2019 Roland Garros FINAL: Rafael Nadal vs Dominic Thiem

[Sephiroth]

King vs Prince of clay, WHO WINS? YOU DECIDE!

 

[FogniShikori]

Who wins?

A FRESH Prince

 

[Sephiroth]

@Sport
@vernonbc
@Crisstti
@clayqueen
@Red Rick
@MichaelNadal
@octobrina10
@aman92
@vanioMan

@tennis_pro ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

and to all the other RAFA fans I missed out

THIS IS IT GUYS!!!

 

[Vamos Rafa Nadal]

My two very favorite players in the final! I predicted they would have a rematch! I love them both but expect the king of clay to win for the 12th time! So thrilled! Can't wait to watch the final tomorrow!

 

[Sephiroth]

My two very favorite players in the final! I predicted they would have a rematch! I love them both but expect the king of clay to win for the 12th time! So thrilled! Can't wait to watch the final tomorrow!

Yeah I'm loving this Nadal/Thiem rivalry!

 

[romeo8880]

Nadal -475 Thiem +380

 

[Vamos Rafa Nadal]

Curious to know: how much court time have each of them had in this tournament?

 

[Centrius]

Who are we kidding? Nadal in three.

 

[Gazelle]

Am I the only one finding it hard to get excited for this final?

 

[Sephiroth]

Am I the only one finding it hard to get excited for this final?

Avatar and post checks out

 

[Centrius]

Am I the only one finding it hard to get excited for this final?

Same here.

 

[Gazelle]

Avatar and post checks out

Idem

 

[Fedalic]

I'd love to see Rafa wins his 12th, but this time Thiem has it figured out.

 

[aman92]

Promises to be an epic..between the 2 best clay court players in the world! Going with Rafa in tight 4 sets

 

[Mainad]

Round #2 for Nadal and Thiem coming up in the championship match. Last year, Thiem failed to take a set. How much better can he do this time round?

 

[Sephiroth]

I'd love to see Rafa wins his 12th, but this time Thiem has it figured out.

Maybe next year, Thiem will get a few more battle scars vs Nadal like Federer and Djokovic have had to win a RG title lol seems to be the trend. Fed > Djokovic > now Thiem in finals.

RAFA being the gatekeeper and fending off every contender throughout the ages

 

[Vamos Rafa Nadal]

I am super excited! I expect Rafa to win in 3 sets, which is fine with me!

 

[TennisFan3]

Thiem's played so far:

1 hour 45 minutes Thursday

1 hour 30 minutes Friday

2 hours 35 minutes Saturday

_____________

This makes me feel he won't be disadvantaged in the final as much from a physical perspective.
He's young and it's like a Master's tournament for him at this pt.

 

[Cupcake]

This makes me feel he won't be disadvantaged in the final as much from a physical perspective.
He's young and it's like a Master's tournament for him at this pt.

That's what I was thinking too. Except for the fact the final is best of 5, unlike Master's. Though in the past some (or all?) masters used to be best of 5 finals. Indian Wells used to be anyway. Not sure about others.

 

[Krish872007]

I'll go with Rafa in 3 tight sets as he's just been so much better on the big points

 

[kishnabe]

Thiem in 5. Nadal is due for a loss in a French Open final.

 

[hipolymer]

Is anyone even gonna watch this? :embarrassing:

At least the organizers got what they wanted, another Rafa RG victory to prop up his imaginary GOAT-claims, at least for another couple years

 

[Sephiroth]

Is anyone even gonna watch this? :embarrassing:

At least the organizers got what they wanted, another Rafa RG victory to prop up his imaginary GOAT-claims, at least for another couple years

You seem upset what happened today?

 

[malbaker86]

Nadal in 4. Thiem played Rafa fine in their previous 2 meetings, he just has brain freezes at the wrong time.

I wanna say Rafa in 3, but 4 is what I'll go with

 

[Russeljones]

Come on, Thiem. Fulfil the prophecy and bring balance to the Force.

 

[hipolymer]

You seem upset what happened today?

If you were a tennis fan, you would be upset that another year goes by with the RG mafia preferring legacy-booster tournaments over actual high-quality tennis in the RG final between Rafa and Nole.

But since you're not a tennis fan, all you care about is your pathetic fanboy mentality and that your tennis god (who you really don't know why is your tennis god in the first place; you just arbitrarily chose someone to root for because you don't care about tennis quality in the first place; people like you will be the first to stop watching the game when your god retires) wins

 

[wang07]

I refuse to pick anything because of this pathetic poll
but anyways Ned in 3, i'll skip this one

 

[Mr Feeny]

Am I the only one finding it hard to get excited for this final?

I think you're finding it hard to get excited because the result seems inevitable. I don't think many believe Thiem even has a chance tomorrow.

 

[StrongRule]

I hope Nadal plays well. If Thiem doesn't arrive to the final at his choking mode then it will be very tough for Nadal. Thiem knows how to play him.

