roger-federer-sticks-to-schedule-while-fellow-tennis-rivals-complain

http://www.thenational.ae/sport/ten...-schedule-while-fellow-tennis-rivals-complain


In slack moments at press conferences involving elite tennis players this year, a favoured line of questioning has been to inquire about the schedule.

It is a topic nearly certain to get a rise out of players who otherwise are plodding through another media session.

The schedule! Endless. Pitiless. Destructive. Certain to end more careers than tennis elbow.

In the past six months, Novak Djokovic has questioned the current calendar. Rafael Nadal deemed it "crazy" and "not possible", and predicted that "because of it, we will all have to retire when we are young". Andy Roddick suggested that players might need to form a union to stand up to exploitative tennis officials and tournament organisers. Andy Murray declared the schedule "messed up, and we need to change it".

Absent from the chorus of critics? Roger Federer, arguably the greatest - as well as most durable - player in tennis history.

On Friday, the Swiss for the fourth time plays in the semi-finals of the Mubadala World Tennis Championship at Zayed Sports City in Abu Dhabi.

In an electronic question-and-answer exchange with The National,he seemed to suggest that the schedule 'twas ever thus and that players control their own destinies.

"We have to remember that the season has always been long and gruelling," Federer said. "That's what makes tennis so amazing.

"Just imagine, in the old days most of the top players were also playing doubles."

He said the tennis calendar is not designed as an instrument of torture for elite players.

"I have always tried to make sure people realise that there are many players who are playing tennis and it's not just the top guys," he said. "There are other players who don't win every week and want the tournaments and need the jobs."

Players are obliged to play 16 tournaments (the four majors, the eight Masters-level tournaments and four of their choosing), and if they play fewer than 18 tournaments in a year they lose rankings points.

Certainly, Djokovic's schedule through the US Open, coinciding with his surge to the No 1 world ranking, was extremely rigorous (76 matches). But welcome to Federer's world: the 16-time slam champion has played at least 70 matches for 11 consecutive years, including 76 in 2011, when he turned age 30.

"I think the biggest challenge for the top players is managing our own schedules and not overplaying," he said. "This is key to health and long-term success."

Commentary: Is Federer really the greatest of all time?

Last Updatedec 26, 2011

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He concedes that the issue warrants continued study, but said that some improvements already have been made. "We now have many 28 [player] draws in the ATP 250 events, we don't play three-out-of-five-set matches in the ATP Tour anymore and we will end the season earlier next year.

"We need to see what happens as a result of these changes before making any new changes."

He added that "we need to do what is right not just for the players but also for our tournaments, who are our partners in the management of the game".

He acknowledges changes in the game since his 1999 debut as a full-time player. "The slowing of the court surfaces, the string technology and the evolution of today's modern athlete has contributed to making tennis … more challenging for the athlete," Federer said.

As for his own longevity? "My passion for competition and my love for tennis has a lot to do with it."

His passion and love bring him back to Abu Dhabi for the fourth edition of the Mubadala tournament, for which he expressed fondness despite never having won it.

"It is an amazing way to start the year," he said. "Abu Dhabi does a great job of welcoming us players to the area, the fans are amazing, the crowds are great, the hospitality is perfect and you are almost guaranteed to have nice weather and competitive matches, which helps you get a jump start to the year."

He will be hoping to open the 2012 season at the same level he ended 2011. He won 15 consecutive matches and three tournaments - including the Paris Masters and the ATP World Tour Finals in London - to conclude the year as the man to beat.

The Federer who will play in the capital is one who continues to look forward, intending to be a better player tomorrow than he was yesterday.

"I have always said that the minute you decide or think that you cannot improve is the time that you should stop playing," he said. "The good news for me is that I feel like I still have things to learn and parts of my game to improve, so I am excited for the future."

Roger is a thorough professional in a field dominated by whiny ass divas, first of whom is the ever-complaining, injury faker from Spain.

I could not agree more with Federer here.. Tennis is not just about the top ranked players.. They also need some tournaments to get some ranking points and get things going..

The schedule is not made only for the top players.. If they dont want to play then they dont have to play.. at least stop cmplaining and ruining it for others..

For some players tennis is the medium for money.. why take that away??

