nolefam_2024
Bionic Poster
Nadal didn't look slow at all. Certainly not his post 2021 self.
He was as fast as 2014 tbh when he almost reached final
He was as fast as 2014 tbh when he almost reached final
Duel Match Stats/Report - Nadal vs Federer, Australian Open finals 2009 & 2017
- Thread starter Waspsting
- Start date
MichaelNadal
Bionic Poster
He was still fast in 2017 but he was pretty sluggish by his standards in the final. He looked a lot better in the Zverev and Dimitrov matches
7
7thKingSlam
Guest
I’d definitely say he looked faster in 2014. But I do think the court speed makes Nadal look slower in the 2017 match than he was. Probably was around the same speed as 2018-19. Also he was more aggressive in 2018/19 so he was getting weaker balls back and conserving energy a bit more.
welcome2petrkordaland
Hall of Fame
Dimitrov gets an assist there, not taking anything away from Federer’s amazing performance.
MichaelNadal
Bionic Poster
It was definitely a brutal match. Nadal was tearing Grigor apart it was amazing how Grigor turned the match around he was playing out of his skin
welcome2petrkordaland
Hall of Fame
Yeah, I posted then about how Grigor just got MTOATed plain and simple. (Mentally Toughest of All Time) in that last 20 minutes or so. So soo mental at the end there.
MichaelNadal
Bionic Poster
Me too bestie. We had it so good. Every tournament was so exciting and there were stakes and anticipation.
7
7thKingSlam
Guest
At 3-4 15-40 in the 5th set Nadal caught fire. Got through that game with really aggressive plays and basically all winners, then broke Dimitrov’s serve the very next game off a 2 shot pass combo. Crowd goes insane while Rafa calmly walks to his bench. One of the commentators said, “Rafa fans, are you really surprised?”
I was. Considering how poorly the last almost three years had gone for him, and how well Dimitrov was playing, I didn’t know how he’d overcome that.
Regarding the fatigue factor, it’s also important to note the AO used to do the semifinals on separate days. Federer played his on Thursday, Nadal on Friday. The match was very long and went late, then he had to play Federer on Friday afternoon. It was a parallel situation to AO2009 or Djokovic’s AO2012, both of which are considered some of the best physical feats in tennis. It would be normal for Nadal to show some fatigue so he performed admirably in that final imo.
welcome2petrkordaland
Hall of Fame
7thKS, RIGHT! You pinpointed the exact moment the mental aspect just overwhelmed Dimitrov…. It was basically over at 4-4 between the ears.
Mustard
Bionic Poster
Fast by post-2021 standards. Slow by 2005-2009 standards.
Nadal changed his style a bit in 2017, i.e. to save his movement for when he really needed it, to serve better, and to try to end points more quickly. That worked well against the field, but not in a direct matchup against Federer.
Nadal did reach the 2014 Australian Open final. That final saw the back injury, which was bothering him for months afterwards, even in the latter stages of the 2014 French Open final.
nolefam_2024
Bionic Poster
I meant to say almost won the title. Sorry for mistype.
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