Hi there.
I have seen already many threads covering the Fed vs Rafa topic but since I am new here I wanted to start my own thread in order to expose my thoughts. I hope nobody minds my imperfect english, just bear in mind my native language is german.
Here we go: First of all, I am a huge tennis fan obviously and I am glad to have found a forum where tennis can be discussed in all aspects. I appreciate not just to watch Fed and Rafa of course but many other players as well. However the rivalry between those 2 players is obviously a top focus at the latest since the other defeat of Fed in the MC final. Indeed Rafa is the only guy Fed has a bad record against since he started his domination end of 03.
I was wondering how does it come that one single defeat calls so much attention and I guess it's because the domination of Fed got so overwhelming over the last 2 years that people have just been kind of desperately looking for a guy who can give him a real challenge. Well, as it seems we have the highly anticipated challenge at hand (well, maybe already since last year) and I think this is the best that can happen to tennis sports because honestly, didn't you also feel at times a bit bored about all the easy wins of Fed, all the records he has broken so easily with so little resistance by his opponents, didn't it sometimes almost appear like he just keeps on playing against records while nobody stands in his way. Since he overcame his early threats (Hewitt, Nalbandian) he was basically playing in a class of his own. That kind of dominance hasn't been seen since the days of Lendl, Vilas, McEnroe or Sampras and many (including Agassi) have named Fed already the GOAT.
Then all of the sudden a young teenager popped up out of nowhere providing him with the first real challenge since his reign started. In turn Fed has now a quite unique opportunity to finally prove that he is indeed the GOAT --- WHAT A GREAT CHALLENGE. He only has to overcome the biggest threat ever in the name of Rafa, but this obviously is not gonna be an easy thing to accomplish. I am pretty much sure the FO title will remain the biggest goal in Fed's carreer, no matter what, though he still may insist Wimbledon means most to him. Personally I think if ever Fed can win the FO it's gonna be this year or at the latest next year simply because he is playing right now at his very peak level and I doubt there is much potential left to improve his game.
Besides the fact that Rafa is basically a clay and slow hard court specialist while Fed prefers grass and fast hard courts there can be no doubt that both players have a huge edge over the rest of the field. Both have won 11 titles last year and have nearly perfect records in their books. Fed has won 23 consecutive finals since his defeat at the Masters while Rafa has won 14 out of 16 finals and is unbeaten on clay since 42 matches. So both players have great records and surely deserve a lot respect. I think we do no justice to each of the players to just compare their personal head-to-head record. As has been said in another thread there were a lot great players in the past who also had bad records against certain players that have been called their nemesis, but that surely hasn't effected their overall achievements and their place in tennis history. As of today Fed has already secured his place in the books with 7 slam titles and I am sure he will add some more. Rafa has just captured 1 slam so far, so there is still a long way to go for him to be called in the same line from a historical point of view but I am sure he will also make his way through as Fed has done though his carreer may not last as long due to his energetic game style.
Having said that it's quite fascinating to compare both players game styles. Don't you agree they can hardly be any more different? However it seems that Rafa is able to neutralize some of Feds strenghts to a certain degree with his kind of play, especially with his heavy topspin on clay. I have never before seen a guy hitting the ball with such a heavy spin, just completely crazy, I am still wondering how the hell he creates that much spin. The ball usually bounces more than shoulder high behind the baseline which makes it extremely difficult for his opponents to put pressure on the ball or to counteract in whatever way.
Rafa is pure energy and volition and with his incredible athleticism plus his mental strenght he has become the factor he is. Coria perfectly summed it up after his defeat in MC when he talked about "the intensity that Nadal puts in each point. He is like a beast, an animal on the court. He's very strong and he's very well prepared." Gaudio put it in similar words after his defeat in the semis. Though Gaudio played one of his best matches and even secured the first set he was unable to keep up with Rafa in the long distance.
