Nadal's schedule for 2017

[Carol]

Nadal for the first time is taking a good care of his schedule. It's obvious that after to be 3 months out of the court because his wrist and having a tough draw (in all the ways) in the AO he needs a little rest starting to withdraw from Rotterdam. He will play in Acapulco on outdoor HC warming up for IW and Miami, wise decision!. And I hope he will skip Roma or Madrid on clay to be completely fitted for the RG getting the incredible #10

 

[the AntiPusher]

Nadal for the first time is taking a good care of his schedule. It's obvious that after to be 3 months out of the court because his wrist and having a tough draw (in all the ways) in the AO he needs a little rest starting to withdraw from Rotterdam. He will play in Acapulco on outdoor HC warming up for IW and Miami, wise decision!. And I hope he will skip Roma or Madrid on clay to be completely fitted for the RG getting the incredible #10

Very wise decision...he won't skip Rome..I seriously doubt it

 

[mightyjeditribble]

Not sure about him skipping the clay tournaments - in the past, it has almost seemed as though playing on clay rejuvenates him when coming back from injury.

On the other hand, he's not the youngest anymore. I'm not sure he'd skip Madrid or Barcelona though, unless he has to.

 

[Carol]

Not sure about him skipping the clay tournaments - in the past, it has almost seemed as though playing on clay rejuvenates him when coming back from injury.

On the other hand, he's not the youngest anymore. I'm not sure he'd skip Madrid or Barcelona though, unless he has to.

Because he's not youngest anymore he should skip Roma or Barcelona and I would' be surprise if he will. Last year he played every single tournament of clay and look what happened with his wrist

 

[Carol]

Nadal for the first time is taking a good care of his schedule. It's obvious that after to be 3 months out of the court because his wrist and having a tough draw (in all the ways) in the AO he needs a little rest starting to withdraw from Rotterdam. He will play in Acapulco on outdoor HC warming up for IW and Miami, wise decision!. And I hope he will skip Roma or Madrid on clay to be completely fitted for the RG getting the incredible #10

Very wise decision...he won't skip Rome..I seriously doubt it

Then Barcelona or Madrid but he always likes to play in his own country

 

[GameSetAndMath]

Rafa should play MC, Barcelona and then take two weeks rest. Then play Rome and then take a week rest/practice for RG.

Madrid may be in Spain. But, Rafa does not like that tournament. Finally, Madrid surface and altitude makes it unsuitable as a spot to prep for RG.

 

[the AntiPusher]

Rafa should play MC, Barcelona and then take two weeks rest. Then play Rome and then take a week rest/practice for RG.

Madrid may be in Spain. But, Rafa does not like that tournament. Finally, Madrid surface and altitude makes it unsuitable as a spot to prep for RG.

We go through this every year about a Madrid..skipping Madrid would be wise but he rarely does.

 

[El Dude]

He can always reevaluate after Monte Carlo. I imagine that he won't want to endanger his best possible form at Roland Garros, so if he's tired and achy he might choose to opt out of either Madrid or Rome.


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[GameSetAndMath]

Rafa should play MC, Barcelona and then take two weeks rest. Then play Rome and then take a week rest/practice for RG.

Madrid may be in Spain. But, Rafa does not like that tournament. Finally, Madrid surface and altitude makes it unsuitable as a spot to prep for RG.

We go through this every year about a Madrid..skipping Madrid would be wise but he rarely does.

Yes, but there is a big difference this time. This RG will make or break Rafa so to speak. As we could see Rafa is back or almost back. Novak is down, at least as of now. So, this is a very good time for Rafa to grab that La Decima. Besides, he is not getting any younger. Winning this RG will keep him rejuvenated for some time, at least for one more year. On the flip side, not winning RG could spell a big doom for his future prospects. Hence, it will be a good idea to skip Madrid this time.

