Will Novak pass Rafa?

[tented]

Here's my own prediction

@Moxie @MargaretMcAleer @Kieran @Jelenafan @tented

Not too shabby, right?

 

[shawnbm]

I never honestly thought Nadal would win Down Under--until Novak blew it and got deported. The thought occurred to me that he was at least in the running for the AO (likely his greatest slam victory along with SW19 in 2008) when Novak was out. Still, unexpected and tremendous victory. As far as I am concerned, he has shown that on the clay he is still the man to beat. I think he could win more in Paris. He's almost superhuman.

 

[Fiero425]

I never honestly thought Nadal would win Down Under--until Novak blew it and got deported. The thought occurred to me that he was at least in the running for the AO (likely his greatest slam victory along with SW19 in 2008) when Novak was out. Still, unexpected and tremendous victory. As far as I am concerned, he has shown that on the clay he is still the man to beat. I think he could win more in Paris. He's almost superhuman.

Unfortunately for Rafa, he's only been so called super-human in Paris! In comparison to it, he's been weak everywhere else! You finally got it?

 

[Jelenafan]

Unfortunately for Rafa, he's only been so called super-human in Paris! In comparison to it, he's been weak everywhere else! You finally got it?

I guess being among the top USO champions with 4 doesn’t count……

 

[Fiero425]

I guess being among the top USO champions with 4 doesn’t count……

View attachment 6725

...and Novak's 3 don't seem to matter to folks! It's all in the perspective you're looking at! 14 is a lot bigger # than 4, 2, & 2! Novak & Fed are a lot more balanced across the board! Rafa's still lacking any YEC where Roger & Novak dominated! You know this! Why do I need to reiterate info?

 

[Nadalfan2013]

...and Novak's 3 don't seem to matter to folks! It's all in the perspective you're looking at! 14 is a lot bigger # than 4, 2, & 2! Novak & Fed are a lot more balanced across the board! Rafa's still lacking any YEC where Roger & Novak dominated! You know this! Why do I need to reiterate info?

Balance? So if Djokovic wins the next 10 AO it’s a bad thing because his resume will look unbalanced? Therefore even though he would love to win more AO he should lose on purpose? Nadal has won each slam at least twice and reached the finals of each at last five times, he has nothing to prove. His record at RG is the only record that will never be beaten while all your balanced stats will be beaten. Stop embarrassing yourself.

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

Balance? So if Djokovic wins the next 10 AO it’s a bad thing because his resume will look unbalanced? Therefore even though he would love to win more AO he should lose on purpose? Nadal has won each slam at least twice and reached the finals of each at last five times, he has nothing to prove. Stop embarrassing yourself.

Novak at present with our laws,unless with our new government, cannot play in Australia, he has been banned for 3 years.Novak can apply for a new visa to play in Australia next year, though he will have to submit a very good reason why he should be considered a new visa into Australia

 

[Fiero425]

Balance? So if Djokovic wins the next 10 AO it’s a bad thing because his resume will look unbalanced? Therefore even though he would love to win more AO he should lose on purpose? Nadal has won each slam at least twice and reached the finals of each at last five times, he has nothing to prove. His record at RG is the only record that will never be beaten while all your balanced stats will be beaten. Stop embarrassing yourself.

Some people's standards are lower and can't be helped I guess! Keep on keeping on! The delusion is real!

 

[Nadalfan2013]

Some people's standards are lower and can't be helped I guess! Keep on keeping on! The delusion is real!

22-20 and 11-7.

 

[Fiero425]

22-20 and 11-7.

2, 14, 2, 4, & 0 (YEC) = 22, but's less impressive than 9, 2, 6, 3, & 5 = 25 (20 majors) .... Nadal does have his Olympic Gold so that's something!

 

[Nadalfan2013]

2, 14, 2, 4, & 0 (YEC) = 22, but's less impressive than 9, 2, 6, 3, & 5 = 25 (20 majors) .... Nadal does have his Olympic Gold so that's something!

YEC are nowhere near the slams. Rafa would rather win a 15th RG title than a 1st WTF without any hesitation. But you are right about that Olympics Gold.

You use the world impressive but nothing in Djokovic's numbers can be called impressive. Rafa 14 titles & 112-3 record HUMILIATES Nole's 9 titles & 82-8 record. So even Djokovic's AO success can't be called impressive compared to Nadal. Sorry.

 

[Fiero425]

YEC are nowhere near the slams. Rafa would rather win a 15th RG title than a 1st WTF without any hesitation. But you are right about that Olympics Gold.

You use the world impressive but nothing in Djokovic's numbers can be called impressive. Rafa 14 titles & 112-3 record HUMILIATES Nole's 9 titles & 82-8 record. So even Djokovic's AO success can't be called impressive compared to Nadal. Sorry.

Novak's Wimbledon record is enough since that's the top event and has been for as long as I played, taught, and watched tennis! It's GOLDEN!

