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RafaLint: January 29th

Photo by Beth Wilson

Photo by Beth Wilson

It seems that a lot of the stuff included in this lint post caused rampaging speculation, paranoia, fear and loathing to be unleashed on twitter today. (Okay, I’m exaggerating, but hey, that’s what a lot of people seem to be doing today.) I was lucky enough to miss most of it because I had a very busy day at work. But I’d just like to encourage people to calm down. Rafa’s not played at a competitive level for a long time. His body is remembering the hell that is and might be wary of returning to that kind of torture. I bet the number of guys on the tour who play without pain can be counted on one hand. It’s just about: will the pain hamper his movement and game. We can’t know that until he’s actually playing at a tournament level. So, let’s just take a deep breath and wait and see. (Also, please remember, Rafa said he wasn’t going to come back until he’s ready.)

Feeling more calm? Okay, now you can enjoy this article: Black Toenails and the Atmospheric King – by Brian Phillips (grantland.com).

But Nadal is 26. Twenty-six! He’s less than a year older than Djokovic and Murray. He’s not a holdover from some phased-out generation; this is supposed to be his prime. And tennis — I’ve written about this before — is richer and crazier and more consistently stunning when his berserk tenacity is part of it. Win or lose, no one pushes the other top players to new heights like Nadal does, which is why he’s been involved in a disproportionately large share of great matches over the last … well, eternity. Wimbledon ’07, Wimbledon ’08, Australia ’09,5 Australia ’12; that’s just scratching the surface. Federer’s the greatest player ever, but I’m increasingly convinced that Nadal is the key to the greatness of this whole era.

So is there any chance we’re going to get him back? Any chance he gets his knee’s busted insides rebuilt, for a couple of years at least, and comes screaming onto the court in the middle of the same old whirlwind? All I want from tennis in 2013 is for a healthy Nadal to launch a sustained assault on absolutely everyone else. Federer, Obama, you name it. I don’t even care if he wins or loses, I just want him back and throwing javelins. It seems unlikely at this point, but consider that — having barely stood on a court in months — he’s still the oddsmakers’ favorite to win at Roland Garros, where he is 52-1 since his debut at the age of 18. Say he comes back and wins an eighth title there this year. Say he’s still as relentless as a hellhound and hellhoundishly starved for more majors. You wouldn’t be giddy about Wimbledon after that? Doesn’t the whole ATP Tour suddenly look twice as compelling?

Get well, Rafa!

Release the hounds!

There will be TV coverage of the first Rafa/Pico doubles match! Let’s home someone streams it.

Articles:

Videos/Audio:

Rafa does social media:

Social media related to Rafa:

(Sorry for all the embeds, but twitter was hopping today!)

Rafel Nadal @ esportsib3tv recognizes that “I have yet sore knee”

@RafaelNadal Manacor trained this morning feeling good despite the inconvenience that still claims to have pic.twitter.com/w1KvCN5b

Rafel Nadal: “I am delighted that David (Ferrer) has got to be the 4. Hopefully reach 3 and play a Grand Slam final”

Nadal: “I saw the end of the year because I have not in my TV channel Eurosport. I can not comment. But I congratulate the two, especially Novak”

Nadal: “I have wanted to start playing, hopefully the knee hold the tour,” said a @ esportsib3tv

Nadal: “The doctors say that all is well. My only goal is to hold the knee”

Which mangles to: Rafel Nadal: “Now we have to see how competition tolerate pain, but you have to start playing”


« RafaLint: January 28th
RafaLint: January 30th »

29 Jan 2013 | by | 21 Comments


21 Comments »

  1. Nikhil says:
    January 30, 2013 at 2:32 am

    The article by Brian philips was interesting . Thanks for the lint :)

    Reply
  2. Ch F says:
    January 30, 2013 at 4:43 am

    It is true that the articles about Rafa’s comeback aren’t very encouraging but for some reason I read all of this with a great deal of distance. What were they supposed to say? That Rafa will come back and win everything at once? let’s be realistic. It’s going to be a tough one, for us fans but mostly for him, battling with his doubts and his physical and mental condition. It is true that the tour changes and that the level of the top 3 is very high, but hey Rafa has surprised us before, he might do it again. Let’s keep that in mind, let’s keep the hope flickering but also expect realistic things in the immediate future, so that any negative result comes as part of a phase he has to go through to regain the top rather than an indication of his future in tennis.