It seems to me that Rafa is the exact antipode to Fed. While Fed delights us with his fluent and seemingly effortlessness game, his fine touch, his all-court-coverage, his great footwork and his shot making variety Rafa in turn gives us the feeling to witness the battle of a gladiator where it's all about the fighting spirit. Likewise Hewitt, just Rafa has much better and more effective weapons in his arsenal.
While Fed being the artist, the eloquent and talkative man of the world, the person of integrity, intelligent and fluent in 4 languages, Rafa appears to be the simple minded man from majorca island (the animal, the beast), surprisingly still a bit bashful despite his success, hardly able to communicate in english, not very talkative at all but... all in all a very likable person as well in my opinion. In fact Rafa's shy appearance outside the court stands in sharp contrast to his confidence he shows on-court.
When Fed meets Rafa it's like a battle of the artist vs the craftsman, of ingenuity vs power and will... and isn't that the most fascinating thing to watch? I am not sure if Fed will ever get the edge over Rafa, in fact I have my doubts, but anyway, for me it doesn't really matter, what matters are exciting and thrilling matches which we hopefully can enjoy the next couple of years.
One thing to close out my little story. I had always greatest respect for Fed as a person but the way he talked about Rafa lately was a little disappointing for me. To classify Rafa as a one-dimensional player was not a classy statement. Even if I do agree to a certain extend this statement has shown a bit of disrespect which is a pity. Also to constantly repeat he's on the way of figuring Rafa out in order to beat him is not really appropriate. 4 matches should have been enough to figure out a one-dimensional player, shouldn't it? I think actually Fed is quite a bit afraid of Rafa and that for a good reason.
I had a vision lately that Fed will loose the FO semis because of fear for losing again to Rafa in the final. Of course I hope my vision is wrong because I would love to see them battling in the FO final... while Fed grinding out Rafa in the fifth. :mrgreen:
That would be the coronation of a great carreer, the icing on the cake. Well, let's wait and see. I think he would have deserved it. Cheers for now.
I have seen already many threads covering the Fed vs Rafa topic but since I am new here I wanted to start my own thread in order to expose my thoughts. I hope nobody minds my imperfect english, just bear in mind my native language is german.
Here we go: First of all, I am a huge tennis fan obviously and I am glad to have found a forum where tennis can be discussed in all aspects. I appreciate not just to watch Fed and Rafa of course but many other players as well. However the rivalry between those 2 players is obviously a top focus at the latest since the other defeat of Fed in the MC final. Indeed Rafa is the only guy Fed has a bad record against since he started his domination end of 03.
I was wondering how does it come that one single defeat calls so much attention and I guess it's because the domination of Fed got so overwhelming over the last 2 years that people have just been kind of desperately looking for a guy who can give him a real challenge. Well, as it seems we have the highly anticipated challenge at hand (well, maybe already since last year) and I think this is the best that can happen to tennis sports because honestly, didn't you also feel at times a bit bored about all the easy wins of Fed, all the records he has broken so easily with so little resistance by his opponents, didn't it sometimes almost appear like he just keeps on playing against records while nobody stands in his way. Since he overcame his early threats (Hewitt, Nalbandian) he was basically playing in a class of his own. That kind of dominance hasn't been seen since the days of Lendl, Vilas, McEnroe or Sampras and many (including Agassi) have named Fed already the GOAT.
Then all of the sudden a young teenager popped up out of nowhere providing him with the first real challenge since his reign started. In turn Fed has now a quite unique opportunity to finally prove that he is indeed the GOAT --- WHAT A GREAT CHALLENGE. He only has to overcome the biggest threat ever in the name of Rafa, but this obviously is not gonna be an easy thing to accomplish. I am pretty much sure the FO title will remain the biggest goal in Fed's carreer, no matter what, though he still may insist Wimbledon means most to him. Personally I think if ever Fed can win the FO it's gonna be this year or at the latest next year simply because he is playing right now at his very peak level and I doubt there is much potential left to improve his game.