If he wins one of Montecarlo or Barcelona and reaches at least a QF on the other, he should definitely skip Madrid. If he goes out without reaching SF in both Montecarlo and Barcelona (highly unlikely), then he should play Madrid as he would need match practice. Anything, in between is a discretionary call.

 

[El Dude]

Skip Roland Garros, GameSetandMath? I don't see it - not unless he's hurt. As you say, he's not getting any younger - consider that next year he'll be turning 32 at Roland Garros! Barring an amazing resurgence, this may be his last and best chance to win #10. He's 31, Novak is wobbly, and no one else is really a dominant clay court player. Yet.

So my point is, now is the time. Rafa needs to arrange everything to optimize his chances of winning Roland Garros this year. If he happens to be a candidate for it next year, that is a bonus but shouldn't be expected. Now is the time.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

Skip Roland Garros, GameSetandMath? I don't see it - not unless he's hurt. As you say, he's not getting any younger - consider that next year he'll be turning 32 at Roland Garros! Barring an amazing resurgence, this may be his last and best chance to win #10. He's 31, Novak is wobbly, and no one else is really a dominant clay court player. Yet.

So my point is, now is the time. Rafa needs to arrange everything to optimize his chances of winning Roland Garros this year. If he happens to be a candidate for it next year, that is a bonus but shouldn't be expected. Now is the time.

Come on, if you read the whole post, you know what I meant. I was talking about skipping Madrid, but typed RG as it was too late in the night. Fixed it now.

 

[El Dude]

OK, must have been the IPA .

 

[GameSetAndMath]

Rafa has signed up for 20 tourneys as per his fans website. Here they are.

1. Brisbane
2. AO
3. Acapulco
4. IW
5. Miami
6. Montecarlo
7. Barcelona
8. Madrid
9. Rome
10. RG
11. Queens
12. Wimbledon
13. Montreal
14. Cincy
15. USO
16. Beijing
17. Shanghai
18. Basel
19. Paris
20. WTF (if still alive by then :snicker).

Of course, he signed up for 21 and then dropped Rotterdam just now. But, this list is nothing unusual. This is kind of standard fare for him.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

The exemption rule from mandatory tournaments for commitment players is as follows:

A player’s number of ATP World Tour Masters 1000 commitment tournaments shall be reduced by one (1) tournament for reaching each of the following milestones:
1) 600 matches (as of 1 January of the commitment year);
2) 12 years of service;
3) 31 years of age (as of 1 January of the commitment year).
If all three (3) conditions are met then the player has a complete exemption from the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 player commitment.

Rafa has satisfied 1) and 2) and hence can skip two mandatory masters tourneys. That is another reason, it is a good idea to skip Madrid, which is so called mandatory tournament.

p.s. Andy and Novak are eligible to skip one mandatory atp 1000 this year due to satisfying 1).
Roger, of course, can skip as many as he wants since he has satisfied all three conditions.

 

[El Dude]

Rafa has played all four Slams and all nine Masters just three times in his career: 2015, 2008, 2007. If you add in WTF, its only 2007 and 2015.

 

[the AntiPusher]

Rafa should play MC, Barcelona and then take two weeks rest. Then play Rome and then take a week rest/practice for RG.

Madrid may be in Spain. But, Rafa does not like that tournament. Finally, Madrid surface and altitude makes it unsuitable as a spot to prep for RG.

We go through this every year about a Madrid..skipping Madrid would be wise but he rarely does.

Yes, but there is a big difference this time. This RG will make or break Rafa so to speak. As we could see Rafa is back or almost back. Novak is down, at least as of now. So, this is a very good time for Rafa to grab that La Decima. Besides, he is not getting any younger. Winning this RG will keep him rejuvenated for some time, at least for one more year. On the flip side, not winning RG could spell a big doom for his future prospects. Hence, it will be a good idea to skip Madrid this time.

If he wins one of Montecarlo or Barcelona and reaches at least a QF on the other, he should definitely skip Madrid. If he goes out without reaching SF in both Montecarlo and Barcelona (highly unlikely), then he should play Madrid as he would need match practice. Anything, in between is a discretionary call.

