Miami final preview and prediction: Federer vs. Nadal

Arguably the greatest rivalry in tennis history is picking up steam in a major way. And it is doing so 13 years after it first began–at this same Miami Open.

Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal will be facing each other for the 37th time in their careers and for the third time already this season when they battle for the Miami title on Sunday afternoon. Federer and Nadal went 15 months without a single meeting before colliding at both the Australian Open and the Indian Wells Masters earlier this year. The Swiss survived a 6-4, 3-6, 6-1, 3-6, 6-3 thriller to triumph Down Under before destroying Nadal 6-2, 6-3 in an all-too-early fourth-round showdown in the California desert.

Nadal still leads the overall head-to-head series 23-13, but it is now tied up 9-9 on hard courts. The two all-time greats have squared off three times in Miami, where each of their first two encounters took place. Nadal cruised 6-3, 6-3 back in 2004, Federer prevailed 2-6, 6-7(4), 7-6(5), 6-3, 6-1 in the 2005 final, and Nadal got the job done 6-3, 6-2 in 2011.

This one almost did not come to fruition. Federer has been the dominant player of 2017 with an 18-1 record and titles in Melbourne and Indian Wells, but it was far from one-way traffic for him in the quarterfinals and semis. After saving two match points to outlast Tomas Berdych 6-2, 3-6, 7-6(6), the 35-year-old returned one day later and battled past Nick Kyrgios 7-6(9), 6-7(9), 7-6(5) in three hours and 10 minutes. Federer preceded those results with more routine defeats of Frances Tiafoe, Juan Martin Del Potro, and Roberto Bautista Agut.

“He’s playing so good,” Nadal commented. “That’s all, no? He’s playing great. When (a) top player like him is playing that well, then it’s always a big challenge for every player. That’s all.”

Nadal endured only one real scare on the way to his fifth Miami final. The sixth-ranked Spaniard got bageled in the first set of his third-round date with Philipp Kohlschreiber, but he recovered to win 0-6, 6-2, 6-3. Nadal also boasts straight-set victories over Dudi Sela, Nicolas Mahut, Jack Sock, and Fabio Fognini.

The 14-time major champion is still in search of his first Miami title, currently saddle with an 0-4 record in finals. This one should be more competitive than what transpired in Indian Wells, but Federer is battle-hardened thanks to Berdych and Kyrgios and a full day off will restored whatever energy was sapped in those thrillers. Given the way he is hitting his backhand, which had been his waterloo against Nadal in the past, Federer should make it three in a row at his rival’s expense.

Pick: Federer in 2

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739 Comments on Miami final preview and prediction: Federer vs. Nadal

    • Correction: should make it FOUR in a row.

      Tsame as Ricky.

      Only Rafa has the potential to save tennis from the rampantly spreading fedfawn weeds.

      But unfortunately the belief in himself is still somewhat lacking.

      Vamos Rafa no matter what.

      Sadly, fedfan in two is the easy pick.

  1. I really don’t see how Nadal will have any answers to GOAT’s current form.. Federer in 2, one tight one easy. WWW?

    • Only 2008-2013 Rafa or 2011-2016.5 Nole could beat this Fed.

      2000-2016 fed couldn’t beat this 2017 35.5 year old fed.

      Defies nature.

  2. Maybe Nadal in 2. He’ll be getting very keen about the clay court season. 2 losses to Fed. A player of his ability will have worked out where he’s gone wrong. He’s only dropped 1 set in Miami and made amends. Fed has had a tough road to the final. 3 tight tiebreakers against Kyrgios must surely take its toll. Nadal will be happy to make this physical. Nadal in finals is a different beast to R16.

    • Agree with JC. If a Rafa who comes out playing better than all his matches here so far, Rafa can win. Fed has started missing easy shots, hitting into the net more often as he progresses through the draw.

      Both Tin man and Bad boy were not gutsy enough when they had the upper hand so Fed had his narrow escapes. Unless Rafa behaves like them, Rafa should be able to beat this Fed. Rafa in two or three sets.

    • I agree that Rafa in finals is a daunting idea to face….but Federer is playing the best tennis ever after his 2004-07 dominance. And both his forehands and backhands are sprinkling the lines. If his serve works out well in the final, I fail to see how Rafa can survive…

  3. Whatever the result in Final…but one thing is sure Federer will find Nadal’s serve heaven after what he faced tonight. I think a day off will certainly boost energy and I can see Federer beating Nadal in 2 sets playing super aggressive tennis…I think Federer’s ROS has been so underrated…I feel there will be a return from Federer against Nadal’s every serve almost.

    • Wow we actually agree on something.

      (except for the part about any aspect of Feds game being underrated by anyone ever)

      • If there ever actually was anyone who ever thought Federer has a bad ROS, they haven’t watched his match against Sampras in Wimbledon 2001.

    • His ROS is the most significant aspect of his magnificent tennis that has improved after his 6-month layoff. Even more than his backhand. His backhand was already extra-ordinary….he is just hitting the slash more often than the slice which is giving less time to his younger and swifter opponents – thus neutralising their advantage over the aging Federer.

  4. If Rafa manage to lose this time around when he got less physical matches compared to Rog and a rest that a slightly longer than Rog…I admit that Rafa is in deep abyss than I originally thought…I picked Rafa in my Bracket,but this new Rog is scared me to death…urgh!!I don’t want to predict!Let the nature decide who’s winning..i’m okay either way although I wish Rafa to win this time…Bring it on guys!!

          • That’s alright hawks…I’m a Muslim and clearly we have a very different view and belief on many things Hawks..that’s okay…

          • No no sorry MA that’s not at all what I meant.

            I doubt you and I are all that different.

            Although I wish I had your tolerance.

            Huge respect.

          • Hawks!!Thank u thank u thank u for your nice and sweet words!!Oh my God!You’re awesome!!I’m very honoured to have your respect and nice gesture Hawks!I’ve seen you’re interacted with other people with less tolerance and sarcastic behavior and to see u with a sweet and nice attitude like this..urgh!it makes my heart and head swell with love for u Hawks!!hahaha…

    • This Fed is quick and aggressive and always moving forward to take away time from opponents. When Kygrios stayed at baseline most of the time in set one, he struggled but when he decided to move up to the court and played with more aggression, he did better in set two.

      If Rafa continues to play from so far back, he will play into Fed’s hands; he has to play with more aggression instead of always counter punching against this Fed. He should mix it up instead of going to Fed’s BH all the time. Kygrios made that mistake by gong CC most of the time to Fed’s BH but at least Kygrios had his serve to bail him out of troubles. Rafa can’t afford to do that and expect to win.

      • Confidence is what makes the difference at this elite level.

        Kyrgios is much more confident than Rafa at the moment.

        #GOAT2.0 is more confident than either of them.

      • Luckystar…Very agree with u!!That’s why I don’t dare to predict..we don’t know which rafa who would come out to play tomorrow..if the version at IW then tired or less rest Roger or not,i think Rog has a big chance to win here…but seen Rafa in 2nd sets against Fog also not very encouraging…he still kept hitting to Fog’s BH side repeatedly..and believe me Rog will feast on that mercilessly tomorrow..

        • MA, I doubt it’s the IW version. This is a final of a Masters we are talking about; I expect something like the AO, this time the role is reversed, with Rafa a bit fresher than Fed.

          He had faced Fed twice already so he’s not unfamiliar with this Fed; it’s unlike facing the on fire Querrey in Acapulco final (perhaps Rafa didn’t expect that version of Querrey).

          Of course there’s also a possibility that Rafa is ‘afraid’ of this Fed, just like he did against Djoko in 2014 final, and so may produce a one sided quick short final in favor of his opponent. I hope this possibility is low to non existent and the right Rafa comes out to play.

          • Oh Lucky…I wish you’re right!Hope Rafa will feel less gobsmacked like he did at IW…also I’m very happy to see his body language in Fog’s match..very very positive..hope he will carry that positiveness to the final…Can’t wait to see how Rafa will handle Roger this time…

        • On another note, it’s all Fedal now because of Djoko and Murray are injured. I’m not sure that if the Djoko of Doha and AO2016 came out to play, Fedal would have their way so far this year. Their (Djoko and Murray) absences or poor form open up opportunities for others and Fedal are ready to take them (to their credit).

  5. RT @Dimonator: Kyrgios on what he showed: “A lot of fight. I thought I competed for every point. I wouldn’t be surprised if [people] found something bad.”

    : Kyrgios: “I got a lot of work to do. I’m 16 in the world. There are 15 players better than me.”

    That’s the spirit nick.

    F<*k the crowd.

      • A big part of why Nole is burned out and in a chronic funk.

        Tennis fans lose and rabid fedfawns win.

        Maybe Nole sold Fed his oxygen chamber.

  6. The best thing this New Federer has learnt is his sheer will to fight almost every point and having almost certain belief to make comeback no matter what score says….This ‘competetive’ Federer with a super confidence and always willing to put a fight, if falling behind in score, will be the highlight of his success this year, and may be it is not a good news for opponents.

  7. This is the first time Rafa has lost 3 in a row to Fed and Nadal dominates the rivalry. Nadal wont let it be 4 in a row. Nadal will be on heat in this final.

  8. TTFN y’all. It’s been fun.

    Need to get my beauty sleep ?

    Hugs ? and kisses ? to my BFF Augusta wherever she is.

    #WheresRafa2013???

  9. Hawkeye, if he actually went undefeated on hard court this year, like literally, I am not sure how would you respond….

  10. Hope Rafa wins..not sure though of it

    Roger realizes he has planted a seed in Rafas head and will look to grow a tree out of it now by making it 3 straight losses this year.

    It depends how badly Rafa wants this. Hope he has learnt from IW and AO 5th set.

    • Mind game! I’m sure Rafa and his team know that. I think Rafa will win this time, I feel that Fed is a bit fatigued and makes more errors; it’s just that Berdych and Kygrios aren’t good enough to exploit.

      I’m sure Fed will come out super aggressive as he wants to hurry Rafa into errors and also wants to shorten the match as much as possible. Rafa needs his FH DTL shots to attack Fed’s FH as much as possible. I hope Rafa is calm enough when under pressure and stays focused. Vamos Rafa!!

    • Nah, this Rafa is not the Rafa of 2015 where he lost thrice to Fog. Rafa has since overcome Fog. Not everyone can live in Rafa’s head, so far only Djoko.

      Even if Rafa were to lose to Fed here, I’m sure Rafa knows he will beat Fed elsewhere going forward, for it’s not likely that Fed can sustain this for long. It’s unlike Djoko since 2011 to early 2012 ( Rafa found the answer in 2012); and then since FO 2014 onwards (Rafa yet to find an answer); Djoko is around Rafa’s age and no one knows for sure when his dominance is going to end.

      Of course now we know Djoko is in a slump, so perhaps it’s a good chance for Rafa to beat him now when they meet, to drive that ‘demon’ out of his head and hopefully once and for all no more ‘demon’ living in his head.

      • Nah this Rafa is also not the Rafa of 2013.

        He’s somewhere in the middle.

        Fed is better than any other previous model year fed.

        And the fedfawn crowd is more rabid than ever before.

  11. Rafa in Miami is not the same as Rafa of IW. His game has evolved to close to his AO level and his fighting spirit and belief are back (unlike in his IW match!). Fed should have lost to both Berdy and Nick, with former choking at key points and poor Nick having to fight with the disruptive crowd all the time. Fed’s level is lower than in both AO and IW, although still high no doubt about it! But this is not fast AO surface. Also, Rafa is fighting for his FIRST Miami title and he will leave his all on this court on Sunday. Fed did not face such Rafa this year. This one will be whole different.

    Further, Miami crowd has sure been pro Fed last night maybe because Nick with his behavior made “enemies” all around the world and he gets to taste some of his own medicine. It will take time and great play from Nick in the future to win them over. But this crowed screams when Rafa addresses them in Spanish, they adore Rafa, so I don’t think Fed will have as much support as last night. At least they will not be as disrespectful of Rafa’s game.

    Lastly, to say Fed won’t be a bit tired in the finals is too preposterous. Fed is 35 years old and the match will be played at sunny hot weather! Also Fed showed a nervous side of him last night. Rafa has always known how to handle a nervous Fed.

    One thing I must admit: Rafa’s inconsistency may be a factor tomorrow, but I hope determined Rafa shows up. I hope Rafa has studied his wrongs of their previous encounters and will come up with his smart tennis and solutions!

    Vamos Champ!

  12. How badly I am yearning to see Rafa hold Miami title

    Fed in his post match interview said ‘ First time ever I have beaten Rafa 3 times in a row..Hope and looking forward to make it 4’

    • Don’t be too upset in case Rafa loses here. He’s not the only one not winning at a Masters after being to so many finals. Djoko has his Cincy and Fed MC and Rome having being to so many finals and still not getting the trophy.

    • Ha, I’ve the same feeling as you Atul, that Fed’s winning will stop at Miami and perhaps continue on grass.

      I think Kyrgios will give Fed lots of problems on grass should they meet. I feel Kyrgios is hurt by the spectators behavior towards him, and the next time he meets Fed, he’ll be more determined to beat Fed.

      Fed had a narrow escape here, Kyrgios let his lead in set one slipped away; he should learn something from this match and never let a lead slips away that easily.

  13. rafa in twoi’m looking past his two losses to fed as records don’t matter when it comes to these two. aussie open could’ve easily been nadal 6-2 final set… of course the 2 – 0 in the indian wells would’ve hurt, but no way fed goes 3 – 0 on the season on another goat. fed has had a tougher path to the finals and nadal will have been anticipating this clash

  14. Can the “objective” Rafa fans here just enjoy Rafa playing without claiming his current struggles are “mental”? His mental strength is legendary. It is his body which is his weak point. The armchair pundits here seem to be unaware that Rafa has or ever had any physical struggles. He is an inspiration to all athletes who have to fight through injuries and physical pain. Marion Bartoli couldn’t take it anymore. Del Potro plays through great pain too. He isn’t what he was but no one keeps saying it is because of his anxiety.
    Rafa is obviously not in the physical form he was in during his peak years.His speed, especially his lateral movement, is impaired. Yet here he is once again in a final. No matter how he fares today, he is and always will be my GOAT.

    • Mine too in my heart. Just not in my head at the moment.

      He is very much still physically more than capable of beating this Fed IMO.

    • Well said Mary. Rafa is physically not the same as the Rafa of old. He’s in another HC final which really says something about him despite not being at his best.

      Sock and Foggy couldn’t break Rafa’s serve, I think that’s encouraging. His serve is his main weakness imo, he barely can serve a 120mph serve these days but has to rely on good varieties and placements to make it tough for his opponents to break his serve.

      Rafa should just mix it up a little bit when facing Fed, don’t just serve to Fed’s BH all the time!

    • Absolutely right, Mary. I am not a huge Rafa fan but I have always admired his competitive spirit and I think he comes to play every match to the very best of his ability. Physically he is not what he was, for the reasons you say (decline in lateral movement above all) but he is in another final, testament to his championship talent and competitive fire. I don’t think he will win it, but he might; that’s why they play the game.

  15. RT @TheBorisBecker: I hope my man @DjokerNole is watching this …it’s time for you to clean your shoes and fix your racket and get back to business…

  16. Rafa looks determined. Good serve placement. Miami crowd lost all my respect. Pathetic.
    But they will have to be more respectful to Rafa just as the AO crowd was.
    Regardless, Fed will win this.
    But Rafa will crush him on clay. And the rest of the field.

    • I just hope Rafa can win this Miami title and then forget about going to Miami from next year onwards; just concentrate his efforts on clay. He’s getting older so he needs all the energy come the clay season.

  17. I am not at all confident about Rafa winning today. But I know he is going to do his best.
    Fed has always been formidable. It is just that Rafa used to be better. He could run down every ball and could depend on his lethal forehand to crush the mighty Fed. Alas that speed is gone and that forehand is a shadow of itself.

    • @mary, 12:56 PM,

      I will have to agree on that. His speed and his footwork have clearly detorioated, thus he does no longer dominate the opponents he used to send to bushes. However, Fed almost lost to Berdy who has clearly been in the slump lately. So why do people think Fed is unbeatable and that Rafa can’t survive this Fed is beyond me! Of course if Rafa showes up playing badly he will lose and would lose to much lesser opponents like he did to Query.
      But why this impressiion that Miami 2017 Rafa can’t deal with this Fed who was almost sent packing by two of his opponents?

      • Exactly Nats! Fed almost lost to Berdych and had a narrow escape against Kyrgios and people still think Fed is so formidable and Rafa having no chances but to lose in straight sets. There’s just so little respect for Rafa, even from some of his fans. Rafa will fight hard, win or loss, for he knows he won’t have that many chances anymore winning the Miami title.

        • I am not one who has bought into the Fed invincibility nonsense. I thought he should have lost to Berdy and Nik. So I am not on the Fed bandwagon. I do not disrespect Rafa’s chances at all in the final. He has found solutions when his rivals got the better of him in the past and can do so again.

          I know that Rafa will give it his all. He would love to win this elusive title. As long as Rafa plays his best and gives it his all, that is all I can ask as his fan.

          • Exactly NNY, I too don’t but into this Fed invincibility nonsense as I saw his vulnerability in both the Berdych and Kyrgios matches.

        • Those that say Rafa cannot be as good as he was anymore and cannot hit his FH like he used to are the ones that disrespect Rafa.

          • I am using invincibility because that is how some are perceiving Fed. Just read some of the predictions and comments from the Fed fans.

            No straw man argument here. Do. It misconstrue what I am saying. When you read Fed fans saying he will be undefeated and win this, that and the other, that is what I am addressing. Those are the ones who have bought into the invincibility and unbeatable business.

          • No wrong, hawks. He has lost speed so he cannot move sideways to his left fast enough. That impacts his forehand. Also his footwork is messed up. Maybe he scrambles to the side and hurriedly takes the shot without time for proper footwork? vr or lucky can probably tell us more about this.

          • My point is that his loss in speed is mostly recoverable to a point that the rest of his game with modest evolution can be recovered to its full effect.

      • Show me who said “unbeatable” besides the squawking strawman ?.

        No one else here nor in the federazzi fawning so called failing federazzi have said so.

        On the contrary, I for one said in the end both Kyrgios and Berdych had their respective racquets until their belief collapsed at the very end.

        Like Rafa’s did in Australia.

        Rafa was physically capable in Australia and is very close.

        He needs to close the gap.

        It is possible tomorrow. Just not probable at the moment.

        Unbeatable lol. Too funny.

        • Will Rafa come out with a new game plan tomorrow? Fed too has lost speed so Rafa can exploit it.
          I think the extra weapon which Fed had at AO was that he did not have expectations of winning anything so soon after his return. So he played with carefree abandon. At IW, he was helped by Rafa. Our man wanted too much to win and so played safe and lost.
          Win or lose, hope Rafa plays tomorrow like his 17 year old self at Miami with nothing to lose.

          • Agreed 99% except for Feds speed.

            He chased down a very good Kyrgios drop shot for a CC winner as fast as ever.

            The question is how at almost 36.

        • Hawkeye,

          You are coming a bit too close to being disrespectful to what I am saying. Don’t go there. You know perfectly well what I am referencing. Some Fed fans have indicated that Fed could remain undefeated. Or did you forget that little discussion with a Fed fan? They are waxing poetic about Wimbledon and being undefeated on hard courts.

          Stop with the straw man accusations.

          • So you want to tell me how to post now when you’ve called out others for trying to do the same to you.

            In your own words, I’ll continue to speak my mind within the site rules.

            There are definite lazy straw man statements here from both sides and I will point them out where I see fit.

