needs to improve, mainly psychologically because in reality that’s the biggest edge between them.
Shirelling…What u say is exactly what i have in mind!…That’s why i have a hard time to accept this loss bcoz it really doesn’t make sense to me…he played the best tennis i’ve seen from him in Tsitsi’s match…and then crumbled helplessly against Novak 2 days later!
He revert back to his ol self by playing 5,6 meters behind the baseline…FH CC all the time…as far as i know that’s a symptom of lack of confidence that he suffered in 2015 season…that means 1 thing…Nerves & anxiety..I think the main reason is the ‘between the ears’ thingy…not as much as physical…
Despite all the discussion about how/what Rafa needs to change to beat Djokovic, I suspect Ricky was correct in his original preview: If Nadal can’t beat Djokovic under these conditions, playing at the extremely high level he was before the final, he’s probably not going to beat him again on HC. The score shows just how much better Novak is, and his level needs to drop substantially before he is going to be close to losing to Nadal on this surface.
Come on, why would Rafa suddenly crumble against Djoko?
People are reading too much into this loss! I think they want to believe that the Wimbledon loss affected Rafa psychologically and so now once he meets Djoko in an important match, he crumbled! Is that what the Rafa fans here want to believe? Is Rafa such a coward, that they think he’s hopeless against Djoko because he’s so scared of Djoko?
Rafa is just simply not ready to meet this Djoko, because Rafa is not battle ready yet; beating Tsitsipas doesn’t equate to beating Djoko, esp in a slam final. Djoko is several levels ahead of Tsitisipas where experience and skills are concerned when playing in a slam. (I admit, I did underestimate Djoko after seeing how Medvedev gave him all sorts of problems and so became over optimistic about Rafa’s chances in the final.)
I can see that Rafa was slow in his movement during the final, his shot selection and execution questionable, his ROS not up to the mark, and his serve became less potent in the final. Rafa had not met anyone who’s so great in his defence prior to meeting Djoko in the final; as said earlier, Djoko exposed Rafa’s shortcomings. Once Rafa couldn’t execute his aggressive tennis, he would coil back into his defensive mode as that’s his default style of play ever since his success on clay. He’s a step slower in anything hence the beatdown.
Rafa always have problems against Djoko on the HCs, he has not won a set against Djoko on the HCs after beating him at USO2013 and that’s five years ago! Heck, even Fed or Delpo couldn’t beat Djoko on the HCs when they’re not even coming back from injury, and they had been playing well to meet Djoko in the SF or final, they still failed.
Djoko tends to play his best in the later stages of slams, Rafa simply had no answer in the final, just like Fed or Murray or Delpo, when they faced Djoko.
Whether Rafa will ever beat Djoko again on the HCs, we gonna see. It depends on what the Rafa camp could do, to stop this Djoko!
Lucky….i didn’t say Rafa is a coward…it’s just i feel that he’s lacking a self belief in that final that he can beat Novak on hc…sure Rafa scored a win the last 2 time they met…but that on clay…they haven’t met on hc for ages…maybe a case of respect too much for Nole too considering he’s the 6 time champ there…
Why he didn’t crumbled like this against Fed in 2017?He also just came back from a long lay off…
Mira, that’s because he didn’t go for four months without matches (he stopped after Shanghai in 2016 if I’m not wrong); also he won at Abu Dhabi exho, played a few matches at Brisbane, and was tested early by Sasha and Dimi.
Fed’s defence wasn’t as great as Djoko’s, and in the Fedal rivalry, Fed was the aggressor and Rafa the counterpuncher. By the final, Rafa’s defensive skills was already well in place hence a five setter.
In the Rafa/Djoko rivalry, whoever is the aggressor would most likely win the encounter. Djoko started off being very aggressive, and his ROS was incredible, that put lots of pressure on Rafa’s service games.