    Reply
    • JayDee50 says:
      January 30, 2013 at 5:32 am

      Well said, and I wholeheartedly agree with your last sentence.

      Reply
    • patzin says:
      January 30, 2013 at 7:19 pm

      I agree with your comments. It must be a bit scary for him returning next week. I worry about the ‘pain’ comments, but as others have said, he has dealt with this pain for most of his pro years. So one step at a time, win or lose; and let’s see what happens. Win or lose – we support him conditionally.

      Reply
  3. leslie says:
    January 30, 2013 at 11:12 am

    Quote from the Brian Phillips article”All I want from tennis in 2013 is for a healthy Nadal to launch a sustained assault on absolutely everyone else.”
    YES! ABSOLUTELY YES! …. Nothing could be better!
    Especially since I am convinced a Healthy Rafa can knock anyone off that court!

    Reply
  4. emir says:
    January 30, 2013 at 11:36 am

    I chose to think positively,I think doctors give him permission to compete for a reason.It is a fact that he has pain in the knees since 05 or something.Rafas knee problems has a long history, the problems didnt begin last year or 09 when he lost in RG and has to withdrew from Wimbledon.I think the big question is if he can endure this pain and be competitive again.To expect his knees would be better than ever because he rest them 6 months would be wishful thinking.

    Reply
    • Ch F says:
      January 30, 2013 at 2:09 pm

      Well resting the knees certainly can’t harm, right? I suppose he will always feel some pain but if the doctors told him that he has done all that is possible to keep the knee problem under control, I guess that will give him some extra confidence. We cannot expect things to be perfect, but we can be sure that the situation he was in before the time off was not sustainable anymore.

      Reply
  5. Scooterdan says:
    January 30, 2013 at 1:17 pm

    I just want to see him walk on that court with his bag and his gear,with that walk of his looking so focussed and serious, bandana in place, ready for battle. Just can’t wait. Nothing like it. The results for me really at this point do not matter.
    Selfishly, I hope he can make it to Indian Wells because I have already purchased tickets and airfare….but I worry about the pain…..

    Reply
    • JayDee50 says:
      January 30, 2013 at 3:00 pm

      …. and then to sit and place the water bottles, wipe himself with the towel, jog over to the net, stand and bounce bounce bounce whilst staring at his opponent, do his zig-zag jog to the baseline……oh I JUST CANNOT WAIT :) Did I forget anything? heh….

      Reply
    • scully says:
      January 30, 2013 at 5:25 pm

      Touching Words of Ms Scooterdan and Ms Jaydee50 made my cry…
      Thank you for reminding me of those happy memories.
      I’m sure exciting and thrilling moments with Rafa is just about to begin!

      Reply
    • nolanola says:
      January 30, 2013 at 6:30 pm

      I’m going to Indian Wells also…hoping that he comes, hoping more that he is without stress and pain wherever he plays.

      Reply
  6. Rafafan says:
    January 30, 2013 at 3:24 pm

    Hi all, to be honest this is more worrying than ever! I suppose it wasn’t a given that after 8 months all the pain will go and having rested well….. the pain is still there.

    Emir, you are normally so pessimistic but I understand where you are coming from.

    Since 2005 it seems to be obvious now that Rafa has always been in pain. He tries for every ball which is amazing (perhaps he won’t so much now) – his competitive spirit is second to none – but I think it isn’t the great likes of Joker, Fed or Muzy but his own body and pain that he has to battle with and win. Didn’t he say once he had to endure the pain? The fact he did this with 11 grand slams in the bag tells you about the mentality of our guy and maybe why we love him so much because his competitiveness and the fact he won’t give in to his knees. But I suppose there comes a point…. I am so scared that he will not last these three tourneys. This would be worse then his loss to Rosel, or Soderling or his 7 final losses to Joker. It would mean the end I guess…..

    Reply
  7. Rafafan says:
    January 30, 2013 at 4:14 pm

    I am sorry, didn’t mean to be so pessimistic myself. Had a bad day!

