2017 Australian Open QF MILOS "the Lumberjack" Raonic vs. RAFAEL "the Bull" Nadal

Who makes the semifinal?


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Dimitrov is moving like a gazelle right now and isn't showing any signs of fatigue. More importantly, he seems to be extremely clutch which wasn't the case in the previous years (then again, I thought Raonić was clutch prior to this match as well, but he choked on that set point).

It's gonna be a totally different match for Nadal, certainly physically more demanding.

I mostly agree. The only thing I would say against Dimitrov right now is that Nadal is not Goffin or Gasquet. A major step up in class. But I agree that some people are underestimating this Grigor, although I guess we'll see for real when he plays Nadal.
 
This was good match for Rafa. A big win but straight sets victory shouldnt give you belief that this is Rafa of old. He clearly isnt. Still too many mistakes from the forehand side plus ı reall think Raonic helped him a lot in this match especially in 2nd set. I still believe AO winner will come from Stan Fed match.Not Dimi vs Rafa.
 
This was good match for Rafa. A big win but straight sets victory shouldnt give you belief that this is Rafa of old. He clearly isnt. Still too many mistakes from the forehand side plus ı reall think Raonic helped him a lot in this match especially in 2nd set. I still believe AO winner will come from Stan Fed match.Not Dimi vs Rafa.

Yeah I agree - if it was Rafa of old I would be celebrating a grand slam victory by now. However is it time to stop asking 'Is Rafa back to his best' - what is the point of this comparison? He never will be back to his best I think and as a Rafa fan I am happy he made semi final of a slam.
 
Kudos to Nadal for this amazing run, keep in mind the last time he made the quarters or better at a slam was at the French Open in 2015.

Kudos to Nadal's fans for keeping the faith so to speak. This time 3 years ago Wawrinka set in motion a decline for Nadal at the AO in 2014, it would be poetic justice if Nadal could banish those demons and win his second title.

Dimitrov though is not a pushover.
 
Congrats Nadal for winning the AO 2017. I predicted he was going to win the whole thing after he beat Zverev. You can tell when this kid is on a mission pretty easily.
 
Rafa might have to thank the Umpire for that victory; her warning in the second set forced Rafa to play faster and procrastinate less, which took his mind away from the score.

Now it Roger's turn to procrastinate in the semi vs Wawa, thinking he's going possibly face his nemesis should he advance.

Maybe another Robredo quit job in the making? ;)
 
Rafa might have to thank the Umpire for that victory; her warning to Rafa in the second set forced Rafa to play faster and procrastinate less, which took his mind away from the score.

Now it Roger's turn to procrastinate in the semi vs Wawa, thinking he's going possibly face his nemesis should he advance.

Maybe another Robredo quit job in the making? ;)

Greek Godess gonna Godess.
 
I mostly agree. The only thing I would say against Dimitrov right now is that Nadal is not Goffin or Gasquet. A major step up in class. But I agree that some people are underestimating this Grigor, although I guess we'll see for real when he plays Nadal.
That's why I can't wait for this match to start, I want to see what Grigor is made of. So far, he's been really impressive, but Nadal is a different beast. Having said that, Dimitrov has already pushed Nadal several times (Cincinnati, Monte Carlo, AO), so I really expect a great match with this new Dimitrov and rejuvenated Nadal.
 
That's why I can't wait for this match to start, I want to see what Grigor is made of. So far, he's been really impressive, but Nadal is a different beast. Having said that, Dimitrov has already pushed Nadal several times (Cincinnati, Monte Carlo, AO), so I really expect a great match with his new Dimitrov and rejuvenated Nadal.

Yup. I'm personally also looking forward to this. To both semis actually. Great contrast in styles in both SFs. Couldn't have asked for more. Now I hope they deliver.
 
For me, there's no comparison. Nadal when he is playing his best is much more entertaining than Djokovic. But each to his own.
Tbh someone like fed will always be 10X more enjoyable for me and while Djokovic might not exactly be my cup of tea I much prefer him to nadal and for that matter enjoy fed/Novak matches which is imo a far more underrated rivalry in contrast to the awful match up that is fedal.
 