There’s no reason why Rafa won’t fight for everything, unless he’s not able to do so. It’s not different from his AO2008 SF vs Tsonga, or AO2007 QF vs Gonzo; in both matches, he appeared too slow to defend, as his opponents were simply quicker in their offences.
‘In the Rafa/Djoko rivalry,whoever is the aggressor would most likely win the encounter.Djoko started off very aggressive,his ROS was incredible that put lots of Rafa’s service games’….
Yeah!…Agree with that assessment Lucky!…If they were to meet again at IW,i hope Rafa will be ready than his display at AO…
Let’s see how Rafa will respond to that painful defeat…Vamos Rafa!!
Mira, we’ll see. Rafa was positive about this AO, or are we suspecting he’s putting up a false front? Judging from past experiences, I doubt so. Rafa is honest with his feelings, he’s upset about his loss at AO2014 and it showed. He wasn’t in 2012 and then be beat Djoko at the FO.
bald army is still in ruins haha.
“….i didn’t say Rafa is a coward…”
but he is. he shat his pants on Sunday. djokovic smelled blood like an apex predator.
Why hasn’t this been moderated?! It’s outrageous it’s still here and not deleted. No-one should have to come to a tennis site and read this. And that is nothing to do with it being aimed at Rafa.. I would say the same regardless of who it is aimed at. It’s infantile offensive garbage and describes the character of the poster perfectly.
Some posters are so classy with their choice of words lol ….
Yeah completely agree with these posts, i scratched my head watching that final on Sunday, you were all right about the way Rafa played, he went back to his old way of playing really passive, not going for his shots, everything went straight back to Novak, sad really the title was there for the taking, he played awesome all fortnight, he was the better player of the too all fortnight, it wasnt such much the loss, it was the way he lost which doesnt make sense, Novak didnt even have to even play lights out to win the match ….
Djoko started the match serving very well and Rafa couldn’t even get his racket on his serves. When it’s Rafa’s turn to serve, Djoko seemed to get every ball back, that’s the difference.
Rafa wasn’t able to play his aggressive game because his serve was returned with interest; none of Rafa’s previous six opponents had such ROS ability.
Djoko did play very well, starting with his SF vs Pouille, and Pouille only managed four games. Both Pouille and Rafa weren’t able to hit with depth, esp when hitting to Djoko’s BH. Djoko seemed able to get to every ball and was hitting with depth himself, forcing Rafa to constantly be on the back foot.
I think Rafa ran out of ideas out there, and his game was consistently under assault by Djoko. I think he’s confused, to press forward and continued with his aggression, or went back to the default game that he so often played with success? He chose the latter but by then Djoko was already having the upper hand and he’s not going to let loose to allow Rafa back into the match.
Djoko did play exceptionally well regardless of whether Rafa hit right back to him or not. His serve was unbelievable, so was his ROS.
All I can say is that Rafa was not ready to meet this Djoko; against someone else in the final, perhaps Rafa could win with his aggression, but against Djoko, his game wasn’t good enough. Even when he finally had a BP in the third set, he hit his next shot into the net, to me he didn’t have the belief by then, that he could win the match, after seeing how Djoko played.
‘I think Rafa ran out of ideas out there, and his game was consistently under assault by Djoko. I think he’s confused, to press forward and continued with his aggression,’
Haaa!!..That’s what i agree Lucky!…It was like he had a brain freeze,don’t know what to do,don’t have a plan B either…Like Mats Wilander said,he expect Rafa to come up with his emergency plan after got ambushed by Novak, like play risky tennis like he did against Stan in 2014 that secured him the 3rd sets…
I’m also a little bit surprised (& i’m sure many other’s too)that the player as calibre as Rafa don’t have a back up plan to save him from that situation…he’s in the final after all…but i also agree with Mats that Nole won’t let Rafa ‘breathe’ that day…
Really really hope that Rafa will learned this lesson..coz i’m sure they will meet again…But Nole,full credit to him played the best tennis i’ve ever seen from him so far…If only Rafa won’t brain freeze like that..i’m pretty sure too we already witnessed another 2012 2.0…shorter & aggresive version from both sides…urgh!!…i cannot imagine how amazing & awesome that match would be!…what a miss!!…Hokay!move on to IW!!…Vamos Rafa!!
