jm1980
Talk Tennis Guru
Moya's interview, via Punto de Break (link to article, in Spanish)
What made Nadal withdraw from Wimbledon and the Olympics
"The clay court season was very hard on him, with a lot of mental and physical pressure. Rafa ended up exhausted.
He is going to take a well deserved break. This is a marathon, a long distance race where you have to make some hard decisions, and we thought it was best to stop and come back at full strength. Rafa two years ago had reached a point of great mental fatigue from which it was very difficult to escape, and now he felt that he was close to that again. He can't allow himself to play a Grand Slam if he's not at 100%, because of his reputation, of prestige, and how he is."
How the loss to Djokovic affected him
"The loss didn't affect him as much as the fact that there's one fewer week than usual to prepare for Wimbledon, as well as the context of being in a pandemic. It's complicated on a mental level to face a lockdown ahead of a big match, to play with few spectators. This affects Rafa, he is a person who has a great connection with people and it was hard to go to London with a quarantine in between."
Analysis of the match against Djokovic
"It was a match similar to the one they played in Rome a few weeks prior. It was all very even, and it was vital to win a series of points that could change the balance of the match. Novak was better in these situations, like at 5-6 in the third set, but it was also key that Rafa allowed him to settle into the match when he was dominating at 5-0 in the first. Even though he closed the set, seeing Djokovic raise his level created doubts in him.
We talk a lot about tactics, but to win these matches you have to be on point with all your strokes. Rafa make a lot of unforced errors and his serve and backhand weren't at their usual level. Novak did it better, he pinned Rafa to his backhand corner, from where he couldn't easily escape. We will learn a lot from this match.
[Djokovic] has an impressive mentality, and determination rarely seen in the history of the sport. All members of the Big 3 have made each other better."
What made Nadal withdraw from Wimbledon and the Olympics
"The clay court season was very hard on him, with a lot of mental and physical pressure. Rafa ended up exhausted.
He is going to take a well deserved break. This is a marathon, a long distance race where you have to make some hard decisions, and we thought it was best to stop and come back at full strength. Rafa two years ago had reached a point of great mental fatigue from which it was very difficult to escape, and now he felt that he was close to that again. He can't allow himself to play a Grand Slam if he's not at 100%, because of his reputation, of prestige, and how he is."
How the loss to Djokovic affected him
"The loss didn't affect him as much as the fact that there's one fewer week than usual to prepare for Wimbledon, as well as the context of being in a pandemic. It's complicated on a mental level to face a lockdown ahead of a big match, to play with few spectators. This affects Rafa, he is a person who has a great connection with people and it was hard to go to London with a quarantine in between."
Analysis of the match against Djokovic
"It was a match similar to the one they played in Rome a few weeks prior. It was all very even, and it was vital to win a series of points that could change the balance of the match. Novak was better in these situations, like at 5-6 in the third set, but it was also key that Rafa allowed him to settle into the match when he was dominating at 5-0 in the first. Even though he closed the set, seeing Djokovic raise his level created doubts in him.
We talk a lot about tactics, but to win these matches you have to be on point with all your strokes. Rafa make a lot of unforced errors and his serve and backhand weren't at their usual level. Novak did it better, he pinned Rafa to his backhand corner, from where he couldn't easily escape. We will learn a lot from this match.
[Djokovic] has an impressive mentality, and determination rarely seen in the history of the sport. All members of the Big 3 have made each other better."
Last edited:
