Rafael Nadal Is Still Unsure If He’ll Play The US Open, This Knee Injury Is Different [Video]

by Tom Gainey | August 14th, 2012, 10:16 am
  • 101 Comments

In a courtside interview yesterday Rafael Nadal said that he is still not sure if he can play the US Open. The former No. 1 has been beleaguered by a return of knee issues which have prevented him from playing any events this summer.

Through translation, Nadal said this knee injury is different than other years. He also added that he cannot say “yes or no” if he will play the US Open. Training and recovery has also been a slow process for Rafa.

Nadal has already withdrawn from the Olympics, Toronto and this week’s Cincinnati tournament. Nadal first began experiencing knee problems in early June after winning his seventh French Open title.

The US Open begins a week from next Monday.


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101 Comments for Rafael Nadal Is Still Unsure If He’ll Play The US Open, This Knee Injury Is Different [Video]

metan Says:

Oh dear, it isn’t a good news. Whatever it takes Rafa,,, come back when you are fit 100%.


Mark Says:

Am devasted for him. Doesn’t look like he is going to play in the USO.


Sienna Says:

Why is it that when a player choses not to enter because he doesnt feel he has a chance of going deep in a tournement devastating ?

Rafa and his team opted to not enter. not because of injury but because of keeping up his elite status.
Him losing against the rosols of atp tour would definitely crumble his elite status


Mark Says:

sienna STFU.


metan Says:

@ sienna, Pete sampras loss to George bastle did he lose his elite status?, till this very moment his fans n those brainy who knows tennis very well still call him king of grass, Roger even idol him, bastle defeated Pete in his back yard.

We are Rafa fans has been sad enough our man is not well and not in the tourney , ,,,


metan Says:

I am not going to pop up till Rafa play, so sad n no mood! Bad day!


Polo Says:

This is sad news for Rafa fans in particular and to the whole tennis world in general. Whether you like Nadal or not, you cannot ignore how talented he is and how his presence always elevates the level of any tournament. I hope he can recover fully and give everybody tough competition again in days ahead.


Mark Says:

^ Thanks for that.


Barbara.Ball@Verizon.net Says:

so sorry my guy Rafa is still hurt. Don’t want him to play unless he is 100%. Really love this young man and only always wish him the best.


Sienna Says:

metan Says:
@ sienna, Pete sampras loss to George bastle did he lose his elite status?, till this very moment his fans n those brainy who knows tennis very well still call him king of grass, Roger even idol him, bastle defeated Pete in his back yard.

We are Rafa fans has been sad enough our man is not well and not in the tourney , ,,,

August 14th, 2012 at 11:33 am

No not 1 loss but I claim he purposly withdraws from these tournments to avoid other losses against similar type of players like Rosol.

They have estimated his current level on the fast surfaces as that bad.

He was perfectly fine at Wimbly. but the rosol match has opened theyes of them and they are clueless, that combined with the unexpected rise of the MIGHTY has shattered the little selfbelief he had after beating Djoker a few times.

Remember how his mental state was at the end of 2011? I need not remind you that he lost his passion and felt like he was on a routine job.

This was just the follow up on that fase in his tennislife.

Beware because it may get ugly!


trufan Says:

Even if Nadal plays the USO, he has a very low chance of winning. Its a fast hard court – perhaps the fastest of the 4 slams – and he has got to be really rusty. He might just extend his break till Shanghai.

That said, the year end No. 1 now is a race between Fed and Djokovic – hard to say who has a better chance, since both have almost equal points to defend (from now till the year end). The indoor part of it favors Fed, Djoke is favored at the USO. It will be close.

As for Nadal – I don’t know if anyone noticed this:

Nadal was born june 3 1986, Borg was born june 6 1956

Federer was born Aug 8 1981, Sampras aug 8 1971!!

Nadal is now as old as Borg was in the Fall of 1982! Borg had quit tennis by then, since he couldn’t get past the top players of that era any more. Nadal is now going to have a tough time winning a slam – except perhaps the French open for another year or so.


trufan Says:

Nadal could actualy lose his No 3 ranking if he doesn’t play (and play well) at the USO. Its been a long time since he was ranked No. 4. With a resurgent Murray, at least outside of clay, he has 3 tough competitors now, instead of 2. And then the Rosol’s of the world. Tough times ahead for Nadal.


jane Says:

Trufan: “That said, the year end No. 1 now is a race between Fed and Djokovic – hard to say who has a better chance, since both have almost equal points to defend (from now till the year end). The indoor part of it favors Fed, Djoke is favored at the USO. It will be close.”

