wilander: Federer Can't Beat Rafa

The Gorilla

Banned
hree-time French Open champion Mats Wilander told Eurosport that world number one Roger Federer cannot beat Rafael Nadal on clay and that the Spaniard should retain his Monte Carlo title for a third-straight year.

"Nadal hasn't really lost a claycourt match since I can't remember when, so nobody can beat Rafael Nadal on clay," the two-time Monte Carlo winner Wilander said.

"Federer does not have the good combination style game to play against Nadal, he does not suit him at all in fact. And you can see it much easier on clay that it's just a bad combination for Roger Federer."

Nadal, who has now won 63 consecutive matches on the surface after easing past Argentine Juan Ignacio Chela on Wednesday, is the twice-defending champion at the Monte Carlo Masters and the French Open.

The number two ranked Spaniard has beaten Switzerland's Federer six times and lost to him three times, including defeats in their previous two matches in last year's Wimbledon final and Masters Cup semi-final.

"Nadal is left-handed he is able to find Federer's backhand all the time in the serve and it's not a good mix," Wilander said.

"Apart from the fact, Rafael Nadal is one of those young guys who really is not afraid of anybody, it doesn't matter if his name is Roger Federer and he has won 10 majors or what, Nadal is just not afraid."

Despite his belief that Federer cannot beat the 20-year-old Mallorcan on clay, Sweden's Wilander says that the Swiss star is the favourite to complete his Grand Slam collection at Roland Garros this year, just so long as he doesn't face Nadal.

"I think on paper he might be the favourite actually, because I think he will be really focused on winning Roland Garros," Wilander said.

"He knows time is running out to win Roland Garros. He is not going to win it three times and I think he knows that. He's going to win it once, maybe twice, and I think this is the year to do it."

The 42-year-old Wilander, who like Nadal won his first French Open as a teenager, says that if Federer has to face a rematch of last year's final against Nadal, the Swiss star will fail.

"Is Rafael Nadal able to come through the draw again after winning clay court tournament after clay court tournament? That's the problem for Roger Federer," he said.

"If Nadal does not go through, Federer will win the French Open."


http://www.eurosport.com/tennis/sport_sto1154342.shtml
 

The Ripper

Semi-Pro
Rafa is playing better than ever. I think Roger will really have his hands full if they both end up in the final. I think Roger's only chance is to serve and volley whenever he can and keep Rafa from grinding it out at the baseline. My impression is that when Roger gets in trouble or is nervous, he reverts to the baseline and won't come forward, which suits Rafa just fine! I hope Coach Roche has been able to make enough of an impression that Roger will come forward and play the net!
 

krprunitennis2

Professional
hree-time French Open champion Mats Wilander told Eurosport that world number one Roger Federer cannot beat Rafael Nadal on clay and that the Spaniard should retain his Monte Carlo title for a third-straight year.

"Nadal hasn't really lost a claycourt match since I can't remember when, so nobody can beat Rafael Nadal on clay," the two-time Monte Carlo winner Wilander said.

"Federer does not have the good combination style game to play against Nadal, he does not suit him at all in fact. And you can see it much easier on clay that it's just a bad combination for Roger Federer."

Nadal, who has now won 63 consecutive matches on the surface after easing past Argentine Juan Ignacio Chela on Wednesday, is the twice-defending champion at the Monte Carlo Masters and the French Open.

The number two ranked Spaniard has beaten Switzerland's Federer six times and lost to him three times, including defeats in their previous two matches in last year's Wimbledon final and Masters Cup semi-final.

"Nadal is left-handed he is able to find Federer's backhand all the time in the serve and it's not a good mix," Wilander said.

"Apart from the fact, Rafael Nadal is one of those young guys who really is not afraid of anybody, it doesn't matter if his name is Roger Federer and he has won 10 majors or what, Nadal is just not afraid."

Despite his belief that Federer cannot beat the 20-year-old Mallorcan on clay, Sweden's Wilander says that the Swiss star is the favourite to complete his Grand Slam collection at Roland Garros this year, just so long as he doesn't face Nadal.

"I think on paper he might be the favourite actually, because I think he will be really focused on winning Roland Garros," Wilander said.