I don't like Federer (or any tennis player ever) - but you have to admit that his stances on issues like the ranking system and the schedule are the most selfless. Rafa's opinions on these issues are very self-interested.

Nadal is in favor of any policy which makes it easier for him to stay on top of the game with less work, such as making the ranking system 2-year instead of annual - and making less tournaments mandatory to protect his injury-ridden body whilst not losing ranking points.

Federer, at his age, must have accumulated at least as much wear-and-tear as Nadal, yet is calling for a fair schedule and ranking system which allows the lower-ranked tennis players better chances to go deep in the draw, and play more tournaments to make enough to support themselves. None of this benefits him, as he IS one of the top ranked players and has nothing to ever worry about financially.

Then you hear about Rafa complaining about taxes at Queens club and it's no wonder that a lot of people like it when the 'pig got roasted'.

rogi love.

If the number of mandatory tournaments would be reduced, that wouldn't affect the lower ranked players at all.

Also, we could say Fed is being selfish here. He hardly ever gets injured, so the schedule doesn't bother him. What about the other players though?.

I think Fed has a great point. The only time you hear complaining about the schedule is when a top player is being interviewed.

What happens to the guy ranked 100 in the world? He might be relying on those tournaments every week to make a living for his family!

Crisstti said:

If the number of mandatory tournaments would be reduced, that wouldn't affect the lower ranked players at all.

Also, we could say Fed is being selfish here. He hardly ever gets injured, so the schedule doesn't bother him. What about the other players though?.

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Maybe because he is smart enough to play an agressive style that prevents him from grunting and hurting his body? is it his fault that almost everyone else is not trying to finish point and preffers to win a point after an endless and demanding rally, taking the lesser risk?

A large part of success at the top level is retaining a positive attitude. Complaining about "grueling" schedules is a form of mental weakness, no?

Remember that the original Bull (of the Pampas) played an astounding 140+ matches in his best year on tour.

Players who are ranked bellow top 50 will never have major problems with the schedule (physically) because they are losing early rounds. On the other hand, you have to understand the problems Nadal or Djokovic are having.

stringertom said:

A large part of success at the top level is retaining a positive attitude. Complaining about "grueling" schedules is a form of mental weakness, no?

Remember that the original Bull (of the Pampas) played an astounding 140+ matches in his best year on tour.

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The game was more about stamina in Vilas' day, rather than the wear and tear from the brutal physically of today's rallies.

Mustard said:

The game was more about stamina in Vilas' day, rather than the wear and tear from the brutal physically of today's rallies.

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Oh, brutal my ass, footballers get smashed by 500lbs linesmen hitting them at a combined speed of 70mph twice a minute and they don't complain.

People in the military undergo severe torture not being allowed to ever sleep or lie down, being beaten within an inch of their lives every single second of every single day for the rest of their lives.

Tennis players have to hit a fuzzy yellow ball?

So bruuuutal.

_maxi said:

Maybe because he is smart enough to play an agressive style that prevents him from grunting and hurting his body? is it his fault that almost everyone else is not trying to finish point and preffers to win a point after an endless and demanding rally, taking the lesser risk?

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So what are you saying that everybody should play like him,tennis players adopt some style in their youth when they are form as players they can't just swich style ,if that was easy they would do it ,but Nadal ,Murray prove that is not easy achievable neither for the best

I don't agree with him, I wonder how much he had the chance to speak with the players who are not elite on these topic,because as I read Tursunov said that most players would prefer shorter season,but their say doesn't mean as much as the say of the elite players,so it' s not just that top players are complaining of a grueling season,everybody when season ends goes home and complain to thair local media that they don't have rest like all the other athletes.
Even older players are admitting that tennis nowadays is much more physical that tennis in their time
Season should end on the end of October,so if someone wants to play there are challengers,season should be adjusted according to players from 15-30 not first four ,and if we have situation that even some from first four are complaining we have problem

Nadal is a very physical player and traditionally they have all burned out at an age much younger than their highly offensive counterparts. To me, it feels as though Nadal is attempting to use the wear and tear of the schedule for his supposed decline as opposed to facing the fact that it is his gameplay that has done it.