Yes, they are very close, but Nole has 740 less points than Fed to defend between now (Cincy) and the end of the year (WTF).

Nole has 3160 to defend; Fed has 3900.

Murray has 3640 to defend and Rafa has 1790 to defend. But incidentally is Rafa’s ranking protected because he is out on injury or does that apply only when there is surgery involved?


trufan Says:

Nadal will be back soon, I am sure. If this was the clay season, he would have never withdrawn. I can’t recall Nadal ever withdrawing from a clay tournament citing injury (he did cite injury after he lost in 2009, but that was after the fact, not before – before he was always saying he was fit, as usual).


skeezer Says:

Fed has historically done very well post USO season. Barring injury/burnout, he will ok defending his points in the fall. In regards to the point scenario it’s all depends on USO IMO.

Jane, don’t have the ATP rule book in front of me but look what happened to Delpo in the rankings……


El Flaco Says:

Haas and Nalbandian are in a war right now. They split the 1st 2 sets after 2 1/2 hours. Delpo is liking this because he plays the winner.


skeezer Says:

IF Rafa is still struggling with his knee at this point I don’t understand why he would still attempt to play USO. Sure, his fans would love to see him play but if he is nurturing a bad injured knee (s) still , he is now going to embark on the playing surface that is hardest on your body, with no prior match play in preparation. Don’t get it, sounds like more of a possible downside risk than upside for his health. But as Rafans have clearly shouted out, he knows best.


jane Says:

For anyone who has the time and the inclination but who doesn’t have TV coverage of the match, you can find the Hass vs Nalby marathon at Sport Lemon’s streaming (and other matches too). It’s surprisingly empty. I am always amazed to see that. Since I have never had the pleasure of seeing live professional tennis in my life, I would be thrilled to be there – all those empty seats!! If only it was in my neck of the woods, I would saunter on over.


Mark Says:

@jane. Rafa will probably drop to no. 4 by the end of the year if he doesn’t play for the rest of the season. I do not understand your question on protected ranking.


Ben Pronin Says:

Jane, Nadal’s ranking is protected if he’s out for at least 6 months (I believe) and his ranking falls significantly. I don’t think they would even consider “protecting” him if he’s ranked just 4th after being ranked 3rd. When Safin was out for a while and dropped from 4th to 104th, that required protection.

Apparently some people need to remember that not only was the Rosol-Nadal match a full length 5 setter, but Rosol may have never even won if he didn’t have the indoor roof after the rain delay. He played a great match but it was particularly how he played in that 5th set that made it so eye-popping. It was an UPSET. It has very little to do with his overall form. If it was the norm, no one would have such a reaction to it. All of these predictions about Nadal’s demise are so stupid it’s infuriating. Yes, his knees are a huge concern, as they always have been, and maybe even bigger now than they were before. But the Rosol match is definitely not the concern. What kind of sample size is this? Nadal is upset early at Wimbledon once after reaching all 5 finals at the previous 5 Wimbledon’s he played. That’s a more adequate sample size.

“An upset occurs in a competition, frequently in electoral politics or sports, when the party popularly expected to win (the favorite), is defeated by an underdog whom the majority expects to lose, defying the conventional wisdom.” – courtesy of Wikipedia.

Conventional wisdom = Nadal will still be a force to be reckoned with and major contender, just as he always has been, once he is healthy.

Idiocy = thinking otherwise.


Mark Says:

^:-))))))


Brando Says:

@Ben Pronin:

AWESOME POST- HALL OF FAME STUFF AS FAR AS BLOGGING GOES!

:-)))))))))


nadalista Says:

@ben pronin:

Don’t bother making sense, it’s lost on the senseless…………


Margot Says:

Bad news for Rafa and his fans, sorry guys :(


Skorocel Says:

A bit off topic, but why isn’t Murray’s Olympic win even mentioned in the funk section???!!! Instead there’s Djoker winning a Nadal-/Federer-/Murray-less Toronto… WTF? Get dude some credit!