  18. Fed in 2. At this level its mind game. At present Fed believes he can not lose.
    In 2015 Djoko believed he cannot lose. Fed was playing better than all during 2015 Wimbeldon & US open until he reached final against Djoko. Fed was looking unbeatable against Murray in Wibeldon 2015 Semifinal and Stan in US open 2015. But Fed was not believing he can beat Djoko in final.
    Fed 2.0 believes he will beat Nadal hence he will win Miami Final on Sunday.

      • At almost 36, he has the reaction time, stamina and speed of any player in his 20s which gives him that confidence.

        How is that possible at almost 36 is the question that no one wants to consider.

        • We have not seen anybody dominating like him at 35+. Agassi & Connors had longevity. But they were not dominating like Fedo. During Ao 17 Fedo build confidence and now he is having never give up mind set. He thinks he can not lose. His winning streak will be halted at some stage. But it will not happen in Miami final. Fedo will be prepared for dominating final.

          • There are more 30+ players competing at highest level than before. Reason could be matches reduced to 3 sets other than Grand slam.
            Fedo’s style of play is the reason for lessor toll on his body. Players like Nadal, Djoko and Murray will not have longevity like Fedo because of their style of play. Fedo can easily continue for next 2 to 3 years unless gets serious injury.

          • Sure Anant, nine less matches per year are B03 instead of B05 since 2005.

            Massive difference LOL.

            You evade the point.

            Federer is as good and arguably better than he’s ever been at 35+ with no significant loss in speed, reaction and endurance. Witness two long b2b three set matches with four tiebreaks in less than 36 hours with no signs of tiring.

            And yes strangely many players suddenly playing career best tennis north of 30.

            Curious.

          • Anant, you have hit the nail on the head! A daniel come to Judgment! Fed’s style of play does not cause injuries. Rafa’s style does. So when Rafa takes an injury break, it is really an injury break. Your less enlightened brethren actually wanted us to believe Rafa is never injured!
            Why did Fed take a 6 month break? Was it a silent ban?

          • @Mary..Have you seen Fed’s game in Clay & Grass season of 2016 after returning from injury? He was badly struggling with movement. His fitness level caused him match against Raonic in Wimby 2016. That made him taking harsh decision of 6 months rest. It allowed him to recover completely mentally & physically.
            Difference of win and loss is very less.
            You need little luck also to win tournament which he is getting in 2017.
            Now Fed is having high confidence of doing well in tournaments.
            There is no limit for raising Doubts. You need evidence. Do you think other players will keep quiet if ATP is biased about Fed?

            @Hawkeye,
            Fed’s style of play, his level of fitness and his injury free career(except minor injuries in 2013 and 2016) are the only reason for his longevity. After switching to new Wilson racquet from 2014 he is grown in confidence. He was little unlucky not to win Wimbeldon 2014 & 2015. However he could able to regain no. 2 rankings(Remember he missed number 1 by whisker). Fed himself confessed large head new racquet gives him easy power on Serve, ROS and backhand.
            Credit should be given to Fed for showing flexibility to adapt technology changes.

  19. Kyrgios had no choice but to play the bad guy. Heck, if Mother Theresa were alive today, she might get booed if she went out to hit a few with Federer.

    Is this not the height of how ludicrous a tennis writer can get? Mother Theresa seriously who is anointed a saint now and devoted all her life to serve people will get booed if she hit with Federer? The extent and silliness of this Fed worshipping gets on my nerves..

    Some other article said has anyone seen such an astonishing comeback..Ofcourse a much bigger one than this..Rafa in 2013 who went on a tear winning 10 titles and 15 finals after 6 months off in 2012.

    • Sanju, but Rafa was 27 when he did it in 2013; this Fed is 35! If Fed goes on to win some more titles similar to Rafa did in 2013, then the question is: what has or had Fed done to improve during his six months away. The same people who questioned Rafa’s comeback in 2013 should now question Fed’s 2017 comeback.

      • But they would never Lucky because of their confirmatory bias.

        He just played two consecutive three setters with multiple TBs in 36 hours and I fail to see the tiredness being claimed.

      • Luckystar APRIL 1, 2017 AT 3:05 PM says: “The same people who questioned Rafa’s comeback in 2013 should now question Fed’s 2017 comeback.”
        .
        In April 2016, Rafa filed his defamation lawsuit against one of these people – former French sports minister (between 2007 and 2010) Roselyne Bachelot, who said on French TV: “We know that Nadal’s famous seven-month injury [in 2012] was because he tested positive. If a player takes a significant time out from the sport, it’s because he tested positive and the whole thing was covered up.”
        The case will be heard before a Paris court on July 7, 2017.
        http://www.lequipe.fr/Tennis/Actualites/Roselyne-bachelot-sera-jugee-le-7-juillet-2017/700376

    • Also Sanju, I read some of Delpo’s comments about Rafa’s comeback in 2013, he expressing disbelief too ( for that I really dislike Delpo from then on). Perhaps Delpo at that time was comparing his own comeback to Rafa’s when his wasn’t that successful in comparison. I wonder what Delpo thinks about Fed’s comeback this time.

      Critics are harsh on Rafa as always; when Rafa beat Fed at AO2009 after his unbelievable five plus hours SF, some questioned that and instigating that Rafa was doping. However, Djoko had done a similar feat at AO2012. Rafa had his incredible 2013 comeback and now Fed at 35 has his in 2017. I think if Rafa is doping then both Djoko and Fed are also doping, maybe the big four all dope to get to where they are now?

          • You do not get to be near the top in the world at tennis without being ultra competitive. That is sufficient motivation to dope, but the top players are also playing for sums that are, for most of us, unimaginably huge. No one should ever be surprised when a player is found guilty of doping. By the same token, I think it crosses the line into irresponsibility (and possibly worse) to insinuate that any player is doping without hard evidence. Some posters here seem to be coming close to that line.

      • I like it that whatever they questioned Rafa of doing, others (Djoko and Fed) are doing that too. What goes around comes around; they have to keep their mouth shut, now that their beloved Fed is also doing some unbelievable stuff.

  20. Fed snatched the racquet out of Rafas hands in AO and caught Rafa by surprise by just going all out aggressive in final set. Rafa was just not prepared as he had never seen this side of Federer in a slam since 10 years against him.

    What surprises me is IW where Rafa knew what to expect and did nothing at all.

  21. @hawks,

    Well, if you say Rafa is to lose in straights that corresponds with unbeatable at this tourney, doesn’t it? Or you will contradict yourself again, and interpret it differently! I am not a mind reader so I do not know what you actually meant. Pardon me!

    Anyway, doesn’t really matter! Everybody is entitled to their own opinion! We can’t all be right!

    I respect Rafa’s efforts! I know he is not Rafa of 2013 and will never be, but I know if he was not tired he would have beaten this “formidable” Fed in that AO final and then you would have been singing a different song!

    Vamos Rafa! Give your best! We love you! ❤

    • It’s my best prediction.

      Nowhere did I say it is the only possible outcome or that he can’t win.

      If you bothered to read and actually CONSIDER my follow up posts instead of the ones that fit strawman confirmatory bias, you and others here might realize that.

      Only strawman deal in absolutes by definition.

      Hope this helps.

      • I don’t need to deal in strawman arguments.

        They are the cheap tool displaying lazy desperation and only work against the inexperienced debater.

    • Natasha o-
      How in the world does someone picking a player to win a tournament in any way suggest that that person thinks the player is “unbeatable”? It means that they think that player will win the tournament… Doesn’t every player who wins a tournament go unbeaten at that tournament? How is that remotely the same as unbeatable? Unbeatable means no can beat them. But no one has ever been undefeated. Plus, he lost in Dubai like a month ago! I still don’t understand where this idea that anyone on the Grandstand ever said he is “unbeatable” came from… I saw people saying that he was playing extremely well, and maybe would be “tough to beat”. But unbeatable?? Like, not capable of losing?? Oh please…. The only people dumb enough to actually think things like that are the Big 3-Fanatic Trolls on Twitter and YouTube. Even if 1 person said it on here, that’s just one moronic opinion out of hundreds on here. But this idea that “people are saying that Fed is unbeatable!” I don’t understand it.

      So my question to you, Natashao, is this- If someone says a player is “unbeatable”, why would it matter? Shouldn’t that person immediately be disqualified from being taken seriously after making such a moronic comment? People said after the US Open in 2010 that Rafa would never lose another major- those people were idiots. People said similar things about Nole in 2011 and 2015. They were not worth listening to. People said things about Fed all the time in his dominant prime. Those people were brainless.

    • I can tell by your tired fedfawn hedging excuses that I don’t need to click on your link to realize that it’s also just more tired federazzi fedfawning propaganda lol.

        • But you and I know who’s who. I once clicked on your avatar and saw my old virtual friend’s name.

          Could have been a typo.

          #DoingTheVirtualWinkings

          • No you did not. you suspected somebody was me and clicked on that poster’s avatar and saw your friend’s name. amy did it bcause she is used to clicking on a poster’s name rather than the post as is done on tennis-x where she is an active poster under a different moniker.

          • No she told me what to click on which proved to me that you weren’t RITB once I checked it out for myself.

          • amy told you to click on another poster’s name, It is a stretch. You suspect x to be mary. amy, who is used to being Margot on tennis-x, clicks on the poster’s name instead of the post. She finds your friend’s name and tells you to click too. So x who is supposed to be mary turns out to be your friend. You and amy conclude mary is your friend. But wait, you did not prove x is mary? Mind you, I have no problem with being RITB or holdserve. Both are Rafa fans and people change their monikers all the time. You have been conspirator, Elina (?)… what not. So why should you call me holdserve? But amy’s caseis different. Margot can change her name to amy or whatever. it is immaterial. What was pertinent in the troll amy case was not that Margot called herself amy but that she falsely claimed to be a Rafa fan and bashed Rafa.

        • amy not only bashed Rafa,she attacked me viciously repeatedly but none of you seemed shocked by her ugly posts. All I did was object to her Rafa bashing and expose her as a fake Rafa fan. So I am evil and amy is good??? Really???
          Anyway, I am dropping this topic. If you think the fake Rafa fan’s viciousness prove she is sweet and good, that’s your problem.

          • Nothing to do with amy or deuce.

            You brought it on yourself and viciousness is a two-way street. But you were the instigator. Also with no proof to base your claims on.

          • The preponderance of probability that amy is deuce is so high that it is as good as certain. 99.999999%. Obviously we cannot prove it 100% unless amy herself admits it. IP address won’t be the same.
            Want me to list out the clues?
            Margot came here posing as a Rafa fan and proceeded to bash Rafa and attack loyal Rafa fans. How does that make me an instigator?

          • Their personalities, and writing styles are completely different.

            deucy doesn’t offend easily and laughs it off. She couldn’t care less. She doesn’t give it any weight. She was tires of this site being so one sided so she moved on.

            amy takes it more personally and takes insults head on but she also moved on.

            But they are completeley different personalities.

            As opposed to you and I who don’t change regardless of our moniker.

            On a completely different and unrelated topic, you know much about probability Mary? Such as the probability of Nole being randomly draw into feds half in 13 consecutive non-clay slams?

            See what I did just there? LOL.

          • you are making me, the victim, responsible for the vicious attacks on me? Wow this sounds like alternative facts

          • AT 10:54 PM says: ¤¤ deucy doesn’t offend easily and laughs it off.
            amy takes it more personally and takes insults head on but she also moved on.¤¤
            .
            I have read in amy’s comments on the Grandstand that deucy wrote email to the owner of the GS to complain about Mary, and amy herself is busy with political battles.

  22. The main difference with Nadal and Berdych/Kyrgios is the serve.

    Don’t expect tiebreakers in final.

    It will be simply a straight set victory for fed.

  23. It seems Fed liked all the shouting of the crowd in his match against Kyrgios. I wonder how he will like it if the crowd tomorrow supports Rafa? I remember he said shut up or something similar to Nole’s parents when they were cheering for their son.
    Anyway, tomorrow it will be GOAT vs GOAT so the crowd is going to be divided.

    • As I posted earlier Mary…

      Shocker. What a trooper…

      RT @SI_Tennis: A little bit of crowd noise during a tennis match? That doesn’t bother Roger Federer https://t.co/VbgNpJL73L https://t.co/YTC5gIZE7e

      The crowd will undoubtedly be over 50% pro-Fed as in 99% of his matches regardless of the opponent (Olympics, Spain and Serbia events the lone exceptions).

    • Mary APRIL 1, 2017 AT 4:07 PM,
      At the 2012 FO, Fed screamed “Shut up!” after he hit the ball into the net and the spectators were cheering for his opponent (Delpo).

      • Another made up story by the fiction expert who claims to know the nationailty of the fans that cheer for Federer and Isner at the French and the fans that booed Rafa in Australia.

        Hilarious!

        • It was Mr. S.Tiggy, who created (in 2014) a fake story that Fed yelled “Shut up!” to the crowd at the 2012FO BECAUSE he was distracted by their cheering for HIM (“by their oohs and aahs”). LOL LOL LOL
          The same Mr. Tiggys’s article has been published 3 years (!) in a row during (!) the French Open , obviously trying thoroughly to brainwash readers. LOL LOL LOL

          • so why are you responding to Hawkeye’s post by mentioning a fake story created by Tignor. Is he or anyone else here Tignor’s secretary or what? lol :s

          • LOL VR, she claims stories are false and makes up her own fake news to fit her confirmatory bias with zero information to back her up.

            #AlternateFactsAreEverywhere

  24. Rafa’s serve against Feds ROS and Rafas FHCC against Feds backhand.

    This was and will be the tactic. But the difference is Feds ROS and BH has vastly improved and Rafas otherwise immaculate defence is a thing of past now.

    • The question that remains to be answered is though Joy, how is that possible at almost 36 he is simply playing better than he ever has before?

      (Still think 2008-2013 Rafa and 2011-2016.5 Nole would beat him though as moot and subjective as that may be.)

      For that matter, Berdych, Kyrgios in Miami and Rafa in AO this year had those matches on their racquets until their belief faltered at the last moments.

      • I don’t think it was belief in the first place! Nick faltered because he let the crowd get to him. He was obviously annoyed and we all know his temper. Berdy, well, we have seen it so many times before, nothing new! He is known for being weak mentally, that’s mainly why he fails to win GS! And as for Rafa at the AO he was too tited both physically and emotionally, so that he was just not able to counterattack an aggressive Fed. That’s my view…

  25. amy forgot and sent a message to nny on tennis-x! ah the perils of old age!
    hawks, you really want me to rake up all the muck?

    • No. I don’t see why it matters who was who. I didn’t think referring to you as hs would matter. You are Mary now.

      I was conspirator and milostard on TT, and many other multiple names on TX (have to keep changing them as Sean bans me so keeping my latest moniker there to myself even though its not much of a secret lol).

      As I said, I’m happy you are posting here Mary.

    • How did I get into this discussion! Nobody has sent me a message on TX because I haven’t posted there in years!

      I don’t like seeing this nonsense starting up
      again! Leave me out of it, but do not start spreading lies about me getting messages on another site!

      Prove it!

  26. On a side note…

    No matter what the outcome of this final is, Rafa has such a great opportunity this clay season. If Murray really doesn’t even return to match play until Madrid, it could very well take him a while to get back into form. Who know’s what the deal is with Djokovic… If his injury concerns are serious, he could continue to slump through clay. He could also prove everyone wrong and suddenly start kicking ass again. Either way, even if Djokovic didn’t have injury concerns, I see no reason why Rafa can’t turn the their rivalry in his favor again this year, especially on clay. Sure, Rafa might not be at top form right now, but he is surely playing well enough where he can turn it up in the clay season! Assuming he continues to play better, I don’t why Rafa can’t handle Thiem and the other good clay court players just fine. I’m also not convinced that Fed would be able to impose his game on Rafa on a clay court, not to mention that Fed might only play a couple clay tournament. I think the biggest question is where Djokovic will be at, and I personally think that this could be the year that Rafa gains back control of that rivalry, on clay anyway. So even if Rafa loses the final today, I think he will be a serious contender for all the big clay titles… I think Rafa fans should be psyched about it, especially if he wins Miami. That will give him boatloads of confidence!

    • On traditionally slow clay, yes.

      However I think Fed has a really good shot at the French Open for his second career slam this year which would also keep the calendar slam in play to one up Djokovic.

  27. Until Rafa actually beats Fed on clay this year, we have to assume Fed has the best chance of winning RG especially as the clay maybe like the blue clay of Madrid? What a wonderful thing it would be if the RG guys could help the GOAT achieve a double career slam and maybe the calendar slam too to put his GOAT status beyond doubt?

      • In fact, the RG people have an underground bunker/clay lab deep under the mountains of Switzerland where the top scientists in the world have been working with Roger to design a clay court that peRFectly works in tandem with his game style to make sure he wins RG again! They’re making sure each layer and ingredient of the court ensures the ball bounces extra low and shoots through the court like a bullet. They’re even working together with Nike to make sure that the outsole of Roger’s shoes, and ONLY Roger’s shoes, specifically allows him to move and feel the court as if it were Basel! And just be safe, they’ve even designed exact clones of Rafa, Novak, Stan, Jo Willy, and EVEN ERNIE GULBIS, for Roger to practice against to ensure that he just won’t lose at RG this year! Similar to the AO, I don’t understand why the hell they decided to wait until 2017 to do this, but your guesses are as good as mine… 🙂

        #WatchOutErnie!!

        • And they are designing special balls that have sensors installed in them which prevent the ball from bouncing higher than shoulder level 😛

          Lol. Nothing is going to happen to RG. The player who plays best will win it like always.

          • And those sensors also trigger the release of a special substance, not visible to the naked eye, whenever any non-Federer player hits the ball, which makes said player drowsy and weak! 🙂

          • Sure. Believe what you want.

            AO17 was fastest slam hardcourt in at least 10 years by a significant margin, faster than recent Wimbledon grass.

            Madrid blue clay played faster than Madrid’s already fast high altitude conditions.

            It’s ok.

            Everybody laughed when I picked Fed to win AO this year.

            All the better to have the last laugh. 🙂

          • Not a conspiracy. Just business and marketing 101.

            Besides, can’t have Nole’s grand slam over his head which didn’t happen until 2016.

        • A good guess would be that they did not have the technology earlier!
          Also if they can have clones of Rafa etc, they can have clones of Fed too and also any number of them.. So maybe the Fed we see now is a clone? that explains why Fed is never tired. A tired clone can be replaced with a fresh one. ooh multiple calendar slams coming up!!!

  28. Kyrgios-Fed was a crazy match. The crowd was really bad and NK was annoyed to hell. NK could not find serve well enough and served a DF in the last few points. I must also say that Fed also read Nick’s first serves better in those moments and the forehand volley he hit at 3-4 down in the TB was insane. It really looked like the ball rebounded from a brick wall.

    We have seen what confident can do for a player. Fed has been winning these close matches and he must be feeling exceedingly confident. If this match were today, I would have said Rafa would surely win but now that there is a break, it’s not that simple.

    Fed’s physical tiredness won’t be a factor tomorrow. I am not sure about the emotional state as only he would know.

    • Seeing how incredibly close their AO match was, and how the conditions in Miami are different than in IW, I see no reason why this match couldn’t go either way. Fed could come out firing and make it difficult for Rafa to impose his game, like in IW. Or Rafa could come out firing and not let Fed get into any rhythm… These guys have just had too many close hardcourt matches at various times for me to ever just assume it will be one-sided for either of them. That’s just me, though.