"He knows time is running out to win Roland Garros. He is not going to win it three times and I think he knows that. He's going to win it once, maybe twice, and I think this is the year to do it."

The 42-year-old Wilander, who like Nadal won his first French Open as a teenager, says that if Federer has to face a rematch of last year's final against Nadal, the Swiss star will fail.

"Is Rafael Nadal able to come through the draw again after winning clay court tournament after clay court tournament? That's the problem for Roger Federer," he said.

"If Nadal does not go through, Federer will win the French Open."


http://www.eurosport.com/tennis/sport_sto1154342.shtml

o_O I really don't get it. I THINK that the last time on the French Open, Nadal and Federer were at 5 sets! :confused: If Federer can take a set, -and he took two- then he should have a big chance against Nadal.
 

Mick

Legend
i believe on clay Federer is not as good as Nadal but I disagree with Wilander's assertion that Federer cannot beat Nadal on clay. Upsets do happen in tennis. It's more likely that Nadal would win if the two were to play each other but it's not impossible for Federer to pull off a win on clay.
 

jetlee2k

Banned
What is up with Matt Wilander? He seems to have so many negative things about Roger. At one time, Roger said he's his good friend and suddently he just turned around and cross the border.

Rome Final last year, Federer lost in 5th but he had the match under his belt. I believe the Monte Carlo either. Roger got all the weapons against Nadal just his mental focus and patience is not as strong as Nadal. He got to be more patience.
 

MasterTS

Professional
Great.. wilander telling the obvious.. just shows it doesnt take a rocket scientst to make a tennis prediction.
 
Great.. wilander telling the obvious.. just shows it doesnt take a rocket scientst to make a tennis prediction.

So what does that say about all of your incorrect predictions? We all know you're not a rocket scientist, but how low is your IQ, exactly?
 

SoBad

G.O.A.T.
As lucky as he was to make it through first round, Fed is toast now, cause Juan's gonna cook him...;)
 

SoBad

G.O.A.T.
you also said he wont make it far in monte carlo, hes damn far now...

As I had mentioned in my previous post, he has so far been incredibly lucky in this tournament. Unfortunately for him, luck is not enough to compete against top players on a consistent basis. He should retire.
 
As I had mentioned in my previous post, he has so far been incredibly lucky in this tournament. Unfortunately for him, luck is not enough to compete against top players on a consistent basis. He should retire.

totally, he is so lucky he won 10 grandslams and will be winning more. yes!

by luck i mean talent, by talent i mean goat, by goat i mean legend, by legend i mean federer.
 
So many people say so many things...The fact that Federer has consistently done well on his weakest surface speaks volumes about the well-rounded game he has. To be the best player on HC and Grass, and the second best player on Clay says a lot about his game. It wouldn't suprise me in the least if Federer makes the finals of all the clay events (again), and loses to Nadal in every final (again). This would make the h2h 9-3, and the Fed haters/Nadal trolls would go on and on and on about how Nadal owns Fed, etc., yet the fact that Nadal has made so few HC finals lately (one in the last year, to be exact) really skews the h2h numbers.
 
i want nadal to be in the final of wimby again, lets see if he can beat there, and in the final in the uso or ao, its just that, he cant even make it past the semis there, but big props to nadal, he showed everyone how untalented roddick is, im a big fan of nadal and federer, but ive been a roger supporter since he beat sampras in wimby.
 

SoBad

G.O.A.T.
Nadal owns Fed, but that's irrelevant, since Fed is not gonna make it deep enough in the draw this year to face Nadal in any of the tournaments.
 
nadal doesnt own fed, they are RIVALS, fed owns roddick, nadal owns roddick, thats ownage, nobody owns nadal or fed, those two are just the most talented players, playing each other to the max saying "i am", nothing mroe, nothing less, one of em is bound to lose, one of isnt bound to wi all the time.
 
Nadal owns Fed, but that's irrelevant, since Fed is not gonna make it deep enough in the draw this year to face Nadal in any of the tournaments.

Nadal owns Fed... Wow? You posts are so immature and ******** that I don't know why I even bother to read them. Do you actually think before you say something, or do you just base everything you say off of opinion?

