Nadal will win all clay tournaments this year

[raph6]

Considering the terrible form of all the supposed contenders on clay, it's likely that Nadal will win for the 1st time in his career all the clay tournaments this year (the important ones, Monte Carlo, Barcelona, Madrid, Rome and Roland Garros).

Djokovic level and confidence are too low to beat Rafa in the weeks to come, and with Pepe Imaz back I don't think it's going to change very soon.

Thiem has been bad all year excepting at Indian Wells during the SF and the F. But he reached these stages with luck as his draw was weak and Monfils withdrew in the quarters.

No comments on Zverev, I would be rude.

The only remaining challenger is Federer, but he is 37 and we all know he won't beat Rafa at RG.

I like clay, I like Rafa, but I hate the non suspense of his clay domination.

 

[MeatTornado]

 

[Sorry_to_tell_you_mate]

If he weren't injured I would say yes, but I'm afraid he's only winning Montecarlo this year and maybe Barcelona. I can't see him winning Madrid/Rome/FO. Not this year.

Sorry to tell you that, mate.

 

[malbaker86]

He's not winning Madrid or Rome but he'll win Barcelona and RG

 

[Yugram]

Considering the terrible form of all the supposed contenders on clay, it's likely that Nadal will win for the 1st time in his career all the clay tournaments this year (the important ones, Monte Carlo, Barcelona, Madrid, Rome and Roland Garros).

Djokovic level and confidence are too low to beat Rafa in the weeks to come, and with Pepe Imaz back I don't think it's going to change very soon.

Thiem has been bad all year excepting at Indian Wells during the SF and the F. But he reached these stages with luck as his draw was weak and Monfils withdrew in the quarters.

No comments on Zverev, I would be rude.

The only remaining challenger is Federer, but he is 37 and we all know he won't beat Rafa at RG.

I like clay, I like Rafa, but I hate the non suspense of his domination.

Just to remind you, Nadal destroyed Thiem in Monte Carlo 6-0 6-2 last year, but a couple of weeks later lost to him in Madrid.

So we can’t judge about the whole clay season by Monte Carlo. There’s still time for Thiem and Zverev. Djokovic... with Pepe he won’t be a threat.

 

[Djokovic2011]

It'll be a sad indictment of the current clay court competition(how's that for a bit of alliteration) if he does.

 

[Lleytonstation]

Three matches in and we are already saying he will go 30-0?

 

[Sport]

.

 

[Jonas78]

No he wont. He is not winning MC, Barca, Rome and Madrid, he is too smart for that

 

[MugOpponent]

I think he'll only win one of Madrid or Rome. The odds of him winning both and losing both are probably about the same. His form today was up and down. Sometimes spectacular(that bullet return of Pella's smash) and sometimes very poor by his standards.

 

[MichaelNadal]

Not even close.

It'll be a sad indictment of the current clay court competition(how's that for a bit of alliteration) if he does.

Like over 30-ovic mopping up the AO again?

 

[DSH]

No, and doesnt matter either.
He has to win Montecarlo, Rome and RG.
Madrid is worthless anyway.

 

[MichaelNadal]

No, and doesnt matter either.
He has to win Montecarlo, Rome and RG.
Madrid is worthless anyway.

This is what im hoping for too. I really never warmed to Madrid replacing Hamburg. Plus he has the least Rome titles out of everything else.

 

[MugOpponent]

This is what im hoping for too. I really never warmed to Madrid replacing Hamburg. Plus he has the least Rome titles out of everything else.

It'd be great to see him retire with at least 10 Romes. Nadal should have a roman numeral X in front of Rome titles.

 

[chjtennis]

No disrespect to Pella, but he pushed Nadal quite hard for 2 hours and 20 minutes. I'm pretty sure this version of Nadal at the age of 33 is not invincible on clay.

 

[DSH]

This is what im hoping for too. I really never warmed to Madrid replacing Hamburg. Plus he has the least Rome titles out of everything else.

Did you know that only 4 players in the open era so far have been able to reach at least the RG semifinals with 33 years or more?

 

[MichaelNadal]

Did you know that only 4 players in the open era so far have been able to reach at least the RG semifinals with 33 years or more?

Heck, im surprised that 4 have!

 

[DSH]

No disrespect to Pella, but he pushed Nadal quite hard for 2 hours and 20 minutes. I'm pretty sure this version of Nadal at the age of 33 is not invincible on clay.

