Nadals potential?

[kimizz]

What you guys think of Nadals potential in the future? I mean hes only 20 years old and he has 2 slams at RGarros, one final spot at Wimbledon and 17 titles or something like that. I know clay is where he has gained most of his glory but I think that the fact that hes so good at clay kind of clouds judgment on other surfaces. Hes still learning them...Can he master Hard surfaces and propably become number one in the world?

 

[OrangeOne]

What you guys think of Nadals potential in the future? I mean hes only 20 years old and he has 2 slams at RGarros, one final spot at Wimbledon and 17 titles or something like that. I know clay is where he has gained most of his glory but I think that the fact that hes so good at clay kind of clouds judgment on other surfaces. Hes still learning them...Can he master Hard surfaces and propably become number one in the world?

No. I also think he's already been through the top of his 'potential' curve, and is not on the way down. Strange to say, but it's the way I see it. Other players have 'figured him out' now, he'd have to change too much to reinvent in my opinion....

 

[ATXtennisaddict]

There was also one guy who had similar stats to Nadal. Lleyton Hewitt.

 

[drakulie]

I think he has room for improvement and has already shown he has the ability to improve. Just look at his serve. It has gotten much better, and his mph has increased over the last two years. This is one of the reasons I think he did well at wimbledon last year.

He definitely needs to improve on finishing points quicker though. That grind it out mentality burns out players way too quickly.

But I don't see why he wouldn't be a top contender for the next few years.

 

[kimizz]

So far the stats are great...future is still open. I think this years clay season will be really intresting. Can Nadal keep up with hes past succes? Id say that Nadal can keep up hes performance. The question is has the others "figured him out" like Orangeone says. Meaning that even if Rafa plays like in the past seasons he still loses. But has hes game ever been a secret? Didnt they figure Nadal out allready at 2005? Huge topspin at clay bounce high-->problem to others(especially Feds backhand LOL).

The biggest problem in hard surfaces is the amount of topspin that eats the depth of hes forehand. That imo is something he can improve a lot.

We´ve seen that hes mental toughness is enough for rank 1 spot. But does he have the skills?

 

[holera]

i really don't see him getting to #1. federer is still improving, and nadal hasn't won a tourney since RG.
big hitters like blake, gonzo, berdych, johansson kill him. and i think other players are learning to play against him.

maybe the biggest thing is that he's a very physical, grinding clay-courter. those types tend to not last long. i think that's why he's injured so often.

 

[4brotherdrive]

Well, if injuries dont play a role, then he definitley has potential. The problem with the big hitters is that they would never beat him on clay, and clay is the most common type of surface for a tournament. He is quickly getting better on hardcourts, his serve is getting better, he is standing closer to the baseline to rally (something he needs to learn to do on returns), he has improved volleys, and has a flatter aproach shot. Even if he does lose this seasons RG I think it will be since he is somewhere in transition, 2008 will be the year that will show wether Nadal is really a threat anymore.

 

[NamRanger]

Poor forehand technique and excessive amounts of movement finally catches up to Nadal. He's a shotmaker defintely, but he has no longevity ahead of him.

 

[TennezSport]

Big Question

I think Rafa is a very talented, but one dimentional player. He has the physical build to pull it off especially on clay (which his game is totally made for). However, the same game that makes him dominate on clay severly hampers his hard court game. He does not have the time to take those big swings on hard court, which is why a lot of his forehands land short.

The other clay court problem is the soccer attitude of running everything down. This is the main reason why he gets so many injuries on hard courts. Hard courts do not cushion the body like clay and Rafa is not really light on his feet.

He has improved his serve speed, but he is not making the high percentage of first or second serves. He has improved his backhand, but makes more errors. Can Rafa make all of the necessary changes to his clay court game and maintain his clay court dominance, while gaining in his hard court game??? That is a big demand to complete while trying to keep the #2 ranking.

Add to that, he will have to face playes like Blake, Berdych, Youzny, Murray and a number of other upcoming players who have figured him out and looking to take his scalp. All which will make it harder for Rafa to maintain his level and health on hard and clay courts.

Only time will tell now.

TennezSport

 

[The Gorilla]

I think Rafa is a very talented, but one dimentional player. He has the physical build to pull it off especially on clay (which his game is totally made for). However, the same game that makes him dominate on clay severly hampers his hard court game. He does not have the time to take those big swings on hard court, which is why a lot of his forehands land short.