I totally agree. I am a huge huge Nadal fan and it is impossible to be unsettled over this performance. I woke up 3.30 am and couldnt sleep again. Couldnt take off the thought off my mind that Nadal could have been 18 and then 19 at the FO.. Last two chances .. Wimbldeon was a sorry miss.. He did get unlucky but I am sure even with Djokovic not at his best yet, He didnt capitalise on the breakpoints because he wasnt as confident.
And this AO, he was playing wonderfully well.. His forehand was as good as ever. HIs backhand was deep and quick. He was at his best enough to beat Djokovic like I wouldnt have been surprised if he did in straight sets.
I cant pin anything else other than bigtime nerves. I used to think all Nadal needs to win is the first set with Novak but now I think oh well atleast be strong enough to win your first service game
I always thought if Nadals groundstrokes land past the service line thats good enough to beat Djokovic. but it gets shorter and shorter when Djokovic punches and punches and kills.
Nadals game plan to beat Djokovic is fairly simple to me.. Ok he will never serve like 2013 again where he did a 135 but come on vary it a lil with 120 .. wide serves on deuce and T on the ads..
So yeah better serve, his down the line forehand, something he was tuning all tournament happened rarely on this one.. so yeah that DTLF should get a weaker Djokovic forehand or atleast neutral. and then play deep enough not just over the service line, even a lil closer to the baseline because its Novak on the other and oh well please please return flat or topspin instead of slice
Serve ,DTLF and play deep.. three point strategy and four returns. But I am no expert and am its no big deal for a Moya or Nadal himself to know.
So whats the difference. Nerves and execution.. His game just falls apart.. everything goes weak.. his forehand. HIs dtlf comes to the middle of the court.. its crazy how shaky and the many number of UFE he makes.
I adore Nadal and I hope he realizes his only way to get back on this dynamic is to find a way to beat him.. Or as much as I dislike or lets say not like Djokovic as much.. there is nothing left other than to admit and accept he is defintely better than Nadal and Federer at his point. He has a boxing mindset and wont stop anything short of giving the final blow and more easy if they dont fight back.
Its funny how we Nadal fans may have to hope Oh Novak doenst win more instead of being confident of our own guys to win more.. Oh and me Just Nadal.. I dont want Fed to 21 :))
Good luck Nadal Fans and maybe we got to get some positive energy to our boy.. and hope he turns it around and fair enough I think the best scenario would be all 3 are at 20.
Great post, PK!
I needed time to digest this loss!!I deal with probably 80% of the population cheering for Novak and I have no problem with it. They deserve to celebrate this flawless performance of their favorite guy. To those teasing me or trying to drive the conversation on the match my response is short: pure class!
However, I do have conversations with myself about Rafa’s huge underperformance. While I do agree that small portion of thiss loss is due to lack of competitive matches and Rafa hardly being tested at this AO but one doesn’t have to be a tennis expert to recognize that Rafa’s performance until the finals was almost flawless!
Rafa was terrified in the finals. He was hardly playing any of his game from the very get go. He has mental blockade, he even failed to show his fighting spirit!