    • I picked Fed in 3 only because of the confidence factor. Now, going into this final Fed will be ultra confident. Rafa has been good but not great to be honest. His second serve against Fog was very up and down and there were way too many central/passive backhands which would obviously lead to a straight set loss in the final. Rafa hit some good serves but I would still like to see him go more for the lines and get some angle on his second serves in the ad court.

      The biggest problem is Fed stepping in to attack rafa’s vulnerable serves. Fed used to attack some in the past but often he used to run around his backhand to hit big forehand returns but now he does not have to do that as he can attack with his backhand return more. He was chipping/slicing a lot more in the past.I hope after IW team Rafa has realised that they need to shake things up a bit.

      My concerns:

      (i) Don’t overdo the body serves. Rafa is now capable of hitting all four corners of the ad and deuce courts so no doesn’t have to be uncertain and go for safe serves. Body serves will only be good if he keeps them unpredictable. And, if you are to go for them, either hit with more pace or get loads of action on them!

      (ii) GET DEPTH on your CC forehand. If you want to get them high to fed’s backhand (which I know he will often try to do), make sure they are struck well and have some angle on them, rather than just have them land in the middle of the service box.

      (iii) Be really aggressive with your backhand counterpunching and as a first strike shot. Hit flat and hard or deep+heavy and not let Fed have all the time in the world by giving so much air to your backhands. I felt Fed had so much pace on his running forehand CC that day and Rafa was just unable to do anything in return!

      (iv) Fed will target your ROS vulnerabilities so don’t be afraid to take some risks. Moya said Rafa should have gone for more on returns in IW so I am hoping they will try this time. CHOOSE RETURN POSITIONING WISELY! Don’t stubbornly stay on the baseline just because it is supposed to be the aggressive option. Would rather stand back and make good contact !

      (v) beware of Fed’s forehand DTL. He’ll spread the court by using angles and then unleash it. Rafa is not fast enough to keep tracking most of them so he needs to be really alert.

      • VR great analysis but you are describing a game that Rafa has not been able to play consistently over the course of a match vs Fedole in a long time.

        His progress is in the right direction but is very slow and Federer has been outpacing him.

        • You are right Hawkeye. The AO final gives me hope though. In the sets which Rafa won and for some phases in even the sets the lost, he played great tennis and was able to overcome a lot of the concerns I have mentioned.

          I think Rafa thought the AO final was a one-off and Fed played an inspired final and won’t be able to sustain that level on the slower/higher bouncing IW courts. He was in for a shocker. I think that match would certainly serve as a wake up call and Rafa will not make the mistake of being passive.

          Also, this time Rafa has won 5 matches to reach the final whereas IW it was really early doors.

          I am expecting a much better performance and fight (he was not at all fighting that well in IW) from Rafa. If Fed plays crazy like in IW, I think he will win but his level drops a bit (esp his serve) and rafa puts more pressure, it could go Rafa’s way.

          But, I do agree with you that a Fed victory is more probable. I am really hoping Rafa can get a title here and head into the clay season like a tsunami.

          • Rafa’s wins have not been against high ranked players in Miami,

            He’s been mediocre by his standards.

          • I know. I only made the point as we know Rafa likes to play himself into form. Imagine Rafa facing fed instead of Kohls in the third round! He is over his worst patch here this tournament and is now in a position to improve.

          • which is why I don’t see him as the favourite. But, something is better than nothing, no? He has improved little by little and I am hoping he can play some inspired tennis in the final.

          • Well, that bagel set Rafa had gotten from Kohl was a wake up call. Note that thereafter, Rafa was way more aggressive when he came out to play – vs Mahut, Sock and Foggy. I think deep down Rafa knows he can’t afford to be tentative, esp in the final against Fed.

            I think Rafa should be well ready for the battle on Sunday, for he knows there are not many chances left for him to win the Miami title, and he won’t want to lose to Fed again, esp in B2B events, certainly doesn’t want a repeat of 2011 here.

          • Also, playing against three SHBH players gave Rafa the idea on how to handle the aggressive one, the net rushing one and the normal rallying one of the SHBHs. It’s quite interesting seeing Rafa adjusting his court positions during the Kohl match.

            Imo, what Rafa should do is to return from further back but thereafter moves forward for the next shot. Also, tries something different, lobbing instead of the usual passing shots. Fed will serve and return aggressively and then rushes forward, so Rafa has to hit it deep enough and if possible lob Fed when Fed is at the net.

            I’m sure Rafa and his team would come out with some game plans, we’re just some armchair advisors; I trust that they have learned from the past two mistakes; it’s up to Rafa how he executes the game plan, how he ‘psych’ himself to remain calm and fight for every point and not let the pressure of winning the title burdened him.

  29. Hi everyone. This is the 2nd time I post here, but usually read lots of comments. Respect for those who are so dedicated to comment here while watching the matches.
    As a Federer fan, who first of all loves tennis, I have deep appreciation for Nadal fans who are not generalizing about Fed fans. I don’t really think that ALL of those people cheering for Roger are real fans. Most of them are friends and families just going out as they would at cinema, basketball matches etc. It’s a matter of personal ethics and education. Federer fans are human beings from different social classes, different levels of education, perceptions etc. They can’t be put in the same category as you can’t do with Nadal or Djokovic fans.
    I think Roger himself is feeling very uncomfortable when having the type of Roland Garros/US Open crowd vs Djokovic on his side. They put too much pressure on him, have high expectations, while Djoko becomes stronger and more motivated inside sensing the heroic opportunity arisen for himself ( being able to beat Fed EVEN when 90% of the crowd it’s on his side). At the end of the day it feels ‘easier’ to lose a hard match when the crowd is against you (your brain somehow justifies it plus some victimization going on :)), than having the entire court cheering at your opponent’s double fault and then lose the match, despite having such a ‘lovely’ support.
    I’ve seen SOME Nadal fans are trying to justify Fed victories over and over again. Let’s take the match against Kyrgios for example. Let’s analyze the statistics…I’ll not go deep. After 2 sets, 1:1 was the fair score. It could have been 2:0 or 0:2 also. Kyrgios could have won it all, agree. Crowd was quite awful. But that’s not to say Roger won undeservedly. That 35 old guy played more than 3 hours against a 21 y.o. hot and talented player and hit more winners (what a surprise right?). There is a reason why he survived against Nadal in the 5th set, Berdych and Kyrgios. When it happens once ( e.g. Donskoy) you can call this guy lucky. When it happens consistently, this is master class.
    Again, I have much respect for Nadal and for most players. Even if you are ranked 115th you still earned it. You might not have Nadal’s defensive skills, Federer’s creativity or Djokovic strength, but you worked a lot to get there and deserve to be treated equally well on the court and off it.
    I think disagreements arise when people can’t control their ego, which is way too much associated with their favorite player. Let’s not take it too personal. I hope Roger wins tomorrow. If not, will be happy for Rafa. Yes, I am able to find joy in Fed’s defeats and at the same time being his fan. He can’t and probably shouldn’t win everything.
    I hope this website/forum remains/becomes a balanced place to enjoy, exchanging opinions about tennis. I so hope and believe that’s possible. At the moment this forum is playing a tiebreak. There is one side that knows what respect and balance is and the other trying to break it. It’s 6:4 for us with 2 match points. Fortunately not Federer is on the other side of the net.

    • A lot of what you said I agree with.

      As much as I hated to see Rafa lose, I was amazed seeing what Federer achieved playing as well as he did.

      I also love watching tennis played at it’s best as in last night’s semifinal at a much better level than Rafa’s semifinal.

      However, for me I was unable to enjoy the match because of the crowd. I disagree that Fed is uncomfortable with the crowd being loud and boisterous in his favour. He has encouraged it in the past and has never commented that the fans should be respectful of both players.

      https://www.si.com/tennis/2017/03/30/ap-ten-federer-crowd-noise

      He generalizes here but he knows the difference between good spirited cheers vs boos, jeers and calling out during serves and balls in play and doesn’t mention that. Of course he likes it.

      I also firmly believe that Nole does not enjoy the crowd against him constantly and primarily vs Fed. He was able to learn to channel the crowd against him but only for so long and I believe it has taken its toll and is part of his long slump.

      The crowd played a factor in both wins over Berdych and Kyrgios in a negative way IMO.

      You seem like a great fedfan Eugene. Hope you stick around. We’ve lost a few good ones like yourself as well as one Nole fan (danica) and one Murray fan (deuce) who got tired of constant attacks from the couple of (mostly one) crazy so called Rafans.

      Lately TT is getting a better mix and I hope it continues. Need a few Nole fans and Murray fans. TX has a better mix but the moderator there is unfair.

        • hawkeye, I agree. At some point Roger should send a personal message to the public – being more respectful towards his opponents.

          • Yeah I doubt it would make any difference unless he actually did it during a match and not many players I can think if would ever do that.

            Well, maybe just one LOL.

      • Yup, but it is only a matter of time before TT gets more Nole and Murray fans too. We are getting new people here.

        #TTforever

      • Wise words, Eugene. I don’t find as much of a problem with the crowd as some others. I do think Roger could and should publicly suggest that fans show respect to all players. Stepping back a bit, I wonder if tennis as a sport should consider trying to shed some of its elitist, ‘gentlemanly’ traditions, and crowd noise/interference is one of them. NBA players on the road shoot free throws with thousands of fans screaming abuse at them. Players in most sports deal with this kind of thing. I realize it would be a big change, but maybe tennis could look into becoming a bit less precious about it.

        That’s a separate issue from the special treatment Fed gets when playing, but I doubt there’s anything to be done about that. I know when I’m watching at home I cheer great shots by Federer’s opponents, and I groaned when Kyrgios double faulted in the 3rd set tie-break. I’ve never understood fans who cheer DFs, but I don’t understand a lot of things people do.

      • AT 7:53 PM says: “We’ve lost a few good ones like yourself as well as one Nole fan (danica) and one Murray fan (deuce) who got tired of constant attacks from the couple of (mostly one) crazy so called Rafans.”

        ¤ Poster ‘danica’ has never posted on the GS and she was happy that the Tennistalk disappeared (according to her own comment that someone copied from the Tennis-X and inserted into the Grandstand).
        ¤ Poster ‘deucy’ wrote on the Grandstand: “…I can’t stand Uncle T. I think he is a bully…”
        I typed the same her sentence in Google Search and saw almost the same written on the Tennis-X: Margot Says: “…Re: Uncle Toni. I think he is a bully…” (March 22nd, 2015)
        I believe that there is not enough U.Toni haters for her taste on the GS (and obviousy there is a lot of haters on the Tennis-X; Fedlovers, for example, have always hated Toni).

    • Eugene- I’ve only been following this site for a couple years at MOST, so I don’t know what it was like before that. But at least in terms of people who comment, this site very Rafa-centric. All of these sites seem to be biased to either Federer or Nadal (unfortunate in my opinion), but I choose to follow this site over the others because the majority of people have a good appreciation for the game and it’s players, and aren’t here strictly to troll Federer or Nadal. You’re right that those types of people aren’t really tennis fans… Every one of these sites has at least a few of those types, but I’ve found that the Grandstand seems to have much fewer of them than other sites. Let’s face it- there are shitty trolling “fans” of both Federer and Nadal who believe that they are somehow different from the other guy’s shitty fans. And even though it could appear at times that pro-Rafa people on here are bashing anyone who simply likes Roger Federer, I don’t think I’m naive in saying that almost all of them are strictly bashing the shitty Federer fans, or “Fedfawns” as Hawkeye calls them, and not just anyone who just likes Federer…

      All of these sites are naturally biased- we’re dealing with arguably the two best players ever, and that means a lot of tension. But I find this site to be much more enjoyable and respectful than others I’ve experienced… Welcome!

    • @Eugene…Hey hey hey!!…Great great analysis and I liked it very much!Yeah,like u love Roger,I also love rafa and wish/want him to win but if Roger win,it’s okay for me either…yeah,of coz will hurt and disappointed if Rafa lose but IMO be positive is very important..for me if u win it is because it was meant for u..same if u lose..i usually not pondered over it for too long..it’s no use to rationalize something that is not ours to decide…

      Same with Roger’s amazing arisen atm…I only can ooh! aah and wow!..and I believe everybody has their shares and moment in this life…if u look the trend/pattern..at this time last year..it’s novak’s time..he’s winning everything and conquered the world and everything in it..and then Andy and his incredible surged till the end of the year..and out of nowhere The Maestro and his amazing comeback…I just wish[from this pattern at least]that Rafa will taste his own heaven after this…that’s all I can do…Hoping..

      But,enjoyed reading your comment Eugene!Hope u will come here more often!

  30. I think that Nadal has the will and the gust to win Federer who is exhausted after he batteled last two matches …remember that he is 35 years old.

  31. Im not saying posters should agree on everything, and i wouldnt want them to either, as thats the whole point in having a blog, i think you will always get sites that are heavy with fan groups, depending on a players success rate, TX was terrible a while ago with alot of bullying Novak fans,and their name calling, thankfully it seems to have calmed down alot there now lately, this site seems more diverse ….

    • Yeah, Alison, it would indeed be boring if there was all agreeing and no debating! That’s why more Federer fans should be join here.

      • I am all for fans of Fed and Novak and Murray and others posting here. The more diversity, the better the discussions.

        I hope that the people who are just discovering this site, stay and join in the discussions. I don’t mind disagreement, as long as it’s respectful. Insults, name calling and personal attacks are the kind of things to which I prefer not to respond.

    • Alison Hodge (AT 9:10 PM) says: “TX was terrible a while ago with alot of bullying Novak fans…”

      It’s refreshing to read the truth! 🙂

    • Agree Ali!!!!This site is a little bit calm and respectful to other poster’s and despite Hawks/Augusta ‘loving’ brother/sister’s banter with each other..i would say this site way more amateur in terms of nastiness,brutality and disrespectful towards other poster’s which is VERY AWESOME!!YOU GUYS ARE ALL AMAZING!!Keep doing that guys!!

  32. Let Nole start playing well and all the bullies would be back on tx. Incidentally, hawks, I occasionally post there. A different moniker.

  33. Tiggy picks Rafa:

    If he can swing as freely as he did there, and keep the points as short, there’s no reason he can’t win again. Nadal insists that the dynamic between them hasn’t shifted in Federer’s favor, but it’s going to be up to him to turn it back in his favor. He’ll need to find ways not just to hit the ball to Federer’s backhand, but to make sure he pushes Federer back in the court when he does. While Rafa got tight trying to finish off Fabio Fognini in the semifinals, he has been sharp in Miami so far, and there’s no question that he’d like to avoid going 0-5 in finals here.

    What should favor Rafa the most, though, is that semifinal Federer had to play with Nick Kyrgios on Friday. Federer has been extremely good this season when he’s been rested, but his level dropped as this week progressed and his time on court mounted. He had to save match points against Tomas Berdych in the quarterfinals, and while he played brilliantly against Kyrgios, he had to do it for three hours.

    I didn’t think Federer would have the energy to beat the 21-year-old Aussie in the semis, but he proved me wrong. Can he do it again?

    Winner: Nadal

    http://www.tennis.com/pro-game/2017/04/previewing-roger-federer-versus-rafael-nadal/65160/

    • Only Fed would know how fresh he is. Like I said, if this were being played the next day, rafa would surely have won. He has had a day’s rest now and knowing he has a long break coming, he can give it all in the final. However, the marathon semi will have some effect on him I guess but the outcome will only be in Rafa’s favor if the the Spaniard is able to play aggressively, return well and serve well because Fed’s going to be more determined than ever to keep the points short.

      • It’s a shame Kyrgios let the crowd’s actions get to him. I think he should win the match if he didn’t let the first set slipped away from him when he had the lead, such was his inexperience, taking it easy and now would regret it. The match was his to take if he had won that first set.

        Both Berdych and Kygrios buckled under pressure in the last few points of their matches when theyre in the TB to decide who’s the winner. Fed was the more steady one and so won both times. Funny that Fed had to get to so many TBs in order to win; against Agut its two TBs where Fed won both. Such were the narrow margins that Fed beat his opponents.

          • Well Mary, that’s partly because Fed was winning so much lately; a few losses and who knows the doubts might come back. He didn’t need to face a Djoko of AO2016 this year; that to him might be a big relief. After winning his no.18th, he’s now more relaxed. If he lost that AO final to Rafa, chances are he won’t be as confident as he is now; winning titles does make one feels good about oneself and then confidence starts to build.

          • And that’s why I was so disappointed that Rafa lost that Acapulco final. I mean winning a title would mean that Rafa was doing things right and so his confidence would then be restored, at least to some extent, better than losing and doubting again. I think he would play better at IW if he won that Acapulco title.

          • That’s the point. It’s about winning titles. If Rafa had won the AO he might be the one on a roll right now. Doubts can change be back if a player starts losing.

            Rafa needs to win titles. That will give him real confidence and belief. I think he will get there.

        • Batista-Agut played better than any of Nadal’s opponents in Miami (first set against Kohls excepted) -never mind Berdych and especially Kyrgios. Just going with the last, I don’t see that Nadal’s level is near Kyrgios’ at the moment. In contrast, I think Roger’s level is very near what it was at IW. He played near his best, overall, in that semi-final. It’s just that Kyrgios is probably the 2nd best player in the world at the moment and also played very well. Unless Nadal can raise his game significantly, I see tomorrow’s final as following a similar pattern to their IW match. Maybe Rafa can indeed raise his game to that level, but I haven’t seen evidence of it in his last four matches. The match is on Federer’s racquet in any case.

          • Joe, you must be joking comparing Rafa to Kygrios. They are different types of players, and, it’s always the counter punching types of players who have the better of Fed – Rafa, Djoko; Murray and Simon at times, even Monfils. Fed rarely has problems vs attacking type or big serving/big hitting players, so far Delpo being the only exception yet Fed beat him 16 out of 21 times they played.

            Rafa certainly won’t be playing like Kygrios, he has his own way of counter punching cum aggression.

          • Agut has no major weapons, he just runs and runs, hitting flat shots and making Fed run with him. Sock OTOH has a big serve and big FH, however Rafa didn’t allow Sock to play his game esp in set one. It’s not like Sock was playing badly, Rafa was aggressive vs Sock, and Sock was’nt comfortable defending.

            I was surprised that Agut could push Fed to two TB sets, when in the past Fed would dispatch him easily. Agut exposed Fed’s weakness, i.e. his slowness in covering his FH corner, compared to the Fed of the past. Kygrios in the SF was hitting CC to Fed’s BH most of the times, and when he hit a DTL shot to Fed’s FH, he won the point.

            Players are intimidated by Fed’s BH yet they play into his hands by hitting there most of the time. From what I’ve seen, only Agut had tried to attack Fed’s FH when he got the chances; Rafa should do like Agut did, mix it up and be less predictable.

  34. If this Miami match was just after AO, I would have said Rafa will win. But after the IW drubbing, I am not sure. He does sound more confident though. Maybe he has an ace up his sleeve if not on his serve.

  35. Just watched the highlights again. Don’t think Nadal can beat Fed at the moment. He’s stepping into his shots and taking as much time away from his opponent as humanly possible. Playing with almost perfect efficiency.

    Nadal doesn’t have an answer to that at the moment, he’s topspin forehand doesn’t keep his opponent back in the court like it use to even though he is playing better than he was 12 months ago.

    Fed in 3.

    • Spot on analysis, Jim. Only thing I would add is that Roger’s ROS has taken a quantum leap ahead recently. The way he was returning some of those Kyrgios bombs makes me think that there won’t be many easy service games for Rafa.

      But I’m curious: why/how do you think Rafa will manage to take a set? Just because he’s Nadal playing Federer? (that’s as good an answer as any, I think).

