To all Nadal fans except one ;)

[Tafmatch]

What is it that you like so much about Nadal's game?

Most of his matches are a bit too boring for me to watch and they often take a long, long time. His shotmaking is usually not very spectacular imo and I just don't know what to look for in his game. Please explain to me what you like so much and maybe I'll learn to see through your eyes .

Just to make sure: I'm not a fan of any player and I think Nadal is a total class-act and one of the best ever!

[Clay lover]

I'm not just his fan, but I like his game (or used to like some of the elements of his game) for the following reasons:

Crazy passing shots, especially off the backhand (sadly it has been declining)
Epic spin
Maximum effort into shots
Great speed

Let's leave antics and bad habits aside. We can talk about that later. We are talking about his game.

I think a lot of people who dislike Nadal/don't appreciate him here don't understand how difficult it is to generate spin with pace the way he does. I just appreciate that "maximum effort" element in his strokes that few other players possess. His straight arm normal finish forehand is one of the most beautifully violent yet biomechanically correct strokes I have seen. (Like most, I don't like his reverse forehand, either.)

[roundiesee]

Originally Posted by Tafmatch

What is it that you like so much about Nadal's game?

Most of his matches are a bit too boring for me to watch and they often take a long, long time. His shotmaking is usually not very spectacular imo and I just don't know what to look for in his game. Please explain to me what you like so much and maybe I'll learn to see through your eyes .

Just to make sure: I'm not a fan of any player and I think Nadal is a total class-act and one of the best ever!

Exactly; he just seems to take so much time in between points, and even a routine straight sets win for Rafa can really take a long time. Otherwise, there's no doubt he is such a great competitor in the sport of tennis.

[papertank]

Watching him slowly construct points and then fire off a winner
Amazing defensive skills, such as running balls down that would be winners against anyone else, and godlike passing shots
When he plays on clay, it's amazing to watch how his spin can neutralize even the best players games

[kishnabe]

Not a fan oh him.

What most remarkable is the way he makes matche against top guys very entertaining.....and matches against weak opponents being boring.

He gives fits to the other 3.....possible the best at transtioning defence to offence.

[forzamilan90]

I wonder who that "one" fan you mention in the title would be lol

[BrooklynNY]

Nadal's shotmaking is actually ridiculous.

Nadal really does have brutal combinations in his shot placement while at the same time it seems as if he is just hitting the ball really high, up the middle of the court - and alot of the time he basically is haha


I think I like his game because it's like the anti tennis game. His game is on one of the extreme sides of the spectrum. Where there are super aggressive all courts or serve volley style players(Edberg/Rafter/Annacone/etc) and there are baseliners/claycourt style players. Nadal is the best of the later type of players, along with Nole. I think all of the great players always are unique in their game and style and Nadal is no exception and he is just on the other end of the spectrum from say a Sampras, who is super aggressive, and Federer who is more in the middle of these two in terms of the playing style spectrum.


I also get the feeling Nadal is the type that his nervous reaction is to go for more, rather than pull back in big situations. You always see him hit a lot of crazy on the run forehands for winners. I do also think his footwork is on par with Federer's as well.

You also can see he is not afraid out there. You can see that from his matches vs Federer. I remember one time, maybe more, he won a set off Fed at the French, and as they were going to their chairs he basically jumped up and fistpumped like 12 feet of Roger.
Some see this as unsportsmanlike, and I kind of do as well, but part of me likes that about him, as much as I do dislike alot of other aspects of Rafa you guys will bring up.

[OverratedIvanovic]

Originally Posted by Tafmatch

What is it that you like so much about Nadal's game?

Most of his matches are a bit too boring for me to watch and they often take a long, long time. His shotmaking is usually not very spectacular imo and I just don't know what to look for in his game. Please explain to me what you like so much and maybe I'll learn to see through your eyes .

Just to make sure: I'm not a fan of any player and I think Nadal is a total class-act and one of the best ever!

You haven't watched enough of his matches, have you

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3QJH...feature=relmfu

Watch it and tell me it wasn't entertaining

[winstonplum]

Originally Posted by OverratedIvanovic

You haven't watched enough of his matches, have you

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3QJH...feature=relmfu

Watch it and tell me it wasn't entertaining

That was by far his best match of 2012. He got jobbed on set point of the first set and was quite pissed, at least for Nadal's standards. I thought he might pack it in, not wanting to walk right into another Djokovic beating, but he fought gallantly to pull out this match and continued on with a great match against Fed.

[rafafan20]

All the cliche stuff: passion, fire, drive. He works harder than anyone else too and he isn't the cookie cutter athlete that most are these days.

[Sabratha]

Originally Posted by BrooklynNY

Nadal's shotmaking is actually ridiculous.

Nadal really does have brutal combinations in his shot placement while at the same time it seems as if he is just hitting the ball really high, up the middle of the court - and alot of the time he basically is haha


I think I like his game because it's like the anti tennis game. His game is on one of the extreme sides of the spectrum. Where there are super aggressive all courts or serve volley style players(Edberg/Rafter/Annacone/etc) and there are baseliners/claycourt style players. Nadal is the best of the later type of players, along with Nole. I think all of the great players always are unique in their game and style and Nadal is no exception and he is just on the other end of the spectrum from say a Sampras, who is super aggressive, and Federer who is more in the middle of these two in terms of the playing style spectrum.