That's why I can't wait for this match to start, I want to see what Grigor is made of. So far, he's been really impressive, but Nadal is a different beast. Having said that, Dimitrov has already pushed Nadal several times (Cincinnati, Monte Carlo, AO), so I really expect a great match with this new Dimitrov and rejuvenated Nadal.

Totally agree. That's the big question: What's Grigor made of? He seems to have found some mental resolve lately, but this is Nadal. Different ask.

Needless to say, like you, I was very disappointed in Raonic. Didn't expect him to go so very 2014 on us.
 
Yuck. Over three hours for a three set match. Yuckity yuck. Dimi god save you, man. OHBH abuse coming up on a hot plate.
 
Tbh someone like fed will always be 10X more enjoyable for me and while Djokovic might not exactly be my cup of tea I much prefer him to nadal and for that matter enjoy fed/Novak matches which is imo a far more underrated rivalry in contrast to the awful match up that is fedal.
Yep. Djokovic stands closer the baseline and on an average is more aggressive than Nadal. I think his SF versus Roger last year was crazy good. There was nothing Roger could've done about it. Nadal is too slow and too boring. His patterns are predictable and the only advantage he has is that he plays those patterns perfectly when confident because well, he doesn't have other options.
 
How was Rafa's fearhand in this match?? Anyone??
Nadal forehand better in this tournament compare to terrible stuff we see the last 2 years. In this match it was good but at times he again start to make mistakes. Strange still very strange that why this errors out of nowhere star to creep in to his game when you think he found the right balance.
 
He'll win a couple of slams yeah. Will he get back to having 2015-16 years (first half). No.

I agree, the level he set, going deep into every tournament has had its toll. He needs a long break away from the game.

He won't repeat those standards anymore, I'm sure of it. Especially if Nadal and Federer can maintain their good form
 
I can see how disappointed some people are but you only have to look at my post #1535 to see that this result is the norm. Nadal now leads their h2h 7:2. My only worry was Rafa's nerves but he held his nerves and the rest followed. His matches against Zverev and Monfils have done a lot for his confidence.
 
I agree, the level he set, going deep into every tournament has had its toll. He needs a long break away from the game.

He won't repeat those standards anymore, I'm sure of it. Especially if Nadal and Federer can maintain their good form

Yeah, the thing is though, it's not even about Federer and Nadal. Djokovic is losing to the journeyman who now starts to catch fire against him and gets the job done. Just like it happened to Federer (Wim 13, FO 14*, AO 15) and Nadal (no need to point out to who or where). That is happening to Djokovic now. He's not turning around these matches like he did vs. Seppi at the french a couple of years ago. He's actually losing those. So it'll be a lot tougher for him to win Slams in the future. He'll be able to bag some though - maybe one or two imho.

*Gulbis can (could) be solid.
 
we all found out tonight that Milos is fake. he is just serve bot just like Karlovic
Yeah, the thing is though, it's not even about Federer and Nadal. Djokovic is losing to the journeyman who now starts to catch fire against him and gets the job done. Just like it happened to Federer (Wim 13, FO 14*, AO 15) and Nadal (no need to point out to who or where). That is happening to Djokovic now. He's not turning around these matches like he did vs. Seppi at the french a couple of years ago. He's actually losing those. So it'll be a lot tougher for him to win Slams in the future. He'll be able to bag some though - maybe one or two imho.

*Gulbis can (could) be solid.
Maybe it will be a reason to regain his fire. He did say that Federer & Nadal out of the picture, was not enough of a challenge for him. If he get's angry, Federer and nadal will go hiding, as they did in the last few years.
 
This must have been a big upset because all I heard here is how Rafa had little chance of beating Freddy Forehead. Lol
 
Maybe it will be a reason to regain his fire. He did say that Federer & Nadal out of the picture, was not enough of a challenge for him. If he get's angry, Federer and nadal will go hiding, as they did in the last few years.

Hehe, keep believing.

Nole is done and dusted. You better pray (meditate) for his soul (mindfuck).
 
Well they werwe saying the same about Rafa in 2014, 2015, 2016....no ?

And Djokovic is still no 2....no ?