While tennis has become much more physical in the past decade, every game has gone through this change. Football became more physical as did basketball. A truly great player will find a way to minimalise the physical effects that the game puts on them(Jerry Rice, Michael Jordan, Kareem Abdul Jabbar) by adapting their method of play to suit the environment of the time. Jerry Rice became one of the first year round athletes that ever played football and Jordan developed a better shooting game than he arrived with. No I am not saying that Nadal has not improved, but if longevity in the sport is his concern, he chose the wrong style of play.

Mustard said:

The game was more about stamina in Vilas' day, rather than the wear and tear from the brutal physically of today's rallies.

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Twice as many matches as many of today's top tier play? No, that is about Vilas' relentless pursuit of competition. It's called passion!

Biscuitmcgriddleson said:

Nadal is a very physical player and traditionally they have all burned out at an age much younger than their highly offensive counterparts. To me, it feels as though Nadal is attempting to use the wear and tear of the schedule for his supposed decline as opposed to facing the fact that it is his gameplay that has done it.

While tennis has become much more physical in the past decade, every game has gone through this change. Football became more physical as did basketball. A truly great player will find a way to minimalise the physical effects that the game puts on them(Jerry Rice, Michael Jordan, Kareem Abdul Jabbar) by adapting their method of play to suit the environment of the time. Jerry Rice became one of the first year round athletes that ever played football and Jordan developed a better shooting game than he arrived with. No I am not saying that Nadal has not improved, but if longevity in the sport is his concern, he chose the wrong style of play.

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Things can have more than just one reason. Why shouldn't Nadal try to push for a shorter schedule, especially being that he's apparently not the only one who's on favour of that.

Crisstti said:

Things can have more than just one reason. Why shouldn't Nadal try to push for a shorter schedule, especially being that he's apparently not the only one who's on favour of that.

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Because a good person is not supposed to be egoist. We are just saying we don't agree with him, that's all.

antoaneta71 said:

So what are you saying that everybody should play like him,tennis players adopt some style in their youth when they are form as players they can't just swich style ,if that was easy they would do it ,but Nadal ,Murray prove that is not easy achievable neither for the best.

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Of course they can change their style. I'm not asking them to radically change it. Federer started playing a lot of Serve and Volley, and few years later he was more of an agressive baseliner that could still come to the net.
Nadal started being a very agressive baseliner, that used to hit flatter and finish point with amazing forehand winners, and few years later he played less and less agressive.

So, my point is valid, and Federer is the living proof of that you can be agressive, try to finish point earlier, and don't kill your body. Sure, Fed has had some troubles in his back from time to time, you can't expect to be healthy all the time, but his style has allowed him to be in good form pretty much all the year, whereas Nadal used to be absolutely wasted after the Us Open.
It's not schedule's fault.. it's the players fault. No one forces Roddick to play his horrible pushing game, no one forces Murray to play like that too, etc. If they would actually take risk things would be perhaps different...

I think the schedule is fine the way it is. The amount of tournaments allow the lower players to earn more money especially since the pay for first round losers aren't that great either.

But it should also be good for the game. Coaches and players will realize that playing a grinding style like Nadal is pretty bad in the long run so they will promote aggressive style baseliners instead. Staying at the top should be hard for grinders and pushers so naturally in the long, long run, aggressive players like Federer will begin to consistently stay at the top.

Crisstti said:

If the number of mandatory tournaments would be reduced, that wouldn't affect the lower ranked players at all.

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That wouldn't work either because tennis become a part time job. Maybe you don't care but us fans want to watch plenty of tennis throughout the year.

Crisstti said:

Also, we could say Fed is being selfish here. He hardly ever gets injured, so the schedule doesn't bother him. What about the other players though?.

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If Fed is 20 year old and the average age of all the players is 30 then you have a point. However, Fed is one of the oldest player on the tour. So no, you're wrong...he's not selfish.

Crisstti said:

If the number of mandatory tournaments would be reduced, that wouldn't affect the lower ranked players at all.

Also, we could say Fed is being selfish here. He hardly ever gets injured, so the schedule doesn't bother him. What about the other players though?.

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like hell it would. if the top players decide to skip a tournament because it's non-mandatory, the tournament's future is doomed.

Everyone has the same schedule so it's another challenge to be at your best.

Fed is tough though, he'll be there fighting through this or any schedule, you won't hear him whining like a spoiled 16 year old.

"I have always tried to make sure people realise that there are many players who are playing tennis and it's not just the top guys," he said. "There are other players who don't win every week and want the tournaments and need the jobs."

