A completely meaningless match in terms of future bearing on the tournament will take place when fellow Spaniards Rafael Nadal and David Ferrer collide at the World Tour Finals on Friday. Nadal has already clinched the group, while Ferrer is out.
Rafael Nadal and David Ferrer will be facing each other for the 30th time in their careers when they wrap up their round-robin campaigns at the World Tour Finals on Friday afternoon.
Nadal is dominating the head-to-head series 23-6, but it stands at a far more competitive 5-4 in Nadal’s favor on hard courts. The two Spaniards most recently squared off in their only meeting of 2015 on the clay courts of Monte-Carlo, where Nadal survived a quarterfinal test 6-4, 5-7, 6-2.
Fast forward seven months and this is a strikingly different world No. 5. So far this fall, Nadal has finished runner-up in Beijing and Basel, made a run to the Shanghai semifinals, and reached the quarters in Paris. At none of those four events, however, did he perform better than he has through two London matches. Nadal cruised past Stan Wawrinka 6-3, 6-2 then erased Andy Murray 6-4, 6-1.
This is the first time since Rome in 2013 that the 14-time major champion has defeated two top-four players in the same tournament.
Ferrer also stormed into the O2 with plenty of momentum, having captured recent titles in Kuala Lumpur and Vienna. But once again a steep step up in competition has proven to be too much for Ferrer to handle. The seventh-ranked Spaniard lost his opener to Murray 6-4, 6-4 before blowing a 5-2 first-set lead against Wawrinka and falling 7-5, 6-2.
Ferrer’s baseline game has been solid this week, but his serve has given him no chance so succeed against the best players in the world. In two outings, the 33-year-old has combined for zero aces and 11 double-faults (eight against Murray, three against Wawrinka).
A proverbial “dead” match is not a particularly enthralling proposition for the fans, but if you could pick two players to contest such a match, Nadal and Ferrer would be the two. Their effort levels can never be questioned regardless of circumstances. Unfortunately for Ferrer, Nadal’s best effort vs. his own best effort is a significant mismatch right now.
Pick: Nadal in 2
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serve it out, serve it out, serve it out
phewww.. going home now
YES!!! he had to win that match…couldn’t just let it go for the sake of momentum…
will they please find someone to fix his serve?? would save us so much grief….
Amy: the serve is there, he’s just miserly about when he brings it out.
ed, he’s a positive scrooge with it!! not in the xmas spirit at all….
You have to laugh – the best singles match so far this week was a dead rubber.
am sure nole is splitting his sides right now…
^So true! But I can’t laugh because it may cost Rafa tomorrow.
Define best.
Rafa winnnnnnnnnnnns!
A loss would have put him in a bad mood, so even though it took too long, a win is better than a loss. I’m glad they gave the viewers a worthwhile contest. It costs a lot of time, money and effort to watch particularly for those who are at the O2.
Vamos Rafa!
That was a pretty good match for what could have been a dull, dead rubber 😉 Congratulations Rafa and Fans!
The match stats, Part 1:
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CURRhUlWsAEmrYP.png
🙂 🙂
The match stats, Part 2:
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CURRj02WUAEkQ7i.png
amy, on the contrary, Rafa didn’t give anything away about his strategy for the SF. I think Nole and his team will be a bit confused.
even if he loses this has been a very positive tournament for him. stands him in very good stead for the beginning of next year. i am also very pleased he was able to get to grips with that match after losing his confidence and focus…that is a good harbinger for the future…
Rafa made it! He finished the group stage 3-0!!!
Vaaamoos!!!
http://www.funutilities.com/files/smileys/07/02/100.gif
I love it when Rafa plays early, I can now sit back, relax and enjoy the rest of the matches tonight.
How about being ripe for Novak tomm for the taking after this long match
I’m all-in on dojokovic tomorrow. No way nadal is winning. Nadal excreted himself way too much no way he is fit enough to have a chance. Nadal should of tanked today. If he loses tomorrow its his poor planning
I hate Rafa Ferrer matches.. I knew this would happen. Rafa is softened for Novak now after this marathon just as Murray softened Rafa for Federer in 2010.