 

[marc45]

#Thiem -- [About playing four days in a row when his opponent had a day off] "I think it's fine. I mean, it's not the first time that that happens in tennis, and it's not going to be the last time. That's our sport."

More from #Thiem on this: "I mean, we are used to it, that we never know when we're gonna play or sometimes we supposed to have a day off, and then, because of rain or other things, we don't have. So it's okay, I think."

 

[Sephiroth]

If you were a tennis fan, you would be upset that another year goes by with the RG mafia preferring legacy-booster tournaments over actual high-quality tennis in the RG final between Rafa and Nole.

But since you're not a tennis fan, all you care about is your pathetic fanboy mentality and that your tennis god (who you really don't know why is your tennis god in the first place; you just arbitrarily chose someone to root for because you don't care about tennis quality in the first place; people like you will be the first to stop watching the game when your god retires) wins

LOL I wanted a Nadal vs Djokovic final but Djokovic didn't brings the goods and they actually stopped play for Novak twice during the heavy conditions otherwise he would've been routed by Thiem if they carried on, you should be lucky Novak even had the chance to go to 5 sets otherwise.

Novak had all the chance to win today and he didn't, nothing to do with RG preference he got what he wanted, sunny day, no wind, he broke back when play resumed, Thiem choked hard to serve it out,you couldn't ask for better chances but Novak STILL couldn't do it

 

[Sport]

Nadal in 3. I see it very difficult for Thiem to win even a set against the King of clay. Now, Nadal can't get relaxed: he is facig the second best clay player in the world and should bring his best to avoid surprises.

 

[StrongRule]

Nadal in 3. I see it very difficult for Thiem to win even a set against the King of clay. Now, Nadal can't get relaxed: he is facig the second best clay player in the world and should bring his best to avoid surprises.

You are underrating Thiem a lot. He knows how to play Nadal.

 

[ACE of Hearts]

If you were a tennis fan, you would be upset that another year goes by with the RG mafia preferring legacy-booster tournaments over actual high-quality tennis in the RG final between Rafa and Nole.

But since you're not a tennis fan, all you care about is your pathetic fanboy mentality and that your tennis god (who you really don't know why is your tennis god in the first place; you just arbitrarily chose someone to root for because you don't care about tennis quality in the first place; people like you will be the first to stop watching the game when your god retires) wins

You’re really trolling these boards. Novak has his chance and he blew it. Thiem was just better than him in this match.

 

[Sport]

You are underrating Thiem a lot. He knows how to play Nadal.

You said the same about me in the Fedal SF when I predicted Nadal to win in 3. You said "no way Nadal wins in 3" and you were proved wrong and over-pessimistic with Nadal's chances. I am not underrating Thiem, as I already admitted in my comment that he is the second best clay player in the world.

 

[ACE of Hearts]

LOL I wanted a Nadal vs Djokovic final but Djokovic didn't brings the goods and they actually stopped play for Novak twice during the heavy conditions otherwise he would've been routed by Thiem if they carried on, you should be lucky Novak even had the chance to go to 5 sets otherwise.

Novak had all the chance to win today and he didn't, nothing to do with RG preference he got what he wanted, sunny day, no wind, he broke back when play resumed, Thiem choked hard to serve it out,you couldn't ask for better chances but Novak STILL couldn't do it

Agree. I thought for sure novak would make him pay for choking but he couldn’t even do that.‍

 

[StrongRule]

You said the same about me in the Fedal SF when I predicted Nadal to win in 3. You said "no way Nadal wins in 3" and you were proved wrong and over-pessimistic with Nadal's chances. I am not underrating Thiem, as I already admitted in my comment that he is the second best clay player in the world.

With Thiem you just never know in what form will he show up. He is very unpredictable.

 

[veroniquem]

Round #2 for Nadal and Thiem coming up in the championship match. Last year, Thiem failed to take a set. How much better can he do this time round?

Are they still playing the final on Sunday? I can't imagine much.

 

[Sport]

With Thiem you just never know in what form will he show up. He is very unpredictable.

He is unpredictable for Masters 1000, not for Roland-Garros. Nadal defeated Thiem in 3 sets both at RG 2017 and RG 2018, despite some victories of Thiem in Masters 1000. At RG, Nadal is a different beast. The Phillipe-Chatrier court is much bigger than the Masters 1000 courts, which allow Nadal to reach more defensive balls.

Also, the level that both Djokovic and Thiem bring in the SF was not that impressive compared with Nadal's one. Both Djokovic and Thiem were losing their serve so many times, Thiem was making a lot of unforced errors and Djokovic was not better than in the Rome final.

Anyhow, let us stop the debate. I know you love to see everything black for Rafa. You predicted Nadal to lose in 2 sets against Nole in Rome, and also went as far as saying "Federer might win this one" in the Fedal SF, which was hillarious.

