Nadal's performance this Davis Cup enhancing GOAT credentials?

zep

Hall of Fame
How about we just enjoy Rafa's performance without worrying about Goat shenanigans.

Sincerely

Red Rick, proud VB, MM and NF resident, as well as ABFP.

I agree. People are so obsessed with the whole GOAT debate that they are losing perspective. I wasn't even planning to watch the Davis Cup but Nadal's performance made me enjoy it. He is on the last leg of his career, let's enjoy it while it lasts.
 

Gary Duane

Talk Tennis Guru
To be honest I just wish he was at home resting. The fact he is playing this much this late in the season is mind boggling (in both good and bad ways, I guess) I find it painful every time he steps out on court, and the fact he's playing doubles as well, and finds himself with these late finishes?? :rolleyes: For the love of god Rafa, just go home. You are, as you say, not with twenty anymore.

Frickin' Spanish superstar organizes this tournament and hosts it in Spain and of course he's lured into taking part. It's so annoying.
It's all about his body. If he is OK, this could make him battle-tested for AO. It will also be a confidence booster. If he stays healthy in almost December, he still has a good month to rest but will possibly not be rusty at the end of AO. Last year's final was almost disastrous. If he had won that final, who knows what 2018 would have been like.
 
:D what is that exactly?

It is toothpicks enclosed in a meat crust. You eat them and become red.

smiley_emoticons_santagrin.gif
 

hoodjem

G.O.A.T.
Did you see the manner in which Serbia were knocked out? Do you know that this tournament marked the end of the golden generation since it was Tipsarevic's last appearance? A very good shot at fighting for the title tomorrow, or at least a better farewell, was wasted.

Serbia lost plenty of times in the Davis Cup before. Djokovic was forced to retire due to injury back in 2011 in front of the home crowd which lost his national team the tie. Young Lajovic lost a decisive 5th match in the 2013 final, also in front of the home crowd. Yet the post match reactions weren't as emotional as this one. There is definitely great national pride just to be clear, but not every reaction from the Serbs is related to the past injustices that the western scum in power delivered. Or to put it better, if anyone is mature enough to not have spite as their main motivation, it's these athletes.

It's fine to point out the atrocious attendance of non-Spain ties this week. In that sense the Davis Cup flopped badly. But don't question the commitment of participants, young or old, to this event that still means a lot to them. They obviously care, which makes the competition at least a little bigger than an exhibition. Otherwise they wouldn't have sacrificed a week of what is a short off season to begin with.
Djoker won his singles over Khachanov.
But Rublev beat Krajinovic.
So it went down to the doubles, in which Djokovic and Troicki lost to Khachanov and Rublev.
 

Apun94

Hall of Fame
The actual Davis Cup is already DEAD

This BO3 show with some random pairing is a poor copy and has failed miserably. When ATP cups starts in Jan , this will be forgotten and erased or lesser players who want to get into form like Pospisil and Andy Murray will play.
Is Federer playing the ATP Cup?
 

clayqueen

Talk Tennis Guru
I can say with utmost confidence if the roles were reversed and Federer was doing exactly what Nadal is right now, certain Nadal fans would downplay it as well.

Without a shred of doubt.
But we are not the establishment who give crib sheets to commentators to promote Fedr as the GOAT even saying repeatedly that he has broken all the records.
 

clayqueen

Talk Tennis Guru
And he still set the record for the most crowd turnover yesterday.

He managed to get in one evening (42517) what Nadal has not been able to get all week in his own home turf. True indicator of who the greatest is in the minds and heart of the public
Has the Magic Box got a capacity of 40,000? Obviously, the people in SA are gullible and believe the hype.
 
During the period that Rafa couldn't play DC because of constant injuries, Spain got demoted.
He was allergic to indoor HC and carpet. There are 2 or 3 instances where he played a tournament that started the following day after DC. Davis Cup is pretty much like the rest of his career. All anyone has to do is skim through DC results to see. When facing weak clay teams, he let his teammates handle those and in turn he showed up for non-clay weak teams. They traded off until it was a good team where Nadal would play for sure on clay and dip out on non-clay.
 

clayqueen

Talk Tennis Guru
He was allergic to indoor HC and carpet. There are 2 or 3 instances where he played a tournament that started the following day after DC. Davis Cup is pretty much like the rest of his career. All anyone has to do is skim through DC results to see. When facing weak clay teams, he let his teammates handle those and in turn he showed up for non-clay weak teams. They traded off until it was a good team where Nadal would play for sure on clay and dip out on non-clay.
You should write books - fiction.
 

Nostradamus

Bionic Poster
Oddly enough we don't seem to talk about Davis Cup much when considering the greatest player of all time, but perhaps we ought to more.