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Also, i don't recall Monte Carlo being mandatory ? What about Barcelona and the others ? And the exos ?

TMF said:

That wouldn't work either because tennis become a part time job. Maybe you don't care but us fans want to watch plenty of tennis throughout the year.

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So the real reason you disagree then it's because you want to watch more tennis (I want to, of course), and not because the lower ranked players would be perjudiced.

TMF said:

If Fed is 20 year old and the average age of all the players is 30 then you have a point. However, Fed is one of the oldest player on the tour. So no, you're wrong...he's not selfish.

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What does his age have to do with anything?.

That by the time the changes are going to be made he will probably be retired or about to, so it wouldn't bother him personally too much, but he still thinks of all the players and of the game.
Ps: answer my posts too.. it's boring otherwise.

nikdom said:

Roger is a thorough professional in a field dominated by whiny ass divas, first of whom is the ever-complaining, injury faker from Spain.

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IDK I'm a fan of Federer, but he has had some diva moments.

Most notably when he lost to Djokovic in the SF @ the U.S. Open.

He made a comment about how Novak slapped a winner past him on match point, and that he didn't grow up learning to play that way, when he down a match point in a match. To me that was a little whiny, but as far as I'm concerned he probably whines and complains the least of all the top players.

Crisstti said:

Also, we could say Fed is being selfish here. He hardly ever gets injured , so the schedule doesn't bother him. What about the other players though?.

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What ?!! Just because he doesn't share his health bulletin with the press every single day including colds and toothaches and muscle pain to throw himself a pity party and because he doesn't take an MTO in every other match , it does not mean he never gets injured. That's the most clueless thing someone can say about a tennis player. Federer gets as injured as any average player on the tour. He skips tournaments and takes longer breaks if he needs to recover from some injury . Making headlines every other week going public with his smallest injuries is just not his style.

Big_Dangerous said:

IDK I'm a fan of Federer, but he has had some diva moments.

Most notably when he lost to Djokovic in the SF @ the U.S. Open.

He made a comment about how Novak slapped a winner past him on match point, and that he didn't grow up learning to play that way, when he down a match point in a match. To me that was a little whiny, but as far as I'm concerned he probably whines and complains the least of all the top players.

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I agree that lucky shot comment wasn't the classiest thing to say. But then I didn't lose to the same guy after holding match points at the USO for two consecutive years, so what do I know how hard it must be to not say such things in the heat of the moment just after the loss !

Crisstti said:

So the real reason you disagree then it's because you want to watch more tennis (I want to, of course), and not because the lower ranked players would be perjudiced.

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Yes. Not just tennis but in every sports I want to see a full season and a players play full time. I don't know if you are a fan of NFL, but any fans would go crazy if the NFL were to cut down from 16 regular games to 8.

Crisstti said:

What does his age have to do with anything?.

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(SIGH)
Older players doesn't have the stamina and the energy level of a younger player. 30 year old Fed is not the same as when he was 24. Plus, the older you are, the more injury prone.

Come on... I didn't have to tell you this.

The schedule is fine. If you shorten it, I'm sure there'll be people who'll complain about that too, like how it doesn't offer them enough opportunities to accumulate points and prize money. The ATP season is basically pretty open. You make your own schedule minus mandatory events here and there like GS, Masters 500/1000 events. People who whine should take time off accordingly and shut their pie holes.

Crisstti said:

If the number of mandatory tournaments would be reduced, that wouldn't affect the lower ranked players at all.

Also, we could say Fed is being selfish here. He hardly ever gets injured, so the schedule doesn't bother him. What about the other players though?.

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Sure he's being selfish, he's only thinking of the interests of the other players, and more specifically the lower-ranked players. Whereas, as everyone knows, the only way a tennis player can be selfless is by advocating whatever helps left-handed Spanish players, no? :roll:

Agassi-Fan said:

I think Fed has a great point. The only time you hear complaining about the schedule is when a top player is being interviewed.

What happens to the guy ranked 100 in the world? He might be relying on those tournaments every week to make a living for his family!

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Why don't you read ATP Rule Book before asking clueless questions? Mandatory tournaments rule is applicable to Top 30 players only. The rest of the field can play 50 tournaments per year, nobody cares.

