Rafa brought his guns, but didn't shoot in the right direction
by Sofia & Emily
After two, not so bright, appearances in the Toronto and Cincinnati Masters, Rafael Nadal arrived in New York City with low expectations. His goal was to make a good tournament and reach a bit further than he did last year, where he lost in the 3rd round to James Blake - "I say that, too. I say I want to play good. I want to play good, but not any result. I say if I am playing good and I lost third round, gonna be good. If I lost in fourth round, I am playing good. Good. Sure, I want to play the more matches that's possible, no? So sure, I would love play the final here. But if I will play the final, maybe you need play your best."
One good victory over the Australian, wildcard player Mark Philippoussis, with a triple 6-4, the Spaniard showed the world that he was there to win and to be taken seriously. Rafa never felt comfortable playing in American soil, but this year you could see it in his eyes, he wanted to change that. His matches were far from brilliant, as he got everyone used to, but it's undeniable that the boy fights like no one else does, as if his life depended on those little yellow balls. That alone combining with the hunger to win, his grunts, his enthusiastic celebrations and the devilish clothes he wore in this last Grand Slam of the year was the success to advance round after round.
"I am happy. I am playing my best tennis here since last month, that's for sure. But I'm not playing the tournament of my life, but I am not playing bad. I am playing good. I am in quarterfinal. So if I am quarterfinals in one Grand Slam, sure, I am not playing bad, no? I am playing good."
Who can we blame for his loss in the quarters?
Was it Critternurse, a Nadalette who went to the US Open, was it Xisca or was he just tired of all his other trips in the Big Apple? Too many parties? Since he first complained about pain in his stomach and then his ankle… (He had a doctor on court in his 4th round match)
So, what was the 'real reason'? Rafa kept the explanation simple: "Because I lose" , but we would say, numbers say it all. Even though Rafa was leading with 3-1 in head-to-head with 2 victories on hardcourt in 2005, some of the Nadalettes were convinced it would be an "easy" win, but the match statistics say something else… Where Youzhny hit 49 winners, Rafa only got to 23 (the average of winners in the earlier rounds of Rafa was 40) , Mikhail's first and 2nd server winning percentages were higher and, we can't deny it - we could make up a million other reasons, Mikhail was better. He made time for some shopping and to visit "Ground Zero", where the World Trade Centre used to be. Rafael visited the twin towers before the attack in 2001 and says it was a weird sensation to be in that exact spot. "I don't know, no? I always have a big remember when I was in the last floor of the tower. I was sit like this. You remember the benches in front of window. I was sitting like that. For half an hour. I remember exactly. I remember exactly the day because I lost 12 match points for my first point ATP. So I arrive to the locker room and I saw that on TV. It was a very shock for me, no? I was there just three or I don't exactly remember, three or five months before, no? I come back every year, and I always go there, no?"
Back to business, he and his devil-looking red outfit (RIP Pirate Pants) made his way to the Quarter-Finals, beating Horna, Moodie and Novak in the process. He only fell to a ruthless Youzhny. For sure he wasn't happy, no one likes to lose, but even in defeat he made the "Nadalettes" almost fall from their chairs when he smiled on court, 3 games before losing.
Our boy is really something special, no?
One good victory over the Australian, wildcard player Mark Philippoussis, with a triple 6-4, the Spaniard showed the world that he was there to win and to be taken seriously. Rafa never felt comfortable playing in American soil, but this year you could see it in his eyes, he wanted to change that. His matches were far from brilliant, as he got everyone used to, but it's undeniable that the boy fights like no one else does, as if his life depended on those little yellow balls. That alone combining with the hunger to win, his grunts, his enthusiastic celebrations and the devilish clothes he wore in this last Grand Slam of the year was the success to advance round after round.
"I am happy. I am playing my best tennis here since last month, that's for sure. But I'm not playing the tournament of my life, but I am not playing bad. I am playing good. I am in quarterfinal. So if I am quarterfinals in one Grand Slam, sure, I am not playing bad, no? I am playing good."
Who can we blame for his loss in the quarters?
Was it Critternurse, a Nadalette who went to the US Open, was it Xisca or was he just tired of all his other trips in the Big Apple? Too many parties? Since he first complained about pain in his stomach and then his ankle… (He had a doctor on court in his 4th round match)
So, what was the 'real reason'? Rafa kept the explanation simple: "Because I lose" , but we would say, numbers say it all. Even though Rafa was leading with 3-1 in head-to-head with 2 victories on hardcourt in 2005, some of the Nadalettes were convinced it would be an "easy" win, but the match statistics say something else… Where Youzhny hit 49 winners, Rafa only got to 23 (the average of winners in the earlier rounds of Rafa was 40) , Mikhail's first and 2nd server winning percentages were higher and, we can't deny it - we could make up a million other reasons, Mikhail was better. He made time for some shopping and to visit "Ground Zero", where the World Trade Centre used to be. Rafael visited the twin towers before the attack in 2001 and says it was a weird sensation to be in that exact spot. "I don't know, no? I always have a big remember when I was in the last floor of the tower. I was sit like this. You remember the benches in front of window. I was sitting like that. For half an hour. I remember exactly. I remember exactly the day because I lost 12 match points for my first point ATP. So I arrive to the locker room and I saw that on TV. It was a very shock for me, no? I was there just three or I don't exactly remember, three or five months before, no? I come back every year, and I always go there, no?"
Back to business, he and his devil-looking red outfit (RIP Pirate Pants) made his way to the Quarter-Finals, beating Horna, Moodie and Novak in the process. He only fell to a ruthless Youzhny. For sure he wasn't happy, no one likes to lose, but even in defeat he made the "Nadalettes" almost fall from their chairs when he smiled on court, 3 games before losing.
Our boy is really something special, no?