Just hate this and I frankly don’t like Ferrer for this very reason, he literally troubles Rafa to make it a slugfest
exactly!
Yep, I really dont like Ferrer for this reason. I thought Ferrer should put in more effort vs Murray instead as Murray was even a more defensive player than Rafa. Why only put in effort vs a fellow Spaniard? I’m really pissed with Ferrer. Not happy with Rafa’s play too, for playing so poorly to lose the first set when he had set point serving for the set after just breaking Ferrer in the previous game. Novak is not going to let Rafa off playing so poorly.
it’s the match up thing…. esp on an indoor court, Ferrer can make life difficult for rafa. He can take the ball so early on his backhand and change direction too. His inside out forehand also troubles rafa. Against roger, for example, his inside out forehand often gets neutralized by roger’s slice and Novak is able to change direction of the ball and does not allow Ferret to camp in his backhand corner to hit forehands.
@luckystar, rafa’s making tremendous progress. For him to reach a level where he can meet everyone’s expectations is going to take some time. Remember how everyone got so pessimistic after his loss to Stan in Paris? look where he is now. I know losing the first set was frustrating but he won a good match in the end. Just look at rafa..he is really happy and confidence is shooting up. So, very positive scenario overall.
Novak was not great against Berdych either. He has also not been playing too well. I know he’ll raise his level for rafa and come out all guns blazing but rafa will try and I hope he can be competitive.
have been watching tennis this week?
No. Rafa troubles himself and opens the door for opponents like Ferrer to “make it difficult.”
#TwoToATangoLad
Who can figure out an anagram for A Tango Lad. 🙂
ratcliff?
goat nadal
10 points for Gryffindor!!!
#NadalGoat
was going to mention that the name omitted the hashtag…
never known anyone who was more creative with hashtags!!
Finally! It was about the time. Ferrer put up a HUGE fight…there are no friends on court! When will I learn it… I thought Ferrer would give up, but no..he did not even test Wawa and lost easily to Andy and remembered to play tennis against Rafa in a dead rubber…ridiculous…
I wanted Rafa to win. I am happy that he won. Tomorrow is another day…
Vamos Rafa!
What is the issue with the foot? Injury?
I expect a straight set drubbing tomorrow and I am pissed
Sanju (at 5:07 pm),
His foot is fine.
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CURVM4uWsAA8NgW.png
It’s happened before. He jammed the foot and then grimaced in pain. He didnt ask for the trainer so assume it was not too serious or something which can be controlled by the physio and painkillers if necessary.
Lots of talk and comments about him exhausting himself before the SF. If you think about it, it’s only one set more than a Slam match. We’ve seen him battle for the win when he’s on his knees from the previous match but the adrenalin gets him through. I can only think of a couple of occasions when exhaustion alone has been responsible for a loss in the later rounds of an important tournament.
Slams have a day off in between ed. What you are talking happened in 2009..this is 2015
I wasn’t thinking of just ’09 AO. He produced some Herculean feats during 2013, not just the Slams, and recently revealed he played throughout that year in a LOT of pain.
Genny SS @genny_ss · 7m7 minutes ago
Guys, re: Rafa’s foot, let’s hope it’s just something similar to what happened to him in the right foot in Beijing’s final.He was fine after
Genny SS @genny_ss · 6m6 minutes ago
In fact, Rafa’s just been asked about it in the SKY analysis of his match. Rafa’s said that the FOOT IS FINE. He simply noticed something.
Genny SS @genny_ss · 5m5 minutes ago
It happens to him from time to time since he hurt it in 2005. But he’s insisted that the foot IS FINE!
https://twitter.com/troublefault/status/667752011140583424
Going to battle:
(Reuters)
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CURC3-7WIAEXI0n.jpg
BREAKING!!!
Yes, the point is that Rafa will not have a day off now. All this week they have had a day off after each match. But Rafa played last while Novak is resting.
Rafa also isn’t a kid in tennis years anymore. He can’t always bounce back. Remember what happened with Kevin Anderson when Rafa had to come back from the brink to win in three tough sets? Then he was tired when he had to Stan.
Ferrer always makes it physical. Some of those rallies seemed to go on forever. But there is no way to know at this time if it will hurt Rafa for tomorrow. I hope not.