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

Gee last time I checked Federer has won 8 Wimbleon GS titles.......Novak has 6 Wimbledon titles

 

[Nadalfan2013]

Novak's Wimbledon record is enough since that's the top event and has been for as long as I played, taught, and watched tennis! It's GOLDEN!

Not anymore. This year Wimbledon has turned itself into a big joke and also grass has been an irrelevant surface for many years now. Stop living in the past.

 

[Moxie]

I never honestly thought Nadal would win Down Under--until Novak blew it and got deported. The thought occurred to me that he was at least in the running for the AO (likely his greatest slam victory along with SW19 in 2008) when Novak was out. Still, unexpected and tremendous victory. As far as I am concerned, he has shown that on the clay he is still the man to beat. I think he could win more in Paris. He's almost superhuman.

So good to see you back around, @shawnbm! Don't be a stranger. I think you have an argument that his win this year at the AO is his greatest since W '08. For the grit at the AO, and who he beat and how at W '08.

What he has done at RG is astonishing. Rather a meeting of man+surface+mentality for b05. I'm sure we all agree he's the greatest clay-courter who ever lived, male or female, but I don't like to think that what he did was "super-human." I think it was incredibly human, which makes it all the more amazing. He's won it looking completely dominant, and he's won it looking vulnerable. He's won it against the odds, in heavy conditions, and he's won it on a bad foot. If you look at his career total in Bo5 on clay, it's something like 130-3. (Maybe someone else can find the stat.) And he's actually rarely been taken to 5 sets. (I know Isner in '11 and Novak in '13 are two.) This is not "super-human," but superiority on the surface, the weight of shot, and the mental beat-down he gives on opponents.

 

[rafanoy1992]

So good to see you back around, @shawnbm! Don't be a stranger. I think you have an argument that his win this year at the AO is his greatest since W '08. For the grit at the AO, and who he beat and how at W '08.

What he has done at RG is astonishing. Rather a meeting of man+surface+mentality for b05. I'm sure we all agree he's the greatest clay-courter who ever lived, male or female, but I don't like to think that what he did was "super-human." I think it was incredibly human, which makes it all the more amazing. He's won it looking completely dominant, and he's won it looking vulnerable. He's won it against the odds, in heavy conditions, and he's won it on a bad foot. If you look at his career total in Bo5 on clay, it's something like 130-3. (Maybe someone else can find the stat.) And he's actually rarely been take to 5 sets. (I know Isner in '11 and Novak in '13 are two.) This is not "super-human," but superiority on the surface, the weight of shot, and the mental beat-down he gives on opponents.

It is why my two favorite RG matches were the 2008 and 2017 RG Finals. You could see that both Federer and Wawrinka were dejected by the middle of the 2nd set. In Wawrinka's case, he was not playing THAT bad, but Nadal's relentless pressure just demoralized him.

 

[Fiero425]

It is why my two favorite RG matches were the 2008 and 2017 RG Finals. You could see that both Federer and Wawrinka were dejected by the middle of the 2nd set. In Wawrinka's case, he was not playing THAT bad, but Nadal's relentless pressure just demoralized him.

Let the "slobbering" BEGIN! I guess we'll all have to deal with it until the next setback! Then it'll begin all over again!

 

[Moxie]

Let the "slobbering" BEGIN! I guess we'll all have to deal with it until the next setback! Then it'll begin all over again!

We've been putting up with folks (including Federer fans) crowning Novak for at least the past 2 years. We get to crow if we want to. That's why there is a tennis forum. There will away be you to at least TRY to take Rafa down a peg, and slather it with emoticons but you do you.

 

[don_fabio]

Rafa raised the bar extremely high with last 2 slam wins. Let's be realistic, he made it very difficult for Novak. What is also very impressive from Rafa he did it without getting tight, last 2 slams, he just played and enjoyed on the court. Novak is different, he has too many things that need to allign for him mentally and eventually become unwanted obstacles.

 

[rafanoy1992]

Rafa raised the bar extremely high with last 2 slam wins. Let's be realistic, he made it very difficult for Novak. What is also very impressive from Rafa he did it without getting tight, last 2 slams, he just played and enjoyed on the court. Novak is different, he has too many things that need to allign for him mentally and eventually become unwanted obstacles.

I wouldn’t say Nadal didn’t get tight in the last two slams he won.

In the AO final, he had a set point in the 2nd set on his serve but lost the set in a tiebreaker. Then, he had a very long service game in the 5th set that he miraculously held. Then on the 10th game on the same set, he lost serve after leading 30-love lead.

At RG, he was tight against FAA in the 1st and 4th sets. Then, against Zverev, he didn’t convert a set point until the end of the tiebreaker.

Nadal definitely had his tight moments, which is natural at his age, but he was able to brush it off those tight moments soon after…