Moreover, ATP with its disney land monkey for a director was stupid enough to specify that besides 4 slams and 8 masters four 500 tourneys and two 250 must be played rather than say "6 other tournaments". Two 250 will be played in any case becasue there are no other warmup tournaments before AO and Wimbledon. But to play all the four 500 events, players will have to shorten either post-AO rest/training period and play in Rotterdam/Marseilles/Dubai or post-Wimbledon.

For Nadal who plays a lot during clay/grass part of the season it is impossible. Don't know about Djokovic, but both get zero pointers for at least 2 years because they don't play all the required events.

That's why they are unhappy about ATP rules/schedules and have the democratic right of voicing their grievance.

BTW looked at Federer's 2011 match record, and found out that he underplayed two 500 events and one 250. One zero-pointer is already on his record. He is definitely getting another one. Don't know whether players are penalized for missed 250. If yes, 3 zero pointers may change his opinion next year.

The mandatory tournament thing is bull anyway. You don't play a masters you get a 0 in it's place -__- you would get a 0 in it's place if you didn't play it anyway. Skip the same ones every year and you are fine. Andy Roddick did it for ages. Federer did it in his prime as well, just skip the ones you don't want to play simple as that. I agree having to play all the master series sucks, but then it leads to this over inflated count. Players should be allowed to build the schedule they want to build, if players just did that the ATP would just have to go back to the old days. There may have been one single seasons where Sampras or Agassi played all 9 master series tournaments.

Look at it this way by the end of 1999 Sampras had played in 66-70 master series tournaments. Having been a pro full time since 88 thats 12 seasons on the tour to get to that number. (The 66-70 being in 88 he played Miami and I know he played it as well in 89, not sure if he played any of the other big tournaments but could find out.) Either way in 12 full seasons on the tour he played in about 70 master series. Nadal who has had roughly 9 has played in 64. Agassi did not reach that number until his 13th full pro year. (Sure Agassi missed a year due to injury but then again Nadal missed a good deal of his first two years and parts of 06 and 09). If Nadal lasts until say 35 with the 8 a year he has been going at he will be at 160 master series roughly, compare that with the about 105-110 that Agassi took part in you can see how it adds up.

It's not that the master series are a bad thing, but its the scheduling. With numerous coming back to back, or in a close period of time. Players have periods of intense play and then little to no play. You have the Aussie Open swing, then a long pause, then almost 4 months of non stop play from Indian Wells to Wimbledon. Then a good deal of rest, then the very tight US Open season, then a good deal of rest, then the indoor season. The only season that is well planned is the indoor season with decent spacing and everything but it comes so late. If not all the master series were mandatory and players only had to do 4 or 5, they could plan a much better season, geared towards their game. I'm sorry as much as what Muster did annoys people, if you play your best tennis on clay, build your schedule around it. Its up to the player if they want to excel on other surfaces. Let's allow players to play what they want, then we can also scratch the homogenization of surfaces. Make a super slick carpet court, and only those who want to will show up. Bring back the slow heavy Hamburg and those who want to will come. I'd rather have the top play 5 masters and show up at more 250s and 500s so tennis can blossom at lower levels. You know how awesome it would be to see a top 5 player at say Newport/Zagreb/Atlanta etc. That's where the focus should be, as small events are dying, but if even Tsonga showed up to Newport the event would go crazy. Just look at what Isner did for that event.

_maxi said:

Because a good person is not supposed to be egoist. We are just saying we don't agree with him, that's all.

Of course they can change their style. I'm not asking them to radically change it. Federer started playing a lot of Serve and Volley, and few years later he was more of an agressive baseliner that could still come to the net.
Nadal started being a very agressive baseliner, that used to hit flatter and finish point with amazing forehand winners, and few years later he played less and less agressive.

So, my point is valid, and Federer is the living proof of that you can be agressive, try to finish point earlier, and don't kill your body. Sure, Fed has had some troubles in his back from time to time, you can't expect to be healthy all the time, but his style has allowed him to be in good form pretty much all the year, whereas Nadal used to be absolutely wasted after the Us Open.
It's not schedule's fault.. it's the players fault. No one forces Roddick to play his horrible pushing game, no one forces Murray to play like that too, etc. If they would actually take risk things would be perhaps different...