    Reply
  8. viki viki says:
    January 30, 2013 at 5:13 pm

    I just hope that Rafa and his team are doing everything right, and not rushing back too soon. I dont know why mats wilander said all that s..t really, i know, it will be hard to get back to his previous level,it will take time for sure.. but talking about rafa taking the RG like it is some kind of miracle, it is too much…i think personaly that rafa and his team are hoping for Roland Garros, why would he play 3 tournaments in a row on clay, cause he wants to take the rust off in first tournaments, and be good for Montecarlo, and perfect for RG, which is hard, very hard, but not imposible, and rafa is the master of the imposimbible :)

    Reply
  9. Sharon/London says:
    January 30, 2013 at 6:55 pm

    I ignore what Wilander has to say, I’m not a fan of the man. I think we will know more where Rafa is with the knee after the 3 tournaments. I’m just pleased to see him take to the court win or lose and pray that he stays healthy.
    Match fitness and confidence is all he needs now. Come Roland Garros I would still put all my money on Rafa to win. He will not give up the crown without a fight. He had the best fortnight ever at RG last Year ,he played sensational tennis every match while in awful pain in the knees. Need I say more!

    I’m fed up with all the media speculation ,so quick to write Rafa off before he has even returned. Tennis needs him, tournaments need him, the people need him and the other players need him. He has pushed Novak and Andy to up their game to another level and Roger to adapt his game. Yet Rafa leads the h2h over all the other 3 I believe.

    Can’t wait till next week. Very excited.

    Reply
  10. Joel Cooley says:
    January 31, 2013 at 10:48 am

    Not terribly surprised to hear Rafa comment that he still has pain in the knee. However, how long has it been where he didn’t, in fact, have some discomfort in the knees? He’s had knee issues, to my knowledge, for about 6 or 7 years now. If the doctors say he is clear to play, its still a good sign, even if he isn’t going to be able to play completely free of pain. He’s won Slams with knee pain.

    I paid close attention to Agassi’s comments in regard to his comeback, in saying that Rafa should realistically expect it to take a year to be back to where he wants. I think of all people, Agassi is quite qualified in saying as much, as he’s been on the tour, and had extended absences. Further, to simply be back to where he can consistently compete with the other Big 3, its going to take time.

    I personally am of the hope that he can get back to that level just for one more stretch of time, as i’m fearful that this is likely his last hurrah at being a top level player. The number of injuries, their severity, their frequency, the depth and talent of the field at hand, all look kind of ominous moving forward.

    At the same time, his willingness to continually overcome is what makes his distinctly who he is. I can’t wait to watch and see if he can climb the mountain one more time. And take us all with him!

    Reply
    • Ch F says:
      January 31, 2013 at 11:18 am

      I see your point and you might be right. What is really positive though is that he was willing to be absent for a long time with the hope to be around much longer, and this means that he wants it. He is certainly not discouraged at this point, I just hope his knee behaves well so he can take heart and keep on trying. I don’t want to imagine what will happen if those first weeks don’t go well.

      Reply
  11. jodiecate says:
    February 1, 2013 at 7:09 am

    Thanks Miri for the link to the Brian Phillips article, i haven’t read any of his stuff before – he’s a real find!!

    I think it’s really mature for everyone not to be expecting great stuff from Rafa straight up, that’s it’s going to take time to get back to where he was etc. etc. But i can’t join in. Sorry. I expect a final at least!

    It’s only a 250 tourney. It’s on clay, his native tongue. Apart from Pico the closest seeds are no. 32 Jeremy Chardy, no. 42 Pablo Andujar and 50. Albert Ramos. There’s not even any top 10 opponents. Couple of tricky experienced players, could put up a fight. But they’d haf to have a particularly good day. Hey, i’m not here to jinx anyone. I just seriously do not expect Rafa’s ranking to drop to 141 or anything like that. I think the South American swing is a great way to start – on clay and taking baby steps. I just don’t see him getting out of his own depth in these tourneys.

    Reply
  12. jodiecate says:
    February 1, 2013 at 7:18 am

    ALSO… what’s with the doing four, or six/seven, blood doping tests in two weeks? Sounds like over-kill with not a lot to show for it:

    So Monday, tests free from any banned substances; Wednesday, ditto; Friday, ditto; Tuesday, ditto; Thursday, ditto; Saturday, ditto.

    Seriously, they could be putting that money into much more effective use.

    Reply

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