Coric beat Federer in Halle and Anderson beat also the Swiss in Wimbledon!

What you say is a truism, but Nadal depends on himself not to get overloaded to the French Open.
If he does, it is very possible that he can lift his crown number 12 there.

 

[Subway Tennis]

Considering the terrible form of all the supposed contenders on clay, it's likely that Nadal will win for the 1st time in his career all the clay tournaments this year (the important ones, Monte Carlo, Barcelona, Madrid, Rome and Roland Garros).

Djokovic level and confidence are too low to beat Rafa in the weeks to come, and with Pepe Imaz back I don't think it's going to change very soon.

Thiem has been bad all year excepting at Indian Wells during the SF and the F. But he reached these stages with luck as his draw was weak and Monfils withdrew in the quarters.

No comments on Zverev, I would be rude.

The only remaining challenger is Federer, but he is 37 and we all know he won't beat Rafa at RG.

I like clay, I like Rafa, but I hate the non suspense of his domination.

I'm not sure if this is a deliberate jinx thread?

It is near-impossible to go through a season as long and gruelling as clay, with as many condition changes, undefeated winning all those events you mentioned. It very rarely happens.

 

[chjtennis]

Coric beat Federer in Halle and Anderson beat also the Swiss in Wimbledon!

What you say is a truism, but Nadal depends on himself not to get overloaded to the French Open.
If he does, it is very possible that he can lift his crown number 12 there.

Not sure if Nadal can dominate clay like he did in the past at the age of 33. We'll see. He may get beaten by a decent but not great player at RG, just like Federer last year at Wimby.

 

[DSH]

Heck, im surprised that 4 have!

Ken Rosewall was a champion with 33 years and 7 months. The following year he was a finalist.
Nikola Pilic was a finalist with 33 years and 9 months.
Pancho Gonzales was a semifinalist with a little more than 40 years!

Só, Nadal will have 2 or 3 more chances to do history there.
The important thing is to arrive 100% healthy. and he will have his big chances.

 

[DSH]

Not sure if Nadal can dominate clay like he did in the past at the age of 33. We'll see. He may get beaten by a decent but not great player at RG, just like Federer last year at Wimby.

To dominate?
That's irrelevant, he needs to win a couple of titles before the jackpot, it's a mix of arriving with rhythm and confidence.
In the other two tournaments he can lose quickly and that does not change anything, in fact, it would be beneficial to him not to load of matches before the big date.

 

[Federer and Del Potro]

Federer

 

[chjtennis]

To dominate?
That's irrelevant, he needs to win a couple of titles before the jackpot, it's a mix of arriving with rhythm and confidence.
In the other two tournaments he can lose quickly and that does not change anything, in fact, it would be beneficial to him not to load of matches before the big date.

His dominance on clay is extremely relevant to him. Clay season is where he builds his year up. If he doesn't do well there, he won't have confidence. He has taken half of his points for the year on clay and gotten confidence from it as well basically throughout his career. Once he gets all the success he needs, he then goes all out without any pressure for the rest of the year. He needs to create that sense of invincibility, the aura, on clay to do well for the rest of the season. To Nadal, clay season is extremely important and winning a couple of tournaments is not all. He needs to absolutely dominate the season.

 

[DSH]

His dominance on clay is extremely relevant to him. Clay season is where he builds his year up. If he doesn't do well there, he won't have confidence. He has taken half of his points for the year on clay and gotten confidence from it as well basically throughout his career. Once he gets all the success he needs, he then goes all out without any pressure for the rest of the year. He needs to create that sense of invincibility, the aura, on clay to do well for the rest of the season. To Nadal, clay season is extremely important and winning a couple of tournaments is not all. He needs to absolutely dominate the season.

He needs to win Montecarlo, Rome and Roland Garros. (Of course, saying it is much easier than doing it).
If that is not to dominate on a surface as physical as clay at almost 33 years, I do not know what that word means anymore.

 

[dr325i]

Considering the terrible form of all the supposed contenders on clay, it's likely that Nadal will win for the 1st time in his career all the clay tournaments this year (the important ones, Monte Carlo, Barcelona, Madrid, Rome and Roland Garros).

Djokovic level and confidence are too low to beat Rafa in the weeks to come, and with Pepe Imaz back I don't think it's going to change very soon.

Thiem has been bad all year excepting at Indian Wells during the SF and the F. But he reached these stages with luck as his draw was weak and Monfils withdrew in the quarters.

