TennisToday

Rafael Nadal Will NOT Getting a Special Protected Seeding at Roland Garros

Rafa & Serena share a presser laugh in Madrid ahead of play next week.

So all the talk and rumors of Rafa's seeding at Roland Garros can stop.

They announce today that he will not get a protected seeding.

French Open tournament director Gilbert Ysern told L'Equipe today:

Considering what Nadal represents in Paris,

i.e. the best player in the tournament's history,

it seemed incongruous that he arrives in Paris with the number 4 or 5 bib.

But it was said to be fiddling. What was supposed to be a strong symbol,

a tribute, was seen as messy business.

Whatever. Here's how I see it:

I believe Novak, Andy and Roger should remain the top 3 seeds.

I think Rafa should swap places with Ferrer and be seeded #4.

And I doubt you'd get much of an argument from Ferrer about it either.

It solves the problem of Rafa meeting the top 3 in the quarters.

Nobody wants to see this happen so hopefully he'll land in Ferrer's section.

Here's what I do know: Wimbledon will not make this mistake.

Rafael Nadal Wins 8th ATP Title at Barcelona

Barcelona ATP 500 - Men's Final

2 Rafael Nadal d 4 Nicolas Almagro - 64 63

This is Rafa's 8th title at BCN - he's only lost 1 match here - 10 years ago.

This marks his 54th title and 39th on clay.

He is now 13-0 against fellow Spaniards in finals. And 10-0 against Nico.

If that weren't enough - Rafa is the only man to win 2 tournies 8 times.

And he'll be looking for an 8th in about a month at Roland Garros.

Post: I feel very happy to lift the trophy once again here in Barcelona.

It means a lot especially after the difficult year I’ve had.

But what a comeback: 6 finals in 6 tournies - winning 4 of them.

In fact, he is the tour leader is titles so far in 2013.

Talk about a big vamos.

And the point of the match - Rafa's twenner realness:

Rafael Nadal Back to Winning Ways at Barcelona

Barcelona ATP 500 - Men's Second Round

2 Rafael Nadal d Carlos Berlocq - 64 62

Seems M-C is a distant memory as Rafa extends his win streak here to 35.

He has not lost a match here in 10 years and is looking for title #8.

Since his return at Vina Del Mar it's been nothing but finals - 3-2:

Vina Del Mar (RU), Brazil (W), Acapulco (W), Indian Wells (W), M-C (RU).

Hard to imagine he won't make it 6 finals out of 6 tournies played.

He'll next face Benoit Parre (ranked 33) - they've never played.

And heading toward possible matches against...

Nishikori, Berdych, Raonic, Almagro and Monaco.

Like I said, it's hard to imagine him not winning the title this week.

Course I just jinx him.

Novak Djokovic Wins at Monte-Carlo and Ends Rafael Nadal's Eight Year Run

ATP Masters Series 1000 Monte-Carlo - Men's Final

1 Novak Djokovic d 3 Rafael Nadal - 62 76(1)

Let's just hear from a happy Nole from his Facebook right up front:

Dreamed of winning this tournament for a long time!

Dear ATP World Tour, no need to ship my trophy, it stays right here :)

Meaning, at his home in Monte-Carlo:

This is Nole's 37th ATP title and his 8th on clay.

It's also his 14th Masters 1000 title out of 24 finals.

He's now won all the current M1000 titles except for at Cincinnati.

Where he has finished runner-up on 4 occasions.

Nole also closed the H2H gap on Rafa to 15-19.

He ties Rafa with most titles on the year with 3: Aussie Open & Dubai.

We will next see Nole at Madrid and Rafa next week at Barcelona.

Interesting to note - they could meet in the Qf's at Roland Garros.

Which would suck. Wake up RG seeding committee, seed Rafa #4.

Hello.

Rafael Nadal & Novak Djokovic to Meet in 2013 Monte-Carlo Final

ATP MAsters Series 1000 Monte-Carlo - Men's Final Preview

1 Novak Djokovic vs 3 Rafael Nadal - H2H: 19-14/Rafa

Round 34 will be played on Rafa's turf. Well, Nole's turf too.

