The way to play Nadal

[2slik]

Nalbandian showing how it should be done efficiently.

Nalby plays him very well.

1) Crush that second serve - one of the weakest in the Top 10
2) Play behind Nadal when he's running to cover the open court
3) Drop shot his 3 m behind the baseline ass
4) Anticipate cross-court forehand passing shot and come in against it

Madrid masters 2007: Nalbanidan defeat Nadal 6-1 6-2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DoyV7ELLSHk&feature=related

Paris masters 2007: Nalbandian defeat Nadal 6-4 6-0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCFdXTMuc64

Indian Wells 2009: Nadal defeat Nalbandian 3-6 7-6 6-0 (Nalbandian had 5 Match points and should have won the match 6-3 6-3)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qW858OWOoNc&feature=related

Miami 2010 Nadal defeat Nalbandian 6-7 6-2 6-2 (It was Nalbandian's 3rd match coming back from injury)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YLaujkzgFfk

http://www.tennisthoughts.com/2007/08/31/how-to-beat-rafael-nadal-on-clay/

Let’s check all 4 major parts of tennis and see what you need:

a) Physical
You need to be very fit of course, but that’s not the critical issue with top players.

I believe most top 200 players are fit enough to play at least 4 set match with Nadal without getting tiredness affect their movement and reactions.

Stamina will be of higher importance than speed since rallies will least a few shots on clay even with a serve & volleyer type of play.

b) Technical
The ability to handle high balls and balls with lot of top spin will come into play.

A player who has been playing low, fast sliced shots for years will not be able to adapt to Nadal’s top spins and will often mishit them.

An all court player (like Federer) is best suited to play Rafael Nadal since it can mix the shots (spin, slice, drop shot, flat, …) and prevent Nadal getting into the rhythm.

c) Tactical
There are 4 typical playing styles in tennis: baseline counter-puncher (Hewitt), aggressive baseliner (Agassi), serve & volleyer (Rafter) and all court player (Federer).

I think Nadal best handles aggressive baseliners since he forces them to go for too much. I don’t see this type of player succeed in the long term.

An even more patient counter-puncher than Nadal could force him to go for the shots and start making mistakes.

Someone like Guillermo Canas or David Nalbandian could break Nadal in his own game.

All court game seems best suited to beat Nadal and Federer may have lost to him many times, but his game is very dangerous to Nadal.

I think Federer would need to serve & volley a little more (especially with fast body serves) to get the edge.

There are no serve & volleyers that I see could hurt Nadal at the moment but a player like Edberg or Rafter in their prime was able to totally disrupt the rhythm and focus of a baseline player like Nadal.

I remember Stefan Edberg demolishing Sergi Bruguera’s game in Madrid final on clay in 1993. The final score was 6-3, 6-3, 6-2.

d) Mental
This is the key to winning against Nadal. 99% of players lose the match against him before they hit the first ball.

They don’t REALLY believe they can beat him on clay and thus don’t give 100% of effort. Then of course they really cannot win.

There is too much hype about Nadal and even top players play too much (in their minds) against Nadal’s name instead of playing the ball.

This creates his aura of invincibility and makes it easier for him to win.

This of course reinforces his status and now it’s even more difficult to beat him.

Someone will have to break the cycle and convince other players that Nadal is not a superhuman.

Similar to Canas and Volandri beating Federer this year…

There are at least 50 players in the world who are technically, tactically and physically ABLE to beat Nadal, but it’s their mind that lets them down.

Rick Sudborough Says:
May 1st, 2009 at 11:12 am

THE WAY TO BEAT NADAL. Please send money later.
Unless you are Borg or Vilas forget it, but you will need their strength and patience. Rafa is baseline lover. He loves to run. So run his ass.
THE KEY: Mix it up.
1. Hit a forcing shot on all short balls. PRESSURE.
2. Drop shot a lot, and hit a winner or a lob. Make his ass run. Make him feel it at the end of 5 sets. Make him cramp. Break him down. He wants to be tested. Test him.
3. Serve an volley to keep constant PRESSURE. Taking the net forces him to pass. Think Verdasco or Gonzalez as serve and vollyers.
4. Do not go for winners all the time because Nadal’s defense is superior.
This is why you have to take the net and drop shot. You have to take him out of his comfort zone. Most morons try to hit him off the court, ie , get hot and lucky. That will not work very often.
5. If you stay back against him you must have patience, but always come in on a short ball.
6. Once Nadal realizes you are smarter and have the tools, his head will slowly come unglued. This will take 3 consecutive wins. Good luck.
7. Tilden would tell you to hit slices back against his topspin. Just like table tennis.
8. The key is negating his topspin and endurance. If The Fed does the above I guarantee victory. RF tries to out hit Nadal. Nice try, but why suffer. His topspin will get you in the end.

