CAMELOT FANTASIES

general masterclass you know me too well.


of course that is what he does even in practice. he avoids hitting backhands as much as possible. he even practices from his forehand corner.

tony cant do a damn thing. rafa brings home the bacon and is one of the greatest players ever lived. he has the highest winning percentage in the sport in the open era.


what the hell can you tell him? he wont listen. he listens to just 3 people: his mom, his dad, and his sister.


tony is a cheerleader. I keep telling people that for the last 7 years but nobody listens. rafa does not listen to tony. he only talks to him but on the court rafa does his own thing.

he is very much a creature of habit.

now he did produce some subtle changes last year on the hard court circuit which helped him win all those titles.

he had the misfortune of hurting his back in Melbourne. after that injury he went right back to his comfort zone.

it nearly cost him in rio. andujar had him on the ropes and should have won.

nadal does not target his practice sessions. it is pretty easy to tell.

he wont really work on his return which is his greatest liability. he avoids backhands as much as possible.

in a match he still finds himself terrified of the net. he makes is so hard on himself.

I know he wins a lot but there is a distrurbing trend that nobody has noticed: he has lost a lot of finals since the end of 2010.

the reason why I am worried is because he is nearly at the tail end of his prime. he has to make it work for 2-3 more years because he is going to find it difficult to win slams after that.

injuries keep holding him back but he also holds himself back to a considerable extent.

anyway I remain worried but we will see.

nole is on record for saying that he is simply going to outwork everybody on the tour. he is also blessed with good health so that does not hurt.

roger is pretty much injury free and working like a dog on his game. this clay season is not going to be that easy for Rafa based on what we have seen in indian wells and in Miami. he is going to need some luck along the way.

right now I have to say that he is far from his best.

Great post, CD. You do know Rafa well. He is stubborn alright.