Rafa is going for a 9th straight title at MC and Nole has made MC his home.

Let's breakdown the head-to-head a little more:

Clay: 12-2/Rafa --- Finals: 8-7/Rafa --- at M-C: 2-0/Rafa

On paper it looks like Rafa's match. But he's still on the comeback trail.

It'll be a huge test. But Factor in Nole's ankle problem.

Who know's. I'd bet Rafa in a 3 set thriller. But really it's 50-50.

***

ATP Masters Series 1000 Monte-Carlo - Men's Semifinals

3 Rafael Nadal d 6 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga - 63 76(3)

For the 2nd match in-a-row Rafa made a mess of the 2nd set.

Let's see... he served for it twice and had match point in 2 JW games.

Rafa will go for a 9th straight title in a tourney he calls his favorite.

It's amazing. It's unprecendented. It's historic.

***

ATP Masters Series 1000 Monte-Carlo - Men's Semifinals

1 Novak Djokovic d Fabio Fognini - 62 61

What ankle injury?

Nole is in his 3rd MC final - he lost the last 2 to RafaL '09 & '12.

He is looking for his 14th M1000 title and 37th on the ATP tour.

His main focus this year is a title at Roland Garros.

This would be a major first step in obtaining that goal.

Rafael Nadal Survives Quarterfinal Scare at Monte-Carlo

ATP Masters Series 1000 Monte-Carlo - Men's Quarterfinal

3 Rafael Nadal d Grigor Dimitrov - 62 26 64

It may not have been pretty but Rafa's kept his quest for a 9th title alive.

Rafa just won his 45th straight match at MC and is now 20-1 for 2013.

But this match was very much one that could have gotten away from him.

Post match: I know that when you have these tough matches,

it is decisive to keep fighting. If you keep fighting, you will lose some ones,

but you will have a chance to win a lot of ones, too.

I gave that fight. Finally he had his chance, and I had my one,

and I converted. That's it. I think I played better the last couple of games.

Obviously I'm trying to find better rhythm all the time.

In my opinion, I did it in the end. It was great.

For his Rafanatics it was great.

Rafael Nadal Powers into Quarterfinals at Monte-Carlo

ATP Masters Series 1000 Monte-Carlo - Men's Third Round

3 Rafael Nadal d 16 Philipp Kohlschreiber - 62 64

And that's 44 straight match wins at Monte-Carlo.

Nuf said.

Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray & Rafael Nadal All Advance at Monte-Carlo

ATP Masters Series 1000 Monte-Carlo - Men's Second Round

1 Novak Djokovic d Mikhail Youzhny - 46 61 64

Phew... That was a little closer than Nole might have liked.

But remember he suffered a severe ankle twist just 10 days ago.

It can't be 100% so he's lucky to be playing. Let's see how far he goes.

*** 

2 Andy Murray d Q Edouardo Roger-Vasselin - 61 64

Andy has been in M-C practicing for a week or so...

He's keen on proving himself on clay.

He's never been to a clay court final on tour.

Tho he's been to a couple Sf's here at M-C.

He got a tough draw this week so that 1st clay final may have to wait.

***

3 Rafael Nadal d Marinko Matosevic - 61 62

In the 9 years Rafa has played here he's lost ONE match.

And he's only given up EIGHT sets. These are crazy stats.

In his eight straight title runs he's not lost a set before the Sf's.

That won't change tomorrow against 16 Kohlschreiber either.

Rafael Nadal Resting Up for the Clay Season

And there's Rafa getting much needed R&R in Mallorca.

Next week he will begin his quest for a 9th straight title at Monte-Carlo.

Then its off to hoist an 8th trophy at Barcelona and a 7th at Rome.

Madrid is happening in there somewhere too - he's look for a 3rd there.

All winding up at Roland Garros where he'll vie for an 8th title.

He doesn't have much room to earn many ranking points...

So he'll more than likely enter Roland Garros as the 5th ranked player.