And Federer being in the trunk section because of skipping Canada? A good move I guess. Last year, he lost to Tsonga in the very 1st round there (so this year he lost virtually zero points), whereas his main pursuer in the No 1. race Djoker was the defending champion in 2012 (and therefore didn’t gain any), so why the fuss?

In my opinion, if Federer was to be in that trunk section, I’d be because of that annihilation in the Olympic final (which was really a debacle with capital D!) rather than because of him skipping Toronto.


Margot Says:

^ Skorcorel, just posted the only explanation on “Roger feeling better” thread. :(


jane Says:

^ Or why wasn’t Andy in the Funk section last week at least?! Exactly Skorocel.

Margot, yes this is bad news for Rafa fans. : / I wish we knew how or why this knee injury is different. Is it not tendonitis this time perhaps – but something else? It sounds like he hasn’t decided outright, so maybe he’ll still play the USO and the rest of the season. Mind you, if he needs the time to fully recover, he has the least amount of points to defend of all the top 4 players so feasibly he could take the rest of the year off, which may be a good plan if the knee is really serious – then he can come back fully refreshed in 2013.


john Says:

Cant believe how much Roddick consistently sweats during each match.

To much American style fast food or is it genetic?

Seems strange for a top player with all the conditional training required at such a high level..

Its always dripping of his hat in cup loads.


jane Says:

Mark and Ben, thanks for clarifying. I remember when Nalbandian was out for a while for a surgery, I think his ranking was “protected”. Mark, what I meant was that sometimes (don’t know the exact policy or rule) a player’s ATP ranking is protected, i.e., halted at where is was, if a player can simply NOT play due to serious injury. But like I say, I am not sure of what the requirements are to fall under this points protection/umbrella.


Ben Pronin Says:

It’s genetics. Sweating doesn’t mean he’s unfit in any way.


Dave Says:

One theory, according to a Swiss sports doctor Heinz Buhlmann (who isn’t treating Nadal so is speculating), is that Nadal’s chronic knee tendinitis (Patellasehnenentzündung) has reached a stage where it is now extrememly difficult to treat and he is on his way to osteoarthritis of the knee cap. [Dr. Heinz Buhlmann is author of several medical books inlcuding “Biomechanics of tennis injuries”, was doctor to Martina Hingis and Swiss pro football clubs. He is member of International Society of Arthroscopy, Knee Surgery and Orthopaedic Sports Medicine. You can use Google to translate the follow link from German to English. Buhlmann was the doctor who diagnosed Martina Hingis’s foot injury as osteoarthritis in 2002, which led to her retirement in early 2003.]
http://www.tagesanzeiger.ch/sport/tennis/Nadal-sollte-nur-noch-auf-Sand-spielen/story/27420394

Nadal’s problem is that the way he runs overstresses and abuses his joints — yet he has basically continued to run and play in a similar way for years, even though he has made slight adjustments to reduce the load, because that’s what he has relied on to bring him success.

For an athlete, osteoarthritis is a much more serious ailment than tendinitis — it tends to be a career-ending ailment. Conventional medicine is relatively ineffective in treating osteoarthritis and Nadal needs to look for alternative options to reduce his body’s inflammatory response and boost its healing of injury as well as radically change the way he runs during matches. The Swiss doctor’s advice to Nadal is just play on clay, no more hard courts.

Of course, don’t be alarmed: the doctor is speculating and didn’t say that Nadal already has full-blown arthritis, just that he is on the way to getting it. Even if Nadal has osteoarthritis, there are non-conventional treatments for osteoarthritis is he knows where to find them. The good thing for Nadal is that, unlike other tennis players who suffer injuries, his knees are being continually checked and scanned so his doctors should be able to detect any problem early, before it has become full blown.

Federer on Nadal: “It’s very surprising, because it was nothing that we heard of prior to the injury. He played so well on clay, and then actually seemed fine at Wimbledon. He had more (recovery) time by losing earlier at Wimbledon.” “I was going to write him and check on him because I can’t believe he’s been out that long.” “I thought the Olympics, OK, that’s fine. That’s a personal choice.” “I thought for sure we would see him in Toronto, but now he missed Toronto and Cincinnati.” “big surprise, these two pullouts”. “I’m sad for him.” “I hope he’ll be back for the Open.”