      • I’m giving Rafa the benefit of the doubt that he’ll take a set because Fed is on a 3-match win streak (Rafa will throw everything at this), Fed dropped sets and had a tougher draw physically coming into the final and Rafa has dropped only 1 set in Miami.

        Fed in 2 or 3. I’ll stick with 3 based on the above.

  36. I am hoping that Rafa can pull this one out. I saw that Fed was sweating throughout and the long match can only hurt older bones. IMO the absence of Nole Murray and an iffy Rafa is helping Fed vulture these wins.

    • Msybe. At 35 and a half, age is always a potential factor. And, for many years now, Roger has generally not played as well in the daytime heat as he has in the evening. That’a a potential edge to Nadal, but he himself is nearly 31 and doesn’t have the stamina he used to.

      Regarding the absence of Nole and Murray, I would agree only with respect to Nole (Federer has pretty much owned Andy for the last few years and I think the pattern would continue if he’s in this form), and only with respect to Nole’s form of 2015-16. He’s clearly not been the same player since then, and in their current form I like Roger’s chances.

  37. Well..Contrary to some beliefs that the match on Roger’s racquet[in some way..yeah]..but Rafa also has a chance to win IF he’s apply an aggressive play[and of coz he’s already knew this] and not stick with his conservative and traditional play..FH/BH,FH/BH,FH/BH till forever[rolling eyes!]..the difference between in the past and now is that Rafa combined a defensive and offensive skills really well..he knows how to get defensive and when the opportunity arrived..boom!there comes the winners from everywhere!He’s the master of the defense to offense attack…I just hope he realize that he’s still be able to beat Rog with all that quality..all he have to do is put some belief and confidence in himself that he can do it…

    • Mira, I love your passionate defense of Nadal. A true fan! For your sake I hope you are right. However, I think Hawkeye’s words above apply:

      “… you are describing a game that Rafa has not been able to play consistently over the course of a match vs Fedole in a long time.

      His progress is in the right direction but is very slow and Federer has been outpacing him.”

          • Hawk: I think you have some perceptive things to say, which I believe is more than you’ve ever said about me. I propose a truce, and you can take whatever bragging rights you want about promises that can’t be kept and so forth. I’m not interested in making internet (or any) enemies, especially when it comes to something as trivial as disagreement about sports; I really do find it boring. What do you say?

          • On the contrary joe, based on your continual digs on Rafa and responses to other posts including mine, you don’t find it boring at all.

            You quite enjoy it.

        • Yes I am, Mary. At least, he’s my favourite player of the big four, even though there are a few other lower ranked players I like more. How about you?

          • I am a Rafa fan. I like Muzz, Fed too ( though reluctantly). Currently I do not like Nole but that might change.

      • I don’t believe that Joe is being sincere regarding his love for MA’s passionate defence either.

        More like he loves his own condescension. Yeah that’s it.

      • @Joe…hahaha… thank u for your words up there..ermm..yeah,I appreciate very much your honest comments and of coz you are right and hawks also is right with his statement regarding Rafa and BELIEVE ME Joe I know what you are saying and I’m aware of the current reality that things a little bit unreal for rafa to win…BUT as a Rafa fan who’s already withstand and shared the painful slump in his career and we’ve done it a multiple times already..you name it Joe and we’ve tasted all of it…I don’t think have a hope and believe is too much atm Joe..If Rafa just give one statement that saying that he don’t believe he can’t win anymore and just playing for fun and not for glory anymore,i will be happily sit back and just enjoy his tennis without much hope…

        But the thing is,Rafa still very much BELIEVE that he can win..slam or Masters..pre AO,he’s already gave a very clear statement about it and who am I to question his motivation and his still passionate desire to win?Same with Roger…before AO,the last time he won a slam was Wimby 12 right?And that was 4 years ago!..and in span of that time,i’ve read a 100’s of articles that degraded and some of it almost insulted that Rog will never win a slam again…and look at how he silenced those who don’t believe in him at AO…I,for one would NEVER EVER discounted a BIG 4 because they’re a very special species who can turn things around in a blink of an eye…and in this case..as long as Rafa still believe..so am I Joe!He’s not too far away strayed and he’s already been to his 3rd final this year….Surely,it’s not that bad Joe?..Nice chatting with u Joe!….VAMOS RAFA!!!WOOOHOOOO!!

        • Mira, I think you are right that Rafa believes he can still win slams; otherwise I’m not sure he would keep playing. You’re also right that by any objective measure he has done very well this year. Let’s hope for a good match tomorrow, even if you and I will be cheering for opposite sides.

          • Yeah Joe!I wish u,Rog and other Fedfans here a very very gooooood luck for tonight’s match…and if Rog win,u will find my honest and sincere congrats here tomorrow Joe!..Good day @ night @ afternoon wherever u are Joe!!VAMOS!!

  38. It’s funny how before Miami started, Federer said that making the semis in Miami would be an “unbelievable run”…

  39. Being 36 years old is a bad excuse considering fed just won A.O. and those are long 3 set minimum matches. But in the end, both fed and nadal are great competitors and only one can win. So I say this match is up in the air for either to win because they both are good.

  40. So its 80: 20 here in Rogers favor over here for the win including many Rafa fans …

    Most likely result yes given that confidence plays a huge part in any tennis match and Roger is riding very high on it now..and Rafa..not so much given that though made 3 finals..not won anything yet..

    The AO final loss, Rafa may have been caught offguard as he did not expect Fed to take it out of his hand and after the Dimi match no matter how much any Fed fan argues, Rafa was not at his physical best for the final…however was very disappointed how he responded at IW..hence I am hoping Rafa makes it a pride issue to fight the best he can tomorrow…This is a title that has eluded him and he does not want 2011 vs Nole to repeat here against Fed…

    However great the rivalry has been, there have been many lop sided matches between these 2…RG 2008, Rome 2013, Miami 2011, IW 2013 in Rafas favor and WTF 2011, IW 2017, IW 2012 in Feds favor

    Hoping for a Rafa win 🙂

    • Sanju: That sounds about right to me. And, although you’re right about confidence, it has to be based on something. For Fed, of course, that is recent results in the first instance. Nadal has had good results too, apart from the elusive title thus far this year.

      For me, the match comes down to this. At the moment, I see Roger as having a clear advantage in serve and ROS. He also has a greater proven capacity to hit winners off the BH, and maybe the FH. His net game is better. Their mobility is about even, as is (I think) their consistency from the baseline. Nadal will probably be a bit fresher, and in recent years Federer generally has not been as good in the mid-day sun as he has been under the lights. If fatigue comes into play, then Rafa may be able to capitalize. But if Federer plays anything near the level of his last match, or even any match thus far in Miami, I just don’t see Nadal having the weapons or consistency to beat him tomorrow. We’ll soon find out.

      • Agree except ‘or even any match thus far in Miami’. If he plays at the level he did against Berdych or Agut..he is in for a tough one..

        Feds serve has always been great..what has made difference is his ROS (no more just block or chip), he is stepping in and crushing it and putting opponent on defensive in the first 2 shots itself and ofcourse the coming over the BH rather than slice it most times…If you notice Fed did this in 1st set of AO 2012 semi too and jumped to 4 1 lead rightaway but somehow could not hold it and reverted back to his original play..difference is that he is now consistently doing this throughout the match..I am sure Rafa realizes this now and will come up with a plan to not play into Feds hands ..he has to mix it up all the time and ofcourse make it very physical and made Fed runa nd stretch him on his FH..

        • Rafa has also to hit his top spin FH very deep and not drop it short for Fed to crush it..Feds ability to hit winners will drop substantially if Rafa is able to keep the ball very deep

        • Yes, you may be right about that. He played terrific in the first set against Berdych but then dropped in the 2nd. I think Rafa’s best baseline tactic may indeed be to hit to Roger’s FH more, especially if he can hit the DTLFH.

      • I don’t care whether Rafa wins or loses today. Let him play well and give me hope that he is moving closer to his best.

  41. Who you guys think will be more nervous heading into this one? Till AO, remember people expected Rafa to win most times and pressure was on him, I feel now Fed carries the pressure more than Rafa..The only pressure on Rafa is to capture Miami..

    • I really think winning the AO took all the pressure off Roger, and that’s part of the reason he’s now playing so well. He had been trying to win that slam for so long and coming up short, I think he just surprised himself by winning it. The fact that it came against Rafa was icing on the cake. Maybe there’s more on Rafa because he hasn’t won this tournament, but I think he’s too experienced and too much of a champ to let it get to him.

      • Agree Joe!We can see very clearly how confident Rog is atm from his body language,his shots..no hesitation whatsoever…But Rafa is another story…been in a final twice and lost..and one to Querry of all player,surely the pressure very well sit on his shoulder atm..but like u said,i don’t think it mattered much to him…but if today,his serve is not working very well,he maybe get nervous and Rog certainly will take advantage of that..hopefully Rafa will find a solution to Rog’s puzzle today…But if he fails,that’s okay…try again next time…

        • Mira, I think Rafa will just move on to clay, whether he wins this Miami title or not. I feel it’s his fans that can’t move on, somewhat feeling regrets that he couldn’t win a Miami title.

          I feel Rafa and his team have clay as his target, perhaps they’re more realistic than Rafa’s many fans; realizing that his best bet is still on the clay courts, with HCs now favoring the big servers cum big hitters and the attacking players.

          Rafa’s best bets on HCs were during 2010 and then 2013, when he had his good to great serve to help him, plus his still very lethal FH, great footwork and foot speed, and aggressive play. After his back injury, he’s no longer the same, with his serve suffering the greatest impact from that back injury imo.

          I do feel positive about his clay court season, I mean if he can reach HC finals despite not being at his best, more so will he do even better on clay.

          • Lucky…Very agree with everything u said..Rafa is a very professional..if he lost in any tournament,he rarely pondered about it for long..he once said,as soon as he get’s home,he already can forget about his loss..except for a few painful tournament that stayed with him for an amount of time..same with Novak,Roger and Andy..

            As for fan’s,i think when you’re hoping too much and to see him lose when your almost grasp the trophy especially on certain tournament,it is really hard to accept..but we have no choice..accept it we must and move on after that…

            About clay,like u and many fan’s,i hope he’s going to have a very positive one..because clay is a very crucial for him..have a good one then all will be okay in Rafaland but if it’s not…every confidence and his self belief will suffered once again and only God knows when or how it will restored back to it’s place…I just wish rafa can survive this year without injury..then everything will get better and better…Insyaallah…

          • After seeing how well he does on the HCs( reaching finals in major events), I’m confident that Rafa will do well on clay (without injury). Don’t have to worry too much about him on clay, he will be fine.

          • Okay Lucky!..Hey,I’ve just gave an article about Rafa a few minutes ago …read it and please give your opinion Lucky..i want to hear it from u..

  42. Some points I would like to say after going through all the above posts:

    1) Kyrgios losing the match was not due to the crowd (of course the crowd was as pathetic as it can get at a tennis match). Regarding the belief that he double faulted because of the crowd is pretty lame. Kyrgios redlined pretty similar 2nd serves against his wins over Nole in crunch situations. That’s where he got the belief and confidence to go for a huge 2nd serve not because of the crowd jeering him (Even Federer lost a point in the 2nd set TB due to someone shouting ‘out’ from the crowd. Given how closely the TB was contested, it could have even helped Roger win the 2nd set TB) The crowd was pretty much the same throughout the 2nd and 3rd set. But Kyrgios held himself pretty well in all those moments.

    2) The match was never on Kyrgios racquet at any stage. It was a very evenly competed contest (Rather Federer had some +15 Winners/UE ratio as compared to +5 of Nick) So to say it was Kyrgios who faltered at the end is maybe exaggerating it a bit. Though I would agree that Berdych did faltered to close it out( but that is what Berdych has been doing for such a long time no)

    3) The reason for Federer being the probable favourite is because Federer played in the semi at a level which Rafa has not been able to display in any of his matches so far. But, since tennis is a sport and anything can happen in a sport on any given day, Rafa can come out playing at a higher level than what Federer showed. My guess is just as good as anyone’s else in that regards.

    4) Now comes the question for which I would really like to offer my 2 cents on: How is Roger able to do it?
    First things first.. when Roger took the injury break, he was still playing at pretty high level for past 2.5 yrs i.e 2014-15, made it to the semis of AO & almost made it to the finals of Wimby. So it’s not like he suddenly started playing so well at 35+. He was playing as good as today in 2014 and 2015 & even 2016 AO. It was just that Nole was playing at an even higher level that denied Roger some big titles. I think that injury break rather made Fed feel more fresh and willing to go.
    Secondly, from the time I have been following Roger, his game has always appeared to me as one which doesn’t need much rhythm or court time to start middling the ball as he would want to (unlike Rafa or Nole). Rather it just depends on how he is feeling the ball on the given day. One match he is striking the ball cleanly, very next day he will start spraying & shanking it. So more of a ‘feeling it’ player than a rhythm player. So even 1 or 2 matches are sometimes good enough to get his shots going.
    Thirdly, the manner in which Fed won the AO, has given him immense belief and confidence that he can still come on top in any match whatsoever the situation might be. That confidence is what Federer used to have during his glory years which Fed himself has brought out on occassions in his interview in the past. This confidence is helping him to go for his shots and play better in tight situations (of course not having to face 2015-2016.5 Nole helps ).
    Lastly, Federer probably has more elements and variety in his game (just my opinion) than anyone else on the tour that I have seen. That helps him win many matches because some elements of his game prove good enough to carry him through even on his bad days.

    • Some astute comments. As one who suggested that the match may have been on Kyrgios’ racquet, I’d just say that is mostly about his serve. He is now in the habit of hitting the hardest second serves I have ever seen, and if he can do that without DF very often, it makes him very hard to break. But you are right that Roger had the higher net winners, and once the ball is returned into play, Federer objectively has a slight edge. I also think you are right that Roger’s level is higher, but not much higher, than it has been for the last three years or so. He was denied a major title three times by Nole at his very best (I also think Roger choked in the 2015 (and maybe end of 2014 Wimby title matches). The major change came when he upgraded his racquet. There is no other good explanation for his markedly improved play from 2014-present.

      • Precisely. The change came with his racquet.
        And as far Federer choking in 2015 is concerned, I would just say that he should have won the US Open final but Novak got the better of him in crunch situations. Wimbledon, Roger didn’t choked! Novak was simply playing the best grass court tennis I’ve seen him play in his career. In my opinion, only Federer having his very best day with his FH and serve might have been able to come unscathed that day. Heck, I can’t even say for sure that Fed/Rafa of 2008 Wimby would have been able to defeat Nole that day. Such was his level of play. I still don’t know how Roger managed to win a set in that match (or in last year’s AO SF for that matter) when Nole was completely outplaying him in almost every aspect of the game.

  43. I give credit to Nadal for his good tournament here in Miami but he didn’t face players like Federer.
    His draw was even easier by far than Fed’s draw. He didn’t beat players like Kyrgios or that Berdych who played a very good match against Fed.

    More over Fed is another beast at the moment with his confidence so high. The only factor (according to me) in favor of Nadal is the fitness. Fed could be tired even if he had one day of rest. But in the other part, in a final you just give everything you have without thinking too much at your fitness. So i don’t think it will be a big factor.

    For me the main keys of this match will be Nadal serve. If he is able to hit good serve and hold serve pretty easily he has a great shot to beat Fed again. If he is under pressure on every service game (like the previous time against Fed) he will lose.

    My pick is Fed in 3 tight sets.

  44. Well to tell the truth, even after being an ardent fan of Fed, I never imagined a day when Federer would be pipped as the overwhelming favourite against Nadal(that too in conditions which suit Nadal’s game the most)
    But I guess, that is what sports is all about. Things change with time.

    • He’s not an overwhelming favourite lol.

      Ask any gambler or check a betting site.

      Everyone knows that having mps on your own serve or being up 5-X in a deciding tb on your own serve is considered as having the match on your racquet.

        • Not what I said.

          He was up 5-4 in last TB with two serves to come on his racquet. Fed needed a mini break to survive. Otherwise known in the moment as having the match on your racquet.

          This really is basic stuff for any experienced tennis fan.

          #Tennis101

      • Yeah Sanju…I can’t wait to see whether there’s something new that Rafa and Carlos has working out in order to deal with Rog this time around…

        • I am waiting too though mentally all prepared for a Rafa loss 🙂

          I think it will be too quick to expect any changes bearing immediate fruit however let us see what those changes are..

          • Sanju….Hahaha..yeah,me too always prepared mentally for a Rafa loss…I never expect too much from him…and also agree with u on the changes..i’m not expect much on that aspect as well..when Novak hired Boris,it took them 6 months or so to bear a fruit..and what a fruit that was!!…on Rafa..if he can go out on court full of confidence and self belief,it will be enough for me atm because if he feels confidence,everything will come alive for him especially his serve…

          • Read Rafa’s post SF press conference transcript; Rafa said win or loss, he’s happy to be in a HC final, and remains positive about his clay court season. I think that’s good to hear, I doubt he would lose confidence even if he loses in this final, for he knows clay is his forte, not HCs.

          • Mira, about that article, I’m with Moya, and that’s why I’ve picked Rafa to win in 2 or 3 sets. It all depends on how Rafa plays, whether he’s calm or nervous under pressure. If he’s nervous, chances are he will mess up like in IW.

            I feel playing against Kohl has helped Rafa, at least he knows now he can’t return from the baseline but gives himself more time by stepping back (like he did in set two). However, I do hope he can step inside the court once he hits his returns, so that 1) he won’t need to run to cover a wider angle, 2) he may be able to hit deep to the corners when he hit from inside the court, that may force Fed to step back, giving Rafa time to move to the net to attack any weak response.

            I hope Rafa plays with calm and freely, not be burdened by the ‘must win’ mentality.

          • Lucky…once again I agree with all u said…in a match against Fog,i like his body language..very positive although I’m going to be honest,i don’t like his conservative play..attack opponent’s BH and just wait for his opponent make an error without the intent to make his own winner..i just wish he will play aggressively..it’s okay to send his FH to BH multiple times but when his opponent start to feel comfortable in the rally he should ‘kill it’ as soon as possible..but u and I know,it’s not happen that way..Hope we will see something different today..he had to…Rog certainly will come out with gun blazing that’s for sure…

    • MA,

      Thanks for that link. I would expect Moya to express confidence in Rafa’s ability to find solutions. He’s done it in the past in his career. I remember when done said that Rafa would never, absolutely never beat Novak again after losing to him again at the 2012 AO. But I knew better. Even though Rafa lost again, I knew this was different. Rafa was competitive and fought back to level the match at 4 sets all. He was up a break and two games from winning the match when he missed an easy backhand and was broken. So Rafa found answers. I knew the next time they played Rafa would beat him. He did during the clay season and got the better of Novak for the next two years in slams.

      It’s dangerous to ever write off a great player or think things will not change. The fact that Rafa played Fed so tough at the AO after two years of not being able to go deep in slams, says something. Even given the fast court conditions plus the fact that Rafa had one day’s rest and also that Fed made adjustments with his backhand, Rafa was still in that match to the end.

      I think after Rafa’s poor performance at IW, is when perceptions changed. Rafa may not beat Fed here, but beat him again he will!

      • Nny!..You’re most welcome Nny!..and yeah,agree with everything u said…even if rafa lost today,that’s okay…he will next time…it will take time but as long as Rafa still have the desire to fight then the chances is still there..

      • Poor Rafa, always has to find solutions – first Fed, then Djoko, and now Fed again and thereafter maybe Djoko again when Djoko comes back to play – never ending process until Rafa retires. And, add to that his own injuries to overcome, his is certainly not a smooth going career, full of ups and downs.