They are not known for juggling the seeds.

This year should be an exception - if they are smart.

I mean, who wants to see Rafa/Roger or Rafa/Nole in a Qf.

NOBODY. That's who.

Rafael Nadal Wins ATP Title at Indian Wells

ATP Masters Series 1000 Indian Wells - Men's Final

5 Rafael Nadal d 7 Juan Martin Del Potro - 46 63 64

Rafa came from a set and a break to notch a record 22nd Masters title.

This also marks a milestone as this was his 600th match victory.

Winning his 3rd title at Indian Wells ('07 & '09) moves him back up to #4.

But that will be temporary as he's not going to defend Sf points at Miami.

This was also his 1st hard court title since October 2010 at Tokyo.

Rafa's 4 tournament comeback swing sure was a success.

He made the final of all 4, winning 3 of them: Sao Paulo, Acapulco & IW.

And suddenly -poof- he's the tour leader in titles won.

This is the best start to a season he's ever enjoyed: 17-1.

We will next see him at Monte-Carlo where he is the 8-time defender.

Post match: A lot of things happened the last seven months, [so]

to be back here and to have this very heavy trophy with me is amazing.

Beating three Top 10 players and winning a title like this is just something

unbelievable for me. I'm very, very happy and very emotional.

Your Rafaholics were too. Trust.

Rafael Nadal Wins Match #29 Over Rival Roger Federer at Indian Wells

ATP Masters Series 1000 Indian Wells - Quarterfinal

5 Rafael Nadal d 2 Roger Federer - 64 62

Rafa improves his mastery over Rog to 19-10 in their H2H.

And he pulled even in matches played on hard court: 6-6.

Out of respect Rafa did not celebrate this victory after match point.

It was painfully obvious that Roger was not playing at 100%.

I mean, Gimelstob used the word 'compromised' for Rog a million times.

It became a tequilla shot game in my head. So annoying.

Post match: I played a fantastic first set, in my opinion.

The second set was strange.

The second set, I think Roger didn't fight as usual.

He probably had some problems and he didn't feel enough comfortable

to keep fighting. Both of us tried to play our best. I played much better

than yesterday. My movements today were much, much better than

yesterday, so I'm very happy for that, especially after a long match

yesterday, to be able to compete well the next day.

He gets Tomas Berdych in the semis on Saturday.

Tough one but I'm going full-stop vamos.

Photo: Pinched from Rafa's Facebook.

Roger Federer & Rafael Nadal to Meet in Quarterfinal Blockbuster at Indian Wells

Tonight we are getting Roger vs Rafa edition 29. H2H: 18-10/Rafa.

On hard courts they are 6-5/Roger.

They both went to 7-5 in the 3rd in their previous matches.

They have only met before the Sf's one other time - Miami '04. Rafa won.

This is the 1st time they've played since the Sf here last year. Roger won.

This is also the most Slams on a court in the history of men's tennis: 28.

I've canceled all plans tonight as I'll have a date with the Tennis Channel.

***

About the photo: Ana, Rafa, Roger, Vika & Nole...

Breaking ground on the new court 2 at Indian Wells. Ready for 2014.

Rafael Nadal Serve Stop Motion at Indian Wells

I was able to watch front row Rafa's practice session on Saturday.

He wore out his practice partner about half way thru.

Later that night he beat Ryan Harrison 76(3) 62.

It was Rafa's 1st hard court match since the Miami Sf's last March.

He's heading to match #29 with Roger Federer in the quarters.

Bring it.

Roger Federer & Rafael Nadal Bump into Each Other at Indian Wells

And they are seeded to bump into each other in the quarterfinals as well.

That would represent match #29. H2H: 18-10/Rafa.

Tho Roger has a tricky draw to get there & who knows how Rafa will play.

But everyone is looking toward it. Me included.

***

Rafa's 7 month injury layoff caused him to fall to #5 in the rankings.

And he really has no room to move up to #4 before Roland Garros.

Ferrer would have to fall apart in the next couple of months...

And Rafa only has Madrid to add points to his ranking.