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Well Roger is egoist,does that mean that he isn't good person

For the rest of you comment, your point is not valid ,you just prove my point valid ,you said Federer changed his style , serve and volley is most agressive style of playing tennis, he changed it for more moderate style of playing: agressive baseline, but that's again within agressive style of play,Murray and Nadal are defensive players for all their career,they can play some points agressive ,but whole matches??? ,to became suddenly an agressive player is not possible

That is question of brain and the brain is hardest to train,especially if you were playing defensive, so your brain was adjusted to that style of play,when they start to play they are young and they are more risk taking, how they grow older they adopt moderate way of thinking and with that moderate style of playing and here comes Roddick who changed his style of playing from agressive baseliner to defensive player ,counterpuncher,that is only directin in which can change your style of play ,from agressive to defensive player, other way around is not posible at least I have not seen such example.Human brain becomes more racionale, more moderate ,less risk taker with older age, style of playing can't go in other direction from that of your brain

Crisstti said:

If the number of mandatory tournaments would be reduced, that wouldn't affect the lower ranked players at all.

Also, we could say Fed is being selfish here. He hardly ever gets injured, so the schedule doesn't bother him. What about the other players though?.

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The one thing I really like about Fed is that you can see he really still loves to play tennis. Not just competing and winning...clearly he enjoys playing the sport itself. I think every hardcore fan can appreciate it when a star player has a real love of the game and is not just playing for stats and money.

The only argument you can make is against mandatory events. If anything, the calendar should be even broader, or just as it is now. A top player should just accept a fine once in a while I guess.

TMF said:

Yes. Not just tennis but in every sports I want to see a full season and a players play full time. I don't know if you are a fan of NFL, but any fans would go crazy if the NFL were to cut down from 16 regular games to 8.
.

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Right you are TMF. It's awful getting through this non-tennis period between WTF and AO.

Roger should have to play every week !

passive_aggressive said:

Oh, brutal my ass, footballers get smashed by 500lbs linesmen hitting them at a combined speed of 70mph twice a minute and they don't complain.

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-200 lbs
-55 mph

And if they don't complain, why are they suing the NFL for concussions?

li0scc0 said:

-200 lbs
-55 mph

And if they don't complain, why are they suing the NFL for concussions?

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You didn't answer my point about the military;

People in the military undergo severe torture not being allowed to ever sleep or lie down, being beaten within an inch of their lives every single second of every single day for the rest of their lives.

Tennis players have to hit a fuzzy yellow ball.

Why can tennis players complain?

passive_aggressive said:

You didn't answer my point about the military;

People in the military undergo severe torture not being allowed to ever sleep or lie down, being beaten within an inch of their lives every single second of every single day for the rest of their lives.

Tennis players have to hit a fuzzy yellow ball.

Why can tennis players complain?

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This is going into some weird logical territory now. By this logic, because there are cancer patients in this world who undergo terrible pain and suffering, folks should not be unhappy about being sick with the flu or if they have a migraine headache?

The complaints of the tennis world should be judged closer to its own history, its own unique nature and all of its constituents.

Nadal comes across as whiny to me because he gets greedy in the clay season and does not schedule his year well instead blaming it on the calendar.

fed_rulz said:

like hell it would. if the top players decide to skip a tournament because it's non-mandatory, the tournament's future is doomed.

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So they should be obliged to play despite their health to help the less good players?.

sbengte said:

What ?!! Just because he doesn't share his health bulletin with the press every single day including colds and toothaches and muscle pain to throw himself a pity party and because he doesn't take an MTO in every other match , it does not mean he never gets injured. That's the most clueless thing someone can say about a tennis player. Federer gets as injured as any average player on the tour. He skips tournaments and takes longer breaks if he needs to recover from some injury . Making headlines every other week going public with his smallest injuries is just not his style.

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Did I say he never gets injured?. He gets injured less than other top players.

TMF said:

Yes. Not just tennis but in every sports I want to see a full season and a players play full time. I don't know if you are a fan of NFL, but any fans would go crazy if the NFL were to cut down from 16 regular games to 8.

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No, I'm certainly not a fan of the NFL... no one suggesting cutting the tennis season to half, though.

In (real) football, there is a longer off season, especially in Germany where they have a winter break as well. Plus, these are team sports, if a player is injured he just doesn't play. The team plays someone else instead and is not really harmed in it's chances.