 

[blue12]

Nalbandian showing how it should be done efficiently.

Nalby plays him very well.

1) Crush that second serve - one of the weakest in the Top 10
2) Play behind Nadal when he's running to cover the open court
3) Drop shot his 3 m behind the baseline ass
4) Anticipate cross-court forehand passing shot and come in against it

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCFdXTMuc64
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wz23EpwXdF0

Nalbandian is one of my favorites. Still like Nadal though.

 

[OddJack]

Wilander said it the best,

The key is control. You cant hit a passive shot against Nadal, you have to control the rallies. Take the ball early and hit it big and flat. Deep into the corners and then into the opening.

Easier said than done,

Delpo

Davy

David

Sod

 

[whoopinstick]

what about the way tsonga took it to him at the australian open 2008

 

[Netspirit]

Nalbandian showing how it should be done efficiently.

I have never seen Nadal getting Anal'd this hard. Bagels, breadsticks - it looks like he had no chances at all there.

 

[Changmaster]

Pretty much every player that has troubled Nadal has a strong 2-handed bh: Nalby, Djoker, Davy, Delpo, Murray, Sod

 

[downdaline]

Wilander said it the best,

The key is control. You cant hit a passive shot against Nadal, you have to control the rallies. Take the ball early and hit it big and flat. Deep into the corners and then into the opening.

Easier said than done,

Delpo

Davy

David

Sod

Quoted for Truth.

I think it also helps that Nalbandian's strokes are good at handling shoulder high balls, allowing him to create angles from those high bouncing Nadal shots. This allows him to take a shot that would normally neutralize a rally (Nadal does this against Fed) and immediately put Nadal in a defensive and out-of-court position.

 

[Tennis_Monk]

Wilander said it the best,

The key is control. You cant hit a passive shot against Nadal, you have to control the rallies. Take the ball early and hit it big and flat. Deep into the corners and then into the opening.

Easier said than done,

Delpo

Davy

David

Sod

Well, That kind of strategy, if executed well, would put even a Roger Federer, a Tennis_Monk on defensive!!

Seriously though, if anyone can execute that game plan to perfection, you can beat every player. It cant be done on a consistent basis.

 

[benasp]

what about the way tsonga took it to him at the australian open 2008

Yeah Tsonga beat him pretty badly. I don't know what was his gameplan but he made a lots of drop volley.

 

[matchmaker]

Hit deep, hit flat, hit hard, take away time from him and punish his short balls. Easier said than done though.

 

[OddJack]

Well, That kind of strategy, if executed well, would put even a Roger Federer, a Tennis_Monk on defensive!!

Seriously though, if anyone can execute that game plan to perfection, you can beat every player. It cant be done on a consistent basis.

Nobody is perfect, and they dont need to.

Almagro did it and had 5 match points.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eearOQ7YCco

 

[Tennis_Monk]

Nobody is perfect, and they dont need to.

Almagro did it and had 5 match points.

I am sure they need to play close to practical perfection. Almagro didnt do it!. If he did, we would be saying "Almagro won against Nadal" than "Almagro had 5 match points".

Davydenko did it this weekend!

 

[OddJack]

I am sure they need to play close to practical perfection. Almagro didnt do it!. If he did, we would be saying "Almagro won against Nadal" than "Almagro had 5 match points".

Davydenko did it this weekend!

What Almagro did was giving himself a chance.

Here we are talking about how to play against Nadal. You can have the right tactics and strategy and still lose, because of your mental or physical limitations.

 

[defrule]

The backhand is stuff of legends.

 

[TMF]

Also a player shouldn’t let rafa to waste time on his serve between point. Try to play at a fast pace service game b/c that takes away rafa’s comfort zone. If rafa can’t keep it up, then he should tell the umpire to ask rafa to play at the pace of the server.

 

[Tennis_Monk]

What Almagro did was giving himself a chance.