        I really enjoy those times when Rafa was in his heydays, playing on clay and almost unbeatable, beating his opponents in straight sets and handing out some bagels and breadsticks. At those times, I would relax and enjoy his clay court matches knowing that he would win in the end. Those were the days!

  45. Some poster’s mention amy up there…and suddenly I miss u so so so much amy….I wish we can chat but I also knew that is impossible…I wish you’re healthy and happy wherever u are….Please know that you’re always in my thought amy…

  46. Imo, all their matches that were ever not on clay were always on both their racquets… Fed especially refused to play any differently against Rafa, except for in 2013 when he just sucked and Rafa was amazing and there was nothing he could do haha. But you guys can save your arguments- I know you won’t agree me, and that’s ok. 🙂

  47. To me, the phrase “on their racquet” means that they are capable of taking the match if they want to. Therefore, aside from some of the clay matches, I think that both guy were always capable of winning every match if they did the right things and played the right way.

    • Agreed. But it also has the meaning I mentioned within a match i.e., when serving for the match either in a game or tiebreak a la Berdych and Kyrgios.

      Hope Rafa can be closer to his best level to make this a match like AO.

      I’m for Rafa obviously but at the very least I hope for a great match and a fair crowd which is rare in a close Federer match.

      • C’mon man, Fed/Rafa match crowds may slightly go for Federer, but it’s not some huge, overwhelming, disrespectful crowd… There’s always going to be some assholes in the crowd who people can point to, but when these two guys play, the crowd is largely respectful.

        That being said, I wouldn’t put anything past the Miami crowds… ?

  48. RT @HoytEvan: After this Miami Final, it will have been 98 consecutive Slams, Masters 1000s and End of Year Champs won by a European man! Incredible…?

      • Well
        I was really busy with my work since the start of the year. Have not been able to see many matches also because of that (mostly have seen only Federer’s matches) Still, I have been able to visit this forum on & off but didn’t really had the time to post anything.
        Miami Masters is the one which I have been able to follow more closely.

  49. abhirf, Feds recovery against Kyrgios to go three long sets vs Kyrgios less than 30 hrs doing same vs Berdych at almost 36 with no significant signs of tiring.

    I agree he’s been playing as good or better tennis north of 30 like many guys today.

    Why now?

    Healthy living. No smoking.

    Smoking gun maybe is all I’m saying.

    That said, his play continues to amaze and astound me, aging or no.

    His reaction time at the net and half volleys for lack of a better term refusing to back off the baseline are unmatched. Always have been.

    • And I don’t suspect Fed more than anyone else just to be clear.

      Happens in every other sport. Why would tennis be immune?

      #SmokingGunsAreEverywhere

      • Fed is probably taking something but it may not be on the restricted list. Like meldonium ( of Sharpie fame) earlier. Rich athletes have access to the latest research and technology. A scary thought is gene doping which could create super athletes with no way of detection.

    • I don’t know much about how Federer recovers.
      But I really have to dig deep in my memory bank to recall the last time I saw Fed tired in a match (Olympics 2012 maybe). Maybe it’s just his style of play, maybe he’s just a super athlete like Nole or Rafa but in a different sense.

    • I agree. I would really like to see Rafa get tgis title. Rafa himself has said that chances aren’t forever. His draw opened up quite favorably and Rafa has taken advantage of it. I think this is his last best shot to win Miami.

  50. Great to hear that team Rafa are prepared to approach the match differently. It doesn’t require a massive overhaul or anything but slight adjustment to some patterns and obv hitting the tennis well to implememt them.

    Coming into their IW match Rafa would have been like okay, he played amazing in the AO final and is backhand was on fire but these IW courts are much slower and higher bouncing so Rog won’t have the same success. What happened in the match was a diff story.

    Now, Rafa knows Fed is doing those things consistently against the field so some changes MUST be implememted.

    I think it comes down to how well Rafa can manage the serve-return dynamic.

    Go Rafa! Get your first title.

    • IW is not slow when the ball travels quicker in the dry desert air. While Fed played well at IW (he looked really fresh), Rafa looked lack luster, as if his legs were made of stones. He hardly moved to retrieve shots that in other times, he would rush to retrieve. IOWs, Rafa looked out of sorts.

      Rafa’s serves and returns in that match were atrocious to say the least, in fact it’s one of the worst matches played by him (comparable to the out of sort Miami 2008 final he played vs Davydenko).

      If he plays like that in this final, then gone case; otherwise he has a good chance of winning, as I don’t think Fed is playing as well here as he did at IW.

      • Lucky…well..Roger is not playing well here but he played well at IW and he won…and Rafa was not played well at IW and he lost..but he’s playing well in Miami..maybeeeee Rafa will win??Hahaha!..If only as simple as that!!..Hehe..

      • Correct. His movement was really bad and even Fed was like ‘Rafa didn’t look like he was 100 percent. Looked slow…’

        It will be a better effort from Rafa and I think Fed’s level will not be as high.

        The game is about to begin!

  51. Nny!Are you ready to rumble with Rafa today??Let’s rumble!!Oh!to ease your worry..i will chanel my Supermoon power soon..hope it will give Rafa the positive energy and of coz…WIN!!!Wooohoooo!!C’mon Rafa!!

  52. Moya has mentioned that Fed taking a lead quickly at IW was a big factor in Rafa’s loss. I think what he means is that Rafa was then forced to play safe. Maybe this time the strategy is like this: Rafa is going to focus on holding his serve in the first few games. Try out a couple of things in Fed’s service games to see what works and what doesn’t and then implement it in the eigth or ninth game to break Fed. Agut exposed some Fed vulnerabilities which could be useful for Rafa. Of course Fed also knows Rafa will try to exploit them so he must have worked out something. It is like a game of chess. Who has thought more moves ahead?

    • Ideally that sounds like a good plan! I wonder if Rafa will start by trying to go hard to Fed’s FH since his classic BH peppering hasn’t worked as well recently, Or if he will try peppering the BH as usual first to see if it’s on that day and then stick to that formula if Fed’s BH isn’t firing? I think that Rafa’s serving has got to be, overall, the most important thing he needs to do well today… One thing that really stood out to me in their last couple meetings was that Fed was constantly pressuring Rafa’s serve. I know it’s not the case, but sometimes it felt like Fed was getting to at least deuce every single time Rafa served. So I agree with you that Rafa coming out being really aggressive on serve is going to be so key.

      Even though Rafa is surely under pressure to win this title that he really wants, I think Federer is also under pressure to want to go into the early Summer with as much confidence as he can possibly have, and winning all three of the first big titles of the season would give him that confidence… That being said, Fed already considers winning AO, IW, and making final of Miami as a massive overachievement for what he expected going into the season, so I don’t know if he feels as though he has quite as much to lose here as Rafa may. That could either play into Rafa’s hands, or it could play into Fed’s hands. There’s just no way to know…

      All I want is for a great match, not one of them winning easily.

  53. A routine victory for Fed 6-4 6-4. Rafa continues with the body serve to little effect. Alas, the brains trust chasm between the camps. Roger with the advantage of variety of attacking options. Rafa will probably never find an answer to the backhand 2.0. An absolute game-changer.

  54. My father thinks Uncle T is a genius and a master strategist. Hope UT is not sulking and will help Rafa with what works. Uncle T knows exactly what Rafa can do and cannot do.

  55. I think I’m going to go with “abhirf’s score line- 6-3, 6-7, 7-5 Rafa’s title… I really don’t have any specific reasons to point to. I just have the feeling that Rafa is going to play well, Fed will not play as well, and Rafa’s going to win his first Miami title. I “just had a feeling” that Fed would pull out the victory in the AO final, but I was afraid to actually believe in it. So this time I am going with “that feeling I just have”… Rafa for the win, to then have won 8 different Masters tournaments!

    • Or 9th different Masters tourney if we want to consider Madrid-hardcourt and Madrid-clay as separate tournaments. 🙂

    • It’s normal for fans to have these feelings as insurance against a potential loss should it happen.

      I do it all the time.

      #AntiJinxings

      • I’m not just picking Rafa to win today. I WANT him to win that Miami title, quite badly… I felt the same way for Fed in the 2014 MC final against Stan. Plus, I think it’s boring when the same person wins every big tournament…

  56. Awesome backhadn DTL from Rafa at deuce!! he did not hit even a single one like this in IW.

    And, two aces in this game already!!

  57. Rafa wasted a BP, he should move forward and take his BH early DTL, he’s so far back so hits it into the net. Another chance wasted.

  58. oh come on, Rafa’s forehand has a lot more juice on it! Not letting Fed hit through.

    104 mph second serve from rafa!

  59. AMAZING serving from Rafa. He has come out like a lion today. I know he has wasted BPs but I am impressed. He will get a break sooner or later.

    • Very frustrating when you feel Rafa on the verge of breaking. He gets the shots and creates break chances, but can’t get it done,

  60. Fed’s 1st serve return strategy is to send every ball back to the Nadal backhand. Thank God Rafa’s backhand is not weak today.

    Oops 30-40 Rafa.

  61. Great second serve! I knew rafa would come out with bigger second serves today. He is taking a lot of risks today. KUDOS!

    • *59%

      But yeah, Rafa needs to address two aspects: Win more points on first serves and also on first serve returns! Fed won 38% second serve points only so he is doing fine there.

      Fed is returning well and smartly. He is redirecting returns to Rafa’s backhand.

      Rafa can turn this around. This is not at all out of his hands.

  62. Well, Roger capitalized on Rafa’s second serve! Rafa not being agressive enough on break points and gets punished for that…

  63. I can’t recall any FEDAL match that was wierder than this one.

    Both the players just kept going through the motions through the whole set. Not often that we get to see.

  64. First set to Fed. Fed not playing too well but Rafa failed to take advantage, wasted all the BP chances and Fed just better to finally take one and then won the set.

    Rafa playing like this is not going to win, refuses to move into the court and waiting for the ball to come to him. It’s not going to work against Fed. To me Fed is there for the taking and a Rafa with a bit more confidence and self belief would have won the set already.

    If Rafa doesn’t step up his play, it will be Fed in straight set despite not playing as well as his earlier matches.

  65. Roger’s placement of his 1st serves are average at best by his standards. How did he managed to win 80%+ of those points is hard to understand.

  66. Not that was a really poor forehand from rafa there at 30-0. So short and no angle!

    The forehand is up and down. He needs consistency which is something we haven’t seen much lately. So, a tough task for Rafa.

  67. Does someone else here also think that Fed is looking more exhausted than he usually does. He appeared breathing a bit heavily to me in the 1st set

  68. there’s the extra bit of power on Fed’s CC forehand I was talking about.So, it has to be a good shot whenever you go to his forehand or you are toast.

  69. Umm..Is Roger hitting his FH like Delpo that Rafa is not able to put racquet on ball which is hardly 2 steps from him. Just seems rooted to the place.

  70. second serve is surely better today. Rafa needs some belief and confidence to break Fed’s serve. Once he has some lead, may be he can relax a little. This is definitely a winnable match for Rafa.

  71. Damn I am tired of seeing his forehand making these crazy errors when you least expect them :/

    Good serving display from Fed now.

  72. The only aspect that has consistently impressed me is Rafa’s second serve. I am not mad at the backhand either. The rest has been inconsistent and been frustrating me.

  73. If you hit a CC that short even at 40-0 down, you ARE MESSING IT UP BIG TIME. There must be a lot of tension in his arm that is preventing him from getting the depth regularly. Fed’s hitting HEAVY forehands to Rafa’s backhands and constructing points. yes, you hear it right, Fed is doing that better than Rafa.

  74. I am afraid the forehand is too vulgar to get a win here and good serving has been guarding it this set. Otherwise, not good enough 🙁

  75. Rafa seems to lose the belief now after losing the first set. It’s really unsettling seeing Rafa looking resigned and starts making so many errors, spraying FHs and BHs!

    • I agree. It’s disconcerting to see Rafa losing belief. It’s like what used to happen against Novak. Rafa seems to be hanging in there through sheer force of will. But this is not enjoyable to watch.

      At least in the first set he was pressuring Fed on his serve and getting break chances. Now nothIng.

  76. Atleast 2 more games than IW..thats some progress 🙂

    Sorry I am finding ways to just be humorous after seeing that monstrous FH vulgarity

  77. That was one heck of a service hold. Vamos!

    Full marks to Rafa’s second serve. First time I have seen him up its level significantly in a big match.

    Now, can Rafa capitalize? normally when you came through a game like this, you feel good about yourself.

    Dear Rog, take it easy with your first serves please.

    • yes sanju. he has been winning more points on 2nd serves so that’s why I was hoping. I know it’s not been about Fed’s serves.

  78. WTH RAFA ! poooooor forehand on 30-30! Forehand is S*** today. So inconsistent. Explains why his overall confidence not high. He depends on so much on his forehand.

  79. Why are we disappointed..Rafa should be..we expect too much of him and he has been not delivering from 3 years now..

  80. Big big congrats to Roger and his loyal fans here especially Joe Smith,Eugene and other’s whom I can’t remember atm..sorry..Rog deserve to win today..He’s much better than Rafa…

    • Thanks Mira. Best regards to you guys too. Rafa needs to change many things. I think he realizes that more than ever.

      • Your welcome Eugene…and thank u back for your nice words about Rafa Eugene…and I agree with u that Rafa needs/should change MANY things..it’s very interesting to follow his progress in the coming months…Hey Eugene,please don’t stop posting here just because Rog will not play on clay okay?I think he will play 1 tourney before FO..Btwgreat to have u here Eugene!

  81. Too bad! Fed isn’t even playing all that well and Rafa just withers in the humidity, loses his way after losing set one.

    A very disappointing performance despite a good start. Rafa should just forget about going to Miami in future, he’s not going to win if he struggles with the humidity, His HC game now (basically a clay court game) is not going to win him HC title(s); just concentrates on clay!

    • RBA and Berdy did better against Fed.

      ThIs is just so disappointing.

      I am not assuming that Rafa can magically turn it around on clay. He is lacking confidence and belief and not winning titles.

      There is not much that is good to take out of this match for Rafa.

    • This is truly embarrassing now. Rafa has not even won a set on slow hard courts.

      I have some really annoying Fed fans (fawns) on my facebook and they’ll be go crazy . Not looking forward to it lol

      Anyway, Rafa was very disappointing. I thought he was a bit unlucky as well in the first set and would raise his game in the second esp after saving that BP at 3-3.

      Forget about slow movement or anything, his regular forehands were so damn disappointing. He not only hit short but hit some of them miles out!!

      • Guys, indeed the match was at best of average quality. I feel like much of its quality depended on Rafa. I might be subjective. But I have the impression that Roger’s game these days is very flexible. He raises his game when needed, depending on opponent’s level (Kyrgios) but then drops his level with players like RBA, Berdych (and almost got punished). Today he felt confident and played just ‘enough’ to win the title. Nadal didn’t challenge him too much.

    • Be assured Rafa cannot beat this Fed on clay if both of them continue their same level of play. Its more psychological at that level and self belief is the key. But on clay chances of bad day for Fed are more and Nadal can take advantage of it. Nadal believes he can beat anybody other than Nole and Fed at this moment. He is kind of second best. If Fed skips clay season and Nole continues his slump then Rafa can regain confidence and once again can win FO at RG.

    • Yes, but still want Rafa back. It’s something psychological, not physical. His game depends on his mental state, which is the independent variable in Rafa’s case. Basically it dictates his level of play.

      • Until Rafa’s forehand comes back, he is not going to win against the other 3 (out of the big 4) when they are in form. Not even against Wawa. When I look at his current movement which is not so good but used to be the best and largely responsible for his success on grass, I have an uneasy feeling he is never going to be as good as he was. Hope the clay season proves me wrong. Rafa has mentioned that RG is his goal. So maybe all the HC stuff is just to prepare for the big prize. I hope so anyway.

        • no way. he was trying his level best to win a HC title. I don’t know if his forehand will ever be good enough. If he gets it to a high enough level, he can win RG but otherwise he will lose to others.

          No fed in the clay season prior to RG but Djoko has already started his training. Murray will be back in the mix and there are scary players like Krygios!

          • VR, I’m not so worried about clay. I think you people worry too much! Rafa playing subpar tennis still could reach three HC finals, what more when it’s on clay? On clay Rafa can glide into positions, and his topspin will work better on clay than on the HCs.

            I do think his FH is so bad now because of his slower movement, slower to get to balls and hence mistiming his FH. I think other than on clay, he needs to play closer to baseline or steps inside the court more often when playing on non clay surfaces, to cut down on the running and so cut down on the misfiring of his FH.

            He has improved his serve by now through this Miami tournament, and also during AO; his BH has also improved a bit; his ROS and FH are still inconsistent, sometimes working and sometimes not so. It’s seems that he just can’t bring all the good things together during a match – when his serve is good, his FH is bad. When his serving is ok, and FH doing ok, his ROS may be bad and his BH too. He just can’t fire on all cylinders within a match to get him to win a title. His game is in a mess, at least on the HCs. Perhaps clay will bring out the best in him, as he has more time to do everything? Maybe he’s like a fish returning to water?

        • MA,

          If I had not had gone through a health crisis, then maybe I would be more upset. But I have perspective. It was a tennis match. Nobody died. So in that sense it’s not that big a deal.

          I have to focus on myself. I can’t help Rafa. I certainly don’t have the answers for him. This was such a dreadful performance that has just don’t know what to think. Rafa’s game has degraded and Fed was playing at a much higher level. I never thought that I would see the day when Fed had Rafa’s number.

          Rafa did not play like someone who wanted to win this title. He fell apart after the first set. That’s how he used to lose to Novak. Fed had the tougher matches in his draw and had to fight to get to the final. Rafa benefited from a draw that opened up with lesser opponents who did not challenge him. But Fed exposed Rafa’s weaknesses in the final.

          I don’t know what to expect from Rafa in the clay season. But he is nothing t showing that competitive spirit and desire these days. I sensed trouble when he lost so easily to Querrey in the Acapulco final. That set off alarm bells. What has happened since has only reinforced those concerns.

          Rafa has not won titles this year. That is what gives confidence and belief. Fed and his team made changes in the last two years. It’s paid off. Rafa and his team did nothing for two years. Whatever they are doing now us not getting it done. I think that Rafa has regressed from the AO.

          I don’t know what to think after this latest loss.

          • NNY, I’m positive about clay. I think Rafa played subpar tennis in this match partly due to the humidity. Fed was also sweating a lot, but Rafa as we know used to sweat a lot and humidity made things worse for him. Maybe, that’s the cause of him looking resigned after losing the first set, for he might be thinking he’s not going to last long in such humid conditions (that 2011 final came to mind when Rafa had nothing left in the third set TB and lost).

            Anyway, I feel Rafa didn’t have the belief that he would win this match and I think his mind would turn quickly to the clay season once this match was over. Rafa will always take the positive out of this (unlike us, me included), and he will concentrate on winning on clay. If he has a successful clay season, he will then think of winning on other surfaces, maybe not grass, but the USO series and then the indoor HC season.

            If his game improves during the clay season, then I feel he may feel confident and have a good second HC season on quicker HCs, it’s on the quicker HCs that Rafa plays with more aggression.

          • Lucky,

            As always I respect and value your thoughts and perspective. I do remember that 2011 Miami final so well! I remember the commentators talking about an exhausted Rafa on the sidelines at the end of that match. It’s always physical with Novak, but that match really took it out of Rafa. That was Rafa’s annus horribilus, when he couldn’t beat Novak.

            I think the humid conditions really got to Rafa in this final. He went off court after the first set and changed his entire outfit.

