Federer fan's feelings about Nadal now?

Do you like Rafa now?


  • Total voters
    66

topher

Hall of Fame
Nice thread. Just goes to show that there are a lot more reasonable, classy Federer fans than a Rafa fan might think (kudos to you guys) and even though there are the irrational ones who make themselves more noticed in Rafa's threads that doesn't mean that they're the majority. Roger fans complaining about Rafa's fans should keep this in mind as well. Also, this is an online board, where rationality and human decency goes to die.

Smart move MichaelNadal. You might as well name this thread:

"On which Federer fan did Nadal cause the most mental damage"?

The answer is on the replies :D

lol, I'm sure that was a convenient by-product.
 

Ico

Hall of Fame
I'm sure it's been said, but I appreciate Nadal for breaking up the monotony of Djokovic-Murray. Also have a feeling he won't be around much longer so I cheer for him more than I used to (whenever he isn't playing Roger of course).
 

ScottleeSV

Hall of Fame
but as soon as he steps on a tennis court I can't stand him. It's something about his demeanour.

This.

It's his constant celebration of points that annoys me, particularly the exaggerated fist pumps and kicks and all that bollocks. I'm surprised he's apparently so well liked among fellow pros tbh. It'll be interesting after he retires to see whether any/some players come out of the woodwork to say they couldn't stand playing him because of this.

The time between points bothers me less. I guess I'm the patient sort.
 

uncooling

Semi-Pro
Lol. The most pathetic poster whose sole purpose on this forum is to bash and spread lies about Djokovic is trying to lecture me. What a hypocrite.
I see that it is not enough anymore to bash Djokovic, but he has to resort to personal insults. Very nice.

You are yet to answer my question! Or at least tell people that you aren't comfortable answering it :)
 

uncooling

Semi-Pro
Sorry, you are a troll and I am not answering to any of your questions.
Don't feed the trolls.

that's funny.

you just answered a question that was asked to Federer's fans (even specified in the title) and everyone knows you aren't Federer's fan

And now you're not answering a question that was directed at you.

Maybe you just don't want to answer because you know the answer :)
 
Just wondering how Federer fans, not unreasonable ones, but balanced ones feel about today's Rafa. He plays a much smarter, more offensive game. He celebrates waaaaaaay less, like hardly ever at all. He doesn't talk about his knees anymore or take MTO's. Have you noticed these things? Has he grown on you over time at all? This guy has literally grown up before our very eyes, it's insane.

53024129_display_image.jpg


the hatred stems purely from nadal acting as a challenger to federer. it had nothing in reality to do with nadal's play etc. just excuses these fans found to justify irrationality. obviously when federer is no longer dominant and djokovic, murray etc have come along, the hatred has lessened. its human nature.
 

10is

Professional
not really sure but the guy seemed very classy when he was winning (2003-2007) after 2007 looked like he was becoming a sore loser...

:roll:

Good for you. I, on the other hand, am a fan of Tennis and care not one whit for "personalities". Federer might very well be the vilest, most loathsome degenerate sodomite on the planet but I will still adore him because of his game, the aesthetics of his immense talent and the sublime artistry that he displays on the tennis court. On the other hand Nadal might very well be the "man of my dreams" and a kindred soul in terms of his persona but his brutal (albeit unique and effective) style of tennis and egregious displays of (on court) gamesmanship will always be off-putting to my eyes and I will dislike him for it.

In essence, I don't give a **** what comes out of a tennis players mouth.
 
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Crisstti

Legend
The thing I like most about Nadal is the way he just goes after what he wants and how target specific he is. I don't think he's more aggressive now. On the contrary, I think he's gotten more conservative. He had a crazy aggressive forehand back in 2005. Maybe the fact that his BH wing wasn't developed enough along with his movement forced him to add more oomph to his forehands but he used to really kill those FHs back then. He seemed more carefree then.
That said, I have mad respect for his effort and I think he's a very cool-headed guy. For all the emotion he shows, to me, he's much more cool-headed than Roger who's a bit like a simmering volcano of emotion at times (I love that too btw). I think his cool-headedness probably makes it slightly easier to watch him because he just does his thing. With Roger, the closer you've followed him the more you're aware of just how much emotion the guy can be holding in at times and it makes it difficult to watch him knowing and feeling how badly he wants something.