Sure, Nadal has beaten Fed a lot, but tell me if he could consistently beat Fed or beat him at all on ANY surface other than clay?
 

tricky

Hall of Fame
I think the unspoken point that Wilander is making is that Federer can't beat Nadal because he doesn't use a 2-handed BH. Federer's 1-handed BH can be a glorious weapon, but what he really needs is a reliable stroke that he can pogo back Nadal's topspin FH, so that Federer can set up his FH shot. However Federer likes to vary spin, pace and angle on his BH side, his shots still go against the best defensive FH in the game. And on clay, slicing every shot just isn't going to work either. If he had a top-20 player 2-hander, he could just trade shots all day until an opportunity arose for an inside-out FH.

I don't completely disagree with that. When you think about it, basically tennis history now hinges on one single stroke: Fed's topspin BH.
 

rjkardo

Rookie
What is up with Matt Wilander? He seems to have so many negative things about Roger. At one time, Roger said he's his good friend and suddently he just turned around and cross the border.

Rome Final last year, Federer lost in 5th but he had the match under his belt. I believe the Monte Carlo either. Roger got all the weapons against Nadal just his mental focus and patience is not as strong as Nadal. He got to be more patience.

I don't think Wilander is knocking Federer. Nadal is in great form, is happy to be back on clay and has not lost on the surface in what, 65 matches?
Saying that Federer will have a tough time, if at all, to beat Nadal is not exactly a shocking, hurtful comment.

Wilander is sharp, insightful and honest.
I find his comments dead-on, even though I do hope Federer wins the French.

Rod
 

jelle v

Hall of Fame
I agree with Wilander, that Nadal's style of play doesn't suit Federer at all, but I disagree with him if he says that Roger has no chance. Federer has the weapons to beat Nadal. Coming to the net, his big forehand, his good serve, his backhand that got way more consistent.

The only thing I suspect, is that Rafael has a big mental advantage on court. Roger seems to lack a little self belief when he plays Nadal. I think that's the biggest problem when he plays Nadal, so imo it is more a mental problem than a tenniswise problem that Federer has a hard time against Nadal.
 

kimizz

Rookie
If wilander says Fed cant beat Nadal it must mean Nadal has really impressed him. Wilander is a major fan for Federer so no jealousness there...Rafa is damn good.
 

harrpau7

Rookie
nadal doesnt own fed, they are RIVALS, fed owns roddick, nadal owns roddick, thats ownage, nobody owns nadal or fed, those two are just the most talented players, playing each other to the max saying "i am", nothing more, nothing less, one of em is bound to lose, one of isnt bound to win all the time.

How in the hell can you say say that Nadal owns Roddick (2-1 head to head) if he doesn't own Federer (6-3 head to head, 7-3 after tomorrow??)
 

Mick

Legend
I like to hear what Wilander has to say if Federer beat the odd and managed to defeat Nadal tomorrow.
 

holy_angel

New User
i think fed has warmed up properly to face nadal....i would say ferrero shld never be treated as any pushover as he was king of clay b4 nadal came in.....

i cant wait to see who wins tmr
 

jhhachamp

Hall of Fame
nadal doesnt own fed, they are RIVALS, fed owns roddick, nadal owns roddick, thats ownage, nobody owns nadal or fed, those two are just the most talented players, playing each other to the max saying "i am", nothing mroe, nothing less, one of em is bound to lose, one of isnt bound to wi all the time.

Isn't the Nadal Roddick head to head 2-1? One easy victory does not mean that he owns him. If he wins the next 5 matches against Roddick, then I would say he owns him.
 

ACE of Hearts

Bionic Poster
I really think that i am so close excuse needs to go away from Roger.He needs to come up big tomorrow.He needs to tough it out.
 

TENNIS_99

Semi-Pro
Nadal is a mighty Wilander. Wilander might have some points, and it's interesting to note that most of the commentators also think Nadal has the upper hand. but I think in Wliander's mind his is bias that heavy topspin baseliners have the avantage on clay. He proved that in his era without the existence of Federer.