No comments on Zverev, I would be rude.

The only remaining challenger is Federer, but he is 37 and we all know he won't beat Rafa at RG.

I like clay, I like Rafa, but I hate the non suspense of his domination.

I would not bet my house on that.

However, I would that he will be injured shortly after the clay season

 

[Subway Tennis]

I would not bet my house on that.

However, I would that he will be injured shortly after the clay season

Hopefully we get a Wimbledon performance similar to last year, with him going a few rounds better after the SF heartbreak of last year.

 

[DSH]

Hopefully we get a Wimbledon performance similar to last year, with him going a few rounds better after the SF heartbreak of last year.

Well, competition on grass is weak, anything can happen there.

 

[Gary Duane]

Nadal winning every clay event up to RG, even if he could somehow do it, would lower his chances at winning RG again and maybe destroy those chances. As it is I'd wager he will play too much on clay, again. It almost cost him last year. Anyone remember the hand?

 

[Deleted member 743545]

If he could not do it at the peak of his physical power, the chance he do it now would be slim to none.

 

[MugOpponent]

If he could not do it at the peak of his physical power, the chance he do it now would be slim to none.

I think it's more of a reflection on the rest of the field than Nadal being the same as Peak Nadal.

 

[ChrisRF]

No disrespect to Pella, but he pushed Nadal quite hard for 2 hours and 20 minutes. I'm pretty sure this version of Nadal at the age of 33 is not invincible on clay.

For me it is more important what happened after the bad start against Pella. He came back from 1-4 with 2 breaks down and from 5-6 with another break as if it’s nothing. I mean, we are talking about weaknesses and possible losses when the opponent isn’t even able to take a set after a heavy lead.

Nadal switched to a higher gear when he needed. On clay he has a lot of time to even start playing tennis. Still I don’t think he really wins all 5 tournaments this year, but generally if this Pella match is the big hope for the field, then there is not much hope.

 

[Subway Tennis]

Well, competition on grass is weak, anything can happen there.

I agree that the grass field is increasingly shallow, partially because there is no benefit to orientating your game around a sparingly used surface. With that said, that shallow field contains two all-time great grass players, so it would still be incredible if he could get another Wimbledon.

 

[chjtennis]

He needs to win Montecarlo, Rome and Roland Garros. (Of course, saying it is much easier than doing it).
If that is not to dominate on a surface as physical as clay at almost 33 years, I do not know what that word means anymore.

You said domination is irrelevant and then talk about dominance. Don't make sense.

 

[chjtennis]

For me it is more important what happened after the bad start against Pella. He came back from 1-4 with 2 breaks down and from 5-6 with another break as if it’s nothing. I mean, we are talking about weaknesses and possible losses when the opponent isn’t even able to take a set after a heavy lead.

Nadal switched to a higher gear when he needed. On clay he has a lot of time to even start playing tennis. Still I don’t think he really wins all 5 tournaments this year, but generally if this Pella match is the big hope for the field, then there is not much hope.

He is still Nadal so he will be very tough to beat. However, there are more holes in his game now than before, naturally. He can be beaten by an in-form player even at RG now.

 

[MajesticTennisManiac]

Well, competition on grass is weak, anything can happen there.

Much tougher than the competition on clay.

 

[ChrisRF]

He is still Nadal so he will be very tough to beat. However, there are more holes in his game now than before, naturally. He can be beaten by an in-form player even at RG now.

Don’t get me wrong, I hope you are right. I don’t hate Rafa by any means, but I want him to really fight for his wins if he gets them at all.

However, I don’t see the signs why this year should be different from 2017 and 2018 (apart from the presence of Fedr of course ). Remember he even lost a set to Kyle Edmund in Monte Carlo 2017, but still he was absolutely unbeatable at RG. Before RG some people thought he was beatable back then as well. He was also injured almost every time in the last few years just until the start of the clay season and it didn’t matter. So what are the real different signs this year?

 

[Tommy Haas]

Will Nadal do to Djoko at RG what Djoko did to him at the AO? That is utterly destroy their opponent and make them look really bad or will it be a decent match should Djoko make it to the final? Carlos should tell Rafa to play his game and do what he does best on clay and focus on a winning strategy and not think about payback for being schooled at the AO.

 

[Sport]

Will Nadal do to Djoko at RG what Djoko did to him at the AO? That is utterly destroy their opponent and make them look really bad or will it be a decent match should Djoko make it to the final? Carlos should tell Rafa to play his game and do what he does best on clay and focus on a winning strategy and not think about payback for being schooled at the AO.