TMF said:

(SIGH)
Older players doesn't have the stamina and the energy level of a younger player. 30 year old Fed is not the same as when he was 24. Plus, the older you are, the more injury prone.

Come on... I didn't have to tell you this.

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Obviously there's more at play than just age. Fed at 30 gets less injured than Novak and Rafa.

Really, if I wanted to follow the logic of Nadal haters here, I could claim Fed is just being selfish, not caring about the health of other players, wanting to win at the end of the year when the other top players are injured/tired, bla, bla.

merlinpinpin said:

Sure he's being selfish, he's only thinking of the interests of the other players, and more specifically the lower-ranked players. Whereas, as everyone knows, the only way a tennis player can be selfless is by advocating whatever helps left-handed Spanish players, no? :roll:

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Yeah, right.

BTW, the interests of the higher ranked players should count too. They are the ones who play until the semis, finals of tournaments. And they are the ones people want to see.

egn said:

The mandatory tournament thing is bull anyway. You don't play a masters you get a 0 in it's place -__- you would get a 0 in it's place if you didn't play it anyway. Skip the same ones every year and you are fine. Andy Roddick did it for ages. Federer did it in his prime as well, just skip the ones you don't want to play simple as that. I agree having to play all the master series sucks, but then it leads to this over inflated count. Players should be allowed to build the schedule they want to build, if players just did that the ATP would just have to go back to the old days. There may have been one single seasons where Sampras or Agassi played all 9 master series tournaments.

Look at it this way by the end of 1999 Sampras had played in 66-70 master series tournaments. Having been a pro full time since 88 thats 12 seasons on the tour to get to that number. (The 66-70 being in 88 he played Miami and I know he played it as well in 89, not sure if he played any of the other big tournaments but could find out.) Either way in 12 full seasons on the tour he played in about 70 master series. Nadal who has had roughly 9 has played in 64. Agassi did not reach that number until his 13th full pro year. (Sure Agassi missed a year due to injury but then again Nadal missed a good deal of his first two years and parts of 06 and 09). If Nadal lasts until say 35 with the 8 a year he has been going at he will be at 160 master series roughly, compare that with the about 105-110 that Agassi took part in you can see how it adds up.

It's not that the master series are a bad thing, but its the scheduling. With numerous coming back to back, or in a close period of time. Players have periods of intense play and then little to no play. You have the Aussie Open swing, then a long pause, then almost 4 months of non stop play from Indian Wells to Wimbledon. Then a good deal of rest, then the very tight US Open season, then a good deal of rest, then the indoor season. The only season that is well planned is the indoor season with decent spacing and everything but it comes so late. If not all the master series were mandatory and players only had to do 4 or 5, they could plan a much better season, geared towards their game. I'm sorry as much as what Muster did annoys people, if you play your best tennis on clay, build your schedule around it. Its up to the player if they want to excel on other surfaces. Let's allow players to play what they want, then we can also scratch the homogenization of surfaces. Make a super slick carpet court, and only those who want to will show up. Bring back the slow heavy Hamburg and those who want to will come. I'd rather have the top play 5 masters and show up at more 250s and 500s so tennis can blossom at lower levels. You know how awesome it would be to see a top 5 player at say Newport/Zagreb/Atlanta etc. That's where the focus should be, as small events are dying, but if even Tsonga showed up to Newport the event would go crazy. Just look at what Isner did for that event.

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Very good post...

This is going into some weird logical territory now. By this logic, because there are cancer patients in this world who undergo terrible pain and suffering, folks should not be unhappy about being sick with the flu or if they have a migraine headache?

The complaints of the tennis world should be judged closer to its own history, its own unique nature and all of its constituents.

nikdom said:

Nadal comes across as whiny to me because he gets greedy in the clay season and does not schedule his year well instead blaming it on the calendar.

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this!!!! QUOTED FOR TRUTH

fed_rulz said:

like hell it would. if the top players decide to skip a tournament because it's non-mandatory, the tournament's future is doomed.

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Which brings us back to surface unity. If clay and grass were completely different from hardcourts, carpet, indoors outdoors, even wood... Some top pro's would skip Monte Carlo and Rome, others would skip Paris and Shanghai, others would skip Wimbledon, others would skip Indian Wells or Cincinnati.. people would specialize again which is great for the game I think and would keep all tourneys interesting without the best players meeting EVERY other week.