            I do agree that Rafa will take positives out of this latest loss. But it was the way he seemed to just fall apart with his forehand and ROS. I hope that I am wrong about his game regressing after the AO.

            I hope that you are right about Rafa getting it together on clay. You are usually honest about your concerns regarding Rafa and the state of his game. I would like nothing more than to see Rafa have success on clay and start playing his best.

            As I said, perspective is important. This was not the end of the world. I sensed that Rafa would most likely not win this match. I just remember a time when Rafa hated to lose. This time he seemed resigned to it.

            Anyway, tennis moves on. I will hope for better things ahead.

            Thanks for your take on what lies ahead.
            ?

          • Nny….Sorry,a little bit late to reply…how r u since we last chat?Hope u feel much better…You have a right attitude Nny…this is just a tennis..no use to pondered or torture ourselves because of it…and I agree with u regarding Rafa…I’m not sure how he will fare on clay because to me this is not about a surface,it’s something that still in his head..but,to be fair to him,let’s see how he’s handle MC…sure,no Roger there but his old nemesis Novak is going to be there…oh,well…

          • Mira, I doubt that on clay this season, Fed and/or Djoko are in Rafa’s head. After the MC and Barcelona titles, I doubt he’s ‘afraid’ to face Djoko on clay. I would think his loss to Djoko and Murray was due more to his own game, when he was affected by his wrist issue. I mean he wasn’t afraid of Murray on clay right?

            I really feel that after reaching three finals on HCs, Rafa should be confident that he’ll do better on clay, for HC isnt his forte but clay court is.

            I also don’t think Fed will live in Rafa’s head now, I mean it’s not like Rafa hadn’t lost to Fed on HCs/grass. He was losing to Fed on grass and indoor HCs in 2006; lost to Fed on clay, grass and indoor HCs in 2007, but he learned to overcomeFed. I would even think that if Rafa does well and wins FO, he will beat Fed in the USO series should they meet. It’s not like Rafa didn’t have his chances at the AO or even in this Miami final, it’s just that he hadn’t the confidence when it mattered, i.e. converting BPs, when in the past he was so good at doing. A few titles in the pocket and he will start believing in himself, and it’s on clay that he will win his titles.

            I think Rafa will beat Djoko on clay should they meet, for I doubt Djoko is that formidable again, at least not so soon.

          • Oh,u really think so Lucky?To think back,I don’t know why rafa have a confidence and self belief issue atm…he’s almost win AO and really did well on HC this year….I’m very very curious what exactly rafa’s problem…Hope he can win 1 or 2 titles on clay to restore back his self belief…but Lucky,i’m not so sure he will beat Novak ifthey’re meet again…not when he’s so low on confidence at the mo IMO…but I really really hope that you’re right Lucky!I really am!

          • MA,

            So Novak is going to be at MC! I wasn’t sure about that. Oh well!

            If I had not gone through what I did, then I might be more upset about Rafa’s loss. But it is a tennis match in the end. I thought Rafa would play better, but it was not meant to be. I knew that Fed was playing with great confidence after winning titles. That is what Rafa needs. That is what gives you real confidence and belief.

            I hope that Rafa can defend his title at MC. I hope he doesn’t have to face Novak until the final.

  82. Is this only Fed’s second time winning AO, IW and Miami? Djoko done it in 2011, 2015 and 2016, so Djoko still better than Fed this part of the season.

    • Why do you think he’s low in confidence, after reaching three finals?

      I think we expect too much from Rafa; Fed’s on fire. I predicted Fed would lose this final based on the assumption that he would be a bit more tired than Rafa, and Rafa would be determined to beat Fed to get his Miami title for the first time.

      Go to the Atp website and read the Shannessy’s brain game article about this match. He too felt that Rafa’s FH was the determining factor for Rafa at least in winning or losing this match, if we’re just looking from Rafa’s perspective.

      It’s Fed who’s the more determined one in the final, Rafa looked deflated after losing the first set. Rafa had his chances at BPs but did not convert and that’s the problem. It’s unlike IW where Rafa wasn’t having many chances.

      I do think if Rafa was a bit more aggressive and stepped inside the court more often, taking the ball a bit earlier and took time away from Fed, he might even win the match. This was what I was talking about prior to the match; alas,Rafa wasn’t feeling comfortable stepping inside the court and so he was playing from well behind the baseline and so hitting some short balls. Notice that once he hit a short ball to the centre of Fed’s end of the court, Rafa looked lost, as Fed was there getting the ball and Rafa had no idea where Fed was going to hit the ball and Rafa thus was hesitant in moving his legs to either right or left and so Fed would have an easy winner. If Rafa is going to continue playing like this on the HCs or on grass, he’s not going to win.

      On clay I feel it’s a bit different, as he’s so comfortable on clay and knows exactly where he wants to hit the ball and he could glide so well on clay that he could buy a bit of time. I feel Djoko won’t be ready so soon to be formidable on clay, and it’s a good time for Rafa to beat him so that it’ll help Rafa regain his confidence.

      • Lucky…On top of your comments u asked me why I feel rafa is low on confidence but at the bottom of your comment..u said “it’s a good time for rafa to beat him so it’ll help rafa regain his confidence”…

        So,that mean’s you’re agree with me that his confidence is not so high atm?And to answer your question…yeah,that’s what I’m wondering..why he still low in confidence..he did really well on HC this year but as we can see from his performance in the 2nd sets…rafa of old would have brushed aside his loss in the 1st set and just playing like nothing happened at all..when his form dropped significantly in the 2nd sets,IMO at that time he’s already lost his battle with himself..that’s why he made a string of UE’s..sure Roger contributed as well but the thing is if Rafa full of confidence he will not give up easily..he will keep on fighting but last nite it shows clearly in his face that he don’t belief in himself to beat Roger…

        When we see Sascha or Nick’s playing,we can see the confidence that oozed from their physics and their shots but can u tell me it’s the same with rafa on the 2nd sets last nite?

        • Nah, the ‘regain confidence’ at the bottom paragraph was meant to refer to when facing Djoko; see my subsequent post on that.

          • Lucky..hahaha..when I see your 1st post,i immediately replied but after I posted my comment then just then I realized that your 2nd post just entered without my notice…that’s okay,we’ll just see how he’s gonna fare on clay after this…

        • Mira, Rafa is not low in confidence but that doesn’t mean he’s high in confidence either! It’s just that he hasn’t won anything despite reaching finals so that may have affected him when he’s playing in a final again, more tensed than low in confidence.

          You can’t compare Rafa to Zverev or Kyrgios, they are the challengers, the underdogs and so they play like there’s nothing to lose. Rafa doesn’t behave that way, he plays like not to lose and so he’ll be more pressurized.

          Remember 2009 to 2010, when Rafa wasn’t confident after coming back from injury? He had not won any title during that stretch of ten months, until MC2010. During that stretch, he did reach final at Shanghai (lost to Davy), reached Doha final (lost again to Davy) but he kept working and believing and finally he won at MC and thereafter started his incredible run of winnning three slams in a row and on different surfaces.

          I think I did mention earlier that maybe Rafa didn’t believe he could beat this Fed on the HC, and so after losing the first set, he was a bit deflated, but he still fought hard but with less intensity I feel.

          I really think Rafa will do well on clay this year, even beating Djoko on clay. They may not meet in finals but in SF or QF, so it won’t be too tense for Rafa. On clay, Rafa is a different animal.

          • Okay Lucky…it’s not long before we find out another version of Rafa..hope you are right Lucky…

  83. Not a great match. Nadal at about the level he’s been playing, maybe a little better. His serve was good and that kept him close. Roger not sharp, ROS was much worse than it’s been lately, and he looked more than a little tired in the heat. He also had a bit of luck with net cords. But still, he got it done. Incredible achievement at his age. Sorry for all the Rafa fans, especially Mira. See you on the dirt!

    • Hey Joe!Thank u for your commies up there…err..I’ve already gave a congrats to u up there as well..hope u read it Joe!Enjoy it okay?U deserve it as much as Roger to celebrate Joe…I’m happy for u!Yeah…see u on the dirt…although I’m not so sure of the outcome either…rafa seems still lacking in confidence and I don’t think it will change much even on his beloved dirt Joe…

    • You were right. Roger was not sharp in the first set and also couldn’t get in top gear entire match but still managed to win because of confidence level he is having. On the other hand Rafa do not believe he can win big title matches on the surface other than clay. Rafa could not take benefit of situation.

  84. Just too good from Federer. Chapeau to TMF. Simply inadequate from Rafa. He needs to go back to the drawing board and clean up his act for the clay season.

  85. Congratulations to Federer!
    Hope he plays better than this when Nole shows up on the other side of the net.

    As for Rafa, well, there’s always clay to turn back too. That’s his real forte and he will come good there for sure. The MC trophy is waiting!

  86. Not the best Fedal of the three we seen this year.
    But personally i can just admire what Fed is doing.
    Imagine if someone have tell you three months ago Fed will be 20-1 after Miami whith AO, IW and Miami titles. Just incredible. Even if he doesn’t play any game on clay, he will have a shot to be number 1 at the end of the year. Crazy !

  87. This Fed was really beatable for Rafa. He really messed it up. The blame is on the forehand. I thought he was serving much better and for the first time second serves were consistently aggressive.

    I am feeling so bad 🙁 6-3 6-4 is such a routine win. 2 more games won than IW. God that forehand was so VULGAR. There were a couple of unlucky net cords but the overall play was dismal!

    • VR, had Rafa stepped in to take his BH DTL early during a BP, he could have won that game and broke Fed’s serve in set one and the end result might be different.

      The problem is not only the FH, but Rafa’s court position during the match. He hardly stepped inside the court unless being forced to!

      • which BP is this? I missed the BP’s he had in the first game.

        I know, he is just not confident enough to step in when needed. When he tried to do it, the vulgar forehand was there.

        This is very disappointing indeed.

  88. It’s pretty disappointing to be honest, for reaching three finals on HCs but fails to win any. Rafa is just not good enough on the HCs now, with all these HC players around, as he refuses to step inside the court to play more aggressive tennis. This match is winnable by him, but he’s just too tentative when having BP chances.

    Again, just concentrates on clay, and forget about grass and HCs, if you insist on playing clay court game on the HCs.

    • Agree Lucky!I wish u send him a message..tell him what we thought about his game…I wonder what his reaction would be??

    • No but how do you continue to step in when you are hitting your forehand miles out. Knowing how precise your forehand has been in your career, it must be baffling for him. Anyway, it’s been years now and he must be used to it. He should still try to step in more.

      How was Rafa looking in the trophy ceremony? My stream ended.

      • He was classy, joking and smiling as always. Great to hear him speaking Spanish to his fans towards the end of his speach.

      • VR, sorry, I mean the FH DTL when he had BP in the fifth game in set one. Rafa was hitting from so far behind the baseline and that’s the problem. He hit it into the net from so far back; it’s not like he didn’t have time to move forward. In that game his FH was still great, having just hit a FHDTL winner two points before this BP.

        To me that’s the problem with Rafa, he could have stepped into the court even when running from left to right or vice versa, but chose to stay far back to do his running. It’s really clay court style tennis.

  89. Roger announces to BG on court that he won’t play any clay lead ups to French Open.

    Wise decision.

    The guy can play himself into condition better than anyone. Still a threat in Paris IMO.

  90. Matt Zemek‏ @mzemek
    Perhaps the sweetest fact of today for Federer:

    He was the player who had logged more miles heading in, which is not historically typical.

  91. And I agree with VR that this Fed is so beatable! Fed was quite ordinary by his standard, but Rafa still failed to take advantage.

    It’s such a pity, as Rafa was serving so well (surprisingly!), was winning the rallies when he mixed things up, but once he lost the first set, he looked so deflated, almost resigned, and his level dropped. I think in his mind he didn’t have the belief that he could win, what a shame when some of his fans here think that he could if he played with a bit more aggression.

    Fedal matches now almost always anti-climatic, after that AO final. It’s quite a disappointing match, it would still be had Rafa won it, full of errors and BP chances, not of high quality. Fed is ordinary but Rafa is below par!

    • luckystar, do you really think Fed would have played same level not matter what? Should Rafa had player better, Roger would have adjusted. Exactly as he did against RBA. He played just enough to win that match. Although dropped his level too much and could have been punished. And then raised his level considerable to face Kyrgios. He is very flexible and adjustable. He could have played much better today if he faced a stronger Rafa.

      • A stronger Rafa would be more competitive than this, also don’t forget Fed started off facing BPs in his first service game, how’s that due to Rafa’s level of play?

  92. He (Roger) will need time to have brain cells regenerated, body parts, ect…
    I intentionally didn’t see the match or even watch the score.

    Is it 2007 yet?

    Was the match any good?

  93. @christophclarey
    Another smart move from a player who has almost always made smart moves when it comes to scheduling
    ESPNTennis‏ @ESPNTennis
    Roger Federer to Brad Gilbert: “I probably won’t play any clay court events except the French. I need a rest. My body needs healing.”

  94. Rafa fans should be grateful for small mercies. At least the crowd showed a modicum of respect and didn’t indulge in the disgraceful heckling witnessed during the Kyrgios SF. It helped there was a sizeable contingent of Spanish supporter in the stands.

    Rafa appeared resigned about the loss and as always gave his customary gracious speech.

  95. He. Keeps. On. Winning. He got this one done because his confidence and more aggressive play. Even if he wasn’t as sharp as recent tournaments, he kept playing aggressive and coming forward and holy moly does Roger take the ball early so well. As I suspected, Roger would win because of his lesser chance of being broken. I did think Rafa would probably take a set though just because of Fed’s fatigue. Roger showed some signs of weariness but overall his game style isn’t as taxing as others so may not have been as tired as others would be despite his age.

  96. I know it’s hard to think about at this moment, but Rafa had worse pre-clay season results last year, and still went on to win MC and Barcelona, beating Murray, Kei, and the then-defending RG champ along the way, and was considered a top contender for RG… There’s no reason that can’t happen this year…

  97. Assuming Roger does skip clay before Paris, Rafa needs to earn 2340 points out of a possible 3500 over four clay lead ups to catch Roger for the coveted Top 4 spot heading into Paris.

    A win today would have reduced that to 1540 which would have been reasonable.

  98. Well, had to leave for business dinner which I almost missed, and could not see the end of it…once Fed broke Rafa in the second I knew it was all over. Rafa had his chances, failed to capitalize on those break points..,such a shame…If only he was able to win that first set, things would have been different…

    It was an anti climatic match, Rafa making errors but saving himself with good serve which is encouraging! Fed got lucky with that net cord, but Rafa was already making it easy for him with his UE, so inevitable came in the end…I really thought Rafa would make ir more difficult for Fed since he started playing well…unfortunately, the thing that I feared the most, Rafa’s inconsistency cost him this match..,

    However, Rafa did much worse last year and won titles on clay and if not getting injured could have done much more…so there is hope…

    IMO Rafa is heading in the right direction. Today he did not play well and he lost. Even by playing sub par tennis he had his chances. Let’s see how things will go on clay,..

    Fed is smart to skip clay tourneys. Serbian commentators were saying he would also skip FO, but guess that’s just their speculation…

    I think Rafa is geared up and will be strong on clay. I really think so…

    Vamos Champ! It’s your time now!

  99. Stephanie Myles‏ @OpenCourt
    Fed said knee felt wonky on clay last year. Physio thinks surface might have been a contributing factor – one reason to minimize clay play

    Fraser‏Verified account @stu_fraser
    Federer: “Wimbledon has to be the biggest goal now. I will stay on hard courts for the next month & get on clay two weeks before the French”

    Svenja Mastroberardi‏
    @svenja_mastro
    Federer repeats in interview with SRF that he’ll skip clay except FO, apparently he counted the weeks: “I’ll take 10 weeks off now”. 🙂

  100. Miami Open champion Roger Federer solidifies grip on GOAT

    “Coming into 2017, Roger Federer had lost 23 of 34 matches to Rafael Nadal.
    In the sometimes heated discussion regarding the greatest men’s tennis player of all time, it was the only serious asterisk.

    And now, three months into this young season, Federer has taken some positive steps toward erasing that qualifier. Three big, swift strides, to be precise.

    Suddenly, 23-14 doesn’t seem so one-sided. And the GOAT argument doesn’t seem quite as complicated. Especially the way things have gone this season.

    And for now, there is no GOAT argument.”

    http://www.espn.com/tennis/story/_/id/19060144/miami-open-tennis-roger-federer-solidifies-grip-goat

    • Oh, I was looking at the article but failed to look at who posted it in the first place; I’ll be more careful next time. Certainly not wanting to deal with people I don’t want to deal with that’s for sure!!

      • Haha!

        Peace LS.

        I still luvs ya! One of the most knowledgeable tennis fans here always. We need you to debate with Joe!

        Glad you’re here and willing to put up with me. Regardless whether you comment or not (I KNOW you read my posts though.)

  101. @BenRothenberg 6m6 minutes ago
    London field as of now:
    1. Federer
    2. Nadal
    3. Wawrinka
    4. Dimitrov
    5. Tsonga
    6. Thiem
    7. Sock
    8. Goffin
    Alts: Carreño Busta, Kyrgios

    Only guy who started 2017 in top-7 who’d currently qualify for London: Wawrinka

    Murray, Djokovic, Raonic, Nishikori, Cilic, Monfils lagging

  102. One non logical factor might be overlooked:

    Despite how well Rafa played in Miami, the lucky star of Miami would not be at his side. MIAMI land is just not the place for Rafa to shine.

    Had both played the same level as we watched at another place today, Rafa luck would have been different today. Watch all the net cords.

    RG is the tournament held every year on around Rafa birthday, that might bring him his best star of the time.

    Rog being born on 8/8 to some customs is believed to be at the luckiest number, that might explain he has the biggest supporters wherever he goes.

    Unexplainable logic, no?

    🙂

  103. Fed just too good on the hard atm and will probably win Wimbledon.

    Stepping in a taking time away from your opponent doesn’t work so well on clay hence why Rafa will continue to do well. I think he’s a great chance of winning RG given his solid results on hard this year.

    • It seems to me Rafa is playing clay court style tennis on the HCs in preparation for the clay court season!

      Rafa didn’t look too upset to me, perhaps his mind was already thinking of the clay court season. I guess at this age, he has to target only certain events to play well and to win, can’t target to win everything. Fed is already doing that, targeting HCs and Grass.

      If Rafa wins many titles come this clay court season, I think he will then concentrate on the USO, and not Wimbledon though he will still play there, just like Fed does at the FO. In 2013 Rafa lost in R1 at Wimbledon and then won the USO series masters and slam; perhaps less fatigued at that time after losing early at Wimbledon? Rafa usually played more aggressive tennis at the USO, probably knowing on quicker courts that’s the only way to have chances to win.

      If Djoko and Murray can’t get back to their best, then Fedal may sweep all the slams (and I feel if Rafa wins the FO, he may be confident enough to do well at the USO HC series). Rafa should at least learn from his 2013, i.e. to be more aggressive even when he may not reach his 2013 level.

  104. Fed is saying he wont play on clay except RG but I doubt that..I think he will enroll in 1 of them..Why enroll in RG at all if he is not that keen?

    What if he goes deep in RG? Say semi/F etc..how will that affect his wimby goal?

  105. There is a good chance Rafa may do better on clay than 2015 and 2016..

    he does not have the invincible pressure on clay this year since he has not performed that well on clay from 2015 onwards..last year yes he got injured but 2015 was a huge let down anyway..