He already did it. Check out the RG 2007 SF and RG 2008 SF, where Nadal destroyed Djokovic in 3 sets.

Djokovic also destroyed Nadal at RG in 3 sets in 2015.

 

[Sport]

Not sure if Nadal can dominate clay like he did in the past at the age of 33. We'll see. He may get beaten by a decent but not great player at RG, just like Federer last year at Wimby.

Is that a prediction or a wish? I can't differenciate between both with your comments.

 

[raph6]

I think it's more of a reflection on the rest of the field than Nadal being the same as Peak Nadal.

Exactly. The last few years, the field was stronger with Djokovic, Murray, Thiem and Stan in 2016, Thiem and Zverev in 2017/2018. Right now, there is no one capable of taking 2 set to Nadal on clay.

 

[chjtennis]

Don’t get me wrong, I hope you are right. I don’t hate Rafa by any means, but I want him to really fight for his wins if he gets them at all.

However, I don’t see the signs why this year should be different from 2017 and 2018 (apart from the presence of Fedr of course ). Remember he even lost a set to Kyle Edmund in Monte Carlo 2017, but still he was absolutely unbeatable at RG. Before RG some people thought he was beatable back then as well. He was also injured almost every time in the last few years just until the start of the clay season and it didn’t matter. So what are the real different signs this year?

He is one year older and that is a big factor. Also, he just came off from an injury and you never know how his body will hold up this time. I think Nadal is still the force on clay, but he should be more beatable now than before. I wouldn't be surprised if he sweeps all of the clay titles, but I wouldn't also be surprised if he loses at F or SF in every clay tourneys as well.

 

[chjtennis]

Is that a prediction or a wish? I can't differenciate between both with your comments.

If it was not clear, that is not a wish but a prediction.

 

[Sport]

If it was not clear, that is not a wish but a prediction.

Well, I don't get the analogy with Federer's loss at WB 2018. Nadal is more dominant on clay than Federer on grass, plus Nadal is younger than Federer. So the fact that Federer lost to Anderson at Wimbledon 2018 does not suggest that Nadal will lose at RG 2019.

 

[chjtennis]

Well, I don't get the analogy with Federer's loss at WB 2018. Nadal is more dominant on clay than Federer on grass, plus Nadal is younger than Federer. So the fact that Federer lost to Anderson at Wimbledon 2018 does not suggest that Nadal will lose at RG 2019.

Gosh, how could you not understand what I said? Federer is old and gets beaten in a match he should win now that he is old. Nadal is also into the age now where he will not be consistent as he used to be, so he could lose to someone unexpectedly. Got it now?

 

[Bender]

If the main dangers stay out of his way then there's a slim chance he can do it, and even then he'd probably withdraw from one of them surely

Thiem still is a threat...the guy seems to mistake playing against Rafa for playing for the title, so if he stays on the other side of Rafa's draw then he'll probably overhit himself to a QF loss and never have to meet Rafa

 

[Djokovic2011]

Not even close.


Like over 30-ovic mopping up the AO again?

Nowhere near comparable.

Ven conmigo, let's take a trip.

 

[Luka888]

No, he will not and he does not need to. Rafa needs to 'rest his body' if you wish. Even if he somehow does, I wouldn't be surprised if he loses again R2 or R3 at SW17. RG is all that matters for Nadal. His clay schedule is always annoying. No wonder he gets injured so often.

Nadal is also not playing that well on clay at the moment let alone the rest of the clay season.

 

[dr325i]

OP, how you doin’?

 

[Towser83]

He already did it. Check out the RG 2007 SF and RG 2008 SF, where Nadal destroyed Djokovic in 3 sets.

Djokovic also destroyed Nadal at RG in 3 sets in 2015.

Nadal beat him in straight sets in 2007/2008 (as well as 2006) but was a bit different to AO this year as AO was the final, they were the top 2 players in the world, both had won the AO. In 2006-2008 Djokovic was still a way off the player he is today in achievements, not ever been to number 1, not won RG so Nadal was huge favourite. You dont count Djokovic at that time as having reached his prime yet

Also in 2015 RG that was also not a final and Nadal had been in poor form so that's a bit different too

2013 USO is probably Nadal's biggest slam win over Djokovic, though he did lose a set he destroyed Djokovic in 2 of the other sets and at a time when Djokovic had reached his prime already