Rafael Nadal Set To Return January 1, 2015 At The Abu Dhabi Exo

Yay…..finally…..some good subject matter! Good luck for your recovery and so looking forward to your return in 2015!!

November 18th, 2014 at 9:59 am

Great news! Already looking forward to seeing Rafa (and everyone else) back!

November 18th, 2014 at 12:02 pm

Can’t wait! Seems like he’s been away forever. Lol
Good luck Champ with the SCT. Hope it is successful and all goes well.
Vamos Rafa!

November 18th, 2014 at 12:26 pm

It’s been dull without Nadal. Tennis needs his spark. Never the same without him.

November 18th, 2014 at 2:02 pm

Actually it was three events: Beijing where he lost to Klizan, than Shangai to Lopez and Basel to Koric.

November 18th, 2014 at 2:19 pm

Good news that humble is coming back ..

he will start with a exo and if at the end of season results would not be g

November 18th, 2014 at 2:58 pm

Good news that humble is coming back…

So he will start the season with exo and if somehow his results are not great at end of season then will cry a river about long season.

November 18th, 2014 at 3:00 pm

It is great to hear that Rafa will be back and every one is eager to see him stronger, powerful that he is well known where he has carved a niche for himself in the annals of the sport. It is in Tennis best interests that he returns and make the sport more competitive than it is today where it is struggling with mediocricity and experiencing a big vacuum at the top, not that the bottom is listful. Abu Dhabi is a good venue for come back, because it is one of the favourite tournaments for Rafa.

November 18th, 2014 at 11:45 pm

Since there is no Nole thread and I didn’t want to interfere with Stan/Mirka/Roger threesome saga, I picked Rafa thread to post, to quote Nole fan from the other forum “a wonderful video dedicated to Nole’s 2014 season by Novak India Fans”, yes India fans, apart of Serbia, Nole has few fans here and there.
For Nole fans and all other tennis fans enjoy the video, I personaly like match point from Miami:

http://youtu.be/Y3QWb4brExY

November 19th, 2014 at 4:28 am

YAY Welcome back to tennis Rafa,im not expecting him to dominate everything,but having him back will be amazing….

November 19th, 2014 at 5:44 am

Michael thats what i love so much about your posts,your a fan of both Roger and Novak,you still wish for the best for Rafa and the other players,and theres never any sarcastic overtones or nasty digs in your posts either,a rare commodity on this forum….

November 19th, 2014 at 5:47 am

^^forget about it ATPMedia was quick to block it.

November 19th, 2014 at 5:51 am

Nole is playing Doha too, not confirmed but very likely.

November 19th, 2014 at 5:55 am

Hippy, I expect him back to old form FAST. His history of coming back from injuries is unlike any tennis player I’ve ever seen.

More parallels with Mario Lemieux. For non-hockey fans, Lemieux was the ultra-gifted star for Pittsburgh who came into the league just a few years behind Gretzky, who had broken all records and was almost universally regarded as GOAT.

But Mario started playing at GOAT level, and soon above Gretzky’s level (at that time). But his seasons began to be cut short by injuries, and it became clear, no matter how great his accomplishments, that he would still never reach the career-potential commensurate with his gifts.

But here… Mario came back from cancer after missing half a season, and became instantly the top per game scorer in the league for the remainder of the year.

November 19th, 2014 at 7:56 am

You are welcome. I will do my best to bring my Humbleness and Humility to balance the Arrogance that’s going on in the tennis world.

More importantly, I will prevent disasters like CiliKori, not on my watch.

November 19th, 2014 at 10:13 am

Tennis Vagabond thanks for the feedback, i certainly like your summary,however we will see im not one that likes to get their hopes up by counting on anything,anyway just like to say good luck to Roger and Stan for the impending DC….

November 19th, 2014 at 12:18 pm

agree with tennis vagabond; nadal’s returns after injury are remarkable. both 2010 and 2013 were years after injuries/surprise losses and he came back to have his best years the ones after.

wog boy thanks for posting that. it was good match point. they used the whole court.

November 19th, 2014 at 12:30 pm

Vamos Rafa!

November 19th, 2014 at 12:35 pm

Jane i like your summary too,but he aint getting any younger,so we will see….

November 19th, 2014 at 12:40 pm

HR, funny as always!