Well, he is not a defensive grinder.

It's Nadal's and Djokovic's fault that they play the way they do. Djokovic used to be more aggressive but rarely won big titles with that style.

joeri888 said:

Which brings us back to surface unity. If clay and grass were completely different from hardcourts, carpet, indoors outdoors, even wood... Some top pro's would skip Monte Carlo and Rome, others would skip Paris and Shanghai, others would skip Wimbledon, others would skip Indian Wells or Cincinnati.. people would specialize again which is great for the game I think and would keep all tourneys interesting without the best players meeting EVERY other week.

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Really?, I prefer to see the top players meeting as often as possible...

Crisstti said:

So they should be obliged to play despite their health to help the less good players?.
....

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You speak as if Nadal's injuries are beyond his control? most of his "injuries" are tennis-related ones (bad technique, needlessly prolonging the rally, playing mm tournaments like barcelona for sentimental reasons, poor scheduling, etc.) -- so why is he calling for a reduction in the tour? Given all this, how can you call Federer "lucky", when it (injuries) has been Nadal's doing all along? I can understand if Nadal slipped over a ball or met with an accident?

Nadal doesn't have to play if he's concerned about his health. But the bar has been set -- and Federer is a fine example of how good scheduling and good technique can result in relatively injury-free tennis. If Nadal (or anyone else) does not have that talent, they should STFU and deal with it. The tour is meant for all to play, not just for Nadal.

fed_rulz said:

You speak as if Nadal's injuries are beyond his control? most of his "injuries" are tennis-related ones (bad technique, needlessly prolonging the rally, playing mm tournaments like barcelona for sentimental reasons, poor scheduling, etc.) -- so why is he calling for a reduction in the tour? Given all this, how can you call Federer "lucky", when it (injuries) has been Nadal's doing all along? I can understand if Nadal slipped over a ball or met with an accident?

Nadal doesn't have to play if he's concerned about his health. But the bar has been set -- and Federer is a fine example of how good scheduling and good technique can result in relatively injury-free tennis. If Nadal (or anyone else) does not have that talent, they should STFU and deal with it. The tour is meant for all to play, not just for Nadal.

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Of course injuries are for the most part beyond his (on anyone's) control.

Crisstti said:

Of course injuries are for the most part beyond his (on anyone's) control.

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Judging on the majority of your posts, in your opinion, this only goes for Nadal.
Which is ridiculous to say.

Properly managing one's schedule will help a lot, just for starters. Next, adjust your playing style in stead of running around like an energizer bunny on whatever a court, next #2 - stop with all the $$$$$$$$$-grabbing exho's and other silly endorsement-inhanced exposures (Shakira? Armani? ).

And to top it all - make sure your team finally SHUTS UP about whatever a niggle is bothering you. It's not going to help.

I still consider myself a fan of Rafa, as I've met him quite a couple of times and consider him to be a fine gentleman. But it's time for him to finally show himself a MAN and to take whatever's coming to him in proper, mature style, in stead of keeping on complaining about whatever is happening. I wouldn't at all mind him finally kicking Tio Toni's ass, as I think he might well be the main culprit, and it's not doing Nadal any good (anymore).

This discussion is amusing if you think of it in light of the WTA.

The Williams sisters are notorious for pulling out of tournaments. In fact I read just last week that Venus Williams pulled out of the tournament in Auckland starting 3 Jan because she was still suffering from the same auto-immune issue she had around the US Open period... this however hasn't stopped her playing exo matches as close as the day before pulling out of the Auckland tournament.

The tour should ping players for doing this - if you are well enough to play exo matches then you should be well enough to play tournaments. As usual I think the Williams' mantra is money first.

passive_aggressive said:

You didn't answer my point about the military;

People in the military undergo severe torture not being allowed to ever sleep or lie down, being beaten within an inch of their lives every single second of every single day for the rest of their lives.

Tennis players have to hit a fuzzy yellow ball.

Why can tennis players complain?

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Well, most tournaments are played on hardcourts and studies have shown that all that movement on hardcourts is overly hard on the bodies. It's be proven that it's harder on the body than many other sports. It's not the fuzzy ball, it's the hard courts.