We’ll see what happens at the US Open. Until Nadal actually withdraws from US Open, I still believe that he will focus on US Open, Shanghai and World Tour Finals this year. Only if he doesn’t show up for US Open or loses early, there is a possibility he might shut down until Australia.


Skeezer Says:

..once he is healthy.”

This is the point isn’t it? His knees are an issue, and IF and WHEN he can play. In this game, if you don’t play you lose, and the rankings fairly apply. If you play, you can lose or you can win. There is a basic difference.

Re; the upset. Yes, it was, to 100 ranked player, 3 sets or 5 doesn’t matter, the end result does. Why? He is out of the tournament.

Ben

I think you are mis judging some of the “Rosol” comments. The Rosols” of the world imo are a type of player( not just Rosol ) who can hit flat shots with pace on a fast surface. This has historically given Rafa fits.( Soderling anyone? ). Take away the time from Rafa and he cannot wind up his big swing.

Don’t now about who is saying Rafa is going downhill, but it is evident he is having injury issues that could( and have ) had a impact on his career, and for the last couple of years his only GS title has been on Clay. This was the guy (so his fans say ) that was going to be the GOAT on every surface. Now, ( in his prime years )its quickly changed to the best ever on Clay. So it is a fair question to ask.

That said, I am also on the bandwagon that Rafa is nowhere near done, and recognize some tennis fans miss him, hope he comes back when he is ready and most importantly when he is 100% healthy.


noogie Says:

Rafa is the Al Capone type. A crafty yet slimy wheeler-dealer. Only his moron fans would believe his stories. Ben he might or might not come back. His two heat non-performance is a good indicator of his way forward. He is going down to the 100’s of the word. He got Ro sol(d)out. He is deteriorating. Sienna in good German. Er ist kaputt gemacht. Heil Rosol.


Polo Says:

That was a good read. Thanks Dave.


Gaga Says:

Nadal is so unlucky. He picked the wrong year to go lame, that should have been 2011 when unstoppable Djokovic and tennis were a one man show until the USO. Yikes.

If Nadal finishes with 13 slams it would be fitting since he is the unluckiest 10+ slam winner of all time.


noogie Says:

Gaga u sound like your name


jane Says:

Not sure where to post on Cincy – anyhow, Roddick and Baker are out, but Querrey is through, and it looks like Fish should be as well.


van orten Says:

i believe nadal will be back but he will balways be vulnarable on hard courts no matter slow or fast.
he is the kaiser of clay who won 2 hard 2 grass court slams. it is not that bad.
but i have always believed he could overtake federer only by winning RG and then fed kept winning a lot and after that nadal made his move winning 4/5.
now they are stuck at 17:11.
nadal needs to win at least six more SLAMS.
so six more RG? one day he will be dethroned on clay.he needs more success on the hard and grass courts to close in.
i wish him all the best.
he shall be back soon!


Sienna Says:

@trufan
You make a lot of sense. Maybe it is a bit harsh the way you put it down but atleast that way people understand what you say and mean.


SG1 Says:

I guess Rafa shouldn’t ever come back as any loss would just jeopardize his elite status. I remember John McEnroe losing to Bill Scanlon at the USO in ’83. He went on to dominate in ’84. Just because you lose to someone you shouldn’t (which every great player has) doesn’t mean you get this fear of losing. If anything, for an incredible competitor like Nadal, this lay off must be killing him. He wants to get our there and prove that the Rosol loss was nothing more than an insignificant blip on the radar screen. If Nadal misses the USO, I’m sure he won’t be happy about it. This being said, better to shut things down and prevent a long term condition he won’t be able to recover from. He’s been through this before and come out of it with flying colors. He and his team know what they’re doing.


Sienna Says:

Sg1 I posted on a diofferent thread it is maybe more apropriate on this one.

Sienna Says:
Wow I am amazed by the contrast Fedal are portraying.

Fed is like a hungry wolf, full of life, lust and passion for tennis as upposed to Rafa who looks wairy, scared and insecure.
The Rafateam is only protecting hte brand of Rafa at this point of the year. Knowing that he will surely lose against the Rosol’s in the world would damage his career big time.

From an atletes point of view his status will dwindle down so fast. Players feel (even Rosol) when They can beat Rafa.

But marketing wise he will be around for a longer period even more if they can portray it like he is injured.
In the shortterm that will only benefit his marketvalue and his acceptance for new brands. He is still doing comercial activities. So 1 further proof of no injury because who would want to do commercial activity when your livelyhood is on the line?
It just doesnt compute with the evidence that is all around us.