Federer can not afford to lose tomorrow - people will jump on to challenge his GOAT after his two losses to Canal. I think this is going to motivate him to give 110%.
 

fastdunn

Legend
I think the unspoken point that Wilander is making is that Federer can't beat Nadal because he doesn't use a 2-handed BH. Federer's 1-handed BH can be a glorious weapon, but what he really needs is a reliable stroke that he can pogo back Nadal's topspin FH, so that Federer can set up his FH shot. However Federer likes to vary spin, pace and angle on his BH side, his shots still go against the best defensive FH in the game. And on clay, slicing every shot just isn't going to work either. If he had a top-20 player 2-hander, he could just trade shots all day until an opportunity arose for an inside-out FH.

I don't completely disagree with that. When you think about it, basically tennis history now hinges on one single stroke: Fed's topspin BH.

yeah, this is innate limitation of 1 hander. not that 2 hander is better
than 1 hander. 1 hander's other benefit is the synergy with other part of
game like attacking all court game.

but the thing is when federer hovers around net unusually frequent,
it usually means things are not really working well from baseline against nadal. often he comes out as a loser.

when things are going well against nadal from baseline on grass or fast
hard courts, he doesn't really frequent net much except a few times
as variety. maybe he needs more proactive net games against nadal
on clay...

what i like about wilander's comment is that he actually seems to
push federer to improve against nadal. he also seems to push
other players to improve against federer
 

Andres

G.O.A.T.
i think fed has warmed up properly to face nadal....i would say ferrero shld never be treated as any pushover as he was king of clay b4 nadal came in.....
Before Coria came in, and then, Coria was the king of clay until Nadal came in
 
Actually Fed's BH is sublime on all surfaces but clay. I don't know why he should try to tweak it specifically for clay. The key thing for Federer is to remain patient and work the point so he can get to net as often as possible, and Nadal WILL hit some unforced errors. Just have to be patient.
 

Aykhan Mammadov

Hall of Fame
This year Monte-Carlo is some-kind preparation for the RG. I'm not sure it will be very nervous. But RG this year will be very nervous NOW for both players. If last years it was nervous for Fed only because he was No 1, then now it will be very nervous for Nadal also - because he is now recognised No 1 on the clay. So the man who is tougher psychologically will win.
 
L

laurie

Guest
This year Monte-Carlo is some-kind preparation for the RG. I'm not sure it will be very nervous. But RG this year will be very nervous NOW for both players. If last years it was nervous for Fed only because he was No 1, then now it will be very nervous for Nadal also - because he is now recognised No 1 on the clay. So the man who is tougher psychologically will win.

As the Monte Carlo final is best of 3 sets tomorrow I don't think it will tell us too much. Federer has a great chance to win tomorrow by trying to impose his will and getting off to a quick start and maintain his advantage.

However, because of that I fully expect Nadal to win if they play in Paris - I don't feel Federer can beat Nadal in best of 5 sets because he cannot match Nadal's will to run around for 5 hrs to win. Of course they did just that in Rome last year and he still lost, I can't see Federer staying out there for 5 hrs again.

I actually think its better for Nadal to lose at some point so he can go into Roland Garros without the huge burden of a winning streak. (but maybe not tomorrow to Federer).
 

kimizz

Rookie
btw, dont listen to that hasbeen wilander, who is he anyways? yeah i thought so, hes jsut pissed nobody gives a hoot n toot about him.

I allready said this once but I should have made a direct response to you HMTS. Most of the interviews Mats gives are basically direct butt licking for Federer,hes really a big fan for roger, so now that he sayd Nadal is too much for Fed means that Rafa really impressed Wilander.

But anyways Ive seen from your previous posts that you are one of these Federer fans who lose all logic when Roger is mentioned but not praised. If you had read the interview close enough you had seen that it wasnt very negative on Federer.HE actually sayd Roger is favorite for RG. Cmon get it in your head, Fed is one player amongst others. He isnt god.

To me you seem like a moron. Opening your mouth in every thread that talks negatively on federer. Pathetic!
 

Mick

Legend
At least this time Rafa is the favorite. Ever since the final of the Roland Garros last year, Federer has always been the favorite everytime he met Rafa in a tournament.
 
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