Are Nadal and Del Potro the most mentally strong players on tour?
- Thread starter Cyan
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TheMagicianOfPrecision
Guest
You are probably right, but WHERE ARE ALL the dick-heads who said that Del Po is a mental midget at the time of Montreal and Cincy!:evil: I told you Del Po was the real deal even though its tough too admit it.
Cyan
Hall of Fame
Fed is not mentally strong. He is just super talented and gifted with amazing skills.
Cyan
Hall of Fame
He has improved a lot since then.
So why does Nadal winning make him "mentally strong"? Maybe he is just good
li0scc0
Hall of Fame
Sure he is super talented with amazing skills. So is Marat Safin.
drakulie
Talk Tennis Guru
not too sure about, Nadal>>> especially the way everyone on this board including you are always saying how tired he is, or exhausted, or injured, etc.
ksbh
Banned
Please use an alternate word for cojones. Federer might find it difficult to understand if he's reading these boards. LOL!
Cup8489
G.O.A.T.
it's early xD
ill give nadal some mental fortitude, but you can't forget that federer managed two five setters this year despite TERRIBLE serving. not to mention pulling through against haas, del potro at the french, and against roddick at wimbledon. as far as 5 setters are concerned, doesn't fed have the BEST record this year, thus meaning maybe that he is the strongest mentally this year, not to mention that he won two slams for every one won by the others mentioned?
hmm.
oh. also forgot against berdych. so of the five setters that i can think of that he's played, he's 4-2? certainly not too shabby.
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drakulie
Talk Tennis Guru
dropshot winner
Hall of Fame
Nadal definately is the mentally strongest, Del Potro is strong too, but not one of the top4 strongest. But both have a amazing combination of mental strenght and big game.
Beating Federer in a slam final shouldn't be used as the absolute indicator.
Or would anyone think of Safin as one of the mentally strongest player had he beaten Federer in the final instead of semi at the 2005 AO?
Beating Federer in a slam final shouldn't be used as the absolute indicator.
Or would anyone think of Safin as one of the mentally strongest player had he beaten Federer in the final instead of semi at the 2005 AO?
Cup8489
G.O.A.T.
it's early lol xD
Yeah it's a silly indicator. That would mean that Federer is the best player against all types of players at any time. Which isn't true. Sometimes his game doesn't match up well against certain players. That doesn't mean they are more mentally strong than he is.
Cup8489
G.O.A.T.
Extract from Cucio's "Fundamental Spanish For Kids".
Furniture with 5 cajones:
Squirrel with a pair of impressive cojones:
it's too bad im not a kid and just very very sleepy. give me a break, i changed it.
cucio
Legend
Chill, man, I was not implying anyone was a kid, just found funny the idea of a Spanish book for children with that kind of illustrative pictures
Peace, and have a good siesta.
Cyan
Hall of Fame
Fed had MONO and it was at a SF....
Sartorius
Hall of Fame
Oh yeah, I agree completely. Federer happens to be a superhuman like tennis player with weak mentality, he never-ever had won tight matches in his career, he wins matches purely by his amazing skills. He has been playing great tennis since he first picked up a racket, he's not a hardworker, in fact he doesn't practice at all. That's probably why he had an incredible amount of success with 15 GSs, many records, a domination period like no other, staying number one for years. Actually he's No. 1 right now too, thanks to his amazing giftedness... Oh, but let's not forget: the main...no, the only reason Federer got back to No. 1 was becuase he was out-of-this world lucky. It is very, very obvious that the the way he bounced back from the first part of this year, getting back into shape and form, had nothing to do with his mentality, it had to do with Nadal getting injured. Federer actually never had to bounce back from tough times or losses in his entire career anyway, hence we didn't notice his weak mentality... Oh what, last year?.. The FO losses in previous years?.. Pfft, anybody can bounce back from those, especially last year's Wimby loss and especially if you're super talented with super-duper skills, it was nothing.
This year, well, Federer automatically won both W and FO by ATP's decision when Nadal was out, since quite sometime that's the way it goes in boxing anyway-err, sorry I mean tennis. No need to mention he actually made it to all slam finals, he's uber-super talented, remember?.. Lucky him.
diegaa
Hall of Fame
I have to agree. Even more, roddick's 2nd biggest asset is his mental strenght. The guy isnt a great player but he's been in the top 10 for almost a decade now.