The other clay court problem is the soccer attitude of running everything down. This is the main reason why he gets so many injuries on hard courts. Hard courts do not cushion the body like clay and Rafa is not really light on his feet.

He has improved his serve speed, but he is not making the high percentage of first or second serves. He has improved his backhand, but makes more errors. Can Rafa make all of the necessary changes to his clay court game and maintain his clay court dominance, while gaining in his hard court game??? That is a big demand to complete while trying to keep the #2 ranking.

Add to that, he will have to face playes like Blake, Berdych, Youzny, Murray and a number of other upcoming players who have figured him out and looking to take his scalp. All which will make it harder for Rafa to maintain his level and health on hard and clay courts.

Only time will tell now.

TennezSport

I have personally never seen Nadal get a lower first serve percentage than 68%.You are misinformed and are making up statistics to back up your assumptions.

 

[Mick]

Can he master Hard surfaces and propably become number one in the world?

it would be quite a feat to dethrone Federer.
Furthermore, Nadal's record on hard courts is not so great. Players like James Blake have no problem beating him there.

 

[danb]

What you guys think of Nadals potential in the future? I mean hes only 20 years old and he has 2 slams at RGarros, one final spot at Wimbledon and 17 titles or something like that. I know clay is where he has gained most of his glory but I think that the fact that hes so good at clay kind of clouds judgment on other surfaces. Hes still learning them...Can he master Hard surfaces and propably become number one in the world?

Nadal is far from done. I don't even think his injuries are all real. I bet he faked the injury for Marseille just to work and adjust his game for hard courts. C'mon guys, he is no 2 for a reason... What I like at him is that he is not afraid of Roger. I would hate to see Nadal loosing #2 spot (other than maybe to Andy Murray or to become #1 – the last one is unlikely in the next few months).
Can he become #1? He’s got the heart and mindset but the game is not that close…

 

[rafan]

Nadal

Well even if he never truly manages to master the hard surface it would be great to see him back again in Wimbledon at the finals - many people said he had an easy time of it but I well remember him fighting and really working for his place in the final - really exciting stuff!!

 

[TennezSport]

See 4 Yourself

I have personally never seen Nadal get a lower first serve percentage than 68%.You are misinformed and are making up statistics to back up your assumptions.

You are more than welcome to do the same research that I did. Look at all of the match stats that Rafa played since Wimbledon and you will find the same answer that I and several others have. Look at the DF stats while you are at it.

TennezSport

 

[Baghdatis72]

I think Nadal has been overshadowed by the fact that Federer is number 1 and he won't be leaving the spot for the following years unless something unusual happens. It's frustrating for a player to try his best and be number 2 and know that he will have to climb a mountain to reach number 1 any time soon. If we add the fact that the hard hitters learned how to destroy him on the hard courts then it's a hard road for Nadal and that could break him mentally in this years clay season.

 

[tennishead93]

nadal will someday win wmbledon because of his grind on any surface

 

[krprunitennis2]

I think he has room for improvement and has already shown he has the ability to improve. Just look at his serve. It has gotten much better, and his mph has increased over the last two years. This is one of the reasons I think he did well at wimbledon last year.

He definitely needs to improve on finishing points quicker though. That grind it out mentality burns out players way too quickly.

But I don't see why he wouldn't be a top contender for the next few years.

I wonder if he would've won Wimbledon if he hit through the ball instead of going for more spin. I saw some vids of him and it looked like he was finishing over his shoulder, not head. XD I wonder how fast his shots would be.

 

[jktennis59]

I think Rafa is a very talented, but one dimentional player. He has the physical build to pull it off especially on clay (which his game is totally made for). However, the same game that makes him dominate on clay severly hampers his hard court game. He does not have the time to take those big swings on hard court, which is why a lot of his forehands land short.

The other clay court problem is the soccer attitude of running everything down. This is the main reason why he gets so many injuries on hard courts. Hard courts do not cushion the body like clay and Rafa is not really light on his feet.

He has improved his serve speed, but he is not making the high percentage of first or second serves. He has improved his backhand, but makes more errors. Can Rafa make all of the necessary changes to his clay court game and maintain his clay court dominance, while gaining in his hard court game??? That is a big demand to complete while trying to keep the #2 ranking.

Add to that, he will have to face playes like Blake, Berdych, Youzny, Murray and a number of other upcoming players who have figured him out and looking to take his scalp. All which will make it harder for Rafa to maintain his level and health on hard and clay courts.