I think I agree about that.

the hatred stems purely from nadal acting as a challenger to federer. it had nothing in reality to do with nadal's play etc. just excuses these fans found to justify irrationality. obviously when federer is no longer dominant and djokovic, murray etc have come along, the hatred has lessened. its human nature.

Basically.
 

zagor

Bionic Poster
Neutral, as they always have been more or less so nothing changed in that regard for me personally.

I'll always respect him and be glad he's part of the tennis by the virtue of being such an amazing tennis player but his game is not my cup of tea.

As for his mannerism the OP described, they never bothered me so it doesn't affect my opinion of him regardless of whether he toned them down or not, that said people dislike famous athletes in general for all sort of things so I never agreed (and never will) with Nadal fans painting with such a broad brush everyone who criticizes/dislikes Nadal (you don't think Rafa's perfect, you're a hurt Fed fan and similar).
 

Bender

G.O.A.T.
The problem with Chico is that he thinks he's fair- when someone says something negative about Nadal, it's ok to him and all those negative posts about Djokovic is all bs.

Also, he can't distinguish between 'fact' and 'thought'. When 90% of voters thought Djokovic had the easiest draw in Cincinnati this year (which is obviously true), he thinks otherwise (voted for Nadal) and blame all voters who voted for Djokovic.

Lastly he can't accept the reality and keeps denying it. Djokovic is inferior to Nadal on clay, he's lucky in several occasions, etc. He just simply doesn't know how to accept it.

I wonder what Chico would answer to this question: who is #1 this season so far?

Let's just feel sorry for this guy who has an IQ of a 5 year old boy.
At least NadalSlamKing was creative in the way he riled up the Fedites, and hilarious whenever Rafa lost, contrary to his predictions.

This guy Chico is a one-dimensional guy who is neither truthful nor fair (or even inadvertently funny). He hasn't any flair either - he's the Djokovic of posting which I guess is fitting.
 
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Jeffrey573639

Semi-Pro
At least NadalSlamKing was creative in the way he riled up the Fedites, and hilarious whenever Rafa lost contrary his predictions.

This guy Chico is a one-dimensional guy who is neither truthful or fair (or even inadvertently funny). He hasn't any flair either - he's the Djokovic of posting which I guess is fitting.

Weak trolling era :)
 

Magnus

Legend
He doesn't take MTOs, he just tries to kill his opponent, so no, nothing's changed Michael, Nadal is still a jerk in my book. And no, I'm not purely a Federer fan, but I allowed myself to vote anyway. Sue me.
 

Hood_Man

G.O.A.T.
Unchanged. I have to confess that one of the biggest reasons he annoys me is because players I quite like keep losing to him (kinda childish I know, but I have to be honest with myself), but at the same time I just get this feeling that if I were to meet any of the top 5 he's probably the one I could get along with the best.

I still want to see him lose in Paris though :twisted:
 
M

monfed

Guest
So anyone who picked option 2 is a hater/troll right? Since there are only 3 legit words on TW, hater,troll and fair?
So Fed fans who picked option 1 are fair and the others are trolls and haters? :lol:

And big LOL@ Ralph fans voting in the poll.
 

ledwix

Hall of Fame
Nadal is much greater to watch now. He has improved all aspects of his game over the years, serve, volleys, backhand, touch, slice, etc. Despite already having the forehand and speed as a kid to be the best clay courter since Borg. That shows he really wanted to be greater than just a clay courter; he is trying to be the best ever basically.

