Nadal at Paris Masters

How far will Nadal go in Paris Masters this year? (If he enters)


  • Total voters
    69

pedro94

Semi-Pro
Hi! How you doin' peeps? I'm new to this forum, this is my first thread.

I'm been a fan of Rafa for a little while now, got my heart ripped out and thrown into acid watching Wimbledon 2018 SF, aged at least 5 years watching Rafa vs Khachanov at USO over a month ago, went to sleep at the start of Rafa vs Thiem USO match because of work the next day, only to wake up at 7am to find out the freaks are still playing and I can just about catch the last set tiebreak (best morning tea ever btw), and cried when I saw Rafa get injured and decide to pursue a career of a cleaner instead.

Now it seems Rafa's already sick of being a cleaner (didn't last long eh), and he plans to come back for Paris Masters (the best tournament for a Rafa comeback isn't it).

So Rafa's history at Paris Bercy is indeed magnificent... During his whole career he only entered this tournament 6 times (if we don't count the qualification stage he didn't get through in 2003), but every time he entered the main draw he reached at least the QF.

His record is:
1 final (bageled by Nalbandian, jeez)
2 additional semifinals (destroyed by Djokovic in 2009 - managed to win only 5 games, and lost to Ferrer 3-6 5-7 in 2013 out of all people)
3 additional quarter finals (retired in 2008, beaten by Wawrinka in 2 very tight tiebreaks in 2015, and pulled out in 2017)

The Paris Masters is one of only 2 remaining Masters tournaments Nadal hasn't won yet (the other being Miami) - he also hasn't won Shanghai, but he won the Madrid (indoor hard) Masters back when it was held in the Shanghai slot.

Given his history at this tournament, I wouldn't give him much chance to win here this year. But given how well he played at Wimbledon under a roof, do you think he can finally break that indoor bad luck he's got and get a big indoor trophy?? (He's only got 2 indoor titles in his whole career, the aforementioned Madrid title in 2005, and an indoor clay title in Sao Paulo 2013 - that one doesn't count right?! it's clay duh)

I'd love to hear your thoughts on this! Do you think he will enter? Do you think he SHOULD enter?? How far can he go? Does he have a chance to go deep? Is there any chance he could stop Djokovic given the magnificent form he's having??
 

Djokodalerer31

Hall of Fame
Who the hell voted - "win" lmao Someone needs reality check badly...Voted 3rd the most! Probably won't jinx it right away in his first match, but will lose his second...
 

TripleATeam

G.O.A.T.
I'll tentatively say QF. Probably will beat a few guys but his injury, lack of recent matches, and a competent opponent on the other side of the net will do him in when he reaches the quarters.
 

octobrina10

Talk Tennis Guru
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pedro94

Semi-Pro
If he decides to play (which is very doubtful) I'd say he reaches SF at the very least.

why is it very doubtful? are there any recent news about his recovery/training? the last thing i read about this was his coach saying they're planning for a Paris Masters return. but that was over a week ago...
 

BeatlesFan

Bionic Poster
why is it very doubtful?

Because of Nadal’s history of skipping the end of the year due to injury, fatigue or whatever else. I’ve said since the USO that he’ll probably sit out the rest of the year. In addition, he knows he can’t beat Novak and that YE #1 will go to him. That’s logical and predictable.
 
T

TennisFan97068

Guest
Because of Nadal’s history of skipping the end of the year due to injury, fatigue or whatever else. I’ve said since the USO that he’ll probably sit out the rest of the year. In addition, he knows he can’t beat Novak and that YE #1 will go to him. That’s logical and predictable.

He also has to keep himself fresh for his yearly 8-week clay harvesting from April to June
 

Mainad

Bionic Poster
Nadal has never been a particularly consistent fixture at the Paris Masters. In the last 11 years he has only made 6 appearances (07,08,09,13,15,17) and he retired or withdrew from 2 of those (08,17). In his 6 appearances he has never failed to make at least the quarter-finals including 1 finals appearance (07 where he got destroyed by Nalbandian) and 2 other semis (09 losing to Djokovic and 13 losing to Ferrer) so it's safe to say it's not been one of his best or most frequented tournaments.

However if his latest injury will permit him I expect him to play and get in at least a few matches ahead of the WTF in which case I would expect him to make the quarters again like he usually does. But everything depends on his level of fitness of course.
 

octobrina10

Talk Tennis Guru
Btw, i REALLY liked this colour combination on Rafa. He should wear bright red more often. He wears these colours during Davis Cup matches but should wear this more.
This was Montreal right?

The Canada Masters 1000 was played in Toronto this year.
 

itrium84

Hall of Fame
I hope he will surprise us all and go deep, fully recovered. I also hope he will reach final, and get beaten by Djokovic.

Sent from my Redmi Note 4 using Tapatalk
 

Ann

Hall of Fame
Do we know whether or not he’s playing? The Nadal camp has been strangely quiet lately
It sure the f has.

There is a photo posted in Nadal news today of him in practice gear carrying rackets. There's our news scoop. :(
 

tennisfan2015

Hall of Fame
Who the hell voted - "win" lmao Someone needs reality check badly...Voted 3rd the most! Probably won't jinx it right away in his first match, but will lose his second...



How far will Nadal go in Paris Masters this year? (If he enters)
 

pedro94

Semi-Pro
OP, Nadal has not won in Miami.

I'm sure that's what I said. Or have I made a mistake there? "The Paris Masters is one of only 2 remaining Masters tournaments Nadal hasn't won yet (the other being Miami)". The bit I said after that about Shanghai is in addition to that.
 

MugOpponent

Hall of Fame
Tough to say. The draw matters at an event like this more than most. I could see third round, I could see him reaching the final. The more likely outcome is somewhere in between.
 

jm1980

Talk Tennis Guru
Well he gets to R2 automatically because of his 1st or 2nd seed.
So I predict he goes out in R4/QF if he participates, indoors are just not rafa's cups of tea
 
Much depends on the playing conditions and the form Djokovic turns up in.

If the conditions are fast, he will have a chance as long as he plays super-agressively (for his standarts), as has been the case with him on HC and grass as of late, and he doesn't run into a red-hot big hitter.

If the conditions are medium as has been the case for some time now, his only chance is that Djokovic etc do not turn up with anything resembling good form.

Nadal cannot grind his opponents on HC till the end of a tournament any more.

It is an utter irony that the speed in Bercy might not suit his game, because it is too slow for his new game on HC.

:cool:
 

kevaninho

Hall of Fame
Hes not playing IMO, and as a fan im pretty content with that. Let Djokovic have the #1 and joint Masters record. These things aren't as important as looking after that knee.
If it means waiting till January and coming back then that's fine, he done that very same thing in 2017 and had a great year.
One thing is for sure that his schedule needs to be very limited going forward IMO. Its OK him feeling fine on clay, but he doesn't need to be playing 5 tournaments over a short period anymore.
 
D

Deleted member 756514

Guest
Hes not playing IMO, and as a fan im pretty content with that. Let Djokovic have the #1 and joint Masters record. These things aren't as important as looking after that knee.
If it means waiting till January and coming back then that's fine, he done that very same thing in 2017 and had a great year.
One thing is for sure that his schedule needs to be very limited going forward IMO. Its OK him feeling fine on clay, but he doesn't need to be playing 5 tournaments over a short period anymore.
The heart wants him to play, but the mind wants him to rest and come back stronger in Australia.
As things stand right now, the slam count is the only race he should be concerned with. YE#1, M1000, Weeks at #1 are but mere footnotes.
 
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