Rafa was not ready for this Nole! However, unless Rafa changes his mindset and starts believing in himself when facing Novak, we will be witnessing more of these beat downs. Novak smelled blood and was feeding himself with Rafa’s fear! Rafa must change it! His confidence simply evaporates when he meets Novak and he and his team must resolve this issue fast enough otherwise RG may become another disappointing event for already shaken confidence of the King of Clay! I hope Rafa doesn’t justify his poor play with lack of match play. He needs to find the way to fight his own demons…
Thanks Natashao. Lucky seems to have better hopes for Nadal. I dont think its easy at IW or Miami ( another unlucky ground for Rafa) but I would be happy enough if Nadal wins at FO even if he loses one or two on the prior ones.. At this point its all about slams and Rafa needs to get to 18. I really did hope it wasnt entirely impossible if Nadal won AO and with that confidence the FO,he could have actually got to maybe even at Wimby and the USO.. But thats just me being a crazy fan wanting Rafa to have it all. 🙂
Yeah, he had brain freeze, probably due to lack of confidence in his own game, as he’s confused whether to be aggressive or to play his old game.
He did have a plan B, ie to play his old game, but after four months break, his old game wasn’t up to the mark. After all, his aggressive game is a new addition, he has yet to truly incorporate that smoothly into his old game. It’s not like he’s not going to play his more defensive game at all, it’s just adding in new elements, ie aggression; he still need time to make the adjustment. Just give him time!
Lucky….I think Rafa should consider to elevate his plan B altogether…add a spice to it to be more efficient,effective & innovative…coz i think his ol games is sucks!…not suitable & very dangerous to his physical too….
Btw Lucky….Thank u very much for your inputs in our discussion yesterday & today….i feel muuuucchhhh better now than a few days ago…i feel that i could kill someone from the sheer frustrations & stuff..hahaha….(joking of coz!)
Oh hey!…Am i right in assuming that you’re going to celebrate Chinese New Year next week Lucky?
Yes, Im Singaporean Chinese so I’ll celebrate CNY.
Oh!…in that case,i wish u a Happy Chinese New Year Lucky!…Hope u will enjoy your big moment with your family ..Makan besar,Chap Goh Mei & all…
Thanks Mira!
You’re welcome Lucky!…👍👌✌
Why wont my comment go through after submit ?
it was too long so i had to approve
I thought so. Thanks Ricky. I have been following Nadals posts on here for a good while but am new to post. Wanted to interact and share my thoughts with some of the wonderful fans on here. I guess you have one more response of mine to approve. 🙂
I am a huge huge Nadal fan and it is impossible to be unsettled over this performance. I woke up 3.30 am and couldnt sleep again. Couldnt take off the thought off my mind that Nadal could have been 18 and then 19 at the FO.. Last two chances .. Wimbldeon was a sorry miss.. He did get unlucky but I am sure even with Djokovic not at his best yet, He didnt capitalise on the breakpoints because he wasnt as confident.
And this AO, he was playing wonderfully well.. His forehand was as good as ever. HIs backhand was deep and quick. He was at his best enough to beat Djokovic like I wouldnt have been surprised if he did in straight sets.
I cant pin anything else other than bigtime nerves. I used to think all Nadal needs to win is the first set with Novak but now I think oh well atleast be strong enough to win your first service game
I always thought if Nadals groundstrokes land past the service line thats good enough to beat Djokovic. but it gets shorter and shorter when Djokovic punches and punches and kills.
Nadals game plan to beat Djokovic is fairly simple to me.. Ok he will never serve like 2013 again where he did a 135 but come on vary it a lil with 120 .. wide serves on deuce and T on the ads..
So yeah better serve, his down the line forehand, something he was tuning all tournament happened rarely on this one.. so yeah that DTLF should get a weaker Djokovic forehand or atleast neutral. and then play deep enough not just over the service line, even a lil closer to the baseline because its Novak on the other and oh well please please return flat or topspin instead of slice
Serve ,DTLF and play deep.. three point strategy and four returns. But I am no expert and am its no big deal for a Moya or Nadal himself to know.
So whats the difference. Nerves and execution.. His game just falls apart.. everything goes weak.. his forehand. HIs dtlf comes to the middle of the court.. its crazy how shaky and the many number of UFE he makes.