Still his game does not look or sound that good aesthetically, but he totally stunned Djokovic with that performance today.
 
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powerangle

Legend
Just wondering how Federer fans, not unreasonable ones, but balanced ones feel about today's Rafa. He plays a much smarter, more offensive game. He celebrates waaaaaaay less, like hardly ever at all. He doesn't talk about his knees anymore or take MTO's. Have you noticed these things? Has he grown on you over time at all? This guy has literally grown up before our very eyes, it's insane.

53024129_display_image.jpg


1375995805000-8-8-13-rafael-nadal.jpg

Your post assumes that all Fed fans aren't already Nadal fans to begin with.

Some of us Fed fans have always liked Nadal and nothing's changed.
 

Sparta-cus

New User
Anyone who is a fan of tennis would certainly appreciate both Nadal and Federer achievements regardless of who they support when they play against each other. Nobody in this planet can reciprocate the type of intensity and individuality to the tennis is mind boggling. I will be missing both! I know some people look for stardom trolling and dishing their hate but they are just sad and unhappy childhood in basement :)
 
Unchanged. I have to confess that one of the biggest reasons he annoys me is because players I quite like keep losing to him (kinda childish I know, but I have to be honest with myself), but at the same time I just get this feeling that if I were to meet any of the top 5 he's probably the one I could get along with the best.

I still want to see him lose in Paris though :twisted:

appreciate the candor and intellectual honesty.
 

clout

Hall of Fame
When he first came up I remember being like "ugh how is this dirtballer always getting the better of someone who plays beautiful tennis" but over the years, Rafa has rose a lot on my fav players list and I’d be happy for Rafa if he ended up with more majors than Fed, although I still hope Fed comes out on top. Still haven't fully warmed to Novak though and at this point, I likely never will although there's no doubt he's clearly one of the greatest as well.
 
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Rosstour

G.O.A.T.
Due to my suspicion he's used PEDs throughout his career I will never be to fond of him, same goes for post 2010 Djokovic and Ferrer.

This is it for me.

Also, Rafa's behavior in the recent Finals vs Kyrgios and Medvedev was appalling.
 

King No1e

G.O.A.T.
I'll admit it wasn't fun seeing Nadal back in the day beat Djokovic over and over, especially at RG. But I've always had total respect and admiration for his intensity, his professionalism, and his unyielding grit and willingness to suffer for the game.
He conducts himself like a true Spartan. Surrender in battle is not an option in his book. He makes damn sure he comes back either with his shield, or on it.

I'd love to hate him, but he's such a bad@$$.
 

Hitman

Bionic Poster
I'll admit it wasn't fun seeing Nadal back in the day beat Djokovic over and over, especially at RG. But I've always had total respect and admiration for his intensity, his professionalism, and his unyielding grit and willingness to suffer for the game.
He conducts himself like a true Spartan. Surrender in battle is not an option in his book. He makes damn sure he comes back either with his shield, or on it.

I'd love to hate him, but he's such a bad@$$.


Pre-2011?
 
I like to see people beat Nadal. I don't like to see Nadal lose. The guy is a force of nature, and to beat him, even if he's not playing well, seems to require herculean effort. He's also been so darned resilient, much more so than I ever thought he would be as I watched him from 2005-2009. Nadal is one of the biggest challenges in the history of the sport. Djokovic and Federer both have those days when they are vulnerable and beatable. I just don't see that in Nadal. He always fights.
 
First off it's not "Rafa", it's Rafael or you could also refer to him as Nadal. He's not your friend/relative. Why not just call him Ralph then?
Second, he still takes unbearably long between points, still plays his ugly CC FH which is like the ugliest stroke of all time, ugly frown face throughout the match,one hell of an ugly BH and just plain overall ugly. Never seen him at the net,takes forever to serve. Probably not as ugly as he was in 06/07 sure but still boring and mundane to watch. I'd rather watch an episode of Under the dome than watching the nadal do his brainless routine.