    RG it depends on the draw and I expect as always he gets a bad draw at RG (clubbed with Novak)

  106. In Miami, the first set score could have been 6 3 in Rafas favor too..he was a bit unlucky to be honest..he should have played more brave on BPs

  107. Fed seems to have clearly turned this rivalry to his side now..23-10 to 23-14..

    reminiscent of Novak..Rafa..it was 16-7 at one time and then Novak got it to 16-14 and then rafa took it to 19-15 and finally 22-15…ofcourse after that 2015 started and no need to tell further..

  108. From Next Year Rafa should skip Indian Wells/Miami to remain fresh on European Clay swing to enhance chances of winning masters and RG.

    If he continue to play tournaments after tournaments like this year, it will cost him dearly as he is getting older and already reaching 31.

    • Yeah, I feel the same too. Rafa should just forget about IW/Miami and concentrates on the clay season, just like Fed skipping clay events (except the slam) to concentrate on grass.

      Rafa will be 32 next year, just concentrate on events that he has better chances of winning. It’s not necessary to win at Miami; Fed has not won at MC and Rome too but it doesn’t bother him; Djoko hasn’t won Cincy and the Olympics; there’s always something missing in each of their CV, so it’s not a big deal winning Miami or not.

      • I agree with you, Luckystar. At this point in his career, I don’t think Rafa should be as concerned with non-clay surfaces, with the exception of the three non-clay slams maybe. The only hardcourt event that Rafa hasn’t won yet that I would love to see Rafa win before he retires is the WTF, but if he doesn’t win it, it really doesn’t mean anything in the grand scheme of things. Same with Olympics singles for Fed.

        I really think Rafa is in such a good position to do extremely well in the clay season. His court positioning is absolutely different, or better, than it was the previous couple seasons, and I think that will make playing against Rafa really difficult for these other players. Even if he played Fed at RG, I still see Rafa as having a solid advantage on clay because it still favors his style much more than Fed’s. It is much harder for Fed to hit through Rafa on clay, and as long as Rafa stays closer to the baseline and hits deep shots, he can keep Fed or anyone else pinned back much more and can impose his game and dictate. Just because Rafa didn’t take a title on hardcourts, to me it is not reflective of how poised Rafa is to kick ass on clay… He just came up against a guy who was playing really aggressive, effective hardcourt tennis. I truly believe that you should be psyched for Rafa in the clay season, Luckystar. 🙂

        • Yes I will, Kevin. I’ve confidence in Rafa, that he will do well on clay; and if he wins the FO, I feel he will carry that momentum to the USO series, just like in 2013. It seemed that Rafa did better at the USO series since 2010 compared to AO/IW/Miami (except 2015/2016 when he did poorly at both).

          • Yep, Rafa would definitely be so much better off in summer hardcourts if he can win RG. I even think he could do well at Wimbledon if he picked up confidence on clay. I, personally, really hope that Novak and Andy can get back to good form for RG and thereafter… It would be cool if we could have more than just Rafa, and maybe Fed and Stan, contending for RG. I liked how in last year’s clay season, Djok, Murray, and Rafa were all in good form going into RG. I hope for the same thing this year, except I REALLY hope that Rafa doesn’t get hurt pre-Roland Garros… That should be obvious, though- no one should ever want anyone to be injured…

  109. I agree with Fed, Rafa will tear through the clay season. If Djoko and Murray can’t get back to top form, then Fedal may end season as the top two.

    I think Fed knows Rafa better than anyone of us know him (Rafa). Fed probably knows Rafa is steadily getting back to his good to great level. If Rafa can make HC major/masters final without playing his best tennis yet, what more Rafa could do on clay!

    I’m not worried about Rafa’s H2H vs whoever; if he bags a few important clay titles including the FO, he’ll be back to his old self and his old self will be hard to beat.

    Rafa is steadily improving his BH and his serve. He needs to improve his FH and ROS, and tries playing more inside the court, to compensate for loss of speed.

    • Yes I always pay rapt attention to what Fed says about his rivals..He surely knows what state Rafa is better than any of us.

  110. Just watched the highlights of Nadal Dimitrov from AO semi..where has that Rafa gone…from that tourney, Rafa has regressed so much..the Rafa we saw in Zverev, Milos, Dimi match..the one who fought fought fought, showed aggression..where art thou Rafa?

  111. Sanju, the others you mentioned are not able to exploit Rafa’s weaknesses as well as Fed can. To beat this Fed, Rafa needs to be fast but his speed is reduced and his lateral movement is slow. He used to chase down every ball but he can no longer do so. To beat Fed who is an amazing athlete, Rafa has to be fast. He is not fast enough to move fast enough to his left to hit DTL FH most of the time so he plays safe and goes CC but even that is impacted ( errors or not enough depth) because in his slower scramble, his footwork isn’t what it was. I do not know whether this is temporary or permanent. Let us hope on clay where the ball moves slower this lack of speed will not be that critical. Hope they don’t install fast clay at RG like they did at Madrid.

    • Nah, why then Rafa could do it at the AO final despite his 5+hours SF match with one less day of rest (compared to Fed)?

      To me the differences are : 1) AO is a slam so Rafa would go all out to do his best; 2) Miami conditions doesn’t suit Rafa, he dislikes humidity; 3) Rafa may not want to stress his knees or gets injured when the clay season is around the corner, unlike at the AO when Rafa would still have time to heal or recover; 4) the IW match vs Fed came too soon when Rafa was still finding his way and adjusting to the conditions whilst Fed being better on the HCs had no such problem.

      Rafa will be fine on clay, it’s important he arrives at clay in good physical conditions and battle ready which I think he is now.

  112. Of course another reason is that Fed is playing extremely well at the moment. I know Fed is going all out to win points because he has the intention of getting as many points as possible so that he can afford to skip the clay season except the FO, and still can have a good seeding on grass. Fed’s target is Wimbledon, not the FO.

    • They are both targets – Wimby being the biggest.

      Fed doesn’t need lead ups to do well in Paris. Only top form Rafa or top form Nole have more than 50% chance to stop him fro m keeping Grand Slam run alive.

  113. I don’t know what is ailing Rafa but his lateral movement is impaired. I am not the only one who has noticed this. So I am waiting for Monte Carlo to see whether his movement and his forehand is better on clay. No matter how good your defence is, you need a great weapon. Without that forehand working Rafa will not be invincible on clay.
    One of the reasons Muzz was slow in the slam stakes was because his forehand wasn’t good. The first thing that Lendl did was to work on it.
    Poor Muzz! I am not surprised Muzz got shingles. Apparently it strikes if you are too stressed But on the other hand if you have taken the chickenpox vaccine, it shouldn’t happen. Probably Muzz already had chicken px in childhood in which case the virus would forever lurk in his system and strike when Muzz is under great stress.

  114. Fed has a lot of respect for Rafa on clay! But if Rafa doesn’t play well at the other clay events leading up to RG, Fed will likely make RG his target for a double career slam. That maybe more prestigious than surpassing Sampras on grass. Besides if Muzz doesn’t get back his form, Wimbledon may also be Fed’s. US Open is always willing to pull out all stops to please Fed so winning RG will keep alive the dream of a calendar slam. But I think US Open is always kind of wide open and nobody can count on winning it. I don’t know why this is so. Near the end of the season? The top players have already played three slams so whoever is freshest among them or someone else if all four are not in A form?

    • Mary, why are you thinking so far ahead? How can Fed win FO when he won’t be having much warm up on clay? You talk as if he’s superman!

      Fed knows very well he won’t have the energy to do well on clay plus on grass; I think he’s the one who knows very well what he can and what he can’t do, not his fans or any other fans! It’s only his fans own fantasy of a double career slam for Fed, whenFed doesn’t even bother about spending much time on clay.

      Even if we take out Rafa,Djoko and Murray from the equation, there are still Stan, Thiem and Kei. On clay they are formidable opponents for Fed. Don’t forget Stan and Kei took Fed to five sets on quick HCs at the AO, what more when it’s on slow clay.

      Fed is realistic and wants to concentrate his efforts at Wimbledon; at the USO there will be many players who are capable of winning there – Rafa, Djoko, Murray, Delpo, Cilic, Stan, and maybe some young players like Zverev and Kygrios. The USO is much harder for Fed to win imo, after all the matches he would have played during the season as a 35 yo.

      • Federer IS superman in tennis sense with Rafa traditionally his kryptonite.

        He practically had no lead up to Australia except a couple of Hopman exho matches and he did quite well in Melbourne.

        Only in-form Rafa or in-form Nole have a better than 50% chance to stop this Fed in Paris.

        Fed made USO final in 2015 and only God-mode Master Class Nole could stop him there. Fed is even better now. Only peak Rafa and peak Nole have better than 50% chance to beat him there.

      • Lucky star, any of the big 4 CAN win any of the four majors if they play well enough compared to the others. I certainly don’t think that Fed will win FO, but I’m not naive enough to say he can’t… It goes to back to the same thing I’ve said to you before- just because someone says that Federer, or any player, can win Roland Garros or back to back masters or whatever it may be, there is no reason to think that anyone thinks that he is therefore “Superman” or “unbeatable” or whatever else you think that people think he is. And anyone who ever says that anyone, including Rafa, “will definitely win” any given tournament is a moron and not worth listening to… No one is EVER guaranteed to win any big tournament. No one is EVER unbeatable… It’s ok to admit that any number of players CAN win RG without it meaning that they are superhuman.

        • Kevin what are you talking about?? Fed not playing any warm up event on clay is not going to win the FO, simple as that and that’s my take. He’s not Superman!

          I dont know what your post is all about, you’re very confusing, at least to me.

          • Why would winning RG without playing a warmup tournament make him “superman”? It would be incredible, yes, but I’m quite sure he wouldn’t be the first person to win a major without playing a warmup. What if he had a really good draw? What if he didn’t have to face any of the big 3 for some reason? Or what if he did have to face one of them and played an incredible match? I know this is clay we’re talking about, but he managed to pull off the AO with on a few exhibition matches in the previous half a year. He wasn’t superman for doing that, he just played really well, and the defending champion lost early. Why couldn’t that potentially happen at RG? Yes the chances are low, but why you say it’s not possible?

          • Saying Fed is not going to win Paris so absolutely is as absolute as saying that he’s unbeatable.

            #IronyIsEverywhere

          • I read somewhere that Fed is skipping most of the clay season because it does something bad to his knees. If true, then Fed is not going to go all out to win unless he finds himself in the final after going through a favorable draw ( euphemism for rigged draw : courtesy RG) and without facing the big three (probably laid low by food poisoning -courtesy RG?).

          • Fed does have a chance to win the French. Do people think he’s gonna not practice on clay during those weeks. He just won’t be in as many intense situations during those weeks to come up against in match play. Roger probably wants and needs a mental break just as much as a physical. He will be fresh both mentally and physically just as he was in Melbourne and we know what happened there. Yes his chances aren’t high because it’s the French but with Novak and Andy slumping and his four consecutive wins over Rafa, a French open title for Fed is, in my opinion, for likely tis year than it has been in a while.

        • Why do you persist in using words like “moron” when talking about other people’s opinions or predictions? No one here is an expert by any means. We are all equal and gave a right to our opinions, even if you happen to disagree. I don’t see the need to characterize anyone’s thoughts as “moronic”, yet you have done so more than once.

          No one here is God. All opinions should be respected.

          My comments about Fed were grossly misconstrued. Now I see that he is being installed as a favorite for RG. This is the thing that I was attempting to address in saying that some Fed fans appear to think that their man is now unbeatable. Is that “moronic”? That is how it seems. So we are picking Fed to be the favorite for RG, Wimby and the USO?

          I am with lucky in not assuming that Fed will be the one to beat at RG. I can see Fed being a serious contender at Wimby. We will have to see how Novak and Murray do as they resume playing.

          • I also think that Rafa has been the favorite in the past to win RG. He was the closest to being a sure thing, if ever there was one. Just one loss at RG in 2009 to Sod in the fourth round! I don’t think it was moronic to install Rafa as the odds on favorite at RG. Then Rafa had his slump after 2014 and things changed. But even now, his record at RG is unmatched. Records that may well never be equaled.

            I just don’t understand why anybody would fw the need to use offensive language when referencing other people’s thoughts. Disagree if you will, but being insulting is the last refuge if those who cannot make an argument.

          • Again, from what I read, he didn’t insult anyone here because no on said he was unbeatable.

            That was his point.

            Amazing.

          • Who did I insult? When I say moron, I’m referring to when someone says that any player is “unbeatable”. Perhaps moron is too strong a word? I would never disrespect anyone for having an opinion on something. Saying that any player “can’t be beaten” is not an opinion because it’s not humanly possible… “Federer is going to be really tough to beat!”- That’s an opinion! “Federer is unbeatable. No one can beat him!”- That is a rather moronic thing to say isn’t it? Especially given that he just lost a month and a half ago? And the context of this is that Luckystar said a little while back that someone had said that Fed is unbeatable, and my response was that I don’t know why Lucky would even consider such a statement worth thinking about, let alone discussing! To me, saying flat out that any player “cannot be beaten”, or “no one can beat them”, is no different than someone saying that someone can’t die. 🙂 And I thought of the same thing when Lucky just said that Federer isn’t Superman. I was was originally trying to support Lucky in saying that she shouldn’t give any weight to any suggestion that Federer is unbeatable, or Superman, or whatever, but I seem to be getting a lot of push-back from this. It seems like a simple concept to me, but I guess not?

          • I add to My post AT 8:10 PM,

            The best approach is to identify it as a strawman because, alternately, any defense of the position you didn’t take to begin with, will just reward the strawman argument and will be countered with additional strawman arguments and round and round we go ad nauseam yada yada yada.

          • I don’t find watching a strawman fallacy succeed entertaining in the slightest.

            I’d rather call it out for what it is.

          • Who did Kevin call a “moron” or who’s thoughts did he say were moronic here? No one here from what I can tell.

            Who did he disrespect?

            Who made him favourite?

            Who said Fed was the one to beat at RG?

            Googles of strawman arguments are everywhere.

          • Recently I saw a crazy movie called “Burn after Reading”. Sometimes what goes on here reminds me of that movie.

          • Strawman argument becomes euphemism for not having an argument or being lazy. LOL!

            It’s quite amusing to have others characterize my words. But I am quite capable of speaking for myself and not being told what to think.

            I was the one who made the comment that some Fed fans seemed to think he was now invincible or unbeatable. So now saying that any player is considered unbeatable is moronic! That is implying that anyone who says it is moronic. Why bother to even go there? To make a point?

            I do not believe Fed to be unbeatable. I have said that more than once. I guess that I can assume then that my comment is not moronic! What a relief! LOL! But using that term that indicate that anyone who may think Fed is unbeatable is moronic, is unnecessary.

            It seems that this has become a battle of egos, with being right the most important thing. I feel compassion for anyone who has to throw around the words strawman argument to carelessly dismiss someone else’s argument. Winning an argument at any cost, meaning disrespecting others specifically, is a rather pointless exercise.

          • “I feel compassion for anyone who has to throw around the words strawman argument to carelessly dismiss someone else’s argument. ”

            Another strawman fallacy.

          • This was your statement…

            “I am not one who has bought into the Fed invincibility nonsense. ”

            No one else did either . It was a strawman.

            No such qualifier of “seemed to think” as claimed above.

            https://tenngrand.com/2017/04/01/miami-final-preview-and-prediction-federer-vs-nadal/comment-page-1/#comment-257521

            Followed by…

            “I am using invincibility because that is how some are perceiving Fed. Just read some of the predictions and comments from the Fed fans.”

            Again, no qualifier of “seemed to think” but that they did perceive him as such. With no reference to where it came from.

            So you are changing your own words now. No one else is.

  115. Wow..so people here are making Fed favorite for RG too? Interesting

    Ofcourse he can but a peak Nole or peak Rafa having only 50% chance to beat him? As far as I know he has never beaten Rafa at RG and even with Nole he is tied 1-1 at RG .

    I think as of now no one is the fav at RG, it all remains to be seen.

    Yes but of the 4 slams , RG favors him most in terms of draws, whether intentionally or not, I cant comment but his draws are softer at RG akways. I ma very sure Nole and Rafa will be in same qtr of half and maybe even Stan thrown in there 🙂

    • Who made Fed favourite? I didn’t.

      Who said peak Nole or peak Rafa only had only 50% chance to beat Fed? I didn’t.

      Rafa is the current betting favourite to win RG outright.

      Please read more carefully sanju. Otherwise those are careless strawman arguments you just made.

  116. No it won’t be – Murray, Djoko, Stan and Rafa would most likely be the top four after Rome and so two of them on each half of the draw. Whichever quarter Fed falls in, it won’t be easy for him, as those four are the four best players on European clay, at least in 2016.

    • Rafa will have a tough challenge passing Fed for No. 4 spot before Paris.

      Possible for sure. Most likely? Bold.

      He’ll likely need two titles and a final. Or one title and three finals. Assuming he plays all four traditional lead ups.

  117. I don’t know why people underestimate Fed on clay. Fed could have had 2 calendar slams but for Rafa. He has made the finals of RG 5 times, winning once. Of the current players, his record at RG is better than anyone else’s other than Rafa.

    • No one underestimates Fed on clay; but Fed had never enter FO without any warm up events. I doubt he would win now, when in the past he couldn’t even win when he was better prepared.

      Fed needs warm ups on grass by entering Stuggart and Halle, what more on clay which is not his fav surface?

      • You have to warm up on grass because it’s so different and mostly because there is more chance for upset and also because as I said it is Fed’s Top Priority but FO is definitely on his radar so his only chance to win both is to focus on grass with best preparations and hope that he can play himself into form in Paris, which I think is possible against mostly qualifiers and other mid-30 gen players.

    • Because Federer isn’t as good on clay as he once was and hasn’t been for years? He hasn’t made the RG final since 2011. I think the last “clay” title he won was on the blue ice at Madrid? He didn’t make his first RG final until 2006.

      • The clay will play “blue” in Paris just like AO was fastest Jim Courier could ever recall to the point that players in the locker room said courts were made fast for Fed.

        #FoolMeOnce…
        #HowManyTimes
        #Business101

  118. If Rafa seems vulnerable on clay, you can bet 100% Fed will target RG. Right now he thinks it is better to conserve his efforts for grass because Rafa rules RG. But that could change if he sees that Rafa is not the Rafa of old even on clay.

    • He already knows he’s not the Rafa of old. He wouldn’t have beaten him three times, twice easily, if he was.

      Rafa’s been vulnerable on clay for years now.

      • Not vulnerable enough at RG because he is so determined to win there. I am convinced he won at 2014 mostly on will and passion. I could see he had physical issues. Last year he probably would have won but for his wrist and from his statements it looked like he wanted to ignore it and still play until convinced it would destroy his career. Probably the memory of AO 2014 reminded him that sometimes you cannot, even with the strongest will in the world, rise above physical limitations.

    • It’s not only Rafa, don’t underestimate others like Stan, Thiem on clay!

      Fed looked vulnerable at Miami too, it’s just that Rafa didn’t go for the kill when he had the chances. I doubt Fed would be all conquering on clay.

  119. And fed will conserve energy for grass regardless of what happens.

    He knows, while not ideal, he can play himself into form at RG with easy early rounds and preferred scheduling from the French.

  120. Enough for today, I’m in need of sleep now. No point going back and forth when we are not the ones deciding who would win or who would not.

    • Well, no night matches unless they install lights just for Roger.

      Clay will be fastest in the history of the RG slams, just like AO was the fastest HC in at least fed’s career, IMO ever.