There needs to be an effort to archive all of Humble’s comments in order to preserve the legacy of the Clay King. (I’m serious, I would read them all in future years).

I hope Rafa comes back healthy and fighting. Tennis is boring without him.

November 19th, 2014 at 1:57 pm

jane, my pleasure. I was right, it has been confirmed, for the first time Nole is playing Doha. We might have first final of the year Rafa against Nole..if they both make so far:)

November 19th, 2014 at 2:11 pm

Rafa comments on Nole finishing Year End no.1:

Djokovic, who won the season-finale in London on Sunday after Roger Federer withdrew with a back injury, finished the year as world number one for the third time in four years and the Mallorcan praised the Serb’s consistency over the last 12 months.

“He is a fantastic player,” Nadal said.

“He deserves to be where he is because he hasn’t had an injury for a long time and that’s very important for a tennis player.

“He is an amazing player so he deserves it.”

I agree. In 2014 Nole was the best from all the players. WTF was a poor show, but from those performers you always felt Nole was a level above them, and he performed better in pre final than all so again based on that performance:

well deserved.

November 19th, 2014 at 4:33 pm

Thanks Alison. I am not sure whether I deserve your accolades, but still I will take it in the right spirit. You need to have a big heart to praise others and you have it in plenty a rare noble quality humans are normally endowed with and you can be proud about it. I see you too as a very fair poster despite your inclination to be biased towards Rafa and Andy, you have the will to curb it and be fair to all the players. In a nutshell, Tennis is greater than individuals.

November 19th, 2014 at 11:37 pm

http://www.tennis.com/pro-game/2014/11/nadal-calls-world-tour-finals-strangest-he-has-seen/53299/#.VG2zfmtYCK2
Yes I agree it was a strange WTF.

November 20th, 2014 at 4:30 am

“He deserves to be where he is because he hasn’t had an injury for a long time and that’s very important for a tennis player.”
Really? He deeserves to be #1 because he hasn’t had an injury? Pretty low comment if you ask me.
I thought you got there by winning more and playing better than anyone else.

November 20th, 2014 at 10:38 am

Yes, I am sure Nadal was trying to insult Roger in a backhanded way.

Roger plays Monfils tomorrow.

If Mirka calls Gael a cry baby, I think Monfils would probably laugh hysterically.

November 20th, 2014 at 10:48 am

skeezer. Rafa’s words are pure gold. That’s right. Joker = no injury means he can play and win. Rafa = injured means he can’t play and therefore can’t win. You see the difference skeezer??
Fed supposedly injured had to withdraw from WTF. A healthy fed might have won the WTF!!
You can’t win more if you’re injured and unable to play!
Geeeeeeeeez!! Some people!!!!!!

November 20th, 2014 at 10:49 am

Actually thought it was insultive to Novak. You deserve to be #1 cause you never got njured?
Mew.

November 20th, 2014 at 10:56 am

Nadal was not trying to insult fed. On the contrary in fact, he was sympathising with fed for not being able to compete.

November 20th, 2014 at 10:57 am

Exactly Giles.

Some will always see only what they want to see.

November 20th, 2014 at 11:21 am

And what does this sentence mean to you?
“He deserves to be where he is because he hasn’t had an injury for a long time and that’s very important for a tennis player.””
Why did he have to mention “injury”? How about he deserved #1 because he was a the better player this year, better than Rafa and everyone else. Not because he deserved it because Rafa was injured and Nole was not.
I never said Rafa was trying to insult Fed, you guys did. I said who I though it was insultive to. Read before you type.

November 20th, 2014 at 11:29 am

“Why did he have to mention injury”? Why not? That’s what it is mostly about – health.

November 20th, 2014 at 11:35 am

skeezer please relax!

I meant to say Novak of course! It was my mistake.

Regardless, I think he is not insulting anybody. Do you know the full context of Nadal’s quote in the interview?

It is too easy to take these things out of context.

So here it is for what it’s worth. I’m guessing a waste of time?

“He is a fantastic player,” Nadal said.

“He deserves to be where he is because he hasn’t had an injury for a long time and that’s very important for a tennis player.

“He is an amazing player so he deserves it.”