This clay court season is going to be very interesting.

Very interesting indeed.

World Tennis Day at Madison Square Garden

Ok, there are 3 other people in this pic besides Serena Williams!

The two exhibition matches went as follows:

Juan Martin Del Potro d Rafael Nadal - 76(4) 64

Serena Williams d Victoria Azarenka - 64 63

Now get your butts to Indian Wells. Oh wait, not you Serena.

Rafael Nadal Triumphant at Acapulco

ATP 500 Acapulco - Men's Final

2 Rafael Nadal d 1 David Ferrer - 60 62

Um. I think it's safe to the 'King of Clay' is back. Way back.

The Golden Swing was kind to him and his comeback after 7 months away.

He leaves Latin America having played 3 finals - winning 2 titles.

He will head to Indian Wells as the 5th seed...

Someone is gonna be hating the quarter he falls in to, natch.

This represents Rafa's 52nd ATP title and 38th on his beloved clay.

Post match: This was a great week for me and today I played

exceptionally well, I dominated the game against the world No. 4 and

couldn't be happier, especially when I think where I am coming from.

Perhaps the conditions were in my favour but I feel it was maybe

one of the best matches of my career.

Mmmm, I don't know about that. But I'll give it to him.

Rafael Nadal Wins ATP Title at Sao Paulo

ATP 250 Sao Paulo - Men's Final

1/WC Rafael Nadal d David Nalbandian - 62 63

The King of Clay is officially back.

It took a week longer than it should have but Rafa is biting trophies again.

This is his 51st tour title and 37th on his beloved clay.

He is only 9 clay titles behind leader Guillermo Vilas with 45 titles.

It'll get tougher from here as he next steps up to a 500 event at Acapulco.

Then he'll head to the Masters 1000 at Monte-Carlo as the 8-time defender.

Rafantaics surely will be holding their breath. But will have faith.

Post match: It's very nice and important because at the end of your career

what’s left are the titles, and depending on certain moments there are some

titles that you appreciate very much. This one I appreciate it the most

because of all the struggles I went through during the week,

with some problems with my knee some days.

Rafael Nadal's Comeback at Vina Del Mar Starts with a Win

ATP 250 Vina Del Mar - Second Round

1 W/C Rafael Nadal d Q Federico Delbonis - 63 62

Yea baby!

I, for one, am thrilled he's back. I hope there are no setbacks.

To be honest - there was a lot of rust in the first 6 games.

Then Rafa turned it on and blasted his way into the quarters.

Post match: I'm happy to play a singles match after so long.

I need days and time to get my game back,

but so far the feeling on court is great.
 
For now the most important thing is to spend as much time as possible

on court. This victory allows me to play at least two more matches,

singles & doubles. To practise is one thing but to play is totally different.

In a real match you can't control your body as you do in practice.

Rafael Nadal Enjoys a Winning Start to his Comeback at Vina Del Mar

ATP 250 Vina Del Mar - Men's Doubles First Round

Rafael Nadal & Juan Monaco d 2 Cermak & Dlouhy - 63 62

Phew. Rafa's singles return begins today.

Juan Monaco posted the pic (watch prominent!) with the caption:

Very happy to play next to my friend Rafa at his return.

Rafa post match: It was a great feeling to play again and

I'm very happy for doing it with a friend like Monaco in a great atmosphere

that we had on the court. In doubles the effort is always less [taxing];

we will see how it goes in singles and how my physical condition is.

I chose this tournament because it is the perfect time and surface.

Trust me - the Twittersphere went nuts with his return yesterday.

Rafael Nadal is in Chile to PLAY Tennis y'all!

Rafa is in Vina Del Mar to ease his way back onto the ATP tour.

He has not played a professional match since his Wimby loss last June.

Vina Del Mar is a small 250 event that he has never played before.

His first match will take place on Wednesday.

But he will play a doubles match with Juan Monaco on Tuesday.

If all goes well he will play in Brazil & Acapulco.

ALL HAD BETTER GO WELL!

Tennis needs him.