I adore Nadal and I hope he realizes his only way to get back on this dynamic is to find a way to beat him.. Or as much as I dislike or lets say not like Djokovic as much.. there is nothing left other than to admit and accept he is defintely better than Nadal and Federer at his point. He has a boxing mindset and wont stop anything short of giving the final blow and more easy if they dont fight back.
Its funny how we Nadal fans may have to hope Oh Novak doenst win more instead of being confident of our own guys to win more.. Oh and me Just Nadal.. I dont want Fed to 21.
Good luck Nadal Fans and maybe we got to get some positive energy to our boy.. and hope he turns it around and fair enough I think the best scenario would be all 3 are at 20.
Not to worry, Rafa and his team are always working to improve his game. He may have past his heydays but he’s still motivated to carry on and has the belief that he’s still capable of winning important titles.
He’s already an ATG, a legend and one of the greatest, if not the greatest, on clay. I doubt his contemporaries are going to surpass him on clay.
Djoko may be chasing Fed’s records and he’s getting closer, one more HC slam, four more Wimbledon, and one more WTF, possible for him to achieve that, but he’s not going to catch up with Rafa’s FO titles.
Rafa may not end his career better than Fed’s or Djoko’s, so be it. We just enjoy what he brings to the court each time he plays, win or lose (sometimes heartaches too, admittedly).
My biggest problem is Nadal has the game much better than his consecutive losses to Djokovic suggests. I noticed how in 2011 Novak started calling him his rival instead of saying something like looking up to him and its that mindset that got him ahead, the belief that he was as good and equal to them and not that they are better like the rest of the field always brought it up. I am sure in his mind he believes and knows he is better than them .. It shows.. he just said he didnt want that arrogance to come back at him later.
Look at how they speak and feel. Djokovic says “oh this is where I want to be. To face him in the biggest stages” ( In other words. give me Rafa I will rip him apart)
Whereas Nadal keeps saying “Oh I prefer an easier opponent.” and right now he says even his best could not have beat him. Now that is crazy to me. Rafa is better than that.
You would want to beat the best to take your titles.. Not hope some easier opponent takes him out earlier. I see why Nadal fans would be desperate to think like that. For all I say , I sure have myself. But thats not going to help Nadal get any better.
Come on, that’s Rafa’s nature, that is, he want to be humble and not arrogant, he’s brought up that way. They are of different personalities, different character.
Not everyone has to behave the same way. If you want to support Rafa and be his fan, you have to accept him the way he is. He doesn’t need to change to please us.
Anyway, humble or arrogant, Rafa comes with a competitive spirit, and whether it’s an easy or a difficult opponent, he’ll show respect to his opponent and goes out there to fight for a win, sometimes he’s successful but sometimes he’s not.
We sometimes feel that he’s overly respectful, so much so that it affects his confidence, but that’s just the way he is.
Appreciate your response. Yes I agree.. His humility is what makes him loveable so much for all of us Nadal fans. I dont need to him to be arrogant. Its in his wonderful nature not to.. But look at him since 2011. Novaks arrogance got to his head and it shows. I just hope his respect or humility doesnt show in his approach on the court He is still oppressive enough to demolish.. (in his own words.. destroy ) some one like Tsitsipas on court. Having a killer instinct or the knockout punch does not take away his humility… I just hope someday soon enough he brings that blow on Novak. He so deserved the double career slam and its been slipping away and its frustrating. I still think his mental edge failed him in 2017 and even worse this time around. Well thats just my endless frustration and worry that he may never get to his second AO crown.. Sorry!
Come on lucky… Do you believe Djoko can win 4 more Wimbledons? I mean nothing is impossible. But 4 more? 2 max. I don’t see Djoko achieving 20 slams, and that has nothing to do with the fact I’m Fed fan. 5 is a lot. He will not surpass Nadal either. He will equal his total at best…
Eugene, it may be tough for Djoko (to win four more Wimbledon) but it’s not impossible.
And, looking at the way he’s playing now, he may sweep up five or six more slams within these two years, it’s not impossible, and that’s assuming Rafa holds on to his FO crown and so gets to 19 slams.
