Young or Older Rafa?

Favoritedal?

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    42
How can anyone select the choking, slow, less physical, declining Nadal.

All the people that selected Oldal don’t appreciate the physicality and mental toughness he brought to the sport.
 
I'd say 2008-2013 was when we got his full package all together. He was a beast on all surfaces, served well, defended great, hit punishing ground stokes, was the toughest player mentally, and barely made any errors. In his earlier years, his game was too defensive (loopy balls/weak serve) allowing zoning players to blow him off the court under quicker conditions but now he's too slow and can't outlast players as much (relatively speaking).
 
Rafa in any form is a treat!

The young buck was feisty and undeniably a breath of fresh air.
Didn't have too much expectation though ...what with his frequent injuries and the resulting din from all "experts" that he was doomed to have a short career.

Now with each stupendous shot/match he plays there is unadulterated joy!

So, To answer your question, the "older" version gets the nod just for the fact that he rubs egg on the face of the naysayers, coming up with jaw dropping performances against all odds!
 
BackhandDTL said:
How can anyone select the choking, slow, less physical, declining Nadal.

All the people that selected Oldal don’t appreciate the physicality and mental toughness he brought to the sport.
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LOL the disrespect of older Nadal. Dude is so fn entertaining to watch.

 
Backspin1183 said:
Fed devotee, why are you so obsessed with Nadal? :laughing:
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Get me! :p lol

glove-freddy-krueger.jpg
 
I've always preferred 2005dal at least on clay for two reasons. I've always looked upon 2000s clay with much nostalgia owing to the prominent players I watched growing up and the diversity they brought to the surface. Clay wasn't some one-dimensional workmen's surface many especially a certain Kermit would like to believe now. There were aggressive baseliners in Kuerten and Moya, people with good variety and touch like Coria, hard-hitting anomalies like Soderling and spin meisters like Andreev and Nadal. Youngdal belonged to this period of nostalgia and the memory of his 2000s look has stuck with me. Ever felt your perception of a person's appearance remained stuck at a point in time in which you shared the most memories with him/her? Your childhood friend still looking like a 10 year-old in your mind despite him being a 40 year old fatty now? That's how I see Nadal now.

Second has to do with my personal preferences regarding Nadal. Reverse forehand was effective but ugly AF. 2005 Cooldal still used the normal finish frequently and also had the results to display it on a grander stage compared to say, 2004. 2005 claydal also had a great balance between defence and attack. Methinks 2006-2008dal tailored his game too much around consistency and lost some of his killer instinct in terms of going for winners or desperation winners. Older more aggressivedal sure was more aggressive but lost some of that passing shot magic especially off the backhand. 2005dal was scary when you think of the arsenal he had -- he could hit hard, he could run like a bunny and pass you left and right, hit drop shots (his drop shots were arguably better when he was young) and also finish points at the net (he wasn't allergic to the net from the very start unlike the next gen players now whom some unfairly think are similar to Nadal in terms of versatility).

The height of the display of the fun of 2000s clay and the brutality of 2005dal definitely came at 2005 Rome. Both showed good grit and variety and in the fifth set when behind and desperate Super Saiyan savagedal just showed up hitting hard normal finish forehands one after another and just pummeled Coria into submission. Good times.

Last but not least 2005dal was pre-ritual dal so I didn't have to endure long waits and questionable gamesmanship while enjoying his tennis.
 
Clay lover said:
I've always preferred 2005dal at least on clay for two reasons. I've always looked upon 2000s clay with much nostalgia owing to the prominent players I watched growing up and the diversity they brought to the surface. Clay wasn't some one-dimensional workmen's surface many especially a certain Kermit would like to believe now. There were aggressive baseliners in Kuerten and Moya, people with good variety and touch like Coria, hard-hitting anomalies like Soderling and spin meisters like Andreev and Nadal. Youngdal belonged to this period of nostalgia and the memory of his 2000s look has stuck with me. Ever felt your perception of a person's appearance remained stuck at a point in time in which you shared the most memories with him/her? Your childhood friend still looking like a 10 year-old in your mind despite him being a 40 year old fatty now? That's how I see Nadal now.