August 14th, 2012 at 5:58 pm


Humble Rafa Says:

Rafa Nation,

Thanks for your wishes. It’s pretty bad, but I hope to be back soon.

Spending time with Xisca. It’s been great. Take care.

Your Humble Highness


Kimberly Says:

I’d put my money on nadal over fed in the 100m!

Rafa fans, i Listened to this crap with the Miami Heat for two years. Made it all the better when they shut everyone up by winning the championship. Certainly showed the national media where they can stick it. And the heat fans stormed the other blogs like an army and told them where to put it! And suddenly after two years of other teams fans showing up on our site calling us chokers, and losers, we were the bad guys. Well i expect Rafa to do the same and I won’t be quiet this time like the last two times he was sent to the pastures on this site.


tennisfansince76 Says:

@Kimberly ha ha laying down the law. also i agree w/ you. Nadal has more pure straight ahead speed than Fed.


tennisfansince76 Says:

@Jane remember defending pts is an illusion. their pts for this year are about even. whoever wins the remainder of the year will be no. 1 regardless of how many pts they have from last year.


jane Says:

tfs76 – an illusion eh? How come we all natter on about defending points then? Why isn’t there just a race? I mean, it’s not totally an illusion is it? Some of it is real? Or is this the tennis Matrix?


Ray Says:

What does the Heat winning 1 title prove? They are still chokers and losers. Go check how many NBA titles LA lakers or celtics have. or maybe even bulls or even spurs!

This is exactly the kind of behaviour that defines losers! celebrating one win as if there is no tomorrow. the great teams/players know there will be another title coming. not the losers, because they didn’t even expect to win the 1st title! also, please check the definition of FLUKE!

and you would put money rafa over fed in a 100m sprint? i would put money on rafa retiring from tennis before fed.

tennis is excellent without rafa and his ugly game. not to mention his bu77 picking and other disgusting habits.

rosol beating rafa is a fluke. novak beating rafa 7times in a row is also a fluke. anytime rafa loses, it is a fluke. This is conventional wisdom.

thinking otherwise = idiot, dumb, moron!


Ray Says:

jane :

defending points matters only in the rolling 52 week system. end of year forecasts depend on year to date performance = race.

end of the day, winning more = better ranking.


jane Says:

My smilie was for tfs76 – just to clarify.


jane Says:

Thanks Ray – I get it.


Ray Says:

i dont know who posted the birth date of sampras, but sampras was born on aug 12, not august 8. laver was born on aug 9, fed on aug 8!

the three GOATs of tennis were born within the same week.

the 2 clay goats = borg, nadal born withing the same week too!


Ray Says:

come on jane, take your mask off. i know you loved my post. :)


Ray Says:

if fed reaches cincinnati final he gets the no.1 ranking till end of USO @ the least with an almost confirmed chance of holding on to the USO till shanghai. [ the chances get better if fed outperforms djokovic @ USO]

if fed makes the quarterfinal @ cincinnati, and djokovic doesn’t win the title = fed is no.1 going to USO.

if fed loses 2nd round or pre quarters, djokovic will have to reach the final to get no.1

from djokovic point of view – if djokovic doesn’t reach final, he stays no.2

if he loses in final, he will need fed to not reach quarters.

if he wins the title, he needs fed to not reach finals!


Ben Pronin Says:

Everyone, from the team to the media, was expecting the Heat to win the title. Not just this year, but last year, too. They fell short last year, but they reached the finals. This year they went one better. Where is the fluke? Lebron James is coming off one of the greatest individual years in the NBA in a long, long time. He should have been the defensive player of the year, too, but I guess the powers that be didn’t want to decorate him too much. Nothing the Heat did this year was in fluke territory. Chokers and losers? Man oh man, if that’s not the pot being devoid of any facts or logic then I don’t know what is.


