Is Rafa burning himself out in this ATP cup right before the AO?
- Thread starter Rafa24
- Start date
King No1e
G.O.A.T.
Which must be frustrating for his fans. A WTF title could be the capstone for a GOAT career, but ATP Cup title will count for little in his legacy.
Lleytonstation
Talk Tennis Guru
Maybe, but he also feeds off confidence. Can you imagine if he beats Djoker? This could be a great thing for him, but if he gets injured we will all second guess it.
This also might be his last "hoorah" in a sense with team events. So he might just want to see it through.
If he wins AO we will say it was his confidence he gained in these events, and if not we will point to this as why.
This also might be his last "hoorah" in a sense with team events. So he might just want to see it through.
If he wins AO we will say it was his confidence he gained in these events, and if not we will point to this as why.
TearTheRoofOff
G.O.A.T.
No. Duracell Bunnies just need a replacement set of batteries and boom.
vanioMan
Legend
Not really. He can do or focus on whatever he likes. As a fan I just support him in what he does.
Yugram
Legend
Lol. Most of Nadal fans don’t care about WTF at all, or even don’t view it as legitimate tournament.
StrongRule
Talk Tennis Guru
Yes, he does. I honestly can't feel sorry for him if he loses early in AO. He should have learned something during the years. He is 33 years old, it is not the right time to have your shortest ever off season. I know Djokovic also plays, but Djokovic is a machine, he never gets tired.
T
Tiki-Taka
Guest
Hopefully he knows what he is doing, Australian Open was an unlucky place for him several times regarding injuries. Whatever happens, I can only applaud his commitment to the national team over the past few months.
TheGhostOfAgassi
Talk Tennis Guru
I hope not.
Rafa24
Hall of Fame
eh the WTF is a joke and doesn't frustrate me that he won't ever win it. he was the only player to beat the winner this year and had one loss like all the other semi final opponents but he didn't make the semis. round robin exhos aren't a big deal as much as the ATP wants to make it out to be because it generates money for them.
also last 3 winners or the ATP? dimitrov, zverev and tsitispas. none of which have sniffed a grand slam final let alone a title.
chrischris
G.O.A.T.
He can handle it. More concerned Fed is gonna be brunt if he doesnt stand up strong for the kids demanding he get a certain sponsor to do the right thing from now on...
Sport
G.O.A.T.
The ATP cup can potentially be relevant for the legacy of Nadal or Djokovic, depending on how they win it. Obviously, if Nadal wins the ATP Cup after losing in singles to Djokovic, the title will not bring any glory to his personal resume.
Standaa
G.O.A.T.
that’s cute, next time you will ignore AO if you feel like Nadal doesn’t have enough of those?
Federer and Del Potro
Bionic Poster
Yugram
Legend
If AO will implement a format where you can win a singles tournament with 2 losses during it, more so while someone with 1 loss won’t even make it through Round Robin, yes, it will be asterisked or excluded out of Big Tournaments conversation.
vive le beau jeu !
Talk Tennis Guru
if only...
octobrina10
Talk Tennis Guru
Rafa's last "hoorah" in a sense with team events will arrive after his ATP ranking goes down dramatically.
Wikipedia: ¤¤ The teams that participate in the ATP Cup are determined by the singles ranking of their best player. On the week after the US Open, 18 teams are announced, based on the best player singles ranking. For a country to qualify, it must have at least three players with ATP ranking, and two of them with singles ranking. The next six teams are announced the week of the ATP Finals. If the host does not qualify on the first deadline of September, it will be awarded a wild card, leaving only five spots for the November deadline.¤¤
ATP Cup - Wikipedia
He's definitely expended way more energy than desired for this tournament. We'll only know at the end of this month whether participating in the ATP was the right decision. Of course the fact that it's for his country and that there is no other top player in the team brings it's own pressure. Were this any individual tournament then he'd pull out of the Djokovic match for sure. We all know Djokovic is the main threat not only for this tournament but also the chase for GOAT status this year, so he doesn't want to hand any psychological advantage anymore than there is already.
Unfortunately there is too much dependance on him to be able to pull out tomorrow.
Unfortunately there is too much dependance on him to be able to pull out tomorrow.
Standaa
G.O.A.T.
but if those rules benefitted Nadal, it would be alright no?
Breakpointerer
Legend
Don't forget MC and Rome
Federer and Del Potro
Bionic Poster
Ned already lost in this tournament so theres an asterisk.
Yugram
Legend
On the thread topic, no, I don’t think Nadal is hurting his AO chances with this event. A loss to Djokovic may hurt a bit, but he isn’t winning AO with Djokovic in the final any way, in fact, no one is beating Djokovic in AO final, never.
He’ll have a week of rest, and I like that he is playing on courts similar to AO for 2 weeks now.
He’ll have a week of rest, and I like that he is playing on courts similar to AO for 2 weeks now.
Standaa
G.O.A.T.
Rafa's last "hoorah" in a sense with team events will arrive after his ATP ranking goes down dramatically.
Wikipedia: ¤¤ The teams that participate in the ATP Cup are determined by the singles ranking of their best player. On the week after the US Open, 18 teams are announced, based on the best player singles ranking. For a country to qualify, it must have at least three players with ATP ranking, and two of them with singles ranking. The next six teams are announced the week of the ATP Finals. If the host does not qualify on the first deadline of September, it will be awarded a wild card, leaving only five spots for the November deadline.¤¤
ATP Cup - Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org
Yugram
Legend
Yeah, lets manipulate and put "=" between singles event and team event. How very convincing.
