My thoughts on Rafa’s loss to Fernando
Photo by Jasper Juinen/ Getty Images
Mostly what I can say about this match is it was weird. My observation was that Fernando’s strategy was to hit behind Rafa whenever he could, Rafa’s to pound Fer’s backhand and wait for him to make mistakes. In the first set, Verdasco’s plan was working perfectly, mostly because Rafa was not even attempting to change direction. I have only seen Rafa move (or rather not move) like that once and that was the Australian Open match against David Ferrer when he had that pulled leg muscle. I have heard anything about an injury except that Rafa said his hip was bothering him from all the pushing. I assume that was just muscle fatigue and not something that he couldn’t overcome. In the meantime, Rafa’s strategy was not working at all since hitting everything to the same place results in not forcing your opponent to move around the court. Another issue I observed was that Rafa was tentative in pulling the trigger for a winner when he had the advantage in the point. Time and again I was left waiting for him to smash the ball by Nando, and time and time, he just hit it back to his backhand. I can only think that was because he was not confident in his footwork. Consequently, Verdasco wins first set 6-3.
In the second set and early in the third, Rafa abandoned the game-plan of just hitting to the backhand and mixed it up a bit. He realized that he was not going to win without moving so he started to do that. It was not the wonderful sliding all over the court that you see on the real clay courts though. More like a hard-court moving. With his strategy not so effective anymore, Fer started making more errors, especially double faults. He was clearly frustrated, even demonstrating how slick the court was by pantomiming cross country skiing. At this point, I felt bad for him. I didn’t want to see him melt down in front of his home crowd. I wanted to see a well-played match with Rafa coming out the winner. I don’t know what I was thinking because Rafa’s only game plan was for Fer to lose the match.
I really can’t even begin to explain how Rafa blew the 2 break lead in the third set. Of course, everybody knows it started with the missed smash into the net. I attribute that again to no confidence in the footwork and also some complicated shadows as at that point only ¼ of the court was getting sun, the deuce court on Rafa’s side. So ball coming out of shade into sun…, complicated but Rafa doesn’t miss smashes. When he lost the first “serving for the match” game, I wasn’t concerned because I didn’t think that Fer had it in him to win the match. But I was wrong. With that break and a convincing service hold (not a common site in this match for either player), Verdasco found the confidence to win. Rafa didn’t know what to do. And that was the match.
I promise to send more and pictures at some point, but need to run off to watch Delpo and Dolgo. Now I will be rooting for Daveeed (how many e’s in that?) and Marc! and Marcel to win. Hope they don’t play at the same time today!
Loading ...
Thanks for the write-up, Deb. That can’t have been a fun match to sit through.
Great write up,and your site is a must for all things Rafa.Sad that he lost,but I was worried he would get some awful injury,just really hoping he does not lose #2 because of this.
Jackovic just lost…are we reading something in this?
The topic is Rafa’s loss to Verdasco. Thanks. Also, no demeaning player nicknames.
I am so sorry… I really did not mean disrespect…it was a spelling mistake. I should know better then to be off topic.
Francine form Montreal
Okay, thanks. I wasn’t sure if it was spelling or what.
Good job, Deb. More or less the way I saw it, too.
I was embarrassed for both of them; the fake clay made them look incompetent, which I think was especially hard for Rafa. Lots of ugly “tennis” in this match, and in others there as well.
You are totally right Melissa. The looked incompetent, Rafa even more so. I know that must have hurt him because he always said that he would not get angry if he played well and lost, it is when he does not compete well that he gets upset. The court conditions made it impossible for Rafa to compete well. He looked like he could not put a ball in court. Fer was not much better. He just managed to put in a decent patch when Rafa was going off the boil and took the match. I just hope Rafa can put this behind him and prepare well for Roland Garros. I really want him to win it, any other thing is a bonus. Vamos campeon!
They looked incompetent, sorry for typo.
Rafa played a stellar match in the 2nd round, Rafa is well capable to do that, He has trounced Verdasco 14 times, with many bagels, If one looks carefully, there really is not much to think as to y Rafa lost this match.
The surface tho clay plays just like a hard court & worse with the slipper conditions. Though this event is tune up to RG, it really is of absolutely no help to RG, as its just like playing on a hard court. Secondly rafa’s draw was horrible.
Rafa yday didnt play to win the match, He played to lose, as he wanted to get away from it ASAP. Sorry, Thats what I think, Y play on a slippery surface, which is not good for Rafa’s game as well as his health when RG is soo near???