Second has to do with my personal preferences regarding Nadal. Reverse forehand was effective but ugly AF. 2005 Cooldal still used the normal finish frequently and also had the results to display it on a grander stage compared to say, 2004. 2005 claydal also had a great balance between defence and attack. Methinks 2006-2008dal tailored his game too much around consistency and lost some of his killer instinct in terms of going for winners or desperation winners. Older more aggressivedal sure was more aggressive but lost some of that passing shot magic especially off the backhand. 2005dal was scary when you think of the arsenal he had -- he could hit hard, he could run like a bunny and pass you left and right, hit drop shots (his drop shots were arguably better when he was young) and also finish points at the net (he wasn't allergic to the net from the very start unlike the next gen players now whom some unfairly think are similar to Nadal in terms of versatility).

The height of the display of the fun of 2000s clay and the brutality of 2005dal definitely came at 2005 Rome. Both showed good grit and variety and in the fifth set when behind and desperate Super Saiyan savagedal just showed up hitting hard normal finish forehands one after another and just pummeled Coria into submission. Good times.

Last but not least 2005dal was pre-ritual dal so I didn't have to endure long waits and questionable gamesmanship while enjoying his tennis.
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Nadal/Coria is such a RIDICULOUS match. We don't even see tennis like that anymore.
 
Gary Duane said:
My opinion is not popular, but I think all ATGs continue to become better players in a race against time as their pure physicality runs down. If you gave any of the present Big three their young bodies back and then let them play their younger selves, they'd win.
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The bolded is pretty much the most crucial aspect that some people don't get.
 
clout said:
I'd say 2008-2013 was when we got his full package all together. He was a beast on all surfaces, served well, defended great, hit punishing ground stokes, was the toughest player mentally, and barely made any errors. In his earlier years, his game was too defensive (loopy balls/weak serve) allowing zoning players to blow him off the court under quicker conditions but now he's too slow and can't outlast players as much (relatively speaking).
Click to expand...
2008-2013 Nadal still allowed people to boss him around, especially on grass.
 
clout said:
Well he's human so he's not gonna win every match even in his prime, but I think those 5-6 years were the best versions of him overall.
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Of course. That was his prime. Just like 2011-2016 was Novak's, and late 2003-early 2010 was Fed's.
 
Clay lover said:
I've always preferred 2005dal at least on clay for two reasons. I've always looked upon 2000s clay with much nostalgia owing to the prominent players I watched growing up and the diversity they brought to the surface. Clay wasn't some one-dimensional workmen's surface many especially a certain Kermit would like to believe now. There were aggressive baseliners in Kuerten and Moya, people with good variety and touch like Coria, hard-hitting anomalies like Soderling and spin meisters like Andreev and Nadal. Youngdal belonged to this period of nostalgia and the memory of his 2000s look has stuck with me. Ever felt your perception of a person's appearance remained stuck at a point in time in which you shared the most memories with him/her? Your childhood friend still looking like a 10 year-old in your mind despite him being a 40 year old fatty now? That's how I see Nadal now.

Second has to do with my personal preferences regarding Nadal. Reverse forehand was effective but ugly AF. 2005 Cooldal still used the normal finish frequently and also had the results to display it on a grander stage compared to say, 2004. 2005 claydal also had a great balance between defence and attack. Methinks 2006-2008dal tailored his game too much around consistency and lost some of his killer instinct in terms of going for winners or desperation winners. Older more aggressivedal sure was more aggressive but lost some of that passing shot magic especially off the backhand. 2005dal was scary when you think of the arsenal he had -- he could hit hard, he could run like a bunny and pass you left and right, hit drop shots (his drop shots were arguably better when he was young) and also finish points at the net (he wasn't allergic to the net from the very start unlike the next gen players now whom some unfairly think are similar to Nadal in terms of versatility).

The height of the display of the fun of 2000s clay and the brutality of 2005dal definitely came at 2005 Rome. Both showed good grit and variety and in the fifth set when behind and desperate Super Saiyan savagedal just showed up hitting hard normal finish forehands one after another and just pummeled Coria into submission. Good times.