JoshDragon
Hall of Fame
That's exactly how I feel.
Cyan
Hall of Fame
When matches go to a fifth set take a look at Fed's record, not impressive at all..
dropshot winner
Hall of Fame
Federer usually was very rarely taken to 5 in his prime, and when he was it was usually a very talented player playing at his best, in those situations you can't always win.
Take a look at Federer's tiebreak record if you think he isn't strong mentally, it's the best in the history of tennis.
Talker
Hall of Fame
I give Potro a lot of credit for the UO win.
Some of it was mental strength.
I really think it was his philosophy that helped, such as "play the best you can and let the cards fall where they may".
Nadal seems to have the same outlook.
This isn't mental strength but just how you approach the game, though it looks like mental strength.
Still these are mental qualities that require a player to stay focused on the philisophy they have and to not get caught up with other distractions like losing a point or set, a bad call, etc.
Ignoring distractions and negative internal dialogue is probably the greatest use of mental strength.
Fed has tons of this, usually. At the UO he seemed to let a few calls get to him, and then seemed to let his game plan wander. He slipped up mentally here and Potro made him pay.
Even Fed can have a few bad days mentally.
Some of it was mental strength.
I really think it was his philosophy that helped, such as "play the best you can and let the cards fall where they may".
Nadal seems to have the same outlook.
This isn't mental strength but just how you approach the game, though it looks like mental strength.
Still these are mental qualities that require a player to stay focused on the philisophy they have and to not get caught up with other distractions like losing a point or set, a bad call, etc.
Ignoring distractions and negative internal dialogue is probably the greatest use of mental strength.
Fed has tons of this, usually. At the UO he seemed to let a few calls get to him, and then seemed to let his game plan wander. He slipped up mentally here and Potro made him pay.
Even Fed can have a few bad days mentally.
All-rounder
Legend
That has to be the silliest statement I have read in a long time even if that was back in 2009
That hold true for Novak, Soderling, and Davy....all were considered as mentally weak in the past. However, after Novak beat Roger at the AO , Soderling taking down Rafa at the FO, and Davy had a great run in WTF, suddenly they became Spartans afterward. Where are they now?
Rafa should be taken out of the equation, because he’s being owned by players in the top ten. Until he can turn things around, then we can consider him as one of the Spartan!
KAndersonFan
Semi-Pro
Winning 16-14 in the fifth set of a Grand Slam final of the most important tournament in the world is pretty indicative of mental strength.. though I agree that Rafa at least is superior in this category.
Cyan
Hall of Fame
It was Roddick... look at the h2h:shock:
'The guy isn't a great player'. Maybe not a great talent but worked hard to become a great player.
Nadal,Hewitt & Roddick are the best upstairs. Federer seems to wilt mentally against tough opponents like Nadal and Murray. When Hewitt and Roddick come up against superior opponents they never give up.
kingdaddy41788
Hall of Fame
Aren't you forgetting Federer?
KAndersonFan
Semi-Pro
And? As I think someone pointed out, Roddick is also a mentally tough player, not exactly a pushover. Federer was by and large getting outplayed throughout the match, and he'd never been pushed to five sets before by Roddick. It was totally new territory and up until the 30th game, the H2H ceased to exist.
What about Federer recovering from two sets down, two points from defeat against Nadal in Miami in 2005? Two sets down to Berdych at the AO last year? Two sets down against Haas playing as well as he could at age 30, saving break point with an inside-out forehand? Two sets to one down against Del Potro, a player you claim is a "mental spartan?" Two sets to one down against Tipsarevic, a match he won 10-8 in the fifth while ILL?