If Rafa withdraws it wont look good since its his home, thats y he gave up the match to Fernando. He didnt do it in the 2nd round bcoz, he needs to take care of the H2H against Davydenko.
On to Rome!!! Vamos Rafa!!!
I totally agree with you! I was watching the game and was so happy because I never imagined that Rafa can loose a match with 2 breaks lead, 5-2, and his service. I’m not saying that consciously he lost the match but maybe he had in his mind that today the rival would be Berdych, he would have another time to probably injure himself, so if it is better to lose with a friend, a Madrid native, make for him the most wonderful day . So after knowing: “I have it, let it go”. May be? What do you think?
Exactly my thoughts Pati, why get injured playing or lose down the line to Berdy or Delpo and give them confidence for the future matchups?? Much better to lose against Verdasco!
i don’t think the competitor in Rafa has it in him to concious let go of a match, no way!
He risk losing the no. 2 off the world spot here!
However, i do think ( and we have seen it before, i esp remember the WTF 09 and 11 ) that his motivation to win in this tournament was’nt very high and when Rafa lacks that motivation it just seems to me that he simply is not able to put in his all and plays without much of a game plan. His mental strenght which is, for me, the one xtra special thing that makes Rafa stand out from the rest off the players is gone when he is’nt too motivated and then there is way for Rafa to loose to any given player on any day!
The techincal analyse off his tennis imo from Deb is correct. thanks for your write up!
It certainly was bizarre to watch even on TV. I just think that all the negativity about the blue clay, altitude, Tiriac, and slipperiness turned into a head trip that, this time, he couldn’t get himself out of. So interesting that Fernando was the one who was mentally tougher on this occasion. I was taken aback by Fernando’s crying afterward. I knew all those losses to Rafa must have been tough for him to take, but I think I underestimated how deep the feelings (maybe the embarrassment)had been.
I wasn’t going to watch the match but after reading Aruna’s comment I’m curious to see what happened. I wouldn’t occur to me that Rafa was tanking a match. That’s why I suggested in a comment yesterday that he might have slipped and then just tensed up. And if you can’t move freely on a court forget it.
Deb, btw, thanks for the write up. I’m sure it was a bummer of a match to see in person.
Annie, There is no other way to put it, Rafa losing from being
5-2 up in the deciding set, thats unheard of. He just played to get out of that blue stuff uninjured, as he said in his post interview “it destabilises his game & he dosent want to risk it”.
I think you’re right Aruna. Someone said he looked near tears towards the end. Probably miserable and angry.
But there’s a huge difference between saying “tanked” and “played to avoid injury” – one implies no effort (and is a fine-able offense, in theory) while the other implies effort, but within parameters. I think the latter is probably more accurate.
totally agree, Miri.
I doubt Rafa has it in him to play to lose, but in addition to trying to avoid injury, it’s very easy to self-sabotage, unconsciously, when you’re in a situation you don’t want to be in. People do it all the time.
Do none of you remember the match against Del Potro in Miami in 2009 ? Rafa was up there and serving for the match twice and couldn’t hold either time. After the match he called it “amazing disaster.” I once saw Federer play against Tsonga in Canada and Fed was up 5-1 in the 3rd set and lost the match. The bottom line is for even the greatest players of all time, things can snowball and go south very quickly. This typically happens a few times to even the best players in every era. This time is no different. If anything, this one is a little more understandable b/c of the craziness in Madrid at the Caja Magica. I think it is quite possible Rafa just may have pulled a muscle b/c his serve was just not there after he went up 5-2. He was broken at love the second time which is rare even when he’s playing his worst. Now we see Uncle Toni saying he advised Rafa not to play and pull out of the tournament and you can see why. I for one am glad Rafa went fishing and took a break. He’ll be back next week refreshed on a surface and venue that he’s familiar with. I think the early loss at Madrid will allow him to skip this tournament in future years irrespective of what they do. The altitude always messes up the players rhythm anyway. The surface change just exacerbated things a little further.
“It” wouldn’t occur to me. sorry for the typo
Deb … thanks for posting this. Its always very informative and interesting to hear someone’s thoughts who actually saw it for real, so thanks for that.
Sad for you that you don’t get to see more Rafa, but enjoy the rest of the tournament.