More people are finding out Nadal's Davis Cup record is insane and means he probably the greatest ever player in the competition.

But his performance this week has been ridiculous. He's almost like a one-man team for Spain, willing them to victory in doubles and singles. This may be the best sustained effort I've seen from Nadal, and that is saying a lot.

Win or lose against Canada in the final tommorow, Nadal's epicness in this Davis Cup has been the highlight of the tournament and won't soon be forgotten.

NO, I think it proves RAFA is more of manipulative deceptive man. He pretends to be Injured for 6 month out 12 of the year but he can play crazy hard for 2 weeks and is healthy as an Ox. Don't say he does it in grand slams too,, that is totally different. Early rounds are fairly easy matches for rafa and you always have full day of rest in between matches.
 

clayqueen

Talk Tennis Guru
Rafa has such tremendous sense of duty something Fedr lacks. With Fedr, something has got to be in it for him otherwise he's not interested.
 

AnOctorokForDinner

Talk Tennis Guru
What's that got to do with Fedr being shoved down everybody's throat as the GOAT saying he's broken all the records which is a lie.

That means a negative sentiment against the (often hereditary) wealthy and powerful aka establishment is beautifully hypocritical on the part of a fan of a wealthy and powerful player.
 

octogon

Hall of Fame
He was allergic to indoor HC and carpet. There are 2 or 3 instances where he played a tournament that started the following day after DC. Davis Cup is pretty much like the rest of his career. All anyone has to do is skim through DC results to see. When facing weak clay teams, he let his teammates handle those and in turn he showed up for non-clay weak teams. They traded off until it was a good team where Nadal would play for sure on clay and dip out on non-clay.

Nadal just single-handedly won Spain the Davis Cup on an indoor hardcourt by winning 8 matches straight in a week.

Stay mad!!!!!
 

octogon

Hall of Fame
On his worst surface!


Yep, it's gonna be fun using this as ammunition against the "Nadal is a bad indoor hardcourt player because he hasn't won WTF" brigade!

He was named the MVP of a indoor hardcourt tournament with the Davis Cup.

Pretty complete player, this Nadal.
 
Yep, it's gonna be fun using this as ammunition against the "Nadal is a bad indoor hardcourt player because he hasn't won WTF" brigade!

He was named the MVP of a indoor hardcourt tournament with the Davis Cup.

Pretty complete player, this Nadal.

He is a complete player, certainly. On the other hand, being a complete player makes it worse, not better, that he has never won the WTF. ;)
 

octogon

Hall of Fame
He is a complete player, certainly. On the other hand, being a complete player makes it worse, not better, that he has never won the WTF. ;)


Yeah, sucks that complete players like Federer and Djokovic have never won Olympic Singles Gold, but I'm sure their fans and the rest of the world will survive
 

tennisaddict

Bionic Poster
He won a bigger and better event than WTF!

Rival fanbases can cry all they like if he never wins it, but the "he's not an excellent indoor hardcourt player" angle went out the window with this Davis Cup.

LOL.

YEC involves beating 5 top 8 players back to back in a single tournament.

What happened this week - Rafa beat journeymen and last i checked he did not face a single top 10 guy. It was a creditable performance nevertheless but a guy with a pedigree of 12 clay majors , this week is nothing.
 

Mckeon

New User
Oddly enough we don't seem to talk about Davis Cup much when considering the greatest player of all time, but perhaps we ought to more.

More people are finding out Nadal's Davis Cup record is insane and means he probably the greatest ever player in the competition.

But his performance this week has been ridiculous. He's almost like a one-man team for Spain, willing them to victory in doubles and singles. This may be the best sustained effort I've seen from Nadal, and that is saying a lot.

Win or lose against Canada in the final tommorow, Nadal's epicness in this Davis Cup has been the highlight of the tournament and won't soon be forgotten.
NAdal is already The Greatest. This year he has increased the gap Fromm djokovic. Margins are so fine as had Federer Won wimbledon and WTF at 38 then the debate would have been very interesting.

Way NAdal is playing he may go undefeated on Clay next year as ive a feeling before he retire soon he wants an undefeated clay season.
 

Mckeon

New User
LOL.

YEC involves beating 5 top 8 players back to back in a single tournament.

What happened this week - Rafa beat journeymen and last i checked he did not face a single top 10 guy. It was a creditable performance nevertheless but a guy with a pedigree of 12 clay majors , this week is nothing.
This week just cements Nadals legacy. This Pique Davis Cup has been brilliant and players loved it. Ask djokovic
 

Spider

Hall of Fame
Let's put it this way - any win hencheforth will only enhance his creds as the greatest of all time. The same applies for Roger & Novak too.

This was a great week. Rafa what a champion.
 
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