I did notice that and i hope its a sign of things to come but since it was an exhibition tournament i think we should take it with a small pinch of salt. Actually Soderling beat Federer but finally Nadal has learnt to overcome Soderling perhaps...
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Yes, and if Liverpool FC beat any of the other top 4 teams within the foreseeable future, they are right back on fantastic form again. Oh. Wait. No.
This early in the season, and on the basis of 1 game, determining that Nadal is on very good form is like determining that the moon is bigger than Jupiter because that's what i looks like with the naked eye.
Time will tell. Again, there is nothing wrong with his forehand or his serve. He needs to get his mind straight. Now, remember, Nadal is a claycourter who has worked on getting better on other surfaces. Watch him on clay to see where his game actually stands. His comeback has been mainly relegated to the hard and indoor surfaces and really aren't going to be great forecasters of how he plays. He practices mainly on clay and I guarantee most of his hitting done after his injury was on clay to minimize the chances of reinjury. He just needs some solid time for practice which he is probably getting now that his injury is pretty much healed. Remember, he was complaining about pain at the U.S. Open, so he has not been truly 100%. All of that factors into his mental game and he probably has not been playing with a ton of confidence. Let's see what the new year brings for him before he gets the "write off".
I'm going to say it's a combination of three factors:
1. injury - probably even ones we don't know about.
2. rhythm - playing most tournaments and feeling confident (or lack thereof)
3. mental fitness - Nadal isn't 100% mentally tuned and his opponents are picking up on this
and taking full advantage.
Saw Rafa's 1st round match in Doha today and he looked very impressive. Admittedly, he was only playing Bolelli but there is certainly a lot more juice on his now deeper groundstrokes now and he's retained the amount of topspin that he used to hit with earlier in his career. He was even hitting down-the-line winners! Can you imagine that??! Nadal hitting down the line winners! Loving his new racket and kit as well.
I absolutely agree. He was impressive, and not only was he playing great tennis, he was taking the initiative against Bolelli, who, at least when i've seen him, goes balls to the wall on everything that even smells like a winner.
If he plays like this for the rest of the year, he can have Roland Garros. Considering that he objects quite strongly to hardcourt, if he can keep this form up, then Vamos Rafa!
he's lost a lot of bulk as well. Should be interesting to see his new tactics against the top 5
What's happening?! No more Toni Nadal apparently. Rafa is currently being coached by someone called Francesco Roig...?
It's his hitting partner. Toni should show up just before the Oz Open.
Oh right. It said "coach" next to his name. Are you watching his match right now?
Yup :P
Prediction. Nadal to dominate 2010 and return to number one. The guy has had injuries to contend with and to write him off is premature. When fully fit he is the best player in the world - period.
I think Nadal can definitely find a way to beat the top guys again. He reached the top by adapting and improving his game, so there's no doubt in my mine that he can do it to get there again.
I'm certainly not doubting he will return to top form. I just can't see him dominating on a surface other than clay. His game fits clay and there's nobody better than him on it. Roland Garros is all his.. For him to pull out another Aussie Open victory seems unlikely. Just too much flat out power out there nowadays (Del Po', Soderling).