Ivan Lendl: "I wouldn't play Madrid..."

vortex1

vortex1

Banned
http://www.tennis.com/articles/templates/features.aspx?articleid=5478&zoneid=9

Some interesting opinions offered here in regards to upcoming French Open tournament.

Do you think Nadal made a mistake by "sweeping" all clay masters and overextended himself? Did Federer really gain more from the loss than Nadal from his win? Does the fact that Nadal's level seemed to drop as he progressed through the tournament will carry on to RG? Is there a "ball basher" who can capitalize on this?

Opinions?
 
WARPWOODIE

WARPWOODIE

Rookie
Interesting view from Lendl. I guess what he is saying is that Nadal will run out of gas in Paris....maybe so. However, I think that Nadal will win the French Open but will run out of gas in Wimbledon.
 
B

Big Dave

New User
tough to say, but ya can't tell with Rafa sometimes. I thought for sure theres no way he can come back with enough gas in the tank after that 09 australian open verdasco match and play Fed, but he took that one to 5 as well, and won.... who knows. i think rafa will be just fine.
 
B

bolo

G.O.A.T.
Playing madrid isn't a mistake for the short term goal of winning RG.

But yes you have to believe it has hurt his chances for the queens (must play to get grass court feel?), wimbledon and then DC (maybe will drop?) stretch. That's basically 3.5 months of continuous mental and physical exertion.

Also I am a little surprised Perrotta only brings up the positives for federer in how the intangibles for the federer/nadal rivalry might have changed now that federer has a FO/record. Pressure can hurt you but it also motivates. While the pressure to win might have lead federer to miss some points here or there it also motivated him to work hard/stay focussed to keep giving himself the best opportunities to win. It's possible he's seen a decline in this last part.
 
Last edited:
Radobg

Radobg

Rookie
I think he will be fine for RG!Not so sure for Wimbledon!!!If he play Queen's and make a deep run there!!And he sed he will play it..
 
C

Chadwixx

Banned
Nadals ocd really acts up in his tournament selection. He says the tour is too long but just cant resist playing every event possible.

Fed did gain more than nadal in madrid. Almost back in form and peaking at the right moment, while nadal lost some of his fire and desire to prove himself with all those wins.
 
M

Max G.

Legend
Chadwixx said:
Nadals ocd really acts up in his tournament selection. He says the tour is too long but just cant resist playing every event possible.
Click to expand...

Over the past year, he's played 16 events - two LESS than the required number.

Him playing 'every event possible' isn't true.
 
cknobman

cknobman

Legend
bolo said:
Playing madrid isn't a mistake for the short term goal of winning RG.

But yes you have to believe it has hurt his chances for the queens (must play to get grass court feel?), wimbledon and then DC (maybe will drop?) stretch. That's basically 3.5 months of continuous mental and physical exertion.

Also I am a little surprised Perrotta only brings up the positives for federer in how the intangibles for the federer/nadal rivalry might have changed now that federer has a FO/record. Pressure can hurt you but it also motivates. While the pressure to win might have lead federer to miss some points here or there it also motivated him to work hard/stay focussed to keep giving himself the best opportunities to win. It's possible he's seen a decline in this last part.
Click to expand...

Bolo,

Looking at Fed vs Nadal and watching dang near every match they have ever played I have always firmly felt that the majority of the time pressure has been Federers undoing. I would agree that outside of the major event there is less motivation but against Nadal I believe regardless of Feds achievements he will always be 100% motivated. So I tend to side with the article in thinking that Madrid helped Fed's confidence and may ultimately end up helping him if he faces Nadal in the FO final since for the first time there will be more pressure on Nadal than himself.
 
cknobman

cknobman

Legend
Max G. said:
Over the past year, he's played 16 events - two LESS than the required number.

Him playing 'every event possible' isn't true.
Click to expand...

Well you cant use the last year as a baseline because he was out for what 3 consecutive months? And that was a direct effect of playing too many tournaments, correct?
 