Earlier this year, i agree, he admitted to getting tired. IMO that was linked closely to the internal battles he was fighting not to the output of energy on the court.
ed gets it.
I doubt that fatigue will be a factor for Rafa against Nole.
Rafa says his foot is fine and he is not exhausted. He says it doesn’t matter how long the match today was he knows he’ll have to play well tomorrow against Novak. He says it was a great match for the crowd and he enjoyed it.
He needs to up his game for the SF even though Djoker is not firing on all cylinders atm.
did you also hear what he said about novak? he said he has been playing at ‘almost an impossible level’ for nearly all year ! Now, go and lecture rafa on being a detractor of himself!! LOL . Why are you not pissed now? or do you think rafa’s paid to pay tribute to novak? another LOL. don’t say he does that because he has to show respect. There is a big difference. You don’t have to use those superlatives. You can generally respect/praise and move to the next question. Rafa’s been singing praises for novak for months now because he KNOWS it and being the great , honest guy he is, he has no shame admitting and acknowledging that.
Sigh. It’s been all Novak Djokovic this year. But, finally, Rafael Nadal is getting back to his level and I am very confident he will be ready to win slams in 2016. It will be a very very interesting year!
Boom. Drop the mic.
vamosrafa (at 6:28 pm),
A fan of a player is under NO obligation to praise every player!
vamosrafa (t 6:28 pm),
I am wondering why you keep lectures about Djoko?! I am wondering what YOUR problem is.
Listen up people, do you hear there?
Are YOU every fan’s secretary?
(He never said they do – but he does call out fans for calling fans of the same players deteactors.)
Therein lies the difference.
And it makes me wonder.
vamosrafa (t 6:28 pm),
Let me remind you that posting negative FACTS about some other players (i.e. not Rafa) has been called ‘attacks’ by someone… 😆
augusta08 says:November 20, 2015 at 6:54 pm
I am wondering why you keep lectures about Djoko?! I am wondering what YOUR problem is
Listen up people, do you hear there?
VR was talking about Rafa’s own words. And a double standard.
And it makes me wonder.
who says he is under an OBLIGATION? this is not even relevant. The relevant question is : who has appointed certain fans of a player to act like guardians and given them the right to start labellng other rafa fans as detractors when the only thing they do sometimes is what rafa ROUTINELY does . Don’t wanna drag this again but just wanted to make a point. NOBODY is under any sort of obligation here , yes, but then stay consistent! If you are calling out some other rafa fan for some ‘behavior’ (which rafa himself consistently adopts ), it is only you who is doing wrong. It just creates a mess every time because being a passionate rafa fan is a sensitive topic for most and nobody likes to see the comments nadline routinely comes up with.
In short: if you are under no obligation to praise other players ( which is fair enough) then don’t expect other fans to have any ‘obligations’. Don’t have double standards! Fair enough I think. I hope it can work for everyone here regardless of what ‘type’ of fan he/she is.
@augusta, the post was not even directed at you but you once again proved what I am saying. What lectures about Djokovic? can you be specific here? I mentioned what rafa said. You hate rafa for saying that? that’s YOUR problem.
Rafa is allowed to sing the praises of his rivals but his fans are not. Fans are not supposed to be objective that’s the whole idea of being a fan. ‘Blind loyalty’ is the phrase I’m looking for.
Listen up people, do you hear there?
Fandom religion believes WHO said something more than WHAT was said even when it’s the SAME thing.
Will we never learn from history?
And it makes me wonder.
and thanks for concisely summarizing, hawkeye 😉
Listen up people, do you hear there?
“‘Blind loyalty’ is the phrase I’m looking for.”
That’s what Nazi’s were looking for too.
And it makes me wonder.
November 20, 2015 at 6:57 pm,
English grammar:
¤¤ English uses a/an, from the Old English forms of the number ‘one’… ¤¤
(I don’t know Canadian grammar).
‘Rafa is allowed to sing the praises of his rivals but his fans are not’
fans not ALLOWED to?? who are YOU to say that? HAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAAHA
I have loyalty of the highest level in that I have never supported anyone but rafa. Every single match.