So, not only because he has escaped serious injury but, according to Nadal, because Novak is a “fantastic” and an “amazing” player.

mew? :)

November 20th, 2014 at 11:53 am

IMO This much ado about nothing,i think Rafa was actually complimenting Novak here rather than insulting him,Rafa was number 1 this time last year,so perhaps he was alluding to the fact that Novaks number 1 without the injuries hes had,i dont know?i think some people have a habit of reading to much into these things sometimes….

November 20th, 2014 at 12:42 pm

I don’t think Rafa intended to put Novak in a bad light in any way. Being a speaker of English I see where this comment could be misconstrued by us. It’s the language barrier again, imo. Give Rafa a pass on some of his comments, they just don’t come out like I think he intends for them to. Rafa really doesn’t make a habit of putting down other players. Nothing new here, he’s words are picked to pieces as much as the Thanksgiving turkey! Give um’ the bird Rafa…..would be so fitting this time of year!! Teasing, of course, some holiday humor…..are we laughing yet? Lol

November 20th, 2014 at 1:14 pm

That’s the danger when you praise somebody and adds a qualifier like Nadal did. The qualifier gives an insight to what the person really feels. Nadal therefore, subconciously revealed what he really thinks, that had he (Nadal) been healthy, Djokovic would not have become number one. He could not been referring to Federer because Federer was only injured at the final when the number one has already been decided. Nadal strongly believes that that without his injuries, he could have been number one.

November 20th, 2014 at 1:39 pm

It’s not a question of lack of proficiency with a second language. Nadal’s grammar may not be perfect but he knows English. He has been speaking it for so long. He couldn’t be that dumb.

November 20th, 2014 at 1:42 pm

If Nadal doesn’t believe he could (not would) have been No. 1 if he’d been healthy, he would not be the champion he is today and would not have 14 slams to his name.

Here is a great article on Novak…

http://www.tennisviewmag.com/tennis-view-magazine/article/reflections-novak-djokovics-fiery-finish-2014

November 20th, 2014 at 2:12 pm

I don’t think (certainly hope) nadal wasn’t undercutting in his comments about nole, which are mostly true, although he does overlook that nole had an injured wrist in the clay season, couldn’t really play his best in the semis at monte carlo, missed madrid, had a tough time in early matches at rome, but ultimately found his form.

ironically it was linked to an earlier neck injury from back in 2011 for which he had minor surgery. but rafa is generally right that nole has remained fairly injury free. knock on wood.

he does a lot of yoga. i wonder if the others do? i think this really helps keep him limber.

November 20th, 2014 at 2:25 pm

Jane i have done yoga in the past,and i now do Tai Chi,however im not as thin Nole,never will be and i wouldnt want to be,his pyschic(dont know if thats spelt right)is indeed perfect for tennis and all that stretching etc,but if he was a normal guy walking the streets,im sorry to say id be saying he was way too thin and needs to eat,however all irrelavant,so anyway i dont know if its my emotional bias?but i dont really think it was meant the way it sounded,all depends on peoples interpretations i suppose….

November 20th, 2014 at 2:41 pm

Sorry lol,if you meant other players then i dont know,i thought Roger did?as far as i know Rafa and Andy use the gym,both seem a bit stockier than Novak though….

November 20th, 2014 at 3:08 pm

I realize Rafa speaks English, but he’s not as proficient as I am……nor would I be proficient speaking Spanish as he would be. There is still a gulf between English and Spanish in conversation and I still think he has problems trying to convey his thoughts properly when speaking English. It would be better for him if he quit speaking English altogether…….I don’t believe he would be criticized near as much. How about it Rafa, stop doing interviews in English!!

November 20th, 2014 at 4:01 pm

Oki,
I got away so many times with the same exuse, blame my English exuse, usually when I realised that what I said wasn’t accepted well, even I meant it. That is advantage English speaking people don’t have, sorry:(
If Rafa wanted to complement Nole why on the earth he would bring injury thing into conversation, unless he wanted to say “if it wasn’t for my injury Nole wouldn’t be #1”, but I will still give Rafa benefit of the doubt, from the “broken English”, fellow:)