      #NID

      • Speeding up clay would be stupid… Many people have been calling for the unhomogenation (dishomogenation?) of court speeds for some years now, so varying the hardcourt speed is much needed, imo, and in the opinion of others. But that doesn’t mean speed up EVERYTHING. That would still make them homogenous haha. The point is to have variation, meaning speed up some of the courts that used to be faster before they made almost everything slower, such as Wimbledon and some hard courts. But clay?? That would be ridiculous. Keep the clay and about half the hardcourts slower. I’m very much skeptical the idea of a business/marketing-fueled, entire-ATP/ITF-involved, Federer-specific speeding up of the AO, especially when I’ve been hearing many people involved in tennis (not all Federazzi) complaining about almost complete lack of variation in non-clay court speeds.

        BUT, Hawks, if there really does end up being a BLANANT change of speed at RG, I will absolutely recognize your argument as a good possibility! 🙂

        • Kevin, how do you plan to measure court surface speed ? Many players said AO speed had been changed and it was suspected that AO had done it to favor Fed. You obviously did not buy that story. So what will convince you about the speed change at RG if players claim it has happened?
          I don’t think the draw rigging argument also cut much ice with you. Hawks pointed out that there were 13 consecutive non clay slams with Fed and Nole in the same half ( probability of 1 in 8192 -surely pretty blatant).
          So I am curious. What will convince you that the surface speed has changed ?

        • Kevin, they gave the court speed for AO this year as 45, even faster than the fastest surface of them all, i.e. Shanghai at 44. So, yes, the court was sped up, whether intentional or not.

  121. I would like Fed meeting Rafa on RG clay. Rafa will destroy him and everyone else on his path to the 10th! You will see!

    Vamos!

    • MA,

      It’s great to have a chance to chat with you! Just a good-hearted soul with a generous heart who wants to have a real discussion about Rafa!

      I read the article and found it interesting. One can indeed look at Rafa’s start to this season in two ways. I have gone back and forth myself. I can see both the glass half full and the glass half empty.

      The question is, where does Rafa go from here? The failure to win any titles is a concern for me. I thought Acapulco gave Rafa a perfect opportunity to win a title. But it didn’t happen. Now Rafa has lost to Fed three times.

      I wonder what might have been if Rafa had won the AO final. Would that have made the difference?

      I don’t know if Rafa’s best tennis is behind him yet. But I think we will get the answer in the clay season. If Rafa can’t turn it around and win titles in the warm up tournaments leading to RG, then that will tell us a lot.

      So we will have to sit back and watch it play out. I am hoping that Rafa will do well in clay and that he still has great days ahead of him!

      Thank you my angel for all your support during this difficult time for me. Your messages every day really helped more than you know!

      You are a genuinely decent person!

      ?♥️?

      • NNY, even Fed had said that Rafa would tear through the clay season (something to that effect), so have some faith in Rafa on clay. His main rival knows him well esp after playing against him thrice this season so far. Mind you, two of those three victories were hard fought ones, where Fed had to play with much focus and intensity, if not the matches might have gone the other way in his opponent’s favor.

        • Lucky,

          Yes, I did read what Fed said. I guess he ought to know! I really am trying to have faith and believe that Rafa will get it together on the clay. Nothing would make me happier. It’s true that he’s playing much better than he was last year up to the clay season. Then he caught fire and who knows what would have happened if not for the wrist injury.

          Your positivity is great to read!

    • Well, nothing in the article that we have not already known. We are know Rafa failed at crucial moments when he had the chances to secure the set/match or to turn things around.

      It has been like that since 2015, though he has improved, from losing matches in the earlier rounds to at least losing in finals. Hopefully this year can be like his 2010 where he could turn things around in his favor when he plays on clay at MC.

  122. I agree with Hawkeye about Federers decent chances at RG. I think Hawkeye is right to say that Djokovic and Nadal would have to be in decent form to beat this Federer even on Clay. I would be honest here, right now RG could go either way depending upon number of factors like draws, the type of form Novak appears, and ability of Nadal whether he can regain the old forehand and athletisim at RG.

    Federer’s new improved weapons like ROS, especially backhand could get him a decent chance at RG. If Federer says he doesn’t care about RG that much, I think he is being tennis-political. He would certainly take a rest before RG and would go for RG with a certain will to get double carrier slam knowing his chances better than ever especially when he has nothing to lose at this point and his mind is full of confidence. I think Federer will adopt the clay playing first few rounds. His tennis genetics are so wonderfully programmed that he doesn’t need that kind of hectic number of matches to adapt on certain surface.

    We might think that Wawrinka’s backhand and aggression made him win RG in his 30’s against super Novak and right now Federer’s backhand is almost as good, if not better, as Wawrinka’s and his remaining arsenals are, may be, slightly better than Wawrinka’s like forhand, movement, agression, ROS, netplay, and probabily serve too.

    Nadal is no doubt the biggest favourite going this years’s RG considering his clay court record and probabily current decent form but it is still not a guaranty due that he will win RG for sure due to certain factors.

    • I would take Stan’s BH on clay over Fed’s. On clay Stan could blow anyone except Rafa off the court with that BH of his. Fed may not have the chance to move forward if Stan hit his big BH to push him back. On clay Stan has time to get to the shot; don’t forget that on quick AO court, Stan pushed Fed to five sets before losing.

      • Wawrinka’s backhand might have not blown off OLD Rafa at RG but he can actually blow current Rafa off, pardon me, on RG. I am not sure if Rafa can regain his old sharpness, athletisim, worrier type defence while running relentlessly and forhand at RG. If Rafa may meet Wawrinka, I would go for Wawrinka to be honest. But, I think if Nadal might meet current Djokovic in RG final, I think might have an upper edge.

        I am not sure about what can happen if current Rafa could meet current Federer in RG final. May be 55 to 45 in Rafa’s favour. But, it could get either way. Apart from RG 2008, RG finals between Fedal were pretty competitive despite of Federer’s less confident appearance against Nadal and defeat scares.
        I personally feel if current Federer with full of confidence, nothing to lose mindset, having almost no more fear against Rafa and with new weapons might have met Nadal in 2011 RG final, I think Federer might have won. But again, lets see what happens if Fedal meets again in RG final, and if they meet again things could GO really INTERESTING, trust me.

          • The misfiring of his FH? Well that’s most likely due to him not willing to chase down every ball, a little bit of hesitant and he would be a split second late hence the misfiring.

            Also, he was playing from so far back that he netted a few FHs; on clay as the ball bounces higher, he would not be hitting into the net that often.

        • Nah, Rafa’s topspin FH on clay is special and Stan’s SHBH won’t be able to deal with it all day.

          I bet at the FO, it’s the Rafa of the AO at least that would turn up to play, not the Rafa of IW/Miami! Rafa at AO didn’t hit his FH short, and hardly misfired that.

          Like I said earlier on, Rafa won’t kill just to win IW or Miami; he had the clay season in his mind, quite evident about it as after the final, he said it right away that now he would focus on clay his best part of the season.

          Playing not that well he still could reach finals at Acapulco and Miami, what more when he returns to clay like fish back to water?

  123. Nny!!..I missed chatting with u too!U didn’t come here yesterday…I want to ask for u but at the same I thought u want some time to deal with Rafa’s loss but I should send something for u!!Urgh!!I regretted I didn’t do that!..And I’m also dying to know how you’re doing?You’re okay now Nny?

    About Rafa…we have to be positive Nny…just think like this….if he can bring himself from his temporary slump of 2 years with flying colours so far,who’s to say that he can’t bring himself a bit further than that?One thing that stand out about the Big 4 is that..they’re very very special species..they can turn things around in a blink of an eye..Rafa proved it too many times before,Andy and now Roger do the same..and honestly Nny…I think Rafa will win titles,,it’s just a matter of time..sure,we can see many times that Rafa still have problems to execute an important decision in key moments but IMO,that’s normal considering his age..when you’re got older and everything start to loose and not as sharp as we were young,whether in thinking,made a decision or our physical abilities..more so with rafa who’s got the most painful experienced with his body and mind for the past 2 years…

    Nny…1 thing we do know is that rafa is a warrior..he will keep on fighting till the end…and he’s also not too far strayed Nny…his level is closer than the result showed to us…the key for us is to be patient..and believe me Nny…rafa will not disappoint us…at least I believe so..insyaallah!..VAMOS RAFA!!!WOOOOHOOOO!!!

  124. In my personal opinion following things can happen if each of them meet in RG Final – I repeat if they meet in Final:

    1. Djokoviv vs Nadal: Nadal wins
    2. Djokovic vs Wawrinka: Wawrinka wins
    3. Djokovic vs Federer: Federer wins
    4. Nadal vs Wawrinka: Wawrinka wins
    5. Federer vs WaWrinka: Federer wins
    6. Nadal vs Federer: coin toss

      • Sometimes its about match ups. Even Murray defeated Wawrinka in RG. Does it mean Murray should have beaten Djokovic because Wawrinka had beaten Novak in previous year. I am talking about Wawrinka’s chances with respect to current Nadal and current confident Federer.

        • And you think the current confident Fed is a coin toss against the current Nadal, when Stan could beat Nadal??

          Stan had beaten Fed at RG in 2015, if anything, Stan would be even more determined to beat Fed after that IW final. Also Nadal had never feared Stan on clay, and he’s playing better now than last year (last year he beat Stan on clay).

          Rafa has never feared any SHBH players on clay, has beaten them more than they beat him.

          • I am not underestimating Nadal’s chances at any cost at RG against anyone. I am just talking about with respect to certain factors.
            Wawrinka beat Federer in RG 2015, but still I think Federer can win against Wawrinka due to his current confidence he is getting after AO. I am totally talking about with respect to what is happening under current circumstances. That is why I like Nadal’s chances against Djokovic if they meet in RG final despite of the face Novak had beaten Rafa in straight sets last time they had met on RG. And Its not that Wawrinka has never beaten Nadal on clay.

          • Ha, Stan had only beaten Nadal once on clay and here you’re saying he would beat Rafa on clay but would lose to Fed?

            Current Fed is confident but not on clay! Djoko to reach FO final? If he’s so good that he reaches the final, then it’ll be coin toss between him and Rafa! See, how confused you are?

  125. I think this year’s RG is the most important slam in Rafa’s career. He must win to remain in spotlight and to find the motive to win further slams. Sometimes, a single match result could turn the dynamics of future tennis debate. I think if Nadal would have won AO final against Federer this year, his confidence might have carried him to win RG and probabily US open too. I could have easily seen him winning 3 grandslams this year if he somehow won. It was probabily the most important match in Fedal’s career or may in tennis history. And now we are suddenly talking about Federer’s potential possibility to Callender Year GS.

    On the other hand, Rafa must make sure that Federer does not win RG. If Federer somehowe wins RG, his confidence would be so astronomical that I would be surprised if he does not win CYGS then.

    • Don’t worry, Fed won’t win FO. It’s just wishful thinking by Fed’s fanatic supporters. There are far too many players who can beat and will beat Fed on clay. It’s wise of him to concentrate on Wimbledon.

      • Lol. Its not that Federer will certainly win RG. Its more about HE CAN in Federer’s ‘FANATIC’ thinking. Its more Rafans who think Federer WILL never win RG and Rafa is a total Guarantee.

        “There are far too many players who can beat and will beat Fed on clay”. By the way does it apply on Nadal’s too?

        • Nope. How many players can beat Nadal on clay? Compared to beating Fed?

          And nope, Fed can’t win FO, not when he doesn’t even play any warm up tournament. Please don’t talk as if the whole field is so useless, esp on clay where Fed is not one of the best on it for so long now!

      • Fed fanatics who think that Fed WILL win RG definitely have wishful thinking. But it’s common sense that a guy playing this well has a CHANCE at winning it, even if that chance is lower than others. Saying that any top player doesn’t even have a chance is no different that someone saying that a player definitely will win. Everyone knew that Fed’s chances of winning the AO this year were slim going into it, but it still happened didn’t it? Even if his chances are slim, why then think that he doesn’t even have any chance at RG? What if Fed got a good draw, and Rafa and Novak just happened to lose before he had to face them? Sure, that’s probably not very likely, but we’ve seen that happen before at majors… We saw it happen in 2009. I am with you, Luckystar, that Federer probably won’t win RG, but I would never say it isn’t possible! If he could make the final there 5 times before, and is arguably playing as good as he was back then, then how could you say he doesn’t even have a chance? All it would take for him to suddenly have a good shot would be if he didn’t have to face Rafa and/or Djokovic, or if Djokovic doesn’t play very well. And as much as we don’t want to think it could happen, what if Fed’s newly aggressive game just happened to actually translate better than we thought onto the clay, and he actually was able to beat Rafa? What if Rafa goes deep in every tournament leading up to RG and starts to get a little tired, and Fed comes in completely rested like at AO and is able to adjust fine to the clay in the earlier rounds? I’m not saying this is likely haha!! But it absolutely is possible! How could it not be at least SLIGHTLY possible, lucky? Yes, I think Rafa is the favorite as of now for RG. Does that mean that Federer absolutely WILL NOT win RG? Of course it doesn’t…

        • I don’t see anyone saying Fed cannot win RG. If depends on how it all plays out. Rafa and Novak will be important in any scenario. If for some reason one or both lose early, then that will impact what happens. That could give Fed an opportunity.

          These discussions are hypothetical at this point. It’s speculation which is all well and good. As long as we remember that’s all it is.

          I think Rafa is certainly playing better this year than last year. The caveat with Rafa is that he stays healthy and remains injury free. That is what cost him at RG last year. Rafa has to be in the discussion when it comes to RG.

          I am looking forward to how Rafa does in the warmup clay tournaments. If he can win a title or more, then he can come into RG with some momentum, confidence and good feelings

      • “Don’t worry, Fed won’t win FO. It’s just wishful thinking by Fed’s fanatic supporters. There are far too many players who can beat and will beat Fed on clay. It’s wise of him to concentrate on Wimbledon.”

        “Far Too many players…”
        Examples please.

          • Wrong. He had two exho matches before Australia. Not much more than a practise match.

            So he can do the same in Paris especially with a cupcake draw which can be assumed (not to mention faster clay).

            Not like the rest of the field is in great form.

            How many times!!!!

  126. Luckystar,
    Current Fed is confident but not on clay! Djoko to reach FO final? If he’s so good that he reaches the final, then it’ll be coin toss between him and Rafa! See, how confused you are?

    No..I am not comfused. You are confusing yourself by mixing OLD RAFA under current circumstances. at RG.

  127. Old Rafa? I’m not even talking about old Rafa!

    The current Rafa is better than the 2016 version, and that 2016 version was already very good if not for his wrist injury!

  128. And you’re the one who mentioned that ‘if Djoko meets Rafa in FO final’ and then earlier on you said – Djoko vs Nadal, Nadal wins. You’re the one confusing things up.

    • For God sake, it’s just an assumption that if current Djokovic meets relatively better current Rafa (compare to 15 and 16) in RG final, then there is a big chance that Rafa may beat Djokovic. Djokovic reaching final means he may certainly be looking good but Nadal reaching final would also make Nadal look probabily just better due to his incredible record in RG Finals. I am not sure why are you getting confused in understanding this thing and what is the thing where I am spreading confusion.

      • OLD Rafa meant the Rafa we used to see at RG during his winning years at RG. OLD RAFA I mean the BEST Rafa we had…..Old did not mean age wise OLD. OLD rafa means the previous Rafa was almost unbeatable in RG.

      • You are confused! As I said if Djoko is to reach the FO final, no one can say the current Djoko on clay is worse than Rafa on clay! The Masters results have no bearings on the FO.

        And you’re confused too about ‘Old’ Rafa. No one says it’s old (age wise) Rafa, and I didn’t even mention the formidable Rafa on clay from the past! I was talking about the current Rafa comparing to his recent 2016 version! To me that version without wrist injury is good enough to win the FO, and this current Rafa is even better, in that he has done better this year prior to the clay season and that gives him lots of positives coming into the clay season. I mean reaching the final at Miami compared to losing in R2 last year, certainly the feeling is better now.

  129. Fed did great on the HCs because he was fresh, he made significant improvements to his game to make the games faster and shorten play. Thus his sucess lead to his sky high confidence. Credit for that!

    Rafa lost close match in AO thus his improvement has been slowed down. Rafa’s low confidence vs. Fed’s high confidence lead to Rafa misfiring in key moments. But again the match was close on Fed’s more favorable surface.

    Clay needs everything but fast play, point construction is what matters. Rafa is certainly there with his current form, only needs to win a few to get high on confidence.

    I think Fed will not win FO. He needs rest and will not be ready on clay. He would also risk injury during long points on dirt…he talked about his fragile knee and advice of his doctor to that effect. We all know his goal is Wimby and if he is fresh and injury free (bear in mind he is close to 36 and his body wears and tears faster duing grueling matches) he will do great there.I thought Fed looked tired in the Miami final and that Rafa was better than him most of the first set. But Rafa’s lack of confidence got Fed an easy victory in the end. Too bad Rafa didn’t win that first set, the match would have been a whole lot competitive.

    I agree Nole is bigger threat to Rafa on clay than Fed. If Nole gets even close to his old form, it will be those two fighting for the RG title..

    • Well said Nats once again. Fed would not want to injure himself just before Wimbledon, so he won’t be fighting hard for the FO title.

      You’re right Fed was fresh at the AO, and if he plays and goes deep at FO, he may risk exhaustion as he’s entering Stuttgart, Halle before Wimbledon. He’s 35, not 25! Fed himself said before the AO final that he would go all out to win even if he had to take a few months off after that to recover. I’m sure he would do that for Wimbledon, but not for FO, as he doesn’t have enough time to recover from FO to Wimbledon should he get injured.

      I also feel Rafa didn’t go all out to win Miami; he looked hesitant at times during the final. Rafa also feared getting injured just before the clay season I feel.

      I do have this thinking that these days, Rafa will conserve energy to get ready for clay and the FO, thereafter, he will go all out to win during USO series when he doesn’t do well on grass. In the past, Rafa would go all out to win anything from slow HCs right up to Wimbledon, and then had nothing left for the USO. Losing early at Wimbledon perhaps had made Rafa shifted his attention, to concentrate on the USO instead.

  130. If Nole and Rafa are in great form:

    1. Djokovic vs Nadal: Nadal wins
    2. Djokovic vs Wawrinka: Djokovic wins
    3. Djokovic vs Federer: Djokovic wins
    4. Nadal vs Wawrinka: Nadal wins
    5. Federer vs WaWrinka: Federer wins
    6. Nadal vs Federer: Nadal wins

    If late 2016 Nole and current form Rafa show up in RG:

    1. Djokovic vs Nadal: coin toss
    2. Djokovic vs Wawrinka: Wawrinka wins
    3. Djokovic vs Federer: Federer wins
    4. Nadal vs Wawrinka: Wawrinka wins
    5. Federer vs WaWrinka: Federer wins
    6. Nadal vs Federer: Federer wins

  131. Guys, I am a huge Rafan….but for me Rafa is not the big favorite for this years FO. He won it so many times because he could run like a rabbit…not the case anymore.
    Have to tell, I think there is no clear favorite this year for RG, atm. Perhaps will change my mind after Monte Carlo and Madrid

    • Don’t see that (that Rafa might…. to win hard court tournaments) happening. If he can’t run like a rabbit on clay, then how’s he going to do that on HCs to win, when he doesnt even have a big serve to help him out.

      Anyway, on clay Rafa can glide instead of runs, so he shouldn’t have problems getting to the ball; he glides better than anyone else on clay. On clay too, he can have time to anticipate and construct points and returns serves better, so I think he will do better on clay than on the HCs.

      • Yeah, he’s only made three of four hard court finals played so far this year going to a 5th set up a break in Australia.

        Agree with Lucky on this one – can’t see Rafa possibly winning one in 2017 based on this “wretched” hard court performance.

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