I think Rafa may get to 20 slams like Fed, and Djoko may do better than both by having say 22 slams. Djoko can dominate at AO and Wimbledon, and now that they’ve built a roof at AA arena at the USO, making it less windy inside the arena, Djoko may win there more often (Djoko not so good with windy conditions, relatively speaking).
Appreciate your response. Yes I agree.. His humility is what makes him loveable so much for all of us Nadal fans. I dont need to him to be arrogant. Its in his wonderful nature not to.. But look at him since 2011. Novaks arrogance got to his head and it shows.
I just hope his respect or humility doesnt show in his approach on the court He is still oppressive enough to demolish.. (in his own words.. destroy ) some one like Tsitsipas on court. Having a killer instinct or the knockout punch does not take away his humility…
I just hope someday soon enough he brings that blow on Novak. He so deserved the double career slam and its been slipping away and its frustrating. I still think his mental edge failed him in 2017 and even worse this time around. Well thats just my endless frustration and worry that he may never get to his second AO crown.. Sorry!
Hi PK, Rafa is respectful of his opponents, and towards his fellow big four, especially. Yes, I think after his seven losses to Djoko in 2011, it did affect him mentally but at the clay season in 2012, he did overcome Djoko at MC, Rome and then RG. I believe at that time, he had overcome the demon in his head, and so he continued to beat Djoko in 2013 at RG, Montreal and New York.
I feel it’s after his numerous injuries in 2014 resulting in him losing confidence in his own body, that he went into a mini slump and not only losing to Djoko many times but also losing to many other players.
I think his recent two wins over Djoko on clay did help him; I don’t think his loss in the Wimbledon SF was due to his mental block against Djoko, it’s more about him not been able to serve as well as his 2017, and so he’s not able to rely on clutch serving even when he had SP and instead ended up losing the set. I blame it on his injury during AO last year, for its after his injury comeback that his serve really suffered.
I truly don’t feel that this AO loss would affect Rafa much, because when Djoko was playing that way, even a fit and healthy Fed or Murray won’t be able to beat him (AO2016 for example). I feel only the AO2014 Stan has a chance ( or a younger Rafa of AO2009!).
I read an interview given by uncle Tony in which he mentions that Rafa should have lengthened the points during his match against Novak… this is contrary to what Moyá is trying to do with Rafa…..
So wrong strategy by the Rafa team? Interesting.
Perhaps Toni knows Rafa better, that Rafa might be able to win more points chasing after balls, engaging in rallies and then waiting for his chances to attack. Perhaps, that may be true because that’s what Rafa does best all along.
I remember in 2017 when Rafa lost to Fed, some of us also felt that Rafa should stay as the counterpuncher and not trying to be aggressive when playing against Fed. By counterpunching and extending the points, he might force errors out of Fed. He’s not going to be more attacking a player than Fed!
I dont think Rafa is going the wrong direction in the long run, he just needs to let this new aggression element blends in with his existing game, and getting the balance right between being aggressive and at the same time, not sacrificing his defence.
It is hard to believe that any other strategy would have brought a win for Rafa in this match.
Not about a win, but about a fight.
Guess my Nadal worry was too long for a successful submit 🙂
Ill put it on this thread, Rafa and Xisca have announced their engagement, they got engaged last May but kept it private, they are planning an Autumn wedding this year, congratulations to the beautiful pair 🙂
Hey!….maybe with this marriage Rafa finally will get his double career slams…or WTF…or Miami…or finally defeat Nole with flourish on hc or grass or add 3 or 4 slams more & surpass Fed’s 20??(hehehe Who knows!)…All his other Big 3 seemed found ‘something’ exceptional after they got married & have kids…Let’s hope!!!
Congrats to Rafa and Xisca indeed. BTW, when is Autumn in Europe, which months of the year?
September, October, November.