Eric Says:

Jane, I think defending points can be important at specific tournaments, if you go in thinking “gotta defend my title!/SF appearance/whatever.” Pressure, etc., something we talk about a lot. But not as much over the course of a few months. As of now, Djokovic is back ahead of Roger in the 2012 race. (Which, actually, is mathematically equivalent to saying he has fewer points to defend in the rest of the season since they’re essentially tied in total points, but leave that aside.) Being ahead in the race is what is going to give him an advantage in the year-end ranking; who knows exactly how the rest of the points this year will be divided up, but probably the USO is going to end up being the biggest difference between them pointwise. And, of course, I’d be willing to bet we would all rather see our respective favorites win another slam than end the year at no. 1 anyway. :)


Ray Says:

winning only 1 title in the last how many years?

do one thing guys. make the heat play against tunisia or some other country every year. i am sure they will win those titles a lot more times!

until the heat repeat the title a few times, this is a fluke. this is conventional wisdom.

thinking otherwise = idiocy.


Ray Says:

here’s a trivia question :

when was the last time a spaniard other than rafa beat federer?

anyone?


Ben Pronin Says:

Oh I see what you did there, clever.


jane Says:

Ray, I am guessing JCF? I dunno.


judy Says:

i feel sorry for all of you who actually think rafa is hurt. the only part of rafa that hursts is his ego. wins the french open, no problems with his knee. plays wimbledon as hard as he could. knee looked fine, but he lost. now, boo hoo. rafa has a bad knee. rafa has a bad attitude whenever he loses, he just blames it on his knee. pleaseeeeeee


Sienna Says:

Judy. You mean like picking a fistfight with opponent during changeover?
Or debatting youre opponents returnaction with referee like youre an 6 year old?

You are so right the signs are there.


autoFilter Says:

Rolling rankings are used to determine seeding for all the tournaments throughout the year, so of course defending points is important. And if any weight is to be given to stats such as total weeks at number one (which is obviously the case), then defending points is most certainly important for that too.


ocgirl Says:

Poor Sienna obviously has a massive crush on Rafa and is overcompensating by trashing him with such intensity. I don’t blame her, Rafa’s hotness eclipses all others. I bet her screensaver is vintage Rafa with bandanna and sleeveless shirt. ;-)


alison Says:

Judy then you can feel sorry for me then,yeah your right his ego must be bruised,but its as SG1 said in a post above Rafas such a fighter and an amazing competitor, if anything its my belief(ok maybe just my belief),he would be more eager than ever to try and prove a point after what happened with Rosol,many players before have suffered shock losses Rafas not the 1st and he sure as hell wont be the last,Serana suffered one at the FO,and then went on to win wimbledon,they are great champions with big hearts and big egos,and thats the reason Rafa has won 11 slams,so lets not be so quick to assume if Rafa says hes injured that he must be lying.


Sienna Says:

ocgirl Says:
Poor Sienna obviously has a massive crush on Rafa and is overcompensating by trashing him with such intensity. I don’t blame her, Rafa’s hotness eclipses all others. I bet her screensaver is vintage Rafa with bandanna and sleeveless shirt

vintage Rafa that was his peak exactly he deteriorated and has become a multimillion dollar bussiness. He doesnt care about the game he cares about money and endorsements. Still even with those he cannot get out of the shade of Roger.


Mark Says:

^ You promised Roger a gold medal. Where is it? Oops sorry, we have to wait until 2016!!


mat4 Says:

Hi everybody!

Long time no… read?

Don’t know if I will be able to post until September, so just to congrat my dear Fed fans from this site for their patience and belief in their champ, and congrat to the few AM fans for the great result he achieved. Fandom is a strange country, but the joy we feel when our fav wins is huge.

So… hope to chat with all of you soon.


Nirmal Kumar Says:

I would be really surprised if Rafa skips USO. He has lost only to Novak and has been in two consecutive finals. It’s a surface which seems to suit him pretty well of late.

I just guess Rafa may comeback and do what Serena is doing in women’s tennis. He may just be in his 2010 form with enough rest for his body. People do forget that Rafa was on a tear at clay and his form was excellent. Just that his injury would have cost him few matches on grass. Once he gets healthy I can’t see anyone other than Novak challenge him.


Sienna Says:

Rafa and his team did indeed make a terrible judgement call Nirmal.
They didnot realise after the rosol match how bad his current state of play onthe fast surfaces actually is.
After wtf of 2011 they must have had a good insight and thought he could pick up after clay. just like other years .
So for the team to make decission to withdraw all these fast tournements must mean that his form and fysiek is terrible added to his mental frailty , his anxiety of losing matches gives us the current state of Rafa.