 

[stringertom]

That's what I was thinking too. Except for the fact the final is best of 5, unlike Master's. Though in the past some (or all?) masters used to be best of 5 finals. Indian Wells used to be anyway. Not sure about others.

Rome’06 5-set Fedal went 5 hours, no? Decided in a TB, unlike slams that way back then and still at RG at this point.

 

[Raphael Nadal]

I'd love to see Rafa wins his 12th, but this time Thiem has it figured out.

Thiem would have to play everything with his forehand, because his backhand is awful vs. Rafa at Roland Garros.
Rafa's ball is too high for Thiem's backhand at Roland Garros, making it impossible for Thiem to win
Thiem doesn't lack the brains, he lacks the talent.

 

[BorisRogerFan]

6-2 6-1 6-3 for Toni Soprano's godson. Or something like that, anyway

 

[Sephiroth]

The point is that Rafa is always given the easier draw to make sure he will win the slam and prop up his ATP claims to still being commercially relevant.

No, the first two sets yesterday were played in 20mph-higher winds than the Fedal semi

"To make sure he will win the slam"

Isn't beating Djokovic here for a millionth time been enough for you yet?

 

[hipolymer]

"To make sure he will win the slam"

Isn't beating Djokovic here for a millionth time been enough for you yet?

Disingenuous and uncharitable as always.

At any rate, it's so obvious that you don't care about tennis quality at all, as you've shown your hand to be a mere blind fanboy who cares about "wins"

It's not about Rafa being the favorite. It's about the tennis overlords screwing us out of another high quality final in favor of their artificial propping up of Rafito's legacy

 

[HetTheGreaterer]

Round #2 for Nadal and Thiem coming up in the championship match. Last year, Thiem failed to take a set. How much better can he do this time round?

Let's hope thiem saves tennis

 

[Sephiroth]

Disingenuous and uncharitable as always.

At any rate, it's so obvious that you don't care about tennis quality at all, as you've shown your hand to be a mere blind fanboy who cares about "wins"

It's not about Rafa being the favorite. It's about the tennis overlords screwing us out of another high quality final in favor of their artificial propping up of Rafito's legacy

You clearly haven't read my posts where I said I wanted a Djokovic vs Nadal final even before this match started but not my fault or RG's fault Novak was incapable of battling through against Thiem and if we're being honest Thiem has been the better player at RG than Novak post 2016. Results and level of play say so.

Tennis gods gave Novak every chance to win today by prolonging the match from the conditions everyone played the same in and making Thiem choke but Novak couldn't take them, sorry fella, that's all on Novak.

 

[hipolymer]

You clearly haven't read my posts where I said I wanted a Djokovic vs Nadal final even before this match started but not my fault or RG's fault Novak was incapable of battling through against Thiem.

Tennis gods gave Novak every chance to win today by prolonging the match from the conditions everyone played the same in and making Thiem choke but Novak couldn't take them, sorry fella, that's all on Novak.

Christ, it's not about the Novak win. No Novak fan WANTS such a win and to be unfairly dismantled by another BVLL

You truly don't get it, because you have a Rafito sized mental screen

Novak had no chances to win RG the moment Thiem was put into his draw and the moment the weather gods decided it

 

[stringertom]

You are underrating Thiem a lot. He knows how to play Nadal.

Thiem beat Nadal in Madrid last year in straight sets but chunked the RG final. This year he beat him in Barca, again convincingly in straight sets. This has to help a bit but I think his biggest advantage over ‘18 is he’s better rested despite the horrendous weather delays. Last year’s final was his 30th clay match and 43rd overall plus 2 DC matches. Tomorrow will be his 23rd clay match and 34th overall.

That being said, The Nadal probably in 4. But, Timmie has a role model:

 

[Sephiroth]

THE ONLY REASON THIEM WON IS BECAUSE NOLE SUCKS ON WIND AND WHEN HIS RHYTHM IS DISRUPTED.

So? Novak should be a better wind player then. It's wind ffs, not RAIN or a snowstorm. The weather is the same for everyone. Thiem handled the conditions better and this is an outdoor tournament. Thiem's shots would penetrate Novak even more with less wind, it works both ways.

If you truly cared about tennis quality, then yes RG would preferably be played in indoor conditions, or at the very least minimal wind. But sadly all you care about is fanboying for your arbitrarily-chosen tennis god

RG did everything they could to stop play so Novak could play in better conditions, and still failed. They didn't have to, heck it became sunny after they stopped play yesterday while some junior girls continued to play Tennis, but they did. Novak was given everything, he can't complain.

 

[guitarra]

My favourite player in the Roland Garros final for the 2nd consecutive year vs the clay GOAT 11-time and defending champion.

Would be a dream scenario if only he were not screwed by the idiotic scheduling.

Anyways, best of luck to Dominic and hoping for a surprise win and his first slam trophy tomorrow.

Come on!