Here we are talking about how to play against Nadal. You can have the right tactics and strategy and still lose, because of your mental or physical limitations.

I disagree. A successful strategy or a tactic is something that work around or some how turns limitations to strength and "WIN" a match.

Whats the purpose of "how to play" if it isnt about winning?

 

[crackbillionair]

what about the way tsonga took it to him at the australian open 2008

Yes, another way. Attack, attack, attack, press him, always move forward, serve and return big, and get to net.

Short rallies do not serve Rafa.

 

[OddJack]

I disagree. A successful strategy or a tactic is something that work around or some how turns limitations to strength and "WIN" a match.

Whats the purpose of "how to play" if it isnt about winning?

You are talking about perfection again. The strategy is about winning, but there is no strategy that guarantee a win. Almagro's strategy got him to match points, but since he could not use the opportunity 5 times, he could not win. This does not undermine his strategy.

Let's say Almagro has mental limitations and weaknesses. Now tell me how you turned this weakness into strength.

Don't play with words.

 

[Tennis_Monk]

You are talking about perfection again. The strategy is about winning, but there is no strategy that guarantee a win. Almagro's strategy got him to match points, but since he could not use the opportunity 5 times, he could not win. This does not undermine his strategy.

Let's say Almagro has mental limitations and weaknesses. Now tell me how you turned this weakness into strength.

Don't play with words.

I am not. In my book, when i am playing tennis, a successful strategy is something that gets me a win, not something that gets me to match point (or within one game of winning or within one set of winning).

It is immaterial if Almagro got to match points. Apparently Nadal was able to come up with his own strategy to beat Almagro and basically proving that Almagro's strategy isnt that successful.

Most major players know how to control their negative emotions and boost postive spirit. That is what is called as "working around" one's limitations.There are a few techniques. I cant speak for how to turn them into strengths unless we know what is this particular "mental limitation". "mental limitation/weakness" is a vast subject.

 

[OddJack]

I am not. In my book, when i am playing tennis, a successful strategy is something that gets me a win, not something that gets me to match point (or within one game of winning or within one set of winning).

It is immaterial if Almagro got to match points. Apparently Nadal was able to come up with his own strategy to beat Almagro and basically proving that Almagro's strategy isnt that successful.

Most major players know how to control their negative emotions and boost postive spirit. That is what is called as "working around" one's limitations.There are a few techniques. I cant speak for how to turn them into strengths unless we know what is this particular "mental limitation". "mental limitation/weakness" is a vast subject.

Yeah, you are right. It's a vast subject.

Have a good day.

 

[svijk]

wow, finally the world knows....the secret is out....poor Nadal is in trouble now

 

[Ledigs]

Watching nadal-verdasco match from 2009. Seems like nadals footwork not quite up to last years. Preventing him from doing inside out forehand as well

 

[President of Serve/Volley]

Just play Serve and Volley... Oh wait, the courts are too slow.

 

[2slik]

Again another bump.

Can anybody tell me whether these tactics can be implemented on clay against Nadal.

If not, does it mean that Nadal's peak level on one particular surface is greater than Borg's and Federer's?

Nadal has never been beaten on his favourite surface while at 100% while Federer has (Only against Safin).

Does this mean that if Nadal wins the US Open he is the goat?

 

[2slik]

Why is nobody replying?

Discuss

BTW I don't like Nadal

 

[samprasvsfederer123]

the way to play nadal instead of aiming down the line aim for his kness its simple dammit!

 

[2slik]

http://tennis.about.com/b/2009/05/31/how-to-beat-nadal-at-roland-garros.htm

 

[cork_screw]

I think going for broke on his second serve is risky. An unforced error just turns that second serve into an ace. I think too many players use 2 points of the court rather than 4. I would love to see more drop shots even if nadal gets to them. It will keep him on edge as to not stay as far back from behind the court as he likes to do. But I do not think there's a simple answer to beating this guy. He can hit winners in a defensive position and his spin and consistency is above anyone else competing currently. I would love to see more drop shots though.

 

[2slik]

the way to play nadal instead of aiming down the line aim for his kness its simple dammit!

Coming from an illumni?