November 20th, 2014 at 4:20 pm

Lmfao: how ridiculous it is for some to even think Rafael is slighting nole: it’s blatantly obvious he has extremely high regard for him and when he starts with calling him ‘fantastic’ and ‘amazing’ at the end its quite clear insult is far from on his mind. As for the now controversial reference to being injury free: what’s the problem with such a comment? It’s clear by now that a injury prone Nadal rates fitness as highly, even calls it important there. I took that comment as: nole deserves it since for a long time he’s been fit, took Cate of business on that front, and because of it he’s performed as well as he has since without it it’s a impossible to do so. A likely another admiration point for Nadal regarding nole. And yet comically: someone reads malice in that comment. I ask: is that a surprise when said poster spends 99% of their time trolling Nadal and his fans? Ignore the narrow minded and take this comment from Rafael for what it is: a stating of his admiration for nole. Both those 2 respect each other highly, their fan bases should be certain of that by now rather than picking up on the speculation passed by a troll.

November 20th, 2014 at 4:27 pm

Did he mean it like it sounded or not? That seems to be the issue at present, I for one don’t think so…..not Rafa’s style. For starters he knows how great, good and amazing Novak is…..after all he said so in the interview. This comment is making the news big time……so apparently lots of differences of opinions……but I’m sticking to mine!

November 20th, 2014 at 4:47 pm

@okiegal: I agree completely: 1- we know he respects nole big time 2- it’s idiotic almost to infer an insult when he starts and ends his comment with compliments such superb, amazing 3- there is NO negative press or anything on this matter except on here started by a troll 4- we all know- those with common sense- that this could quite easily be a comment in Spanish by Rafael that has been interpreted in English in a manner that’s gives it a different slant 5- why do some- thankfully one- infer malice when from the said comment you could infer a pragmatic praise of nole by Nadal. Ultimately: it all boils down to what one feels Nadal intended to say and specifically his feelings for nole. If like many you feel he probably respects nole as a competitor more highly than anyone he’s ever faced then you’ll feel: nah dig there, especially if with amazing, superb comment. But if you feel he’s shady then you’ll conjure up a reading to soothe your Nadal is evil incarnate views. Lol: I only posted this because I thought it’s great to share one pro praising another, wish I had not now considering how even the slightest thing gets spinned as a dig when clearly it’s obvious he’s praising him.

November 20th, 2014 at 5:07 pm

@Brando……^^^^^ Tennis Now had a link on my Facebook account, but I didn’t bother to read it. You’re right, everyone can interpret the comment how they see fit. You could be right about the comment starting out in Spanish and translated to English. Either way I can certainly see how the real meaning could get screwed up. People who don’t like Rafa will not see it in that light at all.

November 20th, 2014 at 5:36 pm

“if you meant other players”
yes hippy i was thinking of the other players; nadal, fed, and andy have all had back injuries for example. i just wonder if nole’s yoga has anything to do with him – so far – being pretty well off in the injury department that’s all. sometimes it’s just genetics though, and obviously fed in particular has more mileage than the others.

November 20th, 2014 at 5:50 pm

Jane if he does do yoga,then thats probably why he can bend and stretch,and get to balls the others cannot,the others use the gym i believe,but they seem more muscular too,where Novaks more sinewy,i wonder if the diet is also something to do with it,im not a celeiac but i would like to know what he eats if only to lose a bit of weight and get fitter?….

November 20th, 2014 at 6:01 pm

hi hippy chick, you could look at his book “serve to win”; it even has recipes. he definitely does do yoga; both he and jelena do it. martina navratilova had a book out (obviously a long time ago), too, that was food related. it might be interesting to check out as an alternative, though i think both diets emphasized protein if i recall correctly. :)

November 20th, 2014 at 6:28 pm

Now the rafafanatics expect the global tennis world to help decipher what Rafa really means. Rafa speaks, now everyone decipher what it really means. Apparently he doesn’t speak for himself anymore.LMAO.

November 20th, 2014 at 10:37 pm

^^^^ If anyone is fanatical about Rafa on Tennis-X, it’s you skeezer.

Even on this thread, you were the first one to help us all decipher what Rafa really means.

You guys! All hail the King of the Rafanatics! Long live the King!

mew!

November 20th, 2014 at 10:57 pm

Comprehension problems again. I do agree with
Nadal, had he not been injured or had Djokovic been the one injured and he (Nadal) was healthy, guess who you think Nadal believes would be number one? Is that so hard to comprehend?