Only time will tell now.

TennezSport

Nadal was an one dimentional player. If you have seen his hardcourt matches last year you could see him hitting flatter and deeper strokes and playing near the baseline.
Right now he's having hard times against hard hitter players (like you mentioned above) but I think this is the toll he have to pay to improve his hardcourt game.
His matches against Agassi and Federer in Wimbledon were great.
The advantage with Nadal is that he can still improve some aspects of his game like serving, volley and hitting on the rise.
He's only 20 y/o.

 

[tricky]

If you have seen his hardcourt matches last year you could see him hitting flatter and deeper strokes and playing near the baseline.

Yup, his stroke style enables him to hit flat shots when he wants to. If he could step into his shot at all, man he could really pound those balls too.

In any case, his 2H BH stroke is much flatter as a whole. He could work on developing better DTL shots with it.

He could work on his return game and further work on his net game to close out points on fast courts. He could develop his service game. There's a lot of things Nadal could work on.

 

[TennezSport]

Let me clarify.......

Nadal was an one dimentional player. If you have seen his hardcourt matches last year you could see him hitting flatter and deeper strokes and playing near the baseline.
Right now he's having hard times against hard hitter players (like you mentioned above) but I think this is the toll he have to pay to improve his hardcourt game.
His matches against Agassi and Federer in Wimbledon were great.
The advantage with Nadal is that he can still improve some aspects of his game like serving, volley and hitting on the rise.
He's only 20 y/o.

I never stated that Nadal couldn't make those changes to his game. My question is whether he could make those changes, stay healthy and compete against other upcoming talents that are already much better than him on fast courts. All while trying to maintain his clay court prowess.

That is a big mountain to climb and as I always say, only time will tell. BTW, until Rafa starts winning more fast court events, he is STILL a one dimentional player.

TennezSport

 

[mileslong]

nadal will someday win wmbledon because of his grind on any surface

nadal win never win wimbledon, he had the easiest draw in history and was like one point away from being eliminated in the first round. he never had a chance against federer and wouldnt have any chance against a number of other players either.

he is still just a one trick pony and has already reached his peak. his style of play burns you out quickly.

 

[holera]

nadal win never win wimbledon, he had the easiest draw in history and was like one point away from being eliminated in the first round. he never had a chance against federer and wouldnt have any chance against a number of other players either.

he is still just a one trick pony and has already reached his peak. his style of play burns you out quickly.

his draw was very weak, but what about renshaw? he only had to play 1 match to win!

 

[Nadal_Freak]

I think Nadal plays really well on grass. I think he might win one before his career his over. As for Nadal's style of game I think he will last now that he is not playing as many tournaments as he used to. He is pacing himself now.

 

[avmoghe]

Assuming his body holds up, I see no reason for him not to stay a top contender. While he'll never be as dominant as Federer, he already has a hall of fame career which can only improve.

 

[OrangeOne]

I think Nadal plays really well on grass. I think he might win one before his career his over. As for Nadal's style of game I think he will last now that he is not playing as many tournaments as he used to. He is pacing himself now.

It's been my understanding that almost every tournament he's withdrawn from in the last 6months has been due to minor injury / pain that could lead to an injury. I could be mistaken, but if this is correct, it doesn't seem he is pacing himself as much as breaking down....

(NB. Even on exiting the AO, he quoted a thigh injury, which was after pulling out of Sydney, after pulling out of the first tourny of the year before that, etc).

 

[kimizz]

nadal win never win wimbledon, he had the easiest draw in history and was like one point away from being eliminated in the first round. he never had a chance against federer and wouldnt have any chance against a number of other players either.

he is still just a one trick pony and has already reached his peak. his style of play burns you out quickly.

Easy to get into wimbledon final?? You have no idea what your talking about...a federer fan with too much emotion involved perhaps? No matter what the draw is if you get into a final at GS its a great achievment. And I wouldnt say that the draw was easy either...you just dont know what your talking about!!

It is true that Nadals style of playing might be a bit harsh but I think he can control that too...sometimes he might retire from tournaments as a precautionary measure keeping an eye for the big tournaments(AO this year).

This weeks dubai is pretty intresting. The first time I started wondering bout Nadals potential was one year ago when Rafa beated Fed at hard surface at Dubai. All eyes on Marcos-Nadal match