Gone isthe warrior he is reduced to a scared former #1 who knows his time is up.


Sienna Says:

On the fast courts that is. his safe haven clay and real slow hc we have inthe beginning ofthe year he would still perform well.
But his game and belief on fast courts is gone.


Michael Says:

Still not sure what his exact problem is ? I think it should be a combination of both physical and mental stress. What I can infer is his lack of confidence to come back on the big stage. That being said, it would be better if he skips the US Open because it is difficult to play on a fast court without sufficient match practice and Nadal has not played for quite a long time. He lacks match practice and that will be quite telling in a grand slam. I hope Nadal can instead concentrate on the year end tournaments like the Parrys Masters and the World tour Finals where he has not won. All the best to Nadal and his Team. I hope he recovers soon. Tennis needs him for his competition.


Nirmal Kumar Says:

Sienna.. I would give Rafa bit more time before judging if his game is gone on the fast courts. He has proved over couple of years he can play well on big stages no matter what type of courts they are.


Nirmal Kumar Says:

Michael,

Nadal has been playing USO without much match practice for last 2 years. He winds down after wimbledon and does not make too much noise on the US HC masters. So I don’t think it would cause much trouble for him. But it’s an different animal now since he used to come there wither winning Wimby or losing in the finals, so he has pretty good momentum. But this year, maybe his confidence would not be that good.

I think what may affect him would be the confidence than lack of match practice.


Polo Says:

Now is not the time to badmouth Nadal. The guy is down because of problems, his knees and if some insists, his psyche. But just the same, it does not seem fair to kick a guy when he is down. Wait for him to be fit and fighting and if you still want to badmouth him then, you may. But wait until that time comes when it would not seem too cruel to do it.


alison Says:

Michael he suffered a shock loss to Rosol,it happens he wont be the 1st and he wont be the last,it is possible that when he says he is injured he is actually injured,why are people so quick to believe hes lying?Hes such a fighter and has bounced back many times before from bigger dissapointments than this,and im sure if hes fit to play he will play,and taking more unecassary time off wont help him get back into form,if anything the more time off he has the worse things get,things get harder not easier,its not as if he has said that he wont play the USO anyway,just a possibility that he might not,nothing is deffinate as yet.


Maureen Says:

I agree with Polo.There are always going to be fans who like/dislike a certain player and the ones who dislike Nadal are quick to criticize and find fault with his decisions. I personally am a huge fan and don’t find the sport as interesting when he is not participating. I wish him a speedy recovery and am confident he can work his way back to the top!


Gaga Says:

Sienna is right. Clay and slow surfaces are where Nadal has the best chances these days. That is from January-June. He was very close to winning the AO final this year. At the Wimbledon and USO finals last year Djokovic did what he wanted with him, ownage. At Wimbledon and USO, even if healthy, it will be harder for Nadal to go deep these days. Look at his loss to Rosol at Wimbledon. Was he injured? He seemed fine against Bellucci. Even if healthy Nadal might lose early at the USO this year.


Sienna Says:

Nk
Ram sure you are mistaken with him playing slams without any pre slam tournement.
That is ok since you are a fedfan and probably doesnt follow rafa so well.
Only wtf i can remember him without playing for a long time.
But slams are best of5 and they are more fysical demanding as wtf .

So im sure you are wrong that he doesnot need match practise before USOpen.
Normally he always has enough cause of the two master leading up.
Rafa might pull the plug for american hc alltogether. His mental state is what bugs him the most I feel .
Low selfbelief is killing for a tennisplayer. even if your name is Nadal.


Gaga Says:

Look how Federer destroyed Nadal at WTF last year. Nadal on the fast courts will not be a factor anymore.


Mark Says:

^ Are you and sienna relatives? You seem to talk the same language- GIBBERISH!!


Sienna Says:

And they know it.

but to keep the illusion (equals money) alive they opt to not expose Rafa for to many rosol beatdowns. What would that do to the stature of an elite player?
I tell you when he/she loses in2,3 tourney second rounders his whole carefully arranged aura of invincibility falls.
With months he would be relegated out the elite class. D-
Thank you rafa….. the rankinggoes and the rest will follow ….


Gaga Says:

Looks like Nadal has withdrawn from the USO.