Nadal is done in terms of consistency. He's well rested at the moment and has the hunger back after taking time off. He can still win the odd slam here and there (hopefully here). It's the same with Novak. He just has one more slam or so up his sleeve and probably 4-5 more masters.
 
Nadal is done in terms of consistency. He's well rested at the moment and has the hunger back after taking time off. He can still win the odd slam here and there (hopefully here). It's the same with Novak. He just has one more slam or so up his sleeve and probably 4-5 more masters.
I think neither are done from winning at least 3 more titles. Health be willing.
 
Very solid performance from Nadal but I can't believe how disappointing Raonic was. Not sure if he hit a single backhand winner throughout and those six set points he let slip through his fingers in the 2nd set, dear oh dear. :oops:

He really did choke like a hooker, as @The_Order would so eloquently put it. ;)
You can say what you like, but these are the facts from the ATP website:

Overall, Nadal hit 15 forehand winners to Raonic’s 11. Nadal backed it up with 13 winners off the backhand side to Raonic’s zero. Not a single backhand winner for the Canadian out of 212 points.

Whenever Nadal needed a point, he knew on this night, on this court, that he could pound away at Raonic’s backhand without retaliation. Raonic’s zero backhand winners was a bad number. The 30 backhand errors offered zero support.

Nadal won 53 per cent (61/116) of his baseline points, while Raonic was far away at 35 per cent (31/89). Raonic only served and volleyed five times, winning three, and won just 52 per cent (27/52) at net for the night.

Nadal won the big moments, and was constantly playing from ahead in the majority of the rallies. Coming from behind against a 14-time Grand Slam champion at Rod Laver Arena is just too tough of an ask.



https://2017.ausopen.com/en_AU/news/art ... oment.html.
 
both players have mental frailties..milos still chokes and rafa has been choking more and more in last couple of years..

milos is going to net rush a fair bit which should be a laugh, looks like milos's serve is good with 33aces today.

how will rafa's stamna hold up?..how will his so-so serve hold up?..he hardly gets any any ace's these days which isn't ideal. nadal should junkball milos and throw him off kilter. slice n dice. sounds rather nice.

dunno who will win, someone in 3/4/5 sets I think.
the former option came to pass..milos still chokes. hurrah and huzzah for mr g. head.
 
Yep. Djokovic stands closer the baseline and on an average is more aggressive than Nadal. I think his SF versus Roger last year was crazy good. There was nothing Roger could've done about it. Nadal is too slow and too boring. His patterns are predictable and the only advantage he has is that he plays those patterns perfectly when confident because well, he doesn't have other options.
Yup. Novak has had fed's number in the last few years but overall they are much more evenly matched and you are bound to get some aggressive play. Tbh it's kind of amusing seeing Rafa fans argue with Novak fans over who is more boring
 
You can say what you like, but these are the facts from the ATP website:

Overall, Nadal hit 15 forehand winners to Raonic’s 11. Nadal backed it up with 13 winners off the backhand side to Raonic’s zero. Not a single backhand winner for the Canadian out of 212 points.

Whenever Nadal needed a point, he knew on this night, on this court, that he could pound away at Raonic’s backhand without retaliation. Raonic’s zero backhand winners was a bad number. The 30 backhand errors offered zero support.

Nadal won 53 per cent (61/116) of his baseline points, while Raonic was far away at 35 per cent (31/89). Raonic only served and volleyed five times, winning three, and won just 52 per cent (27/52) at net for the night.

Nadal won the big moments, and was constantly playing from ahead in the majority of the rallies. Coming from behind against a 14-time Grand Slam champion at Rod Laver Arena is just too tough of an ask.

https://2017.ausopen.com/en_AU/news/art ... oment.html.

Isn't that pretty much what Djokovic2011 said? Are you that insecure? He said Nadal played very solid and Raonic was disappointing. No backhand winners from anyone is certainly disappointing and for a player like him to only S&V 5 times is disappointing, even if he doesn't have the best volleys; winning 52% from the net on 52 times at net might not be disappointing if his volleys aren't that solid and he doesn't have quick enough reflexes. Also, that would be compounded by Nadal's passing shots.

Exciting times for Nadal and Federer fans, of course there are still the SF and either could easily lose there.
 
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