Tennis is practically dead for me with the brainless grinding across all 4 majors,has been for a while now and the only point of interest when it comes to Ralph is to see if he equals/breaks Fed's slam count. And ofcourse as long as Fed's still playing, as a fan it's only natural to expect he can win one more. But gamewise, tennis is dead to me with pushers like Murray winning Wimbledon.

And what's with your nostalgic Ralph threads and posts of late? Looks like you haven't taken that WB RD 1 loss that well. :lol:
Also who are these unreasonable Fed fans,you're not referring to me are you? :lol:
So who is Monfed now, in TTW :happydevil:
 

Hitman

Bionic Poster
I like to see people beat Nadal. I don't like to see Nadal lose. The guy is a force of nature, and to beat him, even if he's not playing well, seems to require herculean effort. He's also been so darned resilient, much more so than I ever thought he would be as I watched him from 2005-2009. Nadal is one of the biggest challenges in the history of the sport. Djokovic and Federer both have those days when they are vulnerable and beatable. I just don't see that in Nadal. He always fights.

I take it you didn't see the AO 2019 final then.
 

octogon

Hall of Fame
I take it you didn't see the AO 2019 final then.


In general though, he has a point. Nadal is probably the greatest big match player of all-time. Certainly the greatest big match player of his era.

To have a combined Grand Slam H2H of 19-10 against Federer and Djokovic in absolutely insane. More often than not in slams, it requires a Herculean effort to beat him. Djokovic winning comfortably in straights at AO 2019 in an exception to the general rule, doesn't change that generally being true over his entire career, even against Djokovic.
 

MeatTornado

Talk Tennis Guru
I still root against him basically every match he plays, but I have a lot more respect for him now. The way he's come back injury after injury and adapted his game is really impressive.
 

Hitman

Bionic Poster
In general though, he has a point. Nadal is probably the greatest big match player of all-time. Certainly the greatest big match player of his era.

I would say Nadal is most certainly the best big match player of the era he played in, I rank him above everyone he has played against there. No questions. He's in contention for best big match player of all time in every discussion about that subject, deserves to be. Sure others may have a claim on the title, most notably Sampras, but Nadal is right up there in the talk. The point I am making is, even though I give him that adulation, it is false to say that Nadal hasn't shown vulnerability and hasn't shown times where he looked a beaten man, because while it is rare, he has.

To have a combined Grand Slam H2H of 19-10 against Federer and Djokovic in absolutely insane. More often than not in slams, it requires a Herculean effort to beat him. Djokovic winning comfortably in straights at AO 2019 in an exception to the general rule, doesn't change that generally being true over his entire career, even against Djokovic.

As for this...doesn't change the point I am making. I already know how tough he is, just saying he is not invincible and has shown cracks.
 

King No1e

G.O.A.T.
Nadal wasn't the fav in their rivalry between 2011 and 2013, it was more even between them. Pre-2011 it was Nadal, post 2013 it was Djokovic.
2012-2013 Nadal had a slight edge in the matchup - he was better in the baseline rallies, and the dynamic changed only in late 2013 when Djokovic improved his serve and net game and started beating Nadal in the short points.
Pre-2011: Nadal with a moderate advantage
2011: Djokovic BOAT, unstoppable
2012-13: Nadal regains advantage
2013-2016: Djokovic dominates short points, gains crushing lead
2017-present: Clear surface differences, Nadal wins on clay, Djoker on hard, epic(s?) happen on grass
 

clout

Hall of Fame
Have warmed up a bit more to him. I admit Fed beating him regularly the last few years has helped.
I guess the “when” plays a big role. If you took a time machine back to 2008 or 2009 and asked a bunch of Fed fans this question most of them would probably say, “F that guy.”

Same goes for asking a Nadal fan how they felt about Novak in 2011 or how a Fed fan felt about Novak in 2015 or last July.
 
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