MAX PLY

MAX PLY

Hall of Fame
Actually, Lendl's point makes perfect sense for most everyone who had Nadal's clay season, except Nadal, as Rafa virtually had to play the Spanish "tune up." Lendl's point wasn't so much that playing Madrid would be bad for Nadal, but rather, that Nadal, from a tennis perspective, gains nothing from playing it. Since he won the previous two clay tourneys and both of those are more similar to the FO environment, playing on a very different clay surface and at altitude does not help him at all--so why play (especially when health has been an issue). Lendl's analysis, from a pure tennis perspective, is, I believe correct. But Nadal cannot skip his country's tournament and disappoint the home fans.

For Fed, the analysis is the opposite, he has had a terrible clay season so far and needed some more matches under his belt and fitness/injuries have not really been an issue for Roger. Likewise, I would find it hard to believe that a week at higher altitude would adversely affect his game (I actually think, as repect to the FO, the "altitude issue" is a bit of red herring).

Nevertheless, Nadal remains the man to beat in Paris, Madrid or not.
 
U

urban

Legend
Lendl isn't wrong. Madrid with its playing conditions doesn't completely fit in in the RG build up. On the other hand, Ivan should think of his own manoeuver to skip RG for Wimbledon. It didn't work out. For Nadal it wasn't wrong either: he had a week of preparation before RG, a 3 week layoff before RG would have been too much. That his form curve sank a bit after MC, is actually a good sign, he can peak now at RG at the right moment. He knows now again, that he wins on clay without playing his best, and maintains his grip on Federer. If his body and knees hold up, he will be tough to beat at RG.
 
Cyan

Cyan

Hall of Fame
patty_mnouchkine said:
there's a good chance that nadal may clinch wimbledon title and lose out on the FO- mu gut tells me
Click to expand...

Now, wouldn't that be funny.

You had Fed winning Wimbledons for years and Rafa winning FO's for years. Then each of them won the channel slam. What's left but for Fed to win RG and then Rafa win Wimbledon in the same year. Hilarious.
 
CyBorg

CyBorg

Legend
They are moving Madrid to earlier in the calendar starting next year.

I believe they're switching Rome and Madrid.

Not sure what conclusions to draw from this.
 
D

Deleted member 22147

Guest
I don't see how Roger Federer gained more from a loss than a win, what difference does a few points make?
 
MAX PLY

MAX PLY

Hall of Fame
Ocean Drive said:
I don't see how Roger Federer gained more from a loss than a win, what difference does a few points make?
Click to expand...

Of course no one made the point you seem to be rebutting. The question is whether Roger got more out of Madrid than Nadal and I suspect he did (Roger's incremental improvement was clearly abundantly aided by playing Madrid, Nadal's not as much). Nevertheless, had Roger won, he would have gotten that much more out of it.
 
C

Chopin

Hall of Fame
Let it me known, I made this prediction about Nadal before Lendl. The guy had "too perfect" of a warm-up. He won't even reach the finals.
 
yellowoctopus

yellowoctopus

Professional
MAX PLY said:
Actually, Lendl's point makes perfect sense for most everyone who had Nadal's clay season, except Nadal, as Rafa virtually had to play the Spanish "tune up." Lendl's point wasn't so much that playing Madrid would be bad for Nadal, but rather, that Nadal, from a tennis perspective, gains nothing from playing it. Since he won the previous two clay tourneys and both of those are more similar to the FO environment, playing on a very different clay surface and at altitude does not help him at all--so why play (especially when health has been an issue). Lendl's analysis, from a pure tennis perspective, is, I believe correct. But Nadal cannot skip his country's tournament and disappoint the home fans.
...[comments about Federe]
Nevertheless, Nadal remains the man to beat in Paris, Madrid or not.
Click to expand...

Very, very well put Maxply. :)

Lendl has a reputation for being gruesomely methodical in his approach to tennis, to the point where people criticized him for having no mercy on the court. I'm sure if hitting your opponent on the head with your racquet is allowed, Lendl would be the first to do it if it means winning.

ivan_lendl_tennis.JPG
 
OddJack

OddJack

G.O.A.T.
Good article, I agree with the author in his assessment of Nadal and Federer chances. By no means it's a done deal.
 
O

Olorin

Rookie
Well, I had a nice holiday. I also agree with the author. Nadal is going to have a tough time making it to the finals this year, in my opinion.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top