CAMELOT FANTASIES

I do like Feli, and while I think he's talented, he's not much of a tactician. As far as talent, I would take Verdasco over Feli, another one who can't seem to put it all together. But, I definitely don't think either are more talented than Nadal. Nadal is special, so special. Never been another player that plays like him. He's inimitable. To me, that's talent.

I guess I'm bored of the knock offs. I wanted to see something new and original and that's what I get with Nadal.

TBH, I don't watch Dmitrov unless he's playing one of the Big 4, so I was surprised to see him perform this way. I watched him a bit when he first started getting noticed and so this behavior seemed foreign to me.

Didn't recognize the Sharapova link, but it's not a good look for me.

Everyone is talented on the pro tour. It's just a matter of question to what degree or to what extent. But first we need to identify what talent is.

Talent is something inherited. Something one is born with. Something that comes naturally to you. That's talent. Anything else is learned. So which talent are we talking about? Learned or inherited one?

For example, Andy doesn't have a forehand that is natural to him. In other words, it doesn't come naturally to him. What he has now is learned. On the other hand, Nadal's forehand is born with. It comes very easy to him. He doesn't need to do anything special to improve it.

Now that's the technical aspects of talent. Then there's the physical aspect such as speed and movement. Who's natural in this instance?

Then there's the mental aspects of talent. Who's mentally very tough especially in clutch moments? Who thrives on it? Who sees it as an opportunity rather than trouble? What's the difference between this person who thrives on it and the person who tends to fold?

Pure technical talent alone won't get any player that far. One must have discipline, dedication and the hunger for it. Someone who's physically fit, moves like a cat and in lightspeed. Someone who can mentally stay calm under extreme situations. By that I don't only mean the game itself, but the conditions as well. Someone who is comfortable at the net or at the baseline. Someone who possess more than one weapon that comes very naturally to them and can switch to several gears when situation requires it. Who can pull it through week in week out without the drop of the level - in other words, who's game, physical aspects of things and mentality is most consistent that comes very naturally to them without much work.

Anything else is learned - nothing wrong with it either but that also means it's their weakness that he/she is trying to improve. Talent is strength. Anything learned is essentially regarded as a weakness.

While Murray doesn't have a natural forehand, you can see from the list that he does have plenty other talent that comes very naturally to him. What separates him from Nadal (right now anyway) is that, Murray is not as talented mentally as Nadal. But when it comes to technicality and physicality, Murray is more talented than Nadal because he is versatile and offers more than Nadal.

Federer, for example, while far more talented than Nadal, Nadal trumps him in the mental department. The mental strength, the fact that he's strong and dedicated, is a talent itself and it far exceeds whatever Federer can offer.

So when I was talking about Feli, I meant in terms of technicality. Then I went on to state in my post that Nadal is however mentally very strong and that separates the two simply because, Nadal's mental ability far exceeds Feli's tennis abilities or anyone's of the current era - perhaps only Nole comes close or even surpass him.

Like Federer, Murray is very weak in the mental department and that's why he needed to hire Lendl. It is his weakness. I know the Brits have their excuses when it comes to Andy, but had Sampras were to come from the same country, he wouldn't have cared about any of this nonsense. He would have gone about his usual way and established his superiority over all others, because he was incredibly talented as all his abilities or talents were inborn. He was almost flawless.