BUT, acknowledging a good thing about his opponent is in NO WAY linked to loyalty. It is just having an extremely narrow, pitiful outlook on things. But again, if it makes sense to you, GO FOR IT. BUT, stop bothering others and making RULES ! NOBODY has asked you to do that and trust me, they make zero sense.
and, if we are fans, rafa is novak’s RIVAL. You what a ‘rival’ means?? don’t say they are rivals on court but not off the court. Do you remember the ‘rivals’ of the 70s and the 80s? START difference. It is what one chooses to be. Rafa is different. He is no Connors or J Mac!
* STARK contrast I meant…
Listen up people, do you hear there?
A rational fan is trying to help blind loyalty to see respect.
And it makes me wonder.
vamosrafa, don’t take these things that seriously. As Rafa says, it’s only tennis. There are far more important things in life to get worked up about.
hawkeye63 says:
November 20, 2015 at 7:05 pm
—That’s what Nazi’s were looking for too—
===
.
OMG! Someone makes efforts to turn the Grandstand into a political website!
nadline10 says:
November 20, 2015 at 7:17 pm
vamosrafa, don’t take these things that seriously. As Rafa says, it’s only tennis. There are far more important things in life to get worked up about.
Listen up people, do you hear there?
An admitted blind fandom posts on multiple forums daily and preaches what they won’t practise.
Actions speak louder than words.
And it makes me wonder.
@nadline, your assessment is extremely incorrect as this is not at all serious business to me. I can see you are speechless and don’t have anything to say because your theories make zero sense. Haha. Anyway, just wanted to convey a point, hope you got it. Do WHATEVER you feel right as long as it is not affecting other people here. Justifying the calling out of others on the basis of some absurd self-made rules is not welcome at all. Thanks.
And with this, I also wrap up my office work. Weekend is here 🙂
@hawkeye, hahahahhaa….. good one…. you are on a roll !
and also, giving reference to what rafa says is so funny! double standards again. Totally ignoring what rafa says about his rivals but taking his philosophy on life and tennis so seriously. Oh God it’s killing me!!! hahahahah
vamosrafa says:
November 20, 2015 at 7:00 pm
—@augusta, the post was not even directed at you…—
===
.
The Grandstand is a public blog.
‘OMG! Someone makes efforts to turn the Grandstand into a political website!’
lol !! what about having a sense of humor?!!! hahah
link?
okay, should I add something then. it is a public blog where fan of every player can support his favourite player in any way he/she wants to. It is not a place to spot ‘detractors’ based on ridiculous self-made rules. I hope this helps. If certain posters so so fond of rules, the owner of this lovely website, Rick Dimon , has laid out some rules. If someone is breaching them, only then point that out.
vamosrafa ( at 7:30 pm),
—okay, should I add something then. it is a public blog where fan of every player can support his favourite player in any way he/she wants to…—
===
.
Yep. And as for me, I believe that I’m entitled to support/worship or not to support/worship whomever I want, and it’s none of self-named true/real tennis fans’ business.
🙂
Listen up people, do you hear there?
“support/worship whomever I want” curiously somehow includes being secretary, wondering and being curious about other Rafans qualities.
And it makes me wonder.
November 20, 2015 at 7:48 pm
—includes being secretary—
===
.
This is YOUR business here.
😆
augusta08 says:
November 20, 2015 at 7:45 pm
“Yep. And as for me, I believe that I’m entitled to support/worship or not to support/worship whomever I want, and it’s none of self-named true/real tennis fans’ business. :)”
Nobody is saying anything to you here! blind worship anyone, I don’t have any issues as long as that blind worship does not include calling me out a rafa detractor and questioning why I am writing something because otherwise, that becomes double standards!
should be clear enough!
augusta08 says:
—includes being secretary—
This is YOUR business here. 😆
Listen up people, do you hear there?
A poster wonders and is curious about other Rafans qualities and what others are allowed to do, and calls others secretaries.
And it makes me wonder.
He will up his game, I’m sure of that. Whether he can sufficiently to trouble Novak remains to be seen. I’m intrigued to see how the match with Murray pans out this evening i.e. will Murray test him or not.