 

[samprasvsfederer123]

Coming from an illumni?

illuminati u mean?

wait so now ill be known as the anti illuminati freak or something dam you!
lol

 

[2slik]

http://www.tennisthoughts.com/2007/08/31/how-to-beat-rafael-nadal-on-clay/

Let’s check all 4 major parts of tennis and see what you need:

a) Physical
You need to be very fit of course, but that’s not the critical issue with top players.

I believe most top 200 players are fit enough to play at least 4 set match with Nadal without getting tiredness affect their movement and reactions.

Stamina will be of higher importance than speed since rallies will least a few shots on clay even with a serve & volleyer type of play.

b) Technical
The ability to handle high balls and balls with lot of top spin will come into play.

A player who has been playing low, fast sliced shots for years will not be able to adapt to Nadal’s top spins and will often mishit them.

An all court player (like Federer) is best suited to play Rafael Nadal since it can mix the shots (spin, slice, drop shot, flat, …) and prevent Nadal getting into the rhythm.

c) Tactical
There are 4 typical playing styles in tennis: baseline counter-puncher (Hewitt), aggressive baseliner (Agassi), serve & volleyer (Rafter) and all court player (Federer).

I think Nadal best handles aggressive baseliners since he forces them to go for too much. I don’t see this type of player succeed in the long term.

An even more patient counter-puncher than Nadal could force him to go for the shots and start making mistakes.

Someone like Guillermo Canas or David Nalbandian could break Nadal in his own game.

All court game seems best suited to beat Nadal and Federer may have lost to him many times, but his game is very dangerous to Nadal.

I think Federer would need to serve & volley a little more (especially with fast body serves) to get the edge.

There are no serve & volleyers that I see could hurt Nadal at the moment but a player like Edberg or Rafter in their prime was able to totally disrupt the rhythm and focus of a baseline player like Nadal.

I remember Stefan Edberg demolishing Sergi Bruguera’s game in Madrid final on clay in 1993. The final score was 6-3, 6-3, 6-2.

d) Mental
This is the key to winning against Nadal. 99% of players lose the match against him before they hit the first ball.

They don’t REALLY believe they can beat him on clay and thus don’t give 100% of effort. Then of course they really cannot win.

There is too much hype about Nadal and even top players play too much (in their minds) against Nadal’s name instead of playing the ball.

This creates his aura of invincibility and makes it easier for him to win.

This of course reinforces his status and now it’s even more difficult to beat him.

Someone will have to break the cycle and convince other players that Nadal is not a superhuman.

Similar to Canas and Volandri beating Federer this year…

There are at least 50 players in the world who are technically, tactically and physically ABLE to beat Nadal, but it’s their mind that lets them down.

Rick Sudborough Says:
May 1st, 2009 at 11:12 am

THE WAY TO BEAT NADAL. Please send money later.
Unless you are Borg or Vilas forget it, but you will need their strength and patience. Rafa is baseline lover. He loves to run. So run his ass.
THE KEY: Mix it up.
1. Hit a forcing shot on all short balls. PRESSURE.
2. Drop shot a lot, and hit a winner or a lob. Make his ass run. Make him feel it at the end of 5 sets. Make him cramp. Break him down. He wants to be tested. Test him.
3. Serve an volley to keep constant PRESSURE. Taking the net forces him to pass. Think Verdasco or Gonzalez as serve and vollyers.
4. Do not go for winners all the time because Nadal’s defense is superior.
This is why you have to take the net and drop shot. You have to take him out of his comfort zone. Most morons try to hit him off the court, ie , get hot and lucky. That will not work very often.
5. If you stay back against him you must have patience, but always come in on a short ball.
6. Once Nadal realizes you are smarter and have the tools, his head will slowly come unglued. This will take 3 consecutive wins. Good luck.
7. Tilden would tell you to hit slices back against his topspin. Just like table tennis.
8. The key is negating his topspin and endurance. If The Fed does the above I guarantee victory. RF tries to out hit Nadal. Nice try, but why suffer. His topspin will get you in the end.

 

[decades]

If only David would stop eating so much and work out once in a while, he would be around to play Nadal in tournaments. Alas, David is nowhere to be found.

 

[2slik]

If only David would stop eating so much and work out once in a while, he would be around to play Nadal in tournaments. Alas, David is nowhere to be found.

I swear if Nalbandian was fit enough and motivated enough, Nadal would have 5 less Grand Slams. He is Nadal's worst ever match up with Djokovic 2nd