Thanks for this analysis/description.Imagine tennis played on an ice skating rink. What would it be like? That sounds extreme, but it also sounds as if for Rafa, at least in a large part of this match, the tennis was similar to what one would imagine on an ice rink. imagine trying to move forward accelerating to hit a smash. , to power a shot down the line off one or other of BH or FH side while running hard sideways (think of the way rafa often does a 180, backwards, after returning serve wide in the deuce court) , but unable to plant a foot and drive though a shot….
I can see a high level of frustration happening for a guy like rafa who is so…intense and so focussed…and for whom court movement is such a part of his game. Indeed when I first started watching rafa in 2008 it was his speed around the court and incredible “turn defense into offense” skills that mesmerized me.
So i think the blue clay could be very different for very player ….even though it is on the surface the “same” for every player. Watching del potro vs dolgo today two things were evident – power strokes and serve work VERY well, fast movements don’t – e.g. dolgo didn’t even attempt to get to the wide deuce court serves.
so mentally there must have been a hell of a lot going on for rafa – the result (3 service drops in a row) speak for themselves….
i don’t think it was mental issues about the next game that were bothering him – more like ….what the hell is going on here…it feels like i’m playing tennis on a skating drink …..
Does anyone know what was done to the courts overnight? or between matches? maybe the surface had changed from the time he played Davydenko?
I don’t know what happens to the courts overnight, but I can say that there is a lot of tending to the court during the match. In other tournaments, I have seen them watering the courts between sets. Here they are water and dragging the court even during sets. I think they started that Thursday after Nole complained.
I’m to the point where I’ve lost interest in the tournament. Not because Rafa lost or I’m boycotting it, but I just have a lot of doubt about the quality of tennis to expect.
I agree. This is not the type of tennis I wanted to see when I spent a lot of money to come here.
The writers are saying that if Federer wins Madrid, he will pass Rafa for #2. I looked at the ranking points, and Rafa has 9615, and Fed has 8520. Last year’s Madrid points are already gone, so Rafa will have 90 more for 9705, and if Fed wins, he will have 9520, still less than Rafa. So, what gives?
See? This is why I hate off-topic posts. The rankings have now been discussed in 2 non-ranking threads with people politely posting just how it is that Fed will become #2 if he wins.
The fact that he requested (and was denied) to wear grass shoes goes to the instability of the court. Rafa’s whole game revolves around his foot work, and if he can’t move, he can’t play his type of game. The SMURFace was like a hard court to him – I don’t think I saw him slide hardly at all – and that is such a shame.
SMURFace is priceless! I wonder if just being allowed to wear different shoes (all players), would have been enough to give Rafa the confidence to win that match.
The surface may have had the worst drawbacks for Rafa and Novak, but it is affecting others badly as well. I watched Serena, and she isn’t moving all that much; with Sharapova and in today’s match she often stood almost flatfooted and just watched the few returns go by. Fed and Serena both had some difficulty when they did slide sideways. Delpo couldn’t stop and slid right into the back wall with his shoulder; luckily it was near the end of his match — I hope it doesn’t affect his play today. That said, some players are apparently able to adjust sufficiently.
I think Rafa knew he’d never get permission to wear grass shoes, though it’s clearly not a clay court. He was making a graphic point to TPTB. It’s no secret that he and Novak have been very unhappy about several ATP issues, and the way this was handled will certainly not be forgot, especially as it’s a matter of safety.
Yes, Djokovic also lost. I am glad Nole is together with Rafa in speaking out against the blue clay and the terrible conditions, maybe it will motivate Tiriac to improve the courts. Also, anyone can make a typo, it’s not about insulting anyone at all. I like Nole, just not my favourite as Rafa is.
I saw the match and the unraveling of Rafa…It was a complete mental shut down for Rafa and it seems there was nothing he could do about it. He is hungry to win and will be back in full force for Rome and Roland Garros, I don’t doubt it.
The one thing I dislike more than the absurdity of the blue courts is the ridiculous commentators who criticized Rafa for questioning his criticism of the money issue in the sport. They stated that players like him benefit from sponsorships, so how could he. The idiots do not get the point. It is when organizers and sponsors forget they are dealing with human beings and not lifeless products when someone must stand up. Bravo Rafa for being strong and brave.
i gather from what Santana said they worked on the courts Wednesday night and Nole and Rafa had completed their 1st matches by then. Whatever work was done, it appears the court was worse than the previous day. I watched the match and it was not Rafa “the king of clay” out there. You could see he was scared to move and run for the ball as he did not want to get an injury.
All i can say is im so glad Rafa got the heck out of there asap.
May the best man win and the players finish the tournament injury free, and hope that the traditional RED DIRT returns for next year.