Pretty Red Artois, Pretty Effective Rafa
Isn't the Artois Championships, known to most as Queens Club and beloved as well as mostly ignored for its Wimbledon tune-up status, just so so lovely? To me, Queens Club looks far more like the England we hold in our collective state of mind: it seems somehow defiantly Edwardian. Add the pretty red Artois signs and the whole affair comes off as delightfully London-y, stately and swingy all at once. Compare to Wimbledon and its preponderance of dank green backdrops and a stadium that evokes less the Empire than the deprivations of the War Generation. I also like that the Artois organizers allow the players to wear whatever they want and don't pretend it's still 1922, like Wimbly, with the all-white rule.
Anyhoo, Nadal triumphs, taking out Jokerman in straights. Woof. I would have to say that at the moment Rafa is the best player in the world on clay and Rodge is the best on grass. But Nadal is number two on grass, and while Fed is number two on the dirt, his number two is way, way more distant than Rafa's number two. Maybe on the old fast grass of the '70s, Nadal would be in more serious trouble. But on the new slow grass, I think Roger is the one with his work cut out for him. Plus, Fed has to get through Jokerman to even have a crack at Nadal, should Rafa make the final. The reverse of Roland Garros (by the way, this situation with his draws in the Slams can't be making Novak too happy, nor helping sustain his confidence coming off the Oz Open).
Two things I'm impressed by with Nadal: He's using his slider lefty hook serve; and he's going for a lot of outright winners off his forehand while still continuing to move forward, anticipating the volley. It's a smart play. He has to expect Fed and just about everyone else to try to force him to hit a lot of passes at Wimbly, so he's not giving them the chance to do it.
Another thing I like is how he messed with Roddick's problems with hitting down-the-line backhands, in the semis. Connors was trying to get A-Rod to do more of this, but now that Andy his ditched Jimmy, he's back to just using his backhand to keep himself in the point. Very well, thought Rafa, let's see if you can stay in the point if I stretch you six feet out of court on that side. It was a very sound and effective tactic.
OK, on to the All England Club and the gloomy Larkin-esque vibe that it evokes!
Anyhoo, Nadal triumphs, taking out Jokerman in straights. Woof. I would have to say that at the moment Rafa is the best player in the world on clay and Rodge is the best on grass. But Nadal is number two on grass, and while Fed is number two on the dirt, his number two is way, way more distant than Rafa's number two. Maybe on the old fast grass of the '70s, Nadal would be in more serious trouble. But on the new slow grass, I think Roger is the one with his work cut out for him. Plus, Fed has to get through Jokerman to even have a crack at Nadal, should Rafa make the final. The reverse of Roland Garros (by the way, this situation with his draws in the Slams can't be making Novak too happy, nor helping sustain his confidence coming off the Oz Open).
Two things I'm impressed by with Nadal: He's using his slider lefty hook serve; and he's going for a lot of outright winners off his forehand while still continuing to move forward, anticipating the volley. It's a smart play. He has to expect Fed and just about everyone else to try to force him to hit a lot of passes at Wimbly, so he's not giving them the chance to do it.
Another thing I like is how he messed with Roddick's problems with hitting down-the-line backhands, in the semis. Connors was trying to get A-Rod to do more of this, but now that Andy his ditched Jimmy, he's back to just using his backhand to keep himself in the point. Very well, thought Rafa, let's see if you can stay in the point if I stretch you six feet out of court on that side. It was a very sound and effective tactic.
OK, on to the All England Club and the gloomy Larkin-esque vibe that it evokes!
posted by Matthew DeBord at 1:52 PM
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