CAMELOT FANTASIES

Rafa off to a good start.

snags 4th UAE title.

Rafa gets it done in Brisbane.


And Andy is well on his way to winning his 26th match in a row.

General, I saw the match from the second set on.

About midway through the second set, it looked like Rafa started losing energy.
Maybe he used up a lot in the first set getting the lead?  I didn't see it, so I don't know.

At any rate, it looks like his fitness is still a problem.  Ok, we are early in the season, so he has a little time to get fit, especially once he hits the clay.
But his positioning on return, and his return is still a big problem.

I realize Raonic is one of the best servers in the game, but on second serve Rafa was still 5 meters behind the baseline.
It makes him look scared out there and it makes it difficult for him to return deep. 
When he did return it, he was fortunate to get the ball back to the service line.  I think one return didn't even make it to the net.
Then if Rafa can't break, it puts more pressure on his own serve.
Near the end, it simply looked like Rafa had no idea where Raonic was going to serve, and Raonic routinely closed it out after breaking once at the start of the set.

Moya and Uncle Toni have simply got to get Nadal to move in closer on return on faster hard courts.  He is giving up too much court and angles. He has quick enough reactions.
Sure Raonic is ranked #3 and a tougher, better player these days, but if I see Rafa become more fit, and returning more aggressively, instead of camping in downtown Brisbane, and he still loses, then congratulate Raonic and that's it.

Early in the second, I did see some solid forehands from Rafa.
The good news is that I still see much room for improvement from him.  But he has to start doing it...

In other matches, Djokovic was very lucky to win today over Verdasco.  Novak played very poorly from a 4-2 lead to lose the first set, and Verdasco had a 6-2 lead in the second set tiebreaker, and a total of 5 match points, and couldn't put some sitters away, losing the set and naturally the match. 

If Djokovic can't pick up his game significantly, he should be well beaten by Murray tomorrow who routined Berdych today.

Respectfully,
masterclass

Big win for Rafa.

He has a great chance on Monday.

Monfils is 2-12 against Rafa.

there goes my prediction.

Andy is out of the tournament.

Rafa getting it done.

Just 2 more victims to go.

it will be Rafa vs Roger at the Australian Open final.

Congrats to Rafa and his fans!  He got it done in 5 against a good Dynamitrov.

This one seemed destined to happen after the big meeting in Manacor at Rafa's Academy.

left to right: Wimbledon Chairman Philip Brook, his wife, Rafa, ITF President David Haggerty, ATP Chairman Chris Kermode, Roger.

Let's see what happens in the finals. 

Respectfully,
masterclass

General, there is no doubt that these two have been and are the face of tennis.

Roger just said that Rafa is playing as well as ever.

Rafa says he feels very lucky to be in the final with Roger.

By now, they know what to say for the media's consumption.

Keys for Nadal:   Returns and positioning must be better.  He cannot afford to hit short and mid court balls against Roger.  He can't put himself out of position by running around the forehand. His backhand has been excellent and he should trust it.   Nadal also needs to get 75% or better of his first serves in.  His second serve has been punished at times this tournament.

Keys for Federer:   He must play relaxed and not think too much.  He has so many different shots he can hit, he at times has brain farts when he has too much time to think.
This is especially true on break points.   He gave away the 2015 US Open to Novak by just blowing one break point after another failing to convert on 19 tries.  The down the line backhand will be a key shot for Federer when he gets the open court.  Typically, Nadal's forehand to his backhand side has to much topspin and bounces too high for Federer to deliver the powerful down the line shot, and he is often forced to slice.  But the conditions are a bit quicker and balls have not been bouncing so high, and Nadal has been hitting flatter than usual. 

Match Play keys:   Nadal will try to slow down play as much as possible, while Federer will try to speed it up.  Let us see if the chair umpire becomes involved.  Federer will probably try to play very aggressively, approaching the net whenever he sees an opportunity (short ball) to pressure Nadal.  Therefore, Nadal's success on passing shots will become a key factor.  In the past, especially at the AO, and clay naturally, the conditions have been too slow for Federer to have much success at the net game and Nadal has been able to pass Federer.  Will the quicker conditions this year change that dynamic or not?

Fitness:  Federer says he has been carrying an injury to his hip abductor since the second round, but it hasn't prevented him from playing well.  Rafa says he was tired after the Dynamitrov match.  Will one day rest be enough for him to recover this time?   Will he get out of the blocks more slowly? 

Ramifications: If Nadal wins he will be the only player entirely in the Open Era to win at least 2 of each major in his career.  Another historical moment is at hand.  He will also finally pass Pete Sampras and sit alone with 15 majors and trail Federer by just two, with his favorite Roland Garros coming up next.   If Federer wins, he will stretch his own record to 18, and make it even more difficult to catch him.

Anyway General, I'm hoping for a good match, and good luck and health to the players.

Respectfully,
masterclass