I also get the feeling Nadal is the type that his nervous reaction is to go for more, rather than pull back in big situations. You always see him hit a lot of crazy on the run forehands for winners. I do also think his footwork is on par with Federer's as well.

You also can see he is not afraid out there. You can see that from his matches vs Federer. I remember one time, maybe more, he won a set off Fed at the French, and as they were going to their chairs he basically jumped up and fistpumped like 12 feet of Roger.
Some see this as unsportsmanlike, and I kind of do as well, but part of me likes that about him, as much as I do dislike alot of other aspects of Rafa you guys will bring up.

Nadal is only good for clay, on most other surfaces his tactics don't take him that far. Apart from the AO.

[Tafmatch]

Thanks for the answers so far guys and for not turning this into another pro/con rafa war.

Originally Posted by OverratedIvanovic

You haven't watched enough of his matches, have you

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3QJH...feature=relmfu

Watch it and tell me it wasn't entertaining

I watched it and it was an entertaining match . Opposing styles are always the best to watch imo. I was most impressed with Berdych's play and felt bad for him playing so well and still not winning that match.

Usually I root for the attacking player so I get frustrated a lot nowadays... I guess if I learn how to enjoy defensive tennis a bit more I might enjoy watching more matches. Djoko-Nadal is a nightmare for me to watch because I just don't know what to look for and it takes ages.

[Candide]

His inswinging down the line must be one of the most exciting shots in tennis. It's not a bread and butter shot but when he pulls one out it's special.

His OCD bottle wrangling on the chair is also quite amusing.

[DRII]

No one has ever played like Nadal. His spin production is literally one of a kind, his movement is only equaled by a select few players ever, and his court sense is among the best I've ever seen.

He is probably the best baseliner the game has ever seen, with Nole sometimes matching him along with Borg from days past. If the game always started from the baseline with no serving; Nadal would have won more titles than any other player.

[namelessone]

Originally Posted by BrooklynNY

Nadal's shotmaking is actually ridiculous.

Nadal really does have brutal combinations in his shot placement while at the same time it seems as if he is just hitting the ball really high, up the middle of the court - and alot of the time he basically is haha


I think I like his game because it's like the anti tennis game. His game is on one of the extreme sides of the spectrum. Where there are super aggressive all courts or serve volley style players(Edberg/Rafter/Annacone/etc) and there are baseliners/claycourt style players. Nadal is the best of the later type of players, along with Nole. I think all of the great players always are unique in their game and style and Nadal is no exception and he is just on the other end of the spectrum from say a Sampras, who is super aggressive, and Federer who is more in the middle of these two in terms of the playing style spectrum.


I also get the feeling Nadal is the type that his nervous reaction is to go for more, rather than pull back in big situations. You always see him hit a lot of crazy on the run forehands for winners. I do also think his footwork is on par with Federer's as well.

You also can see he is not afraid out there. You can see that from his matches vs Federer. I remember one time, maybe more, he won a set off Fed at the French, and as they were going to their chairs he basically jumped up and fistpumped like 12 feet of Roger.
Some see this as unsportsmanlike, and I kind of do as well, but part of me likes that about him, as much as I do dislike alot of other aspects of Rafa you guys will bring up.

That was in 2005 RG SF, he was younger back then, way more exuberant and expressed himself more on court, so to speak.

[veroniquem]

Short answer: everything. The presence, the energy, the intensity in effort, the mental, the explosiveness of the shots, the touch and on clay specifically, the way he moves and slides is like a superior art form.
Nole, a clay court style player? Hilarious, given almost all his titles are on hard (only on hard this year) and the only slam he's never won is RG. Djoko is a hard court specialist who happens to do well on clay. If 4 finals at USO and 3 finals at AO (vs 1 at RG and 1 at W), don't tell you that, then nothing will. His first master title was on hard (Miami), his first slam was on hard too (AO).

[Ms Nadal]

I love Rafa's topspin and his amazing passing shots! I love how he chases the balls down and stretches himself to the limit. His mental strength and pure focus on the court. I love his fist pumps and celebrations. Rafa's oncourt habits such as the water bottles is so cute. The way he slides on the clay, his ability to rally. That lasso forehand is such a great shot. His fighting spirit is the truly special!

[Mustard]

Originally Posted by veroniquem

Short answer: everything. The presence, the energy, the intensity in effort, the mental, the explosiveness of the shots, the touch and on clay specifically, the way he moves and slides is like a superior art form.

All this. Rafa is also the closest player to Thomas Muster in terms of playing style since Muster left in 1999.

[Mainad]

IMO what's not to like?

The power, the determination, the aggression, the unbelievable defensive skills, the energy, the intimidating presence and the sheer staying power.

When he first burst onto the scene with his sleeveless vests, knee-length pants, long greasy hair plus bandanna, he reminded me of a wild Apache warrior who had just escaped from some old-time Western! The only thing missing was a feather stuck in his headband! He certainly resembled no other tennis player I had ever known and that was before I had even seen him hit a tennis ball!

He may be paying the price now for all that physical power and exertion but IMO he transformed tennis into one of the most physically demanding of all the sports. Everybody else had to scramble and quickly get fitter and stronger just to try and keep up with him and that includes players like Djokovic and Murray and even, to some extent, Federer.

Nadal is just unique!

[Ms Nadal]

Yes, Rafa is totally unique. He saved us from the Federer domination! . I have never liked a tennis player as fondly as Rafa. He is a truly special tennis player! I love Rafa!