great to see you general postpre.
healthy and reasonably fit clay warrior cannot be defeated in full combat (best of 5 sets battle) at RG in a final.
it is just a very tough ask.
only a fool would bet against him. steve tignor, jon wetheim, and Darren cahill were such fools. they have learned very little about Rafa even after watching him at RG for 10 long years.
the guy has something like 91-1 record in a best of 5 sets matches on clay in his lifetime.
as the great general masterclass has indicated, Rafa was not quite himself there this year. he would hit 38 unforced errors. his backhand was horrible for 1/2 of the match and he returned poorly by his standards. he was often 16-18 feet behind the baseline and gave up too much real estate.
he had even dropped some of his usual supreme fitness this year.
compare that to his best like in 2008 when he hit just 7 unforced errors in the final against a very dangerous opponent.
he was there to be had this year and still he willed himself a victory.
I cant afford to bet against him.
His will is unbelievable. He never ceases to amaze me.
Remember when he went up in the stands and whispered to Toni. This is reportedly what he said. I got this from FB but couldn't get the picture.
Rafa to Toni: "Call an ambulance"....
Yeah,my heart skipped a few beats,too, when I read this. In case you didn't see this,when Rafa went up to greet his family, he hugged Toni but then murmured something to him. He told Toni that he(Rafa) had had cramps since the 3rd set and that Toni should call an ambulance. Toni,however, thought of something better. Dr. Angel Ruiz (who I think is the Davis cup doctor) was there and Toni asked for his help.After the ceremony, The doctor gave Rafa the needed serum,and Toni assured the journalists that everything was fine now.