Federer and Del Potro
Bionic Poster
Davis Cup also a team event but Ned fans act like he did that by himself. Can't have your cake and eat it too.
I hope Ned wins a WTF so it elevates past EXHO status.
Yugram
Legend
These team events doesn’t count into player’s title amount any way. So should WTF.
StrongRule
Talk Tennis Guru
@Federer and Del Potro You should become a Nadal fan. It's never too late.
Federer and Del Potro
Bionic Poster
I don't have any problem with Nadal, I think it's very possible GOAT debate ends up being between him and Djokovic and Federer being a bit behind..
We don't need to pretend certain events don't matter as part of the debate though. I don't view WTF as much more valuable than an M1000 but to win it usually requires a tougher road than an M1000. Sometimes even tougher than some paths to Slam wins are...which isn't to say it's more important than a slam, obviously it isn't.
The ability to lose and still win is a nice protection not offered by many (any?) other big tournaments, but there are times that hasn't helped Federer either (IE he beats Djokovic in the round robin and loses to him later on).
Surfaces changing on the event would be cool but is probably not logistically easy or even possible.
BGod
G.O.A.T.
Eh, I don't think he even cares about the AO after getting bludgeoned by Novak last year after some favourable match-ups in his draw. I think being so close to Roger with 19 Slams and winning again in New York has put his mind more at ease to concentrate on clay and secure that French Open this and next year.
Federer and Del Potro
Bionic Poster
FWIW I much prefer the one and done style all grand slams operate under and that should never change.
I don't mind another tournament of lesser import than a slam having a round robin though. It's a nice change of pace and the lowered pressure would probably lead to more great matches if it wasn't at the end of the year when everyone's gas tank is near empty. But that's a problem with the USO as well.
I don't mind another tournament of lesser import than a slam having a round robin though. It's a nice change of pace and the lowered pressure would probably lead to more great matches if it wasn't at the end of the year when everyone's gas tank is near empty. But that's a problem with the USO as well.
StrongRule
Talk Tennis Guru
We all know you are a troll, no need to keep proving it again and again.
Sport
G.O.A.T.
Wimbledon is an EXHO.
Federer and Del Potro
Bionic Poster
Basel is the 5th slam though, so Fed's career stays about the same.
The Guru
Legend
Lol well that's awfully convenient
vanioMan
Legend
This is not true at all. WTF is one of the biggest tennis events, perhaps the biggest after the Slams.
Sport
G.O.A.T.
Only because it was a team event it doesn't follow that all team players contributed the same. Nadal was the MVP of the Davis Cup 2019 for a reason. Nadal won the 2019 Davis Cup almost on his own, with minor contributions from Bautista Agut and the double partners.
Bautista Agut missed several matches because his father died, and he even lost some matches before the new of his father's death.
Because Carreño Busta was literally losing all his matches in singles, Nadal had to win both the singles matches and the doubles matches, 3 rounds in a row.
Nadal ended the tournament with a perfect 8-8 in matches played (100% of victories), 5 of them being in singles. During 3 rounds in a row, Nadal had to win both the singles and the doubles match the same day, playing 8 matches overall during the week. Incredible how he won that physically exhausting title, being the MVP of the tournament.
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Legend of Borg
G.O.A.T.
that isn't how it works
just because one's favorite player doesn't win a certain event, that doesn't make it pointless or illegitimate
I would bet on my life Rafa doesn't have this same bitterness towards this tournament, he tries hard every time and gives it his all
The_Mental_Giant
Hall of Fame
He does get tired, he just has super mental strenght and dont make error on key points when facing important points in a match
tennis_pro
Bionic Poster
I hope so
estigma2001
Hall of Fame
10 days to rest
Hitman
Bionic Poster
No, I can't.
What does this event have to do with the WTF? Just seems like an underhanded dig at the WTF for no reason.
TheGhostOfAgassi
Talk Tennis Guru
It’s basically a dress up party on a dying surface
Lleytonstation
Talk Tennis Guru
You think he will continue to play DC every year too?Rafa's last "hoorah" in a sense with team events will arrive after his ATP ranking goes down dramatically.
Wikipedia: ¤¤ The teams that participate in the ATP Cup are determined by the singles ranking of their best player. On the week after the US Open, 18 teams are announced, based on the best player singles ranking. For a country to qualify, it must have at least three players with ATP ranking, and two of them with singles ranking. The next six teams are announced the week of the ATP Finals. If the host does not qualify on the first deadline of September, it will be awarded a wild card, leaving only five spots for the November deadline.¤¤
ATP Cup - Wikipedia
Rafa24
Hall of Fame
or if davydenko, dmitrov or zverev would win it. LOL. zverev can't even make it past the 1/4s in a slam but he has the almighty WTF!
TennisFan3
Talk Tennis Guru
He's already destroyed his chances at the AO by overplaying. He is NO spring chicken. He will most likely crash out of the AO - injured and hobbled early in the 2nd week.
The ATP cup and the extra tennis Nadal played, will have cost him a potential slam. Djokovic at 17 - will be breathing down his neck.
TheGhostOfAgassi
Talk Tennis Guru
Lol Fed fans can’t even handle a comment from Greta Thunberg. 2 threads deleted in no time.VB is like a collective over-protective mother
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