Yeah, Federer had some choppy matches in the fifth set finals last year, losing 2-6 in two of them. But he was 28 last year.. still playing great tennis, but needing longer than he did to recover for matches. And wearing down in the fifth set, especially after a Super Saturday semi, can be expected from now on.
supineAnimation
Hall of Fame
Nadal?... no question. Del Potro?... no. Not that DelPo is mentally weak (neither is Federer, but thanks for the chuckle from the anti-Fed contingent), it's just that there's no way you can deem someone that young as THE most mentally-strong on tour, particularly when a little over a year ago he got double-bageled by Fed at the AO playing two of the weakest sets I can remember seeing from a top player in recent memory. Roddick is very mentally-tough as well. You don't stay in the top 10 as long as he has without having that quality. But I guess some consider staying #1 for nearly 6 straight years and winning 16 majors to be something that can be accomplished by a player who is not mentally-tough, so what do I know?
davey25
Banned
Nadal absolutely. Del Potro? No. I would say his mental strength is good, nothing remarkable, his piercing strokes are his biggest asset. Del Potro is just godified by some people since he beat Federer in a major final, one which he would have lost in 3 sets if Federer hadnt blown so many chances to win the 2nd set, despite Federer serving abysmal and playing mediocre all around that day. Yet since he won, through whatever means, he is somehow some mental demon, while all those who lose to Federer in major finals are chokers or mental midgets automaticaly somehow. Go figure. People also dont understand that Del Potro has the 2nd best game to hurt Federer in a big match of the top players since he has so much power it is enough to set Federer on his heels. That includes even Murray or Djokovic, both excellent players, but both have games that are very manageable for Federer in a big match. That all has to do with his tennis ability and having the right tools to achieve the dubious task of facing Federer. It is not being a choker or not as some like to label it.
Sartorius
Hall of Fame
So if Federer keeps beating players not named Del Potro or Nadal in slam finals, it's not that significant. Because the "true threats" were not there anyway, and that player Federer beat was "afraid of Federer" and gave the match away.
If someone does beat Federer in a slam final, they have proven themselves to be "not afraid of Federer", since this is one of the very few requirements to beat him, if not the only one.
And not to forget, in the case of Federer losing a slam final, to Del Potro or to Nadal or to that new "Spartan" player, it's another proof that Federer is mentally weak.
How convenient...to hide a very unconvenient truth: In the big picture, Federer is mentally as strong as Nadal, if not stronger.
davey25
Banned
LOL no way in hell either Hewitt or Roddick are tougher mentally than Federer. Nadal definitely is, but Federer is definitely 2nd place in that category of the current field. As for giving up Hewitt has given up MANY times in matches with Federer, and if you are a Hewitt fan you should well know this. He also gave up halfway through his French Open quarterfinal beatings by Ferrero and Gaudio (and yes I saw both matches), and some other matches. The only time I have ever seen Federer really give up was the French Open final vs Nadal in 2008. As for Roddick he is the one who blew crucial points and service games in the 2004 and 2009 Wimbledon finals with Federer despite arguably outplaying him overall both days. Dont get me wrong though, Hewitt and Roddick are very mentally tough indeed, amongst the better this decade in that category, but still clearly below Federer.
Hewitt or Roddick with Federer's game would still not have won 16 slams. People dont give nearly enough credit to Federer's mental strength, how many times he has pulled himself out of a bind, and how often he has held his nerve at crucial times in a big match. The amount of mental strength it takes to be so consistent and so dominant for so long with any game is incredible.
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petetheileet
Rookie
No way for Del Potro!!!
Easily agitated on the court and it has affected his performance a number of times!
Easily agitated on the court and it has affected his performance a number of times!
AM95
Hall of Fame
so i suppose winning two seperate majors 5 consecutive times takes no mental toughness? or 22 consecutive slam semis and 10 consecutive finals?
hes mentally strong, he's not the strongest out there, but hes mentally strong.
davey25
Banned
Beating Fed at the SF is not that hard!??! Is that why he is 16-2 in slam semifinals, and the only 2 to beat him at that stage were Nadal and Djokovic.
Djokovic's slam semifinal win over Federer was really more impressive in itself than Del Potro's U.S Open final win. It was a straight sets mugging vs a hard fought 5 set struggle. In addition despite the mono excuse rehashed by *******s, Federer actually was playing pretty well in that semifinal, and much better than he was in the U.S Open final vs Del Potro which actually was quite poor for his standards. I say that as someone who likes Del Potro more than Djokovic as well.
swordtennis
G.O.A.T.
Not sure about DelPo. Not sure what this guy is all about. Not sure if he is some kind of player or one of these "Frankensteins". If ya know what I mean....
D
decades
Guest
Sure after Roger it's those two and Murray.
BounceHitBounceHit
Legend
Who's the most mentally tough player?
That would be Fed. BHBH
That would be Fed.
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