Last but not least 2005dal was pre-ritual dal so I didn't have to endure long waits and questionable gamesmanship while enjoying his tennis.
Click to expand...

I agree with much of this post, but particularly this paragraph. I was going to add something like this to my original post in this thread, but you've done it for me and better than I could've said it lol.

That's sort of how I see Nadal too, and why I'd like the young version back. I can't get the young Nadal pirate pants look out of my head, and the contrast he created with Federer at the height of the rivalry was so cool. Today, he's still Rafa, but he's not really unique in style. Tennis style yes, but not the overall look. Now he's just an old (still great) tennis player. To me at least.

And like you said, it's not just Nadal. I have a couple childhood friends that I don't talk to anymore or very rarely, and we've all gotten a bit fatter, but I still see them as teenagers at the rare times we do talk, and luckily they haven't changed at all personality wise.
 
Steve0904 said:
I agree with much of this post, but particularly this paragraph. I was going to add something like this to my original post in this thread, but you've done it for me and better than I could've said it lol.

That's sort of how I see Nadal too, and why I'd like the young version back. I can't get the young Nadal pirate pants look out of my head, and the contrast he created with Federer at the height of the rivalry was so cool. Today, he's still Rafa, but he's not really unique in style. Tennis style yes, but not the overall look. Now he's just an old (still great) tennis player. To me at least.

And like you said, it's not just Nadal. I have a couple childhood friends that I don't talk to anymore or very rarely, and we've all gotten a bit fatter, but I still see them as teenagers at the rare times we do talk, and luckily they haven't changed at all personality wise.
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You both put it so well. That was the Rafa that got me hooked :D He was SO different.

3N81.gif
 
Youngdal is my choice, if i really need to make a pick. It's that raw energy, grit and fierceness of his game that made me gravitate to him.

The Pirate lookand uniqueness of that forehand just made it even better. His match with Agassi, then Rome O6 finals with Federer just sealed the deal for me. I was so sure that Federer would win that final, leading in the 5th set.

That never say die spirit ala Naruto just got me laughing in excitement.
 
beast of mallorca said:
Youngdal is my choice, if i really need to make a pick. It's that raw energy, grit and fierceness of his game that made me gravitate to him.

The Pirate lookand uniqueness of that forehand just made it even better. His match with Agassi, then Rome O6 finals with Federer just sealed the deal for me. I was so sure that Federer would win that final, leading in the 5th set.

That never say die spirit ala Naruto just got me laughing in excitement.
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Tennis wise, Nadal was never a failure academically compared to Naruto.
 
2005 and 2006 were good, but couldn't translate well to other surfaces. Personal favorites are 2008-2010, 2012, and 2013. Later years he is less explosive but has improved other facets of his game.
 
undoubtedly it is youngdal 2008 - 2009 stretch for me.........i have great memories from that period, in 2008 i had just finished my college and getting ready for uni.........i was enjoying my time at home, will never forget watching rafa edge out fed around 3 AM indian time for his first wimbledon title........i liked the 2013 version almost as much as 2008 but 2008 was just spectacular domination across all the three surfaces in a single season, something which the other two can never boast of........
 
The older version, suddenly remembering his Tennyson during set 5 of the 2019 Open final. Ulysses-dal: "old age hath yet his honour and his toil...."
 
eldanger25 said:
The older version, suddenly remembering his Tennyson during set 5 of the 2019 Open final. Ulysses-dal: "old age hath yet his honour and his toil...."
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The Medvedev match is definitely one of my fav Nadal matches ever :D it had that old-school, classic Nadal 5-setter thing going on that he used to do all the time lol.... he was even sleeveless :unsure:
 
MichaelNadal said:
he was even sleeveless :unsure:
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kinda like famous samson story vibe..when his magical power was in his hair, proves it once again that nadal is mythically epical and somehow was transfered from that ancient legendary world up to nowadays, being pretty on par with those epic heroes:D
 
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