1972Murat said:nehmeth said:1972Murat said:So Nole needs Cincy, Rafa needs Paris and Roger needs Rome?
Doesn't Roger need Monte Carlo too??
That one is not mandatory so to me it's a bit different than the rest...
imjimmy said:The surface favors Djokovic and I feel that Nadal is not where he was in the 2013 North American hardcourt season. Most notably the serve, return of serve are not at the level they usually are when he is at his best on hardcourts.
I think Djokovic will get this one, but it will provide more motivation for Nadal to get back in the European summer season.
nehmeth said:imjimmy said:The surface favors Djokovic and I feel that Nadal is not where he was in the 2013 North American hardcourt season. Most notably the serve, return of serve are not at the level they usually are when he is at his best on hardcourts.
I think Djokovic will get this one, but it will provide more motivation for Nadal to get back in the European summer season.
It is always good to see you around imjimmy.
Kieran said:I'm reading conflicting stuff regarding Rafa's serve. Some are saying it's off, and others it's on. What was it like before the Raonic match?
And bear in mind, after Raonic broke, he had no more breaks points after this.
Against the Raonic serve, the missile, Rafa had a good few opportunities to break in the first set, and broke 3 times after. So his return must be okay too, no?
I haven't see any tennis, because of the time diff, so I'm asking this, not because I want to contradict anyone, but because the things I'm reading contradict each other...
imjimmy said:Today's match is more important for Nadal than it is for Djokovic.
Broken_Shoelace said:Kieran said:I'm reading conflicting stuff regarding Rafa's serve. Some are saying it's off, and others it's on. What was it like before the Raonic match?
And bear in mind, after Raonic broke, he had no more breaks points after this.
Against the Raonic serve, the missile, Rafa had a good few opportunities to break in the first set, and broke 3 times after. So his return must be okay too, no?
I haven't see any tennis, because of the time diff, so I'm asking this, not because I want to contradict anyone, but because the things I'm reading contradict each other...
Who said it's on? It is nowhere near on.
Trust my judgment on this, buddy. Now for all I know, Nadal my come out and serve like Goran against Novak, but from the matches he's played so far, he hasn't been serving particularly well. That's not to say that it's been bad, it's just been predictable and ineffective. The slider out wide isn't working (most of the time it's missing, unless he hits it with no angle, which defeats the purpose), the one up the ad court is virtually non-existent, and he's not getting any swing on his serve on either side. Just the usual "spin it in to the middle" kind of serving. The one notable exception is the body serve, which he's been hitting well and hard.
The problem is, he's playing Djokovic. So he needs a particularly ON serving day. If every Nadal service game is going to be a battle, the match is virtually over.
Now, the good news is, Rafa fully knows this, and I've seen him serve average in the past during a tournament, before stepping it up against Djokovic (the 2012 AO stands out, as well as their Monte Carlo meeting later in the year). So I am positive Nadal will attempt to do this, but just how well the serve clicks is the question. The surface is too slow for him to get a ton of cheap points anyway, but he at least needs very good placement and some pace.
Kieran said:Broken_Shoelace said:Kieran said:I'm reading conflicting stuff regarding Rafa's serve. Some are saying it's off, and others it's on. What was it like before the Raonic match?
And bear in mind, after Raonic broke, he had no more breaks points after this.
Against the Raonic serve, the missile, Rafa had a good few opportunities to break in the first set, and broke 3 times after. So his return must be okay too, no?
I haven't see any tennis, because of the time diff, so I'm asking this, not because I want to contradict anyone, but because the things I'm reading contradict each other...
Who said it's on? It is nowhere near on.
Trust my judgment on this, buddy. Now for all I know, Nadal my come out and serve like Goran against Novak, but from the matches he's played so far, he hasn't been serving particularly well. That's not to say that it's been bad, it's just been predictable and ineffective. The slider out wide isn't working (most of the time it's missing, unless he hits it with no angle, which defeats the purpose), the one up the ad court is virtually non-existent, and he's not getting any swing on his serve on either side. Just the usual "spin it in to the middle" kind of serving. The one notable exception is the body serve, which he's been hitting well and hard.
The problem is, he's playing Djokovic. So he needs a particularly ON serving day. If every Nadal service game is going to be a battle, the match is virtually over.
Now, the good news is, Rafa fully knows this, and I've seen him serve average in the past during a tournament, before stepping it up against Djokovic (the 2012 AO stands out, as well as their Monte Carlo meeting later in the year). So I am positive Nadal will attempt to do this, but just how well the serve clicks is the question. The surface is too slow for him to get a ton of cheap points anyway, but he at least needs very good placement and some pace.
Nice post, Broken, thanks! There have been a few who have said it's on, including Hunting, who was at the Raonic match. Bodo too. I know, some people will scoff, but I never mind that, I think he's okay.
He's dropped serve only once the whole tourney. I know, he hasn't faced Nole. I agree with your last paragraph, though. He'll definitely try step it up. A victory here will give Nole bragging rights heading into the clay, a 3 in a row wins, and that's something that'll give Rafa time to reflect. I don't think he performs his best when he takes on that kind of reflection.
A win for Rafa resets his season and leaves him stronger heading onto the dirt than last year.
Vamos!
Kieran said:Well, if he's serving good enough to take the man in front of him, I'll be happy...
imjimmy said:Have a nice Sunday. What are you doing up so early?
Broken_Shoelace said:imjimmy said:Today's match is more important for Nadal than it is for Djokovic.
I don't know about that. It's just as important for both, in that winning it would be great, but a loss is hardly season-damaging. Though I guess winning for Nadal might provide him with a bigger confidence boost since it's always an achievement to beat Novak on hards.