November 20th, 2014 at 11:05 pm

Rafa has been the master of come backs which is something very difficult to achieve in such a competitive sport. Distressingly for him, he has been plagued by physical problems in the past too and was compelled to take lay offs, but everytime he came back in a stunning and resounding fashion and silenced his critics who were hastening in writing his obituary. This shows his tenacity and will power braving against all odds to stamp his authority and announce his arrival in a big way. Will this time be any different ? I am sure Rafa will be going for his historic 10th Rolland Garros title, not that 9 is enough. What an incredible achievement that is in the annals of this sport, a player so dominant on a surface and incredibly difficult to dislodge.

November 20th, 2014 at 11:15 pm

Such a great player and I wonder why Rafa has not been able to improve the way of expressing himself and always lands in controversies where his statements are dissected and can be interpreted by both his hardcore supporters as well as opponents as they wish to imagine. The language barrier is Rafa’s biggest problem and I am not sure why he has not taken steps in addressing it as afterall he has been dominant in Tennis for over 14 years right from when he made his debut. Not only Rafa, all Spanish players have this problem except may be Robredo. Roger and Novak who are also alien to English do not encounter this problem for they are well versed in many languages and are in a position to express eloquently what they wish to say authoritatively without giving much room for interpretation. In Rafa’s case, it is quite the opposite and he searches for words expressing himself and always lands in a soup with his statements which are twisted, twirled and subjected to the tightest scrutiny. It is time Rafa concentrate on this most important aspect and improves his way of communication. He needs to do it as he is a Champion and with the power over expression he can offer many best suggestions to the sport in general.

November 20th, 2014 at 11:30 pm

@Michael……Rafa needs to stop doing interviews period……He gets himself in hot water more often than not and Uncle Tony too!! I’m kidding of course…… his English has improved over the
years but the meaning goes awry at times.

November 21st, 2014 at 12:05 am

Okiegal,

True. He has definitely improved, but not to the desired level. It is evident that his english has not improved like his monstrous game which has baffled many even including the likes of the Great Roger who couldn’t cope up with its ferocity, aggression, vigour and consistency. But when it comes to expressing in English, Rafa is faring worse than his contemporaries and often goes awry putting himself and his fans too in an embarrassing position often with his off-the-cuff remarks which leaves room for varied interpretation upsetting many. I am sure Rafa’s fans too would take it in the right spirit of what I wish to say and do not deride me of denigrating Rafa in any manner. I am ofcourse blunt but just stating the obvious.

November 21st, 2014 at 1:14 am

@Michael……I’ll have to admit to being taken aback by some of his statements as a fan. I assure you I take no offence to your comments……there is lots of room for improvement concerning his English, but you know what……he didn’t have to bother about trying to learn the language in the first place. All in all, he’s gotten better, imo.

November 21st, 2014 at 1:51 am

@OK
Lol Andy’s attempts at speaking Spanish would probably be pretty minimal!

November 21st, 2014 at 2:39 am

@Margot…….About 5 yrs ago I bought two books to try to teach myself Spanish. I also found some Spanish language exercises on the internet. Worked at it for awhile but gave up. I learned real quick you to have a good memory, so I was done before I got started. I think if I’d been younger I might could have learned it. Andy speaking Spanish would mess up that beautiful English accent, so I hope he leaves that alone! I hope he gets back on track, gosh, tennis needs these guys well. I’m anxious to see how DelPo does too. Cheers to you, Margot! Enjoy your posts!!

November 21st, 2014 at 3:13 am

Poor old skeezer still having comprehension problems. Lol

November 21st, 2014 at 3:39 am

Jane@ November 20th 6.28pm many thanks,and while im not really interested in life stories of famous people,the recipe bit sounds quite intersting,as i do really need to get fit and lose a bit of weight,the only problem is im not a particulaly good cook though either….

November 21st, 2014 at 5:03 am

I don’t think that there was any language issue here at all. He answered quite clearly. OFten, I hear that when Federer makes a questionable response, I’ve read the excuse that english is not his first language which is laughable also.

People just didn’t bother to read the full context of the interview.

Mentioning consistency,being an amazing player and avoiding significant injury is not a language barrier.

Oh great English speakers here, how would you have phrased it more palatable to your English sensibilities?

November 21st, 2014 at 8:39 am