Be Like LLeyton
*Ed. Note: Peter Bodo is on vacation until August 16th. In his absence, we are proud to present commentary by the TW Tribe.
*When I took up the opportunity to write about the second-best player on the planet, I asked myself the question that I was supposed to answer in 750 words: "What are Rafael Nadal's chances at this year's U.S Open?"
Like Dunlop Maxply, my answer was: "Pretty good."
Post-Wimbledon, the Tennis community was quick to declare that the U.S Open was destined to host yet another final between the ATP's two titans.
Their logic was simple yet solid: If Roger made it to the final bastion of Rafael's Clay Stronghold and Rafa made it to Roger's Lawn Cathedral, of course they'll meet on a even surface; the hardcourts of Flushing are a "neutral" surface between fast grass and snail-paced clay.
I was even tempted to think along those logical lines, even though Henman's quote (calling the surface at Flushing faster than Wimbledon) kept spinning around my head. It seemed reasonable but, unfortunately, no 750-word answer was bailing me out of my predicament.
After one of the first night sessions at Toronto, I turned ESPN's Sportscenter on as background music to my late-night online reading. As the show was starting, one of the announcers quoted Nadal as saying: "This is the start of the most important part of my season."
I stopped reading and turned that quote over and over, again and again, in my head. "That's it!" I screamed, "we've all been missing the point!" Why would Nadal say that? Especially if you consider that, at the time he made the quote, his season looked like this:
- Nadal had trounced Fed in four finals.
- Rafa defended his two MS titles and Roland Garros.
- He broke Vilas' all-time clay win streak
- Rafael made the final at Wimbledon.
I thought that Nadal holding his ground on clay was a lot more important than the U.S Open Series. I was sure that making the final at Wimby managed to top his previous achievements. Didn't these accomplishments make the rest of Nadal's year seem like a giant bonus?
No, and the explanation as to why not is quite simple.
The greatness of Nadal has been proclaimed, doubted, defended, and attacked. This is folly, since Nadal is a lock to end up in Newport even if he decides on Saturday to marry Xisca and never set foot outside of Mallorca ever again. So, why is the hardcourt season so important to Rafa?
I quoted Novak Djokovic as saying he thought himself capable of achieving his "life goal", which was to reach the top of the rankings. The next sentence in the interview explains why: "To be number one is the highest achievement that you can make".
You see, tennis is one of the few sports where having your name next to the #1 spot in the rankings actually means something. The glory attached to that spot is tangible, not only for yourself, but for everyone involved in the game. If you're number one, well, you're the best. No questions asked.
So, as we have seen, reality is not that complicated on the ATP Tour.
As the number 2 player in the world crashed out in the third round at Toronto, Steggy inquired, "How much is this impacting your Nadal piece?"
"It hardly does," I replied.
My reasoning: Even though Nadal bows out early, he gets to practice more and thus gains mileage on the surface. For Rafael, getting his footwork to resemble Mercury's is the most important thing to build his game upon; after that is accomplished, the world #2 should work a bit more to gain that extra "oomph" on the first serve plus a little deceptiveness to the second serve. And that's where the to-do list stops.
Nadal shouldn't try to implement some new tactic just for this one Slam. That could be Rafa's cardinal sin. Nadal's brand of tennis drives 90% of the Tour mad and being the #2 seed helps him avoid that dreaded 10% of the draw that doesn't fear him.
Rafael should unload tons of top-spin at his opponent; he should still let the guy across the net be the aggressor. Nadal should be the one making his rivals go for too much, not the other way around.
Rafael Nadal needs to remember that he is the best defensive tennis player on this planet and that he WILL chase down certain winners and embarrass the offenders with some Vamos!-filled passing shots. But in the same breath, Rafa has to realize that many players that weren't as dangerous on clay or grass are deadly on hardcourts. Tomas Berdych is Exhibit A.
The most important adjustment Nadal has to make is purely mental; Rafa needs to learn not to get discouraged when some of those winners, in the end, remain winners.
Nadal has been handed a tough draw at Cincinnati. Future Young Gun Sam Querrey proved to be a deceptively tough match-up. And, even though Rafa's recent conqueror Berdych fell, James Blake (a man Nadal has yet to beat) is looming large.
On top of all that, Rafael has Federer to worry over; the number one ranked player in the world didn't satisfy his hunger for Masters Series titles with his recent Toronto victory. The Fed seems determined to defend his Cincinnati crown and momentum is on his side.
I know Nadal Fanatics wince at comparisons to Lleyton Hewitt (even though the similarities are eerie). However, this is why they should embrace the shadow of Lleyton, at least for this month alone:
Back in 2001 the twenty year-old Australian, who was being touted as the best defender in tennis, let out a few "C'mons!" while beating Pete Sampras in the U.S Open Final. Two months later, when Hewitt won his first Masters Cup title, he became the number one ranked player in the world. Lleyton remained the best tennis player on the planet for 72 weeks.
So, Rafa, be like Lleyton.
--Juan Jose