Agreed..winning AO would have been precisely what the doctor would have prescribed but that stubborn 35 GOAT had other plans:devil. Now All the pressure is on Rafa to recapture RG.

 

[Carol]

Rafa has signed up for 20 tourneys as per his fans website. Here they are.

1. Brisbane
2. AO
3. Acapulco
4. IW
5. Miami
6. Montecarlo
7. Barcelona
8. Madrid
9. Rome
10. RG
11. Queens
12. Wimbledon
13. Montreal
14. Cincy
15. USO
16. Beijing
17. Shanghai
18. Basel
19. Paris
20. WTF (if still alive by then :snicker).

Of course, he signed up for 21 and then dropped Rotterdam just now. But, this list is nothing unusual. This is kind of standard fare for him.

Yeah, I saw that list but I don't put too much attention on it because probably will change. I rather to see his schedule step by step

 

[Kieran]

Nay, lads and lasses, I don't agree with any narrative that suggests that Rafa is reliant upon a big make-or-break season on clay, at all.

I've long held the belief that if Rafa gets back to his best, then he's a serious threat anywhere, and can win any of the 4 majors. We saw this hinted most starkly in Oz, where his great form and amazing run wasn't on the back of any great success on clay. In fact, departing the FO injured after two victorious rounds gave him nothing to build on, and in fact only added to his injury woes over the last 5 years. He skipped Wimbo too, and struggled for the rest of the season, eventually calling it a day before the season ended, to tend to his wrist.

The idea that a disaster in Paris is a potential nail in the coffin for him elsewhere is contradicted by his performance in oz.

I would agree, however, that his schedule looks ambitious, and most likely hypothetical (already skipping Rotterdam shows that he's listening to his body when it yawns out loud for rest), and I agree also that he should play little outside the big tournaments, and should also skip Madrid...

 

[the AntiPusher]

Nay, lads and lasses, I don't agree with any narrative that suggests that Rafa is reliant upon a big make-or-break season on clay, at all.

I've long held the belief that if Rafa gets back to his best, then he's a serious threat anywhere, and can win any of the 4 majors. We saw this hinted most starkly in Oz, where his great form and amazing run wasn't on the back of any great success on clay. In fact, departing the FO injured after two victorious rounds gave him nothing to build on, and in fact only added to his injury woes over the last 5 years. He skipped Wimbo too, and struggled for the rest of the season, eventually calling it a day before the season ended, to tend to his wrist.

The idea that a disaster in Paris is a potential nail in the coffin for him elsewhere is contradicted by his performance in oz.

I would agree, however, that his schedule looks ambitious, and most likely hypothetical (already skipping Rotterdam shows that he's listening to his body when it yawns out loud for rest), and I agree also that he should play little outside the big tournaments, and should also skip Madrid...

Kieran..I think where most of us are saying that all the pressure is on Rafa because it's his bread and butter surface for his game but really more for his confidence..Rafa's confidence builds from the clay season..it's comparable to sitting Bull and Sioux Indians having Custer and his troops on their turf in little big horn..Rafa knows the way the court plays if it's windy, rainy or sunny..He feels invincible there although his desire to win over the past few years hasn't been where it needs to be because he hasn't played as well as the other players did. If Rafa can go on a run on a fortnight at RG.,he will carry that to Wimbledon and the rest of the season because at this point it's all about the slams. IMO

 

[El Dude]

That's an ominous analogy, AP!

I tend to agree with both you and Kieran, or at least think it is a middle ground. I think doing well in clay season - winning at least one, if not two of the big titles, will help carry him for the rest of the year. But if he doesn't win any of the big titles, or say only one Masters, I don't think he'll be as much discouraged as determined.

That said, if he only wins a single Masters or less, that would point to real decline, and perhaps his AO surge being somewhat of a mirage, or at least false hope, and we might have to accept a level closer to 2016.