Besides the fact that Rafa is basically a clay and slow hard court specialist while Fed prefers grass and fast hard courts there can be no doubt that both players have a huge edge over the rest of the field. Both have won 11 titles last year and have nearly perfect records in their books. Fed has won 23 consecutive finals since his defeat at the Masters while Rafa has won 14 out of 16 finals and is unbeaten on clay since 42 matches. So both players have great records and surely deserve a lot respect. I think we do no justice to each of the players to just compare their personal head-to-head record. As has been said in another thread there were a lot great players in the past who also had bad records against certain players that have been called their nemesis, but that surely hasn't effected their overall achievements and their place in tennis history. As of today Fed has already secured his place in the books with 7 slam titles and I am sure he will add some more. Rafa has just captured 1 slam so far, so there is still a long way to go for him to be called in the same line from a historical point of view but I am sure he will also make his way through as Fed has done though his carreer may not last as long due to his energetic game style.
Having said that it's quite fascinating to compare both players game styles. Don't you agree they can hardly be any more different? However it seems that Rafa is able to neutralize some of Feds strenghts to a certain degree with his kind of play, especially with his heavy topspin on clay. I have never before seen a guy hitting the ball with such a heavy spin, just completely crazy, I am still wondering how the hell he creates that much spin. The ball usually bounces more than shoulder high behind the baseline which makes it extremely difficult for his opponents to put pressure on the ball or to counteract in whatever way.
Rafa is pure energy and volition and with his incredible athleticism plus his mental strenght he has become the factor he is. Coria perfectly summed it up after his defeat in MC when he talked about "the intensity that Nadal puts in each point. He is like a beast, an animal on the court. He's very strong and he's very well prepared." Gaudio put it in similar words after his defeat in the semis. Though Gaudio played one of his best matches and even secured the first set he was unable to keep up with Rafa in the long distance.
It seems to me that Rafa is the exact antipode to Fed. While Fed delights us with his fluent and seemingly effortlessness game, his fine touch, his all-court-coverage, his great footwork and his shot making variety Rafa in turn gives us the feeling to witness the battle of a gladiator where it's all about the fighting spirit. Likewise Hewitt, just Rafa has much better and more effective weapons in his arsenal.
While Fed being the artist, the eloquent and talkative man of the world, the person of integrity, intelligent and fluent in 4 languages, Rafa appears to be the simple minded man from majorca island (the animal, the beast), surprisingly still a bit bashful despite his success, hardly able to communicate in english, not very talkative at all but... all in all a very likable person as well in my opinion. In fact Rafa's shy appearance outside the court stands in sharp contrast to his confidence he shows on-court.
When Fed meets Rafa it's like a battle of the artist vs the craftsman, of ingenuity vs power and will... and isn't that the most fascinating thing to watch? I am not sure if Fed will ever get the edge over Rafa, in fact I have my doubts, but anyway, for me it doesn't really matter, what matters are exciting and thrilling matches which we hopefully can enjoy the next couple of years.
One thing to close out my little story. I had always greatest respect for Fed as a person but the way he talked about Rafa lately was a little disappointing for me. To classify Rafa as a one-dimensional player was not a classy statement. Even if I do agree to a certain extend this statement has shown a bit of disrespect which is a pity. Also to constantly repeat he's on the way of figuring Rafa out in order to beat him is not really appropriate. 4 matches should have been enough to figure out a one-dimensional player, shouldn't it? I think actually Fed is quite a bit afraid of Rafa and that for a good reason.
I had a vision lately that Fed will loose the FO semis because of fear for losing again to Rafa in the final. Of course I hope my vision is wrong because I would love to see them battling in the FO final... while Fed grinding out Rafa in the fifth. :mrgreen:
That would be the coronation of a great carreer, the icing on the cake. Well, let's wait and see. I think he would have deserved it. Cheers for now.