Gaga Says:

Rafa out of US Open. Major bummer. Coming on live on @espn sportscenter at 11:30 to discuss

From pat McEnroes twitter

SportsCenter ‏@SportsCenter
BREAKING – @RafaelNadal expected to announce withdrawal from US Open (knees).

Tennis Connected ‏@TennisConnected
Rafael Nadal will NOT play the US Open. Confirmed.


Sienna Says:

Maybe more then 3 tournements but people forget quickly.


Gaga Says:

Poor Rafa. The injury must be for real.


Sienna Says:

There you go even more proof.


Gaga Says:

Rafa Nadal @RafaelNadal

I am very sad to announce that I am not ready to play the US Open in NY. Thanks to my fans for their support and specially, the new yorkers.


alison Says:

Dissapointing news for Rafa fans,Rafa has withdrawn from the USO this year.


Gaga Says:

It would be eerie if he goes the Borg way and with the same number of slams, 11.


Sienna Says:

Tennis can handle this very well. it is a shock that a top player doesnot want to play a slam because he feels his chances of reaching the second week are slim.

But the game was already on for Roger and Novak. Maybe Murray can join with the win in olympus , butrafa was hardly a factor on the fast surface anyway.

He iscounting his chickens and try for au open#2.


alison Says:

Gaga hes withdrawn from the USO,but please lets not start with the retirement talk.


Dave Says:

Gaga: Borg and Nadal’s birthday’s are only a few days apart. When Borg effectively left the tour in October 1981 it would have been like October 2011 in Rafa’s age. At the time Borg had 64 titles (from 88 finals), including 11 slams (from 16 finals) and 3 year-end championships (from 8 finals). Had Borg bothered to play the Australian Open on grass in his prime, he probably would have won at least 3 more slams against the weak AO fields given Borg won 5 consecutive Wimbledon titles against stronger fields.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bjorn_Borg_career_statistics


Nirmal Kumar Says:

Pretty bad that Rafa has announced his withdrawal from Open. I’m not sure if he going to take the entire season off, as typically post USO is his worst period in his season.

Tennis needs Rafa and this is not a good news for tennis. Wish he gets back to court ASAP. One of the biggest expectation is to see Rafa vs Roger at the Open. I thought this year it would be more interesting having Roger won the Wimby with his higher confidence, he could have a better chance.

Wish we have a Roger vs Novak finals showdown.


Nirmal Kumar Says:

Sienna.. I did not see Rafa do much on the US MAsters tournament before USO for past 2 years. I’m sure last year it was very bad showing from him. Maybe he got 3-4 matches. I’m not sure if that’s what he needs before the Open. He seems to adapt pretty well without much success.

But since he has pulled out now, we really can’t say if it would have affected him.


Nirmal Kumar Says:

Also I don’t think we should give too much importance to these prep tournaments. How many tournaments are there before AO for them to prepare. How many grass tournament do they play before Wimbledon. Not much.

I think it’s the momentum which is more important. That’s what Nadal is lacking now. That’s what he used to have for past 2 years coming to open.


Sienna Says:

Nk
it is clear that you dont follow tennis as close as some of us.
So try to tone it down a bit with statements that are not so full of tennis knowledge. Rafa clearly always plays pre prep tourney.
Even wimbly he always plays queens.


Nirmal Kumar Says:

Sienna,

Ofcourse he plays them. But how much he wins in them matters more. Rafa won queens only once in his career. Be lost before few times, but went on to win or reach the finals.

So yeah he may play the tournaments, but he does not win much in those tournaments. I know Roger has skipped Halle few times, but it had not stopped him from reaching finals of Wimbledon.

So you don’t have to bother about my tennis knowledge with your peanut brain. I have more than enough to what you have. Your nuisance of just barking against Nadal does not make you a knowledgeable poster.


Michael Says:

Alison,

For sure, he has some physical problems. But more than physical, I think he withdrew from the US Open primarily because of lack of sufficient match practice. He lacks confidence which is so much important in Tennis in big matches. However, I am pretty much surprised that this has happened to Nadal of all, who is the greatest competitor Tennis has ever seen ??

Nirmal,

Yeah, I agree. It is lack of confidence more than physical problems and I repeat what I wrote to Alison here also.


Sienna Says:

NK

It was not about winning or losing those prep tourney but entering No offence but youre remarks are a bit sluggish.

He only requires a few atches in those tourney…
But you acknowledged my view and that is what counts…

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